Art By Vladislav Pantic

“violyn is happening too fast” YOU MEAN TO TELL ME IF A 6FT TALL FEMME LESBIAN TOP SHOWED UP AT YOUR JAIL CELL BUSTED YOU OUT ILLEGALLY AND THEN SAVED YOUR LIFE TWO TIMES IN A ROW AND STUCK BY YOUR SIDE EVEN THOUGH YOUR SISTER IS KINDA FUCKING WACK AND DID I MENTION SHE’S HOT YOU W O U L D N ‘ T CATCH FEELINGS REAL FAST???

AND ON THE FLIP SIDE. IDK ABT YOU BUT IF I MET A BUFF BUTCH LESBIAN WITH ANGER ISSUES TRAUMA AND A HEART OF GOLD AND SHE COULD KICK MY ASS IF SHE WANTED TO AND SHE PINNED ME AGAINST A WALL IN A BROTHEL I WOULD FALL DOWN LIKE FIFTEEN FLIGHTS OF STAIRS. caitlyn is stronger than all of us for not disintegrating on the spot during that scene like omg-

ANYWAY JUST SAY YOU’RE HOMOPHOBIC 

Post-War Storm Epilogue: Reunion **spoilers for RQ4**

                                                   1 year later

The wind is chill on my skin as I step onto the runway at the edge of Archeon. It’s been a year since I was last in Norta, a year since I said goodbye to Cal. So much has changed since then.

I’ve come alone this time, leaving Farley with Clara and Kilorn with Cameron, even Davidson stayed behind in Montfort - all aware that this is a trip I need to take alone. My family are safe and happy, and as much as it pains me to leave them again I’ve known for some time that my path would lead me back here. At least this time around it’s by choice, and not as part of a cruel game.

Over the past year I’ve explored the world to the farthest reaches and back,  always keeping one eye on my former home, on Norta. The first broadcast we watched together; my family, Davidson, the Red Command and even Evangaline, huddled around to see the first glimpses of the new country. In the weeks following the battle the High Houses started to return. Silvers and reds were shown to be mixing, working together to build the new world with a fledgling government drawn from both bloods. Cal was elected temporarily as the first Premier of Norta amidst the fall-out, as the country sought to find a new equilibrium. Seeing his face, clear of pain but worn from rebuilding was a smart to my slowly healing wounds.

The next broadcast I saw came six months later. Away from Ascendant, away from my family, I watched as Cal was sworn in officially as Premier. A king no longer, but still a leader in his blood. The footage panned to Cal’s government, a collection of reds, silvers and new-bloods alike, all committed to upholding a better future. I didn’t watch the full broadcast, unwilling to see the marks of resistance still brewing amongst bitter silvers. I have to remind myself that for once, the good outweighs the bad, and with Cal at the head of government it will stay that way. Progress has been slow, but as Davidson would say, inches for miles.

I snap out of my memories, caught off guard by the light rain that has started to fall. My Montfort escorts lead the way to my transport and I find myself once again on my way to Whitefire.

***

The palace remains much the same; the marble polished and clean, free from the gore of a battle long since passed. The throne room however has been repurposed for government - the colours of House Calore have been removed, as have those of Marandus and Jacos. Much like in Ascendant, the colours that now line the walls are those of silver and red, interspersed in equal measure. A physical reminder of the unification of the bloods.

It’s here that I find him.

My breath catches as I watch him from the doorway. Cal seems much unchanged; his broad shoulders cloaked in a simple dark jacket with trousers to match, tucked into military grade boots. His hair is longer than I last saw it, long enough to start curling around his ears as it falls forward. I put a hand to my red earring, the one Cal gifted to me a lifetime ago, as the full weight of missing him crashes into me and I find it hard to breathe. In response my lightning crackles to life in my palm, and Cal’s head snaps up at the sound.

His gaze finds me immediately, smoldering bronze in surprise and trepidation. Cal straightens, seemingly searching for the right thing to say and coming up with nothing. “Hi”, I say quietly, never averting my gaze. A startled chuckle bursts from him, “Hi” he says in return.

I suddenly feel awkward. What if he didn’t wait for me? What if this year apart has changed everything? Cal steps forward as I make to step back, reading the questions in my eyes before I can voice them. “Mare”, his voice is soft and pleading, serving as a balm to my nerves. My lighting crackles once more as the heat in the room slowly rises, and I step towards him. With that one step it’s as if a spell has lifted and we rush towards eachother, desperate to close the space between us.

Cal pulls me into his embrace, his body warm and as strong as I remember. My arms lock around his neck as he lifts me, holding me so tightly it feels as though we could become one from sheer determination alone. I draw back to look at him, tracing his cheekbones with one hand before settling it along his jaw, cupping his ear softly. Cal shudders beneath me, the raw emotion roiling in his eyes as he studies my face as if memorizing it, likely checking for any new scars, ever the soldier. Cal clears his throat as he sets me back down, although doesn’t release the circle of his arms, keeping me close, safe within his cocoon of warmth.

“I’ve missed you.” Cal chokes out. “Everyday, I’ve missed you. Every storm I’ve hoped to see a streak of purple. Everywhere I turn I think I see you.” Cal’s breathing is heavy as his eyes bore into mine, afraid to look away even for a moment. “Is this real? Are you really here?” Cal swallows audibly, waiting for me to speak with bated breath.

I try to sound nonchalant and fail spectacularly, my voice wobbling when I reply, “It’s real. I’m here.” Cal’s body trembles against mine, his growing smile threatening to crack my heart wide open as I continue, my voice betraying me once more, “I’m never saying farewell to you again” I whisper, tears leaking from the corner of my eyes, tracking quickly down my cheeks. The temperature in the room spikes, my body curled in delicious heat as Cal burns. He leans towards me, tentatively kissing away the tears running down my cheeks one at a time, his lips feather light on my damp skin, before drawing back to look at me once more.

“Are you going to kiss me properly or have I got to do everything myself?” I tease half-seriously. Cal’s deep laugh shakes through my body, through my soul, stitching together all my broken pieces, filling my heart with such happiness I feel as though it might burst. “There’s my Mare” Cal chuckles, sobered once more by the sight of my smile, before drawing me flush against him and closing his mouth over mine.

***

The wounds still exist. The betrayals and deceits lie between us as they always have, but they are no longer obstacles. The path that brought us here was treacherous, fraught with sorrow and death, but it has forged us into the people we have become, and are still becoming. My physical brand remains, as real as the emotional scars left behind by Maven in both of us, but the time spent apart has allowed us to grieve and find peace in our own way.

Nothing stands between us anymore. With hearts slowly mending we have only hope for a new world and a better life for all bloods. Our choice is simple and made without hesitation; on this day, and every day from now, we will choose eachother.

———–

Phew, I hope you guys like this! This is my first attempt at writing any sort of fic, let along posting it. I finished War Storm yesterday and couldn’t bear the way it ended, so wanted to continue the epilogue with this. I needed to see Mare and Cal reunited, ok!

Anyway, I’d love to hear any thoughts on this! Is this how you saw things ending up? I need someone to fangirl with, pls and thanks.

My Opinion on Maven Calore

I have wanted to get this of my chest for a while. If you don’t want to read that’s okay, but it might be worthwhile! If you read the whole thing then you are definitely my friend :) Without further ado: 

I fell for Maven Calore, just like Mare Barrow did in Red Queen. I did not immediately fall in love with Marecal at “Thief, Obviously”, and that I think is okay even though most of the fandom did. I was conflicted because at the time, I truly did believe Maven was with the scarlet guard and that Cal wasn’t. Yet Cal was still incredibly kind and sweet to Mare  Then we all know what happened, and I was incredibly angry with Maven and could not comprehend what had happened. 

Throughout Glass Sword, I felt like Mare did, falling more in love with Cal but then also missing a boy that never really existed. But then King’s Cage caused even more heartbreak! I tried so hard to separate the dream and the reality. King’s Cage gave us more insight into how twisted Maven truly is. As someone who suffers depression and anxiety, it often feels like there are two versions of me in my head. One that isolates and self deprecates, and another that tells me to be kind to myself. The fact that Maven truly does not know what is him and what is what Elara constructed is devastating. He has grown up with endless mental and probably physical abuse from his mother. He never felt like he was good enough, that he was a shadow, and I personally know how difficult it is to feel like you are not enough. He is constantly battling so many parts of himself, the desperation and confusion must be terrifying. He admitted to Mare in the bathtub scene that he knows it is his fault that they aren’t together. He shows regret in his eyes when he is marrying Iris. 

I also think the reason why Mare understands him so much is because they are really similar in personality in how they deal with pain and fear. When Maven scratches his hands to inflict physical pain, Mare recognizes that in herself as a substitute for mental pain. Both of them hate each other but no matter how hard they try they can’t let each other go. Their twisted love is so toxic. Like Mare said, if she was raised by someone like that, what would she become? What was Maven supposed to be? Mare could easily become a monster too, and often fears she already is one. Both have murdered. Both are broken. Just imagine if you loved someone, then killed them by accident, then loved another yet had that affection butchered and shattered by your own mother .If you were molded  to become someone else’s tool for their desires, to live a fate you never wanted.

I do not excuse Maven’s horrible actions, but my heart breaks for the tragedy he is. When people say Maven should die, etc. I understand where it is coming from. Hell, Mare wants to kill him. She had the chance to, but she couldn’t. She sees all the layers he has and how difficult it is for him to sort through them and find the truth. In his twisted way, he does love Mare, and that love is poison. I think we must remember that he is a brilliant villain, a beautiful tragedy, and very much grey rather than black and white, but still a broken boy. 

@vaveyard

EMMA D'ARCY as TOMMY THE TALENT (2023) dir. Thomas May Bailey

THE LAST OF US: part ii mod by Angel-gbc

forever bitter b/c the moment motherfucking drama queen sirius black chose to find his Chill™ was that precise second when his desperate, distraught, despondent godson asked him to explain thoroughly and in detail how exactly it was that his mother and father got together because his mother OBVIOUSLY hated his father. 

Alternative ‘nah, she didn’t’ canon-plausible Sirius reactions:

grabbing Floo Harry by the shoulders and saying, “harry,  your mum loved your dad as much as i loved my motorbike.”

listing places he caught them snogging

giving an overly detailed three hour oral history of their romance

or a three minute oral history in musical form

harry, has anyone had the talk with you? do you know what sexual tension is? (remus: sit down, sirius.)

reciting from memory the half written sonnet james had started for lily for seventh year valentine’s day, which he made the fatal mistake of chucking in the bin for sirius to find instead of burning it to erase all evidence

forcing remus to be lily and doing a dramatic reenactment of james proposing 

THEE OAKWREN QUOTE OF ALL TIME

- night drives, samantha camargo

i bet her fingers touch all the right places

so true