Brief warning for those of a more squimish nature: If you are uncomfortable reading about male anatomy and the specific medical terms used while doing so, please be advised that the medical terminology is heavily used in the paragraphs found below.
If you're a new reader who has only read up to this point in the chronology/timeline, then this might have been a bit of a shock. There are many things that I want to assure you of, and I ask you to please bear with me. I have made, and will continue to make V and Evey strong, despite this. I promise. I care very much about these two. I would never let them fall to something like this.
First, I did not merely pull up the idea of impotence as a whim, I promise. Nor did I do it to in any way hurt V. I would never, ever, do anything to hurt these characters so dramatically, just for the fun of it. I always try to treat my characters with the utmost respect. I did do some research on the effects of severe burns on male genetalia, and impotence does indeed appear to be an issue, especially if no skin grafting is done.
Yes, I do believe V is probably impotent. I've done research, and my findings are discussed and layed out below. But please don't panic. That is not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, I think I can actually use that scenario to make their relationship -- as a couple genuinely in love -- into a stronger relationship. V and Evey will work around this and come out stronger. I do promise you. I would give this couple nothing less than my absolute best.
Let me be honest ... I'm a married woman in her thirties, and I'd like to gently advise any young female readers that if you settle down and marry, your mate will almost definitely run into a bout of impotence at some point. And how you handle it could make all the difference in the world. It doesn't mean the woman doesn't "turn him on" enough, nor is it merely a matter of male embarassment over something failing. I've spent years on various relationship boards, and one thing I learned is that if a man honestly loves a woman, sex is a form of communication for him. When it doesn't work, he often feels like he can't communicate, or "show" his love as well. So that is what we have to get around here.
And finally, no, I'm not going for a miracle cure here, because I don't think they need it. I honestly think they can be stronger than that. I don't want to whip a miracle cure out, if it would in any way imply that I think they "need" it to survive as a strongly mated couple.
I also want to assure you that I will make their relationship stronger despite this. I don't want to give them a magic cure, because for me personally, that would make me feel as though I'm saying that they're not strong enough to survive this as a couple, without having a magic cure to fix it. To me, personally, I would feel as though I were disrespecting them. Because I think they are strong enough. Intercourse does not define sex, nor does it define a strong couple. Love does. And that's what I intend to use and build for them.
And finally, I want to also note that as of the date I first wrote and posted this story on my homepage/homesite/website (6/12/2006), I had already posted eight adult stories, all received very well. As of this date that I now post "I'm Still Here" here on ffnet, I've posted 33 adult stories on my homepage. V and Evey's relationship, including in the adult format, has progressed and improved throughout the decade of time that these stories cover.
Why I think V is impotent ... the details, including references.
Ok, let me first say, yet again and before anyone panics, that this will not be a problem for them. If you go on to read the later adult stories (they can be found on my homepage via the link in my profile), you'll find that I'm trying to make them stronger, even while they work around this particular issue.
Let me next say that I did do research on this. You know, I spent til the age of 26 in graduate school, doing the research for my Phd in Physics. I am a scientist by trade. My very gut instinct, ground into my bones, is to go out and search for the data. So yes, I did it here too.
And let me further say that I realize I'm about to belabor this point, but some of the questions I've received do deserve an answer. I put forth that I did not go into this hoping that V would be compromised in such a way. Hand on the Bible, I was not hoping for it. Quite the contrary, actually. I went into this wondering what medical case studies would suggest as the result. You know, I've been married for eight years, to a man who is now in his forties. It's a simple fact that almost every man out there will go through at least bouts of temporary impotence, especially as they grow older. It happens, and to a vast, vast majority of men. And like most married women, I've seen bouts of impotence 'in action' (no pun intended), and I would not wish it on anyone. But one thing you learn, as you go through it, is that there are ways around it ... and if you can get around the issue in a healthy way, it makes the relationship stronger. How the female reacts is a large part of recovery.
Ok, first off, based on the condition of V's hands (what we see in the movie, at least), the burning did appear to be pretty bad. I, personally, would not call that minor scarring. It appears, visually, to be what's known as hypertrophic scarring. Secondly, when we see him walking out of the fire, it would certainly appear that the flames he was walking through could get literally everywhere.
Now, as for the research ... ... From what I've found in the published medical case studies and burn advisory pages, if male genetalia is badly burned then even a "traditional" skin graft is unlikely to return proper functionality to the male organ. It's because even the scarring from the skin graft can make the new skin too tough ... not flexible enough. The skin on a penis must retain a certain suppleness for proper functionality. To explain it another way, imagine a penis that's been burned badly enough that the medical professionals would decide to do a skin graft. The skin that grows back will indeed have less scarring than had the burns merely been allowed to heal over entirely on their own. The newly grafted skin will indeed be smoother and less scarred. However, it will still, most likely, be toughened enough (also including the tissues beneath, if the burn hit the base of the skin), that the penis will be unable to swell properly. It's a function of the toughness and ridgidity of the new skin. It is not an issue of the penis being "burnt off" ... the penis can still be entirely present, with urine still passing through just as normal. It's not a function of penis "loss'. Rather, it's an issue of the suppleness of the newly grown skin, and whether or not the penis can swell as needed, within that skin.
Now, I don't think V had skin grafting done. Those hands of his did not look as though they had been "skin grafted". And if he didn't even get his hands treated with proper medical attention, then I doubt he got his groin treated either. So consider this ... if properly treated, skin grafted, penile skin is still so scarred and toughened as to make impotence likely, imagine how scarred and toughened untreated skin would be. If even proper, medically skin grafted skin has a difficult time allowing the penis to swell, imagine what you're up against with skin that was allowed to grow back on its own, without treatment.
Ok, now, furthermore, I should note that I did find one medical case study where a new type of skin graft was able to restore full potency to a badly burned penis. But, I want you to note, that this was a new type of skin graft, that is still very new to the world. And it's not like they get many chances to test this that often ... there aren't that many badly burnt penises out there. So in order for this new type of graft to have helped him, not only would he have had to have gone out and received the proper grafts (so wouldn't his hands look better in that scenario?), but he would have had to have found someone actually doing this new type of graft.
An explanation of this new graft can be found in a link on my homepage (visit my profile on this site to reach my homepage, OR you can do a search on the internet for PEAhopeless V for Vendetta Fan Fiction). And in particular, I'd like to quote this section from the case study ...
In the past, penile reconstruction has been attempted with skin grafts, local flaps, and even free flaps, which often result in scarring and an inability to achieve erections.(footnotes 1,4) This dermal substitute provides a smooth, noncontracting neodermal bed for skin grafting. This eventually allowed the authors' patient to achieve erection and have sexual intercourse.
Now, again, take note that this case study is talking about a new form of skin graft that does have success at allowing an erection. What this passage is saying, is that traditional skin grafts "often result in scarring and an inability to achieve erections". Let me repeat that ... traditional grafts often result in scarring ... and that's the same scarring and toughening that I'm talking about above. That's what causes the impotence. But again, this is only a new procedure. So again, I ask ...
Would V have managed to find someone to perform this new procedure? I would say it's unlikely, and given the condition of his hands, I would say that argues against it.
Did V have proper medical care performed, which would probably have given him some "tradional style" skin grafting? Based on his hands, I would say no. If he'd gotten his penis treated, I would think his hands would have been better treated and grafted as well.
So I'm guessing, based on the conditions of his hands, that he let his skin heal as best as it could on its own.
And if even "traditional" penile skin grafts produce skin that "often results in impotence", then why in the world would his even more scarred, untreated skin have even a prayer of supporting an erection?
And that, my friends, is my argument, including references.
If you visit my homepage, as can be found via my profile here at ffnet, or by doing a search on peahopeless ... or peahopeless vendetta ... on any major search engine, you'll find many adult stories spanning the length of the timeline. If you have any doubts as to how strong these two can be, or exactly what is possible, please check out those stories, through the end of timeline.
