My take on the "Jester manipulated Harlequin" theory.
Sooo, I think we've all seen this theory going around, the one about Jester manipulating/hypnotizing Harlequin into killing Columbina.
Now, I won't say I hold the absolute truth, I'm a mere player. But I don't think it's something as simple as "Jester did it because he's evil and didn't want to get his hands dirty", the characters from TFC are complex, which is a good thing, and they come in shades of grey.
I think the initial theory has merit, but the reasoning pushed forwards tends to be a tad bit simplistic/weak. So, here is what I think could have been the logic behind Jester's deeds : He had to make a choice to save as many members of the Circus as possible, all while dealing with being particularly weakened because he was feeding himself to Pierrot, and Columbina's imminent "relocation"... Which I think wouldn't have been good at all.
Columbina was seen as very pretty by humans, even though she was a monster. But she also was the weakest, and the lack of food probably made it worse. Yet she was the only one suggested for "relocation"... You probably can get some ideas as to what that would have meant. She would have been too weakened to save herself.
Jester probably knew what that meant too : a fate worse than death for her. He knew what needed to be done, but he knew that the others wouldn't want to kill her. The three closer people to Columbina at the time of her death were Pierrot, Harlequin, and Ticket Taker. Pierrot is usually the strongest, but he was in horrible shape at that time. Ticket Taker isn't known for his strength. The last closest person was Harlequin, amongst the strongest of the Circus, who was in better shape than Pierrot.
So, taking this into account, Jester could have hypnotized Harlequin into killing Columbina, as a "mercy kill", and a way to get more strength to break free. And none would have been the wiser at the time, hence why in their stories, Harlequin is the one who killed her... And in appearances, who would have thought otherwise?
But I don't think there was some malicious intent behind these actions: only a wish to save the found family with the "tools" given. We know that event traumatized everyone in the troupe. Everyone. If Jester had done this maliciously or without remorse, he wouldn't be traumatized. Alas, it was a series of unfortunate events, someone had to take charge, he did, after all, he is known for being skilled at survival.
Welp, this was my take on the theory, sorry if there's a typo or two, I'm sleepy XD.
