The Unwanteds Wiki
Register
Advertisement

SPOILER WARNING!
This article contains heavy discussion of plot details from the newest Unwanteds Quests books. You are at risk of major spoilers if you haven't read up to the newest installment in the series. Be careful!

Aaron was a main character in the original Unwanteds series, and was the twin brother of Alex Stowe. He was declared Wanted in Quill, was the leader of the Restorers, and was the high priest of Quill. He was later declared Unwanted and became a friend of Artimé.

Personality

Aaron changes quite a bit throughout the books. In the beginning, he is a rule-follower and wants to get ahead. He's quiet and serious, and deeply dedicated to his goals and the improvement of Quill.

As high priest, he’s demanding and impulsive. He thinks he’s a lot better than he is, and is rude to everyone around him. However, he’s still a bit of a coward, and often immediately regrets or tries to rewind his decisions. The books outright describe him as a "whining, beastly little turd."[1]

After Island of Graves, Aaron is a lot more polite and doesn’t focus on power anymore. He regrets his past actions and tries to be a very different person than he was. He turns into a "thoughtful, useful young man."[1] When on the Island of Shipwrecks, he's genuinely "alive and animated—a rare sight."[2]

Overall, Aaron is a very serious person[3], and is fond of making things sound more important than they actually are. He's also intelligent and creative, especially when it comes to machines. Ishibashi says he is very mechanically minded.[4]

Marcus believed that Aaron was simply misunderstood.[5] Kaylee says that he enjoys being quiet and alone.[6]

Apparently, he's more good than evil. Arabis hesitated a bit when sniffing his hand, however.[7]

Appearance

Aaron has short[8][9] dark brown hair[10][11] with dark brown eyes.[12] His hair is shorter than Alex's in Quests.[9] His face is normally clean-shaven.[13] When Kaylee is trying to guess his ancestry, she describes him as kind of ambiguous; at first, she she guesses his mother is from northern Africa or somewhere tropical, like Tahiti.[14] His father is potentially from Eastern European descent, somewhere like Italy[15], and Aaron looks more like him.[16][17]

He has scars on his face (particularly on his forehead and between his eyebrows) after Island of Shipwrecks[18][19][9][20], and is significantly stronger after his time away from Quill.[18]

"...a dark-haired boy just entering."
― The Unwanteds, "A Glimpse of Quill" (201)
"...the way the boy slipped his jacket off, or the way he smoothed his Quillitary haircut just so, that it was Aaron."
― The Unwanteds, "A Glimpse of Quill" (202)
"...Aaron’s jaw squared harshly, his nostrils flared, and his dark eyes as lifeless as marbles..."
― The Unwanteds, "Together Again" (268)
"...a disheveled, dark-haired boy with eyes as round as saucers peered into Mr. Today’s office."
― The Unwanteds, "Together Again" (269)
"He stood several inches taller than the curled old woman..."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Legends, "In a Panic" (42)
"His hair was disheveled and his jawline wore an uneven layer of fuzz. Shadows hung below his bloodshot eyes."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Shipwrecks, "Aaron Grows Desperate" (51)
"The boys resembled their fair-skinned, dark-haired father..."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Tiny Personalities (28)
"His muscles filled out in a way they never had before...The scars on his face grew less noticeable, but they didn’t disappear, though his shaggy head of hair covered them most of the time."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Settling In" (207)
"He lifted his mop of hair to show Alex the longer scar on his forehead."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "The Talk" (356)
"...he looked at his reflection and touched the scruff on his chin absently, studying it. There were some scratchy bits among the soft fuzz now, and he could see that the scratchy bits were as black as his sisters’ eyes. ‘We look like our father,’ he said."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Aaron's Last Secret" (89)
"[Alex] wore his dark brown wavy hair longer than Aaron, who kept his cropped short. Up close, Aaron had a distinct scar between his eyebrows and another on his forehead from a shipwreck..."
― The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Captives, "Living Life in Peace" (54)
"His voice was gritty, and his normally clean-shaven face wore a thick stubbly growth."
― The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Fire, "Regrouping" (300)
"...his gaze darting from the scars on Aaron’s face to the white in his stubbly beard, to the limp in his step, and then back up to the fear in his eyes."
― The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Fury, "The End of The End of The End: Behind the Last Door" (459)

Note: Please look at Alex and Mr. Stowe's pages as well, as Aaron looks similar to them.

History

Aaron was born and raised in Quill's Necessary quadrants with his twin brother, Alex. Aaron was always a creative child, but he was almost never caught. He missed getting an infraction when he was mistaken for Alex while drawing in the mud. Throughout his childhood, he reported many people’s infractions, including Samheed, Meghan, and Will Blair, believing that he was doing his duty to Quill.[21] In the end, he had no recorded infractions.

Relationships

Alex Stowe

Aaron is Alex's twin brother, and the two are "irrevocably tied together."[22] They can physically feel when the other dies.[23][24][25] They are close growing up, and Alex takes one of Aaron's infractions. The two become enemies after Aaron becomes high priest of Quill, and Aaron tries to kill him. After Island of Graves, Aaron seriously changes, and the two become much closer again. Alex is secretly jealous of Aaron's magical abilities, but keeps that to himself, and acknowledges that Aaron is an important part of his team.

Kaylee Jones

Aaron meets Kaylee when he joins Alex and Sky in rescuing her. She teases him a bit, but they bond over both feeling like outcasts.[26] Aaron likes Kaylee because she doesn't know or care about his old mistakes, and her large personality relaxes him.[27] They go on a journey around the Seven Islands after Island of Dragons to see what they can find, but are unsuccessful in finding anything. The two move to the Island of Shipwrecks. Five years later, Kaylee proposes to Aaron, and the two get married.[28] They later have a son, Daniel. In the last chapter of Dragon Fury, it's revealed that they have more kids after the series. He never tells her about his immortality.[29]

ItoSato and Ishibashi Junpei

Aaron is close with all of the scientists, but especially Ishibashi. The three of them helped him find himself and gave him a home on the Island of Shipwrecks. Ishibashi stuck by him when he needed a parental role.[30] Ishibashi is also the first person that Aaron truly respects.[31] Ishibashi says that Aaron reminds him of someone that he knew in another lifetime.[32]

Eva Fathom

Eva was Aaron's secretary in Quill, and the two were not close or friendly while she was alive. Aaron is frequently hostile towards her and threatens her many times. She goes behind his back. Aaron is the reason for Eva's death, though he regrets it and it was an accident.

Panther

Panther and Aaron are best friends. The two originally meet in the jungle and Aaron wants to use her for destruction; but the two become a lot closer and he realizes just how dangerous she is after Eva's death. The jungle, and Panther, become a safe place for Aaron, where he feels wanted.

Fifer and Thisbe

Aaron is much closer with Fifer and Thisbe than Alex is. The three of them are very close throughout Quests, even through Aaron's distrust of Thisbe in Dragon Fury. Aaron believes in Thisbe especially. Even when she seems to be on the enemy's side and everyone is turning against her, Aaron wants to be the one to believe in her.[33] Aaron sees a lot of himself in Thisbe.[34]

Mr. and Mrs. Stowe

Aaron doesn't have a great relationship with his parents. They almost seem to worship him when he is declared Wanted, and he immediately assumes his position above them in the social rankings. When he finds out that Eva has had his father tasked with taking down the wall, Aaron gets upset and confronts his father. He ends up sending his father to the Ancients Sector, but has an immediate change of heart and revokes the decision. In the end, it seems like Aaron did genuinely care about them, as he is shaken by the news of their deaths.[35][36] He also seemed at least a little worried that they didn't actually like him, and instead wanted Alex to be the Wanted son, based on his nightmares.[37] Despite his poor relationship with them, and the lack of affection shown in Quill, it does seem like Mr. and Mrs. Stowe hugged Aaron, at the very least before he left for university.[38] (Because it's Aaron and he reports everyone for the most minor of things, this probably was a common occurrence in Quill, and not some secret thing.)

Simber

Simber and Aaron have an interesting relationship. Early on, they have no reason to like each other. However, Simber acknowledges that people can come back from their mistakes, and that people are rarely pure evil forever.[39] After Aaron joins Artimé's side, the two become much, much closer. Simber is especially attached to Aaron after finding out that he's immortal; he's the one person that Simber can't lose.

Sky

Sky and Aaron are close. After Aaron joins Artimé's side, Sky becomes a person he can lean on. Ishibashi tells Aaron that if he feels he's losing sight of himself, he should seek out Sky.[40] Aaron feels like Sky didn't know him too well when he was evil, and therefore she doesn't judge him based on his past. He thinks she's pretty, although there were never any romantic feelings between the two.

Samheed Burkesh

Samheed has a special hatred for Aaron.[41] As a kid, Samheed was never all that nice, but Aaron was also the person who reported his infraction, which got Samheed sent to his death. Later, Aaron repeatedly tried to kill those in Artimé. While Samheed understood his redemption, the two never got all that close. In Dragon Curse and Dragon Fire, Samheed is at Aaron's side in the civil war, but distrusts him. After being trapped in the library together, the two overcame their differences and became friends.

Other Notable Relationships

Many people hate Aaron for his past actions, specifically including Frieda Stubbs and the rest of the Dissenters. Aaron is also friends with Carina Holiday and the other creatures in the jungle (although he doesn't particularly care about the rock). Aaron also admits that his feelings around Justine were based on fear, not respect.[31] He is shocked to find out that Maiven is his grandmother, and the two get lunch together every day.[42]

Quotes

"Forever at your service, Madam High Priest. May all Quill's enemies die a thousand deaths."
― The Unwanteds, "Aaron the Wanted" (143)
"I don't want to be happy. Happy causes infractions. I want to be intelligent and strong. And I am. I am Wanted."
― The Unwanteds, "Together Again" (265-266)
"Great cats! That smarts."
― The Unwanteds, "The Quillitary" (287)
"You useless, Unwanted piece of dirt. You ruined my life with this! When this battle is over, Justine will dispose of me, and it's all your fault! Why couldn't you leave me alone?"
― The Unwanteds, "Severing Ties" (354)
"High Priest Haluki, one day you will beg me for your life. And I will not give it back to you."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Silence, "Home Sweet Home" (77)
"But we are smart, and the truth is clear now: Quill is not the land of the Wanteds, and it never has been. Artimé is the land of the Wanteds, and we are the true Unwanteds, all of us. My friends, how does it feel to be Unwanted?"
― The Unwanteds: Island of Silence, "Cohorts" (144)
"I'm not Alex. I'm Aaron. I'm the twin everybody hates."
― The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "The Evil Twin" (59)
"I'm not a character in one of your scripts, Samheed. I have no desire to be like that anymore. And I'm insulted and hurt that you think I do. I'm not sure what more I have to do to convince you that I've changed. It's been...so long. To be honest, I'm tired of apologizing for the same things year after year after year, but I believe I must do it, because what I did was terrible. That is the cost of my actions. So I apologize again to everyone here—I'm sorry for how I hurt Artimé. But sometimes I feel like if you haven't been able to let it go and forgive me by now, Samheed, I doubt you ever will."
― The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Fire, "A Stealthy Invasion" (64-65)
"If it's any solace, people can come back from grave mistakes."
― The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Slayers, "Regret" (214)
"Every day I relive my past like a recurring nightmare. Every day I face people who still hold scorn for what I've done. And I deserve it. But, Thisbe, my dear sister...I want you to know it's not too late to come home. You have a chance that I didn't have, and I'm begging you to take it. Come with us."
― The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Slayers, "At Last, a Moment" (411)

Abilities/Weaknesses

Aaron is extremely talented with magic, specifically magic related to living things and statues. He is able to repair Panther's tail and put Simber back together with no spell components or words. He is also the go-to for the "Live" spell and spells like it.

Aaron was able to see the not-so-secret-hallway's entrance without any magical practice or training, as confirmed in Island of Fire. This means he has very powerful natural magic.

Aaron has a gift for understanding the way things work[43], which allows him to create all sorts of mechanical contraptions. He thinks it's easier to build a machine than to fix it.[44] He is good at mentally seeing and understanding designs.[44]

For a while, it was believed that Aaron was immortal because of the seaweed. Any time he was harmed, the wounds would heal abnormally fast.[45][46] Dragon Slayers and Dragon Fury confirmed that this was not permanent.

Trivia

  • Aaron's name means "exalted" or "strong." It might also mean "high mountain," which could be a reference to his high priest position.
  • We are all obsessed with him.
  • Aaron is afraid of mirrors, and covered the one in his room in Artimé.[47][48]
  • The first book suggests that Aaron can at least start a car, and potentially even drive it.[49] However, in Island of Shipwrecks, he doesn't know how to start a car.
  • Kaylee and Aaron get married in a Barnes and Noble bonus chapter at the end of Dragon Captives, set five years between the original series and Quests. Samheed and Lani get married on the same day!
  • It is heavily implied that Aaron is so magically powerful because of how creative he is. Snippets in the series suggest that Aaron might even be more creative than Alex, such as when he would as a child pretend the mop was a dog and the broom was a hedgehog.[50] He also shows creativity in his drawings, which likely aren't very good, but he still tries.
  • He feels most comfortable in the jungle with the "other misfit, dangerous ones."[51]
  • At the time of Island of Graves, he is afraid to go in the water.[52][53] He does later learn how to swim in Island of Dragons.[54]
  • Aaron likes the rain.[55]
  • He's from Quill. Of course he can wait for food.[56]
  • In Island of Dragons, he takes cooking lessons from the head chef in Artimé.[57] [58]

Gallery

Official Artwork

Disclaimer: While these artworks are official, there are many differences in how the characters are portrayed compared to their book descriptions. Many of the official artworks are whitewashed or otherwise incorrect. While they can be used as reference for fan artworks, they are not an accurate representation of how the characters may actually look.

Fan Artwork

All artwork is used with permission from the artists.

Disclaimer: The wiki works to show artwork that matches how the characters are described in the books, but interpretations may vary from artist to artist.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Settling In" (206)
  2. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Surprising News" (203)
  3. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Back to Artimé" (422)
  4. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Peeling Away the Skin" (216)
  5. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "The Call of the Wild" (386)
  6. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "A Grand Reunion" (492)
  7. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "A Brother's Love" (194)
  8. The Unwanteds, "A Glimpse of Quill" (202)
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Captives, "Living Life in Peace" (54)
  10. The Unwanteds, "A Glimpse of Quill" (201)
  11. The Unwanteds, "Together Again" (269)
  12. The Unwanteds, "Together Again" (268)
  13. The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Fire, "Regrouping" (300)
  14. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "The Dragon's Triangle" (83)
  15. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "The Dragon's Triangle" (82)
  16. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Tiny Personalities (28)
  17. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Aaron's Last Secret" (89)
  18. 18.0 18.1 The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Settling In" (207)
  19. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "The Talk" (356)
  20. The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Fury, "The End of The End of The End: Behind the Last Door" (459)
  21. The Unwanteds, "Broken Ties" (279)
  22. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "A Momentary Lapse of Judgment" (2)
  23. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "A Momentary Lapse of Judgment" (3)
  24. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "A Momentary Lapse of Judgment" (4)
  25. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Heading for Home" (379)
  26. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Magic All Around" (128)
  27. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Magic All Around" (129)
  28. The Unwanteds: Dragon Captives, "The Big Day" (bonus chapter)
  29. The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Slayers, "Pulling It Together" (399)
  30. The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Slayers, "Confusion in the Cavelands" (343)
  31. 31.0 31.1 The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Peeling Away the Skin" (220)
  32. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "And They're Off" (367)
  33. The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Slayers, "Confusion in the Cavelands" (343)
  34. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Aaron Longs for Home" (20)
  35. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "The Talk" (359)
  36. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Heading for Home" (378)
  37. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Clinging to Life" (8-9)
  38. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Finding the Inner Applecorn" (243)
  39. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Stealth and Trickery" (70)
  40. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "And They're Off" (366)
  41. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Strange Company" (48)
  42. The Unwanteds Quests: Dragon Fire, "Trial by Jury" (417)
  43. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Peeling Away the Skin" (217)
  44. 44.0 44.1 The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Peeling Away the Skin" (219)
  45. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Aaron Fights His Battles" (353)
  46. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Aaron Fights His Battles" (359)
  47. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Aaron's Last Secret" (88)
  48. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Getting Ready" (236)
  49. The Unwanteds, "The Way It Is With Twins, Redux" (384)
  50. The Unwanteds: Island of Shipwrecks, "A New Discovery" (352)
  51. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Unfamiliar Territory" (40)
  52. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Settling In" (207)
  53. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "Back to Artimé" (420)
  54. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Aaron Longs for Home" (18)
  55. The Unwanteds: Island of Graves, "The Talk" (357)
  56. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Contemplating Flight" (136)
  57. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Preparing to Fly" (165)
  58. The Unwanteds: Island of Dragons, "Preparing to Fly" (172)


Advertisement