When Fjord gets frustrated with the rest of the group he turns to ask Molly to back him up only to remember as the name is falling out of his mouth that Molly is dead.
How often does Fjord accidentally call Caduceus Molly? How hard does the loss of his roommate affect him? When they go to sleep at night does Fjord say “Goodnight Molly” to Caduceus? TO WHAT EXTENT DOES THIS AFFECT CAPTAIN FJORD TUSKTOOTH?
The cool part, and by cool I of course mean deeply upsetting, about Fjord calling Caduceus by Molly’s name is that it absolutely tracks for Fjord and Molly’s relationship.
For all the ridiculous shenanigans Molly got up to, there were points where the group was too bugfuck ridiculous even for him, and those were usually points when they’d be too bugfuck ridiculous even for Fjord.
Trying to talk Jester and Nott out of Fluffernutter probably took him right back to standing with Molly watching everyone else trying to steal the dodecahedron for no apparent reason.
No offense to all the people saying “Fjord!! Don’t be distracted by a pretty face, Avantika’s dangerous!” but that’s not what I think is going on at all.
Fjord’s not attracted to Avantika – not in a romantic and sexual way. What does Fjord want – what has he wanted every since we’ve met him? He wants to understand what’s going on with his powers, to know he’s not imagining things. After all, he focused on Caleb’s magic until it was clear it wasn’t like his; he persisted in trying to figure out Molly’s swords until Molly explained that his rituals didn’t really mean anything. Fjord has been desperate to figure out his powers, and Avantika’s finally giving him the information he craves.
Then there’s the psychological aspect: being seen, and known, and understood. Canonically, all his life, Fjord has tried to fade into the background. He doesn’t want to seem dangerous or unlikeable, so he deliberately has people underestimate him, he charms them, he flirts and tips his hat and hopes that’s enough for people to see past his heritage and past. Avantika allows him to move beyond that. She’s led him into the spotlight as the leader of the Mighty Nein and one of the chosen of Uk’otoa, but she’s still the captain – he doesn’t have to take full command of the situation. He has a fallback. It’s the perfect dynamic for someone like Fjord.
So of course he gravitates towards her. Of course he tells her about his dream when he can’t get the words out to anyone else. Of course he explains about his falchion, and the words he hears, and his search for the truth, despite the fact that Avantika is patently dangerous, a pirate captain and a cultist who threatened to murder him and all his friends and who has an eye embedded in her palm.
I don’t think Fjord’s attraction to Avantika has anything to do with physical attraction or desire. He sees in her what he’s been looking for for months at the very least, if not his whole life, and he may even see in her what he wishes he could see in himself. He’s probably flattered by her attention, and excited at the possibilities their patron and their connection to each other through their patron suggests. He’s awed by her power and eager to learn from her.
Is he going to regret it? Probably. Will he learn that she isn’t what he’s looking for? I hope so. But I can’t blame him, and not because he’s fallen for a pretty face.
I wanted to finally use some of my leftover paper clippings since I always keep them, just in case, but they usually have weird shapes so they still just lay around or only end up as swatch papers. Motive wise; idk it is Fjord in the water holding something round and sparkly ¯_(ツ)_/¯ I didn’t think about it much, just wanted to draw a male character and cr is like my only joy right now.
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