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the-badger-mole · 2 months ago

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How the High King of Elfhame Got His Seneschal's Photo

Well, this was a waste of a trip to the mortal world. I leaned against the brick wall of the cafe I'm waiting in front of and bite back an annoyed groan. After all, I knew coming here on the strength of a fourthhand rumor was a long shot. Still, when Randalin told me that he'd heard from his valet who'd heard from the servant of one of the gentry families of the lower courts that there was a rumor of a kidnapping plot against my brother amongst the solitary fae, I thought it best to look into it myself. Now that I know the rumor was just the product of someone's overactive imagination, I wish I had just let one of the spies from the Court of Shadows look into it .

The fact that I probably wouldn't have trusted anyone else with this mission isn't a thought worth acknowledging.

I look down the empty street, expecting the Roach at any moment. Not for the first time, I wish for some way to travel between Faerie and the mortal world without needing to rely on one of the Folk to escort me. I would have asked Vivi if I knew how quickly this little side mission was going to be done. Oh, well.

A dark car pulls to a stop about half a block away from me. I note it absently. After all, I am not waiting on a car. Ten minutes later, I'm starting to get impatient. The Roach had come with his own agenda, I knew, but he had led me to believe that he would be done with his errand long before I was done with mine. I hope he'll show up soon. It was really starting to get cold, and I am not dressed for the weather. I shiver and pull my hoodie closer around me. Maybe, I consider, I should consider making it policy that anyone coming to the mortal realm should carry burner phones so they can stay in touch. Knowing when the Roach would be here would make waiting a little more bearable, at least.

The sound of the car door opening draws me out of my thoughts, and I realize that a man has emerged. Then I realize he's heading in my direction. My hackles go up immediately, though I try to calm myself down. He may not be coming to me. He may just pass me on the way to someplace else.

He does not pass me.

"This isn't a place for loiterers," the man says gruffly. I snort at that.

"If I see any I'll let them know."

"Oh, a joker."

"Only on occasion." The man sneers at me.

He's not dressed the way I picture mortal thugs dressing. He is in a brown leather bomber, but his jeans are clean and crisp, as if he ironed them as flat as he could that morning. Even I know that is unforgivably geeky. On his feet is a pair of shiny black dress shoes. Not boots, or sneakers, like I'd seen on gangsters and evil bikers in movies. The man is also inexplicably wearing a pair of dark mirrored sunglasses, although the sun had very nearly set.

"Why don't you show me your hands?" He phases it like a question, but it sounds like a command. I ignore it and turn my gaze away from him. In my pocket, I turn my fingers against my wrist, feeling the hilt of my dagger there. Let him try me.

"I said show me your hands!" When adding volume to his voice doesn't work, he reaches for me, presumably to force me to obey. The shock on his face when I grab his wrist instead is deeply satisfying. His yelp of pain when I twist it to an unnatural degree is even more so. My dagger stays where it's hidden up my sleeve. I don't need it for him.

Down the street, the car opens again, on the passenger side this time, and another man emerges, running towards me and his friend. Well, a fight will keep me warm, anyway.

"Freeze!" the man shouts. He pulls a gun from his waist and points it at me. Internally I groan as I reluctantly raise my hands over my head. How did I forget about guns?

-:-:-:-:-:-:-

"You're where?" Vivi screeches on the other end of the line. I flinch away from the phone receiver and glance around warily, certain that the police officers can hear my sister.

"I'm in jail," I repeat. "I need you to come bail me out." Vivi goes silent and I swear I can hear her pinching the bridge of her nose. Then, to my surprise, she laughs.

"Alright," she says at last. "Give me an hour."

"I've already been here for three!" I complain.

"Tough!" Vivi cackles. "I have to drop Oak off at a party, and I need get a card for the birthday boy first. You'll be alright. And if you get a prison tattoo, make sure it's a cool one."

"Viv!"

"I'll see you soon." Vivi is still laughing as she hangs up. I have to choke back a growl of frustration as I slam the receiver back onto the cradle.

"Finished?" the deputy who'd escorted me from my cell to make my one phone call.

"Finished," I sigh. A few moments later, the iron bars slam shut behind me. I am not alone in the cell, but the woman on the top bunk is in deep slumber, if her bone rattling snores are anything to go by. Then the smell of her hits me. This must be the drunk tank, I realize. With a huff, I sit on the bottom bunk and wait.

And I wait.

And wait.

One hour passes without Vivi showing up. Then two. At two and a half hours, I get up and pace the floor. Surely they'd give me another call, I think. But then, who else would I call besides Vivi? It was almost a miracle that I remembered her phone number. I never even tried to memorize Heather's. Besides, even if I had, Heather was probably with Vivi, or stuck at home. They only had one car between them.

Finally, as the clock was about to mark the third hour since I'd called my sister, I hear a commotion outside of the cell block.

"What do you mean I can't see my sister? I am here to bail her out. I have the cash right here!" Vivi's voice carries back to me, and I almost cheer in relief.

"Vivi!" I call.

"We're here, Jude!" Vivi yells back. Then her voice goes low. I can tell she's talking to someone, and finally they seem to come to an agreement. Then they are headed in my direction. Vivi appears behind the sheriff and she is the most beautiful sight I've ever seen. I'm so happy to see her that I don't see who's with her for a moment. It's not Heather who is standing behind her. It's Cardan.

Seeing him here, in the mortal realm- in a mortal police station of all places is so jarring, I can only stare for a moment. Especially since he's in a ridiculous red silk shirt with pearls at the cuffs and collar. Then I turn back to Vivi.

"Por que lo trajiste?" I demand in harsh whisper.

"Llegó a mi puerta y no me dejaria salir sin él." Vivi shrugs. "It was faster to bring him."

"That doesn't sound like you're grateful to see me," Cardan says, raising his brow.

"What are you doing here?" I ask him. I'm not angry. I'm too confused for anger, and I guess he sees that in my face, because he's not nearly so defensive when he answers.

"The Roach came rushing back to the palace raving that you'd been kidnapped," Cardan said. He eyed my cell distastefully, keeping well away from the iron bars. I have to force myself not to shrink in embarrassment. "And here you are indeed being kept captive for ransom. It wouldn't be very gallant of me to leave my seneschal imprisoned."

"Estaba furioso," Vivi tells me with an amused glance at him. "Tengo preguntas para ti luego. A lot!"

"Hey, pal," the sheriff cuts in. "Bail ain't ransom. She was arrested, not kidnapped." Vivi shakes her head, ignoring both men.

"Jail, Jude?" she sighs. "Que hiciste, hermanita?"

"Nothing!" I hiss back. "No hice nada. Es solo que él tiene una lasca en su hombro!" I jerk my chin towards the sheriff without looking at him.

"Little lady, assaulting an officer is not a little chip on my shoulder," the sheriff says. Vivi and I fall silent and stare at him. He shoots us a smug smirk. "Yeah, I speak Spanish, too." Behind him, I see Cardan is also smirking. His brows go up in amusement.

Little lady? he mouths silently. I scowl and shake my head at him. No. He will absolutely not make that a thing. I am not above ordering it so.

"You assaulted an officer?" Vivi is doing her best to sound disapproving, but she is barely keeping the grin off of her face, or the laugh from her voice.

"I didn't know he was an officer," I explain for for feels like the ten thousandth time tonight. "Some guy approaches me and starts making vague threats and I'm just not supposed to defend myself? He wasn't in uniform. He didn't even show me a badge!" At that, Vivi whirls on the sheriff, all amusement gone from her face.

"He didn't even identify himself?" she almost yells.

"W-well, h-he...he was only trying to warn her not to loiter," the sheriff stammered. "That block has had some issues with vandals recently, so plain clothes cops patrol there."

"I wasn't loitering. I was waiting for my ride." I press myself to the bars and glare daggers at the sheriff. "Then this random guy comes over and starts demanding to see my hands. I wasn't vandalizing anything! Tell me where that falls under protect and serve."

"Let my sister out!" Vivi demands. "Whatever your officer got was well deserved, it sounds like."

"It sounds like he got off lightly." Cardan's voice is deceptively airy. There's a coldness in his eyes that I know from experience means nothing good for the sheriff.

"I already told you, I can't let her go," the sheriff huffs. "Assaulting an officer is a felony, and a judge will need to set bail. She's in there until Monday." My jaw drops in shock. It's Friday. He expects me to stay in this disgusting cell for two days? Before I can protest, Cardan speaks again. This time when he speaks, the anger is tinged with glamour.

"I believe you'll find that you can let her go tonight," he says.

"I...I can let her go..." The sheriff's voice is distant, as if he's talking in his sleep. "Yes...I...I can let her go tonight. Just be sure to show up to your hearing on Monday."

"There won't be a hearing on Monday," Vivi says, her voice taking the same ineffable quality that Cardan's had. It was always strange watching the Folk glamour mortals from this end. Normally, I'm not a fan, especially of my sister doing it. But I cannot spend the weekend in a jail cell.

"Ri-ight," the sheriff agrees. He goes quiet for a moment and I suppose it's during this time that his brain supplies a good reason for letting me leave. He blinks his eyes rapidly, as if waking, and he shakes his head. Then he unlocks the cell and holds it open for me. "You're free to go."

"Wait, he still has my dagger," I say as I step hurriedly out of the cell. The sheriff closes it slowly behind me and stares at my cellmate thougthfully. She had been snoring loudly through this entire exchange.

"By all means let us retrieve it," Cardan drawls. "We all know how naked you feel without a weapon." Vivi rolls her eyes and enchants the sheriff again. A few minutes later, he's brought my sheathed dagger out from the evidence locker, and thrown away the plastic baggie it had been stored in. I wonder if he will get in trouble for this, then I decide that I don't care. I shouldn't have been arrested in the first place.

"Hey buddy," the sheriff calls Cardan aside. His brow goes up. At the informality of the address, I suppose. Still, he's intrigued enough to move closer. Whatever glamour Cardan had put on the sheriff seems to have left him with the impression that he and the High King were friends. He grinned mischievously at Cardan and hands him a manila envelope. "I figured you'd want a souvenir of your girlfriend's time as a felon."

"I'm not his girlfriend," I huff rolling my eyes. Cardan accepts the envelope nonetheless. I'm too tired to care, though. It must be near dawn, and all I want is to go home and sleep.

"What did he give you?" Vivi asks as we make our way to her and Heather's car. Cardan opens the envelope and pulls out a glossy picture. It's my mug shot. A flash of hot rage rolls through me, and I have half a mind to go back inside and show the snarky sheriff what assault with a deadly weapon truly looked like.

"I need ten copies of that!" Vivi howls with laughter. "I'm sending this to everyone!"

"No you're not!" I say, snatching the picture out of Cardan's hand and stuffing it in my pocket. "We are never talking about this again."

"Oh, honey," Vivi laughs again, throwing her arm around my shoulder. "You know that's not true." I grumble something vaguely threatening as I climb into the backseat of the car, but I know she's right. At least the photo evidence will soon be gone. I plan on burning my mugshot as soon as I can.

Later, in my rooms at the palace, I intend to do just that. Only when I check the pocket of my hoodie, it's gone. It must have fallen out in the car.

-:-:-:-:-:-

In his room, Cardan pulls out the photograph the sheriff had given him, and smooths it out. It's not very wrinkled, despite having been shoved unceremoniously into Jude's pocket. The woman herself stares up at him, holding a black placard with Duarte written in white block letters and a series of numbers beneath that. Loose strands of hair had fallen from her simple braid to frame her face, and she looks like she'd just been through a battle. Cardan supposes that wasn't far from the truth. Despite her apparent disarray at the time of her arrest, she manages to somehow look both imperious and sullen at the same time. Cardan grins at the image, knowing that Jude might actually kill him if she knew he had it.

Some months later, when she is in the middle of carving a space for herself in his room (their room, he corrects himself), Cardan is proven right.

"Are you serious?" she demands, snatching the framed photo from among his things on the dresser. Her eyes are alight with anger when she rounds on him. Cardan only chuckles in reply.

"Well, I could hardly commission an official portrait of you without drawing some uncomfortable questions," he tells her. "Besides, I don't think any painter in Faerie or the mortal world could capture your essence quite as succinctly as this."

"Get rid of it!" Jude orders him. His wife didn't need any magical binds to get Cardan to do whatever she wanted. He would swim the entire ocean to bring her the fruit of the trees that grew in the Court of Teeth if she wanted. But in this, he would have to insist on his own way. He crosses the room and gently pulls the picture from his wife's resisting hands.

"I would sooner throw my crown in a tar pit," he tells her. At her indignant shriek, he laughs again and kisses her forehead. The novelty of having the privilege to do so hadn't yet lost it's luster, and Cardan suspected it would be a very, very long time before it did. "Have I ever told you how adorable you are when you're angry?"

"I thought I was terrifying," Jude says, crossing her arms and scowling at him. Cardan shrugs.

"Who said you couldn't be both?" He smirks at her as he goes in for the final blow, "My little lady."

Now there's a part 2

#tfota #jude duarte #vivi duarte #cardan greenbriar #jurdan #ever since i found out it's canon that jude is part hispanic #i've been kind of obsessed with the idea that the duarte sisters speak a bit of spanish #i feel like it's a cornucopia of comedic and dramatic potential that got wasted #in my headcanon their mortal dad spoke it to them when they were kids #and vivi insisted they keep it up while in faerie #she teaches them what she remembers from justin and what she picks up from telenovelas when she makes her secret trips to the mortal world #so now they all speak spanglish #it's kind of their own little code while they're in elfhame #so jude is REALLY annoyed that the cop understands her #also cardan's reaction to roach telling him he saw Jude being bound and loaded into a car at gunpoint was SOMETHING

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heaven-in-a-wild-flower · 8 months ago

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Jurdan Headcanon (Jude Duarte and Cardan Greenbriar)

I’ve also published this on ao3 if you’d rather read it there, here’s the link. I’m making this a full series (Cardan in the Mortal World).

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 2.5

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Previous Chapter (Chapter 7)

Chapter 8

Cardan’s POV

It is a day of rest at the Vivienne-Heather household and Jude is in light slumber with her head atop my lap. Oak is watching moving pictures upon the black cage (Jude has assured me many a times that this ‘Television’ is no cage but I shall say it as I see it). This moving picture is named ‘Despicable Me’ which features some atrocious yellow absurdly-shaped monsters following an even more absurdly-shaped man. However, I do have to admit that their antics are quite entertaining.

It surprises me when Oak tells me that Gru is seen as a villain in the world of the moving pictures. If I’d had a father even half as kind, it would’ve changed my world, why it would have changed the very essence of who I am today. I tilt my head down to hide the traitorous tear slipping down my face, and I see Jude’s face peaceful in slumber. I have only one warrior to thank for invading the thorny barrier protecting my heart and conquering it, scarred and rotten though it may have been. I kiss her upon her brow and promise silently that I shall never let her down nor waste the value she conferred upon my kindness, I shall be a good uncle to Oak, always.

I gently ruffle Oak’s hair who shakes off my hand and continues to remain seated on my legs and pretend he is riding a horse. I acquiesce to his commanding pats upon my shins and raise my legs to fully satisfy his rich imaginings. Suddenly he is distracted by Heather’s mobile device which chirps like a bird (Jude has also assured me that no birds are encapsulated within the devices, that it is merely ‘modern human technology’). He picks it up and begins tapping furiously at its surface. These mobile devices will be the death of humans, building up merely finger dexterity and no other useful fighting or survival skills.

“Uncle Cardan,” Oak calls. “Hmm?” “What would you be if you were a human?” He asks. I ponder the question. I am king in my realm, although that was entirely by luck (and Jude’s devious scheming), so I do not place much faith in my ability to successfully rule humans. However, I am skilled at entertaining and remaining fashionable in every realm. “An Influencer,” I reply, having recently learned of them from Heather, whose attention is often completely captured by influencers on her mobile device. Oak simply nods and continues swiping and tapping at the mobile device. I think nothing of the question, children, human or fae, have wild imaginations.

“Uncle Cardan, look, look!” He shrieks, shoving the mobile device right in front of my eyes. I squint at the image. It is an image of me wearing a gauzy purple top with loose white pants, my neck is decorated with swirling dark tattoos and my eyes are painted over with glittery paint. I cannot deny that it is a highly flattering attire (although all attire is flattering on me), but I am utterly confused how this image exists when I have never worn these clothes at all, nor commissioned any such painting.

“Oak, where did you source this painting of me?” “It is not a painting, Uncle Cardan. It’s AI,” he explains, laughing and confusing me further. What sort of witch is this Ae-Ai, is she divining the future?

All this excitement wakes up Jude, who frowns at me confusedly and mildly annoyed. She wears irritation as beautifully as every other expression but I quickly vanish it by placing quick kisses upon her nose and cheeks and lips. Her hair is a certified nest, but she wears this upon her head as grandly as she wears a crown.

“What are you guys arguing about now?” she grumbles. “And is it really worth disturbing my nap over?”

“I apologise a thousand-fold, my darling queen, but it is indeed of utmost urgency. I suspect a witch is plotting against me.” Jude squints at me and I pluck the mobile from Oak’s hand to show her the evidence. Oak meanwhile is rolling around the floor laughing and laughing, I have been sorely amiss in my duty of teaching him the appropriate royal etiquette.

“Cardan, babe, this isn’t a witch. It is, once more, just mortal technology. Oak put in a picture of you and this created what it thinks you would have looked like if you’d have been an influencer. Speaking of, Oak, save that image and send it to me,” she says trying to keep her face unmoving, but I see a twinkle of excitement in her eyes. It sparks an idea of my own, “Oak hand me the mobile device.” I quickly enquire what mortal profession is appropriate for one with Jude’s skills and the mobile device answers with the police, more specifically, the FBI. I type in my request and the Ae-Ai provides an image of Jude in a complete FBI attire. I stare at the image long enough that Jude leans over to see what has so fully absorbed my attention. She blushes at the image and rolls her eyes. My modest queen, able to make any attire seem magnificent. I whisper to Oak to preserve this painting as well and send it to Jude.

Heather strolls into the room and states that she’s found another Ae-Ai witch, this one’s skills lay in extending eyelashes. Jude seems uninterested but self-proclaimed fashion connoisseur that I am, I decide to accompany her to test this witch for myself. (The earlier one’s skills have left me quite intrigued).

“Babe, your eyelashes are long enough already,” Jude grumbles. “Only the better to bat them at you, my sweet villain,” I reply, winking at her. She blushes once more and kisses me goodbye.

We ride in the metal monstrosity that Heather chariots, Vivienne holding her hand in the front seat and I lounge in the back. We pass through a food tunnel, I have no other description for this ‘McDonalds’ Drive Through’ and I munch on some French fries (the French are talented chefs in every realm).

We arrive at the witch’s lair. It is decorated quite beautifully, I concede, in gleaming white marble streaked through with a rainbow of colours, although it must be to lure in victims. A woman, presumably the witch’s minion (This minion is not yellow unlike in that ‘Despicable Me’ picture), explains the process. I zone out as I look around the space, wondering what the witch uses to extend eyelashes and whether I can abduct her for my own kingdom.

Finally, it appears to be time for the witch to do her magic. Vivienne and I enter a different room, while Heather opts to wait outside with a cryptic statement, “I’m not letting any technology near my eyes, god forbid, I’ve watched enough final destination movies.”

The room is sparsely decorated with plain white walls, however, there is a giant technological monstrosity in the middle of the room. It has pincers like a crab, although made of metal (What are crab pincers made of, I wonder) surrounded by a glass cage and a bed below. The human woman directs me to lay down on the bed.

“So, this is Kate, our eyelash extension AI. You’ll just have to lay here while she does her work. We recommend taking a beauty nap because the process will take between 15-20 minutes. I’ll be controlling it remotely, so you don’t need to worry.” I nod, not that I need sleep to enhance my beauty but I wouldn’t mind the rest. She also adds, “The metal parts are magnetically attached so they can’t pierce your eyes, if you bump into them, they’ll simply fall off and get detached.” I sigh softly, not that I was worried at all, but Jude likes my eyes, it would be a shame for them to be wounded.

“As you wish. I am ready to begin.” I lay down and the witch, Kate begins her spellcasting with a low hum. I must have fallen into a light slumber because I am woken by the human woman announcing that the work is complete. She smiles and exclaims, “Wow, you look amazing. Are you a model? Or influencer?” It is easier to merely agree than explain that I am the High King of Faerie (I attempted it once and the woman I explained it to was extremely angry with me because she believed I was jesting and Jude was not pleased either).

She places a mirror before me and I am indeed impressed. My eyelashes look significantly longer, closing and opening my eyes nearly has the effect of waving a fan. They now skim the tops of my cheekbones, highlighting my face structure pleasantly.

“Would you mind if I record a reel?” The woman asks, pointing her mobile device at me. I reply that I do not mind, although unsure what a reel is.

After paying the human woman, we all set off back to Heather’s abode.

Jude’s POV

They return quite late from the eyelash extension parlour. I’m half asleep when Cardan joins me in bed and I’ve forgotten all about where he just came from. I just squeeze myself into his arms and fall right back asleep.

In the morning, I wake up to Cardan’s face in the sunlight. It nearly infuriates me how beautiful he looks, but he’s mine so I can’t complain. And his eyelashes leave me speechless. They look like those annoying pixies’ that used to be always fluttering around him when he wasn’t mine, who’d enhanced their beauty with magic. He opens his eyes and it’s a whole show. He blinks those long lashes innocently at me and it makes me blush so hard, I kiss him so he doesn’t notice. He seems surprised at the sudden affection, but is soon to reciprocate and thread his long fingers through my hair.

“Aunty Jude, Uncle Cardan!” Oak shouts running into the room. I frustratedly pull myself away from Cardan turn towards Oak. He has leaped onto the bed and is excitedly showing us something on his phone. “Look, look! You’re famous!” We watch a reel of an eyelash extension parlour showing off Cardan’s face, and the hundreds of thousands of likes and comments it has accrued. ‘Step on me Daddy’, ‘Cut me to ribbons with those cheekbones king’, ‘Why do men get the prettiest lashes ugh’. I agree with the last comment but I stop reading them for fear that they’ll make me angry at all these shameless men and women fawning over my king.

“Aha! I was right to assume I would make a successful influencer, wouldn’t you agree, my sweet god,” Cardan gloats with pride. “I suppose your vanity in your appearance is only going to grow from here,” I reply, fake disappointedly.

“Indeed, perhaps I should begin an account of my own,” he replies. He leans into my ear and whispers, “but no matter how many people gaze upon me, I will always be only yours to touch.”

Tagging @jurdanhell @nee-naw-nee-naw-beepbeep

Let me know if anyone wants to be added to the tagging list (or removed).

#jurdan #jude duarte #cardan greenbriar #jude cardan #jurdan headcanons #jurdan hc #Cardan in the mortal world!#tcp #the cruel prince #tfota #the folk of the air

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introvertgoat · 9 months ago

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hc that throughout the years, jude takes leaves of absences form being high queen to go spend a couple months w vivi heather n oak !!! madoc too ig while he’s still exiled lol. ( vehemently ignoring the stolen heir’s canon sorry not sorry.) family bonding time, far away from the hubbub n chaos of the folk, n also the realization that jude doesn’t mind the mortal world all that much. yes it’s not faerieland, but it’s smth alright n she finds it soothing at times. she’s less unhinged n paranoid compared to when she was younger n the ptsd from her past has decreased in its intensity thanks to heather-mandated therapy ( heather only had to hear a couple times abt the duarte sisters’ fucked up childhood for her to plead jude to go to therapy—vivi alrdy has— n jude relented after 5 yrs of honest-to-god begging. big slay heather our mental health queen 🫂) and so that’s why she can even leave faerieland in someone else’s hands. these visits aren’t too frequent but they r long in their duration. 3-4 months tops. sometimes cardan comes along bcs the bed feels empty w/o jude n— Okay he’s js lonely w/o his wife. sue him. some poor hapless councilor advisor is forced to be in charge in their place (they send letters weekly. ‘please your majesties, when will you be returning home ?’ #urgent LOL) one day jude (age:37) notices grey hairs appearing on her head n she sort of freaks out. not in an entirely vain way either. more like:. oh fuck aren’t i supposed to not age as long as im in faeirieland ?? 3 long discussions later w cardan n the royal folk-human specialist, the conclusion that is reached is that bcs of jude’s visits to the mortal word, as infrequent as they r, theyve seemed to affect the way her body ages. or more aptly put, doesn’t age lol. jude gets some grey hair n lines on her face while still technically NOT aging. n she feels less panicky abt it bcs hey she’s not aging. sort of. meanwhile, cardan finds himself deeply enamored w jude’s grey hair n the subtle creases on her face that multiply slowly. he tells jude js so n she’s like i am not susceptible to flattery cardan greenbriar. hes Serious abt it tho n tells her that he isn’t saying that bcs it’ll make her feel better or wtv but bcs her aging evidently is actually beautiful to him. cue jude sour pursed lips for a bit as she gets these days when it comes to cardan being unbearably earnest towards her but she feels less weird abt the hair n lines so :)

anyways this was a long-winded niche asf hc that appeals to exactly only 2 ppl on this site n im not even confident in THAT estimate lol

#notice there’s no mention of taryn here ? hc that they never rlly resolve their relantionship issues properly n taryn n jude plan their #trips months apart bcs SISTER ISSUES !!!! also taryn is lowkey bitter abt the fact jude forgave cardan for everything he did to her but not #her #hc that they eventually get their shit together n it’s a long sob-filled heartbreaking reunion bcs at the end of theh day the duarte twins #love each other to pieces no matter what n that’s probably the worst part of their fractured relationship LOL #me: i want to see jude happy n content n the long process to being better n— basically everything left in unacknowledged in canon #[dua lipa crying.gif]#she’s so precious to me #it won’t ever happen realistically bcs of magic n shit but my jude ages elegantly vision is so strong ive been POSSESED #jude duarte #madoc family #jurdan #tfota #also idk if i’ll ever read tsh/tpt it js isn’t appealing to me from what little i’ve heard abt it lol #suren seems miskiin but also we should’ve all saved ourselves the trouble n let oak grow up permanently in the mortal world …. 🧘‍♀️#vivi duarte #heather #i will always be annoying abt heather i need more of her need her own little story abt meeting vivi LIKEE #tell me how she brushed away vivi’s inherent folk weirdness TELL ME ABT IT..#healed jurdan n the duarte twins will HEAL ME #lol #btw when i say jude forgave cardan i mean that boy had to pull out all the stops LMAO they even had a not-break-up for a while

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bassiascoparia · 4 months ago

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Let Vivienne hate Madoc. Just let her.

Sooooooooooo I just saw some posts saying that Vivienne could love Madoc because she only believed that she would hate him when she vowed to hate him-

and even if that is true............

Let her hate him. Just let her.

First of all, can we have a Duarte sister who doesn't forgive Madoc for killing their parents?

I want to see him face consequences for murdering them, even if he had his explanation for doing so. I want to see him feel guilty about it and not be able to forget it. And Vivienne is perfect for this.

Jude loves him (albeit in an uncomfortable manner) and Taryn seems to have some love and loyalty to him too.

And honestly, I cannot emphasise how awful their parents' murder was for the Duarte girls. They saw it right in front of their eyes, and then Madoc kidnapped them and took them away from the only home they knew back then.

(And if Justin and Madoc can both be fathers to Jude, then the same goes for Vivienne. Madoc's her bio father, Justin's her adopted. He took care of her for 9 years-don't tell me she didn't love him.)

We as the readers are not really affected by it, because Jude barely talks about her parents and their murder, and doesn't express much grief after ten years because she's bottled it up and pushed it down.

But the Duarte sisters are. They knew their parents and they miss them, especially Vivienne who knew them longer and had better and clearer memories of them.

And honestly, Madoc was an awful person for that. He's an awful person for killing two people in front of children. Justin I get, because the guy tried to axe him, but he could have knocked Justin out-don't tell me he wasn't that strong or reflexive.

And Eva? He had no need to kill her at all. He could have grabbed her-AND THERE WERE THREE SMALL CHILDREN RIGHT FUCKING THERE!

It doesn't matter if he had an instant killing instinct. He's still a terrible person for killing Eva and Justin.

And do you know how much it must have affected Vivienne that Jude and Taryn treated their parents' murderer like their own father? Put yourself in her shoes. Imagine the betrayal, the hurt, the fury and pain.

We've been thinking and looking at TFOTA from Jude's perspective for far too long. It's time to dive into other characters' minds and see it from theirs.

Eva and Justin aside-let's go to Oak.

We know that Madoc was going to put Oak on the throne for his own gain, and we know that this would have traumatised Oak. Imagine being a king, having to make so many decisions-and Oak would still have some degree of responsibility, even with Madoc as the regent. Imagine having so many people looking at you for so many things that an adult should handle when you're so young.

Oak would've been traumatized, and you know it. And Madoc knew it too, and he still decided to go forth with the plan.

But where does Vivienne come into this, you ask? Why don't I just post this under a Madoc hate rant?

(I don't hate Madoc).

Because Vivienne knew what I just told you too. She saw Oak who was young, and he was almost 9 then (I think) and she was nine when her parents were murdered and she was stolen away.

And honestly, I'm pretty sure she hated Madoc in that moment. Pure hatred.

She probably took pleasure in forcing him to adjust to the mortal world, though. That must have been nice for her.

I don't think Vivienne loves Heather in the faerie way-she loves Heather in a more human way. (I love Vivienne and Heather so much, you have no idea, as much as some of you love Jurdan). And honestly, good for her. Good for both of them.

And honestly, I don't hate Madoc. It's just that when I think of him with relation to Vivienne, then I really start to hate him. That's all. Feel free to debate with me if you want.

#Madoc #Vivienne Duarte #Vivi Duarte

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aaal-iz-well · 7 months ago

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okay, so i had some ideas for jurdan fics, but nothing concrete, and i thought your response would help me solidify stuff, so here we are:

Cardan and Jude are in a secret relationship where Cardan sneaks into Jude’s house under Madoc’s nose and vice versa, and all the fun is in the sneaking!

They have a rivals with benefits relationship. and at the start Jude asks Cardan to swear that he wont hurt her, and cardan is offended that she would think that he’d be so low and says that if anyone is in peril of being harmed, it’s him, and isn’t that a shame because he can’t get a swear that can be depended upon from Jude.

So in this one, after cardan really outdoes himself in troubling her, he is frustrated that jude doesn’t PAY ANY MIND TO HIM AT ALL. and when he's wallowing in his pity, it will occur to him, that he's seen the way jude looks at him, and that has to be something, but he figures that the reason she isnt interested is because she's mortal, and so cardan has to do stuff that (apparently) appeals to them. So he’ll read bodice rippers to learn the steps to seduce mortals, and he’ll try to be like all alpha male and find occasions to pin her to the wall and all that stuff but jude just thinks something wrong with him, but god, does he look.... (writing this down, i realised it sounds kinda serious, maybe, idk, but in my head it all looks so funny)

Cardan is a magician in the mortal world (he just uses glamour), people come to see him because his sleight of hand is just impeccable and also because my man is GORGEOUS, and like just to stare at him, and Jude attends one of his shows, and maybe inadvertently wearing one of the spells against it, or something, and wasnt caught by security, and something after that.

anyways, what'd you guys think of them. feel free to add suggestions and specific scenes in different scenarios that pop into your mind!

#the cruel prince #jude x cardan #cardan greenbriar #jude duarte #jurdan #tcp #the wicked king #the queen of nothing #fic idea #tfota #the folk of the air

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maingh0st · 9 months ago

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the main reason I like Taryn/the Ghost (despite the fact we get microscopic crumbs in the text) is that it’s thematically compelling for them as characters.

the best romances aren't just about ~vibes~ and ~spice~ but about two unique, fully realized characters becoming part of one another's lives. each character carries their lifetime's worth of formative experiences, beliefs about the world, goals, strengths, habits, wounds, coping mechanisms, preferences, etc—so inevitably there's conflict and change and (ideally) growth. this is why we love Jude/Cardan so much!

like, for just one example: Jude always resented the Folk, even as she admired and envied them. she talks about wanting to be better, to be worse, to excel beyond them and rule over them, and ultimately to conquer her fear of them. part of why Jurdan is so great (aside from being The Power Couple) is because falling in love with Cardan forces Jude to accept that sometimes, the Folk can be good and safe and worthy of her trust. in my interpretation, this arc culminates when Cardan is turned into a snake and Jude has to rely on others (Fand, Grima Mog, the Court of Shadows, etc.) rather than just her romantic partner. she does conquer her fear of the Folk—partially through her cunning and tenacity, yes, but also partially through learning to trust her heart and find those with whom she is safe.

but that's not a lesson Taryn needs to learn. she wants to fit in with the fae; she craves their approval. in tcp, Locke's whole shitty test is based on Taryn's ability to prove that, even though she's human, she can live like the fae. and in twk, while Jude is isolated, exhausted, and (rightfully) paranoid about being betrayed, Taryn is constantly surrounded by the Folk. she seems to find belonging among them, yet she almost loses herself in the process. from a story perspective, Locke isn't that interesting of a romantic partner because he only confirms what she seems to already believe: that to belong in faerie, she will have to change and abandon certain parts of herself (represented most starkly by her betraying her sister). she will have to learn to love differently and live by different rules. and she's quite good at it, as we see—but it makes her miserable. so Locke's murder is narratively important (beyond just being Very Fun) because it represents her rejection of the life he insisted she live.

but the Ghost (for as little as we know about him) is half-human and spent part of his life in the human world. I think there is so much potential for the most delicious narrative tension to arise from their dynamic. they both, for their own reasons, straddle both the human and the faerie worlds, yet fully belong to neither. both of them make choices they regret (killing Liriope / betraying Jude) and both of them are harmed as a result (the Ghost's true name being used / Locke being straight-up emotionally abusive). there's a lot of common ground there, but also potential for great conflict considering the very different lives they live.

after the events of tqon, I get the sense that they're both kind of... recalibrating. of course, the Ghost is still part of the Court of Shadows, but the monarchs he serves are very different than Dain, and he's also been freed from the abuse of his true name. and Taryn is a widow, pregnant, the daughter of an exiled general, the sister of the new mortal queen, and seemingly a bit of a phenomenon in the social scene of Elfhame. who are they, and what is their place in this world that isn't built for them? how do they find belonging without losing themselves? what does living a good and fulfilling life even look like for each of them? how do they adapt to their environment without crossing into the territory of self-betrayal? truly just so many questions that are so fun to chew on

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booklover41802 · 1 month ago

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Do you accept Jurdan fanfic requests? If yes, Can you write a fic, where he has a nightmare (from this childhood and teenage years). And she wakes up from the noise, gets worried and then comforts him

Thanks for the ask, love! I had so much fun writing this, I hope you enjoy :)

Cardan

“You’re weak,” Balekin sneered at him as he nodded to an ensorcelled human servant to use the whip on him. Tactfully done so Cardan would know what it was to be beaten by a creature Balekin considered inferior. All of this was because Balekin had caught him reading Alice in Wonderland and confiscated the book. To him, anything from the mortal world was considered useless. Which was also how Balekin viewed Cardan.

Strangely, the servant appeared to be faceless. He craned his neck, to see if he could catch a glimpse of their features, but as he did, the whip came down upon his back with a sharp thwack. Cardan gritted his teeth. He could bear it, as he’d always done before. The whip came down upon his back again and again at varying speeds, reopening old scars. He knew what happened if he were to show he was in pain and tried to control his breathing to manage it.

“This is your punishment for reading mortal trash. Thus you are to be beaten by a creature who ought to be your inferior. But you love those disgusting vermin, don’t you, little brother?” Balekin leaned down and attempted to make eye contact with Cardan, but Cardan wouldn’t look at him. He knew this was his humiliation for doing something Balekin considered unacceptable and he wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of meeting his eyes. If he pretended to be humbled, perhaps Balekin would leave him alone.

Such were the wishes of fools. Balekin’s thorned hand shot out and gripped Cardan’s chin, forcing him to look Balekin in the eye. Those owl-like silver eyes of his gleamed with malice as the thwack of the whip echoed in the room. As droplets of Cardan’s blood dripped onto the floor from Balekin’s thorns, his brother cocked a brow at him, relishing in the pain. “I asked you a question. You love humans, don’t you, Cardan?” Balekin’s face was alight with a sort of mania as he wished for Cardan to admit to loving humans.

But he wouldn’t. Although he was only fifteen, he’d been living at Hollow Hall for six years and had learned the appropriate responses to his brother’s taunts. He longed for the ability to lie, to placate whatever notion Balekin had in his head. He detested humans for having what he desired. “I hate humans and they disgust me.” A faerie lie. He was disgusted in himself for liking them, hating himself all the more.

For a little while longer, he would play the fool. Just a little bit longer. His heart hammered in his chest as Balekin tilted his head, an unreadable expression crossing his face. Was it a good answer? Was it what he wanted to hear? His back was a mess of agony throbbing with each new wound on his skin. He could have sworn his heartbeat was sown into the scars, thumping erratically in the open wounds.

To Cardan’s relief, Balekin’s wicked mouth curved in a smile. “You just might make a fine prince someday. I do this because I love you. Father entrusted you in my care so you might represent Faerie in a respectable manner. You’ve done well today, Cardan.” Balekin nodded once more at the faceless servant who dropped the bloodied whip in a heap. “You may go and clean your wounds. But let this be a lesson: you are a Prince of Faerie. You are not a mortal. You will always be better than them. Do you understand me?”

Cardan dipped his head in acknowledgement, ever the obedient brother. “Of course, brother. I understand you perfectly.”

“Good. I trust you will clean this mess up.” Balekin turned on his heel, snapping his fingers for the servant to follow him.

Cardan remained on his knees until Balekin’s footsteps faded away before rising shakily onto his feet. The pain was a nauseating ache that penetrated his flesh in waves. Bending over, he fought back a groan as he picked up his shirt that he’d discarded and hobbled off to his room. He would clean the blood later once he’d taken care of his scars and the pain had dulled to manageable ache.

All the servants he passed also appeared faceless like the one before as they carried out their duties in the manor. He turned to look at them, to study them, but when he looked at them closely, they almost seemed to be blurry. He stumbled, confused. He hated it all. Hated Hollow Hall. Hated the servants. But most of all, he hated himself for being weak. If he was stronger, then Balekin wouldn’t find the need to torment him. But he was just as his brother said: weak.

When he made it to his room, he shut the door and squeezed his eyes shut. All he could see and hear was Balekin. Balekin laughing as Cardan passed out from pain. Balekin sneering at the book he’d caught Cardan reading. Balekin delighting in Cardan’s agony

Balekin, Balekin, Balekin, Balekin, Balekin.

His brother’s silver eyes seemed to be watching him from every corner of Cardan’s room. Cardan fell to the floor, rocking back forth with his hands fisted in his hair. Was this to be his life? Always in pain, always scared. He couldn’t bear it. He would rather-

No. He wouldn’t, couldn’t.

Then, Balekin thrust open the door, teeth gleaming as he grinned at Cardan. In his hand was the bloodied whip. Those venomous owl eyes shone with a sort of mania. “Ready for another round, brother?”

Jude

Jude knew Cardan was having another nightmare. He thrashed in his sleep, grinding his teeth as he fought against his dreams. His breath came ragged and uneven, sweat dripping from his brow. She stretched out her hands and tried to shake him awake. An awful groan escaped from his lips, still trapped in his head.

“Cardan!” Jude pleaded with him, trying to get him to wake.

His head flipped side to side and his mouth was downturned in a frown. His hands were tightly fisted in the sheets, as if trying to hold onto something solid. It was times like this that Jude felt utterly useless. There was little she could do. There was nothing to fight, nothing to outwit, nor anything that would allow her to scheme. Nothing. All she could hope for was that Cardan would soon wake and leave whatever Hellscape his mind had invented.

Thankfully, her wishes were answered as Cardan’s eyes fluttered open, erratically looking back and forth. His breaths now came in heaving gasps as he hadn’t quite yet realized he was no longer dreaming. He still had a white-knuckled grip on the sheets. She slowly reached out a hand and placed it on his wrist, to let him know she was there.

He turned his head to the side, and in his eyes was a profound, deep pain. His whole body had begun to shake. He opened his mouth and the only word he said was, “Balekin.”

Of course, she should have guessed the root of his nightmares would stem from Hollow Hall, and the abuse he’d suffered there for years. She nodded sympathetically at him. “He’s dead now, love. Your dream wasn’t real. I’m real, I’m here for you.”

“Could you hold my hand?” Cardan looked so vulnerable in that moment it made her heart ache. Although he was the High King of Elfhame, he was still an individual with years of trauma he’d had yet to overcome.

“Of course. Anything you need, I’ll give it to you.” She gently laced their fingertips together and gave his hand a squeeze. “Do you want to snuggle?”

He weakly smiled at her, nodding. She laid down and he slid over to her side of the bed, resting his head on her shoulders. For a few moments, they sat in silence as his breathing finally began to slow with Jude absentmindedly running her fingers through his hair. Then, he broke the silence and whispered, “I can still feel what he did to me. It’s like a phantom pain on my back. I know it’s not real, but it hurts. All of those endless hours of isolation spent in the dark, trying to clean my wounds as best I could… I don’t want to feel like this anymore.”

Jude felt a lump in her throat as his words. She could imagine Cardan as a child alone in his room, hoping for someone, anyone, to care, only to find himself forsaken by those he called family. “You’re not alone anymore, Cardan. I will always be here. I will always protect you. No one will hurt you like that again so long as I live,” she assured him, trying to instill her words with confidence.

Cardan held her a little tighter, his body still shaking slightly. “He always said he did the things he did because he loved me. I’ve always associated love with pain, but that’s… not right, is it?”

“No. Love isn’t supposed to cause you pain. Sometimes you love the wrong things or people, but it shouldn’t bring you misery. I love Madoc even though he killed my parents. What sort of love is that?” Jude laughed, attempting to lighten the mood. “Love can make a person do horrible, terrible things to others, but it never justifies the end result. What Balekin did to you… was never love. Maybe to him it was, but it shouldn’t be thought of that way,” she answered, knowing she was guilty of also associating love with pain. Cardan had shown her what love was really meant to be.

He let out a sigh. “I love you, Jude. More than you’ll ever know,” he murmured, his breathing finally evening out as he drifted back to sleep in her arms, knowing he was safe with her.

“I love you too, Cardan,” she whispered back to him, knowing he was asleep, but wanting to say it all the same. Those words had once seemed so terrifying, yet with Cardan, it didn’t seem so scary. Together, they had learned what it was to love another and together, they would overcome any obstacle that stood in their way.

#jurdan #the cruel prince #the wicked king #the queen of nothing #cardan greenbriar #jude durate #holly black #booklover41802 writes #my writing

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