#serra isn't his last name????

[cainhorror]

RE4 Remake + dailyquests

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 54 (The Game Tried to Take MY SON!)

cw: toddler peril. I learned a lesson about playing with unpatched mods but I played up a bit of drama despite not accepting what happened as canon. Only shot of Ash is above because more felt gratuitous for something that technically never happened because I reversed it.

The quiet house unnerved him. Conrad knew something wasn't right. He texted Heather, and in less than a minute his phone rang. "I'm sorry I didn't text," she sobbed through the phone. "Ash's daycare called and I...I...I'm at the hospital with him now. Doctors have him sedated."

"What happened?!"

"It was daycare," she repeated. "They said he was on the slide but then they looked away and...and they thought..." She broke down, and Conrad felt her pain through the line. Her fear shook the phone in his grasp.

"It'll be okay. I'm on my way there."

He embraced her when he walked through the door to St. Sims Hospital, and she fell into his arms. "He'll be okay," he assured her, but he didn't know any better.

"How did this happen?" she cried. "What kind of mother lets her son-"

"Stop. This isn't on you."

"If I didn't work so much, I could have been home with him. Maybe I could have..."

He pulled her close, feeling every tense muscle in her rigid body. "This isn't on you," he repeated. "And we're not gonna lose him. We'll all get through this together. We're a team, remember? That means Ash, too."

She was quiet. "Conrad... Do you believe in curses?"

"Like witches?"

She frowned as her thoughts pounded against her skull. "I don't know. Maybe. Maybe mermaids? But Mortimer Goth told me a story once about cursed Landgraabs, and I know how it sounds. But when Ash came along I thought about it a lot more than I should, and then I had to give him their last name. After tonight, I feel sick to my stomach. What if I cursed my son by giving him Malcolm Landgraab for a father?"

"There's no way Ash is cursed," he said quickly. "I know you're scared for him, but curses aren't real and Ash is one of the luckiest kids in the world. He'll get a Landgraab trust fund and he's got you for a mom."

She managed a smile, but when the doctor emerged from the pediatric care unit, she raced over to hear word of her son. "How is he? Oh, Watcher, please let him be okay..."

Dr. Serra smiled. "He hit his head pretty hard, but other than a headache for a few days, we think he's going to be fine. We want to keep him overnight for observation, but he's awake and he's asking for you."

Heather's whole body breathed with relief as she embraced her son's doctor. "Thank you!" she sobbed. "Thank you so much!"

Behind her, Conrad felt his muscles loosen. He'd been so focused on Heather, he didn't even notice his own fear at the thought of Ash in peril. "Thank you, Doctor. We're so grateful."

Dr. Serra smiled. "You must be Conrad. Ash asked for you, too."

Ash would recover quickly, but Heather wasn't so sure about herself. Even with Conrad's unflinching support, she felt torn apart by guilt over her son's near-fatal accident while she'd been working.

She was always working, trying so hard to earn enough to buy out her clinic from Ash's other family. ->

<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start

WCIF St. Sims Hospital? Sims 4 Gallery build by @pihe89/pihe89. Stunning build, simply put, and very popular (so many copycats). And it comes with a science lab and alien wormhole nbd. Two floors, so many varieties for rooms. Why would I build when people are this talented? It's in a second save and I'll use it again for babies, but hopefully we're not back here for any tragedies anytime soon.

How did this happen?!? Needless to say, Heather's guilt is also mine. I had too many mods and tested fate playing before updating them all! I played some Ultimate Decades Challenge generations and still have the Children and Toddlers Can Die mod installed (I like having options, I guess?), which only kills toddlers with hunger if I'm not mistaken. I was also having some mod issues after the Lovestruck update and didn't realize it until this happened, but the toddler needs bars stayed in the green while their needs deteriorated and I didn't know. Only the toddlers!

So I followed Conrad to work and when he came home Ash was gone and Heather had the 'lost a child' grief moodlet. Cue my internal scream! I revived him instantly with MCCC because this is not UDC and I have plans for this kid! I was so shocked I didn't take any screenshots of the whole disastrous event, but I couldn't pretend it absolutely didn't happen. And honestly the accident ties in with Heather's nagging fears the curse could be real, which is the one unintended benefit of this whole thing.

[geddy-leesbian]

A carved oak table tells a tale, of times when kings and queens sipped wine from goblets gold, and the brave would lead their ladies from out of the room to arbors cool. A time of valor, and legends born. A time when honor meant much more to a man than life, and the days knew only strife to tell right from wrong through lance and sword.

fantasy + cowboys + don quixote variety pack for Serennedy week

plus little snippet of a princess Luis story:

It's the moment of truth. Leon has hacked and slashed his way through what felt like endless waves of monstrous wolves and gigantic insects, navigated through a maze of a garden lined with thorny bushes, and solved a few puzzles. Finally he's reached the base of the tower. If the stories he's heard are true, there's a beautiful princess up at the top waiting to be rescued.

Scaling the tower isn't too bad. There's hardy vines growing on it, that Leon is able to use like a rope to climb up to the lone window at the tower's top. His heart races as he heaves himself through the window. There might be a beautiful princess in the room. A princess so beautiful and special that Leon will actually be attracted to her without conscious effort, and she'll be so grateful to finally be rescued that she'll agree to marry him right away.

Or the room will be empty, and Leon will just have to make peace with the fact he's going to die alone, because this whole “find a princess to rescue” thing was his last ditch effort after years of trying and completely failing to court women the normal ways.

Shutters magically snap shut behind Leon, covering the window, trapping him. The room is lavishly furnished. At the center is a large canopy bed, with intricately carved wood posts and lacy fabrics. And there's a figure in a dress laying on it. Success. It isn't until Leon gets closer that he realizes: It's a man. He approaches stealthily, dagger drawn and presses it to the man's throat.

“Oye, what the hell are you doing?! Barging into someone's bedroom, putting a knife to their throat?”

“There's supposed to be a princess here. You've got her dress. Where is she? What did you do to her?”

“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but there is no princess here. Never has been. Just a very charming prince who happens to enjoy wearing his mother's dresses.”

“You're kidding.”

“No, you have the wrong castle, hero boy. But, while you're here… Untie my hands?”

“I can't believe this,” Leon complains, rolling the man over and using his dagger to cut the rope tying his hands together. “I went through hell to get here expecting my soul mate, and instead I get you.”

“Easy, easy. I may not be the princess you expected, but I'm not nothing either! Can the handsome and amazing Prince Luis Serra know his savior's name?”

“Leon.”

“Thank you, Sir Leon,” Luis purrs, before breaking Leon's brain a little bit by boldly going in for a kiss. “Now let's get out of here. Just a few flights of stairs, no more traps. Oh, and there's a dragon at the bottom of the tower that you'll have to slay.”

“Of course there is. Whatever.”

[allfleetingdreams]

'when it could be different' - a Serennedy oneshot

SUMMARY:

Luis Serra Navarro survives Valdelobos and returns to a country that wants his head just so he could reunite with a certain someone. He doesn't think he deserves another chance at life, but since he's still here and very much alive, he decides to make the best of it. It isn't every day you get another shot after all. ------------------------------------------------ Alternate ending to 'a little bit too late'.

ADDITIONAL TAGS / WARNINGS:

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Characters: Luis Serra, Leon S. Kennedy Relationship: Luis Serra/Leon S. Kennedy Word Count: 4,593 (completed) Tags / Warnings: Luis Serra Lives, Reunions, Second Chances, Guilt, Referenced Murder Attempt, Dorks in Love, implied past Leon/Ada, Game: Resident Evil 4 Remake (2023), Alternate Ending, PTSD (hinted)

PREVIEW BELOW

With a deep breath, Luis charges into the downpour once more: almost sprinting, almost tripping, almost crashing again into someone. After a hundred excuse me s and coming through s later, he crosses the last two blocks and reaches one gray building which sits on the very coordinates he’d been given. Three stories; nondescript; menacing in the thick sleet of rain. Luis skims the vicinity for prying eyes and unwanted silhouettes, but as far as he’s aware, there’s none. A rusty bitter clog works his throat as his gaze falls back upon the building. His heart, already panicking due to the noise and the change of scenery and the tragic lack of sleep, shifts gears and kicks off in its fleshy cage. He’s here at last—and he is terrified. Would he be able to run? Does he even want to run? He spent months looking for anyone to inquire about a certain someone’s whereabouts, and now that he’s here, his throat is chock full of sand. He’d been nervous before, but this is different. He’d been scared before, but nothing tops this. He’d almost died before, but the fear of death had long since left him. His certain someone—he could be here, in this lonely apartment looming in front of Luis. Why turn back now? “They keep a close watch on him,” Ada Wong, of all people, told him when he finally found the right contact for his certain someone. He was keeping a low profile in a quiet town several miles away from Valdelobos when Ada had broken into his apartment one cold night, and Luis almost fought her out of confusion and fear. “Don’t want him to end up like Krauser. They pay him more. Make sure he’s taken care of so he won’t start acting ungrateful… Always have to keep your dogs leashed and loyal.” Luis remembers the shudder down his spine at the mention of Krauser’s name, the involuntary twitch of his shoulders as if another knife had been plunged into his back. He knows Ada saw it, too; saw the momentary flash of horror in his eyes, the hit of the replay button on his very face. …He’d never gotten over that.

[shadowqueenjude]

LUCIEN VANSERRA/ AUTUMN COURT HEADCANON THING

this has no basis in canon besides vibes, but in the fae side of Prythian (and the autumn court specifically), what if surnames were the names of the fae mothers to honour them? Like how surnames denoted an ancestor or your job? And this could tie in neatly to the religion of the Mother as well :)))

What I’m saying is using this headcanon, the Lady of Autumn would be Vanserra, or Serra for short :))

This is very interesting because many indigenous religions in our world used to follow the matriarchy system before the Europeans came and made everything patriarchy. And not many people know but in southern India there's a naming convention of giving the husband/father's first name as a last name to the wife and children. So, my last name is actually my father's first name. It would be quite interesting if it was a naming convention like this but on the lady's side instead. Of course, I highly doubt SJM would do this because her brand of "feminism" isn't feminism. Plus, Lucien despises his last name. If it was his mother's first name I highly doubt he would resent the name as he does.

[darkx-the-dragon-kn1ght]

Chapter 38- Part 13

Florence and Snow…what very specific names. Are those references to characters from the Orre games? I'll have to look into that later…

(Future edit: I did look it up, and I couldn't find any mentions of characters named Snow or Florence in either Colosseum or Gale of Darkness, so…the names are just there, I guess.)

But regardless…he asked for someone to look after the Pokémon, and that's what we're gonna do.

It's an Eevee, baby!! All those previous Eevee references in Spinel Town are paying off!!

To be honest, I have no idea where “Elio” came from. I just wanted his name to start with an ‘E’ because ‘Eevee’, and that name just kinda…came to me. 

Now, as for this other item here…

Ooh, I can use that for yet another encounter! Not now though, another time.

And now the matter of actually getting out of here…well. The captain may not have been able to figure out the layout of this place, and neither have I, but Xera came just a bit more prepared than he did…

There's no beating an Escape Rope, baby.

Also, the PokéDex entry, for the record:

As for the final actual encounter, we go back to-

Oh, the Egg hatched! And I was right about what it was! Brilliant!

Thorn because…cactus. Yeah. But fun fact: Thorn is also the name of a very cool character from one of my favorite book series of all time, Wings of Fire. Fun fun fact: Thorn is also the name I gave my Nymble (later Lokix) in Scarlet, who was a permanent fixture on my team for that game. 

…I really need to come up with a new naming theme for the next time I do a Pokémon playthrough…

Anyways, another Dex entry for y’all:

Now, after swapping out Thorn for the usual team back at a PC, we go back to Reborn City one more time, specifically to the eye-melting candy shop. Now- let me see if this is going to work…

Aha, it does! Usually you buy an ice cream from a salesperson who shows up in Opal Ward on sunny days, but that's never happened for me because the weather dislikes me greatly, so buying one at Spinel Town is the next best option.

And now, let me show you what's so special about this particular ice cream machine.

Well, we bought chocolate last time, sooooo…why not vanilla? Nothing suspicious about that at all!

I lied, the machine lied, we all lied!! It was a free Pokémon all along!! Surprise Vanillite, folks!

Frost isn't just a reference to the fact that it's an Ice-type, but also a nod to frosting- y’know, because Vanillite is based on a type of dessert. 

At any rate, here's the PokéDex entry:

Aaaaand that's all, everyone! Those are (more or less) all the new Pokémon we can catch for right now! And that means we have everything we need now to prepare to challenge Serra- at least in terms of teambuilding. But that’ll have to come another time- and by another time, I mean after I get some darn sleep, aaaah-

(Future edit: And that also means the chapter is going to end off here! I had the foresight to screenshot the PC Boxes after all the encounters just in case, but not to screenshot the save screen, but whatever. So next time- and I know this is true because I already played it and I’ve got what I need to write the chapter- we’ll ACTUALLY check out the Voclain Estate and challenge Serra. No more delays, that sixth Badge will be mine, and so will that Herbal Extract, I hope!)

CURRENT TEAM:

Riptide

Species: Feraligatr

Gender: Male

Level: 49

Ability: Sheer Force*

Item: Protective Pads

Brave nature; Alert to sounds.

Glare

Species: Arbok

Gender: Female

Level: 48

Ability: Intimidate

Item: Black Sludge

Naughty nature; Highly curious.

Bloom

Species: Roserade

Gender: Male

Level: 49

Ability: Technician*

Item: Big Root 

Docile nature; Alert to sounds.

Prong

Species: Vikavolt

Gender: Female

Level: 49

Ability: Levitate

Item: Zoom Lens

Rash nature; Loves to eat.

Crater

Species: Camerupt

Gender: Female

Level: 49

Ability: Magma Armor

Item: Quick Claw

Hardy nature; Often scatters things.

Kirin

Species: Girafarig

Gender: Female

Level: 48

Ability: Sap Sipper*

Item: Odd Incense

Quirky nature; Thoroughly cunning.

CURRENT BOXES:

NUMBER OF RELOADS: 28

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[msfbgraves]

[Touch is not light or frivolous to him and Daniel being so free with his touches - he mistrusts that a little.] Interesting. I wonder if John ever shares his concerns over Daniel's free-affection with Terry, or if he ever believes that Daniel doesn't love Terry/would cheat on him, since he's so touchy-feely? On a flip note, does Betsy ever wish John were a little more physically affectionate if she sees/knows how Daniel/Terry are?

Betsy might wish for it fleetingly sometimes but they are quite happily married, if you get my drift, and if John would touch her more than he does now that might get more than a little overwhelming for them both.

John doesn't share any suspicions with anyone (though he has hinted about things needing to stay 'decent' at those omega beta afternoons of Daniel's when talking to Betsy. That was btw one of the few times she got honestly annoyed with him, as Tory, Johnny and she herself love them). But John does watch Daniel very intently, and Daniel knows this, and it irritates him, but this is Terry's most trusted friend and most important ally. No good can come from saying anything. There was a little scene that one time when John was coming to the Silver house, and he saw Daniel. With a handsome Italian man. Probably beta. Well dressed. The type a boy like this ought to have been with, if you'd ask him. Standing on a street corner. Talking in low voices. And then the older man pulled him close, ruffled his hair, and kissed his cheek...

So John positioned himself right into his line of sight. There he is, staring them both down, and when Daniel sees him, he isn't even fazed. He lifts his chin, and calls him out: "John! So good to see you." Well, John has called someone's bluff before, so he walks over, and Daniel says: "Michael, you remember our good friend John Kreese?" And that beta looks at him as if he's feckin prey. Daniel gives him the tiniest smirk, and says: "John, you've met my brother, Michael?" And that beta can't even be bothered to tilt his head. Instead he hugs Daniel again, tells him to take care of himself, and then turns the full blast of his gaze on John as he walks away from him. "Buona serra," he says, in a tone of voice that tells John these would have been the last words he'd ever hear if he'd been staring down the barrel of a gun right now. So he straightens his back and nods. "Would you like some eggplant, John, while you wait for Terry? I made it fresh," Daniel says, and he does not want some feckin eggplant, he wants the steak his Betsy's cooking him, and he's got places to be. He keeps looking at the brother though, till he is out of sight, before he gives Daniel Betsy's best and makes his excuses. Daniel brightens at his mate's name, and wants to get them cookies, but they have cookies too, and he'll see Terry at the Stallion tonight. Daniel doesn't listen, walks back anyway so he has to follow him inside where Daniel gives him those cheesy bites Tory likes so much. And it looks so inviting but John can suddenly see traces of the brother in him and he can't help thinking:

We shouldn't have let the LaRussos regroup...

[adalrikr]

He certainly hears her before he sees her - it's hard not to, with the way that she shouts his name into the empty air of the still academy, running towards him - but his heart seems to catch in his chest when he does.

It's Serra, of course it's Serra, it's always Serra. Serra who seems to plague him wherever he goes. Serra. Serra. Serra.

"... Serra...!" He isn't upset to see her... why isn't he upset? He thought he would be angered, or at least annoyed upon seeing her face again if they ever had to meet, but... he's not. In fact...

He's... happy. He's terribly happy.

"... I... I didn't come for you..." He had come to be a student, to learn about the world outside of Elibe and the magic that he could harness in a place like this.

Friends and otherwise being here was more of a welcome surprise than something that he never did expect. And Serra was the last one that he could have ever expected.

He would have thought she would want to stay in some sort of life of opulence wherever she was, definitely instead of travelling all the way from Elibe to some sort of foreign academy.

And apparently being here long before him? That was the biggest surprise of all.

"You... you were sick? Are... are you alright...?!" Something burns in his chest to know that she had been in pain, and probably all alone. Hadn't he... promised to stay by her side...?

Was he always taller than her? He wonders, as he looks only slightly down at her face. Had she always been so...

He closes the book that he had been holding awkwardly between them the entire time, swallowing down something that bubbles in his heart. Not that staring at her will help with that.

"... Serra... can I... can I kiss you...?" He doesn't wait for her reply, as if he is scared of what she could possibly say, even though he knows that she surely loves him. She acts like he is perfect, like he could hang the very stars in the sky for her - he couldn't, even if he wanted to.

He pulls her close as he kisses her, noting how small she seems in his arms. She's smaller than he is, seemingly as gentle and petite as she claimed that she was. After a moment, he steps away, cheeks burning as red as the blazes that he casts.

He quickly grabs one of her bags, slipping back into an old routine, trying to hide the flush that blooms across his face.

"Here... I can... carry this for you. Where's your room...?"

I Could Be Anything You Like

@adalrikr

No one could really blame Serra for sulking. Really, no one could! Because for once, she had every reason to. Truly, these last few weeks have been horrible! As the beginning of the month crested over the end of the old one, Serra found herself bedridden with some awful illness. It’d gotten so bad she’d had to leave the Academy! And in all her recovering and ailing, she’d entirely missed her birthday, and hadn’t even enjoyed being waited on hand and foot by the medical staff. Really, how dreadful it’d all been...!

Here she stands, now, in the sweltering sun, loaded with bags of her things, returning to the monastery. (That’s right — they hadn’t even sent a vassal with her to carry her bags! The nerve of some people, to let a lady languish like so...) Truly, though, despite the crease above her eyebrow, she was trying to be all strong about all of this. After all, she was back at the monastery now! The sun was shining, nature around her vibrant beneath, and she’d pinched her cheeks hard enough while staring at herself in the infirmary mirror to will a little color back to them. Today, she tries to tell herself, will be splendid, absolutely so...

And that’s when she sees him.

Purple hair, nose half-buried in a book, turning only just so that she can see his features and confirm that it is, in fact, him. A bag slips off her shoulder and to the ground. She drops another one. She barely notices.

Staring at him, now, in the midday sun, within a courtyard in the monastery, she remembers their final parting perfectly. (It replays in her mind nearly every hour, anyhow.) She’d always expected to see him again, soon after that.

But she hadn’t. Unlike in her fantasies, Erk never followed her to Ostia, nor had he shown up uninvited elsewhere in her life.

Until... now.

Is it really him... could it truly be—...?

Her heart is racing beneath her habit, burning brilliant. Her fingers move without memory or meaning. And before she knows it, to match the ferocity of her heart, she is running towards him.

“Erk!”

It is him. It is him. That’s exactly his face, and the way he stands, and the way he holds a book, and—

She smiles. All of the heartache, and anger, and the eternal wondering, of why he’s not with her, and he still is greeted with a grin.

(And, of course, because it’s Serra, misplaced understanding.)

“I can’t believe it! Omigosh, it’s really you, isn’t it?” Her hands are clasped together, in front of her heart. Perhaps it’s to keep it from crawling out of her chest. “You must’ve heard, haven’t you? That I was ill. And you came all the way from Elibe just to see me... he he he! That’s just what I’d expect from you!” She basks in the idea of that — of him worrying about her, rushing to find her, coming all this way, just for her... “Well... I’m recovered now, but my constitution is still a bit weak, of course... Hm, how about I let you carry my bags back to my room?” She nods, self-affirming — seems fair to her. “Honestly, Erk... if you were so worried about me, you could’ve just come straight to the the infirmary!”

[sayruq]

Why do you consider the Dance of the Dragons more relevant to the current plot than the Blackfyre Rebellions?

The Dance has no relevance other some passing mentions here and there.

Meanwhile, Illyrio has already cryptically stated that the Female Blackfyre line is still around and Griff’s main army is historically made up of Blackfyre supporters.

Why did Varys sabotage the Targaryens (Rhaegar’s plot to call a council to depose Aerys at Harrenhall) just to undergo a complex and costly plot just to restore them again? If he really had the ability to swap Aegon, why not just take Rhaenys too, I doubt Elia would object to seeing that her children were safe. It’s clearly a poorly conceived lie.

Aegon and Daenerys have nothing in common with either Aegon the Elder or Rhaenyra.

All you really have, quite frankly, is a glaring bias against Dany, and tendency to cartoonishly vilify her.

so grrm dedicated tens of thousands of words to the dance of dragons for fun? don't make me laugh.

illyrio's comment is more relevant to elia- the paternal line was dead (house targaryen) but the maternal side of the family was still alive (house martell). if you think grrm is suddenly going to reveal that serra, who was a lyseni sex slave, was the last of the blackfyres, you're delusional. the man hasn't even bothered to let us know if calla blackfyre had a child and all the relevant blackfyres after daemon i blackfyre died have been his male descendants and you think grrm is suddenly going to confirm the most convoluted fan theory? meanwhile house martell has been getting more and more development. that alone should tell you what grrm thinks of aegon's origins

varys is not restoring the targaryens. aegon's parents died while he was a baby which gave varys the chance to engineer the perfect king but that could only work if aegon's claim to the throne had any weight. he would do this if he had access to a baratheon baby. that man does not care about house targaryen, he is influenced by his upbringing and what he witnessed in aerys' court

rhaenys was almost 3 by then and since she was a girl, elia probably believed that she was safer than aegon and she would have been right had tywin not gotten to them first. it's also easier to smuggle a white passing baby than a dornish toddler. it's not a poorly conceived lie because varys doesn't do poorly conceived lies and he confessed to a dying man with no witnesses as all the spies inside the walls belong to varys. sorry but you'd have to be stupid not to realise this. male heirs get killed and female heirs and their mothers tend to get spared. no female targaryen has ever truly ascended the throne and targaryen inheritance law has completely ruled it out, so not only would varys be more interested in aegon, there was also no reason for rhaenys or elia to be murdered, which goes to show how sadistic and evil tywin is, if killing the baby believed to be aegon isn't enough

not only do aegon vi and daenerys have a lot in common with rhaenyra and aegon ii (respectively), aegon vi and daenerys also have a lot in common with daeron ii and daemon blackfyre (also respectively).

i kind of feel bad for grrm. he literally spells it out in multiple chapters and even has varys admit the truth to a man on the verge of death but here you clowns are making up the dumbest theories in the fandom in desperation.

no matter what you think, aegon is elia's son and he will be the only one with the name targaryen to sit on the iron throne.

[abbysimsfun]

Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 65 (Personal Lows)

cw: pregnancy loss (I'm so sorry I did not plan this.)

As well as life had been going for Heather and Conrad, reality came crashing down one Saturday when Ash was in the city with the Landgraabs. Both were spending the day at work, but Heather fell ill and called Conrad.

"Something's wrong. Can you meet me at St. Sims Hospital?"

Heather was admitted for tests, but Dr. Serra delivered the devastating news. "This happens more often than you might think this early on, but there's no heartbeat. I'm sorry."

"This is my fault," said Conrad. "My fear added stress you didn't need."

"This isn't your fault," said Heather staunchly. "Dr. Serra said this happens more often than you think. You didn't stress me out any more than the rest of our busy lives stressed me out. I've worn a glucose monitor since high school and I have to remind myself to slow down all the time. You make my life so much easier, Conrad. Not more stressful."

"This can be a difficult time for anyone," Dr. Serra said gently. "I'd like to refer you both to a colleague of mine, if you're open to it. Her name is Dr. Supriya Delgato, and she's a relationship and family therapist with a focus on grieving. I think you should talk to her when you're ready. She has an office upstairs and I can let her know she might hear from you."

"Yes please," said Heather. "Thank you, Dr. Serra."

Conrad was still apologetic when they returned home, trying to think of the right thing to say while an exhausted Heather changed into her pajamas. "I'm sorry. I should have been more supportive from the start."

"I'm glad you were honest with me, Conrad. For better or worse, knowing how you feel makes everything clearer for me."

"I do want a family with you. I want Ash to have a brother or sister, and I was looking forward to the parenting classes we were going to sign up for. I wish it hadn't turned out this way."

She embraced him. "Me too. But when I was about seven my mom had a miscarriage early, like me. She got through it, and she had Hazel a year later."

"Heather, I promise you, next time I'll be ready."

"I believe you. We don't need to think about that tonight, but I think we should schedule an appointment with Dr. Delgato like Dr. Serra suggested."

"I haven't spoken to a grief counselor since I was in high school," he admitted. "Back then I was too angry at the world to get anything from it."

She held him in a reassuring embrace. "I think this will be a good thing for both of us."

They went to bed that night feeling closer than ever, cuddling beneath the covers until they both fell asleep. ->

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NOTE: This happened unexpectedly via the Heathcare Redux mod by adeepindigo and I was really sad about it. I'm sorry to anyone who hated this development especially after we all went through it with Conrad. I considered pretending it didn't happen since it happened SO early, but I appreciate the realistic storytelling supported by the mod nonetheless. And Conrad will be thrilled about the next one, because I'm literally sending him to grief counseling to justify me changing his trait to 'Would Love to Have a Child Right Now' without letting it flip over time. No chances taken, only plot! In all honesty Heather should have had therapy in high school so in some ways this is long overdue for them both, anyway.

NOTE 2: That last shot is the first time they autonomously cuddled (to sleep, my heart!) after the Lovestruck update. Honestly their level of flirty when they're together is usually sky high and blocks out most of their sad moodlets, hence the smiles despite this really sad installment. When it comes to Conrad, Heather isn't unflirty whatsoever.

[sayruq]

If I+S=A, why would Blackheart let Varys and Serra to become slaves instead of protecting them and getting profitable betrothals to preserve Daemon's line ?

the golden company isn't without gold and they could have easily supported the last blackfyres given how many wars they've fought in their names. instead varys had to climb out of slavery after suffering mutilation and he happened to know where serra was and serra spent years in sexual slavery, suffering untold horrors until illyrio bought her, fell in love with her and freed her to marry her. golden company apparently knows where the female line of the blackfyres is and the last of the male heirs and they decided to fight pointless wars in the disputed lands instead of rescuing them. the same golden company that fought for maelys who was described by his enemies as a monster.

apparently now that illyrio and serra had a perfect targaryen looking son, the golden company was willing to step in. they're so kind, they were willing to including daenerys targaryen in their invasion of westeros.

the blackfyre theory is up there as one of the worst theories in asoiaf fandom history and i'm in including varys is a merman in this