The Crepin-Lore Manifesto.
Part 1: The Background
It is the end of the semester, and I have assignments due, finals to get ready for... So, obviously, I wrote the longest trio of posts in my blog's entire history.
In this little (lol) character analysis/information compilation, I will try to show you that:
1. That something really indescribably weird/evil is going on with Kerubim Crepin and Atcham Crepin's history, because really, we don't know a lot about their childhood, but what we do know, doesn't paint a pretty picture.
2. They are very fascinating characters, especially Atcham, and their story is underappreciated, or entirely unknown in the greater fandom.
Besides that, I also to make some obscure info, from side-media, more accessible.
However, this part of the analysis will be about common misconceptions and background information that will inform the rest of the analysis.
"Are they really full-on brothers?"
When I was rewatching Wakfu last year, I asked this, since I hadn't really thought about it.
The answers I got were very... diverse, and more confusing than anything. Most wikis listed them as "brothers or half-brothers", which added to the confusion.
However, 3-4 rewatches of Dofus + getting deep into the franchise later, and I know the answer.
Yes. They are full brothers, without any ambiguity on the question.
They share both a father - God Ecaflip, and a mother - an unknown mortal woman who's last name was Crepin.
Atcham's full name is Atcham Crepin. He does not contest it, and Dardondakal has no reason to lie.
And, as a second, slightly more ambiguous piece of evidence, Kerubim implies here that he and Atcham come from a different litter than Ush. Litter being a word that describes a group of kittens born to the same mother, at the same time.
Because Kerubim talks of his past life in the Dofus MMO, we know that ecaflip demigods keep their memories of past lives, so it is his first-hand knowledge, and not something that was told to him.
[Dofus MMO - Quest: Du rire en barre / Laughing Matter]
(Both original and translated dialogue, for posterity.)
(So, yeah, cough-cough. Kerubim and Atcham are, pretty much, all but confirmed to be fraternal twins. Just like Flopin and Eleley.)
"Twins... Are you sure that God Ecaflip didn't just have multiple kids with one woman?"
This is certainly a possibility, especially with Atcham repeatedly calling Kerubim his older brother... Perhaps the litter line is more figurative.
However... It would be pretty out of character for Ecaflip, with the information we have from Wakfu Raiders.
...Listen, I knooow, It's a discontinued mobile game, but you have to understand, it's the only thing we have to judge Ecaflip's treatment of his lovers, ok?
The important thing is that he doesn't seem to care about them, after he's done. Neither does he seem to care about the demigods that result from his romantic exploits, when we look at his treatment of Yakusha, Atcham, and, yes, even Kerubim.
And even if he cared, he still wouldn't stick around. Mortals don't live long enough to get attached.
All of Ecaflip's love for Kerubim stems from one fact - he's entertaining to him.
His love is deep, but it's not parental. It doesn't depend on who his mother was, or if he's happy. It depends on the fact that Kerubim obeys him, serves him, is a good person and a hero, and takes any punishment or attention he gives him, while being fun to sometimes torture, test and play with.
Even if Ecaflip's treatment of him is horrifying, he can't help but be proud of it himself. Especially when this tough love had taught him some things.
But, despite the sugarcoating he applies to his feelings while raising Joris - because his son doesn't deserve the misfortune of knowing all that - it's pretty obvious that even though he loves Ecaflip back, not all of his feelings towards him are warm.
...But before any of that that, Kerubim was simply one of many orphan demigods without a home, a family, or a mother, about all of whom Ecaflip cared just as little.
It's pretty likely that he probably wouldn't even recall that woman's name.
"About the family - what about the time Kerubim said that he was the last Crepin in his family?"
Okay... Nobody would ask this. I am certainly THE only person on this planet who even cares. But, I do have an answer to this.
Anyway, here's a giant, seemingly-unrelated-at-first-glance tangent:
Kerubim Crepin, and the 30-40 instances of accidental Cluster B coding.
To preface this section, I am perfectly aware that it is a bit selfish, to shove my personal headcanons and interpretations of him having comorbid BPD and HPD, something that is entirely unintended by the writers, and simply my observation of his personality, into my analysis of lore post. And neither am I a psychologist.
However, even without these two headcanons, I cannot write this analysis without ever mentioning this - because I am going to be discussing his canonical, unhealthy behavior patterns, coping mechanisms, and emotional turmoil.
They all go unnamed, but they are present in the show, down to it's core. My headcanons are, at best, me putting a name to his struggles.
Kerubim Crepin struggles with being blind to other people's emotions, having very low cognitive empathy.
His emotions are intense to the point of dissociation. He often has wrong ideas of how close his relationships to people actually are.
Besides that, he's prone to impulsive behaviors that damage those already shaky relationships.
His defense mechanism is splitting, switching at a moment's notice between idealizing and devaluing someone.
It happens, in some ways, with pretty much everyone he loves.
And most importantly, Kerubim Crepin is terrified of being alone, of being abandoned.
His struggles are, no doubt, rooted fully in his childhood trauma, which I shall discuss in the next post. But until then, a very broad assessment of his mental health and personality issues is good to keep in mind.
Whether you agree with my headcanons or not - these are simply his character traits, which I had based said headcanons on - and, even without them, these facts are important facets to understanding him, no matter what you name them.
With this, I had finally established the foundation for the next part, where I will discuss the actual Childhood bits of his backstory, and get started on talking about Atcham.
...And yeah, the reason why he would say that he's the last Crepin, is because with how broken their relationship is - Atcham is dead to him, as much as he is dead to Atcham.
But where do all these issues, these struggles, and pains come from?
I will discuss that in the next part.
[PART 2]
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