Author's Notes/Rants/Ramble
TLDR - One-shot turned full-fledged story, based on how I wish the wedding in S3E3 ended, up until the wedding night; Headcanon for shoulder injury is not 100% curable but can become less debilitating with time and therapy. Please read the disclaimers below, thanks!
Trust me when I say, that I did not intend these notes to become their own fully-fledged chapter lol This story was intended to be a one-shot (a long one, I won't lie) but as I progressed, I started developing a cool backstory in my head which lead to a cool headcanon… and now here we are!
I was randomly bitten by the Andith bug one day. I started reading Andith fanfic out here and y'all have inspired me to write the below. I tried not to read too much DA fanfiction while the show was running and now I've gone down a rabbit hole lol This story started out as a one-shot to how I wish the wedding in Season/Series 3 Episode 3 went (ending with the wedding night). Now it's turned into a fluffy, spicy, andith-centric story, which will start with their wedding, explore their honeymoon adventures, and dabble in Anthony's journey to recovering the use of his arm (see headcanon below lol).
I always felt so unsatisfied with how their arc ended (especially on Anthony's end). Poor sweet man had his heart broken too and gave her up (so untimely lol) so that she could have a better future (and as we all know, that didn't happen right away). We won't ever know how he ended up either and that makes me so sad. So here's my attempt at making myself feel better. The title is inspired by the suddenly popular classic song by Linda Ronstadt ;D (jk, yall know I had this on repeat trying to get all the angst out).
Disclaimers:
I do not own the rights to DA - they belong to BBC and Julian Fellows. I am borrowing them for my own amusement and not for any profit.
This story is rated M for… a look into married life haha.
The below is my take on a consensual relationship between two adults with a large age gap in between. According to the wiki fandom, Edith is around 28 and Anthony around 52.
Please note, we all know how strong Edith becomes later on in the series, but really that is mostly due to the tragedy of her being jilted at the altar (and everything that follows). While Edith inherently is strong-willed (and comfortable in her skin in S3) I still want her character to make an emotional journey, if you will. So please be patient if y'all don't like how wishy-washy she it lol
I've tried to do as much google research as possible for travel options from London to Italy (which I don't even go into too much detail about) - still, apologies for any incorrect information on my part.
I am not a medically certified anything.
Ridiculously Detailed Headcanon:
Disclaimer: I know there exists (somewhere) a popular fanon about Anthony's relatives but I've never seen one regarding his injury (please correct me if I'm wrong of course!). Please note, that these ideas were thought up by yours truly and are only backed up by educational guesses, extensive google research, and random nerdy anatomy trivia that I have because I'm into kinesiology. This is in no way medical advice or even scientifically backed - just brain worms at work lol
Anthony's injury is caused by damage to his brachial plexus which he suffered via bullet wound to the back (below the shoulder). The brachial plexus (google it, it'll make sense when you see it) is a network of nerves that send signals from the (cervical) spinal cord, to the shoulders, arms, and hands. The main area of damage is right next to the armpit, below the shoulder's ball-and-socket joint. The bullet entered and exited cleanly, without hitting bone or organ and did not leave anything behind (which is why his arm was not amputated).
While his arm is often referred to as "useless", it is not completely paralyzed. He still has his sense of touch, but suffers from bouts of numbing, extreme weakness, and a nearly nonexistent grip. He is able to move, (especially at his elbow with the support of his left arm) but it's so stiff and heavy that he's better off not forcing it.
The sling is only bound around his hand, and not his whole forearm or wrist. If you think about it, a sling that supports at the hand sorta to still needs muscle support from the bicep (to keep the forearm "afloat", if you will) - which he is clearly able to do. Otherwise, his "deadweight" would cause his wrist to bend uncomfortably, causing more discomfort in his hand - this is where he would benefit from a sling wrapped around his whole forearm instead.
The reason he prefers the sling (rather than have his arm hang at his side) is because the sling position prevents less numbing in his forearm and hand. If he just "deadweighted" his right arm everyday, the weight would only add pressure to the brachial plexus, causing even more numbness - his shoulder would get tired faster and would probably slouch to the right as well.
In the sling, he is better able to support the weight of his arm (again, keeping the arm "afloat") - no compression, less numbing, and less stiffness. This also keeps his bicep "engaged" daily. The only time he removes his sling is when he sleeps and he follows a detailed stretching regimen from his doctor.
Full disclaimer Re:Headcanon: In any of the stories I make, post WW1, Anthony will never be cured 100%. It's just not my thing. No jabs to anyone who's gone down this path, it's just not my cup of tea ✌?(this is coming from someone who insists the bullet entered and exited cleanly without hitting bone or organs lol) Again, I am not a medically certified Anything.