L.W. (Little Wrath): The Burdened Heir in Lover Forbidden

Overview

L.W. – Little Wrath – is the son of King Wrath and Queen Beth, and the heir to the vampire throne. For thirty years, he carried a secret: his father’s death was not an accident. That secret, combined with the recent return of Wrath from the dead, has left L.W. isolated, furious, and driven by a single purpose – to kill Lash, the head of the Lessening Society, before his own failing eyesight robs him of the ability to fight. This character analysis examines L.W.’s role in Lover Forbidden, his motivations, relationships, key decisions, and thematic significance.

Plot Role

L.W. is the reluctant heir who refuses to step into the spotlight his father left empty. When Wrath reappears, L.W. must confront his resentment while also hiding his physical vulnerability. As a frontline fighter, he chases Lash alone, abandoning his ahstrux nohtrum (bodyguard roommate) Shuli in the field – an act that nearly gets Shuli executed. Over the course of the story, L.W. is forced to admit that he cannot complete his vengeance alone, leading to a secret alliance with Shuli. His personal war with Lash threatens the fragile peace Wrath is rebuilding and draws the Brotherhood into further danger.

Motivations and Traits

L.W. is driven by a need to avenge his father’s death – even though his father is now alive. This paradox reveals a deeper wound: he needs to reclaim the heroic father he lost as a child. He also fears his own blindness, which is progressing rapidly. “Time was running out,” the narrative states, and he doesn’t want to “waste any of it” (Chapter 11). His traits include:

Rage: He is quick to anger, especially with his father and anyone who reminds him of his dependency.
Pride: He refuses to ask for help, even when his body gives out, as shown when he alone keeps fighting after ghosting Shuli.
Solitude: He prefers to be alone, sleeping in the abandoned study of his father’s mansion, keeping contact with the family to a minimum.
Reluctant Vulnerability: In a rare moment, he admits to Shuli that he is going blind and that he needs him – an admission that tears down the wall between them.

Chronological Arc

L.W.’s story begins before the main narrative, when he was a child carrying the weight of the King’s death. After Wrath returns, L.W.’s arc follows three phases:

Isolation and Defiance: He rebels against his father’s authority and the security his station demands. The confrontation in the Audience Room (Chapter 17) boils over: L.W. screams that his father “made a decision and fucked us all.” He refuses the role of heir and quits the rotation.
Forced Partnership: When Wrath pairs him with Shuli as his ahstrux nohtrum, L.W. initially treats Shuli as an annoyance. He abandons Shuli in the field, leading to a heated confrontation. However, after Shuli finds him and they face Lash together, L.W. begins to see Shuli as a tactical – and emotional – asset.
Secret Alliance: In Chapter 30, L.W. confesses his blindness to Shuli and forces him into a rogue pact: they will kill Lash together, without the King’s knowledge or the Brotherhood’s interference. This decision marks a shift from solitary revenge to a partnership built on mutual need.

The story does not show the final confrontation with Lash, but the epilogue implies that L.W.’s actions have helped stabilize the court – his father remains King, and L.W. is still alive, presumably continuing his mission with Shuli by his side.

Relationships

Wrath (Father)

The relationship is the emotional core of L.W.’s arc. L.W. grew up believing his father was dead, and he watched his mother mourn for thirty years. When Wrath returns, L.W. cannot forgive him – not for the death itself, but for the choice Wrath made to go out that night. “You made a decision and you fucked us all,” L.W. hisses. He feels that his mother’s lifelong devotion to Wrath’s memory was a betrayal of him, the living child. Yet the narrative notes that the initial embrace between them was “the lost and scared child who’d hugged the hero.” Beneath the rage is a boy still longing for his father.

Shuli (Ahstrux Nohtrum)

Shuli begins as a forced roommate – a playboy aristocrat forced to protect the heir. L.W. dismisses him until Shuli’s loyalty proves itself. In the cellar fight scene (Chapter 21), Shuli insists on going first, saying, “Let me die as the target.” That self-sacrifice cracks L.W.’s armor. Later, when L.W. admits he needs Shuli, he spits out the words under duress, but they forge a bond that lasts. By the end, they fight as partners, and L.W. even shows sadness when Shuli offers to take the lead – a rare emotion for him.

Bitty (Rhage’s Daughter)

L.W. is irresistibly drawn to Bitty, but he knows his life is too dangerous. In his thoughts he calls her “off-limits” and reflects that she is “in the path of disaster unless she came to her senses.” He is grateful that her mother is a therapist, implying he expects her to see reason. This attraction ties into the theme of forbidden love across worlds, as L.W. is royalty and Bitty is half-breed, but here the barrier is L.W.’s own self-destructive mission.

Key Decisions and Consequences

Ghosting Shuli in the field (Chapter 17): L.W. abandons his ahstrux nohtrum to chase Lash alone. The consequence: Shuli is nearly executed under vampire law, and Wrath is forced to intervene. L.W. later stands up for Shuli, risking his own life to prevent the execution.
Refusing the throne and the rotation (Chapter 17): L.W. quits the Brotherhood’s rotation and declares independence. This pushes him further into isolation and leads to the secret alliance with Shuli, which is treason without the King’s permission.
Confessing his blindness to Shuli (Chapter 30): L.W. reveals his physical weakness and forces Shuli into a rogue pact. The consequence is a partnership that could end in both their deaths, but it also gives L.W. a chance to accomplish his vengeance before his sight vanishes.
Choosing to go after Lash alone again (implied throughout): L.W.’s refusal to accept help from his father or the Brotherhood nearly gets him killed multiple times. It forces Wrath to take drastic measures, including threatening to ground him.

Theme / Symbol Connections

L.W.’s story touches several major themes in Lover Forbidden:

Family Legacy and Duty: L.W. is the heir to the throne, but he rejects the legacy. His journey is about accepting or redefining duty.
Identity Concealment and Self-Discovery: His failing eyesight is a secret he keeps from everyone except Shuli. Hiding this vulnerability symbolizes his fear of being seen as weak. Only when he confesses does he begin to discover his true strength.
Sacrifice and Redemption: L.W. is willing to sacrifice his life – and possibly his soul – to avenge his father. In the process, he must sacrifice his pride and ask for help, which redeems him from total isolation.
Death, Grief, and the Fade: The ghost of his father’s death haunts him. The “fade” of his own eyesight mirrors the fading of memory and legacy.
Forbidden Love Across Worlds: His attraction to Bitty is dangerous because he believes he has no future to offer her. He chooses vengeance over love, a classic forbidden‑love conflict.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: What is L.W.’s secret about his father’s death?
A: L.W. has known for thirty years that Wrath’s death was not an accident – it was caused by a bomb set by Lash. He kept this secret from everyone, including his mother.

Q2: Why does L.W. hate his father even after Wrath returns?
A: He hates that Wrath made a choice to go out that night, which “fucked everybody.” He also resents that his mother dedicated her life to the King’s memory, leaving L.W. emotionally neglected.

Q3: How does L.W.’s relationship with Shuli change over the course of the book?
A: It starts as a forced arrangement with mutual contempt. After Shuli risks his life for L.W. in the cellar and L.W. confesses his blindness, they form a secret alliance based on mutual need and, eventually, grudging respect.

Q4: What is L.W.’s ultimate goal in the story?
A: He wants to kill Lash, the head of the Lessening Society, before his eyesight fails entirely. He believes this vengeance is his responsibility alone, though he eventually accepts help.

Q5: Does L.W. ever reconcile with his father?
A: The story does not show a full reconciliation, but L.W. stands with his father against the conspiracy. His anger remains, but he no longer acts solely against Wrath’s interests. The ending explained suggests that L.W. continues his mission, but perhaps with a more open heart toward his family.

For further reader discussions, see the questions and answers page.