STOP!
This page contains massive spoilers for WADtD. You really shouldn't read this unless you've finished the story. ^.^;
Anyway, it's just my thoughts and comments on the fic. AKA- babbling you can read if you're realllly bored or curious about some things. ^_^;; I'm writing this to get my own thoughts straight, and because I spent so much time on this story it's ridiculous. @_@
Before this fic, I'd done some dabbling in the WK fandom after reading Mami's stories. I was curious about what could be done with the characters because- let's face it -the anime wasn't all that great. My true fandom is Gundam Wing, but I wanted to try my hand at something different. I'd done a few one-shots, but I wanted to really try something new with WK. I've done arcs and multiparts for GW, so I thought I should give it a try with WK.
Mind you, WADtD was only supposed to be a few chapters long. x__x;;;
I wrote Farfarello's part in chapter one with the idea of making a Vampire fic about him because of all the little possibilities I saw there. Pale skin, a near-obsession with blood and violence, and his loathing of the church. I showed it to Mami and she encouraged it; however, I was working on a GW fic at the time, and having a hard time writing Farfarello. I just wasn't used to him. So I pushed it aside and didn't touch it for almost half a year. When I finally picked it up again, I did what I usually do: I just started writing and hoped my muses would toss me some ideas every once in awhile. x_X Most of my fics have very little thought put into them-- multiparts especially. Doesn't make any sense, I know, but I'm a lazy writer. *sweatdrop* That's why some things may seem disjointed, or some things are too hasty or left hanging. Gomen. ^^;;
WK is Mami's realm, not mine, so when I posted the first chapter and then the next couple, I was in no way prepared for the positive response I got from random readers. Talk about flattered. XD Arigato, minna! If so many people hadn't taken such an interest in it, I would have pushed the fic aside long ago and possibly never touched it again, because it was a real pain in the ass. (Vermilion is proving to be even more of a headache, actually. -_- Somebody shoot me.)
The Characters
A writer cannot help but fall in love with the characters he or she writes, whether they be OC's or fandom. I quickly fell under the spell of these WK boys- Schwarz most especially (probably because I was already hooked on them from Mami's fics). I began to understand Farfarello, and he became eerily easy to write-- though I suppose he's somewhat OOC. Still, everyone perceives the characters in their own way, I suppose. ^.^
I'd always been kind of fond of Ken, but this fic cinched it. He's just so easy to write. He's just an ordinary young man as far as emotions and thought process go. He was there to blast obscenities when no one else would, point out the stupidity of an action the others might be too afraid to mention, or reach out and try to save the one man everyone had given up as a lost cause. He was the only character I felt like I had kept fairly IC. But then, I never watched the entire WK series, what do I know? =p
I know I made Ran at least a little OOC. @_@ I hope it didn't bother anyone too much. From what I saw of the anime, he wasn't nearly so quick-tempered. But then, he wasn't putting up with the shit I put him through in WADtD. *insert evil cackle* Vampires, betrayal, and the constant presense of the four men he hates so much was sure to put a strain on him. In the back of his mind, he was ready to just give up and die at times during the fic. He was just so tired of it all-- but he's not the kind of person to lay down and die. Thus, his ferocious temper. ^^;
One or two people mentioned that I made Crawford OOC, but when I heard their reasons, I felt like rolling my eyes. True, I probably have no idea what I'm talking about, but hey, this is my opinion. -_- They were expecting a severe, solemn man who never cracked a smile or a joke, and was bastard material. OK, I know I saw him smirk at some points during the series, and in the manga he made several smartass comments to Schuldich, goading him into fights. To me he just seems like an arrogant but intelligent man who can't help but push peoples' buttons when the opportunity presents himself. He's just more subtle about it, and doesn't derive a wicked joy from it the way Schuldich does. He's an American, dammit. We Americans are sarcastic little bitches. o_O;
Bleh. I could go on and on with character studies, but I won't.
Death and Betrayal
I got a lot of varied reactions to the introduction of "Verrat". To be honest, I have no idea where that idea came from. o__O;; I was just writing, and it.. happened. Farfarello was sent to guard Aya-chan. Then she woke up. It just came out that way; it wasn't really planned. But when she did wake up, I realized I could do some really twisted shit through her.
Who else would be able to melt the Beserker's heart, have the ability to destroy Ran from the inside out, and throw a wrench in everybody's plans? She was the unexpected player- much like Riddle in Vermilion. They could do one thing or the other; whichever they choose to do has the ability to change everything.
I liked the thought of Farfarello having a little sister figure; someone to be protective of in his own way, and someone who honestly cared for him. I don't think he would have started to feel as deeply for Ken as he did if Verrat hadn't slammed a wedge into the the wall around his heart. Yay for unpredictable muses. ^^;;
I'd been planning on having Farfarello introduce her to Ran, allowing chaos, angst, and general confusion prevail, but the story ran off on its own again with the introduction of Souma and Iragadachi. Yes, Rosenkreuz was mostly another unplanned occurence. >_< I hadn't planned on using them that extensively. Feh. Oh, well, it worked out OK. They gave me an opportunity to really play with the whole betrayal factor, when Schuldich became Salem. I regretted not being able to use Salem more, but I brought him in too late. I'm hoping to be able to play more with the Erasing thing in Vermilion.
Ken's death was something I did plan on, however. Just before they were all captured by Agammedo's Vampires, I decided that Ken was going to die. He had to, in order to strengthen Farfarello for the final battle etc etc. So I killed him....
And felt like I'd choked on a dagger everytime I tried to see past that. I realized just what Weiß would go through with his death. More importantly, I knew that with the loss of both his sister and Ken, Farfarello would be lost for good. He would take the medicine again. It had been his escape from reality before, and it would be what helped him to forget once more. They didn't want Ken dead. I sure as hell didn't want Ken dead.
So I brought him back. Perhaps that was a mistake. *scratches head* I'm still undecided about that on some levels. Yes, it meant I could work on the storyline more, and write "Vermilion". Yes, it meant everyone kept their sanity. Yes, it meant a happy ending. But it was also a little cliche in some ways, and... well, it meant that for the umpteenth time I was pulling Moonshadow, my angst muse, up short. I once wrote a GW arc, where every single Gundam pilot died at the end. I couldn't stand writing it. I hated it so much it wasn't even funny. So I wrote an epilogue in which they all met in their second lives; a somewhat happy ending that made me feel a little better.
Well, I've released Moonshadow to play, and she's having quite a ball. She's been dumping inspiration and ideas on me for "Vermilion", several of which are quite evil. x_x; There are going to be some nasty things later on in V, and the ending will be bittersweet at best. Goddess help me. x____x
In closing, WADtD was a real rollercoaster, and unfortunately the harness was broken, so I had to cling on with tooth and nail. I'm relieved I managed to wrap it up somewhat decently and- once again -am ever grateful to the people that read it and encouraged me. ^__^
I enjoyed writing the story, and am enjoying writing its sequel, which should wrap up this whole storyline for good. It's even more of a hell to write than its predecessor, but I hope you'll enjoy it just the same. ^__^
Ja ne!
/End rant
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