Authors/creatives! Be careful when you get a comment from a "guest" on AO3 or wherever that seems too good to be true. I had a guest comment that they really liked the chapter of LBTS that they had read and wanted to know if they could discuss writing ideas with me. I said sure, and when they emailed me, it turned out they were either a bot or a scammer that wanted to do art based on my characters and stories (remember, I'd only heard from this "person" once) for a commission (their words, not mine).
I don't have any problems paying someone for art of my characters. As a matter of fact, I have commissioned someone once already to do art based on Sword (and it's brilliant and was worth every penny, and I want to continue supporting small business artists for this kind of stuff). But I will seek YOU out. No one spams someone out of the blue and then offers commissioned "art" based on the characters and stories they've only commented on once as a real thing. LAME. I should have known something was up when someone commented that enthusiastically on the newest chapter of something that's been on AO3 for more than 10 years that they'd never read before - that was suspicious to me, but I took it as a nice comment and was really touched. Dumb ass me.
I will definitely continue to seek out and hire artists that I pick. Lesson learned on overly complimentarily comments, however. 🤨 🙁
I go through periods where rereading some of my old King Arthur fanfic reminds me how much fun I had doing it - and how much I miss the time when the fandom was in its heyday (even if it was a tiny fandom). Bless everyone that still kudos, comments and reads my work. I love every version of Arthur and Lancelot so much.
Real (3824 words) by sasha_b
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: King Arthur (2004), Original Work
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Arthur Castus/Lancelot Benoit
Characters: Arthur Castus, Lancelot Benoit, Roland Benoit, Guinevere Benoit
Additional Tags: Angst, Alternate Universe - College/University, Modern Era, Alternate Reality, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Slash, Male Slash, True Love
Series: Part 105 of Live By The Sword
Summary:
Arthur and Lance attempt to go to a 'normal' dinner with Lance and Gwen's father, who has nothing good up his sleeve. University years.
Continuing my Arthurian concepts, Lancelot of the Lake (I wanted it to be Lancelot du Lac, but alas, it looked really bad on his sheet, with the fancy font and all). As I did with Arthur, we have Lancelot and his sword - again, I just have a thing for designing fancy swords :')
His whole concept is blue, because you know... Of the Lake. Child of Avalon. It had to be blue hahaha every detail on his sword/armour is to look like plants, fountains and water.
I also wanted his sword to have that ~clashing~ of fluid like fountain shapes and rectangular, harsh line shapes because even if he is water, he is also constant in his loyalty, beliefs and is someone you can rely on.
(oh I told you guys I have some hot takes regarding Lancelot, Guinevere and all that... 'TIS LOTTIE TIME NOW)
Also did the whole ~testing Photoshop layers thing~ again and, lo and behold, we have some vitral looking version of Lancelot. It can also be him during one of the rituals in Avalon, who knows ;)
More ramblings on my version of Lancelot, what I thought during his design, who he is to me as a character and why he has that insufferable smug smile, under the cut below hahahaha
(fangirling? yes, fangirling over arthurian legend, yee been warned)
First things first: YES, Ioan Gruffud.
I fell in love with Lancelot because of him in the 2005 King Arthur movie and that is FOREVER the vision I have of Lancelot, this man has SINGLE-HANDEDLY made me believe he is a loyal friend and a little shit at the same time and there is NO room for another Lancelot in my mind.
I fucking love him so much
The 2005 movie is one of my favourite versions (I was 13 when I first watched it, he was my teenage crush, I'll love it to death) - but it does leave a lot of the characters out to create a whole other story on its own. I love it, but there's so much more on Arthurian Legend we can work on!
My Lancelot, then: yes, prince of Benoic. Taken by Avalon, raised by the Lady of the Lake, ruthless in combat. Best Knight of the Round Table, could even be better than Arthur (some say), and fiercely loyal to his companions and commander.
One hell of a womanizer, though. This man can't see a good looking woman - or even man, for that matter - without starting to flirt and say some things that would make even the gods flush. Everyone laughs while Galahad wants to die every single time Lancelot's flirty mode is ON.
Pretty useful when they have more stealthy missions that require lying, deception and cheating - be it men or women, Lancelot's charm will NEVER fail.
(other more "brutish" Knights, so to speak, say it's his Avalon ✨ pixie charm ✨ - and really, the man doesn't disagree)
Even if he is very loyal to his friends, brothers in arms, and his beloved Arthur, he can't be like that in romances, though. Lancelot's love is a quick flame that burns down an entire forest in the blink of an eye and it's put out quickly with a heavy rain the day after, while Arthur's love is a lingering fire on a winter night, keeping his lovers warm and away from harm as long as it has wood or coal to burn.
That's why I chose to give Lancelot a more reliable look with all the rectangular shapes, constant stripes and more of a "bulky" look compared to Arthur (Arthur has more of a slim-strong constitution). But he also has some sharp points, because of how dangerous he is, and the ever flowing shapes of the water of Avalon - like his very flowy dark blue cape.
He's always covered in blood too. He is the best Knight, he has no problems when it comes to killing, and he doesn't have Arthur's moral compass. If he has to be ruthless, he will be.
(told ya this man lives rent free in my head)
And that's very important to his character, in my opinion. Lancelot is a pagan, he doesn't mind bloodshed, and he certainly has no issues with giving in to lust and earthly pleasures. There is no Heaven to judge him, and no Hell to burn him. He is fatally human. Not trying to be better and to go on a moral high horse when his hands are covered in blood and his only talent is death - just surviving his times as he can.
HENCE - and brace yourselves for hot take time! - why he loves Guinevere, but he's in NO WAY a better man than Arthur. He would stop his flirting and womanizing shenanigans for her, but WHY would she give up someone so absurdly upstanding and unreal like Arthur for him? And he doesn't want her to. She deserves better than him. He loves being around her, his heart aches, but how many hearts hasn't he broken? It's kind of a poetic justice sort of thing in his view.
And he wouldn't sleep with her, not when she loves Arthur and Arthur loves her so fucking much. He might be a little shit, yes, sassy, bitter, hedonistic and even annoying at times - but he is loyal. He doesn't love easy, and when he does, he loves hard. And he loves Arthur too much to do the one thing that would destroy the man he would give his life for.
He's a bastard, but he does have standards. A bastard with feelings :)
Jokes aside, this is, again, MY take on Lancelot. MY Lancelot, is all fun and games, will argue religion with every single catholic/christian he meets on his way, will get covered in blood during battle, will kill with no remorse, will drink with no remorse, will indulge in sex and break hearts with no remorse.
But he will give his life for his friends - he will sacrifice everything for those he loves, and his loyalty can never be bought - for in the end of the day, if he's lying on the grass choking in his own blood, he knows those are the ones who would come to his aid. He knows Arthur would rather die for him than watch him die - even if Lancelot thinks this would be the utmost stupid-est and unfairest thing to ever do.
The world deserves and needs an Arthur in it - not a Lancelot.
In my Arthurian Legend, this is his character, this is who he is. A lot more darkness and existential dread, pleasures and adrenaline rushes in battle to cover up how flawed he thinks he is - even if bards sing of his heroic feats, his reputation is that of a hero and women everywhere swoon upon hearing his name, painting him as a knight in shining armour.
He's not - he's a womanizer in a blood stained armour, pledging his killing skills to someone who has a better, idealistic view of the world and higher moral standards than him.
If you read all of this, thank you for coming to my TED Talk, and do know I suffered immensily not making him a dual-wielding killing powerhouse.
All these long years we've been together, the trials we've faced, the blood we've shed. What was it all for, if not for the reward of freedom? And now when we are so close, when it is finally within our grasp — LOOK AT ME!
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