Gentleman Apprentices Week

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER(I had work yesterday and couldnt finish on time)

BUT DAY 7 OF @gentapprentices

Day Seven: Dear Husband Your apprentice built a life with their partner. What does it look like?

@gentapprentices​

“I pledge to you that it will be your eyes into which I smile every morning. I pledge to you my living and my dying, both equally in your care. I shall be a shield for your back, and you for mine.”

Rounding off Gentlemen Apprentice’s Week with a wedding! By the time Asra and Alexander do get married, it’s been a ceremony a long time coming. They choose to make it a very quiet affair for just themselves, their familiars and their closest friends, followed by a long honeymoon in Nopal and beyond (meaning more than a few forays to the Magician’s beach). They’ve been together a long time by now, but getting married to them signals the start of a new chapter in their lives, one that won’t be interrupted by plague and tragedy, and one that they can look forward to for the rest of their lives.

For this, I took some inspiration from aspects of celtic/pagan marriage traditions, for example the act of handfasting, and the vows are from a popular set used by couples today. 

Picture details under the cut

Written for Day 7 of @gentapprentices​ Gentleman Apprentice Week – Dear Husband

Julian x Ąžuolas Wedding headcanons!

First thing’s first, Julian wanted to have a perfect proposal and had a lot of great ideas for it. Ultimately though, it happened spontaneously—he looked up and watched Ąžuolas cooking for a minute before the question popped itself. (Asra swears Ąžuolas’ yes could be heard all the way out at Muriel’s hut, but some liberties may have been taken. :P )

Portia was the first person they told, and she lost all of her shit with delight

The initial plan had been to have a small ceremony with friends and family—but let’s be real, nothing stays low key in the South End. Once word got out that Doctor Devorak and Ąžuolas were talking to the rabbi, the whole neighborhood rallied to throw them the biggest, most Jewish-Vesuvian wedding imaginable.

Wedding Rings: Ąžuolas purchased / traded for a piece of ivory from Rūkykla and, when Julian was working in the clinic / otherwise not around, carved it into the wedding ring he gave him on the day of the ceremony. Muriel looked over the final piece and declared “nice I guess"—which of course meant it was perfect. Julian opted for something more traditional, plain silver.  

In the run up to the wedding, Julian found himself missing his parents very much. The obvious reason was because his parents were gone, and that was a big part of it. The bigger part was because of how involved his parents would have been in the planning and wedding itself. (What pains him the most, besides the fact that his parents would have adored Ąžuolas, is that as he grew and as his relationship with Ąžuolas grew more and more serious, he wanted to marry under the same chuppa as his parents.)  

As it stands they used the next best thing—Mazelinka and Lilinka’s.

Nadia designed and commissioned the glasses that they broke at the end of the ceremony. Technically, two sets were made—one for breaking, and one for heirlooms.

The wedding cake is a vanilla raspberry cake with vanilla frosting, but there’s also pumpkin bread cupcakes with buttercream icing  

Honeymoon: Oh they’re going everywhere! First stop would be Nevivon, then Prakra (Nadia sends them off with letters of introduction haha) and then it’s wherever the winds take them. Ąžuolas’ birth village may or may not be on the itinerary as well ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Gentleman Apprentices Week

(boy)Friends to Lovers—on physical intimacy with their LI

Tashi’s relationships move pretty quickly and he’s always been a physically affectionate person so hugs and kisses come easily to him. However, this is on his own terms. He wants to initiate everything and can get irritated if his partner wants to take the initiative.

This, in part, stems from his disability. Physical intimacy when you’re half-paralysed isn’t exactly the “standard” and he knows it can be a nuisance to work around the chair and height difference. It’s easier for everyone if he’s the one to set things up. He’s had too many people trying to climb onto his lap, only to tip the chair or stop all the blood in his legs when he couldn’t feel it.

Gentleman Apprentices Week

Dear Husband—your apprentice’s wedding or married life

@gentapprentices

Of the two, the one who would propose would be Asra, although Cassian doesn't like the idea a bit, he would accept anyway.

Nadia helps with the decorations and the food, Portia and Muriel bring different types of flowers, Asra and Cassian choose the clothes they will wear while Julian tries to convince them that it would be a good idea for him to be the one to marry them.

The wedding would be somewhere full of nature, with many floral decorations and diverse dishes. All their close friends would attend! (Even those who aren't so close)

Morga (was invited but didn't want to go)

Asra's parents are the first to arrive.

Nadia checks that everything is impeccable along with Navra, Nahara and Nasmira.

Portia and Julian have a competition about who can drink the most, mazelinka is the referee.

Muriel's in the corner wondering whether to stay or sneak out.

Asra makes last-minute changes.

Julian loses the competition and falls to the ground dramatically.

Aisha and Salim dance a soft ballad.

Morga arrives unexpectedly with some risky activities to give "excitement" to the party.

Natiqa hides in the bushes.

Asra and Cassian go to the altar together because Cass starts to panic.

Julian is saved from a flying arrow from Morga by Nazali.

Aisha and Salim congratulate Asra and her new son-in-law.

Wild Natiqa appears and surprises Muriel.

Asra asks Cassian to dance.

Portia, Nadia and all her sisters dance as they have a lively conversation.

Everyone is having fun at the wedding until the next morning :)

@gentapprentices​ Gentleman Apprentice Week Day 6

Dear Husband—your apprentice’s wedding or married life

The idea of marriage was mostly Ame’s idea.  Muriel and Ame, after making their partnership official, had a sort of unspoken engagement.  They never sealed their relationship with rings or had any big proposal, instead they just quietly agreed that they would commit themselves to each other.   Asra was the one to break the question about marriage.  While Muriel wasn’t exactly thrilled over the idea of a big celebration, Ame really did love the idea of having a small ceremony.  There was only one problem: with Ame’s memory loss and the Kokhuri gone, neither of them had any idea on where to start in what their wedding should include.

Day 5: Man’s Best Friend

Vis’s familiar is a maned wolf named Marigold. She’s an utter sweetheart and adores Vis. He spotted her at the markets under the coliseum. Instantly he felt a connection with her when she looked up at him with her little peepers. He paid quite the coin for her–although he was under the assumption he was buying a dog and not another canine. As her coat brightened and she grew larger, he realized he was swindled but she was his now. With their strong bond, she will always refer to him as “dad”.

She’s lightning fast and incredible at hunting. Marigold is rather large for her species, and often times is unaware of her size. While she is sweet as can be, she can be protective and territorial. With strangers she is cautious and won’t act unless provoked or by Vis’s command. 

Dear Husband

(This is gonna get sad before it gets better. Warning Trauma and Death)

Technically Alaric never married. But that doesn’t mean he was a crappy father. In fact he was a lot better than most husbands/fathers go. Always ready to help Fayla with house chores while Wren was on bed rest, ready to run to Nopal or Praka for any cravings Wren had (Fayla had to stop him when Wren mentioned a Cactus Juice Slushie from Catclaw Mountains she had when she was younger, Alaric was already tacking up Amata before Fayla halted him), and ending up being a loveable Papa.

When Asher (son) and Odette (daughter) were born nothing could keep Alaric away. He was at Wren and Fayla’s home every other day. Reading, playing, cooking for the women, helping with household chores, etc. Both women were absolutely smitten with him, especially when it came to diaper changing.

“While I’m visiting I’ll be changing! You two have already done enough!” *proceeds to get halfway through the changing and ends up throwing up in the diaper basket* “Wha-eurgh! Have.....you been feeding? *gag* them?” “No no!!!! I’ll change them!”

“At this rate, Allie, it will be nightfall before you get one done...”

Unfortunately the happy family didn’t last long. When Alaric, Lactarius, and Valerius has decided to stop by for a visit they find Wren and Fayla’s home crushed under a landslide. The three spring into action digging and getting more help to find the four buried inside. They end up finding Wren, Fayla, and Asher together in what was once the kitchen. All of them dead. Alaric was devestated. The man’s grief causing him to frantically search for his lost little one. Lactarius had to pull him away for a few minutes so he could properly grieve the loss of the three and regain his common senses. After searching for his daughter nearly the entire day (everyone giving up hope to finding the little girl alive and just simply looking for a body to bury with the two women and other baby. By some miracle they end up finding little Odette (1 yr old) pinned under and shielded by a giant tree. The little girl would end up loosing her leg just under the knee, but that wouldn’t stop her later in life. (Alaric would make her prosthetics and hire others to make some for balls and dances specially for her)

After everything settled back down and Alaric was full time father he settled into his role quite nicely. A few hiccups here and there, nothing that Lactarius and Valerius couldn’t help him through, Alaric and Odette grew into a great father/daughter team. The young girl quiet and withdrawn around strangers, but once she got to know you she would show you her rambunctious personality. The only time she was fiesty right out of the carriage was around the dock workers and pirates listening to them share stories of how they lost limbs, eyes, teeth, etc. Odette felt she had to share how she lost her limb. It made Alaric feel better that she was comfortable sharing what happened. And the fact that these rough men would cheer and make her feel like a Queen when she would hobble onto the deck to join them. Except when Old Hugh told her to make her story more dramatic (people LOVE dramatic!) so now she will add a dragon made a landslide, or a bog witch threw a tree at her because she was too pretty......

Alaric wanting the best for his daughter decided it was time for him to stop running away from responsibilities and enjoying a carefree life of random side jobs and hobbies here and there. He formally began shadowing Valerius as new Consul of Vesuvia. Valerius thrilled his son was following traditions gently reminded him to also pursue his own hobbies and not get sucked under the pressure to be perfect. To try his best and don’t be afraid to fail and ask for help. Because without failing himself, Valerius would have never met Lactarius.

Dear Husband—your apprentice’s wedding or married life

Weddings have always been a... complicated affair in Ember's eyes. For most of his life he considered weddings to be awful, binding, contractual things that he wanted no part of. It was even worse when it came to marrying back into the royal peerage, Lucio was a Count after all. Lucios first proposal was a very...Lucio way of proposing if you catch my drift. Flowers, people, pressure, and it did not go over well. 

How dare he?

How dare Ember stand in front of everyone and reject Lucio? How dare Ember embarrass him like that?

But Ember had some compelling frustrations as well.

How dare Lucio propose to someone he basically just met? How dare he do it in front of all of Vesuvia? With all that pressure...how could he jump right back into a marriage as if his first one meant nothing?

How could he embarrass Nadia like that?

They'd never fought so bad for so long.

It almost ended them.

Surprisingly it was Lucio who became the bigger person when it came to the prospect of them breaking up over it. He decided as long as Ember was in his life then it didn't matter that Lucio couldn't call him his Viscount.

If a wedding does happen for them, which Ember has grown enough to no longer denounce the possibility of, then it is far in the future. It is after a lot of things have been thought through for both of them. Years of work would be required to reach the level of understanding it would take. Lucio's first marriage was not as ideal as he would've liked, and he is determined to get it right this time.

The day he plans to propose he is wrecked with nervousness. What if they fight again? What if Ember still doesn't want to? All his worries are for not when Ember beats him to the punch the day before he planned the big event.

"You still wanna get married?"

Naturally, Lucio is furious he got one-uped and even more furious that Ember said it so casually...like it meant nothing

Ember explains that his words weren't a proposal, simply the beginning of a discussion. One he might be ready to have.

They speak for a long time, they speak about many things.

And in the end.

There’s a reason they’re called that! Tell us about your apprentice’s familiar.

For @gentapprentices​

Their familiars

☆ﾟ･* .☆ﾟ･* .☆ﾟ･* .☆ﾟ･* .☆ﾟ･* .☆ﾟ･* .☆ﾟ･* .☆ﾟ･* .

Daksh’s Familiar - King

Hot tempered / Protective / Rude / Honest / Self-Centered / Charming

Daksh’s familiar is a King Cobra that is known as King, is also seen as the king of wands being also Daksh’s patron on the minor arcana. King tried to bite his old owner on a show, Daksh chuckled at this and before anything happened to him, Daksh bought him. King tends to act like he doesn’t care about Daksh, but if someone tries to do something to him, he’s gonna attack without thinking.

Sayri’s Familiar - Shaya

Freindly / Loyal / Protective / Nurturing / Motherly / Calm

Shaya, a mountain lion that Sayri found and help her after a big tragedy. She protects Sayri as much as he protects her, they’ve been together even before arriving to Vesuvia. They can be fighting side by aside or  playing and cuddling. Shaya can be a fierce in battle but most of the time she acts like a lap cat, still her presence can be quite intimidating.

Calyx Hadassah, 31, Green Magic and Herbology

Calyx studies both the spiritual and scientific properties of plants and herbs, he actually held a degree in Herbology before the plague

Absolutely envies Portia's garden and regularly begs her for cuttings of some of her rarer plants (she's more than happy to oblige!) He comes back with arms full of half dying plants to revive nearly every time he goes to the market!

He makes lots of herbal remedies and salves for the shop (as well as being a great cook), ability to navigate by reading the energy of plants and their roots, better at tea leaf reading and bone throwing than tarot and his patron Arcana is Temperance

For @gentapprentices Day 7

The wedding itself was a quiet, moonlit ceremony in Nadia’s gazebo, followed by tea and snacks in the balcony- Faust and Manju had tiny silk robes and an eyepatch respectively for the occasion. Salim beamed and nearly knocked his son in law off his feet with the force of his hug, and Aisha lovingly warned him not to crumple up Haidi-Haidi’s lovely gold-and-brown sherwani. There was a tale-and-song filled campfire get-together in Haider’s home-village just outside Nopal (Haider insisted on brewing for everyone- Asra helped enthusiastically, and got teary eyed at the elders’ blessings). Haider had drawn up an extensive itinerary for a honeymoon in Zadith (they’d both heard so much about it from Salim and Aisha)-but that plan flew out of the window (indefinitely postponed, in Asra’s words), when The Heirophant most graciously extended a cordial invitation for a congratulatory reception to be held in the new couple’s honor. An inter-realm honeymoon was the perfect flavor of enjoyable and adventurous for the two magicians, so a week of Haider’s fretting later, they were off on the appointed date.