#oc: Serena Tavyndír

[eliteseven]

Soft Shadowheart x Tav Cottage-core Hc’s

These are specifically brainstorming hc’s for my fics (ft. Human/ex-noble Tav) but I feel like most of them are general enough:

*potential for spoilers, obvs

Tav has a really good relationship with Arnell and Emmeline. I think Shadowheart was already in love with her by the time they rescued her parents, but seeing Tav interacting with them makes her fall all over again. Tav is extra gentle w Emmeline and never lets her or Arnell do too much labor around the grounds. Idk this is just very important to me

Before they find the cottage, Tav scouts ahead while Shadowheart cares for her parents in the city.

Tav buys a mount just so Shadowheart’s parents can make the trip out to the cottage they want to renovate.

Tav camps outside at nights and offers the warmest (and only indoor) space to Shadowheart’s parents while they build up the rest of the cottage. Naturally, Shadowheart is incredibly endeared by this and camps out with her :) it’s just like old times for them

Shadowheart taking lazy cat naps in the sun (with her cats!) on Tav’s lap on the sunnier, warmer days.

It is only suitable that they be in close proximity to a lake for nightly “swimming lessons”.

Shadowheart LOVES PDA. She feels she has squandered so much of her life, plus Tav is a human and she only has so much time to spend with her- so yeah Shadowheart is all over that!! All the time! Stealing kisses from Tav while they work in the garden, slipping her hands into Tav’s back pocket, yanking Tav behind the barn and Tav stumbling out with kiss marks all over her face lol. (And trips to the city!! Shart is 100% on go mode anywhere)

Tav was raised a “proper lady” noble and she SQUIRMS bc she does not want to get caught absolutely devouring Shadowheart in front of her parents! Shadowheart knows this and takes the utmost joy in making Tav uncomfortable like that (affectionately)

When they get around to decorating, Shadowheart realizes she’s never had a space of her own in the cloister (aside from her tent when she travels)! I think she takes a lot of joy in self discovery. Exploring what she likes, realizing she’s so into color and vibrance after so many monotonous years. She also likes the domesticity of just…seeing her items next to Tav’s atop the dresser, or their shared garments in the wardrobe. She can’t remember the last time anywhere ever felt like home.

Tav regularly wakes up to the last remnants of her body heat being siphoned away by Shadowheart, Buttons, some of their cats, and any of the other animals they care for. Sometimes she also cannot breathe bc her gf’s hair is splayed out (and Shadowheart has looooong hair) all over her face. It brings her immeasurable joy and she wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Shadowheart tastes Emmeline’s apple and plum pie and it brings back strong memories of childhood, so Tav takes it upon herself to get all kinds of recipes from Emmeline. In her spare time, she tries to surprise Shadowheart with them. Sometimes they prompt memories, sometimes they taste awful and they laugh so hard they make new memories 💕

Shadowheart’s mark eases up, but once in a while it causes her flashes of pain. If it occurs at night, Tav refuses to sleep. Moonlit walks, curling up by the fire, anything to keep Shadowheart’s mind off it, depending on how much pain she’s in. But the best distraction is usually between the sheets tbh. Shar whom??

Tav regularly beefs with that squirrel. She swears it loves Shadowheart and hates her (it does).

[eliteseven]

....had some more thoughts as I was fic brainstorming 😅

ShadowTav Cottagecore HC's: Cooking with Emmeline

-I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Neither Shadowheart nor Tav can actually cook. It was done by others in camp. In Tav's past, she was a noble: she had a kitchen staff. In her life as a knight: meals were provided or she was scrounging up whatever she could find. Hardly the makings of a gourmet.

-Shadowheart is just as bad. Cloister meals were...questionable. She adopted finer tastes infiltrating these fancy gatherings, so she and Tav both have lofty aspirations in the kitchen and absolutely nO way to back it up

-Cue Emmeline: Now that she's living a stable, happy life in her guest cottage with Arnell, getting to see her daughter safe, married, free of Shar....it does wonders for her. She gets her game back. There are mouths to feed- and no one with skill! She saves the day!!

-It starts with Emmeline baking her apple-plum pie for Shadowheart (this happens in BTYR!). If you didn't read it, long story short: Shadowheart is ecstatic because it instantly brings back real, honest-to-gods memories of childhood for her. To the point where she can close her eyes and picture it.

-Naturally, Tav is in love with the sight of Shadowheart so blissfully happy. So she takes it upon herself to consult with Emmeline and get the ingredients every week, and they make something new together each time.

-Tav offers to make herself scarce and let the mother-daughter duo bond, but Emmeline wants "both her daughters" to learn her craft. (Yes, Tav cries when she hears that) 😭

-Emmeline is so patient with them. They're idiots:

-Shadowheart zones out watching Tav's long fingers kneading the dough when they make bread. Any instructions told to her during this period are forever lost. She's utterly useless until she snaps out of it. Tav actually listens, she wants to impress Emmeline

-Shadowheart gets some flour on her cheek. Tav goes to remove it. Makes it worse. Shadowheart retaliates. They have a flour fight. Make flour clouds as they hurl it at each other. When the dust settles and they've collapsed into a messy, laughing heap on the floor, they notice Emmeline standing there, covered head to toe. She looks exasperated, but really, she's delighted that Shadowheart is still the same fun-loving, mischievous little girl. And now she has a partner in crime. 🥹💕

-Tav and Shadowheart do learn, eventually. They cook each other supper. They make Emmeline and Arnell food, too. They have reached unmatched levels of domesticity. Sometimes Shadowheart will wrap herself around Tav while she cooks, sometimes Tav reads to Shadowheart and hangs out in their tiny kitchen while she does the cooking.

-Emmeline is finally satisfied, knowing her daughter and her bride won't be starving to death any time soon, should anything happen to her ❤️

[eliteseven]

Okay but fr Shadowheart's cloister camp clothing though...I remember the first time I ended the day and saw her I was like "goddamn i thought we were going to sleep, not model??" Tav must have been fighting for her life keeping her eyes up

RIGHT like Tav just got all comfy in her literal “homely clothes” and she probably gets nice and cozy by the fire and Shadowheart comes out in her haute couture Sharran full-body lingerie 🫠

Tav won’t even glance in her direction and Shadowheart is inwardly a little more offended and hurt than she lets on, but it’s all because Tav knows she won’t be able to resist staring like an idiot 😭

Shadowheart, stretching, trying to get Tav’s attention: “Gods, I’m tired….”

Tav, fighting like hell not to look: “Better get some breast. Ah…Rest!! Better get some rest! Goodnight!”

[eliteseven]

Serena "Tav" Tavyndír: (Human-Ex-Noble-Fighter) x Shadowheart

Fic Link

[eliteseven]

Not the same anon but I would also love jealous Shadowheart HCs. A one shot would be amazing if you can but no pressure!

Lolllll

Jealous Shadowheart HC's, by Popular Demand (3 ppl).

I've long said this, but Shadowheart doesn't do jealousy. I think she's never had to. She grew up in the cloister- we know she mentioned having secret trysts or flings or w/e, but no serious relationships. She thought she was training to be a weapon, really. So...relationships- monogamy- I don't know if it ever crossed her mind? Probably not her scene.

Also, while I love her confidence, "I know I'm beautiful, but it's nice of you to say" etc. I think she's accustomed to suitors bending over backwards for her, but a lot of the time it was superficial- none of them knew her, it was purely physical.

All this to say: she's never had the inclination of being possessive of anyone, until...Tav.

Tav comes along with her stupidly tender touches and that look she gives Shadowheart, like she's the most resplendent being she's ever met. Shadowheart realizes she wants that all to herself forever. But Tav loves everything about her- her temper, her less than composed moments. For the first time in her life, Shadowheart's in love 💕

Shadowheart isn't oblivious- Tav is beautiful, she's going to get her fair share of attention. Tav's a people person, and she has a background in nobility- which meant a lot of schmoozing and cajoling. She has a way of enticing people- but unlike Shadowheart, she's never really weaponized it. She isn't really aware of how she draws people in (which pisses Shart off lol)

Most of the time, Shadowheart is content to let it happen. But for those lingering gazes on Tav? The way the barmaid touches her arm when she leans over suggestively to serve her? Nah Shadowheart is not standing for it! She will tilt Tav's chin and kiss her senseless in front of the entire tavern. If there are bedrooms (or perhaps even a hidden corner) Shadowheart is making use of them immediately.

Maybe it's a little residual Sharran domme energy in her, but Shadowheart expresses her discontent in the bedroom by marking Tav up. The camp pretends not to notice Tav's neck the next morning. (Tav fully encourages this behavior 😅)

The one subject that riles Shadowheart up every time: Tav's past in Cormyr. I won't mince words- Tav was a noble, pent up in her estate with stuffy rules, dying to live, bound for an arranged marriage she wanted no part of.... When Tav gets to Cormyr, she has a time. 👀 She might not be as experienced as Shadowheart, but she's certainly picked up a thing or ten in the near decade she was there.

If Tav has a "close friend" from her past in Cormyr that she references fondly every once in a while, whew...Shadowheart can't help but imagine who might have had her Tav wrapped around their finger.

Now, IF Shadowheart were to ever meet this friend, say she made it to the cottage for some ungodly reason:

Shart would obviously try to play it cool (She's too proud to admit she's jealous outright). Instead, she's draping herself across Tav, sitting on her lap, stealing kisses. She's generally very kind hearted now, but idk I can see her reverting back to her old ways for a bit. She’s definitely making some of those famous biting comments.

Tav tries to defuse it and keep her even keeled but sometimes it's so hard bc Shadowheart is pettyyyyy 😭💀

Tav: So, why don't we swap stories? Do you remember-

Shart: Yes, Tav, do you remember the night we bathed in the pools outside the House of the Moon and you spread my-

Tav: -Anyway, have you met Buttons?!

(I will try my best on the one shot but I have so many WIP's at the moment so maybe we can work it in elsewhere?)

[eliteseven]

The baby definitely thinks their parents are named "Heart" and "Tav/Love" well in to their childhood

She totally thinks her parents are “Heart” and “my love”/“love” for the loooooongest time.

Obsessed with the idea of the baby learning all their mannerisms/habits like that!!

She sees the way Tav and Shart interact and she inevitably picks up on all their little exchanges.

A few more ShadowTav baby HC’s:

She mimics Tav’s accent, picks up on alllll of Tav’s little former-noble habits.

She’s seen Tav take off her cloak and drape it across Shadowheart’s shoulders on colder mornings. Now, every single time Shadowheart sits outside, that baby is running over with a blanket 😭

She’s seen Shadowheart sneak up on Tav to surprise her while she’s training. So ofc she does the same (and Tav commits to pretending to be surprised so well 🥰)

She’s seen the way Shadowheart does Tav’s braid and insists upon doing it herself! She can’t braid! It’s a good time.

She makes the same stank face Shadowheart does when she doesn’t like something. Tav thinks it’s so cute 😭 now she has TWO menaces in her life (Shart does not find it as amusing lmao)

She mimics Shadowheart’s sarcastic little quips (repeating “Must I?” Whenever she’s told to do anything bc she heard Shadowheart tell Tav that once 💀)

She tries to carry Tav’s sword for her (a loyal squire 🥹💕) and cannot. Arnell probably fashions one for her out of wood so she can practice with Tav, because she has decided she too would like to be a knight

[eliteseven]

How would Shadowheart and Tav react if they got caught while doing the deed by Shadowheart’s parents? Or by the companions before they settled down?

Haha I knew this was coming at some point!

Getting Caught by Emmeline and Arnell:

It's the end of the world for Tav! It's worse than the Netherbrain, it's worse than that one time she literally died and came back. She probably instantly starts like...apologizing lmao.

"I'm sorry, we weren't...I would never...she fell onto me!"

Like a teenager caught red-handed with their (not so) innocent daughter (who is at least 40 lmao). It's just how she was brought up. She scrambles to cover them both bc ✨chivalry✨, but internally she's just dyingggg. Can't look at Arnell and Emmeline in the eye for a while after.

Tav is dramatic af afterwards:

"My honor is forever ruined"

"...Tav, we're betrothed."

Emmeline surprises them all at supper by making an offhanded comment about Hallowleaf women and their insatiable desires, and how she and Arnell were just the same, in their youth. I like to think everyone at that table comes away equally mortified, except for Emmeline, who just shrugs and eats her bread roll bc it's the truth. Arnell probs used to lay it down 🤷🏻‍♀️ Shadowheart got there somehow, right?

As for Shart's reaction:

Shadowheart is mostly: 1. annoyed at the interruption (things were just getting good and she has needs) 2. amused by Tav's reaction. It's funny! She's grown. They're her parents. They love Tav. They aren't clueless and frankly, they've probably seen worse from their time in captivity. She probably reacts faster than Tav. I think life in the cloister made Shadowheart a little more relaxed about these things. Tav was always taught to save face and project the best possible image. While she did leave home, she was around 19 so these lessons probably stuck.

At Camp:

Look, it's canon that Shart is always down™️ (source: "Oh, has the mood struck you, love? I suppose we could try, if you think the others won't stir...")

I'd say the camp has heard them "building sandcastles" quite a few times. They usually try to put some distance between themselves and camp- but sometimes they end up getting intimate right there in Shadowheart's tent. What the camp can't hear, they can probably see in silhouettes against the tent, if Shadowheart doesn't cast darkness.

And lbr, their companions have probably gotten an eyeful on one of the evenings where they're having a camp party. Shadowheart was cooler with being something of an exhibitionist in the past, but Tav is so soft and intimate that it's different, now. She wants Tav's love and affection all to herself, away from prying eyes. Their love (and really, that is the key factor here, it's not just sex) is for them, and them only.

If some unfortunate soul were to happen upon them like that, interrupting their private time together, I think they might be on the receiving end of one of Shadowheart's death glares and some choice words.

[eliteseven]

Absolutely love how you portray Tav and Shadowheart. Would you mind sharing some more domesticity HCs please?? They deserve that peaceful, full of love life so much 😭

🥹💕 thank you so much!!!! Sure, I would love to share a few nuggets of domesticity!

ShadowTav Cottage Domesticity HC’s (pt.2)

-Neither Tav nor Shadowheart have a “green thumb”. I think they’re both better at killing things, given how they’ve both spent the last decade 😅 but I feel like Arnell and Emmeline are just pure magic in the garden. They teach Shadowheart and Tav how to plant, water, compost, prune, and just generally care for the plants and trees. It’s like Emmeline’s little lessons in the kitchen. It’s a sweet way for them all to spend time with each other. Plus, every time Shadowheart’s parents remark that she’s doing something in just the same way she would have as a child, she lights up! 🥰

-Shadowheart and Tav starting a book collection 🥹 Shadowheart’s favorite smutty novels, a collection of Emmeline’s recipes, Tav’s favorite childhood books, writings that they came across in their adventures, books they pick up for each other on trips to Baldur’s Gate. They read together nearly every day. Sometimes, Tav reads while Shadowheart naps in her lap out in fields, under the sun. Sometimes Shadowheart gets a laugh out of her and reads her smutty excerpts while she makes supper in the kitchen.

-I’ve said this before but: Shadowheart particularly takes so much joy in decorating their cottage. Tav had her own quarters in her estate through childhood- but Shadowheart never really remembers a room being hers, let alone a cottage. She wants paintings! Color! Flowers, both alive, and of the dried and pressed variety! Little signs of their shared life together still make her eyes sting with emotion. Her clothes mixed in with Tav’s in the wardrobe (I HC they share everything🥰). Her equipment (sword, armor, etc) hanging beside Tav’s in their display. She never feels alone again. She has a home. She belongs somewhere, to someone, just at they belong to her.

-Shadowheart and Tav doing each other’s hair before bed. Or, perhaps, undoing is the proper term here- but I genuinely think this is a romantic, soft, domestic, meaningful ritual for them both. In days where Shadowheart wears her hair up; Tav lovingly undoes Shadowheart’s hair, part by part, runs her fingers through every silken strand. She rubs at Shadowheart’s scalp, gets her to unwind like a kitten, curling into her touch like she’s the warm afternoon sun. Shadowheart returns the favor- she loves Tav with her hair down. She brushes Tav’s hair and watches the stress of the day melt away from her shoulders. It’s something simple, really, but an act of sheer adoration for them both.

-Cottage maintenance, baby! A particularly bad storm has Tav (who…probably still isn’t the best at tinkering or fixing things bc…why would she be?) sitting on the roof, soaked to the bone, trying to patch a part of the roof that’s given out. Sure, they could put a pail under it and call it a day, but Tav is…Tav. It’s over Arnell and Emmeline’s little guest cottage, and she will be damned if she lets her in-laws sleep in the rain. She…can’t fix it. Not till morning, and not without assistance. But she and Shadowheart offer their room to her parents. Shadowheart comes and finds her in the rain, and I like to think…they just embrace it. Rain and all. It’s freeing. Probably stay out there till who knows when, just taking in the rain, embracing each other. Poetic cinema

-Tav comes a long way with the animals. She’s always liked animals, but I don’t think her past afforded her any chance to really have any pets other than her mount in the military (assuming she had one). It warms Shadowheart’s soul to wake up to Tav quietly whispering to Buttons about how busy their day is going to be, or racing Scratch and the Owlbear to the barn, or singing sweetly to Daphne while she brushes her. But seeing Tav holding the little ones: the kittens, the baby chicks, Buttons when he’s a pup…baby fever!!!!! Has Shadowheart down atrociously 😍

-not exactly a domesticity HC but needs to be said: they still train together. Tav will be damned if she lets her skill with a blade get rusty- especially now that she has a family to protect. Shadowheart, too- wits and blades always sharp, just for a different, kinder goddess now. Now, if they’re both sweaty and worked up and happen to simply jump each other’s bones afterwards, every time…. 😏 I digress

-bittersweet last one here: Tav is a human. Shadowheart will outlive her. She’s well-aware of this fact, and though she is living her best life, she worries for Shadowheart in the future. I’ve been playing with the idea that, every day, when Shadowheart is otherwise occupied, Tav slips away to write her a little note. Like a diary entry, almost- but for Shadowheart. Sometimes they’re brief thoughts, sometimes it’s as simple as telling Shadowheart how ethereal she looked that day, and how much Tav loves her. Tav saves these notes over the years as she compiles them. Hiding them from Shadowheart is one of the hardest things she ever has to do. But…one day, when Shadowheart is aching from the loss and misses her…well, she can open up this journal, or collection of notes, and fall in love with Tav all over again 🥹💕 Tav documents all these sweet little moments of domesticity, and they gain eternal life on that parchment. Shadowheart is free to relive their love and life together as often as she wants. I think she will always be Shadowheart’s home.

[eliteseven]

Okay, so I’m in love with all the baby HCs, but what about when she’s a little older or a teenager? I can only imagine the attitude little Jen could potentially have and Shadowheart and Tav just looking at each other like, “she gets it from you.”

A MENACE just like her mother. (You can guess which one 😅)

Here are some thoughts on Jen growing up:

I think you have it exactly right. The way I envision it: she’s a sass master just like her mom. I mean this is “Purple seam, you donkey” Shadowheart we’re talking about here. She can be vicious 😭 I think Jen also learned a thing or two about sweet talking and diplomacy from Tav. Lethal combo in her teen years. She knows how to be difficult and get out of trouble. Shadowheart has definitely met her match 💀

I think she’s a handful, even as a little kid. She parrots Shadowheart’s sass rather frequently. We’ve spoken about how she hears phrases and repeats them- “must I?” Every time she’s told to do a chore. She copies Shadowheart’s stank face when she’s displeased. Tav just eats her UP 🥹 (she’s used to it). Shadowheart is finally getting a taste of her own medicine, and a gift from Selûne, no less! It’s poetic justice. Arnell and Emmeline find great amusement in this.

When Jen is a teen?? Lord. Shadowheart and Tav thought the Netherbrain was problematic?? 😭💀 Jen tries to sneak out to the city and ALMOST makes it, but Shadowheart ofc is the queen of sneaky maneuvering and she’s 10 steps ahead, waiting by the horses with the most unimpressed expression. If Jen can talk to the animals like Shadowheart, she probably conspires with them 🤭 Bonus if she picks up on her mothers’ skill sets. If she learns mirror image or something tricky like that…..whew it’s going to be so fun watching Shadowheart and Tav trip over themselves trying to keep up 😏

Shadowheart will turn to Tav in bed, with the most exhausted expression one night, and just ask, “….how did you do it? How did you put up with me?”

And Tav will simply grin because it is both grueling and frankly, the greatest joy and privilege she has ever known.

[eliteseven]

I can’t do art for the life of me but here are some doodles concepts of Tav (Serena) x Shadowheart that I can come back and cringe at later

Edit: now we may cringe in ✨color✨

[eliteseven]

Cute idea! Shadowheart healing their baby's first cut or bruise?

🥹 Just…imagine the wide eyes, bright and green like Shadowheart’s, and full of genuine awe as they look at the now healed wound, and then at Shadowheart.

She’s regarded like she’s magic, warmth, light, everything good in the world. Only one other being has ever looked at her like that. Shadowheart never thought it possible. To that baby, Shadowheart is safety, protection, happiness. She’s none of the things the cloister tried to force upon her. All that child has ever known is her love, her soft coos, her gentle, healing touch.

Something about being viewed like that probably goes a long way in healing residual trauma for her.

[eliteseven]

Shadowheart: love, I want a baby

Serena: ....I mean, I lack the equipment for bringing that about, but hey let's give it a go anyway

Shadowheart: *totally meant like adoption, but is always horny for her love* oh- okay 👀

Serena, fumbling: “Let me see what I can do-”

but really I feel like that convo is like:

[eliteseven]

Did Serena and Shadowheart follow the same romantic arc as in the game (first kiss at the party, making things official after Gauntlet, first time at the beach, etc)? Or did it go entirely differently? Who fell first for the other? How did the other companions react? We know there have been a few "bumps" here and there, like the life expectancy talk, or Shads just being a gremlin early on lmao, but how are things between them overall (before full domesticity life at the cottage, which they 100% deserve 😭)?

I love them both so much and i'm simply obsessed with how you write them, thank you for sharing that with us 🙏🙏

AHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH 💕 I put a lot of love into writing them, I’m THRILLED you love them too!! 🥰 thank you for the sweet words, week made!!!

For ease of reading (bc damn I started and did NOT shut up lol), I’ll detail their journey under the cut: (with a few screenies) 😊

I used the game’s romantic arc to structure the basis of their relationship- so all these events did happen, though I’ve messed with the timeline a little.

-their relationship is contentious at first. When Serena finds out she’s a worshipper of Shar- it’s obviously a little jarring, despite the honesty. She trusts Shadowheart about as much as Astarion, fangs and all. Shadowheart (besides being a gremlin in general at first lol) thinks Serena is probably the easiest to manipulate in the group (her other options are Astarion and Lae’zel- and those are non starters). She mistakes Serena’s kindness for naivety, I think. Serena is…exhausted by all these…unique…personalities 💀 she has a worm in her head and a very opinionated Sharran in her ear

-Still, they exchange some not so subtle stares at camp, their first couple of evenings together. Shadowheart pretends not to look at Tav when she insists on sparring with Lae’zel to stay sharp. Tav pretends not to look when Shadowheart comes out in her haute couture Sharran full body lingerie 😭 they both fail miserably!! The constant thirsting/staring game begins!!

-I actually think Shadowheart falls first. She intended to simply use Tav to get rid of the worm. She didn’t count on Tav being so…good 🫠

-When Astarion bites Tav- it’s Shadowheart who reacts most viscerally. Everyone thinks it’s just her threatening to stake a vampire for her own safety, but…she’s jealous!!!

-when they meet Wyll, (not the first time for Tav!)- he accidentally outs her as a member of one of the patriar families of Baldur’s Gate. He’s happy to see a familiar face, but…Cue the ridicule from those who think she’s a soft ass noble playing dress up as a knight. Shadowheart and some of the others are downright mean about it. Still, Shadowheart takes note of her prowess during the fight outside the grove. She’s interested, now. Then Tav goes on to give all she has to the Tiefling kids and joins Wyll on teaching them to fight. Shadowheart starts to see her priorities and…likes them secretly 😭

-They find themselves drawn to each other, regardless. When Shadowheart shows true fear before a wolf, it’s Tav who steps in front of her and gently tugs her away. During long walks, she and Tav often find themselves side by side. Tav doesn’t pry- but her stoicism fades with time. She tells Shadowheart little stories of her time in Cormyr. Shadowheart, in turn, begins to confide in her. They sit together at the camp fire. They don’t touch, just yet. But the longing is building. Still, Shadowheart isn’t afraid to let her hear it when she disagrees- and boy, do they squabble.

-Shadowheart doesn’t intervene when Tav is whipped for Loviatar’s blessing or w/e- like I mentioned before, that breeds resentment. Tav is getting whiplash from Shadowheart. Sometimes she’s so sweet, so soft…and then she reverts back to cruelty, taking pleasure in others’ pain. She heals Tav’s wounds, and feels guilty. She’s realizing Tav is not a simple amusement, to be discarded right after use. She has…real feelings for her 😅 she’s drawn to Tav’s kindness and wants to return the favor, and this puts her at odds with Shar’s teachings

-The party is still their first kiss and first “date” if you will. Shadowheart plays coy but appreciates Serena remembering so much about her. She’s…touched, as much as she is attracted.

-At this point, they’re something of a fledgling couple. The group knows, of course- but Shadowheart does NOT entertain Tav publicly. They’re flirting, stealing kisses behind tents, taking long walks together at night, anything away from prying eyes. Shadowheart doesn’t want anybody questioning her faith…Shar included. Still, Shadowheart wants Tav all to herself. She doesn’t like when the other members of the group cozy up to her. She’s conflicted.

-the push into the Shadow Cursed lands puts a little distance between them. When Shadowheart is all ecstatic about Shar protecting her from the curse, Serena points out that she isn’t protected, along with the others. Shads hits her with “you’re resourceful, you’ll figure it out” 😅. That hurts, a lot- given their new relationship. her obsession with Shar frightens Tav to an extent, but she understands Shadowheart is indoctrinated. It’s hard to reconcile how sweet she is in one moment , with how cruel she can be in the next. Tav tells Shadowheart she feels her pulling away. Shadowheart agrees.

-The trials and their conclusion absolutely wreck Shadowheart, of course. Shar has abandoned her. In her hour of need, at her lowest point- Tav tells her how proud she is 🥹💕 she swears to Shadowheart that she may not have Shar, but she will always have her, if that’s what she wants. Shadowheart hasn’t known unconditional love like this before. She wants Tav fully, she’s tired of denying herself happiness.

-The night on the beach is their first time sleeping together. I considered changing this in the timeline- but I think it works beautifully. Shadowheart is genuinely frightened to be swimming- she would only do that with someone she was truly in love with.

-from there, they’re quite public about their relationship. Shadowheart changes her look to reflect her new lot in life. Tav adores it, adores her. Shadowheart softens. It’s a lot more domestic and sweet. This would pretty much put them around the beginning of act 3, give or take! Tav risks everything with Shadowheart to get her parents back. Things are really looking up for them 🥰

This brings us to the point where the NLS series picks up!

[eliteseven]

Maybe theres a sacred magical Selunite artifact hidden away that could help? (Literally just a strap) Maybe Aylin and Isobel would know

This has me dead lmao “literally just a strap” 😭

Tav, trying to be discreet: “So, Aylin, about that…special artifact…

Aylin, across the entire tavern: ALLY MINE, YOU WISH YOUR MATE MOST HIGH TO CONCEIVE? THIS IS JOYOUS NEWS, ALL OF FAERUN WILL SING SONGS ABOUT THE HEROICS OF YOUR GLORIOUS OFFSPRING, OUR CHILDREN WILL BE GREAT ALLIES-

Shadowheart, turning to Isobel: -so it’s a strap?

Isobel: …yeah it’s just a strap

[eliteseven]

Shart would definitely want kids, she has this line when romanced after all:

“It'll make for quite a bedtime tale for the children, if you ever get me in a family way.”

Unromanced it’s this!

“It’ll make quite a bedtime tale for the children if I survive to have any, that is”

!!!!! You’re so right, thank you!!!

Also:

1. What does Shadowheart consider an appropriate bedtime tale for a child 💀

2. “If you ever get me in a family way” ma’am you adopted every creature in the forest I feel like you would be the one to bring it up

3. Tav and Shadowheart re-telling their tale for their child before bed and disagreeing with each other’s (biased) account of the events like every ten seconds 😭

“And that’s when I knew your mother fell for me.”

“Hardly. I was planning on slitting your throat while you slept, it just so happened Lae’zel was closer that night.”

“…oh. 🙂 ”

[eliteseven]

Shadowheart's Graffiti

I was thinking about what Shadowheart says when the party stumbles upon some graffiti on a city wall in Act 3:

“Well, I think I was the one who did it. I can recognize my own handwriting. How long ago was this? Years? All the time I spent training, hidden away from the world. I think…I think I must have wanted to leave my mark somewhere. Just to prove I existed. Even to myself…"

And Tav doesn't really get a chance to say anything in response.

But I was thinking, how touching it might be, if she and Tav returned to the city after everything. A warm summer night, hand in hand, perhaps with some wine--fueled giggling and stumbling through the streets of Baldur's Gate. Maybe they're even roaming the upper city- passing a fancy estate. (Maybe even Tav's childhood home- or what's left of it). Maybe Tav spots a stray piece of charcoal, or a painter's brush and bucket- abandoned for the evening until work resumes in the morning.

It would be so sweet if she offered it to Shadowheart; eyes glinting with mischief. An opportunity to rewrite her name: whatever name she pleases. A moment to mark her survival, Shadowheart's journey thus far. She's still here. Her cloister is not. She made it.

And I think Shadowheart would want nothing more than to mark not just her own existence; but theirs. She has Tav tag the wall, too, and she steps back from their joint-artwork, grinning like she used to as a child. She's not alone, anymore- in her sorrow or her joy.

Once, she marked a wall to prove she existed. Now, she marks another, to prove she is thriving.