#Isolde is an abuser

[nobroth]

Isolde is also a victim of Eamon.

Isolde, a very young noble woman, falls in love with Eamon and betrays her own family to help return ownership of Redcliffe to the Guerrins. After the Rebellion, they marry. But Isolde is in a precarious position - the rest of the Fereldan nobility hates her because she's Orlesian, Maric himself "frowning" on their marriage, and she could never go home if Eamon gives into the pressure of that disapproval and discards her because she betrayed her family and her country for love. If things don't work out with Eamon, her life is pretty much over. (one of the many reasons I don't see her and Teagan having an affair as a reality also).

Isolde then has to deal with Eamon bringing in this child who everyone thinks is his bastard. Now, Eamon could have at any time told his young wife - who literally only has her attachment to him guarding her life - that it's Maric's child and that she doesn't need to worry. But nope! He doesn't do that! And he doesn't intervene when Isolde is cruel and lashes out at the child either, just sends him off to an abbey to "make peace". Very Catelynn Stark and Jon Snow.

Then, Isolde gets to listen to Eamon tell Cailan all about how if Anora can't provide a suitable heir then he should discard her. Marry someone else. And their son starts showing signs of magic. Connor's birth was very hard for Isolde, she doesn't know if she can have another child. (And as it turns out, she can't. She dies in childbirth the second time.) So she panics, and hides Connor's magic.

Eamon knows. Loghain says he has proof that Eamon knows that Isolde is doing this and doesn't do anything about it.

If Isolde gives her life for her child, Eamon throws him away anyway and puts him in the Circle. If Connor dies, Isolde dies in childbirth. Either way, Eamon does not seem to give a fuck. Because he's a bad person.

[lelianaslefthand]

thinking about how everyone in alistair’s childhood failed him

[anaptian-champion]

well why dont you prove that your precious devil dog is so well-behaved and bring her out for us?

what so you punks can fucking attack her???

no thanks 🖕

[isolde-serpentia]

How could you?

I gave you everything.

I gave up everything.

I lost myself as I gave you empty hands because there was nothing more to give...

And you smiled.

You loved every second of destroying me.

Your poison eventually succumbed me to the addiction.

I became addicted to you.

Your this ghastly drug that's a leach on my soul, and you'll feed.

I have no nutritional value left, but you'll feed anyway.

I can't get away from you.

My every move...

My every waking moment flashes your image through my mind like lightning striking a tree and setting it a'blaze.

You destroyed me.

You mock me as a victim as of your a saint.

Well, I'm no victim.

I'll be the one to bury you with your own poison one day.

Even then, I will still never be able to get away from you.

At least the world will be safer without your existence.

For that, I will be able to smile back at you.

[lifegoesonevenifeverybodyisgone]

Isolde’s life has been one string of one tragedy after another. She doesn’t dream for herself nor have anything to live for. While her brother was driven to the point of burning everything, Isolde felt too calm, for losing everything in the war meant nothing for she had nothing. Nothing but an empty vessel.

Except, Kakania was her everything. The golden key to open her door. A promise of a hopeful and more wonderful life. And thus her “dream” became her dream. But the gold was only brass and Kakania was only a person, not a goddess who could do anything to save her.

From a prisoner to a patient living inside a suitcase led by the humble lord, the Timekeeper, Isolde wishes to fix herself. She doesn’t believe in a future but deep down she hopes for it. So she is committed to this “treatment”. Unusual as it may seem, this treatment composed of going on missions with an Australian boxer and an American biker from the 90s as her comrades in battle.

Mr. Joe Brown or what he calls himself, J, cannot be anymore different from her. He lived in a time of the disco, the New Age Movement, and the technology that she couldn’t even begin to understand. He was also a blacksmith who forged tongs and swords with his burnt hands, a cook who made burritos and tacos Miss Centurion would enjoy, and a man of the people: the fabled man of Haight Street. How peculiar… although as different as they can be, he was also the same age as her.

“How can we even be the same age?” She wonders. Although she looked youthful, the books continue to weigh on her head. Her hand instinctively aches as she remembers a cup that she held too many times. Her eyes are witness to tragedies no child should ever bear. Despite this everyday troubles, the violence in the streets, and a community that relied on him, he could still smile and find a future for himself. Why can’t she?

But his friends were truly his friends, not parasocial admirers. He had a loving father and mother, he had a sister that he loved, and a community who could pull him up when he was down. And she?

She was only a decoration, to be admired but objectified, to be seen but not heard. But that was her life, the only life that she had ever known.

Yet how could this noble lady, the most esteemed opera singer in Vienna, envy such a man?

A tragic and traumatic life is normal to those who know nothing else. She belonged to all of Vienna, she belonged to everyone...except herself.

But then that familiar world is gone.

The suitcase has its unusual but united inhabitants. Slowly but surely, the empty void of her heart made its way to new friends and new experiences.

Then it hits her.

She was too young to be the star of Vienna.

Too young to be the measure of perfection, too young to be subjected to perverse obsession from so-called admirers, and too young to hold the weight of a world-ending war.

Now it's all gone. Vienna, Theophil, Trista, her mother and father, and her. The golden key she hoped to open her empty door was only brass. If her only anchor to the crashing tides is also broken, then how can't she drown?

Where will she go?

[dalishious]

Alistair vs. Cullen

It really annoys me when people act like Alistair and Cullen are the same character, when they are very different.

Alistair grew up with child neglect. When visiting Denerim, Eamon kept him in the kennels. At Redcliffe, he slept in the stables on a pile of hay. Alistair also recounts a time when he was locked in the dungeons for a day before someone came to get him out. And of course he also talks about how Isolde despised him, and “made sure the castle wasn't a home.” But is still convinced that Eamon is a good person and he deserved all that. Cullen had a very fortunate upbringing with a loving family who supported him and what he wanted in life.

Alistair never wanted to be a Templar; he was forced into joining the Order by Eamon. He is vocal about how much he despised this, and considers Duncan recruiting him for the Wardens as “saving” him from them. The only thing he says he enjoyed about Templar training was the educational component, which he did not receive previously. Alistair was a poor recruit because he frankly did not want to be there, and therefore did not take it very seriously. He saw practices like the Harrowing as horrifying, and deepened his dislike of being a Templar further. And as time goes on, he becomes even less of a supporter of the Order; he outright says Meredith is the biggest threat to Kirkwall in Dragon Age II, if made king of Ferelden. It was always Cullen’s dream to be a Templar, and would even force his younger sister to “play the apostate” for his “training” before being recruited. Cullen was an enthusiastic recruit who considered Templar training “all that he had imagined”, and “did not hesitate” in taking his vows. Even the Harrowing did not waver his devotion to the Order, which by Dragon Age II becomes downright fanatical and tyrannical, practically worshipping Meredith. (Though this was later attempted to be retconned in Dragon Age: Inquisition… just as poorly as all the other retcons in that game, taking the path of “just pretend he never said and did all those things!”)

There is a lot of dialogue from Alistair about how much he dislikes the Chantry. Cullen, on the other hand, is extremely faithful and the only criticism he ever has about the Chantry is that they don’t treat the Templars well enough.

Alistair has a good sense of humour—in fact, it’s one of his biggest coping mechanisms. Cullen wouldn’t know a joke if it hit him in the face.

The player can disagree with Alistair on every turn. He is presented as sometimes being right, and sometimes being wrong, like most people. (Side note: more than that, you can be downright verbally, emotionally, and physically abusive to Alistair. Holy shit, I didn’t even realize how bad it can get until reading through the dialogue in the toolset, because I’ve never picked those options in game. I was honest to god flabbergasted and very uncomfortable through much of it.) The player rarely has the chance to even mildly disagree with Cullen. On the rare occasion you do, the dialogue is painted as if the player is being an unreasonable asshole, and he never even addresses what they say. (Example.)

The only reason I think people are capable of mistaking them for another is because fandom likes to donate Alistair’s personality onto Cullen. That and the the ever-frequent whitewashing of Alistair doesn’t help matters. But I’m not even a Cullen fan and I think it’s a disservice to both of them to act like they’re just Alistair and Alistair 2.0, honestly.

[moonlitstoriess]

Across the Universe-ch.3 (Fenrys x Reader)

Summary: Y/n has everything she needs in life. A family, friends, a safe place she calls home and most importantly a male whom she loves. What happens when it all changes when Y/n finds out about the betrayal of her lover and her so called family? Well, ending up in Terassen and in queen Aelin's court was not what she expected but what she will need to start her new journey full of surprises.

Warnings: Traumatic flashback, brief description of SA, abuse.

See masterlist

A/n: Hey guys! Just a heads up, I gave a brief description of y/n here but nothing too specific as in the end, I want you to imagine yourselves in y/n's place. Hope you enjoy this :)))

Following the Illyrian traditions was very important. Submitting to the males wishes, their desires and orders, being a proper house maid was the future of almost every female unfortunate enough to be born in Illyria. This point was confirmed once more as she stood near the stove in the kitchen, silently humming to herself with the hopes of drowning out the ugly laughters of him and his male friends in the dining room, drinking and burying themselves in all the fat and gluttony.

"Y/n, sweetheart, come here!" There it was, that deceptively caring voice that only came out when he was so drunk that he could not even tell the difference between a goblet and a chamber pot, drinking ale from the latter and declaring it the finest vintage in all the realm.

She knew better than to argue or even think of putting up a fight.

When she entered the room, there were 3 other males with him, all smirking at her while greedily looking up and down her body with eyes that held hunger within them. At that moment, as he got up and went to lock the door behind her, y/n realized her fate. She wanted nothing more than to die right then and there.

"Sweetness, why don't you give us a show first?" one of them said, giving her a disgusting cruel smile that displayed his rotting, yellow teeth.

And so, as her 16 year old body was forcefully defiled all night long by these vile monsters, as her pleas fell on deaf ears, as they slapped and cut her up for their pleasure, y/n knew that hell would be kinder to her than Illyria and its males.

Y/n's eyes shot open as she immediately jumped up to a sitting position on the bed with a racing heart and a sweat covered body. It had been a while since these nightmares last happened to her. Visions of those horrible, dark times. They started coming back right when Azriel stopped sleeping with her. Now it seems that they have just gotten worse.

"Shhh, oh you poor child, you are safe now."

Y/n turned her head around to see an older female, with graying hair rubbing her back in comforting circles.

She did not have the energy to use her voice, so y/n whispered, "Who are you? Where am I?"

The woman smiled as she calmly explained, "My name is Isolde and I am one of the head royal healers. You are in the healing hut where I have been taking care of you for the past one day."

"I have been in this state for a whole day?"

"Yes. After you passed out, Aedion was meant to come find me but it seemed like Fenrys had a different plan. Oh, you should have seen him when he winnowed here. He was frantic! I never saw him so worried before. He laid you down here on the hut and only said 'Help her, please.' Then he winnowed again and left you here in my care. In the past day, her majesty queen Aelin and the lady Lysandra came down here twice to check up on you, but you were still unconscious."

Fenrys was worried about her? Of course he was worried. They were all worried because y/n is their captive and they could not have her dead before they got the information they needed out of her.

With a scoff, she turned her head around to inspect the room. There were two rows of beds here on each side of the wall and two circular windows at each end of the room. Multiple shelves and tables around the place contained all sorts of books, medications, and some kinds of herbs. The light coming from the afternoon sun cast a comforting glow around the room.

The healer got up and began to gently inspect y/n as she said, "Her majesty said to bring you to her once you were better again. There is a washroom just outside this door on the left and inside you will also find some clothes. Although it was quite challenging to find a shirt that would somehow go through your wings which is why I washed your old shirt and put it back there."

That is when y/n looked down and realized that she was wearing some sort of chest binds and underpants. Oh Cauldron boil her...they had to strip her naked? At her worried face the female replied with a knowing smile, "Yes, I saw your scars and burns but do not worry, I was the only one who changed your clothes so your secret shall go with me to my grave. I swear it."

Slightly embarassed, but grateful nonetheless, she nodded her head and wordlessly padded to the washroom. After washing up and changing into a fresh and comfortable set of brown pants, her old, long sleeved shirt, and new, knee high light brown boots, y/n left the washroom and followed the healer out towards wherever this queen wanted them to be at.

When Fenrys got word from Aelin that y/n was finally awake and that Isolde would bring her to the formal sitting room soon, he immediately raced through the woods in his wolf form to reach the palace in time. He did not know why or how but Fenrys was definetly feeling something unusual and foreign whenever he was around her.

He remembers how, two days ago when Rowan felt y/n's presence within Terassen's teritorry and sent him to investigate, Fenrys did not expect to be dumbfounded by this winged female lying unconscious on the ground. She was ethereal. Her gorgeous, soft hair that he suddenly felt like running his fingers through, her plump, full lips, gentle yet defined features that made her look like a work of art. But most importantly, her unique and breathtaking black wings that seemed to glitter under the sunlight.

And then, when he winnowed them to the formal meeting room, he felt her nervousness and wanted nothing more than to make her feel safe. It did not help that being right behind her meant that he could smell her delicious scent of jasmine and peach. He remembers how, when Rowan took y/n's air out, Fenrys had this sudden and animalistic urge to kill him. Rowan, his closest companion for so many centuries, suddenly became his number one enemy.

Lastly, when y/n fell unconscious again because of shock...Fenrys could not even understand his own actions. He was supposed to wait just like everyone else until Aedion called someone but...he could not stand there and watch her lie unmoving, so he immediately winnowed her to Isolde. Even though he did not visit y/n after that, he would unsuspiciously ask everyone for updates on her. He knew he should not care but, whatever this silly thing inside him was made him care for some foolish reason.

"So what if she fell unconscious? We still need to keep our eyes on her every move. If our assumptions are true, she is a stranger from a completely different world."

Lorcans voice brought Fenrys back from his thoughts as he watched his family argue over y/n and her fate. Lorcan and Elide arrived just this morning from Perranth after Aelin sent word to them.

"I agree. But she also did not seem like a big threat either. She looked quite shocked when she realized what was happening." Lysandra said while glaring at Lorcan.

"And? it all may have just been a part of her innocent act to reach whatever her goal is."

"Lorcan please calm down, we will se-" Elide was cut off by Lysandras voice.

"You really are a soulles creature then aren't you? Gods...She fell unconscious!! How do you act that out?" Lysandra was staring daggers at him.

"Lorcan is right. Unconscious or not, she is a threat to us for as long as she is in here."

"Really Rowan? I ca-"

"Alright that has been sufficient enough, you three." Aelin said as she gave a pointed look to her mate, Lysandra and Lorcan before continuing, "We won't know anything until we speak to her and that means, we also can not come to any conclusions until we get her side of the story. So either you act like rational beings and we interrogate her properly, or you can just leave the room right at this moment because I do not wish to deal with any additional headaches right now." Her queen side truly came out as those turquoise eyes looked harshly at everyone, including Fenrys, and especially at Lorcan.

But no one could say anything else because the doors opened and in walked Isolde with y/n behind her and Fenrys once again had this urge to be near her and protect her from the unavoidable interrogation that was about to happen. She had an indifferent facial expression on that could fool anyone else but not him. Because for some reason, Fenrys could scent her discomfort and curiosity as her eyes looked around the room.

Y/n noted that his room was different from the previous one. Because while the previous one had different colors, this one was covered in various shades of green starting with pale and ending with forest dark. The floor was covered in a beige and green floral patterned rug, in the center there was a small, circular, golden brown table and on each side of it there was a green couch with hints of silver in their patterns. There also was a white marble fireplace that was currently empty. Finally, on each side of the fireplace, there were two floor to ceiling windows that displayed the gardens outside.

The strangers from the other day were all here, some sitting on the couches while others were standing in the center, but there were also two new strangers that she did not recognize. The extremely tall, tan, muscled man with brown hair that reached his shoulders was not the type that could be overlooked. It was as if his presence always demanded attention. Not to mention the fact that those threatening dark eyes were currently staring at her. If looks could kill, y/n would already be dead. Next to him, was a very small, pale woman with dark black hair and the most adorable face. She was also staring at y/n, but unlike the intimidating beast next to her, she was smiling with genuine kindness.

And then there was Fenrys who was leaning against the wall near the window, staring at her. His arms were crossed which made the impressively large muscles under his white tunic bulge and that made her feel hot all over her body. But, she managed to reign in her feelings and stood stoic faced looking straight at the blond, blue eyed female who was now walking closer to y/n.

"Well, I hope you are feeling better now." The female said, standing face to face with her and assesing y/n with her eyes.

"I am, thanks to Isolde." Y/n turned her head sideways and gave the healer, who was standing next to the door, a small yet genuine smile which Isolde returned.

"Yes. Well, she is our head healer for a reason after all. Thank you Isolde, you may leave now."

Isolde did a small bow and then turned to leave. Once the door closed, Y/n's cold facial expression came back on while looking at the female before her and already mapping out her potential exits from the room. She managed find a small but sharp needle in the washroom so, that was her only weapon as her knife was taken from her when she was unconscious. It is not like y/n was sad about it anyways because that knife was gifted to her by Azriel for their 50th anniversary.

"Y/n, come sit. Don't worry no one is going to hurt you...yet." The blond said with a small smirk as if expecting her to be afraid.

But y/n had seen and been through worse situations when she was working for Rhysand and had to go on missions with Cassian or Azriel. Her name though, how did they kn- Oh, yes, well of course Fenrys told them. Y/n cursed herself for ever revealing her name to him and went to sit on the empty couch without showing an ounce of fear. They could interrogate her all they like but they could never break her.

When she saw the tatooed male opening his mouth to say something, she crossed her arms and said with an indifferent tone, "Shouldn't I know your names? I mean, I could refer to each of you by your hair colors like 'silver hair' or 'ugly brown hair'..." at that she gave a look at the tall brooding man and continued, "but I would really rather call you by your names."

The blond female fully smirked before saying, "My name is Aelin and I am the queen of this teritorry. The 'silver hair' is prince consort Rowan and my mate."

"My name is Elide and I am the lady of Perranth" the small woman said while smiling sweetly at y/n before pointing to the still angry-looking giant beside her and saying, "he is my husband, Lorcan. Please do not be afraid of him he is just-"

"Acting like a baby? Do not worry Elide I am not afraid of men that seem threatened by my presence. It adds to my ego and confidence." Y/n said with a smirk as Lorcan got visibly angrier at her while someone on the other side of the room let out a small chuckle.

Aelin was full on smiling when y/n heard another voice, "Finally! Someone who can put Lorcan in his place. My name is Lysandra by the way" the brown eyed female said with a wink. Lastly, leaning against the couch was Aelin's look a like who, with cold eyes that were assesing her said, "Aedion." It seems like all the males here hate her. Well, how fantastic!

"And that is Fenrys, whom I believe you are already acquinted with." Aelin said, gesturing to him. Fenrys, still stuck to his place by the wall, only gave her a quick and wordless nod before looking away.

Rowan sat on the couch facing her and said, "Now, since we cleared that up, y/n, tell us where you are from."

Y/n sighed before telling them about her world, but still keeping some information hidden from them. She told them about the different courts, the type of fae, of Illyria and her wings, the mortal lands and the wars.

When she was finished, they each had different facial expressions while processing what y/n just said. Aedion, seemingly the only one to quickly gather his thoughts asked, "Then, in your world...Prythian? there are many who like you, have wings."

She nodded before saying, "Yes, these wings are specific to Illyria. Those who are from there have these black, bat-like wings. But there also are those with white, feathery wings. For instance, in the Dawn court. Those are called Peregryn."

Rowan asked her next, "And the Night court is where you work?"

"Worked. I was there for 52 years serving its High lord. But then...let's just say I was betrayed. In fact, I was packing my things and getting ready to leave right before I ended up here."

"So you just suddenly ended up here?" Elide asked curiously from her place on the couch right next to Lorcan who had one hand within reach of his knife and the other on Elide's waist. Y/n smirked, he thinks he is so slick but she has already memorized the ways of those like him. Always ready to attack. Which, if he does dare to attempt, the long and sharp needle in her pocket will find its way quicker to his throat than the knife in his hand will reach her.

"No, while I was getting ready to leave, I heard a voice calling me. I did not understand what it was saying and then, I got this deep urge within me to go find its source. So I flew to where it was and found that it was the Book of Breathings that was calling me all along."

At their puzzled faces, y/n asked, "You do know about the Book of Breathings, yes?"

Lysandra and Aelin exchanged a confused yet slightly alarmed look before the former asked, "Should we be aware of it?"

Oh, they definetly had no idea. With no other choices left, y/n explained all about the 3 objects of the Trove, how they managed to gather them, or rather how Nesta managed to gather them, and finally about the Book of Breathings.

Aelin, still seemingly deep in thought said, "That is how you won your war then."

"Well, we also had the upper hand because there were 3 of the most ancient beings, Gods of a sort, fighting on our side. My at the time high lady and high lord made deals with them in order to make them fight for us."

At that, Aelin scoffed, "How fortunate that the Gods in your world atleast agreed to aid you in your wars."

At y/n's puzzled look, Aedion smirked as he said, "My cousin killed the Gods of our world. One of her many titles is Godskiller."

To say y/n was shocked would be an understatement "How? I mean...how do you just manage to kill the Gods? How is that possible?"

Everyone in the room apart for y/n shared a look before Rowan said, "You told us about your world, it is only fair that we tell you about ours."

And so, they all,except Lorcan because he is still a brooding child, took part in explaining her all about their world. They told her about Wyrdgates, Valgs, the king of Adarlan, the Wyrdkeys, the Iron Witches and their matrons, their Wyverns, Maeve, Erawan, the war at Orynth, how Aelin managed to close the gates with her powers, and lastly, about the sacrifice of the Blackbeak witches that gave the upper hand for them to win the final battle. This all happened 3 years ago. It was clear that they left out quite a few things and by the stern looks Aelin was sometimes giving to them, it was about her but y/n did not blame them. After all, she also left out information about how the Night court or any other court in Prythian works, what is Velaris and what was her position at court, how skilled she is at war or just fighting in general, her age, Amarantha's 50 year reign and most definetly, her past.

Y/n had never heard so many shocking revelations at once. What on earth did they go through? So many innocents were being forced to wear chockers or rings with whatever those demons were? The fae of Erilea were definetly different from those in Prythian. But what spiked her curiosity the most, was the information she got on the Ironteeth, Blackbeak witches. Apparently, her wings were similar to those of their Wyverns and from what they told her, y/n felt like she would get along well with them.

She turned her head towards Aelin and asked, "So, now you have no powers left?"

Aelin sighed and came down to sit next to her, which made Rowan immediately come to stand right behind her at the edge of the sofa, watching y/n with a gaze that dared her to even try doing something to his mate and queen. Y/n genuinely smiled, how impressive (and romantic) that he loves and protects her so much.

"Well, I gave most of it away but, there is still a little bit left in me. Not large enough to burn down a forest or create a fire wall but, enough to still remind me of my roots."

Nodding, y/n turned her head to everyone else, landing her gaze on Fenrys, while asking no one in particular, "What powers do the rest of you have? I know silver hair over there has some air power that can take the breath out of your body but...what about the rest of you?"

Lorcan scoffed, "Who do you think you are-"

"Shapeshifting. I can shift into any form of living being." Lysandra cut in after giving Lorcan a death stare. Y/n smirked, she liked this female very much.

After everyone, except for well...of course Lorcan and Elide said what their powers were, y/n noticed how Fenrys never once opened his mouth during this entire process, preferring to stare at her from his spot near the window.

So, she asked him, "Fenry-"

But he cut her off, "Lorcan is right. You are in no position to ask us of anything. Better you shut up than ask things that are of no concern to you. My powers are known to those that need to know of it." and with that, he stalked towards the doors and left the room.

Lorcan was smirking until Elide jabbed him with her elbow, Rowan, surprisingly, did not seem happy and Aedion had an unreadable expression. Y/n thought that maybe just maybe Fenrys would not be against her but...it truly seems like she is the number one enemy of all the males here.

Aelin let out a small cough that drew y/n's attention from the door and told her with an uncertain smile, "You...could stay in the palace, I will have a guest bedroom arranged for you if you wish. And while you're here, we could look into this whole matter of gates and help you find a way on how to get you home."

"Oh no I really should start looking for a way to leave, and besides, your males do not seem to want me he-"

"Finally, something we can agr-"

"No." Elide said, cutting of her husband and then looking at y/n, "The males can go and brood for as long as they like but you are a stranger to our world which means out there you won't find anything. Your best chance is here, within the palace walls."

"Bu-"

"I command it as the queen."

"You are not my queen."

"But you are standing on my grounds and that means, whatever I say is law."

Aelin and y/n stared at one another, unflinching, holding each others gaze before y/n finally said, "Alright!"

Aelin smiled, before saying, "Ladies, shall we escort our guest to her bed chambers?"

Lysandra and Elide both stood which caused their husbands to immediately hug them as if they are newborn babies who could not stand being away from their mother. Y/n's heart ached because that was how Azriel was with her once. What was he doing now? Was he worried for her? She doubted it.

Aelin placed her hand on y/n's shoulder to bring her back to reality, as she softly said, "Come"

When the queen and her two ladies led her to her room, y/n's shock was written all over her face but she did not care. She has lived in and seen luxury for quite a large span of her life now, but not even her bedchambers at Velaris or the ones at Dawn court could ever come close to this.

The room was medium sized which added to its comfort. On the right side of the wall, was a large bed with a golden headboard, pale pink or almost white covers and white, see through curtains hanging above. Next to it, was a small, beige nightstand that had a small vase full of daisies, lilacs and a candle that stood on a small golden holder. Opposite to the bed, on the left side of the wall, was a white table with golden designs around the corners that held a large mirror, various beauty products and a singular vase full of white roses. Right next to it, was a white door which Aelin said leads to the washroom and beyond that, the large wardrobe. In front of it was a small, soft, white chair with golden stag figures over it. In the middle of the room, was a small, low, cream colored rectangular table and next to it, were two light gold lounge chairs. Behind the table and the chairs, was one large floor to ceiling window that was covered by, again, white see through curtains and beyond that, it seemed that there was a balcony that overlooked the vast expanse of this territory. The floor was covered in a large, white rug with pale pink and gold designs all over it. The room smelled of roses, vanilla, and other lovely citrusy scents.

"Aelin, I am so glad you listened to me when I said that we needed to have a feminine guest room for our female visitors." Elide said, gazing lovingly into the room.

"One of the best rooms in the West wing." Lysandra said before winking at y/n.

"Get some rest, I shall have food delivered to you and we can begin tomorrow."

Y/n gave a small thankful nod, but before she could say anything else, a messenger with black hair and gray eyes came into the room, bowed to Aelin and said with a small smirk, "Your message was received. King Dorian can't come now which is why Chaol and Yrene are on their way."

Aelin smiled and said, "Thank you Nox, what about Manon?"

"The queen of witches has not replied yet but it seems she has a lot to do in her kingdom. After all, she has to share it. My guess is that she and Dorian will come together."

"Ah those two, I am counting down the days till I hear of their union." Lysandra said while shaking her head.

When Nox saw y/n, he swept his gaze all over her, smirked even bigger than before, before bowing to Aelin and exiting the room.

Aelin, who saw the whole thing, just smiled shaking her head and said, "Nox Owens. He is...we have been friends ever since I was 18 and now he is my main messenger."

Elide took Aelin and Lysandra's hand and led them towards the door but not before saying, "Good night y/n! See you tomorrow."

And as y/n got ready for bed and ate her food, all alone in this foreign place, she wondered what her future held for her and how she would get home.

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

A/n: 4.4k words! Wow... but it was so much fun to write and also why not give you guys some more juicy stuff? Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed reading this and see you in the next chapter <3

Taglist: @wallacewillow0773638 @cleverzonkwombatsludge @ladespedidas @mis-lil-red @going-through-shit @kaitttttttt @bunnyredgirl @crazylokonugget @blackgirlmagicforever

[unicoo]

The way we watch Alicent get pimped out by her dad, sworn to secrecy by the king, forced into a marriage with the same man (who isold enough to be her dad), maritally raped by said old ass husband & forced to carry his heirs in quick succession, all while still growing up herself and losing her only friend…….yet somehow, someway, there are people out there who………blame Alicent…the child? Book!Alicent is a different story, but to sit and WATCH show!Alicent go through all of this manipulation and grooming and abuse, and hate her?! Yeah some of y’all are sick 😭 I’m not even joking because like…..what?!

We are supposed to feel bad for Rhaenyra being forced to marry………but not Alicent? Why? Someone tell me why & quickly!! And don’t you dare say “sHE seDucEd vISerYs”, no, she was manipulated and then told to keep it secret by her king! He knew it was wrong yet didn’t gaf, so where is his hate? Are we being hypocrites guys?

We are supposed to feel bad for Rhaenyra & her kids, but not Alicent & hers who were ignored and treated like shit? Once again where is Viserys’ hate? QUICKLY, tell me!!! He’s neglecting his kids guys, we don’t support that do we?

We are supposed to hate Alicent for how she treated Rhaenyra, but not Rhaenyra for how she treated Alicent? (Especially when it was shown Alicent was trying and she didn’t become hateful until RHAENYRA LIED to her) Why, tell me, tell me, tell me. And don’t you dare say “sHE BEtRayEd hEr bY mARryInG ViSeRYs” SHE DIDNT HAVE A CHOICE!!! If we know Rhaenyra didn’t and we feel oh so bad for her, and we know most noble women don’t have a choice, then why are we mad at Alicent like she did? tell me please I BEG!

We scream girl boss for Rhaenyra wanted a son for a son, sorry make that sons for a son, yet Alicent is Beelzebub for wanting Justice for her son (WHO WAS A KID!!!! He hadn’t done shit yet, he was sweet and dragonless & got bullied, then maimed, YOU WOULD BE MAD TOO, lie & say you wouldn’t 😐) anyone who doesn’t understand Alicent’s motives behind the eye for an eye incident is either not a parent or is a heartless monster 🤷‍♀️

Y’all quite literally watched Alicent’s villain origin story and said why she so mad? Are you…..are you seriously dumb or just fucking with me? 😭

Y’all are pro Rhaenyra because she’s a “feminist” yet y’all hate every women who isn’t Rhaenyra……to me it sounds like…….✨hypocrisy✨

And how does one stand for a war against misogyny only to participate in the misogyny themselves? 🤔

The dance is a war against misogyny yet……….no one is stopping the misogyny, just dressing it up with cute excuses and throwing the blame onto the other side………..

(Also like it’s not far fetched to believe Rhaenyra would’ve had Alicent’s kids dealt with, especially since she’s hated Aegon since before he was a baby. My guy was 2 and she was beefing with bro like…. And you can’t say “AliCEnt & OtTo didN’T lEt tHeM hAVE a rElAtiOnsHIP” ummm SHOWwise that is untrue Rhaenyra just didn’t wanna fuck with them kids 😂)

[brightest-stars-if]

i played with m!lux so i didn't get to see the full extent of isolde's bad vibes 🫠 i thought i was just being too sensitive when she treated my mc coldly after i tried talking to her... no wonder lux ended up like that!

Isolde’s abuse of m!Lux is, for now at least, more subtle when you compare it to her abuse of f!Lux.

With f!Lux, she sees her greatest failure. She’s constantly reminded that her greatest regret in life was (in her eyes) not worth it. As a result, f!Lux becomes her pariah, and she lashes out at her. Her own self-hatred warps into contempt for her daughter. That’s how a lot of the verbal abuse from the demo comes into play. To make it worse, she also hates herself more with f!Lux.

With m!Lux, she sees victory (though it’s a rather Pyrrhic one). When she looks at him, she has the consolation that her greatest regret in life was at least worth it, that it’s paid off. As a result, m!Lux becomes her savior in a way, and she’s she’s able to shift some of her self-hatred into misplaced adoration — it’s not a mother’s love, or even love at all, really. She’s so desperate to keep her influence over her son that she works to isolate him from everyone she can, and it makes him incredibly lonely. Of course, he doesn’t realize it’s her fault yet.

[smokerswifey]

This may be unpopular but Tristan aint no good leader ,he let one of members die due somthing less important, no wonder meliodas dosent really trust him or feel like the can up huge responsibilits on tristan. And never really say anything when isolde ,Jade or Chion do somthing wrong . You saw him lol

Pretty sure Chion and Jade don't really see him as friend ,mabye the relationship is forced.🤷‍♀️ idk..

This kind of a really harsh take tbh .

Tristan is only sixteen years old he obviously isn't meant to be " a good leader " . He's still a child you can't expect him to be as good as his father or howzer or zeldris or king.

And Jade dying isn't entirely Tristan's fault, sure if he had dealt with Io more rapidly maybe, MAYBE Jade would've survived but again Jade's death is obviously the guy who killed an innocent teenager's fault and not some other teen who wasn't sitting on his ass and was fighting his own battle as well .

And Meliodas trusts Tristan a whole bunch that isn't the issue . The issue is that Tristan doesn't trust himself ( not using his demon side and whatnot ) so he can never use his full potential and holds back . And sadly they are in a war so if Tristan refuses to go all out, Meli has to let someone who won't hold back carry out the mission ( that person being Percy )

And Jade already told us what he thought about Tristan, he cared for him as a friend and also admired him but simultaneously hated his guts so their friendship is a bit odd ?

Even tho Jade was jealous of Tristan being Isolde's hero, we've still seen him show some care towards Tristan during the chapters where he was alive so I do think Jade must've cared for him at least a bit .

And I am sure that Chion does care for Tristan à lot as a friend but he's kinda turned most of that care into an unhealthy obsession as a coping mechanism since Tristan was the one who saved him from abuse, so he turned his gratitude and admiration for him into deep obsession and possesivness ..But overall I do think he cares for him .

I actually like that Tristan isn't some hybrid Mary Sue perfect prince or whatever.

He has flaws and he makes mistakes even tho all of his friends think that he's perfection incarnate .

That makes him anxious and angry towards himself because everyone has all of these expectations towards him and he doesn't want to let him down .

In that aspect he's extremly relatable because everyone wants to make their close ones proud of them .

I think that Tristan is a wonderful character and in time he will overcome his insecurities and become an incredible leader .

But for know let him learn, let him fail, let him get back up on his feet and try again .

[stari-hun]

Reverse 1999 Yappin Masterlist

𓆙 Orange marks the best content

My other Masterlists ! Headcanons and Ships , Wilderness , Critters

Reverse 1999 Character Diagram - Full Game 1.8

Timeline of Events

Insight 2 - Timeline of Insight 2 , Insight 2 is like Winx

Character Bonds - General , Greenlake, Book 6 , Book 6 part 2

The Atlas : Overview and the Narrator's Omniscience

The Atlas : Book 6

What would I ask the Cave of Truth?

Character Analysis

Sonetto - Insight 2 , One Day Sonetto Will Go Against Pavlov

Constantine - Before the Storm, The Happiest about the Storm, Constantine would've always ripped Verneider apart

Sophia and 37 , Looking to you and Looking beyond you

Small Arcana piece from the web event - "The wise ones drew a circle at their feet and declared themselves apart from this realm."

General

Shitty Summaries - Book 3. , Book 5.

Reverse 1999 is an Existential Horror - Vereinsamt and Uncannt Valley Instinct

Scoops of Angst - Marcus , Verneider Vs Isokania , Vertin's Trauma from Book 3 , Sophia and 37 vs Sonetto and Vertin , Sophia left right before the truth reached Apeiron , Mr Karl not being outed as an abuser before or after his death is... , Monologues , KB Shamane and Kumar : The Bullet ,

MESMER AND MEDPOC SIBLINGOLOGY !!!!

37 is the only cast member of Apeiron who truly suits the island, but it's also what makes her naive

"Crush me into dust."

As close as they are, Sonetto and Vertin can never go back to the bond they had as kids while Sonetto is a field agent

Book 6 : Cause it needs its own tab

E Lucevan le Stelle Mini Summary

E Lucevan le Stelle Diagram - 1. , 2.

The Pacing of E Lucevan le Stelle : How the Isolde keeps herself off innocuous until she's ready to enter the stage

Isolde - The Small Room - Isolde Character Story , Isolde is a man hater and it would 100% include Kakania if she was a man

Kakania - My gripes with her , Kakania is an unreliable narrator and dependent on Isolde as well

Marcus - The worst birthday ever (and possibly Isolde's gift)

Isokania - Outside Perspective on Isokania , Doomed from the Start , Their comic panels line up...

Theopil , Theopil Continues to Haunt the Narrative

The Dittersdorf's - Theopil

Isolde and Playwright

Heinrich and Diggers

Isolde - + Jessica , Character Bingo, Trista made the servants think she was crazy, Insight 2

Theories

Arcanists as a Community Don't Think of Sexuality or Gender

Character Stories are The Stories Arcanists WANT to Tell

The Player isn't Vertin

Pandora's Magic on Vertin

The Storm's Origin

Vertin's mom casted the immunity spell on her

Arcana knows the original name for arcanists

Arcana put out the ads for the Manus and information about the Storm out so it could reach the SPDM children

Worldbuilding

The Foundation vs Manus Vindictae

The Foundation (+ School of Discipline and Laplace)

The Artificial Somnambulism and Modern Perspective

The Foundation is Brainwashing People

Zeno - Greenlake's View Versus Rayashki

Reverse 1999 and Customs after the Storm

Shamane's Character Story was good insight on how the ecosystem in Reverse 1999 works.

Appraiser Arcanum - General (Getian, Pandora, Windsong, Marcus) , [Features of Bones]

Arcane Traces last 15,000 - 17,000 years

Numbers System for Book 5

Economy Ramble

Events

Nightmare at Greenlake Relationship Chart

Blonney would be into Creepypasta

Kumar and Shamane : Doomed Family

Kaalaa Baunaa and Divination after Kumar's death

What if Vertin was in Mor Panhk?

Kumar is my favorite NPC and she should be yours too

Shamane and Kaalaa Baunaa and the remnants of Kumar

Makower Overreacted Super Hard

Uluru Games : Ezra saw someone die in his character story??

Bessmert and Getian

Notes on Shuori ; Jiu Niangzi, Getian, and Jessica)

Farewell, Rayashki - Windsongs Vibe , General Vibe + Me being sad and upset

Ley Lines: A Strong Supporting Field

Evgeni is Anti Earth

Series of Dusks -

Semmelweis in imperfect and she embraces it

Kakania is INSUFFERABLE outside of the perspective of someone who needs her

Theory ! The Director intercepted Semmelweis' death

[nobroth]

Pinned post.

This will be a low-activity blog for Alistair Theirin featuring verses in Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age II, Dragon Age: Inquisition, and Dragon Age: The Veilguard.

Guidelines will be the same as they are on @valorcorrupt. Shipping will be based on plots and interactions, please don't assume there's a ship.

Blog canon. | memes. | Bio.

Portrayal notes specific to this blog below the cut:

Alistair is 21 when the Fifth Blight begins. He has a whole bunch of trauma, religious and otherwise, to handle. He's got a complex about other people making choices for him. He will not find it cute or romantic for a Cousland to decide that they can rule together when he has repeatedly expressed that this is something he does not want (without prior discussion, prior meaning before you get to Denerim).

This portrayal will not lean towards the more serious portions of Alistair's personality. I do not see him as a light, happy himbo. Yes he's very happy and very loving when in a relationship. A good friend, a smile and a shoulder when needed. But Shale nails it when she says that he hides behind a "veil of jocularity", but he's not an idiot.

I will have verses for all outcomes from Origins, King drunk and Warden. Obvious cws apply.

Alistair's relationship with Eamon is... complicated but I won't pin it on Isolde. Isolde was also one of Eamon's victims, and though she did bad things Eamon is the one responsible. Misogynistic comments about Isolde won't fly, though there's nothing wrong for naming her as the abuser she is.

The boy is bi. Sorry, but he's not straight.

This Alistair portrayal will see him as brown with slightly pointed ears. I'm probs not gonna have icons bc I'm old and tired, but that's what he is.

[princehendir]

the way that last post extends to morrigan 2.. 27 years of shrimp psychological warfare isolation dehumanization brainwashing and abuse by a legendary immortal witch ENDED by some random ass connecticut clark from dust town ass dwarf guy who is so loves you .i know that old cunt was seething in her little cuck shack. that last part can also be applied to eamon and isolde btw

Haha yes! Yes!

[hysteric-machine]

Spoilers for the new Reverse 1999 chapters

TW Psychophobia, Torture, Intergenerational trauma?, Suicide Attempts...

Now started playing the new story chapters of Reverse 1999. And while I KNEW what I was going to go through, the instant I saw Isolde tied up on the electric chair... I reminded.

I reminded what it did to me as a mentally ill kid to play Alice Madness Returns. What it did to me when I watched Penny Dreadful as a young adult. So I paused. To talk about it.

I am one of the lucky ones. I never had go to a psychiatric ward (my parents tried to get me there after my first suicide attempt, but it was an adult only service, and as a 16 years old I wasn't old enough to enter, luckily my mom was there to attend to me all summer since she worked from home).

I did suffer the stigma, in many ways, but I did not suffer the medical abuse to a no return point extent. Of course the abuse in general is still terrible, but I got lucky. Some friends did not. Someone you know surely got through that. Everyone knows someone broken by psychiatric institutions. And a lot of these unlucky individuals did not recover, and sometimes died from this abuse.

We can argue that it's much better now, that there isn't torture anymore (that's a lie, getting tied down is torture, getting isolated is torture, and I won't start talking about how close to prisons psychiatric wards are, and yes I hate the reality of prisons too).

We can argue about all of this.

But we are still counting our dead. Mourning people that were not helped, not cured, but drowned even further into despair and left in shreds.

And my body knows, when I watch these pieces of fiction, when I read the history of how our condition were "studied", how the DSM got written. I feel an overwhelming and unspeakable fear. Because I know, it's me on the screen. It's my story. It could've been my exact story.

It has been the story of many unluckiest, unprivileged people (at this point I have to mention that of course, it is not just pure luck : if you aren't white, if you're lgbtq+, if a woman, you're particularly poor, if you're from a pious family, if you have commorbidities and many more can add to the list, it's going to be harder and you are the first ones on the list).

I can't ease this feeling. It's like a survival instinct. You know you don't want to ever have to go there. Even if "it can be fine sometimes", "there are some safe wards" or whatever. If you are mentally ill you just know.

So a kind reminder : always consider this when dealing with someone close to you that have mental health issues and seems to not be able to get the help they need, or sometimes are in emergency state. Please don't call the cops. Don't call the emergency services. Please don't get them to a psychiatric ward first without trying everything else, especially if they aren't ok with going there. It is, in and of itself a traumatic experience to live, and even the less abusive institution ARE abusive because psychiatry's history is what it is. It's not because some privileged people got out of there unharmed (and again I can't agree with that) that everyone would.

Anyway, it's all over the place, I can't find a good way to word this, because there is no good way to word that I'm terrified by all that shit, with reason.

Take care of yourself, of your loved ones. You can't change the world, and it is designed in a way that we still have very few alternatives to psychiatry nowadays, so you can't really avoid it all together. Just know that it's not only fiction and incredibly triggering for some of us.

Cheers. If you can relate and wish to read the new Reverse content maybe take your time to be ready, not alone, in a good mindset.

[geralts-yenn]

Believe in me

Modern Vampire AU Melot (Tristan&Isolde) x OFC Aurora (third-person pov)

summary: Aurora desperately needs a job and her friend suggests something she wouldn't have thought of: working as a blood donor in the nightclub of the vampire king. Meeting the vampire Melot on the same day helped Aurora to make up her decision.

But things are getting complicated soon. Melot and Aurora have to deal with hateful humans, power-hungry vampires and even gods.

series warnings: 18+ Adult content! parental violence and abuse, blood and other vampire stuff, violence, sex in all kinds of forms. Probably need to add more as the series continues

chapter warnings: parental violence and abuse

word count: 1,8k

A/N: The first series I am starting on tumblr and to say that I am nervous would be an understatement. I am terrified. This is all very new to me, so please be gentle. Although every kind of interaction is highly appreciated as always. I'm taking nice words, gifs, keyboard smashes or supportive advice. Just reblog and add your thoughts to it to make me happy, please!

Part 1

Series Masterlist

Carefully, Aurora tiptoed down the stairs. She knew her father was already drunk and if he heard her, a new fight was inevitable. But she wasn’t careful enough, she didn’t even manage to get into the living room before she heard him yelling:

“Aurora, get your ass into the kitchen and make me dinner!” Aurora silently cursed and turned to the kitchen.

“Hey Dad! I was on my way to the library. I need to catch up on my classes. Would you mind some microwaved leftovers?” She didn’t dare to look at him so she just stared at her feet. 

“Yes, I do mind!” he shouted at her. “You know exactly that your mum isn’t here anymore to take care of me. And you know it’s your fault. She was driving your stupid ass to your soccer training. And yet, you stand here in front of me and your mum is gone. Two years! It’s been two years without her. And you still act like it isn’t all your fault, ungrateful bitch! You should have died, not her!”

So, it’s one of the days when he didn’t even try to hold back the hate. Aurora tried to blink the tears away that started gathering in the corner of her eyes. Without saying a word, she started to prepare a meal for her father. If she chopped some onions, maybe she could blame her tears on that.  

Her father watched her silently, but his eyes still gave away the pure hate that he felt for his daughter. He was never a loving dad like the ones Aurora knew from TV shows or commercials. He was always cold towards her, ignoring her as much as possible. Even when her mum was still alive. Back then, he didn’t make a difference in the way he treated Aurora and her sister Tara. 

But after the car accident that killed her mum and miraculously left Aurora without even a scratch, he changed. He was still ignoring Tara. But he transformed all his frustration and despair into hate and disdain towards his youngest daughter. 

After Aurora had finally finished cooking, she served a portion to her dad. He took one bite, grimaced and smashed the whole plate against the wall. "How are you not even able to be useful for something that simple as making me dinner? This tastes like shit!" he hollered. He shot up, knocking over his chair, and thrust towards Aurora. 

She took a sharp breath and held up her arms, trying to protect her face. Her dad quickly changed directions and his fists slammed hard into her rib cage. Aurora cried in pain and fled through the kitchen door. At least he was slow when he was drunk enough to beat her. 

Biting her lips to drown the pain in her chest, she grabbed her backpack, keys and shoes and ran out of the front door. She didn’t stop until she was a few blocks away. She needed to get as much distance as possible from her father. When she finally decided that she was at a safe distance, Aurora sat down on the sidewalk and brushed some gravel from her bare feet before she slipped into her sneakers. 

Sitting down was not a good idea. As she tried to get up again, the pain in her chest got so bad, Aurora couldn’t fight back new tears. So she decided to just stay there, sitting in the dirt. She didn’t have anywhere to go anyway. Slowly, she tried to calm herself, taking deep breaths and pressing her palms on her closed eyelids.

People were passing by, but Aurora didn’t care if they saw her like that. They probably didn’t even notice. But when she opened her eyes again, she was startled as there was a guy sitting right next to her. Aurora flinched with her eyes wide. 

“Oh, hey, I’m sorry! I didn’t want to scare you.” The voice of the stranger was deep and somehow soothing. “I saw you crying and was about to ask you if you needed help.”

Aurora carefully lifted her gaze to the man. He was breathtakingly handsome. His dark curls fell into his face, his sharp jawline was covered in stubble and his pale skin was flawless. And his eyes were glowing in a dark crimson.

“You… You’re a vampire!” Aurora stated the obvious. A smile swept over the face of the young man, revealing his perfectly white teeth, his fangs brushing over his lower lip.

“That I am.” he said, in a very friendly and casual way. He held out his hand. “Melot it is. I would say nice to meet you, but in the state you’re in, I think that wouldn’t be fitting.” Aurora took his hand, noticing that it was surprisingly soft and warm. But she couldn’t bring herself to say anything. So Melot kept talking: 

“Is there anything I can do for you, dear? I can’t just ignore you sitting here crying.” His hand brushed over her back to sooth her, so carefully, Aurora hardly felt it. She felt stupid, but she just couldn’t bring herself to speak. His beauty was stunning, and yet he scared Aurora all the same. She had never seen a vampire that close to her. Although they were legalized ten years ago, most of them kept living among their own kind.

“Did someone hurt you?” Melot tried again. A small sob escaped Aurora, but then she shook her head. Finally, she replied to him:

“I’m fine! Thank you for checking in on me, but there’s no need to.” Melot frowned, obviously not convinced by Aurora’s words.

“Can you call someone to pick you up? Your parents, a friend? I don’t want to leave you here like that. You’re definitely not okay.” he insisted.

Aurora thought about what he said. She couldn’t call her parents, of course. But she probably should call Tara. She could be crashing her sister’s couch until she knew if she wanted to go back to her dad or what else she could do. 

“I’ll call my sister,” she told Melot. “I’m Aurora, by the way.” She offered him a small smile that he returned with a wide one that once again revealed his fangs.

Aurora took out her phone and called Tara. Her sister wasn’t quite happy that she had to get her, but in the end she told Aurora that she would be there within the next 20 minutes. Aurora brushed her tears away with the sleeve of her shirt and blinked curiously at Melot.

“You haven’t seen one of us yet, have you?” he asked. Aurora shook her head.

“No, I don’t go out a lot and my dad is not really fond of the idea of vampires living among us, to be honest.” To Aurora’s surprise, Melot didn’t seem to be offended. He chuckled softly.

“He’s not alone with that, and I understand. It must be a scary thought for humans. But I swear we’re not creeps. At least most of us.”

Now it was on Aurora to chuckle. “That’s exactly what every creep tells you, you know?” Both laughed at that. 

Melot thought about asking once again what had happened, but he was glad that Aurora had stopped crying so he decided to leave it to that. Though, he felt strangely upset to see her like this.

Instead, they talked about lighter topics. Aurora spoke about her classes and Melot told her that he was working for his uncle.  He wasn’t exactly Melot’s uncle but it was easier to call him that, considering that they lived like a family the last 500 years.

When her sister's car stopped next to them, Aurora had almost forgotten how upset she was when she left her home. And she also had forgotten about her broken ribs. She got up and cursed immediately at the pain that shot through her body. Melot was next to her out of thin air, steadying her steps. His arm was wrapped around her waist and he took the weight of her body onto his shoulders. 

Tara didn’t even get out of the car. She just opened the passenger door. 

“What happened this time?” she asked, though she didn’t seem to be honestly interested. Aurora got angry at the heartless reaction of her sister. Even a stranger, a vampire to be precise, was more invested in her than her family. 

“He broke my ribs. After he smashed his dinner against the wall. I can’t go back to him tonight.” Her sister just rolled her eyes. 

“So you want to come home with me? Fine, canceling my date then.” She couldn’t sound any more annoyed. Melot clenched his jaw. There was this sweet girl and someone had hurt her. And not even her sister did anything to help. He decided that he would keep an eye on Aurora. 

When she was finally seated in Tara’s car, Aurora turned to Melot. “Thank you! It was really nice to meet you!” Melot chuckled, remembering his own words at the beginning of their conversation. 

“Goodbye Aurora, take good care of yourself!” He looked down at her, a soft expression on his face, despite his extraordinary red eyes.

Tara drove off before she had to witness any more of that stupid conversation. 

“What was that, so you’re dating a vampire now, or what?” She spat the words into Aurora’s face. Aurora cowered back into the seat.

“No, he just stopped and asked me if I was alright. No human did that, by the way. I don’t know him and I won’t ever see him again, I guess. So you can stop hating me for another reason.”

Melot watched the car driving off, not without remembering the driver's plate. When he turned, Charlie was standing beside him.

“Melot, what are you up to again?” He was smiling deviously. Melot shook his head. “Don’t bother, cousin. It’s nothing of your interest.” Charles raised an eyebrow but didn’t press any further.

“August wants to see you. He’s pissed, I have to warn you, though I don’t have a clue why. So good luck!”

Melot gritted his teeth in frustration. He wanted to investigate what happened to Aurora. He needed to see her again. There was a bond he felt towards her that he just couldn’t explain. He didn’t have time for the stupid intrigues of his uncle. August was the fucking vampire king, he should be able to deal with his shit on his own. Or at least, if he needed Melot’s help, he should finally acknowledge Melot’s skills and give him more recognition.

Part 2

[queer-ragnelle]

so many people who write medievalisms about arthuriana: "what if I took this genuinely cool and complex female character and made her totally unrecognizably cruel and evil for literally no reason"

like leave those ladies alone!!!!! if I want to read some modern arthurian retelling it should not be more mysogynistic and cruel to women than literal actual medieval misogyny!! you are doing the good work posting about the horrors these authors visit upon medieval women so I can take those books right out of consideration when I'm looking for something to read

I’m actually glad to hear this helps, anon.

Sometimes I worry that by mentioning a bad retelling it will encourage people to seek it out for morbid curiosity. But they’re really not worth it. I buy books on sight, like recently Bedivere by Wayne Wise or The Book of Gaheris by Kari Sperring and that’s what I did for the four Lavinia Collins books. I don’t recommend this method lol but to me it’s helpful as a writer to determine what I don’t like in a retelling and also I can then make informed recommendations or warnings for others. Sometimes a book is great until the end like The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman and I would still recommend it, but others I dropped or skimmed the remainder of like The Winter Knight by Jes Battis.

What kills me is when people recommend a book to me like “You should read Persia Woolley’s trilogy, it’s great! Has all the characters!” Then you open it up and Guinevere is so misogynistic and callous to the women she meets it’s completely insufferable. Palomides is an orphaned slave and constantly othered as “the Arab.” Isolde is a child bride. Agravaine is despised by everyone and literally has a mental breakdown after finally snapping from child sexual abuse, kills Morgause, and is thrown into prison to rot. Then he’s released to kill Pellinore and Dinadan so Gawain and Gaheris can be let off the hook. Ragnelle is there. But at what cost? The subtext is kinda racist to her and Gingalain anyway because they’re dark skin “wild” fay people that don’t speak the language so her loathly lady storyline has….bad vibes. Gingalain coming to court and weirding people out with his appearance and then dropping dead outside Guinevere’s chamber was not it for Fair Unknown enjoyers like myself.

I could go on it’s kind of endless. My goal though is to focus on what’s good out there. It can be challenging bc when are the Orkney bros ever all good at the same time? Almost never. So there’s a trade off—are a great Gawain, Agravaine, Gaheris, and Gareth worth it if Mordred is tying women to the bed to rape and mutilate them? (Guinevere Evermore by Sharan Newman) The highs and lows are so extreme it’s maddening. But I’ll do my best to recommend things worth reading even with the yucky stuff. Maybe I’ll make pros and cons of each….