Micaiah Pairings?

[Lost Impact]

As it's been mentioned in the Micaiah thread that many people dislike the Micaiah and Sothe pairing, I thought I'd open up a poll on this. Personally I find the Micaiah and Sothe pairing to be weird, and there should have been more options for her like with other FE lords. If I missed anyone feel free to comment below and I'll add them.

As for my personal favourite Micaiah pairing, that would have to be Micaiah and Zelgius.

 

Edited January 29, 2018 by Lost Impact

[omegaxis1]

I am not against the Micaiah/Sothe pairings, but there just isn't enough romantic vibes. Instead I feel they are more akin to siblings. Had there been more forms of attraction, any kind, even, then I could have accepted this.

But yeah, I felt ore chemistry with Micaiah and Zelgius, or rather I could have seen more chemistry between them. The two are very alike.

[Magical Glace]

Micaiah/Sothe is really weird.  She basically raised him.  I don't like it and usually delete their Auto A support for that reason.

The other options are alright I guess, aside from maybe Ike and Soren, for Ike it's not because I don't like him but because I can't see Micaiah/Ike as being anything other than formal.  They barely talk and when they do it's they're either enemies or allies due to circumstance of the world ending.  Soren speaks to her even less, and he's pretty antagonistic to her in the one interaction they have.

[Florete]

What the hell are Soren and Ike even doing on here? Laura and Tauroneo would make more sense. Mist would make more sense.

But I like Micaiah and Sothe and I like them together. I can understand why some see it as weird, but I like it because a romance between them is never really pushed nor denied. They care for each other more than anyone else, and for relatable reasons, and before they're "in love" (or if they are they don't show it). They're like kindred spirits.

It's a similar reason to how I got attached to Robin and Chrom in Awakening. Their supports sucked, but everything else in the story, the stuff that wasn't meant to be romantic, really made it work for me, and having little to no dialogue changes after their marriage actually made it feel better to me because it's like, this is how it is, these two are made for each other.

Edited January 29, 2018 by Florete

[Icelerate]

Out of all these characters, Micaiah is most comfortable talking with Sothe so I guess him. 

[eclipse]

BRB putting "mage" in my username.

I really like her with Pelleas.  It's an interesting situation where everyone thinks one is Branded, who isn't, while the other is Branded, and doesn't want anyone to know.

[vanguard333]

I personally actually like the Micaiah and Sothe pairing. I thought it was clear in Radiant Dawn that the way that they cared about each other was more than just as foster-siblings-of-sorts (even Ike; Ike, could see it).

1 hour ago, Florete said:

What the hell are Soren and Ike even doing on here? Laura and Tauroneo would make more sense. Mist would make more sense.

But I like Micaiah and Sothe and I like them together. I can understand why some see it as weird, but I like it because a romance between them is never really pushed nor denied. They care for each other more than anyone else, and for relatable reasons, and before they're "in love" (or if they are they don't show it).

This, for the most part (including why are Soren and Ike on the list, but I personally prefer Ike and Elincia anyway). Did it need to be outright stated by either character? It was obvious to everyone in Radiant Dawn. What can I say? The two are very close, their conversations with each other are really good, and who would you then pair Sothe with? Who else does he care about enough? 

There are a few pairings in Radiant Dawn that I personally am not a fan of: Geoffrey and Elincia, and Mist and Boyd being two of them (Mist and Rolf). But Micaiah and Sothe is not one of them.

[Dandy Druid]

I personally like her with Volug, but that wasn't an option...

3 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

This, for the most part (including why are Soren and Ike on the list, but I personally prefer Ike and Elincia anyway). Did it need to be outright stated by either character? It was obvious to everyone in Radiant Dawn. What can I say? The two are very close, their conversations with each other are really good, and who would you then pair Sothe with? Who else does he care about enough? 

I've seen people pair Sothe with Astrid.

[saisymbolic]

I don't really see Micaiah in any romantic relationships with anyone, so my mind automatically converts every one she can possibly have to a platonic one. Especially with Sothe, considering she practically raised him. Had there been a way to keep her A support with Sothe while having a platonic relationship as an ending, I would have been less inclined to delete the support rank. But, eh, what can you do?

However, because that isn't possible, I suppose I would choose Pelleas because I can.

2 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

What can I say? The two are very close, their conversations with each other are really good, and who would you then pair Sothe with? Who else does he care about enough? 

Duh, Ike. So he and Sothe can raise their children together.

[vanguard333]

5 hours ago, Dandy Druid said:

I personally like her with Volug, but that wasn't an option...

I've seen people pair Sothe with Astrid.

Astrid!? Seriously? The girl head-over-heels for Makalov (for some reason, though that's kind of the point of that romance) and almost never even interacts with Sothe in Radiant Dawn? Don't get me wrong; her support conversations with him in Path of Radiance are good, but they're not romantic in the slightest. 

5 hours ago, saisymbolic said:

Duh, Ike. So he and Sothe can raise their children together.

Hilarious. Absolutely hilarious (seriously).

That funny remark from Micaiah is just one more reason why I like Micaiah and Sothe.

Edited January 29, 2018 by vanguard333

[Rose482]

Pelleas and Micaiah make such a cute paring, I wish we got to see more of them together in RD ;_; Also Pelleas using dark magic, while Micaiah using light magic makes them even more cute together for some reason. 

Sothe and Micaiah is still a good paring in my opinion as well.  

[saisymbolic]

19 minutes ago, vanguard333 said:

Hilarious. Absolutely hilarious (seriously).

That funny remark from Micaiah is just one more reason why I like Micaiah and Sothe.

It was one of my favorite lines, too. I still laugh at it to this day. I like to imagine Micaiah as having a very dry, sarcastic sense of humor because of it.

[vanguard333]

21 minutes ago, saisymbolic said:

It was one of my favorite lines, too. I still laugh at it to this day. I like to imagine Micaiah as having a very dry, sarcastic sense of humor because of it.

As do I, to be honest.

[Interdimensional Observer]

6 hours ago, omegaxis1 said:

I am not against the Micaiah/Sothe pairings, but there just isn't enough romantic vibes. Instead I feel they are more akin to siblings. Had there been more forms of attraction, any kind, even, then I could have accepted this.

But yeah, I felt ore chemistry with Micaiah and Zelgius, or rather I could have seen more chemistry between them. The two are very alike.

More or less the same here.

The BK and Micaiah had hardly any time together. Micaiah and her Knight in Shining Black Armor sounds like a classic cliche, but it isn't done in so cliched a way, for the BK is inherently no hero. The two also share in being Branded- not that Micaiah learns, insofar as we are told, until 4-F-2 after he dies. 

Micaiah never knew the BK's true self, including his bad side, which would have complicated the relationship somewhat. It still could have worked, just not without a few bumps.

There happens to be a romantic pairing in another game which is similar. A character is helped by another and only sees their good, never seeing the questionable and far less good side of them at all. I really liked the two together.

 

3 hours ago, vanguard333 said:

Astrid!? Seriously? The girl head-over-heels for Makalov (for some reason, though that's kind of the point of that romance) and never even interacts with Sothe in Radiant Dawn? Don't get me wrong; her support conversations with him in Path of Radiance are good, but they're not romantic in the slightest. 

Actually they do get a 3-F battle convo together:

Spoiler

Astrid vs Sothe

Astrid: Oh… It’s you, Sothe. I’d sincerely hoped we wouldn’t meet like this.
Sothe: Me too, Astrid.
Astrid: I knew you were with the Daein army, but I hoped that, if I didn’t see you, I could pretend it wasn’t true. Now, however, I’m glad I saw you. How you have grown. You look like a true soldier now.
Sothe: …I’m not the only one who’s grown. You look every bit the true knight now, Astrid.
Astrid: You really think so? Thank you, Sothe. That means a lot to me.
Sothe: I know the answer, but I still have to ask. Will you pull back? We don’t really have to do this, do we?
Astrid: I was about to ask you the same thing. I don’t want to fight you, Sothe. Please fall back.
Sothe: …I thought as much. Let’s get started. I’m sorry, Astrid.
Astrid: I am sorry as well, Sothe.

It isn't romantic, nor were they in FE9 either, but perhaps that is nice since it means they're just opposite sex friends.

 

3 hours ago, saisymbolic said:

Duh, Ike. So he and Sothe can raise their children together.

Agreed! And Ike wrapped his rugged hands around Sothe's tight waist, speaking in his plain tongue..............

Although the truth of the matter is Ike was so popular at the end of RD, that almost everyone on the continent wanted a child or three of his to raise, even Laguz women (through surrogate Beorc mothers). That is why he left Tellius. Ike in his honorable mercenary-like willingness turned down no paying or really desperate customer, and he charged but a modest fee and asked for minimal food and housing from each host. Yet even he found granting children to hundreds got very tiring, and after a few years decided enough was enough, and left the continent; his progeny able to be found even in the smallest of villages. 

 

Back to Micaiah. Pelleas would work with her certainly. Their relationship is friends and lord and servant, but I could see a transition to romance. The Dawn Brigade boys and Volug (she'd be one lucky bastard), well she doesn't get enough conversation with them due to no true Supports (although she has more with Volug the untalkative than any of the DBBs).

[omegaxis1]

3 minutes ago, Interdimensional Observer said:

More or less the same here.

The BK and Micaiah had hardly any time together. Micaiah and her Knight in Shining Black Armor sounds like a classic cliche, but it isn't done in so cliched a way, for the BK is inherently no hero. The two also share in being Branded- not that Micaiah learns, insofar as we are told, until 4-F-2 after he dies. 

Micaiah never knew the BK's true self, including his bad side, which would have complicated the relationship somewhat. It still could have worked, just not without a few bumps.

There happens to be a romantic pairing in another game which is similar. A character is helped by another and only sees their good, never seeing the questionable and far less good side of them at all. I really liked the two together.

Which sucks really bad. Like, Micaiah and Zelgius aren't just branded, but also endured many of the things that Branded fared, never allowing themselves to have long term attachments to anyone, being connected to Sephiran in some way. I honestly feel like Micaiah could have at the very least gotten Zelgius to not have a death wish in trying to fight Ike to the death. Or at the very least, it could have been similar to Nyna and Camus, in how they became Star-Crossed Lovers. 

[DarkLordIvy]

Maciah and Sothe just strikes me as an awkward relationship to turn romantic. I’m not a fan. 

I am partial to Maciah/Pelleas, still a bit awkward but I feel like they have way better potential romantic chemistry. My second choice would be to pair her with Volug even though he’s not an option here. He’s who I’ve had Maciah support in my first RD run. 

[Jave]

I like both with Pelleas and Sothe, but I voted Pelleas because I like it slightly better.

I'm disappointed at the lack of Stefan in the poll. That's my favorite after the previous two.

[Dandy Druid]

8 hours ago, vanguard333 said:

Astrid!? Seriously? The girl head-over-heels for Makalov (for some reason, though that's kind of the point of that romance) and almost never even interacts with Sothe in Radiant Dawn? Don't get me wrong; her support conversations with him in Path of Radiance are good, but they're not romantic in the slightest. 

Yeah. Some people hate Makalov so much that they paired her with Sothe because of their PoR interactions, even though they weren't romantic. It's a pairing designed to make Makalov old and alone.

[Dark Holy Elf]

I like Micaiah/Sothe pretty well; unlike some people I always read them as having romantic chemistry. Micaiah talks about wanting to always have Sothe at her side, which is possible to take as a purely platonic comment but I'm not inclined to do so.

The fact that they knew each other when Sothe was 6 and Micaiah was in her teens is a bit weird but it's well-trodden ground for Radiant Dawn already, since it pushes JillxHaar as well (which is an even larger age gap to boot). In the case of Sothe/Micaiah, their key year or two  of separation surrounding the Crimea-Daein war (during which Sothe did a lot of growing up) provides ample opportunity for their relationship to be reset and take on a more romantic tone. They both just care about and love each other so much, that I can't really see other pairings for either, at least not with established characters. For instance, I can't see Pelleas ever being as important as Sothe to Micaiah.

[vanguard333]

12 hours ago, Dark Holy Elf said:

I like Micaiah/Sothe pretty well; unlike some people I always read them as having romantic chemistry. Micaiah talks about wanting to always have Sothe at her side, which is possible to take as a purely platonic comment but I'm not inclined to do so.

The fact that they knew each other when Sothe was 6 and Micaiah was in her teens is a bit weird but it's well-trodden ground for Radiant Dawn already, since it pushes JillxHaar as well (which is an even larger age gap to boot). In the case of Sothe/Micaiah, their key year or two  of separation surrounding the Crimea-Daein war (during which Sothe did a lot of growing up) provides ample opportunity for their relationship to be reset and take on a more romantic tone. They both just care about and love each other so much, that I can't really see other pairings for either, at least not with established characters. For instance, I can't see Pelleas ever being as important as Sothe to Micaiah.

You said it better than I ever could. Also, I never made the comparison before, but you're right about it being comparable in age difference to Haar and Jill. Though I don't think it's ever really made clear how big the age gap is exactly between Jill and Haar:

We know that Haar was already part of Shiharam's wyvern platoon, but Levail reminds Haar, "You had just been dubbed a knight [when Haar and Shiharam left for Daein]." Given how much it makes it sound like Haar was almost a fresh recruit when it happened, that would likely place him in his mid-to-late teens when he and Shiharam left. They lived in Daein for 18 years before Path of Radiance, then add 3 years for Radiant Dawn, and that would place Haar in his mid-to-late thirties, with Jill being not much older than Haar would have been when he and Shiharam left Begnion. That is big (Haar is certainly older than he appears), though how big would depend on how old Haar was when they left Begnion, and how long it was after that when Jill was born. Still, somewhat justified by: who else is nearly as important to them?

Edited January 29, 2018 by vanguard333

[Shoblongoo]

 

9 hours ago, Dark Holy Elf said:

I like Micaiah/Sothe pretty well; unlike some people I always read them as having romantic chemistry. Micaiah talks about wanting to always have Sothe at her side, which is possible to take as a purely platonic comment but I'm not inclined to do so.

^^^

This. When the writing is good, you don't need sexual tension or awkward confessionals to spell it out that there's a romantic connection. You can just see it in the way they act around each other.

...how casually Micaiah can make fun of him when he fanboys over Ike.  
...the way Micaiah reacted when she thought Tibarn was about to throw Sothe off a cliff.
...the way Sothe wanted to just pick her up and leave everyone else behind and run off somewhere with no responsibilities and no fighting, when she started to crack under the weight of her position as head of the Daein Army.

I don't think she had anything more than pity for Pelleas, and I don't think Pelleas ever would have had the guts to make a move on her (especially not with Sothe around).

There may have been something going on or starting to go on with Zelgius. He was obviously into her, and she was at the very least intrigued by him. 

And I tend to believe Sothe saw that. Ostensibly, it was his time with Ike and the Griel Mercenaries that made him so uncomfortable having the Black Knight around. But I think what really pushed Sothe's buttons--and the reason he wanted the black knight to fuck-off immediately every time he popped up--is that he sensed there was a budding thing going on between him and Micaiah. (#Head-Canon) 

 
 

Edited January 29, 2018 by Shoblongoo

[Interdimensional Observer]

11 hours ago, Dark Holy Elf said:

The fact that they knew each other when Sothe was 6 and Micaiah was in her teens is a bit weird but it's well-trodden ground for Radiant Dawn already, since it pushes JillxHaar as well (which is an even larger age gap to boot).

Like pushing JillxHaar is a good thing? They share an adoration for Shiharam, and sure they live together for a while doing business, but why do they just have to get married? There is no romance at all in their PoR support. Is adoration for a dead man enough to build a marriage around?

 

5 hours ago, vanguard333 said:

Still, justified by: who else is nearly as important to them?

Not all opposite sex relationships have to cross into marriage! Ike didn't end up marrying anyone in RD, and Lucia and Bastian seem to end up in a possibly amorous relationship while never actually tying the knot. Why did Jill need a marriage ending?

 

2 hours ago, Shoblongoo said:

This. When the writing is good, you don't need sexual tension or awkward confessionals to spell it out that there's a romantic connection. You can just see it in the way they act around each other.

The clash between subtly and obviousness. Too subtle, and some find that nothing is felt, as in the case of Marth's development in SD. Too obvious, and you get other issues, I can't think of exactly how that would play out, but too much of an emotional trainwreck, exposition dumps, and just too many scenes hammering the same point ad nauseam are what I can think of.

[Lost Impact]

Ok, I edited the poll to add Volug and Stefan options. Apologies for the wait.

As for why Ike and Soren are there, I know that Ike x Micaiah shippers exist, and from what I've seen Soren and Micaiah seems to be a popular pairing? I dislike both pairings myself as I don't think they make any sense (the only basis for Soren and Micaiah is "they're both branded". Micaiah and Stefan/Zelgius make a lot more sense). Interesting though, never seen anyone pair her with Volug before. Now I think about it though, it does make a lot of sense.

I can see why people would like Micaiah x Sothe, but I still can't stand the pairing. There's the age gap and different aging, they treat each other as siblings, she raised him, no romantic feelings really shown. As for who they'd end up with otherwise, Micaiah could stop Ike and Zelgius from fighting and they could end up together. Yeah I know that would require some story changes, but it isn't a canon pairing anyway so it doesn't matter. As for Sothe, I never pictured him with anyone, he doesn't seem romantic at all. Or he could just go with Ike and have their children.

[Just call me AL]

It's a bit odd, but yet I like it. I mean it's pretty obvious that Micaiah and Sothe care about each other. It's never shoved in your face. And the game itself pretty much makes it a point to show that pairing Micaiah and Sothe with other people, much like any other FE (lord) pairing that gets very few if any implications, requires the player to go out of his or her own way. And at the very least, it makes more sense than, say, Boyd/Mist.

[Interdimensional Observer]

6 minutes ago, Just call me AL said:

And at the very least, it makes more sense than, say, Boyd/Mist.

They were setting up Boyd and Mist back in PoR, what with their A support being Mist randomly crying and Boyd consoling her.

Then there was this bit in Chapter 17, which is odd since Boyd otherwise quits showing up in the plot after the first 8 Chapters. So that they did include him, meant they had to have a reason for it:

Spoiler

Ike
I think she weighs... Oh, I'd say about half as much as Mist.

Mist
Wow! I'm surprised!

Boyd
I'll bet you are...

Mist
What are you grinning about, Boyd?

Boyd
Oh, nothing... I'm just amazed...Did you know you're two times heavier than she is!? I'm glad I don't have to carry you around! It'd be like wearing an extra suit of armor!

Mist
You... You pig! You're the worst!

Boyd
Gaaa!
 

Lovers' quarrel much? Ouch to Boyd if Mist is promoted at this point, since it means he is getting Shoved by a horse. The C and B supports between the two were also quarrels, with the B ending in Boyd blushing.  Can't get any more obvious here.

Boyd is also in the Prologue and Chapter 1 of PoR made out to be about Ike's equal in age and experience, and the closest thing to his best "bro" friend. In prior FEs- Archanea and Gen 1 Genealogy, the best friend of the protag got his sister, it is not without precedent in the series. Mist herself is very much a reference to the sword using Troubadours and female Paladins of Jugdral, particularly Ethlyn given she is Sigurd's little sister and Mist is to Ike.

RD then of course throws in its little bits in an attempt to remind the player of the romance and keep it alive.

This is coming from a devout MistxRolf shipper, so I think you can trust me that Mist and the Meathead is a very sensible pairing. (And I'm still not quite happy Mist didn't get an alternate paired ending with Rolf in RD.)