Viravos

Viravos is the slash ship between Aaravos and Lord Viren from the The Dragon Prince fandom.

Canon
When Avizandum was slain by Viren and Harrow, Viren took the mirror from the dragon lair, thinking it had great powers. But from that day onward, he kept the mirror in his secret chambers, concealed by a piece of cloth. Occasionally, Viren would try to reveal the nature of the mirror, using reveal spells without success. After revisiting it frequently, one day, he finally saw someone at the other side of the mirror, in what appeared to be a library. That someone was Aaravos and sometime later, he returns. He approaches the mirror on his side and Viren raises his hand. Aaravos does so as well, only to fix his cloak, which makes Viren assume that Aaravos can't see him on his side. Eventually Aaravos extinguishes the candles using sun magic, as well as the fireplace on the place he is in. Now in darkness, Viren realizes that Aaravos can see him as well. Aaravos places his hand on the glass alerting Viren that they can now see each other.

Since they can only see each other and not hear each other, Aaravos prepares a mystic ritual, guiding Viren along. He places a desk near the mirror and sets a box on it. Then, he takes out the contents and as he waves his hand over them, indicating that he wants Viren to get the same thing on his side. When Viren does so, Aaravos begins sewing a strange rune onto the cloth and Viren imitates the motion, saying he had never seen a rune like that before. Next, he takes the rock and breaks it in two while covering it with the runecloth while Viren matches the action with the pestle. Next, the two grind up the amethyst-like gems inside and pour it into a goblet to make a potion. Aaravos raises it like a toast and drinks it, indicating that it's not poisoned, with Viren following reluctantly behind. Aaravos then holds his hand over the goblet and touches the knife to his palm. However, since Viren still distrusts Aaravos, he hesitates to do the same and leaves the room to think. When he later returns, instead of performing the ritual with Aaravos, he covers the mirror with the cloth fire and fury.

When Aaravos re-enters his study, he finds Viren waiting on the other side of the mirror, ready to finish the ritual. They both cut their palms and let the blood drip into their respective pots before Aaravos releases a caterpillar-like creature from his mouth. He drops it into the pot, transporting it to Viren's side. The caterpillar then crawls up Viren's ear and he is able to hear Aaravos' voice for the first time. Startled, Viren asks Aaravos' name. Aaravos expresses his relief at finally hearing another voice and asks how he might serve him.

Now able to converse, Viren once again asks for Aaravos' name but the elf insists it to be irrelevant. He also asks where Aaravos is, which he claims not to know. Viren assumes Aaravos is lying, which he denies. Viren explains that he found the mayor in the lair of the dragon king and queen, speculating that the mirror and Aaravos were of importance to them. Aaravos admits that it was a possibility and asks what Viren needs of him, again. Aaravos finally reveals his name when pressed, and Viren demands to know why every book with Aaravos's name is distorted as soon as he looks at it. Viren demands a reason to trust Aaravos, to which the elf replies that he shouldn't trust him

Behind the Scenes
"I think that Viren's choices are his own to the extent that he knows. I do think that Aaravos is... manipulative in a very slow and seductive way. And I guess in that relationship, over time, the question would be "wait, am I making my own choices or am I being led to choices you wanted me to make, Aaravos?""

- Aaron Ehasz talks about Viren and Aaravos’ interactions

Fanon
is one of the top 5 most popular ships within The Dragon Prince fandom, and it's the most popular ship for both characters. Fans of the ship started shipping these two characters as soon as they started having their first interactions through the mirror. They started noticing what fans call "sexual tension" and an air of intimacy between the two, which fueled the ship. Some analysis were even made about the queer subtext of these interactions between them. .

Later on, as their relationship got more complicated and fans started noticing Aaravos using Viren for his master plan, some fans within the fandom decided not to ship the two. However, fans of the ship kept defending the ship, arguing that Aaravos even has a "soft spot for Viren," presenting evidence of this through his behavior throughout the seasons.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

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