#against it but cleves was pretty chill

[averlym]

Hi question, are there any ships involving my girl Anna of Cleaves? I love her and I just... want her to be have a girlfriend ok

ANNA OF CLEVES DESERVES SO MUCH LOVE

The ship I’ve seen the most of is of cleves and howard, but there’s also some stuff with boleyn I think! maybe a bit with aragon? (I’m fairly neutral with ships so I’m probably not the best person to ask)oh and talking about ships! @existencialvoidofexistence​ has a pirate ship AU and you did want anna with a girlfriend so uhm here’s her with katherine but pirate-y! (they’re plotting on the Hullbein :D)

[excaliefur]

Cathy’s Relationships with the other Queens

DISCLAIMER:

I have written this around what Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss have created, it is not 100% realistic in what happened in history. It is not written around any of the actors, they are not their characters. 

This can be read with platonic love, familial love or romantic love. Read it however you want. !They are not based on the actors! I cannot emphasize that enough!

Its a character study from my point of view, I may write some other fics about somethings I have mentioned here, I already have a plan for the Elizabeth Incident.

TW: Swear words and like some words that aren’t nice I guess?

Catherine of Aragon:

It’s a mother daughter relationship. They weren’t close in the past life since her father died early on in her life and her mother needed to be able to provide for them. Also because Catherine simply didn’t have time and she had other duties to do. Cathy heard a lot of stories about Aragon from her mother, Maud, Aragon’s lady in waiting. When Maud passed away, it killed her. But now in the reincarnation era, she could hear stories about Maud from Aragon. Besides that, they had helped each other a lot from the beginning.

Aragon helped Cathy when Cathy was facing writers block, nightmares, trauma, survivors guilt and many other things, she was a non judgmental figure who was there for her all the time, out of everyone, Cathy was probably the most open to Aragon. Cathy was a common sense filter for Aragon, when she needed to rant about her problems, when she needed another persons opinion, whenever she just needed a shoulder to cry on, Cathy was there for her. On quiet days, they can often be found together, just reading or softly discussing odd things. Aragon is teaching Cathy Latin, and its going well considering the fact that Cathy already knows Spanish, is learning French and German, and she is obsessed with William Shakespeares works. Cathy is helping Anna and Aragon improve their English. 

Anne Boleyn: 

Anne and Cathy had a lot in common. At the beginning, they barely acknowledged each others presence, they bonded when Kat ran away, and when Jane decided to take part in the annual prank war. Soon they were inseparable, they did everything together, they read together, ate together, analysed works of art and slept together (not that way, get your head out of the gutter) Cathy comforted Anne from nightmares and vice versa. That was before the Elizabeth incident. They don’t talk about it anymore. It took time for them to regain each others trust, but slowly they did. And their relationship regained the same level of closeness, maybe even closer. During prank wars, they are almost never allowed to work together, because of Anne’s intelligence partnered with Cathy’s common sense. They are a force to be reckoned with. Normally, Anne comes up with outlandish plans that go against all of science, and Cathy splits up the parts that wont work and fix them so they will. Anne then takes psychology in to hand and they both manipulate their targets right where they want them. Both of them are master manipulators, although Anne hates using it for evil. 

Cathy’s lies saved her life once and now she only uses it for good and she guides Anne as well. Contrary to popular belief. Anne Boleyn is very intelligent and very well rounded in many aspects. She does crosswords daily and she works with Cathy on puzzles and riddles that are very hard to crack. When they went for a team bonding escape room, Cathy and Anne worked out every puzzle. Anne loves to learn and especially with Cathy since Cathy never judges and already knows Annes capability, they are often found watching how do they do it or how is it made together. Sciences are their favourite subjects to learn together although both of them are highly skilled in the arts. Anne and Cathy have a plan to make a comic book series someday, although both of them are master procrastinators. Anne is teaching Cathy french. 

Jane Seymour:

Jane and Cathy had a lot of history, even without ever having met in their past lives. They both died the same ways and Cathy married Thomas Seymour, Jane’s brother. So they were sister in laws and married to the same guy. A bit awkward to talk about. They didn’t ignore each other but they weren’t fighting to spend time with each other. They got so bad that when they began to work on the musical, Cathy, the resident writer. Sat down with everyone individually to get their stories and they would work together to figure out which parts to keep in the musical and which to cut out, for a variety of reasons. But they avoided the conversation for months until the final deadline was approaching and they had nothing written down for Jane’s part. 

Catherine (Aragon) took things into her own hands and forced both of them to sit together and speak, she was there to make sure they stayed but once both of them broke down, she left them to talk. They both broke and started crying, Cathy and Jane had a talk and settled their differences. Now they have a sibling relationship, Cathy protects Jane and vice versa. Jane is often found dragging Cathy from her laptop and forcing her to sleep and cutting her off from coffee when she was close to a caffeine overdose. Cathy had overdosed several times, and every time, Jane had been by her side when she was given activated charcoal and was puking her guts out. Cathy was by Janes side when Jane regained bad memories and had panic attacks from mild fevers and sickness. Jane was terrible when anyone in the house was sick, so if she got sick. It was an all hands on deck situation to calm her and help her rest.

Anna of Cleves:

Anna and Cathy were surprisingly close, they met several times in their past lives, but it was much more formal then. Now they are frequently called the chill squad, they watch from the back seat as shit goes down. Aragon and Jane are the mum squad, Kat and Anne are the beheaded cousins and Anna and Cathy are the chill squad. Anna made witty comments as they watched Anne do something stupid and Kat laughed, and Cathy responded with comebacks as they watch Jane and Aragon yell at them. Anna and Cathy tend to be the laid back ones, and although they seem calm, if you mess with any of the queens, Anna and Cathy are the ones that respond the hardest. Anna has a short temper and is likely to want to yell until her voice is hoarse, which is horrifying and sure to scar anyone, however, Cathy usually comes up with a clever plan that costs the person more than their mental health. Likely their jobs or their marriage. Nothing too extreme. 

They also had their sensitive times. Anna had crippling self esteem issues. What Henry said and did in the past life, may not have seemed to hurt her, but it did; it hurt her bad and she felt awful. While she hid it. Cathy could see through her facade. And broke her down, just so they could rebuild, stronger than ever before. Cathy also had problems with survivors guilt, and who better to help her than another person in the same situation also with survivors guilt. They spent hours talking about stuff they could have done to help others. They ranted to each other, they yelled at each other, they cried to each other. They fought each other as coping mechanisms. Until Aragon found out. Aragon put a stop at those unhealthy coping mechanisms and one day all three of them made a trip to a gym. Aragon told them that they were going to learn boxing. It confused them but they agreed. They took boxing classes for 1 hour and 30 minutes each week and in a year, they were pretty well skilled. Now Cathy and Anna, when they feel overwhelmed by anything. Instead of taking it out on each other, they box fair and square. Cathy and Anna are best friends and can be seen in the gym practicing hard, or on the roof, stargazing and chilling. Cathy loves to learn new things and she spent hours with Anna just learning about Germany and German culture, it helped Anna relieve burden as well. Anna is teaching Cathy German now and Cathy is helping Anna improve her English. 

Katherine Howard:

Cathy and Kat were probably the closest from when they first met. In their first lives, Cathy met both Katherine Howard and Anna of Cleves when she was in Mary I’s household. Cathy is constantly by Kat’s side whenever she needs it. She is the only one who is allowed to call Kat kid. It used to be term of endearment but when Cathy accidentally called her kid, Kat felt safe. They have a sibling relationship where Cathy is the older over protective sister and Kat is the innocent, naive but scarred younger sister. Cathy is the kindest towards Kat than anyone else. She sort of stands behind Kat as Kat does some silly stuff looking intimidating and scaring anyone who would dare to mess with Kat. Kat is oblivious to all of it. Kat generally goes to Anne or Jane for anything to do with nightmares but Cathy is always ready to help her out. Often, neither of them get sleep so they have a Disney movie marathon until one of them fall asleep. 

Kat persuades Cathy away from work using cuddles and her puppy dog eyes. Often times at night when Kat can’t sleep she just enters Cathy’s room and watches her work. Those times Cathy also goes to sleep. Jane and Aragon’s secret weapon when they can’t get her off of her laptop and Anna can’t force her into her bed, is Kat. Cathy cannot say no to Kat. Anne became overly protective of Kat and refused to let her near Cathy during the Elizabeth incident, but Kat broke out of her grip and everyone made up. To this day, whenever anybody goes at Kat, calling her a sl*t or a wh*re, their life will be ruined by Cathy, as much as Cathy would love to deck them. She knows how to ruin somebody’s life by a single phone call. Although Cathy was extremely short, her glare could paralyse a grown man.

[yourdeepestfathoms]

Heat Haze Daze

song is Kangerou Days by Kagepro and was also my bop back in seventh grade

———————

With a chilling vibrato, Jane concluded her performance of At Last. Instantly, there was a booming swell of cheering and clapping, and a very radiant look of adoration from both Kitty and Joan. The silver queen smiled bashfully, but proudly and bowed. A second later, Anne crashed into her, spinning her around in a tight hug.

“Oh! My! God!!!” Anne exclaimed, clasping Jane’s hands in hers mere minutes after releasing her from the bear hug. “That was so amazing!! You did so good, Janey!!!”

“Oh please,” Jane waved a hand dismissively. “It wasn’t that good.”

“Don’t be modest,” Aragon said. “You have a wonderful voice, dear.” Her retort was backed up by several agreeing comments in the whirlwind of a comment section on the Live.

Jane blushed. “Thank you, Catalina. Thank you everyone, really!”

After a few more compliments and Jane struggling to not be humble, the Sunday Session was wrapped up.

Or so they all thought.

“W-wait-” A nervous, shaking voice squeaked. “I’m sorry. Can I sing something?”

They all looked over to their fidgety pianist, who can’t seem to stop tugging anxiously on the straps of her overalls. Suddenly, she looked a lot younger and her choice of outfit seemed a lot dumber, but fitting for her current shy demeanor. Only Joan would wear such a thing with a sunflower yellow shirt underneath, despite it being 2020.

“You?” Kitty said. She glanced Joan up and down, as if she were trying to find an ounce of vocal talent in her. “Why?”

“Because I want to.” Joan said, gathering herself up to her full size and this time not stammering, although she didn’t seem any more mature in those stupid overalls. “Please? I have this song I wanted to sing and I’ve really been practicing and...” She trailed off, opting to look up at the queen with hopeful eyes.

Despite most of them not being all that close with Joan, they had to admit that those puppy dog eyes were extremely effective, so they gave in and agreed. Instantly, Joan perked up. It seemed she wasn’t expecting them to say yes.

“Oh joy!” Joan exclaimed in glee. She skittered back over to her keyboard, tripping momentarily on one of the crisscrossing wires on the floor in her excitement. She nearly toppled over when she sat down in her stool, but regained her balance and flashed a grin at the queens and the phone pointed at her. “Ready?”

There’s a scattering of agreements, both in person and in the chat, although she couldn’t see those. She beamed again, then promptly straightened herself up and turned to her keyboard.

In an instant, her glowing smile and shimmering eyes were wiped, leaving her face blank and focused. But even then, it was clear her nerves were beginning to take over, knowing that tons of people, including the ones she desperately wanted to impress and the ones that didn’t like her at all, were there, watching her.

Joan’s stomach flipped at the thought of singing in front of so many fans and the queens. She’d sung before, but nothing like this. Not where other people really noticed or heard her. Stage fright began to get the better of her as she awkwardly fidgeted for a moment, then got her fingers into the right place and began to play an upbeat, fast-paced tune. A moment later, her voice resonated through the air.

“August 15th at 12:30 noon I don't see a cloud above

The sun is shining down, what a pretty day

So sick of this summer heat I can't beat away the haze

The rays are giving way

And spending all of my time having conversations sitting next to you”

The words, slightly rough from a lack of a vocal career, slide gently from her lips. They shake and shudder as they come out, but hold strong and don’t fracture on the tip of her tongue like a few of the queens and many of the viewers were expecting.

Joan was actually singing.

And she was singing good.

“"Hey but I...don't really like the summertime"

And as you were petting on that cat you said such a daring thing

Right from under your breath”

It was amazing. Sure, it was no Heart of Stone or All You Wanna Do, and maybe her voice wavered and strained on simple notes a few times, but Joan was actually doing really well. A lot better than anyone was expecting. In fact, Kitty had been betting that she would have failed the moment she opened her mouth.

“Ah, and as that cat had ran away

You tried to chase it in the end

Jumping right out in front of a

Traffic light that poured a shade of red bright red”

And then, things took a jarring twist.

“Crashing in and breaking you to bits

That truck a heard a scream a little bit too late

Blood dripping everywhere and choking your smell of hair

I breathe in a gulp of air and just can't take it

Are these lies? The heat is mocking me

"What you see is exactly what you're gonna get!"

And with the blue of sky I hear singing crickets cry and

Fall right back into another dark sleep”

It happened out of nowhere- the peaceful, serene song Joan had been singing suddenly wrenched around and turned into something much more sinister with enough force to give everyone watching whiplash. The warm summer day she sang of was gone, replaced by the gruesome image of a grueling car accident. And her tone helped portray that perfectly.

Joan’s voice was dripping with gore. It oozed from her lips like pus from an abscess and stained any ears that heard the lullaby of carnage she was harmonizing. Her eyes were lit up, too, wide and shining silver. She rocked back and forth as she sang, sometimes leaning forward against her keyboard on the more intense notes, only to lean back and relax on the lighter ones, although every word in that chorus seemed to be gratuitously gruesome.

And then, her words die off and the tune of her keyboard morphed back into a gentle, peaceful hum.

“Sitting up in my bed I could hear ticking clocks the shock

Will mock my ever ringing head

I look to see the time

August 14th at 12 something noon I don't see a cloud above

The sun is shining down

And yet I hear a cry of a cricket singing loudly in my head”

The queens were shocked into silence, and not just out of respect during a performance. They were genuinely stunned by the darkness of Joan’s song. And, yes, they knew that she had her own pent up emotions, but never in a million years did they expect their shy, soft-spoken, stuttering music director to ever sing such a thing.

It was startling. Actually startling.

“"Hey but I...I really have to wonder why

Because in the dream I had last night we sat in the

Same old park we are sitting at now

"Hey, I think the two of us should leave."

But stepping slightly off the path, their heads turned up towards sky

And were gaping pointing struggling to keep away a scream”

Something flashed in Joan’s eyes. The queens braced themselves.

“Stabbing holes and splitting you in two

The beam made seam as it fell straight from the sky

Ringing an old wind chime and shaking a passerby then filling the air

Until they hit those park trees

Are these lies? The heat is mocking me

"Bet you wish you were asleep, but it's not a dream!"

Vision it blurred away and keeping my thoughts at bay I swear you stood there while keeping such a dark smile”

A tidal wave of carnage spilled free from Joan’s lips and crashed over the queens. Another vivid death is laid out for them, this one somehow much worse than the first.

The reactions to such a thing were mixed.

Aragon had her chin raised in an impressed manner. She was stunned to see Joan sing such a thing, but proud nonetheless.

Anne looked a little dizzy, as she wasn’t the best with blood, even blood in a song. She shut her eyes, trying not to think about what was happening to the poor girl being sung about, but ultimately failing.

Jane was startled. The look in Joan’s eyes gave her chills, making her feel entirely exposed even though she’s just another face in the crowd at that moment, another spectator in the small Sunday Session audience.

Cleves hadn’t expected Joan of all people to sing a song like this. She didn’t think she had it in her, so the girl had her captivated.

Kitty was backed up against Jane, her face twisted with disgust and fear. She kept looking up at her mother, hoping her pleading eyes would make her yell at Joan to stop and shut up, but she was dismayed to see Jane far too engulfed in the song to notice her distress.

Cathy was intrigued. She never really took Joan for the type to sing, and yet, here she was. And her transitions from slow to fast, from relaxed to intense, from soft to loud, where smooth and amazing. Especially the one right after the first chorus- an elongated, downward spiral of madness.

“Endlessly I see that over heated haze

And again the laughing will repeat on through the days

You've been dying for the past ten years

We are trapped in cycles and the end is never clear”

Joan’s voice has softened, as was her playing. The notes echoed around the auditorium, soft and mournful. It sounded like the ghosts of ancient monarchs whispering from beneath the floorboards.

“But a story is a story all the same

And today like any has an ending so to say

Far away and out beyond that scorching summer day”

For a moment, all is silent. The queens get just a second to breathe and recover from the madness they had just heard, and then Joan is slamming her hands down on the keys and sliding them down the keyboard, causing an awful, but fitting shriek to pierce through the air.

“Crashing in and hitting me instead you

I pushed you aside to nearly dodge a truck

Blood dripping everywhere and choking my smell of hair

You breathe in a gulp of air and just can't take it

Are these lies? I haven't heard him say

"What you see is exactly what your gonna get"”

Her voice is soft at first, but then it builds up and up and up until it’s an uproar of blood-soaked words and shrill, screaming notes. Her eyes are lit up again, this time even brighter, and her vibrato shuddered in the air. At the last line, she suddenly leapt to her feet, knocking over her stool and continuing to play enthusiastically while keeping pace with her music.

“Maybe this summer day has finally gone away

But that's all I'll say so this is where it ends now”

Before the instrumental took over, she slammed her fingers down on the keys and cried over the wailing sound, singing louder and louder and louder.

“August 14th and sitting alone on a bed a girl awakes repeating just the same

Muttering again

"Guess I failed again.." as she sat all alone

And held a cat still cradled in her arms”

With a few final notes, the song concluded. Joan stumbled back, taking deep, heaving breaths. Sweat is dripping down her reddened face. She didn’t bother to wipe it away, instead whipping around to the queens with an eager expression.

“Well?” She said, beaming at their gobsmacked expressions. “What did you think?”

[a-little-slice-of-fandom]

Maybe what you think their personalities are like

Oh ho BOY am I going to get crucified for my opinions on this matter.

Before I start I just want to say this isn’t some kind of call out post. This is just my own opinions and what I think personally...which is something my blog has always been centred around. I’m strongly against cancel culture and I always aim to keep my blog discourse free...has anyone noticed how I don’t really include the ladies in waiting, shipping the queens or the controversies around casting in this blog??? Because even though I have my own opinions, I don’t want my blog to become filled with hate or caught up in discourse. I (along with many others) come to six to escape!!! I don’t want to fill someone’s feed with drama. Debate is healthy, flame wars are toxic. Enough said.

So firstly, the ladies in waiting exist in an odd limbo within the Six universe. They are characters in the broadest sense of the term, they’re given names within the script and the queens acknowledge that they are in fact the Ladies in Waiting are indeed reincarnations of the original Ladies in Waiting from the Tudor era. They also react to what goes on throughout the show (another important indicator of characterisation...see my AYWD Mask post for more info!). But they aren’t characters in the same way that the queens are characters. They have no lines of their own and go through no development throughout the show. They serve as background characters. They prop up, enhance and are vital to the show, that much is indisputable, but they aren’t the queens. This unique lack of characterisation means that everyone sees the ladies in waiting differently. And I too have my own ideas on what I think they’d be like.

Firstly, I don’t like this idea that the ladies in waiting are glorified children or glorified babysitters to the queens. I understand the appeal and comedic/ angst possibilities of these options, but for me it just doesn’t...work. Most of them were around the same age as the queens they served. I also really dislike overly relying on the real life people behind the characters as jumping off points for basing the personalities. There is line between the characters and the real life people: let’s respect it. (This does NOT just go for the ladies in waiting though. This goes for the queens as well. Boundaries guys).

The Ladies in Waiting, to me, are the best friends of the queens. And to me, they’re probably the closest to their respective queens (Aragon = Maria/Bessie, Boleyn = Maggie, Jane = Joan, Cleves = Bessie). Because that’s what the ladies in waiting were to the real life queens: their best friends and closest companions. That dynamic makes sense to me. And it’s sort of backed up in the queens songs as well? Aragon’s song is drum heavy, Boleyn’s is guitar heavy, Seymour’s is based around the piano and Cleves heavily relies on the bass to give it that laid back feel. The actual personalities of the Ladies in Waiting to me is honestly very simple as well, because I mostly associate them with their respective queens and their instruments. Maggie would be super energetic and fun loving...like Boleyn and DLUH. Bessie would be super chill and laid back...like Cleves and Get Down. Joan would be nurturing but powerful...just like Heart of Stone and Seymour. Maria would be strong and loyal...just like No Way and Aragon. That’s how I characterise the Ladies in Waiting. Is my characterisation weak and flimsy? Hell yeah. But I think it makes sense. I like it! I like the idea of Bessie and Cleves just chilling drinking tea, or maggie and Boleyn being partners in crime, or Joan being a tiny version of Seymour. (I also do not see Bessie and Aragon disliking one another. I see this pop up from time to time and I just...don’t agree with it. Aragon was classy as hell and also fully understood what Henry was like. She wouldn’t blame Bessie for anything. And she didn’t historically.)

Dynamic wise between the ladies in waiting I see them getting along pretty well actually, since their actions are no longer governed by court politics and their personalities would probably compliment each other’s well.

So yeah that’s my opinions I guess??? I know I’m going to get crucified for these very middle of the road opinions but I honestly just feel like these make sense to me?

[jane-fucking-seymour]

How would or did the og. We. Cast react to kat getting glasses. Saw your bully buddy there post some aimie pics in glasses. Would love to know how she reacted to getting them and picking out frames. Did she not want them was she excited

MY BULLY BUDDY LMAO @ichlugebulletsandcornnuts

But yes so what happened was

WE!Kat gets glasses

Kat didn’t want anyone that close to her so the whole eye examination thing was very scary, especially when they put that stuff in your eyes that dilated the pupil and it makes you not be able to see very well. She was very scared while that happened and clung to Anna and Jane the entire time.

Once she realized she could get glasses in cute designs she was excited. They had mentioned surgery but the queens save for Cathy were 10000% against it. Getting glasses was a bit event in the house and everyone pitched in

Aragon - tells her they look nice!!! Love the frames!!! Didn’t go with but was kept updated and chimes in on every one they sent her.

Boleyn - instantly takes as many photos as possible, “oh my god you’re so cute!!!!”

Seymour - went with Kat to get the glasses so has already “awwwwww”’ed at it, thinks they’re lovely and is glad everyone is reacting positively

Cleves - instantly takes photos, posts them immediately, loves them because Kitty is so cute!!!! They had gone online to look at shades and Anna was glad that it paid off

Parr - is delighted to see Kat so excited and they look so GOOD she’s glad Kat found ones she liked

Broadway!Kat gets glasses

Went to the doctor with Anna for a checkup and didn’t really react when they mentioned glasses. Also didn’t want to do surgery for similar reasons as WE!queens. Didn’t mind the doctors as much, was glad it was over though

It was far more chill of an announcement than it was in WE. Anne and Catherine helped her look through some catalogues. Overall it was chill, they picked up her new glasses while they were out running errands, wasn’t big to do, Katherine was very calm during all of it. No issues.

Aragon - loves the frames, had gone with to help her pick them out since Kat trusts her judgement and also because Aragon is the most realistic of the bunch

Boleyn - LOVES THE SHADES no photos just yet but she does try them on herself and is like “wow you can’t see for sh-“ until Anna tells her to cut it out

Seymour - is the last to see the new shades, hadn’t gone with them because she was running errands but she loves them! Is very happy Kat got that settled

Cleves - went with Kat, also was a fashion judge to ensure proper fashion decisions were made. Also researched the brands and looked at reviews to make sure Kat wasn’t getting scammed or anything

Parr - loves the shades ofc. Had been with Jane helping with prep while the rest went off on the merry adventure of getting Kat glasses. For the most part stayed pretty out of it but absolutely adores how Kat looks in them and might be the most “so cute!!!!” about it after Anne.

[bellabooks]

“When We Rise” Recap Episode 4 – The Fight Continues

I want to thank Lara Hayes and Alex Scoville for putting together such wonderful recaps  of When We Rise while I was away at Clexacon. The series did not perform as well as ABC had hoped, and there are plenty of theories and blame being placed around for that. (Slate writer Jeffrey Bloomer has an interesting piece on all of that. Check it out.)  I too have a theory about why When We Rise didn’t soar: It was rather dull. The series tried to cram a tremendous amount of history into four nights, which is a lot for even the most avid binge watcher. Somehow, what could have been a vibrant and vital telling of our history, was too often mired in exposition and stilted dialogue. However, the fact that ABC gave almost a full week to telling the story of the LGBTQ community, means something. There were shining moments, and those that fell flat, but a part of our history was championed and that counts for something for sure. The fight for marriage equality and Prop 8 takes center stage and When We Rise shows what really happened behind the scenes. The infighting, the controversial decision to have conservative lawyer Theodore Olson lead the case, and the new kind of activism that led the change. Of course, we still have the stories of Roma, Cleve and Ken. For our resident lesbian couple, their daughter is all grown up and about to have a baby the night of the Obama election. It’s also the day that Prop 8 won, and for many, the joy of having Obama elected is tampered by the huge setback for LGBTQ equality in California. We’re also introduced to Chad Griffin (played by out actor T.R. Knight), who will go on to play a major role in the fight against Prop 8. Massive demonstrations begin the night of the election in California, and Cleve is heartened to see a pushback against apathy and a return to the grassroots-voice of the people-activism he was a part of in the 70s and 80s. At the hospital, baby Justice is born, and Roma puts herself squarely on the sidelines, even though she and Diane raised Annie together. This is one of the storylines that was lost in the shuffle of this series. There are gaps that aren’t explained, and a distance between Annie and Roma that doesn’t feel right. However, since these characters are based on real people, maybe this is just an accurate telling of their experience. Roma’s resolve begins to melt a little when Annie refers to her as Grandma Roma. Roma and Diane run into their neighbor, Victor, at the hospital whose wife is dying in the hospital and without insurance. We see that there is some backlash against those with HIV and AIDS, who are given treatment (finally after years of death and devastation), by those who can’t get the medical treatment for things like cancer, diabetes and the like. I admit, this came as a shock to me, and it’s one of the eye opening things about this series. Roma, who is on the health commission, promises to continue to fight for families like Victors’. She runs into instant opposition on the commission, and pledges to go around them. Back at home, Annie and her husband want to move back in with Diane and Roma, which causes tension in the family. Roma does warm up to the idea though. Cleve is approached by the young man who has been interviewing him, and his lesbian friend Robin (played by Pauley Perrette) to help with the fight against Prop 8. They know Cleve has the reputation and could help lend legitimacy to their cause. Cleve is reluctant to do things the new way, and pushes back against Robin. She leaves disappointed in him, and he can’t help but be reminded of the day he himself met with Jim Foster and was sent away disillusioned. Cleve does come around and joins the new fight. Ken, who is clean now, but also deeply involved in a church that wants him to leave his gayness behind, is drawn to a new group that is renting out his church’s space. The group is led by Bishop Yvette Flunder (played by Phylicia Rashad), the real life leader of the City of Refuge United Church of Christ. There Ken sees that he can be himself and still find salvation.   Chad Griffin meets with Theodore Olson and finds that despite his conservative slant, he is a proponent of marriage equality. There are few fiercer lawyers in the country, and now Chad just has to convince everyone else that Ted is the right choice to defeat Prop 8. Cleve moves back to San Francisco, and Roma continues her fight to get health care for the people of San Francisco. She gathers union leaders a their home to convince them to join her, and they do. After dodging Chad’s calls and texts for weeks, Cleve agrees to meet with Chad. He doesn’t like what he hears about Chad bringing Prop 8 to the Supreme Court. He does agree to meet with Ted, and Ted’s commitment sways Cleve when he tells him that prominent Democratic lawyer David Boies would be his partner in the suit. Cleve and Chad run into serious opposition from LGBTQ leaders. They threaten to release the file of all the cases they’ve lost to Olson. Chad thinks they should go for it, as it can only make the case for Olson stronger. Cleve even gets Roma, who is fundamentally opposed to marriage, on his side. Speaking of Roma, she holds a meeting of citizens who are without insurance. She hears from a woman who purposely exposed herself to HIV to get help with her other ailments. It’s pretty devastating to hear. So is the news that Victor’s wife has died, right before Roma is able to tell him that they will be moving forward with the healthcare plan. As the Prop 8 trial begins, Roma starts to reevaluate what she thought she believed about marriage and the bonds of family. She has a freak out in front of Diane, Annie and her now husband, and Annie is the only one who calls it like it is. Roma wants to marry Diane and she’s scared about wanting that. Diane and Roma agree to go through with it, and Roma can’t help but smirk with happiness. Ken heads down to city hall to reunite with Cecilia Chung, his old friend who tried to help him for many years, and is now a commissioner. She runs out to embrace him and his thrilled that he finally reached out to her and was able to turn his life around and help others. They team up to meet with Roma whose help they need to expand the outreach of City of Refuge United Church of Christ. As you know, the judge in the Prop 8 case ruled in favor of LGBTQ marriage equality. I do admit, I still got chills hearing it. The case moves to the Supreme Court, with much hope and much trepidation. Around the same time, Edie Windsor and the DOMA case begins, and the question arises: will President Obama side with them? We meet attorney Roberta Kaplan (Mary McCormack), who isn’t about to back down and let the President off the hook. Roma calls her sister and much to her surprise, her sister wants to be there for the wedding if the case passes. Roma finally sheds a few tears, worried that they won’t win, and is comforted by granddaughter Justice. Just as the City of Refuge gets the help and funding they need, their minister and trans activist Bobbie Jean Baker (Jazzmun) is tragically killed in a car accident. We know now that President Obama did indeed give his support to same sex couples, and it made a huge impact. The DOMA and Prop 8 cases headed to the Supreme Court and despite their worries, Cleve tells everyone that they have already made history. And indeed, history was made. DOMA was overturned and same sex marriage became the law of the land. Ken was ordained a minister and began performing marriages for elated couples. Roma and Diane also take their vows, officiated by Tom. Afterwards, Roma and Diane celebrate with Cleve, who reminds us that there is still much to fight for. Our fight is not over, even if some orgs shuttered their doors and claimed victory after the court decision. There is much to do for our trans community, LGBTQ people of color, workplace protections, health advocacy and so much more. I’m so grateful that When We Rise declared this, because while we are right to celebrate this victory, our work is far from over. http://dlvr.it/NZTvph