Character Changes: Addison
He is not in the cover art, nor does he have a character sheet. There is a reference drawing, though:
…Oh my god.
(And I don’t even believe in a god)
Just from looking at his wiki, I knew that this was going to be the most exhausting character to work with. He probably has the most complicated lore out of anyone, and it doesn’t help that none of it is explained by the canon. There are some hints at his backstory, but you wouldn’t know what they mean unless you were also looking at outside material (revealing essential lore on social media or sources outside the canon itself is kind of a trend for this particular creator).
I get the fact that he’s a lab experiment is being kept under wraps to be a big reveal later. I do. But ideally, there should be some hint at it. Spitballing, maybe someone could mention that humans who have fennec tails aren’t something that happens naturally? Because with the suspension of disbelief as high as it is for this world, that isn’t clear!
So, let’s get into everything we know about him.
Introverted, spends most of his time on art, friendly, has a witty sense of humor, his friends are the ones making him get out more… that’s all fine. It works very well, I’m keeping that stuff about him. And the part about him not liking touch without permission, I can work with that.
Addison, now that I think about it, might need as much biology-related analysis as Zill, because reading about his species is somehow even more ridiculous.
So, Addi’s a genetic experiment. Made in a lab called Xirxine, which I have to say, is an ominous name for a lab. He was created by a scientist/villain named Annie (who is still canon in this version) who was abusive to him.
He’s mostly human, and his tail is his only visible animal characteristic. I say visible for a reason, because he also has the ability to purr, and he can sense storms before they happen. Not related to him being part animal, but he also has a long scar across his chest and stomach, nubs instead of feet, and he’s albino.
In addition, his insides are fucked up due to the whole “made in a lab” thing, and cause a bunch of health problems that I’m not even going to list because that will not be a part of this rewrite’s canon. Addison’s life has been messed up enough, adding this is just irrelevant and gilding the lily, frankly.
And then there’s the big thing: the bindi on Addison’s head is secretly a third eye that only opens when his sleeper personality takes control of his body. This second personality is apparently part of the experiments that were done to him, and is a murderous person named Adder, who can control basilisks.
In the original canon, he was also the adopted son of a wealthy widow before being taken in by Latika, so when she died, he inherited all her money. So, he’s secretly rich, and gets kidnapped often because of it.
He also seems to really adore Damian (why can’t you guys realize you’re meant for each other?) and stands up for him against Leeson. And he’s not particularly scared of at least one of Damian’s more frightening forms.
Some more about him:
He cares a lot about his looks
Doesn’t easily get angry about being insulted
Is pretty easily flattered (by Gustav and Damian, anyway)
Gets comically nervous around someone he’s attracted to
Reacts with anger or violence when he’s triggered
Has PTSD
Is very capable of standing up for himself when necessary
Ok, now time for changes.
His personality is good, no need for change there. His backstory also mostly works, but I’m cutting out the middleman. He wasn’t adopted by the rich lady, Latika adopted him from the beginning.
The “sensing storms” thing is too specific and not the kind of thing that would come up naturally, so I probably won’t use it. He can still purr, though. Also, in this version, his feet are little paws (a second sign of his animal side in addition to his tail) and he still has the chest scar, as well as more scars that he has to remember to hide depending on how much he’s wearing. And he’s still albino, because why not.
Addison’s relationship with Damian is the same because I like them together.
Also, all the things in bullet points are still true, they’re all pretty good characterization. I’d also like to add to the first point: he’s a little vain, but part of the reason he pays attention to how he looks is because of the aforementioned scars thing.
Now, the most complicated for last.
Bindis are decorative, with religious purpose. I used to think it was just a coincidentally common thing for people to have freckles in that spot on their forehead, but no, they’re applied on purpose.
In my version, Addison does just have a freckle on his forehead, not a bindi, since those are worn by women anyway. He does believe in Hinduism, though, since I think that’s what it was supposed to show about him. And I thought it would be cool to find a rewritten way to keep his character design the same.
Next — deep breath — Addison does NOT have a second personality that likes to murder people because —
THAT IS NOT HOW DISSOCIATIVE IDENTITY DISORDER WORKS, AND GIVEN THE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN THAT DISORDER AND ADDISON’S SITUATION, IT WOULD BE IRRESPONSIBLE OF ME AS A WRITER TO CONTRIBUTE TO MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT IT.
*coughs*
The fact that people with D.I.D. are shown as unpredictable and violent so often in media is a deeply misrepresentative portrayal. And writing a character who has formed an alternate personality as a result of a traumatic experience is just too similar to the disorder, and it looks like an allegory for D.I.D. whether that was the intention or not.
Anyway, Adder does still exist, because that’s supposed to be a big part of Addison’s character arc and it would be hard to argue that I’m following the creator’s intentions without it. But he doesn’t exist as a result of Xirxine’s experiments and taking over Addison later (kind of like a comparison to how trauma can cause a person to form multiple personalities, who do NOT commonly become murderers who kill people with snakes).
Instead, Adder is a possessing demon who happens to take advantage of Addison later (an outside influence, removing the comparison to a mental illness, which is mostly an internal effect).
In the original canon, it looks like Mirage was the one who awoke Adder in Addison, so maybe in this version, she knows this possessing demon in need of a body and reluctantly lets them take Addison so she can have an ally.
With that sorted out, that’s all for now!