#This has got to be going somewhere important

[vvkyomi]

what the blue lock boys' good luck charm is | itoshi sae, shidou ryusei, nagi seishiro, michael kaiser

itoshi sae

i can imagine you getting him some kind of bracelet that he wears 24/7. he won't do anything like kiss it before a game because he thinks it's embarrassing. he doesn't think he needs luck—he's got talent, after all—but he still won't take it off. when you gifted him the bracelet, he probably didn't look all that impressed with it. but when you told him “i'll return it if you don't like it” he just scoffed and never even answered you. trust me, that's sae's version of the no, it's mine forever now. and he literally never takes it off. like. he wears it to his games, in the shower, at interviews. he gives no fucks.

he never talks about it though. he doesn't even like when you bring it up. he's just embarrassed ,, he's just a silly little guy.

shidou ryusei

i'm not going to be nsfw here but trust me, i could be. he's my favourite little freak. <3 but alas ,

his good luck charm is a kiss from you. i'm not talking about a little brush of your lips, no. i'm talking about a full on kiss, tongue and everything, before every single one of his games. if you're willing, he'll make a show out of it too. he'll make out with you right in the stadium after threatening the coach to let you sit on the bench with the team as opposed to somewhere in the audience.

he'll come out of the locker room, run up to you and just pull you into a kiss. if he could, he'd do it after every single one of his goals too. (he's probably tried this and figured out pretty quickly that it doesn't work all that well in the middle of a game)

nagi seishiro

nagi is a low effort type of guy. he likes easy things and he doesn't want to over complicate literally anything. so for him, i imagine it'd be something simple and sweet: a hug. before one of his games, you'll give him a tight hug & kiss on the cheek to seal the deal.

“do your best, sei!” you'll say and he'll complain and whine that it's a hassle, but at the end of the day, he will try to do his best for you. and so far, it's worked pretty well.

sometimes though, he won't want to leave your embrace. he'll just keep holding onto you until you have to literally pull him off because he needs to get to the locker room to get changed for the game. bribe him with cuddles and a gaming session if he does well and he'll let go—but not without complaining and whining.

michael kaiser

he has a lot of tattoos. so before an important game, you'll get a sharpie and add a little drawing to them. other people rarely see it since he's got to keep his arms covered most of the time during games anyway, but he knows it's there and it makes him want to be even better—want to impress you even more.

the night before a game, you'll add a cute little sketch of a cat to his arm with a little heart and he literally will not shower until after the game, just to make sure it stays there. i don't think it's so much about luck for him, i think it's just a reminder that you're watching him and he needs to be the best on the field.

[prlssprfctn]

"So OOC! This issue is crap"

And if I say you are reading it wrong, and this page actually makes total sense?

I saw people bashing the writer for a while on Twitter, and I couldn't help but bring this page there to discuss all criticism and explain what Jason had meant because hate comments towards Jason is insane and FOR WHAT, too! So, let's go through some points I had already heard on the Internet during this week.

1) "How dare Jason speak for other kids?"

Let's start with the most important point there: Jason does not necessarily actually want to talk about his siblings. He generalises the whole thing because it is his way to communicate about his own feelings. It is the same thing Bruce does through some comics — he puts his own feelings into a loud "we," even if the narrative doesn't always fit. People historically do that quite often when they need to feel more sure and secure in what they are talking about.

2) "Jason doesn't care about Gotham? Insane ass take"

It is not about his general feelings towards Gotham! It is about the Robin mantle and the intentional motivation to get into vigilantism. Jason loves and has always loved Gotham, and it is proven by some runs that he always finds a way to help his town, even in no capes!AU.

But this is a thing. In a perfect life scenario, Jason cares about Gotham by donation and some other charity stuff, by specfic profession, even. Not by jumping in suits. He loved Gotham, but not with the same self-sacrificing agenda with suits and fake identities as Bruce — he originally became Robin for him. To be loved and accepted. The magic the mantle gave him was family. Family and the safe place to live in.

It doesn't mean that he didn't enjoy his Robin days before the shit hit the fan. It doesn't mean that he doesn't love Gotham. Come on.

Bonus points that are very biased: funnily enough, I think he is not entirely wrong in general narrative. Most of the kids didn't start doing what they are doing now for Gotham specifically. Some of them didn't give much thought about this TOWN at the beginning of their journey. Some of them had different motivations and reasons, or circumstances. And that's OKAY. It doesn't mean that they don't care about Gotham now. It is about the original intentions and thoughts on that matter. They got attached to this city somewhere along the way, and it is beautiful and symbolic.

And yeah, they didn't jump into suits and mantle for Bruce's love as Jason did, but somewhere along this way, they also become depended on his approval and love. You can't deny it.

Here, I said it.

[woso-dreamzzz]

Javelin

Ona Batlle x Reader

Summary: You and Ona are each other's homes

The first time you met Ona, she kicked you in the face with a football.

In revenge, you threw it straight back at her and she accidentally lost a tooth from the impact.

You'd been best friends ever since then and your parents could barely keep the pair of you separated.

And as with all things like that, a relationship was naturally the next step.

Fumbles in the back rooms of the family home, making out in your room during family reunions, a kiss after Ona scores in an important match.

And all of those soft, teenage fumbles transformed into something much more beautiful.

You'd followed her to Manchester when she left Spain.

It had taken a lot, uprooting your whole life and moving to a different country whose language you hadn't paid much attention to in school.

Ona helped though.

Ona always helped.

That had always been the case.

Ona helped you and you helped her.

Your training never really went as long as hers. You weren't away from home as often as Ona was. Throwing a javelin wasn't quite as physically draining as football was so you were able to cook dinner and clean up and go to almost all of her matches to support her.

"That smells good."

Arms close around your waist gently and a head rests between your shoulder blades.

"Taste," You say, bringing a spoon up to Ona's lips straight from the pot," Good? Too salty? Not salty enough?"

"Perfect," Ona says," Perfect like always. You spoil me."

"You deserve to be spoiled."

Ona giggles a little, a soft kiss being pressed against your neck as she moves away. "I'll grab the plates."

You make a home in Manchester together before Barcelona come knocking and you're more than willing to return to Spain again.

You get another coaching team. You train in the heat.

You and Ona discuss a dog but nothing has come of it just yet. You bask in each other's company. You return to family reunions and seeing Ona's family on the weekend right until the summer.

The run up to the Olympics is brutal.

You're both tired and drained but it's a dream to represent Spain on a stage like that, to show people around the world just what you can do.

People watch events that they don't usually watch and if you can even convert one person into a javelin fan then it'll be an Olympics well spent.

You have your goals for this Olympics and Ona has hers.

And you hate seeing that her goals will be left unfinished.

"Hey..." You say gently as she approaches you at the barrier," I'm sorry."

You can see her putting on a brave face. You know it's fake.

You lean over and gently draw her closer.

Spain hadn't made it to the final. They'd lost the bronze medal.

Ona had lost the bronze medal.

Your own gold medal for javelin feels like a weight in your bag, heavy and you wish you could throw it in the river so Ona wouldn't be able to see it.

But you know that she knows you won it.

She'd sent a very long rambling text before setting up an accompanying phone call where she declared her love for you and told you how proud she was and how she couldn't wait to see your medal.

Now though, you don't want her to see it.

You don't want her to see it because you know she'll be reminded of what she's just lost and you can't do that to her.

You won't do that to her.

You refuse to do that to her.

So you hold Ona against you now as she rests her head in your shoulder and you play with the soft baby hairs that rest on the back of her neck.

"We've got a break now," You whisper to her, voice quiet and soft and everything she needs to hear right now," We'll go somewhere hot. With a beach. We'll relax and have some fun before the season starts again. Relax and reset."

"I wanted to win you a medal," Ona chokes out against your skin," I know you've already got one but-But I wanted to get you another one."

"I don't need another one," You assure her," I've got you. That's enough for me."

[undreaming-fanfiction]

Just My Type

This one is for @henderdads with her prompt - accidental first kiss. Happy Valentine's Day, Cass! I hope this will bring you some joy!

Steve Harrington wasn't known for sharing his problems with others. He was the one who resolved all your issues, not brought more to the already very overcrowded table. The kids needed some stability, and as much as he loved Nancy, Robin, and Eddie, they weren't exactly fit for that role. The girls would soon leave Hawkins for college (Steve was so proud his heart could burst), and Eddie had his hands full with the whole finishing high school thing while still recovering from being nearly eaten by demobats.

No, Steve had this handled. He was the least fun of the four, but reliable. As far as the kids knew, the only issue Steve had was his inconsistent and ever dramatic love life, nothing else.

When Steve's eyesight started getting worse, likely from all those concussions, he handled it on his own. No need to worry anyone. A secret pair of glasses for home, prescription sunglasses for driving (and yeah, he looked cool in them, despite the kids' grumbling), and that was it. They didn't need to know. Everything was working out just fine. He was great at faking things.

At least until that fateful day. But we’ll get there. First, something about Steve’s love life.

See, Steve was dating around. He had been feeling anxious, unfulfilled, and the more he thought about it, the reason wasn’t Nancy for once. Even stranger, he knew he was over her, but the feeling of needing something and not being able to get it wouldn’t leave. So he got out there, used his charm, and prayed he’d finally find the one.

So far, it wasn’t working out. Most of the girls he went out with were lovely, kind, and gorgeous, but there was always something missing that made him break things off before anyone could get hurt. He had a type - curly or wavy dark hair and even darker eyes, but hey. It wasn’t his fault that Nancy had been the closest to an ideal relationship he’d ever had! That had to be the reason, he thought. Maybe his concussed brain decided that curly hair meant a good girlfriend.

“It’s not like I can help it,” he lamented, pretending not to see Eddie’s amused smirk. They had become good friends after their Upside Down near death experience, and as Dustin never failed to mention with a truckload of disgust, they were now practically inseparable. “Who doesn’t like curly hair? They’re making it this whole thing. I’m over Nancy.”

Eddie snorted and tossed his chemistry textbook somewhere towards the pile of stuff that might have included his desk. “Uh-huh. Sure thing. So this new one-”

“Jenny.”

Eddie snapped his fingers. “Yes. This Jenny. It’s just a coincidence that she’s a dead ringer for Wheeler.” He nudged Steve’s side with his bare foot. “Come on, Harrington. Be honest with your only adult friend.”

Steve kicked him in retaliation. “Wow, rude. I’ll let you know, I have Robin!”

“Buckley is so much more than a mere human, Steven. She doesn’t count, she surpasses our species. Whereas I,” he announced to the broken ceiling fan, “am very human, non-judgmental, and I have seen you go through half a dozen ladies of the same type since the spring break. So?”

Laughing, Steve kicked him again. “So nothing. She doesn’t look like Nancy. Hell, she looks more like you - her hair is darker, more wavy, and she has those really pretty dark eyes. And she’s tall. Are you saying you’re my type too?”

Eddie rolled over and batted his eyelashes. “I don’t know, Steve, am I?”

Steve hit him with a pillow in the face. If he hadn’t been so busy laughing, he might have just noticed the tinge of longing in Eddie’s voice.

..

To recap: the two things that led to the most important day of Steve’s life were a) his tendency to date a certain visual type of girl; b) his unwillingness to admit to anyone that he needed glasses.

Here’s what happened.

Steve, being both a good friend and a good boyfriend, took Jenny to see Eddie perform with the Corroded Coffin. Was metal his favorite music genre? Not really, but he wanted to support Eddie, and Jenny didn’t seem to mind, she even agreed to wear a Corroded Coffin t-shirt from Steve’s wardrobe.

Steve found himself enjoying the concert way more than he’d expected. The alcohol helped, sure, but it was so heartwarming to see Eddie in his element, scarred, but still the same. Steve had even learned to recognize the lyrics within all the noise, and even if he wasn’t ready to discuss that with Eddie yet, Steve considered them surprisingly deep. He really hoped Eddie would make it big, he was a wonderful guy, and life owed him big time.

After the concert, Jenny excused herself to the bathroom, and Steve went to grab some beers. His head was pleasantly buzzing, and even though his eyesight was more blurry than usual, he found his way through the crowd with ease.

He put down both beers and wrapped his arm around Jenny’s waist. He’d lost track of time at the bar, she must have come back in the meantime. And so, as they tended to do, he touched her cheek and turned her face into a quick kiss.

Steve noticed several things at once.

First, stunned gasps from the Corroded Coffin members, along with Robin’s snickering.

Second, Jenny’s cheek felt different. Almost stubbly?

Third, it was the best damn kiss he’d ever had.

And fourth, before the kiss could end, he felt something wet - the beer he’d just brought - hit his head and back, along with an angry shriek.

What happened next was a blur, and not just because he had trouble seeing it. He was vaguely aware of a second Jenny hitting him with her purse and storming off, Robin trying to control her laughter, and the person next to him, also drenched in beer? That was Eddie.

“Eddie, I’m so sorry!” Steve instinctively grabbed napkins and started drying off the beer in Eddie’s hair, on his jacket. “I...OK, not the best time to tell you, but I’ve noticed I can’t see shit, and normally I wear glasses, but I couldn’t take them with me because I look like a baby accountant or something, and I didn’t want you guys to worry. And uh, you probably know, but your hair looks kinda like Jenny’s, and I’m really sorry I did that without asking.”

Eddie was motionless, letting Steve fret over him. He was just staring into the distance, cogs turning in his brain.

Robin, bless her heart, re-directed the Corroded Coffin guys to grab a mop and a dry t-shirt from Eddie’s van for both Steve and Eddie. After that, she started ushering the unlucky pair towards men’s bathrooms, to “wash off that smell before it’s too late.” She snapped her fingers in front of Eddie’s eyes, getting him to move.  

As she shoved both of them towards the sink, she grabbed Steve’s hand and pulled him close. “Since you are freshly broken up, I would strongly suggest you think hard and fast about why you made that mistake, Steve. I can’t spell it out for you, even if it would be easier for everyone involved.”

Steve took a deep breath. “Yeah, uh...I think I might know.”

“Might?”

“I definitely know.” He rubbed his forehead. “I’m so dumb. That...even if I didn’t mean to, it wasn’t fair to Jenny. Or the ones before.”

Robin smiled at him and, not unkindly, patted his shoulder. “They’ll get over it. In the meantime, your man looks like he’s about to faint. Don’t mess this up, OK? I couldn’t stand to see you brooding again and going through another set of Eddie substitutes.”

After she closed the door behind Steve, she grabbed the mop and started cleaning the mess. She could say it would cost Steve a lifetime of driving her around, but she knew he’d do that anyway.

..

In the bathroom, Eddie was slowly finding his words. “You...you kissed me.”

Steve took a step towards Eddie, trying not to spook him. “Yeah. I know it sounds like bullshit,” he said, pushing down the bitter memories of that word, “but I really mistook you for Jenny. I can’t see much, especially when it’s dark. I’m really sorry, Eddie.”

He couldn’t see Eddie’s face, but his voice didn’t sound fine. The music from the club drowned out most of the quieter sounds, but Steve could swear he heard a sniffle. “Of course,” whispered Eddie and he seemed so sad. Steve wanted to punch his own face. “Of course it was a mistake.”

Eddie straightened his back and wiped at his eyes before turning towards Steve. “Don’t worry, Steve. It happens. I mean, you should feel more sorry for yourself, you’re single again, and if Jenny or anyone from the club talks, they’ll think you’re a-”

“I don’t care.”

With a bitter chuckle, Eddie shook his head. “You don’t get it, Steve. You have a reputation to protect. Our lovely and pious citizens of Hawkins expect something like that from me, they know I’m...wrong. But you? You’re the golden boy. Steve, you should think about what this will do to you.” He wasn’t looking at Steve, his eyes were glued to the floor. Steve didn’t need a hint to know why Eddie was blinking so rapidly, why he sounded so strained.

He reached out and grasped Eddie’s hands. “Eddie. I really don’t care. I won’t feel sorry for what someone might think. The only reason I’m sorry is that I kissed you without you agreeing to it, in front of people, because...” He took a deep breath and squeezed Eddie’s hands. “...because I wanted our first kiss to be something special. Not a case of a mistaken identity caused by my shitty eyesight. And I wish I could have done it differently, that we wouldn’t be in this dirty bathroom, and sticky and disgusting from that beer. But even if I’m sorry for not asking you, I’m also glad. Because it made me realize something really important.”

Eddie was staring at him with wide eyes, still wet with tears, but there was a hint of a smile on his lips. A hint of hope. “And what is that?” he asked.

Steve moved several wet strands of Eddie’s hair from his face. He looked just a little bit like a wet rat, but to Steve, he was the most beautiful person he’d ever seen. And he couldn’t wait to bury his hands in Eddie’s hair properly, when it was freshly washed. Maybe smelling of Steve’s shampoo. That was a thought.

He stroked Eddie’s cheek and for the first time in so long, he felt puzzle pieces falling in place. This was right.

“I realized that I didn’t answer you when you asked me,” he smiled and pulled Eddie closer. “You, Eddie Munson, are exactly my type.”

[thedolmainblog]

hi!! i've been looking at your oc blythe and wreckofwafers yunie, they're so cute together! i wonder what they're like together, if you don't mind me asking?

okay funniest thing is that wreck told me they got a pretty similar question so either its a WILD coincidence or youre the same anon. i must say i admire your curiosity.....

so! what im gonna do is that im gonna explain things from blythe's point of view :3 here we go! under the cut bc it got long lol. as always, yuniekins and the art below belongs to @wreckowafer .

yunie essentially took the Sex route of romancing him, which basically is a series of lewd encounters between the two.....so yes before they even confessed their feelings yunie has given him a blowie, has been fingered multiple times by him and has been throughly thigh fucked.....that last part is what made him snap and finally take yunie for himself

blythe doesnt know this himself but yunie allowing him to take his virginity is a Huge Deal bc she's essentially handing him her highly important bargaining chips to him. but in blythes perspective he sees this as something very precious, something very important (not in the same way yunie sees it, but nevertheless) and seeing her halo crack because of him is. hes so normal about it is what im trying to say.

after the whole bunnyfuck sesh love claim, blythe isnt like. SURE what their relationship is at this point but he was sure of two things : he himself at the very least is very fond of yunie, and he doesn't want this....relationship to end somehow. and so the lewd encounter ensues!

but also he is treating her with small bits of affection. he doesnt want her to think hes a WEIRDO!!!!! even when his heart is bursting with love and affection. small kisses to her forehead, appreciative rub here and there, he protects her from people who bother her and the praises he gives her never ceases. he will get more Insane about it later. hes already happy with what they have going on!!!! and because he eases her into rather than just plunging her in she starts reciprocating the affection too, esp kissing u_u they start kissing on the mouth and both of them are obsessed by it!!!

the event that sealed them as a couple is blythe saving yunie instead of yunie having to save herself!! it was either kidnapping or a group of molester getting to her and blythe Just So Happen in the area, and of course he cant just!! let that slide!! and yall saw how he is when The One is hurt. he nearly beats everyone involved to death with one or two escaping. while hes mentally taking note of the one who escapes, he then turns to yunie to check up on her to see if shes okay (with blood on his hands still!!) and her response is to say i love you. ah.

with i love yous exchanged and yunie feeling safe in his arms 100% (he still thinks that he shouldve been able to prevent the whole thing from happening, but alas) they become rapechesters MOST ANNOYING COUPLE!!!! constantly in honeymoon phase, always near and touching each other. half of the people who know blythe is happy that he isnt grouchy all the time but also oh my god we can hear those two fucking in the back!!!!

like how i always describe blythe when he finally finds The One, everything else becomes a trivial matter compared to yunie. he starts prioritizing her over everything, why spend time doing useless things if he can take care of yunie instead? he has to provide a reason for her to stay with him. he also molds his catastrophic brain damage around HER brain damage and thinks everything she says is right. if they HAVE to be separated for a while, yunie already has a brand new phone blythe gave her to communicate. (somewhere, rhett is pissed off and has put blythe in his shit list for this)

yunie becomes somewhat of his assistant! she has no problem handling paperwork involving shady work and what is essentially money laundering. shes faster at it than he is, so shes always there when he deals with his shady practices. its also a good excuse to keep her near him at all times u_u people know not to touch her anyways

all in all everything she does (only smiling at him, confessing why she feels this way, clinging onto him constantly, wanting to be the goodest girl in the whole world when hes a bit mean to her during sex) only makes blythe fall deeper and deeper to the hole that is I LOVE YUNIE!!!!! he is never going to recover, and he is so, so happy about it. after everything hes been through, he finally found his true love.

[swytchoocos]

Valentine’s Day— Haitani brothers ୨♡୧

I know for them is white day in march but this is the Americanized version feb 14 ;)

Ran Haitani

• Last-Minute but Perfect Plans – He acts like he doesn’t care about Valentine’s Day, but somehow everything falls perfectly into place. Reservations at an upscale restaurant? Done. A thoughtful but expensive gift? Already bought. He’ll act like it was effortless, but he definitely planned in advance.

• Teasing but Sweet – Spends the whole day teasing you, calling you needy for wanting a romantic day with him. But then he’ll randomly pull you close, tuck a strand of hair behind your ear, and say, “You’re lucky I like spoiling you.”

• Lavish Gifts – He’s got money, and he’s not afraid to use it. Jewelry, designer clothes, perfume—he loves seeing you draped in things he picked out. “Makes you look even better, doll,” he’ll smirk.

• Slow Dancing at Home – If you two go back to his place, he’ll put on some slow jazz or R&B, take your hand, and sway with you in the dim light. It’s one of those rare soft moments he doesn’t admit he enjoys.

• Possessive Affection – Ran has a habit of pulling you onto his lap in public, especially if he catches someone else eyeing you. “They can look, but they’ll never have you,” he’ll say with that lazy grin.

• Late-Night Drives – After dinner, he’ll take you for a ride through the city, one hand on the wheel, the other holding your thigh. He’ll drive aimlessly, just enjoying your presence.

Rindo Haitani

• Acts Like He Doesn’t Care (But He Does) – He’ll grumble about how Valentine’s Day is overhyped, but if you say you don’t want to do anything, he’ll get secretly annoyed. He wants to do something for you—he just won’t admit it.

• Simple but Meaningful – He’s not about flashy dates like Ran. Instead, he’d take you somewhere quiet and personal—like a hidden ramen spot or a scenic lookout where he can just enjoy your company without distractions.

• Homemade Effort – If he really likes you, he’ll cook for you. He’ll pretend it’s no big deal, but you’ll catch him double-checking the recipe or cursing under his breath when something doesn’t turn out perfect.

• Protective but Subtle – If you go out, his hand is always resting on your lower back, guiding you through crowds. He’s not the type to be overly possessive, but he makes sure everyone knows you’re his.

• Soft but Rare Compliments – “You look nice,” is about as much as you’ll get at first. But if you catch him off guard—maybe laughing or staring at him with love in your eyes—he’ll mumble, “You’re beautiful,” like he didn’t mean to say it out loud.

• Loves Spending the Night In – Rindo would rather have a chill night in than go to a fancy dinner. Movie marathon? Gaming session? Cuddling under a blanket while he absentmindedly plays with your fingers? Yes to all of the above.

• Quiet but Deep Love – Unlike Ran, Rindo won’t shower you with words, but his actions speak for him. He’ll hold your hand when no one’s looking, press a kiss to your temple when he thinks you’re asleep, and pull you closer in bed when he thinks you might move away.

Overall, dating Ran on Valentine’s Day is like being swept into a whirlwind of luxury and charm, while Rindo makes you feel like you’re the most important person in his world—even if he struggles to say it.

[bigasswritingmagnet]

Blood Will Out Ch 16 - The Reunion

Summary: When Agatha Sannikova learns she is, in fact, Agatha Heterodyne, she inadvertently kicks off a series of events that reopens old wounds, drags secrets into the light, and brings war to the doorstep of the all but defenseless Mechanicsburg. Saturnus struggles to crush his enemies with a town almost as broken as his body; Agatha, determined to undo the chaos she's unleashed, plunges into the depths of Castle Heterodyne.

Raised by a literal saint and the devil incarnate, Agatha - with an unleashed mind, a burning spark, and a band of very unexpected allies - will fight to do the unthinkable: be a good Heterodyne and a good person.

< Prev chapter | A03 link

Gil managed to get Tarvek pinned to the ground and shout, “I knew you were—!” before Agatha got him in a headlock and hauled him off-balance.

“Stop that!” she shouted as Tarvek scrambled away.

“Hy forgot about him,” Vole muttered. Higgs murmured a slightly sheepish agreement.

“What are you doing here?” Tarvek demanded. “How did you even – do you have any idea how dangerous this place is?”

Gil broke free of Agatha’s grip and shoved her away, barely looking at her.

“I heard what you did! Trying to kidnap someone and then lying about it, and who even knows what else! I knew I had to stop you, because they’d never see you coming, you lying, traitorous, weas—!”

This time, it was Tarvek who tackled Gil. He had significantly less success pinning Gil down, but held his own as Gil struggled to break free, or at least get enough space to draw back a fist. 

“I never did anything to you!” Tarvek screamed. “All I wanted to do was help—” 

Gil tried to cover Tarvek’s mouth with his hand. “Shut up! Shut up, you liar! The Baron told me exactly what you are!”

Tarvek let out a sound somewhere between a howl and wail and bit down on Gil’s hand.

A cascade of water hit them, leaving both boys coughing and sputtering. A shadow fell over them, and they looked up to see Agatha with her fists on her hips, glaring down at them.

“Thank you, Mr. Higgs,” she said, not looking around. 

“Ma’am,” Higgs said, setting the now empty bucket down. 

“I do not have time for this,” Agatha said to them, sternly. She pointed at Gil. “You. Get off of him.”

Slowly, sullenly, Gil obeyed, and he and Tarvek got to their feet. While Tarvek was Agatha’s height, Gil had a few inches on her, and several pounds of muscle on them both. The way Agatha was glaring, she somehow managed to loom over him all the same.

“Who are you and what are you doing in my castle?”

“I’m Gilgamesh Holzfäller. I came here to stop Tarvek from—”

“I wasn’t going to—!”

“Ah-ah!” Agatha interrupted, holding up a hand. She shut her eyes and inhaled deeply. When she opened them, she had…changed. Neither Tarvek nor Gil recognized it, but the castle did. Higgs did. Even Vole did.

Whatever their feelings about the girl, all three felt nothing but honored to bear witness as – after years of having roots trimmed and new growth cut away – a Heterodyne began to bloom. 

“My town is under attack. I need to fix the castle. Tarvek has been helping me, and I need his help, so whatever you think he did, too bad.”

“But you have to—!”

“Have to?” Agatha repeated. Her eyes blazed and her jaw clenched. She knew how to respond to that one. Lord Satur— Her grandfather had said it often enough, and right now Agatha felt it in every bone in her body. She bit the most important words back.  “Have to? I am the ward of Master Saturnus Heterodyne and Lady Teodora Vodenicharove! You are an intruder in my town, in my home!  I can do whatever I want, and I do not have to do anything!”

“Bu—” Gil began. 

She pointed imperiously at both of them.

“Whatever your problem is, you both put a sock in it until all of this is over, because I don’t have time for it. If you can’t do that, get out, or wait here until I do have time to get someone to escort you to safety. If you are going to help, you have to be gracious.”

“Gr/gracious?” the clank repeated, baffled.

“Dot vill be de Lady Teodora talkink,” Vole said from the corner of his mouth.

“You already know I’m here to help you,” Tarvek said. He shot a nasty glare at Gil, who shot one right back.

“Well, I know he’s up to something, and I’m not letting him out of my sight until he does it."

“Do it in a polite and respectful manner!” Agatha ordered. “As long as you’re in my castle, you will behave like civilized gentlemen. Understand?”

They both nodded, still shooting each other vicious glares.

She swiveled on her heel to face the others.

“Now what?” 

“N/Now we go to th/the li/library. Foll/follow me.”

“Just admit we’re lost,” Higgs said.

“We are no/not lost!” the castle snapped. “I cannot get lost withi/in my own wa/wa/lls! The rooms have/ave simply been mov/mov/rearranged in my ab/absence!” 

Agatha felt that must be the case. No matter how uncharitable one might want to be, there was no denying that 'all these hallways look the same' was not a viable complaint for anyone. Each Heterodyne had left their mark, whether in design or decoration. One hallway had snakes - carved into the crown molding, twining around light fixtures, taxidermied into poses alternately intimidating and unsettling. Another had been built perfectly symmetrical, and had managed to remain so even in the destruction. Mirrors had cracked in the exact same pattern, statues were missing the same pieces, and rugs unravelled so tidily it was hard to believe it was not intentional.  

They had settled, mostly unconsciously, into a formation: Higgs and the Castle/Muse hybrid in the front, Vole bringing up the rear, the Heterodyne and her associates in the protected middle. Gil and Tarvek had been very consciously ordered to walk on either side of Agatha after the second slapfight had broken out.

“I’m pretty sure I saw that pillar before.”

“Do you/you want to le/lead?”

“Little bit.”

“Wait,” Tarvek said suddenly, bringing them to a halt. He cocked his head to one side. “Shh. Listen.”

“I don’t hear anything,” Gil said irritably. Tarvek was listening too hard to be snippy back. 

“Me either. I think the fighting’s stopped.”

“What?” Agatha said. “You can’t tell me your father just gave up!”

Vole fished out a pocket watch and glanced at it. “No, dey is probably just stopping for de night.”

“You can’t call time out in the middle of a war!” Agatha exclaimed.

“Sure hyu can, especially if hyu can’t see in de dark. Efferybody splits up und goes to sleep und den dey is rested for fighting in de morning.”

Agatha looked at Higgs, who nodded.

“That’s crazy!” Agatha sputtered. “That’s—! You—! What!”

“You have to sleep if you want to keep your strength up. And speakin’ of, maybe you three should put your heads down for a bit.”

“We can’t go to sleep!” Agatha protested. “I have to fix the castle!”

“They can/cannot stop now. I must/must be repaired.”

“They’ll be a lot less likely to bolt you in upside down if they have a nap first,” Higgs pointed out.

The clank hesitated, the tips of its wings flicking uncertainly.

“Well,” it said grudgingly. “When you put it/it that w/way.”

Vole made a face. “Lord Heterodyne is not gon be happy about dis.”

“He’s going to be a lot less happy if he doesn’t get his castle back,” Agatha said, and rubbed at her face. With her momentum lost, her shoulders sagged. “’M hungry,” she mumbled.

“C’mon,” Higgs said, and changed directions. Down another hallways, and then he ducked into a room and waved for them to follow. 

It was a bedroom, dominated by a four-poster bed. Agatha guessed that it might have been some kind of guest bedroom, as the furniture selection had the slightly disjointed feeling of being things you didn't want to get rid of, but didn't like enough to use every day. The bedposts, for example, were carved to look like they had simple vines twining around them. Beautiful, but not particularly exciting - the flowers depicted weren't even the poisonous kind. The sturdy wardrobe in the corner couldn't walk on its carved wooden feet, and the rug was, under the dust, attractive colors in a pretty pattern that did not make you feel like your eyeballs were being dragged from your skull.   

Like everything else, it had seen better days – the bed curtains and blankets were moth-eaten, and one of the posts had snapped, leaving everything hanging at a wild angle. Agatha recoiled as Higgs approached it.

“What if it has rats in it?” she whined. Gil and Tarvek nodded vigorously, noticed they had agreed on something, and glared at each other.

“Hyu should be so lucky,” Vole said dryly.

“I’ll make something up,” Higgs said. He looked to Vole. “Think you can find a kitchen from here? Good. You go get them something to eat, I’ll take care of this."

“And wh/what am I/I suppo/osed to do?” the castle demanded.

“You stand guard outside the door and try not to be annoying, if you think you can do that without blowing a circuit.”

“You/you are ver/ver/much ruder than I rem/remember.”

“It’s been a rough day for everyone,” Higgs said flatly.

Both Vole and the clank turned to leave; the castle flicked its wings out enough to block Vole from passing it, but couldn’t fold them back up properly and had to shuffle out the door sideways while Vole snickered.

The teenagers huddled up against the wall, Agatha once again the bulwark between the two boys, and watched Higgs as he began to strip the bed. He was examining each piece of the bedclothes very carefully, looking for something – they did not know what, and he did not volunteer the information. Anything that passed the test was tossed into a pile in the middle of the floor; the rest went onto the bed. When all the blankets and sheets had been sorted, Higgs went to the wardrobe and repeated the process.

“The castle knows him?” Tarvek whispered.

“He said he was from Mechanicsburg,” Gil murmured.

“But the way he talks to it is weird. And he just walked right in here without any trouble. Vole’s a Jäger—”

“Jäger-shaped,” Agatha corrected.

“Fine, Jäger-shaped. But he’s just...he looks like just a human.”

Higgs began to construct makeshift bedrolls out of the blankets that had matched his mysterious standards. As he did so, he glanced up and, seemingly without meaning to, met Tarvek’s eyes. Tarvek felt his stomach go tight. The look in those eyes was not threatening or dangerous, but told Tarvek that while he was not quite in over his head, he was sinking rapidly and should perhaps abandon ship and strike out for shore.

Tarvek looked away.

“I guess it doesn’t matter,” he muttered. He wondered if Higgs realized how much of a mistake that had been. Perhaps he had weighed the dangers of warning Tarvek off against Tarvek saying something he shouldn’t; perhaps he simply hadn’t realized Tarvek was very, very good at this.

Because Higgs might as well have told Tarvek to his face that he was right, there was something strange about him, and it was a secret, and the secret was big enough that he would be willing to hurt or even kill Tarvek to keep it that way.

“What do you mean, Vole’s Jӓger-shaped?” Gil demanded. “You’re either a Jäger or you aren’t.”

“He used to be. The generals threw him out because he tried to kill the Heterodyne Boys.”

A pause.

“What?”

Agatha shushed them both, irritably.

“Keep your voices down! The castle doesn’t know – and you two are not going to tell it. I need all the help I can get in here, and the castle will absolutely crush him if it finds out. The Heterodyne Boys forgive him for it, even though he swore to get his revenge and...” Agatha waved a hand in an “and so on” gesture.

“Then why is he helping you?” Gil demanded.

“He’s not helping me. He’s helping my— He's helping Master Saturnus.” She paused, and glared at Gil. “And you don’t tell anyone that. Especially not the Baron.”

“Then he is still a Jäger!”

“No, he isn’t,” Agatha said, in the tones of a Mechanicsburger explaining something that was perfectly sensible and blatantly obvious – to them. “Jägers swear the Jägertroth and serve the Heterodyne family. Vole broke the troth, but he helps Master Saturnus, specifically." She frowned. “Although Master Saturnus was surprised. He thought Vole hated him, too...Mr. Higgs?”

Higgs looked up.

“Do you know what happened with Vole? Why Master Saturnus thinks it’s his fault?”

“What makes you think I know?”

“You’re old enough to have been around when it happened. Aren’t you?”

“I am that,” the airman said, mysteriously amused. “What did he tell you?”

“I asked once, but he didn’t want to talk about it, just that it was his fault. Vole wouldn’t say anything except that it wasn’t his fault – but I think Master Saturnus must have done something bad, because he never thinks anything is his fault.” 

“Is that all Vole said?”

“He said it was very personal.”

“Huh,” Higgs said, genuinely surprised. After a moment, he went back to arranging the blankets. “S’pose it is.”

“You’re not going to tell me either, are you?” Agatha complained.

Higgs was quiet for a moment. He finished arranging the blankets and rose, moving to sit down on the bed. He took out his pipe, but did not light it.

“There was a…misunderstanding between Vole and Master Saturnus. Saturnus felt that should be taken into consideration. The generals…didn’t.”

There was a long silence.

Tarvek was thinking that once again, Higgs had said more than he likely intended to say. For one, Higgs had the apparent age of someone who would have been young when the Heterodyne Boys came to power – perhaps not a child, but certainly not a full adult. Certainly not old enough to hold any kind of position that would let him be privy to the Jӓgers’ secrets.

Agatha was thinking something very different.

“Did Master Saturnus ask him to kill his sons?”

“No,” Higgs said, immediately.

He din’ need to ask. Hy alvays know. Dot’s vy Hy iz…

“But Vole thought he did,” Agatha said.  

“Yes,” Higgs said. “Vole wanted him to ask him; I think he would’ve tried it eventually, on his own. The generals thought so, too, so they threw him out. Saturnus couldn’t stop them – wasn’t his call to make.”  

“How do you think someone is asking you to commit murder?” Gil demanded. Tarvek raised an eyebrow.

“Extremely easily,” he said. “Especially if both parties are familiar with each other.”

“And you’d know all about that,” Gil sneered.

“And he and Vole were very familiar with each other,” Agatha said to Higgs.

“No offence meant, but I’d say ‘bout the closest things to friends your average old school Heterodyne could have.”

“I believe it,” Agatha said dryly. “Honestly, I’m surprised they were close enough that Vole even thought he could guess what Master Saturnus was thinking.”

“That’s the thing,” Higgs said. “Vole didn’t think he could guess. He could. I’d never known him to be wrong, til that night.” He glanced at Gil and Tarvek, then away. “This ain’t my story to tell. And it ain’t somethin’ you need to worry about. ‘S not somethin’ you can fix, not the way you’re thinkin’.”

“I guess you’re right,” Agatha said with a sigh. “It’s none of my business.”

It made sense that she would care about her grandfather’s guilt, but she cared about Vole’s side of things, too. She wasn’t sure why. Perhaps because she and Vole both cared about Saturnus, in their own different ways. Perhaps it felt unfair to punish him for something he might have done, even if the might was a probably.

“Besides,” Tarvek said, “he’s not a Jäger anymore. That means he’s not your responsibility.”

Agatha said nothing to that. No, he wasn’t a Jӓger. He wasn’t really a citizen of Mechanicsburg, either. He’d shown nothing to her but indifference, and she couldn’t say she particularly liked him as a person, so it wasn’t as if they were friends. And yet…

She did not notice Higgs noticing that she did not say she agreed.

[ripdragonbeans]

Love In The Darkest Of Places // modern!Aemond x Reader

Chapter 9: Healing is a Process

Summary: Focusing on bringing Alys down, you and Aemond get caught up in the rush of it all, causing you two to burn out. What better way to help that than therapy?

A/N: Love my @exitpursuedbyavulcan lol

Masterlist

Chapter 8 // Chapter 10

Curled up next to Aemond, you gently played with his beautiful long hair as you both faced the computer monitor. Every time either of you looked at Aemond’s draft to the head of the university, you would freeze. Both of you wanted Alys out of your lives, out of the university, so why were you hesitating?

“We should gather more evidence if we can,” you offered. “Maybe find some of the other guys she's gone after?”

Aemond shook his head. “I doubt any of them would want to call her out. They probably didn't even realize she was manipulating them. I didn't see it until I talked to you.” He sighed. “She's good at this game.”

“Are you going to send the report anonymously?” It was the first time you asked him.

“I'll send the report anonymously, but I'm not going to erase my name from the texts. They need to see every step she does, including calling me by my name.” He took a breath. “But if you want me to go completely anonymous, I will, and I understand. I don’t mind pulling myself through the mud, but I don’t want you to get dragged as well.”

You moved to sit in Aemond’s lap and faced him. Holding his gaze, you told him, “I am never leaving you again. You go through hell, I go through hell. Together forever.”

He nodded. “Okay, then. I'm not going to hide.”

Moving off his lap, you stayed close and watched as he began typing vigorously. 

To whom it may concern, he typed. I write to you to inform you that one of your staff members, Professor Alys Rivers, has engaged in inappropriate conduct with students. Attached to this email are screenshots of conversations between her and me, Aemond Targaryen. 

I trust that appropriate action will be taken in this matter, and I am happy to cooperate with any further investigation you require.

Sincerely, 

Aemond Targaryen

Taking a big breath, Aemond sent the email. When he looked to you, you gave him a reassuring smile, took his hand, brought it up to your lips, and gently kissed the back of it. 

“I'm so proud of you,” you whispered. “She will not get away with this, not anymore.” As you looked at him, you noticed how exhausted he looked. You knew it must have taken a lot out of him. It was one thing to admit all that has happened to you, but to go public with it is another story. “Come on,” you tugged on his hand as you stood up. “Let's go somewhere.”

As you pulled up to the building and got out of the car you gave Aemond a small smile. 

“The library?” He asked.

“You always feel better after you've been to the library,” you shrugged. “So I figured why not take a quick trip.”

Aemond pulled you into a hug. “Thank you,” he whispered.

When you broke away from the hug, you took his hand and pulled him over to the library, not that he needed any goading; you just enjoyed pulling him around sometimes. As you entered the library the smell of books immediately surrounded you. It was a warm and cozy feeling. Hand in hand, you wandered the isles of many books until you each found a few to borrow for the month. Before checking out, however, you found yourself in a cozy alcove upstairs where the two of you could begin reading one of your books.

The quietness of the library was a welcome reprieve from the loud noise going on in your head and you figured it was the same with Aemond. With so much going on in life it was important to you that you and Aemond both find ways to settle all that noise and take a breather every now and then.

You closed your book, a good fourth in already. “Ready to head out?” you whispered to Aemond.

“Hm? Oh, yeah,” he closed his book. When he stood up from the very pillowed chair he stretched his arms high, revealing a little bit of skin as he did so.

You smiled seeing that little glimpse of his stomach. Instead of being a menace, you walked over to him and wrapped your arms around his waist. Pressing your face against his body, you inhaled his scent and took the moment in. For the first time in a while, you and Aemond were at peace. 

Aemond wrapped his arms around you. He tilted your head up by lifting your chin and pressed his forehead against yours. “This is nice,” he said quietly.

You murmured your agreement.

Within the peace and quiet of the library, you and Aemond were both able to find yourselves again and plant your feet well into the ground again.

“How do you feel about therapy?” you asked him the next day. It had been on your mind for a while, and you thought it would be good for both of you. You fixed your breakfast as you waited for his answer.

“Like talking to someone about everything?” Aemond paused. “It's crossed my mind a few times, yeah.”

Crossing across to the couch, you sat down next to him. “I think it would be a good idea,” you offered. “Maybe couples counseling, too.”

Aemond turned to you quickly. “Do you think we need help? I can do better. We can work it out.” His eye widened in horror.

“No, Aemond, we're okay,” you reassured him, then shrugged. “I just think it would be healthy for us, especially after all that's happened.” 

“I think therapy is a good idea,” he said after a while. “I still haven't fully comprehended everything that's happened and,” Aemond sighed, “I want to feel better. I want to be better, for you and for me.”

“Then let's do it.” You nodded your head and kissed his cheek. “Couples therapy it is. Do you want to go on your own, too?”

“I think I will. It'll probably be for the best.”

You smiled. “I agree.” Wrapping your arms around him, you held Aemond close to you—close to your heart. You would never let him go, not anymore, and you would never let someone make him feel so inferior ever again.

The waiting room in the therapy center was painted a dull brown, creating a neutral-esque environment. It was all brown. Different shades of brown. The chairs and benches, however, weren’t brown; they were black. It was a very boring sitting room, you thought, but it was better than being overstimulating.

As you sat with Aemond, you noticed he was bouncing his leg. “Nervous?” 

Aemond continued to bounce his leg. “On edge, I would say.”

On this day, Aemond donned his usual eye patch and pulled his hair up in a bun. He was dressed casually, but being Aemond, he looked like he had an important interview to attend.

You placed a hand on his knee. “Everything’s going to be okay.”

You looked around. There was no one else in the waiting room, and granted, it was later in the day as well. After a few minutes of silence, a door opened, and a man called out your name and Aemond’s. As you two stood up, Aemond nervously wiped his hands on his pants. Instinctively, you reached out and took his hand.

“We'll be right over here,” said the man you assumed to be the therapist. “Sit anywhere you like, and please make yourselves comfortable.” He smiled warmly before going behind his desk. “Hello, I will be your therapist, Dr. Simon Strong. A lot goes into this, so let's start at the very beginning. How did you two meet?”

Aemond, hesitant, didn't say anything, so you took it upon yourself to begin the conversation. 

“We met when we were children. Our mothers were, emphasis on “were,” close, and when they drifted apart, we stayed friends. We were neighbors, actually.”

“And how did that help build your relationship?” Dr. Strong asked.

“It brought us closer together,” you shrugged.

“She was my only friend,” Aemond said carefully. “She would visit a lot and wasn't scared of my brother or off-put by my sister, like some other people who had tried to be friends with me.”

Dr. Strong raised his eyebrows. “Your only friend?”

Aemond shuffled his feet. “Yeah, I didn't have many friends growing up; it was more of just her and my siblings.” He looked at you. “But she's the best person that's ever walked into my life, and for that, I'm grateful.”

The therapist nodded. “Now, I would like you two to tell me why you want to do couple's therapy.”

You answered without hesitation. “We want to have a healthy relationship.”

“I had an …issue with a past relationship, and I don't want that again,” Aemond added.

Dr. Simon Strong leaned forward with interest. “Ah. We’ll get that later. Here is my question: has your relationship always been romantic?

You shook your head and laughed, “No, it was never like that. We were children; we didn’t know what love was. We knew we cared about each other, but that was it.” You tried to push away some of your very first feelings for him.

“I think I was always in love with you,” whispered Aemond.

“Aemond…” you paused to take a breath. “Now that I think about it, I think I was always in love with you, too.” You turned to Dr. Strong. “I think we both fell in love early on but didn’t quite know what it was,” you cleared up.

“That’s fair. Many do not understand the deep and abstract concept of love outside of caring for others when they are young children.”

“All I knew then is that I cared about her. There wasn’t exactly any love between my mother and father,” Aemond said. “I had no real example of what love was supposed to look like.”

“And there is no one-fits-all all when it comes to love,” Dr. Strong added. “Every couple looks different. What matters is that both parties are happy and healthy. Are there any moments in your history as children that stick out to you?”

“When I was sick once he brought me soup,” you offered. “It wasn’t much, it was very simple, but I remember feeling cared for.”

Aemond cocked his head to the side. “I remember that. You were running a high fever and were suffering from body chills.” He looked at you. “I knew even then I wanted to take care of you. I didn’t like it when you got sick or hurt, but I’m glad you always came to us when something happened.”

“It wasn’t like I could go to my mother or father,” you scoffed. Turning to Dr. Strong, you explained to him, “My family was never the most supportive of me. I know for a fact they never wanted me, and they weren’t eager to hide it.”

“That must have been very traumatic for you,” Dr. Strong replied.

You shrugged. “It’s something I grew up with. It’s more like background noise at this point.”

“It still follows you?”

“I guess it kinda hangs over me.”

“I see…” Dr. Strong scribbled something down. “What about you, Aemond? How is your relationship with your family?”

“My birth dad is nonexistent. I don’t want him around. My mother and my siblings care about me, and I care about them. I know there is love and support between us all.”

Dr. Strong addressed both you and Aemond with his next question. “Have either of you had previous relationships?”

Silence enveloped the room. 

“Not me,” you said, breaking the silence. Well, Aemond thought I was in a relationship with someone else, but I wasn’t.”

Dr. Strong straightened his back. “Oh?”

“It was this double date she and I were practically forced into when we were in high school,” Aemond explained. “We didn’t go on the double date as a couple but as a part of the other’s date. It was a mess. I got jealous, and I tried to make her jealous and it ended up with both of us getting hurt.”

“Has that event shaped how you two are now as a couple?”

“Not that one specifically, but…” you trailed off to let Aemond bring her up. She had to be talked about. She was the elephant in the room.

“My professor. One of my university professors coerced me into a relationship with her,” said Aemond. His face had gone blank and devoid of emotion.

“Was there anything that led you to be in a relationship with this person? From what you have told me, the two of you are very close.”

You hesitated. “I told him I couldn’t be with him. We kissed, a heat of the moment thing, and I freaked out and ran away and told him I couldn’t let myself be with him.”

“And how did that make you feel, Aemond?”

“I was… heartbroken, I guess. I didn’t know what to do.”

“And how did this professor coerce you into a relationship?”

“She flirted with me. A lot, actually.”

Hearing this made your blood boil but you kept your anger and jealousy down to let Aemond tell his story.

“She would call me to her office, and we would talk. She would make leading comments and ask questions bordering on inappropriate. At first, I hated it, but then I started to want that; that feeling of someone wanting me.”

Your heart dropped as though it was attached to a rock and then thrown into a lake to drown.

“The day she kissed me…I felt wanted, and that’s what I was looking for, what I so desperately needed.” Aemond turned to you. “I never initiated any of our intimate moments, including kisses or hugs. Everything was started by her.” He turned back to Dr. Strong. “I was just going through the motions. There was maybe a time I felt like I actually cared for her; I did care for her in a way, but not in the way I care about my…” he trailed off and looked back at you. “You. I never cared for her the same way I care for you. Alys was all physical, not even always wanted. I let her do whatever to me just so I could feel like I was wanted by someone.”

Tears were streaming down your face. “Oh, Aemond, I’m so sorry.”

He shrugged off the apology. “It was my choice to follow her and I regret it every day.”

“Well,” Dr. Strong started, “that is certainly a lot to hop into.” He made sure to look at both of you. “You did really well, you both did. You should be proud of yourselves for opening up not just to me, but to each other. I can tell you two care about each other a lot and want this to work. That’s good.”

“Do you have any suggestions for us as a couple?” you asked.

“As a couple, not really. I do encourage you to continue talking openly with each other. That does wonders in a relationship. Communication is key. Individually,” Dr. Strong looked at you, “you should try reaching out to your family, maybe they’ve grown, maybe not. If you would not like to reach out to them, that is up to you, but I think you may find some closure. As for you, Aemond,” he turned to face him, “I would consider a companion to have around when your significant other is unable to be with you. A dog, perhaps? A cat is easy to take care of, not a fish, someone you could find comfort in when things are too hard. Both of you taking care of an animal would be beneficial to you as a couple as well.”

The two of you nodded. 

As the session went on, Aemond talked about Alys and their relationship and how it has formed who he was now. Hearing him talk about her made you uncomfortable but hearing how uncomfortable she made him made you mad.You thought back to the first time Aemond had told you about Alys and when you had caught them in the hallway. It was her that initiated it; not him. It made you feel better, in a way, but you were still not a fan of it. But then he had seemed so…besotted with her. Knowing now that it had been more infatuation and physical than anything helped how you felt about the whole situation. However, it had you wondering about the dinner you had with them as well. Aemond seemed so out of it and now you knew why. 

During the session, you touched on your family a bit more and how they treated you and how that shaped who you were now. It was…difficult to talk about them. When you had your last conversation with Jace you thought that would be the last of it. That may not be the case anymore. 

 Aemond began speaking. “There… there is one other thing I’d like to talk about before leaving: my eye.”

“Ah, yes, I was wondering if you were going to bring it up. What would you like to say about it.”

“I won’t give all the gruesome details, but if anyone’s ever been there for me, it’s her.” Aemond reached out and grabbed your hand. “She was the one who gave me the sapphire in my eye, actually.”

“I have a matching necklace,” you added.

“If it weren’t for her always being there for me, I honestly don’t know where I would be now. I can’t imagine my life without her.”

You squeezed Aemond’s hand and looked at him. “I don’t know where I’d be, either, Aemond.”

When you and Aemond finally broke your gaze and looked back at Dr. Simon Strong, you found him smiling at the pair of you. “You two will do well in therapy. You have already done a good job of communicating and this is only the first session. We’ll see you in a week? I normally see my patients every week and then we slowly start to add more and more time in between sessions.”

“Yeah, in a week is good,” you said.

“Wonderful,” Dr. Simon Strong smiled at you. “Now it is time for Aemond’s session by himself. You can wait in the waiting room.”

“Thank you again, Dr. Strong,” you shook his hand and then turned to give Aemond a kiss on the forehead before leaving the room.

The drive back to Aemond’s apartment after the therapy sessions that day was quiet, but in a good way. Both of you have been carrying baggage and now that it was all out in the open the air felt cleaner. You glanced at Aemond through your peripheral vision and smiled. He was gazing out the window.

“Everything all right?” you asked him.

Your question apparently startled him. “Hm? Oh, yeah. Just thinking.”

“We did a lot today. I’m proud of us but I’m mostly proud of you, Aemond.”

He let out a breath that sounded like a chuckle. “I’m glad I can make you proud, my dear.”

“Oh? Have we graduated to pet names now?” You said with a joking edge knowing that using pet names and nicknames were a bit of a sore spot for him after her.

Aemond took a beat. “Yeah, I think we have.” He moved a hand onto your thigh and gave it a squeeze. “I’m honored to have you as mine, my love.”

If you could have, you would have pulled over to the side of the road and kissed him right then and there, but you couldn’t. Instead, without taking your eyes off the road, you brought his hand to your lips and gently brushed them against his knuckle. “As am I.”

Despite living with Helaena, you found yourself spending more and more time with Aemond. A few days later, you found yourself curled against Aemond’s body in bed. While you were awake, Aemond was softly snoring, still asleep. His arm was draped around you and held you close, your back pressed against his stomach. You turned to look at him and take in his beauty. With his eyepatch discarded on the bedside table, his sapphire shined in the morning light. His long hair was sprawled out on his pillow as his head was turned towards you, as though the last thing he saw before falling asleep was you. Smiling to yourself, you basked in the moment. It was peaceful.

After a few minutes of beautiful silence, you gently roused Aemond from his sleep. “Wake up, my dear.”

Aemond mumbled something and simply pulled you closer, burying his 

“Aemond,” you groaned, “it's time to get up.”

“It’s too early.”

“No, it's not. Come on, let's get going.”

“Fine,” said Aemond, dragging out the word.

You finally shimmied out of his grasp and sat up in bed. Gently pulling up Aemond to a sitting position, you laughed as he pretended to resist you. Once you got him sitting up, he immediately fell on top of you, completely limp.

“Help, I've fallen and I can't get up,” he said half heartedly.

You had to wiggle him off of you to be able to get off the bed. When you were able to actually get up, Aemond relented and did so as well. With his hair all messy, he muttered something about being tired then flipped his hair out of his face. Lumbering over to his closet he pulled out his clothes for the day. You watched him as he changed, unmoved from your spot in the room. As if he felt your eyes on him he turned around. 

“Like what you see?” he playfully asked.

You took a few steps closer to him. “Of course I do, my love.”

Aemond hummed contently as you hugged him. He placed a soft kiss on the top of your head. “It’s time for you to change out of your pajamas as well.”

“What? You don’t like my shorts paired with one of your shirts?” you teased.

“Honestly, I love it, but where we’re going may require a change of clothes,” Aemond said.

With his words, you remembered the goal of the day. You were going to begin the process of adopting a dog.

[rasby]

How do the M6 drive?

I recently got my drivers license and i missed these goobers so...here you go :)

Asra:

• Oh god...GET OFF THE ROAD!!!

• Pretty sure their license is a fake one...there is no way they passed a drivers test in their life

• Too distracted, forgets to follow the rules, forgets to put in the gas...

• They'd go to a gas station with the intention to fill the car with gas and leave with no money for gas but a thousand different snacks and drinks

• Prefers to be a passanger princess anyway

• Doesn't know anything about cars either, but that's why they have Muriel and/or MC ♡

• Stickers and little decorations everywhere they could fit. They're more concerned with the cars looks then functionality...

Nadia:

• Always the group driver

• Probably the only one responsible enough to drive more then 2 people

• Keeps everything up to date, follows every rule possible

• Is known to ever so slightly road rage during long car drives or really bad traffic

• Her car is neat and probably smells very nice

Julian:

• He's an okay driver

• Good at following the rules, no road rage at all, only slight annoyed glances

• Good reflexes, knows how to drive even under pressure

• His only big issue is that he will drive tired

• Obviously he'll claim he's fine and that he can handle it but after a few hours of driving, everyone would need a break.

• Falls asleep immediately after someone else starts driving

• Probably a messy car, but it works perfectly cause he does regular check ups (smells a bit musty though)

Portia:

• I personally think that she would not be a driver at all

• Even if she had a license, i doubt it would ever be her first choice to be the driver

• She's too scared, and panicky, and multiple lives would be relying on her

• Also, she'll miss out on seeing and yelling "cows" when the car passes some cows!

• On the rare occassion that she does drive, it wouldn't be too long, and she would be tense the entire time

• If she did have a car it would be a small, cute car. Nothing too much, though i think she prefers taking public transport

Muriel:

• Muriel is, i think, the perfect driver

• Doesn't road rage, good at following the rules, doesn't speed...

• But i don't think he has a license

• They are expensive to get, and it's not like he goes anywhere too crowded or important that the police would stop him

• He knows a lot about cars, probably lives in a car or a van with Asra

• Used to only drive with one or two people (Asra and MC) but as soon as there is more people then that he's tense and self concious and can't do it, especially not on any long distances

• Eventually Nadia gets him a proper licence

• He also wouldn't have a car cause he would share one with Asra, and he's mot that concerned with what it looks like

Lucio:

• ...

• No one is safe when he's on the road...

• He's not a necessarily bad driver like Asra is

• He knows the rules, and he knows when he is breaking them

• He speeds too much, only drives fancy fast cars, he's always in a rush to get somewhere

• Probably got his license revoked at some point

• Probably caused a few car crashes too...

• He doesn't clean his car or fix it, but he pays people to do it regularly. He has to have the fanciest, prettiest car, to match his personality.

[ifyesterdayistooheavy]

My Season 3 theory

For the players:

There is potential for multiple people to get out soon. To deal with that somebody from O (or X) is going to (betray, horribly murder) an important X member to win a game. That X members BFF will then go O because they aren’t going to share their loved ones blood money with that psycho (I’m guessing the mom and son duo)

For junho, inho, gihun:

Gihun dies, inho dies, junho lives.

Okay so, like imagine this: gihun finds out about inho, hes all pissed but inho is thinking…. . Junho and inho talk face to face and junho ‘kinda’ gets through to him. It’s enough, along with gihuns ambition, yeah I’ll help you stop it. But inho is clearly thinking he’s got no future outside the games. They split up. Gihun goes with inho to the boss quarters to gather vip data (junho has already been here. He’s better situated to gather stuff from the tunnels and make sure the exit is clear and help other players find it). Gihun and inho have a conversation. Gihun is still pissed, but he realizes yeah inho is still an enjoyable person to be around, their connection wasn’t fake, they have a lot in common (gihun is annoyed about all of this while inho is pleasantly pleased).

And then we need action so now we’ll play a game with a timer! It’s called “Bombs away!” The rules: gather all the evidence you can to take down the vips and end the games. Take it to the tunnel exit and then leave on the boat, far enough away so that you don’t die while the entire island explodes. Junho gets there! The remaining players get there! But uh-oh! A guard appears! Before inho can shoot him, gihun gets shot somewhere! Somewhere significant! Maybe the leg? Now gihun is too slow to get there in time, even with inhos help. (Also you have to swim). Two minutes to midnight gihuns infamous luck finally ran out.

Because he wants to prove he did value his relationship with gihun (and also because he’s suicidal), inho chooses to stay too. Inho calls junho and tells him the MacGuffin code, but junho understands what’s happening. Junho is not happy. Gihun is not happy. Inho seems content. Gihun tells him to leave but inho refuses. (AKA ‘My BFF needlessly killed himself for me’ PTSD vs. ‘I abandoned my wife while she was dying’ PTSD: FIGHT!!!)

Junho gets back to land. The police laugh him out of existence. The evidence inho and gihun gathered is gone. The island is gone. New vips start the games over in Europe.

I love this ending because it’s so horrible. Everyone gets what they asked for (gihun, the front man dead. Junho, finding his brother and reforming him. Inho, making that connection) but not what they wanted (gihun, ending the games. Junho, actually saving his brother. Inho, finding a place outside the games)

It’s like a giant triangle of misery lol

[soapbubbles511]

Yupppp. Stede has decided he needs to WIN AT INN KEEPING. That he is showing his love for Ed by WINNING AT INN KEEPING. Because Ed wanted to run and inn and so he's going to make it the best fucking inn ever. Does he actually like running an inn? Why are you even asking that? Of course he loves Ed.. I mean inn keeping. In his head he has connected their relationship with WINNING AT INN KEEPING. And is concerned with what it means about their relationship that Ed isn't intense about WINNING AT INN KEEPING.

Meanwhile as far as Ed was concerned they'd already won at inn keeping. He's not a pirate anymore. He's got his boyfriend. They turned their little shack into an inn! That people actually come to! And he can tell little stories to the guests and make little table settings and do his little inn tasks. But now he's concerned that's not enough for Stede because he's being all weird and intense about inn keeping, which is cutting into his very important kissing Ed time.

Basically these idiots just need to talk to each other. It doesn't have to be inn keeping. Just somewhere they can be together with a low risk of being stabbed or shot. And maybe somewhere for Stede to do some light criming side quests.

i've seen this from a couple different people but i really think it's a misread to think the character arc of gentlebeard in the djenks holiday special is actually that ed is just being lazy and doesn't want to do hard stuff and he needs to be managed. i mean, he could probably help stede out more, but that doesn't look to me like the core of the actual problem at all?

it seems to me like what's going on is that stede is determined to Not Run Away. "i'm not changing my life again." stede abandoned his first marriage, and then he abandoned ed, and then he abandoned his first marriage AGAIN, and then he abandoned piracy, and now! now he's supposed to have things figured out! now he's not going to be a guy who runs anymore! now is when he shows that he can commit to things! he's committed to his life with ed and part of his life with ed is being innkeepers so THE INN HAS TO SUCCEED AT ALL COSTS.

he cannot admit even inside his own mind that he just fucking hates innkeeping, because that would mean admitting failure. innkeeping was ed's dream! how could he be selfish enough to give up on ed's dream? he's gotten his brain into a state where the success of the inn equals the success of his relationship with ed, and he's gotten so obsessed with that he's not paying attention to their actual relationship. and at the same time he's miserable so it comes out as frustration with ed because it can't be that he doesn't like innkeeping and he's working so hard he can't do any more so surely it must be that ed's the one who needs to be more committed?

(plus what would he do instead? he doesn't want to go back to piracy because he doesn't want to die anymore, or see ed die, and what other options are there? if he admits he hates the inn then he'd have to admit he doesn't actually KNOW what he wants to do and that would be terrible because maybe the problem is him, maybe he'll always feel like this wherever he goes, maybe he just doesn't know how to be happy)

what he needs to say is "i want to be with you but i don't want to be innkeepers, can we figure out something else?" but he cannot say that, he can't even think that, and it comes out as "why aren't you helping with cakes more?" it's not about the cakes.

[only-god-canstopme]

aaron forgiving andrew for killing tilda when he has children of his own because he thinks that if she were around he never would’ve let her meet them.

(and if he didn’t want his children near her, or any children near her, that means that he, as a child, should’ve never been near her. and he gets what andrew did bc he would kill to keep these children safe too.)

[every-sanji]

[real-mossysheep]

I feel that the most important part of this question is where the person who owns the cats lives. If they were to live in a deadly forested area like Florida, then would say moderated outside time. On a leash, in a yard, on a beach, in a park, etc. I only day this because of Florida's ecosystem. Alligators, Bob cats, birds, cars, all predators that would kill a cat.

However if we are talking somewhere more open, like Kansas, with giant wheat fields and large areas with open ground or small hills, then it's fine to let your cat out. Along as your cat has a safe area where they can go to hide, ie: a tree house, a patio, your house, etc. This is because of coyotes in particular.

However if you live in a densely populated area like a city, then you should be careful. Regulate your cats time outside. And only in areas you feel are safe.

Cats are still predators. Even cats that have lived indoors their entire life still kill small crimes given the chance. You still have to be careful no matter what, but your cat is more likely to return after being out if you give them that little amount of trust.

My old cat, tilly, would constantly try to escape, get out of the door, killing frogs in the pool cage, escaping out into the trees. Sometimes it took hours to get her back.

However when we moved, and had a fenced in area, and a bigger yard outside of that, we let her out. She would climb trees, run around, play, give us heart attacks, and stuff. However she never went past our property line. The furthest we got her out of our yard was about 7ft from the path I would take to school.

Our other cat, zihlas, would instead bot try to escape, as he would rather eat food. He would of course also target the frogs, but that's a cat thing. Then when we moved he would stay on the patio, never really going out until we actively encouraged it. He would run around out side, rolling around, and having fun. Still never tried to escape, but atleast he was exercising. The worst thing he has done in terms of this topic, would be brain damaging a squirrel and leaving it to die, or getting a parasitic infection. [He's fine now]

Overall, it depends on the area and how the owner is about it, while taking into account the trust between cat and human[s].

Thanks, Anon!

-submit your poll!-

[practically-an-x-man]

this fucking mosquito allergy is going to be the death of me i swear

[sysig]

Gotta sweep up all this Dust (Patreon)