#'babe why do we have so many candles in the house??'

[ancientgoddessofegypt]

Lilith The Enchantress: Lilithian Energy In The Houses. How Each One Brings Their Own Tempting Flair.

So you're probably wondering, where am I going with this?

I wanted to focus on the temptation of lilith, and why she is so oozing and attractive as is she.

For this reading, I will focus on the houses. In my later post, it'll be in each sign.

So lets dig in! Shall we ;)

Lilith in the first house - Pleasing to the eye. Can have a very sultry appearance. There is a point where they must undergo a transformation of the self, and at some point they will have a divine, sensual aura. There sensual power comes through the way they look at you, and often times they can tell when they're being a little too flirtatious. But that is so they can get the person of their choice. Like a siren, they go in for their target and come out on top. They use their attractive persona as like a spell, think of the girl on who framed roger rabbit with the beautiful red hair and dress.

Lilith in the second house - They have an eye for detail. This is the time to take you to their home and show you the rose petals on the bed with the red and white candles everywhere. They know how to make a person want them, by adding to some flair into their home. While also using different aesthetics for they're look to match with the energy that is being shared between them and they're lover. Very picky with who they spend their time with you know. They aren't for everyone. These are the type to make you wait for it.

Lilith in the third house - These are the lovers that can write erotic letters and make you think about them all night. The way their minds can carry a story, and then when you meet them in person its even better than the books. They hold their composure well, but deep inside they are ready to be explored in more ways than one. My my my, they sure know how to right a love spell. One that lasts til the very end.

Lilith in the fourth house - It's actually so much harder to get them to show you who they truly are, thats what makes their mystique so awe dropping. The way these lilithian beings share themselves is with the power of their emotions, and eventually they will bring you right into their beautiful dungeon they call a home. Where you will find all them in just one bite. Very sensual with the right one. The one that makes them feel good, the one that knows them from the inside out. These lilith babes will let you have all of them if once you have succumb to their power.

Lilith in the fifth house - The sensual energy these lilithians carry is a one of a kind. Their magnetism never goes unnoticed, and they take you on a roller coaster of emotions with their performance. They are intimate with their audience and can put you under a spell with the way they make things look. Their hearts are in it with this one. Very gentle to the eye, but to the soul its much more deep and profound. Can't take them anywhere because their wild manes get stuck in the pursuit of love, where they will drenched you with all their sweet and tears to make more use of the bloody romances they've indulged in. They will have you thinking about them for many moons, due to them putting their all into what they do in the matters of the heart.

Lilith in the sixth house - To be loved by a lilith babe with this placement, is to have made yourself fully devoted to them. Worship is what they want, and it is what they need to pursue them. They don't let just anyone in, so you must be prepared to give yourself as an offering. Very pleasant, and freaky to ones they want most. Most never see this coming, which is why they always get away with it ;) The sensual energy they carry is very smooth, abundant and hard to describe. Mysterious auras that you want more of, so much so you will spend every hour, every day of the week wanting to get to know them.

Lilith in the seventh house - The die hard lovers who goes in for the kill. What they want wants them, and they oozee it in with their attraction spells. Their auras are unique, fresh and able to commit to their partners. It's just that they have so many options to choose from so they have no use to sticking around if you're not pulling in your weight. Im sorry, its hard having to be loved by so many! The sensual power in them is hot, tempting, and alluring. You just can't get enough of them. Can see right thru you and can captivate you with just a look!

Lilith in the eighth house - The way they just make things easy with how they seduce people is something I feel nobody else can relate to. The way they come in and take the throne with how they please their partners as well as themselves, It may be that nobody could come close. But thats the thing about being in a scorpion house, is that you touch people in a way that people are not able to control within themselves.. yet you've already mastered it. Very pleasing, pulsating, bold and full of passion. The sensual nature in them could have you feel things you've never felt before, and that will have you in a panic. because the way they are able to get you to come out of that shell and move deeper into them . Will have you begging for more & more & more. Bewitching auras indeed!

Lilith in the ninth house - The delicacy mixed with erotic power. The angels and the demon. The artist and the muse. They have the power to seduce anyone with just their mind alone. They can seduce you with their wit, their humor, their charisma and just their soul in general. But on a sensuality note, they are abundantly clear on what it is they want. And they know just how to get it. They waste no time in going after the energy it is they feel desires them. They are devoted to themselves and the power of a Godly force and nobody comes close. So to the ones who get to experience them, they feel a closeness to the divine that makes you tremble a bit. Because they show us a sense of carefreeness thats been missing, so the way they seduce you is in how they free themselves in a world that is committed to self restraint.

Lilith in the tenth house - Enchanting and mysterious in nature. The world wants to have them but cannot get enough of them. The secret to these characters is that they know what it is you're looking for, but you just won't get it from em. Not immediately that is. They'll make you wait for it. Hell, they'll even charge you for it if your a beggar. They know you want it, but they aren't easy. Like a coquette, they'll have you waiting for years, and their energy will be intact and while yours feels depleted. Lilith tenth housers just know how to work it with their sex appeal. It can transform you, to say the least. ;)

Lilith in the eleventh house - A special energy is unlocked in these lilithians because not only do they have the capacity to seduce the whole world they can be someone close to them too. Be careful with them, because they might bite! ;) Their sensual power comes from the ability to be close with them and they have a compassionate nature too! This makes them way more likeable and seductive. And even if you're close to them, there is still something else about them. Almost hard to ignore, so its no wonder friends and associates try to get it on with em.

Lilith in the twelfth house - If all the other placements are tempting to the eye, then these beings are tempting to the soul. They have a capacity to entice others with the way they carry themselves. They have a gift in pulling you in, and telling a story with just their body language alone. The moment you are seduced by them, is the very moment you come over and have a meeting with God. They are no angel, but they can just about make you feel things that where never present before.

Lilith in these houses can show the tempting, seductive energies of a person if they learn how to tap in. There is a short story about lilith being the tempting 'devil' we kind of all known of her to be. However, learning more complexities of her story. She is so much more. So this just a small version of what we know as lilith, there will be many more to come!

[neoiightss]

Having a separate room - NCT 127

Hii, this is my first request, so I’m really excited! Sorry for disappearing guys, I was extra busy with work, but I’m back! Please feel free to send me any requests ^ ^

pairing: y/n x johnny, taeyong, doyoung, yuta, jaehyun, jungwoo, mark, haechan. 

warnings: established relationships, pure fluff, domestic life. 

 

Johnny 

He’s understandable right off the bat. He doesn’t see a problem with it, and as soon as you mention wanting to use the extra room in your house as a personal area, he will gladly help you decorate or build the furniture. 

As you two walk through the Ikea’s aisles, picking up a desk and a chair for your space he points at a cute set of pink-colored decorative frames that would go well with the theme you wanted. 

“What do you think, babe? I could hang them right above your desk, it’ll look good, right?”

He asks excitedly, making you smile genuinely before nodding, he smiles back with your approval as he puts the products in your cart. 

Taeyong 

Another one that will be so excited, taking it as a little project of yours, helping you decorate the place (you might have to tone him down a little, or else he’ll just make it his style). 

“Look we can install a shelf right here and fill it with my Spongebob figures set” 

He points excitedly, walking around the spare room in your shared apartment, planning all the decorations and furniture’s positions as soon as you mention wanting to use it as your home office place. 

“Yeah, but that’s yours and I don’t even like Spongebob that much, maybe I can just put some candles..” 

He pouts trying to win you over with his puppy eyes. Which, unfortunately for you, it works very well, giving in as you watch him smile brightly, walking to the next wall where he wants to graffiti a cool design for you, of course. 

Doyoung 

He probably already has a room for himself, a little studio where he practices and records his songs and doubles it as storage for some of his clothes as well. So he gets it when you mention wanting to have a place for you, even though he loves living with you and enjoying your moments together he just wants some alone time to recharge and gather his thoughts. Will help you out with decoration if you ask, but mostly will just do the heavy work like bringing and building furniture, he doesn’t want to interfere much in your personal space, letting you do whatever you feel like.

“Right here?” 

He looks at you as he levels the shelf you bought, proceeding as he gets your approval, he cleans his palms in his shirt as he finishes installing the last one, internally wondering why you need so many shelves. 

“Alright I’m taking a shower, let me know if you need anything”. 

He says before leaving you to decorate the place, excited to see how it will look at the end. 

Yuta 

Will be the one to suggest you use the spare room in your apartment as he notices you working uncomfortably on the dinner table, sitting awkwardly as you type away on your laptop, he simply can’t have his baby in such situation! Will help you out with putting the place together and even suggesting you a few decorational itens he saw online to make the place more cozy. Will definitely spend an insane amount of money on an office chair just because it’s the “most comfortable on market”. 

“Are you crazy? That’s too much Yuta, besides I only work two days a week from home”. 

You scold him as soon as you see the price of the chair, watching him look unfazed as he puts it together. 

“My baby deserves the best. Besides it goes well with the new pc set I bought you, the reviews online says the keyboards are really egornomical”

“You bought me a what??”   

Jaehyun

He likes to have his alone times just as much, and even tough he’s always romantic and sweet to you he’s not the clingy type. I can see him using the dorms as his personal room, a place where he’ll work on his music or just unwind for a while, especially when he’s too tired or frustrated with life, not wanting it to affect you. He doesn’t oppose when you ask to use the spare room in your house as your little craft area, finding it so cute that you want a place for yourself as well. 

Just like Doyoung he won’t interfere, just helping with the things you ask, but will definitely want to leave one item that will remind you of him, just in case you miss him.

“It’s just missing one final touch, darling” 

He smirks, trying to contain his smile after you give him a quick tour of the room, showing the way you decorated it, you look at him confused asking what is it before he takes a small Polaroid of him blowing a kiss from his pocket, placing it on your desk. 

“So you don’t miss me too much” 

He winks watching you laugh in disbelief, later on, he’ll make you take one as well for his room. 

Jungwoo

What do you mean you want a room just for yourself? He’ll definitely whine a little as you propose it, he thought the whole idea of moving together was to be together as much as possible! It will take some explaining and pouting from you to convince him, in the end he’ll agree with you and help you organize the place, as he tries to, not so sneakily, bring his own stuff there. 

First is an extra chair in case he wants to visit, what about his music equipment? It was just laying around and won't take much space, and as soon as you realize you’re yet sharing another room with him. 

“I know what you’re doing, Woo..” 

You look at him seriously as he quietly installs his pc on the other side of the room. 

“What? You know the wifi is better here, it’s just for when I want to play with the guys, I promise baby” 

He pouts, trying to win you over this one. 

Mark 

He’ll gladly accept it with no complains, he also has his own room where he built a little studio to work on his music and have his alone time so he agrees right away when you vocalize the need to have a space of your own to work on your things and just have your alone time as well, but as soon as he has his days off at home he’ll get a little uneasy not seeing you so often around the house, doing nothing on the couch or doing your cutesy crafts on the dinner table. 

He’ll come around here and there, bringing you water or a treat, or even just to give you a kiss and when you least expect he’s laying on the little couch next to you, watching you work as he plays random songs on his guitar. 

“I thought we agreed on me having this room for just myself”

You comment after a while, your tone giving in that you weren’t even mad. More else amused to see him wanting to be there with you. 

“Ah, come on babe, I’m just giving you a little ambience song, pretend I’m not even here” 

Haechan 

Your own room? Alone time? But he barely sees you..are you mad at him? Is he annoying you? That man is going on full whiny mode as soon as you mention it. He can’t believe his baby doesn’t want to spend all their precious time together being glued into each other. 

Believe me it will take some time to convince him it’s nothing wrong with him, you just want a place to work on your hobbies in peace and have your alone times. After a while you’ll convince him, with the promise that he has a free pass to visit you whenever he’s missing you, and just like Mark he’ll make the most lame excuses to crash onto your room. 

“Seriously, what do you want now, hyuck?” 

You look back as you feel his presence, the boy looking at you with puppy eyes as he enters your room. 

“It’s just that I think I saw a spider on our room, I’m staying here just a little bit, promise”. 

You roll your eyes, not being able to contain a chuckle as he comes in, sitting next to you, snuggling onto you. 

“Baby you know the wifi is soo good in here, maybe I could bring my pc and we’ll have a cute couple’s gaming room!” 

[dark-and-kawaii]

─ ⊹ ⊱ Heart's Delight ⊰ ⊹ ─

Summary: What happens when Mephistopheles comes knocking at Raphael's door and is greeted by a little mouse? Well, surely nothing delightful. In the eerie silence of The House Hope, you lay broken and bloodied, your child stripped away…

♡ Pairing: Raphael x F!Tav/Reader - Slight Haarlep x F!Tav/Reader

♡ Content: Dadphael - Implied noncon - Hurt/Comfort - Soft Raphael - Angst

The House of Hope stood eerily silent, its grand halls echoing with an unsettling stillness. The souls that usually paraded about now cowered in corners in fear as the candles flickers danced along the walls.

In one of these dimly lit corridors, a figure lay crumpled on the cold stone floor, your breath shallow and ragged. 

It was Haarlep who first stumbled upon you. His brow arched as he watches how you lay brutalized and broken. Your clothes torn, stained with your own blood, a pool of it forming around you. Your inner thighs were coated in your fluids, and from the looks of it another milky white delightful looking substance... That already beautiful face of yours was now painted with blood, saliva and your tears. Those lips he tasted so many times now split and swollen from another other than either him or Raphael…

The creature might have relished in the sight more, drinking up how utterly pitiful you looked, if it wasn't for the fact that you were barely clinging to life… 

He could feel it. The moment slipping away from you as the seconds passed. His usual smirk was replaced by a look of genuine concern as he knelt beside you… These marks -his fingers traced the bruises, the marks that marred your flesh- were they…?

A sound, something like a pained groan, escaped your lips as his fingers brushed over a particularly deep gash in your arm.

“My my, aren’t you in a sorry state.” Haarlep murmured, his voice soft yet tinged with an edge of humor that never quite left him. Carefully, he gathered you into his arms, careful not to aggravate your wounds further. As he carried you towards the healing bath, his sharps eyes had caught the absence of a certain babe- his eyes narrowing in the direction of the crib. 

The little pup, yours and Raphael’s infant was no longer there.

Haarlep’s brow remained arched as his eyes fell back down to the bite wounds that riddled your body… He moved his tail to help keep you propped in his arms as his hand left you to graze a scar that decorated his collar bone.

Ah. Now he knew why those bites looked so familiar.

His grip tightened around you…

Mephistopheles. 

All the pain, all the suffering he had endured at the hands of the archdevil was suddenly brought to the forefront of his mind. For a moment, he could almost feel himself being held down, feeling the fangs and claws sink into his flesh…

It wasn't just the memory of pain that plagued the creature's mind. Haarlep looked down at you, his eyes filled- mixed with something like pity, sadness, and amusement. He had a feeling he knew what the Devil was going to do with the child... “what a pity~” he murmured, “And to think, I had wanted to make a meal out of you both~”

His words, while teasing, were not lost on you. You whimpered softly as he carried you away, your heart sinking as you felt Haarlep carrying you further and further away from where your child slept not long ago. Your eyes, glazed with pain and exhaustion, flickered briefly in the direction of the empty cradle before falling back to the floor. Even though you were too weak to struggle, your hand twitched and curled against Haarlep's chest as he cradled you…

As the incubus reached the healing bath, he stepped inch by inch into the warm water. A low hiss escaping your lips, your body tensing as the water burned against your open wounds.

“I know.” He hummed, his voice low and soft, “But the burn feels so delicious does it not, my dove~? It reminds me of the first time we played together~” His hand, which was wrapped around your back, trailed slowly down your spine while lowering you into the bath. The water rose quickly, swallowing you, and stinging every cut, gash, and bruise. 

Your body shuddered, but you were far too weak to try and escape it, “H-haarlep…”

Haarlep smirked, a chuckle vibrating through him, “Oh, don't tell me you are already begging~” he mused, a single claw tracing up the line of your jaw.

A faint, barely perceptible smirk graced your lips as your eyes finally shut, succumbing to exhaustion... Your daughter is the last thing on your mind before the darkness takes…

The waters healing kiss washing over you, knitting your wounds together, soothing your pains as you sat in Haarlep's lap. 

“Sleep, my dove.” The incubus said, a small smile spreading across his lips before pressing a tender kiss no one would have ever expected to come from him to your forehead. 

When Raphael emerged, the air crackled with ash and swirling embers, as if two ancient dragons had clashed in a furious storm. His wings spread wide, and he stood with a clenched fist... His face, filled with a punishing rage Haarlep had yet to ever see. 

“Where... Is she!!” The cambion snapped, the words hissed through clenched teeth. 

Ever the provocateur, Haarlep let the question linger in the air. One of his eyebrows crept upwards in amusement as he watched Raphael, who was so desperate to know where you- or daughter was. Twisting his body, Haarlep revealed you, stroking your hair, “It's a good thing I found her when I did~ Otherwise, she would have ble-”

“You insufferable creature!” Raphael’s brow furrowing deeply, “Do not dare toy with me! Where is my daughter” The underlying fury in his voice was barely contained, betrayed only by the tightening of his jaw.

The incubus chuckled, his fingers running through your hair as his free hand reached down into the bath, gently pulling your ragged gown up. The silky fabric floated above your thighs, revealing the unhealed bites and claw marks that littered your flesh, “It would seem your dear old father decided to come knocking on your door, and your little mouse was the one to greet him.” He smirked, his hand sliding over the curve of your thigh, “I can only imagine what came of your little pup-”

Raphael's ears were deaf to the creature's words. His eyes focused only on you and the way your body hung limp in Haarlep's lap. The way you looked so fragile and frail, like a moth's wing. And your heart's delight, yours and his daughter stripped away... 

His jaw clenched, his hand lifting to his face, his fingers ready to snap,  “No…” he growled, his eyes flashing as he snapped and vanished, leaving nothing but the smell of burning ash.

Time passed slowly, but when he returned, Haarlep saw how Raphael's back was turned, his wings drawn tightly around him. His head bowed low as his on e slick back hair now framed his face in disarray, those opulent clothes he wore now mirrored yours, his body sharing similar wounds as the ones you had worn hours ago.

He moved to where you now lay, your body surrounded by the warmth of his satin sheets. Raphael could see how your face was stained with freshly shed tears, and even though Haarlep had taken the utmost care with you, you had yet to wake. Gently, he placed his infant into your arms and watched as you subconsciously pulled her close. Your lips curling into a soft, content smile as your daughter nuzzled into the crook of your neck.

Haarlep watched from the small couch near his master's bed, one eye opened, curious at how the half breed Raphael managed to hold his daughter once more... “What did he want with the little p-”

Raphael looked up at Haarlep, an unspoken warning in his eyes. 

... “-The little bundle of joy.”

The cambion settled into a chair across from the bed, snapping his fingers to summon a bottle of his finest wine and a glass. As he poured, his eyes opened slowly, the fires within them banked but not extinguished, “A bargaining chip,” he said, taking a sip from his glass.

Haarlep chuckled, a quick retort on his lips, “Well, you should have left the little tyke-”

“Do not push your luck, incubus.” Raphael growled, his tone low and dangerous.

“...- Do tell me though~ What sort of contract did your dear father want to make? Surely it was something tasty~ Considering how you look like that little mouse of yours when i found her~”

Raphael's eyes narrowed as his hand clenched the glass, a hair away from shattering it…

“Ah~ But silence speaks volumes, doesn't it?” Haarlep mused, swirling his fingers around the couches fabric, “The way your hand trembles, the fire in your eyes ever so slowly extinguishing~ You have lost something. Something important...~”

Raphael said nothing, every muscle in his body tightening, a silent testament to the fact that the incubus' words rang true. Instead, he stood up and slowly removed his stained clothing. His eyes flickering to the bed, and then back to his smug sex toy, “You have a job.” He said, his voice flat, emotionless, “You are to remain by their side every waking moment that I am absent. Is that understood?" As he moved to your side, his hands grazed over the unhealed bite marks Mephistopheles left on your skin.

Haarlep could see Raphael's body tense as his eyes swept over the damage done, how the healing pool couldn't quite heal everything... Nor take away the touch of Mephistopheles… “Now leave.” Raphael commanded before crawling in beside you and his daughter, his body and wings curling around yours protectively…

“And incubus…”

“Hm~?”

“Should you disappoint me, I will ensure that your very soul and all your innards are dispersed throughout the most desolate reaches of the hells.”

The subtle shift in the air hinted something far more sinister than mere words could convey. Whatever contract Raphael had signed, it was a dark pact, one that bound him to an unwritten fate,  one that loomed over him like a specter.

[sophswritingthings]

OK AS A HISTORY NERD NOW IM INTRIGUED ON MORE OF YOUR THOUGHTS FOR MIZU X !PERFORMER READER

pairing: mizu x fem!street performer!reader

warning(s): none

a/n: allowing me to indulge in my history fixation while writing gay fanfic? oh babe LET ME TELL YOU—

summary: after meeting the mysterious street performer, mizu follows you back to the theater. which, has a library. you spend your time together, what little you have of it, taking and learning about one another’s culture.

word count: 577 words / 3,227 characters

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

you lead mizu back to a nearby theater, greeting other secret performers as you walk in. they eye you a bit suspiciously, seeing who is following you. but no words are exchanged.

you take mizu back to a library; walls cascading with books up and down.

she’d never seen anything like it.. such a large library filled with colorful books of english, and, supposedly—american history. and there had to be something on japan, too, because you seemed to know things about her culture well.

“so, why have you traveled from japan, exactly?” you pose the question, grabbing a candle and beginning to riffle through piles of literature. 

she wasn’t telling you she was here to assassinante a man. you’d think her terrifying. heartless. ruthless. cold.

to which, to some extent, she was.

“I’m.. here, visiting family,” she whispered. wasn’t exactly wrong.

you chuckled, “the white man you mentioned? your father?” you whip around to look at her for a moment.

“yes,” she responds rather quickly. “I haven’t met him, before.”

you nod, “japan closed its borders—deported all the white men and women there,” you respond. “it makes sense you’ve never met him. are you.. judged, in some way?”

she scoffed, “I’m sure you have no idea,” she folded her arms. “I am what they call an onryō. a demon.”

your eyes widen, gazing at her as you walked over with a stack of books you looked to be struggling to carry.

“demon?” you murmur, watching as she takes some of the books from your arms. “just for being born of a white man?”

she nods, “yes.” she narrowed her eyes, “it’s not exactly fun.”

you scoff, “I didn’t think it would be—constantly having a bounty of your back for your dead body,” you settle down at a desk, smiling and patting the seat beside you.

she sits down beside you, gazing at the many books.

“well—here in england, those eyes are considered beautiful,” you smiled softly at her. “I think they’re beautiful.”

she’d never heard such kind words before. especially about a part of herself she hated so very much.

“thank you,” she whispered, her voice barley audible.

you chuckled, your cheeks tinted rosy red, “though I suppose I am one for all things weird.”

she laughed along with you, “how so?”

“as I told you—a woman such as myself is not allowed to do much. I am expected to marry at sixteen, settle down with many kids, and never leave my house. I cannot work, I cannot do anything here,” your eyes narrowed, gazing at the book below you, “I just want to perform. to act—it’s my passion. It’s something I love.”

she nodded slowly, “I see,” she muttered. “It’s much different in japan. women can work.. though it’s not like they have many options. and.. performing. It’s one of the many things women do in japan.”

“I know!” you hissed, “performing should not be something that is restricted to men. nothing should be restricted to me; we should all be… equal.”

mizu couldn’t help but agree with you. she felt the same way; seeing as she was here, masking as a man her whole life to be able to do what she wanted.

you talked for hours on end. hours on hours of talking about your culture, about your lives, about what you’d been through. 

you were so similar; yet from completely different parts of this world.

she found that amazing.

she found you amazing.

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

a/n: I’m presenting said project tomorrow and my anxiety said no

[vivacissimx]

Heyy hope you're well. Ignore this if you want but I'm curious, do you believe in the Maester Conspiracy?

Let me take this step by step. Long post incoming but you asked, so:

WELCOME TO VIVACISSIMX'S CONCLUSIVE POST ON THE MAESTER CONSPIRACY!!!

The Maester Conspiracy is the theory that the maesters of the citadel work in concert with one another to effect certain political ends in line with their longstanding designs for Westeros — including a specific aim to hamper the existence/return of magic via living dragons.

The only dragontamers during the times of Fire & Blood and ASOIAF are Targaryens, so it ties together as: the maesters have sought to limit/manipulate/end Targaryen rule because they are anti-magic for reasons known best to them.

Do I believe in this? Textually it's pretty clear that this phenomenon exists.

FIRST: REASONS THE MAESTER CONSPIRACY IS DEFINITELY ACTUALLY FACTUALLY REAL

ONE: Multiple characters from different backgrounds tell us so.

Pycelle’s breathing was rapid and shallow. “All I did, I did for House Lannister.” A sheen of sweat covered the broad dome of the old man’s brow, and wisps of white hair clung to his wrinkled skin. “Always.. for years... your lord father, ask him, I was ever his true servant... ’twas I who bid Aerys open his gates... ” That took Tyrion by surprise. He had been no more than an ugly boy at Casterly Rock when the city fell. “So the Sack of King’s Landing was your work as well?” “For the realm! Once Rhaegar died, the war was done. Aerys was mad, Viserys too young, Prince Aegon a babe at the breast, but the realm needed a king... I prayed it should be your good father, but Robert was too strong, and Lord Stark moved too swiftly... ” “How many have you betrayed, I wonder? Aerys, Eddard Stark, me... King Robert as well? Lord Arryn, Prince Rhaegar? Where does it begin, Pycelle?”

—ACOK, Tyrion VI + emphasis mine

[Archmaester] Marywn smiled a ghastly smile, the juice of the sourleaf running red between his teeth. “Who do you think killed all the dragons the last time around? Gallant dragonslayers armed with swords?” He spat. “The world the Citadel is building has no place in it for sorcery or prophecy or glass candles, much less for dragons. Ask yourself why Aemon Targaryen was allowed to waste his life upon the Wall, when by rights he should have been raised to archmaester. His blood was why. He could not be trusted. No more than I can.”

—AFFC, Samwell V

Why can't Archmaester Marwyn be trusted? Since it's the same reason Aemon can't be trusted?

"Archmaester Marwyn's Book of Lost Books." [Rodrik Harlaw] lifted his gaze from the page to study her. "Hotho brought me a copy from Oldtown. He has a daughter he would have me wed." Lord Rodrik tapped the book with a long nail. "See here? Marwyn claims to have found three pages of Signs and Portents, visions written down by the maiden daughter of Aenar Targaryen before the Doom came to Valyria.

—AFFC, The Kraken's Daughter

His interest in Targaryen prophecy, perhaps? (Aemon is also seen to have said interest, corresponding with Rhaegar Targaryen on the matter.)

[Barbrey Ryswell:] "[Maesters] heal, yes. I never said they were not subtle. They tend to us when we are sick and injured, or distraught over the illness of a parent or a child. Whenever we are weakest and most vulnerable, there they are. Sometimes they heal us, and we are duly grateful. When they fail, they console us in our grief, and we are grateful for that as well. Out of gratitude we give them a place beneath our roof and make them privy to all our shames and secrets, a part of every council. And before too long, the ruler has become the ruled. "That was how it was with Lord Rickard Stark. Maester Walys was his grey rat's name. And isn't it clever how the maesters go by only one name, even those who had two when they first arrived at the Citadel? That way we cannot know who they truly are or where they come from… but if you are dogged enough, you can still find out. Before he forged his chain, Maester Walys had been known as Walys Flowers. Flowers, Hill, Rivers, Snow… we give such names to baseborn children to mark them for what they are, but they are always quick to shed them. Walys Flowers had a Hightower girl for a mother… and an archmaester of the Citadel for a father, it was rumored. The grey rats are not as chaste as they would have us believe. Oldtown maesters are the worst of all. Once he forged his chain, his secret father and his friends wasted no time dispatching him to Winterfell to fill Lord Rickard's ears with poisoned words as sweet as honey. The Tully marriage was his notion, never doubt it, he—"

—ADWD, The Prince of Winterfell

Please note these quotes touch on some of the largest political shifts to occur in Westeros. From germinating the idea of alliances between Great Houses in the mind of Rickard Stark who later betrothed/fostered his children to the Arryns of the Vale, the Tullys of the Riverlands, and the Baratheons of the Stormlands; to the Sack of King's Landing; to the circumstances around the Great Council that named Aegon V the Unlikely as king. I am not saying the Citadel was the sole mastermind behind all of these events, or even that maesters all act as one without their own interests/personalities guiding them... but more on that later.

TWO: The Glass Candle test.

Glass candles are obsidian—dragonglass— candles that apparently only burn when magic (see: dragons) exists in the world. Daenerys Targaryen has been hearing about these glass candles for a while now.

Xaro looked troubled. "And so it was, then. But now? I am less certain. It is said that the glass candles are burning in the house of Urrathon Night-Walker, that have not burned in a hundred years. Ghost grass grows in the Garden of Gehane, phantom tortoises have been seen carrying messages between the windowless houses on Warlock's Way, and all the rats in the city are chewing off their tails.

—ACOK, Daenerys V

Hear me, Daenerys Targaryen. The glass candles are burning. Soon comes the pale mare, and after her the others. Kraken and dark flame, lion and griffin, the sun's son and the mummer's dragon. Trust none of them. Remember the Undying. Beware the perfumed seneschal."

—ADWD, Daenerys II

Read: What Quaithe tells Daenerys here is that because the glass candles are burning, people (powerful, dangerous, with their own designs in mind) are becoming aware of her dragons. It means they're coming and Daenerys needs to be cautious of them.

And who is watching the glass candles?

Armen the Acolyte cleared his throat. “The night before an acolyte says his vows, he must stand a vigil in the vault. No lantern is permitted him, no torch, no lamp, no taper… only a candle of obsidian. He must spend the night in darkness, unless he can light that candle. Some will try. The foolish and the stubborn, those who have made a study of these so-called higher mysteries. Often they cut their fingers, for the ridges on the candles are said to be as sharp as razors. Then, with bloody hands, they must wait upon the dawn, brooding on their failure. Wiser men simply go to sleep, or spend their night in prayer, but every year there are always a few who must try.” “Yes.” Pate had heard the same stories. “But what’s the use of a candle that casts no light?” “It is a lesson,” Armen said, “the last lesson we must learn before we don our maester’s chains.

—AFFC, Prologue (Pate)

So, the Citadel has this tradition that every single guy ever to graduate from their school has to at least be aware of the glass candles, which basically serves the purpose of letting them know whether or not there are dragons in the world. Okay, fine, it's a lesson on failure, sure. What's interesting is that this mystical and compelling lesson on failure can only be as old as the death of the last dragon in 153 AC, otherwise they'd all be able to light the candles. So it began at most 147 years ago.

Notably, for years after the death of the last dragon, various Targaryens attempted to hatch more.

So what is the true purpose of the Glass Candle test? Why would the Citadel have a convenient means of knowing immediately if a new dragon was hatched/magic was returning, despite ostensibly having a Grand Maester on every single Targaryen King's Small Council ever?

What was their investment?

THREE: It aligns with the actions/beliefs of the maesters we see on-page.

Old Cressen might be, yet he was still a maester of the Citadel. “I need no crown but truth,” he told her, removing the fool’s helm from his head. “There are truths in this world that are not taught at Oldtown.” [...] As he sank to his knees, still he shook his head, denying [Melisandre], denying her power, denying her magic, denying her god. And the cowbells peeled in his antlers, singing fool, fool, fool while the red woman looked down on him in pity, the candle flames dancing in her red red eyes.

—ACOK, Prologue (Maester Cressen)

[Maester Luwin:] "Perhaps magic was once a mighty force in the world, but no longer. What little remains is no more than the wisp of smoke that lingers in the air after a great fire has burned out, and even that is fading. Valyria was the last ember, and Valyria is gone. The dragons are no more, the giants are dead, the children of the forest forgotten with all their lore.

—ACOK, Bran IV

Note: Maester Luwin actually has a Valyrian Steel chain and has attempted to do magic but by the end of his Citadel studies, he no longer believed in such. Due to his own failure to harness it, yes, but perhaps also due to his teachings under the archmaesters at the time.

Alleras stepped up next to Sam. "Aemon would have gone to [Daenerys] if he had the strength. He wanted us to send a maester to her, to counsel her and protect her and fetch her safely home." "Did he?" Archmaester Marwyn shrugged. "Perhaps it's good that he died before he got to Oldtown. Elsewise the grey sheep might have had to kill him, and that would have made the poor old dears wring their wrinkled hands."

—AFFC, Samwell V

FOUR: Citadel Maesters are super into dragons in general, perhaps a bit too into them, you be the judge.

In what place, if any, has there been an accumulation of dragonlore? Valyria. The Citadel. Dragonstone. Probably some of the Free Cities as well. Maybe Asshai in the far east.

—So Spake Martin, May 2000 (the Citadel clocking in at #2, technically #1, considering RIPValyria)

[H]e brushed the dirt off Colloquo Votar's Jade Compendium, a thick volume of tales and legends from the east that Maester Aemon had commanded him to find. The book appeared undamaged. Maester Thomax's Dragonkin, Being a History of House Targaryen from Exile to Apotheosis, with a Consideration of the Life and Death of Dragons had not been so fortunate. It had come open as it fell, and a few pages had gotten muddy, including one with a rather nice picture of Balerion the Black Dread done in colored inks. Sam cursed himself for a clumsy oaf

—AFFC, Samwell I

Tyrion had read much and more of dragons through the years. The greater part of those accounts were idle tales and could not be relied on, and the books that Illyrio had provided them were not the ones he might have wished for. What he really wanted was the complete text of The Fires of the Freehold, Galendro's history of Valyria. No complete copy was known to Westeros, however; even the Citadel's lacked twenty-seven scrolls. They must have a library in Old Volantis, surely. I may find a better copy there, if I can find a way inside the Black Walls to the city's heart.

He was less hopeful concerning Septon Barth’s Dragons, Wyrms, and Wyverns: Their Unnatural History. Barth had been a blacksmith’s son who rose to be King’s Hand during the reign of Jaehaerys the Conciliator. His enemies always claimed he was more sorcerer than septon. Baelor the Blessed had ordered all Barth’s writings destroyed when he came to the Iron Throne. Ten years ago, Tyrion had read a fragment of Unnatural History that had eluded the Blessed Baelor, but he doubted that any of Barth’s work had found its way across the narrow sea. And of course there was even less chance of his coming on the fragmentary, anonymous, blood-soaked tome sometimes called Blood and Fire and sometimes The Death of Dragons, the only surviving copy of which was supposedly hidden away in a locked vault beneath the Citadel.

When the Halfmaester appeared on deck, yawning, the dwarf was writing down what he recalled concerning the mating habits of dragons, on which subject Barth, Munkun, and Thomax held markedly divergent views.

—ADWD, Tyrion IV

Maesters who have written on dragons: Munkun, Grand Maester to Aegon III The Dragonbane whose efforts to revive the dragons all failed - he wrote True Telling about the Dance of the Dragons as well; Thomax, unknown time; and Anonymous, who wrote a real banger that the world isn't ready for, apparently. This last one will come into play later.

There is also Truth by Maester Anson, cited in AWOIAF, which is only mentioned insofar as it disagrees with Septon Barth's statement that dragons can switch sex.

So there are at least four books written by maesters on dragons, and more that the Citadel library has collected from the world over!

(The books by Thomax and Anonymous, while both being titled The Death of Dragons, are confirmed not the same.)

There is potentially one more, if the unnamed tome Arianne encounters is unique:

During the daylight hours she would try to read, but the books that they had given her were deadly dull: ponderous old histories and geographies, annotated maps, a dry-as-dust study of the laws of Dorne, The Seven-Pointed Star and Lives of the High Septons, a huge tome about dragons that somehow made them about as interesting as newts.

—AFFC, The Princess in the Tower

In summary: the Citadel's investment in dragons/magic is rigorous, a matter serious enough that they lock knowledge on it away in a vault, in order to take a maester's vows you must undergo a test that disavows magic's existence, there are maesters willing to die to deny arcane arts, potentially maesters willing to kill for that too. To a man, maesters dismiss magic... but are they actively engineering it's downfall?

This is where it gets murky. I myself would say that they take advantage of circumstances to have others do their dirty work. That maesters seek to preserve the status quo but also manipulate it to serve their own ends. Which brings us to the next point

SECOND: HOW THE MAESTER CONSPIRACY FUNCTIONS IN ASOIAF (POSSIBLY)

In ASOIAF timeline, the dragons are all already dead and magic is subdued. As a result, the winters are longer and the summers are shorter, another thing the Citadel is deeply concerned with, being the people who officially announce the changings of the seasons.

As established, we know of Pycelle's involvement in opening King's Landing for Tywin after Rhaegar died — this is where the concept of maester's having differing motives and personal loyalties comes up.

Pycelle is a pretty clear case study, he's both deeply loyal, as a maester of the Citadel, to preserving a nominal peace regardless of the dishonorable & murderous ends required to do so... but he also personally is loyal to Tywin Lannister, who is his ideal ruler.

In a letter to the Citadel, Pycelle wrote that the divisions within the Red Keep [between Aerys and Rhaegar] reminded him uncomfortably of the situation before the Dance of the Dragons a century before, when the enmity between Queen Alicent and Princess Rhaenyra had split the realm in two, to grievous cost

—AWOIAF, The Targaryen Kings: Aerys II

Grand Maester Pycelle cleared his throat, a process that seemed to take some minutes. "My order serves the realm, not the ruler. Once I counseled King Aerys as loyally as I counsel King Robert now, so I bear this girl child of his no ill will. Yet I ask you this—should war come again, how many soldiers will die? How many towns will burn? How many children will be ripped from their mothers to perish on the end of a spear?" He stroked his luxuriant white beard, infinitely sad, infinitely weary. "Is it not wiser, even kinder, that Daenerys Targaryen should die now so that tens of thousands might live?"

—AGOT, Eddard VIII

“For the realm! Once Rhaegar died, the war was done. Aerys was mad, Viserys too young, Prince Aegon a babe at the breast, but the realm needed a king... I prayed it should be your good father, but Robert was too strong, and Lord Stark moved too swiftly... ”

—ACOK, Tyrion VI

We know from the books of the unswerving Pycelle's loyalty to the Lannister and precisely to Lord Tywin. Why this loyalty? Was there any event we don't know yet?

There´s backstory yet to be revealed, certainly, but if you asked Pycelle he would insist that he was acting in the best interests of the realm.

—FORUM: Asshai Chat July 27, 2008

It's possible that Pycelle's advice given to Aerys was personally motivated by his own political beliefs on who was best suited to rule & his acceptance that the war was already over, so he needed to get out on the winning side. GRRM has hinted that there's more to the story.

It's additionally possible that Maester Walys, Rickard Stark's maester born from a Hightower mother and an alleged archmaester father, was advising Rickard on making alliances down south simply because that's what he thought was smart politicking.

However, it's interesting that multiple maesters were involved in arranging the chess board of power in Westeros against House Targaryen, and, now, are shown to be aligned to preserve power in the hands of... the Lannisters. More accurately, I would say they seek to preserve whoever is a) currently in power and b) amenable to a maester's advice and manipulation. More on this when we get to Stannis.

Now, Pycelle is personally loyal to the Lannisters because that is what he thinks is in "the best interests of the realm," but otherwise, maesters in general are invested in preserving the power structure as is, because war disrupts their slowgoing machinations (Marwyn's words: the world the Citadel is building). In fact, as the Lannisters infight throughout ACOK and become unstable, only to be saved by an alliance with the Tyrells, there is a response from the Citadel that indicates they're willing to switch to whoever is the dominant side, it if means protecting their influence.

[T]he Conclave accepted the fact of Pycelle's dismissal and set about choosing his successor. After giving due consideration to Maester Turquin the cordwainer's son and Maester Erreck the hedge knight's bastard, and thereby demonstrating to their own satisfaction that ability counts for more than birth in their order, the Conclave was on the verge of sending us Maester Gormon, a Tyrell of Highgarden. When I told your lord father, he acted at once." The Conclave met in Oldtown behind closed doors, Tyrion knew; its deliberations were supposedly a secret. So Varys has little birds in the Citadel too. "I see. So my father decided to nip the rose before it bloomed." He had to chuckle. "Pycelle is a toad. But better a Lannister toad than a Tyrell toad, no?"

—ASOS, Tyrion II

Before we get into cartoon villain territory, let's caveat that their involvement in the deaths of the dragons and the Targaryens who could potentially hatch them once more does seem to be a one-off for them in terms of puppet-mastering against a monarch, and indeed, they never intended war, preferring to function methodically in the background.

"Be that as it may. My father sat where I sit now when Lord Eddard came to Sisterton. Our maester urged us to send Stark's head to Aerys, to prove our loyalty. It would have meant a rich reward. The Mad King was open-handed with them as pleased him. By then we knew that Jon Arryn had taken Gulltown, though. Robert was the first man to gain the wall, and slew Marq Grafton with his own hand. 'This Baratheon is fearless,' I said. 'He fights the way a king should fight.' Our maester chuckled at me and told us that Prince Rhaegar was certain to defeat this rebel.

—ADWD, Davos I

They maximize their influence — they don't overstep.

On to Stannis.

[Alys Karstark:] "Arnolf [Karstark] is rushing to Winterfell, 'tis true, but only so he might put his dagger in your king's back. He cast his lot with Roose Bolton long ago ��� for gold, the promise of a pardon, and poor Harry's head. Lord Stannis is marching to a slaughter.

—ADWD, Jon IX

“Y-your Grace, my order is sworn to serve, we…” “I know all about your vows. What I want to know is what was in the letter that you sent to Winterfell. Did you perchance tell Lord Bolton where to find us?” “S-sire.” Round-shouldered Tybald drew himself up proudly. “The rules of my order forbid me to divulge the contents of Lord Arnolf’s letters.”

—TWOW, Unreleased Theon Chapter

Here we have Arnolf Karstark, castellan of Karhold, who pledges to Stannis... but secretly he's actually pledged to Roose Bolton, who is in league with the Lannisters. Together they planned the Red Wedding. The Karstark maester is seen assisting in this plot to see Stannis dead via the Karstark-Bolton-Lannister network.

Does Stannis have his own maester with him? No, Maester Cressen dies in the ACOK Prologue, and his replacement, Pylos, is not mentioned as having accompanied Stannis North. Stannis is far from the influence of the Citadel and has publicly declared his new faith in R'hllor, something for the Citadel/general Westerosi hegemony to worry about, and now we have a maester helping to plot against him...

Once more, it's possible that said maester is simply acting of his own volitions & values. Conveniently in service to House Lannister which currently holds power. However, he's not the only Northern maester to have conflicting loyalties South:

[Wyman Manderly, Lord of White Harbor:] If Stannis wonders that my letters say so little, it is because I dare not even trust my maester. Theomore is all head and no heart. You heard him in my hall. Maesters are supposed to put aside old loyalties when they don their chains, but I cannot forget that Theomore was born a Lannister of Lannisport and claims some distant kinship to the Lannisters of Casterly Rock. Foes and false friends are all around me, Lord Davos.

—ADWD, Davos IV

Something to consider.

THIRD: ADDRESSING THE FERTILITY OF TARGARYEN WOMEN

Let's take it back for a minute. I'm separating this section because a whole bunch of it comes from AWOIAF/Fire & Blood and I know not everyone is super familiar with those, so I'm taking time to explain it fully. A big facet of the Maester Conspiracy has to do with magic and dragons ergo House Targaryen. We have covered the Aerys/Pycelle, Maester Aemon, and Daenerys portions.

But there is a larger relevant point: The miscarriages and stillbirths of Targaryen women.

From AGOT we know that the birth of dragons is tied to blood magic, but specifically, that magic which is performed by Daenerys — a pregnant Targaryen. She has prophetic visions both asleep and awake that lead her to the final hatching of the dragons... and it's the deaths of Rhaego in her womb, Drogo by her hand, and Mirri by her order that facilitate this.

She was lying there, holding the egg, when she felt the child move within her… as if he were reaching out, brother to brother, blood to blood. "You are the dragon," Dany whispered to him, "the true dragon. I know it. I know it." And she smiled, and went to sleep dreaming of home.

—AGOT, Daenerys IV

"You will not hear me scream," Mirri responded as the oil dripped from her hair and soaked her clothing. "I will," Dany said, "but it is not your screams I want, only your life. I remember what you told me. Only death can pay for life."

—AGOT, Daenerys X

So, let's posit that there is some matriarchal link between fertility, motherhood, and births... even of dragons.

The theory here is that maesters, operating under the idea that Targaryen wives's fertility was somehow related to the blood magics/births of dragons, meddled with their pregnancies to prevent said magics/births of dragons.

The reason the maesters may have suspected this? Well according to AGOT and Fire & Blood, at certain times, Targaryen women/wives experienced miscarriages of fetuses that were "monstrous." Dragonlike, some might describe them (some being me, in the following list) — so the contention that the women of House Targaryen were magically involved in literal dragon-birthing does seem possible.

The miscarriages in question:

1A) Maegor Targaryen and Alys Harroway's stillborn: a monster, with twisted limbs, a huge head, and no eyes.

1B) The hatchling born to Alyn Velaryon and Baela Targaryen's daughter Laena: the dragon that wriggled from the egg was a monstrosity, a wingless wyrm, maggot-white and blind

2A) Maegor and Jeyne Westerling's stillborn: a legless and armless creature possessed of both male and female genitalia → eventual death in childbirth

2B) Maester Aemon in AFFC Samwell IV: Dragons are neither male nor female, Barth saw the truth of that, but now one and now the other, as changeable as flame

3A) Maegor and Elinor Costayne's stillborn: a malformed and stillborn child, an eyeless boy born with rudimentary wings

3B) In The Hedge Knight, the last dragon to ever live is described as small with unformed wings

4A) Daemon Targaryen and Laena Velaryon's stillborn: the babe was twisted and malformed, and died within the hour → eventual death in childbirth

4B) Laena's stillbirth unique because it's implied that Rhaenyra's maester, Gerardys, who arrived slightly too late, might have been able to assist in saving Laena's life following the birth — the same way he was able to save Viserys I's hand and life when other maesters couldn't. Thus, incompetence or malice on the part of the present maester might have contributed to Laena's death.

5A) Daemon and Rhaenyra Targaryen's stillborn Visenya, Rhaenyra's early labor brought on by the news of her father's death and her usurpation by Aegon II:

The princess shrieked curses all through her labor, calling down the wrath of the gods upon her half-brothers and their mother, the queen, and detailing the torments she would inflict upon them before she would let them die. She cursed the child inside her too, Mushroom tells us, clawing at her swollen belly as Maester Gerardys and her midwife tried to restrain her and shouting, “Monster, monster, get out, get out, GET OUT!” When the babe at last came forth, she proved indeed a monster: a stillborn girl, twisted and malformed, with a hole in her chest where her heart should have been, and a stubby, scaled tail.

—Fire & Blood, The Dying of the Dragons: The Blacks and the Greens

5B) Rhaenyra's usurpation by Aegon II is a parallel to the usurpation of the Amethyst Empress by her younger brother the Bloodstone Emperor, in the ancient Great Empire of the Dawn. This is said to have been what caused the first Long Night to occur and indeed, after Rhaenyra, we see the dragons die out, magic disappear, summers grow short, and winter grow long.

When the daughter of the Opal Emperor succeeded him as the Amethyst Empress, her envious younger brother cast her down and slew her, proclaiming himself the Bloodstone Emperor and beginning a reign of terror. [...] In the annals of the Further East, it was the Blood Betrayal, as his usurpation is named, that ushered in the age of darkness called the Long Night.

—AWOIAF, The Bones and Beyond: Yi Ti

6) Naerys Targaryen's multiple miscarriages/stillbirths vs. 2 living children → eventual death in childbirth

7) Rhaella Targaryen's 8 miscarriages/stillbirths/child deaths vs. 3 living children → eventual death in childbirth

8) Daenerys with Rhaego:

"Monstrous," Mirri Maz Duur finished for him. The knight was a powerful man, yet Dany understood in that moment that the maegi was stronger, and crueler, and infinitely more dangerous. "Twisted. I drew him forth myself. He was scaled like a lizard, blind, with the stub of a tail and small leather wings like the wings of a bat. When I touched him, the flesh sloughed off the bone, and inside he was full of graveworms and the stink of corruption. He had been dead for years." Darkness, Dany thought. The terrible darkness sweeping up behind to devour her. If she looked back she was lost. "My son was alive and strong when Ser Jorah carried me into this tent," she said. "I could feel him kicking, fighting to be born."

—AGOT, Daenerys IX

With these in mind, we can ask: why would anyone think these similar descriptions have anything to do with outside interference? Couldn't it just be that Targaryen babies are weird, it's the blood magic and the incest, nothing to see here?

The thing is that all of Maegor's stillborn children (3/6 examples of dragonesque children) were poisoned, by Tyanna of the Tower. Rhaego was also poisoned, by Mirri Maaz Duur's blood magic.

So 4/6 of these hybrid children were born under the influence of some sort of darker magic. This still leaves Rhaenyra and Laena's respective draconic stillbirths. It opens the question of whether poison was involved in those, too. In my personal opinion, it might also intend to raise a question mark on the matrilineage of Targaryen women who birthed children & brought about dragons — a private theory but raised by the idea of Rhaego's description and the concept of him being "dead for years."

That said, the two serious cases I think we can look into here are Naerys and Rhaella's serial miscarriages/stillbirths/child deaths.

Both these women suffered from frail health and abusive circumstances. Naerys was extremely slight and small of stature, it's possible that she simply struggled with the physical toll of pregnancies. Rhaella gave birth for the first time under traumatic circumstances (the burning of Summerhall and deaths of her family) when she was 14 years old, totally reasonable that she'd be permanently affected by that. In fact, these are two women for whom it would not be suspicious should they experience fertility issues. So if there were ever two people who you could get away with pulling this on...

The reasons to consider each more closely —

NAERYS TARGARYEN: Naerys's successful birth of Daeron (later Daeron II) happened the same year the last dragon died. After this, King Aegon III The Dragonbane started attempting to hatch new dragons whereas before he was extremely resistant to dragon-anything. Naerys's miscarriages and stillbirths begin only after attempts to hatch dragons commence — a likely time, if a link between her fertility and future dragons was suspected by bad actors. Her only other living child Daenerys Lateborn is born 17 years later, and in fact is one of a set of twins, the other child dying at birth. So, it's possible that pregnancy was also tampered with, and simply did not succeed on both twins

Counterpoint One: Naerys was not a healthy or robust person, nor did she desire to carry children. They were forced on her by her purposely cruel brother-husband Aegon IV. It's possible she was not poisoned and simply suffered from miscarriages/stillbirths naturally.

Counterpoint Two: Naerys was married to a man who had many mistresses, lovers, bastards, and grasping councilors. It's possible that she was poisoned, but not by maesters, rather by those who sought to gain power by opening up the position of Queen.

RHAELLA TARGARYEN: Aerys and Rhaella were married to one another based on a prophecy by the Ghost of High Heart that through them, The Prince/Princess That Was Promised would be born.

"Why did they wed if they did not love each other?" "Your grandsire commanded it. A woods witch had told him that the prince was promised would be born of their line."

—ADWD, Daenerys IV

"Maester Aemon believed that Daenerys Targaryen was the fulfillment of a prophecy... her, not Stannis, nor Prince Rhaegar, nor the princeling whose head was dashed against the wall." "Born amidst salt and smoke, beneath a bleeding star. I know the prophecy." Marwyn turned his head and spat a gob of red phlegm onto the floor.

—AFFC, Samwell V

Someday the dragons will return. My brother Daeron's dreamed of it, and King Aerys read it in a prophecy. Maybe it will be my egg that hatches. That would be splendid

—The Hedge Knight

The prophecy is known to at least one maester of the Citadel... seems realistic that it would be known to multiple! The prophecy in question regards the birth of the Prince/Princess That Was Promised, the herald who will bring dragons back into the world, and the culmination of House Targaryen. When Rhaella became pregnant and was close to her due date, the King Aegon V had all the Targaryens gather in Summerhall where he intended to attempt to hatch seven dragon eggs (perhaps he also had some suspicion about the connection between the blood magic needed to hatch dragons and Rhaella's imminent potentially prophesized birth?)

… the blood of the dragon gathered in one … … seven eggs, to honor the seven gods, though the king’s own septon had warned … … pyromancers … … wildfire … … ames grew out of control … towering … burned so hot that … … died, but for the valor of the Lord Comman …

—AWOIAF, The Targaryen Kings: Aegon V

This is what remains of the story of Summerhall. Who wrote this note? Maester Corso, of course. Where did he send this letter? The Citadel. Woof. Innocuous on it's own but for the purpose of this post, in line with the idea that the Citadel was keeping a close eye on all things dragon.

The Maester Conspiracy would ask: who is to say what really went wrong at Summerhall? All we know is that Rhaella gave birth there amidst the chaos and then she didn't give birth to a child who lived past a year for 17 years to come. Miscarriages, stillbirths, child deaths... she had them all. Aerys's paranoia grew and grew until Rhaella was completely isolated. It was under these conditions of extreme scrutiny that Rhaella finally had Viserys, and Viserys lived, and then Daenerys was born while isolated on Dragonstone & raised far from maester's influence following.

Here's the point that sticks out though:

"Lannisport was the end of our voyage," Prince Oberyn went on, as Ser Arron Qorgyle helped him into a padded leather tunic and began lacing it up the back. "Were you aware that our mothers knew each other of old?" "They had been at court together as girls, I seem to recall. Companions to Princess Rhaella?"

"Just so. It was my belief that the mothers had cooked up this plot between them.

—ASOS, Tyrion X

The Unnamed Princess of Dorne and Joanna Lannister were both companions to Princess Rhaella. The exact timeline is unclear but it's definite that the Unnamed Princess was older than the other two. She'd given birth to Doran over a decade before Rhaegar was born, although Rhaella was a very young mother (13 or 14). However, they were close enough to cook up 'plots.' It seems realistic that the Unnamed Princess was present earlier in Rhaella's life while Joanna came about later. GRRM is not trustworthy with ages and timelines anyway, so that's a supposition.

All three of these women had the same experience: a firstborn who lived, followed by a long expanse of fertility issues, followed by another successful birth (or more).

"I was the oldest," the prince said, "and yet I am the last. After Mors and Olyvar died in their cradles, I gave up hope of brothers. I was nine when Elia came, a squire in service at Salt Shore. When the raven arrived with word that my mother had been brought to bed a month too soon, I was old enough to understand that meant the child would not live. Even when Lord Gargalen told me that I had a sister, I assured him that she must shortly die. Yet she lived, by the Mother's mercy. And a year later Oberyn arrived, squalling and kicking.

—AFFC, The Captain of the Guard

Doran was nine before his mother had another successful birth after two child deaths. Her manner of death is unknown. Tyrion is likewise nine years younger than Jaime & Cersei. Joanna Lannister's possible fertility issues in the in-between are unknown, but she died in childbirth. Viserys is 17 years younger than Rhaegar (similar to how Daenerys Lateborn is 17 years younger than Daeron II). Rhaella Targaryen died in childbirth. If all three of these women who canonically shared time, meals, chambers, etc together suffered from similar infertility issues and timelines, with Rhaella being the worst affected, can we theorize that there might have been issues of poison at play?

Pycelle was the Grand Maester at the time — we know he was involved in other plots with poison at the center (Robert Baratheon and Jon Arryn most notably), and we also know that Tywin Lannister married for love. So despite his loyalty to Tywin, couldn't it be that Pycelle never expected Tywin to match with his cousin of few advantages, and that Joanna's struggles were perhaps an unintended, unforeseen consequence?

Could this be the additional backstory regarding Pycelle and Tywin that GRRM is referencing?

Counterpoint One: If the maesters were aware of the prophecy and Rhaegar fulfilled it, they shouldn't have continued with Rhaella

Counterpoint Two: The timeline for the various births of Rhaella, Joanna, and Unnamed Princess are all over the place. It's possible that GRRM didn't simply flub the timeline and actually there is no connection between these three women's similar fertility issues.

Counterpoint Three: Rhaella was traumatized from her young birth and Summerhall's tragedy, her fertility issues arose naturally.

All possibilities.

FOURTH: IS ALL OF THIS GOING TO BITE THE CITADEL IN THE ASS SOMEHOW? WHY ARE THEY EVEN DOING THIS? (SPECULATION)

My theory as to the roots of the Maester Conspiracy is threefold:

ONE: The Citadel, like all institutions of higher academia, is not politically neutral and is invested in specific visions for the future. They inherently seek to preserve the status quo which allows them to function and expand their own influence. They are as liable to corruption as any of the other institutions we see (monarchy, knighthood, the Faith, the Night's Watch, the Kingsguard, etc.) and while maesters do not act as one, they do act as an informal web pushing forth specific beliefs and ideals.

TWO: Not all maesters are created equal. Archmaesters and other such influential members of the Citadel are closer to certain truths than others, it's in the handchosen placement of maesters in the ears of specific lords/political players that we see a larger plan.

THREE: The Citadel is aware of prophecies foretelling a second Long Night to come. To combat this, they have long sought to destroy one of the heralds of said disaster, that being dragons. To put it simply: All magic is from the same root / all magic must be destroyed.

That's my theory.

Now, is this going to bite them in the ass? Hahaha of course!

ONE: The Faceless Men are infiltrating the Citadel due to some plan we are not yet privy to. The AFFC Prologue shows us the novice Pate being body snatched by an FM implied to the Jaqen H'ghar — what is he after, though? Potentially the extremely rare book titled The Death of Dragons that is solely kept in some locked basement of the Citadel... which he just acquired a key for?

TWO: Euron Greyjoy is coming to sack Oldtown, and he is obsessed with dragons/arcane arts/doing experiments with pregnant women (back to my point about connecting dragon births and human fertility)... but above all, he is not nice.

THREE: Daenerys Targaryen is coming to Westeros, and she's the Mother of Dragons. The Dragons are here. By focusing on dragons, it's possible the maesters have lost sight of the bigger picture — the incoming Long Night, wights, and Battle for the Dawn.

That was such a long post I fear and way beyond the question you asked. I appreciate it anyway, seeing as I've wanted to get all these thoughts out for a while to organize what I think & what the text itself points to.

To answer your question: Yes I do think the Maester Conspiracy is a real thing! I believe it's been set up mainly insofar as it will guide Samwell Tarly's POVs in Oldtown, the upcoming Euron Greyjoy plotlines, and potentially Arya due to the Faceless Men connect.

Eventually it will bring Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow into play (the latter likely due to the Arya and Sam of it all, which winks to the importance of Jon now having an Oldtown-bred squire in Satin), probably in line with the concept of the Second Dance George has been teasing us about.

Just how it will all play out, though, I couldn't say. We shall have to see. Drink water. Manifest TWOW. Speaking of manifesting...

[sgiandubh]

Sunday sounds: Third Advent Gaudete Sunday - Joy

This severely traffic jammed Sunday may be plagued with hustle, bustle and the final scramble to Christmas, but it is time to light the pink Shepherds' Candle.

These Most Humble of Them All were also the first to be told something that forever changed our hearts and minds, and immediately sent them on the road to Bethlehem:

'And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.' (Luke,  2:10-12).

Despite and sometimes even against anything else, this Sunday is about an overwhelming, definitive feeling of Joy:

We do not need complicated words to describe what we think or feel on this particular day. This is why, and rather uncharacteristically, I have chosen John Rutter's deceptively simple and modern tune. It closely resonates with John Betjeman's Christmas poem - and I could never resist Betjeman:

The bells of waiting Advent ring, The Tortoise stove is lit again And lamp-oil light across the night Has caught the streaks of winter rain In many a stained-glass window sheen From Crimson Lake to Hookers Green.

The holly in the windy hedge And round the Manor House the yew Will soon be stripped to deck the ledge, The altar, font and arch and pew, So that the villagers can say 'The church looks nice' on Christmas Day.

Provincial Public Houses blaze, Corporation tramcars clang, On lighted tenements I gaze, Where paper decorations hang, And bunting in the red Town Hall Says 'Merry Christmas to you all'.

And London shops on Christmas Eve Are strung with silver bells and flowers As hurrying clerks the City leave To pigeon-haunted classic towers, And marbled clouds go scudding by The many-steepled London sky.

And girls in slacks remember Dad, And oafish louts remember Mum, And sleepless children's hearts are glad. And Christmas-morning bells say 'Come!' Even to shining ones who dwell Safe in the Dorchester Hotel.

And is it true?  And is it true, This most tremendous tale of all, Seen in a stained-glass window's hue, A Baby in an ox's stall ? The Maker of the stars and sea Become a Child on earth for me ?

And is it true ?  For if it is, No loving fingers tying strings Around those tissued fripperies, The sweet and silly Christmas things, Bath salts and inexpensive scent And hideous tie so kindly meant,

No love that in a family dwells, No carolling in frosty air, Nor all the steeple-shaking bells Can with this single Truth compare - That God was man in Palestine And lives today in Bread and Wine.

[ariesmemes]

♡    ╱    SEMICOLON SENTENCE STARTERS ( created using seventeen’s 2020 album semicolon. lyrics come from english translation via genuis. feel free to adjust to fit your muse. )

“still holding onto the bat”

“don’t step back”

“don’t listen to anyone”

“just do whatever you want”

“hit ‘em up”

“you still have one chance left”

“don’t give up”

“you know what, i believe ya”

“just be yourself”

“what are you so worried about?”

“hit it further away”

“come running out, babe”

“keep your head up”

“we’ll wake up to a new tomorrow”

“throw that ball”

“let’s have some fun”

“you’re busy running away”

“why the game of hide and seek?”

“let’s play something else”

“there may be no end to our journey of dreams”

“let’s take a break for today”

“let’s have our own party”

“party on until the day ends”

“we do what we say with no fear”

“we play and play”

“why do you keep holding back when you feel emotional?”

“there are many ways to express it”

“i want to have a matter of choice”

“calm down”

“slow down”

“you can think about it more”

“everything is a good idea”

“everybody has a good idea”

“i don’t know what’s right or what’s wrong”

“base it on the order of your senses”

“i’ll always support how you feel”

“it’s right, it’s good”

“whatever you want”

“you can think it easily like do-re-mi”

“it’s difficult to think”

“it’s always difficult”

“just sing”

“life goes on”

“just keep going”

“endless regrets and worries”

“you define my world”

“almost everyone knows if it’s not as easy as it seems”

“take it easy for tomorrow”

“write that down”

“it’s not so difficult”

“hey buddy”

“what time is it?”

“i overslept”

“look out the window and it’s good weather”

“tripped on a stone while coming out”

“even if it hurts i don’t feel bad”

“i need to fix my sneakers”

“people don’t seem to care”

“why doesn’t it change?”

“i’m sure it’ll come soon”

“i’ll be at your house soon”

“knock on the door”

“what are you worried about?”

“come with me”

“what do you want to do today?”

“write down everything from one to ten”

“whatever you want”

“the destination is not very important”

“let’s go together”

“we all play the role of problem-solver and worry about it”

“tell me your wish”

“blurt out anything”

“it makes you feel better”

“wait a minute”

“it’s between you and me”

“it’s between me and you”

“it’s always between us”

“like a flame that never goes out”

“meeting you today was fun”

“how did you feel?”

“call me right away tomorrow morning”

“we are friends”

“tip-toeing the line”

“on the edge of barely crossing”

“relying on the light of a single candle to find each other”

“we already know”

“don’t rush”

“light a flame”

“don’t need loud sounds”

“let me breath deeply”

“i want to keep going right now”

“we’re falling for each other”

“i’m ready for you”

“my heart is ready”

“never cared about what anyone said”

“said you fell in love at first sight”

“checking if it’s a lie”

“if i show you something will you think me over every morning?”

“that firework launched in the middle of the sea”

“any day and anywhere”

“in the end i hope you become more to me”

“i become more to you”

“we won’t be able to hide what’s between us”

“love is you”

“if you’re careless about it now, what do i do?”

“the wave doesn’t stop”

“my surroundings are so quiet”

“my love only amounts to this”

“hello, my joy”

“you always make me laugh”

“you let me forget everything for a moment”

“play a song i know”

“hold my hand”

“before i know it, the me of today hopes for the you of tomorrow”

“baby, it’s alright”

“it’s okay”

“i’m even more thankful”

“i don’t know what to do”

“what can i do?”

“i’m really sorry”

“i’ll be your spring to whatever winter it may be”

“this is all my heart can say”

“please be the light in the dark sky”

“i can do everything for you”

“i just want to give you everything”

“that makes me feel small”

“it suddenly makes me hate myself”

“thank you for staying by my side”

“thought it was hard writing my feelings down”

“i can get closer to your love”

“i’ll be your umbrella in the rain”

“i’ll protect you on all your days”

[percervall]

decorating the house

Player: Kostas Tsimikas Words: 982  Requested: - Warnings: None, fluff, suggestive ending A/N: I wrote this one towards the end of last month, but didn't get around to posting it until now. The idea was kind of inspired by @footballerimaginess blurb on Kos decorating the house

Please let me know what you think! 🧡

Autumn masterlist

----------

“Hey babe?” came Kostas’ voice from the corridor as he walked into her home office. 

“Mm?” she responded, still focussed on making sense of the numbers on her screen. 

“Oh, you’re working,” he observed when he laid eyes on her.

“Gimme a minute..” she said, mumbling something under her breath about men named Greg and their inability to organise. Kostas smiled as he watched her work. She sighed and rolled her shoulders, pushing her blue light glasses up into her hair as she spun around.

“Okay, you had a question?” 

“Yeah, where do we keep the Halloween stuff? I tried the garage but it’s not there,” Kostas said.

“It’s up in the loft with the Christmas decorations. Why?”

“Oh, just thought I could decorate while you worked. The lads made it into a competition to see who could decorate the best. I have a feeling some of them will cheat by asking their partners to do it and then taking the credit,” Kostas explained, a child-like glint in his eyes. 

“Sounds like fun. What’s the prize?” 

“Pep said he’d get the winner a bottle of wine. Second and third both get Halloween sweets.” 

“So everyone’s a winner?” Kostas shrugged. “All right, well I’d say do your best– or worst since it’s Halloween,” she continued. She wondered if she should be concerned about the grin that broke on her boyfriend’s face when she gave him free rein like that, but decided it would probably be fine. What was the worst that could happen?

Kostas hadn’t been lying when he said he wanted to decorate. When she emerged from her office three hours later to get coffee, he had already decorated the staircase and hallway. She stopped in her tracks to take it all in. He’d strung cobwebs through the balusters of the staircase, adorning them with tiny black plastic spiders. The wall of the entryway was decorated with paper bats. She had a feeling he’d spent a good amount of time making those because she’d never seen them before. Her pumpkin-shaped glass jar had been filled with battery operated fairy lights, and placed on the entryway table. It looked really good, she had to admit.

As she moved into the living room, she stopped again. Their dining room table was covered in decorations and art supplies. Kostas was focussed on something that involved a glue gun and some candles. She dug her phone out of her back pocket and snapped a quick photo of him. Placing her mug down on the kitchen island, she moved to stand behind him.

“How’s it going?” she asked softly as to not startle him.

“So far so good. Did you see the staircase? And the wall?” Kostas said, looking up from his work. Now that she was closer, she saw he was using old crayons to add a drip-effect to some of the left over candles from last year. 

“Mmhmm. Where did the bats come from? I don’t remember them from last year?” 

He looked at her with a grin.

“That’s because I made them. Found a tutorial on Pinterest, it was easy enough to follow. I made too many so I used some for the wall behind the TV as well,” he said, pointing towards the fireplace. She followed with her eyes, taking in the paper bats and the cobwebs draped over the mantle. He’d put her skull candle holders down already and the two fake dog skeletons.

“And I saw someone use these things to make dripping candles,” he continued, holding up the crayons.

“Is that what the glue gun is for?” she asked, picking strings of fake cobwebs out of his hair. 

“Uhu, you put the thing in there,” he said, loading another crayon into the opening where the glue stick would normally go, “and then the heat will melt the wax. It’s easier than the blow dryer.” He nodded to her discarded blow dryer as if to prove his point. 

She smiled, watching him move the glue gun around the pillar candle until it looked like blood was dripping down it. Pressing a kiss to the crown of his head, she moved back to the kitchen to make herself another coffee. While the Nespresso machine spluttered away, she rested against the counter. 

“I think you might win this Kos,” she said as she took another look at what he had done so far.

“Really?” 

She nodded in reply and retrieved her mug. Taking a sip, she sat down opposite him at the table. 

“Can you film me making these candles so Pep knows I did it?” 

She smiled at how eager he was to get this right but got her phone out and started filming him crafting away. Turning around, she zoomed in on the fireplace.

“Just so you know Pep, Kos is in charge of decorating from now on. Couldn’t have done it better myself,” she said before turning back around. Kostas laughed and finished his final candle. He unplugged the glue gun, and gathered the candles. She kept filming him as he placed them down on the mantle. 

“Babe, if football somehow doesn’t work out for you, you have a future in interior design,” she commented as she put her phone down. Kostas beamed at her from across the room, admiring his own work. She walked over to him, wrapping her arms around him. 

“My beautiful Kos, a man of many talents..” she murmured and kissed him briefly. Kostas tightened his arms around her, chasing her lips when she pulled back. 

“Mm, follow me upstairs and I’ll demonstrate something else I’m really good at,” he pretty much purred in her ear, sending shivers down her spine. 

“Gotta clean up first babe, you made a mess.” 

“Give me five minutes and I’ll show you just how much of a mess I can make,” he replied, moving his lips down to her neck. 

---

Paper bats The mantel

[enniewritesathing]

🎵 🕯️ for Brian 🥘🍕 for John

Brian:

🎵 Music they listen to:

Y'know, Brian strikes me as a Pop kind of person, so I'm gonna go with that, lol. He likes something he can bop to when/if he goes running. For studying, he like Lo-Fi.

🕯️Favourite Aromatic candle:

John:

🥘Favourite Food:

Any meat-heavy dishes, but specifically pork adobo. He makes it from time to time as to not overdo it. John still hasn't figured out how his mom makes her version of it.

🍕 Pizza Topping:

John's not picky at all. He pretty much likes anything on pizza, but pepperoni's gotta be on there one way or another.

[xoxo-teddybear]

Birthday Bummer - Bakugou Katsuki

Bakugou x f!reader

Warnings: Angst, Cursing, Fluff, cheating accusations, jealous Katsuki

Summary: You love your boyfriend! You do! And he loves you! However he’s always busy. You understand being a pro can be very occupational but when he does have days off, he spends them either training to doing some paper work. Doing everything he can to get ahead, and you of course support him! But sometimes you miss him and sometimes he misses..a lot

BAKUGOU’S MASTERLIST

“Oh? You’re not gonna be able to make it again?” You said with sadness laced in your voice. The phone in your hand felt like led in your shaking palm as you spoke to your boyfriend.

“Yeah. I’m so sorry Teddy Bear. Endeavor won’t let me off especially with all the damaged I caused during our last battle.” He explained. Your lip began to quiver but you bit it to hide your expression.

“It’s fine, Suki. Really. I understand, you’re a hero and you’re busy. Don’t worry about it, Love.” You said with a reassuring tone.

“Are you already at the restaurant?” He asked with worry.

“No, I didn’t even leave the house yet. I was still getting ready. I was actually gonna text you to tell you I was gonna be a little late, but..yeah.” You said. Bakugou sighed in sadness.

“I’m so sorry. I promise I’ll make it up to you baby.” Another empty promise. You licked your lips at his words and gave a disappointed sigh.

“Ok.” You replied.

“I love you.” He sweetly said.

“I love you too.”

“Bye Y/N!” Kirishima said from the other side of the phone.

“Shitty Hair said ‘bye’” Bakugou said, relaying the message.

“Heh, bye Kiri.” You said and hung up. You placed the phone down on the table and bounced your leg up and down as you let your head rest in your hand.

Of course. Like usual, Katsuki blew you off again for work. It’s not like it’s his fault but he never seems to turn his agency down. You understand that being a hero requires diligent work and good ethics but your boyfriend would always drop everything for work whenever, wherever. That includes you.

“Excuse me, Miss?”

You looked up to the man who was dressed in a clean suit with a white apron. “Would you like anything else?”

“Ha, I mean..unless you can get my date here, then just the check.” You joked. The kind waiter placed an understanding hand on your shoulder before placing down the bill. You sipped from your champagne glass and payed before grabbing your purse and walking out of the fancy restaurant. Maybe if your boyfriend were here, you would be getting in his car with him to go home, but instead, you were driving your own and sitting by yourself. You began your drive home to the empty house.

The usual. Katsuki blows you off for work, tries to make it up to you with something special, fails to show up for that, repeat cycle. This time..it was different though. It was supposed to be your special day. It was your birthday.

You hoped he would’ve remembered. I mean, it’s not like this was your first birthday with him. This was going to be your 4th birthday with him! And he forgot! And you would’ve let it slide had it not been for the fact that he had been blowing you off more and more for work. You understand he’s a pro and you get that with the sudden splurge of crime in Musutafu he’s been way busier but he didn’t even spare you a little “Happy Birthday, babe.”

As you pulled into the driveway, you looked at the doorway and saw an edible arrangement! Your eyes lit up as you ran out the car and went to examine the gift. Unfortunately, as you read the gift card, you saw it was from Mina and not Katsuki. You smiled nonetheless, appreciative of the gift.

You brought it in and enjoyed the sweet treats in the basket with a sad smile. You left it on the dining table along with all the other gifts. A beautiful set of rings, a new dress, a heart holding teddy bear, and a bouquet of roses from your father. You were always a daddy’s girl. You and your father were extremely close and only grew closer once you lost your mother. Growing up an only child, your father was your best friend. You loved him dearly. As you examined the flowers, you couldn’t help but notice his note that put a smile on your face.

Hello my Sweet Angel, Y/N. It’s been another year of you being in my life and I couldn’t be happier to have been blessed with you. I hope these roses will suffice but I know they pale in comparison to your beauty. I hope you enjoy this marvelous day and I’m sorry I couldn’t be there to spend it with you as we usually do. I love you Y/N

-Daddy

You called your father to thank him for the roses and to have a conversation with him. You hadn’t talked to many people today despite it being your birthday so talking to one of your favorite people should bring your mood to a better place.

“Alright, I should get going now. It’s pretty late and you need your rest.” You reminded your father.

“Of course dear. Have a nice night, goodnight sweetie.”

“Okay, goodnight Daddy!” You chirped.

“Goodnight!”

You enjoyed speaking to your father and you definitely did feel your mood brighten until you noticed a text from Katsuki. You foolishly hoped it was a last minute birthday mention but of course you were wrong.

‘I’ll be home soon, princess. Mind getting dinner started? Thanks <3’

You could only sigh and feel your mood drop once more.

Afterwards, you chose to ignore his request and went to your shared bedroom. You stripped out of your gorgeous outfit and took off your makeup that you spent hours on. You hoped Katsuki would’ve gotten to see you all dolled up for your special day but things happen..you guess. You ran a hot bath for yourself and filled it with all types of scented bath salts, soaps, and flower petals. You lit a few candles and set them up all pretty around the tub and hopped in, relishing in the warmth that wrapped around you. All you wanted to do was forget about today.

—

Bakugou walked through the door exhausted from the day’s work. He took a shower at the agency and was all set and dressed in a comfy tee and a pair of sweats. He dropped his case at the door and walked in, expecting dinner for him on the island, but instead was met with a bunch of gifts. He stood shocked but chuckled to himself at the thought of you doing such a nice thing for him out of nowhere. He guesses that this was better than dinner.

He walked to the gifts and examined them. An edible arrangement that seemed to be eaten? Rings that were obviously for a woman? A dress? Okay, by now he realized that these gift must’ve been for you but for what? He continued to look through the gifts and noticed the lovey dovey Teddy Bear and bouquet. He grew a little irked at the gifts that one would deem romantic but what really sent it was the note. The words made his blood boil and when he saw the note was signed “Daddy,” he exploded.

“Is she…” as Bakugou thought about it, he came to the conclusion that you must’ve been cheating on him with some sugar daddy. The gifts, the dress, the rings, the note?! It gave him all the signs. In a raging fit, he took the basket and slammed it to the floor. He ripped apart the Teddy Bear, tossed the rings, singed the dress, and stomped on the beautiful roses. Finally, he made his way to search for you as he spoke to himself. “Oh that cheating fucking bitch.”

—

You were all set with your bath and had already dried your hair. You were dressed in your favorite silk set as you laid on the king sized bed. Suddenly, the door busted open and your boyfriend walked through the door, and he was pissed.

“Katsuki! The door!” You exclaimed before Bakugou made his way over to you.

“Am I not enough for you?!” He screamed. You looked at him in silent confusion and your pause urged him to continue. “What?! Do I not make enough money to your liking?! Well sorry if I can’t fucking spoil you! I just thought you would’ve appreciated my fucking efforts a little damn more considering you don’t have to work at all!”

“Katsuki, what the hell are you talking about?” You questioned, sitting up a little straighter.

“I’m talking about you fucking cheating on me! You think I wouldn’t notice all the fucking gifts you got for spreading your legs for some rich bastard?!” He asked and threw your gifted dress on your lap. You looked at it in shock as you ran your fingers across the singes. “Why don’t you take that fucking dress and the rest of your stupid gifts, and get the fuck out of this ho-“

Without letting him finish, you pushed his chest away and ran downstairs to the island. You set your eyes on the island and you stopped in your tracks, covering your open mouth with your hands in shock. Bakugou followed you down the stairs so he could see your reaction to having your gifts ruined, thinking it was exactly what you deserved for “cheating.”

“No, no, no!” You said an ran to the scattered gifts, trying to collect them as best as you could. Tears fell down your face as you looked at all the broken pieces in your hand. It wasn’t that you cared about receiving gifts, it was that these gifts were from people who cared enough to remember the day you came into this world. A day your own boyfriend couldn’t even remember this year. You found the crushed bouquet and held it against your chest. A gift from your dear father, ruined.

“What is wrong with you?” You tearfully asked the blonde behind you. You stood on your feet as he smirked at you with crossed arms and scoffed.

“What’s wrong with you? Fucking cheating on me with some sugar daddy?! And don’t even try to lie your way out of this shit, I read the fucking card.” He stated. You gawked at him in confusion and looked around as if he was crazy.

“The bouquet was from my father, Bakugou! Not my fucking sugar daddy! I don’t fucking have one, you prick!” Your words made Bakugou’s eyes pop as his arms uncrossed and slowly fell to his sides.

“W-What?” He asked.

“My father! The roses were from my father! The edible arrangement was from Mina, the rings were from Momo, the teddy bear was from Kirishima, and the dress was from Jirou! They gave me these gifts because it’s my birthday! Remember?!”

Bakugou immediately felt guilt build up in his chest. A little relief with that fact that you weren’t cheating, but immediate guilt for accusing you of doing so, telling you to leave, breaking your gifts, and forgetting your birthday.

“Y-Y/N I-“

“Save it Bakugou. You want me to leave so bad? Then I’ll go.” With that, you slammed the destroyed flowers into his chest and ran to the bedroom to change and pack a small bag with Bakugou following your trail.

“Y/N! No, wait!” He shouted and chased after you. Before he could grab hold of you, you made it into the room and slammed the door in his face before locking it. “Baby! C’mon, open the door! I’m sorry!”

“Leave me alone!” You said as you changed.

“No! Baby, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I forgot your birthday, I’m sorry I accused you of cheating, I’m sorry I ruined your special day. Please just let me in to fix this!” He begged. You finally opened the door with an angry look. “Baby! Thank go-“

“You can’t fix this, Bakugou!” You said with tears poking at the ends of your eyes. His heart began to ache when he noticed them and the bag you carried. Not only that but ever since you started calling him Bakugou again, he felt weak.

“Baby..it’s Katsuki.” He said trying to reach out for you but you snatched your hand away.

“Don’t call me that and as of right now, no it’s not!” You tried to walk away but Bakugou grabbed onto your waist to stop you.

“Y/N, stop, please. Look, you don’t have to go, just stay here and we can talk about this. Please we don’t even have to talk, just stay here. I’ll sleep in the guest room just don’t go, please.” He pleaded with soft tears. You bit your lip before calming down and speaking to him.

“Katsuki, I can’t be around you right now.” You said with a broken voice. “I just need some space…please.”

Katsuki still refused to let you go and so you stood there for what felt like forever. Eventually, you felt his hold weaken and so you pulled his arms off before walking away. Bakugou quietly followed you to the exit and before you left, Bakugou grabbed your wrist.

“I’m sorry. Please..let me fix this.” He said with tears running down his eyes. You froze before going in to make a move. You sighed and placed your hands on his face and wiped away his tears with your thumb. Bakugou took the opportunity to hold you in his arms once more as he leaned in to your touch. You pulled his face in and pecked his cheek before placing your hand on the knob once more.

“We’ll talk when I get back.” You softly said. You didn’t bother to see his response before you shut the door and got in your car to drive away.

Talk about a birthday bummer.

A/N: UGH, HORRIBLE ENDING

Tag list: @sxcker4you @aomi04 @tessabrown101

[agirlwhoisaphantom]

Pancakes for Dinner - Bucky Barnes x Reader

Summary: You have dated Bucky for a couple of years and Bucky is ready to pop the question. But does everything go according to plan?

18+

Word Count: 4,285

Warnings: Fluff, a hint of anxiety, car sex, biting, cream pie, Smut

Author's Note: This was supposed to be fluffy but hey I'm glad it took the turn it did.

Nude Lipstick? Check.

Cute Heals? Already wearing them.

Wearing a dress that hugged your curves perfectly? Yes.

When you and Bucky got together, he promised you that he would take you out on a date at least once a month. It didn’t matter if you were both tired. He always wanted to take you out.

This time it was a bit different. Bucky was taking you to somewhere fancy. When you would ask him about the restaurant, he would simply try to ignore the question.

You were finishing up getting ready when Bucky was leaning on the doorframe staring at how beautiful you looked. He loved seeing you wearing your pajamas with ketchup stains, but whenever you would get ready, his mind would go wild. He had a smile on his face as his eyes were roaming all over your body. You were wearing a beautiful long black velvet dress that was a deep cut on the chest area. Bucky always thought that he was lucky to have you by his side. He was always grateful that you were.

Ring…. Ring…Ring…

Bucky’s phone started to ring. “I’ll be back, Doll. Steve is calling me.”

He goes to the bathroom downstairs and locks himself in it. He wanted to make sure that you were unable to hear his conversation with Steve. Luckily, you were playing music as you were getting ready.

“Buck, are you ready to do this?”

“Yes, I’m ready to ask her” he pauses as he places his hands on his pockets, holding an item. “I have everything planned out. She is going to love it” a small chuckle escapes his mouth as he starts pacing back and forth. “I’m a bit nervous about doing this.”

Steve takes a big breath, loud enough that Bucky was able to hear it through the phone. “There is nothing to be nervous about, Buck. You love her. Just remember all those things that you have told me, that you can’t wait to build a family with her, that you wouldn’t trade anything in this world for her”

Bucky started to breathe heavily as his steps were getting heavier. He knew that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you, but he wasn’t sure If you wanted to do the same. The thought that your answer was going to be no, scared him.

He completely ignored everything that Steve was telling him. It’s white noise to him. He takes a couple of deep breaths. “I can do this. I have to go, Steve thanks for the pep talk. I’ll let you know when we leave so you and the rest can come to the house.”

Turning on the faucet, he throws cold water towards his face. “you got this, you can do it,” he whispered to himself.

Whenever you would get ready, Bucky would usually stay and watch you. He would compliment you and tell you sweet things to boost up your confidence. He didn’t care if he got a call. He would stay and let you listen in. So, it was odd that he left to talk to Steve about something.

Walking down the stairs, you notice that Bucky was at the bottom with his hand on the railing. Bucky’s eyes were digesting as he looked at you from head to toe. He was speechless. His eyes were sparkly, his mouth was hanging open slightly as he took in your appearance. To him, you were walking in slow motion. You looked so beautiful, he didn’t want to forget this moment.

Once you were at the last few steps of the staircase, Bucky extends his hand towards you. Without a second thought, you place your hand on his hand. “You look so beautiful, Doll.” He had a smile on his face.

Bucky was wearing a tailored black suit with a white shirt underneath, the two first buttons were unbuttoned, and his hair slicked back. Fuck, he looked good. “Babe, are you sure we can’t just stay in tonight and order pizza?” you knit your eyebrows together and push your bottom lip forward, making a pouty face.

“We have to go. The reservation is at 8pm” Bucky rolls his eyes as he gives a brief chuckle. He gets near you and places his metal hand on your waist meanwhile his other hand goes behind your head. He wanted to look at you up close. He wanted to see every little detail on your face. He mainly wanted to admire what was his. “Wait here. I have something to give you before we head out” He leans in to give you a forehead kiss.

Bucky heads to the kitchen to grab your gift. Your mind wonders what he could be talking to Steve about. Before your thoughts could continue, on the corner of your eye, you can see Bucky walking towards you with roses and a sunflower bouquet. Those were your favorite combination of flowers. “Bucky, you didn’t have too” your eyes start to water. You were so grateful to have him in your life.

Placing the bouquet on your arms, “I know I didn’t have to, but I wanted to. This is the first time we ever go out to a fancy place, and I want you to remember this” You get on your toes to give Bucky a kiss on his lips before you both head out.

Bucky held on the side of your dress. He didn’t want the tail of the dress to get dirty. When he opened the car door for you, he helped you by lifting the dress, making sure that it didn’t get trapped on the door.

Hungry eyes

One look at you and I can't disguise

On your drive to the restaurant, you shared laughs with stupid jokes you both would make. Every time your favorite song played, you and Bucky would sing your hearts out. You would dance. Meanwhile, Bucky would try to as he was driving.

A couple of minutes later, you were sitting across from Bucky at a very fancy restaurant. It was well decorated, and the ceilings were very tall with so many beautiful chandeliers. The place was dimly lit with a lot of candles.

You watched him look over the menu, and your mind wandered away from the food. You started to wonder when he had time to plan all of this and what was Steve’s call about. He was always with you, and if he wasn’t with you, he was with Steve and Sam. Your eyes were roaming all over him, from his steel-blue eyes to his metal hand. It brought you joy that he finally felt comfortable showing his metal arm in public.

“What is that beautiful mind thinking about?” Bucky asked you, breaking your inner monologue. Most of the time, he can tell what was going on in your mind. But due to him being nervous about what he is going to do later tonight, he couldn’t figure out what was going through your head.

Looking back down to the menu, “Oh, it’s nothing. Just wondering what I should get to eat.” You shrugged. With your index finger, you randomly pointed to something on it “hmm, chicken parmesan sounds good.”

Bucky shakes his head, and a lopsided grin forms on his face. “Ever since the day that I met you, you have never been a good liar,” he winks at you as he takes a drink from his cup of wine. “especially when it comes to lying to me.”

You take a big breath as you sighed “I’m just grateful” you didn’t want to throw any clues that you were suspicious of him. “that you are in my life, Buck.”

Bucky nodded, indicating that he felt the same way towards you. “I am too, doll. I have a feeling that you are a bit confused about why I brought you here. I just thought that it was time for us to go to a real fancy place” He looks up at you with wide eyes and places his hand on top of yours.

He was always thoughtful about the locations he took you. He always wanted to make sure you were comfortable and that you would enjoy being there. “It’s perfect, honey” you turn your hand so you can hold his hand.

He takes a big breath as he relieved his tense shoulders when he heard that you loved being here. “I should have brought you here sooner.”

“yes, you should of,” you said in a teasing voice.

Bucky sets down the menu and stares at you. “Mmm… you should be careful with that teasing,” He prompted you, leaning in towards you from across the table.

You grinned mischievously and leaned in as well, so you were closer to him “or what am I going to get punished later if I continue?” you asked in a low voice.

He had the same look you did as he nodded.

You gently bit your lower lip “oh, you wouldn’t dare,” you said slowly and seductively.

Placing his metal hand on your cheek, “Yeah, let’s see about that,” slowly moving it towards your neck, gently wrapping his metal fingers around it. He winked at you.

You both leaned back as the waiter came back to take your orders.

-----------------------------

Throughout dinner with Bucky, there were shared laughs between the two of you. He would tell you stories about how he and Steve were as kids. How he was tall meanwhile, Steve was short that would always put newspapers on the insides of his shoes to seem taller. You always loved hearing his stories.

"Bucky, I love you" you placed your hand on top of his.

Bucky always had a surprised look on his face whenever he heard you say 'I love you' to him. He never thought that at some point, he would hear those words from another person. His eyes were slowly filling up with tears. "I love you too. I-"

His phone started to ring. It was Steve again. Bucky takes a big breath. "I'll be right back, baby."

Bucky got up as fast as he could. He was heading to the restroom. Watching him walk away in such a hurry made you more suspicious of what he could be doing. You started to overthink about the things that he could be doing. He never acted like this. Your first instinct was to text Wanda and let her know about concerns

8:37 pm Wanda, Bucky has been acting a bit weird all day.

Minutes pass by, Wanda hasn't responded, and Bucky was still on the call with Steve.

8:54 pm Sorry, love, my phone has been acting up. Why do you think he is acting weird?

This was odd. Usually, Wanda would respond to your messages rapidly, but this time it took her time. Why was everyone acting weird?

Bucky was walking back and forth in the restroom. He was lucky that the restroom was only one stall. If not, people would think that he was going crazy. "Steve, is everything ready?" he started to heavily breathe at the thought that things might have to be moved to tomorrow. "Please, just tell me."

“Everything is just fine, give us- Peter, stop throwing rose petals everywhere and just place them on a line on the staircase- yes, Bucky, everything is fine” Steve wanted to sound confident, but everything wasn’t okay. He didn’t want Bucky to panic even more.

Wanda rushed to get Steve’s phone out of his hands. “Bucky, she is suspicious that something might be going on” there was a bit of silence. “Go out there and tell her nothing is going on.”

The fact that you were suspicious of the actions that he was doing threw him off his balance. Bucky’s mind went blank unsure what he needed to do next. He froze into place.

Meanwhile, Bucky was spaced out. Steve was on speaker.

“Peter and Sam put down the fucking rose petals. Stop making a mess. Please, you two can tackle or attack each other later.”

“Bucky, are you still there?”

“See what you guys did. Bucky froze, and he is probably panicking” Steve sounded annoyed with what was going on.

“Cyborg, do you need me to Amazon Prime you a charger for that brain of yours to compute again” Sam yelled loud enough Bucky was able to hear him.

“Can you all just shut up? I should have brought the girls instead of you three bird brains” Wanda sounded frustrated and just wanted the decorating done.

“excuse me, I am-“

Bucky hung up the phone. He couldn’t handle hearing them argue anymore. He needed to calm down before heading back to you. He takes out the box that he had been holding on to for months. He didn’t want to open it. He was just looking at it.

You were scrolling through Instagram, Twitter, any social media platform to distract your brain as you were waiting for Bucky to come back.

“Hey, let’s get out of here” he grabs your hand and pulls you out of your seat. He placed money on the table to pay for both meals and tip the waiter.

You both were speed walking towards the entrance. Every 5 seconds, he would look back at you to see your reaction. You were looking at the ceiling at how beautiful it was. Every chandelier was different. None of them were the same.

“So, where are we going now?” you tilted your head as you gave him a brief smile. With what has been happening all day, nothing can’t surprise you anymore.

“We aren’t going anywhere. We are going for a drive around town.”

As Bucky was driving, you would occasionally lay your head on his shoulder. It was a quiet ride. Every time there would be a red light, he would gently tilt your head towards his direction so he can give you a kiss on the lips.

Looking through the car window’s you notice that Bucky was driving further away from the city. You wondered why, but you didn’t want to ask him questions. You knew that whatever place he was going to take you, it was going to be meaningful.

Turning around to see how far away you both were, you weren’t able to notice the city anymore. There was an occasional light through the drive but not often. Bucky pulls over to a random empty parking lot. He leans in forwards and takes off his jacket, wrapping you around it, so you weren’t cold.

Bucky presses the button to open the sunroof and turns off the car. You started to recline your seat, so you have a better view of the sky. Bucky did the same. He lifts up with his arm so you can lay your head on his chest.

Staring at the night sky. You weren’t able to see nor count the stars due to light pollution. But it didn’t matter to you. All you cared about was spending time with Bucky.

Placing your hand on one of the jacket’s pockets, you felt a rectangular-shaped box. “aha, I found what you have been hi-“ you take the box out of the pocket. Bucky widens his eyes, thinking that you have taken out that one specific box. “oh, it’s just your phone” there was a sound of disappointment in your voice.

“You think I’m hiding something don’t you” he laughs a little.

“You’ve been acting all weird today. Of course, I think you are hiding something” you push your lower lip forward and knit your eyebrows together. You wanted to see if making that face would make Bucky talk.

Bucky places his left hand on your chin tilting your head upwards, so you can see him more clearly. He gently takes a bite of your lip and pulls it towards his direction, closing your lips and his lips together. He pulls away for a moment. “I’m not hiding anything, Doll. I promise.” Slamming his lips back to yours, not giving you a chance to respond back. He slips his tongue into your mouth in a demanding way.

He takes your hair and moves it behind your shoulders. Moving his lips to your cheeks down to your neck. He tilts your head slightly, having full access to your neck as he continues to nibble on it. “Let’s go to the backseat, Bunny,” he whispers into your ear seductively.

You have always liked Bucky’s car, since the backseats had a ton of room. He was quick to help you move to the back seats, and he followed you. The moment you both were in the backseats, his lips were pressed against yours. Meanwhile, his hands were working on the zipper at the back of your dress. The hastiness making it clear that he wanted it off of you as soon as possible.

As soon as the straps were falling off your shoulders, Bucky cups your breast massaging them. You sneak your hands to unbutton his shirt. You started to move your lips towards his neck and grab his shirt pressing your lips against it, leaving lipstick all over the shirt's collar. You gave him a smirk as your hands traveled down to his pants, unbuckling his belt and zipper. Earning a gasp from him when your hand slightly rubbed against his hard length.

Bucky notices that you were struggling, so he moves his hand from your breast to push his pants and underwear lower. He places his hands underneath your dress, pulling it downward, exposing your breasts and your torso to him. Cupping his hands on your ass and massaging them. You took your arms around his neck as you climbed to sit on his lap. "All night, I've been craving to do this to you, Bunny" Bucky smirks as he sneaks his fingers down to your heat, pushing your panties aside. He rubs his fingers against your lips, circling them around your clit a few times before gently taking two of his fingers into you.

You leaned in forwards, placing your lips against Bucky's shoulder, biting his skin as you moaned, trying to be quiet. "fuck, Bucky."

Thrusting his fingers inside of you, he smirked to himself, knowing that he can make you into such a needy mess. He nibbled your earlobe as he slowly pulls his fingers out of you and proceeds to lick them as he stares deep into your eyes.

You stroke his cock a couple of times before moving it to your entrance. You let it go in slowly, letting out a quiet moan as you did. You rolled your hips and bounced on his lap in a matter of seconds.

Bucky groaned, his hands moved to your hips, digging his fingers on your skin. Occasionally he would move your hips to control your movements. He threw his head back, closing his eyes. He wanted to feel your walls clenching around his cock and hear your voice moan and occasionally whimper.

When you released a very loud moan, he had known that he had just hit your spot. Causing him to press his lips onto yours, slipping your tongue into his mouth as you tried to control how loud you were being. Bucky swifts your body so that you were now lying down. Your legs were wrapped around his waist as he continues to thrust inside of you.

You could hardly stay quiet. Placing your hand on the back of his head, you pull him down for a kiss, moaning into his mouth. Moving his metal thumb playing with your clit. Breaking the kiss, Bucky places his other hand on your mouth, attempting you to be quiet. "Bunny, are you close?" he grunted into your ear. You nodded rapidly as you threw your head backward. "okay, wait for me. I want to cum at the same time as you do." he mumbled against your collarbone. He started to thrust into you sharply, and his fingers this circling against your clit. You moaned loudly against his shoulder, your legs tightening around his waist and your walls clenching down around his cock. Causing you to bit down on your lower lip as you got closer to your climax. With every thrust that he went in deeper, hitting your spot. After a couple more thrusts, you both reach your climax at the same time.

You both knitted your eyebrows as you both moaned together. You two had to catch your breaths and come down from your high. Bucky pulled out of you and immediately went over to grab the tissues to help you clean yourself.

The window of the car was fogged up, and your makeup was running down your face. “Look at my messy bunny” Bucky takes a tissue and tries to help you clean up your makeup.

-----------------------------

Driving home, Bucky completely forgot about the surprise he had for you.

Walking into your house, you see a trail of rose petals from the entrance to the staircase. "Bucky?" you had a confused look on your face.

"Let's go upstairs and take a bath" he forms a smile on his face.

Heading to the bedroom, the trial of roses continued. You simply ignored it but deep down, it made you happy that Bucky planned this when we got home. You grab your pj's and his. Meanwhile, Bucky was preparing a bath. You stared at yourself in front of the mirror. Wow, you were such a mess.

Bucky was lighting up the candles that were in the bathroom and placing them around. When preparing the bath, he makes sure it's at the temperature you like and filled with bubbles. He places the box next to the bathtub making sure that he could reach it when he needed to get it.

As you were heading to the bathroom, that same trail of roses lead to it. Opening the bathroom door, you notice the path ended. You see Bucky surrounded with lit candles and with the scent of roses. You walk up to Bucky, getting on your toes to give him a brief kiss on the lips "was this something you were trying to hide all day?" he nods in agreement "ha, I knew it" you lean on to give him a kiss on his cheek "I love it Bucky."

"I knew you would, Doll. Now turn around. I want to help you put up your hair," turning around, agreeing on letting him put your hair in a ponytail or in a bun. He was always so gentle he didn't want to hurt you, not tug your hair too hard whenever he would do that.

You start to undress, and Bucky does the same. He lowers his body into the bathtub. He takes your hand, helping you lower your body onto the tub.

He wraps his arms around you as you lean onto him. He nibbles on your ear and kisses the back of your head.

You grab a handful of bubbles and try to throw them in his direction. "Hey, you got bubbles on my eye," he complained as he grabs a couple of bubbles and rubs them on your face. You both were uncontrollably laughing.

"Doll, we should play a game" he gently pushes you forwards, exposing your back to him. "You need to guess what I'm trying to say, okay."

You give him a brief nod agreeing that you wanted to play with him.

Bucky takes a big breath as he knows that he is about to ask you, and no matter what your answer was going to be, there is no turning back.

With the fingertips from his right hand, he starts to spell out 'Marry Me.'

"wait, wait, Bucky, spell it again. I'm not sure what that word is"

Once again, he spells out 'Marry Me' against your skin.

You were still unsure of what it was, you shifting your body now being able to face him. "I know this is cheating, but I have to know what you spelled out" you chuckled a little.

"yes, that is cheating, doll" he takes a big breath as a big smile on his face forms. "Will you Marry Me?"

You froze into place, trying to process what he just said. "Do you mean that?" your eyebrows rose, and you had a smile on your face.

"Of course, I mean it" he takes a big gulp before saying anything else, "I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to make pancakes at 2 in the morning with you. I- I just want you."

"I-"you lean in forwarding, closing in the gap between you and him. Wrapping your arms around him, you stare at his beautiful ocean blue eyes. You get on top of him, sitting on his lap.

He places his hands around your waist. He was searching all over your face for any hints of you saying yes or no. "so is this is a yes?" his voice got small and a bit shaky.

Leaning in forward to give him a brief kiss, "yes, Bucky. I do want to marry you."

Bucky sighs in relief "you have no idea how relieved I am now" he chucked a little bit.

Placing your hand on his cheek, "you have no idea how happy I am, and I can't wait to have little munchkins with you," you scrunched your nose as you smiled.

He grabs the box that he placed outside of the tub and opens it revealing a stunning heart-shaped diamond with a silver band. Bucky grabs your hand, placing the ring on the fourth finger of your left hand. "I can't wait either, Mrs. Barnes."

[imagines-hoarder]

House Warming - Bucky Barnes

Summary: Hopping through some standout moments in making Bucky's apartment a place worth coming home to. (This definitely could have been a headcanon but I refuse to do headcanons at this time.)

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader

Word count: 2.6 k

Warnings: fluff with a lil angst

A/N: I have finished all the assignments left for my degree and decided to sit down and write today. This is probably trash but idc because it has been written and therefore I may as well release it. It's been a while since I've written and years since I've truly tried dipping my foot into a different fandom, but I figured I'd give it ago. Please don't forget to leave comments, I love interacting with y'all. Thank you @bwbatta​ for the dividers! xoxox

Masterlist

It all started with a damn candle. A ‘sandalwood & vanilla orchid’ candle tucked away in a reused cyan jar.

“I found it at the art market down the street last weekend,” you said as you placed it in the corner of the living room window. “You know we have to support local business.”

“And I shouldn’t assume this is your way of telling me my place smells, right?” Bucky quipped from the kitchen island, a cup of coffee in his hand and a lazy smile on his face. He’d just gotten back from a 12-day mission with Sam, and the last thing he had on his to-do list was to buy candles.

The smile grew firmer as you put yourself into his arms. “Complete opposite, actually. I bought it cause I thought it smelled just like you.” You hid your face within his chest, and he thanked the stars that you couldn’t see the warmth rising in his cheeks. His barren apartment felt a little bigger with a candle in the windowsill.

From there it became decorative pillows… and a couch to hold them. The small living room had quickly become a mess by the time you both had brought it up to his fourth-floor apartment, furniture wrap and packing peanuts strewn everywhere.

“I still don’t know why you needed to buy a sofa this big,” Bucky grumbled as he leaned over the back of the beige three-seater, looking down at your splayed out across its cushions.

“Don’t get me wrong, babe. I love the transient bachelor look you’ve got going on here, but you need more furniture than an armchair,” you mumbled between heavy breaths as you tried to regain control from maneuvering the couch into the apartment.

“And the pillows?” A laugh fell from your lips as you watched him look at the indigo cushions with a remarkable amount of disdain. Who buys pillows made just to look nice on a couch?

“They add character.”

“I didn’t think character was an area we were lacking in. Transient bachelor, remember?” He walked around the couch and shifted you over so he could lay beside you. You instinctively curled into him as you both closed your eyes. For a second the place felt like home. “I also don't know how you plan for us both to fit on this couch every day along with the pillows.”

“Don’t worry about it,” You looked up from his chest with a mischievous glint that made his heart skip. “It’s a pullout bed too. I’m sure it’ll be firm enough even for you.”

The home improvements didn’t stop there, but Bucky refused to admit how much he enjoyed them.

He liked having a place and person to come home to. After you had bought neutral bedding for his room, you’d spent an evening putting together ‘his and hers’ trestle bookcases for either side of the bed. He’d try to keep up his crabbish demeanor as you argued that ‘you needed a place to set your books for when you slept over,’ and a side table could no longer contain the small collection you had spilling over. Even still, he couldn’t find it in himself to banter much about the minor changes you made to make the place feel lived in.

And God, did he love living with you around. Between missions, his continued therapy, and trying to find his place in a world that had tripled in opportunity since his youth, he knew that he never had to question who he was and where he fit in when he walked through that door. You still occasionally slept at your own apartment when he was away, but he could always count on you being asleep in his bed by the time he came home.

One toothbrush in a glass became two, and from there, hand creams, face masks, and cotton pads cluttered the bathroom counter, packed away in their clear containers. You had made sure to keep lavender bath salts on hand for the late-night baths you took together when he woke up in a panic, unable to close his eyes again for fear of falling back into a nightmare.

It took time and working through plenty of hesitation before Bucky could progress from sleeping on the pull-out sofa to the bed, but ever since, you found your nights attended by restlessness whenever you weren’t wrapped in his arms.

Once your lease was up and you had a lengthy conversation about your inability to rest without him, you quickly filled the apartment with brown boxes. Bucky had been no less than astounded by how much you fit into them. From then on, no nook or cranny was without a vase or shelf.

“How many mugs does one house need,” Bucky asked skeptically while he continued to carefully pull them from their paper wrappings.

“Oh, come on! They’re fun!” You exclaimed, wrapping an arm around his waist as you took the Charlie Brown mug from his metal palm. “Plus, we go through enough coffee around here to justify some extra mugs.”

After you put the mug into the lowest shelf of the cabinet, you busied yourself with filing away the spices one cabinet over. No matter how much he tried, Bucky couldn’t pull his eyes away from you, lost in your own world as you chipped away at unpacking your belongings, making yours his, and vice versa. The domesticity in the little things you did was something he could get used to, and he wanted to return the feeling of normalcy as much as he could. He was far from the average boyfriend, but you remind him that could be a good thing. You never wanted to be average, but in these small moments, as you both did what normal couples do, he felt that he could create a new normal with you.

“So your Christmas gift came in already, and it’s too big to hide.” Your awkward tone carried over the phone as he exited a station ten minutes away from the apartment. Even though his neck ached and the cold nipped at the top of his ears, he couldn’t stop himself from releasing a breathy laugh.

“I thought you said you were good at this gift-giving thing, doll,” he teased you as he maneuvered his way to your shared apartment.

“Oh, don’t you fret, baby. I am the best gift-giver in all of New York City. I just slightly miscalculated how big this thing was and have realized it won’t fit into our closet.”

He tsked with a smirk on his face. “If you say so.”

“Hey, you gave me my Christmas gift a week ago.”

“Yeah, that’s because I didn’t know if I’d be back before Christmas.”

“Well, you will be, and I’m glad you are,” your voice softened lovingly as he pulled out his keys to the front of the building.

Bucky had gotten used to your love, but he’d vow to never take it for granted. All the pain he’d endured had somehow led him to you, the person who didn’t see his broken pieces as a burden or a project but as a potential to be whatever he desired.

When he hung up the call and unlocked the apartment, his brows furrowed into one; the apartment was pitch black. It was only when he heard your soft footstep walking towards the entrance that his face relaxed.

Before he could even kiss you, you had your palms firmly placed over his eyes. “No peeking; your gift is in the living room.”

The uncertainty in what you could have got him made his stomach clench. “Is it an animal?”

You slowly dragged him through the front hallway, making sure to avoid crashing into the entryway storage table. “I’m sorry to say it’s not alive.”

“Is it a nice welcome-home spread with candles, fruit, and the pullout bed all set up?”

He could feel your eyes roll to completion. “Easy there, sergeant. That’s for later.” You pulled him down to sit on the couch, and he kept his eyes closed as you pulled your palms away, moving to turn on a lamp. “Okay, Buck. open up.”

When he opened his eyes, it took him a moment to understand what he was seeing nestled against the wall; when he did recognize it, he could only form two words “Holy shit.”

“Holy shit indeed.”

He was quick to stand up and cross the room, eager to get a good look at the walnut centerpiece. “Does it work?”

You scoffed as you moved to kiss his cheek. “What kind of girlfriend would get her ancient boyfriend a broken phonograph console?”

He didn’t even attempt to answer as he bent down to wrap his arms around you, his lips eager to find yours. “A fucking Magnavox radio and phonograph,” he mumbled against your lips.

“A working Magnavox radio and phonograph, you mean.” When you pulled away and saw that his face held a glow reserved only for special occasions, you knew you had made the right choice. “I’ve got some records wrapped up if you want to open those now too.”

You yelped in surprise as he picked you up and made his way towards your bedroom. “I’ve got something else I’d like to unwrap first.”

Bucky Barnes had grown up in a period when the average family could seldom afford nice things or much of anything at all. The Great Depression has resulted in the slogan ‘Make it do or Do without,” being ingrained into what memories he still had, and 'doing without' had become commonplace for the Barnes household.

That’s why every gadget and gizmo you added to your household left him in awe. For much of his life, including the decades he spent as a weapon for Hydra, he hadn’t been allowed to call anything his own; he was still getting used to living so plentifully, both in love and in life. But now, he could barely move and he thought it had all been taken away from him.

The attack was supposed to have been contained, at least three miles away from the apartment. Anything less, and he would have made you visit your family upstate instead of just suggesting it. By the time Sam had told him that there’d been some confirmed damage within a block of the apartment, Bucky was already on his way home. He couldn’t think of anything but the worse: you trapped in a collapsing apartment building or pulling up to find no building there at all.

He felt his lungs fill with air again as he pulled up to your building, completely intact regardless of the severe damage less than a five-minute walk away. It felt like both seconds and hours between when he parked his outside and unlocked the front door.

“He doesn’t have his phone on him, mom. How am I supposed to…” you trailed off from your call as he walked into the living room, turning your head away from the Breaking News report you’d been glued to for the last hour. “Wait, I’ll call you back. Yeah, I’m fine. I’ll call you back.” Your eyes never left his as he walked over to you, hanging up the phone with worry in your eyes. “Buck, are you oka-”

You couldn’t even finish your sentence before he pulled you off of the couch and into his arms. His grip was less reserved than he usually kept, but he made sure not to hurt you, eager to keep you in his arms, where he knew you were safe. A single tear fell from the corner of his eyes as he realized the real possibility that he could have lost you if you lived even 5 minutes closer to the attack. You stayed like that for a while, gathered tightly in his arms as you both settled onto the floor You didn’t push him to verbalize his fear; you already understood it. And it took this occurrence for him to realize he never wanted to experience this feeling again.

Bucky was quiet for the rest of the evening, and while it worried you, his fear had been evident enough not to require questioning. The city-wide cleanup had lasted all hours of the night; for the first time in all the years you had lived in the city, the sounds of the whirring of vehicles clearing debris off the street had been too close to ignore. The sun was rising before a single word was said between you and Bucky, tangled together on the sofa as the first ray of light made itself known.

“You’ve spent so much time piecing this place together, doll.” His voice was raspy. You know he hates when you see him cry, but his pain was always evident in his voice. “And it could have been all wiped away in seconds.” You let a heavy silence settle between you as you traced a pattern into his shoulder. He couldn’t bear to say it, but you knew what he meant: You could have been gone within seconds. “I just… I don’t ever want to feel like this again.”

You’d both gone through so much to make your relationship work. Nearly normal was as close as you would ever attain to being an average couple. The distance, the days without contact, and the ever-present fear that anything could pull you away from one another was something that had taken time to work through.

You looked around the living room and saw the place you had built together. There were photos and books scattered on any flat surface, a leftover mug half-filled with cold tea, and a record left out on the phonograph. The apartment looked like what love felt like; a messy combination of everything you and Bucky. But this apartment could not contain everything that ‘home’ was; only Bucky could do that.

The words fell from your mouth before you could restrain them. “Maybe we should move.”

Your eyes found each other, and you both sat in silence, though it felt lighter, invigorated with the new proposition.

Before he even responded, you could see tension dissolve from his shoulders. “Where do you want to move?”

You hadn’t thought that far ahead, only being able to provide him with a shrug. “I don’t know… maybe upstate, maybe somewhere else.”

“Your mom would like you being Upstate.”

“My mom would love us living next door too, but I don’t see that in the cards anytime soon.” You got a ghost of a smile for that.

“We could probably afford a house if we moved out there,” he said as he moved his lips to meet your forehead.

“Buck, I’d move anywhere with you. As long as we have each other, then we have all we need to rebuild this place.”

He pressed soft kisses to the crown of your head, and you swore you felt his chest flutter. “Tomorrow, I’m gonna look for some places, bigger ones too.” He tilted your head up to find your eyes, and you were sure that all of the love you carried for each other was incredibly visible at that moment. “You have made this apartment something worth coming home to. Now let me give you a house to make a home.” Your skin tingled with adoration as you pulled him as close as possible, burying your face into his neck.

You didn’t want to let go. You wanted to lay in this room, in this bed, and in this moment until the end of time, but you knew that something bigger and better was on the horizon for you and Bucky.

“All I heard is that you’re buying me a house.” His laugh was music to your ears.

[fireflykaizoku]

Killer Week - Day 2 [Free Day]

it's his birthday today and i'm so happy aaaaaa he's so precious, he deserves all the love ❤ i had this cute little family scenario in my head so i thought: why not?

tw: well, children

By the time you woke up, Killer wasn’t in bed already. Your husband used to wake up first to have breakfast and go to work. Since he worked at a mechanical workshop with Kid, he was always up early. The blonde always placed a kiss on your forehead, went to your kids’ bedroom and kissed their forehead as well, before leaving. This week was very busy, and you noticed Killer didn’t even mention anything about his birthday. Which made you assume he simply forgot.

But of course, you didn’t.

The day before, your kids made little drawings. Your daughter drew Killer holding a plate full of paste while the rest of the family were around him; your son drew him playing drums with their uncle Kid. They wrote “happy birthday, daddy” and signed their names. They did their best while being children, but it was full of love and dedication.

You got his birthday presents that were hidden in the wardrobe and bought some cake. The kids wanted white and blue balloons to decorate the house, a sign saying “happy birthday” and many candles. For dinner, you made pasta with peperoncino and prepared the living room, waiting for Killer to come home from work.

The door slowly opened, and as soon as Killer turned the lights on, he saw you holding a cake while singing happy birthday. The kids were singing happily, jumping and running towards him, hugging the blonde’s legs and showing him the drawings they made.

Your husband was speechless, to say at least.

— I… I forgot. Kid reminded me earlier this morning, and I… I assumed you forgot as well. — his voice was almost breaking, still in shock realizing how thankful he was.

— I would never forget your birthday, babe! — you smiled, moving closer and placing a chaste kiss on his lips.

Killer grew up thinking he would never find someone who would accept who he really was. The man was very insecure about many things, and at some point, he accepted the fact that he wouldn’t have someone that could love him.

That’s until he met you a few years ago. And now there he was, with a partner and children of his own. People who loved him, who cherished him and took care of him. He didn’t have just one person who loved him, he had three.

— Daddy? — your son’s voice snapped him out of his thoughts. — Are you okay?

With a soft smile on his lips, Killer held your son and daughter, making them giggle.

— I’m just very happy. The birthday cards are very beautiful. — the blonde said, feeling his heart full of love. — I loved them. Thank you.

After dinner, you ate cake and Killer opened his presents. Some of them were things he mentioned he needed or wanted, the others were homemade, like pictures of the four of you together so he could take to work.

The man never cried, but it took him a lot to hold back the tears this time.

— Did you like the presents? — you smiled, playing with his blonde hair.

He nodded.

— You know I’m not cliché, right? — he asked, making you tilt your head, not knowing where this was going. — But the best present I could ask for is you and the kids. Thank you for giving me this family. I love you, the three of you.

You giggled, caressing his face with your soft hands and kissing the corner of his lips.

— This was cliché, yes. But I get it. — you started. — This was the best present I could ever get too. I love you, Killer. We all do.

[skinnyducky]

lullaby (pt. 2 to cherry) // v.h.

This part went through so many changes. Originally, they weren't getting back together but I ultimately decided for Y/n to take Vinnie back because I'm a sucker for happy endings and second chances. Kinda came out longer than I wanted it too, but meh. This part is heavily inspired by the song "Lullaby" by Mariah Carey. Other than that, I hope you enjoy!

link to part 1

Word Count: 2219, unedited

WARNING: language, mentions of partying, alcohol, drugs, and a very fluffy yet cheesy ending.

---------

It had been a few months since you and Vinnie had bid your goodbyes. Within those months, you were doing great. You had aced your first semester classes, you just moved into your apartment, and you were at the highlight of your life. The only thing you lacked was someone to bask in the happiness with. To say you missed Vinnie was an understatement, but you were too prideful to actually tell yourself that.

You tried dating again, but no one could hold a candle to your Vinnie. Plus, you hadn’t been keeping up with him on social media or anything, so you didn’t know if he had moved on and forgotten you. You didn’t want to reopen old wounds, so you refrained from contacting him.

But little did you know, not a day went by that Vinnie didn’t think about you. He constantly thought about what he did, beating himself up for even having the thought of another girl while he was with you. But he didn’t know what to do. Your relationship was dying, and none of you bothered to even talk about it. So, to him, he thought there was nothing that he could do…thus causing him to do what he did. Thankfully, he didn’t go too far with the girl, but still…he knew what he did was terrible.

Dating for him was pretty much impossible. Much similar to your situation, there was no one who could fill your shoes. The way you danced around in his head during the day and ruled his dreams at night…no one could do that for him. You were one of a kind, and with as many offers he got, he was torn that none of them were from you. He was a funk…a really bad one.

His friends and housemates took notice of this and being the best friends they were, they decided to drag him out of the house and to a party at Triller Compound because that’s what every heartbroken friend needed when they’re down. To be surrounded by booze, loud music, and sweaty people…oh yeah, that’s what he definitely needed right at this moment.

“C’mon, at least smile a little bit.” Alex said, looking back the upset boy through the rearview mirror.

“Smile about what? Going to some party that I didn’t even want to go to.”

“You seriously need to get over, Y/n.” Thomas sighed, turning to Vinnie from the passenger seat. “What happened between to you two happened for a reason. You just gotta let it go.”

Mia scoffed from beside Vinnie and slapped Thomas on the shoulder. “Thomas, it’s not that easy!”

“I’m just saying, if it were me, I wouldn’t be all upset and everything.”

“So, you’re saying if we broke up…you wouldn’t be sad?” Mia responded sharply, obviously joking.

Thomas nearly choked, looking back at his girlfriend. “I-I’m not saying that. I mean, if…it’s just that…it’s different, okay. He cheated.”

“Did you have to bring that up?” Mia rolled her eyes and turned to Vinnie. “Don’t listen to him, okay. It was your relationship, and sure you messed it up, but…you still can be sad about it. I think.”

Vinnie huffed and stayed silent, no bothering to listen to anyone. He didn’t need people reminding him of his mistakes, that was the whole reason why he was being a downer. He just couldn’t forgive himself. There were no ounce of words or speeches that anyone could give him that would make him feel better. This was just something that he’d have to get over with time.

It was only minutes before they pulled up to the packed mansion and stumbled out of Alex’s car, Vinnie being the last out. He watched as his friends rushed to the house before heading inside. Upon entering the house, scenes of people grinding and drinking came into his sights. The sound of trap music filled his ears as the strong stench of weed brushed across his nose. He sneered before walking to the backyard. He scanned the area for any sober person he knew, hoping to find someone to complain about his situation to.

As he searched, his eyes landed on a familiar head of y/h/c hair. He furrowed his brows, trying to get a better view of the person. “That can’t be who I think it is,” he thought to himself as he moved in closer.

That was when you looked to side, and he caught a glimpse of your profile. His heart nearly stopped beating the minute he saw your face. He breathed hitched in his threat as he tried to keep himself from hyperventilating. He never thought he’d see you again, yet here you were…just a few feet away from him. He had forgotten the fact that you two had mutual acquaintances, so it came to no surprise that you’d come to this party.

Vinnie watched as you threw you head back in laughter at something one of your friend’s said. There wasn’t much he could do but stare at you. He didn’t know what to do. It’d be risky to even think you’d want to talk to him, so he refrained from walking up to you. He didn’t want to bring up painful memories. It was a good thing you hadn’t seen him yet.

---------

“You’re joking!” You smiled. “Come to think of it though, Bryce would be the one to try and drink tequila off your tits.”

Your friend, Y/bff/n snorted, “I know right!? I was like…sir, I am not that kind of a girl. Please have a good night.”

The two of you continued to laugh at her situation before you heard her go silent. You calmed yourself down, looking at her shocked face. Confused, you followed her eyes and turned around to see what had her so shook up. At that moment, your eyes met the very person you had least expected to see tonight…

Vinnie.

He was staring right back at you. The minute he realized you were looking back at him, he nearly freaked out. He attempted to look around, playing as if he hadn’t been eyeing you, but you had already caught him in the act.

“Is that…?”

“Vinnie, yep. That’s him.” You said, placing a hand on your hip. “I wonder what he’s doing here.”

Y/bff/n snickered. “It’s a party, Y/n.”

“I know that, but I honestly didn’t expect him to be here tonight.”

You two watched the boy look around frantically and you couldn’t help but smile a bit. You missed him and judging from the sight in front of you…it seemed as if he did too. But still, you were a bit out of the loop. Who’s to say he hasn’t already moved on. You couldn’t intrude on his happiness, that wouldn’t be fair.

“You should go talk to him.” Y/bff/n said.

You looked at her with your eyebrows raised. “You really think so?”

“It’s obvious he’s still into you, babes. And considering the fact you’ve been looking at him with those goo-goo eyes, I think you’re still into him too.”

“I don’t know, Y/bff/n. I mean…what if he’s seeing someone else.”

“There’s no way. If he’s trying that hard to pretend that he wasn’t just staring at you, he’s still hung up on you. And, even if he is seeing someone, that doesn’t mean you can’t just go and talk to him.”

You shrugged. “I guess you’re right.”

“Atta girl. Oh, and on your way back, make sure you grab me one of those little mini cakes. I’ve been craving one since we got here.”

Rolling your eyes at the foolish girl, you proceeded to leave her side and head over to Vinnie. The moment he saw you, he practically froze. You could tell he was nervous; his awkward stance and wide eyes told it all.

Within seconds, you stood before the boy, a slight grin on your face.

“Hey, Vinnie.” You greeted, placing your arms behind your back.

“Y/n, didn’t see you there!” He laughed. “Well, I did see you there but like, I wasn’t watching you or anything…yeah, totally wasn’t watching you.”

Your smile grew wider. “Yeah, sure. So, how’ve you been?”

“Good, uh…definitely good. You?”

“Um, my classes are going well, and I just got a new place…so, can’t complain.”

“That’s dope, Y/n. Glad to hear you’re doing good.”

You nodded, looking down at your feet. “Same to you. I’m sure you’re, y’know…enjoying everything with your girlfriend.”

Vinnie looked at you with a puzzled expression, your statement taking him back a bit. To be honest, he couldn’t be surprised that you thought he’d be taken by now because he thought the same about you. However, at the same time, with the way he was acting right now, he was shocked you didn’t realize he was still head-over-heels for you.

“I don’t, um…I’m not seeing anyone.”

You grinned to yourself, trying to keep your cool as you tilted your head at him. “I’m sorry, I just thought you’d be with someone.”

“It’s fine. I definitely get it. To be honest, I thought you’d be here with someone.”

“Technically, I am.” You replied.

It was at that moment Vinnie felt his heart explode and despair run through his system. He weakly put on a happy face, shooting you a thumbs up.

“That’s g-great.”

“Yeah, Y/bff/n just was dying to come with me. She’s been begging to go to one of these parties, so I thought why not?”

“Oh,” Vinnie breathed, feeling his heart piece itself back together. “So, you’re not seeing anyone?”

You shook your head. “Not right now. I’ve been on a few dates and stuff, but no one has ever made me feel like y-”

You stopped yourself, locking your lips together to keep that last word from leaving your mouth. You didn’t know why, but something in you didn’t want you sharing your feelings with Vinnie. Maybe it was the small ounce of hurt that clung to your heart like a child from Vinnie’s infidelity. Or maybe it was the slight fear that he may not want to get back together. There were so many thoughts in your head, all speaking at once. It was so loud, that you didn’t even catch what Vinnie had said to you.

“…and-…Y/n? You listening?” He tapped you gently, bringing you out of your head.

“Sorry about that. I was in my head for a moment. What were you saying?”

“I was just saying that I’m sorry for what I did. I was just so confused on where we stood in our relationship, not saying that it justifies my actions, but instead of coming to talk to you, I went and…well, did what I did. Believe me, I never meant to hurt you, and I totally understand if you don’t forgive me.”

You sighed, “I’m not gonna lie, I didn’t know where our relationship was headed either. Honestly, I was planning to break up with you that night.”

“And I ended up giving you even more of a reason to do so.”

You both laughed before meeting each other’s eyes.

“I wish we had talked about it, y’know? Communicated and all of that suff. It would’ve saved us both a heap of heartache.” You continued. “I can’t lie, even though life has been good, it sucks not being able to share it with you.”

Vinnie smirked, taking your hands in his. “Y/n, ever since we broke up…I haven’t been able to think about anything but you. I hadn’t streamed, I barely left the house…I couldn’t do anything. I just didn’t know how to function without you. You have such a hold over me…I didn’t know how to get over you.”

“I guess this whole goodbye thing really wasn’t a good idea after all.”

“No, I think it was. I think it happened for a reason. That reason being, so we can fall in love all over again.”

At this point, you were a smiling mess and there was nothing you could do to hide it. Vinnie wasn’t any better, you could tell he was in pain by the way he hadn’t stopped showing his pearly whites. It clear to both of you now that you two were still in love, if not more than before.

“That’s so sweet, Vin.” You said. “But also, cheesy. You were always the sappy one in the relationship.”

“As if, Miss Hopeless Romantic. I’m not the one who freaks out over Valentine’s Day.”

“Mmhm, sure you don’t.”

The two of you stood there for minute in silence, your hands entangled, and your gazes planted on each other. It felt good, and it was almost as if all that hurt…that fear…it was completely gone and now replaced with passion and security.

“Y/n, I know you probably have some resentment towards me, but I love you too much to care. So, if you’re willing and there’s enough forgiveness in your heart…I wanna restart, right from the beginning.”

Without much thought or hesitation, you said, “We can restart. For sure.”

“Well, in that case…Hi, I’m Vinnie.”

You smiled as the feeling of love washed over you. To say you were happy was an understatement, you were in paradise. Life was great, and now you had your boy back to share it with.

“Nice to meet you, Vinnie. I’m Y/n.”

[thewistlingbadger]

Some ralvez headcanons to end the day:

Spencer has a tv at his house but you can only watch VHS and CDs on it. So the first time he stays the night at Luke's, he's like "oh you have cable." Luke wakes up alone in bed. He walks into the living room to find Spencer sitting on the floor watching blue's clues (the old school one with Steve) or some other kid cartoon.

Luke can't pick a love language. He loves to hug and compliment Spencer. He loves to make him smile, whether it's a small grin or a wide open mouth smile. He loves paying attention to everything he does. And don't get me started on gifts! Chocolate, flowers, etc is what he gives him in the beginning. It overwhelms him at first. No one's ever been that way with Spencer. But then Luke gives him a stuffed animal and he loves it. Bows their bed is literally covered with stuffed animals bc he refuses to leave them all on the ground where they're at the mercy of Roxy.

And these stuffed animals are very much well thought of. Around Halloween they're Halloween themed. At Valentine's Day they're Valentine's Day themed. But in the summer, that's where he gets the ones he finds most interesting. He's gotten one of a toad, a chicken, a cow, a horse, you name it he probably has it.

Every Christmas they go to the Bronx to visit Luke's mom. Spencer never really has "been" to new york. Sure, they go every year for a case or two but he's never really been there as a tourist. Luke shows him all his favorite spots, they play in the snow, etc. Spencer's really proud at the Spanish he's able to speak, so is Luke. His mom can actually understand what he's trying to say. They stay at her apartment bc hotels in New York are expensive and when it starts snowing you cant go anywhere basically. They stay in Luke's old room and ofc there's banter about it. They drink coquito and Luke's mom tells Spencer stories about Luke's childhood and about her life. They pass down family traditions.

Luke doesn't like his other family too much so he tries his best to avoid him whenever he comes to town. They're really judgemental and he really doesn't want to hear about what they have to say on his autistic boyfriend.

If they get snowed in or they don't go to the Bronx for Christmas they stay inside all day with their fuzzy sweaters that Garcia knit them. They spend the whole day baking cookies and watching Christmas movies.

They also make sure to get Christmas pictures. I mean like, professional Christmas pictures. Ones where Roxy wears red bows in :)

Spencer gets a shit ton of gifts for Christmas it almost makes him uncomfortable. He gets books, puzzles, new clothes, fidget toys, new candles, new chess boards, and of course, stuffed animals. Spencer finds Luke incredibly hard to shop for but Luke doesn't mind and Spencer tries his best.

Luke has the gift of thinking that he's being super subtle when in reality he's being super obvious. He was like "hm. How do I hint to him that I want to move in together?" And then he just started stealing his shit. "Hey babe have you seen my toothbrush?" "TOOTHBRUSH? HMM IDK SPENCE. MAYBE WE SHOULD CHECK MY PLACE." "your place? Why tf would it be there?" "OH IDK-"

Luke loves Spencer's apartment tho. If they allowed dogs he probably would have moved in with him. He finds Spencer's apartment incredibly soothing. On their day off Luke asked him to hang out and he was like "yes! I'm finally gonna be in his apartment!! Victory for Luke Alvez!!" And then the second he walked in there he was like "whoa what is this book about?" And he spent the whole day just listening to Spencer explain all his things.

Spencer writes essay's on his spare time. Some of them he submits to colleges and research centers, some are for his own personal reasons, but he's wrote some just for fun. He notices how much Luke loves to hear him talk so he thinks "oh wow he must really like to learn!" So he prints out every analysis of every animation movie he's ever seen and gives it to Luke. Luke is amazed at this for many reasons and reads every last one of them.

When being with Derek, it was mainly the sports channel that kept him up. Derek was always trying to watch the games that he missed while on cases and he often got so sucked into them that he forgot Spencer was trying to sleep late at night. With Luke, it wasn't sports it was video games. It wasn't really that Luke was allowed during video games, it was often that everything else in the apartment was quiet and the tv being on 10 bothered him. But he'd often just grab his blanket and come to couch so he could watch Luke play.

If it's not video games, it the weekly novela. White people, they have book clubs. Spanish people? We have our telenovelas. Luke keeps up every week no matter what the case because he KNOWS that his mother is gonna call him and ask him about the show and if he says that he didn't watch it she'll be all dramatic. "¿Qué? ya no amas a tu madre?" "Mamá por favor, cálmate-" watching the telenovelas with Luke helped Spencer learn a lot of Spanish. Spencer has always secretly had a flair for dramatics (he only let this side of himself out with Emily) but he let it out with Luke while watching their shows. "Ay no Luke. ¡Ella NO solo se acostaba con su primo! tienes que estar bromeando, ¿qué pasa cuando se entera?"

Luke naturally is a goofball, he just didn't expect for Spencer to be such a goofball too. Spencer only really let that out when he was around Derek but it felt nice to let it out around Luke. Every weekend they would do something silly. Build a pillow fort and pretend that aliens where invading, try to bake things they've never made before without a recipe, sing with different accents as they slide across the hard wood floor in their socks, etc.

What Spencer loved to most about Luke was that he was a dreamer. He liked to dream about things that were impossible, dreaming about things he knew he'd never do. It was as if his mind was filled with wonder in the determination despite the fact that he had seen all that he seen in the world. They could literally stay up all night just because Luke kept asking him question after question like "what's the difference between hand soap and body?"

Luke sure did steal a bit of Spencer's personality. The more time he spent with him he started researching little questions that popped into his head. He started memorizing statistics of his own (yeah it was mainly to impress Spencer but he found it fun too.) He'd also start unconsciously copying the way Spencer talk and certain facial movements. The team comments on how he's starting to become more like him and Luke responds "you say that like it's a bad thing. I feel my brain expanding everyday i spend with him. I'm getting smarter :)"

Luke has a tendency for having no filter and being very with people he's close to. (Yes I'm saying neurodivergent luke alvez rights) he doesn't often realize that Spencer gets super tired at night. There's been many times where he's asked questions at the wrong time. Like when he layer upside down on their bed and asked Spencer if he wanted kids. Naturally, he got the reply of "it's 4:42 am go to bed Luke"

Luke's very open to trying new things. He's the first person who gets invited to Reid's and Penelope's "every Saturday hangout" (if you've seen my post on garceid headcanons you'd know what this is). It's a nice change of pace for Penelope and Spencer. They usually focus on each other but now they're like "how many things will Luke let us do?" Luke left Penelope's apartment that Saturday with black nails a skirt and lavender glitter eyeshadow.

They love to clean and bake together. Spencer loves healthy relationship feels like a fair trade-off. Spencer teaches Luke how to do some things and Luke teaches him how to do some things! (He taught Luke how to play chess. He's not very good at it.)

They get a house together eventually. They spend a shit ton of time on the landscaping bc Spencer wanted the outside of the house look a very particular sort of way. And Luke's not gonna deny his boyfriend that. Besides, he enjoyed seeing his scrawny boyfriend put his back into the yard work. There's probably a bench swing on the porch too.

I don't think either of them are opposed to being married but I can also see them just living their days out as being boyfriends forever.

Luke is super not judgemental and this makes it super easy for Spencer to open up to him. He probably tells him more secrets than he's told anyone on the team ever. He's very honest about how he used to be in love with Morgan and Luke doesn't judge him nor is he jealous.

When Luke sees Spencer with glasses for the first time he fuckin dies. He can't handle it. You will never meet someone as soft as Luke alvez.

Luke respects boundaries like crazy man. He has never not even ONCE joined Spencer for a shower bc Spencer didn't ask him to. It relieves Spencer a lot because in the past majority of his partners just did stuff without asking him about it first and he just had to pretend that he was okay with it. Like moving his shit around, or not putting the dirty dishes where they're supposed to be, for example.

They have inside jokes as well. The team has no idea what they're about but it just makes them smile.

[batgurl1989]

The Test

Summary: You find out your pregnant, but Henry is busy building his computer.

Word Count: 2184

Warnings: none. Fluff.

A/N: requests are open so is taglist. Enjoy!

Taglist: @rmtndew @henrynerdfan @cynic-spirit @diegos-butt @princesssterek @daddys-littlewhitegirl

Plus sign. Well that happened. You stared down at the plastic stick, the little screen telling you something you felt you already knew given the last couple of days. That, and some quick math had you peeing on a stick in the upstairs bathroom. Capping the end, you held it in your hand, wondering what to do with it. You could simply throw it away, and come up with a way to tell Henry without it. You didn't need proof, he would believe you given what you two had decided to do with the time the pandemic and the shutting down of filming had given you.

But you were bored. And if Henry got to amuse himself building a computer on the dining room table, you could amuse yourself too.

Kal greeted you when you opened the bathroom door, hopeful you would give him the attention his dad wouldn't. Henry had been up since dawn building his computer. It was like Nerd Christmas for him, and you were fairly sure he hadn't slept much last night out of excitement for today. You couldn't exactly begrudge him this since you had taken a week off when Devil May Cry 5 came out last year. That was one of the many reasons you and Henry worked; you were both nerds.

"Hey buddy. Let me just check in with your dad, and then we will go for a walk." You scratched the American Akita behind his ears, leaning down to kiss his nose when he offered it to you.

You tucked the pregnancy test into your hand, pressing it up your arm so that you were hiding it. You could hear the magic happening in the dining room, the clicking of parts coming together, the clinking of the screwdriver as he secured them. You couldn't help but smile as you poked your head around the corner to see Henry hunched over the table in his favourite blue tank top, lines of concentration creasing his forehead.

"Good morning, sweetheart." Henry glanced up to flash you one of his dazzling smiles. Your heart thumped in your chest every time he gave you one. "Have a good sleep?"

You shrugged as you sidled up beside him, careful to keep the test hidden. Henry turned in his chair, resting his hands on your hips as you stepped between his legs. You loved how dainty he made you feel when he held you close, enveloping you in his warm embrace. Slowly you leaned down, caressing your lips against his. You kept your eyes open, watching him carefully as you stealthily placed the test on the table behind some computer parts while he was distracted by your kiss.

"I'm going to take Kal for a walk, so you have the house to yourself for a bite." You whispered with a final peck. Henry's attention seemed divided at the mention of giving him quiet time. Cupping his cheek, you couldn't help the grin on your face. "Have fun."

Henry gave your hips a squeeze of appreciation before he turned his attention back to the computer laying in pieces across the table. You had to fight the giggle that threatened to bubble from your lips as you usher Kal out of the dining room. You grabbed a granola bar on your way out of the house, tucking your phone into your back pocket after making sure the ringer was on.

The clock was running now. You wondered how long it would take for Henry to discover the pregnancy test as you clipped Kal's leash to his collar and left the house.

***

When you got back from the trails, Henry hadn’t moved, but the computer was coming along. He now had a GoPro camera strapped to his head, filming himself for his Instagram page. Without a word, you glanced around, seeing the pregnancy test sticking out from behind a few parts still, right where you left it. Silently chuckling, you made your way upstairs as a wave of morning sickness crashed over you. How you thought this had just been a stomach bug was beyond you.

After emptying your stomach and brushing your teeth, you crawled into bed, suddenly exhausted down to your bones. Curling on your side, you cursed yourself for getting pregnant. Not that you weren’t happy. There was just so much about pregnancy that was not sitting well with you. Hugging Henry’s pillow to your front, you sighed, allowing his scent to wash over you, calming the turmoil you felt inside. He would make a great dad, there was no doubt about that. You, however, weren’t sure how you would be as a mom.

Tears pricked your eyes, but you fought them down. Wasn’t it too early in the pregnancy for your hormones to be this out of whack? You refused to let yourself become a bumbling mess about this. There had to be something that could help.

Giving up on a nap, you decided to have a bath. The warm water sounded so soothing right then. Tiptoeing to the bathroom, though you were pretty sure Henry was too engrossed in his computer building to notice that you were having a bath at an odd time in the day, you shed your clothes. Eyeing yourself in the mirror, you turned sideways, trying to imagine what you would look like pregnant. You hoped you weren’t like your sister who seemed to be pregnant everywhere. A little beach ball on the front was wishful thinking, you knew, but isn’t that what every pregnant woman hoped for?

As you waited for the tub to fill, you decided to light your lavender and honey candle, hoping it would help calm your jumpy nerves. You couldn’t decide which was more exhausting, the jumpy nerves, or the fact that every few hours you were emptying your stomach. Dipping your toe in, you sighed at the welcoming warmth. Sliding your body into the warm hug, you realized just how achy your body was. Pregnancy sucked, you mentally grumbled.

The water lapped around you, and the candle filled the room with its relaxing scent. You felt your body relax as your eyes slid close.

***

“WHAT!?” You jolted out of your stupor when you heard Henry call out. Your brain felt like it was shroud in a fog, and it took you a moment to remember what he was doing, and why he might be yelling so loudly. When he filmed himself for social media, he usually kept pretty calm and quiet. Nothing like what he sounded like now.

His heavy foot falls thundered up the stairs. You were just sitting up in the tub as he threw the door to the bedroom open, not caring as it thumped hard against the wall. From the bathroom, you could see that the GoPro was still attached to his head. You sent a silent pray out that the GoPro was off, and Henry wasn’t filming you when he turned to see you in the bathroom attached to the bedroom. At least you knew it wasn’t live, or you would have to have a discussion with him about that. His followers didn’t need to see you taking a bath.

He held up the stick to you, his face a mask of disbelief.

Your smile told him everything he needed to know. He was across the room in a matter of seconds, stepping into the tub while you laughed and shrieked. Water sloshed over the edge, splashing on to the tiled floor and making a mess as he lowered himself on top of you. His body surrounded yours, and he didn’t seem to care that he was soaking his clothes, putting his GoPro at risk, and wreaking havoc on the bathroom in general. He cupped your face, staring at you for a moment, letting you see the pure joy on his face.

Your heart jumped at his reaction. You hadn’t realized how nervous you had been about what he would say until he had you in his arms, a giant grin curving his lips. He kissed your face all over, sweet pecks as laughter rumbled in his chest.

“You going to tell me how long that test has been sitting there?” Henry asked gently, pulling away with a smile still in place on his face. You grinned, glancing at the clock in the bedroom to see what time it was. Henry’s fingers tapped your neck impatiently where he was still cupping you.

“About 5 hours apparently.” You snorted. Though you had known it was going to take him awhile to notice the test, you didn’t think it would have been 5 hours. Note to self: when Henry is focused, it is no joke. The look on his face made your snort turn into a full laugh as his eyes bugged out of his face. Calming down, you blinked innocently at him. “Sorry, babe, but I didn’t want to disturb you when you were having so much fun building your computer.”

“I highly doubt that is the reason.” Henry fixed you with a mock stern look. He growled at you, before leaning in for a searing kiss. Your toes curled in the water, and the heat of the kiss shot through your body, lighting all your nerves on fire. His lips slowly mirrored yours, his tongue exploring your mouth. Your hands pulled at his soaked shirt, trying to get at the warm skin underneath. Henry laughed as he pulled away, shaking his head. “Ah ah. Not until you tell me the real reason?”

“Not fair!” You stuck your lower lip out in a mock pout. Henry quirked an eyebrow, making you cave. “I wanted to see how long it would take you to find it, okay? I was curious.”

Henry snorted, shaking his head again. He didn’t doubt for a second that that was your true intention. You had proven that you did things out of curiosity just to see what would happen all the time. There was still a burnt patch in the grass from the last time you were curious. He leaned up, and peeled his shirt off, finally giving you what you wanted. You ran your hands hungrily over his chest, and around his back. Henry’s face softened when you pulled him down to you for a hug. You tucked your face into his neck, sighing contentedly.

“We can get out now.” You mumbled, realizing how uncomfortable he probably was. The tub wasn’t the biggest, and hugging was definitely awkward.

With one last kiss, Henry got out of the tub, spilling more water onto the floor. He ignored the large puddle, his attention fully on you, as he offered you his hands to help you out of the tub. He wrapped you in a fluffy towel, running another one over your arms and legs to dry you. You felt a little weird being doted on like that, but it seemed like something he felt he needed to do. He combed through your hair, untangling the wet ends.

“Pajamas or clothes?” Henry asked when he was done, smiling at you in the mirror.

“PJs please.” You returned his smile. He chuckled, pressing a kiss to your bare shoulder before disappearing in the bedroom. Looking around at the mess, you decided to follow him so your pjs wouldn’t end up wet.

“Are you happy?” You asked quietly, apprehension gripping your stomach and heart. A wave of nausea washed over you, and you couldn’t tell if it was from morning sickness or not knowing how he would answer.

Henry paused in his search for the flannel pajamas you loved so much to turn to you. He took in the look on your face and abandoned his search completely, coming to stand in front of you. You worried your lower lip as you looked up at him through your eyelashes. He brought his hand up to cup your cheek, his thumb stroking across your lip, encouraging your teeth to let it go. He tilted your chin up so you were looking him directly in the eye. His blue eyes were a storm of emotions that you couldn’t decipher.

“Did I plan for this? No. Did I think I wanted this? Also, no.” You tore your eyes from his, trying to turn away from him as the hurt started to eat away at you. Henry gently turned you back to him with his hands on your shoulders. He squatted down a little so he could look you in the eyes again. “Am I ridiculously happy about it? Absolutely. Do I want it now? Also, absolutely.”

Your heart leapt at his words, a lightness floating inside you. He pulled you into his warm body, enveloping you in his arms. Tucked against him, you didn’t doubt for a second that he wanted this. Wanted you. Wanted your baby. Tears pricked your eyes, and a sob caught in your throat.

“Happy tears.” You told Henry when he realized you were crying. Pressing a kiss to the top of your head, he hugged you tighter, and you never wanted to be let go.