BECAUSE HEâS ALL I EVER KNEW OF LOVE â act three
[Y/N] was a neighbour of Peter âSteeleâ Ratajczykâs, who had seen her as another sister. When she starts her own band, itâs his best friend, Josh Silver, who catches her eye.
Masterlist
Content warnings; pregnancy (it wonât be the main story and Iâll eventually forget about it)
January 1999
Spending new years pregnant was rough. You sat on the sofa drinking a Pepsi, at least Josh wasnât drinking, but the smell of his cigarettes made you crave one, desperately.
Everyone knew of the pregnancy now. Your parents â once your mother stopped hysterically sobbing â were ecstatic.
Your mother had already bought stuff for the baby. The colour blue was a continuous theme in the bag of stuff she had dropped off.
You were sorting through them in the spare room when Josh walked in.
âHow many clothes do babies need?â You ask.
âThey shit a lot.â He replies.
You nod, humming. You pick up a tiny little shirt. âAnd look how tiny itâll be.â
He takes it into his own hands, looking at the pile behind you. âDoes she think itâll be a boy?â
You laugh. âYou think?â
He smiles, sitting next to you. âItâs going to be a girl.â
You shake your head. âItâs a boy, definitely.â
Josh shrugs. âWe can bet on it.â
You laugh. âAnd Iâll win.â
â˘
Your band had an interview with a small music magazine. Darragh was there early, talking to the interviewer.
She introduced herself to you, shaking your hand. âBig fan of your music.â
You smiled and thanked her.
âYouâre here early..?â You tease, raising a brow as Darragh is staring at the girl.
He rolls his eyes. âMe and Lucy have crossed paths before.â
You smirk. âSure, you did.â
He goes to reply when Joel waltzes in, and the interview begins. Her friend began recording the interview.
She asked about future plans and projects for the band. Asked about Mackey. Asked about the three of yours lives behind the scenes â which were all very blunt answers, never talking about marriages or babies.
When you were heading to your car to drive home, Darragh stayed a step behind, talking to Lucy.
You were unlocking your car when you could see Darragh kissing her, and she walks off in a hurry.
âWhat?â He catches you staring.
âNothing.â Youâre quick to reply. âJust wondering how many times those paths of yours have crossed..?â
He rolls his eyes. âShut up.â He goes to say something again before he walks off again. âIâm going home, love ya!â
[Y/N] Targaryen meets a certain hedge knight. The two of them forget their oaths, vows and principles in their roles.
Masterlist
Content Warnings; birth scene(?), unwanted pregnancy, Aerion hits reader (ooc? Idk), death of a child
212AC
You had awoken to your nightgown soaked through. Your unborn child making it difficult to even sleep anymore. You havenât had any dreams for almost a whole year.
You were terrified. Maesters, handmaidens, a wet nurse surrounded you. You felt the walls caving in on you.
You screamed and screamed. You cried out for someone, anyone, to come help you. The maester told your handmaiden to shush you, something about the babe being stuck.
That shook you out of your head. âNo!â You scream. You fought against hands, groaning at the feeling of the blood.
You had knocked yourself into a deep, delirious sleep. Your mother was there, so was Matarys.
When you had awoke, the room was quiet. Except for small cooing and whispers.
You reluctantly opened your eyes, wishing this was all a dream, that you werenât pregnant, still unmarried.
But when you followed the noise. Aerion was holding the babe near the window. The moon beaming in, casting light on the babe.
âAerion?â
He grins at you. âYou have gave me a son, dear wife.â
You felt weak. Your mouth parched, scratching your throat as you swallowed back bile.
Standing up, off the birthing bed, as if you hadnât almost bled to death birthing that thing. âAmazing news, cousin.â
Aerion noticed your state, how you werenât begging him to hold your child, how you were so eager to leave. âI think the boy wants a name.â
You shrug, wrapping yourself into your robe. âYou pick. Heâs your son.â
âOur son.â
You didnât feel like fighting. You felt pure bliss that the leech isnât inside your womb no more. âOf course, husband.â
He walks closer to you. You could hear the thing cooing, probably hungry. Aerion is trying to kiss your cheek, but you move quicker.
âI need to go on a walk.â
Aerion raises a brow. âIn your condition?â
You scoff. âI have no condition. You have an heir. Congratulations.â
You donât wait for a response before youâre literally speeding down the halls. Hoping, praying that Kiera is roaming the same halls, expecting you.
And she is. Daeron at her side. She looks confused that thereâs no child in your arms, expecting bad news about the outcome of the babe.
But you shake her off. Explains where heâs at.
âYou donât look happy, cousin.â Itâs Daeronâs hoarse whisper that cracks into the air.
You sigh, picking at your nails. âI never wanted the.. babe.â
She leans forward, resting her hand on yours. âI know what youâre feeling, what youâre thinking⌠it will pass.â
The King insisted you name the babe, before he is announced to the people of the council and Kings Landing.
It was one of the first times you actually held your child. He was already three moons old. Your dreams began to haunt you, once more.
He stared at you. Blinking with his white eyelashes, with your motherâs blue eyes. He had his fatherâs pure white hair.
The more you sat, examining this child, you realise how beautiful he is, how he looks at you like youâre his whole world.
âValarys?â You whisper. His hand comes to your face, babbling, spit rolling down his chin.
It wouldnât be a moon or so later, that you and your son become sick, heavy with fever, and a rough cough.
The maester told you it was common for mother and child to get sick at the same time. Since they spend so much time together. But how could you explain that youâre just getting used to having him.
Aerion tried to help both of you, before it started to get worse for Valarys.
You had mended in no time, being able to eat your meals at the table again. You began to breastfeed your baby, as the maester advised to boost his health.
It wasnât until after you had came back from dinner, with Aelora trying to make odd conversation with you, Alys being snippy across the table, that you go into your chambers, taking your overheating child into your arms once more.
Valarys had became your comfort over time. You enjoyed watching him grow up, and how he was beginning to look more like you everyday.
He had babbled in happiness to see you, screeching when you took him into your arms. You had began to nurse him, rocking him back and forth, when Aerion struts in.
He slams letters down on the table in front of you. His knuckles white with tension, face red with anger.
âCare to explain?â
You look at the letters, seeing that they were your letters that you had sworn you had sent off to Duncan.
âAerion, Iââ
His open hand stops you, as you gasp in shock that he had slapped you. In front of your child.
You growled. âI donât know how itâs any of your business who I send letters to! Iâm just worried for your brother and his caregiver.â
âCaregiver?â He scoffs. âI shouldâve known what happened in Ashford⌠shouldâve known I married a whore!â
You try your best to ignore him, rocking Valarys as he begins to get restless because of the raised voices. You cover your breast again. His head on your shoulder.
âYou gave me an heir, but heâs constantly sick! How will our family line continue if their king is a sickly one.â
You close your eyes, hoping this ends soon.
âPerhaps your womb is rotten. Will I just get sickly children from you?â
You swallow. âPerhaps.â
He scoffs again. You flinch back. Aerion notices and steps down onto his knees in front of you.
âIâm sorry, wife. I.. I let my anger get the best of me.â
You ignore him. Your cheek was hot.
He sighs. âEven the maesters are feared for the boy. They say heââ
âI donât give a fuck what the maester says. They couldnât save my mother, my brothers. Why should I trust them to save my son?â
You finally look at him. âHe just needs time.â You felt tears bitting at your eyes. âValarys will be a strong child, I know it.â
Aerion nods, his hands comes to rest of the boys head, kissing his cheek, before kissing yours. Valarys is snoring lightly, whimpering in his sleep when Aerion leaves.
It wasnât until the year was almost over that life just had to knock you over one last time.
You had awoken to the sound of screaming, crying, shouting. You had jumped out of bed and ran to the nursery, pushing past handmaidens that had crowded the halls and doors.
Aelinor is in front of you, her arm wraps around you to stop going further. âNo, sweet girl.â
âBut Valarys!â You try to fight against her, until the maester is standing.
âHe is dead, princess.â
You gasp. âWhat?â
âHe had many ailments, and diseases that we know no cure of.â He looks down to the ground, almost in shame, begging for forgiveness.
You grab onto Aelinor, almost for something to ground you. âMy son?â
The maester nods. âIâm sorry, princess.â
You felt your knees go weak, your eyes getting cloudy. âYou⌠who can you save?!â You scream. âMy mother, no cure. My brothers, no cure. And now my son!â
You didnât mean to shout and scream. But knowing that your son is just behind this old man, hurts your chest, your heart beating far faster. You want to see him, hold him, nurse him back to health.
But you donât. Your knees donât make it to his cot before youâre on the floor, sobbing, screaming. Aelinor is there. You think Kiera is, too.
You scream until youâre choking on air, scratching at your skin. You scream until youâve passed out into your aunts lap.
You dream of your father, how you would stand with him, watching the knights practice on the grounds. The night after another rough dream. How you held his hand and didnât let go.
When you got ready for the funeral, you were still weak, not able to eat, or sleep. Even walking past the nursery makes your heart drop.
Standing and watching the pyre go up in flames. Aerion doesnât look your way, once. He was the first to leave. You were one of the last.
Silent tears ran down your face. Blood collecting at your fingernails.
âNiece,â it was Maekar. âI have heard what my son has been saying about you and your ability to make children.â
You gulp, expecting him to support his son. Claim youâve been cursed, to go and pray profusely until youâre with child again.
But he doesnât. Instead his arm is around your shoulder.
âMy son is an idiot.â He speaks. âValarysâ death has nothing to do with you, or even the babe himself. He was just a sick child, that has no proper medicine to cure him.â
His words do little to comfort you.
You think he can tell.
âJust know, youâre not to blame, niece.â
You try to pretend that you agree with him. But youâre starting to believe that you were cursed.
Guys real talk. Iâm starting university come September. If anyone went or goes to university currently, whatâs the stuff i DEFINITELY need for my accommodation and in general for a university student.
I donât want to buy stuff and then never use them.
[Y/N] Targaryen meets a certain hedge knight. The two of them forget their oaths, vows and principles in their roles.
Masterlist
Content Warnings; unwanted pregnancy
211AC
You werenât told when Rhaegel, Alys and their children arrived. Or the reason for their visit.
But Aerys seemed somewhat pleased to see his brother.
Rhaegel stuck close to his wife. Their children did the same. They seem rather shy, and never spoke to you or any of Maekarâs children.
Their twins, Aelor and Aelora, seemed to enjoy private conversations with Aerys â which were supervised by Alys.
You had caught them when walking down the halls. Alysâ blue gown caught your eye. And once her eyes met yours, Aerysâ chamber door slammed shut.
Your heart sunk. You tried your best not to show it at dinner. Or when Rhaegel tried to discuss your father and brothers without crying.
Within the next few days, you werenât called into council meetings. Aerys would walk past you without a second look.
Thatâs when you knew something was happening.
You had caught Aelinor outside with Daenora, the youngest of Rhaegelâs, playing with Daella and Rhae.
Aelinor welcomed you with a warm smile as you sat at her side.
âTea, niece?â She goes to nod to one of her handmaidens to begin pouring tea, when you stopped her.
âIâm only here to get answers.â
This caught Aelinorâs full attention. âWhat for?â
You sigh, glancing at the little girl, who looked far too much like her father. âWhat is Alysâ plans with the twins?â
Aelinor took a sip of her tea. Her eyebrows raised up from over the cup. She hums. Almost smirking.
âYour sweet aunt Alys is trying to get the twins into an heir race with you..â you dreaded the rest of her sentence.
She sighs. âAnd, sweet girl, Iâm afraid, with Maekar here, sheâs winning.â
Tightness in your chest reminded you to breathe. You didnât say anything, and that was enough for Aelinor.
âI thought if I married Aerion then Maekar would support my cause..?â
Aelinor laughs. âYouâre forgetting heâs the youngest son, the youngest brother. Heâs dying to get on that throne before any one else.â
Moons later, you knew you were in the early stages of pregnancy. The more you looked into a mirror you noticed the small bump.
You also knew you were in the early stages of being usurped from a throne that was promised to you.
You were waiting for the announcement. You blatantly ignored the pregnancy, pushing the thought away that you were carrying Aerionâs child.
At night, when you laid on your back, staring at the ceiling. He was sneak a hand on the small bump, whispering about a dragon, his heir.
You were disgusted at him, and this thing inside you. You would push his hand away and curl into yourself, crying for your mother.
So when the next morning came. Your handmaidens helped with your dress.
âPrincess, I canât tighten it any further.â
You inhale. âTry, please.â
The girl nodded, tightening the corset, until you could feel it right into your ribcage.
You went on a walk with Kiera around the gardens, the halls â that still haunt you with your brothers and your father.
Young handmaidens talked amongst themselves, glancing at you, looking at you with pity.
You thought everyone was past this pity towards you.
It wasnât until you were sat at dinner. Aerys stood at the head of the table. Alys sat with a sharp look in her eyes.
âIâm happy to announce that my brother, Rhaegel will be heir after me!â
Your grasp around your chalice tightened. The tightness in your chest was back.
When you raised your eyesight, you noticed that Maekar was in the same predicament.
Thatâs when it hit you. The throne will never be yours.
You were quick to excuse yourself, rushing to your chambers. Ribbing off the dress and the corset. You sat in your nightgown all night â writing pages and pages to Duncan. About how much you miss him, how much you need him to be here with you.
You knew it was rare that the location Aegon had gave you a while back was where they still were, but you prayed at your bed before wrapping into your duvet â ignoring how your husband came back when the sun was rising, smelling of sex and alcohol.
Yes, you may have been a struggling college graduate, and a ex-burglar. But, youâre Bruce Wayneâs secretary first and Batmans sidekick secondly.
Masterlist
Content warning; sexual tension, another short chapter, shoot me
taglist; @jellyfish-tae @justservingcant
The Joker has came in, demanding to know where Dent is. It takes everything in you to stay still on your feet, as you watch him and his little friends shove guns into peoples faces, trying to make them scared so that theyâll say something â without your suit, it wouldnât take you long to be shot down.
But no one budged.
It wasnât until the man had a knife against an old manâs face that Rachel spoke up.
Thatâs when Joker thought she was entertaining enough for him.
You blink and sheâs in the same position as the old man once was, a knife pressed into her cheeks. He spoke silently to her, about a wife, whilst Rachel fought and squirmed against him the knife.
Itâs when you finally moved. âThatâs enough.â
âHah!â He turns to you, knife ready. âI donât take orders from a little secretaryâŚâ
He knows who you are.
âIsnât Bruce gonna come save you now.â He steps closer to you. You donât break eye contact, even though you can see Rachel standing behind him, shaking her head, mouthing something to you.
You sigh. âIâm not scared of you.â
He laughs in your face. His breath hot. âOf course, youâre not scared.â The knife is traced along your jaw.
âBut I think the people around you, would be terrified, to see you bleeding outâŚâ the knife presses harder. âRight at theirââ
Before he could finish their sentence, Rachel had stepped behind him, raised her foot between his legs to kick him in the crotch.
âOh..!â He turns to Rachel again. âYouâve got a little fight in you. I like that.â
A figure jumps down behind him. Batman. Bruce.
As soon as Joker is away from you and Rachel, sheâs at your side again. Sheâs hugging you.
âYou didnât have to do that.â Sheâs saying in your ear.
âItâs fine.â You shrug it off.
You had to stand and watch as Joker and his remaining friends run off. The guests soon leave, too. As does Rachel and Dent, once they have a safe passage to somewhere safe.
Itâs just you, Batman, and Alfred whoâs sweeping up glass.
âAlfred, let me help you.â You felt useless.
âNo, itâs quite alright, miss.â You ignore him, picking up large shards of glass into your hand. âWe donât need any more injuriesââ
All he heard was a large hiss of pain from you as the glass cuts into your skin. He sighs.
âSorry, Alfred.â You brush off the glass into a bin, before rushing into the bathroom, where Bruce stood, his chest exposed, wearing only the bottom half of the bat suit.
âOh, my god. Sorry.â
âHey, itâs alright.â He stops as soon as he can see the blood trickling down your wrist. âWhat happened? Did heââ
He, meaning Joker.
âNo.â Youâre quick to shake your head. âItâs just me being stupid.â
He shakes his head, leading you further into the very large bathroom. Bruce takes your hand under the tap, rinsing the blood with water.
His own hand was so warm, his whole body was radiating heat. You couldnât help but rest your head on his shoulder.
He sighs. âYou alright?â
You nod. âIâm sorry.. that I couldnât help you.â
His thumb rubs at your wrist.
âEverything happened so fast.â You continue. âHe had Rachel, and I couldnât let anything happen to her, sheâs your friend. Youâd kill me if I didnât save her.â
He pauses. He pulls you back. âAnd if anything happened to you, I wouldnât be able to live with myself.â
You snort. âBruce, youâre the Bruce Wayne, youâre the Batman. Iâm just your secretary, your little sidekick.â
He tuts. âYouâre more than thatâŚâ
You inhale. Bruceâs eyes held such intensity, you couldnât look away. âWhat else am I, Bruce?â
He leans closer, and youâre scared of where this is going.
âOh, apologies!â Alfred. âI was going to see if miss [Y/N] needed stitches, or if you did, Bruce?â
Bruce shakes his head. âJust a few bruises, Alfred. However, [Y/N] might need your help.â
You let Alfred lead you to the kitchen, where he examined the cut. Whilst your heart tried to recover from whatever was going to happen in the bathroom.