Rumarin Headcanons: War Paint and Spell Tomes and Prudery, Oh My
Saturday, May 2nd, 2020 05:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tippetariuswritesFor a long time I've wanted to write a list of my Rumarin headcanons, but I was waiting until the most important ones were revealed in my Skyrim fanfic series. That finally happened in chapter 15 of Throat of the World, so here it goes. Spoilers ahead!
Rumarin didn't have a good relationship with his parents. Mostly I infer this from the way he goes on and on about Otero while saying next to nothing about his parents. Otero was his father in all the ways that mattered.
Otero was the most important person in Rumarin's life, and Rumarin never really got over his death. That's part of why he talks about Otero so much, and it's also why he wears war paint. He's copying the way Otero painted his face for his performances.
Rumarin struggles to learn from spell tomes because he's dyslexic. He hides the real problem by claiming he's a lazy halfwit who can't be bothered with studying. That time he grabs a random book at the Winterhold library and "reads" from it? He's just making shit up.
But how did Rumarin learn how to conjure weapons from a spell tome? It was a special book that Otero put together himself, a guide with pictures and clear steps that Rumarin could easily follow.
Rumarin was named for Lake Rumare in Cyrodiil. For the meaning of "rumare" or "ruma," I go with what's listed in Hrafnir's Languages: "Dear, familiar, own." Since an "-in" ending adds directional meaning to an Aldmeri word, I'm assuming "Rumarin" translates to something like "becoming dear or familiar." Even if Rumarin knows the meaning of his name, I doubt he'd feel comfortable talking about it.
Speaking of Cyrodiil, I believe that's where he spent most of his life. Rumarin's dialogue makes references to Cyrodiil, but the most telling line of all is this: "I wonder if the Dwarves made airships. We could use it to fly over the Jerall Mountains, then come back when we realized we were in Cyrodiil."
Rumarin has a shady past. It would go a long way to explain his deflective nature, his secrecy, and his contacts in the underworld (which include a forger and a man who makes counterfeit College robes). Then there's little comments like this: "Ah, the Dainty Sload! I know these pirates! The first mate is an Orc. I say we kill him before he remembers I owe him money." To see more of Rumarin's shady side, try the Raven of Anvil quest.
He's a prude. Rumarin will tell you that himself if you take him to the Temple of Dibella. He also implies that he's uncomfortable around Ingarte, a serving wench whom he describes as "a bit too... forward." Also, Kris Takahashi has said that Rumarin is a prude who's scared of intimacy. The headcanon I take from all this is that Rumarin is bad at romance, and he probably gets awkward and weird if someone flirts with him.
Beyond being a prude, Rumarin has trouble expressing his true thoughts and feelings. He has trouble making and keeping friends, because it doesn't take long before people realize he's using jokes and snark to keep them at a distance.
Rumarin avoids "crude" language and doesn't swear much. He passes up obvious opportunities to do it. Instead of "ass" or "butt," his go-to word for that part of the anatomy is "bottom." When he tells a story about Otero using an Elder Scroll to wipe himself, Rumarin uses words like "unmentionables" and "droppings." Sometimes Rumarin says weird things that sound vaguely obscene (what was that about a groin tattoo of a wyvern mounting a cliff racer?), but anything more than that falls outside his comfort zone.
Rumarin didn't have a good relationship with his parents. Mostly I infer this from the way he goes on and on about Otero while saying next to nothing about his parents. Otero was his father in all the ways that mattered.
Otero was the most important person in Rumarin's life, and Rumarin never really got over his death. That's part of why he talks about Otero so much, and it's also why he wears war paint. He's copying the way Otero painted his face for his performances.
Rumarin struggles to learn from spell tomes because he's dyslexic. He hides the real problem by claiming he's a lazy halfwit who can't be bothered with studying. That time he grabs a random book at the Winterhold library and "reads" from it? He's just making shit up.
But how did Rumarin learn how to conjure weapons from a spell tome? It was a special book that Otero put together himself, a guide with pictures and clear steps that Rumarin could easily follow.
Rumarin was named for Lake Rumare in Cyrodiil. For the meaning of "rumare" or "ruma," I go with what's listed in Hrafnir's Languages: "Dear, familiar, own." Since an "-in" ending adds directional meaning to an Aldmeri word, I'm assuming "Rumarin" translates to something like "becoming dear or familiar." Even if Rumarin knows the meaning of his name, I doubt he'd feel comfortable talking about it.
Speaking of Cyrodiil, I believe that's where he spent most of his life. Rumarin's dialogue makes references to Cyrodiil, but the most telling line of all is this: "I wonder if the Dwarves made airships. We could use it to fly over the Jerall Mountains, then come back when we realized we were in Cyrodiil."
Rumarin has a shady past. It would go a long way to explain his deflective nature, his secrecy, and his contacts in the underworld (which include a forger and a man who makes counterfeit College robes). Then there's little comments like this: "Ah, the Dainty Sload! I know these pirates! The first mate is an Orc. I say we kill him before he remembers I owe him money." To see more of Rumarin's shady side, try the Raven of Anvil quest.
He's a prude. Rumarin will tell you that himself if you take him to the Temple of Dibella. He also implies that he's uncomfortable around Ingarte, a serving wench whom he describes as "a bit too... forward." Also, Kris Takahashi has said that Rumarin is a prude who's scared of intimacy. The headcanon I take from all this is that Rumarin is bad at romance, and he probably gets awkward and weird if someone flirts with him.
Beyond being a prude, Rumarin has trouble expressing his true thoughts and feelings. He has trouble making and keeping friends, because it doesn't take long before people realize he's using jokes and snark to keep them at a distance.
Rumarin avoids "crude" language and doesn't swear much. He passes up obvious opportunities to do it. Instead of "ass" or "butt," his go-to word for that part of the anatomy is "bottom." When he tells a story about Otero using an Elder Scroll to wipe himself, Rumarin uses words like "unmentionables" and "droppings." Sometimes Rumarin says weird things that sound vaguely obscene (what was that about a groin tattoo of a wyvern mounting a cliff racer?), but anything more than that falls outside his comfort zone.
