Hey everyone, I just wanted to share my thoughts on Rook. It's a pretty long post, and you probably all already know this, but I just wanted to share!
⌦ · DISCLAIMER —· ☐ ☒ ·
I am not a lore expert and I can be wrong. My knowledge of the fandom is not complete, and I may sound confident, but my knowledge is insufficient. You are welcome to correct me and argue with me. I try very hard to talk about my hyperfixation calmly, but because I love every character, it can be difficult for me to witness dislike towards some of them [e.g. Rook, Jamil, Malleus]. For me, curiosity and interest in art [including characters] is a very important part of life, and I apologize if this text turns out to be less calm and more personal in its arguments. Everyone has the right to dislike, hate, not understand, and not accept anyone or anything, especially if they have had unpleasant, painful, or traumatic experiences. There will also be no links today. However, there will be a disgusting amount of quotes and bias — yes.
—•· — — · ✖️ × ·
Rook Hunt is a very, very complex character. His main problem is that we don't know for sure where he is lying, where he is embellishing, and where he is telling the truth [much like Jade, but we'll skip that]. The fandom has a mixed opinion of him, and arguments about all of this still cause a lot of strife among people. But I think we can start with the basics of the canon:
This is a college for villains.
Every character has negative, unpleasant, strange, borderline illegal traits. For some, they are simpler and more straightforward, for others they are more complex and heavier, but none of these characters are saints, good, or completely sinless people. That is precisely why we are here — to study evil. —•· — — · ✖️ × ·
Rook's family is shrouded in deliberate mystery. The Hunter avoids any questions and answers only when forced to [for example, in book 6]. We don't know much about his family: He has parents and five siblings, two older and three younger. He is the third child, the middle child. We know that Rook's family owns many country houses around the world, inside which there are teleports, which should require permission from all the governments where the houses are located. Beyond that — it's only speculation, because Rook never speaks directly. In his sleepwear vignette, Rook says this:
Rook: If you think about it, I don't have many memories of staying in one place for several years, like here. [at college]
Of course, this could mean that he and his family simply moved around constantly using teleports between their houses. But then Rook could have used the same teleports to just return to his room and have his own place. By stating that three years is a very long time for him to have stayed in one place, Rook is hinting at some rather strange situation. We can't know for sure whether the Hunts moved with all their belongings between their houses [for concealment purposes?] or if Rook wasn't even part of the 'Hunts' during that time. Now, knowing that Rook should, in theory, be part of the privileged class, we should consider these moments:
Rook: I used to cut my bangs with a knife. All I cared about back in those days was ensuring my vision was unobstructed.
Rook: However… Whenever the scissors came close, I would dodge before I could stop myself. Rook: The barber shop owner was in despair, saying they couldn't cut my hair if I kept that up. Ah, that brings back such fond memories… Jamil: Huh? So you're saying… that even though you came to get a haircut, whenever they tried to cut it, you kept dodging away? Rook: Exactly, I couldn't help it. Oh, curse my poor little self. It must have been just instinct.
[Jamil then assumed that Rook's first visit to a barber was in childhood; nevertheless, the previous line and how Rook was transformed in his Pomefiore prefect outfit show that he went for his first haircut when he transferred to Pomefiore.]
Vil: Well, he had long, thick, and completely disheveled hair. Incredibly untidy. Also, he never bothered with sunscreen or skincare, even though he's prone to sunburns… So his cheeks and nose were always freckled and bright red. And as for his attire, he only cared if it was easy to move around in. He'd just walk around everywhere in sweatpants with frayed hems or jeans with torn knees, not even bothering to mend them. I suppose back then, the "Beauty" Rook sought didn't include his own appearance.
Rook was a very neglected, unkempt child. In this world, self-care, even for men, is a common and almost mandatory thing for everyone. Even Ruggie and Idia, who supposedly shouldn't have the desire or means to do it, engage in at least minimal self-care. However, the only self-care Rook allowed himself then was washing himself to get rid of smell, and cutting off parts of his hair so he could see. His hair, cheeks, and shoulders suffered from the sun; his hands flaked and cracked; his hair held twigs and leaves. Given the setting, this is very strange! In the Halloween event, he mentions a time when he got lost in the forest and almost died. His story is very similar to the Disney movie "Tarzan," and Trey is more than sure that Rook lied. This could be a lie, the truth, or an embellished truth based on a play.
⌦ · SUMMARY —· ☐ ☒ ·
Rook Hunt was a neglected and ignored child who did not take care of himself. He used to have habits that are only needed if you live in a hole in the forest. —•· — — · ✖️ × ·
Rook's heightened senses and abilities often frighten both players and the characters themselves. What we know:
"absurdly sharp" vision.
Good sense of smell ("His sense of smell is as good as his eyesight")
Terribly good hearing.
Talent for zoolinguistics.
Ability to determine his sleep time with an error margin of 10 minutes.
Steadiness and consistency of heartbeat.
This is, of course, frightening. How can you not fear a person who, with only his eyes and nose, can learn a bunch of unpleasant things about you? But we should think about what it's like for the hunter himself. This is a constant, unrelenting, powerful sensory overload for every one of Rook's senses.
[door opens] [door closes] Rook: — Someone's door just opened… Ah, yes, today the track and field club has early morning practice.
Rook: As soon as I hear any noise, I immediately wake up. It might still be early, but I think I'll start getting ready for the day! This is a hard life. Every small sound, every fly, every pungent smell, everything that a person can just ignore and not notice, for Rook becomes information that he not only notices but also remembers. He can't even sleep properly! Other characters talk about his irrepressible optimism. When asked why he chooses to do everything Vil wants [for example, spraying himself with perfume, even though he hates the smell on his body, and it's the reason he hates onions], he says he "does everything to make Vil happy." Nevertheless, his feelings can fail him — in the sense that he wasn't given a sense of tact and understanding of others' emotions. Despite Vil's explanations about the situation in Book 5 and Rook's attempt at reconciliation with the others, Rook hasn't forgiven himself. He continued to smile and laugh, but there was less theatrical flair in his words, and he shared his feelings more. Vil, a perfectionist and a man of hard work, greatly values Rook for his sharp gaze and understanding of beauty, and even if he considers some of Rook's words rude, he will prefer to accept them, even through initial resistance. Vil understands the "gradations of compliments" from Rook perfectly, and even if he hears praise, he understands exactly what lies behind it. Nevertheless, Rook truly values both the ideal of beauty and imperfect life, both Vil and everyone else. Rook values Vil even when he is imperfect, evil, and tried to kill another person. He loves him even when Vil is capricious and demanding, and acts as the one who talks the Pomefiore housewarden out of or into things. He is the reason why Ace and Deuce became part of the competition, and also the reason why Vil decided to accept Ortho into the film club. Therefore, Rook blamed himself greatly and, it seems, sometimes still blames himself for what happened to Vil. He calls this guilt "selfishness," yet his selfishness is — "I couldn't notice that he was feeling bad and should have helped, now I'm helping him because I feel bad that I didn't help him before." For Rook, it was normal to accept blame and mild aggression after the tournament situation, and he didn't defend himself — for him, he truly was guilty. This theme is brought up again in his dream, where he stayed in Savanaclaw because he never met Vil. Alone with his hyperfixation on the idol duo. [just like Idia with pre'-- HEM] He wakes up from the thought that he doesn't want to be in an ideal fake world, but wants to return to his imperfect, evil, and demanding Vil.
⌦ · SUMMARY —· ☐ ☒ ·
Rook has abilities that are excessive for a human, which can interfere with living. These traits may make his image more perceptive than he actually is.
—•· — — · ✖️ × ·
Rook's hunting is his life. He is a hunter, he lives with his bow. This is shown not only story-wise but also in gameplay — quite often he uses his bow instead of a magic pen, which is, you could say, not very conventional. Rook's hunting is often mistaken for stalking, which has some basis, as he deliberately tracks his "prey," and the "prey" is often NRC students. First, let's better consider how he treats supernatural beings.
Epel: Ace, let's go. Ace: You jumped on that real quick! Epel: See the look on his face? Ace: So? Rook: Heh-heh-heh… I've long wondered how one would hunt a ghost! You have no body, but would you solidify if I used magic on you? Or would you disperse like mist? Could I trap you in a bottle? Oh, how my hunter's blood sings when faced with an unknown quarry!
Vil: The staffer said the beast and crustacean Phantoms are in cages numbered in the 800s… What kind do you think is in this one? knock [at this moment, Epel and Vil had expressions of fear, displeasure, and horror on their faces x)] something moving Rook: Oh là là! It responded to my knock.
Rook: We've fought various Phantoms on the way here, but… I didn't realize they had different classifications, like beast and crustacean. Absolutely fascinating. Epel: Ugh. Could you please wipe that eager look off your face?
I often experience similar painful curiosity. That's probably why I write these posts — I love the story, art, people too much, and at the same time, I feel excessive curiosity about it. I'm glad that you, my readers, asked me to share my thoughts. Rook just doesn't have any brakes yet. I call this painful fixation "being messed up on a hyperfixation," while my acquaintance rather politely calls it "Naturalism-research." Let's start with Rook's victims at college:
Ace and Deuce
Kalim
Ruggie
Leona
Lilia
Malleus
With fairies and beastmen, things are a bit simpler than they seem at first glance. Each of the four characters received an offer to play tag ("tag"). He watches them and studies them not as a person obsessed with another, trying to harm them or make them fall in love; he watches them as a wild animal does its prey. Like cats, like jumping spiders, before attacking it is necessary to study the prey, but Rook never got to the "attack" part [even though he says he knows the sizes and basic habits of everyone at college "in case I need to defend myself" (???)]. It's just his way of understanding the world, and to some extent, expressing love. This is, undoubtedly, still creepy — but his goals are exclusively naturalistic. Therefore, his behavior towards Ace, Deuce, and Kalim looks a little strange — as if he doesn't belong to the same species as them. But we'll talk about that another time — I don't have the desire to translate and show you the Theory about Eggs right now.
⌦ · SUMMARY —· ☐ ☒ ·
Rook is a hunter, and his understanding of the world is distorted, most likely due to p1., where it was clear that Rook was deprived of normal society [since parents would have taken care of him!].
—•· — — · ✖️ × ·
In all of this, it's easy to forget that Rook, besides being a hunter, is also just a good person. In everyday life, he is quite curious, and quite deliberately rage-baits other characters to chase them or get away from them; but if the situation calls for it, he can be very gentle and caring. My favorite dialogue about this has so far only appeared on the Japanese server: I haven't seen an English translation with my own eyes, because there isn't one, and I don't know Japanese, so I'm translating from memory.
Ruggie: What's so special about eating snow? If you say something like "it's too perfect to eat" or some other elegant reason, I don't care. Rook: Ah, such an unyielding spirit! But no, that's not the main reason. To melt and digest snow, your body needs to spend extra energy. Besides, snow takes heat away from your body, so trying to quench your thirst with it will only make it worse. Ruggie: Ah, I see. So that's why I've been feeling so thirsty for a while. Rook: ..Ah. You've already eaten snow. (ʘ‿ʘ)•—
The way he is simultaneously smart and dumb. I love it. Rook's words helped Deuce eventually invent his signature spell, encouraging him. Rook, when Epel began to develop his signature spell, after a brief moment of surprise, immediately pulled himself together to support Epel and help him continue developing the spell. When Epel or the MC is in danger in Tartarus, he takes the hit himself, and then spends some time with a rather debilitating wound. In the Halloween event, he told a whole story just to calm Sebek down. In the second Nightmare Before Christmas event, he quite often stayed alone with Lilia and Cater against a noticeably stronger opponent to let the rest of the team escape. —•· — — · ✖️ × ·
Also, French is not a native or even an invasive language of the Sunset Savannah, but a language from the Shaftlands, you can read about it here.
⌦ · SUMMARY —· ☐ ☒ ·
I haven't provided many examples of how Rook quite sincerely and without malicious intent helps other people, but he does it often. Despite his usual behavior, he will never endanger another person and will try to make sure that every acquaintance of his feels more or less okay, if it is in his power. He performs much better in battle than in dialogue, but he tries very hard.
—•· — — · ✖️ × ·
And on that note, this disgustingly long take ends! I haven't said everything, but it's already long enough. Rook is a very complex character, and I hope I understood him at least a little. His meaning, his love, lies in beauty. But for him, beauty is everything in the world. How everything grows and lives, how it transforms and blooms, all the beauty of the world, natural and unnatural, ugly and beautiful, any manifestation of life — is beautiful. And this warms his curiosity, his interest. —•· — — · ✖️ × ·
