The Hooded Hood pretty much has a plan for everybody, so it's not like she's singled out. But in fact Liu Xi is one of the principal characters that the Hood so far hasn't worked over that much. Even in the present team, the Hood had impacted far more on Hatty, CSFB!, Vizh, G-Eyed, Mumphrey, and of course CZ. From the Hood's perspective it's a compliment that he's got Liu Xi in his sights, although she wouldn't see it that way.




Liu Xi and the Hood have a little dialogue in the next chapter, albeit not to the point. Liu Xi has more urgent issues to discuss.







Cleone ended up as Xander's familiar pretty much by accident (he was happy with his Medusa-petrified hamster Harry). Thereafter Xander couldn;t dismiss her without destroying her. I would probably have resolved this and developed the relationship further and better had poster-Xander still been around. PV Xander's sidelining to the background is in line with me de-emphasising many characters whose posters are absent (e.g. Dancer, Finny, Sorceress etc.)

Nor is Vinnie Xander. Xander was/is far more experienced and calculating and a good deal more ruthless, as Liu Xi can attest. Vinnie is on one hell of a learning curve trying to keep up with the job he;s been dumped with. It has put a massive target on him along with overwhelming responsibility. That's one reason he agreed to join the LL, so he's got a bit of cover. It;s also why he's struggling in his relationship with Liu Xi, because he doesn't want her at ground zero when it goes down and he doesn't want the relationship to be all about her useful powers.

One might consider that Liu Xi joining the LL at the Hood's behest anyway may have something to do with keeping Vinnie alive anyhow.




I don't think Vinnie has much hubris, but like many people new to a big job he's unsure where to draw lines. He doesn't want to do it Xander's way, but that way worked. Can he find another method? Dare he risk it given the consequences of screwing up?




This makes sense. Cleone and Liu Xi have some common background. Both were effectively enslaved, both were ceded to an owner who intended to use them sexually, both escaped and ended up linked to powerful men who both tried to protect them and needed their support. Their experiences of how well that worked out differ thereafter.










Xander would argue that the sorcerer supreme's job sometimes involves him overcoming any or all of those powerful beings, most of them far more powerful than himself. The role seems to be as final arbiter of use of magic and perhaps more, but it is very much about championing "the little people" against the big players. So while Xander might ally himself with, say, the Shoggoth most of the time, he has to be ready to shut the Shoggoth down if ever the Shoggoth's needs conflicted with humanity's. So he can't get too close.

Same with Vinnie in the job. Vinnie has to be ready - is supposed to be ready - to take on and take down whoever the sorcerer supreme is supposed to stop. That theoretically includes the Lair Legion, Liu Xi Xian, the Hooded Hood, and any cosmic power. It's a tall order and not one he could manage.

On the other hand, Xander may still be playing a long game behind the scenes to do exactly that if he feels it neccessary. His maxim was always "don't be there when it happens".




From a personality poin of view, Vinnie isn't really confident enough to work closely with powerful and experienced females without difficulty. He's still an occasional gibbering wreck with Liu Xi and she's closer to his age and learning level.

Factor in too that Vinnie's other experience of a powerful female ally was, in fact, Kerry. Admittedly they were under an aphrodisiac effect at the time but it has left him wary of getting close to allies of the opposite sex. A complication is this is a previous prophecy that the foretold Celestian Madonna (or one potential-future version of her) is the child of Liu Xi and Danny Lyle and things get very tangled.




Vinnie wouldn't ask anyone to be his familiar. He doesn't see himself as that kind of mage. Even a stone hamster would be too great a commitment.




Vinnie doesn;t think he needs saving, because if he was "saved" he couldn't carry out his role effectively.

Vinnie's had this choice before, to remain comfortable and safe with a partner (his ex-fiancee) or to lose everything to do the right thing, and he chose the latter. He'd make the same choice again, no matter how much it hurt or what it cost him.




I like my characters to have blind spots and limitations. This is one of Vin's.







Doesn't mean he'd understand.







It's potent story material.