Ask Game: 9 With Rlainarin?

ask game: 9 with rlainarin? ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

For ash-sokia, for the write a kiss ask game #9: a kiss in public. 

Author's Note: This fic started out light-hearted and then took a more serious turn during the writing process.  Many, many thanks to cosmere-play, rysn and Priscellie for beta-reading!

Content warnings for classism, speciesism, prejudice

Renarin fidgeted nervously as he and Rlain neared their destination for the evening, a classy new winehouse that had just opened up in an upscale part of the Breakaway market.  It was similar to the establishment on the Shattered Plains where Adolin and Shallan had first gone out together.  When Renarin had heard about the winehouse, it had seemed like a good choice for their first public date.  …Well, a first date somewhere outside of the usual haunts frequented by the members of Bridge Four.  Renarin had heard that this winehouse was supposed to have a relaxing atmosphere and a truly impressive list of wines.

Rlain had initially seemed hesitant about the idea, but ultimately he had given in to Renarin’s enthusiasm, and had agreed they should give it a try.

Renarin was so caught up in his own nerves that he almost didn’t notice the odd look that the master-servant at the door gave him as she double-checked his reservation.  As they were being shown to a table, Renarin thought he could feel her staring at his back.  There were whispers at the tables surrounding them, and someone sniggered.  Renarin flushed and tried to ignore it.  He’d grown too comfortable in Adolin’s shadow when he was among other Alethi lighteyes, forgetting how much Adolin’s presence protected him from being targeted as the ‘strange Kholin’.

Renarin took his time reviewing the wine lists, which were written out in Alethi glyphs as well as women’s script.  Rlain professed that he found the number of choices overwhelming, and asked Renarin for advice.  Renarin gladly obliged.  As he began sharing his expertise regarding all of the different wines, something in him began to relax.  Rlain listened attentively, offering questions here or there, and eventually they settled on some specialty wines from northern Azir.  A glass of sapphire for Renarin and a red for Rlain.

The wine really was excellent, and the alcohol took the edge from Renarin’s nervousness.  As the two of them continued to make comfortable small talk, Rlain raised a hand in a tentative gesture to request a refill of his water goblet.  Renarin noticed immediately when the signal was overlooked by the winehouse staff.  He followed up by flagging a servant himself, and the man quickly came over with a pitcher and refilled their glasses.  A little while later, the same thing happened again.  Then Renarin ordered them another round of wine--orange this time in accordance with the Codes.  Another master-servant brought Renarin’s wine over quickly.  Rlain’s… didn’t arrive.

Oh.  What was happening finally began to sink in.  The looks and the whispers hadn’t been about him.  Or they hadn’t entirely been about him.  Rlain had known, or had suspected this would happen.  He’d expressed hesitancy when they’d first discussed the winehouse--pointing out that darkeyes typically wouldn’t be allowed into such a place, and singers had the darkest eyes of all.  Renarin had brushed off the concern at the time, responding that Rlain was a Knight Radiant now, and Radiants belonged to a class all their own.

Apparently, not everyone agreed with that sentiment.

He was suddenly deeply mortified, because he hadn’t really spared a second thought about the situation from Rlain’s perspective.  Renarin had wanted to go out so that they could have a good time together, but he had caused Rlain pain without meaning to. 

“I’m sorry,” Renarin said abruptly, with genuine remorse.  “I didn’t mean for our date to turn out like this.”  He reached across the table and took both of Rlain’s hands in his own.

Apparently, not everyone had heard the new gossip that Dalinar Kholin’s son and the listener from Bridge Four were openly courting, either.  A brightlady at a nearby table gasped and visibly recoiled from them, shockspren forming and breaking in the air around her head.  Behind her, a master-servant on the way to deliver wine to another patron forgot her training and nearly fumbled her tray as she stared.  And at yet another table, an elderly brightlord in Bethab colors muttered something harshly under his breath, his brows drawing downward as he attracted a bevy of aversionspren.

That was the very last straw.  Something in Renarin snapped, filling him with fury.  It didn’t often show itself, but he had his father’s temper.  Having to witness the insults to Rlain, and to the two of them together, was absolutely intolerable.

Renarin slid his chair out from the table with a long scraping sound that made conversations trail off and drew every eye in the winehouse.  Then he rose and walked around the side of the table to stand over Rlain, placing a hand firmly on the back of his chair.  He left a trail of bubbling angerspren in his wake.

The listener eyed him suspiciously.  “What are you…?”

Renarin drew in a deep breath as he scanned the entire room.  Then he attempted to channel his cousin Jasnah as he spoke out loudly, letting the tone of his voice drop to match the temperature of the snow caps outside the tower.

“The wine here is good, and the selection is excellent.  But the service is appalling, and the ambiance is even worse.  A brightlord’s guest is a brightlord’s guest, deserving to be treated with dignity and respect.  No one here is in any position to dare question whom a brightlord of the second dahn chooses to invite out for the evening.  Especially when that guest is a storming war hero and a Knight Radiant.”

Renarin looked down at Rlain’s upturned face, and raised his other hand to cup his cheek.  He spared a moment to hope that he wasn’t being too presumptuous, then he stooped down and firmly kissed him.

The kiss was chaste, determined, defiant.  He meant it to be a deliberate message to everyone else in the room.  You can’t ignore us and we’re not going anywhere.  This is something you’re just going to have to get used to.

Rlain went very still--not drawing away, but not exactly reciprocating either.  It caused a bit of Renarin’s anger to slide sideways.  You’re doing this wrong, he told himself critically.  He’d been attempting to help, but had just wound up messing things up, as always. 

Then the listener’s quiet humming changed subtly, shifting to something calmer.  Rlain leaned in and returned the kiss, and Renarin felt himself relax marginally.

When Renarin drew himself back up to his full height again, he quickly spotted the man whose clothing marked him as the head master-servant of the winehouse.  He glared and gestured pointedly down at Rlain’s wineglass, still sitting empty on the table.  The man got the message, and another master-servant quickly scurried over with the missing goblet of orange wine.    

Renarin returned to his seat, his anger slowly dissipating.  He felt the weight of Rlain’s gaze on him as the listener sipped at his wine, and it caused a flush to rise in his face.  “I’m sorry,” Renarin apologized again, as the ambient noise of the winehouse began to resume.  “I probably should have handled that differently.”

“Probably,” Rlain agreed mildly.  The cadence of the word was unfamiliar, and Renarin wished he understood enough about the rhythms to know which one Rlain was attuning right now.  “Still, you chose to speak up, to a room full of lighteyes.  I…no one’s ever really done that for me before.”  Slowly, he extended a hand across the table.  Renarin reached out and took it, twining their fingers together.

Renarin had acted out of anger in the moment, drawing everyone’s attention to them without even asking Rlain what he wanted.  That had been a mistake.  They were courting now, and situations like this would almost certainly happen again.  Moving forward, he resolved to do better.

As they continued to drink their wine in silence, Rlain spoke again.  “In my experience, people don’t change unless they’re given a reason.  I love Bridge Four, but they never would have let me carry a spear if I hadn’t made a point of asking first.”  He looked up and met Renarin’s eyes.  “So yes, I’m willing to make lighteyes uncomfortable if it causes some of them to confront their own perceptions of the singers.  If there’s a chance that it results in one tiny step towards singers being more accepted at Urithiru.”

Renarin nodded thoughtfully. Then he smiled at Rlain.  “Making lighteyes uncomfortable is kind of my specialty.”

Rlain smiled back at him.  “I appreciate that. Now why don't we take a look at the wine list again.  I’d be interested in trying that vintage from Tu Bayla….”

Top 10 Minor Stormlight Characters I Want To See More Of

Don't get me wrong. I will take 1500 pgs of Kaladin being Kaladin and Shallan being Shallan etc. etc. But there are some characters who just don't get very much screentime who I would LOVE to see featured in Stormlight 5. Here are my Top 10 picks!

[Contains spoilers for Stormlight!]

#10: Zu

I do love me some Windrunners, Lightweavers, and Bondsmiths, but I'd love to see some of the other Orders get featured too. Zu is a Stoneward (like Taln!) and she seemed cool in her brief appearances during the Shademar diplomatic trip. There's that bit about how she seems to be better at combat than her known background would suggest and how she seemed super perceptive...but mostly, I'm not gonna lie, I just want to learn more about Stonewards and cool ladies.

#9: Thude

I mean, since Stormlight 4 ended with [SPOILERS INCOMING WHOOP WHOOP] Venli finding the Listener community hidden away, I assume we'll get more from them in Stormlight 5?? I hope so! Thude in particular seemed cool: I feel like it was largely due to him that some Listeners escaped from Odium, and I'd just like to spend more time with those characters. Venli's mom too!

#8: Those two cute Ardents

I had to look up their names: Ashir & Geranid. They're the cute couple of Ardents who live on a Reshi Island and seem to be living their best lives? Ashir likes to eat sweet food and cook, and as a man this would be scandal were he not an Ardent. And Geranid is doing science experiments on flamespren. I would love to see what they're both up to these days!

#7: Axies the Collector

I just like learning about all the different spren, I think. And so Axies was a fun character to follow around. He needs to meet Kaladin so he can learn that imprisonment spren are real!

#6: Cusicesh

This is that big huge spren in Iri that rises out of the water at the same time every day and cycles through faces--we meet them in the Axies the Collector chapter. And I dunno! Something about Cusicesh just captured my imagination! What are they the spren of exactly?? Why are they so punctual?? What does it all mean?? I don't really expect to find out, to be honest, but I would love to visit there again.

#5: Azure

I know Azure is a major character in a certain other series, but she was a fairly minor part of Stormlight. But she was great! I don't know if she'll really be coming back--her heading off into Shadesmar felt final--but Nightblood is still on Roshar so maybe? I'd love to see more of her interactions with Rosharans!

#4: Malata

Here again we see my desire to just see more of the orders! We haven't seen much of the Releasers, and I'd like to see more. I don't want them to be written off as the "evil" order or something, and I think Malata is an interesting character.

#3: Dieno (The Mink)

Like, not only is Dieno a super interesting character in his own right, but he also provides a much-needed Alethi-critical perspective, I think. I'd definitely like to see him more in Stormlight 5!

#2: Cord

I mean, Cord was featured heavily in Dawnshard, but I'd say she's definitely more of a minor character in the main Stormlight series. And I'd love to see more of her! She's tough, cool, hopefully gay for Rysn...and I'm also a big fan of Rock, so I like seeing members of his family. I also appreciate that Rock & Cord have such different outlooks but still seem to have a really (rock?)solid relationship. Stormlight can use more healthy families, you know?

#1: Hesina

But the number one character I want to see more of and my actual motivation for writing this list is Hesina! I feel like Hesina has appeared quite a few times--certainly more than some of the others on this list--but her scenes usually also involve Kaladin and Lirin, and Kaladin and Lirin usually dominate the interactions. I am desperate to see more Hesina-as-Hesina, not just Hesina-dealing-with-the-father-son-drama-that-is-her-constant-background. I'd love to see Hesina interact with other characters too--I think there was been tumblr discussion of Hesina interacting with Adolin or more with Rlain: that'd be great! Honestly, I would take ANY Hesina POV section, as I'm not sure we've ever had one?

#morehesina2024!

A few low-hit Cosmere fics that definitely deserve more attention, in my opinion:

Crafting by Jazzy_Kandra (Gaz/Red) Second chances and a Radiant origin story. Short and sweet.

Hands for Holding by cosmere_play (Eshonai & Bila, Mature Themes) Written for minifemmeslashfeb2024. Eshonai's first time didn't go well, and Bila wants to help out. This fic has a playful tone to it that I adore.

Thinking, Overthinking, and a Pile of Letters by bridgeboy (Design/Khriss) One of my absolute favorites. Anyone who enjoyed Design's character in Yumi and the Nightmare Painter really should read this fic.

people are really looking at stats to determine if a fic is worth reading? no wonder fics that never got popular at the first drop never had a chance 💀

Cosmere Femslash Fest Fic List

Here’s a list of all the fics submitted to Cosmere Femslash Fest 2023, organized by rating. Check out all the ones that interest you, and please do comment and give kudos if you like it–it means everything to a fic writer, and we want to encourage as much femslash as possible!

General and Teen

Hypnotic, takin over me by Hazekiller16. Venli/Leshwi, General. Bonus fic!

Steel Lovers by Stingythefish. Mistborn OC/`OC, General

Different As Can Be by LuxViolet. t4t Vin/Shan, Teen

Trillium by Truthwatcher_Vez. Ann/Tress/Salay, Teen. Bonus fic!

Harmony of Scholarly Concerns by TrishHankins. Rushu/Venli, Teen

Never Had by BlindRadiant. Kalami/Navani, Teen

Sweetness by Milk. Navani/Ialai, General

Thinking, Overthinking, and a Pile of Letters by bridgeboy. Khriss/Design and Cord/Rysn, General

Sick of crying for blue eyes by Zvarrklingreputation. Navani/Evi, General

Metamorphosis by Truthwatcher_Vez. Masaka/Izzy, Teen

Voice by aluminumoxynitride. Leshwi/Venli, General

Warmth by Thirstspren. Yumi/Akane, General 

You'd be stars by SapphicSpren. Shallan/transfem!Adolin, Teen

All's Fair in Games of Love and War by Macro_Scenery. Lyn/Laran, Teen

A Change of Plans by Faithfully_Queer. MeLaan/Steris, General

Mature and Explicit

Learning Curves by sir_not_appearing_in_this_archive. Akane/Yumi, Explicit

Of Me by cosmere_play. Evi/Sja-anat, Mature

A Study in Worship by Naaru. Jasnah/Shallan, Mature

This Is How You Grieve Your Lover by LunaEarnshaw. Shallan/Tyn, Mature

stay on the phone (just to hear me breathe) by gabrial. Yumi/Akane, Mature

Questions for Later by BlindRadiant. Navani/MeLaan, Mature

Not the quitting kind by catharsisnt. Shallan/Tyn, Mature

A Breath of Understanding by cosmereplay. Azure/Jasnah, Mature. Bonus fic!

You recently taught yourself morse code, but now you wish you hadn’t as the birds keep pecking at your window telling you that “it’s coming.”

Send me a Ship and a Number and I will Write a Kiss

…good morning.

…goodnight.

…goodbye.

…where it hurts.

…where it doesn’t hurt.

…on a falling tear.

…to shut them up.

…in secrecy.

…in public.

…desperately.

…in joy.

…in grief.

…discreetly.

…casually.

…passionately.

…lazily.

…to distract.

…as encouragement.

…for luck.

…on a scar.

…on a place of insecurity.

…in a rush of adrenaline.

…in relief.

…in danger.

…as a ‘yes’.

…as an apology.

…as a suggestion.

…as a lie.

…as a promise.

…as comfort.

…after a small rejection.

…to wake up.

…forcefully.

…to pretend.

…to gain something.

…to give up control.

…without a motive.

…because they’re running out of time.

…because time’s run out.

…because the world is ending.

…because the world is saved.

…out of pride.

…out of greed.

…out of lust.

…out of anger.

…out of envy or jealousy.

…out of spite.

…out of habit.

…out of necessity.

…out of love.