#i said i might last night and i did
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I know I mentioned this a little bit last night with the screenshots. But it really is fascinating seeing Seiroku’s inherent contradictory-seeming nature to certain aspects.
He mocks and says friends and comrades are useless trash to not be worth saving or fighting for. Based on the limited discussion that Seiroku mentions towards Naoe, his band prior to the Obsidian Eight was NOTÂ a good experience for him.Â
But as long as they are in a band, those with special powers always get the short end of the stick. Bands are organizations where the weak masses cling to the few strong ones. None of them hesitate to push the hardest jobs onto others while they kick back and offer hollow encouragement. They only force you to carry their hopes and dreams They expect more and more. I’m sure your friends are the same worthless trash not even worth saving.
And....he isn’t entirely wrong, not completely. People DO project their hopes and dreams onto others, we even see it in the series, the same way we see the masses or certain cast members rely on only a handful to be the real fire power. It’s not a particularly STRONG point to the Uesugi because their strength COMES from that connection with one another (although it really is still applicable as the majority looked to Naoe and/or Kuroko to help them/tell them what to do). But we see it with others. Even if it is more positive since its main characters, but it’s still there under the surface. So one can imagine how much Seiroku was put under pressure. It’s like trying to swim while being dragged down. The backlash if something goes wrong, things just become ‘expected’ and no longer praise worthy or the effort acknowledged. The higher and stronger they’re viewed, the deeper the fall. Seiroku clearly had and has no interest in being any sort of motivating figure for others. He just wanted to do his part. Not to mention the hollow words of encouragement and pushing the hardest jobs onto others means he himself likely both observed and experienced that. It leaves a bitter taste when someone offers you fake happiness when they want to see you fail, or make you do everything while they get benefits from it. Aka like every school group project.
But at the same time, Seiroku DOES try to connect with the other members of the Obsidian Eight. It’s not a BAND. It’s a GROUP. And for the most part, they’re all strong. Different levels obviously, but it’s not like in a band with hundreds or thousands of significantly weaker members clinging helplessly to you and projecting onto you. For the hate and disgust and disdain he has for the bushi bands, its not a reflection of Seiroku’s interest in connections. He clearly puts in the effort, especially with Shiro that we’ve seen so far (which is rather hilarious considering Shiro is.....well......Shiro), to be able to have the connection and chat with others. He isn’t a lone wolf type, but he does see a clear divide between the weak and the strong and only wants to be around those who he sees as equals or at least in the strong category.
Now this is less headcanon-y and more just discussion. And all of it is very subjective because summaries only offer so much and I’d rather read the actual translations whenever they eventually come out, especially for what Seiroku himself says. But in regards to chapter 139. It’s mentioned the doors for the eight basically create whatever the members imagine or what they might wish for. An eternal dream so to speak. Although it’s mentioned Seiroku’s is probably his previous life. But I doubt that. More likely, its what Seiroku would have wished for. Or maybe it’s the beginning of it when things were nice before Seiroku became bitter and hateful towards bushi bands. Again, translations will play a lot into this. But it is interesting it is in fighting oni within a band, but a band he’s welcomed in and treated equally. More like how he is in the Obsidian Eight than what he likely was treated like in reality (or in reality once his strength showed itself fully - again dependent). Which really does just show he does WANT connections and a close circle to him, especially if it is Seiroku’s ideal dream. And also his want to play doctor more since he doesn’t get to do that as often anymore.
#ᛠ —  [HEADCANON]  twist  the  threads  of  reality  [SEIROKU INUKAWA]#i caved and rambled#i said i might last night and i did#its fun bc initially it looks like he rejects connections but he DOESNT#its he rejects the structure and being used essentially by the weak#which inherently puts him against bushi bands themselves as he says#at least in his eyes#but with the eight theyre all strong#so he wants to connect#idk if this makes sense but i hope it does
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you've heard of: aroacespec "is this person flirting with me" confusion, now get ready for: Does this person think I'm flirting with them (and also are they flirting "back" with me) because I accidentally bumped into them a lot?
#new jersey girl seems to really like me that makes me happy#nobody's been attracted to me before#but it'll make me sad if she asks me out#because even though I LOVE her i think i'd have to say no just because i really imagine myself#with a boyfriend far more than a girlfriend lately and i don't want to put her into a relationship that might end up feeling like#misgendering...#aro#ace#aroace#aroacespec#aromantic#arospec#greyromantic#greyro#I said this#we've been walking all over campus together and she's um. not a very considerate walker i keep#almost getting pushed off the path so that's whyh i keep bumping into her lol#but also she seems to like standing/sitting near me?#and i said 'i think my face is a little...' because i was thinking it felt like it got too much sun#and she was like 'i think your face is a little too-- wait what did u say?'#and i said i didn't even use an adjective but said burnt/red was what i should have siad#and she just said 'i think your face is a little'#like is that an oblique compliment??#okay the funniest part is yesterday she said some random girl came up to her and said she looked pretty and she wasn't sure if it was#flirting or just a compliment so she doesn't even know what flirting is either lol#also she calls me Data now bc i told her about hwo my uncle said my parents consult me like picard consults data lol#tbh maybe i gave her the wrong signals by moisturizing when she was in my room last night?#(kept sticking my hand under my clothes. my roommate brought her in right after i showered)#i asked my roommated if that was weird and she thought it was fine but she might not be the best metric
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Something I find interesting is that Bad always has always played a bit of the fool when the Federation is involved. He pretends he doesn't understand things, he pretends furniture is enough to distract him from anything (sometimes it does, but other times he is clearly playing it up), he says he doesn't know how he got into this secret room, etc. He stays as neutral as possible without siding with them.
And for a while that seems to work. They keep using furniture to distract him. They never punish him even when he shows up in a Federation building, because he's just a silly guy and doesn't know how he got here.
But... Someone at the Federation has noticed. And the reason we can know this is because of the survey and the reward.
A lot of people have been given tasks recently, and they have all received the rewards that were offered to them. Everyone except Bad, who got scammed out of his initial reward and instead given a lot of furniture.
BUT! The fact that he was offered the question as a reward in the first place says a lot. It says the Federation knew that it needed to offer him a reward that would be enough to entice him to do the task (like the trident for Philza, and spawn eggs for Forever, etc.), and what reward did they deem suitable for BadBoyHalo? Answers. Answers to absolutely ANYTHING he could ask them.
It was an insane reward to offer, completely disproportionate to the task that was being requested of him. But apparently this was the only reward the lower case Cucurucho, Osito Bimbo, calculated would be enough to motivate Bad to do a task for him. It had to offer something INSANE to convince Bad to work for the Federation.
When he was given the furniture, the book that apologised for the confusion was in upper case. The original Cucurucho saw what was offered and pulled back, going with it's old reliable technique of distracting him with nice furniture instead. After all, Bad is silly, Bad is gullible, give him some shiny furniture and he'll give up on anything.
But that means... Osito Bimbo has not fallen for Bad's ruse. Osito Bimbo didn't even consider offering furniture - the offer was an answer to any question, because Osito Bimbo calculated that was the reward that would get Bad to cooperate.
Just interesting what this could be saying about the Cucuruchos and how they view Bad differently...
#badboyhalo#last night musing my brain is mush#Also ignore that Bad said later it might have done the survey for furniture asdllfd 😆#He is a silly guy at heart!#But yeah I am partially convinced ignoring Bad is either because Bad has done well to stay off the radar#(as he once pointed out to Foolish he never actually breaks any rules)#or they are intentionally doing it to drive him towards them#after what they did to Cellbit I wouldn't be surprised#and if they have caught on to his act? even moreso#him asking such a good question might have revealed a bit too much as well#(and there is also also the fact Cucurucho could also be playing a game... he did say Bad was intelligent)
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#not using my big girl brain OR the tags im just turning the thots over like a boiled sweet on a cold winter day but#there is something to be said for the parallels between carla and liam / carla and lisa#more to the point specifically for today’s thoughts: carla telling lisa that she loves her and lisa not saying it back#even if it’s so obvious to we the viewers (and ofc with vicky’s confirmation) that she feels the same but is obviously struggling with it#rewatching those old scenes really put carla and liam into perspective as a thirty year old and not a thirteen-fourteen year old#but that she opens herself to him so completely and so immediately and even though he shows hesitation she doesn’t let it stop her#she tells him don’t worry you’ll get there because i know we’re meant to be i know this is right i know and i trust in us and in you#and then he goes back to maria#and now present day carla confessing her Big Feelings and lisa hesitates#and it’s like it’s happening all over again#she likes lisa more than lisa likes her#and she’s been here before and she knows what it means#and best case scenario it takes lisa another several months to come to terms with her feelings and now she’s just been told that she might#not have that long to wait#she needs in she needs security she needs immediacy she needs anything but hesitation#god though ESPECIALLY after liam was the one who carla brought up when discussing lost love with lisa and not peter#not paul#(haha bird joke)#idk it’s in my head like worms#rewatching those old liarla scenes last night was like a punch to the gut i forgot they went through all of what they did#and now again…… UGGGHH#anyway#not to say i’m concerned because i truly believe they’ll work this out the way they’ve worked everything out so far:#thoroughly and together#and i cannot waaaaait to watch#that’s it that’s my lunch hour thought of the day#coronation street spoilers
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everyday I wake up and put on my Valentine's themed heart-shaped glasses for thirteen February, and every night i go to sleep with a Loveybug-esque pep in my step. don't worry
aww anon this is so sweet and I appreciate it SO much!! hang onto those heart-shaped glasses you will need them come wednesday<33(hopefully)
sneak peek for your patience
#we can all celebrate valentine’s day on march 6. right. right.#i’m gonna try with all my might to get it written today and betaed tomorrow and posted wednesday#let’s go february let’s go#i am home this week and last night my parents were asking about my life and i said what do u wanna know#and my dad said ‘what’s anna-scribbles up to lately?’#and i laughed and told him about thirteen. it was very cute#but anyway i have more time now so i’m gonna WRITE#this chap has some very sweet/funny parts. i think#also some devestation but i mean what did u expect#happy february! (it’s march)#asks#thirteen#anna rambles#ml
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Chapter Four
#oleander comic#update#portal#portal 2#chell portal#caroline portal#glados#chelldos#whew this was a long one. and theyre only getting longer#when i said you guys would like it im talking abt the second to last page hehe#i did a quick read thru for typos last night but i was als exhausted so i might notve caught everything but i do not care
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spent from 10:30 PM to about 3:40 AM at the emergency vet last night with my brother's puppy, Snoop. she's okay, but she ate something that made her sick and I was super scared in light of Stringer's bloat so i wasn't taking chances and took her
she came home with me early this morning and we went back for a recheck around noon and she's gotten the all clear, so here's hoping all dogs stay healthy from here on out!
and no more emergency vet visits, please
#she was eating the blanket at the bottom of her crate in the brief intervals i crated her to walk Stringer#but also was gnawing obsessively on nylabones yesterday she may have ingested parts of#so i can't say for sure what did it but her stomach was all out of whack and they said her x-rays might have shown foreign objects#but the recheck today shows they've all reached her colon and out of her stomach so they will be pooped out on their own#thank fucking god - i was almost hysterical last night before becoming numb sitting in that ER with all those other animals suffering#saw some absolutely horrific things - i hate hate hate going to the emergency vet it's always traumatizing#cause not only are you dealing with your pet and their scares but then total strangers who are also contending with life and death#we got home around 4:15 this morning and i didn't get to sleep until 5ish and then was away by 7 so i'm fucking exhausted#i napped for an hour earlier this evening but i feel tonight i will pass out early
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✨noping out✨ of an awkward situation li k e
#(nansu’s mona interview was too cute so i *need* to laugh at lxl to end the night normally im not sorry—)#tonight’s dance is fiancé!!!!!!!!! the camera angles are a thing of beauty in this one y’all h a v e to watch it if you can#ok that’s enough of lxl i can see the gif past the tags anyway so. well~~~~~~~#anyways!!!! the mona interview!!!! the tl;dr of it is basically just nansu talking about mona’s 2nd album + the concert#and how the concert came about (long story short: she said ‘i wanna perform live as mona!’ to the staff in passing and her wish was granted)#***if i didnt read it wrong that is… um. proper tl this weekend if i have the energy i promise~~~~~#yk what since it’s just 2 pages in total i might as well tl the entire thing. it’s not as wordy as some of the past lxl + ft4 interviews so.#since her concert’s on saturday too… aaaaaaaa i wanna go~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~#mona live >>>>>>> lxl live you agree y/y—#only reason to look forward to lxl’s live is for the lxltwt fanartists’ drawings of the performance btw#bc m a n. they actually manage to make the dances seem decent (if only in the form of exquisite drawings)#the spell of the fanartists is lifted the moment the actual lxl dances break free from containment though lmao#i still recall having high expectations of tsuki no hime’s dance thanks to the fanart… then i saw *it*.#b u t since mona’s live will have songs from both albums im expecting lxl’s live to be the same in that regard#at the very least last stage and oshimahou should get dances… i think#i hope they actually do the heart poses in oshimahou though bc that’d be hilariously cringe (and suki.kirai already did it better no cap)#o k that’s enough lxl for one night gnnnnnnnn~~~~ see y’all tomorrow afternoon for a possible mona concert twt!!!!
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#(( ooc. ))#negativity tw#venting tw#sorry for bad vibes on the dash today again#will delete this in a sec just lemme vent#so. i bought all the food for thanksgiving....#i cooked it all. his only contribution was rinsing half of the potatoes. peeling 2 carrots. and opening a couple cans for me#even the turkey that was supposed to be his to handle i ended up doing#bc he severely undercooked it so i had to step in to fix that and make sure it cooked properly#and then he said 'okay. you did all the cooking. i'll clean up.'#................... nope. guess who handled that too#while he was just sitting at the table after he was done#i'm the one that put all the food away. wiped down everything. filled the dishwasher#and got it going. gathered up all the other dishes and put them by the sink to wash#so to recap. i bought all the food. made all the food. and cleaned up after the entire meal#if i sound bitter its because i am#when i pointed out that i was having to clean up everything when he said he would his response was just 'sorry i'm such a useless hubby'#i mean yeah kinda#couple all this with the fact that i'm also the one who was up until midnight last night. on my bday. and on my period and exhausted#doing a ton of housework that he was supposed to handle. including cat litter which flares up my asthma when i do it#but i didn't have a choice. just masked up and did it myself bc its not fair to the fluffy bbys if i just let it slide and wait#for him to do it. bc that might be a few days.#sorry to bitch on the dash like this but just. the last couple days especially have been disappointing#between him flubbing my big 30 bday yesterday and now this today......... i'm really over it#gonna be lurking here and pretending i'm not pissed off
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Do you think if I wish hard enough my mom will get electrocuted by a string of Christmas lights and just go up in a cloud of smoke. It’d be a Christmas miracle
#I’m not even DOWN THERE YET and I want to fucking KILL HER#I have to work Christmas Eve and the day after Christmas. I live four hours away from my family#I told her this MANY TIMES I said I’ll drive down after work on Christmas Eve be there Christmas morning but I need to leave by 3-4 to get#home at a reasonable hour so I can have time to unpack/catch up on a couple days of chores/get plenty of sleep#she called me last night and told me she didn’t schedule Christmas stuff until SIX PM#and when I said why tf did you do that I’m not staying that late#she got mad and upset and was like ‘it’s the only time everyone is free :(‘#BUT THEN proceeded to tell me we were having lunch with her HUSBAND’S family at noon#(ppl I am not close with never have been literally don’t talk to)#and everyone I know is like ‘just leave when you said you were going to anyways’#and like yeah I could but then my family is gonna be ENRAGED that I didn’t do Christmas stuff with them#and they’re like ‘well explain that your mom didnt listen to when you said you needed to leave’#but the thing is. no matter what. they’re going to take her side#I should sacrifice my time and comfort to spend time with them because they’re FAMILY#never mind that literally not a SINGLE ONE OF THEM has EVER come up to visit me#IM always expected to drive down there. but that sacrifice doesn’t count it’s not good enough#but if I stay that late I won’t be getting home until AT LEAST midnight or later#cuz my family has no fucking concept of time so if it starts at six that means it doesn’t ACTUALLY start until 7 so most of them might be#there by 8 so I’ll be expected to stay until at least 10 to sufficiently catch up with all of them#I’m going to scream I’m going to cry#if I leave early I’m the awful ungrateful terrible bitch who never comes to see any of them#but none of them could adjust their days by just a few hours to see me before I needed to leave#FOR MY FUCKING JOB !!!!!!!! SOMETHING COMPLETELY OUT OF MY CONTROL#and like the thing is. my piece of shit manipulative bitch mother#I KNOW she did this on purpose#I know she didn’t plan this until six to FORCE me to stay longer because she was mad I wasn’t staying long#(again… because of work… something I can’t control)#so she’s orchestrated this to put me in this position#where I have to suck it up and stay and be exhausted and have tired migraines for a week cuz I get only a couple hours of sleep and then#or leave and make everyone pissed. I hate her so FUCKING much
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am i crazy am i just a hater does wicked with like a 100+ member orchestra sound bad
edit half rescinding this because the mixes in the movie itself was great why is ths soundtrack release like that
#dex says things#it sounds . rly rly RLY overproduced in the preview of witf they showed last night#like i said i might be . nitpicky but idk it sounds like the the music and the actors are fighting for ur attention#i did REALLY love the choregraphy n the camera work n the sets n costumes n stuff#everything outside of the actors n the music i actually rly rly like abt this movie
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long tag ramble below u have been warned
#ok i feel like i should say Something before i start being active again#but i dont want it to be a Statement which is why i’m putting it in the tags#(also bc i procrastinated doing this for weeks so i know this is a very stale topic by now#but i also haven’t been on tumblr literally at all so this is 100% my organic authentic opinion lmao)#so read if you gaf and ignore if you don’t#anyway: george def could’ve done more to ensure she was comfortable#and as someone who has also gotten in over my head with older men and regretted it#her hurt is valid and i’m deeply sorry she feels the way she does about that night#but with that said i see no reason to believe george Should have known how she really felt#or that he deliberately took advantage of either her youth/inexperience or her discomfort#and that’s the most important thing for me— he fucked up and misread a situation but that doesn’t make him an evil person#and i hope they can both move on and grow and heal#as for my future in the fandom: i honestly dunno how active i’ll be going forward#i was already becoming pretty disconnected so this might’ve just sped up the process? i’m tired of being put through the wringer#but i also don’t really have a fandom to replace this so i might just continue casually participating in the way i have been#either way rest assured i will never become a rabid anti. that shits embarrassing#i got HORRIBLE drolo rsd the other day when tommy’s mom needed clout and vagued him so like if nothing else. droloisms are forever#also as a last thing— this feels kinda silly and self centered to say but i will anyway#sorry for not opening up my blog as a forum for discussion again the way i did with the drituation#i know i helped a lot of people sort out their feelings and that was (and is) really really important to me#but it also tanked my mental health (mostly as a result of the fallout and not the act itself but still)#plus my life irl was pretty stressful at the time when everything was first going down#so i just didn’t feel up to putting myself through that again#but i’m sorry if anyone wanted to discuss w me but wasn’t able to#anyway. i think that’s all i have to say!#i don’t want to turn this into a capital D discussion but as always my askbox and dms are open#love you all tons! i hope you’re having a good day 🫂🫶#bella talks
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i came out to my parents last night 😄
#and it went FINE#AH#like its all good and chill#i knew my mum suspected and i was counting on that and that she might have talked to my dad about it before which i dont if she actually did#but i think so#and like ive been dropping things like going to pride with all my queer friends etc#and my mum was like 'yeah i suspected' last night#and this morning she checked in on me again to see if im all good#and she was like 'you do know that ive known for years right'#and i was like 'yeah 🥹🥹'#and last night i was also like that i dont wanna like shout it out to my grandparents and extended family (yet)#and my D A D said yeah that's yoir decision! you decide when to tell people!#and my mum this morning then also was like i have one piece of advice#dont tell your (one) grandma#you can just wait her out#bc my aunt had 'a lesbian phase' aka lived with a woman for a few years#which i ALSO JUST FOUND OUT VERY RECENTLY THAT WASNT JUST TWO FRIENDS LIVING TOGETHER PLATONICALLY#and apparently my grandma had a few choice words to say about that#which yeah i probably like will not tell her bc why should i???#and i Knew that#anyway#MERRY CHRISTMAS I DIDNT RUIN CHRISTMAS ITS ALL GOOD IM HAPPY IM RELIEVED I CRIED BC THATS WHAT I DO#personal#shdhsjskdhfhdhshsjdhdjak#needed to share :')
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oh also someone who is a good friend but we don't really talk too much, clocked me as someone who would be into choking. it was fucking funny as hell
#they were right#which is the funniest part becuase HOW AND WHY DO YOU KNOW THAT#same person who was MAYBE hitting on me#like this person and another friend were talking about rings and they gave their ring to the friend to try out and they were#admiring their and hand stuff and said to him that 'someone could choke you with this' and he told them#'tell that to lish she'll say she'd be into it' and i wasnt paying attention to this conversation right and they#laughed and came up to me to say that and i literally replied with a smirk like 'i'd be into it'#and both of them laughed and told me what the previous conversation was#and like SJFBSK#ueah#also we had like two cakes on the table. tiramisu and chocolate and we did this thing last time we hung out at a bakery and got cakes where#we took like half a spoon of the cheesecake and half of a brownie and had it together and it was good#so this person did the same things with todays cakes and when i asked them how it was they said it was good and i should try it#and while he was preparing a bite for me with both cakes he just went#did you know that both tiramisu and chocolate are aphrodisiacs#and i was mentally just like JSBFKSBDK???? KDBSK kinda fucking flustered as shit#and i said woah really? and then i took the spoon they prepared.#and yeag#earlier they also like shifted to sit closer to me but then that might be because of the food#and they also asked me whether ive been with anyone in uni but that conversation got cut short becuase of soemthing else#happening at the table#but yeah.#i THINK they might be flirting with me but i might also be reading this all wrong#they dropped me back off to the apartment tho but then again thats becuase we live in the same building#yeag#fun night fr actually#suggestive#cw suggestive
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"I didn't break," she said quietly. His heart cracked at the words. "I didn't tell them anything."
She didn't say it for praise, to boast. But rather to tell him, her consort, of where they stood in this war. What their enemies might know.
"I knew you wouldn't," he managed to say.
"She ... she tried to convince me that this was the bad dream. When Cairn was done with me, or during it, I don't know, she'd try to worm her way into my mind." She glanced around the cave, as if she could see the world beyond it. "She spun fantasies that felt so real..." She bobbed under the surface. Perhaps she'd needed the cooling water of the lake to be able to hear her own voice again; perhaps she needed the distance between them so she could speak these words. She emerged, slicking back her hair with a hand. "They felt like this."
Half of him didn't want to know, but he asked, "What sort of illusions?"
A long pause. "It doesn't matter now."
Too soon to push—if ever.
Then she asked softly, "How long?"
It took the entirety of his three centuries of training to keep the devastation, the agony for her, from his face. "Two months, three days, and seven hours."
Her mouth tightened, either at the length of time, or the fact that he'd counted every single one of those hours apart.
She ran her fingers through her hair, its strands floating around her in the water. Still too long for two months to have passed. "They healed me after each ... session. So that I stopped knowing what had been done and what was in my mind and where the truth lay." Erase her scars, and Maeve stood a better chance at convincing her none of this was real. "But the healers couldn't remember how long my hair was, or Maeve wanted to confuse me further, so they grew it out." Her eyes darkened at the memory of why, perhaps, they had needed to regrow her hair in the first place.
"Do you want me to cut it back to the length it was when I last saw you?" His words were near-guttural.
"No." Ripples shivered around her. "I want it so I can remember."
What had been done to her, what she'd survived and what she had protected.
Even if the woman treading water before him didn't seem to have vengeance on her mind. Not so much as a hint of the burning rage that fueled her.
He didn't blame her. Knew it would take time, time and distance, to heal the internal wounds. If they could ever really heal at all.
But he'd work with her, help in whatever way he could. And if she never returned to who she had been before this, he would not love her any less.
Aelin dunked her head, and when she emerged, she said, "Maeve was about to put a Valg collar around my neck. She left to retrieve it." The scent of her lingering fear drifted toward him, and Rowan lurched a step closer to the water's edge. "It's why I—why I got away. She had me moved to the army camp for safekeeping, and I ..." Her voice stalled, yet she met his stare. Let him read the words she could not say, in that silent way they'd always been able to communicate. Escape wasn't my intention.
"No, Fireheart," he breathed, shaking his head, horror creeping over him. "There ... there was no collar."
She blinked, head angling. "That was a dream, too?"
His heart cracked as he struggled for the words. Made himself voice them. "No—it was real. Or Maeve thought it was. But the collars, the Valg presence ... It was a lie that we crafted. To draw Maeve out, hopefully away from you and Doranelle."
Only the faint lapping of water sounded. "There was no collar?"
Rowan lowered himself to his knees and shook his head. "I—Aelin, if I'd known what she'd do with the knowledge, what you'd decide to do-"
He might have lost her. Not from Maeve or the gods or the Lock, but from his own damned choices. The lie he'd spun.
Aelin drifted beneath the surface again. So deep that when the flare happened, it was little more than a flutter. The light burst from her, rippling across the lake, illumining the stones, the slick ceiling above. A silent eruption. His breathing turned ragged. But she swam toward the surface again, light streaming off her body like tendrils of clouds. It had nearly vanished when she emerged.
"I'm sorry," he managed to say. Again, that angle of the head. "You have nothing to be sorry for." He did, though. He'd added to her terror, her desperation. He'd— "If you had not planted that lie for Maeve, if she had not told me, I don't think we'd be here right now," she said.
He tried to rein in the twisting in his gut, the urge to reach for her, to beg for her forgiveness. Tried and tried.
She only asked, "What of the others?" She didn't know-couldn't know how and why and where they'd all parted ways. So Rowan told her, as succinctly and calmly as he could.
When he finished, Aelin was quiet for long minutes.
She stared out into the blackness, the rippling of her treading water the only sound. Her body had nearly lost that freshly forged glow.
Then she pivoted back toward him. "Maeve said you and the others were in the North. That you'd been spotted by her spies there. Did you plant that deception for her, too?"
He shook his head. "Lysandra has been thorough, it seems."
Aelin's throat bobbed. "I believed her." It sounded like a confession, somehow.
So Rowan found himself saying, "I told you once that even if death separated us, I would rip apart every world until I found you." He gave her a slash of a smile. "Did you really believe this would stop me?'
She pursed her mouth, and at last, those agonizing emotions began to surface in her eyes. "You were supposed to save Terrasen."
"Considering that the sun shines, I'd say Erawan hasn't won yet. So we'll save it together."
He didn't let himself think of the final cost of destroying Erawan. And Aelin seemed in no hurry to discuss it, either, as she said, "You should have gone to Terrasen. It needs you."
"I need you more." He didn't balk from the stark honesty roughening his voice. "And Terrasen will need you, too. Not Lysandra masquerading as you, but you."
A shallow nod. "Maeve raised her army. I doubt it was only to guard me while she was away."
He'd put the thought aside, to consider later. "It might just be to shore up her defenses, should Erawan win across the sea."
"Do you truly think that's what she plans to do with it?"
"No," he admitted. "I don't."
And if Maeve meant to bring that army to Terrasen, to either unite with Erawan or simply be another force battering their kingdom, to strike when they were weakest, they had to hurry. Had to get back. Immediately. His mate's eyes shone with the same understanding and dread.
Aelin's throat bobbed as she whispered, "I'm so tired, Rowan."
His heart strained again. "I know, Fireheart."
He opened his mouth to say more, to coax her onto land so he might at least hold her if words couldn't ease her burden, but that's when he saw it.
A boat, ancient and every inch of it carved, drifted out of the gloom.
"Get back to shore." The boat wasn't drifting—it was being tugged. He could just barely make out two dark forms slithering beneath the surface.
Aelin didn't hesitate, yet her strokes remained steady as she swam for him. She didn’t balk at the hand he extended, and he wrapped his cloak around her while the boat ambled past.
But Aelin turned toward them, hair dripping onto the stone at her bare feet. Half a thought from her could have had her dry, yet she made no move to do so. "We're being hunted."
"We know that," Lorcan shot back, and were it not for the fact that Aelin was currently allowing him to rest a hand upon her shoulder, Rowan would have thrown the male into the lake.
But Aelin's features didn't shift from that graveness, that unruffled calm. "The only way to the sea is through these caves." It was an outrageous claim.
"And I suppose they told you that?" Lorcan's face was hard as granite.
"Watch it," Rowan snarled. Fenrys indeed bared his teeth at the dark-haired warrior, fur bristling. But Aelin said simply, "Yes." Her chin didn't dip an inch. "The land above is crawling with soldiers and spies. Going beneath them is the only way."
Elide stepped forward. "I will go." She cut a cold glance toward Lorcan. "You can take your chances above, if you're so disbelieving." Lorcan's jaw tightened, and a small part of Rowan relished seeing the delicate Lady of Perranth fillet the centuries-hardened warrior with a few words. "Considering the potential pitfalls of the situation is wise."
"We don't have time to consider," Rowan cut in before Elide could voice the retort on her tongue. "We need to keep moving. Gavriel stalked forward to study the moored boat and what seemed to be bundles of supplies on its sturdy planks. "How will we navigate our way, though?"
"We'll be escorted," Aelin answered.
"And if they abandon us?" Lorcan challenged. Aelin leveled unfazed eyes upon him.
"Then you'll have to find a way out, I suppose." A hint-just a spark-of temper belied those calm words. There was nothing else to debate after that.
And they had little to pack. The others gave Aelin privacy to dress by the fire while they inspected the boat, and when his mate emerged again, clad in boots, pants, and various layers beneath her gray surcoat, the sight of her in clothes from Mistward was enough to make his gut clench.
No longer a naked, escaped captive. Yet none of that wickedness, that joy and unchecked wildness illuminated her face.
The rest of their party waited on the boat, seated on the benches built into its high-lipped sides. Fenrys and Elide both sat as seemingly far from Lorcan as they could get, Gavriel a golden, long-suffering buffer between them.
Rowan lingered at the shore's edge, a hand extended for Aelin while she approached. Each of her steps seemed considered—as if she still marveled at being able to move freely. As if still adjusting to her legs without the burden of chains.
"Why?" Lorcan mused aloud, more to himself. "Why go to these lengths for us?"
He got his answer—they all did—a heartbeat later. Aelin halted a few feet away from the boat and Rowan's outstretched hand. She turned back toward the cave itself. The Little Folk peeked from those birch branches, from the rocks, from behind stalagmites. Slowly, deeply, Aelin bowed to them. Rowan could have sworn all those tiny heads lowered in answer.
A pair of bony grayish hands rose above a nearby rock, something glittering held between them, and set the object on the stone.
Rowan went still. A crown of silver and pearl and diamond gleamed there, fashioned into upswept swan's wings
"The Crown of Mab," Gavriel breathed. But Fenrys looked away, toward the looming dark, his tail curling around him.
Aelin staggered a step closer to the crown. "It—it fell into the river."
Rowan didn't want to know how she'd encountered it, why she'd seen it fall into a river. Maeve had kept her sisters' two crowns under constant guard, only bringing them out to be displayed in her throne room on state occasions. In memory of her siblings, she'd intoned. Rowan had sometimes wondered if it was a reminder that she had outlasted them, had kept the throne for herself in the end.
The grayish hand slipped over the rock's edge again and nudged the crown in silent gesture. Take it.
"You want to know why?" Gavriel softly asked Lorcan as Aelin strode for the rock. Nothing but solemn reverence on her face. "Because she is not only Brannon's Heir, but Mab's, too."
A throwback to her great-great-grandmother, Maeve had taunted her. Who had inherited her strength, her immortal lifespan.
Aelin's fingers closed around the crown, lifting it gently. It sparkled like living moonlight between her hands.
My sister Mab's line ran true, Elide claimed Maeve had said on the beach. In every way, it seemed.
But Aelin made no move to don the crown while she approached him once more, her gait steadier this time. Trying not to dwell on the unbearable smoothness of her hand as it wrapped around his, Rowan helped her aboard, then climbed in himself before freeing the ropes tethering them to the shore.
Gavriel went on, awe in every word, "And that makes her their queen, too."
Aelin met Gavriel's gaze, the crown near-glowing in her hands. "Yes," was all she said as the boat sailed into the darkness.
#Chapter 35#Rowan Whitethorn Galathynius#Rowan Whitethorn#Rowaelin#Rowaelin chapters#Rowaelin quotes#Rowaelin moments#Aelin Ashryver Whitethorn Galathynius#Kingdom of Ash#Sarah J. Maas#spoilers in post & tags please no spoilers up to this ch. first read with me cry with me pt. 2 perspective Rowan#That lake water had never seen sunlight had flowed from the dark cold heart of the mountains themselves. — she is the sun and the heart#It would kill even the most hardened of Fae warriors within minutes. Yet there was Aelin swimming as if it were a sun-warmed forest pool.#her faintly glowing body. As if the water had peeled away the skin of the woman and revealed the blazing soul beneath.#But that glow faded with each passing breath she emerged to take dimming further each time she plunged beneath the surface.#internal inferno-or simply because she first wanted to wash away the stain of Cairn? Perhaps both.-She didn’t trust her power on land#The Celaena freedom vibes hurt-Lorcan god on his shoulder-OMG do her&Manon share crowns?#At least she'd begun speaking her eyes clearing a bit. — the glow still barely clinging — the way he just wants her to be ok#You could join me she said at last No heat in her words yet he felt the invitation. — but rather to be WITH her#She did no such thing her arms continuing their sweeping circles in the water. Aelin only stared at him again in that grave cautious way.#real or not real — a god in her own might — as if she could see the world beyond it; worlds; the queen to walk between worlds#Too soon to push—if ever. — he’d hear them when she was ready — if the time never came he’d love her anyways — it’s how they fell#what illusion? night made of dream. or the worst; both.#the way he knows the date with her just like Lyria — him offering to cut her hair — knowing she needs to remember — no fear of lakes anymor#all the Mistward paralells — I didn’t break — I know — I’m tired; ITS ALL THE TROPES#she’s making me think of Annie from HG — THE WAY HE LOVES HER — no rage just trust — everytime he calls her Fireheart#the two of them worrying the other would be upset and feeling guilty while there not — the way Chaol described as a wolf&he just sees as is#he just wants to hold her-how she goes to him-hes just happy to beWher-what if-known-it switched THEIR-she isTHEspark-Lorcan almost-no fued#HeirofMab-shes why-Rowan loves nomatter-on his knees to apologize-had Lys been pretending to be him?blind eels4ladyTHXlilfolk-Gavriel the#longsufferingbuffer-​FenrysKNEW-more iron-moon star&Sun2stars-but Aelin never wanted that-she'd give it all-my favoriteCh.RowanSimp4his wif
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So apparently I don't get to let my license lapse 😔 but also why was this his immediate reaction lmaoooo
#not snz#no bc why was this lowkey so aggressive LMAO#rip to our other coworkers#anyway i was sleep deprived as fuck last night and I'm working Wednesday so we were talking about that#then he asked how it was going with the other job so i had to give him the chisme#and then i said i might not finish my recert bc what's the point and he Did Not Like That lmaoooo#really said 'i don't like the coworkers so you can't quit'#not my problem but also haha i made him care me >:3#we've come such a long way from 'begrudgingly tolerating' me lmao i wonder what it was that won him over#partner posting
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