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vows are not to be taken lightly (especially vows made to you) by juurensha
Fandoms: Time of Iron Series - Sarah Rees Brennan
16 Jan 2026
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Summary
“Fine, fine, that’s beside the point anyway—or not quite,” Amanda had replied with a wave of her hand, then pointing at him. “The Cobra, come on. He also needs some stress relief, you know.”
Marius had just frowned. “Understandable. He has full run of the stables—although he does need to take either myself or a guard with him—along with the library and any number of musical instruments. …is this you telling me that he wants to throw a ball?”
“No, this is me telling you that he needs to get laid,” Amanda said bluntly.
Or Marius notices that Eric has taken no paramours lately and the entire manor assumes that the two of them are already together. Marius insists that he has made vows, but after all, he's already broken one vow, so what's another?
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Bookmark Notes:
Amanda had shrugged. “Suit yourself. You have the muscles, and you know, being tossed around is always fun… And you’re the Last Hope! Do you know how many clients we had who requested look-alikes? And none of them could quite pull off that cool hauteur you’ve got—it’s a noble thing, I suspect. Ah, the Cobra’s a lucky man—but you still need to put in an effort! You’re lucky too, you know!”
“I do,” Marius had said reflexively before pausing and saying haltingly, “…you seem to have the wrong impression of my relationship with the Cobra though.”
Amanda had raised an eyebrow. “Really? You took down your sword—the one you had hung up—and cut through twenty men for him.”
“…it was closer to ten—”
“And then you swore to protect whatever he cares for,” Amanda continues.
“Yes, that’s only proper—”
“And then you led all of his people straight into your ancestral home, defying both the king and the new emperor to do so,” Amanda barrels along heedlessly. “Darling, if someone did all that for me, I’d almost forgive them for forgetting to sex me up after. But only almost, because all that deserves a good bout in the bed after, you hear?”
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Bookmark Notes:
I’ve been begging for crumbs of this fandom, so to now have this feast of Eric/Marius with gorgeous characterization is a fucking delight
“No? We don’t all have incredible pain tolerance and are built like a brick shithouse,” Eric replied with a raise of his eyebrow.
“I am not that rectangular,” Marius protested and plowed on. “You could have brought a servant to give the sacrifice.”Eric is more of a hero than anyone here and the only man he could ever swear a blood vow to. Even if he is a mystery wrapped in an enigma on a good day, and all that dipped in far too much glitter and wine and debauchery on others.
He can’t help but feel somewhat glad that Eric can’t leave this world—it’s horrible of course that he died in his original world, but—well, he had made a life here in this one, right? And what would he do without Eric now…a depressing thought, he really needs to focus.
“A blood oath does not imply romantic interest!”
“Not necessarily, but Marius—from you—who else could you devote yourself to after swearing this?” his mother asks, peering into his eyes.“Marius,” his mother says firmly, reaching out a hand to touch his arm. “Love is not a weakness.” Marius can’t help but snort at that, narrowing his eyes. “It is when you’re a Valerius. …and I never said anything about love to begin with.”
So, no—he prefers Eric to shine. Preferably, of course, he would be with him to properly protect him, because Eric can barely take care of himself, but if he isn’t— As long as Eric is well, that was what he vowed, and that is what matters in the end …is that love?
Marius blinks at Eric. “Be at ease. I can defend myself, and I am sworn to protect you, not the other way around.”
“I guess, but—that’s not really how I see it. An oath binds both ways, right?”I certainly need to know that if I am to lend you any of my own people. I will not have them walk into a situation that I myself do not understand, much less aid you in pursuits that I am in complete ignorance of.”
There’s a surprising amount of horrible gothic furniture and decorations that feature snakes that Eric has managed to repurpose, and Eric gets so few joyful things to do these days between all the hard work he is responsible for, so why not let him redecorate and put on ridiculous plays in his spare time?
“I don’t always want to be the one that needs protecting,” Caracalla says quietly, looking up at Marius… “it’s not just manipulation. It’s misdirection and acting and—and working with people’s expectations, so they underestimate you while you hide your true abilities beneath the surface,” Caracalla recites. Marius narrows his eyes. “…you’ve been talking to Eric.”
“And I’ve seen Sir Cobra draw you back from the brink, and from what I hear, he’s basically unofficially running your house for you.”
Marius scoffs. “And just from that, you would draw the conclusion that I would break my vows and—”
“You already broke your vows in his defense, didn’t you? What’s another?” Emer shrugsAnd even if Eric would welcome such—such overtures from Marius, with everything that is going on, it is still a very bad idea. Eric, however, notoriously, loves bad idea—
Eric just chuckles, leaning back against the desk. “Oh come on, Marius—of course I’m into you. Who wouldn’t be?”
He always knew that Eric admired him and saw him as his “favorite,” but this is—Why does it make any difference that Eric’s emotions might be romantic in nature? Because then Eric is choosing him out of his own free will, his eyes and mind clear, with full knowledge of who Marius is, warts and all.
(He’s already broken one vow, what’s one more for this impossible, beautiful man?)
So he simply grasps Eric’s face in his hands and kisses him again. It’s just as wonderful as before, heated and enthusiastic, but too soon, Eric breaks away to point out, “…but hang on, I’m manipulative.”
“Not for your own benefit. You do it for others,” Marius replies, nosing at Eric’s chin.
Eric kisses him sweetly but then has to add again, breathlessly, “…sometimes it is for my own benefit—”
“But not just for your own.”Eric built an entire golden palace just to shield the downtrodden, and he had happily torn his reputation into shreds to shield it. This is the only person that he could ever swear an Undying Vow to, and most likely the only person he could ever love like this, even if he rarely understands him.
Marius stares into Eric’s eyes and confesses, “You are one of the best people I know, and I swore my life to you.”
Eric stares back at him, swallowing. “…I wouldn’t build me up on a pedestal or anything—”
“Why would I do that, I have no talent for sculpture,” Marius says impatiently. “You are frequently infuriating as well, but you are—you are the only one I could ever want.”