Old Men (and Sooley!)

its out

whatever (renders to 240p because i don’t feel like being 1080p today)

real and true

i appreciate the appropriate tagging for my incredibly important and scientifically rigorous yaoi research

I wasn't actually in love, but I felt a sort of tender curiosity.

F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby

He is indeed a guy

wlw being mentioned in Nu Carnival lore made me so happy

new event is maid cafe themed YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS!!!

birthday celebrations continue

contemplating danoli arranged marriage once more… (the seeds planted by @wet-poodle-nudes of course.)

so, thinking about a timeline where dante’s parents never died and he was just sort of… kept. very bird in a cage. he never underwent the trials of the elemental spirits of fire because his parents feared the strain would kill him.

with his parents’ continued rule, solaria teeters on falling into ruin. it stays afloat mostly through luck. the local public sentiment towards the sun lord (dante’s father) and his consort (dante’s mother) is pretty negative due to their lack of action against those who attack solaria. meanwhile, the other territories view them as frivolous, ditzy nobles; they’re both too nice, too kind for their own good. its quite fanciful that desert rulers would purchase ice sculptures and other luxuries.

dante, in the midst of all this, resents his parents and his position immensely, but he’s self-aware enough to know that he doesn’t exactly have the health to rule and he’s lived an incredibly coddled life. he’s privileged, but he can’t do anything.

as solaria’s position becomes more and more precarious, it becomes evident to dante’s parents that the best move, for solaria and dante, is to marry dante off. it would bring in a strong alliance, wealth, and, if they can send dante off, perhaps they can protect him from the local strife.

enter: olivine.

there were probably a lot of possible suitors dante’s parents looked at for him. but, olivine’s healing ability puts him head and shoulders above the rest. after all, if their son’s survival is paramount, then they want someone who could properly look after his health.

after some intense discussion, the marriage is arranged. there’s a wedding in solaria. and then a wedding in the water territory.

for the wedding in the solaria, dante and olivine meet one day before their wedding to be.

going to solaria a bit of an adventure for olivine; its nice for him to be able to see the world outside of the water and light territory, even if it’s for an event that’s tying him to a stranger. he hopes that maybe the marriage means he can visit again.

meanwhile, dante is so furious about the whole ordeal that he stonewalls olivine’s attempted visits for several days. his parents reassure olivine with soft words and laughter; they invite him to hospitality in dante’s stead. it’s clear to him that dante’s parents are incredibly kind people who love their son dearly. they are very much unlike his own parents whose love is shown through unyielding and weighty responsibility.

on the final day, dante agrees to see olivine. as he arrives to dante’s bedroom (a scandalously intimate place to visit but it seems that dante’s health will allow nothing else), he sees dante’s mother bowed close to dante, cupping his cheek. they exchange whispers, cajoling and reluctant in turns. dante’s mother introduces them while dante remains mute to olivine. his mother says that he wanted to meet with him alone and wishes them both luck as she leaves.

two caged birds left to talk… dante is terse with olivine. in their conversation, it becomes very quickly evident that neither of them particularly desire their marriage. olivine has a gentle, sad smile when dante asks, angrily, ‘don’t you want more?’. dante’s prospects are rather dire, but surely, olivine, a beloved priest, could protest a marriage he didn’t want.

going into more of a broader overview of what the potential dynamics would be: dante goes to live with olivine in the water territory.

olivine is pretty chill with letting dante do what he likes and also helping him do what he wants. its a kind of freedom dante has never known and he uses it to his full ability. though the marriage wasn’t his choice, he’s determined to take control afterwards. he’s also very much an only child and kind of a brat.

in their adventures together, i feel like dante gets very frustrated with how passive olivine is. he sees how olivine’s temple goers ogle and fawn over him. once he’s sure olivine’s kindness isn’t some ploy, he starts to bully olivine into having preferences.

i like to think, at some point, laying in bed together at night like children at a sleepover, they discuss their wishes. they both have many, many wishes they’ve kept close to their heart, for one reason or another. and like… though some of them may be difficult, once their wishes are spoken aloud, they help each other realize how achievable those dreams are.

dante’s straightforward thinking cuts through much of the winding anxiety that strangles olivine’s wishes. he can see all the strength, all the power olivine possesses. he knows olivine is capable. meanwhile, olivine’s experience with helping others overcome their own struggles opens up possibilities that dante didn’t consider because he thought if his wishes did happen, he’d have to muster the strength to complete them on his own.

together, they find that they arent quite as trapped as they thought they were