so lets talk abot vex’s title
im still taking a social media break but i came back to announce that i finished watching Critical Role Campaign One Episode 60: Heredity and Hats and i literally have to say this after watching that moment. THAT moment.
the Lady Vex’ahlia, Baroness of the Third House of Whitestone and Grand Mistress of the Grey Hunt moment. THAT MOMENT.
yall i will immediately return to being a hermit after this but may i just say, again, once again, with every feeling i can muster in my cold dark soul, that i will DIE for percy. i love this man with every fibre of my being, every sinew, every hair, every milimetre of flesh and bone i LOVE this man
i fucking cried when he did that. that simple act of giving vex a title, a house, and a position within whitestone is interlaced with so much weight and meaning and layers and layers of love.
FIRST, he gave vex, a simple commoner in the eyes of syngorn, not even a true elf in their eyes, a title. effectively making her just short of royalty in whitestone, and a person of importance outside of whitestone. she technically outclasses her father now. hes just an ambassador. important, true, but without title. being an ambassador is his job, he loses that, hes back to being a normal elf but vex is a straight up fucking BARONESS. syldor is now below her in rank.
SECOND, he gave her respect. or in a way, he gave her the means in which the elves of syngorn, the ones that had scorned her and turned their noses up at her, and thought themselves better than her, would have to show her respect. where syldor would have to address her with the proper title, where he’d have to call her a lady. prior to meeting syngorn, vex was so worried about looking well-off, looking like she was better like she was equal with syngornian elves like she deserved to walk amongst them and percy straight up gave her something better.
THIRD, he gave vex power by declaring her mistress of the grey hunt. again, another slight against syldor. syldor has power, true, but limited power. strictly political power thats tied with his job. percy straight up gave vex command of a fucking section of the military force of the whole city-state of whitestone. political AND military power. subtly telling syldor that even though he has influence, that he has power, vex has more. also not so subtly telling him this by straight up saying “despite your relationship with her, do watch your manners”
FOURTH and i think most important. back when the conclave first attacked, vex was the most hesitant about leaving greyskull keep because to her, it would be like abandoning home again. by declaring vex a baroness, percy also gave her the third noble house of whitestone, the house’s family crypt, etc etc. but those are just objects. what percy did is essentially carve out a place in whitestone just for her. home if she wants it. a place to lay down roots and stay if she wants to. even if greyskull keep is restored, that third noble house of whitestone will always be vex’s now.
heres the kicker. not only did percy effectively give vex a home, a permanent home (one that needs tlc but thats unimportant) that she can return to whenever she wants and one that will always be there waiting for her. he gave her a home, in front of her father, in her father’s house, after he essentially said “you being here makes life complicated.” he gave her something that her father, for all his posturing and self-importance was unwilling and unable to give. what syldor was so hesitant to share, percy gives it without question. openly and willingly, asking for nothing in return.
and he gave her ALL of that after syldor gave them the letter of passage. he did that after syldor had already left his study and written everything out. percy literally made syldor go back to his study to amend vex’s name in the letter and amend what he had wrote of her and amend her name into someone with rank and title. and, for that moment at least, percy forced syldor to rethink everything about vex’ahlia and i am fucking REELING from that moment
get you a fucking man like percival fredrickstein von musel klossowski de rolo the III