#fuse eri

[crazyasianlove]

Forest Ep. 7 (Sub. Esp)

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[absolute-decay]

Do you think in the most twisted, misguided, disgusting, and almost idiotic way, Chisaki saw his young self in Eri, and thought he would be to her what the boss was to him. Like. This lost young orphaned child with nothing but the clothes on their back taken in by a Yakuza. That's literally their only similarities but do you think Chisaki decided that was enough? That he should be the one to "save" her?

I know it sounds ridiculous but just stick with me here.

This single image from chapter 136 screams so fucking much about Kai's brain and his relationship with Eri to me. Because ask yourself. "Why doesn't Kai just put Eri into a coma like he did The Boss?" Because that would solve so many of his problems. No chance of Eri escaping. No chance of any Heroes finding out about her. There'd be minimal resources spent on her since all he needs is to keep her alive regardless of physical condition. It literally solves everything, it almost feels like a plot hole. But then you remember the fact that Eri was entrusted to Kai by The Boss, and then you take another look at the image above, and it kinda clicks, doesn't it?

He doesn't do that because he genuinely, truly wants to take care of Eri. He might even really see himself as her father figure. And I think that makes so much sense, especially with his other relationships. Case in point, Shin Nemoto.

We saw the results of Shin using his Quirk on Kai, and he says straight up, "I like you, I trust you, your presence makes me feel at ease." And he didn't even seem shocked or upset after saying it, so it wasn't a truth he was unaware of or didn't want Shin to know. That's simply how he felt, cut and dry. But, with that being the truth, he was more than willing to use him as an expendable asset, have him be a fall guy after the raid with the other Bullets, and fuse with him, which he seems to believe will fucking kill him. That's not Kai using a pawn: That's just how Kai is with someone he cares about.

So, it wouldn't be far fetched to say, the same applies to Eri, and that really does recontextualize every one of their scenes, huh?

"You're the centerpiece of my plan."

"To this girl, you're no hero."

"You're cursed, every action you take kills someone."

"Someone else is going to die because of you!"

"She doesn't want you."

None of this is manipulation or scare tactics or anything like that. This is just what Kai thinks of humans. That he can hurt and pull and abuse them in the worst ways possible, and do it over and over again, and not understand when they want to run away. And I feel like him being raised in one of Garaki's "orphanages" just rubs salt into this wound.

Because, he takes care of Eri, doesn't he? He gets her toys and a pretty room and a soft bed, and he's nice and calm with her, doesn't even use his quirk to kill her and bring her back to life painfully as punishment! He doesn't seem to be physical with her at all, outside of the blood extractions. She has everything a girl could ask for, and she spurns him? Runs from him? Well, no matter. That's just how children are. Ignorant, illogical, they just don't make sense.

...It's such an incredibly fucked up way of thinking. And I think it's ingrained so deeply in Kai's mind because it's what he thinks he never had.

I think the way he treats Eri is how he thinks loving parents would have treated him. Pretty toys and nice clothes and good food and absolutely nowhere in his mind does any genuine relationship dynamics or aspects of unique personality come into play because after years and years of not having it he just. Doesn't. Get it.

So that's why it's lacking in his relationship with Eri. In all of his relationships, really. Because The Boss took him in and loved him and cared for him and Kai knows that but he doesn't understand that. So he's trying his best to "love" and "raise" Eri by being an empty photocopy of a parent at his best, because that's all he is. That's what defines Kai, till the very end.

He's empty. And so is his love. So Eri's room will always be full.

[daycourtofficial]

Hell was the journey but it brought me Heaven

Pairing: Eris x Rhysand’s sister!reader | WC: 1.9k | warnings: blood, gore

Summary: in the immediate moments following Beron’s death, Eris is determined to see to the needs of his court. His mate insists he takes a few moments to himself and bathe.

Note: this is a part of my gingerfucker series. The events of this fic follow in the immediate aftermath of ‘Cold was the steel of my axe to grind’

Author’s note: happy day 3 of @erisweekofficial !!

The sun had set, but just barely so. Your chest thrummed with the mating bond, but it felt different somehow, as if the new power radiating off of him leached into you.

The dawn of a new court.

You could feel that heaviness settling over your mate. The expectations, the guilt, the reservations. You didn’t know if the news had spread yet - to the outskirts of Autumn, to the other courts, to Rhysand. How did Rhys feel, now that Beron was dead? Did it change anything?

Eris looked different now. Exhausted, yes, but not the way you had come to know. As if the world had finally rolled off his shoulders to become someone else’s problem. He was radiating so much heat it was nearly impossible to stand too close to him.

Marigold and her sons had taken Flint’s body, moving him down into the cellars so they could clean and prepare his body for mourning. Eris had been upset that you had refused to allow him to go with them, using your body as a shield anytime you thought he might turn around and run.

“Er, you have to change. You have to be less bloody.”

Eris was unfazed at your words, annoyance in his chest at not seeing Flint’s body any longer. He’d get over it eventually.

You led him through the halls of the Forest House - once an immaculate display of wealth, not a speck of dirt or dust to be seen, now was a state of chaos. Broken chairs, overturned shelves, ransacked armoires. It was chaos incarnate - which made the site of Eris’s chambers even more startling.

They were pristine, the ward still effective at repelling anyone from entrance. It felt too clean. Everything had changed since this morning when Eris’s neurotic movements woke you. The only disturbance in the room was the unmade bed from when you had gotten up, as if the occupant had just gone about their day to day life.

Prythian has changed, your life has changed. But this room stayed the same in spite of it. Something about the room sobered Eris up, pulling him from his trance, as if the walls echoed with an itinerary.

“There is so much to do - advisors to speak with, we must send word that Beron has fallen-”

Your hand on his forearm gave him pause. “You may take a bath, High Lord.”

His mind quiets at the title - you were the first to officially call him by it.

High Lord of the Autumn Court.

Not merely a dream anymore. He had never played with the words before, never practiced how they felt on his tongue. It felt too much like a jinx, a childish superstition he couldn’t seem to shake. The name coming from your lips felt incredible, but it didn’t make him swell with pride the way the word ‘mate’ does.

“Sit, Er.”

Your hand pressed against his chest, right where an etching of a leaf adorned the armor. He sat on the edge of the chair, his muscles tensing and then immediately relaxing as they found the first sign of rest in hours. Eris felt unsteady in the chair, as if the furniture couldn’t hold the weight of all that he had done.

You knelt before him, quietly removing each plate, undoing each tie and gently laying the copper colored armor down beside you. He sighed at the relief, unaware or unfeeling of how tight each plate had been on his skin, the leather straps leaving indents in his skin.

Your movements were slow and deliberate, peeling each section of armor off as if it were glass fused to his skin. Each piece removed allowed for parts of him now visible, despite the layers of clothes, to be met by your fingers. You spent several minutes on each of his limbs, your fingers making slow, deep movements into the skin, as if you could reach to the bone and heal him.

He groaned at the ministrations, his body growing weary and aging as you sat before him. This night alone aged him a century it seemed. Despite his desires to rest, his body was buzzing with energy. It felt nearly impossible to sit still, as if every piece of his body were being removed and replaced with a newer, better version.

You slowly removed his gambeson - a deep green fabric that cushioned his chest from any harsh blows to his armor. You reached for the hem of the tunic beneath, pulling it over his head as he raised his arms. His skin was untouched beneath it, not a single bruise littering his pale chest. Removing the garb made his skin even warmer - you were practically sweating being near to him.

Your fingers moved lightly down his chest, making a jagged line tracing from mole to freckles as you slid down his torso toward his pants - you slowly pulled them down his legs, watching his face for any reaction. Once the pants reached his ankles, you tapped each ankle so he’d lift his feet, allowing you to move the pants away.

The armor did an incredible job at protecting his body - the only part of him that showed any hint of what happened today were his hands and his face. Maybe the new powers thrumming through him saw to his injuries.

You moved toward the bathroom, turning on the faucet for the tub before returning to your mate. He hadn’t moved, staying completely still, undeterred by his naked state.

“Eris, you need to take a bath.”

His head turned to you, a lethargic movement that offered no grace you had come to associate with Eris. You reached out a hand for him, hissing at the contact of his skin, but not letting go. You led him to the bath, which had filled in the slowness of his movements.

The bath was dark, the entire room devoid of light, Eris’s powers too drained to light it. No matchsticks laid anywhere in the Forest House - why would they? The bathtub was a dark pool of water, inviting the new High Lord as you led Eris into the water, stabilizing his arms as he put his legs in before sitting down. The water was cold, a shock to his nerves that had him suck in a breath through his teeth.

The cold sank into Eris’s bones, as if this bath was a renewal. He let himself slip beneath the water, everything so dark he finally felt free to let through the scream that had been building in his lungs. Becoming High Lord rewrote his entire body, every cell within him changed, but it was this bath that felt like the birth.

A liminal space. He was stuck in the in-between. Beneath the surface of the water, he was still in the before. Some part of him knew once he came back up, everything would be different.

His blood was boiling inside him, unsure how his organs weren’t being roasted from within. His scream echoed through the tub, emitting so much heat he was surprised he wasn’t on fire at this point. He was sure the water was boiling, the pain in his body almost too much to bear.

Until he came up for air. The second his head hit the surface, the screaming stopped. The pain stopped. He was glowing in that dark room, a deep blue color blinding in the darkness.

Blue flames burn the hottest.

Eris turned to find you moving about the bathing chamber, his entire existential crisis unnoticed by you. You were silent as you moved about the bathing chamber, grabbing all the necessary products and towels before returning. You checked the water, pulling your hand away quickly at how hot it was.

He watched as you quietly drained the water, allowing the first coat of grime and heat to be washed away down the drain before refilling the tub, your mate staying still the entire time.

With the tub refilled, you grabbed a cloth and gently began working it across his skin, inspecting him as you moved. His skin began growing cooler, the water and rags you used to clean him grounding him.

He was Autumn’s new High Lord, but he was still Eris, still your mate.

You hummed as you worked, a song the trees had been singing earlier that night. He smiled as his accompanying hum startled you, filling in the gaps of the song where your harmony laid.

He felt reborn, a lightness surging through him as if the Mother herself were giving him new life.

Before you could drain his second bath, before the two of you had to face the consequences of the past twelve hours, he shot his hand out, circling your wrist. There were a million things to consider - a coronation, official statements, word to the other courts, the family all being on the same page about what to say publicly. It would all wait.

“Thank you.”

A gentle smile was all he got in return, as well as a sharp tug on the bond between them. A million questions circled his mind, only realizing as you brought him back into his chambers that you were wearing a servant’s uniform.

What had the day brought you? Or, Eris corrects, what had you brought to this day? His beautiful mate, his equal in every way. Two sly foxes, except you never wanted the predatory title to be attached to you, always preferring to be false prey.

Gods help the fools who underestimate the two of you.

He searched through his wardrobe, finding exactly what he wanted: a bloodred jacket, the collar raised made his jaw look like a knife.

Now was not the time to appear too soft. The most turbulent time in a High Lord’s position is the first few weeks, and while he ached to just come out and say he intends to be different, he couldn’t in good conscious risk the people of Autumn like that. He intended to prove that he was different.

But to do that, he has to first appear strong.

He found a white shirt, quickly throwing it on before hopping into a pair of dark brown trousers, tucking the shirt in. He didn’t have time for a corset, opting for a red vest with gold embroidery instead.

After lacing his boots, he sat up in the chair ready to go, but your fingers in his hair stopped him. He felt you put the crown atop his head - he hadn’t even realized you had pulled it off - the thing practically sinking back into Eris’s skin, happy to be reunited with its master.

Eris stood up, the crown and regalia reminding him of who he was. It was like Eris had been underwater the whole day, stuck in a trance, only now coming up for air, the question slipping from him without his intention.

“Why are you in servant’s clothes?”

“I will tell you all about it once you return.”

The new powers coursing through his veins reinvigorated him, while you felt yourself crashing with each passing moment.

He nodded, knowing full well whenever he returned you’d likely be asleep, tucked away in his bed chambers. The thought pulled a smile from him as he bent down, placing a kiss on your lips.

It was soft and sweet, full of a promise he knew he could make: I’ll be back.

Millions and millions of small decisions had brought him here, to a life he never thought possible. He stood on the precipice of his future, looking out over the edge, no idea of what was to come. With his first step from his chambers, he walked off, trusting for once that everything had a way of working out.

One cannot appreciate Heaven without having lived through Hell.

Divider by @tsunami-of-tears 🫶🏻

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Eris taglist: @magicstrengthandcourage @book-obsessed124

[electricbathsalt]

I would like to clarify something:

My point was never that Chisaki didn’t do anything wrong, that he was innocent, or justified in any of the things he did. He’s horrible. He’s a horrible man who did horrible things.

My point was that he’s not actually any worse than the League of Villains, and that a lot of the fandom doesn’t bother properly understanding his character. So many people will say that he’s pure evil and that he was just born that way, when that’s… blatantly untrue? He clearly is a product of the environments he grew up in. You cannot convince me he would have turned out the same person had he had a different, better upbringing.

I’ve seen many people say that Chisaki is the exact same as AFO and Endeavor, while loving Shigaraki and saying he deserved better. Which is interesting, considering Chisaki is also canonically a victim of AFO, and as for with Endeavor, I’d say there’s quite a few pretty fundamental differences between the two:

One: Chisaki’s goals were not entirely for himself and his own prosperity and wants.

Two: Chisaki didn’t enter into an arranged marriage where he forced his wife to have multiple kids for the sake of his goal. It was not premeditated. Eri was dropped in his lap, and he made a plan based off of that.

Three: Chisaki was raised in the yakuza. Before Chisaki was in the yakuza, he was in one of AFO/Garaki’s orphanages, where it’s implied he was experimented on. His outlook on life, the world at large, and violence is going to naturally be extremely different from Endeavor’s due to how he was raised. Endeavor seems to have been born in a relatively regular civilian or hero family.

Four: Chisaki is half the age of Endeavor.

And I hope I don’t have to explain why Chisaki is not the same as AFO.

It’s shown that Chisaki is capable of love and care. The problem is that he never learned how to properly show those things. He never learned about the inherent value of human lives—he believes that being alive is something you must prove yourself worthy of.

Nemoto used his truth quirk on Chisaki, and Chisaki’s true feelings were that he likes Nemoto and finds his presence reassuring. Yet he doesn’t spare a second thought before killing him and fusing with him. He doesn’t exactly hesitate to put Pops into a coma, the person who he treasures most. It seems that Chisaki doesn’t equate caring about someone with not hurting them.

He doesn’t hold grudges. He doesn’t blame anyone but himself for the destruction of the Shie Hassaikai. He doesn’t care to go after Midoriya or the LOV for revenge. He seems to think violence is something expected, that it’s a given. That someone hurting you isn’t something to be mad about. People like to wave around Chisaki’s whole shtick of dehumanizing people and thinking of them as pawns, but they don’t realize that he doesn’t exclude himself from that. Yes, he likely believes himself to be the queen, but still ultimately a chess piece.

Chisaki isn’t a sadist. He’s never a jackass for the sake of being a jackass. We only “see” him smile once and firstly, we don’t even get to actually see it because it’s covered by his mask, and secondly, it’s a fake smile to try to throw Midoriya and Mirio off his trail. Yet I see people make him smile and revel in other people’s pain all the time, make him an asshole who likes tormenting people for the sake of it. That’s not Chisaki.

Chisaki is not worse than Dabi or Shigaraki. Chisaki is not “completely different” from them and ten times more evil. He is the same; he thinks how he does because of how he was brought up. He would’ve been different if his childhood was different. He is not less deserving of rehabilitation than the LOV.

Anyway. This is getting longer than I intended, so I’m just gonna cut it off there.

[spiritedstars]

Spirit Meets the Bones XXX

Genre: Angst/Romance/Drama Warnings: Mentions of physical abuse. Author’s Note: In case you missed it, here’s a little art I commissioned of my darlings <3

shoutout to @divinerivals for being on this journey with me <3

Tagging: @climb-the-mountian / @vanserrass / @zenkindoflove / @animezinglife / @readthelastpaage / @teddyhoneybear / @positivewitch / @clockwork-ashes / @carnythian / @secret-third-thing / @runningwiththeoceans / @readychilledwine / @goldenmagnolias / @that-golden-lyre / @thedarkinmansfield / @mali22 / @maidr-00 / @electromagnetic-waves / @eastofatlanta / @moobell55 / @bibliophiliaxvignette / @devilsfoodcake22 / @weesablackbeak / @ladywhilemia / @alohaangels / @feysandfeels / @corcracrow / @dawneternal / @gracie-rosee / @mage-neve / @queenoftheworld1998 / @wolvesnravens / @illyrianvalkyrie / @rainbowsnowflake

Find it all here.

For once, Iris was awake before her husband. 

The last few days had been a whirlwind of movement and this was the first time he’d gotten a chance to actually rest. He slumbered next to her and she couldn’t help but watch him, her chest tightening at how exhausted he seemed. Iris hadn’t slept too well either given the impending ball and all that was to come from it. It had awoken a new set of worries in her and what should’ve been a joyous event of some sort, was now going to end in a bloodbath. 

Whose blood they would be drowning in remained to be seen. 

Aside from the chain of events that would be taking place, whatever else Eris wanted to discuss with her made her nervous. Her husband had always been straightforward with her, even when he was hesitant to discuss something. Eris avoiding the discussion altogether had Iris wondering just how unpleasant it would be. 

There was so much to be done and so much to worry about and as she watched him sleep, an ache unfurled in her chest. 

She had basically confessed that she was falling in love with him. While Iris was sure it was obvious and he could probably sense it, this was the moment she was finally admitting it to herself. Which was incredibly silly given they were married and mates. And yet…words between them held a certain weight. She wanted to wait until he was ready to hear it. Until it felt right. 

Even if they seemed to be running out of time. 

Iris brushed her hair from her face then curled back into him and immediately, Eris’s arm wrapped around her. He slept on his side and she gazed at his face, still so serious in his slumber. Iris couldn’t help but brush the back of her hand across his cheek and as Eris sleepily nuzzled into her hand, she felt her cheeks heat. She loved being touched by him but she loved touching him even more and watching him shudder, knowing he had never been this relaxed with anyone else. Knowing only his mate could bring him this level of ease.

It never ceased to make her heart flutter the way they touched so easily and openly. 

And gods, she didn’t know when the two of them had become such blubbering messes with each other…anytime she thought back how prickly they had been together, it seemed a lifetime away. 

Now, Iris felt addicted. It was a chasm of all her wants and desires and she dived in headfirst. And it really was these little things - the touch of his hand and how it lit a fuse in her heart, how it made her ache in the best way. 

Leaning in, she couldn’t help but place a small kiss against his lips. And while yes, she was worried about whatever else he had yet to share, Iris trusted him. He’d tell her when he was ready. 

In the meantime, she could ease some of his stress, right? They could…play with each other, right? Especially when in three weeks they…they could be separated. 

Iris forced herself to take a breath, wiggling the prickle of anxiety from her fingers, and instead, focused on cataloging every inch of his face. He would be alright. They would be alright together. 

Lightly, she let a finger trace the scattering of freckles on his shoulder – freckles she had thought about kissing embarrassingly often. She wondered if he could tell.

Biting her lip, Iris watched him for a breath then — feeling bold, she leaned forward and planted a feather-like kiss on those exposed freckles that she was just tracing before moving again to plant another soft kiss on his collarbone and then one more on his neck. 

She would’ve kept going, that invisible string between them urging her to keep close and do more but Iris felt him shift and pulled back. She blushed furiously at his sleepy smirk.

“Well. Good morning, wife.”

“Hi.” 

Her response sounded too demure to her own ears and when he chuckled, she couldn’t help but hide away in the crook of his neck, hating that he brought out this side of her. This stupid shyness.

His chest rumbled with another chuckle beneath her and Iris felt goosebumps erupt across her body when his hand slid down her back and up. She was still in her silk robe from yesterday. Eris had begged her to keep it on so he wouldn’t lose his sanity and the way it felt beneath his fingers now as he soothingly rubbed her back – it was testing Iris’s own sanity.

“If you’re trying to take advantage of me, I can pretend to be sleeping again.” he murmured in her ear. “You have my permission to do whatever you want, little gazelle.” 

“You’d love that, wouldn’t you,” she said, pulling back to meet his gaze and the knowing grin on his face.

“You having your way with me? I’m dying to see how creative your mind can be.”

Iris tsked and pursed her lips, her finger back to tracing his collarbone, and she avoided his gaze. “I’m not sure what kind of dirty mind you think I have but I doubt it’s as filthy as yours.”

Eris’s hand slid until it was under her chin and forced her to look at him, his smile wicked. “I hope it’s the filthiest.”

“I don’t think anyone could take that top spot from you.”

“You’re right,” he whispered, his gaze darkening as he watched her. “My mind is absolutely, wholeheartedly, and unapologetically disgusting when it comes to you.”  

Heat surged between them and their mingled scents of arousal filled the room. The evidence of Eris’s desire was already pressed against her and Iris wondered if he knew just how tempted she was to climb him like a tree. She wondered how many mornings could they have like this, waking up and wanting to be skin-to-skin. Where they could wake up and be all over each other. Iris wondered if he could sense the slickness gathering between her legs. 

She licked her lips and whispered, “Tell me.” 

Eris closed his eyes and Iris had to bite back a smile when he took a deep breath, his nostrils flaring. 

“Wife.” he said tightly and squeezed her against him.

“Mate.” she whispered again and Eris made a noise of distress, burying his nose into her hair and Iris couldn’t help the giggle that slipped from her lips.

“Menace,” he choked out, pulling back to narrow his eyes at her.

“I think you mean delight.” she replied sweetly and Eris felt his heart nearly beat out of his chest. 

He kept telling himself to be patient but gods, waking up like this with her — with her lips on him and lovely soft body pressed up against him, the scent of her desire all over him. How was he supposed to resist? How was he not supposed to devour her? 

Iris watched his mind work but for once, she didn’t want him to think. She didn’t want either of them to worry about anything – to hold back. The bond between them was a living thing and it was begging the two of them to touch. 

“Do you want me to start?” she asked and watched as her husband’s eyes darkened with desire. 

“Start what?” he rasped.

“Telling you how often I think about you touching me.” she continued in her hushed voice and Eris groaned.

“Yes – no – wait –”

“I barely said anything.” she teased. “Should I keep going?”

“No.” he almost begged. 

“But…” she started and had to swallow before having the courage to continue, “I didn’t get to tell you about how often I – I think about your cock. How good I know it’ll make me feel.”

“Oh fuck.” Eris breathed and squeezed his eyes shut. He had to force himself to count to ten slowly so he didn’t embarrass himself and fucken come right then. His wife was supposed to be shy when it came to sex. Despite his teasing, he always approached it carefully so he didn’t push her away from it. So he didn’t overwhelm her. So he didn’t fucken tackle her in his haste to taste her. 

Yet here she was confessing something so simple and he was about to crumble. Like an imbecile.

“It’s too early for me to be able to handle the word cock coming out of your mouth.” he said tightly. 

Iris flushed deeply, thoroughly enjoying his pain, and said, “I think about tasting you. Taking you in my mouth.” she confessed and Eris wasn’t embarrassed to admit he almost whimpered. “I don’t have experience doing that but – but I’ve read enough romance novels to manage.”

“I’ll teach you,” he said and squeezed her against him. “I’ll teach everything while I show you everything I’ve been wanting to do to you.” 

“Do you want to know what else I’ve thought about?” she whispered and Eris’s eyes were almost glazed over as they shared a look.

“Yes.” he breathed then, “No.”

Iris’s chuckle was a little breathless as she said, “I think about how experienced you are and how that’ll work in my favor.”

“You have no idea how depraved I want to be when it comes to you.” he said, his voice guttural.  

“Then tell me.” she whispered, pressing herself against him even further, knowing that being chest to chest would be something he couldn’t resist. Eris couldn’t take his eyes off her as she stared up at him with those rose-colored cheeks, her eyes filled with as much desire as his own. 

Licking his lips, he finally spoke. “I think about us fucking almost too much for my own good,” he said. “It’s a sickness. An illness. An addiction. You’d never be the same after.”

Iris bit her lip and shifted, squeezing her thighs together. “That’s – that’s a big promise.” 

“Mmm.” Eris hummed and couldn’t stop himself from saying more. “I think about how I’d lock us in this room and have my way with you. Fuck you in every position possible until you’re so overstimulated you can’t move. Until the only thing you can do is whimper my name and I’d just fuck you again to keep hearing your whimpers.” Iris shuddered against him and Eris’s hand slid down her back and squeezed her backside, kneading as he continued, “I’d have you covered in my come with more of it dripping out of you. I’d fill you up every chance I had. Wake up with my cock inside you and go to bed with my cock inside you, keeping it warm for me.”

Iris had to take a shaky breath, arching into his touch as he squeezed her ass, her nipples hard beneath the robe and she knew he felt it, pressed up against him like this. 

“That sounds like a lot of work.” she rasped and Eris’s grin was wicked. 

“As long as you’re willing to keep these lovely legs spread for me, I’d be delighted to have you sit back and let me do all the work,” he said, his voice low. “You can be my pretty princess.” 

Iris licked her lips and squeezed her thighs together again, feeling her core throb with each word he said. “And what if I wanted you on your back, where I think you belong?” she asked. “What then?”

“I’d lay back and let you decide if you want to ride my cock or ride my face. As long as I can have your pretty cunt on me.”

Iris didn’t know if it was possible for her face to heat further but her whole body was on fire. The silk of her robe was a cage, a curse when she desperately wanted him to touch her.

“Eris.”

“Yes?”

“If you don’t touch me right now –”

She didn’t finish the sentence before her husband was upon her and immediately, her legs wrapped around his waist, her robe falling open, and his hardened cock lined against the spot she was craving for him to touch. Their kiss was a clash of teeth, messy, desperate, and asd Eris thrust his hips into her hard enough that Iris was sure she would come any minute. 

Touch. Taste. Claim.

Eris rolled his hips into her again, relishing in the feeling of her cunt against him through the sorry excuse of lace covering, and feeling her wetness only made him want to taste it, made him want to dive between her legs and never come out. His hands touched and squeezed every inch of her and the sounds she was making only spurred him on as he nearly ripped that fucken robe off her. The straps of her nightgown fell off her shoulders in his haste, and her breasts were pushed up by the way he was hovering over her and Eris was almost sure he was going to black out. His tongue found its way to hers and their desperate kiss became even more eager as she dug her nails into his shoulder, rocking her hips to meet his.

It would take him seconds to rip the scrapes she wore off. Even less if he burned them off and as Eris’s mouth devoured hers, the mating bond between them shone bright, the gold thread wrapping its way around them and Eris – he would embarrass himself and come like this, nearly fully clothed – especially when Iris whimpered, clamping her legs around him – he would embarrass himself and their scents together would threaten to kill him —

Their scents — the scent of their mating bond threatened to — 

And it was like a bucket of cold water was thrown over him and Eris froze. The scent of their mating bond — How could he forget?

Iris stilled beneath him, her brows furrowed at him in confusion as he abruptly pulled away. Their labored breaths were the only sound throughout the room and Iris would’ve died of embarrassment of being so disheveled had Eris not been right there, struggling with her. 

But he’d pulled away –

“Eris…?” Her tone was tentative as she glanced at him, still hovering over her. 

“We should stop.” he said hoarsely and Iris blinked. 

“What?”

“We need to stop.” 

The words had barely left his mouth when he pulled away completely and Iris shifted, slowly and carefully fixing her nightgown, suddenly feeling exposed in a way she didn’t like. She watched as Eris stumbled out of their bed, running a hand through his hair, his expression shutting down.

Swallowing, she sat up on her knees, observing him standing at the foot of the bed, his back to her, and immediately, whatever worries she had tried to keep at bay came flooding back. A moment of silence passed before she finally asked, “What’s wrong?”

Eris winced but kept his back to her, trying to calm the raging beat of his heart, trying to ignore the thread of gold that tied them together currently choking him. 

A risk. It was a risk to become more intimate than this. With everything that was to come, having anyone, especially his father scent their bond now would be a very foolish move. He couldn’t risk it. He couldn’t make it worse for her.

A wife could always leave. A bonded mate? A bonded mate would always be linked back to him. 

“Did I do something wrong?” 

And her question was in a tone so quiet and troubled, Eris almost threw himself out the window.

He turned back to find her sitting, her robe back on her and her fingers nervously fidgeting in her lap but it was the way she looked at him that struck a nerve. She hadn’t looked so deflated since he’d met her and he had caused that.

“Of course not.” he breathed and as quickly as he had shot away from her, Eris closed the distance between them again and kissed her furiously. “You’re – you’re perfect. You’ve done nothing wrong.” he whispered before pulling away again and Iris blinked rapidly at the quickness of his movement.

“Then…what just happened? I thought – I thought we —”

Eris shook his head, giving her a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes then turned away from her again, and Iris’s brows furrowed as he walked towards their shared closet and started rummaging. “As much as I would love to keep going in the direction our morning started, we – we can’t.” 

“Alright…” she said slowly and slid off the bed, edging closer to him. “It’s alright if you changed your mind.” Smoothing down her hair, she attempted some humor, “I won’t make fun of you too much if it turns out you’re all talk with no follow through.” 

Eris tensed and squeezed his eyes shut, misery choking him. “It’ll be a busy day and I’m already running late,” he said and Iris flinched when he slammed the closet door shut. “I’ll try to meet you for lunch but if I can’t, I’ll send word and you can continue with your day. Keep a hound on you at all times.”

Iris frowned, her hands fisting at her sides. “You’re making it very hard for me to believe that I didn’t do something to piss you off,” she said. “You – I’m feeling pretty rejected right now.” 

Forcing himself to take a breath, trying not to inhale her scent too deeply, Eris turned to face her. “I’m – We have to be extra careful these next few days. I expect you to be on high alert every minute you’re outside of this room,” he said and Iris blinked. “I think it’ll be safest if we aren’t seen together as often. Let them believe we’ve gotten into some sort of fight.”

Iris stared at him in disbelief then huffed out an incredulous laugh. “Eris. What the hell are you talking about?”

“Haven’t you been listening?”

“Oh, I’m listening,” she said and her expression flattened. “I’m just waiting for you to start making some sense.” 

Eris scowled and felt his ears turn red. This was stupid. He was being stupid but he couldn’t get into this with her right now. He couldn’t let himself get sucked into her orbit again, forgetting what was at stake. She was already a target for being his wife. The moment anyone scented their mating bond, it would be the end and he knew with how big these events usually went, his Father would already have something up his sleeve for the ball.

Finally, he sighed. “I’m sorry. Again, you didn’t do anything wrong. I will explain later when I’m not – when it’s better timing.”

“I have nowhere else to be right now,” she said curtly. “And the world won’t end if you take five minutes to explain what the fuck is going on in that overthinking head of yours.”

His mouth thinned and Iris felt anger surge through her body. She was angry and embarrassed but she sure as fuck was not going to let him leave without explaining. 

“This is getting worse for you by the second, Eris,” she said. “I trust you but trust has to go both ways and I’ve been nervous about whatever you’re holding back on since the other night.” She moved until she stood right in front of him and pointed a finger to his chest. “Until you explain, I will not make it easy for you to leave this room.” 

Eris watched her beautiful face and hated that he knew the pink of her cheeks was in anger – in discomfort that he was putting her through. That he had embarrassed her. But if he hadn’t stopped himself, it would’ve – he wouldn’t have been able to resist. And what kind of a husband, what kind of a mate would he be if he didn’t weigh the cost of his lust?

“Every mating bond has a scent,” he finally said and reached up to take her hand on his chest in his own. “Depending on how long the couple has been together, it either simmers down or becomes more potent. Couples who are freshly mated…the scent of their mating bond is very potent. Not to mention the craze of the mating frenzy that takes place.”

Iris blinked. “Oh.”

“Yes.”

“So you don’t want us to –”

“Yes.”

“Because you don’t want others to –”

“Yes.”

Her expression flattened. “And you didn’t think to take a moment and calmly explain this to me instead of pulling that little stunt?”

“I don’t explain things. I just do them.” he retorted and knew he sounded like an insolent child but he couldn’t help it and – he blinked and then scowled. Eris hadn’t even taken into account what the mating frenzy would be like and how he’d handle that amidst all that was happening. 

Iris’s annoyance was evident on her face, especially when she pulled her hand away. “That may have worked for you before but clearly and obviously now, it doesn’t,” she said and tried with all her might not to snap at him. “This feels like an odd regression on your part given all that’s been happening between us.” 

“I’m not –”

She held up a hand. “If you’re worried about people scenting our mating bond, you say that. We can find a solution. If you don’t want us to go further because you find yourself not wanting to, which is perfectly acceptable, you say that –”

“I always want to –”

But Iris waved her hand. “You use your words. I know that’s been difficult for you in the past and I am happy to be patient as you figure it out but what I don’t have patience for is being made to feel like this. Like I made a mistake and wasn’t dignified with a moment of your time for an explanation.” 

Eris scowled. “I already said you didn’t do anything. I apologized.” he snapped. 

Iris’s scowl was as mean as his own. “I do not care for that tone, Eris.” 

“I do not care for yours either, Iris. I said I will explain later.” 

A beat of tense silence passed before Iris scoffed and shook her head, taking a step back. “Of course, Your Highness,” she said curtly and Eris struggled not to let his expression fall when she backed away further and then turned from him, tightening her robe around her. “You did say you were running late and who am I to add to your plate? Don’t let me and my logical demands stand in your way.”

“Iris –”

“I’m too annoyed with you to continue this conversation. You can get what you asked for and we’ll discuss it later,” she called over her shoulder. “Don’t bother finding me for lunch either. I wouldn’t want you to accidentally have time to explain your thought process to me.”

“Will you please –” 

But his wife had walked off into their bathroom, slamming the door behind her and Eris had to hold back a groan, left standing, like the idiot that he was, scowling in the aftermath of his own stupidity.

~~~

“Stupid bastard. Thinking I’m some mind reader…It’s not like I’m a daemati and can figure out what he’s thinking!” Iris grumbled and the pups turned as one to watch her pace around their kennel. “I know whatever it was he was thinking, was idiotic. He’s an overthinking machine and I’m certain it was a stupid reason that if we had just talked it out, it would’ve been fine.”

Iris paused and glanced down at the hounds, Lyra closest to her. With a sigh, she lowered herself to pet the hound, scratching behind her ear. “I suppose I could’ve let him start explaining but it would’ve been like pulling teeth and he was already running late.” Glancing at Lyra, she tilted her head and the hound followed the movement. “Plus I was annoyed. So. I think he needs to stew for a bit. He made me feel terrible this morning.” 

And true to her word, Iris had ignored his message for lunch and avoided wherever he was. Was it childish? Yes. Did she feel silly doing so given everything between them and what was to come? Also yes.

But she couldn’t help it. When he pulled away from her after she had initiated their…hot and heavy morning, she was mortified. To have all that skin on display and be in such a vulnerable position, after saying all those things he said and all the things she had said – for him to pull away? 

“Good luck getting my hands or mouth near your cock now, asshole,” she mumbled and slowly stood with another sigh, glancing down at Lyra. “Fancy a trip with me to the stables?”

“I’d love to go.”

Iris whirled around, her heart jumping to her throat and hand already at the dagger hidden in the folds of her dress but froze when she saw who the unexpected guest leaning casually against the door was. She straightened, six of the twelve hounds surrounding her. 

“Finn.”

Her brother-in-law gave her a roguish smile and then bowed at the waist. “Sister-in-law.”

“How long have you been standing there? Wait – how did you get in?” she asked quickly, flustered that he may have been watching her and she hadn’t been aware. Judging by the smirk that graced his face, too similar to his brother’s, Iris had a feeling he’d heard more than she wanted.

“I also have access to their kennel though they’ll never like me as much as they love Eris,” he said and his smirk widened. “I heard something about hands and mouths near a cock? I could be mistaken, of course.”  

Iris flushed and then scowled. “Sneaking up on me will not warm me up to your presence.” 

“Ah, apologies, my lady. I didn’t want to interrupt such a riveting discussion.” Finn said with a grin. “If it helps, touching cocks is an enjoyable pastime of mine as well so nothing to be embarrassed about.” 

He had the audacity to wink and Iris wished for the ground to swallow her whole. 

“It does not help.” she tried to snap but only sounded even more flustered. “That – is — inappropriate.”

“Of course, of course,” he said, his mouth twitching before he glanced at the hounds still surrounding her. “I come in peace. Only to accompany your mother to her next destination. You can stand down.” 

Surprisingly, the hounds listened to him but Lyra remained on high alert at Iris’s side. Glancing at the hounds, she knew Eris must’ve trained the hounds to trust Finn enough to get this kind of reaction from them. 

“Accompany me?” she asked and met her brother-in-law’s gaze as he straightened, giving her a nod.

“Yes. I was told you’re sick of my brother’s face so I volunteered my own handsome face instead.” 

Iris narrowed her eyes slightly. “He told you that?”

Finn chuckled. “Through clenched teeth and threatened me about sixty-five times before he actually allowed me to come.”

So Eris knew she was avoiding him and yet, couldn’t stop himself from sending someone to look after her. She wanted to be annoyed with him for this little antic but sending Finn was extending an olive branch; Iris knew exactly how much he liked his brothers being anywhere near her. For him to send Finn…at least he was respecting her request for space. 

She couldn’t help but sigh and saw Finn try to fight back a smile. “I’m on my way to take Axel for a ride. I suppose you can join me.”

“Thrilled by your enthusiasm,” was Finn’s retort. “Do lead the way.”

Watching him warily, Iris bid the puppies goodbye and exited the kennel with Lyra in tow, Finn following her. 

“So, Iris.”

“So, Finn.”

And the two watched each other as they walked, highly aware of their surroundings. Iris maintained the demur stance she always did with Eris in public and Finn seemed to walk with a menacing gait that Iris wasn’t sure he was faking. Their first interaction had been brief and though Eris had filled her in more about his personality, it was different being alone with him.

She tried not to be too intimidated by his height. 

“Are we going to talk about how you have my brother by the balls?” he said and Iris snorted before remembering herself and clearing her throat.

“I don’t know what you mean. My husband is responsible for himself.” 

“Ah, don’t want to ruin his image, I see,” Finn said with an exaggerated nod. “If it helps –”

“I don’t think you realize that whenever you say if it helps, you’re not actually being helpful.”

“I didn’t even get to finish my sentence.”

“Judging by all the other sentences you’ve said before, I deemed it necessary to cut you off.” 

Finn snorted and gave her a sidelong glance. “I like you.”

Iris’s lips twitched. “The jury is still out on how I feel about you but I suggest not to get too comfortable.”

“Oh? And why is that?”

“I won’t be responsible for how Eris reacts to your behavior.” 

“Pfft. He can be mad all he wants that we’re best friends.”

“Oh, we’re best friends now?” Iris asked with a raised brow and Finn grinned at her in such a devilish way that she knew almost instantly, that no male or female stood a chance against his charm. 

���The absolute best of friends,” he confirmed. “Any female that my brother has allowed to touch him in front of me is my new friend.”

“Is that so? And how many new friends have you had?” she asked, her cheeks heating at his knowing gaze and Iris could tell from these few minutes alone with him, that this brother-in-law of hers was a riot to be around. 

“Just the one, sister.” 

The two had reached the stables and Iris paused by the door, her curiosity winning out. “Why are you really here, Finn?”

Finn’s gaze seemed to catalog her every breath as they stood before he shrugged. “He was worried and distracted enough that he sent me to make sure you’re alright. I’m assuming he did something stupid?”

“Did you ask him that?”

“I did and when he looked about ready to light a fire under my ass, I assumed the answer was yes,” he said and Iris’s lips twitched before she turned away, walking into the stables. She waved to the stable worker who bowed and upon seeing Finn, immediately exited. Finn had followed her in, a respectful distance away with Lyra between them, and as she stopped in front of Eris’s horse, she allowed herself another glance at her brother-in-law who watched her with too much glee on his face.

“You’re being odd.”

“I’m only excited to be spending time with my new best friend.” 

Iris’s amusement rose by the second. “Has anyone told you, you’re a little too friendly?”

“All the time but it’s usually in a different setting,” he said with another wink. Iris rolled her eyes and turned to Axel, smiling at the horse and petting him gently as Lyra paced the stables.

“Aside from being distracted, is your brother fine?” she asked carefully and Finn’s smile was too smug.

“Are you worried about him?”

“Not particularly.” 

“Ah, you’re a liar too,” Finn said and settled himself against Axel’s stall. “No wonder you fit right in.” 

“I am not a liar,” she muttered with a scowl. “If you’re only here to escort me, I’ve arrived. You may go now.”

Finn tsked. “I thought we were going on a ride? Don’t withdraw your invitation now when we haven’t even gotten to Eris and his disappointing behavior as a husband.”

Her brows lowered, her expression betraying how incredulous she found him. “Don’t go putting words in my mouth about my husband.” 

“Given what I heard you say you’d rather have in your mouth, I would never do that.”

Iris blinked, a breath of silence passing between them as he smirked down at her, and in the next breath, Iris’s knife was unsheathed and pressed to her brother-in-law’s throat.

Finn had the nerve to look delighted as he raised his hands by his head. 

“I know you’re my brother’s wife and he would skin me alive if he heard me but I think I’m in love with you.”

“Finn.”

“Yes?”

“You’re too comfortable,” she said sweetly. 

“But we’re best friends.” 

“No, no we’re not. Especially if you keep this up.”

“If it helps —”

“It doesn’t.”

“ — I can tell you embarrassing things about Eris as a child?” he offered with a smile. “I’m his favorite brother. I have so much ammunition.”

Iris snorted and lifted the tip of her dagger to his cheek, tapping gently. “It’s sweet you think you’re his favorite,” she said, and giving him a warning look, she backed away, hiding her dagger again. That delighted expression of his remained and Iris wondered if he’d been dropped on his head as a child. 

Granted, Finn Vanserra was called The Sword for a reason and Iris holding a knife to his neck had to be comical to him.

“You look so damn soft. Didn’t think you’d have it in you to knife me.”

“I look how I have to,” she merely replied and Finn watched her, a curious smile gracing his face.

Iris let him watch her, feeling like this was some sort of test she hadn’t signed up for and it made her wonder how often Eris had ever mentioned significant others around his brothers. Given his history and the nature of the Vanserra household, she couldn’t exactly be too surprised at how interested Finn seemed. Without a word, he moved past her and Iris backed away as he opened Axel’s gate and began to prepare the horse for her. 

Iris watched him silently, suddenly feeling awkward as he worked; she didn’t think Finn was ever the type to be quiet and now Iris wondered if she was being rude to him. He was only here at Eris’s request; it wasn’t like he was trying to make her uncomfortable. Eris had told her he had a loud personality despite being under Beron’s thumb and it made her realize this loud personality was probably Finn’s act of rebellion against his father. Brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, Iris pursed her lips wondering if she also just sucked at realizing how friendships were formed. 

Elain and Lucien had been different. Eris had prepared her for that but given how he’d originally warned her of his brothers, Iris wasn’t sure which side of them she would be getting.

She reached out, tapping his shoulder softly before dropping her hand as Finn paused and looked at her. “You don’t have to do that, you know. I can do it myself.” 

“I’m not sure if your husband is just an idiot and he hadn’t made you realize this but you are much too pretty to do anything yourself, especially when you have a big strong handsome male around to do it for you,” he said, the corner of his mouth lifting and Iris couldn’t fight back a small smile.

“He would not take the words coming out of your mouth very well,” she said and Finn laughed softly.

“Getting on Eris’s nerves is an art I’ve perfected. Him marrying you only gave me more to work with,” he said and finally, led Axel out of his stall, handing the reins to Iris. “Despite the reservations I see you have about me, I’m genuinely curious about you. I know the way things are don’t allow much room to…do that comfortably but the offer is there.”

“To be my obnoxious best friend?” she asked with a raised brow, her lips twitching at his offended expression. 

“I’m a delight.” 

“Your brother thinks that too about himself but all he actually is, is annoying.” Iris replied and Finn snorted. “You two are cut from the same cloth.”

“I disagree but you are married to him. You can’t exactly call him out for the troll that he is.”

Iris shot him such a reproachful look, that her brother-in-law couldn’t help but laugh heartily. “If you’re jealous of him, Finn, you can just say so. Don’t go around saying ridiculous things.” 

“Aw, you think my brother is handsome?”

Iris rolled her eyes then schooled her expression and said primly, “He’s alright.” 

Finn grinned. “Not a troll then?”

“The only troll I’ve had contact with so far is the one standing in front of me.” she said dryly and Finn snorted.

“We both know that’s far from true,” he said and gave her a Cheshire cat smile. “I won’t tell Eris you think I’m more handsome than he is. It’ll be our little secret.” 

“Wow,” Iris said and fought back a laugh. “You are certainly as delusional as he is about his looks.” 

Finn chuckled and she watched him prepare his own horse, wondering if indeed, she could have a friend in him. Despite the circumstances, she knew Eris trusted him to an extent. With the ball coming up…she knew how deep that trust had to run for them to accomplish what they planned. 

Her expression turned serious and when he met her gaze with a quirked brow, Iris straightened. “Finn.”

“Yes?”

“You’ll…you’ll have his back, right?” she asked quietly then swallowed. “He’ll be alright.”

Iris watched as emotions shifted across his face and a muscle flexed in his jaw before he put a hand over his heart and bowed. Iris blinked in surprise.

“None of us know what that night will bring,” he said softly and straightened, his expression the most solemn she’d seen from him. “But whatever it is – whatever happens, we’ll make sure he’s alright. You have my word on that.” 

She bit the inside of her cheek and then nodded. “You – you didn’t have to bow.” 

Finn’s expression softened into that roguish smile. “You’re the future Lady of Autumn. If I don’t pay my respects now, how else will I stay in your good graces to cause chaos later on?”

Iris shook her head, a small smile blooming on her face. “As if Eris would let you get away with anything.”

“With you distracting him? It’ll be a breeze.” Finn said, waving a hand. 

“You overestimate how distracting I can be.”

Finn cackled. “You underestimate yourself, sister. I have never seen my brother like this before,” he said and gave her an approving nod. “It’s good for him.” 

A blush spread across her cheeks and Iris pursed her lips, pulling Axel forward to give Finn space to bring out his own horse, Lyra wagging her tail in front of them. “I see the sweet talking has already begun.”

“I’m an excellent ass kisser, my lady.”

Iris tried to fight back her laugh but failed miserably when he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at her. Shaking her head again, she gave him a warning look. “Let’s get this ride over with so I can be free of your inappropriateness.”

But as they stepped out of the stables, Finn’s body snapped to attention and Iris’s brows furrowed as his expression changed. He shot her a warning look before they turned and were stopped by none other than the High Lord himself, the curious gleam in his eyes immediately setting Iris on edge.

“Well. Interesting to find the two of you here.” he drawled and Iris felt her pulse quicken. Her run-ins with her father-in-law had been far and few but Eris had always been with her, shielding her from it. This was her first run-in with him after what he did to Eris and she had to swallow the surge of anger that coursed through her. 

Now the High Lord stood across from them and Iris already knew it would be as unpleasant as every interaction with him was. Two of his advisors stood behind him, glancing at her and Finn in curiosity but saying nothing as Beron took a step forward. The High Lord waved his hand carelessly behind him for them to leave and as he took a step forward, Lyra immediately straightened in front of Iris. 

The High Lord’s brow lifted as he stared down at the hound then back at Iris. “If that hound doesn’t move in the next breath, I’ll kill it where it stands.”

Iris’s heart dropped and she quickly tapped her leg. “Lyra,” she called and the hound stood her ground until Iris repeated her name in a sharper tone. After a tense breath, Lyra shifted to Iris’s side, the hound’s gaze never leaving the High Lord despite how he sneered down at her.  

“Father,” Finn said, shifting himself slightly in Iris’s space with his horse. “This is an unexpected surprise. I thought you were surveying the fields for our new crops.”

Beron shifted his gaze to his son and Iris swallowed hard at the way the High Lord’s eyes narrowed slightly. “I am where I wish to be.”

Finn nodded graciously. “Of course.” 

Beron’s mouth shifted in disgust the longer he stared at Finn and Iris’s body tensed further when his gaze shifted back to her. She lowered her eyes, knowing it was what he wanted to see, her fingers tightening in the folds of her dress, and tried not to imagine the scars on Eris’s back. The scars Beron so happily gave him, still healing. 

“Daughter-in-law,” he said and his tone had her hackles rising. Iris lifted her head as he took a few steps closer to her and met his sneer. “I see you’re venturing out without your husband.”

“He gave me permission, my lord.”  

“Did he?” 

Iris managed a nod and tried to keep her expression even as Beron’s gaze skated down her body, even if the way he looked at her made Iris want to claw his eyes out; she was wearing a fitted riding set but the way he watched her made it seem like she was standing in one of her nightgowns. His eyes lingered long enough that it made Iris fidget and the High Lord’s smirk was vile as he shifted to his son.

“Does your brother know you’re sniffing around his wife?” he asked and Finn tensed. “If you plan to share her, that’ll get messy.”

“Father.” Finn snapped with a scowl and Iris flushed deeply, rage lighting her body as the High Lord gave a nasty laugh. “This is not what —”

But Beron waved his hand, cutting Finn off, his magic forcibly pushing him back out of Iris’s space as the High Lord edged closer. “Are you preparing yourself for the first ball as a princess, Iris?”

“Yes.” she said tightly. “Of course.”

“I do wonder how your husband will fare given how all eyes will be on you,” Beron said slowly, again, watching Iris’s every breath with too much interest. “You may be required to dance with others.” 

“I will do my duty as Eris wishes,” she said carefully and his snide smile made bile rise in her throat. 

“You may be required to dance with me as well.”

Iris schooled her expression to remain as blank as possible. “It would be an honor, my lord.” 

Beron lifted a brow. “Will it?”

Iris blinked. “Of course. I will do what is expected of me.”

“To please your husband?”

And Iris hated the way he said it – that tone he always used whenever she was unfortunate enough to be in his presence. The way he watched her every breath, trying to get a reaction from her. She desperately tried to fight back the heat rising to her cheeks at his choice of words. 

“As I said, my lord,” she began quietly. “I will do my duty as Eris wishes.” 

“Such loyalty,” he said lowly, a hand reaching out to tug sharply on one of Iris’s loose curls and Iris tried not to wince, taking a careful breath. The High Lord’s head tilted to the side, his nostrils flaring as he watched her before his gaze flickered to his son in distaste then back to Iris. “You do well to remain loyal.”

Iris had to swallow the insult as she flushed. “Of course, my lord.”

His eyes narrowed again and Iris didn’t know what exactly he was seeing or sensing other than her discomfort and the raging beat of her heart. She wondered if Eris could sense something was amiss. She hoped for his sake that he didn’t. Iris didn’t want him coming anywhere near his father right now, especially when Beron added, “Do note your father will be in attendance. I assured him you’d be on your best behavior. It will not end well if you are not.”

Iris tried to keep her expression from falling, to not give the High Lord the satisfaction of impacting her but immediately, she felt ringing in her ears, and a slow panic began to simmer in her stomach at the idea of seeing her father again. At an event that was already going to be incredibly stressful. 

She didn’t like the gleam in her father-in-law’s eyes as he watched her reaction. This fucker knew exactly what he was doing by telling her this. It was a cheap shot at her but also at Eris, knowing Eris would never want her father in the same place as either of them.

“Will you be on your best behavior, Iris?” the High Lord almost purred and she had to fight back a gag as she answered him in the way she knew he wanted.

“Of course, High Lord.”

Beron tapped her cheek rather roughly and Iris tensed. “My High Lord.” he spat and she forced her jaw not to clench. It was all a power play – she could not get angry. It would only be worse for Eris.

And again, thinking of her husband and his scars. Thinking of the state he had returned to her that night after the High Lord had finished with him — Iris forced herself to take another quiet breath. 

“Of course, my High Lord.” 

That nasty smirk returned to his face and finally, after a tense silence, Beron stepped back. He glanced at Finn, his mouth frowning in distaste once more. 

“What are you doing here?”

“I was asked to escort Iris.” 

Beron snorted. “Why? Is she blind or stupid?”

Iris’s flush deepened and before she could open her mouth, Finn replied rather curtly, “We’re family, Father. We’re spending time together.” 

Beron gave a nasty laugh. “Well then,” he said and glanced again between the two of them before adding, “Be sure you don’t cause a scene. If you’re going to fuck her, at least do it privately.” 

“You have got to be fucken kidding me.” Finn particularly snarled and Iris had barely blinked when Finn stumbled back, holding his face.

The High Lord had backhanded him so quickly, Iris had missed it. Her pulse spiked as Beron glanced at Iris once more before his condescending gaze flickered back to Finn.

“Do not give me that kind of an attitude.” Beron spat. “You all have mouths on you that speak without being asked to. You act as you like and think there aren’t consequences for it.” The High Lord glanced at them both with disgust. “The Mother gave me all of you and you’ve been nothing but disappointments. Maybe one of these days, I’ll have you all whipped into better shape.” 

And with a final noise of disapproval, Beron walked off, leaving Iris and Finn where they stood. 

Moments that felt like hours passed before Iris let out a breath and Finn finally glanced at her with a tight expression, the right side of his face still marred with red. “Are you alright?”

Iris managed a nod, blinking rapidly. “A-are you? He backhanded you hard.” 

Finn shrugged but Iris saw it for what it was, knew he was embarrassed and hated that he was. “Wasn’t the first time and certainly not his hardest hit.”

“I can look at it if you’d like?” she offered carefully but Finn shook his head. 

“It’ll go away on its own,” he muttered and worked his jaw before glancing at her, his carefree demeanor from earlier gone. “I want to be perfectly clear that despite the jokes I made earlier, I truly mean no harm and would never cross that boundary with you. I truly do welcome you as my sister and a friend if you’ll have me.”

Iris flushed lightly and her expression softened. “Of – of course. I know you meant it all jokingly. Don’t – don’t let him sour things between us with those disgusting accusations.” she said, her expression firm, and carefully, she touched his shoulder. “I could use all the friends I can get.”

Finn nodded, letting out a breath as his shoulders dropped. “I don’t know about you but I don’t think I’m up for a ride after all.” 

Iris shook her head, a boulder sitting on her chest. “Neither do I. This felt like a warning.” 

“I have to tell the others,” Finn muttered. “I don’t know what he’s planning or if he meant anything else by it but…”

“My father being invited despite knowing how Eris feels about it is deliberate,” she replied, her fists clenching. “I wouldn’t put anything past him to rile Eris and cause additional problems.”

“I’d have to agree,” he said and rolled his shoulders back. “Let’s get these horses back and find my brother. It seems additional planning needs to be done.”

~~~

Eris had found them shortly after they entered The Forest House and without saying a word, had walked them back to his study, reinforcing the shield with Finn’s as they sat down to discuss. Finn had taken the lead in retelling their interaction with the High Lord and Iris couldn’t help but watch Eris and his body language. The white knuckles, his rigid stance, his blank expression.

“I want to know exactly what he said and did. No detail is too small,” he ordered them both. “Tell me everything.” 

His expression had darkened the more they explained and when they finally retired to their bedroom, his demeanor hadn’t changed. He didn’t speak as they changed for bed and Iris felt herself deflating the more they sat in silence, watching him carefully through the mirror in her vanity as she brushed her hair.

He was seated on the edge of their bed, his back to her, and Iris frowned as she turned to face him. Cautiously, she tugged on that gold thread between them and Eris finally shifted, glancing over his shoulder at her. 

“Yes?”

“Don’t let him get to you this much. He did it on purpose,” she said quietly. “You know that better than I do.” 

Eris shook his head and looked away but didn’t reply and Iris’s frown deepened. 

“He’s said worse before,” she added. 

“You said when he leaned close to you, he seemed to be…sensing something,” he said, his back still to her.

“Yes,” she said carefully. “I am assuming it was my discomfort. He does enjoy that.” 

Eris scoffed and leaned forward, his head dropping in his hands. “That he does,” he said quietly. “He enjoys making everyone uncomfortable and now he’s put us on edge.”

“Do you really think the interaction was that out of the ordinary for him?” 

“I don’t know.” Eris said, his tone curt and Iris felt her shoulder drop. 

“Eris.”

“What.”

Iris tried not to scowl at his snippy tone and forced herself to take a breath through her nose and then stand, walking over to his side. She crossed her arms across her chest. “If he knew anything, Finn and I wouldn’t have been able to walk away from that interaction,” she said and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t let this add to your stress. You have enough on your plate.” 

Eris snorted and sat up, meeting her gaze. “Easier said than done when I felt your damn panic,” he said. “I thought he –”

“But he didn’t. I am fine. Finn is fine.”

“I hate that fucken word.” he spat and stood, moving past her to start pacing. “Nothing about this is fine.”

Iris frowned. “Eris –” 

“Every time I think things are stable, he does something that triggers me and I start to —” he started then growled in frustration. “We’re so fucken close. I don’t know what I’d do if we don’t – if he isn’t —”

And as Iris watched him pace, she found it harder to picture leaving him when the ball came. Yes, he would have his brothers but the thought of him going through all this in his head – where he couldn’t even have her to bear it with him – made her rethink her agreement. 

“What do you need right now?” she asked softly. “Tell me how I can help.” 

“I need a — a break. A distraction,” he muttered. “I need to close my eyes and forget about everything.” 

“I would’ve thought what I was wearing could’ve worked,” she said, hoping he could read the humor in her words. “You’re distracted enough that you didn’t even comment about the robe I’m wearing.” 

And indeed, she’d picked this white silk robe with feather trimming on purpose. She’d chosen what was underneath it for the same purpose. Since he’d heard about the interaction with Beron, he’d shut down and all Iris could sense was anger. She wanted any other reaction to get him out of this funk. 

Eris paused and his gaze narrowed on her, standing with her hands folded in front of her. Of course, he’d noticed what she’d decided to wear. He always noticed and Eris hated that the first moment he’d had her to himself all day, they were spending it like this – dealing with his moods. But he couldn’t stand to even think about touching her. He had a feeling his father’s observation skills had given the High Lord more than Eris had wanted about his relationship with his wife. 

What if he had sensed their bond? How could Eris jeopardize things now?

“Given how silent you are, I’m getting a strong sense of deja vu from this morning with how embarrassed you left me.” Iris said dryly and Eris blinked himself back into reality. 

“I’m not trying to embarrass you,” he said quietly. “I’m trying to protect you.”

Iris blinked then quirked a brow. “I’ll need you to explain this one,” she said.

A muscle flexed in Eris’s jaw as he gazed at her, trying to organize the many thoughts going through his head but when Iris took a step towards him and extended her hand, he scowled and then sighed, allowing her to lead him back to their bed, forcing him to sit. 

“The floor is yours,” she said with a wave of her hand. “You said you would explain later. We are now at ‘later’.”

“I would’ve explained earlier had you not avoided me all day,” he mumbled and Iris gave him a pointed look.

“Are you sure about that?” she asked and his scowl returned. “You look even less inclined to explain things now than you did this morning.” 

Eris crossed his arms and Iris did the same, standing opposite him. The last time he had seen her in white was their wedding; it had looked lovely on her. Now, standing in this rather extravagant robe, she looked as beautiful as ever. Downright edible. It made his shoulders slump and he ran a hand over his face. How was he to avoid touching her when she looked like that?

“Again, I wasn’t trying to embarrass you. I am – struggling with how to phrase this.” he finally said and Iris nodded patiently which only made the tip of his ears heat. 

When a few moments passed and he didn’t elaborate, Iris sighed. 

“Let me assist you with this.” she said and Eris lifted a brow.

“...Alright.”

“I am assuming you’re still attracted to me, yes?”

Eris rolled his eyes. “How much more obvious does my cock need to be for you to know that?” he said and Iris flushed, pointing a finger.

“Check yourself,” she warned and Eris held his hand up in surrender. “And I am also assuming you do want us to be intimate at some point?”

“Yes.” 

“So why are you hesitating?” she asked, curling a strand of hair behind her ear. “Is it because I have hesitated in the past?”

Eris shook his head slowly and struggled to let the words leave his mouth. He looked at his wife – really looked at her. He watched the slant of her full mouth, frowning slightly as she waited, felt the weight of her hooded hazel eyes on him, standing there like a gift he was more than ready to unwrap. But…she was already condemned to be his wife and mate. Did he need to condemn her to stay tied to his memory should something happen to him? 

He didn’t trust his father one bit and the way the High Lord kept sniffing around her made him uncomfortably tense – like his father’s slimy ways were seeping into him – onto her. It made him anxious, anticipating the worst. More than usual and that was saying something. 

He glanced at Iris once then looked down at his hands. He knew she was nervous about what he’d say and the last thing Eris ever wanted was for her to feel any kind of discomfort with him but…he didn’t trust his father. Eris did not want to consider what Beron would do to her. She needed to have a plan. 

“This morning when I stopped us, it wasn’t because of anything you did. It was because I was trying not to be selfish with you.” he said quietly and her brows furrowed.

“Selfish?”

Eris ran a hand over his mouth and sighed softly. “I want you so badly that I was – am willing to keep you with me forever.” he said. “But I also know that I can’t do that to you and would rather have you prepared for the worst-case scenario.” 

Iris forced herself to take a breath, her fingers tightening in the folds of her gown. “The worst-case scenario being…”

“My untimely death when my father hangs my body on the flagpole for the court to see an example of what he does to traitors.”

She felt the blood drain from her face and quickly shook her head, refusing to let the image of what he just said take root in her brain. Her grip tightened on her gown and forced herself to take a breath. 

“And how will we be ready for that, dare I ask?” Her voice was tight and Iris refused to believe in such an option, refusing to even consider that Eris wouldn’t be fine and whole by the end of all this.

Eris ran his tongue over his teeth, trying to word it in a way that didn’t cause him additional strain when he finally forced himself to say, “I want you to prepare for a longer stay in the Day Court.”

She let a heartbeat of silence pass before she asked, “How long?”

His expression turned stoic and he met her gaze as he spoke, “In the event our worst-case scenario plays out, I want you to have an out.” he said firmly. “You would be long gone by then and if we don’t – if the mating bond isn’t fully accepted, you have an out to never return or be tied to this court again.” A muscle flexed in his jaw and he felt himself choke on the words as he continued, “You would be free of me, the bond, and all that it entails.” 

“Free because you’d be dead.”

“Yes.”

He watched her expression as she blinked rapidly, silence stretching between them and Eris could only clench his hands in his lap as she opened then closed her mouth, her expression shifting through her emotions until eventually settling on disbelief. 

“Is that what you think?” she asked incredulously. 

Eris only straightened. “You won’t have to live with too hard of a loss. With any kind of guilt or lingering feelings. I’m sure it won’t be easy and will take some adjusting to but I’d rather you lived and dealt with the loss of an unfilled mating bond than die or be tortured enough to wish for death at the hands of my father when I can’t be there to protect you.” He said and his expression hardened as he repeated firmly, “I want you to have an out.”

And Iris could only stare at him in stunned silence, her battered heart cracking at the seams. 

[itz-rae]

is Kai Chisaki incapable of love?

platonic and romantic

(Ik I'm probably not the first person to point this out but whatever)

One of the most important people to Chisaki is the Boss who he clearly sees as a father figure though because studio bones fucking sucks they cut a lot of there interactions out of the anima

The Boss is one of the only people we see him show care or empathy towards

although as soon as the Boss goes against him with what he was planning on doing to Eri, Overhaul put him in a coma

But it's clear this comes from Kai wanting to make him proud it is still an incredibly fucked up way to do it

But I don't believe it's entirely Kai's fault I believe it's part of his quirk instincts (ie like how Himiko Toga's need to drink blood and La Brava loving people more intensely) make Chisaki more controlling

I mean, it's not outright stated, but come on, he can manipulate matter with his bear hands it's not a stretch to say part of the reason he's such a control freak is because of that

Which brings me to his relationship with Chronostasis, the only other person he cares about

We know Hari is one of his childhood friends though we don't know much else but he is Kai's right hand man and one of the only people we see Overhaul consistently trusts with Eri and his plan for the Shie Hassaikai

And even during the raid, we see Kai going out of his way to heal Hari while he eminently fused with Nemoto (probably killing him if Eri didn't rewind them) as soon as he wasn’t able to fight anymore

The big difference being that Chronostasis never disagreed with Kai to the extent Hari was more loyal to Chisaki than the actual Shie Hassaikai

While the Boss definitely loved his adopted son he wasn’t okay with his plan (understandable) and was worried about the path Kai was going down but in the end he was too late and didn't give him the help he needed

In conclusion, Chisaki is definitely capable of loving and caring for someone, though he'd definitely be controlling about it and do what he'd think is best in the long run

[kyushiblast]

Hiii !

May i ask for some jealousy with (separate) team star x reader ? Like their s/o is being close with someone else, or just general thoughts about it. I lack originality but there’s sooo little stuff with them

Only take the guys if all five are too much

Most importantly, have a good day ‼️

⤷ 〝 hit up. 〞

➞ pairing : giacomo , ortega , atticus , mela , & eri x gn! reader

➞ summary : team star reactions to someone hitting on you.

➞ genre : fluff

➞ cw / other : slight cursing

➞ a/n : i cannot DESCRIBE how hard i mentally screamed when i saw mela for the second time playing through pokemon violet. like please , she’s not the fire crew boss for nothing

❝ giacomo ❞

— ★ really pissed off.

— ★ of course, he’d probably try to hide it from the other person—scoffing and glaring at the other whilst behind you.

— ★ i kind of imagine him, if it were in a private place, to be blasting music anytime the other would talk just to annoy them more.

— ★ if the other tries dissing his music, he’ll probably break a fuse—especially if it was dedicated to you. but then he’ll calm down, because if he’s ever learned something from bullies, it’s that all they want is a reaction to their taunting.

— ★ doesn’t care how loud he yells in public unless it makes you uncomfortable.

— ★ giacomo would roast the person in return, hook his arm around your shoulder, and amble off with the middle finger up at the person just to spite them.

— ★ and despite looking all tough and whatnot, he’d still pleasantly kiss you on the lips afterward.

❝ ortega ❞

— ★ will roast the heck out of the other. when i tell you he is the most mischievous, best representing with a shit eating grin i mean it.

— ★ the other person’s flirting with you? get FLAMED by ortega. and he’s not even the fire type crew leader, but he is going to be ROASTING the other like there’s no tomorrow.

— ★ “sorryyy, i would battle you, but my pokémon tend to get bored in the middle of battles with low-life losers like you,” he’d say.

— ★ will cling to your arm subconsciously, pissing off the other more. and if you’re able enough, he’ll want a back ride right in front of the person.

— ★ and then after, when the person leaves as a wreck from ortega’s sharp remarks and lines, ortega would probably wave bye to them saying something like: “byee, cya never!”

— ★ finally, he’d pepper your face with kisses no matter how dorky it looks.

❝ atticus ❞

— ★ the calmest of the bunch.

— ★ will be polite with a slight twinge of annoyance in his voice.

— ★ if the person doesn’t leave, he’ll start becoming more annoyed. but since he’s not the type to stir a scene, he’ll just tenderly take your hand and walk off with you.

— ★ if the person follows, they’re just asking for trouble. POKÉMON BATTLE TIIIIIME

— ★ after drenching them with a poisonous defeat, he would say in his own atticus way that the person needs to move on.

— ★ then he’d start thanking you for not going with that other person and he’ll vent about how he hates when people are like this.

— ★ expect more scheduled dates after!!

❝ mela ❞

— ★ hot tempered. would accuse the other of trying to steal you away before stating that they have no chance.

— ★ no mercy whatsoever, except maybe for a little pity glare that screams “go away!” to the other if they seem apologetic enough.

— ★ will walk in front of you and hold out her arm protectively—maybe out of habit in her earlier years—even if you’re perfectly capable of defending yourself.

— ★ she’s dominant in the conversation. will barely let the other talk. the only thing she’ll gladly hear is their apologizing for hitting on you and/or admittance that they’re no match for her.

— ★ after, she’s miss mean-but-with-good-intentions again! she’ll tsk and deny everything if you tease her.

— ★ expect random acts of kindness after.

❝ eri ❞

— ★ the nicest. she’ll politely explain that you’re spoken for and ask for them to stop.

— ★ and if they don’t? then she’ll step it up and insist more. will point towards a pokémon battle.

— ★ she’s extra set on doing her best, especially since if she loses she’ll lose her pride of being strong for you. her pokemon seem to sense that too.

— ★ after, if she notices that the pokemon of the other seem to have a close bond to their trainer, signaling that the person’s not as bad as they show but just desperate, she’ll hype ‘em up saying something like: “i’m sure there’s someone out there fit for you!” but if it’s the opposite, she’s going to be naturally cold to them.

— ★ and as the other slumps away, she’ll hug you and ask if she did well.

— ★ she’ll take you to eat somewhere afterwards.

work of kyushiblast , please do not translate , copy , or repost here or on any other platform !!

[thefirstknife]

Im very out of touch with what's happening in Destiny since I stopped playing but I have to ask WHAT DID THEY DO TO ERIS???????

SHE FUSED WITH THE HIVE. SHE'S ACTING LIKE OUR OWN HIVE GOD. WE'RE GIVING HER TITHE TO MAKE HER POWERFUL ENOUGH TO BEAT XIVU ARATH. Insane. She's becoming so unhinged AND so kissable.

[the-aerispace]

Aizawa and Izuku as a fusion! They're my favorite two characters

:3

order up!

I was gonna do a bit more but this drawing KEPT FIGHTING ME so like I just decided to settle for this 😭😭

my ideas for this are that this was a complete accident... But I guarantee this fusion brings out the parental instincts TENFOLD. And neither of them realise but he parents 1-A so hard all the time... (Izuku gets it from his mum lol)

Very analytical, a beast when fighting, but absolutely cannot say that someone got his order wrong at a restaurant.. also a magnet for traumatised children. Welcoming aura + would burn down the world to keep a child safe is a perfect match. Eri loves him when he does show up, but he doesn't show up very often, as Izuku and Aizawa don't really fuse all that much. (I'd consider Aizawa fusion averse to people who aren't Mic or Midnight (and Oboro but like yk), and I'd say Izuku mainly fuses with just his classmates and friends.)

request fusions here!!

[ysmtttty]

Eris week Day 2: Childhood || Legacy

AO3 or read below

Once upon a time, in a kingdom veiled in shadows and cruelty, there lived a young prince who loved his family dearly.

One shot, 1.1k words; @erisweekofficial

Once upon a time, in a kingdom veiled in shadows and cruelty, there lived a young prince who loved his family dearly.

He was the firstborn son of a fearsome and wicked king, who ruled the land with an iron hand. The young prince, though cherished deeply by his gentle mother, could not escape the dark influence of his father. The king was determined to shape his son into a mirror image of himself, a ruler even more ruthless and cunning. He harbored the vision of his son surpassing him in every way, with no intention of easily relinquishing the throne.

As the years passed, the young prince's heart was slowly consumed by the darkness that surrounded him. It seemed as though the light within him had been snuffed out, and everyone believed that the king's corruption had taken root in his soul.

Yet, there was a time when the young prince was innocent and free, before the weight of the crown loomed over him. In his childhood, he spent his days playing with the puppies in the garden, causing mischief, and sneaking pastries from the kitchen, much to the annoyance of the cooks. He would sit by his mother's side, listening to the stories she told with wide-eyed wonder. She was his first friend, his greatest comfort, and the most precious person in his little world.

She used to be the first who greeted him in the mornings with motherly affection, and the last who said him goodnight, leaving a tender kiss on his forehead. In her presence, the young prince felt a sense of peace and calm that he found nowhere else. He would share with her tales of his adventures, proudly recounting how he had taught the puppies to sit or how he had made a sweet maid's daughter blush by giving her daisies from the garden.

Those were the golden days of his youth, filled with love and laughter. But as he grew older, the cruel king decided it was time for his son to learn the ways of a true heir.

On that fateful day, the king struck the young prince, hard enough to leave a bruise on his chubby cheek and bring tears to his eyes. The prince looked to his mother for protection, but she stood by silently, tears streaming down her face. She did not intervene; she could not and she never did. She watched helplessly as the king began to mold her beloved son into something dark and unrecognizable.

The young prince’s light-hearted nature began to fade, replaced by bitterness and cruelty. His words grew harsher, and his actions more brutal. His mother could only watch as the transformation took hold, as the innocence of her child was stripped away.

Despite the harshness of his new reality, the young prince still played his favorite game—pretending. But now, the game had changed. He no longer pretended to be a mighty warrior or a fair king; instead, he wore masks of cruelty and cunning, so convincing that even he began to believe in them. No one could tell he was still pretending, that beneath the mask, a flicker of his former self remained.

As time went on, the young prince was joined by brothers. They, too, were once full of life, with chubby cheeks, fiery red hair, and mischievous grins as they stole candies from the kitchen. The young prince loved his brothers dearly, and they adored him in return. But as they grew older, they too fell under the king's dark influence, becoming echoes of their father and eldest brother.

The young prince watched in silence as his brothers lost their innocence, as their childhoods were stolen by the cruelty of their father’s reign. He watched them suffer, beaten until they conformed to the king's will. And in that suffering, the young prince finally understood why his mother had never come to his defense.

He then realized that the mask he wore had become a part of him, fused to his very being. But then, a new light entered his life—his youngest brother, a child of pure love and light, untouched by the darkness that had claimed the rest of the family. This child was different, and the young prince vowed to protect him.

But the light was soon extinguished, shattered by the king and the brothers who had succumbed to his influence. The young prince fought back, rebelling against his father, enduring broken bones and shackles. Yet, even his pain was insignificant in a court ruled by darkness. No fire or light seemed capable of piercing the thick veil of cruelty.

Centuries passed, and the young prince grew into a cunning and dangerous man. His mask was no longer a mask; it had become his true face. His eyes gleamed with cruelty, and his emotions were buried deep within, never to be seen again.

But deep down, he knew what he had to do. He had to bring fire back to the court, to ignite a wildfire that would burn the corrupted kingdom to ashes, so that a new and just realm could rise from the ruins.

When the young prince finally ascended to the throne, the kingdom began to change. Though the dais of his throne was stained with blood, the cries of despair gradually faded. The death of the old king marked the beginning of a life that could flourish once more.

At first, the people feared the new king as they had feared his father. They had no faith in his kindness, for they had known only tyranny. But over time, the king’s actions revealed his true intentions. He ruled with a firm hand, but his decisions were guided by a desire to help his people.

Slowly, the kingdom began to heal, and the folk came to cherish their new king. Yet, some wounds took longer to mend.

The king's brothers, still twisted by their father's teachings, envied him. They dreamed of seizing the throne, of ending the life of the brother who had always been there for them. The king, now unable to undo the damage that had been done, could only watch in despair.

His mother, who had found freedom after the old king’s death, still loved her children dearly. She chose to stay in the kingdom for just a little longer, but even love could not erase the fear that lingered in her heart. She flinched when the new king raised his voice at someone, and she was more guarded around him, as if she feared he might hurt her too. The king noticed, and it pained him deeply, but he did not know how to fix it.

The new king had achieved everything he had set out to do, yet he had lost everything he had once loved. In quiet moments, he longed to be that carefree young prince again, playing with puppies and listening to his mother’s stories, far away from the burdens of the crown and the scars of the past.

[lineli225]

Tomura's Shigaraki peculiar interest towards Izuku Midoriya: A compilation of every sus moment from him! PART 2

PART 1: https://www.tumblr.com/lineli225/741546036473053184/tomuras-shigaraki-peculiar-interest-towards-izuku?source=share

Then AFO comes and possess Tomura, that's the moment Izuku realized Tomura is a victim, and needs saving as well The last thing Tomura sees before being gone, is Yoichi's speech about Izuku's heroism, and Izuku jumping, his body moving on his own, to try to SAVE him from AFO

After that, Tomura is abasically gone, as his mind is consumed by All for One, as they fuse, it's beocmes hard to tell where Tomura ends and AFO starts, BUT! Thanks to SNS we finally can see a part of Tomura again! his core, his most genuine self, and what that apart says?

This is proof, that this whole time, Tomura's unconsciousness DID realize Izuku is a real hero, ever since he saw him save All Might, help Todoroki, fight Stain, save Eri and Koda, and so on and on, he always KNEW Izuku was different from the other heroes

Moving on, from Tomura's point of view, he was kept suffering the collateral damage in that cave, yet when AFO talks about Izuku, Tomura's eyes suddenly focus, looking straight towards UA

At UA we have Izuku worried about Tomura btw

After that, we finally move to THE FINAL WAR ARC! Where right at the start we have a funny event ShigaAFO, or mostly AFO, tried to spread decay through the floor, to quickly kill all heroes, but- for some reason- the guy that wants heroes dead- stopped him?

Tomura, why did you stop him? Was it because Izuku is there? Is it because you still want to be saved? (we'll cover this exact feeling later)

Moving on! Some of Tomura and his Izuku obcession traits comes mixed with All for One’s personality too, in the form of wanting to upset Midoriya by hurting his friends and… Praising him? He literally killed Bakugou just to get a reaction out of Izuku! yes AFO might be acting like this because Izuku is All Might's apprentice, but- we know Tomura is a huge influence.

Little context, we know who's personality is most in control through the eyes, AFO has no pupils, but Tomura does, so when ShigAFO has pupils, it means Tomura

THEN! IZUKU FINALLY ARIVES!

And Tomura's personality immediately fronts and start fighting for control

He literally BREAKS the mind fusion ONLY to talk to Izuku, to taunt him, to ask him if he’ll leave his responsibilities as a hero and not save everyone, to in his cat, tsundere, childish way of speaking ask: are you truly daring to try to save me?

The moment Izuku asks if Tomura is still there, Tomura immediately starts fighting against AFO, who tried to lie and stay he was gone

Then Izuku takes Tomura from what was his flying tomb, decided that he won’t let Tomura die, and announces once again, that he won’t ignore him

Anyways touching foreheads again

It won't be easy, specially since we're dealing with a tsundere "spicy kitten", Tomura is literally smiling the whole time, while taunting and bickering

Tomura almost seems to not be even tyring to fight, in canon they spent 20 minute spinning around, Izuku trying to keep him still, while Tomura only laughed

Tomura then shows his vestige world, it looks exactly like the city he was ignored by, as a kid, once again, showing how much this trauma still bothers him, we then have a very interesting scene with stars and stripes

SnS points to a crack, a fissure, that apparently she caused when destroying ShigaAFO's vestige, the crack represents the torn open hole in AFO's chest where Tenko was in, meaning, if the city is a barrier of lead formed by his hate and trauma, the crack in it then represents Tomura's little flicker of hope of being saved by izuku, that is bovious given soon we have another flashback to when Tenko though of a worthy hero…

it's important to note, another clue that Tomura does want to be saved (as if this all wasn't enough)

we know he relates to Bakugou, and YES, bkg IS improtant for Tomura's arc, during UA cage math, he had a stress attack when he saw people tyring to help Bakugou, which trigered him, since he wasn't saved when he wasn't broken

(proving he didn't consider himself broken before being found by AFO, and he does believe AFO broke him), so why would people save bakugou?

Later when Tomura sees Bakugou get up, he makes this very soft and surprised expression, his eyes shine, it almost look like hope

Now Izuku is focusing on trying to break Tomura's hatred barrier, by aiming at the crack...

Tomura also for some reason doesn't attack when Izuku stops, every time tomura had the chance, he just doesn't kill, he always waits him to get up again before attacking, it's almost like he doesn't want to actually severally hurt him!

This is all for now! Well, this is long XD and believe me, it can get longer, I had many other things and small moments i wanted to point out, but god, THEY HAVE A LOT of stuff Reading weekly and watching the anime might give the illusion that they have no developed relationship

, due to physically meeting only 4 times, but it’s on their perceptions and thoughts of each other that they are developed, pretty much subtext, but it’s there and shouldn’t be ignored the way it is!

This has been written only with Manga panels and canon content so it is explicit that it IS text. But boy if i add all the promo content, hori’s interviews and plans, songs, art, anime filler, of well, THEY HAVE A LOT OF CONTENT

Anyways, when MHA end i'll surely make a new post about it!

[telestoapologist]

ikora, supportive but also cautioning eris while she's fusing herself with the hive

xivu, meanwhile, supporting eris with no regards to anything or anyone else (or eris, even)

[bjdavis5]

Mean to say perp for the second option

[icey--stars]

Vanserra Brothers (Headcanons)

Headcanons for each of of the Vanserra brothers. All 7, including the ones who passed in the Spring Court incident.

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Day 1 of @erisweek2023 (Brotherhood / Family)

a/n: welcome to Eris Week 2023 everyone! I have a couple headcanons coming toward you that will include the headcanons that Born for Tragedy is set in as well as other future stories about Eris or Lucien! So... if anyone starts wondering about my headcanons, bOOM. I had too much fun with this one.

So… let’s start with family/brother headcanons. (post-beron’s death because fuck that guy) also I added a bit of dad!Helion in this because in my hopeful heart, I want the Vanserra brothers to have a real dad.

WARNINGS: MENTIONS ABUSE/TORTURE, VERY ANGSTY, TRAUMA DISCUSSED AND BAD TRAUMA RESPONSES

I hope you enjoy it regardless though! This was actually quite fun to make because I can use it for my other stories when I talk about the Vanserra brothers :)

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

So, Eris has 4 brothers that are still alive. I’ve already named them in Born for Tragedy, but I plan to use the HC across many different stories, so let's talk about them.

Jax is the second eldest Vanserra. He’s probably the one who got abused the least because his personality and stoicness is exactly what Beron wanted for a son. 

However, he is widely regarded as having snails for brains, so Eris still got the general position while Beron lived because Eris was more apt in strategy and getting people to do what he wants.

Jax likes to fight and while not too impulsive since his teen years, he tends to be always looking for a fight.

If anyone was going to get him a gift, he’d probably most appreciate armor/weapons. However, make it fancy because he likes to be well dressed and look the most wealthy compared to everyone else.

Jax is the brute warrior of the Vanserras with very little ability to do anything court-related.

Normally, he has quite the cold heart and Eris has struggled to have any sort of relationship with him.

Of course, Eris actually was jealous when Jax was born, as he got more attention than Eris during those times, and Eris wasn’t completely mature enough to realize that the fact he kept seeming to reject Jax, hurt the poor boy more.

So, Eris has the worst relationship with Jax of all and Jax is too standoffish and holds grudges so long that they just can’t find any sort of relationship with each other.

But Eris does keep in mind his brother’s preferences though because he eventually realized his mistake when the now dead, third-eldest Vanserra, Fynn came along.

Now, before we go on about Fynn and perhaps how he died while chasing Lucien to the Spring Court… Jax does know that Eris tries. He does, but he’s salty. That’s all. Salty motherfucker who’s virtually emotionless, but probably the least traumatized of all the brothers.

He was one of the 2 brothers to help Eris chase Feyre into the Winter Court.

Nothing much changes for him when Eris finally becomes High Lord. It’s just a change of seasons for him.

Now, Fynn was kinder than any of the previously born brothers. Beron resented him for it and often punished the boy when he was found being kind to a servant.

So Fynn hardened and by the time he was an adult, he was rageful and absolutely miserable to be around. Such a short fuse and a big boom to go along with it.

Fynn constantly was angry. At Beron, at Eris- not too much at Jax because they mostly ignored each other. Fynn was jealous of Eris.

Eris never did manage to apologize for the whippings that Beron forced him to give Fynn before the brother died.

But in all honesty, Fynn had been broken beyond repair. His kindness cost him and he was angry and rageful all the time. At everyone.

Some say it was a good thing that he died when he did.

The boy was smarter than Jax, but Beron still prized Eris for his manipulation tactics, so of course, Fynn was salty about that as well.

Eris and him often fought, but it was always Eris who cut it short and dismissed his brother. Yet another reason Fynn was so rageful.

He was ignored. A third born meant nothing to everyone. Eris was the prized first born Vanserra. Jax was close enough that they didn’t care. But Fynn meant nothing to them. And worst yet, he was weaker than most of his brothers and had less control over fire than any of them.

In the Spring Court incident, he was one of the two brothers besides Calix (6th born) to die. The third brother chasing Lucien under Beron’s order was Kuhn (5th born). Killed by Tamlin- his rage was at last quelled.

The next brother is Hue, 4th born in the Vanserra line.

By the time that Hue had been born, Eris had managed to get his head out of his ass and swore to protect his youngest brother, helping his mother to raise them in secret and helped his brother deal with Beron’s beatings.

Hue was as kind as Fynn, and he was intelligent as well. He was fascinated by everything. However, Beron called him his “failure.” The boy acted more like a scholar than anyone else in the Forest House.

At one point, Beron ordered Eris to take the boy during some constructive early teen years to a cabin and raise him. Eris had mastered seeming as cruel and manipulative as his father by this point. Eris kept his rage down and followed orders.

Eris fostered his brother’s scholarly heart, but trained him well to never show that weakness to his father. Hue was a more lanky brother, and while training was enjoyable, he preferred reading in his rooms.

But in any battle (which he has been in many, as he was the other brother helping to chase Feyre with Eris), he is very fast. The quickest reflexes.

He’s one of the more emotional brothers, but hides it well.

He enjoys the finer aspects of magic. The beautiful parts– not burning someone’s face off, but using it to make a piece of artwork.

Hue is fascinated by shiny little trinkets that he can collect and either hide or put on his bookshelves to decorate them. His bookshelves are a mess.

But he also enjoys art. Drawing, painting and other various options are some of his favorite pastimes as he tries to capture the beauty of a very simple scene in a canvas.

So, if you were getting him a gift, the best option is a bunch of little trinkets, a lifetime supply of books (which is exactly what Helion does as he gains Hue’s trust. He gives him little trinkets maybe with a little bit of magic from his libraries and then gives Hue free access to said libraries whenever he wishes for it) and maybe some art supplies, but Hue doesn’t need much. He just needs a canvas, pencil and then some paints to be happy.

When Eris becomes High Lord– Hue is very happy when he allows him to explore any and all interests he has. And Eris is very proud of him 🥹🥹🥹

The next Vanserra, the 5th born, is Kuhn. Kuhn is similar to Jax in ways, as they both have quite broad shoulders and enjoy training. Eris is more lanky than Kuhn, but no matter for either of them. Kuhn gives better hugs that way.

Now, seeing as Hue was such a “success” when being raised by Eris, as soon as Kuhn was able to be fed solid food, he was whisked away to the cabin.

Eris promised his mother to care for his brother. Kuhn grew up very similar to Hue– free from Beron’s wrath, but trained to avoid it, and not get either of them in trouble when they return to the Forest House years later. Beron was pleased with how Kuhn acted so warrior on the outside and actually rewarded Eris for his efforts.

Kuhn is like a mix of Jax and Hue at the same time. He enjoys training and is quite apt in his bow skills, but at the same time, he’s also fascinated by particular things– namely animals and the stars.

So… when Helion is giving out gifts, he gives Kuhn a little trinket that shows the view of the stars in the Night Court from the top of some mountains and makes sure to get an invitation for them both to the next Starfall in Velaris. (Kuhn was very happy)

Kuhn enjoys helping Eris with his hounds when he can, learning at least their names and offering advice when Eris off handedly mentions some issue, or that some hound got injured

When Eris is High Lord, Kuhn and Hue are some of the most useful when dealing with the lords and other annoying things.

Calix is the 6th born Vanserra, and according to canon, the last of Beron’s sons. One of the perished ones.

Beron did the same as he did with Kuhn and Hue– have Eris raise him. Calix didn’t seem scholarly at all though and was quite the violent child. But he was better than Fynn, and that was for sure. But they were similar, but Calix lacked the “loss of kindness” that Fynn had.

Calix was inherently violent, often killing frogs and other creatures just for fun and then throwing their bodies around for fun.

Eris did his best to “train” Calix, but the boy was unbothered and ignored him.

So, when it came time to go back to the Forest House, Calix was punished harshly, and with him, Eris. Calix didn’t understand, however, that it had been his fault that Eris was so cold toward him afterward.

Calix looks like almost an exact copy of Eris, so Beron had been hopeful, but quickly found that Eris was much more well trained and so Calix was resented, but not nearly as much as some of the other brothers.

Calix is the other brother that is killed by Tamlin. Beron basically taken the two sons most desperate to please him to chase Lucien to the Spring Court. Calix had been quite desperate, and Fynn, and Kuhn had simply been ordered to go along, as Beron considered him one of the more pleasing sons. Eris, since he refused to go along despite being ordered, was punished severely.

So, Calix and Fynn died, and Kuhn returned with gouges from huge claws in his back.

Hue was banned from helping either of the injured brothers and was barely even allowed to grieve his other two. (Hue had cared for them despite them mostly hating him for being more well-liked by their father)

Now, naturally, Lucien is the last brother we talk about. He was born before the Spring Court incident, and Beron was practically raging at the fact that Eris had failed at raising Calix as he did with Kuhn.

However, Eris managed to convince Beron to give him a chance with Lucien and his mother didn’t even wean Lucien off her milk, she just sent Eris to get him in a panic.

Eris found out why the panic soon after when Lucien was laughing with joy in a cradle in the cabin. The boy was glowing.

So yes, in my mind, Eris did know that Lucien was not Beron’s son, but treated him all the same.

Before Lucien could remember anything though, Eris found a spell to lock that Day Court magic inside the toddler before he burnt down the house with all the heat pouring off of him. After all, Day Court and Autumn Court abilities were similar in that way– heat. And Eris didn’t have a damn clue how to train Lucien to control his Day Court powers, so he locked them away and managed the fire instead.

Lucien was different from any other brother Eris had managed to raise. He was smart, could fight very well, but he was… different. Emotional and very quickly bonded with anything. Animals, most notably. When one of Eris’s hounds accidentally bit the boy in play, Lucien had acted so rejected.

Eris tried his best, and it paid off… mostly. They were ordered to return early from the cabin and Lucien wasn’t vicious enough yet and Beron punished them both, finding the smallest excuse to do it to Eris.

Lucien resented Eris after that, and Eris never did try to mend that relationship, nor did he find the time when Lucien fell in love with a lesser fae female. However, he refused to hunt Lucien after he ran for the Spring Court. In the few minutes he had before Beron came after him, he made sure his littlest brother would be cared for and sent a letter to Tamlin.

Also, as an added note as to why Lucien believes Eris is so cruel: he thinks Eris was the one to report Jesminda to Beron- purely to make gain off of it (acceptance from Beron being the goal)

I’m not going to go too much farther into Lucien, as we know a lot about canon past that point and there are other times to talk about all my HCs for Lucien. This is about Eris and his brothers.

Now, if you notice, I’ve done all the Vanserras except the first born. Eris. Poor, tortured Eris.

In my mind, Eris is one of the most traumatized Vanserras, with Hue, Calix and Fynn coming close in second. He was the first to learn of Beron’s cruelty, the first to face it, and the one to face it the longest.

He messed up a lot too. Beron wanted cruel, wicked and manipulative. Eris was none of those things as a child. He was curious, loved cuddling with his momma and loved playing with the hunting hounds people brought around. He loved riding horses-

Basically, Eris wasn’t that way. But he quickly learned to be. Permanently changed by Fynn to be exactly who his father wanted because he was desperate to avoid the whip and the fire and the pain. However, he still managed to keep the pieces of his fractured heart, even if they were slipping between his fingers.

That is probably the only reason he was able to raise his brothers the way he did. Hue and Kuhn care for him deeply in that way, and he is the same way. But they never show it. However, the little fist bumps or secretive gifts were enough for Hue and Kuhn to know that Eris still cared even when he was forced to whip them by Beron’s command.

Oh yes… Eris wasn’t just the abused. He was also the abuser. Even if he didn’t want to be. But he always managed to show enough pleasure in the act to placate his father, because sometimes it was a good feeling. He felt in control, despite not being in control in the slightest.

But without Beron’s command, he always felt guilty for it and knew that in some way, his brothers did hold something against him for it. I mean, honestly, who wouldn’t though? Eris truly seemed like he enjoyed it. And he never came to check up on them afterwards. (He sometimes wanted to, but refused to risk his father’s rage again)

His brothers (especially Lucien because Beron knew he was different than the other pale red heads that were his sons and was punished more, and much more by Eris himself) think him cruel. Even if they saw a softer side when they grew up, he was still vicious with training. Sometimes heartless. And he can't help this because of how he grew up. He's sort of like Fynn in those ways.

Eris isn't completely kind though. Some (like his mother) like to paint him as damaged, but even while he is damaged, he is still not absent of cruelty. After all, Beron drilled it into him. The pleasure in whipping was surely evidence of such.

But he does truly hate Beron. He knows his father is a cruel male- crueler than he. Willing to kill lovers of his own sons and lords whenever. He hates Beron- for everything. For what he did to Eris, for what he did to the Autumn Court, for what he did to his mother, and what he did to his brothers. There are of course, many more reasons, but those are the main ones.

Even after becoming High Lord, he didn’t show much more emotion or care, but he did allow his brothers more freedom and they lived with less fear. It would take a millennia to repair the damage done to them all though.

So, to say the least, the Vanserra family is fucked up and there isn’t much repairs in sight. Even when Helion tries to get closer to them, it's hard. They are traumatized asf and often, lonely because lonely=safe in their mind because there is nobody to report them to their father.

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Btw, feel free to ask more questions about the headcanons <3

TAGLIST HERE! - see post for specifics <3

Tagged in all ACOTAR Stories: @bunnymallowo, @officiallyunofficialperson, @margssstuff, @rebloggiest-reblogger, @inpraizeof, @graciereads, @eos-princess, @bubybubsters

(please let me know if you'd rather not be tagged in Eris Week or would like to!!)

[sjmgirlie]

You will never be able to convince me that ACOSF was a good book. Let me explain.

1) It was a literal homicide for all the characters. Every. Single. One. I’m not sure if it’s because it’s from Nesta’s pov or what, but seriously, every single character basically became unlikeable? Rhys? Feyre (to an extent)? Cassian? Mor? Amren? Did Nesta really get much better?? Like no one was really likeable. Maybe Az being the only sane one. Elain showed some teeth which I liked but it still wasn’t the best.

2) Where was the plot? You’re telling me she only found troves and then killed one mortal/made queen? Before you argue, the fact we find out about Nesta’s literal powers in another series says a lot. Why didn’t we find out Nesta had silver flame power (WHICH IS THE NAME OF THE BOOK) in said book??????? Make it make sense. This book didn’t move the plot at all. Other than having the troves now. And killing the one crazy queen. The amount of times we were on the stairs was not needed. Nesta is a massive part of this universe, and yes, she can wield the troves. But everyone who is made can. So like what else could she have done? Something more im sure. I mean that’s why I think she was in HOFAS in the first place. To “conquer” the prison, get gwydion as her return of service, and show her powers. I get that the whole starborn thing needed to happen in HOFAS with Bryce but honestly Nesta needed more. And that’s another reason why people think she’s going to get another book, because what even happened in her book????

3) Nessian. Now here me out. Do we like smut? Yes. Do we like it when there’s actual romance involved? Yes. Did we truly get that? No. It’s been a while since I read this book because I just have no desire for a re-read. I’m sorry. But going from “my only regret in this life is that we did not have time. That I did not have time with you Nesta. I will find you in the next life” (ya I basically memorized it because I was kicking my feet at him saying that) to “I didn’t ask to be shackled to you either” after Nesta, a human turned fae, didn’t care about being called a mate? Like? Absolute homicide to Cassian’s character. Was the hike nice? No. Did he say nice things after she passed out? Yes. But like? I just think they deserved a better romance. And I just literally didn’t even know who I was reading when Cassian was involved. The guy that would crack jokes and just was loving? All of a sudden a mean person? To Nesta too? Like idk. It rubbed me the wrong way. They deserved better. The fact people actually want Eris and Nesta means it CLEARLY did not stick. Which means it was not convincing. No one says this about Feysand. They could have been FIREWORKS. But at times it genuinely didn’t feel like Cassian even liked her??? Where was the golden retriever energy? It was like the guy was on steroids the whole time and just blowing a fuse constantly. That was NOT the Cassian I remembered from ACOWAR. I mean idk maybe it was the fact the reluctant mate trope was just too difficult? The fact it started physically wasn’t my favourite either. Then it was so focused on that that it was like okay were are those romantic moments. “You’re not going to marry Eris” “no” “we will have no others” like that was romantic. Then the shackle thing literally happened the next day. Wtf.

4) Did I relate to Nesta’s issues and healing journey? A bit. But I just found it aggravating at times. I felt there was huge potential to dive into what it is to be the oldest sister. More into alot of things tbh. Her holding the line on Ramiel was a great moment, because she could finally protect people she cared about, but I wish that would have been implied more? Her journey seemed like a huge self insert and idk. It wasn’t as amazing as it could have been.

5) Nesta’s redemption? I don’t even like that word. I wanted people to begin to UNDERSTAND Nesta more. Not just be thankful she saved Feyre/Rhys/Nyx. Like a genuine understanding. Does Cassian? Ya I guess. Elain? It’s said she knew everything Nesta did and why. So yes she did. Az? Ya. He was literally the only one who wasn’t an asshole to her at any point lol. And I wouldn’t consider Elain and asshole to her either because she did just stand up for herself finally. Like imagine the comments you’d hear having Nesta as a sister (for real). But did anyone leave understanding Nesta, understanding why she was snarky and rude? No. Idk if that’s the point to create a divide or what. But seriously. I get Nesta to some degree now. Why did the characters not.

6) Nesta gaining friends was nice and I see why people cling to the Valkyrie. That was literally probably the best part of the book. And that’s saying something about the way the romantic pair was executed might I add. We weren’t obsessed with Feyre and Mor and Amren being friends. We were obsessed with Feysand. But the most you hear from ACOSF is about the Valkyrie.

7) Again. I never truly hated Nesta, but I didn’t necessarily love her after this either. I understood the character more, I saw her own dark thoughts, I saw how she felt, and I understood. But was she my favourite? No. I think her appearance in HOFAS, other than showing her powers (????), was to make Nesta more likeable. Because a lot of people still don’t like her. Like I said, I am PRO ARCHERON FOREVER, but I wanted more for Nesta. I wanted a lot for the girl.

8) The dreaded bonus chapter. I’ve said my opinion on this multiple times. Idk. It’s just hate for Elain that drives it tbh. It’s literally a copy and paste of the Nessian one from ACOMAF basically that if you put it in a plagiarism generator it would probably not pass. YET, it has literally desecrated the fandom. Completely. You literally can’t go anywhere without some ship war happening. And ya, I feed into it too being super pro Elriel because I love them. But damn. Imagine if this energy was put into, idk, theories of the plot? We would have figured out the Maas universe by now tbh. I wish it didn’t exist everyday. And to a lot of people it doesn’t, and I envy them. Life was simpler before the “did you read the bonus chapter” fiasco. And tbh I’m pretty sad that SJM hasn’t said a word about it. Or her publisher because it gets way out of line way too often. The actual love triangle has always been set up as Lucien/Elain/Az, and somehow we left the BC with a square??? Idek.

Overall, it just did not do Nesta or Cassian justice in my mind. It created way too many head canons, it made Cassian unlikeable in a lot of ways (why are you calling Mor beautiful?) and it just seriously destroyed a lot of characters.

I’m really hoping in Elain’s book we, idk, make amends finally? If I have to see another toe to toe battle between Nesta and Rhys I’m going to be sick. They are both right in ways, but I just can’t take it anymore. And this is what I mean about Nesta’s story not being one of UNDERSTANDING. Which is what she NEEDED. TO BE UNDERSTOOD. The rudeness, snarky comments, death glares etc just needed to be understood man.

[itsnothingofinterest]

A part of me is still feeling like nah there’s no way he just died, horikoshi is gonna do the same death fakeout again and something is gonna bring him back like a rewind or something.

I mean I want to think the same, really I do. I've normally been all for the most wild theories, provided the most wild theories, on how Tomura would be brought back. Nary an apperence made where I wouldn't come up with some improbable way he'd break free of AFO and turn around his latest misfortune. And here especially, it feels like he needs too because this conclusion for him is just terrible. But as it stands, his situation isn’t looking good.

Rewind looked spent just getting Deku’s arms back, Regen wasn’t working even before Tomura’s body got turned to dust, AFO says he stripped the missing half of the Overhaul quirk away to make Decay & I’m not sure if that allows it to grow back, and there's just not a lot of other ways to imagine he could comeback from his already crumbling-body getting obliterated by Deku's day-saving fist.

Granted, people have been throwing around enough theories that some do sound convincing or possible. After all, why would Hori set up Decay as being a messed-with Overhaul if that wasn't going to come into play? What was the point of Kurogiri coming to save him if he just got blown up (and would he really have Bakugou just murder him)? In fact I'd like to highlight one theory in particular that's stuck with me by @thesustainedworldatransverse which suggests that Rewind might be the mutated missing half of Decay (since the tragic circumstances of Eri's quirk awakening were identical to Tenko's tragic circumstances and we now know that tragedy was BS). Thus Deku, carrying the last sparks of Rewind directly from her horn in the very fists he just punches into Shigaraki's heart, would bring them into contact to fuse back together and allow Tomura to reconstruct himself. A part of me knows that's probably not super likely to happen...but would it not be super fucking clever if it did? It's 2 "the things were similar for a reason" reveals and another "small detail had huge ramifications" reveal one after another; Horikoshi loves those.

But ways to bring Tomura back aside, the biggest hurdle is thinking Hori would even want to bring him back. Despite my critique of him extending this arc with an unnecessary extra climax he didn't have the energy to land, he does seem very burnt out. And as much as some of us may disagree, scene direction certainly suggests he wanted last chapter to just look like the day was saved so…hmm. Maybe it could be a fake out to shock readers and get MHA trending before he walks it back next chapter? He has done that before on multiple occasions. But for now, who can say?