#as well as a lot of thoughts about how sweet Ned is)

[knightsickness]

westerosi perfume culture thoughts based on medieval/early modern ^^

incense in septs to the point of both cat and sansa immediately thinking of the smell of it when thinking about the faith. this is fully a ‘the faith is just catholicism’ thing theres reference to a censer being used at tywin’s funeral, though this is also to cover the smell of the body - i believe its implied theyre using a lot more incense than they typically would and failing to overpower the rot smell

scented candles and incense are both used in septs and to scent rooms - scented candles higher-end, beeswax candles, which even unscented smell quite sweet and are quite expensive (they burn cleanly and don’t spit). animal fat tallow candles are much cheaper but perfume can’t stop rotting fat smelling of rotting fat it just combines with it. tallow tends to be used in poorer settings, for light not scent

scented beeswax candles used by tyrion and cat, and in the sept of baelor - imo v unlikely most smallfolk or smaller septs are buying them regularly, especially considering how many candles they need to keep lit. i’d say tallow 90% of the time beeswax on holy days

basically every noble in kings landing seems to wear perfume, ned specifically repulsed by the fact that robert now does which is crazy. whats roberts taste in perfume like

varys specifically is always described as perfumed, which is like. effeminacy due to eunuch status he leans into but also his ambiguous origin - while a lot of people in westeros wear perfume it seems to be significantly more popular in the free cities + beyond, vv frequently mentioned in dany chapters

perfumed and powdered often go together, varys and lysa off the top of my head - powders could also be scented, quite popular in france

multiple references to oldtown being heavily perfumed, dual reference to incense as a faith centre and worn perfume on a dowager, oldtown as a wealthy city and consumer centre

perfume also strongly associated with prostitution, an irony - septs and brothels often scented with incense, the ‘perfumed boy’ slaves victarion kills, satin wearing scent in his beard

popular scents rarely described in more detail than a type of flower or ‘sweet’ - most interesting perfume a westerosi lady wears is taena’s wildflower and musk, which cersei compares to the smell of moss

the tyrells seem to only wear rosewater this is pretty explicitly part of their branding as a house. even the blue bard a tyrell servant washes his hair with rosewater. most roses actually don’t distill well i’m assuming they have some westerosi equivalent to damask roses grown in bulk at highgarden or some other reach territory (probably at highgarden their scent in the gardens would be part of the tyrell image cultivation there. henry viii did this specific thing so you would smell his rose perfume in the gardens even when he was away from home which some historians have referred to as a ‘serve’) only like two varieties of rose work in perfuming. i’d also speculate that the roses margaery and her ladies brought to tywin’s funeral, if they were strong-smelling enough to cover the smell of an unnaturally rotting corpse, were probably roses scented with rosewater

perfume application on people typically oils, waters and more rarely waxes - multiple mentions of perfumed beards or hairstyles and waxes would be easier for that - perfume in baths common for the wealthy

no mention of scented accessories e.g. gloves or fans, though both immensely popular in elizabethan england - are there civet cats or equivalent in westeros? there are whales and thus presumably ambergris, taena’s perfume referred to as musky but unclear if this means it contains actual musk - animal perfumes are best for scenting leather, strong and waxy and other lighter scents can cling to them. dany wears scented silk clothes

tyrion associates worn perfume strongly with old whores, which suggests cheap perfume widely accessible, probably perfumer’s shops in major cities (notable bc otherwise we could conclude perfumers worked primarily for aristocratic patrons)

there are probably westerosi perfume-makers but its also likely theres a solid luxury import trade - dorne and the free cities both have established distinct perfume cultures and strong trade links with merchants

#asoiaf #a song of ice and fire

[bittenbyyou]

Smitten

High School!AU | Peter Parker x Reader

genre: fluff

description: Just Peter Parker falling for you and coming up with the silliest plan to talk to you more.

word count: 1.8k

warnings: some Spider-Man Homecoming spoilers, Peter being a dork lol

a/n: Hello! This is my first time writing for Peter and I’m such nervous posting it, but I adore him and thought the origin story of how my bf and I got together suited Peter so well. Lol. So enjoy! 

The first time Peter heard about you was in freshman year when you were ranked number one in academics, earning jealous stares from everyone. But not from him; he was rather impressed.

Sophomore year was when your name came up again through his ex-girlfriend, Liz. Turns out you were her partner for an English project, which he didn’t think much of. He was happy with Liz… until he defeated her dad, who turned out to be a villain called “The Vulture”, and she and her mom moved to Oregon afterwards…

Anyway, it was now junior year and for the first time ever, he had a class with you—good ol’ AP U.S. History. 

“Dude, over here,” Ned called out from the first row of seats near the back corner. Peter smiled at his best friend and made his way over, taking the seat behind him.

“Hey Ned.”

“So glad we have another class together.”

“You said it.”

The two made small talk until you arrived, taking the seat next to Ned. He was mutual friends with a lot of your friends, so you felt comfortable sitting next to someone you were at least acquainted with rather than a stranger.

“Hi Ned,” you said sweetly.

“Oh [Y/N], you’re in this class too? Nice!” Ned gestured a hand towards Peter. “This is my best friend, Peter.”

“Peter… Parker, right?” you asked. Peter was surprised you knew his full name, but then remembered Liz. He nodded his head a few too many times, but you found it endearing. 

“Y-Yeah. Hi.”

“Hi. Nice to meet you. I’m [Y/N].”

Wow. You were cute.

“Sup losers,” a deadpanned voice said from behind you. You turned around to see MJ, jumping out of your seat to give her a big hug. 

“MJ! We’re in the same class, yay!”

“I know you’re not hugging me this early in the morning,” she said with her index finger raised. 

“You know you love me.”

“Ew.”

She gave you two pats on the back and you let go, giggling at her expression of faux disgust. You returned to your seat, which was in the middle of MJ and Ned. MJ then quickly whipped her head around to look at Peter.

“Sup Parker,” MJ said with a salute of two fingers.

“Hey MJ.”

“You met [Y/N] yet?”

“Yeah, Ned introduced us… you know her too?”

“Met her in an elective. She looked lonely.”

“You make me sound like a loser with no friends,” you said, pouting your lips. 

“I have no friends either.”

“You have me!” you chirped.

“And what about us?” Ned asked, gesturing back and forth to him and Peter.

“Whatever,” MJ brushed off. The three of you laughed while Peter watched, feeling somewhat left out even though he was mentioned. 

“I’m a bit jealous. You all already know each other,” you said. Wow, you said exactly what he was thinking. They knew you, but he didn’t.

“Well the only person you don’t know is Peter and I only met him because of the decathlon. He’s really not all that interesting,” MJ said, smirking in his direction. 

“Are you serious? Peter’s the coolest,” Ned said, hyping him up like a true best friend. “Peter knows Sp—”

“Dude!” Peter exclaimed, hinting at him to shut up with his deadly glare. 

Ned chuckled nervously. “I mean… you’ll get to know him, [Y/N]. And he’ll get to know you.”

*Ding!*

Saved by the bell.

From that day on, the four of you grew closer. Group work was always in teams of four in that class which worked out perfectly. Peter quickly learned you hated presentations because you would freeze up and trip on your words, so he volunteered to present instead just to hear you thank him and flash that sweet smile.

At lunch, Ned always invited you and MJ to join him and that’s when Peter learned how passionate you were about food. Specifically the school’s chicken alfredo. 

“It’s delicious!” you said, doing a little happy dance after eating a forkful of pasta. 

“It’s gross, processed food. Do we even know if it’s chicken?” MJ asked, eyeing the meat on her fork suspiciously. 

“I don’t care, I’m still eating it,” you said, enjoying the noms. 

“Aren’t you lactose intolerant?” Ned asked.

“That’s not stopping me.”

“I’m lactose intolerant,” Peter said without thinking. Everyone stared at him with a variety of expressions. MJ was skeptical, Ned was confused, and you were surprised. 

“I literally saw you eating ice cream yesterday,” MJ pointed out. 

“And his bowels paid for it,” Ned lied. Peter let out a nervous laugh.

“Hah, yeah, I was on the toilet… for hours.” You placed a hand over your mouth, trying your best not to laugh. “But I’m fine now!”

“Are you sure you should be eating lunch today then?” you asked. “Wouldn’t want your bowels to hurt again. I’ll do the honors of reducing food waste and eat it for you.”

MJ and Ned stared at Peter. Well, MJ was daring him to eat it with her piercing eyes while Ned gave him a knowing look.

“You can have it,” Peter said warmly, sliding his tray of food over to you.

“Yay!” you cheered. “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

Because honestly seeing you eat and doing that happy dance again filled him up more than any food could. You were too cute.

Peter was sure of it. He definitely had a crush on you. It took him until almost the end of first semester to realize it, but he knew now. 

He liked how smart you were. The way you answered any question the teacher threw at you so flawlessly was a mystery to him because history bored him. 

He liked how funny you were. The way you were passionately defending why mayo was the superior condiment against MJ and her love for ketchup made him die of laughter. 

He liked how kind you were. The way you helped another girl plan a dance for her quinceanera despite having so much homework. 

He liked how cute you were. The way you fell asleep in class after being the first to finish your test. 

He even liked how clueless you were. The way you knew absolutely nothing about Star Wars but still allowed him to ramble on and on about it in class and listen to him with a caring heart. 

Yup. He definitely liked you. 

A lot.

But he didn’t know how to tell you. You two didn’t hang out outside of school at all and he was so darn shy. It wasn’t until he and MJ hung out at Ned’s place one day when an opportunity arose. You were invited to his house as well, but you declined because of some projects you left till the last minute. 

The trio were building Legos and at one point Ned had to go downstairs and help his lola cook dinner while MJ and Peter remained upstairs. She was sitting on Ned’s bed while Peter was on the floor continuing to build the Lego Death Star. 

“I’m going to give you some advice, Pete,” MJ started to say. Peter looked up at her in confusion.

“About what?”

“About [Y/N].”

His eyes started to wander around the room. “W-What about [Y/N]?”

“What do you think about her?”

“What do I think a-about her? What’s not to think, she’s sweet. She’s nice. She’s kind.”

“Those are synonyms.”

“She’s smart. God, she is so smart, and she gets my jokes and actually laughs at them and—”

“Yup. You like her.”

His face fell. “No… No… No~.”

“So should I call her for you?” She whipped out her phone and Peter panicked.

“Don’t!”

“Why not? You have got to talk to her.”

“I do talk to her.”

“Outside of school,” MJ specified. “I have her number if you want it.”

“No, she’ll find it weird if I text her out of nowhere.”

“So you’re going to continue staring at her when she’s not looking like a total creep?”

“I don’t… I don’t stare,” Peter mumbled. MJ rolled her eyes at his denial.

“You do,” she teased. “Look, I’m going to the restroom. Here’s my phone. Do whatever you’d like with it.”

If Peter was a creep, then MJ was a psychopath because who would let anyone use their phone so freely? He still took the device from her hands and waited until he was alone to tap your name in MJ’s messages. His heart was racing at the thought of having your number, but he didn’t feel ready for it. 

So… he did something else.

5:44 PM | MJ🖤: Hey 🙂

Yikes. He really was a creep.

5:45 PM | You 😇: Hi MJ! What’s up? Did y’all finish building the Legos?

Peter smiled to himself at your enthusiastic greeting. 

5:45 PM | MJ🖤: No, not yet. Ned left us to help with dinner. How are you?

Your next reply didn’t come as fast this time. Peter panicked, wondering if he said something weird. Then again, this whole situation was borderline crazy.

5:49 PM | You 😇: I’m doing my homework. It’s so boring. Wish I was with you all. 🥺

5:50 PM | MJ🖤: We wish you were here too. 💖

Peter saw the thought bubble with three dots pop up, eagerly waiting for your reply. 

5:50 PM | You 😇: Hey MJ… I have a question.

5:50 PM | MJ🖤: Go for it.

5:50 PM | You 😇: Who are you? Lol.

Shit. Shit. Shit. You knew. Oh my god, Peter’s life was over. He got up off the floor and started pacing around the room in panic. 

5:51 PM | You 😇: I know you’re not MJ… so either you stole her phone and I’m going to have to report you for identity theft or she let you use her phone. 

5:53 PM | MJ🖤 : Okay, it’s Peter. Don’t report me. 🥺

He held his breath for your next response, facepalming himself for getting caught so fast.

5:53 PM | You 😇: Peter, why are you pretending to be MJ? If you wanted to text me, I could’ve just given you my number. Haha.

5:53 PM | MJ🖤 : Wait, really? I’m sorry. Idk why I did that.😅

5:53 PM | You 😇: Yeah. Here’s my number XXX-XXX-XXXX. Please text me as yourself. Lolol. 

Peter had the biggest grin spread across his face as he fell onto Ned’s bed in relief. He couldn’t help but laugh at the situation. By some miracle he did it. He got your number… he actually got your number. 

“Why are you staring at my phone like a creepy serial killer?” He looked up to see MJ leaning against Ned’s door frame. 

“Uh… I got her number?”

“How?”

“... You’re going to kill me.”

#peter parker x reader #peter parker fic #mcu peter parker #peter parker fluff #peter parker blurb #my writing #smitten

[miela]

First of all, thank you so much for this request. I love this trope so much. Gonna make this part of an AU of Shattered Memories version of this because this fits so well with it! Reader doesn't have spidey powers in this one, so the outcome would be very different which is why it's even more of an AU. Enjoy!

A Sense of Reunion {AU}

Pairing: Peter Parker x Stark Daughter!Reader Genre: Fluff Warnings: devious child (lmao) Word Count: 3.4k 

↪ divider by firefly-graphics

Peter didn’t expect it to happen like this. He wasn’t sure if it was a blessing or a curse, actually. He simply needed a job to pay for rent and be able to make a living for himself in the best way that he could. But he didn’t expect everything to drop into his lap like this. 

Peter had gotten fired from his job at the pizza place as a delivery driver. He was late one too many times on making deliveries which resulted him in getting fired. Although the job wasn’t all lavish and luxurious, it still helped with rent. He begged for another chance but the manager wouldn’t budge, which left Peter jobless and struggling. With juggling his Spiderman duties, school studies, and trying to function as an adult earlier than he would’ve liked to he had a lot on his plate. It made him feel rather lonely sometimes. Yeah, he had his college friends and the sweet neighbors in the apartment complex across the hall, but it wasn’t anything like when he had his friends from before.

And it was definitely different without you.

(Y/N) Jarvis.

You were someone who transferred into Midtown Tech during your sophomore year of high school. You didn’t make friends too easily and usually kept to yourself in general. It wasn’t until you decided to join the Academic Decathlon that you became friends with Liz Allan. That’s when you truly opened up. That’s when your true personality shined through. You were a sweet girl. Always helpful and always kind. Peter was taken by you fairly quickly. 

Peter was also surprised at how unconventional you were.

“You guys are building a Lego Death Star?” you asked intrigued from your locker which wasn’t that far from Peter’s. 

You had overheard Ned and him talking about it and you just couldn’t help yourself but go over and ask about it. They were kind of shocked that a popular girl like you approached them.

“Uhm…” Peter started nervously and hesitantly. “Y-yeah…!”

You beamed. “That’s so cool! I’m jealous! I have a Millennium Falcon that I haven’t had time to do.”

“Really?” Ned asked. 

“Yeah!” You smiled, took out your phone, and showed them a picture of you happily hugging the Lego box. 

Peter pretty much fell head over heels for you right then and there without realizing it.

The problem was that you were dating Flash Thompson at the time, and Flash did not like Peter. There were plenty of times when you had to defend Peter from Flash’s bullying and you had to apologize to Peter for Flash's bullying, which put a strain on your relationship. And it ended up in a breakup during the homecoming dance. You spent the whole dance crying in the bathroom by yourself until Liz found you and comforted you. Then the week after Liz had to move away. 

So you lost your boyfriend and your best friend within a week.

Peter will never understand why you confided in him, but you did which only strengthened your friendship and his crush on you that he didn’t realize until the beginning of senior year. Ned told him that you felt the same way but he just thought he was saying that because of how close of friends you guys had become. He wondered if it was actually true. He would never know. 

At least so he thought. 

When he had to sacrifice his identity to save the universe, he remembered your reaction to it. You were there that day and you were supportive of him throughout everything. Except when you had to forget about him. He had never seen you cry so hard before, beg so much before, and look so hurt before.

It broke his heart. 

And here he was a year later and you didn’t remember him along with the rest of the world.

When his college friend, Harry Osborn, heard about Peter losing his job he brought up something that changed his life. 

“You know the Starks are looking for a babysitter.” 

He perked up at the Stark name. “Huh?”

“Yeah,” he replied. “It’s very under wraps, they want to keep it secret that they have children. But it’s good money. I can put it a good word for you.”

And that’s how Peter ended up at the Stark’s lakehouse right outside of the city, in front of his old mentor and father figure’s face meeting him and his daughter for the first time again. It was strange to him that he had to pretend like this was the first time he was meeting Tony Stark and his family. 

Well, this was his first time meeting Morgan and she took an instant liking to Peter which pleased Tony and Pepper.

“Now she may like you, but the real boss will be home soon,” Tony mentioned. “If she doesn’t see you as a good fit she’ll fire you before I do.”

Peter couldn’t tell if he was joking or not, but he chose to chuckle softly. He was also shocked to hear that he had another daughter. 

She must be like 12 or something if she can’t watch Morgan, he thought. 

Soon Tony and Pepper say their goodbyes to Morgan and Peter as they took off. They were apparently going to Malibu for the weekend for some business trip. Peter was surprised they chose him to be the babysitter but really, when you are Iron Man you can pretty much guarantee your safety from the average person (even though Peter isn’t an average person).

Peter looked down at Morgan who was smiling up at him. “Are you hungry? Do you want a snack?”

“Yes,” she chimed.

So he went to the kitchen with her and at her request, he made her a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. He figured that he would make one for you too since you would probably be hungry when you got home. When he asked Morgan what kind of sandwich you would like she told him.

“Peanut butter, Nutella, and jelly, but the peanut butter has to be chunky and the jelly has to be strawberry jam and the Nutella has to be in the center because on the peanut butter side, you have to put potato chips and on the jelly side you have to put strawberry chucks and the one with the Nutella has to have banana slices,” she explained very meticulously. “And she likes to eat it with a glass of milk on the side. Oh! And the bread has to be honey wheat and toasted,”

“Oh…” Peter responded trying to go over the steps in his mind. “Wanna help me make it so I don’t mess it up?”

Morgan was more than happy to help and he grabbed all of the ingredients from various cabinets. Meanwhile, Morgan talked about anything and everything. One of the things he found out was that your nickname is “Luna” because it rhymed with “Maguna” and you had a moon and stars themed room. It reminded him a lot of you and how you would always draw moons and stars on the corners of your school notes when you were bored in class or as a way to distract you from whatever was making you feel uncomfortable at the moment. 

“I know my name is Morgan but Daddy calls me Maguna, Luna calls me Maguna and Mommy calls me Maguna so you can call me Maguna too.”

“But that’s your nickname for your family, right?” 

“Mhm!” Morgan smiled happily.

“So maybe I should call you something else? How about Miss Morgan?”

Morgan giggled and nodded. “Then, I will call you Mister Peter.”

“Deal,” he smiled.

“You should marry my big sister! She likes boys like you!” Morgan stated excitedly like she just came up with the best idea in the world. 

“I-I think, I might be too old for your sister, Miss Morgan,” Peter laughed. 

Morgan shook her head. “Nuh-uh, you are perfect for her! Her last boyfriend was a poopyface.”

Peter smiled at her enthusiasm and just let her live her little fantasy. As he finished putting your sandwich together, he heard the door open. 

“I’m home,” you sang.

“Luna!!” Morgan cheered and ran over to you. 

As Peter heard you and Morgan greet each other, he poured the glass of milk and put it next to the plate of the intricately detailed sandwich. Then he walked over to introduce himself as the new babysitter. But he froze when he saw who it was. It wasn’t a preteen girl like he was expecting.

It was you.

He wasn’t sure what confused him the more, the fact that you weren’t a child but someone his age or the fact that you’re Tony Stark’s daughter. He had so many questions but he didn’t even know which one he would ask first if he could ask any. You didn’t even remember who he is so he couldn’t even ask. 

You looked up at him and smiled as Morgan hugged you around your waist. “Hello! Nice to meet you, I’m (Y/N).”

Peter remembered what Mr. Stark said and had to catch himself before he looked really stupid just staring at you like a deer in headlights. “H-hi!” He squeaked out after a moment and then cleared his throat to fix his voice from cracking in high octaves again. “H-hey, I’m…uh…Peter, the new babysitter.”

“We made you your favorite sandwich!” Morgan said excitedly before you could respond.

“Ooh,” your smile grew. ““I’ll be right back, I gotta get out of these clothes and into something more comfy and then I can enjoy the sandwich.”

And you went up the stairs to do just that and Peter watched you go until you were out of view. He was still processing everything that just happened. 

Morgan walked over to Peter. “Told you.” she sang and Peter blushed. 

When you came back down, you went straight the the kitchen where Peter and Morgan were sitting at the island. You wore a black oversized 90s vintage designed Taylor Swift tee shirt and a pair of drop-crotch joggers with blue fuzzy socks with cloud prints on them. Your face was cleared from makeup and you looked ten times more relaxed than you did when you first came home. You went straight for the sandwich, let out a satisfied breath, and closed your eyes as you chewed your first bite. 

“You made this?” You asked Peter. 

“Uh, yeah,” he responded as he rubbed the back of his head nervously. “With some help of course.”

“It’s perfect,” you smiled. 

“Really?” 

“Mhm!” you nodded and took another bite.

Peter gave you a tight-lipped smile in response.

“You seem nervous,” you mentioned. “Did my dad tell you that I'm scary and would fire you before he does? Relax, ignore him. He says that to freak people out.”

Peter wished that was what had him nervous, but he was still processing that you were here, that you were a Stark. He wondered where the name Jarvis came from. It didn’t help that he also has a major crush on you which only adds to his nervousness of being around you. 

“Man, he got you all freaked out, doesn’t he?” You asked when Peter didn’t say anything. “No worries, I’ll hang out with your guys so you can see that I’m not as scary as he says.”

Peter figured this would be one helluva day.  

After doing different activities with Morgan like having a tea party, puzzles, and drawing you guys settled into watching a movie which was Frozen II. Peter noted that you sang every single song without missing a single note or beat. Morgan sang a long too but with some songs, she would be too enthralled by the movie to really remember to sing. After the movie, it was almost eight o’clock Morgan had winded down but she wasn’t sleepy just yet. 

“Alright, Maguna,” you stood up from the couch and did a big stretch. “We can do one more thing before it’s bedtime. So what’s it gonna be?”

She looked up in thought and then a spark came to her eye and then, what Peter could’ve seen, was a mischievous smile. “Let’s play house,” She said.

Oh god, Peter thought and Morgan’s words from earlier echoed in his mind. It was bad enough that he was still processing all of this but he felt like he was about to be set up by a six-year-old.

“Alrighty then,” you agreed. “Who’s gonna be who?”

“You two have to be mommy and daddy,” she explained. “And I’m the baby.”

Peter decided he needed to avert the situation without completely throwing away the whole idea. “You want me to be Mommy, and (Y/N) to be Daddy?” Peter joked. 

Morgan laughed at the idea and you giggled looking at Peter with an eyebrow raised. 

“Perfect, I get to make fun of my dad for once.” You smile, amused.

Peter sighed in relief when you turned back to Morgan who was still laughing. 

After playing house for a while with you imitating Tony exaggeratingly and Peter doing his best mom impression, Morgan was finally tired enough to finally go to sleep. You carried her to her bed and Peter leaned in the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest as he watched you tuck her in. Morgan seemed happy and in return made you happy which made Peter happy. 

He was exhausted though.

“Goodnight, Maguna,” you smiled and kissed her head. “I love you 3000.”

“I love you 3000,” she replied softly and sleepily as she hugged a soft bear plushie. 

“Goodnight, Miss Morgan,” Peter smiled. 

“Goodnight, Mr. Peter,” She yawned. 

You stood up from the bed and walked over to the doorway to where Peter was. You both smiled at each other tiredly.

“Ready?” You asked him.

“Yeah,” he nodded feeling relief that Morgan hadn’t done any funny business to make things awkward between you two.

But he mentally spoke too soon.

“Wait!” Morgan exclaimed startling you both as you guys looked a her wonderously. “You guys have to kiss goodnight!”

Peter felt his soul leave his body. He thought he was safe from this. It’s not like he didn’t want to kiss you, he’s been wanting to kiss you for years. But that doesn’t mean that you want to kiss him. Now it was going to make everything awkward. He didn’t blame Morgan though. She was just a kid with a big imagination. A very, very big and open imagination. 

“Us?” You asked with an unsure look on your face.

“Yes,” Morgan replied sitting up and crossing her arms.

You looked at Peter shyly and he could tell your face was burning from embarrassment. His face was also burning just thinking of the idea of kissing you. You gave him a look the read that you were willing to if he was.

“I can kiss you on the cheek,” you whispered and Peter’s blush bloomed even more.

“Yeah…!” he squeaked again and then cleared his throat. “No, yeah the cheek is good…mhm…yeah.”

“No,” Morgan whined and pouted. “Like how Papa and Mama kiss.”

You looked at Morgan horrified and Peter’s eyes widened and he froze.

“You gotta, otherwise I can't sleep,” Morgan stated. 

“Bullshit,” you sang lowly enough for only you and Peter to hear. 

“Morgan, I don’t think it’s a good idea-” Peter began but was cut off by a grunt from Morgan who pouts harder and crossed her arms over herself.

Peter wanted to crawl into a hole and scream. Mostly because he wasn’t against the idea but he didn’t want to do it in front of Morgan and he didn’t want to do it if you didn’t want to do it.

“I’m okay with it if you are,” you said knocking Peter out of his thoughts and nearly onto the floor. 

Did he hear you right?

“A-are you sure…?” He asked with wide eyes.

You nodded in response looking up at him. “It’s no big deal, right? Just a peck wouldn’t hurt.”

Oh my god, it’s happening. Peter felt his entire body buzz with a feeling he couldn’t really pinpoint.

“O-okay,” Peter squeaked once more and mentally cursed himself for it.

You stepped closer to him as you looked him in the eyes and he looked back into yours. You were just as pretty as he remembered and now you're so close to him getting ready to kiss him, He gulped nervously. His heart raced a million miles per hour.

He thinks he would have an easier time kissing Ned than he would you at this very moment.

“I’m waiting,” Morgan sang sleepily.

“Here goes nothing,” you said before you pressed your lips to Peter’s.

His heart jolted and he kissed back in a reflex. 

This kiss lasted a total of five seconds but to Peter, it was five seconds too short. You pulled back and pressed your lips together looking up at him for a long moment. He looked back at you with his heart still racing in his ears. He could’ve sworn he heard yours beating at the same rapid pace. After a long moment of looking at each other, you broke the gaze and looked over at Morgan. Peter never took his eyes off of you. 

“She’s asleep,” you whispered. 

Peter looked over to see a sleeping Morgan. Peter had no idea when she fell asleep but he was hoping that it was before you guys kissed.

 “Let’s get out of here before she wakes up and has some other bright ideas,” you whispered again.

“Y-yeah,” Peter walked out and you followed behind.

You closed the door softly and then walked down the hall with him so you guys could talk freely without worrying about waking up a sleeping Morgan.

“Uhm…” you started. “You can stay here tonight. It’s late and we have like three guest rooms that you can use.”

“Yeah, your dad told me earlier.”

“Oh! Okay, good, good.”

You guys stood there for a moment, ignoring the elephant in the room. Peter felt it and he was pretty sure that you felt it too. The curiosity of what a genuine kiss would feel like rather than one that was rushed, But neither of you wanted to bring it up. 

You cleared your throat and turned to walk towards your room. “Goodnight, Peter.”

Peter watched you as your hand grabbed the doorknob and before he could even make a decision, his mouth did it for him. 

“(Y/N)?”

You stopped and looked at wide-eyed Peter who was surprised by his own voice. 

“Yes?” You respond.

You guys looked at each other longingly again before his legs took him over by you. What are you doing? He stopped right in front of you. Another moment of looking at each other and wondering. 

You glanced down at his lips and he did the same to yours. That was all the answer he needed.

“C-can I try something?” He asked softly.  

“Yes, “ you answer before he can even finish asking. 

He glanced back at your lips a moment before looking deeply into your eyes. He then softly puts a shaky hand on your cheek and you close your eyes a moment before you look up with hooded eyes. He leaned in slowly and you let out a soft breath and closed your eyes. 

Then his lips met yours. 

The kiss was soft and sweet and Peter could actually feel the softness of your lips then time. You put your hands on his shoulders and grip his shirt as you deepened this kiss causing it to go from cute to passionate. Peter’s heart was racing once again and he let out a soft sigh of satisfaction.

He was finally able to kiss you after all these years and it was better than he could’ve ever imagined. 

After a moment he got a little more confident and he brought your bottom lip in between his teeth for a moment causing a soft gasp to escape from you before he kissed you again, taking your breath away. He had no idea what came over him, but you both liked it.

After another moment you pulled back and he chased the kiss not wanting to part just yet. He looked at you with hooded eyes before pulling back a little. You looked up at him and brought your hand up to touch your lips before you hesitated a moment and pressed your lips together.

“Uhm…we should…” you started your voice very low.

“No, yeah, yeah. We should…” Peter said and then stepped back slowly. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” You replied and stepped into your room quickly and closed the door.

Peter turned and smiled big as he walked to the guest room. At the same time, you leaned against your door smiling and softly touching your lips as you still tasted his kiss on your lips.

~

Tags:

@letssee2468 @chrisevans-realwife @riordanness @peterdarlingg @thecrystalclarity @brckenmemories @paleprincesssxo @blackcanary130 @kindlover @i-have-no-life-charlie @melodicheauxxlovesfood

#peter parker x stark!daughter #peter parker x stark!reader #peter parker x silk!reader #peter parker x avenger!reader #peter parker x afab!reader #spiderman #peter parker #avenger!reader #peter parker x y/n #peter parker x reader #peter parker x you #peter parker fic #peter parker imagine #tom holland #marvel #mcu #spiderman x reader #spiderman x y/n #peter parker fanfiction #peter parker series #mcu marvel avengers #mcu peter x reader #marvel mcu #mcu fanfiction #avengers #marvel cinematic universe #tom holland x reader #tom holland x y/n #tom holland x you #tom holland fanfiction

[crazyyluvr]

request for basketball player miles x reader who’s just a sweetie and dedicates every point he makes to his girlfriend

ATSV: Miles takes joy in acknowledging you whenever he scores during his basketball games.

pairing: e1610!miles morales x fem!reader

cw: college au, fluff, just miles being miles, established relationship, mmm kissing

format: headcanons/bullet point

It’s my time to shine with my limited basketball knowledge hehe

I envision Miles playing point guard in the Visions Academy basketball team, making those plays and getting a lot of points and assists and whatnot.

Every time before a game of his, he’ll give you a kiss just before entering the locker room to do a last-minute briefing with his coach and team.

The chatter of the crowd sounded faint in comparison to your heartbeat when Miles grabbed your waist and pressed his lips against yours. You were shocked for a second before you reciprocated the passion and intensity, wrapping an arm around his neck to pull him closer.

After a few more seconds, you both pulled away.

“What was that for?” You asked, slightly out of breath.

Miles grinned, his eyes crinkling. “For luck.”

During the games themselves, Miles would be on a whole other level, knowing that you were watching and cheering for him.

He scored a whole lot more, and his teammates would smirk knowingly, aware of his motivation. His determination pulls his team up as well and makes them also play better together.

They call that the “Miles Effect,” which always starts with you just being there, of course.

When he’d score a point, he’d point at you after high-fiving his teammates. When he’d make a difficult basket, he’d blow you a kiss. And when you’d reciprocate it, the crowd had their own reactions.

Your face slightly heated up when Miles turned to you after a challenging layup, placing his fingers to his puckered lips and moving them towards your direction, a wink accompanying it.

The girls surrounding you screamed, making you wince a little from the volume as you quickly did the same to him so he could turn around and refocus on the game.

“Did you see that?! Miles Morales just blew me a kiss!!” A girl sitting in the row in front of you shrieked, jumping around. You frowned as her head bobbed up and down, obscuring your view of the game.

Her friend — bless her soul — slapped the back of her head and pushed her back down on her chair. “No you idiot, his girlfriend is sitting behind us. He wouldn’t blow a kiss to you.”

The friend turned and gave you an apologetic smile, which you waved off, gesturing that it was fine and that you appreciated what she did.

When the game ends in victory for Visions Academy, Miles ends up as the Player of the Game (for plot’s sake), and He answers the questions the Visions Academy Broadcasting team asked with a big smile on his lips.

“In your opinion, how good did you and your team perform today?” Ned asked, pointing the mic at Miles as the taller boy wiped his forehead a little with the towel hanging from his neck.

“We did pretty good, as we always do,” Miles answered, his lips quirked up. “I’m really proud of everyone’s performance today, and of course there were some rough patches, but we’ll learn from them and do even better next game.”

Ned nodded, satisfied with his answer. “How about your performance specifically? Was there anything behind your amazing moves today?”

Miles paused, staring at the camera in thought before turning back to Ned when he got his answer. “I dunno man, it’s always the same person motivating me every game.”

He turned back to the camera, pointing at it. “Shoutout to my biggest fan, my number one supporter, and the best girlfriend ever.” He then turned and actually looked at you, waving at you. “Gracias mi amor, te amo!”

Since the mic was also connected to the speakers around the court (their college is rich lmao), everyone heard his statement and started aw’ing at the sweet boy.

Although the boy was tired after his game, he still brought you to his house to eat dinner with his family, both of his parents congratulating him on his win (they watched his game ofc) and his Uncle Aaron applauding the plays he saw Miles used when watching it on the TV.

And teasing the both of you of course.

“Kid, you gotta attend his games more often if this is how well he’ll play,” Uncle Aaron joked with you, making Miles blush in embarrassment and lightly elbow his uncle.

“Uncle Aaron!” He said, a bit of a whine in his voice.

“You can’t deny him Miles, you did perform better,” Miles’ dad, Jeff, shrugged, putting a bowl of food on the table.

“Dad!” He snapped playfully, burying his red face in his hands.

You laughed, patting his shoulder. “Don’t worry, whether or not I motivate you, I’m gonna attend as much of your games as I can.” Rio cooed at the two of you, happy her little boy ended up with such a nice girl.

And boy did you have no idea how much that statement made his evening — and the rest of his week.

author’s note: i honestly had fun writing this, tho it feels kinda short :(( i hope this fit your expectations anon!

I love Miles, he’s such a sweetheart <33 feel free to send more requests people 💪

- mar

#atsv #atsv x reader #spiderman #miles morales #miles morales x reader #e1610 miles #across the spiderverse #idk if i did this right im sorry #satsv #miles morales headcanons #fluffy :))

[esther-dot]

Idk how attractive jon is supposed to be but he has the stark look and sansa has a thing for the stark look, i mean look at waymar and loras, their descriptions match jon's exactly. Sansa's opinion at the end of the day>>>

I love Sansa’s Waymar and Loras crushes! So cute! I kinda think a good part of what attracts Sansa to any given guy is the romantic notions she can attach to them, not strictly their physical appearance? So while I certainly agree with the Jon and Waymar parallels and think martin intentionally wrote similarities between Jon and her crushes, I believe her romanticized view of knight was a factor as well. Personally, I wish Martin talked about Sansa’s body/ how beautiful she is a lot less, so this isn't a topic I enjoy discussing, but the convo kicked off because of a poll and here’s a screenshot of my totally unremarkable tags:

And here’s what an angry Jon fan posted because they didn’t like the tags on the poll:

They go on to criticize other tags by Sansa fans/Jonsas, but mine were based on specific lines from the books because the question wasn’t vibes but canonical beauty, and it so happens, these are lines I am very fond of because I love NedCat:

And was it really such a terrible thing, to want a pretty wife? She remembered her own childish disappointment, the first time she had laid eyes on Eddard Stark. She had pictured him as a younger version of his brother Brandon, but that was wrong. Ned was shorter and plainer of face, and so somber. He spoke courteously enough, but beneath the words she sensed a coolness that was all at odds with Brandon, whose mirths had been as wild as his rages. Even when he took her maidenhood, their love had more of duty to it than of passion. We made Robb that night, though; we made a king together. And after the war, at Winterfell, I had love enough for any woman, once I found the good sweet heart beneath Ned's solemn face. (ASOS, Catelyn V)

It’s a beautiful passage with a lovely sentiment, so I take exception to classifying this as petty fandom shit when there was nothing intentionally insulting behind what I said, I just think Cat's thoughts about a man she dearly loves were pertinent. Also, Jon’s Stark looks are a big R+L=J clue which is teased a lot in AGOT so it’s intentional and important:

The boy absorbed that all in silence. He had the Stark face if not the name: long, solemn, guarded, a face that gave nothing away. Whoever his mother had been, she had left little of herself in her son. "What are you reading about?" he asked. (AGOT, Tyrion II)

Martin described Jon’s face the same way he does Ned’s here, although the point was ha ha! he has the Stark look not because of his father but because of his mother, Lyanna.

Jon had their father's face, as she did. They were the only ones. Robb and Sansa and Bran and even little Rickon all took after the Tullys, with easy smiles and fire in their hair. (AGOT, Arya I)

Arya heard and whirled around, glaring. "I don't care what you say, I'm going out riding." Her long horsey face got the stubborn look that meant she was going to do something willful. (AGOT, Sansa I)

Sansa could never understand how two sisters, born only two years apart, could be so different. It would have been easier if Arya had been a bastard, like their half brother Jon. She even looked like Jon, with the long face and brown hair of the Starks, and nothing of their lady mother in her face or her coloring. (AGOT, Sansa I)

"Lyanna might have carried a sword, if my lord father had allowed it. You remind me of her sometimes. You even look like her." (AGOT, Arya II)

Now, Ned goes on to say Lyanna is beautiful so a lot of fans really emphasize that and say it means Jon and Arya are/will be attractive, and maybe! It doesn't bother me for people to read it that way, but if you look at the other uses of long face in ASOIAF, or the Stark look, I think it indicates, it's not particularly attractive, and one might even say, it's unremarkable. I didn’t say ugly, its simply unexceptional imo. Obviously the horsey face/horse faced stuff is an insult so we don't have to take that to be a neutral assessment, but I don't think it actually means pretty either, not when you look at how it's used elsewhere.

Anyway, it doesn't matter if Jon is handsome or not because we all were supposed to have already learned that what matters is who he is, not his face. So, while I have no investment in how attractive/unattractive these characters are, I imagine that Jon being Jon is what will make Sansa fall for him, not how pretty he is. Something that might sound kinda like this:

I had love enough for any woman, once I found the good sweet heart beneath Ned's Jon's solemn face

#jonsa #nedcat #r+l=j #book jon #dot chat #discourse #< for filtering

[pedropascalenjoyer]

the sweetest

✧ format: oneshot

✧ word count: 578

✧ warnings: reader knows peter is spiderman & just pure fluff

✧ author's note: spidey-love for the soul! since feburary is coming up soon (not really) I've been feeling romantic so except a lot of fluff mostly! don't worry, nsfw coming soon, if I'm motivated enough 🥲 enjoy!

A perfectly wrapped box, so small, but it held something so valuable inside.

A promise ring for you that had a cobweb design and your name engraved into it. It was kind of cheap since Peter was suited up whilst visiting the shop owner about the making of the ring.

Pushing that aside, Peter was right outside of your steps just pacing around nervously. He had called Ned about it but Ned was reassuring him about it a lot, a lot, a lot.

He felt nervous, you'd been with each other for a while now, but he could still felt the sweet butterflies in his stomach, god, you were his partner, but he still had a big time crush on you. It all just felt unreal to him, especially when you knew both of his lives; Peter Parker and Spiderman. He remembers your face, shocked, yet you took it somewhat well and supported him. Just worried he would be hurt.

He laughed at the sweet memories before perking up when he heard footsteps coming towards the door, the door knob shaking, he froze—

"Oh shit, hey Peter!" You laughed, "you scared me." You closed the door behind you before looking at your loving boyfriend. "What's up?"

Thank God his reflexes were quick enough to hide the little box behind his back, he grinned nervously. "Hey, um," he thought about his words carefully for a moment, "I just needed to talk to you about something." Oh god, that sounded like he was going to break up with you, stupid. Your facial expression immediately changed, everything changed, now you were nervous, and he was nervous— a total crisis.

"I'm not breaking up with you, I swear! Let's just.. Go inside." He slips the box into his pocket, hoping that you didn't see before quickly opening the door to your apartment and entering it like some kind of burglar. Mumbling, "It's alright. It's alright Peter, remember what Ned said." You both went to sit on the couch, you waited patiently for whatever he needed to say.

"We've been with each other for a long time, and I'm glad I've met you, you know?" Don't ramble, Peter. Don't ramble. "I just wanted to well, express gratitude, you know? You've been amazing and everything and well, I've been planning this for a while I guess, I'm pretty nervous and—" You're rambling Peter, you're rambling. Peter shook his head and just pulled out the box, looking away from you.

Your eyes nearly jumped out of your skull, processing everything before reaching for the box and slowly opening you. "Oh my god Peter," Peter closed his eyes embracing, expecting something terrible to come out of your mouth, "It's perfect, oh my god." You put the ring on your finger, tears rushing down your face. You quickly embraced him tightly, looking at the shining silver ring. "Thank you Peter, I love it— I love you!"

Peter sighed in relief, hell, he even felt himself tearing up. "I love you too— look." Letting go and wiping your tears away to see his ring, you clanked your ring against his, laughing so happily.

"How did you even get this?" You cupped his face, Peter shrugged, chuckling. "Got ways." You shook your head, you knew how, but you didn't mind at all. It was a perfect moment, a perfect clear memory to lock inside both of your minds. You stared into his eyes before locking your lips onto his.

#marvel #marvel x y/n #marvel x you #marvel x reader #peter parker #peter parker x y/n #peter parker x reader #peter parker x you #spiderman x y/n #spiderman x reader #spiderman x you #spiderman #marvel fanfiction

[asongofstarkandtargaryen]

Not to demonize Cat but the woman literally said Arya was a trial and she wanted her to be like Sansa; she admired Edmure’s efforts to look after his people but at the same time she saw them as useless mouths to feed; she wanted 14 year old Jon out of his own home in Winterfell. How is that supposed to be similar to him? Same with Sansa being Ned 2.0 just because she’s in the Vale. She doesn’t recall any of his lessons like his other kids do. He is a man who lived and died for his family and was overall well liked by his people. He carried Lyanna’s secret to his grave. Sansa snitched on her family (bitterly regretting it) because she was in love with the little psycho who tried to murder her sister and she barely had any contact with the smallfolk. The math doesn’t add up. Just reads like a Jon/sa fetich of NedCat 2.0, same people who insist Jon longs for Cat’s love and approval since he has oedipus complex or whatever. But one can not erase canon and none of the women Jon felt attracted to had anything to do with Cat. They need milk of the copey.

Yes, I agree with you.

Comparing Catelyn saying that Arya was "a trial" while the latter was missing to Jon gifting Arya the Needle, it's clear that those two characters view Arya's behavior differently.

Arya herself was doubting that her mother would want her ( which mind you wasn't true, Catelyn wanted both her daughters back. But it says a lot about the impression she had given to her child through her behavior). Meanwhile, she was certain that Jon would want her even if no one else would. Jon's acceptance is wholeheartedly, he doesn't criticize Arya's parts their society considers unwomanly ( and in fact, all the girls he finds attractive share those traits of hers).

Here is the thoughts of Catelyn when her brother gives shelter to innocent people in Riverlands war zone:

Only my sweet brother would crowd all these useless mouths into a castle that might soon be under siege.

ACOK - Catelyn I

Jon Snow in ADWD is doing exactly what Catelyn is criticizing her brother for, he gives shelter to "useless mouths" ( aka all the Wildings that can't contribute to the fight against the Others).

Jon's worldview, beliefs and behavior is so different from Catelyn's that it's laughable to claim that "he's Catelyn with Ned/Lyanna's characteristics". Do they have a couple of things/ traits in common? Surely, but so does almost any pair of pov characters. That doesn't mean all of them are copies of each other.

Moving to Sansa, I disagree with the fandom's notion that she's Ned 2.0. As you said, she doesn't recall his lessons like his other children do. That's not to condemn her because Ned taught mainly the boys and Catelyn was responsible for the girls ' education ( Arya is the exception here because we know that she liked to follow her father and see him performing his duties as the Castle's Lord).

And then there is the scene where Sansa tells Cersei her father's plan. Again, I'm not gonna codemn a 11 years old for making a silly decision but considering that a major theme in Ned's story is that he never revealed his sister's secret, preferring to soil his honor in order to protect it I fail to see the similarities between father and daughter in terms of personal values and priorities.

As I often say, Sansa was way closer to her mother than she ever was to her father and she shares some core beliefs with her ( plus her narrative comparison to Cat is important due to the Littlefinger obsession with both of them). So if the fans want to link Sansa to any of her parents, Catelyn the correct choice imo.

On a side note, I'm sure that you probably meant no harm but I don't like the word "psycho" to describe awful characters. Joffrey was a little shit but that was because he was spoiled by his mother and neglected by his father. He didn't have any psychosis. Mental illnesses affect real people and that's why I don't like seeing them being used as slurs.

#asoiaf ask #laren-dorrs

[agentrouka-blog]

Jon is said to be called black heart bastard in books. Besides him Rhaegar, Jaime, Bronn and Brown Ben Plumm are mention to have black hearts. Melisandre told Davos that Others also have black heart. Do you think it's implying about treachery and duplicity in these characters?

Oh, let's do it the old-fashioned way and just check out Every Single Mention! :)

One thing that stands out is that the black heart is usually assigned in an accusatory manner by a different character, so the connotation to treachery or cruelty is definitely an in-universe trope, while at the same time creating some fun parallels between those so described.

Black hearts a-plenty. Lots of quotes.

"Rhaegar … Rhaegar won, damn him. I killed him, Ned, I drove the spike right through that black armor into his black heart, and he died at my feet. They made up songs about it. Yet somehow he still won. (AGOT, Eddard X)

-> Dead, yet triumphant. An armored heart.

So many dead, so very many. Their corpses hung limply, their faces slack or stiff or swollen with gas, unrecognizable, hardly human. The garments the sisters took from them were decorated with black hearts, grey lions, dead flowers, and pale ghostly stags. (ACOK, Tyrion XV)

-> A sigil worn by the dead.

Styr scowled. "His heart may still be black."

"Then cut it out." (ASOS, Jon II)

-> A mark of treachery. In need of killing.

"So tell me, Ser Davos Seaworth, and tell me truly—does your heart burn with the shining light of R'hllor? Or is it black and cold and full of worms?" [...] It is well you did not lie to me. I would have known. The Other's servants oft hide black hearts in gaudy light, so R'hllor gives his priests the power to see through falsehoods." She stepped lightly away from the cell. "Why did you mean to kill me?" (ASOS, Davos III)

-> Treacherous, in opposition to fire, with ill intent.

"Why? Is it your fault that Bronn's an insolent black-hearted rogue? He's always been an insolent black-hearted rogue. That's what I liked about him." (ASOS, Tyrion IX)

-> A mark of disloyalty.

Ser Brynden laughed again. "Much as I would welcome the chance to take that golden sword away from you and cut out your black heart, your promises are worthless. I would gain nothing from your death but the pleasure of killing you, and I will not risk my own life for that . . . as small a risk as that may be." (AFFC, Jaime VI)

-> A mark of treachery. In need of killing.

Jon felt as stiff as a man of sixty years. Dark dreams, he thought, and guilt. His thoughts kept returning to Arya. There is no way I can help her. I put all kin aside when I said my words. If one of my men told me his sister was in peril, I would tell him that was no concern of his. Once a man had said the words his blood was black. Black as a bastard's heart. (ADWD, Jon VI)

-> A mark of treachery (against his family) caused by torn loyalty (between the Watch and the Starks).

"Ser Grandfather knows how to count. The Second Sons have gone over to the Yunkai'i." Daario turned his head and spat. "That's for Brown Ben Plumm. When next I see his ugly face I will open him from throat to groin and rip out his black heart." (ADWD, Daenerys VI)

-> A mark of treachery. In need of killing.

A horn of mead was never far from his hand, so the spittle he sprayed when making threats was sweet with honey. He called Jon Snow a craven, a liar, and a turncloak, cursed him for a black-hearted buggering kneeler, a robber, and a carrion crow, accused him of wanting to fuck the free folk up the arse. Twice he flung his drinking horn at Jon's head, though only after he had emptied it. (ADWD, Jon XI)

-> Variety! An unrelenting negotiator with high demands who cannot be moved. Treacherous only in the expectations of generosity placed on him, not in true falseness.

Ghost came racing from the gate. Tormund's horse shied so hard that the wildling almost lost his saddle. "Naught to be feared?" Jon said. "Ghost, stay."

"You are a black-hearted bastard, Lord Crow." Tormund Horn-Blower lifted his own warhorn to his lips. The sound of it echoed off the ice like rolling thunder, and the first of the free folk began to stream toward the gate. (ADWD, Jon XII)

-> Same as above: Unrelenting, intimidating, stern.

Bonus Black-heartedness:

The Hoares

The west coast of the North has also oft been beset by reavers, and several of the Hungry Wolf's wars were forced upon him when longships out of Great Wyk, Old Wyk, Pyke, and Orkmont descended upon his western coasts beneath the banners of Harrag Hoare, King of the Iron Islands. For a time the Stony Shore did fealty to Harrag and his ironmen, swathes of the wolfswood were nothing but ashes, and Bear Island was a base for reaving, ruled by Harrag's black-hearted son, Ravos the Raper.  (The World of Ice and Fire - The North: The Kings of Winter)

Archmaester Hake tells us that the kings of House Hoare were, "black of hair, black of eye, and black of heart." Their foes claimed their blood was black as well, darkened by the "Andal taint," for many of the early Hoare kings took maidens of that ilk to wife. True ironborn had salt water in their veins, the priests of the Drowned God proclaimed; the black-blooded Hoares were false kings, ungodly usurpers who must be cast down. (The World of Ice and Fire - The Iron Islands: The Black Blood)

-> A mark of cruelty as well as treachery and illegitimacy. In need of killing. (Historically opposed to the dragons.)

The Heart of Old Volantis

Who built it? When? Why? Most maesters accept the common wisdom that declares it to be of Valyrian construction, for its massive walls and labyrinthine interiors are all of solid rock, with no hint of joins or mortar, no chisel marks of any kind, a type of construction that is seen elsewhere, most notably in the dragonroads of the Freehold of Valyria, and the Black Walls that protect the heart of Old Volantis.  (The World of Ice and Fire - The Reach: Oldtown)

They must have a library in Old Volantis, surely. I may find a better copy there, if I can find a way inside the Black Walls to the city's heart. (ADWD, Tyrion IV)

 One looked toward the Long Bridge and the black-walled heart of Old Volantis across the river. (ADWD, Tyrion VII)

-> A black heart may simply be armored in black, protecting what is within.

So a black heart does, indeed, indicate treachery and duplicity, mortal animosity, often in opposition to a fire-related enemy. It can also indicate illegitimacy, and it carries a strong connotation with death, though in the case of Ben Plumm it is survival he champions. It may indicate a "wall" or "armor" around the true intentions of the heart, similarly to a metaphorical Wall of Ice.

Honorable mention: Dark Heart

One spoke with the timbre of a child. The floating heart pulsed from dimness to darkness. [...] Perched above her, the dragon spread his wings and tore at the terrible dark heart, ripping the rotten flesh to ribbons, and when his head snapped forward, fire flew from his open jaws, bright and hot.  (ACOK, Daenerys IV)

-> In opposition to Daenerys and her dragons.

The dwarf woman studied her with dim red eyes. "I see you," she whispered. "I see you, wolf child. Blood child. I thought it was the lord who smelled of death . . ." She began to sob, her little body shaking. "You are cruel to come to my hill, cruel. I gorged on grief at Summerhall, I need none of yours. Begone from here, dark heart. Begone!" (ASOS, Arya VIII)

-> A child. A wolf child. A dark heart.

Or, interestingly distinct: Heart of Darkness

At her command, one produced an iron key. The door opened, hinges shrieking. Daenerys Targaryen stepped into the hot heart of darkness and stopped at the lip of a deep pit. Forty feet below, her dragons raised their heads. Four eyes burned through the shadows—two of molten gold and two of bronze. (ADWD, Daenerys II)

-> Where dragons dwell.

Most sinister of all the sorcerers of Asshai are the shadowbinders, whose lacquered masks hide their faces from the eyes of gods and men. They alone dare to go upriver past the walls of Asshai, into the heart of darkness. On its way from the Mountains of the Morn to the sea, the Ash runs howling through a narrow cleft in the mountains, between towering cliffs so steep and close that the river is perpetually in shadow, save for a few moments at midday when the sun is at its zenith. In the caves that pockmark the cliffs, demons and dragons and worse make their lairs. The farther from the city one goes, the more hideous and twisted these creatures become...until at last one stands before the doors of the Stygai, the corpse city at the Shadow's heart, where even the shadowbinders fear to tread. Or so the stories say. (The World of Ice and Fire - The Bones and Beyond: Asshai-by-the-Shadow)

-> A place of demons, dragons "and worse". A place of corpses. Marked by the run of a river named Ash, a city named Stygai. Truly stygian.

Far be in from me to cast aspersions (Lies, I love casting those.) but given that Jon is associated with the term most frequently, I'd suspect he will end up playing a role in opposition to a fire-related enemy, who will want him dead, guarding his heart's true intentions behind a black armor and plotting with ill intent. Perhaps accused of trying to be a usurper, perhaps accused of demanding too much, perhaps trying to reconcile a taint in his blood with his loyalty to the Starks.

#rouka queue #long post #quote compilation #black heart #jon snow #parallels #anti daenerys targaryen #not really but you know

[tracybirds]

Remember my TAG Sims 4 save that I’m building? Well it’s well time for an update on where I’m at! I’m having great fun populating the worlds with characters and various people’s OCs* and thought I’d show off how they’re going! I’m focusing on CAS (Create A Sim) rather than building in this save and trying to create a full world of sims! Also note that I’m planning on the gameplay beginning with a teenage Jeff, so no main characters for now. I play with aging off and age them all manually so the other characters will just stay the same age until I’m ready to interact with them.

I’ve finished three worlds; Willow Creek, Oasis Springs, and Sulani. Working on Newcrest and Henford-on-Bagley next! Today I'll show off the characters made in Willow Creek :)

*I’m only showing the TAG characters and the OCs I have made for them today, not OCs made by other people... mostly because I'm not done!! Also if you're interested in my making your Thuderbirds OCs, let me know! I have a lot of households to fill lol and they'll just hang out in the background of the game :D

Notable changes: I moved the park to the Oakenstead lot, added a second park (in Foundry Cove) and a skate park. I changed the museum into a botanical library and placed a community garden next to it. There is now an early childhood education centre and a hospital that can be visited, and I placed a gym and a museum. I did not make any of the builds, they’re all found on the gallery and then tweaked.

There are twelve households in Willow Creek, including an apartment with four families. The only townies I care about are the Goths so they’ll end up being the only non TAG characters. I found a renovated Goth Mansion and a Goth family revamped to look closer to their Sims 2 counterparts on the gallery and stuck them in there :)

Sims 4 lore down, let me show off the sims!!

Sally, Grant and Jeff Tracy

In this save, Jeff has two brothers and a sister, based off of @amistrio's hc :D

Kyrano, Kayo and Tin-Tin

I decided I wanted to add in Tin-Tin and I have vague memories of reading a fic where they were sisters, so I went ahead and did it :D

Brains, Brains and Fermat Hackenbacker

I love Brains ahaha so I put him in twice :D why not after all!

The Apartment Building has four families: Ned Tedford, Tycho Reeves (and his brother David...lol), Wayne Rigby (and his daughter Eleanor... double lol, I think it was @katblu42 who suggested that name :D), and Kat Cavanaugh (who I gave a sister who lives in Oasis Springs, but I've included said sister for completeness)

Ned Tedford

I gave him lots of freckles mostly because I think they look sweet ahaha... I'm tempted to make Gladys a Plant Sim, but for now he's just going to enjoy gardening :D

Tycho and David Reeves

Come on... I had to XD David's a doctor whose aspiration in life is to solve the Strangerville mystery ahaha

Wayne and Eleanor Rigby

Yes the glasses are on purpose :D I love the idea of Rigby being a single dad and I also aged him up a little simply because he's clearly been with the GDF for a while and it made sense to me.

Kat and Sara Cavanaugh

Sara is Kat's older sister but they don't get on so they live in different worlds.

And finally, our last couple of houses are filled by...

Cass McCready, Aiden Hawkins and Theo McCready-Hawkins

Cass is obviously our favourite firefighter, and so I decided to create Aiden to be her fiance and Theo to be their kid. I always imagined Cass having two boys and to be a single mum when she met iR for the first time, so I did give Aiden a couple of less desirable traits lol... I'd like to play out their story at some point so they only have Theo to start :D

Reece and Dobbs (aka our favourite space pirates/scrappers!)

I love these guys so much, they crack me up :D They're space married, don't question me on this, and they live in a tiny home with some chickens xD I might see if I can replace their current home with one that's modelled after a spaceship bc that would be fun!

Robert and Aidan Williams

Aidan is one of my favourite kid characters in the show and I love him! So cool headed even when crisis is happening and his dad is hurt :( I thought for a long time about whether I'd add in more family but then I realised the house was only two bedrooms and then I invented a story where his mum had recently passed away and him and Gordon could have some bittersweet bonding (bc Gordon stays in touch and remembers everyone obviously!!) so I decided to leave them as they were and also the smaller the household the less likely the game is to crash lol

WillowCreek also is resident to three OC families, but they are not mine so I don't want to post about them without permission :)

Anyway I hope you enjoyed the update on this!!! Someday I'll have real gameplay to share lol, but I'm having so much fun building the world up!

#thunderbirds are go #sims 4 #uh yup #sometimes i sims #that should be my tag for this lol

[mattyalwayssmokesweed]

What makes you think Arya is going to be queen in the north?

A lot of things actually. This is going to be long.

First of all, in the first book, Ned tells Arya:

"You," Ned said, kissing her lightly on the brow, "will marry a king and rule his castle, and your sons will be knights and princes and lords and, yes, perhaps even a High Septon." — Eddard V, A Game of Thrones

I always thought that was significant, especially because then she tells Sansa, who at that moment was betrothed to an actual prince, this:

“Sweet one,” her father said gently, “listen to me. When you’re old enough, I will make you a match with a high lord who’s worthy of you, someone brave and gentle and strong.” — Sansa III, A Game of Thrones

It could be nothing, really; to be honest, it could just be Ned trying to make his daughters feel better in the best way he could, but I still find it strange how it was exchanged between the sisters; Sansa will be betrothed to a Lord, and Arya to a Prince— it feels a little too much like foreshadowing. The Sansa part is more understandable because there’s only one Prince at the moment (well, two counting Tommen but he’s a bastard Baratheon, so of course he’s out of the equation just like Joffrey was), but then why would Ned say Arya will marry a prince, when it’s clear he has no intention of betrothing his daughters to the king’s sons?

Maybe because she is going to be crowned queen, and whoever she marries will be a king. How can she be crowned, if she’s in Essos currently training to be a Faceless Man?

That takes me to Lady Stoneheart, who Arya saved when she warged into Nymeria. Arya technically brought her mother back using her connection to her direwolf, and Beric Dondarrion gave her the kiss of life— so the gods decided to accept the exchange between Beric and Catelyn’s lives, but why? Because they (or R'hllor, more likely) are angry at the Freys for breaking the guest right, which is reffered to as a sacred law. If we take into consideration the story Bran is told about the Rat Cook, then we know the gods don’t like it when the guest right is broken, which to me means they brought Catelyn back to avenge everyone who had broken that sacred law— that’s why Lady Stoneheart is so vengeful even though she’s only been brought back once (she was dead for more time, I know, but still) in comparison to Beric, who only really suffered from memory lost and losing himself after six times being revived by Thoros of Myr, Catelyn came back even worse, which makes me believe she’s being used as a weapon by the gods, who are angry at the Freys.

Now, Lady Stoneheart, in the last time we see her, has Robb’s crown

In [Lady Stoneheart’s] hands was a crown, a bronze circlet ringed by iron swords. She was studying it, her fingers stroking the blade as if to test their sharpness. Her eyes glimmered under her hood. — Brienne VIII, A Feast for Crows

She’s holding onto that crown both for sentimental reasons (it belonged to her firstborn) and as a reminder of what the Freys did to her family. But I think she’s waiting for one of her children to appear. Now this is pure speculation, but I think Catelyn knows somehow her children are alive— maybe she met with Ned and Robb in the afterlife (is that how George calls Heaven? I can’t remember lol) and realized none of her other children are there except for Robb.

Now, even if that’s not true because it’s speculation, Catelyn is aware that Sansa was “de-legitimized” by Robb on his official will:

"A king must have an heir. If I should die in my next battle, the kingdom must not die with me. By law Sansa is next in line of succession, so Winterfell and the north would pass to her." His mouth tightened. "To her, and her lord husband. Tyrion Lannister. I cannot allow that. I will not allow that. That dwarf must never have the north." — Catelyn V, A Storm of Swords

So Sansa is no longer the next in line of succession because Robb “took her out” of the will, in a way. So who’s next, now that Robb’s heir, Jon, is also dead? And yes, we all know Melisandre is bringing him back, but between Jon and Arya who Catelyn would choose as the next ruler of the North?

Lady Stoneheart is waiting for one of her children to come to her so she can crown them, and given the connection Arya has with the Riverlands and that both Rickon and Bran are far away. If Rickon is smuggled by Davos, he’d be taken to White Harbor and presented to Wyman Manderly, which isn’t in anyway close to where the Brotherhood without Banners is; Bran is too busy being a tree. That only leaves us Arya.

Why do I think Arya is going to be crowned? Her direwolf is the alpha of a pack of wolves in the Riverlands; the Brotherhood without Banners knows Arya and would support her claim; Brienne and Jaime swore to protect the Stark sisters… it all comes together to Arya being queen, with Brienne and Jaime as part of her Queensguard, and the BwB as her army (and if Edric Dayne ever shows up, I believe he would also support her claim). She will be crowned in the Inn of the Kneeling Man, where the last King in the North, Torrhen Stark, kneeled to Aegon the Conqueror.

I don’t think it’s going to last, however— Arya might like or dislike being queen, we don’t know, but she would give the crown to either of her brothers (Jon, Bran or Rickon) without question. But I think it’s important that Arya, as Queen, leaves the northmen to take back Winterfell and for her to stay there until either one of her siblings comes back— which probably will be Jon since he’s the closest, but maybe it’ll be Rickon once Wyman hears the northmen have taken Winterfell with Arya as their queen. (Wishful thinking again, but we may even get an Arya and Rickon reunion in White Harbor and have the two siblings leaving the armies as queen and king)

Now, how will Arya get to the Riverlands if she’s in the House of Black and White training with the Faceless Men? I think there’s going to be big fallout between Arya and the Faceless Men, which will make Arya go back to Westeros and seek out Nymeria, and maybe even Gendry and the BwB in the last place she saw them. And if she hears her mother is back, she’s going to go look for her. Let’s remember this:

That night she went to sleep thinking of her mother, and wondering if she should kill the Hound in his sleep and rescue Lady Catelyn herself. — Arya XII, A Storm Of Storms

And this:

It was her mother she wanted, not her mother's sister. — Arya XII, A Storm of Swords

We are reminded constantly that Arya loves her mother. If she had the change to see her again, she’ll take it in a heartbeat. And once they meet again, Catelyn will crown her. Also:

"In that one she was always looking for her mother, stumbling through a wasted land of mud and blood and fire. It was always raining in that dream, and she could hear her mother screaming, but a monster with a dog’s head would not let her go save her." — Cat of the Canals, A Feast for Crows

Could be about the Red Wedding and Arya’s guilt for not being able to stop the Freys for murdering her family (which is obviously not her fault— she was just a kid and there was nothing she could’ve done), but it could also foreshadow their reunion.

So yeah, I believe Arya going to be Queen in the North, if not permanently. But I do think she’s going to take back Winterfell and kill the Boltons, especially when we know this:

Dressing her in grey and white serves no good if the girl is left to sob. The Freys may not care, but the northmen… they fear the Dreadfort, but they love the Starks. — The Turncloak, A Dance with Dragons

And:

What do you think passes through their heads when they hear the new bride weeping? Valiant Ned's precious little girl. — The Turncloak, A Dance with Dragons

The Northmen will help Arya and support her claim as Queen in the North is they discover Ramsay married a girl who was pretending to be Arya. I believe that would be the final push that would make them raise arms against the Boltons and go to Arya to help the Stark girl take back her home and her name, which Ramsay took from her and gave it to someone else.

#a song of ice and fire #asoiaf #game of thrones #arya stark #a storm of swords #a dance with dragons #a feast for crows #a clash of kings #adwd #jon snow #catelyn tully #catelyn stark #robb stark #sansa stark #ramsay snow #ramsay bolton #house stark #ned stark #acok #affc #bran stark #lady stoneheart #pro arya stark #queen in the north #arya stark queen in the north #the winds of winter #twow #a dream of spring #ados #asoiaf theories

[justviwriting]

'A New Home'

Fandom: A Song of Ice and Fire Characters: Catelyn Stark, Ned Stark Pairing: Ned/Cat Rating: T Words: 2.873 Summary: “Of course, sometimes her laughed; smiled at her; gave her a sweet compliment. But those moments were always short-lived. And because he always went back to his sombre demeanour, she was left to wonder whether any of it had been genuine at all. She knew he was genuine when they were alone in her bedroom, and it was also where she found the most comfort with him.” A short oneshot about Catelyn and Ned at the beginning of their marriage A/N: I’ve been thinking about Ned and Cat a lot lately, so I wrote this small, mostly fluffy oneshot. Hope you like it :)

[you can also read it on AO3]

Catelyn walked through the courtyard, trying to resist the urge to pull the coat closer around her neck, or to run back inside to grab another scarf. None of those northern folks appeared to care about the cold, so neither would she. One day, the cold might not bother her anymore. One day, she might not care what anyone thought. But today was not that day.

She always noticed their looks and could always hear their whispers. Of course she was never treated with anything but respect, yet courtesies did not matter to her. This was her home now; she was a part of this place. She needed to be a part of this place, fulfilling her duty as Lady of Winterfell. And for that, she needed their genuine respect.

To them, she was just some southern woman, serving as Lady Stark through a marriage many of them had been opposed to. Calling this place – that was so different from where she came from – her home was already difficult in itself. The weather aside, it was the people that were different; the clothes, the food, the traditions, even the music. Of course she was trying her best, and she would certainly not shy away from changing her ways to succeed. She had always done her duty. She had married a man upon her father’s request, and she had been able to give her husband a son and heir shortly after their wedding. She should be filled with pride and joy, yet she was not. Robb gave her joy – far beyond that – but she could hardly cling onto a toddler; a toddler that would become Lord of Winterfell one day.

And while her son brought her joy, there was also the other boy. As Jon Snow grew, so did his resemblance to Ned. Robb, on the other hand, resembled her with his red locks, yet none of the Stark traits visible. Occasionally, Ned mentioned how he could see himself in Robb’s face, and Catelyn always gave him a faint smile at that. She doubted his words were genuine. Perhaps he was trying to find himself within his legitimate son’s face, perhaps it was out of fondness for him, but she also knew that he said it because he was very well aware of what everyone else thought; she knew he said it so to calm her mind. And she might feel grateful for that but somehow, it filled her with anger instead. If he really wanted to ease her mind, he would send his bastard son away, yet he was determined not to, without granting Catelyn a single explanation. He never wanted to talk about the boy in general, and Catelyn refrained from asking questions, knowing very well he would not give her answers.

As Catelyn went through the courtyard, she also passed the construction site of a new, small building. The work had appeared out of nowhere, without her knowledge, and upon asking what it was, one of the workers had curtly told her that it had been commissioned by Lord Stark, but not more. As head of the household, Catelyn surely felt entitled to know what kind of new buildings would be raised on those grounds, but apparently no one believed that she had a right to know. She had gone to Ned then, but he, too, had not given her an answer and simply told her that it should not trouble her.

Her husband’s face was a difficult one to read. His expressions were as cold as the place he was lord over. His sentences were often short, his words firm, and his face blank. He certainly did not appear as a person one would like to confide in. He was also very hesitant with her – almost treating her as if she were made out of brittle glass. After she had arrived at Winterfell, he had mostly left her to herself. She had been the one who had sought him out then, asking him to join her bed, so they could fulfil their duty. Eventually, he had let her know that he had simply wanted to give her time to adjust, not wanting to pressure her into anything, and even admitted to feeling uncertain whether she would even have wanted to see him after learning about Jon Snow. His words had eased her mind then. She had feared that he did not want her – did not care for her at all; feared that he was too in love with that unknown woman, the one who had given him his bastard son. The latter might still be true. While he did not avoid her, he was still careful around her. He was very different from his brother in that aspect – or any aspect, really. Brandon had been quite open and bold, even brash, and had certainly never been hesitant around her. She had needed to constantly remind him to be careful that they were not seen together whenever he had kissed her; had to prevent him from going to far when he had put his hands on her body, in fear that he would have ruined her prior to their wedding. With Ned, she it sometimes felt as if she had to force him to put his hands on her. Not all the time, though.

The first time she had seen his expression open up had been during their wedding night. He had been gentle and careful, not making a single movement without asking her first. Catelyn had been fairly scared and had spent the day of the wedding wishing it had been his brother instead. However, in that moment, she had felt almost grateful that it had been him. When she had pulled down the blanket he had given her to cover up after her wedding dress had been torn apart, she had seen the desire on his face. And she had seen it several times since then.

Yet this was not the only time she wanted him to open up. Of course, sometimes her laughed; smiled at her; gave her a sweet compliment. But those moments were always short-lived. And because he always went back to his sombre demeanour, she was left to wonder whether any of it had been genuine at all. She knew he was genuine when they were alone in her bedroom, and it was also where she found the most comfort with him.

She had come to realise that her husband was a rather reserved person, and had therefore vowed to herself to be patient with him, and to try and help him in opening up to her. She obviously did not want to force him – neither could she – but she prayed that at some point, he would be less reserved with her. She would never call her husband an unpleasant man, and despite his bastard, she believed him to be fairly honourable. And when they were together, he could be caring and gentle, even kind.

Catelyn arrived in her chambers, preparing for dinner by changing into a different dress for the evening, one that was not stained by the mud. She sat at her dressing table as her maid, Lara, was doing her hair, talking about the unbearable weather. When Catelyn’s mother had died, she had received her mother’s previous maid – a woman, already advanced in age, who had eventually retired, resulting in a young Lara receiving the position just before Catelyn’s own marriage. Lara had not particularly enjoyed leaving the Riverlands either, but she was rather adventurous, so while she loved to complain about the weather, she had found her own joy in this strange place. And a charming and fun girl like her had found friends almost immediately, which had granted Catelyn the possibility to listen in on rumours flying around – not always in her favour, but at least she was not left in the dark.

As Lara rambled on, Catelyn suddenly interrupted her, asking, “Do you know what that new building is?”

She could see the smirk on Lara’s face through the reflection of the mirror. “I do, my lady,” she replied. “However, it is supposed to be a secret.”

“Am I not allowed to know a secret?” Catelyn asked, raising her brows.

“Well, it is a secret to be kept from you,” Lara told her. “On Lord Stark’s orders. He wants to surprise you, my lady.”

Catelyn turned around then. “What do you mean?”

Lara looked at her for a moment, silently, but still a smile on her lips. She was clearly thinking of what to tell her but Catelyn was almost certain that she was contemplating on whether she should tell her the truth. Eventually, Lara said, “I guess it cannot remain a secret for much longer either way, so I might as well tell you.” She made a dramatic pause before she added, “He is building a sept!”

“A sept?” Catelyn asked, staring at her confused.

Lara nodded, excited. “Yes, a sept – for us. Well, for you, of course, but also for us. Isn’t that wonderful?”

Catelyn was quite taken aback. Of course, a sept sounded wonderful – to have an actual place to pray in was something she had missed quite dearly. Yet she would have never dared to dream that this place allowed it. And somehow, she felt uneasy. She doubted everyone would rejoice in that decision as much as Lara did.

Before dinner, Catelyn went to Ned’s solar, wanting to talk about what Lara had just shared with her. She had not seen him all day, and as she entered, he was hovering over paperwork at his desk. He appeared fairly tired when he looked up at her.

“Am I disturbing you, my lord?” Catelyn asked.

Ned shook his head. “You are never disturbing me, my lady. Is it time for dinner yet?”

“Almost,” Catelyn replied. “But if you are too busy, I won’t take any offence if you had your dinner here.”

Ned gave her a small smile. “It’s fine, I will join you in a moment.” He looked back down on his desk, a rather strained expression on his face.

For a moment, Catelyn considered leaving him again. He clearly appeared stressed right now. However, she then remained inside the room, closing the door behind her. The noise made him look back up.

“Is something amiss?” Catelyn asked.

Ned looked at her for a moment, then sighed. “According to those letters, it appears that every harvest was awful, that the aftermath of the war still weighs heavy, and that therefore everyone wants a cut on their taxes, among other demands – at least that is what every single one of those letters seems to contain in one way or another…” He gestured at the letters lying in front of him.

“Do you believe their worries and demands to be genuine?” Catelyn asked then.

He sighed again. “The war is still weighing heavy on everyone but I do not doubt that they are exaggerating. They know I’m merely a younger brother,” he said then. “I fear they are hoping to use that to their own advantage.”

Catelyn bit her lip. She wanted to help him but she did not know whether her help was wanted. It was not her duty, after all. However, he was still her husband. Carefully, she asked, “Would you want to hear my advice?”

He clearly seemed surprised at her question but then nodded. “Yes, of course.”

Catelyn moved a bit closer to his desk. “I believe they are trying to examine you – scrutinize even. To see whether you are someone to rely on, someone to work with, or whether they should better think about themselves first. You would want them to respect you more than anything,” she added.

“I agree,” he told her. “Yet they are not wrong in wanting to test me. I am merely a younger brother. I fear I will make them all enemies of mine.”

Catelyn gave him a small smile. “There is no reason for you to play their games, my lord,” she told him. “Not everyone can be a friend, but if you are just and reasonable, you won’t create too many enemies either. Those men respect strength,” she added, remembering what her father had told her what felt like a million years ago. “Having doubts is not a flaw but a virtue, so you can always recognise your own faults. But do not let them know your doubts. Do what you deem to be right, based on your knowledge and experience, and I am certain you will earn their genuine respect and trust.”

He looked at her for a moment, then a smile appeared on his face. “Perhaps you should take over my duties, and I will take care of yours.”

Catelyn laughed slightly. “That would be quite the scandal, I believe.”

He chuckled at that and said, “Thank you for your advice, my lady. I very much appreciate it.”

Catelyn gave him another smile. Then she looked down, remembering why she had come by to begin with. Should she ask him about the sept now? Or should she, perhaps, simply act surprised once he would reveal it?

As she considered what to do, Ned stood up and said, “I suppose we should prepare for dinner now?”

He walked around his desk towards Catelyn. She bit her lip, then hesitatingly said, “There is a reason for why I wanted to talk to you … Someone mentioned that the new building is supposed to be a sept.”

He stared at her, surprised. “Who said that?” he asked. When Catelyn did not reply anything, he sighed. “It was supposed to be a surprise.”

Catelyn smiled at that. “It certainly is a surprise, my lord.”

 “Well, I guess it does not matter how you found out,” he said then, giving her a smile and looking at her for a moment before he asked, “Do you like it?”

She chuckled slightly. “I love it.” His face lightened up at that. She looked at him, wondering whether she should let him know her worries. She did not want him to regret it, as he appeared fairly excited, but she also wanted for him to open up to her more, and honesty was part of that. “Though I am slightly worried about what everyone else might think.”

“Does that matter?” he asked. “This is your home as well as theirs. You should feel comfortable here, not being forced to hide your faith.” She tried giving him another smile at that, though she did not succeed. She was glad that he felt that way but his opinion was hardly the only one that mattered. Apparently, he had noticed her uncertainty as he came closer now, prompting Catelyn to look back up at him. He smiled at her. “And Robb, and any future children, should have a place to pray as well.”

She stared at him, almost shocked at his words. “You would want for your heir to pray to the Seven?”

“Of course he should be raised in the faith of the Old Gods, but that does not mean he should be prevented from learning about your faith as well,” he told her. “He might be heir to Winterfell but he is still your son.” Catelyn was stunned by his words. Part of her felt relieved and happy, but it also troubled her. “Do not worry too much about what anyone else thinks. You are the Lady of Winterfell, and my wife. This place is your home, and I would also very much like for you to see it as such.” Carefully, he raised his hands, putting them on her arms. Catelyn smiled slightly at his reassuring touch. “I will do everything to make you feel comfortable and welcome here.”

She looked into his eyes. They were gentle again. “Thank you, my lord.” She raised her hand then, softly caressing his cheek with her fingers, then, slowly, she pulled him in for a kiss. He seemed surprised at first but then he put his arms around her, pulling her closer. Catelyn smiled slightly against his lips but then broke the kiss, leaning back into his arms, looking at him. His expression was open now – showing her the kindness and softness she so often longed to see. With his arms around her, all of her previous worries had suddenly vanished.

Her hand wandered into his hair then, gently brushing through it as she looked at him in silence, enjoying this moment of peacefulness. His hand was stroking along her back as he said, “I believe we should go to dinner now.”

She could tell by his eyes that he did not want to move, and neither did she. She did not want for this moment to vanish. She did not need dinner, she needed the comfort of his arms. She smiled at him then and said, “I’m certain they can wait for the Lord and Lady of Winterfell.” She continued brushing through his hair, then asked, “Is it possible to lock that door?”

He stared at her surprised for a second but then a smirk formed on his lips and without another word, her pulled her closer, kissing her again as Catelyn laughed.

#a song of ice and fire #asoiaf #fanfiction #catelyn stark #ned stark #ned x cat

[wizard-loving-wizard]

okay so far i really love amnesty and it's so different than i expected. let me dump my thoughts

first off. beforehand, the title "monster of the week" completely misled me because i really thought that meant there would be a new monster every single episode, when really it's just a bunch of mini-arcs exactly like every other taz story lmfao. and now that im in it, im really enjoying the MotW game because it lends itself so well to the narrative and i feels so easy to interpret and understand.

the pcs are fantastic... i adore duck so much, what a guy!! beacon is the coolest 😭 and there's something about the way travis plays aubrey that feels so genuine and lived-in and very endearing. that highly impulsive bisexual 20-something stage magician just leaps off the waveform

ned is fun but i think he's my least favorite clint pc because i often get annoyed by the terrible lies clint comes up with that are so extreme just to be funny it ends up being not funny at all... and so far ned's class has hardly been used at all, his backstory as a criminal serves the story well but it feels like the class itself isn't very useful. though some of his decisions have been very very interesting and compelling to me, like sacrificing his car, and taking the hit to stop the goatmen from escaping. also if he kept his loot from the night he robbed aubrey's house, does that mean he still has the flamebright pendant?!? bitch give it back

but anyways i love the worldbuilding so much and the setting and the town. very cozy fun good vibes

the NPCs. oh my god the Npcs i love them so much. i would die for momma and barclay. minerva has my heart. im so thirsty for more dani scenes. heathcliff is a fantastic char. i've only had indrid for like 3 episodes now but if anything happens to him or he leaves town, i will explode. and billy??? my sweet billy??? i am extremely invested in billy's wellbeing, what a darling.

one random thing. the boys never asked about how the sylfs get their magical disguises. and after they met indrid, they lied to barclay about going to meet him, as if indrid is some secret stranger. none of the boys said anything about how it seems very obvious that indrid is the one who gives all the sylfs at amnesty lodge their disguise accessories so im not sure if they've realized... maybe it's just too obvious to point out lmfao but like why did they lie about where they were going? anyways whatever

i have a lot of thoughts about the story that are kind of jumbled. there's just a LOT going on. it's increasingly sus to me, all of the similarities between the abominations and the sylvan world. somehow the abominations DON'T come from there, even though they have the exact same goat people and the exact same black slime as the corrupt sylvan forest (i can't remember what it's called).

overall, very fun campaign. so many good goofs. im having a great time

#text #the adventure zone #amnesty

[a-libra-writes]

... What if in Modern-AU Catelyn lives?

And it's not the whole normal affair of Ex-wife and New-Wife hating each other, it's more like a besties type thing?

Catelyn sometimes specifically comes over to hang out with Ned's new wife. She gives Ned a 'Oh Hi, How are- 'Y/N! There's a new cafe I wanted to go with you to!' or 'Ned, you look great- Y/N! you're glowing! Do you know the gender of the baby yet?'

Rickon talks about having 2 moms to his schoolmates, confusing the teacher. Because they were sure that Rickon had a father? They've seen a father... Right?

Only for Catelyn and Y/n to show up at the next PTA meeting when Ned is busy and can't come. Further confusing the Teacher.

(Que teacher panicking, they haven't been releasing this child to a random stranger, right?)

It was all cleared up, but Ned still gets suspicious looks from the teacher.

Their friendship was more like sisters than anything else. Catelyn hasn't spoken to Lysa in so long... She misses her sister and so Y/N is a surrogate *and better than Lysa,*

Oh how interesting!! I love how much youve thought about this haha, ill add a few cents!

In this case, Cat and Ned must've separated on amicable terms and she still sees the kiddos a ton - probably has joint custody. I like the idea of Sansa's college being close to Catelyn's place so she can room with her mom if she doesn't want to do dorms (plus she can keep Lady with her!).

It's super sweet she's involved with the new wife too, especially if she's very new to motherhood and super anxious about it. Catelyn def has plenty of expertise and advice and might come across as pushy, but she genuinely wants to help! She def asks Arya and Bran to help out the new wife with some chores to make her burdens a little easier (sometimes they listen, lol)

I think in modern!au, Catelyn and Lysa are def those sisters who grew up super close and just kept drifting apart :^( Cat tried to lean on her after the divorce, but Edmure ended up being more supportive... ... I like to think it took some time for Catelyn to warm up to the new wife, just because she felt protective of Ned. Once they're friends she's really glad to have that sort of female companionship. I kinda think she'd place more importance on a female friend?? Or she's of the generation that "men and women can't be close without it being romantic", yanno.

(Not related but I feel she mentors Brienne in some way in this au!!!)

I think Ned worries they wouldnt get along bc he still loves Cat a lot (in a familial way now) and he's worried Rickon and Bran and Arya won't adjust well... but after time and lots of talking and reassuring it works out. The PTA meetings are def funny, but imagine the sports games for Arya ... the hockey moms are gossiping about "Catelyn and that other woman" being in the same place and they want the catty drama lol. But Cat and the new wife are sitting next to each other like GOOOO ARYA YOU CAN DO IT BABY WOOOOO and now Arya has two embarrassing parents whooping at her while she plays 🤦🏾‍♀️

(Rickon drawing both his mommies and dad and siblings plus Jon at school and one teacher has a conspiracy theory that its some kind of FLDS situation LOL)

Also during holidays and family get togethers... new wife, Catelyn and Lyanna all drinking wine together as the evening winds down. Rickon is asleep on Catelyn and all the dogs are crowded under the table as they play cards and drink

#lysa is def an anti-vaxxer facebook mom lmfao #cersei isnt antivax and she wont stoop to facebook but she 100% instagram influences her kids #at least she doesnt bother with the fake live laugh love stuff lmao its all pics of her expensive clothes & #and vacations and perfectly coordinated children hashtag GIRLBOSS #i know she isnt related i just love her LOL #libra says stupid shit #libra headcanons #anon headcanons #modern!au #ned stark x reader #sort of

[eruverse]

Skimmed briefly thru Russian history to determine who’ve ever been Ivan’s lovers or fuckbuddies:

Verdick (subject to change)

Commentaries:

- Wow that’s such a brief list, 75% of humans are less pathetic than this and Ivan is like 1000 year old (yes I headcanon that Ivan’s lovers or fuckbuddies are really on the scarce end, he just has the vibe yknow)

- Francis is an understatement. I should look into it more deeply but this isn’t going to be contested. Anyway it was both fun and not fun, Ivan felt like a barn dog that was being forcefully domesticated.

- Yao (during Sino-Soviet alliance) is the only person Ivan has ever been married to. Funny that Yao is Ivan’s first husbando but Ivan is Yao’s… 73837382th. Ivan and Yao didn’t have the worst relationship but also def wasn’t the best. Their whole relationship goes back ONLY to the 17th century and it was meh, they are best behaved with each other in modern time only. Today they are plenty sweet but a bulk of that has the arrangey vibe they had during their short marriage decades ago. Most of it is still business.

- Alfred. I chose to not make them get together during USSR era simply bc it would be too schizo. At most they smooched (think of that famous pic with Soviet and American soldiers ahah) and thus their real relationship was in the 90s. There was real love, Ivan thought he could make it work, they could make it work, but alas, it ended up being the worst relationship Ivan has ever had (while for Alfred it was just disappointing for lots missed opportunities and potential. He never truly realized how much he fucked Ivan over btw. I have to say that not all of it is his fault ofc but he is also not not instrumental. And if there’s a choice between blaming Russians, Ivan’s own sons and daughters, and a foreigner, ofc Ivan would blame the foreigner especially one that is instrumental in it). Anyway, the 90s was fucked up for Ivan but it took him quite a long time to realize fr that they just simply can’t be together. That’s why, there wasn’t an exact breaking point no matter how fucked up he felt. It was just a gradual downspiral. At one point their bed became too stifling and depressing a place for Ivan.

There are WAY TOO MANY THINGS to talk abt their 90s relationship or the aftermath, but I’ll only talk abt one thing here: one reason Ivan is like. Salty abt the whole thing is because he showed Alfred like most, if not all, of his vulnerabilities and it wasn’t taken care of well. A betrayal to his very being. And other things. Ivan wasn’t only salty due to loss of power and influence in world stage but he basically had nothing to eat, difficult to not feel utterly humiliated and helpless when you couldn’t even fulfill ur basic needs. Any dignity of the self, gone. Anyway.

- Wow I didn’t even know Russia and Prussia had warmish relationship in empire era. Nice! During WW2 it was outright hateful but since it wasn’t all their relationship is I think it’d have progressed to be at least civil closer to modern time (also with Germany in general). I think Ivan’s relationship with Gilbert would be pretty cordial. Anw I’m hoping ppl would write more abt Ivan that’s not only being Soviet both in reality and mindset tho ahaha

- Ned: eh I’ve heard things. Ned will fuck whoever for business and Ivan liked him quite well.

- Serbia: one and only here means one and only TIME… but yeah. Most likely Serbia asked or offered. It was only once. Serbia still thinks about it. Anyway, it’s interesting that Serbia is older than Russia but still says that he’s totally the younger bro.

- Sadik: still contemplating. If it happened, it was def sorta hatesex. I need to look into this but I think there was a lot of fascination with each other also.

- Anyway I don’t think Ivan had any semblance of relationships with Soviet republics, and if he had, it was more of an isolated incident. Idk, I just think that as much as he obsessively keeps people close, he actually still keeps them at arm’s length. And Ivan hates looking vulnerable. The closer ppl are to him, actually the more restless and fearful he often feels.

- Also I don’t hc that he and Golden Horde had had a semblance of relationship (even forced one) bc… he was a kid and Golden Horde was too uninterested for things like that during that time. Much more amusing to chase little Vanya around.

- Need to look into his relationships with Nordics and Baltics but my interest in most things west of Russian border is really shot to hell. For now I don’t think any semblance of relationship had happened.

- Anyway, small hc: none of these guys took Ivan’s virginity as it was a human woman, or basically a human (I tend to think it was a woman tho). She lived nearby many centuries ago and Ivan still keeps tracks of her descendants and watches after them from afar sometimes, just like he watches over a lot of his people. Might or might not have a thing with the one and only Yekaterina.

#hetalia #aph russia #hws russia #aph america #hws america #aph france #hws france #aph china #hws china #god too many to tag im not gonna do it #my headcanon

[queenaryastark]

Arya Stark + Feminism

George R. R. Martin created Arya specifically as a feminist character:

I can’t say there’s any one specific model, but a lot of the women I’ve known over the years have had aspects of Arya with them. Especially some of the women I knew when I was a young man back in the ’60s and ’70s, you know — the decade of the sexual revolution and the feminist movement. I knew a lot of young women who weren’t buying into the, “Oh, I have to find a husband and be a housewife.”

That’s certainly part of Arya’s thing. There’s that scene where Ned is telling her, “Well, one day you’ll grow up and you’ll marry a great lord and you’ll be the lady of the castle.” And she says, “No, I won’t. I don’t want that. That’s Sansa, that’s not me.” I knew women who were saying things like that: “I don’t wanna be Mrs. Smith, I wanna be my own person.” -- GRRM, Rolling Stone 2019

This is illustrated in her first chapter where she argues the value of women with Jon and insists she should have the same opportunities to learn as her little brother, Bran:

She watched her little brother whack at Tommen. "I could do just as good as Bran," she said. "He's only seven. I'm nine."

---

"The Lannisters are proud," Jon observed. "You'd think the royal sigil would be sufficient, but no. He makes his mother's House equal in honor to the king's." "The woman is important too!" Arya protested. -- Arya I, AGOT

Later in the novel, she asks her father about three different careers she aspires to, all of which involve power and influence in her own right rather than through a husband or male relations:

"Yet someday he may be the lord of a great holdfast and sit on the king's council. He might raise castles like Brandon the Builder, or sail a ship across the Sunset Sea, or enter your mother's Faith and become the High Septon." But he will never run beside his wolf again, he thought with a sadness too deep for words, or lie with a woman, or hold his own son in his arms. Arya cocked her head to one side. "Can I be a king's councillor and build castles and become the High Septon?" -- Eddard V, AGOT

It’s interesting to note that while Arya and Ned are talking about how Bran’s aspirations to be a knight are over and Ned mentions sailing a ship across the Narrow Sea for his son, Arya doesn’t latch onto knighthood or sailing. She focuses on being a king’s councillor, architect, and high septon.

The historical figures Arya admires are progressive and assertive women who led others:

Nymeria nipped eagerly at her hand as Arya untied her. She had yellow eyes. When they caught the sunlight, they gleamed like two golden coins. Arya had named her after the warrior queen of the Rhoyne, who had led her people across the narrow sea. -- Arya I, AGOT

Anguy would teach her to use a bow, and she could ride with Gendry and be an outlaw, like Wenda the White Fawn in the songs. -- Arya XII, ASOS

In addition to admiring historical women, Arya defends other women by executing two rapists for their crime against another girl she never met, Layna. First she uses one of her death wishes on Chiswyck right after he tells the story of what he did. Raff the Sweetling’s execution was also due to his murder of Lommy, but he admitted to participating in the gang rape. Not only does she trick Raff into repeating Lommy’s last words, she presents herself as a young girl he can rape, only to turn the situation around on him.

Arya also has multiple positive female relationships and helps drive business to the Happy Port:

"The best whores are at the Happy Port, down by where the mummers' Ship is moored." She pointed. Some of the dockside whores were vicious, and sailors fresh from the sea never knew which ones. S'vrone was the worst. Everyone said she had robbed and killed a dozen men, rolling the bodies into the canals to feed the eels. The Drunken Daughter could be sweet when sober, but not with wine in her. And Canker Jeyne was really a man. "Ask for Merry. Meralyn is her true name, but everyone calls her Merry, and she is." Merry bought a dozen oysters every time Cat came by the brothel and shared them with her girls. She had a good heart, everyone agreed. "That, and the biggest pair of teats in all of Braavos," Merry herself was fond of boasting. Her girls were nice as well; Blushing Bethany and the Sailor's Wife, one-eyed Yna who could tell your fortune from a drop of blood, pretty little Lanna, even Assadora, the Ibbenese woman with the mustache. They might not be beautiful, but they were kind to her. "The Happy Port is where all the porters go," Cat assured the men of the Brazen Monkey. "'The boys unload the ships,' Merry says, 'and my girls unload the lads who sail them.'" -- Arya III, AFFC

#arya stark #canonarya #asoiaf #asoiaf meta #aryastarkmonth2022

[tvshowspoilers]

Soooo OFMD episode 6 thoughts…

I really haven’t processed the scene with Ed and Izzy enough yet to comment the way it deserves

I want to get that as a tattoo “poison into positivity” beautiful line

I love that like the art of fuckery there was a lot of humor until there was a tonal shift ( Stede killing Ned and Izzy battling Stede)

Hm, I really like Ed’s line that killing Ned isn’t worth the poison. Unfortunately he left it open for Stede to take the poison…

Still love that Taika brought his daughters!

I love the entire party scene and I adore that Stede worked it out by being Stede.

Aww the looks Ed and Stede share are so sweet

Honestly, a lot happened in this episode and I like that for how short it is. Kinda amazing

Love the sex marathon with Lucius and Pete…

I wonder if Stede planned to kill Ned or if it was a combination of guilt left over from Chauncey’s words mixed in with his protectiveness of Ed and the crew…Ed doesn’t seem to care at all?

Except for the guilt of letting Stede take the poison of killing him.

Tbh I like the role reversal between Ed and Stede in this episode.

Was part of the reason Stede killed Ned a test to see if it changed how Ed felt?

I want to know why Ed did that little shift after Ned said he likes Stede cause of his “amateur bumbling status”….is he like well true or is he like that’s gonna make him upset or is he thinking that’s not true cause he also does a little headshake (tho that might be to the pet statement) what? I want to knowwwww. I’m excited to see how fanfic authors write this scene!

Stede may have forgotten Jim’s words about killing someone takes a piece of you, huh

I think that the flashback scene of kid Stede was really well done and as some else said, shows that there’s cracks that Stede still has and isn’t as good as he shows. Also considering we have two episodes after 6, it was probably good that David didn’t go into full blown trauma territory or it would have been rushed. I’m one of those that wishes Stede’s trauma was addressed but the way things are playing out it’s better that it’s left to season 3

But Ed’s expression after Stede kills Ned actually kills me, thanks and then when he tries to comfort him

Gosh Izzy was so right to say wait

I can’t even begin to process that sex scene but they both consented and even though it was fast and a bad idea, they both continued it. I’ve got to watch it a few more times to get thoughts in order

Also fang is still my favorite character and I adore him “sore fingies” baby

I may not like this one as much as it’s season 1 counterpart but it’s a solid episode and I liked it

#ofmd s2 spoilers #our flag means death #spoilers #ofmd #stede bonnet #blackbeard #edward teach #blackbonnet #gentlebeard