Zheblii

[Start] [Mission 1: part 12] <- -> [Part 2]

@witless-winion1 @im-not-a-porno @cyberghoulxxo @circuswitch @xtilminkj-re @y2kinnow @readerreadings02 @godsfavouriteamoebe

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Hooray! I love Damianya questions.

Alright, reasons I love them in canon:

I've always had a soft spot for rich person x poor person; perhaps this is a reflection of my lifelong, innate desire for a rich woman to sweep me off my feet and fund my lazygirl lifestyle. However, I think it's because I grew up in a society where class is a distinct social marker (hooray, Britain, amirite?) and there's always been a tension there that's really beautiful and ugly in equal measure. I was a poor person who attended university with a bunch of ultra-rich goons; I learned about them, and they learned about me (well, some did, anyway). I think there's a charm in the sharing and growing of these different perspectives. This is where Damianya is especially poignant, because they're at a critical age in-canon for socialising and growing as people. I genuinely think those two will learn a hell of lot from each other (and in fact, already have done), and I can see that trend continuing. Regardless of whether their future is romantic or platonic, I think they'll both be significant to each other in terms of personal development.

I also just adore Damian as a character. He's my precious baby boy; watching him change because of Anya's influence is amazing to see unfold on the page/onscreen. I also just adore a well-written tsundere that goes beyond just acts of incredible violence and suddenly screaming about whatever-the-fuck; he actually feels well-rounded where being tsundere is a side-trait to who he actually is. Anya is also absolutely stunning as a character, considering the tragedy of her past and just how much lying this innocent child has to do, so I guess I really fell on the Damianya train when she confesed she was a telepath to him. She hasn't even been that honest to her parents, who she adores. It was this amazing moment of empathy and communication between them (obviously, it didn't pan out, but... it revealed a lot about Anya's empathy, especially for Damian, IMO).

Also, they play with so many tropes that I adore reading in fiction: enemies/rivals-to-lovers (potentially), enemies/rivals-to-friends, puppy love, weird girl/normal guy...

The reasons I love writing them so much:

What I love most is that Damianya has potential, especially in aged-up AUs. While Yor and Loid have potential in different ways, they're still fully realised characters and adults, so you can have much less leeway when determining their personalities and actions. It's for this reason I always struggle writing Loid in scenes, and the same with Yor. Incidentally, I keep accidentally basing writing Yor off my wife... (she's not a contract-killer, I have checked. You can never know nowadays!)

Back to Damianya: their potential for scope in writing is so much more fluid. They have no set roles, jobs, or personalities, and therefore, if you can defend your writing choices logically, it's allowed! They have such amazing potential for angst (considering that Damian is technically Anya's 'target'), for comedy (like, have you seen them in the show?), and for so many other things besides!

He asks her to come to his house for some kind of party and they discover everyones secrets.

but then i remember the emptiness in my heart and the tears i would shed knowing my fav thing ever is done LOL

Aside from his initial attitude toward Anya ("when this mission is over she's going straight back to the orphanage"), he also planned to coerce/seduce/con Yor into marrying him within one week.

"First I get her to take on this small favor, but by the end I'll make her agree to get legally married."

Of course Yor surprised him by proposing first, so we never got to see that dark path emerge.

...Except actually we sort of did. Twilight did try to go down that dark path briefly in Chapter 35, but Yor knocked him out and made him think she had no romantic interest in him. If she hadn't done that...it's sad to think about what would have happened (as @katzennstack wrote here).

Fast forward to the mole arc:

Instead of manipulating Yor for his benefit, he nearly lost his life to protect her from getting hurt (emotionally). Several months of living with Yor and subconsciously admiring her strength and kindness had indeed made him "lose his edge" as he sort of mentioned to Nightfall.

If another family crisis had emerged, would he still have tried to coerce/seduce her into staying in the marriage at that point? Unclear. But his decision to spare Yuri seems to indicate he would have hesitated a lot.

Fast forward again to when Yor comes to terms with her feelings:

Instead of seeking to trap her, he thought, "If...Yor insists she wants to be freed from our agreement, I'll have to respect--" before he cut himself off and his thoughts went to Plan C. But before all the rationalizing, as others have pointed out, his emotional reaction occurred first. He looked just as terrified/shaken as in the mole arc when he thought the SSS had gotten the jump on him (but it turned out to be a WISE colleague):

He may still be willing to go to extremes like tranquilize Yor just to escape an SSS party, but to cause her lasting harm like he'd initially been willing to...I think not. Seems like he's subconsciously locked into "How can I minimize the amount of harm I'm inflicting on Yor and Anya" while continuing to carry out his mission.

She got attacked by bandits. She killed them all, but they shot her.

The image of this in my head made me laugh, I had to draw it

the forgers

Part 2 <- Part 3 -> Part 4

And he's going to look over at Yor who's completely relaxed and having a good time and just relax a little.

Oh my wife still thinks we're safe. If we were about to get shot she wouldn't be. Must be okay.

Give that anxious cheetah his golden retriever service wife. He needs her.

Loid winding himself up to injury: *looks at Yor*

Yor: *happy and relaxed*