For those who don't know, Stockholme Syndrome is a mental syndrome that is summed up as "falling in love with your captor", whether a physical, sexual, mental, or emotion captor. Many times, the captive sees traits in the captor that they themselves show, or they believe, 99.9 of the time futiley, that they can change their captor for the better.
Also, it is alluded to that Imoen was molested and raped by Irenicus, and many times, victims of molestation and rape will feel physical pleasure from the violation. It is only natural;the acts being performed on them are meant (in general, not by the molester/rapist) to feel pleasureable. This causes a horrible cycle within the victim; they know that what has been done to them is wrong, yet they still liked it, in a way. They become disgusted with themselves, reject all other sexual or romantic touching (even down to hugs, kisses, or even being touched at all by others), and begin to self-destruct.
As a survivor of both Stockholme Syndrome (mental and emotional) and molestation, I used my experiences in this story. Imoen could not concievably think that she could change Irenicus, so she feels that because he touched her in a sexual manner, that he must feel something for her.
He molested her because of her resemblance to Queen Ellesime (see first story "The Chronicles of Darkness: Rose Petal Skin"), and this allusion of similarity between them is an ego boost for Imoen. As was shown in "Baldur's Gate", Imoen was often left out of activities between the CHARNAME and Gorion, even though Gorion also brought Imoen to Candlekeep. She feels inadequate compared to her older brother/sister, though she is very good at hiding it. I had Imoen also use her feelings of pleasure, no matter how perverse, from the molestation as a base for the Stockholme Syndrome. No other person, man or woman, had touched her in such an intimate way, and she enjoyed it, so she becomes obsessed with the man. She mistakes it for love, which is also rather common with sufferers of Stockholme Syndrome.
The reason I wrote this story was to deal with my own feelings towards my emotional captor, who was also my molester. It was the clinching factor in realizing "This man is bad for me. Even when you say no, he keeps going. RUN." That is why this fic is near and dear to my heart, because it was made, as they say, out of my blood, sweat, and tears.
I hope that this has disturbed you and opened your eyes. If you find that you are suffering from Stockholme Syndrome, or you are being molested, please contact the nearest authorities. If you are recovering from either, feel free to contact me at I'm here to talk.