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scorpioriesling · 4 months ago

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Caught in 4k H.C.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *

Pairing(s): Reader x Rhysand, Cassian, Azriel, Lucien, Eris, and Tamlin

Warnings: mdni, 18+, smut, masterbation, mentions of multiple kinks if you squint

Summary: A collection of head cannons where you catch the ACOTAR boys fantasizing / jerking it :) Just for funsies and I hope you like, lol. I also included photos for each! <3

SR’s Note: Honestly I saw this new photo / fan art of Lucien andddd I had to do something with it. The ween was staring at me… I was quite literally caught in 4k. SO, here we are, here’s an idea, I rolled with it. Enjoy, all you freaks (;

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Rhysand

Would absolutely be jerking off at his desk, in his office. Doors locked, he thinks no one is home.

He would start slow of course, then speed it up, thinking about you — how you looked before you’d left for downtown Velaris this morning, your hair up in that cute ponytail that showed off your pretty face.

Last time he had you at his desk your hair had been in a ponytail. His fist made for a rather sturdy hair tie.

“Ohhh,” he let out a small sigh, thinking of how your body looked as he pounded into you relentlessly from behind, your round little ass reverberating with every snap of his upper thighs against it. He squeezed his cock harder, thinking about the sounds that came with those thrusts-

“Fuck, baby,” he whispered, his head rolling back as he relaxed back in his chair, pumping his cock faster and faster, the image of your naked body pushing him toward his impending release. The way the desk would creak as his dick reached unimaginable depths inside you, sliding in and out so fucking fast; your body fit perfectly with his.

“Rhys! I’m back!” Your honey-filled, sing-songy voice rang out from the downstairs foyer just before he could release, and he immediately halted his movements. How long had he been doing this? He glanced at the clock — surely you hadn’t been gone that long.

The soft patter of footsteps rang out on the stairs, and he stuffed his still-hard dick back into his formal pants, struggling to tug the zipper up and attempt to conceal his erection. You’d surely notice, and he’d surely be embarrassed.

The door to the office swung open, and sure enough, you stood — bags in hand, ponytail and all. The bright smile on your face faltered when Rhys’ failed attempt at a warm greeting was recognized.

“What’s wrong, sweet heart?” You asked, setting down the paper bags and striding over to his desk. No no no, he thought. You needed to get out of here, at least until he could calm down.

“Nothing, my love.” He smiled, embracing you as you moved to sit on his lap. You shifted slightly, looking at all the papers atop his desk.

“You’ve got a lot of work it seems,” you say. He sighs lightly. “Yes my love,” he responds, kissing your cheek. The feel of you against him stiffens his cock, and he can only pray you don’t notice.

“Mhm,” you hum, shifting on him once more. Rhys’ breath comes out ragged, and you side-eye him with a smirk. “Almost the same amount as when I left earlier,” you point out. A small tinge of pink flushes his cheeks and you chuckle, kissing the tip of his nose before gazing tensely into his eyes.

“What were you doing up here all alone, anyways?” He meets your eye with an equally challenging stare. “Working.” He says coolly. You smile humorlessly, moving to straddle him instead. Instinctively, his hands cup your ass, squeezing hard. He knew what you were doing, but you didn’t care. It worked, and that’s all that mattered.

“I have something… else… you could work on, if you’d like?”

Cassian

He’d trained with you enough by now that he’d gotten used to your… attire. The way your tight leathers clung to your body, every dip and curve of you outlined for everyone to see.

He didn’t care so much now that you’d been together so long, but something about you striding in that morning stirred something in him.

You were laughing in that vivacious way you did, usually with Gwyn and Emerie and Nesta — a lot of times, when he was lucky, with him too.

He smiled at the sound of your voice, floating down the stairwell toward the training ring. His back was to you; but when he turned and caught the sight of you, your legs bare and midriff exposed, his breath faltered a bit.

Sure, he’d seen you completely nude before, but in front of your peers? Your friends? Especially during training… he wasn’t sure how he would handle two hours of this kind of torture. He could already feel the blood rushing to his cock at the sight.

“Y/N this isn’t- You know for training you can’t-“ he fumbled. Gwyn giggled, and you rolled your eyes.

“Cassie, it’s like a hundred degrees in here today. You said we weren’t doing hand to hand anyway; what’s the harm in lighter clothing?” You shrugged. He only stared blankly at you, commanding his eyes not to drift past your collarbone.

His hand jerking his cock later that day was the harm in lighter clothing.

He let out soft breaths, leaned back as he sat on the edge of his bed.

He thought about how that tiny little tank top was stretched thin across your generous chest, how his eyes traced over the outline of your bra when you did your warm ups. Gods… how many times he’d ripped thin little things like those off of you, how many times he’d toyed with you, undoing your lacy bras you’d wear just for him…

He kept pumping, thinking about how your tits bounced when he purposefully assigned the group jumping jacks and high knees exercises, and how painful his cock grew during your session.

He thought back to the times he drilled into you on this very bed, your knuckles white on the headboard as he shoved his cock deep inside of you, your screams of pleasure only encouraging him further.

It was borderline torturous today during cool down yoga, watching you in downward dog, your spine arched, your long legs on display. Under your shorts, he could only imagine the panties you had on — maybe his favorite, the glittery kind he could easily slide down your legs with his teeth.

Usually, this was before he would lick your cunt until you shook beneath him, your slick covering his lips and chin.

Had no one else attended training this morning, he honestly would’ve taken you right there; yanked your mini shorts over that perky little ass and drove himself straight inside of you. “You want to tease me? You know what happens when you play around,” he knows you love it when he spanks you-

“Cassie?”

He stilled, his chest heaving as he opened his eyes. Lo and behold, you were before him again. You hadn’t yet changed out of your training attire, and as your eyes trailed over his form on the bed, taking in what he was doing — you closed the door behind you.

“Baby, I-“ he stammers, and you only smirk at him.

“I suppose the new outfit this morning worked, hm?”

Azriel

It was hard, so painfully hard having a mate as beautiful as Azriel. So hard having a mate so beautiful, but was gone so often on missions that you found yourself at times taking care of your needs on your own.

You couldn’t blame him for it, you were quite lucky. But little did you know, he would need to take care of his own twice as much.

On this occasion, it was a case of… well, miscommunication. He was scheduled to be gone on a mission, and you’d told him you would stay the night with Morrigan instead of being alone in your shared home for the evening.

Of course, that was not what happened.

Azriel finished his mission early. He reported to Rhys, flew back home, and was happy to have a night off with rest and relaxation. He even lit candles in the house, for christ sakes.

He knew you were at Mor’s, and though he missed you so much, he didn’t want to take away from girls night. He’d walked in on one once and… well… let’s just say he’d never do it again.

Azriel was padding around the flat, finishing the last few sips of black coffee from his mug when he passed the sapphire door. His steps faltered, only for a moment, and he tipped his mug back to drain it, still eyeing the opened door.

Curiousity, and years of spy work must have gotten the best of him. He sat his mug on the hallway table, pushing against the usually locked door. This room was off limits to everyone, that was, except you and Azriel.

His breath caught in his throat as he made his way through the room, sitting in the plush chair near the center of it.

“Oh…. my…” he breathed. He leaned forward, his gaze flickering between the various vibrators scattering the ground. He stared, feeling unable to move — that was, other than his dick, which began to twitch beneath his leathers.

He continued to gaze, cataloguing which items weren’t in their holding places. Other than the vibrators, there were clamps missing, and maybe-

His cock fucking throbbed. He sat back in the chair, yanking on the ties and binds to free himself from his pants. Finally, finally getting his dick in his hands, he allowed his mind to wander further.

When were you in here alone? It had to be within the last few days, it didn’t look like this before he left. He slid his scarred fingers over his long shaft, thinking of you in this room, the things you’d done together in here. What you’d likely done alone.

“Mmmm,” he grunted, holding himself tighter. He thought of your tight cunt, how he had to work his thick cock into you every. Single. Time. “Fuck,” he muttered. You always looked so beautiful, a gorgeous, ruined mess for him, all tied up on the bed. Gods, the sounds you’d make, how they’d echo off the walls, through the entire house-

“Fuck baby, so tight for me,” he groaned. He usually wasn’t so vocal, preferring to hear you much more instead, but alone… he wished he could talk your ear off. Tell you to play with yourself, right in front of him so he could watch.

Gods, if he were here, watching you cry out against your vibrator thinking about him… there’s no way he would be able to hold back.

“Good girl, good fucking girl, take it, take all of it-“ he sucks in a breath, his gaze snagging on a pair of lacy underwear discarded by the bed. He quickly snatches them up, remembering how they looked last time you’d had them on.

The soft sound of the front door opening and closing pulls Azriel from his haze, immediately tossing the underwear back under the bed. He shoves his dick inside his leathers, groaning as his pants protest against his size. You weren’t even supposed to be back tonight — maybe the plans with Mor fell through.

Within minutes, he’s closing the door as quietly as he can, sure you won’t suspect a thing. He smiles lightly to himself. Hopefully, if you’re home to stay, you’ll be in the mood to finish what he’d already started.

He’s almost halfway down the hallway, heading for the foyer when a cough sounds from behind him — the other end of the hallway. He turns slowly, and sure enough; his eyes meet yours. Only for a moment though; he can’t help but notice the sheer nightie you’ve managed to slip into, breasts pushed up from your hands clasped behind your back.

“Having fun in there by yourself?” You tease, jerking your chin toward the sapphire door across the hall. Azriel doesn’t move a muscle, his thoughts racing.

“H-how did you know I was in there?” He asks, his tone low. You only giggle, taking a few steps toward him and revealing your hands at once. One held his mug, which he hadn’t noticed wasn’t on the hallway table anymore.

“Seems we’ve both forgotten to put our things away, hmm?” You wink. “I’ve lived with the Spymaster long enough to pick up on a few things, Azzie.”

Lucien

With Lucien, things were always *almost* a little more than “friendly”. Sure, you’d been best friends for centuries now, but over time, you’d both begun to realize there was more to it than just being friends.

“It’s truly not that complicated,” Tamlin explained. “She likes you, you’re clearly in love with her — I don’t see where the problem lies?” But, Lucien still only sighed.

“We’ve been friends so long, I just don’t want anything ruined,” he’d explained. That only made his High Lord friend laugh.

“I think it was ruined, my friend, the moment you let your feelings cloud your judgement. Which was a very, very long time ago.”

Honestly, he wasn’t wrong. In your youth, you and Lucien were simply platonic; you’d grown up together, bonded over the horrors you’d both endured and helped each other through, and found comfort in relying on one another.

But over time, that changed. Suddenly, attending Balls and Galas with Lucien sent flutters through your stomach. Going to dinners with him on quiet evenings warmed your heart, and now when he brought you flowers for your table — it felt new, it felt… more.

“Well, aren’t you the loveliest couple Prythian has to offer!”

This would happen often.

One of you, or both, would hastily explain that you’re just best friends. Well, you used to, anyway. Last time the older woman in the market made a comment as such, Lucien just smiled politely and held your hand tighter, continuing on as though nothing happened.

The moment that had tipped it all though… oh boy. You’d been in the kitchen of the manor, baking apple tartlets as autumn was approaching and they were Lucien’s favorite from back home. He had joined you, wanting to learn from someone with such a talent and, honestly he just wanted to spend time with you.

“Okay, next we need flour… Lucie, that’s you,” you whispered the last part, and Lucien snapped out of his daze. His hand dropped from his chin, propping his head up on the counter as he gazed at you from across it.

“Hm? Oh, I’m sorry,” he stood, searching for and grabbing the bag of flour from behind him. You smiled, taking it from him and measuring out a few cup fulls. He resumed his position, looking to you once more.

You met his gaze, your hand stopping midway between the bowl and bag. “Lucien, I thought you wanted to help me,” you said.

“Right, right, I do,” he moved toward you, pushing up the sleeves of his tan waffle-knit sweater as you dumped in another cup. Your breath caught as his hands appeared on either side of you, the sudden feeling of his toned body pressing against your backside lightly ceasing the air from your lungs. You tried to remind yourself to resume your breathing as normal — the steady rise and fall of your shoulders measured now by his chin resting atop your left one.

“Next… we, have two eggs,” you explained. You take them from the carton, and Lucien chuckles behind you, his body so close you can feel every movement and muscle beneath his clothing.

“Allow me,” he says smoothly, his arms caging you in closer along your sides as his hands rest atop yours. “I think I know how to at least do this part.”

You allow yourself a laugh, but it comes out breathless. He does as such, cracking them into the bowl and setting down the shells.

“Alright, now next is… hey!” You squeal, turning to face him in shock. He laughs, his smile radiant as you look down your nose at the dash of flour smeared on it. You reach for the bag, but you’re too slow — Lucien has both of your wrists held tight in an instant, pinning you to the counter with his hips against yours. Your noses are mere inches apart, and he continues grinning.

“Lucien, this isn’t-“ He doesn’t let you get another word in before he smushes his lips against yours, and you instinctively soften against him. Years, you’d waited years for this — the feel of him against you, his lips touching yours. All of those almosts, all the lingering touches, all of the sleepovers and hugs that went on too long, all those times your hand held his.

Now that he’d had you once, he only wanted more.

Which was why he sat in his favorite spring meadow now, trying to clear his head.

He couldn’t.

He only thought of you.

You, in all your beauty. The way your hair would always fall perfectly around your face. How you felt, your soft lips pressed against his. How your body, he was so careful to protect, felt pressed against him that day. He hated how hard his cock was just thinking of your ass pressed against him.

When he’d caught you off guard and finally kissed you… Gods, you’d look so lovely laid across the counter, wrists held above your head in his grip. He’d worship you and kiss every inch of you if you’d let him. Tartlets be damned; he’s sure you’d taste even better.

He was smiling to himself in the afternoon light when the most beautiful voice made itself heard before him.

“I can only wonder what you’re dreaming about to have such…” You playfully tease, your sentence trailing off. His eyes fly open, and he sits upright, looking at you and trying to find some kind of response.

“No! No, I uh, was just drifting off, just lounging here, against this uh…” he pats the fallen tree trunk behind him.

“…wood?” You finish. He shakes his head slowly, a smile creeping onto his lips. You giggle, dropping to your knees before him and adjusting your skirt around you. You leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek and he blushed.

“Well, tell me what you were thinking, then? Maybe I’ve thought of things similar.”

Eris

It was a beautiful morning — perfect for the horseback ride Eris had planned with you that day. He knew you had a few duties to tend to into the evening, and he wanted to squeeze in a little alone time beforehand if he could. You were more than happy to oblige.

“I’m not sure I’ve seen the leaves this red so soon in the season before,” you pointed out, looking around the autumn grove in wonder. Eris looked too, his focus landing on you once more like it had countless times already that morning. He knew, of course his mate was gorgeous, but… you were truly getting the best of him today.

“Maybe the season is getting longer,” he said absentmindedly, watching how your hips moved forward and back as your horse trotted along. Fuck, if you didn’t have obligations clogging your schedule later today, he’d have you off that horse and sitting on him instead. Gods what he’d give to feel that tight, pulsing cunt throbbing on his awaiting dick-

“Ooh! Eris look! Those are honeycrisp!” You said excitedly. “We have to get some, your mother has been looking everywhere for these.” Eris mentally kicked himself for being such a … guy. He was so happy just to spend time with you right now, and of course his mind was going to sex when his absolute gift of a mate was innocently noticing the apples dangling from the trees, thinking of others while his mind was only thinking of you.

Then again, he only ever seemed to think of you.

“Anything for you, dear.” You flashed him a smile then, and his spirits lifted higher. He led his mare toward the trees, sliding off and tying the reigns as you slowly approached behind him. You were shorter than him, and though you had enough courage for the entire Autumn court, you didn’t mind a gentle helping hand every once in a while. You handed your mate your own reigns, watching as he tied them to a branch as you also made to de-saddle.

His strong hands slid around your waist, firmly placed on either side as he hoisted you from the animal with ease and set you gently on the ground in front of him. You grinned up at him then, your hands still on his shoulders as a sudden rush went through you. You couldn’t help but remember the excitement you’d felt all those years ago when he was but a simple schoolgirl crush to you; that feeling remaining even now that you’re mated to the Autumn heir.

“I love you,” he said then, his one hand cupping your cheek and pulling you in for a kiss. You leaned into him, his hands roaming over your body as you felt his pants tighten slightly against your stomach. You chuckled, breaking for air before he got too many ideas.

“Apples?” You suggested. He nodded, swallowing thickly, but you could see the lust swelling in his irises. Once all your tasks were done today, you were sure you’d be seeing more of this side of him later tonight. “Apples,” he agreed.

The Lady of Autumn was more than thrilled with the discoveries you and Eris had come back with, her gratitude for the both of you evident before she bid the both of you goodbye. Watching you go, even for a few hours felt like torture for Eris. He shook his head, cursing the dirty thoughts racing through his mind — but they wouldn’t stop.

They surely didn’t stop as he sat before the fireplace at sunset, lazily sipping the last remnants of whisky from his glass as he scanned over the court’s weekly newsletter. The words were a blur; he was just passing the time and waiting for you to come home. Waiting to get his hands on you again.

Gods, your lips had tasted so good this morning, so warm against the cool air of the grove. Fuck, that little waist… when he’d had you the other night, bent over on the bed, fucking himself into you relentlessly, his hands gripping your smooth skin-

He wasn’t sure when he set down his glass, or when his paper hit the floor, but his fingers were now gliding over his cock, throbbing with need. His head rolled back, short breaths coming out between his parted lips.

The way your body moved this morning… he let out a soft groan. He thought of you, sitting on his lap, the fire casting a golden glow around you, bouncing up and down on his length. You didnt need any other fire — you emitted light yourself, everything you did, everywhere you went. You were the sun itself.

“Y/N…” he sucked in a breath, yanking on his cock. He thought about the tiny lingerie you’d wear for him, how he could pull it down over your tits and take one of your nipples between his teeth as you rode him harder…

His groans were cut short as a soft, familiar mouth met his, and he slowed his strokes but smiled into the kiss in realization. You pulled back an inch, a few tendrils of your hair tickling his neck and shoulders as you leaned over the couch above him, taking the scene in fully.

“Did you miss me?”

Tamlin

The sharp knock at the door startled him, his gaze drifting from the reports on his desk to the entrance of his study.

“It’s nearly ten thirty, Sir,” Alis peeked her head in. “I’m going to turn in for the night, unless there was anything else you needed.” Tamlin’s eyes widened in realization, and he looked at the wall clock for confirmation. Sure enough, 10:27 p.m. He sighed heavily.

“No, no, I’m quite alright Alis. Tell me, has Y/N turned in already?” He asked. His heart clenched as he tugged on the bond with no response. He’d told you he would be done with these reports hours ago, but, per usual to no avail. He hated disappointing you.

“I haven’t seen her since nine, Sir.” Alis said. He only nodded, and she closed the door quietly. Tamlin rubbed his eyes, shuffling his files into neat stacks and flicking off his table side lamp before heading toward the master bedroom.

Upon entering, his heart dropped even more. Of course you’d gone to bed, why wait up? He’d done this before. Promised to be done with work only to stay awake for hours into the night, not giving you the attention you’d deserved from him.

You. His mate.

His mate that, upon further inspection, must have believed he would finish on time tonight. You’d fallen asleep in a petal-laden lingerie set, barely leaving anything to the imagination. Tamlin’s lips pressed into a thin line — it was one of his favorites. Now he really felt bad.

Not only did he feel bad… he felt horny.

He stepped as quickly and quietly as he could across the hall toward the master bathroom, closing the door and leaning against the sink.

His chest heaved, and he stared at himself in the mirror, his cock growing harder and harder in his pants. He needed a shower, now.

He flipped the water on, allowing the steam to cloud in the bathroom before he cracked open the door to the hallway, just an inch so some of the hot air could filter out. The moonlight illuminated the space enough through the window — he avoided turning on the lights.

It was only after he’d stripped and gotten into the warm water that he’d started fisting his cock.

Images of you played in his mind, some recent, some from the past. The first time you’d made love in the garden — you had daisy petals all through your hair, your back bridging as it arched in pleasure while he ate you out. Gods, you tasted so sweet — sweeter than any honey Tamlin had ever tasted, in his court or beyond it.

His free hand braced against the cool tile of the shower wall, his other running along his thick length faster.

The images burned into his brain of you laid out on his desk — one he’d been spending so much time at lately with his stupid papers — your mouth open, crying out his name as he worked your clit with his fingers.

Your hands felt so good tangled in his hair… he’d missed that so much, he knew it was his own damn fault for not giving you enough of really anything lately.

“Gods Y/N,” he gritted out, his teeth clenched. The warm water ran over the defined muscles of his back, a reminder, but not quite as exact as the feeling of your fingers on him during those nights of the frenzy. That’s when you’d gotten that adorable, flowery little number anyway that you were wearing now — were you asking to be fucked like that, again?

He groaned at the thought, biting his lip in anticipation. The way you’d looked, so peaceful and delicate, your hair laid prettily on your pillow — but he knew.

Every once in a while, you wanted him crazy. You didn’t want nice, gentle, garden love-making. You wanted mating-bond, frenzy-crazed, sex. The kind that had you once drenching the sheets with your cum, squirting from you as your mate pulled orgasm after orgasm out of you. The kind that had you shaking as you sat on his face, his nose nudging your clit as his tongue played in your folds.

“FUCK,” Tamlin swore, pumping his dick so hard, feeling his release building, imagining your tongue on him instead, your awaiting mouth and beautiful, round eyes gazing up at him from the floor…

“Looking for somewhere to, finish?” You asked, stepping lightly into the shower behind him. Tamlin stilled, his face flushing at being caught in the act.

“I… sweetheart I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you, I-“

“You didn’t,” You interjected, crossing your arms beneath your breasts. Tamlin’s cock jerked, his eyes roaming hungrily over your naked body. The cute outfit was something, yes, but your body, just you — now that was something he’d prefer over anything.

“…but I wish you would have.” You raised an eye brow at him.

His eyes darkened at your words and he chuckled, looking to the floor and shaking his head slowly.

“Y/N, I don’t think I’ll be able to last very long-“

“Try me,” you challenged, stepping forward as his gaze met yours. “We haven’t yet done it in the shower.”

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ

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oristian · 5 months ago

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LUCIEN VANSERRA — HEIR TO THE DAY COURT

I originally intended to wait and post this for @lucienweekofficial but I wanted to share this stunning artwork with everyone early! I cannot wait to see Lucien and Helion and their interactions in the next books and I have high hopes that Lucien will be appointed to some title—either High Lord, or Prince—within the Day Court. The vision was Helion crowning his son and Lucy brought this idea to life wonderfully.

ART CREDIT @lucychanart

COMMISSION BY @oristian / @/ktbookishclub

characters belong to Sarah J Maas 🦊☀️

REPOSTS ALLOWED WITH FULL CREDIT

#lucien vanserra the prettiest male in prythian #pro lucien vanserra #lucien vanserra #lucien acotar #helion #helion acotar #lucien and helion #day court #heir of the day court #lord of foxes #acotar #sjm #lucien vandaddy #acotar fanart #art commisions #lucien vanserra fanart #pro lucien #pro helion #Instagram

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utterlyotterlyx · 9 months ago

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The Fox and The Fawn

High Lord Eris x Rhys!Sister!Reader x Azriel

Part One

Summary - As the ways of the world shift, you find yourself torn between those who have always cared for you and the life you feel like you were made to live.

Warnings - none right now really, some angst, harmless flirting, tension, slight fluff, mention of wing loss

Hauntingly beautiful was one of the few ways to describe the High Lord Eris Vanserra.

There was a rake-ish look about him, like he belonged in one of Nesta's regency era romance novels that had her eyes widened and bottom lip caught between her teeth. It was rather infuriating.

Tension continued to linger, one of doubtful trust. Rhys wanted to trust Eris, he wanted to trust that the new High Lord of Autumn knew what he was doing, but something was stopping your brother from investing into the change fully and you weren't quite sure what.

Eris sat opposite you in the meeting chamber, eyes trailing down your figure approvingly, a crown of golden leaves dipping to his brow and accentuating those russet eyes that always sought to burn you with their intense glare. It had been strictly forbidden for you to leave Velaris on your own after what had happened to your elder sister at the hands of Tamlin, you understood it of course, Rhys wouldn't survive if he lost you too, his youngest sibling but by far the fiercest creature in all of Prythian's history.

War was scoured into your bones, hellfire raged in your soul, and you were very well known for your tactical prowess and outspoken nature, from your quick wit to your dry humour. Some said that you were the reason that Prythian still stood, you had worked very hard to undermine Amarantha right under her nose, feigning innocence and naivety that she drank from like a fountain of youth, you had been instrumental in the war against Hybern too, and Eris had watched in stoic awe as you wielded your sword like it was an extension of yourself, gracefully cutting down your victims and using your power to decimate hoards of males into ash.

Eris wouldn't admit it, certainly not in front of Rhysand and Cassian who made it his mission to keep Eris as far away from you as possible, but he thought that you were the most incredible thing he had ever witnessed. And as you sat before him, draped in a sheer black dress adorned with white crystals that allowed him to relish at the picture of your full breasts, it was taking him a lot of will power to not fling you on that table and take you right there and then, even if your brother was watching, he didn't care.

The meeting was simple, Rhys wanted to know how the politics between the courts were to improve with Eris now at the helm and steering the Autumn Court ship. Feyre sat to the left of your brother, dressed in her usual ethereal pale blue, another garment made by your mother, but less impressive than the items you owned. You sat to his right with Azriel to your side, Mor, Cassian and Nesta occupied the seats to Feyre's left in that order, and Lucien lingered somewhere between, still on the side of the Night Court, put just an arms length away from his brother.

Eris was stoic and cruel, power radiated from him, but you seemed the be the only one who saw what lingered beneath that façade. The occasional split second glance he would direct to Lucien when he thought no one was watching, one full of regret and sadness. It seemed that there were many more layers to Eris Vanserra than any of you realised.

"How do we know that you won't rule like your father did?" Rhys had craned forward in his seat, his jet black crown glistening in the darkening sunlight that poured down through the domed windows.

Eris' jaw ticked, a clearly sensitive subject for him, your chin dipped in examination and for a moment, he glanced to you, fire in his eyes that mirrored the very faint sphere of orange that curled around pupils, "Would I have bothered to overthrow him to only rule like him?" Eris replied with his own question and you felt Mor scoff from where you sat, your older cousin not enjoying the sentiment one bit.

"Who knows what you males strive for," Mor bit, more like growled, at him, you face remained distant and cold, you didn't remove your gaze from him, everyone knew that they couldn't hide from you, you were too observant.

Guilt had swirled in your gut at the sight of him, under examination by a group of people he longed to be somewhat friendly with, to work with to better the lives of his people, and Velaris was rich in knowledge and power, it was a court that you would want on your side if you walked a second in his shoes.

It wasn't often, if at all, that you would speak at meetings, it was an unspoken rule for you to be seen and not heard, your presence was powerful enough, and you did have the knack for making things worse with your jabbing words, "Raise your hand if your father is a piece of shit," the room fell silent, and Azriel had his head dipped low to conceal his smirk, his knee nudging yours gently in warning.

Slowly you raised your hand and looked to Rhys who rolled his eyes, but didn't raise his own, he didn't want to indulge you. In turn, Cassian raised his hand, Azriel lifted a finger as did Mor, Lucien's hand raised with his elbow still firmly plastered on the arm of his chair, and Eris didn't dare partake, but you all knew his answer already. Counting under your breath at the souls that had answered your call, you relaxed into your seat, "I don't know about you Rhys but I don't think you're anything like our dear old dad. Mor is nothing like hers, nor is Cassian or Azriel or Lucien. If we were all held accountable for the actions of our fathers then we surely would live in the most tyrannical world possible, no?"

Rhys raked down the iron clad walls of your mind and you gave him a pointed look, refusing him entry and smirking at the twitch that pulled at the corner of his lip, "There is no evidence that Eris will be like Beron, and refusing him alliance only makes such possibilities more likely," you picked at an invisible thread of your sheer black garment and feathered your fingers down the bargain tattoo that curled around your upper arm, one that matched the mark Azriel bore in the same place from a stupid bargain you had made what felt like eons ago.

"In simple terms, brother," you fluttered your eyelashes at him, ignoring his clear fury, "Get over yourself and give it a chance. Prythian can't be a land of harmony when males with big egos can't see the opportunity before them."

Feyre had confined herself to looking at the wall, shifting uncomfortably at the colliding forces of power between you and her mate. It was never something she had the courage to stand between, she'd perish if she even tried. Nesta was smirking at you, the only one who would hold Rhys accountable and live to see another day, relishing in the fury of the High Lord.

Another nudge prodded into your thigh and you snapped your gaze to Azriel, "Will you stop nudging me?" You swatted at his thigh, "This world has been through enough already, Amarantha, Hybern, Koschei... It's time that we made a world to be proud of and we can only do that if we work together."

"Who knew that the fawn had a voice?" Eris spoke and you sent him a satisfied grin, Rhys looked to the High Lord and snarled at the name he had dared to direct to you, but quickly composed himself with a warning glace to you that meant he would deal with you later.

Matching is tone, you teased, "Thank you. My campaign for High Lady is imminent," Cassian let out an audible low chuckle, his shoulders shaking next to Nesta who was doing her best to contain the amused smile that fought its way onto her lips.

Typical y/n.

Looking to Rhys, you smiled and waiting expectantly, he seethed out his answer, "Fine," he moved his attention to Eris who was still smirking at you, eyes blazing with curiosity, "We will work with you, Eris. Let's call this the start of a long lasting alliance between our courts," Rhys rose to his feet, "Please feel free to stay the evening and join us for dinner. I will have a room prepared for you."

An olive branch, one that made you avert your gaze to Eris to see him nod in shocked agreement.

Rhys lowered himself so that his head lingered by your ear, his fingers curled around the back of your chair, and he growled, "My office. Now."

A chill slithered down your spine and you smiled thinly at no one in particular before rising from your seat and following Rhys from the room. The pair of you didn't utter a single word as he led you through the halls of the House of Wind, walls that seemed to shrink away from your pulsating energies as he led you to his office and shut the door behind your entrance.

"What in the name of the Mother do you think you're doing?" Rhys seethed as he rounded your smaller figure, towering over you to the point that he shrouded you in the shadow of his figure and flexing wings.

With a raised brow, you spoke calmly, "I highly suggest you take a step back and stop trying to intimidate me," his gaze softened slightly and he obeyed you, stuttering back a couple of feet and tucking his wings out of sight.

"Eris is not someone that we should have an alliance with," he leaned against his desk and watched as you turned around, lifting the heavy glass lid to his whisky decanter and pouring two glasses of the amber liquid before extending one out to him which he took without question.

You waited until he had taken a sip before talking, "Regardless of what you think, you know I'm right," you took the seat opposite the desk and nestled into the deep brown cushions, leaving him standing before you, "Rhys, you wear a mask to the rest of the world, in everywhere other than Velaris. Cauldron, you even make us follow suit. Has it ever entered your limited mind that Eris may do the same, that he too is hiding behind the mask he has created for himself?"

Rhys frowned, "Did you just call me stupid?"

Scoffing, you sipped the amber liquid and enjoyed the delicious burn that sank down your throat, "All you're doing is proving my point."

Rhys threw his head back and inhaled deeply, clenching his eyes closed and pinching the bridge of his nose, "You know that I love you," he lowered his gaze to wash over you, but you didn't falter, you had never faltered under Rhys' glare, you were perhaps the only one who wasn't impacted by it, "You have to understand that I will always do what is right to protect our home, to protect you."

"And you have to understand that I will always do what is right to better the continent, not just our people."

The relationship between you and Rhys was a complicated one. There was a lot of love and respect between you, but his fear of losing you often clouded his mind. His word was law, but your word was the final judgement. The reckoning. There was nothing even he could do to change that.

Many males had attempted to get close to you, but none were good enough to appease the expectations of the High Lord of the Night Court. It wasn't as if you cared. You required an equal, someone who wouldn't diminish your power, and males had the tendency to attempt to control you.

Rhys had even refused your hand to Helion, much to your disappointment, and before the acts that led to the demise of your sister, he had refused to extend a thought to Tamlin who had clearly been besotted with you. Thank the cauldron for that at least.

"You have a strong will, y/n," a backhanded compliment if you had ever heard one, you rose from your seat and placed your empty glass on the bare surface to his left, "It will get you in trouble."

"Good. I can't wait."

Leaving Rhys alone in his office had filled you with far too much smugness and serenity.

The golden tainted pink hue from the sunset poured through the large windows, trickling up the walls and coating your skin in its soft shimmer as you paced before them.

Black fabric chased after your steps from your dress sweeping in the breeze you had created in your movements, you could feel the comfort of your chambers, you could almost taste it as you rounded the corner and entered the room without a second thought.

The familiar skitter of cool kisses swirled around your ankles and you didn't need to look up to see who was splayed across your cream comforter, "I know what you're going to say," you disappeared behind the thin clouded dressing screen and peeled your dress from your body, rifling through the railing full of ornate pieces whilst Azriel examined your silhouette from his place on your bed.

"Then I don't need to tell you how stupid you are," you looked over your shoulder at his words, like he could see your expression which was one of confusion and annoyance, "I swear you get more defiant each day."

Peeking your head around the corner of the screen, displaying your face and shoulder to him, you spoke, "It's the only exciting thing I have to do around here."

Azriel quirked a brow to you, his shadows dancing around his shoulders at the sound of your voice, "That's not true," you scoffed at his words and disappeared back behind the screen, continuing on your quest to find a dress for dinner, "There are plenty of things to keep you entertained in Velaris."

"Azriel," you deadpanned, not stopping your movements in plucking dressed from the railing and holding them up to your body, "Rhys doesn't let me do anything other than train and sit and look pretty and intimidating. I'm Velaris' glorified trophy."

A particular garment caught your eye and you smirked, taking it from its hanger and pulling it up your form. It was a stunning piece, one you rarely wore. An ornate solid gold bodice of blooming roses and ivy that connected to a red wine skirt that possessed a high slit, cream lace poked from the highest point of the slit and kissed your thigh.

"That's not true. He let you fight against Hybern," Azriel told you pointedly, seemingly becoming lost for words when you stepped from the screen and soothed down the skirt of the dress before bending down to secure golden heeled sandals to your feet.

"I fought against Hybern because there was no choice to do anything but that," you hadn't spared the Shadowsinger a glance but smiled softly at the shadows that curled lovingly around your ankles, you held two sets of earrings up to your ears and tilted your head in the mirror, "I'm sure if there was an option to stay home then Rhys would have gladly assigned the position to me."

Azriel rose from the bed, moving behind you and resting his hands on your hips, his hazel eyes boring into your reflection, "He worries about losing you. He couldn't stop what happened to your mother and sister, I think he just wants to be able to stop anything from happening to you," Azriel smiled at you and your orange ringed violet eyes softened at him, "Wear the red ones, they match the skirt."

"Thanks, Az," he hummed in response and took a step back, the place where his hands once lay turning cold and begging for more, "Shall we go to dinner then? What an exciting evening we have ahead of us," Azriel chuckled and offered his arm to you which you gladly took, allowing him to pull you from the room.

There was an unspoken attachment between you and Azriel, like it could be something more if you were both willing to risk your already perfect relationship on the notion of it. You both knew that feelings lingered, but if Rhys ever found out it would surely cause a civil war within your family, and you'd hate to think where everyone would stand in that battle.

The dining room had been beautifully dressed, a black tablecloth and tall golden candles, gold plates and coated silverware, ornate but expensive goblets and an array of blood red and orange flowers, no doubt a nod from Feyre of respect toward Eris.

Azriel left you at your usual seat with a subtle squeeze of the hand before rounding the table and taking his spot opposite you, scuffing the chair against the stone and sitting in it as you did in yours. Family members trailed in one by one, Nesta took her seat beside you and Cassian sat to her left, Mor took the spot beside Azriel and Elain took the other, then Amren entered, then Rhys and Feyre, the former of which nestled into his spot at the head of the table.

Then Lucien and Eris entered, and the High Lord eyed the last two remaining spaces, the one at the head of the table opposite Rhys or the one next to you, and Eris strode beyond his brother to steal that option. He teetered at the edge of it and peered down on you questioningly, "May I?"

Feeling Rhys' eye on you that you didn't dare to acknowledge, you nodded gently, "Of course," he took your answer in the palm of his hand and used it to pull the chair out, his scent of mulled wine, candied orange and pine filling your lungs as he sat.

Eris was dressed well, a red waistcoat adorned with golden swirls, a cream shirt that was tucked into the waistband of his black pants, like he knew to match your own attire, something that not only you noticed.

Idly, decanters of wine floated about the space, pouring themselves into the empty goblets placed at every seat, and food began to appear, dish by dish, on the long table. Platters of roasted vegetables, silver dishes piled with meats, bowls of fresh salads, boats of sauces, and most importantly, towers of desserts that made your eyes glisten, wanting to skip the main course entirely and help yourself to a slice of cake.

Clearing his throat, Rhys raised his goblet, tearing you from your salivating thoughts, "A toast," he smiled thinly at Feyre whose gaze shifted to you and then to the male at your side, "To new alliances."

The room repeated the sentiment before digging in, doing their best to ignore the swirling tension caused by Eris choosing to spend the evening sat beside you. Though, that soon vanished when Cassian started telling his many tales of his escapades throughout the years with the intermittent corrections from Rhys and Azriel.

"I should thank you," a low voice spoke from your right and you craned your head toward Eris, his hypnotising russet orbs were fixated on you, dark and full of wonder as they raked over your face, "For what you said at the meeting. I hope you weren't scolded for helping my cause."

Eris' voice was low, only loud enough for you to hear and you alone, his eyes were soft and stare void of that stoic cold that usually possessed it. He looked like a completely different person, there was actually kindness bubbling within him, genuine sincerity in his words.

"Rhys can scold me all he wants, it'll never change anything," you replied in the same tone, the orange ring in your eyes burning like wildfire, "Anyhow, it's a cause worth supporting."

From the corner of your eye, you caught Lucien watching you with intrigue, his fingers encased with Elain's atop the table with a knowing glitter lingering in his expression, he grinned as his brother spoke and leaned toward Elain to whisper something beyond your realm of hearing, "I can't remember the last time I saw you before Hybern."

Smirking, you asked, "Have you been thinking about me, High Lord?"

"It's not hard to," he replied honestly, watching the faint blush creep up your cheeks, "When was the last time?"

Humming, you thought about it, it wasn't often you actually left the confinements of Velaris thanks to your brother's protective antics, your eyes glazed over slightly, "It was Under The Mountain, at the beginning, after she," you rolled you shoulders, coiling them in the memory of that night.

That's right, the last time he had seen you before the war had been the night after Amarantha had stripped your wings from your body, carving them off with her talons to punish Rhys' reluctance. It had taken everything within Eris to not set her alight on the spot, if he could have, after he had seen your shaking pale form wandering the halls like a ghost.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up."

"It's fine," you insisted, sighing deeply, "It's a fading memory now, I've adjusted well."

"I'm glad to hear it," the genuine tone to him was confusing, but you always knew there more to him than what met the eye, and part of you was proud to have been correct about it.

Eris had grown up listening to the stories about you and Rhys, two formidable winged warriors that exuded darkness and power, who held the capacity in their fingers to shatter kingdoms if they so wished it.

It didn't scare him. You had never scared him actually.

"Make the most of this alliance, Eris. It's very rare that I speak up on such matters," you told him, sipping from the wine in your cup and placing it back onto the tabletop under Rhys' watchful gaze.

There was an elegance about you, Eris noticed, the poised shoulders and perfectly slender pointed ears, the violet eyes with the speckles of Autumn orange, the grace laced in your words. It was a spectacular thing to witness up close.

"Then why did you?"

There was a moment of contemplation and you furrowed your brow in thought, "I can't sit by and be part of the reason why people suffer," very unlike Rhys, "Other than that," you trailed off, looking deep into his eyes like your violet pools were drowning in his soul, "I'm not quite sure."

Author's Note

Part one to the series I've been planning for awhile.

Prepare yourselves for a pining, needy slow burn with a hint of forbidden love x

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really-fanny-longbottom · 7 months ago

Text

the things we do for love

summary: secrets can never be kept for long. eventually, the truth always comes out, and so do the consequences of it.

warnings: mentions of blood, pregnancy, birth, fight, death; there's a flashback scene in the middle.

pairings: helion x reader (platonic); inner circle x reader (platonic)

words: 7.6k

you are a scholar from day court. but you are not just a simple scholar — you are the best.

you were known for graduating at the top of your class and for your impeccable reputation of never failing a project and never leaving a question unanswered.

you have always been a very curious person, and the fact that you grew up in day court gave you the privilege of having access to the best libraries with the best books in prythian.

that's why books were your life and the fact you liked to have an answer for everything, even though helion called you a know-it-all from time to time, and even if that irritated you a little, it was true.

whenever a question arose that you didn't know the answer to, you made it your personal mission to find one.

even if it meant having to read dozens, if not hundreds of books, but that part you never care about.

besides, the libraries were your favorite places, especially the one near the pegasus stables.

the only thing you liked more than books was pegasus.

you thought they were the most magnificent creatures your eyes had ever had the pleasure of seeing.

your favorite was meallan, who was also helion's favorite — it was with him that you learned to ride a pegasus, and he was your favorite partner to fly and enjoy the sky.

besides being curious, you were also a very adventurous person, and it was your sense of adventure that got you into trouble.

one day, you decided that it would be a great idea to combine the two things you love most in this world — books and pegasus.

so you tried flying with meallan while reading one of your romance books, only to get distracted when the scenery in the book started to heat up and lose your balance.

your luck? meallan wasn't flying very high when it happened.

your bad luck? a broken leg and a very big and angry lecture from helion.

when he heard what you did, he banned you from flying with meallan or any of the other pegasus again for months.

which led you to focus on books again for a while, which helped a lot during your recovery.

your reputation caught rhysand's attention.

the high lord of the night court was in the middle of researching the cauldron.

rumors about hybern being in search of it for a new war had reached his ears, and as all high lords should, he began to prepare for war but the truth is that his library could not be compared with those at day court.

even with the help of the priestesses, he was unable to find almost anything.

that's where you entered the equation.

during a meeting between the night court and day court at helion's palace, rhysand mentioned your name.

helion wasn't surprised.

he knew very well what you were capable of, and in that moment, he couldn't hide the pride he felt for you.

he knew what rhysand was about to ask of him.

he wanted you to join him and his inner circle in velaris and help with the research, and if possible, bring some books from your court on the subject for them to read as well.

helion had no problem with you helping them, afterall rhysand was one of his longest friends.

the only thing he didn't like was putting you in the enemy's attention.

if hybern found out, you'd have a target on your back.

helion explained his worries to the high lord of the night court and his inner circle that were seated beside him.

he explained to them how you were not just another citizen of his court.

you were important and very close to him.

he told them how your mother was one of his best friends for centuries, and when she died, he took you under his care.

the night court assured him that they would treat you like family and that they would not let anything bad happen to you.

before helion could respond, your voice filled the conference room, "i'll do it."

all the heads turned in your direction, helion leaned back in his chair and ran a hand over his face, "how many times do I have to tell you not to eavesdrop?"

with an innocent smile, you replied, "i wasn't eavesdropping. i was passing by, and i heard my name."

"really? you were just passing by?" helion didn't believe you for a second.

the inner circle watched the scene unfold in front of them with amusement in their faces.

"hm-hm" was your response.

helion interlaced his hands and with an amused look — one that you knew very well and that meant he was about to corner you — "and where were you going, if i may ask?"

"i. . .hm, i-" you paused to think, before an idea came to your mind "ah, i was going to the kitchen. yes, that's where i was going."

helion chuckled, "the same kitchen that is on the other side of the palace, and you can't access it from this floor?"

your smile fell, and you realized you had been caught.

he was right, this floor was for political purposes only — helion's office, the conference room they were in now, an armament room and the map room which was mainly used by helion's general and his soldiers.

everyone tried to contain their laughter at your expression and when you tried to come up with a quick response and couldn't, you decided to admit defeat.

"okay, okay, i wasn't just passing by. what do you want me to say? you know i'm curious."

"indeed, i do." he gave you a smile.

raising from his seat, he gestured for you to approach him, and when you did, he wrapped you in a side hug. "y/n, meet the inner circle."

you couldn't help but linger your gaze on the shadowsinger. he was stupidly handsome, and no one should look that good.

the laughter caught your attention, and when you looked at them, you noticed that everyone was smiling except helion.

realizing what had just happened, you said, "shit, did i just say that out loud?" a hand coming to cover your mouth that was starting to form into a nervous smile.

"unfortunately," helion replied with a roll of his eyes.

another thing you were also, besides being curious and adventurous — is being honest.

you are not, and you have never been afraid to say what you think and be direct about it.

helion has always really liked that trait of yours but not at the moment, especially when you're using it to flirt with the male in front of you.

"okay, enough." he averted his gaze to azriel, "stop looking at her like that before i regret all of this."

the shadowsinger raised his hand in surrender with a smile playing on his lips.

helion released a sigh before looking at you. "are you sure about this? you don't have to do it if you don't want to."

you gave him an assured smile, "i'm sure, i can do this. besides, it's what i was trained for, right?"

the word 'trained' led you to another thought, one that helion wasn't very fond of "oh, can you train me while i'm there?" you asked the general.

cassian was surprised by the question. no one ever asked him to train them before, and if they did, it wouldn't be a female.

that made him feel a strange sensation in his chest, one that he wasn't used to. was it, pride?

"of course," he had no problem in saying.

"awesome. i'm going to pack my things." you gave them one last smile before exiting the room.

with the door shutting behind you, helion turned to his old friend, "alright. rhysand, i'm trusting you, all of you, with her. so. . .do not fail me. unless you would like to see me very angry." helion added a little of enfase with his high lord voice.

rhysand chuckled at his words, but he knew the male meant every single one of them "we won't."

helion turned to cassian, "oh, and cassian? be careful when you eventually put a weapon on y/n's hands. she's a little curious and clumsy even though she never lost or ruined a book, which is kinda of a surprise, actually."

cassian laughed while crossing his amra over his chest, "it can't be that bad."

helion gave them a nervous laugh before telling them one of your many stories.

"i once tried to teach her archery because she was interested and when i was teaching her how to shoot an arrow, she got distracted with a butterfly that was flying near her and the arrow that was supposed to go into the target, end up going into one of the gardener's legs. who, by the way, was on the other side of the garden."

cassian's smile dropped, and he's arms fell to the side.

everyone else laughed, if it was at your story or at his reaction, cassian didn't know.

"oh, this is going to be fun," morrigan said with a "i already like her," followed by amren.

"no weapons, got it." cassian said before starting to re-think about his life's choices.

•••

you were finishing packing when helion entered your bedroom chambers.

"everything okay?" he asked you.

"yes, i already have everything i need."

you turned to look at him and when you saw his worried look, you gave him a gentle smile "don't worry. i'm going to be fine."

"i know," he reciprocated the smile and approached you.

his hands fond your shoulders and he gave them a tight squeeze "remember, no one can know. it needs to remain a secret."

"yes, i know. i'm not going to tell them." you promised.

"good," helion gave your shoulders one last squeeze before letting them go, "now, have fun but please be careful with the weapons during training with cassian. we wouldn't want you to lose a finger."

"or him," you added, making you and helion laugh.

"or him," he repeated your words with a chuckle, "also, don't forget our agreement," helion reminded you with a stern look.

you rolled your eyes but with a chuckle escaping your lips, "i know."

"four letters during the week," he said while smiling at your antics, warmth in his eyes "deal?"

"deal."

•••

everything was going well.

you had been at the night court for about three months now and the research about the cauldron and hybern had progressed a lot with your help.

you loved velaris and adjusted very well but instead of staying with the inner circle, like rhysand offered, you decided to rent a house near the sidra so you could explore the city of starlight at your own pace.

and because you never lived alone before and decided to try it — 'a new adventure' that's what you wrote to helion in the letter.

he didn't liked it.

you also did that, so you had a reason for the shadowsinger to fly you to the house of wind and then back to yours —but you decide to leave that little detail out of the letter.

the library at the house of wind made you feel at home and helped with your homesickness.

the priestesses adored you and found your presence comforting. the only thing they didn't like very much was when you disappeared for a few hours and they had to alert the inner circle.

they found you on the last floor of the library drinking tea while talking to bryaxis much to cassian's dismay.

when they asked you about it you blamed your curiosity — you had heard some priestesses talking about the creature that lived in the library while searching for a book.

you went to the edge of the stairs and when you looked down, you found nothing, and you needed to know what this creature was like so your feet started moving before you could stop them.

you end up finding that bryaxis was really good at telling stories and you thought he was friendly.

cassian didn't liked it.

you were doing remarkable work, rhysand had complimented you multiple times for it.

you were respecting the agreement and sending four letters as agreed and cassian still had all his fingers and toes but the same couldn't be said about the ear he almost lost when you got distracted during sword training.

two months without any incident — or almost.

but that changed the day a letter from the night court arrived ar helion's office.

•••

helion never winnowed so fast as he did when he received the letter from rhysand explaining about what happened to you.

the moment helion set a foot on the night court's ground, he was quick to make his way to rhysand and grab him by the colar of his shirt.

"what the hell happened?" he yelled.

rhysand's eyes widened, never in his four hundred years of friendship, had he seen his friend reacting like this.

rhysand told him everything.

how you didn't show up in the library this morning and clotho noticed your absence.

how no one had seen you since last night and after checking if you were in the library or the rooftop training which you weren't, they decided to come to your house to check on you.

how they found the door of your house open and when they check the inside. . .

the house was destroyed.

broken furniture, paintings lying on the floor, shattered objects, torn cushions and then, blood.

not just yours but also whoever invaded.

apparently, training with cassian had worked, because you put up a good fight to the invaders.

and then there were the scents.

the scent of qutumn soldiers.

at least five different scents lingered in the air but they were starting to disappear so they suspected you had been taken at least two hours ago.

and when the explanation ended, helion finally released his friend's shirt and took a step back.

helion panicked.

you kidnapped?

autumn soldiers?

helion knew what this meant.

he had found out the truth and came for you.

all the emotions started overwhelming helion — anger, worry, fear, rage.

this couldn't be happening.

it couldn't be true.

helion leaned over to try to ease the pain he felt in his chest.

but it didn't work.

raising his head, the inner circle watched as helion's golden eyes darkened — anger.

he was going to find you, and he was going to bring you home — to him.

even if it meant he would have to destroy the autumn court with his bare hands, like he did once, to some beasts, centuries ago.

"don't worry, helion, we're going to find your scholar," rhysand promised him.

"she's not just my scholar!" the high lord of day shouted.

he shouted so loud that the birds that were posing on the trees nearby flew away as fast as their wings allowed.

feyre moved forward and placed her hand on helion's arm, trying to comfort him as much as she could, "what do you mean by that?"

helion met the high lady's eyes, and all she found in them was pain and fear.

his lip trembled, and after taking a few deep breaths, he told her the truth.

the truth that no one was prepared for.

"she's my daughter."

the inner circle stilled at his words. for a few moments the only sounds heard, was their breathings.

this was unknown to them, helion had never mentioned a child of his own.

"y/n is my daughter, and she's the princess of the day court."

before any of them had the chance to say something, helion raised his hand and signaled his second in command to approach him.

the male had refused to let his high lord come alone after reading that letter "benjen."

benjen approached him and stood to his full height, ready to receive his orders. "yes, high lord?

"i need you to send a letter to rris, tell him what happened and that he needs to come to velaris as soon as he can."

helion paused for a second, very well aware of the gazes the inner circle were sending his way, "and also tell him not to show the letter to anyone, as soon as he finishes reading it, he must burn it immediately."

"of course, high lord." bejen replied and gave a small nod before leaving to carry out his order.

at the exit of one of his most trusted friends, helion looked turned to face the inner circle, and he only had a second to breathe before the shadowsinger spoke.

"why are you sending a letter to eris? What does he have to do with y/n?" he asked him, with worry and confusion on his face.

if autumn had really captured you, he didn't want to waste another minute.

"everything."

tired of his riddles, rhysand spoke, from one high lord to another.

"helion, tell us what's going on? how is y/n your daughter, and why did i never know about it?"

"how is eris connected to her? and why has she taken by autumn soldiers?" cassian added.

helion released a long breath and pitched the bridge of his nose.

he approached his old friend, and with a stern look and a firm voice, he said, "if i tell you, rhysand. . .you and your inner circle can't tell anyone."

rhysand looked back, and with the firm nods of his family, he returned his look to helion before extending his hand to him "i promise."

helion took his hand, and a bargain was made.

a tattoo in the shape of the sun appeared on the back of their necks.

helion gave him a nod before telling him, "y/n's mother didn't die, and she wasn't just a random lover."

the inner circle approached at the sound of the new information the spell cleaver was sharing them.

they formed a circle around helion, as if the keep the information within it.

"y/n is the result of an affair that i had eighty-two years ago."

helion paused, aware of what he was about to say. once his words came out, he couldn't go back.

"she's mine and elowyn's daughter."

several gasps were heard out loud. they froze in their place's with shock spreading through their features.

oh, this was bad.

this was very bad.

"you mean. . .?" feyre wasn't able to finish her sentence, too afraid to say it.

"yes." he said, his eyes locked on the high lady's blue ones, "the lady of autumn is her mother."

helion sighed, and turned with his back facing them "we kept it a secret all these years so beron wouldn't find out, but apparently, he has."

helion took a step back and passed a hand through his long black hair. "that's how y/n is connected to eris. he's her older brother."

mor spoke for the first time since all of this happened. "but how does he know?"

helion looked at her. "because eris was the one who brought y/n to me on the day she was born."

•••

eight-two years ago

the sun had left a long time ago.

the night had already come with it's dark sky, shiny stars, and smooth breeze.

the entire prythian was thankful for it.

every citizen from every court just wanted today's day to end.

no one understood or had an explanation for the events of today.

it didn't make sense.

prythian was in the height of winter — two weeks from the Winter Solstice to be more precise.

and even though the seasonal courts didn't follow the natural course of nature, they, too, were affected.

during the entire day, the sun shined like it had never shined before, releasing an unbearable heat that prythian had never felt before.

not even the summer court or the day court have had a sun like that before.

and these were the two courts best known for their warm suns.

even winter court, known for it's constant cold, and it's land always decorated with snow and ice felt uncomfortable with the sun.

nothing happened differently during the course of today's day to explain the reaction from the sun.

there was no reason for it.

except, there was, they just didn't know that.

—

the letter came a few minutes after helion had finished his dinner.

he, too, was contemplating about the sun's behavior earlier.

he even made his way to one of his many libraries to see if this event had ever happened before but he found nothing.

it wasn't strange for the sun to shine like it did today.

they've had their fair share of hot summers but for the sun to shine like that during the winter?

that didn't make sense.

and with all the libraries and even more the books he owned, there had to be an answer somewhere.

the high lord of day was in the middle of reading a book when the letter appeared on top of it.

the letter had brown tones with leaf patterns and an intense scent of pine — Autumn.

that was the second strange thing that happened today.

why — of all the Courts — would autumn be sending him a letter?

it was then that he noticed that the letter did not come from beron.

the stamped seal did not belong to the high lord.

no, the seal was in the shape of a hound.

the heir's beloved creatures and personal seal.

eris Vanserra sent him a letter — a personal letter.

without further hesitation, helion opened the letter and read the content hidden within.

if he was confused before, he is even more now.

the letter contained three simple instructions: "meet me at the border between day and dawn in twenty minutes. come alone and don't let anyone see you. burn the letter once you finish reading it."

now, this was even stranger than the sun's behavior.

—

helion knew that he was most likely making a mistake.

meeting eris alone at the border could very well be a trap, but on second thought, what reason did the heir have to ambush him?

the answer was none.

he knew that eris was not the cruel and arrogant male he appeared to be.

he knew that deep down eris was good, honest and kind and that the rest was nothing more than a mask that he had created because of beron.

that's why helion followed his instructions.

he just hoped he didn't regret it.

as agreed, eris appeared exactly twenty minutes after sending the letter.

the high lord of day decided to arrive a little earlier as a precaution, just to make sure there were no hidden hounds ready to attack his legs, especially today that he was wearing a new robe.

helion had no idea what this secret meeting was about.

he came to think that perhaps the heir was moments away from asking him for help to take down beron, but he came to the conclusion that if that were the case, it wasn't him that eris would ask for help, but the night court, so he scrapped that idea and was left with no other.

therefore, he had no expectations for this meeting — if it could be called that.

but the last thing he expected was to see eris vanserra with a newborn in his arms.

—

the day was already feeling long, but with the sun shining like that and the unbearable heat that came from it, it only made it seem even longer.

elowyn, lady of the autumn court, had now been in labor for three hours.

the eighth child of beron vanserra and elowyn was about to come into the world.

and like all the other births, beron was far away from the room where his wife was.

but eris was there.

just like he was at all the births of his younger brothers, holding his mother's hand like he always did.

eris loved his mother more than anything, and one of the reasons he wanted to overthrow beron so much was so she could be free and happy.

he also knew that lucien was her favorite son, and although it hurt him, he would still do anything for her.

but what was unknown to eris was that he was her favorite son too.

eris was surprised when his mother announced that she was pregnant again.

after all, lucien had born more than four hundred years ago.

another brother was something that the young heir wasn't expecting.

but he couldn't not be happy.

besides he always liked taking care of his brothers when they were younger, and after everything that happened maybe a baby was exactly what they needed.

as his mother pushed again, eris began to think about all the things he was going to teach the new member of the family — fishing, hunting, fighting, reading, writing, camping but most importantly how to control his powers.

that was something eris didn't have.

no one taught him how to control and use his fire, and that led the healers to treat a lot of burns because of it, and he wasn't going to let this baby go through what he did.

his mother's scream shook him away from those thoughts, and Eris refocused all his attention on her and made sure to hold her hand tighter, assuring his mother that he wasn't going anywhere.

not until his brother was born.

two hours later, after many screams, pain, and sweat — a baby's cries burst into the room, bringing tears of happiness to the eyes of elowyn and eris.

but it was at that moment that the mother made her first turn of events.

"it's a girl, my lady," the head healer that was helping with the labor announced "a very healthy baby girl."

eris froze, not knowing how to react before this new information.

in over a thousand years, the vanserra lineage had never had female descendants.

this couldn't be possible.

"a girl?" elowyn asked, exhaustion in her voice.

"yes, my lady." one of the healers that assisted with the birth and now holding the baby confirmed while walking closer to the bed.

"it looks like you've been blessed, my lady."

eris's grip on his mother's hand loosened, and the male stood up from the side of the bed where he had spent the last five hours crouched.

now raised to his full height, eris saw his baby sister, and his heart stopped.

and that was when the mother made her second turn of events.

the baby didn't look like eris or his mother or anyone in his family.

her hair wasn't red, her eyes weren't russet or brown, and her skin wasn't pale.

she wasn't a daughter of autumn.

meaning she wasn't beron's daughter.

eris took the baby from the healer's arms before speaking to all of them. "leave us."

the head healer asked before making her exit, "should we announce the birth to the high lord, my prince?"

"no," eris was quick to respond.

he looked at the baby in his arms again before meeting the gaze of the female. "i'll tell him myself when he gets back from the meeting. thank you for your help."

"of course, my prince." the healer turned to face elowyn and bowed one more time before leaving the room "my lady."

elowyn gave her a small smile. "thank you, lydia."

now alone in the room, eris finally looked at his mother and took a seat on her left side of the bed, and passed the baby to her arms.

at the sight of her daughter, elowyn cried.

she knew what this meant.

beron was going to kill her and her child.

her love affair had ended after becoming pregnant with lucien, but after seeing helion at the high lords meeting three years ago, all the feelings that she had buried deep down in her heart came to the surface.

and as always, she wasn't able to stay away from the male she's always loved — the love of her life, her mate, and now the father of two of her children.

elowyn ran her fingers over the delicate cheek of her daughter — her only daughter.

and with tears running down her face, she looked at her firstborn and said to him in a low voice "he's going to kill us, isn't he?"

it was eris's turn to have tears in his eyes, but he didn't let them fall.

placing one of his fingers in front of his little sister, eris saw the baby wrap her small hand around his finger, and he could have sworn his heart skipped a beat at the gesture.

he had a gentle smile on his lips as he looked at the newborn now sleeping in his mother's arms.

her hand still wrapped around her big brother's finger.

"she's Helion's, isn't she?" eris asked without taking his eyes from the baby.

elowyn's mouth opened in surprise.

she never mentioned helion to anyone, not even to lydia who wasn't just the court's head healer but also her dearest friend.

"wha-"

"it's okay, mom. i have known for a while." eris gave her a small smile, eyes still directed to his sister.

"since when?"

"since lucien," eris finally looked at his mother.

eris gave a long sigh before revealing his opinion to his mother "if you would like to know, i wish you had married him and not Beron, even if that meant i would never been born."

eris grabbed her hand and give it a tight squeeze before continuing "you deserve to be happy and well treated, mom, and i know that helion does that and so much more. i've never seen you as happy as on the days you returned from your encounters with him."

elowyn gave him a genuine smile before murmuring a small "thank you," she had no idea her son was aware of this.

eris chuckled, now putting the two pieces together, "this is why the sun is acting like crazy today, isn't it? because she's a child of day.

the same had happened with Lucien but it wasn't as strong as today and lucien was born in the summer which didn't raise any suspicions.

his mother nodded her head in affirmation before returning her eyes to her daughter, smiling, "she looks just like him."

and it was true.

everything about you screamed helion — your eyes, your hair, your skin, and even your nose.

there was no doubt in it.

concerned invaded her face, and elowyn found herself holding the baby tighter to her chest.

she looked at her son again, "what are we going to do?"

eris met her gaze before looking at the peaceful baby again, and his head started to work to come up with a plan.

even if you weren't beron's you were still his sister — his baby sister — and he wasn't going to let that horrible male harm you.

after a few minutes and after thinking about all the possible ways, eris understood there was only one option — one that he hated.

but that didn't matter.

what mattered was to keep you safe and alive even if it meant to send you away.

the tears returned to his eyes.

he had to swallow the lump in his throat because he knew he was about to break his mother's heart.

after breathing for a few seconds to calm his heart, he gathered enough courage to tell her, "i have a plan."

and just like that, the mother made her third and final turn of events.

—

the High Lord of Day couldn't believe what was in front of him.

eris vanserra with a newborn in his arms?

things had just gotten far more interesting or dangerous.

the heir of autumn was walking in his direction and looking at his surroundings while doing it.

when he finally stood in front of the high lord, eris asked him, "are you alone?"

with an annoyed look, helion raised his arm to gesture around them, "do you see anyone else here, prince?"

"as far as i'm concerned, you could have soldiers hiding behind the trees ready to attack me at your signal, high lord." eris gave a sarcastic smile.

helion reciprocated his smile while adding, "i could say the same about you."

eris shrugged his shoulders and concluded, "i suppose that's true."

helion winked at him before his eyes moved to the baby in his arms.

trying to act as normal as possible and not let his curiosity take the better of him, helion asked "who's this little one? and why would you bring a baby here?"

helion didn't have a good view of you, only of the top of your head since the rest was hidden by the blanket.

at the question, eris held you tighter in his arms, he looked to the high lord, who was still busy staring at you, probably trying to get a better look.

he wanted to see his reaction when he revealed the truth to him.

"this is my sister. she was born a few hours ago." the Heir said and moved the blanket so helion could finally see you.

when eris removed the blanket and helion finally had a good view of you, confusion settled on his features.

the spell cleaver's features scoffed before telling him, "she's your sister?"

eris nodded before helion continued. "i hate to be the one telling you this, eris, but she looks noth-"

you opened your eyes at the sound of his voice, making the high lord of day freeze in his place.

helion stopped.

his heart did, too.

realization entered him as he put the pieces together.

he raised his head to look at the redheaded male who only gave a nod of affirmation as his response.

helion had to blink his eyes several times to make sure that he wasn't dreaming — that this was real.

you looked just like him.

"it's not possible." helion said, more to himself than to the young heir

"it is. she's the living proof of that." eris told him.

helion's eyes widened in disbelief, "the sun?" he murmured.

"yes," eris confirmed as he passed one of his fingers through your cheek.

helion couldn't tear his eyes from.

you were looking at him with your big golden eyes — his eyes.

he felt weak in his knees.

helion always wanted children, he knew that since the moment he met elowyn but the world hadn't been kind to them.

by the Cauldron, he didn't even know elowyn was pregnant.

the last time they had seen each other was a little over ten months ago, but sometimes that happened, it had happened before.

when Beron was around a lot, it was difficult for her to leave without lifting any suspicions, so they would wait until she could.

sometimes it took weeks, other times mouths, but helion was patient, he would rather wait than risk her safety at beron's rage.

but the wait was worthed because when they were together it was like the rest of the world disappeared and it was just the two of them.

it was perfect.

the room was lit by the first rays of the morning sun and a gentle breeze came through the window.

the two lovers were together in bed. after a long night of passion and romance, the two were in each other's arms with nothing but a sheet protecting them from the breeze.

elowyn laughed again at the tickling sensation.

she hit helion's arm that was holding her against his chest "stop", but she couldn't stop laughing.

"why would i do that when i can hear that magnificent sound?" helion joined her laugh.

but helion was right.

elowyn only laughed when she was with him, and that was one of the reasons why she loved him so much.

the lady rested her head on the high lord's chest and released a long sigh before giving voice to her thoughts, "i wish i woke up like this every morning."

she adjusted her head on the male's chest so she could look at him,"with you."

helion lowered his head to meet her beautiful brown eyes, a sad smile taking over him, "me too."

"do you ever think about that? about how our life would be if we were together?" she asked him.

"of course i do," he placed a hand on her hair and began to caress it as he spoke "the first thing i would do, would be to marry you and after making you my wife, i would make you my high lady."

a smile began to form on her lips, "ehat else?"

he reciprocated the smile and continued, "afterwards, we would have our honeymoon at the summer court because i know how much you would like to visit there. and then, i would show you every place of your new Court. the libraries, the pegasus, the entire palace and my favorite places."

he paused for a second, sadness starting to make its way to his features again "i would make you feel like home, and i would make you feel loved, seen and heard every single day. i would give you anything you asked of me, sunshine."

a tear fell from elowyn's eyes, and her lip trembled a little, "that sounds perfect. ot would be a dream come true."

helion wiped her tears and told her "yes, it would be. . ." he gave her a weak smile.

he, too, felt the pain of what they could only imagine."would you like to hear the best part?"

when she nodded her head, he proceeded "after a few years of being married, if we were blessed enough and if you wanted, of course," he paused, "children."

elowyn didn't know what to say.

she had confessed to helion a long time ago how she wished she had run away from her family and married him instead of her current husband.

how she wished she had been strong enough to stand up to her father and how she wished all her sons were his.

because this last confession was what held her back in autumn, she was not capable of abandoning her sons and leaving them at the mercy of beron.

she couldn't wait for the day when eris killed him so she could finally be what she always wanted — lady of the day court but in this case she would be high lady as helion had told her and she didn't doubt for a second of his words.

but unlike helion, the first thing she would do, wouldn't be to marry him but to accept the mating bond.

that beautiful, golden, and magical mating bond.

she tugged on the bond and a second later helion did the same.

finding the words she was looking for she said to him "of course i would have children with you, helion. that's not even a question."

she giggled, "can you imagine? little versions of you and me running around and causing trouble?"

helion couldn't hold back the laughter that escaped at her words "they would be troublemakers, wouldn't they?"

elowyn laughed even more "of course they would be."

her laughter quieted and a hint of love adorned her face "maybe i would finally have my little girl. i always wanted a daughter."

"me too," helion confessed, "i would name her after my mother in honor of her."

"your mother was a remarkable female. it would be an honor to name our little sunshine after her," she said and dropped an arm around his waist.

"it would be my greatest achievement.'' he gave her a kiss on the forehead.

they spent the rest of the morning in bed talking about the future they wanted more than anything and expressed their love one more time until elowyn had to leave.

what they didn't know at the moment was that it was the last time they would see each other for a really long time.

the memory surged through helion's mind like a wave.

he remembers that day so well after all that day was only ten months ago.

what a coincidence that on the last day they were together they talked about their future and their children and now, right in front of him, was their daughter.

their little sunshine.

with a trembling voice, helion spoke after a long time in silence "can i hold her?"

"of course," eris was quick to answer,passing you to your father's arms.

and that's when it happened.

a moment that neither helion nor eris would ever forget.

in the second that you were in helion's arms, both of your skins started glowing as bright as the sun had just a few hours ago.

the day court glow.

"wow," eris whispered, amazed at what was happening.

"indeed, she really is mine," without taking his eyes from you, helion asked "what's her name?"

"y/n," Eris answered still observing the glow.

once again, the high lord froze on his spot.

his heart started beating faster.

seeing the strange reaction from helion, eris spoke "what is it?"

helion looked at the male with a smile "that's my mother's name. i told elowyn once how if i ever had a daughter, i would want to name her after her."

eris smiled at the kindness of his mother but he wasn't surprised, she was always like that.

"elowyn," the high lord of day whispered.

locking his gaze with the red-headed male, concern all written in his features at the well-being of the female he had been in love for centuries.

he was so focused on you that he didn't remember to ask this earlier, "elowyn. how is she? is she alright?"

eris released a long sigh, "physically? she's fine but exhausted from the birth. emotionally? she's a wreck, but i suppose that's normal considering her only daughter has to be sent away."

"what?"

"that's why i sent you that letter, helion. i came to bring her to you." eris said, a firm look on his face.

"she can't stay in autumn. no matter how much i want." he murmured the last part to himself, but if Helion noticed he didn't show.

"no one can know about her, about who her mother really is, we need to keep this from away from beron's ears."

he nodded his head, agreeing with the young heir.

of course, you couldn't stay there. he didn't even want to imagine what beron would do if he found out about you.

at the thought of the horrible male, confusion settled on his face again, "wait, what about beron? certainly, he's going to notice that his supposed child is missing."

"don't worry about beron, i took care of it." eris tried to be as vague as possible.

"how?"

"you don't want to know, besides that's not important right now. she is." he gestured to you, your skin still glowing and now grabbing one of helion's fingers.

eris gave a long breath, and then directed his gaze to you just for a second before raising it again to the high lord "are you going to take her?"

helion scoffed, "what kind of question it's that?"

eris released a long breath of relief, and a weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

he didn't doubt that the mal3 would refuse you, but he couldn't but be nervous at the same.

the heir reached for the inside pocket of his coat and removed a letter, and helion took his gaze from you to look at it.

"my mother wrote this for you. she told me to tell you to only read it once you're back home," he handed him the letter.

helion's heart ached at the revelation of elowyn calling his court 'home'.

he accepted the letter and thanked the red-headed male, starting making his way to leave.

but before he could, he stopped at the voice of the heir calling for him.

he turned around to face him.

"i want to be part of her life," eris confessed without hesitation.

"what? we just agreed that no one can know about her, eris, and that includes you. she can't know you're her brother." helion explained.

"i know that," seeing the confused look Helion gave him, it was his turn to explain.

"she doesn't need to know me as her brother. a friend will be enough." he paused for a second, "beron just nominated me as autumn's emissary which means i will be the one going to your court for meetings so i want to take that as an opportunity to get to know her and to see her grow. that's my only condition, i already lost lucien, and i'm not going to lose her either.'

"very well, as long as you share those moments with elowyn. that's my only condition too," helion replied.

"consider it done."

without further words, the two males parted away.

one with a heart full and the other with an empty one.

•••

present

helion's heart was no longer full.

how could it be, when you, the best thing that ever happened to him was missing?

he saw the inner circle's face at the big revelation he had just told them.

rhysand broke the silence "why didn't you tell me? i could've helped you."

helion met his gaze, "i couldn't risk it. y/n is my number one priority, and she'll always be, so i did everything i had to do in order to keep her safe. i have no regrets."

feyre interlaced her fingers with rhysand's, asking the high lord, "does she know?"

"only that she's my daughter. she doesn't know about elowyn or eris and the rest of her brothers."

"she never mentioned anything," mor replied.

"i told her not to. y/n knows that she's my weakness and that if my enemies knew about her connection to me, they would use it as leverage. so i made sure no one outside of day knew it, except eris and elowyn, not even her other brothers knew it." helion explained.

"not even lucien?" feyre asked, feeling sorry for her friend.

"no, not even him."

"so how did Beron find out?" azriel said, interrupting their conversation.

"i don't-" helion started, but before he could continue, the autumn heir arrived.

as soon as Eris' eyes met helion's, he marched towards him.

the heir was angry, and he didn't spare a glance at the inner circle.

"where is she?" eris demanded and his heart dropped when he saw the state of the house.

when eris's eyes settle on everyone, all they saw was desperation and fear in his eyes.

"where is my sister?!"

a/n: thank you for reading!

taglist: @emryb @fantasyandshit @azrielover @shadowsingercassia @brieflyclassymortal @lilah-asteria @lure-of-writing @pruvii @olive-main @mybestfriendmademe

*if you asked to be tagged and you weren't, it's because I couldn't find your blog.

the beautiful dividers belong to @cafekitsune

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thisisntreaver · 10 months ago

Note

okay so first of all I want to say that I have absolutely no intention of starting any kind of fight and everyone is fully entitled to their own opinions.

and second of all let me comment on the state of things in fandom spaces that make me feel like that disclaimer was necessary before actually sharing my opinion

but I never really saw Theresa as evil or 100% selfish or anything? I do feel like she actually means well? we know she can see the future, but it's never really explicit how detailed it is and what she does and doesn't see? unless I missed that somewhere.

the way I thought about the whole logan and hobw thing was that she knew that there were only so many ways it was possible for Albion to survive, and she told logan this, but he reacted to the information by becoming the tyrant he did. so then you step up to tske his place, and you're faced with some of the same choices he is. kind of like she can see the different paths there are, and tries to steer people in a certain direction, but she can't force anyone to make a specific decision.

it's like 2 am for me so this might not be all that coherent but the whole thing boils down to this; I think Theresa does know shit about the future, but she doesn't know or forsee everything. so she tries to make certain things come to pass and to prevent others, but sometimes there are still outcomes she couldn't have predicted.

sidenote, which I think is also why she wants the spire, because then she can have greater control and accuracy in her visions

I didn't take this as you wanting to fight, but I do love a good discussion so thats why this reply is kind lengthy. You're also fully entitled to your own opinion on this but this is why I view Theresa the way I do.

So the thing is you are right in your last paragraph. Thats why she wants the spire, she all but says it to us in the see the future dlc, for her visions to be more accurate and have more of a reach.

That is an inherently selfish want though, as much as she tries to justify it, it wasn't a necessity. In order to get it she takes Luciens grief for his wife and child and twists it whispering to him to push him over the edge to be willing to do anything to get them back.

Then she goes and manipulates Rose into buying the music box so that she and sparrow get called to the castle. Rose is very realistic, she says that they could eat for a week, which would be monumental for them, and Theresa fires back with "and at the end of that week you won't be any closer to your dream of being in the castle." She uses Roses childish fantasies against her and it gets her killed.

In only two actions shes absolutely decimated Lucien as a person by taking advantage of his mental state at the lowest point in his life, and pushes Rose to her death by putting it in her head that this music box can change her life.

With Logan and by extension HOBW I do think its a bit more complicated. At that point she could see all the possibilities. She told Logan flat out that the darkness was coming to Albion, immediately after he watched al his men die by the Crawler. It makes him paranoid, and he goes down the tyrant path because he doesn't know what to do, and she isn't really helping him. Then with HOBW she over corrects and doesn't tell them anything, gives them not even the smallest bit of information about the darkness so that they focus all their feelings on Logan, and think hes just evil for no reason, then drops a bomb on them about the darkness. When the hobw is upset about that she tells them "I told you what you needed to know" or in the case you choose to execute Logan and HOBW upset about that she says "well that was your choice."

She is steering people in certain directions. The ones she deems correct with very little thought in how it effects them or what they would do without her input.

Theresas not evil, but she is selfish. She doesn't tell anything she thinks could harm her cause, she manipulates others for her own needs, and she justifys it by saying its fo the good of Albion. But Fable 2 wouldn't have gone the way it does without her initial inferences, and Fable 3 wouldn't have happened at all if she hadn't made the decision that she wanted the spire and that Albion needed it.

#fable #fable 2 #fable 3 #lord lucien #fable theresa #logan fable #fable rose #hero of brightwall

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surielstea · 4 months ago

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Ensnaring Marks

Eris week day one: Bargains

Pairing: Eris Vanserra x Rhys’ sister!Reader

Summary: Reader and Azriel decide to take part in Eris’s coronation, only to end up in one of the new High Lords traps.

Warnings: Mentions of UTM | petnames (bunny, love) | reader is lonely

A.Note: I wrote this last year as a one off so it might be a bit… well, not good, but I promise the rest of the week will be better 🙏😭

4.3k words.

I sat on the hardwood floors, leaning against the base of the couch, Azriel seated behind me as he flitted through a chapter book. I had my head back on the cushion, waiting for his chapter to end so he could finally give me attention, this silence was beginning to grow deafening.

I stared at the elegant panes of his face, his sharp nose and his hazel eyes scanning the words on the pages rapidly. My eyes trail down to his hands that clutched the book, sickening scars trailing from his wrist down to his fingertips. The white marring was a pattern I've memorized, trailing my hands along the grooves when I got too anxious and occasionally a small kiss to his knuckles to remind him that he shouldn't be ashamed of them.

"You're staring." He grumbled and a small grin formed on my face as shadows curled through my hair.

"You make it hard not to, Shadowsinger." I tease, it was no secret that Azriel was the most attractive of the three Illyrian brothers, no matter what your type was— Azriel was quite the stunner. He closed his book and put it on the armrest beside him.

"What is it that you want then?" He arched a manicured brow and my grin widened as I pulled myself up onto the couch, swinging my legs over his lap as I lounged back.

"I'd like you to tell me something," I ask as shadows come to swirl around my ankles. "Tell you what?" He mutters confused.

"Anything you want, what's on your mind?" I tilt my head and he closes his eyes like he needs to sift through his thoughts before he can answer.

"Beron died." He muttered and I rolled my eyes.

"Old news." I wave him off, the event happening weeks ago.

"Eris's coronation is tomorrow. He asked me to come." Azriel crosses his arms over his chest like the invitation was a threat of some sort. My smile dropped.

"Will you?" My brows knot together and he gives me an incredulous look.

"He invited everyone from the inner circle, but it felt more like a mockery than anything," Azriel grumbled. He knew that talking bad about the people of the Court of Dreams got under my skin more than anything and I had a newfound urge to choke out a certain redhead.

"We should go." My eyes light up and he looks at me like I'm insane, but stays silent, looking down at my feet in his lap. "If he invited us as a joke, we should go." I snort and he shakes his head in protest. "It'll be funny! Not to mention the drama it'd stir." I giggle mischievously and Azriel gives me eyes that were a full lecture on their own. "Oh don't act like you're not a total gossip, shadows tell you every secret you want to know." I kick his thigh playfully and he grumbles under his breath as I remember the nights we would share wine and converse over whoever's tittle-tattle that shadows informed him on.

"I don't gossip, I tell the truth." He states and I snort at the ridiculous claim.

"You need a refresher on the definition then because you've just proven yourself to be a pot stirrer Az." I pat his shoulder and he shrugs me off. We stay quiet for a moment, my hum of laughter filling the silence as he mulls over my ludicrous idea.

"Okay." He nods and I raise a brow.

"Okay?" I ask.

"Okay, we can go to his coronation." Azriel hummed and I blinked, confused as to why in the hell he'd ever agree to such things.

As if he'd seen the shock on my face he supplied a reason, "I have to go there to talk about contracts and alliances the day after so why not just arrive a day early?" Azriel poses and I smile excitedly. "This isn't just some ploy to get me out of the house?" I ask with a chuckle but there is some truth to it.

Ever since Rhys left for Under The Mountain I haven't quite been the same. I didn't leave the house unless I was with another, the whispers on the street about the High Princess. Those long hours spent with Keir in the court of nightmares, hosting it while my brother was away. Hating who I was then, cold and distant, both inside the court of nightmares and dreams. It was rare I got out, much less left courts. I didn't like the rumors, the talk on the streets, the theories. Most of it was idle talk, some of it had truth— and it was that minuscule portion that scared me the most.

"Yeah, I'd like that." I nod and he offers me a gentle smile, slightly forced but comforting nonetheless.

"Do you want to invite the others?" He asks and I take a moment to think about it, but decided that if Mor knew she'd be pissed, Rhys wouldn't go, Amren doesn't care, and I'm pretty sure Cassian would rather chop his own hand off. "No," I shake my head. "Just you and I could burn that court to rubble." I intone, crossing my arms like we'll need to do such things. and he raises a brow— that apparently intrigues him. "Joking." I smack his shoulder and a warm grin came to his face, genuine.

"Are you?" He narrows his gaze on me and I look away mischievously.

"I wouldn't mind seeing the prince's face if I took his court." I give him a gleeful smile, something like pride shines in his eyes. "I wouldn't mind seeing the prince's face in general," I grumble afterward, and the pride he held swapped for something of the opposite. "It's not my fault he's hot!" I throw a decorative pillow at him which he swerves with an ease I envied.

"It's your fault you find him attractive." He pushes my feet from his lap dramatically and I giggle at his childish behavior.

"You have to admit, he could turn you." I tease with a smirk and he glares at me. "If he didn't open his loud mouth he'd be perfect." I sigh dreamily, leaning back into the couch, utilizing the entire space as he gets up to put his book away.

"That's always the problem with the men I date. So pretty, until they start speaking." I huff, standing up and following him to the bookcase like one of his own shadows. "Maybe I should go for the quiet ones." I hum. "I ought to practice on you." I wrap my arms around his bicep and he bristles, lightly shoving me off as I cackle.

"You're not funny." He mumbles, walking over to his desk where he has unfinished work to complete.

"Don't act like I'm some sort of monster for teasing. That's all you and Cass do to me." I roll my eyes as I watch him sit on his stool. "You actually get the ladies, it's easier to joke about when it isn't true." I sling an arm around his shoulder and this time he doesn't shove me away.

"You would get males if you left the house." He grumbled in retort and an idea blooms in my head. "That's the idea for going to the coronation." I grin and he grants me a sidelong glance. "Is that why we're going?" He asks and I shake my head. "No!" I squeeze his bicep. "We're good allies, meaning we're there to support him," I argue and he huffs. He could never say no to me, never has. "And also admire his perfect face." I quietly mutter but it's nothing the Shadowsinger wouldn't notice.

"Go pack your bag." He shakes me off of his arm. "Just for one night. We'll find a hotel on the border." He hums and I nod, following his instructions with a new task rather than talking his ear off like usual.

——

It was the first Friday of the month, meaning that family dinner was afoot. Morrigan had spilled her glass of wine all over the Shadowsinger in a dramatic movement of her hands so he had gone to go change, meaning I was subject to sit in the center of the dining room surrounded by couples ogling at each other, they were practically drooling down their chins— and adding wine into the mix, gods it reeked of arousal.

"Horny bastards," I mutter, standing up and throwing my napkin down onto my plate. I bunch my skirts in my hands and make my way toward the hallway.

"Sister! C'mon!" Rhys races after me, following me all the way to the foyer of the large house.

"What?" I look at him confused.

"Won't you stay for dessert?" He says hopefully and I twist my lips to the side.

"I don't know Rhys, I'm tired." I sigh out and his eyes soften.

"You're always tired." His voice was a whisper his words had my feet bolted to where they stood.

"I trained with Cass this morning, I'm actually tired," I stress and he nods in understanding.

"Let me at least take you home." He reaches his hand out.

"I'm fine." I shake my head.

"Please." He pushes his hand toward me further and I look down at it. "Alright." I accept, sliding my hand into his, mostly out of pity.

He doesn't waste time in winnowing us straight to the house of wind, my feet planted solidly on the marble tiling. "I miss you." He uttered and I looked up at him, detaching our hands.

"I miss you too." I offer him a small smile but it doesn't quite reach my eyes the way he wanted it to.

"I wish you'd come by more often." Something in his violet eyes glazed over and my heart cracked.

"It's hard." I rub my hands together anxiously before deciding it best to just cross my arms. "I should be happy." A frown forms on my face and I don't have it in myself to maintain eye contact. "I don't know what's wrong with me. Something's just, missing." I shrug when he doesn't say anything.

"Something or someone?" He prods and I glare up at him.

"My love life isn't our biggest problem." I shake my head.

"But it is bringing you trouble, therefore it's bringing me grief." He mirrors my stance and crosses his own arms.

"Well that's not something we can just fix, it's an internal problem." I muster the courage to look into his familiar violet eyes. The same color as our father's own but held all the love of his mother's gaze.

"I want to be there for Nyx, for you and Feyre too. But I'm selfish and It's difficult for me to be surrounded by something I want for myself." I confess and he releases a soft sigh, then pulls me in for another hug.

"We'll figure it out, promise." He reassured. I allow myself to sink into the warmth of his hug, how similar it was to our mothers. I nod and wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him closer as he wraps his wings around us and cocooning the both of us in our own little world of darkness.

"Thank you, Rhys," I whisper. "Feels good to talk again." We haven't really said anything to each other beyond small talk after Nyx's birth, and that's nearly a year ago now. I haven't been the same since the war and found it hard to open up since. It's been a long while since he even hugged me.

"I'll see you again soon, okay?" I back away from the embrace and he nods. "Sooner than next month's dinner?" He hopes with an easy grin coming to his face and I nod confidently.

"Sooner than next month's dinner," I assure.

"Good." He smiles before walking towards the edge of the opening where he winnowed us.

"Night, Sister." He flares his wings outward. "Goodnight brother!" I wave him off and he dives off the side of the house, I'd be worried about him if I didn't hear the steady beats of his wings a moment later.

I release a long sigh and retreat to my room.

————

I stood in front of my body-length mirror, gazing at the gown I wore. It was a deep blue as an ode to my court, I always wore colors of the night when visiting other courts, and today was no exception. The gown itself was beautiful, soft silk material that moved like water. It had a dipping neckline with curtaining sleeves that hung off my shoulders, the excess fabric draping from my back in two long pieces all the way to the floor where the rest of the dress dragged. The skirt was one long piece but had a cone-like figure, excess material swooping along the sides and attaching to my waist, forming a flattering silhouette. The dress was modest in cleavage though had a long slit ripping up all the way to my hip, the toe of my heel peaking out at the base.

I was putting in a pair of silver dangling earrings when Azriel made his appearance known at my doorway. He released a low whistle and I smiled, turning around to face him. "How do I look?" I ask him. "Like the princess you are." He hums, pushing off the frame and extending his scarred hand towards me. "Do they know we're leaving?" I ask, grabbing my bag. "I don't think they'll notice." He shrugs and I slip my hand into his. Shadows twine up our connected arms and I smile at the temporary binding. "Ready?" He asks and I nod with a grin.

He steps into the shadows and pulls me along with him. I squeeze his hand tighter as we walk through the abyss of darkness. It takes a moment to know if I was even awake or not, but by the time I regain consciousness of where I was we were already back in the real world and now in the autumn court.

"I still don't understand how you do that." A shiver runs down my spine and I let go of his hand. "Here," He takes my overnight bag then it disappears into the shadows. Apart of me wonders where it's gone but I know he wouldn't tell if I asked. "Come on." His hand slips back into mine as he pulls me towards the venue of the autumn lords coronation.

At the entrance, we were greeted by two guards with bright red hair and faces that were nearly identical. Eris was a fool to think these two men could hold off Azriel alone. "Court and name?" The guard with a clipboard asked and I rolled my eyes at the extravagance of it, this isn't a wedding. "Night Court. I'm probably titled the Shadowsinger." Azriel hums, his hand squeezing mine a little tighter as the guard flips through the list, going all the way to the bottom where our section resided. "You're here, and the girl?" He glances at me carelessly. "I'm the princess of night, I don't know what the lord would put me down as." I crease my brows and lean over to peer down at the clipboard. Spotting the names put down as high lord of night, high lady, lord of bloodshed— and "Bunny." He glances up at me and my stomach twists. "Section B, seats four and five. Proceed." The two guards step aside. "Enjoy, Bunny." The other guard teases me with a malicious smile and it takes everything in me not to roll my eyes.

"I forgot how much I hate Eris." I huff.

"I forgot he calls you that." Azriel chuckles and I playfully bumped his shoulder. "He clearly doesn't know that bunnies are animals of Spring not Night," I grumble, picking apart the idiocracy of it.

"What sort of a nickname is owl though?" He defends and I roll my eyes, continuing my march down the long corridor, chairs passing each side of me.

"We're awfully close to the front," I mutter as Azriel sits down in the seat we were told to. Second front row and nearly center.

"Eris's motives are always a mystery." He sighed as I sat next to him.

"Maybe we shouldn't have come," I mutter. "I mean, is this rude of us?" I whisper.

"He's the one that invited us." He shrugs.

"And it was funny at the time, maybe we should go." I offer but before he can reply the music is starting and people immediately settle. Theres nobody to the right side of me, but people sit beside Azriel. Meaning the rest of my family was supposed to be lined along my right.

Royal coronations aren't nearly as fun as mating ceremonies. The best part of them was admiring the venue and all the dresses others came in. I was nearly asleep until Eris finally came out, on the dais with a priestess.

He wore a dark green tunic, nearly black. His dark red hair was stark against the cream-colored background of the manor walls. His golden eyes were practically glowing with power and I was intent on staring right at them as the ceremony went. The golden irises trailed over the crowd, across his mother, Lucien, and his other brothers who were some distance apart, a group of advisors who used to work under Beron huddled in the back, and then finally me. Our eyes locked right when the golden leaf crown was placed atop of his head and I swore it was pure power that shone in his eyes as he became High Lord. Finally high lord.

He didn't tear his gaze from mine. Not when he accepted the crown and definitely not when he sat on that throne, the one that looked as if it could swallow me whole but when he sat in it he was the one to dominate it, an absurd amount of manspreading at play as he lounged back in it. The flawless picture of a careless king.

A smile curved his lips as everyone stood to cheer. Azriel and I stood, but we did not clap, and he didn't look away even for a second as everyone bowed, and I kept my chin held high.

——

The chairs were cleared out and something like a party began, an extravagant ball morphed from a coronation. A long line of men women and children alike filed down the side of the wall, all leading up to the dais where Eris sat and answered any questions the civilians might have had. Who knew the next time they'd get the chance to speak with a high lord?

"We should probably go," I say, sipping from my wine glass. "I wanted to say something to him but there's not a chance I'm waiting in that line." I huff and Azriel hums in reply, sipping from his own whiskey. The autumn court had the best liquor and the best food. The court was always in harvest and the vineyards were always in fresh bloom. I would visit all the time if it weren't for the male that now ruled this place.

"We can go to the inn if you're feeling tired, if not I'd like to eat more." He plucks a grape from a bowl and pops it into his mouth. "I'm going to find a bathroom or whatever place I can be alone in for a moment." I excuse myself and he nods, bidding me a goodbye.

I failed at finding a bathroom but after trying a few doors I managed to find an empty room, the one for holding the guests' coats, but it was quiet nonetheless.

I release a deep sigh and shuffle through the coats, curiously passing time until the Shadowsinger is ready to go. The door of the closet swings open and I freeze as someone enters, getting caught for stealing when I was actually just hiding would be mighty embarrassing.

But I wasn't met with a guard I was met with a worn-out high lord, his head back against the door with the top of his shirt buttons unbuttoned and his sleeves rolled up to his forearms. "Running from your own party?" I scoffed and he startled, whipping his head to me.

"Hello, Bunny." He gave a foxlike grin.

"Don't call me that." I cross my arms but his smirk only broadens.

"It's fitting," He leans closer and flicks my nose. I flinch back but there's a lot less room in this closet with both of us in here. "Is that why you call me it then?" I stumble back as he comes closer.

"Do you know what a fox's favorite thing to hunt is?" He questions and I take another step back, my body pressing flush against the cold wall.

"I don't know, mice?" I raise a brow.

"Hm, would you like me to call you mouse instead?" His long legs close the distance between us in one stride and I'm looking right up at him. He reaches towards me and brushes his hand along the column of my throat, his thumb coming to my bottom lip.

"No," I swat his hand away but it comes right back to where it was.

"Because you're a bunny, and you're all alone with me in here, caught in my snare." His smile is malicious if not a little seductive. "I want a bargain with you." He hummed, his eyes flashing something like mischief in his eyes.

"You have nothing I want." I cross my arms in front of me.

"I have plenty of what you want." His thumb caresses against my jaw. "Your little family needs my alliance to succeed in their peace treaty," He hums knowingly. "Tamlin will go down in a feeble attempt at a fight but he'll give in. But me? With my army and skill set, it'd be war." He purrs and my skin alights with his warm touch. We would win, with the Night Courts allies we would win. But war means death no matter what, and that's the last thing we need. If I can avoid that and make sure he stays true to his word with a bargain I was willing to risk anything.

"What do you want from me?" Bargaining with Eris is tricky. He's beyond smart so any loophole he could find in whatever I make him do must be eliminated.

"I want you," His long finger trails from my ear to my lips where his thumb swipes over the bottom one.

"Me?" I scoff with a raised brow.

"Yes, you." He nods.

"Specify," I command him.

"I want you at my side for three days a week, and I'll sign your brother's little peace treaty." He nods, and my stomach drops to the floor. To give up half my freedom to ensure war won't break out— if he even would. I debate my options. I need Rhys or Amren to make this decision for me. I try to think of what they would do, and how they would approach the situation.

I know deep down they'd both sacrifice themselves and a lot more to ensure the safety of our family. So I think about my terms. "Why?" I ask.

"Does it matter?" He hums with a smile. "It's a yes or no." He shrugs.

"So if I agree to this, you'll never call out a war against my court?" I ask. He nods. "You'll sign the peace treaty and stay true to it?" My brow raises and he dips his head again. "You won't hurt any of them?" My voice is a little more soft. His nod repeats. I go quiet, thinking it over.

"Three days a week, whatever days you want." He hums like that gives me any sort of flexibility. "But you have to be by my side." He crosses his muscular arms that strained beneath his tunic.

"Deal," I mutter and his eyes glow in the dark of the closet. I gasp as ink begins to carve up my thigh. I move it out from my skirt where the slit is, revealing a deep maroon color swirling from the back of my knee all the way up and along to my inner thigh. I've never seen a bargain's ink another color than black, I suppose the cauldron liked the high lord. His pale hand came to my golden skin and brushed over the new tattoo, right along my bare thigh. When I realized what he was doing I moved my leg back under my skirt. He looks back up to me with a smirk curving his lips.

"Your neck," I reach up and brush the back of my hand along the new ink forming there, disappearing beneath his shirt. "Mine is a lot easier to hide." I hum.

"Who said I was going to hide it?" He arches a perfectly manicured brow. "I want yours on display when you're in my court," He grabs my wrist before I can pull my hand away from his neck.

"You're a fool if you think I'm ever letting it show." I snarl.

He smirks. "When your brother asks about where you got it, what you bargained to earn it, what will you tell him?"

I swallow thickly, keeping eye contact with his golden irises.

His smile widens when I don't reply. "I'll see you tomorrow, Princess," He mocks a bow and I narrow my eyes on him, about to retort but— cauldron-willed, bargains were unbreakable. I had no other choice. "Tomorrow," I whisper softly, mostly to myself but I know he heard it. How in the hell was I ever going to explain this mark to Rhys?

Eris Week tag list: @adharanotfound @mp-littlebit @its-me-meg @olive-main @bookwormysblog @inurus @iwishiwasaprincess @randomgurl2326 @tigerlily00 @i-know-i-can @bubybubsters @booklover0318 @lalaluch @hallabongy @weirdo-fun @cognitoergosum41 @adventure-awaits13

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lenniharrisonsims · 2 years ago

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Usurper's Coronation in Newcrest

Breaking News- in a grand and lavish ceremony held at the Crescent Cathedral in Newcrest, and broadcast across the world for everyone to see, King Victor of Windenburg has crowned himself as head of the New Windenburgian Empire.

Though he had the Archbishop of Newcrest there in attendance in the dais with him, the new Emperor crowned himself with a brand new crown made for this occasion. Of course, not without giving a speech first:

"I stand before you all with great respect for the task fate has seen fit to hand me. The powers that be have deemed me responsible for the lives and welfare of the people of Newcrest, Sulani, Selvadorada, Tartosa, and of course Windenburg, who all save the last have suffered for far too long under ineffective and weak leadership. Who have betrayed your trust by allying themselves with the Simsdom Empire and their lust for greater lands and wealth. I have been called to free you from this tyranny, and usher you into a new age of prosperity and power. We will grow our new empire in strength with a foundation of traditional family beliefs, hard work, and determination. Under my rule, we will abolish the overreaching hand of the Tsarina and spread the truth throughout the world. I was born a Prince, I became a King. But today- I am made your Emperor!"

The speech was met with resounding cheers and applause from the guests in attendance at the church, which was made of primarily Windenburgian nobles and the upper class- people who generally would support a Windenburgian take-over of free and independent nations.

From there, Emperor Victor established his reach into these newly "conquered" lands by installing his family and allies into positions of power within them, abolishing the current monarchies and ancient bloodlines already in place there.

First, he crowned his wife, Queen Agathe, as Empress- bestowing upon her a similar Imperial Crown to his own, but with smaller jewels. Some may recognize the dress the new Empress is wearing for the occasion, because it is a direct replica of the purple dress HIM the Dowager Tsarina Nadia wore for her coronation along with her late husband, Tsar Alexei (seen below)

The next crown the Emperor granted was to his daughter- Crown Princess Martha Lofton-Strauss- and her family.

The Crown Princess was made Queen of Sulani, her husband became Prince Consort Albert, and her son was given the title of Crown Prince Eugene of Sulani. Princess Emma remains Princess Emma, but it's now "of Sulani" instead of "of Windslar."

Next in the ceremony was Emperor Victor's son, Prince Jonas.

Prince Jonas, who was once dating our very own Crown Princess Ophelia, and who's rejected proposal supposedly started this war, broke a lot of hearts in the Empire today. Many had believed the prince had a true and noble character, and were excited for the idea that he may one day marry our Crown Princess. But it turns out he is just as wicked as his father, and readily accepted the crown and title of King of Tartosa.

Beyond the family, the Emperor rewarded his most loyal servants- the son of the Marquess of Lykke, Lucien Castellano, Earl Frankvan.

Lord Frankvan was made King of Selvadorada, his wife made Queen Felicity, and their son made Crown Prince Oskar of Selvadorada. Felicity and Oskar even wore Selvadorada Yellow to remind everyone of their new titles.

However, the last and most shocking news of all comes from the last coronation- the betrayal of King Cesare's own little brother, Stefano Colona.

Stefano Colona was once Prince Stefano of Newcrest, the younger brother of King Cesare, but he abdicated his title in Newcrest when he married Chief Lilah Mahoe of the Sulani Independent Islands, and became Prince Consort there. He then lost that title as well when the Chief divorced him after a cheating scandal and rumors of a "love child" were exposed. The woman he cheated with, and their "love child," were standing up on the dais with him as he was crowned King of Newcrest. His apparent new wife was made Queen Justine, and their son was made Crown Prince Damien Colona. No word on how the King and Queen in exile are taking this news- it truly is the most profound betrayal.

The broadcast ended with a long shot of the New Emperor and Empress overlooking their loyal followers and a message that read: All Hail the New Windenburgian Empire!

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thehighladywrites · 6 months ago

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ACOTAR MEN X READER, SITTING ON THEIR LAP

✩ summary: different scenarios where you find yourself sitting on them

✩ warnings: nsfw, 18+, mentions of sex, mentions of self-doubt, kissing, begging, gossiping, fluff, smut, crack, fun times and soft Eris😭💗

✩ amara’s note: the original cassian hc was so long that i had to stop myself bc i was thirsting and it turned into a regular oneshot lmaooo😭 anyways enjoy babes!!!!💗💗💗

reblogs are really appreciated! :D

RHYSAND

No matter how angry you and Rhys get or how petty the fight is, you two always end up holding hands, even while yelling at each other.

Sitting in his lap while you two argue about random, non important stuff is a standard

You guys just don’t do the whole “no touching” thing

Today, the argument was over who cooks better, both of you bickering pettily.

“Listen, I love you a lot, but the kitchen isn’t your best friend. It's crazy how you can burn an empty pot.”

“Maybe you’re crazy,” you retort, arms crossed over your chest as you step closer to him, leaning against his desk in his office.

He keeps arguing with you, going back and forth, while pushing his chair back from the desk to make room for you.

“Whatever, Rhys. I don’t even need to cook when I can summon anything. It’s stupid, and you’re being unfair,” you mutter as you put your hands on his shoulders and plop down in his lap, subconsciously warming at the way he holds your waist and places one hand on your back to keep you steady.

He suppresses a smile, scratching the back of his head as he looks up at your pouting self. “You’re absolutely right, sweetheart. I don’t know what I was thinking. Of course, you’re an amazing chef,” he concedes, his tone laced with affection.

“Awww, come with me while I make you something,” you say, flashing him an oblivious smile.

“Oh! Um, you sure we shouldn't order something or..?” he asks nervously, his voice getting higher as he kisses you.

You slip out of his lap and hurry downstairs to plan his meal, assuring him not to worry about ordering anything and to just come down for his favorite meal.

“Dear Gods,” he whispers as he gets up, a mix of worry and fear in his voice.

ERIS

Eris had been stressed out for a few weeks now. Nothing you said seemed to make a difference.

He was dealing with his father’s death, ruling a new court as the heir, and inheriting the High Lord powers. Your heart ached for him. You wanted to be there for him, giving him hugs and words of encouragement, but you were not on that level yet

Today had been the most stressful day yet, resulting in him shutting down and locking himself up in his bedroom.

“Eris, are you okay? Can I please come in?” you knock gently on the wooden door, voice hushed and gentle.

After a few moments of silence, you hear him shuffling behind the door until he opens it very slightly.

He is shirtless, only in a pair of pants. You manage to catch a glimpse of his tired, amber eyes before he turns around to lie in his bed.

The room looks clinically clean, the only disturbance being Eris’s rugged appearance.

Without saying a word, you walk over to him and give him a hug. It’s a long, warm hug that tells him everything he doesn’t allow himself to hear: you’re there for him.

It takes a few moments for him to hug you back, but when he does, he wraps his arms tightly around your waist, bringing you into his lap.

Only after an hour of silence does he speak

“I feel like i’m stuck. These powers are killing me, the board is fucking annoying, the folk believe i’m wicked and cruel and i have no idea what to do about anything.”

He looks up at you with desperate eyes, “Do you believe I’m truly wicked?”

You shake your head in honesty. “No, honey. I have not met anyone as smart, kindhearted and brave as you. Others do not know you like I do but they should,” you whisper, hands going through his tussled hair. “You’ve been hiding behind your mask for too long, Eris. Let people see the real you.”

The room goes quiet, the only sound being the beating of your hearts.

Slowly his lips meet yours in a new and experimental kiss. He stares up at you with his pupils blown but before you can apologize and get off his lap, he kisses you again and locks his arm around you

“Thank you,” he whispers between heating kisses, “Thank you, beautiful.”

CASSIAN

“Hi there sugar, what can I do for you?” Cassian asks sweetly as he flicks your nose with his finger, happy that you ran into his office and immediately plopped down on his lap

“Can you fuck me?” you ask, frustrated with the lack of dick lately.

His eyes widen slightly at your words, then he slowly cracks a handsome smile. “Gods. How inappropriate of you,” he teases, the amusement clear in his voice.

His teasing almost makes you sob. This was totally NOT the time. You almost roll your eyes before realizing he will so not give in if you give him that

“Cassian, i’m begging you. I want, no- need to be fucked. Please, i’m losing hearing in my left ear,” you beg as you get closer and sit in his lap, rubbing your hands all over his chest

He looked incredibly good, almost unfairly so. Cassian’s jaw and chin had grown scruffy in a ruggedly masculine way that made him look older and even more attractive.

A week without seeing him had only heightened your weakness for his body, making you throb.

“Losing hearing? You must be really dying for me, huh? Alright then. I’ll let you ride,” he smirks at you while unbuckling his belt.

He finally fucking let’s you fuck, hitting spots that makes you go fuzzy brained.

You make him promise to never be gone again before going for another ride, satisfied when he breathlessly promises.

LUCIEN

There is not a bigger shit-talking couple in Prythian than you two

One look between you two is enough.

Someone’s being annoying? You share an annoyed glance. Someone’s being rude? You share a baffled glance. Something’s juicy’s happening? You share a glance that says you will so talk about it when you get home.

“— and he has the audacity to two-time her? He’s lucky to find even one person willing to date him,” you gossip, lounging in Lucien’s lap, your voice dripping with disbelief.

“You’re not going to believe this, but this isn’t his first time. He did that to Tamlin’s cousin too,” Lucien adds, his tone filled with incredulity.

“No way,” you gasp in disbelief, shaking your head as the gossip sinks in.

“Yeah, apparently this guy fucks around in all courts and cheats on anyone willing to stomach. What a fucking loser, honestly,” Lucien nods in agreement, disdain evident in his voice. “The sick bastard gets off on it.”

“That reminds me, guess what I heard about Rhys in Rita’s yeaterday,” Lucien prompts, leaning in with a sly grin, clearly ready to share some gossip.

“Some males and females were talking about Rhys, saying he's replaced Feyre with a clone,” Lucien whispers, his tone laced with disdain. “And get this— they think her transformation from human to fae is fake and that there is no way she could possibly be the mother of Nyx.”

“A clone? They’ll say anything these days,” you exclaim, raising an eyebrow incredulously.

“That's exactly what I'm saying! They're probably just making shit up out of thin air,” Lucien replies, nodding in agreement.

“I wouldn't put it past them,” you say, shaking your head as you reach for a biscuit, happy to be sitting and gossiping with your love.

AZRIEL

Azriel loves when you sit on his lap.

It makes him feel safe and relaxed knowing you're close to him.

It's something he does every day when he comes home - having you in his lap. Sometimes you both sit quietly, other times you talk or fuck or cuddle, depending on how you’re feeling.

Azriel especially likes the fuck part.

He loves the part where you sit on his lap while he works. If you’re good, he’ll bend you over his desk and fuck you. If not, he still fucks you but he does it with no mercy

He makes you sit on his dick and tells you not to move and inch or you will be edged for hours, not being allowed to cum once

Fucking torture is what it is honestly

“Stop moving around so much, i can’t focus.”

“Do you blame me? You’ve buried your dick in me, of course i’m moving. Maybe do something about that.”

He raises his eyebrows at your snarky comment. If it’s something he didn’t need today it was sass.

His day was quite shitty and all he needed was his sweet mate who would kiss away his problems and take his dick perfectly

Azriel smiled slightly as he put his pen down. He would take out his frustrations on you today.

“You want to be fucked? Let’s fuck,” he says in a low tone

In the end, all his papers are scattered, all pens on the floor.

He is relaxed and all smiley while you’re on death’s door💗

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