FE: a Begnion-centric entry.

[myaru]

Fire Emblem has had the weird effect of making me fangirl through fic instead of journal entries. That might have always been the case - that when I love something I wax creative - and it's just been too long since I've been fanatic about a game or anime, I don't know. Suikoden made me go analytical sort of, and we know what happened with Xenogears, so maybe not.

This is here so I can point to it if/when people have questions about my reasoning. I claim no revolutionary new ideas. In fact, this has probably been hashed out by others. :D


1: Begnion, ruled by matrilineal descent
The definition is here, and I don't think there's much to argue about on this point. The implication in the timeline is that the Apostles are all female (the Japanese seems not to be gender-specific, so I guess this could be worked with?), and we know every ruler since the establishment of the empire was from that line.

The point: it doesn't matter who an Apostle might marry once Daein and Crimea pop up. Not that Begnion seems to acknowledge them enough to consider political marriage, but if they did, I see lesser children (i.e. not Apostles) being pawned off for such arrangements. The Apostle's only familial duty would be to provide her successor, and since the ability to hear Ashera is passed on through the female half of the line, the male part frankly wouldn't matter as much.

So hey, I wonder what would happen if all the female members of the family were killed off but there were a few male relatives left to carry on the line? Maybe I'm being too specific here - maybe it's just the first-born of a generation in general that manifests the talent. I don't actually recall anything that says the talent only passes to first-born.

Maybe Sanaki has some male relatives hanging around somewhere. If you want to talk about inbreeding, please, let's go there. I don't get you, FE fandom.

2: The senate vs. the throne
There's a story on FF.Net asking why it seems two kingdoms were founded. (Haven't read it yet, but I will! Eventually.) I think the simplest answer is best, and it's the one I keep in mind - Altina founded the country, but later the senate transformed it into a theocracy and sat the Apostle on the throne. All power is given to the senate in that entry of the timeline. The Apostle seems to have ceremonial and popular significance, but all practical/effective power seems to go to her so-called subordinates. It doesn't seem to have ever been different.

Sephiran was probably trying to change that and failing. It's notable that Elincia doesn't actually get much help from Begnion until he returns and smacks the senate around, and Sanaki clearly has to work around her own government to get anything useful done. Her authority only extends as far as her personal presence, and she was probably always one step away from a knife in the back. It's interesting Sephiran's existence alone was enough to protect her from that, and they didn't try to off her while he was gone. I'd speculate he was in league with the senate, except that a) Lekain had no clue what was going on in the Tower, and b) Sephiran seemed genuinely interested in toppling the them in her favor. It wasn't just something he did to cause chaos, which was my original assumption.

Look at that. What a sweet - not to mention practically effective! - declaration of love~~~~! With that in mind, I've dramatized the balance of power way too much. What I should really say is: what balance of power?

How Sephiran managed to gain power in canon is a big frigging mystery to me. There's no logical explanation for it.

Why isn't Sanaki more paranoid? She really should be.

Comments

[measuringlife.livejournal.com]

I've always wondered about the connection of Sephiran and the senate as well. I don't think he'd ever really be on their side, maybe a manipulation here and there for the greater good, but then it was Lekain that started the Serenes Massacre which caused Sephiran to go batshit in the first place.

I don't know if Sephiran knew instinctively that Lekain & co did it, or if he ever had his suspicions, but it always seemed to me he was conditioning and protecting Sanaki. After all, she was pro-Laguz which was obviously Sephiran's doing.

obviously he took a cue from Naesala and slept his way to the top? I'm thinking Sephiran did it by being very charismatic and easily underestimated. Just like the first time you see him he seems a 'simple bishop'? Yeah. He hung around the right places, hired Naesala and Volke for the proper blackmailing learned the culture and 'did as the Romans did' so to speak.

A good thing he chose Begion and not Daein. I can't see a Sephiran spouting about killing subhuman scum.

I think she's too sheltered to be paranoid. I think Sephiran and Sigrun (+Tanith) have probably kept her sheltered enough. Plus, that girl's got an iron set of balls. She'd probably simply be pissed that someone dare make an attempt on her life and want to take out the unlucky bastard herself.

[myaru.livejournal.com]

I want to think he did know about Lekain, but then I remember that he didn't actually pop up as a power in Begnion for several years. He did a little bit before Sanaki would have been born though (I... think? where am I getting that). But the question is, who else would he suspect, really? Is/was he innocent enough to assume the rumor started on its own, that nobody was really after Misaha or the herons? I was under the impression that he knew she'd be in trouble if she revealed her brand.

It would be really nice to see those flashback scenes. Ike's is floating around on YouTube, but I couldn't find Sephiran's last scene.

Since he was conditioning Sanaki, it makes you wonder if he expected to win. He might have had other plans for her in the event that Ashera's judgement passed (I can't see him letting her be judged, honestly, and her tolerance might have saved her); I wonder, though, if maybe he doubted the success of his plan, and groomed her to be the kind of empress he thought should rule Begnion just in case. I kind of like the idea that he knew his plan was doomed from the start, though. He seemed rather resigned to it in the endgame.

... Volke. XD HE'S EVERYWHERE. Volke/Naesala otp? god no

Hahaha... ha, so I wonder if maybe Sephiran could have slept his way to the top? He's pretty enough~ Oliver would take him up on it! :D :D :D *bricked*

Okay, so, my view of Sephiran's disguise is a little bit skewed because I already knew who he was. Because of that, he seemed a little too... verbose? Eloquent? Am I fangirling? Uh. Um, I was going somewhere with that. Sigrun says something about Sephiran being from a long line of powerful magic users in RD when Sanaki is worrying about him. Begnion is so mired in culture it would be impossible for him to rise in rank if he didn't come from a noble family in the country - that's the impression I get from PoR. So somehow he sidestepped into the family history of Persis - and I'll just assume the house is named as the province is, because that makes sense.

If he and Zelgius went to Persis (for some reason or other, who knows why) and ingratiated themselves with important families a while before Sanaki's ascension, it's possible they could have entered politics as members of those families that had just been overlooked, or maybe adopted. There's precedent in Chinese history for families to adopt boys (usually by marriage) and give them the surname. This isn't China, but--?

I'm sorry, I HAVE to figure this out. IT'S DRIVING ME CRAZY.

[measuringlife.livejournal.com]

Well, from my understanding -- Sephiran was AROUND during that time, but it wasn't until the Serenes Massacre that he decided everyone needed to die. Before then he was working for peace and Laguz and human relations. When all his friends and relatives got torched, he went OK NOW JUDGEMENT FOR ALL. So I think he already had his doomplan on when it came to Sanaki but it seems he was... more fond of her? Like, he failed utterly at evil plans because he loved and trusted those around him too much (Namely Sanaki and Zelgius)

Actually, my pet theory comes from the Nightrunner series. In there, Seregil takes on a boy who lost his family and was jailed together with him and proclaims that he is 'Sir Alec of Ivywell" a prestigious but failing manor at the far outreaches of Mycena. And of course, Ivywell does not exactly exist but it was made to be plausible enough to give him peerage but boring enough for them not question it.

I think Sephiran's would've gone similarly, a few revisions, perhaps a failing area with a lot of prestige but not much else...some jedi mind tricks.. sleeping with the ones who question more, making Sanaki kill the rest... Sephiran has a whole bag of tricks (and very pretty hair)

I ACTUALLY WROTE THAT. Over at the kinkmeme! It was fun. Naesala is such a slut, he's pairable with everyone but Ike and Soren, I swear.

and for P.S. AHAHHA SO TRUE. Some of them (namely Reyson) might've very well bedded two kings! If anything, the Herons have good taste.

[myaru.livejournal.com]

I think what's making me wonder is this:

Haar: We never spent much time together when I was in Begnion. But, Sephiran... I think I know you pretty well.
Sephiran: I haven't forgotten you, Haar. Shiharam's hotshot young protege. You were both exemplary soldiers. Your defection from the Begnion dracoknights was a huge loss.
Haar: Hmmm... Sort of like the huge loss when the senators managed to defeat all those great changes you proposed?
Sephiran: ...
Haar: I suppose if any of those changes had happened, we wouldn't be here now. Am I wrong?
Sephiran: An interesting question... I'm honestly not sure, but that's all I can say about that.
Haar: Too bad. For you, and for me.

Something was making me think Sephiran was actually involved in politics before Sanaki was born, and I think this battle conversation is it. I don't know when Haar defected, though. If it was the same time as Shiharam, that leaves six years where Sephiran was just hanging around. And there's this big hole in the time between Micaiah and Sanaki in which Misaha is dead and we don't know about her daughter. I speculated - IN JEST - that maybe Sephiran provided a new heir when he couldn't find Micaiah, but that idea kind of scares me, and not because of my OTP. Since we're talking about skanky herons, though...

So, Sanaki softened his heart? :D HOW COULD SHE NOT. Life would be full of endearing moments like this:

Lekain: *exposits endlessly*
Sanaki: Lekain, shut up! I have something to say.
Lekain ....

That's a good idea about his background, and so much simpler than mine is. Persis is way out there, and borders some impassible mountain range, so maybe you're right. I bet he could pull that off. And seriously, who would ask? All he'd have to do is smile and proposition and oh that hair~~ (Lehran will do ANYTHING for his goddess.)

... yeah, you know. I have to go read that now.

I wonder if Reyson could snag a lion? Probably. I don't know if he could handle that, though. The logistics are a bit off.

Hahahahaha, also, regarding your first reply: Sanaki has balls of steel, you're so right. That's so going to backfire on Lehran someday.

P.S.

[myaru.livejournal.com]

Herons are skanks. It's a pet theory of mine. Just look at how EVERY ONE OF THEM is bedding a monarch, come on. It's so obvious. Lehran has a history, too.