#all i have are the two main characters and ulli's weird brother who's like 20 years older than her

[mercuryislove]

1, 4, and 9 (for whichever story, I’m not picky 😊)

because I'm unable to shut up about anything ever I answered two for each..... I hope that's okay lol

1. Which character is most devoted to another character? Is that character equally devoted to them?

This is hard to say because undying devotion is like. my thing. I'm obsessed with devotion, especially when it morphs into something beyond loyalty and dedication. (basically I'm obsessed with the idea of love driving people to insanity lol I could talk about that shit for days) UM. If I had to pick just one, I would say probably the way Andhira (and her brother and mother) is devoted to the Sovereign. It's kind of a cop out and also kind of contradicts the fact that Andhira like. tried to get him killed once to take his place (listen, a thousand years is a long time. Of course there's going to be insane family drama. Give her a break), but she loves him. They all love him. He's the reason they exist. He's the reason there are any vampires left at all. He's the primary reason that the world hasn't torn itself apart in spite of it all. She would do anything for him. She would fall on her sword a thousand times if he asked. Even if he didn't ask. If she thought that was what he wanted, she would do it. And he absolutely is as devoted to her. If not more so. Everything he has ever done was for her. (well. Technically everything he has ever done was for Tahire, but like. bear with me.) He would give up anything for his daughter without a second thought because she is the reason he lives on despite well..... not always wanting to. He would gladly live forever if that was what would make her happiest, but he would die at a moment's notice too.

Honorable mention also to the devotion between Ciaran and Anwei because um. Imagine living through hell together and being the only thing the other has and growing to resent that you're the only thing the other has and then coming to understand that your resentment was only misguided loneliness and misery and heartbreak over so much lost and ultimately finding peace with each other through that fact.

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4. Are there any characters who don't realize just how strongly another character feels about them, whether those feelings be positive or negative? Over the course of the story, does anything make them realize? If so, what?

LMAO well. Vera and Andhira really fucking hate each other. Until they don't. They definitely hate each other initially for good reasons. They both are a paragon of what the other hates most. Vera hates Andhira because vampires ruined her entire fucking life (even if she personally had nothing to do with it), and Andhira hates Vera because humankind has spent thousands of years trying to wipe vampires off the face of the earth (even if half the time vampires are the ones who called for the hunts). Over time, they both learn that their preconceived notions of each other's lives are mostly false, and that they... kind of directed their hatred at the wrong targets lol

Honorable mention goes to Yixing being like “damn okay I only thought Ciaran was like. in love with me or whatever. Not that he wanted to burn down the world in my name to keep my delicate mortal body safe.” He didn't realize shit was getting out of hand until it was too late ._. I mean. It's not his fault because nobody else did either and Ciaran made a series of very logical leaps and bounds from “okay I will do anything to keep you safe” to, um “I'm going to rip the soul out of every person who has ever or could ever hurt you and I will find the only god left and I will rip out her soul too for good fucking measure because it will make me better at keeping you safe.” Like. We've all been there lol

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9. Are there any two characters who pretend to feel differently about each other than they do? Does anything force them to reveal their real feelings?

Um lol Vera lies to everyone about how she absolutely most certainly does NOT care for Andhira in any way because “she's so. Ugh. Like. What? No. I hate her. I mean, yes I did return to the job I swore I'd never do again because she broke into my house and asked me very nicely and because we both share horrific nightmares. The fact that she's the most beautiful woman I've ever seen has nothing to do with it. It's actually because my uncles told me I should help her. Nothing to do with anything else. Did I mention she fucking sucks. Blood. Get it? She's a vampire and I hate her.” It doesn't take long for either of them to warm up to each other but they're both super in denial about it for a whole host of reasons, and what finally happens is that (in dramatic gay fashion of course) Andhira basically takes a bullet for Vera, and she's all upset thinking she's been grievously injured and is like “why tf would you risk your life for me? I thought you fucking hated me” and Andhira is like. “Well. I did it because I'm virtually impervious to harm but also why do you think I hate you? I care about you, even if you're a huge asshole to me at every turn” and then they're both like. hm. Maybe we don't hate each other as much as we thought we did. And we were just keeping up appearances because we thought the other still felt that way.

And my honorable mention goes to my closeted gay climbing girl Wren who thinks she is just very good friends with her supremely dykey world-famous climbing friend. She doesn't realize that like. it isn't just friendship until they're climbing together and Ulli offers to tie her in because she's already chalked up (which. Having someone tie you in or untie your rope before/after a climb is like. unbelievably intimate lol yes I speak from experience). And they're both looking at each other like. um. is anyone else getting a gay vibe?