#balgruuf x ldb

[hircines-hunter]

Early morning sun ☀️

For @umbracirrus

[umbracirrus]

Things that Balgruuf and Elyse do as a couple (part 1) - Cute things

The first part of my collection of posts on things which Elyse and Balgruuf do as a couple! I'll be creating a masterlist after the first two are posted, and they will all use the tag '#Balyse couple stuff'! This is all sorts of cute little things that they do.

I may add to this in the future!

They will have tea in bed in the morning at least once a week, sometimes more if there are special occasions, and their schedules will be adjusted accordingly.

And speaking of their time in bed, as Elyse is more sensitive to the cold than he is, she loves cuddling up to him at night.

Balgruuf is the early riser of the two, and he could easily just lie there for a while in the morning watching her, the whole time wondering just how lucky he is to have her in his life.

Balgruuf will always take the day off for Elyse's birthday. He learns before they get together that she isn't the biggest fan of celebrating it, so he will try to do something with her, of her choosing, to fill the time and to give her something more positive to associate the day with (and this works, but it takes a few years. She really appreciates the sentiment from the first time that he does it though, especially with it falling in the middle of Whiterun's recovery from the battle that occurs there between the Empire and the Stormcloaks.)

A meal which they enjoy and will often have on the rare evening off/date nights is a rich beef and vegetable stew with some freshly baked bread (sometimes slathered in garlic butter), accompanied with either some Honningbrew Reserve or Colovian brandy (the latter of which being a particular favourite of them both, though the former they have much easier access to), followed by a warm mixed berry crostata. They will do the whole feeding each other little forkfuls of their food thing, and it will be candlelit in the privacy of their quarters.

They love to hold hands. If they can't hold hands at particular times though, if they can get close enough to each other, a fleeting touch of their fingers brushing together is just as good for them.

Balgruuf's hair is full of braids. In the evening, Elyse will carefully help him undo them and comb through his hair. If she is awake early enough, she will help him do them up too. As Elyse gets older, she starts putting her hair into a braided, tucked updo, and Balgruuf will return the favour. (Their daughter together, Aina, also does similar with her hair, and so they also have to help her with the same until she learns how to do it herself!)

They also have an almost ritual-like routine on evenings where they manage to go to bed together, helping each other with getting undressed and ready for bed. More time is spent helping Balgruuf, as his outfit is most often more intricate than hers.

Elyse takes on some of Balgruuf's burdens when she is completely settled in in Dragonsreach after they are married and is more familiar with everything that he does. She typically helps more with issues relating to the guards and security as she is out and about in the hold more often than Balgruuf is, but also works closely with Farengar. This allows for them to spend more time together and be all cute and sappy as they can handle two things at once, as opposed to him handling things one at a time.

Balgruuf will always smile when he smells lavender, as it reminds him of her.

Likewise, Elyse associates oak smells with him.

Elyse likes to wear his tunics and shirts to sleep in. She does have her own nightwear, but finds his clothes cosier.

Balgruuf loves how passionate Elyse is about alchemy when she has the opportunity to practice her hobby. He allows her to set up plant pots across Dragonsreach, mostly on their balcony and on the porch, to grow flowers for both decoration and alchemy purposes. He'll even go with her on walks outside the city walls to gather ingredients (usually with at least Lydia tagging along at a distance).

Elyse likes to buy books for Balgruuf, especially ones covering historical topics. She isn't as interested in those sorts of things herself, but she knows that he is. Sometimes she can just sit there and listen to him read aloud.

Balgruuf calls Elyse 'dear' and 'my love' a lot. Elyse calls him the same, but she much prefers to save the pet names for more private or intimate moments.

Balgruuf likes to rest his chin atop her head (she's 5'2, he's at least 5'10)

Elyse likes resting her head against his chest to listen to his heartbeat. She also likes to wrap her arms around him.

Elyse and Balgruuf take time off to go for at least one pilgrimage to High Hrothgar, to let him meet Paarthurnax. The Greybeards aren't the most pleased to learn that after the fact, but both Balgruuf and Paarthy get along well (Odahviing's word helps a lot in this, as he has met and properly spoke to Balgruuf by this point) - it makes Elyse incredibly happy (almost overwhelmingly so). That, and it gives the idiots a few weeks (mostly) alone together.

Balgruuf proposes to Elyse exactly four years to the day of their first meeting.

Their wedding falls on the day of the first winter snowfall in Whiterun of late 4E 205.

They both like sneaking out to the Bannered Mare at night to get a break from Dragonsreach. Their housecarls do not approve of this, yet they persist. Who could dare stop the Jarl and the Dragonborn, after all? Ysolda loves the money that their presence brings in so she won't rat them out.

Elyse mentions Balgruuf a lot when she meets with her closest friends in the city (most often Carlotta, Olfina, and Lydia), to the point that she gets teased about it. A stark contrast to the denial of her pining before they do get together. Elyse teases Olfina back about Jon, at the very least.

They love to steal kisses from each other when the opportunity arises.

Balgruuf makes sure that Dragonsreach always has at least some honey in its pantries for Elyse, on account of her sweet tooth. She doesn't know that he does that.

Balgruuf won't admit it, but he loves how cute she looks when something frustrates her - he just finds the way that her nose scrunches up, the curl of her lip, and the squint in her eyes endearing.

Elyse loves Balgruuf's nose and crows feet.

[never-shouldve-come-here]

Dad Rumarin has been rattling in my brain ever since I made that post so uhhhh here

[umbracirrus]

Things that Balgruuf and Elyse do as a couple (part 2) - Intimacy and sex

Part two of my lists of things Elyse and Balgruuf do as a couple! This list has mature and sexual content, it will be under a read more, do not interact if you are a minor.

I may add to this in the future!

They have got handsy in more than one inappropriate place in Dragonsreach. The porch, his desk, their balcony overlooking Whiterun, the throne, and even the dungeons on one particular night where they had slipped out to the Bannered Mare, had too much to drink, and didn't want to get lectured by their housecarls for not letting them know where they were by entering through the main doors (though thankfully the sound of a patrolling guard stopped them before they went too far, and they relocated to their bedroom)

Balgruuf likes to kiss Elyse's throat. He quickly finds out that it's very sensitive, especially so with his beard, and he loves the sounds that she makes when he does it. He likes it even more when she lets her hair down to cover any marks that he leaves.

Elyse likes to touch his thighs. Whether she's about to go down on him, or if she's on top, or even in a much more innocuous situation, he will absolutely melt into her touch.

Elyse also likes to thread her fingers through his hair, usually when he is using his mouth on her.

Their first time having sex together is also the same day that they have their first kiss. The pining between them was that strong and had been going on for so long, the kiss opened the floodgates to intimacy.

Once they are together, they do have sex somewhat often. The nature of the work they do sometimes leads to the occasional period of time where they simply don't have the energy or aren't in the mood for weeks, sometimes a month or two, however.

Bathing is perhaps their favourite type of non-sexual intimacy. They help each other with their hair, and help to ease any aches and pains, and both quite enjoy the lingering scent of the soap which the other uses on their skin.

When they decide to have a child together after a few years of marriage (bearing in mind Balgruuf's children are in their teens at this point, Frothar is already an adult by this point), it doesn't take long for Elyse to fall pregnant... Though that may have been down to the fact that she already was pregnant by that time (as per the point above, they do have sex somewhat often, and the pregnancy was as a result of a lapse in precautions against pregnancy which they were typically very on top of), and hadn't even realised as it was too early a point to know. (I've started writing a little thing about this actually 😌)

Elyse is the first person that Balgruuf has allowed himself to be vulnerable with, to open himself up for, experience physical intimacy with, and to love in over a decade, since the death of his wife and childhood sweetheart (Frothar and Dagny's mother), and the death of his second lover who he was on the verge of proposing to (Nelkir's mother) (this is all my headcanon, by the way). He confesses as such to her after their first time sleeping together.

In a similar sort of vein, the first time that they have sex is also Elyse's first time in years. Her last relationship with sex was from when she still lived in Cyrodiil, and she never anticipated being able to be with someone for love as opposed to being forced to be with someone as a matter of politics or power upon learning she was Dragonborn (and don't get me wrong, politics and power are involved in their relationship and them getting together, but they had been pining for years at this point and their love is a much stronger factor than those other two combined)

Elyse hates when Balgruuf has very late nights, as she is the 'late to bed, late to rise' person of the two of them. This doesn't happen too often, but she still hates it. She craves his warmth and his touch in bed, whether sexual or not, and it is on these nights (so long as she isn't exhausted) that she will sometimes make do with using her hand. There have been occasions where Balgruuf walks in to the sight of her touching herself, and with her permission will help her finish.

It's not often that Balgruuf masturbates, and it's most often when he desperately misses her at night. On occasions where she isn't in Whiterun because she's handling a dragon or something.

[umbracirrus]

Things Balgruuf and Elyse do as a couple (part 3) - Arguments

The third part of my planned set of posts about my idiots Balgruuf and Elyse <3 This time is arguments (and how they make up after them). And I lied, here's post number 3 for today! But the remaining posts will be scheduled.

As a preface, I'll say that these two do not argue often at all. They don't like arguing with each other, so they do what they can to avert ending up in one.

Their first argument happens before they become a couple, when Balgruuf makes a decision which impacted Elyse without talking it through with her, because it would have otherwise resulted in danger for Whiterun. There were a lot of complexities to the situation beyond just that, but they talk things through and figure things out and their friendship was all the more stronger as a result after.

It is very rare that they actually have an argument on that sort of scale after that initial one, though they do have them. That initial argument will always be their biggest argument.

The people of Dragonsreach know that Balgruuf does occasionally have a temper and to avoid him when he is angry, but they quickly learn that Elyse is a force to be reckoned with when she is in a foul mood following an argument - especially following an argument with Balgruuf.

When she does argue with him, her hands play a big part in conveying just how frustrated she is. She'll start with her arms folded. Then it will move into fists clenching and unclenching at her side. Then it becomes jabbing with her fingers near to his chest, accentuating her words with each one.

She also grits her teeth and clenches her jaw the longer the actual argument goes on, and her words get very snippy and shrill.

If it all becomes too much for her, she will simply turn around and leave Dragonsreach. Her behaviour at this point gets a bit self destructive, where she will go wherever she can that isn't there. After the initial argument the two have, Lydia ensures that she keeps an eye on her. Fortunately, this happens incredibly rarely. Arguments never normally reach this point.

After a majority of arguments, she stays in Dragonsreach, but she isn't very approachable.

The thu'um can physically be felt in her voice if the argument was bad, and there is a near to constant scowl on her face.

For an argument that wasn't as bad, she spends her time pacing the porch to try and keep herself out of the way and to calm down, she is a bit more approachable when she goes there.

Balgruuf, meanwhile, when he argues with her his voice gets louder and louder, especially if things keep escalating or if he is certain that he is right. He is less physical in showing his frustrations in comparison to Elyse, mostly because he has learned over the years to conceal it when dealing with visitors who rubbed him the wrong way.

He will also always stay Dragonsreach following an argument. If an argument is incredibly bad (the equivalent of Elyse leaving Dragonsreach bad), he cancels any public facing work he needs to do and isolates himself in his quarters. This is essentially what he (both of them really) did during that first argument. He can't be spoken to at this point, there is no getting through to him.

If he doesn't shut himself away, he can be very snappy when people talk to him so most people try to stay away from him. It takes very little for his anger to flare back up. About the only people who can get through to him at this point are Proventus and Irileth, and maybe Elyse depending on the nature of the argument that was had in the first place.

When things weren't too bad in the argument, Balgruuf will simply throw himself into work in the hopes that normality will distract him.

Now. The sorts of things that they would argue over... Usually it's little things which would result in a very small minute or two squabble that they quickly get over. Did something get misplaced? "I thought you said X, not Y!" Just in general very minor things.

They do have somewhat bigger arguments when they disagree with something, this can fall from decisions made in relation to Whiterun (sometimes coming out of a place of concern/an attempt at advice but interpreted as criticism or judgement), or one of the minor arguments happening when one of them is already in a bad mood.

Some of the biggest arguments are almost always over masters of safety.

Balgruuf can at times get very protective of Elyse and gets worried when he knows that she could be putting herself in danger. Often he would trust her judgement, but in some situations he feels he needs to let her know that he doesn't like how something sounds. For the most part, she will listen and try to compromise. But there are times where she is set on what she wants/needs to do and might find it overbearing, and it will escalate from there between the two of them. Like they establish pretty early on, before they are even together, that they both value communication and it is on these occasions where it doesn't happen.

On the flip side, with him being Jarl, there are often threats against his life. When Balgruuf doesn't take a threat which she (and others) believes to br credible seriously, she'll try to make a point in letting him know that she's worried for him. Oftentimes, he is able to reassure her that he is safe - that there is a plan to handle the threat but it needs him to continue as usual - or he will take steps to protect himself. But on rare occasions, he continues to believe that there is no threat and that leads to tensions and arguments.

They do have bigger arguments than those, but they are very incredibly rare because, well... They don't like arguing with each other. It's most likely on a once in a decade sort of rarity.

Now, onto the positive part - the two of them making up after an argument! As a majority of them are incredibly minor, it's simply a matter of figuring out the cause of the argument or solving the issue which led to it, apologising if needed, and maybe a quick kiss before they forget about it and go on about their day. They'll have probably forgotten about it by evening.

Anything bigger than that though, no matter the scale, they'll wait for a moment where things aren't as heated (whether that takes minutes, hours, even days) and go somewhere that they both consider a place that is safe and not to be ruined by anger - their balcony overlooking Whiterun. When there, they will do their best to talk things through from their perspectives rationally and calmly, figure out how they will move in from things together. It may take a little while for them to properly recover from the argument after this, but no matter what, they will move on.

If either of them are decidedly in the wrong, they'd do what they can to apologise and make up for it. Whether that's giving little concessions for the other, or allowing them some space or making little changes in what they do.

Thankfully, none of their arguments result in reaching a point of no return in their relationship. The strength of the bond between Elyse and Balgruuf is immense, forged through a potential end of the world crisis with dragons and the Skyrim civil war, and would take much more than an argument - even a major one which keeps them apart for days - to break it.

Now... If somebody was arguing against the two of them together? They had better have a damn good argument, because those two are very good at backing each other up.

[hircines-hunter]

Tea is too Sweet for the Jarl.

for @umbracirrus