Thou art Morgan Le Fay, sister to King Arthur, apprentice and student to Merlin the Enchanter... for now.
A great destiny steeped in magic and mystery has been foretold to you, and the unnatural forces of this ancient world are guiding you towards it, whether or not you are willing. Having escaped heartache and woe, you are currently at liberty to enjoy a merry life at the court of Camelot, surrounded by kin and comrades. Raise Ywain, your little son, learn from your ever-disgruntled warlock mentor, go on fantastical quests and romance the knights of the Round Table, or someone else entirely!
Customize your Lady Morgan's name and appearance, study rituals, raise your skill in different domains of sorcery (warcasting, trickery, divination and more), shape your relationship with your child and much more in this text-based fantasy interactive fiction based around Arthurian legend.
View Morgan's family tree.
Love interests (see their links for appearances):
Merlin (m). He's old, prickly, sometimes mean... but less so to you than others, which is gratifying. His study is your sanctuary, his wit your sparring partner. You suspect your tutor is hiding a great many things from you, so pursuing him could be a bad idea. But perhaps you cannot resist an attempt to wiggle your way into his affections.
Sir Kay (m). King Arthur's foster-brother and seneschal of his lands. A behemoth of a man; tall, wide, thickly muscled. He's a brute, but he's carried a torch for you ever since you met him. Whether or not you entertain his affections is of course up to you, but the decision might be easier if only he stopped being so cruel to some of the aspiring knights who should be his protégés.
Sir Gawain (m). The bastard brother to King Lot, who's your sister Morgause's husband... small world. He is Sir Kay's best friend, though the two could not be more different. Fair Gawain is charitable, popular with the men at arms and so charming that he's widely known as the Maidens' Knight. Not that he is without his shortcomings; you would know, given he has somehow become a dear protector and confidant. Perhaps you still want him.
Sir Galahad (m/f*). An upstart knight from a backwards province, he should be fated to obscurity, but possesses strange talents and seems to carry a touch of the divine. Sir Lancelot brought him to court, so impressed was he with the young lad. Maybe you knew him long before he was presented to the Round Table, though. Maybe you've seen him in your dreams. If only Galahad, put off by your witchcraft, didn't hate you to the point of obsession...
Guenevere (f), the golden Queen of Camelot. Your brother's wife. She's the most beautiful woman in Albion, and the most talkative, and perhaps, paradoxically, the loneliest. She desperately wishes for your approval, but with the way she acts sometimes, it's hard not to wonder what else she might be wishing for.
Ninianne (f). The Lady of the Lake, ancient and most powerful fairy in all of Albion. She is the mother of Sir Lancelot, has tested your brother's might and appears to share a complicated history with Merlin. She's a mystery and seems to know much more about you than you can be entirely comfortable with.
Friends and family:
Ywain (m). The son you had by the husband you hated. Ultimately, your relationship with the child is up to you, but as he matures, one thing becomes certain: Ywain is nothing like his father. He's his own beast, strange and emotional, diligent and good.
King Arthur (m). Your half-brother who is five years younger than you. He found you, rescued you and now loves you as though you'd known each other your whole lives. He dotes on your son, aiming to provide you both with the best possible life and asking for naught but fealty in return. He's a sanguine, adventurous and chivalrous young man who was pushed in the role of regent extremely early in life, but is bearing up under the expectations.
Blanchefleur de Beaurepaire (f). Your best friend and penpal with whom you entertain a teasing mentorship. When first you meet, she's but a young girl, but already whip-smart, sharp-tongued and too persuasive by half. Over the course of your acquaintance, she has grown into the epitomy of grace and confidence. She still looks up to you.
Sir Perceval (m). The youngest man to ever be knighted at the court of Camelot and easily the weirdest. He's his own brand of innocent; blunt, cheerful and with the attention span of the average housefly. He is Ywain's favorite playmate.
Queen Morgause of Orkney (f). Your eldest sister. You haven't seen her since she married King Lot. You know that she's had two sons by him, but that's about it. Something about her is different, not at all as you remember... but then again, it's been such a long time.
Queen Elaine of Garlot (f). Your middle sister. Much like Morgause, you lost sight of her after her own marriage to King Nentres. She's passionate, wistful and a hopeless romantic. She seems hopeful that your sisterly relationship can be rekindled.
Setting: this is not a precise retelling of any particular Arthurian cycle and lots of liberties were taken with the characters. Albion is a highly fictionalized version of/inspired by 12th-13th century England and Brittany.
*literally. This character's gender identity is complex and ambiguous and will be explored in the story. Please be kind and don't send asks pressing me to put specific labels on Galahad. Outside of the game itself, he/him will be used for this character.
dividers by @/pixopix; artwork is a commission by the wonderful @/theoasiswinds and the blog's header image is an illustration by Mary MacGregor from her 1907 book "Stories of King Arthur's Knights".
curtsying and humbly presenting this to @interact-if
Follow-up to the skinny dipping ask: can any of the RO’s swim? (Other than Nini.)
Now how funny would it be if Nini couldn't swim? (I'm joking, she can.)
Alright, so...
Gawain is a poor swimmer and had to be rescued a few times, but all in all, his talents are servicable. Same goes for Kay, although he doesn't sink so easily. Guen has never tried it. Galahad is a good swimmer but Galahad's good at everything. And Merlin will just turn into a fish
Please help me decide sth. I know he's only a side character in this but I'm still lowkey obsessed with him and for some reason, I genuinely can't decide this. I guess only the people who mayyybe have read some of his texts will care, but even so, I need input pls 🙏
So far, I've written him otherwise as relatively short and skinny/wiry and pretty unkempt. And he'll have freckles either way.
what's Perceval's hair color?
yellow (kind of wheat-blond, Kay meanly compares it to urine)
it was an absolute pleasure to read your work, your nuance, your sense of humour, you attention to details are a joy to experience!!
As for my inquiry… I understand that Morgan’s gender is central to the story you wanted to tell and the themes you wish to explore, however if you were to imagine an alternate universe where Morgan were male/a man, how do you think that would affect the dynamics with the love interests?
thank you again for Le Fay, and thank you for sharing your writing with us!! :D
- Kafka (in love with the whole cast/family already)
Hi! This is a cool ask, thank you ☺️
I'm just going to answer this assuming it's for a cis male scenario. I think if Morgan were a man, everything would just be completely different. She could have been a sort of magical knight figure... like the Green Knight or something! It's kinda neat to think about. Anyway, Arthur would not be gentle with her. Still friendly and warm, but nowhere near as protective. As would the rest of the cast, very likely! Blanchie wouldn't want to be friends if Morgan were "just some guy" and of course, Ywain wouldn't really exist. At least not birthed by Morgan. Nor do I think would Morgan have been forced into a relationship with (a genderbent??) Urien...? Hm...
As for the romances!
It wouldn't change anything with Merlin, I think. As he said, people of all genders annoy him equally haha. Ninianne either. Those two are too inhuman to care. They would fall in love with Morgan no matter her gender because love is more spiritual for them. I think all their romance paths would look the same, too. Then again... I kinda think of Nini as somewhat to very gay so maybe she wouldn't be interested, or at least AS interested in a male Morgan. I'm not sure.
Gawain would sooo be here for a male Morgan. He's bi anyhow and has been intimate with nearly as many men as he has women, so it's not like it would invite in him a phase of panic and acceptance.
Galahad would feel even more conflicted about being in love with a male Morgan, I think. But on the other hand, he might not... ah, his situation is so complicated anyhow that I don't think Morgan being male would have an impact. It would be different, of course, in some ways, but I can't wrap my head around it.
Kay's romance might actually turn non-existent. It's not like he has never felt attracted to a man before (he's experimented once) but he feels emasculated as soon as someone breathes wrong into his direction. Therefore, I don't think he'd ever enter a relationship with a man.
Guenevere's route could be unchanged in technical terms, all of the key scenes could still happen, but I love wlw and the particular flavor it adds to that relationship. They're my sapphic queens and I love them.
How have I not seen this?? It's so beautiful holy crap. I need to check my own tag more often. I'm so so flattered you made this and your Morgan looks incredible!
Firstly, that Galahad anon was an outlier because it’s clear that most of the people tuning in, including me understand and appreciate what you’re trying do with all the characters including Galahad <3
Because the concept of this story has still been turning around in my mind I tried to make some playlists for the ROs keeping in mind what you’ve said and hinted about them thus far 💜 hope it’s at least somewhat accurate but I enjoyed doing it!
This is one of my favorite asks ever, I think. First off, thank you for your reassurances, BUT OH MY GOD I LOVE YOUR PLAYLISTS. Music in general is so important to me, and you have such amazing taste, the vibes are IMPECCABLE.
First off, not Heroes by David Bowie being in Gawain's playlist, it's so perfect I cannot see how I never thought of it. It's so him. The songs all are, I listened to the ones I didn't know but that especially. AND VENUS AS A BOY. YES HE IS. YES HE BELIEVES IN BEAUTY.
Close To You works so well for Guenevere, it's such a beautiful song that it always stirs me when I hear it. That must genuinely be what she's hearing/what she feels when Morgan enters any room. "Why do stars fall down from the sky/everytime you walk by?" Way to make me weep.
Moving is so good, I love Kate Bush in general!! Did you know she's my face claim for Ninianne? And Moving works so excellently because Kate Bush wrote that for her dance teacher... something something mentorship... feeling special ways about Merlin... sigh 💜
Ninianne's playlist is probably my favorite... As The World Falls Down is so good for her and Morgan. I can't believe I haven't introduced her yet and you still got such a good grasp on their relationship. AND THEN I SAW YOU ADDED FALLING. It works so well it should be illegal. "The sky is still blue/The clouds come and go/Yet something is different/Are we falling in love?" Crying 💙
Galahad and The Man With the Child in His Eyes 😭 "Wondering what on earth I'm doing here/Maybe he doesn't love me"... and then there's I'm Not In Love... "I'd like to see you but then again, that doesn't mean you mean that much to me" "Be quiet, big boys don't cry"... AND THEN I SAW THAT YOU PUT PERSONAL JESUS THERE AND OMG.
And then Sir Kay has so many hot songs like omg. BUCK?! NINA SIMONE SINGING ABOUT HER MAN'S BIG HANDS THAT COULD CRUSH HER? I'M ON FIRE BY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN????!!! "Only you can cool my desire"????
You ate with this. Way to dissolve me in six screenshots. This must be one of my favorite things to have come out of tumblr for me in my whole time on this site. Thank you so much <3
I personally am very interested in complex stories about navigating gender identity and embodiment, esp where it intersects with faith and purity.
Maybe this is TMI but I grew up devout and felt fairly estranged from what "being a woman" was supposed to be. I probably would have come to identify as something like agender if I had had a framework that allowed me to consider that a possible identity (I'm at peace with where I am now). Instead, I went through a lot of hostility and estrangement with my own body and the social standards expected of its presentation, and felt instead very drawn to saints and holy mystics like Julian of Norwich, who lived deeply outside of expected norms of embodiment/social roles while still finding divine power in the body (stigmata, Jesus as a breastfeeding mother, etc.). I even went through a "maybe I'm called to be a nun" phase. For me, gender and embodiment were caught up in concepts of spiritual encounters through bodily rituals of deprivation and sacrifice.
It's something that resonates through a lot of medieval literature and is part why I find medievalism so fascinating. I'm excited about Galahad, whatever his journey is.
Not "too much information" at all! This was honestly really interesting to read and I'm glad you shared it, not just because it reassured me (which, I've gotten so much kindness even though I was feeling very rough, I'm really grateful to everybody) but also because this is genuinely so cool to me. Your connection between identity and medievalism, that is. I hope it's not strange to say I find it cool...? Then again, with what I'm writing, you're probably not surprised.
It honestly feels like you're pretty much my target audience, so I'm glad you're along for the ride <3 although I must say, I'm probably less knowledgeable than somebody who has been properly raised into the religion, so I hope you won't end up being disappointed.
I'm not going to get into more Galahad stuff at this point in time because I'm just exhausted by that discussion, but thank you so much for saying everything you did and for sending such a kind and personal ask.
Hey, as a gender ambiguous individual myself, I wanted to throw in my two cents regarding the Galahad situation: Do whatever the fuck you want.
The longer version: even IF Galahad was a trans woman/non-binary character which comes out later in the story, (which you have established he is not,) calling him by male pronouns and not being open about his identity from the jump would be well within your rights. Considering you want to explore his gender in a more nuanced way, without using the modern labels, then your approach of signifying that there will be some gender fuckery without being specific is an absolutely appropriate way of dealing with it.
Anyone can think what they like of course and I am not a spokesperson for all of transgenderkind, but just letting you know that there is an audience for the way you choose to write/present your story. Looking forward to meeting the little angel! :)
Thank you very much. After the ask I just got, reading this was just what I needed.
There is indeed gender fuckery! Lol
My intention with it is pretty much exactly as you said. I'm very glad you understand and that you're here for where I'm going with this! I don't even mind that others will look at it and go "nope", but to insult me anonymously is something else and I won't lie and say it didn't make me sad.
The little angel is waiting in the rafters, I can't wait for you to meet <3
Galahad isnt real. He doesn't have wishes about discussions because he is not real. You, the author, are real. The way you talk about a possible trans character, is real. Trans readers watching you be coy instead of just saying yes, a character is trans/intersex/has a gender related arc regarding transness/gender identity, or no, a character isn't trans, is real. I don't want to potentially misgender a trans character, DAV pulled that with Taash in all of their promo to hide their transness. It's treating gender like a titillating secret, like we'll get rewarded by eventually seeing what's in their pants and transvestigating Galahad. Do whatever, it's your if and your blog, but at the end of the day I hope you realize why this approach can be seen as very gross and disingenuous by a trans audience. Happy pride and good luck with this IF.
You say he's not real and his wishes don't matter, but you don't want to misgender him?
I'm telling you that using he/him is not misgendering Galahad.
Gender ambiguity is a core theme of Galahad's arch. There's a reason he gets called "Angel". He doesn't fit into a simple modern trans label and I'm unwilling to slap one on him and then broadcast it before it has the chance to genuinely be explored from the ground up in the story. Especially since it's a medieval setting and very different from the reality today. There is no transvestigating going on here. There will be no reward. Neither do I want to tell you what's in Galahad's pants right there in his intro post, just like I wouldn't for any other character.
Also, when you see me talk about a character like this and then jump to apply certain concepts and making me out to be offensive with such limited information, it's hard for me not to second-guess your intent as wilfully projecting and misconstruing stuff. Calling me and my writing gross and disingenuous, no matter how indirectly you frame it and try to pretty it up with well wishes, is also... a decision, when I've answered you in as honest and polite a spirit I can muster. Sorry if this is all very jumbled but I am in a state.
Happy pride to you too.
This is my comfort project and I love everything about it very much. I assure you I'm not a malicious figure trying to undermine or fetishize gender matters. I'm already quite tired of defending myself, so if I see any more asks in this vein, I probably won't answer them. Perhaps I'll just wait with talking about Galahad in general until he's appeared in the story. That might be the safer way to go.
Edit: I also rly don't wanna fight with anybody. Maybe I was too harsh here... but at any rate, this is how I feel and I hope people can accept it when interacting with this IF.
To the anon. It is not that serious. Yes, we want trans Rep as much as possible.
But first of all, an author doesn't need to tell you. You don't need to know a character's fav color, preferred sex position, reason why they dress a certain way.
Second, There's a non zero chance that there is a reason why it's not openly discussed, archs, plot points, spoilers. You don't know that, and that's on purpose. Part of the story, y'all. And you'll survive until the author decides IF it is even important.
Third, Being trans, as you know, is often just another part of us. We don't need a damn announcement when a trans character walks into a room. Like our hair color, or the clothes we wear, or our favorite food and color. Boiling the character down to only "r they trans or not" is high-key gross. Like, ik we want rep, but let the authors cook. You demand a raw chicken rn.
Thank you so much for saying all this and so eloquently, too. I really was a little too affected to express it like this, but I'm so glad you understood me and that you feel the same <3 especially given your lived experience
Small update: since this anon has sent me another, now nastier message, I've blocked them and will be turning off anon altogether for a moment. I hope the rest of you guys understand <3
I really appreciate all the support I've gotten in the comments. I'm very grateful to all of you
Edit: I've also expanded Galahad's description to hopefully get on top of such things in the future. Not that I think this particular anon would have considered this, as they seem to have decided I'm a transphobe (I'm really, really not) and have called me as much in the ask which led me to block anon messages a while.
Please, when interacting, remember I'm a human being.
Galahad isnt real. He doesn't have wishes about discussions because he is not real. You, the author, are real. The way you talk about a possible trans character, is real. Trans readers watching you be coy instead of just saying yes, a character is trans/intersex/has a gender related arc regarding transness/gender identity, or no, a character isn't trans, is real. I don't want to potentially misgender a trans character, DAV pulled that with Taash in all of their promo to hide their transness. It's treating gender like a titillating secret, like we'll get rewarded by eventually seeing what's in their pants and transvestigating Galahad. Do whatever, it's your if and your blog, but at the end of the day I hope you realize why this approach can be seen as very gross and disingenuous by a trans audience. Happy pride and good luck with this IF.
You say he's not real and his wishes don't matter, but you don't want to misgender him?
I'm telling you that using he/him is not misgendering Galahad.
Gender ambiguity is a core theme of Galahad's arch. There's a reason he gets called "Angel". He doesn't fit into a simple modern trans label and I'm unwilling to slap one on him and then broadcast it before it has the chance to genuinely be explored from the ground up in the story. Especially since it's a medieval setting and very different from the reality today. There is no transvestigating going on here. There will be no reward. Neither do I want to tell you what's in Galahad's pants right there in his intro post, just like I wouldn't for any other character.
Also, when you see me talk about a character like this and then jump to apply certain concepts and making me out to be offensive with such limited information, it's hard for me not to second-guess your intent as wilfully projecting and misconstruing stuff. Calling me and my writing gross and disingenuous, no matter how indirectly you frame it and try to pretty it up with well wishes, is also... a decision, when I've answered you in as honest and polite a spirit I can muster. Sorry if this is all very jumbled but I am in a state.
Happy pride to you too.
This is my comfort project and I love everything about it very much. I assure you I'm not a malicious figure trying to undermine or fetishize gender matters. I'm already quite tired of defending myself, so if I see any more asks in this vein, I probably won't answer them. Perhaps I'll just wait with talking about Galahad in general until he's appeared in the story. That might be the safer way to go.
Edit: I also rly don't wanna fight with anybody. Maybe I was too harsh here... but at any rate, this is how I feel and I hope people can accept it when interacting with this IF.
To the anon. It is not that serious. Yes, we want trans Rep as much as possible.
But first of all, an author doesn't need to tell you. You don't need to know a character's fav color, preferred sex position, reason why they dress a certain way.
Second, There's a non zero chance that there is a reason why it's not openly discussed, archs, plot points, spoilers. You don't know that, and that's on purpose. Part of the story, y'all. And you'll survive until the author decides IF it is even important.
Third, Being trans, as you know, is often just another part of us. We don't need a damn announcement when a trans character walks into a room. Like our hair color, or the clothes we wear, or our favorite food and color. Boiling the character down to only "r they trans or not" is high-key gross. Like, ik we want rep, but let the authors cook. You demand a raw chicken rn.
Thank you so much for saying all this and so eloquently, too. I really was a little too affected to express it like this, but I'm so glad you understood me and that you feel the same <3 especially given your lived experience
Galahad isnt real. He doesn't have wishes about discussions because he is not real. You, the author, are real. The way you talk about a possible trans character, is real. Trans readers watching you be coy instead of just saying yes, a character is trans/intersex/has a gender related arc regarding transness/gender identity, or no, a character isn't trans, is real. I don't want to potentially misgender a trans character, DAV pulled that with Taash in all of their promo to hide their transness. It's treating gender like a titillating secret, like we'll get rewarded by eventually seeing what's in their pants and transvestigating Galahad. Do whatever, it's your if and your blog, but at the end of the day I hope you realize why this approach can be seen as very gross and disingenuous by a trans audience. Happy pride and good luck with this IF.
You say he's not real and his wishes don't matter, but you don't want to misgender him?
I'm telling you that using he/him is not misgendering Galahad.
Gender ambiguity is a core theme of Galahad's arch. There's a reason he gets called "Angel". He doesn't fit into a simple modern trans label and I'm unwilling to slap one on him and then broadcast it before it has the chance to genuinely be explored from the ground up in the story. Especially since it's a medieval setting and very different from the reality today. There is no transvestigating going on here. There will be no reward. Neither do I want to tell you what's in Galahad's pants right there in his intro post, just like I wouldn't for any other character.
Also, when you see me talk about a character like this and then jump to apply certain concepts and making me out to be offensive with such limited information, it's hard for me not to second-guess your intent as wilfully projecting and misconstruing stuff. Calling me and my writing gross and disingenuous, no matter how indirectly you frame it and try to pretty it up with well wishes, is also... a decision, when I've answered you in as honest and polite a spirit I can muster. Sorry if this is all very jumbled but I am in a state.
Happy pride to you too.
This is my comfort project and I love everything about it very much. I assure you I'm not a malicious figure trying to undermine or fetishize gender matters. I'm already quite tired of defending myself, so if I see any more asks in this vein, I probably won't answer them. Perhaps I'll just wait with talking about Galahad in general until he's appeared in the story. That might be the safer way to go.
Edit: I also rly don't wanna fight with anybody. Maybe I was too harsh here... but at any rate, this is how I feel and I hope people can accept it when interacting with this IF.
as a trans reader, is galahad supposed to be trans or gender selectable? idk dancing around clarifying in his description and listing, but using strictly male pronouns when talking about him feels kinda........ bad, if i have to be honest.
I'm not going to clarify.
If it makes you feel iffy, I understand and you're free to steer clear (please do, if it affects you in any way, I mean this entirely in earnest and with good intent) but I can tell you right now that whatever you're thinking about, it's not what's truly going on with Galahad. And I'm talking about Galahad exactly the way he would want me to right now.
Blanche and Arthur competing for Morgan's affection
I don't think it needs to be a competition... Especially since Arthur is quite proud and already sure of his sister's affection. Meanwhile, he is the High King, aka the liege lord of Blanchefleur's father, so she would not cross him by rubbing Morgan's friendship under his nose. She's both too smart and too dignified for that
So we know how Arthur feels about the RO’s, but what about the approval that really matters - Ywain’s? How does he feel about Morgan’s potential partner?
the thing is, I'm rather sure I've answered this before.... Only I can't find it :(
Everytime I read the description morgan says about how her baby looks like an old man, I want to cry. It reminds me of this video I watched saying that your children look like old folks when they are born because you will die before you ever see them grow old so life gifts you with this sight. I want to sobbbb
-- "ywain is my darling child" anon
fr that's so sad
I mean, if you're lucky you don't see them grow old/die
