[ooc] So they say you're troubled, boy
Here, have 2000+ words on what's in Gant's head. Spoiler warning for Gant's case and for Season 4 of Supernatural.
Bear in mind that this is all my interpretation / headcanon. Your mileage may vary, and I certainly don't expect this to be taken as gospel. This is just my way of explaining my understanding of Gant, where he is right now as a character, and how he got there.
On Good, Evil, and Justice
That's a nice, crunchy topic for us to start on. Gant believes in America justice. He became a police officer, some forty-odd years ago, because he wanted to uphold the law, capture criminals, and protect innocents. I think that back when he was a young man, he wouldn't have even considered murdering an innocent to make sure a criminal was convicted. But over time, he became corrupted. He still believed that he was a force for good, and criminals were a force for evil, and so he believed that whatever he did, as long as it was helping him catch criminals, was also good. So murdering Neil Marshall, framing Joe Darke so he would be convicted, framing Ema Skye so he could blackmail her sister and control the Proescutor's Office, ruining Angel Starr and Jake Marshall's careers, all of that was okay, because it was for the greater good. After all, who better to run the justice department than Gant himself? There was no one he trusted more. And if what he did was illegal, or morally wrong, well, better he get his hands dirty doing it than some other innocent soul, right?
So that's how it was for the two years between Marshall's murder and Goodman's; Gant may have felt a bit sad that Neil had to die, and no doubt his relationship with Lana suffered (he was fond of both of them, as he was of the detectives under him; that fondness didn't stop him from screwing them over, but it was there nonetheless), but it was a small price to pay for all the good he was accomplishing as Police Chief and as the puppet master behind the Prosecutor's Office. He certainly never felt guilty.
Then the Goodman murder happened. By his own admission, Gant was panicked; he certainly was sloppy and careless enough. Unlike the Marshall murder, which directly accomplished good (as Gant saw it), this murder was purely self-interest. Gant was trying to cover his ass and protect himself. He didn't feel too good about it after, but that certainly didn't stop him from doing what he needed to do to cover it up (i.e., make Lana clean it up). And of course, he directed whatever frustration he might have felt onto Jake Marshall; it was all his fault, after all. But I think that by the end, on some level he was starting to realize that he couldn't really justify himself as having acted for the greater good; he recognized, even if it was subconsciously, that he was just protecting himself, and I don't think that made him feel too good. I still don't think he felt guilty, but he might have felt uneasy, having lost some of his previously ironclad certainty that he was right, and that his rightness justified whatever unlawful or immoral action he might take.
One more thing on the subject of good and evil: Gant loves good people. He loves to see good people doing good things, and doing them well. When he was finally defeated by Wright and Edgeworth, he was happy. He laughed and clapped his hands and was cheerful and congratulatory. They were on the side of good, after all, and they'd won -- through cleverness, through teamwork, through thorough understanding of the law. Much as it infuriated him to be cornered and exposed, he had to respect a victory like that.* It's for this same reason that he's so fond of Dean.
Riku pointed out that in between the laughing and congratulations, Gant also takes some time to needle Edgeworth, saying something along the lines of, 'you're just like me... you'll do what's needed'. And then went back to smiling and commenting on what a good team Miles and Phoenix make. Which I guess just goes to show that Gant can be a sadistic little bastard.
On Dean, Fear, and the Soul
Right from the start, Gant liked Dean. Their first meeting was in the Mess Hall during mistletoe season; Gant had something he could see Dean wanted, and he was curious to see if such an obviously proud, attractive (and seemingly heterosexual) young man would brave the mistletoe and having to kiss an obnoxious old man to get it. The fact that he did was a big point in Dean's favor; the fact that Dean was so tsuntsun about it (encouraging and pushing away at the same time) delighted him further. He found he could easily get under Dean's skin, and he enjoyed provoking and teasing him, because Dean's reactions were so entertaining, and yet Dean always fought back, even when he was clearly enjoying himself. Gant finds that sort of relationship endlessly entertaining.
Not only that, but Dean also struck him as a good person, putting himself in danger to fight evil and protect innocents, and as mentioned above, Gant loves good people who do their jobs well.
Then, during the Heroes weekend a few weeks later, Gant got more than he bargained for. Using his temporary power to read minds, Gant got way too good a look inside Dean's mind, including the forty years Dean spent in Hell. This had two effects. One, it further proved to Gant that Dean was a good person: the fact that Dean had survived Hell with his sanity intact, the fact that Dean felt so much regret and guilt for the horrible things he did in Hell, the fact that he wanted to desperately to make up for his actions, just made Gant like and respect Dean even more. Gant felt more affectionate toward Dean after that, knowing how much Dean had suffered (and knowing exactly how much horror and pain had been inflicted on him). Gant's not a hugely empathetic person, but getting a first-hand view of forty years in Hell softens a man a bit.
The second effect was that it showed Gant that Hell is real and bad people go there. It put the fear of eternal damnation in him; it's one thing to hear about Hell, it's another to see and feel it for oneself, even filtered through someone else's brain. Gant may be a murderer and he may not feel guilt for the lives he ruined, but he's nothing if not self-interested and he DOES NOT WANT to suffer like Dean suffered. The idea makes him feel scared and sick; he's not getting any younger, after all. So now he's been thinking more about whether he really did the right thing or not. He feels like he did; he's pretty sure he did; but he has doubts now. He didn't have doubts before. They make him feel all oogie.
On Near, Camp, and the Future
Then there's Near. Like Dean, Near amused Gant at first, though for different reasons. He's such a strange young man, so incredibly smart and yet also incredibly naive; he claims to be the world's greatest detective and yet he doesn't even seem to know how to take care of himself. Gant's first thoughts were of how he could use Near; someone so intelligent and yet so emotionally vulnerable could be a valuable tool indeed. So he was very friendly with Near, very affectionate, and his plan seemed to work a little too well, when Near developed an inconvenient crush on him. Inconvenient because Dean (whom Gant also wanted to stay close to) found it distasteful, because Near was becoming more difficult to control, and because for all his vices, Gant is not a pedophile, and though Near may be legally an adult, he still looked and acted too much like a child. So Gant essentially told him to grow up and try again later.
He continued to keep Near at a friendly, but respectable, distance for some time; what caused things to change for him was when Near aged up to 21 and sought him out. This Near was older, more mature, and quite physically attractive to Gant, and made Gant consider seriously the idea that maybe Near could be a real prospect, that his attentions could be enjoyed instead of merely politely deflected. The idea that the Near he knew would grow up into this new Near appealed to him greatly.
And after Near returned to normal, Gant did note changes in his behavior; Near honestly seemed to be trying to be more mature, more responsible, less childish. Gant was pleased, and allowed Near to get closer to him than he had before. Then Near did something that cemented Gant's interest: he offered Gant a way out. He offered Gant the opportunity to come home with him, after Camp; to start over, instead of facing nothing but prison time and probable execution. Even if Gant had had no intention of allowing their relationship to be anything but platonic, from that time forward he would have done quite a lot to stay in Near's good graces; fortunately for him, doing that was both easy and enjoyable. Things seemed to be going pretty well for him.
Then he got outed. And predictably, Dean was furious and wanted nothing to do with him, which saddened Gant, but didn't really surprise him. Near, on the other hand, was relatively unfazed. He wasn't happy to learn of Gant's past, but nor was it a deal-breaker; they were both using each other, after all, and they were both benefitting from it, and they both enjoyed one another's company, so why not continue? After this point, Gant and Near's relationship changed somewhat; the balance of power had shifted more towards the middle. Near might be younger and frailer and more naive, but he had power over Gant, and Gant knew it.
But for the most part, he's okay with it. To most people, Camp seems a prison, but to him, it's a paradise. Beats the hell out of prison, anyway. And knowing that he has a way out makes it even better. Though he was power-hungry and ruthless before, he's a bit more relaxed now; he's content just to enjoy himself. He doesn't have to rule.
Concluding Remarks
I've been criticized for playing Gant too sexual, and I think in some ways that criticism is valid. I think that I let him get away with things he shouldn't have, under the no-sex rule, and I intent to be more mindful of that in the future. And I don't intend for sexuality to be a huge part of his character; however, when he threads frequently with people he's sexually interested in (Dean, Near) and people who flirt with him (Cuthbert, Poison Ivy), it's going to come up. If that bothers you because you think it's out of character, then please, talk to me about it; if it bothers you because you don't like the idea of this old man having a sex life (and I'm sure plenty of people do find that unpalatable) then you're under no obligation to read those threads. I'm sure his relationship with Near is particularly squicky to some; I completely understand, and it's certainly not my intention to upset anyone.
I've also been criticized for trying to 'redeem' Gant, and I have to object solidly to this criticism. I'm not trying to do anything with Gant. As with all the characters I play, I brought Gant into Camp with no preconceived notions or ideas about how he would develop or what he would do here; Camp is a wonderfully chaotic place, and I just wanted to see where things would go. Escaping prison and execution, becoming close with Dean, becoming a pseudo-father figure for Near, being forced to reexamine his past crimes and, in particular, getting an up-close and personal look at Hell have all had an effect on him. If things had happened differently, he might have developed completely differently, and that would have been okay too. Gant has developed as most characters in Camp have, influenced by the events and people around them. I'm not going to apologize for that.
And believe me, it would take a lot more than what's happened here to 'redeem' Gant; he's still a self-interested, egotistical jerk, and he still doesn't feel more than trace amounts of guilt for what he did; he regrets that people he was fond of had to die, he regrets that he didn't cover his tracks better, he regrets that he was found out, and he certainly regrets that he might go to Hell for what he did, but he's not about to renounce Satan and throw himself upon the mercy of Heaven -- not with a pure heart, anyway.
If you feel like discussing any of this, or you have further questions or concerns, I'd love to hear from you! My critpost is here (comments screened, anon commenting on), or you can comment here. ♥
Bear in mind that this is all my interpretation / headcanon. Your mileage may vary, and I certainly don't expect this to be taken as gospel. This is just my way of explaining my understanding of Gant, where he is right now as a character, and how he got there.
On Good, Evil, and Justice
That's a nice, crunchy topic for us to start on. Gant believes in America justice. He became a police officer, some forty-odd years ago, because he wanted to uphold the law, capture criminals, and protect innocents. I think that back when he was a young man, he wouldn't have even considered murdering an innocent to make sure a criminal was convicted. But over time, he became corrupted. He still believed that he was a force for good, and criminals were a force for evil, and so he believed that whatever he did, as long as it was helping him catch criminals, was also good. So murdering Neil Marshall, framing Joe Darke so he would be convicted, framing Ema Skye so he could blackmail her sister and control the Proescutor's Office, ruining Angel Starr and Jake Marshall's careers, all of that was okay, because it was for the greater good. After all, who better to run the justice department than Gant himself? There was no one he trusted more. And if what he did was illegal, or morally wrong, well, better he get his hands dirty doing it than some other innocent soul, right?
So that's how it was for the two years between Marshall's murder and Goodman's; Gant may have felt a bit sad that Neil had to die, and no doubt his relationship with Lana suffered (he was fond of both of them, as he was of the detectives under him; that fondness didn't stop him from screwing them over, but it was there nonetheless), but it was a small price to pay for all the good he was accomplishing as Police Chief and as the puppet master behind the Prosecutor's Office. He certainly never felt guilty.
Then the Goodman murder happened. By his own admission, Gant was panicked; he certainly was sloppy and careless enough. Unlike the Marshall murder, which directly accomplished good (as Gant saw it), this murder was purely self-interest. Gant was trying to cover his ass and protect himself. He didn't feel too good about it after, but that certainly didn't stop him from doing what he needed to do to cover it up (i.e., make Lana clean it up). And of course, he directed whatever frustration he might have felt onto Jake Marshall; it was all his fault, after all. But I think that by the end, on some level he was starting to realize that he couldn't really justify himself as having acted for the greater good; he recognized, even if it was subconsciously, that he was just protecting himself, and I don't think that made him feel too good. I still don't think he felt guilty, but he might have felt uneasy, having lost some of his previously ironclad certainty that he was right, and that his rightness justified whatever unlawful or immoral action he might take.
One more thing on the subject of good and evil: Gant loves good people. He loves to see good people doing good things, and doing them well. When he was finally defeated by Wright and Edgeworth, he was happy. He laughed and clapped his hands and was cheerful and congratulatory. They were on the side of good, after all, and they'd won -- through cleverness, through teamwork, through thorough understanding of the law. Much as it infuriated him to be cornered and exposed, he had to respect a victory like that.* It's for this same reason that he's so fond of Dean.
Riku pointed out that in between the laughing and congratulations, Gant also takes some time to needle Edgeworth, saying something along the lines of, 'you're just like me... you'll do what's needed'. And then went back to smiling and commenting on what a good team Miles and Phoenix make. Which I guess just goes to show that Gant can be a sadistic little bastard.
On Dean, Fear, and the Soul
Right from the start, Gant liked Dean. Their first meeting was in the Mess Hall during mistletoe season; Gant had something he could see Dean wanted, and he was curious to see if such an obviously proud, attractive (and seemingly heterosexual) young man would brave the mistletoe and having to kiss an obnoxious old man to get it. The fact that he did was a big point in Dean's favor; the fact that Dean was so tsuntsun about it (encouraging and pushing away at the same time) delighted him further. He found he could easily get under Dean's skin, and he enjoyed provoking and teasing him, because Dean's reactions were so entertaining, and yet Dean always fought back, even when he was clearly enjoying himself. Gant finds that sort of relationship endlessly entertaining.
Not only that, but Dean also struck him as a good person, putting himself in danger to fight evil and protect innocents, and as mentioned above, Gant loves good people who do their jobs well.
Then, during the Heroes weekend a few weeks later, Gant got more than he bargained for. Using his temporary power to read minds, Gant got way too good a look inside Dean's mind, including the forty years Dean spent in Hell. This had two effects. One, it further proved to Gant that Dean was a good person: the fact that Dean had survived Hell with his sanity intact, the fact that Dean felt so much regret and guilt for the horrible things he did in Hell, the fact that he wanted to desperately to make up for his actions, just made Gant like and respect Dean even more. Gant felt more affectionate toward Dean after that, knowing how much Dean had suffered (and knowing exactly how much horror and pain had been inflicted on him). Gant's not a hugely empathetic person, but getting a first-hand view of forty years in Hell softens a man a bit.
The second effect was that it showed Gant that Hell is real and bad people go there. It put the fear of eternal damnation in him; it's one thing to hear about Hell, it's another to see and feel it for oneself, even filtered through someone else's brain. Gant may be a murderer and he may not feel guilt for the lives he ruined, but he's nothing if not self-interested and he DOES NOT WANT to suffer like Dean suffered. The idea makes him feel scared and sick; he's not getting any younger, after all. So now he's been thinking more about whether he really did the right thing or not. He feels like he did; he's pretty sure he did; but he has doubts now. He didn't have doubts before. They make him feel all oogie.
On Near, Camp, and the Future
Then there's Near. Like Dean, Near amused Gant at first, though for different reasons. He's such a strange young man, so incredibly smart and yet also incredibly naive; he claims to be the world's greatest detective and yet he doesn't even seem to know how to take care of himself. Gant's first thoughts were of how he could use Near; someone so intelligent and yet so emotionally vulnerable could be a valuable tool indeed. So he was very friendly with Near, very affectionate, and his plan seemed to work a little too well, when Near developed an inconvenient crush on him. Inconvenient because Dean (whom Gant also wanted to stay close to) found it distasteful, because Near was becoming more difficult to control, and because for all his vices, Gant is not a pedophile, and though Near may be legally an adult, he still looked and acted too much like a child. So Gant essentially told him to grow up and try again later.
He continued to keep Near at a friendly, but respectable, distance for some time; what caused things to change for him was when Near aged up to 21 and sought him out. This Near was older, more mature, and quite physically attractive to Gant, and made Gant consider seriously the idea that maybe Near could be a real prospect, that his attentions could be enjoyed instead of merely politely deflected. The idea that the Near he knew would grow up into this new Near appealed to him greatly.
And after Near returned to normal, Gant did note changes in his behavior; Near honestly seemed to be trying to be more mature, more responsible, less childish. Gant was pleased, and allowed Near to get closer to him than he had before. Then Near did something that cemented Gant's interest: he offered Gant a way out. He offered Gant the opportunity to come home with him, after Camp; to start over, instead of facing nothing but prison time and probable execution. Even if Gant had had no intention of allowing their relationship to be anything but platonic, from that time forward he would have done quite a lot to stay in Near's good graces; fortunately for him, doing that was both easy and enjoyable. Things seemed to be going pretty well for him.
Then he got outed. And predictably, Dean was furious and wanted nothing to do with him, which saddened Gant, but didn't really surprise him. Near, on the other hand, was relatively unfazed. He wasn't happy to learn of Gant's past, but nor was it a deal-breaker; they were both using each other, after all, and they were both benefitting from it, and they both enjoyed one another's company, so why not continue? After this point, Gant and Near's relationship changed somewhat; the balance of power had shifted more towards the middle. Near might be younger and frailer and more naive, but he had power over Gant, and Gant knew it.
But for the most part, he's okay with it. To most people, Camp seems a prison, but to him, it's a paradise. Beats the hell out of prison, anyway. And knowing that he has a way out makes it even better. Though he was power-hungry and ruthless before, he's a bit more relaxed now; he's content just to enjoy himself. He doesn't have to rule.
Concluding Remarks
I've been criticized for playing Gant too sexual, and I think in some ways that criticism is valid. I think that I let him get away with things he shouldn't have, under the no-sex rule, and I intent to be more mindful of that in the future. And I don't intend for sexuality to be a huge part of his character; however, when he threads frequently with people he's sexually interested in (Dean, Near) and people who flirt with him (Cuthbert, Poison Ivy), it's going to come up. If that bothers you because you think it's out of character, then please, talk to me about it; if it bothers you because you don't like the idea of this old man having a sex life (and I'm sure plenty of people do find that unpalatable) then you're under no obligation to read those threads. I'm sure his relationship with Near is particularly squicky to some; I completely understand, and it's certainly not my intention to upset anyone.
I've also been criticized for trying to 'redeem' Gant, and I have to object solidly to this criticism. I'm not trying to do anything with Gant. As with all the characters I play, I brought Gant into Camp with no preconceived notions or ideas about how he would develop or what he would do here; Camp is a wonderfully chaotic place, and I just wanted to see where things would go. Escaping prison and execution, becoming close with Dean, becoming a pseudo-father figure for Near, being forced to reexamine his past crimes and, in particular, getting an up-close and personal look at Hell have all had an effect on him. If things had happened differently, he might have developed completely differently, and that would have been okay too. Gant has developed as most characters in Camp have, influenced by the events and people around them. I'm not going to apologize for that.
And believe me, it would take a lot more than what's happened here to 'redeem' Gant; he's still a self-interested, egotistical jerk, and he still doesn't feel more than trace amounts of guilt for what he did; he regrets that people he was fond of had to die, he regrets that he didn't cover his tracks better, he regrets that he was found out, and he certainly regrets that he might go to Hell for what he did, but he's not about to renounce Satan and throw himself upon the mercy of Heaven -- not with a pure heart, anyway.
If you feel like discussing any of this, or you have further questions or concerns, I'd love to hear from you! My critpost is here (comments screened, anon commenting on), or you can comment here. ♥