Summary: Aaron is a Hebrew gladiator whose daily routine of training and fighting is changed by the arrival of a unit of Roman soldiers.
Basically, a Robron AU set in the world of gladiators. (full notes on AO3)
Excerpt:In a world of ashes, the sands of the arena were always golden. Aaron never had a problem finding his place there, his rage marking the path for him, his feet sure and his course true. And by the time he could stop to breathe, to survey the results of his actions, those sands had been soaked in blood. Yet underneath the scarlet hues, he could still see the gold and the promise embodied in its twinkle.
Thanks: To Jo @sugglesmiles, who was the world’s best, kindest and most patient beta. She both took the fic to the gym, to help get it into shape, but also was a constant source of support and encouragement. I can’t thank you enough and I don’t know if I would have been able to finish this without you! I really couldn’t have asked for a better beta. Thank you, hon! ❤
And to Tara @starsdah-b, the fan artist I was lucky to be paired with! Her art is always gorgeous and she also helped motivate me to continue writing during rough spots, not to mention she was also incredibly generous with her kind support. I’m pretty sure her gorgeous creations are going to be the best thing about this entire fic. Thank you, lovely! ❤
To Ivett @isabellaofparma for helping to birth the idea and pushing me to write this, to my friends who’ve been so generous, helpful and kind to me regarding this fic and my writing when I was struggling, and lastly, to anyone reading this for taking the time to do so and for any feedback you may offer. I feel like this fic belongs to you all as well. ❤
It was a pleasure and an honor for me to work with you. I’m so glad I got to have you as my artist and I think what you created is beyond lovely. I enjoyed your input on the fic, hearing your thoughts and feedback, I loved seeing the sketches you made and witnessing the work process, and I am so taken by the resulting art! The tenderness that you capture here between Robert and Aaron, the way they hold each other and how mutual it is, the inclusion of the candle (meeeeep! The theme of light!) and how you make me feel what they feel for each other, I adore it to no end. I could stare at this all day (and I probably will). You’re insanely talented and I’m so glad you picked my story and that you’re a part of this fandom. We’re really lucky to have you. Thank you for sharing your gift with us! <3333333
So…um…I guess I have an opinion now that my dash is quiet. Calm. Full of random American fandom stuff.
Um…I’m kind of nervous to give this opinion but here I go.
Guilt. Robert is feeling extreme guilt. Over the past year, he has grown and has started thinking about past actions and reactions to events. His old guilts are coming back to light. The guilt he had hidden deep inside his soul and hoped would never come out. Old guilt. New guilt. He is feeling guilty about everything.
What does this mean? Well…since Robert has grown instead of hiding that guilt again he is reacting to it. Trying to fix it. Trying to fix everything around him. Being super hard on himself. Feeling like a failure. A loser.
I sense Jack’s voice is ringing through his head right now. Maybe Diane’s voice. People who have looked down at him.
Robert is feeling guilty about The Whites, about Seb’s future, about Lachlan killing people for months when in January he could have stopped it. Not fully believing Liv. He feels guilty that Aaron has to deal with him and his guilt. He feels guilt STILL that Aaron has to deal with Seb (which we know that Aaron loves Seb…as he has said many times and has shown us…many times).
That guilt does weird things to a person.
Get upset with himself. Gets upset with others. Overcompensates. Tries to overplease or hides away. Tries to figure things out on his own to protect the ones he loves (Aaron, Liv, and Seb for instance). Throws himself into things overzealously(wedding planning for instance). Stressing himself out so much that his body makes him slow down?
That’s where Robert is right now.
Stressed. Feeling Guilty. Scared.
It’s interesting. The show isn’t blatantly telling us all this (I think they are attempting to treat viewers like they are smarter than that) but they are showing us a lot. Knowing Roberts past and what glo up he has had over the year…this all fits. I’m interested.
I know Robert loves Aaron. Aaron loves Robert. Liv loves both of them. Seb loves all of them and mostly just wants to get fed. 😉 *Choo Choo*
Also, Robert came back to Emmerdale with the Whites, he has to see them out too.
I don’t know what the future holds but I know Robert and Aaron will be fine. Full of drama (they are a super couple) but a lot of love and laughs too. That’s good enough for me.
Other Thoughts
– Mike Parr hates his job. He is done. *snort*
– Don’t let people upset you because right now its fun for some to get people upset. Don’t fall for it. Move forward. Not back. Towards the light people. Towards the light.
– Some Vanity fans…in my opinion aren’t really Vanity fans. Calling Robron fans the c-word and creating fake spoilers to upset the already upset isn’t cool. Anti-Robron/Robert people hiding behind the Vanity ship…is ruining the ship. Full disclosure here. Not a Vanity fan but I respect the fans who like them and are respectful to other ships. I bow my head out of respect to them.
-Be kind to each other. None of us agree with each other but we can come together in our love for Robron.
I’ve been enjoying the week. I only see good things in the future. So…yeah. That’s my opinion. It’s what I see. *shug*
So…yeah. Have a good one. I’ll leave you a nice Robron smile for all of you. 🙂
I see people putting some wishes for future Robron moments or scenes.
So, I’ll throw my hat into the ring.
I want to see a date. A full blown date. Aaron and Robert doing the meet at the door. Walk or drive to a restaurant. Have a nice dinner. Drinks. Walk home. Kiss at the door only to have Aaron grab Robert by the collar and drag him upstairs.
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