#“ahh yes let us explore this character's kink potential”

[sauriansolutions]

Me: my kink blog needs more kink content... I'm going to write burpcanons for my favorite characters!

Also me: oops I accidentally just wrote an entire character analysis essay about Jade ;;

Yeah uhh... idk why I'm like this? I'll try again another time... but if anyone wants to read my way too intense whoopsie attempt, imma throw it here~!

my main jade headcanon is that jade's excessive politeness is just a mask to hide his more twisted core (see what i did?) 

But i can also imagine a jade who genuinely values social etiquette. Maybe it's an anxious/ASD insistency on "rules"--he learns an effective rule, (ie, burping in public is *always* rude), and unless he has legitimate cause to update (say, he learns burping is considered a compliment in the Scalding Sands), he'll continue to follow this rule rigidly forever. 

This would generally work well for jade. But it might make him seem unapproachable in a different way (*too* polite! Suspicious! Is he a robot? What's his deal?)

The other problem is, such a system could easily lead to jade holding himself to an unrealistic standard. If he ever did slip up, (letting out a loud burp in public by accident,) i could see this leading to excessive embarrassment and self-recrimination.

I can imagine a child version of jade coming to the realization that his predatory nature scares others away, realizing that he needs to find *some* way of appearing more approachable, if he ever wants to "fit in" and make any friends besides floyd and azul. Even among the trio members, i think jade is legitimately the scariest--he's as smart as azul, as strong as floyd, and he also lacks their innate social skills (potentially toeing the ASD/psychopath line).

A really cute, kinda sad idea: what if little jade asked his grandma tried to teach him "proper etiquette?" And she does... but, because she's from a totally different generation of merfolk, it's rather antiquated? 

Jade's parents and teachers make things worse by encouraging this... because, c'mon, a ten year old politely bowing and saying things like, "my goodness, please excuse me!"... is actually really adorable. 

This leads to jade developing a persona that's very respectable and charming. 

Yet he'd still come off pretty eccentric, and he'd have an especially hard time relating to other kids his age. While mer kids would just find his behavior and speech patterns stuffy and outdated, on land he'd definitely come off as the most "foreign" of the octotrio, as the high-class manners he learned are specific to an older generation, *of the northern coral sea.*

Unfortunately, i think azul would also strongly encourage jade's overly-polite personality change... but this is because azul sees how uncanny and frankly terrifying *this* jade would be as a business associate. 

This isn't to say i think azul would intentionally sabotage his friend! Rather, i think azul a.) Respects jade to the extent i doubt he'd believe himself capable of manipulating him, and b.) Wants to be like that himself--outwardly perfectly polite and respectable, secretly capable of being as cold and ruthless as necessary. 

I think this whole, "being envious of a character trait the other believes is a serious flaw" component of jade and azul's relationship has tons of angst/introspection potential, whether used as a kink thing or not. 

Kink example: jade accidentally burps during some meeting or social event. He excessively over-apologizes, and smoothly directs the conversation on. Everyone, especially azul, comes away with a higher opinion of jade--"oh jade is so courteous~ wow, even when he makes a (totally reasonable) mistake, he goes so far out of his way to apologize, what a gentleman~~"

What they don't see, is jade secretly reprimanding and hating himself. Endlessly agonizing, recommitting to a standard of absolute, inhuman perfection that is 1000% fear and shame driven. Believing that anything less will make others hate him, (even more than they probably already do!)

Meanwhile azul is like, "i wish i could commit to *that* level of self-destruction! I'll just have to try harder~"

One last thing re: jade/azul's messed-up dynamics, then I'll move onto jade/floyd. I think, tragically, that jade and azul secretly idealize each other--hyperfixating on their strengths and successes, and minimizing/completely overlooking their flaws and failures. But, because they're snarky bitches to each other to hide their vulnerabilities, they both believe the other holds them in disdain and contempt, when in fact, the opposite is true. 

And because they're both intelligent, driven, hardworking, and self-sacrificing, jade and azul have not only accidentally grown to become each other's perfect enablers--they've tricked themselves into believing that they like this arrangement. 

Floyd time!

Regardless of whether they had to eat their siblings to survive or not, i hc that jade always took on the role of the "parentified" twin. Now, floyd is a prodigy in many ways: strong, stubborn, and dangerously creative... but i think he's only able to be this way because jade was there to be the anchor twin. Unlike floyd, jade can be relied upon to be unflinchingly stoic. Jade's always (needed to be) the one who can make the hard decisions. To do what needs to be done, without crying or complaining. And, no matter the toll on his body or soul, move on to the next thing, seemingly unaffected. 

The Leech twins are, especially in life-or-death situations, actually highly complimentary and really effective together, in these roles. That said, the twins' dynamic, especially in "normal" situations like making friends and going to school--could easily veer into toxic codependency. 

And since jade is the anchor, i think floyd was probably really, really upset when jade first started developing his polite personality. 

Initially, jade's attempts at becoming this "new" jade probably led to a lot of pushback from floyd. And I'm talking fighting, pleading, complaining, full-on tantrums, tearful threats of abandonment, and basically anything and everything floyd could think of (and he is Dangerously Creative), to get jade to go back to behaving like he did before.

But a combination of jade's stoicism, stubbornness, and refusal to back down from his decision in any way eventually led to floyd more or less accepting that jade is going to do what jade is going to do. 

There was also comfort in the realization that, no matter the outward facade, jade was still jade

#absolutely failed attempt at uhh what i intended #know what i don't even want to dignify this with real tags #no for real why am i like this #“ahh yes let us explore this character's kink potential” #but first let's completely psychoanalyze him #JC tries to do a writing exercise