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1533-secrets-from-history · 1 year

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Power and status of ottoman princess

Title and honorifics

Before the rule of sultan Bayazid II every high ranking woman were called Hatuns,including mother,sisters,aunts and daughters, however thier social standing was naturally higher than non imperial women. The way to adrress them was Hatun that was used after their given name,for example, Gevherhan hatun,daughter of Mehmed the coqueror or effendi that would have similar meaning as mistress.

After accession of Bayazid II his daughters and granddaughters were given title of sultan,however non of his living sisters or aunts got the honor. Later on proper way to adress them woulf become “Sultanim”, which would mean “my sultan”,or again “effendim” by other members of imperial family. I would like to underline that contrary to what wikipedia states, there is no records that I know,where princesses where called with “Devletlu İsmetlu” like Valide sultan and Haseki sultan were.

The term “sultana” that was made more feminine by Europeans never existed in ottoman language.

Family, Marrige and Issues

I want to start discussing their family with brothers,it’s widely known fact that before suleyman there was “once concubine,one son” tradition therefore if shehzade/Sultan had full-sisters they were all older,that is one way to deduce if princess of unspecified mother was full sister of half sister of reigning sultan. Naturally Shezades had closer relationship to their full sisters as they were leaving with him and their mother,when he was appointed as governor of princely province. Their latter life would be spent in their brother’s harem before marriage.

being half sister of sultan did not automatically mean that their relationship would have been stained,however mostly,princess would favour full-brother over half,but were treated by same respect regardless who ascended the throne. It was different case when imperial princess had no full brother at all,for example Sah Huban, she had very close relationship with Suleyman,even closer than his deeply respected full sisters.

Their marriages,much like any other princesses of any country, was political,arranged by their parents to strengthen standing of their father or brother,for example daughters of Selim I were firstly married to powerful politicians,so their father would have supporters in his rebellion,while their second marriages were arranged to help Suleyman in his early reign. Their husbands were usually much older than them, therefore marital life was likely not consensual and in no way their choice. For example,Rustem paha,husband of Mihrimah,was same age as Hurrem,her daughter’s fate was even worse as she had to marry peer of her own grandfather,however given the fact that they had 8 children,marriage can be considered successful. After the Marriage princesses were getting their own little “Harrem”,where they had great rooms for themselves and their servants,where even their Husbands needed permission to enter and even refuse to have sexual intercourse with them,sometimes their marriage could end unconsumated and after some time princess could use another of their privilege-divorce. Reason of divorce could have been different: Personal attitude,mistreatment,political move or adultery. It was made clear,especially by Suleyman,that imperial princesses were full-fledged members of imperial family so they ranked higher than their husbands,therefore having relationship with other women was their humiliation,which would lead to divorce, after which they would retire in old palace and could refuse to remarry again.

Only their first degree descendants would be given imperial titles.

Daughters- Hanimsultan(with Ayse Humashah as exception)

Sons-Sultanzades. They ranked even below non-sultan imperial consorts and some of the highest ranking harem servants.

Hierarchy and Power

They actually had equal standing in ottoman hierarchy. As female members of dynasty they had the same status and privileges,were reffered as sultans and often received relative stipend.( Which was on average 200 akche a day, for comparison, Valide sultan had around 2000-3000 depended on time period, Haseki sultan 1000-1100(Hurrem as only exception,who got stipend of Valide sultan ) Gulfem,who was almost regarded as member of family herself was recieving 150, Nurbanu’s trusted friend and one of the highest ranking non-sultan woman ever Canfeda received 200, Mahidevran only received 40 and avarage stipend of cariye was 2-4) Besides, sisters of sultans were technically daughters of sultan, though the deceased one, still they were treated with great respect much like their late father. However, birth order was important thing in ottoman society so younger sister respected older and bowed to them as well as nieces bowing to aunts regardles of their martial or fianacal status. Therefore saughters of sultan,as nieces, were calling sisters of sultan,as aunts, “effendi" out of respect.

In conclusion, even if they had same social standing, sisters of sultan were still bit ahead daughters of sultan formally.

However, Granddaughters, Nieces and cousins of sultan,despite the same rank, were less prestigious.

Despite their relative social status and order of birth their actual power was dependent on several factors:

1. Their relationship with Padishah,Valide sultan or Haseki sultan. They had higher rank and much more evident political power, they still needed their permissions about major decisions,even if it were their right, so being on good terms with them was a good move. Half-sisters naturally were not as favoured as full-sisters by Valide sultan,but with padisah had more options, they could have been supportive, religious, charitable and obedient another way was sending beautiful, well-educated concubines,who could have become Haseki(after 1533), that is when their good relationship begun,most of Sultanate of women memebers were raised at their court and remained in favour after they became Valide Sultans, in that case even some of the Padisah’s expressed gratitude and gratefulness for raising their mother, (such occasion was Ahmed I’s attitude towards her aunt which I will discuss below.), they could also donate money to wars, harem managements and charitable projects, either all their own or assist Haseki sultan.

2. The second way to gain power was wealth. Money opens many doors and it was like that in the past. They could establish some business or even receive bribes.

3. They could also gain power with marriages, it was not only beneficial for their brothers,but for them as well. If their husband had a high rank, they could keep an eye on the political situation and act accordingly, they would use that influence to assist their brothers, who,In turn, would be extremely grateful for their support.

Comparison between Ottoman and European princess

Status- Status of European princesses depended on their marriage. Being princes was not guaranteed power,but only a formal status. For example, Margaret Tudor was below prince Henry in rank but when she married by proxy to Scottish king, she outranked him and demonstrated that by walking in front of him. On the other hand, another sister Mary married to Charles Brandon and was Duchess of Suffolk ever since,while Status of Imperial princess remained the same.

Opportunity- European princesses could have become Queen consort and Queen mother and veiled immense power, while imperial princesses could never become Haseki or Valide.

Marriage- Ottoman princesses were usually older when married and outranked their husbands,while European princesses were always below their husbands. Sultan could also refuse remarryin,while European princesses had no such right

Freedom-European princesses were less limited by social customs.

Consummation-Ottoman princesses had the right to refuse Consummation without a deadline, while European princesses had to Consummate marriage even if they were twelve, unless of course parents arranged it other way.

Divorce - it was right of ottoman princesses to divorce their husbands,while for European princesses it was a rare privilege.

Despite so many differences, one thing was same- they had a loveless purely political match .

Powerful ottoman princesses

Here I Rank ottoman princesses,who had considerable power and influence, sorted by date of birth.

P.S gifs are from MC and MC:K,but some characters might represent different historical figures.

Fatma sultan

Fatma may have been the second child of Ayşe Hafsa and Selim I . She was born in Trabzon around 1492 and spent her childhood there. When her younger brother Süleyman received his own princely province in 1509, she probably accomponied him to Caffa with their mother.

She was married in 1516 for the first time,but it soon ended in divorce and Fatma returned to Manisa. She gained considerable influence as she was most likely the sister,who was recorded to be in Manisa, helping mother manage harem and protect Suleyman from their father. If legends are true and Selim was indeed trying to kill Suleyman,that she had hands in saving him. Most likely, Fatma and her mother were instructing young sukeyman,how not to deserve the wrath of father and covering his mistakes. After Suleyman ascended the throne, she was married again to Kara Ahmed pasha in 1522. Marriage lasted long,but did not produce any child, so either fatma was infertile (Kara Ahmed pasha had two daughters that are disputed to be fatmas,but they were likely from previous marriage) or the match was not happy and Fatma refused sexual intercourse, however considering her reaction to his death, it was most likely the former.

According to what we have Fatma seems to be quite free spirited as depicted in the series. She was wealthy, cunning and might have been fond of parties. She had hands in financing some of her brother’s campaigns and even won the favour of janissrries. However, in 1555 Kara Ahmed pasha was executed by the efforts of Mihrimah and Hurrem and Fatma was married to eunuch and banished from the capital for hed intrigues against them She died either in 1557 or 1573.

Sah huban sultan

Daughter of Selim I and unknown concubine, born in 1500. As she has no full brothers, she was very close to Suleyman and their father, with whom she spent most of her childhood. Considering Suleyman’s great respect for her, Sah was likely a supporter of him and helped to deal with Selim I.

She was married in 1523 to well-educated and intelligent Lutfi pasha with whom she shared religious thoughts and beliefs. Marriage, however did not seem to be successful the couple only had one daughter and Sah refused to have a sexual relationship ever since. She was very pious, intelligent,outspoken and fierce in nature. In the only description of her daughter Esmahan Burnaz, it is said that she was arrogant and demanding and it was Shah’s domineering attitude in the family that was blamed for it, as by this “she had ruined the role of woman” in the child’s mind. However,that was recorded by the European ambassador only, who had never met any of them and probably heard some rumors or made it up after an ugly end of their marriage.

In 1541, Lutfi pasha punished a prostitute for adultery by mutilating her genitals.Şah could not tolerate the humiliation and mutilation of a woman without a word, which is why she got into an argument with her husband, who hit her . Şah had Lutfi pasha beaten up and immediately asked his brother to allow the divorce. Süleyman then exiled him. Şah remained with her brother in Istanbul for the rest of her life and supported the wife of Süleyman, Hürrem, in carrying out her construction projects. She lived a modest life in the Old Palace and devoted all her time to charity and religion. Shah had excellent relationship with Hurrem and Mihrimah and in my opinion, close bond between aunt and niece helped young sultan to shape her mind and characteristics. She died in 1572 and was buried in her father’s complex.

Mihrimah Sultan(1522-1576)

Her life is very much known. She was the most powerful imperial princess in the empire, so I will just list some of her achievements:

1. Her stipend was 600 akches a day during the reign of three different Sultans. it was three times as much as regular pirncess

2. She had correspondence with Catherine de Medici and other foreigner diplomats, who would often send her gifts to help them in some political affairs.

3. She financed some of Suleyman’s campaigns all her own

4. She built a whole fleet of 400 ships.

5. She had three palaces and two mosques

6. She served as sole de facto Valide from 1558 to 1566 and shared it with Nurbanu from 1566 to 1574.

7. After the death of Bayazid Mihrimah banned everyone from laughing and sent back clothes to Suleyman and Selim who were secretly planning a grandiose wedding, that was cancelled by Mihrimah and instead a very plain ceremony was held.

Humasah 1543-c.1582 or later

She was a posthanous daughter of Shehzade Mehmed and despite being only a daughter of prince, she was given the same privileges,but greater power, as any other sultans. She was one of two favourite grandchildren of Hurrem and Suleyman. She married three times,but the source of her power was a good relationship with Sultans. She was the one who raised Safiye and gifted her to Murad, so her power reached it’s peak during his reign.

She financed many construction projects,but was buried in a mosque that was built by Hurrem and Suleyman for her father.

Ayse Humasah 1543-1594.

Daughter of Mihrimah sultan and Rustem pasha, she was practically the same as her cousin with whom she shared many things started from date of birth and ended with their name. Ayse Humasah was the only woman born to an ottoman princess,who was herself addressed as sultan and her children were considered members of the dynasty. She was married two times and her influence was extremely great during the reign of three Sultans. Her power reached it’s peak, when her husband was appointed a grand Vizier and she had hands in very major political decision.

Gevherhan Sultan. 1544-after 1526.

Eldest child of Nurbanu and Selim. She was married to Piyale Pasha, an admiral who died in 1578 and she was remarried in 1579. She was one who raised Handan and gifted it to the prince, for which not only Handan was grateful, but her son Ahmed as well, who after his accession gifted very expensive furs to Handan, Gevherhan and Safiye. The second gifts were given to Handan and Gevherhan only,which indicates that unlike Safiye,she never fell from his favour. Peak of her power was from 1598 during her husband’s grand vazirate. She did a lot of charity in her life.

Ismahan sultan 1545-1585

Daughter of Selim and Nurbanu,she was married to Sokollu Mehmed Pasha and Through her husband and her own rank, Esmehan was the most influential sultana of the empire for years. In wealth, only her aunt, Mihrimah, could overtake her, but in influence, almost no one could. She constructed several projects and had foreign diplomatic affairs, most notable her correspondence with Catherine de Medici. She had a very artistic and dramatic personality, often throwing parties and shows. She was recorded to be very much alike Hurrem,both of them were short, not conventionally beautiful,but very intelligent. She was heavily involving herself in politics with her mother.

Burnaz Atike Sultan

Sultan Atike was born in 1614 or 1615 and although some sources consider her to be the daughter of Kösem, she was certainly not her child. That can be supported by the fact that she supported Turhan’s rebellion and had a good relationship even after kosem was killed. She was one who raised Turhan and remained in friendly terms for both Turhan’s gratitude and their shared politican views. Atike was noted to love children very much,but had none on her own, so she was involved in raising her nephew,who regarded her as second mother and listened to every of her advice.

She died around 1570.

I hope you liked it, I think it’s unfair to only talk about Mihrimah,while there were so many powerful and intelligent Princesses. I did not talk about Esma sultan as she was in later centuries and I am not fond of her times.

Which ottoman princesses are you favourites?

If i accedentaly missed something out you can ask it in comments

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rinfarts · 6 months

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Ostara Irel Escanor

Mother Chimeris. Her story has already been mentioned in this post: https://www.tumblr.com/rinfarts/724924361270804480/chimeris-ostara-escanor-15-years-old-at-that

Now I’ll just try to complement it. (English is not my native language, so there may be mistakes. Please be understanding)

The king and the people of Orlandor weren't supposed to find out the truth about how bad things were in the neighboring kingdom. Otherwise, Giran himself would have begun to dictate terms to Meridian, not caring about the wishes of his “wife.”

No, it was clear that a disease was raging there. But only a few dared to check the scale of the epidemic. No one tried to become infected and bring the infection to their native lands. Therefore, when the Meridian Elders took Chimeris away, Ostara began simulating an accident.

A couple of days later, sad news came to the king from the far side of the palace. His daughter fell off a horse during a walk, breaking her head. The doctors couldn't do anything. He was more angry than sad. However, Giran had not expected anything good from this part of the family for a long time.

He formally attended the funeral, already thinking about how many weeks later it wouldn't be shameful to send his grief-stricken mother to some monastery. He did not recheck the circumstances of the tragedy in detail. In his understanding, it was unprofitable for Ostara to lose Chimeris, because at least some of the lady’s well-being rested on their common child. __________________________

It should be noted that even before this whole situation, the woman was looking for ways to prosperity. She couldn’t count on a lucky break (if the death of a quarter of the population and almost the entire ruling family of Meridian can be called such). Ostara established connections with her “husband’s” brother, Duke Cotul.

At one time, he lost in the race for the throne due to the fact that he had weaker magic than Giran. But over the years he made up for it with charisma and a sharp mind. Step by step, the Duke gained new supporters, approaching the coveted crown. Giran saw this, but there was little he could do.

Communication with Ostara, on the one hand, entertained the man quite well (few people in the palace could joke sarcastically with him on equal terms), on the other hand, it made him very nervous. She persistently promoted her interests, although in fact she possessed nothing other than magical abilities and ancient blood. And she refused to strengthen their secret agreements through Chimeris.

The girl was interesting to Kotul:

1) Like a sorceress. He was still vulnerable to losing his magic like other Metamurian men who possessed it. And he was looking for not very powerful partners with whom he could agree on an exchange of mana.

2) Like an alchemist. It was through the Duke that Ostara obtained many instruments for her daughter so that she could develop her skills. So, unlike many, he knew about these abilities and even requested some elixirs.

3) As entertainment. Yes, she is his niece. What do you want from medieval morals? Giran had a bunch of other daughters - older, more beautiful and more beloved. With the support of local aristocratic families. So the marriage of Chimeris has not even been discussed yet.

Kotul at one time offered his brother a ransom for her. But he, out of inherent harmfulness, set the price at such a price that it was comparable to the budget of a prosperous province. The Duke gritted his teeth, decided that the game was not worth the candle and went to negotiate through Ostara. For her own reasons, she, too, was not enthusiastic and was stalling for time, but at least she maintained the appearance that she did not see anyone other than a “dear friend” as her son-in-law.

She did not even tell the Duke the truth about Chimeris. For Ostara, Kotul was a valuable (in the absence of others) ally, but not a person worthy of trust. So he really considered the girl dead.

The Duke expressed much more sincere condolences than Giran, promised to help Ostara if anything happened, and went to get rid of heavy thoughts in the company of his concubines. __________________________ A little later, the king was overthrown and killed. Almost no one knew the details. But Kotul, as the new ruler, suited many residents so much that they did not want to find out the details. Only Ostara, who weakened her “husband” with a curse in time, was more or less aware of what was happening.

The new king significantly thinned out the family, getting rid of all the heirs and heiresses who could pose at least some danger.

And a few months later, wonderful news came from the healed Meridian. That Princess Chimeris, who died in Orlandor, ascended the throne as queen and the new heart of the world.

The Duke was furious. Ostara not only violated their old agreements by independently changing her daughter’s fate, but also made him look like a fool. This undermined trust between the allies. After all, if she hid such a “trifle” from him, what was stopping her from starting a major adventure behind her back again?

In addition, Ostara essentially prevented Orlandor from absorbing its weakened neighbor. If the Elders had to negotiate with Giran or Kotul, the conditions for Meridian would not be at all enviable.

Ostara was angry too. The daughter should have taken her out of this “hole” even before her coronation. And now she stubbornly did not answer letters. From the moment the deception became known, Kotul took the lady into custody, so she could no longer go home secretly. The news of Chimeris's accession took her no less than the Duke by surprise. Until the very end, she counted on the position of regent in her native kingdom.

While sorting through the papers left by his brother, Kotul came across correspondence with the monastery. Giran really hoped to get rid of his “wife” in this way. Now this idea seemed interesting to the Duke. True, he decided to choose another temple - dedicated to the element of Light. Being in which for Ostara, who possesses dark magic, would be akin to torture.

Soon the woman was tonsured a nun (although she honestly tried to knock out the abbot's eyes with tonsure scissors). Neither the joyless life of the monastery, nor the influence of the opposing elements pleased her. Ostara tried to contact her daughter several times, but never received a response. The lady remained in the dark until the end of her life: whether Chimeris betrayed her, or whether the letters were intercepted by a third party. A few years later the woman died. __________________________

The story of Chimeris (if anyone is suddenly interested) : https://ficbook.net/readfic/13293038 __________________________

I'll say a few words about Ostara's design.

I belatedly realized that this art would be difficult to use as a reference. Due to the specific lighting, everything seems darker than it really is. According to the original idea, Ostara has ash blonde and light skin.

Blue and brown are the generic colors of Orlandor (which was already seen in the art with the teenage Chimeris). Ostara got darker, richer shades to match her character.

The lady wore outfits of this color scheme forcedly. In her native lands, she preferred gold and black.

I wanted to portray her as dangerous, powerful. Give pointed features. Plus emphasize belonging to the vector of Darkness. The shadows behind the back and the silhouette of a bird separating from them (s - symbolism) are manifestations of Ostara’s magic. Scourges woven from darkness are capable of wounding no worse than steel.

However, the lady specialized more not in direct battles, but in weaving intrigues. Which was greatly facilitated by the other side of her gift - the curse. In theory, any sorcerers can resort to them, but only the dark ones are capable of so skillfully placing and removing the ligature of curses from a person.

Partly this feature saved her when the werewolf child was born. Ostara limited the girl's abilities with curses so that she would not transform in front of witnesses, which would be difficult to get rid of.

With the advent of Chimeris, a lot has changed in her life. All their actions had to be carefully calculated in order to keep the secret and their lives intact. Everything was complicated by the fact that it was difficult for the child to convey some things visually. So Ostara looked for any opportunity to explain to Chimeris HOW the surrounding people and galhots treated werewolves.

On the main square of the capital, executions of those considered werewolves took place from time to time. The wounded victims were pushed onto the platform amid the joyful and angry screams of the crowd. Sometimes an different nature was actually noticeable in them - the converts had little control over their bodies, becoming covered in fur or scales. But more often they looked like people. Perhaps some of them were even tried in vain. But the ax of the executioner in any case looked frighteningly inevitable. At the instigation of Ostara, Chimeris attended such executions from early childhood.

This also served another purpose - to demonstrate as much as possible that their side of the family was NOT sympathetic to werewolves. Has nothing in common with them. The lady even got a skillful imitation of jewelry for werewolf fangs (the budget would not have been enough for the original) - the latest in fashion among Orlandor beauties. This is the set shown in the picture.

#w.i.t.c.h #ostara escanor #w.i.t.c.h ostara #chimeris escanor #w.i.t.c.h chimeris #w.i.t.c.h fanart #чародейки #w.i.t.c.h fan character #w.i.t.c.h au #w.i.t.c.h oc #dark sorceress #dark witch

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dirtytransmasc · 9 months

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Rhaenyra is the rightful heir, do u support team green also because you think that aegon's claim is stronger because he is a man?

honestly, succession doesn't matter all that much to me, I'm not a political person even when it comes to fantasy shows. but let me have a spin at explaining my take.

Rhaenyra was the true heir, she was the first born and she was the named heir, I agree with that fully. but with the way we see her act, I personally don't think she would have been a good queen. she tends to expect a lot of others, give little in return except she she's desperate for aid, and picks self benefit over what's best for the realm (having multiple bastards, "killing off" her husband in place of another that will weaken her ally ship with the velaryon's, running of to dragonstone, etc.) and then will harm those who threaten to topple her house of cards (putting the blame and wanting the torture of a child after her own son cut out his eye, asserting her son onto the Driftmark throne even when he had no claim, killing an innocent man who stated a simple fact, etc.). I think she would have ruled with fear and very irresponsibly. at the end of the day, my thing is, is that Rhaenyra was never prepared for the throne and was coddled (that's Viserys's issues) and she was unfit for the throne because she could never seem to out the realm before her and her children. Daemon is also insanely cruel and rouge and Rhaenyra refuses to put him on a fucking leash which is another massive problem (if he could stop killing people that would be great in my opinion)

Now, do I think Aegon has a better claim cause he's male? no, I think men and women are equally capable of ruling. do I think Aegon would be any better? no not really. I do think that with the counsel of his mother, who served in Viserys's place for years and always thought of everyone else (the court, house, allied houses, and the realm while also thinking about image, money, etc), his wife (who was beloved by the people and had their interests in mind), Aemond (who was an excellent warrior and was well studied for the task of being king), Otto (if he could pull his head out of his ass was one of the best hands. key word, if, but it stands for something. he understood and played the game of politics for years), and Criston (he definitely wasn't made to be hand, no matter how much I love him, but he was always a good inside ally to the greens) could help him rule much better than Daemon could for Rhaenyra and many of her allies were similarly not well suited (most not all). again, Aegon and his court would be far from perfect, but they were much better suited for the task in my opinion.

but at the end of the day, the Targaryen dynasty was crumbling, rotting away day by day. I don't think either side could have saved it, I think both had flaws that were ingrained to their core. while Aegon's line might have kept it alive a wee bit longer, it wouldn't be substantial. war and bloodshed was biting at their heels and total death and destruction hovered over their shoulders.

neither was fit to be heir. Rhaenyra being the rightful heir by both birthright and by claim through Viserys doesn't make up for her not being fit. Aegon having a cock doesn't make up for him being unfit. that's the moral of the story.

I'm not pro green cause I think Aegon deserved the throne, I'm team green cause they're more interesting in my opinion, they also just happen to be my pick if I'm forced to pick a side in the war.

in a perfect world they would have come together as an actual godforsaken family, say their overdue apologies, strengthen the house as a whole, made up for the years of infighting and ruled together through Rhaenyra, that personally what I want, but it'll never happen in a million years. so yeah, that's my take on the succession war. throughout the whole timeline I may shift closer to one side than the other, but 90% of the time I was with team green, even when I wanted nothing more for Aegon to be allowed to run away to essos

#we're going off only the show here #just to clarify #no one could save that house at that point #not truly #so I think the whole “who should have claimed the thrown” thing is kinda stupid #cause I could argue all day why neither deserved it #but if I had to pick #id go with the greens cause they seem the most capable #considering they were always undigging the graves they were thrown into (for the most part) unlike Rhaenyra digging hers deeper and deeper #till she realized she was fucked and then making it eveyone around her's issue #neither would have ruled well but Aegons court would have ruled better #by just a smidge #not enough to save the house though #they might have seen another generation or two of true rulers to the the throne but that would be it in my opinion #it would have fallen to the same shit show that it did after the war in canon until the house collapsed in on itself #you can bicker and bicket for days about it #who should have ruled. who caused the war. who's to blame. who's this who's that but honestly. does it really matter?#it was fucked ever since Viserys was crowned #thats where the succession crisis started #viserys fed those flames with his idiocy and neglect till the flames became a wild fire that destroyed everything it touched #pro team green #anti team black #anti rhaenyra targaryen #(precautionary tags for my own mental well being)#aegon ii targaryen #rhaenyra targaryen #dance of the dragons #hotd #house of the dragon

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evilwriter-originals · 2 years

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Hey, I know I haven’t read all your whumptober stuff yet (I know, talk about being really late), but if you haven’t written more about it I’d like to see literally anything with Girad and Dyon. You can say no, and you can take your time. I just really like those two characters.

Answering this late, so thank you so much for reading my Whumptober writing! Your comments encouraged me a lot! Now, here is a scene with Girad and Dyon, as requested!

Girad couldn’t help but watch his father as he ate. He’d said nothing at all after they’d been introduced to the Nessari princess, Anaria Torlena. Girad wanted to talk with him about the meeting, but didn’t know where to begin. Talking with King Dyon of Aborsken was like playing with fire - one often got burned from doing so.

“I don’t like her,” Dyon finally said, putting down his goblet.

Girad had expected these words, but was still a little upset by them. He’d liked Anaria.

“Why not?” he asked, pushing his empty plate away. A servant noticed and quietly came to remove it from the table. Girad gave a small thank you, and saw his father roll his eyes. Dyon often ignored the servants, both human and Nessari.

“She’s too haughty,” Dyon said. “She acts as if she has power she does not have.”

“And what do you mean by that? She is heir to the throne of Nessar.” There were desserts on the table, and Girad would have been pondering them, as he loved sweets, but now was not the time to eat dessert.

“Yes, but she’s a woman.”

Girad frowned. “That does not make her lesser than us.” If anything, Anaria had more status. She had magic, almost unlimited magic due to her breeding, and would live far longer than either of them.

Dyon shook his head, grabbing his goblet. “You do not understand.”

“I think I do.” Girad said, angry now. His father looked down on women, was truly a misogynist, and it clouded his views of other people, ruled his judgment. “You don’t like her simply because of the fact that she is a woman. You see her as someone to be used and discarded when no longer useful.”

“Well, that is what this marriage is all about.”

“She’s marrying me, father,” Girad told him, narrowing his eyes. “And I have the final say in how I feel about this marriage.”

Dyon laughed after taking a sip of his wine. “Oh, no you do not.”

“But I am your heir, and the one to be married. I will one day be king of Aborsken and Nessar.” Girad wanted to rub in how much more power than he’d have than his father, just to make him hurt. “I will have more power than you could ever hope to have.”

Dyon slammed his goblet down on the table. “And yet you act with such insolence!”

“I’m marrying her,” Girad said calmly, but firmly, trying to not let his temper get the better of him. He didn’t want to be controlled by his temper the way his father was. “I like her, and I see benefits in this arrangement.”

Dyon’s nostrils flared. He fingered the butter knife on the table near him. “Fine,” he told him. “You will wed Princess Anaria.”

Girad didn’t like how he made it sound like it was ultimately his decision and not his own.

“Good.” Girad pushed back his chair and rose. “And you better treat her as your equal.”

Dyon sneered. “We’ll see about that.”

#asks #requests #fantasy #original writing #original characters #ocs #girad #dyon #anaria #writing #fiction

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bonesandthebees · 2 years

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Then we have the call and Hannah! I love this part. It’s so clear how Hannah just doesn’t care. They made an arrangement for blaziphane. As long as you don’t touch that, they don’t care who rules the planet. Everything they do is for their own gain. All they care about is their own people. The sirens (woman even more that men).

And Wilbur and Tommy don’t fall under that. They are male. They are half Sirens. They are too far removed from the crown to be important for inheritance. And Hannah has never met them so she can’t form any personal attachment.

I like how she clearly cares a lot about her own rules and etiquette, but not about those of other planets. Phil is not allowed to call her Hannah. That is her personal name. He needs permission to do so. Phil clearly doesn’t know that. I thought he had been told, though maybe that was just Ranboo. Maybe he knows but didn’t realise how big of a deal it was since he never tried to call Wilbur by his personal name and Wilbur decided to give what he gets for the title thing.

She doesn’t care for Eldignvger ettiquete either. Wilbur is older so Wilbur needs to introduce himself first. Which makes sense. To her he’s not a bastard because their system is maternal and his mother is her aunt. She could care less about who his father is if he wasn’t a human. She’s also slightly offended by the extra name. But like we saw in the flashback. They don’ care enough to make a fuss about it because Wilbur is male.

Also, I love how Wilbur can tell her Voice is strong even through a call. She’s next in line to be queen. She should nave the strongest Voice of them all. So she probably practiced. Also the methodology was really interesting and her outfit is really cool!

-🌲

lmao yup Hannah doesn't give a shit about anything but the blaziphane agreement. Themis is also a very snobbish planet, often thinking of themselves as better than most of the other planets in the galaxy. They don't have a lot of respect for outside customs and etiquette, which they know they can get away with because everyone is afraid of them!

the Myrina comment really pissed Hannah off for two main reasons. One, Phil didn't realize how much emphasis was put on the distinction between personal and formal names. Like he knows there's a distinction, but he figured that since Hannah shares the same name as her mother it would be easier to just avoid confusion and call her Hannah, not realizing what a misstep that was. Two, Hannah is the heir. She's not the Queen yet. she's literally the same age as Wilbur (maybe a year older?) so she's also used to being undermined for her age, especially by foreign politicians, so Phil trying to use her personal name instead of her formal, regnal name also hit a little too close to home with her desire to be seen as a full blown leader in her own right and not just a young princess. hence why she snapped at him so forcefully about it

yeah the Themisians don't give a shit about Eldingvegr etiquette. they don't care what the Eldingvegr royal bloodline is. Tommy and Wilbur are both royal through their Themisian side as well, so the Themisians are always going to default to that when it comes to etiquette. Themis also doesn't really care about the concept of bastards in general, considering most of their rulers are women so it doesn't matter so much who someone's father is. in Themis' eyes, Tommy's only leg up over Wilbur is the fact that he's the heir to Eldingvegr's throne, but ignoring that the two are on equal footing so things default to Wilbur considering he's older

yupppp her Voice is extremely strong. sometimes a siren with an extremely powerful Voice has a subtle hum under all their words even when they're not using it. it just bleeds through, and while it's not the same as them actually using the Voice to command people, it definitely adds an intimidation factor and gives whoever the siren is speaking to the sense that you do not wanna fuck with this person (also ty for the compliment on her outfit, it looks so cool in my head I was so excited to describe it)

#ask #spruce anon #the stars and their children

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lestwritewhilewaitingforajobcall · 3 years

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Tamed Seas - Poseidon x Reader

(A/N)

This is the very first post I’m making on this equally new account and also the very first time I am ever using a second person POV for the reader. Let me know your thoughts!

The following story is just for shits and giggles. I do not own any of the characters, they are the property of Shinya Umemura and Takumi Fukui and Ajichika. I also do not own you, the reader.

Warning: Swearing from my disclaimer.

Tamed Seas

Poseidon x Reader

They were never allowed to stare.

If Poseidon never looked anyone in the eye, deeming them unworthy of even a simple gaze, then anyone other than himself were equally unworthy in looking at his wife.

Just before the meeting had started about a decision to be made on humanity’s fate, Poseidon had entered in his full regalia, his wife walking alongside him. Of course, such a prestigious couple deserved such a special entrance, as Hermes, per Zeus’ request too, played his violin most ceremoniously, a proud smirk on his face upon seeing the royal feet step perfectly on the red carpet he had immediately placed upon knowing of their arrival. Zeus’ older brother held a record of never attending meetings, much more any simple get-togethers unless they were of real utmost importance such as this one.

Shiva’s eyes grew at the sight of the couple. Even though Poseidon’s wife had originally been a mortal who had ascended to godhood, you were glowing and looked as ethereal as Aphrodite. Was he seeing things? He blinked and leaned forward in his seat. The last time he saw you was at the announcement of your wedding, then after the ceremony he never caught a glimpse of you ever again and only heard stories of your new and impressive conquests. Were you always this godlike?

As if reading his thoughts, he gulped upon finding himself at the receiving end of Poseidon’s cold and stoic stare. He shrugged his shoulders. Man, he had heard rumors of his sudden protectiveness towards his wife, but he never expected him to be this overly protective. He was merely trying to figure out if his wife was always glowing like this or not. Both figuratively and literally.

Alright, maybe he was checking you out a little bit.

Unlike the god of the seas, his wife greeted Zeus, and all the familiar gods with a warm smile. It had been ages since you had seen them all together, and the sight brought a sense of nostalgia to the days where you had first earned their favor, then their respect, and then their friendship. Although your story might not be as mighty (and as physically taxing) as Hercules’ was, you considered those ‘young’ days to also be one of your best apart from getting married to the man god who you had given your heart for and will continue to love and cherish for the rest of your life. Since you became Poseidon’s wife, you had not had much time to do leisure outside the palace, and correspondingly after heralding the title of ‘queen of the seas,’ you had taken it upon yourself to help your husband in matters concerning his own kingdom and the vast seas themselves.

“Master Zeus—” Zeus threw you a knowing look. “My apologies, Zeus, it’s such a pleasure to see you again!”

“Same here, little lady! Judging by the frequent calmness of the Atlantic Ocean, I trust you and my brother are faring along quite well?” The father of all gods chuckled, then wiggled his gray eyebrows. “Why, I must say, me and most of the other Olympians have been waiting for some new gods and goddesses to rule alongside us, if you know what I mean! Ehe he~”

Characteristic of your husband, Poseidon simply scoffed before muttering how gods such as themselves need not gossip. Blue eyes never left the Hindu god however, and unbeknownst to his wife, he lingered closer to you than usual whenever the both of you were in public.

This time, Shiva had had enough. He was sure he only looked at the direction of Poseidon’s wife only once, and admired you only once as well, yet he was being skewered by the god’s gaze for longer than what he had intentionally allowed. As if he had openly claimed you as his! He was the god of destruction for heaven’s sake, and would not allow this sacrilegious act, regardless of whoever he had to settle the score with. If it was with another prominent deity, then it would be a lot more fun. Golden eyes narrowed daringly, an equally challenging aura oozing from his form and startling the nearby gods.

“Lord Shiva, are you okay—”

“(Name). How many times do I have to repeat myself? You have no need to refer to other gods with honorifics.” Your attention whipped to your husband, who to your surprise, held a familiar, challenging stance. Unbeknownst to you but the other gods especially Aphrodite, Poseidon simply matched the challenge of the Hindu god. “You are the wife of the seas. All the other gods are beneath you, as they are beneath me as well.”

Upon hearing this, Shiva gripped his concrete armrests too greatly and it crumbled to dust under his strength. Pumped at where this interaction seemed to be heading−the thought of fighting, he stood up, arms on the ready to cause destruction. Despite being in the middle of the crowd and quite far away from the center of the stadium where the couple stood, he caught glimpse of the famous trident he would never be caught dead wielding. Now this was getting interesting!

“My rules are simple: you disrespect me, you die,” He pointed at Poseidon, which the latter found disgusting enough to scrunch up his nose.

“Should we put a stop to this, Lord Zeus?” Hermes asked behind a white gloved hand. Not exceeding any expectations, Zeus laughed after a stroke of his beard and clapped. He always was one to find entertainment in alike situations, especially after the fact that this was the only time, he and all the other gods had really felt Poseidon riled up. The expression on the god of the seas’ face remained calm but it was betrayed by the suffocating, dominating presence he emitted from where he stood.

“And after you die, your wife would become firsthand witness of realizing how your title betrays your strength,” Shiva stretched, but halfway through noticed Poseidon’s quick work of his trident. He took a stance and prepared for the parrying move.

Amidst the unexpected battle that was soon to happen, to everyone’s surprise, a whistling sound echoed along the tension-filled stadium. It was a tune most foreign to the gods, all except one. From your lips, a beautiful melody poured out as a soft gentle breeze seemed to have begun to blow. It was an old tune you had learned from one of your many lifetimes in the mortal world,

And the very same one you had sung to Poseidon that had sustained him in trying moments.

Poseidon came to a full stop, his muscles unmoving as he listened and slowly, put his trident down. What was he thinking? He should not have been swayed by a foolish taunt committed by a foolish god. He was perfection incarnate. His wife would never fall for a foolish antic, so why did he? Now he was both angry and confused with himself. How could he have allowed himself for even a moment, for others to see him angry over this? What even was this?

Without the need to look at you, relishing in your fine tunes reminded him of the initial catalyst to his reaction and an answer to his question. Whenever matters concerned his wife, his emotions, which he learned were out of his control, seemed to defy all rational logic, which, even at the very beginning of your courtship, bypassed his ego. Of course, despite these strong feelings, the one thing Poseidon had control over were his actions. Therefore, he had always had a grip on how he presented himself. Although it was still a slow progress to figuring out this foreign feeling with his wife, the only other being he deemed truly worthy to allow into his life, anyone else will never have a chance of being privy to this side of him−a sentiment that thankfully, his wife shared. Though he never admitted it, he was confused and left mulling over for some time when you had also told him before that you had meant a different thing.

“…Foolish. Gods have no need for wars, we are perfect beings ourselves. You are not the reason for my presence here and are not worthy of my time and attention.” Another long silence fell, finally broken by Poseidon, ignoring the mix of surprised and fearful stares. His legs started carrying him towards the direction of one of the high stage boxes in the stadium. “Come, (Name).”

Shiva, who had his fists out and ready to fight, blinked twice in confusion before grunting, scratching the back of his ear violently in frustration. “You Greek gods have always been boring! And here I thought I’d finally be able to cause some destruction again, this time in Valhalla…”

Other than the Hindu god himself, none would ever understand if he had riled up the Greek god on purpose for the sake of his own entertainment or, perhaps, for something more personal. Zeus, meanwhile, followed the sight of his older brother walking quietly alongside his wife. Aphrodite nodded her head in his direction, affirming his suspicions. He would never fully understand the concept of love, but hey, he did get the message that all would be damned if so much as a single hair went missing on (Name)’s hair. And it seems he was not alone in this thought, as despite Shiva’s aggressive taunting, he also managed to peak into the gravity of the god of seas’ feelings towards his wife.

After Shiva had been calmed down and more gods piled in along with the Valkyries, Zeus set his meeting in motion. From the stands, Poseidon and his wife occupied the two seats that closely resembled their thrones. Eagerly sitting beside the god, (Name) grinned. Every day she had to sit close to her husband or even at times on his lap, she always felt like her body fit snugly against his.

Blue eyes stared uninterested at the spectacle.

“Dearest?” Poseidon turned his head and met your gaze. Any dark smudges had disappeared beneath his eyes, and his mouth that was carved into a seemingly permanent frown softened. His lips went from a thin line to a gentle curve.

“Thank you.”

No more words needed to be said. Poseidon knew what you were thanking him for, and he responded by closing his eyes as though he was swallowing every ounce of serenity that emitted from you. And the taste was sweet…

Above the angry retaliation of the gods regarding the verdict of Ragnarok, Poseidon enjoyed an elusive peace. Even if it was just a simple moment like this, he set his features in calm lines and his shoulders sank−a truly rare sight, a special secret between himself and his wife.

“I don’t care about this. I am eager to go home.” Poseidon whispered under his breath.

A chuckle left his wife’s lips. “We’re going home soon, don’t fret.”

#poseidon x reader #snv x reader #snv poseidon #shuumatsu no valkyrie #snv poseidon x reader #record of ragnarok #record of ragnarok x reader #record of ragnarok poseidon x reader #snv thor

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hell-heron · 2 years

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Day 26 - Parallels with Other Characters, also Names, Self-Actualization and Revenge, part 1 - Theon and Arianne

I want to say this started as an entirely different meta but I got distracted midway by the fact there are THREE characters besides Theon, actually, that seem to pass from being referred to in chapter titles by aliases to being referred by their name. Victarion in ADWD, Arianne and Barristan in TWOW. Obviously, GRRM might still have to pick chapter titles for TWOW, but given that the Forsaken, Mercy etc had their own titles, I think it works.

This strikes me bc Arianne and Victarion are characters with MASSIVE ACOK Theon energy in such a way that I think this says something about the way Theon's self actualization and finding his name again came to be.

Theon and Arianne occupy, alas, very similar spaces in the heart and spleen of the fandom as two ambitious very young adults who don't trascend past the inexperience and immaturity that could be expected even a little, in a series where half the major povs are extremely gifted children. Arianne's mistakes are obviously not as destructive as Theon's but there's a racist and sexist bias against her making it so they're pretty much equally hated. They're both extroverted and snarky and overtly sexual in a way that hides some pretty massive trust issues, struggling with rivarly towards a sibling they have very good reasons to feel is favored by their fathers over them despite being officially the heir, and they lash out against this in a very similar way

The queenmaker plot and the taking of Winterfell are similarly feverish, desperate, euphorically exciting-until-they're-not endeavors in which both Arianne and Theon endanger and hurt children they massively project on (the actual child murder on Theon's part nonwitstanding). Theon seeks to avenge his inner child reenacting his own hostage situation from a position of control, Arianne to heal her inner child realizing her fantasy of a disinherited daughter crowned over her younger brother. This is literally how she presents the plan to Arys:

“Will not? Cannot! Myrcella is more fit for rule …”

“A son comes before a daughter.”

“Why? What god has made it so? I am my father’s heir. Should I give up my rights to my brothers?”

At this point, needless to say, Arianne knows exactly nothing about Tommen to justify this. Obviously her fantasy is doomed even before her plan itself fails- Myrcella is younger than Arianne was when she found her father's letter and never had any desire for the Iron Throne, she doesn't quite comprehend the situation, her first reaction when she's called queen is fear that something happened to Tommen, where Arianne blindly embraces the idea Quentyn plotted against her. An absolutely unsatisfying projection vehicle, just as Bran, Rickon and Beth are for Theon - the Stark boys are helped escape, the whole household covering for them, when he tries to use Beth against her father as he was used, ser Rodrik begs to take him in her place. Theon's misery of being held hostage long term, completely alone and unsupported, only to realize his family had given up on him from the start remains his and his alone.

The motive also feels to me the same - grab for power that's actually a grab for agency lashing out at a situation of forced stasis they spent 10 years in, that's actually a desperate appeal for their fathers' love and trust. Theon's time in Winterfell is obviously horribly traumatic but it also represents a forced stasis, it's extremely damaging for him to have an illusion of physical freedom to do what he pleases vis-a-vis training, hunting, whoring etc. while actually he's prevented by adult responsibilities even as his fifteen year old foster brothers lead armies. The attainment of manhood on the Iron Islands for noble boys seems to coincide with becoming a captain. Theon is taken when he was just beginning to learn:

Ugly as it was, that smile brought back a hundred memories. Theon had seen it often as a boy, when he’d jumped a horse over a mossy wall, or flung an axe and split a target square. He’d seen it when he blocked a blow from Dagmer’s sword, when he put an arrow through a seagull on the wing, when he took the tiller in hand and guided a longship safely through a snarl of foaming rocks.

then never sets foot on a boat again for the next ten years and seemingly is put to train on equal footing with Robb and Jon who are four years younger. The fandom generally assumes Ned's plan for Theon is to wait until Balon dies to then have Theon as a lord friendly to the mainland interests: this makes perfect sense but we never know about it. We never find anything about what future Theon expects, he's not betrothed, obviously we find out when he returns that Balon is actively praying for him to die rather than awaiting the return of his heir for him to finally have a true place etc. but Theon has no way to know the situation at home either because he's only getting letters about the good news. Theon is pretty adaptable - he has some characteristics that make him slightly weird in the islands (preferrence for riding, fancy bitch taste, not used to the different power dynamics, uninterested in religion) and in the North (some romanticization of the Old Way, dark humor) but he does decently in both until he explodes in Winterfell, he's at ease in the Riverlands in the Blackfish' forces, he considers the Night's Watch as an option where he might be decently happy etc. The problem is he's never allowed to hope or prepare for any future, the war of the Five Kings is literally the first time he has any direction in life.

As for Arianne:

The freedom that Prince Oberyn allowed his bastard daughters had never been shared by Prince Doran’s lawful heir. Arianne must wed; she had accepted that. Drey had wanted her, she knew; so had his brother Deziel, the Knight of Lemonwood. Daemon Sand had gone so far as to ask for her hand. Daemon was bastard-born, however, and Prince Doran did not mean for her to wed a Dornishman. Arianne had accepted that as well. One year King Robert’s brother came to visit and she did her best to seduce him, but she was half a girl and Lord Renly seemed more bemused than inflamed by her overtures. Later, when Hoster Tully asked her to come to Riverrun and meet his heir, she lit candles to the Maid in thanks, but Prince Doran had declined the invitation. The princess might even have considered Willas Tyrell, crippled leg and all, but her father refused to send her to Highgarden to meet him. She tried to go despite him, with Tyene’s help... but Prince Oberyn caught them at Vaith and brought them back. That same year, Prince Doran tried to betroth her to Ben Beesbury, a minor lordling who was eighty if he was a day, and as blind as he was toothless.

What we get here is: Arianne has arguably more freedom than any young lady of her rank in the rest of Westeros, but she doesn't perceive it as freedom because while she can make more independent choices for the present about sex, friendships with people of all social ranks, parties etc, the future is both outside her agency AND unknown to her, which are both factors to her dissatisfaction with it. We know Doran means for Arianne to be Viserys' queen consort, Arianne only knows he doesn't mean for her to be princess of Dorne, but she deduces that he must want her to be someone's consort, and she doesn't outright reject this. She courts several heirs, not second sons of rich families willing to back her claim up to expand their influence in Dorne or something. She's willing to work with her father's plan and have her future partially dictated as long as she knows enough to make the best of it. Arianne is a huge people's person, very charming and able to manipulate, does well in her role "in charge of feasts and frolics" etc. and we have absolutely no reason to think she'd be either incapable or miserable as a consort. So the problem here is that Doran, through ridiculous matches he knows she won't accept, is essentially forcing her into a suspended childhood where she can neither plan for a future as princess of Dorne nor for one as consort. And she must lash out against it to have any feeling of agency in her life.

So she does, like Theon, recklessly and daringly and with an initial success that speaks of her cunning and boldness, like Theon, she claims a vengeful motivation towards external forces when really it's to vindicate her place within her own family she wants, like Theon

Asha shook her head. “How could you be such a bloody fool? Children . . .” “They defied me!” he shouted in her face. “And it was blood for blood besides, two sons of Eddard Stark to pay for Rodrik and Maron.” The words tumbled out heedlessly, but Theon knew at once that his father would approve. “I’ve laid my brothers’ ghosts to rest.”

“And what is it I want, ser?”

“The Sand Snakes freed. Vengeance for Oberyn and Elia. Do I know the song? You want a little taste of lion blood.” That, and my birthright. I want Sunspear, and my father’s seat. I want Dorne. “I want justice.”

She fails miserably, like Theon, but how does it end?

On the morning that she left the Water Gardens, her father rose from his chair to kiss her on both cheeks. "The fate of Dorne goes with you, daughter," he said, as he pressed the parchment into her hand. "Go swiftly, go safely, be my eyes and ears and voice... but most of all, take care."

"I will, Father." She did not shed a tear. Arianne Martell was a princess of Dorne, and Dornishmen did not waste water lightly. It was a near thing, though. It was not her father's kisses nor his hoarse words that made her eyes glisten, but the effort that brought him to his feet, his legs trembling under him, his joints swollen and inflamed with gout. Standing was an act of love. Standing was an act of faith.

He believes in me. I will not fail him.

Doran and Arianne's dialogue in The Princess in the Tower is one of the highlights of AFFC for me, it's so heartbreaking. Arianne is able to confront her father about the baggage of the last ten years, which Theon does in the show but not truly in the books. While Doran is understandably disappointed and upset with her, they are able to come to a reconciliation, he slowly comes to admit he wronged her, he admits to her his most fallible, uncautious human feelings, his "heart's desire". He breaks down thinking nostalgically of Arianne as a little girl. More in ADWD: he sees her loyal nature and good intentions in the bad choices she made and defends her:

Obara laughed. “Aye, our sweet Arianne has seen to that.”

The princess flushed, and Hotah saw a spasm of anger pass across her father’s face. “What she did, she did as much for you as for herself. I would not be so quick to mock.”

He even enacts the #1 Theon love language of laughing at her bad jokes :(

The little princess smiled. “Three Oberyns, with teats.”

Prince Doran laughed. It had been so long since Hotah last heard him laugh, he had almost forgotten what it sounded like

“There’s my lord husband.” His sister reached down inside her gown and drew a dirk from between her breasts. “And here’s my sweet suckling babe.”

He could not imagine how he looked at that moment, but suddenly Theon Greyjoy realized that the Great Hall was ringing with laughter, all of it at him. Even his father was smiling, gods be damned, and his uncle Victarion chuckled aloud.

And of course, in TWOW we see Arianne no longer as a presence in someone else's chapter nor referred to by an alias but only by her name, on a mission on her father's behalf that's the utmost sign of his trust in her, given for the first time the agency to act on his behalf and find power and direction for herself, empowered by her rightful place in the family - a family that was hurt and humiliated (obviously for the Greyjoys this was a bit more self inflicted, but you know, in Theon's perception) but that is now plotting to rise again in vengeance and managing, mostly thanks to Arianne's own efforts, to find unity in that plotting after being fractured and conflicted. Essentially, the taking of Casterly Rock Theon plans in ACOK before his dreams are quickly shattered.

Arianne represents the self actualization that Theon desires but could not have, not by through any fault of his own but by a series of circumstances - the way Arianne has a support system he doesn't, the way his first tragic mistake happens in a much more high stakes environment, and simply the fact Balon is a very different person from Doran. He cannot have his self actualization through power, only through looking in the mouth of hell and deciding to come out of it through the moment of pure desperate human connection of rescuing Jeyne. But the existence of Arianne's chapters affirms that it didn't have to be like that, that suffering and sacrifice shouldn't have been his only opportunity for self actualization, and that a reading that it was purely and simply his fault that things turned in that direction is just dismissive.

#theon greyjoy #theonmonth2022 #valyrianscrolls #arianne martell #op

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aboveallarescuer · 3 years

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I love that Daenerys Targaryen has significant parallels with all the major ASOIAF characters (as well as with many of the minor and the historical ones too). I love that comparing and contrasting her with them almost always highlights her epicness and/or how special her place in the narrative is.

Daenerys Targaryen is not just a queen, she’s a queen regnant and Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, i.e., a she-king. This means that she can be compared and contrasted not only with Cersei and Margaery or with Alysanne and the other Targaryen queens consort, but also (in fact, especially) with Stannis and Robb or with Aegon the Conqueror and the other Targaryen monarchs that succeeded him.

Daenerys Targaryen is not just a claimant to the Iron Throne like Stannis, Young Griff and Renly, she’s the only one of them who is a POV character.

Daenerys Targaryen is not just one of the POV rulers, she also happens to be the only POV ruler with power in her own right and who isn’t in a subservient position in any way (Jon is Lord Commander, but he’s also the king’s advisor and is running the equivalent of a penal colony, so the stakes are much lower than Daenerys ruling a city and dealing with opposition from half the world; Tyrion and Ned are Hands of the King; Cersei is queen regent, which means that her power stems from Tommen’s kingship). Also, Daenerys has the clearest parallels with Aragorn and her ADWD storyline was deliberately written by GRRM as a response to the lack of information from Tolkien about what makes Aragorn a good king. Finally, if one compares her ADWD storyline with Jon’s, one can see how many roles she occupies at the same time: the administrator (Jon), the monarch (Stannis), the most magical character linked to fire and prophecies (Melisandre) and the leader of the disenfranchised (Mance; note that Daenerys was forced to leave her homeland, was enslaved and currently doesn’t belong anywhere - that’s the exact same situation of many of the former slaves of Slaver’s Bay, who come from different places and have different races, ethnicities and backgrounds. Daenerys empathized with them right away because she is one of them. Her detractors may accuse her of being an outsider, but that’s because they prioritize the viewpoint of the Ghiscari slavers. The freedmen, like Daenerys, come from many different places and are outsiders to the noblemen too).

Daenerys Targaryen is an extraordinary conqueror and strategist. Aegon the Conqueror made the Westerosi bend the knee with the help of his dragons, 15-year-old Daenerys Targaryen overthrew the slave masters primarily thanks to her own battle plans, not her dragons. Robb Stark captured castles in the westerlands motivated by personal injury and his actions had local impact; Daenerys Targaryen conquered three cities motivated by her desire to abolish slavery and her actions had worldwide impact.

Daenerys Targaryen is not a typical member of her family, she is the main leader and representative of House Targaryen in a way that Jon/Bran/Arya/Sansa or Cersei/Jaime/Tyrion can’t ever claim to be. Their fathers Ned Stark and Tywin Lannister had large roles in the main story and, in the Starks’ case, their older brother Robb is more well-remembered than any of them (at least so far). Meanwhile, Daenerys’s father Aerys II was already dead before she was born and before the main story began, which allowed her to carve her own path outside of his influence. Moreover, her accomplishments are already greater than both of her older brothers’. She became the face of her family in a way that matches (in fact, even surpasses) Ned with House Stark and Tywin with House Lannister.

Daenerys Targaryen is not a typical mother, she’s both Mother of Dragons and Mhysa. Her motherhood is transcendental in a way that Catelyn’s or Cersei’s aren’t because it is not related to blood ties or to her fertility. Instead, it’s associated with her unprecedented feat of reviving an extinct species, with her ability to make up the magic as she goes along, with her leadership, with her revolutionary nature, with her compassion for thousands of people. Additionally, unlike the other major mothers, Daenerys is the only one who isn’t doomed to go “mad” despite all the losses and hardships she faced.

Daenerys Targaryen is a hero, which is especially clear when her actions are contrasted with House Stark’s, whose brand of “heroism” has been mostly to react to personal injury so far. Ned Stark participated in Robert's Rebellion because his father and brother were killed. Ned’s son Robb wanted Northern independence because his father was killed. Ned’s vassals want to start another war in the name of the Starks because of their loyalty and their outrage about the Red Wedding. Their motivations, sympathetic as they may be, have never involved the commoners. In contrast, GRRM had Daenerys empathize with the former slaves, start a war in their name and abolish slavery despite them not being associated with her through oath of fealty or blood relations or lands. She was specifically singled out by the author as the one leader who “wants equality for everyone”. It’s a stark contrast (pun intended) to the actions of the main family (at least as a unit) of the story. Sadly, it’s easier (for some fans) to root for the heroes mostly reacting to personal injury who never made any mistakes of large scale consequences since they never got to be in authority. Or for the heroes fighting against ice zombies (though, to be fair, Jon haven’t even faced them in ADWD, his main challenge was to conciliate the Free Folk and the Night’s Watch, so the stakes of his storyline are much lower when one compares his problems with Dany dealing with enemies from all over Essos raising armies to defeat her). It’s harder to do the same with the hero who takes an active stance against social injustices and who wrestles with hard questions about when political violence is justified (which never have easy, clear-cut answers) and all the negative ramifications that come with them.

Oh, and have I mentioned that Daenerys Targaryen is the character with the most overt clues of being Azor Ahai/Prince That Was Promised/Stallion Who Mounts the World? Like with the birth of the dragons, uniting all the khalasars and then leading humanity to victory against the Others will be two more unparalleled feats of hers among the characters of the current timeline. Additionally, as she becomes surrounded and influenced by prophecies, we get to see how Daenerys has a healthy relationship with them in contrast to other characters like Cersei and Stannis.

All these attributes and accomplishments are made even more remarkable when one contrasts them with what doesn’t necessarily make Daenerys Targaryen unique. Yes, Daenerys became the most powerful person in her world, but she also lived in poverty among lowborn people without the privilege of a castle or a formal education, which lends itself to comparisons with Davos and Melisandre. Yes, Daenerys is a queen, but she’s also a young girl who loves songs and stories and idealizes her family members, which lends itself to comparisons with Arya, Brienne and Sansa. Yes, Daenerys is a loving, compassionate mother, but she was also raised by her abuser throughout all of her formative years, which lends itself to comparisons with dysfunctional families like the Lannisters, the Greyjoys and the Cleganes. And so on.

Daenerys Targaryen has a very special place in the narrative, which I think should be acknowledged not only to appreciate her character, but also to understand why GRRM chose to isolate her from everyone else. Why would GRRM be confident that his readers would still be interested in Daenerys despite the fact that she doesn’t interact with any of his other major characters for most of the story? Is it merely because of her dragons, as her detractors say?

No.

It’s because, as the list above showed, Daenerys’s narrative importance and accomplishments are unmatched. They had to be. Daenerys’s character and storyline had to be connected to pretty much everyone else’s in significant, thematic ways in order for her to earn an entire continent, as well as her place as the Fire of ASOIAF. That is why Daenerys is guaranteed to have a major role in all the three main plotlines of ASOIAF. That is why Daenerys is so iconic and represents this book series in a way that no individual Stark could ever do. That is why Daenerys has to be so many things at the same time: a POV character and a claimant to the Iron Throne, a mother and the main representative of her family, the most powerful person in her world and a former slave, a ruler and a conqueror, a she-king and a young girl, quite possibly the story’s main hero and savior. That no other ASOIAF character can come close to her narrative importance or to her in-universe accomplishments is kind of the point because Daenerys had to encompass everything that is great about ASOIAF in order to carry her own storyline. And I'm excited for TWOW because, as she moves closer to Westeros, her importance will only increase more and more.

Daenerys Targaryen is like fine wine. She gets better and better the more time passes, the more you think about her and the more you realize how all the other ASOIAF storylines somehow lead back to hers. Dany’s storyline almost always looks that much more epic and greater in comparison to them because she carries her storyline on her own, so the author had to make sure she caught our attention.

#daenerys targaryen #asoiaf meta #asoiaf speculation

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bitsandbobsofwriting · 3 years

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Long Lost Prince Part 2;

Merlin leads his people home and Arthur grapples with whether he should keep his feelings to himself or not.

Part 1

Just like Arthur promised, a portion of Camelot's army mixed with around fifty of Merlin's knights are marching towards the Dragonlands within a month.

Merlin and Arthur lead the way, Sir Thornway, Sir Leon, and Sir Mordred following closely behind. It was decided fairly quickly that Hunith and Gaius would stay in Camelot; they were desperate to get home, but they weren't fighters, and whilst the chance of attack was fairly low considering the army behind them and the two dragons circling ahead, Arthur and Merlin were unwilling to risk it.

At a quick pace, Arthur reckons they could've made the journey in a week, but the army is slow-moving, and it takes them almost three to reach the border. They don't hear a peep out of anyone as they move through the countryside, though Arthur does raise an amused eyebrow at Merlin every once in a while, as and when the Warlock chuckles at Kilgharrah whispering in his head about all the various pathetic mercenaries and bandits running away screaming at the sight of his silhouette against the clouds.

The Dragonland, in comparison to Camelot, was a very small kingdom, but it’s capital city was near the far border, backed by miles and miles of towering mountains. In one of the many sessions of reminiscing that Merlin, Thornway, and Kilgharrah have in the evenings, they discuss the mountains at length. They were mostly uninhabited by people, even before the purge, they were far too treacherous for those without a guide and strong magic, and even then the paths were still dangerous.

The great mountains were where the Dragon’s resided; in a network of twisting tunnels and great caverns carved with fire and magic. Merlin vaguely remembers being taken there a few weeks before... before they left. Thornway told him that retreating into the mountains was one of the back up plans, if Uther’s army was too big and there was no hope of escape through the countryside.

(Arthur frowned at that. He was frowning at a lot nowadays, but Merlin just squeezed his leg under the blanket they were sharing (Leon did NOT smirk and Arthur did NOT blush) and whispered, yet again, that he was not his father.)

The escape through the mountains was planned to be a last ditch effort though, even with the dragons leading them and their strongest sorcerers protecting them, the perilous paths, with their knife edge drops and loose rocks and harsh snow, would have taken too many casualties to count. Though, in the end, escaping through the countryside had been just as deadly.

Arthur also used the journey to think about what Leon had said. Though Merlin and The King stuck close by for the whole trek, conversation was sparse (though the silences were comfortable); Arthur was unsure how to bring up the inevitable change in their relationship, though he knows that, for his own peace of mind if nothing else, he should.

They were deep into the Kingdom, having passed all the now doubly abandoned outer villages (Arthur was right in thinking that two dragons and a marching army scared away all the various mercenary groups and bandits) and now only a day’s ride from the capital, that Arthur asked Merlin the question that had been plaguing his mind for weeks. The two of them were sat against a fallen log, the night flourishing around them. The silence over the rest of the camp was tense, the knowledge that they were close hanging in the air, but the silence between Merlin and Arthur was comfortable, peaceful:

“What are you planning on doing?”

Merlin took a noticeably deep breath and Arthur turned to him, trying desperately to keep the worried frown off his face:

“I don’t know. I didn’t really discuss it with ma, we just... wanted to get home, and work from there, see what happens I guess.”

Arthur nodded, gulping slightly before he responds:

“Do you think she wants the throne? Your mother? Or will you become King?”

Merlin chuckles, but Arthur clenches his hands and looks away at the humourless lilt the noise has:

“I’d love to see her back in her crown, on her throne, but it’s been a long time. She did everything with my father by her side, I don’t know if... if she would want to do it on her own. I don’t know that she would cope.-”

The Warlock turns to face Arthur, and it strikes The King how close they are when he can feel Merlin’s breath on his cheek. He turns to meet his gaze once more:

“-What would you do, Arthur? In my place?”

Arthur can only hold his stare for a few moments before he looks to his lap, shaking his head slightly:

“I don’t know, Merlin. Tell me what’s on your mind, I... I can’t promise that I’ll have the answers, but maybe saying things out-loud will help.”

Merlin nods as he shuffles in his spot slightly, and Arthur likes to think that he was moving closer:

“I... I’m desperate to get home. But at the same time, I waited. I waited for twenty years, I’ve built myself a life in Camelot, I’d... given up on ever returning home, and I was just about coming to terms with the fact that Camelot was my home now. And then... this. I have to lead my people back, I know that, I owe it to them, it’s my job to protect them and give them back their heritage-”

Arthur interrupts quietly:

“Your heritage.”

Merlin sighs:

“-yeah, my heritage. My mother, and Gaius, and my people, and... and I, we deserve to go home. But I was only six when we left, I never got all the lessons on how to be a Politician, a King. Yes, I’m the heir, yes, I remember home and the crown and being a little Prince, but I am not built to be a King, Arthur, I don’t want to- I can’t fail my people, but I fear I will. I... I’ve been putting up a brave front for my mum, for Thornway, but I’m terrified. I have no idea what I’m doing, Arthur. What if I mess up?”

Arthur allows a small smile to slip onto his face as he takes Merlin’s fidgeting hands in his own. He shakes his head as he huffs out a short laugh and Merlin looks at him incredulously:

“You couldn’t possibly, Merlin. I know you well, do I not?-”

Merlin nods his head vigorously:

“Better than anyone.”

Arthur fights the blush:

“-And I’m telling you, that you have nothing to worry about. You may not have had official lessons, but you have the mind for politics.-”

Arthur glances to his lap briefly as he takes a fortifying breath, stroking his thumbs over the back of Merlin’s hands, still clutched in his, and looking up to him again:

“-I had all those lessons. All that training, and practicing, and tutoring. But I was still so... lost when I became King. I don’t think I ever told you, Merlin, but the only thing that got me through was you, always by my side. Because I knew that you would never let me fail, because I trusted you to see my shortcomings and make up for them without fuss, without fault. And you did, without asking for any thanks, or recognition, like you do with everything. To this day, you think I’m a good King because of destiny, but that’s utter bollocks and I’ve always known it. I’m a good King, Merlin, because you made me a good man first. And on days when I doubt my own rule, I remind myself of how much faith you have in me, and it gives me strength, because I know you would never allow me to fail, and on the off chance I fall, I know you would catch me. Every good King who cares about his people has doubts, Merlin, but however much faith you have in me? I have the same amount, if not more, in you. You’ll do just fine.”

Merlin looks at him with wide, teary eyes, and Arthur flushes under the scrutiny. The King goes to say something, maybe a flippant joke to de-charge the atmosphere, but before he can utter even a word, Merlin throws himself at him, wrapping tight arms around his shoulders and burying his face in his neck. Arthur almost falls back, but he holds steady, chuckling slightly as he returns Merlin’s hug with equal intensity. Merlin’s muffled voice from his shoulder has Arthur tightening his grip:

“Will you catch me? If I fall?”

Arthur moves a hand up to cradle the back of Merlin’s head:

“You won’t fall. But I’d spend the rest of my life stood below you with my arms out ready, Merlin, if that gave you just a fraction of the belief in yourself that you should have.”

Neither pulled away for what felt like hours, and by the time Thornway wondered over to check on them, they had fallen asleep against the log, arms still firmly wrapped around each other.

He smiles mournfully as he drapes a blanket over them. You would have to be blind to miss the odd moroseness that had overtaken them both, and the old knight knew that his Prince was dreading having to leave Arthur, and that Arthur was dreading the same. They shuffle in their sleep, and Thornway freezes, worried that he had woken them, but when Arthur just mutters Merlin’s name and moves impossibly closer to the other man Thornway sighs. This is going to be... painful for the two of them, and he’s not quite sure how he can help.

After another day of travel, they find themselves moving through the capital city, towards the castle sitting at the foot of the mountains.

The army was left with orders to methodically clear the city whilst Arthur, Leon, Thornway, and Mordred headed straight for the citadel gates. Though the city had fallen into disrepair, the castle looked like it had barely been touched, even by the elements, and Thornway explained that powerful enchantments laid over the ancient building, preventing it from being invaded or damaged by even the strongest of armies:

“It was meant to be a stronghold, somewhere we could hide and keep our people safe in emergencies, but we knew if we did that we would have backed ourselves into a corner. Uther was taking over more and more of the city every day, if we locked ourselves in... we would have just starved. Trying to escape through the city and out into the wilderness was our only hope.”

Merlin nods absent-mindedly as he stares up at the main door:

“Can we even get in?”

His voice is quiet and shaky, and Mordred steps forward to put a hand on his shoulder as Thornway replies with a small smile:

“You’re the heir, the doors will always open for you, Little Falcon.”

Merlin replies with a weak smirk and flushed cheeks:

“You know, I’m not all that little anymore.”

Thornway barks out a laugh as he shakes his head slightly, ruffling Merlin’s hair as the younger man pouts:

“Well, you’ll always be littler than me.-”

Merlin goes to retort, but before he can, his knight steps back and gestures to the great doors in front of them:

“-Go on, it’s time for us to finally come home, I think.”

Merlin gulps and nods, and Mordred lets his hand fall back to his side as the older Warlock takes the steps two at a time, hesitating only slightly before he wraps his hand around one of the doors’ metal rings. It twists easily in his grip, and the door swings open. Merlin has to take a step back and cover his mouth with his sleeve as he coughs, the billowing clouds of dust being disturbed for the first time in two decades making it almost impossible to see into the dark hall.

It settles after a few moments and Merlin takes a deep breath, reaching behind him wordlessly and relaxing only when he feels Arthur take his hand. The blonde King gives his hand a comforting squeeze, and Merlin takes his first shaking steps across the threshold.

He walks through the dark corridors slowly, one hand tightly clenched in Arthur’s, the other trailing along the wall next to him. The rest of the group is silent as they follow him, and nothing can be heard bar their muffled steps over the dusty rugs, and the deep breathing of Merlin and Thornway.

Merlin seems to know where he’s going, so no one questions the corners he turns and the rooms he passes without second thought. The deeper into the castle they get, the darker it becomes, until finally Merlin stops, a long hall stretched out in front of him. His eyes flash gold and the torches lining the walls flare up, illuminating the corridor in golden light. Arthur turns to look at the Warlock beside him, empathetic tears gathering in his eyes as he sees tracks on Merlin’s cheeks.

Merlin turns to glance at Thornway, whose in a similar state, before closing his eyes and flattening his free hand against the wall, digging his fingertips into the cracks as his voice comes out quiet and raspy:

“I know these halls, this stone.-”

Thornway takes a deep stuttering breath, muttering Merlin’s name. Merlin steps away from the wall, looking back to his knight with a weak, teary smile:

“-Do you remember? Chambers filled with golden light, vast halls bustling with people and dragons and magic?”

Thornway gulps and nods, slowly moving towards Merlin and putting a hand on his shoulder:

“I remember.-”

He nods down the corridor, taking a deep breath and clearing his throat before asking:

“-You remember what’s down there?”

Merlin smiles and nods, squeezing Arthur’s hand and leading the group down the hall, obviously impatient to get to wherever their destination is, but unwilling to walk any quicker.

Leon and Arthur share a confused and slightly concerned look but don’t say anything, allowing Merlin and Thornway to lead the way. Once again, Merlin hesitates only slightly before pushing the door at the end of the corridor open. and the six of them gather inside the immense chamber. Like the rest of the castle, it was dusty, but untouched; unlike the rest of the castle, it was bathed in colourful light. The walls were high, the ceiling obviously stretching far above the surrounding rooms, and the afternoon sun shone brightly through giant stained glass windows.

Reds and blues and greens and every other colour imaginable were splashed across the stone floor, painting pictures of dragons and flowers and family, but everyone’s eyes skip over the colourful artwork, instead being drawn to the two golden thrones sat on a dais at the other end of the hall. Merlin lets go of Arthur’s hand, walking towards the thrones with wide eyes as the others stay back, watching with a mix of pride and grief. Thornway follows after a few moments and Leon has to put a hand on Arthur’s shoulder, shaking his head slightly when the King looks at him. Arthur clenches his hands and looks away, but stays by the door, wanting more than anything to be with Merlin through this but also understanding that it wasn’t his place.

Merlin finally reaches the thrones.

He wipes the thick dust from the armrests with shaking, but reverent hands before sitting down on the steps, slightly to the side of the golden seats. He runs his fingertips over the stone, remembering every bump and crack and texture, and Thornway stands behind him, in line with the thrones, putting a hand on his shoulder and muttering:

“Now this brings back memories.”

Merlin nods, looking up at him, tears no longer flowing, but still gathering in his eyes:

“I... I don’t remember much, but I still... know. I know this is where I sat, with you behind me, ma and dad next to me on their thrones. I remember dad promising that when I was older, they’d have a throne made for me, so I could sit with them.”

Thornway nods, slowly moving to sit beside him, ignoring the creaking in his bones as he lets his weight fall onto the stone steps:

“Hmm. foreign royalty and dignitaries thought it odd that the King and Queen let you sit in on meetings, even as a young child, but they were always adamant; they didn’t want to hide you away. You were always safe, of course, but they wanted you exposed to the people and the people exposed to you. I suppose they wanted to nurture a natural love and protectiveness of your people in you; how could they expect you to serve the Kingdom well if you were only doing so out of duty, and not genuine love?”

Merlin hums thoughtfully before smiling briefly up at Arthur, still stood on the other side of the room. When Arthur tentatively returns the smile, despite not hearing the hushed conversation, Merlin looks to Thornway next to him, bumping shoulders with a short giggle:

“Probably why I’ve always been so disrespectful to Arthur, everyone in here was equal, no matter what. I guess that’s why the treatment of servants and commoners was such a shock when I moved to Camelot, I don’t really remember much of home, but it definitely felt different.”

Thornway nods as Merlin stands, holding out a hand to the knight and pulling him to his feet. Merlin’s gaze moves around the room, though he stays rooted to the spot, and Thornway asks his question quietly:

“What do you want to do? Do you want to finish clearing the castle and the city first, or fetch your mother and uncle first?”

Merlin gulps before taking a deep breath, staring at the floor and saying in a small voice:

“I don’t know... what do you think I should do?”

Thornway chuckles and shakes his head:

“This is your decision, Little Falcon. You are the Crown Prince, this is your Kingdom, your city, your people, trust your instincts. What should be done?”

Merlin looks to Arthur once again, reminding himself of the King’s promise to catch him should he fall, before looking back at Thornway with a determined expression:

“Send Kilgharrah to fetch ma and Gaius. We no longer need him as a deterrent, and we’ll still have Aithusa. He can make the journey to Camelot and back in a week at most, knights, even on horseback, will take at least twice that. It’s been a while since either of them went flying, but they’ll remember soon enough, and I trust Kilgharrah to keep them safe. We can keep clearing the city and start rough plans for rebuilding whilst we wait.”

Thornway grins and nods proudly:

“Exactly what I would have suggested. See? You’ll be just fine.-”

Merlin returns his grin shyly, blushing slightly as he rubs the back of his neck. Thornway rolls his eyes good-naturedly before gesturing to the others:

“-Come, My Lord, we should let the others know and head out to send Kilgharrah off as soon as possible.”

Merlin pushes the older knight’s shoulder playfully at the use of a title, but Thornway just smirks and waves Merlin ahead of him.

Arthur, Leon, and Mordred were told of the plan as the group made their way out of the castle again, having to cover their eyes when they step into the bright sunlight. They all smiled fondly as they saw Merlin’s growing confidence, though Arthur had to stamp down the growing anxiety swirling in his stomach; he refused to be sad for himself.

Kilgharrah was flying back towards Camelot within the hour, and Merlin was separating the army into groups and assigning tasks with a strong voice and straight back, taking every question and suggestion in his stride and organising hundreds of people without issue.

Arthur knew that there was still a conversation to be had between himself and Merlin, though with every day that passed he questioned whether it was the right thing to do. He wasn’t oblivious enough not to notice the way Merlin always asked for his council, even when he didn’t need it, always searched for his eyes in the crowd when he addressed his people, but that didn’t mean that his... affections, were returned.

Everyone, even Thornway now, kept shooting him pitying looks, and he figured out fairly quickly that he wasn’t as subtle as he’d like to believe. Leon was the only one he could rely on to convincingly pretend nothing was wrong, and Arthur used that to back up his deliberate ignoring of his stupid emotions.

Six days had passed and the clearing of debris from the lower town was well on its way when Kilgharrah landed in the castle courtyard, his two passengers tense and teary. Only Hunith, Gaius, Merlin, and Thornway took the journey through the castle this time; the others continued to help with the work in the town, not quite feeling that they would be welcome on the emotional tour.

Hunith decided fairly quickly that she would move on to become Queen Mother. Merlin would be crowned King (though he put his foot down and insisted that it wouldn’t happen until everything was properly sorted, and the people were settled back in the city), and though Hunith would still be the most senior of the royals, Merlin would technically have the most power.

Arthur had mixed feelings about that.

As King, Merlin would be a lot busier, would have a lot more responsibilities, but equally, he would have much more control over the use of his time; somehow making it both harder and easier to organise visits between the two of them. Though Arthur, of course, didn’t mention such feelings, just pulled Merlin into another tight hug and congratulated him with a grin.

With the help of Merlin and Mordred’s magic, and the few sorcerers scattered throughout the army they had brought, clearing the town of debris and rebuilding what they could with whatever was left went fairly quickly. Soon enough, the blacksmith’s and an infirmary were up and running, and the farms were ready for work to commence, just as soon as the resources from Camelot arrived.

The castle, whilst it had been fully explored by Merlin, Hunith, Thornway, and Gaius, had yet to be opened up to others or cleaned properly, but no one mentioned it. The gang slept happily in homes rebuilt in the upper town, and accepted Merlin’s excuse of wanting to focus on the people’s infrastructure first.

It was a week or so after Hunith and Gaius had arrived, Kilgharrah and Aithusa had disappeared into the mountains with Merlin’s approval, and Arthur once again found Merlin stood in the otherwise empty, still dusty throne room, staring at the golden seats with his hands in his pockets and his face tense.

Years ago, Arthur would’ve been wrong in his assumption that Merlin hadn’t heard him approach, but just this once he knows that he’s right. Arthur had slowly become an expert on picking up Merlin’s ticks, and even in the low light of the evening the blonde could tell that Merlin had no clue he was there.

Arthur didn’t want to feel like he was intruding, so cleared his throat quietly, only walking closer to the other man when his head whipped around, smiling slightly when he saw it was just Arthur.

Arthur stepped up next to him, and they both stared at the thrones in silence, shoulders brushing ever so slightly. Everything had been so busy in recent weeks that, other than the conversation two weeks earlier, Arthur and Merlin had spent barely any time together, just the two of them; every other time Arthur had found Merlin alone in the throne room he had shut the door quietly behind him and left, too afraid to intrude, not quite ready to start a conversation. The conversation.

After a few minutes, he clears his throat again and speaks in a quiet voice, not looking to the Warlock next to him:

“What’s on your mind?”

Merlin responds almost immediately, but like Arthur, he speaks quietly and doesn’t move his gaze from the thrones:

“Nothing, everything. I’m... doing ok, I think.-”

Arthur nods with a small smile, but Merlin continues before he can say anything:

“-But I’m scared that I’m only doing well because you’re here. You have to go back to Camelot eventually and... it sounds stupid, but I... I don’t want you to go. I need you, Arthur.”

Arthur gulps, finally looking to Merlin’s sorrowful face, though the other man refuses to meet his gaze. He takes his hands out of his pockets, fiddling with them roughly, rubbing his knuckles together and scratching his palms harshly. Arthur clenches his jaw, taking one of Merlin’s hands in his own gently and running soothing fingers over the younger man’s callouses:

“I know what you mean.-”

Merlin looks to him in surprise, his eyes widening, and Arthur continues with a small smile:

“-I told you, Merlin, I’m only a good King because of you. I’ve never had to rule on my own before and I’m dreading going back to Camelot without you.-”

Merlin shakes his head roughly, but Arthur continues once again, before he can disagree:

“-No, Merlin, don’t argue, it’s true. I... I need you as well, I don’t want to be without you, and I’ve no clue how I’m going to cope with a week’s ride between us. Leon tried talking some sense into me back in Camelot, and I know he was right, that all relationships take effort and we’ll have to work incredibly hard to stay in each other’s lives in any significant capacity, and I’m absolutely willing to do anything to keep you close, if not physically then... otherwise, but I’m still...-”

Arthur sighs and looks away, his cheeks just a little bit pink as he continues quietly:

“-I’m still scared to be without you.”

Merlin gulps and squeezes Arthur’s hand in his own, waiting for the blonde to finally look up at him again. The Warlock smiles at the eye contact and Arthur returns it weakly as Merlin finally replies:

“The last ten years of my life have revolved around you, completely and utterly, and I know it’s selfish of me to... not want that to change. I know I’m staying here, with my people, as their King. I would never consider abandoning them, not really, but I desperately want to, just so I can stay with you. We... we’ll figure something out, find some way to communicate quickly. I’m magic incarnate, there has to be a way, I... I’ll make a way, if I have to.”

The tears in Arthur’s eyes finally overflow at Merlin’s determined tone, but before the other man can say anything about it, Arthur pulls him into a tight hug, clutching his cloak in shaking fingers and burying his face in his shoulder, for once feeling grateful for the extra inch in height that Merlin has on him. Merlin returns the hug without hesitation, closing his eyes against the tears, though not managing to stop them from falling as he quietly speaks, his voice thick:

“I promised that I would stay with you until the day I died, but I... I have to leave, I... I can’t-”

Arthur tightens the hug as he interrupts him:

“No, Merlin, you owe me nothing, you don’t have to explain. You’ve already given me my kingdom, now it’s my chance to return the favour. I would never ever ask you to leave this behind just for me.”

Arthur can feel Merlin’s body shaking with silent sobs, and he runs a hand through his hair softly, breathing deeply in an effort to hold in his own bawling.

They stand wrapped in each other for a while, neither willing to let go even when their tears dry up and their breathing evens out. Eventually Merlin rasps out a whispered:

“I don’t want to lose you.”

Arthur pulls back at long last, but doesn’t go far, leaning his forehead against Merlin’s and closing his eyes before replying:

“You won’t. We’ll take turns hosting Yule celebrations, and I can visit on your birthday, and there’ll be tournaments of course, and trade routes, and shared patrols near the border. I refuse to let you slip from my grasp, Merlin, you’ll never be without me, not for long anyway.”

Merlin huffs out a gentle laugh, and Arthur thinks the flutter of his breath over his cheeks and through his eyelashes is the most beautiful thing he’s ever felt. Both of them open their eyes, but they don’t move away from each other, even as they stare, becoming increasingly aware of the very little amount of space between them. Arthur’s brows crease slightly but he ignores the concerned question in Merlin’s eyes, instead lifting a hand to gently cup his jaw, gulping as Merlin’s expression falls into a soft smile.

The King takes a deep breath as he summons his courage, eyes filling with tears again as he clears his throat, whispering so quietly that it’s a miracle Merlin hears him, even with only inches between them:

“Merlin, I... you mean a great deal to... I mean I... -”

He cuts himself off with a quiet huff, and Merlin smirks at the slight blush dusting his cheeks, patiently waiting for him to continue. Arthur shuts his eyes tightly, taking another deep breath before opening them with a newfound determination. He meant it, he’d come this far, he was not going to let Merlin slip away:

“I love you, you are the single most important person in my life, and I would go to the ends of this world just to see you smile. I owe you my life, and so much more than that; you’ve been making promises and swearing oaths to my crown for years-”

Merlin interrupts him quietly:

“To you, to Arthur, not the crown, to you.”

Arthur huffs slightly and rolls his eyes:

“I’m trying to confess my undying love here Merlin, and I’m not very good with this whole... expressing shit, so shut up and let me finish.-”

Merlin snorts but stays otherwise silent, raising an eyebrow to prompt Arthur to continue:

“-Like I was saying. You’ve been swearing things for years, and now it’s my turn.-”

Arthur steps back, taking Merlin’s hands tightly in his own as he lowers himself to one knee, pressing his forehead to the Warlock’s knuckles:

“-I swear on my crown and in the name of Camelot, that I will always love you, that I will always be ready catch you, and that I will never stop putting the work in to make sure I don’t lose you, that you don’t lose me.”

The blonde can hear Merlin’s stuttered breathe and barely has time to process Merlin’s whispered-

“I accept your oath.”

-before he’s being pulled to his feet and urgently kissed.

One of Merlin’s hands settles on the side of Arthur’s neck and the other grips his hip. Arthur’s arms flail for only a moment in his shock before he moves to clutch Merlin’s collar tightly, closing his eyes and kissing back, pushing as much of his devotion into the action as possible and wanting nothing more than to sooth the stress-induced bite marks on Merlin’s lips.

They pull back far too soon, as far as both of them are concerned, once again resting their foreheads against each other as they catch their breath. Arthur’s face slowly morphs into a grin as he says:

“And to think I was stressing over whether I should tell you for weeks.”

Merlin rolls his eyes in response, snorting in amusement as he admits, much to Arthur’s chagrin:

“Believe me, I already knew, you weren’t very subtle. You’ve been sulking.”

Arthur lets out an incredulous huff and pulls back, still holding Merlin’s collar but staring at Merlin’s amused raised eyebrow with wide eyes:

“I am a King, Merlin, I do not sulk.”

Merlin chuckles:

“Well so am I, and yes you do.”

Arthur narrows his eyes slightly:

“Not yet you’re not. That’s besides the point, if you knew... why didn’t you say anything?”

Merlin’ face falls slightly, and if Arthur had to guess, he’d say that Merlin looked a little guilty. The blonde furrowed his brows but pulls his Warlock close again, stroking his jaw softly with his thumb as he waits for an answer:

“I... I love you, Arthur, more than anything, but... I wanted see if you would do anything about it. I knew I would do anything for you, but I needed... I needed to know if you thought I was worth the distance, the effort. If I said something first, I never would have known... I would always be second guessing if you were about to... to break it off, because you didn’t want to put in the frankly ridiculous amount of effort it’s going to take to keep things... good.”

Arthur smiles and shakes his head disbelievingly, landing a quick kiss to the tip of Merlin’s nose and smirking at the way his face scrunches in response:

“Well, now you do know. I will do anything, everything, to keep you happy and safe and loved. You will always be in my heart, if not by my side.”

Merlin smiles, and the two of them resolutely ignore the tears gathering in their eyes as he whispers his reply:

“As will I. I’ll talk to the Druids, Kilgharrah, Thornway, I’m sure we’ll be able to figure out some magical way to communicate.”

Arthur just smiles and nods, taking Merlin’s hands in his own once more:

“Ready to head to sleep? It’s late, and I know you’re tired.”

Merlin takes a deep breath, glancing to the thrones before walking towards the door, keeping Arthur’s hand securely in his:

“Yeah. Though unless we sneak past the others I doubt we’ll get to sleep for a while. Morgana’s been speaking to me in my head and teasing me for weeks and my mum keeps hinting at how politically beneficial a marriage between the kingdoms would be.”

Arthur doesn’t even try to hide his snort, but nods in agreement and squeezes Merlin’s hand, following him out into the star-lit evening with a newfound enthusiasm to see what the future will bring.

THE END OF PART 2!!!

I think I’ll write one more reeeaally short part, a ten years later sort of thing, just because I have a few more ideas about this, but no real huge plot points, just cute little things I want to add in but haven’t found space for yet.

This took a little longer than I expected to come out, but I hope y’all enjoyed it!!

(and yes, I may have taken a little inspiration from The Hobbit movies, sue me (pls don’t, I’m kidding))

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9worldstales · 3 years

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MCU Loki Ep 6 “For All Time. Always.” intensive analysis

So that’s the end of the series and of my analysis of each episode. No, actually it’s not as there will be a second series. So basically this episode too follows the same trend the other episodes followed, it ends on a cliff-hanger.

Now, there’s nothing wrong with cliff-hangers but if you abuse of them, it reveal you don’t believe your series can hook viewers even without cliff-hangers.

Whatever, let’s go.

This time, instead than a music, the ‘MARVEL STUDIOS’ writing has in the background quotes from the Marvel movies which is interesting because it kind of hints to the time passing.

It continues showing a beautiful view of spaces which seems to be creating and destroying in which we get other quotes which are historically famous.

Then we move to where Sylvie and Loki are.

Title and then first (poorly done) dialogue as they face the door of a place which has weird cracking, shining lines as if that reality was about to break apart.

Sylvie all of sudden asks Loki if he’s going to tell her not to kick the door, but since she has Mary Sue powers he’s not going to do so because:

Loki: It never made a difference.

In itself is a terrible premise for your relationship guys and the prove you don’t have one. If you don’t listen to each other, that’s not a good basis to found a relation and the fact that Loki doesn’t even care to be heard but would let her do what she wants is equally not promising.

Please, mark Sylvie’s words here:

Sylvie: Well, if you think it's a bad idea, I prefer you to speak your mind.

This would be a good sentence. A good basis for a relation as she asks for his input, she tells him she wants to hear it but he has none. Okay, whatever, it could work if it wasn’t that Sylvie is hesitating. Loki worries and she tells him she needs a moment, he worries more, tries to speak his mind about it and she tells him:

Sylvie: Loki, shut up. I was pruned before you even existed. I have been waiting for this moment my entire life. I just need a second to get my head straight, okay?

So… she has asked for Loki’s input, she has told him to speak his mind but when he does she tells him shut up. Because she actually didn’t want him to speak his mind. She wanted him to be the one who would stall her because she needed a minute and now she’s angry and rude because he’s not giving her what she wants. Loki still remains compliant because… Mary Sue.

Since Sylvie clearly doesn’t want to enter, the doors decide to open on their own so as to force them to enter.

I’ll be honest, the place is cool but I’ve no idea why ‘He Who Remains’ would have built to himself a place like that in a location like that. Whatever, let’s not make questions which obviously won’t get answers.

Miss Minute appears abruptly to welcome them to ‘The Citadel at the End of Time’ and tells them ‘He Who Remains’ is impressed, ‘He Who Remains’ being the one who created all and controls all, in short, at the end, it is only ‘He Who Remains’. According to Miss Minute he’s willing to offer them a deal, adjusting the timeline to place them back into the timeline in a way that won't disrupt things while the TVA keeps doing its work. Loki will get to win the battle of New York, get the Infinity Stone and the Throne of Asgard… because it’s not like he wanted the love and acceptance of his family and feel like he belonged, no, the TVA and this series don’t care about this part of the whole Loki problem.

You know, many blame Waldron for messing up Loki’s character in this series and is real, he messed it up big time, but I wonder if he did it on purpose or because he was requested to do so.

Because I can’t believe someone who sat down and hear a Tom Hiddleston’s lecture about “Loki” has no idea all this came from pain and not from ambition to rule, so Miss Minute offering him a throne POST “THE AVENGERS” instead than his father’s love, his family’s acceptance, a way to pack up things with his brother, maybe even the chance to be Odin’s legitimate child feels dumb and a mere attempt at remarking how Loki is actually solely moved by ambition.

And it’s not like they couldn’t do it because she then tells Sylvie she can give a lifetime of happy memories and the chance to live with Loki. So they can redo what happened to Loki… and they don’t offer it to him? As if what happened in the Vault in “Thor” was something he wanted to keep? As if his attempted suicide at the end of “Thor” was something he enjoyed?

She could offer him everything and she says so:

Miss Minutes: It's crazy, but he could make it work. All of it. Everything. Exactly the way you've always wanted. And you can have it all, together.

…and satisfying Loki’s greed for a throne was what she chose to go because this series desperately wants to characterize him as solely longing for a throne.

Sylvie doesn’t believe her, saying it’s just fiction.

Loki’s statement could have been a little more profound, as he says they’ll write their own destiny, meaning he doesn’t want the help of ‘He Who Remains’, but it could have been deeper if Miss Minute has offered him to change his past and he has just worried about the future, it could have meant he would let go of the past, and worry about what he could improve in the future.

Instead Miss Minute offered the past to Sylvie and the future to Loki, whom, we know in this series was set on the start on being in charge of his fate so it was unlikely he would have accepted. Pity, it’s a wasted chance.

She leaves them, this meeting changing ABSOLUTELY NOTHING except that we now know we’re in ‘The Citadel at the End of Time’ and the final enemy is supposed to be called ‘He Who Remains’ and we move to Renslayer who’s downloading files.

On a side note I like how she sees the sign Mobius’ glass left and pause for a moment.

Then Renslayer discovers the files Miss Minute has downloaded for her aren’t the ones she asked for, but she’s told ‘He Who Remains’ thinks they’ll be more useful to her. As a good little soldier without will, Renslayer doesn’t even argue on this.

We won’t see Miss Minute again in the series.

Overall she has been useless. This last episode tried to paint her as a bit more malicious but she’s basically a Clippy cartoon, as an AI she doesn’t have at all the character of Jarvis (from “Iron Man”) or Karen (from “Spider-Man: Homecoming”). Miss Minute is entirely forgettable, overall useless, just a kid cartoon to draw kids’ interest.

It would have been scarier if Renslayer had downloaded the files by herself and discovered somehow she had downloaded a different file but whatever, let’s move on.

Loki and Sylvie walk for a corridor as the camera rotates, drawing on the suspension but not really doing anything relevant. They get in a hall and Loki, seeing the dust, wonders if ‘He Who Remains’ is actually still alive. Again this won’t mean anything because the guy is alive and why there’s dust is left unexplained.

Sure, they might want to save the answer for the second series but considering how this series went I’m not even sure about it.

A door opens and ‘He Who Remains’ appears and it turns out the big bad is the actor who’s meant to play the part of Kang the conqueror.

Kudos to Jonathan Majors as he managed to make ‘He Who Remains’ very charismatic, which is relevant as he’s also meant to play Kang The Conqueror in incoming movies and if it had come out as boring it would have been a huge problems for those movies.

Anyway, ‘He Who Remains’ is absolutely calm, comfortable, in control and amused. He eats an apple, commonly viewed as the fruit of temptation and knowledge as he talks with them and doesn’t play the role of ‘action boy’ like the other 3 female POC were.

He invites them to follow him to his office, which they do although they keep on pointing their swords at him. Loki realizes he’s just a man and Sylvie tries to kill him but he warps himself away from her blow so she misses. She tries again and fails again so they remain alone in the lift. The doors open and ‘He Who Remains’ is outside, waiting for them.

Now… I guess Sylvie attempting to kill the guy at random foreshadows the fact that’s she’ll try to do so afterward as well… but this is sort of signalling she’s losing her Mary Sue powers because she’s starting to look dumb. She’s not even sure he’s the real big bad and not a side kick and yet she’s trying to murder him in one blow.

She has already tried it with the Time-Keepers and it didn’t work out well, why she’s trying again?

Once they’re in his office he offers them… tea? And tells them to sit down while they’re all nervous and with their swords out. They sit because… the plot says so?

I mean no one would sit while at the same time still being so wary he keeps on pointing his sword to a guy.

But back to Renslayer we go. She’s collecting documents and complaining she said she didn’t want to be disturbed when she hear the door being knocked.

The one knocking though, is Mobius, with a Time Stick.

Renslayer expresses her admiration for him coming back from the Void… when it actually was Sylvie who gave him the means to do so. Not that Mobius mentions it because for him it was a piece of cake coming back. With the Tempad Sylvie gave him and that he didn’t left her.

Renslayer: If anyone was ever gonna make it back from The Void, I suppose it was gonna be you. Mobius: Oh, well, you know, one man's Void is another man's piece of cake.

Whatever. Renslayer asks him if he’s gonna prune her and he acts all moralist with her.

Mobius: I like that idea. But, you know, my standards might be a little bit higher in that area than yours. You know, with close personal friends.

So what? He’s gonna close her on a time-loop in which she gets beaten over and over until she admits she was bad for betraying him as he has done with his other friend, Loki? Or Loki got that even though he hadn’t betrayed him because he wasn’t a close personal friend?

Renslayer tells him he couldn’t get in the way of her little cult’s mission. Mobius complains the Time-Keepers are fake and they’re Variants so there’s no mission because for Mobius all this is very personal.

Pruning Variants was fine only as long as whoever was in charge didn’t lie to him. Once he did, there’s no mission.

Renslayer at least is more coherent. She doesn’t care about the lies, she has decided the TVA is her life and so she’ll continue serving it as the brainwashed cult member she is.

Renslayer: It can't have been for nothing.

Mobius instead goes back to his beliefs when he perceives himself to be wronged

Mobius: It's exactly the same thing. Because if you think too hard about where any of us came from, who we truly are, it sounds kinda ridiculous. Existence is chaos. Nothing makes any sense, so we try to make some sense of it. And I'm just lucky that the chaos I emerged into gave me all this... My own glorious purpose. Cause the TVA is my life. And it's real because I believe it's real.

Because there’s no point in thinking too hard at things when they’re murdering others but when they’re lying to you… of course you’ve to care.

Anyway when Renslayer tries to call for D-90 helps Mobius tells her it won’t work and shows her the Franklin D. Roosevelt High School pen Renslayer had in her office which we saw in Episode 2. So, to 2018, Fremont, Ohio, Franklin D. Roosevelt High School we go. B-15 is hiding there, chased by U-92. She shows herself to him and then gets into an office which has plenty of Franklin D. Roosevelt High School pens. As they’re inside they’re interrupted by Renslayer, only it’s not judge Renslayer but principal Renslayer, the Renslayer who can live in the Sacred Timeline. Apparently this is done to persuade U-92 that Renslayer is a Variant, same as them. Now what, is B-15, going to lead all the hunters to know Principal Renslayer? As a plan it seems a little slow but of course the series just asks us to assume it worked and each hunter now believed B-15 that they’re all Variants.

And how could they track the original Renslayer?

Because Renslayer COINCIDENTALLY had a pen with written over the name of the school in which she worked among all her trophies and stuff and everything else and Mobius, who supposedly knows her by centuries, never saw it before and COINCIDENTALLY noticed it only, what, the day before because Renslayer COINCIDENTALLY gave it to him to sign a document and COINCIDENTALLY he remembered the name and COINCIDENTALLY he assumed if she had it, it’s not because another analyst gave it to her but because it’s tied to her true identity and COINCIDENTALLY this was all true. What an awesome series of plot contrivances in a poor attempt to explain how they did find out which was Renslayer’s school when they could have just searched in the computer for a Ravonna Renslayer in the Sacred Timeline. Back to the Lokis we go with ‘He Who Remains’ fully aware Sylvie is the main character, the one who make a journey filled with pain while Loki was just ‘a flea on the back of a dragon’.

Because yeah, this confirms that, despite the title being “Loki”, this has never been Loki’s story. He just happened to be there, a bystander. This is Sylvie’s story. But Loki managing to ‘hang on’… well, ‘He Who Remains’ guesses it counts for something. Yeah, that the series used Loki’s popularity to lead people to view it thinking it would be about him when it’s all about Sylvie. I’m sorry for Sophia Di Martino, it’s not her fault but if someone says me I’m watching a series about Tom Hiddleston’s Loki I want it to be about Tom Hiddleston’s Loki not about anyone else, not even my favourite actor or the best actor in the world. I feel cheated and this doesn’t please me at all. Loki tells him he lost while Sylvie tries again to kill him and again he phases out of her way. He tells them they can’t kill him because he knows what they’ll do and shows them in fact he has a document on which is printed what they’ll do. On it we can see that Loki is the Variant L. 1130 while Sylvie is L. 1190. Loki tries to wave it away as a parlour trick.

‘He Who Remains’ points out to how he has programmed already his TemPad to make sure he’ll avoid all of Sylvie’s blows. I’m not even sure how this works, before they used Time Twisters to loop the Variants, now they actually use the TemPad to… teleport in another place without even opening a timedoor?

The Tempad is the great applied Phlebotinum of this story. It can do everything and the Mary Sue can even make it work without knowing how.

‘He Who Remains’ also informs them he knows whatever happened between them.

Oh, good moment to point this out, remember that big fact about Sylvie and Loki touching each other and this breaking the timeline and we never learnt why but Mobius said it was because two variants of the same person fell in love?

Well, we’ll never get confirmation if it’s true or not and it’ll never happen again. The best we can assume from a Watsonian perspective is it was ‘He Who Remains’ who caused the timeline to branch to save them… from a Doylist perspective it was just another plot contrivance created ad hoc to get them out of a potentially fatal situation.

‘He Who Remains’ insists whatever they did was because he paved the way for them. So what, he controlled their minds? Everyone else’s? He told Classic Loki to die so they could have the time to beat Alioth? Or he would have stopped Alioth? Just because he knows, he didn’t pave the way, at best he predicted it.

Then we get this bit:

‘He Who Remains’: Oh, come on. You know you can't get to the end until you've been changed by the journey. This stuff, it needs to happen. To get us all in the right mindset to finish the quest.

So what’s this? The author talking to us through ‘He Who Remains’, telling us we had to go through 6 episodes so that the reason why Kang the Conqueror will appear wouldn’t feel like a random plot contrivance? And he lead us through all this journey a plot contrivance after the other?

So basically this series could have been avoided by just having ‘He Who Remains’ shoot himself but no, we needed to go through 6 episodes to have Sylvie kill him and refuse to take his place so that his Variants can come? Or even better we could have avoided all this by just having Kang coming but no, too easy, better waste 6 episode setting up that Kang was coming because no one was interested in a series about Loki but in a story about how Sylvie, the supposedly perfect Mary Sue female viewers were supposed to identify with because all female viewers want is not a compelling female representation but a Mary Sue, actually is a dumb woman moved by revenge that opens the Pandora Box and starts it all?

I… I don’t even know how Sylvie moved from Mary Sue to Pandora from an episode to the other.

Do those characters have a character or are they merely puppets?

Loki asks him if this means he manipulated them and ‘He Who Remains’ uses his words to imply he’s the great manipulator.

Loki? In this series? Manipulator? He couldn’t talk his way with an old woman!

You can’t destroy a character and then speak as if his abilities are still there!

Loki WAS a manipulator in the movies! You destroyed him so don’t come here and tell me he still is! It’s no more believable!

But that’s not the point, the point is that ‘He Who Remains’ wants to say that Sylvie isn’t any more capable to trust anyone… so the series had Sylvie say she can’t fall asleep near someone she can’t trust in Episode 3 and then showed her sleeping in front of Loki short after, and then she pruned herself to go save him and trusted him to help her enchant Alioth and he never betrayed her, and he never betrayed anyone in this series really and a Loki even died to help them and just because ‘He Who Remains’ says she can’t trust anyone she doesn’t?

When actually it’s not that she was betrayed by people as far as we know, her story isn’t one of lies and betrayal as her parents were honest with her, her story is merely of a fascist organization wearing very obvious uniforms hunting her?

She shouldn’t have trusting issues with normal people, she should just hate the TVA and yet she trusted Mobius and even gave him the Tempad, her only way out of the place and told Loki Mobius cared about him and now, out of nowhere, she has trusting issues?

It’s Loki the one with trusting issues, not her! He’s the one who was lied all his life, he’s the one who wasn’t believed when he told Mobius the truth, he’s the one who saw Boastful Loki blackmail them.

Does this story knows what’s going on with its characters?

We switch to Mobius and Renslayer.

Mobius wants to tell to the people of the TVA the truth. Renslayer shows him that just because she knows the truth it doesn’t change a damn thing to her and in a way she’s right… or better, she makes more sense than him.

Renslayer: But what if it's a necessary one? Someone created the Time-Keepers. They created this whole place. They gave us all purpose. I have to believe they had a reason.

Mobius was a blind believer before. He was sure the TVA was necessary. So what does it changes if the Time-Keepers weren’t in that room, if they aren’t three but one guy who calls himself ‘He Who Remains’. The mission, the goal, is the same and maybe he lied for self protection so if someone were to try to decapitate him, he would decapitate a puppet.

And which difference it makes if Mobius knows he’s a Variant who got lucky enough to be spared? He, B-15 and all the others didn’t care about the Variants they killed and all they complained and whined was they were lied at, without realizing they had it better than the other Variants who were hunted and killed.

But Mobius goes…

Mobius: No, because I've seen the horror waiting for people when they get pruned and there's nothing necessary about that.

…so okay, if they just died and ended up becoming nothing it was okay for you? It’s because you’ve seen the Void all of sudden you decided pruning people isn’t good?

I mean, I found right from the start the TVA a fascist organization employing torture and police brutality to murder people they saw of a different ‘racial’ group (Variants as handled as if they were a different race from them) with dehumanizing methods, stripping them of their rights and enjoying belittling and hurting them.

Yeah, occasionally Mobius showed some sense of moral but he was an active perpetrator who stuck Loki in a time loop so he could be beaten to Mobius’ heart content until he were to mindlessly obey to Mobius who called himself his friends but basically forced him to cooperate right from the start and continuously belittled him.

And when Loki confronted him more than once Mobius was absolutely fine with what the TVA was doing because, as Renslayer will remind him, without the TVA there should be chaos and free will is bad. But now, now that the TVA lied to him and even pruned him… oh, Mobius saw the light, HE would never again send people to such a horrid place.

Only he escaped from the Void, knowing for all the others who were in the Void, there was no way to come back without a TemPad but who cares?

I mean, it’s great Mobius grew a conscience and decided that sending people in the Void isn’t the right thing to do… but the story should have PROVED he was thinking so in the past episode already instead in the past episode he didn’t show any care about the Variants he forced to end up there, most of which died.

He was all ‘All that time, I really believed we were the good guys’ and ‘Well, I guess when you think the ends justify the means, there's not much you won't do. By the way, you did some annihilating too’ and ‘I too did what I had to do’ and didn’t care at all to save the people that ended there. The TVA kept on pruning, innocent people kept on being sent there and he gave them no way out.

And now he preaches to Renslayer they shouldn’t send people there because he seen the place and he thinks they shouldn’t send people there? How was instead right leaving them there?

They had then an absurd discussion about how, if the TVA weren’t to exist people would have free will.

It’s not that people didn’t have the free will if the TVA existed. No one knew if they were following the sacred timeline or not, so it’s not like whose who followed it were coerced into doing so. They did so of their own free will.

The people they killed didn’t go against the sacred timeline deliberately, it was never a matter of choosing if to obey or not.

One of the biggest problems of the TVA was they processed people for breaking rules people didn’t know existed, and not because they had been lazy but because the TVA didn’t have the authority to impose those rules and didn’t even inform people they were imposing them.

Anyway Renslayer, who’s big about enslavement, says only one person should have free will, the one in charge. Great, Renslayer, so if that person decides to kill everyone and then commit suicide you will agree with it, won’t you?

Because this won’t be chaotic.

So Mobius, not having anything to counter, complains she babbled about them being friends and then sent him to die and wants to know why she changed.

I honestly love this bit but I fear I love it not for the author’s intention.

Renslayer: Nothing, Mobius. I didn't change. Mobius: You didn't change? You betrayed me. Renslayer: No, no. You betrayed me! I looked out for you, hung my neck out for you, and you suffer a crisis of faith and turn to those Variants? Eons of friendship. And you threw it all away on a couple of Lokis. No, Mobius. I didn't betray you.

Mobius sees the world through his personal, selfish lenses. He changed his mind so Renslayer should have too and should have supported him and given him what he demanded. What Renslayer wanted, what she felt, how she didn’t care if the TVA lied to them and was her job to cover up the lie, didn’t matter to him.

Up till that moment he always did what he wanted and she covered up for him. The moment she said ‘no, I won’t cover up for you anymore’ he goes ‘you betrayed me’. His relationship with her is not one of friendship and in the same way he can’t be friend with Loki because the moment Loki did something that displeased him he stopped listening to him and punished him by having him beaten.

Owen Wilson is really good at portraying Mobius but Mobius, as a character, is a spoiled child who’s used to have things his way and throws a tantrum if they don’t go as he wants.

This is the only one time though that the series dares to call him out and since it’s Renslayer doing so, I fear it’ll go unnoticed.

Mobius, in fact, has again nothing to counter except they can’t take away people’s free will. HIS OWN specifically, I might add because until he wasn’t involved he was perfectly fine with taking it away.

Loki: It's an illusion. It's a cruel, elaborate trick conjured by the weak to inspire fear. A desperate attempt at control. Now, you all parade about as if you're the divine arbiters of power in the universe. Mobius: We are. [Ep 1]

Loki: So everything is written. Past, present, future. There's no such thing as free will. Mobius: Well, I mean, you know, it's an oversimplification... [Ep 2]

And he also was fine with avoiding chaos.

Loki: Ah, I see. So, when they're finished, what happens then? Mobius: So are we. No more nexus events. Just order. And we meet in peace at the end of time. Nice, right? [Ep 2]

But the most ironic thing is that Mobius in Ep 1 tried to criticize Loki for doing and believing exactly what the TVA is doing and he never seemed to realize it.

Whatever, Renslayer opens up a timedoor telling his she’ll do what she’ll need to do.

Mobius tries to tempt her with an offering:

Mobius: Wait, stop. Look, maybe we can build this into something better together.

And I’d like to know what’s this something better he means. They’ll control people’s will only a bit? Just to make sure only the good guys win? Or what? They’ll simply forbid time travels?

Which would be the TVA purpose if they don’t catch people who go against the sacred timeline and prune them? What are they going to do? Become a private police? Spies? History archivists? What?

So Mobius tries to use the big gun to stop her, the time stick.

Renslayer warns him he’s no danger to her even with that because she’s an action girl and he’s not.

Mobius has his own heroic scene in which he attacks her and he’s sent flying the next second. He tells her to prune him and she doesn’t. Renslayer couldn’t even watch when he got pruned the first time, she can’t do the job herself.

She’s more of his friend than he is Loki’s friend as she didn’t even close him in a time loop in which he gets hurt but leaves him there.

Mobius asks her again where she’s going to go and she says:

Renslayer: In search of free will.

And I’m WHAT IS THIS SUPPOSED TO MEAN? Unless she means she’s going to search for the person in charge, or for power, she just claimed only one person can have free will, the one in charge so is she searching for the TVA boss or for a way to become that herself?

And anyway that’s the last way we see Renslayer so she won’t have the chance to tell us why Sylvie was pruned because it actually wasn’t relevant, it was an excuse to give her a sad back-story.

Depressing.

Back to the Lokis, ‘He Who Remains’ goes on with his propaganda.

‘He Who Remains’: I understand your moral objections to what the TVA does. And my methods are deceptive. But the mission, it never was. Without the me, without the TVA... everything burns.

Loki asks him what he is afraid of which turns out to be him so Sylvie asks him who he is.

Before focusing on his reply I want to point out how the dialogue between the three of them tends to be structured.

Loki says something, ‘He Who Remains’ answers, then Sylvie says something, ‘He Who Remains’ answers then we go back to Loki. Sylvie and Loki take turns in making questions with ‘He Who Remains’ which is not how a discussion goes in the real world. Sometimes someone makes two questions in a row, sometimes another person add a question to the question done, this sort of order is something you get only in a script that tries to balance the screen time of the characters.

Anyway, ‘He Who Remains’ pulls out his whole back-story and yes, he has a back-story and it’s better than Sylvie’s. Which isn’t surprising as he, or better one of his Variants, is meant to be Kang the Conqueror, the next big bad for the movies.

He even hints it in the list of names he says he had.

‘He Who Remains’: Oh, I've been dubbed many names by many people. A ruler, a CONQUEROR. ( Snickers ) ‘He Who Remains’, a jerk.

A conqueror. Kang, the conqueror.

He then proceeds to explain his back-story, confirming what I suspected. Part of the TVA back-story was true, eons ago there were various timelines they came in contact and then decided ‘why not to destroy each other because the bright lure of freedom diminished their life's joy in a mad scramble for power, for identity as they were made to be ruled and…’ okay, he didn’t put it quite in this way but this was, as Miss Minute said, almost the end of everything.

And, apparently, the ones who started the mess were all his Variants. Because having so many Loki Variants might be troublesome but having Kang Variants is apparently apocalyptic.

But then ‘He Who Remains’ reveals that the truth diverges from ‘dogma’ (so yeah he too sees the TVA as a cult). The first Variant of himself and with this I guess he means himself found Alioth, weaponized it and used it to end the Multiversal War. Once their timeline was isolated he just used the TVA to kill the branching timelines. He’s not the devil he’s the one who kept them safe…

…though he’s conveniently skipping he kept them safe until he decided to prune them. But he tells them his Variants are worse than him which really doesn’t promise anything good.

I would say this doesn’t explain at all how he knew what Loki and Sylvie would have done when facing him because the TVA usually knows what’s going on in the sacred timeline by excluding all the other possibilities. If you’re pruned if you’ll go forward, right or back, you can only survive by going left, hence you’ll go left.

There though there’s no one which can prune Loki and Sylvie for saying something different from what’s in the script.

I was thinking the TVA would employ some sort of prophet/prophetess to explain this but no, why explain things? Much better to leave them unexplained and without sense.

Still, he who comes last makes an interesting observation which I was hoping would be discussed in episode 3 but I got no luck.

‘He Who Remains’: You may hate the dictator, but something... ( Exhales deeply ) ...far worse is gonna fill that void if you depose of him.

When there a Void of power, problems always come. The bigger the place, the worse. Because that’s how human works and what history teaches us.

So Loki’s idea that Earth is at war with itself because it’s not united under a single ruler isn’t completely out of a Void (even if it discounts rebellions and attempts at stealing power and assumes he’s capable of ruling a huge planet with lot of people he knows little about and views as inferior). Complete chaos, anarchy, total lack of authority aren’t working ways to handle things. But the TVA sits at the opposite extreme, it’s just too controlling, too trampling of people’s will to be okay.

The TVA is a bad solution, it doesn’t really work, it just seems so because it murders whoever who doesn’t agree. How many lives preserved? And how many more it killed? Did it murder 1.000 for each 10 it saved? More? 100.000 for each 10 it saved? Even more than that? There are whole cities in the Void, how many times did they rest New York? Asgard? The whole Earth? Some other world?

The idea ‘He Who Remains’ went through any scenario makes me wonder again ‘how?’ did he have a time stone like Doctor Strange in “Avengers: Infinity War”? Explanation please?

Loki goes moralistic as well since at this point everyone is going moralistic:

Loki: So you just... continue to prune innocent timelines?

‘He Who Remains’ surprises them telling them he wouldn’t be the one to prune innocent timelines…

‘He Who Remains’: You two would. There are two options! One... you kill me and destroy all this, so you don't just have one devil, you have an infinite amount. Or... you two. You two run the thing.

Basically ‘He Who Remains’ is offering them a choice between complete chaos and complete order, telling them he’ll pass the ball to them.

Loki doesn’t believe he would give up being in control but ‘He Who Remains’ insists he’s just old… which makes sense but… then what about all this being already written and predetermined?

If everything was already written it’s not like he’s giving this up willingly, he’s merely following the script, a script that has to be followed and so whatever his motivation is, is pointless.

I also don’t quite get why he chose Loki and Sylvie, why they were perfect. They even have contrasting ideas, for crying out loud, but since we aren’t explained anything we are just supposed to accept this logic or lack thereof as valid.

‘He Who Remains’: I've gone through a lot of scenarios... trying to find the right person to take this spot. It turns out that person came in two. But it's definitely you two. So, no more lies. You kill me and the Sacred Timeline is completely exposed. Multiversal War. Or you take over and return to the TVA as its benevolent rulers. Tell the workforce who they are and why they do what they do.

Was that actually the purpose? To see Sylvie, that represent chaos and wants to murder him, fight with Loki which represent order and a benevolent ruler?

Sylvie’s turn to go moralistic.

Sylvie: You treated real people's lives like some kind of game.

‘He Who Remains’ shrugs off her words.

‘He Who Remains’: It's not personal, it's practical. Sylvie: It was personal to me.

That’s the real problem with Sylvie. She’s not worried about everyone he played with, she’s worried about what was done TO HER. It was personal TO HER. Who cares about the others. For her revenge she’s willing to sacrifice everyone.

‘He Who Remains’ turns the blame on her.

‘He Who Remains’: Grow up! Grow up, Sylvie! Murderer! Hypocrite! We're all villains here. We've all done horrible, terrible, horrific things. But now, we, you... have a chance to do them for a good reason.

She has to grow up, she’s a murderer and a hypocrite, we’re all bad… but now we can do something for a good reason… and this is messed up, actually.

Let’s try to put some order in this.

Sylvie was hunted by people, lot of people, who wanted to kill her. Yes, she could keep on escaping and never trying to kill them back or doing so when it was the only way for her to escape. It’s a valid possibility if your sense of moral is against killing.

But also deciding to prioritize your life and murdering whoever is attempting to that is a valid choice if you have no problems dirtying your hands and hope in a more normal life.

So okay, she’s a murderer, a murderer that killed for a very personal reason... but there’s a problem here. It’s ‘He Who Remains’ who’s a hypocrite because HE was the same as Sylvie, not the other way around. He has killed countless Variants and condemned her to such a life for a very personal reason, his own survival. It’s practical FOR HIM, to condemn Sylvie and the others, the others do not agree.

If there’s some growing up, they both have to do it as this is survival of the fittest and there’s no noble and good reason like he’s trying to sell them. The TVA saves a really small minority to condemn a huge majority. Keeping the TVA active to save such a small minority because they belong to said minority is not a ‘good reason’. It’s the same old, a selfish reason.

Still, credit when it’s due, this part is interestingly philosophical. However the series contained so many things that don’t make sense I honestly don’t know if it’s interesting on purpose or by coincidence (this show was big on coincidences as well).

And I don’t see why he has to point at Loki when he says they’ve all done horrible, terrible, horrific things when he could actually point at himself, instead, through all the discussion he has tried to put Sylvie against Loki, to make her doubt him… while Loki just lets him. In fact Sylvie looks at Loki as if one would look to someone guilty of something terrible.

Then he informs them they have passed the threshold, the point in which he doesn’t know anymore what will happen.

And I’m again, why could he know things before and now can’t anymore? Explanation please?

Meanwhile the timeline on which that place seems to rest starts to branch.

Loki is confused, apparently he didn’t expect ‘He Who Remains’ to let them decide their fate freely.

‘He Who Remains’ points out that, whatever they chose, things wouldn’t change for him.

‘He Who Remains’: Yes! Yes! Yes! What's the worst that can happen? You either... take over and my life's work continues or you plunge a blade in my chest and an infinite amount of me... start another Multiversal War. And I just... end up right back here anyways. Reincarnation, baby.

Oh, so there’s also reincarnation in the MCU? Are the Variants reincarnations or people who diverged from their chosen path? I’m beyond confuse.

Sylvie says it’s another lie, another manipulation and ‘He Who Remains’ denies it.

I mean… when Loki says manipulation ‘He Who Remains’ goes all ‘Interesting, that your head would go to that. Sylvie, you think you can trust this guy?’ when Sylvie says so he’s ‘Oh. No lie. No manipulation.’

I’ll say he’s trying to manipulate Loki and Sylvie to fight. That’s why there are two of them, to make them fight.

In fact Sylvie goes for the kill without even asking Loki what he thinks about her and he stops her. He asks her to talk about it, but she’s not interested, she just wants to kill ‘He Who Remains’ and that’s why I find them a terrible couple and I don’t get why Loki should love her beyond her being a Mary Sue.

She’s not really interested in Loki’s opinion, in what he wants, in hearing him out. She wants to do what she has always wanted to do, kill the person behind the TVA, not for the other Variants who can fall victims to them but for herself, for her revenge.

It’s not that she doesn’t believe in ‘He Who Remains’, it’s she doesn’t care if he’s telling the truth or not, she just wants to kill him. Loki is not saying they shouldn’t kill him, he’s saying they should think at it, but she’s in a rush to do it. And, at this point, she doesn’t want to believe in Loki’s either.

Loki: Sylvie, the universe is in the balance, everything we know to be true. Everything. I know the TVA has hurt us both. But what if by taking him out, we risk unleashing something even worse? All I'm suggesting is we just take a minute to think about it. I promise you from my heart this isn't about a throne. Sylvie: What was I thinking trusting you? Has this whole thing been a con?

And this hurts Loki because… she’s like everyone else. She doesn’t trust him, she never did.

Loki: Really? That's what you think of me... after all this time? Sure. Why not? Evil Loki's master plan comes together. Well, you never trusted me, did you? What was the point? Can't you see? This is bigger than our experience.

And at this point Sylvie says something very childish.

Sylvie: Why aren't we seeing this the same way?

Or better ‘Why aren’t you seeing this the same way as me?’ because if the problem was ‘we see this differently’ we could talk about why this is it, but if the point is ‘you see this differently’ you are the problem and you should change your way or you’re in my way. And again this proves they’re a terrible couple because being together is also about finding compromises.

Loki’s reply actually seems to miss the point:

Loki: Because you can't trust... and I can't be trusted.

It’s not about what they can’t do, it’s about what Sylvie wants and what he wants. She wants ‘He Who Remains’ dead. He wants her safe and a new life for himself, one in which he won’t have to lie and backstab. He liked her because

Loki: But that's kind of what's great about her. She's different. She's not trying to take over the TVA, she's trying to take it down. And she needs me.

…but he was slightly wrong. She’s trying to take down the TVA yes, but not for pure reasons, but just because she has a grudge toward them. It doesn’t really matter to Sylvie it’s a Fascist organization or what it does to other Variants, she’s just hurt and wants retaliation.

And in this she’s similar to him. He was hurt by his family and wanted the throne not out of ambition but because he was taught that who gets the throne is the one worthy and loved. Getting the throne was his way to soothe his hurt. Sylvie comes from a different back-story, she was taught killing the enemy is the way to solve the problem and that’s why she wants to destroy the TVA, because the TVA taught her destroying something is the way you deal with problems.

They had a different nurture phase, so they came out different.

But as he believes he’s flawed, he sees the problem as a nature’s problem.

She can’t trust. He can’t be trusted. That’s their nature. And it’s not. As Sylvie said when they met

Loki Variant (Sylvie): This isn't about you. [Ep 2]

It’s about her pain. And in a way their fight might parallel the one between him and Thor… and he’s even better than Thor in his efforts to reach her.

When he says they should think about it, he wants to talk with her about it. He’s not saying she has to do what he says, he wanna them think at this together. He’s stalling? Possibly, but he’s showing himself open to discussion which is something.

So, while Sylvie shows she has magically leant Loki’s magic and now can use him to push him away because she’s awesome like that (and note that it’s true Loki magically learnt enchantment, but she explained him how it worked, he never explained her how his magic worked), Loki tries reasoning with her without invalidating her point even though her words about not being able to trust him had hurt him:

Loki: Maybe he's lying! Maybe he's not. The cost of getting this wrong is too great.

When she accuses him of something, he insists that’s not that:

Sylvie: Fine. Do it. Kill me. Take your throne. Loki: No.

But what’s more he proves her he doesn’t aim to hurt her by giving her the chance to kill him. He exposes his throat and let his blade fall. He completely drops the aggressive stance and tries to reason with her from an unthreatening position, giving her all the power so that she doesn’t feel attacked.

He tells her he understands her and it’s true if this is meant to parallel his fight with Thor during which all he could think was that destroying Jotunheim would fix everything. It probably would have worked better if he had explained her why he knows but whatever. He tries to show her he prioritizes her, that he doesn’t want to hurt her, where Thor’s main worry was to protect the Frost Giants. Loki protects ‘He Who Remains’, but make clear he does so to protect Sylvie.

Loki: I've been where you are. I've felt what you feel. Don't ask me how I know. All I know... is I don't wanna hurt you. I don't want a throne. I just... ( Sighs ) I just want you to be okay.

Try to think at how would have been “Thor” if Thor had tried stopping Loki by pointing out how his brother wasn’t the sort who’ll commit genocide, how he would feel bad if he were to do so, how he understood Loki was in pain and wanted him to be okay and destroying Jotunheim wasn’t the way.

It’s interesting in both scenes Loki had to remark it wasn’t about him wanting the throne, it’s always about love. In “Thor” he wanted Odin’s love, in “Loki” he wanted to protect Sylvie whom he loved.

Credits when it’s due, in “Thor”, Thor told Loki he didn’t want to fight him, but he did so by a position of power, he was in a situation in which he could defend himself and the whole ‘I will not fight you, Brother!’ to Loki who had no idea Thor had changed might have felt like Thor looking down on him, looking at someone who wasn’t worth fighting against.

Thor too tried to stop Loki… but the script simply wanted him to be more concerned with protecting Jane and Jotunheim than his brother. Loki instead prioritizes Sylvie. Sadly it’s not enough because she too, like him, is too damaged.

She’s touched by his words… but they aren’t enough. She drops her sword and kisses him… but this is not enough for her. She doesn’t love him enough she’ll gave up on her revenge.

So she steals ‘He Who Remains’ timepad, opens a timedoor and tosses Loki through it. The Timedoor, differently from episode 2, closes quickly so Loki can’t go back.

‘He Who Remains’ meanwhile has enjoyed the show as if it were an amusing, incredible movie. As Sylvie throws away the furniture that divides them and asks him if he’s gonna beg for his life he laughs and says he could do but will never do it. He’s not scared, which is a huge warning sign that killing him out of revenge isn’t the solution, it’s what he wants.

She kills him anyway and he smiles telling her he’ll see her soon then dies laughing.

Sylvie remains alone there and falls sit as she savours how revenge actually doesn’t taste that sweet as they say.

Meanwhile the timeline outside keeps branching madly.

It’s a beautiful view, I’ll have to say this episode has very nice visuals.

Back at the TVA Mobius and B-15 see the timeline branch as well on a screen and I’m confused because the TVA wasn’t meant to be capable to see the timeline past the void but all of sudden they can… or it’s pre Void and the timeline started branching there too? Who knows?

No one at the TVA is doing anything they’re just watching the scene and I don’t know what’s going on.

So everyone has peacefully accept the TVA lied to them and they had to stop working for it but remained at his place?

Renslayer was the only one who believes they had to trust in the system and wanted to fight for it?

That’s impossible to believe honestly, the TVA should be chaos and confusion at this point, with people attempting to cope with the truth and arguing about what to do.

Mobius and B-15 decide that there’s no turning back and, apparently, since they had turned against the TVA, she show is trying to promote them as two good guys/heroes/whatever.

I’m ALL for redeeming characters, really, I’m glad they had changed their ways but it was just done in a very unconvincingly way, EXPECIALLY FOR B-15 who has never showed care for the Variants and was all about pruning them and belittling them with joy, but also for Mobius who was ruined by Ep 4 and had poor dialogues also in episode 5.

Loki is in the TVA room in which Sylvie has tossed him. He’s clearly distraught and sat there for a while until he decides to leave and run out, probably searching for ‘his great friend’ Mobius.

He finds him talking with B-15 about how the timeline is branching and tells him what had happened.

Loki: It's done, Mobius. We made a terrible mistake. We freed the Timeline. We found him beyond the storm. A Citadel at the End of Time. He's terrifying. He planned everything. He's seen everything. He knows everything. It's complicated. Okay? But someone is coming. Countless different versions of a very dangerous person. And they're all set on war. We need to prepare.

He’s so upside down he realizes Mobius doesn’t know what he’s talking about when Mobius asks him if he’s another analyst (probably because Loki is dressed like one).

At this point Loki realizes Mobius doesn’t know him and neither does B-15 who calls for the boots. As he looks around he sees the TVA has changed, there’s no more a statue of the three time-keepers but one of ‘He Who Remains’, or, more likely, of Kang the conqueror.

The episode ends like this and Loki will do better say he was just talking of a nightmare he had or fake temporal insanity if he doesn’t want to be pruned by this new Kang.

Or is it Sylvie who has taken control?

We don’t know, we’re meant to find out in the next series.

So, to sum it up… the initial discussion between Loki and Sylvie was poor and apparently aimed to set up the idea that despite episode 3, 4 & 5 wanted us to believe they were meant to be a couple, the things couldn’t work, thanks for making us waste 3 episodes over this, the meeting with Miss Minute was something that was better to cut, actually let’s cut Miss Minute from the series.

The Renslayer subplot is merely a teaser for the next season. In the Comics she falls for Kang and she basically left in search of him so this might tell us something about future developments.

The whole plan to reveal the truth to the TVA was poorly done, they could have cut the ‘Loki and Sylvie met Miss Minute’ scene and focus more on ‘the TVA discovers the truth’.

I actually liked Mobius and Renslayer’s meeting but, I fear, not for the reasons the author wanted.

There’s tons of things unexplained and confusing in this episode, like the dust in the place, at this point I might even wonder if ‘He Who Remains’ was really there or Sylvie killed an hologram.

Jonathan Majors did a great work with ‘He Who Remains’… on the opposite side Tom Hiddleston’s Loki hardly had a role except for the last bit in which he tried to stop Sylvie.

Even though it was Loki, Sylvie and ‘He Who Remains’ in that room, it felt more like it was a dialogue between Sylvie and ‘He Who Remains’ and Loki had decided to be there solely to support Sylvie instead than for his own reasons and I mean, supporting Sylvie can be a personal reason but he has just… put her in a position of power. It wasn’t as if he was there WITH her, but he was there FOR her and she fundamentally didn’t need nor wanted HIM, she just wanted someone who agreed with her and told her what she wanted right from the start.

In an interesting note this episode remarked again they ARE different people and he’s not an extension of Sylvie who would nods his head when she felt they should nod their head. And Sylvie chooses revenge versus love in a very total way because she’s not even willing to talk over it where, although Loki turned it down, Loki always talked with Thor when they had a fight, he tried to explain himself. Sylvie doesn’t.

Through their fight she just accuses him. She tells him he gets in her way because he wants the throne because he wants to con her, because he wants to kill her. Ultimately when he tells her he only wants her to be okay, she tells him she’s not him, so either she doesn’t want herself to be okay or she doesn’t return the feeling, she doesn’t want him to be okay and that’s all she gives as explanation for her actions.

She doesn’t try to explain how she feels or how the TVA hurt her. She just expects him to understand by osmosis I guess, or because he’s a Loki like her.

It’s an interesting scene, all their fight is worth discussing but also… disregard previous character developments.

He supposed love story with Loki never existed, not even as a teenager experience, the idea of losing him was nothing compared to her wish to murder ‘He Who Remains’. All that incensing about Sylvie being the special, superior female Loki Variant kind of crumbled down in this episode.

Fundamentally she gave up her brain and her love for her wish of revenge and she has played like a pawn in the game ‘He Who Remains’ set for her. He goaded her into not trusting Loki and killing him and she let the guy manipulate her.

The series continued to give her no solid back-story to speak of, her past was just very sad and that’s it, but also skipped on Loki’s back-story entirely with the result they both don’t feel very deep if we just watch the series.

Still I think that the confrontation had a lot of potential but was meant to be set up better.

As for all the things the series left unexplained… I can’t really say I approve. People should want to watch a second season because they enjoyed the first, not because it’s a requirement to understand the first, never mention I’m pretty sure they don’t really aim to explain all that remained unexplained.

We don’t see any more Kid Loki nor anyone explains us the existence of Alligator Loki which are both two huge wastes as they too had a lot of potential. And what about Throg in a jar? He also gets forgotten.

All the points about Loki being a narcissist or not, falling for Sylvie out of narcissism or not remains unexplored. They didn’t dig in a single one of his past family issues and traumas.

The TVA kind of discovered the truth and… that was it because then when Loki is back everything is rewinded.

To sum it up, the “Loki” series had A LOT OF POTENTIAL, but it wasted most of it.

It did a poor use of its awesome actors due to a poor script which turned them OOC or gave them senseless dialogue, it has potentially strong thematic (fascist organization, police abuse, discrimination, passively collaborating with what’s wrong) which didn’t explore at all in a meaningful way, inserted a bisexual character, or two if Sylvie too was bisexual… and then let the whole notion drop as it was completely irrelevant for the plot.

It was set up as a mystery or a crime story which was intriguing… but then failed to deliver as everything happened not following a plan but thanks to plot contrivances happening one after the other.

It could have explored parallel realities, Variants of the same people… but reduced them to a joke that’s mostly uncharacterized.

It could have been all a joke at this point, the “Looney tunes” humour was fun… but no, it wanted to be serious to waste more than half of an episode in “Looney tunes” humour that wasn’t relevant to the plot. And I could go on and on, because there’s plenty of promising bits that… go nowhere.

I mean we didn’t need Loki and Sylvie’s relation to be romantic, if it had been familiar, if Loki were to see her as a long lost twin sister and that was it, someone with whom he wanted to build the sibling relation he failed to have with Thor, it could have worked but no, we needed the romance that… goes nowhere. 3 episodes spent to set up a romance that wasn’t needed and goes nowhere.

And it’s not even a lie, it’s not that Sylvie is manipulating Loki… it’s just that when all is said and done, whatever she felt for him didn’t matter because she wanted to murder ‘He Who Remains’ right then and he told her to wait.

The worse feeling though is maybe that I fear that what I find interesting in some parts wasn’t what the author wanted me to find interesting.

I mean, where I see police brutality and abuse and a wonderful opportunity to discuss of these things… the author seems to see just a funny moment to beat Loki up and humble him and force him to reflect on his bad behaviour. So… I don’t know.

Ultimately the show failed to deliver a Loki story. Loki has a lot of screen time and Tom Hiddleston is great but… he’s not the Loki we knew as, except for a couple of moments in ep 1 & 2, he acts dumb and slow witted, he can’t manipulate anyone but what’s worse he can’t even persuade people when he’s telling the truth and yeah, they gave him back his magic powers but he uses them poorly and lost his fighting abilities.

There was no exploration of his trauma, of what made him ‘Loki’. When asked what makes a Loki a Loki, Loki says ‘independence, authority, style’ but what I wanted to know was what made him HIMSELF, his experiences his trauma, and see him unpack those.

Instead the series only had him say ‘I’m bad, I’m weak, I’m a narcissist’, they didn’t care at all about nurture, they tried to blame all on nature, over and over, especially with the horde of Lokis who’re all backstabbing and longing for power, except the ones who aren’t but we don’t talk about them.

Whatever, I’m done. I’m just sad for how it went and I needed to vent because I really, really hope this series would be awesome, the other series promised well and this series has the potential… but it failed to use it.

#loki #loki odinson #loki laufeyson #sylvie #mobius m mobius #ravonna renslayer #kang the conqueror #hunter b 15 #miss minute #9 worlds study #9 worlds study mcu loki

197 notes · View notes

sserpente · 3 years

Note

I feel like what broke me the most while watching LOKI is the fact that he repeatedly asked about his mother after seeing her future. It’s a nightmare having the ability to watch your future unfold and have the inability to do something about it. I was already sad when Loki turned Frigga down in Dark World, but having Loki witnessing her death and Loki getting to hear Odin say he loved his sons before he died makes it such a sadder (but much needed) scene to witness.

Yes, absolutely! You know, I've already said before that I love the dynamic between Mobius and Loki but I have to add that even though he's a cool character, I don't trust him.

He showed Loki Frigga's death for a reason. I love how around TDW, us saying that Loki blamed himself for Frigga's death was mainly a headcanon, and now it's finally been confirmed as canon--and Mobius used that to get the reaction he wanted and to get him to help him. He certainly helped with Loki's realisation of him not being able to go back to his main timeline and that his fate, at least in the "sacred timeline" or Null Timeline, is sealed. Mobius told Loki he killed his mother when clearly, this isn't true--and he didn't show him how Thor freed Loki after and how he took his revenge on Malekith, sacrificing his life by getting stabbed by Algrim. (And what was Loki supposed to do here? Apologise for not dying after all?)

Loki really needs a hug. He saw some of the most painful moments of his life and I agree with you, seeing this and knowing that it's supposed to be the "proper flow" and that there is nothing he can do about it, is heart-breaking. Those are powerful moments because they run so much deeper. Whatever Loki does, he does it for a reason--it's like he said, he doesn't enjoy hurting people. But when Thor told him that "maybe there's still good in you" and "our paths diverged a long time ago", Thor failed to consider that he contributed to Loki being the way he is as well--being the way he has to be. The same goes for Odin saying "I love you, my sons"--after all, their last interaction before this was him saying "Your birth right was to die", and even Frigga who didn't want to see how manipulative Odin is, who contributed to gaslighting Loki even though she loved him very much. It's not just Loki's fault. He's being too hard on himself. His emotions are valid. His anger, his fear, his grief, it's all valid and he has a right to crave a throne. He has a right to crave control by any means necessary. His drastic measures, wanting to rule Earth and inflicting pain and fear clearly show how desperate Loki truly is. I don't want to call it a cry for help--but this episode today proved that Loki is so overwhelmed with his emotions that, with a steel and stubborn grip, he holds on to the only truth he believed was always a promise, that he was born to be a king. Villains are made, not born.

Especially with Loki's "song of freedom" we got so much insight into his thoughts I feel so blessed already and we're only one episode in! It just makes so much sense. Everything that happened to him and having been told that he was born to be a king led him to believe that being king equals being in utter control. Maybe that is true but that's only on the surface. Now that he's with the TVA who wanna tell him he doesn't belong here, needs to be reset and shouldn't be making decisions over his own life is the greatest lack of control yet. I see now how Tom kept emphasising how the TVA is a place of order and Loki is the God of Chaos. Of course he will not sit quietly and accept his so-called fate in this timeline. This is one of the many things I love about Loki so much. Yes, he loses a lot. But (after his failed suicide attempt) he keeps going, even when he hides insecurity behind arrogance, charm and wit, even if in many situations, he acts out of spite. I could go on forever!

#loki #loki spoilers #loki tv show #loki tv show spoilers #loki tv series #loki tv series spoiler

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professionallydeadinside · 2 years

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OKAY SO ORIGINALLY I WANT TO WAIT AND POST IT WHEN I WAS DONE WITH THE FIRST HALF BUT IM NOT GONNA GET IT DONE BY THE END OF MAY AND ID RATHER GET A BIT OF IT OUT SO HERES THE FIRST BIT OF THE MERMAY FIC ITS 4000 WORDS OF QUEER <3 AND ALSO IM SUBMITTING IT SO TUMBLR CANT KILL IT AND HIDE IT FROM YOU AS EASILY

Read it below!

“My bet is for Alexander to win.”

“Betting against your own sister? You are cruel, Ava!” Ava’s dignified response was to stick her tongue out at Alexedar.

“Hush, Alexe! Ashe is good, but Alexander is from Erhan. That’s all they do over there, train to fight and spar.”

“That’s all Ashe does, too,” Alexedar pointed out smugly. Bubbles rushed from Ava’s mouth as she sighed heavily.

“Well, it doesn’t even really matter. Seems Papa’s going to need us. Look, here’s Angela, on a mission, heading right for us.”

Alexedar sighed, too, though much lighter than Ava had.

Of the three sisters, Angela was the one always sent out to retrieve others for her parents. Seeing Angela swimming towards someone with a determined look on her face almost always meant at least one of the rulers requested them.

That time, it seemed it was Ava and Alexedar the rulers required.

Angela’s golden spaded tail glittered in the streams of sunlight that flittered through the water.

“Ava, Alexe,” she exclaimed as she came closer to them, “Papa needs you both! He says it’s important.”

“Well, it better be important! I’ve been waiting to watch Ashe and Alexander go head to head for a long while!” despite her words, Ava set off towards her parents' throne room with little fight, Alexedar in tow behind her. Angela didn’t follow them; Alexedar guessed she had more missions to carry out.

Ava didn’t look concerned in the slightest as they went closer and closer to her parents' throne room, but Alexedar couldn’t help but feel nervous. The three rulers called on Ava frequently; she was their daughter, and the oldest of them. She was expected to learn everything she could about the kingdom so she could one day be a great queen among great queens. Alexedar, on the other hand, was rarely called on by the three. He was a friend, had even been raised by them, but he was never expected to hold any position akin to ruling. That was always Ava’s right, and so being called to the throne room was very rare for him. It always brought forth the fear that they were going to tell him he wasn’t welcome in their home anymore, and they were getting rid of him. Alexedar knew that was irrational, that they’d never cast him aside, but the fear still remained.

When they entered, the room was full of council members, all clustered around the three thrones that the rulers sat upon. Calib sat on the middle throne, wil Gabriel to his right and Beth to his left. Their thrones were all on equal standing, and all knew the order meant nothing in the grand scheme. Beth was just as likely to answer your call or request as either of her husbands, and they were the same. They were all equals, in every sense of it.

The moment the large doors swooshed open, all eyes turned on the pair, including the eyes of Ava’s parents. The fact all three of them were present further disturbed Alexedar. Most times, only one or two would be present, and it was almost always Calib and Beth. Gabriel always preferred hiding away in his lab and with his studies than being a king, and his presence made Alexedar’s nerves all the worse.

“Ava, Alexedar, come, come. Thank you for coming as quickly as you did. I heard Ashe and Alexander were just beginning to spar when I called upon you. I’m very sorry, I myself desperately wish to be watching that match, but this is important,” Calib rose from his seat and flashed them both an award winning smile, though the edges were strained.

It was odd to see the salmon shark mer visibly unsettled and nervous. Alexedar had the sudden desire to vomit.

“Soon, a delegation from Recol will be arriving to negotiate an alliance with us. Among those coming is King Aeneas’s son, Prince Alocer. I am telling you both about this as you are the only ones I see as capable of handling these discussions out of all the youths who could learn and help. Ava, as the next queen, you shall have to be present so you can learn how a negotiation is handled. Alexedar, you are calm and kind. Someone with a heart can prove a necessity in situations like these,” Alexedar couldn’t decide if he’d rather be told he was being kicked out.

Negotiations with Recol were famously rough affairs. King Aeneas was diplomatic enough, and quite kind, but his wife was the opposite. Fianna was cut throat, and refused to settle for anything less than the best deals. Trade deals were a headache, and the idea of a military alliance being discussed was already giving Alexedar a migraine.

“Forgive me, but I don’t think I understand why I was requested and not another of your daughters. Surely there are others with hearts?” Calib huffed a laugh and shook his head.

“Ashe is far too head-strong, and will likely end up causing a war, instead of preventing one. Angela is kind and bright, but her intelligence is best suited for things other than politics. You, Alexedar, are kind, and capable enough to handle politics. They say the prince is very much like his mother. Who knows, perhaps you will be able to soften him, and keep these negotiations from resulting in any bloodshed,” Alexedar was going to cry.

Fianna’s wrath and stubbornness was legendary, and the thought of getting to meet a replication of that was enough to spark the idea of fleeing Alternate. Alexedar had heard from Alexander that Erhan was lovely that time of year.

Unfortunately, it was too late for him to give further protest, as Ava had already accepted for the both of them.

Alexedar sighed in defeat to himself quietly.

The group was set to arrive in only a few days, days that Alexedar used to complain to Ava and try to prepare himself for assisting in negotiations with Recol. Vast preparations were made during the days, the people of Alternate determined to prove their worth to Recol. The people of Recol were usually dull and boring, but thought they were above everyone else. It was said that parents thought themselves superior to their children, and would care for themselves before their own kin.

Yet, still, they thought themselves above all others.

Alternate was determined to prove them wrong.

The last of these preparations was readying the royal family and council to be presentable, something Alexedar wasn’t accustomed to.

“No, Alexe, you can’t wear the jacket! It’s not dignified enough to meet royalty in!” Ava argued as she darted away from him, keeping his jacket out of reach.

It had originally been hers, and she had let him borrow it when his parents died, but he never got around to returning it. Alexedar practically lived in it, and none, not even Ava, knew how he kept it clean despite never being without it. It was his greatest comfort, and the thought of being without it to meet the Recol delegation made his skin prickle and itch.

Alexedar let out a cry of frustration as he chased after her, “to h—l with dignity! Give it back!”

Not dignified enough, she had said. How dare she? It wasn’t like it was an old, ratty, smelly rag! Old, yes, but you couldn’t tell from looking at it. It looked pristine, good as new, like he had just gotten it that day.

Finally, he was able to grab her pink frilly tail and yank her back. She yelped as she jerked backwards and the jacket slipped out of her grip, which Alexedar promptly snatched and held close to his chest. Ava sighed as she righted herself and eyed him warily.

“C’mon, Alexedar, please? Just for the first impressions? If it’s true and that prince is as mean as his mom, I don’t want him to find something to ridicule you for in the first five minutes of him being here. We can keep it close, too, in case everything gets too much and you need it. Please?” Alexedar stared at her for a long moment before he too sighed and relented. He reluctantly handed the jacket back to Ava and was rewarded with a hug.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m the best, I know. Now, get off me. I have to get ready,” thus, minutes later, Alexedar was standing in front of Alternate’s castle between Angela and a council member he was too anxious to remember the name of, his jacket resting safely in a locked and secure room. If he leaned forward, he could see Ava and make faces at her to make her laugh, which he did to pass the time while everyone else spoke amongst themselves while waiting for the delegation to arrive.

She looked very regal next to her parents and in a long grey dress, her hair done up with pearls. Ashe was next to her in armour, her hair simply floating in the water around her head. Angela was next to her in a golden dress, her hair in a simple braid behind her. Alexedar was next to her, in a black sweater with an open back, the neck tied in the back, leaving ribbons brushing his shoulder blades and spine as he simply floated there. His hair was loose, and too brushed his back, making him constantly want to shiver. There were no sleeves, either. It took all of his willpower and then some not to either run and get his jacket or start crying. The fact it was black made it even more scary. It was bold, and stood out against the rest of him, which was pale and white. Truthfully, if he had been wearing it in any other context but meeting royalty and mers he’d never even seen before, he probably would’ve found it pretty. As it was, he wasn’t wearing it while just messing around with Ava, and was ready to have a nice breakdown.

All conversation stopped and Alexedar was thrust from his thoughts on how uncomfortable he was when the fanfare for the Recol delegation began. Truthfully, there wasn’t much on the delegates to show they weren’t normal citizens, and it took Alexedar a moment to find the prince.

They all wore silver with gems added to the jewellery, with strings of additions ranging from pearls to sapphires to rubies were attached around the base of their tails similar to a sash. Alexedar wondered if the stones had any meaning, as almost everyone had some form of emerald on them. Their actual clothes were all in dark and dull colours. The only reason Alexedar knew their prince was among them was because he had been told, and one of them wore a silver circlet atop his head.

He was an orca, large and with a sort of detached pride. It was like he thought himself better than all others, and was burdened by their inferiority, and, yet, was willing to put up with the world’s incompetence. He had black hair that was slicked back, and his face looked so natural with a scowl that Alexedar wondered if he had ever smiled.

When the Recol delegation stopped before the Alternate council, Calib, Beth, and Gabriel all went forward. Alexedar tried to pay attention, but something about the prince kept him so captivated he could only half listen. When the prince spoke, however, he was all ears.

“On behalf of my father and my home, I thank you for hosting us, and these negotiations. I pray that these talks may be easy and end quickly,” Alocer bowed his head slightly, but did no more to show respect. It was expected, and yet still some used it as a reason Recol people thought themselves above Alternate. They would say that, but it would’ve been far stranger for the prince of any kingdom as large as Recol to well and truly bow to another ruler. No one else of royalty truly bowed to the three, and neither did the Recol prince.

His eyes were dark, a glittering black, and he looked at all of them like he knew everything about them, even the thoughts in their heads.

The three accepted the others gracefully, and led them inside. Alocer moved through the castle like it was his, with an ease and grace even Alexedar lacked, and he had lived there almost his entire life.

Those from Recol were silent as they followed those from Alternate, who were chattering amongst themselves. None from Recol gave any indication Alternate’s castle was impressive in any way at all, they looked at it like it simply was. Like it simply existed. Not good, not bad, just there.

The three were next to Alocer, Ava just a bit behind them. Alexedar was quite a fair distance away from them, yet the prince kept meeting his eye. The first time Alexedar noticed Alocer watching him, he tried to play it off cool, like he interacted with foreign royalty all the time, like he belonged there. It didn’t happen that way. Alexedar had gotten startled and ended up knocking his glasses off his face. They floated for a second before he snatched them back up and shoved them on his face. Once he was able to see again, his eyes darted to Alocer, who was looking away. Despite that, Alexedar could see a corner of his mouth ticked ever so slightly upwards. Alexedar distantly noticed that his face was burning, though it wasn’t until Ava caught his eye and waved at her face that he realised how badly.

Unconsciously, he started to rub his arms in a poor imitation of his jacket. His only saving grace was that no one had seemed to have seen his blunder. Other than Alocer, of course.

They were all led to a great dining hall, a place Alexedar was only familiar with from games he’d play with Ava and her sisters when they were all younger. There was a long, long table that stayed in place only because of chains that connected it to a cathedral ceiling. On all sides of the table was a stone bench, the last reminder that the room hadn’t always been hollowed, and had instead been a block of solid stone. When the room had been hollowed, there had been left tall walls that ended before reaching the ceiling. Those walls had been turned into benches for the table. Alexedar had never been inside the room when it had been prepared, and it was amazing. Food lined the table, scallops and oysters and clams and types of fish he had never seen before, goblets made of spun seaglass at each place setting, large openings made in the walls allowed for sunlight and water both to flow through. It was like something out of a dream, or a fairy tale.

The three sat on one end of the table, the end wide enough to accommodate all three of them, with Alocer on the left side of them, next to Beth. Ava, Ashe, and Angela all sat on the right, beside Gabriel. Alexedar was, yet again, next to Angela and a council member he couldn’t care about. Those across from him were from the prince’s party, though he knew nothing about any of them. From his spot, he could hear Alocer speak, his voice lower than it was outside.

There, he spoke for all to hear. At the table, he spoke only for those nearest to him. He knew it would’ve been rude, but Alexedar was debating asking Angela to switch places with him.

It didn’t take everyone at the table very long to grow comfortable and begin to speak. Once all present started to talk, it suddenly grew very loud, and Alexedar’s previous interest in the room and those in it began to dwindle. Again, he started to rub at his arms.

The council member on his left attempted to ask him his opinion on something, and Alexedar could only stammer out a stilted response. A lock of his hair brushed his hand when it reached his shoulder and he started to tug at it and pull it. The sensation blurred together with the noise, and helped his panic continue to grow. As nonchalantly as he could, Alexedar rose upwards and whispered out an excuse before quickly and quietly fleeing. None seemed to really notice him aside from Ava, who watched him go with worry and concern.

Once the door was firmly closed behind him, he took off down the winding and unending halls within Alternate’s castle. It didn’t take long before Alexedar reached a locked closet, though it had felt like an eternity.

When he finally got the door unlocked with the key he had pulled out of nowhere, he himself had no real knowledge of where he had gotten it, he darted inside.

The closet was a storage closet, with shelves filled with things that had no use or were extra. On one of the shelves was his jacket, draped over the side.

Alexedar’s ears were ringing and his chest was heaving as he grabbed it and slipped it on. The fur on it tickled the back of his neck in a familiar way. The jacket had a slight weight to it that was comforting, comforting enough his breathing slowed.

The room was still and quiet, and he didn’t feel as open or vulnerable as he had at the table. He curled up on the floor, tucking his tail underneath him. Despite all the light in the room coming from dinoflagellates on the ceiling, his tail still glittered and sparkled. Watching the blue glow from the algae reflect off his white tail and scales was mesmerising, and something he had long used to help keep himself calm. As Alexedar watched the light reflect and shimmer, he could feel his glasses slowly float away from his face.

He sighed and reached up to put them back on when the door to the closet opened. Startled, he involuntarily jerked his hand up which resulted in his glasses flying up and out of his reach from where he was curled up. Alexedar’s vision was so horrible, he could only see a blurry silhouette enter the room and slowly reach up to where his glasses were floating.

“You certainly seem to be having a grand time. A better time than I, I’d say,” God was pointing and laughing at Alexedar. That careful, calculated, low tone was Alocer. The prince of Recol had found him, hiding in a storage closet, coming back from the brink of a breakdown.

Alexedar really was going to cry.

He was trying to think of something to say, some quip that would make all of it better, but all he could manage was an attempt at eye contact, despite the fact he couldn’t see where Alocer’s eyes were. He could vaguely see Alocer come closer.

Alexedar watched him warily as he kneeled down in front of him. Alocer flipped Alexedar’s glasses around and leaned forward. Slowly, carefully, Alocer pushed the wide round glasses back where they were meant to be.

Alexedar blinked as the world became clear and sharp again, including the prince.

Up close, his eyes glittered, and, though they saw no less of Alexedar’s thoughts, they felt kinder. Like he wasn’t seeing every minute detail and aspect of him for judgement and blackmail, but simply because he was curious. As though he just wanted to know what all were thinking at every moment simply because. It was unsettling, yes, but not scary or intimidating.

The corners of his eyes were pinched, like he wanted to frown but wasn’t. His lips were pressed together and thin, and his hair was lighter than his eyes, but not by much. The prince did not seem the type to worry for a stranger, and Alexedar was nervous.

The two simply watched each other for a long few moments before Alocer spoke, his face and head still very close to Alexedar. “Your rather sudden departure left the eldest princess in quite a tizzy. She would much rather be here with you than in that hall, I gather. If not for her parents, I’d wager she would’ve ran out with you. Unfortunately, your three rulers forbid it. Fortunately, I was able to escape,” despite the light tone, it was clear Alocer chose his words very carefully, something Alexedar noticed. Nothing he said was said on a whim or an impulse. Alexedar felt like he should say something specific, like there was a response Alocer was waiting for.

“You’re very close,” is what Alexedar ended up saying. Alocer looked surprised, it was clear that wasn’t the response he was waiting for, but he didn’t seem disappointed.

“Ah, forgive me,” he leaned away and Alexedar regretted speaking, “has. . .hiding in a closet helped you, at all?” Alexedar suddenly realised that the prince was very awkward, kneeling on the floor. Gods, his tail must hurt.

“Bit better, yes,” on a good day, Alexedar wasn’t loud. There, he spoke barely above a whisper. Alocer nodded a few times, then looked at Alexedar for a few long seconds.

“You were not wearing that earlier. Why dash to an old storage closet just to put it on?” He was clear talking about the jacket, though his words seemed to only be half for Alexedar, and mostly for himself. Still, Alexedar answered.

“It. . .helps me to calm down. You lot are quite intimidating.”

“I don’t doubt it. But, then, why didn’t you have it when greeting us, or at the table?”

“My friend, Ava, the princess, was worried you and the others would think less of me. Would say cruel things to me,” Alexedar had no real idea why he told Alocer all that. Something about the prince just made him talk and talk.

“They really believe me that heartless?”

“Do your kind not think us heartless, too? In our own way?”

“We think you frivolous fools,” the way he said it, however, made it seem like he didn’t count Alexedar among the frivolous fools. Or, perhaps, Alexedar was a love sick, foolish boy from fairy tales and reading into things that didn’t exist. “You know, you know my name, yet I do not know yours. I am not one to enjoy having a disadvantage.”

“My name is Alexedar.”

“Alexedar,” the prince stretched the word out like he was tasting it. Alexedar had never been the biggest fan of his name, figured his parents had been either drunk or sleep deprived when they chose it, but hearing it in Alocer’s low voice made it not so bad. It actually sounded kind of nice.

He liked it.

“You are Alocer, prince of Recol.”

“Yes. I can only guess you, too, are a prince? I admit, I do not know you nor your name at all.”

“Oh, no, I’m no prince. I’m just a friend of the royals. They let me live here, and I keep Ava from eloping with the gardener's son,” Alexedar huffed a nervous laugh. Him, a prince? No.

“Sounds like good gossip,” Alocer smirked with a bit too much teeth to be completely comfortable before it fell and he sighed, “alas, it will have to wait. I do not think we can continue to hide here much longer before your friend sends guards looking for us.” Alocer rose to his towering height and held a sickly pale hand out for Alexedar.

Alexedar looked at the offered hand and then back at the floor.

“Wear your jacket, too. Should anyone say a word of it, I’ll speak to them myself,” there was a strength and conviction in his voice that made Alexedar believe him.

He took the offered hand and was heaved upwards. His glasses began to slip off again, but before Alexedar could fix them, Alocer already had.

Alocer’s hand lingered near Alexedar’s white hair for a moment while he watched something on Alexedar’s face before he shook himself out of it and brought his hand down. He offered his elbow to the other, “so none think to say anything,” being his reason. Alexedar took that as his reason to touch Alocer.

With their arms linked together, they left the closet.

———————————————————————

(Slightly writing this live while I read it so-) OKAY FIRST THESE POLY RULERS??? GOOD FOR THEM WE LOVE TO SEE IT!!!

Alexedar is really going through it my boy is having a full crisis XD

I ALREADY KNEW ALOCER WAS AN ORCA BUT I FORGOT SO PLEASANT SURPRISE JEJSSKSJ

ALSO CAPTIVATED AT FIRST SIGHT??? Go alexedar i believe in you jsjsjssj

Poor boy getting sensory overload?? Locking himself in the closet lmao go gay boy USING HIS JACKET AS A COMFORT OBJECT PLEASE I LOVE THAT

Oughhhh Alocer being tender with alexedar,,,,,please my heart can’t take this,,,,

SILAS THIS WAS SO SWEET WHAT THE FUCK JSSJJWJSN THIS IS A LOT OF FEELINGS FOR 1 IN THE AFTERNOON BUT I ADORED IT SO MUCH!!!!

#submission #answered #long post #MY EACTION IS UNDER THE READMORE SORRY THE FORMATTING IS WEIRD JSKSKS

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subbing-for-clones · 3 years

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The New Apprentice Part 13

Maul x Apprentice Reader

Word Count: 2.8k

WARNINGS: Pretty sure I got the layout wrong for the Sundari palace but I don’t care. Canon typical violence. Divergence from Canon (obviously by now) mentions to smut

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Just over a month is all it had taken to gain the complete loyalty of the Mandalorian people. If you were being honest with yourself, you were almost surprised. Not in the fact that Maul had been able to accomplish this but at how quickly he had achieved it. The Death Watch members that had remained as your guard had always wanted the head of Satine but now half of the citizens called for it as well while the other half wanted her in prison for life. A month was all it took to remind the people of their rich history and culture that they had all but forgotten Satine had stolen from them. Farm lands were seeded, armor was being forged again, their religion and martial arts were being taught in the schools once again and everyone felt safer than they had in years. They hadn’t realized what they were missing until they had it again. Once they were on track to total planetary independence once again, they wanted nothing more than for the woman who stole it from them to pay.

Maul smiled to himself; his people wanted revenge. How could he not oblige even if it didn’t simultaneously serve to accomplish his ulterior motive? It was time. He had sent Kiara down to the prison with a long-distance communicator so she could falsely convince Satine that she was there to aid her. Before she could get her whole message to her old lover, Kiara destroyed the device. All Obi Wan knew was that the only woman he had ever loved was in danger. Although he thought the perpetrators were members of the Death Watch. He remained ignorant of what he was really going to be walking into.

With Savage out praising Kiara for a job well done, you and your lover were sparring in the court yard just the two of you. Sparring with your lover and Master had become your favorite activity to do together. Well, second favorite you thought as you felt one of the many lovely bruises on the inside of your thigh throb. If you had to describe Maul in a single word it would be passionate. He drew from the well of his hearts more than he probably knew himself. Whether he was making love to you, commanding a room or sparring; every action, every word was embodied by his very soul.

It wasn’t even about training anymore so much as it was a dance with him. The red of your sabers sparked as they clashed and hissed with his joking mock growls as they slashed through the air. The twinkle in his eye that matched yours was permanent during these moments as your bodies glided around one another. The bond you had nurtured during your time together made anticipating one another’s moves effortless. It made victory or defeat almost impossible. Without intervention the two of you would be locked in this dance for all eternity much like an asteroid floating through space. Yes, that’s what it felt like in this moment; drifting through the universe with him.

Days had passed since Savage had trained with his brother. Time between his teachings had grown as the responsibilities piled on both of their shoulders. Savage actually appreciated this, it allowed his relationship with his brother to be just that, a brotherly relationship. Not that of Master and apprentice but not quite equals either. That would come in time. Maul hadn’t grown up like Savage did so the idea was still a foreign one and as far as exploring bonds and relationships went, most of that energy was directed towards you.

It turns out, ruling an entire planet was taxing and time consuming to say the least when done properly. Big surprise. As an attempt to lift some of the weight off of his shoulders Maul had appointed his brother to take the brunt of running the crime syndicates in his name. Savage flourished in his leadership role. He was so intimidating at first glance that no one in the underworld dared question or go against him. Maul only had to be present for the occasional formality and big picture decisions.

The intervention necessary to end your deadly dance came in the form of an intrusive anticipation of Obi Wan’s arrival. When you stumbled your footing, Maul caught you in one of his strong arms and sheathed his saber with his free hand, breaking the trance the two of you had been in for gods know how long.

“My love, are you alright? I haven’t seen you fumble during that particular form since Dathomir,” he ran his free hand across your cheek and if you had a weaker resolve, you would have sobbed at the way he looked at you in this moment. Genuine adoration and worry gleamed in his golden eyes. He looked into you as if you had hung the stars themselves and commanded every ocean in the galaxy. You steadied yourself and cupped his cheek, mirroring his own actions and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips.

“Yes, Maul I’m alright. I’m just a little distracted I guess. When do you think the Jedi will fall into your trap?” Maul smiled at your lack of patience.

“I’m not sure, the message was only sent out to him during the early hours of this morning. Soon I would imagine. A few days at most, a few hours at the earliest.” You looked off to the side and sneered, “should I ever be captured you wouldn’t wait days to come and find me.”

He actually laughed out loud at this as he pulled you into a tight embrace and you seared the memory of his laughter as deeply into your mind as you could.

“My love I would never had let you out of my sight long enough for us to be parted in the first place,” he cooed into your ear as he pressed kisses into your hair.

The funny thing about irony is the fact that you can truly only understand the weight of it in hindsight. If he could go back to any minute between your sparing session and that he had a multitude of possible courses of actions that would have altered the current horror he was facing. He should have put you on a ship and sent you away, temporarily or permanently it didn’t matter as long as you were far away from Mandalore that night. You had even mentioned wanting to take a trip with him to a world covered in sand beaches. He should have left with you right then and there when you suggested it. Even if nothing could have been done to alter the course of what had occurred, he wished he had held you a little tighter, kissed you a little longer, told you he loved you one more time before night fell.

He hadn’t sensed his old master’s presence until it was almost too late. His eyes widened and he ordered you to hide your force signature like he had taught you and to run. Run as fast and as far away as you could. You had never been one to argue with him during emergency situations, you had trusted him to make the right calls when it mattered most. Perhaps he should’ve kept you by his side in that moment. He didn’t know. He wished you had never come back.

You had felt Maul’s immediate panic the moment you sensed another strong presence, when he told you to run you didn’t hesitate to follow his order. Leaving your lover and his brother, your best friend alone in the throne room to face an unknown foe broke you in a way you had never broken before. You slipped behind the throne and plunged yourself into the hole beneath it that led to an escape tunnel and ran as silently as you could through the hidden passage way that fanned out through the palace.

You exited the tunnels from behind a tapestry that hung from the stone wall near one of the many side entrances. A ship you didn’t recognize was landing, rather poorly, not far from your location. You did however recognize the Jedi that came running out of it. When his eyes locked with yours you felt his rage radiate from him but his voice remained calm when he spoke.

“So, Maul is behind the coup. Where is Satine and where is your Master?” he held the hilt of his saber in his hands but didn’t ignite it just yet, thumb hovering over the activation button.

“Otherwise occupied at the moment. Your timing is impeccable I must admit,” your hands hovered over your own dual hilts strapped to each leg. Both of you waiting for the other to make an aggressive move, you circled around one another. You couldn’t let Kenobi pass you, not now. Not while your master was dealing with this new threat. You had only heard Maul speak of his former master on two occasions. Both of which had a spark of the emotion you felt through him when he told you to run. If he really was battling the powerful Sith Lord he couldn’t risk Kenobi coming and adding an opponent to the list. The answer to the true question that glinted in your mind would decide the outcome of the night. Did the Jedi fear your Master or his more?

Both you and the Jedi snapped out of your unblinking stare when a flaring pain ripped through the force. He turned to you, “what in the name of the force was that?”

You gulped in worry of your lover’s condition. You couldn’t run you had to help him. His last order was one you could not follow, “his master is here.”

“Dooku is here?” You actually gave yourself a mere second to scoff at his ignorance, “Dooku was not his master. Dooku is the apprentice he took when you debilitated Maul.”

Obi Wan stood there in shock. The council had started to suspect that Dooku was in fact not the Master but the apprentice. If the true Master was here, the man who orchestrated the clone war, and Maul was fighting him in this moment; perhaps they could end everything right now. End the war, stop the never-ending meat grinder and save the lives of the clones he cared for; his commander. As if the both of you thought the same thing at once, you took off running back to the throne room together in a temporary alliance but when you arrived it was empty.

One of the massive windows was shattered and you could hear Maul’s cry pierce through the night. You hesitated, knowing your lover didn’t want you in this fight. To his credit, the Jedi did not hesitate along side you. He leapt through the opening and you watched through wide eyes as he landed between a cloaked figure and Savage, blocking a blow that would have undoubtedly killed the golden Zabrak. As Kenobi engaged with the mysterious figure you searched the courtyard for your lover, the same place the two of you were sparring in this morning. You found him laying crumpled, aftershocks from being electrocuted still caused tremors. You leapt down beside him, worry causing your mental wards to slip. You reached for your beloved Master while Savage and Kenobi battled Sidious. Maul’s eyes widened when they focused on your concerned face.

“You can’t be here. I told you to leave, you have to leave now. You have to be gone already,” he pulled himself to his feet with a groan and pushed you behind him in the same way he had shielded you from Savage in the past, “Go. Now.”

The cloaked figure force pushed his two attackers into the stone wall, knocking them unconscious from the impact. A light trail of blood followed their wake as they slowly slid to the ground in slouched positionings. The hooded old man turned his attention to Maul, no, to you.

“So this is what you have truly been hiding from me my former apprentice. Not this planet, not the little clubs you have taken over in the underworld; this creature.

“You will not harm her,” Maul ignited his saber once again and kept his body covering you. You crouched behind him, both weapons held in a reverse grip one behind you, at the ready to slash forward and the other shielding your Master’s abdomen. Not unlike the wolf that protects her mate’s throat during a stand-off.

Sidious cackled coldly, “I have no intention to do so,” he pointed his eyes back to you while you narrowed yours at him, “you have great power girl and it is being wasted by your current tutor. He is not a Sith. He is a poor excuse of an assassin who should’ve died long ago. Despite his survival he failed. Do you really think you can learn anything from a man who had to have a witch put him back together piece by fleshy piece?”

You did not answer. You allowed him to continue his monolog, stalling for time so you could meld with your Master, minds dancing with one another in a sort of battle meditation. If you were to succeed you had to work as one, both extensions of one another. You weren’t ignorant or arrogant enough to deny the utter weight of the power before you. This wasn’t a battle for you to win, this was a battle for you to survive.

Sidious realized what the two of you were doing and lunged, saber going straight to Maul’s chest. You flicked the wrist of the arm that guarded him and parried his strike allowing Maul to take a step forward to block his Master’s second blade. You spun around him with the weapon you had ready behind your back but were blocked before you could make contact with his throat. Thus began another dance. If you had allowed your mind to wander you would’ve wondered if the sight could have been considered beautiful. A total of five crimson lightsabers swung and clashed in violent sparks leading trails of light in their wake. Ground was given as equally as it was gained, despite the perfect mind meld you were performing with your master and the decades of training between the two of you it seemed like all you could accomplish was to keep up with Sidious.

Just as the Jedi and the other Night Brother were starting to stir Maul’s concentration was interrupted by concern for his brother the effect was immediate and brutal. You weren’t in position to be able to block Sidious’ swing that took Maul’s good leg at the knee nor the lightning that sprang from his finger-tips. You howled in rage, watching your Master crumple to a smoking pile, barely clinging to life. He wouldn’t survive another hit like that. Sidious turned to sneer at you as if he could read your thoughts. You sheathed your blades and flipped over the top of him just as lightning left his fingers again. You dropped your hilts and stretched both arms in front of you absorbing the energy directed to kill the man you loved. A new kind of rage boiled in your soul, clenching your teeth and flexing your legs to keep you grounded you did not halt or block his blast but rather, absorbed it. Allowing it to fuel you. Your hair billowed around you like you stood in the center of a hurricane; your eyes blown with the power that coursed through your veins. You barley noticed how Savage ran to his brother’s aid while Obi Wan sat frozen equally in awe and in horror.

“That’s it my newest young apprentice, let the hate, the fear and the rage fill you up. Harness it, use it.”

“I will never be yours old man,” you growled with the effort to stay awake, “you will never win this.”

“Why my dear, I’ve already won.”

Your power had depleted as soon as he spoke, allowing the shocks to reach you with no defense. You could accomplish a great many things with the force but your well wasn’t nearly as deep as Sidious’. Your vision darkened in the corners and slowly seeped until all you could see was the black and feel yourself falling into bony arms. It was seeing you fall that finally snapped Kenobi out of his trance and Maul awoke just in time to see his master absconding with his apprentice, his love, the woman he was to ask to marry him. His defeated cry rang through the air as did his anguish through the force. He tried to give chase behind the Jedi but you and your captor was long gone.

This was not a battle to win, this was the battle you had to survive and thanks to your sacrifice, for now you, your master, his brother and the Jedi did just that. Survived an encounter with power and death themselves.

Tag list, please let me know if you want to be added or removed:

@the-grey-jedi

@gotham-city-uber-driver

@thundersheild

#darth maul x reader #maul x reader #sith apprentice #sith reader #maul x sith reader #swtcw #tcw #star wars #star wars au #the clone wars #tcw au #swtcw au #x reader #fanfiction #darth maul fanfiction #sith warrior

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multi--kpop--fanfics · 3 years

Text

There’s Blood On The Crown

prince!Xiaojun x queen!reader

genre: angst, horror, royalty!AU

warnings: heavy dark themes (blood, major character death, betrayal)

Part of THE CROWN - a collab call by @earth-to-that-asian

Word count: ~1.7k

Author’s note: The fic was beta read by @jaemotel and @intokook , who also made the header (thanxx bby💕). Inspired by the song Intro: Crown by Purple Kiss

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What do you say,

What if I ruled the world?

“Now, you may rise, Your Majesty, Queen Y/N”, the priest announces and you rise from your knees, the diamond crown resting proud but heavy on your head. You walk towards the balcony of the castle and look down, where the rest of the civilians awaited for you. You were their Queen now, the one who would guide them through thick and thin, especially after your beloved husband’s death, the late King Kun.

“All hail the Queen!”, the crowd chants as you raise your hand and wave, the beaming smile on your face acting as a facade, masking your true feelings - uncertainty, sorrow and most importantly, fear.

Fear, because you trusted no one in the council. They never liked you in the first place, not only because you were the late King’s wife, but because you were also a very skilled fighter, one of your most valuable assets, hence why you were the Grand General of your kingdom before getting married to Kun.

These weasels hated seeing a woman in power, simply because they wanted that power for themselves. But none of them had the guts to step up and claim the crown. They only knew how to scheme, bribe and conduct murders without ever getting blood on their hands.

There was only one person you could trust, the only one who truly recognized your strength and dedication to the crown - Prince Xiaojun, Kun’s brother and your brother-in-law. He was the only one who welcomed you with a warm smile and would always be respectful towards you. Everyone in the kingdom knew of his gentle nature and the civilians were always delighted to see the two of you take walks through the town. He treated you like family. And family is always there for you, just like Xiaojun today. You turn your head back and smile at him, an equal smile spreading across his handsome face. However, by the time you have turned your head back, his smile is instantly replaced by a clenched jaw and a stern gaze, burning with hatred and jealousy.

Nobody knows

It means nothing to me

Xiaojun enters the throne room, fully-armored, his sword sheathed on his back and his hunting knives strapped on his sides. You were seated in the throne, your white cape falling gracefully around you, the diamond crown and your silver chest armor shining from the sunlight that is creeping through the colored glass windows. Your image is a sheer contrast to Xiaojun’s, his armor being pitch-black, almost resembling an angel of Death.

“Ah, Xiaojun, what a delight to see you!” you state, smiling to him. “I haven’t seen you wear this armor in a long time. May I ask what’s the occasion?” you ask with curiosity. “I have decided to go hunting” he replies nonchalantly and you smile even wider, unaware of the true meaning behind his words. “That’s wonderful! Perhaps I could join you? I’ve been dying to leave the castle gates and get my blood boiling through some action” you slightly pout, albeitly tired from sitting around and letting your armor and sword get rusty.

He chuckles at your reaction and he unsheathes one of the daggers from his arm and traces his finger along the edge of the blade. “I will not have to leave the castle to go hunting… In fact, my prey is right in this very castle” he states and takes slow yet steady steps towards your direction. “I-I don’t think I follow..” you stutter, fear starting to take over your senses. “What I am trying to say, dear Y/N, is that my true prey is not just within this castle - It’s right in front of me”. The realization then hits you.

It’s invisible but you know it’s mine

So where do you see yourself?

“You want the throne?”, you ask in shock, not wanting to believe that the one person you trusted ever since you stepped your foot in the castle was the one who wanted your fall. “I don’t want just the throne. I want the power that comes along with it”, Xiaojun admits, his ominous gaze fixated on you. The imminent danger awakes you and you yell with all your power towards the throne door.

“GUARDS!” and within seconds, your two strongest guards barge through the throne room, clad in heavy armor. “Prince Xiaojun has attempted murder against the Queen and is hereby guilty of commiting betrayal to the Crown. Seize him at once!” you yell and the guards point their weapons towards Xiaojun, who has seemingly raised his arms in surrender. “The accusations Her Majesty has made against me are completely false!”, he bites back, “Besides, I haven’t attempted murder..”, he adds and silently pulls out another dagger from his sleeve, “..Yet”.

In a split second, he throws the daggers towards the guards and he hits them both in the blind spot of their armor, their cloth-covered necks, the sharp blades of the dagger cutting through the flesh. The guards are now flat on the marble floor, their lives slowly slipping away from their bodies that lay in blood. After recovering his daggers from the dead bodies, Xiaojun hears the familiar sound of a blade being unsheathed. He turns to you and he sees you holding your sword, your cape discarded on the floor, standing a few meters away from him.

“Finally, the queen has stepped down from her throne!” he spits, his voice dripping venom. "The Queen has a crown and she will do everything to protect it. Even if it means killing the prince", you prepare yourself and get into a fighting stance. "How ironic, to share the same goal at a moment like this", Xiaojun points out and unsheathes the sword from his back, "It's a shame you won't be alive to witness my success".

I am running for the crown

I keep breathing when you drown

You charge at Xiaojun with full speed, your sword in a secure hold. He throws a dagger at you to cut off your advance, but you duck down in the last second and you avoid it, closing the distance between you in the meantime. You fling your sword upwards, in an attempt to cut through his waist armor, but he is fast enough to parry your attack with his own sword. "You're fast, I'll give you that. But not fast enough", he mocks and pulls another dagger from his thigh, landing a deep cut on your forearm, making you cry out in pain.

The blood is staining your pristine blouse, but you don't care - you only want to stay alive in order to defeat Xiaojun. You kick his knee with full force and he groans, falling on his knees. "You know better than underestimating my skills, Xiaojun", you hatefully spit back and get up. You switch your blade to your intact arm and swing it towards his face, but he raises his arm and catches the blade mid-air. "I don't - I'm just reminding you how inferior your skills are compared to mine" he replies and holds the blade still, his fist now bleeding from the sharp edge. "You haven't even landed a proper cut on me, yet your arm is still bleeding from a mere dagger", he continues and stands on his feet, twisting his arm and the blade as well.

You grit your teeth as you fight back the pain from your own arm being twisted and you lift your leg to kick him in the face, but alas, he's fast enough to swing his sword again and land another cut on you, this time on your leg. You feel the muscle joints being ripped apart and you scream once again, the blood gushing from the fresh wound. Xiaojun takes advantage of your vulnerable state and pulls the sword out of your grasp and throws it at the other side of the throne room. He then kicks you on the chest and you fall flat on your back, the diamond crown falling from your head. You try to stand your ground, but Xiaojun immobilizes you with his own body.

"It's truly a pity, Y/N. We could have been the most powerful and loved royals in the world… But you just had to fall in love with the fool of my late brother, didn't you?", he asks and caresses your cheek, the pretentious affection making you scrunch your face with disgust. "You will never be like Kun, you monster" you grit your teeth with anger, "Do you know why? Because he was always faithful to the people. Because the people are the true crown-"

You never get to finish your sentence, as a dagger is piercing your throat, ridding you incapable of breathing. The stream of blood starts pooling around your spasming body, staining the marble floor, your clothes and the diamond crown that lays next to your head.

I believe myself no doubt

Xiaojun watches your last moments with a blank expression on his face, still on top of you. "Ironic, isn't it? The King and his Queen, dying by the same hand, clad in the same armor. Truly, the most perfect of tragic endings". You are unable to answer, the last of his words dealing the finishing blow to your form. You have stopped moving and a single tear falls from his face. "Even in death, you are still the most beautiful woman I've seen in my whole life, Y/N" he whispers and leans in to kiss your now lifeless lips. "Worry not, my love, you may meet your beloved husband now. The crown is in good hands".

He stands up and takes the blood-stained crown in his hands. He places it on top of his head, the blood dripping on his soft blonde locks. He slowly walks towards the throne, the edge of his sword scraping the marble floor and creating a line from the blood on it - your blood. He looks at the painting that rests above the throne, a painting of you and King Kun smiling fondly, wearing the same crown that now rests on Xiaojun's head.

"You know, both of you were wrong. I never betrayed the crown. In fact, I was the only one who did everything to protect it", he speaks as he sits down on the throne, "And I succeeded, my beloved family. All thanks to you. You may now rest in peace", Xiaojun says with a soft smile on his face, making him look like an angel.

An angel of Death.

My Lord

How come I never lost my faith?

#xiaojun angst #wayv xiaojun #xiao dejun #royalty au #wayv angst #horror #the crown: a collab call #wayv fanfics

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threadofdestiny · 3 years

Text

Magnolia (Bakugou x f!reader)

Feudal Japan AU

Shogun!Bakugou x Midoriya’s sister!reader

Summery: Her mother, lady Midoriya Inko, had once told her that the gods had predestined a path for every single person. All she had to do was follow the path and trust that it would lead her to happiness. But how could (Y/N) find happiness in a political formed marriage with her brother’s rival, a man known for being brutal and cold hearted?

Warnings: sexual content in later chapters / period-typical-sexism / strong language / violence / Drama / Angst / Fluff / Slow Burn/ political marriage / Reader is Izuku's sister / period-typical-discriptions like vague mentions of longer hair to form typical hairstyles or specific wardrobe / Bakugou is not good at feelings / Bakugou is a mean, explosive boi / third-person perspektive

Wattpad

AO3

If someone wants to be tagged, just let me know :)

Chapter 1, Chapter 3

Chapter 2

The Emperor's Order

"...So, to sum it up in a few words: The situation in the north is steadily worsening!", Aizawa finished his report in a monotone voice while rubbing one of his dry eyes. Dark circles around them adorned the man's tired face and testified the many sleepless nights he had endured.

With a suppressed groan, Toshinori settled into the ornate chair at the head of the table as he nodded to his dark-haired general, while he placed his hand over the badly healed injury he received a long time ago. His gaze wandered intently over the huge map of his kingdom as he considered the small figures carefully placed on the neat leather. "We will have to reinforce the borders there, there and there. Shigaraki is getting more and more brash every time, attacking small villages and troops regardless of losses.", the Emperor replied, equally exhausted, before turning to his youngest Shogun, who had taken a seat at his table:"Young Bakugou, you took over the late Shigaraki's lands after the attack against the throne was averted. His forces have been crushed, but there are enough signs that he is still moving within your and Aizawa's borders. I will order that you receive men from the other shogunates to better contain the danger. So prepare yourselves for the gathering of new samurai and soldiers." The young man who was addressed by Toshinori nodded somberly before scribbling something down on the paper that lay on the table in front of him.

"However, I have not called you together today mainly to discus matters of war.", once again sounded the clear voice of the frail emperor, who had once been the strongest of all samurai. However, this was before his time as the head of his empire. Back when his mentor had ruled over this country and he had been his loyal general, as the symbol of peace. But this had been in the past for what felt like an eternity. "We will have to talk about the fact that I have neither heirs nor living family members who could take my place should I loose my life early. My health is not what it once was. So it is urgently time, now that the situation is getting worse, to talk about my legacy if we are to prevent a war for the throne if I may pass away!", explained Toshinori as he looked each person firmly in their eyes. His bony hand wandered over his ribs massaging the old injury that had made him the man he was today. Despite the fact that his body was only a shadow of its former self after the tragic attack, his eyes and voice still showed the sharp mind that Toshinori possessed. No one dared to raise an objection as he steered the topic in that direction, knowing full well how urgent the matter was. "Now that my health is slowly declining, many have their eyes set on the throne and enough have already tried to seize it by force," he continued to speak as he saw his loyal men tense at his ominous words. Midoriya Izuku swallowed hard as he heard his mentor's insinuations. The thought that Shigaraki himself had almost succeeded in putting these plans into action sent a shiver down his spine. "Accordingly, after much thought, I have decided to declare Midoriya Izuku as my heir. With the young Todoroki Shoto, who will inherit the largest shogunate in the south in due course, and with Bakugou, who will guard the northern borders. I see this as a steadfast cornerstone for the coming future.", Toshinori finished his speech without further ado, while he looked into the now shocked faces of his former students. General Aizawa, on the other hand, did not seem surprised to hear the emperor's plans.

"Your H-Highness. I-I'm not sure if I'm up to this!" breathed Izuku in shock, while Bakugou on the other side of the table snorted derisively. The young shogun was one of the most loyal men of the crown, and yet he wasn't exactly known for having a friendly disposition. He and the green-haired samurai did not have the most loving relationship with each other. Since childhood, they had learned the way of the bushido together under the protective hands of Aizawa and Toshinori. Side by side they had grown into the men they were today, but their different personalities had always ensured that they could never completely let go of their rivalry, even if they had already proven in the past that they could work together if they had to. Bakugou detested Izuku's indulgent, soft traits. That a man of his disposition had managed to keep up with the proud and talented boy had put a damper on him over and over again. Bakugou was a goal-oriented and fierce young samurai who had worked his way to the top with only his own strength and steely will. He was stubborn, ruthless and temperamental, but he had proven many times, that he was a good leader and loyal comrade despite his personality. His reputation as a bloodthirsty warrior however, made even the most experienced swordsmen tremble, perfect for the role as the warden of the northern borders. Someone like the young shogun would only take orders from someone he truly respected. It was therefore completely inconceivable to Izuku that someone like Bakugou would ever accept him as his emperor.

Worried, the green-haired man looked briefly at his former fellow pupil who stared him down in surprising silence with his deadly red eyes. Actually, Izuku would have expected Bakugou to be enraged after the emperor said that his rival should become the next heir to the throne, but instead of freaking out, the man just clenched his jaw and watched him with an iron expression. "You are well trained, young Midoriya. I am certain, that you will grow into this role, with my guidance. Of course, I am equally aware that you and young Bakugou have a somewhat bumpy relationship. But neither of you is a fool, which is why you know full well that such an alliance is exactly what this country will need in the future. You will have to face many people in your life who will question you. However, with Bakugou by your side, you will be able to overcome them. You as my heir will become the new symbol of peace, while you should consider young Bakugou as your future general. He as your sword and shield should be able to secure the future we all strive for in the depths of our being, don't you think?" Toshinori confidently assured before turning to Bakugou, who was now glaring down at the table with his arms folded in front of his chest. He had averted his gaze with a snort after the emperor's last words, but to everyone's surprise, he had not voiced any objections.

"In fact, a desirable thought occurred to me yesterday during the introduction of the young debutantes, which is why I have come to the conclusion that I would like to solidify this alliance I envision for the future with a consolidating bond.", the emperor declared after a short break, while he pulled out a prewritten contract from one of his long sleeves. "W-What do you mean?", rang out Izuku's indignant voice, while he was giving Bakugou an anxious look out of the corner of his eyes. The young shogun also seemed to wonder in which direction the conversation seemed to lead, but he remained silent as he waited concertedly for his emperor to continue speaking:"Well, you and Bakugou have reached an age where it makes sense to marry and start a family. Bakugou my not have any siblings, but coincidentally, you possess a younger sister of marriageable age. What alliance is more solid than that of a family brought together?" "B-But isn't this a somewhat hasty decision! I haven't even had a chance to look around for other families who would be sufficient for her.", Izuku tried to object as he imagined in horror of having to give his sweet, loving (Y/N) to his ruthless, temperamental rival. "Are you saying I'm not good enough for your damn sister, Deku? Or were you not listening just now? We are on the brink of a fucking war!", the blond shogun growled angrily as he slammed his fist down on the table, while his patience was wearing thin. Bakugou's body tensed dangerously as he made a move to rise threateningly while staring down at his former fellow pupil in offense. Panicked, Izuku looked from the emperor to the shogun, only to shake his head hurriedly to placate the temperamental man.

"N-No, it's just... I... didn't think you would agree... a-and... well...", stammered the green-haired man, while he hurriedly waved off that he was not happy about the outcome of this conversation. Of course, Izuku saw that this would be a solid alliance when viewed from a political perspective, but it did not change the fact that he did not feel comfortable with the thought of having to give his sister to Bakugou. "I think this is an excellent opportunity to bury your hatchet. An official connection between your two families will strengthen the throne on which you will sit in due course, Midoriya. Fewer people will dare to go against you if it is clear that the two of you support each other.", General Aizawa interrupted his former students with a bored tone as he placed his hand on Bakugou's shoulder to stop him from jumping over the table and strangling his rival on the spot. "Then it is decided! Young Bakugou will marry Young Midoryia's sister.", the emperor declared with a confirming nod. Swallowing, the head of the Midoriya family dropped his objection when he realized he was outvoted. Tormented, he thought about how he should prepare his sister for a man like Bakugou, while said man was surprisingly cooperative and collected despite the fact, that he will have to marry the little sister of his childhood rival.

The presentation of the debutantes at the imperial court had been a resounding success for the venerable Midoriya family. No other young lady had received such high praise like the daughter of this house. Not only her mother, but also her brother, Izuku, had beamed with pride and embraced his sister directly in his strong arms after they escaped the piercing eyes of society when they had finally arrived at their home after a long afternoon.

The young girl, however, would not have thought that the euphoria would be dampened just one day after the festivities, but when Izuku had returned from the audience with the emperor, he had looked exhausted and unhappy. Reddish spots from the stress he had experienced covered his cheekbones that was dotted with freckles. His green eyes shone with sorrow as he retreated unceremoniously to their late father's study, leaving her alone with their mother in the parlor, without much more than a tired greeting.

His little sister had made such a flawless performence, which even he had only been able to admire with bated breath. Jealousy had almost gripped him a little when he had observed how fearlessly and successfully she had been able to face up to this task at her tender age. Despite the fact that he was now one of the most powerful noble warriors of his generation, even nowadays he was still a rather reserved and shy man. When he was her age, he would not have been able to step so fearlessly towards the emperor of that time. But does that mean that his gentle sister would also be strong enough to be able to stand by the feared shogun's side? What if Bakugou turned his dislike of Izuku to (Y/N) just because she shared his blood? He couldn't bear the thought of the latter possibly suffering from their difficult relationship.

Izuku's hands had buried themselves desperately in his full, wavy hair as he had bent over the emperor's written order. The hours passed in the small stuffy room without the young lord truly registering it. Only the wandering of the sun, which constantly changed the incidence of light through the window, testified that time had not stopped, but no matter how long he sat there, the young lord would not think of a solution to this precarious situation.

How could he explain to his sister that she had been promised to a man just one day after her debut? Izuku had wanted to give her a say in the matter who she was going to marry in the future, but now his hands were tied, for even as the heir to the emperor, he did not have the right to ignore the crown's decision. The entire situation was an unbelievable catastrophe in the eyes of the young head of the family. He doubted that a simple wedding would allow him and Bakugou to put aside their differences. Even worse, the man now had something in his hands that Izuku loved with all his heart. The green-haired heir was a family man. He adored his mother and sister and wished only the best for them.

Bakugou, on the other hand, was a person who had forgotten how to feel tender feelings for someone else after he had buried his vulnerability under all the blood he had shed in the past. He was someone who had learned how to hate more than how to love. Izuku could not imagine that (Y/N) could be happy at this man's side. That was what bothered him the most. His childhood rival was not a bad person, although he had done some pretty bad things in the past. He trusted Bakugou to do the best for his country's security, but was a brute like him also able to protect the fragile heart of a sheltered girl? Bakugou hated Izuku. That much was certain. So would he hate his sister, as well? The thought that she might be stuck in an unloved marriage caused Izuku's heart to contract painfully.

Completely lost in his own thoughts, the young householder only noticed how much time had passed, when a servant had served him tea and food in the early evening. As if spellbound, he had been looking at the letter that sealed his sister's fate. With a deep sigh, the young man slumped down before lifting his head to rise his gaze at his servant:"Bring me my sister, please!" Izuku commanded before watching him bow and leave.

It had taken only a few moments for (Y/N) to enter the room with a look of concern. She had neither kneeled nor indicated a bow when she had entered the study, as such formalities were not expected in front of Izuku. He and his sister were very close, even if he hadn't spent much of his life growing up with her. "Is everything all right, brother?" she asked cautiously after approaching the table where Izuku had been huddled, unchanged, for several hours. "I have important news for you!" he sighed as he gestured with his scarred hand for her to sit across from him. "The emperor was very fond of you.", her brother began with a sad smile as his sister sat down. He watched as she placed her hands demurely in her lap and returned his expression gratefully. "... In fact, he was so excited that he had personally ordered a wedding between you and one of his closest followers.", he explained hesitantly as he watched sudden surprise appear on his sister's countenance. Completely perplexed, (Y/N) looked up at him as she absorbed the pronounced information. For a brief moment, her attention swung to the document bearing the Emperor's seal before she looked back at her brother, gulping. This turn of events had been completely unpredictable for her. The youngest Midoriya's heartbeat stopped for a moment when she realized that her fate was already sealed with this document, before different families could have come to them at all. The thought of not being able to control the further course of events made her truly afraid, even if she tried not to let it show. She didn't want her brother to feel even more agitated than he already was, because neither of them could do anything about the emperor's decision. "W-Who is it?", she asked accordingly without making any effort to speak out against the decision. However, the pained expression on her brother's face only caused more unease to spread through the pit of her stomach.

"... Bakugou Katsuki!", replied Izuku after a long hesitation. A shiver ran down (Y/N)'s spine when she heard the name of her future husband. Silence spread between the siblings for a moment, while (Y/N) tried to swallow the rising lump in her throat. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes before quietly clearing her throat: "Isn't he one of the other two lords who had studied together with you under the emperor?", (Y/N) asked silently, while she tried to hide the shaking within her voice. Unfortunately, her brother had not often mentioned Bakugou in his stories, so her information on him was exceedingly sparse. However, she knew enough rumors that circulated around this man, although of course it was impossible to tell which ones actually held a shred of truth. Nodding, Izuku cleared his throat as he reached for his teacup, which already felt rather cool in his scarred hands. "He is the youngest man to be elevated to the rank of shogun. He rules over a large part of the northernmost lands. He... is, in consideration of his status, an... excellent match...", he explained hesitantly, before covering part of his pained expression with the richly decorated porcelain. (Y/N) was thoughtfully silent as she weighed this detail internally. A man appointed to the rank of shogun by her current emperor could not be a bad person, could he? What kind of man was Bakugou Katsuki? Was he the bloodthirsty warrior like everybody whispered behind his back, or was he a loyal supporter of the crown, who was just misunderstood? Izuku did look unhappy, but maybe it was just because Bakugou was his rival. That much, after all, she was aware of. With clenched hands, (Y/N) tried to tell herself that this man didn't have to be her downfall, however, she could feel uncertainty raising in her stomach. No matter how she twisted or turned it, she would have to somehow come to terms with her situation without falling into a panic attack.

Clicking his tongue, Bakugou downed his tea before brashly taking his dinner, while he ignored his companion. "Tell me, why are you in such a bad mood tonight?", Kirishima persistently inquired for the third time, while he also helped himself to the food that the servants had provided for their master. One of the kitchen maids blushingly placed a bowl of rice in front of him and received a beaming smile from the charming, always good-humored samurai. Bakugou grunted meaninglessly and continued eating in silence without giving his companion a proper answer. "We could be at the Kaminari family's celebration right now. But you decided to throw our plans out the window.", the red-haired man sighed in dismay as he watched his best friend closely. "The festivities at the Kaminari family would certainly have been a good start to get to know the families of the young unmarried ladies. If you want to comply with your family's requests to finally find yourself a wife, you're going to have to start dealing with people.", he added testingly after a brief pause, receiving a contemptuous snort in response. "It's too late for that shit now anyway. So I might as well stay at home where I don't have talk with all those lickspittles.", the blond man hissed in annoyance, not looking up from his dinner.

Surprised, Kirishima began to sit up straighter after Bakugou had finally answered his questioning properly for the first time. Deciding not to give up, he leaned forward a bit to watch the blond man closely before continuing with his questions: "Why is that? Have you already found a suitable wife without my knowledge?"

The way the young shogun paused for a moment gave the curious samurai exactly the answer he was looking for. Interested, Kirishima watched as his counterpart's red eyes lost focus and Bakugou began to drift off in his thoughts. In the Shogun's mind's eye, the figure of his rival appeared, who's expression was filled with horror, when he began to understand that the Emperor had ordered his sister to be married to Bakugou in order to strengthen an alliance between them. With clenched teeth, he then imagined the young girl who had been presented to the emperor two days ago as a debutante. Soft and innocent, she had strode past the crowd and bowed in front of the crown with ragged breaths. She had seemed braver than Izuku could have been at her age, and yet Bakugou could not shake the image of her looking up at him in fear, much as her brother had done years ago. A tearful, frightened girl was not exactly the kind of woman he imagined at his side, but what could he do about the emperor's decision? He had come to the capital with the intention of finding a wife, but this was not how he had imagined it. Not with the little sister of damn Midoriya Izuku.

"No matter which lady you're thinking of, I think you should send her a bouquet of flowers, or better yet, pay your respects to her family right away! I bet they'll greet you with a kiss on the hand if you've already made up your mind.", the red-haired gentleman interrupted the silence. Immediately, Bakugou turned his scowl on his best friend and gave another disdainful snort before replying:"No way!", he barked angrily as he clutched his chopsticks so tightly that they began to crack dangerously. "Well... You'll have to know in the end. But nothing comes from nothing. If you want that girl to like you, you're going to have to be benevolent towards her.", Kirishima replied with a grin, as he folded his arms behind his head. "So if I were you, I would start courting her before someone else does. Or perhaps the family has already rejected you because your reputation doesn't appeal to them?"

That comment was the last straw that broke the camel's back for Bakugou. Bursting, the chopsticks broke in the temperamental shogun's hand. What did he care if others were interested in the girl? Even if the emperor had not ordered a marriage between them, his rival could not have refused the courtship of a shogun. Even without his title, no one could have refused Bakugou if he wanted something. Especially not such an effeminate person as Midoriya Izuku. Not that he cares anyway. He couldn't care less who was going to be his wife, as long as she was able to fulfill her damn duty's.

However, it was a complete waste of time to worry about such things. In the end, the current emperor had taken the decision of what would happen from them either way. She would become his wife whether he sent her flowers or not. Bakugou hated it when people tried to force something on him. If the order had not come from the emperor himself, the person who would have dared to do such a thing would have had a tongue for the longest time. He would have ripped it out without hesitations. But Toshinori was damn right that Bakugou was no fool. The ash-blond man had seen the extent of the rebellion in the north with his own eyes. The opponents of the crown grew bolder now that they thought the throne stood on sawn, wobbly legs. Despite Deku's effeminate personality, he was a good candidate for the crown. The young shogun would never admit it openly, but Midoriya's self-sacrificing and solution-oriented nature would make him a good emperor if Bakugou stood by his side to strike down those who would take advantage of his good nature. A marriage union between Bakugou Katsuki and the future emperor's sister would make a powerful statement. It would change conditions on the border as well as in the capital for the better, but did he have to spend more time than necessary with Deku because of it? Hell, fucking no!

"No ten horses will make me seek out Deku if not necessary!", Bakugou stated icily, before realizing that he had now given the unknown girl an identity. Realization flashed in Kirishima's eyes as he heard who the young shogun was thinking about. "The girl in question is little Miss Midoriya? I didn't think it would be her who would steal your attention. Even though I'm sure she left a lasting impression on many the day before yesterday. I heard that the matchmakers also spoke highly of her. A true gem, I've heard." Gritting his teeth, Bakugou turned away from his friend as he heard all the compliments about his future wife. He had no interest in talking about her, but the latter still seemed reluctant to drop the subject.

"Well, probably you should actually leave her alone...", Kirishima finally relented. He paused briefly for the dramatic impact, gleefully eating some vegetables, watching as the young householder slowly taxed him again with a piercing gaze:"What are you trying to say?" "Well... I guess the tension that exists between you and Midoriya-san certainly wouldn't be beneficial to such a connection. After all, you've never quite been able to put aside your youthful rivalry. I am sure that he would not be very enthusiastic if you tried to court his little sister all of a sudden. Actually, I'm sure he'll reject you outright.", Kirishima replied innocently as he inwardly counted to three.

"WHAT, like that damn Deku is going to be able to stop me from courting his little sister. Nobody rejects a damn shogun out of anything! Not even the Emperor's fucking favorite, you hear me?", he snarled at his friend before turning angrily to one of the servants. "You! Go buy the most expensive flowers you can find and send them to the fucking Midoriya household! Make sure Deku sees exactly who sent her that stupid bouquet. Let that weak little good-for-nothing die at the thought that he can't do anything about the fact that I'm going to marry his damn sister.", Bakugou ordered, cursing, before rising angrily to stomp out of the room. Arriving at the door, the young shogun turned once more to Kirishima, who looked after him in perplexity at his choice of words. "And just so we're clear. The damn emperor ordered the wedding. Like I'm going to deign to marry Deku's sister on my own otherwise, you understand?"

#bakugou x reader #Bakugou x female reader #bakugou x yn #Bakugou #Bakugou Katsuki #bnha #mha #boku no hero academia #my hero academia

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