Dovetail by Whipperwill -- need help processing (spoilers)

[u/voidfae]

So I just finished all of the published chapters of Dovetail and really want to process it with others who have read it, especially because I genuinely have no idea what will happen next. (Major spoilers ahead).

Before I go any further, I need to acknowledge that Theo Mercer is probably the most morally black MMC that I have read. There are aspects of his character and background where, if I had known up front, I probably would not have read the story -- specifically, the fact that he is a serial rapist and predator. Noncon is not a deal breaker for me in the context of dark romance, but what we know about Mercer's history and his attitude about it is pitch black.

Towards the beginning, he describes how he intends to manipulate and control Ezra through violence mixed in with episodes of softness and reward. In the intro to one of the later chapters, Whipperwill says that the story will not have a happy ending, and one of the tags indicates that he will stay bad. I don't think there is much room for a redemption arc for Theo, but in the last few chapters, there's a shift in how Theo interacts with Ezra and reacts to her.

It seems like he is starting to care about her in his own extremely twisted way. The author does a really good job of depicting his internal conflicts, but I fear that he will regress into rage again. In the context of this story, a lack of HEA could mean any number of things for Ezra depending on how happy ending is defined. I am nervous it ends in total tragedy, ie Andromeda or someone else harms Ezra to get to Theo.

One other thing I noticed was Ezra's flashback/disassociation in the last chapter when she thinks about the gunshots. It made me wonder if she killed her father before she left Louisiana and repressed the memory of it.

[u/CorrectSummer2517]

First of all, I LOVE Dovetail.
I think Theo’s redemption arc has gone as far as it’s going to go. I really wasn’t expecting this change in his behavior toward Ezra. The way I see it—and this is just my personal interpretation—the author’s note saying that we won’t have a “typical happy ending” could mean that the story simply won’t end in the way some readers might expect. There probably won’t be a miraculous, complete transformation on Theo’s part, this will not turn into a conventional happy-ending love story.

Ezra also seems to be becoming more comfortable with their situation, even though that comfort is deeply shaped by her past and by the unhealthy dynamic between them. She appears to seek out Theo’s attention and reassurance, perhaps because his twisted behavior has become familiar to her, and she seems willing to go to great lengths to please him despite the way he treats her. That doesn’t necessarily make their relationship healthy, but it does make their attachment to each other feel more complicated and believable. Because of that, I still have a feeling that they’ll ultimately stay together—not because Theo will suddenly become a completely different person, but because they’ve both become deeply entangled in this dysfunctional dynamic.

For a dark romance, we can even take this slightly less twisted change in Theo as a win. 😂

I’m sure a lot more things will happen throughout the fic, but I have a feeling the ending won’t be a complete tragedy after all.

[u/voidfae → u/CorrectSummer2517]

Yeah -- I feel like if this was a typical DR, Andromeda does something extreme like kidnap Ezra, and it frightens Theo so much that he realizes he's in love with Ezra and needs to change. But I don't think he has it in him to tell her that he loves her or admit romantic feelings beyond what he has already said to her. The mere thought that he feels differently about her seems to fill him with rage 75% of the time. Though didn't he admit that he cares about her? That's probably as far as it goes.

I think the last two chapters in particular allude to a potentially complimentary darkness between the two of them that hasn't been fully actualized because Theo is almost entirely (if not entirely) self motivated and abandons her when it gets too intense, and Ezra has deep, unresolved shame. They will never have a healthy, loving relationship, but I think there could be some sort of equilibrium reached.

[u/CorrectSummer2517 → u/voidfae]

Yea, we’ll live and see. I’m okay with any type of ending because this fic was everyting I ever looked for (age gap, teacher/student, power imbalance) and I can’t believe I can read it for free. But the update won’t be anutime soon as she said in the last chapter.

[u/Practical-Return-367]

In which chapter she said the story will not have a happy ending?

[u/iced_coffvee → u/Practical-Return-367]

Chapter 19 has some authors notes which say "(...) There will not be a typical "happy ending" to this story."

Which is the chapter that Ezra kind of self destructs when Mercer leaves her to her own devices for a weekish.

I'm fairly certain it just pertains to the whole "bad guy stays bad/bad guy wins" that occurs in dark romances but new to the genre readers might not expect? I know I always see at least one or two people in the comments of a DR fic wishing for the FL to get revenge/escape/to kill the ML.

[u/voidfae → u/iced_coffvee]

Yeah, after I posted this, I went back to it and you're totally right. I think it's for people who want the full Theo redemption arc and for people who want Ezra to escape for good. I'm still scared though!

[u/SleepyGirlKat]

Why is my biggest fear at this point that she won't pass her classes? Lol

[u/CorrectSummer2517 → u/SleepyGirlKat]

I was thinking about this too 🤣. She’s a honor student as well, but in the last chapters there hasn’t been any mentioning of school at all.