Mockingbird is a The Witcher (2019) fanfic.
You can read the story at Archive of Our Own here
.
Mockingbird includes examples of:
- Abusive Parents:In this story, most parents leave much to be desired. Emhyr wants to marry her own daughter to give birth to an heir capable of saving the world regardless of what Cirilla thinks or feels about marrying the man who conquered her kingdom and caused the deaths of the beings. dear of her. On the other hand is the mother of the false Cirilla who in a good mood calls her "her little mistake" but if she is angry about being abandoned by a lover she takes it out on her, drinks and throws her two children out of the house, and when False Ciri makes a mistake when playing a piano piece by being forced to play for her guests despite panicking to play for strangers, she tells him that it is a shame and squeezes her arm.
- Bittersweet Ending: Emhyr dies at the end and False Ciri returns to Darn Rowan agrees that it could be his death sentence later and has had 3 miscarriages, but is at peace with this having had a happy and loving marriage and managed to change to Nifgaard of a militarized nation at the center of knowledge and culture.
- Demoted to Extra: Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri hardly appear in this story, only near the end. The story instead centers on False Ciri and her caretaker Stella Congreve.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Emhyr despite everything has this, he cannot kill his wife despite not loving her and that she put his plans at risk. He doesn't hurt False Ciri either, but she offers him anything to be forced to pretend to be the real Ciri.
- Later this saves Ciri from being trapped in a forced incestuous marriage, because Emhyr cannot follow her realizing that she will only make her suffer.
- Perspective Flip: This story focuses on false Ciri, a secondary character in the canon whose only function was to pretend to be Ciri, here we see her life before the war, her time as a refugee and dressmaker, her thoughts and feelings about passing as Ciri and her life to the Beware of Stella Congreve.
- Riches to Rags: False Ciri is at first a minor noble from Cintria, she can afford an intituress, maid and servants, and her mother's parties are famous although they are rarely invited to court and dances, the war comes and she ends up as a refugee working measuring fabrics in Brugge.
- Rags to Royalty: False Ciri is a Cinderella type: A minor noblewoman who, due to circumstances, ends up measuring fabrics for a half dwarf, until she is kidnapped to pretend to be Princess Cirilla and although the emperor realizes the deception he falls in love with her for her virtues making her his empress and queen of Cintria.
- Parental Incest: As in canon, Emhyr wishes to marry his daughter Cirilla, both to legally unite Cintria to Nifgaard and to have a son who has the power to save the world.
- Princess Classic: Despite not being a true princess, False Ciri fits this Trope, she is beautiful, kind, feminine, an excellent pianist and possesses an inner strength capable of bringing the emperor of Nifgaard.
- Old Man Marrying a Child:
- Emhyr is even older than false Ciri's father but ends up marrying her.
- Stella Congreve married the elderly Count Liddertal at sixteen.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: Emhyr wants to marry and father a son with Cirilla his own daughter but with the purpose of giving birth to the hero who will save the world from an ice age.
- War Is Hell: False Ciri and the rest of the refugees not only lose their homes and family due to the war but also go hungry and cold thanks to very small rations of food in poor condition, they must endure sleeping with insects and rats in addition to the threat of contracting diseases for these same conditions while many deal with the loss of everything.
