#dynamics tbt

[astrcnomia]

i think avery would absolutely adore estinien and bond with him rather quickly (even if it’s just one sided in the beginning). estinien’s direct and honest — he doesn’t dance around issues and if he has a problem, he’ll say it to your face. on top of this, he doesn’t force socialisation (he fucking elusive jumps out of that shit himself let’s be real here). i think it’s very possible they would have similar communication styles though there would be a few blunders in the beginning as they learn to understand each other.

one such blunder would be that avery would think that estinien’s earlier desire for vengeance was a bit of a misguided journey and that would cause some conflict between them. avery’s feelings about it would’ve come from a place of care and the belief that it would likely harm more than it helped, however they would’ve had trouble communicating this in a way that didn’t come off as somewhat confrontational or i suppose mocking in a way.

i think that once they get past that and learn how to communicate properly with each other that they’d end up with a really strong bond where they have each other’s backs through thick and thin and are very supportive of each other.

[astrcnomia]

i think avery would find maybe not complete empathy for yotsuyu (since it would be difficult for them to put themselves completely in her shoes), but at the very least sympathy (not pity, however), more an understanding than anything.

they wouldn’t believe for a second that yotsuyu has done the right thing or condone her actions — the way she's ruled doma is awful but he can understand that yotsuyu is a woman who has been hurt at every opportunity, consistently, from childhood and then suddenly thrust into a position of power without ever having dealt with any of her trauma. her actions, while wrong, can be understood through the lens of a traumatised woman who has no way of dealing with her grief or anger (or loss of self for that matter because she has never been allowed to have a clear sense of one that hasn’t been violated in some manner) in a healthy way and instead uses it to control and hurt others so that it cannot happen to her again. it is her way of having absolute control for what is essentially the first time in her life.

not to mention, if avery had suffered the same things yotsuyu had, who is to say they wouldn’t have done the same in her position? no one can ever truly know for sure how they’d cope with someone else’s trauma or what it would influence them to be like. yotsuyu was cruel and harsh in a world that was cruel and harsh to her; she was not allowed the freedom to stay kind or soft and it’s very difficult to choose to remain kind and not become bitter in a world that beats you down at every chance. he would very much hate that she was never given the chance to heal or properly atone (he doesn't believe she deserves forgiveness — that is a much different ask altogether — because her actions were still wrong but redeeming oneself, atoning for your actions, being allowed to heal in a safe space, and learning to do and be better is never to be done with the thought of chasing forgiveness in the first place).