And It Was Cool

[ithildin]

dejla and I spend a lot of time entertaining ourselves by analyzing the characters in our fic, usually in her comments, since her place is just so much tidier than mine and with better snacks. Yet again today, there I was hanging out, shooting the proverbial breeze, being a comment hog, and an anvil fell on my head (not a real one) (just in case you were wondering). I had this sudden insight into the characters in one of my series that had never occurred to me after nearly ten years! And it was cool! And I was pleased! And no, I know this is of no interest to 99% of you, but sometimes, I just need to hear myself type to sort it all out [g] And anyway, most of you probably filter me out anyway, so I'm bothering even less of you than I normally would. Or something like that. Hah!

So as you were. Have a snack and a drink on your way out. Don't forget your hats and purses. Come back soon!

A Bit Later:

Bear with me here. This is in regards to my Bloodties series, and at dejla's we were talking about Lacroix's relationship with Methos. This was my original commment:

That's why he sought out LaCroix in the first place, when he first met Triona. Alexa had just died, and he needed a diversion. And he loves winding LaCroix up. As Triona told LaCroix, "He's only ever Methos to you." Methos doesn't have to be anyone else with LaCroix, he's never been anyone else to him. I think that's an important component in the triangle. Oh, heck! I just thought of something so blazingly obvious that I can't believe it never occurred to me before![mutters and wanders away to ponder]

A while ago, I'd said that Methos joined a vampire family unit. Which is still true. LaCroix's 'family' includes Methos, always has from his POV, since their relationship started when LaCroix was mortal. They've been family, traveled together, been there for each other in times of crisis, over the last 2000 years. Methos has been a constant in LaCroix's life. One of the few people he's sees as an equal.

Other than a cruel quirk of fate, Triona would be LaCroix's vampire fledgling, or child. While she isn't a true vampire, she does have a fledgling's bond with LaCroix. So in a way, Triona was added to the family unit LaCroix and Methos already had.

What was my sudden insight? That Immortals tend to be solitary. And then there's Methos. Consider how long he spent with Kronos and the gang. For all intents and purposes, an Immortal family unit. They considered themselves brothers. So in retrospect, his relationship with LaCroix and Triona isn't that odd. It's an arrangement like he's been used to being in. It's comforting in its normalcy. I never really looked at it from that perspective before. I've seen it from LaCroix's POV, and from Triona's, and the difficulty she has with the unusual relationship she shares with both Methos and LaCroix. But Methos' POV? I'm not sure I'd ever quite reached a conclusion. But this works for me.

And if you move this from my fic to the actual series, that need for a family unit explains something about Methos. He's been married so many times. He obviously likes being part of a family. And it explains hanging around Duncan and Joe, and by extension, their extended family. For him, normal is being a part of a family group, not a solitary existence.

Comments

[dejla.livejournal.com]

I think it's interesting!!

And are you going to tell me the great insight? *pouts*

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

More than likely [g] I'm still sorting it into explainable words and seeing if it fits into the current fic. Which I think it will. I'll get back to you after supper!

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

Okay, I added it to the post up there. Hope it makes sense!

[dejla.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's a great one! Yes! You're right... Immortals are solitary because they stand outside mortality and believe that they need to fight each other--except that Kronos built the Horsemen, and one of the rules was they didn't fight each other. So Methos isn't by extension solitary. Neither was Kronos, which is also interesting.

And LaCroix shows that same sort of need which he wouldn't admit it. It's why he 'adopted' Janette, and then adopted Nick for her (I always thought it was 'pick out the one you want and Daddy will bite him for you. Janette didn't want a fledgling--she wanted a sibling and a lover.)

And in the series, you see that in Duncan too. That might be what pulls him and Methos together--the loneliness of being Immortal, and the need to have someone else who understands the loneliness and wants a family.

Which actually fits into Simple Gifts, because in that, Duncan has disappeared at the end of the series, and Methos is determined to find him because Duncan has built this clan. Duncan's always been a clan chieftain--when he loses his natural clan, he starts building a new one without realizing what he's doing. And what he's done is set up his obligations to this odd unwieldy group, and he can't just walk away from it. He can leave it for a while, but he has as much a responsibility to them as they have to him, and as much right to their support and they have to his.

After all, family is where you go because they have to take you in.

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

I'm so glad it made sense and wasn't totally wacky :)

LaCroix has children, like Francesca, people he brings across at the time because it suits his purposes, and then there's the ones like Janette and Nick who are meant to be family. They may spend time apart, but always come back to each other. I've tried to use that in my fic to a certain extent, where Methos and Triona will spend time together as a couple, and then they drift back into their relationship with LaCroix.

I think you're right on with Duncan, and I'm looking forward to when Methos finds Duncan again at some point.

[dejla.livejournal.com]

Not wacky at all. Perfectly sensible.

And the family analogy is so logical. It explains so much in both shows.

It is interesting, especially when Methos points out the obligations Duncan's foisted on them and should be returning. I suspect Duncan hadn't actually thought of it that way; I think it's the way he was raised, and it's what he's been searching for as much as any of them, including Connor.

At least in this series of mine (I call it Ravens, but I think of it as SSG), Connor isn't dead. I need to fix the bad bad Archangel arc anyway, so I don't know about Richie. I don't have any particular interest in Richie, and I don't know whether it's a good or a bad thing that Richie is dead and Duncan killed him. I still have to decide.

I mean, if I can tweak the end of FK to keep both Natalie and Nick alive, I can figure out Archangel. Right?

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

Richie is alive in my series simply because I'd written fic that took place 80 odd years later, before he was killed off in the series. Connor is alive too, though he's only appeared in one story. Again, written before the movies ever appeared [g] And Nick, of course, only because I always thought Nick survived LK. LaCroix would never kill him permanently. He'd stake him to incapacitate, but only to buy time.

But yes, now I think about it, 'family' is a thread that runs through HL quite strongly.

[dejla.livejournal.com]

Well, the immediate vignette I wrote had LaCroix saying to Nick, "What did you think immortal meant?" But I actually had this entire season 4 planned out, not entirely plotted, but planned. Even had an outline. I think I have a copy of it around here somewhere...

[keerawa.livejournal.com]

Huh, interesting. I'd actually seen Methos as a solitary Immortal who occasionally splurges by forming Immortal connections, but sees them as rather risky. But I could buy that interpretation, in a fic. What am I saying - it's METHOS. I can buy almopst any interpretation, if it's well-written.

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

Actually, that was always my impression, till today. Then I started thinking how long he'd been with Kronos and the gang, and his hanging around Duncan, and all the times he's been married, and I saw it in a somewhat different light. Always surprises me how an old fandom can still surprise me! [g] That's actually the coolest part!

[mastermia.livejournal.com]

It's great to have an insight like that about a character. I really believe that when an author knows his/her characters and can crawl in their head like that it really improves their writing!

I couldn't find the hat I came with, but I just grabbed one I liked. Hope it's not a problem...

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

Crawling around can be fun!

As long as it's not my hat, go for it [g]