#and now we're not even in her life to celebrate her marriage lasting a year

[icedteaandoldlace]

When I got to the last episode of Up Here and they sang A Christmas Prayer, I thought that they sounded nice and that it was a pretty solid song, but it didn't really resonate with me in any way, so I just kinda set it aside, thinking, "I don't have any use for this now, but I'll come back to it when I feel like it later." Well, friends, now, on the first wedding anniversary of my ex-friend who ghosted the entire friend group in January, that time has finally come.

[i-cant-sing]

Time Traveller AU part 9

Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here. Part 3 is here. Part 4 is here. Part 5 is here. Part 6 is here. Part 7 is here. Part 8 is here. Time Traveller au masterlist is here. Check out my MASTERLIST for more!

Part 10 is here.

"I think you should take off your veil now. You need to impress the princes so that one of them could take pity and marry you. Or you could try black magic-"

"Baris, I will pull your tongue out and strangle you with it if you say another word." You muttered, holding your head in your hands.

After Baris landed the "marriage bomb" on you last night, you've been stressed. Why did I have to teach Mihirmah? Why did I have to accept the bracelet? Why did I-

"You have bags under your eyes, and considering that they're the only feature visible, its not good-" You threw a pillow at him, which he dodged easily. You hadnt slept at all, how could you? You tried to figure out a plan, that didnt work. You tried to fix your time machine, that was not going to work at all without tools.

"You could be wrong." You mumbled, opening your eyes as you stared ahead. "This bracelet could be nothing but just a kind gesture. It is not a marriage proposal. You're wrong-"

Baris cut you off. "I know it seems impossible, considering how you look, even I'm surprised- but I'm never wrong, Y/n. I've worked here for more 25 years, I know what everyone thinks." You stared at him with a pinched expression.

"You have to help me, Baris."

He smiled. "Of course, you'd be lost cause else wise! I'll get the seamstress to make you some new clothes-"

"No, I meant- you have to help me escape. I cant- I dont want to get married!"

He scoffed. "Darling, we're alone right now. You can drop the "I dont wanna marry a prince and enjoy the luxuries of the world" act."

"I mean it!" You huff.

"And why is that?"

"Because-" you bit your lip. What excuse can you possibly come up with to satisfy him?

"I love someone else."

"How tragic." He said monotonously. "Love has no place in the harem. You're here to attract, serve and please the royal family." He walked closer to you, leaning down as he lowered his volume. "And I'm going to give you some advice: you better not use that excuse again, never even MUMBLE about having a lover again, not unless you want to be tortured and executed for being a traitor."

You knew what he was referring to. The harem, the concubines, the whole palace was filled with jealousy. If anyone were to hear about this, they would use it against you, conjure up such vulgar lies that the sultan will chop off your head.

"Baris I cant-"

"You dont have a choice, Y/n." He cut you off harshly. "I suggest you suck it up and pretend to be happy or else you'll be in for a hard life."

"Now, get ready. You need to teach a lesson."

-

"You look sick."

You resist rolling your eyes. "Yes, I know I'm ugly. Thank you for keeping me updated."

Mihirmah shook her head. "No, I mean you dont look well. Are you alright?"

No, I lost sleep because of you and-

"Just tired, Mihirmah. I think we've should stop here today." You watched her beam.

"Finally! Now we can celebrate!" Mihirmah clapped her hands as the servants brought in some tea and sweets. She had initially wanted to celebrate her victory from last night as soon as you came in, but you wanted to get the lesson done with so that you could leave.

"You enjoy it. You did a good job." You tried to excuse herself but she frowned.

"I did. And so did you! I mean, the way you made Mahidevran shut up! It was amazing!" She took a piece of sweet and handed it to you. "Besides, my father appreciated your efforts as well-"

You looked down at the bracelet. This was more of a death sentence than a gift.

"Mihirmah." You took off your bracelet. "I- I appreciate the sultan's gift, but I cant accept this. Its too much- its-" you mentally rolled your eyes at your next excuse. "Its above me."

She furrowed her brows. "Even if that may be the case, which its not because you fully deserve that after the showdown, you still cannot refuse or return a sultan's gift, much less one that he made himself!" She tilted her head. "What is really going on? Why do you not want the bracelet? And dont say its not to your taste, because lets face it- you probably have not seen jewels like this in your life."

Biting the inside of your cheek to prevent the insults from slipping out, you took a breath.

"I... heard that..." you took another breath. How do you say "I dont want the bracelet because I dont wanna marry any of your brothers" without sounding narcissistic. "I... I heard that there might be a different meaning behind the bracelet. That it may signify... something else."

"Which is...?" She prompted you.

You exhaled.

"That I might be considered to be... a spouse for a sehzade."

Mihirmah snorted as you looked down to conceal both your embarrassment and fear.

"I'm sorry- what did you say?" She was laughing now. You continued to look down. As long as she's laughing and not getting mad at you for even suggesting such a thing, you're fine. Besides, if she's laughing then it means that all that bullshit Baris was spewing earlier was just that- bullshit.

"You think- my father, the sultan, wants you- YOU, to marry one of his sons?" She wiped a tear away from her eye as she laughed. "That is the most ridiculous idea I've ever heard. True, father does only give handmade gifts to those he considers close, but I dont think thats true in your case, Y/n. You're just my teacher, that's all. Besides, even if you were to be considered as a potential spouse for my brothers, you have my mother and Mahivdevran standing in your way. And trust me, they're going to marry their sons to someone they like. You- they cant even tolerate you as my teacher at this point of time."

Sighing in relief, you nod. "Well, that's great to hear-"

"Wait." Mihirmah narrows her eyes at you. "If you thought that my father wanted to marry you to one of his sons, why did you want to return the bracelet? Did you- did you not want to marry my brother?"

Oh shit. "Mihirmah no-" You tried to pacify her.

But she snapped at you. "What? You think you're better than my brothers? Any of them? You'd be lucky if Mehmed or Mustafa chose you, if such a miracle does happen."

Your eyes were wide at her venomous tone. You dont know whether it was because she was protective of her brothers, or if she just really hated the idea that you would consider rejecting royalty.

A few more moments of silence went by. "You misunderstand me, sultana." You chose her title to please her. "I know of my status, and I am well aware of how... lowly I am to be a part of this family. The only reason I was returning the bracelet was because... I didnt want the harem to assume things and threaten or hurt me. I am aware that the sehzade have their favourite concubines, much better equipped to their tastes. But if they were to see this bracelet gifted by the sultan on me, they would... it would cause misunderstandings. I just wanted to avoid that."

Your words were carefully selected to not aggravate her any further, which it didnt but they also didnt calm her down.

Mihirmah's face was still sour. "The concubines are smart enough to figure out who's a competition and who's just a mere servant. You have nothing to worry about."

The words stung but... you just bowed and took your leave instead of slapping her across the face.

Mehmed had just turned the corner when he saw you leaving Mihirmah's room with tears pooling in your eyes, the niqaab only causing them to look more prominent.

He entered Mihirmah's room, finding his sister looking angry as she gazed into space.

"Mihirmah?" He sat down beside her, noticing how she didnt immediately light up as she always did when he came. What did you do to piss her off so much?

He cupped her face to look at him. "What's wrong? Tell me."

-

You're laying in your bed, arm over your eyes as you try to think of a way out of here.

When will the time machine work again?

Its not like you can go out of the palace to get help or even tools to work on it, and you always fear that someone just may walk in on you tinkering with the machine. The only place where you can get privacy in this palace here is the dungeons, only because its dark and oh-so-daunting that it doesnt really attract people there.

There's a knock on your door. With a grunt, you get up and open the door, only to find no one there. Your room was in the harem, but it was on the upper floor, so you could see the whole area from above, including the silhouette of someone leaving the harem doors.

Normally, you wouldn't have bothered with the "door bell pranks", but you made your way down because 1. you're not familiar with what this might mean, maybe some royal summoned you and you're to follow the servant. 2. you're bored.

When you left the harem and looked to your left, spotting the back of a girl in red dress, you knew she was baiting you to follow her. So you did, turning around the corridor only to be body slammed to the wall.

3 women surround you, blocking any escape routes. They're all glaring at you, and you recognise their faces. They're the concubines.

You clear your throat. "Well? I suppose you have something to say that you couldnt say in there."

The brunette in front of you narrows her eyes. "Who do you think you are?"

"Why dont you tell me?"

Her glare intensifies. "You think you can just bat your lashes and whore yourself to the sehzade?"

"Heh?"

The raven haired girl on her right grabbed your throat and banged your head against the wall behind. "Dont play dumb! We know you're trying to marry the prince!"

The blonde on the left banged your head against the wall this time, gritting out "Stay away from sehzade Mustafa!"

"And sehzade Mehmed!" the brunette warned, repeating the same assault as the other two.

You took a deep breath, closing your eyes as you rubbed the sore spot on the back of your head. "None of your accusations are true. Unlike you, I actually have a respectable job here-"

"We saw the bracelet! You think you can just prance around here, pretending to be this holy and pure, untainted girl while we work ourselves to the bone to get in bed?!" The brunette screamed at you, getting in your face.

You pushed her away. "First of all, I am not interested in marrying anyone. Secondly, the bracelet means nothing than a job well done. And finally- you seem to mistake your status over me. I dont work for you, or under you. So, this is for earlier-" You slapped her hard across the face, making her fall. The other two were in shock, and you took that as an opputunity to slap them too.

"Now, we're even." You huffed, adjusting your niqaab before turning on your heel to leave. You needed to slap them, not only because you need to let them know they cant bully you, but also because you needed to release some steam. It felt good, you wont lie. You may have even imagined some people's faces as you smacked them-

"Omph!" You're pushed to the ground, flipped over onto your back. You grab on to the hands that are wrapped around your neck, eyes wide as the brunette starts to choke you.

"You stupid bitch!" She screamed as you fought hard to pull her hands away. She yanked the veil off your face, smacking your cheek hard enough to scratch you with her sharp nails.

"Laira stop-" the blonde tried to pull her off you but Laira continued to beat you.

"Hand me the torch!"

"Laira-" The blonde started again but the raven haired grabbed the fire sconce off the wall and handed it to Laira.

You stared in horror as she brought the torch closer to your face, the heat radiating. She grinned manically, one hand still squeezing your throat.

"You're not even that pretty for a sehzade. Did you use black magic on them?" She clicked her tongue, while your eyes were fixated on the torch. "I guess, it wont be futile to ruin your face for guarantee."

"Please no-" she choked you harder with her man hands that you just couldnt seem to pry off, and you sort of became paralysed as the dancing flames took you back to the night in the desert, when the assassins set your tent on fire. Everything slowed down, and noise drowned out like in the movies.

Salauddin. Help-

The flames suddenly vanish from your view as Laira is thrown off you.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?!" The man roared behind you. Your eyes moved from the shaking concubines to your saviour.

Ibrahim pasha.

"Pasha bey-"

"Shut it. Guards! Throw them to the dungeons!" Ibrahim yelled and automatically, 4 Janisarries appeared from behind him and dragged the wailing girls away.

Ibrahim looks down at you, his eyes shifting from rage to sympathy. He crouches down and helps you sit up, his touch gentle.

"Are you alright, Hatun Y/n?" You're staring at him in a daze, your body has not recovered enough to physically react, almost on autopilot.

Say something.

"Y/n?" He asks again, his brows furrowing as his concern deepens. Why does everything sound so far, so low?

He snaps his fingers near your ear, and your brain finally reacts.

"Y-yes." You tear your gaze away, looking at the fire torch lying on the ground far from you.

Fire. Second time you were almost burnt to death.

"Come on." He helps you up, gently tugging you to follow him. A few shaky steps later, you follow him to your room.

He sat you down on the bed. "There we go." Ibrahim pasha scanned your face for any burns or injuries, noting the nail marks from the slap.

"Baris Agha!" Ibrahim called and a few seconds later, the eunuch stumbled in.

"Yes, pasha- ya Allah, what happened to-"

"Baris." Ibrahim snapped at him. "Get me bandages and healing balm. And keep quiet about this." Baris only nodded before following orders.

You cleared your throat. "I... thank you for saving me, pasha." Ibrahim smiled courteously as he sat on a chair nearby.

"It was my duty. Sultan Suleiman had asked me to keep an eye on you."

Your brows furrowed. "Why?"

Ibrahim looked at the bracelet around your wrist. "I suppose you did something to make him pleased."

He relaxed in his chair, crossing his arms across his chest. "So... what happened with the concubines?"

"Misunderstanding." You said dismissively.

"And what that might be?" He prodded. When you didnt reply, he sighed. "I am the pasha, the sultan's right hand. I am supposed to know what happens in the palace."

"Its nothing of significance. You can let the girls out of the dungeon."

"I'm afraid that decision is not upto you." Ibrahim deadpanned. "If you do not wish to tell me, fine. I have other ways of finding out." He made his threat clear and began standing up.

"Wait!" You clenched your niqaab, looking at the veil in your lap. "I'll tell you, but... you cant tell anyone."

Ibrahim stared at you before nodding, sitting back down.

"There may have been a rumour... the cocncubines- they think that the bracelet, a gift from the sultan means that I am... special." You mumbled the last word.

"Special how?"

"They think... that the sultan wants me to be his... daughter-in-law. Actually, they think that I am wooing the sehzades- Mustafa and Mehmed."

"And are you?" He asks immeadiately.

"Of course not!"

"Why not? Anyone would love to marry a prince."

You scoffed. "I would never want to be a part of this family, not even as a teacher."

He raised a brow. "Hate the Ottomans?" You shake your head. "No. But I wouldn't want to be a part of it." You clicked your tongue. "Everyone in this palace is a slave. The concubines, the servants, the wives, the kids, you and me too. The wives of the sultan, they have all the luxuries one could imagine... except for the loyalty of their husband. Not to mention, they have to live in constant fear of being replaced and be in paranoia forever because everyone who is not family, is a threat to her. The kids? If you're born a boy, sure- you are immediately given a superior status, but with such power and princely status also comes with its own drawbacks. The boy will have to always be compete with his brothers, not because he wants to be the next sultan, but for survival."

In Ottoman empire, there was a common practice of fratricide- a tradition where once the next sultan is chosen, the new sultan is allowed LEGALLY to kill his brothers, stepbrothers, nephews and even female relatives (sisters included) as well, so as to get rid of any future competition or betrayal by his own family. In a nutshell, it was done to prevent civil wars.

"If you're born as a girl, then you may have a better chance of survival than your brothers, but that's still not guaranteed. Not to mention, you are raised to be married off to someone that will strengthen the royal family. Not to someone you love." Ibrahim watched you as you continued. "Its not better to be a servant either. Always being threatened, questioned about your loyalty, having to take the fall for the higher ups. The eunuchs, who think they are all high and mighty and control the court, you and I both know that their job to "protect the women of the harem" wasnt even their choice. To be forcefully castrated as children, forcefully ripped from their families, forced to serve the royals... they dont have a choice. I dont have to tell you how degrading it is to be a concubine."

"And me? How am I a slave?" Ibrahim asked.

You smiled sadly. "You know very well, and youre just trying to see how much I know. Your past is not a well kept secret, pasha." You kept quiet, and Ibrahim realised you already knew about his life.

Ibrahim, born as Orthodox Christian, was enslaved during his childhood. He and Suleiman became close friends in their youth, or perhaps forced to convert to Islam and then raised to befriend Suleiman. Suleiman appointed Ibrahim as grand vizier when he took the throne.

"How do you know?" Ibrahim's gaze was sharp. "I know a lot of things, pasha. But dont worry, I have no ill intent. If anything, I want to be as far from this life as possible. Perhaps... you could help me with that?"

He raised a brow. "I dont think that is an option for you right now." At your frown, he explained. "The safest place for a woman like you is here."

"Did you just forget that my face was almost burned off moments ago?"

He chuckled, shaking his hand. "Of course not. But you need to understand that you cannot just up and go without a word, especially after the sultan just gave you a handmade gift, and whether or not it signifies that he's considered you for one of his sons, it does mean that he considers you important. His majesty will not just accept your leave for no reason." Ibrahim leaned forward, clasping his hands. "As for your safety, you can leave that to me. I will make sure no harm befalls you again. I promise."

"But what about the sehzade? The rumours?"

He hummed thoughtfully. "If you're so concerned about that matter, then you should just avoid the princes as much as you can. Keep your niqaab on, continue your lessons with the princess and avoid interacting with people as much as you can."

Well, its not a bad suggestion. If you make yourself scarce and draw less attention to yourself, you can slip out of the palace and leave unnoticed.

"Oh, pasha?" You called him as he stood up to leave. "Can I request you not to tell about this incident to anyone?" You pointed to bruises on your face.

He grinned and nodded. "Of course. But it is not me you should be worried about talking." At your confused face, he chuckled.

"Baris Agha still hasnt returned."

-

Mihirmah and Mehmed were in your room just a few moments after Ibrahim pasha had fetched the bandages from below and treated your wounds, further confirming that Baris was spreading the news about your attack all over the palace.

"Y/n! Who did this to you?" Mihirmah traced the bruises gently as she sat beside you on the bed, while Mehmed sat in front of you, on the seat previously occupied by Ibrahim pasha- just closer this time.

"I dont know." You lied, pulling yourself away from Mihirmah's concerned touches. Oh you're still mad at her.

Your evasiveness didnt go unnoticed by her, as she dropped her hand and her mouth settled into a thin grim line.

"Why did someone attack you? What happened?" Mehmed asked, cutting the tension.

You shrugged. "I dont know." You fiddled with the niqaab in your lap. There's a big bandage on your cheeks, so while you couldnt exactly wear your veil again, you suppose in a way your face was somewhat covered?

"Probably mistook me for someone else. Or just a misunderstanding." You tried to brush this off.

"Still, it shouldnt warrant such a reaction. We should investigate-" Mehmed started but you shook your head.

"Ibrahim pasha is already looking into the matter. He'll take care of it-"

"I am the sehzade. I will look into this personally." Mehmed stated before leaving the room before anyone could stop him. Ah, to be the knight in shinning armour for a distressed damsel.

You and Mihirmah sat alone now. The air in the room was thick, the silence thicker. Mihirmah glanced at your nonchalant face, your eyes fixated on the ground, not caring how uncomfortable the silence was making the princess.

It was clear she had to break the ice.

"Y/n." She called. "Yes, sultana?" You answered, but your eyes still remained on the ground.

Sultana. Not Mihirmah, like she'd allowed you to call her, but sultana.

She pursed her lips. "I..." She paused. What is she supposed to say? Sorry? The word is as foreign to her as it is to any royal.

"I dont like the things you said this morning." She finally stated. "You shouldnt have said those things."

You resisted the urge to scoff. Is she really trying to pin this on you and make you apologise? Entitled brat-

"You're right, sultana. I was out of line. I suggest we should just stick to our lessons and avoid talking about anything else. I'll be careful not to bring up any other topic." You stated monotonously.

Mihirmah frowned. Why are you saying this? Why are you being so difficult?

"Stop it." She warned. You nodded. "As you wish, sultana. I'll arrange another Quran teacher for you." Your words only enraged her further.

"I said- stop it." She ordered but you're hell bent on making her apologise- a dream, but still. You clicked your tongue. "I suppose I'll hand in my resignation to the sultan and explain to His Majesty that it was my fault for being a useless servant who is just not capable- ow!" You finally looked at her in disbelief.

She pinched you. Mihirmah pinched your arm. Hard.

And she had the gall to glare at you, with some anger and remorse in her eyes.

"What did you do that for?" You spat, hissing as you rubbed the area she'd assaulted. There was going to be a bruise, for sure.

Her frown deepened. "You- I told you to stop, didn't I?!" You watched her trying to contain her rage, her body shaking as she tried not to wrangle you by the neck. "I- I dont want you to leave."

"But sultana-" "Mihirmah. You call me Mihirmah." She emphasised.

You bit the inside of your cheek to suppress your smile. "I am just a dispensable servant-" You jumped back when she went to pinch you again.

"Will you stop doing that?!" Your arm still hurt from her first attack. Mihirmah's nostrils flared. "Will you stop acting like a brat?!"

Your throat made a sound of disbelief. "I am acting like a brat?! Have you looked in the mirror recently?"

"Yes and I look very beautiful! Unlike your busted face!"

"Oh so you just get to insult me?" "I am not insulting you! I am DESCRIBING YOU!" She screamed as you glared at her. Mihirmah took a few deep breaths to calm down. "I am not calling you ugly, I was just referring to the bruises on your face. How did you manage to get beat up so badly? Did you not learn anything from my sparring lessons?"

"Sparring lessons? You mean the times where you would flip me on my back or throw me against the wall?" She glared at your accusation. "How is it my fault that you dont fight back?"

Mihirmah's gaze flicked the arm you were holding, the one she'd pinched. "Does it still hurt?" Her voice was much softer this time.

"Would you like me to pinch you back to demonstrate how much it hurt?" You spat back and she scoffed. "I didnt pinch you that hard. You're just sensitive." "Sure, you must only have meaty man fingers." You grumbled as she gasped and smacked your bruised arm, making you hiss.

The two of you glared at each other before Mihirmah wrapped her arms around you and looked up at you with a small pout.

"This doesnt work on me." You muttered, making her grip tighten around you.

"You know you're not a servant." Mihirmah whispered, looking up at you with puppy eyes, but only you knew the real Ronda Rousey in her.

"You're my friend, Y/n. Or the closest thing I have to a sister." "If you were planning on beating up your sister, I'm glad your parents didnt have one."

"Shut up, you're ruining the moment." Mihirmah scolded you. "I dont want you to go. I dont want you to be hurt, either. So just- I'm willing to let things go back to the way they were before this morning, if you are."

You stared down at her. You knew you were never going to get a real apology, Mihirmah was too prideful. You couldnt make her feel ashamed for her actions, or hold her responsible. So, you'll have to make do with this.

"Fine." She broke into a grin and squeezed her arms around you tightly before letting go.

"Now, tell me! Who were these girls who attacked you? I'll skin them with my daggers!" Ignoring her sociopathic tendencies, you shrugged. "I dont know, Mihirmah. I dont know who they were- I'm still new to the palace."

She hummed before her face lit up in realisation. "Wait! Baris Agha did say something about concubines. I'll ask Mehmed too when he returns with more information from Ibrahim pasha!"

-

While you are trying your best to hide the incident about your attack, unbeknownst to you, the news has spread like wildfire in the palace. A maid saw Mehmed entering Ibrahim pasha's office, and when she reported it to her friend, she then told her about how she overheard the eunuchs talking about a fight breaking out between the concubines and someone else, and then someone added that they saw Ibrahim pasha, Mehmed and Mihirmah in your room, so you were involved too. It wasnt long before this news reached Hurrem and Mahidevran, only this time it was more dramatised.

"The concubines tried to kill Hatun Y/n! It was only by pure luck that sehzade Mehmed saved her! And now her wounds are being tended to by Mihirmah sultana while sehzade Mehmed and Ibrahim pasha are punishing the concubines!" Gul, the chamber maid, told Mahidevran.

Mahidevran narrowed her eyes. "Why did they save her? She's just a teacher." The queen didnt understand why the royal children were going through such lengths to get justice for you. Fights in the harem break out all the time.

Gul fumbled with her thumbs, avoiding eye contact with her queen. Mahidevran's frown deepened. "What is it, Gul?"

"I- sultana- I just heard some rumors, its probably not even true-" "Out with it!" Mahidevran snapped.

Gul licked her lips as she spoke. "Um- I overheard that sehzade Mehmed has been... spending a lot of time with Hatun Y/n. Especially after the dinner where Mihirmah sultana recited-"

Mehmed... spending time with you? Why? If he wanted to sleep with you, he could have any girl from the harem. So why you? Why you, a Quran teacher, a conservative girl who covered herself from head to toe? Surely, Mehmed hadnt been bewitched by your physical appearance- not that you had any, in her opinion. And then Suleiman seemed to like you to, so for Mehmed to fancy you would be because-

Mahidevran's eyes widened at the sudden realisation.

"Get me Mustafa. Now!"

-

"Hatun Y/n was attacked by the concubines! Ibrahim pasha saved her and carried her unconscious form to her room!" A maid reported to Hurrem.

"Why was she attacked?" Hurrem asked, bored.

The maid hesitated to answer. "I am not sure, sultana, but the word is that the concubines were jealous of the attention Hatun Y/n was getting from sehzade Mustafa."

Mustafa? No. What possible business could you have with Mustafa? From the past week's events, Hurrem was told that you'd spend most of your time with her daughter, and only moments with Mehmed when he visited his sister.

"Mustafa isnt interested in Y/n." Hurrem stated, more to herself than to refute the maid's claims.

The girl nodded. "I'm only telling you what I heard, sultana. And... I also saw sehzade Mustafa leaving Mahidevran sultana's chambers to visit Hatun Y/n earlier today, just moments before I came here!"

Hurrem halted as she tried to make sense of the information. Mustafa was out all day because of the hunt, he wasnt supposed to return before dinner. Which means, he was fetched, likely by Mahidevran. Who probably informed him about your attack and now he went to check on you.

But why? Even at the dinner the other day, Hurrem didnt detect any sort of affection from Mustafa for you, or you from him. You both barely glanced at each other.

Maybe he's just checking in on you. That's all it is to it.

"How badly was Y/n injured?" Hurrem inquired.

"I didnt get a chance to see her yet, she's been with Mihirmah sultana since the event, but I heard that her unconscious body had to be carried by Ibrahim pasha himself! And- and that he even bandaged her up-"

"Ibrahim pasha?" Hurrem whispered to herself. What business did he have with you? He could've easily had a servant tend to your wounds, so why did he personally do it himself?

Ibrahim. Mustafa. Mahidevran. What are they upto? Hurrem knows Ibrahim doesnt like her, that he favours Mahidevran and Mustafa over her, that he wants Mustafa to be the next sultan-

Hurrem's heart sinks as she pieces it together.

"Get me Mehmed. Now!"

-

Suleiman was having dinner with his family. Both of his families- Mahidevran and Mustafa joined him tonight as well. He was happy to have them together, all well and healthy.

Except... something was off.

Suleiman's gut could sense it. The children were making small talk, his wives as well, but he could tell. There was some sort of tension.

It was Mihirmah that made him finally speak up.

"Mihirmah." He called out the girl who was playing with her food. "You've barely eaten. What's wrong?"

The room immediately fell dead silent, the attention now focusing on Mihirmah.

She smiled nervously, taking a small bite. "I'm fine, baba."

But Suleiman could see that her usual bubbling aura was somewhat depressing. "Mihirmah." He called her name more sternly, and this time, her smile faltered as she finally spilled.

"I'm just worried for Y/n."

Suleiman frowned. And when he looked at everyone else, it was clear that they knew something he wasn't aware of.

"What happened?"

-

Baris Agha was having fun riling you up. "So, you're telling me that both sehzade Mustafa and Mehmed, the two crown princes racing to be the next sultan, are visited you?" He snickered as you shot him a glare. "Can I just suggest you to remove the niqaab for the wedding-"

"Baris! Shut up!" You raged at him. "Dont think I dont know you were the one spreading the lies about-" "Lies? About what? About you being attacked? By concubines who are jealous of your- I dont know, I'm sorry what it is that these men seem to be enraptured with-"

There are hurried, intense knocks on the door. Baris opens the door as a servant stumbles in, out of breath.

"Hatun Y/n! Sultan Suleiman has summoned you! Now!" His tone signified that you're not to waste time.

"Why did he call for me?" You whisper to Baris as the two of you rush down the hallways.

"Perhaps he wants to formally ask you to marry one of his sons-" "Baris!" He grinned. "What? I have a sixth sense-" "YOU HAVE NO SENSE!" You yelled. "Have more sense than you." Baris grumbled.

"Why are you even following me? Dont you have a job?" You wanted him to stop vexing you.

He snorted. "And what? Miss out on all the fun? Besides, you know as the future sultana, you will need me-"

"I swear, as soon as I'm finished meeting the sultan, I am going to throw you off the roof."

The two of you turned the corner leading to the royal dining hall, and you bumped face first into Ibrahim pasha's back, the man catching you by the arms before you fell on your ass.

"P-pasha? What are you doing here?" You asked, backing up once you got your footing.

"Sultan sent for me. What are you doing here?" Ibrahim asked, equally confused.

"He summoned me as well. What do you think its about?" You watched the cogwheels in his mind turn and the realisation dawn on him.

"The attack earlier." He exhaled, closing his eyes as he tried to figure out his next steps. "We cant- you cant tell him the truth!"

"You want me to lie to the sultan?" He rose his brows. "Please, Ibrahim! I- I told Mihirmah and Mehmed and then Mustafa that I didnt know who the attackers were, or why they attacked me! If you tell them the truth-"

"Y/n." He grabbed your shoulders, staring into your worried eyes. "I promised to protect you, didnt I? I intend on keeping my promises."

You both entered the dining room together, bowing to the royal family sitting there.

"Y/n." You looked up at the sultan. "Is it true? Were you attacked?"

You were quiet for a few moments, resisting the urge to glance at Ibrahim to figure what to say, before nodding hesitantly.

"Y-yes, sultan." You trailed your eyes back to the ground. These people, they were warriors. They didnt have any technology back then, and they had to rely on body language to read people.

And you didnt want to risk him catching you in a lie.

"Are you alright?" Suleiman's voice was much softer now. "Did you go to the infirmary?"

"I'm well now, sultan. Thank you for asking." You meekly answered. "I was saved in time, thanks to Ibrahim pasha."

Mahidevran's eyes narrowed at you. Ibrahim saved you? Of course, you'd lie about that, so that no one would suspect you and Mehmed getting close. She thought to herself.

"Ah, Ibrahim pasha." Suleiman's voice turned serious. "You were the one who saved Y/n?"

"Yes, sultan." Ibrahim confirmed.

"And you have the attackers in custody?"

"Yes, sultan."

Suleiman slammed his fist on the table, rattling everyone. "Then why the hell wasnt I informed of it?!" Ibrahim kept his head down as the sultan continued to rage. "Why does everyone seem to be aware of this matter, except me?! Answer me, Ibrahim!"

Hurrem couldnt help the smile that curled on her lips. She was glad to see Ibrahim getting in trouble, perhaps Suleiman will finally get rid of him for once and for all-

"It's my fault, your majesty!" You announced suddenly, and everyone's focus shifted to you. "I- I was- I was shaken up from the attack and I- I made the pasha stay with me. I was too scared- I didnt think I was safe- so Ibrahim pasha left to make arrangements to assure me I was safe! He was busy because of me. I'm sorry! If- if anyone should be punished, it should be me!"

You held your hands together tightly to stop them from trembling. The room fell silent at your explanation, with you and Ibrahim holding your breaths.

"Is this true, Ibrahim?" Suleiman broke the silence.

"Yes, my sultan." Ibrahim answered. "After I had saved Hatun Y/n, I wanted to assure her of her safety, so I was busy interrogating the concubines who attacked her. After they confessed, I wanted to check if anyone else in the harem had any ill intentions for Hatun Y/n, so I was engaged in checking everyone who could be a possible threat. I was on my way to inform you, but you summoned me before I could."

"Concubines? Why did they attack Y/n?" Suleiman asked, wanting to know the result of his interrogation.

Ibrahim answered without missing a beat. "They were jealous of Hatun Y/n's bracelet." You looked at him but the pasha kept his eyes ahead at the sultan. "From what I gathered, Hatun Y/n refused to give up His Majesty's handmade gift, and when she put up a fight to defend your present, she was subjected to a harsh beating and had her face almost burned."

Suleiman's eyes widened. "Burned? Because of a bracelet?"

"It was what the bracelet represented, my sultan." Ibrahim's statement made your heart sink. He better not tell him about the "daughter-in-law" theory.

"The concubines think that you... favour Y/n over them." Ibrahim's words set fire to your cheeks and you had to bite your lip to suppress the gasp you almost let out.

Ibrahim decided to change the "daughter-in-law" theory to "3rd wife/bedwarmer theory".

"What rubbish?!" Suleiman slammed his fist on the table again, and perhaps everyone in the room was silently grateful for his rage and disbelief, as it disapproved the theory and quelled any future rumours. "I only see Y/n as my daughter, nothing else! How dare they slander me like that?! How dare they hurt someone I care about?! Ibrahim, execute those wretched concubines!"

Your eyes widened at the order. Preventing their death sentence was the only reason you lied and kept this charade up. You cant risk more people dying and history changing forever because of you!

"Y-your majesty!" You fell to your knees, your voice wet. "I- I beg you- I beg you on the behalf of the concubines, please- have mercy!"

Everyone watched in surprise as you cried for mercy for... your attackers?

"You... want me to forgive them? Despite what they did to you?" Suleiman asked, watching in disbelief at your tears wetting your niqaab.

"It- it was wrong- but please, they're just- they're just young girls. They made a mistake, they shouldnt pay with their lives!" You tried to come up with better reasoning. Aha!

"Sultan, I- we are Muslims. You are a role model for Muslims all over the world right now- but you have a role model as well- someone you havent met or seen, but you follow his advices and footsteps every day. Its Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)- and- and he advices us to be forgiving and merciful." Ibrahim watched you try to persuade the king.

"On the Day of Judgement, when we beg and grovel Allah for forgiveness, would He not forgive us happily if we show mercy to His creatures? If we forgive His mankind?" You pleaded and Suleiman was touched by your words, so-much-so that he walked over to you and pulled you by your shoulders before pressing a kiss to your veiled forehead.

"You're too kind, Y/n." He whispered, before nodding at Ibrahim. "Dont kill the concubines. But find a fitting punishment for them, Ibrahim." The pasha bowed his head obediently.

"And find Y/n her personal chambers in the royal wing." Suleiman stated, making everyone surprised.

No. Room in the royal wing only meant more contact with the royals themselves. This was the last thing you needed-

"Your majesty-" He held up a hand. "Dont protest, Y/n. You were hurt because of my present and while I appreciate that you defended it, I do not wish to see you hurt. Ibrahim, find her a room and shift her there by tonight. And assign a few guards and servants to Y/n as well. I dont want her to feel unsafe again." Suleiman looked at Ibrahim with a serious expression. "I trust her in your hands, Ibrahim."

"Of course, your majesty." Ibrahim nodded.

Suleiman looked back at you, a gentle smile on his face. "I would like you to join us for dinners now." He gently pushed your back and Mahidevran immediately scooted a bit closer to Suleiman's seat and patted the space beside her... and next to Mustafa.

Hurrem glared at the blatant display of intentions- Mahidevran showed her "generosity and humbleness" by letting you sit next to her to please Suleiman, and also make you sit next to her son to get close with.

At this moment, both queens are under the impression that Suleiman wants you to be his future daughter-in-law, so both women think that the other is making her son court you because the first one to marry you will produce a heir, further legitimising the prince's claim to the throne and becoming the next sultan, especially since Suleiman views you to be the perfect, pious woman who would be the perfect mother for his grandkids.

The only difference is- Mahidevran wants you to be Mustafa's spouse, not because she thinks you're a good match for her perfect son, but because she wants to speed up Mustafa's claim to the throne. She knows Suleiman prefers Hurrem over her (Hurrem's five kids are proof of that), and since she has no child other than Mustafa, Mahidevran is at disadvantage and she needs every advantage she can get, no matter how savoury it is- like you.

Hurrem on the other hand, does not want you as her Mehmed's spouse, because you're not what she had in mind for her precious son. She wants someone soft, demure, submissive, beautiful and more importantly- someone she can control. But she also knows what game Mahidevran is playing, and since Hurrem doesnt want Mustafa trying to steal the throne from Mehmed, Hurrem will have to just- get rid of you.

-

"So... the sultan just said that outloud?" Baris ate a date from the fancy table in your brand new chambers. "He just announced that you're his "daughter" to everyone?" He heard you groan a yes from your place on the bed- face buried in the pillows.

"And Mahidevran sultana made you sit between her and sehzade Mustafa?" He heard you groan another "yes".

Baris plopped down next to you. "So you're marrying Mustafa. Huh, didnt bet on that-"

"You bet on this?" You asked miserably, finally pulling your head up. "Of course, need to make money. Unlike you, not everyone has the oppurtunity to marry into royalty-"

You smack a pillow right across his face. "If I hear you talk about marriage again, I will strangle you."

Baris rolled his eyes, fixing his hair that you'd messed up. "I dont know why you're so upset. Did you want to sit next to Mehmed instead? If so, maybe I can still win the bet-"

"I dont want either of them!" You stated frustratedly, sitting up. "Do you not get it- I dont want to be a part of royalty! They're- they're all mad! My life would be in constant threat- from jealous concubines, possessive mother-in-laws, throne hungry princes. I dont want that!"

"Is it because you want Ibrahim pasha?"

You blinked at him. What? "What?"

Baris rubbed his chin. "Oh come on, I saw the way you two looked at each other before you entered the dining room- how the pasha promised to protect you, even from the sultan's wrath."

"Are you like- fishing for anything? For fun?" You shake your head at him.

Baris gave you a look. "Really? What about you going in and lying to protect him? He didnt even say anything before you took the chance to save him."

"I saved him because it was the right thing to do! Not because I love him!" You exclaimed, throwing your hand in the air. "If this is how you think, please- PLEASE resist the urge to ever help me! I dont want a proposal coming from you just because you saved me from choking."

Baris glared at you. "First of all- I'm never going to be as blind as the sehzade when it comes to love. Secondly, you'd be lucky to have me as a husband. At least your offspring will have a chance at looking somewhat normal-" You lunged at him and put him in a chokehold while Baris grabbed at your hijaab covered head to pull you off.

Your fighting match is brought to a halt as someone knocks on the door.

Mustafa stands outside your door, surprised to see Baris looking slightly disheveled when he opened your door.

"Baris? What are you doing here?" Mustafa asked, watching the eunuch fix his collar.

"Ah sehzade! Oh I was just helping Hatun Y/n adjust to her room. Shift her things in here." Baris faked a smile.

Mustafa nodded before lowering his voice. "Is she awake?"

"Yes yes- please come in." Mustafa walked inside just as you appeared out of the wooden divider screen, adjusting your niqaab.

"Sehzade." You gave him a courtesy. "How may I help you?"

Mustafa gave you a gentle smile, his moustache quirking up handsomely. "I would like to ask you to spend the day with me tomorrow."

You froze, and you didnt dare look at Baris who you knew was sporting a smug look because you didnt want to throw your shoe at his face in front of the prince.

"I- I think I am busy with Mihrimah sultana tomorrow-"

"No, I asked her. She said she's happy to skip her lessons for tomorrow." Mustafa cut your excuse. "I'll come by after breakfast. Good night, Y/n."

-

Even though Mustafa said he'll see you after breakfast, which for royals was just an hour before noon, you were woken up by Baris at the ass crack of dawn.

"Baris! What the hell?" You glared at him when he yanked the covers off you. Baris grinned at you. "As much as I'd like to believe in beauty sleep, its so not helping in your case. Come on, you need a bath and a lot of other stuff!"

He'd brought fine silk gowns and matching niqaabs (which you insisted on wearing despite Baris voicing his displeasure).

Currently, one of the maids had just finished doing your eye makeup- which in this case was kohl, and some dried berries crushed to a fine powder to make a rouge sort of shade.

"Since your eyes may be the only thing the prince sees, we need to make them bewitching!" Baris had commented before spraying you down with a lot of perfume.

"That's enough!" You push the bottle away as you coughed at the musky, earthy perfume. "Isnt that for men?" You ask coughing.

Baris's grin only widened. "Its sehzade Mustafa's favourite attar! I had to bribe his chamber servant to tell me this. And you my darling-" He sprayed you again. "-need to smell like him so that he thinks you two are a perfect fit!"

"That is literally the stupidest thing I've heard-" your insult is cut short as your vision is blinded by Baris flipping up your veil to reveal your lower half of the face and him applying some crushed berries juice to your lips.

"Just in case you have a change of morals and want to kiss the prince." He jumped back when you tried to slap him.

Soon, Mustafa came to fetch you. You two were currently walking through the royal gardens, with you giving curt answers so that he would lose interest in you and leave you alone.

Your dismissal didnt go unnoticed by him. "What do you like to do for fun?"

"Read." You answer looking at the well cut hedges. "Have you been to the royal library?" He looks down at you, finding you gazing at the flowers. "Yes. I've already read all of the books there." In college, of course.

"All of them?" His disbelief makes you look at him. Finally. Mustafa thinks.

"Of course." You answer, offended.

"Even the royal ancestry book?" Mustafa raises a brow at you.

"Yes." Your brows furrow. "Ask me anything."

He shakes his head and chuckles. "I doubt you know more about my ancestors than me."

When he looked back at you, you were still looking at him expectantly.

"Ask me."

Mustafa's curiosity got the best of him at your determination.

"This is- this is incredible." Mustafa commented, his eyes wide as he looked at the ancestry book from where he basically quizzed you. He didnt know he was talking to a historian who had pulled all nighters for pretty much every major empire for finals.

"How did you learn all of this?" He asks you, still double checking your answers.

"Oh... I have good memory." You mutter, making him shake his head at you with an amusing smile.

"Of course, I should've figured. You're a hafidha, you're passionate for learning." And passionate for making money in trivias.

Mustafa closes the book. "So, since you've read every book in here, I suppose you must be bored?" He doesnt wait for an answer when an idea pops in his mind. "Come on, lets go."

You follow him, trying to keep up with his fast pace. "Go where?"

"To get you new books." He looks over his shoulder and gives you charming grin.

Your steps falter. New books? "We're leaving the palace?" He hums.

You havent left the palace since you came here, mostly because you havent been able to leave.

You match his pace. "Lets go!" And Mustafa finally sees you excited for the first time today.

With a few Janissaries and some disguise, you all head out into Istanbul. You're looking around the city like a kid in a candy store, only you're looking for a something or someone to help you fix your time machine.

The market comes into view along with the sound of hawkers trying to attract customers. Of course, the only shopkeeper who wasnt yelling was the blacksmith, allowing his hammer to garner the attention of serious clients.

He could be of use. If you're able to find some tools, maybe even get some metal films, you could try to spark a charge and trigger the time machine to work.

You start to take a few steps towards him when Mustafa grabs your shoulder and pulls you back to him. "Where are you going? Stay close to me. I dont want to lose you." He tells you, almost in a chiding tone, but his hands carefully pulling your robes around you said otherwise.

He lead you towards a bookshop. Mustafa nodded at you to go ahead, explore and get any book you want. He'll buy it.

While you were busy browsing, Mustafa couldnt help but steal glances at you. He didnt understand why he was doing this- he couldnt really see your face, or anything except for your eyes.

Your eyes, they were pretty but its not their beauty that really captivates him. Its the swirl of emotions in them. The mystery in them, like there's... more to you. Like you're hiding something.

Perhaps it was your mannerisms. Your dismissive nature, your tendency to not be impressed easily by their eccentricities or status, almost as if you've lived with royalty before.

Maybe he likes how different you treat him him. How you dont bend over backwards to please his family, or try to pursue him or his brothers. In fact, you almost seem to be avoiding them altogether.

You intrigue him. Badly. Amusingly. Adorably.

-

"I dont understand! Where could she have gone?" Mihirmah whined to her brother at lunch. Mehmed only raised a brow. "Who? Y/n? She might be in her room recovering from yesterday's events. She was pretty shaken up-"

"I already checked! She's not there!" Mihirmah sighed before laying her head in his lap, and he began patting her hair. "She went out with Mustafa but she still hasnt returned! Its lunch time and I planned on teaching her sword fight! For self defense, you know- so that she doesnt get beat up like last time."

Mehmed's hand stopped patting. "She's with Mustafa?"

She nodded. "Since morning!"

"Huh." Mihirmah sat up, looking at her brother puzzled.

"What? What is it?" She asked him.

"Nothing." He faked a smile, but Mihirmah knew him like the back of her hand. "Mehmed. Tell me."

"I just... dont understand why Mustafa is spending time with her." He stated, standing up to walk to the balcony. "She's your teacher. What business does Mustafa have with her?"

Mihirmah watched her brother stiffen suddenly, watched the way his jaw ticked as he looked down the balcony. She stood up and joined him, following his gaze to see what he was looking at.

Its you. And Mustafa. Finally returning to the palace, servants holding piles of books following behind you two. What's even more bizarre is to see Mustafa smiling down at you while you giggled, covering your mouth despite the niqaab, making you look even more bashful.

Even Mihirmah hadnt ever seen you so joyful, and yet here you are- laughing so gleefully with her eldest brother. Step brother.

It rubbed her off the wrong way.

"You want her?" She asked him, her voice so hollow that it made Mehmed look at her.

"What?"

Mihirmah looked at him, her eyes stern. "Do. You. Want. Her?"

Unwavering determination. Thats what he saw in his sister's face.

Say the word, and it'll be done.

Mehmed stared at her.

"Yes."

-

"I hope you had a good time." Mustafa asked you as he walked you to your chambers. You nodded. "I did. Thank you, sehzade." Despite your best attempts at dismissing him, Mustafa was very persistent at breaking down your walls. And sure, part of you giggled and pretended to be flustered at his words, you mainly acted cordial so that he may take you out of the palace more often. He was your only way out at the moment.

You both stopped outside your door, the servants walking past you to place your books inside. Mustafa looked satisfied.

"If you ever need to go outside again, feel free to come to me, Y/n." He offered, before taking out a small box from his pocket and handing it to you.

Your heart dropped. A ring? Now? This fast? No no no no no-

You opened the box and you felt life returning back to you. It was a gold broach adorned with rubies and a diamond in the center, encaged in an intricate heart pattern.

"I may not share my father's gift of handcrafting jewels, but I do happen to be skilled at acquiring precious jewels on my conquests." Mustafa informed you as he took the broach from the box and looked at you for permission before pinning it to your hijab, just below your collar bone.

You were too stunned to stop him or even turn down the gift, though Mustafa took your silence as awe.

He adjusted the broach.

"Perfect." He whispered, looking into your eyes.

You watched him leave with a grin, finally able to breathe when he was out of sight.

With a sigh, you enter your chambers, half expecting Baris to be sprawled over your bed waiting to tease you for details on your outing.

What you werent expecting was... her.

"Did you have fun?" The sultana asked, her eyes sharp. "I've been waiting for you, Y/n. Lets have a chat, hm?"

Shit.

-

"You're abnormal." Your hands stop adjusting your hijab as you glare at him through the mirror.

"What?"

Baris tilted his head. "You're abnormal." He repeated.

You turn around from the vanity and glare at him. "Is this another way of calling me ugly?"

"Tch. No, I have words for that." He shook his head. "I meant, you've been acting weird since yesterday, after you returned from your secret outing with sehzade Mustafa."

"You're imagining things." You mumble, turning back to the vanity mirror and picking up the broach Mustafa gave you.

Baris scoffed. "I am not. I may have been busy with the younger royal kids yesterday, but I did manage to catch a glimpse of you giggling and blushing when you returned with the prince." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "So that means, the day went good. Something happened on the way to your chambers." He narrowed his eyes at you. "Did you kiss him?"

You whipped your head. "Baris!" He palmed his face. "Sorry, I forgot you're the religious prude. Did he kiss you?"

"No, Baris! No one kissed anyone." You began pinning the broach to your hijab, the same area where Mustafa had placed it yesterday. But you werent able to, too frustrated at the interrogation.

Baris grabbed the broach from you and pinned it in place. "So, you two didnt kiss, bought you enough books to make a you a scholar, and gifted you this broach, and you're disturbed because...?"

You frowned. "I am not disturbed. You're just reading too much into this."

"Fine, dont tell me. I'll find out on my own." You walked past him to teach your Quran lesson.

As much as you'd like to think that you're sly, Baris is right. Something did happen. After you'd returned to your room, you were met there by Mahidevran sultana.

You were reasonably scared because you thought that she's here to torture you or even kill you because you've been "seducing Mustafa" or whatever rumour Baris has spread about you.

But you were surprised when she told you that she wants you and Mustafa together, in marriage. As soon as possible. For the next half hour, Mahidevran basically told you all about the likes and dislikes of her son so that you would accustom yourself to them and then emphasised how supportive she would be of you to be her daughter-in-law. She even encouraged you to... sleep with him, she didnt say it directly but you got the meaning behind her words.

At the end of her lecture, she warned you to not spend time with Hurrem or any of her offsprings, besides Mihirmah because you are her teacher and even then told you to keep your interaction strictly formal and minimum.

When she was about to leave, she spotted the broach on your clavicle and beamed, almost proudly so. When you confirmed that Mustafa gave it to you, and started to take it off to return it to her, she stopped you and told you to wear it everyday. EVERYDAY.

"My son has given you something. You should be honoured. Cherish it." Mahidevran ordered.

The main reason you didnt tell Baris about Mahidevran and her confusing but threatening demands to court Mustafa was because of Baris's blabber mouth that couldnt hold a secret if his life depended on it.

And you have enough on your plate as it is.

You enter Mihirmah's chambers, bowing as you spot her.

"Ah! Welcome! Sit, sit!" Mihirmah pats down the seat next to her and you're slightly suspicious of her energy.

She's upto something.

You sit down beside her, opening the Quran. "I think we should start with-" She closed the book in your hands.

"In a minute. Lets talk first, hm?" She smiled at you. "How was your day off yesterday? Well rested?"

Your shoulders sag slightly. Of course, she wants to know about your day out with Mustafa. Baris probably blabbered something to spark her curiosity like this.

"Yes. A much needed break. Quite refreshing." You tell her, purposely keeping away from the details, lest she gets the wrong idea again and accuses you of whoring around your "ugly self" to her brother.

"Mmhm. Had fun with Mustafa?" Her sharp tone made you look at her.

Is she implying something?

"The prince was kind enough to get me some books." You told her cautiously, trying to ease the tension. "I think you'd like some of them-"

"Mustafa sleeps around." You blinked at her. What were you supposed to do with this unsolicited information.

"Okay...?"

She shrugged, picking up her cup of tea. "I'm just saying- he's been with a lot of women. The other day I was reading a verse from Quran where it mentioned adultery. Then I realised- thats what Mustafa is. An adulterer."

"You read Quran without me making you-"

"Mustafa is an adulterer, Y/n. Allah will not forgive him. He's doomed for hell."

"Actually, if he repents sincerely-"

"He's doomed, Y/n. Doomed." She reiterated.

"By that logic, so are most of your ancestors. I think most men, kings and princes commit adultery-"

"Mehmed doesnt." She stared at you. "He's never slept with anyone. He's a good Muslim man. Allah will be pleased with him."

What is going on here? "Um... okay. That's great news for sehzade Mehmed."

"And for you." Mihirmah announced. "You are the lucky one."

"What?"

She let out a sigh of frustration, as if she has to state the obvious. "Mehmed likes you- no, he loves you-" "Loves me?" "Shh! I'm still talking. You have caught his eye for some reason, so you should end whatever it is that you have with Mustafa and be loyal to my brother."

The room was silent, the two of you staring at each other- you, in confusion. Mihirmah, in determination.

A crow croaked outside.

"First of all, I have nothing going on with sehzade Mustafa. Secondly, Mehmed said he loves me?" You asked while trying not to show resentment.

Mihirmah scoffed. "He doesnt have to say it, I know it."

Your tension deflates to some extent. Okay, so she's just making up stuff. This can be handled.

"Mihirmah, I understand how-" you resist the urge to roll your eyes "-you may think Mehmed may be attracted to me, I am honoured, really. But I can assure you, Mehmed does not love me."

"No, I love you." Your head whips around at the sound of his voice.

Mehmed. He's standing behind you.

"Sehzade-" you begin standing up to bow to him, but he holds up a hand.

"Mihirmah's right. I love you." Mihirmah beamed proudly at standing correct.

Your eyes could only widen in horror as Mehmed sank down to sit right beside you, and with Mihirmah on your other side, you were trapped between the siblings.

"I. Love. You." Mehmed repeated, his hazel eyes staring into yours.

After several moments of silence, a crow croaked again. Mihirmah nudged you to say something.

"Um-" You cleared your throat. "Ugh... thank you."

Mehmed's brows shot up in surprise while Mihirmah broke into a fit of laughter.

"Thank... you?" Mehmed asked, and you would've thought he was mad if it werent for the amused smile on his face.

Mihirmah continued to laugh, and you had to look back at her to make her stop. "I-I'm sorry, Mehmed- this was- this was just too funny. I mean, she has a prince, the next heir of the empire confess her love and all she says is "thank you"?" She said, chuckling as she wiped the tear from her eye.

Mehmed glared at her playfully. "Well, maybe she's just shy around you." Why are they talking about you like you're not right there?

Mihirmah hummed, then nodded. "Perhaps you're right. I'll leave you two lovebirds alone. I have to do something-"

"What? Why? You dont have anything to do." You stopped her from standing up. You dont want to be alone with Mehmed.

"I do!" She narrowed her eyes at you.

"Like what?"

"Like-" her eyes zeroed in on your broach. "-pretty. Mustafa gave it?"

"Yes-" you yelped as she grabbed it and pulled it off you, ripping the niqaab it was pinned with along.

"Mihirmah!" Mehmed yelled at her, his eyes stern. You could only stare at her in disbelief before turning away from Mehmed to hide your bare face now.

"Oops! I'm sorry Y/n! I'll go get you a new niqaab- this one is all torn!" She said without an ounce of remorse before leaving the room.

Mehmed shakes his head as he watched her leave, before turning his attention to you- or well, your back.

"Y/n?" He called out to you softly. "I'm sorry for Mihirmah. She... she doesnt mean you any harm. She's just- she sometimes doesnt realise how hurtful her actions can be when she's trying to help someone."

When you didnt reply, Mehmed grew slightly worried. "Y/n?" He sighed when you didnt reply. An idea popped in his head as he looked around the room before looking down.

You heard the sound of cloth ripping, your heart dropping as you assumed the worst. He wasnt going to-

Your head turned around just as Mehmed's hands encircled around your head, a red cloth blocking your view of him.

"Mehmed?" You whispered, scared. His frozen hands seemed to snap out of it and began encircling round your head, the red cloth in his grip brought closer to your face. Thats when your eyes landed on the bottom of his red shirt (kemis). It was ripped.

Mehmed had torn his shirt to make a niqaab for you.

His eyes were focused on tying the makeshift veil, securing it before they landed on you.

"Y/n?" He called your name gently again, his concern growing at the sight of tears pooling in your eyes. He softly sighed as a his hand reached up to wipe a tear that escaped your eye.

"You're that scared of me?" After a few moments, you sniffled as more tears escaped your eyes and you shook your head. "Then?" When you didnt reply, or couldnt as you continued to cry mutely, he took it as a sign that you were humiliated because of Mihirmah removing your veil.

He took a deep breath and cupped your face gingerly before pressing a tender kiss to your forehead.

"My mind is occupied by you. I think about you all the time. Perhaps...I only think about you, moon." He wiped another tear with his thumb. "I love you, my moon. I fear I... I love you too much. My heart holds so much love for you, I can hardly call it my own anymore." He then kissed your teary eyes one by one.

"I know you... you dont love me yet, but one day, when you find yourself being generous, I want you to be the one holding my heart in your hands. Its yours, moon. Yours."

-

Baris waited with a few guards and servants outside Mihirmah's room, when Mehmed left the room with a satisfied smiled on his face. Baris noted the bottom of his torn shirt but before he could comment on it, Mehmed asked him where Mihirmah was.

"She went to see sehzade Mustafa. Shall I fetch her?" Mehmed waved him off, saying he'll go get her himself, after all- Mihirmah still had to finish her lesson with you.

Mehmed had just turned around the corner when you came out of the room.

"Y/n-" Baris called out to you but you sped past him, and he didnt chase after you when he saw your red eyes.

He'll tease you later, when you're not so sad. For now, he has to report the sight of this to someone.

-

Even if Mihirmah hadnt bumped into Mustafa and proudly showed off the broach he'd gifted you, the news would've still somehow made its way to him by the servants whispers.

"Oh this broach? Its pretty, isnt it?" Mihirmah smirked, showing it off to Mustafa. "Y/n gave it to me."

"She... gave it to you?" His gift. You gave it away?

She nodded. "Mmhm. She said it wasnt that precious to her, so she gave it. She was going to throw it away, but it went well with my dress so I took it."

You were going to discard his gift? Just like that?

"Mihirmah. There you are." Mehmed walked over to her. "Mustafa." He greeted his brother.

"Mehmed." He looked at his shirt. "What happened to your shirt?"

Mehmed grinned. "Nothing." He then looked at Mihirmah. "Come on, Y/n is waiting for you. I talked to her."

Mustafa could only watch the two siblings beam at each other as the taste in his mouth soured.

His broach. Torn shirt. Mehmed "talked" to you.

Mahidevran could feel her blood boil at the complaints Mustafa brought to her. Even if he didnt, the maids she'd hired to spy on you had already reported of everything they'd witnessed. You and Mehmed alone in Mihirmah's room.

Did you not understand a single word she said? Does she need to give you a more stern warning this time?

"Hurrem must've put them upto this." She muttered, before her gaze flickered to her worried son. She placed a hand on his shoulder. "Dont worry, Mustafa. I will fix this. You focus on Y/n, hm? You deserve her, my lion."

So? How was it?

Part 10 is here!

[thedensworld]

Welcome to Densworld🌼

Masterlist

den | aries | 24 y.o | infp-a | she/her | carat💎 ahgase🐥

Scoups only

Jeonghan only

Joshua only

Wonwoo only

Woozi only

Mingyu only

The8 only

Vernon only

1. Found You | Choi Seungcheol

His wife suddenly went missing. There are two possibilities, his best friend has hid her from him or she literally left him.

2. Lover Series | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu's love life has became more interesting since you came

3. On Scene | Yoon Jeonghan

Yoon Jeonghan, once a dedicated police officer, finds himself embroiled in a web of corruption and is subsequently transferred to a unit that is shunned by his colleagues. Just when he thought his life couldn't get any more complicated, a murder case emerges, and it appears to be connected to his ex-girlfriend.

4. Healing Hues | Jeon Wonwoo

Exhausted by the monotony of his life as a celebrity, Wonwoo makes a pivotal decision to return to his childhood hometown and embark on a heartwarming project: building a small library named 'Healing Hues.' Little does he know, this journey will lead to a series of unexpected and transformative events.

5. To The Rescue | Jeon Wonwoo

Eight years had passed since you and Wonwoo last worked together, but fate had other plans. The case you thought was behind you resurfaced, pulling you back into the world you thought you'd left behind.

6. Doesn't Mind At All | Hong Jisoo

Joshua willingly agrees to pick up his boss's daughter from school, not realizing that this simple task would lead to an unexpected encounter with his longtime crush.

7. Sweet Macaroons | Choi Seungcheol

Seungcheol was far from pleased when a food critic posted a negative review that started to impact your sales. He couldn't stand to see you upset.

8. Mind Date | Hong Jisoo

Joshua has the power of mind control, enabling him to get anything he wants by influencing people's minds. Suddenly, he meets you, someone he can't control at all.

9. Even When We're Drown, We're Still Breathing | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu was missing the spotlight he used to have, so he decided to accept the offer to shoot a reality show about marriage life and parenting. However, his wife was in a different situation.

10. Don't Touch Mine | Yoon Jeonghan

Jeonghan had hid his feelings for you, but he had been in denial. Then, an unexpected event occurred, and everything changed.

11. Post-Magazine | Kim Mingyu

It was an honor for Mingyu to collaborate with a well-known magazine. But this job made him realize that love at first sight is real.

12. Where to Sign? | Choi Seungcheol

Seungcheol is about to sign the pre when you said this thing to him

13. Guilty Flower | Choi Seungcheol

Seungcheol accepted his mother offer to meet you, his potential future wife said his mother, without knowing what kind of person you are.

14. Naming is Fun | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu knows that you are his laugh button, but he can't believe your suggestion over the baby name.

15. Now You're Safe With Me | Choi Seungcheol

Seungcheol received several missed calls from you, and he knew they weren't just regular phone calls.

16. Forever His | Choi Seungcheol

You found out that Seungcheol was marrying you for your property and wealth while you're pregnant with his child. What would you do? Let him go or play a fool?

17. Piece of Origami | Kim Mingyu

you have no idea that you're this untalented in making a paper fold—origami until your kid ask you to make one

18. What A Fate | Yoon Jeonghan

Who would have thought your next meeting after having a one-night stand would be this unexpected?

19. Perfect Pairing | Choi Seungcheol

Mafia Seungcheol has to face a fact that he found his bestfriend's long-searched sister. However she is a NIS agent who was ordered to terminate him.

20. What a Sweep | Choi Seungcheol

Seungcheol brimmed with excitement as he prepared to teach you some Jiu-Jitsu moves, little did he knows, you would nearly send him into a heart attack.

21. Ten Years | Jeon Wonwoo

In hospital Wonwoo is a doctor, and back to house he is your husband. However, your sudden conditions make him choose.

22. Everything | Choi Seungcheol

You come to him in the middle of the night, plan to end him immediately. However everything change.

23. What A Revenge | Yoon Jeonghan (Part 2 of What A Fate)

After an unexpected rendezvous after a one night stand, Jeonghan asked Mingyu to set him up with you. However you had a different situation and it's getting complicated.

24. Falling Flower | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu never thought that he would find Y/n, his friend's secretary, attractive. What's started from eyes, physical, has fallen to his heart. As he tries to get to know you, he realizes he knew nothing about you.

25. Rewind Button | Jeon Wonwoo

If Wonwoo had a time machine, he would definitely go to crash your wedding.

26. Flower Bloomed | Kim Mingyu (Part 2 of Falling Flower)

It's been a year since Mingyu and you were married. Once united by a good feeling, has started to scatter, both you and Mingyu couldn't find reason to stay together.

27. Your Best Man | Jeon Wonwoo

Wonwoo has tried his best to become the best man you've ever met. At the end, he is the best man.

28. Stupid Cupid | Kim Mingyu

You must be the reason why he's been nervous for tonight's event. There must be something that Cupid has been doing.

30. Hold On Tight | Yoon Jeonghan (Part 3 of What a Fate)

What's started for a revenge and status has developed into something Jeonghan couldn't comprehend. He unconsciously were willing to do anything and it was only for you.

31. Alone At Night | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu has no idea until he had to sleepover in your house because of the rain. In fact, it hurts him.

32. Revelation | Choi Seungcheol

What started as an office romance escalated quickly when there are news about Choi Seungcheol, your boyfriend, is suddenly the heirs of the company where you both work.

33. I Can Fight | Jeon Wonwoo

Since you married Jeon Wonwoo, you always considered to not wear revealing clothes. Honestly, Wonwoo doesn't care

34. Bucket Of Happiness | Jeon Wonwoo

After the divorce settled, you immediately moved to Canada for your treatment. Meanwhile, Wonwoo has to run away from his parents who couldn't stop forcing him to get married.

35. Sweet Truth | Choi Seungcheol

The relationship become unstable and lot of things happened. It's time for truth to be revealed

36. Towel Argument | Hong Jisoo

Towel is just a towel. It's not something essential. But why it is able to crack a relationship? Joshua is the first man to proof you that you won't have a towel argument.

37. People's Person | Xu Minghao

You never had a person. You were always be the people's person.

38. Time For A Rose | Choi Seungcheol

You found out how he always got you flower at the perfect time.

39. Right Time | Kim Mingyu

You both were too young when you get together, right person-wrong time. Two years after break up, destiny brought you two again.

40. Let Me | Choi Seungcheol

Seungcheol has known your for a long time and has been very grateful of your dedication as his worker. It was supposed to be just like that.

41. How To Summon Demon | Choi Seungcheol

Your friends and you playfully played game to call the Hot Demon in high school. What if he actually summoned?

42. Case 143 | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu and Y/n are exes. One day, they have to work a case together and it makes the situation uncomfortable for both teams. Besides for the rookie, Hansol.

44. Another Revelation | Choi Seungcheol

Just like other conglomerates in drama, Seungcheol's mother wants you to break the relationship.

45. Chill Dad | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu always wanted to be the chill and cool dad for his kids, however the world don't let him.

46. Work Stressed | Yoon Jeonghan

Working with your best friend is stressful and Jeonghan will tell you why.

47. App Location | Choi Hansol

You finally found the right function of the share location apps

48. Taste Me | Choi Seungcheol

Can't friends taste each other? Seungcheol didn't know the answer. But he was certain that it'll be fair only if he could also taste you.

49. Arrangement Crossed | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu started to enjoy the arrangement between him and you. What should he do?

50. The Moves | Kim Mingyu

Here's the plan, get you on the bed.

51. Illogical Project | Choi Seungcheol

It was just a project to get rid of a side chick, but Seungcheol fall. Deeply.

52. Dream Consequences | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu had ignored you last night and you will make sure he'll pay for that.

53. Logical Project | Choi Seungcheol

Illogical project dismissed! Now, Seungcheol had to face a new problem, Jiyeon and Jeonghan.

54. Top 10 Anime Betrayal | Kim Mingyu

It's hot news, and you can't help but share it with your boyfriend because Mingyu always loves your stories—top 10 anime betrayal level.

55. And No News | Jeon Wonwoo

Wonwoo can't reach you and he was worried about you.

56. Skinny Dipping | Choi Hansol

It'll be so nice if you and Hansol could have a little chat about both of your life, forgetting things that had hurted. Right?

57. Marry A Rich Man | Jeon Wonwoo

every parent wanted their daughter to marry a rich man, Jeon Wonwoo. However, you are a rich.

58. Black Card Issue | Lee Jihoon

after a fight, Jihoon didn't expect to receive notifications for a revenge. However, he's not complaining.

59. Stay Supple! | Yoon Jeonghan

two ordinary worker have to deal with a baby. What should they do? Stay supple!

60. Why Women Kill | Kim Mingyu

your husband of 2 years was found dead while you were away. Kim Mingyu, the detective, try to help you find the truth.

61. Talk The Stalker | Choi Seungcheol

Seungcheol is obsessed with you, he loves you and he would do anything to protect you.

62. Gentle Daddy | Choi Seungcheol

Welcome aboard to the threenager stage of Seungcheol's son and how he parents him.

63. Born Superhero | Jeon Wonwoo

Started as clueless father to superhero, watch how Wonwoo grow as a father... And a husband.

64. Complexity Of Us | Jeon Wonwoo

Being a friend to Wonwoo is hard. After Wonwoo saw you coming to race with another guy, it added to the complexity.

65. How Love Letter Work | Lee Jihoon

Jihoon watched you grown, from a trainee to a co-producer. So, a love confession would be the last thing he expected.

66. Just Like You | Choi Hansol

Hansol couldn't understand his son. But it was all because they were very alike.

67. Thicker than Blood | Kim Mingyu

It was an impulsive decision to take the kid home. However, who knows it'll bloom the flower in your family?

68. Fortune Teller Confession | Choi Hansol

No confession—no gig success. His logic-driven mind convinces him that it’s a harmless choice to make a confession over a fortune teller words, not realizing the emotional weight it carries.

69. My Woman | Kim Mingyu

Everyone in the building hate your leadership and start to think that you were only able to secure the position because of your husband, the CEO.

70. Kiss A Friend | Kim Mingyu

Mingyu was obsessed with his ex fiancee who had left him on the altar. To get her back, he paid all your debt to help him.

71. Is It New Year, Yet? | Yoon Jeonghan

Every year, twins will make a new year list contained with everything they want to do.

To be continued ;)

e n j o y, joy! -dk

[avatar-anna]

so just an idea. what if few years down the line when prof and h get married and he drops her to uni first time after they are married and people address her "professor styles" or "doctor styles" and she cant stop blushing and harry is just smirkingg. you can totally ignore this if this isn't something you like!

Heyyy queeeeeen, first of all HAPPY NEW YEAR! Second off all this is kinda a request/idea : how about y/n is mad at bf!Harry so she gives him the silent treatment and then out off nowhere he calls her y/n Styles and it gets her attention and then they have a talk about marriage and the end up making love?

I've given this a lot of thought, because on the one hand, I feel like Professor would be the type to keep her last name. BUT I also think she would appreciate the idea of shedding her past for good by taking a new name, Harry's name. She talks about it at length with Harry, and he holds his tongue, wanting her to come to her own decision and supporting whatever she wants to do (but he totally has an opinion and it's for her to be Mrs. Dr. Styles). And because you so graciously requested this, we're going with Mrs. Dr. Styles, so here is three times Professor was referred to as Dr. Styles!

The Professor Series

Harry often thought the way Y/n went on tangents was cute, adorable even, but right now she was being a little...unreasonable.

"Y/n, we talked about this. It happened for a moment, and security took care of it. I'm fine."

"This is not okay! Do you know how many creeps there are out there? So many. I don't need statistics because I encounter them all the time, Harry. This is serious. You could've been hurt, the band could've been hurt, anyone could've—"

"Darling, nothing happened. Come back down to earth for me. Please?" he said, standing up from the hotel bed to come near her.

"I am on earth! Where some...some freak decided it was okay to run onstage and charge you! Why aren't you taking this seriously, Harry? Anything could've happened? So many celebrities are attacked by fans who think they're in a relationship or have a right to..."

And on and on she went.

Harry knew it was scary for her. Y/n got easily spooked by this kind of thing. And he was fine with that, but honestly, hearing about all of this was freaking him out. He'd been fine after the show, but now she was making him uncomfortable.

"Y/n, love, come on. Stop," he said gently, reaching for her hand. But she wouldn't stop, she just kept going.

Harry loved her, he would never want to change a single thing about her. He loved her little quirks and all the things that made up who she was. She wouldn't be his love without them. But sometimes she didn't listen to him, and sometimes she worked herself into a frenzy when she didn't need to.

"Y/n Styles! Stop. I love you, but you need to stop," he said, voice soft but stern.

He didn't even realize what he said until she asked, "What did you just call me?"

"What?"

"Y—You called me Y/n...Styles," she said, and Harry thought she'd probably never looked so confused in her life. "Why would you do that?"

"I...I don't know," he said truthfully. "It just came out. Sorry."

He wasn't sorry, though. Not really. Harry might not have meant to, but he certainly liked the sound of it. They hadn't been together very long, but he knew what he wanted, he knew what his future was going to look like. Harry didn't care how long it took or when that future started, but he could wait.

What he didn't want was to freak his girlfriend out. Harry knew Y/n loved him, but she sometimes got squirrely about the abstract, the unknown.

"No, it's—it's okay, I—I kind of liked it," she said.

Of all the things to happen tonight, that was the most surprising.

Grinning, Harry said, "You did, did you?"

"I know that look. Don't give me that look or I'll take it back," she said, stepping away from him as he got closer.

"What look?"

"That look! Put those bedroom eyes away!"

"Bedroom eyes?" Harry asked, laughing as he cornered Y/n against a wall. In a sing-song voice, he said, "You want to be my wiiife."

"N—No, that's not what I said, I just—Hey!"

"No more talking," he said, carrying her over his shoulder. "We, Y/n Styles, are going to bed."

Y/n tried to say something, but Harry's mouth was on hers before she could make a sound. "I said no more talking," he murmured, nudging his nose against hers. "We're going to bed, and we're going to kiss for a little bit."

"Maybe a little more?"

Chuckling, Harry kissed the top of her cheekbone. "Whatever Mrs. Styles wants, she gets."

"Stop it with that. We're—mm."

"Shh. No more talking."

"It's—It's Doctor Styles," Y/n corrected, wrapping her arms around Harry's neck.

"Of course. Now, where were we?"

"Have a wonderful, wonderful day, Dr. Styles."

"It's review day. My least favorite day," Y/n huffed, slumping against the seat of the car.

"Impossible," Harry said, leaning across the middle console to kiss her temple. "Today is your first day of work as Dr. Styles, which means it is the best day."

Y/n's cheeks flushed at the sound of her name. Her new name. She loved it, of course, she wouldn't have changed her name if she didn't. But it was just so new. They'd only been...married...a few weeks. Seeing the ring on her left hand still surprised her from time to time.

"Are you going to say Dr. Styles every time you address me?" she asked him.

Harry's grin was broad as he winked and said, "Absolutely, Dr. Styles."

"Harry—"

He took her chin in his hand and kissed her long and hard. When he pulled back, her entire face was red. "Harry! Anyone could see—"

"Let them. I love my wife, and everyone should know it," he said. "I'll be by for lunch, okay?"

"Really?"

Harry kissed her forehead. "Yep. Gonna bring you flowers and embarrass you in front of all your students and make them jealous at the same time. So go, I'm looking forward to being a trophy husband."

He was being silly, he knew that, but he couldn't help it. They were married. Harry would shout it from the rooftops if he could, but he would settle for making Y/n blush every chance he got.

Grinning from ear to ear, Y/n surged forward and kissed him. "Do you have to bring the flowers?"

Chuckling, Harry pecked the bridge of her nose. "I have to bring the flowers, Dr. Styles."

Y/n, Dr. Styles, wrinkled her nose at Harry, her husband, who just wrinkled his at her and kissed her pouted lips. "You better go, Dr. Styles. You're gonna be late for class."

She nearly told Harry to drive them back home, that she didn't want to go back and teach, she just wanted to stay in all day with him. But that was impractical. She had to go.

So Y/n got out of the car and went, but not before one more kiss to Harry's lips.

All day, when students called her Dr. Styles, Y/n blushed. She got through her lectures without a hitch, but she couldn't avoid the teasing questions at the end, or the cheers and whistles when Harry came by as promised, a takeout bag in one hand and a large bouquet of her favorite flowers in the other. He ate up all the attention, then sat Y/n on his lap while they ate lunch together. And when her next class was about to start, he didn't leave like she expected. He stayed in her desk chair and minded his own business while she gave her lecture, though she could feel his gaze on her every now and again, each one more heated than the last.

Y/n could feel each one and tried not to rush through one of her lectures so they could get home. That wasn't who she was, she was a good professor who didn't let her husband's—her husband's—bedroom eyes get in the way of a lecture. She was better than that, she would be better than—

"I think that covers everything. I think you would all benefit from some free study time, so...so get studying!"

Students trickled out one by one, some of them going up to Y/n to ask her a question or congratulate her or both. She answered and accepted each graciously, but her fingers were also tapping furiously against her leg, just below the hem of her skirt. And finally, when the last student was finally gone, Y/n turned around and launched herself at Harry.

"Take me home," she mumbled against his mouth. "Take me home right now, please."

"Darling, you have one more class—"

"Now," she insisted, before going back to kissing him all over. His neck, his jaw, his cheeks, the corners of his mouth.

Harry hummed as he threaded his hand through her hair. He gripped her waist and indulged her in one more kiss before he tilted his head back. "I love you, my darling, darling wife, but no."

"No?"

"No. I know you want to now, but you'd be disappointed for letting your students down later," he said.

Y/n wanted to protest, but she knew Harry was right, so she slumped against his chest. "But I want you right now."

"Believe me, you are not alone in that department," he said, squeezing her hip. "But, we have our whole lives together, hm? So I will wait, and so will you, and when we get home..."

"Promise?"

Harry kissed his wife, loving the feel of her body pressed against his. "Promise."

"Okay, we're live in three, two, one!"

The host of The Daily Show smiled at the appropriate camera and did his normal greetings after the commercial break, then announced that Y/n was here.

"Welcome Dr. Y/l/n"

Y/n was nervous beyond all reason, but somehow she managed a small smile. "Thank you. I—It's Dr. Styles."

She wasn't used to this. She wasn't used to the cameras and the attention and the live studio audience. Well, she was, but her lectures were different. That was her safe space. This...a live television interview was not her safe space.

"Right! Of course, congratulations!" the host said. "How is married life treating you and your husband? What's his name again?"

"HARRY!" someone in the audience shouted, which caused everyone to laugh and cheer.

Y/n blushed. How long had they been married, and she still blushed at the mention of her and Harry being married? "Good. Good, I guess. We're very happy."

"I'm glad! And I'm so curious to know how the two of you met. A Cambridge professor with multiple PhDs and a world famous pop star. How does that happen?"

The host's voice wasn't condescending, merely curious, but Y/n wasn't prepared to talk about this. She didn't come to talk about her relationship.

Her mind buzzed with an answer that wouldn't be rude but would also change the subject. "We...met during the pandemic, which was when I realized how lacking schools were in...in so much. Which sounds silly, but I skipped most elementary grades and spent most of my time in higher education. But I...I realized I could help."

"Right! You became quite the internet sensation during lockdown to make educational videos, which obviously led to this. Your very own curriculum."

Grinning, Y/n nodded.

She never set out to write a series of textbooks for children. Y/n had a busy life, a fulfilling life as a professor. And yet somehow, she found herself wanting to do more. Harry had a lot of...younger family, and she liked to help them with their homework and projects and such. But her first look at their textbooks was very disappointing.

"This is what they're teaching you? This isn't even historically accurate! Where's..."

It was safe to say once something was on Y/n's mind, she couldn't let it go. Harry was amused but supportive, his usual reaction when she took on a new project.

"How can I help, love?"

"You didn't even finish school. How are you going to help me write a textbook?"

"Ouch, love."

"Well?"

"I mean you're right, but you could always say, 'Thank you husband. I love you so much.' Now you try."

"Thank you husband! I love you so much!"

"See? Not so hard."

"I started by just writing one. A comprehensive American History textbook," she said now, tapping her fingers under the desk where no one could see. " Kids have the capacity to learn so much more than what schools are currently teaching them. Leaving things out or not acknowledging certain events or painting our nation's history in a certain light is a disservice to them."

Y/n wasn't expecting applause, didn't necessarily want it. So she was surprised when the audience cheered for her answer. She smiled despite herself, then glanced to the side where Harry was standing off camera. He gave Y/n a thumbs up and blew her a kiss.

"That's amazing," the host said. "So you started with one, and it just progressed from there?"

"Yes, I—Once my mind is set on a project, I can't let it go, so I carved out time and just...wrote a bunch of textbooks, I guess. Well, I researched and got a Master's in Urban Education first. But then...then I wrote a bunch of textbooks."

"You wrote an entire elementary and middle school curriculum by yourself! That's incredible, Dr. Styles."

The audience cheered again, and when it died down, the host asked her more questions about her books, which she was happy to answer. She talked about her approach and her willingness to not shy away from or hide unsavory history. "In a way that's appropriate for each age group, obviously," she said. "But it's important for children to understand the complexity of history and that there's never just one side to a story. I tried really hard to be respectful and honor forgotten voices that have been left out for too long."

"Would you ever teach to younger pupils, yourself?" the host asked.

"Oh heavens no," Y/n said quickly. "My students at university can barely keep up with me. No, I—I wanted to do my part by providing well-rounded, unbiased material, but I'm not sure kids would want me to teach it."

And when it was all said and done, when the cameras were off, the host shook her hand and thanked her for coming to the show.

Y/n walked off the set and toward Harry, who was quick to spin her around in his arms. "You were fantastic," Harry said.

"I know! I was nervous at first, but I just am so proud of my work, you know? So it was easy to talk about. And I even managed a few jokes!"

Harry laughed because her "jokes" flew over everyone's heads. The only reason Harry got them was because Y/n practiced them on him the night before. "They were great."

She smiled, but it dimmed the longer she looked at him. "You didn't think they're funny."

"What? I didn't say that! Why would you—"

"You didn't have to. It's all over your face," she said, pouting. "You don't think I'm funny?"

"I think you're brilliant, and I think you have so many talents. Can you let the rest of us idiots be funny?"

"I suppose that's fine," she huffed. "Can we go home now?"

Kissing her temple, Harry took her hand and led her out of the studio. "We can go wherever you want, Dr. Styles."

[shippingmyworld]

Pigging backing on the Danny x Sam ask, but I wanna you're thoughts about Manny and Frida too and how their romantic relationship didn't work out

The Manny x Frida ship sinks a lot less dramatically than the Danny x Sam ship in my headcanon lmao

I chalk up their relationship 'failing' to Manny being autistic and Frida being adhd-coded. Also because they were 13-14 when they kissed and I believe that when you're that young you don't quite know what you want out of life or relationships yet, especially if it's your first one.

In full honestly, I don't believe that Manny held a single ounce of attraction to Frida in a romantic way. Frida was the one that initiated the kiss during the series finale, and Manny barely even reacted to that. I think his autistic mind just went 'Oh, I guess I'm dating Frida now.' and when people/his family asked him if Frida was his girlfriend, he confirmed it. In his mind, you only kissed someone if you were dating or married.

While I do think that Frida did develop a crush on Manny, I don't believe that she was serious about the kiss as a way for them to start dating. She's excitable, and gets swept up in the moment very easily, and is the jester type of character. She's the hypeman of every situation she's remotely near, even if not directly involved (my main example is the Cactus Kid episode, where she slides into the scene and makes the 'Oh, must be awkward to be you.' comment to Cactus Kid when Grandpapi reveals he's only using CK to make Manny jealous and doesn't think CK is cut out to be a real villain). I think that she kissed Manny because her thought process was something along the lines of: "Hey, this superhero just rounded up literally every villain in the area and is being celebrated by everyone. Someone should kiss him, that's what will make this moment super hype."

So yeah, they tell people that they're boyfriend a girlfriend when asked, but nothing about their relationship actually changed. They don't hold hands, they don't go on romantic dates, and they haven't kissed since that final fight. They still hang out all the time during their first year of high school, but slowly start drifting to different groups as they don't have many classes together.

The year passes normally and it's summer break. Rodolfo approaches Manny (who's just hanging out at home) all nervous like, asking a bunch of questions like he's beating around the bush. Manny thinks it's weird and asks his Dad what's up, and Rodolfo asks if everything is good with Manny and Frida since she hasn't been around recently. Manny says everything is fine, and Rodolfo keeps pushing the issue (he's projecting failed marriage with Maria onto his son). He eventually asks when the last time Manny kissed Frida was, and Manny realizes they haven't kissed since the first kiss right before high school.

So, being the direct person he is, Manny just calls Frida (in front of his father of all things) and tells her point blank.

Manny: "Hey, we haven't kissed since a year ago." Frida: "Huh, you're right." Manny: "So I guess we're not dating anymore?" Frida: "Yeah, I guess so. We're still friends though, right?" Manny: "Of course!"

And the call ends there with Manny going on with his day as usual while his Father stands there horror-struck and still processing the most chill breakup in history.

Meanwhile there's a whole soap opera level of drama going on in the background, as all the supervillains in school want to date Frida and have been waiting for her to break up with Manny, and Zoe has been trying to get Manny to fall in love with her. But that's a whole nother fic prompt lol.

Also it's cool, my posts are literally filled with typos lmao

[simslegacy5083]

Today's (10/31/2024) Episode: In Loving Memory

Luigi had been happy to see his step-mom at New Years but was devastated when he found out he had missed his last chance to hug her goodbye. 

"Thanks for letting me know" he said, his voice breaking "you're right, she was really something special." Ending the call with his step-brother he turned to Noemi, who was sitting next to him at the computer, looking concerned. "That was Scott" he told her "Mom passed away this morning…" 

"Oh honey, I'm so sorry" Noemi replied, rising to wrap him in a hug "She was such an amazing sim. I can't begin to imagine how hard this must be for you. Let me know if there’s anything special we can do today in her memory."

Luigi was still deep into processing his own feelings that afternoon when Noemi came to gently remind him that Skye would be home soon. "He was so close to his grandmother, and he feels things so deeply. I'm really worried about how he’ll handle the news." 

"Ugh, I'm such a plumhole!" Luigi swore “I was so wrapped up in myself I hadn’t even considered that, and I have no idea how to help him with this… no wait! Maybe a special drink to soften the blow?“

 Noemi didn’t dispute his plan, such as it was. "It couldn’t hurt to show him we care in small ways. Bringing him to Orange’s place for the memorial tonight should help him come to terms as well“. She frowned. “As long as we aren’t interrupted by fans or those paparazzi vultures.”

Skye's reaction was pretty much exactly what his parents had expected. As soon as they told him he started to sob, quickly pushing back his chair and running from the room. The sound of his bedroom door closing followed shortly thereafter. "Should we go after him?" Luigi asked his wife, unsure. 

"Let's give him some time" she said "This is really his first time dealing with the death of a loved one. He was so little when your dad passed. Why don't we get dressed for dinner first and then check on him? He’ll be able to catch his breath, and we’ll still have time to answer his questions before we go."

It turned out Skye was less blindsided by the news than his father. "Grandma told me she'd be going to the ever after soon" he explained when they came to see him a few minutes later. "She said she was looking forward to being with Grandpa again… but I’m still really going to miss her.” 

“Me too, buddy." Luigi agreed "She moved in with my dads and me when I was just a toddler and was as much a parent to me as they were.”

Noemi put an arm around her son. We're going to her dad's house to see your Uncle Scott and Aunt Kelsie for dinner tonight; and we can all share the ways she made us feel loved. You don’t have to share if you don't want too though, it's up to you. Are you ready to get dressed so we can go?"

Skye nodded solemnly and went to get ready. Settling outside his door to wait Luigi turned to Noemi, a question in his eyes. 

"I never even considered, dad and mom and papa… how's that going to work!? Dad and mom weren't together romantically until after papa passed." He paused then, his eyes widening with fear and concern. "Noemi… what about us, and Kiana…??

Noemi was quick to put him at ease about their own relationship "Honey, you know as well as anyone that my marriage to Kiana had been one of convenience for ages before her death. I’ll be happy to see her, but I was never more than a poor stand-in for her previous partner, who she’s reunited with now.”

I’m only interested in a relationship with YOU." She leaned in to demonstrate the depth of her romantic interest in him, and him alone. 

"Your parents" she continued after breaking away from her husband's relieved kiss "are a different story. They’ll need to come to some sort of arrangement, I imagine" she chuckled "but I suspect they’ll figure it out. Like you told Skye, the three of them lived together for years."

That evening Valentina's family gathered at her father Orange's ancestral home in the Del Sol Valley Hills to celebrate her life. 

"Thanks for hosting this privately." Luigi said as his famous step-grandfather greeted them at the door and led them to the front patio where everything was setup for their meal. “I mostly enjoy interacting with my fans, but I don’t think I could bear paparazzi and the public bothering me right now. I don't know how you’ve managed all these centuries without building a moat around this place!“

Orange stared at him, bewildered "Luigi… hasn't anyone told you about the celebrity disguise!?" Now it was Luigi's turn to stare. Shaking his head in disbelief Orange continued “you must REALLY love the attention to have gotten this far without knowing about THAT. I’ll fill you in during dinner.”

The family spent a pleasant evening reminiscing about the dearly departed sim that had touched all their lives so deeply. Before they left for the night Orange was even kind enough to let young Skye post a picture of him and Luigi together for his ever-growing simstagram account.

They all felt better following the meal, and after helping with his homework Noemi introduced Skye to one more way to center his emotions.

“These are yoga mats” she began. “Yoga is an exercise that helps me relax, and I’ve read it can also help with your asthma. It's been a long stressful day, and I think we could all enjoy a little time here under the stars together. You up to following along with your father and I?”

Skye nodded, and their little family began a tradition that night that would serve them well as they dealt with life’s many ups and downs.

View The Full Story of My Not So Berry Challenge Here

[lgbtqmanga]

New Releases June 11, 2024

Birds of Shangri-La (manga) vol. 3 by Ranmaru Zariya

A paradise of sensuality, Shangri-La is a male brothel celebrating the glories of gay sex—not somewhere you’d expect Apollo, a straight man, to seek employment. But Apollo has now finished his training as a teaser under the brothel’s most sought-after bird, Phi, and he’s quickly realizing he’s not keen to work with anyone else. When Phi himself starts to show possessiveness over Apollo, the two further risk permanent exile from paradise!

Case File Compendium: Bing An Ben (novel) vol. 2 by Rou Bao Bu Chi Rou (Meatbun Doesn't Eat Meat)

From the outside, He Yu seems to have everything going for him: he’s handsome, rich, and smart. But beneath his perfect facade, he’s hiding a dark secret–one that makes him a slumbering threat to the people around him. After spending years abroad, he enrolls in film school to pursue the girl of his dreams, Xie Xue…but that forces him to deal with her overprotective older brother, the man He Yu hoped he’d never see again.

Xie Qingcheng, an icy man of subdued emotion, was once He Yu’s doctor, and is the only person who knows He Yu’s terrible secret. He Yu swears not to let his past with this man get in the way of his feelings for Xie Xue, but he soon finds himself drawn into a tangled web of intrigue and violence that involves both of the Xie siblings. As a sprawling conspiracy sucks in He Yu, he must confront his own grudges and face new truths–including his own feelings for Xie Qingcheng, which warp into a fixation much darker than what he feels for the man’s sister.

Even Though We're Adults (manga) vol. 8 by Takako Shimura

Is it worth making everyone else miserable just so we can be happy? Even as they wrestle with this question, Ayano and Akari decide to move in together. Their new life together sustains Ayano after salacious rumors chased her out of her last teaching job. Meanwhile, Wataru is left hurting in the wake of the divorce and Eri struggles with an adulterous love of her own.

Finder Deluxe Edition: Mirage (manga) vol. 13 by Ayano Yamane

Akihito is back with Asami but has lost his memories of him. And to make a bad situation worse, Akihito is going through withdrawal from no longer taking the drug responsible for his memory loss. But despite not remembering his lover, the warmth of Asami’s kindness has Akihito feeling confused about his growing attraction. Will that be enough for Asami to get his old Akihito back?

I Think I Turned My Childhood Friend Into a Girl (manga) vol. 6 by Azusa Banjo

Hiura and Mido’s time as roommates ends with the start of the new school term. But now that Hiura’s gained a little more confidence, he’s forging deeper friendships with his fellow classmates, and at the invitation of rich girl Yoshino, he somehow ends up making his society debut! Meanwhile, a new character who is knowledgeable about makeup gets a glimpse of Mido’s secret. Will this set something off?!

Marriage to Kitsune-sama (manga) by Ken Homerun

In the town of Hokutochou, a mystical tradition unfolds every few decades. A villager is selected to ascend the mountain to marry one of the alluring fox spirits who reside there. Inaho has longed to take on that role, and when his time finally comes, he eagerly climbs the mountain to meet his new handsome husband, Subaru.

The captivating lord has been watching Inaho for quite some time and is pleased to receive his new spouse. But before this supernatural marriage can enter its honeymoon stage, Inaho discovers Subaru is cursed to devour his beloved--aka Inaho! Can they find a way to break the curse, or is this marriage doomed to end in tragedy?

The Moon On a Rainy Night (manga) vol. 5 by Kuzushiro

MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE

Summer break has finally begun, and Kanon and Saki throw themselves into preparing for the upcoming choir contest. When Tanabe suggests setting up a maid café for their school festival project, the three friends decide to head downtown to look at maid outfits. What with conductor practice, shopping excursions, and spending almost every minute with Saki, Kanon is actually starting to enjoy summer in a way she never did before. The only thing that could burst this happy bubble is an unexpected encounter with her classmate Tomita, who usually treats her with scorn. Could there be more to Tomita’s story than she’s letting on?

The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame: Master of Gay Erotic Manga: Vols. 1 & 2

A slipcased edition of the best-selling two volume series collecting the work of Gengoroh Tagame, the "Tom of Finland of Japan" and modern master of "bara" manga.

The often violent, visceral, and always provocative style of Japanese manga legend Gengoroh Tagame, one of the originators of Japanese bear culture, comes to life like never before in our two volume The Passion of Gengoroh Tagame series — the only English-language collections of Tagame’s erotic work, celebrated around the world for its groundbreaking subject matter, masterfully crafted imagery, and unbridled exploration of bondage, lust, passion, and romance.

Vol. 1 includes ten short stories dating from the late 1990s to the early 2010s, with an introduction by celebrated novelist and biographer Edmund White, as well as an essay and jacket design by acclaimed novelist and graphic designer Chip Kidd. In Vol. 2, Tagame serves up what his fans love best: elaborate, sensational, beautifully rendered erotica and BDSM. Kings, monks, cops, athletes: no manly man is safe from the deliciously depraved fantasies within this treasure trove of long and short stories previously unpublished in English, accompanied by original essays and an exclusive new interview with the internationally renowned cartoonist.

Our new two volume slipcased edition is a must-have for Tagame fans, as well as fans of bear cultures in general. (Please note: This book is a traditional work of manga, and reads back to front and right to left.)

Pulse (graphic novel) vol. 7 by Ratana Satis

FINAL VOLUME!

Sue’s past is finally coming back to bite her! Both she and her husband have been summoned to give statements and it won’t be long before they have to go to court. Is the director standing at the precipice of her fall from grace? All will finally be answered in the heart-pounding conclusion of PULSE!

Punch Drunk Love (manhwa) vol. 2 by MOSCARETO and art by Okdong

After getting not just one, but two passionate encounters with manager Jeong Tae-moon, finance worker Park Seon-woo is on cloud nine. The problem? Mr. Jeong is completely turned off by everything from Seon-woo’s frumpy appearance to his sloppy oral technique. Desperate to keep living his ultimate fantasy come true, Seon-woo works hard to improve himself and become a man worthy to stand at Mr. Jeong’s side…or just to crouch on hands and knees as Mr. Jeong’s footstool! Could he even dare hope to become Mr. Jeong’s exclusive lover? Maybe if he ditches those Coke-bottle glasses…

Shonen Note: Boy Soprano (manga) vol. 7 by Yuhki Kamatani

After an unexpected mishap at the national choir competition, Midori loses sight of who she is and decides to resign from the choir. Meanwhile, Yutaka's time as a boy soprano is reaching its end as his voice begins to change. He hopes Midori will get to hear him perform one more time, but…

Untamed: the Official Artwork

This stunning hardcover collection is a full-color guide to the rich world of historical fantasy The Untamed. This live-action drama series–an adaptation of Mo Xiang Tong Xiu’s New York Times bestselling novel series Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi–became one of the most popular dramas in China with over 9 billion views and fans located all over the world, including those introduced to the series in English on Netflix. This full-color hardcover (300+ pages long) is an art-and-text guide featuring beautiful shots from the show, character features, cast interviews, explorations of fashion and settings, illustrations and concept art, song lyrics, and more!

[redfoxwritesstuff]

Sunflower: Book 1, Chapter 3

Tom Hiddleston x OFC Series rated: M Chapter warnings: drinking AN: Can you believe it? We're at chapter three! Three consistent weeks of Sunflower! That's like a posting record for the last three years! Look friends, I know a lot of us, me included, are in some pretty crazy weather right now. It's either super cold or super snowy or if you're really unlucky- both. Stay safe, stay warm

Masterlist Chapter 2 Chapter 4 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chapter 3

They sat in a corner booth of a small private restaurant. It was peaceful and empty. Places like this were frequented by locals primarily while the visitors would sleep in and wait for the brunch buffets, fast food joints and reservations for celebrity chiefs. Even on The Strip, locals had their places. 

They were in the weird in between time where Las Vegas was either still sleeping off the night before or had already gone to work, contributing even more to the isolated feeling that hung in the air. 

It was places like this that the resident celebrities could slip in and get some eggs and toast without any fuss. Places like this, Elton John or Celine Dion were just another local hiding from the flashing lights. Places like this embodied the vibe of the locals. The walls screamed, ‘Look, we all just live here’.

“Thank you again,” she picked at the airy sleeve around her wrist, “for the clothes.”

“It’s the least I can do for asking you to hear me out.”

“I- I know who you are.” She blurted out and his whole body stiffened. “I called Ashley- My sister- to cancel breakfast and she looked you up.”

“And?” He was cautious now, so different than the carefree charm that seemed to drip from his pores and that worried her. It was like the warmth had been sucked from the air around him in a instant. 

“You’re an actor. I- I’ve not seen anything you’ve done. I don’t really see much movies. Why me? Why just a normal girl? Don’t you have an actress girlfriend or something. Won’t insisting on trying to be married ruin your career or life or something?” Her insecurities were all the more raw knowing that not only did she drunk marry a hot man but a famous one at that. 

“Maybe that’s why.” The waiter refilled their coffees, interrupting the conversation though Tom was quick to thank him for the refill. “Maybe I need something normal. I’ve done the actress partner thing and it just- it’s too much attention. My ex, my last serious relationship- she got married this weekend.”

“So you drown your loneliness and marry a stranger?” She scoffed at him. “That’s not how anyone should solve their problems.” It was the Vegas way though. 

“Perhaps. But perhaps it’ll work out.” 

“What about your career?”

“It’ll be fine, I’m sure.�� She wasn’t as sure as he was but really, what did she know?

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

His phone rang though he was quick to dismiss the call. “You have every reason to be worried but I can promise you, I’m not going to force you to do anything. One year- give us one year to see if this was a mistake or not.”

“Tom,”

“I know it’s probably not going to work out, most marriages don’t and we don’t even know each other. Let’s take the time to get to know each other though. Let’s see what happens. Let’s take our time. If it doesn't work out and we still don’t want to be together in a year, we split no fault, no questions.”

“So we play pretend?” 

“It won’t be pretend. We stay loyal to each other. We put in a honest effort. And if I ever make you feel unsafe or we fight too much, we pull the plug. I know I’m asking a lot-” The ringing of his phone interrupted him again. 

“Do you need to take it?” 

“No…” His answer was reluctant as the phone lit up once again with another call. 

“You sure?” 

He sighed. “I Should. Here,” He handed her a few twenties from his wallet. “That should be enough for the bill and tip. If you wouldn’t mind? I’ll try to be quick but…”

“It’s fine.” She wove him away. Was this her first act as his wife? It felt surreal. “Tom?” 

He turned to her, phone halfway to his ear. “Yeah?” 

“I think this is a dumb idea but, okay.” 

His face lit up in a smile. “Okay.” 

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

“This is Tom.” 

“Do not ‘This is Tom’ me.” Luke was angry.

“What’s got your feathers ruffled?” Playing dumb was always a good move with Luke. It’s far better to admit nothing until he knows exactly why Luke is mad at him this time. Tom had learned the hard way that if he started talking first, he was likely to admit to flirting with a interviewer when Luke was mad about a too high room service bill.

“Have you lost your bloody mind?” That wasn’t a good sign. 

“Is the correct answer ‘Yes’?”

“Damn right it is. You have ten seconds to explain to me why there are pictures of you kissing a brunette in a bar the same night Sophia got married. Go.”

“I’m human and allowed to kiss women, Luke.” Tom leaned against the side of the building, standing in the shade. 

It was quickly getting hot outside with the sun beating down. He wanted his sunglasses but they were back on the table.

“True. I’d rather you did it discreetly but that’s true. How about why there’s pictures of you with the same woman wearing a wedding gown. Tell me you crashed a wedding.”

“I crashed a wedding.” 

“You didn’t get married?”

“I got married.” 

“Oh thank god.” There were three heartbeats exactly, Tom had counted, between Luke’s reflexive answer and the realization hitting. “The fuck you did! You’re going to get it annulled, right?” 

“No, we’re not.”

“Have you lost your mind?” 

“That seems to be the question of the day.”

“Do you have any idea what this will do to your career? Your reputation?” Luke sighed. “I feel sick.” 

“It’ll be fine, I have faith in you. You can clean nearly anything up.” The door opened and Tom glanced over. She was beautiful even the morning after, with her hair in a lightly contained mess.

“This is a mistake.” Luke said as Tom watched her look around before catching sight of him. 

“Hopefully it’s the best mistake I’ve ever made,” Tom smiled as he disconnected Luke’s squawking as he pushed himself up off the wall.

“Here,” She held out the excess cash. He’d given her too much for the bill, even factoring a generous tip. Though he took it from her, he didn’t stop to count it before putting it in his pocket. “What now?”

“Well, if we’re going to give this a chance we should get to know each other. We can walk around, get to know each other? Do you want to stop by your room to get a change of shoes?” The started walking together back toward the hotel. It wasn’t far but her feet would quickly start hurting. 

“I don’t have a room. I’m a local.”

“Oh,” the silence was awkward. 

Two strangers stood in the bright sun of a waking city. They hardly knew anything about each other and yet they were husband and wife. The biggest adventure -or mistake- of their lives stretched out in the twelve months before them. 

For better or worse, they had taken their first steps down this path together, as partners. Their lives would forever be changed and shaped by the decision made this morning. With the path that took them to this point as unknown as the future, let us walk along side them as the Las Vegas sun beats down around us. 

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

“So, why were you drinking by yourself?” Tom stood close to her. It was dark yet the Vegas heat radiated up off at the pavement. The shared a smoothie in a large cup. The alcohol was strong but she was having the time of her life.

“I work here. Why are you drinking alone in Las Vegas?” She danced in place to the music playing from the speakers as water spouts shot in the air, lit up in a rainbow of colors to the tune of the music.

“I’m not drinking alone, I’m drinking with a beautiful brunette.” It took two tries to catch her hand, but when he did, he spun her around just to see the smile that lit up her face.

~~~~~~~~~<3

Tag List: @winterisakillerr, @alexakeyloveloki @jennyggggrrr, @dangertoozmanykids101, @tilltheendwilliwrite @tinchentitri @wizardcherryblossom, @buttercupcookies-blog, @violethaze, @kats72

[richincolor]

New Releases - Week of June 4, 2024

It's pretty amazing, but we're watching for ten different books this week. 

London on My Mind by Clara Alves – Nina Perrotta translator Push

Sixteen-year-old Dayana has always dreamed of visiting London — to walk along the Thames, take pictures outside Buckingham Palace, and maybe even get a glimpse of Arthur, Prince of Wales, whose marriage has been all over tabloids. But the trip of her dreams turns into a royal nightmare when her mother passes away. Now, Day must leave Rio de Janeiro to live with her estranged father and his new family in London.

As it turns out, the U.K. isn’t exactly Day’s cup of tea. She struggles to forgive her father for walking out on her and her mom all those years ago; fights with her stepsister constantly; detests her stepmother; and she can’t even see One Direction in concert because they’ve been broken up for ages. All she wants to do is trade the rainy skies of London for the sun and beaches of Rio.

That’s when she runs into the girl of her dreams — literally: The coincidentally named Diana, a witty, funny, redhead who was in the middle of . . . escaping Buckingham Palace? Something isn’t right here, but it makes Diana all the more alluring. As time passes, and the two girls grow closer, Day can’t help but wonder if there is more than a little truth to the rumors surrounding Prince Arthur — and if Diana might be involved somehow. Is it all in her head, or could Day be caught up in a real-life royal scandal?

Malicia by Steven dos Santos Page Street YA

Four friends, three days, two lovers, and one very haunted theme park

On a stormy Halloween weekend, Ray enlists his best friends Joaquin, Sofia, and Isabella to help him make a documentary of Malicia, the abandoned theme park off the coast of the Dominican Republic where his mother and brother died in a mass killing thirteen years ago.

But what should be an easy weekend trip quickly turns into something darker because all four friends have come to Malicia for their own

Ray has come to Malicia to find out the truth of the massacre that destroyed his family. Isabella has come to make art out of Ray’s tragedy for her own personal gain. Sofia has come to support her friends in one last adventure before she goes to med school. Joaquin already knows the truth of the Malicia Massacre and he has come to betray his crush Ray to the evil that made the park possible.

With an impending hurricane and horrors around every corner, they all struggle to face the deadly storm and their own inner demons. But the deadliest evil of all is the ancient malignant presence on the island.

Four Eids and a Funeral by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé & Adiba Jaigirdar Feiwel & Friends

Ex-best friends, Tiwa and Said, must work together to save their Islamic Center from demolition, in this romantic story of rekindling and rebuilding by award-winning authors Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé & Adiba Jaigirdar!

Let’s get one thing straight: this is a love story.

These days, Said Hossain spends most of his time away at boarding school. But when his favorite hometown librarian Ms. Barnes dies, he must return home to New Crosshaven for her funeral and for the summer. Too bad being home makes it a lot harder to avoid facing his ex-best friend, Tiwa Olatunji, or facing the daunting task of telling his Bangladeshi parents that he would rather be an artist than a doctor.

Tiwa doesn’t understand what made Said start ignoring her, but it’s probably that fancy boarding school of his. Though he’s unexpectedly staying through the summer, she’s determined to take a page from him and pretend he doesn’t exist. Besides, she has more than enough going on, between grieving her broken family and helping her mother throw the upcoming Eid celebration at the Islamic Center—a place that means so much to Tiwa.

But when the Islamic Center accidentally catches fire, it turns out the mayor plans to demolish the center entirely. Things are still tense between the ex-friends but Tiwa needs Said’s help if there’s any hope of changing the mayor’s mind, and Said needs a project to submit to art school (unbeknownst to anyone). Will all their efforts be enough to save the Islamic Center, save Eid, and maybe save their relationship?

Louder Than Words by Ashley Woodfolk and Lexi Underwood Scholastic Press

This amazing collaboration brings together two inspirational Black artists, NYT bestselling author Ashley Woodfolk and actress Lexi Underwood, for a story about the transformative power of art as protest and its capacity to change the world.

When Jordyn Jones transfers to Edgewood High, it’s her opportunity to forget everything that happened at her old school. To forget what she and her friends did. To forget who she used to be. That was a different person — this is a fresh start. Now she’s someone new, someone better.

Except it’s the very first day of school, and somehow everyone already seems to know who she is. But Jordyn soon finds a group of friends, and she even starts talking to Izaiah, a soccer star who shares her love of art. Life is good. That’s until an anonymous podcast called Tomcat Tea begins revealing humiliating secrets about Edgewood students, ruining their reputations and in some cases their futures. Jordyn and her friends know they have to do something—and this is Jordyn’s chance to prove to herself that she’s changed.

Jordyn’s plan to take down the podcast throws her into the spotlight, and as the momentum builds, so do the risks—because Jordyn has a secret of her own, one that could ruin everything . . . and that a mysterious harasser online is threatening to expose.

With riveting prose, New York Times bestselling author Ashley Woodfolk and acclaimed actress Lexi Underwood balance an insightful depiction of the power of art as protest with asking some of the biggest questions facing teenagers today—in an era where mistakes can be picked over endlessly online, who is worthy of forgiveness? Can someone ever really change?

Barda by Ngozi Ukazu DC Comics

Darkseid is…and life on Apokolips is tough—but then, it is hell after all. And no one knows this better than Barda, Granny Goodness’s right hand warrior.

But Barda has a secret…she is in love. Or she is drawn to the idea of it anyway, whether it be the beauty of a flower, her affection for her closest friend, Aurelie, or the mysterious and fierce enemy warrior, Orion, who is the only match for Barda’s strength.

But when Granny decides Barda is becoming too soft, she assigns Barda a task that might be more than she can handle—to break the seemingly unbreakable Scott Free. And as Barda questions why Scott has such hope and what he might have done to promote such hatred from Granny, she finds herself drawn to him in a way she never expected.

The only thing is, we do not speak of love on Apokolips…

Don’t Wait: Three Girls Who Fought for Change and Won by Sonali Kohli Beacon Press

Follows the stories of three young women activists of color fighting for some of today’s most pressing movements of defunding the police, environmental justice, and arts education

Girls of color have always been on the front lines of the fight for equal rights—to vote, to learn, to live—even when they are the last to benefit from the outcomes of their work. In Don’t Wait , journalist Sonali Kohli follows three teenager’s’ efforts to make their communities safer, healthier places.

Don’t Wait highlights what propelled the teenagers into their activism to their experiences organizing and incorporates Q&As with important lessons from activists who have led the way.

The three teen activists

· Nalleli has lived across the street from an active oil well in South Los Angeles and at age 7, developed serious health problems. Nalleli and her mother take on an oil company and become environmental justice activists.

· Kahlila, following the murder of George Floyd and looking to help fight back, becomes involved with Black Lives Matter movement in Los Angeles and fights to defund school police in one of the largest school police forces in the nation.

· Sonia, an accomplished singer who was grappling with finding an creative outlet in the pandemic, strove to increase access to arts education in schools across California.

As the young women transitioning from teen to adult activists, Don’t Wait reflects the powerful lessons they’ve learned in their activism while building movements in their communities that will continue to live on as they move forward.

Looking for Smoke by K.A. Cobell Heartdrum

Since moving to the Blackfeet Reservation with her parents, Mara Racette has felt like an outsider, taunted by her tight-knit classmates for growing up far away. So, when a local girl includes Mara in a traditional Blackfeet giveaway to honor her missing sister, Mara thinks she’ll finally make some friends.

Instead, a girl from the giveaway, Samantha White Tail, is found murdered.

Because the members of the giveaway group were the last to see Samantha alive, each becomes a person of interest in the investigation:

New-girl Mara, who hated Samantha for being particularly cruel.

Grief-stricken Loren Arnoux, who was Samantha’s best friend until her sister’s disappearance drove a wedge between them.

Class-clown Brody Clark, whose unreciprocated crush on Samantha is an open secret.

And tough-guy Eli First Kill, who has his own complicated history with Samantha.

Despite deep mistrust, the four must now take matters into their own hands and clear their names. Even though one of them may be the murderer.

In her powerful debut novel, Looking for Smoke, author K. A. Cobell (Blackfeet) weaves loss, betrayal, and complex characters into a mystery that will illuminate, surprise, and engage readers until the final word.

Moonstorm (Lancers #1) by Yoon Ha Lee Delacorte Press

In a society where conformity is valued above all else, a teen girl training to become an Imperial pilot is forced to return to her rebel roots to save her world in this adrenaline-fueled sci-fi adventure—perfect for fans of Iron Widow and Skyward !

Hwa Young was just ten years old when imperial forces destroyed her rebel moon home. Now, six years later, she is a citizen of the very empire that made her an orphan.

Desperate to shake her rebel past, Hwa Young dreams of one day becoming a lancer pilot, an elite group of warriors who fly into battle using the empire’s most advanced tech—giant martial robots. Lancers are powerful, and Hwa Young would do anything to be the strong one for once in her life.

When an attack on their boarding school leaves Hwa Young and her classmates stranded on an imperial space fleet, her dreams quickly become a reality. As it turns out, the fleet is in dire need of pilot candidates, and Hwa Young—along with her brainy best friend Geum, rival Bae, and class clown Seong Su—are quick to volunteer.

But training is nothing like what they expected, and secrets—like the fate of the fleet’s previous lancer squad and hidden truths about the rebellion itself—are stacking up. And when Hwa Young uncovers a conspiracy that puts their entire world at risk, she’s forced to make a choice between her rebel past and an empire she’s no longer sure she can trust.

Storm: Dawn of a Goddess by Tiffany D. Jackson Random House

Before she was the super hero Storm of Marvel’s X-Men, she was Ororo of Cairo—a teenaged thief on the streets of Egypt, until her growing powers catch the eye of a villain who steals people’s souls.

Few can weather the storm.

As a thief on the streets of Cairo, Ororo Munroe is an expert at blending in—keeping her blue eyes low and her white hair beneath a scarf. Stealth is her specialty . . . especially since strange things happen when she loses control.

Lately, Ororo has been losing control more often, setting off sudden rainstorms and mysterious winds . . . and attracting dangerous attention. When she is forced to run from the Shadow King, a villain who steals people’s souls, she has nowhere to turn to but herself. There is something inside her, calling her across Africa, and the hidden truth of her heritage is close enough to taste.

But as Ororo nears the secrets of her past, her powers grow stronger and the Shadow King veers closer and closer. Can she outrun the shadows that chase her? Or can she step into the spotlight and embrace the coming storm?

The Love Interest by Helen Comerford Bloomsbury YA

Seventeen-year-old Jenna Ray has just been saved by the world’s newest superhero, Blaze. And, in the eyes of the public, that means one thing: Jenna Ray has been cast as the Love Interest.

No. Not happening. Not if Jenna has anything to say about it (even if Blaze is actually quite sweet and cute).

But her plans to defy the HPA (the Heroics and Power Authority) and turn down this new role are thwarted when the Villains begin to take an interest in her and offer a life-changing proposition; become Blaze’s Love Interest, while avoiding catching feelings for him, to uncover the HPA’s secret plans and find her missing mum.

To make matters even more complicated, just as Jenna starts to embrace her new-found career, she discovers she might be more on the side of the superheroes than she ever imagined …

[jgroffdaily]

'Merrily We Roll Along' made them old friends. Now, the cast is 'dreading' saying goodbye.

Patrick Ryan

USA TODAY

NEW YORK – On July 7, the cast of “Merrily We Roll Along” will take their final Broadway bow together. For the show's tight-knit central trio, the grief has already set in.

The waterworks start not even three minutes into our conversation, huddled in the back of the Hudson Theatre before a weekday performance. Directed by Maria Friedman, the acclaimed revival of Stephen Sondheim's 1981 flop musical charts the fissure of a longtime friendship between Franklin (Jonathan Groff), Charley (Daniel Radcliffe) and Mary (Lindsay Mendez) as they navigate careers in the arts.

Offstage, the threesome has become “thick as thieves,” Mendez says. In the past year and a half, they’ve been there to celebrate births, marriages and pregnancies, as well as seven Tony Award nominations for the production itself, including for their respective performances.

Radcliffe, returning from a short vacation, sprints down the theater aisle as soon as he arrives, where he’s met with a giant bear hug from Groff. They excitedly greet Mendez’s husband, J. Alex Brinson, and her 3-year-old daughter, Lucy, who sweetly stops by to deliver mom coffee. Lucy briefly protests, asking to stay for the rest of the interview.

“That’s how I’m going to be at the end of the show,” Groff jokes. “These two are going to walk out of the building to their families, and I’m going to be like, ‘But I want to go with you!’ And they’ll be like, ‘Jonathan, get a life!’”

But, he adds, “that’s why we’re all crying in this interview: It’s the roles. It’s the life we’ve seen each other live. Doing a long run of a show, you’ve seen everybody’s highs and lows – it really is so bonding.”

Groff, 39, Radcliffe, 34, and Mendez, 41, look back on "Merrily," their careers and more (edited for length and clarity):

Question: There are less than 40 performances left of “Merrily We Roll Along.” Have any unexpected emotions come up as you enter the homestretch?

Radcliffe: Going into it, you just know it’s all going to be very emotionally loaded and bittersweet and lovely and sad. But I’m excited to just feel all those things onstage with (them) for the next few weeks.

Mendez: I think I can speak for Dan, just because we're parents of young children, that this run and how long we’ve been doing it has been taxing. We’ll be ready to get our nights back. But this show and these people have been such a huge part of my life, so I’m going to severely mourn that. (Looks at Groff.) He’s already sobbing!

Groff: (Wiping away tears.) I’ll be a wreck. I have a sinking feeling like I’m going to vomit; it feels like sand through my fingers. Once it’s July 8 or 9, we’ll be mourning. But the part I'm dreading most is doing it for the last time.

Radcliffe: Disclaimer to anyone coming to that final performance: You’re not going to be seeing the show, really. You’ll just see us crying at each other for a couple hours.

You’ve lived with these characters for nearly two years, including the 2022 Off-Broadway run. Are there scenes that hit differently now?

Mendez: I think when … oh, no. (Laughs as she starts to cry.) When we do the end and we say, “Years from now, we’ll remember and we’ll come back.” That really hits me.

Groff: Oh, no, not Lindsay going! Lindsay is the rock!

Radcliffe: Yeah, all three of us do cry, but Jonathan and I have cried considerably more than Lindsay. Sometimes Lindsay will come out for the last scene and we’ll both be in bits. Lindsay knows Jonathan is a lost cause, so she’ll look at me like, “Get it together!” But I do think it changes show to show. Throughout the run, you’ll find new resonances with whatever’s happening in your life. No matter what kind of day you’ve had, there’s some song where you can exorcise those feelings: If you’re having a great day, you’ve got “Bobby and Jackie and Jack.” If I’m having an angry day, I’ve got “Franklin Shepard, Inc.”

Was there a time in your careers when you felt like you had finally "made it?"

Groff: I would also say ("Merrily"). I wanted to be an actor that was always working in theater, but I didn’t imagine quite how – I thought maybe I’d be in the ensemble of a Broadway show. I was taking gymnastics lessons the first year I moved to New York because I really wanted to be in “Mary Poppins,” and I couldn’t do that unless I learned backflips! (Laughs.) And then “Spring Awakening” happened, and it was such a fairy-tale experience. I remember feeling, “Oh, my God, it all happened so fast.” I was in a bit of a state of shock.

But there was also a lot of growing up I had to do; being closeted, there was so much of my life that was compartmentalized. So with this, it feels like getting a do-over of the “Spring Awakening” experience. I’ve never felt more myself. This time, I’m not so blocked and I’m really able to take it in and enjoy it.

What are the offstage moments you're going to miss the most?

Radcliffe: Hanging out in Lindsay’s dressing room. Sorry, Lindsay, that you’ve had to share with us.

Mendez: We have a kiki every day. My daughter is there 50% of the time, playing and eating snacks off of Jonathan’s hand. (Laughs.)

Radcliffe: She watches “Peppa Pig,” so she came in the other day and was like, “Do you want to play 'pass the parcel?'” Also, in the most heated scene of the play, Lindsay hurls bread at people and I’m off in the wings trying to catch it every night. We high-five if I get it and she shames me if I don’t.

Mendez: I do, very much. And now, they’re helping me up and down as I’m navigating this pregnancy.

Groff: Pulling your skirt up (mid-performance) on Sunday as the belly was coming out. I was like, “Oh, my God, that baby is jumping out right now! We’ve got to fix this dress; the gown is coming down!”

Mendez: That's what the joy of the show is: None of us are carrying it by ourselves. Taking that bow together at the end is like the best thing ever.

[princesssszzzz]

Sneaking Away

Modern!AU Rhaena is in an arranged marriage to Garmund. She goes to the family summer home to meet Aemond when he comes back to Westeros and memories of their youth bring them together again.

Read on AO3

Pairing: Rhaena x Aemond

Warnings: Targcest, OOC Daemon

Word count: 7.4k

Rhaena's heart raced with a mixture of excitement and apprehension as she and Daeron made their way back to the family's main property. It had been a year since she laid eyes on Aemond. Daeron, always the attentive listener, absorbed her worries about her young marriage to Garmund, a fate she found suffocating. Forcibly married and after this meeting with her father, she knew she had to do her duty to be a wife to this Garmund. Rhaena sighed and peered forward watching Daeron twist and turn the car through the hills as she explained how she'd been avoiding the man she was supposed to call her husband. The car hummed, setting the stage for a reunion she's been eagerly anticipating with Aemond, but also dreading. She felt so conflicted.

The Targaryen family's high status dictated these arranged marriages, but Rhaena couldn't shake off the unease of being forced into such a union, especially in her freshman year in college. Daemon had whisked her quickly out of school and rushed her into the wedding gown. It was now May, school was over and she wouldn't be allowed to return. She was supposed to do her duty and become a mother, going to live with Garmund at the end of summer.

If her own mother were alive, this wouldn't have been allowed. At least not so soon. Alas her father is a widowed wealthy man, independent and concerned only with the family's legacy and station in society. Her uncle Viserys' sudden passing last year had gravely shifted the dynamics in the family, leaving her father Daemon in charge. Something everyone had been dreading. His propensity for not getting along with anyone had everyone avoiding coming to the main property, but now all the excuses to be away had been exhausted. Rhaena, Baela, Daeron, and Aemond were called back to make sure they were "doing their part" for the family business.

Rhaena had semi successfully ignored her father's favoring her older sister most of her life, but he gained sudden interest in her when she and Garmund turned 18 and it made her feel queasy. The young woman wished she would go back to being overlooked and insignificant before she caught her father's eye to serve his needs. Garmund Hightower's father is the second richest man in the country, quickly climbing towards being the first and Rhaena knew her father was plotting. He's been not so subtlety pressuring her to quickly have a child with Garmund. Rhaena sighed, trying to clear her thoughts as Daeron pulled up to the large gravel driveway, turning down the music.

"Alright we're here." They turned to look at each other, knowing what they were both thinking. Daeron just tried to give a reassuring smile.

She felt Daeron and Aemond understood her. Daeron had been completely shipped off to boarding school, graduating and finally returning home after his father died.He barely remembered his father and with his mother already deceased, his only emotional connection to the family was Aemond and Rhaena. The only two family members he's spent the most time with. Aemond being the one visiting him all the time when he got bored when his older siblings left the country after their mother's death. Rhaena remembered back to her father celebrating and toasting one night that he no longer had to deal with his ragged sister-in-law. He was fully in control and everyone had to go through him for the family business deals and fortunes. Even Aemond.

As she stepped out of the car, Rhaena took a deep breath, ready to face her father again. Her heart fluttered with a mix of emotions at the thought of Aemond. Memories of their stolen moments together before he went overseas flooded her mind, a love that had to be buried deep within her, She knew Aemond was already inside and had no idea how he would react to her marriage in his absence. She never told Baela about her secretive relationship with Aemond. Baela would kill Aemond. No matter what, she and her boyfriend Jace would never like him. Too much bad blood from childhood fights, and Rhaena believed her father's dislike of Aemond had rubbed off on her sister. Their childhood family friend Jace never got along with him. Never have and never will. Rhaena glanced over at Jace's parked car, knowing he and Baela were already inside. Those two weren't married yet, and Daemon didn't even try to force Baela's hand in marriage. He knew his daughters. Rhaena would give into the match to please her father, Baela would marry Jace no matter what.

As close as she had grown with Daeron being the same age as him and going to the same college, she couldn't tell him about her and Aemond's relationship either. He wouldn't even believe her, probably just laugh at her and dismissing it as her silly girlhood crush or her playing around. She had the opposite personality of Aemond, with completely different interests and hobbies. To anyone else, it just makes no sense. Daemon's favoritism towards Baela, and his disdain for Aemond only added to the complexity of Rhaena's situation. The clandestine bond she shared with Aemond in the past was a forbidden flame that she had to shield from the prying eyes of her family. The fear of her father's wrath and the repercussions of having her true feelings exposed gnawed at her, making Rhaena tread carefully in the delicate dance of secrets and longing.

She and Daeron walked up the large staircase, opened the door, and walked inside. As Rhaena navigated the treacherous waters of expectations and familial obligations, the smell of Aemond in the home was obvious to her. She blushed and slowed her steps so Daeron wouldn't see the color of her cheeks shifting. The unspoken connection between her and Aemond simmered beneath the surface of her skin, a forbidden love that could unravel their worlds.

With every step down the long marble-tiled hallway, Rhaena steeled herself to see him, knowing that her heart harbored a secret that could either liberate her from the shackles of duty or condemn her to a life of yearning.

She saw her father's angry face first. Rhaena and Daeron slowly crept into the opulent sitting room, the air thick with tension that seemed to crackle. Rhaena's heart sank as she saw the storm brewing on her father's face, a storm directed at Aemond who stared into the fire seeming unbothered by her father's temper.

"I can't believe you would do this." Daemon's voice was sharp, cutting through the silence like a knife. "You ruined a perfect alliance for our family."

Aemond's expression remained stoic, a hint of defiance in his one visible eye as he shifted his head to meet Daemon's gaze head-on. "I won't be controlled like some pawn in your game, Uncle. I chose my path regardless of your plans. I'll do my part in the growth of our Essos branch, that's all."

Rhaena shifted uncomfortably being unnoticed by both men, her heart torn between her groomed loyalty to her father and her feelings for Aemond. She wished she wouldn't have walked in during an argument. Attempting to diffuse the tension with her voice soft, she spoke up.

Rhaena quietly cleared her throat and clasped her hands together "Father?"

Aemond stilled before his gaze flickered towards Rhaena, his one visible eye holding longing and frustration. He had missed her more than he cared to admit, and seeing her now reignited a flurry of buried emotions within him. Yet his face remained emotionless, Aemond still aware his pissed uncle was in the room. Rhaena, on the other hand, felt a rush of warmth and nostalgia wash over her when Aemond glanced over, her heart fluttering in a way that only he could provoke. For a fleeting moment, the world around them seemed to fade away, leaving only the two of them standing in a bubble of shared history and unspoken words. It was Aemond who broke the silence first, his voice low and tinged with irritation at Daemon's usual dismissive demeanor towards Rhaena.

"Rhaena," Aemond's tone was tense yet filled with an underlying tenderness as he stood slowly, "It's been far too long." He turned towards his little brother and nodded. "Brother, you're slightly taller."

Daeron scoffed and gave a quick boyish laugh at his brother's mocking tone when Rhaena's heart skipped a beat at the sound of Aemond's voice, a rush of emotions flooding her being. She stepped closer to him, her eyes searching his face for any sign of the connection they once shared, the connection that had been kept hidden from the prying eyes of their family.

"Aemond," she whispered, her voice barely above a breath, "It's nice to see you again." She's fortunate to have the pleasant reputation she has. No one ever questioned or cared about her warm greetings to Aemond, her father knowing Baela has a much different greeting for him.

"Rhaena." Daemon cut off her thoughts with his back-to-business tone. He was still annoyed with Aemond. Her father roughly stood up, petty and bothered that Aemond was now standing and appearing larger than him. His gaze quickly left Rhaena, before squinting at Daeron.

"Hmmm.....Daeron," Daemon began, his voice carrying a tone of authority. Rhaena didn't miss he'd almost forgotten the boy's name again. "I've arranged a match with the youngest Martell girl down south."

Daeron sighed unsurprised, while Daemon glanced at Aemond briefly flashing anger before looking back at the younger, much more pliant boy who wouldn't argue with him. Rhaena wasn't shocked to hear this. She wondered how it felt to have been in a normal family, with no relationships set up abruptly like this. She never bothered explaining any of this to her friends at school. They wouldn't get it. It was slightly different with her uncle as the head of the family. He at least tried to be loving while her father just barked orders and conjured up different schemes.

Daeron's eyes flickered with a quick moment of hesitation before he spoke. "Uncle, I... I feel a sudden illness coming on. May I be excused?" he asked, hoping to avoid the discomfort of the conversation about his own arranged match to a stranger.

Daemon brushed him off with a wave of his hand, already moving on to something else. "Fine, go rest," he spoke in a calmer tone, finally seeming to relax more.

As Daeron hurriedly left the study, Aemond's brow furrowed contemplating the mention of a Martell match for his brother. However, his thoughts were quickly interrupted by Daemon's next words.

His uncle's voice echoed through the room venomously as Daeron left Rhaena standing alone near the entrance, feeling exposed. "My dear nephew, it seems our sweet Rhaena has found herself in the clutches of young wealthy Garmund Hightower. If only everyone was as simple as Rhaena with my matches," Daemon smirked at Rhaena, a glint of amusement dancing in his eyes as he nonchalantly picked up a pen, twirling it between his large fingers.

Rhaena felt heat creeping up her neck. Aemond stilled again, peering at Rhaena with an unfamiliar look before he shot a steely gaze at Daemon, a silent challenge in his eyes daring the older man to continue his jest. The tension in the room thickened, like a storm brewing on the horizon, as the implications of Daemon's casual remark hung in the air and cast a shadow over Rhaena and Aemond.

Aemond's heart had skipped a beat, a mixture of shock and rage bubbling within him. Rhaena, his cousin whom he shared a complicated bond with, was married off while he was away. But Aemond, ever the master of composure, masked his emotions behind a stoic facade.

"Married?" Aemond inquired with a forced calmness, eyeing Rhaena while cocking his head to the side. His long hair swayed behind him. "To Garmund?" he added, though the question felt like a heavy weight on his chest.

He thought back to Garmund his cousin on his mother's side. He didn't like Garmund before, having gone his entire life paying no attention to the younger boy. But now the dislike exacerbated into something much more extreme. As the tense atmosphere lingered in the room, completely missed by Daemon, Rhaena could feel the weight of the room pressing down on her. She searched for a way to escape the uncomfortable conversation and Aemond's eyesight. With a quick glance back towards Aemond, she mustered up an excuse.

"I-I... I just remembered something urgent I need to attend to," Rhaena stammered, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "Excuse me, please."

Without waiting for a response or acknowledgement from her father, she hurriedly made her way out of the room, feeling a rush of childishness wash over her. Aemond's gaze followed her, his eye reflecting a mixture of emotion. He stood there silently. Daemon consumed in his own world, was now engrossed in a phone call. With a dismissive wave of his hand, he signaled for Aemond to leave. His attention was now focused elsewhere.

Alone in her summer room after semi running down the halls and up the stairs, Rhaena let out a shaky breath. The walls offered up solace in their silent embrace. The weight of the situation still hung heavy on her shoulders, but in that moment of seclusion she allowed herself to be vulnerable. To feel the emotions that had been brewing beneath the surface.

Rhaena sank into the warm, comforting embrace of the bath, letting the fragrant rose bubbles envelop her like a soothing cocoon. The water's gentle caress eased the tension in her muscles, but it couldn't soothe the turmoil in her mind. As she leaned back against the porcelain, her gaze drifted out of her bathroom and into her bedroom, taking in the familiar sight of her childhood dolls neatly arranged on a shelf.

A pang of nostalgia tugged at her while she stared at worn teddy bears, their button eyes staring back at her with a sense of timeless innocence. Rhaena's thoughts wandered back to simpler days when her biggest worry was which game to play with Baela or how high she could swing on the property's ancient oak tree to show her mom.

The weight of adulthood and the burden of responsibilities suffocated her spirit. She longed for the days when the world was a playground and her father could be drowned out. The laughter of Baela and Jace sneaking into the kitchen to steal snacks echoed in her mind, a bittersweet melody that brought both comfort and sorrow.

With a heavy sigh, Rhaena closed her eyes, allowing herself to drift away on a tide of even more sacred memories. In this moment of solitude, surrounded by the ghosts of her past, she yearned for the simplicity of her girlhood, where the only thing that mattered was the next adventure with Aemond.

As Rhaena's mind meandered through the corridors of memories, she found herself drifting back to the summers spent in this grand house. It was a place where the walls echoed with the laughter of cousins playing in the sprawling gardens, and the air was always filled with a tantalizing scent. One particular summer stood out vividly in her mind, the summer that marked a turning point in her relationship with Aemond. It was the summer when a misunderstanding led to a grave accident that changed their dynamic forever. Before he had never even acknowledged her existence. The memory unfurled like a delicate tapestry before her eyes. Rhaena vividly recalled the night she woke everyone up in a frenzy, accusing Aemond of stealing her mother's beloved cat. In the chaos of the darkened house, Aemond was left missing an eye, pissed off even more than usual, and a permanent scar on his face.

Guilt gnawed at the young Rhaena's heart as she saw the chaos of the house unfold before her. She was too young to understand the complexities of how many of her family members did not get along before then. In the days that followed, she made it her mission to bring Aemond snacks and comfort, a silent gesture of apology and camaraderie. Aemond didn't necessarily have a choice, with him not being allowed outside while he was healing. He was stuck in the house with Daemon's youngest while everyone else was free to roam around and play outside. As they sat together in the sunlit corners of the house, his attitude towards her shifted into something else. It started with sharing whispered conversations, spending hours in the library, and stealing moments of laughter. A bond began to form between them woven from threads of understanding.

That summer became a turning point, a chapter in their intertwined story that spoke of forgiveness, empathy, and the unbreakable ties that bound them together as more than just family. Rhaena knew that amidst the shadows of the past, there glimmered a ray of light—a reminder of the bond she shared with Aemond, forged in the fire of childhood misadventures and sealed with the sweetness of shared snacks and whispered confidences. Aemond and Rhaena’s childhood bonding was a welcome distraction from Daemon’s behavior. When Aemond left the country at 19, she was reminded how horrible her relationship with her father was. Rhaena knew from watching wholesome families on TV that her family was not normal, especially Daemon’s borderline abusive behavior. She would often spend hours in her mother’s garden daydreaming about having a good father. A father who didn’t curse and call people cunts. A father who treated her like a princess and played in the playground with her. A father who didn’t scoff at her still having stuffed animals and Barbies at age 10. A father who would never see her as boring. She would often come to Aemond when they were younger, complaining to him about Daemon and he would agree with everything she said, replying with nods and 'uh huh'. Rhaena would giggle when he occasionally responded to her bizarre stories by inventing new curse words to mutter at her father.

Laena thought it was odd at first, why a girl like Rhaena wanted to hang out with her older cousin, a serious boy who was into much different types of games than her. She wanted to play with dolls, he wanted to take Nerf guns outside and explore the woods behind the family’s 50-acre property. They compromised and Rhaena took her dolls outside and walked alongside Aemond as he pretended to go hunting. After the eye incident, he was not allowed a real weapon to run around with.

‘As long as Rhaena has someone close to befriend other than her sister’ Laena thought.

Alicent thought it weird but chose to ignore it and be at peace with how the young girl was so much different than her vile father. She was secretly glad he had someone to spend time with to get away from his foul older brother.

Rhaena knew she could rant to Aemond, say anything about her father and Aemond didn’t like him anyway so he would never tell an adult on her or reveal her secrets. That’s how it shifted from playing to much more grim conversations. Complaining sessions about how they couldn’t stand their fathers. Rhaena started it, Aemond eventually opened up slowly, throwing rocks outside with Rhaena and occasionally blurting out how he hated his father and what Viserys did to bother him that day.

Rhaena sat further back in the warm bath, the water still soothing her body but not her racing thoughts. She leaned back, reminiscing about their first innocent kiss as children in the woods. It was a fleeting moment, a simple peck prompted by a scene in a movie she had seen.

She remembered how nonchalant he'd been, playing in the woods like always until she impulsively decided to mimic the kiss she saw. Stepping on the tips of her toes to reach the ever-growing Aemond, she planted a quick peck on his lips, he stared back at her saying nothing as she smiled at him but he still didn't respond. What she missed in her haste was the sigh and smile that flickered across Aemond's usually stern face before she dashed back to the house, called in by her grandmother.

As she soaked in the bath, the memory brought a bittersweet smile to her lips. It was a moment of innocence, a spark between them that she couldn't quite understand back then. And yet, it lingered in her mind, a glimpse of something deeper beneath their shared complaints and secret confessions.

Rhaena still couldn’t get over Aemond calling his father by his first name. It seemed so disrespectful. Eventually, Aemond started to rub off on her and she thought ‘Daemon' when talking to her father but didn’t dare say it out loud. Father would suffice until he passed away. Rhaena enjoyed living vicariously through Aemond and appreciated his audacity. She laughed at how him and Baela never got along, yet how similar they could be at times. Daemon never noticed or cared that his daughter was spending so much time with the nephew which annoyed him the most. If he did, he didn’t say anything. After her mother’s death, that was when Rhaena started to appreciate his ignoring her. She could quietly sneak off for hours. If he ever questioned where she was, she would always say she was off reading in a cozy nook somewhere. He didn't care anyway.

As much as Rhaena loved her sister, and they were so close, she didn’t want Baela to see certain sides of her. She would feel embarrassed. With Aemond, she could say anything. As they were getting older and he felt annoyed by her childish antics as he called them, he would ignore silly things she said or respond with sarcasm and scoffs. Rhaena thought it was funny because was still listening anyway.

‘He’s only pretending to be annoyed.’ Rhaena thought. She smiled to herself, realizing the older boy was not bothered with her like her father was.

When the family gathered together at the big house. Rhaena started to notice the age difference between her and Aemond. He was years older and they spent less and less time together the more they aged. She realized he wanted to spend more time around people his age and do adult things, but he was too nice to ever ask her to go away. He let her linger around his room during the summer and would give her hints.

“I’m going to smoke now.” He never smoked in front of her, hiding the stinky cigarettes from his father and claiming he didn’t want to be a bad influence on Rhaena. He pecked her forehead as she reluctantly got up out of his bed, breaking their comfortable cuddle and turning off the movie they had been watching.

“This stuff will give you cancer. It kills.” Placing the cigarette in his mouth and waiting for her to leave before lighting it.

“Stop smoking it then.” Rhaena just widened her doe eyes, confused and worried. He just chuckled at her and she would leave, going to read a book or to bake pastries.

Later he would walk past her at dinner, and the strong whiff of tobacco would hit her. She didn’t mind the smell though, and it started to relax her despite the obvious contrast the gruff scent had to her floral body sprays. Aemond left her when he was 18. Following his older siblings out of the country and attended university overseas. Rhaena was heartbroken, and busied herself in schoolwork and extracurriculars, bidding her time for his summer visits.

She became all the more aware of her father’s behavior again without Aemond’s distractions. Baela had left for university a year after Aemond, going to a further away school to be closer to Jace. Now she was alone with her father and it gave her anxiety. Daemon got irritated so easily and Rhaena fell into her introversion, feeling more comfortable just being quiet, smiling, and doing what her father asked of her to appease him. He was always arguing with someone, on business calls yelling into the phone. But things got better after Alicent died months later, Rhaena didn’t realize how much Aemond's mom seemed to bother her father but she did feel bad for Aemond, she spent the entire funeral watching him grieve with his siblings.

His temper quickly came back after her uncle died last year. Rhaena sighed, knowing this is just how it’s gonna be with her father forever. She was a legal adult now, and couldn't let this bother her forever.

Reluctantly, Rhaena opened her eyes, the reality of her current situation crashing back with cruel clarity. The water was at room temperature now.

The grand dining hall of the family's estate was filled with the clinking of silverware and the murmur of conversation. The long, ornate table was adorned with fine china and flickering candles, casting a warm glow over the gathered faces.

As the elegant dinner unfolded in the grand hall, the ambiance was disrupted by the sound of the heavy oak door creaking open. All eyes turned towards the entrance as Rhaena hurried in, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment at arriving late. Aemond's gaze lifted towards her, his one good eye capturing her every movement. There was a fleeting moment of stillness as their eyes met, a silent exchange. Rhaena's heart skipped a beat as she caught Aemond's intense stare, the weight of their shared secret hanging heavily between them. She averted her gaze, feeling a rush of guilt and longing swirl within her. Despite the tension in the air, a sense of familiarity and longing sparked in her chest.

Aemond's expression remained inscrutable, curiosity and perhaps a hint of something more hidden beneath his stoic demeanor before he turned back to his conversation. Rhaena took her seat after rushing to peck her grandmother on the cheek and give a cordial greeting to Otto Hightower.

As Rhaena settled in, she couldn't help but notice the playful banter happening between her sister Baela, her husband Jace, and her cousin Daeron, with Aemond seated nearby. Baela's laughter echoed through the hall as she teased Daeron about his latest college escapade, earning a chuckle from Jace.

As the jovial atmosphere continued to dance around the dining table, Baela couldn't resist teasing, her mischievous grin lighting up her face. "Daeron, Rhaena told us you tried to cook dinner in your apartment last week. How many pots did you manage to burn this time?"

Daeron chuckled, feigning offense. "Only a few, cousin, but I'll have you know that I've improved! I only set off one small kitchen fire this time."

Jace chimed in with a playful jab at her. "Well, at least Daeron's kitchen disasters are more entertaining than your attempts at making homemade pizza. Remember when you accidentally put chemicals in the dough?"

Baela blushed, shooting a mock glare. "I thought it was water." She shrugged it off. "Besides, it's not like your experiments in the lab always go smoothly, Mr. 'Oops, I accidentally created a mini-explosion.'"

Amidst the laughter and gentle ribbing, Aemond had been silently observing when raised his glass, a twinkle in his eye. "To the family, where even your mishaps and blunders bring us closer together. Cheers." Daeron scoffed.

"What do you mean your, don't you mean ours? Include yourself, bastard." Baela and Jace snickered among each other as Aemond rolled his remaining eye, not wanting to incorporate himself into mishaps and blunders.

Rheanys shot her granddaughter a look, giving a silent warning about using curses at the dinner table. She turned back to Otto, before cutting her eyes at Aemond.

"No announcement?"

"He told me he had something to share, but Daemon knows." Otto gruffed at the far end of the table, now trying to ignore Daemon. Working with his older brother was much easier. Rhaena was sure if Otto didn't share family members and have so many connections that hated Daemon, he would have been fired by now.

As the dinner conversation ebbed and flowed, Daemon cleared his throat, fixing a pointed gaze on Otto. "I was going to wait until after dinner but since you're all here, did you know that your grandson here went off and got himself hitched before graduation?" The words hung in the air, causing a collective gasp to ripple through the room.

The loud clinking on her plate wasn't enough to take attention off of Aemond. Rhaena's eyes widened in shock, her hand instinctively dropping her knife and fork. Aemond's jaw tensed, his one good eye narrowing as he shot a warning look at Daemon. "I told you not to bring that up, old man," he growled, the tension palpable in the room.

Daeron, ever the jester, couldn't resist a quip to try to lighten the mood. "Well, well, brother, leaving us all in the dark about your secret escapades. Who's the lucky lady?" He winked mischievously, eliciting a chuckle from Baela, who nudged him playfully. The 'lucky' of course being him throwing sarcasm back at his brother.

Rhaena felt a wave of desolation wash over her. Aemond had always been somewhat of a mystery to her even with their closeness, but the thought of him being married and keeping it from her stung. She stole a glance at him, her heart aching with a tinge of longing she couldn't quite place.

As tensions simmered in the dining hall, Aemond took a deep breath as he locked eyes with Otto. "You knew, didn't you?" Aemond's voice was laced with accusation as he pointed a finger at Otto. "You were in on it, weren't you? This whole charade of arranging a marriage without my consent."

Otto's expression remained stoic. "It was for the good of the family, Aemond. You shouldn't have run off. Your mother would have wished—"

Aemond cut him off with a bitter laugh. "She wished? Don't pretend this was anything other than a ploy to control me, to force me into a life I never wanted!" His one eye blazed with defiance as he turned to Daemon, who sat back in his chair with a smug grin.

Daemon's voice dripped with condescension. "You were always a rebellious one, Aemond. But this marriage was necessary for our family's future. You can always annul, and you should be grateful for the opportunity."

Aemond's temper flared at Daemon's words as he carefully avoided looking at Rhaena. "Grateful? For being treated like a pawn in your schemes? I won't stand for it, I married my professor Alys. I'm leaving, Uncle. I'm taking what's mine and I'm going to Essos, far away from this suffocating web of control you've all spun. I told you both I'll do my job over there and that's it."

The room fell into a stunned silence at Aemond's declaration. Rhaena watched on, her heart torn between sympathy for Aemond's plight and fear of the consequences of his defiance. Daemon's face darkened with rage, but before the older man could respond, Aemond pushed back his chair, the scraping sound echoing through the hall.

With a final glare at his uncle, Aemond strode out of the room, his footsteps echoing down the hallway. The stress lingered in the air, thick with Daemon's anger, as the family grappled with the aftermath of Aemond's bold decision to break free from the suffocating grasp.

Rhaena made her way back to her room after the tense dinner, the echoes of Aemond's bold departure still reverberating in her mind. The flickering candlelight cast shadows along the corridor, mirroring the turmoil within her. The summer house that held so many fond memories felt so cold and dark now.

She recalled the aftermath of Rhaenys, Otto, and Daemon's discussion after Aemond left. The tension had been palpable, each word spoken laced with hidden agendas and unspoken threats. Rhaena felt a pang of betrayal as she remembered how her father had orchestrated the whole charade, manipulating their lives like pieces on a chessboard. Aemond saved himself, and didn't think twice about leaving her behind.

Daeron called down the hall with a somber expression. "Rhaena, come out with us for a drink. It might help clear your mind," he offered, concern evident in his voice.

But Rhaena shook her head, her heart heavy with the weight of her emotions. "Thanks, but I'm too tired tonight," she replied softly, mustering a weak smile to reassure him.

As she reached her room, the door creaked open, revealing a sanctuary of solitude amidst the chaos of her family's machinations. She listened to Jace's loud car pulling off while she sat on the edge of her bed, the events of the evening swirling in her mind.

With a heavy sigh, Rhaena gazed out of the window, the moon casting a silvery glow over the courtyard below. In the stillness of the night, she allowed herself a new moment of vulnerability, the weight of her conflicted feeling pressing down on her like a heavy cloak. Laying down on her bed, the soft rustle of the sheets enveloping her, Rhaena knew that the path ahead would be fraught with uncertainty and difficult choices.

Aemond's footsteps echoed softly down the dimly lit corridor of the hall, the flickering lights casting dancing shadows on the stone walls. As he approached Rhaena's door, a faint sound caught his attention, a delicate symphony of stifled sobs.

Quietly opening the door, Aemond's remaining eye immediately fell upon Rhaena. She was laid on her bed, her face buried in her hands, shoulders trembling. The sight tugged at his heart, stirring an unfamiliar ache within him.

"Rhaena," he called quietly, his voice a gentle whisper cutting through the silence of the room.

Startled, Rhaena quickly tried to wipe away the traces of tears from her cheeks, hastily attempting to compose herself. "Aemond, what are you doing here?," she managed, her voice strained with forced calm.

Aemond approached her bedside, his gaze full of concern and regret. "Rhaena." He paused, wanting to make sure his next words were the right thing to say to the crying girl. She raised her hands, trying to hide face behind her long pink sleeve.

"Don't hide your pain from me," he replied, his tone tinged with genuine empathy.

Aemond sat down next to Rhaena, his posture initially rigid as he struggled with his own emotions. In an attempt to offer comfort, he started off with a tone of feigned toughness, a defense mechanism he often wanted to resort to in difficult situations.

"Rhaena, you can't be like this. We're adults now, things are different" he advised, his words tinged with a hint of sternness.

Rhaena looked up at him, taking her face off the silk pillow. Her eyes glistened with shed tears, and for a moment, it seemed like she would heed his advice and put on a brave face. Just forget about everything, do her duty, and move on. It was a burden placed on her once she was born a Targaryen.

But the weight of her burden proved too heavy, and her façade crumbled once more, her sorrow spilling out like a dam breaking. She should have known it would end like this. Aemond would get tired of her like her father did, and leave.

"I can't, Aemond," she whispered, her voice filled with a raw vulnerability that pierced through his defenses. "I feel so trapped... I don't know what to do."

Aemond's resolve wavered at the sight of her despair, the walls he had built around his own emotions crumbling in the face of her pain. With a sigh, he let go of his tough façade, his expression softening as he reached out to gently brush a stray tear from her cheek. His pale cold fingers warmed on her face.

"Rhaena..." he murmured, his voice laced with a tenderness that surprised even himself. "I know I may not always show it, but I care about you. It's not you. I just had to..."

As Rhaena looked up at him, a glimmer of hope flickered in her eyes, a silent acknowledgment of the bond that was slowly forming between them in the midst of their shared turmoil. In that moment, Aemond realized that perhaps, in each other, they had found the strength to weather the storm that threatened to engulf them both.

But Rhaena snapped at him, "Don't condescend me. You don't like me. Maybe you never did. Were you just bored? Just spending time with me to get away from Aegon? Are you still upset about your eye?"

As Rhaena's words struck a chord within him, Aemond felt a surge of emotions rising within him, a tumultuous mix of guilt, love, and an inexplicable desire to protect her from the pain that consumed them both.

"I never meant to hurt you, Rhaena," Aemond began, his deepening voice laced with a raw honesty that startled him. I married Alys out of convenience, out of a deal we made..." He paused to take a breath, looking away from the girl. "It was about escaping the suffocating."

“I was going to tell you but….your father.”

Rhaena's eyes widened in surprise at his confession, a glimmer of understanding shining through her stressed face. Before she could respond, Aemond faltered, the weight of their shared pain crashing down upon him. In a moment of vulnerability, he suddenly leaned in, his lips finding hers in a desperate, tender kiss.

The world around them seemed to fade away, leaving only the echo of their shared breaths mingling in the hushed air. In that fleeting moment, their hearts spoke a language of their own, a silent plea for solace in a storm of chaos. Aemond pulled back, his eye meeting hers.

"I love you Rhaena." As Aemond gazed into Rhaena's eyes, his heart ached at the pain reflected in them. He gently brushed away the remaining tear that lingered on her cheek, his touch a soothing balm to her wounded soul. "I love you," he repeated softly, his voice filled with a depth of emotion he had never dared to show before.

Rhaena's breath caught at his words, her heart fluttering. She felt a rush of warmth flood her body, a sense of comfort enveloping her in Aemond's embrace. But amidst the comfort she found in his arms, a shadow of fear lingered in the depths of her gaze.

"I don't know what to do," Rhaena whispered, her voice laced with trepidation. "My father, he demanded that I have a child with Garmund. He said it's a duty, a responsibility I must fulfill."

Aemond's brows furrowed in a mixture of anger at the mention of Garmund, after he'd tried so hard to forget about him earlier. That boy.His jaw clenched as his arms tightened around her, a fierce determination to shield Rhaena from the shackles of a loveless union. "No, Rhaena you don't have to," he said firmly, his voice tinged with a hint of possessiveness.

A flicker of hope lit up in Rhaena's eyes at Aemond's words, a spark of courage igniting within her fragile heart. She reached out to cup his face, her touch tender yet resolute. "And what about us, Aemond?" she asked, her voice trembling with emotion.

Aemond's gaze softened, his eye locking with hers in a pledge. "I'll figure it out," he vowed, his voice unwavering. He had already packed his belongings after storming out, but he didn't want to leave without Rhaena. "We'll deal with him. You don't have to let that craven touch you."

He leaned down to kiss her again, easily moving her fragile body with one arm to position Rhaena beneath him. As Aemond's lips met Rhaena's once more, a wave of tenderness swept over her, mingling with a hint of bittersweet nostalgia. It was as though they were transported back to simpler times. He wanted to chuckle at how his body didn't fully fit onto her much smaller bed.

With gentle touches, Aemond began to undress Rhaena while kissing her neck, his movements a promise of protection and understanding. Each piece of clothing shed felt like a release, a shedding of the expectations and obligations that had been imposed upon her. Rhaena closed her eyes, allowing herself to be enveloped in the familiar warmth of his presence.

The faint scent of cigarette smoke lingered in the air, a subtle reminder of Aemond's rebellious streak that she had always found oddly comforting. She knew he had smoked while in his room earlier, not bothering to blow the smoke out the window like he used to. It was a scent that spoke of late-night conversations and shared secrets, of moments stolen away from the prying eyes of their family.

Aemond stilled for a second, leaning back to take in Rhaena's body. As they laid there, they were intertwined in a dance of intimacy and solace. In that fleeting moment, she allowed herself to forget the looming shadows of Garmund and the weight of her father's expectations, choosing instead to revel in the connection she had with Aemond.

He moved down to taste her, going from her nipples down to her wetness and Rhaena gasped. Her arms moved to cover her mouth from the loud moan that threatened to escape. She felt her body tense as he began to reach up to caress her breasts. Aemond leaned against her side, allowing her to wrap her legs around him. She felt safe in his arms, as if she was protected from everything in the world that could harm her.

A small, shy laugh escaped her lips, a trace of a memory coming to mind. A time when they had been so young, with the world and their destinies seemingly at their feet. Aemond's smile seemed to reflect her own, a flicker of warmth lighting up in his eyes as he looked up at her. He climbed back up, leaning down to whisper something in her ear, a secret that only they shared, a promise to be true to one another in a world that seemed determined to tear them apart.

"Aemond." Rhaena writhed and sighed his name, the whisper barely hear over his deep groan as he pushed inside her.

And so they started to dance, the music of their bodies intertwining in a symphony of love and despair. As Rhaena surrendered to the embrace of Aemond's passion, a fleeting sense of peace washed over her, a glimmer of hope that whispered in her ears.

Aemond continued to work himself into her, his movements slow and tender. In the face of their shared pain, they found solace in the connection that transcended their reality.

As Aemond gazed into Rhaena's eyes, she looked back at him with a tenderness that melted his heart. He finally knew. He couldn't pretend anymore. He knew that in Rhaena, he had found a soulmate, a confidante who would see beyond the flaws he had allowed to consume him admid of their shared passion.

Rhaena felt the words bubble up from the depths of her soul, a confession she knew she had to make. Breathlessly, she whispered, "Aemond, I want to have your baby."

The words hung in the air, heavy with unspoken truths and the weight of their forbidden love. Aemond's eyes widened in surprise, a mix of emotions flickering across his features. In that vulnerable moment, Rhaena saw a glimmer of understanding dawn in his gaze, a shared acknowledgment of the tangled web fate had woven around them.

With a trembling hand, Rhaena reached out to cup Aemond's cheek again, her touch a silent plea for him to see the depth of her desire, the fierce yearning for a future that defied the confines of their reality.

Amidst the symphony of their entwined bodies, Rhaena felt a surge of empowerment rush through her. She knew that in choosing to bear Aemond's child, she was seizing control of her destiny, carving out a path of defiance and love in a world that sought to dictate her every move.

As the echoes of their whispered confession lingered in the air, Rhaena and Aemond found themselves bound not only by the threads of passion but by a shared determination to rewrite the script of their lives, one heartbeat at a time.

[peachymilkandcream]

Break Me Slowly|Part 30 (Finale)|Yandere Levi x Evelyn

(A/N: We've made it to the end of the series. Thank you so much to everyone who's supported this it means so much to me. It's probably going to be a short chapter but you'll see why at the end. This was once just a silly little idea rattling around in my head but now it's been fully written out and hopefully you guys enjoyed it. I'm still taking requests for oneshots, questions, and headcanons though, so please please feel free to request more. For example, maybe some oneshots of after the series ends with his older kids? I don't know the choice is up to you. I hope you loved these two as much as I do. (Also if you know the artist of this please dm me with their name and socials and I'll edit it to put in credit!) Thank you so much for reading <3)

WARNINGS: noncon, dubcon, manipulation, domestic abuse, yandere themes, forced marriage, forced pregnancy, stockholm syndrome, violence, mind breaking, misogyny, etc.

============================================

Hange's arrival was the last piece to the the puzzle of Levi's perfect life. He was better off now than he had ever been with countless allies and supporters backing him up once more, reinstating his untouchable reputation that had kept him safe from all suspicions thus far. His wife had come around to his advances and gave him the son he had always wanted. Truly he was king of the world.

==============================================

"King of the world." Evelyn repeated softly to herself, slowly moving her eyes from the manuscript in her lap to the fire's glow.

She had written down everything that had happened to her over the past few years, in the spare moments when Levi was gone. Her intent back then was to write everything down to portray just what kind of a character he was, that he wasn't this great hero that women swooned over. He was a monster through and through that shouldn't be celebrated. Levi is just a handsome face and a reputation used to hide his heinous actions since no one would touch him.

Her plan had been to expose him once she wrote everything down, when the behavior started, who it effected, and most importantly what it had come to.

Life had gotten in the way, a tragedy of events leading up to their current state of the world, so finishing what had happened was put on delay. She didn't have the time she once had now that her son was becoming a toddler and her stomach was already swelling with another child, this time they both hoped for a daughter.

The world was on her side, Evelyn could have exposed Levi before Erwin gained a position in the new world government and before Hange returned so that Levi had no supporters. If she played her cards right Levi could have been in a prison cell for the rest of his life or executed. As the surviving spouse all of his money and assets would have gone to her, her excuse of needing him for the sake of Furlan would have been out the window. Even now if she pulled away support the same outcome of Levi's fate would happen even with Erwin and Hange's support, she could be rid of him with enough money to live for the rest of her life.

So why didn't she?

That was the question that still burned in her mind. The one that had planted itself in her head from the moment she left him to the mercy of Eren and Zeke. The first time she questioned her hatred of him. Back then it had been a shock but now it was a part of her everyday life.

What had she become? What had she allowed herself to do? Willingly becoming the plaything of a horrible man and she was just giving him what she wanted? He was getting his happy ending. Because she had let him.

"But the records of your crimes, he has you trapped, remember?" Spoke her mind.

"No, he doesn't." Her voice replied. "All Levi said was as long as it exists we're stuck together, but if it's destroyed I'm free, but he's free to come after me."

For the first time in a long time a sense of rebellion burned bright in her heart. That flame had been kicked down over and over, trampled until she thought it had gone out.

But here it was, burning bright in her chest.

What was she after all? Evelyn had asked that question to Levi before and been met with the answer that she existed for him and him alone. But before all of this that's not what she was. She was a Scout, a soldier, a person. Not a possession.

After all this time it dawned on her that this silly tell all book of hers would do nothing. People would still applaud him as a hero, or even say that his possession of her was hot. That they wished to have a man so obsessed with them. How lucky was she?

There was nothing lucky about this. Nothing lucky about being a slave to the whims of a madman.

Eren had wanted freedom for all Eldia, she wasn't free. She was just like her ancestor Ymir, the one who's soul burned bright in her. A prisoner of a man who had more power than she. Levi was her King Fritz, and she his Ymir. She would never be free under him. Furlan would become a prisoner of him.

"What of the child? How can you take the child and leave? All those failed attempts, how would this be different?"

It would be, back then no one would come and save her. She waited for someone to help her out of this, but nobody came.

She had to save herself.

The fire burned hot as she fed it those papers, come and find her if he dared.

Evelyn Ackerman would be free.

============================================

Levi returned home to a quiet house, this second pregnancy was hitting his wife hard, and she required more rest. And with the state of training up a toddler from hell a nap didn't sound too bad for him either. Perhaps he would join her.

The door opened but his wife was not their, neither was she in the bathroom.

"Odd." He voiced.

For some reason the house felt slightly colder and empty. A bead of sweat trickled down his neck as he got a bad feeling about this.

Each room he found empty made him more frantic, shouting her name over and over. Combing the woods, the towns, everything. She had done this before, so why couldn't he find her?

Then it hit him like a bucket of water dumped on him.

"Allies." He pondered. "Who helped her... Someone helped...And hardly any staff to watch her- I gave her too much- too much!"

He kicked a chair over in the sitting room, watching it topple over. Anything he could get his hands on her broke, the last time he'd been this out of control was when Evelyn tried to kill him.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" He seethed. "You're a damn fool Levi! How could you be so fucking blind- she's just the same as she's always been. Plotting, scheming little bitch!"

The room was thrown into absolute chaos as he let out his fury, not only was his only true happiness gone but she took his child with him.

"She can't get away with this. Who does she think she is? Thinking she can run from me and take my son with her? I'll show her, that little whore will pay!"

With his temper spent he broke down into a sob, running his hands through his hair as the anger and fear of losing her forever sunk in. He had done everything, everything for her. Making sure to go t o the best physicians in the country so that he could walk as well as he could again. Even going so far as to get metal replacements for his fingers. Just to be able to remain as much the same as he always had. And this is how she repaid him? Oh she didn't want to see his face when he found her.

A scrap of slightly burnt paper brushed against his foot, making him look down.

Picking it up, the words he caught before it faded into burnt edges told him it was the file of his crimes, the only thing that had kept them both tied to the island.

So she had burned it? Interesting.

It was a challenge, a dare. Levi had warned her that burning the file meant he had the freedom to come after her, and she'd done it regardless. Evelyn was challenging him to come after her, the thought brought a smirk to his face.

"Ready or not wife, here I come."

(A/N: I know I know! It's a very unsatisfying ending! Which is why I'm going to announce a little mini series coming out after this chapter posts which will be Levi's hunt for Evelyn and his child. It will be a very short series (maybe 10 chapters at the most) but I went into this thinking this would be the end of the end, but it just felt like it needed something that wasn't another few chapters but something all on its own. There will be a bit more of Evelyn and Levi to come!)

[kingedmundsroyalmurder]

The Blue Castle, chapter 9

Continuing on my theme last time of the power (or lack thereof) of social shaming, we are now seeing Valancy turn it hard on her mother and cousin. While Valancy no longer cares about her reputation or what her relatives think, she knows full well that Mrs. Stirling and Cousin Stickles desperately care, and she is fully willing to take advantage of that.

Sidenote re: the banister. I am just imagining that Valancy has been dreaming of doing it for years, probably because it was so unthinkably forbidden than I'm sure her mother never even thought to explicitly forbid it. She doesn't seem to continue going down the stairs via banister, so I'm having fun imagining her doing it, ticking it off the mental bucket list as 'fun but not all that' and moving on with her life. No more obsessing over tiny details for Valancy Stirling! Have a desire, fulfill that desire, move on with life.

I'd been thinking that Mrs. Stirling and Cousin Stickles reminded me of characters in a Roald Dahl book, which is true, but the actual comparison that's been escaping me is that they are Miss Minchin and Miss Amelia from A Little Princess. The cold, stern, dominant one and her slightly hapless, entirely out of her depths, follower. I don't really have any further insights to follow the comparison, but it makes me laugh and gives me another prospective friend for Valancy. I think she and Sara Crew would have just the best possible time in the Blue Castle.

Anyway, back to the actual chapter, Valancy's threat of going to the Presbyterian church instead of the Anglican one is deeply funny to me, and just so very North American. Other places have their religious schisms, but the unspeakable horror of going to the wrong kind of Protestant Church is one of those details that makes it clear that LMM is writing about her own home culture.

It's interesting that Cousin Stickles celebrates her birthday, not her anniversary. Other than Valancy's co-opted birthday, I think this is the first time we've seen the family celebrate an event that's not marriage related. I also like that we're starting to get a broader perspective on the Stirlings. Now that Valancy's not quite as scared of them, she can start differentiating between the really awful ones and the ones she actually doesn't mind. I like that she admits to liking Uncle Herbert, and I also like that his being a more personally decent person than some of the other Stirlings hasn't done a thing to improve Valancy's situation.

I really like the brief glimpses we see of the non-Stirling residents of Deerwood. Roaring Abel, even in these couple paragraphs, is a delight. (And the idea of Mrs. Stirling half whining at Providence for not having dealt with him is deeply funny.) Not all of Deerwood is as suffocating as the Stirling family, and now that Valancy is asserting her independence and personhood, she will hopefully get the chance to actually experience the rest of it!

Valancy doesn't mention it in her narration, but I have to imagine that there is an amount of vicious satisfaction that her mother has to tiptoe around her now. Mrs. Stirling has never before had to consider Valancy's feelings, while Valancy has had to basically center her life around her mother's whims, and now the shoe is on the other foot. It's frankly a testament to Valancy's character (and to how fully the Stirlings just do not matter to her anymore) that she's not reveling it the power flip.

[thejuliawhitewrites]

An excerpt from "What's a King to Fate?": Kido's Coronation

There were two immutable facts to Kido's life. First, that one day he would be king. Second, if he was to be king, his father would first have to die.

No one thought that a cough would be what killed High King Halim. It was persistent, yes, but came with no other symptoms or ill effects. The man was in rugged health otherwise so the cough was mostly ignored. Until it couldn't be. He stubbornly held on until Kido's 16th winter had passed, until he was a man who could fully take his throne. After battling his illness for three long years, Kido watched his father deteriorate in three short months.

Egypt had been contacted the second the king's health took a turn for the worst and they arrived just in time. Kido couldn't bring himself to leave his vigil by his father's bedside to meet them at the docks. He didn't even know they had arrived until Atem was at his side saying prayers for Halim's health. His cousin's presence reminded him that he wasn't alone in his anguish. One day Atem would also know the pain of having to watch his father die and then take his throne.

The High King passed away with the rising dawn. Now it was time to crown the next one.

Until the day he died, Kido would never admit that he ran away. He just. . . Needed space. He had to get away from all the well wishes and sympathies and questions and answers and preparations and madness. So he packed a sunship late one evening after most of the city had gone to bed and set off. He'd expected to least get to a nearby island before anyone even noticed he was missing. He hadn't expected Alto to sail out on a windsurfer and stop him after only a few short hours. They slid back into port before the sun came up, the only people there to greet them being Iz'zi and Raven. No one said a word as they returned to the palace for a few short hours of sleep.

Two things happened the night before the coronation. First, Kido and Iz'zi were married in a private ceremony in the temple witnessed only by family and close friends. The marriage of the future king should have been something celebrated by the entire kingdom, but Kido insisted on privacy for this ceremony as the next day would be filled with all the proper pomp and circumstance. Their rings, a dark metal band with a glowing orange stone, were a gift from Jehu on behalf of Dark World to celebrate the wedding and coronation. Kido's sat on his right hand while Iz'zi's sat on her left. They were sprinkled with water, blessings were given, they spoke their vows, and they were married. A peasant's ceremony, quick and easy, the last thing Kido could do as a man before he became a king.

The second thing that happened was Kido was locked in the throne room all night in profound meditation. He was to contemplate what it meant to sit in the throne before him and rule his people. The gods were to give him divine insight into his reign. And they did. As he sat there somewhere between the waking world and the world of dreams, he saw prosperity and a bright future for his people. The sight of a sprawling, shining city was addicting. He would do whatever he could to make the future a reality.

When he opened the doors to the throne room the next morning, he never expected to see Atem and Haou fall onto the floor in front of him. They both jolted awake in a second and scrambled to their feet with identical, sheepish smiles.

"Where you out here all night?" Kido asked, looking between his cousin and his brother and feeling his heart swell.

"We didn't want you to be alone!" Haou cheered, a bright but sleepy smile on his face.

"We're with you always, Cousin," Atem nodded, his emotions a bit more under control than Kido's wild child of a brother.

"Thank you. Both of you." Kido pulled them both into a hug, taking whatever strength they were willing to give him. He would need all of it for what was about to happen.

~*~

Most of the streets of Atlantis were not wide enough for any large processions. Once they lost the continent and were reduced to an island city, they expanded as much as they could, leaving the streets only wide enough to walk two abreast between stalls and carts. There was one street, however, that was left wide. It snaked all around the city an that was the path used for royal funerals and coronations since the continent sunk.

It was down that road that the funerary procession started off. Halim's body in it's coffin was paraded down the streets for the people to say their final goodbyes to their beloved king. Behind his coffin carried by the designated mourners were Kido and Haou, the brothers and their tears side by side. Behind them were the priests and scribes, followed by more mourners to round off the procession. The people cried and wailed as they passed, littering the street with white lotus blossoms to be trampled by the procession.

Once at the docks, the coffin was brought onto one of the galleons, which was then boarded by the priests and the royal family. Their friends, certain noble citizens, and the Egyptians all boarded a menagerie of flotillas before the whole funerary fleet set sail into the ocean. It didn't take long to get into deep enough waters for the funeral and they were still well in sight of the city for the citizens to watch. Kido could barely hear the words of the priests over the blood rushing through his ears. His eyes were glued on the coffin as he said his own silent goodbyes to his father. All too soon the time came to load the coffin onto the sled. He and Haou took up their positions on either side. With the priest's signal, they both heaved up on the sled as hard as they could. The coffin lurched and slid into the ocean. The priests spoke the final blessings and it sank and just like that it was over. They sailed back to shore and proceeded with the second part of the ceremony: the coronation.

Water flowed freely through the city in fountains and waterfalls, but no where was more sacred than by the cliffside where a large waterfall fed right into the ocean, where the freshwater from the waterfall mingled with the salt water of the ocean. It was there that they traveled next, The royal family and guests all on the beach while the citizens crowded in wherever they could find. In a small alcove in the cliffside, Kido and Iz'zi were changed out of their royal blues and into white, the dress of a servant class, as they were about to become servants to their kingdom.

The mood of the day picked up significantly when they emerged, hand in hand, from the alcove. The people cheered as they stepped into the pool on the fresh water side together and stood before another priest. Silence descended when the priest began speaking in the ancient tongue only used during such significant ceremonies. As such, Kido only understood about half of what the priest was saying. He spent more time sailing than studying, after all. But he'd gone over this ceremony enough times that he could follow along. First it was entreaties to the gods to keep and protect the new king and queen. Then prayers for strength and wisdom. Then Haou and Atem stepped forward, offering themselves help guide and protect, anointing Kido and Iz'zi with blessed oils just as Akhenaden and Akhnomkanen had done for Halim at his coronation.

Then it was time. Once again hand in hand, Kido and Iz'zi bowed their heads and stepped under the waterfall. Water rushed over them, soaking them to he bone as the priest shouted more prayers. They could barely hear with the water rushing around them. What they did hear were the cheers of their people and knew it was time. He squeezed her hand. She squeezed back.

Stepping out of the waterfall on the salt water side to the cheers of their people was the new High King and his High Queen.

They stepped back onto the banks smiling and waving as warm, dry cloaks were placed around their shoulders, blue for Kido and red for Iz'zi. In a second they were surrounded by their friends and family who offered heart congratulations. There was still so much still to do. Royal appointments needed to be made, people needed to be knighted, Iz'zi needed to receive the facial tattoos that would mark her as the queen, and a huge feast to celebrate. But that was for later. Right now he wanted to burn this feeling into his mind and never forget it. This is what he had been born to do and he was determined to be the best king Atlantis had ever seen.

[la-lauren]

We're in the Bay for Thanksgiving, which has been nice. We get to stay at her mom's partner's house by the beach. They live in Southern California and rent out the main house up here but keep the MIL suite empty for themselves when they visit or for us when we're up here. It is so nice to have a whole space to ourselves by the beach without paying hotel prices.

Anyway, as such, we have seen her dad and his family only once and just done what we wanted otherwise. Also very nice. We've been sleeping in until 11. I feel the angels singing, the cells in my body feel like they're finally getting a chance to recover, instead of waking up to walk a dog rain or shine. I do miss our babies though.

We went to Target to pick up the Eras Tour book that was released yesterday, on Black Friday. I am so thankful Black Friday isn't the mob it was 20 years ago. We leisurely walked around Target and the mall, got what we wanted, and it was so low stress. We ended up trying on engagement rings, and honestly, it just made me so sad, because our finances are not anywhere near get-married level, and I don't want to get married or even engaged under a Trump presidency anyway.... which means we likely won't be married in the next 4-5 years. That just breaks my heart. I am also afraid of marriage rights being revoked for couples "like us."

When we got home last night, we put on a documentary called A Secret Love. We knew it was two older lesbians and their lives, but I truly didn't expect it to hit the nerves that it did. They spent 70 years together, the majority of them in closet. They told their families their whole lives that they were just roommates. When they finally did come out, the remaining living family members did accept them, and they got married in the nursing home (I think).

I think it just hurts knowing that the same rhetoric Pat & Terry had to fend off is making a resurgence with the Christian nationalists that are about to be running our nation. They feel so free to harm others in their words and actions. I worry about the raids Pat & Terry saw in their days being a thing again. I don't think it'd happen in Cali, but you never know, I guess.

In California, I've felt a bit silly about the shame I've felt for being gay. In LA especially, it really is celebrated, you know? Accepted. It has become so easy for me to forget my roots, the ones that built that shame from the ground up. I have felt so loved, so allowed to take up space, so wanted -- in a place that I was always told was superficial and demonic.

I don't even just mean with my partner. I mean in public, people are kind to me. As an obese unattractive woman, I am met with kindness in LA. I am seen as a person. No one comments on my weight. I can't say the same about the South, even though the population is largely obese!

I'm sure it'd be a different story if I wanted to act, right -- like I'm not traditional movie/model material, but in the day-to-day, I am welcomed with love by these people. Not the judgment I felt in the South.

Anyway, my body does feel like it's on its last leg (literally because of my ankle/foot problem), and I worry my body may fail before I can marry the love of my life. I'm trying my best to avoid it. I'm trying so hard to be healthier. I wish it weren't this difficult for me.

On the other hand, I've noticed recently that when I'm transferring her between places or when I pick up her wheelchair with one hand, strangers will remark some version of, "Wow, you're strong," and in those moments, I am proud and thankful for my big body and strong muscles. It has been a legitimate concern if I do lose weight, whether I'll be able to easily move her around when needed or lift her chair with ease. For now, though, I am strong and more than capable, and I offer up thanks to the universe for that.

I am holding on tight to my partner, and I am ready for whatever is about to come down the pipeline because I know we're facing it together.

I'd never have dreamed up this life for myself, but I'm so glad it's where I've landed. I hope it keeps getting better. I just wish we'd landed in the Kamala-as-President timeline instead of this one.

[trixcuomo]

50s Undead housewife aesthetic

Trixany slow-blinked as Haris Pilton and her old parole officer chatted happily about her new book, The Joy of Being A Forsaken Housewife. This... this wasn't her life.

Well, Haris was the one being fake-polite and over-eager about the abysmal subject matter. When pitched into the trash, Trixany was sure that book would start its own dumpster fires. But it was her job to promote bigger Azerothian celebrities than herself. Not like she had a choice.

Haris beamed, "AH! The Forsaken market! We here at Haris Pilton Entertainment Corp have been wanting to crack into that for years. And... help, um, support your people. In this tough transitional period between leaders."

Parole officer to the stars and captain of the Striped Sails fleet, Wilhemina Pearlington looked up. She had a dour expression, and a slow, slightly threatening tone of speaking. "We have our lady, Calia Menethil. She came back to us."

Haris held her tight smile. "Of course you do. For now."

Trixany uncrossed her arms, "Yeah, that's not gonna last."

Willy glinted at Trixany.

"Look, Willy. I know we're also bandmates and we have history and all that--"

Haris smiled, "Oh how delightful, to be in the same warband."

Trixany, "No, it's a girl band. The Kaja-Cola Flava Girls? Go on, look us up. Anyway--I don't take any issue with your book because of that. I don't."

Willy bared her greenish teeth, made a hissing-gurgling noise that made Trixany and Haris lean back from the table.

"... It's just an antiquated premise, ontop of everything else that's wrong with it. A book about keeping house? It says, 'How to keep an Undead husband content and your household thriving in a modern world.' What the hell, Willy? This sets society back a few decades, don'tchya think?? When exactly did you die, the stone age?"

Willy peered at the page Trixany was reading. "Oops, that should say 'writhing,' not 'thriving.'"

"Um, what? How can a household writhe?"

"... We Forsaken live with a lot of crawling little creatures. They need a good home life, too."

"Ew!!"

"Trixany, this is your assignment." Haris slid the slime green binder her way. "You'd better get started, especially if you see so many problems with it."

"I am not working on this book. I refuse to even touch it."

"Trixany, Wilhemina Pearlington, aka Black Cherry Dhalia of the Kaja-Cola Flava Girls," She finished swiping through her comm, catching up on that info, "...is also a Fosaken celebrity, and she wants a book deal. She's getting one."

Willy flipped open the binder, turned through a few chapters. "I'm most excited for my recipe for mud pie. Cheaper and easier to make than Westfall mud pie!! You can find most of the ingredients down at your local graveyard!"

"Urp--"

"And chapter seven is where we get into putting spunk back into a Forsaken marriage. Going frogging in the swamp can be pretty romantic."

"Oh, that might not be so bad. Sharpen took his girlfriend on a date frogging once... Before they broke up."

Haris gestured eagerly, happy to finally bring the other Blood Elf and the Forsaken woman together.

"... Except they didn't use their own rotting, worm-infested bodies as bait!"

Haris facepalmed, "We were so close."