#but where wolfe has santi who knows all his secrets and has seen him at his worse

[bookwyrminspiration]

i don't know a lot about Blackburn yet, so maybe I'm off, but he feels like Wolfe to me. but a Wolfe without a Santi

[rosalind-of-arden]

Protecting Santi from Wolfe’s little rebellions

So I’ve been thinking about that handcuff scene in Paper and Fire. You know the one. “Wolfe in chains, Santi acting utterly unlike himself... And the four of them in a locked room.” Very long post below.

tl;dr: Wolfe can get away with “little rebellions” because the Artifex can’t openly arrest or kill him (Thanks Keria and Qualls!). Santi absolutely needs to maintain his image as the loyal and highly skilled soldier everyone thinks he is. If the Curia doubts Santi, Santi is dead. Wolfe needs to be cuffed in this scene to maintain plausible deniability for Santi. He stays that way until Santi is sure neither Jess nor Glain will tell the Curia that Santi is in on any scheming to rescue Thomas.

I already picked at this scene quite a bit back when I did my reread posts, but let’s do it some more, specifically trying to work out what Wolfe and Santi are thinking. Jess, of course, is not at all a reliable source on this. Having Jess as the POV character in his book is a lot like having a chess game as narrated by someone who only barely knows how to play and can’t see half the board.

But there are clues. Let’s start with Ink and Bone, chapter 15. There’s the dramatic reveal of Wolfe’s backstory and the fight that turns physical, yes, but also this little nugget:

“I’m coming,” Santi said. “And don’t argue with me about how you can’t protect me - I know you can’t. It doesn’t matter. I’m coming.”

But wait! Santi is the one always trying to protect Wolfe, not the other way around! Or is he? Let’s look at a couple other data points:

Santi to drunk Wolfe in France: “If you don’t care about your future, think of theirs. Think of mine.”

Wolfe’s journal: “I should leave you, Nic” because “I will make you break your own vows to the Library to save me from myself.” “Leaving you means giving up on a better world.”

Here is what Wolfe is protecting. Not Santi’s physical safety, necessarily, but Santi’s future with the Library. Wolfe is a heretic. His career is shot and at least 2 of the Curia want him dead. Despite that, Santi is a high-ranking military officer in good standing, one the Curia is extremely reluctant to lose, but one who would lose that safe and influential status if the Curia were to decide he is involved in Wolfe’s heresy.

Wolfe and Santi both know that Santi’s job is one of the things keeping them safe. They also know that Santi’s job is their only shot at changing the system from within. Santi has a lot of influence and is high enough in rank to be promoted to the Curia. That makes protecting Santi’s job a priority for Wolfe and Santi.

How do they do that? By making damn sure Santi isn’t seen as complicit in any misbehavior on Wolfe’s part. Santi can look the other way when Wolfe engages in his “little rebellions” because Wolfe can take the fall.

But wait, you say, Wolfe is on thin ice with the Curia, Wolfe can’t get in any more trouble! They’ll kill him! It seems that way, but consider what happens when Wolfe gets caught misbehaving. Keeping Danton around gets Danton killed, but Wolfe himself hears only the same threats he’s been hearing. Similar results from protecting Morgan. And Jess. The kid gets hurt. Wolfe gets more of the usual threats. Wolfe doesn’t necessarily know that Qualls has threatened to leak secrets if Wolfe is imprisoned again. He might not even know how much leverage Keria has to protect him. But he’s certainly worked out that while they’ll try to arrange “accidents”, the Artifex and Archivist won’t take overt action against him. Paradoxically, Wolfe enjoys a certain amount of freedom to be his rebellious self.

So keeping his students’ secrets? Perfectly fine, Santi can say he didn’t know. Going to rescue Thomas from immanent arrest for inventing a printing press? Risky for Wolfe, but potentially survivable if Wolfe goes alone. He’s already survived knowing how to build a press and keeping students’ secrets, so there’s a chance he gets out of this, too. Santi, on the other hand, could very well be killed outright for getting involved in this. Jess doesn’t pick up on it, but I suspect this is why Santi stays outside to guard the door while Jess and Wolfe go into Ptolemy House. If he’s outside, Santi is away from the printing press and can claim not to know about it if he’s caught.

That, and the fact that the Library already snatched the press, are probably the only reasons Santi survives this. Look at how he and Wolfe act when they’re arrested: Wolfe crying, Santi saying it’s worth what happens next. They think they’re going to die. They only live through this because the Artifex and Archivist have no evidence Santi knows about the press.

Now then, on to the handcuff scene. First of all, let’s assume that Wolfe and Santi learn things from Thomas Rescue Attempt #1. We also know that they suspect Thomas is alive, and that Wolfe has already tried recovering memories of the prison. Put this together, and we can conclude that Wolfe and Santi have talked about what to do in a variety of scenarios in which one or the other is caught behaving suspiciously.

Another thing to keep in mind here is that as far as Wolfe and Santi know, both Jess and Glain might be reporting to the Curia. As readers, we know that the Artifex did recruit Jess to spy on Wolfe. It just never went anywhere because Jess was kept away from Wolfe. We’ll also see Captain Feng trying to recruit Glain to Team Archivist/Artifex in the next chapter. Wolfe and Santi know enough about Library politics to have reasons to suspect both kids are compromised.

So look at how the arrest happens. Santi marches in to the rescue, then immediately orders Wolfe arrested. Wolfe is not at all surprised by this. Why? Because he and Santi already talked about this. Maybe this exact scenario, if they had any warning of what was going to happen. (Say, the Artifex coercing Wolfe to go to the training ground, and/or Wolfe plotting to meet Jess.) Maybe they’ve just contemplated similar possibilities. Maybe they calmly planned out tactics, maybe Santi just threw up his hands and yelled “look, if I catch you where you’re not supposed to be I’m going to have to arrest you!” Who knows. Regardless, Wolfe saw it coming and was prepared for it. Look how calm he is in the cuffs. That’s because he’s doing it to protect Santi.

But then there they are in the room with the kids, and this happens:

He lifted his bound wrists silently, and, when Santi shook his head, dropped them back with a heavy clank of metal to the table.

Though he’d brought the chair over, Santi didn’t sit. “You’re still under arrest, Scholar Wolfe,“ he said in a quiet, calm voice that raised the hackles on the back of Jess’s neck. “You’re going to stay what way. You know why.”

Note the nonverbal communication about the cuffs. Wolfe is already convinced Jess and Glain aren’t a threat, so he’s ready to drop the arrest pretense and get out of the cuffs. Santi refuses, and Wolfe accepts that. He doesn’t argue. At most, he passive-aggressively bangs the cuffs on the table. Wolfe understands that Santi isn’t ready to trust the kids yet, and he agrees to go along with it. Santi’s “You know why,” is also a reference to whatever they’ve discussed in advance.

Santi’s outburst after this, and the argument with Wolfe about Wolfe’s risk-taking, are off script, and a very tempting distraction for us as readers. Look, dads fighting, let’s be just like Santi and lose focus of their real objectives in this scene. But notice how Wolfe keeps trying to redirect things. He gets a couple sharp words in, yes, but he doesn’t stick with the argument for long. Instead, he redirects the focus to Glain and Jess. Because that is the actual point here: figuring out whose side Glain and Jess are on and what they’re planning.

Another interesting point: Santi’s warning to Jess about the risk he’s taking in showing them the book. “I’m still an oath-sworn member of the Library High Garda.” Here’s Santi back on track and focused on what he needs to be right now. While the kids remain potential threats, he has to be a good soldier. He can’t let smuggling slide. Or at least, he can’t be caught letting smuggling slide.

Another one: Wolfe does not tell Glain what his invention was. Another layer of plausible deniability. Everyone is safer if no one in that room can say that printing was discussed.

And finally, after much discussion of evidence and the kids repeatedly expressing their determination to rescue Thomas, we get this:

Santi and Wolfe exchanged a look. Wolfe inclined his head a little to the side, with a strange, crooked smile. “You see? They’re as bad as we are.”

“Worse.” Santi sighed. He rose and unlocked Wolfe’s restraints

Here’s that nonverbal communication about the cuffs again. Wolfe is again asking if Santi is ready to trust Jess and Glain. This time, Santi agrees. Two readings here: one, Santi is now convinced that Jess and Glain are firmly on his and Wolfe’s side and no longer a threat. Plenty here that the kids said and did that could have accomplished that. Or, two, Santi has conceded this fight to Wolfe. Whether Santi trusts the kids or not, Wolfe is determined to go forward with this, and Santi is going along with it, just like Thomas Rescue Attempt #1 at the end of Ink and Bone. Either way, there’s no more reason for Santi to play the well-behaved soldier.

Now, purely for speculation, what might the contingency plan have been if Wolfe and Santi decided not to trust the kids? My guess is Santi would turn all of them over to whoever people arrested for fucking with training exercises get sent to. Probably the High Garda commander? This would keep Santi safe: he did the lawful good thing, no evidence to the contrary. Anything he said in that meeting could be passed off as an attempt to draw information out of the suspects. At this point, Wolfe would face some unpleasant mental health consequences, but he would probably get out of the ordeal alive for reasons discussed above. The kids' fate is more up in the air, but Santi is willing to write them off, and if they weren’t trustworthy, Wolfe would be, too.

Anyway, after this, we see Santi continuing to maintain his public image right up until they get to Rome and it’s time for Thomas Rescue Attempt #2: The One That Succeeds. He keeps his distance from the kids. He has Zara and Troll run interference and pass messages. He is very unhappy to see Jess at his door, yet again. To anyone watching, Santi is a good, loyal soldier.

So there it is. The grand theory of the cuffs and Wolfe and Santi’s defensive strategies. Or at least one possible interpretation of things.

[ericsonclan]

A Visit to the Library

Summary: It's a quiet day at the library for Santiago, the librarian mothman, when a surprise visitor comes a'knocking.

Word Count: 1664

Read on AO3:

It was a quiet day in the library. Usually each period had at least a few students using their study hall to cram for a test or research their latest project, but the post-break blues must be hitting everyone pretty hard since there hadn’t been anyone except the occasional student dropping off overdue books and it was almost noon. Santiago eyed the clock suspiciously, wondering if that was really the time. He’d reset the clocks himself come daylight savings, but still… checking his phone though, he confirmed that it was indeed almost lunchtime.

Absentmindedly munching on his sleeve, the librarian wondered to himself how much of that bag of flour was left in the break room. He’d heard it was up for grabs and it was sure to make a tasty snack. Pausing mid-munch, Santiago looked down at his sweater in horror, realizing he’d nibbled yet another hole into his sweater. Tutting to himself, his antennae twitching in annoyance, Santiago tried his best to stretch the fabric around the hole to hide it better. There was a pretty significant chunk missing; it was no use. Sighing, Santi let his chin fall into his hands. This was his favorite sweater. He really didn’t want to eat it beyond the point of recognition.

A turning doorknob had Santiago’s antenna thrumming at the sound, the hairs on his wrists standing up as he looked over curiously to see what student had come begging a late fee be waived this time. Instead it was not a student at all, but an adult. Santiago adjusted his glasses, squinting with interest at the fine specimen in front of him. He’d seen this man at faculty meetings before but their paths hadn’t crossed yet. He was the PE teacher and also the coach of one of the school teams, Santi couldn’t remember which.

The man glanced round the library, looking lost, then his eyes met Santiago’s. “Oh, hi there. You’re the librarian right, Mr. Gutierrez? I noticed a bunch of books on top of the lockers in the boys changing room and figured I would return them,”

“Thoughtful of you, but you shouldn’t have,” Santiago came out from behind the desk to help the man with the books. “Usually I just let those books sit up there till the end of the school year then when the students clean out their lockers and are forced to finally return them I really hit them with the late fees,”

“How passive aggressive of you,” the coach replied with a wry smile.

Santi shrugged. “It’s the little things in life that bring the most joy. Besides, late fees go toward the budget for new books. Thank you regardless for the gesture, Mr…”

“Garcia. You can call me Javi though,” Javi offered his hand, shaking Santi’s firmly.

“Santi,”

“Nice to officially meet you. I never really see you outside the library,”

“What need is there for other pursuits when I have books?” Santiago shrugged, a sardonic smile upon his face. He looked down at the titles of the returned books. “Hmmm, some of these have been gone for quite some time. I remember getting them down for the students too. They belong up on the shelves in the back,”

“I could get them up there if you need help. I have pretty long arms,” Javi offered.

Santiago gave him a quick once over. “Indeed. Well, I’m certainly not one to turn down help. To the forbidden recesses of the library we go!” With that he turned on his heel, leading the way. He called it this section “the forbidden recesses” whenever someone needed something back there simply to spice things up. Truthfully, this section didn’t look that much different from all the others, neat and tidy and well dusted. Santi was a fastidious duster when it came to the shelves even though the dust brought out his allergies. Stopping in front of the appropriate bookcase, he pointed to the top shelf. “The first volume goes right there,”

“Right. Uhhh…” Javi looked upwards, thinking through his options. Grabbing a chair, he stepped on top of it and stretched to his full height, trying to get the book in place. Santiago leaned back against the bookshelf across from him, admiring Javi’s determination. And the view. When Javi successfully tipped the book into place his tail began to wag in glee.

Santi bit his lip. So cute.

“I did it!” Javi declared, smiling proudly. “Where does the next book go?”

“Two bookcases over, second shelf from the top. Though in the name of complete transparency, I must admit that there actually is a ladder for the top shelves,” Santiago pointed over to the ladder itself, tucked snugly between two bookshelves.

“Oh. That makes sense. Shoulda known there was something round here to stand on besides chairs,” Javi scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment.

“The fault is mine. I was having my fun seeing what you would do without one, but I don’t want you finding out about the “secret” of the ladder later and hating me for it,”

Javi jumped down from the chair. “I don’t think you have to worry about that. You pranked me, that just means I’ll have to get you back later,” His grin caused Santiago’s wings to flutter open slightly before the mothman closed them again sharply, clearing his throat with an awkward cough. “I look forward to seeing what you’ll try. I have fairly keen senses, you know. My antennae have never led me wrong,”

“Neither has my nose,” Javi took a step forward. Santiago wondered if he was going to try something but instead the werewolf merely picked up the book he had been reaching for. “Two bookcases over, second shelf from the top, right?”

Santiago blinked in confusion. “Yes, but now that I’ve revealed the ladder I’ve shown myself perfectly capable of putting these away on my own,”

“Eh, I don’t mind helping out. I have a free period,”

Seeing the carefree smile on Javi’s face, Santi couldn’t help but return it in kind. “Alright. We’ll make it a team effort then,”

---

There were about a dozen books that Javi had brought in from the locker room. One by one the pair made their way through the library, Javi carrying the ladder and climbing it to place each book in its proper place while Santi carried the stack of books and directed Javi on where each one should go. It didn’t take them long before each book was safely tucked away and Santiago found himself searching for a reason to get Javi to stay just a bit longer.

“Have you ever perused the shelves of our fine library yourself?” he asked, looking up at Javi as he made his way down the ladder one final time.

“Can’t say I have. I’ve never been a big reader though I did used to read at the senior center on Saturdays way back in my high school days,”

“May I be so bold as to offer a reading suggestion?”

“Be my guest,”

“Come with me then,” Santiago guided Javi to the fantasy section. There he pulled out a worn-down copy of Alice in Wonderland. “This is a personal favorite of mine. I’m sure you’ve seen the film so you should be able to follow the general gist of the story, but experiencing the original prose itself is another experience entirely,”

“Oh yeah! I did see the cartoon a couple times. It’s pretty fun,”

“I gave you one of our older copies too, so you don’t need to worry about damaging it,”

Javi chuckled. “Is it that obvious how clumsy I am? Seriously though, that’s really thoughtful of you,”

“Do you have a library card?”

“Oh, right. Guess the one for my community library won’t work, huh?” Javi flashed Santi a charismatic smile.

“Tragically, no. I’ll get you signed up,” Santiago headed back over to the main desk to pull up the forms for a new library card. His ploy hadn’t bought him much time, only a few minutes really, but he enjoyed them nonetheless. It had been quite a while since he’d last met a man who made his wings flutter the way Javi did. Even if it was only light flirting, it was nice to shake off the metaphorical cobwebs of his social life if only for a moment. “And with that,” Santi said, stamping the library card before handing it to Javi, “You’re all set,”

“Thanks! Also, just in case it comes up…” Javi continued, fiddled with the corner of his newly-borrowed book, “Is there a number I should call in case of emergency?”

“…Excuse me?”

“Y’know, like if I lose the book or leave it by my stove and accidentally set it on fire… so I can pay for a new book of course!”

“Well if the book’s on fire you should probably call the fire department, but if it just gets lost, you can call the main school number and they’ll redirect you to the library,”

“Oh, ok,” The wolf ears on Javi’s head deflated just a little.

Santi looked over at Javi curiously. He hadn’t meant… had he? “And just in case of an extra serious emergency…” he grabbed a sticky note and scribbled upon it, “Here is my personal cell number. Call me any time, night or day, and I’ll make sure all your needs are fulfilled. Book needs,” Yeah, Santi. Real subtle.

Javi’s face lit up as he received the number, his tail wagging at a slightly faster pace. “Awesome! Then I’ll call you sometime- about books! Or I’ll see you when I drop this one off after finishing it,”

“I’m always here, never anywhere else,” Way to sell yourself, Santi.

“Alright, see you then… bye!” with a final wave Javi was off, walking through the library doors with his tail wagging excitedly behind him.

Santiago watched him go, finally letting his wings spread and flutter with excitement. Had he just landed a date?

[rosalind-of-arden]

Ash and Quill Reread chapter 10

Here we go again. Let’s see what Morgan, Wolfe, and Santi are doing in this chapter.

Morgan’s door isn’t locked. Is she waiting for Jess? Or are locked doors a trigger for her?

Jess just left Wolfe and Santi’s room with them all over each other. He encounters Morgan in a bed, and what is he thinking? “He wanted to be in that bed with her, the way that Wolfe and Santi were no doubt already in theirs.” I think Morgan would approve of their relationship role models inspiring Jess to think of comfort sex.

Sharing Morgan’s Obscurist vision is painful for Jess, like a bad headache.

Obscurist vision: shimmering, shifting lines and colors. Jess can see sap moving in plants. Shows life energy in everything.

The Iron Tower lies about how quintessence works. Are any of us surprised by this?

Morgan had at least some direct interaction with Keria in the tower. Keria told her she has a gift for seeing quintessence.

Morgan can not only drain energy from living things, but also summon victims for draining.

Morgan asks the animals she’s about to kill to forgive her. She feels bad about killing them, and makes sure it isn’t painful. There’s her compassionate side.

But then we also have her ruthless cunning. She feels bad about it, but not so bad that she doesn’t recognize this as a useful ability and make an effort to practice and get better at it.

Morgan says she absorbs the energy from living things to make herself stronger. How accurate is that? After doing it, she feels cold, her eyes are lifeless, and she almost collapses. Is there just an initial shock to her system when she takes in new energy? Or does she not fully understand what she’s doing? I get the feeling that Morgan developing this power is a bit like Jess and Dario developing their plotting skills: doing the best she can based on limited understanding.

High Garda weapons have “power capsules”.

I love how Wolfe neither asks nor demands to be included in the press building. He just suggests the possibility.

Here, with only Jess (who has seen him in some bad moments) and Thomas (who has been in the same prison) to hear him, Wolfe can admit to his fragile mental state.

Also, Wolfe, actually understating his own abilities and achievements: “My version was crude.” “I’m not unskilled.” That’s some insecurity he’s letting show. He hasn’t been able to do this kind of work since before Rome. He’s probably concerned about how much he’s still capable of, so he’s not letting the boys set too high of expectations.

And then here’s the deflecting sarcasm after the display of vulnerability: “Don’t butter me, Schreiber; I’m not a piece of bread.” Wolfe does not want to be reassured that he is valuable after expressing insecurity, he wants to get right to work and pretend there is nothing emotional about this.

At the same time, what else is Wolfe accomplishing with all this self-deprecation? Building Thomas up. Telling him repeatedly what a genius he is. For all his attempts to pretend he doesn’t need it, Wolfe understands the value of having one’s talents recognized.

Thomas also gets Wolfe’s need to be busy with work. Wolfe says he wants to get to work? Thomas busts out the plans.

Thomas and Wolfe are both so happy to be working together. If it didn’t end horribly, this could have been such a healing experience for both of them, a chance to do the work they’d been violently stopped from doing and to be appreciated for it.

I am never going to get tired of Jess and Thomas discussing the names and genders (or lack thereof) of mechanical lions.

“I never expected to have to make anything but things of peace.” Awww, Thomas. Thomas needs hugs.

Thomas’s comments here make me thing he and Wolfe might have been doing some scheming as well as building. He’s building another Ray of Apollo and plotting to take on the Archivist. Jess is completely cut out of whatever Wolfe is planning this time, but it sure sounds like Thomas is included, maybe even an equal partner - he wanted the weapon power supplies before Wolfe showed up. Is this an indication of Wolfe’s level of trust in Jess, or just of the skills needed?

So many lessons Jess misses in this whole round of failed jewel theft plotting. Khalila is more perceptive and ruthless than he thinks she is. Wolfe can anticipate his moves and out-think him. Wolfe can find a better solution to a problem than Jess can.

“Mothers love their sons, however flawed that love might be.” Wolfe is projecting his own family problems onto Jess’s family here. There is some overlap, certainly, but we don’t know Mrs. Brightwell quite well enough to know whether this is accurate.

I do wish we knew how Wolfe got those gems, though. Another fun conversation Jess missed out on.

Morgan refines her energy draining powers, but she’s sad to see Thomas create the Ray of Apollo. She doesn’t want him to become like her: a kind person with destructive power that must be used for the greater good.

Santi: Ooooooh, shiny laser gun. Want.

It’s not just weapons geekiness that has Santi so insistent on more testing, though. He needs to know the full capabilities of this thing so he can properly incorporate it in battle plans.

Wolfe almost always calls Santi “Nic.” Here it’s “Niccolo.” I think this is the equivalent of a parent using a child’s full name when the kid is in trouble.

Wolfe vs. Santi, round 10, on shooting the Ray of Apollo again. Santi doesn’t even let Wolfe finish his sentence here, which is rather unusual. Have they had this fight already? This one is a definitive win for Santi, bringing the score to 6-3. That’s still Wolfe winning twice as often as Santi.

Here’s a bit of foreshadowing of Wolfe’s later discomfort with the Ray of Apollo, though.

Again, hints of schemes Jess wasn’t in on. Santi wants Thomas to make more Rays.

Morgan has clearly decided to be more direct about asking Jess for sex. It does not get much more direct than waiting in his bed in a sexy nightgown.

Morgan: You are upset and I know you’ve been plotting. Jess: Is that why you’re here? Morgan: No you oblivious moron!

Morgan immediately agrees with Jess that Santi wouldn’t go along with the plan. She knows how overprotective boyfriends are.

I am still of the opinion that Jess is right to anticipate that Santi would find out about the plan if Wolfe knew (but not because Wolfe can’t keep a secret, just because Wolfe would have no reason not to tell him), but his conclusion that Santi would not go along with the plan is flawed. He’s thinking about how much control he wishes he had over Morgan’s risky choices, and projecting that onto Santi and Wolfe. But Santi, despite his controlling urges, doesn’t actually exercise that level of control over Wolfe. See the Wolfe vs. Santi score above. Ironically, Jess gets Wolfe and Santi so wrong right when he makes his own decision to conspire with Morgan to send her into the same dangerous prison where she had traumatic experiences.

Chess ephemera. More “sacrifice” language. Caine is really setting us up to think someone (probably Wolfe) is going to die at the end of this book.