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masked-alien-lesbian · 1 year ago

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This is so awesome! I can kind of see now why ppl might ship Kiara and Drake. I think it's the concept that if Drake had more character growth, they would have been a good opposites attract couple. I think why the whole Kiara x Drake thing and Penelope x Maxwell thing was so random to me was they didn't go anywhere with it. The dialogue for both Kiara and Penelope's attraction to Drake and Maxwell was only in the story so that the reader's could get jealous and say, "no he's MINE!" and than it all looked silly if you had mc romance Liam or Hana and by TRF played out, 5 years later, ALL the other LIs still haven't moved on from mc.

I was honestly just curious to see if you thought if some random lower class OC was to stumble into Kiara, if it would be possible for Kiara to fall for them. (I think she could fall for someone if like you said, they had a drive to learn and were respectful to her). Tbh, my view on Kiara has completely changed by reading your essays and now I'm genuinely curious of this character who is misunderstood and isn't really in the books enough.

Would you be in the mood to do a quick hc of what it would be like to romance Kiara? Like what kind of person would you have to be to catch her eye? If you're bad at learning languages would that be a turn off of hers? I just didn't understand what she saw in Drake lol it felt so random when they wrote that in lol

Hello, @masked-alien-lesbian! Thank you so much for another lovely Kiara ask - I love talking about her, Hana and Liam xD

So! HC's on Kiara as a love interest? I'm game!! 😃 (It's going to be long tho...I am incapable of writing anything quick sorry!! 🙈)

So I had my own thoughts, but I also often discuss Kiara (and our other common fave characters) with a group of close friends (thank you so much for the additional inputs, @cassiopeiacorvus, @thecapturedafrique and @mand-delemonde! 🤗🤗🤗). I found that we agreed on several things when it came to writing Kiara romantically, and the kind of person we liked to pair her with. These things I found the most important:

A Respect for Diplomacy.

I feel like even if they don't show an inclination, it's alright as long as they do not look down on the value of diplomacy and diplomatic relations.

I can see her even with someone who may be militaristic in their approach, as long as they value diplomacy. Having someone who is their opposite in approach can be beneficial as a match as that allows for different perspectives but there should be a healthy respect from both sides.

An Enthusiasm for Learning.

I feel like they don't need to even be the most knowledgeable person in the room, but there should be a willingness to be open to different perspectives. Kiara is herself someone who likes to learn new things and educate herself. I feel like she would want someone who shows that kind of energy and respects her love for her pursuits as well.

An Appreciation for Different Cultures.

I can see her with someone who likes travel, loves to explore different cultures, and yes - would like to learn languages. I don't think they need to be polyglots like her and her family, but someone she can talk about nuances of language with who would find joy in those discussions, and not look at it as some weird interest, or look down on her for it, or doubt her proficiency (Madeleine, the MC and Maxwell do this at least once each in the original series).

From what I've seen in canon, she has never shown any disdain for people who don't know French as well as she does (eg. In Lythikos in TRR1, she is only offended when you ask her to sleep with you in French). People in fandom have called her a snob for this skill, and the MC in TRR3 was allowed to do the same...but tbh she doesn't show any snobbery through this skill or when other people aren't as good at it. So I can definitely see her happier with someone who is willing to explore different cultures with respect and enthusiasm, than someone who doesn't care or looks upon these pursuits with disdain.

Physicality

So this section, and the next, is where I get into what the narrative has to say about Kiara's feelings for Drake. The first time we get a hint of that is when Kiara gets flustered seeing Drake shirtless in TRR2 Ch3 during the barn raising (if you choose to partner with Drake). She also pays attention to the fit of his suit, as you can see in TRR3 Ch 7 when a single Drake comes with the group to her province. In TRH, she talks of liking more rugged, down-to-earth men if the MC is married to Drake. So at least in terms of men that's what canon claims she may like, but that can always change!

In terms of women...canon doesn't say much about her sexuality either way (except that she initially seems shocked during Savannah's bachelorette if you ask her to play bed-wed-dead with female options, but she does proceed then to pick options! Olivia to sleep with, Penelope to marry). So anything is game!! In my personal headcanon (and I mention this in a story of mine titled "The Perfect Gift") that she is "woefully specific" in the kind of man she wants, but finds herself attracted to a wide range of women. So physicality and personality wise I can see her with a wide range of women, ranging from very masculine presenting to ultra feminine presenting femmes.

Loyalty to Friends and Family.

I have begun to realize that very often fandom tends to limit Kiara's feelings for Drake to just the previous point, and assumes that canonically all she feels for him is just plain lust. I feel this ignores something Kiara herself tells us in TRR2 Ch4, during the garden party. There, Kiara tells us that her fondness for Drake began when they were younger - seeing his loyalty and dedication to his friend Liam.

Kiara herself is affectionate in her own way towards her friends and family, though she also employs "tough love". Very often she guides and defends Penelope and Zeke, even though they sometimes frustrate her. She also is from a family that shows an abundance of love and care for each other, and I would think she would appreciate a spouse who would appreciate and value her family as well. So yes, I can see her highly valuing loyalty and filial relationships, especially healthy balanced filial relationships. I cannot see her with someone who would view the people she loves and values with disdain.

And while Kiara herself may not require this as a character, I would like to see the people around her show the same loyalty and love towards her as well. Unfortunately in canon, even Penelope and Ezekiel - her own best friend and brother - don't give back the same energy that she gives out for them. So my hc always is that the person she is with gels well with her family and friends, but also gives her the attention and focus and care she deserves.

In terms of turn offs for Kiara, a big turn-off I can see for her based on canon would be people overstepping their boundaries, or showing ostentatious behaviour designed to show off their power. She initially allies with both Olivia and Madeleine and different points in the series, but shows visible frustration when they get drunk on their own power and abuse their position. I can see this play out even more intensely in a romantic situation. Kiara won't suffer fools or people who play too many games.

I don't think not knowing languages would be a turn off, but not showing a basic interest or at least a healthy respect, for her interests will. I cannot see her staying with a person who looks down on learning languages, or cultural diversity, for too long. I feel like she needs to be happy talking to her partner and engaging them in conversation, and you can't have that with someone who may look down on your passions.

Now to get to the point about Drake! In some ways I'm kind of okay with the randomness of it - after all, the team was on a bit of a "pair the spares" spree in TRR2, where every LI got an alternative LI (TRR was somewhat unique in this respect - very often alternatives would be given only to whichever LI the team deemed the least popular). Clearly the only alternative LI they had planned somewhat was Olivia and Liam, so of course Driara (and Maxwell x Penelope, which was introduced in TRR2 Ch 6, and didn't last very long) would feel a little random.

However, given Kiara is a very practical woman in canon itself...one could still figure out a way to make such a scenario fit with her character. I could always headcanon that she couldn't show any indication of her feelings in the social season where she was a competitor, and it would make sense! And now that the competition is over and the Prince made his final choice, she could feel free to pursue or at least interact with the man she really liked.

Back when I shipped Drake and Kiara, I thought there could be potential in terms of an opposites-attract scenario. I liked the idea of Kiara nursing a secret fondness for earthy, rugged men, as well as the possibility of Drake realizing that not all nobles were evil through someone like Kiara. And there were some scenes at least in TRR2 where Drake seemed like he could view her differently (and be a total weirdo about it) like the option in the prank scene, where he could leave a cute note to her.

Had the narrative actually cared about Kiara, and viewed Drake as someone who needed to grow from his own prejudices, I believe there was a possibility for a good relationship there.

Unfortunately the narrative dislikes proving Drake wrong, and doesn't mind throwing Kiara under the bus...which was why, when Drake stans spewed their racist vitriol all over Kiara during TRR3, the end result we got in TRR3 (where they "confirmed" how much Drake disliked Kiara) was equally racist. That is ultimately why I would never, ever go for Driara...but there was some potential if Drake showed any interest in growing and evolving beyond his puny mindset.

Above all to me, I need the person I pair Kiara up with, to center her as much in their relationship as she would them. Which is why Drake is not even worth considering as a partner for her, IMO...and why I wouldn't go for Penelope either even though she and Kiara are a popular fandom pair. Kiara's friendship with Penelope centers too much around her, and Penelope (in canon especially) brings none of that energy when Kiara would most need it.

To sum it up? I feel like personality wise I wouldn't mind someone who could balance out her practicality and rational bent of mind with a more emotional approach, and someone who would take pride and joy in her interests and achievements. Someone she can have fun talking to, and someone who would fiercely protect and defend her as much as she would do so for them. (In my universe, that's basically Hana 😄)

I hope this helped and didn't confuse you too much!! 🙈🙈

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