Blind Huntr/x AU - Or Another Example of How to Include Multiple Blind Characters in the Same Story
Inspired by this post, where I used The Owl House as an example of how to write multiple blind characters in the same story. This is a topic on which I have received several questions and one where I receive the most pushback when I suggest it when betaing. I know K-Pop Demon Hunters is popular, so I am using that to spread awareness to those who might not otherwise know. Additionally, this film has taken over my life, so why not make a blindness AU out of it?
Big thanks to @cowboysinspace for the extra insight into Korean culture. You helped me figure out the nuances of navigating guide dogs in Korea. Thanks to @sharonz-arty-corner03 for working hard on the future artwork for this A.U., as well as for exploring cane types for the girls and such giving in-character suggestions. The cane tip head-canons are mostly yours. I just expanded on some of them. And lastly, thanks to my best friend who is also blind and helped come up with this A.U. when I brought it up. We both agreed Rumi would have light perception so she can see her demon marks.
Hope you enjoy the A.U. I hope seeing the nuances of how each character experiences blindness can allow writers to imagine having more than one blind character in a story without feeling “forced”.
-Rumi is blind with light and shadow perception. She was born blind, with her residual vision declining more in early childhood. She can still see the light of the Honmoon, which served as an inspiration for her during training and during her career. Light perception also enables her to see her own patterns, the patterns of other demons, and the weapons used by Huntrx.
-She developed a love for glitter and shiny accessories, which allowed her to feel pretty and engage in fashion in an accessible way.
-Training was not a concern for her, workaholic that she is. Following in her mother and Celine’s footsteps, she perfected her singing and learned to play multiple instruments. While dancing and modeling posed challenges, she found dance to be a way to safely release her energy. Celine and a line-up of private instructors helped make it easier to learn choreography.
-As for fighting, Celine taught her how to use weapons safely, how to maintain spatial awareness, and how to attack demons using mannequins with glowing demonic patterns. Later, Zoe and Mira joined Huntrix and trained beside her using modified techniques. Their glowing weapons and unique connection with Rumi allows her to track them during battle.
-Rumi was probably homeschooled due to time devoted to her Kpop training and fighting training, fear of bullying in mainstream education, and general lack of accessibility in the outside world. Celine also probably demonstrated overprotective attitudes toward Rumi, which probably included fearing that her patterns would be exposed by other children. Little Rumi was also probably the type to run into glass doors. Oops.
-Rumi used large print as a child before her sight worsened. She transitioned to Braille, including Braille music, and retains those skills. However, with South Korea’s push to move away from paper and analog products, Rumi mostly uses typing, audio, and voice recording. She records ideas for songs on her phone the same way Ejae, Rumi’s singing voice, described in interviews
-As for cane skills and other blindness techniques, Rumi was expected to rely on the vision she did have until safety concerns made it impossible to avoid them. Rumi developed cane skills with an instructor who had her practice navigation and social skills by buying snacks at food stalls and convenience stores.
-Celine tried to shield Rumi from the media. Media outlets assumed Rumi would train to be a licensed massage practitioner, as that is a common career path that is accessible to blind people.
-Eventually, Rumi bought a new cane that was sparkly. She’s a no-jab cane girlie. She uses a ridged cane if she needs to navigate in battle and most demons probably don’t notice it or think it is a staff.
-Huntrx does special yearly performances for Disabled People’s Day
-attended a blind school, either Seoul National School For the Blind or Hanbit School For the Blind with a focus on academic achievement and classical music
-Classical music and modeling were encouraged by her parents in childhood, but as Mira grew up, she rebelled and started other hobbies, such as blind sports
-parents initially gave her body guards who taught her basic self defense
-parents are supportive, but thought her blindness would make her more docile and easy to control, although her parents also hid her away due to rick of unfavorable societal attitudes
-she played blind sports as a child on her school teams, which encouraged her energy and competitiveness
-she and Zoe get into arguments about blindness, what is and is not offensive, that kind of thing, before making up
-Mira will beat up anyone who makes Zoe cry, including paparazzi who bother Zoe’s photophobia
-learned to cook in a safe, accessible way and got Huntrix to take accessible cooking classes while they were trainees
-sports and classical training helped during training for Huntrix
-enjoys wearing jewelry that makes noise as she moves
-similarly, her cane tips and two-point-touch method with metal glide or porcelain tips that give her good tactile information and provide nice auditory feedback
-as a graduation gift, her parents gave her money for plastic surgery, which she probably spent on an expensive Braille display and new piercings
-initially worked with fashion and make-up brands which she tried to convince / bully to become more accessible, and ultimately lead to her creating her own successful accessible brands
-blind with some residual vision
-is the enthusiastic visual describer for when Huntrix watches shows
-similarly, becomes the designated direction giver due to her residual vision
-Zoe has a guide dog from the Samsung Guide Dog School in South Korea
-uses large print and Zoom technology
-mainstreamed in terms of school in California, ostracized due to blindness
-parents were supportive and encouraged her cane use and interests. She enjoyed O&M training because it allowed her to leave school for a bit and go out.
-Zoe wanted to blend in, considering her grade-school experience, but also yearned to be herself, so had a less certain relationship with her cane. She felt a guide dog would give her independence, companionship, and talking-points in social situations
-likes lots of lights, color, and patterns in her room/space
-does scrapbooking and decoration with a mix of random patterns
-her cane is decorated with lots of keychains, so she has to switch them out regularly because too many creates imbalance
-she collects canes in different colors and selects a new one depending on her mood
-she probably became a social media influencer for fashion and blindness in California, since that was becoming popular and allowed her to create connections which eventually helped her increase her fame when joining Huntrx
-enjoys educating others about blindness, but sometimes gets overwhelmed and has to step away from education for a while
-introduced the public to her guide dog through social media, getting people used to big dogs after receiving a fearful reaction to such a large dog in Korea at a signing
-deals with some heightened senses and so often wears earbuds
-originally forced herself to deal with cameras until Mira dragged her away, which encouraged her to create better boundaries, thus increasing the value of the limited pictures of her
-in terms of accommodations during concerts, stage lights are adapted for her and Rumi
-fighting training was hard because of lack of depth perception as well as relying on residual vision
-has a rocky relationship with her blindness, but it is much better now, especially with her guide dog being a more positive experience
-in terms of cane tips, thought a marshmallow tip sounded cute as a kid and couldn’t resist asking for one, so that became her main cane tip
Feel free to use or expand on this A.U. Also, remember that multiple blind characters can exist in the same story, as demonstrated by this post. Additionally, I tried my best to research, but please let me know about any inaccuracies or nuances of South Korean culture I may have missed.
