Peter is so my type a nerd 💖

Honestly, I'd let Walid get away with a few human rights violations ifyouknowwhatimean lol

While trying to navigate through not_so_transparent RoL’s lore, character development and pretty fucked up emotional baggage of Thomas and Peter (god help them), the lovely @punnyadt-goreny and I at some point came to a conclusion that “Starlingale”, as a popular pairing as it is, has a lot of flaws. One can forget about the age gap and the chain of command, one can get used to social, cultural and economical differences. But one can’t fix psychology. Overall, for “Starlingale” to work (realistically)… they need to work… HARD. And none of them (realistically) seem to be capable of doing such work.

And that got me thinking. There are at least two other suitable candidates for the role of a perfect guardian of Nightingale’s battered heart. Less tricky and more reliable. So, ladies, gents and non-binary folks, let’s take a closer look at Alexander Seawoll and Abdul Walid.

Quick note: Yes, I'm considering only same-sex relationships. Partly because of the personal preferences and partly because I for the life of me cannot see a more or less suitable straight pairing for Nightingale in canon (unless Dr Vaughan is secretly waiting to seize the opportunity, that is). Yes, I know that Abdul is canonically married, but since no one ever saw Mrs Columbo Walid… And, yes, when it comes to Nightingale’s heart we could always just resurrect David Mellenby and be happy with that. BUT… in order to do that, I’m afraid we’re gonna need a healer. And when I say a healer I mean The Doctor. Vwoorp-vwoorp!

So… Let’s start BIG.

Alexander Seawoll

‘This is my fucking investigation, Nightingale,’ said Seawoll. ‘I don’t care who you’re currently fucking — I don’t want any of your X-Files shit getting in the way of proper police work.’ (Book 1, chapter 2)

Yeah… If it isn’t the vibe of a bad break up… I honestly don’t know what it is then. But of course BA never intended it like that. He obviously wants to be good and progressive, but apparently not that good and progressive (cough I do want to have some words with BA cough). Anyway…

The obvious sparks aside, this pairing seems oddly believable and strangely workable.

They both know what the job is and how it always comes first. They’re equal in ranks. And the " weird bollocks” aspect doesn’t seem like a big problem. Alex can get used to it, certainly.

Alex’s apparent… simplicity (let’s call it that) in manners is easily overshadowed by his loyalty and pragmatism. He is as reliable as a staff made by Sons of Weyland and really clever. He would definitely rip Nightingale’s shooter to shreds with his bare hands (who needs impello, right?), then would get suspended and move to the Folly to take an eye on the inpatient patient, to Molly’s delight and Peter’s confusion.

His relationship with his emotions, however, leaves a lot to be desired. Like Peter’s shrink pointed out in AoW: Alex’s barking is his way of showing affection. Because showing affection in a proper healthy way involves showing too much vulnerability, apparently (from the creators of “boys don’t cry” bollocks). Him and Thomas are pretty similar in this regard and that makes them… a bit dry (although totally English). And here lies one small technical problem. You can soften them up only to a point. If you want to make them properly cute… you have to sacrifice Nightingale. And by sacrifice I mean making him the weaker one. You can’t fiddle with Seawoll. He is a rock. And if he gets a bit less rocky, he stops being Seawoll. So any potential softness gets to come at Nightingale expense. And it’s a tough decision.

Overall, with no-OOC, this relationship is something that could fit in the canon easily, mostly because of its emotional dryness and no-nonsense vibe. I could’ve mentioned dramatical blandness, but… There are still a lot of potential conflicts and job-related situations one could come up with to shake things up a little. So, it might not be so bland after all. And the initial “getting together” story could be quite fascinating as well.

Abdul Walid

Well… Those of you who haven’t read “A Gentleman’s Agreement” series, I do recommend you take a look. It’s a gem. And most of my theorising is based on the experience of reading it. 

I have to admit, Abdul is very close to being the perfect partner. But as it usually is, it’s his blessing and his curse. 

Let’s start with blessings. He is a self sufficient, sophisticated man, a professional with a brilliant career, a man of science, no less, which makes him a faint reminder of a poor old David. And maybe it’s a different sort of science but the same sort of curiosity, that familiar to Thomas (and that Thomas secretly is quite fond of, otherwise, why would he willingly obey Abdul’s “doctor orders” and let himself be poked, prodded and put in an MRI in the name of science). But this curiosity doesn’t blind Abdul (which, I’m afraid, we can’t say about David). He appreciates Thomas as a person, and not solely as a project, a specimen to be studied. The man fascinates Abdul (so does magic), but his fascination is more on a tender side. It’s a good starting point, but then they get to talk. And with Abdul they would talk, because…

Abdul is mentally stable and emotionally available. Of course, he’s not explicitly touchy-feely, but being a doctor he knows a thing or two about psychology and what is healthy or not. He wouldn’t want to change Thomas, thou, more likely he would guide him subtly to a more open way of expressing emotions, the way Thomas still would be comfortable with (which is important). Abdul doesn’t care about vulnerability, it doesn’t affect his judgement of character, I mean, he’s seen Thomas gravely wounded and drugged to the oblivion, how much more vulnerable one could get. So, basically, when Alex is a man who can physically catch Thomas if he falls, Abdul is the one who can catch him mentally. And, imo, psychological comfort is what the current version of Nightingale desperately needs. 

You can easily make them cute and domestic without sacrificing Nightingale’s slightly dry demeanour. Abdul would adapt to his partner’s quirks, being absolutely comfortable with the way Thomas is. However if you’re partial to a more soft Nightingale, that will work as well. I’d say, with more tenderness they would just flourish. But here comes the curse.

Perfect partners tend to be boring… dramatically speaking. The easiest solution is to overflow them with love and cuteness. But love and cuteness get old pretty fast. One should be really careful with the amount of sugar, especially in M/M relationships, especially if one of these M is Thomas bloody Nightingale. Another obvious way is to make Abdul a “damsel in distress”, but this trope doesn’t really work with him. He’s not so much a part of the job so he can be in immediate danger quite frequently. And his relationship with Thomas might as well be pretty closed so no one would really know about them. So this practically leaves us with a quite limited variety of inner conflicts, such as, for instance, Abdul’s religious beliefs and Abdul getting older while Thomas is not. The former, however it’s an interesting subject of study, is also a big bloody minefield. And as an atheist I wouldn’t go this path, I’d prefer to assume that Abdul was a grown man and knew what he’s doing in regard to the potential controversy. The latter, on the other hand, might spice up their pairing a bit. But at the end of the day it’s kinda sad, slightly morbid and… predictable. Everyone already knows how it’ll end. Even if Thomas starts ageing again, the chances are he still will outlive Abdul. And Abdul being near perfect just makes this inevitability even more tragic. It’s pretty much David 2.0. It’s gonna fucked up Thomas again. Unless he decides to… well… you know… to take the matter in his own hands. 

And that’s what brings us back to the start and (god help me) a potential drama queen…

Peter Grant

I used the “drama queen” term here a bit too freely. What I actually mean is that Peter is the queen for those who love drama. I mean, oh, boy, where do I start?! 

He’s a subordinate and an apprentice, which is already a problem and quite serious one, at least for Thomas. He’s emotionally fucked up, had a controversial childhood and his relationship with his dad… for a long time has been non-existened. He craves validation and love at the same time being justifiably anxious about potential “father figures”. And yes, I agree, he’s showing symptoms of avoidant attachment style. That being said I should mention that after a thorough consideration I came to a conclusion that Thomas is more likely anxious-avoidant than just anxious. And those who know about attachment styles already guessed that it’s even more… fucked up. 

Peter also has a tendency of being bravely stupid or stupidly brave (whatever you prefer) and this accompanied with the scientific curiosity that makes him a reminder of David as well, can drive poor Thomas to an untimely death from a heart attack. The ageing predicament be damned. 

In no way Peter is a perfect or even comfortable partner for Thomas. And their initial getting together that usually gets simplified in fanfics (for totally understandable reasons) realistically shouldn't be simple. They’ve got issues. Both of them. A lot of ussies. And this obviously makes them interesting… dramatically speaking. However, if they won’t get their heads out of their arses and surender to the therapy, they’re doomed. And given how much is at stake here… with Peter being the only apprentice and with the whole future of the Folly on his shoulders, and if the relationship went awry, he would probably transfer and it would be a square one again for Thomas… Yeah, well, you get the idea. 

Why wouldn’t it work the same way it apparently would with Alex? Firstly, because of inequality. And not even in ranks but in age as well. Thomas’s “borrowed time” aside, Alex and him are still more equal in this regard. Alex is a grown ass man, who knows what he wants and what he’s doing, he’s got a lot more experience with life (love-life included) and people. He may not be the most patient of men, but he knows how to care for others. As opposed to Peter who’s got little to none of such experience. He’s too young. I might even go further and say he is too young to appreciate Thomas beyond his crush on “tiger tank destroyer”. Simply because (truth be told) he doesn’t really know the man. They don’t talk to each other. It’s not solely Peter’s fault. Them talking to each other would have to include Thomas getting a bit vulnerable in front of Peter. Which is not an easy task for Thomas. And, more importantly, might affect Peter’s judgement of him, because of the clearly existing “pedestal”. Neither Alex nor Abdul put Thomas on a pedestal. But Peter does. And it’s a shaky foundation for a relationship that is destined to fall sooner rather than later. 

So in order for them to work they need to transform. The transformation in itself is a very interesting story, add to that the job-related dangers and ooh! So as much as Stralingale is a flawed pairing, it’s pretty damn interesting as well… if you want them to suffer a bit first. 

What does it tell us? In the paradigm of “write what you want” nothing much really. I won’t be nagging about “the right ways” of utilizing characters. But still there are some hints on what type of story would be better suited for each pairing. 

So, if you’re up to some gruesome character development that eventually will help them to be a bit less fucked up, Peter is your boy. He’ll drive Thomas insane but through this insanity he will (probably) find clarity. 

If you want just a happy Thomas who’s loved just because he exists, you may consider putting him in Abdul’s careful hands. 

Peter: How would I know?

Walid: How would you not?!

Peter: Who am I, Karl Landsteiner, discoverer of blood groups?

since I've only started really dipping my toe in the Rivers of London series this year in earnest i'm a little like "wait am i really the first one to post this??" as spotted/linked on Reddit, information about the next full-length Peter Grant novel is out!!

Have just finished not one, but two epic battles :))) And here's the aftermath :)))