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Ship manifesto: Alternis Dim x Edea Lee (6110 words)
Aaaand I had too many Altdea feelings that I ended up also writing a ship manifesto for them. Note that this manifesto contains two types of spoilers: minor spoilers related to Alternis's backstory and characterization, and major spoilers for Bravely Default and Bravely Second that could easily change your experience playing the game. The first set of details is necessary for understanding the basics of the relationship. The second set is necessary for a more complete understanding of the relationship, but is optional. So I've split this post into two sections: a minor spoilers only section and a major spoilers section. The division between sections is clearly marked so you can stop reading before you hit major spoilers.
Edea is one of the four protagonists of Bravely Default, and a strong contender for #bestcharacter. She is the daughter of the grand marshal of the Duchy of Eternia and is a foot soldier in one of the divisions whose mission is to capture the wind vestal. However, her strong sense of justice causes her to become disgusted with the cruelty of her side and she defects to the vestal's side.
Personality-wise, she is pretty bubbly and cheerful and blunt. She is also somewhat childish and immature, being the daughter of the Grand Marshal and lived a sheltered life, but also very headstrong and stubborn and occasionally bad-tempered like her father. Over the course of the game she matures and develops a more nuanced morality. Edea combines a girly aesthetic (fashion! fancy desserts! that ever-present bow!) with a tomboyish love of swords and smacking things (like... you can choose your characters' classes in this game but Edea is by far the most warrior-coded character and has the stats to match).
Alternis is a minor character in Bravely Default. His backstory is minor spoilers but I include it here to give people a baseline of what his character is like. As indicated, he was an orphan found by Edea's father, Braev. He and Edea were raised together and consider each other childhood friends. As a result, he is both incredibly loyal to Braev and reluctant to harm Edea. The combination of these two things causes problems for him when Edea deserts, because he has orders from her own father to kill her if she interferes with the Duchy's mission.
Personality-wise, he usually has a calm and professional demeanor, but underneath he is in reality quite moody and emotional. He is prone to losing his temper easily and can be bitter and misanthropic as the monologue above reveals (many of his journal entries involve expressing contempt for the people he works with). Most of all, his coolness hides deep feelings for Edea.
Alternis and Edea's first interaction after the start of Bravely Default is when the main party is ready to leave Ancheim. Unbeknownst to the main four characters, Alternis boarded their ship while they were away and ambushes them. Believing that Edea was captured by the Wind Vestal, Alternis tries to rescue her only to realize she's simply deserted the Duchy. He can't bring himself to fight her, so he instead smashes the skystone that allows their ship to fly, hindering their mobility. Throughout this conversation, you can see he has a bit of a patronizing attitude toward her (basically, barking orders at her, "Cool your head before we next meet, Edea", etc.).
From this point on, Alternis spends a lot of time worrying about Edea -- in particular, that her desertion and alignment against the Duchy puts her life in danger. He works behind the scenes to enlist the help of others to allow a peaceful resolution to Edea's betrayal. There is are a few tiny bits of offscreen interaction, but mainly the next time they interact is during Alternis's boss fight, the final one in this world.
He is the Duchy's last stand, and finally (after avoiding it the whole game) fights Edea. This is where you get his backstory and where Alternis finally admits something that you probably already suspected -- that he has feelings for Edea. (NOTE: Shortly thereafter, there are major spoilers for the game that affect earlier parts of the game, so if you haven't played the game, I highly recommend NOT watching the full scene. I've already quoted the relevant bits above.)
More slight spoilers but Alternis keeps a diary whose entries you can read. Despite the calm and collected exterior, his entries about Edea are like this:
And this:
Like... wow. The romantic pining is off the charts.
Supplemental to canon is a drama CD called Bravely Default: ~Reunion Festival~. On the third track (translation here) is a story where Braev and Alternis reminisce about the past, which includes how Alternis was adopted, his early interactions with Edea, as well as developing feelings for her (and an overwhelming desire to propose to her) from an early age. There is some cute content here, like kid!Edea instantly approaching a mute and withdrawn Alternis, and coming to his rescue when he's bullied by other kids (who he doesn't want to retaliate against because his darkness powers are too violent and strong).
There are some more interactions in the game as well as in the sequel, Bravely Second, but I will stop here because they're either not as interesting or spoilery. These interactions and the introspection you get from Alternis's writings are the main things you need to understand this pairing. So I will move onto...
Let's break this pairing down into some of the basic elements: As you can see, Alternis in writing is very different from Alternis in person -- very over-the-top romantic. This contrast suggests he has the tendency to repress his emotions. Second, something you can see in his interactions with Edea is that he gets easily flustered in her presence or when thinking about her, losing his temper or becoming awkward and nervous. Third, he is very protective of Edea and her family. I think it's canon that Alternis has made a vow to protect them. There is therefore a lot of Lady and Knight / Bodyguard Crush aspects to this pairing. Alternis has very strong feelings for Edea that he views as inappropriate to act on so he hides those feelings and channels them into a loyal knight kind of vow.
However, I argue that in order to fully understand the dynamic between Edea and Alternis, you have to understand the relationship between Alternis and Braev and the Japanese cultural practice it is invoking as a trope -- namely, the practice of mukoyoushi or adult adoption. This practice involves a powerful family adopting a son who becomes the heir to the family. Sometimes, but not necessarily, this involves the man marrying a daughter of the family and then taking her name instead of the other way around. It used to be the case that the people who adopted sons this way were the heads of samurai families, but in modern times, they are businessmen who run family-owned companies. In either case, the purpose of this practice is to allow patriarchs to choose and groom their successor, who (presumably) is selected based on merit and experience rather than on blood relations. The trope invokes a certain kind of characterization for the chosen successor -- they are much more likely than a trueborn son to be "hungry," a "striver," rather than, say, a complacent snob. It can be quite a romantic trope (not in the "love" sense but in the "fantastical; idealized; sentimental" sense) -- a practice that most people have no personal experience with but is dramatic and makes for good fantasization fodder.
Alternis very much fits the role of a mukoyoushi. He was found and quasi-adopted by Braev Lee; since his adoption, Alternis has been clearly angling to demonstrate his indispensability to the Duchy -- rising high to the Council of Six, constantly working on important missions like reconaissance/information-collection, and making it his own mission to see to it that Braev's new world is created. He is not officially part of the Lee family, but he is close enough that the fact that Braev Lee might one day make it official is not out of the question.
Marrying Edea is not necessary to achieve Alternis's goal of becoming one of the Lees -- there are points in the game and supplemental material where Mahzer and Braev treat and accept him like a son already, and he is surprised but very happy to hear this. However, I read Alternis as having fallen in love with Edea anyway. That is to say, she is NOT simply instrumental to his larger goal of becoming a Lee -- he developed feelings for her independent of that goal. At the same time, however, it means that if Edea were to marry him, that would bring him supreme happiness -- not only would it mean his feelings are returned but it would also represent the fulfillment of his other life dream: to become a Lee. And it goes the reverse way as well: if Mahzer and Braev indicated that they would be fine with him proposing to Edea it would be a sign that they have accepted him as a son. So while I don't think Alternis's love for Edea is purely an expression of his adoption goal, I think his desire to be with her is nevertheless entangled in that goal.
But wait -- there's more!
The mukoyoushi trope relies on the mukoyoushi being "hungry" -- purposely selected from a slightly lower rung of society so that they possess an ambition to improve themselves and their standing (that ambition being what makes them qualified to enter the higher rung), but not so low that they haven't received the education, upbringing, etc. they need to succeed. So there is always a lot of class dynamics and Princess/Retainer tropes to play with when you get a situation like this.
However, Alternis is an extreme case -- he was lifted up out of homelessness and desperation, essentially a street rat made good who now presents as a knight. But he remembers his origins. I don't doubt that the extreme contrast between his life before Braev Lee -- as an urchin living on scraps and hating the world -- and how far he's risen up under Braev's patronage -- one of the most powerful people in the Duchy of Eternia -- is jarring to him whenever he thinks about it. This extreme class difference is great for the Altdea pairing because it means there are canonical reasons why Alternis will just. not spit it out.1 He can't shake the feeling that he's just not worthy -- either to be with Edea or to be a Lee. Just daring to hope that Edea might one day have feelings for him or that he might be recognized as Braev and Mahzer's son could be seen as presumptuous so he takes pains to hide those ambitions, while still consciously taking actions that would maximize his chances of one day being recognized as worthy. In other words, he's obsessively built his life around a goal that he is terrified to even admit he has. He has to wait for the Lees to show him clear signs of acceptance in spite of his low origins before he's willing to broach either topic. It's great for all that sweet pining and miscommunication that slow-burn romance stories are built on. If you're the kind of person who loves the self-loathing "I'm not good enough for them" angst, this pairing is the good stuff, right here.
But wait -- there's more!
As you may have noticed, the mukoyoushi trope blurs the line between romantic relationships (arranged marriage between daughter and man: mukoyoushi as "son-in-law") and familial relationships (adoption by father of man: mukoyoushi as "son"). This blurring is particularly severe in Alternis's case, as he was taken in by Braev when he was fairly young and raised side-by-side with Edea. It creates a very sibling-like dynamic between Alternis and Edea, as you can see by certain scenes where Alternis comes off as a scold-y, protective older brother.
This renders Alternis's feelings for Edea pseudo-incestuous, which might be a plus (something fun to play with) or a squick. From Alternis's perspective, this is quite tricky, because he is afraid to express romantic interest in Edea openly but by not doing so, becomes more and more like a brother and a platonic presence in her life than a love interest. If the self-loathing wasn't enough to make Alternis's feelings Complicated, then how about throwing in some guilt or fear that Edea will never see him as anything other than a brother, and that, all things considered, she is right to do so?
I've talked a lot about the Alternis -> Edea part of this relationship. What about Edea's feelings?! Well... that's complicated. I'm not quite sure how to read Edea's view of Alternis. My initial read when I first played through the game is that she has, like... a huge blindspot when it comes to Alternis. Like, as a person, he is practically invisible to her. The party has access to a journal, which it eventually becomes clear was written by Alternis. This journal contains several very personal passages gushing passionately about how much the author loves Edea. Edea's reaction to this is... nothing. Not discomfort, not creeped out, not pleasure, not surprise, not embarassment, not curiosity -- nothing. She doesn't seem to even consciously register that she has access to Alternis's private thoughts. At no point does she have an "if Alternis really did write this... that means... fuuuuuuuuuck" moment or "I feel vaguely bad reading his diary" moment. Initially I read this as Edea having such a blindspot about Alternis that she can't put two (the owner of this diary is obsessed with me) and two (the owner of this diary is Alternis) together (Alternis is obsessed with me) -- it just doesn't compute. Her feelings for Alternis are so platonic and so unnoteworthy that she can't even entertain the notion that his feelings for her might be anything else, so she just locks it all away and won't even think about it. In the Japanese vesion, the Alternis blindspot explanation is even more plausible as Alternis's name is Anazel D, and the journal has a big "D" on the front of it. Yet Edea never says, "OMG, it has to be his journal, I'm sure of it!" I felt like the only explanation for this level of obliviousness is that Alternis is almost invisible to Edea -- she pays him so little attention that she wouldn't even think of him when trying to brainstorm the writer of the journal. He just inspires no feeling -- no excitement, no interest -- whatsoever in her. (Or it's possible that Edea canonically never read the journal cover-to-cover and was only quoted bits of it?)
However, there is another way to read this, supported by one (the only?) time Edea is asked to respond to the romantic content of the diary:
This suggests that Edea is neither oblivious to nor willfully ignorant about other people's feelings for her. Quite the opposite: she can recognize and discuss such crushes frankly. It's never confirmed who the two boys she's referring to here, but possibly they are Ringabel himself and Alternis. If so, this suggests that the reason Edea has absolutely no reaction to D's Journal is because she already knows the depth of Alternis's feelings for her. The journal doesn't tell her anything she didn't already know. (Alternatively, maybe she was thinking about two completely unrelated and random people, in which case... the "utterly oblivious / in denial / blindspot" explanation is appropriate. orz)
In either case, though, Edea basically seems unable to acknowledge Alternis's feelings. Either she knows them already and is just like "anyway" or she learns about them obliquely and is unable to actually process it. Ironicsugoi on Discord jokingly sums up the dynamic pretty well:
Also notice that when she rebuffs his proposal, it's not a direct rejection or even an acknowledgement of his feelings -- she just says "Now's not the time for such rubbish!" Given that they are fighting a battle to the death aboard a crashing airship, she's stating the obvious. But it seems avoidant, like she's rejecting the subject entirely in order to avoid acknowledging his feelings in any way and having to respond to them. It is also still ambiguous whether she already knows what he just admitted and just doesn't care (it's so unimportant -- why are we talking about this right now?) or whether she thinks the very idea of him having feelings for her is too outlandish to even be contemplated and her mind just shuts down (you're being weird -- stop being weird!). There is a lot of potential here for character development for Edea -- what is going on with her attitude toward Alternis? In order for it to change, how would Edea need to be different?
If I had to describe a similar pairing dynamic, it would be Emma and Mr. Knightley from Jane Austen's Emma. Both feature the man in love with the woman for a really long time; the woman has never been in love; the man exists in the woman's blind spot; and they even a sibling-like dynamic (Mr. Knightley's younger brother is married to Emma's older sister, making Emma and Mr. Knightley siblings-in-law). (I am actually working on an Altdea fic basically trying to remake the plot of Emma with Bravely Default characters.)
The rest of this post contains major spoilers for BOTH Bravely Default (BD) and Bravely Second (BS) that will affect your experience with both games. So if you haven't played both games, I would recommend ending here, as you've already read all you need to know about the Altdea dynamic.
However, I will now go over spoilery material for Bravely Default and Second because my discussion of Altdea would be incomplete without it.
In Bravely Default the main spoiler relevant to this pairing is that Ringabel is actually an amnesiac Alternis from another world (World 6). Unlike Edea's *pokerface* reaction to Alternis, Ringabel DOES inspire feelings in her, ones that she eventually recognizes as romantic. Before she is able to, though, he leaves her world, leaving her feeling utterly bereft.
Fast forward three years to Bravely Second: Alternis has several very cool moments in this game. Except (spoiler warning) all the cool ones are actually Ringabel dimension-hopping and posing as World 5's Alternis in order to keep Edea safe. In terms of actual Alternis moments (again, I'm using Alternis here to mean strictly non-Ringabel Alternis), there are only a few, and there is only one that involves interesting interaction with Edea: the Dark Knight / Time Mage asterisk sidequest.
In this sidequest, Alternis is trying to keep taxes high to pay for poor laws that support orphan children, while Khamer is trying to lower taxes so that the economy recovers. If you side against Alternis, he will fight you and once again propose to Edea mid-battle:
History repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce... Edea again shoots Alternis down (again, not by directly rejecting his feelings), and Alternis lets out an anguished cry. But this time it's played for laughs. Also, notice just how... awkward the proposal is this time around. So awkward, OMG.
After the battle you get this diary conversation between Yew, Edea, Magnolia, and Tiz:
You can see that Edea is cognizant of the fact that Ringabel's face is under Alternis's helmet, but she basically is NOT opening that Pandora's box. In general, Edea throughout this game is doing her best to avoid thinking about the Ringabel Question, and a major plot line of the game involves pushing her to stop burying her feelings and confront them.
One final bleak note about the Alternis-Edea dynamic in Bravely Second: Edea responds differently to Alternis!Ringabel than she does to Alternis despite not being aware that Alternis!Ringabel is actually Ringabel, particularly in this scene from Chapter 6 -- blushing when he says "I would go to the very ends of the earth for you if you needed me, Edea" and chasing after him when he turns to leave, an unusual action for Edea to take. This strongly suggests to me that Edea (World 5 Edea anyway) is attracted to Ringabel but NOT Alternis. (Most times when Alternis is in a scene with Edea also involve Braev, and the three of them very much have a familial vibe -- see for example this scene.)
This brings us to the Alternis-Edea dynamic post-Bravely Default: In the years after the end of BD, we know that Edea is aware of Alternis's feelings for her, and he is not so thoroughly discouraged or crushed that he shies away from making ANOTHER proposal three years later. But her reaction to him is still basically... *pokerface*. This is quite in line with the characterization I gave earlier of Edea's attitude toward Alternis. However, there are now additional factors at play, namely that (1) Edea has feelings for Ringabel who is not Alternis but also at the same time Alternis, (2) she has still not quite come to terms with those feelings, and (3) Ringabel is no longer in her world, but awkwardly, Alternis is.
I thus read the Alternis-Edea dynamic as being incredibly awkward in the interstice between Bravely Default and Bravely Second. On Alternis's side, he knows Edea is aware of his feelings but they're, like, Not Talking About It. He is also maybe aware that Ringabel is himself from another world and maybe aware that Edea has feelings for Ringabel, which puts him in this awkward zone of somewhat requited love (but mostly unrequited). He still hasn't let go after three years, but there are many question marks about this period: does he regularly propose to / make romantic overtures toward Edea? Or was that just a one-off thing during battle after three years of silence? Why is he still clinging to those feelings despite having been shot down and this making their relationship awkward?
On Edea's side, this is awkward because she's kind of heartbroken about having been abandoned by Ringabel but she is in denial about that fact, and she knows Alternis likes her and he's the same person technically and he hasn't abandoned her but Alternis isn't Ringabel -- she is still waiting for Ringabel in her heart. On a good day she's unable to process Alternis's feelings for her and now it's even worse. Rather than have to think about all that, she'd rather take all those feelings, his and hers, and stuff them in a box and shove it under her bed where she never has to think about them again. That's how I read Edea in the post-BD time period, given what we know about her in BS. I view the two of them as "frozen" or "stuck": knowing things are awkward between them but not knowing how to fix it, either to make it fully platonic or fully romantic. So everything is normal, we're acting normal. With Edea too there are a lot of question marks: does she have to regularly reject Alternis? Is she ever tempted to use him as a Ringabel replacement? Does she have moments where she does find him attractive but specifically because he reminds her of Ringabel (so awkward)?
To make things even more complicated on Edea's end, Ringabel left her in order to save his own world's Edea, so you now have this RIDICULOUS two-person love chain: World 5 Alternis -> World 5 Edea -> World 6 Alternis -> World 6 Edea. World 5!Edea might actally feel (for the first time) a subconscious affinity/solidarity with her world's Alternis in the feelings department -- they're both losers in love. Edea strikes me as the type of person who has never seriously been in love before so this is new and depressing for her.
So if you're into weird and awkward feelings, this period of time is ripe for it. However, this reading of Alternis and Edea is largely speculation on my part.
Post-BS, the potential for interesting semi-romantic Altdea dynamics kind of falls off. Edea has at this point come to terms with her feelings for Ringabel, found out that interdimensional travel is possible, and has been encouraged many times (SO many) to chase after the things she loves. Post-BS, what makes most sense for Edea's character is for her to devote all the resources she has as the Grand Marshal of Eternia to the task of discovering interdimensional travel, locating the Planeswardens that Ringabel is working for, and convincing him to stay with her.
The ending is teasingly ambiguous about whether it's Alternis or Ringabel who is in the council chamber with Edea. He is missing the ribbon that would unambiguously distinguish them; Edea mentions that he's saved her many times (something only Ringabel did in this game, but plausibly something Alternis may have done post-BS or pre-BD); he also says something that echoes a line that only Ringabel said ("You know I would fly to the ends of the world if you needed me, Edea..."); she has no reaction. My personal read of it is that this scene was crafted to function as a (rushed) Rindea ending in case Bravely Third never got made. However, if Bravely Third gets made, I think there will be a more in-depth resolution to the Rindea plotline, and it makes more sense to read this as Alternis, who, following Braev's retirement, has transitioned from being Braev's right hand man to being Edea's and has agreed to help her in her mission to find Ringabel (he is just That Loyal (and emotionally repressed)).
If so, there is still the awkwardness that Alternis resembles Ringabel enough to echo a significant line Ringabel says in BS, but the awkwardness has been defused somewhat, because Edea knows her own feelings now, and so I think she is better able to deal with Alternis and Ringabel's similarity and still establish her relationship with Alternis as platonic (because she has resolved to pursue Ringabel). This is just one way to read the BS ending, however.
Alternatively, it's possible this scene depicts Edea after chickening out and deciding to settle for Alternis instead (even after everyone tried to push her to chase Ringabel). You can imagine the kind of rationalizations she would produce in order to justify this decision -- "The man I need has been right in front of me the whole time" "He's spent so long chasing me; it's time I chased him instead" "Alternis is a Ringabel who won't break my heart by leaving me" etc. etc. If so, she probably won't stay like that for long in a sequel -- but it is an interesting dynamic to explore in fanfiction while we wait. I think this one is a bit less likely, though, because I view the main things stopping Edea from pursuing Ringabel is (1) she thought it was physically impossible to travel between worlds in a non-destructive way, and (2) she thought that he had moved on and was living his life happily with World 6!Edea. The events of Bravely Second demonstrated both were false -- you can travel between worlds and Ringabel hasn't settled down. So if anything, I think the barriers keeping Edea from pursuing Ringabel are at an all-time low.
In any case, you can choose to disregard what is likely in canon and just go for any Altdea dynamic you like (Edea in a poly relationship with both Alternis and Ringabel? Why not!).
One final post-BS dynamic to talk about, though: Edea's promotion to grand marshal. During Bravely Second, Braev retires and Edea becomes grand marshal of Eternia. This development turns the Edea/Alternis dynamic into a boss/employee relationship, which is new. Before, Alternis technically outranked Edea and is the "older brother" so he can get rather imperious with her. That said, it is somewhat modulated by the fact that he has a crush on her and she is above him in terms of social class, adding up to a roughly "peers"/"childhood friends" type relationship with some fluctuation. However, with Edea's ascension to grand marshal in BS, the power in the relationship shifts entirely in Edea's direction -- she not only outranks him but she's his direct boss.
Alternis's formality and the respect he pays to hierarchies means that he is likely to be quite deferent to Edea's authority, and Edea is not afraid to pull rank if the situation requires it. Therefore, setting a fic with Grand Marshal Edea allows one to play with a more femdom dynamic where you can play up Alternis's obedience and "as you wish" tendencies, and have fun with all the awkward situations Edea might place him in.
The major downside is that this ship has about... 0% chance of happening in its Altdea form. (Very high chance of happening in its Rindea form, assuming we actually get Bravely Third!) However, knowing that the ship will never happen does give some incentive to explore it in fanwork, because you know canon will unfortunately never give you the thing you want.
Please note that I'm new to this fandom and probably missing a lot of older Altdea stuff, especially art which is harder to search for. Let me know if there are more things to add. Also, uh... I should probably curate this somehow because it's really long and I'm not used to having OTPs with so much fanwork.
Pre-BD (functions as Altdea or Rindea):
Gradual Feelings by![[fanfiction.net profile]](/img/userheads/ff-icon-192.png)
Drakojana (1857 words)
Masquerade by![[archiveofourown.org profile]](https://p.dreamwidth.org/b164c54b26e4/-/archiveofourown.org/favicon.ico)
chacusha (1556 words)
El Ángel de Luz byMaryVicky (1166 words)
Her Knight by![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
perydot (876 words)
Because It's You byLunar-Serenade (2334 words)
Baby Bird byBay-Alexison (2161 words)
During BD:
That which Yearns is that which Knows byLarkawolfgirl (1990 words)
Snapshots - Chapter 5: A Reason to Exist byKomatsu (473 words)
Post-BD:
How Edea Got Her Groove Back byTheStockholmEffect (151k words - Unfinished)
Courage bykabukimono (6450 words)
Timid Devotion bychacusha (1406 words)
Love and Black Helmets byjellijeans (230 words)
During BS:
After the Glow bykmacl1994 (3412 words - Unfinished)
Post-BS:
The Difficulty of Other's Love byrandomblackberry (3141 words)
Alternis/Grand Marshal!Edea:
Snapshots byKomatsu:
Chapter 7: Lucky (2236 words) It's a dark and stormy night in Eternia, and Edea has a new guest. Alternis does not approve. (My comments: Platonic Alternis & Edea (I think?). It's cute.)
Chapter 11: Your Helping Hands - Altdea (589 words) "Zip me." (My comments: Alternis being awkward. The good stuff.)
Un buen nombre byculoniforsx (1461 words)
AU:
A Girl, A Boy, and a Wolf byRaaj (5073 words)
Out of the Stillness byKomatsu (13718 words) (Explicit)
Unknown:
Warmth for the Winter byBlackCats (1751 words)
Art by![[tumblr.com profile]](https://www.tumblr.com/favicon.ico)
cold-brew-colors
Art bypomone-is-happy
Art, Art, Art, Art bychacusha
Art bynoctuart
Art bybraevleescreaming
Art bymaeka
Loss of you by![[deviantart.com profile]](https://i.deviantart.net/icons/favicon.png)
SailorLi
Bravely Default Secret Altdea santa bydazzel-almond
Alternis has never held hands before byrosalynnspecter
Some nice Altdea bydarkstarrunner
Altdea byalternos
BRAVELY DEFAULT: Alternis Dim and Edea by017m
The Most Beautiful byKHMarieXII
Black and White byssbbforeva
セコム騎士 by 伯
幼馴染 by おれんじ
【ネタバレ】じれったい by ハスノ
名刺用, 【ネタバレ有】らくがきまとめ, ♡, 【ネタバレ】バカバカバカっ！！！, ちゅっ, ＼ﾄﾞｻｯ／ by すもも
プロポーズ by ねいじ.ゅ
Quotes from D's Journal and Yew's Diary come from the Final Fantasy Wikia:
http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/D%27s_Journal/
http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Yew%27s_Diary/
Videos / Let's Plays linked or used to get quotes:
Bravely Default cutscenes by![[youtube.com profile]](https://youtube.com/favicon.ico)
Quirinus
Bravely Second walkthrough byHeroVoltsy
Bravely Default Drama CD ~ Reunion Festival~ Translation by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
mokochan_314
1 I do realize that Alternis has blurted out his feelings to Edea not just once but twice (at least). It's even become a bit of a running joke with the drama CD and this LINE sticker. That said, Alternis and Edea are both awkward as fuck about communication and their relationship to each other so you can easily undo this. Not only that, but the Bravely Default universe has canon alternate universes, so you can always choose to play in a fresh world where Alternis hasn't made a confession yet, if you want to. Or you can focus on all the pre-Bravely Default years that Alternis had feelings for Edea which he never acted on. So many possibilities! ↩
Edea Lee
An eighteen-year-old girl hailing from Eternia. On first impression, she appears to be a spoiled princess type. However, while strong-willed and opinionated, she is also kind and filled with a sense of justice. She never shies away from a conflict.
Likes: REALLY sweet things
Dislikes: Cooking, hassle, insects (Edea's entry in D's Journal)
Likes: REALLY sweet things
Dislikes: Cooking, hassle, insects (Edea's entry in D's Journal)
Edea is one of the four protagonists of Bravely Default, and a strong contender for #bestcharacter. She is the daughter of the grand marshal of the Duchy of Eternia and is a foot soldier in one of the divisions whose mission is to capture the wind vestal. However, her strong sense of justice causes her to become disgusted with the cruelty of her side and she defects to the vestal's side.
Personality-wise, she is pretty bubbly and cheerful and blunt. She is also somewhat childish and immature, being the daughter of the Grand Marshal and lived a sheltered life, but also very headstrong and stubborn and occasionally bad-tempered like her father. Over the course of the game she matures and develops a more nuanced morality. Edea combines a girly aesthetic (fashion! fancy desserts! that ever-present bow!) with a tomboyish love of swords and smacking things (like... you can choose your characters' classes in this game but Edea is by far the most warrior-coded character and has the stats to match).
Alternis Dim
A twenty-three-year-old man of unknown origin. His name is Alternis Dim, bearer of the dark knight asterisk. Wearing jet black armor and wielding a dark blade, he is a solemn warrior who takes his duties very seriously.
Likes: Edea, coffee
Dislikes: Desserts, little girls, intellectuals (Alternis's entry in D's Journal)
Likes: Edea, coffee
Dislikes: Desserts, little girls, intellectuals (Alternis's entry in D's Journal)
"In the foul, reeking underslums of Florem... I survived on muddied waters and gritty sands. But what choice does one have when abandoned soon after birth!? Hatred for this accursed world had been my sustenance. That is, until the grand marshal saved me! He took me in and raised me as if I were his own! To help him fulfill his ideals became my purpose... my will to live!" (Alternis boss fight in Chapter 4)
Alternis is a minor character in Bravely Default. His backstory is minor spoilers but I include it here to give people a baseline of what his character is like. As indicated, he was an orphan found by Edea's father, Braev. He and Edea were raised together and consider each other childhood friends. As a result, he is both incredibly loyal to Braev and reluctant to harm Edea. The combination of these two things causes problems for him when Edea deserts, because he has orders from her own father to kill her if she interferes with the Duchy's mission.
Personality-wise, he usually has a calm and professional demeanor, but underneath he is in reality quite moody and emotional. He is prone to losing his temper easily and can be bitter and misanthropic as the monologue above reveals (many of his journal entries involve expressing contempt for the people he works with). Most of all, his coolness hides deep feelings for Edea.
Canon interactions
During the events of Bravely Default:
Alternis: "What new form of torment is this!? I cannot bear these games, Edea! Do not do this to me." (Chapter 1 - Ties to the Dark Knight)
Alternis and Edea's first interaction after the start of Bravely Default is when the main party is ready to leave Ancheim. Unbeknownst to the main four characters, Alternis boarded their ship while they were away and ambushes them. Believing that Edea was captured by the Wind Vestal, Alternis tries to rescue her only to realize she's simply deserted the Duchy. He can't bring himself to fight her, so he instead smashes the skystone that allows their ship to fly, hindering their mobility. Throughout this conversation, you can see he has a bit of a patronizing attitude toward her (basically, barking orders at her, "Cool your head before we next meet, Edea", etc.).
Einheria: "That girl has caused you no end of grief over the years. Very well." (Chapter 2 - The Bloodrose Legion)
From this point on, Alternis spends a lot of time worrying about Edea -- in particular, that her desertion and alignment against the Duchy puts her life in danger. He works behind the scenes to enlist the help of others to allow a peaceful resolution to Edea's betrayal. There is are a few tiny bits of offscreen interaction, but mainly the next time they interact is during Alternis's boss fight, the final one in this world.
Alternis: "Can we not go back to as before, Edea? Did we not grow up together!? Did we not enjoy the closeness of family!? I... I had thought that once I had proven myself... ...perhaps I would... would take you as my bride!"
Edea: "Don't be a fool! Now's not the time for such rubbish!"
Alternis: "Rubbish...? ...Arrrgh!!" (Alternis boss fight in Chapter 4)
Edea: "Don't be a fool! Now's not the time for such rubbish!"
Alternis: "Rubbish...? ...Arrrgh!!" (Alternis boss fight in Chapter 4)
He is the Duchy's last stand, and finally (after avoiding it the whole game) fights Edea. This is where you get his backstory and where Alternis finally admits something that you probably already suspected -- that he has feelings for Edea. (NOTE: Shortly thereafter, there are major spoilers for the game that affect earlier parts of the game, so if you haven't played the game, I highly recommend NOT watching the full scene. I've already quoted the relevant bits above.)
Before the events of Bravely Default:
More slight spoilers but Alternis keeps a diary whose entries you can read. Despite the calm and collected exterior, his entries about Edea are like this:
I lowered myself into bed with a sigh. My right hand unconsciously drifted to the back of my head. There, beneath my pillow, it fell upon a picture frame. Within it, a disheveled room full of scrap iron, oil stains, and a single, beautiful flower...
Edea...
My beloved Edea...
I pine for the chance to see a smile unfurl across your face set in equal parts courageous fire and innocence. I long to hear your voice, sweet like a spring breeze. Let it speak my name, and I shall die a happy man (D's Journal - Enigmatic Writings (9/20)).
Edea...
My beloved Edea...
I pine for the chance to see a smile unfurl across your face set in equal parts courageous fire and innocence. I long to hear your voice, sweet like a spring breeze. Let it speak my name, and I shall die a happy man (D's Journal - Enigmatic Writings (9/20)).
And this:
And Edea... I expect you, too, will join the vestal here. You were ever a tomboy. Capricious. Pure and stubborn. Quick to tears... Perfect. I know not what it is you see in the vestal. What spark resonated within you. But I swear this now, I will keep you safe. At any cost. I always longed for a family... I will not see it destroyed!
The ship's siren has begun to sound, and the pilot's taking her up, just as planned. The time is come, then. This may be the last entry I am able to write. I'm removing Edea's picture from its frame and placing it within these pages. I want her by my side... (D's Journal - Enigmatic Writings (6/16)).
The ship's siren has begun to sound, and the pilot's taking her up, just as planned. The time is come, then. This may be the last entry I am able to write. I'm removing Edea's picture from its frame and placing it within these pages. I want her by my side... (D's Journal - Enigmatic Writings (6/16)).
Like... wow. The romantic pining is off the charts.
Supplemental to canon is a drama CD called Bravely Default: ~Reunion Festival~. On the third track (translation here) is a story where Braev and Alternis reminisce about the past, which includes how Alternis was adopted, his early interactions with Edea, as well as developing feelings for her (and an overwhelming desire to propose to her) from an early age. There is some cute content here, like kid!Edea instantly approaching a mute and withdrawn Alternis, and coming to his rescue when he's bullied by other kids (who he doesn't want to retaliate against because his darkness powers are too violent and strong).
There are some more interactions in the game as well as in the sequel, Bravely Second, but I will stop here because they're either not as interesting or spoilery. These interactions and the introspection you get from Alternis's writings are the main things you need to understand this pairing. So I will move onto...
The Altdea dynamic
Let's break this pairing down into some of the basic elements: As you can see, Alternis in writing is very different from Alternis in person -- very over-the-top romantic. This contrast suggests he has the tendency to repress his emotions. Second, something you can see in his interactions with Edea is that he gets easily flustered in her presence or when thinking about her, losing his temper or becoming awkward and nervous. Third, he is very protective of Edea and her family. I think it's canon that Alternis has made a vow to protect them. There is therefore a lot of Lady and Knight / Bodyguard Crush aspects to this pairing. Alternis has very strong feelings for Edea that he views as inappropriate to act on so he hides those feelings and channels them into a loyal knight kind of vow.
However, I argue that in order to fully understand the dynamic between Edea and Alternis, you have to understand the relationship between Alternis and Braev and the Japanese cultural practice it is invoking as a trope -- namely, the practice of mukoyoushi or adult adoption. This practice involves a powerful family adopting a son who becomes the heir to the family. Sometimes, but not necessarily, this involves the man marrying a daughter of the family and then taking her name instead of the other way around. It used to be the case that the people who adopted sons this way were the heads of samurai families, but in modern times, they are businessmen who run family-owned companies. In either case, the purpose of this practice is to allow patriarchs to choose and groom their successor, who (presumably) is selected based on merit and experience rather than on blood relations. The trope invokes a certain kind of characterization for the chosen successor -- they are much more likely than a trueborn son to be "hungry," a "striver," rather than, say, a complacent snob. It can be quite a romantic trope (not in the "love" sense but in the "fantastical; idealized; sentimental" sense) -- a practice that most people have no personal experience with but is dramatic and makes for good fantasization fodder.
Alternis very much fits the role of a mukoyoushi. He was found and quasi-adopted by Braev Lee; since his adoption, Alternis has been clearly angling to demonstrate his indispensability to the Duchy -- rising high to the Council of Six, constantly working on important missions like reconaissance/information-collection, and making it his own mission to see to it that Braev's new world is created. He is not officially part of the Lee family, but he is close enough that the fact that Braev Lee might one day make it official is not out of the question.
Marrying Edea is not necessary to achieve Alternis's goal of becoming one of the Lees -- there are points in the game and supplemental material where Mahzer and Braev treat and accept him like a son already, and he is surprised but very happy to hear this. However, I read Alternis as having fallen in love with Edea anyway. That is to say, she is NOT simply instrumental to his larger goal of becoming a Lee -- he developed feelings for her independent of that goal. At the same time, however, it means that if Edea were to marry him, that would bring him supreme happiness -- not only would it mean his feelings are returned but it would also represent the fulfillment of his other life dream: to become a Lee. And it goes the reverse way as well: if Mahzer and Braev indicated that they would be fine with him proposing to Edea it would be a sign that they have accepted him as a son. So while I don't think Alternis's love for Edea is purely an expression of his adoption goal, I think his desire to be with her is nevertheless entangled in that goal.
But wait -- there's more!
The mukoyoushi trope relies on the mukoyoushi being "hungry" -- purposely selected from a slightly lower rung of society so that they possess an ambition to improve themselves and their standing (that ambition being what makes them qualified to enter the higher rung), but not so low that they haven't received the education, upbringing, etc. they need to succeed. So there is always a lot of class dynamics and Princess/Retainer tropes to play with when you get a situation like this.
However, Alternis is an extreme case -- he was lifted up out of homelessness and desperation, essentially a street rat made good who now presents as a knight. But he remembers his origins. I don't doubt that the extreme contrast between his life before Braev Lee -- as an urchin living on scraps and hating the world -- and how far he's risen up under Braev's patronage -- one of the most powerful people in the Duchy of Eternia -- is jarring to him whenever he thinks about it. This extreme class difference is great for the Altdea pairing because it means there are canonical reasons why Alternis will just. not spit it out.1 He can't shake the feeling that he's just not worthy -- either to be with Edea or to be a Lee. Just daring to hope that Edea might one day have feelings for him or that he might be recognized as Braev and Mahzer's son could be seen as presumptuous so he takes pains to hide those ambitions, while still consciously taking actions that would maximize his chances of one day being recognized as worthy. In other words, he's obsessively built his life around a goal that he is terrified to even admit he has. He has to wait for the Lees to show him clear signs of acceptance in spite of his low origins before he's willing to broach either topic. It's great for all that sweet pining and miscommunication that slow-burn romance stories are built on. If you're the kind of person who loves the self-loathing "I'm not good enough for them" angst, this pairing is the good stuff, right here.
But wait -- there's more!
As you may have noticed, the mukoyoushi trope blurs the line between romantic relationships (arranged marriage between daughter and man: mukoyoushi as "son-in-law") and familial relationships (adoption by father of man: mukoyoushi as "son"). This blurring is particularly severe in Alternis's case, as he was taken in by Braev when he was fairly young and raised side-by-side with Edea. It creates a very sibling-like dynamic between Alternis and Edea, as you can see by certain scenes where Alternis comes off as a scold-y, protective older brother.
This renders Alternis's feelings for Edea pseudo-incestuous, which might be a plus (something fun to play with) or a squick. From Alternis's perspective, this is quite tricky, because he is afraid to express romantic interest in Edea openly but by not doing so, becomes more and more like a brother and a platonic presence in her life than a love interest. If the self-loathing wasn't enough to make Alternis's feelings Complicated, then how about throwing in some guilt or fear that Edea will never see him as anything other than a brother, and that, all things considered, she is right to do so?
I've talked a lot about the Alternis -> Edea part of this relationship. What about Edea's feelings?! Well... that's complicated. I'm not quite sure how to read Edea's view of Alternis. My initial read when I first played through the game is that she has, like... a huge blindspot when it comes to Alternis. Like, as a person, he is practically invisible to her. The party has access to a journal, which it eventually becomes clear was written by Alternis. This journal contains several very personal passages gushing passionately about how much the author loves Edea. Edea's reaction to this is... nothing. Not discomfort, not creeped out, not pleasure, not surprise, not embarassment, not curiosity -- nothing. She doesn't seem to even consciously register that she has access to Alternis's private thoughts. At no point does she have an "if Alternis really did write this... that means... fuuuuuuuuuck" moment or "I feel vaguely bad reading his diary" moment. Initially I read this as Edea having such a blindspot about Alternis that she can't put two (the owner of this diary is obsessed with me) and two (the owner of this diary is Alternis) together (Alternis is obsessed with me) -- it just doesn't compute. Her feelings for Alternis are so platonic and so unnoteworthy that she can't even entertain the notion that his feelings for her might be anything else, so she just locks it all away and won't even think about it. In the Japanese vesion, the Alternis blindspot explanation is even more plausible as Alternis's name is Anazel D, and the journal has a big "D" on the front of it. Yet Edea never says, "OMG, it has to be his journal, I'm sure of it!" I felt like the only explanation for this level of obliviousness is that Alternis is almost invisible to Edea -- she pays him so little attention that she wouldn't even think of him when trying to brainstorm the writer of the journal. He just inspires no feeling -- no excitement, no interest -- whatsoever in her. (Or it's possible that Edea canonically never read the journal cover-to-cover and was only quoted bits of it?)
However, there is another way to read this, supported by one (the only?) time Edea is asked to respond to the romantic content of the diary:
Ringabel: "And Edea, the author claims he's madly in love with you. Any ideas? ...So I can pummel him?"
Edea: "If I said no, I'd be lying."
Ringabel: "What!?"
Edea: "I'm saying I have my suspicions where boys in love with me are concerned. But the facts don't add up. For either of them." (Party Chat: "Let's Press On")
Edea: "If I said no, I'd be lying."
Ringabel: "What!?"
Edea: "I'm saying I have my suspicions where boys in love with me are concerned. But the facts don't add up. For either of them." (Party Chat: "Let's Press On")
This suggests that Edea is neither oblivious to nor willfully ignorant about other people's feelings for her. Quite the opposite: she can recognize and discuss such crushes frankly. It's never confirmed who the two boys she's referring to here, but possibly they are Ringabel himself and Alternis. If so, this suggests that the reason Edea has absolutely no reaction to D's Journal is because she already knows the depth of Alternis's feelings for her. The journal doesn't tell her anything she didn't already know. (Alternatively, maybe she was thinking about two completely unrelated and random people, in which case... the "utterly oblivious / in denial / blindspot" explanation is appropriate. orz)
In either case, though, Edea basically seems unable to acknowledge Alternis's feelings. Either she knows them already and is just like "anyway" or she learns about them obliquely and is unable to actually process it. Ironicsugoi on Discord jokingly sums up the dynamic pretty well:
Alternis: I'D DIE FOR YOU EDEA
Edea: ✔ seen @ 8:45
Edea: ✔ seen @ 8:45
Also notice that when she rebuffs his proposal, it's not a direct rejection or even an acknowledgement of his feelings -- she just says "Now's not the time for such rubbish!" Given that they are fighting a battle to the death aboard a crashing airship, she's stating the obvious. But it seems avoidant, like she's rejecting the subject entirely in order to avoid acknowledging his feelings in any way and having to respond to them. It is also still ambiguous whether she already knows what he just admitted and just doesn't care (it's so unimportant -- why are we talking about this right now?) or whether she thinks the very idea of him having feelings for her is too outlandish to even be contemplated and her mind just shuts down (you're being weird -- stop being weird!). There is a lot of potential here for character development for Edea -- what is going on with her attitude toward Alternis? In order for it to change, how would Edea need to be different?
If I had to describe a similar pairing dynamic, it would be Emma and Mr. Knightley from Jane Austen's Emma. Both feature the man in love with the woman for a really long time; the woman has never been in love; the man exists in the woman's blind spot; and they even a sibling-like dynamic (Mr. Knightley's younger brother is married to Emma's older sister, making Emma and Mr. Knightley siblings-in-law). (I am actually working on an Altdea fic basically trying to remake the plot of Emma with Bravely Default characters.)
SPOILER SECTIONS
The rest of this post contains major spoilers for BOTH Bravely Default (BD) and Bravely Second (BS) that will affect your experience with both games. So if you haven't played both games, I would recommend ending here, as you've already read all you need to know about the Altdea dynamic.
However, I will now go over spoilery material for Bravely Default and Second because my discussion of Altdea would be incomplete without it.
Canon interactions (cont.)
In Bravely Default the main spoiler relevant to this pairing is that Ringabel is actually an amnesiac Alternis from another world (World 6). Unlike Edea's *pokerface* reaction to Alternis, Ringabel DOES inspire feelings in her, ones that she eventually recognizes as romantic. Before she is able to, though, he leaves her world, leaving her feeling utterly bereft.
Sidenote: Altdea vs. Rindea
In some sense, you can get everything you want from Altdea in the related Rindea ship. Ringabel regains his memories during the events of Bravely Default and remembers being World 6's Alternis Dim. Altdea fics set before the events of BD (in whatever world) basically double as Rindea fics as well because arguably World 6 Alternis (i.e. Ringabel) would have also had those experiences, just in World 6 with that world's Edea.
THAT SAID, Ringabel has a different personality than Alternis Dim, and even though he eventually regains his memories and that changes his demeanor somewhat, large parts of his Ringabel personality still remain intact. In addition, Ringabel and Edea have a very different established dynamic with each other, which Alternis and Edea do not -- Ringabel and Edea met as strangers; they journeyed together; they saved the world together. Ringabel is a flirty person who flirts with Edea regularly, and Edea is used to that. Regained memories don't change this particular shared history and established baseline of interaction. In other words, any interactions set after the events of Bravely Default with Ringabel and Edea will necessarily feature a different shipping dynamic than similar interactions between Edea and vanilla (non-Ringabel) Alternis.
When I talk about Altdea in this essay, what I mean is interactions between Alternis (of any world, including World 6) and Edea where there is no trace of the Ringabel-specific personality and history. The dynamic is the pure Alternis/Edea one and not a mix of that and the Ringabel/Edea one. If there's some Ringabel aspects at all, I consider that to be Rindea instead of Altdea.
In some sense, Rindea is more fun to play with than Altdea because you have TWO dynamics, which you can mix and match and emphasize as you like. It even allows you to indulge in some identity porn, because World 5 Edea has known both Ringabel as Alternis and Ringabel as Ringabel and is forced to square those very different people, and the knowledge that Ringabel (post-memory recovery) uniquely embodies both. However, because I have such a strong preference for the vanilla Altdea dynamic over the Rindea one, I basically always prefer when interactions max out the Altdea half, which makes that toying feature of Rindea moot for me, so I'm not the best person to discuss that mix-and-match feature of the Rindea ship. But someone with a better appreciation for both dynamics should write some meta for it!
In some sense, you can get everything you want from Altdea in the related Rindea ship. Ringabel regains his memories during the events of Bravely Default and remembers being World 6's Alternis Dim. Altdea fics set before the events of BD (in whatever world) basically double as Rindea fics as well because arguably World 6 Alternis (i.e. Ringabel) would have also had those experiences, just in World 6 with that world's Edea.
THAT SAID, Ringabel has a different personality than Alternis Dim, and even though he eventually regains his memories and that changes his demeanor somewhat, large parts of his Ringabel personality still remain intact. In addition, Ringabel and Edea have a very different established dynamic with each other, which Alternis and Edea do not -- Ringabel and Edea met as strangers; they journeyed together; they saved the world together. Ringabel is a flirty person who flirts with Edea regularly, and Edea is used to that. Regained memories don't change this particular shared history and established baseline of interaction. In other words, any interactions set after the events of Bravely Default with Ringabel and Edea will necessarily feature a different shipping dynamic than similar interactions between Edea and vanilla (non-Ringabel) Alternis.
When I talk about Altdea in this essay, what I mean is interactions between Alternis (of any world, including World 6) and Edea where there is no trace of the Ringabel-specific personality and history. The dynamic is the pure Alternis/Edea one and not a mix of that and the Ringabel/Edea one. If there's some Ringabel aspects at all, I consider that to be Rindea instead of Altdea.
In some sense, Rindea is more fun to play with than Altdea because you have TWO dynamics, which you can mix and match and emphasize as you like. It even allows you to indulge in some identity porn, because World 5 Edea has known both Ringabel as Alternis and Ringabel as Ringabel and is forced to square those very different people, and the knowledge that Ringabel (post-memory recovery) uniquely embodies both. However, because I have such a strong preference for the vanilla Altdea dynamic over the Rindea one, I basically always prefer when interactions max out the Altdea half, which makes that toying feature of Rindea moot for me, so I'm not the best person to discuss that mix-and-match feature of the Rindea ship. But someone with a better appreciation for both dynamics should write some meta for it!
Fast forward three years to Bravely Second: Alternis has several very cool moments in this game. Except (spoiler warning) all the cool ones are actually Ringabel dimension-hopping and posing as World 5's Alternis in order to keep Edea safe. In terms of actual Alternis moments (again, I'm using Alternis here to mean strictly non-Ringabel Alternis), there are only a few, and there is only one that involves interesting interaction with Edea: the Dark Knight / Time Mage asterisk sidequest.
In this sidequest, Alternis is trying to keep taxes high to pay for poor laws that support orphan children, while Khamer is trying to lower taxes so that the economy recovers. If you side against Alternis, he will fight you and once again propose to Edea mid-battle:
Alternis: "Edea, I beg of you! Think again! The children are our greatest treasure. A nation that forsakes them has no future! But let us speak of another future... ...Our future! Yes, y-you will be my bride! And I... I shall be your...!"
Edea: "This isn't the time for proposals, you ninny!"
Alternis: "Ungh.... NOOOOOOOOO!!!" (Chapter 3: Alternis boss fight)
Edea: "This isn't the time for proposals, you ninny!"
Alternis: "Ungh.... NOOOOOOOOO!!!" (Chapter 3: Alternis boss fight)
History repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce... Edea again shoots Alternis down (again, not by directly rejecting his feelings), and Alternis lets out an anguished cry. But this time it's played for laughs. Also, notice just how... awkward the proposal is this time around. So awkward, OMG.
After the battle you get this diary conversation between Yew, Edea, Magnolia, and Tiz:
Edea: Alternis Dim... He's five years older than me, so that makes him 23 [note: in the English version, Edea is supposed to be 21 and Alternis 26 due to localization age changes, but the diary entries accidentally kept the Japanese ages] now. He's originally from Florem.
Tiz: He was an orphan, wasn't he?
Edea: Yes, when Alternis was all alone as a child in Florem, my father reached out to him and offered him a home... We were raised as close as any brother and sister.
Yew: Your father was truly a great man...
Magnolia: Alternis continues to support orphans, providing them with food and educational support.
Yew: Now I feel like we've done something terrible...
Edea: We had little choice. If we let the government carry on with those impossible taxes, it may have allowed the poor laws to survive a bit longer, but it would have eventually driven the whole nation to ruin. A bit of free food and some books would have been little comfort then...
Magnolia: But he never does remove that intimidating helm of his, hm? I wonder just what kind of face he is hiding under there!
Edea: ......... (Alternis's entry in Yew's Diary)
Tiz: He was an orphan, wasn't he?
Edea: Yes, when Alternis was all alone as a child in Florem, my father reached out to him and offered him a home... We were raised as close as any brother and sister.
Yew: Your father was truly a great man...
Magnolia: Alternis continues to support orphans, providing them with food and educational support.
Yew: Now I feel like we've done something terrible...
Edea: We had little choice. If we let the government carry on with those impossible taxes, it may have allowed the poor laws to survive a bit longer, but it would have eventually driven the whole nation to ruin. A bit of free food and some books would have been little comfort then...
Magnolia: But he never does remove that intimidating helm of his, hm? I wonder just what kind of face he is hiding under there!
Edea: ......... (Alternis's entry in Yew's Diary)
You can see that Edea is cognizant of the fact that Ringabel's face is under Alternis's helmet, but she basically is NOT opening that Pandora's box. In general, Edea throughout this game is doing her best to avoid thinking about the Ringabel Question, and a major plot line of the game involves pushing her to stop burying her feelings and confront them.
One final bleak note about the Alternis-Edea dynamic in Bravely Second: Edea responds differently to Alternis!Ringabel than she does to Alternis despite not being aware that Alternis!Ringabel is actually Ringabel, particularly in this scene from Chapter 6 -- blushing when he says "I would go to the very ends of the earth for you if you needed me, Edea" and chasing after him when he turns to leave, an unusual action for Edea to take. This strongly suggests to me that Edea (World 5 Edea anyway) is attracted to Ringabel but NOT Alternis. (Most times when Alternis is in a scene with Edea also involve Braev, and the three of them very much have a familial vibe -- see for example this scene.)
The Altdea dynamic post-BD
This brings us to the Alternis-Edea dynamic post-Bravely Default: In the years after the end of BD, we know that Edea is aware of Alternis's feelings for her, and he is not so thoroughly discouraged or crushed that he shies away from making ANOTHER proposal three years later. But her reaction to him is still basically... *pokerface*. This is quite in line with the characterization I gave earlier of Edea's attitude toward Alternis. However, there are now additional factors at play, namely that (1) Edea has feelings for Ringabel who is not Alternis but also at the same time Alternis, (2) she has still not quite come to terms with those feelings, and (3) Ringabel is no longer in her world, but awkwardly, Alternis is.
I thus read the Alternis-Edea dynamic as being incredibly awkward in the interstice between Bravely Default and Bravely Second. On Alternis's side, he knows Edea is aware of his feelings but they're, like, Not Talking About It. He is also maybe aware that Ringabel is himself from another world and maybe aware that Edea has feelings for Ringabel, which puts him in this awkward zone of somewhat requited love (but mostly unrequited). He still hasn't let go after three years, but there are many question marks about this period: does he regularly propose to / make romantic overtures toward Edea? Or was that just a one-off thing during battle after three years of silence? Why is he still clinging to those feelings despite having been shot down and this making their relationship awkward?
On Edea's side, this is awkward because she's kind of heartbroken about having been abandoned by Ringabel but she is in denial about that fact, and she knows Alternis likes her and he's the same person technically and he hasn't abandoned her but Alternis isn't Ringabel -- she is still waiting for Ringabel in her heart. On a good day she's unable to process Alternis's feelings for her and now it's even worse. Rather than have to think about all that, she'd rather take all those feelings, his and hers, and stuff them in a box and shove it under her bed where she never has to think about them again. That's how I read Edea in the post-BD time period, given what we know about her in BS. I view the two of them as "frozen" or "stuck": knowing things are awkward between them but not knowing how to fix it, either to make it fully platonic or fully romantic. So everything is normal, we're acting normal. With Edea too there are a lot of question marks: does she have to regularly reject Alternis? Is she ever tempted to use him as a Ringabel replacement? Does she have moments where she does find him attractive but specifically because he reminds her of Ringabel (so awkward)?
To make things even more complicated on Edea's end, Ringabel left her in order to save his own world's Edea, so you now have this RIDICULOUS two-person love chain: World 5 Alternis -> World 5 Edea -> World 6 Alternis -> World 6 Edea. World 5!Edea might actally feel (for the first time) a subconscious affinity/solidarity with her world's Alternis in the feelings department -- they're both losers in love. Edea strikes me as the type of person who has never seriously been in love before so this is new and depressing for her.
So if you're into weird and awkward feelings, this period of time is ripe for it. However, this reading of Alternis and Edea is largely speculation on my part.
The Altdea dynamic post-BS
Post-BS, the potential for interesting semi-romantic Altdea dynamics kind of falls off. Edea has at this point come to terms with her feelings for Ringabel, found out that interdimensional travel is possible, and has been encouraged many times (SO many) to chase after the things she loves. Post-BS, what makes most sense for Edea's character is for her to devote all the resources she has as the Grand Marshal of Eternia to the task of discovering interdimensional travel, locating the Planeswardens that Ringabel is working for, and convincing him to stay with her.
The ending is teasingly ambiguous about whether it's Alternis or Ringabel who is in the council chamber with Edea. He is missing the ribbon that would unambiguously distinguish them; Edea mentions that he's saved her many times (something only Ringabel did in this game, but plausibly something Alternis may have done post-BS or pre-BD); he also says something that echoes a line that only Ringabel said ("You know I would fly to the ends of the world if you needed me, Edea..."); she has no reaction. My personal read of it is that this scene was crafted to function as a (rushed) Rindea ending in case Bravely Third never got made. However, if Bravely Third gets made, I think there will be a more in-depth resolution to the Rindea plotline, and it makes more sense to read this as Alternis, who, following Braev's retirement, has transitioned from being Braev's right hand man to being Edea's and has agreed to help her in her mission to find Ringabel (he is just That Loyal (and emotionally repressed)).
If so, there is still the awkwardness that Alternis resembles Ringabel enough to echo a significant line Ringabel says in BS, but the awkwardness has been defused somewhat, because Edea knows her own feelings now, and so I think she is better able to deal with Alternis and Ringabel's similarity and still establish her relationship with Alternis as platonic (because she has resolved to pursue Ringabel). This is just one way to read the BS ending, however.
Alternatively, it's possible this scene depicts Edea after chickening out and deciding to settle for Alternis instead (even after everyone tried to push her to chase Ringabel). You can imagine the kind of rationalizations she would produce in order to justify this decision -- "The man I need has been right in front of me the whole time" "He's spent so long chasing me; it's time I chased him instead" "Alternis is a Ringabel who won't break my heart by leaving me" etc. etc. If so, she probably won't stay like that for long in a sequel -- but it is an interesting dynamic to explore in fanfiction while we wait. I think this one is a bit less likely, though, because I view the main things stopping Edea from pursuing Ringabel is (1) she thought it was physically impossible to travel between worlds in a non-destructive way, and (2) she thought that he had moved on and was living his life happily with World 6!Edea. The events of Bravely Second demonstrated both were false -- you can travel between worlds and Ringabel hasn't settled down. So if anything, I think the barriers keeping Edea from pursuing Ringabel are at an all-time low.
In any case, you can choose to disregard what is likely in canon and just go for any Altdea dynamic you like (Edea in a poly relationship with both Alternis and Ringabel? Why not!).
Alternis and Grand Marshal Edea
One final post-BS dynamic to talk about, though: Edea's promotion to grand marshal. During Bravely Second, Braev retires and Edea becomes grand marshal of Eternia. This development turns the Edea/Alternis dynamic into a boss/employee relationship, which is new. Before, Alternis technically outranked Edea and is the "older brother" so he can get rather imperious with her. That said, it is somewhat modulated by the fact that he has a crush on her and she is above him in terms of social class, adding up to a roughly "peers"/"childhood friends" type relationship with some fluctuation. However, with Edea's ascension to grand marshal in BS, the power in the relationship shifts entirely in Edea's direction -- she not only outranks him but she's his direct boss.
Alternis's formality and the respect he pays to hierarchies means that he is likely to be quite deferent to Edea's authority, and Edea is not afraid to pull rank if the situation requires it. Therefore, setting a fic with Grand Marshal Edea allows one to play with a more femdom dynamic where you can play up Alternis's obedience and "as you wish" tendencies, and have fun with all the awkward situations Edea might place him in.
Downsides to shipping Altdea
The major downside is that this ship has about... 0% chance of happening in its Altdea form. (Very high chance of happening in its Rindea form, assuming we actually get Bravely Third!) However, knowing that the ship will never happen does give some incentive to explore it in fanwork, because you know canon will unfortunately never give you the thing you want.
Fanworks
Please note that I'm new to this fandom and probably missing a lot of older Altdea stuff, especially art which is harder to search for. Let me know if there are more things to add. Also, uh... I should probably curate this somehow because it's really long and I'm not used to having OTPs with so much fanwork.
Fanfiction
Pre-BD (functions as Altdea or Rindea):
Gradual Feelings by
Drakojana (1857 words)Alternis wasn't sure how it happened. First, he thought he disliked Edea. But gradually, he realised he grew fond of her. Perhaps, too fond.
(My comments: An alternate backstory to Edea and Alternis's childhood, more gradual. Mostly pre-BD, but some BD storyline near the end.)Masquerade by
"Contrary to what most people thought, Alternis did not, in fact, dislike dances." It just takes special circumstances before he's willing to participate. A short, fluffy Altdea one-shot written for Bravely Ship Week Fall 2018.
(My comments: A fic I wrote to delve into Alternis's self-consciousness and the way he hides in his armor.)El Ángel de Luz by
MaryVicky (1166 words)Un día de lluvia caía en Eternia, un joven muchacho en armadura negra esperaba paciente la atención médica en el hospital de aquellas tierras, cuando de repente, apareció ante él, su musa, su ángel de luz.
(My comments: Reading in translation, pre-BD Altdea fluff.)Her Knight by
perydot (876 words)Edea still remembers who Alternis Dim used to be.
(My comments: Interaction as children.)Because It's You by
Lunar-Serenade (2334 words)No matter how different Ringabel and Alternis may seem, they still shared the same weakness - a certain headstrong tomboy with a big mouth and an even bigger heart. (Alternis/Ringabel x Edea)
(My comments: Half pre-BD Altdea, half during-BD Rindea.)Baby Bird by
Bay-Alexison (2161 words)Edea hates being called baby bird.
(My comments: Half pre-BD Altdea, half during-BD Rindea.)During BD:
That which Yearns is that which Knows by
Two yearning hearts, three different perspectives.
(My comments: This one has Edea liking Alternis as a child but they both pull away in their own way and never get together and it's angsty, until Ringabel comes along and manages to close the loop.)Snapshots - Chapter 5: A Reason to Exist by
The Battle at the Holy Pillar, from another's perspective.
(My comments: More Alternis angst.)Post-BD:
How Edea Got Her Groove Back by
TheStockholmEffect (151k words - Unfinished)[Post-game, true ending] Starting and ending a war? Easy. Making sure the war stays over, and forging broken bonds between nations? Trickier. Figuring out a certain Dark Knight? Impossible. But I'm Edea Lee, so it all ought to be a piece of cake, right?
(My comments: This is the motherlode of Altdea fanfiction. A slow-burn Altdea fic set post-BD with Edea starting off still heartbroken over Ringabel. Lots of Altdea, Alternis and Edea being bad at feelings, Alternis/Ringabel contrasts, and even extra worldbuilding and backstory for Alternis. It's. the dream.)Courage by
kabukimono (6450 words)Alternis Dim may have survived the fall from Grandship, but the hardest part has yet to begin: moving on and dealing with a certain Grand Marshal's daughter.
(My comments: Featuring awkwardly dealing with that proposal. Lots of Alternis being awkward and embarrassed and Edea and Alternis being fail at communication.) Timid Devotion by
"The ache of being so close to being so close to Edea kept Alternis awake at night." Just a short character study of how the Edea/Ringabel relationship makes Alternis feel, set shortly after the events of Bravely Default.
(My comments: Me exploring some of Alternis's side of the awkward post-BD period.)Love and Black Helmets by
it really does seem like everyone has finally gotten their happy ending—except for alternis. ...what about him? why can't he have his happy ending?
(My comments: Alternis bitter at Edea having chosen Ringabel.)During BS:
After the Glow by
kmacl1994 (3412 words - Unfinished)Alternis confronts Edea after the conclusion on the Grandship. Will Edea and Alternis confront their own feelings? Alternis x Edea. Bravely Second. Spoilers for the game.
(My comments: AU where Alternis asks Edea out after she sides WITH him against Khamer during BS.)Post-BS:
The Difficulty of Other's Love by
randomblackberry (3141 words)A fic set post-Bravely Second, in which Edea is NOT salty, Yew is confused, and Tiz just wants to help. However, the universe may have been better off without his interference.
(My comments: Edea waiting for Ringabel, but encouraged to pay more attention to Alternis by Tiz. Features Alternis/Ringabel contrasts and Edea facing the Ringabel/Alternis Problem head on and trying to negotiate her relationship with Alternis.)Alternis/Grand Marshal!Edea:
Snapshots by
Chapter 7: Lucky (2236 words) It's a dark and stormy night in Eternia, and Edea has a new guest. Alternis does not approve. (My comments: Platonic Alternis & Edea (I think?). It's cute.)
Chapter 11: Your Helping Hands - Altdea (589 words) "Zip me." (My comments: Alternis being awkward. The good stuff.)
Un buen nombre by
culoniforsx (1461 words)Al final de su jornada, Alternis Dim hace una visita a la Gran Mariscal Edea Lee.
(My comments: Reading in translation, seems like established relationship with a pregnant Edea.)AU:
A Girl, A Boy, and a Wolf by
"Imagine Person A of your OTP is a shapeshifter. One day B finds A as a dog (or whatever animal), and believing it to be a stray, takes A home and adopts them. A waits for a chance to escape, while being unintentionally babied by B. Person A sees B in their private life and begins to like them, and when A guiltily runs away B is heartbroken. A finds B as a human and asks them out." Now imagine this happens when they're kids, so uh, no romance. Just Alternis rescuing Edea from hypothermia when she foolishly goes searching for her runaway dog alone.
(My comments: The story for Alternis's adoption by the Lees but with a shapeshifter!AU twist.)Out of the Stillness by
For her first assignment, Edea had expected something more exciting, like being on the frontlines in the search for the Wind Vestal. But no, her father has decided she needed a babysitter and assigned her to accompany Alternis Dim as he investigates the destruction of the Temple of Wind.
(My comments: An AU where Edea and Alternis are sent to investigate the Temple of Wind together and there's sexual tension and also sex. This is the only fic I've seen that explores what it would be like for Edea and Alternis to have sex for the first time and it's pretty gREAT.)Unknown:
Warmth for the Winter by
That was that, then; he was officially banned from wearing his armor to casual outings. (Alternis, Edea, and a childhood tradition.)
(My comments: Fluffy one-sided Altdea. I don't know when this is set??)Art
Art by
Art by
Art, Art, Art, Art by
Art by
Art by
Art by
Loss of you by
SailorLiBravely Default Secret Altdea santa by
dazzel-almondAlternis has never held hands before by
rosalynnspecterSome nice Altdea by
darkstarrunnerAltdea by
alternosBRAVELY DEFAULT: Alternis Dim and Edea by
017mThe Most Beautiful by
KHMarieXIIBlack and White by
ssbbforevaセコム騎士 by 伯
幼馴染 by おれんじ
【ネタバレ】じれったい by ハスノ
名刺用, 【ネタバレ有】らくがきまとめ, ♡, 【ネタバレ】バカバカバカっ！！！, ちゅっ, ＼ﾄﾞｻｯ／ by すもも
プロポーズ by ねいじ.ゅ
References
Quotes from D's Journal and Yew's Diary come from the Final Fantasy Wikia:
http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/D%27s_Journal/
http://finalfantasy.wikia.com/wiki/Yew%27s_Diary/
Videos / Let's Plays linked or used to get quotes:
Bravely Default cutscenes by
Bravely Second walkthrough by
Bravely Default Drama CD ~ Reunion Festival~ Translation by
mokochan_3141 I do realize that Alternis has blurted out his feelings to Edea not just once but twice (at least). It's even become a bit of a running joke with the drama CD and this LINE sticker. That said, Alternis and Edea are both awkward as fuck about communication and their relationship to each other so you can easily undo this. Not only that, but the Bravely Default universe has canon alternate universes, so you can always choose to play in a fresh world where Alternis hasn't made a confession yet, if you want to. Or you can focus on all the pre-Bravely Default years that Alternis had feelings for Edea which he never acted on. So many possibilities! ↩
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