#ch 35

[failedelectrocution]

Pet the middle aged man, pet him!!!!

[evespearl]

I wanted to clear up the scene between Aemond and Helaena in chapter 35, because while I have my reasons for including this past, I was a bit concerned it might seem out of character.

In a culture where incest is normalised, every family member is a potential partner. In the case of the Targaryens, this replaces the normal bounds of siblinghood with an expectation of intimacy built on the premise of Valyrian blood supremacy. What interests me is how much of this incest is desired and how much of it is taught and enforced; this is the core of Aemond's and Helaena's interactions.

Like many Targaryens, Aemond and Helaena share a very odd sibling dynamic. In the show, it reads as more tragic than romantic; Aemond clearly cares for Helaena, while she feels shackled to her visions and disassociated from reality. In episode 7 of season 1, when a young Aegon complains about having to marry her, Aemond clearly views the prospect differently:

Aemond: "She's our sister." Aegon: "You marry her, then." Aemond: "I would perform my duty, if Mother had only betrothed us. (...) It would strengthen the family. Keep our Valyrian blood pure."

This exchange shows that, even as a child, Aemond internalised the Targaryen exceptionalism much more strongly than his brother. Aemond's willingness to "perform his duty" and his wording suggests that he viewed sibling marriage as a milestone and was genuinely open to marrying his sister to achieve it.

I don't necessarily believe Aemond was ever attracted to Helaena. However, Targaryen customs allowed him to think about her differently than a normal brother would. When the kissing occurred, they were both young teenagers (Aemond likely around 13 or 14). Aemond doesn't think this past matters and makes a hypocritical distinction between Targaryen incest and (hypothesised) Manderly incest. Although he doesn't reminisce fondly about what they did and holds no desire for her, his reaction shows how he has normalised this behaviour.

His dismissal of Helaena's comments regarding Cordelia's potential jealousy further shows that he doesn't consider it an issue. But if Cordelia kissed one of her brothers? Suddenly, the same logic doesn't apply:

Helaena ran her fingers through the browning grass. "And how would you feel if one of her brothers kissed her?" Aemond's eye narrowed instantly. He pictured Torrhen Manderly's face and felt disgust coil in his stomach. "I would kill him", he answered, meaning it. "But that is different. We're Targaryens. They're not like us."

Both show Aemond and Green Tides Aemond struggle with self-esteem. As the spare, Aemond has felt the need to prove himself his whole life. His jealousy toward Aegon might, for this reason, have translated into his relationship with Helaena; kissing her might have provided the validation he otherwise lacked. It was both about trying to claim "something of Aegon's" and about strengthening his own Targaryen identity:

The memory surfaced slowly: Helaena, years ago, seated on his lap in the dimness of the library, her hands cradling his face as she guided him. Her lips had been soft. Aemond had almost forgotten their feel. There had been a thrill to it, of course — of taking something that belonged to Aegon. But it had never sparked his desire. Not in the way Cordelia did.

This culture of incest has its consequences. Because Aemond has no other sisters, he had to seek out an "inferior" match from an "inferior" bloodline. This is one of the reasons why he is so cold to Cordelia in the beginning; he didn't truly see her as an equal because she didn't meet his standard of "Targaryenness".

If an early GT Aemond could have chosen between Cordelia and a hypothetical sister-wife, I believe he would have picked the sister — even if he found Cordelia more appealing. To him, having a sister-wife is more about status, culture, and repute than personal desire. It cements a Targaryen man's place in the hierarchy, alongside the ability to command a dragon. However, by this point in the story, Aemond has experienced significant growth. He no longer seeks validation in the same way, and his care for Cordelia is such that he wouldn't consider other options.

Figuring out whether this fits Helaena's characterisation was more difficult. Helaena is a very mysterious character who hasn't been explored in much depth in my story yet. In the show, she has visions, averts touch, and seems unhappy in her marriage (traits that apply here as well) but could she have ever desired Aegon or Aemond? Or does kissing mean something else to her than it does to a character like Cordelia?

Because Helaena often averts touch, it is possible she views physical intimacy as a social and cultural requirement rather than an emotional one. I don't believe she desires Aemond physically, either. Fire & Blood suggests she was content with Aegon before the tragedy of Blood & Cheese; in the show, not so much... but she is still a Targaryen. While I personally don't believe incest "comes naturally" to them, I also don't think all Targaryen women necessarily hold the total opposite view of the men (e.g. Targaryen men desire their relatives but Targaryen women don't).

Helaena was raised in the same environment as her brothers. She is a dragonrider married to her brother, with whom she has children; she isn't ignorant of her house's customs. If a young Aemond suggested learning from her — especially if she sensed his desperation for validation and didn't feel emotionally attached to the act herself — would she have said no?

In House of the Dragon, Helaena doesn't fly Dreamfyre and appears somewhat detached from her Targaryen identity. I'm not too fond of that portrayal, as it paints her as a more passive player than her book version. In my story, I want Helaena to be more connected to her house; while she is often interpreted as a victim of her marriage — a reading I don't disagree with — her book counterpart seems more content with the arrangement, evidenced by the fact that she shared a bedchamber with Aegon. By making her open to kissing Aemond, I tried to bring in a bit of book Helaena and suggest she is shaped by the same exceptionalism that influences her brothers.

Ultimately, I included this for two reasons. First, because it shows Aemond's growth. His affection for Cordelia proves he is capable of loving a person rather than just a symbol. Sure, Cordelia is in many ways a symbol herself, but the connection is real. Second, it shows he is capable of romantic love outside his family, and that this love is, in fact, far healthier than any familial relationship he has known.

This is also another layer of the Targaryen blood supremacy critique I've been trying to weave into the story. This is just my interpretation of how incest could influence these specific characters. Everyone is free to disagree, but I hope this at least cleared my views up a little bit!

[akutagawa-daily]

Akutagawa daily 1765/★

[crowreadsbleach]

I'm not sure what to make of this diagram-looking arm at the start of volume 5. Something to do with Quincies and how they channel reishi, maybe? The labels on the arm are the same in English, so that doesn't offer me much more in the way of context. I do like the poem accompanying it, though.

Daaammn! I'm ashamed to admit I'm surprised, but it turns out Orihime's also a smarty! Or at least book smart.

Keigo, Mizuiro. Hear me out, guys. I think you two might just be the outliers here.

The man was so shocked his art style changed!

I'm trying to figure out what's going on with this random background classmate's hair? Like, how does it work? Maybe she's a secret protagonist of her own series?

I would watch the shit out of a competitive sewing anime with Uryuu as the protagonist. I'm usually pretty apathetic towards sports stories, but I have faith that this hypothetical sports sewing AU would make it so ridiculously over the top and fun to watch.

[salt-salty-salted-fish]

Hey hey J3 seems too wholesome?

[The sergeant answered with a bright smile.

“Look, I found the missing person!”]

Wrong person, even wrong gender… but such simple happiness! He’s got the spirit!

And his reaction to the donuts… so cute… and hes the only one on shift right now why can i imagine the security team is seriously understaffed… hes working hard… so precious

I like ‘im he should get a raise and more donuts.

[captainobviois]

Genuinely the reveal that’s causing me to experience the most emotion is that Sextus and Dulcinea used to sext and Dulcinea is a messy bisexual. I love it and if I were Gideon I’d have the same reaction she is wow

[every-panel-of-gokuraku]

[theasiaverse]

It's incredible how a simple gesture, like a gift, can change the course of things. Taeha, with the gifts Haesoo gave him, seems to have found something more than just a material object: there’s a hidden bond, an intensity growing between them. The kiss they shared, the second one, was a moment that shook them both, a sign that their emotions are now unstoppable.

Yet, it’s not just about affection, but also the attraction Taeha exerts with his gaze. There’s something in the way he looks that has an undeniable power, as if every action is meant to enchant and conquer. Haesoo, who thought she could introduce someone else into Taeha’s life, hadn’t anticipated that a kiss could be so much stronger than any unsaid word.

But then, shall we talk about Taeha's warrior look, straight out of the anime Princess Mononoke? 🤔😂