Part of a series! I just felt like doing a chibi shot of random pairings and then following it up with tl;dr explanations of how I view the pairing. PREPARE TO BE BORED OUT OF YOUR SKULL.
Much like almost every relationship in JTHMverse (in my eyes anyway), Nny and Edgar are not a healthy or particularly happy couple. Of course, ya can guess that by the fact that Nny plans to kill Edgar at some point, but anyway.
There are different ways to go with this, but for the sake of argument I'm going to go with the basic idea laid out in Vargas for how their relationship might have progressed after the whole original story. It's not the only version but it's the one I'll use here. This is just my personal understanding of their relationship, and I know there are people who have their own versions of what happened or what could have happened, and therefore their view of their pairing could be worlds different.
MORAL OF PREVIOUS PARAGRAPH: THIS IS SUBJECTIVE. Continuing on.
The problem with their relationship, the main conflict for them I think, is the huge power imbalance between the two of them. It's easy to make fun of Edgar for being a doormat and letting Nny do whatever he wants, but it kind of trivializes the fact that Johnny's a homicidal maniac who could kill Edgar at any time, so it's in Edgar's best interests to do what Johnny wants to stay alive. Heck, I can't say I'd do any differently in such a situation. If someone threatened to kill me, or presented that threat in a very tangible way, I'd be afraid to be around them too, and I'd probably do what I thought would make them happy.
Johnny is insane, and therefore that puts them on two different planes that can never really reconcile. Edgar can never really trust Johnny because of that, and I think that even if everything turns out fabulous and Nny somehow drops his whole murder-Edgar plan, I think there's a good chance that Edgar would still be afraid of him on some level. This is justified, understandable fear because Nny has killed dozens, perhaps hundreds of people, and there's no reason he wouldn't do the same to Edgar at some point.
Now, you throw in what Nny wants from their relationship, that happiness, and the fact that the end of this happiness involves murdering Edgar. The fact that Nny doesn't think this is a bad thing is an example of just how messed up the connections in his head really are, and another way that Nny and Edgar can never meet on equal ground. Edgar isn't crazy (haha, at least not yet). Edgar can never completely understand Nny or what he does, or why he does whatever it is that he does. Nny's actions are random, unpredictable to him.
There's also the fact that Nny's perfection has been left vague for Edgar so far, so he still, to this point even in the story, has no idea what the magic cue will be for Nny to finally decide "this is it" and then murder him. In a way, nothing has really changed since they first met. Nny can still kill him at any time. For all of the love that Nny may have for Edgar, it won't save Edgar's life. We have a clue as to what that perfection might be like from Nny's encounter with Devi, but whether or not his perfection with Edgar is the same or not is still unknown.
Edgar is still essentially powerless because the end of their relationship, the perfection that Nny is looking for, is defined by Nny and Nny alone. It involves Edgar, sure, but it won't be Edgar's decision (unless he can guess it correctly) when it will happen.
Nny of course, sees nothing wrong with this. Nny believes that Edgar understands this entire thing. Kind of relating to his intense selfishness, Nny doesn't care that when his perfection is reached, Edgar will be dead (or he gives that impression, if it happens things may turn out differently). That's part of it, for him.
Does Nny care about Edgar? I'm sure that he does. Does Nny love Edgar? Depends on your definition, really, but it wouldn't be unreasonable to think that he does. It's not that Nny doesn't care about Edgar, because he does, it's just that his understanding of relationships and other people is so twisted by his insanity that he just doesn't understand. He follows the rules of his own reality.
Does Edgar care about Nny? I think that he does. Does Edgar love Nny? That's a trickier question and again depends on your definition of love. You might even look at it as Edgar just feeling concerned, responsible for Nny, just feels like he has to help him somehow and that all this time, he's not in love with him, not REALLY in love with him, at all. Sick irony there.
Does Nny know that he's hurting Edgar? I don't think Nny is quite that self-aware or perceptive. After all, he seemed somewhat confused when Devi resisted. Does Nny think killing Edgar is a bad thing? No. This is the primary example of what is wrong with their relationship. In a way you may think of Nny as having trivialized death, or the finality of death.
Edgar, despite saying he understands, I don't think really thinks it will happen. I don't think he appreciates the finality of the situation himself, and if Nny did make that attempt on his life, I imagine that he'd try to fight, if he could. Edgar doesn't want to die. He's not suicidal. But he feels that he has no other choice. Nny may kill him at any time, anywhere, for any reason, regardless of whether Edgar agreed to it or not. Agreeing to it, saying he understood, may have prolonged his death for a while, but as Scriabin pointed out at that one point, Edgar doesn't trust Nny's sense of self-control. Edgar doesn't trust Nny to keep his promise, to keep waiting, to wait until that perfection is reached before killing him. He's still afraid of Nny, and while this may not be as obvious at some times rather than others (for example, if they're chatting in a hallway with no visible weapons compared to Johnny is gesturing with his knife to illustrate a point), he doesn't trust him.
Do you need trust for a healthy relationship? I'd imagine that having some would be nice. Does Nny trust Edgar? I think he does. He trusts that Edgar is being honest with him and that Edgar is being sincere most of the time.
Their relationship is defined more by how one side views the other than any kind of agreement on what their relationship should be by two people. That's kind of awkward though. I'm trying to think of a better way to phrase it...hmm. Like, when you have two healthy people in a relationship, their understanding of that relationship is built on their joint interactions, on the two of them together, as one entity. I don't think that Edgar and Nny really view their relationship that way. They've constructed in their minds their own view of the relationship, whether or not it had been confirmed as such by things that happened in reality, and they have no reason to doubt their view of the relationship, because what they percieve to happen feeds and justifies how they feel.
Darn it, I feel like I'm still not getting this across correctly...hmm. Nny has his own view of the relationship and of Edgar that may or may not be false, but he believes it to be true. The same is true vice versa. While Edgar may interpret what Nny does one way, Nny interprets Edgar's actions the other, and they're so convinced that what they think is right that they never ask the other person if they're correct. Darn it I feel like this isn't making sense.
Again, the most telling example of this difference in world-views is in Nny's philosophy and his plans to murder Edgar. Murder and death to Nny mean very little (he kills people for extremely petty reasons at times) and they mean different things to Edgar. Nny sees nothing wrong with what he plans to do with Edgar, but more importantly, he believes that Edgar, likewise, sees nothing wrong with dying for Nny. In a way it's kind of touching that Nny believes that Edgar would be so selfless as to give up his life for him, but again, it's an indication of how twisted their relationship really is.
The two of them don't communicate, not very well. They're both fairly intelligent, so they can hold conversations with each other about intellectual topics, but they're completely at a loss when discussing what the other feels honestly. Both don't seem particularly in touch with their emotions, not enough so to discuss it with each other. A lot of assuming going on. Edgar doesn't feel that he can be honest because he thinks he'll die for it. Nny's reality shifts and changes with his moods, and his moodswings, though temporary, can be hazardous. How many times has Nny flipped out and started choking Edgar at some point? Edgar has no reason to trust him, but Nny assumes that Edgar does.
Now, if we were to go with the ultimate best-case scenario, let's assume that somehow, beyond all sense of logic, Nny is a little less crazy and stops killing people, and more importantly, decides not to kill Edgar. Let's say that somehow he gets some professional help or something, he gets some kind of help to make him less crazy and enough so that he won't murder Edgar for it.
I can't see Edgar believing such a transition right away, and I imagine that it would take him a long time to stop fearing Nny. Their philosophies can be different, but the two of them have shown that they can talk through them amiably.
Would they get together as a couple? It depends. Again, Edgar has his own issues with his religion. Nny has his own understanding of happiness and love that doesn't usually match up with other people's (love=death for example). Nny has things to do. Edgar has his own life. I can see them visiting each other occasionally, going out to do things. I can see them being friends very easily. Whether or not they would take that next step would depend on Edgar getting over his issues and Nny finding some reason to do so.
Let's say, going with this best-case scenario, that Edgar does get over his issues and decides that it's okay to care about Nny this much. Hey, interesting thought. It could be that Edgar fears caring about Nny so much simply because it will almost invariably end in him getting killed. Hahaha, nothing about sexuality in the end, tho I'm sure that plays a part. I'm getting off topic though.
So let's say that Edgar gets over it and decides that if Nny wants a relationship like that, that'd be okay. The question is, would that relationship be what they really want? Assuming that Nny was somewhat fixed here, he may be entirely happy just being and hanging out with Edgar, a human that doesn't inspire hatred.
As usual, there's the problem of Nny not liking physical contact or body fluids. The key here is that when Devi leaned in to kiss him, Nny leaned in as well. One can read from that that when Nny really wants to, or really likes someone, that he wouldn't mind. The thing is, would he find that important? One can guess that maybe Devi made the first move in that case, but it could have been Nny.
Would Nny want more than just a comfortable, friendly relationship with Edgar? It depends. I think of Edgar as average looking, not particularly noticeable, so I can't imagine that Nny is overcome with crazy gay lust whenever he looks at him. I can't really see Edgar's body holding much interest for Nny. An exception here of course is love, and I know there are people out there who just want to do intimate things like that with people they love because they want to be close to them. If Nny wants that kind of intimacy, it's a bit more understandable than the lust thing. I see Edgar in much the same light, not seeing Nny as particularly attractive (I go from that one short with Nny and that one girl, where he says "Now on the outside, I may not be much to look at" or something along those lines.) and I likewise can't see him overcome with sexual desire. With Edgar too, I can't see him ever submitting to that desire, unless there were some other circumstances.
What would trigger a deeper relationship in this scenario? Possibly it would be gradual. Touching maybe, if Nny felt the inclination. Just gradually enjoying each other's company.
I can see them, in this best case world, just enjoying being friends with eachother, and not feeling particularly motivated to deepen that relationship, necessarily. Maybe it would happen by accident.
Realistically, I can't see Nny ever being "redeemed" so to speak. I think that would be lame, that the love of a person is enough to make Nny not crazy. I can't see Nny ever being able to relate to Edgar on the same level just because he's always got that insanity. He's always unhinged, in one way or another, unpredictable. He always presents a threat. He sees no problem with presenting this threat. His feelings for Edgar may be true, they may be genuine, and he may truly love Edgar as much as Johnny can ever love anyone, but the problem is that he still can't get outside himself enugh, he can't show enough empathy, enough understanding of other people, to understand that killing who you love is a bad thing. This is something between them that I can't see being resolved, or at least resolved easily.
Yeah, there's a big deal made about Edgar's problems with his feelings, but that's because that to Edgar, he thinks it's important. It's how he feels. It pales in comparison to the larger problem, which is that Nny will probably kill him. In a way, you can think of Edgar poking at the details to avoid looking at the larger problem. Also, the larger problem has no solution, apart from fixing Nny's brain somehow, and the smaller problem potentially does. He focuses on something that he feels he can actually fix, that he has some power over. Edgar has no power over Nny or what he does. He has power over himself, at least.
Realistically, Nny will probably try to kill Edgar. Whether or not he succeeds depends on various factors. You can bring up the point that Nny tried to kill Devi after only one night, and Nny has had this long protracted relationship with Edgar that has given him perspective on how time works in a relationship, and I'd give you that gladly. That would probably be a factor in here, possibly even enough of one to derail Nny's plans to kill him. But most likely, I see him trying at least once.
Killing Edgar is the anchor of that relationship to Nny. I can't imagine him taking well to getting rid of it, in one way or another. Nny's not good at relationships (catastrophically bad at them, one might say) and therefore his understanding of how to have a relationship with someone that doesn't end, that doesn't have a real set ending or goal or any noticable, real perfection, would probably freak him out or bother him.
Would Edgar ever leave Nny? Physically, maybe he would try. I don't think so though. Nny grabbed Edgar from wherever with no warning, and there's no reason for Edgar to think that that won't happen again. He has a right to think that Nny would follow him, most likely be upset that he left him, and try to kill him. He doesn't think he can leave. Likewise, he doesn't think he can leave the relationship, as again, he thinks that Nny will kill him for it. He could be wrong, but it's a valid fear to have.
Edgar feels trapped and therefore acts as though he's trapped. He doesn't think he can escape, so he doesn't try.
Worst case is pretty obvious. Edgar dies. Nny could react to this in various ways, from being happy as he was with the others, or with regret. Suicide, who knows. There are lots of potential worst cases for these two. Suicide for Nny, for example. Edgar going bonkers. Edgar killing Nny, which if Edgar is crazy, isn't entirely unbelievable. Also if Edgar fights back after Nny's been released by the system and his invulnerability protects him, but leaves Nny vulnerable. Nny could very well die if Edgar tried to defend himself, unprotected and no longer immortal. There are lots of unhappy ways for them to end up.
If you look past Nny's total crazyness, the two of them seem like two people who would get along. They enjoy talking to each other, they seemed to like each other, and in general, it would be far from unbelievable that they could be friends. Whether or not they take that next step depends on what continuity you're writing in. If you're in another world altogether like :iconladyyatexel:'s SWAN, then this entire thing is a moot point cause her Nny isn't a homicidal maniac (well sorta), and therefore the threat of death isn't an issue.
Nny being crazy is a HUGE factor in how the two of them interact in Vargas continuity, and the threat of Edgar's death and such is a constant concern. There are other issues and yeah, they can be important, but the most important is still the fact that Nny wants to kill Edgar, and Nny finds nothing wrong with that. Scri may have phrased in a bad, seizure-causing way in Down, but you can look at it as him voicing Edgar's internal fear of Nny, in so many words.
A good thing you can say about the two of them is that on the whole, they don't play head games with eachother. Nny is honest with Edgar, or at least tries to be, about most things, and Edgar is a sincere listener and is honestly concerned about Nny. Mostly the two of them do have good intentions towards each other, and it's their own personal issues that tend to make things messy. In that way, they're more healthy than some, I guess.
Anyway, I feel like there was more I wanted ta get into here but I can't remember what it was at da moment. OH WELL. I love this pairing for all its twisted messed-upness.
I plan on doing Edgar/Scriabin and Edgar/Jake as well at some point.
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