iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 18h

Honestly wasn't expecting this to come out as well as it did 😆

A Ryanair plane flying over a wall/tower (in the bottom portion of the photo) against blue skies.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 22h

Amazing things happening on my Facebook 15 years ago when if only I’d known it could get so much worse.

On this day
15 years ago

15 Oct 2011

Getting sick of the writers thinking of excuses for Arthur to hate magic. Bored now.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 23h

Thank you! I’m sure I’ll enjoy it. The entire series is like that, it’s quite nice for just paperbacks! Below is my copy of Morgoth’s Ring. (Of course I am me, and I still have my eye on the hefty leather bound HoMe boxset that’s about £250 😂)

Morgoth’s Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien and edited by Christopher Tolkien.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 15/10/2026

Ex-brother-in-law got me a voucher for my birthday. Whalefall has been on my tbr for a while so let’s get to it. Beren and Lúthien was probably my fave section of The Silmarillion. I know this version is a bit different (e.g. has more Melkor) so I’m interested to see its evolution tbh!

Two paperback books. Beren and Lúthien by J.R.R. Tolkien (edited by Christopher Tolkien) and Whalefall by Daniel Kraus.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

The most upvotes I’ve had on anything for a while 😂

Comment one:

Please don't judge me too harshly, but I was into George yelling at Paddy.

Comment two:

We don't kink shame here.

Comment three:
'Look at me when I'm talking to you' OK go off king

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

You’ll probably see from the photo he was talking about something very serious, but please still excuse me while I scream a bit 😁

George Fouracres on Instagram liking a comment to his post (linking to a petition) that says “Happy Birthday George. Everything you said here needed saying…”

(The rest of the comment isn’t visible.)

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

I know it's not exactly a reach to do dark tower + lava forge so I'm not like... a literary genius or anything. But I'm really pleased with how sorta close I got heh. (#TROPspoilers <- just in case folk don't want to see the set image.)

Inside Barad-dûr as depicted in Season 3 of The Rings of Power. A tall dark archway with lava visible behind it is in the background of the image. In front of three shallow steps resides a stone forge with two Orcs pouring something into a recess. In frotn of this, a shadowy figure observes (probably Sauron - he's wearing a spiky crown.)

Enveloped on all sides by rock and earth, she could no longer perceive the mountain. But its presence clawed at her still. By what trickery she could not say how lava glowing hot flowed from the magma chamber deep into the dark tower. Its oppressive orange glow covered her cheeks, ripples dancing across her eyes as it cascaded, silently yet no less deadly, down the forge’s enormous walls—borne away by channels scored into an obsidian floor.

Galadriel paused, noting the way her light reflected beneath her soles. Then, she whipped her head around quickly, distracted by another reflection formed between two distinct lava flows. The walls too were highly polished, and doppelgängers turned to face her from all sides.

Alone, she thought. I am alone with only my mirrored selves attending me.

Advancing further, she spied a large, raised platform at the back of the chamber. The forge itself was nestled within a blackened recess, the jagged rocks hewed a little too symmetrically to have occurred naturally. Even now, with no work taking place, the flames blazed ferociously. A singular eye illuminating the shadows that reached for it.

Galadriel’s breath caught the moment her foot made contact with the lowest step. Long skirts bunched in her fists, she paused, her spine rigid and eyes fixed on the anvil set before the fire.

A vague, shadowy shape—taller than a man, lurked next to an orderly tool bench. It didn’t move. Not at first. Not until it inhaled deeply, its head rolling above broad and angular shoulders as bones creaked and clicked.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

I do stand by this part enough to post it here though.

It also never stops amusing me that people will claim that they find [ship or character] ridiculous or boring, yet they can't seem to stop talking about [ship or character] and whatever fans of [ship or character] are up to NOW, however obliquely. Like, there comes a point where you're actually a fan.
You're just in denial about it. Again, this isn't unique to one side of the fandom and if you think it is - your biases are winning.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 03/10/2026

Aww, I remember seeing this and thinking it was possibly as far south as I'd ever been, and feeling a little in awe of the amount of ocean between me and the next bit of land at that moment.

Sea arch over a blue ocean with waves crashing against rocks below. The sky is very blue.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 02/10/2026

Cleaning up my phone and I’m deadly serious that Rings of Power should do this as a DVD bonus or something.

A WhatsApp screenshot.

Person 1:

“Maybe Elrond and Sauron should have a fight scene but both using their actor’s real accents for the lolz.”

Person 2:

“And Galadriel in the background saying proper Welsh things.”

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Love how I was obviously on holiday some of last month 😆

Storygraph September wrap-up showing -

- 6 books read
- 1,941 pages
- Average rating of 3.75

The average book length was 323 pages and average time to finish 4 days.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

My evening summed up… Bunny dress, Hell Ramen and King’s Theatre.

Woman wearing a pale blue dress with white rabbit pattern.

A bowl of Hell Ramen at Maki and Ramen in Glasgow.

A view of the stage from the stalls, quite close to the front, at the King’s Theatre in Glasgow.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Yes, and I have two of him now 😂 (This photo is from last year, I might’ve posted it before!)

LEGO Sauron mini figure held aloft in front of Barad-dûr.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Mr. Catherloki knows me well exhibit 5981. (He said, “well - you do own his house,” about the LEGO to which I obviously had to reply, “I own ONE of his houses… he’s had like, five.”)

Lord of the Rings LEGO set of Sauron’s helmet and a birthday card depicting Rocky from the film adaptation of Project Hail Mary. He’s saying, “happy happy happy birthday!”

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

I finished the last of the physical books I brought. Part set in NSW in a strange coastal town, part set in the past while two sisters are transported from Ireland on a convict ship… it’s very heavy on the magical realism. Also very heavy on the intergenerational sisterhood and, “fuck men” lmao.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Last day of guaranteed uninterrupted reading 😔

View from a sun lounger by a hotel swimming pool. There’s palm trees and wooden umbrellas visible under a blue sky.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

I kinda keep my Hades and Persephone love on the down low because everyone assumes you like that fuckass Lore Olympus interpretation. No actually, I’ve liked Greek mythology since I was a wean *and* I’m kinda obsessed with death. That’s literally it!

Statues of Persephone and Pluto (Hades) with Cerberus at Pluto’s feet.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

I finished the short story collection. Whatever’s going on with Korean sci-fi/horror writing, I like it. Now I’m reading this. I lowkey have beef with many mythological retellings, but I was intrigued that this is a dual narrative switching between Hela and an Orcadian woman in the modern day.

The Shapeshifter’s Daughter by Sally Magnusson.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Just read the titular story in this collection. A cursed lamp that comes to life, multiplies and eats all the company records (so they eventually get done for financial crimes) AND makes the CEO eventually off himself? We stan an anti-capitalist queen.

Cover of Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung depicting a pink rabbit on a purple background.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Me and my very black T-shirt had fun dying in the sun and saying hello to the Minotaur.

Replica/restored columns at the palace of Knossos. The mural depicts a bull/Minotaur figure. It is very sunny.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Thoughts and prayers for Mr. Catherloki who has to be seen with me in public. (We’re going to Knossos today.)

A woman with red hair photographing her back in a hotel room mirror. Her black T-shirt has the name Sauron printed on the back and an image of him wearing armour as depicted in the Fellowship of the Ring film adaptation.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

You know you get that genre of North American who comes to the UK and is astonished to be around manmade things just sitting there (among everything else) that are hundreds of years older than what they’re used to back home? This is sometimes how I feel about places like Greece.

Photo of the remains of a Roman capital city on the island of Crete. There’s a road on the left and partial remains of some buildings, though nothing much taller than the foundations or very bottom of a structure. A tower like structure is in the background. There are mountains and trees.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Bit different with the crowd there today and yes, you can’t tell from this photo but it was actually sunny 😂

A stage on the right with a crowd of people in front of it and the same ferris wheel and tent from yesterday on the left.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

The only thing I'll say about today from a personal perspective is that perhaps unusually (for the average European), I've been to the WTC memorial twice. First in 2012 when the museum wasn't even open yet (first image) and then last year when they were cleaning/repairing one of the pools.

One of the reflecting/memorial pools at the former World Trade Centre site taken in September 2012 with the museum (not opened yet then) in the background.

A WTC memorial pool in July 2025 completely emptied of water and no water cascading into it. The pool was under maintenance.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

You call me superstitious/Tie me up with your deceit/I could never be malicious/Though I seem bittersweet.

View of a large green space with a stage set up on the right and a tent plus ferris wheel on the left. The sky is blue with a few clouds.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 10/09/2026

Science Fiction that errs a bit on the side of fantasy. None of the aliens are humanoid/bipedal and linguistic differences are acknowledged by different pronoun use. Genuine world building that can be a bit confusing at times. Lovely but complicated human-alien friendship at the centre. Enjoyed it.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

So you can see what I mean... a shot underneath a bridge that was much more artistic in my head when I took it, but you can see the purple hue pretty well.

The river underneath a bridge. The arch of the bridge dominates the entire shot with the river and bridge supports visible in the bottom right corner.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

The thing about film is, you really don't know what you're gonna get until the photos are developed. S had to edit this for me into black and white because the colours came out a little weird (mainly green and purple.)

A railway bridge and train over the River Clyde in Glasgow. The line leds to Central station. There's a tower block visible on the left-hand side in the background.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Potential holiday pile? I’ve got some stuff on my Kindle as well. The issue with physical books is I try not to shove too many in my suitcase 😂

Books from left to right -

- The Sirens by Emilia Hart
- Audition by Katie Kitamura
- The Shapeshifter’s Daughter by Sally Magnusson
- Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

*Thinking* I wonder what I was up to two years ago today... (My friend Daniel there was also afflicted.)

Not watched S2 yet but it‘s all over my tumblr dash. Very annoyed yet again that Sauron being hot in his human/elven forms is actually Tolkien canon but a TV show went and did it for real and they definitely saw people like me coming a mile off. I do not need this.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 30/08/2026

A week ago I felt on a roll. Was filling in a bit of dialogue in future planned chapters but it's interesting how this Half-Maia Celebrían fic was leading me to writing minor Celrond AND also, "why is she still called Celebrían?" Maybe one day... I will feel well enough to come back to you :(

“My heart would gladly accept you… “

“But?”

“Must you sound so crestfallen?”

“So, there is a ‘but’ after all.”

“Something is wrong with me, Elrond. I could not burden you with it. And our children,” she said, raising a hand to her mouth.

“I would remind you, that of the two of us, I am the one with the hmm, unique heritage.”

Celebrían snorted. “You maintain the lie almost as well as my mother.”

“I don’t under—”

“—please Elrond! I have long suspected something is amiss; will you not be honest? Consider it an engagement gift.”

Elrond hesitated. “I have told you before, far more evasively—it is not my place. You must ask your lady mother.”

“And what if… I do not like the answer.”

“In asking that question, I am confident you have made a reasonable deduction.”

“I—am I evil, Elrond?”

“No. It does not work that way; foul deeds are not inherited. And there is nothing else wrong with you either.”

“It is a drain on you,” said Celeborn, taking her hands in his. “I can feel it.”

Galadriel brightened a little. So hopeful that her husband could pretend as much as she did; that a new truth bloomed from the weeds she had cultivated with her lies.

But there was little warmth surrounding Celeborn for now. He still wore his pain plainly, his jaw set while he continued to dutifully rub her knuckles.

“Help me,” Galadriel begged. “Please.”

“I am not the right person for this,” he said, coldly.

“Please… I know you cannot forgive me yet, and you perhaps never will. But believe me, there is no-one else I need to do this.”

Celeborn softened, a small, resigned smile pulling at his mouth.

“It is a girl,” he remarked, moving a hand down to Galadriel’s stomach. His touch was gentle, attentive enough that Galadriel could believe he had taken the first step. That he could accept the child and raise her as his own.

“You can feel her?”

“Yes,” replied Celeborn. He met her gaze, his eyes shining with tears. “Everything else aside, I sense, I know she will be important to me.”

“I wish for you to name her.”

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

Difficult book to get my head around because I think I mostly liked it but it couldn’t decide what it wanted to be? It’s one part friendship and belonging, another part sorta psychological thriller and a main character who is a fantasist. Always enjoy Glasgow featuring in a book though!

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Love walking through my city when everything in the world feels shit, but sometimes there’s wee reminders that being true to yourself and your beliefs isn’t pointless.

Statue in Glasgow commemorating those who fought against fascism in Spain 1936-39.

A woman is holding up her hands in a v-shape and the quote reads: better to die on your feet than live for ever on your knees.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

You don’t know the 2026 Scotland eclipse. She goes to another school.

View of the cloudy sky between two rows of tenements. I swear the sun is actually there somewhere.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Apparently driving myself loopy for two hours on Sunday creating a master list on tumblr turned out to be worth it eventually 😆 (Short term gains of course as not everyone looks in the tags.)

Screenshot of an AO3 kudos email with kudos left on eight different fics.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 08/08/2026

Badge making at a community gala. I resisted the temptation to end up explaining why I had one of the most evil symbols on my chest and did fire instead (close enough 😆)

A badge saying the name Catherine with a smiley face above and a flame below pinned to a black jacket.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

Really spoiling my fic sigh (as I'm writing it) but... I'm just enjoying picking apart Sauron's brand of crazy/delusional too much... (More potential dialogue but idk if it'll stay this way. It should be obvious who's who in terms of who's being addressed 😆)

“I will never forget you, my master. Alas, it is time we do this my way.”

“I wish I could have kept you. But you always loved your children more.”

“I still dream of you accepting your place by my side. We would have been perfect.”

“It broke my heart to kill you. Our time together was… beautiful.”

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Gonna be vulnerable again. I will admit that yes, sometimes I have wondered why ‘big’ accounts won’t read my fics and it’s all got tied up in worrying my writing/plots suck (or people are making judgements based on one sided accounts of things.) I may not have a huge readership but I have this.

Just wanted to pop in and let you know that I absolutely DEVOURED your work and find it to be wonderful! I thought about commenting on your update chapter but figured I'd pop in here since I have more (good) to say about this work as a whole. Not that you necessarily NEED to be reminded that your worth isn't dependent on how others respond to your work (as you've already recognized the dissonance between the logic and the feeling there), but this really was lovely. I feel like there's a dearth of Annatariel fics that aren't DDDNE, so it's always refreshing to find one like yours that, while dark, is still a happy ending (depending on how you look at it).
Anyway, hope you're doing better and I'm going to hop over and see what else you have in store!

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

VERY rough as not all the dialogue is filled in and I'm sleepy, but... ring forging brainworms starting to take shape/what if A*azon hired ME to write TROP S3? (Btw this snip is a Sauron multiship checkpoint. I very respect peaceful mono and multishipping, but please don't yell.)

“What ails you, little flame? You always knew exactly what to say to me.”

“My lord, you are gone. You are not here.”

“Oh, but I am. I am in the very bones of you. How else do you think I can see directly into your heart. Do you not like my gifts?”

“They are not here either!”

“Oh, but we are,” chorus Adar, Galadriel and Celebrimbor, the vast cavern spinning around them again. “Behold, the curses you have wrought upon us.”

Adar approaches first, black smoke trailing from the holes covering his chest and back. “We are always with you,” he sneers, bracketing Sauron’s face with gauntlet and bloodied hand.

“Gorthaur,” says Adar, lunging forward and claiming Sauron’s mouth. Adar’s kisses were always desperate, like the thirst upon the mountain top reborn. Now, his blackened tongue burns and streams of inky blood fall from his lips, smearing their chins.

Sauron gasps for breath once Adar releases him. But there’s little time to recover. Now, Galadriel claws at him, gripping his cloak in her hands and forcing his head to turn.

Deep red spokes creep across her left clavicle and breast, forming a crack directly above her heart. Despite the heat, the ocean clings to her, her hair falling in wet strands and water pooling at her bare feet.

“Halbrand,” she trills, and she too pushes her tongue into his mouth. She isn’t gentle. Not at all like Sauron remembers. Her teeth nip upon his bottom lip, hard enough to draw more blood, its heat cracking and scorching his flesh.

He falters, almost falling to his knees, ‹when she finally lets go.

“Annatar,” hisses Celebrimbor, a mockery of the evening he first beheld that form. Grabbing Sauron by the wrist, Celebrimbor wrenches him in the opposite direction.

Anticipating another kiss, Sauron watches helplessly. Blood begins to seep from a wound hidden in Celebrimbor’s hairline, mingling with everything pouring from the divots across his chest.

It’s surprisingly tender, when the moment comes. Celebrimbor strokes his knuckles along Sauron’s cheekbone before taking his fill. More blood flows across Sauron’s tongue as Celebrimbor forces his lips apart, the taste too potent to originate from his veins alone.

Now, the instant Celebrimbor’s grip slackens, Sauron’s knees find the hard ground, his shoulders sagging.

“Mairon,” rumbles Melkor’s spectre, speaking through the mountain.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

It's Day 7 in my timezone... just a stretch of mortal time archiveofourown.org/works/89687881 M. Complete. 11.8K words. #Saurondriel #Haladriel

Saurondriel Summer Week

Day 7

Fireworks OR Stargazing.

Stars against the night sky with the title 'just a stretch of mortal time' in the top right corner of the image and 'by Aikaterine' in the bottom right corner.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

Still not sure about Tenet, but rewatching it means I get to say... hey, did you know I've been to the place that was used as the opera house in the opening scene?

Ruins of the Linnahall in Tallinn, Estonia.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Cath write a oneshot under 10K words challenge... failed.

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Cath M 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿💍 @catherloki.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Last time I went out with my camera, we were on Sauchiehall Street heading for a train home and I said to Mr. Catherloki, “I’ve got one shot left” and mere seconds later the universe answered my call.

Graffiti on a wall depicting the Eye of Sauron as seen in the Lord of the Rings films but the Ring Verse substitutes the One Ring for the word “device” instead.

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