#bedikay

[sickfreaksirkay]

Sir Kay, Seneschal of King Arthur's Court, Harold J. Herman / Illustration from the Mabinogion / The Quest for Olwen, trans. Gwyn Thomas and Kevin Crossley-Holland / The Story of Merlin, trans. Rupert T. Pickens / Illustration from The Quest for Olwen, Margaret Jones / Wace's Roman de Brut, trans. Eugene Mason / The Mabinogion, trans. Lady Charlotte Guest

a collection of sir kay and sir bedivere: companions/lovers/worse, for @queer-ragnelle's may day parade

[grail-lifesupport]

i miss my wife tails, i miss her a lot

[kulttuurinkurittama]

Morning

This is a very silly continuation doodle for "Sunrise", Bedwyr trying to bitch about beaumains burning shit again meanwhile Kei is going through the horrors of waking up. Really enjoying working in these greyish tones too.

Also this is fully and completely based on the neon pink and yellow mugs I saw at the shop I went to get new piercing jewelry from. Literally first thought, "yeah that's Bedwyr". They read (roughly) "A like in anxiety" and "what a fucking piece of work", very silly, very goofy.

[queer-ragnelle]

Vulgate: The Story of Merlin | More quotes at Arthuriana Daily

[kochei0]

the link to eng translation doesnt work for me :(

Aw I'm not sure why that is! But i'll list the links here again if it helps :

ENG translation carrd (explains how & where to read the TL , has a trope list)

ENG translation site (the TL itself is here)

and look: the fabled old men yaoi yall be talking about, they're in there!!

[knightsofsomethingorother]

Arthuriana Inktober 14 - Lover

[gingersnaptaff]

❤️ for bedikay!!!!

Ohhhhh, anon, I was foaming at the mouth to do this so thank you so much for suggesting Bedikay!!! I really hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it! 😊☺️

❤️ first kiss / realization

Bedwyr shut the door as quietly as he could. Cai's pants filled the room. Each was awash with agony. Moonlight crept through the velvet curtains, limned his slumped shoulders, his crooked posture with silver as he sat on the bed.

Bedwyr took a step forward and inwardly rued his luck as the floorboards shrieked beneath his boots. “Cachu.”

Cai sniffled but did not turn his head. “Wyr?”

“Ay.” He sighed tremulously, crossed the room, and rounded the bed before he dropped to his knees in front of his foster brother, his first and fiercest friend, and took one of his calloused, sword-roughed hands in, squeezing it tightly. “Arth wasn’t thinking.”

A flicker of a smile crossed Cai’s face. His amber eyes were dull, red-rimmed. Bedwyr couldn't help but stare at them though, admiring the flecks of gold and green that glimmered within them. Cai squeezed his hand in response, stroking the back of it.

A coil of heat stirred in Bedwyr's gut as he shuddered a little.

The fire crackled merrily in the grate. Muffled shouts and laughter from the guards changing shifts seeped through one of the open windows. Through the wall he could hear Gwynhwyfar rebuking her husband for his “superbly stupid lambasting” although her voice had taken on the strained, raw quality of somebody on the edge of losing their voice. Neither of them spoke. They didn't need to. A weight settled between them, a blanket of snowfall that soothed Bedwyr's concern a little even though he kept on clasping Cai's hand.

“He never does,” Cai said bitterly at last, the spell between the breaking. He gently tugged his hand out of Bedwyr's grip and wiped it on his dirtied tunic. Sweat and soil smeared the fine blue brocade although he paid it no heed.

With an uneven breath Bedwyr replied, “Gwyn's had it out with him. She's not happy. That's what you can hear in case you were wondering.”

Cai's lips quivered into a half smile although the wounded look in his eyes still remained. “Good.” He rubbed at his throat and sighed, his gaze flicking downwards to the stripped mats that lined the floor.

Bedwyr swallowed harshly. He could still feel the brand of Cai's touch on his skin, the flame of his body heat rippling through his veins. ‘It - He - He was an idiot. I should've said something. I shouldn't have let him say that. I shouldn't!”

Cai's head snapped up. He held Bedwyr's gaze unflinchingly. “Don't blame yourself. You didn't know he'd come out with that anymore then I.”

But Bedwyr shook his head frantically, a breath catching in his throat. “It wasn't right! And his smug smile after he'd brayed like an ass! I could've beaten him the way you used to when we were teenagers, or flung him over my shoulder and tossed him in the river.”

Cai snorted, the tightness in his shoulders loosening a little. “Gods, I would've paid to see that. Bedwyr Bedrydant hurling our most noble Brenin Mawr into the Afon Ystwyth all because he had the temerity to declare an utterly atrocious englyn.” He chuckled richly, his cheeks dimpling a little as he tried to bite back a smile.

“Wouldn't you?” Bedwyr said at once, raising an eyebrow. "Or do you mean to tell me that Cai Hir would simply let his reputation be tarnished by a simple poem with some of the worst cynghanedd arrangements I've ever had the misfortune to listen to?”

Cai waved a hand dismissively. “Oh, I've been privy to them before. Once you've heard him jabber away about where best to place a stress or whatever you get sort of used to it.” Pinching the bridge of his nose, he exhaled deeply before continuing, “He never did that with you then?”

“No. Never.”

“Huh. Guess he just wanted to make my ears bleed then.”

Bedwyr nodded. “S'pose.”

“Coc o gath,” Cai cursed, reverting back to their old adolescent swear, the one that had filled them with a giddy lightness whenever they spoke it in hushed, cautious whispers around his father's table. His voice blazed the heat of flame to such a degree that it singed the edges off his Gododdin accent.

Bedwyr sniggered. “Cat's cock? Such inelegant language! Don't let Arth hear you, eh, or he'll have steam billowing out of his ears.”

Cai winked, his laughter bouncing off the walls, bright and cheerful. His face glowed with amusement, his veins flickering with copper of flame, while his smile widened, becoming that same boyish uptick as it had when he’d been fourteen and raring to be in the thick of battle.

At that Bedwyr's chest tightened. His heart spasmed wildly.

“For that alone I'd batter him to death, dragon-blooded king or no,” Cai carried on, paying no attention to his friend's far away expression. “Provided Gwyn allowed me to, of course.”

“Of course,” Bedwyr quickly agreed as he shifted a little to get some feeling back into his leaden limbs, holding Cai's gaze again.

Cai tugged him upright, lightly resting his hands around Bedwyr's waist so that he didn't lose his balance. His hands blazed with warmth, positively sweltered with it, and Bedwyr gulped as he caught his eye.

“Do you remember when we were smaller and played at being Bendigeidfran and Matholwch atop the mountains? And Arthur always insisted that he was Efnisien come to cause more harm than good?”

Bedwyr nodded. His throat tightened around a cry, a wail. Something hot and heavy crushed his chest. “He skulked about muttering about his horses and you and he would always fight.”

Cai smiled wryly. “He was lucky it didn't devolve into real blows half the time.” He fiddled with the torc around his neck, the metal throwing golden sparks across the tapestried walls.

“Uh huh.” Bedwyr hums. And he always insisted we ‘quest’ for the most asinine things. Just roam around your father's caer as though we were magpies searching for gold. All we found were half-tarnished firedogs and your sister's old hairbrush.”

Cai's face crumpled and, for a brief moment, Bedwyr thought he'd said the wrong thing. But then his shoulders started to shake and a burst of raspy laughter left him. “Wyr,” he breathed, his breath ghosting over Bedwyr's skin in a hot, fennel-scented cloud. “If I didn't know any better I'd say you were rather annoyed at our dearest High King and Battle Lord. That's my job.”

Bedwyr scrubbed a hand through his hair, his cheeks flushing hotly. “I just… Even now he forgets how important you are.”

“Then let him do so.” Cai said, his hands cupping Bedwyr’s cheeks. His thumbs stroked the greying stubble that peppered his jaw and Bedwyr found the sensation oddly pleasurable. “I only need one person's acknowledgement in this court, you know.”

Bedwyr frowned. His chest thumped wildly against his ribcage. Blood pounded in his ears as loud as a carnyx and he blinked bewilderedly.

And all the while Cai was staring.

Waiting.

His voice cracked, “I don’t-”

“Don't what?” Cai murmured, staring at him intently. “It's you, Wyr. Always. Ever since you first came to my father's court it was you. I looked at this lanky streak of piss-”

Bedwyr threw back his head and cackled.

“What?” Cai said, his brow furrowed in befuddlement. “I'm serious! I did! And you were lanky, you can't deny that! Why else d'you think you were Rhiannon whenever we played out her run-ins with Pwyll and Gwawl?”

“I wasn't lanky,” he replied through his tears. “I was gangly. There's a difference. I had twig limbs, alright. I was growing into my frame, as Lady Eigyr might've said.”

Cai smacked the stump of his right arm. Bedwyr reached over with his left and whacked him back. “Course you were. That's as good as an excuse and I've heard plenty from Arth over the years. His one for the englyn-”

“Now you'll have steam coming out of your ears.” Bedwyr interjected quickly before Cai went on a rant about Arthur's lack of decency.

And then, without thinking, he pressed his lips to Cai's.

He stiffened up instantly, his eyes bulging. His hands flexed by his side, his veins flaming amber. Bedwyr's heart stuttered in his chest as he pulled away, a frantic apology bubbling on the tip of his tongue.

Yet… Cai laughed.

It crackled through the air, nestled deep in Bedwyr’s chest, eased the violent clamour of blood in his head. A bonfire of relief.

“Oh,” Cai said in an odd voice, his dark eyes smouldering. “I never thought you'd do that!”

Bedwyr chuckled half-hysterically. “I - I -”

Cai's lips quirked into an ecstatic grin. He leaned forward, pressing his lips to Bedsyr's again in a kiss that was as sure and as certain as he was. Fire lingered on his lips. His hands slid to cup the back of Bedwyr's head, gently stroking through his dark curls in such a way that Bedwyr hummed happily, his eyes fluttering shut.

And oh, this felt nice.

The tightness in his chest receded a little. Bedwyr melted when Cai deepened the kiss, cupping his friend’s - no, his… cariad's - burning cheek with his one good hand. His head whirled. The sweetness of mountain air muddled his senses, and something warmer, smokier, intrinsically Cai.

They stayed like that for a few moments longer, exchanging sweeter, lazier kisses while Cai's fierce warmth eddied into Bedwyr's very bones before gently pulling apart, a string of spit connecting them. With a start - and through the lightheaded fogginess of his thoughts - Bedwyr realised Cai's hands were still cupping his head, his fingers stroking through his hair until Bedwyr purred. Their breathing came in fast, frantic pants.

Their eyes met and Bedwyr laughed. “Come to bed?”

Cai's throat bobbed. He uttered a little high-pitched giggle, the flush on his cheeks deepening to match the blood beneath his fingernails. “I-”

“If Arthur says anything I'll deal with him.” Bedwyr hurriedly said. “But… please?”

“I'm not worried about that. I just…” Cai took a deep breath. “When did you know?”

“Eh?”

“When did you know?” He repeated, his voice scratchy. “That you loved me?”

“I… When you stalked away after the englyn. That's when I truly knew. Flames were licking at your feet, setting the undergrowth alight, and I thought, ‘Oh.’”

Cai grinned, showing a flash of teeth. “‘Oh?’ Is that all?”

“Cai, paid y geg. I knew then because I could've punched Arth and felt no remorse if I lost his friendship, but - but I didn’t want to lose you.”

“My friendship?” Cai arched one dark eye eyebrow, waiting for him to continue.

“No,” Bedwyr burst out. “I mean, uh, yes, but - but just you. Everything about you.”

Cai said, “Oh.” And then gently took Bedwyr’s hand in his and kissed it, brushing his lips over the faded scar etched into his palm, before he gently dropped a kiss on the stump of his arm. “And then you hared it back here -”

“Had to, lest you try and murder our King where he slept. But I heard you crying instead and I-” Bedwyr took a shaky breath, tears pricking his eyes. “I didn’t like it. You were like a lamed animal.”

“I’m grateful. I think I would've at that moment, regicide be damned.” Cai said, nibbling his lip, the tips of his ears flushing with embarrassment. He sighed softly, tangling their fingers together.

Bedwyr squeezed back.

[caer-gai]

Classic Lit Drabbles Part 2 Electric Boogaloo

By: Eatgreass (@quidam-sirenae) on ao3

Summary/Review:

This one's an anthology style fic so each chapter has it's own summary! Deals with all sorts of classic lit including arthuriana and it's all very good!!

Warnings: vary by chapter; blood and violence

Major Characters/Ships (Arthuriana): Kay, Bedivere, Mordred, Gawain, Aggravain; bedikay, Gawain/the Green Knight,

[gwalch-mei]

40 and 29 for arthurian ship of your choice!

thank u for the ask!! i was gonna default to gawain and lancelot but hey lets go w kay and bedivere bc im love them and they need more content really 29.First Date? probably something thats overly romantic and chill <3 i could see them just sharing a nice meal together at night either in camelots kitchens or in a nearby picturesque forest or meadow <3

40. Whos the skilled shopper for holidays? who waits till the last minute and is stressed? Kay is really good at planning what hes gonna get and does so months in advance but is really bad about. actually going out and shopping bc he. quite frankly. hates going to markets due to the sheer amount of people there (hes not really good with crowds if you ask me and is already stressed bc he has to plan large feasts for the holidays someone please give this man a break) meanwhile bedivere doesnt plan shit ever and he never will but somehow always picks a really good and thoughtful gift by chance <3

[sanddef]

Nice things for an Abandoned Quest

Rewrote an old assignment and it held up surprisingly well. This picks up after Kay tried to kill that dog

597 words

Though incredibly biased, Bedivere genuinely thinks that Kay deserves more credit. After all, the man has been at the King’s side since they were children, he fought his first battle for him at sixteen. Not once has he tried to usurp Arthur or undermine him, and that’s saying a lot for a king’s brother these days. Lord knows he has enough work as a seneschal on top of being a knight. But that didn’t mean that everyone in Camelot was mistaken. No, Kay was often less than honorable, though then again, honor seemed like it was in short supply these days. 

“How did you fare?” Bedivere asked Kay when he returned from his quest not even half an hour after he left. He’s soaking wet, and everyone was giving him a wide berth, trying to avoid his temper. Bedivere didn’t worry about it, let him yell himself hoarse, he was going to make sure he wasn’t hurt at the very least.

“I lost the dog.” Kay said simply, brushing his hair away from his eyes.

“No, you did not.” Bedivere said, taking Kay's sword and shield so he could have his hands free. Kay huffed.

“Well, it is a ridiculous quest anyway. Why must I follow a dog? What would that lady even want with the foot of a hart anyway?” He complained, “I hate getting wet.”

What happened on that quest, Bedivere had no actual idea. He just knew Kay was a habitual liar, especially when he’s this upset.

“The dog returned.” Bedivere said as he helped Kay with his cloak. Kay grunted, used his magic to warm his hands and rubbed at his face. “It is all wet too. Would you mind telling me how that happened?”

“I did not try to drown the dog, and that is the truth.” Kay said, “I returned because I felt sick.” Bedivere guessed that the second statement was a lie, but as for the first, he had no reason to disbelieve him. Kay shrugged off his chainmail, laying down on his bed.

“I suppose Gawain will attempt the quest now.” Kay continued, “What an auspicious start, by mocking me. He is sure to succeed, it seems no punishment ever touches him. No fear of anything short term, much less eternal perdition.

“Not Gawain; Lancelot will.” Bedivere said, idly folding Kay’s cloak, “And you know that to be untrue. You remember the Green Chapel?”

“He got let off easy and you know it.”

“He girds to this day.”

“Don’t care.” Kay sighed, sitting up slightly, “He has an unseemly easy tendency towards diplomacy.”

“You say that like it devalues his character.”

“It does when he does it.” Kay said, “And Lancelot has a similarly uncontrolled tendency towards violence. You would think it would be the other way around.”

Bedivere tossed the cloak onto Kay’s chair, “Are you done?”

Kay paused, considering the question. Bedivere could almost see his thought process, searching for something else to complain about before Bedivere leaves.

“You’re too kind.” Kay says finally, smiling slightly, “By the hand of my friend, you tolerate too much.”

“Are you done now?” Bedivere asked again after a moment. Kay scoffed, looked up at the ceiling of their room.

“I’m insulted that you’re leaving me to go do God knows what.”

“I won’t stay and lick your wounds.” Bedivere smirked, and Kay bristled. For a moment Bedivere thought he was going to send him away.

“Will you stay and talk to me?” Kay paused, considering, “We can talk about something nice. I can do that.”

“We can do that.”

[mordredpendragon]

okkkkk and here's a relationship dynamic for the younger gen. (i'll make one for the others later there's just so many characters lol)

but yeah the younger knights + bedikay daughter (who i don't have a name for yet) are all peers to one another

i listed mordred/percival with a romance line but i assure you what they got is far worse than being lovers. it's a secret third thing (codependent homoerotic 'best friends')

galahad has an unrequited thing with percival but i don't think galahad himself even knows what it is. percival only thinks of him as a friend though

griflet weird homoerotic crush on galahad

still gauging how i want to characterize griflet but i imagine he's a more lighthearted character considering the two edgelords in the group (galahad and mordred) he and percival are buddies!

galahad and mordred WERE on the road to becoming friends. but then shit happens and they become legit enemies. play paradise lost when it comes out to find out 💔

bedikay daughter is a bit of an outlier in the group but she's there and she's a peer of them who shows up semi-frequently. WAS ok with mordred and then (spoiler spoiler spoiler) not fond of galahad bc he's a little (very) mean. good terms with griflet on the virtue of being kin, likes percival best among the other 3 bc he has an actual pleasant personality

[grail-lifesupport]

[grail-lifesupport]

literally finally found my calling in digital art, illustration and comics when i drew gawain in a grave post mortem

I keep seeing medival arthurian literature pop up on my dash, and I did a little digging because I'm a huge literature, arts and language nerd

I dont know you, and you dont know me, but I really love you guys, wherever you may be

Good for you good for you

I admire the dedication

[taliesin-the-bored]

Tag game: tag nine people you’d like to know better.

Tagged by: @oneshoulderangel (Thank you for tagging me!)

Last song: At the moment, I have "Losing Your Memory" by Alan Star stuck in my head, which I suppose makes it my current song, not my last song. Hm. I get songs stuck in my head very easily, but the last one I had there for a significant amount of time was a mashup of different language versions of "Les Rois du Monde" for about a week. "Lehetsz Király", the Magyar version, is probably my favorite of them. It's worth a listen.

Currently watching: Normally, the answer would be "random mostly terrible old movies/shows" or "nothing much", but I currently have a hyperfixation on the musical Roméo et Juliette and have been watching it in multiple languages. (Thus, the song).

Three ships: This is hard. Maybe as a result of being on the ace and aro spectrums, I'm more likely to care about which characters are interacting than whether it's romantic or platonic. Here goes:

Kedivere/Bedikay. It can be romantic, platonic, or queerplatonic, but whichever way, I'm here for it. I probably spend too much time thinking about how in Cullwch and Olwen, when Cai gets mad at Arthur and marches out, Bedwyr stays behind, keeps acting like nothing's happened, and isn't the one to avenge Cai's death. The feeling of betrayal on both sides has a lot of unexplored potential. And the version where Bedivere dies and Kay fights to bring his body back safely while mortally wounded himself... And the version where Bedivere survives Camlann and Kay isn't said to fight in it, so they might be left together after their world has fallen apart...

Platonically or queerplatonically, Galahad and the Grail Heroine. I really like the tragic Grail Quest friendships, but I like theirs most, maybe because there's something weird and otherworldly about them both. I like it when characters are strange and endearing and doomed by the narrative.

Ever since reading John Matthews' retelling, which I read before the original, I've had a soft spot for Caradoc and Guinier. The Story of Caradoc is very disturbing, and I have some major qualms with Caradoc over a detail Matthews cut out, but all the same, there's a reason these two have the best track record with magical fidelity tests. Each of them would go to the ends of the earth for the other, and together, they're stronger than any curse.

Favorite Color: Blue, particularly royal blue and some teals.

Currently consuming: Black licorice with chocolate.

First ship: This is a hard one, since through elementary and most of middle school, I tended to go along with whatever I thought the author's intentions were and was more likely to unship something. The first non-endgame ship I got invested in was Sonya/Nikolai in War and Peace. I didn't like Nikolai, but Sonya did, and she was my favorite character, so I wanted her to be happy. The first non-canon couple I thought was meant to be together was also in War and Peace: Marya Bolkonskaya and Julie Karagina. My eighth grade self did not think their letters could be interpreted platonically. I still don't.

Last movie: If the musical doesn't count, the last movie I watched was Quest for Camelot, which was awful. Though not Robot Monster-level bad, Robot Monster has an elegance to its simplicity which Quest for Camelot lacks.

Currently working on: Various fics, most of them Arthuriana or CotRK-related (I am woefully behind on the Badfic Bingo), and (theoretically) an epic-style poem, though I haven't gotten much of it written for quite a while now.

Tagging: @gawrkin, @emperorcandy, @wildbasil, @gorewound, @knightsofsomethingorother, @ladyminaofcamelot, @tasosotaso, @amashelle, @gingersnaptaff (I have no idea who's been tagged so far, apart from the people on @oneshoulderangel's post, so I apologize for any multi-tags)

[queer-ragnelle]

Added some books to the Arthurian Retellings page! We officially have books from every decade of the last 100 years!

Arthur of the Britons by Rex Edwards (based on the 1970s show of the same name!)

Arthur the Bear of Britain by Edward Franklin (prime inspiration for Warlord Chronicles!)

King Arthur and His Noble Knights by Mary MacLeod (Le Morte d'Arthur retelling!)

The Emperor Arthur by Godfrey Turton (Pelleas point of view!)

Gareth of Orkney by Edith Ditmas (Gareth point of view!)

Launcelot & Guenevere by Richard Hovey (tragic plays!)

The Great Captains by Henry Treece (bad Arthur, good BediKay!)

[knightsofsomethingorother]

❤️‍🔥🔪 bedivere and kay

❤️🔥 Romantic headcanon- So Kay's got that whole icy heart thing, right? Here's my pitch: Bedivere rests his head on Kay's chest directly over it when he gets migraines.

🔪Violence headcanon- Kay's got a thing for violence. He and Guinevere have that in common and they chat about the horrific acts of blood and suffering inflicted by their paramours to the horror of any eavesdroppers.