This post contains MAJOR SPOILERS from late in the set. Do not read this post unless you've read ALL of the books that have been published. You've been warned.
I have addressed some of the sticking points that fans have about the theory that Kenric is Forkle. These are my previous posts on this topic.
Fan Denial about Certain Theories
The Clues about Forkle's Identity
The Significance of the Forgotten Secrets
How a Certain Theory is Plausible
The Validity of the Anagram
Forkle's seed had a black hair wound around it, which proves that Leto is Forkle's true identity.
On the surface, this information appears to prove that Leto is Forkle's true identity. But does it really? Could Shannon be using misdirection? Yes, because elves use elixirs to change their hair color. Many elixirs wear off quickly, but not all of them do. Think of Iggy's fur color. The elixirs used on Iggy last for days or weeks. Readers assume that no elixir was used on the dead Forkle's hair, but it's possible that one was.
Fans also assume that Forkle's true hair color is black because Forkle changes to Leto when he eats callowberries. The hair changing to black doesn't make sense in that scene. Callowberries reverse the effect of ruckleberries, which cause the body to swell. Callowberries don't change hair color, at least not as far as we have been told. Shannon leaves out important information on purpose. Forkle had to have done something to change the hair color. He could have taken an elixir right before he entered Sophie's presence. If so, the elixir could have been one designed to change hair color to black. We just don't know.
The black hair does not definitively prove that Forkle's true identity is Leto. We must keep an open mind and not rule out theories when other explanations are possible.
The Wanderling trees for Kenric and the deceased Forkle don't look alike, so Kenric isn't Forkle.
I previously answered this one by pointing out that Shannon describes the leaves of one tree and the bark of the other. We have no idea whether the trees look alike. Another fan suggested that Sophie would have noticed. I didn't have an answer to that except to say that it could have been a plot hole.
Now, I have a solid theory about the trees.
The Kenric and Forkle trees are not the same. But Kenric is Forkle.
Yes, I'm serious. But how can this be? We know from Forgotten Secret #4 that Kenric was tired of being a Councillor. This suggests that Kenric planned to step down eventually. I believe it is a clue to the reader that Kenric faked his death.
If Kenric had a plan to fake his death once an opportunity presented itself, then he had to be prepared. He had no way of knowing when that opportunity would arrive. And he had a complication, mentioned by Forkle on page 184 of Nightfall:
"Neither of us wanted to be in the Wanderling Woods."
There is no way the tree in the Wanderling Woods is Kenric/Forkle's tree. None. The hair used for that tree was from someone else.
Kenric planned to fake his death, but he didn't want to be in the Wanderling Woods. He got a red hair from some other elf and placed it where it would be found. That hair was used for the Kenric tree that was planted in the Wanderling Woods.
It's possible that the Councillors each have a hair saved in a designated location just in case. Perhaps all elves do. Kenric would have submitted someone else's red hair. I have a theory about where he got the hair, but that's a topic for another time.
The Kenric and Forkle trees are not the same, because the Kenric tree isn't Kenric's tree.
Forkle, Leto, and Astin have personalities that are completely different from Kenric.
Remember this scene from page 351 of Exile:
When she didn't move, he nudged her forward, and she tripped on her too-long cape and slammed against the door, which swung open and sent her toppling into the room. She could hear Master Leto snickering...
Leto's behavior isn't very nice. Leto nudges Sophie, and she falls. He laughs about it. Awhile back, I read a post where someone wondered why Leto is so rude in this scene, since he's Forkle. It's because he's putting on an act. He doesn't want Sophie to guess that she's met him before. He's rude on purpose.
I see no problem with Forkle/Leto/Astin behaving differently from Kenric. Of course they do!
Oralie makes these two statements about Kenric on pages 222 and 232 of Stellarlune:
"He could be quite charming when he wanted to be."
"Kenric could be quite intimidating when he wanted to be."
Oralie's observations suggest that Kenric behaved in a certain way when he wanted to achieve a desired outcome. Kenric had the adaptability and cleverness that was necessary for someone with multiple identities.
Kenric is an amalgamation of all of his identities. He's been in multiple identities for his entire life, and he is adept at interchanging them. Here's part of the description of Forkle's tree from page 214 of Nightfall:
The rest was such a hodgepodge of colors and textures, it almost felt like the Wanderling was trying to reflect all of Mr. Forkle's identities at one.
Indeed. The varied behavior of the different identities is Kenric's cover. It doesn't prove that Kenric isn't Forkle. We know that Forkle plays different roles. Why can't Forkle's true identity be Kenric?
It is impossible that Kenric could be a Councillor and also be Forkle, Leto, Astin, and the fertility doctor. Even a pair of twins couldn't maintain that many identities.
The books say that the entire Lost Cities have the same time zone, which makes no sense. Supposedly, the elves have prevented every species that has ever existed on Earth from becoming extinct. Furthermore, all of those species live inside Mount Everest. Oh, and elves live forever without aging.
If we are expected to believe all that, then why do we draw the line at Forkle maintaining five identities? I know why: Fans just don't want Forkle to be Kenric because it doesn't fit their headcanon.
Forkle's identities are no less implausible than anything else. Let's break down how it might be possible.
During the years that Sophie lived in San Diego, a significant amount of time was spent in both the Kenric and Forkle identities. Little time would have remained for the other identities.
Lady Cadence points out that the Beacon of the Silver Tower, which was Leto's position when Sophie lived in San Diego, has very little to do (Nightfall, page 224). Leto was easy. He was likely not around most of the time when he was supposed to be in the Silver Tower.
Sir Astin has always seemed like the throwaway identity to me. I suspect that Astin was not used much during the time that Sophie was in San Diego.
The San Diego years were marginally doable.
After Sophie arrived in the Lost Cities, Forkle did not have to be present in San Diego. That identity was used minimally during the first three books.
Astin was used some, as was Leto. I figure this combination is more plausible than when Sophie lived in San Diego.
After Kenric's alleged death, Leto becomes principal, so one big job is traded for another. Astin seems to disappear. Forkle resurfaces. During each stage, identity use switches around to where some are used more and others less.
After one Forkle's death, it gets trickier for the remaining Forkle, and Shannon shows him exhausted or a bit frazzled at times. It is at this stage where I feel the multiple identities are the least plausible, simply because I believe the fertility doctor identity was in play to a greater degree than apparent (see posts here and here).
Kenric voted for the memory break on Prentice. Kenric cannot be Forkle, because Forkle would have saved Prentice by voting against the memory break.
I see the situation a bit differently. The Forgotten Secrets show that Kenric had a darker side to him. He did vote for Prentice's memory break, and I don't see it as a contradiction.
I want to remind you how hardcore Forkle actually is. He's not a kind, grandfatherly type. Forkle triggered Sophie's telepathy when she was five, which caused her to endure unkind human thoughts for seven years. The entire Project Moonlark situation is ethically problematic. Let's just be honest about that. Sophie was created, placed with a human family, and then stolen away from them. It wasn't nice.
Forkle's notes to Sophie during the first Keeper book weren't nice. He taunted her at times.
Now, Kenric. We saw hints of his darker side in the Forgotten Secrets. Forkle as Kenric would have voted for the memory break to protect his position. He couldn't be the only Councillor voting against the memory break. Most likely, the rest of the Council were strongly for the memory break. Kenric was protecting his own interests by going along with them.
No, it's not nice. But do you consider everything Forkle has done to be nice? I doubt it. Does Forkle feel remorse now? Of course. That's why he says that he is responsible for what happened to Prentice. Kenric/Forkle recruited Prentice, used Prentice to keep the Elysian secret safe, was therefore indirectly to blame for Prentice's arrest due to involving Prentice, and voted for Prentice's memory break. Yes, Forkle feels very responsible.
I firmly believe that Forkle is Kenric. I know he is, but I haven't been able to resolve one discrepancy.
We know that Prentice became Kenric's keeper, because information about Elysian was found by Sophie in Prentice's mind.
Glowing eyes peeked through bushes covered in blue ears, and butterflies with bright red lips whispered sounds like mush (Exile, page 239).
My sticking point was mentioned by another fan recently.
In Stellarlune, Forkle doesn't know anything about Elysian and dismisses its importance. Kenric knew about Elysian, so he can't be Forkle.
Kenric obviously had the memories of Elysian erased from his own mind, which would explain why Forkle doesn't know about Elysian. But Kenric must have had trigger words, right? This is the problem:
Stellarlune, page 253 "My training as a Washer has taught me how to hide memories in a very specific way, where the person holding them remains completely unaware—but the memories can easily be triggered if the need arises. And I, as your partner, would know the triggers. They would be carefully selected words or phrases containing enough of a clue about the secret that I'd be able to recognize any need to call for it, yet remain completely in the dark otherwise."
I know Kenric is Forkle, so how can this be? How can Forkle have no idea that Elysian is important when Sophie mentions it to him? He surely used a trigger word so that he could retrieve the information. Unless it's this from page 343 of Legacy:
His frown deepened. "Strange. I planted details about all of this into your mind years ago... Odd that it didn't trigger with everything else—and it's even weirder that it's not triggering right now, given that we're actively discussing it."
Is there a flaw in Kenric/Forkle's method of triggering implanted memories? I'm not sure that it explains Forkle's lack of knowledge. I feel like the explanation is just outside of my grasp. I can't quite put my finger on it.
My best guess at present is that Kenric did the one thing he should not have done. According to Oralie, Kenric was frightened about what he knew about Elysian. He said that he would have the information washed. I believe he did, and I suspect that he was so frightened that he didn't use any trigger words.
Wouldn't that be ironic? Kenric told Prentice that it was wrong for Councillors to use their caches and have no idea what was in them. He might have done the same thing with the Elysian information due to his fear.
I have an idea that Shannon is planning to show that the entire elvin world suffers from hypocrisy, even the members of the Black Swan. Kenric/Forkle has been culpable in bad Council decisions; neglect of Talentless elves; neglect of twins; disdain of humans; erasing important memories without a fallback plan; and forcing Sophie to grow up with headaches after triggering her ability. He is a fascinating, contradictory, and flawed character. This doesn't mean that Kenric/Forkle is a bad person, but he has done many ethically problematic things.
All of my past Keeper posts are linked from this page:
Keeper of the Lost Cities Summaries, Reviews, and Theories
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