Ivar/Deirdre

I'm gonna do these little questions for all the pairings. :3

Do I think this ship had any chance of happening in the show?

No. This wasn't on their radar. Ivar was the only one not to be framed as having a romantic interest in Deirdre, and they spent most of their time as royal peers (and then as a royal in-group to sneer at Garrett when he was being a dick).

Would I have supported the two of them actually getting together?

We'll get to it. The short version is that if Conchobar was shopping his daughter around for arranged marriages to form a political alliance, he should've been saying, "Garrett who" the second that Ivar walked in.

Did I want them to get together?

Nah. I didn't feel it. Deirdre seemed too young, and when Ivar met Lady Fioana and Princess Lynette, he did not hold back on his thoughts on how much he liked them. And neither of them are shy, so I don't think they'd have any reason to lie about it.

If they were together, do I think they’d be happy?

Oh, for sure! Ivar is an absolute gentleman with a fiery, daredevil streak. He's got exactly the sort of temperment that can hold up to Deirdre, without going into the excessive levels of arrogance that turned Deirdre off of Garrett. If he had been the person she'd been betrothed to, maybe she would've protested a little on principle, but I think - like, two days of talking to Ivar and realizing he's - y'know - Ivar would've had her wondering if this was really so bad.

I do think they would butt heads a bit on tradition if any differences came up, though. Ivar's willing to swallow his pride to cater to the customs of others, but Deirdre isn't nearly as cooperative. In public, you wouldn't see their disagreement, but there'd be a fight back in the bedroom about how rude Deirdre is being and how Ivar is clearly letting them get taken advantage of. Then again, I don't see those being explosive arguments. Ivar and Deirdre do adhere to the rules of polite, verbal conflict, so I could see them working everything out after Deirdre calms down from the shock of rage. And if Ivar ever agreed that they were being disrespected, he'd be the first to stab someone over it. Traditions stop mattering real quick when he's been insulted.

I don't know if it'd be the most passionate relationship, exactly, since - again - they aren't shy, and they done nothing to signal any interest in each other. But it'd be a pleasant one at minimum, with plenty of potential to be more than that. Deirdre could do a lot worse.

And the million dollar question: what do I think of the ship overall?

I'm so shocked it's as popular as it is. As I've been digging through the older fan sites, I kept coming across Ivar/Deirdre fics. The modern fandom experience is to almost always immediately sideline the Black man, no matter how literally perfect he is, but I'll be damned if people in the late 90s and early 2000s didn't share a look and collectively decide, "We live in a meritocracy now." Lots of credit to Justin Pierre, who's the best actor on the show.

To me, it would've been the perfect storybook, princess fairytale ending. The 'Good King and Queen' of the 'Good Kingdom' - you know, the ones we don't have to dwell on for too long in the story, because we have to turn our attention towards the trash people causing actual things to happen. So they're great, in a way where I'm kinda not interested, only because I think they'd be too inherently healthy and regal to have any juicy drama for me to cling onto. The most I could hope for is that one of them gets sick and the other has to go on a daring quest to find the cure - but that's not focusing on the relationship. That's just stuff around the relationship. So they're fine, but their main story isn't their romance, and I do not believe in any characterization of Ivar pining over Deirdre. You'll instantly lose me. That's a Rohan fic.

Actually, that's the best way to put it: Ivar/Deirdre is for people who shipped Rohan/Deirdre as their endgame, but forgot Rohan was emotionally repressed.

So.

With all that said, let's address the elephant in the room.

I want you to look at Ivar. And I mean really look at the guy. What does he have going for him? Hot. Multi-lingual. Educated. Royal. A diplomat. From a kingdom that's even bigger than Rheged, which Garrett already brings up to say how tiny Kells is in comparison. Super polite. Quite cheeky when he wants to be. Enjoys a good fight (as much as the fairies seem to, actually lol). Good fighter in his own right. Excellent specialist for stealth missions. Excellent diplomat. Capable of hunting down a thief across a sea. Has a flair for dramatics without being too showy about it. Directly supports his friends.

The one drawback I see on his side is that he's kinda patronizing until somebody 'proves' themselves to him. He didn't like the others at all until Rohan saved his life, and he has a habit of scolding the others for not being disciplined enough or polite enough. But he once someone comes into their role, he accepts them for their strengths. Their weaknesses - eh... I mean, not to project, but I've had relationships where someone wanted to "politely correct me" on every little thing so I could do it the 'best' way. Deirdre would absolutely lose her fucking mind over that in time, but I also don't think it would get that far. Ivar's very easy to put in his place when he's wrong. After - uh... again, after having to prove that he's wrong.

But to quote the only good Cinderella movie in existence, "We hide our flaws... until after the wedding uwu" So I don't think that drawback would come up for a while, especially when Deirdre's young enough to give Ivar the benefit of the doubt in terms of experience, and as the husband-to-the-kingdom's-ruler, Ivar's gonna know his place is to never directly contradict the Queen. Their children would be exceptionally well-behaved, omg.

You get it, right? Why - if you were Conchobar - you'd be tripping over yourself to have this young man as your son-in-law?

Okay! So now I want you to take a look at Deirdre.

Independent. Strong-willed. Passionate. Speaks her mind. Doesn't blindly follow tradition for tradition's sake. Will refuse royal obligations if they clash with her beliefs. Polite. Courteous. As far as we know, educated, but not multi-lingual. Great tactician. Right on the front line to defend her people. Disobeyed her father specifically to help find Draganta. From a smaller kingdom than Ivar's, and currently embroiled in a multi-decades long war. Great with a sword. Loyal. Doesn't seem like she's travelled a lot. A capable leader, except for when she refuses to hear others' advice.

I don't know what kingdom Ivar is from. They don't say. One of his subjects (the fake one that was actually a Sentinel) seemed to be Arabic, and he himself said he came from across the sea. So let's go with 'somewhere between North Africa and West Asia'.

Which means he's got relatives of African descent, Arabian descent, and potentially Indian descent ('cause even though India's kinda far, they'd be having their Golden Age. Everybody wanted in on that uwu).

You are not gonna tell me that any of his aunties and older cousins, and especially his mother, are gonna look at the princess of this tiny-ass, war-torn kingdom, who doesn't listen to what she's told, who doesn't do what her elders say, who fucking talks back and out of turn (publicly!!), and has to have an opinion on everything she doesn't like...

... and sign off on that arrangement.

I, a Black woman not even related to this man, am already shaking my head as I think about Ivar bringing her home to meet his parents. She would call them by their first name and be on a ship to Kells within the hour - if she was lucky. And if Ivar was lucky, he'd get to visit her in a decade.

(Not really, but she'd get in her head about making a good impression, and screw it up as the pressure gets to her. :( Sorry, Deirdre. Ivar would coach her on how to recover from it, though. If they were both lucky, they'd convince his parents that she's the most capable possible ruler Kells - or any kingdom in Kells' situation - could ask for, which might be enough to earn an extremely reluctant blessing to allow them to run off together. Unless he's their only son. Then it's not happening no matter what rofl)

In conclusion, Deirdre is not good enough him. I know the show has her as "The Girl," so there's no one better around, but that's in Ireland. There is no way this man is starved for choices back home - ones educated by the finest scholars of the Gupta Empire, dressed in the finest silks shipped along the Silk Road, dining on the finest food seasoned with literally anything.

But if he did fall helplessly in love with Deirdre anyway, one raised eyebrow from his family and that's all over. Oh, he could still do it. He could cut off all ties with his family and stay in Kells forever, if he really wanted to. But he'd be letting down so many people depending on him to fulfill his princely obligations - ones set before he left to get the chalice back. And this is someone who took personal responsibility for losing the chalice in the first place; this ultra-important artifact that probably wasn't sat outside on a rock, and probably had other guards around it, and was more than likely not his independent responsibility. That's how committed to his kingdom he is. He ain't staying for her.

Could she go with him? No. She's got a kingdom to rule one day.

Could he sail back and forth? Maybe. Except he was willing to believe his kingdom was under attack by a group serious enough that he abandoned the quest he'd originally abandoned his kingdom for to try to go back and help - so obviously, his at-home situation has a bit of precariousness around it, and he's needed there. Hard to do when you're constantly commuting between continents.

And to be honest, I don't think his relatives would particularly like Conchobar either. How has he ruled for so long and never managed an end to his war with Temra? He can't negotiate a treaty, but he won't just finish them off to be safe? So he's stupid and weak. Of course they'd want elegant, precious Ivar to speak reason to their enemy, or finish that enemy off if they have no sense to be stirred. But while that's good for Kells, what does Kells offer in return?

A white girl who can't eat spice. :/

(I know in my soul that Ivar has a younger sister, and I know in my soul that she'd also be a little shit who'd purposely spike Deirdre's food with even more spice than anyone else was eating - as a prank. Which... y'know... could be super cute to watch Ivar comfort Deirdre about uwu)

And that is the only plot that would convince me of their love: Nemaine or Maeve starts some shit by trying to make Ivar think Kells wants to trap him there forever, and it's the first time he's ever thought about staying in Kells even after he reclaims his chalice. The scheme to split up the Mystic Knights is foiled by Ivar taking a brand-new interest in the Mystic Knight of Air. Skip-ahead, skip-ahead, boring healthy romance and elegant dates, and then we get into all the Meet the Family shit that happens. You thought Garrett was bad? I want them turned up to eleven, and I want Ivar to make the most passionate, horrific display of disobedience by saying he rejects his family's preferences, and is staying with Deirdre even if they disapprove. Maybe even confronting them about their own displays of immaturity towards their hosts, who've been kind and loyal friends to him since he arrived.

... But I'm just gonna re-watch Coming to America instead LMAOOOOOOOOOO it's faster