#rytleo

2 minutes into PoF and theyre already doing gay shit I cant do this dawg

This is their first public display of affection over the course of 6 years btw

Bonus

14. What's an opinion they'll never agree on? How do they deal with that?

Theyll never agree on what happened in the mists, and Leo will never forgive him for freeing Balthazar lmao.

The thing you must know was that in ls2 Leo was trying So Hard to convince Rytlock to let him do the ritual. He has a strong magical background, has a deel understanding of the spectral magic in Ascalon, ane is, as a necromancer, extremely familiar with the mists. In Leo's eyes it SHOULD have been him, so when things started going off the walls Leo was nearly the one to go in but was blindsided by the imperator stopping him bc it was Rytlock's duty specifically, and Rytlock urgently chasing after it.

Leo, you have to remember, his whole THING IS trying to free to souls of Ascalon, thats literally what his huge reason for becoming a necromancer was. So he felt robbed by the charr chain of command. THEN learning that Rytlock freed Balthazar? It didnt matter sohothin was back in posession at that point, even so Leo KNEW the mask Rytlock puts on, he Knows Rytlock's dependency on sohothin due to his past of being bullied and treated as less than. Yes, Rytlock was manipulated by a human god, but its Because Leo already has this idea in his head that it Should Have Been Him, that he is being 10x harsher. He, in his mind, wouldnt have fallen for it, he would have known better, he would have found another way. And he is Hypocritical, bc Leo made a pact with a human god (grenth). Its just the consequences of that pact are only on him, Rytlock brings this up during an argument but it doesnt phase leo bc the only person losing bc of that deal Is Him, no one else got hurt.

Do I think Leo was correct for being angry? Yeah, but I also think hes extremely stubborn, self-righteous, and hypocritical. There isnt meant to ever be a good resolution for this, its forever a huge chasm in their relationship and goes back to how I frame their relationship as the ashes of a fire post pof.

Its even worse that the commander was killed then had to defy death (something leo hates bc he holds the cycle of life and death as sacred) which adds to him already being pissed LMAO.

4. Is there someone else who would be a better partner for either of them?

Oh, Absolutely LMAO. FOR LEO, Mostly, and still a bit for Rytlock but Ive always saw their post PoF relationship as Leo being way too good for rytlock and Leo accepting he will never find the type of life fulfillment he would actually want.

This is going to come up a lot but Post PoF their relationship is in this weird place of sticking together bc that feels like both of their only options. Theres even a line where Leo is talking to Rytlock about having to deny the life he would have with the Olmakhan had he left it all to join them. This is a life Leo wants, its a life he wants every charr to have a chance at choosing, but the legions arent there and his work to change them isnt done so he has to decline it. Rytlock says something along the lines of "you deserve a better life than one I can give you" to which leo simply responds with " I know."

I dont really ship rytlock and leo bc I think theyre the perfect couple, I ship them bc of the circumstances that lead them together and that red chain they forge between each other which makes it so that they never really seperate. Is this a good thing? No! But thats part of their story!  I think part of the tragedy of leo's character in particular is that he will never have the life he deserves bc the path he decided to travel down. But they accept this about their relationship, they stick together, theres a sort of gentleness between them that they treat each other in the ashes of that post Pof Fire bc of them reaching that acceptance between the other and the situation theyve been given. Theyre Choosing to remain as they are. Its not that they both dont care for each other, its just a complicated history with some things going unforgiven.

As for Rytlock. Its funny bc I feel like, I dont know if in canon rytlock and crecia end up back together or not, but regardless I think he kind of finds the relatability hes missing from leo in regards to his own struggles In his reconnecting/repairing the bridge with her. So hes kinda doing a bit better than Leo in having a greater sense of fufillment. Heres how I view it; if theyre together in canon then its just a like, im the wife wife, this is my husband and his wife situation, and if not then its just a friendship but regardless it doesnt change much ngl.

5. Is the relationship living up to their initial expectations?

Kinda???.....mostly bc I dont think their expectations were really that grand to begin with due to the nature of legion charr relationships. Theyre still together though, so in that sense their expectation of being together is there LMAO.

8. What would it take for them to break up?

I honestly think this is mostly on leo. Let me post a little paragraph from a prev rytleo ramble post for context.

"They are not a red string of fate, rather a forged red chain. Charr care a lot about loyalty, they care about loyalty in a way that I feel is hard to describe other than something deeply rooted in their culture thus hard to shake. During the time Leo and Rytlock spent together as Leo climbed the ranks and together they took on Ascalonian missions, sharing nights, swapping stories, sparring, challenging, they forged that bond. A bond between two people with no other options. They chose each other. "

5. Is the relationship living up to their initial expectations?

Kinda???.....mostly bc I dont think their expectations were really that grand to begin with due to the nature of legion charr relationships. Theyre still together though, so in that sense their expectation of being together is there LMAO.

9. How do they feel about each other's exes and people who flirt with them? Is jealousy an issue in general?

Ill start with the jucier one.

Rytlock does get jealous, noticably, if he and Leo are at a bar and Leo gets hit on. This happened a lot earlier in their relationship when nothing was official so he had less of an actual horse in that race but usually could give the pursuer some sort of Look to drive them away. At its Worse it was during PoF where they like didnt breakup but were pretty seperated...Especially bc Leo made it a point to seek company elsewhere and the jealousy stemmed from both the idea And the fact he was losing Leo. Losing his partner and realizing he had fucked up Yet Again with someone and it was a mixture of self disdain, jealousy, anger, sadness, all in one extremely angsty package. And not even in the sexual/romantic aspect, even just Leo going off and talking about the war effort with other people when usually it wouldve been with Rytlock.During the less intense times I do think Rytlock experiences maybe a slightly above normal amount of jealousy when it comes to the romantic/sexual admirers, bc I think that kind of fits someone who had struggled with low self-esteem n has a whole thing about Proving others wrong and having a sort of machismo mask bc of it. But its not something thats Overt or an actual serious issue. Leo doesnt have any actual exes so thats another thing.

Leo, on the other hand, doesnt experience jealousy when it comes to pursuers of Rytlock at all. He knows the culture he comes from, he knows Rytlock's high status, of there would be people seeking him, especially given Rytlock has multiple kids, its just whatever to him. The jealousy he does experience is in regard to those kids and having that shared experience of parenthood. He just cant provide any real solace that in the way others can, and he cannot even bring himself to ever want biological children bc of charr culture anyway. So the jealousy comes from partially wanting to help but not being able to, and knowing having a biological cub in the legions is something he wouldnt be able to handle.

How does Leo get along with Crecia? Great! I mean, Leo doesnt care for the entire exes thing, he just genuinely gets along with Crecia exceptionally well bc theyre similar in drive + are both very business first. Its actually a little funny. Maybe rytlock has a type idk. But any other possible ex it really just is on an individual level, leo doesnt have any problem with the ex part. Also very funny considering Rytlock was nervous about leo and crecia interacting bc of that but then like, they just teamed up and he now had 2 wives yelling in his ears about everything or leo having them Both bicker in HIS ears while trying to do work. Extremely amusing times in ibs

THANK YOU FOR THE ASK