Also want to say there's nothing wrong with wanting a dark fantasy romance. I love that shit. I just think the reason people may be unhappy is because they're looking for something in the story that isn't meant to be there.
We already know from the script it should be there. If you have the option to remain mortal at the end and there are special answers for this scene, then you must have a line in the dialogue that will lead to this. Once again, even if Astarion perceives this relationship as a barter (I disagree with this by the way), it's on him, not on my character. I should be able to play this moment the way I want. I don't understand why you are so resistant to one positive answer option. Literally, they can add one positive line. It's not that much.
He may even respond rudely to this positive line. I don't care. But I want to answer something positively, because the question "what do you want" is not rude and will never be rude.
I'm confused because there are positive lines for the player. How is saying you wanted what was best for him not positive? When he asks what you want you can then say you want to be a vampire like him. When he asks if you want to be his forever you can say yes, it's all you want.
You can only get the scene where you say you're not ready to be a spawn yet if you circumvent his ultimatum by not triggering the intended scene. I agree that the writing there conflicts. But they'd need to add more than a line of dialogue if you were able to stay with him without becoming a spawn. And ultimately that's not the story they wanted to tell.
But when I said it's not meant to be there, I wasn't referring specifically to the option to stay with him and keep your freedom. I'm talking about the version of a dark romance people seem to be asking for in general. There isn't a more genuine romantic moment because they're intentionally portraying the start of an abusive relationship. And it seems like people are really looking for a version of the relationship that isn't abusive, but his being trapped in the cycle of abuse is the point. It's part of the conclusion to his story.
