#faroe gone

[groenendaelfic]

Summary:

The Queen is dying; parliament is about to name August Horn of Årnäs her successor; and Simon Eriksson is rushing across the ocean armed with nothing but a ten-year-old piece of paper searching for the boy he fell in love with when he was sixteen, or rather the man who is Sweden's rightful next King.

Simon Eriksson is a fool.

Chapters: 3/5 Fandom: Young Royals (TV 2021) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Simon Eriksson/Wilhelm Characters: Simon Eriksson, Wilhelm (Young Royals) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Post-Season/Series 01, Future Fic, Wilhelm Never Returned to Hillerska, Aged-Up Character(s), Wilhelm Needs a Hug (Young Royals), Simon Eriksson Needs a Hug, Wilhelm leaves it all behind and starts a new life, on the Faroe Islands, Pining, Smut, Tender Sex, Anal Sex, Angry Sex, they are both absolutely hung up on each other, August exists, Wilhelm has a dog, Other Additional Tags to Be Added

[piggyinparadise]

Scrolling through Julius instagram I realised this is how I imagine Wille in Faroe Gone

Faroe Gone by @groenendaelfic

[junk-whunk-punk]

i'm just a freak in love with @celebrimbot 's OCs i can't fuckin exist with them on de same planet in de same world😩😩 ama slut for them ngl✌ im showboating oki✌

silly sketchlists w de ultimate super pup lil lad Farohîr and de ultimate tiny giant bunny Harnathir😌

aasssssSSSSSSSsssSSSSsSSssSSsSsSSSsssss💃🥂

[groenendaelfic]

I have! 👻 and I am so delighted that it hasn't been forgotten yet!!

Writing the prologue was quite the experience and something I've never tried before.

There will be more. The story and idea is very dear to me and I have many plans for it. Oh and of course only Wille will be able to see ghost!Erik. 🙃

Possibly blasphemous opinion (but something that made me laugh as I envisioned it.) Something I find interesting about Erik is that I don’t think he would have predicted Wilhelm *or* August falling so hard and so epically and commitedly for an Eriksson sibling. He talks to both of them like he expects them to be having casual flings and not taking things too seriously. Kind of makes me wonder if his ghost is wandering Hillerska and shaking his head at his real little brother and his boarding school little brother like “you two are both under 20. no need to put a ring on it yet, okay? Calm down.”

👻

[spacetimeaccordionfolder]

guy who had an idea for a 2 minute canon compliant scene from a podcast during a 3 day window that existed in an episode and looked at ao3 using filters and can't find a fic with that exact detail in it and yet can't stop thinking about what if that detail happened and is realizing this should be more than just a tumblr post but also isn't sure how to translate the scene into written word: oh shoot i'm going to have to write this aren't I

[doughdulls]

what to do about the fact that like, 50% of my day to day brain and willpower is going to actually honing my craft and practicing/doing things that will definitely one hundred percent benefit my career for the rest of my life and the other 70% is occupied with thoughts of Malevolent because like

what do mean he watched Ride 'Em Cowboy 4 times why on earth did he watch it so many times is he stupid?? he was an adult man when he did that, like he was definitely over 30.

like there was no way for him to watch it at home because it's the 1930s so did he just?? go to the cinema each time?? to watch Ride 'Em Cowboy??? 4 TIMES?

did he ever take Parker, do you think? Bc four times is a lot so surely... idk man I love Arthur Lester so much you aight white girl

[luci-z-wont-shut-up]

Just had the worst Terrible Horrible No-Good Idea

Okay so let's say that jarthur fulfills their end of Kayne's deal and by some big fucking miracle he actually upholds his promise, with no catches, caveats, or extra "surprises". They don't get any sort of punishment from him, he gives them their reward of being sent back to their world, a body for John, AND Arthur gets Faroe back (maybe not technically *his* faroe but I don't think it would matter to him all that much, idk u get the point). All carrot, no stick.

Kayne has been satisfied, with this timeline at least.

He leaves them alone.

. . . the same cannot be said for Horig.

[optmstcontmblr]

If I had a nickel for every franchise I got into where an underlying theme was clones fighting machines. I'd have two nickels... which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

[hydrus101]

I still cannot fathom what would possess Arthur to have seen “Ride Him, Cowboy” FOUR TIMES.

Faroe would have been gone by then, he wasn’t taking her to go see it. Did Parker drag him along? Four times? Did he go by himself? Four times. Did he just genuinely have earnest, honorable Wild West cowboy daydreams? Did he like the little music number that’s there in the middle? Was he just SO BAFFLED by the plotline of a ACTUAL JUDGE trying to EXECUTE a HORSE for MURDER perplex him so much he had to see it over and over again to truly believe it? (As did I?) Did he just really really like the way John Wayne looked in that little necktie?

I have so many questions.

[flying-fangirls]

Hey so like. You know how Faroe is the lighter, yeah? How she is the constant source of warmth and light that guides Arthur through the cold, dark, and unknown? And you know how Arthur can never seem to lose the lighter? How she always finds her way back to his side, no matter what happens or tries to pull them apart? And you know how the lighter is the one thing of Arthur's that forces like Kayne cannot touch? How she is the one piece of Arthur that they can never harm or steal away? You know how Faroe can never truly be gone because she is entwined into Arthur's soul? How she is not just Arthur's light, but also his hope, his resilience, his love, his foundation? How she is all the strongest and most beautiful parts of him?

Yeah. Yeah you know that, and I know that. And now Arthur knows that, too.

[groenendaelfic]

Faroe Gone Final Chapter Sneak Peak

So there's still lots of editing I need to do before I can post the whole thing, but with tomorrow looming I thought I'd share something "happy" and "cheerful" to distract y'all.

Have fun reading the beginning of the final chapter and hope you enjoy! 😇

Simon doesn't know if it's the sudden fog, his tears, or the fact that all he wants to do is be a fool and turn back around again—the first one, definitely the first one—but he drives back to Tórshavn at almost a snail's pace.

It doesn't matter. He has well over a day until the ferry makes its return journey to Denmark and nothing else to do except go over his time with Wilhelm again and again, replaying the good times and the pleasurable times and wondering if he could have said or done anything to change the outcome of his journey—other than realizing that all of his feelings were mere nostalgic illusion and fantasy, which of course turned out to not be the case.

Quite the opposite. Real Wilhelm was so much more than what Simon made him out to be in his head. There's so much he's missed. So much he doesn't know yet and which he desperately wants to find out.

It hurts, and yet there's nothing else Simon can do, no other choice which wouldn't hurt more sooner or later.

No. Simon tried. He did the best he could and that is enough. It has to be enough.

Simon had to leave while he still could.

The road ahead of him is empty, no one else in sight. No people, no cars, no sheep. Nothing except the wet, cold fog swallowing up everything and a rushing noise in his ears which might be the wind or the ocean or Simon himself.

Simon blinks away another tear and keeps driving, turning up the heat and hoping it will help.

It doesn't.

On the next island he passes a camper van. It's parked, and Simon thinks he can make out a brave tourist trying to take a picture, but he isn't sure. It's not as if there's much to see except an endless wall of grayish white.

Maybe that's the fascination.

Wilhelm told him that there are thirty-seven words for fog in the Faroese language, and while Simon laughed and told him to stop kidding, he's sure he's already experienced half of them, and it's only been two days.

Okay, that might be an exaggeration, but contemplating the uselessness of taking pictures of fog is a lot more bearable than lingering on the fact that he'll never get to be with Wilhelm again, never feel that satisfied ache in his muscles, not like this, and really how long can a grown man cry before he's all out of tears?

Pretty long he guesses.

Simon once stopped Ayub's baby daughter from attempting a daring escape on all fours, and Simon swears she was crying forever. Not that he blames her.

Crying is cathartic if it's anything, but if she could produce that many tears because of nothing more than a foiled plan to explore the stairway, then how many will Simon be able to shed before he's all wrung out? He’s a lot taller than her after all and guaranteed to not forget the reason for his tears even after being presented with some candy.

Simon doesn't want to know.

Simon wants to keep driving through this fog forever, because all that's waiting for him at its end is the mundanity of his never-changing life and a scandal revealing the Crown Prince to have been the victim of underage revenge porn thanks to his second cousin and presumed successor, and that is guaranteed to make it worse, to drag Simon’s name back into public awareness.

He should probably call home and warn his mom, warn Sara, but facing them will be torture of an entirely different kind, and also the investigative journalist they chose is a good one, one bound to build a case and not blindly believe her sources before going public, so there is still time.

Not too much though, as there is an impending deadline if the Royal Court and the Prime Minister are to be believed, or at least Simon would really prefer news of August’s deeds to overshadow him being taken into the line of succession.

Not that he’s so naive as to think a mere article can do more than delay the proceedings at best—although one can always hope—and ideally the journalist and whoever else gets a say in choosing the right time will see it the same way, but all of that is still more than half a week away, so why burden his family before he absolutely has to?

No, he's not going to call home yet, but maybe he should reserve a room before he gets back to the capital.

He decides to do it the old fashioned way and pulls over at the next opportunity. A viewpoint, or so he presumes the sign a few meters away from him would tell him if only it was clear enough to see.

He wipes at his cheeks and opens his phone. There are plenty of options for him to stay at. Small, privately owned places, holiday homes with kitchens and living rooms, quaint little hotels doing their best to sell their Nordic, rustic charm to tourists wealthy enough to make it there, and of course a camping ground, because unlike Sweden, the Faroe Islands don't allow one to set up camp anywhere else.

Simon doesn't choose any of them. He wants a warm but bland room, boring and inoffensive and as likely to be in Tórshavn as on the other side of the world.

Something as far from Wilhelm's colorful and most definitely handmade and expensive wooden furniture as he can get, and so he books himself a room at the first—and only—international hotel chain he can find, something he'd never do otherwise, and pretends that he's looking forward to it. The hotel has a fitness center after all and well over a hundred rooms. Simon is almost going to feel like back home in Uppsala.

Not.

He sighs and makes sure he received a confirmation for his booking, before he throws his phone onto the passenger seat and sighs again.

Somehow, magically, or rather because he's on a windy archipelago in the middle of nowhere, the fog is starting to clear. He can see a few meters of grass now, and then a cliff, and below it the cold, dark ocean pretending at being calm.

Simon wants the fog back, but when has he ever gotten what he wanted, and by the time he's back on the road he swears he can see a tiny patch of blue sky up ahead.

The hotel is on the outskirts of town and exactly as impersonal as Simon hoped it would be. He isn't hungry, and so he goes straight to his room and falls face first into bed.

The sheets are white and the pillows are white and they smell bland and clean and inoffensive, nothing at all like Wilhelm, and why would they?

Simon hates them. Simon also hates the hotel, but it's not as if he's in the mood for sightseeing, and as he isn't willing to take a shower yet—what? He's alone, no one's going to smell him, and isn't that the entire problem?—all that's left to do is turn on the TV, because he's for sure not touching his phone again any time soon.

Not when that would mean having it confirmed with every passing minute that he was a fool to leave Wilhelm his number. Wilhelm isn't going to call, but Simon would rather live in denial for as long as he can.

The TV does not greet him with an info screen as Simon expected, but an English speaking news channel, the volume turned up way too loudly, and Simon turns it off again as fast as he can.

Wallowing in self pity it is then.

Unfortunately Simon's usual answer to bouts of self-pity—angrily jerking off to thoughts of Wilhelm—is not an option right now, because Wilhelm is the entire reason for his misery, and so he grudgingly reaches for his phone after all and starts up a game which would work much better on a computer screen.

He's just about to finish off the newest boss, when a text message pops up.

If I do it, it reads. Then can we

The sentence stops halfway through, and Simon almost has a heart attack.

The delay in his reaction is enough for him to be killed instead, but it's not as if Simon notices.

Wilhelm. It has to be Wilhelm.

He taps the message, and while that makes it larger, it doesn't change the words.

He almost calls Wilhelm back right away, because Wilhelm is swaying, is reconsidering, and Simon wants that, he wants it so bad, to have Wilhelm back in his arms and his life, but also Simon already told Wilhelm that he can't be the only reason Wilhelm returns, that this is a life changing decision if there was ever any, and that Wilhelm needs to make it for himself and not for a hope of them maybe working out, and so he doesn't.

Instead he waits an excruciating minute and then another, just in case Wilhelm wants to add something or pressed send too soon, but no further message follows.

Simon curses and swears and kicks up his feet, because now he has hope again and that is great, but also torture. He doesn't want Wilhelm to get the wrong impression, doesn't want him to think that Simon wouldn't be willing to pick right up where they left off if he could—in the bedroom that is, not when it comes to fighting—and maybe they could also go on a date which has been nineteen years in coming.

Simon wants that. Simon really wants that. How can he not, now that he's had a taste, has spent time with Wilhelm, just Wilhelm, has had breakfast with him and done chores with him and played with his dog. Simon wants Wilhelm back, now more so than ever.

Simon knows he's an idiot, thinking of romance and dating when he just left the love of his life behind, and even if he hadn't, a returning Wilhelm would have much different things on his mind. He'd have to. He'd have no other choice. Things like his dying mother and the throne and the public reacting to his return after ten years in exile.

Wilhelm wouldn't have time for Simon, no matter how much Wilhelm would want him. Not for weeks and not for months. Simon would have to sneak into an assortment of palaces with the eyes of the entire nation on nothing but them if he wanted any time with Wilhelm at all, and Simon wouldn't want that. Simon doesn't want secrecy and sneaking and lies. Not that'd even be an option, what with the press and curious bystanders everywhere.

There is another option of course. The only one Wilhelm would ever consider coming back for. The one which at first glance sounds perfect because it means being with Wilhelm and standing by his side. It would also mean giving up everything else in Simon's life though, but what has he really got to lose? Why stop being foolish now?

Wilhelm told Simon that he's it for him. Wilhelm loves him. Simon's already traveled across an ocean. What's one tiny text message compared to that? Why can't he be selfish just this once and fuck the risk and the idiocy and the fear of what will be in one year? In five? In ten?

It all might end in disaster, but it might also not, and why should he be miserable if there's even the slightest chance at some fleeting happiness. After all it's not as if the email Wilhelm sent isn't bound to upend Simon's life anyway, and it's not as if Wilhelm is actually going to come.

Simon wants to be happy.

Simon wants to be happy and now there's a chance for it and so why not take it? He's done stupider things before, like coming here in the first place, so he might as well go all the way.

He doesn't text Wilhelm a yes, doesn't make any promises. He texts one word and one word alone, followed by a number, the name of the hotel and his room number, and maybe that's the biggest promise of all.

He doesn't regret it. He couldn't stay, not without making his inevitable departure even worse, but now he's done his part and the ball is in Wilhelm's court, all the balls are, and Simon is here and waiting.

For a ferry. For Wilhelm. For the life they could have had.

Fuck.

[capesch-arts]

Coda

I must say, Faroe...

...!! What the-

That was unexpected..

D-dad? No... You're...

I'm afraid not. Well, Faroe. I'm impressed. You continue to surprise me... Now, what will I do with you?

Jane...

Hm?

Jane.. you... Where are they?

They're back home, right where they belong. Where they're supposed to be. Granted, they are causing a bit of a fuss.

They said they'll fight you..

Oh and they did. But, it's quite a difference when an ant tries to conquer the sun, don't you think? I'm sure it'll all work out in the end.

... Don't... *Sob*

You want them back, don't you?

I want them to be safe...

You want them back.

I.. yes... (Tears start to well up in her eyes)

Tell you what, dear, (Gently wipes Faroe's tears)

You've peaked my interest and I'm not shy in watching a new play. So... you can have them back.

Jane? You're going to...

And I'll clean you up as well. Your arms and legs? I'll heal them. And those awful blood stains? Gone. I can't have you go around with a piece of a god covered in blood. You'll even have your body back, but not your eyes, no. You only have eyes for them.

Why? What's in it for you?

Smart. Just like your father. Well, Faroe it's not everyday I gift an unworthy human such as yourself a fragment of myself, and despite Jane's little rebellion... I'm feeling quite generous for you both... Unfortunately, such a gift doesn't come with a bit of a price. Let's say... Their memories.

Their memories? What do you mean?

They won't have their memories. All of it. The day you met, the ritual, the Dreamlands, Carcosa? Nothing. A blank canvas. They won't remember any bit of humanity they learned while you two were together.

What? What- No! Why can't-

Come now, Faroe. If the two of you are truly for one another, then it shouldn't be a hassle. You'll teach them again, won't you? Or do you truly doubt yourself?

So? Choose.

While my mood is still elated, of course! And I'm beginning to feel bored...

I- I need time to-

Three.

Wait!

Two.

Fuck sake- please-!

One.

YES! Deal...

(he laughs, darkly) Very good, Faroe. I can't wait to see how this goes.

Break a leg, dear. (Disappears)

Hello?! Is anyone there?

[Don't you remember?]

(how angry would you all be with me if I said The King said this all in Arthur's sweetest and softest dad voice to her? Just to kick her more to the ground?)

New guide since Yellow fellow's in the mix:

[This will be Yellow's dialogue]

If the King's dialogue in Arthur's body is BOLDED and Italicized, that means he's using his real voice, not Arthur's.

[arthur-lesters-middle-c-key]

I’ll forever be annoyed that Malevolent doesn’t stop to recognize the significance of a PIANIST choosing to bite off part of his PINKIE FINGER. No matter the hand, the pinkie is maybe the second most important digit for piano playing, behind the thumb. (Second and third fingers, SIT BACK DOWN.)

Your pinkies are hyper-attuned to hit the right notes in a root chord, pick out an overall melody while the rest of your hand is playing a harmony, hell, it’s the start of most scales. As a pianist, I’ve put years of procedural memory into training just my pinkie fingers to do their jobs and if I lost part of one I would be devastated, even as a hobbyist.

There’s so much symbolism potential there, too! I love that John in general has control of Arthur’s left hand, which on piano controls the low notes, the accompaniment to the melody, and the root and stability of almost anything you play. It mostly supports, though can sometimes intertwine with the right hand or branch off into cello-like melody of its own (chopin does this a lot it’s great). That conceptually fits John SO WELL. Not to mention the idea of Arthur being so guilt-ridden with Faroe’s death that he distances himself from being a pianist at any opportunity, only to be reeled in by an Eldritch force that explains EVERYTHING to him as piano… the possibilities make me scream.

…Unfortunately though, I don’t buy the ‘the symbolism is there’ argument for this one, it’s FAR too niche to expect the average audience to know what exactly a professional pianist would value (besides the ~oooooo no don’t break my hands~ beat that every pianist character in a thriller/horror/action story ever seems to have gone through at some point), and malevolent goes out of its way so often to explain symbolism.

I think my frustration is that Arthur having trauma surrounding piano, losing direct control of his left hand, and losing/replacing his top pinkie joint, doesn’t have many narrative consequences. (Didn’t even talk about how a wooden pinkie would probably fundamentally change the sound/timbre of your playing, which would be cool to see reflected.) Arthur seems to be able to play piano fine even with John controlling his hand, and enthusiastically does so at several points post- starting to process Faroe’s death in the dreamlands. It’s fine as a narrative choice, there’s a story to tell after all, but I’ll always miss the character intricacy that could come from exploring these consequences and backstory specifics.

[samglyph]

I felt the need to draw kayne holding faroe because when we hear him talking to her off screen, that’s the scariest part of the episode for me. I mean obviously the threat is terrifying, and in the scene with the bath Kayne is arguably saving Faroe’s life but god. Can you imagine being Arthur. Your baby is alone and she’s already in danger, she’s already doomed and the blame still falls on you despite your attempts to come to terms with it, and then you can hear her but you’re just out of reach and a being that has murdered thousands, millions, tells you to stay put and goes to talk to your daughter without you. He saves your daughter from your mistake, but now he’s made it abundantly clear that he can interact with her. That even though one threat is gone, a much, much bigger one has come to take its place.

[inscribedlighter]

Everything Kayne does so specifically affects Arthur and John's relationship. It makes me think the Black Stone isn't the final goal. He wants the Day of Wrath. To do that he needs John and Arthur to be in very specific headspace in regards to their friendship.

He needs John to want them to stay together and he needs Arthur to want seperation. He's depending on John's fear of loneliness and need for control and Arthur's resentment of commitment (which Arthur sees as a loss of autonomy).

Like.

The Dagger: Kayne had to lure Arthur into the city. Like the black stone he can't see him, so Arthur had to come to him. He talks about the Patreon voting and who Arthur thinks will win (on a meta level). Then he gives Arthur the dagger. The dagger is a key component of the worst result for both of them (a tie). Arthur bleeding out and sent to Addison. John seeing Arthur is dying and going into the King. Then struggling and being cast out into the dark world. The coin which has two heads, lands on its side. Ties are bad and a tie means Kayne gets his hooks into both of them.

Yellow: Kayne specifically shows up to save Arthur and needs to save him for his plans to work, but Yellow does a bunch of things.

Arthur is forced to rely on someone he cannot trust. His personal autonomy is not returned with John gone, and worse, it cannot be trusted that Yellow won't try to steal his body. Unlike season 1 John Arthur knows where Yellow comes from and he remembers all the ways season one John burned him.

Yellow also provides a way to make Arthur not only miss John, but remember exactly how John used to be. It makes Arthur feel worse about who he's becoming without John. When John returns he feels guilty he has fallen so low. He's so thankful that John is back he actively avoids the red flags he see and is eager to show John that 1. Their friendship means a great deal. 2. That he trusts John perhaps more than he trusts himself right now. 3. He's sure John does not want his body and after all they've been through would never betray that fact.

Prime headspace to be manipulated.

🗡️

Kayne Keeps John In Dark World: he could have just sent him back to Arthur right away, but instead had him hit rock bottom. Had him do things for him. It reinforces to John how scared he is of the place. How alone he is there. How John falls back to being the King there without Arthur. Bonus Kayne uses it as leverage to get John to manipulate Arthur saying Arthur is too stubborn to do his bidding.

But then when all is revealed Kayne threatens them both to do his bidding to retrieve the black stone. He could have done that from their first meeting if he wanted to. He knows about Faroe. This is why I think it's not actually about the goal, it's about the journey.

Pops Matthews Head: needed to stop him from mentioning Kayne to Arthur, but also set dressing for later. Kayne points out Matthew had a choice in telling Arthur and yeah it got his head popped off, but he made the choice. John could have told Arthur about the deal and yes there would be consequences but he had a choice. (Also might be a nod to the Tie but I digress). John's choice is completely understandable up until the moment he asks for Arthur's memory erased (more on that later).

Shows up in the Mine while Arthur is Dying: John is on the cusp of losing Arthur again. Kayne reminds him what he has at stake. Not only is John terrified for Arthur, he also is terrified of going back to the Dark World, and this solidifies that 1: Arthur cannot die because John can't stand to be alone again. 2: Arthur cannot die because if he does his deal is broken and he's sent back. 3: Kayne establishes he isn't there to actually help John get things done. John cannot rely on divine intervention. John is soley responsible for keeping Arthur alive.

John stitches Arthur, but I'm convinced once he did Kayne just healed him up. He needs Arthur alive and he needs John desperate and guilty and he also needs John to become more and more attached to Arthur, not on a friendship level and not even on a survival level, but on a selfish level. Kayne wants John to feel entitled over Arthur and his body. Not just one or the other but both. He wants John to resent not getting a say about things that specifically effect Arthur. Kayne wants John in isolation to feel it keenly.

Get Arthur to New York: where there are people. For the first time Arthur not in places being affected by the King in Yellow's madness (because the King is indisposed due to Kayne. I think?). Arthur was bound to be reminded of how nice it is to interact with other people and John would feel isolated. Ramps up John feeling isolated after he just got back from the Dark World. Also causes a possessiveness of Arthur and pushes John to try to isolate Arthur in turn.

Makes sure Arthur Knows about the Deal Before John Can Tell Him: Arthur struggles with trusting John this season, but lands on John being on his side even if there's something wrong with his memory. He constantly reassures John that he is trusted. It's why they go to New York. Which makes John feel more guilty.

Arthur talks about how undefeated John is (John was super defeated and is guilty about it.)

John resents his reliance on Arthur and tries to manipulate him to establish his own autonomy. He has the excuse of the deal, but he's also making choices (like Matthew).

John resents his reliance but also saw what happened when they were seperated. Becomes angry when obstacles get between them (Oscar)

John will do whatever it takes to keep Arthur safe. Both because of his attachments and the threat of the Dark World. Thinks Kayne won't save him. Causes friction when he tries to get Arthur to give Oscar the stone. Gets him more frustrated when Arthur disagrees. John wants autonomy yes absolutely, but he also wants some control over Arthur's autonomy.

We also get a ton of indications that Arthur does not like being tied down/controlled. He resented being forced to marry Bella and misses the birth of his child because he has a crisis about it. His resentment of religion and Daniel's belief in it. Avoiding any relationship with Daniel because of the control he tried to exert wanting him to move to New York. He admits he felt a terrible kind of relief after Faroe died, not having to take care of a child anymore. He doesn't like when he is forced to give up his own autonomy. Even for the sake of others. And he knows it's shitty and he feels guilty about it, but something inside him struggles.

The Grey Stone: sets them up for the mission with the black stone so that Arthur would be keyed into things about the Order, but ultimately was just a end point. Kayne's real goal here was to finally reveal John was working for him. Arthur never even touches it.

Interestingly, although not necessarily Kayne's machinations, Arthur loses all the people he's met since coming back to their world. Larson and Yellow are banished. The Butcher is killed. Noel is bleeding out and sent to maybe Spain. Arthur writes down to forget Oscar (which might not be literal but an underline of Arthur choosing John). Cannot write Marie. I think Daniel is the only exception, but it's established how dangerous Arthur being near him is with Daniel getting hurt. Arthur cares about him but once again doesn't want to be tied to him.

So even if he got back to New York the majority of Arthur's ties would be gone. Just like how he has nothing really to return to in Arkham with Parker dead. All he has is John. So England! Right? Start fresh. No ties (pun unintended).

Yorick: Kayne specifically mentions the tooth. Now that the two are alone again Yorick can cause some conflict even if Yorick himself is on their side. Arthur sees a tool that can help them and John sees a danger to Arthur. Also John gets jealous when Arthur trusts Yorick over him.

Kayne Offers to Wipe Arthur's memory: reinforces to Arthur that John actually shouldn't be trusted when it comes to his autonomy when push comes to shove.

Arthur has been struggling all season to try to accomodate John's isolation. He can see the situation is unfair to both of them. He gives up on a friendship with Oscar, but also tries to establish an openness with Noel so that John has a little bit of a voice outside his head and Arthur doesn't have to be isolated from other humans. Arthur is happy to give John autonomy, but not at the cost of his own because, as established, he doesn't like sacrificing his autonomy for other people. He is being forced to with the John situation and because on his journey with John he has become much more self aware. He is trying his best to compromise.

But now the shoe is on the other foot, and when John is offered a chance to take Arthur's autonomy he immediately tries to takes it. No compromise.

Arthur thinks John fucked up on a human level because of the stress of the deal and his resentment for his lack of control. I don't think he clocks how afraid John is of being alone and that part of the reason he tries to control Arthur is so that he doesn't lose Arthur (Which pushes Arthur away because he does not want to be controlled. Not by Yellow, Larson, the Mine Creature, or John).

John on the other hand understands it was a shitty thing to do. Knows theatening Arthur's body was over the line, but doesn't see how attached to autonomy Arthur is. Arthur gives John an ultimatum. Either John takes over or he doesn't because that has ALWAYS been what it's been about for Arthur. John's betrayal reestablishes it firmly. Either they seperate or John takes over. He does not see or even want a middle ground. Middle ground was Yellow. Middle ground was Oscar. Middle ground was John working for Kayne.

Kayne Ignores John's calls when Arthur is Killed by the Hag: could be he just can't hear them, or could be that he REALLY wants John's fear of being alone to reach a max. Like as a star wars fan it feels like Kayne is Anakin Skywalkering John into fear of being alone so deep, and clinging on to Arthur so tightly that later on he's going to do something extremely ill advised to keep Arthur bound to him, not out of love but out of fear. Something that Arthur does not want

At the same time Kayne is also trying encourage Arthur's own selfishness about his autonomy and being tied down by establishing very complicated trust issues in Arthur where he cares about John and trusts him up to a point but cannot trust him with his body.

So that Arthur keeps forgiving John until a big enough betrayal makes it impossible.

So Arthur very explicitly wants them to have seperate bodies and thinks this will fix things.

And John does not want them to be seperated at all.

The resulting blow out results is maybe the Day of Wrath. John does a thing to keep Arthur, Arthur feels betrayed, spirals about how he could never trust John and does something to counter what John did. Arthur is stubborn you can't make him do anything, but you can ensure rebellion. Like, bonus points if John's actions seem to be in line with Kayne and Arthur thinks he's screwing both of them and freeing himself entirely from being controlled by others.

Whatever Arthur does sets off is exactly what Kayne wanted in the first place. The Black Stone was a bluff or just a key to getting Arthur to do the thing.

In conclusion Kayne isn't just trying to point them in a certain direction, he's very deliberately trying to manipulate how they feel about each other.

The real big bad was the friends we made along the way.

Now John and Arthur might be able to avoid this with the power of hope and love and friendship, but I think Kayne is doing all he can to make them have incompatible goals. He even says it never works out when they seperate.

Hopefully John and Arthur love each other enough to forgive each other.

[nikoisme]

I've always interpreted Arthur as someone who is uncomfortable with being "bound" to someone/something. For example, he might have liked Bella, but not the idea of marriage and everything that came with it. He loved Faroe, but couldn't handle the constant weight and responsibility of fatherhood (in episode 31 he says "there were moments, years later, that i enjoyed the freedom of a life in arkham. Untethered. The ability to have a drink with a friend, to spend the evening out without anyone worrying about me, without anyone wanting me. Did that mean i was happy faroe was gone? Did that mean, in some small way, i appreciated the death of my child?"). Which becomes interesting when he gets literally bound to John and has deal with it, whether he like it or not. He has to take up the responsibility and weight that comes with their relationship