#spoilsverse

Daily excerpt from today's writing, chapter 4 of Second Star to the Right:

Marie took up a seat next to her sister-in-law, enjoying the coolness the marble steps offered and handing the younger woman a little pie. She occupied this time by baking. And eating.

“The fear…never goes away,” she admitted, watching as several little birds bathed and danced in the water garden before them, “but we can help you live with it, to foster distractions.”

It was Petra’s first experience with Erwin being away at war, off conquering again and though she hadn’t chosen to become an Empress, the princess watched as the affection between her brother and his young bride grew and grew each passing day.

“I wish I could promise you he would come back. He always has…they all have but…”

But nothing was promised, especially not in war. No one man ruled the world and no one man ever had. Eventually they always fell.

So we actually have an au of our au where Erwin does in battle I think? And we adopted the custom of levirate marriage into their society in which the brother of a deceased man has an obligation to marry his widow and adopt his children, which would be Levi since he is Erwin’s only blood brother.

We have a habit of having AUs of our AUs lmao we had a similar au for strawverse too except Levi isn’t Erwins brother, just his boss.

I have a million headcanons but am terrible at coming up with them on the spot!

Frenchie and I made up a sinian version of Nutella that Petra loves. Erwin employs the inventor in the palace kitchen because she ends up craving it during most of her pregnancies.

When the men leave for war, the palace and country’s affairs are left in the hands of the women rather than an advisor or smth. Women have equal rights as men in Sina and honestly, Petra, Marie, and Nanaba probably run the country better than the boys do lol.

Petra and Erwin have a million babies.

I think Petra is too focused on her feelings for Erwin to really consider romantic feelings for Levi. 

If there was any way Erwin would have known that Levi would fall in love with Petra, he absolutely would have taken a step back and allowed him to take her as his bride. 

And there’s certainly the potential for Petra to have developed feelings for Levi as well in this circumstance.

Relaxation.

It had been the number one thing prescribed to her by the palace physician, the young Queen of Sina entering into what the medical expert believed to be her eighth month of pregnancy. 

She was nervous, naturally; on edge since the discovery of her conception, a mere two months after the loss of what would have been the Imperator’s first born son.

The shame still weighed heavy within her heart; that despite the reassurance from physicians, from family, from her own husband that it was not her fault, she could not shake the guilt, not when the customs of her own home had been so very deeply scarred into her being. 

So it was not easy for her to relax, yet she knew an effort must be made; for the sake of the baby, for the sake of the potential heir to the Sinian throne. After all, she did not believe she could handle not only a second loss, but shaming her husband a second time.

Petra had been advised to take frequent baths, as soaking in sweet, warm water had been known to aid in the relaxation needed for the mother to be to prepare for her upcoming delivery. But prescribed or not, the young woman would be lying if she did not admit to enjoying them, as it not only soothed her weariness, but truly brought about the tranquility she needed. 

“Your bath is ready, your Highness.” 

Petra looked up to the servant that had addressed her, their head bowed as though apologetic in disrupting the queen from the game of mancala she had been playing with her nieces. 

She nodded, a soft smile on her lips in gratitude. 

“Very well; I will be in shortly,” she spoke, before setting to finishing the game with the children.

“We’ll have another match later,” she promised them as she slowly stood from her seat, resting a hand atop her belly, and excusing herself from the company of her family. 

x

Confusion settled on the young Queen’s face as the woman explained her reasons for for hiding in such a position, and forcefully making her join as well. 

It was odd, in Petra’s opinion, to have heard the other admit she was hiding from her husband with such a gleeful look on her face. She had only ever known women to hide from their husbands for one reason, and the certainly did not do so with any sort of cheer on their features. 

“A game?” Petra repeated, her voice soft to match the level of Marie’s as to not give way to their location. The blonde continued her explanation, and while Petra understood the nature of the game, she still had trouble grasping that Marie and Nile had been playing together. This was a game she had seen young boys play occasionally, never having witnessed any others do so. 

She remains silent a few moments, tempted to peek around the hedge for any sight of dark haired man Marie hid from, but wondering of the possibility that he may be right around it.

“So you’re saying I should hide from Erwin in the hedges? How will he know to find me or that I am hiding from him?”