#i feel like i've already said most of this in your dms... scattered... hahaha

[avcnturine]

I’ve seen a number of theories about Aventurine’s eyes, how they’re viewed within the Avgin culture and how they’re viewed by outsiders, what they symbolism, their powers, etc., so I want to hear your headcanons 👀

〈　　　from　　∶　　　　𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐀 𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐍 𝐌𝐈𝐂　/　🇦​🇨​🇨​🇪​🇵​🇹​🇮​🇳​🇬​　　〉

ooooo!! granted, i don't know what others have been saying myself, so apologies if my headcanons aren't quite up to their theories

how they're viewed within the avgin culture,

note to myself here to talk at some later date about avgin cultural history and origins because looking at the flashback scenes gave me some more thoughts. anyway!

brightly-colored, multi-toned eyes are seen as a good omen, specifically that the child is a gift from fenge biyos herself. for the life of me, i'm almost sure i remember there being a line either from his mother or his sister or his younger self in one of the flashbacks about how aventurine's eyes are a sign of gaiathra triclops' blessing, but i can't find it rn!!!!!! anyway, the association comes from their veneration of the aurora, which is believed to be the embodiment of fenge biyos' divine essence when she leaves behind her body to ascend for the rebirth of kakava. because the avgins' signature brightly-colored eyes mirror the hues and vibrancy of this aurora, it's believed that these children are in essence "fragments" of fenge biyos' divinity brought down and shared among the people as sources of blessing and good fortune. there's more i could say here about the embodiment of fenge biyos' divinity here ( as in divinity made bodily ) given the avgins' beliefs that sigonia itself is shaped from the goddess' body. so there's definitely a common thread that runs through the avgin belief system here. anyway, in particular, blessed children like these are seen as a kind of deliverance for the avgin people from their reality of suffering. there's a clear collectivistic value system and sense of community duty that comes with it. this is, i would argue, where aventurine's own view on fate and how good fortune can be used to combat it, stems from. from the scene where kakavasha returns the stolen necklace to his sister:

???: Pain and poverty are the trials of Gaiathra Triclops. SHE has also granted us a chance, and that's your good luck, Kakavasha. Your good luck is the most precious wealth that we — and all avgins — have. ???: You're a child blessed by Gaiathra Triclops and can lead the clan to happiness.

not every avgin has them. the sigonia planar ornament, as well as numerous other characters' reactions to aventurine, indicates that the "sigonian eyes" are a well-known phenotypical stereotype. but given that they seem to so far broadly associate the eyes with sigonia even though the avgin is only one of its numerous tribal groups, i'm willing to believe that the distinctive eyes themselves are a case of generalization also. there are plenty of sigonians, and avgins, who have gone unrecognized by the larger galaxy due to not possessing them. 　

the exact colors and hues vary. aventurine's are distinctively a sharp sky blue and bright lilac, but there have been other variations of different colors, shades, and combinations. the lighter and more vibrant ( thus closer to the aurora ), the luckier the child is considered to be. notably, no two individuals with the exact same colors have existed at the same time, something that's only deepened the avgins' beliefs.

how they're viewed by outsiders,

aside from the established indication of stereotype,

superstition. some other buried text that i can't remember right this second, as well as sunday's question to aventurine during the interrogation of whether "the avgins have any ability to read, tamper with, or manipulation one's own or another's mind", tell us that the rumor or urban legend that this may be the case is fairly commonplace. it's pretty clear that hoyo takes some inspiration here from how the roma people are similarly perceived and distrusted. 　

jealousy and envy. the description for "sigonia: the unclaimed desolation" also tells us that the avgins frequently draw "jealousy and ire" from others due to their naturally attractive features, beautiful eyes, and inborn ease of social maneuvering. the interaction of these two faces ( the superstition / distrust and the envy ) can be seen whenever aventurine's defining features are brought up — his eyes are almost always called " beautiful " by others ( such as by sparkle ) in the same breath that they and what they represent are also disparaged. we also see this in of course his former slavemaster, who valued him in part for his beauty while also treating him like dirt. though in this case the direct correlation to aventurine being avgin isn't present, we still see that same dichotomy. 　

so do those eyes have powers? most likely not. ( i say most likely because frankly, the cutscene where he accosts the trailblazer like hella aggro plays up specifically the force of his gaze super super intensely, with his eyes clearly being the locus of the intimidation going on there. so i wouldn't be entirely surprised if hoyo was trying to imply that there is "some" sort of pseudo-hypnotic / psychic thing he can pull out. idk. ) 　 ultimately though i land on no. the reason for this, even despite said cutscene, is because i think aventurine understands the power of suggestion very, very well — and knows that if everyone already sort of buys into the idea that avgin eyes have the ability to bend their minds, then it's already most of the way there to being true. it's basically placebo effect in reverse. i think this is actually why the cutscene is the way it is, and why the game doesn't give us any other clear answer otherwise — it's essentially putting this same "is there, isn't there?" question in the player's mind that the characters in-game themselves have. 　 the knowledge of this power of suggestion is why aventurine doesn't oppose or correct any of the avgin stereotypes others have about him, instead actively playing into them and using them to benefit himself. the sunglasses are not to hide his eyes; they're there to enhance them. he knows that with sunglasses that flashy, the eyes are where most people are going to look first on his face. so he leans into that, and when he takes them off, it only brings out his eyes even more. if people who are confronted by them then think they might be getting psychic'd, and are then jumping through hoops in their own minds and psyching themselves out, then they're doing half the work for him. and at that point, isn't the rumor then just kind of true?