#forkle

you find out that linh and tam's mother misses them and regrets what she did, to the point where she becomes more forgiving and lenient; painting awkward portraits of her children because she's beginning to forget what they look like. but despite the pity, none of it is framed in a way that tries to excuse her and her husband's actions. tam and linh will always be the ones who decide whether or not to forgive them, but the narrative doesn't push the idea that they should.

it's revealed that cassius does love his son deeply, and every time he laughs and joke, a tiny part of him is happy when he sees his son smile. but instead of formulating sophie to feel bad for him, she's furious at the idea that him loving keefe will ever make up for the years of neglect his son had to go through.

it's told time and time again that gisela believes that what she's doing will be good for the world-- and therefore good for keefe. but the story doesn't even entertain the notion of understanding gisela for what she did to her child because nothing would ever justify the lies and manipulation.

1: are there going to be any lgbt elves???

2: what happened to magnate Letos wife

3: why is Tinker so terrified of explosives

4: what is Fintan and Bronte’s ‘long history’

Fintan - constantly talking about arson and rebelling against world leaders to establish my own dictatorship where I also bring back the guillotine

Elwin - giving friends snacks throughout the day to prevent them from starving bc we had late lunch

Forkle - making a purple mustache and taping it on my face while also wearing a beret

Quite a few, actually.

Some of these are going to be a writer talking about a writer's stylistic choices, and some of them are going to be a fan talking about the content creator's possibilities.

The Coward's Way Out(I would not put it past Shannon to do this): It was all a dream. Everything was a dream. Sophie got hit by that car and has been in the hospital since, in a coma for the past four years. None of it was real.

The Unsatisfactory Ending: Nothing is tied up well at all. All the villains live, the council is still full of jerks. Sophie's still having a mental crisis. Keefe is still off being an idiot. But hey, at least the plot is... sort of done. There's going to be a sequel series, though. It's going to be twice as long. Maybe Sophie and Fitz are dating again at the end, but none of their pressing problems have been solved.

The Boss Battle Ending: Everything culminates in one last battle. Everything ends here. This is usually what I go for when I write stuff that takes place within canon that hasn't been dealt with by Shannon yet. Like, it all gets tied neatly with a bow. A bunch of people are dead, possibly some of our faves, some adults, all the Neverseen officials, etc. Everything is done, over, and will never be resurfaced. Because the war has been won on a battlefield.

The Annoying Ending: So idk if anyone's read The Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard. If you have, you remember how the last book was just endless discussions of war and politics and Mare going back and forth between hating and loving Cal? Yeah. Imagine that, but it's the council and Sophie and Keefe. Because it's just exhausting and endless. And by the time you get to the end of the book, all you've got is a girl with some earrings and some emotional damage and a life that's in ruins and a guy that's somehow still waiting for her despite how it would be better-- Okay. I'm sorry. But a long drawn out war discussion would be really annoying. Gimme action or gimme death.

The Feel Good Ending: This is literally just going to be found family good vibes. The comfort we've all been wanting, craving, needing. They're chilling or eating dinner or laughing or talking or just being whole again. The world is done trying to hurt them. They're finally free from the chains of being the saviors of the world, and they're finally allowed to be kids again. They'll be okay. It's finally, really, truly going to be okay.

The Sokeefe Ending: It ends with a Sokeefe confession/kiss. That's honestly all I want in this world. I want it to end with them kissing in the rain. I want it. So bad. Please. And if I could get a hunger-games-esque flash forward I would cry. Thank.

The Twist Ending: Some key piece of information is revealed at the last moment. Something important, something needed. And, just like that, all the stakes change. All the weapons shift. The entire stance of the book is altered. Now, loyalties have varied. Sides have shifted. People are having breakdowns. How do you keep going? Some of them won't. Some of them have to. Who's going to be able to make it out alive? No one knows until you get to the last page, staring at the book that has held so much of your life, and whispering, softly, "what the fuckkkk"

The Memory Loss/Lazy Writer Ending: Basically any cheap wrap-up tactic that sets up another series. Memory erasing, mysterious illness, the Neverseen destroying themselves, blah blah blah. Something cheap and quick and easily swallowed by editors so they let you take the next year off before starting the sequel series.

Happily Ever After: Everything. Is. Done. Everything is finished, all the plot points are dealt with. Every character gets a satisfying ending, from Tam getting hugs and Keefe coming home to Sophie getting to sleep at night again and Dex getting page time to Stina getting character growth and Biana dying her hair purple. Everything solved, everything finished, you sit, softly, holding the book, and feel like everything has come to an end. Everything is done. And you're not sad. You're happy. Because the characters are happy. The void in your chest is filled, knowing that they went where they needed to go.

Sad ending: All your darlings are dead. Never coming back. Everything hurts. I'm not even going to say what could happen here. But everyone could die. I'm talking Divergent levels of character death. Like, sweet and holy stars dEATH. Like, all the death you'd never want and more. And who's left crying at the end? Who watches the world burn? Who's sobbing as everything they loved is taken? Who won the war, but lost everything else? Is it Sophie? Is it Fitz? Is it Keefe? Is it Linh? Tam? Wylie? Teirgan? Forkle? Gisela? Who is left? And why are they crying?