Shades of Magic has a strong theme of paralelisms, Holland and Kell, Athos & Astrid and King George IV, etcetera, and in those paralelisms the most important thing is that Each Of These Characters Could Have Been One Another. If the twins had been born in the grey london, Astrid and Athos COULD have been the aloof and magic wanting monarchs, if George had been born in the white london... wait no actually he'd be dead. But Kell COULD have been Holland, Holland COULD have been Kell. Back to Hastra and Lenos, Hastra could have been Lenos but Lenos could not have been Hastra. They both accompanied an Antari (Lenos with Lila, Hastra with Kell), they both were religious, etcetera, yes, but their difference relies in that Hastra doesn't want his Equilibrium, he doesn't want to work in the sanctuary, so had Hastra been in Lenos's place, Hastra could have been Lenos. However what fucks me up so badly is that Lenos couldn't have been Hastra, he himself says this, had he had some more Magic he could have been a monk in the sanctuary, but unlike Hastra he would have accepted it outright, unlike Hastra, Lenos wouldn't have gone out of his way for an adventure, Lenos is much more adept to religiousness, Lenos, if he had been in Hastra's place, wouldn't have gotten into the boat because he would never have that chance. In conclusion if Lenos was a tadbit smarter he wouldn't be fucking dead. Hastra would be tho that femboy monk really was that good at being a guard.
