Line #69 FanFic/GoNotGently


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6	[[quoteright:295:[[http://willothewisp.deviantart.com/ https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/eiko_gng_8080.png]]]]
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8	->''"For my birthday, when I was ten, Papa gave me hair ribbons and chocolate and a new set of spanners and the chance to pilot an airship without Erin at the co-pilot's wheel. For Vivi's birthday, when he was twelve, he got a houseful of dead children and left us a very gentle little note and went off and Stopped.\
9	\
10	Why?"''
11	--> --'''Eiko'''
12
13	Thirteen years have passed since the events of ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'', and Eiko Carol Fabool has grown into an intelligent, self-possessed young woman and the heir to the regency of Lindblum. She is [[HappilyAdopted beloved by her parents]], keeps in touch with [[HappilyEverAfter her old adventuring buddies]], and is well on her way to becoming [[WrenchWench a talented airship engineer]].
14
15	There are only two disappointments in her perfect world: her [[TheMagicGoesAway fading connection]] to her eidolons, and the lingering pain of losing her childhood friend, Vivi Ornitier, when she was ten. Otherwise, everything about her life seems almost too good to last.
16
17	And then Lindblum is attacked without warning by a violent unknown aggressor, and in trying to stop him, Eiko finds herself whisked away to the ruins of the Desert Palace. Trapped at the mercy of a madman, and armed with only her own wits and some half-forgotten white magic, Eiko struggles to find a way to escape and return home...while at the same time piecing together clues about her mysterious captor. What exactly ''is'' Black Tango? What is his connection to Kuja, to the black mages, and to the dead world of Terra? And what part did he play in Vivi's death?
18
19	''Fanfic/GoNotGently'' is quite possibly the best-known FFIX fanfiction on the internet, and certainly among the best. It tackles the darker side of many of the same questions about life, death, and survival that were raised by the original game, and provides some very interesting explorations of the inner workings of magic and summoning on Gaia. In the process, it paints vivid, well-painted portraits of all the familiar FFIX heroes thirteen years down the line, and adds a small but judicious handful of original characters to the mix.
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21	Oh, and there are Black Mages. [[{{Squee}} Lots and lots of Black Mages.]]
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23	If all this sounds good to you, go and [[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/963803/1/Go_Not_Gently read the story]] before scrolling down. There are some extremely powerful [[TheReveal plot twists]] that are really best experienced fresh, and only the most major are spoiler tagged below. You have been warned.
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25	----
26	!!This story provides examples of:
27	* AbductionIsLove: Played with, because Tango [[spoiler:is barely conscious that what he's doing is trying desperately to grab on to his happy memories. He admits he probably would have killed her if he didn't already like her.]]
28	* AbusiveParents: Tango, to the Black Mages. Played with, though in that [[spoiler:everything he does is to save their lives; his abusive behaviors come from his unstable personality, not lack of love for them.]]
29	%%* ActionGirl
30	* ApocalypseMaiden: [[spoiler:Eiko comes very close to becoming one when she decides to risk summoning Necron to force him to help extend Black Mage lifespan - the other summons are ''[[HeroAntagonist very clear]]'' this puts the world at grave risk.]]
31	%%* ArrangedMarriage
32	* AxCrazy: Tango ''really'' isn't all there. [[spoiler:Undergoing incredible BodyHorror and dangerous self-experimentation will do that to you.]]
33	* BabiesEverAfter: Zidane and Garnet have two children, with a third on the way at the time of the story.
34	* BattleButler: Black Mages are capable of turning the destructive forces of nature itself to their will. [[TheWoobie Rain]] prefers making sandwiches and keeping Eiko's rooms in order.
35	%%* BattleCouple: Dagger and Zidane, Beatrix and Steiner, [[spoiler:Eiko and Tango]].
36	* BeautifulAllAlong: [[spoiler:Played with; Tango looks very handsome under his hat - the problem is he looks like ''[[BigBad Kuja]]''.]]
37	* BerserkButton: Don't tell Tango what to do. Also, don't hurt his "children". That goes for Eiko, too.
38	-->"You do ''not'' blow up Eiko Carol's people in Eiko Carol's city!"
39	%%* BewareTheNiceOnes
40	%%* BirthDeathJuxtaposition
41	* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:Tango dies and Eiko is permanently scarred by the trauma of her abduction and losing him all over again (not to mention the cognitive dissonance of loving someone who was AxCrazy by his own view), but having [[DyingAsYourself regained his sanity and kindness]], and the black mages stabilize their biology thanks to his efforts, though it takes years to be reborn into new bodies; in addition, it turns out that he [[SomeoneToRememberHimBy left something]] with Eiko.]]
42	* BlackCloak: Tango wears extremely dark colors with the [[InTheWood normal Black Mage attire]].
43	* ChildrenAreInnocent: The Black Mages following Tango are clearly more children than EvilMinions, and act it.
44	* CloudCuckooLander: Tango has a tendency to go off on weird, TalkativeLoon tangents, aggravated by his [[MoodSwinger shifting moods]]. [[spoiler:Alarmingly, Eiko's internal narration starts to have the tangents too, especially after she ends up siding with him.]]
45	* BreakTheCutie: Both Eiko [[spoiler:and Tango/Vivi - in fact, the later breaking and becoming Tango leads directly to Eiko breaking when she realizes her abductor is her previously kind crush]].
46	%%* BrokeYourArmPunchingOutCthulhu
47	* ChewToy: [[spoiler:Tango]], as it turns out. [[spoiler:When ''not dying'' turned out to be a prelude to ''worse'' things, he hasn't had a great life.]]
48	%%* CurbStompBattle: Tango vs. [[spoiler:Zidane]].
49	* DamselOutOfDistress: Nobody is coming to save Eiko, but that hardly stops her. [[spoiler:She only stops trying to escape when she ends up siding with him in an attempt to find a less destructive way to save the Black Mages.]]
50	%%* DeadGuyJunior: Vivi and [[spoiler:Vita]].
51	* DeathFic: The loss of poor Vivi still drives the plotline, even thirteen years later. [[spoiler:Except not, as he suffered more metaphorical death as Black Tango, but he actually does die at the end.]]
52	%%* DrivenToVillainy
53	* DynamicEntry: Freya and Amarant have ''no time'' for doorknobs, man! There's a battle on!
54	** Doubles for BigDamnHeroes ''and'' [[DeadpanSnarker Deadpan Snark]].
55	--->'''Freya:''' Dreadfully sorry I'm late. Amarant wanted us to stop and eat.
56	%%* EldritchAbomination: A few of them!
57	* EvenEvilHasStandards
58	-->''"Oh, Gods, [[spoiler:Vivi, Vivi]] wouldn't kill ''Steiner'', would he?"''
59	* EvilFormerFriend: [[spoiler:Black Tango is an insane, misanthropic version of Vivi, corrupted by the very process he thought would keep Black Mages alive and lashing out in barely remembered pain at his old friends. He becomes less evil as he remembers more of what actually happened in the course of canon.]]
60	* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Eiko's hair grows out along with her despair.
61	* TheFaceless: Tango and the black mages, although they are [[AvertedTrope far from]] being FacelessGoons. [[spoiler:It's also shown part of the reason they hide their faces is that they all resemble Kuja, as his "sons" through invention, and they understandably resent him.]]
62	* FallenHero: [[spoiler:Black Tango is Vivi, after discovering the Black Mages were bound for extinction, his desperate attempts to survive turned him into a Black Waltz model black mage, and drove him insane with pain; he barely remembers the friendship he had with the party. Subverted due to LoveRedeems, causing him to regain his mind and realize the survival of the black mages doesn't require destroying the rest of the planet.]]
63	* ForgottenChildhoodFriend: Played with. [[spoiler:Nobody forgot Vivi]], but over the years of loneliness and self-exile, [[spoiler:he's [[LeftForDead rewritten his own history]] a little in his head...]]
64	%%* FreakinessShame
65	* FromMyOwnPersonalGarden: Tango's first sign of opening up is actually making food from his lab for Eiko. Though she [[BrainBleach blanches]] when she realizes he doesn't just the food, but the [[spoiler:minions, too - she wonders how much embryonic Black Mage from the fruits he uses as replacement for the factory got in the actual vegtables.]]
66	%%* FuroScene [[ShowerOfAngst Of Angst]]
67	* GetItOverWith: Subverted, painfully. It's amazing how fast you change your mind when the strangling actually starts...
68	* GigglingVillain: Black Tango has a weird giggle he frequently goes into.
69	%%* GladToBeAliveSex: Possibly the least joyful example(s), ever.
70	* GoGoEnslavement: Eiko just cannot seem to find proper clothes in the Desert Palace. She makes do with [[{{Stripperiffic}} Kuja's leftovers]].
71	%%* GratuitousPrincess: Eiko Carol, Garnet, and Cornelia all hold or held this status.
72	* HairTriggerTemper: It's amazing how easy it is to set Tango off. [[spoiler:Eiko theorizes this is because he still has immaturity from being Vivi combined with Black Waltz aggression.]]
73	%%* HappilyAdopted
74	%%* [[SheCleansUpNicely He Cleans Up Nicely]]
75	%%* HerHeartWillGoOn
76	%%* HeroicSacrifice
77	* TheHighQueen: Everybody in Alexandria loves Queen Garnet.
78	* HurtComfortFic: [[spoiler:The core of the fic is Eiko slowly nursing Black Tango back to something resembling sanity after she realizes he's Vivi.]]
79	%%* IDidWhatIHadToDo
80	* ImportantHaircut: [[spoiler:Tango]] begins to soften towards [[spoiler:Eiko]] after this, despite it verging on a TraumaticHaircut at the time.
81	* JabbaTableManners: Don't eat lunch with Black Tango. Man does not know how to eat slow.
82	%%* LimaSyndrome
83	%%* LineOfSightName: Eiko ends up giving these to a lot of the Black Mages. Rain, in particular, comes to mind.
84	* LoveMakesYouCrazy: [[spoiler:Eiko is bitterly self-aware of this when discovering Tango is a corrupted Vivi causes all of her feelings for him to come rushing back. By the end of it, she's become just as much of a CloudCuckooLander as he is, willingly attempting to summon Necron to force it to extend black mage lifespan simply because she can't force herself to betray him in any way.]]
85	%%* LoveHurts: And ''how''.
86	%%* TheMourningAfter: Poor, poor Vivi.
87	%%* MamaBear
88	* MadScientist: Tango will never stop looking for [[spoiler:a way to save his "children"]].
89	* ModestRoyalty: Zidane and Garnet have [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething more important things to do]].
90	* MommasBoy: Rain loves his "mother" very, very much.
91	%%* MoodSwinger
92	%%* MoralityPet: All the Black Mages, to Tango.
93	%%* MotiveRant: Several.
94	%%* NoMrBondIExpectYouToDine
95	%%* NotQuiteDead
96	* OmnicidalManiac: [[spoiler:This is Necron's purpose, as revealed by the summons - he is effectively the part of the universe that desires to die, and so when manifested he attempts to destroy as much as he can.]]
97	%%* OneWingedAngel
98	* PapaWolf: Don't ever mess with Tango's "children". [[AbusiveParents Only he's]] [[HypocriticalHeartwarming allowed to]] [[MoodSwinger do that]].
99	* PetTheDog / KickTheDog: Tango vacillates wildly between these, with regards to the Black Mages. [[MoodSwinger Sometimes in the same scene.]]
100	%%* PimpedOutDress:
101	%%* ThePollyanna: The Black Mages. My gosh, the Black Mages.
102	* PsychoPrototype: There's a reason why Tango's name sounds so reminiscent of the Black Waltzes. [[spoiler:He wasn't always, but Vivi didn't exactly have time to consider if converting himself into one would break his mind worse.]]
103	* PsychopathicManchild: Tango's occasional lapses into childish tantrums and pouting only make him that much creepier. [[spoiler:And more tragic, when his backstory is revealed.]]
104	* PurpleProse: Undeniable at times, but this fic [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools makes it look good]].
105	* RaceAgainstTheClock: Black Mages have a limited lifespan, and [[spoiler:Tango and Eiko]] won't let them stop without a fight.
106	* RageAgainstTheHeavens: [[spoiler:Eiko does ''not'' take the summons revolting when she tries to summon Necron to force him to help well.]]
107	* TheReveal: Black Tango [[spoiler:is in fact Vivi Ornitier himself, driven mad by the grief of watching his own people die.]]
108	%%* RoaringRampageOfRevenge
109	%%* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
110	%%* SacredHospitality: Rain and the other Black Mages do their best to uphold this ideal, with varying results.
111	%%* ScheherezadeGambit: Invoked/given the nod by Tango, early on.
112	%%* SheIsAllGrownUp
113	%%* SoWhatDoWeDoNow
114	%%* SomeoneToRememberHimBy
115	%%* StillGotIt
116	* StockholmSyndrome: [[spoiler:Eiko bitterly realizes this is what's happening to her as she falls in love with Vivi all over again while in perfect knowledge of how he's also Black Tango, but [[LoveMakesYouCrazy finds it increasingly hard to care]].]]
117	%%* SuperWindowJump
118	%%-->"You're all [[PrecisionFStrike fuckin']] idiots, you know."
119	%%-->"Why's that?"
120	%%-->"Because the [[ThisIsForEmphasisBitch bitch]] can ''fly!"''
121	%%* SummonMagic
122	%%* TakeAThirdOption: Eiko attempts this in her DealWithTheDevil.
123	* TakeThat: Directed at Eiko's original costume design, by none other than Tango himself.
124	-->''"Yellow,'' Carol? Yellow scoop-neck coveralls with the front cut out?"
125	%%* TalkingInBed
126	* TermsOfEndangerment: "Linden-bloom" is the most common one that Tango throws at Eiko, as a pun on her adopted hometown, but he generally showers her with these, to her unease and disgust.
127	* ThereWasADoor: There are ''dozens'' of doors in Alexandria Castle, but Tango just ''has'' to [[DramaticShattering waste a perfectly good window]].
128	%%* TomatoSurprise: [[spoiler:The identity of Black Tango.]]
129	%%* {{Tomboy}}: Eiko.
130	%%** Also Cornelia, to an extent.
131	* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth: The black mages, according to Tango. Not to mention Vivi himself. [[spoiler:...supposedly.]]
132	* TorchesAndPitchforks: Zidane half-jokes about this at one point:
133	-->(Dagger)'s called in the cavalry and all the fine horses and all the fine men, and last time I heard even Quina was sharpening all the forks in the kitchen and asking if this guy was good to eat.
134	* ATragedyOfImpulsiveness: Arguably, this all could have been avoided if Eiko had let the Lindblum air force take on Tango...although, then again, he might have just [[DownerEnding slaughtered them all and moved on to Alexandria]].
135	* TragicVillain: All Tango wants is a world where his children can live. It's not ''his'' fault that [[spoiler: according to his calculations, everyone else has to die to facilitate this.]]
136	%%* TranquilFury
137	%%-->"Don't move. I don't like it when you move."
138	* TheUnfettered: Tango ''will'' save the black mages. Period.
139	%%* UnstoppableRage
140	* UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans: Or at least survival of the Black Mages, from Tango's perspective.
141	%%* VillainousBreakdown
142	* VillainousCrush: It becomes clear to Eiko that Tango acts awfully like someone with a crush on her. [[spoiler:And then it becomes clear this crush came from before he was a villain.]]
143	* WhatTheHellHero: [[spoiler:The Eidolons to Eiko, upon realizing she intends to summon Necron. They all mutiny and refuse to help her.]]
144	%%* WingedHumanoid: Black Tango, same as all the other Waltzes. Also, [[spoiler: Eiko in her Trance form]].
145	%%* WrenchWench: Eiko, although it's more of an informed ability.

Context FanFic / GoNotGently