#for example I didn't come up with any special lore for the N family

[sunset-peril]

Social Makeup Study - Hateno Village (HFS, TotK)

Village Structure

Leadership system: Eldership and a monarchy-like structure both appear to be used at once. An electoral system has become popular with some citizens, and Hyrule's monarchy has begun to restore itself, both further complicating the matter. Traditionally, Hateno used an eldership system exclusively, but Hyrule's sudden destruction 100 years ago brought elements of a monarchy (primarily that there is one leader who inherits the position).

Leader/Ruler: Reede Imperial (leader/mayor, under dispute), Link Hyrule (elder, under dispute, King of Hyrule)

Economy: As a former land of exile, Hateno is traditionally non-exporting. However, the village became known for agriculture and dye production after the Age of Burning Fields. Recently, the village has become a hub for textiles such as clothing and hats. The past century has brought significant changes in this area, which has also brought unease.

Demographics: Historically was 100% Pedigreed Wolfbred, although the modern village has a makeup of approximately 50% Wolfbred/Wolfbred Hybrid and 50% Hylian. This shift was also brought about in the last 100 years.

Beliefs and Afterlife: A Hylia-worshipping village. Wolfbred mythology depicts them having been created by the Twilight's interaction with their ancestor and believe that the Twilight became heritable through his line. Although the Twilight Realm is not an afterlife realm (nor was it intended to be), the Wolfbred still believe their ghosts will be returned to the Realm when their bodies fail because of their own Twilight, and believe that Midna created the Celaeno Orientalis constellation (a wolf-like constellation that appears over Hateno) as a replacement for the Mirror of Twilight to help their souls return "home". Due to the Mirror of Twilight's destruction, there is no way to confirm or deny this belief; however, it appears to have been reinforced by Link's successful command of both Wolfbred-like spirits and Hylia's Honor Guard (souls of past heroes) in battle.

Citizens

Link (Imperial) Hyrule: The last documented male Wolfbred, and the last Wolfbred born under exile. For this reason, he’s referred to as the last “Pedigreed Wolfbred”.  Champion of Hyrule/Hylians, despite not technically being Hylian, and beloved mate of Princess Zelda. Died during the Great Calamity, but not before becoming King of Hyrule. The first Wolfbred King since Kakku. Cause of death: fatal battle wounds. He was resurrected 100 years after his death, and reigns over Hyrule today with his beloved. The Sheikah crowned him King Sovereign before Calamity Ganon was sealed for good, as the throne would pass to whichever of King Rhoam's heirs/relatives was found alive first. Called "Grandpa" (sometimes written "Grandpaw") by his extended family. Has developed blindness in one eye as well as joint pain, two common signs of a Wolfbred's aging, and is technically retired from all soldiering.

Zelda (Esmerelda) Hyrule: The first Hylian to marry into the tribe in 10,000 years due to the exile, and mother of Hyrule's first (chronologically-speaking) Wolfbred-Hylian hybrid: Zelda Ivee. Said to be the only true Hylian who could speak the Wolfbred tongue fluently before the Calamity. The Sheikah's crowning of Link restarted the Kingdom of Hyrule, so this Princess hasn't seen a need to rush her ascension to the Queen's throne. Her temper was found to be of Wolfbred descent, as she is Karu’s descendant. A beloved teacher at the newly build Hateno Schoolhouse.

Zelda Ivee Hyrule: King Link and Princess Zelda’s beloved little girl and the new Princess Zelda. She is the first Wolfbred hybrid since her distant ancestor Karu, and her soul is over a century old despite her age of five. Her upbringing will likely shape the future of Hyrule, as her parents come from such different backgrounds. Current studies regarding her aim to identify whatever might trigger the aggressive tendencies her family tree is infamous for, so her exposure to such triggers can be limited. 

Reede Imperial: Leader of Hateno Village and descendant of Sydnei (Link's sister). He retains a strong desire to stay in tune with his heritage and prides himself on keeping Hateno just the way it was during the exile: a safe haven for the Wolfbred. He inherited the antagonistic tendencies of his family. Although he is generally a very peaceful, vegetable-loving man, he has recently begun to display aggressive behavior, and has gotten in a few fights. (Now that the villagers think about it, so has Link.)

Clavia Imperial: Reede's wife and the mother of Karin. Clavia is Hylian, but has been accepted into the Clan as if she was Wolfbred. While her daughter is in school, she spends time at Link and Zelda's, often helping tidy the place so the half-blind Link can keep his last good eye on his pup. Besides, she believes it does Link good to have someone other than Zelda to talk to.

Karin Imperial: Reede and Clavia's daughter, and a pupil of Zelda's. Currently, Karin is not affected by her family's tendencies. Purah aims to prevent exposing both her and Zelda Ivee to whatever causes those tendencies to develop. Although, considering how riled up their fathers have suddenly gotten, Purah and her fellow researchers may have to work fast to identify the cause and isolate it from the girls.

Sophie and Cece: A pair of Wolfbred-Hylian sisters. Cece is eldest. Their existence greatly influences modern Wolfbred-Hylian relations as Sophie is considered legally Wolfbred, while Cece is the first hybrid to not be legally Wolfbred, at least within the village. Surprisingly, Sophie is the more docile of the two. Cece recently moved back in after traveling the world to study fashion. Village opinions are mixed. Link and Sophie are friends. Link and Cece are not.

Ivee: Daughter of the family who runs East Wind General Store. It's rumored that she was actually named after Zelda Ivee, as Hateno thought she'd been killed in-utero during the Great Calamity.

Pruce, Amira and Azu: Family of Ivee, runs East Wind. Ancestor was a dear friend of Ordon, which strengthens the rumors about the origins of Ivee's name. Father, mother and younger brother, respectively. Azu has taken fondly to "protecting" the village, a tendency that often develops in Wolfbred males as they approach and reach puberty.

Tamana: A former Cucco rancher, and Teebo's mother.

Teebo: A very polite Wolfbred pup and Tamana's son. Has shown an immense interest in weapons and the warrior arts since he was very young, and now fills a slot on the day-shift Hateno guard. His apparently innate interest in warrior arts and protection have brought him and Link into a mentor-mentee relationship.

Medda: A tomato-raising farmer, and Aster's father. His wife passed many years ago, but he and his daughter seem to be doing well.

Aster: Medda's daughter. Loves tomatos and froggies, and recently moved next door to Link and Zelda.

Dantz, Koyin: A family of Wolfbred who live outside the town on a farm in the forest, completely devoted to the ways of their ancestors. Father and daughter, respectively.

Sayge, Senna and Sefaro: Family running the Kochi Dye Shop. Sayge and Senna are devoted artisans, who are thriving with Hateno's new textile based market. Sefaro, however, is a much more studious soul who prefers to read history books at the schoolhouse. He's tried to badger Link into teaching him more sensitive history like the Great Calamity, Wolfbred Exile and Sheikah Fallout; currently to little-to-no avail. Perhaps when the little historian is older... or when other tensions in the village smooth over....

Prima: Said to be the prettiest Wolfbred after Midna Marie. May be related to Linky due to the strong facial resemblance to his mother, but is clearly not of the Imperial family.

Worten: Prima's husband. A Wolfbred-Hylian hybrid like his wife, which was seen as a milestone for the species (as hybrids had become distant enough to interbreed again)

Uma: An elderly Wolfbred-Hylian. One of the first hybrids to be born, and has lived since the Age of Burning Fields. Full of knowledge about the village and its history, with a priceless ability to see multiple perspectives for almost any conflict in the village. She usually attempts to soothe Link and Reede when they are riled, often with more success than their wives.

Hyrule's Final Stand Masterlist

[concubuck]

((The refs reminded me in a roundabout way, if you've got time to answer this at some point, what is/was Alastors relationship to Husk? I'm curious about their dynamic because I thought 1. Husk could potentially teach Alastor (or baby) how to fly and 2. "Any hole is a goal" Husk could have potential to be a fuckbuddy, depending on that dynamic. So if you want to answer I'll be really interested in that extra lore!))

((I headcanon that Alastor isn't friends with anyone who was in his debt, Husk and Niffty included.

I've never been terribly fond of the idea that Husk and Niffty are unique amongst Alastor's underlings, except insofar as they happen to be the two among many he chose to call on to help with the hotel. The fact that he's infamous as a dealmaker suggests to me that he has a LOT of people in his debt/control, and the fact that he said he'd "call in a few favors" when he summoned H&N suggests that he didn't call them because they're his full-time employees or his friends, but because they owe him. They might be two of his preferred underlings, but that's a little like being "employee of the month" at an Amazon warehouse; you probably worked yourself half to death for that "honor" and you're still just one of hundreds of workers.

(One of the reasons I most dislike Husk & Niffty being "special" is because, if Alastor DOES have countless other souls in the exact same position as those two, it seems an absolute waste to treat them like the only ones that matter when we could be imagining up the possibilities and lives of all the other people he could have the exact same dynamic with... but I digress.)

On the one hand, given what we know about Alastor in canon and the implications of being a "dealmaker" in Hell, a location well-known for folklore about soul-selling deals-with-devils, it seems probable that what he's doing is bargaining people into debts where if they can't pay him off he'll eventually come to own their souls—or, he's just straight up buying their souls. Which, in Hell, where you ARE a soul, means they're selling themselves to him. This, y'know, sounds a lot like enslaving people.

On the other hand, Alastor was a Southern man with Black family who was born 30-odd years after the Civil War, so you'd think he'd probably be anti-slavery—even if not because he has a pristine moral compass himself, then at LEAST because he could feel the weight of his family's judgment breathing down the back of his neck.

So he skirts around acknowledging his hypocrisy in two ways:

One, he tells himself that what he's doing is different because it's not like he's, say, for example, personally hunting, capturing, and enslaving people, or exploiting totally innocent children born underneath his control. He's only taking advantage of people who "deserve it": because they were naive enough to trust his obviously exploitative offers, or because they were stupid enough to get into so much trouble that they need his help, or because they were weak enough to give into his offers... or maybe they just simply deserve it because they're damned and therefore terrible people. It's their own fault, so really, he's enacting a kind of cosmic justice by taking advantage of them! [/sarcasm]

And two—this is the bit where Husk & Niffty become relevant—Alastor personally considers forcing someone under his power to act friendly to him out of fear for their livelihoods/safety/freedom to be the worst thing a boss/owner can do. Whether that means "hitting on a debtor" or "inviting an employee to out-of-work social activities" or far far worse things, that is what Alastor considers the worst abuse someone powerful can commit. So his idea of kindness is never, ever putting his underlings in a position where they feel obligated to act like his friend.

(These aren't good excuses for his hypocrisy. But they're the kind of excuses consistent with how real people—especially abusive people—justify committing evil actions: either by saying that their otherwise heinous actions are acceptable because their targets deserve it, or by splitting hairs when defining "evil actions" so that they can tell themselves that they're okay as long as they don't do the things they've personally defined as morally unacceptable.)

The upshot of all this is that he feels like he has a moral imperative to never force anybody under his power to fake emotional intimacy with him. Which is admittedly a noble motive, except that he takes it to extremes ("NEVER make friends with anybody I've got power over, because they'd feel like they can't turn down my friendship,") and he uses it to feel honorable while pardoning himself for far worse behavior.

This was his position with Husk & Niffty. He didn't own their souls, but they were in debt to him for favors performed decades prior, slowly working off their debt. (He intentionally writes his contracts to be slow and hard to pay off—to trap as many people as possible into eventually losing ownership of their souls and to keep those that do ultimately pay him off working as hard as possible in the meantime.) He held their eternal futures in the palm of his hand. Therefore he didn't, and couldn't, consider them friends.

Now, this is all past tense. For the purpose of this AU, when Alastor decided to become full demon, he knew that would be a massive transition and that he'd need at least a couple of months of complete solitude, followed by who-knew-how-long adjusting to the change. So he decided to settle up with all his outstanding debtors before his transformation. He gave each debtor a one-time-only chance to pay off as much as they could with whatever they had at the time—cash, goods, services, favors, etc—and have the rest of their debt forgiven, in exchange for freedom... or, if it seemed easy enough, he pushed them the rest of the way down into forfeiting ownership of their souls.

Both Niffty and Husk were among the debtors who had their debts forgiven and were freed from Alastor's service.

He hasn't spoken to them since.

He doesn't want to speak to them. They saw him when he was at his peak—and when he had power over them. He doesn't want them to see what he's been reduced to... even worse, when he's just their equal, and doesn't have the authority to silence their judgment and mockery.

Because of their prior power imbalance, he'd feel inappropriate being friendly with either of them—and he'd feel infuriated and humiliated to be in a position where either of them has any power over him, such as teacher/student. Sleeping with them is nigh on unthinkable.))