#intricate rituals that allow you to hold another man's hand etc

[markantonys]

me throughout that one TFOH chapter when mat makes a big scene of bidding farewell to rand and lingers for a moment waxing poetic in his narration about the feeling of rand's hand in his and the symbolism of his calluses and heron brands and then rand stands there yearningly looking at the tent flaps for a while after mat's left before turning away and ordering asmodean to play the saddest song he knows

[wolf-and-bard]

The Geraskier Soccer Parents AU of my dreams (in an early morning strike of weird-brain):

-Geralt knows he isn't the best dad ever. He tries so goddamn hard, but his job is demanding and consumes so much time and even with Ciri being seven already, he still has essentially no clue what he's doing. He sometimes falls into bed, half-dead, and she is the one to give him a good-night kiss. He sometimes forgets she prefers cheese and puts ham on her sandwiches. He is sometimes too happy to have her sleep over at her friends rather than invite them to their house. He doesn't read her all the children's classics, doesn't go trick-or-treating with her, doesn't even pretend Santa Claus is a thing. He isn't the best dad ever. He tries.

-There is one thing he never, ever fails to do and that is take Ciri to soccer practice. Ciri picks up and drops hobbies, interests, even tastes by the week, still unsure what she wants to pursue, but soccer isn't only her favourite pastime, it's theirs. Practice is twice a week and they have a ritual for it. Geralt picks her up from school and drives her there, she tells him about what the dumb boys in her class said, how her art project is going etc. Geralt is there throughout practice, tucked in between Foltest - a guy who is constantly worried for his daughter Adda to get hurt and also very much anxious for her to do well - and Tissaia - a woman who has not one, but three girls in Ciri's age group and several more in others, and knits like a magician - and watches. He takes notes, silently cheers for Ciri.

-After their games and while Ciri changes, Geralt chats with her coach Vesemir - who used to be Geralt's coach, but now prefers to train the girls' teams - about the progress of the team, upcoming tournaments etc. Sometimes when Vesemir is indisposed, Geralt even leads the practice. When Ciri is all done, Tissaia usually has another hat or mitten finished and Geralt and her drive with their girls to whatever food place the girls are in the mood for. They have an early dinner in which Tissaia lectures the girls on their form and in which Ciri is sometimes allowed to sit on Geralt's lap - but only if Fringilla or Yen don't tease hear about it - but in which she definitely gets to steal his milkshake (Geralt hates milkshakes). Geralt only praises her when they're back in the car and Ciri tells him he's too much of a softie with her and should be more like Tissaia. Should maybe marry Tissaia. They both laugh because that is never going to happen.

-Life is good that way. It's not perfect, it's not without bumps, certainly not without tears and scrapes, but whatever the job, whatever injury Geralt carries with him, however long he has to drive, he never, never ever misses soccer practice.

-The season's just kicked off in the year of Ciri's eighth birthday when Geralt and her arrive early on the field to find the stands empty save for a girl in the most ridiculously colorful excercise clothes and blond hair that is braided intricately around her head. With her is a man, maybe five years Geralt's junior. Ciri bolts towards them with a bright grin and Geralt is hesitant to follow. He knows neither the girl nor the man, but from what he can gather she wants to join the team which is just what they need as they're one girl short this season. "Hi, I'm Ciri, I adore your braids." Geralt holds back on the eye-roll. It's nice Ciri can make friends this easily, but his house already is a shrine for role-playing and board games, dolls and random DVDs and another friend means more things Ciri will want to try out. "Thank you," the girl replies and tilts her head to better show them off. "My uncle Jaskier braided them for me, I'm sure he can do yours too." Both girls look up expectantly at the man and Geralt only really notices him then. He is averagely built with bright blue eyes and an even brighter smile. His floral print shirt has three open buttons and his pants barely reach his ankles. He has the look of a flippant music teacher or a hipster coffeeshop owner. His eyes meets Geralt's and, wait, did he just wink? "I'd love to, dear," he says in a smooth voice that absolutely does not go straight to Geralt's guts. Geralt turns on the spot and decides to pressure check the balls, but he can hear the others giggling as Jaskier braids Ciri's hair. "I'm Priscilla by the way. What's up with your dad?" - "Oh, don't mind him, he's bad with meeting new people." - "Very intense." That's Jaskier. Oh, Geralt will show him intense.

-Ciri invites them to their after-practice dinner. Geralt wants to begrudge her that, but she and Priscilla have latched onto each other in record speed and Jaskier actually fights Tissaia on some of her more strict stances and he braids Yen's and Sabrina's hair too, only Fringilla doesn't want him to touch hers which he respects. Geralt and Tissaia glance at each other. Come to a silent agreement. They may not befriend Jaskier, but he's sunny and so good with the girls and they can use someone like him among their ranks, someone who doesn't have Calanthe's tendency for swear words or Crach's tendency to break out beer in the middle of practice or even Nenneke's tendency to relate everything to the workings of god.

-Jaskier is as faithful as Geralt, perhaps the only one who shows up every time without fail. Shani's parents only drop her off and Crach switches between  Cerys' and Hjalmar's practices and Tissaia sometimes texts Geralt to pick up her girls. Jaskier is there, every time, earlier than any of the others. He chats with Vesemir about his day-to-day, brings home-baked cookies for everyone, he cheers and whoops and tries very hard to understand soccer even though it's evident he doesn't. Geralt never wonders why it's him and not Priscilla's parents that come, it's none of his business. He begins to tolerate Jaskier, but he knows that is where he has to draw the line. He has his hands full with Ciri and his job and his brothers too. He can't afford friendships that extend beyond the field.

-Jaskier doesn't let him off though. He always takes the spot next to Geralt (technically an improvement over Foltest's sweaty visage) and prattles on and on, at least until the game begins. When it does, Jaskier divides his attention between the girls and the stack of paper on his lap which he annotates during practice. It's often either sheet music or the illegible scrawl of pre-teens or wonkily drawn instruments. Jaskier already told him, but from that too it is obvious that Geralt's hunch was right, he is a music teacher. Geralt finds his eyes darting to Jaskier's long fingers, nimble and calloused from the various string instruments he plays. Finds himself glancing at where Jaskier's tongue peeks out in concentration. He listens to the man's ramblings and hums his replies and comes to dislike the days when Vesemir isn't there and he has to focus all his attention on giving the girls a good practice. Not that he doesn't want to, it's just that having Jaskier at his back unnerves him.

-(Jaskier for his part doesn’t care at all about soccer, but he cares about Priscilla so he convinced her parents to let him take her; after that, she said it would be fine if he dropped her off and picked her up again, but Jaskier pretends he is super invested in the sport and the team and he is, but mostly he’s invested in charming Geralt)

-After an entire season of mutual pining and obliviousness, Tissaia decides she's had enough and rallies the other parents. She has Foltest organize a big party at his country house, has Nenneke promise to look after the girls (the woman doesn't drink) and has Crach whip out the finest spirits he has in storage. Calanthe makes a phenomenal playlist and it's Tissaia's job to get Geralt to the party (Jaskier's not a problem) and dress up nicely. Only Aridea, Renfri's stepmother, refuses to pitch in, but she's been a bitch anyway.

-When Geralt picks up Jaskier at his downtown flat he has to grip the wheel of his rover hard in order not to short-circuit. Jaskier has done something to his hair that Geralt can't name but that makes him go woozy inside. He wears a plain shirt that compliments his eyes and hugs his body just right and he looks high on life with color in his cheeks and the most dazzling smile. He's gorgeous. "Darling, don't you look dashing," Jaskier says excitedly and props his feet up on the dashboard, only after kissing Geralt on the cheek. Which is not fair. "Likewise," Geralt mutters, then blushes furiously. He didn't want that to come out, oh no. Jaskier either didn't hear or acts like it and they drive in silence to Foltest's country house. Well, aside from the songs Jaskier hums under his breath, some new composition no doubt.

-At first, Geralt thinks it's a nice enough party for someone who doesn't like parties. Foltest's grilling burgers, they all have cocktails, the music is mellow. Not that that stops Jaskier from swirling an already quite drunk Calanthe over the terrace in dazzling moves. Geralt wants to be swirled like that. "You really have it bad, don't you?" Crach comments when he notices Geralt staring. Geralt downs his beer (he's no cocktail drinker) and tries pointedly not to stare at how Jaskier's swinging his ass around.

-The buzz makes it easier and he relieves Foltest at the barbecue for a bit. But then Jaskier walks up to him, a little short on breath and grinning his most flirtatious little grin. It gives him fucking dimples. Sigh. "Hey you big strong man," Jaskier says. He smells like pineapple and coconut, but isn't even a little drunk. "Jask," he says, pointedly flipping a burger. "Foltest says he has an old karaoke machine in the shed, but it's too heavy for me. Help me?" - "...fine." Geralt gestures for Foltest to keep up with the meat and he and Jaskier make their way along a garden path that winds through thickets and by a small pond. The shed is painted blue and white and Geralt and Jaskier find it very much cluttered, but not dirty which is nice. Geralt only understands it's a trap when it's already sprung on them. The tiny click of the look is almost inaudible over Jaskier's anxious commentary of their search for the machine. There is only one small window and no light Geralt can see. Fuck.

-"Ehm, Jaskier?" he reaches out and gently touches Jaskier's shoulder which has the other man yelp and jump. Which doesn't bode well for what Geralt has to tell him. "I think we're trapped." The effect is immediate. Jaskier goes rigid, his breath catches. Is he afraid? Claustrophobic perhaps? Shit, so he can't be in on the joke. "Jask?" - "Geralt. I know we aren't the closest, but I need you to hold me right now." And he launches himself at Geralt. Maybe he is in on the joke? No, he's trembling too hard for that. Geralt catches him and does as asked. "I am absolutely going to die," Jaskier whines into Geralt's neck and Geralt can't help a small chuckle as he rubs Jaskier's back soothingly. This is... surprisingly nice for a trap. Also likely Tissaia's doing. Geralt has a rare idea. "What if I distract you until someone finds us?" he murmurs against Jaskier's hair and Jaskier draws back a little. In the half-dark his eyes glisten, widen when they meet Geralt's. "You would?" - "Close your eyes, Jaskier." Geralt feels a surge of daring, perhaps granted by the intimacy and seclusion of the situation. He catches Jaskier's lips with his own. When they part, Jaskier grins, shaking from something other than fear. "I thought you didn’t much like me," he whispers. "I thought I got on your nerves." - "Idiot." They kiss again and, faintly, Geralt can hear someone cheer from outside.

[kazlifeadventures]

24th June. Still in Baku. Tour starts!

The tour has started! Met some of my new bus mates and went out for a traditional dinner near the hotel..yummm I've decided I love a local dish called dolma. I had the very tasty dolma version that was stuffed vegetables (egg plant, tomato, capsicum, stuffed with lamb mince ).

The next day we were up and off on a trip to the Gombustan mud volcanoes in the morning. A short bus trip out of Baku to meet the local taxis that take you the last few kms across the bumpy dirt roads to the volcanoes. The local taxis consisted of a variety of the old Soviet Ladas.. somehow I ended up in the two door one that was probably the oldest one there- it kinda looked like if it hit a pothole it would fall apart...😂. Everyone told tales of their crazy trip with bumps turns, cranking music. Ours was like driving miss daisy...we even ran out of fuel and watched our driver get out and refuel from his one litre water bottle of fuel...then pop the hood and check the oil and water. No music, as no radio, and the huge cracked windscreen was the complete picture.... Gotta love that Soviet engineering!

Azerbijan is reported to have the most mud volcanoes of any country, with the odd ‘volcanoes’, spread broadly across it. 350 of the 800 volcanoes of the world are in Azerbaijan. The local people call them “yanardagh” (burning mountain) amongst other names. The mud volcanoes were an interesting phenomena that were surprisingly cold and gluggy; the texture of sour cream. Yes I stuck my hand in it. 😁. Apparently it has some great properties and some amazing health benefits. Lucky me I seemed to be the only one that received a free bottle of the mud (old plastic 600ml pepsi bottle), from our taxi driver... I thanked him in Azerbaijani, and I guess strike one again for blonde hair and a smile, pretty sure they helped as well! *update on the bottle - I never used the mud, I gave it to one of my bus mates who is hopefully using it once they are back home.

After playing in the mud, it was off to see the 15000 year old Petroglpyhs in a nearby section of Gombustan state reserve. The reserve has more than 6,000 rock carvings, which depict such things as primitive people, animals, battle-pieces, ritual dances etc. It was hard to get them to come out in a photograph, as a lot of the details are very faint and more easily visible to the naked eye.

It was back into Baku for a walking tour around the old city with our local guide. Even though I had already explored the area by myself I went along as I love to hear the stories and the history from the local guides. We ended the day with a trip to a restaurant for some more Azerbaijani food (the highlight bring Plov - a pastry filled with rice and meat - so yum!) with our local guide, J-Lo (*not her real name, but she shall forever be known as J-Lo, and she will love all the photos we put on her phone when she left it with us).The night then ended with a stop high on the hill to see the flame towers in all their glory, lighting up the night sky.

Next day, heading to Sheki.

As we headed out from Baku on Wednesday 26th June, it was interesting to see the land changed to more greenery enroute, it was not so arid like the areas near Baku. On our way to Sheki we stopped in Shamakhi city, one of the oldest cities of Azerbaijan, where the first dynasty state of Shirvan was founded. It was always part of the major travel hub, with traders staying overnight enroute long the Silk Road. The city has been rocked by 11 major earthquakes over its lifetime as it is located in a very seismic area. As a result large parts of the city have been reconstructed. Our visit included a stop at Juma mosque an 8th century mosque purported to be the second oldest mosque in South caucasuses . Juma means ‘Friday’. Which is prayer day for Muslims. The Mosque has survived 8 of the 11 earthquakes in the area, rebuilt/repaired twice since its construction. It was probably one of the largest and prettiest mosques I have seen.

A visit to Yeddi Gumbez, the mausoleum known as the seven domes cemetery was next. Located a short distance from the mosque, high on a hill. Unfortunately alot of the domes have been destroyed over the years. With only 3 recognisable structures remaining. The Cemetery is very important and holds many important people like 16 members of the kings’ family.

We were then treated to lunch at local restaurant on our way to the village of Kish. For a lot of us this was our first introduction to the local speciality compote drink. A sweet compote made from locally grown fruits, that tasted a bit like cordial (depending on the fruit used to create it). Kish serves as the location of an inactive 12th or 13th Century Caucasian Albanian church. Not the Albanians from Albania, the Caucasian Albanians is a modern name for an ancient country in the Eastern Caucasus that was located where the present day republic of Azerbaijan capital is located.

We then headed off to Sheki city, another important Silk Road stop, with its population of approximately 63000. This was our stop for the night, but we also got to visit the amazing summer palace residence of the Shaki Khans (nope - not Shaka Khan - totally different era...) Built in 1797, and UNESCO listed, it stands on the outskirts of Shaki, and a huge amount of work has been carried out to restore it’s mainly timber structure.This was a surprise to see a structure with such intricate detail. No photos allowed inside, but it was fantastic to see so many of the huge heavy ��shebeke’ windows. The Shebeke windows contained beautiful designed created using stained glass, inserted in framework that contains no nails or glue. They looked so much nicer from the inside with the light coming through them.

Once we checked into our hotels in Sheki I then headed out to locate some of the local food we had been given the hot tip to try. As I was walking to the nearby town centre area I unfortunately encountered a bit of an issue with a local man who had followed me from the reception in the hotel. All ended well, but it gave me a bit of a reminder that maybe I need to not be nice to people all the time (never going to happen though!) I did get to try an amazing meal called ‘Piti’, an amazing meat based meal, that contains a broth, that you tip over bread that you have ripped up in a bowl with added sumac. You then mash the remaining ingredients in the mug that they come in (It’s a lamb meat cooked with chick peas, chestnuts and fat with local spices) I know it sounds yuck with the fat, but seriously so yummy!!! Those of us who’d met up at the restaurant then tried the local sweet of ‘Sheki Helva', a very sweet little morsel of rishta, stuffing and syrup.

Azerbijan means land of fire. Fitting really, given the huge amount of gas being mined in the area. It’s also a country that like most countries has had its share of rule by various other countries, with changes in its borders as a result, some only fairly recently and the source of conflict with its neighbour, Armenia. The country has an interesting and involved history, and I feel very fortunate that I have been able to visit and explore some of its treasures before it blooms into a major tourist destination.

As usual more photos to come!!