Comment on ripening of the wound

  1. horrorcowboy Thu 02 Apr 2026 10:37AM UTC

    victorian maiden murtagh is so real 😭

    i remember reading “murtagh” and coming to the scene of him brushing a thumb across nasuada’s coin, but immediately stopping because he "felt as if he’d taken an unwarranted liberty" LMAOOOO this DORK. he was raised with so much court-bred propriety that he has extreme sensitivity to social boundaries. which is why he’s so repressed here! he can be with eragon but only when its in the DARK and no one is WATCHING and clothes must be ON. kissing is like third base to him, he is practically no better than a whore in a brothel! and GASP what do you mean you want him to bed you eragon?? he might see your ANKLE!!! think of his poor delicate sensibilities, i beg you!!

    i love that you picked up on eragon’s underlying hurts and anxieties! outwardly he’s really trying to hold onto this image of confidence and strength despite everything that’s been done to him. it’s very intentional. he doesn’t want them to think they’ve broken him, especially not as shadeslayer, as someone who stood for freedom. letting the bravado slip feels like letting them win.

    and with murtagh it’s even more complicated. he doesn’t want pity from him, doesn’t want to be seen as fragile or diminished, like someone who needs to be handled carefully. there’s pride there, but also something softer, he wants to be seen as an equal, as someone murtagh can still respect, still want, still stand beside. not someone reduced by what’s been done to him.

    so he overcorrects a little, leans into that confidence even when it means swallowing his own fear and hurt. because if he lets that show, even for a second, he risks losing control of how he’s seen, and right now that’s one of the only things he has left.

    (murtagh can see through him anyway, and loves him regardless)

    thank you for the lovely comment!

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