Clexa - Blog Posts

Clexa + Parallels Lil’ gift for you Erin, I know how much you love these. I hope it will “cheer you up”’. Thank you for everything. But this gifset is also for all the Clexa fans as well. THANK YOU FOR BEING AWESOME.

I got a new job about a year ago. It’s an IT job and part of my job involves supporting desktops running different operating systems. Every morning I log into: wanheda (Linux), heda (windows) and clexa (OSX). They are all running smoothly.

Yes yes yes! Thank you!

Recently Updated Works-in-Progress Clexa Fic Recommendations

Howdy Clexakru! For our next installment of Clexa fic recommendations, I am focusing on Recently Updated Works-In-Progress. The majority of these fics have been updated within the past couple months. There are so many great WIP out there, so this is Part 1. I may do another list that focuses on those WIP that have been updated in the past 6-months or so (cause writers have lives too and shouldn’t be overlooked just because they aren’t able to update sooner). Without further ado:

A Crown Seldom Enjoyed by @onemilliongoldstars: Oh hell yes the Game of Thrones crossover you never knew you needed (well that’s a lie, we have all been secretly pining for this fic). This author’s writing style is beautifully romantic but completely realistic. It is soft when necessary but strong when it matters. It is, in one word, enrapturing. I tried to wait till this was complete so I could binge it, but I couldn’t wait. It was totally worth going to bed at 3am to finish it.

Earning it Back, Heart Upon the Southern Ground, and Behind the Stars by @sassymajesty: Guys, I don’t know how to explain to you in words the extent to which I love this author’s writings. The angst, the slow burn, the fluff, the angst, the love, the heartbreak, did I mention the angst? Jesus the last update of EIB was perfection but I am so scared of what lies ahead. When reading these fics I am always reminded of the saying “nothing worth having in this world comes easy”.

For Madi by thelovelypintobean: Fair warning, this is a Bellarke engagement but a Clexa endgame (OK OK STOP YELLING, HEAR ME OUT). Bellamy and Clarke have a kid together, Madi, but Clarke is in love with her best friend, Lexa. Bellamy proposes and Clarke says yes “for Madi” (Hey, that’s the title of the fic!). What I really like so far is that Lexa and Clarke don’t fight their attraction, like in so many fics. They are magnets that can’t help themselves when they are alone. Chapter 2 is a little messy with a bunch of new characters but keep going because it is shaping up to be a good ride.

My Heart is the Hardest to Break by @jazzyjazzin: Lexa tutors Clarke and in return gets tips on how to make a girl fall in love with her (as if anyone wouldn’t just fall in love with Lexa at first sight). Of course, Clarke is oblivious as to where Lexa’s true feelings lie. This has been such a roller coaster of emotions and the payoff has been worth it. I can’t wait to see how this ends.

Except You Love by @theproseofnight: I’m going to need a broom to sweep up my broken heart after reading this one. Clarke and Lexa break up after a once-in-a-lifetime romance due to opposite responses to a tragedy. The emotional breakdown this author creates is captivating. The layered details of the before, during, and after break-up scenes are reminiscent of the style of Lover in Low Light (for those who know their Clexa fic history, you know that is not a compliment to be taken lightly).

Battle Lines 2 by @gorgondrifter: This is a sequel to Battle Lines (hence the “2”). I tell you, I just adore this series. Battle Lines starts right after Clarke and Lexa do the naughty but Lexa doesn’t die. There is loads of love and pining between the two. I really enjoy the exploration of the “what if Lexa didn’t die” canon divergent stories and this one always puts a smile on my face. The writing style is fast-paced, gives just enough detail to keep you interested, and has matured over the course of the series. Give this a shot.

She’s New by @artsy-polarbear: Ah, did you think I would forget about this one? Hell no! I am adoring this take of a nerdy, lonely Clarke and a popular, outgoing Lexa. This is refreshing compared to how most fics imagine the two characters. However, many of the qualities we love about the two remain. We still have protective Lexa and oblivious Clarke. I read this one with a never-ending smile on my face.

Sleepless in Seattle by @lorig11: Do you want to laugh out loud on the metro and have everyone look at you like you are crazy? Do you want to have to stifle a laugh behind your hand while sitting in a quiet doctor’s office? Well have I got the fic for you! I freaking love the fun, witty style of this author’s works. If the humor brings you in, it’s the deep, well-written connection between Clarke and Lexa that makes you stay. The last update had me throwing a temper tantrum like a child who just got told pizza was not a vegetable.

Devotion to Duty, Stellar Collision, Polis Tattoo, Breaking the Ice, Titanic: The Untold Story by @thessclexa: Is that 5 WIP all updated recently?! Yes, yes it is! And the best part? They are all amazing! I honestly cannot tell you which one is my favorite because they are all so different and amazing. Spend a Sunday binging these and it will be a Sunday well spent (or just blow off work to read them, like I did).

Closer by @rivertalesien: Clarke is an escort and Lexa is one of her clients. What happens when identities are discovered and feelings develop? There is an intelligence to this writing that I haven’t seen in awhile. The author requires the reader to pay attention to time and place as the story unfolds. I am enamored by that author’s phrasing choices, such as “sensual carnality”. Clarke’s switch from soft to dominating beautifully reflects her internal battle with her feelings.

Heaven Sent by @effortlesslyopulent: Clarke was sent down to Earth many years before the Ark crashes. She and Lexa marry and rule together. Now the Ark has crashed and Clarke’s loyalties are tested. Oh how I adore this fic! As the angst grows, Lexa and Clarke’s love grows with it. For anyone who has been asked to choose between family or the love of your life, you will relate to Clarke’s “decision” in the latest chapter.

Show Me Your Colors by CommanderHearteyes071215: Clarke teaches at Arkadia HIgh and Lexa is the new teacher. Lexa is cold and stand-offish but Clarke is determined to get to know her. Guys, the banter between the two is fantastic. Their favorite thing to say to each other? “I hate you”, “I hate you too”. They are both oblivious to their mutual love but they aren’t fooling those around them. This has been such a fun and easy read.

Everything Is The Same As It Was by @aphrodites-law: One day all 7 billion people on earth vanish - except for Clarke. At least, that’s what she thought until she was staring down the barrel of Lexa’s gun. It is so Clexa that is would take the end of the world for them to find each other. This is a slow burn, fluffy fic about two sweet souls just trying to find something worth living for. A comforting-type of fic.

Lancelot by @almostafantasia: Kingsman/Secret Agent AU. Lexa is a British secret agent (oh yeah she has a British accent in this one; you’re welcome) and Clarke is the President’s daughter. During a mission gone wrong, they both find themselves instantly drawn to each other. This fic is filled with lighthearted Anya bantering and action-packed scenes. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the ride so far.

Well, that’s the list for now. If there are any lists you would like to see in the future, drop me a line. I have some ideas lined up already. Until next time, remember to spread the love to all our amazing authors.

awesome! the never ending joy of this fandom

this week on who wants to hide their feelings

(insp.)

This! Thank you @entirelytookeen :)

How come you didn’t ship bellarke before clexa happened, and now that clexa is finished, why not ship bellarke? I’m just curious and also a little envious as our fandom does not have as good writers as you (yes I am a bellarke shipper)

I confessed in a post about why I love Bellamy that when I started the show, I did so because I found the aesthetic and premise appealing, but I’d first heard noise about it because there was a really popular femslash pairing. (This was midway between season two.) I thought, “with my luck the dynamic between the girls will be boring twee sweetness and I’ll end up shipping the heroine with this goober I can tell is CW-flavored endgame from the first ten minutes of the pilot. Because I already love that goober.”

But I was wrong! Not just about how Clexa played out, but also about Bellamy and Clarke, as I further expand on in that post about him. I tend to ship characters who believe in the same thing, but have wildly different approaches to how to get it – so the fundamental understanding between them is there, but the tension between their methodologies leads to interpersonal friction that (hopefully) leads to better mutual understanding. (I didn’t sit down and decide I would do it this way, of course, I’ve just noticed a pattern.) That’s Clexa in a nutshell.

But it’s not Bellamy and Clarke – they’re the polar opposite in my opinion. They believe and strive for very different things, and all they share is an investment in propping up the system they believe will lead to their different goals, or prioritizing the people who will do the same. If anything I anti-ship them, not because of silly fandom squabbles but because I think they bring out the worst in each other if unchecked. 

So much of their interaction in seasons one and two (again, I stopped watching after three and I’m completely uninterested in any other seasons, so please don’t write me saying I’m “wrong” because of them) leads to the most grim and traumatic outcomes: Lincoln’s torture, pulling the lever at Mount Weather, even Bellamy’s undercover mission and the fall of TonDC. They weren’t the only variables at work in those situations, of course. But because of their lack of similar ethos but shared logos, when it’s just the two of them? In close quarters? That’s when bad shit goes down. 

To be fair, this is also why I like them as friends. They’re both carrying really deep emotional scars from life on the Ark, so they’re kinda like… trauma buddies. The emotional abuse they’ve both suffered really has removed their sense of when to put on the breaks, as it were, and I like the idea that they can look at each other and say, “thank goodness for someone else who realizes there is no such thing as constancy, or permanent safety, all we really have are coping methods that help us get better at pretending. Someone else who will do, quite literally, whatever it takes.” But at brass tacks this is a really poisonous worldview, as even their behavior acting as individuals can back up. And while I like the idea they can look at each other and feel less alone to see someone who is broken in similar ways, if I want them to heal, they need to be shaken up and shaken out of it. 

I don’t think they’re capable of doing that for each other. Together, Bellamy and Clarke tend to fall back into old, Ark-era roles or patterns of behavior – understandable, since they’ve been conditioned to see each other in those roles since birth. (Even when they fight, they’re more fighting the ideas of each other left over from the Ark.) Turning that into a romance feels like romanticizing those abusive systems, i.e. “their love cancels out their trauma.” And I have to be honest, the fandom surrounding them seems to buy into that, with the whole “she’s his princess, he’s her soldier” shtick which I find… repellent.

(not to bash your ship, bunny, but you did ask)

So I was never going to ship them, regardless. And even now, the thought of them ending up together is less upsetting because of Lexa’s presence or lack thereof, and more because Raven and Bellamy are the clear standouts as a (still-living) couple: thematically, narratively, and even in terms of actor chemistry. If Bellamy and Clarke are endgame, it’s just another nail in the coffin of incredibly poor writing and tone-deaf characterization that led to the show becoming unwatchable in its third season. (Instead of, again, Lexa’s presence or lack thereof.) When I used to get angry at the thought of Clarke and Bellamy together, it’s because I believed the show was better than that; I don’t anymore, and that’s what makes me sad. 

… so now that’s cleared up, let me take a moment. 

Not to rap your knuckles or anything, but Clexa is not “over.” I’m sure you were just speaking in terms of continuance in canon… but still. I’m going to take this opportunity to put it out there that coming into the blog of someone who so (passionately) ships two female characters and asking them, if one was killed off, why they don’t just switch to the heterosexual pairing that involves the character left standing, is not a good look! I’m flattered you like my writing so much and I’m going to take your question as the compliment I’m sure you meant it, but I feel like I would be doing you something of a disservice if I gave the impression that it didn’t also cross a line.

Even if you missed my posts on what an amazing, perspective-shifting experience it’s been for me as a lesbian to write romances between two women for an audience who is hungry for exactly those stories, this remains a Not-Good Look. Considering the rate at which lesbian and bisexual female characters are killed off, taking their deaths as a reason to stop shipping – as in, stop celebrating their stories and love, stop writing the potential that was unexplored, stop honoring what pieces of representation they did provide and why death does not impact its importance – would basically mean the death of femslash fandom as a whole. Which is exactly what the wrong kind of people want. Especially the predominantly male, cis, white, and heterosexual showrunners who see any story that is not an extension of their own lived experience or reflective of how their experiences are the best and should be taken as universal. (#notallmaleciswhitehetshowrunners) 

I think shipping as activism is misguided, but at the same time I can believe that an audience caring about the “wrong” couples is a finger in the eye of people who make their livings persuading others that whiteness and heterosexuality are the only valuable commodities. Those people are genuinely threatened by an audience who wants the girl to get the girl, or who rallies around heterosexual couples where not just one but both characters are played by actors of color. Because American television is very much part of the capitalist machine, and if they can’t use it to skew the value of concepts they feel they “own” – that the main dude has to prioritize the white female lead over all other romantic prospects, that the bisexual heroine can suffer interestingly in relationships with other women but her happy endgame has to be with a dude – they have to fall back on things like writing talent, and, well. 

I’m wandering into the weeds a bit, but my point stands: if I stop shipping the characters I love just because the people in charge decided one of them had to die, the terrorists win it would be antithetical to fandom itself. A large part of the purpose of fandom is to reclaim popular narratives from those who would use them to toxic ends, to prove that systematic privilege does not mean you get to completely dictate the destinies of those who lack it – even in fiction. 

So they killed Lexa. That’s within their purview. But that can’t touch Clexa. It would be an error to translate their mistakes as impact. Or to believe their actions should, in any way, guide my own. 

And Kane just backs up to move out of bell’s way. Wtf?

Day 655 without Lexa

Bell unnecessarily inserting him into a situation yet again– probably just jealous of the intense eye-fucking that happened immediately prior to this

I kinda love this, especially spray painted Heda spoon. Oops! I meant , “ spray painted Heda front spoon and protector of the Clarke”. Let it be known that there is front and back or top and bottom spoon.

i didn’t notice this before bc the scene is so tender & beautiful & the filming is so up close & at like this weird angle but clarke is def spooning lexa?? like she traces up her arm & like it’s so clear but i couldn’t see it

lexa, commander of the blood, was the little spoon

Lexa’s expression as she listens to Clarke in this scene is so intense! I would love to hear Lexa’s internal monologue as she listens to Clarke. « Clarke is so beautiful, confident and smart. And intense. I imagine she is really good in bed, her passion, focus, intensity... Oh jok! Clarke asked me a question. Focus and spit something out. That wasn’t so bad. Phew. Jok! She was not impressed hmmm ... what is Quint doing. Oh wow! Clarke is so amazing. Wait where is she going? Air ...? I need Air. Okay, call a recess and then casually follow her with an expendable warrior. Here we go... »

Oh my! One of the best clexa fanfics presented as a graphic novel? Yes please!

Lightning Only Strikes Once: A Clexa Comic

      Lexa? Lexa? Oh my god, she’s coming back! You are invited to join us on this journey with Clarke and Lexa as we bring them to life in a comic book series!       Lightning Only Strikes Once: A Clexa Comic is an adaption of the popular fanfiction written by Fiona. The story sends our heroes back to the beginning of The 100, from which it’ll change the events of the first two seasons of the show and then spin a completely original new story. Certain plot points and developments will be similar, but many will diverge from the original television program. Subjects such as xenophobia, racism, queer baiting, and many others for which the show has been criticized will be treated with the utmost care to ensure that the same mistakes are not repeated.       We started this project to bring the writing of Lightning Only Strikes Once to life and help fans see a whole new story play out, but we need your help to make this happen. We are launching a GoFundMe page to help crowdfund the production costs. Our goal is to produce a quality comic book. Additionally, we are donating a portion of each book order to the Koh Tao International Primary fundraiser promoted by Eliza. The funds would help sustain the running costs of the school and support as many children as possible so that they can receive the education they all deserve.

Get your book now!

     To get the latest updates and sneak peeks, visit our blog to learn more about the project and how you can be a part of this charitable venture!

About Us // FAQ // Contact Us

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Slick!

“The next commander will protect you”

-I don’t want the next commander, I want you

(Clarke and Lexa, 3x07)

@aaronginsburg so glad InStyle posted that great pic of Lexa. Too bad all y'all queer baiters killed her in the third season.

MOVE OVER, ICE DRAGON!

Hugely honored to be on InStyle’s fun, new list!

Check out the whole list by CLICKING HERE.