Yay! So glad to see this is actually happening. One caveat: I must unfortunately confess that neither Jowy nor Luca is precisely my cup of tea, though I don't have any especial dislike for them. I obviously think this is awesome regardless, but... in the interest of full disclosure, I suppose?
I think my favorite thing about this (and no doubt the reason you need tens of thousands of words) is the care you take to make Jowy's transformation a process. In the game (where we admittedly didn't get to spend much time with him), I always felt like the sweet dorky boy -> ruthless Machiavellian transition was waaay too abrupt, so what you're writing here is basically exactly what I wanted to see. Also, the focus on knowing how to read people: it's something Luca ignores as completely beneath his notice in every way, and for Riou it's an innate gift, but for Jowy it's something he can see the value in but which he has to actively work at, and that's great. (An awesome, awesome complement to Luca's "power is VIOLENCE," which comes across as both a challenge and a weakness.)
I love everybody in the Highland camp, probably especially Kiba (the idea that Luca hesitates to press him too far is intriguing and something I hadn't considered), and I can't wait for Leon and Jillia and Lucia to show up. All in all, this is a really ambitious undertaking that's paying off awesomely and tackling a part of the story we (understandably) didn't really get to see. Looking forward to part 2!
I'm really pleased that you're reading -- and enjoying -- this despite neither of the central characters being favorites. It's one of the best writercompliments I can get, because hey, something about this crazy thing must be engaging. :D (Mith's never been big on them, either, and I admit that I do a little dance of triumph when I show her bits of this thing and she gets hooked.)
And I have so many thoughts about Jowy's arc over the course of the game and what exactly is going on inside his head, because he is my precious baby in II, but I will spare you the tl;dr because most of what I think his journey was is chronicled in this fic, anyway. Suffice to say that listening to Luca Blight is a really bad idea, dude, no matter how much you're telling yourself that you aren't. The reading-people thing is something I'm having fun playing with, too, especially as it pertains to leadership; Riou's skill at that is why he's a good commander, whereas Luca gets by on raw strength and charisma. And Jowy doesn't quite have enough of either.
Writing the Highland cast is so much fun, and I'm pretty sure Leon shows up in the next installment of this (depending on where I put the chapter break). Jillia might not pop up until the third chapter or so, but I'm having a lot of fun win her. Thanks so much for checking this out!
I think my favorite thing about this (and no doubt the reason you need tens of thousands of words) is the care you take to make Jowy's transformation a process. In the game (where we admittedly didn't get to spend much time with him), I always felt like the sweet dorky boy -> ruthless Machiavellian transition was waaay too abrupt, so what you're writing here is basically exactly what I wanted to see. Also, the focus on knowing how to read people: it's something Luca ignores as completely beneath his notice in every way, and for Riou it's an innate gift, but for Jowy it's something he can see the value in but which he has to actively work at, and that's great. (An awesome, awesome complement to Luca's "power is VIOLENCE," which comes across as both a challenge and a weakness.)
I love everybody in the Highland camp, probably especially Kiba (the idea that Luca hesitates to press him too far is intriguing and something I hadn't considered), and I can't wait for Leon and Jillia and Lucia to show up. All in all, this is a really ambitious undertaking that's paying off awesomely and tackling a part of the story we (understandably) didn't really get to see. Looking forward to part 2!
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And I have so many thoughts about Jowy's arc over the course of the game and what exactly is going on inside his head, because he is my precious baby in II, but I will spare you the tl;dr because most of what I think his journey was is chronicled in this fic, anyway. Suffice to say that listening to Luca Blight is a really bad idea, dude, no matter how much you're telling yourself that you aren't. The reading-people thing is something I'm having fun playing with, too, especially as it pertains to leadership; Riou's skill at that is why he's a good commander, whereas Luca gets by on raw strength and charisma. And Jowy doesn't quite have enough of either.
Writing the Highland cast is so much fun, and I'm pretty sure Leon shows up in the next installment of this (depending on where I put the chapter break). Jillia might not pop up until the third chapter or so, but I'm having a lot of fun win her. Thanks so much for checking this out!
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