#void!!

it's a wizard thing.

it's a wizard thing is my silly ship name for gale & eden, which is very queerplatonic and, in many ways, blurs the line between romantic and platonic. they're not dating, that's very clear, but they're deeply devoted to each other and care about each other so so much.

a lot of their bond stems from this like... devotion that's very casual on the surface but kind of batshit when you look closer. like. gale will gladly and honestly say that he views eden as being basically equivalent to a god, if not better. to gale, the only god worth following is one that stands by him and encourages him to be his own person--exactly who eden is.

and on eden's side, gale simultaneously triggers and soothes a very specific anxiety he has regarding his magic. eden thinks he's hot shit and acts like it, but also he feels like other spellcasters look down on him for not being able to perform magic in the way they do. and, sure, at first gale feeds into that, even if he doesn't always mean to. but with time, gale comes to understand how much this *hurts* eden, deep down, and tries to be more understanding.

and as they grow closer, gale starts casually affirming eden's worth, both as a mage and in general. he starts saying that eden is a wizard too, even if not in a technical sense. he's a wizard when it counts.

which brings me to the ship name. this comes from me thinking that, if you ask gale directly what his relationship with eden is, he'll just. shrug. and say "it's a wizard thing." it is not a wizard thing, and it's not clear what he means by that.

whatever those two fruity wizards are doing, it's definitely gay.

strange new worlds.

SO this friendship dynamic with eden and lae'zel is in large part inspired by some headcanons i read about lae'zel being autistic coded. that unlocked something in my brain about her, and now i think a lot about her and eden being autistic4autistic besties.

i think that, especially at first, lae'zel thinks that eden is very naive and far too trusting. however, she starts to admire that about him, especially once she sees that he *is* very capable both in combat and as a leader. but more than that, she realizes that she appreciates the fact that he never judges her or looks down on her, especially when she doesn't understand something about faerun.

lae'zel is in a world that's almost completely unfamiliar to her, and there's a lot that doesn't make sense. she asks questions, and eden always answers, completely non-judgmental. he seems just eager to share information in general, and while he's not the *only* one helping her feel more secure and comfortable in this new world... he definitely helps.

and, soon, she starts returning the favor, answering any questions he might have about *her* home. at first, she treats it very much as a mutual or transactional thing. he gives her information, she gives him some. it's a bond built on trust and helping each other understand, and with time that trust becomes closer and firmer. eden encourages lae'zel to be curious, to ask questions, to *learn*. and all while not reacting with shock or disgust at any answers she gives him.