relationship chart :: capeandcowl

[swordedpast]

⚔ a story of a knight--

⚔ friends and foes?

Rin Tohsaka Fate/stay night (Unlimited Blade Works) average How does one even begin to describe Rin Tohsaka? She's selfish and spoiled, and a brat besides. On top of that, she keeps standing in the way of Archer's goal of self-destruction. Yet she's his Master in the Holy Grail War, even if that shouldn't apply here, and with her power and determination she's proven herself to be worth following. That should be all it is, and yet...Archer also feels a bond to her that he can't explain. Somehow, first in the short time he knew her back home and then in the months he's been with her here, Archer has grown to value Rin as a person and enjoy spending time with her, despite all their bickering. It's awfully complicated, and events in the City have only made it more so. Somehow, it's all led to their relationship becoming something greater than Master and Servant. But the disparity in their timelines (him from the middle of the Holy Grail War, her from months after it) and their own daunting issues stand between the two of them being open about what they feel for each other.

Shirou Emiya Fate/stay night (Unlimited Blade Works) steelminded No matter what, Shirou Emiya is an existence Archer can't tolerate. This kid needs to die. That's all there is to it; any more complicated explanation would boil down to the same thing in the end. Unfortunately, Rin opposes this idea for some unfathomable reason, and so for the moment Archer has promised not to kill Shirou. That doesn't mean he'll let the stupid boy with orange hair and big dreams go totally free, though. He plans to harass him on a regular basis--like picking at a wound that won't heal.

Saber Fate/stay night (Unlimited Blade Works) promised_victory As far as Archer is concerned, Saber should be his enemy. But she's too many other things as well. The distant star he once chased; the embodiment of his failures; the mirror to his own pain. Like Rin, she's from farther down the timeline than he is back home, so it turns out that the both of them must cooperate as Servants of Rin Tohsaka. Archer isn't sure what to make of this, but more than that, he isn't sure what to make of the softer sides of Saber he's seeing here. Over the course of his life he came to remember her only as the personification of the ideals he upheld, and now he's being reintroduced to her as a person. It's a complicated experience.

Kirei Kotomine Fate/zero god_damned For the life of him, Archer can't remember exactly what his relationship with Kirei Kotomine was when he lived. But Rin says the priest is her guardian, and Archer has a vaguely uneasy feeling about the man. So he keeps a wary eye on him. After all, he considers himself Rin's guardian now, and he won't let some priest change that.

Minako Arisato Persona 3 Portable xxii_thefool Since he met her in this world, Minako has unfailingly treated Archer with sweetness and cheerful kindness. And it's worse than that: she's also clearly a heroic person willing to sacrifice herself for others. She's demonstrated this not just in small ways by now, but in large and dramatic ways as well. So naturally she reminds Archer of his younger self and should be a prime target for his hatred. Somehow, though, it's hard for him to follow through with much nastiness to her. In fact, he wants to help her instead. But he knows now that he can't: she's already beyond salvation. That's yet another way she reminds him of himself, yet he still finds himself unable to hate her. She's like him, but she's not. So instead of railing against her, he's found himself opening up to her, both by chance and by intention. Without entirely realizing it, he's begun to look to her for guidance.

Rick Bradbury Ex Machina waiting Archer's been a little curious about this man ever since he was dragged into the same games that killed Rin, but only more recently have circumstances given him the chance to learn more about Bradbury. Necessity brought them together for a mission, and against all expectations, Archer has found himself impressed by Bradbury's honest dedication to his job. There's something distantly familiar about that determination and sincerity, but not familiar enough to make him angry and resentful. So he's found himself oddly loyal to this big and serious man, even if he'd rather not say so in so many words.

Dirk Strider Homestuck bonermagic Just some kid...who happens to also have a lot of rough experiences in his own world behind him. Yet he's still capable of holding up with casual sarcasm. Truth be told, Archer kind of likes him. It's a little awkward, though, since it seems like Dirk genuinely likes Archer too--maybe even thinks he's cool. And how can Archer put up with something like that?

Roxy Lalonde Homestuck wytchkkrafts Another kid, and this one's really good with the sass and the sarcasm. Archer can respect that, even if he doesn't much care for her choice in cat names. He can't quite pinpoint why, but he sort of likes her. Maybe it's because she seems so bad at exercising her own best judgment. More and more, he feels the need to protect her, because that's what happens when he likes someone: he acts like a sullen jerk to them while not-so-secretly protecting them.

Jack Bauer 24 out_of_time As a fellow seasoned and ruthless fighter kind of guy, Jack is someone who it's easy for Archer to relate to on a level of pure sarcasm and cynicism. As time in the City has gone by, Archer has continued to hear and see things about Jack Bauer that have intrigued him and cemented his opinion of the man as someone who's been through many of the same bitter experiences as he has himself. Brooding antiheroes can recognize their own kind, after all. Though he'd be loath to admit it, Archer might even look up to Jack a little bit as someone who's followed the same path of a hero as he did, opened his eyes to the horrors of it, and still picked himself up and kept going afterwards.

Julian Keller Marvel Comics (616) hellionated Some guy who seems to be the aggressive sort. Archer doesn't have the highest opinion of him, thanks to his hotheaded attitude, but he's starting to suspect that the kid may not be all talk: he might have the guts and power to back it up as well. So he's keeping an eye on Julian, just in case it turns out he's not useless. With what he knows and what he's done, he may be valuable in the fight against Vulcanus.

Laura Kinney Marvel Comics girlverine One of his employers, the owner of a dojo where he works as a janitor. As a very serious but apparently well-intentioned young woman clearly experienced with and devoted to fighting, Laura has a rare privilege with Archer. That is to say, she reminds him of Saber, the second person to save him and give him an ideal to follow. This means that he's more than happy to work for her, and he would gladly fight for her if she asked. He'll put up with a lot of demands from her as an employer should she care to give them, and despite her obviously being capable of defending herself, he'll run to help protect her if he sees her in danger. Both his position as her employee and her resemblance (in his mind) to Saber make him inclined to do right by her. At the same time, though, they also mean that he holds her to high standards: she has to be someone worth serving and protecting in the name of the woman she reminds him of. He'll be all the more inclined to criticize her and even lash out if she steps off the pedestal he's put her on, and it's unlikely to be pretty.

Mordin Solus Mass Effect heal_or_execute Initially, Archer was inclined to dismiss Mordin as some soft, idealistic sort who didn't understand what it took to save people. Since then, he's worked with Mordin on a mission and found himself volunteering at his clinic, and he's beginning to suspect that the friendly alien may have more to him than that. At the very least, he has to admit that his dedication to his job as a doctor is sincere and wholehearted, and that's something he can respect.