#matthias: that's... really beautiful

[zaritarazi]

hanne (trying to recall a fun childhood story): did you tell them about the zipline

matthias: i did tell them about the zipline

jesper: he told us about the zipline

hanne: then why do you all look so upset

wylan: sorry, to clarify, are you referencing the zipline designed to kill children?

hanne and matthias at the same time, still not sure why people don't think that the zipline story is funny: yes

nina, walking back into the room after getting a glass of water: why does everyone suddenly look so concerned did matthias bring up his childhood summer camp's illegal fucking zipline again

[callmewishful]

Twitter has a picture of Matthias in a Hawaiian shirt and I didn’t know it but that’s all I needed my life

[absent-o-minded]

I just finished my annual reread of SoC and my third reread CK (bc I can only emotionally manage it so far).

I would really love to do some bigger analysis posts about all of them, collectively, as pairs and/or as individuals, because I’ve realised that I’ve never fully delved into it.

CK was as emotionally wrecking as it always is. But I think that on this round, it carried a heavier weight, because it’s the first time reading CK where I’m actually older than all of the Crows.

[i-love-soc-a-very-normal-amount]

Reasons to read Six of Crows

1. Actually good representation

- all the crows have ptsd of some sort that actually affect their actions

- religion also affects their actions (eg. Inej with her saints and unwilling to kill, Matthias with djel)

- Jesper and inej are darker skinned

- wylan is gay and jesper and Nina are bi

- wylan has dyslexia that he's really ashamed of because of his father(and when he told Kaz he(Kaz) literally just shrugged!!)

- Kaz is physically disabled (his leg) and needs to use a cane

2. Nina is canonically thick and curvy but is still described as beautiful and badass

3. Again with Nina

- she does eat more than the other crows and they don't judge her for it

- when she starts to eat less bc of parem her friends panic and try to get her to eat more

- and when she starts eating again they're so fucking happy

4. All the crows have their own horrible backstory and yet none of them have ever been in a toxic relationship

5. The boundaries that characters set are actually respected (eg. Kaz with his gloves and no-touch rule)

6. It's so funny ("My ghost won't associate with your ghost", "I'm going to get someone to burn my kruge for me / you could pay someone to pay someone to burn your kruge / I'll pay someone to pay someone to pay someone to burn my kruge / you know what the really big bosses do? They pay someone to pay someone...", "MAYBE I LIKED YOUR STUPID FACE" among other examples)

7. There are such impactful and beautiful quotes ("I would come for you", "I have been made to protect you" etc)

8.

9. To elaborate with the 'horrible backstory' thing

- Inej is a victim of sex trafficking

- Wylan was nearly murdered by his father's men for not being able to read

- Matthias was brainwashed from a young age to hate Grisha

- Nina (and other Grisha) were kidnapped and abused by Matthias and his fellow drüskelle

- Jesper's mum died when he was 7 years old

- Kaz's dad died when Kaz was 9 and left him and his older brother (Jordie) to sell the farm and go to Ketterdam. Jordie died from a plague a short time later and Kaz had to use Jordie's dead, plague-ridden body to swim to shore after being mistaken as dead and loaded onto the Reapers' Barge along with Jordie and then find a way to survive with no money and no family to go to

[orpheusluvr]

Kissing away his insecurities (Matthias x Female Reader)

NSFW WARNING

Your boyfriend is feeling quite down today after paying more attention to his appearance, but you reassure him that he’s still perfect in every way.

(This beautiful man deserves all the love in the world </3 )

It had been 6 months since you and Matthias started dating, and today he questioned himself more than he ever has.

“We’ve been together for half a year…why does she still love me?” He whispered to himself, looking in the mirror and examining his features.

“These hideous scars…these unappealing burn marks…the missing eye…how is she able to see past them?” He glared at his reflection.

He then noticed your reflection standing in the doorway, and he panicked ever so slightly. He was worried that you heard what he said. And you did.

“Oh hey Y/N.” Matthias said, trying not to look at you.

“Matthias. I heard everything.” You said, walking over to him. He refused to turn around.

“I always fear that you’ll look past my personality one day and decide to leave me.” He said, a hint of sadness lingering in his tone.

You went over and stood in front of him. His face was almost lifeless, the glimmer that he once had in his eye had suddenly faded away. Seeing him in this sudden state tugged at your heart.

You gently held his face.

“I’ll never leave you, no matter what.” You said.

“Really?” He said.

You nodded.

“You’re perfect. I don’t need anyone else in my life except for you, because I only love you and I always will.”

Those exact words were enough to make Matthias suddenly embrace you into a tight hug.

“I love you too Y/N. But I don’t deserve you at all.” He said, his voice muffled as he buried himself into your shoulder.

“You deserve every part of me.” You whispered, stroking his brown hair.

Matthias pulled away from you, his cheeks reddening.

Despite it being such a serious moment, your words kept playing with his emotions. He wanted you so bad. But he didn’t want to ruin the feeling, so he tried his absolute best to stay quiet.

You gently stroked the side of his face where his burn marks were. He flinched at first, but then after feeling the gentle warmth of your touch against his least favourite spot, it made him feel calm. You then leaned forward and placed soft kisses on every part of his face.

“Baby…I-I…

Matthias pulled you away from him.

…I want you.” He said, looking into your eyes while his face was a deep red colour.

You paused for a moment, a blush also forming on your face as you put together his words and realised what he meant.

Despite both of you being together for 6 months, you never had sex. Both of you were too shy to ask. But Matthias finally decided to be the one to bring it up today, after how you were making him feel.

He was also extremely self conscious about himself, which was one of the reasons why he was so scared to ask.

You gently held his hands.

“You can have me.” You smiled.

He felt as though all of the negativity from today had suddenly disappeared, as a small smile appeared on his face.

“O-okay…follow me.” He said, walking over to the bed.

You both began undressing each other, while Matthias constantly asked if you were still okay with this. And each time you’d laugh and nod your head, reassuring him that he didn’t need to keep asking.

And a few moments after, you both stood there with nothing on at all. He admired your body, from top to bottom while you did the same with his. Both of you blushing after seeing yourselves in this state for the first time ever.

“Y-you have a beautiful body.” Matthias said.

“So do you.” You smiled at him.

You kissed every part of his body, paying most attention to the places where he was most insecure about. His breathing hitched as you moved closer to his intimate area.

“I-I know it’s not that big…I’m sorry…” his voice was barely audible.

That was the biggest lie you heard until today. He was easily 5-6 inches. That was MORE than enough for you.

You smiled as you shook your head, planting a soft kiss on his tip. He slightly whimpered, goosebumps running through his body.

“Come on Matthias, you shouldn’t be lying to me like that!” You said, looking at him then immediately shoving his load into your mouth.

“Ah-” Matthias let out a groan, grabbing onto your hair.

You moved back and forth at a slow pace, slowly increasing your speed as you got used to this new feeling in your mouth. His breathing became faster, throwing his head back for dear life while sweat dripped down his forehead.

“S-slow down…baby…I’m gonna…” he whimpered, feeling as though he was about to release.

He tried pulling you off him, but you gently held onto his hand and shook your head, looking directly at him.

Seeing you like this with his cock in your mouth made him waste no time in releasing, his juices filling up your mouth. His eyes widened as he saw how you swallowed, some of it dripped down the sides of your mouth and fell onto your chest. You slowly pulled his cock out of your mouth, the sides of your lips dripping with his cum. You looked at him lovingly, lust dancing in your eyes.

“Y-you didn’t need to swallow it.” Matthias panicked, hurriedly finding something to wipe you both off.

“Why wouldn’t I? I didn’t want to waste such a valuable thing.” You said.

He couldn’t hide the embarrassment on his face.

“But it’s not-”

“Shh.” You held him in your arms, his face pressing against your chest. He welcomed your warm embrace.

“Matthias, I’m so lucky to have an amazing boyfriend like you. I’m forever grateful.” You whispered, planting kisses on his cheek.

“I’m the one that’s lucky.” He said, holding you tighter.

“I want to get married to you someday.” You said.

He looked at you, a shocked expression was visible on his face.

“Then, in that case…”

He lovingly held your face.

“…I know I don’t have a wedding ring yet…

…but will you marry me?”

[detectiveinference]

General Relationship Headcanons: Andrew Kreiss x reader

(I'm so sorry in advance if it's ooc)

Similar to Matthias from the last post, you would need to have patience with him due to the trust issues that stem from his trauma.

Andrew was always in solitude, avoidant of others. He has lived alone for many years due to the way people have treated him in the past. It'll take a long time for him to get used to you talking to him and being around.

He eventually starts to develop feelings, but didn't confess for the longest time due to his intense fear of rejection. You two had a meaningful conversation about your feelings and he was finally able to be true to his feelings when you told him you felt the same way.

ꕥ He loves your company. Even if you two weren't talking. Andrew enjoys being around you and steal glimpses of you. He was nervous you would think he's staring at you; it was his way of appreciating you for everything that you done for him.

ꕥ You two go on midnight strolls, stargaze, admire the flowerbeds in the moonlight. Andrew is a fond of violet irises, he compares you to the flower as he finds the both of you really beautiful.

ꕥ Speaking of flowers, he associates chrysanthemums with you. Specifically, white and red chrysanthemums as they symbolize a strong, romantic love and deep passion, also symbolizing loyalty and honesty. He will go around the manor to find chrysanthemums for you, if he couldn't find any. He will take the matter in his own hands and some himself and hide the flowers deep in the flowerbed to surprise you when they fully blossom.

ꕥ Andrew will display some awkward gestures when he's around you such as:

Nervously fidgeting with his hands when talking to you

Planning elaborate romantic gestures but feeling self-conscious about executing them smoothly.

Trying to find the perfect words to express his feelings but stumbling over his thoughts.

You understand his habits and he learned that you'll never say anything negative about his behaviors. You are the reassurance he needed.

ꕥ One of the type of gifts I think Andrew would gift you would be handpicked flowers. He would walk around the field at night as you slept to surprise you in the morning with a breakfast in bed! He takes all his time to make sure it's perfect. Even when the flowers in a vase with water, some of them still wilted. You hold his hand and tell him that you appreciate the thought, a simple "I love you" sets his heart ablaze.

ꕥ Andrew has a picture of you in a locket that he bought so when you two were apart. He still had you close to his heart and reminded of the beauty that is his lover. A long lasting, intense yet hidden love.

[she-posts-nerdy-stuff]

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about Jesper Fahey and religion.

Whilst we know that Matthias follows Djel, Inej follows the Saints, Nina was raised with the Saints but is atheist because of her understanding about Grisha, and that Kaz and Wylan adopted atheism based on their childhood experiences, we don’t get a lot of information about how Jesper feels about religion. We know he was raised with the Saints and that when he swears he says “Saints”, as does Nina, where Wylan says “Ghezen”. It’s notable to me that Matthias and Inej either rarely or never invoke a name in vain; I think Inej may say “Saints” in that context the odd time I can’t remember, but I’d argue in that case it’s probably because she isn’t specifically naming them to do so whereas Matthias would have to but I’m working off memory there so please feel free to correct me. But Jesper’s actual relationship with the Saints is arguably quite ambiguous, with no particular passages that point us in either direction. (Show!Jesper is highly implied to be atheistic in season 1 when Inej asks him what he thinks about Alina and he says he doesn’t care whether she’s real or not so long as they get paid, but there isn’t really anything like this in the books to my recollection) I think that might be because he has a far more complex and painful relationship with religion than we see on the surface level, and this has particular links to Nina’s belief that the Saints were possibly real people but were simply powerful Grisha not religious saviours/martyrs.

When Jesper was a child, his father would read him bedtime stories “from his Kaelish book of Saints”. At the same time, Colm was unintentionally damaging Jesper’s view of Grisha power and of himself by forcing him to hide it and telling him “that’s what killed your mother. That’s what took her away from us”. Alongside the self-hatred this cultivates in Jesper, seen mostly in Crooked Kingdom since he’s most open about it in the beautiful, heartbreaking chapter 24, I think it may have also impacted his relationship with religion. To be told as a child that these people are worshipped and valued for the things they could do, the same kind of things he saw his mother do and that he could be capable of, but that his power is a curse and a shameful secret that has to be hidden from the world is so damaging. It effectively raises the question: If it’s different for me than it is for them, what’s wrong with me? Why am I less worthy of love?

When Jesper already had these feelings growing inside him, feelings that went on to massively impact all the relationships in his life (most notably his relationships with Kaz and Wylan but I would also argue his relationship with Inej is affected by this as well) and actively endanger him when he began to try and fill the void he felt with gambling, to emphasise these emotions with something that could have been so beautiful and given him so much comfort by turning it into something that can be used against him by labelling him as less than others is so heartbreaking and honestly painful.

Obviously this is just an interpretation or a theory but this is how I feel about it when I reread, if anyone else has thought about this please feel free to add anything or contradict it with your own interpretation I’d love to read it.

[mrsjoeythehurler]

When I Met You

(OC FMC x Liam Mairi)

All characters except for Aurora Sallow who is my OC and the FMC of this fic belong to Rebecca Yarros. The plot of Fourth Wing also belongs to Rebecca Yarros.

Content warnings: most of the warnings that are for Fourth Wing are also going to be in When I Met You. That includes: Blood, death, injury, violence and war. The only content warning I am adding is panic attacks (2)

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟAurora Sallow ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ

"You had to walk that thing twice?"

Sawyer nods his head. "Yeah. Turns out that when you repeat a year, you have to repeat everything that got you in the Riders Quadrant in the first place. That includes that death trap."

We're still in the courtyard, waiting for further instruction on what comes next.

"Well, that's unfortunate."

"Tell me about it, " he says, rubbing the back of his head. I, uh...I haven't told my parents I had to repeat a year." He looks at me with a wince.

I give him a small smile. "Well, your secret's safe with me."

I know all too well what it's like to not want to tell your parents things. My whole life, I've learned to keep my issues hidden. Keeping my panic attacks on the down low and my anxiety bottled up until I was alone. My parents already had enough to worry about without me being a burden. They didn't need me to worry about too.

I see a flash of silver in the corner of my eye and realize it's Violet.

"Sorry, Sawyer. I have to talk to someone real quick. Can I see you later?"

Smiling, he nods. "Of course, I'll see you later. It was nice talking to you, Aurora."

When I finally make my way over to Violet, I tap her on the shoulder. "Hey."

"Aurora? What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question."

She sighs. "My mom sent me here. Trust me, there's nothing I would like more than to be with the Scribes right now. But I'm here."

I give her a sad smile. "My parents sent me here, too. I think we'd both much rather be transcribing books right now, though."

Violet huffs, "Tell me about it."

Just then, a beautiful dark-skinned girl walks up to Violet and squeezes her shoulders. "We made it!" She yells.

Violet gives her a smile, but I can tell it's forced, "We made it."

"I can't thank you enough," the girl goes on. "There were at least three times I would have fallen off if you hadn't helped me. You were right—those soles were slick as shit. Have you seen the people around here? I swear I just saw a second-year with pink streaks in her hair, and one guy has dragon scales tattooed up his entire biceps. Oh, hi!" She says, suddenly turning towards me and offering a hand. “I’m Rhiannon Matthias. But you can call me Rhi."

Laughing a little, I take her hand. "Aurora Sallow. But you can call me Aurora."

"Aurora and I were in the Scribe Quadrant together." Violet tells Rhiannon.

“Well, it's nice to meet you," Rhi says. "Now, shall we go find the dragon scale tattoo guy? I'm very interested."

Rhi loops my arm with hers while her other loops with Violets as we walk. I can't help but notice Violet doesn't look too good. Whether it's nerves or a sickness, I can't tell.

Rhiannon doesn't seem to notice as she continues talking and hunting down this dragon tattoo guy. "Speaking of which," she says, "We need to trade boots. There's a bench—"

We all halt as a tall man in a black uniform steps out of the crowd charging toward us. My anxiety kicks in, and I scramble to the right, taking Rhiannon with me in my haste to escape. I forgot our arms were linked.

However, she must have let go of Violet's because Violet smacks right into this guy's chest.

"Violet?" the man asks. He obviously must know her, and I can see it in his eyes. He looks familiar to me, too, but I can't remember his name.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He barks. He looks mad. Really mad. I take another step back, again taking Rhi with me.

Violet's still looking up at him, but something's not right. She looks like she's about to pass out. "Dain. It's good to see you."

At that moment, her knees give out.

I unloop my arm from Rhi's and take a step towards her to help when this Dain guy beats me to it.

"Damn it, Violet," he mutters while hauling her back to her feet and bringing her to the bench.

Violet leans her head back against the wall. "I'm going to be sick."

"Head between your knees." Dain says, "It's the adrenaline. Give it a minute, and it will pass."

Not wanting to stand here and do absolutely nothing, I take a few steps towards my friend to help her when Dain whips his head towards me and frowns. "Who the hell are you?"

I freeze. "I'm Aurora, Violet's friend."

Dain continues to look at me with that intense expression. "Listen to me, Aurora. Violet is fine," he commands. "If anyone asks, you tell them exactly as I said, that it's just the adrenaline working out of her system. Do you understand?"

I narrow my eyes. "You don't need to act that way with me. I'm not going to go around telling everyone people's business."

"You better mean that." He warns.

"He's one of my oldest friends." Violet trembles from her spot on the bench.

Looking between them, I sensed there may have been more than just friendship involved. But I didn't say anything. "Oh."

"And a second-year rider, cadet."

I want to laugh. He says it like that title alone means he has a reason to act like a dick.

Newsflash, buddy, your attitude and your beard suck.

"My knee is sore," Violet whispers.

And that's when Dain becomes even more protective.

After Rhiannon and Violet trade shoes, Dain asks Violet if she trusts us, to which Violet nods.

"All right." He stands and turns towards us. "I'm Dain Aetos, the leader for Second Squad, Flame Section, Second Wing."

Man, I hope I'm not stuck with him as a leader.

"Parapet should be over in the next couple of hours, depending on how fast the candidates cross or fall. Go find the redhead with the roll—she usually carries a crossbow— and tell her that Dain Aetos put you and Violet Sorrengail into his squad."

Well, that hope of mine was short-lived.

"If she questions you, tell her she owes me for saving her ass at Threshing last year," Dain continues. "I'll bring Violet back to the courtyard shortly."

Rhi and I both glance at Violet to make sure she's okay, and she nods.

"Go before someone sees." Dain barks.

Rhi links her arm back with mine, and we walk back to the courtyard.

"He's… kinda intense, isn't he." She says to me as we continue walking.

"More like annoying," I say.

Violet's oldest friend or not, I didn't like Dain Aetos.

10 minutes later, Rhi and I are back in the courtyard with no sign of Violet anywhere.

"Do you think Violet's okay?" I asked Rhi. "She really didn't look too good."

Rhi looks over at me and gives me a small smile. "She'll be okay. I have full faith that she'll be okay. It really could have been just the adrenaline, as Dain said. The parapet is no joke, as you obviously know."

She's right. She has to be right. Violet will be okay.

A couple minutes later, a girl comes over and introduces herself. Her name's Tara and I can tell by the way Rhi is looking at her and the way she's soaking up everything Tara's saying that she's definitely interested in her.

Letting them talk, I take in my surroundings and freeze.

Standing not ten feet away is the most beautiful boy I've ever seen.

And he was staring right at me.

With blonde hair and eyes as blue as the ocean, he was captivating. He had a jawline I’m convinced was crafted by the gods and even though he’s wearing flight leathers, It’s not hard to tell he’s sculpted underneath. His arms were covered in ruins, which means he’s a marked one—

"There you are!" Rhi shouts, bringing my attention back to her.

We both see Violet and rush over to her.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟLiam Mairi ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ

I couldn't look away.

I know Xaden needed my undivided attention, but I couldn't help it being elsewhere.

Gods, this girl was beautiful. Long brown wavy hair that reaches her mid back, big brown eyes I could get lost in, pink-tinted lips.

She was the most stunning girl I've ever seen.

"Liam, are you even listening to me?" Xaden says, bringing me back to the present.

"No," I reply, not taking my eyes off the girl.

"What are you-"

Xaden doesn't get to finish his sentence because Garrick interrupts him. "He's looking at that girl."

Xaden scans the courtyard. "Which one?"

Garrick points at the stunning brunette, who has her attention elsewhere now.

When Xaden finds her, he narrows his eyes. "That's the girl who waved at me at the parapet."

Garrick looks over at Xaden, confused. "Do you know her?”

"I don't think so," Xaden says.

Then his attention moves to the girl she's talking to. She has long brown hair with silver streaks on the ends. I've never seen hair like that before.

As Xaden keeps staring at the silver-haired girl, my attention returns to the brunette by her side.

And my attention stays there during Commandant Panchek’s entire welcome speech.

[cirilla-fiona-riannon]

Yves' Sequel Spoilers

This is simply a fan translation and is not intended as a replacement for the game. Expect grammatical errors.

In an ordinary mansion in a certain city of a certain country一

Matthias: ".........."

Matthias: ".........."

Matthias: "You're late."

Kagari: "You're just too early. Weren't you here 10 minutes before our appointment?"

Matthias: "30 minutes."

Kagari: "You're such a good student. Stop being so uptight."

Kagari: "I brought you something nice."

Matthias: "What's this?"

Kagari: "Dorayaki. It's delicious. You'll be amazed."

Matthias: "Hmm. It's certainly delicious."

Matthias: "It's exquisitely soft and sweet. This must have been made by a delicate, sensitive, and beautiful woman."

Kagari: "I don't get what you're saying."

Matthias: "By the way, why did you suddenly decide to bring me a gift?"

Kagari: "We've met several times, but I haven't given you anything."

Kagari: "I was just imitating you since you always give me coffee. Eat more."

Matthias: "No, I appreciate it, but I'll refrain."

Matthias: "Consuming any more sweets would go against the 15th precept of the Åsbrink family."

Kagari: "You're so uptight. You should relax a little."

Azel: "Oh, that smells nice. The scent of sweets is always delightful."

Azel: "I'll have some."

Kagari: "Here comes the greedy god."

Matthias: "Azel, you're always late. At least learn from Kagari and arrive five minutes before our appointment."

Azel: "I'm not late. Look, the bell just rang. I'm actually right on time."

Azel: "But this is delicious. Does this dorayaki have red apple filling in it? And there's Achroite coffee, too."

Azel: "I always return the favor when I receive gifts. I have the utmost respect for your kindness."

Kagari: "I don't care about that. Do you have any gifts? I bet you don't."

Azel: "Kagari. You shouldn't judge people or gods based on their appearance."

Matthias: "But you don't have any, do you? It looks like you're empty-handed to me."

Azel: "Offerings aren't limited to things that can be seen."

Azel: "It seems that the dark calamity (Gilbert) has started to move."

Kagari: "Obsidian, huh? That was quick."

Matthias: "But that's to be expected. That's not enough for the dorayaki."

Azel: "Now, now. Let the God finish speaking first."

Azel: "It seems Obsidian had a secret meeting with Rhodolite."

Azel: “They likely intend to use Rhodolite to gather information about the alliance we formed.”

Matthias: “A wise decision. That small country won’t pose a threat to our country, let alone Kogyoku and Tanzanite.”

Matthias: “They’ll receive a warm welcome anywhere they go."

Kagari: “If someone who can withstand Kogyoku’s ‘hospitality’ comes, I’ll personally take care of them.”

Azel: “I agree. We should gladly welcome them. Tanzanite’s way of welcoming might be a bit stimulating, though.”

Matthias: “You two, make sure you don’t break the law.”

Matthias: “But what do you think Benitoite and Jade will do?”

Azel: “Those two countries are in the same situation. They will surely start moving to find out our intentions.”

Kagari: “Will I get to see Keith? I just got a new sword and want to test it out.”

Azel: “Keith would probably be thrilled. I miss Prince Silvio. He’s rich, you know.”

Matthias: “All the law-breaking stuff you guys are trying to pull is really giving me a headache.”

Matthias: “So I guess the important thing now is how we work?”

Azel: “Good point, Matthias.”

Kagari: “Shall we kill them?”

Azel: “No, Kagari. That should be the last resort.”

Azel: “We each formed alliances with specific goals in mind. However, it wouldn’t be in our favor if the princes of each country figured that out.”

Kagari: “.........”

Matthias: “..........”

Azel: “Whether to take a defensive or offensive stance is up to each of us.”

Azel: “Now, let’s begin. For the sake of our respective ambitions.”

[pruneunfair]

COBYB shit list (Rage post).

This isn't really an actual analysis or anything like that. Just a vent post to get out the frustrations of how willfully ignorant COBYB stans are.

It's all being a "girls girl" until it's this shit

When a woman wants to act obsessive and the man doesn't reciprocate, the woman is a creepy bitch who needs to go while the man is comforted by the audience and celebrated for rejecting the stalker (as it should be)

When a sexy man wants to be obsessive and abuse a girl to get out his frustrations of being in lust with someone who can't say no to him, she's just "rejecting her true feelings" and the man just doesn't know how to show his love in a normal way.

knowing damn well that this story would be treated as the psychological horror it truly is if Matthias looked like Marquess Sergev from I thought my time was up. Pretty privilege is so real right now.

"Oh he chose to do nothing against his bitchy mom! Kyle isn't deserving of Layla for being such a coward!"

"Matthias on the other hand buys Layla gifts even when he hurts her because he really does love her! It's the nobilities fault he's like this! He apologized in the end didnt he? 😢 he just doesn't know how to properly show his love!"

Be real: Everyone would adore her for "protecting her fiancé" and would sympathize with her if she was the lead of a basic isekai or regression.

Bro will meet this girl when she's 12 and get bliss out of torturing birds knowing it makes her cry and you still have people diagnosing Layla with BPD and absolving Matthias of all blame.

Hey guys, is this the look of a pleasured young woman after a so-called "fun night" in the woods?

You tell me?

Matthias can do whatever the hell he wants and it's just "He's a red flag but I'm color blind 😏" but GOD FORBID I defend Ari.

What? I thought you people LOVED toxic relationships as long as the guy is conventionally hot?

Layla gets coerced into being a mistress against her will so her uncle Bill will be safe and people STILL claim that it was not SA because she "consented" after her only remaining family members future was held as leverage.

"Who does she think she is? Kissing Matthias right in front of Layla 🙄"

His fiancé? And don't give me that "it was an arranged marriage" crap because we all know the manhwa community doesnt give a damn as evident by OTHER manhwas.

Plot twist: The ending wasn't actually Layla getting lobotomized by the plot to love Matthias. She just knew that man was never going to quit until she either accepted or he takes a page out of the song Sarah from Tyler the creator.

Yall know that "Grandma, you little victim." Meme that originated in tiktok? That's basically the best way to describe Laylas future when she grows old.

"If you don't like it, don't read, you're just justice farming for views 😒"

First of all, would you believe me if I said I got a basic summary of what happened thanks to getting a ton of COBYB related posts on tiktok and Instagram videos that were being extremely vague and gaslit you into thinking it was romance? (Yes, I did find the rest of the chapters to read so I could actually make a verified post but to begin with, I already knew a basic idea of what was happening.)

Second of all: if this were just some random 🍇 and degrading fetish comic on a porn site with little people defending it, I wouldn't feel the need to care. (EX: I don't make any abandoned empress posts because everyone already hates it so there's no need to say what has been said a million times already) this is a gross porn novel that was put on a site mostly inhabited by 10-16 year old girls that makes stalking and 🍇 look sexy thanks to the artstyle and the ML being a buff BTS blow up doll and instead of it being called out, you got THOUSANDS of people tarnishing the name of dark romance so they can justify a grapist while pretending to be girl's-girl's instead of coming to terms with the fact that the comic with a beautiful artstyle is grade A garbge.

[jackwolfes]

demigodbeautiies’ end of 2024 multifandom fic rec list ✨

2023 version // this is a list of some of the fics i read and enjoyed in the past year, and if you give any of them a read i hope you enjoy them!

SIX OF CROWS

a path to normal by seimaisin (G | Wesper/Marya & Wylan): a beautiful, lovely post canon marya & wylan study

the city outside still sounds like it’s on fire by sunshineriptiee / @heypax (T | Wesper): wesper get kidnapped an inadvisable amount

One With Everything by samalander / @intosnarkness (T | Wesper): still ongoing but such a treat. jesper SHOULD be a ratty ass stupid delivery driver sometimes

Hidden Desires by Feriku (M | Wesper): god the miscommunication! the angst! the smut! it's all so fucking choice!

the thrill of first love by ofcoffeeanddonuts (M | Wesper): i really am just such a sucker (lol) for some first time fluffy smut

Don't Stop by Ciciwrites (E | Wesper): love me some semi-public exhibitionist antics

Baby, It's Cold Outside by @basicbard (E | Wesper): it's got wesper in a bookshop! forced proximity! wylan thirsting after matthias! breaking and entering!

All Eyes on Me (Your Illusionist) by osco_blue_fairy (E | Wesper): there's maybe a theme with some of these E recs but this one is just, very fun. does show!verse wesper in a way that lots of other fics i've read don't which is really fun

BBC MERLIN

Try To Change The Ending by phyllisverse (M | Merdred): i read this while suffering through the british train system and honestly it fucking cured me. it is everything wonderful about prophecy fics with messy communication and a lot of internal screaming

Skin Trade by @0hheytherebigbadwolf (E | Merdred): i love me some dark deep dubcon and this one's written beautifully

For King and Country by versaphile (E | Multi): phew i don't have a lot to say about this one other than the fact it's really hot and a truly delightful concept fun

OTHER

WINTERSTORY: OR HOW THE BOY KING FISHED THE SUN OUT OF THE SKY by perennials (T | KageHina): it has been a hot fucking second since i've read haikyuu fics but this one was sooo fun i love me a character study

[brokenheartsrecords]

track three: voices in the wall words: 0.7K tw: none taglist: @lxvebelle , @that-daughter-of-hephaestus find track two here

YOUR MOTHER IS A BIT TOO glad about your almost-ruined reputation. As she runs around the sitting room, planning the engagement and wedding breakfast and oh, God, the wedding night, you feel compelled to make her stop.

“Mama, what if I have a secret lover I will elope with? What will come of your planning then?”

You, in fact, do not have a secret lover. It’s not because you aren’t beautiful, it’s just that people see you more as a friend rather than a potential bride.

And, yes, you’ve rejected quite the lot of suitors because you just didn’t like them.

You can’t be blamed.

“If you had a lover, I would’ve known by now. If it weren’t for this wedding, you’d be a spinster your whole life! This is a sign from God, darling. He orchestrated this because you and Lord Hawthorne were meant to be together! It’s His holy word.”

Good luck telling Lord Hawthorne that God orchestrated this, and not me.

You know that Grayson Hawthorne thinks that you somehow created this situation, when it really couldn’t be far from the truth. You could try to break it off, but that would dishonour not just his, but your family too.

It didn’t matter how you’d break it off if the result would always be the same.

And Grayson was too much of a gentleman to break the engagement off himself.

You tried to find faults in him on the carriage ride home. Like how he was too uptight, or if he gambled (how would he gamble if he never took a stroll in society, though?). Maybe he had a secret collection of horrid paintings, or he hoarded Marie Antoinnete’s fatal guillotine? 

But you couldn’t find a single fault in your memory, unless the fault was him being too gentlemanly. And what type of fault was that?

“Tulips or lilies? I would go with lilies, but I wonder what Skye will say about that.”

And just like that, you had an idea.

“Mama, if I marry Lord Hawthorne… wouldn’t Ms. Skye be part of the family?”

Your mother stilled, a light frown pulling at her lips. “She would. But that does not matter, because all household tasks will be shifted to the Lady Hawthorne. And Lady Hawthorne would be you. Skye would hold no responsibilities in that house, child.” She came over to you and patted your hair, which you had left loose down your back. 

Slowly, your mother gathered the strands and parted them into three, beginning the foundations of a braid. “I might be too happy for your wedding, but that is because I never really thought I’d be able to attend it.” She says, her voice but a whisper. “I’m truly overjoyed for you, and you secured such a great match, too! Trust me, your marriage will be nothing like mine.”

The house was too large. Too silent. The only sounds came from outside the sitting room, where the maids were running through the staircases to prepare baths. Your mother’s husband wasn’t to be seen.

“Can I speak to Lord Hawthorne tomorrow?” You ask, trying to shift your mother’s attention.

You can hear her smile. “Of course. I’ll send a letter to Skye.”

In your room later that night, you can’t sleep. You blame it on nerves, but you know that that is not the case.

Outside, you see a light approach the stables, and it slowly disappears. 

It’s probably a stableboy walking back to the servant’s quarters, you assume.

Until you hear shuffling from the walls.

“Report.” A female voice says, and you jolt up in your bed. 

A deep breath. Not from you, but from someone else in the walls. 

“There is a wedding being arranged, madam. I know nothing more.”

The tinkling of coins, and the hard sound of them falling into someone’s hands. “Tell me more.”

The voice is soft, seductive. 

“The wedding is to the Miss. Lord Hawthorne and the Miss. They will be calling at the Hawthorne residence on the morrow. Please, that is all I know.”

“Shame.” The voice says, and you can hear the frown. “Matthias, you know what to do.”

Footsteps.

You don’t hear the second woman again.

[jujus-bizarre-blog]

Some of my favourite Crooked Kingdom quotes :)

So I finished Crooked Kingdom and this post is gonna be a lot less articulate than my last one about the series because...

Who the actual fuck let the last 100 pages of that novel happen???

They were so entertaining but aside from that they had some of the most beautiful sentiments and prose. So I am going to share my favourites from each character's POV in Part Six: Action & Echo :3

Nina: Page 455

"But she hadn't been made for shame."

"Nina had grieved for her loss of power, for the connection she'd felt to the living world. She'd resented this shadow gift. It had seemed like a sham, a punishment. But just as surely as life connected everything, so did death. It was that endless, fast-running river. She'd dipped her fingers into its current, held the eddy of its power in her hand. She was the Queen of Mourning, and in its depths, she would never drown."

It's such a beautiful sentiment and moment to watch her fully come to love herself again and her new power. I love Nina as a deeply relatable character and this was just so perfect to see her come back to loving and finding herself.

Inej: Page 460

"But what about the rest of us? What about the nobodies and the nothings, the invisible girls? We learn to hold our heads as if we wear crowns. We learn to wring magic from the ordinary. That was how you survived when you weren't chosen, when there was no royal blood in your veins. When the world owed you nothing, you demanded something of it anyway."

This gave me chills. Everything about this is utterly gut wrenching and feels incredibly relatable. I reread that line probably 4 times before moving on.

Jesper: Page 471

"It's not a gift. It's a curse. But when it came down to it, Jesper's life had been full of blessings. His father. His mother. Inej. Nina. Matthias leading them across the muddy canal. Kaz--even Kaz, with all his cruelties and failings, had given him a home and a family in the Dregs when Ketterdam might have swallowed him whole. And Wylan. Wylan who had understood before Jesper ever had that the power inside him might be a blessing too."

Jesper realizing that for all the shit luck he has at tables he has been lucky enough to have amazing people in his life. It's just very sweet.

Matthias: Page 483

"Unnatural, said the old, determined voice. Beautiful, said the voice that had spoken the night he'd helped Jesper and Kuwei escape Black Veil. It was newer, less certain, but louder than ever before."

I love this part because it shows just how much Matthias has changed through the two books. It's beautiful and sweet and heartwarming.

Wylan: Page 427

"Wylan summoned every bit of bravado he'd learned from Nina, will he'd learned from Matthias, the focus he'd studied in Kaz, the courage he'd learned from Inej, and the wild, reckless hope he's learned from Jesper, the belief that no matter the odds, somehow they would win."

Okay... I cheated with Wylan's it's from his chapter just before Action & Echo... BUT, I think this sentiment is much more telling than anything in his Part Six chapter. I love this quote because it shows just how much his found family taught him. They're messy, they're brutal, and they're awful, but they are everything to each other. They teach each other, they help, they care, they tease, and that's way more than Wylan ever had at home.

Kaz: Page 480 & 529

"'I also had her stop at the Menagerie.'

She smiled then, her eyes red, her cheeks scattered with some kind of dust. it was a smile he thought he might die to earn again."

"'That's the laugh,' he murmured."

The second quote isn't from his chapter, it's from Inej's final one, but it conveys the same thing as the first quote. It shows what Kaz could have been, that somewhere in there he wants to show Inej can take his armour off, that he is willing to do it for her and I think it's just really gratifying to see.

That all being said chapter 42 was so evil. It had me going from sobbing of joy to sobbing of sorrow and back to joy in the span of 3 paragraphs istg. What the actual fuck Leigh Bardugo???

[i-dont-even-know-by-this-point]

Idk guys something about a Beauty and the Beast Helnik AU is really tickling my brainworms (spoilers ahead for CK)

Not a 1-for-1 adaptation — I think it’d be interesting if, like in SoC, they both got stranded together somewhere rather than Matthias holding her hostage for the whole thing… or at least, it’s got something to do with the drüskelle & Nina getting captured, and then they end up stranded somewhere afterwards, like in the book.

Anyway, it could work quite well with Matthias (beast) learning from Nina (Belle) and changing his views about Grisha and stuff. Maybe he got cursed by a Grisha or something? Maybe Nina has something to do with why he’s in whatever beasty situation he’s in?

It might also be interesting if Nina is actively being pursued by drüskelle, and that’s what drives her into staying with Matthias — a lesser of two evils kind of thing? Maybe?

And then the parallels with ahem… the Beast getting killed at the end… BUT! The Beast survives so Matthias can too. He will. He must. He— [machine gun fire]

[grisha-brain]

Six of crows as adults

Nina and Matthias:

-They don’t know where to settle because she wants ravka and he wants fjerda and they both also want to stay in kerch

-they stay in kerch for a while and matthias learns to make waffles and other desserts

-they open up a shop

-very cheap (but good) dessert

-cheap because matthias didn’t want to rip people off

-even though it’s literally ketterdam

-when nina becomes pregnant they move away from ketterdam and settle down in the mountains on the fjerda-ravka border

-they stay there but travel to ketterdam a lot

-also they have TWINS

Nina and Hanne/Rasmus/Ilya:

-Ilya and Nina marry and become king and queen eventually

-They start off as Mila and Rasmus, but by the end Nina’s chosen a new name (it’s just Nina again) and Ilya has a saint name which he uses instead of Rasmus

-Then they decide to get Genya to start tailoring her back, really subtly

-They start with the eyes over the course of a few months

then start making her hair darker and wavy

and finally the face structure

it takes a few years but its totally worth it

They are the king and queen of Fjerda, and have to have enough kids to have a worthy heir

They have 4

Their eldest is Matthias, supposedly named after Sankt Mattheus

We all know who he’s really named after, but Fjerda is fooled.He’s basically Matthias reincarnation. He has blue eyes blond hair (from Yvla) which he wears long, and a similar personality (the first to die vibe. except he doesn’t die. He does not inherit grisha abilities

-The second is Hanne. Nina absolutely insisted on it. Named after the queen’s old friend who died. Totally not named after her father.She’s bold and loves combat. Also otkazatsya. She has russetish hair (no-one know where that’s from) and green eyes.

-The third is Joran. He’s a healer, and he plays a key part in the Drusje revolution (basically the fjerdans coming to accept grisha) He has brown hair and green eyes.

-The youngest is Ylva. Ilya chose this name. She has blonde hair and copper eyes and is a alkemi. She loves working with poisons and such.

-In this version (my main headcanon. i’m sorry but my mind just doesn’t like undead matthias. it’s heartbreaking but its so beautiful to read i can’t just undo that) she ends up dating Addi van Eck after many trips to Ketterdam spent with her.

-yes the royal fjerdan family take regular trips to ketterdam to see some of their *criminal* friends. Nina and Ilya grow old but don’t, because they’re grisha and both live to well over 100.Everyone knows theyre grisha and love them for it because they have that much influence.

-when they do die, they pass fjerda onto matthias and his partner (his partner is agender. why? because I say so) and the grimjer line stays strong for centuries after that

Kaz and Inej:

-They don’t think physical intimacy is too important

-They try to heal, but it’s not the main goal

-They do get married, though

-Kaz signs off all his letters and stuff as KGB and no one actually knows what it means

-Kaz stays in ketterdam and becomes a really successful gang leader. He establishes a new gang, the Silver Crows, instead of taking over the dregs

-Meanwhile Inej hunts slavers on the wraith and absolutely heeds kaz’s advice to make herself a legendpeople fear her and love her

-she stays anonymous the whole time though, only the crows, the crows kids (when they’re old enough) and the crows parents know.

-They never have children

-Eventually they decide that she spends 3 months on the wraith and 1 in ketterdam and it works really well.

-After a few years in this schedule, they decide to end pekka rollins once and for allthey start by destroying the dime lions, which is easy because they’d already shaken the foundations and had weakened them quite a bitthen move on to rollins

-They know that killing him is too merciful

-so they buy the house that was a hertzoon household and lock him in there.

-just stuck in that house.

-they even get him a silver dog like the one hertzoon had and get it to attack him regularly

-badly

-in the end, pekka rollins kills himselfyes i just grinned while writing that

-Inej dies first (sorry I have to write this)and it’s like criminal romeo and juliet

-because kaz brekker no longer has a reason

-and the rumors of him not needing a reason are false.

-so he dies while waiting at the harbour for her to come back from her travels (yes he just sat there waiting not eating or sleeping)

Jesper and Wylan:

-They get married before they even reach adulthood. it’s legal.

-Jesper Van Eck

-Yes they keep Van Eck. for the sake of business.

- Colm is a bit disappointed but gets over it.

- jesper jokes its to disgrace the name

-Wylan is a successful mercher. he does everything but jesper reads for him

-jesper helps wylan write letters full of insults to the van eck in his prison cell

-and they burn all the responses without reading them

-they really want children but they want to adopt the perfect one

-and they find her

-just before the wraith eneded the menagerie, the zemini gave birth to a girl. the father was some anonymous kaelish client

-the girl was put up for adoption and it was like they knew as soon as they saw her

-yes, jesper is also kaelish-zemini, but it showed a lot more on the baby.

-she had skin too light for zemini or suli but too dark for the other races

-and bright red hair

-she actually looked like she could be their child.they named her Aditi (Addi) Van Eckshe grows up to be tall and pretty and there’s a bunch of boys who try to get her to date them.

-but she turns them all down

-because wesper ain’t raising a straight girl

-she’s a really good fighter and a tidemaker and she joins the silver crows as soon as Kaz lets her

-wylan and jesper don’t let her but jesper’s a bit too scared to say no to kaz and wylan secretly think she should definietely learn to fight

-In my slightly more canonical universe where matthias does die, she ends up dating Yvla Grimjer.in the one where matthias lives, she ends up dating *trans* alby rollins (lol redhead couple)

-yes i definetely headcanon alby as transfem (but she keeps her name because it’s kind of androgynous)

-Jesper dies first (yes i am going into this sorry guys(

-and it’s so wrong because jesper is grisha and should outlive wylan

-when it’s just wylan and addi wylan doesn’t see the point any more and quits his job

-they move to lij and stay there

-addi stays with wylan to support him even though she has a life with yvla

-when wylan dies, yvla and addi live in that property and stay in Lij for the rest of their lives.

[incorrect-soc]

Godly Parents: SoC edition

(Lil disclaimer: This is not necessarily PJO's meaning of Godly Parent. It's just basically a "Which God is your godly parent" buzzfeed quiz but with actual information-)

Kaz: Nemesis, Goddess of indignation against, and retribution for, evil deeds and undeserved good fortune. Kaz spent the entire two books and the bigger part of his life holding grudges and planning his revenge on an arrogant man who got away with destroying a bunch of people's lives. He makes it his life mission to make him pay for his crimes.

Inej: Hermes, Messenger of the gods; god of travel, commerce, communication, borders, eloquence, diplomacy and thieves. First of all, Inej is Suli. Suli people are known to be "nomads", travelling from place to place. Second, Kaz hired her to be his spider, to collect and deliver important information, a messenger of some kind. And a detail I particularly liked is the whole thing with the shoes. Hermes most characteristic item are his flying sandals; and Inej is also particularly fond of her climbing leather slippers.

Jesper: Hephaestus, God of the forge, craftsmanship, invention, fire, metallurgy and volcanoes, craftsman of the gods. Yeah, yeah. The obvious reason is in fact because Jesper is a Fabrikator. He literally controls metal. If it's parental issues we're talking about, well, we all know how that went for both of them.

Wylan: Apollo, God of Sun, light, prophecy, philosophy, archery, truth, inspiration, poetry, music, arts, manly beauty, medicine, healing, and plague. "Because of Wylan Van Suns-?" *slap* Shut up, that was literally sarcasm. Wylan's story and latter fate begins because of a music conservatory, and music really played such a big part in his own story as well as his story with Jesper (ehem, piano incident). Also, bit of a fun fact, Apollo is supposedly the creator of the flute so there you go. Another literal thing is that he created a fake plague to help Kaz.

Nina: Hecate, Goddess of the dead's souls, witchcraft and divination. (Matthias would be so happy for the whole witchcraft thing). I don't think I have to elaborate on this one, but just a reminder that Nina can in fact control dead bodies.

Matthias: Hestia, Goddess of the hearth, fire and of the right ordering of domesticity and the family. *Introduces really gut-wrenching line from chapter 40 of Crooked Kingdom about how he finally could go back home*. I know it's kinda ironic that Matthias is from an icy country and Hestia is the Goddess of the fire, but no one said this was a perfect analysis (do I look like Rick Riordan to you?). Matthias was all about family values and homeland really, even if they meant different things at the beginning and at the end of Matthias' story. First it was his bio family, whose death ignited his hatred for the Grisha and his home was Fjerda. But in the end, the Crows became his family, the family he gave his life for, the same way Nina became his home.