Betrayal — Tag Meaning
Tags the knife in the back: a trusted character breaks faith, and the story turns on the breach. Whether it's a canon betrayal re-examined or an invented one, the tag promises the rupture is central — along with the anger, grief, and possible repair that follow.
What to Expect From "Betrayal" Fics
A trust-shattering turn and its emotional wreckage. Reconciliation may follow, but the wound comes first.
How to find Betrayal fics on AO3
On AO3, click any tag to see every work that uses it, then refine with the "Filters" sidebar — combine it with your fandom or ship, set a rating, or exclude tags you don't want. See our AO3 filtering guide for the full walkthrough.
Browse "Betrayal" works on AO3Want the deep dive? Read our full trope guide: Betrayal →
Popular Fics Tagged "Betrayal"
Real examples from AO3's most-kudosed works:
it wasn't right (the way it went down)
by theoneiam2277
Page Six
by ThisBeautifulDrowning
The Brave Shall Heed The Call
by MlleMusketeer
Your Wild Eyes
by radish_spiritt
Periscope
by Samauke09
Rain, In Their Dark Eyes
by Anonymous
Related Tags
Angst
One of the foundational tags of fanfiction, covering stories centered on emotional pain — grief, longing, guilt, heartbreak, despair. Unlike a content warning, Angst describes mood: the fic dwells in difficult feelings and wants you to feel them too. It says nothing on its own about whether things improve.
Tag guide →
Manipulation
Warns that a character deceives, gaslights, or psychologically maneuvers others within the story. The tag spans plot-level scheming (con artists, spymasters) and intimate, darker dynamics, so its weight depends heavily on the rating and surrounding tags.
Tag guide →
Forgiveness
Centers the act of forgiving — between estranged friends, betrayed lovers, or family torn apart by canon events. Unlike Redemption, which focuses on the wrongdoer's arc, Forgiveness sits with the wronged party's choice, making it a quieter and often more complicated emotional study.
Tag guide →
Lovers to Enemies
The arc run in reverse: a loving relationship curdles into opposition — through betrayal, ideology, or tragedy — and the fic charts the fall. Writers use it for villain origin stories and doomed canon ships, trading the genre's usual payoff for the dark fascination of watching love become its opposite.
Tag guide →
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