Q. 🍁 + i want you talk about kara and mordred! from @arturiusrex
A. * for the sake of this making some amount of sense, i am going to note that in kara’s lore, mordred refers to mordred mac loth, one of the six legitimate sons of king lot and queen morgawse of lothian. obviously this can be altered in practice, but it is generally my starting point.
kara and mordred have known each other practically since her birth. the friendship between their fathers is a long standing one, with a boyhood beginning, and separate kingdoms certainly did not prevent lot and caw from bringing up their families in intimate association. mordred is a few years older than kara, and between them they had seven siblings, all boys. as one of the youngest and only girl, kara was the adored one, and mordred did his fair share of doting.
as young children, kara more than a little idolised mordred, and he always seemed happy to indulge and delight the little girl ever trailing after him. but as they grew older, their friendship became a deep, genuine and affectionate bond. as kara’s time at dùn èideann increased, particularly after the destruction of her home and then the death of her parents, mordred became kara’s closest confidant and dearest friend. and when word is brought that her last brother has been killed by arthur, it is mordred who holds her as she cries.
falling in love was as natural as breathing. but pursuing a relationship with each other was not so simple. the loss of her family made kara guarded, not to mention angry. and a vicious sharpness comes with the responsibility to avenge them. mordred has a responsibility to his father and his kingdom, his brothers, and the obligation to tread a little more carefully when it comes to arthur pendragon.
kara knows that there are many reasons, and valid political ones at that, for mordred to follow his brothers to arthur’s court. not as only a representative and perhaps informant for lot, but also to ascertain whether arthur’s concept of empire might actually be of some use in the wake of the saxon threat to lothian (hint: it’s not). kara knows this. but it doesn’t change the fact that she hates it. they fight, with a knack for knowing just how to hurt each other too, and it gets fraught and difficult. but no matter what is said in the heat of the moment, or how right they think themselves, or how much distance there is between them, there is always forgiveness and understanding and solace at the end of it. there is a sense that they will always find their way back to each other against all odds.
and then they do. arthur’s persecution of magic and paganism is untenable, and his court is in chaos, and his rule is collapsing. lot dies, and mordred’s brothers, and he finds himself king of lothian and leader of the resistance against camelot. his disdain for arthur reaches breaking point. he returns to his kingdom, and to kara. finally they’re on the same page, fighting on the same side. camlann looming.
i have to admit that i’m not quite sure how the story ends. ultimately in tragedy i guess. but whatever happiness they would have found together before camlann i think would have been worth it.
