#Yes it was still a fight he could have won and he lost anyway.

[sleebyfrogs]

Okay so just imagine like. You’re just a little guy. You have no parents and your grandfather who raised you has always disparaged and disapproved of the very fact that you exist, for reasons utterly beyond your control. People enjoy your presence because you’re polite and charming the same way they enjoy flowers in spring, which is to say in passing and ultimately without any real connection.

And then you meet this guy who is just like. obsessed with you. He always wants to be around you and he derives true joy from it without you having to say anything funny or clever or lie for politeness’ sake. He creates art that he loves of you and because of you. Indirectly, you are suddenly able to put joy and beauty into the world, anything into the world, because you inspire him. You never imagined you would leave any kind of footprint the way things were before, because nothing you had was meaningful or lasting. And he flatters you dreadfully, he tells you how incredibly beautiful you are, and whether you realise it or not, you can feel that at least part of this value that he has found in you, that he has given you, comes from that beauty.

And then one day you meet his friend, who is older than you and cooler than you and a lord, and so witty and eloquent that you struggle just trying to keep track of whatever the fuck he’s talking about (and he always sounds like he knows everything about it), and he’s been this guy’s friend much longer than you have, and he also compliments you on your beauty and so seemingly that is the only quality of any worth that you possess, right? And then he waxes on and on about how it’s the only thing worth having and explains that what you have is actually incredibly valuable and fragile and precious, and that you are inevitably going to lose it and there’s nothing you can do. And also he says all this while you’re having your gay awakening because he’s sweet-talking you in a way you’ve never experienced and it’s uhhhhh it’s something. So then while you’re having a complete existential crisis over this your mutual friend calls you over to show you the most exquisite painting you’ve ever seen in your life and it’s of you. You didn’t know you could be so beautiful to anyone, you didn’t know he could create anything so beautiful, you didn’t know beauty on this level could even be captured in art. And that’s how he sees you, continually, without you having to make any effort to please him? Just to be yourself is enough to have inspired this incredible thing? You might cry. And then you realise he created it here and now and of you because on this particular day of June, you are twenty years old, and young, and pretty, and once you age out of that, you will lose the one thing anyone has ever valued in you, and surely also his interest, and you will be alone again, and worthy of nothing and no one. And because you’re also twenty years old and privileged and inexperienced you’ve never learned any capacity for nuanced thoughts and say things that are incredibly rash and stupid and regrettable.

So I’m not saying Dorian did nothing wrong but I am saying in his position I’d definitely have been a vain and terrified idiot too

#The Picture of Dorian Gray #LISTEN. My other point is that yes he should have known better but he was never given the chance to learn how to make those better decisions #The world and people that should have prepared him to be a wiser adult navigating a more complex world failed and neglected him #So in that position with the life he’d had behind him he could *never* have made a different choice even though his past was full of so many #opportunities for him to learn that if only anyone had actually given it the time of day to teach him #Yes Dorian was selfish and cruel and stupid and that is his fault #But it was also wrong of the people in his life not to have shown and taught him how to be anything else #And that’s really what makes him a very tragic character to me #Because all these things that he couldn’t control came together by sheer chance and made him an offer he had no means to refuse #and no idea he was even agreeing to #and it set him up perfectly to ruin his entire life and the lives of so many around him #Doriginal #Lord that was. an Essay and now it’s 4am girl help #Yes it was still a fight he could have won and he lost anyway. #but I do think it’s more than a little unfair that no one who was meant to ever gave him a sword.

[bucknastysbabe]

Hi I got an ask about subby Criston and I’m here to fill it but I accidentally deleted the ask itself. So I hope you see this😭😭I kinda went cuckoo bonkers word to Wyn but anyways! Pookie bear cries and nuts like 40 times🧸🧸

Knock ‘em out - C.Cole

Rating: Explicit

WC: 3k

Tags: Boxer!Criston, Manager!Reader, Criss priss prob needed to be in an institution but now gets paid for beating ass, a little bit of manipulation from reader, marathon sex, overstimulation, sub space, soft domme, 🚨CRISTON BIG ASS PRAISE KINK🚨, he’s puppy your honor, Dom/sub, sub drop, aftercare, pnv!sex, multiple orgasms, intercrural sex, cumming in pants, lil bit of background story but mainly P O R N

Taglist: @aemonds-holy-milk @arcielee @sugarpoppss2 @lovelykhaleesiii @starogeorgina @moncherrii @bambitas @targaryenbarbie @fairysluna @thought--bubble @fallingintoyourlilaceyes @gemini-mama @valeskafics

Thanks @tumblin-theworldaway for helping my mind crank up heheheheeh

Criston knew he was off— something never wired right in his brain. Most people would interview him and see the rags-to-riches story. He came from trash, really, his dad was the janitor at the big boxing gym in the city. Coach Dondarrion told people they let Criston train for free as his father worked so tirelessly.

In reality, he couldn’t stop getting into fights at school. It was unchecked anger growing out of control. Criston’s mother and father begged Dondarrion to take him on and help channel that aggression. It likely saved his life. He was only 10 and beating kids’ faces in over slights— imagined or real. He was horribly possessive, jealous, and lost. Boxing seemed to put a lid on that.

Occasionally he’d have to be ripped off an opponent. Whispers of Criston Cole being a psycho were rampant. He was twenty-three when he got his current manager. She worked miracles. His everything— Criston loved the woman so much that sometimes it hurt his head, thoughts too intense to siphon through.

He’d known her from the Blackhaven gym, she was a daughter of Coach Swann and knew the realm of boxing pretty well. Coach Dondarrion brought her into the picture when Criston almost killed a man in the ring.

She didn’t bat an eye when Criston snarled and tried to intimidate her— only cocking her head and snorting like he was an unruly animal. He’ll never forget the words she said after. It was a shift for the boxer.

“Do that again and you won’t fight this week. I’m in charge now. You’re my prize pet. If you want to keep being a prize pet then you’ll listen to me,” she stated, manicured nail poking his chest.

The bigger man still had no clue what came over him, but her words were like a balm. This was what Criston needed— firm orders and guidance. He hoped at the time she could help him with all the mess in his head. Criston nodded and replied, “Yes ma’am.”

“Good boy. Let’s come up with some rules. You like rules don’t you?”

No unnecessary jabs, no yelling, work on riding the bike and going through footwork, and no cumming until he had won.

Those were the rules before a fight. Criston abided by them religiously. Even if he was like a caged animal towards the lead-up to the big event. He would feel himself grow more and more agitated— actively restraining from ripping his opponent's jaw off. Cole probably looked psycho, with dark eyes intense, jaw clenching. But his expression remained eerily placid. His manager liked that and said she could smell the fear off the other guy.

Criston remained undefeated, she must be right he thought. Coach Dondarrion said Swann was a goddamn genius. She was perfect like that. He hated she wouldn’t go public with their relationship, Criston would wind himself up into an obsessive tizzy over it.

But when he won again, and again, she was there to take care of him. They’d get through the usual press, Criston would shower, and they’d ride back to the hotel together. The air was charged in the back seat. She’d slapped his wandering hands away the first couple of times.

Now he knew to stay put and she’d tend to his face or scratch his hair, careful of any knots and bruising. It felt so fucking good the first time she touched him, he had cum in his sweats before even reaching the hotel. Whining and writhing as she cooed and put ice on his black eye or taped a busted nose— he couldn’t remember exactly.

His manager had cooed in surprise when he seized up and gasped, wetting the inside of his briefs, “Oh, baby? You came? Needed that, didn’t you? Criston Cole, my prized pet, big bad man, didn’t know you liked being loved on. You deserve it, baby, I’m here for you, always.”

Her words had simultaneously embarrassed and made Criston want to kneel at her feet, awaiting her next command. He remained quiet, cheeks flushing heavily, worried internally his nose would start bleeding. Swann curled at his side and stroked his messy curls.

“Don’t be ashamed, you deserve to feel good. ‘Sides I know you have more to go, gotta be pretty full from going a week. You want me to take care of that, empty you out?”

Criston gritted his teeth and whined. He wanted it so bad. The demon in his head teased and prodded him, spitting lies. “She thinks you’re a weak little bitch, you really gonna spread your legs and bare your neck like a slut?” the voice said. He moaned softly, pained from the dissonance.

His manager whispered gently, a small hand rubbing soothing circles on his chest.

“Criston, baby, stop thinking so much, and let me do it for you.”

He melted into her warm embrace, the proposition flicking on a switch he didn’t know existed. She smiled as he slurred out a ‘yes’ and went lax under her palms. Criston didn’t know at the time— that submitting completely to another made his mind stop for a bit.

He was euphoric, eyes focused on her as they entered the hotel. She waved off any reporters and led him by the hand. Criston clung to her like a needy child in the elevator, his cock swelled up again. The manager let him rut a bit on her tight skirt and giggled at his desperation.

When they finally, finally gotten to the room— she stripped Criston down and made him cum until he cried, all the adrenaline sapped out of his body. He lost count of how many times her mouth and hand brought him to completion. He got to float in his head, tongue too thick and limbs too heavy to do anything but whine and be coddled.

Criston woke up later as a new man. He felt he could breathe. Then the games began as his record kept going up, Cole escalating to the fucking top. He didn’t know what to do with all the money except buy his family a house and Swann anything she desired.

He’d won again. Shaking his fist and snarling obscenities at Strong on the ground. He’d get another fuck-ton of money and go home happy. He’d picked up the belt and grinned, elated at his thirtieth win. On the top of the world.

Criston’s mind began to whirl as he stalked down the hallway. He briskly showered and answered a couple of questions to the press. She waited to the side, sinful red lips curled upwards. Swann was wearing the red bottoms he bought her, pretty legs shown off in her little dress and blazer.

When she nodded toward the exit he followed, agitated at the annoying reporter still asking questions. Criston didn’t want to upset her, so he kept his mouth shut and followed along, pulling his hoodie up. His balls fucking throbbed. He wanted to fuck his angel so bad, maybe she’d let him on a special occasion like this.

He got into the dark luxury vehicle, inhaling her sweet scent. Criston was close to getting feral, mouth watering at the possibilities. Still, he remained mute. Until she shifted, facing him in the dark, eyes full of affection. Criston couldn’t help the thin whine that burst from his chest at her attention.

“Look’it you. Took down Breakbones, got thirty wins, fucking hell baby,” she drew closer to him, “Criston Cole, you’re the real deal! You wanna fuck me, baby boy? I think you’ve earned it.”

“Pleaseplease, yes, fucking yes,” he pled.

A stagnant pause fell over the back of the car.

“Thank you,” he moaned, “Thank you.”

“Good boy, don’t forget your manners.”

She placed a warm hand high on his thigh, massaging the sore muscle. Her other palm caressed Criston’s patched-up cheek. She hummed “A kiss?” He nodded eagerly, vibrating in place, adrenaline still coursing through his veins. But Criston knew he had to be her good boy.

The woman softly pecked his lips, pulling back to watch Criston chase with a sad noise. She smiled and kissed him again, deeper this time. He eagerly opened his mouth for her, shivering as her nimble tongue playfully lapped at his own. Criston’s hands balled up in his sweats— no touching, no touching unless given permission.

Their lips wetly smacked in the dark car, her hand moving up to rub maddeningly at his straining cock. Criston cried out into her mouth, hips bucking helplessly. She laughed and nibbled on his shapely lower lip, hand squeezing his manhood.

“S’all mine isn’t it? My cock, just for me.”

He nodded in misery, his body wanted to let go, but it was a bit of a process to get Criston in the headspace he wanted. She knew how to get him there. Like her lips against his ear, tits pressed against his chest as she purred, “Easy love, relax, I’ve got you honey.”

“Mmm- gods, need it,” he gritted out, dark eyes lolling.

As her firm hand jerked him over the sweats, Criston’s manager nipped and kissed at his clean-shaven cheeks and neck. She whispered, “Sweet boy, I know you are s’hard, relax, relax, you’re gonna get to cum all night baby. As much as you want, just gotta let go okay?”

She praised and played with him some more, Criston began to pant hoarsely, thighs shaking as he neared the precipice. She tutted when the car stopped, “Get yourself together baby, we’re here now.” He blinked, a tear falling down his cheek, bewildered by the way she left him.

He was so fucking close! The boxer sulked and groaned at his denied orgasm, eyes watery from how intense his balls were throbbing now. He wiped his eyes and pulled the hood of his sweatshirt up again, keeping his head low. He hoped the half-assed tucking of his hard-on worked.

They walked in sync to the elevators. He sulked, “M’so hard it hurts.” Criston’s girl pouted her lips, patting his cheek, “I know, I know sweet boy, but we can’t keep the driver waiting. Almost there, don’t be so needy.”

Criston wrapped his arms around her waist, tucking his face into her neck. He would be good, he wouldn’t hump or bite. He merely wanted to hold her for a second before the elevator dinged. Swann hummed and nuzzled back into his hair.

Onward they went, Criston’s mind growing fuzzier and fuzzier as his body thrummed with need. Upon entering the penthouse suite— her entire demeanor changed. She snapped, “Go get undressed and kneel for me by the bed.”

He nodded in little jerks, undressing and folding them neatly, just how his mistress liked. Criston shuddered as the cool air hit his cock, swallowing heavily as he knelt before the foot of the bed. His hands shook with need, his adrenaline still thrashing and pumping underneath the skin.

He was downright panting by the time she came out of the bathroom, naked as he was. Criston bit on his lip, eyes watering again. The angel laughed, “You sure are worked up tonight.” She padded behind Criston, winding a hand into his hair, eliciting another agonized noise from the boxer.

“You are so damn talented, the Warrior smiles on you. I’m proud.”

“Thank you, thank you ma'am,” he whispered.

“I’m going to get on the bed and you’re going to fuck all that energy and cum out okay?”

“Yes ma’am- ohmygods.”

Criston’s brows pulled together as she laid before him, legs crooked and spread, her cunt shining with slick. He growled, digging his nails into the skin of his thigh. She crooked her fingers playfully, “C’mon baby, you’re allowed to touch. Use me, my special pet earned it.”

He almost felt bad in the way he roughly had pulled her ass flush to his hips, the flesh smacking loudly. Criston had eagerly gotten on his knees in the center of the soft bed, slotting his swollen cock against her slick pussy. “F-fuck, fuck, gonna use you baby, ’m sorry,” he gritted out. She smiled and shrugged, moaning as he rutted against her a couple more times.

Criston’s dark eyes rolled up as he entered her velvet cunt, warm and sososo tight. He snarled as he snapped his hips into his baby. She was crying out and digging sharp nails into his shoulders. Cole knew he was lost in the feeling, rasping and groaning possessive, ugly things he would never say out loud.

But when legs were wrapped around his waist and she was mewling his name? Criston had lost his firm barriers. He rumbled into her ear between kisses and bites, “My godsdamn pussy, mine, you’re mine, I’ll f-fucking kill anyone who touches you, looks at you, gods I’ll do anything!”

He groaned, balls drawing up quicker than expected. She was crying out “Yes! yes! All yours!” Criston sucked in a wet breath at her neck, hips driving into her at a breakneck pace, hands bruising her pretty skin. He choked on his drool, unable to warn her— Criston’s orgasm was that intense.

She tightened around him when his cock flooded, absolutely flooded her pussy. Criston moaned and clenched his jaw, fucking through the oversensitivity. His girl dug her heels into his ass to spur him on. The boxer swallowed down a little mewl. Everything was still so swollen, he had to keep fucking, keep cumming.

“Mmm, yes! Don’t stop baby, oh Criston!”

“I-I am, fuuuck, g’nna fill you up again!"

He drove his hips upward, lifting her hips so that Criston could get at her g-spot. She raked a bloody mark across his back, gasping in delight. He rambled while thumbing desperately at her clit, “Yeah, yeah, feel s’good, cum on me baby, need to feel you, m’close again!”

Criston wasn’t sure if it was her gorgeous wail or her pussy gushing on his cock or both but he came again. She chose to mouth at his lips, shaky legs clenching around him, hand pulling the hair at the nape of his neck. Meanwhile, he whined Swann’s name, the quickness of his second orgasm turning Criston’s brain into jello.

The slick noises between them were loud and sloppy, he was stuttering and whining. She threw her pretty head back and moaned. Criston was finding words hard. He kept fucking and fucking. She felt too good and he had so much cum for her.

“That’s it, keep it up,” she grunted.

Criston slurred, “Ca-can’t stop, can’t, can't!”

He felt his eyes grow wet as his overstimulated cock was gripped and milked by her cunt. The angel, his angel, wrapped her arms around his sweaty neck, his hips forcing little 'uhs' out of her plush lips. Criston blabbered uselessly, words bordering on sobs now. It felt too good, the pain and pleasure were ecstasy to him. He bottomed out inside her, stopping to mewl long and high before returning to feverishly thrusting again.

“Oh, oh, angel- hurts- s’good ohmygods your pussy, gotta cum again, m’sorry m’so sorry!”

She nuzzled at his jaw, moaning, “It’s okay, doing so good for me, needy baby. You needed this, poor baby’s balls are so full.”

“S’full,” he agreed, mindless and shivering.

Criston’s thighs began to twitch as he felt another wave cresting. He practically wailed as the third peak licked up his spine— white hot and mean. She gasped, nails digging into his flanks, pussy pulsing around another load of Criston’s molten cum.

He was a mess, wordless and drooling. Criston began to move again, gaze unfocused and mouth agape. He whimpered, all overstimulated and still fucking frantic. Criston felt like he’d die if he didn’t stop, tears pouring down his flushed cheeks.

Her hands held his face now, her lips saying something. Criston slowly cocked his head, attempting to understand his manager’s words. She said it again, this time louder with a smack to his cheek. Criston stopped his movements, protesting with a weak noise.

“Babydoll, you gotta fuck my thighs, I'm starting to hurt. I’m going to turn over, okay precious? Got that?”

His lips trembled— Criston didn’t want to do that. He wanted her pussy. He slid out anyway, a torrent of white spend flooding out of her well-used entrance, seeping onto the bed. She marveled "Oh Criston, you still have anything left?" The woman hissed under her breath as she flipped onto her stomach. She tucked a pillow under her hips, giving him access to her thighs, slicked with their release.

Criston stared— unsure how to proceed. His cock was so flushed it purpled, aching horribly. He whined, frustrated with his stupidity, the man just wanted familiar tightness again. She sighed and reached back, ushering his knees and thighs to cage her legs in, forcing Criston forward.

He gasped in delight when his cock slid between her soft thighs, warm and wet. His depleted brain decided this would do. Criston’s thrusts were jerky and uncoordinated, he was growing too sensitive to go on much further. He kept at it, crying and sniffling like a babe.

“Awe baby, you’re hurting huh?”

“Mhm!” he replied, scrunching his face up tight. He had to cum one more time, he had to! Even if it was excruciating, the pleasure ramped up into nerves prickling all over his worn body. She watched him with lidded eyes, lips in a smirk. Criston exhaled again, throwing his head back to sob.

“Gotta- I gotta,” he mewled.

“I know sweetheart, so close, let it all out, you’ll feel so much better. You’re so pretty like this— all fucked out and still want more. Knocked your whore brain sideways. My cute slutty puppy, I love youuu.”

Criston folded under the praise, his body contracting once more, stomach cramping as he devolved into cries. His abused cock managed to dribble one little last bit. He couldn’t stop crying, falling back onto his haunches. Swann guided him down to shush and pet his hair. She murmured, "You're okay, all done now, I'm here, not going anywhere. Just breathe."

Criston’s muscles were all loose but the adrenaline had been sapped quickly. He was gutted— in a good way. Just couldn’t help the reaction, he knew it would happen after an intense romp like this. His baby curled into his heaving side, laying feathery kisses on his jaw, a relaxing hand at his diaphragm.

“That’s it, let it out, poor baby. Couldn’t help yourself hm?”

Criston nodded through the incessant tears, his shaky hand threading through her hair. He rasped, “I love you so much. You’re perfect.” He was growing more sleepy, settled by her kisses and glowing smile. He could float easy and enjoy the win, curled up with his lifesaver. Well, after she got him water and wiped down the mess. He realized with a smile— she had laid a towel underneath them.

She’d have to help him function tomorrow, Criston knew he’d be scrambled eggs, sore, and a bit grumpy. But that’s why they kept a suite for three days. After the kick off he would rest up and replenish. They would fuck sensually, cuddle, and watch a in some order of that fashion.

His addled mind conjured up a big diamond ring he’d buy for her.

#ser criston cole x reader #ser Criston cole imagine #criston cole x reader #hotd fanfic #hotd smut #modern au

[ruggiezz]

imagine nrc during the world cup era OMG 😟 rook after france loses to argentina, heartslabyul watching england losing

— REACTING TO THEIR COUNTRY LOSING IN THE WORLD CUP : twisted wonderland

[synopsis] twst characters and their reactions to their country getting disqualified

[characters] ace, deuce, cater, trey, riddle, ruggie, floyd, jade, azul, rook

[extra] this is just for the funsies, me spreading my octavinelle + ruggie latinos agenda. i'm a firm believer in the cater is american headcanon (AMERICA RAHHH🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🦅🦅💥)

ACE TRAPPOLA and DEUCE SPADE got together with you to watch the World Cup. Oh? You're not interested in football? Too bad, you're watching it with them anyways. Pros: They buy snacks for all of you to eat while watching. Cons: Ace screams at the television and gets extremely frustrated. The silence was loud when the match with France ended. At least the food was good...

CATER DIAMOND was not #LiveLaughLove-ing that month. Imagine being the only american in your friend group full of british people while the US had a match against England. Don't get him wrong; he doesn't really care about football, but it's hard to ignore it when the whole school is talking about it. At the end of the day, Magicam material is still Magicam material. He got lucky though; the match ended in a draw; it could have been worse. Needless to say, he did not care about the US losing, #WorldCup #Disqualified.

TREY CLOVER felt like he was in a nightmare—a 29-day-long nightmare. The Heartslabyul students were either having a blast or screaming when they won, or they were having heated fights about whose country would win. Trey was stressed; maybe other housewardens were enjoying the World Cup (like Kalim, who was throwing parties every opportunity he had), but RIDDLE ROSEHEARTS was certainly not happy. The students were so focused on, in his words, "guys running after a ball", that they weren't studying for their final exams. Yes, he had become less strict after his overblot, but a few students still got collared. Both of them were relieved when the World Cup ended; they could not care less about their country losing.

RUGGIE BUCCHI listened to the brazilian matches while working, like it was a podcast. He was a busy guy, you know? He had to work, but he still wanted to listen to the match. To be honest, Ruggie was pretty confident that they would make it to the semi-finals. We are talking about Brazil here; their team is good. "There's no way the europeans are winning this one" he thought. Imagine his face when they lost by a penalty goal, a penalty goal... Ruggie bought himself a doughnut at Sam's to cope and not have a mental breakdown.

Peru didn't even qualify; they lost against Australia. FLOYD AND JADE LEECH were in a bad mood during the whole World Cup.

Yes, Chile didn't qualify either, but a business opportunity is a business opportunity. Did you hear? You can watch the football matches while eating in the Mostro Lounge, and if you spread the word and bring your friends, you get a special discount. AZUL ASHENGROTTO got showered in money during those 29 days it lasted; the restaurant made three times the amount they usually make. He was very happy, to say the least.

ROOK HUNT was delighted to see all the students celebrating. The passionate cheers of the students, the way they all rooted for their country, how they got together to watch, how sad they got over their team losing, how beautiful. Yes, maybe the students were screaming at each other; maybe one even threw a chair across the room, but still. There was something captivating in seeing how a game could bring students that had nothing in common together, all with the same goal: to see their country win and crush the others. He was more sad about the World Cup ending than France losing, even if they were so close to first place.

#twisted wonderland #twst #ruggie bucchi x reader #riddle rosehearts x riddle #trey clover x reader #cater diamond x reader #ace trappola x reader #deuce spade x reader #azul ashengrotto x reader #jade leech x reader #floyd leech x reader #rook hunt x reader #brazilian ruggie bucchi #chilean azul ashengrotto #peruvian jade leech #peruvian floyd leech #riddle x reader #trey x reader #cater x reader #ace x reader #deuce x reader #azul x reader #jade x reader #floyd x reader #rook x reader

[howlingday]

Princess Nora's Arc AU, Nora was certainly a unique princess, she's not like princess Weiss who's a sticker for manners and rules, she couldn't care less if anything she just wanted to be herself and have fun. One day she sees a young squire jaune being picked on by the other squires so she scares them off and protects him. When their gone she asks if he's okay which he's not since he's supposed to grow up and defend her not the other way around which she refutes with how she can defend herself. They become friends, maybe noras first ever true friend outisde of politics and jaune promises to pay her back and defend her with his full might when he gets older

Princess & Squire

"And you say you beat them off with a stick?"

"A big one!" Nora said as she beamed at her neighbor princess, Weiss Schnee of the Ice Queendom. "And it was sharp, too."

"So it was a cudgel." Weiss said with a frown. Nora gave her an odd look. "A club." She tilted her head. Weiss, losing her patience, shouted. "A hitting stick!"

"Well, duh!" Nora giggled. "It's not like I had my heels for stabbing!"

"And where were your knights?" Weiss asked, her patience long since worn away. "Surely they would not leave their princess unprotected."

"Believe me, I don't need protecting." Nora chuckled, punching her open palm. "None of those punks will be bothering Jaune any time soon."

"Yes, and regarding Squire Arc-" Nora gave the odd look again, "Jaune. Was he not punished for his failure?"

"What failure?" Nora asked. "He got bullied by the other squires because they're a bunch of assholes."

"Princess Valkyrie!" Weiss stood and smashed her hands against the sitting table. "Your job as the Princess of the Jade Empire is to learn from your studies and become a proper leader for your people! How do you intend to become a respectable empress when you're sprinting through the muddied streets, swinging cudgel like a barbarian while you spout such profanities like a common wharf whore?!"

Nora blinked at the outburst, then proceeded to laugh at her friend. Weiss' face only grew more and more red as Nora continued her guffaw. It was at this point that Jaune poked his head in, only to then retreat back out the door when Weiss' snarling visage turned to his direction. As she calmed down, Nora did what she did best.

Be herself.

"It's easy, Weiss!" She stood up, then turned to the window. "I just have to keep being me. Ren is already the emperor, so all I have to do is just stay alive until he decides to give me the throne. Until then, I'll keep being the toughest princess out having fun. And Jaune'll be right there with me, looking out for me when I can't look out for myself."

"You really are a child." Weiss shook her head with a sigh before falling into her seat. "You're lucky your brother is the emperor, otherwise you and I wouldn't be having this conversation."

"Well, duh, the only reason we're talking anyways is 'cuz your dad wants us to be friends so he can have good relations with our empire." Weiss blinked. "What? Just because I like having fun doesn't mean I can't be aware of the political intricacies of the realms both inside and outside the empire."

"No, I... I guess not." Weiss flushed a bit at being so callously shown up. "Still, your knights should be doing the fighting for you. Squire Vasilias is already showing great promise as my personal guard!"

"I dunno," Nora swayed her lips side to side, "I'm pretty Jaune's already won against him at rock, paper, scissors."

"What?" Before she could answer, she watched Nora tip-toe to the door where their personal guards stood by. She pressed her ear to the door before flinging them wide open. Jaune had his palm flat while Neptune held a fist. Paper beats rock. "NEPTUNE!"

"Um..." Neptune gulped, the squire caught in his charges deadly, icy gaze. "I, uh, won at least two."

"Uh-huh, out of how many?" Nora asked, looking to her squire.

"Uh, I lost count at fifteen games, No- I mean, Princess Valkyrie."

#rwby #rwby au #princess nora's arc au #princess nora #nora valkyrie #weiss schnee #jaune arc #neptune vasilias

[kr1osz]

I've recently finished TLOK & there for joined the fandom and... Did we even watch the same show???

(Very long & passionate rant under cut)

Like mf wdym Korra is the worst/weakest Avatar? It's physically not possible for her to be the weakest as the cycle goes on the Avatar spirt gets stronger so technically the weakest Avatar is Wan!! But I still want to point out the many reasons why Korra isn't the weakest or worst Avatar.

Firstly, I want to acknowledge vaid criticisms of Korra. Yes she constantly underestimated her opponents but in her defense she was severely inexperienced. She'd spent most of her life in that training facility in the south Pole and then once she got to republic city was almost immediately thrown into dealing with the equalits so she underestimated Amon due to lack of experience. She was then manipulated by her uncle so can you really blame her for not realizing he was evil till it was too late? THAT WAS HER FAMILY!!

Anyways, Korra has faults like every Avatar but she also has feats that you all seem to forget/over look!

My main example and my favorite to bring up in this argument is; Korra on harmonic convergence after having Raava RIPPED from her (need to emphasize the fact that Korra did not give Raava up willing like some of y'all like to think, she fought to keep Raava with her and was devastated when she lost her and the past lives. She didn't give it up willingly) meaning she didn't have the Avatar state and this fight was just her pure strength against UnaVaatu.

KORRA BEAT HIS ASS WITH NO BENDING, NO AVATAR STATE, NO PAST LIVES, NO NOTHING. KORRA FIST FOUGHT THE SPIRIT OF CHAOS AND DARKNESS AND WON!

But I have more examples of how strong she truly is (there is no order to them lol).

Korra broke out of Blood bending without the Avatar state (something Aang couldn't do).

She had control over 3/4 of the elements at like five, and the only reason it took so long to master Air bending (which still only took like a few months) was because she didn't get a teacher until she was 17!

Korra fought one of the strongest air benders WHILE DYING, like ppl forget she was slowly dying during that fight. She was weakened and still won.

Now let's talk about another one of my favorite feats of hers, REDIRECTING THE AVATAR UNIVERSE VERSION OF A FUCKING NUKE. Like it was so powerful it ripped open a whole in space & time, creating a new spirit portal and she redirected it and wasn't even fazed. Like I'm 90% sure she didn't even break a sweat!

She's the first Avatar to metal bend, ik it's likely because she's the first Avatar to exist when metal bending was more common but she was metal bending in like a week! That's not something anyone can do!!

Another reason I have is technically not about her strength but more about the strength of Korra's version of Raava. When Korra re-fused with Raava, the Raava spirit was bigger than it was when it was ripped from her and alot bigger than the version Wan fused with meaning Korra has a stronger version of Raava than previous Avatars making her inherently stronger than them. When Korra re-fused with Raava, she was big enough for Korra to ride on her but when Wan fused with her Raava fit in a tea pot.

Now time to defend Korra's loses!

・Korra lost against Amon because she was inexperienced, she'd spent most of her life away from the world and wasn't prepared to fight a master water bender.

・Korra lost Raava because it was supposed to happen. Ever Harmonic convergence Raava and Vaatu fight so it's likely that ever 10,000 year's the avatar cycle will restart, also did we not watch Korra be absolutely DEVASTATED that she lost her connect with the last Avatars? Like she spends most of the time during the 4th season wishing she could talk to Aang!

・Honestly I don't even know if Korra won or lost against Zaheer but I do know she was slowly dying during the fight. She was no where near her full strength! Also, the red lotus was actively surprised at how well Korra fought against going into the Avatar state just showing her control over it.

・Korra got her ass beat in that ring in the earth kingdom because she was rusty and GOING THROUGH IT! Like she hadn't fought in 3 year's and she was still working through her turama, it's the samething when she lost to old Toph, she was rusty, still being affected by the poison, and traumatized. There was on way she was going to win in that state

・ Korra lost in her 1v1 with Kuvira because she was rusty, she hadn't fought in 3 year's and you expect her to be as good as she was before her hiatus? Bitch please! Korra quite literally goes on to go toe to toe with Kuvira at the end of the season when she'd worked through her rust.

In conclusion, Korra isn't the wort or weakest Avatar your just over looking her feats and dumbing her down because you can't except your fav isn't as strong as you think. She was ment to restart the Avatar cycle, and she also isn't even in her prime! She's 17 in the first season, 18 in season 2 & 3, and 21 in the last season, Korra is still at the beginning of her career as an Avatar. She's only going to get stronger.

Also no, I'm not a Korra glazer. She's not even my favorite Avatar, it's Kiyoshi.

#legend of korra #avatar korra #korra #tlok korra #tlok #defending korra #i think this fandom is just blind tbh #raava #avatar the last airbender #netflix avatar #this is the longest post I've ever made #im very passionate about this #you don't understand #how important this is to me #sorry for any typos #i was being silly #then it got out of hand #sorry for any mistakes

[rraaaannnn]

Gaming competitor 2

In 2000s

You walk slowly while wearing an oversized black T-shirt and blue oversized pants. It has been almost four weeks since you lost the game

You needed not to go to the arcade for a while to avoid ridicule from your friends after the defeat. You wanted to disappear for three days, but you did not know that you were being punished by your parents for not going out anywhere for four weeks

You enter the arcade door while seeing if someone has taken your place in your absence, so that the place’s cashier notices you

''Look who's here, I didn't expect you'd be gone for four weeks, are you ashamed of losing this much?''

You smile sarcastically

''Something you will never understand. Punishment from the parents.''

''Wh-Is it because I don't have parents, FUCK YOU!''

There's nothing serious that you guys used to joke with like that

You go to your usual place and your favorite game and see someone's head wearing a black hoodie

Approaching from behind, you could make out the little fingers and the distinct way they pressed the buttons to win

You smiled lightly after she heard the sigh that came out of this person's mouth even though she won the game

You approach quietly so that this person does not notice you while placing your head close to the person's right shoulder

''BOO!''

A scream spreads around while your loud laughter follows it

Which made the person who screamed recognize you, which made her place her hand on her chest, trying to comprehend what had happened to her a short while ago

Hanni Pham

Your competitor who made you lose four weeks ago

''The hell you're doing!''

Hanni expresses her anger while her voice softens as if she is asking you why you disappeared after the move that made her think about you all week

''I wanted to have a little fun scaring you…this is really fun and funny''

You're still laughing at the scream she let out

''This is not funny''

Her eyebrows and sideways glances are starting to show you how annoyed she is with you

''What are you doing anyway at my private game?''

Now Hanni raises one eyebrow

''How long has it been your game… Should I remind you that this place is for everyone and that this game can be played by everyone?''

It's your time to raise one eyebrow

''If you finish reminding me, stop and find another game to play with because I miss playing this video game''

''I will not go anywhere!''

She hugs her hands tightly to her chest and sticks to the chair like glue

''You're just bored, stop doing that and go away!''

Hanni sticks out her tongue to tease you

“If you don't move away, I will push you away.”

You start approaching and grab Hanni and try to carry her, but it seems that she is a little strong, so you try harder. You were able to carry her, but you fell to the ground, so Hanni quickly crawled to the chair while you were sitting on the ground, trying to pull her with her leg

''You two! Will you never stop fighting?''

The cashier stands while placing his hands on his waist

''Tell her to let go of my leg first!''

Hanni says as she tries to kick you off her leg

''If she stays away from the video game, I will stop pulling her leg!''

''Stop before I kick you out…''

The cashier orders you

''Yes! Kick out this gum stuck to the chair.''

''I'm talking to you Y/N''

''WHAT?After what we've been through?''

You ask him in disappointment after you released Hanni's leg causing her to hit the chair hard

''Of course he won't kick me out of the arcade, especially after I beat you!''

Hanni says arrogantly as she adjusts her jacket and the hoodie back on her head

You're both busy looking at the street, Hanni looking at the tree on the left and you looking at the sidewalk on the right after a cashier kicked you both out of the arcade

You look at Hanni, who is busy counting the leaves of the tree, then sigh and start walking on your way

''I think I should go to Johnny's to give me some lollipops''

You felt a tug on your wrist that made you turn to Hanni again

''Don't go to him!''

You tilt your head towards Hanni

''Thanks a lot you idiot,Because of you, I can't play now,Why don't I go to him?'

“I have a computer at my house that you can play with”

''Why should I come to your house?''

''To play…I downloaded the Street Fighter game,It's your favorite game,You can play it''

Well it's time to tease her, she was still holding your wrist so you decided to hold her other hand with your other hand

''Let's play with it, you and me on the bed,I bet it will be more fun''

A smirk appeared on your face after Hanni understood the hidden meaning of your words, so she started hitting you on the shoulder while she screamed lightly while hiding the blush on her face

''I can't stand you''

Hanni starts leaving you behind

''Am i still invited to your house?''

Without turning to you Hanni says

''Hurry up before I change my mind''

You look at the room full of things, full of pictures of some toys and singers. You can also see some certificates of excellence, and touch some of the things on Hanni's table while you wait for her in her room

''I brought some water for you…I didn't find juice''

Hanni tells you as she enters the room carrying snacks

''It's okay, I just want to play''

You sit next to her on the bed while you watch her try to open the computer

''Are you sure your parents won't be upset that you invited me here?''

''They won't be angry. I always invite my friends to the house.''

Finally, you open the game and Hanni gives you the keyboard to choose your character and play with it

You start playing while Hanni keeps watching

''That's great…why come to the arcade if you have your own computer? I would never leave my house if that were me!''

You express your admiration while playing professionally

“I said I would try it once, so I started going there for one thing without realizing it''

''Man, it's a waste of money, like my parents say''

''Yes, I agree with you, it is a waste of money, but I have reached the stage that made me see that it is not a waste of money because I won my award.''

''Chan-lee figure?''

You curse after asking your question because you lost,you gives Hanni the keyboard to start play

''No, it's you''

Hanni starts playing while ignoring your taunts

''Oh Hanni, you've become as flirtatious as me''

''Stop yelling, you're distracting me''

She tells you while moving her fingers skillfully

''Can you explain how I became your prize?''

''UGH just forget it!''

She almost lost, but was able to block the knockout

''I wonder why you would say something if you're going to back down? Should I teach you how to real flirt?''

Hanni wins the fight so here she is looking at you

''Do you want me to teach you how to play for real?''

''You're annoying…why don't you have a lollipop in your house? Johnny is better than you. He has a whole bag of lollipops''

''Stop talking about him!''

Hanni tells you while putting her keyboard to the side

''Why? are you jealous?''

''YES! Cause I go to the arcade every day and pay money to get your attention while he can get you with a lollipop''

You smile, a smirk

''I'm trying to win you over while you're talking about this boy''

Hanni returns the keyboard to her hand and starts playing without having to face you

''Calm down Hanni, I didn't know you loved me this much''

Hanni stays silent while she plays

''I can knock you out, Would you like to see?''

''You can not''

Hanni answers you calmly

''Are you betting on Chan Lee's figure?

''Yes, I bet on it!''

Hanni gets a little excited about the bet even though she just confessed to you

You grab Hanni's chin and pull her towards you. All Hanni can feel is your lip on hers. She doesn't know how to respond. Hanni is confused. You place your hand on the back of her head even if it means it will make her hair a little messy

You are enjoying this moment unlike Hanni who seems frozen

Hani starts kissing you after realizing that it probably won't happen again

She even dropped the keyboard on the floor and put her hands on your shoulders

Until you turned away from her while smiling at her

''Looks like you liked the knockout''

A light slap on your shoulder makes you laugh

''Looks like I lost the bet''

You press her cheeks lightly

''It's okay, I won the Chan Lee figure and you won me''

''Seriously, did I win you over? Does that mean you don't need a lollipop boy?''

She smiles at cute Hanni

''Yes…I think I'll replace the lollipop with your lips.''

Successive hits on your shoulder while Hanni's face turns red and you laugh

''you are so cute''

You tell her as you pull her into a hug

Hanni has become your favorite arcade

—

Actually, I don't know if they used the word "cute" in the 2000s💀

#newjeans x reader #hanni x reader #hanni imagines #newjeans imagines #newjeans

[livefastdriveyoung]

Takeaways from Testing Day 1

The RB-20 Maintains Status Quo - Max ended a full 1.162 (don't quote me but I think that's the correct math) ahead of Lando Norris in P2. The car did not appear to struggle under its 142 laps. It also remained consistent across majority of the runs. Checo will drive tomorrow.

Aston Martin is being underestimated - Fernando Alonso is a world champion, he started his session in P3. He stayed there for a great deal of the session. Even ending in P8 puts him in the points if this is a race. Additionally, Lance pulled through into the top five, taking P4 for a period of time. He's a strong driver, he shouldn't be underestimated. They both finished in the points, and had Lance not lost his mirror he could have pulled a fast lap.

Williams Car is the problem, not the drivers - I cannot reiterate this one enough. Alex Albon had a fuel pump problem, so entirely out of his control. Logan Sargeant has improved. Undoubtedly so. Not only has he built up his muscle and trained hard, he spun out and still managed to get back onto the track, and sit at P10 for most of the session before ending P11. Allegedly the reason he had a spin out was also because of a gearbox/transmission error. Whether it was the cause or the issue was the result, he held it together well. The car is having problems, not the drivers.

Mercedes Performance - We know that Lewis Hamilton is a strong driver. He's never been the best qualifier when there are competitive cars. Yes, George did not do as well as he could have, ending with P12, but he experienced at least two lock-ups. There's no guarantee that the issues don't exist in Lewis's car as well. We'll see what happens.

The complaint about their front wing design is interesting. F1 and FIA are separate organizations. Mercedes wouldn't blatantly violate the letter of the law, they would be the first team to be called out for it. They follow the letter and have the approval of the FIA. It has been approved. Whether F1's concern about the 'spirit' of the law being violated is something that could impact them, I don't know. I'm sure that the new rules will include a provision against this next year, but any immediate action, I doubt. Symonds is unimpressed.

Haas is not to be thrown out of the running - yet - A new team principal means that there are going to be changes. They straight out said the focus was on the Tyres and not on performance. While they are not a strong team, I think that throwing them away just because you might have preferred Guenther, or like to rely on what you already know, this isn't that. Yet.

Visa Cash-App Racing Bulls - Forget it, I'm calling them V-CARB. Anyway, Daniel Ricciardo, (LOL that autocorrected to all caps which is so funny) had minimal struggle with the car. His first few laps were not great,, but to end in P4 is wonderful. His statements about a podium in the beginning of the season being a dream not a reality is interesting, but I wonder if that is self-deprecation/spreading the party message from within Red Bull's house. Yuki finished P13, but, again, only had a morning slot. He was high up for a good portion of the day as well. I think this is going to be interesting. The narrative that they are not a junior team anymore seems to be accurate.

Stake did well - The C44 is worlds ahead of last year's model. Additionally, we forget regularly that Bottas was a Mercedes driver, he's won Gps before. Zhou is not a bad driver, I think this might be his last season to prove himself because I think Audi will keep someone who has a history of winning, and if the rumors are true, Carlos Sainz will be getting one of the seats. But that might motivate him. He's also young, 24 is below the mean age of the drivers (29) and if he can demonstrate improvements, they might keep him over Bottas.

Ferrari Fights - Buckle down y'all. I don't think that Carlos will do anything to sabotage Charles, he's not an idiot, but he's going to do what he has to in order to prove that Ferrari are losing out on a driver. He was P3 today. Charles is great, we know he can drive, his improvement is clear. I'm curious as to what that is going to look like.

if he's moved on from this, he's going to need to demonstrate to Audi that he can be a First Driver.

Alpine - Pierre pulled P5 right at the end. Ocon is toward the bottom. I'm not sure what's going on in house but nobody is happy allegedly. Guess we'll see.

#f1 #f1 testing #red bull racing #vcarb #mercedes #ferrari #williams racing #max verstappen #george russell #alex albon #logan sargeant #daniel ricciardo

[worriedvision]

Lovers to strangers (Part 2) - Gepard (turning towards Luka here though)

Part 1 here. Gender neutral reader, Sampo betrays the reader here. I'm writing in Luka here BC I felt like it lol, he may or may not be your next love interest but shh.

--

Your place for rent was chasing you up about payments that were missing from your accounts, and you only realised what happened after you were eventually evicted. Now on the street, your stuff with you, Sampo was there with a gift box.

"Here, open it." Sampo states, brimming with excitement at you receiving this present he made for you. Opening it, a big cloud of smoke obscures your view, you hearing his voice giggling as he escapes. When your vision becomes clear, you see a letter addressed to you.

_-_-_

'_,

I'm not actually your brother! Isn't it funny how you went with that so easily?

Anyway, thanks for your generous donation to the Sampo Koski fund.

Love you like a brother,

Sampo Koski.'

_-_-_

Your jaw drops, processing the fact you didn't actually have a brother. The bastard scammed you, he took your long term boyfriend away from you by referring to himself as your brother, and now he's taken all of your savings. You can only hope Natasha would still be happy to keep you around as an assistant, despite your wishful thinking backfiring at you like this.

"Are you _?" You hear a man ask, shaking you from your thoughts. You nod, and he smiles as he introduces himself. "The name's Luka. Doctor Natasha told me you'd be able to accompany me to my cage fights tonight."

Oh, uhh..." You trail off, looking at the letter once more.

What was the probability that Sampo was going to be there? Would he call you out as the idiot who thought he was related to you?

"Just this once? I'm sure once you see me fight, you'll be convinced to tag along." Luka smirks, his mechanical arm giving an enthusiastic thumbs up.

--

Turns out, Luka was right.

He got your mind off your situation for a bit, in fact it seemed like he was fighting for you. Flashing smiles and winks at you when he had a second, giving his all in a lovely fight, and he eventually won the battle.

"Hah, Sampo lost another bet!" You hear someone cackle. "He's always wrong about Luka."

Luka taps your shoulder, smiling warmly at you as you begin to carry out the checks for his arm, as well as the basics.

"I heard about him, you know? He was boasting about screwing you over." Luka huffs, frowning to himself. "He's a shady guy, but he's also really good at pretending. I don't blame you for thinking you were related."

...just how did he know about all of this? Did everyone know about him being fake with you about your relation to him? Did your boyfriend know all this time?

"I think this was one of my best fights. I think you're my good luck charm." Luka chuckles. "How about I treat you to a congratulatory meal for helping my victory?"

--

Natasha knew fine well Luka was going to be fine without having a doctor there, but she knew he was one of the few guys that you would be safe with. Natasha knew he was stealing glances at you whenever he could, a very obvious look of interest in his eyes and his heart rate growing at a rapid rate when you enter the room. Instead of scolding him for trying to take a doctor to the fighting ring like she would with Sampo, she gives him directions to you. She felt terrible for only discovering the source of your financial problems merely a few hours ago, so she wanted you to know you still have your job with her while also letting Luka take you on a date.

Upon hearing Sampo blew the money he got from stealing from you due to him betting incorrectly on Lukas fight, she couldn't hold back a knowing smirk. She was glad to know he wouldn't enjoy what he stole from you. Looking out the window, her heart swells with joy when she notices Luka walking you to a food stand.

Yes, Luka was going to treat you well.

--

While all of this was going down, Gepard had also heard of the crime Sampo had committed and bragged about. How dare he steal from you like that, and like to you about something as important as being related to each other! He wanted to find you, but due to his work he has to wait until he gets time off.

For now, he had to prioritise somehow getting Sampo charged for his crime.

--

"Here's my number, thank you for making me feel better." You say, Luka enthusiastically typing in your number and sending you a test message to make sure he had your details correct.

"Let me know when you're free," Luka smiles, seeing you turn to speak to Natasha. After making sure you entered the office, he finally heads home.

#gender neutral reader #honkai star rail imagines #hsr #sampo #Gepard #Natasha #luka #luka x gender neutral reader

[butterflydm]

wot rewatch 1x7: the dark along the ways

spoilers for s1 of WoT and through Knife of Dreams in the books; minor spoilers for one of the s2 character blurbs

Aaaaah, my angel Tigraine is here to kick ass and have a baby. This cold open floored when when I first saw it and it still floors me. It's amazing. I'm looking forward to more Maiden action in s2 so much. Not just the fighting here, but the emotion -- how frustrated she is that they won't just let her have her baby in peace, how she finally has a moment to herself and then this new potential threat shows up and we hang in that moment. Fantastic episode opener and it really makes me excited about what we might get in s2 for the cold opens.

So... given that she left Andor to chase a prophecy to save the world and has found herself on Dragonmount about to give birth... Tigraine could probably guess who her kid was going to be at this point, I feel like? She was very well educated, first in Andor and then in the White Tower, so I'm sure she would have known the Prophecies (maybe she even figured out when she learned that the female warrior society of the Aiel was called the Maidens of the Spear?)

The Emond's Field people want to get Mat but Moiraine must refuse because he's literally in recasting limbo right now. I love how Rand just instantly lost all trust in Moiraine the second she refuses to open the Waygate. She won him to her side by helping Mat, then immediately lost him once she stopped. Rand (and Nynaeve) are so protective & defensive over Mat in this episode and I really love it.

Of course, Rand is now probably also about, like 75% sure that he's actually the Dragon and so there's no need to worry about Mat anyway. But Moiraine is absolutely not sure who the Dragon is and it very well could be Mat (imo if she wasn't worried that Mat was a potential channeler, it would be pointless to send the Red Ajah after him).

Rand's little despairing looks back at the closed Waygate and his instant defense of Mat against anyone who says a word against him (even Egwene): catnip to a newly-minted Cauthor shipper.

Yeah, Mat is 100% Moiraine's least favorite child -- she 'knows' what choice he would make, she says (the wrong one). So, there are actually two different ways that the show could go with Mat -- Moiraine could be either right or wrong that Mat would make the wrong/evil choice and it depends on how they've decided to handle the Seanchan. Because if they follow the same storyline that the books did, Mat does essentially choose to embrace evil along that path (even if Jordan never admits it) when he decides that he's okay being married to an unremorseful and unwilling-to-change slaver. If Tuon stays the same way that she is in the books, then Moiraine was right about Mat. If Mat and Tuon's storyline gets changed/updated to be less... awful, then Moiraine will have been wrong about Mat.

Lan tries to tease Nynaeve to cheer her up but fails, so he tries to reassure her instead, telling her that Mat is safer where they left him. It's a sweet little moment.

Both Egwene and Rand are more open in this moment than they were in episode 2 and are able to share a snuggle as they sleep (but Egwene also checks in with Rand first this time and waits for him to essentially nonverbally give her a 'yes' before snuggling in). Rand is also a lot less raw about the breakup and they're hovering in a weird 'maybe we're not broken up after all' space.

People's worst fears clawing at them is a lot more informative kind of existential terror than just gore-whispers.

Honestly, given how on-edge everyone is put by the Black Wind, it would more surprising if it didn't lead to tensions and arguments. That was a rough experience for them all.

Lots of Lan backstory in this episode! His title, people from his past, etc.

Poor Moiraine looks so exhausted. Pretty much now until the end of the season. This is also when Moiraine has the message sent to the Red Ajah about Mat, which Lan is not around to hear, I note.

Perrin engages in some Fainspotting!

Oh, I notice that when Min serves drinks to the ta'veren, she keeps her eyes down. To avoid seeing all the viewings maybe? And I'm pleased to say that show!Min remains likable on rewatch, despite my bad experience with book!Min in my reread! She actually is a world-weary and well-traveled woman who has been through Too Much and is Tired instead of feeling like a tweenager cosplaying as one. And Moiraine literally has to blackmail her into sharing her viewings about the EF5.

And reading the new s2 summary about Min also tells us why Moiraine threatening her with exposure is enough to make her crack -- she was forced to be a carnival act! Yikes, Min's aunts!

Also that does look like the same baby from Rand's vision in the next episode, at least to me, so I think that's what she was seeing.

The EF5 all confronting Moiraine. I do wonder if it was the whispers of the Ways that made her decide to open up to them about how the non-Dragons will die when the Dragon faces the Dark One. And though the group does fracture into an argument after this discussion, they do present a united front against Moiraine here.

This argument also does a good job in laying down Egwene's philosophy and her reasons for wanting to do this. And we get another passionate defense of Mat from Rand.

It's fascinating how quickly Nynaeve jumps the conclusion that Rand and Perrin are 'fighting over' Egwene (something that both Rand and Egwene find initially baffling). I wonder how long Nynaeve has been expecting this to come up as an issue between them, that she goes there so quickly. Back in ep1, she sends Perrin away from Egwene's celebration to spend time with his wife and then in this episode, she notices Perrin noticing Egwene and Rand snuggling together. She is on "Perrin->Egwene HIGH ALERT" at all times and it's just kinda fascinating. If she'd just let them argue, I sincerely doubt that Perrin would ever have let anything slip.

Perrin's staring at Rand's mouth while saying "only woman I ever loved was my wife" moment. With a single shot, Perrin comes across as infinitely less heterosexual than his book counterpart.

We get some more good Lan content in his scenes with Moiraine and then Nynaeve. It's nice to get to see a piece of Lan's culture and for him to share it with Nynaeve. All the scenes that he has with both of them in this episode are really good. Lan comparing his devotion to Moiraine to Nynaeve's protectiveness over the Two Rivers' kids; I like it.

And this scene with Egwene and Rand is his last stab at denial. He wants to pretend that he can still be Egwene's husband/Warder. But if he doesn't give up on his denial, he might be condemning Egwene, Perrin, & Nynaeve to a painful death. What Egwene says here (that she will stand by Rand if he's the Dragon) is also related to why he goes off on his own and pretends to be dead imo -- he knows his friends wouldn't abandon him and so he has to abandon them for their safety.

And we reach the point where everything is at a crisis point and Rand can't keep denying every strange thing that's been building up since the night the Trollocs attacked.

This scene with Rand and Min is very good. Again, show!Min is doing a lot better than book!Min. Also, Min, I'm holding you to that "three beautiful women" viewing.

Aah, the kindness of how the show did Rand's birth really gets to me. The story is so much... colder in the books. That show!Tigraine gets to have a last moment of connection before she dies, and gets some assurance that her kid will be taken care of. It was an incredibly compassionate change to make.

lol, the poor awkwardness of the three Emond's Fielders (before they realize that Rand has disappeared with Moiraine).

Moiraine's thoughts, probably: "shit, it's one of the boys. Well... at least it's not Mat".

#wot #wheel of time #wot on prime #wot rewatch #wot book spoilers #knife of dreams #wot s2 spoilers #wheel of time s2 spoilers #wot prime spoilers #wot show spoilers

[greypetrel]

One for an ambush!

[ Click here for the girls || Click here for the boys || Click here for the last party member ]

More Three Musketeers? More Three Musketeers.

They were lucky they didn’t have to travel to Ferelden to retrieve the lost locket and save the Queen from a quicker demise, am I right?

Well here we are, as usual these days I wrote something about it. I may indulge in a full AU, this is much more a retelling with period-appropriate clothing (and Cassandra in a dress because the idea was funny).

***

At two in the morning, our three brave adventurers barged out of the Empress’ private quarters running back to the ballroom. They ran in the dark corridors in a tense silence: they had already bested so many ambushes that expecting another only seemed natural. They were all tired, and even Dorian couldn’t pretend anymore he was having fun at the Winter Palace, and had stopped trying to lighten the mood up two rooms ago.

All was silent, except for them: fretful steps echoing in the rich corridors covered in golden stuccos, heavy breathing and Cassandra’s shield making her dress frush whilst she ran, and the Seeker grumbling about it, irritated still after the whole evening. Aisling had the elven locket well secured in her tailored bodice -not so proper and retrieving it would surely cause some gasps if she wasn’t cautious about it, but she was more confident not to lose it that way, pockets just didn’t seem so secure in the chance of fighting. She had finally made her decision, the locket was crucial for her plans and time was running out. She caught sight of Cole, appearing near a glass door a little before them, and she need no further indication to correct her steps and run towards the spirit boy. She knew her friends would have followed.

She was almost at the door when the Anchor on her left hand activated, sending a jolt of electricity up her nerves. She hissed in discomfort and stopped abruptly, big skirt frushing in protest, clutching her left fist and holding her arm close to her chest. She could hear her heart thumping in her ears as she caught her breath and waited for the pain to subside a little. It wasn’t the constant background pain of Haven, when the Breach had been open and the mark itched constantly, but when she approached some rifts, it spiked and flared and for a couple of minutes it burned very uncomfortably. Which right now meant-

“Are you ok darling?” Dorian asked, in a low voice as he panted and caught his breath, rubbing her back nonetheless. Her dress was so tailored she couldn’t exactly feel it much, but she appreciated the gesture anyway, soothing as it was.

“Yes. It’s better now, I’m ok. But-“ She replied, and she was sincere.

“But, if there’s a rift, we found the assassin.” Cassandra concluded. She knew by now that it was her way of caring: just acting and doing things for you so you could rest. She turned and smiled at her, nodding in agreement.

“Well, saved us the trouble of slipping in yet another wing of the palace and get even more sweaty.” Dorian added, shrugging it off with sarcasm.

“Pride, sneer, she thinks she has won, dreams of a crowned head in a sea of blood, everything burns but she laughs at it.” Cole added his own.

“So it’s a she.”

Aisling huffed, lowering her arm and flexing her fingers to get used to the prickling of the Anchor, its green light casting an eerie glow on the marble pavement -who had marble as floor?- and on the red satin of her outer skirt, her right hand grabbing her staff more securely.

“I think I have an idea of whom she may be.” She added, grimly.

She casted glances first to Dorian, who smiled at her and nodded, signalling he was ready; then to Cole, who still looked paler than usual in the discomfort of so many people around, but whose blue eyes shone with determination. Lastly she looked at Cassandra, who looked as pristine as ever -and very weird in the dress that Josephine had forced her to wear- and still unstoppable even after hours of sneaking and fighting, and was the first to speak.

“Ready when you are, Inquisitor.”

“Let’s go kick some more asses.”

“Ready, eager, a last bout of energy. Let this end here.”

She smiled at them all, she wanted a group hug so bad, but there wasn’t time right now. Not if they wanted to save the Empress. That locket had to return to the ruler, and then she would have hugged them all. Right now, words would have to do.

“I’m glad it’s you kicking asses with me, my friends. One for all.”

“And all for one.” Cassandra replied, smiling with amusement at the quotation.

Aisling straightened her spine, put on her best Inquisitor face and marched out of the glass doors in the little courtyard. As she was imagining, there was a last ambush waiting for them. Duchess Florianne smiled at her, and after some -very stupid- confession of her being the mastermind behind the assassination attempt, left her to fend off a Fade Rift.

It was indeed time for another dance: this time, tho, it was her favourite steps, and with some of her favourite people. She raised her staff and let thunder and lightning dance with them.

#dragon age #dragon age inquisition #da fanarts #cassandra pentaghast #dorian pavus #inquisitor lavellan #three musketeers AU #historical fantasy #historical fashion #digital art #dragon age oc #da:i #wicked eyes and wicked hearts #fanart #da fanart #lavellan #illustration #costume redesign #greypetrel

[mlobsters]

supernatural s11e14 the vessel (w. robert berens)

don't judge, nic. (generally historical fiction is not my jam. the sigh i sighed when the title screen with nazi-occupied france came up... also why i immediately get tired over old timey men of letters stuff)

hold the phone, i know that music intro! it's non, je ne regrette rien by edith piaf - which was used to wonderful effect in inception. spent far, far too long trying to find a clip of it, everything is garbage quality and it's not streaming anywhere i can get it easily

well, i am definitely on board with stabbing nazis, with impunity. (and gee, men of letters related, color me surprised :p)

haha ok but wait

SAM 'Cause I found something. I mean, we need something. Magic. A weapon strong enough to give us a shot against Amara. So, I've been looking outside the lore in history. And I found this, the Vichy Memorandems. They were Nazi communications that puzzle historians to this day. And they speak of a super weapon obtained by the Ahnenerbe, said to be strong enough to win the war.

reminds me of the magicians rhinemann ultra

the magicians s2e2 hotel spa potions

I mean, it was amazing reading about how you used the Rhinemann at Gettysburg to help win the war for the Union. And it was you who slipped it to Rupert Chatwin for the Battle of the Bulge. I mean, you changed history.

the magicians s2e3 divine elimination

The spell that won World War II is called the Rhinemann Ultra? Sounds like a not-so-great beer.

and someone had to power-up with god .... juice (semen) to be able to cast it. anyway. god this is going to take forever.

SAM Well, these memos refer to it as "The Hand of God." I mean, that was sort of a catch all term for several objects he touched on Earth in Biblical times. But they're believed to contain traces of His power. DEAN Yeah, well the Nazis believed a lot of things. SAM Dean, Lucifer's caged. God's MIA, the only beings strong enough to battle Amara are gone. If we're gonna fight her, what better way to arm up than with an actual dose of His power?

just sayin. familiar!

so dean i got a pro-tip here for you. have more than one source of caffeine on-hand at all times. that way even if you're out of power or machine breaks or no grounds or whatever, you can have coffee. personal fan of starbucks doubleshot cans. and it reminded me of the self-heating coffee cans in the neuromancer universe way back when they first came out and i've been drinking them for my first coffee of the day since :p (william gibson writes about coffee a lot.)

answers the incapacitated crowley question i had

distressing. i generally like crowley, even if i don't like what he's getting up to. and having him in this forced pet play torture thing is pushing some really upsetting and unpleasant buttons for me. at least they let us know he's still in there fighting i guess sooner rather than later

DEAN Just in case things go sideways, somebody needs to be left standing to take care of the Darkness. We can't risk us both! And at the moment, I'm the least valuable player! You both know that I can't kill Amara, so the least I could do is get the thing that we need so that you can! SAM So you expect me to sit here and ride pine while you can Cas go play Jules Verne? DEAN Yes! No. I - who?

so he just used a 20,000 leagues under the sea reference but doesn't know who jules verne is? sure, jan. anyway. sure, yes, get dean and lucifer!cas alone on a sub together, sounds great. handwave away sam's confusion about logistics of time travel without wings

SAM (Resigned) Be safe. DEAN When am I not?

ha ha.

oh, sam, i feel you.

LUCIFER Right. We'll double down on what screwed us the first time. You're really bringing your A ideas today. I can't believe I lost it. (sighs) Him. Can't believe I lost Dean.

and now dean is alone there, great. trying to figure out what submarine movie this is reminding me of but all i can figure i've seen enough is the hunt for red october (which is cold war) mashed with some vague memory of enigma machine on a sub thing - maybe from cryptonomicon? (book by neal stephenson which was kind of a mashup of current and historical fiction)

jackles is doing a good job with this and the production quality is nice but i'm emotionally detached and just want it to be over with. lucifer isn't even half assing his castiel cosplay but i guess sam is too distracted with imminent death for dean if they don't fix the problem

SAM Wait a second. I remember Bobby told me when you needed strength to retrieve us from the past, you used him to power up, you touched his soul, right?

LUCIFER That's right, I did that. But that procedure can be fatal. SAM Use my soul. That way maybe you'll have enough power to wield the spell. LUCIFER That isn't necessary. SAM It's worth the risk. Cas, Dean needs our help. I trust you.

ugh. the unknowingly begging for torture from the thing that tortured you for (an unknown but presumably) very long time, yeah. turns my stomach. is this over yet. at least the cat is out of the bag right after.

DEAN So. Cas. SAM Yeah. What do we do? DEAN What else? We hunt Lucifer, trap the bastard, and save Cas. SAM Like I said. Lucifer may be in control now, but Cas may not come back willingly. I mean he chose it. DEAN No. No, not possible.

guess we're not mad about him saying yes to lucifer? all righty.

getting in a lingering beauty shot

and closing with non, je ne regrette rien again

#supernatural #spnwatch #spn 11x14 #robert berens #non je ne regrette rien #music #tm spn thoughts #is my tag for the magicians spn parallels or whatever #the magicians #very vaguely

[childotkw]

Back with Sea Dragon Lucerys brainrot...

Also saw that you are calling it the salt in our blood au, haha nice.

After Jace's and possibly Joffrey's death (ur evil) I'd imagine Luke getting colder and losing his childlike innocence... almost like the restless freezing waves of the sea. Of course he would still be unhinged bc its Luke, cmon.

Considering how Jace died, these following events from f&b still happens i'd assume. "Though the attackers bypassed Dragonstone, no doubt believing that the ancient Targaryen stronghold was too strong to assault, they exacted a grievous toll on Driftmark. Spicetown was brutally sacked, the bodies of men, women, and children butchered in the streets and left as fodder for gulls and rats and carrion crows, its buildings burned. The town would never be rebuilt. High Tide was put to the torch as well. All the treasures the Sea Snake had brought back from the east were consumed by fire, his servants cut down as they tried to flee the flames. The Velaryon fleet lost almost a third of its strength. Thousands died. Yet none of these losses were felt so deeply as that of Jacaerys Velaryon, Prince of Dragonstone and heir to the Iron Throne."

So at this point Driftmark is pretty fucked, and i was thinking... maybe Lucerys and grandpa Corlys could go on an adventure together after the crown is won :D sailing around the Realm and finding treasures, discovering new cultures and learning from them, maybe surviving a few dangerous otherworldly creatures, krakens, wyrms, FUCKING SIRENS. The sirens trying to lure Luke and Corlys by mimicking their lovers' voice, and they only survive because while Corlys hears Rhaenys, Luke hears Aemond and he is taken aback. He has pushed away his feelings towards that man for the longest time (rightfully so) And when Corlys asks how Luke wasnt effected by the sirens he questions if he doesnt love Rhaena and Luke is forced to tell him his true feelings. And Corlys is like "i have already lost a son for this exact reason i am not going to lose another" and he is all supportive (and yes he does see him as his son rather than grandson bc he sees Laenor in him)

I can also imagine Aemond going "fuck it i need to find this mfs" taking vhagar and going after them thinking they died or something. Maybe he saves them from a fight or a hostage situation and both luke and corlys r all silent on vhagars back now knowing lukes feelings and aemonds like i just saved u tf is this

Then when they come back after a few months of being gone they r greeted by their family members with feasts and all that. They basically saved House Velaryon's future with the treasures they found and now they r the richest family in Westeros once again.

Maybe Aemond swears fealty to Luke as a protector bc hes enjoyed their lil adventure a bit too much and doesnt have anything better to do anyway. (he is free from baratheons bc he begged Rhaenyra to not make him marry the girl and Rhaenyra helped him get out of it) now he is just a second son of the late King Viserys' and has no inheritence. So he just tags along with the Velaryons

Hahaha thank you!

Losing Jace and Joff (I know I am but I live to hurt fictional characters and this would create delicious ✨drama✨) would absolutely have stolen the last remnants of Lucerys' innocence. For a good long while he'd fluctuate between desperate anger and cold, hard detachment.

Driftmark definitely still gets hit, and it's brutal. Lucerys' need to avenge his brother and his birthright burns very bright after that.

I also love your idea! I can see, after Rhaenyra is Queen and things are...tentatively chill once more, Corlys recognising that Lucerys (and him as well) needs time to process and heal. He'd be the one to suggest the two of them going off, for more 'practical, everyday experience' that Lucerys would need as Lord of the Tides. He'd come into his title on a wave of red, now he needs time to learn how to be a sea dragon in peace.

So the two of them, with Rhaenyra's blessing (and a bunch of conditions, like regular check-ins and having to return within a year or two), board Arrax and set off.

And I'm not sure about bringing merlings into it (I'd have to do more research into how they work in asoiaf), but the idea of Lucerys getting hit with a clue-by-four about his feelings for Aemond because of a fucking magical fish is hilarious. He'd be so offended and embarrassed that it literally took a mythical creature for him to realise what Rhaena had been hinting at all along.

But the idea of Corlys discovering and then accepting Lucerys completely and wholeheartedly because he doesn't ever want his heir to feel like Laenor had? That he never wants to drive Lucerys away, or dismiss his feelings, or call it a 'phase', as he had with his son? Pure art.

The inevitable reunion with Lucerys and Aemond would also be brilliant because Corlys just looks at Aemond for a moment then turns to Lucerys and is like "while not my first pick, I fully support your choice in partner, so long as you are happy" right in front of Aemond and Lucerys just closes his eyes in resignation because omg grandpa must you???

#anonymous #HOTD #the salt in our blood au #lucerys velaryon #corlys velaryon #aemond targaryen #lucemond #supportive grandpa corlys would be so delightful

[sandersea]

coach!neil au

i will (probably) never flesh this out further but please enjoy this au that has been living rent free in my head since 2016:

after the butcher cuts the tendons in Neil’s ankles, he laughs. he laughs as Neil crawls his way across the floor, already bloodied fingers leaving streak marks against the cement. no one laughs as Neil drags himself from the house, when he refuses any of the offered help.

the hospital sends him home in a wheelchair, and he refuses to leave the building until he’s shoved it down a flight of stairs. he’s only been out of surgery for twelve hours, only been out of bed for six, but he signs himself out AMA and orders them to give him a pair of crutches. sitting down in that wheelchair feels too much like he’s got a future there.

the FBI tells him he has twenty minutes with the foxes, and it takes him eleven of those to climb the single flight of stairs to their room. they tell him ‘starting now’ at the door, awkwardly, and he snarls in their face that he doesn’t need their pity.

it’s not Andrew who has him collapsing to his knees in the hotel room, but exhaustion. he faces the foxes the same way he first met them - doubled over, scrabbling for his dignity against the floor, fighting the urge to vomit. (this time Andrew is not the one who knocks him down, but he is the one who picks him up.)

the horror in their eyes isn’t just at the mess that is his face or his arms or the haunted look in his expression, but the way his legs are shaking, spasming, and even with the surgeries they just aren’t moving the way they’re supposed to.

the first week with the crutches, Neil’s legs collapse beneath him like a puppet with its strings cut. after that, he can’t get around without the wheelchair.

they still play the ravens in the finals, but they don’t have the fastest defenseman in division i anymore. they do, however, still have Neil. it’s Neil who notices the way Matt is limping. the way Riko is weaving through the backliners like they’re not even there. it’s Neil who makes the call to sub a few players out - Matt joins him on the bench. Kevin takes his place in front of the goal. they don’t have the fastest defenseman in division i anymore, but they have the best player in the country, and the man who knows riko’s moves better than anyone. they leave the foxes with barely anything in the way of offense, and focus entirely on defense. Kevin guards the goal like his life depends on it.

(it does.)

they don’t win the game, but they don’t lose. the buzzer sounds with the score still tied. Neil wheels himself to center court for the final shootout and gets as close to Riko as he can. Riko grins like he’s already won. he might not have orchestrated this injury, but it’s everything he could have wanted anyway. Neil grins in return, and throws the fact that Neil and Kevin and Jean belong to the main family now. that Riko can’t touch them without bringing his own brother’s wrath down on the nest like a bomb. that even if he wins this game, he’s lost everything. Riko turns on him, anger consuming rational thought, and raises his arm with the intention to kill.

(Andrew gets there first.)

the only thing that changes is that Neil never walks again.

the future he sold to Ichirou in exchange for his life never comes to be - instead, he pays off his debts as the new coach of the ravens (you said it yourself, Ichirou throws in his face as he all but throws him from the car. it’s been 14 months since the surgery but his legs still can’t support his weight. a professional player can make seven figures a year for my family. you turned the foxes into champions, now you will do it for the ravens.)

he says no.

Andrew says yes. (you are a fox, he says desperately against Neil’s neck, and I am still the man who is keeping you alive.)

the same team he is told to lead is the team that lost to him only weeks before. the team that tried and failed to break him at christmas. the team that stands kingless, toppled, teetering at the brink of total destruction. the team that resents him. the team that can’t respect him, the cripple who calls himself their new coach. the team that refuses to listen. the team that has been turned, brainwashed, the team that reacts to his humanity like a poison.

the only thing that keeps him in black and red is the way that it’s not just his life anymore - the deal was for the three of them, Neil and Kevin and Jean, and then Andrew offered himself as a fourth. it’s hardly the first time he’s walked into evermore for his family. (but this time, it may be the last.)

Andrew turns his back on his brother and cousin and every promise that tied him to south carolina and transfers to edgar allen, like he was originally meant to. it’s one final victory against Riko’s memory. (no one is surprised to see him leave. if anything, they’re surprised that he pretends to be reluctant about it.)

the following season the ravens play the foxes and it’s the most painful day of his life - he sends his team to the court opposite his family, and he knows a hundred different ways to exploit their weaknesses (he mentions none of them). the seven original foxes refuse to play (they’ve been telling him they were going to for weeks now. the one thing that doesn’t change is that he is still a fox, and they see each other at least once a week. talk once a day. it’s not the same). he has to wheel his way to the opposing team’s locker room that still feels like home and drag them back onto the court. they go, but they don’t play their best - all these times that Neil has thrown himself on a grenade for them, it’s all too easy for them to throw the game. it’s not USC who wins that year, but the ravens.

the next season it’s easier. they’ve got new players who never knew Riko’s regime, and older players who are coming to see that there’s just as much winning to be found with Neil’s way of thinking. it’s still never going to be home.

the next season, it’s not terrible anymore. the ravens are slowly learning how to play it as a game and not a battlefield, how to be humans again. they play the foxes and the foxes win. (the ravens don’t throw the game, but they act as leaderless. Neil still won’t coach them against his people)

the season after that, he thinks he might be enjoying himself. the ravens are allowed to study whatever they want now, to make friends. the ones who were there during Riko still act like they used to, but the younger players are happy. they don’t put on their uniforms like they’re going to war. they don’t fear death if they don’t win. (most of the time, they do win. Neil drives them through the same drills he learned as a raven, the ones he learned from Kevin, and he still reads the people around him like he’s living on the run. the saddest part is that he’s a hell of a coach, and that he genuinely enjoys what he does - he just wishes it was a different team he led.)

the original foxes have finally all graduated. Matt and Kevin and Andrew make court, and 70% of their earnings go directly into the Moriyama’s pockets. 86% of all of Neil’s graduates make it to the pros, and a portion of theirs come back as well.

Andrew signs with the West Virginia team. Matt does too. Dan takes over when Wymack retires, and she and Neil get together as often as they can to discuss their teams and the sport and their lives over lunch.

now when the foxes are seated across from the ravens at the banquets, there’s smiling and laughter. the foxes are still taken from broken homes and the ravens still practice longer hours than any other college team, but they’ve found a common friendship on the court. (and it helps, now, that Dan calls out the raven weaknesses as loudly as Neil does for the foxes. it’s impossible for their games to be anything but friendly when Neil wears an orange jersey that reads WILDS 01 and Dan wears the long forgotten black and red JOSTEN 04.)

evermore is the seat of the national team as well, and for a period of months every year he’s yelling at Kevin and Thea and Matt to haul their asses, he’s not here to watch them lose. the original foxes (and their spouses and children) splay across the seats in the raven lounge and make it feel more like home than it already does. Andrew makes the short drive from their apartment to the court like he does nearly every day, but this time to play instead of to sit beside the coach and offer unsolicited advice.

it’s nothing he ever wanted, but it’s still his life, and he’s still okay. the foxes are still his family and they’re still alive, they’re just a little bit farther away than he would have liked. he still spends the rest of his life in the sport he loves and he still makes a name for himself as one of the best, it’s just in a different position than he thought. he still has a home and two cats and a life with Andrew, it’s just in a different state.

even in this world where everything goes wrong, Neil does what he does best - he survives.

#my writing #aftg #aftg fanfic #aftg au #neil josten

[fymagnificentwomcn]

I still have plenty to say on the topic, so bear with me, the original link is here, it would be too much there I think.

Anyway thank you Sol @palaceoftears for these tags that succinctly sum up the main point of the original post, let's bring them as starting point here:

#joanna you ate this!!! missed reading you#truly love how deeply you analyzed that confronting suleyman IS confronting the system!#also the freeing aspect because like freedom doesn't have to mean happiness?#yes ofc hurrem wouldn't be happy knowing ultimately suleyman didn't love her & her children over himself#but it's still freeing to not live yout whole life brainwashed lol?#like I never get how ppl that loves her watch her going from 'i'll kill the sultan' & 'don't treat us as animals' to dependant on suleyman#and just go 'happy ending :D' about it#mahidevran sultan#hurrem sultan#sultan suleiman#magnificent century#muhtesem yuzyil

You know how much I dislike Surrem, but I absolutely get people shipping it without getting it like "happy in love" (huge kudos to my sis Tisha) since it's an extremely complicated, mutually toxic relationship, while yes they do love each other at same time. But they are both each other's heaven and hell simultaneously throughout the whole show, with Hürrem being in worse position due to power imbalance. Power imbalance that never fully goes away. He might also be dependent on her in emotional way since he himself comes to belief she is the only person who would never betray him (because she truly had least benefit in it). Don't be fooled though, if she had e.g. crowned Bayezid in S3 as Sah intended, he would have shown her no mercy. /I once mentioned a bit about them, also historically here./

And LBR she got mistreated by him (please, he told her to kill herself for him, and the goal was not to determine whether she had poisoned Mustafa truly) multiple times before S4, it was only because of the topic covered I mentioned S4 stuff, especially related to how he screwed her kids.

People think of stuff in "tangible" categories and why stuff like mere "awareness" (without leading a revolution or whatever lol) seems to have little meaning.

Which is again one of the main themes of the show - to give voice also to those who lost and as such do not have the "but we won, we were happy, we lived" defence always acting for them. Bah, even controversies or discussions surrounding them. They are losers, not even worthy to talk about, and put on sidelines. We often discuss what motivated the "big figures" who got to become rulers, even if we do not approve of their actions or criticize them. Rarely we talk about "losers". Which is what Mustafa's letter stressed - people will deem me as traitor, while your name will be written in golden letters because of all your victories. This alone will make your name remembered. And even considering that Mustafa was lucky in that people generally did not believe him to be a traitor, with Bayezid it was much harder because yeah he did openly rebel and it's not something we can deny. But some jump to conclusions like 'he was insolent and one day decided to rebel for no reason' (yes, I've seen such takes) is very simplistic. I do not even approve of a lot of his actions there since while I get his anger at Suly and Selim I hate how he involves plenty of soldiers in a fight without a chance to succeed as long as Suly ass lives, but damn takes like above truly erase what brought him to such point. Because he was the prince with bigger support at that time. He could have waited for his father to die soon and easily taken the throne. /And historically - yes if you actually dig up sources, he didn't wake up and decide to attack innocent cookie pacifist Selim lol/. Show! Bayezid telling Defne that he would be labelled as a "rebellious prince" for future generations with obvious evidence backing it up means a lot because even though he IS one, there is so much more to this story and what bought him to this point, starting from his father's attitude to him since he was a kid.

And damn I do need to stress the need for the critical approach to SOW (which does not preclude stanning the characters/getting interested in historical figures ofc)? Maybe not here, but I still see TikTok shit on “The big 5” introducing feminism to Ottoman harem. There is no revolution we can talk of in any case, but truly, where is feminism involved in Haseki institution? It only privileges one woman over others. The others are still required to serve them, which is why we had the Hürrem/Gülnihal and Nurbanu/Valeria stories. And what it ties with what Sol says once Hürrem tries to kill Gülnihal - her parents' ghosts appearing to tell her It's not revenge. It's not what you promised us. Meanwhile, the men are still in power, with a person like Suleiman having unlimited agency. More.. the man selects the woman he gives those privileges too. And even if he grants her freedom (if HE pleases so), it has little actual effect because we all know she is still forbidden to leave him and would have lost her kids anyway if she had done so. Thus said, the moment when show Hürrem slams the door to Sulyass' stupid face is one of my fave Surrem moments without a doubt and one of fave H moments in general ahsmshs. / BTW One day I will finally talk how Westerners focus more on say legal marriage when it that system having multiple sons was more ground-breaking because even free brides from noble families who did not have children had little power and agency. /

There is plenty of irony involved, just as Mahi finally freeing herself from attachment to Suly once he rejects her freedom to which he is entitled by the System. Bah, only he has the power to do so regarding his women. It's all only at his own discretion.

It is precisely what I also mean by "taboo-breaking" and the questioning Mahi does of Suleiman and the way he (as Sultanate) operates. In that world mere questioning could break the taboo. We do not know what future lay ahead for anyone, but damn what he kept doing was neither just nor wise according to the very norms of the times themselves. Yes, Mustafa was the most promising and fitting candidate for the throne and he did not betray his father, so Suleiman removing him from "open succession" was not even why this method of succession had been established in the first place and demanded from princes assembling their own support, also ensuring that he would be easily accepted to prevent discord and rebellions. Mustafa did it too well, the horror. And that him wanting to do something (also as he himself stated, since he got privilege of being the prince and be able to rule, he should not sit idly, but use it for good purpose and the people) only brought him troubles because of Suly ass own ego only shows again the problems with this system and being centered on one person so much. Suleiman violated a lot for his own agenda, centered around himself, not the future of the state. This is what Mahi is criticizing and stating it to his face when he tried to paint his son as a traitor to present himself as just and acting for the state IS taboo-breaking in itself. Asking the question instead of dismissing it all as "fate", as Mihrimah tried.

Mahidevran tries to awake Mihri, who while rich and "still in power play", is very similar to her in many ways (also with the one big sin that has weighted on them silently). They all lost. Even Selim. Getting Mihri's brother (Hürrem's son) on the throne did not mean triumph and happiness for her. Heck, even Selim is a walking wreck. It's not even about sides because SS truly managed to destroy everyone's lives, not only one side's, so in the end it's not even favoritism. All for him to go with his beautiful words, a show-off victory, and his beloved throne (while saying something else in his monologue). Mahi telling Mihri to stop holding her father blameless IS the moment making someone else's eyes open and maybe do not let actively go for something that will not help anyone out at this point, like causing discord between Selim and his son. These are small things that are important for the theme and how mental freedom is also of value. Same with awareness. Nobody expects revolution or claims something. And we are at a particular point when Mahi already lost Mustafa and says it already in the context with him gone. She won't resurrect him with her words ofc LOL. And Mahi truly didn't have to do this, just take popcorn and look at Hürrem's kids & other descendants fighting even more.

You can precisely see when SS decides how to dispose of Bayezid when Mihri says she will never forgive him and will be dead to him if he executes her brother. The lightbulb over his head in this moment lol. So her continuing to hold him blameless, while putting everything on Selim and Nurbanu is buying his shit and rules of the Sultanate. Mihri might have power, so she can stir things up in attempt to still "win", but.. they all lost. Her acceptance of it and stating it out loud before leaving Topkapi again has meaning. One might continue to have power and live in palace (unlike Mahi), but they all lost anyway. Mere meddling that can cause only chaos to still try to win is meaningless and can ony be harmful. As such, Mahi's words can have at least some impact.

Mahi and fate as Sol's post with Plami's commentary also has this delicious tidbit with mirror - most likely Hürrem would have never ceased to hunt down Mustafa after Mehmed's death because she had decided on eliminating him long before that and kept carrying out the plan via concrete & repeated actions. However, Mahi still questions herself on that because she can never know. And even if it changed nothing, it still tormented her and polluted her conscience. Because culpability is still there, regardless of "system" and circumstances" and whether it has any tangible effect or not. Same with Selim still being culpable even though SS wanted Bayezid executed. He still chose to do so anyway. Bah, he is actually very self-conscious and states clearly that he won because unlike the others he was able to kill his brother.

Similarly, Mustafa, Cihangir, and Bayezid also made their choices. Mustafa could have axed Suleiman and it would have been hard to blame him for this in the situation it boilt down to. Actually, he was the one with biggest support at that moment, so rules of the Sultanate definitely allowed him to dispose of an aging ruler who began making a multitude of mistakes. He had the biggest power at his disposal if he wanted to. Moreover, Musti also chose to invite the member of the opposition faction because she was his sister, despite said sister openly declaring her standing on the opposite side and speaking to him "with her mother's words" last time they met. Once more, instead of rules of Sultanate and how the system expected him to act, he chose familial bonds.

Then again, Bayezid did have Selim on his knees in front of him and chose not to kill Selim, despite Selim never promising him any change or begging for mercy.

They both died, but they also could have chosen differently and compromised their conscience and values in the process.

Yet the opposite choice to adhere to the Darwinist rules and get the throne at any cost is not something mechanic that promises happiness or safety, either. Actually, it can make you painfully blind. We see Hürrem deciding blood will be spilled only of her enemies once she learns her son is going to end up on the throne. When she meets with the witch after Mustafa is dead and the throne for one of her sons IS a certain thing.. it's not what she wanted to hear, starting from her own imminent demise from natural causes. Same with her trust in the "human face" of the Sultanate aka Suly ass:

The "right, sultana?" is an ironic call-back to the beginning of the episode when she uses same words about Suly's power to exclude herself from the matter of Mustafa's death.

Also let us note the use of the word "destiny"😱 .

Also, Hürrem did not come back to ponder her preceding conversation with the witch earlier, as she had another proof of herself not interpreting it correctly - when she assumed Nazenin's baby would be the one the witch predicated as the Sultan. Nurbanu was after all pregnant with Murad at the same time.. so no, the witch was not mistaken, Hürrem was simply so caught up in her own vision of how it would go (also with Baye taking the throne) or assumed the witch to be mistaken, so she didn't notice it was about her grandson.

Another interesting thing is that the witch also predicts Mihrimah's future and that while her physical illness will pass soon, the spiritual pain will soon start and persist.

Because even if we "win" in that we survive, it does not need to bring happiness with it. At all.

It doesn't work like this either (Mihri talks about sacrifing Musti and Cih), while we are at it. There are no simple mechanisms like that! And how Mihri adopts her mother stance and calls her out that only one of her sons can survive according to the Darwinist rules (which is also what Rüstem advocates in any circumstances, only for him there is no support for Bayezid really... any can go) is just irony at its finest, and it stems also from her feeling of guilt - I already tainted my conscience and went again familial bonds, so let it at least mean victory for my favourite brother. She is now quick to accept one of them will die, she just wants to ensure it's not Bayezid.

Another of Hürrem's children that do adopt her "survival no matter the cost" agenda (and no, it's hard going for that to "pacifism" agenda shortly after getting what you wanted), and to a bigger extent, is Selim obviously.. Selim states to Bayezid that he will live because he is capable of killing his brother for his own survival. But we know what sort of life this is (and that he won't live long from history). He might later quote his mother to Mihrimah and convince himself that since nobody is innocent under this dome, so only the deserving win, but outside that, he does call himself a "brother killer" and does consider it a burden. /And Selim being his mother's son is another fascinating topic, since he was like.. her least fave and yet he is the one most alike her and who most absorbed her views and agenda.. to later emerge as sort-of third unexpected faction /.

Neither Mihrimah nor Selim ever found peace after adhering to the System's rules of fratricide. Bah, they cannot even be a family again as the only surviving members.. instead they openly accuse each other of being brother killers. Judging by history, they will eventually learn to co-operate, but nothing will be the same ever again. There is no moral victory in it for sure. Selim does not claim it any point. Actually, he is the one to point out that: We all lost. Innocence died and nothing will be as before. We can accuse Selim of many things, but he is a pretty self-conscious character indeed.

The others might be dead, but they did adhere to their principles and values due to choice.

The power of reflection or questioning is also tied to to the concept of choice as what makes us a human. MC never promises us happy ending (how it could, we all know the ending point), but the mere presentation of choice, of humans trying to create something positive, like Mustafa, Bayezid, and Cihangir deciding not to fight against each other as expected, is meaningful.

Instead we got nobody truly winning or benefitting from what happened LBR. It cannot get worse than that, really.

The whole issue again reflects what I said earlier in that post on how Erdogan historical propaganda works. It's not all sunshine and rainbows, but there is no questioning at all. Instead we have normalization of violence and presenting it as something necessary, and that there is no choice or alternative to what happened. The sultan killed his brothers, but he had to. It was necessary, it was automatic. There is even no person behind it, but a robot always doing the right (even if brutal) choice because "it was like that".

And to some up the great ironies of life, we can remember that Mahi who lost it all... survived them all, so she won the Darwinist game in the end despite being rejected by System multiple times:

#all the ironies of life indeed #'the strongest survive and win' #as if #regarding everything in this statement #the topic of free choice vs system vs fate is soo fascinating in MC #Maybe will talk even more on the topic #let's see #mods opinions #meta

[robininthelabyrinth]

Jiang Cheng is taken to Nightless City, not Lotus Pier, after being captured by the Wens

ao3

“Why’d you bring him here?” Wen Xu asked. His eye was twitching, which didn’t look healthy.

Actually, he just…didn’t look very healthy at all, really. His skin was off-color and he had circles suggesting he hadn’t slept in too long; he’d lost weight, too. Unlike Wen Chao, who was positively bursting with good humor now that he’d personally ‘won’ a great victory, he looked as though he weren’t having a good time at all.

“Why not?” Wen Chao said carelessly. “He’s the last heir of the Jiang sect, once I track down that stupid girl, and it’s not like he’s a threat; he’s got no cultivation left, courtesy of Wen Zhuliu. I can put him on display.”

“Like an animal in a menagerie? You’ve got to be joking.” Wen Xu was scowling. “Do you know the trouble he could make for us if he escaped? A living heir – even without a golden core, he can still sire the next generation. He’s practically a symbol of rebellion!”

“Oh, don’t be such a stick in the mud. Father will enjoy it.”

“If he escapes, that undermines our credibility, injures morale,” Wen Xu argued. “Our troops are fighting for us because they see us as the sun in the sky, and if we slip up…the enemy will know that as well as I. There are spies everywhere. We’ll be facing a non-stop wave of rescue attempts!”

“And we’ll repel them all! Anyway, you’re exaggerating –”

“I am not –”

“What is the cause of all this noise?” a low, calm voice drawled from the door to the hall, causing Wen Chao and Wen Xu to all but trip over themselves in order to salute.

Jiang Cheng, bound and beaten bloody, without even his cultivation, utterly helpless, turned his head slowly, not wanting to draw attention to himself. That was Wen Ruohan himself standing there, cruel smirk twisting his lips – the man who had ordered the burning of the Cloud Recesses, the man who had ordered the massacre of the Lotus Pier, the man in whose name all these terrible things were done.

Both Wen Chao and Wen Xu tried to explain at once, and Wen Ruohan listened to his sons, looking thoroughly disinterested.

“A captive like this can be kept as a prize, but not displayed,” he finally said, sounding bored. “A-Xu is right, if they know we have him, they’ll only try to rescue him…still, there’s no harm in keeping him for now; he might be useful someday. Who can tell..?”

“I got him as a present for you,” Wen Chao blurted out. “Father –”

“If you want to impress me, bring me Nie Mingjue,” Wen Ruohan said. “Alive, and in chains. Whoever does that will win my esteem.”

“But – Father –”

“As for this one, I care far less. Figure it out between you.”

With a dismissive wave of his hand, Wen Ruohan left.

“Now you’ve gone and ruined it,” Wen Chao said to Wen Xu resentfully. “It was going to make him happy, and now he’s just back on the same old thing about Chifeng-zun…you deal with him.”

“Me? He’s your prisoner!”

“Yes, well, now I don’t want him any longer,” Wen Chao tossed his head. “You ruined all the fun of it – anyway, you’re the one who cares about whatever rescue attempts or whatnot. I’ve had my fun, I’m done…you do the rest.”

“A-Chao!” Wen Xu shouted, but Wen Chao clearly didn’t care. He’d turned his nose up and marched away down the hall. “Damn, A-Chao!”

But he was gone.

Wen Xu scowled after his younger brother, then turned back, his gaze dropping down to regard Jiang Cheng.

“Fuck,” he said, fervently, and for a crazy moment Jiang Cheng felt something almost like fellow-feeling, a wholly unexpected and unwelcome stab of sympathy for someone else who had to deal with a complete lunatic for a brother, always stuck being the one to clean up the mess…but that was completely crazy. This was Wen Xu. “Where can I even put you that people won’t immediately know who you are?”

He thought about it for a moment, then reached out and nudged at Jiang Cheng’s side with his shoe, making Jiang Cheng hissed a little in pain.

“Do you require a doctor?” he demanded.

Jiang Cheng had no idea what to say about that. He’d been hit by the Jiang sect’s discipline whip – he’d need a doctor for some time yet. Everyone knew those wounds never healed right…and that was for cultivators, a class to which he no longer belonged.

“Fuck,” Wen Xu said when Jiang Cheng didn’t respond. “All right. Fine. I can – deal with this. You…fine.”

That completely incomprehensible stream of words finished, he reached down and scooped Jiang Cheng into his arms as if he were some weak young lady, then strode off purposefully.

“Stupid A-Chao,” he was mumbling, not paying any attention to Jiang Cheng. “Stupid, stupid A-Chao…as soon as someone doesn’t have their golden core, he stops thinking of them as a threat. Stupid! People are capable of so much more than just cultivation…”

Jiang Cheng stared up at Wen Xu’s chin, the only part of him he could really see from this angle, and wondered a little. He’d certainly assumed that he’d become wholly useless once he lost his golden core – his parents had both stressed cultivation as one of the most important things in life, all about being the best, cultivating the most, and he’d spent his whole life working as hard as he could on building his core, forming it and then strengthening it, refining it. And yet here Wen Xu was, speaking as though he thought Jiang Cheng was something to fear.

As though he were still dangerous.

From anyone else, Jiang Cheng would have assumed it was simply pity or an attempt to comfort him. But Wen Xu could have no such motives – Wen Xu was the enemy.

Wen Xu kicked open a door and put Jiang Cheng down on a bed.

“Stay here,” he said, as if Jiang Cheng had any idea where he was or any inkling of where he could run to even if he wanted to, and left once more.

Jiang Cheng glanced around the room he’d been left in. It was one room off of a large and spacious courtyard, luxurious but oddly impersonal, as if all the signs of personality had been shoved away and hidden for fear that they’d bee seen.

Not long after, Wen Xu reappeared with a woman, who looked annoyed.

“This isn’t why I came back from Yiling, you know,” she said reproachfully. “I could be doing actual work there. Running a Supervisory Office isn’t like having a vacation…”

“A-Qing, please,” Wen Xu said, and she fell silent. “Just…take a look at him, all right? I’ll handle the rest myself. I don’t want anyone knowing he’s here, not even the servants…I trust you, though.”

“Emotional blackmail is cheap,” Wen Qing grumbled, but Jiang Cheng could tell she was convinced. “Fine. Are you really planning to care for him yourself, though? I mean, keeping him in your own bedroom? This was supposed to be a place for one of your concubines.”

“The last one that got shoved in here committed suicide,” Wen Xu said stiffly. “They usually do, once Father’s done with them, and it’s not like I’m going to take one willingly. The room’s empty, he might as well use it, and this way we can keep his presence here secret.”

“Aren’t you worried he’ll try something?” she asked, and Jiang Cheng wondered again what it was that made all these powerful scions of the Wen sect look at him, beaten bloody and robbed of his golden core, and see something worth worrying about.

What did they see in him that he didn’t?

“I’ll handle it,” Wen Xu said shortly. “Don’t I always handle it?”

She was quiet for a moment. “You’re still not sleeping, are you? Those nightmares of yours –”

“It’s a weakness I can’t afford, A-Qing. Father could order me back to the army any day.”

“I can try to talk to him. Make him leave off, at least for a little while…I don’t like the thought of you going up against Chifeng-zun. Uncle wouldn’t be nearly as obsessed with him if he wasn’t actually as good as they all say he is.”

Wen Xu laughed without humor. “I’ve fought him a few times before, friendly spars in discussion conferences. I know exactly what our skill levels are. That’s why I can say with a great deal of certainty that if he gets anywhere near me, he’ll chop off my head without blinking twice, and there’ll be exactly shit all I can do about it. But Father won’t care. I doubt he’ll even notice – no, I’m wrong. He will notice, in the sense that it’ll make him all the more desperate to capture Chifeng-zun.”

Jiang Cheng wouldn’t have believed that any father, no matter how negligent, would be so indifferent as Wen Xu was describing, but the other man seemed sure, and Wen Qing didn’t look like she disagreed.

“I’ll talk to him,” Wen Qing insisted. “I’ll tell him something.”

“Like what?”

She glanced around, then looked down at Jiang Cheng.

“I’ll tell him you’re working on the Jiang heir,” she said, and looked away from Jiang Cheng as if she couldn’t bear to hear what she was saying, even though she was still saying it. “Breaking his spirit, molding him into something we can use in the future. He’ll like that.”

Wen Xu scoffed. “Right, and then A-Chao will tell him that he’s already had Wen Zhuliu melt his golden core and it’ll all be a waste of time. He’ll just laugh at me and send me out to die all the faster.”

“Not if I can find a way to fix it,” she said.

“Fix it? Fix what?” Wen Xu blinked. “You’re not serious. His golden core?”

“Why not?” Wen Qing asked, tossing her head, sounding haughty and arrogant like all the Wens – but her words lit a fire in Jiang Cheng’s heart. She actually sounded confident, like she thought she could do it. “Listen, cousin, I’m not about to lie down and resign myself to losing you; you’re the only one in the main branch worth anything. You do your part, I’ll do mine.”

“No one can resurrect a golden core that’s been melted,” Wen Xu protested, but even as Jiang Cheng watched he could see him being swept away by her enthusiasm. “Anyway, I don’t actually know how to break a man. I never went in for that Fire Palace stuff, not the way A-Chao did.”

“Well, get over it,” she said shortly. “I don’t care if you beat him every day or dress him up in veils and take him as your concubine – just find a way to make Uncle believe that you’re sincerely devoted to the task and I’ll get him to leave you alone, and find a way to fix that golden core problem, too. Just stall, you hear me? Stall.”

“…fine. Will you take a look at him now?”

Wen Qing pulled out her needles and Jiang Cheng didn’t even have time to move before he was completely paralyzed, feeling more than seeing her hands loosening the rope around him and start an examination as impersonal and efficient as any doctor. He didn’t care, though – he wasn’t going to escape this himself, he knew that already.

He wasn’t even going to try.

Not when staying meant that Wen Qing could find him a way out of his current predicament, not when staying meant the chance to figure out from Wen Xu what exactly it was that he saw in Jiang Cheng…maybe he could even find some of those spies Wen Xu had spoken so fearfully of and pass information along to them.

Maybe he could still do something, after all.

#mdzs #jiang cheng #wen xu #wen qing #wen chao #wen ruohan #my fic #my fics #i think i slightly misread the prompt #oh well

[horizon-verizon]

What do you think of people saying that sending thousands of men to die in battle is justified because Aegon II actually fought in battle, just like Ned and Stannis fought in their wars for example, but that Rhaenyra sending men to die for her in war is wrong because she never actually fought alongside them? I think it’s wrong. What does it matter to the families of the peasant men if the lord/prince/king dies fighting with their loved one? Their loved one still died for an aristocrat’s war. And anyways, many lords/kings/princes fight in wars not out of trying to be fair to their peasant soldiers, but because they want glory for themselves, they want songs sung about their battle prowess. Rhaenyra isn’t a warrior, and her not fighting doesn’t make her any worse than men who fought. And I thought it was very smart of her to not fight in a war in which she was a primary target. Aegon II did and he barely survived.

For people in the modern era who probably never having fought in, were close to any real fighting and destruction (likely Westerners), or having no memory of being in that sort of danger, this is such an easy way of thinking to have. I would like to hear someone(s) in my own country, the U.S., say or suggest that the president should go into battle with a particular platoon or whatever and not get lampooned, mocked, and ripped apart for it. for suggesting such a “barbaric” or stupidly reckless and unnecessary thing.

There is no shame or stupidity in not fighting with or amongst your army unless: 

you wish/need to create a stronger image

there is a need for overall morale (as Jon Snow does)

And how we determine the urgency of those needs differ from case to case. In Rhaenyra’s case, she had just lost her child Visenya in a horrendous bout of labors that probably messes her up while more stressed than she ever had been birthing a child. She more than likely couldn’t ride without inviting even further internal injury to herself. 

And she had more dragonriders than Aegon at her disposal (even if she didn’t want to send her sons, again she had just lost Lucerys and her Visenya). 

If she had actually left in her condition, she probably would have died or also sustained life-long injuries. We have to remember that Aemond and Vhagar were also there. And that Rhaenys was taken by surprise and killed (since she and the blacks didn’t seem to know that Aegon and Aemond would be there and were waiting). Yes she stepped up and charged forward, but again she did not expect it and maybe could have survived with another dragonrider there. The chances would be higher at least. (MORE on Criston Cole planning this BELOW)

Aegon was grieving but physically “secure”. (If he wasn’t drinking as much, which I doubt since he would still mourn for his kid and has always used alcohol for anything of note and stress relief, as alcoholics do. Still, he’d be readier and safer to ride than Rhaenyra).

The idea that a leader must fight right beside their soldiers is an idea popularized/inspired by ancient writers noting such of Alexander the Great. It is an idea of showing strength and a willingness to put oneself in danger for the success of the ethnic group, the culture, and/or the religion of that army. Thus encouraging them onwards and leading by example. Alexander fighting alongside his army was unheard of in his world as rulers tended to gather armies and keep themselves apart because, like in chess, the ruler/king’s capture/death means the end of the war (typically).

It’s also been that way for centuries and many battles were won before Alexander and many societies did not consider a king/ruler putting themselves in immediate harm’s way a perk or admirable. nobles and peasants alike wanted a strong ruler who’d wage wars, but not a reckless one -- because they needed/wanted a reasoning ruler to even wage wars in the first place and get them wins. Feudal/ancient mindsets and all.

And we can say all we can say about Alex beating many armies due to his “innovative” or out-of-the-box habits, but the very real problem is that he also sustained several injuries, some of them life-threatening. Several times.

I think that these people believe that Aegon went into battle because he wanted to somehow extend an image of solidarity, because he wanted to communicate strength and unity, or that he genuinely wished to show how willing he was to protect them and their families. However, that isn’t how it went down. 

The battle at Rook’s Rest -- or really the dragon “dance” above it -- was planned by Criston Cole, who became Aegon’s new Hand after he dismissed Otto. And it was most likely meant for Rhaenyra, trying to draw her out. Here is a series of quotes showing Aegon’s losing trust and respect for Otto that lead to that decision: QUOTE #1, #2, #3. 

Aegon followed Criston’s plan and he did it b/c:

revenge -> he wanted to kill Rhaenyra himself or have a personal hand in it for not accepting his rule and for Blood and Cheese 

he felt that Otto was not giving him the results he wanted soon enough -> that he was being made to be seen as weak and unfit for the throne while Rhaenyra (the “unfit” and the woman) had all those supporters lined up against him -> his fitness for rule and his masculinity, he felt, were called into question publicly)

he wanted to display his own strength

Not because he cared about the peasants and fighters under his banners. He felt entitled to their swords because they declared for him and he was, in his own eyes, the king. That is also obvious when we see him execute those still supporting/declaring for Rhaenyra while imprisoned in the Red Keep before.

....All which ended with him almost dying and getting injuries so severe he had to be kept in bed for almost a whole year while Aemond became his Prince Regent (ironically, Alicent doesn’t become Aegon’s Queen Regent....hmmmm).

Some major differences between him and Aegon I is that Aegon had already used his dragon Balerion and fought on the behalf of several Esssoi persons (experience) and he had a much calmer temper and discerning personality that was not built on the idea that his penis gave him leave to delude himself into thinking he could not be vulnerable. Also, he hadn’t messed his body with alcohol as much as Aegon certainly did.

#asoiaf asks to me #aegon ii's characterization #aegon ii #fire and blood comment #fire and blood #asoiaf war waging #feudalism #westerosi feudalism #asoiaf #rhaenyra i and aegon ii #character comparison