You've actually managed to do something which I didn't believe possible, which is to make me feel empathy towards Delphine!
She's one of the most hated characters in Skyrim, yet it's rather hard to know why. Nazeem, yes, he's rude, patronising AND a liar - when is he ever in Dragonsreach? Ulfric, yes, he's waging war on his own countrymen and unintentionally helping the Thalmor. Tullius, yes, he's bland and blatantly admits he doesn't understand Nord culture. Ancano and Elenwen, yes, vile evil Thalmor torturers. But what's wrong with Delphine?
Well, simply that she's a bitch who bosses you around, despite the fact that the Blades are supposed to help the Dragonborn - and that she asks you to kill Paarthurnax. Those are really her only "crimes" - and yet most players hate her as much as genuinely annoying or evil characters.
Your Delphine is different. She's obviously insecure and out of her depth, being the Grandmaster by default since she doesn't know of any other living Blades. You make it clear that she might have been a very competent underling, even a competent Captain, just not the Grandmaster. You've also added in a lot of detail that makes me empathise with her - over a decade on the run, hiding in the Thieves Guild, barely able to trust anyone even there. She must have been relieved when it finally seemed safe enough for her to buy the pub in Riverwood and become a simple village innkeeper. After several years of safety, she'd probably started to relax.
Then her entire life and worldview gets shaken up again. The dragons are back. There must be a Dragonborn to go with them. Who is it? Is it someone she can trust? The Thalmor might start actively hunting for her again. And all of those fears of hers boil up to the surface. You make it clear how stressed and terrified she is. She doesn't even want to accept Brynjolf's help since she's not sure if she can trust him. It's no wonder that she orders the Dragonborn around (or would, if it wasn't Elisif) because she needs to assert her authority to stop her life collapsing.
I'm still not sure that I can find empathy for the game's version of Delphine. Your story is proof that she could have been written as a much more sympathetic character with only a few small changes. But I definitely like your version, and that surprises me. I'd thought she was unredeemable.
Re: The Wolf Queen Awakens 9.4
She's one of the most hated characters in Skyrim, yet it's rather hard to know why. Nazeem, yes, he's rude, patronising AND a liar - when is he ever in Dragonsreach? Ulfric, yes, he's waging war on his own countrymen and unintentionally helping the Thalmor. Tullius, yes, he's bland and blatantly admits he doesn't understand Nord culture. Ancano and Elenwen, yes, vile evil Thalmor torturers. But what's wrong with Delphine?
Well, simply that she's a bitch who bosses you around, despite the fact that the Blades are supposed to help the Dragonborn - and that she asks you to kill Paarthurnax. Those are really her only "crimes" - and yet most players hate her as much as genuinely annoying or evil characters.
Your Delphine is different. She's obviously insecure and out of her depth, being the Grandmaster by default since she doesn't know of any other living Blades. You make it clear that she might have been a very competent underling, even a competent Captain, just not the Grandmaster. You've also added in a lot of detail that makes me empathise with her - over a decade on the run, hiding in the Thieves Guild, barely able to trust anyone even there. She must have been relieved when it finally seemed safe enough for her to buy the pub in Riverwood and become a simple village innkeeper. After several years of safety, she'd probably started to relax.
Then her entire life and worldview gets shaken up again. The dragons are back. There must be a Dragonborn to go with them. Who is it? Is it someone she can trust? The Thalmor might start actively hunting for her again. And all of those fears of hers boil up to the surface. You make it clear how stressed and terrified she is. She doesn't even want to accept Brynjolf's help since she's not sure if she can trust him. It's no wonder that she orders the Dragonborn around (or would, if it wasn't Elisif) because she needs to assert her authority to stop her life collapsing.
I'm still not sure that I can find empathy for the game's version of Delphine. Your story is proof that she could have been written as a much more sympathetic character with only a few small changes. But I definitely like your version, and that surprises me. I'd thought she was unredeemable.