xasafi

[xasafi]

Do you think Jean will look at James Rhemann who coaches one of the best teams in class 1 exy, who owns a garden, who is living his life with his dear partner— wondering. Do you think Jean will look at him thinking “maybe one day I can have what he has”?

Do you think freshman post-rehab Jeremy looked at coach Rhemann and thought “i will never have what he has”

[xasafi]

Jeaneil: not romantic, not platonic, but “a secret third thing” - a few personal thoughts about forever partners and a bond that transcends universes.

Let me start by saying that I just love Jeaneil, period. I absolutely devour their canon interactions and their dynamic as “misplaced forever partners” (they make me go absolutely insane, I’m very much obsessed and simply unable to be normal about them) but I also REALLY love fics where they are their unique brand of codependent Raven partners and/or the ultimate ‘best friends forever’ (basically them on the more platonic side of things). That being said, I will also occasionally read AUs with them as a romantic ship if the mood strikes.

But I'm going to be honest with you - my favorite 'non-canon' dynamic for Jeaneil is them being in a Queerplatonic Relationship (even if they wouldn't know that that's what it is) and them being pretty damn intense about it (and about each other).

I don't mean it in an unhealthy way though, and I’m not necessarily talking about the infamous Raven codependency either (that can be a thing too, to a degree, yes, but this is not about that).

(About Jeaneil QPR) It's just that their love, their devotion, their care and understanding for each other is so incredibly great, their bond so profound and unique, that when observed by an outsider, their relationship appears to be something beyond most people’s understanding - it's a level of closeness and intimacy that most people simply cannot wrap their head around or comprehend. Still, people will look at Jeaneil and marvel at the connection they have; a connection that in a lot of universes was a thing forged in a dark place, cemented by blood and pain, something that could have easily just been a temporary, shaky alliance formed out of necessity, only meant for survival. But it's clear that it isn't just that - not at all, actually. They care about each other and love each other so deeply, so fiercely, that it's basically blinding - it's so obvious that the bond they have is not only incredibly strong and genuine but also just so undeniably full of trust, affection and mutual respect. It's absolutely beautiful.

They are each other’s safe place, each other's anchors, each other’s forever partners. They just know each other, SEE each other. They have the closest thing to real-life telepathy to be ever observed in our world and that freaks other people quite often. They are so used to having the other by their side - the place for the other practically carved into the space next to them; that the mere thought of losing the other makes them feel unbalanced, like they are about to lose a limb. Some people say they act like a couple but they are just… them. Jean and Neil, Neil and Jean, JeanandNeil, NeilandJean.

And yes, this dynamic goes a bit beyond their canon relationship and is a thing more typical of Raven!Neil AUs in particular, but I genuinely think that what Jeaneil have in TSC and TGR (despite their relatively short history together in the og trilogy) is basically a “lighter” (but still placed quite firmly in the ‘intense’ territory) version of this dynamic. Like, let's be honest, just between Neil being ready to annihilate whoever hurt Jean, followed by him putting a hit on Grayson without a second of hesitation and Jean’s “I wouldn’t have given him to you if I’d known you would just throw him away so carelessly,” it's pretty freaking clear that they are quite insane about each other in canon too. They might try to act like that isn't the case, but not only do they care about each other SO MUCH but they also very obviously still have this bond, this link that was destined for them from the very beginning - a connection that I believe would be present in every single universe where they exist, no matter how their lives would have unfolded. A red string of fate perhaps? Something connecting them as platonic soulmates and forever partners in every lifetime?

And well, if they act like that in canon, after basically a few weeks of knowing each other, you can definitely imagine how inseparable and close they would have been in a different (eg. Raven!Neil) situation.

(“I don't think he [Neil] would have left Jean.”)

[xasafi]

What if I say Jeaneil? Misplaced forever partners?

(Song: Background by Jin)

[xasafi]

Misplaced forever partners translates to jean and Neil being soulmates in most other universes me thinks (platonic or romantic up to u)

[xasafi]

jeaneil “in another life, i would have really liked just doing laundry and taxes with you”

[xasafi]

i need jean and neil to hug i have no idea how that’s even gonna work but i need it so much

[xasafi]

I have a hypothesis for the future (among hundreds, but oh well)...

When Neil realizes that Jean and Jeremy are developing a relationship (or have already started) he is going to do the same thing that Aaron did with him, but with Jeremy.

He will test Jeremy.

I don't know what he will say or how, but he will do it to make sure that Jeremy is trustworthy and that he really loves Jean. And there we will read it.

Jeremy will be very angry. He will get very angry and call Neil something horrible. His first insult in the trilogy.

Neil will laugh at the irony when Jeremy tells him to fuck off (literally, "You're a bastard, Josten" / "That doesn't answer my question, Jeremy" / "Fuck you, is that a sufficient answer?")

Wow... anyone give more?

[xasafi]

canon divergent tsc au where jean/neil's relationship borders the line between platonic and Something Else a little more closely and when neil visits jean in LA he ends up spending the night, and its not anything explicitly romantic or sexual but jeremy and cat and laila all witness neil being so careful with jean in the aftermath of the meeting with stuart and the fbi, witness the weirdly intimate physical codependency they formed in the nest and neil's violent and vicious protectiveness over jean...

[xasafi]

something something the concepts of being nothing and no one are so prevalent in the tfc trilogy that this line in tsc indicates that, to jean in this moment, neil is the everything, is the someone neil never thought he would have the chance to be something something

[xasafi]

nora sakavic when i catch u....the intention behind not giving us jean's pov of the raven on foxes attack, the intention behind letting us see through a third party jean visibly agonize and try to reach through the screen as if he could somehow protect neil....

[xasafi]

neil dedicated himself to the foxes for life after a couple months with them, jean would choose jeremy, cat, and laila every time also after a couple months. the level of unquestionably, inseparably dedicated the forever partners would've been makes me SICK

[xasafi]

jeaneil is/has the most gut wrenchingly beautiful secret third thing. forever misplaced partners and unfulfilled promises.

[xasafi]

okay jean saying 'jeremy is my partner' is cool and everything but jean saying 'neil is my forever partner'.... think about it

[xasafi]

oh god okay having serious jeaneil thoughts so like how about jeaneil in the nest constantly watching each other's backs. wiping the blood of each other's wounds and stitching each other up. neil growling when anyone comes too close to jean. jean shoving people to protect neil on the court. riko forcing them to participate in each other's suffering but through their unspoken bond they manage to get through it. neil can bear the torment if jean's hand is there for him to squeeze the life out of. jean can hack the torture if neil's piercing blue eyes are there for him to focus on. them falling asleep together in the same bunk after long tiring nights when their bones have just barely been allowed to heal. them communicating exclusively in french when it's just the two of them alone together. them hauling each other up when one's about to fall. having a shared look that says "get up" or in the worst times "i can't do it". taking each other's hits and punishments because they know the other will do it for them when the time inevitably comes. both of them an unstoppable force on the defence line. when they're on together nobody gets through them. stealing this line from trc but jeaneil as a pair of "horror movie twins" with their blunt words, uncaring postures and sharp eyes. they don't talk to anyone. and everyone's better off for it. because if they do talk to you, they'll tear you limb from limb with their words.

[xasafi]

Jeremy and Andrew coordinating a sleepover for their partners. Andrew packing Neil a snack (it’s a cigarette and a Gatorade) and dropping him off in the Maserati at Jean’s apartment with the promise that he’d pick him up in the morning.

Jeremy, Kevin, and Andrew going out clubbing while Neil and Jean cuddle on the couch and watch a movie (or maybe an old Exy game because they are who they are) and both of them falling asleep on Jean’s pull out bed.

Jeremy and Andrew finding them all curled up like two cats in the morning, bringing enough coffee and pastries for the four of them to share.

[xasafi]

Jeremy and Andrew coordinating a sleepover for their partners. Andrew packing Neil a snack (it’s a cigarette and a Gatorade) and dropping him off in the Maserati at Jean’s apartment with the promise that he’d pick him up in the morning.

Jeremy, Kevin, and Andrew going out clubbing while Neil and Jean cuddle on the couch and watch a movie (or maybe an old Exy game because they are who they are) and both of them falling asleep on Jean’s pull out bed.

Jeremy and Andrew finding them all curled up like two cats in the morning, bringing enough coffee and pastries for the four of them to share.

[xasafi]

what if we made Jean and Neil kiss. on the mouth. and it was platonic. wouldn’t that be beautiful?