#so hi kotlc fandom!

[thegunssawyerstole]

ive said this once and i will say it again, grady is the most nuanced character in KOTLC. Purely from just how he is written in canon- there is so much we can draw from his character with little inference.

On the one hand, you have a walking tragedy: he manifested one of the rarest and most dangerous abilities in the lost cities at a young age, he lost his daughter to her fiance, (if we're talking theory, he may have been in the neverseen), you can't help but feel sympathy for him.

But then- you realize something terrifying.

Gisela and Vespera are right.

Grady is the most ruthless elf in the lost cities.

But he's also one of the kindest.

Despite the danger it poses, he and Edaline adopt the Moonlark, they put themselves at risk. Despite everything been through, they willingly give their love to a girl who needs it. That is one of the kindest acts someone can pull off.

However, as alluded to earlier, there's another side to him. Despite how concerned, kind, and thoughtful he is; he is also vengeful, impulsive, and distrusting.

Let's look at Everblaze again. Partially because it's the best example of his darker nature, partially because I have it on hand right now, partially because it is my favorite book in the series.

In Everblaze, Grady's vengeance and impulse is seen in full. Take King DImitar, for an example. Sophie was going to be taken away; and Grady jumped in. He believed it to be the right thing to do; and believe me it was, but there is a dark tone to it. A feeling of impulse; that he wasn't truly thinking at the moment. And he almost violated the treaty, if it wasn't for the Councillors coming to his defense.

This scene serves as subtle foreshadowing for later and sets up something very important about Grady:

He could kill someone if he wanted to. And he knows that.

But what could push him that far? Well, there is an answer to that, an answer we later find out:

Jolie's death.

When he finds out the true circumstances to Jolie's untimely demise, his sheer ruthlessness is demonstrated. There's a deeper level to this however, it is his underlying fear of being taken advantage of showing to its surface.

Brant took advantage of Grady and Edaline, and that is the biggest injustice to Grady. Because it's what he has been fearing, it's why he had closed himself off to the world.

That fear causes the sheer level of terror that is caused in Grady. Terror that builds into his impulses, which causes him to go out to find Brant, with intent to kill.

That's why he doesn't want Sophie to come with, he doesn't want his daughter to see the monster he was about to become.

The monster he believes himself to be.

It's not just Everblaze, but a feeling that permeates his character and his choices.

His distrust of Keefe stems from two things:

The similarities he sees between himself and Keefe (the sense of humor, the blond hair, and later in the books; the ability of control).

How that, in a way, is all Grady has ever known.

Elves manifest young. Meaning that he has spent a majority of his life being distrusted by his peers, as well as distrusting the world and fearing someone would take advantage of him.

So when there's a talented but terrified young kid that needs his helps; whether through adoption or through training, he obligies.

Why?

Because he sees himself so much in that situation. Because of that deep feeling of kinship, he feels a need to take care of people in that situation.

Grady's empathy trumps his distrust.

And that's why he starts helping Keefe. That's why he adopts Sophie.

tl;dr: grady's character absolutely FUCKS why does no one talk about this???

also he is hotter than hell and i will fight people on this

[queefsencen]

[waining-crescent-moon]

i like keefe as a character but i think he would be so much better if the other characters acknowledged that he’s a loser

[milo-igidk]

is this a safe space to say ive yet to hear a sophie bio dad theory thats based on any type of cannon compliance

[ann-lol]

Kinda forgot how a lil insane people are on Pinterest 😭

[lotusishere]

Fitz pissed me off in that bonus scene with him and Biana. How is Biana gonna ask “how did you telling her you have a crush on her go” and his dumbass wants to pull up with “I told her that I trust her so we’re pretty much dating.” He’s autistic.

[multi-fandom-lunatic]

its time we stop justifying the bad characters do and start embracing it as part of their character complexities

[ramiethewizard]

AHHHHH THEYRE GONNA HAVE MY BOYS NOW 😭

If Fitz isn’t hot as fuck then what am I doing with my life

[chronically-ill-psionipath]

Exile. Page 240.

No text version

[lucyshypemaster]

keefe was actually insane for this

[floofeeeeee]

Au where Sophie get fostered by Tiergan instead of Grady and edaline

[queefsencen]

fitz vacker when they left no instructions just a legacy to protect and when if theres a reason im still alive when everyone who loves me has died(joined the neverseen) then im willing to wait for it and also when i am the one thing in life i can control and also when he faces an endless uphill climb and also when he has something to prove and he has nothing to lose and his pace is relentless and he wastes no time and AND ALSO WHEN LIFE DOESNT DISCRIMINATE BETWEEN THE SINNERS AND THE SAINTS AND IT TAKES AND IT TAKES AND WE KEEP LIVING ANYWAY AND WE RISE AND WE FALL AND WE MAKE OUR MISTAKES AND IFTHERESAREASONIMSTILLALIVEWHENSOMANYHAVEDIED

@autistic-daydreamer

[waining-crescent-moon]

i wonder how disappointed the vackers were that alden’s first child was a vanisher

the pressure alden and della probably felt to have another kid and the shame alvar must have felt for something he couldn’t control

it would’ve happened when alvar was a teen too so there must have been so many expectations and so much excitement only for it all to come crashing down when he manifested

alvar must have felt like he had to do so much to make up for the fact that he wasn’t a telepath

[milo-igidk]

in my head ro is a lesbian and has a gf btw. if you even care.

[ann-lol]

Doodles✨

[lotusishere]

I realize why Keefe has so much “confidence” in how behavior. It’s because he can literally feel everyone’s emotions. He knows what to say or what to do in situations because he already feels what other people are feeling. So he just adds to that. And it’s funny because the second his talent started glitching out and he couldnt feel other peoples emotions. He suddenly became very nervous when it came to talking. He didn’t know what to do or say because he didn’t know what the other person was thinking or feeling.