#aura theory

[kyliafanfiction]

One of these days, I'm going to write a oneshot or a fic that actually uses Aura Theory interestingly. It's been done before, but so fucking rarely

I don't care that WoG is that it's officially not canon. Who gives a shit about that in fanfic.

I actually do think it can be used interestingly, but ffs, 99% of fics of headcanons are just boring in the simplicity with which they use it.

[nonplatonicsubtext]

what are your thoughts on aura theory? tbh i honestly thought regular exposure to the “think im the bees knees” power DID kind of break Amy’s brain but what do i know, i didn’t read Ward

i think the most useful way to think about the aura in relation to amy and victoria's relationship is to go back to the thematic core of the power, which is the halo effect right? its the exaggerated version of the same thing, of thinking someone is a better person based on their attractiveness, just with all the middle steps removed.

so when framed in that context, of course it affected amy - it's part of the whole dynamic that resulted in the relationship we see. but things wouldve gone the same way without the aura, because thats the function powers serve on a metanarrative level - they're literalisations and exaggerations of the trauma, magnifying the level of damage able to be caused and enabling their hosts' worst instincts in ways that are reflective of the core issue but wouldnt actually be possible without the power.

amy was isolated and idolised the one person who ever gave a damn about her. powers, no powers, thats the same, and its not something that victoria OR amy did. they're both a product of their environment. neither of them is really to blame.

[thesternest]

i wonder how different the worm fandom would be if victoria's aura was simply not a thing like i straight up thought the fandom made that up for a while

[thesodafloatzel]

// For my own future reference:

Naruto Chakra is congruent with Pokemon Aura, which is congruent with RWBY Aura, and which is derived from the real life concepts of the Odic Force, Orgone energy

Pokemon Types are congruent with Chakra Natures, which are congruent with Dust Types, which are then congruent with Thaumcraft Aspects; Dust is a crystallized analogue to Essentia caused by the 'melting point' of the energy being 'higher' for Dust

Pokemon Moves are equivalent to Jutsu (Physical attacks / Taijutsu, Special attacks / Ninjutsu, and Status moves / Genjutsu)

Pokemon Abilities are congruent with Kekkei Genkai, which are congruent with RWBY Semblances; can be further divided between Passive skills (Poke-Body ~ Physical traits like the Sharingan ~ Defensive semblances like Qrow's TF fetish enabler) and Active skills (Poke-Power ~ Jutsu derived from those traits, like Kamui for the Sharingan ~ Offensive semblances, of which Qrow's Bad Luck counts ~ Emitter Quirks)

Infinity Energy is equivalent to Spiral Power and refers to the hidden potential of the Combustion of Manly Souls, and the Manly Combination of a Trainer's willpower with their Pokemon can Kick Logic to the Curb and cause Mega Evolution (sometimes, sometimes you just get Synergy Burst but the power increase is basically the same); in this way, it is tied to and builds off of Yin Release and Special Aura

Dynamax is the result of external energy (Power Spots) causing a pokemon's body to grow and change to contain it; in this way, it is tied to and builds off of Yang Release and Physical Aura

Z-Power; the Z stands for 'Zenith' and allows a trainer to provide the 'spark' to 'catalyze' the shards Necrozma's Light inside the Z-Crystals provide, which results in limitless Type Aura for the duration of one Move

Magical Energy is divided by Type-MOON lore into Mana and Od, depending on whether it comes from the planet or from magi. I hit the point where my brain stops working because it's just too tired so I'll have to come back to this part later-

[foxy-pawsy]

RWBY theory:

Aura is most commonly singularly-colored and specific to the individual. However, there's a possibility that Aura can be dual-colored in the very least. Such an occurrence would have to be rare, as the majority of Humans and Faunus who can project their Aura have all been shown to only have Auras of the singular variety. That said, there may be individuals - both Human and Faunus- that can have multi-colored Auras. One has to wonder what the criteria for such a variation would be.

I think that if an individual had a strong enough affinity to multiple colors, to the extent where it could be a part of their identity, then their Aura would reflect those colors.

We know for a fact that Aura is the physical manifestation of one's soul, even if they can't project it. Likewise, one's soul is tied with their personality and their ego; what makes that individual themselves, essentially.

So, where am I going with this? Well, in my opinion we've seen one person who may fit such an outline...

Neo Politan.

[kyliafanfiction]

One issue I have with the whole 'Wildbow said Aura Theory isn't True' is that the whole theory comes from, or at least got big, because of a comment he made in reply to a fan comment.

Now, I have read a reddit thread where he said something to the effect of 'I was tired, not paying attention and didn't give the right answer' or something to that effect. And like...

Okay, fine. He made a mistake. Took him three years to notice and correct it, or something like that, but fine.

But that calls into question literally any other Word of God statement he's ever provided, at least in answer to a question or comment. Because he could have bene tired and not paying attention and given a wrong answer then.

And since so much of the wormverse is understood through WoG because of the tight confines of much of both Worm and Ward in terms of POV, that means... a lot of what we think we know about the Wormverse could be 100% wrong.

Like, how many landmines are littered around in his WoG that he's never caught because they never caught on, never became popular fic trends or correcting them never became central to a sequel or later part of the work?

At that point, should we care about his WoG at all, when he could just reveal he was wrong?

Like, to be clear, I don't think Aura Theory is a necessary explanation for Amy's obsession with Victoria. Nor do I think, even if it was true, it would actually mean Amy didn't still actively choose (albeit while in the midst of a psychological break after the sort of shit that would break most people under the sort of stress she was under).

I do think Aura theory is interesting, and it's worth exploring in a fanfic (because fanfics can be 'hey, what if X that isn't true in canon was'), and I wish there wasn't a contingent of fans quite so rabid about constantly screeching 'it's not canon' anytime it comes up in discussion, but...

Really. Either Wildbow just up and retconned the Aura or he doesn't police his WoG properly and it calls everything else he's ever said into doubt, unless it's specifically backed up by material in the text that can be taken as 100% unbiased/reliable.

Or we can just not care about WoG at all, which is really the best way to do things in almost every fandom, because ultimately:

If It's Necessary To Understand The Work, A Character In Said Work Or To Understand the Intent Of A Scene, It Should Be In The Work Itself.

[kyliafanfiction]

Like, Irrespective of anything else, the only way Aura Theory would actually be victim-blaming is if you thought Vicky did it deliberately, and/or if you thought 'she was teasing me' is a valid defense for rape. (It isn't)

The Aura impacts emotions, not actions.