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ahoyimlosingmymind · 30 days

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i have compassion for Fitz Vacker in the same way I have compassion for Child stars in Hollywood.

He is perceived as a living dream, while he exists in a nightmare that people have so little understanding and empathy for. There's a level to him that is fundamentally unrelatable to most. He has no perceived lacking. At least, not when you're taking in the situation at face-value.

And this^ way of seeing him is fundamentally isolating. It strips him of depth and realness, and it makes him into an image to ascribe ideas and false perceptions onto. A blank canvas to project all of your worst insecurities . After all, He's not real- it doesn't hurt him, right? In fact, it's trendy among the lower class to dislike him. If you aren't obsessed with him to the point of a parasocial relationship, then you resent him. He cannot struggle or have any issues whatsoever because the perception of what luxury is, is so powerful.

This is reflected in the way Dex saw the Vacker's in books 1 and 2. It's reflected in the fandom's inability to empathize with Fitz is any way shape or form (at least on Pinterest/YouTube/Instagram)

He's socialized more around adults than his peers, because of the idea of giftedness and notoriety. Which just puts him on a higher pedestal, and makes him a larger target to hate among kids his age.

He is known, but he is not known. If anyone pursues him as a friend, it is for the sake of making connections and being popular. It's disingenuous. It's to use him as a stepping stool on a rapid rise to fame. to exploit him for personal gain. His trust issues don't come from nowhere, after all.

He had one friend his entire childhood. and what do you know? It's a kid who is trying so hard to outrun the exploitation of his dad's dreams and wishes for him.

Sure, Fitz's parents are present in his life, but they can only mitigate so much of the outside world before it starts seeping right through the walls of their home.

I just think it would be so strange to have so many people barely know you and either obsess over you to the point that you are more fantasy than reality, or resent you so much that you can't say a word without hearing some snide comment in response. And to know that NONE of it is real. None of these people know you.

Fitz's family obviously represents a really big issue in society. Because Dex, Sophie etc... they are RIGHT, that the standards of their world aren't fair. They are right to call it out. They are right to have anger towards the 'upper class' who does nothing to help the lower class. It's understandable. and it's far more relatable than Fitz's situation. but the thing is, shame is shame. and scorn is scorn.

the upper class may whisper. But the lower class does too.

and that's just it. Therein lies the issue with the lost cities.

IT"S NO ONES CHOICE. It was not Dex's choice to born into a bad match marriage, it was not Keslar and Juline's choice to be born in a world where a system like mathmaking even exists. It wasn't their choice to have triplets. But it also wasn't their choice to raise them in a society that hates them.

But no more was it Fitz's choice to be born a Vacker. No more was it his choice that his parents happened to be a good match. It's not his choice to be born into a society where that stuff matters. He's a kid.

But because he represents something at face value that people tend to hate, he is undeserving of compassion when compared to a character like Dex. Fitz is dismissed and disliked because he represents something about their society, even though he's a child who has no real way to combat what generations older than him have enforced.

He is the vessel that is easy to target and to hate, because people need to find someone to blame. Even if that person technically has not contributed in any way to the thing that the people wish to destroy.

and it can only cause resentment to build between the two classes.

Idk man the perception of Fitz Vacker will forever have my head spinning.

#“And they'd all be so disappointed but who am I if not exploited?”#Fitz vacker #biana vacker #alvar vacker #kotlc #kotlc meta

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swans-chirping-in-the-distance · 8 days

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The Root of KOTLC Characters (this is NOT math related I don't fuck with that shit)

This is basically a long rant about the foundation of different characters in my eyes. This is how I see them; feel free to give your thoughts.

Sophie Foster

Sophie is a character who has been built inwardly. She couldn't fully rely on her family because of Forkle convincing her that she couldn't open up about her telepathy. She loved her family, but she was so young that that really affected her head. Sophie is this person who has built a house on no foundation; all she has are these little pieces of plywood holding up a full house. This house has boxes of Things To Do Later, mountains of family and friend moments, and her high expectations subconsciously set by herself because she's always been "better". And when the house eventually caves in, she'll be faced with whatever is down underground, with all the pain and suffering that she buried as a little kid with the only resource for building herself being distraction.

Fitz Vacker

Fitz was never taught how to cope. He grew up seeing his father's own guilt being poorly buried by Alden's self-gaslighting tactics. He grew up seeing his brother, whose anger was held shut by the thinnest of threads. He grew up seeing a variety of humans, for better and for worse. Fitz never knew how to grow properly. I firmly believe that Fitz is built around this backbone of uncontrollable anger. He can be SO kind when he controls in, but it's SO hard to do. It's like this constant temptation, asking for a little bit of his joy until all he's left with is guilt. And he refuses it as much as he can. But that's at his core, and your core is something that is VERY hard to change.

Biana Vacker

I can't see into Biana’s brain like I can see into Sophie and Keefe's and the others', but I can definitely say that her backbone (not foundation, I mean this differently than I do with Fitz) is sadness. That's what she resorts to.

Keefe Sencen

Much like I can imagine Sophie's head as this pretty painted house that's falling apart at the bottom, I can perfectly see Keefe's brain. Keefe is like a Russian Nesting Doll. He's built himself around this empty hole in the middle from being abused and manipulated at such a young age. That empty hole is filled with complete sadness. Keefe has built walls around it to bury it deep. He's focused on little things and cracked jokes, but it's never enough. On the outside layer, he's just a joking guy, but if you knock down that wall, he's angry. And if you knock down more, you see in the window to that bottomless pit, where Keefe keeps trying to fill up on kindness and joy and even anger, yet he can't. Because this sadness is gaseous; it keeps looking like it's empty, but it's full. And in the gaseous hole of sadness, Keefe sees a reflection of himself, an ugly, warped reflection that looks a little too similar to his parents. And that's why Keefe builds up all of these walls; not because he's afraid of the hole in himself, but because he's afraid of having to see himself in it.

Dex Dizznee

Dex is built on anger. No doubt. He can be kind, but he's angry about the Council wronging him, his peers wronging him, and all the suffering his family has gone through. I think Dex's is the most clear out of all of them if you ignore when he randomly became innocent in some of the later books.

Tam Song

Tam is built on this unwavering support of love. When his parents abused him, he had the love of his sister. When Exilium abused him, he had the love of his sister. Even when he and Linh argue, they still have each other. They can argue and still hug it out when they hear rough news. Hell, even if he didn't have Linh, he still has his friends that he deeply cares for. Tam is a much more loving person than people give him credit for. He would kill for them and die for them. He knows he'll be alright because Tam has love, and it's something not enough people see.

Linh Song

Linh looks very peaceful. She's learned to control it. But deep down, she's angry. She's angry like Fitz, and she's bursting at the seems of her smiles. She's angry her brother chose someone else over her, that her parents have the nerve to try to win her back, that no one ever listens to her. Linh is finding it harder and harder to control that deep anger that has been in there since her parents gaslighted her and Tam. Tam seems angry, but he is truly loving, and Linh seems sweet, but is really mad.

#twilomiwb #i could be digging too much into them but hey. if im wrong we pretend its just an au #kotlc #keeper of the lost cities #sophie foster #keefe sencen #biana vacker #tam song #fitz vacker #dex dizznee #linh song

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mallowmelt-down · 9 months

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I just went to see the Barbie movie for the second time and I’ve been wondering how the KOTLC gang would react to it so here’s my thoughts.

Keefe: He ordered an ‘I am Kenough’ sweatshirt before the credits even finished. He definitely says that Ken is literally him. He memorized Ken’s entire song and of course he used his mimicking skills to do it in Ryan Gosling’s voice. Secretly, it was hard for him as an Empath to watch the movie, especially with Sophie and her strong emotions sitting next to him.

Sophie: She thinks it’s an absolute masterpiece and 100% cried during the Billie Eilish song “What Was I Made For” given her own past with the Black Swan. Since none of her friends truly understands what it means to be human, she called Amy that night and they chatted about it for hours. She would definitely sneak out to the Forbidden Cities to see it again with Amy.

Fitz: He has had some experience with Barbie during his trips as a kid trying to find Sophie so he vaguely understands the importance of the movie. He respects it even though he didn’t relate to it. He pretends he understands the confusing human jokes despite the fact he doesn’t get it at all.

Biana: She totally fell in love with all the different fashions and tried to recreate some of the outfits afterwards. She found the human interpretation of mermaids hilarious when she saw mermaid Barbie. She was shocked by the treatment of women in the real world and had to ask her mom about it later.

Dex: He was forced to take the triplets with him so he spent most of the movie trying to get the three of them to stay in their seats. His favorite character was Allan and he broke into an ATM machine later so he could go buy an Allan doll. He noticed Sophie was sad after the movie so he dyed Iggy the Barbie pink color the next day to cheer her up.

Tam: He insists that he hated it and the pink gave him a headache but truthfully enjoyed the musical numbers and secretly added all the songs to his playlist. He will also put the songs on blast whenever he visits his parents to piss them off. Linh forced him to buy her a Barbie right after the movie.

Linh: She liked it and was very amused by the fake waves on the beach. She was disappointed to hear that the pooping dog Barbie toy was discontinued since she desperately wanted to buy it. She found some Barbie inspired pet outfits to force poor Princess Purrfins into later, with Tam’s reluctant help.

Marella: She loved all of it, especially the cute Kens. Dex helped her hack into the human Internet afterwards so she could read about all the drama behind the scenes. She spends an entire ability lesson with Fintan talking about it, much to Fintan’s disdain.

Wylie: He thought it was very thought provoking and Maruca teases him when he tries to analyze the deep symbolism of the movie with her. He decides to take an intensive human studies class after watching it and sees that there may be more to humans than he thought. Like many others, he cried over the idea of his mom being just a girl at some point in her life.

Maruca: She added a pink streak to her hair for a week afterwards. She really liked the Barbies’ blunt honesty during the Nobel Prize scenes. She later tried to make a smaller version of the pink Barbieland heart border with her Psionipath ability for fun.

Stina: She’ll tell Sophie it was a dumb human movie but genuinely enjoyed the human world scenes the most. She really related to Sasha the most.

Elwin: As the only adult who attended, he got the tickets for everyone, held seats, and made sure everyone had popcorn. His favorite character was weird Barbie and wants to start remodeling his house like hers. He joins Dex and buys as many Barbies as he can hold to take back to the Lost Cities. It was hard for him to watch as a doctor when Ruth said “Humans only have one end.”

Comment your own headcannons, I would love to see them!

#keeper of the lost cities #kotlc #shannon messenger #sophie foster #keefe sencen #biana vacker #fitz vacker #linh song #tam song #marella redek #maruca chebota #wylie endal #barbie #elwin heslege #stina heks #headcannons

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anonymous-kotlc-thoughts · 1 month

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This relates to another ask/

Maybe it’s just me, but I don’t think Fitz being headcanoned as a poc and being disliked has any correlation.

He’s been headcanoned as poc for… honestly as long as I can remember. However, people only really started to dislike him when his anger issues and such became apparent (so two or three books ago) (I haven’t reread the series in a minute, don’t quote me on that one).

That said, I do think it’s important to understand all parts of characters. Fitz can be angry, but he can also be caring. Dex can be sweet, but he can also be a bitch. Linh can be gentle, but she can also be absolutely terrifying, the list goes on. No person is perfect, and that’s something which goes for both fiction and non fiction.

Just my two cents that nobody asked for!

#anonymous kotlc thoughts #kotlc #kotlc fitz #fitz vacker

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spaceangst · 1 year

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the vacker legacy and their golden boy: fitz vacker

welcome to my new psychoanalyzing kotlc characters series! i thought i’d start with fitz because this particular reread of the series has brought up some interesting facets in his character i had previously overlooked. i’ll try to keep this objective (focusing on canon and what shannon has written) but i’ll also include some of my personal opinions about him in a separate section at the end, to keep my bias out of it.

(apologies for how long these are going to get, i’m having a little too much fun with them!)

now.

fitzroy avery vacker.

it’s no secret that sophie is infatuated with him from the moment she meets him. but that’s sophie. this is about fitz (and while i do mention the love triangle situation and how it develops, it’s not really about the ships - that deserves it’s own moment to shine.) it’s also important to remember that the series is from sophie’s perspective. this is an unreliable narrator, and it shows us fitz through sophie’s eyes, but also through the other character’s eyes.

from the start, we’re told that fitz is the golden boy, the youngest telepath to manifest in the elven world and an incredibly powerful one at that. he grows up as a part of the vacker family, which is quite possibly the most powerful family in the lost cities, regardless of who the councillors are. all the elves grow up with money, but fitz grows up with status. what sets him apart from biana is how this status evolves between the two of them as the vacker legacy itself unravels.

in the first book, fitz is, from a writer’s standpoint, boring. he’s too perfect, never making mistakes, and busy being handsome and smart. obviously, given that the series is from sophie’s point of view, it makes sense that her gateway to the world remain untainted, regardless of her feelings for him. where we really start to get to know fitz is in exile. we get to see that perfection shatter entirely, and as a writer, it’s beautiful. fitz is ugly when he’s mad, shouting and screaming and blaming everyone but himself - outwardly. it’s no secret that he thinks highly of himself as the golden boy of the vacker family, and it’s hard to imagine that he doesn’t place some of the blame on himself for not being his dad’s first choice - or being able to fix alden.

still, his anger is a remarkable facet of his personality - and just what makes him a great foil to keefe. we’ve all seen his temper flare up in exile, blaming sophie for the memory break going wrong.

fitz isn’t used to things going wrong - as i’ve mentioned in other posts, he’s a creature of perfection of habit. he’s used to being the best, and while he admires sophie’s powers and her strength, that doesn’t mean he necessarily knows how to accept it with grace. in other words, he’s never been second best.

despite all the kids being young, fitz is the oldest of sophie’s group at the time. and his reaction shows his age, but not his maturity. he’s quick to blame and reacts without thinking - his anger brings out parts of him that he normally doesn’t reach for. fitz is always the one who prefers plans and thinking things out, and rarely do we see him like this. as a reader, it’s easy to hate him for this reaction - because we know that it’s not sophie’s fault. and the rational fitz is supposed to know that too - and he does.

kind of.

fitz’s greatest weakness as a character is that he doesn’t grow from this outburst. it’s not the first, and it’s not the last either. he’s a prideful guy - and with reason, he has a lot to be proud of. he’s not the best at apologizing either - it’s a cycle, where he gets mad, has an outburst, and apologizes with gifts to fix things.

this wouldn’t be such a big deal, i mean all of us have different love languages, right? but there’s a constant in the people he gets mad at (neverseen and related villains regardless. that’s justified anger, even at alvar, although that’s a little more complicated) and it’s:

1. sophie 2. keefe 3. dex

starting from the last, but not the least, dex. even after it’s revealed in (i believe) lodestar, that dex used to eat alone in his alchemy sessions and the vackers weren’t necessarily the nicest to him, snobby over their status in the elven world etc., we see him get mad at dex for hesitating over the situation with alvar. it’s particularly interesting, considering we never really see fitz bond with dex, just dex tell sophie that he’s going to be nicer to the vackers now that he understands them better. this is apparent to be a little more one sided in their interactions, and it gets worse with the reveal that alvar has “forgotten” his memories. fitz is ready to condemn him, but when dex isn’t, it upsets him.

remember, alvar was a part of the group that kidnapped and tortured sophie and dex. his supposed crush and his friend. and yet, both of the victims are feeling a little more kind hearted than fitz, who is alvar’s brother, yes, but it’s also been made clear that he isn’t as close to alvar as biana is. and yet.

as for keefe, his reasons for hating keefe make sense. and they don’t. if anything, he should be able to understand where keefe is coming from, especially since he *does* seem to be aware of keefe’s feelings for sophie. and despite the fact that they’re supposed to be best friends, he’s the least sympathetic to keefe’s situation. he’s betrayed, of course, they all are, and he’s angry about it, because of course he is. that’s normal - and it all adds up. where things get weird is when we realize that fitz doesn’t know that much about keefe. sophie’s the first one up to his house and keefe even says he doesn’t bring friends home, but it’s clear that he’s never talked about it with fitz.

fitz also has a tendency to not take keefe seriously, which the other characters all do an extent, but they know when to take him seriously and when to not. but fitz misses a lot of keefe’s growth and he still sees keefe as this weird kid that skipped a grade and likes to play pranks. keefe’s a shell of the person fitz knows at this point, and this is something they both need to come to terms with.

fitz’s pride comes into the picture here, manifesting as willful ignorance. he doesn’t know about keefe’s situation because, quite frankly? he didn’t want to sympathize with dex either. he’s a proud guy and this is GOOD characterization but. he kind of looks like a jerk.

in regards to sophie, these scenes sum up both how he feels about her and why i think they’re not good together:

i’ve talked a little about fitz and perfection and why he sees sophie as perfect even though it feels like he shouldn’t - and i don’t want to rehash all that so i’ll leave a little link to some thoughts i had regarding a scene in stellarlune, so you can check it out here. warning: stellarlune spoilers. the non spoiler version here: fitz craves perfection. his world was always perfect, and so was he. he’s the golden boy, after all, isn’t he?

what makes it so hard to have sympathy for him, after all i am an eldest daughter in an indian family with gifted kid burnout and a queer identity crisis - i know pressure lol it’s all i’ve ever known - is that he simply can not let go. he expects that painful level of perfection from himself, and it’s sad that they can’t have a little fun with the chandelier incident. he thinks that sophie would expect that kind of perfection from him, and for that reason, he thinks the problem is his levitating.

obviously lol, it’s not, but the boy but he also expects that kind of perfection from others, and thinks that others ALSO want that perfection, as seen in how he handles the news that sophie has found out who her genetic mother is.

more on THAT later. i doubt i’ll be able to stay objective on that scene so i’m saving it for the end of this little piece. (which is not as little as i was hoping, but if the people are interested, i could do a part two where i answer questions instead of just winging it!)

the second scene’s literally from the next page, but his pride and focus on perfection converge in on telepathy. sophie’s better than him, and there’s this undertone that this bothers him. he’s losing - and perfection always wins. here it is again - sophie’s ridiculously strong mental barriers. the point of trust.

part of the reason the sophitz relationship was doomed to fail from the start is the emphasis fitz places on their abilities. but we’re cognates is a cry for the little boy who wants his place back as the best, and sophie is his return to greatness. it’s not a bad thing when done right, but fitz can’t see past that. his sense of trust is misconstrued and believes it means sharing everything, never mind the fact that sophie’s a part of a rebel organization with thoughts planted in her head that could change the world. literally. the black swan planted them there.

(is the humor helping? i feel like we’ve been bashing fitz a bit for his lack of growth and i would apologize because i do think he’s a valuable character and a well written one at that, but a bit unlikeable when it comes down to it.)

he’s had his trust broken and people have hidden things from him, but in the grand scheme of things, alvar’s betrayal is the one that cuts him the most deeply. keefe’s hurts, sure, but i could argue it’s for love triangle related reasons, more than their supposed friendship instead. (i will, actually. that’s a part of the love triangle analysis - and if you think this is long...) but nothing is really earth shattering in the sense that it deeply warps his sense of identity. he’s been hurt a lot, and he’s a traumatized kid, but he reacts with less maturity than his younger sister - and a lot of the other (younger) characters at times, which can be frustrating to see when the solution is right there.

and here we are. the most painful scene for me to read - and i haven’t even gotten around to rereading legacy yet. so. legacy spoilers ahead.

this is my warning - i’m not cutting fitz as much slack for these scenes even if i understand where he’s coming from. he’s wrong. it’s as simple as that, and i *will* explain why, but if you still believe sophie and fitz should have ended up together and plan on reminding me of that, i respect you, but please just stop reading here.

for context, this is right after sophie finds out that oralie is her genetic mom and fitz is waiting at havenfield and tries to guess why she’s so upset. or that she’s figured out who her parents are. it becomes apparent shortly that even he doesn’t know which he’s doing.

“I get why you’re not ready to talk about it YET.”

this is supposed to be a small sentence to show how understanding he is, and it would be, if it wasn’t for the glaring YET at the end. he still expects sophie to talk about the subject sometime, and with him. but it’s weird that he’d be so relieved about it - considering how UPSET sophie is at the moment.

i tried, you guys, i really did. did i mention i was a hardcore sophitz shipper when i first started the series? only the first three books were out and i was in middle school minding my own business and even got through exile mad at fitz but hopeful.

it was my second readthrough before neverseen dropped that had me, you know, rethinking things. and now, at 19 (yeah okay that makes me sound old but you know the books have been out for a while now so), it’s easy to see why. sophitz is every little kid’s dream come true. your crush likes you back and it’s all as magical as you thought it would be. except it isn’t, because we tend to only see the good in people we like. sokeefe is the slow burn because it takes time to build up to a relationship and it’s not going to how you think it will.

I DIGRESS. this next excerpt is where i get really upset because fitz just does not listen. he pushes and he pushes and he pushes and god, you would think he’d get it.

things he gets points for: not lashing out at her immediately and holding back on his anger

things he does not get points for: well, you’ve read the scene too, right?

sophie says it best: he. just. wasn’t. listening.

and he also takes it upon himself to decide for her, who it is, even though sophie is clearly so very painfully obviously distressed. i mean, for anyone in his position, this is a major jerk move, but you know, it’s fitz, so he’s going to keep it perfect.

and just when we think he’s finally understood, just as i was thinking he’s getting better at reading situations, he brings up the matchmaking thing.

y’all, he acts like her not being matchmakable is a problem for both of them, even though it technically doesn’t affect her the way it affects him. she’s said it herself, that she has reservations about the whole thing, and it’s not even something she considers her future to be.

“you don’t want it either - you know you don’t.”

they might both be telepaths, but fitz projects himself onto sophie a lot because of that. it gets worse after they become cognates because it’s an even greater honor and they’re doing it together.

but they’re not the same. nowhere near it. it’s this scene that made me realize that fitz hasn’t been seeing sophie - he’s been seeing her potential and everything she could be, and that’s why he’s so fixated on the matchmaking lists. of course, matching with the most powerful elf the lost cities has ever known would restore his family name. it would be perfect, really, the most powerful elf and the second most powerful telepath the lost cities have ever known, matched together.

i could say more about him claiming that sophie’s privacy is less important than her future, as if the two aren’t one in the same, but i’d like to overlook that and pretend it’s just his entitlement and his view of matchmaking as the be all end all creeping in and nothing more.

so.

that was a lie.

“I… don’t think you’ve thought this through. But of course you haven’t. It’s late. You’ve had a long day with lots of huge stuff. So… can we just agree to not make any decisions right now?”

the way he’s so sure she hasn’t thought this through is a double edged sword. not only does it show a kind of possessive edge over her, where he’s constantly speaking for her and OVER her, it also shows us how he’s convinced it’s still about him.

fitz. my buddy. my man. listen to the girl.

he doesn’t bother giving her reasoning a chance and steamrolls ahead with his own, which we know sophie hates anyone doing. i mean, look at her argument with keefe in nightfall - she’s not going to stand for people speaking over her or for her. she doesn’t want their protection.

what’s wrong with this scene is that fitz writes off everything sophie is feeling and saying, and the key word here is ruin.

ruin.

instead of being understanding to sophie’s upbringing and her unique situation, he can’t look past his own return of the king (a lotr reference, shannon would you be proud even if i’m slandering your character?) to elven society. in fact, it says a lot that he sees her as the vacker redemption arc even when sophie herself has mentioned - to us and to HIM - that she doesn’t feel like she fits in with elven society but only if she plays by his rules.

(feels a little like objectification, ngl, and that doesn’t sit right with me.)

he’s blinded by his status, his pride, and perfection, and that, right there, is his biggest downfall.

not the conclusion gif i was looking for but y’all this is long enough let me keep this brief.

(HAHA YOU THOUGHT i am incapable of being brief)

fitz is an incredibly consistent character when we get down to it, and he’s not as complex-ified as the other characters are. well, not the way the other characters are. biana’s arc is about improving as a person and getting stronger, dex’s is about overcoming internalized prejudice, keefe’s is about chosen family and trauma, etc. fitz’s character arc is almost backwards - from a writing standpoint, this would be a really cool villain origin story. not that fitz is a villain, but over time, rather than his character becoming a better person, he starts out perfect until that perfection crumbles and we get to see the perfectionist that so desperately craves a return to his old normal, with everyone in this new normal. he’s trying so hard to fit into old clothes, outgrown shoes, and slip back into his old memories.

as a love interest, no. i could go further about his “interest” in linh being driven by her same power, but i have no doubt that matchmaking would still be of great interest to him, so i’ll leave it at that.

I DONT HATE FITZ. not as a person, nor as a character. i don’t see him as the most likable, but you guys, he’s not a villain. he’s a teenage boy who needs to work through his issues before he gets anywhere near sophie, but he’s been through a lot so i’m trying to cut him some slack. he’s an incredible asset to the kotlc team and his need for a plan tends to keep them from getting themselves in more trouble. he’s helped sophie improve her abilities vastly, and indirectly, pushed her to become better. quite literally, the story would not exist without him. we need fitz as a character because he makes the story what it is, but as an individual i just think we wouldn’t get along.

-k

(any questions are appreciated and i would love to have some canon discourse! i know in the quest for more diversity in the kotlc characters, discourse tends towards that, understandably, but i do believe there’s a lot to be uncovered in canon and i would love to talk about it more! yes, more than 3,219+ words about it LOL)

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synonymroll648 · 7 months

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explaim sokeefitz to me like im 16 and going through a sexuality crisis

apologies for getting to this late, i didn't check tumblr yesterday, but i'm answering it now!

sokeefitz is the polyamorous (consensually non-monogamous) ship between sophie foster, keefe sencen, and fitz vacker. some people interpret sokeefitz as a v relationship, while others (including myself) interpret it as a triad. in-depth explanation surrounding terminology and why people (romantically and queerplatonically) ship it below!

edit: this turned into an impromptu essay lol. there's a one paragraph summary at the end, i promise

v relationships versus triads, in relation to sokeefitz

v relationships are when one person dates two people, but said two people don't date each other. they're called v relationships because if you make a diagram of it, it looks like a v. typically, sokeefitz in a v relationship is portrayed as sophie dating the boys but the boys being just friends. but i've also seen interpretations where it's keefe dating the two of them, or fitz dating the two of them. sometimes, portrayals of v relationship sokeefitz are centered around their v relationship evolving into a triad.

which brings me to what triads are! triads are when three people are all dating each other. so a sokeefitz triad would be sokeefe, sophitz, keefitz, and the three of them together rolled into one ship.

most interpretations of sokeefitz, v relationship or triad, involve them being romantically interested in each other. (i'll talk about queerplatonic variations of sokeefitz later!)

why do people ship sokeefitz?

sokeefe and sophitz have a lot of canon grounding, so i think it's pretty self-explanatory as to why people ship sophie with keefe or fitz. the reasoning as to why shipping her with both of them became a thing was because people here on this lovely hellsite looked at the love triangle and went, wouldn't it be a win-win situation if they were an ot3 (3-person version of otp [one true pairing])?

while keefe and fitz have gotten jealous over each other's connections to sophie in canon, with their background of being best friends, some can see them being okay - with boundary-setting and trust-rebuilding beforehand - with dating her simultaneously. as for why sophie would want to date them simultaneously, there's a lot of moments in canon where she hates the idea of 'choosing between them'. she loves both of them in different ways for different reasons, and doesn't like the idea of giving up one for the other. if she were given the option of trying out a polyamorous relationship with them, there's a high chance she'd take it in canon. so, people give her that chance in fanon.

as for why people enjoy variations of sokeefitz where the boys are dating sophie and each other: keefe and fitz are often interpreted as childhood friends to exes. ex best friends? ex boyfriends? who knows anymore, keefe canonically stole fitz's bramble jersey, and fitz canonically wanted to move in with keefe and be his roommate. canon tries to portray them as friends with tension, but queer fans like myself have a tendency to look at their deep understanding of who the other used to be from the little things to the major parts and the bridge burning between them and go, hm. that's some good ship material, if i do say so myself.

keefe and fitz probably wouldn't have mutual romantic attraction towards each other in canon, but keefe flirts with literally everyone (from sophie to dex, and also going to take off his shirt for tam that one time) and is often read as bisexual-coded by the fandom. (typical bisexual definition: being attracted to two or more genders.) lots of people on here view fitz as being attracted to people based on personality, not gender. i personally like to headcanon him as someone who's not a big fan of labeling his sexuality, since it might feel like boxing himself into something, when the public and his family and his peers have been boxing him into different roles his whole life.

anyway! as to why people like myself like sokeefitz, alongside the screw the love triangle aspect of the ship, is how the three of them work excellently as a team. they have deep chemistry, and know how to compliment each other's weaknesses one way or another. they're by far not a perfect throuple, but i feel like they trust and love each other enough (in their own ways) that they're willing to work out their issues together. sophie and fitz have ironed some issues between them out through cognate training, and continue to do so; sophie and keefe have had major disagreements before, but reconcile in the end once they've tried to make up for mistakes made; and keefe and fitz have the hardest time making up, but it's arguably harder to let go of your first true friend when the two of you have gone through so much already.

queerplatonic variations of sokeefitz

i've also seen interpretations where at least two of them are in a queerplatonic relationship (qpr) instead. queerplatonic is a broad category that's typically defined as deep intimacy between people that may involve actions outwardly perceived as romantic (cuddling, dates, etc) but not have romantic intentions behind them. (for informational purposes, since qpr's aren't talked about much outside of the aromantic community, i'll note that most of the time qpr's don't include sex, but sometimes they do.) since queerplatonic is such a broad category, there are lots of variations of how it feels. the two main descriptions of queerplatonic attraction i've seen fall under the category of 'more intimate version of friendship' or 'relationship that exists entirely outside the platonic to romantic spectrum'. (personally, it feels like the former to me.)

queerplatonic variations of sokeefitz typically come from headcanons that fitz is on the aromantic spectrum, since he appears to have little to no romantic attraction in general towards people in canon. (example: while keefe frequently flirts w/ people and notes/hints at attractiveness in others, most of that doesn't even register as a possibility in fitz's head. unless he is attracted to someone, which appears to have only ever explicitly happened in canon with sophie.) there are headcanons that fitz is simply aromantic, while others headcanon him as demiromantic (only romantically attracted to people once he really gets to know them) or grayromantic (experiences romantic attraction occasionally, or only under certain circumstances, or only in small amounts).

this doesn't mean that sokeefitz is only ever interpreted as queerplatonic on fitz's end, though! i've read at least one fic where sophie was in a qpr with keefe and fitz (and i'm pretty sure keefe and fitz were in a qpr with each other too), and i've also read one where keefe was aroace (aromantic asexual, little to no romantic or sexual attraction) but willing to try out a qpr with sophie and fitz, who were both interested in him.

another important note about qpr's: some qpr's consist of people experiencing only queerplatonic attraction towards each other, other qpr's have at least one person who experiences romantic attraction and at least one other person who experiences queerplatonic attraction and they work out boundaries around what's 'too romantic' (been there, done that), or have at least one person experiencing attraction that fluctuates between romantic and queerplatonic, or something else. sokeefitz can be interpreted to fall under any of these categories, although i personally interpret it as the second option when we throw queerplatonic attraction into the mix.

summary: sokeefitz is the polyamorous ship between sophie foster, keefe sencen, and fitz vacker. it can be interpreted as all of them dating each other (being in a triad), or only some of them dating each other and others being just friends (being in a v relationship). v relationship variations of sokeefitz usually consist of sophie dating keefe and fitz, but keefe and fitz not dating each other - but there are other v relationship variations, like keefe dating sophie and fitz, but sophie and fitz being just friends. the main reasons why people ship these three is because the love triangle is stupid, and they have good enough chemistry and enough want to make things work with each other that they have potential for a good relationship. also, there are queerplatonic variations of sokeefitz, but those are less common and based on headcanons surrounding different characters - mostly fitz - being on the aromantic spectrum.

to anyone who made it this far - please let me know if you have any questions surrounding any of this, i'd be happy to answer!

#ask #anon ask #sokeefitz #kotlc #keeper of the lost cities #sophie foster #keefe sencen #fitz vacker #idk whether or not to tag this as kotlc analysis but. it kinda is #anon if this is not the kind of explanation you were going for please feel free to come back and ask for something else #i'd be happy to clarify things #i just realized this said LIKE i'm sixteen and going through a sexuality crisis #i just read it as 'i'm 16 and going through a sexuality crisis'#and as someone around that age. this is just how my brain works #so. who fucking knows if this is coherent smh #it's also unedited. if you couldn't tell #(you probably could)

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dragoncookies · 10 months

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(PT 1) REREADING STELLARLUNE!

I am on a mission this summer to reread the entirety of Stellarlune, every last word, because I’m really just delusional and don’t want to believe my favorite childhood series is spiraling downward (even though it truly is). There’s still some gold in Stellarlune, quite a lot actually.

SO, if you don’t want to reread stellarlune but still stay up to date you can follow me as I analyze this convoluted book. If you want, of course.

(TW: all caps).

(Sorry for grammar or spelling mistakes).

CHAPTERS 1-2:

Quick summary: Sophie finds the note, gets pissed at Grady for letting Keefe go and leaves her room to go to Elwin’s place with Sandor. Elwin and Ro are having a weird stuffed animal/exlir showdown, they have a long discussion about Keefe (go figure), then they call up Dex to figure out why Keefe freaked out and left. Dex clearly doesn’t want to tell them but they find out that Lex is talentless (it’s so sad).

First of all can I just say OH MY GOSH the whole thing is about Keefe. Literally that is all anyone obsesses over for the first two chapters so far. Literally his health and safety is ALL SOPHIE OBSESSES WITH in her internal monologues. Is that even healthy...?

CHAPTER ONE:

Funny thing, CHAPTER ONE HAS MAD PARRELELS TO THE SOPHITZ FIGHT SCENE IN LEGACY. Like, I’m not even lying when I say that I got intense flashbacks to that scene because Grady was literally acting like Fitz in his mannerisms and the syntax was so similar and the dialogue rang so many bells. It was uncanny.

Fitz tends to drag his toe on the ground and run a hand down his face when he’s stressed, and in this chapter Grady would be doing things like “dragging the toe of his boot through he flowers woven into her carpet”

and “Grady dragged a hand down his face”

I’m not even joking when I say that Grady said, “You trust me, don’t you?”.

There’s also a part in chapter one where it goes:

“’But I’ve never seen him so detirmined. Best I could do was...’

‘Was?’ Sophie prompted when he didn’t finish.”

In the Legacy fight scene there were multiple moments when Sophie didn’t finish her sentence and Fitz finished it. Except now it’s Sophie finishing the sentence. She was the one who was frustrated and she was lowkey acting like Fitz did in the Legacy fight scene. Little reverse reverse moment.

Do with this information what you will.

I never get tired of the Flori descriptions. In the first part of chapter one Shannon described her swaying to be like an autumn breeze, but at the end of chapter one she was described as swaying in a storm. Felt fitting.

Also,

someone get rid of Shannon’s ability to hit the Enter button,

Please.

;)

CHAPTER TWO:

I forgot how unironically comical Sandor is. It might just be me, but I narrate things when I read occasionally so I would be reading his stuff aloud with the squeaky bunny voice and everything he says is so serious but the voice makes it lowkey funny. The first lines of chapter two were so goofy because Sandor was all “it’s exactly what I feared” and it’s just Elwin’s house. It’s funny for me to imagine okay.

Chapter Two really highlights something in Sophie at this point: She is very unpractical. She’s a little dramatic but she refuses to listen to common sense and logic, and gets annoyed with anyone who tries to reason with her. She only listens to those who agree with her in that Keefe should have stayed. Like with Grady and Elwin she feels horribly betrayed, but connects with Ro because Ro wants to drop every current problem they’re all facing with the state of affairs in the elven world to find Keefe. When Dex (later in this chapter) points out Keefe might be safer in the lost cities Sophie gets mad and thinks “what’s wrong with everybody??” Like, Sophie please you’ve got bigger problems right now. Lowkey relatable ngl.

Okay I might ruffle some feathers with this, but Ro only gets more and more annoying with every new book that comes out. She’s so unbelievably in everyone’s business it’s surprising she has the fanbase she does. I feel as though Shannon is TRYING to make her BLATANTLY disrespectful and everyone just eats it up more and more. First of all, she just exposes Keefe’s personal statement in front of everyone and it clearly makes Sophie uncomfortable, then talks about how she’s been wanting this to happen forever and just assumes Sophie feels the same way about Keefe that Keefe does Sophie. Like, what would Ro have done if Sophie genuinely didn’t like Keefe? She’s shoving her nose in a teenage relationship she has NO BUISNESS being in. Gosh Ro. Sorry that was critical...she’s just so invasive. Also, this is a fantasy series, the romance is becoming excessive.

When Sophie calls up Dex, all I can say is oh my. Oh my.

Dex has clearly been crying and looks real rough and Sophie’s just like “so why are you crying. You’ve been crying tell me why, don’t argue with me” and when I tell you I’ve never wanted to reach through the pages and slap someone more. He’s clearly hurt and all she can think about is how badly she needs to get Keefe back. She makes Dex reorganize his priorities in the middle of a grieving session for his sibling so she can make him try and find Keefe. SOPHIE. HE’S YOUR FRIEND. BE NICE.

This entire conversation is also highlighting how lowkey hypocritical Sophie is (wow I’m absolutely bagging on the poor girl). She asks Dex “you trust me, don’t you?” when Grady literally asked her that a chapter ago and she got mad about it. She also tried to tease Dex a little to lighten the mood like Grady did a chapter ago when Sophie didn’t find it funny before.

Then there’s the part where Dex really really REALLY doesn’t want anyone to know that Lex is talentless and Ro just goes “well i know what happened and I’m going to spill your secrets in ten second unless you tell her yourself” (paraphrasing). That is just. I hate to say it but that is absolutely disgusting. You don’t hold people’s sensitive and personal information over their head’s like that. Dex has been sobbing and there’s crashing coming from his end of the imparter from inside his house. His world has probably been flipped upside down, he’s shouting “STOP” and asking them not to prod anymore, and Ro just FORCES the information to come out of him one way or another. That’s sick. It’s underhandedly sick. Sophie goes along with it too, using some pathos type sappy speech to convince Dex why invading his privacy is important because guess what? Finding Keefe (a relatively useless task) is more important than Dex’s privacy.

Then after Ro forces Dex to tell Sophie keefe’s new ability-detecting ability she makes it seem as though he’s overreacting.

Put simply: poor Dex.

There’s emphasis on the obsession with elven abilities in this chapter. Ro repeatedly highlights how bizarre it is that elves are so infatuated with something that can only be useful half the time, and Dex’s grief over Lex not having an ability shows how HEAVY the elven prejudice runs. Like, it’s literally making him cry. He doesn’t even want to say it. That’s how important it is in elven society. Dex even says, “Abilities define us for the rest of our lives”. Yikes. Maybe this is an important concept to keep in mind...?

I love this part of the chapter, though, when Dex actually does tell Sophie about Lex:

“’Oh,’

The tiny word seemed to pulse, growing louder with every beat until the sound filled the enormous room.

So did the word none of them said.

Talentless.

More tears dripped down Dex’s cheeks, and Sophie felt her own eyes turn watery.”

Sad :(

Well, that’s all for now. If you read all of that, you’re a legend. Stay tuned for more chapters!

#kotlc #keeper of the lost cities #kotlc keefe #Keefe Sencen #kotlc sophie #kotlc ro #sophie foster #kotlc stellarlune #stellarlune #kotlc headcanon #fitz vacker #kotlc fitz #kotlc keefe sencen #kotlc sophie foster #kotlc Fitz vacker

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queenie-blackthorn · 6 months

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50% into kotlc, here are some thoughts ive had since the 25% mark :D

@aylin-hijabi @that-multi-fandom-hijabi sorry for tagging yall a lot lmao

first thing that comes to mind thats plot-related n not character-related is prentice. he was exiled 12 years ago, same age as sophie. its so obviously not a coincidence. tho i wonder whats up w him n tiergan (idk how to spell lmao i feel like thats wrong)

also, i wonder just how strong sophie is. like, the way she knocked fitz into the wall ??? thats her not knowing the full extent of her powers. i have a feeling shes always gonna be one of those main characters whos extremely powerful but constantly throughout the series she finds new abilities she has. kinda like percy jackson

im also realizing how stupid ill seem if im just overanalysing everything and my guesses are too far-fetched or too deeply thought out to really mean anything lololol

moving to character-related, i adore dex. he seems kinda spiteful tho ??? esp towards fitz. thats prolly bc the vacker family is apparently rlly famous n shit n meanwhile dexs parents were a bad match. still dont rlly get what that means. i feel like theres more to him. also his crush on sophie is adorable

KEEFE. nothing, just... keefe. havent seen much but from what i HAVE seen, hes hilarious. i remember aylin mentioning that hes like leo valdez in that theyre both hot, funny, and traumatized... still waiting on the 'traumatized' part. she also said hes less major in this book n more major in the second book, so maybe ill find out then

midterms are gonna go wrong just wait i just know it

biana seems acc genuine in wanting to be friends w sophie. but there was one point when she was talking to sophie n there was smth like a glare for a moment ?? idk kinda sus to me. maybe im overthinking it cause i cant think of a possible motive

marella seems cool. in the art, shes absolutely gorgeous, but so is everyone in this goddamn book. also notable that the first time i saw her name i misread it as 'redneck' 💀💀💀

stina is a bitch. nothing else to say, except that she looks terrifyingly like me? except different eye color n i wear glasses loll. i hope to see some character development cause i personally hate the trope of "token mean girl" in books (like drew tanaka or zoya nazyalensky) cause theyre so one dimensional n boring (although zoya does become majorly more likeable throughout the grishaverse books, im hoping to see the same in stina)

irrelevant but the amount of times sophie is ending up in the infirmary reminds me of a roleplay w my friends from like three years ago oml the nostalgia (cause there would at all times be at least one character in the infirmary injured or nearly dead bc we needed that drama to keep the rp going LMAO)

overall, theres not as much to say as there was at the 25% mark. (i feel like theres more i wanna say but i cant think of anything.) prolly cause since then, the book has mainly been abt learning abt the elves' world n culture. i think by the 75% point im gonna have a lot more to say, n then ill post the final update thingie when im 100% done w the book

ill be 75% done in 89 pages, but the last day of midterm is tomorrow, so god knows how long thatll take me :') i promise to try thooo

oh also galvins a bitch but i feel like she has trauma fsr idk shes just giving

#kotlc thoughts #kotlc #first time read

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ilovebylersblog · 1 year

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#aka which do u project onto #keeper of lost cities #sophie foster #keefe sencen #fitz vacker #kotlc #biana vacker #tam song #linh song #keeper of the lost cities #dex dizznee

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corruption-exe · 2 years

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Villain Arc Essay

“People are not born heroes or villains; they’re created by the people around them.”

-Chris Colfer

The only elves in Keeper of the Lost Cities that deserve or could possibly have villain arcs are Sophie Foster-Ruewen, Fitz Vacker, Dex Dizznee, and Biana Vacker; with the bonus of Marella Redek.

In this essay, I will explain why they deserve it and show proof of why.

Starting with Sophie Foster-Ruewen, this is an interesting possibility considering the following.

Throughout the series, she is shown to be annoyed by the Black Swan keeping secrets. This could result in her rebelling.

Albeit, she could also turn into one considering other factors as well: The lines between good and bad are blurring, she could be fed up with being the Black Swan’s Moonlark, and she’s crumbling from the pressure put on her from her responsibilities Black Swan and non-Black Swan.

In Unlocked, Sophie was looting a Neverseen hideout when she got the idea to burn down the hideout. Although this gained her some approval from Glimmer, it could be seen as an act of her seeing the lines between good and bad blurring. She left her symbol, the Moonlark, in the dirt as a way of the Neverseen knowing it was her doing and it was her responsibility. Although she wouldn’t join the Neverseen, she could be showing signs of breaking away from the Black Swan. This could also lead to our next factor.

All Sophie wanted to be was “normal”. Unfortunately, it would never be because the Black Swan created her intending to help the Lost Cities. Although it was a good intention, Sophie would have to grow up early.

She was shunned as a “freak” in the Forbidden Cities and when she finally got to the Lost Cities, she was often thought of as the elf from the Forbidden Cities.

It might be unlikely considering that she loves and is loyal to her friends and family, but do you know who is second on the list?

Fitz Vacker, her Cognate.

Many fans on other platforms hate him and would accept it immediately, but on this media platform, he’s regarded as a realistic teenage elf and a well-thought character due to blogs that gave him analyses. His emotions are seen as irrational to some, and although it is easy to see why they’re thought to be irrational, nearly no one has seen him for who he was behind the persona and appearance he displayed.

All of his life, he was the Golden Boy. The Golden Vacker. The one that had his nexus off at a young age, had enough mental strength to leap with three people at the same time and manifested as a powerful Telepath. He was feared, admired, and envied.

In everyone else’s view, it was perfectly fine to judge a Vacker child, no matter how young, but what they didn’t take into account were his feelings.

I’ve said it before and it might be repetitive, but he was a child. Children don’t often know how to deal with their emotions, no matter how rich or poor.

He was forced to be perfect “for the family”, so he did as he was told. It has never been stated in canon, but he has probably practiced his smiles, walks, waves, etiquette, and all that is required to make him perfect for society.

Apart from his feelings, do you know what else is overlooked about him?

He was never given as much credit as he deserved. It might have deflated his ego to a well-portioned size, but when in canon has he ever been praised personally? When has he been told that he did a great job? Do you ever remember that being addressed?

Sure, Sophie is the Moonlark and is a huge puzzle piece, but what about her friends? Has he ever been given credit for his help? For finding her?

If so, then has it been enough?

A good question is what about Alvar and Keefe?

He had confessed to considering his older brother as a role model and aspired to be like him – a diplomat working on foreign relations. Although Alvar wasn’t around much, it was clear that he loved his brother and was affectionate when he was around.

As for his best friend, Keefe viewed him as the brother he never had; and in turn, Fitz shared his family with Keefe, thinking of him as another brother, disapproving of his parents.

It’s been shown that after both Alvar and Keefe’s betrayal, Fitz subtly starts showing that he’s gained trust issues, nearly losing the ability to trust when Tam left.

As a result of Keefe’s betrayal, he hasn’t forgiven Keefe completely. After his breakup with Sophie, although Keefe was somehow the indirect cause, Fitz was most likely berated by his father. His father has shown that he wants Fitz and Sophie to match through the short story released with Flashback from Keefe’s point of view.

And for Alvar? Fitz was upset at Alvar, and, in a blind rage, nearly killed him. If it wasn’t for Alvar knowing basic survival skills, he would have died. As far as I have seen, no one has tackled how he probably thinks or thought of himself as a monster for that. Mind you, he was only 16 or 17.

Why people decide that his anger issues are uncalled for is unclear since he’s only a teenager. Most of us are teenagers like he is.

Not to mention, his father and the weight of the Vacker legacy. His family has had years and generations of working in the Nobility; those fresh out of the womb are expected to follow.

It’s common knowledge that he has joined the Black Swan and has been exposed to the dystopia behind the utopian illusion the Council and Elvin society has put up. He may be crumbling into madness because of what he thought he knew and what he knows now. He is losing to his inner demons and he doesn’t know how long he can take until he snaps.

Although the pressures of society could be the cause for Fitz, on the opposite end of the spectrum is Dex Dizznee.

Interestingly, both could become villains, yet they are put in different social classes. Both have prejudices against them, yet they bear them with different masks of emotions.

Dex has the shortest end of the stick, being the son of a Bad Match and a brother of triplets. He genuinely cares for his family and learns from his mistakes.

Why is he on this list?

Unless you need a refresher course, I suggest you continue reading the following.

Like Sophie, he would never work for the Neverseen, but, rather, split off on his own.

He’s a Technopath. How dangerous can he be?

Unless you haven’t thought that question through, I suggest looking at the canon stated below.

Throughout the series, it’s known that he builds panic switches for all his friends in case of emergency, and they have proven handy, as shown in Flashback. Dex has improved his panic switches and as far as canon goes, he is tweaking and upgrading them for more specific emergencies. His Sucker Punch has helped Sophie and the others countless times.

In the first book, he managed to fix and upgrade Sophie’s iPod without knowing that he was a Technopath. Later in the book, when he and Sophie are trapped in Paris, he manages to hack into an ATM and get money so they could buy food. A friendly reminder that he, again, hadn’t found out about his ability and wasn’t trained.

In Everblaze, a thirteen-year-old boy with barely any training built an ability restrictor during Study Hall. Although this was a big no-no, it’s impressive that he learned how to suppress an ability, something natural embedded into an elf’s DNA. Later, he builds a copy of the restrictor, but it gets destroyed. Accomplishing one is enough, but two? It must have taken him a long time to code the other one since the technology is very advanced.

In Neverseen, he built the Twiggler and countless others. He hacked into the registry files, managing to erase his trail as he went. He nearly killed everyone because of a device he built that malfunctioned because of Councilor Zarina. Notice how I used the word “nearly”? Fitz threw it, but it nearly cost him his life, making Dex feel guilty.

He’s shown insecurity in his creations and himself as he was scared that he harmed Sophie for good and killed Fitz. I am sure that this alone can knock him down.

I could continue on a deeper rant about his inventions, but that’s all I’m going to list. He’s a powerful Technopath, so him without limits while on a dark path, no one knows how it can go and that is scary.

Ignoring all the inner turmoil, his villain arc could also be something personal.

As stated above, his parents were a Bad Match and he had triplets for siblings, an automatic magnet for rumors, gossip, scorn, and prejudice.

When talking about the ability restrictor, he stated that he didn’t want what happened to him to happen to his little brothers and sister.

He could turn into a villain to “fix” the world through terms that the Black Swan, Neverseen, or the Council won’t use or think of.

Just like Fitz, Dex is barely credited. He has always been ignored even though none of them would be alive without him. No one has thanked him. No one invites him on missions. He’s already stated that he’s the guy that stays home and works on gadgets. He is the reason why Sophie and the others are even alive in the first place. Yet, where is his thank you? Where is his appreciation inside the universe?

Nowhere to be found? That’s because it’s true.

He’s only called when he’s needed. Maybe Dex will start feeling underappreciated and feeling inferior. Insecurity is one of the many pillars of villainy in some instances.

Dex has many more reasons in fanon, but the ones I stated above are how it can go canonically.

Moving back to the higher parts of the Lost Cities, let’s finally talk about Biana Vacker.

From the very beginning, she's had a right to turn into one.

For proof, she has admitted to always being seen in the shadows of her brothers and used as a stepping stool to get to Fitz by other kids for their gain, causing her to have trust issues.

Just like her brother, she’s weighed down by societal prejudices and expectations. She hides behind her smiles because what would the public think if the Vacker Princess were to cry? What then?

So she bottles up her emotions. How else would she be the perfect daughter?

In Nightfall and Flashback, everyone watched as she got through the process of being scarred. What were their initial reactions to the scars?

Cover it up or try to heal it. It’s an imperfection and that’s nothing a lady should have. It's a sign you almost died. Stop crying. You can’t do that.

Like, please, can’t you see she’s suffering? At least tell her she was brave for tackling Fintan and Vespera without any thought.

It’s proven that she also cared for Keefe and she seemed to be closer to Alvar than any of the other Vackers. It looked like she genuinely cared and loved him before the betrayal and after the memory wipe. The rest of the Vackers held their distance, but she treated Alvar as she would have if nothing had happened.

I find it interesting that she’s a Vanisher. I have a feeling that this was meant to be something symbolic. She’s always in the shadows of everyone, so why not give her the ability to blend in with them more?

The public acknowledges her as a Vacker, but she’s only relevant when Fitz or Sophie is with her.

Biana mirrors her brother in so many ways but to a darker extent.

She may know she’s cracking. She just hopes that no one gets hurt as she did.

And to conclude this essay, Marella Redek, the wildcard.

Yes, the Pyrokinetic herself. Pyrokinetics are known to have chaotic thoughts because of the fire they control. Fire is known to be a very destructive element.

As proven by Fintan and Brant, being a Pyrokinetic can drive you to madness. Fintan accidentally killed five elves with Everblaze while Brant accidentally killed his fiancèe, Jolie.

Although she hasn’t shown any signs of danger, she hasn’t reached her full potential yet.

Marella could snap anytime soon.

From a young age, whispers followed her around due to her mother being mentally unstable. They only got worse when she was revealed to be a Pyrokinetic.

Pyrokinetics in the Lost Cities were considered Talentless because the ability was deemed too dangerous, so this would get people talking shit about the Redek family as if they weren’t already.

Strained with expectations and followed by whispers, destructive thoughts clawing their way through her mind, maybe her origin story will happen through an outburst of emotion and fire.

All five of them would be dangerous villains separately. If they worked together, they would tear the world apart, and they would do it thinking they were in the right, with smiles on their faces.

Tag list: you’ve probably forgotten, but here it finally is! (if you never asked to be tagged, i’m sorry, but i probably tagged you out of loyalty/i want your opinion)

@synonymroll648 @gaslight-gaetkeep-gayboss @an-ungraceful-swan @orionalumn @bookblr-bestie @squishmallow36 @thefruitsaladdemon @gay-otlc @i-dont-know-nor-care-go-away @arson-anarchy-death @aceofunicorns @when-wax-wings-melt @fintan-pyren @hellomyfriends @bookwyrminspiration @posts-from-the-dark @florida-fruity-frog @callas-pancake-tree @kamikothe1and0lny @even-if-in-another-time @katniss-elizabeth-chase @camelspit @the-abandoned-schoolbus @chaotic-bumblebee-agenda @constant-sapphic-breakdown @rusted-phone-calls @aroace-dadwinstan @arcadialedger @xanadaus @winterfireice @coldtragedytaco @that-glasses-dog @that-multi-fandom-mess

Essay based on this post.

please tell me what i should tw

#kotlc #keeper of the lost cities #sophie foster #marella redek #fitz vacker #biana vacker #dex dizznee #fintan pyren #brant alger

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