#aaron stowe | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

artimeanatheart · 5 days ago

Text

Aaron Character Analysis-Book Six Part Two

If I had any doubts, this book proved that Lisa McMann does not shy away from major character deaths. And, like with previous deaths, as painful as it is, it's a good decision that does a lot for the story.

Brother and Son

"Aaron glanced at Ishibashi. The man had stuck by him as well when he needed a parental figure in his life. It seemed Aaron needed to step into that role now, with Thisbe. It didn't matter anymore what people thought of him. He needed to be the person who believed in Thisbe when everyone else wrote her off. To be there for her when no one else trusted her."

Throughout all of this, the people on the rescue mission don't really realize that Aaron is struggling. Even Sky and Carina, who are Aaron's friends, don't see just how much he's hurting. Although there is one person on the team who sees Aaron's pain, the person who knows Aaron better than anyone else does: Ishibashi. I like to think that, when they were debating who should go on the rescue mission, Kaylee and Ishibashi realized that this wouldn't be an easy situation for Aaron and that at least one of them would need to go. Kaylee probably wanted to spend some time with her son-she's been away from him for most of the series, after all-so Ishibashi got to go along and spend some quality time bonding with his son.

"'I'm starting to think we're the ones making it complicated,' said Ishibashi in a quiet voice. Aaron looked at the man. He knew the old scientist didn't speak often in situations where someone else was leading. But when he did, it was usually something impactful. So Aaron took Ishibashi seriously."

Throughout the book, we see how close these two have become and how well they know each other, like when Aaron draws attention to Ishibashi's point so that he isn't overlooked. He knows that Ishibashi only speaks up when he has something important to say. Or when Ishibashi supports Aaron in his resolve to be there for Thisbe. Ishibashi really understands how Aaron's mind works. He's seen him at his worst and at his best. He's the one who was there for Aaron through a major portion of Aaron's redemption arc and saw first hand just how hard Aaron worked to get to where he is today.

"'What are you thinking?' Ishibashi asked Aaron. 'I can see the determination in your eyes.' 'I think we can turn this around,' said Aaron. 'I know this isn't Thisbe's path to the future. It can't be! She still has a chance to redeem herself, if we can only get her to stop this nonsense before something terrible happens.' 'I believe in you to be there for Thisbe,' Ishibashi said quietly, giving Aaron a meaningful look."

They just have this really beautiful, open, loving parent-child relationship. They love each other so much and are also able to respectfully disagree on things. For example, Ishibashi thinks Aaron should tell Kaylee about the seaweed. Aaron doesn't want to and makes sure Ishibashi knows that it is not his place to do it. And Ishibashi respects that. Ishibashi and Aaron don't pressure each other into doing things; at this point in life, they give each other the space to make their own decisions and trust that they will come to the right one. Take notes Marcus.

"Believing he might be immortal because of the seaweed that Ishibashi, Ito, and Sato had given him to save his life years ago, Aaron was forced to think about that, as well. What was worse than living a life full of apologies? Watching everyone you loved die and never getting to do so yourself."

And on the topic of Aaron and Ishibashi, it's time to finally talk about Aaron's immortality. Or rather, his belief that he might be immortal. He views being immortal as a well-deserved punishment. He doesn't deserve the peace of death. Aaron, who loves his family more than anything in the world, thinks he deserves to watch all of his loved ones die because of things he did when he was a teenager. Let that sink in for a moment. Anyways, Aaron doesn't tell Kaylee about his immortality because he thinks it would cause her unnecessary pain. It sure has caused him a lot of pain. Why wouldn't it hurt her? And he also doesn't feel any sort of urgency to address it. He'll outlive Kaylee (or so he thinks) so she'll never have any reason to find out. And it turns out not to be an issue because people who've eaten the seaweed can die, actually. Despite what the books say, I do think that Aaron would have told her about the seaweed and his quasi-immortality eventually. Or, sticking closer to canon-he never told her but she found out on her own. I can just see the two of them never addressing it directly but kind of alluding to it in a joking manner all the time.

"It was as if Ishibashi could read Aaron's mind. The old man put his cool, wrinkled hand on top of Aaron's. After a moment he said, 'Every day is a new day, Aaron-san. A chance to try again. We can't control other people's choices. But with our gift, we can continue to gain wisdom and be there for our loved ones forever to try to steer the way.'"

Before dying, Ishibashi helps reframe Aaron's view one last time. This time, about how he views immortality. Ishibashi helps Aaron see it as a gift. He'll always be around to help people, to guide them like Ishibashi has guided him. There will always be someone who remembers the history of the seven islands to ensure that history doesn't repeat itself. And, in a testament to his growth and his respect for Ishibashi, Aaron immediately accepts this reframing. Also, by showing Aaron that something he saw as a punishment for himself can actually be a gift to others, Ishibashi has also given Aaron a tool to help him forgive himself. Aaron may have done bad things, yes, but now he can use that experience to help others who might be going down a similar path. Like Aaron thinks Thisbe is.

"'I have never been better,' Ishibashi said. 'This has been a long journey, but I believe it will be a satisfying one. I'm glad I came along to see this beautiful world. I was thrilled to experience the volcano system-what a ride! And so happy to spend time with you, my son. I must tell you, Aaron, that I wasn't sure about you for a long time. But I am so pleased with the man you've become.' Tears sprang to Aaron's eyes. He hadn't been expecting praise. . ."

Ishibashi sees how much Aaron is struggling with what Thisbe did and knows what Aaron needs to hear. He calls Aaron his son, tells him that he's proud of the person Aaron has become, and calls him Aaron-san to remind him about the respect he's earned. He promises to be right there beside Aaron for the rest of their presumably immortal lives, showing Aaron that he'll never be alone again. He'll always have someone in his corner who loves him. Which is very sweet but so sad, knowing what comes next.

"Is this how people had felt when he'd done the same thing? Because it was excruciating. He had a sudden wave of regret when he thought about Alex, who'd never given up on him, even in the darkest times. How he missed his brother! The thought of never seeing him again was too much to take. If only he could have a moment with him now."

But before that, Thisbe and Aaron have a talk. And that talk has some painful parallels to the original series. The brilliance of Thisbe's perceived betrayal from a writing standpoint is that it puts Aaron in a similar position with Thisbe that Alex was in with him when they were teenagers. Prior to this, while he was sorry for hurting Alex, he didn't really know what that sense of betrayal felt like. Now he knows exactly how much it stings. Because of that, he feels even worse for hurting Alex and wishes he could apologize to him yet again. But he can't. Because Alex is gone.

"Gathering strength, Thisbe stared Aaron right in the eye. 'This meeting is a waste of time,' she said, trying to sound disgusted."

The confrontation scene with Aaron and Thisbe is very reminiscent of the meetings between Alex and Aaron in book one. Thisbe is acting a lot like young Aaron did. It is just that: an act. But still. The coldness. The feigned emotionlessness. The similarities are not subtle and Aaron certainly doesn't miss them. He sees his younger self in Thisbe. And not in a good way. I wonder if, when Thisbe was creating her 'evil' persona, she based aspects of it on what she knows about teenage Aaron from reading the books. Then, the parallels between how Thisbe is acting and how the younger Aaron acted wouldn't just be on a narrative level. They would be completely intentional on the part of the characters. Ouch.

"'This is all my fault,' Aaron whispered. 'You're taking after me. Please, please don't make the same mistakes I made. I'm here today to tell you that you will regret this for the rest of your life. . .like I regret my mistakes.' He took a breath. 'Every day I relive my past like a recurring nightmare. Every day I face people who still hold scorn for what I've done. And I deserve it. But, Thisbe, my dear sister. . .I want you to know it's not too late to come home. You have a chance that I didn't have. And I'm begging you to take it. Come with us.'"

But even with how much he's hurting, if Thisbe had actually betrayed them and then realized her mistake, Aaron would have forgiven her in an instant. Oh, the irony. Because Thisbe was only pretending to betray them, it hurts Aaron even more (that's another book seven topic). Thisbe doesn't realize that this would be the case. She thinks Rohan is going to be the one who has the hardest time forgiving her. She doesn't know about all the negative feelings Aaron has towards himself. She didn't realize he would take some of the blame for what she did. She's another person who hadn't realized everything that Aaron was struggling with. But now it's out in the open. And that will have consequences for their relationship.

"But Ishibashi had no pulse. No heartbeat. Aaron bent his face near the scientist's but could detect no breath left inside him. The young man tried his best to revive Ishibashi, ignoring his own agonizing pain. But in time, Ishibashi's neck and chest grew cold beneath Aaron's hands. After too long, Aaron finally gave up. Heaving and exhausted, he looked at the man's face. Ishibashi. . .was dead. Aaron's eyes widened as unshed tears burned them. But then a desperate, wretched sob escaped. He took in a sharp breath, and more sobs came. Sick, angry, broken sobs. Sobs that had never come when his own parents had died. But Ishibashi had been more than a parent. 'No!' Aaron screamed. 'No!'"

As Thisbe is realizing all of this, the plan falls apart, the Revinir attacks, and Ishibashi dies saving Aaron's life. As if Aaron didn't already have enough survivor's guilt. Aaron has to deal with both the fact that his father is dead and that people who've eaten the magic seaweed can die. He can die. That knowledge is a comfort for Aaron, despite his recent (as in, minutes ago) revelation. The seaweed doesn't confer unlimited immortality. It extends life. It revives. It heals. But it's not a permanent 'fix' for death. It can wear out, especially if the person who has taken it only takes it once. Or frequently throws himself in front of fire to protect his loved ones (yes, I'm talking about both Aaron and Ishibashi). Amidst all that sadness, that's a bright spot. Aaron's ability to die was never taken from him. Showing that to Aaron was Ishibashi's last gift to his son, lifting some of the burden Aaron's been feeling.

"Ishibashi Junpei, grandfather, scientist immortal, had died. But in the midst of deepest, darkest sorrow, grief, and loss, Aaron could squint and barely see a tiny ray of light. Leading Ishibashi home."

At the end of the book, Thisbe and Rohan are running for their lives through the forest, Fifer is barely clinging to life, and the book chooses to focus on Aaron's grief over Ishibashi. It lets the sadness sit in a quiet moment and focuses in on Aaron, rather than either of the series' protagonists. It lets us sit in the sadness and leaves us with questions. What will Aaron do without Ishibashi? How will he cope with this loss on top of everything else? Will he be able to forgive Thisbe?

The next book is going to be hard for him, without Ishibashi there to support him. But I know he gets a happy ending. He's strong. He'll make it through.

#aaron stowe #the unwanteds #aaron stowe meta #unwanteds quests #unwanteds quests spoilers #ishibashi junpei #thisbe stowe

7 notes · View notes

artimeanatheart · 9 days ago

Text

Aaron Character Analysis-Quests Book Five Part Two

While I do love this book, there are some things that I wish had been explored a bit more in it, mostly Aaron's relationship with Fifer. But I suppose saying that I wish there were more is the most complimentary critique I can give something. Even with some missing things, there's still a lot to enjoy in the back half of this book and a lot to talk about.

Labels and Legacies

"She [Fifer] held out the robe to him once more. 'Are you ready?' Kaylee stepped in 'Oh, no thank you,' she said, taking Aaron's hands in hers so he couldn't accept it. 'He's just fine without it.' Aaron gave a weary laugh and looked sideways at his wife. 'Kaylee's right. No thanks. You're going to have to find a new head mage.'"

By the time Frieda has died and the time has come to recreate Artime once more, Aaron has pretty much already decided that he won't take the robe back. And he has an inkling as to who would be a good option to replace him. Although, Fifer and Thisbe still look to him for leadership. He's their older brother. He's supposed to be in charge. They don't understand all of the reasons Aaron can't be head mage again.

"'Fifer?' Aaron nudged. Fifer sucked in a breath as the voice in her head returned. 'I-I-what?' 'You seem like a good fit.'"

Aaron's looking around him at the people who could be head mage and he lands on one person. Someone who already knows how to lead, who successfully navigated a coup with only a small number of people on her side. Someone who has Alex's compassion and passion for leading but who has a bit of a sneakier, mischievous, lighter side that Artime really needs. Fifer Stowe. Aaron was the one who directly suggested that Fifer become head mage, and I suspect he'd already decided that she would make a good head mage by the time the discussion started. And Fifer does want the robe. So she takes it. And the reason that one of the leads of this book steps into the most important position in Artime is Aaron himself (I'll come back to that point in a couple of books).

"Aaron looked up at Fifer. His lips were parched and peeling. 'We didn't have much longer in there, if you know what I mean,' he said earnestly. 'Octavia was working hard on a 3-D window, but it kept going wrong. We were getting desperate for water. I kept fainting. If another day had passed, we might not have survived.' He paused. 'I know what you did was probably hard for you. But however it happened, it was the right thing.'"

Aaron's relationship with Fifer is very understated in this book, and in the series in general. But this book is one of the first times where we see some meaningful interactions between them. Not only does Aaron essentially choose Fifer as the next head mage, he quietly and steadily offers her his unconditional support. He promises her that she won't be alone. He reassures her that she is the right choice. He understands better than most the things that she's struggling with after killing Frieda, although he doesn't directly acknowledge it.

"'And do you feel that same fierce love for Aaron?' Fifer stared. 'Yes,' she whispered. 'Probably more. If I'm being honest.' Aaron had always been there for Fifer, while her good relationship with Alex had just begun when his life was taken away."

Which brings me to one of my rare critiques of Aaron-related things in this series: we needed to see more of Fifer and Aaron's interactions. We're told throughout Quests that Fifer is really close with Aaron but we never actually see them interacting in a meaningful way beyond what I just described above. If we'd had some scenes with just Aaron and Fifer before the whole 'trapped in the library' thing, Fifer's worry over Aaron would have felt even more visceral and it would have made their reunion that much more impactful.

"'I think I know what to do with the worst of them,' said Fifer. Aaron gazed pointedly at his sister, as if willing her to remember something about his past without him having to say it. He'd made worse mistakes than these dissenters. . .who just happened to be the very people who hadn't been able to forgive him."

Additionally, while I love Fifer's relationship with Sky, I wish that she'd had a version of the conversation she had with Sky with Aaron instead. Because Aaron understands what Fifer is going through in a way that no other characters do. He understands what it's like to kill a head mage and then become one, even if their situations were very different. He also understands what it's like to be in conflict with his twin and knows how to work through it. I just feel like his input could have really helped Fifer. It makes sense why she didn't think to go to him, though. He hasn't wanted to talk about any of that for her and Thisbe's whole lives. Although over the past couple of months, something's changed for Aaron. He's ready to talk to them, really talk to them, about his past, even though he won't say it. He'll wait for them to come to him. I do love the little interaction we get between Fifer and Aaron where we learn that he had stayed up all night reading about how to fix the tubes. Which he proceeds to do, because that's what he loves and what he's good at. It's so nice to see him being able to do something he's passionate about, even briefly, after everything he's been through in the past couple of books.

"Then Aaron spoke gently to his sister. 'I appreciate that you want me on your panel,' he said. 'But I will decline. I've caused too much contention with the dissenters already. You'll present as a more unified jury without me in the mix.' Samheed frowned, but then his face relaxed, and he said with a hint of kindness, 'I think you're right, Aaron. That's big of you to see it that way. But'-he stiffened slightly, as if regretting his generosity-'your opinion of the questionable ones will actually be valuable.'"

Next up is Aaron's role on the panel. It's very in character that he wanted to remove himself from the situation and not be openly on the panel, which would definitely have led to more issues. And the others are also right that his input would be valuable. Who better to determine which of the dissenters are remorseful for what they did than someone who has both been in the dissenter's position (blindly following Justine in book one) and in Frieda's position (his time as high priest)? It's kind of ironic that the group who originated because they hated him for hurting Artime ended up in a similar position that he was in back when he was hurting Artime. It's a nice circular moment for Aaron.

"'So now we have spies?' asked Aaron sharply. Fifer's lips parted. Then she closed them. 'Yes, Aaron. I've got no problem with spies. This is a serious situation. And we have precedence for that. Charlie and Matilda spied don you in Quill for years.' Lani laughed aloud. Aaron's lips contorted as he tried not to. 'Good point. Very well, then. I will be a spy.'"

On the topic of spying, he was not thrilled about it. But spying is one of those things that is quintessentially Artimean. The Unwanteds have been spying on Quill since long before Aaron entered the picture. Gunnar was a spy in the government for years. Mr. Today literally had secret cameras placed all around Quill. Artime has no issues with subterfuge. And it's telling that Aaron does. He's not Artimean or an Unwanted. Or at least, he doesn't view himself as such.

"Ibrahim sat up too. 'We're not doomed,' he said sharply. 'Remember who we are and where we come from. Our very nature, as Unwanteds, is one of survival.' 'I've never actually been an Unwanted, you know,' Seth said. He dropped his eyes, feeling suddenly inadequate among this group. He'd never faced being purged.

This book makes a point to distinguish between the terms 'Unwanted' and 'Artimean.' Not everyone who lives in Artime is an Unwanted and not every Unwanted is an Artimean. For example, Seth is an Artimean through and through but he's not fully comfortable claiming the Unwanted label. He was born in Artime. His parents never abandoned him, never sent him to his death, never left him to fend for himself. An Unwanted is someone who has experienced those things. Most commonly through the Purge, which means that most of our original cast (like Alex and Lani and Samheed) are certainly Unwanteds, in addition to younger purged characters, like Ibrahim and Clementi. Sky and Crow, who escaped slavery on a raft and nearly died; the Warbler children who were catapulted to Artime's shores; and Fifer and Thisbe who were sent to their deaths as infants could also qualify as Unwanted, although I doubt some of the Warbler children choose to use the term. Artimean is a term referring to where the person's home is and Unwanted refers to a kind of cultural group.

"'Not me either, I'm afraid,' said Claire. 'My life is in Quill.'"

So not all Artimeans are Unwanteds, although there is definitely a big overlap between the two. But not all Unwanteds are Artimeans. They might feel like the Unwanted label fits them but that their home is someplace other than Artime. This includes the Unwanted Warbler children, like Scarlet, who are definitely Unwanted but would probably call themselves Warblerans rather than Artimeans. Then there's the pretty unique case of Claire, who was definitely an Artimean Unwanted in the first series but has clearly established that Quill is her home now. She's a Quillen Unwanted (that sounds like an oxymoron).

"The good news is that I think I know what to do now. It might take me a while to rebuild the control panels, but I have the tools I need over at my island.'"

And then there's Aaron. I don't think, at any point in the series, that he would identify as an Artimean. If he were asked where he was from, he'd probably say that he was raised in Quill but that he's from the Island of Shipwrecks. At this point in the series, I don't feel like Aaron has claimed the Unwanted label. He definitely could, considering the fact that he's felt unwanted with a lower case u his whole life, and that he was left for dead by the pirates. Other characters even consider him enough of an Unwanted to encourage him to be head mage. But Aaron doesn't feel comfortable claiming to be an Unwanted. He was never Purged. He wishes he had been, so he's keenly aware that he lacks that experience. He also doesn't feel like he deserves to be an Unwanted. He spent years hurting them, enslaving them, trying to find ways to eradicate them. A part of him has always wanted to be an Unwanted. Now it's not something that he feels ashamed of and he's confident in claiming his creativity. But the actual title? No, claiming that would mean that he's forgiven himself and he's far from doing that.

#aaron stowe #the unwanteds #aaron stowe meta #unwanteds quests #unwanteds quests spoilers #fifer stowe

7 notes · View notes