KKC Theory Wiki

Bast Is Secretly Kvothe's Son, Hidden by Fae Time-Dilation

fringe identity · popularity 430 · 2 source threads

The unusual closeness between Kvothe and Bast plus the Fae's distorted time flow suggests Bast is Kvothe's own child.

About: Bast, Kvothe

Also involves: Felurian, The Fae, Remmen

The theory§

This theory proposes that Bast is the biological son of Kvothe, conceived during Kvothe's time in the Fae with Felurian. Its scaffolding is the difference in the flow of time between Temerant and the Fae: with one mortal day equating to roughly half a Fae year, Bast could age across nearly a century and a half within the Fae while less than a year passes for Kvothe, allowing him to grow to adulthood and then seek his father out. Supporting flourishes include the shared 'Twilight' titles — Bast is named Prince of Twilight, Felurian the Lady of Twilight — the closeness between master and student that exceeds ordinary teaching, and the near-homophony of 'Bast' with 'bastard'. The theory founders on Kvothe's own introduction of him as 'Bastas, son of Remmen, Prince of Twilight and the Telwyth Mael', and on approved illustration depicting Remmen as a grown male. Defenders salvage it only by supposing Kvothe is either ignorant of his fatherhood or deliberately telling a technical half-truth.

Evidence§

  • Bast is 150 years old … Bast full name is Bastas, son of Remmen, Prince of twilight … Ferulian's full name is Felurian, Lady of Twilight.
    OP's foundation: Bast's age, his Twilight title, and Felurian's matching Twilight title. — u/H_is_
  • Kvothe had plenty of sex with Felurian when he was 16 … 1 day in Temeran = 0.5 years in the Fae world
    OP's mechanism: conception via Felurian plus Fae time-dilation enabling Bast to age fast. — u/H_is_
  • He finds him - Spends the last two years with Kvothe, which explains why he is 150 years in present day and why he has such interest in bringing Kvothe back to his old self and preventing him from dying.
    OP explains Bast's devotion as a son seeking and saving his father. — u/H_is_
  • I also think the name Bast is really close to bastard which is a naming technique that would seem to be right up Pat's alleyway.
    Comment adds the Bast/bastard near-homophone as supporting wordplay. — u/brownsad
  • if he was talking about his mother he was annoyed at for swindling his father and toying with him. It does sound like he knows her better than he would the "crazy lady".
    Comment refines theory: Bast's bitterness toward Felurian reads as a son's resentment. — u/kristalykiralyno
  • Kvothe states in Chapter 13 of NotW: "Chronicler, I would like you to meet Bastas, son of Remmen, Prince of Twilight and the Telwyth Mael." … if this theory is true, Kvothe is either lying, or he's being very misleading
    CounterCounter: Kvothe explicitly names Remmen, not himself, as Bast's father. — u/scowlbear
  • There is official, approved art of Remmen that squashes that.
    CounterCounter: approved illustration shows Remmen as a distinct grown male. — u/MeleeCleric
  • the idea of Bast being adopted by Remmen would be a tidy explanation if Kvothe isn't aware he's Bast's father, of if Kvothe is aware but for some reason felt compelled to deceive Chronicler while telling an almost technical truth.
    Rebuttal salvaging theory: Kvothe may be ignorant or telling a technical half-truth. — u/aerojockey

Book refs: NOTW, WMF, NOTW ch 13

Tier reasoning§

tier kept fringe: speculative and explicitly contradicted by books naming Remmen as Bast's father

Contributors§

Source threads§