I think the general principle is that the protagonist shouldn’t have more than maybe one important advantage over most other characters. If most of the characters in the fic are non-morons, or superpowered, then that one’s free. Luminous!Bella gets to be a vampire “for free” because she mostly interacts with other vampires; Rational!Harry gets to be rational because everyone else in MoR is smart too; but for Bella to be both luminous and a witch, without most of the other main characters in the fic being one or the other as well, wants a single cause.
Alice and Edward are the most significant Cullens, and have witchy powers. The antagonists include a large proportion of witches. Does this get Bella a witchcraft pass? Particularly since her power is one that only works in the context of other powers—it would simply not do anything in the absence of other witches.
Bella definitely gets a witchcraft pass… her power is boring. It’s mostly there because female protagonists in romantic vampire fantasies usually get an immunity to the mind tricks of their vampire suitors. Basically so it gives them an excuse to be in a thrall that can only be explained by overwhelming sexual dominance.
I hadn’t thought about it like that, but on reflection, I think that it does qualify for the pass. It helps, too, that it’s not a general immunity to witches—she’s still vulnerable to Alice and Jasper, for example.
What about her control as a newborn? Does that count?
Her control as a newborn is her luminosity, so far as I can determine—she has a set of generalized techniques to influence her desires and emotions, and takes advantage of the specific knowledge which she acquired from the others in her coven to focus these techniques on the precise alterations she needs to be a well-controlled newborn.
No, she had control in canon too. Luminous!Bella is only a touch more self-possessed. My explanation—maybe I haven’t played it up enough? - is that if you know something about what to expect, you will do a better job of handling it. This is borne out by Carlisle being immune to wanting to nom humans, and having known vampires existed before he was bitten. The others have more trouble, and the one who has the most trouble is Jasper—who also was turned the most unexpectedly and traumatically, while the others at least expected to die of injury/sickness or had amnesia.
No, she had control in canon too. Luminous!Bella is only a touch more self-possessed. My explanation—maybe I haven’t played it up enough? - is that if you know something about what to expect, you will do a better job of handling it.
It surely also helps that luminous!Bella has been spending years practising emotional control!
I think the general principle is that the protagonist shouldn’t have more than maybe one important advantage over most other characters. If most of the characters in the fic are non-morons, or superpowered, then that one’s free. Luminous!Bella gets to be a vampire “for free” because she mostly interacts with other vampires; Rational!Harry gets to be rational because everyone else in MoR is smart too; but for Bella to be both luminous and a witch, without most of the other main characters in the fic being one or the other as well, wants a single cause.
Alice and Edward are the most significant Cullens, and have witchy powers. The antagonists include a large proportion of witches. Does this get Bella a witchcraft pass? Particularly since her power is one that only works in the context of other powers—it would simply not do anything in the absence of other witches.
Bella definitely gets a witchcraft pass… her power is boring. It’s mostly there because female protagonists in romantic vampire fantasies usually get an immunity to the mind tricks of their vampire suitors. Basically so it gives them an excuse to be in a thrall that can only be explained by overwhelming sexual dominance.
I hadn’t thought about it like that, but on reflection, I think that it does qualify for the pass. It helps, too, that it’s not a general immunity to witches—she’s still vulnerable to Alice and Jasper, for example.
What about her control as a newborn? Does that count?
Her control as a newborn is her luminosity, so far as I can determine—she has a set of generalized techniques to influence her desires and emotions, and takes advantage of the specific knowledge which she acquired from the others in her coven to focus these techniques on the precise alterations she needs to be a well-controlled newborn.
No, she had control in canon too. Luminous!Bella is only a touch more self-possessed. My explanation—maybe I haven’t played it up enough? - is that if you know something about what to expect, you will do a better job of handling it. This is borne out by Carlisle being immune to wanting to nom humans, and having known vampires existed before he was bitten. The others have more trouble, and the one who has the most trouble is Jasper—who also was turned the most unexpectedly and traumatically, while the others at least expected to die of injury/sickness or had amnesia.
It surely also helps that luminous!Bella has been spending years practising emotional control!
No, you’re right, that’s in there. I’m not familiar with the source material, I suppose.
You’re right. Her control falls squarely under the single-cause rule.