The White Queen + Costumes
George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence's black doublet, white shirt and black pants in Episode 07.
// requested by anonymous
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@forgottengarbhan
The White Queen + Costumes
George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence's black doublet, white shirt and black pants in Episode 07.
// requested by anonymous
Family Matters || Garbhan & Aria
Aria frowned at the man standing in front of her.
No, frown was perhaps too kind of a word. Aria glared at the man in front of her.
Aria had, in the past few years, become quite good at glaring at people. It was one of the few defenses she had that, mostly, would not have her ending up in an even more terrible circumstance than the one she found herself in. There were no words that could be turned on her. There was only the way she chose display her emotions on her face.
This glare, however, was different. This was one that she'd felt had been within her for years and was reserved for family-- family that had betrayed her.
This glare was reserved for Garbhan Stafford and him alone. Aria had developed this glare when Garbhan and Rían had left Astaira all those years ago when the kingsmoot had declared Eilia the new Queen. She hadn't even meant to at that time, it was just the only way she knew how to react when both her cousins-- the only other Staffords left in the world-- had walked away from her and her sisters.
Since their return to Stafford alongside Roderick Varmont, Aria had had ample opportunity to perfect this look which she now bestowed upon her cousin as his trips to Stafford has been numerous, given that Rían had taken charge of Lorcan. Aria had done her best to avoid him as much as possible but now he was standing directly in front of her.
"What?" Aria snapped, though careful to keep her voice low as she did given they were surrounded by a number of Roderick's other guests that evening. She couldn't possibly imagine why Garbhan had chosen to approach her this evening.
It wasn't until he made to step around her that Aria realized it was actually the containers of wine that were on the table behind her that her cousin was looking towards, not her. Somehow this managed to make her more angry, though she could not say why.
"Anyone who drinks as much as you do starts to give of the appearance the liquor is, perhaps, distracting you from some... unhappiness, perhaps? And whatever do you have to be unhappy about, Garbhan?"
Garbhan's cup had been empty for nearly four minutes (which was a unacceptable amount of time when one was trapped in the same room as Cormac Calleary, Roderick Varmont, and his tiresome brother). So it was the bottles of wine upon the table -- and not his cousin -- that had directed him to this part of the room.
However, even if she had not fixed his attention with that stern, clipped, “What?” her stare alone would have done it. Her eyes, a shifting swirl of blue and green, brown and gray, seemed more blue-gray than ever tonight. They shone back at him like Stafford stars, but not the warm, merry ones he had seen in years past. These were colder -- frozen, distant, and far beyond his reach.
Had Garbhan had consumed as much of the Emperor's wine as would have pleased him, his cousin may have gotten a more honest answer from him. As he was only two glasses in: he laughed at her queries.
"Unhappy, dear cousin? Me? Never." There was the tiniest bit of sarcasm that hung in the air between them, but Garbhan did not expect Aria to find it -- not when she could not know the regret and remorse that weighed heavily upon him. She was nearer to the truth than perhaps she realized ... but now was hardly the time to dwell on that, and Garbhan pushed those thoughts away from his mind as easily as though he had merely brushed dust from a shelf.
"I drink to be merry!" He said, filling his glass as near to the brim as he dared, "And, by the looks of it, you may benefit from my example." He did not need to note her look again to know that she wouldn't care to listen to anything he suggested, but he pressed on, "One should not be quite so dismissive of one's elders, little cousin -- not when they have experience on their side to help guide you." At this, he poured her a second glass -- only slightly less full than his own -- and passed it to her unbidden.
"The amount of enjoyment you receive this evening, now rests firmly in your hands." He winked, pressing the glass into her grasp.
David Oakes in Vikings: Valhalla (s3) as Earl Godwin
ooc | Garbhan & Roderick
garbhan is NOT a fan but he doesn't want to die so ... he's here to tolerate roderick but not much else??? I don't think Roderick would care for him much, but he probably likes having staffords "on his side"?
quillington
Nov 30
Oh yes absolutely! Also fun fact he now calls him cousin since he’s engaged to Eilia too 💀💀💀 so ~that’s fun!!!!!
forgottengarbhan
Nov 30
Original Poster
delightful! just when I thought my family relationships couldn't get worse! <3
quillington
Nov 30
@forgottengarbhan Roderick: if there’s one thing I can tell you as a varmont — family relationships can ~always get worse! *gestures to the impending varmont civil war* cool, huh?
also gonna include this bit from the eilia/garbahn opening ooc, since obv it is relevant to this relationship:
quillington
Dec 1
So re: Roderick forcing Garbhan to fight in the war I think it’s a yes and no — since @forgottenrian def did fight I don’t think he had to do that necessarily (tho he deffff lost major respect/brownie points re the emperor if he didn’t) as long as he was doing smth meaningful to contribute to the war effort in a way a ~woman couldn’t, so like diplomatic missions convincing other powers to help the ovn or at the v least ~not to join astaira, for example, would’ve been an acceptable or like ruling a county in someone’s stead whike the lord was off fighting or serving on the war council (tho getting out of fighting there defff would’ve been a tough stunt to pull given how roderick runs his councils) or a role in financing and directing funds etc beyond just ~giving money~ bc a woman can do that, or…whatever…idk that but that kind of thing would’ve been an acceptable substitute so yeah! There are some options!!! I mean obv ultimately what he did is 100% up to you Ofc but yeah re what roderick would’ve expected it would’ve been smth like that
re the above, what ~do you think garbhan might've done during the war? i defff think it'd highkey impact their current relationship/the way roderick ~views garbahn frankly!
but yes!! i agree! and the feeling is mutual! this is a toleration-only zone! lajsdkfjksdjf
just given his personality alksjdfjkldsf i feel like roderick isn't the biggest fan of garbhan ~as a human being~ but he finds him highly convenient as a symbol!! whenever ppl mention astairan rule he just points at rian and garbhan and goes 'you want THESE guys???' while ~also lauding them (roderick has never met a hypocrisy he doesn't wanna get on board with!) for realizing how freaking cool roderick obv is and siding w him!!!!! and trotting them out as loyal lords (kings!!) is so fun!!!! also, like, roderick CANNOT seem to wrap his head around the whole ~electing kings~ thing so he def thinks that the staffords are the astairan royal family...and also the lorcans (since they had a king rule during roderick's lifetime) lowkey sort of were too kind of??? he assumes some civil war interregnum ig idk lkajsdlkjfsjkdf
BUT that being said...he is NOT a fan of garbhan buddying up w the lorcans!!!!!!!!! if he knew abt his flirtation w aisling (tho it sounds like its so far secret which is frankly wise!) he would flip!! a stafford/lorcan marriage is a NO GO bc he'd immediately assume that they're colluding to rise against him as the ~*~two~*~ royal families of astaira lakjsdfjkdsjf this probs ~will encourage him to @forgottenedmund @forgottenarthur @forgottensebastian to be like ONE OF YOU GOTTA MARRY THE ELDEST LORCAN and also may have roderick reconsidering rian's post in lorcan -- and possibly fully move against both the male!staffords and/or the lorcans depending how things go/if the lorcans aint going for his princes lasjdflkjsdf
but yeah assuming, for the time being, he aint up on that he probs ~is carefully considering who the stafford boys marry and ideally it would be either his daughter or no one!! let that name die out yo! he'll subsume ~all staffords into his ~own family tree thank you (man's literally planning to put aria in a nunnery for precisely this reason as well)!! lakjsdfjklds he'd prefer rian for cassandra, just bc he's the erstwhile ~king in roderick's mind, but marian hates that so garbhan becomes more of a possibility esp if rian were to...have a convenient accident...adslkfjdjskf
but yeah there's also always the illegitimacy scheme i mentioned [ here ] in his back pocket too, tho it ~is complicated by the fact that eilia has accepted him and he's now lowkey looking to ~re-legitimze her and the terms of de-legimitzing the brothers by necessity ~also de-legitimizes the sisters. he can def get over that hurdle somehow (maybe their mom had a lonterm affair and those boys aint even staffords! who knows! lajsdfjklsdf) bu t yeah!!
IDK what this role would be called, exactly, but I sorta imagine him as like ... ~a public liaison~ sorta guy? I think that Roderick would have given him a job that played to his strengths and honestly ruling/administrative/financial tasks/being a general, etc isn't really it.
Okay, so like what I imagine is that he was sent into newly occupied towns in Astaira after the fighting and he was there to like distribute any proclamations / pardons / reassurances / etc but also to play nice with the local nobles and be his charming self to sorta help bring Astairan nobles who have surrendered/been defeated over to Roderick's side?
But like his main purpose was to be just half paraded around so people could see that the Staffords were standing with Roderick??? (Like, I think this sorta backfires sometimes because people saw it as a betrayal, but I do think that it did work on some people!) And yeah, I think if Roderick sees the Staffords as being people he can have around to "prove how cool he is" ;DD than it would have been a good role for Garbhan to play? And I do think he would have been good at it. He's good at disarming people and smoothing things over (when he wants to haha)
Anyway, yeah his current situation with Aisling is secret/on the downlow really just so Garbhan can have fun with her AND other girls (at least that is how it started!) so I don't think Roderick knows about it, but Garbhan also does not think that it would be this disruptive if word got out about it?! Honestly, it wouldn't have stopped him from getting himself into this situation, but now that he's here and he knows Aisling better he wouldn't want to drag her and her family into this especially since he was being so casual about it!! but lbr that's garbhan for ya!
I can see it ultimately getting out, ngl, so that might be something he has to deal with down the road!!!
I have also been thinking a little bit about how Garbhan would interact with Roderick and like ... I think he'd mainly be his charming self, but he would also make some comments either as a joke or hidden beneath sarcasm where his true feelings about roderick sorta slip out a little, but it is never ~quite explicit enough that it's treasonous or even insulting but he definitely pushes the boundaries a little bit sometimes ngl!
"Honestly, it wouldn't have stopped him from getting himself into this situation" cue rian facepalming into the sun tbqh lakjsdfkljsdkjlf
ok no but that sounds perf and its def smth roderick could use!! bc lbr roderick is ~not much of a ppl person himself!! alksjdfkljsdf i feel like those're usually called like chanecellors or viceroys (tho those are also often names for administrative roles too) so fun fact garbhan might get a fancy title to go w it (rian: don't let this go to ur head) but yeah he's a propaganda machine w no off button as far as roderick is concerned ;DDDDD he also stands near roderick's throne and makes him look cool and that sir is priceless (there's some things money can't buy...only crushing military coups will get you looking ~this hella rad ig...)
i ~do also think that roderick probs overestimates the degree to which this is probs ~universally appealing to all the astairans bc like...elections...roderick doesn't get it. this guy's ur lost prince, right? so obv you like him and everything he chooses to do and everybody (me) he chooses to endorse, by extension!!!! the astairans: are you high? adslkjfkjdsf but anyway alksdjflkjsdjfjdf
roderick lowkey thinks garbhan should probs be a like monk or smth since iirc we said priests can marry in lfr so like...if monks can't, go be a monk or smth...no kids for you, ur bloodline is DANGEROUS, so yeah as i said he'll be none too pleased should the aisling thing ever come up alsjdfkljsdkjf
as we know, roderick is not exactly....a jokester so like there ~are probs some lines he can get away w given that roderick's like 'i don't get that saying im epic af is a joke to you' lakjsdfkljdsljkf but also like...he will NOT stand for being (knowingly) mocked so like...tis a fine line he treads!!!!!!! and rian is SWEATING in the corner lakjsdfajsdjfkd roderick: 'that was a funny joke you made. my vengeance will be swift and brutal' are the vibes if he gets caught but imma go ahead and say that so far roderick's been oblivious af tbqh aljsdfjklsdf but yeah so long as garbhan keeps them veiled ~enough like...roderick's robot heart won't compute alksjdflkjsdfjk 'so true that my magnificence outshines the very sun' *pointed look at aurelian* rian, stressed jake peralta voice: oh god
EDIT -- i meant to say!! so do you think garbhan was doing anything at all re: the war effort, like going around ahead and time and being like 'yo just surrender now' to various places or anything? if he ~was doing smth ~for the war effort and not just sweeping in ~afterwards, that'd be a big deal re roderick's feelings towards him now. if he didn't do anything towards the war effort roderick is more likely to be kinda smug and disgusted re him, and think him a coward -- if he ~did do things before hand roderick's probs like swords aren't his thing and that's sad for any man to admit, but he's got this diplomacy thing down so...he's not ~wholly lacking and he gets some respect still' alksdjfkljsdf
hehe honestly garbhan out here just playing with his life and his bros like they ain't got nothing to loose liTERALLY just to see rian sweat!!! (I do think that he is pretty strategic about it because he doesn't WANT to die --- most days lmao --- but he does like to make his brother nervous and I feel like he knows the line that he can toe by this point and while he's probably gotten pretty close to it, I don't think he has crossed it yet (hence why he is still alive!!!))
also I love that he might have gotten a fancy title to go with it!!! he'd probably tell rian that this chancellor title or whatever is way cooler than just being a steward ;DDD
RODERICK MAKING GARBHAN A MONK (I just choked on my dinner) there's definitely a part of garbhan that loves the idea of like ... not being a father but being celibate is a no go and him being a monk is just a disaster .... he'd literally never follow any of the rules and asldfjsldafjdslakfj I'm crying (the poor abbot guy would hate his life if roderick ever did this to him by sending garbhan to an abbey lmao)
Okay, so I can see him having been sent before the fighting and telling people to "surrender now!" sorta thing but ngl he was not especially effective at that because his heart was not in it (at least to start!) but as things got more dire, I can see where he would have been more passionate about that because he would have wanted to save as many lives as possible and he would have been more in favor of Astairans giving up, then all being murdered by Roderick (which probably didn't do much to help his ratings lbr!!) but anyway, I do think he was more effective in the role of swooping in afterwards and trying to repair the damage done than from preventing it from happening, at all, if that makes sense???
OOC | Odile & Garbhan
Honestly, I think Odile is gonna have such a great time trying to seduce Garbhan. hahahah.
Odile absolutely tries to mold her personality to what the person in front of her wants from her, but I think (outside of Aleksander who sees the real her all the time!) Garbhan may be the only other person that gets to see what's closest to Odile's "real" personality! Just because the mask he wears is pretty close to the one that she's put on herself since she was five and sold to the workhouse, so they honestly probably get along pretty well!
I can imagine them having lots of fun, especially since he loooves to spend money and Odile looooves people spending money on her!!! She will absolutely feed into his worst qualities if it means getting lots of fancy things and drinking fancy wine and seeming desirable!
I also can see her being like: "I have seen how your brother looks at me, you could make him jealous if you kiss me!!!" and like feeding also into Garbhan and Rian's brotherly competition and stuff!
TL;DR - I am excited for these two bc I think they would be VERY fun messy bitches together.
omg hell yeah!!! garbhan would be so down for this relationship!!!! (garbhan: seduce me, please!!!!)
I do think that he wouldn't want it to be in front of aisling because he does care enough about her that he wouldn't want to break her heart that way, but if she's not around .... your man garbhan is here for all of the fun odile cares to throw his way!!! he'd be so down to spend an evening with a gal who is up for flirting/drinking/gambling/etc and he'd also looove to drop a lot of money on her because it would make his brother both angry AND jealous (and there's really no higher calling if you ask him ;DDD)
also he doesn't really NEED a reason to kiss Odile but making his brother jealous is definitely an added bonus that Garbhan is so here for!!
ooc | Garbhan & Fiona
I feel like Garbhan once tried to flirt with Fiona and didn't even get out whatever pick up line he was trying on her when Fiona punched him in the face and now he leaves her alone
BAHAHA omg honestly i feel like its not that far off!!
so between Fiona being forced out of her home AND having to live with Rían has her steward, she is NOT having it! so if some random guy from the OVN (he does NOT get astairan status from her, no matter what his family name it!) and tries to flirt with her? as much as fiona definitely wanted to punch him in the face i do think she has enough self preservation NOT to do that!
depending on the situation , she might have tried to threaten him with a peace of cutlery or described all the (completely made up) ways she could maim a man with her embroidery (which is hysterical... like she's ever actually sat still enough to do embroidery!)
I'm honestly not sure if fiona is observant enough to notice garbhan's thing with ainsling? (or w/ her own sister for that matter!) but on either account she is NOOOOOT a fan! she's def on team fake staffords GTFO of astaira!
omg not the detailed descriptions of how she can main a man with her embroidery!!!! (I'm crying) I take it back she doesn't have to punch him to get him to stop bothering her ... that would be enough haha! (also ... not garbhan lowkey being a little afraid of her now ;DD)
garbhan: I'm going to skip dinner tonight .... fiona is sitting by the fire with her knitting needles o.O
I do think that he's pretty secretive with Aisling tbh because part of the initial allure to him was the secrecy ngl and now that it's a little more complicated, it is for her own sake as well (he doesn't think it would be great of either of them to be found out and forced to marry .... garbhan would rather not ruin her future that way because she does deserve better). that being said, idk how secretive aisling is being haha but until we have an aisling rp'er, I'd say she probably doesn't know???
as for his feelings for her sister, he likes to think that he doesn't show ANY signs of that, but I feel like if Fiona was going to pick up on either of his secrets, it would be that one! but I think it is probably is subtle enough, for now, that she likely wouldn't and honestly garbhan doesn't want anyone to find out so much that he probably does stupid things like go out of his way to be mean to her #facepalm
OOC | Bartholomew & Garbhan
so i don't have a ~ton of ideas for these two, ngl, except that i feel like, before an ~alternate spouse~ was found for her, there may have been some talk of wedding ciara to rian or garbhan? ciara is part of the imperial family, she's part astairan, the staffords are (depending who you ask anyway) princes, there was hopes of a varmont-stafford team up to forward the cause of the war etc etc. obv the whole went in another direction, etc, but yeah i can see where there were at least potential talks abt it, but maybe even smth as srs as an engagement asp? but!! regardless of that there was probs lots talk and many dinners as a result that would've seen these two chilling and, even if the idea of prev ciara/stafford talks aren't smth we wanna explore, there's also the fact that the staffords obv were astairan and bar's kids're half astairan and he was probs like 'we should have them hang out a bit' which meant that bar was also hanging out w them and yeah!! garbhan and eoin might even be friends potentially? idk?
tbh im not sure what bar would make of garbhan lakjsdflkjsdf like legit im not even sure WHY?????? but i think he's a LOT in bar's mind, kind of a flashy kid which probs makes bar feel like there's no real substance ljaksdjfklsjdf but affable enough, if a loT, to have over to dinner lkajsdlkfjasdf after that tho he just wants to go have a nice quiet moonlight walk in peace tho i think aljsdfakjdsf i feel like he lowkey thinks garbhan is a bit exhausting laksjdflkjsdf like my dude...ur a varmont u have a whole BEVY of close relatives a billion times more exhausting than poor garbhan smdh bar: that im used to. that lil joke garbhan made abt the pudding tho? exhausting i need a long walk to recover lkajsdlfjkskdljfksdf me: ??????????
I can TOTALLY see that having been a thing!!!
I feel like Garbhan would have actually been on board with that? Especially if it was awhile ago when he still had ~hope~ for his future lmao.
I think he'd see Ciara as someone who is sorta in a ~similar position? In that, she's part Varmont/part Astairan and who has connections/ties/fondness for Astaira, all while being kept from it and while Garbhan's in a worse situation re: his relationship with Astaira, I feel like he'd see a marriage to Ciara as a way to in a positive way -- especially since she, at least, has a good relationship with her cousins there and like that might have provided a gateway for him? plus, I feel like he'd get on really well with Ciara? I think they would have had fun together, ngl, especially if they've known each other for awhile and I think she probably got on with Garbhan, initially, much easier than Rian. (and I think Garbhan would have also loved this ngl alsjfladsf)
However, I don't think Ciara would have wanted to marry Garbhan. As much as she likes hanging out with him, I think she'd also see how reckless and flirtatious he can be and honestly Garbhan comes with a lot of red flags as a potential husband and I can see her have even told her dad that she'd marry him if she had to, but she'd rather someone a little steadier?? I also think she would have liked Rian, eventually, but he would have taken a lot longer to warm up to and she probably would have had some hesitations about him, just based on how his father has acted/it seems like Rian is following in his footsteps so idk it depends how close she ever got with him or not ??? Like if she knew him enough to understand his motivations better, I think she would have been okay with him but I don't know if they ever had that kind of relationship??
ANYWAY, to sum it up, I do think that Garbhan would have been on his best behavior around Bart during the time when a marriage between him and Ciara was a possibility and he would have sorta hammed it up a little to get on Bart's good side which would be a much chiller Garbhan but ... probably still a little much/exhausting lmao in Bart's opinion!!!
I feel like there was a time after Godfrey and Ciara's engagement where he was a little bitter about it (depending on how serious things were lookin' tbh) and probably then a little rougher towards Bart but as things have gone on/Garbhan has come to realize that he still cares for Eabha while also realizing that he's The Worst and doesn't actually deserve anything good, he's like "yeah good call on not letting me marrying your daughter!"
I can also see where Garbhan and Eoin could be friends, too!!! although ... ngl Garbhan would have been a terrible influence on him and like 99% of the time when Eoin got in trouble, it would have probably been Garbhan's fault #whoops .... which probably didn't do much for him when he was trying to marry Eoin's sister.
WHEN HE STILL HAD HOPE FOR HIS FUTURE SOBBBBB no but garbhan being potentially enthusiastic abt being a good spouse to his daughter would've made suchhhhh a good impression on bar!!!!! like, sure, that kid might be a loT (again...not sure why???? he feels sm this way abt him...but here we are hahaha) and frankly ~ciara being the one to turn ~garbhan down but garbhan being chill either way (eventually -- probs spoke well of him too that he wasn't like ~stoked to not be marrying her either hahahaa) would've ~also gone a long way in his book bc ciara getting what she wants is important to bar!!!! so like the kid had the good taste to be enthusiastic abt ciara, they get on well, but also he has the good heart to take it well when things didn't work out! bc, yeah, bar would back her to the hilt, whether she wanted to say directly to him 'thanks but no thanks' or she wanted it to come from bar (and if that option, whether she wanted it to seem to be political or not), he'd be happy to handle it either way
BAHAHAHAHA oh man yeahhhhh @forgottenrian is defffff a guy who takes hella warming up to!!! man does ~not know how to ~recommend himself to strangers~ at allllll which has been a huge stumbling block for him frankly hahahah and yeahhh boy def comes w red flags of his own!!! laskdjfkjsdf
not the ~chiller vers of garbhan still being a loT i love it lkasdjfkljdsf <33333 bar: 'that guy is just...so much' rian: 'you don't even know the half of it' lasdkjflksdjf
oooh do you think there's any lingering resentment re @forgottengodfrey atp (and yes i should probs put this in godfrey's post bc i ~will get confused but...here we are...i am ~also lazy ;DDD lakjsdfkljsdjfk)? i def think godfrey is probs pr chill abt the situation and tries to just be cordial, if so, tho he's also not afraid to be like 'ok that's enough settle down' if he feels like its getting outta hand -- whether in past or present
GOOD CALL ON NOT LETTING ME MARRY UR DAUGHTER lkjsdfklajsdjkf bar: *looks directly into the camera* do you think he's ever actually ~said that to him btw or is it just what hes ~feeling?
NOT GARBHAN BEING 99% OF EOIN'S TROUBLE BAHAHAHAH deffff did not help in the cause w ciara!!!!! i feel like bar's the epitome of the 'im not angry im disappointed''but everyone knows that's worse!' dad too and probs just his quiet 'you done fucked up' gaze was fun for everyone laksdjflksjdfjklsdjf bar: i thought you were better than this internal monologue moments lkdsjfakljsdkjfsdf
So idk what we think the timeline on all of this was, but I'm thinking that maybe they'd been thinking about the Stafford/Ciara engagement for awhile and it had sorta settled into Garbhan's head that it would likely be an official thing and even though I think, by this point in time, Garbhan had already started to develop feelings for Eabha, he didn't really see that as a possibility but he was okay with the idea of him and Ciara because they were friends and got on so well and yeah so then it probably was a bit of a blow when she was the one who decided not to go through with it?? I think she probably talked to him, herself, and while there was definitely part of him that completely understood (especially as his own heart actually belonged to her cousin #whoops) there was still some part of him that was a little brokenhearted over it ... like his best girl friend didn't even think he'd been a good husband, basically???
I do think that this also might have had something to do with Ciara's developing relationship with Godfrey, since I do think that she was a little heart eyes @ him before their engagement, but it was also mostly the fact that Garbhan was a lot to handle and while she enjoys his company, she ultimately did not see them lasting?? Anyway, I say this because I can see where the engagement w/ Godfrey came a little quick after the Garbhan/Ciara engagement fell through??
And yeah, I do think that there is still a little resentment there for a lot of reasons, honestly!!! a) because Garbhan does NOT trust Amira and at all and I think that this extends to Godfrey; b) he thinks that Godfrey is totally up to no good behind his charming exterior and he does not like that Ciara thought that Godfrey was a better choice than himself??; c) even though he's ultimately #teamelionora, of Roderick's kids, he's definitely been #teamArthur because of their friendship, so the whole Calanion side of things is a no go, anyways .... so yeah there's a lot of reasons why he doesn't like Godfrey, and this is just insult to injury!!! I do think he tries to play nice, but if he's drunk (which is often) he will be more vocal about it and yeah, I don't think Godfrey is at all unsure if Garbhan likes him or not (but perhaps luckily for Garbhan, I can see where Godfrey would chalk it all up to the Ciara thing and not think it was because he just distrusts his entire family lmao)
I don't think that Garbhan has ever actually told Bart that he thinks it was ultimately good that he didn't let him marry his daughter, but I can see where it might come out eventually (although the more I think about it, the more he hates Godfrey haha so the window for that comment might have only really been between his broken engagement and the engagement with Godfrey/Ciara haha)
Also .... I feel like Bart's "disappointed" looks vs anger would actually work on Garbhan alskdjflsajdflsdjflsdkjf like he'd sorta tuck his tail between his legs and leave ashamed haha vs pulling out that classic Garbhan charm and sarcasm to combat his anger lasdkjflsdjfldfkj (not that it effects him enough to stop him from being a mess all the time because once he starts on a wild evening, it is not easy for him to turn things around!!! but I do think that it has gotten him to rethink his choices before!)
(not Bartholomew accidentally being a better dad to him than his own father ???)
OOC | Aurelian & Garbhan
so as i mentioned in [ aine's comment ], aurelian wants lorcan for his fam and, since the stafford boys currently have charge of it, he's in a kind of we can do this the hard way or the easy way kinda mentality, so if @forgottenrian and/or garbhan are interested in teaming up and like marrying one of his daughters or nieces or grandkids or whatever, great!! that's the easy way and then they can all be friends!!!! b ut the hard way involves getting rid of them and, frankly, aurelian won't hesitate to do either slajfsdkjfkjsdf atm tho he's def offering the carrot i feel like but yeah part of him wants to get rid of them ~anyway, since he and their dad had sm beef, but he's happy to put that aside entirely if they can be allies bc he's a practical guy and an alliance is, he believes, the ~smart choice...so yeah! lasjdlfkjdsf
Garbhan does NOT care for Aurelian, honestly? He's literally No Fun and I feel like when he's around Arthur is also less fun?? So??? No???
Garbhan's affection for both Eabha and Aisling also have made him interested in who shall get Lorcan and, for both of their sakes, he hopes it is Peadar but even his odious brother would be a better choice than Aurelian and the Solemonts, so .... tbh, I feel like Garbhan is gonna dig in here and not be especially receptive to any offers Aurelian tries to throw his way!! (also I feel like Garbhan would be offended if Aurelian offered him his bastard (although newly legitimized) granddaughter lmao ... even if I feel like he'd feel like a total ass for feeling that way once he actually meets her but!! anyway!!!)
I feel like Aurelian won't be such a fan of Garbhan's the more they get to know each other either ... so idk how many offers will be forthcoming from him and he may decide that both Garbhan and Rian have to go based solely on Garbhan's behavior ;DD (Rian: on my god)
Have a Drink | Garbhan & Arthur
"You haven't seen my brother around today, have you? I'm trying to avoid him, for has a terrible habit of trying to ruining all of my fun ... "
Garbhan's voice was loud, filling the hall as though he spoke to a large crowd, when it was only Arthur in attendance. He took two slightly stumbling steps towards his friend and spilled a few drops of wine upon the floor as he moved.
He was drunk.
He had not wanted to come, at all, but his brother had insisted upon it. We should be there, he had said, to celebrate the birth of Roderick's children.
Garbhan had pointed out that he doubted very much that Roderick would care for them to aimlessly wandering the palace while they waited for Amira to deliver the children (at least two were expected and there was a rumor of a possible third). Garbhan had also made note that sometimes a woman's labor may last days. Neither point made Rian relent and, here they were.
Garbhan had been drinking steadily since midmorning and as it was nearly dinnertime, he was now properly in his cups. Rian had been horrified to see him like this and Garbhan, even in his state, detected that perhaps his brother was regretting dragging his him along, after all, and this, alone, had almost made the day worth it.
"I told him, if one cannot celebrate the addition to our great Imperial Family, then when can we, eh?" A pause as a realization sank in, "Although, I do think that we both know, that my brother is only truly happy when he can be perfectly serious. Tiresome fellow that he is."
He slapped Arthur on the back. "Here, man, have a drink!" He said, passing a glass to him as he proceeded to drink from the bottle, "You cannot expect me to all of your father's best wines alone! We must drink to the health and future happiness of your siblings!"
OOC | Amira & Garbhan
i just KNOW garbhan and amira are besties ;DDDDDD no but honestly can hardly picture two ~more different ppl ladkjsflkjsdfj i defffff think amira gave the staffords a hard time when they were like 'and now we should invade astaira' bc...i mean, has amira ever gone easy on ~anyone alsjdkfkljdsfj but i think she was also sus right from the start that they were gonna try and steal astaira out from under the empire and she aint abt that!!! astaira is for edmund, like everything else <33333333 mommy knows best klajsdfklsdjf
i ~do think getting to know garbhan ~has helped bc i think she's like 'this dude is way too lazy to try to steal a country from a conqueror' but she still aint trusting rian bc that nerd is too self-important ~not to try smth but fortunely he's hopelessly bad at human interaction so that's a big plus bc lbr anything he tries will NEVER get off the ground <33333333 so she's not super worried abt them atp tbqh a;lsdfjaklsdfj
ANYWAY!! amira just gave birth to a daughter and YES the age gap IS weird but that doesn't mean that the staffords aren't suitable husband potentials sooooo that's fun!!! alksdjfkljdskf still, girl's keeping her options open bc they aren't the ~last royals in the world (yet) so!! lkajsdflkjsdf
I feel like Garbhan is actually kinda afraid of Amira? Like she totally gives him the creeps and he's just like "does no one else see this???" also the amount of times that Amira has haunted his half-drunken dreams ;DD
I feel like Garbhan just knows that she's messing with crazy shit (he doesn't know what, exactly, and doesn't care to know, thank you!) and he'd try to avoid her, if possible, and he's never been so happy to have such a lazy reputation -- like she cannot think he's a threat?!?! (although he privately probably DOES worry about Rian? especially if it is at all semi-obvious that Amira doesn't care for him? IDK how Rian handles Amira???)
ok but AU where Garbhan marries Amira's blind witch daughter asldjfsladfjsaldfjdslfj and I just .... what an odd couple that would be! But the way he would literally die rather than have Amira as a mother-in-law!!!
OOC | Aleksander & Garbhan
so i feel like garbhan is the kind of guy alek would just genuinely really enjoy like his whole ~thing is just too much fun!!!!!! ofc he's gotta play the sainted priest so he can't be overindulging w him like he's ~like to but just...well played ur living ur best life out there and game recgonizes game...also pls confess ur sins to me if you get blackmailed abt that info it defff wasn't me promises alskdjflkjdsfj ;DDDDD
aslkdjfslajfdsljf yeah AU where these two are great friends honestly!!!
but yeah garbhan here is NOT religious at all (he's never once been to confession under his own accord #oops) and if he WAS he'd honestly be praying to the astairan gods so ... anyway he's not the best parishioner and anytime he remotely participates in religious things is when he's being forced to/roderick is watching and even then it is half assed and it would be very clear that he hasn't been to services in a long time
[ garbhan honestly trying to fake it and failing ]
The White Queen + Costumes
George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence's golden doublet and creme pants in Episode 02 & 03.
// requested by anonymous
ooc | Garbhan & Rian
garbhan is here to (affectionally?) roast every decision rian has ever made and make his life hell because it is fun and rian still loves him afterwards (right??)
so rian loves this dude to death!!!!!! but also he is the bane of his existence on the daily alksjdfjlkdsfj rian is the easiest target in the whole entire world and i fee like garbhan knows ~exactly how to press his buttons expertly lajkdsfjlsdjf like this dude is sooooo srs and doesn't?? know??? how???? to relax???????????? and if garbhan's doing like the lfr equivalent of like doing shots and a conga line or smth, rian is like THIS IS STRESSING ME OUT EVEN MORE lksjdfajklsdjkfajsf like garbhan does not even have to ~try little less the effect he gets when he ~does...sdlkjfasdljfjsdf
honestly think rian would be a loT happier if garbhan had been the firstborn, wheeling and dealing and having to interact??? w ppl???? and then rian could be his man in the shadows doing math and history and stuff alkjsdflkdsjf but sadly the one w ppl skills is not the one whose duty is to interact w ppl lajsdlfkjsdjf
i ~do feel like tho when they actually ~do work together, they can be a pr effective team bc they do have v complementary skills and weaknesses so where one ~isn't up to the task the other ~is etc but like?????? idk how often they can get enough out of their own way to pull that off????
so kate and i have also done a lotttttt of hc'ing abt the stafford family backstory so i will bc presenting a crash course on that in a hot second but first some direct ~nowadays~ business that might even drum up some potential plots if you like any of it...
MARRIAGES
rian: PLS STOP HITTING ON MY POTENTIAL FIANCEES I ALREADY HAVE ENOUGH COMPETITION IN THEIR HUSBAND AND FIANCE(S) RESPECTIVELY
lakjsdflajsdjfajsdf its ok tho bc rian has big plans for his lil bro and matrimony!!!!!
i ~do feel like (only ~partially to distract him from distracting his own ladies!!!! alsdjfkljsdf ;DDDDD jk jk i think he made this list while they were still in the ovn lakjsdfjsjdf) rian ~is looking to get garbhan hitched sometime pr soon!!! some ladies he's got lined up for their political value to their cause:
eithne malconaire -- so you might remember this one from the cassimir/rian post, but an old blood astairan family to garner the sympathy and loyalty of the ppl! (~was eithne but she got betrothed so that's out) but im guessing?? brigit will NOT be feeling that?? so aoife would've been his next choice but seeing as finn snagged her, rosie's next up (really, rian thinks bran was awfully inconsiderate having so few daughters ;DDDD like this if we're already scraping the bottom of the barrel like this!!! rosie: ...thanks lakjsdfjsdjf no but its so sad like garbhan could've been a ruling lord smdh lsjkdfajklsdjf), but yeah i ~do think ideally he'd marry closer up the line than further down it since there're no sons in this family so he's higher up the line of succession etc but yeah if brigit is deeply against it rosie'sll do aljsdfljdf so if garbhan can seduce aoife away from finn? so much the better!!! or better yet??? steal eithne away from cassimir!!!! gold star brother move right there!!!!!!! lakjsdfkjldsf
lorcan -- so this one ~which lorcan literally does not matter to rian since none of the girls are set to inherit so!!!! if he wants the middle one, rian says go for it!!!! this is another old blood family and esp if rian can't close the deal w aine (which lbr...that woman is married in her own heart so like...it aint happening, man!), garbhan coming in clutch w a lorcan alliance is GREAT!!! esp bc the lorcans managed to keep their armies pr pristine whereas the malconaire armies, for example, got hella chewed up, etc, so they could potentially bring military to the table, too! this still ranks number 2 tho bc rian still thinks there's hope for him and aine where he can get lorcan ~and calleary assistance that way, but if he does def and definitively strike out w aine, this marriage prospect might go up to the #1 position in rian's mind tbqh
calleary -- again legit doesn't matter which one for the same reasons!! they aren't old blood astairan so its not ~as good a match as above but...the callearies are wealthy w hella naval experience and allies etc...itd still be a good match! just stop flirting w one in ~front of the others ok????
after that its all a bit of a crap shoot in rian's mind but he's left garbhan a larger pool of choices than himself ig alkjsdfjdf rian: i call that generosity!! no but lbr garbhan is probs way better equipped to juggle all that ~and make actual progress w it too...rian is still barking up two wrong trees smdh
STAFFORD BACKSTORY
ok so, @forgottenarias , pls def say so if im misremembering smth or leaving smth really significant out or whatever!! i wanna do sorta the footnotes vers of events as our primer for you, here, lizzy, regarding our hc's on rian and garbhan's faction and its schism from eilia, aria, and shiv's faction, just to give you a hopefully pr straightforward foundation for this stuff
if you're interested, you can also find more in the tagged 'ooc' and 'lore' posts [ here ] and [ here ], but that ~will probs mean a lil digging unfortunately lajsdjflksdf we did a lotttt of chatting lakjsdfjksdf and much of it on disco too so even there may be missing stuff *facepalm*
also -- obv pending approval etc -- but as sort of a skeleton for what im abt to say here, i did make up an [ astairan kingslist ] covering only the past like...200years or so. ill copy that here as a reference re what im abt to say bc idk sometimes timelines make things easier (note: this one starts current -> past):
AC
1288-present – roderick varmont, b. 1245, m. 1262, m. 1264, m. 1265
1281-1288 (7 years) – eilionora stafford, b. 1267
1263-1281 (18 years) – domhnall stafford, b. 1243, m. 1264
1255-1263 (8 years) – finnian lorcan, b. 1230
1244-1255 (11 years) – dubhán stafford, b. 1215, m. 1238
1238-1244 (6 years) – ciar stafford, b. 1179, m. 1196
1236-1238 (2 years) – caoimhe ormond vii, b. 1170, m. 1192
1236 (4 months) – callum braoin, b. 1192, m. 1222
1233-1236 (3 years) – declan stafford, b. 1214, m. 1232
1233 (1 month) – conan básdorcha, b. 1216
1232-1233 (1 year) – aine ó loch lorcan, b. 1208
1228-1232 (4 years) – aoife killough, b. 1161, m. 1198
1228 (29 days) – bréanainn boyle, b. 1187
1228 (2 months) – cillian stafford, b. 1196, m. 1220
1226-1228 (2 years) – tairdelbach lorcan b. 1154, m. 1173
1226 (2 weeks) – fionn calleary ii, b. 1182, m. 1203
1225-1226 (1 year) – diarmuid stafford v, b. 1162, m. 1182
1222-1225 (3 years) – senan calleary, b. 1206
1222 (3 weeks) – feardorcha stafford, b. 1187, m. 1221
1222 (7 months) – mellán hanthom, b. 1203
1222 (9 days) – fergus ormond, b. 1180, m. 1213
1200-1222 (22 years) – brigit malconaire iii, b. 1180, m. 1209
1134-1200 (66 years) – cerball lorcan, b. 1121, m. 1138
1123-1134 (11 years) – sorcha calleary, b. 1036, m. 1073
1103-1123 (20 years) – macdara malconaire ix b. 1041, m. 1073
1101-1103 (2 years) – cathaoir tierney, b. 1053, m. 1086
1043-1101 (58 years) – darach malconaire, b. 1019, m. 1043
1011-1043 (32 years) – cormac byrne, b. 964, m. 1002
1000-1011 (11 years) – caoimhe lorcan, b. 967, m. 169
so stafford history hc bullet points:
while obv anyone in astaira is eligible to rule, right down to pate the pig boy, for whatever reason the staffords have boasted the largest number of kings in their family line across the board, including the semi-legendary first king of astaira, who first united the land in the age of the heroes etc, and as a result historically the house has felt sort of a family legacy of responsibility for the crown and wellbeing of astaira etc
just like in the ovn, the plague hit astaira c. 1220, lasting until c. 1245, and wiping out thousands of souls. as such, in the midst of piling bodies in the streets and creating hasty burials all while desperately tryna care for your sick dying loved ones, bc of astaira's unique election system, the crown experienced horribly instability as astairans were drug out again and again and again to spend weeks electing someone only for them to drop dead months later obliging everyone to stat all over again
issues in astaira ground to a halt at the v worst time possible and some amongst the staffords developed a desperate plan: eliminate elections and crown the eldest stafford and his heirs as perpetual heirs of astaira ever after, the way ~other kingdoms work
this all came to a head at the election that ultimately saw dom crowned, brother vs brother, w dom opposing what he saw as a coup against the ultimate authority of astaira (the ppl) and rian and garbhan's dad (who we've been calling riacan just bc he seems like the kind of dude to effectively name his son after himself esp since he named one son 'king' and the other 'little rough one' lajslfjksdf but yeah obv just a ~working title~ for him but ill use it here just for ease/to hopefully keep it less confusing) and ~riacan representing what he saw as stability and salvation for the realm
obv we know who won in the end...
so yeah that's the general bullet points and what rian, at least, sees himself as fight for!! its for the good of astaira!!! why can't his foolish cousins just see this indisputable truth smdh lkasdjfkjdf
it should also be noted that there were other factors involved w the riacan vs dom situation, such as fierce sibling rivalry and the fact that lena (eilia and aria's mother,) was promised to the future king of astaira, whoever that might be (should he prove male -- her brother was promised should the next ruler be a queen) and riacan, during his time as ambassador for his father to orinthia, had fallen madly in love w her, etc, so like...a lot here!!!
there's also a whooooole thing w garbhan's aunt, princess réalta stafford (sister to dom and riacan), the woman whom roderick had been promised to by his father and whom roderick jilted to wed elaine right before the plague killed his own father. realta went on to be ambassador to the ovn on dom's behalf, countering riacan's bad press there, and ultimately met a bad end in a jail cell there which almost caused a war, hugely impacted aria's growing up (that's another whole thing) etc so like...that's a whole thing, too! but i already threw a ton at you and for now ill leave that bit off but i did want to mention that it ~existed at least alksdjfsjkdf
STAFFORD LEGITIMACY STUFFS
there may also have been rumors in the ovn, while rian and garbhan were growing up there, regarding both the stafford girls illegitmacy (which did come home to roost) as well as some regarding the stafford boys (secretly spread by riacan's implacable rival, lord sun -- who may ~also -- w amira -- be behind realta's mysterious fate shhh ;D and which roderick will almost certainly choose to unleash should the boys ever act against him etc and which he's always held over their heads w exactly that threat in mind) which suggest that riacan may have secretly wed lena all those years ago in orinthia, thus invalidating both riacan and lena's later marriages (the current stafford illegitimacy claim hinges on the idea that dom was secretly married to aine of kil-kennar prior to his marriage to lena so it doesn't impact the validity of riacan's marriage...) which two marriages, together, resulted in the births of all five of the current staffords...you can read more abt all that in [ this ] thread so yeah!!
ik that was a tonnnnn of stuff i just threw at you so def lmk if 1) you like any of this!!!! obv this is all v much pending re your thoughts on how canon-viable any of this is, and is v much still in the hc'ing stage!!!!! but also ofc also 2) idk how ~clear this even was so like pls def lmk if ur like wtf is even going on/you have any questions alksjdfalkjsdljfkjksdf
anyway, v excited for our boys!!!!!!! i just know, whatever direction we take things, they gonna be a disaster <33333333
Okay, you did NOT hear this from me but Garbhan also loves his older brother a lot and WOULD die for him but he can't have Rian (or anyone else!!!) knowing that because then he would literally have to kill himself b/c we all know that Rian is a loser ;D
But also you are SO right I feel like these two are very incompetent as a ruler/leader on their own but together they make a very well rounded and talented person ... if they would only actually work together they probably could have covered more ground with Roderick than they have w/ Garbhan effectively leaving Rian on his own!
ngl I feel like part of Garbhan hates every single one of these future potential brides Rian has picked out for him literally just because they are RIAN'S plans but also when Rian is like "you should marry Eabha Calleary", Garbhan is just like GOD. EW. nO. *slams door ... comes back 10 seconds later* I MEAN IF I LITERALLY HAVE NO OTHER CHOICE I GUESS BUT WHY ARE YOU RUINING MY LIFE?!? ;DDD
No, but for real he would be very conflicted about the arranged marriages he would actually be okay with because he doesn't deserve them so it's a whole thing and he'd be kinda hot and cold with the idea depending on the day so that's fun for Rian to navigate but ultimately I feel like Garbhan is like "hey you gotta get married first ... and the day YOU can score a lady is the day I'll agree to marry whoever you want .... I'll wait ... " ;D
(unless, of course, Garbhan could somehow score Guin, Cassandra, or Aine out from under Rian which, lbr, won't happen but he'd jump on that opportunity so fast just to spite his brother <3)
But don't think that any of this chaotic behavior means that Garbhan doesn't care about Rian -- because he dOES and as I was saying to Kate, I think that Garbhan was (secretly) seriously considering just staying Astaira after the kingsmoot that Rian lost because he just saw a much better quality of life in Astaira than back at the OVN with Roderick and gang as a disgraced younger brother of the guy who couldn't win his crown back BUT he ultimately gave all of that up because of his brother and he didn't want to abandon hIM!
I also love all of this and it also helps to further explain why rian is willing to dIE on this hill that his family should be the ruling family?!? And how the elections caused so much uncertainty during an already uncertain (and dangerous time honestly to have so many people constantly making the journey to sort out the next kingsmoot one after than other!). And I do think that Garbhan understands why his brother feels so strongly this way, but I do also think he kinda doesn't agree with it but that's also the 1 thing he won't say out loud because it runs so deep (even Garbhan has limits!)
aLSO I'm obsessed with everything you guys have come up with plus I love the complicated legitimacy rumors && I think it's great that it is also something that Roderick has over the boys, too, like I don't feel like it is enough to keep them loyal to him, by itself, but it is definitely isn't something that they would want spreading around, either, if they can help it!
ooc | Garbhan & Aria
I'm SOBBING because I feel like you are so right -- that these two could have had a great relationship (especially just being able to stick together through everything that is happening now??? in like an AU where Garbhan's dad isn't delulu and the cousins actually stayed in Astaira and just y'know accepted that Eilia (and her dad before her!) was the 100% the right choice!!!)
Anyway, like w/ her sister, there is a pretty big age gap/they didn't have a huge amount of time pre-conquest to get to know each other but I feel like in the brief time he did know her, he thought she was a pretty cool kid!!
And I feel like he grieves a lost relationship w/ Eilia, but I feel like he grieves it with Aria even more because while I feel like he admires Eilia more, he likes Aria more??? If that makes sense??? Like I think he has watched her and does think she would have been an awesome person to hang out with?? Meanwhile, I feel like there's a part of him that is intimidated a little by Eilia and feels like he would have to be on his best behavior the entire time and he's not good at that, if that makes sense?? (I also think he would feel more comfortable with Eilia if he ~really~ knew her, but he just sees the part of her, y'know??)
Like with everyone, Garbhan is not here to trauma dump on Aria or even hint that he's at all bothered by what's going on and will continue to be completely unserious and unbothered by everything!!! He's also nothing if not determined and Aria telling him he sucks won't really deter him so ... get ready for your second least favorite cousin here to pester you (affectionately)!!! <3
Okay I actually have so much to say about these two when I actually just assumed Aria would be glaring at Garbhan the same way she glares @forgottenrian and nothing else? Haha!
But these two are actually in the same position within their respective Stafford family lines being the second siblings! While obviously things went very different in their upbringings for multiple reasons I do they could/would have connected on the whole notion of essentially what is their purpose after they’re no longer the spare, ya know? Aria for example always knew that Eilia would have some place for her when she became Queen and/or the heir of Stafford but there is something I think to go from being your sibling’s heir to just being their sibling after they’re have their own children. Honestly there was probably a world where Aria might’ve been pulling similar antics to Garbhan tbh (but that def wasn’t going to be an option with her father/how cloistered away she was due to her powers!)
Due to the fact Aria barely travelled through Astaira much at a certain point and NEVER out of Astaira thanks to her Dad and then Eilia being worried abt her powers being discovered (which potentially is some fallout from the Aunt Realta business @forgottenrian mentioned!), I am imagining one of the few times Aria really spent time with her cousins was when they returned for the kingsmoot that Eilia and rian participated in?!?! Unless you feel like Garbhan was maybe coming to Astaira more often than I imagine! Even so… I could see where Aria’s father maybe kept Aria away if he was coming to the Citadel considering Garbhan and Rian’s ties to Roderick/the OVN and Dom’s (private) fear that Aria’s powers would be discovered and get back to Roderick.
BUT after Dom’s death and with Eilia & Rian distracted by trying to become the ruler of Astaira, I imagine it might be easier for these two to interact and even form some sort of bond. I do think there was probably some tension considering the history between their fathers, but I don’t think at that point Aria would’ve been so vehemently anti-cousins as she is now (both thanks to Rian & Garbhan and her Orinthian family failing to come to Astaira’s aid, girl does NOT trust anyone in her extended family!) There was probably still an idealistic feeling there that the two families might reconcile since both of their fathers had passed away and maybe all the bad blood could be left in the past! They could all be together at the Citadel and the Stafford sisters could have family beyond just the three of them! With that idea in mind and knowing Garbhan is a little (lot) less intense than Rian, I def imagine Aria would’ve warmed to him and probably felt like the slightest bit happier since their Dad died and maybe kinda like she finally had an older brother figure in her life!
Buuuut as we know, after Rian lost the crown they both went back to OVN! And Aria has, since that moment, seen that action as the ultimate betrayal. They abandoned Aria and her sisters who, let’s be real, were still literal children when this was happening AND they betrayed their country abandoning Astaira when things didn’t go Rian’s way! She’s obviously never forgiven them for that, which I’m pretty sure she told/will tell Rian to his face as soon as she could/can! As far as she’s concerned, they aren’t her family anymore. AND if in that time during the kingsmoot she actually formed a bit of a relationship with Garbhan only for him to abandon her? EXTRA awful in her mind! AND that foundation they had years ago would kind of go in with the idea that he’s got this connection to Aria more than Eilia— it totally makes sense she’d be the more imitating one out of the pair, especially if the last time he met her, Eilia was laser focused on becoming the queen!
I def think, now, Aria puts up her shields around him— maybe even more so than she does with Rian? Honestly she straight up just wants to embarrass Rian and prove to everyone he’s a completely fake Astairan— both because she believes that AND she knows that will hurt him. She can tell he cares! But Garbhan, who sort of just seems to be in it for a good time… she definitely isn’t going to try to publicly embarrass him or call him out unless she knows what she says cannot be refuted in any way. She’s def clocked that he does not seem to care in the same way his brother does (considering she’s probably told him to his face she doesn’t like him and he’s unbothered, outwardly!) and honestly… that’ll frustrate the HECK out of her! She’s definitely trying to find those moments where she can feel some sense of control and feeling like she has the moral/intellectual high ground is one of those times!
Also she hates— HATES the Arthur/Garbhan bromance. Just the worse! Have better taste in friends @forgottenarthur ! 😜
Yeah, I totally agree!! I don't think that they really came to Astaira that much (honestly if EVER) after their dad lost out in the kingsmoot and so I do agree that the first real time that they got to know each other was afterwards when Eilia and Rian were competing??
Also crying over Garbhan and Aria having grown up in a similar position :( You are so right!! Like, I think Garbhan has always sorta felt like he's just the spare/the backup plan/etc/etc and while I think he was probably felt more to feel that way than maybe Aria was, it's still kinda clear that that is also their role? And yeah, what would life look life for them once their sibling was crowned/had a family of their own??
Garbhan: I get why the younger brother of the king is always the evil uncle trying to get the throne now ;DDD (jkjk)
Garbhan especially hates his position because he also knows that he would make a terrible king if it ever came to it and he'd also be pretty terrible in whatever position Rian would try to put him in (he doesn't have the temperament for stewardship or any council position requiring long-term planning nor the discipline to be a master of war) and I think it continues to play into Garbhan's just general feelings of not having a place nor having the means to carve a spot out for himself so ... he's just kinda lost and drifting :(
BUT yeah I think that they could have had a real chance to bond during that time in their life!!! Garbhan would have been lowkey a little excited to get to know his cousins and sorta began to see a future where he might have a place and home in Astaira (honestly regardless of who won -- even if, lbr, he kinda knew what rian would do if he did loose if he really thought about it and sticking around to see Eilia be queen was nOT it! .... )
ngl I do think that Garbhan might have even considered staying in Astaira, even if his bro was gonna leave? I don't think he ever told anyone that, but I can see where he even started to make plans on the downlow but then ultimately his loyalty to Rian won out and he left!! (as much as Garbhan hates on his bro, he would die for him honestly. Garbhan: would be the dumbest thing I ever did but ... here we are!)
I don't think he blames Aria at ALL for how she's treating him now but it dOES hurt him (even if he is really good at pretending like it doesn't at all!) especially since he knows that she's 100% right about it. :(
Also, I feel like to Aria's face, he's more likely to be like: Arthur can have better friends than you ... but then to Arthur he's like: isn't Aria the coolest person you've ever met??? (just because he can't have Aria knowing that he likes her/cares what she thinks!!)
ooc | Garbhan & Cormac
the way cormac drives garbhan crazy!!! it's almost as bad as how much cormac drives rian crazy and it is only because he does such a good job at that, that garbhan hasn't somehow "accidentally" tied up cormac in his room/locked the door/misplaced the key
kldsjflskdjfkajdjkf meanwhile cormac probs thinks that garbhan is obsessed w him lkdasjfjlkdjf like the guy just hangs around lorcan all the time!!!!! and like, yeah, he ~lives there and literally all his stuff is there, and its effectively the seat of his familial power atm, and his only living immediate family lives there too and he really has nowhere else to go, but like...is that the ~real reason he's staying???? he 'flirts' w eabha -- but she's the worst *obv* so that's def just an excuse to be near the callearies!!! and whoooo amongst the callearies is most interesting?????? like, is there even a contest????? also i like to think that cormac is the sort of guy who could walk in on garbhan and aisling fully making out and ~still not piece together that they're an ~item if garbhan said that he was just cleaning her face or smth (SCREAM) so i think its safe to say that he hasn't picked up on garbhan having ~any other~ romantic connections...plus, like, the dude went to alllllllll this trouble to come back to astaira like he literally got involved w a war...just so he could come here...to lorcan...and live side by side w cormac (nm that he didn't know that'd be the outcome ahead of time and that was thrust upon him by roderick NOR did he know that hanthom would be taken away and that cormac would then go to reside in lorcan -- that's that irrelevant information obv garbhan's just obsessed w him) like...you do the math alskdjfakljsdkjdf
and like don't get me wrong this is suuuuuuuuper flattering, garbhan!!!!! and, in another world, idk maybe they could make things work but...what is the light a candle (garbhan) to that of the burning sun (cassimir) i ask you?????? sorry man its just not gonna happen lakjsdfalkjsdkjfd
that being said, i ~do think this impression of garbhan's affection for himself ~does give him a v soft place in cormac's heart, so i think he does go to some trouble to like check in w him, spend time w him, and he ~likes being admired (plus like...he's not immune to the whole ~prince thing ngl alksjdfkljsdf) so i feel like it probs makes him act stupid which...is really quite the achievement when we're talking about ~cormac calleary~ himself lajksdklfjsdf
he probs ~is tryna cook up a proper marriage for garbahn (he needs a consolation prize!!!!! he knows how garbhan must WEEP w jealousy any time cassimir comes to call...) and now i gotta find a reeeeeeally crazy match for him <3333333 omg. varmont rules...if things don't work out despite the crazy electricity happening between alistair and aria (footage not found)...boy has cormac got the girl for youuuu!!!!!!! in the mean time he's on the hunt but i feel like some of the ladies he's tryna push him in rooms w to see if sparks fly include (formerly now she's engaged elsewhere...) @forgottenguinevere (garbhan's a prince right!! and then they could be brothers when cormac marries cassandra!), @forgottensonya or @forgottenbrigit or rosie (another AND THEN WE'D BE BROTHERS scenario when finn and aoife get hitched), or, best for last, drum roll pls... @forgottenvalentina alksdjfkljsdlfjklskdjf ik ik...all of these will work great! roderick would hang draw and quarter you for guin, sonya has no interest, brigit might murder you in the night, rosie's going through a maybe???? break up situation that stirs up a lot of trauma involving the war you helped w, and valentina is well...valentina!!!!! aria is ur literal cousin who hates you lkajsdfkljdsf good luck, have fun, and, most of all -- YOU'RE WELCOME!!!!!!! ;DDDDDDD
Cormac believing beyond anything that Garbhan is MADLY in love with him and orchestrated (somehow) this elaborate plan to end up living under the same roof with him is I C O N I C and I'm here for it!!
Garbhan, on the other hand, is nOT (although I'm not sure he'd even necessarily completely pick up on it or not? I'm not sure explicit Cormac would be about it or if it would just be this ~unspoken understanding~ between them??)? Either way, I'm loving the concept that Garbhan can't do anything without Cormac just assuming that Garbhan's motivation is purely based on his deep affections for Cormac lkfjlsfjldfj
Garbhan locks Rian in a room with Cormac??? He is trying to bond his brother with the man he loves!
Garbhan stays out too late drinking? He's clearly nursing his broken heart over never being able to lock Cormac down!!
Garbhan says means things to/about Cassimir??? He's so overwhelmed by jealousy!
I DO think that it would annoy/frustrate Garbhan if he dID know (at least for the two seconds it would take him to ask himself the question: how can I use this information to make Rian's day worse??)
HAHAHAH omg Cormac trying to play matchmaker for Garbhan!!!! Valentina lowkey being amazing if only because Garbhan would get a kick outta being Cassimir's step-dad && making Valentina Rian's sister-in-law (unfortunately neither is a good enough reason to be Valentina's husband bUT still)
OOC | Bartholomew & Garbhan
so i don't have a ~ton of ideas for these two, ngl, except that i feel like, before an ~alternate spouse~ was found for her, there may have been some talk of wedding ciara to rian or garbhan? ciara is part of the imperial family, she's part astairan, the staffords are (depending who you ask anyway) princes, there was hopes of a varmont-stafford team up to forward the cause of the war etc etc. obv the whole went in another direction, etc, but yeah i can see where there were at least potential talks abt it, but maybe even smth as srs as an engagement asp? but!! regardless of that there was probs lots talk and many dinners as a result that would've seen these two chilling and, even if the idea of prev ciara/stafford talks aren't smth we wanna explore, there's also the fact that the staffords obv were astairan and bar's kids're half astairan and he was probs like 'we should have them hang out a bit' which meant that bar was also hanging out w them and yeah!! garbhan and eoin might even be friends potentially? idk?
tbh im not sure what bar would make of garbhan lakjsdflkjsdf like legit im not even sure WHY?????? but i think he's a LOT in bar's mind, kind of a flashy kid which probs makes bar feel like there's no real substance ljaksdjfklsjdf but affable enough, if a loT, to have over to dinner lkajsdlkfjasdf after that tho he just wants to go have a nice quiet moonlight walk in peace tho i think aljsdfakjdsf i feel like he lowkey thinks garbhan is a bit exhausting laksjdflkjsdf like my dude...ur a varmont u have a whole BEVY of close relatives a billion times more exhausting than poor garbhan smdh bar: that im used to. that lil joke garbhan made abt the pudding tho? exhausting i need a long walk to recover lkajsdlfjkskdljfksdf me: ??????????
I can TOTALLY see that having been a thing!!!
I feel like Garbhan would have actually been on board with that? Especially if it was awhile ago when he still had ~hope~ for his future lmao.
I think he'd see Ciara as someone who is sorta in a ~similar position? In that, she's part Varmont/part Astairan and who has connections/ties/fondness for Astaira, all while being kept from it and while Garbhan's in a worse situation re: his relationship with Astaira, I feel like he'd see a marriage to Ciara as a way to in a positive way -- especially since she, at least, has a good relationship with her cousins there and like that might have provided a gateway for him? plus, I feel like he'd get on really well with Ciara? I think they would have had fun together, ngl, especially if they've known each other for awhile and I think she probably got on with Garbhan, initially, much easier than Rian. (and I think Garbhan would have also loved this ngl alsjfladsf)
However, I don't think Ciara would have wanted to marry Garbhan. As much as she likes hanging out with him, I think she'd also see how reckless and flirtatious he can be and honestly Garbhan comes with a lot of red flags as a potential husband and I can see her have even told her dad that she'd marry him if she had to, but she'd rather someone a little steadier?? I also think she would have liked Rian, eventually, but he would have taken a lot longer to warm up to and she probably would have had some hesitations about him, just based on how his father has acted/it seems like Rian is following in his footsteps so idk it depends how close she ever got with him or not ??? Like if she knew him enough to understand his motivations better, I think she would have been okay with him but I don't know if they ever had that kind of relationship??
ANYWAY, to sum it up, I do think that Garbhan would have been on his best behavior around Bart during the time when a marriage between him and Ciara was a possibility and he would have sorta hammed it up a little to get on Bart's good side which would be a much chiller Garbhan but ... probably still a little much/exhausting lmao in Bart's opinion!!!
I feel like there was a time after Godfrey and Ciara's engagement where he was a little bitter about it (depending on how serious things were lookin' tbh) and probably then a little rougher towards Bart but as things have gone on/Garbhan has come to realize that he still cares for Eabha while also realizing that he's The Worst and doesn't actually deserve anything good, he's like "yeah good call on not letting me marrying your daughter!"
I can also see where Garbhan and Eoin could be friends, too!!! although ... ngl Garbhan would have been a terrible influence on him and like 99% of the time when Eoin got in trouble, it would have probably been Garbhan's fault #whoops .... which probably didn't do much for him when he was trying to marry Eoin's sister.
ooc | Garbhan & Arthur
the bromance I didn't know I needed, honestly <333
I do think that Garbhan was probably a little resistant to it, at first (or at least like legitimately??? Like he's all about having a good time so he wouldn't have like turned Arthur down if the opportunity arose to drink together or whatever) but I don't think he planned to become friends with him 1) because there's a lot of guilt/baggage on his end regarding this stafford/varmont relationship -- even pre-conquest tbh -- and 2) garbhan doesn't have friends???
and like after a couple of years garbhan probably just woke up and was like ".... am I best friends with this asshole??"
to quote mr. darcy "I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun"
sdlkfaljsdf omg ikr?? ok so i think arthur was ~also in the middle before he knew that he had begun alkdsjfkldsjf bc i do think he def was like 'this dude is literally just a hanger-on tryna butter me up for favors' bc i think like...99% of the ppl who spend their time around him are like fake friends whose families are like 'be a gentleman of the imperial prince's chamber so we can get in some face time w the rich and powerful and thus get an extra castle' or whatever laksdjfkljsdf and sure the stafford boys wanted a whole ~country which was more than most ppl angle for but like...i def still think he just wrote him off as another guy who just wanted to hang w arthur to get smth out of it basically
since, until coming to astaira, arthur legit didn't have any ~real friends beyond that, except his family members -- and i don't need to tell you what a can of worms all ~that is alskdjfkjdsf -- he was still willing to put up w fake friends and just have a good time w them and just assume that was all he was gonna get in life
so yeah!! basically i think he probs ~did have garbhan out to drink and party w him etc back in the day but also like??? def thought it was just all v fake basically
i ~can also see where arthur's ~unnamed lord sun~ grandpa and garbhan's dad being political rivals (at least i ~think that's smth you mentioned in the blurb you published on the main? might be misremembering tho so ignore this if i am hahahah) may also have served as a bit of a roadblock for these two early on frankly? alksjdfkjldsf but also if roderick wanted to make sure the staffords felt roped in, that'd outweigh any concerns for the opposite his grandfather might have had in arthur's book frankly lakjsdfkljsdf and lbr garbhan is wayyyy more fun than wet blanket rian so if arthur's gonna spend time w one of them...alskdjflksjdf
AM I BEST FRIENDS W THIS ASSHOLE BAHAHAHAHA honestly arthur to a degree too, i feel? i think it was a lil more gradual for him but i think same kinda thing where just more and more he was like 'you know what will make this party more fun? garbhan' to like 'you know whose really great at making me laugh when i need a laugh? garbhan' to 'you know who gives the best advice [ooc: ok questionable but...arthur]? garhabn' and like??? whether or not he's acknolwedged this to himself yet???? idk???? esp bc he do still be stuck in the mentality that everyone in the world only wants him for what he can do for them (even his family, he thinks, to a degree) and thus don't value ~him as a ~person only as a ~prince, idk that he's quite worked all that out but he knows that ~he genuinely likes garbhan and hey!! that is smth at least bc idk how much he genuinely likes like ~any of the rest of his "friends" frankly lakjdsfjksdf laksjdfkjlsdf
so yeah i think he's like im his friends but idk if he's ~really mine or if he's just saying that bc of who my dad is and who i might be someday etc but since he's got that asterisk up on ~all his relationships i think he tries not to think abt it too hard and just goes abt his day as if they're buddies basically lakjdsflkjdsf
that makes a tonnn of sense and honestly, I think Garbhan is in the same sorta space where he's not sure how ~real~ it is on Arthur's side (does he like to hang out with me or is this just another way to keep us in check/pass us off as Varmont supporters??) I don't think he spends too much time considering that tho because that's too ~emotional~ and ~serious~ for Garbhan to handle most of the time so 99% of the time he's just here for a good time and has convinced himself he wouldn't care if Arthur woke up the next day and told him he never enjoyed hanging out with him even 1 time
also like we mentioned on discord .... garbhan is HERE to ship Aria/Arthur!! idk that Arthur has ever mentioned his interest or not to him but I feel like Garbhan has certainly picked up that there's ~something~ between them and ngl there's something so wonderful to him about the idea 2 of his favorite people from both sides of his life falling in love??? like lowkey there's this tiny (hidden) part of him that sees it as this symbolic hope for himself, too, like if THEY can fall in love and be happy perhaps there is a future where garbhan isn't stuck between two worlds and disliked/hated by both??? I don't think he even realizes any of this, but I think that it dOES go beyond just being a good wingman that he wants this thing to succeed
anyway, even if Arthur HAS not said anything to him/denies it, I do think that Garbhan knows better and he will still (lightly) tease him about it/subtly (or not so subtly) orchestrate things so oh no! now Arthur and aria are left completely alone!!!