It's A Well-known Fact By This Point That Rafal Is Oftenthe More Mature Of The Brothers, But Actually,

It's a well-known fact by this point that Rafal is often the more mature of the brothers, but actually, something interesting I took note of is how this characterization can also be observed symbolically.

Vulcan calls Rhian "duckling." Rhian also wears a swan feather doublet when he attempts to stand up to Vulcan, yet fails, flounders in his role, and doesn't live up to the image of "swan."

And what sort of creature emerges from Rafal's chest as Fala? What at first appears to be a dark, furry duckling, but actually, it matures, and it turns out Rafal's soul has borne a swan.

Then again, Rafal is also somewhat emotionally immature, so it evens out.

These quotations from The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy reminded me of Rhian, mostly from Rise:

“But however much he thought, he found no answer. And when it occurred to him, as it often did, that it was all happening because he had not lived right, he at once recalled all the correctness of his life and drove this strange thought away” (47).

“The dreadful, terrible act of his dying, he saw, was reduced by all those around him to the level of an accidental unpleasantness, partly an indecency [...] in the name of that very ‘decency’ he had served all his life; he saw that no one would feel sorry for him, because no one even wanted to understand his situation. [...] This lie around and within him poisoned most of all the last days of Ivan Ilyich’s life” (37-38).

There's this emotional suffering to it, or if I skew my interpretation, a restlessness, or failure to find love. Rhian's treated like his love life is something barely pitiable, his troubles minimized. He's not awarded any understanding, even by Rafal, his own brother!

No one bothered to sympathize with him because they didn't see his problems as worthwhile. Everyone saw his losses as shallow, generally, I'd say, like: his crush didn't work out, so what? He fell for a major red flag, so what? Even Rafal. Rafal failed at his job as a sympathizer. He lacked empathy, so we have to fault him for that.

Also, I'm pretty sure Rafal would be the type of child to pop Rhian's balloons intentionally when they were younger to spook him.

Texting in a Modern AU:

Rhian: My arm is killing me, Rafal! I got shot at the pharmacy today.

Rafal: WHAT

Rafal: hang on rhian im getting my car keys/

Rhian: *a shot

Rhian: Sorry! Made a typo! :)

Rafal: You almost gave me a heart attack, you BASTARD.

Rhian: ily too

Here's rough dialogue from a more skeleton-like section of the outline of TOTSMOV41, not fully "rendered" yet:

Agatha: What's he doing out of the grave?

Sophie: I don’t know!

Rafal: Taking a stroll out and about. Being dead is rather pointless. Had to stretch my legs.

Agatha: Can’t you put him back?

Sophie: Ah, well, I’m afraid the flower didn’t offer me a receipt. Besides, even if I could return him, I wouldn’t. I just got him back!

Agatha: Flower? What flower? Are you all right? Are you drugged?

Rafal coughed to interject.

Sophie spoke over him: It’s complicated.

Agatha: But—

Rafal coughed again and cleared his throat, but the girls paid him no mind.

Agatha: Why?

Rafal: As much as I don’t want this quarrel to end, I think we should flee.

The girls looked back.

And together, the three ran.

I never wanted to be a pile of dirt before, but there you have it. I’ve never wanted to be a freshly dug grave more in my life.

@rosellemoon I meant to respond to your other post, but I think I missed my chance. No need to apologize for the second reblog! I appreciate reblogs! And you always have something insightful to say.

I love viewing Rhian as a victim of circumstance and I agree with your view on how the Pen lacks humanity.

And, huh, I am not that surprised that Rhian’s restlessness started the rot, but I don’t blame him. You’re right. I wonder if he went stir-crazy? I mean, no outside relationships, no vacations at all, etc, etc. It sounds like a lonely, miserable life despite all the prestige he gets, as if he were a high-profile prisoner. No wonder he used to be so clingy and so attached to Rafal. More so as a child, of course, but he did miss Rafal, originally, when Rafal left.

Also, that the restlessness came before Aladdin—I wonder if the Pen was getting bored too, and wanted to jumpstart the (artificial) switch for some excitement/its own entertainment? Maybe, it could have been less malicious at the start, or did it always intend to tear down the brothers?

But, that makes sense, if Rhian's restlessness was Evil, and Evil Attacks/always gets the privilege of striking first, like the opening move to a chess match (that's sort of how I picture it, even if war is messier than that) it only is reasonable that he'd be first one to fall victim to the rot.

"...wicked twinkle." - Ok, now this really seems deliberate on the Pen's part. More than ever. I can't believe it revels in Rhian's suffering! Then again, now I can.

And, I think the Pen "transferred" its "wicked twinkle" to Rhian's eyes as I'm fairly sure that book 1 kidnapper shadow "Rafal's" eyes had a mischievous twinkle or gleam to them.

what if the storian was homophobic