#they're all villains they're all heroes... it just depends on whose point of view you're looking for

[mishkakagehishka]

Where's my post ab being a two-faced bitch bc i like both eichi and valkyrie i'm feeling it again

[vsaintsin]

Hi there, its Athena for Sunday Ask-A-Thon week 2 at @ask-a-thon: Have any of your ocs gone from villain to hero, or vice versa? What happened?

Excellent question, as most of my characters have flip-flopped in various ways. Sometimes, it depends on whose perspective you're viewing them through. Sometimes, it's character development. I think specifically I'll address Carlisle, because he's the central point of my writing for the time being.

In the earliest years of his character, he was a nameless, faceless mercenary (in a fanfiction/rp on one of the larger websites of yester-year). He mostly existed to support another character's motives and goals and was distinctly villain-coded, however much his own motivations were unclear. Eventually, through a very long period of unintentionally building his character and through interactions he had that I couldn't predict with others, he developed a sort of tragic half-redemption story.

In very short summary, the poor guy was unwittingly/unwillingly part of an organization that sought conquering, dominance, power, etc. He never intended to be on the wrong side of a war, but found himself victim of their propaganda. Force-fed for years that the organization's goal was to bring peace, to end war, etc., he willingly - for a time - fought on their side of things.

All of that character development revolved around 'but what if I'm the bad guy'. It was getting harder for him to look at his actions and see where he was creating good or peace. If anything, he felt a lot more like a villain. People feared he and his allies, shut them out, and hid away. He had to actively seek out answers - a process he realized was illegal - from media coverage outside of the organization he worked for/lived under in order to start uncovering the truth.

Naturally, when he did, he was beyond furious. If you spent your whole life killing-in-the-name-of, trying to create a better future, just to discover that your good nature - and capacity to get your hands dirty for the greater good - had been preyed upon - anyone would be angry.

Already a weapon, and already a criminal in multiple countries for his transgressions against them through the organization he worked for, he struck out on a path for redemption. He started to usurp from within, and to break down the delicate political arrangements that said organization had, using all the skills they taught him. Eventually, he was caught and struck out on his own, but those decisions did cost him everything.

He's a sort of fun example in a way because he's more of "The hero discovers that they're actually the villain" and progresses to "the villain becomes the hero in villainous ways". Maybe doesn't exactly fit the question, but it's a fun subject to expand on, and shows some of the grey areas of which side of a war you happen to be born on.

(Disclaimer: This is the character in my books, but this is not exactly his story anymore. While the themes of this story still exist within his character, ancient in his bones, this story didn't serve the practical purpose of his narrative anymore.)