The fun of different verses
Sep. 16th, 2013 09:23 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ladybug_archiveSo I re-read the second of my two fics in what I call the "Alone Again, Naturally" verse. That version of Duke is certainly depressing, having gone through two marriages that didn't work out, still pining for Serenity, and feeling bitter and hurt over believing he was excluded from Yugi's group (whether they meant to do it or not).
I still agree with Duke's feelings on the latter issue and still feel that, whether they meant to or not, in the series Yugi and company did exclude Duke from their tightest circle of friendship. (I don't think anyone managed to penetrate that circle, really; the original four were just too close.) But it was interesting comparing that verse with the "Commiseration" verse, which I invented more recently.
Commiseration verse happened because I still really liked the idea of Duke as a loner and going off to be a professional gambler, but I wanted to see what would happen if he did that in a verse where he really wasn't alone. So it became another possible branch-off of the Lead Me Through the Fire verse and how Duke handled his grief over David's death following that fic. Duke and Serenity are a couple, but Duke still can't come to terms with feeling that David's death is his fault. He feels it's unfair to Serenity for him to be around in such a miserable state, as well as feeling like he just can't deal with being around reminders of David all the time, so he packs up and goes to Gardena in Los Angeles, where casino-style gambling is legal.
Duke in Commiseration verse also feels excluded from Yugi's group, but he's not extremely bitter and cynical over it. He's accepted it and long ago moved on from that. He has Serenity and that's enough for him. He just wishes he still had David too, and is seeking a way to do the impossible and reverse the death.
He meets assorted strange characters along the way, including his cynical and brooding boss, Slim Marcus (from Perry Mason), and Snakes Tolliver, a fellow gambler (of course, from The Wild Wild West). He and Snakes have ended up quite close, with Duke aware of Snakes' true past and Snakes having agreed to a partnership to try to help Duke find a way to get David back. Despite Snakes' cowardice and self-serving nature, he proves a worthy friend when Duke needs him.
I've debated over whether Commiseration verse should tie up with the Close Your Eyes, Clear Your Heart sequel to Lead Me, with Snakes being involved in the eventual discovery of this strange place in Egypt where Duke goes to reverse time, or if Commiseration verse should be completely separate. If separate, Duke most likely never does come up with a real way to revive David, but he has found Snakes and is grateful for his new friend. If connected, Snakes would forget everything about his and Duke's involvement once Duke reverses time, but he would regain those memories once the spell unravels and everyone starts to remember the truth.
Overall, Duke in Commiseration verse is younger, perhaps more naive, and certainly not bitter like Duke in the Alone Again verse. I kind of think Commiseration verse Duke is more like manga Duke than Alone Again Duke is (who is more like a combination of both anime and manga Dukes). Commiseration Duke, having Serenity, feels no need to reach out to random girls and flirt to be noticed. (And he may or may not have done that to begin with, before Serenity; manga Duke does not, at least not much.) Alone Again Duke, having no one, flirts all the time because he longs to be noticed, even if by someone only superficially interested in him. He thinks that's preferable to being home with supposed friends who ignore him.
Then that runs a slight parallel with Snakes in my headcanon for him, with him having hung around saloon girls a lot when he was a riverboat gambler. He knew they only wanted his money, but he was embittered from girls not wanting him because of his scar, so he took whatever he could get.
Snakes is fond of Duke, calling him "kid" and being rather protective of him. He is, perhaps, to some extent, what Duke could have been in another time and place (like the Alone Again verse; Snakes was always alone). Duke wouldn't have become a criminal, most likely, but the other parallels still stand. Snakes may see in Duke someone a bit like him when he was younger and before he bitterly decided that trying to help people only resulted in hurt. Snakes also, however, envies Duke a bit for having things Snakes never had (a loyal friend, even if dead now, and a loving girlfriend). He feels that Duke should give up the quest of trying to bring back the dead, but will support him in it as long as he pursues it.
Snakes is older, cynical, and knows a harsh reality to the world that Duke doesn't, even with Duke's dark upbringing by his hateful father. Duke, in turn, knows a different type of harsh reality, but also has the light of what he discovered from having David and Serenity around. He and Snakes each have something to offer the other in their unique friendship.
Oh, and one final comparison between the Dukes: Alone Again Duke is obnoxious (mostly as a front). Commiseration Duke is just sad. No front, no facades. He's burned out on them.
I'm not even sure Alone Again Duke had a David as a friend. I never mentioned David in that verse, because I figured he either wasn't there or else was just Duke's manager and nothing more. And if Alone Again Duke never had anybody, gah, how horrible for him.
I still agree with Duke's feelings on the latter issue and still feel that, whether they meant to or not, in the series Yugi and company did exclude Duke from their tightest circle of friendship. (I don't think anyone managed to penetrate that circle, really; the original four were just too close.) But it was interesting comparing that verse with the "Commiseration" verse, which I invented more recently.
Commiseration verse happened because I still really liked the idea of Duke as a loner and going off to be a professional gambler, but I wanted to see what would happen if he did that in a verse where he really wasn't alone. So it became another possible branch-off of the Lead Me Through the Fire verse and how Duke handled his grief over David's death following that fic. Duke and Serenity are a couple, but Duke still can't come to terms with feeling that David's death is his fault. He feels it's unfair to Serenity for him to be around in such a miserable state, as well as feeling like he just can't deal with being around reminders of David all the time, so he packs up and goes to Gardena in Los Angeles, where casino-style gambling is legal.
Duke in Commiseration verse also feels excluded from Yugi's group, but he's not extremely bitter and cynical over it. He's accepted it and long ago moved on from that. He has Serenity and that's enough for him. He just wishes he still had David too, and is seeking a way to do the impossible and reverse the death.
He meets assorted strange characters along the way, including his cynical and brooding boss, Slim Marcus (from Perry Mason), and Snakes Tolliver, a fellow gambler (of course, from The Wild Wild West). He and Snakes have ended up quite close, with Duke aware of Snakes' true past and Snakes having agreed to a partnership to try to help Duke find a way to get David back. Despite Snakes' cowardice and self-serving nature, he proves a worthy friend when Duke needs him.
I've debated over whether Commiseration verse should tie up with the Close Your Eyes, Clear Your Heart sequel to Lead Me, with Snakes being involved in the eventual discovery of this strange place in Egypt where Duke goes to reverse time, or if Commiseration verse should be completely separate. If separate, Duke most likely never does come up with a real way to revive David, but he has found Snakes and is grateful for his new friend. If connected, Snakes would forget everything about his and Duke's involvement once Duke reverses time, but he would regain those memories once the spell unravels and everyone starts to remember the truth.
Overall, Duke in Commiseration verse is younger, perhaps more naive, and certainly not bitter like Duke in the Alone Again verse. I kind of think Commiseration verse Duke is more like manga Duke than Alone Again Duke is (who is more like a combination of both anime and manga Dukes). Commiseration Duke, having Serenity, feels no need to reach out to random girls and flirt to be noticed. (And he may or may not have done that to begin with, before Serenity; manga Duke does not, at least not much.) Alone Again Duke, having no one, flirts all the time because he longs to be noticed, even if by someone only superficially interested in him. He thinks that's preferable to being home with supposed friends who ignore him.
Then that runs a slight parallel with Snakes in my headcanon for him, with him having hung around saloon girls a lot when he was a riverboat gambler. He knew they only wanted his money, but he was embittered from girls not wanting him because of his scar, so he took whatever he could get.
Snakes is fond of Duke, calling him "kid" and being rather protective of him. He is, perhaps, to some extent, what Duke could have been in another time and place (like the Alone Again verse; Snakes was always alone). Duke wouldn't have become a criminal, most likely, but the other parallels still stand. Snakes may see in Duke someone a bit like him when he was younger and before he bitterly decided that trying to help people only resulted in hurt. Snakes also, however, envies Duke a bit for having things Snakes never had (a loyal friend, even if dead now, and a loving girlfriend). He feels that Duke should give up the quest of trying to bring back the dead, but will support him in it as long as he pursues it.
Snakes is older, cynical, and knows a harsh reality to the world that Duke doesn't, even with Duke's dark upbringing by his hateful father. Duke, in turn, knows a different type of harsh reality, but also has the light of what he discovered from having David and Serenity around. He and Snakes each have something to offer the other in their unique friendship.
Oh, and one final comparison between the Dukes: Alone Again Duke is obnoxious (mostly as a front). Commiseration Duke is just sad. No front, no facades. He's burned out on them.
I'm not even sure Alone Again Duke had a David as a friend. I never mentioned David in that verse, because I figured he either wasn't there or else was just Duke's manager and nothing more. And if Alone Again Duke never had anybody, gah, how horrible for him.
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no subject
Date: 2013-09-16 10:54 pm (UTC)Your Alone Again verse is definitely sad; I'm so used to your characters getting eventual happy endings... I do like that sliver of hope in the Commiseration verse.
(Of course, my favorite verse is the one where David is restored... heh... I'm just a softie...)
no subject
Date: 2013-09-17 03:24 am (UTC)Duke/Mai seems to be a popular pairing in fandom, although I have no idea why unless it's based around the idea that they're both loners and outsiders (and the fact that manga Duke has a little crush on her). Usually when I see Duke/Mai fics, though, it's based around the anime introduction Duke and he's basically a cad to her. Bleh. Duke gets such a bad rep in fics. But maybe I could write a decent Duke and Mai fic (not necessarily a pairing fic) and that could be the next Alone Again installment and offer a sliver of hope.
I love writing Duke and Snakes friendship in Commiseration verse.
I like David being able to be alive, too. And now that I've developed this Duke and Snakes friendship, I wonder how to coordinate both friendships. It feels like that if David is restored, Duke won't "need" Snakes anymore and they'll drift apart, which is sad. I want the friendship to be true and not just based on need. But if both David and Snakes are around, I wonder if it would just get crowded and Snakes himself would feel that he should bow out, whether or not Duke would really want that.
no subject
Date: 2013-09-21 05:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-09-21 06:32 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2013-09-21 07:30 pm (UTC)I'm sort of lulzing again over Mai and Duke. I think it's also a matter of the fandom being, "THESE TWO CHARACTERS ARE FLIRTATIOUS AND OUTWARDLY CONFIDENT, THEY OBVIOUSLY NEED TO BE TOGETHER." I feel like they would go strong and burn out quickly if together because they're so much alike in some ways.
no subject
Date: 2013-09-22 01:02 am (UTC)