#blue warriors

[evilhorse]

Blue Warriors! On me!

(Aquaman Volume 9 #9)

[autoacafiles]

[im-the-king-of-the-ocean]

Jim and Aja with number 3 for the poses?

pose reference

[autoacafiles]

[im-the-king-of-the-ocean]

Ajim for crying pose 7?

There are moments when the battle rages,

and exhaustion begins to set in.

Moments where, for the briefest of instances,

they waver.

It is in these moments, Aja and Jim come together,

and remember

why they fight.

[im-the-king-of-the-ocean]

8 for Ajim?

“You hide it in jokes and sarcasm, but I can see how broken you are.”

.

“You hide it in jokes and sarcasm, but I can see how broken you are.”  Tentatively, Aja approaches Jim.

“I’m not broken.”

“I—I didn’t mean it like that.”  She gently touches his arm.  “But I can see you’re hurting.”

“Aja—”

“Didn’t you once tell me it’s never good to suffer alone?  To shut out your close friends and family?  People who love you?”

Jim turns away from her.  “This is different, Aja.”

“How so?”  She moves so she can see his face again, though he won’t meet her gaze.  “We are both warriors.  We both know what it’s like to lose.”

Finally, Jim’s eyes meet hers.  There’s a million thoughts running through his head, Aja can see that clearly.  She reaches up to cup his cheek in her hand.  “It’s okay,” she whispers.  “You don’t have to talk about it now.  I’ll be here.  Whenever you’re ready.”

Jim wraps his hand gently around Aja’s fingers.  “I don’t know I’ll ever be.”

“Then, I’ll just be here.”  She offers him a shaky smile.  “Jim, I…”  She looks down away from him, and then back at him.  “I love you.”

Jim presses his forehead against hers.  “I love you, too, Aja,” he replies.  He exhales.  “And, thank you.”

They embrace.  Jim buries his head in Aja’s shoulder.  She can feel his trembles as he begins to cry.  She puts her hand on the back of his head.

Today may end in sorrow, but tomorrow will come.  And they have each other.  Always.

[im-the-king-of-the-ocean]

29 for AJim!

“You can lie to yourself but don’t lie to me.”

…

“You can lie to yourself, Aja, but don’t lie to me.”

Aja hesitates just before going to open the door.  She gazes at her warped, distorted reflection in the golden doorknob.  “I told you.  I’m fine.”

“And I know you’re not.”  Jim walks up behind her.  “Please.”  He places a hand on her shoulder.  “Talk to me.”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”  Maybe if she keeps telling herself that, it will become true.

Jim sighs.  Aja can feel his breath on the back of her neck.  He goes on, “I know there is.  Aja—”

“Jim.” Aja cuts him off.  She doesn’t actually have a rebuttal, but she knows if she lets him keep talking, she’ll lose her resolve.  She has to go.  Everything will be better if she just goes away, and never returns.

“Aja.”  She’s not sure how Jim manages to maneuver between her and the door, but he does.  He leans against the slab of wood, effectively cutting her off from her one way out.  You know I—” Jim takes a sharp breath.  “I love you.”  He places both hands on her shoulders this time.  “I’m not just going to stop caring because you’ve run someplace far away.”  He closes his eyes, inhales, exhales, and then opens them.  “I know what it’s like to not want admit what’s wrong.  I’ve been there.  Aja, it’s not a great place to be.  Please.”  He reaches up and strokes her cheek with his thumb.  “Let me help.”

Aja places her hand overtop his cool, stone one.  She leans into his touch.  Oh, how she’s always loved being physically affectionate like this with him.  One would assume Jim couldn’t be soft due to his trollishness, but he is the gentlest person she knows.

“Okay,” she whispers, before allowing him to collect her in his arms and carry her over to the couch.

Jim places Aja down, and then sits down next to her.  He gives her space.  She closes that space by crawling into his lap and resting her head on his chest.  She wants to hear his heartbeat, for its regular thrumming to reassure her he’s still there and not going anywhere.  As a response, Jim puts a hand on the back of her head and strokes her hair.

“It’s really not that big of a deal.”  Aja sniffs.  Her sight has gone blurry, and she’s pretending the tears don’t exist.

Jim wipes them off her cheeks.  “It is, to you.”

“It shouldn’t be.  I’m the queen.”  Aja sighs.  “I’m supposed to be…” She toys with a loose thread on Jim’s shirt.  She’ll have to get the royal tailor to make him something new.  Seklos and Gaylen only know what rumors will start circulating amongst the people if the Royal Prince-Consort is seen out and about in ragged clothing.

“…Perfect,” Aja continues.  “Everyone expects me to be this ideal and I’m, I’m me.”  She looks up into Jim’s eyes.  “I accept that I am the ruler of Akiridion-5, that this is who I am supposed to be.”  She groans.  “I just wish they treated me like I was normal.”

Like everyone on Earth did, she doesn’t say.

Aja misses the mudball planet.  A part of her longs to go back.  But, she’ll also never forgive herself if she doesn’t try to change things on Akiridion-5.  Her parents’ rule, peaceful though it was, had not been without flaws or failings.  Aja wants to change things, for the better.  For that, she needs the royal position she’d always run from.

“I’m sorry.”  Jim presses his forehead against Aja’s.  “I can’t change the way they think.”  But I can be here for you.  It’s his unspoken promise.  The one that’s always there.

Aja never asked Jim to come with her  She’d wanted to, back when things were first beginning for them and their romance was young, uncertain, and exciting.  But, she couldn’t take him away from his home and his family, even though it pained her to be apart from him.

He’d come anyway.  Not at first.  Not by request.  But, because he wanted to.  Jim walked into her court and asked to earn a place by her side.  She’d stared at him in wonder and accepted.

They’d been together since.  Their lifespans equally long and longer than any of the friends they’d once had on Earth.  Through everything, through every conflict (and boring council meeting), they supported each other.  They’d loved each other.  They’d found a new normal with each other.

Aja exhales.  Today.  Today has been a bad day.  One where she struggled to be both herself and ruler.  Tomorrow could be equally as challenging.

She finds Jim’s lips with her own and kisses him.

It’s relieving to remember she won’t have to face whatever comes on her own.

[im-the-king-of-the-ocean]

To have something a bit more positive tonight, here’s some really really rough sketches of my OCs, Andy and Lela (Andy’s on the right; Lela’s on the left). They’re daughters of Aja and Jim and would totally kick the butt of certain Cheeto puff jerk faces if given the chance.