#just ivan things

the monstrous bride

“Just as the ultimate goal of Arthurian quest finally defines itself as the Holy Grail, the object that can never be assimilated into the real world, so the ultimate woman of romance is a fairy mistress, or fairy queen.” — Helen Cooper 

The monstrous bride is not necessarily monstrous, but she is, by definition, inhuman, which is part of her je ne sais quoi. Her happiness often depends on whether her groom knows her inhuman. If he does not, he is bound to find out before the story concludes, at which point he will either be repulsed by his wife's deceit and leave her, or attempt to make the relationship work, but fail, because he is operating under a misinterpretation of her nature. If he is aware of her inhuman identity, it will often be one of the factors leading to his attraction to her, and he will be rewarded with her love – but often at the cost of abandoning his previous life completely.

like the snow melts

I love the idea of Ivan having few places of residences. An apartment in M.oscow and K.aliningrad, a home in V.ladivostok, and another he likes to keep out of peoples minds. A place he can work without any surprises. And that’s just when it comes to his own lands. Besides in his Country, there’s a home in M.insk for longer visits outside of work and another in S.eychelles. 

Still very open to adding another.

He has very well paid house keepers to keep it up to par. It’s too much for him to keep up with alongside work, traveling for work, his sleep schedule a little messed from jumping time zones often, and other means of draining his time. 

/o/ 

There’s also an element of privacy that comes with having many places; people need to call ahead of time ( unless an official says where ) to find out where he is. He doesn’t need to worry about surprises besides the select few that have a key and know his main place of residence. With all the other Countries he’s connecting with it’s easy to yearn for a pinch of alone time and he’s slightly protective of such.