— BEDROOM HYMNS
PAIRING — Ser Gwayne Hightower x fem!Reader // Queen Alicent Hightower x fem!Reader
SUMMARY — Your sister-in-law wishes for you to become one of her ladies-in-waiting but you become so much more. Things complicate when your husband comes to visit.
AUTHOR’S NOTE — The title is from Florence + The Machine song. Alicent is a lesbian in this fic but she's also very conflicted about it. Reader is 100% bisexual. I wanted to write this fic for some time now because I have a crush on Alicent ever since Season One so yeah... Here we go... 😩😈
WARNINGS — cheating, homosexuality seen as something *wrong* (by Alicent), mentions of sexual activities (no actual smut – tiiiiny bit in the beginning)
WORD COUNT — 6,240
ENGLISH IS MY SECOND LANGUAGE.
You moved away from between her trembling legs after a cry of pleasure muffled by her own hand that she had covered her mouth with. Alicent’s juices were dripping down your chin when you smirked at her and looked up to meet her big brown eyes. Those soft big brown eyes that you adored more than anything. You had always adored them. So full of sadness and softness and you had never wanted anything but to make her feel better.
“Have I pleased you?” You asked while peppering her soft inner thighs with your kisses although you knew the answer already. Her husband had no idea how to please her.
The Queen only nodded and looked away. Poor Alicent – she always felt bad and guilty after the peak had already been reached. The sudden realisation of her sin was soul-crushing but the tension and desire had been too great to ignore them. She deserved the relief and you did not see anything bad about it.
“How many times do we have to do this?” You sighed and lied next to her in her bed. Your fingertips caressed her sides and your lips attached themselves to the crook of her neck, smelling all the scented oils in her hair. She was The Queen of the Realm and she was pampered like no other Lady. “There is no shame in this.”
“There is a sin,” Alicent turned her head around to finally meet your gaze. She raised her hand to nervously play with the seven-pointed star pendant on her sweaty chest.
“Why?” You bit on your lip and caressed her auburn locks out of her face.
“It is betrayal,” she frowned as if she was getting frustrated with your lack of understanding.
“It would have been if you lied with a man,” you explained and kissed her cheek before laying on your back and staring at the ceiling.
“I should find your vague idea of morality perplexing,” Alicent pointed out and you couldn’t help but chuckle at her confession.
“But you do not and thank Gods for that,” you rolled your eyes with a smirk.
A silence occurred as Alicent kept playing nervously with the pendant between her fingers and you were staring at the ceiling and counting all the cracks.
“What kind of husband is my brother?” She asked suddenly and you turned your head around to look at her again.
“A good one,” you admitted, feeling nearly guilty for that because you knew why she was asking – her husband was not good. Not to her and not to her children.
“Why are you doing this then?” Alicent asked.
It was obvious why her brother was on her mind now. He would arrive at King's Landing any day now. You couldn’t wait to see Gwayne again after a few months of being apart and you only wished he had taken your son with him but he could not. Robyn was the eldest son and he was supposed to stay in Oldtown. He had just become a squire and leaving his knight for a few long weeks would not be advised, therefore you had to go on missing your boy. Day after day as if he was a burning hole in your chest. Mothers would always miss their sons, you assumed.
“To kill the time,” you shrugged your arms, not wanting to reveal how much Alicent meant to you and for how long. “And to help you. You are my friend and I love you,” you confessed.
Alicent always loved Princess Rhaenyra more. Your father was a Master of Coin in King Viserys’ Small Council and you were growing up together – three girls running around happily. Or rather – two girls following the Princess like two overjoyed puppies. Rhaenyra was the centre of everything for you and not only because she was the Princess but also because she meant everything to Alicent. No matter how much effort you were putting into making Alicent like you more, you were destined to fail for she always was choosing Rhaenyra over you.
It made you grow bitter towards The Princess but never towards Alicent. You were blaming yourself – you had to become more and try harder perhaps and maybe then you’d earn more than just leftover crumbs of her love and friendship.
You couldn’t understand your feelings back then – why was the attraction so strong, what was making you feel so attached to the young Hightower Lady. You were the same age and yet everything she said was like a command to you. Wherever she went, you followed. Even when you felt like a burden because she so clearly would rather be left alone with Rhaenyra. But Rhaenyra never minded your presence because to her you were only a pawn on the board, an ornament, an addition of no importance. So, you often witnessed the two girls laughing together, whispering, exchanging small gestures of affection. You were only watching. Observing as your heart ached.
During The Heir's Tournament you met Ser Gwayne Hightower, Alicent’s older brother. He was young then, eager to show off his abilities and make his family proud. Perhaps he did not have his sister’s big brown eyes but he had the auburn hair you loved so much about her and he had her softness about him. You were enamoured with him in no time and when he approached the royal box to greet his sister – he caught your eye and you caught his and for that moment when your eyes met, you felt butterflies all over your body.
Ser Gwayne Hightower received your favour on that day and the sparkles of joy in your eyes while you were throwing the wreath at him were very obvious to your father and to his as well. You could not know that then but they exchanged meaningful looks for a short moment.
Even though Gwayne lost the duel with Prince Daemon Targaryen, he did not lose your affection. In fact, witnessing him nearly winning and losing only because Prince Daemon chose to play dirty – it only solidified your feelings. Ser Gwayne was a righteous man, a chivalrous knight and a brave one, too. It took lots of courage to face Prince Daemon Targaryen himself.
Gwayne was carried away with his face covered in blood and dirt while his mind was filled with thoughts of you – of losing your favour and your interest. However, you hurried to his side right after the tournament ended to make sure he was fine. And at the sight of you – he truly was fine again.
You were only ten and five but you knew already that Ser Gwayne was the only man you could see yourself being married off to. Thankfully, your father saw that, too. Two years later you were sent to Oldtown and for the whole time in between you were exchanging letters. When Alicent was married off to King Viserys shortly after his wife’s death, you still felt bitter but not as much as you could because you mostly felt excited about your own upcoming wedding.
However, the sadness and anxiety on Alicent’s face on her wedding day were a sight you would never forget.
Years and years of the happy marriage had passed and you were still in touch with your sister-in-law because of the letters you were exchanging and her son that you and Gwayne were raising in Oldtown – Prince Daeron Targaryen. But other than that, you had your own life now to live, your own duties, your own offspring and Alicent was simply not occupying your mind as much as in your adolescent years.
You were aware of King Viserys’ health getting worse and worse as Alicent was ruling the Kingdom in his name. The burden of responsibility was heavy and her marriage was getting more and more difficult. You couldn’t say the same of your own union – you loved Gwayne and he loved you. Just like every married couple you had your misunderstandings and disagreements but you were grateful for him every day of your life and you knew well that he felt the same towards you.
It was after breakfast on one of those days that seemed to be pretty typical in the morning and then they turned out to be life-changing for a person. Without a warning and without an ominous feeling deep in one’s gut, they just happened and changed lives.
A letter came to you from Queen Alicent and you expected nothing of great importance in it so you put it below the pile of letters you had to respond to this morning. You sat by your desk and dipped the feather in the black ink as you started to perform one of your duties as Lady Hightower, helping your husband to run Oldtown in his father’s name.
Letter after letter, until finally you were left with the last one. You opened it with a small yawn, which turned into a frown after reading Alicent’s plea and request.
“What is it?” Gwayne entered your chambers this very moment but his smile dropped at the sight of your face.
You folded the letter suddenly as if it was a secret or something dirty but it only increased your husband’s curiosity as he approached the table and raised an eyebrow at you.
“What is it?” He repeated the question and you pinched the bridge of your nose, trying to find the right words.
“It is from your sister,” you replied and looked up to meet his confused gaze. He knew about your friendship and for you to react this way at one of Alicent’s letters was simply unusual.
“Is he dead?” Was all Gwayne asked.
“No, Gods, no,” you shook your head and took a deep breath in. “Not yet,” you added.
“What is it then?” Gwayne lifted your chin up gently to make sure your eyes would still be on his. You swallowed a lump in your throat and finally decided to tell him what his sister had requested.
“Queen Alicent wishes for me to become one of her ladies-in-waiting,” you revealed and Gwayne’s confusion only grew. “She feels lonely in King’s Landing, she needs a friend by her side. Somebody she can trust.”
“It is out of the question,” Gwayne took the folded paper from your hands and read the letter himself, still standing above you as you nervously fidgeted with your fingers.
Your own feelings were chaotic at that moment. Something in your heart wanted to run to King’s Landing at this very moment because Alicent needed you and because you wanted to make her life easier and make her happy. You had always wanted nothing but her happiness.
But you had your own duties in Oldtown and you had your husband here and your children. You could not just leave like that, could you? Especially when Oldtown was so far away from King’s Landing.
“It is out of the question,” Gwayne said again and threw the letter on your desk. “Reply to her that your Lord Husband does not agree.”
“She is your sister,” you looked up at him, pleadingly.
“Yes and I have nothing but love for her in my heart but her request is selfish,” he clenched his jaw as he looked you up and down, visibly surprised that you were not agreeing with him on this. “Why does she want to take you away from me? You are my wife.”
“Your wife – not your property,” you reminded him.
“That is debatable,” Gwayne huffed and looked away but before you could scold him, he continued with more. “Living in a different city, different castle, so far away from me… Will you still be my wife?” He turned his head around in an attempt to try to read your emotions.
“I will forever be your wife,” you stood up and took his hand into yours before placing it on your chest where your heart was. “But she needs me, Gwayne. She’s all alone there with no one by her side.”
“Father is with her,” Gwayne interrupted you. “He always favoured Alicent.”
“You do know that being favoured by him is a burden, not a prize,” you reminded. “Please, let me go. For some time at least. Until The King dies. It should not be for long and I’ll take the girls with me,” you tried to convince him as your fingers caressed his hand on your chest. “Please,” you whispered, looking up deep into his eyes.
After a long moment of silence and hesitation, your husband nodded his head reluctantly.
A few months later, you found yourself standing in the courtyard of The Red Keep, awaiting your husband’s arrival. He had a business to deal with in The Crownlands and he wanted to spend a few days with his family, too. You were caressing the creases on your dress with your hands and your teenage daughter Margaery was fixing her younger sister’s hairdo. Little Wyllow had been missing her father the most and she couldn’t wait for his arrival. In fact, she had made you and Margaery wait there since early morning and at this point you were exhausted already but you didn’t complain since you couldn’t wait to see Gwayne again either.
Even though it also felt a little weird and awkward since your mind was being flooded with memories of his sister’s body tangled with yours underneath her royal silk sheets. Her plump lips parted and soft moans escaping them, her beautiful big brown eyes hazy and filled with tears of shame and pleasure…
You were trying to shake those thoughts and images off of your head when you were interrupted by the sound of the horses approaching the gate.
“Father!” Wyllow nearly ran straight under the horse if she was not stopped by Margaery.
Your older daughter gave you a scolding look and she was right to do so because it was your duty to watch over your children, meanwhile you were distracted by the memories of dirty acts instead.
When you watched Gwayne jumping off of the horse, your heart clenched in your chest at the sight of him and you suddenly realised why Alicent was so filled with shame and guilt because now you felt them, too.
His handsome face, his eyes sparkling at the sight of you, his auburn hair reflecting in the sun… He truly was the man you loved. You just couldn’t help the fact you loved his sister, too.
“Father!” Wyllow finally was free to run into his arms and he crouched down to hug her and kiss her forehead.
“I am so happy to see you, little bird,” Gwayne cupped his daughter’s cheeks and she giggled.
He straightened himself but Wyllow clinged to his left hand so he used his right one to caress Margaery’s face lovingly.
“You’re growing fast, my love,” he pointed out.
“I am trying my best, Lord Father,” Margaery nodded her head with a smile and then she took a step back to get out of the way and let him greet you.
“Lord Husband,” you gave him a nervous and soft smile. Gwayne tilted his head a little and your heart skipped a beat. He was a very observant man but there was nothing that would give you away, right? What could it be?
“Lady Wife,” he smiled at you and took two steps ahead to be able to kiss the palm of your hand. Whatever he had noticed, he pretended it was nothing. At least for now.
“You must be exhausted,” you pointed out. “The chambers have been already prepared for you and I’m going to tell the maids to fix you a bath.”
“Does it mean we are not sharing the same chambers during my stay here?” Gwayne raised an eyebrow at you.
Margaery cleared her throat and she took Wyllow by her free hand.
“Shall we go inside now? Let our Lady Mother greet Lord Father properly,” she dragged her protesting sister behind her.
“She is becoming a fine Lady,” you chuckled awkwardly. “I can’t help feeling that the air and water in King’s Landing are making her grow up faster. Perhaps she is spending too much time with women older than her,” you explained, clasping your hands in front of yourself as if you had no idea what to do with them. “Come with me, I am sure you want to greet your father and sister, too.”
“I do,” Gwayne followed you inside while some of the men he had taken with him were taking care of his luggage with the help of The Red Keep’s servants. “You still haven’t answered my question about the chambers,” he pointed out when you were in the staircase together.
“My darling,” you turned around abruptly, making him stop his walk. “Your chambers are close to mine, please do not get cross with me. Those past few months I have learnt to love my solitude,” you explained and Gwayne tilted his head again but he only nodded.
“Let it be then,” he only said.
With each one of your husband’s kisses and each one of his touches, each one of your reached peaks and cries of pleasure, you felt more and more purified of sin as if his body was washing away Alicent’s smell off of you. After months of not laying together, you were lost in each other for hours with caring very little about getting any sleep. You were watching the sun rise behind the window when you were too exhausted to go on as you were laying on Gwayne’s chest, drawing circles there with your fingers and his hand was playing with your hair, gently massaging your scalp.
“Have you been faithful to me?” You asked casually and you could feel his muscles tensing under you.
You had no right to ask that – but he did not know of it.
“I have,” he answered. “Of course I have.”
“And if I say that the whores count, too?” You looked up playfully.
“I have been faithful to my Lady Wife,” Gwayne shook his head and you spotted a slight irritation on his face. He did not like it when his honour was being questioned – he was a knight, after all. “Why do you ask? Have you not been faithful to me?”
A shiver went down your spine at his chilling accusation.
“How can you ask me that?” You gasped.
“You have accused me first.”
“Because you are a man,” you reminded him.
“I am. And I know what men are like,” Gwayne nodded his head. “They must all be following you around – a beautiful Lady far away from her husband is like an invitation,” he finally cracked a smile, revealing that he was only jesting.
“I do not want any man but you,” you assured him as the tension left your body because you did not have to lie about it.
“That is good to know, my love,” Gwayne kissed the top of your head. “You had me worried with your cold greeting and not letting me into your chambers.”
“Are you not in my chambers now, Lord Husband?” You teased him and placed a kiss on his chest where his heart was. “And if my greeting was cold, then I owe you an apology. I spend too much time around your sister and her husband and I keep forgetting that some marriages are happy. That mine is…” You wanted to look up to meet his gaze but you couldn’t as something inside of you was stopping you.
“That is a shame,” Gwayne only said.
“It is, darling, but you are here now to remind me.”
You were sitting in the same chambers as Alicent, embroidering side by side and even though you were using no words, you found each other’s company comforting. Your arms were brushing as you both were focused on creating beautiful patterns on the same piece of fabric to make the work faster. It was supposed to be a beautiful green blanket with embroidered little dragons.
Princess Helaena was sitting nearby and embroidering spiders on her own piece of fabric. Her cousin, Lady Margaery Hightower was sitting next to her and teaching her younger sister the craft. It was peaceful, cosy and quiet – you loved those moments the most because it was nearly as if Alicent was your own Lady Wife and you were just enjoying the time spent together with your family, far away from all those loud and obnoxious men surrounding you everywhere. These chambers were your escape and your own queendom.
When the doors opened, everyone except for Helaena looked up with a slight irritation since the man entering this sanctuary was nothing but an intruder. Even if the man was Ser Gwayne Hightower, who was loved by every person inside the chambers.
He cleared his throat when you gave him a soft smile, your arm still brushing Alicent’s and you were sitting in a way that made sure you were facing each other. You had never thought about it before but it was quite intimate indeed. Your husband’s tilted head made you realise that he had just observed something and after a short while you understood what it was as you moved away slightly.
“Brother,” Alicent greeted him.
“Lord Husband,” you nodded at him.
“Forgive me for interrupting. I would like to take Margaery for a walk around the gardens,” he extended his hand towards his older daughter as Wyllow looked up at him with pleading eyes. “It must be Margaery alone this time but I promise you, little bird, I am going to take you for a walk later, too. Perhaps we’ll walk to the bay and watch the ships,” he assured her and she sighed with relief.
“You can finish without my help now, I believe,” Margaery handed the fabric to her younger sister. “Do try, at least. If you face any challenges, Lady Mother or Helaena shall help you.”
Helaena looked up when her name was mentioned and she gave Wyllow a soft smile that encouraged her little cousin to keep going. When Margaery stood up and left the sofa, Wyllow moved closer to Helaena and The Princess did not seem to mind.
“Can you help me with the ladybug?” She asked and Helaena’s face lit up at that.
“Lord Father,” Margaery took Gwayne by his arm and bowed her head at you and Alicent before walking out of the chambers with her father.
“I am wondering what is the matter my Lord Husband wishes to discuss with Margaery,” you hummed to yourself.
“She is ten and five now,” Queen Alicent pointed out. “What is the only possible matter that fathers wish to discuss with their daughters at that age?”
You furrowed your brows at her words because she was right and you did not like the sound of that. It was a shame that she was right, too, and not only for your own daughter but for every woman in this Realm.
You saw Gwayne again before dinner, on your way to the dining hall. He was walking down the stairs and you rushed to him to walk by his side. He offered you his arm and you took it.
“I have a question for you, Lord Husband,” you started, nearly aggressively and he raised his eyebrows at that fierceness.
“What is it, my love?”
“Are you planning to marry our sweet Margaery off so quickly? I do not wish for her to get wed too soon,” you told him, hoping he would understand your point of view because sadly, in the end, the decision was his to make for women had always been properties of men – once her father’s, then her husband’s.
Sometimes you wished you had become a septa.
“Not soon, no. But she is ten and five. That was the age you were in when we met,” Gwayne reminded you with a smile.
“Yes, indeed, my darling, but it was us both meeting and falling in love. That is different, you must admit,” you pursed your lips.
“I must, indeed. Do not worry, I am not willing to force anything upon our sweet daughter. I have only told her to start looking around for suitable matches… soon,” your husband explained. “I am sure King’s Landing is full of important young men.”
“I do not wish for her to get married here. This place is rotten and so are its people,” you sighed. “My greatest wish is for Margaery to marry a man from The Reach.”
“We all have wishes, my darling wife,” Gwayne’s answer was nearly mocking but he spotted your annoyance so he looked around to make sure you were not being seen before pulling you by your waist and pushing you against the wall to steal a kiss from your lips. “Gods, I missed this,” he whispered and you felt your cheeks heating up.
“Gwayne!” You scolded him playfully. “I missed this, too,” you added and caressed his cheek with your fingers.
But his smile dropped and eyes became serious all of the sudden. You stayed like that in a short moment of silence before he dropped the question that turned your guts inside out:
“What is the nature of your relationship with my sister?”
You were taken aback by his question and you moved your hand away from his face before taking a deep breath in, trying to steady your heartbeat.
“Alicent is my best friend,” you looked deep into his eyes, surprised by your own courage to lie like this…
But was it a lie? She was your friend, after all.
“There is intimacy between you two that I can only wish for between us these days,” Gwayne whispered and you bit on your lower lip.
“She is my main companion for weeks now,” you tried to explain.
“Are you still planning to come back home after The King dies?” Gwayne lowered his voice even more since talking about the monarch’s death could be seen as treason.
“Y-yes, of course,” you nodded nervously.
“Why the tremble of your voice?” Gwayne raised an eyebrow.
“What are you accusing me of?” You suddenly clenched your fists, trying to take another route of getting out of this awkward situation. “Your implications are indecent. You have been accusing me of obscenities ever since you arrived here. You wound me deeply, Lord Husband,” you straightened yourself.
“You have accused me first,” Gwayne reminded you.
“Without any reproach thrown at you. I have asked out of simple curiosity,” you informed him.
“You are right, do forgive me,” he reached for your hand to place a delicate kiss upon the palm of it. You sighed, feeling extremely guilty.
“You are forgiven,” you whispered, nearly inaudibly, because it felt wrong to be the one saying those words.
In fact, at that very moment, you promised yourself to fix everything. You promised yourself to invite Gwayne to your chambers again for the night and let his touch to purify you like on the previous night. And you would go to The Sept and you would pray the sin away, you would beg for forgiveness, you would be a better wife, perhaps you would beg Alicent to let you go back to Oldtown with your husband.
Yes, that was the plan.
In the early morning you couldn’t tell that you were well-rested. Your muscles were sore after the previous two nights and your head was hazy but you still got dressed up quickly when the sun was rising and creeping inside your chambers to shine upon Gwayne’s auburn hair. You leaned in to kiss his forehead and you left him sleeping to visit The Sept and be able to go back to The Red Keep before breakfast.
You had never been a devout but you were not a savage either. You believed in Gods and now more than ever you needed redemption.
You expected to be alone there at such an early hour but no – of course not. Queen Alicent was already there, kneeling by the stone table and lighting the candles. You closed your eyes and took a deep breath in. She was your greatest temptation and it was a cruel joke that the Gods had played on you to put her there at this time when you visited The Sept to pray her very own self away from your life.
Alicent looked up, surprised to see you. Her soft features were as sad as usual but at the sight of you she seemed to be a bit happier – relieved, in a way. Your heart clenched inside your chest. How could you ever want to leave her? You couldn’t. She was too dependent on you. Her happiness was and so was her sanity. Leaving her would be equal to killing her.
“I have not expected you in The Sept at such an early hour,” she commented as you kneeled next to her.
“I have not expected myself here either,” you smirked. “I came here to ask for forgiveness.”
“Forgiveness? Aren’t you always the one telling me that what we do is no sin?” Alicent furrowed her brows.
“I have lied to my husband. That is a sin,” you confessed and Alicent did not say anything to this. “I… I will have to go back to Oldtown, I think… I can’t… I can’t go on like this,” you looked down and Alicent remained silent but you didn’t have to look at her to know her big brown eyes were filled with tears. “I miss my son and I miss Oldtown… King’s Landing is corrupt and I do not wish for my daughters to grow up here. I… I miss Gwayne, too. I love him, I love him, I love him…”
“Are you trying to convince me or yourself?” Sudden, harsh question made you look up to meet her teary gaze.
“I’ve been loving him ever since I saw him during the tournament. You were there, sitting by my side,” you reminded her.
“You love him because he is my brother but your life has always revolved around me,” Alicent pointed out and you felt your cheeks heating up.
“You… You knew?” You only asked.
“I was blind to choose Rhaenyra because she was never for me to reach. She was The Princess and you were equal to me, so devoted. Blindly, very often. I took you for a fool and only after losing you, I realised. When you were sent to Oldtown, I suddenly understood that my only friend had left my side,” Alicent explained. “My only friend and the only person who has ever… Who has ever loved me – except for my mother.”
“Gwayne loves you, too,” you pointed out.
“Does he? He took you away from me,” Alicent’s jaw clenched and your eyes widened. She was not being rational but you knew why – she was scared of losing you again. In fact, she was determined to make you stay by her side.
“You will not let me leave, will you?” You whispered.
Alicent opened her mouth to say something but then her face softened and she stood up rapidly to walk away.
“I am sorry… I do not wish to… Act like this… I do not recognise myself,” she admitted with her voice full of shame. She raised her hands up to her mouth as she nervously bit on the soft skin around her fingernails.
You didn’t answer because you were too lost in your own thoughts. Was she right again? About you loving Gwayne only because he was her brother? You had never thought about it before. It would mean your whole marriage was a lie, an illusion – or rather a delusion.
“When I’m with him, I don’t imagine you,” you stood up as well when the realisation hit you. “But when I’m with you, he doesn’t exist to me. It’s as if there were two of me.”
“I do not understand,” Alicent shook her head. “To me, there is only you,” she confessed and laid her eyes on you.
You didn’t know what to answer. You swallowed a lump in your throat instead.
“I am flawed, poisoned…” Alicent continued. “I can only feel this way towards other women. I felt this way towards Rhaenyra until a certain moment and then… Then my whole life was about you. I have spent hours inside this Sept, trying to pray this away,” Alicent’s silent tears streamed down her cheeks.
“I do not have such a conflict. I can love both men and women,” you told her. “I can love you and I can love Gwayne…”
“I do not wish to share you!” Alicent interrupted you and then she hid her face in her hand as she sobbed.
“Women are not their own property. I am not the one to decide if I can be shared,” you answered diplomatically.
You felt sorry for her but you also felt sorry for Gwayne that he was being betrayed behind his back by his own wife and sister – two women he loved the most except for his daughters. He would die for you both, he would kill to protect you or to defend your honours – even though none of you had an honour anymore. He was the real victim here.
But one more look at Alicent’s sad eyes was enough to break you again. You approached her to cup her face and kiss her softly. She protested in the beginning since you were inside The Sept but you didn’t give a fuck about it anymore – you would go to Seven Hells anyway.
“I shall not leave you,” you promised her.
When you came back to your chambers, Gwayne was dressing up in front of the mirror. He raised an eyebrow at you entering the room.
“Where have you been?” He asked.
“In The Sept to pray,” you answered truthfully.
“Has my sister turned you into a devout like her already?” He chuckled.
“She has a great influence on me,” you nodded and walked up to him to kiss his cheek.
“You even smell like her,” he said and your heart skipped a beat.
“I am fond of her scented oils and she allows me to use them,” you answered.
“It feels weird when I’m fucking you, I have to admit,” Gwayne chuckled awkwardly and so did you.
“You shall fuck me more then,” you pointed out quietly.
“Even more, Lady Wife?” He shook his head with another chuckle.
“Until her scent is gone,” you explained and looked out of the window.
Gwayne did not say anything to this but his smile disappeared. From the corner of your eye you saw his reflection in the mirror and you realised that he had finally understood what was going on behind his back.
After a while, which felt like forever, he cleared his throat:
“It is a putrid place indeed.”
“You must take me far away from here,” you turned around to grab his arm and your heart broke when you felt him flinch a little. “You must save my soul and take me home,” you pleaded despite the promise you had given to Alicent earlier but that promise had not been given sober. You had been intoxicated with her.
“You must come back home yourself, my love,” Gwayne smiled sadly at you and caressed your hair gently, “for I do not wish to force anything upon you. You are always kind enough to remind me that you are not my property, aren't you? And I agree,” he nodded, “this decision is for you to make.”
And you didn’t know what to say or do because there was no decision that felt right and no decision that didn’t feel wrong either. Gwayne was your duty and your sacrifice and Alicent was a self-indulgent sin but you loved them both so much that you cursed the whole Hightower bloodline for existing because your life would be so much easier without them.
You knew what Gwayne was expecting of you – he expected you to choose your duty because – just like his sister – he was all about honour and decency. But you didn’t want your husband to feel as if you were choosing him only because of your marriage vows – you wanted him to know that you cared for him, too, even though he wouldn’t believe you now.
But there was only one choice for you anyway, wasn’t it? You couldn’t just stay with Alicent and pretend that it was the right thing to do. You couldn’t abandon your family and your duties for her and she had to understand it.
You looked deep into Gwayne’s eyes and your own filled with tears at the sight of all the pain and sadness in his. You dropped your hand down from his arm to intertwine your fingers with his.
“I do not think of myself as flawed or poisoned for feeling the way I feel,” you explained to him. “But I do not wish for my nature to spoil our union. If anybody can save me, it would be you,” you whispered. A plea. A desperate cry for help. “I am a mother, I am a wife, I am Lady Hightower and my home is in Oldtown.”
Your heart, however, would forever be divided; torn and bleeding. The deep, burning hole was forever to stay there for one reason or another.
MASTERLIST
NEW FIXATION JUST DROPPED I WANT TO FUCK GREGORY HOUSE!!!
need to cuddle him so bad bye
A SIGHT SO SWEET
PAIRING: jason todd ✗ gn!reader ;
SYNOPSIS: jason can't seem to get enough of you – his watchful eye never once leaves you ;
REQUEST: “ hello! i went to a party today and i kept thinking about jason. well, i think he'd be the kind of partner who'd watch you from afar to make sure you're okay, he'd definitely have access to your location 24 hours for his own peace of mind. i went to a party today and i wondered what it would be like for him to watch me while he's on patrol to make sure i'm ok, he'd want to know when you're leaving your house, when you've arrived the place you're going to and when you're leaving as well. especially given the fact that i've been drinking i think... anyway, could you write something based on that? xx 💋 ”
WARNINGS: nothing to worry about in this fic. it can get a bit suggestive at the end ;
WORD COUNT: 1.0k ;
NOTES: i enjoyed writing this fic so much! i'm not sure what sparked it, but the process was so fluid and enjoyable. thank you for this request <3 it was a joy to write. it is honestly such a marvel to try and understand jason's character with every piece of work i write. i started around june-july and now i feel confident to call myself a writer and i have all of you to thank <3 ;
── .✦ NAVIGATION ; MASTERLIST & AO3 ౨ৎ
“I'M TOUGH.” you remark as Jason’s rough fingertips dance over your knuckles ever so delicately.
He regards you as if he'd break you if he grabbed on too hard. His soft touches light a candle in your heart. Your skin feels hot as his touch grazes over it.
He nods, “I know you are.” His voice is laced with the all too familiar worry you've grown to hear from him.
You wish you could take all of it away and protect him. Unfortunately, you can't do that. You settle with trying to carry the burden together and prove to him he doesn't have to face any of this alone.
“C’mon Jay—” you pout, his eyes dart between your charming eyes and lips - dewy from the cherry lipstick you wear.
Cherries, an angel's kiss in spring.
“—It’s just a simple bar, a small get-together with some of my UNI friends. Nothing bad will happen,” you put the emphasis on the last bit of your words as an effort to soothe Jason's fears and reassure him, “I can take care of myself.”
“You have,” he says, “you still do and will do so, I’ve just joined in too. I want to take care of you too.”
His words strike a chord inside your heart, the saccharine taste of them fills every corner of your body. Those endearing eyes he sneaks glances at you, not aware that you notice them and do the same, break into the surface of your skin and steal your breath away.
He has a way of consuming every bit and part of you. That never fails to mesmerize you.
“We take care of eachother.” You reply as your lips graze over his scarred knuckles. “I don't want you to worry so much, baby.”
He sighs as he leans into your touch. “I know, I just—” he stammers, the words getting stuck on his tongue.
“It's normal to worry, but you can’t let it consume you.” You bring your hands to cradle his face. Jason doesn't shy away from the touch and sinks into your embrace – the sight makes your heart ache in the best way.
You grab onto his hand and place it on the inside of your wrist, letting him feel your pulse.
You give him a cheeky grin as you whisper, “feel that?”
He chuckles quietly, “Mhm, yes.”
“As long as you see, hear and feel me – I will never leave.”
*****
In Jason's mind there is not a single person in this world who compares to you. No one is as dreamlike and otherworldly like you. Especially now, as he watches you sway and move in the kaleidoscopic hues of the bar. The prismatic lights kiss your delicate and inviting skin.
Oh, how he wishes to do the same.
Jason wonders if you know that he’s keeping an eye on you right now, if you can feel his watchful gaze on your form. Do his glances light a fire in your heart just as yours does in his?
He should be patrolling right now, making sure everything is okay. But he find his eyes following your every step as you glide through the dance floor.
He knew when you left the shared apartment that belongs to the two of you – 6:31 pm, knew when you arrived at the bar – 7:05 pm, knew when you finally met up with your friends – 7:18 pm.
Jason engraves every detail in his mind, because he has to. He's making sure that you're okay, that you're safe.
He catches a glimpse of you drinking some vibrant drink. You scrunch your nose at the taste of it and the sight sends butterflies in his stomach.
You laugh at something your friend says. The infectious and melodic sound of it reaches Jason. He can’t help the moonstruck grin that spreads on his face.
Jason's thrown for a loop when he spots your gaze pin him in place. Your eyes fixate on him as if you're entranced, as if he's the only one in the room.
He feels his heartbeat speed up.
Without tearing your gaze off of him you mumble something to your friends, something that he can only guess was a short goodbye. The surprised looks on your friends faces quickly disappear from his mind as you stride to him with confident, but light steps.
“Come to take me home?” You question with a curious voice with a taste of something he can't yet place.
He sheepishly runs his hand down his neck. “What gave it away?”
“Well.” You click your tongue. A smirk dances on your lips. “You've been pretty attentive all night long, watching my every move. I hope the show was up to your standards.”
“Show–?” He chokes on his words. You tease.
You laugh. The sound is akin to honeyed nectar on his tongue.
Jason tries to collect his thoughts. “I still haven't had my fill and I don't plan on leaving you unsatisfied either.”
“Really? I wonder who's the greedy one in this relationship.” You hum playfully.
“Dance with me,” he suggests unexpectedly.
Your eyes dart across his face, taking in his nervous demeanor. “You don't dance.”
“For you I will.”
*****
He spares a single glance at the time. 10:46pm. Time for you to head back to the apartment.
He counts himself a lucky man as the one who takes you home, as the one who waits for you outside the bar, as the one your wobbly steps guide you towards, as the one you wrap your arms around while he caresses your face and tells you to let me help you with the helmet, honey.
He brings your hand to his lips and kisses the back of it. The skin is velvety to the touch.
Jason's eyes don't leave your own dazed and enchanted eyes. To him you are a vision so captivating, so sickeningly sweet, all he wants is to get a taste of you.
He is taking you home, isn't he? He is truly a lucky man.
© ROBINSFILM ﹕ I do not give consent for my writing to be posted or used on any other platforms without my permission and proper credit.
“I love you”… “It’ll pass”
GOD FLEABAG BROKE ME
[Jason Todd x Reader]
Word Count: 5k
Summary: Five times Jason's hair lets him down. Thankfully you're too gone for him to mind.
A/N: This was supposed to be silly, but I infected myself with Soft Bitch Disease HELP
Divider found here
Jason Todd had very nice hair. Dark and soft and unruly, it suited him well. As did the stubborn streak in the front that resisted any attempts to dye it (he’d tried once, on a day when his self-esteem had taken a nosedive).
And ever since the first time you ran your fingers through his hair, he’d put significant effort into taking good care of it. Anything to entice you to do it again.
So, yes, he was proud of it. He was proud of the way his bedhead made you smile. The way you wrapped that stubborn white curl around your finger and pressed a kiss to it. The way you couldn’t resist playing with it when he laid his head in your lap.
…But that didn’t mean there weren’t mishaps.
Helmet hair was the most common problem, and largely inescapable. In the beginning, when he’d just barely started spending nights in your apartment and long before moving in together was even a thought, he’d rushed from the window to the shower, not even taking his helmet off until the bathroom door was closed behind him. You usually weren’t awake anyway. But he didn’t think you needed that particular image of him.
Until the night where you got a little too caught up in a new show to go to bed at a reasonable hour. A summer night in the middle of a heat wave that had Jason flinging off his helmet the second his boots touched the living room floor, before he clocked you laying on the couch in the dim light from the TV.
“Oh, I really got carried away,” you mumbled to yourself, scrambling for the remote as you noted the time on your phone lockscreen. “Yikes.”
“H-hey,” Jason said awkwardly, not sure how he was supposed to act, at once happy and self-conscious.
“Hi,” you greeted with a smile, reaching to turn on a lamp before shutting off the TV. “You okay? I heard a lot of sirens tonight.”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Heat wave makes people fucking crazy, though.”
You nodded, giving a sleepy little stretch before vacating the couch and moving towards him.
“Are you fine, though? I assume body armor isn’t exactly… breathable.” You poked at the thick padding covering his stomach.
“You’re right about that. I took way too many breaks.”
You frowned, unconvinced, as you took in his flushed face, the hair plastered to his forehead in damp swirls.
“Not enough breaks,” you corrected decisively. “Strip and sit.”
“Uh, w- ”
But you were already busying yourself with the tower fan in the corner, dragging it closer to the couch and turning it to its highest setting.
You looked back at him expectantly, gesturing towards his gear with an impatient hand.
“I’m serious. You need to cool down. And have you been drinking water? You need to drink water. I’m getting you water.”
You were hurrying away again before he could respond, and a tiny smile stole over his face at your brusk insistence. You couldn’t be bothered with awkwardness when you were convinced he needed caring for. It was… nice.
New. And nice.
So he was quick about following your orders, leaving all that heavy kevlar and plating in a messy heap by the window and dropping onto your couch cushions in just his boxers. The cool air of the fan offered immediate relief, soothing his overheated skin.
You were back seconds later, a damp rag in one hand and your largest water bottle in the other, ice clinking against the sides in time with your steps.
You opened it for him before shoving it into his hands, tossing the lid over your shoulder with a severe look that made him laugh. Drink it all. Message received.
You dropped onto your knees on the couch cushion beside him, swiping the cold cloth over his forehead, his neck, behind his ears.
Jason sighed contentedly at the sensation, lifting the bottle to take a long drink, the water inside so cold it almost made his teeth hurt. He drained a third of it in one go.
“Good boy,” you said approvingly, brushing a kiss to his cheekbone and effectively undoing all your hard work as Jason’s skin warmed again from the praise.
Still, he dodged back from your hands when you reached for his hair.
“I’m still really sweaty.”
“I know,” you said with a laugh. “I can handle sweat, Jason.”
“It’s not gonna feel nice,” he said, eying you uncertainly.
“It will feel nice to you, which is the point.”
And, well, he couldn’t really argue with that. When you reached for him again, he stayed still, sighing as you slowly swept damp and flattened curls back from his forehead. Your fingers worked carefully through the sweaty tangles, gently restoring order and lifting the strands away from his scalp, giving the cool air from the fan an opportunity to ruffle through them.
“Good?” you asked after a few minutes, your voice almost a whisper.
Jason hummed appreciatively, his eyes half-closed.
“Good. Keep drinking your water, honey.”
Hair gel was only a problem once before he learned his lesson.
And really, technically, it was actually your fault. Your fault entirely for leaving him to fend off the vultures alone.
You’d promised. Looked him in the eyes, kissed his pouting lips, and promised to attend this charity dinner with him.
Jason had begrudgingly agreed to attend four Wayne events per year, and the dinners, at least, had a clear and predictable end time. Not that it mattered as much when you were with him. You made an unbelievably charming party guest, skilled at pulling focus off of Jason exactly when he needed, unparalleled in your ability to set him at ease when the endless stream of self-important rich Gothamites started to get to him like an itch under the skin.
But the universe decided to play with him that day, sending its opening move in the form of a frantic, heartbroken call from your close friend who needed you right that very second. Jason heard the crying from the other side of the room, and looked to you with alarm, hands freezing in the process of buttoning his shirt.
You were making soft, soothing sounds, moving to slip the cocktail dress back off your shoulders, reaching for your sweatpants where they sat neatly folded beside Jason’s.
“How long ago did he leave?” you asked.
Jason caught your eyes, raised his brow in question.
Fight with boyfriend, you mouthed to him. He sighed, head tipping back in defeat.
And he did feel a little bad for the resentment that bubbled up at the realization that you were backing out of the event. Your friend was upset, and she had every right to seek you out. But that didn’t mean he was happy about it.
Jason finished getting ready glumly, smoothing his hair into a more gentlemanly shape and using more gel than usual since you wouldn’t be there to fix it for him if it fell out of place.
By the time he was ready to leave, you were finished with your call, waiting by the door in unfairly comfortable clothes and an empty tote bag for the snacks you’d pick up on your way. You started pouting before Jason could say anything, shuffling up to him to plant consoling little kisses over his face.
“So handsome,” you said, smoothing your hands over his shoulders. “Sorry, baby. I know you hate these things.”
“It’s gonna be so much worse without you.”
“Maybe you’ll make a new friend,” you suggested hopefully, breaking into a giggle at the flat look he fixed you with. “Fine, probably not. Is Dick going?”
“Yeah…”
“Well, that’s good then. Just shove him at anyone who gets too close to you.”
Jason snorted, failing to hide the smile the image inspired.
“I’ll see you when I get home, okay?”
And Jason clung to that promise for the whole night. When he saw Dick’s name card placed on the other side of the room. When he caught sight of the menu that listed twelve courses in excruciating detail. When the lady who was seated next to him at dinner wouldn’t stop trying to touch him. By the time the insultingly tiny slivers of cake were placed in front of each guest, Jason had a splitting headache, a thoroughly depleted social battery, and a recurring daydream about strangling himself with his own bowtie.
He inhaled his dessert at a concerning speed, made a show of shaking Bruce’s hand, and fled the venue like a bat out of hell.
The shower was running when he got home, but all Jason could manage was kicking off his shoes, ditching his jacket, and half unbuttoning his shirt before faceplanting on the bed in a flawless starfish formation.
There was no energy left anywhere in his body or mind. Give him a night on the rooftops and alleys, kicking ass and getting shot at, over a night with the Gotham elite any night of the week.
He was half-asleep when you climbed over him on the bed.
“What have they done to you?” you whispered, amusement clear in your voice.
Jason let out a wordless groan, and you laughed.
“All that, huh? You want a bubble bath?”
He shook his head, face never lifting from the sheets.
“Let me rinse this gel out of your hair before you pass out completely, then. We can use the kitchen sink.”
He gave the most pitiful sigh you’d ever heard, and you shook your head with a knowing smile, nudging his heavy limbs over until you had enough space to crawl into bed.
When he woke the next morning, it was to the sound of your soft giggles, syrupy sweet and undeniable. Jason opened his eyes, already smiling at the sound.
“What’s funny?” he asked sleepily, hands automatically seeking you across the sheets, latching onto your thigh, your waist.
You bit your lip, handing him your phone with the forward-facing camera open.
He looked like an electrocuted cartoon character, hair bound together in chaotic spikes sticking out in all directions. God damn hair gel. The look on his face had you laughing again, but you softened it with a fond stroke to his cheek.
“My little dandelion.”
Occasionally, Gotham’s weather liked to toy with Jason too, sending him home to you looking every bit the sad, miserable wet cat.
He refused to carry an umbrella. Umbrellas were for old people and tourists. His hoods suited him just fine and allowed the added benefit of leaving both hands free. And mostly it was fine. Unless Gotham was in a Mood.
Rain fell in hard, heavy sheets, large cold drops that landed with all the force of hailstones and bit at exposed skin without mercy. It was impossible to see more than a few feet in front of you, the effect only made worse by the blanket of dark, angry clouds overhead. Even that, Jason may have made it through relatively unscathed. But the wind was determined to have its fun too, running through the city in heavy gusts that made windows rattle and buildings creak and groan. Sending torrents of rain nearly horizontal, battering any unlucky pedestrians it caught wandering the sidewalk.
Unlucky pedestrians like Jason, whose hood had been blown off his head three blocks back. Whose eyes were nearly shut against the constant onslaught of wind and rain. Who had shoved a bouquet of flowers up his shirt ten minutes ago and was pretty certain he’d been leaving a trail of soaked flower petals behind him ever since.
By the time he made it back to the apartment you shared, he was soaked to the bone and shivering, hair plastered to his face and down over his eyes from the weight and force of the water.
At the sound of the door, you came running, skidding to an unsteady stop in your fuzzy socks as Jason reached to catch you. He held you carefully away from his drenched body, frowning an apology at the wet handprint he left behind on your sweatshirt.
“Are you okay? I was hoping you were camped out in a shop somewhere waiting for this storm to pass.”
“It’ll go all night,” Jason said, still out of breath and feeling half-drowned as he dripped all over the kitchen floor.
Your thoughtful frown shifted into something more concerned as you noticed the way he was keeping one hand tucked beneath his jacket.
“Are you hurt? What happened?”
Before he could answer, you had his jacket unzipped and were pushing his sweatshirt up in search of an injury.
Jason cringed as several waterlogged flowers tumbled onto the floor, shifting self-consciously as you stared blankly at the sight before you. His palm was still pressing a handful of stems to his stomach, where several leaves and even more petals had plastered themselves to his skin rather than falling free.
“Oh.”
“Sorry, baby, I tried to keep them safe, but I think I just made it worse.”
“Jason…” you said slowly, reaching with gentle fingers to sweep aside the hair that was still dripping rainwater in his eyes. “Did you go out in a thunderstorm just to buy me flowers?”
“N- It’s… It was barely raining when I left.”
“Only you would try to downplay a romantic gesture,” you said, shaking your head with a fond smile.
Jason shrugged, the movement bringing your attention backed to his soaked clothing and prompting you to help him out of his jacket.
He took advantage of your distraction, still finding it easier to say vulnerable things when you weren’t looking into his eyes.
“I had to get you something today. It’s our anniversary.”
Your face scrunched a little, turning to study the calendar stuck to the fridge with a goofy souvenir magnet.
“Help me out, darling,” you said apologetically. “Anniversary of what?”
“Um…” Jason gave up on the rest of the flowers, letting them fall to the floor and brushing the clingy petals away from his skin. He wasn’t even looking at you now, but he didn’t seem offended. Just… embarrassed.
You gave him some space, taking your time grabbing extra towels and clean, dry clothes for him to change into. And you wanted to linger, to help peel wet fabric from cold skin, rub warmth back into numb fingers, kiss rosy color back into pale lips. But he still looked shy, eyes diverted and distracted, so you left him with the stack and a soft kiss to his cheek before moving to make him a cup of tea.
He came back to you in his own time, bundled in his coziest clothes and wrapping his arms around you from behind, resting his chin on your shoulder.
“Six months ago you told me you loved me for the first time,” he said softly.
“Oh…” You leaned back into his arms a little more. “I should have remembered that. I’m sorry.”
You felt him shake his head, still resting against your shoulder.
“S’okay… We had a night in. You made pancakes for dinner.”
“I remember the moment, just not the date…” you said, wiggling around in his hold to face him. His hair was still dripping onto the towel he had draped over his shoulders.
“I put it in my phone the night it happened. When you were in the bathroom,” Jason confessed, pink creeping up in his cheeks.
“I felt it a long time before I said it,” you confessed in turn, reaching for the towel and running it over his hair. “It took a while for me to build up the nerve to say it to your face.”
A face that was currently scrunched in boyish protest as you continued ruffling his hair with the towel, soaking up the extra water.
“Yep, that one,” you laughed, dropping the towel back to his shoulders and giving his hair a little extra tousle.
He kissed you twice. Once with a playful nip, then softer, slow and sweet like he’d quite like to stay there all night.
“Thank you. For saying it.”
“Thanks for saying it back.”
You would never convince Jason that The Unicorn wasn’t a brilliant stroke of innovation.
His hair was getting too long, constantly falling in his eyes, tugging uncomfortably in his helmet, hanging out of his hood when he opted for the mask instead. But he hadn’t been in the mood to get it cut, and you certainly never complained. It just gave you more to play with.
When you were home together, it was heaven. You couldn’t stay away from it, passing your fingers through it when you walked by, coming up behind him when he sat on the couch or at the table to press kisses into the unruly curls, playing with it idly any time you were cuddled up together. You had turned the Red Hood into a cuddly house cat, constantly placing himself near you and feigning indifference, only to melt at the first brush of your fingertips.
He’d spill all his secrets for one of your scalp massages. Credit card number. Social security number. Terrible teenage poetry. Anything you wanted to know, as long as you kept touching his hair.
But when you weren’t around, his perspective shifted rather dramatically.
Reading a book became incredibly frustrating, unless it was done with perfect posture and the book held at eye level or flat on his back. This graduated from annoying to fucking impossible the third time he dropped a book on his face.
And cleaning his guns? Absolute bullshit. Grease that took two washes to get out of his hair from constantly trying to push it out of his face. Uncharacteristic clumsiness when taking them apart because he couldn’t see.
So he came up with a… creative solution.
Which is how you came home to find Jason lounging comfortably, tucked into the corner of the couch with a blanket, a book, and an absurd hairstyle, the front of his hair gathered into a little bun on the crown of his head.
“Oh, hello,” you called with a surprised laugh, kicking your shoes off and dropping your purse onto the table by the door.
He hummed distractedly, eyes still fixed on the pages.
You plopped down on the cushion beside him, watching him read with an amused little grin until he finished his chapter.
“Hey baby,” he finally greeted you, placing his book on the side table.
“Hi…” you said, eyes flickering back up to the tiny bun at the top of his head. “Who’s your friend?”
“A masterclass in ingenuity,” Jason said as he gave the bun a satisfied little pat. “Which lets me read without breaking my nose.”
“I see.” You bit your lip, hard, trying not to laugh as you stared at it.
“Stop lookin at it!”
He grabbed your chin, forcing you to make eye contact.
“Sorry,” you laughed. “It makes you look like a baby unicorn.”
“That better be a compliment.”
“Oh, of course. You’re a very dashing unicorn.”
He scowled at you, but despite his best efforts it was entirely without malice. Disappointing, given glaring was one of his most natural talents. But he’d never been very good at glaring at you.
“It’s actually very cute,” you said through a smile, reaching up to squeeze the little bun before Jason batted your hand away. “Can I put a bow on it?”
“No.”
He wouldn’t stop you if you actually tried. But you didn’t need to know that.
“You could just cut it, you know. If it’s bothering you this much.”
“It’s fine,” he sighed. “I know you like it.”
“You know what I like even more?”
“Mmm?” He leaned his head back against the cushions.
“Your comfort and safety.”
“Lame,” he said solemnly.
You broke first, falling into a fit of giggles that dragged a laugh out of him too.
“Seriously though,” you said, leaning into his side, a smile still on your face as he wrapped an arm around you automatically. “Why don’t you get it cut? I’ll come with you if you want.”
He shifted a little, let out a sigh that sounded more serious than the last.
“I um… I’m not really in the mood to let a stranger with sharp objects near my face right now.”
“Oh,” you said softly, subconsciously snuggling a little closer. “Okay.”
“It… It comes and goes. That… feeling.”
You nodded, gave a little space in case he wanted to say more. He didn’t.
“Could you? Trim it? I could buy you some salon scissors. And one of those trimmers with the different settings. If you want.”
“Yeah, maybe… Probably wouldn’t look very good though.”
“We could watch tutorials. Besides, you could pull off just about anything with that face.”
He scoffed, but you could see a tiny spark of pride in his eyes, the inclination of a smile at the corner of his lips.
“Could… Would you do it for me?” he asked hesitantly, glancing down at you.
Something fluttered in your chest at the gentle request.
“I can try. Do you think… I mean would that be okay? When you’re feeling like this?”
“Yes,” he said simply, no trace of doubt in his voice.
“Okay,” you answered, smiling at the sweet kiss it earned you.
“Not too short,” he requested, barely moving his lips from yours. “Make sure there’s enough for you to play with.”
Your stomach gave a little flip, and you kissed him back a little harder.
“You’ve got it.”
Slicked back wasn’t a go-to hairstyle for Jason, in any context. And he was still adamantly anti hair gel since “The Dandelion Incident.”
But fresh out of the shower, all it took was a comb. It would keep his hair out of his eyes for a little while, at least. And give him an excuse to seek you out, not that he needed one these days.
He found you in the living room, sorting through a basket of clean laundry in search of matching socks. You did a double take when you saw him, smiling as he dragged you closer by the hips.
“Look at you,” you giggled, holding his face in your hands.
“What do we think?” he asked, moving easily with your touch as you tilted his chin to either side, looking him over with overplayed seriousness.
“Hmm. Very handsome,” you decided.
“Yeah?”
“You’re always handsome,” you said, kissing his cheek. “This is just a different kind of handsome.”
Jason hummed thoughtfully, fighting a smile and squeezing you closer, a warm feeling fluttering in his chest.
“What kind of handsome?”
“Distinguished. Debonair.”
“I’ve never been debonair in my life,” he laughed.
You stepped back, forming a little frame with your hands as you continued to study him.
“This guy’s got a favorite jeweler. A permanently reserved table at a restaurant in case he feels like dropping by.”
Jason rolled his eyes, but didn’t stop you, watching you with a fond smile.
“He slips people their tip during a handshake. Orders a martini like James Bond. He - ” You broke off suddenly, pressing your lips together, eyes widening slightly.
“What?” Jason prompted, poking at your side.
“Nothing.”
“Well now you have to tell me.” He caught your hands as they dropped, pulling you back into his arms.
“It was just a fleeting thought. Nothing important.”
“Great. Tell me anyway.”
You sighed, grabbed at his shirt as if to brace yourself.
“This hairstyle might… maybe… make you look the tiniest bit like… Bruce.”
The reaction was immediate and exactly what you expected, Jason jolting back as if slapped, his expression entirely horrified.
“Just a little,” you insisted. “And only because this is usually how he does his -”
But he was already scrambling back to the bathroom.
“Nope, nope, nope, nope.”
“Jason, it doesn’t mean -”
The door slammed, and you bit at your lip, trying not to laugh at his dramatics. Your humor didn’t last long, however, as you caught the buzz of an electric razor.
“Absolutely fucking not!” you yelled, bursting through the door and snatching the razor out of his hand. “Jason!”
“It has to be done.”
“No, it really doesn’t.” You turned it off, tossing it back under the sink.
“Can’t believe you said that to me,” he groaned, scrubbing his hands over his face as if to wipe away the comparison.
“Temporary insanity. Didn’t mean it,” you said, taking both of his hands in yours.
He stared at you doubtfully but followed without question as you started backing out of the bathroom, towing him along with you.
“I can fix it. Without shaving your head.”
Jason gave a fussy sigh, but you didn’t falter, pulling him into the bedroom.
“Sit,” you said, pushing lightly on his shoulders until he dropped down onto the foot of the bed, looking up at you expectantly.
You placed a knee on either side of his hips, settling comfortably on his lap and cradling his face in your hands.
“Jason,” you said sweetly.
“Hmm?” His eyes were locked curiously on yours, giving you his undivided attention, pout already beginning to fade.
“You are the most beautiful person I have ever seen.”
He looked mildly unconvinced. You continued on your course, pressing gentle kisses over his face until he gave a slow, heavy exhale.
“And I’ll keep thinking so no matter what. But I think we both like your natural hair better than this,” you whispered against his skin. “Can I fix it for you?”
“Yes,” he whispered back, eyelids already beginning to droop as your fingers worked their way into his hair.
You could fix this problem with a quick little ruffle. That’s all it would take. But that’s not how Jason liked to be touched.
You started slow and gentle, your fingertips moving in little circles against his scalp starting at his hairline and moving back, pressure slightly increasing with every pass. Your nails scraped gently over the back of his neck, sending a pleased little shiver through his body as his head dropped to rest against your chest.
“There we go,” you said softly, moving your hands to the sides of his head and working upwards to accommodate his new position. His arms wrapped around you as he gave another sigh, a much softer sound this time. Contented.
You got no words from him for a while after that, just the feeling of his slow, steady breaths and the warm sweep of his hand as it snuck under the back of your shirt.
He loved it when you did this, always, had stopped trying to be coy about it a long time ago. Told you how sweet you were. Talked about how much you spoiled him. But you’d honestly never thought about it that way.
It was a privilege to give Jason these moments of tenderness, to feel the tension drain out of him the longer you went on touching him this way. To see the way his face went serene, eyes soft and a little glossy. You’d do anything he asked to keep earning those content smiles, keep hearing those happy little sighs. You wondered if he knew that.
His hair was dry by the time you stopped, pulling him away from your chest with a gentle tug that had him releasing a low hum. He looked up at you, eyes half-closed and dreamy, his hair a sweet riot of messy waves and loose curls.
“There’s my Jason.” You stroked his cheek, feather light.
“Still handsome?” he asked quietly.
“Devastating, my darling,” you said, pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “I’ll never recover.”
He believed you this time, with a sleepy slow smile.
“Good,” he said, collapsing lazily back onto the blankets, dragging you down with him as he kept you tucked tightly against his chest. “Don’t want you to.”
A/n: Say something before I lose my mind
people are literally sleeping on him istg
ned stark x younger!reader
imagine, it has been a year and a half since catelyn died during the birth of rickon, ned had finally gotten over grieving her and has come to terms with her death no one is pestering him to remarry, life is peaceful, until one day he sees you. You who is the daughter of one of his closest bannermen, you who was accompanying their father to have a meeting with ned stark the second he lays his eyes on you, his mouth goes dry, he suddenly starts to run hot even if its the middle of winter, his toes curling in his boots out of nervousness, gripping the arm of his chair till his knuckles turn white, trying to focus on what your father is saying and not glance at you as you and your father leave he starts to busy himself in his work but as the night rolls in and he’s in bed ready to sleep. His thoughts drift off to you and soon his mind is plagued by images of you, your bewitching eyes, your beautiful hair, your soft lips he would oh so love to ki- he internally slaps himself, you are only a few summers older than Robb and he’s having such tainted thoughts about you, you’re the daughter of one of his closest companions friend, you are making him question his morals, can you blame him though? you are such a prepossessing sight, he thinks as he slowly pulled under the blanket of sleep hoping to see you in his dreams.
there are not enough fics about my man here do him some justice ✊😔
constructive criticism is welcome!
The challengers x hotd agenda continues
jason todd x fem!reader
aka don’t fuck with jason’s girlfriend
4 in 1 blurbs
warnings: mildly creepy guys, standard protective bf methods
Jason’s good at shutting people up very quickly. You’d almost call it a talent.
He shuts you up with a kiss when you get stuck in a rant, or with a hug to calm your worried rambles.
And when you’re in an incorrigibly teasing mood, he’ll throw you over his shoulder and carry you back to your bedroom to really shut you up.
With other people though, he has…different methods.
You sit atop your kitchen counter, trading lazy kisses in between giggles with your boyfriend. He stands in front of you, hands massaging your thighs as he leans in for another. You happily oblige.
You break off the exchange to lay a series of sweet kisses on that spot under his jaw.
His head tilts back, letting out a groan so low you nearly miss it. “Sweetheart…” he warns.
“Sorry…” you resign with a sheepish smile.
A knock at the door bursts you out of your shared reverie. You press a kiss to his knuckles and hop down to start setting the table.
Jason gets the door, greeting the pizza guy with a nod as you shuffle around the kitchen. The delivery guy hands him a receipt, asking for a signature.
Jason uses the door as a surface to sign, giving the delivery guy an apt view into your apartment, where he sees you getting out plates in the kitchen. More noticeably, he sees you in your boyfriend's shirt, which rides up just a little bit when you stand up on your toes to reach the top cabinet. The lift of the shirt exposes the bottom of your underwear, though it falls back into place again just as quickly.
Now, lucky for this guy, Jason’s facing the door and does not see him checking you out in your own home. Unlucky for this guy, he has wildly misread the vibe of your relationship. Or at least your boyfriend.
“Man, how do you get anything done around here?” He jests.
Jason looks up at him, and the pizza man’s eyes tear away from your legs to meet his hard gaze. It does not take him long to realize his mistake.
“Try again.” Jason behests, arms crossed in front of him.
The pizza boy’s eyes go wide and he shakes his head, stuttering. “I—uh, I said have a good night.”
“Mhm.” He grumbles.
The pizza guy hands Jason the box with shaky hands and scuttles back down the hallway.
Thankfully, you didn’t seem to notice the exchange, but even so, your boyfriend still glowers down the hallway after him.
“Jay?”
His attention snaps back to you, demeanor changing instantly. “Yeah, baby?”
You’re sitting in your usual spot at the table, his chair empty and waiting just around the corner from you.
“Come sit.” You say, with eyes that might as well be hearts.
He gives a reassuring nod and kicks the door shut behind him.
You and Jason are sitting on the floor in his old room at the manor, your legs thrown over his. You lean up against his bed, asking him about posters on the walls and trinkets on the shelves.
His knee is propped up and your arm dangles across it, his hand in yours. He plays with your fingers and periodically leans forward to leave a kiss on them.
You’d just woken up less than an hour ago after spending the night post-gala, and it’s a peaceful, if not unusually quiet morning.
Dick shouts your name from another room, audibly booking it towards you. Yeah. That’s more like what Jason remembers.
He grumbles some annoyances, dropping his head against your intertwined hands.
Dick bursts into the room, clearly incredibly excited.
“What’s up, Dick?” You ask, calm as ever. Jason lets an unseen smile creep up, head still down.
Dick’s practically jumping up and down, “You gotta see the shit that Tim just found in the cave!” His face drops as he directs his gaze to Jason, “You’re not invited.”
“Thank God.”
Dick ignores him and grabs your wrist, yanking you up from the floor. This is one place where he differs from Jason—he’s not always quite so aware of his own strength.
His grip doesn’t hurt really, but it’s firm enough that you imagine there’ll be bruise marks there later.
“Hey.” Jason calls out, nodding his head to where Dick is holding your arm. “Ease up.”
Dick follows his gaze and immediately loosens his hold, apologizing to you before pulling you along once again (this time much more gentle).
You grin at Jason as he tugs you out the door, him returning it with an endeared smile as he watches you go.
Fuck he loves you.
Jason had a decent break from his night job for once, and was happy to let you drag him out to a bar for a little date. You’d been linked at the hip for most of the night, his hands maintaining their ever present home on your waist with yours rested on his thighs as you told him about your hectic day.
He’d usually prefer to stay in bed with you for as long as possible when he gets time off, but you’d looked so excited asking him to go out with you—he never stood a chance.
You look up into the mirror as you wash your hands, a strand of hair falling into your face as you do. You push it back behind your ear and smile to yourself, recalling the several times Jason had wordlessly done the same throughout the night as you rambled.
You make your way back to the bar, smile immediate on your face when you see your boyfriend. It gets replaced rather quickly though, when a man slides in front of you, cutting off your view of him.
“Hey there.”
You have to take a step back because of how close he decided to stand to you. He looks sober (enough) but wildly overconfident in whatevers about to happen.
"Let me buy you a drink, pretty thing."
Jason calls you pretty thing sometimes. It makes the blood rush to your cheeks and an inescapable smile creep up on your lips. When this guy says it, it makes you literally frown.
"Oh no, I'm okay, my—"
"You seem like a dirty martini kinda girl." He expertly ignores you, clearly trying and failing to make some kind of innuendo there.
Jason's sitting back against the bar, watching the interaction carefully. You still can’t see him, but he’s close and you can rest comfortable knowing he’s looking out for you.
With that reassurance, you don’t play this out quite as carefully as you would if you were alone.
"Look, I don't want a drink from you, thanks."
Apparently that was the wrong thing to say to him because his face contorts quickly to mock-disgust that you figure is really just embarrassment.
“Hey, don’t be a bitch just ‘cause—”
You try to sidestep around him, thoroughly done with this interaction, but he grabs your upper arm harshly, pulling you to an abrupt stop.
Jason stands up real quick, yanking the guy backwards by his collar before you can even process what's happening.
Now, you know that Jason is an objectively intimidating guy. There's not many people that will come face to face with that absolute unit of a man and still decide to keep on trying him. However, you tend to forget that when you're so used to your gentle giant that only ever speaks to you kindly and touches you softly.
But his intimidating status becomes very apparent when the guy spins around, looks up at Jason, and immediately takes four steps back. He actually almost bumps into you in the process, not doing anything to tame Jason’s acute distaste for this man.
"Listen to me—back the fuck off before you get hurt."
“She—”
“I don’t give a fuck. Leave.”
The guy hesitates.
“Now.” Jason adjusts his posture to stand at his staggering full height, clearly with no qualms about putting him back in his place.
That does it for him, the man stumbllng away with half-committed mumbles of “whatever” or “something something lame anyway.”
Jason watches him until he walks out the door, before turning back to you.
He delicately takes your upper arm in his hand, pulling your sleeve up to search for bruising. But as harshly as he had grabbed you, it didn’t have the time to cause a bruise before Jason intervened.
“What’d he say to you?” Jason asks, brow furrowed as he inspects your arm.
“Nothing very interesting.” He looks at you mildly.
You smile and comb his hair back from his forehead, “Don’t worry about him. I’m good.”
He lets your arm go, and exchanges it for holding the back of your head, planting a kiss on your forehead.
You take his other hand and guide him back to your seats.
“Besides,” You look over his shoulder and let out a little shocked gasp. “Guess who just walked in.”
He gives you a questioning look before his face slacks, eyes widening in realization.
“No…” And you smile so brightly it almost makes up for what's coming his way.
You redirect your smile over his shoulder and give a wave to the door. Jason swigs down the rest of his drink, hand finding your waist once again.
“Jaybird!”
Jason’s still exhausted from patrol last night but he’d insisted on going with you to the bar to meet your friends. You’d tried to convince him that it was okay to stay in and rest tonight, you’d be fine. But it was a losing battle.
You suspect it has something to do with him not liking when you go out in Gotham at night, especially when you’re drinking.
So he hangs out in the background of the buzz, with you sat in front of him, in between his legs.
You’re talking it up with Roy, who’s been making jokes about how Jason’s “moody ass” tricked you, “the ray of sunshine” into this relationship somehow.
You laugh, taking a sip of your drink. “Right, ‘cause you and Kori were in love at first sight.”
"Oh, fuck off." Roy jeers.
He doesn't say it with the cadence of a joke, but it is.
You know he's joking, he knows he's joking.
Jason, who very well may have been tuned out of the conversation up to that point, does not seem to know he's joking—or he doesn't care.
You don't need to look behind you to know that your boyfriend is in defensive mode, though the look of regret mixed with amusement on Roy's face gives a solid hint.
You hold your hand out to block Jason his path as he moves forward. He lets you stop him, though you're certain he could get past you without so much as blinking, no problem.
"Right. My bad, forgot your guard dog was here. Don't fuck off." Roy backtracks, hands up in front of him.
Jason just rolls his eyes, slouching back down. You reach behind you for his hand, giving it two squeezes. You know he’s tired, so much so that he almost punched his best friend for making a typical joke.
“Five more minutes, okay?” You say softly over your shoulder.
He nods at you blearily, and ducks his head down to rest on your back. You adjust your posture a little bit to make it more comfortable for him and continue on talking, his hand still in yours.
If he hadn’t fallen asleep so quickly, five minutes would’ve been five minutes, but instead it became something more like fifty.
He goes through patches where sleep isn’t always so welcoming, a phase he’s been in for the past couple of weeks. You’d been waking up to find the bed half empty, your boyfriend resigned to doing research on cases in an attempt to at least be productive while he’s awake.
You can’t protect him in the same ways that he protects you—you’re not a fighter or necessarily “intimidating.” But you can protect him like this, in these little ways. Letting him nap on you, making him close the case files and rest with you, holding his hand throughout the night so that when he inevitably has nightmares, he knows immediately that you’re still with him. That he’s safe.
So if he can get some much needed sleep while only costing you a stiff back tomorrow, you’ll happily take that deal as many times as he needs.