#the traumatized trio aka the emerald trio

[masqueradereveler21]

“Believe me, Professor, I’ve been asking myself the same question for the whole year.”

• Another commission done by the wonderful @millyillus 🤍 thank you again for bringing this character to life, I am forever amazed by your talent •

[insomniaruler]

Clay Pigeons

“I’d like to stay but I might have to go start over again”

Aka. Grian realizes his brother is also extremely traumatized

Aka. Jimmy learns to like life again after about two ish years of straight.

Aka. I give Jimmy a crow familiar because I could and it’s cool :D

The Evolutionists fought and killed the tyrant of the end but they left one behind. The world they returned to was gray and sad without Grian’s cackling laugh echoing through the air.

So when Jimmy got a note in the Watchers cryptic way he leapt at the chance of bringing his friend and brother back.

(Now you have to understand. Grian, Jimmy and Pearl had always been a trio. Since the day Jimmy was found in a box in the middle of the forest it seemed the twins would have moved heaven and earth to protect him. And Jimmy never could feel like he repaid them for allowing him to join their flock. He didn’t remember much before them but he knew from day one that he was a bad omen. His wings were gold and black, a canary’s wings, a sign of death.)

So Jimmy went, without telling anyone, even Pearl or Martyn, where he was going. Jimmy traveled through forests and scorching deserts to the coordinates The Watchers had given him. Finally there he stood, sword grasped in his hands as he looked up at the broken portal insignia he knew. And with only a glance back he strode up to it and stood in the center. Jutting out his chin Jimmy spread his wings wide and struck the portal thrice with his walking stick. And his vision was consumed with purple.

“Hello Canary.” A soft vaguely masculine voice surrounded him. “Hello Watcher. I was lead to believe I was getting my brother back if I came to you?” Jimmy straightened his back and jutted out his chin. “Hmm. Yes yes we do remember that.” A very androgynous voice came from his left. Jimmy shivered, that was the one who guided Grian away. “So do I get Grian back?” Jimmy asked, standing straight, like he’d been taught by Pearl.

Laughter erupted around him and Jimmy realized how many Watchers surrounded him. There had to be at least a hundred possibly more hidden in the shadows. “Oh stupid canary, that's not how it works.” Jimmy had not once in many years been ashamed of his wings, but in this moment where he was surrounded by hundreds of laughing things that hid in the dark he felt the cold feeling of shame rise in him.

“What?” Jimmy hated the betrayed tone in his voice. “You see, we Watchers have a counterpart per se and they are desperately upset that our numbers are uneven now.” The voice sounded like it was pouting and Jimmy felt a cold feeling of dread wash over him. “I won’t go with you! I’m not the admin! I won’t be able to help you!” Jimmy felt as small and powerless as he did as a fledging abandoned by his flock.

“Then I guess your dear brother will have to suffer for your insubordination.” A new voice spoke. “NO!” Jimmy screeched, shoving forward. “Take me! Take me, don't hurt him. Please.” “Good. Come along canary.”

Jimmy felt chains wrap around his wrists and binding his wings. With a scream he lost consciousness.

—

Jimmy drifted in and out of consciousness for the next while, but he jolted awake when the door to his “cell” burst open. A new being stood there, they didn’t wear a mask, instead a muzzle wrapped around their mouth, its robes were emerald green and spattered with red flecks. It approached him and grabbed him roughly, hoisting his arms over his head. A pair of pliers approached his hands and suddenly he felt a blinding pain as his talons, small and deadly sharp, were ripped out of his hands.

By the end Jimmy felt like a piece of meat on the production line, and then he felt the cold feeling of a blade by his feathers. Then an echoing snip. his wings were clipped. They had clipped his wings. Even when they regrew the feathers would bear a scar. Then the monster tugged him out the room down the hall. Even when he stumbled the thing wouldn’t slow. Eventually they reached a chamber where three ornate thrones stood.

“Kneel player.” A voice echoed from all around him. The Thing behind him retreated as his chains were attached to the floor. He instead screeched and pulled against his chains, thinking he’d escape for sure from the flimsy looking metal. But the loops didn’t even budge as he thrashed against them.

“Player continue that and you will feel the consequences.” He continued to hiss and thrash against the chains. “Player continue to resist and The player known as Grian will suffer for it.” He stopped suddenly and the room was filled with three bright lights, one purple, one green and one orange. “Greetings canary. We are Those Who Watch, Those Who Listen and Those Who Speak.” The purple robes one gestured in turn to itself, the green thing and the orange thing.

Jimmy wanted to bear his teeth, and then sink them into the star like skin of the things neck. But he simply looked on blankly, if he reacted would they hurt his brother? “Here in the void you will learn to fight the dangers in our world, you will Listen and report to us. Your superiors in every single way., not respecting that will result in punishment.” Jimmy wanted his talons; he wanted the heads of all these monsters on pikes.

After more discussion he was led back to the locked room. Feeling more and more like one of the cages miners would bring down to the deep caves full of toxic gas. Curling up on the stack of unidentifiable soft material Jimmy started to cry. Heaving ugly cries that started at his sternum and died in his throat. His once beautiful wings dull and lifeless without the vibrant flight feathers. He knew what people said about people with flight scars.

They were bad people, people who went into fighting rings, people who gave themselves over to anyone who would take them. (It was only after they left Jimmy realized just how horrifying the great Avian floating cities were in terms of society norms. But he was far far away from them now). He missed his flock. Grian and Pearl with their safe wings, Grian’s bright red feathers and pearls titanium white plumage. Eventually the sobs quieted to silent tears before he fell into a fitful and uneasy slumber.

His life fell into a horrible routine where he’d wake up with food being pushed through the hole in the bottom of his door and then being taken for training fifteen minutes later. The food would be thrown up thirty minutes in. He had scars far deeper and bloodier than he ever expected to have.

he tried three times to find Grian. each time they caught him and strapped him to a cold iron table and played the sound of Grian begging for the pain to stop over and over until Jimmy was sure he was going mad. It took what he guessed to be 5-6 months till he noticed he didn’t need the food they pushed through the grate.

The unappealing slop would be his only food for the day so he usually rushed to get it down, in hopes of some nutrients before he threw it all up again. But that morning(?) he didn’t feel the urge to eat. That’s when he knew he was turned. He was different from humanity. He was disgusted with himself, how could he let this happen. Pearl nor Grian would welcome him back if they saw him now. His door opened and another Listener stood there, a muzzle wrapped in its hands.

His training changed, he was put under a hollow looking Listener. It was silent, like a shade drifting through the halls, looking at certain doorways longingly. Jimmy knew, this one had been like him. And it had failed to escape. It terrified Jimmy more than he liked to admit.

The next month he was back on the table and his mentor stooped over him as he begged for the sound of his brother's screams to stop. He had hoped he’d free Grian and then give up, meet death in her entirety. But they had caught him again.

They sent him to a world terribly smelling like home and flock, then he broke the rules. He fell in love. With a man with blue hair and kind eyes. He didn’t deserve what happened to him. Jimmy loved the man and that caused his downfall. Because this was the watchers game. Grian was there but he didn’t recognize Jimmy so Jimmy didn’t recognize him. Grian slipped once and said ‘Timmy.’ But never again.

He died in a desert stained red from blood. He woke on a whistling mountain peak. On a soft couch. When he sat up he froze. He had flight feathers. Raising his wings he pumped them once and he rose into the air. “Hello my omen.” A woman’s voice echoed in his head.

Looking around he saw her, tall with crow wings double the size of his. “Hello, Lady Death.” He touched back down and bowed to his patron god. “I’m sorry this has happened to you, Jimmy.” Jimmy didn’t recognize his name for a moment before he slumped. “Do you think I’ll ever escape?” “I think, with luck on your side you will thrive.” Jimmy couldn’t help but snort. “Luck abandoned me years ago my lady.” “Then with your wit and heart.” She said softly. Together they watched the game conclude and she smiled at him. “Be strong, I’ll see you soon.” Jimmy hoped so.

He returned to the place without sky. And his miserable existence continued on, a few months later he was given a posting on a locked server run by a strong admin.

Appearing on the server he breathed in the smell of the jungle around him. Turning around he blinked, he had a tail. Running his hands through his hair he realized he was a fish hybrid.

The months on empires had to be some of the most relaxing times he had in a long time. Pearl was there, she wasn’t herself. She looked sad and melancholic. He wanted to comfort her but he could imagine the flash of cold hatred and retreated before he could speak.

Then it had to fall apart. Everyone either fled or died so he returned to the void. With a report and cold shame. He broke the rules again, he fell in love again and made friends. The watchers agreed and left him in silence for months. For listeners, silence creeps into your bones until you tear at your skin just to hear the ripping.

—

There were Speakers outside his cell. In his time in this hell he learned Speakers were incredibly rare. And that they were horrible gossips who talked too much for their own good. Listening in was also far too easy when you’re a listener.

“Did you hear the Watchers newest trainee escaped!” One of the Speakers said, a heavy Russian accent obscuring their voice. “Really? the Bee hybrid?” The second one sounded incredulous and very British. “No! The avian, their ‘favourite’ apparently he cut and ran months ago and nobody spread the news!”

Jimmy’s heart was beating in his throat. “Holy Shit! What the hell’s going to happen to him?” The British one asked, “they say he escaped to a safe server with a good admin. They don’t think they’ll be able to get him back fully.” The Russian one said and they started to walk away, chattering loudly.

Jimmy sat there, eyes wide. Heart beating out of control he fought the urge to scream. He could leave, he could do it. Grian wouldn’t fall for his mistakes.

That night (?) (when the lights dimmed) he couldn’t sleep. Half thought out plans were becoming fully formed in his mind.

When a tray rattled through the slot he was still awake. He discarded the tray and began to pace. If his timing was correct today would be weapons training. If he could be fast enough he could plunge a blade through his stomach and never look back. He had enough player left in himself to choose permanent death.

By the time the Listener stepped through the door he was ready to be done with this miserable life he found himself in. It gestured him out into the hall towards the training rooms. He was right then, death loomed. Jimmy was ready. They stood on the fighting mats across from each other. Usually Jimmy would be scared, fighting was the worst part of training. But he felt an uneasy calm. The chosen blade was a sharp biting black sword that could cut clean through a golem.

His mentor readied its sword and he did the same. Just as the Listener moved he turned the sword on himself, shoving it between the padded armour. The world went hazy and he swore he heard a crow cry out.

Then he woke up.

A crow was pecking at his booted feet. He sat up in a hilly mesa. The crow chirped. “Where-��� the crow hopped onto his leg in its claws it held a note.

Hello Canary,

That was not what I meant by I would see you soon. But it worked. The Watchers believe you are dead, they won’t come for you. Try to use this second chance, you deserve it. Trust me. You do.

Best wishes, your guardian, Death

Jimmy sighed looking at the crow. “Really?” He asked as the black bird chirped at him. “I bet she sent you to babysit didn’t she.” If crows could laugh this one would’ve been. It hopped onto his shoulder and began to peck at his ear. “Alright alright I’m going.” He muttered getting to his feet as he looked around. It was an empty biome. A few sparse trees and then just seemingly endless plateaus.

“Right. Do- do you have a name Crow Friend?” Jimmy asked as he walked forward on shaking legs. “If not I’m just going to call you crow.” He said stumbling towards a stout oak tree. The bird seemed very offended by this and took off. “Alright bye then Crow.” Jimmy said with a snort. He felt so much better, the sun shining on his face and the breeze rushing through his feathers.

“Birb brain.” Jimmy muttered before sighing. It’s what Grian called the moments he let his avian instincts take over. He hoped Grian was happy and safe enough to talk about birb brain.

Jimmy punched down the scruffy oak, using its planks to craft rudimentary tools. He found a muddy puddle by the oak and took a second to look at himself. He was pale, underweight and shaking, his wings were in desperate need of a preen, his ears were now drawn into points and, the most interesting thing was the change to his hair. In the front a chunk of it had turned stark white and was interspersed with flashes of emerald green. Weird.

Crow returned as he absorbed the crafting bench into his inventory. “Ah! Hello there Crow.” He said holding out a palm. Crow nipped his ear and dropped a small poppy into his hands. “Uh, your name's flower?” The crow nipped his ear. “Ummmm poppy?” He offered. The bird looked disappointed as it flew into his palm and began to smush the flower. “Oh! Is your name Red?” Jimmy asked, feeling quite sure. He was rewarded with a bobbing head from the newly deemed Red.

“A pleasure, I’m guessing you’re one of Lady Death’s?” Another head bob then a tilt. “Her Angel too? Dang you’re interconnected Red.” He said with a chuckle as he walked on the edge of the grassy patch towards, well… he didn’t quite know, but he knew it was far better than what he was leaving behind.

——

Eventually Jimmy found himself in a small frontier town out on the Mesa. It was there for the gold rich soil and nothing else. Jimmy saw it as a chance to disappear into a community who protects its own.

And they accepted the pale, underweight, and over dressed avian with pointed ears from the mesa wastes without a second glance. Linen shirts and denim pants were offered up, altered by steady hands for his wings and tail feathers. Jimmy felt safe there, he felt human. He adopted two barn cats and began to grow a small plot in the shaded community garden. He was alive again. He loved the smell of a new breeze again and talked to people again. He felt like Jimmy Solidarity-Minecraft was back, replacing The Canary.

It was after about a month that he noticed his new feathers were coming in. They were soft and downy bearing harsh white scars where they were cut.

The next month the town organized a vote because they were in desperate need for a new sheriff (mostly to suppress the current bandit problem). Jimmy didn’t really want to deal with it. He was getting night terrors more frequently and he wasn’t quite sure what to do about that. Red usually woke him up before he started to scream.

But the day the election was held he was drawing up blueprints from his very limited redstone knowledge for a creeper farm to give the town a fresh start using the large Mesa creepers. Red left to go spy on the election proceedings not before he cast a glare back at the redstone. Jimmy couldn’t help but agree with the crow, his head hurt.

He was pecked awake at his desk by a flapping and screeching Red. “Whoa whoa whoa- what’s wrong Red?” The bird didn’t stray from its goal, instead trying to get him down the stairs. “Alright! Alright!” He got up and Red settled onto his perch on Jimmy's shoulder.

Down on the packed dirt floor he looked at Red. “Now what you menace?” Before the bird could act one of the town elders entered the barn holding some paper and a small piece of gold. “Clara? What’s up?” He asked as she looked at him with a smile. “Well I’ve got to talk to you about something…” Jimmy felt his stomach drop suddenly, this was it. They were sick of him and were throwing him out.

“You won the election!” She said holding out a badge. Actually this was worse than being thrown out. “W-ehat but I didn’t run!” Jimmy spluttered, feeling Red nod along with his words. “No one else got any votes.” Clara said walking up to one of her many horses stowed in the barn.

“Are you flipping serious??? Hold another vote! I’m not becoming sheriff.” Jimmy protested, wings puffed up like an angry cat. “We don’t exactly have the funds for that right now, plus it will only be dealing with the bandits, nothing else.” Clara said with a shrug. “Is it just fighting?” Jimmy asked a scowl on his face. “Just fighting.” She said with a smile. “Fine. If it’s anything else I’m quitting.” “Okay, see you tomorrow then Jimmy.” And she walked off.

Red looked at him disappointedly. “Alright alright I know I’m a real doormat.” He muttered. Looking at the badge he smiled at the faint glimmer of true gold. “At least they give real gold.” He said with a shrug. Red hopped down onto his palm and stole the thin golden star and flew back into the loft. “Right.” Jimmy sighed.

—

Over the next couple months Jimmy quickly realized the job was much more than suppressing the banditry. He was given forms on trade and diplomacy. But he didn’t quit. It was like they were waiting for a reason to throw him out. He threw himself head first into the work. Using all he learned from his time as a property police on evo to make the town better than it was before.

There were other players on this world too. Pearl was gone, he couldn’t say how that made him feel. He saw the man again, Scott. Maybe this time they wouldn’t fall apart. He was free, maybe they could love again. He never said anything though, terrified of a cold hatred filled glare.

In those months of work he found himself being insulted and taunted by a false god. The taunts tickled the part of his mind where he was locked in a cold silent cell echoing only with his choked sobs.

Then the world pulsed. Sixteen times, it smelled like dev magic. He creeped up to investigate the source with Red perched on his shoulder, seemingly forgiving him for taking office in this moment of curiosity. Standing there was a collection of colourful characters ranging from a tall zombie to a short glare hybrid. But standing next to a man in emerald green armour were two people he never expected to see again. Bright red, blue and yellow parrots wings with void like eyes. Grian, his brother. And next to him, brown hair and large snowy owl wings. Pearl, his sister.

He wanted to go to them and hug them tightly. But he was something monstrous and if they looked at him with pure disgust he wouldn’t be able to survive that. Red fluttered out, off his shoulder towards the group before in a flash they disappeared again. Red landed on the ground turned towards his hiding spot, inquisitive look in his eyes.

Jimmy walked out and crouched by the corvid. “Yep those two were the infamous Grian and Pearl. My siblings.” He said to the larger-than-average bird. Red hopped onto his shoulder, cuddling into his hair slightly. “I wonder where they went…” Jimmy said with a shake of his head before he got back into the air towards Tumble Town.

When the sky blue walls came into view he sighed slightly. The tall walls blocked most of the breeze from the Mesa. And sometimes in the night his brain refused to believe he was free from the cold endless void.

Red was waking him up more often than not so he didn’t wake the town via screams. He touched down on the top of one of the Sun warmed walls kicking his feet slightly. The sun was setting on the horizon, looking down he made sure the iron constructs were activating and beginning their rounds before he got up and stretched his wings wide.

Red looked at him confused. “How do you feel about sleeping out here? I can’t be in the walls today.” He asked his bird friend. The bird landed on the handle of his axe with a question in his eyes. “No- maybe? I dunno. I have a bed roll but-“ god how did he get here? Talking to a crow like it was his only friend. “It’ll probably just be sleeping in a tree somewhere. Ya know? Birb brain.” He offered the unimpressed bird.

Eventually Red followed him to a tall oak just out of sight of the walls. where Jimmy stretched out in the highest branches looking at the stars. For the first time in years he shared them with his flock. And he fell asleep feeling a betrayed sense of calm.

That morning Red was gone. The little diva of a bird likely back at the loft in Tumble Town by now. Little shit. Getting up from the branch Jimmy shook the worst of the twigs from his hair before taking a running take off towards Tumble Town.

When he got there he could feel something was off. In the center of town sitting on the edge of the fountain was Grian, and Scott. And they were laughing about something. There was no alternative he’d have to talk to them if he wanted to get home. So he steeled himself before touching down.

“Timmy! I missed you!” Grian said, hugging him tightly. “I er- missed you to Grian.” Jimmy muttered. “Sup toy boy!” Scott said, waving at him. “Wait…? Toy boy?! That’s so funny!” Grian giggled. And Jimmy realized he much rathered cold hatred over this. “I mean with the cowboy outfit you do look like woody. Ya know, a toy!” Grian said laughing his tea kettle laugh.

Jimmy sighed softly, hating this interaction more and more. “Please stop Grian.” “Naw! It’s so funny!” Grian giggled, hugging him again. “Grian stop it.” He muttered. Scott sat up from his place on the fountain wall watching closely. “Well it explains why you’re so short.” Grian laughed, hanging off his shoulders. “Grian. You’re acting like the watchers!” Jimmy finally said, pushing him off.

Jimmy looked up at Grian. Ah. There was that hoped for cold hate and shock. He felt Red flutter down and land on his shoulder. “You don’t mean that.” Grian whispered. “Oh I don’t mean that? Well you’re the one treating me less then.” Jimmy was on a roll now. “You don’t understand what they’re really like.” Grian said, voice picking up anger. “Oh I don’t?! Sure!” Jimmy yelled back. “They are worse than what you’d ever know! YOU BLOODY STUPID CANARY!” Grian Shouted back, getting in Jimmy’s face.

But Jimmy didn’t respond, instead he stepped back quickly. He began to rub at his face as if feeling for something. Red screeched in his ear, he nipped the ear lobe but Jimmy didn’t respond. Instead he crumpled inward. “Timmy?” Grian was suddenly scared instead of angry. But when he tried to approach his crumpled brother the crow screamed at him. Scott tiptoed up quietly, and got the same response from the protective bird. “Hey I’m trying to help. Let me help him I’m Scott.” The crow looked at him, up and down before chirping slightly.

“Jimmy? Jim? Petal? Love can you hear me?” Scott whispered, shaking Jimmy’s shoulders. “Stop! No! Don’t HURT HIM PLEASE! I’LL BE GOOD!! I’ll never try to escape again I swear-“ Jimmy was shaking, staring at nothing as he clawed at his face. “Jimmy listen to my voic-“ “j-just take my wings! Don’t hurt him please!” Jimmy was seeing something that wasn’t there.

“Hey, hey. Listen to me. I don’t know where you are but it’s not where you think it is. You’re in the mesa, Tumble Town.” Scott said bringing his forehead to meet Jimmy’s. “I’m here I’m Scott Smajor. We met in a death game and then again when we were kings. I love you. Please come back to me.” Scott murmured rubbing his thumbs over Jimmy’s cheek bones.

Behind them Grian was blinking heavily. He was scared. Scared for Jimmy, this wasn’t his sunny brother, something had happened to him. The strange feeling Crow was staring at him with what could only be called a sneer. “Grian, come on.” Scott said, supporting most of Jimmy’s weight. “Right!” Grian said, walking up to them.

They walked through town, following the crow that flew on. Eventually they found themselves in a small sparsely decorated apartment above the sheriff’s office. The crow fluttered to a perch watching closely as they put Jimmy on the couch. He was awake but out of it. Scott pulled out a chair and sat next to Jimmy. He looked at Grian “so… what was that?” “I- I have a history. A bad one with the watchers. And I think something happened between Jimmy and them. But I’m going to call Pearl.” Over Grian’s shoulder, Red glared hard.

Over the next hour Jimmy came back to himself. He was pale and whenever he looked at Grian (who was trying to talk to Red) he felt a cold sense of dread. But Scott sat next to him with no hatred in his eyes, softly whispering reassurances. Huh that was nice of him. Red fluttered away from Grian, landing deftly on the back of the couch.

“He’o Red.” Jimmy greeted the familiar, holding out his hand to the protective bird who accepted the offered ride down to Jimmy’s level. He thanked him by trying to peck his heart out. “Whoa hey hey, I’m sorry alright.” Jimmy said with a roll of his eyes. The crow huffed before making a home in Jimmy’s bed head.

Soon after Pearl arrived from the small window hatch. Red went to her, inspecting her hair and wings thoroughly. She took it surprisingly well, only sending the bird a few strange looks. “Jimmy! Grian tells me you remember more than you let on?” Pearl didn’t look angry, in fact she looked sad.

“Uh- surprise? And what do you mean remembering?” Jimmy asked uncertainly. “Most of the evolutionists don’t remember. And-“ she looked up and Grian standing in the middle of the room, he nodded. “Taurtis is dead. They dumped his body in the middle of the server.” Pearl said with a furious look in her eyes. “Oh… Gri I’m so sorry.” Jimmy said, looking at Grian. “It’s okay… he lived a good life.” Grian murmured flatly, looking away.

“Jim?” Pearl asked softly. “Why’d you leave?” She asked quietly, looking down. Jimmy sat up hunching his shoulders and wings, he heard Grian gasp behind him before he looked at her. “I tried to be the hero. I got a note from them and thought I’d get Grian back if I could just talk to them.” Jimmy chuckled wetly when Pearl gasped again.

“Turns out. They were manipulating me. And I was too STUPID to flipping notice.” Jimmy said, angry with himself. “Hey no. They’re good at that.” Scott said shifting to the couch to be next to Jimmy. “Right right. So I tried to play the ‘hero’ ya know. And I was taken.” Grian growled and Red glared at him. “They- they trained me as a Listener. And it wasn’t the most pleasant…” Jimmy gestured upwards to his tapered ears.

Grian walked toward a window and then punched it. “Hey!” Jimmy exclaimed. “I’ll get you fucking new one, Jimmy you idiot- are you okay now? Are they coming after you?” Grian asked walking back to the group. “Uh no? They, they think I’m dead?” He smiled awkwardly as four identical stares were fixed on him. “What? Why?” Grian squawked, walking forward gripping his shoulders, Red screeched at him going to peck the avian. “Whoa! Hey hey! Chill out you overgrown chicken-“ Grian stopped holding Jimmy.

“Uh because I died?” Jimmy said hunching. Pearl bared her sharp teeth with a hiss. “They’d know if you respawn. What happened?” Pearl asked face relaxing her face. “I went for perma-death? I stabbed myself through the gut with one of their dragon swords?” He cringed as the room exploded with screams and screeches, even Red got in on it.

“But hey! Lady Death sent me back, said it wasn’t my time or something?” Everyone stopped screaming and looked at him sadly. “So uh yeah? But I’m here, I’m well on my way to liking life again and seeing myself as a human?” He looked down

“Jimmy. Look at me.” Grian knelt next to him. “I’m so happy you’re still here.” And Grian tugged him into a tight hug. “I could never hate you, you’re my baby brother.” He was tugged somehow tighter to Grian’s chest as he felt wings close around him. “I missed you so much, I’m so so so sorry I made those memories come up-“ Jimmy wrapped his arms around Grian. “I missed you. I missed you-“ Jimmy murmured into the hug.

—

“There is something wrong with that bird.” Grian said as they sat around the table. “Really? I’m shocked.” Jimmy said sarcastically as Red surveyed Scott who was dozing on the couch. “What is he?” Pearl asked leaning forward to grab a handful of chocolates. “55% sure he’s a familiar? I’m not entirely sure, but Lady Death sent him to babysit me.” Jimmy said. Chuckling.

That night with Grian, Pearl and Red asleep, Jimmy and Scott sat on the roof looking at the stars together. They leaned against each other sleepily. “Did you mean what you said?” Jimmy asked, looking at the moon. “About what?” Scott asked, looking at Jimmy. “You loving me?” Jimmy asked softly. “Every single word of it love.” Scott said, pressing a kiss to Jimmy’s cheek. And in that moment he felt entirely, wonderfully, human.

[aspoonofsugar]

Emerald + Mercury = Cinder

BEGINNING OF THE END = MIDNIGHT

The episodes Beginning of the End and Midnight can be seen as complementary.

Both share a similar structure with the first part telling Cinder’s story and the second part showing how past events are influencing the present. At the same time, they show the links among Cinder, Emerald and Mercury and explore their changing dynamic.

In Beginning of the End it is shown how they came together and we reach the climax of their cooperation. The Fall of Beacon is when the trio is at its strongest. It is only because of their coordination and teamwork that the plan succeeds. In Midnight instead we are shown the beginning of their separation.

For different reasons (fears and wishes) both Mercury and Emerald are about to leave Cinder. Mercury already has and it is probable Emerald will soon.

The two episodes also give us two opposite and complementary visions of Cinder.

In Beginning of the End, we have the way Cinder wants to appear:

Cinder: (stepping forward slowly, glass anklet shifting with her footsteps) I've already told you. And I don't like repeating myself.

Salem: I would like to think I have shown a great deal of patience over my many years walking Remnant. But I do hate repeating myself.

Mercury: Is this how you treat a patient? (Emerald reaches over and twists the screwdriver in his leg, causing him to wince) Ah, too tight!

Cinder: Enough. Our Mercury put on a wonderful show. He was quite brave.

Salem: Do you find such malignance necessary?

Watts: I apologize, ma'am. I'm not particularly fond of failure.

Salem: Then I see no reason for your cruelty towards young Cinder. She's become our Fall Maiden, destroyed Beacon Tower, and most importantly, killed dear Ozpin. So I'm curious, to what failures are you referring?

In Midnight we see who she really is. Moreover, it becomes more and more clear that her imitation of Salem is different from the original:

Salem: I will tell you when and where you are needed.

Cinder: Both of you, get out. I’ll let you know when you’re needed next.

Mercury: Yeah about that, Salem’s got other plans for me. I’m not gonna be taking orders from you anymore.

Why is this being shown through her interactions with Emerald and Mercury? Why are they important for Cinder’s character?

First of all, Mercury and Emerald are Cinder’s kids, at least narratively speaking:

Roman: Oh, look! She sent the kids again! This is turning out just like the divorce!

Roman calls them so when they first appear and later on several characters refer to them as kids in relation to Cinder.

Raven (about Emerald and Mercury): Two children you've tricked into following you.

Tyrian: (chuckles as he slowly walks toward Emerald) Careful, little girl. Cinder isn't here to protect you anymore.

Tyrian (mocking Mercury): Oh yes, the world is mean, and I'm a big, bad man now just like the others.

Salem (to Emerald): Speak, child.

In short, they are meant to be the last link in a chain of abuse that starts with Salem, goes on with Cinder and finally arrives to them.

At the same time, as the title says Mercury + Emerald = Cinder because they are nothing more than parts of Cinder herself, both in their backgrounds and in their personalities.

CINDER + “HUNGER” = EMERALD

Cinder: Follow me, and you'll never be hungry again.

Cinder: It's... an emptiness. It burns. Like hunger. I like it.

In Beginning of the End Emerald and Cinder are shown to share a hunger motif.

Emerald is presented as a street rat who survives through stealing. She is poor and starved, so she accepts Cinder’s offer to be taken care of and to be given food. That said, it is clear that other than food what Emerald is truly starving for is love:

Emerald: I just... (sighs) Cinder was the only family I ever had. She cared about me, taught me things...

I'm the one Who rose out of filth and was loved by no-one

Similarly, Cinder too is shown to be hungry. More specifically, she is hungry for power:

Cinder: I want to be powerful.

It is meaningful that in the episode where Cinder tells Emerald she won’t have to starve anymore, she herself is starving. This contradiction conveys the tragedy of Cinder’s character aka a traumatized girl taking in a kid similar to her and becoming like her past parental figures.

As a matter of fact Emerald and Cinder’s first meeting has parallels with Cinder meeting both Madame and Rhodes.

When Cinder meets Madame she asks for food, but is negated it:

And she is later shown to have survived through leftovers.

In contrast, food is the first thing Cinder offers Emerald, who she recognizes as a girl who has survived in poverty, like her.

In their first meeting, Cinder also treats Emerald pretty much like Rhodes treated her. Both discover a young girl, who has just committed a theft and confront her. However, instead of punishing the girl, they both offer to be the girl’s mentor and become her idol.

As a matter of fact both Cinder and Emerald are shown to idolize their saviors to the point that both girls try to look like them by changing their hair/clothes:

So, it would superficially seem that Cinder is acting like Rhodes and in the opposite way of Madame. However, the reality is far more complex. Deep down, Cinder is acting like her adoptive mother because she is targeting a girl and thinking about how she can weaponize her. At the same time, there is a key difference between her behaviour and Rhodes’s. Rhodes had Cinder give the sword back, while Cinder never stopped Emerald from stealing. If anything, she encouraged her criminal activities changing her from a thief to a terrorist. In other words, Cinder radicalized Emerald.

This is once again linked to the motif of hunger both girls share:

Cinder: You Atlas elites are all the same! You think hoarding power means you'll have it forever, but it just makes the rest of us hungrier.

Cinder’s trauma is rooted in the unfairness of the world. She was made to starve simply because she was born in the wrong situation and society completely failed her.

What is more, when Rhodes refuses Cinder as well, she too refuses his vision of the world. Rhodes, pretty much like the Prince of the original fairy-tale, offers Cinder a way to social-climb. In the fairy-tale, Cinderella marries the prince and so becomes a princess in the end. Here, Rhodes is telling Cinder she can reach her own castle. Cinder can escape her misery and reach Atlas. However, this is seen as a lie by Cinder the moment he attacks her.

So, Cinder giving food to an orphan like her and trying to destroy the current order are both coherent with the idea that the world is unjust and needs to be changed. However, Cinder is using the same problems she criticizes to her advantage. What is more, she is exasperating them in order to fulfill her personal agenda, which is only about herself and her self-image.

Let’s see now, what do our two young thieves steal? What are they “hungry” for?

a) Emerald steals a ring:

Salesman: A beautiful ring... for a beautiful woman.

Interestingly, the ring itself might be a reference to the original story of Aladdin, which is apparently Emerald’s allusion.

In the original story Aladdin meets two jinns. The first one is in a ring and Aladdin uses it to save himself and to escape with the magic lamp, where a stronger jinn is. So it makes sense for Emerald to steal a ring (something she wishes) just to meet a woman that promises her she can have more (her personal jinn aka someone that can realize Emerald’s dreams).

Why does Emerald steal the ring?

It is possible she just wants to sell it in order to buy some food, but I like the idea that she steals it also because she wants some beauty (”a beautiful ring for a beautiful woman”) in the harsh and horrible world she lives in (“filth”).

b) Cinder steals a sword:

Like in Emerald’s case, the object of Cinder’s theft can be seen as part of her fairy-tale’s allusion.

As a matter of fact, in Cinder’s adaptation of Cinderella the swords are nothing, but her glass slippers.

This is made clear later on when Rhodes (both the Prince and the Fairy Godmother) gives Cinder the first sword. It is meant to be a prize on his part. He is showing Cinder she does not need to steal it anymore because she has gained it. Moreover,  weapons are said to be extensions of a person by Ruby, so it makes sense that the slipper of the original Cinderella becomes a sword in this version. It fits the personality of our Cinder, a fiery young girl, who wants to become a huntress.

Finally, since Cinder’s story uses both inversion and deconstruction when adapting the fairy-tale, it is interesting that in the end the Prince refuses to give Cinder the other sword (slipper) and Cinder takes it by force:

In this way, Cinder goes back to stealing, which was what Rhodes had originally tried to avoid.

Why does Cinder steal the sword in the first place?

She steals something to defend herself with and to hurt her tormentors. Violence is rooted in Cinder’s first theft.

In short, Emerald wants something beautiful, while Cinder wants something powerful.

This difference is coherent with their respective semblances since Emerald creates illusions, while Cinder is able to overheat objects, so that she can create explosions and manipulate their shape. Both powers are representative of their user’s flaw and coping mechanism.

Emerald is a person who has reacted to her traumatic life by chasing illusory dreams of warmth and love. She tricks others and is tricked because she refuses to dispel her self-delusions.

Cinder is instead a person, who has been molded through violence just like the glass statues in the hotel. She is forced to endure until she can’t take it anymore and she explodes:

She herself is the Glass Unicorn, which shatters like Cinder’s innocence when too much pressure is added. Not only that, but Cinder too has started molding others to her will. She has been grooming both Emerald and Mercury for her own ego. This is why the name Scorching Caress fits her so well. It is because behind every act of care it is hidden an act of manipulation. And this happens because Cinder too has been treated utilitaristically and the only kind of love she experienced (Rhodes’s) was a “weak” love Cinder ended up perceiving as fake.

In short, Emerald and Cinder have different coping mechanisms and aim for different things. However, this does not mean that one is better or worse than the other. Their main difference is that right now Emerald is more in touch with her own needs and wishes. Ironically, the delusional girl has never lost sight of what she truly wants.

Emerald wants a family. She has been looking for it in the wrong places and she has been pursuing it in the wrong ways. However, Emerald has never forgotten what she is truly after and she is starting to realize she won’t have it, until she stays on Salem’s side:

Salem: It's important not to lose sight of what drives us: Love, justice, reverence... but the moment you put your desires before my own... they will be lost to you. This isn't a threat, this is simply the truth. The path to your desires is only found... through me.

Tyrian: Shh, shh, shh, shh, shh. I want to tell you both a little secret. Your question is all wrong. (laughs)

Emerald: What?

Tyrian: "What do you want from this?" Children, please, if you're not loving what you're doing, then you're in the wrong field.

Salem promises to fulfill Emerald’s wishes, but Tyrian has already told her that pursuing a wish while working for Salem is useless. Emerald is starting to realize it and this is why she will probably leave.

Cinder has instead forgotten what she originally wanted:

Cinder: Like you? You can do whatever you want, go wherever you want.

Cinder’s original wish was to be free and also to be loved, like Emerald:

You're no good I hope you know That your life is of no use And the truth is that No one's ever loved you

However, her being failed by the adults has twisted her wish into a desire for power.

This difference is well conveyed by Cinder and Emerald’s respective line in Beginning of the End:

Cinder: Follow me, and you'll never be hungry again.

Emerald: Thank you...

Cinder: The Huntsman severed the connection before it was complete. (pause) Yes. It's... an emptiness. It burns. Like hunger. I like it. (pause) Yes. I will claim what is ours. (pause) Thank you.

Emerald thanks Cinder because she won’t have to be hungry anymore, while Cinder thanks Salem because she is able to feel a hunger she likes.

This fits well with Cinder’s last words to the Madame:

Cinder: You’re right. Without you I am nothing. But because of you, I am everything.

Emerald does not want to be hungry, while Cinder has been tricked into thinking that being hungry is the only way she can become not even “everything”, but just “something”.

CINDER + “EVERYTHING” = MERCURY

Cinder: Because of you, I am everything.

Mercury: So I got strong, but I never got it back! I've had to work harder than anyone to get where I am.

Cinder’s way of thinking is very similar to Mercury’s. Not only have they both endured their parents’ violence, but they have tried to give this violence meaning. It is because of Madame that Cinder has become “everything” and it is because of Marcus that Mercury has become “strong”. They must believe that it was not all for nothing and that the pain they felt made them stronger instead of weaker.

This is why Cinder thinks that deep down her “hunger” is good. It is because it drives her, but she ignores that it blinds her too.

This is why Mercury keeps going back to his father:

Mercury: Bad hair, used a scythe, and smelled like my dad after a long day. It was him.

Mercury: My dad always said... "if you need to know a city, ask the rats."

He mentions Marcus here and there and uses his teachings to solve problems. That is because those teachings must have some value, right? If they don’t, then Mercury’s life means nothing.

The nature of Cinder and Mercury’s foiling is clear in their first meeting:

Like in Emerald’s case, Cinder finding Mercury calls back a moment of her past.

In particular, it parallels the murder of her adoptive family and Rhodes discovering it. Mercury, just like young Cinder, has just killed an abusive parent and is confronted by a person after the fact.

Once again, Cinder seems to act differently from the adults that let her down. Rhodes was horrified and attacked her, while Cinder praises Mercury and has him join her group.

However, she is deep down acting as Rhodes did. As a matter of fact what truly hurt Cinder about Rhodes’s reaction is that he convinced her that she is irredeemable.

The whole scene plays with the Cinderella’s allusion and inverts it:

The clock strikes midnight and just like in the fairy-tale, the magic is over. In Cinderella, the protagonist goes back to her true self and runs away not to be seen. However, in the end, the prince recognizes her through her slipper (a symbol of her innate beauty and kindness) and marries her despite her humble condition.

In Cinder’s story, midnight is when she reveals a part of herself to Rhodes. She shows all the anger and violence she has been repressing. Cinder is not a “good victim” like the Cinderella of the fairy-tale and Rhodes can’t accept it. Not only that, but he negates Cinder’s dream to be free:

Rhodes: You can run, but you’re going to be running for the rest of your life.

Cinder: I won’t have to run now.

Rhodes: That’s all you’ll ever do.

This shatters Cinder’s hopes and self-perception. She internalizes that she will have to live in opposition to society because she is somehow “a bad person”. She is not a huntress (a princess), but a nobody who’ll have to use violence to survive. And she starts doing it immediately. As the song that starts playing implies, she has been awaken from the “fragile lies in bones”. However, this “truth has broken her soul in two”. This wound is still there and it has influenced, among other things, her reaction to Mercury.

When Cinder meets Mercury, she associates him to his father three times:

Cinder:  And you're his son. We saw your fight from the treeline. He's taught you well.

Mercury: Guess so.

Cinder: What's your name?

Mercury: Mercury.

Cinder: Mercury... Tell me, are you anything like your father?

In this way, she strengthens the connection Mercury tried to cut by killing Marcus. She is indirectly convincing him that he can’t be different from his father:

Tyrian: All you ever learned was pain and violence, and now you're too afraid to leave it. Such a tragedy.

Tyrian spells it out clearly for both Mercury and the audience. The only reason Mercury joined Cinder and is now working for Salem is that he is scared. Not only is he scared for his own survival, but he is scared about failing to be anything else than what his father taught him.

Cinder is deep down scared too by Salem and her group:

However, she too, like Mercury, has given up on being anything different than a criminal. She puts up a strong demeanor, but is actually really frail. She is like glass that has been bended through heat (violence) and can easily shatter.

Both Mercury and Cinder are two violent victims. This duality is kind of conveyed also through their names and colors.

“Cinder” is something that has only partially burnt. They tried to reduce her to ashes, but failed and a part of Cinder is still burning. This is why her main colors are black and red. She is black because she was burnt. She is red because she can burn. She was both hurt and has hurted others.

Similarly, “mercury” is a silver/gray metal and this is Mercury’s main color. This choice gains a possible deeper meaning when one considers that his aura is white and that his surname is Black. His aura can be seen as Mercury’s nature, while the surname “Black” is a symbol of the “nurture” he received. Mixing these two factors made so that Mercury turned out like he is (a gray character).

So, Cinder and Mercury have been shaped by their abuse and this is clearly visible on their bodies as well:

Cinder keeps the scar on her neck hidden, while Mercury has chosen to weaponize his missing legs.

It is telling that Mercury made of his own mechanical legs his weapon and that he mostly uses kicks to fight. It is another detail that shows how he is reducing both himself and his trauma to weapons he can use.

Cinder too shows how frail her sense of self is through weapons. It is not by chance that her current weapons are made of glass. In her backstory her swords were a symbol of her true self and of who she could become. Right now, they are nothing, but glass imitations of that ideal.

In short, Cinder and Mercury are both victims and murderers and they needed to have both sides of themselves accepted by their mentors.

However, Rhodes and Cinder failed to do so. They both refused the victimhood of the child in front of them, but they did so in opposite ways.

On one hand Rhodes refused Cinder’s violence and its reasons. He ignored his feelings of affection for the girl and steeled himself, so that he could fight her.

On the other hand Cinder gladly accepted Mercury’s violence and groomed him (Scorching caress), so that he would completely embrace it too.

The difference between Rhodes and Cinder lies in them having different reactions to the violence perpetrated by a child. However, they both fail to address the child’s pain. Rhodes does so because his vision is too black and white. Cinder does so because she is not even able to address her own pain.

However, both Cinder and Mercury need to address their own victimhood. Still, they refuse to do so because it would mean to accept their vulnerability. It is easier to convince themselves that they are the strong and violent ones. They are the ones others are scared of:

Mercury: We're the guys you should be afraid of.

But it is precisely because of this refusal that they are currently caught in dynamics similar to the ones they escaped:

Salem and Tyrian are nothing, but more dangerous versions of Madame and Marcus.

Salem treats Cinder as a pawn, rather than a person. She strips her of her personhood and agency and punishes her violently.

Tyrian is a killer, who enjoys his job like Marcus. He keeps invading Mercury’s personal space and threathens him. Moreover, his own semblance is similar to Marcus’s. It might not steal people’s semblances, but it still messes with their auras (with their very souls).

Cinder and Mercury struggle to recognize their own situations because to do so they must accept they are still stuck in their horrible childhoods:

Mercury: You may not like it here without Cinder, but I think I'm right where I'm supposed to be!

Cinder: I don’t serve anyone. And you wouldn’t either, if you were built that way.

However, this refusal is confusing them about what their true needs and wishes are:

Cinder: I want to be strong. I want to be feared. I want to be powerful.

Mercury: So what's in it for me?

In Beginning of the End both characters receive a line where they express some kind of wish.

As stated above, Cinder’s wish is not her original one, but a twisted version because she thinks she can’t reach her true desire.

When it comes to Mercury, he is not even sure of what he really wants. This is made clear even later on:

Emerald: I mean, there has to be something you want from this, right?

Mercury: Salem's promised us everything. We win this thing for her, we'll be top dogs in her new world. What more do you want?

He says Salem will give him all he wants, but he still fails to answer Emerald’s question. What is it that he wants?

He wants “everything” Cinder can offer him and later on “everything” Salem offers him. However, this is just another way to say he’ll take anything he is given, be it even something as basic as survival:

Mercury: Look, even if what he said was true, we can’t stop Salem. You told me yourself, Hazel tried. He failed and he got in line. Big guy’s not going to pick fights he can’t win, and neither should we.

This is because Mercury is so scared and hurt he can’t even start to think about what he wants.

Similarly, he goes back to a fatalistic vision of the world:

Mercury: Just made sense.

Emerald: It made sense?

Mercury: All my life, my father trained me to be a killer, an assassin like him. And then moments after I killed him, you two showed up looking for someone with my exact skills. Just felt like it was meant to be.

Let’s highlight that Cinder does the same:

Pyrrha: Do you believe in destiny?

Cinder: Yes.

Cinder: You know, Neo, someone once asked me if I believed in destiny. And I'm happy to say I still do.

Both Mercury and Cinder have convinced themselves that there is a “destiny” written for them and that they must play that role (the role of an assassin, the role of the Maiden). However, in this way they are just chaining themselves and accepting to Do As They Are Told by adults and mentor figures, who do not really care about them.

EMERALD + MERCURY = SOUL + BODY

I'm the one That was born in a nightmare a murderer's son Got no gun But I gleam like a blade and I'm harder than iron I'm the one Who rose out of filth and was loved by no-one Delusion I'll steal til your blind and defeat you from inside your mind

I'm the one That was ripped from the earth and exposed to the sun Overrun By the hate and the beatings defiled by a father I'm the one I'll race with your eyes and you'll never outrun Illusions Will conquer your mind and will make you fulfill my design

Mercury and Emerald’s song says several things about them.

First of all, it conveys the idea of two kids that feel let down by the world and have decided to retaliate. They mock their opponents and praise their respective abilities. However, it is clear from the verses above that it is just a mask to hide their pain.

This fits with them appearing for the first time in Best Day Ever where Ozpin says this:

Ozpin: And they will be, but right now they're still children. So why not let them play the part? After all, it isn't a role they'll have forever.

Differently from out protagonists (at the time), Emerald and Mercury are not playing the part of kids, but they are acting as big bad thugs to prove themselves to the people around them.

Secondly, the song is useful to explore Emerald and Mercury’s foiling.

a)

I'm the one Who rose out of filth and was loved by no-one Delusion I'll steal til your blind and defeat you from inside your mind

I'm the one That was ripped from the earth and exposed to the sun Overrun By the hate and the beatings defiled by a father

Emerald was never given love, while Mercury was given hate:

Mercury: I'm sorry you didn't have a mommy that loved you, but I had a father who hated me!

This difference is at the root of their different personalities.

On one hand Emerald attaches herself to the care Cinder gives her and takes it as the most love she’ll ever receive.

On the other hand Mercury is just content with not receiving hate and violence from the people around him.

Emerald is more open about her connections with others, while Mercury is more disillusioned. She is strongly driven by them, while Mercury is too scared to fully embrace them.

Emerald has clear wishes, but she is deluding herself about them. Mercury has fears that do not let him realize what he wants.

This difference stems from the different nature of their traumas. Who was never given anything accepts whatever they are offered, while who received pain thinks even nothing is better than more pain.

Still, we are currently seeing an inversion of this dynamic. Emerald’s wishes and their not overlapping with reality are making her doubtful. Mercury’s fear and survival instinct are making him refuse the truth:

Mercury: And all of this is pointless, anyway. Salem’s not ending the world.

In the end, facing one’s own feelings, being them wishes:

Or fears:

Is still better than repressing them, even if it might be painful.

b)

I'm the one That was born in a nightmare a murderer's son Got no gun But I gleam like a blade and I'm harder than iron

I'm the one I'll race with your eyes and you'll never outrun Illusions Will conquer your mind and will make you fulfill my design

The song I’m the One has four key verses. In the first two ones both characters tell a little of their past and then discuss their abilities, while in the other two Mercury mostly talks about his past and emphasizes it, while Emerald highlights her semblance more.

This ends up foreshadowing the importance of Emerald’s semblance and Mercury’s lack of one (”got no gun”).

Emerald’s semblance is important on different levels. As stated above, it perfectly embodies Emerald’s flaw:

Mercury: You're in denial.

And it is linked to unconscious aspects, like wishes and fears. Finally, it is a semblance linked to trickery and lies and these are among the causes of The Fall of Beacon:

Cinder:  Our Kingdoms are on the brink of war, yet we, the citizens, are left in the dark.

It is not by chance that this semblance specifically has been so instrumental in Cinder’s plan, after all.

Similarly, Mercury’s lack of a semblance is one of his defining traits:

Mercury: He never went easy on me! Every day of training was a beating. And when I unlocked my Semblance, he stole it with his!

Ironically, this would make for an excellent narrative objective for Mercury’s character. However, he is so sure his semblance can’t be taken back that he has completely given up on it. This even if he is clearly bitter about having had a part of himself stolen.

The key aspect here may be that Mercury has failed to get his semblance back through his father’s teachings:

Mercury: He told me I could have it back when I was strong. So I got strong, but I never got it back!

And he is now considering it lost forever. It is possible that the path to find his ability again is instead another one altogether.

That said, while Cinder mostly used Emerald’s semblance in her plan, she also made great use of Mercury’s skill and of the peculiar nature of his body:

The first step in her plan, after all, uses both Emerald’s semblance and Mercury’s prostethic legs to spread negative emotions. This tendency continues in PvP where Emerald uses her semblance and Mercury, unhurt because of his legs, prevents Ruby from interrupting the fight.

In short, Emerald mostly relies on her semblance, while Mercury mostly relies on his legs and fighting prowess.

This detail adds to the idea that Emerald and Mercury have been acting as a unit and have been complementing each other. Emerald acts as the “soul” and Mercury as the “body”.

The soul is one’s personal essence (like the semblance). It is where (once again) wishes reside. The body is what protects the soul and is animated by instincts and self-survival.

They complement each other. This complementarity is shown in Emerald and Mercury’s fights.

In the Vytal festival, Mercury takes on both Coco and Yatsuhashi for a short while, so that Emerald can size her chance to fight Coco at her own terms (and she wins by using her semblance).

In the Battle of Heaven, Emerald uses her semblance to help Mercury fight and, in a sense, she compensates for his lack of one:

This perfect complementarity used to make them strong, but right now it is clear that it has become limitating:

Blake: When you’ve been at someone’s side for so long, after a while they become a part of you. But that’s just it, they’re only a part of you. Don’t forget about the rest.

 This is why they are currently being separated by the narrative.

On one hand Emerald must learn not to be so emotionally dependant from others and must make her own choices. This is also why her using the lamp might be meaningful:

Qrow: This last great creation would be given the power to both create and destroy. It would be given the gift of knowledge, so that it could learn about itself and the world around it. And most importantly, it would be given the power to choose, to have free will to take everything it had learned and decide which path to follow - the path of light or the path of darkness.

The whole point of the relics (and of the journey we are going through) is to learn about the world, about creation and destruction, so that in the end a choice can be made.

This is why the first relic we saw is the relic of knowledge. Now, Emerald is a character that has been dependant on others, so that she could realize her wishes. Aladdin itself is a story about a character depending on a Jinn to make his dreams come true. However, it is possible Emerald’s arc will be different and it will be about gaining the knowledge to act and realize one’s wishes.

On the other hand Mercury must face himself and learn what he really wants. He must start living instead of simply surviving. In a sense, he must take the soul his father stole back.

Mercury quoting Marcus: "This is a crutch!" "This makes you weak!"

Marcus was wrong. One’s individuality (semblance) does not make them weak. If anything, Marcus’s abuse of Mercury made him need a literal crutch (since he lost his legs) and the boy is still hiding behind this violence to avoid any real choice about himself. This is what prevents him from becoming strong:

Yang: You might be powerful, but that doesn't make you strong.

Raven: Who do you think you are, lecturing me?! Standing there, shaking like a scared little girl?!

Yang: Yeah, I'm scared. But I'm still standing here!

His connection with Emerald might still play a role in this. After all, Mercury is, among other things, the god of thieves and this allusion has been played with by making him protective of Emerald (whose surname means “thief”). It might be used in a deeper and more meaningful way later on.

Emerald and Mercury must grow because if they don’t, they’ll end up as their dark foils:

Both Hazel and Emerald ended up joining Salem out of a feeling of love that was twisted. Emerald joined Salem because of her loyalty to Cinder, who is using her. Hazel joined Salem because of the death of his sister that he blames on Ozpin. Their semblances are even symbolic of their respective flaws since Emerald is caught up in her own delusions, while Hazel is unable to properly grieve, so he can’t “feel pain” on more than just the physical level.

Both Mercury and Tyrian are assassins and Tyrian is who Mercury might become if he truly chooses to live only to kill and does not find a different goal.

It is also telling that both Emerald and Mercury are currently put in similar circumstances as their two foils. As a matter of fact Mercury is leaving with Tytian, while Emerald and Hazel have been given the password to use the lamp and must choose what to make of this information.

At the same time, Emerald and Mercury have also some traits of respectively Tyrian and Hazel as well.

Emerald is fiercely loyal to Cinder like Tyrian is to Salem:

Tyrian: So devoted to someone so incompetent.

Hazel wanted to protect Gretchen (and is still acting on these unfulfilled feelings of protectiveness) like Mercury is trying to protect Emerald. Moreover, Gretchen and (probably) Emerald’s choice was/will be to fight an enemy that can’t be beaten, going against Hazel and Mercury’s wishes.

All in all, Emerald and Mercury have had interesting interactions with both Hazel and Tyrian that can be (ironically) seen as two incomplete and flawed mentor figures.

On one hand Hazel has been acting as a protector of sorts. He carried Emerald when she lost consciousness after the Battle of Heaven and he tried to protect both Emerald and Mercury from Salem’s rage after their failure.

On the other hand Tyrian is seen tormenting the two kids whenever he gets the chance. That said, he ironically ends up spelling out for them truths the two must face:

Tyrian: Do what makes you happy children... please? I'm begging you...

Tyrian: Of course she is! You’re surprised? Salem is destruction incarnate! Our mistress wishes to see the end of it all! There is no ideal more beautiful.

In short, some kind of interesting foiling seems to have been set-up for the four of them and it will be interesting to see if/how it develops.

MIDNIGHT = BEGINNING OF THE END

In a sense, when the clock stroke midnight it was the beginning of Cinder’s end because she entered a spiral she has not been able to stop since then. Not only that, but she has dragged other people in that same spirals and those people are now struggling against it, just like her.

At the same time, midnight signals the end of illusions and that may be a fitting description for where we are in the story so far.

Ruby has just announced the existence of Salem to the world, Emerald is uncovering several truths about Salem, Cinder and herself and the Ace Ops are being forced to face their emotions. Of course, when some illusions end, new ones appear. However, it is clear we are in a pivotal moment, which will hopefully lead to some changes.

Similarly, Cinder, Mercury and Emerald will probably go their own ways soon and it will be interesting to see how their paths will foil and where they will meet again.

As for now, it seems that because of Emerald’s allusion to Aladdin, she might use the last question to Jinn. If so, she will probably aquire knowledge and wisdom (emeralds are the stones of wisdom apparently).

Mercury will probably spiral a little bit as for now, but I wonder if he will receive some pivotal focus in the Vacuo’s volumes. Other than him going there with Tyrian, there is also the fact that it would make what is currently just a juxtaposition with Penny (thank you, @hamliet​ for noticing) a more interesting foiling.

Penny is an artificial human, a creation who was given life because her father loved her so much that he sacrificed a part of his aura for her... twice. She is at the centre of the theme of creation and it represents the good sides of it. She is a creation with a soul, a child, the fruit of parental love. It is because of the love she received that she is willing to protect creation:

Penny: That is not… I choose to fight for people who care about me.

Penny’s arc is about self-actualization. She struggles to be her own person outside her role, her purpose and even her parent. However, even if she has been objectified and keeps being objectified, she has also been given affection and this is why she fights.

Mercury is her opposite. He was the target of his father’s violence. Marcus not only stole his legs (while Pietro built Penny a body), but even a part of his soul (while Pietro gave Penny a part of his). He taught Mercury hate and violence and this is why he is currently helping a witch to destroy the world. Because of this, it would be interesting for such a character to receive focus on the volumes about destruction.

Finally, Cinder, as the Fall Maiden, is linked to the theme of choice. This has already been explored a little bit in her being obessed by destiny, as said above. However, the theme of choice is one which must still be fully explored.

In particular, there are several references to choice and destiny when it comes to Cinder’s foil aka Pyrrha:

Cinder (about Pyrrha): Hmm... People assume that she's fated for victory, when she's really taking fate into her own hands.

Cinder: It's unfortunate you were promised a power that was never truly yours.

Pyrrha: When I think of destiny, I don't think of a predetermined fate you can't escape. But rather... some sort of final goal, something you work towards your entire life.

Red-Haired Woman: She understood that she had a responsibility... to try. I don't think she would regret her choice, because a Huntress would understand that there really wasn't a choice to make. And a Huntress is what she always wanted to be.

Pyrrha’s arc is about making a choice. She must choose if she wants to become a Maiden. She struggles, but in the end she accepts this responsibilty. She embraces her idea of destiny and tries to be a Maiden even without powers.

Cinder’s idea of destiny is not fully explored. In a sense, just like Pyrrha, she has taken destiny in her own hands. However, she also seems to use the idea of destiny to nurture her self-image as the Chosen One and as the Worthy One.

At the same time, Pyrrha’s choice led to her tragic death. Not only that, but in the end her death accomplished little. Even Ruby activating her silver eyes has more to do with her wish to protect life, rather than with death. Why is that so? It is probably because Pyrrha’s choice was made without knowledge. She had been explained only a fragment of the truth, while the whole point is that one should learn, meet creation and destruction and then make a choice. This is why we have yet to meet the relic of choice.

My guess is that the theme of choice will mostly be explored through Cinder’s character, who will be asked to choose her destiny in the end.