holding grudges like they're a hand
— heavens, why can't it be your hand?
❝ Our Forest of Thorns ❞
written by llxcifers / izabela
THEY SAY HUNGRY DOGS ARE NEVER LOYAL. Starve anything for long enough and you will come face to face with what survival of the fittest truly looks like — a figure of spite, of rawness, of sheer fucking will to satiate everything that has ever been lacking in its life.
Oftentimes, Daphne Ravinstill found herself thinking back to the history before, the history that laid entire centuries before the foundation of Panem had even been conceived, a history otherwise shrouded in secrecy and doubt, hidden in texts from languages lost to the war against nature and desperate mankind. It was inexplicably satisfying to her to know she's amongst the last few humans to see Panem as the re-imagined Rome, and not simply as a motherland that exists beyond the rules of causality. Great empires dictated the way the world worked and only to those who knew what came before did the future finally seem less taunting and more so predictable.
As the daughter of President Ravinstill, Daphne was a darling to the Capitol torn and impoverished in the aftermath whimpers of war.
As the President's second born child however, she was but an unfortunate afterthought who has only ever been given the stamp of 'second best'.
Her father only ever had eyes for his first born son, who was in every each way better than she could ever hope to be — " You cannot expect inferiority to recognize superiority; and to delay success for the sake of making sense to smaller minds is blasphemy, " she learnt to tell herself as her cold home drove her into seeking through all means available the path that would satisfy her insatiable spirit best, that would fill her voids and clip the thorns on her roses too.
THEY FOUND EACH OTHER WALKING DOWN THE SAME PATH.
IN WHICH . . . Coriolanus Snow befriends the daughter of President Ravinstill during his Academy years, and she proves to be more than a perfect ally, more than even the bottomless fountain to his joy — Daphne Ravinstill is his equal, the match he long since desired, but has only recently realized he needs.
M A I N • C A S T
Anya Taylor-Joy is
DAPHNE RAVINSTILL
— there is no mystery to it :
to love is to be weak.
you make me weak.
Tom Blyth is
CORIOLANUS SNOW
— you came into my life
to take everything & every
step of the way, i let you.
P L A Y L I S T
I. HOW VILLAINS ARE MADE by Madalen Duke
— " so easily we're persuaded " + " when the lines are blurred and faded "
II. WIRES by The Neighborhood
— " you knew the game and played it "
III. PACIFY HER by Melanie Martinez
— " you don't love her " + " stop lying with those words "
IV. DINNER & DIATRIBES by Hozier
— " honey, i laugh when it sinks in " + " a pillar i am of pride "
V. MONEY POWER GLORY by Lana Del Rey
— " i want money and all your power, all your glory "
VI. NDA by Billie Eilish
— " you couldn't save me, but you can't let me go " + " i can crave you, but you don't need to know "
VII. JEALOUSY, JEALOUSY by Olivia Rodrigo
— " comparison is killing me slowly "
VIII. KLETKA by Molchat Doma
— " where do they open without ringing ? "
IX. SAVAGES by Marina
— " murder lives forever and so does war " + " it's survival of the fittest, rich against the poor "
X. GOLD by Imagine Dragons
— " only at first did it have its appeal " + " but now you can't tell the false from the real "
AN ODE TO NOBODY'S SON
AND NOBODY'S DAUGHTER
DISCLAIMER | I do not own, nor claim right over "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" and any of its related titles, lore, settings, characters and plot lines. This is a work of fiction and I only claim right over my own original characyers and their respective plot lines, with afferent lore additions/modifications and new settings. Please do not steal anything.
COPYRIGHT | llxcifers / izabela
TIMELINE |
Takes place during TBOSAS, with flashbacks to moments that would come before the book. I won't follow the action of the book word for word though, since Daphne will not be a mentor during the games.
RATING | 18+ / Rated R
( for possible depictions of violence )
DEDICATIONS |
Cheers to y'all & happy hunger games ~
-folklorist raichia moonslver fireestar
ivysbookgarden mayamaybe29 sparkspiastri
redhandledmachete venusmidnights
dazy_shines -naaprema MegxPeg
c00chieravager leoslcve coruscvnts
AUTHOR'S NOTE |
• Daphne and Coryo are too pretty fr — also absolute love how Sejanus and Daphne are gonna agree on the "games are useless" but for whole different reasons; gosh it will be so amusing to have him think they finally found common ground only for Daphne to shut him off with her own reasoning that is downright gorgeousss 🤣
• Fair warning that imma be posting an "extended cast" chapter for this fic real soon 'cause I got a few more important oc's to show off, like Daphne's brother, her father etc.
• There's something truly special to me about Daphne's interests, which we will know more about through the story, but as a tease before we dive in — nuclear physics, ancient history.. My girl is about to be the academic weapon role model hah.
• Now, let's take a moment to talk about the gifs, the video and the damn cover I made for this book cause man, I gave this my ALL