#And what I believe is that they want the later although I phrased it somewhat poorly in terms of 'did you enjoy'

[maeamian]

A related tangent that I'm going to share here to spite you all for keeping this post from dying the quiet death a post I made at midnight about an email I didn't like deserves, but when I was first considering if I was autistic and doing the whole self-evaluation thing to kick things off, one of the questions was "Are you the 'eccentric professor' of your family" which, by any objective analysis of what they meant by the question and were trying to get me to think about the answer is yes 10/10 I am indeed I know a lot of shit about specific areas and am absolutely weird.

HOWEVER, my grandfather, may his memory be a blessing, was literally a professor of chemistry and was literally known for his funky eccentric shirts, so of my family, I am absolutely NOT the eccentric professor, I'm second in the rankings probably but I can't touch the first place's qualifications for the title. I answered 'very true', but was deeply annoyed about how that constituted a lie, technically, even though it was an answer to what they were asking, which is a) the sort of thing I'm trying to talk about in the first clause of this post and b) almost a better diagnostic criteria than the actual evaluation it was from.

This may just be the autism speaking, but I fucking hate when customer surveys ask me 'how likely are you to recommend this or that to a friend' because they are lying about what they're asking. I am 0% likely to recommend almost any product to any friend and especially not by brand if at all possible, but what they want to know is 'did you have a decent experience with the thing' and that's a whole other fucking question if you want that answered fucking ask that. Except if I answer the question they're asking instead of the secret question, they yell at their employees on my behalf which I never wanted either. Terrible system, would not recommend it to a friend.

[alicepao13]

Hudson and Rex S02E13 - In Pod We Trust

This is a serious episode. Somewhat.

I can't get over the fact that they all want to listen to true crime podcast when not only are they with the police but they deal with murders all the time.

What the hell, dude? Do you not have a home?

Rex: I don't know what the fuck a podcast is but it allows me to eat Charlie's burger while he's distracted so it must be good.

Me neither. Although, in S3 we learn that Charlie had followed the news of a case of a notorious serial killer when he was like in high school, so I guess it's the true crime aspect of it.

"How did he get up there? That dog is a ninja". You haven't seen anything yet.

This is a better cops-done-wrong episode than the one that was written during the BLM movement period. The latter was basically trying to placate the audience and was presenting cops reacting unrealistically as they find out that they're part of the problem, coming off as disingenuous. Cops would not react that way. Still, it's Hudson and Rex, so I don't expect much of a balanced script in terms of that, and I've seen other (bigger and more expensive) crime shows go off the deep end when when the time came to write such episodes. They do try to handle difficult issues respectfully, I'll give them that. However, this is still a cop show. I mean, if you're ashamed that you're making a cop show... don't make it?

lol Jesse saying that the case files from 20 years ago haven't been digitized because they're ancient, in front of Joe who was already a cop back then. "I think you've just bought yourself a one-way ticket to those ancient archives". That's fair.

"I went [to the crime scene] to make sure that you didn't bury the truth, again". There's a misunderstanding. See, Charlie is a good white cop™.

Hi, Vicky, who later got a redemption storyline a lot of characters would have dreamed of.

Rex, huh?

Protestors using the imaginative slogan "Do your jobs". Awful. Do yours, writers.

"But... But... they still love me, right?"

Joe: "We have to be really careful with the optics on this one". You've put an innocent in jail, I think you should care more about that.

She totally said SJDP instead of SJPD. Oops.

Dude, I know Charlie is white but you don't have to tell him a hundred times that this case is a hot potato.

"If you come peacefully, you'll be treated fairly," he says to a man who was wrongly incarcerated for 20 years!

Booking the black guy, releasing the white police guy. I mean... I'd have asked the question too.

Well, that lasted all of 2 minutes. You can argue and have tension for like 5 minutes. It won't kill you guys.

Yeah, I wouldn't trust him just for that. I mean, that was 20 years ago. During which Joe continued climbing the ranks inside the police, which means that he could have easily stopped caring about justice more than he could afford to.

This show's attempts to write some of the jargon and phrases that would otherwise be said in a proper police procedural but can't be said on this "family show" is hilarious. I assume we can't say "ass"? Like, I have no issue believing the actress in her role, I think she's good, but the dialogue...

Enjoying Charlie's on-screen suffering once again.

Joe, like 10 minutes ago: We have to be careful about the optics in this case. Charlie: Nah, I have a murder to solve.

I bet Charlie is reminiscing the good old days where suspects were intimidated by the police right about now.

"You think I murdered Ty for ratings?" People have killed for 20 bucks.

Police corruption in the SJPD is rampant. The only clean cops are our cops lol

Okay, you need at least a second paperclip, amateur. Also, in the second shot, the paperclip is not blue.

I like that line. And she's partially right. Except for the whole murder thing.

I can't help thinking that Joe was right not to get involved further back then. That way, he kept his job, he survived a toxic environment, and even managed to rise to a rank where he can now make an actual difference. And he kept his soul. I'm sure if we were to delve deeper into it, we'd have seen the cost of that on his conscience, but it still led him to where he is now. And where he is now is not a bad place. Camilla cannot understand any of that because she hasn't been nor will she ever be in that position.

Well, turns out they did all this for nothing as Tyler had recorded his own confession and it just arrived to Phoebe a few days after solving the case.

Yeah... I don't think Romeo would want to see a cop within a hundred yards ever again. But we have to get our happy cheesy ending.

[dialovers-translations]

Diabolik Lovers LOST EDEN ー Ruki Dark [06]

CHAPTER MASTERLIST

ー The scene starts in front of Eden

Kou: Huh? Are you all by yourself, M-neko-chan? Where is Ruki-kun? 

Yui: He went back inside earlier. Do you need him for something?

Yuma: Not from Ruki, but from you. Well, I guess it’s not that serious.

Azusa: There’s something we’d like to ask you, Eve. Wouldn’t you agree...that Ruki has been acting strange as of late? What do you think? 

Yui: Strange, you say? ...I do think he’s somewhat different from usual. Is there anything that makes you feel that way? 

Kou: It’s not anything in particular that throws us off. Rather than that, something just feels off about his behavior.

We get the impression that he constantly has something on his mind. I mean, he has always been the kind of guy who tends to fret over things. 

Yui: ( I’m sure it’s the fact Shuu-san inherited Karlheinz-san’s powers as well as Eden which have been on his mind... )

( Although judging from what he said earlier, he found the answer to both dilemma’s. )

( However, I’m sure that he hasn’t been able to give everything a place just yet... )

...I can’t say for sure, but it could be that he’s feeling a little distressed because of the state Eden is currently in?

Azusa: You...think so...?

Yuma: Maybe we’re stressin’ out over it a lil’ too much. I guess we can wait and see how things go for now.

Yui: ...Thanks. 

Azusa: ...? Why would you say that all of a sudden? 

Yui: I believe that he gets a lot of support from you guys looking out for him like this. 

That’s why I wanted to thank you as well. 

Kou: Ahaha! You’re sounding like his wife, M-neko-chan.

Oh well, we’re brothers after all. It’s our duty to be there for one another, so this is only the natural thing to do. 

Yuma: But you’re still his number one. So ya should be there to support him as well, ‘kay?

Azusa: That’s a request from us...

Yui: ...Yeah, of course.

ー The scene shifts to the entrance hall at Eden

Yui: ( Ah, Ruki-kun. Wow...He’s carrying a huge pile of books. )

Ruki: So you’ve come back inside as well.

Selection

→ Should I help you carry those? (❦)

Yui: Look at all those books. Should I help you carry them?

Ruki: No, it’s okay. I can handle it by myself.

Or do you perhaps...Think I am so weak of a guy that I wouldn’t be able to handle a couple of books?

Yui: T-That’s not what I meant! I only wanted to help because it seemed like a lot of work...!

Ruki: Pfft. I just wanted to try saying that phrase.

→ Where did you get those books? 

Yui: Where did you get those books? There’s so many of them...

Ruki: ...There’s something I’d like to look into so I borrowed them from the pharmaceutical department. 

Ruki: I’m going to be in my room for a while until I’ve finished all of these. Just call if you need me.

Yui: Sure. I’ll bring you some tea later, okay?

Ruki: Yes, that’d be great.

ー Ruki walks away

Yui: ( Even here in the Demon World he resorts to reading, huh? ...I suppose he never changes in that regard. )

*TIMESKIP*

ー The scene shifts to the guest room

*Flip*

Ruki: ...

*Flip*

Ruki: ( ...It’s not in here either. )

*Thud* 

Ruki: ( I suppose I’ve been focused on reading for a bit too long. My vision’s become blurry... )

( ...Even though I’ve read through so many books, the information I seek isn’t in any of them. )

( I had a hunch I wouldn’t be able to find it...So why can’t I stop looking for it? )

( How come...I cannot help but seek an answer to my question? )

( Especially since I know very well that if I were to find the answer, it might only lead to a newfound kind of fear. )

ーー This is like I have been infected by some kind of illness.

( No matter how hard I try to shake it off, it keeps on eating away at me from the inside. )

I might just meet my end one day. ...At the hands of the disease known as greed. 

Monologue

Even after some time had passed,

Ruki-kun would not leave his room.

While I’m on my way,

to bring him the tea I prepared, I start thinking. 

‘Ruki-kun is acting different (違う) from his usual (いつも) self’

However, could this ‘usual self’

actually be an image,

I formed of him inside my own head.

ーー TO BE CONTINUED ーー

[adelemadouce]

The Sacrilege of Fontainebleau Part 1

A few days after the scandal at court, Églée *Madame la Maréchal* Ney visited me early one morning while I was having breakfast. I had not had to appear at the Tuileries again since that dramatic day, which I was very happy about. Églée hugged me. She was wearing a dark green hunting costume and smelled of cloves. "Have you gotten over the shock yet? I can reassure you...everything is fine again! There is no divorce, they have reconciled!" I offered Églée a seat, but she declined. "I must go soon, my dear, I must accompany them both to Fontainebleau. The Emperor wants to welcome the Pope!" She took my hands and looked at me sadly. "The Empress asked me to calm you down and ask you to quickly forget the ugly scene! She knows that you are afraid of the Emperor!" I shook my head slightly and said: "Ohh!" Églée immediately smiled and her sad expression turned into a mischievous grin. "The Empress told me what had happened... she had caught the Emperor and Élisabeth in flagrante delicto in the Emperor's secret boudoir. She had never before seen him so angry... he threw a chair at her! Imagine! That's why she ran away. Later they continued to shout at each other until Hortense came and was able to end the argument. And then Eugène came too...and the Emperor started to cry. Then everyone cried together, and in the end everything was forgiven and forgotten. That night the Emperor went to bed with Joséphine and gave her his love, which she longed for so much...she told me!" Églée giggled. "But the best is yet to come...Rémusat told us what Joséphine had to witness when she caught the Emperor in flagranti with de Vaudey!" I looked up at Églée expectantly. She was enjoying what she was saying. "...she saw that Élisabeth had her head in the Emperor's lap!" My mouth formed a silent O, although I had no idea what it meant that Élisabeth had her head in the Emperor's lap?! "She probably wanted to force his forgiveness for her suicide-lie! But as you can see her tricks didn't help her. Élisabeth handed in her resignation to the Emperor...I feel sorry for her. But she just wasn't a good fit for us!" Églée hugged me again. "I'm just curious who will be his next...Well, I have to go. Au revoir, my sweet!" And then Églée disappeared. To Fontainebleau!

After her visit, I went back to my bedroom to choose a dress for the day. I glanced at a portrait of the Emperor when he was still General Bonaparte. There was already talk at court that I had a picture of him in my bedroom. But I didn't care! I love this picture and enjoy looking at it. My maid Camille came in. "Are you going out today, Madame?" She smiled. Camille was a nice girl, always in a good mood. I sat down in front of the dressing mirror and Camille started to brush my hair. "No," I replied. "In this bad weather I like to stay at home and dream in front of the fireplace." I looked at the portrait of Napoléon and sighed. "Camille, can I ask you something?" She looked at me in the mirror. "Of course, Madame. Just ask!" I thought for a moment about how I wanted to phrase my question. "When you watch a woman lay her head in a man's lap...what does that mean?" Camille stopped brushing my hair. "Do you know what I mean," I asked. Camille nodded. "I know what you mean, Madame...but it's somewhat tricky to answer your question!" I turned my head to her. "Why?" She lowered her hand with the brush. "It is really very delicate, Madame! Well, then...when a woman puts her head in a man's lap, she satisfies him...with her mouth!" I opened my eyes wide because I couldn't believe it! "You mean she has his...member...in her mouth?!" Camille brushed my hair vigorously. "Mais oui, Madame! This kind of lovemaking is as old as the world!"

And I once again hadn't known it! I felt myself blushing. What an unworldly fool I was! "Have you done it before, Camille?" She laughed. "Pardon, Madame...but I won't answer that!" Now, I was being indiscreet... I sighed again and looked at the portrait. I imagined Élisabeth kneeling before the Emperor and singing...avanti...mia dolce ragazza...facciamo l'amore...subito...

Suddenly a flash shot through my head! I saw myself in the mirror and jumped up: "It was him! It was him!!!" Camille was frightened. But I left her standing there and ran over to the nursery. My little Napoléon was just having his breakfast. I held out my arms to the wet nurse. "Please give him to me, just a moment!" I took my boy from her breast and cradled him tenderly in my arms. I cried. "My darling...my little imperial darling!" I went with him into my bedroom and stood in front of the portrait. "You are his son! The Emperor is your Papa!" I said quietly and kissed his forehead. Camille seemed very frightened by my strange behavior. "Should I take him back, Madame? He's probably still hungry?" I kissed my son again and gave her the child. "Yes. Please leave me alone for a moment!"

When Camille closed the door behind her, I burst into tears. It took me a quarter of an hour to recover from the shock of my discovery. And I recalled - that night in La Malmaison, it was the First Consul who crept up behind me, grabbed me, made love to me and impregnated me! Because Napoléon, the Emperor, knew the Italian words that the man had whispered in my ear! He, Napoléon, was the father of my child! But what if I was wrong? What if the man that night was someone else? I knew immediately that I would only find my inner peace again if I had certainty. And there was only one person who could give me this certainty! I had to go to him, to Fontainebleau!

I calmed down more and more, I wanted to think logically and not make any mistakes. I had to go to Fontainebleau, as a woman, alone, without a passport, without protection! It was impossible!

Impossible? As a woman, yes! But not as a man! I will go to Fontainebleau as a man!

First I needed men's clothing. It occurred to me that our gardener never took his work clothes home with him, but left them in the shed. Of course I could have stolen clothes from Duchâtel, he wasn't at home and wouldn't have noticed anyway. But my sense of honor was not satisfied with this, and besides, his clothes were too fine for such an adventure. So I quickly put on a house dress and went out to the coach house. I found some trousers, a jacket and a black hat. I would wear two bed-jackets as a shirt, that would be warm enough. I took our gardener's clothes and brought them to Camille. "Can you wash these for me, please? And hang them in front of the fire. It must be dry by tomorrow morning!" Next I went to Duchâtel's study. I needed a map showing the barrieres! I immediately found the right map, took it into my bedroom, rolled it out on my bed and studied the route to Fontainebleau. I also needed money! In my jewelry box I found several hundred Francs and a few gold Louis! I put everything in a little money bag that I would wear around my neck. I'm thinking of taking a small knife with me, just in case... I was able to hide it in the shaft of my riding boots. Then I thought of something that might be helpful: the paper with my oath as lady-in-waiting bore the imperial seal. This seal would open doors for me! I foldet the paper and put it in a bag, with the map. In the evening I told Monsieur Copin that I needed him with the little carriage at six o'clock in the next morning. So, I was prepared and ready! Camille was watching me. "I'll explain everything to you when I get back," I said to her. "Should I be afraid for you, Madame?" I stroked her cheek. "No!"

[soul-dwelling]

What was the relationship between Vulcan and Lisa even supposed to be? At first when Lisa was just shown I though she was like his girlfriend, but later the whole story of Vulcan taking her and the kid (forgot name lol) in seemed to be more of a family in a kind of siblings type of way. But then later it seemed like it was romantic after all, so I guess its like they are parents to the kid in a way, but still eh

LOL, Vulcan and Lisa’s relationship is about the only thing I didn’t have a problem with in Fire Force. 

And that’s saying something, because it’s not like it isn’t problematic (she gets revealed as a honeypot / covert agent before realizing she actually likes Vulcan and joins the good guys) but because any problematic stuff is mostly fully explored (Lisa still ends up carrying a ton of trauma) and gets somewhat of a payoff (Lisa helps stop Giovanni…sort of--I’ll get to why that didn’t work for me in a moment). 

Vulcan and Lisa is pretty much the only adult coupling we get in the story that feels healthy. Again, it’s based initially on a lie--yet Vulcan’s treatment got to Lisa and convinced her that the White Clads were in the wrong. That is itself problematic (“all she needed was love and family,” “we’re going to avoid using Lisa to interrogate how what the Clads want and what they did was wrong”). 

So maybe I’m just a sucker, or maybe the standards are so low with Fire Force, that we have two people who have an excellent rapport with each other, seem to bounce off of each other well--and, oh, look, they’re 18, this doesn’t become creepy and weird. I guess that’s why I didn’t read Vulcan and Lisa as a sibling-like relationship; although I think that choice would have worked as well (and give the story something missing, non-sexual relationships between a same-age man and woman that is lacking in a lot of the series), I also think there is a dearth of adult writing in this series, and handling Vulcan and Lisa as being in a relationship, however subtle it is, works. It’s again Ohkubo accidentally falling into good romance writing, as he did with Soul and Maka, that is so understated that you can believe if it was unintentional. 

So, I guess if I had any criticism with the Vulcan and Lisa relationship as it appears in the manga, I would have liked it to be more obviously a romantic relationship. It’d be nice to break up how cynical this story could be by showing one couple that makes it work, instead of leaving it so awkwardly written that, yeah, I get seeing a sibling relationship initially before Lisa is blushing at Vulcan complimenting how the White Clad attire fits her. 

And it’s not like I don’t ignore how weirdly conservative and nuclear family the set up is, that Vulcan and Lisa are like the parents and Yu is like their kid. But it is dismantled enough: Lisa is revealed as a spy, Giovanni mocks them for having played house--it’s enough of a setup to be subverted later. It’s like an early Spy x Family…only it’s Ohkubo’s usual screw ups…and the latest Spy x Family chapter kind of sapped a lot of the charm that series has had up to now--but that’s a topic for another time. 

I also appreciate that we mostly explore how traumatizing Lisa’s time with the White Clad was. We still have some disturbing imagery in the form of how close Giovanni gets to her physically--but this is an instance where it doesn’t come across as fanservice or fetishizing view or titillating poses and trying to accentuate Lisa’s figure. I’m going to try not to read into Giovanni’s presence too much: if you read rape-like imagery in the scenes, or even read into the potential that Giovanni assaulted Lisa, I think the imagery reinforces that reading, even if you don’t want to go there and read it as mental coercion (itself already a violation, hence the phrase “mind rape”). It never came across to me as crossing a line and was one of the rare cases where this series, and this overall oeuvre by Ohkubo, took the moment seriously and didn’t reduce it down for titillation: it was a set of moments to emphasize that Giovanni groomed this child, put her into a position to lead Vulcan on, then when she falls for him Giovanni gets way too close to try to get into her mind and coerce her back into his service. It works. 

That being said, I think there are missed opportunities with Lisa, or at least poor treatment of her. We really needed another woman added to the cast who, upon introduction, is reduced to a dumb sex gag by Shinra--and then calling back to it again upon her re-introduction? We really couldn’t let her be the one to defeat Giovanni, to symbolically get back at her tormentor and get some catharsis? If you really have to have Arthur be the one to stop Giovanni, you can’t make it into a combined attack, complex and intricate, between Arthur, Lisa, and others to stop Giovanni? 

(And it’s weird, too: there is headcanon I had that could have tied Arthur’s dilemmas into Giovanni’s overall plan, stuff my friend and I have explored in plotting out ideas--but that isn’t what happened here.) 

But no, we instead have Arthur show off how OP he is so that the Giovanni fight ends as a joke to set up the fight against Dragon as what will be truly impressive. 

(Sidebar: Yeah, I’m still bitter about Fire Force, but there is nothing in that Dragon fight that I thought was cool. Maybe it’s the black and white artwork: I’ve seen colorized artwork that kind of makes it more engaging when Arthur is standing atop the video game lettering. But this was so stupid--and not in a fun “Black Star vomited back a laser” way. This is Arthur taking time off from a major problem in the series, as the world is coming to an end, to play Dragon Quest then getting into a Scott Pilgrim-esque fight in space that tears his body apart. Reading that in writing, that should be amazing--and it just came across as so boring visually, and not a decent payoff. It is just a gag, and not even a particularly funny one, just one that clashes with the tone and visual style up to now--and, seeing as I just said Scott Pilgrim did this kind of stuff, but better, it also comes across as derivative, which wouldn’t be a problem if it was well done, and it just never looked good to me.) 

If there is any other flaw to having Lisa and Yu here (and I’ll talk about how the series screws over Yu), it’s that a lot of the role of Vulcan’s crew in the story feels under-utilized. Granted, I could say the same about Viktor when it comes to the science side of this story: Dr Stone this isn’t, this is a series that is about fighting, with the science and tech sides just in support roles and exposition roles. It’s not to ignore the cool tech Vulcan makes--but I’m blanking on what he makes beyond Maki’s owl shields and eventually the new Excalibur. I wanted to see more inventions and tech by Vulcan, Lisa, and Yu. I wanted to see characters get tricked out with more gear that gave them advantages against the Clad--and had the Clad ramp up their work, maybe even their tech, in response. It’s not as if Ohkubo doesn’t have mecha designs from B Ichi to Soul Eater, and it’s not as if this manga and its anime adaptation didn’t draw from steampunk. It would have made illustrating that much harder, but I almost wonder whether it would have made fights more engaging, the stakes higher, give the 8th some victories that showed that their work recruiting people paid off. 

Now, as for Yu: the poor boy got screwed over so much. I like Yu--he’s a proto-Gopher, only likable. But he’s underserved by the story. He’s here just to be the victim: he gets injured by the White Clads to make Vulcan and Iris desperate; he’s taken over by Giovanni to make Vulcan worry, to see his student possessed by his greatest enemy. It’s one reason why I think showing Yu and Lisa designing more tech with Vulcan would have made his presence feel more needed to the story, so that he’s not just Side Character Number Five in a cast that was getting way too big by the series finale. It almost makes me wonder if that is why the anime waits until the Vulcan arc to introduce him--because it’s bizarre, seeing Ohkubo obviously had a plan with Yu, having him appear so early in the manga, during the Hibana arc, but the anime doesn’t bother. Did Ohkubo realize he had next to nothing to do with Yu except make him a prop whose injuries motivate Vulcan, so don’t do more with him? It robs a lot of the really good setup for how Shinra’s intervention to protect Yu is what helps them get an audience with Vulcan to begin with. 

[visionhaunted]

→ @yuuzhan​ said: meta + divinity, godhood, otherness; literally and / or symbolically

send META + a word,  a name, or phrase and i will write a head canon based off of this

   Oh I apologie already for how messy this one is about to get. So. There are two specific things I want to talk abot when it comes to this topic and that is firstly, the supposed godhood the Vong impose on Jacen ( and his twin ) and secondly, his own views on his position in the world and how it changes over time.

1. The Vong god situation

   Very early on in the war, the Vong realise the Jedi are much stronger opponents than they expected them to be. Some of them begin to try figure out what this could mean, how this could possibly be when they were so sure of their own superiority before this. Some choose to believe that certain Jedi are reincarnations or human vessels of their Gods. The most prominent example of this deification are Jacen and Jaina specifically because they are TWINS. Twins hold a special place in the world of the Vong in that they believe one twin will always eventually win out over the other. They want and encourage Jacen and Jaina to fight especially when Jaina takes on the mantle of Yun Harla, the trickster Goddess and Jacen starts being associated with the God Yun Yammka, the slayer ( and the twin of Yun Harla ), after defeating ( although not killing ) warmaster Tsavong Lah. Tsavong Lah became obsessed with capturing Jacen to sacrifice him to the Gods but Jacen escaped him time and time again, further cementing the idea that he is more powerful than the Vong and therefore potentially involved with the Gods SOMEHOW, further spreading the belief that he is more than just a human or a Jedi.

    While most Vong associated Jacen with Yun Yammka due to the way he proved himself in battle ( despite his reluctance to fight at all ), one of them, Onimi, DISAGREED with that assessment, instead believing that Jacen’s body was a vessel for the Goddess Yun Shuno, the pardoner, instead. Onimi does not give an explanation for his disagreement with the other Vong but we can guess that Jacen’s actions as an outspoken pacifist during the war and the stories of how he treated the Shamed ones, who Yun Shuno is the Goddess of, with respect, helped to instill the idea in Onimi, that Jacen was somehow connected to the Goddess of forgiveness.

   I’ve touched upon how ironic this whole situation is before, with Jacen and Jaina eventually actually fighting to the death and Jacen taking on more characteristics of the trickster Goddess his twin was associated with while Jaina becomes known as the Sword of the Jedi, a title much more suited for the association with Yun Yammka, but I also think Jacen very much blends characteristics of BOTH twin Gods in the end.

2. Jacen’s personal feelings about godhood

   During his late teen years and early 20s, when he first comes in contact with the idea that the Vong see some kind of God in him, Jacen firmly REJECTS the idea he could stand above anyone in any way. The last thing he wants is to be seen as above someone else for any reason. Despite this even he cannot entirely shake the feeling that he is destined for greatness, an idea that Vergere further encourages in him. During his time with the Vong, Jacen, much like his sister, eventually leans into the role the Vong give him but abandons it just as quickly once he finds an escape route. While Jacen does acknowledge he is apparently destined for greatness, he still rejects the notion of GODHOOD.

    Jacen’s arrogance makes this a rather complicated topic as a whole though. While he is quick to reject most titles and deification through others, going as far as to present himself as ‘ man of the people ’ when he becomes leader of the GAG years later, he still, personally, holds views of himself that put him ABOVE others, even if he rarely fully admits to it. It starts somewhat harmlessly in his childhood with Jacen deciding that his classmate Raynar is so obnoxious and annoying his opinions are worth less. If things stopped there it would be fine, kind of looking down upon annoying people is pretty normal and not the end of the world but Jacen always takes things a bit too far in the end, doesn’t he? He willingly sacrifices Ganner on C.oruscant after Vergere urges him to make a choice and he decides he has to live while Ganner has to die, he allows himself the choice over who lives and, more drastically, who dies as he decides more and more that HE is the only person seeing things in the right way.

   In the end, Jacen decides while he may not be a god, he does stand above most others. In skill, in knowledge, in the ability to steer the fate of the galaxy in the right direction. Jacen stopped being a mere person the moment Vergere prepared him for GREATNESS, if he wanted to or not, he had no choice but to eventually reject his humanity. It just happened to transpire in the worst way possible.

[terraxcloud]

What Actually Is Loveless?

This post has spoilers.

I've known about the Loveless ending for a long time now, but parts of it don't fit the narrative of the FF6 Opera.

In Terra's perspective, Cloud would have already left the game. She can't get a response from him like what Loveless shows. The Midgar Blues song from Remake describes it like he left in the middle of the night while Terra was sleeping.

In Loveless, the hero tells the princess that he's leaving because the "people I love are waiting". I highly doubt they're the people from FF7 (I think this detail was always my gripe now that I recall).

So, you know what I think Loveless actually is? It's the ending of FF7R. The Gold Saucer Loveless play is showing the very end of FF7R part 3 with 1 of the 3 girls.

The only girl that I believe checks all the boxes for who it is is Yuffie (too many hints about that to list here). Of course, there's heavy implications if it does end up being Yuffie.

I'll just describe my interpretation of the play with the assumption that Yuffie is the hinted-at "princess" (as simple as I can get it and somewhat like it's shown in the play):

Cloud is freed from Sephiroth's control because of Yuffie sharing the "dancing dream" from Remake with him (Zack's Dreams & Honor). They defeat Sephiroth. Cloud says goodbye to her and gives the reason why. Yuffie obviously doesn't understand, but she'll wait for him just like Terra has.

The "dancing dream" idea comes from Barret's final words when he says that Cloud should dance until he "frays his strings" and saying words like "puppet" like Sephiroth would.

Although I do wonder if the dancing happens AFTER Sephiroth is defeated.

In short, they may do an "as above, so below" thing with Yuffie and Terra, which may be to future-proof the story when others in the future want to Remake FF7 again. Yuffie also sings pretty often, which I bet may play into it.

By the way, the princess is named "Rosa". The only character that describes herself using roses is the "White Rose of Wutai" Yuffie. You may think the others are more "qualified", but at the end of the day the hints and symbols are more important than the romance scenes in the middle of the story.

Yes, this is what Terra "described" in World of Final Fantasy. To beat Sephiroth, Cloud has to forget him. Tifa doesn't seem like she'll just "forget Sephiroth" and Aerith has to fight him because she's a Cetra and already has her own dream with Zack.

I'll note something else too - both Squall and Vincent (his cell phone game) dance with their girls. Terra already has her own dream to do later on, so it makes sense to just create another, especially since both Cloud and Yuffie have had their dance scenes separately (Andrea is in both of them).

The materia song Yuffie sings in Cissnei's house has the phrases "I will patiently wait" and "dream of you" at the very end, which kinda cements it in a way as Cloud mentions the song in her date. Also, Cissnei has the same weapon as Yuffie, kinda like Zack and Cloud.

I wrote more than I expected. It could all be wrong, but we've gotten this far...

[angelholme]

V, V, V — Day 1 : Purple

So what seems like a lifetime ago there was a site called “Outpost Daria”, and (and I realise this will come as quite a surprise) it was a site that contained, amongst other thing, a lot of fanfiction for the MTV series “Daria” (I know — who would have guessed?). I am not entirely sure if the site is still there — it’s been a while since I last went there, partly because it vanished at once point, then came back — as some fanfic sites are wont to do — but also because most of the writers I was reading had stopped writing.

This is a common problem with fanfiction writers — one I am possibly about to suffer from I have to admit, but I might return to that later — for two main reasons.

The first reason is that when the series you are writing for ends, the “new plot threads” you are writing for run out. Daria had five years of plots, but after that — when the series came to an end with “Is It College Yet?” — the new plots came to an end as well. And so fanfic writers had to make up their own plots and eventually even the best of us run out of ideas.

The second reason is that even if the series continues (NCIS, Doctor Who etc) eventually writers just get bored and stop writing because they have better things to do.

As I said — I might come back to whether I am going to be one of those, because that’s not what this particular post is about.

On “Outpost Daria”, back when it was in its heyday, there was a writer named Canadabrit, who created a character named Lynn Cullen (this was way before Twilight, I am pretty sure) who was the spitting image of Daria……. well it just ran from there. It turned into a long series called “The Family Saga” and was very, very good and very well written.

The distinguishing characteristics that set Lynn and Daria apart were that Daria wore her trademark green jacket, and although she was cynical, somewhat misanthropic and a little standoffish she was — for the most part — generally someone who would interact with other people and — again, for the most part — be nice to people. She was willing to help Britany with her art, and while she didn’t put up with people she didn’t like, she was willing to help people she believed were worth helping, or at least people who were not beyond redemption.

Lynn, on the other hand, wore the same type of jacket, but in purple. And she was no where near as nice. She was far more cynical and far more likely to tell you to go f*** yourself if you were someone she judged to be less than fitting of her ideals.

And for the most part over the past twenty, twenty five years this is how I have tended to view people — they are either green or purple.

Me? I am — for the most part — far more likely to be purple. If you’ve seen some of my posts on line about how we should treat those individuals who believe certain things that I hold in contempt, then you’ll know it’s not that I don’t suffer fools gladly — fools I can live with and will gladly put up with. Because fools, by definition, don’t know any better.

But the wilfully ignorant? The ones who go out of their way to be that wrong about things? Yeah — they deserve all the contempt and the scorn and so on that they get.

This is where the internet helps a lot, because I only really have to talk to people I want to. Not necessarily people who agree with me — I get that only ever talking to people who take my side, or agree with what I say, or are “yes-men” (for want of a better phrase) never ends well, because if you are never exposed to new arguments, you never learn and you never grow.

But you can be exposed to new arguments in polite ways, and respectful ways, and ways that make you not want to punch Nazis and racists in the face.

You can be exposed to new ways of being, and new ways of thinking without making you want to take a flamethrower and set the person you are talking to on fire.

You can be exposed to new ideas without wanting to rip out the still beating heart of that person, throw it in the microwave, cook it for ten minute, then serve it back to them on a bed of wild rice and watch them eat it.

The other thing I should mention about Ms Cullen — the purple one of of the story — is that she has somewhat inventive methods of punishing those who cross her and do her wrong. Which is possibly something that will come up in a later entry about the topic of HCG (the method of categorising people that should replace the MB Personality Indicator thingy which is just nonsense in my point of view).

However more of that potentially later. Unless I forget, which is always possible.

Basically “purple/green” is the most basic way of categorising someone in my mind — green is cynical, but most likely to be friendly and helpful, where are purple is cynical, and unlikely to be friendly and helpful.

Which given I spent eight years in customer service, you’d think I’d be the opposite, but I guess — as Hawkeye once said (and it might have been Father Mulcahay and not Hawkeye) — “I did my time in hell” so perhaps that’s why I’m no longer friendly and helpful, except at work (where I get paid to be!)

[sintreaties]

May I ask you about your editing process, if you do not mind? How do I go from "a blonde haired woman" to "a woman whose hair looks like sunshine rays are threaded through it"

Although I’ll do my best to answer this ask, it's fair to say that my editing is currently the weakest part of my writing process. It is kind of a big problem, the biggest, in fact, given how editing is literally what makes or breaks a story.

The things that I'm about to explain are the same things that a lot of experienced writers would tell you in my place. The reason for that, very simply, is that they're perfectly logical and they work, yes, but... We'll see why it's not that easy.

Because this is quite a complex topic, this answer ended up being much longer than anticipated. I decided to divide this post into three parts, which you can read under the cut:

The Process

Purpose

Why It's Easier Said Than Done

I hope you'll find this somewhat helpful. Keep in mind that nothing I say here is an absolute rule, even I switch things up depending on the situation.

Part 1: The Process

Let's start by saying that editing is just another part of the writing process. Arguably, because it is the most important, you should do everything you can to ‘prepare the ground’ and make your life easier.

Here’s how I usually go about it:

1) Planning

In this part, you do everything you can to have a really good grasp of what you’re going to write. A few things that you should really focus on are:

Plot. Write down a timeline, an outline, or anything that you may come back to while you write. This will help you avoid plot holes and writer's block.

Characters. Make character sheets, write short introductions about them, make playlists and Pinterest boards — do anything you want, as long as you get to know them like the back of your hand.

Main Topics. Watch videos, read articles on the web, go to the library, or whatever, but do take notes of anything you might find hard to understand, unfamiliar or particularly relevant (like scientific cases, historical periods, different cultures, etc). This will really help you flesh out the kind of story you want.

Anything else. And I really mean it. Even if you might end up cutting it out, better to spend a few seconds deleting a paragraph than to waste hours and hours on research later.

This is crucial. I used to hate doing this stuff, but trust me, you'll thank yourself in the end.

2) Writing

Ah, the fun part! Time to put all that research to good use.

Your priority now is to finish the first draft. It doesn't matter if it gets ugly, messy or nonsensical. Trust the process. Editing will handle the rest.

Don't get hung up on details or tangents. If you find yourself struggling with a scene, a line or a character, you can always leave comments or write things (in brackets) so that you may come back to them later

3) Editing

Set the first draft aside. Ignore it for weeks or months — as much time as you can. You should forget as much as possible. Because your writing is not so familiar anymore, it will be much, much easier to spot what needs to be fixed.

More notes. So you're looking over the first draft again. Now that your eyes are fresh, take notes about what you believe needs to be reworked — everything from clunky dialogue to scenes to characterization to pacing. It's good to know from the start what will need more time and effort

Work in drafts. I usually use between three and six drafts. You can go about it however you want. For me, however, it's better to start with the big and move on to the small. You don't want to get distracted by grammar issues when you've got plot holes as big as the Grand Canyon.

Big stuff includes: plot, characterization, tension, everything that you left in brackets, key dialogues.

Small stuff includes: descriptions, subtext, phrasing, grammar, typos.

You can have as many drafts as you want, but if you find yourself growing tired, if it gets harder to catch and fix mistakes, set everything aside and give yourself time to forget about it for a bit.

Learn when to stop. Editing can be a never-ending process. The story will never be as good as it is in your head. It will never be perfect because perfection does not exist. Learn to settle on a final draft, otherwise you risk doing more harm than good.

Part 2: Purpose

At its core, editing is about purpose. Every element of the story, every word and character must be there for a reason. You need to decide what needs to stay, what needs reworking and what can be cut out altogether.

Clarity should always take priority. Do not be afraid to delete or change anything that impedes it, even if they might be your favorite elements. "Killing your darlings", it's called. A line might flow beautifully to you, but it's useless if the reader doesn't get it.

Learn to balance things out. You might be the kind of writer that focuses on characterization, or dialogue or (as in my case) introspection. These things are rarely enough on their own. George R.R. Martin is great at characterization, but his prose can be flat and repetitive and the way he writes about breasts and food is oddly specific. Stephen King can literally pull you into 1974 Maine, but he often goes on pointless tangents and his endings don't always hit the mark.

(Coincidentally, the fans of those incredibly successful authors will tell you that they both need better editors and that's why we should graciously learn from the critique they receive).

What I mean is that you don't have to give up what you enjoy writing. You simply have to make space for the other elements. Remember: if you're writing a story it's because you're expecting someone to read and appreciate it.

Let's take a look at your example now. Before touching that sentence, you need to ask yourself:

1) Who is this woman

2) Who’s describing her (is the narrator neutral? Is the POV relevant? A lover, an enemy and a secondary character should all give different descriptions)

3) What’s the situation in which she’s being described

If she’s a background character, someone we only see in passing (like a waiter in a restaurant scene, the cashier of the grocery store, etc) you have no reason to describe her in detail. Unless the more important characters — meaning, the narrative POV — have anything to remark about her, she’s just “a blonde woman”.

On the other hand, if this woman is the love interest of the main character or someone who is particularly relevant to the story, the other line you offered is certainly more fitting.

The secret to editing, in the end, is to know the story you’re writing. That’s why planning at the start is so important.

You need to have a good grasp of your characters, the tension of the single scenes, the subtext, the narration, how you want the readers to react and even your genre.

Once you know that a certain scene is more important than the others, it goes without saying but you will have to put more effort into it. If you’re writing a comedy, you’ll have to ensure that the tone is right all the time, otherwise the narration might sound flat or even obtain the opposite effect.

An easy, obvious way of giving relevance to an element of your story is to take away from other elements.

You want to write paragraph after paragraph to describe the battlefield of your epic fantasy's ending scene. That's cool. In that case, you might get away with saying that the king’s bedroom is large, lavish and warm, without getting into any details whatsoever.

Be careful about when you do this though. At best, it feels cheap and lazy because it takes away the reader's feeling of immersion.

At worst, it shows that you’ve gotten tired at a certain point (and God forgive me, but I’ve started to notice this a lot in my longest drafts).

Which brings us to the final point.

Part 3: Why It's Easier Said Than Done

Editing requires three main things: patience, time and enthusiasm. I intentionally left skills out, because without those three, I can assure you, you will not get to put skills into your work.

If discipline is what most writers struggle with, fatigue is the main obstacle that I face during the editing process. I get tired of reading and re-reading the same things, the story loses its magic, I just want to move on. Plus of course, I'm not a native speaker so there are instances in which my English sounds odd and I might not even realize it (even if the uniqueness of my speech can be used to my advantage sometimes).

Although I have still much to learn, these few things have been particularly helpful:

Alpha or Beta Readers. They don't know the story, which makes it easier for them to spot mistakes. One of the problems this presents, however, is that your opinions may vary. Make sure you go to someone who knows what they're doing — and no, that does not mean 'go to someone who will agree with everything you write'. Learn to take criticism when it's deserved.

'Read Aloud'. It's a Google Docs extension that does just what it says: it reads the text aloud. Although it's clunky and the robotic voice is completely devoid of pathos, it's very helpful when it comes to pacing and sentence length. Plus hearing your typos makes it easier to spot them.

Read Aloud — Literally. Flaubert used to do this all the time. The downside is, that with all the shit I write I risk growing hoarse, plus it's just plain embarrassing. This is a last resort for me.

Typing Assistants. Google Docs has a built-in typo detector but I also use the free version of Grammarly. Both of them can be pretty unreliable, Grammarly in particular can actually make things harder (as proved by the way it's trying to correct this post as I write it), but it's good to use them for one last spelling check.

Switching Between Projects. I only started to do this recently but it's been a game-changer. Focusing on only one story can be more effective, but working on multiple projects prevents taste fatigue and lets you clear your head. Pick no more than two or three stories at a time — unless you want to drown in plot bunnies.

Change Font and Screen. I swear it works. Using the Google Docs app on my phone instead of the web version helps with the tiredness. The change of font might give you a sense of estrangement, without having to set your work aside for weeks.

As I mentioned, some experienced writers will tell you these things because they are true. The challenge remains in trying to find what works for you.

That being said, I'd still like to go pro merely for the chance to have a personal editor.

[themidlibrary]

Can I rq the heartlabyul fellas with a very.... Scary s/o. Like y/n came straight out of a horror movie, sadako from the ring/kayako from ju-on vibes. It also doesn't help that their s/o does stuff that can be considered odd the the majority, like climbing in vents, hiding under beds and tables, popping up out of nowhere when you look away for a second, being able to twist and bend their body into weird and almost impossible ways, stuff that you would imagine a supernatural horror movie antagonist would do, y/n does that on the regular while being COMPLETELY oblivious to how scary they are. Even when they aren't doing that...stuff and is just sitting they just have this unsettling aura.

𝗋𝗂𝖽𝖽𝗅𝖾, 𝗍𝗋𝖾𝗒, 𝖼𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗋, 𝖺𝖼𝖾 & 𝖽𝖾𝗎𝖼𝖾 + 𝗎𝗇𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗌𝖼𝗂𝗈𝗎𝗌𝗅𝗒 𝗌𝖼𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋

— thank you for the request dear, although it's in my rules that I only accept requests from a maximum of 4 characters, I will be making an exception because I really liked your request. you are more than welcome to apply here

𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐋𝐄 𝐑𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐒

riddle considers you a good person, however, his behavior and mannerisms end up hiding this fact from other people

he was watching the roses being painted by the first years, sighing in relief that everything is working out that day, turning to the side, he came face to face with a figure in white clothes with long black hair covering his face

you were just looking for information, but it almost gave rosehearts a heart attack and although that first date wasn't one of the best, you ended up getting closer as time went on, even though, he still hadn't gotten used to his somewhat eccentric mannerisms

during a tea party, you left a spoon under the table and how riddle was deep in the conversation you were having with trey, didn't notice your disappearance, but when he felt a pair of hands brushing his leg, her screams could go all over the dorm, as well as the typical phrase "off with your head"

riddle scolded you in front of everyone in the dorm, although later, while you were alone, he asked you not to do it again

after months of this happening and their relationship getting stronger and stronger, he eventually got used to his "eccentric", already knowing how to deal with it — he doesn't hesitate to punish those who make derogatory remarks about you, just as he doesn't hesitate to call your attention to certain quirks of yours that can be dangerous, riddle cares a lot about you and that's why he just wants your well being

𝐓𝐑𝐄𝐘 𝐂𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑

he had heard of you and most things were not good or nice, many students had complaints and mean adjectives related to you, trey didn't believe them so easily, but he was also a little wary when it came to you

your first date took place in a somewhat unusual way, but which was marked by his mannerism, a group of students were gathering around trey to try the cookies that had just come out of the oven, everything going well... until the moment of your arrival

the lights started to flicker and the air got colder, heavy footsteps could be heard, as well as the sound of a dark writhing and as they turn, they came face to face with you, before even taking a single step, all the students were screaming and running away with the exception of the vice leader

he didn't know what to expect at that moment, holding the tray tighter, but when approached, you pointed at the cookie tray, asking if you could get a

trey was surprised, but nodded, watching you take one of the cookies and leave right away the same way you came in, watching you take one of the cookies and leave right away the same way you came in; that day, he discovered that most rumors about you were exaggerated, you were a good person, but totally oblivious to the fear you caused in others

he can tell when you are hiding under beds or tables from the sound of your breathing, in those moments, he asks if something happened or if you are hungry, trey likes to take care of you

𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐃

you always looked at a glance in the selfies and photos taken by cater, independence of time and place, he would be lying if he said he didn't feel a slight fear and maybe that feeling was increased by listening to all the stories related to you

but when he met you in person, surprised how different his personality was from his appearance, you were indifferent and even ignorant about your actions that caused so much fear in the people around you and in cater's vision you looked so adorable

one time, he was doing a live for his followers with the intention of telling the controversies related to a very successful artist, you noticed that the boy had forgotten his notes from the class they had taken earlier and decided to go give it to him

cater was so immersed in the subject that he didn't hear the sound of the door opening, much less your steps, he noticed that there were numerous comments saying that there was someone after him, he promptly laughed and commented that they would need to try harder to scare him

but when he felt an icy hand squeeze his shoulder and a hoarse voice called his name, he yelled before falling off the chair he was sitting on

when he noticed it was you, cater promptly got up and pretended nothing had happened, taking notes and thanking you for the good deed, also taking advantage of that moment to show you to his followers; even though the first impression wasn't the best, they got used to you and your "misadventures"

he will make it his mission to show the world your adorableness and deny all the rumors around you, although these attempts fail most of the time and you end up not cooperating very much, he is still very determined and sharing on his social media photos of normal moments of his daily life and in the description, there are countless cute emojis to show how much he adores you

𝐀𝐂𝐄 𝐓𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐀

he really likes you, but it's really hard to keep a decent appearance when you keep appearing out of nowhere, keeps hiding under tables and beds and the most bizarre of all, how you squirm in humanly impossible ways

ace was one of his first victims, having been sent by riddle to gather other students for a tea party, he couldn't find you and the thought of "forgetting" you seemed to be more and more tempting, but he knew he would be scolded by riddle and that was the last thing the boy wanted

he then went straight to his room and when he opened the door, came across the following scene, you crawl out from under the bed, his limbs twitched abnormally and letting out a moan that sounded like pain, faced with that scene, he could only do one thing ... run away while screaming

actually, you had dropped a pen and while you were under the bed, ended up hurting his back while trying to get out

later, he ended up approaching you and becoming your friend, he would laugh out loud at times when you scared the other students and would not hesitate to approach you with the intention of helping you choose your next targets, ace would realize how oblivious you were to his scary aura — at first finding it hilarious, but as it gets closer to you, genuine concerns about it begin to arise

being determined to help you be less oblivious to it, but if you continue to do so of your own volition, he will be the first person to reach out and ask: what should I do?

𝐃𝐄𝐔𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐏𝐀𝐃𝐄

he feels the obligation to protect you from any ill-intentioned individual — even though it will seem like the bad guy is you most of the time —, always accompanying you and making an effort to include you in any plan he intends to participate in

your first date with you wasn't one of the best, being watching the result of an entire afternoon spent helping to decorate the hall for a party, feeling a tense presence behind him, deuce got ready and punched what was behind him that could be a threat

but it was just you, wanting to know the party time to go celebrate together

he felt so guilty at that moment, helping you to the nurse and staying by your side until you were better, deuce feels determined to become your friend after you forgive him so easily and don't hold a grudge for the event

deuce does not hesitate to frighten anyone who makes derogatory statements about him, regardless of your unusual behavior, he considers you someone so good and deserving of so many things, being one of them, a sincere friendship that he longs to give you.

[spunkypigeon]

Psychological Analysis of Reiji Sakamaki

This is going to be a massive analysis of Reiji Sakamaki's character - focusing on his mental and emotional patterns, as well as his behavioural habits and where they stemmed from. I shall split this analysis into sections for easier reading and as a way to organise the points I will be making throughout this post. 

I often find Reiji to be an overlooked character, or one who’s considered boring in comparison to the other brothers and their respective routes; and so, my analysis was born, as his route reminds me of Laito’s quite a bit, due to them both being quite manipulative towards Yui.

All the transcripts used were translated and created by the lovely @dialovers-translations 

Note: This analysis will focus on just Haunted Dark Bridal and everything in it, from the route itself to his character song. However, I may make analyses on his routes in the later games depending on how this turns out, but I hope you enjoy reading this nonetheless.

Trigger Warning: Abuse, Manipulation, Stockholm Syndrome, Co-Dependency, Narcissism, Dehumanisation and Depression

Word Count: 40,473 words

To begin with, I'll point out that Reiji is an extremely complex and complicated individual; I believe the main issue that people take with this character is that his actions seem incomprehensible and unrelatable if you’ve never been in a similar situation. His words can often contradict his emotions, he's also incredibly harsh and a person who lives and strives for perfection. In addition, his personality can often become unbearably obstinate at times, such as when he lectures Yui in relation to her manners, which brings me to my first point:

Verbal Behavioural Patterns

Throughout the entirety of Reiji’s route within the game, we are presented with a strict, perceptive, controlling and an utterly abhorrent character; within the first few chapters of Haunted Dark Bridal, we are given the interaction between Yui and Reiji, in which he feels the need to discipline her for her lack of manners when it was time for them to share a meal:

Reiji: I find it very displeasing that the woman sitting next to me does not know her manners

Reiji: Allow me to thoroughly lecture you

Yui: Huh ? Lecture me ?

Reiji: Yes, exactly. Is that not to your liking ?

Yui: Um...thank you very much. I’ll do my best

Reiji: You seem to be quite eager about this. However, your resolve is worth nothing

Reiji: I’d simply like to erase this unrefined aspect of your existence, as it is an eyesore...that is all

Reiji: Please do not misunderstand me

Reiji: This has been a waste of time. I’ll begin immediately 

-----------

Reiji: Wrong! How many times must I tell you ?

Yui: I-I’m sorry

Reiji: Never would I imagine you’d be a lady with a memory this poor

Yui: (...It’s because Reiji is way too strict)

Reiji: What is it ? Honestly...

Yui: N-Nothing. I’m sorry...

Reiji:...I do not want to hear those apologetic words. They are displeasing to the ear

Reiji: Although...I don’t necessarily dislike it when you wear an expression as bewildered as you are now

Yui: Huh...?

Reiji: Quiet. I told you that your voice is displeasing to the ear, didn’t I ?

Reiji: Please stay silent so that you don’t worsen my mood and further...

If we take this interaction here, it can be implied that if a person does not fit into Reiji’s desired qualities then he will mould them into his desired outcome. This can be implied from when he asks “Is that not to your liking ?“ in relation to lecturing Yui. The phrase itself poses as an interrogative yet it is in actuality a rhetoric - he’s manipulating his words to appear somewhat polite or ‘genuine’ but in reality, he’s forcing the matter at hand to occur, Yui does not have a choice in wishing to receive a lecture since it will be forced on her either way. Phrases such as this are often used in reverse psychology as a strategy for getting what you want by demanding or suggesting what you don't want; it’s often named a strategic self-anti-conformity, because your communicated demand goes directly against what you want, or in this case, what Reiji wants - this can be interpreted through the inclusion of the negative adverb “not”, as he’s suggesting that Yui doesn’t or shouldn’t want the lecture to occur even though he himself does (strategies like this are often used to ‘guilt trip’ others, which is exactly what Reiji is doing here in order to get his own way). In addition to this, Reiji also directly states what I have already implied in a much later chapter (that he will mould Yui to his fitting):

Yui: (W-What am I saying!? My mouth is talking on its own…!!)

Reiji: Oh dear…You sure are bold. I do not dislike that.

Reiji: It makes me want to bend you to my will

It can be interpreted that Reiji uses his language in order to manipulate Yui; this will range from rhetorical lexis and patronisation to positive and negative face. The two faces are a product of Goffman's theory of politeness -  positive face refers to the need to feel accepted and liked by others while negative face describes the will to do what one wants to do with freedom and independence. Throughout Reiji’s route, this can be seen fairly regularly, such as in the Prologue, where Reiji suggests that Yui should feel the necessity to know her place in order to please him; this feeds into positive face. Reiji manipulates his language in order to pressure Yui to conform to his standards in order for her to be appreciated by him. Yet, Reiji provides the opposite to that - he serves as the negative face -  as he holds the standard that he should be able to do as he pleases both freely and independently as opposed to Yui.

Reiji: Is something the matter?

Yui: Ah, well…I was wondering if I could have some tea as well…

Reiji: Aah…My apologies. How careless of me…

Yui: No, it’s okay…

Reiji: I completely forgot to teach you your own position.

Yui: Eh?

Reiji: I am deeply sorry. However, I did not expect to have to teach you something as simple as this…

Reiji: To think you would believe you have the right to enjoy a cup of tea with me, please do not get ahead of yourself. It’s highly imprudent.

Reiji: Do you understand?

Yui: …Yes.

Yui: (Does he really have to put it like that…)

Reiji: …Do you truly understand?

Yui: Y-Yes!!

Reiji: Very well. Well then, please stay put there until I’ve finished drinking my tea.

Reiji: Good grief, you sure are a troublesome servant.

Yui: Servant…!?

Reiji: Is something the matter?

Yui: No, nothing…!

Reiji: I see. I would hope so.

Yui: (This is way worse than I even imagined. I’m being treated like a slave…)

Yui: (Will things stay like this from here on out…?)

The aforementioned negative face can clearly be seen within Reiji’s phrases of: “To think you would believe you have the right to enjoy a cup of tea with me, please do not get ahead of yourself. It’s highly imprudent.” and “ Very well. Well then, please stay put there until I’ve finished drinking my tea”. It is made evident that Reiji desires his independence to do as he pleases - no matter how small the task at hand may be - however, he becomes stern and degrading when Yui attempts the same - she takes the initiative to ask for something rather than standing idly by -. The conflict between the two desired faces pose as a power dynamic...to put it simply, Reiji desires to do as he pleases and expects Yui to be obedient to that - he expects her to lose her initiative and follow in what he deems is acceptable for her to do -. Given the fact that all the brothers are each highly abusive, it comes as no surprise that Reiji implements a power dynamic through his words moreover physical violence. The added factor that he uses terms of address such as “servant” implements this further, not only is it a means of degrading and patronising Yui, but it directly establishes the dynamic Reiji desires.

Throughout the entirety of Reiji’s Haunted Dark Bridal route, he often uses his language in order to manipulate and break Yui down (though at times he does resort to violence, which he deems ‘punishments’). He does this in order to break down Yui’s sense of self-worth; by breaking down Yui’s positive attitude linguistically, it allows him to mould her thought process to his desired standards - the most prominent way for this to occur is by inflicting Yui with an array of humiliation and a sense of embarrassment. Embarrassment, shame, guilt, and humiliation all imply the existence of value systems. Where shame and guilt are primarily the outcome of self-appraisal, embarrassment and humiliation are primarily the outcome of appraisal by one or several others, even if only in thought or imagination. One critical aspect in which humiliation differs from embarrassment is that, whereas we bring embarrassment upon ourselves, humiliation is something that is brought upon us by others.

The Latin root of "humiliation" is "humus", which means "earth" or "dirt"  (this is most likely where the phrase “being treated like dirt” derives from). Humiliation involves abasement of honour, dignity and, with that, loss of status and standing. We all make certain status claims, however modest they may be, for example, "I am a competent doctor", "I am a happily married mother", or even "I am a human being". When we are merely embarrassed, our status claims are not undermined - or if they are, they are easily recovered. But when we are humiliated, our status claims cannot so easily be recovered because, in this case, our very authority to make those status claims has been called into question. People who are in the process of being humiliated are usually left stunned and speechless, and more than that, voiceless. This is exactly what we see in regards to Yui and with that, she will often retreat into her thoughts. 

It can be implied fairly easily that Yui is subjected to chronic manipulation by Reiji; chronic manipulation in close relationships - such as the one we follow through his route - can have a similar effect to trauma, particularly when the victim of manipulation is made to feel either guilty or ashamed (which Reiji clearly does) but why does he manipulate her in the first place ? Chronic manipulation can often be used as a survival mechanism to cope with a challenging or competitive environment, especially when one lacks relative power and control. Pathological manipulation may also be the result of family, social, societal, or professional conditioning. This will be addressed in a later point as this is only half of Reiji’s abusive tactics, as he (if pushed too far) will resort to physical abuse moreover just mental and emotional, which brings me to the second section of his analysis.

Physical Behavioural Patterns

Throughout a handful of scenes within Reiji’s route in Haunted Dark Bridal, we see him become physically abusive towards Yui - however, much like Laito, Reiji’s go-to abuse towards Yui is predominantly psychological, he opts to manipulate her through humiliation and degradation moreover physical violence.

Reiji: ーー Is that truly the only thing Shuu told you?

Reiji: If you don’t want to be struck by the whip any further, I’d recommend you stop lying and tell me the truth.

Yui: P-Please believe me…I told you everything…

Reiji:…Very well.

Reiji: As your reward, I’ll engrave you with even more whip marks.

Yui: Cut it out already!

Yui: (H…Huh? I…Why am I shouting like this…?)

Yui: (It’s almost as if I’m not being myself…)

Reiji: Hmph. I did not expect for you to suddenly bare your teeth at me at this exact timing…

Reiji: It sickens me!

Yui: (It probably does not matter what I say…)

Reiji: …You look defeated. So you no longer have the power to even fight back?

Reiji: Fufu, I’m nowhere near satisfied, you know?

Reiji: In fact…It only makes me want to hurt you more and more.

Yui: !!

Reiji: Listen carefully…From here on out, you shall never speak a word to that good-for-nothing again.

Yui: !!

Reiji: This is a definite decision. You have no right to choose.

Reiji: You understand, don’t you?

Here is one of the instances where Reiji resorts to physical abuse in order to maintain control over Yui and limit her interactions - specifically with Shuu moreover any other brother -. By Reiji acting on a more physical scale to gain Yui’s complete obedience, it presents his sadism as a means to keep control; it can also be implied that his violence towards Yui serves as an emotional outburst (in this scenario, the outburst is the result of her talking to Shuu, which Reiji found displeasing).

Controlling individuals can be described as perfectionists defending themselves against their own inner vulnerabilities in the belief that if they are not in total control they risk exposing themselves once more to childhood angst. Such people manipulate and pressure others to change, so as to avoid having to change themselves, and use power over others to escape an inner emptiness. 

We already know that Reiji can be easily categorised as a perfectionist and as I have stated in the previous section, that if an individual does not fit his overbearing standards, he will break them until they do. If we follow the implication that the physical abuse Reiji subjects Yui to is due to a need to maintain control and power moreover than a lack of empathy, which one could associate either Kanato or Ayato with depending on the routes you play. I have inferred this from when Reiji states “Listen carefully“, although he does enjoy the sadistic thrill of causing Yui pain and suffering, the fact that he uses this declarative implements the notion that this is a power movement; gaining back the control that he might have thought he lost when Shuu made his presence known. I have derived this interpretation from Yui’s end of chapter monologue, in which she states:

Even after all of my senses had been numbed,

Reiji’s whip continued to assault my entire body.

I do not know what kind of hard feelings he bears,

towards Shuu who is his blood-related older brother

However, what I am certain of, is that I tried to touch upon,

something which I definitely shouldn’t have…

The scars engraved deeply across my entire body,

could they be a representation of the pain Reiji feels in his heart…?

Thinking about it that way,

might just be a little too convenient though.

From this, the implication arises that this is both the reinforcement of control as well as an emotional outburst - as though he’s stuck in a haze and unable to stop even after Yui’s body became numb. Whether you’ve played the game or not, it’s common knowledge within the community that Reiji bears a great deal of resentment towards Shuu, and this resentment will be explained in a later point as I still feel Reiji’s abusive behaviour needs to be addressed.

When it comes to physical abuse, there can be extreme and subtle variants of it; in this case, I’m referring to when he poisons Yui’s drink - it’s not as violent as when he beats, whips or assaults her but he is still causing her physical harm.

Yui: (So he does have a soft spot after all…I might have misjudged him.)

Yui: …Huh…? The fragrance is slightly different from before.

Reiji: …Oh ? You noticed ? As to be expected.

Reiji: I prepared a special tea for you.

Yui: T-Thank you very much.

Reiji: Fufu…Well then, have a taste.

Yui: (H-He’s much kinder than I thought…? Reiji has this side to him as well, huh ?)

Yui: I’ll give it a try!

Reiji: Yes…

Yui: …!!

Yui: (W…What’s this? My lips that touched the tea suddenly feel numb…!)

Reiji: …Oh dear. Seems like it was not to your liking.

Yui: R-Reiji, uhm, this is…?

Reiji: Did I not tell you earlier? It’s a tea I brewed especially for you.

Reiji: One with poison in it, that is.

Yui: P-Poison…!?

Yui: (T-Thank god I didn’t drink it all… )

Reiji: What are you looking relieved for?

Reiji: Getting down on your knees and lapping up the spilled tea comes first, does it not?

Yui: Eeh!? I-I can’t do that!

Yui: For starters…Why did you do this?

Reiji: Why ? Even if you ask me that…

Reiji: I had just finished the development of a new drug. It is not normal to want to try it out when an ideal test opportunity presents itself ?

Reiji: Furthermore…You did not truly believe that I would pour a cup of tea for you, did you ?

Yui: …!!

Reiji: Fufu…

Yui: E-Either way! Please don’t do these kinds of things!!

Reiji: Those who fall for such an obvious trap have no worth to be kept alive.

Reiji: Additionally…I genuinely did not think you would be this much of a foolish, incompetent person…

Reiji: Good grief,  I’m disappointed…I am the one who wants an apology.

Yui: (Uu…That’s horrible…)

Yui: (For starters, why is he making poison…It doesn’t seem like my life is in danger…But I’m still scared..)

Although Yui’s life is not exactly endangered from this, it still leaves her feeling scared of what Reiji could be capable of. In my opinion, this can plainly be identified as ‘Operant Conditioning’, developed by B.F Skinner. Operant conditioning is a way of learning by means of rewards and punishments. This type of conditioning holds that a certain behaviour and a consequence, either a reward or punishment, have a connection which brings about learning. The term "operant" was used by Skinner in order to give us a good overview of his theory. By this term, he meant that this type of conditioning involves only external factors that affect behaviour and its consequences; in this case, that external force would equate to something such as an interaction with Shuu, or anything that displeases Reiji. My point is that on one hand, the physical abuse Yui suffers by Reiji’s hand can be viewed as an outburst of emotions, but it can also be perceived as a display of power and control. One part of the operant is reinforcement - this is a process of increasing the frequency or rate of a behaviour by means of presenting a stimulus shortly after the display of behaviour. The event that intensifies the likelihood of the behaviour to be repeated is called a reinforcer. To put this plainly, and in context, Yui offhandedly converses with Shuu, Reiji in turn chooses to punish her via a whipping and the next time Yui encounters Shuu, she opts to pass by him and is then rewarded by Reiji - by him forcing that violence on her, it’s implemented a sense of fear towards repeating the cause of the violence; it therefore allows Reiji to control Yui’s behaviour and, in essence, her loyalty. 

Reiji: …Three seconds tardy.

Yui: S-Sorry.

Yui: (Uu…He’s upset after all…)

Reiji: Take a seat over there, and tell me your reasoning.

Yui: Y-You see…This and that happened…

Reiji: That’s too vague. That doesn’t tell me anything.

Yui: Uhm…I crossed paths with someone…

Reiji: With who?

Yui: That’sーー

Yui: Well…It was Shuu.

Reiji: That good-for-nothing…I feel like my ears will get sullied just from hearing his name.

Reiji: So, what did you do?

Reiji: Don’t tell me…You did not do something as foolish as to talk to him, did you?

Yui: Y-Yes.

Yui: After all, I…I made a promise with you.

Reiji: I see…

Reiji: Very well. I’ll give you a reward.

Yui: …! With the whip again…!?

Reiji: Oh dear? Do you want to be hit?

Yui: N-No.

Reiji: Fufu, no need to be so frightened…Well then, come here.

Yui: Yes…

Reiji: …

Yui: (I-I wonder what he’ll do…)

Reiji: Well done

Yui: Eh…?

Yui: (Uhm…Did I imagine that? There’s no way that Reiji would…)

Reiji: You feel honoured, don’t you? To get complimented by someone like me.

Reiji: Oh, it’s time for my tea.

Reiji: Of course, there isn’t any for you. Just enjoy the fragrance for now.

Yui: Y-Yes!

Yui: (Reiji’s no different from usual but…)

Yui: (Yeah…This might have really been a reward…)

Following on from this; and linking to one of the first claims I made during the introduction, Reiji appears to contradict himself - throughout the majority of this route we see him manipulating Yui’s thoughts and behaviour in order to align with his respective views, however, we sometimes see him ‘break’ this rule of his as within his Maniac 03 section we are given this interaction:

Reiji: You seem to be polishing all of them rather meticulously.

Yui: Yes. After all, I have to make sure not even a single fingerprint remains on them, right?

Reiji: Haah…This is boring.

Yui: Eh?

Reiji: Your overly obedient attitude. I don’t like it one bit.

Yui: …Eh?

Reiji: This calls for a punishment. I’ll strike you with my whip.

Yui: …What are you saying!? Please don’t tell such weird jokes!

Reiji: Jokes? …Fufu, is that what this looks like?

Yui: Kyah!

Reiji: Oh dear, I missed.

Yui: No…Please cut it out!

Yui: (I was doing exactly as he asked, yet he still doesn’t like it, that’s just too much…!)

Yui: (Besides…That whip, it has a bunch of thorns stuck to it…Just thinking about being struck by it once…)

Reiji: It is no fun when you obey every single command. …Understand?

Yui: Eek…

Yui: …!?

Yui: (…Huh? This time I didn’t even dodge, yet he missed…?)

Reiji: Fufu…I have to say, I’m surprised you saw right through me.

Yui: …?

Reiji: As you said, I was simply joking around. Good job on figuring it out.

Yui: A-A joke…?

Reiji: I simply don’t have the time to waste on punishing someone like you over something so trivial…Fufufu.

Yui: …!?

Reiji: Several devices have gotten damaged by the whip just now.

Reiji: Please put all of them away.

Yui: …O-Okay.

Reiji: Fufufu…It’s wonderful to see you so obedient.

Yui: …Thank you very much.

From this we can very, clearly see his sadism showing - he enjoys punishing Yui and will go out of his way to find a ‘valid’ reason to do so. Throughout the majority of his route we are shown time and time again that Reiji likes to bend others to his will, so that would imply that he values obedience, so then, why would he state “your overly obedient attitude. I don’t like it one bit.” ? I think the answer lies with his mother, Beatrix. We know that she was a strong-willed woman. Despite being the second wife and enduring horrid treatment from both Karlheinz and Cordelia, she still kept her head held high and did what she thought was right - even if Reiji was resentful of her not giving him the attention he needed, he respected her attitude. Reiji would never have tried so hard to please his mother if he did not truly respect her and it’s because he respected Beatrix so much that her apparent rejection of him cut him so deep; so, despite always trying to get Yui to exhibit more dignity and better manners, Reiji doesn’t want her to be meek and weak-willed - which is why I believe this interaction was included within the game, Reiji desires someone who is obedient, loyal and dignified but not faint of heart. With that, I believe that his contradictory actions serve a purpose, Reiji desires Yui to be obedient but not docile.

From both these sections, we can clearly understand that Reiji is an incredibly sadistic and controlling character, however, like most things, behaviour such as this often derives from a complicated childhood or simply an event that was highly significant to them, leading me to the next section.

Childhood

Depending on if you’ve played the games or have simply seen the anime adaptation, it’s common knowledge that Reiji was neglected by Beatrix; out of all of the brothers, he was neglected by a significant amount - the only one close enough would most likely be Kanato, but even then, he still got some form of recognition by Cordelia, twisted though it may have been. So, if we take that into account, we can decisively infer that what Reiji desires most of all would be recognition, which I why I believe this interaction to be highly important in order to understand his mentality:

Seiji: The woman on this picture is the target?

Reiji: Yes, without a doubt.

Reiji: …However, this sure is strange.

Reiji: To think that like this ーー

Reiji: There would come a day on which I would exchange words with you, a Vampire hunter.

Reiji: I will be counting on you?

Seiji: …I’ll fulfil the request without fail.

Seiji: And eventually, I will come to kill you as well.

Reiji: Yes, please come at any time. I shall be awaiting your arrival.

Reiji: Seems like…Our relationship won’t end any time soon.

Seiji: Hmph…

Reiji: Fufu��

Reiji: Soon enough, you will get to know first-hand.

Reiji: Who is the most admirable, that is…

Reiji: Don’t you think so too, mother…?

When it comes to the lore and customs of vampires within the Diabolik Lovers universe, it’s known that they often kill one another as an act of love, or a declaration of love. However, by Reiji opting to seek out a vampire hunter to kill Beatrix, it can be interpreted to serve as a means to make her suffer. It’s in my opinion to believe that Reiji never hated his mother, he resented and revered her, but I don’t think he hated her - not truly anyway -. So, once the realisation dawned on him that he’d never be recognised for his perfection, then he’d be noticed for his skills instead; I’d like to argue that it’s precisely because he didn’t hate her that he couldn’t bring himself to kill her the way the triplets killed Cordelia.

If we think about the psychology of neglect, most prominently, emotional neglect, it’s suffice to say that it might be as bad, if not worse, to be on the receiving end of indifference as of physical torment. As the psychologist William James stated “If no one turned around when we entered, answered when we spoke, or minded what we did, but if every person we met “cut us dead”, and acted as if we were non-existent things, a kind of rage and impotent despair would before long well up in us, from which the cruellest bodily torture would be a relief”.  Rage and impotent despair are precisely what a child may feel when it registers the extent to which it doesn’t matter to those who brought it onto the earth; far more likely, these emotions will mutate into feelings of shame, mingled with continued admiration and respect for those who elicited it. By using this, it can serve as a means of understanding why Reiji chooses to respect both of his parents. I implied earlier that he wishes for Yui to bear a strong will much like how his mother did, and as for Karlheinz, Reiji is the only one of his brothers who has an inkling of respect for him. It can also be implied that this is one reason why Reiji lets Cordelia whip him, but by following this approach, it’s clear to say that - from a psychological standpoint - physical pain blocks out the mental pain, the physical inflictions serve as a distraction to the emotional torment - even though he did state that he was “attuned to pain inflicted on the flesh”, I’m still inclined to believe that this still holds significance within this analysis. 

Furthermore, if we look into the symptoms of childhood emotional neglect - CEN for short - it can be said that those who have suffered from this tend to avoid conflict. My point is that by letting Cordelia treat him how she does, he’s avoiding the problem; he’s avoiding conflict. By Cordelia and Yui essentially being one in the same (since Cordelia has taken over Yui’s body), causing conflict or attempting to rival Cordelia would likely cause more harm than good to Reiji’s wants and desires - that being Yui’s safety and ‘return’ -. Conflict avoidance is a type of people-pleasing behaviour that typically arises from a deep rooted fear of upsetting others. Many of these tendencies can be traced back to growing up in an environment that was dismissive or hypercritical. 

Going back to the psychology of the matter, the child will do anything rather than entertain the idea that an injury has been done to it by its own progenitor - especially if the parent is charming to other people and impressive in the professional sphere (much like how Karlheinz and Beatrix were/are important amongst the demon world). The child will just assume that there must be something deeply wrong with itself to justify the indifference. It must have failed in some way, it must in its essence be profoundly ugly, repulsive, deformed or lacking. This is the only conceivable explanation for the blankness with which their existence is received. Therefore the adult who emerges from such a complicated, veiled childhood is likely to be in a confused state. On the surface, they may experience only good will and a continued desire to please their early caregivers. But deep within themselves, they may feel lacerating doubt, paranoia and self-contempt. To numb such feelings, they may take to calming addictions to keep themselves from constant encounters with their perceived repulsiveness. When it comes to Reiji, these ‘calming addictions’ would relate to his scheduling and experiments, they allow him to disassociate from himself and lessen the burden of his lacking self-worth.

Reiji’s Relationship With Yui

When it comes to Yui, we often see the many different faces of Reiji; we, in essence, follow his story. Though Yui takes to every trial and tribulation that Reiji throws at her, she is still determined to help him - and try as she may -. This shows us that Yui’s innate moral compass is intact, she learns to understand the type of person that Reiji is, and yet she still lingers - she doesn’t opt to run from him in the end, though she is worn and broken by that point, but it shows that Yui’s kind, almost motherly, attitude can allow someone to mellow. What I mean by this is that as Reiji’s route continues, his strictness and abhorrent behaviour fluctuates.

Reiji: Were you asleep? As I thought, you aren’t in top shape.

Yui: …Yes, a little.

Reiji: I figured that would be the case, so I’ve brought you some medicine. Please drink it all with some boiled water.

Yui: …

Yui: (The medicine Reiji brought me…I’m grateful if he truly is worried about me…But…)

Yui: (Just the other day, he tried to kill me…)

Yui: …I’m sorry. I can’t drink this.

Reiji: …Well, I figured you would say as much.

Yui: I just…can’t trust you right now…I’m sorry.

Reiji: …I do not believe there is a need for you to apologise.

In this instant, Reiji drops his guard, his usual attitude and sternness has softened - even if only a little -. It allows us to view his progression as a character and how the presence of Yui has inadvertently helped him. Our introduction to the character showed him drugging Yui, punishing her and showing no remorse for his actions; now he is pandering to her, the question is why ? 

We know that Reiji is a character with a copious amount of flaws and trauma from his childhood. He prefers to close himself off from the world and silently resent everything around him - it paints him as a bitter, broken man who deals with his problems by suppressing them; by doing this process for many, many years, it leaves him out of touch with his own feelings. Reiji’s quick to scorn and scold Yui for her more empathetic and naïve personality; he often tells her to not apologise, as though it disgusts him. I believe his attitude towards Yui started off so utterly abhorrent because she reminded him of himself. CEN - Childhood Emotional Neglect - we know Reiji has prolifically suffered from this, we know that he tried to perfect everything he did in order to please those around him both internally and externally; if he failed those expectations from others and himself then he most likely deemed himself as not ‘good enough’ to be rewarded with the attention that he so desperately needed as opposed to Shuu, who we’ll get onto later. These are all traits that we see Yui output during this route, and so, by initially resenting her, he is resenting his problems - yet as the route continues, he slowly becomes a little more lenient with her, implying that he is in some way coming to terms with his abuse and trauma; slowly accepting it. I think this is why he ‘panders’ to Yui in this scene, by accepting her, he’s accepting himself...though this is only in a small quantity, hence why he’s still stern with her - he wants to help but he lacks the ability to convey those emotions, it’s as though he’s unaware of his own feelings because he’s suppressed them for so long.

Being so unaware of your own wants, feelings and needs can make you over-focused on those of the people around you. Many CEN people have very little awareness and compassion for themselves but an excess of both for others. They may end up wrapping themselves up in providing their spouse with everything they want and need while inadvertently missing the one thing they need the most: you. The real you, the inner you. They need your emotions. This is what we’re seeing here. Reiji’s still closed off and strict, however, the notion that his actual feelings are present makes Yui happy. She’s happy because she’s actually seeing Reiji, and not just the façade and walls he puts up.

Reiji: Fufu…I admit it is rather difficult to ask you for your trust.

Reiji: However, right now I am speaking nothing but the truth.

Reiji: This medicine has been made especially to improve your health. I can assure its effectiveness.

Yui: For…me? …Really?

Reiji: Yes. …Believe it or not, but I have actually reflected upon my actions a little as well.

Yui: Reflected…?

Reiji: My attitude that night was somewhat childish, I reckon.

Yui: (S-Somewhat? …You call that ‘somewhat’…?)

Reiji: Therefore, I earnestly made said medicine for you. Well then, drink it please.

Yui: …Fufu~

Reiji: …? Is something funny?

Yui: N-No.

Yui: (It’s just…When I consider this is Reiji’s way of trying his very best to apologise, I got a little happy…)

Yui: I understand. I’ll take this medicine. Thank you very much.

Reiji: No need to thank me.

If we follow the interpretation that Yui somewhat reminds Reiji of himself - or at least, his younger self - it can feed into why he becomes ‘protective’ of her once Cordelia appears. Following this narrative, by protecting Yui during the Maniac chapters, he is, in essence, protecting himself. Yui reminds him of himself and that’s the conclusion I’ve come to - her need to impress and please others, her meek and timid attitude, and the fact that she’s overlooked by others despite her drive and determination to achieve; these are all traits that Reiji possessed as a child, and by ‘protecting’ Yui, he’s subconsciously protecting his childhood self - hence why the verb ‘protecting’ is abbreviated, his fight with and against Cordelia is more so for selfish reasons rather than out of ‘love’ for Yui. By Cordelia attacking Yui’s personality and her as a person, she’s also attacking that same fragment within Reiji - we all know that he’s a bitter man, but he knows where he stands in comparison to others, yet once faced with Cordelia, he outwardly displays his distaste. He opts to not fight back physically, but fights back verbally, and I think that this is quite significant to his character; in essence, he’s taken the role of the inferior - the dynamic both he and Yui had - however, instead of him being the one in control and using his language to project that, he’s now on the receiving end of that, like how Yui was, and he fights back with quips and sarcasm - much like how Yui would protest and sometimes come out with a quip herself -. 

Cordelia: I love the softly swaying moon reflected on the surface of the lake.

Reiji: So you favour unsteady things? That’s a perfect fit for someone as unstable as yourself.

Cordelia: Nfu, are you complimenting me?

Reiji: It’s the biggest compliment I could give you.

I find this parallel quite significant as it puts Reiji into the position of Yui, the inferior, the ‘unimportant’ one; yet, if they’re both so similar, then why is Reiji so hell-bent on being above her ? Why does he invalidate her ? And why does he grow to become somewhat narcissistic from his abuse ? Well first of all, we need to establish what NPD (Narcissistic Personality Disorder) is, and how it applies to Reiji before we continue analysing his relationship with and to Yui. 

Narcissistic personality disorder is a mental condition in which people have an inflated sense of their own importance, a deep need for excessive attention and admiration, troubled relationships, and a lack of empathy for others. But behind this mask of extreme confidence lies a fragile self-esteem that's vulnerable to the slightest criticism. A narcissistic personality disorder can cause problems in many areas of life, such as relationships, work, school or financial affairs. People with narcissistic personality disorder may be generally unhappy and disappointed when they're not given the admiration they believe they deserve. They may find their relationships unfulfilling, and others may not enjoy being around them.

This fits in line with Reiji’s character, especially his sense of importance, fragile ego and the notion that neither of his brothers enjoy his company - obviously, his ego is not as inflated as Ayato’s and his company is not as unwanted as Kanato’s, but they’re different cases entirely -. Within the official Diabolik Lovers Vandead Carnival fan book, there’s a character Q & A in which Reiji states this interaction:

Me? Losing? Do you truly believe that would happen? Hmph. Please cut the ridiculous questions. Me - who is perfect at everything from academics to household chores…If you have your doubts, feel free to come to the manor tonight. I shall serve you various wonderful dishes prepared by none other than me.

I’ve opted to include this as it directly presents his overzealous, inflated ego and perfectionism - and it means that I don’t have to shoehorn in copious amounts of dialogue where I can only imply and speculate. To begin with, I’d like to address his sense of self worth and ego; this is recognisable within his declarative, that he “is perfect at everything”, but in reality, he’s not, and the notion that he used the verb ‘perfect’ speaks volumes to that. ”Perfect” can have many connotative implications of being flawless, idealistic, almost ethereal in its lack of faults and this mindset of his allows this seemingly small inking of narcissism to come forward and be on full display - there’s a difference between thinking highly of oneself and that of perfectionism, which I shall be addressing -.

For some people with NPD, this sense of superiority isn’t as evident in how they behave. Some may be shy or withdrawn, but they may still firmly believe they’re superior in one or many aspects compared to other people; and this is where Reiji falls into the category - he’s not bombastic like Ayato, who we can clearly understand has NPD straight off the bat - and I think this is very in line with his character, Reiji prefers to stay in his laboratory and occupy himself, he’s reserved and withdrawn both physically and emotionally yet he still retains the mindset that he is above everyone else; that he is “perfect” compared to others.

Reiji: …!? You…Do you have any idea who you are embracing right now?

Yui: I know. It’s…Reiji.

Reiji: Oh dear. I assume the little bird has become quite meek after being locked up in her cage.

Oh well, it’s fine. I shall forgive you just for now. Including the fact that I am carrying you in my arms right now.

I find this section of dialogue to embody this quite well in regards to his superiority complex towards Yui and he does this in the form of metaphors - he calls her a “little bird”, which can imply that not only is Reiji pointing out Yui’s physical shortness in comparison to himself, but also her status and the fact that he views her as below average in regards to her skills and intellect. It presents his derogatory nature towards Yui, however, the fact that he calls her a “bird” could imply that he deems her somewhat beautiful and helpless - something to be admired but not anything to be weary of, as though she poses no threat to him. In addition to this, the inference that he’s openly compared her to an animal poses the suggestion that to him, she is nothing more than a mere pet; it’s in our innate social standpoint to carry the belief that we are better than our pets, that we are on the more ‘perfect’ side of evolution in regards to an animal’s mental capacity; therefore, they are nothing more than something pretty to look at, we lock them up in cages to be admired and looked down upon at the same time - yes we do care for our pets and develop a loving bond but we can also treat them as though they are babies, a child to be looked after and doted upon; a lesser form of ourselves. I think this is the point Reiji is making here, yes he does hold some form of care for her, but it imitates that of an owner and its loyal pet (which is the dynamic Reiji expects Yui to conform to, a pet, a servant) and even though that care exists, he still holds the deep-rooted belief that he is superior to her, that he is perfect compared to her - she has flaws and he doesn’t, which again brings us back to “Me - who is perfect at everything “. 

Furthermore, by him using the phrase “locked up in her cage” emphasises the implication that she is a pet to be observed. Conversely, it could also imply that Yui has become worn down by not just the mental constraints of being a vessel for Cordelia, but also the emotional confines of being with and around Reiji, being under his overbearing influence - Yui has become a flightless bird subjected to Reiji’s whims and influence, an influence that now constrains her, and that has now caged her. It’s assumed that Reiji prefers Yui to have a strong will as opposed to meekness - for her to follow in Beatrix’s resilience and determination -, and so by him declaring Yui as meek, is him shedding light on her flaws, and the implication that she needs to be ‘retrained’ much like a pet would in order to fit his ‘perfect’ standards. This inference can subtly present Reiji’s mild narcissism and perfectionism towards Yui, but what is perfectionism ?

Perfectionism is often defined as the need to be or appear to be perfect, or even to believe that it’s possible to achieve perfection. It is typically viewed as a positive trait rather than a flaw. People may use the term “healthy perfectionism” to describe or justify perfectionistic behaviour. Perfectionists set unrealistically high expectations for themselves and others. They are quick to find fault and are overly critical of mistakes. They tend to procrastinate a project out of their fear of failure. They shrug off compliments and forget to celebrate their success; instead, they look to specific people in their life for approval and validation. There are three subcategories of perfectionism, which are:

Socially Prescribed Perfectionists:

Socially prescribed perfectionists are very self-critical. They feel immense pressure to be the best and worry others will reject them. Perceived external standards (which can come from family, workplace, society, etc.) can lead to anxiety and low confidence.

Other-Orientated Perfectionists:

Perfectionists who are other-oriented. They hold others to high standards and can be critical and judgmental which can leave destruction in their wake. It’s hard to build working relationships under these conditions, which is one reason this variety is so detrimental.

Self-Orientated Perfectionists:

Self-oriented perfectionists are organised and conscientious. They set high standards for themselves in their lives and careers, but are able to go after their goals. High self-oriented perfectionism is generally associated with the most “adaptive” traits correlated with greater productivity and success, including resourcefulness and assertiveness. They show higher rates of positive emotion and motivation.

Perfectionism can often develop and occur due to a frequent fear of disapproval from others or feelings of insecurity and inadequacy, mental health issues like anxiety or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) can lead into perfectionism. While a correlation between OCD and perfectionism has been found to exist, not all people with perfectionism have OCD, and not all people with OCD are perfectionists. Having a parent who exhibits perfectionistic behaviour or expresses disapproval when their child's efforts do not result in perfection can also factor into perfectionism developing. Some parents may encourage their child to succeed in every area or push perfection on them to an extent that can be considered abusive and an insecure early attachment. People who had a troubled attachment with parents when they were young may experience difficulty self-soothing as adults. They may have trouble accepting a good outcome as good if it’s not perfect. 

I believe this links quite nicely to Reiji’s character as we know he was dealt a troubled childhood full of neglect and comparison - opting to memorise an entire novel rather than simply enjoy reading it, in hopes that it would catch his mother’s attention; I believe that this is where his perfectionist persona developed from. By him developing this behavioural pattern at an early age, it allows his world view perception to change - if he must raise himself to an impossible standard, and be ‘perfect’, then so must everyone else; this feeds into his development both as a character and as a person, he desires to be recognised for his perfection, and so, when Yui does praise him for it, he revels in it - it allows his fragile ego to grow, and for him to feel acknowledged; though he often puts Yui down, degrading her, he also allows her to prosper and learn too, as though he’s trying to subtly repay her kindness. CED and perfectionism can be interlinked; by not having the emotional praise and approval as a child, you begin to internalise the possibility that there is something wrong or inadequate with you, and so you try to ‘fix’ that and become ‘perfect’ in hopes of achieving the closure that is so desperately needed; by Yui providing this acknowledgement to Reiji, it not only fuels his ego and perfectionism, but it also allows him to gain closure and comfort, for a moment his insecurities vanish and I believe he enjoys that, it makes him feel content and gives him some form of care to latch onto - why would he risk so much to try and save Yui if he didn’t care ?. It can be implied that the relationship between Reiji and Yui ‘softens’ over time due to her providing him with the emotional stability he needed as a child and him clinging onto that - we know that his brothers don’t really care for or about him, and so naturally, he would cling onto the one person who does...that being Yui.

Additionally, NPD can not only be linked to perfectionism, but also CEN. One of the causes of CEN is being raised by a narcissistic parent. Narcissistic parents are a major source of childhood emotional neglect. Narcissistic parents are unable to see the true nature of their children or respond to them emotionally. They are taken up trying to get their own needs met, and are not capable of giving emotionally to anyone, and that includes their child. So children of narcissistic parents often have their emotional needs ignored or discouraged, the very root cause of CEN.  The extreme type of CEN that contributes to narcissism happens when your parents not only ignore your emotions, they actively squelch your feelings and your true self.  Narcissism may be partly determined by genetics, but to become a narcissist, you generally must grow up with a complex mix of being emotionally squelched in some ways, and overly indulged or excessively praised in some kind of superficial or inaccurate way. CEN is at the core of every narcissist. When you have CEN, you tend to take up little space. Deep down you feel unimportant and invalid, so you don’t ask for much, and you don’t allow yourself to want or need much. On the other hand, those with narcissism are the opposite. Narcissists put their own feelings and needs first, and feel most comfortable when taking up lots of space. This predisposes people with CEN and narcissists to feel comfortable with each other. They often fall in love with each other, but its seldom works out well; this links to Reiji when I mentioned that he contradicts himself - he puts his own needs first during the beginning of HDB yet behind closed doors, he still feels invalid. He outwardly possesses the belief that he’s better than Yui, and better than his brothers yet once he’s in the comfort of closed doors, once he’s on his own, that mask drops and his bitter resentment and festering insecurities take hold. He’s self-contradictory in his beliefs and wants, both presenting traits of NPD and CEN.  This is because when the parents are emotionally neglectful, the various levels of sensitivity of the children combine with the differing ways the emotional neglect comes across to each child. One may grow up with the struggles of pure CEN and another sibling may end up with narcissism - or in Reiji’s case, both. The hidden inner cores of narcissistic people and those with CEN are very much the same; since CEN is a contributing part of the development of narcissism, this is not surprising. The shared inner core of these two very different styles is a shared inner feeling of being empty, alone, and insignificant.

By explaining how NPD and CEN parallel each other, it better helps explain Reiji’s contradictory nature from his outward behaviour and his inner feelings. Emotionally, he can relate to Yui as she presents traits of his younger self to him and so, emotionally, he wants to ‘protect’ and ‘fix’ that. However, physically, intellectually and socially, he does not relate to Yui. Physically, he is stronger and of a completely different race to her; intellectually, we know he is far above average and prides himself in that, and socially, he is again, above Yui. It’s clear to say that vampires and humans are going to have a difference in status and hierarchy - humans are nothing more than food to vampires, food, slaves, pets, and by that being the social hierarchy for them, it’s going to be imbedded and ingrained into people like Reiji who are in a position of power; just because Yui can be implied to remind Reiji of his childhood naivety and self, doesn’t then mean that she is on the same wavelength as him, she is not and Reiji likes to bring awareness to that. Reiji poses as a highly sadistic and manipulative man and, when he can, he chooses to indulge in that, such as when he and Cordelia tighten the corset around Yui’s body, causing her pain.

Cordelia: Nfu~ Well then, tighten the corset please. So my waist looks nice and slim, okay?

This girl is especially lacking, so we have to try and emphasise the curves.

(Wha!? So mean!!)

Reiji: ーー I’m tightening it, okay?

Cordelia: Go ahead…!

(…It’s so painful, it feels like I might die.)

Reiji: Do you want it even tighter?

Cordelia: Yes, you can still keep going.

(…Please stop! If you try and make it any smaller, it’ll just look creepy!)

Oh, is that so? Reiji, what do you think? This girl is screaming for you to stop.

Reiji: I see. In that case…Let’s tighten it just a little more.

By including this interaction between the three characters, it re-establishes Reiji’s sadism - yes, he mirrors Cordelia’s expectations for him towards her in order to bring Yui back, and so one might say that the ends justify the means. However, I am not prepared to overlook his fall-back into his more sadistic tendencies - does this tie more into his physical and psychological behaviour ? Yes, but does it also tie into his relationship with Yui ? Yes.

The moment before Cordelia took control of Yui we saw Reiji’s ‘true colours’ emerge - the fact that he cares and has grown to care and show affection towards Yui - yet as soon as Cordelia takes the limelight and pushes Yui into the background, he openly takes to causing her pain; inflicting his darker traits on her once again, and this time she can’t fight back whatsoever...not even with her words, and Reiji indulges in that - such as him tying the corset tighter even though it’s causing Yui physical pain, and knowing that it’s causing her pain too. Interactions like the one listed above reinforces how dark of a character Reiji is - he has his softer moments, but he also has his more sadistic ones too; this being one of them, it’s a subtler interaction and display of his sadism, but it’s there nonetheless.

It's evident that some pathological personalities have a sadistic quality about them. Narcissists will torture with put-downs to keep their ego afloat; antisocial personalities may make people suffer into submission to get a need met, enjoying the sense of power it provides them. However, the aforementioned are not usually openly hostile and destructive as a general way of relating to others. In these circumstances, such acts of cruelty are really means to an end; a part of the disorder.

While no longer addressed in the ‘Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders‘,(DSM), sadistic personality disorder (SPD), similar to the passive-aggressive and masochistic personality, has continued to be recognized as a condition by many psychologists. First written about as a psychological construct by Krafft-Ebing in the mid-1800s, the sadistic character was then recognized as someone who enjoys instigation of pain, cruelty, and humiliation as sexual dominance. This was expounded upon by Freud, who discussed sadism and masochism as “bipolar dimensions of the aggressive component of the sexual instinct”; looking beyond this sexual basis, however, Eric Fromm later found that sexual sadism wasn’t the only form of expression of some people's need to humiliate: "Mental cruelty, the wish to humiliate and to hurt another person's feelings, is probably even more widespread than physical sadism. This type of sadistic attack is much safer to the sadist... the psychological pain can be as intense or even more so than the physical... the core of sadism...is the passion to have absolute and unrestricted control over a living being. To force someone to endure pain or humiliation without being able to defend oneself is one of the manifestations of absolute control..."

The most common traits of SPD can include:

Use of physical cruelty or violence in relationships to establish dominance (not simply for the sake of secondary gain, like robbery). 

Humiliation of people in the presence of others. 

Unusually harsh treatment or discipline towards someone under their control. 

Amusement from witnessing the psychological/physical pain of others, including animals. 

Lies to inflict pain on others. 

Operating through intimidation or terror to get others to comply. 

Restricts the autonomy of people they are close to (their spouse must always be accompanied, children aren't allowed out of the home etc). 

Fascination with violence, weapons, and torture/injury.

The psychologist Millon furthered that those with SPD tend to be noticeably abrasive with sarcasm, criticism, and hostility; they also tend to be strongly opinionated and unwilling to consider others' views, and may harbour an eruptive temper. This latter component is especially important, as those with SPD cannot handle vulnerability - much like Reiji -. Therefore, at the first sign of a threat, no matter how insignificant, their preferred tactic is "offense is the best defence" to show they're not to be played with. It can be implied that we see this throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, opting to push pain onto Yui for seemingly no apparent or valid reason - he’s outwardly showing Yui what he’s capable of and that he’s not a person you’d wish to cross -. However, this display of offence and emotional coldness could also be seen as his defence mechanism, since we’ve already implied him to suffer from CEN, the best way for him to cope with this is to shut everyone out so that there’s no chance of him being hurt emotionally again.

If we take Reiji’s apparent childhood neglect and abuse, alongside the formulaic ‘bully’ psyche, we can understand his sadistic tendencies more. We know that Reiji was dealt with humiliation, absence and emotional turmoil; so to more or less, subdue that on his part, it can be implied that he mirrors the behaviour he was dealt with and inflicts it onto others as a way to deflect his own suffering: it takes the phrase “hurt people hurt other people” or to put it in a clearer tone “people who are hurting, hurt other people” and takes it to a darker state. To compensate for his own misfortunes, Reiji opts to hurt others the way he was hurt, and how that emotional misfortune took to becoming more and more physical, giving him the desire to physically punish others and force them to mirror his inner turmoil - we know that Reiji let this trauma and unresolved problem fester, turning him to resent his family and over the years, that would grow, the hate would grow and worsen, and so would his desire to punish others the way he was punished; as they grew, so did his sadism - which is why he can act so heinously towards Yui, who in turn only wants to help Reiji. Yui’s put in a bad position and her first instinct is to try and make good of it, and I think that factors into why the dynamic between Reiji and Yui changes throughout the entirety of HDB.

Yui: Ah…Are you awake, Reiji?

I’ll pour you a cup of tea right away.

Reiji: Yes…

Did you stay by my side the whole time, perhaps?

Yui: Yes, I didn’t want to leave your side for even a split second.

…Was I in the way?

Reiji: Not at all.

Yui: Thank god…In that case, I’ll go get theーー

Reiji: Hold up. Before that, come here.

The inference that can be drawn from this interaction here is that Reiji is hesitant yet willing to drop his guard and let Yui in. His interrogative of “Did you stay by my side the whole time, perhaps?“ presents Yui with the hint that he is prepared to lower his guard if she is prepared to stay, that he is willing to be vulnerable if she’ll keep him company. It’s interesting to point out that as a character who prefers his own company and for people to leave him be rather than simply follow him around or annoy him for their own satisfaction, is openly asking if the person he at first deemed unworthy of wasting his time stayed with him. It puts his insecurities on full display, that he’s lonely; the fact that Reiji doesn’t say “you stayed...” and instead asks “did you stay...” exhibits his hesitation and uncertainty but also hope - just a little bit, but it’s there -. He’s unsure but hopeful for Yui’s answer, and I think that parallels his early-stage behaviour pleasantly; it shows his willingness to help himself and lower his defences as long as Yui is willing to stay with him through it. By this interaction occurring, it lets the relationship between the two develop - yes Reiji is still stern, rude and somewhat obnoxious, however, he begins to acknowledge Yui as a person, key word being ‘begins’, as he’s still got a long way to go in order to overcome his many deep-rooted problems, and the interaction for that has been set-up.

Interactions such as this present Reiji with a more mellow attitude towards Yui than what he did during the majority of his route - he’s still stern and holds strong to his sense of self and perfectionism however, it’s become lesser than it was, since Reiji willingly let Yui in and lessened his guard around her. It shows that his progress as a person is occurring, though it is at a rather slow pace - which is fitting for someone like Reiji.

Reiji: …You really helped me out earlier. Let me thank you.

Yui: Eh? Did I do anything?

Reiji: You called out for me in the classroom while I was being forced to lecture those girls on the continuation of class.

I thought that was very quick-witted of you…But since it’s you we’re talking about, I suppose that was not the case.

----------

Reiji: …Humans are bothersome creatures after all.

Yui: Eh?

Reiji: Say I would refuse to help them with their studies, I am certain bad rumours would spread in no time.

‘That guy is unfriendly’, for example. Although I wouldn’t mind if that’s what they think about me.

Take the witch hunt for example.

Yui: Witch hunt?

Reiji: Yes, after even the slightest disagreement, they would claim someone to be a witch, falsely accusing them.

Although in the current era we live in, witch hunts should no longer exist.

That being said, it would be foolish of me to purposely trigger a bad situation.

Nor do I wish to shake up my current lifestyle.

So I’ve been trying to remain kind to a certain degree, avoiding other people developing some sort of resentment towards me.

Above all, the overall image of the Sakamaki household could not be worse because of the other brothers.

I have to at least keep up a good impression, or else I will be treated as their equal. …There you have it.

Here we see Reiji praise and acknowledge Yui’s behaviour and opts to thank her - yet he quickly follows that with one of his usual remarks -. It presents his softening façade but also his sarcasm, it can be implied that he covers up his relief at Yui’s actions with feigned annoyance - he’s not ready to completely drop his guard and let someone in after so many years of festering in his own trauma and turmoil; it’s not always that simple and it shows his struggle to do so. Additionally, this is one of the very few times within this game that Reiji ever mentions his brothers as a collective, and I’m inclined to believe that it shows how distant he is from them. By him using the phrase “the [other] brothers” moreover “my brothers” displays that emotional distance, he’s not using the possessive pronoun ‘my’ because he doesn’t feel as though they are his brothers - he doesn’t feel connected to them -. Furthermore, the notion that he states  “‘That guy is unfriendly’. Although I wouldn’t mind if that’s what they think about me.”  emphasises the fact that he is still very much stuck in his ways through his self-contradictory and self-anti-conformity tactics, he tells Yui that he could care less what others thought of him, yet we know that this is not true - he doesn’t care for people’s opinions of him yet opts to “at least keep up a good impression, or else I will be treated as their [his brothers’] equal”, it’s rather ironic don’t you think ? He states that he doesn’t care yet in reality he does, he’s invalidating his own feelings and using his brothers as an ‘escape goat’ for that; even the fact that he uses the declarative “there you have it” displays his somewhat reluctance to lower his guard completely.

Keep in mind that through Reiji’s mentality and the fact that his mind is a boiling pot of negativity towards himself and others, it’s likely to assume that he lacks a concept of love and how to separate it from his manipulative tendencies. Once Yui has become content with being dragged into Reiji’s emotional mayhem and depreciating manipulation, he lowers his guard - little by little - but as Reiji becomes ‘better’ in a sense, Yui becomes worse - feeling more and more broken as the route continues, and I think this can be implied to hold significance to the relationship between the two. 

Reiji: Just like this…I’ll continue to love you…Till you can’t think of anything else.

This is your punishment for being so doubting. …Well, to be honest.

I doubt this will even count as a punishment to you. …Fufu.

Yui: …Haah…

Reiji: Well then, where would you like it next…? I’ll give you my fangs thoroughly…wherever you want…

Yui: Aah…

(Is this happiness…? Yes, it has to be.)

(Reiji…Is loving me after all.)

The important thing to note in this interaction here is how the words “love”, “punishment” and “fangs” are grouped together. Both “punishment” and “fangs” include connotations of pain, and discipline, implying that Reiji will continue to ‘train’ Yui with rewards and punishments (again, manipulating and abusing her) however, the added factor that “love” was included in this exchange could imply that Reiji subconsciously views love as another form of pain and punishment; as though instead of him viewing his abuse of Yui for what it is - abuse - he’s glossing over that fact and instead calling it “love” since canonically, vampires are known to kill as an act of love; they murder the ones they love:

Cordelia: In that case, I’ll kill you. And then I’ll kill him…

Killing him would be the ultimate proof of my love.

I shall be the one fulfilling his greatest desire to die. Haah…Isn’t it wonderful?

Reiji: You have no interest in being the person he loves the most. In short, you just want to force your own love upon him, am I wrong?

Conversely, due to his upbringing, and the vampiric logic of DL, maybe by imprinting this kind of behaviour on her, Reiji is trying to say that he has enough emotion towards her to consider melding love and pain together. It can be considered that vampires drink each other’s blood in the DL universe under three circumstances: food, love, and pleasure; I think Reiji melds those three together. I’ve implied this mainly through the actions of when Yui turns into a vampire when following Kanato’s route; Kanato even comments at times that it makes no real difference for him, “she’s just as sweet as before” in relation to her blood. By Kanato continuing to drink Yui’s blood is not the same as drinking it for nutrition, as it was before. Thematically speaking, it can be implied that sucking blood is what Rejet uses to symbolise intimacy and sadism in the franchise - and from that we can interpret that by drinking their own blood, it acts as a means of giving pleasure to one another as well as food and sustenance. The ‘love’ aspect of this is a little harder to explain given the notion that basically none of the characters (aside from Yui) understand the concept of love, and of loving someone, however, I believe a phrase from one of the chapters in Laito’s route can explain why pain melds into ‘love’; he states “do you know how it feels to love someone so much that you end up hating them?”, which I think describes the brothers’ mentality towards love quite well. Family-wise, they were each damaged, and so their understanding of familial love vastly differs that of someone who grew up with a caring and stable family - applying this to Reiji brings us back to his CEN, his neglect came as a form of ‘love’ - which hurt him - and so by him harbouring feelings for Yui, he’s going to mirror and perpetuate that, hence why I think his later punishments come as a form of ‘love’ from him.

Going back to the subject of the matter, Reiji’s walls are still very much up, they’re just not as high as they were before - his stern attitude still remains and somewhat prevails, but his caring nature begins to grow.

Reiji: Haah…I wanted to believe you were sincerely listening to my words, but it seems my message did not get through in the slightest.

Yui: I’m sorry…

Reiji: …When do you have to hand it in?

Yui: By the end of today…

Reiji: Do you know what time it is right now? Honestly you are unbelievable…I suppose I have no other choice.

Yui: Eh…?

Reiji: Where’s the assignment? Do you have it with you?

Yui: Y-Yes!

(Could it be, he’ll help me?)

It’s this one.

Yui pulls out the assignment

Reiji: …You’ve already made a mistake in your first answer.

Yui: Eh? Where?

Reiji: It does show that you solved it with your own abilities, but do you honestly intend to submit it like this?

Yui: Uu…Sorry…

Reiji: Please show me your notes.

Yui: Y-Yes…

----------

Reiji: Over here, and here…On these pages as well, there’s errors.

Let us fix these mistakes first. Then we can proceed.

Yui: T-Thank you very much…!

The school setting for this interchange is quite refreshing, but it also reinforces the academic differences between Reiji and Yui - he’s been alive for a very long time while Yui is only seventeen - and it goads the ‘redemption’ of Reiji’s overbearing nature, as previously, Reiji was displeased with trying to help his fellow classmates yet here he’s willing to help Yui of his own initiative - though he does show reluctance to do so, again establishing his slow growth and progression -. If this scene were to take place during the beginning of the game, he would no doubt chastise and degrade Yui for her mistakes and inability to understand the question, however, he does not take that chance to berate her here; yes he does chime in with his usual remarks, yet he offers to help her fix her mistakes together - he’s extending and reaching out to her and letting her take hold of that hand - naturally, by comparing his beginning chapters and his later chapters, it’s not difficult to see why Yui is ecstatic in this exchange. 

On the contrary, whilst Reiji’s character goes through growth, so does Yui’s - Reiji more for the better and Yui more so for the worst, and I’d like to bring attention to that. I’m not going to discuss her entire character but I’d like to bring awareness to her contribution to their relationship, starting with this:

Reiji: That too. I’ll prepare you a hot drink, but first eat thiーー

Yui: My blood is disgusting, huh? …To the point where you don’t ever want to drink it again.

Reiji: Yui, calm down. I haven’t said any of that, have I?

If you’re in bad shape, this could possibly affect your blood as well.

Therefore, you don’t need to think that waーー

Yui: But! You wouldn’t want to drink disgusting blood, would you!?

If you won’t have my blood, then what am I supposed to do!?

Without good-quality blood, I won’t be of any value to you…!

At this rate, I won’t be able to remain by your side…!

(I don’t want that…!)

Reiji: …You truly are a foolish person.

Who said you aren’t valuable to me?

Yui: Because…!

He embraces her

Reiji: Haah…

They’re bad at dealing with things. They always assume the worst right away. They pretend to understand even though you don’t.

Honestly…They really are a handful. …Do you know who I am talking about?

Yui: Eh…?

Reiji: I’m talking about you, Yui.

To think you still don’t understand after being told so many times…Listen carefully, okay?

Yui: Y-Yes…

Reiji: The taste of your blood is irrelevant.

I am most definitely a Vampire. As long as we are living together, drinking your blood is an essential part of it…

Even so…

I don’t mind how disgusting your blood may be. …Yui, as you remain yourself.

This exchange shows the changes that Yui’s character undergoes in order to satisfy Reiji’s; even the notion that he’s being uncharacteristically soft in this dialogue presents how they both have changed and how the narrative has changed - the beginning contrasts the end. Reiji opts to put his own feelings to the side in order to accompany Yui’s, which shows his progression to take others’ needs into consideration, as well as learn to accept his own feelings and let himself validate them - I find this progression quite powerful due to where his character started: bitter, resentful, controlling and utterly sadistic in his means of manipulating Yui. However, we see this stark contrast in Yui - a character who we know likes to help others, stay rational and open minded but most importantly, we know that Yui is a genuinely kind soul; so to see her throw a fit of distress and rage is quite shocking to behold. Additionally, the fact that she actively interrupts Reiji mid sentence provides us with how she’s changed - she’s becoming more erratic in her behaviour; as per the fact that she cuts Reiji off by stating, “My blood is disgusting, huh? …To the point where you don’t ever want to drink it again. “ reminds me of Kanato, and his erratic behaviour - the inclination that you take one thing to mean another and instantly go off the rails, which is what we see here and I think that it can be implied to serve as a good test to Reiji’s slow progression and betterment.  The end segment of the transcript above is particularly valuable in this interpretation of Reiji’s character development, especially in regards to his perfectionism; the fact that he’s practically declared that he’s willing to push aside the notion that her blood is no longer perfect (for the time being) as long as Yui remains true to herself truly speaks volumes - we’ve been through how and why Reiji possesses perfectionist traits, and for him to then consider pushing his own morals aside for someone he initially saw as beneath him genuinely allows not only Yui but also the audience to view Reiji’s ‘true colours’ so to speak - in this small segment, we see Reiji’s core as it should be, not hell-bent, resentful nor scorned, we see the little shards of tenderness and affection that he’s locked away for so long; he’s becoming ‘true’ to himself and he wishes for Yui to remains true to herself too. 

Yui���s Relationship with Reiji and her Deteriorating Mind

However, as I vaguely touched upon before, Reiji’s development also takes a toll on Yui; her character changes as Reiji’s does, and that’s bound to have an effect on the two.

Those who weren’t treated with respect by their family and have low self-esteem, will tend to deny the abuse and won’t expect to be treated better than how they were controlled, demeaned, or punished by a parent. Denial doesn’t mean we don’t know what’s happening. Instead, we minimise or rationalise it and its impact; and may not realise it’s actually abuse. Research shows we deny for survival to stay attached and procreate for survival of the species. Facts and feelings that would normally undermine love are minimised or twisted so that we overlook them or blame ourselves in order to keep loving; by appeasing our partner and connecting to love, we stop hurting - love is rekindled and we feel safe again.

When we fall in love, if we haven’t worked through trauma from our childhood, we’re more susceptible to idealizing our partner when dating. It’s likely that we will seek out someone who reminds us of a parent with whom we have unfinished business, not necessary of our opposite-sex parent - this is able to link to Reiji’s hatred of Yui’s meekness and how he wishes for her behaviour to intertwine and parallel Beatrix’s -. We might even be attracted to someone who has aspects of both parents. This is known in Freudian parlance as ‘Repetition Compulsion’ and helps us overlook signs that would be predictive of trouble. However, cases like this can often instil what’s known as ‘Stockholm Syndrome’.

Stockholm syndrome is a psychological response. It occurs when hostages or abuse victims bond with their captors or abusers. This psychological connection develops over the course of the days, weeks, months, or even years of captivity or abuse. The ‘captors’ in this case can often have the uncanny ability to sense a weakness or vulnerability in another person and is followed closely by the charm of first impression and then reinforced by the promises of meeting the unmet needs of the other. The Stockholm syndrome or ‘trauma bonding’ in the relationship does not come into play until after the ‘capture’ has taken place. It is after the veneer of first impression has worn thin that the captor now has to use the ‘good guy/bad guy’ scenario to set the bonding. The captors in this case are adept at making the captive feel sorry for them by telling stories of their own abuse as children and making excuses for their temper and aggressive behaviour. This combined with small acts of kindness ingratiates them to the captive after the abuse that sets the fear of reprisal up in the captive. Some cases of an abusive relationship can have the scenario where the captive gains the insight and strength to leave, and the captor murders the captive and the common motif for this is “If I can't have you, nobody can”.

Now here is where it gets a bit difficult. It would be simple to say that all hostages or captives that fall prey to this type of person are ‘weak’ or ‘needy’. That is not the case; however, as we trace back as investigators we often find indicators that made the captives more susceptible to the wiles of the captor. The attribution error allows us to transpose our beliefs about what ‘normal’ behaviour is onto those who behave differently. Too often we just shake our heads in disbelief as a captive returns to the captor voluntarily and despite the urges not to by family and social supporters. Others throw up their hands and cite Stockholm syndrome as the culprit without understanding the dynamics and the context of the situation.

Emotionally bonding with an abuser can actually be a strategy for survival for victims of abuse and intimidation. What might have begun as a normal relationship has turned into a controlling and abusive situation, or in our case, the opposite. They are trying to survive. Their personality is developing the feelings and thoughts needed to survive the situation and lower their emotional and physical risks. The fear of outbursts from the abuser becomes a controlling factor in the victim's life. For survival, the goal becomes to anticipate anything that may result in an outburst for the controlling person and avoid it at all costs. The abused person becomes preoccupied with the needs, desires, and habits of the abusive controlling person. The outcome of this survival mode or ‘freeze’ reaction versus ‘fight or flight’ reaction can result in a captive who experiences a loss of self-esteem, self-confidence, and psychological energy and who is ‘burned out’ and too depressed to leave; another possible outcome is a return to a childish infantile pattern of bonding with the aggressor - in our case, the latter is visible within Kanato’s route in Haunted Dark Bridal -.

In many cases, it's not simply feelings for a captor that keeps individuals captive in an unhealthy relationship - it's the totality of the investment and the types of investment:

Emotional Investment - They've invested so many emotions, cried so much, and worried so much that they feel it necessary to see the relationship through to the finish.

Social Investment - They've got pride, and to avoid social embarrassment and uncomfortable social situations, they remain in the relationship.

Family Investments - If children are present in the relationship, decisions regarding the relationship are clouded by the status and needs of the children.

Financial Investment - In many cases, the controlling and abusive partner has created a complex financial situation. Many captives remain in a bad relationship waiting for a better financial situation to develop that would make their departure and detachment easier.

Lifestyle Investment - Many controlling and abusive partners use money or a lifestyle as an investment; captives in this situation may not want to lose their current lifestyle.

Intimacy Investment - They often invest emotional and sexual intimacy. Some captives have experienced a destruction of their emotional and or sexual self-esteem in the unhealthy relationship. The abusing partner may threaten to spread rumours or tell intimate details or secrets; a type of blackmail using intimacy is often found in these situations.

Throughout Reiji’s Haunted Dark Bridal route, we see Yui slowly adapting to the physical and mental abuse Reiji instils on her, and in a way, her kind spirit betrays her and is manipulated by Reiji. I’ve mentioned previously that Reiji uses Operant Control on Yui; so when she’s rewarded for ‘good’ behaviour, her innate compassion allows her to somewhat overlook the heinous actions that are inflicted upon her. This can be implied by the notion that she wants to believe that there’s good in Reiji, that he’s not entirely bad and abusive. Yet, once Cordelia is out of the picture and Yui has returned back to ‘normal’, she displays a more erratic streak compared to her usual tender personality, opting to assert herself more, however, that assertion comes in a frantic nature moreover stubbornness - such as when she declares to Reiji that he won’t want her anymore because she thought her blood wasn’t good enough. The question is, why would she say that in the first place ? She’s endured so much pain and suffering from Reiji yet she doesn’t want him to leave her...why ? From what I’ve inferred, it’s quite simple, she’s broken. What I mean by that is that she’s become so worn down over time, having what little confidence and self-esteem she has etched away time and time again, being ‘retrained’ by Reiji’s cruel manipulation and then having Cordelia take over her body on top of that - she’s mentally exhausted from dealing with Reiji’s regime and it’s taken its toll on her.

Throughout the route as a whole Yui barely interacts with any of the other brothers; therefore she’s isolated for the majority of the game, she doesn’t have anyone to turn to and once Cordelia strikes, the only person who more or less comes to her ‘rescue’ is none other than Reiji. Mental exhaustion, isolation and pressure all factor into how a person as a whole ‘breaks’, in essence, once Yui has become undeniably worn out, it allows Reiji to mould her mind into his desired outcome - which is what was mentioned all the way back in the first few sections -. By him casting Cordelia out, it leaves Yui vulnerable, tired and confused; by him posing as her ‘rescuer’ so to speak, Yui’s exhausted brain is going to jump to the conclusion that everything she was put through was due to an act of ‘love’, “Reiji’s here because he loves me” was most likely the basis of her thoughts at that moment - she was at first valuable to him due to her blood and she doesn’t want to lose that status of importance to him. So, when Reiji decides to pay attention to other people, it can be implied that Yui feels threatened by that, and becomes frantic that he’s going to leave her - Yui’s been isolated for the entire game, and through that, and everything else she’s been through, she’s going to depend on him; and follow the rules he sets out for her because that mindset has been ingrained into her. 

Reiji: Our bond should not be able to be broken over such a trivial thing.

Furthermore, do you fully realise that you have captured the heart of a Vampire?

I’d like to bring attention to this small piece of dialogue above within the After Story chapter, more so for its irony at the fact that Reiji uses the verb ‘captured’ even though he is technically the ‘capturer’ since he enforced this life on Yui when she chose him. Even the word itself carries connotations of imprisonment and subjugation, displaying the utter irony of the situation - Reiji has physically and mentally restrained and constrained Yui’s whole person, yet through her acts of kindness, he instead feels imprisoned - it’s baffling yet it provides us with the implication that Reiji feels content with her, enough to subtly change his character and climb up the hill of betterment; furthermore, this could then imply that as Yui feels depended and devoted to Reiji due to Stockholm syndrome, Reiji may also feel this string of attachment to Yui because he can’t better himself without her - it can be implied that their relationship is a double-edged sword -. 

Reiji’s broken Yui’s psyche to the point where she feels unsafe if Reiji is not with her or around her. She’s been isolated and tortured into developing a form of twisted attraction which may have all started due to her empathetic character - she’s attached with no one else to turn to, she’s cut off from the world and her only means of purpose is by serving Reiji.

Reiji: That way, you’ll learn much more. I’m saying this for your sake as well.

Yui: B-But, if I do that, we won’t be able to head home together any more.

Reiji: So you’re practically ordering me to teach you because you don’t want to? You’ve sure become quite assertive with your words, haven’t you?

Yui: That’s not true…! I just don’t want to become unable to head home together with you!

As I’ve stated previously, Yui can often become quite unstable when faced with separation from Reiji and the dialogue above perfectly encapsulates that. Throughout the opening of the route we see Yui try her best to go about her daily life, often left on her own when she’s not being ‘trained’ by Reiji’s strict demands - it paints her as someone with initiative that can cope on their lonesome - whereas now, that fragment of Yui has completely flipped; where she could cope on her own, now she can’t. It all ties back to Reiji’s many problems but it also speaks volumes about Yui’s own personality and quite frankly, lack of self-esteem.

Due to her implied low self-esteem, Yui believes the abuser’s belittling, blame, and criticisms, which further lessen her self-esteem and confidence in her own perceptions. Reiji intentionally does this for power and control. She’s brainwashed into thinking she has to change to make the relationship work; she becomes easily manipulated, blames herself and tries harder to meet her abuser’s demands. It can be implied that Yui may interpret sexual overtures, crumbs of kindness, or just absence of abuse as signs of love or hope that the relationship will improve; thus, as the trust in herself declines, Yui’s love and idealization of Reiji remains intact, and she may even doubt that she could find anyone better.

Many of us can have empathy for the abuser, but not for ourselves. We are unaware of our needs and would feel ashamed asking for them. With this in mind, it makes us susceptible to manipulation if an abuser plays the victim, exaggerates guilt, shows remorse, blames us, or talks about a troubled past if they have had one. Our empathy feeds our denial system by supplying justification, rationalisation, and minimization of the pain that we endure. Most victims hide the abuse from friends and relatives to protect the abuser, both out of empathy and shame about being abused; secrecy is a mistake and gives the abuser more power, which is exactly what we see.

Going back to a point I made at the beginning of this section, about how people can often fall for those who remind them of a parental figure, I believe this has relevance to Yui and her attachment to Reiji. We know that she grew up with the church and that her father, Seiji, was strict on her as a child - I don’t think Yui suffers from CEN like the rest of the brothers, and we know that she did have friends before she moved to the mansion. However, I’d like you to keep in mind that Seiji was the one to kill Beatrix by Reiji’s command; therefore a relationship between those two characters has been established in the past - no doubt Reiji was just as controlling then as he is now. The Reiji we see during this game is quite brutal in his manipulation, but he is also strict....’strict’ being the key word. It can be implied that Yui may have seen the same strictness in Reiji that was in her father, possibly leading her to find a strange form of comfort in that - she wishes to please Reiji’s firm nature much like how a child wishes to appease a strict parent.....by getting on their good side; we can predominantly see this through the Heaven chapters of the game.

Yui: I’ve brought your tea.

Reiji: Yes…Right on time. Not even a single second off.

Yui: Of course. You are very punctual after all, and so am I.

Reiji: I see. That is a very favourable way of thinking.

Yui: (I did it…! Reiji is pleased! I’m so glad!!)

One of the first instances where Yui was to meet with Reiji she was three seconds late, in which she encountered a nasty punishment from him - here, after she’s been completely broken and worn out, she’s right on time, she’s punctual because Reiji’s ways of living have been ingrained into her; she’s been ‘trained’ properly by him, like an owner would do with their dog (again bringing us back to the pet power dynamic) and therefore has become co-dependent.

Co-dependency  is an emotional and behavioural condition that affects an individual’s ability to have a healthy, mutually satisfying relationship. It is also known as ‘relationship addiction’ because people with co-dependency often form or maintain relationships that are one-sided, emotionally destructive and or abusive. 

The concept that Yui’s eager to please him, and the fact he states that it’s “favourable” of her implements Yui’s development in regards to their relationship, and how Reiji’s overbearing control has practically obliterated Yui’s original self - her former self has been completely lost to him.

Cordelia and Mirroring

Within this section, I’d like to talk about Cordelia and how Reiji mimics and mirrors her behaviour and expectations in order to ‘kill’ her...but first, what exactly is mirroring and mimicry ?

Mirroring, also known as ‘Limbic Synchrony’, is the act of mimicking those around us. It’s an ingrained social behaviour that typically yields positive results, mirroring can help to establish a rapport between humans, with research finding that it improves interpersonal skills in children. It is widely known that individuals frequently imitate each other in social situations, and that such mimicry fulfils an important social role in the sense that it functions as a social glue. With reference to the anticipated action effect, it has recently been demonstrated that individuals do not only imitate others, but also engage in anticipated action before the observed person starts engaging in that action. Interestingly, both phenomena (mimicry and anticipated action) rely on tracking others’ social behaviour. However, this act of mimicry and mirroring can also be used by those of a controlling nature, who wish to use these tactics to benefit their own circumstances; this leads us back to Reiji. 

Going through his Ecstasy chapters, I often found that in Ecstasy 10, Reiji displays an almost completely different attitude towards the end, opting to display the qualities and traits that Cordelia wishes to see - more or less giving her what she wants -, which I at first found rather strange due to him spouting the exclamative “Don’t touch me! You’re filthy! You are the most disgusting slut I’ve ever met!” back in Ecstasy 05, so why then does he decide to provide this interaction:

Reiji: Of course. This dress is almost no match for your fair skin…

On top of that, your skin is so smooth…It puts even this velvety fabric to shame…

Yui: (…! What am I getting all flustered for!?)

Am I beautiful? Reiji.

Reiji: Yes, you are more beautiful and charming than anyone else. My precious…

Yui: Compliment me more! More!

Reiji: So much so, I wish I could rip that dress off your body at the very instant and completely ravish you.

If I don’t…I fear other guys might just try and gobble you up in no time…

Yui: Haah, I don’t mind. Reiji, get on your knees. And please put on my shoes.

Reiji: Yes. My precious darling.

Yui: (Reiji’s kneeling down…!)

Exactly. Now, put my foot on your knee.

Reiji: Fufu…You are beautiful as ever…Your legs are slender and elegant like those of a crane.

These feet as well…So precious and small, they fit right into the palm of my hand.

It’s rather simple really, Cordelia wants to be complemented, she wants to be praised and adored; showing her overall narcissism in the process, and Reiji plays into that, he mimics and mirrors her emotional desires in order for Cordelia to drop her guard. The irony of this scene is that he’s in fairness, complementing Yui’s body, he’s not praising Cordelia’s personality, her intellect or even her original body yet we see her present more leniency once her desperation for praise is fulfilled. This need of Cordelia’s is what inevitably causes her downfall.

Cordelia: Fufu. That settles everything then. I’ll enjoy watching you resurrect Beatrix and killing her afterwards.

Reiji: Yes. Before that, Cordelia, would you like to seal our vows with a kiss…?

Cordelia: Oh dear, you’re surprisingly a romanticist.

Reiji: ーー Come on.

Cordelia: Very well. Go ahead…

Reiji leans in

Reiji: Cordelia…

Cordelia: (…No way, why…? Reiji…Do you not care about “me” at all?)

He kisses her

Reiji: Nn…

Cordelia: …Nn…!?

*Thud*

Cordelia: (Eh!? Cordelia pushed…Reiji away?)

What is…this? What’s the meaning behind this!?

Reiji: …You fell for it, Cordelia. I made you…ingest a certain drug.

Cordelia is a character who demonstrates openness in what she desires and that leaves Reiji to mimic and mirror that in order to coerce her to lower her guard - she becomes blinded by her own narcissistic needs and Reiji is able to take advantage of that; I think this is a nice way to bring us back to how manipulative of a person he is. Reiji’s able to lure both Yui and Cordelia into a false sense of security, and once their defences are down, he’s able to enact his own plans.

Reiji’s Paradoxical and Parallel Relationship with Shuu

For this section of my analysis, it’ll be impossible to talk about Reiji without talking about Shuu; in Shuu’s third ending, he finds Reiji’s old diary in which he talks about setting fire to Edgar’s village. It’s not made clear exactly what the diary said or what Reiji’s tone was, just that Reiji does admit in the diary to causing the fire and Edgar’s ‘death’. When asked if all this is true, Reiji’s response is that it was something he did as a child.

Shuu: That day, you followed me and went to Edgar’s village.

Yui: Edgar is…?

(That’s…the name of the friend Shuu mentioned before…)

Shuu: And then…You set fire to the entire village, did you not?

To rob me from my best friend. Because of your own resentment towards the guy who had something you didn’t have yourself…You wiped clean an entire village…

Was it fun to burn Edgar to death?

Reiji: …

Yui: Reiji…Killed Shuu’s friend…?

(With fire, on top of that…So that’s why Shuu hates fire so much…)

Shuu: No matter how much we may view humans as inferior living beings, it does not make sense for us to mindlessly slaughter them for our own pleasure.

If Vampire hunters were to find out…Our entire race would be in danger…

Kanato: Say…Reiji, is he speaking the truth?

Reiji: …It happened when we were children.

Personally, this response from Reiji is rather odd, his hatred of Shuu isn’t exactly a secret; and being vampires, killing doesn’t seem to be that big of a deal. In Reiji’s route, he reveals quite early on that he killed his own mother. With that in mind, if Reiji really had meant to kill Edgar all those years ago, wouldn’t he just admit to it ? The fact that he says that setting fire to the village was something he did as a child could hint that he feels guilt - and to an extent, shame - towards it. Even in the current timeline, he refers to his action as “setting the village on fire”, not as “killing Edgar”; while his actions did lead to Edgar’s ‘death’, it seems unlikely that he actually set out to murder. Reiji has always resented Shuu due to his mother valuing Shuu more than himself. But more than that, it was the fact that even though he worked incredibly hard, Shuu thrived by doing absolutely nothing. In addition to that, Shuu often ran away and tried to escape the pressure of living as the apparent heir. To Shuu, the strict attention that Beatrix gave him was suffocating, and Reiji envied that attention. 

Reiji naturally has a personality that nurses grudges for a long time, as evident by how much he still resents Shuu years later. From Reiji’s perspective, it can be implied that he sees a brother who didn’t and still doesn’t appreciate any of the things he has - things that Reiji wants so badly but can never obtain. It may be inferred that if Shuu took his life and role as the heir seriously, Reiji might not hate him as much as he does, if at all. The sense that you get of Reiji from Shuu’s route is that rather than wanting Shuu to disappear, Reiji just wants him to better himself.

Reiji: …Someone like you, it isn’t just your actions and appearance, but even down to the very depths of your heart, you are nothing but a filthy fiend it seems.

I wonder if it’s because you were spoiled during your upbringing due to being the eldest son…Our caretakers have created a monster.

No…This level of disgracefulness can only be attributed to someone’s true nature. I don’t sense a single grain of refinement in you.

Shuu: …I have no idea what you’re talking about. You’re noisy so go away, Reiji.

Reiji: You are the eyesore here. You too, why don’t you make yourself at home underneath the ground where you’ll be out of sight.

Shuu: …Don’t wanna, it’s cold. If you don’t want to see me, then leave.

Reiji: Wha…You good-for-nothing!

Yui: C-Come on guys…

(It’s rare for Shuu to talk back this much…)

(Reiji is usually calm and collected as well, but when it comes to Shuu, I feel as if he’s purposely trying to attack him…)

(None of the brothers seem especially close, but these two in particular…)

(It could be that amongst all of them, they are like cat and dog…)

Reiji’s responses in regards to Shuu are often filled with malice and disgust, but here, he directly states the problem he has with him by saying “you were spoiled during your upbringing”. We’ve thoroughly implied and analysed Reiji’s overwhelming CEN and how that’s affected him growing up, however, due to Shuu being almost suffocated in what Reiji longs for, he’s naturally going to become envious of his brother because of that, and begin to resent him.

Reiji is a character who’s suffered from CEN, however, by following Shuu’s route, we learn that Beatrix was quite an overbearing mother due to Shuu’s placement in the family - Shuu was dealt with an unhealthy amount of attention and Reiji was devoid of any -. I know that in Reiji’s More Blood route, we do see instances of Beatrix checking up on Reiji and his studies, sometimes praising him, however, just because a parent asks how you’re doing once in a while, does not constitute to a child not being neglected...he very much was, at least, emotionally. They’re both two ends of the same spectrum, and although Reiji is emotionally closed off for the most part, he’s also emotionally volatile in his own ways - punishments - whereas Shuu is the flip-side of that and is emotionally apathetic; here’s how they paradox each other.

What I mean by this, is that both Shuu and Reiji’s behaviours contradict themselves even though at their cores, they are inherently the same. So, what is apathy ?

Apathy involves a lack of interest in different aspects of life, including normal daily tasks and social activities. It is often seen in varying degrees in healthy people, but it is also a symptom of a number of different mental health conditions including depression.

The origin of the term apathy comes from a form of the prefix “a” meaning “without”, and the Greek pathos meaning “emotion, feeling, suffering”. Thus, apathy was originally defined as freedom from suffering. During the 18th century, the meaning changed to “a sense of being without emotion or feeling indifference, especially to matters that are important or appealing”.

Apathy is characterised by feelings of indifference and lack of emotion. The term is often used to describe a lack of caring or concern, but in mental health contexts, this loss of interest in different aspects of life events is often a sign of a condition. There are different types of apathy consisting of:

Emotional apathy - Characterised by a lack of both positive and negative emotions

Behavioural apathy - Characterised by a lack of self-initiated behaviours

General apathy - Characterised by less motivation, poor emotional responses, and lack of social engagement

Research suggests that apathy and anhedonia (lack of pleasure) are closely linked, with people experiencing higher levels of apathy also reporting more anhedonia.

Two other forms of apathy that people may experience are:

Bystander apathy - This is related to the bystander effect, a phenomenon in which people witness someone else in need of help, but do nothing to intervene or offer assistance. There are many reasons why people may not take action in these situations, including indifference or apathy to the other person's plight.

Compassion fatigue - Sometimes people care initially, but become overwhelmed or physically and emotionally exhausted. This leads to a decreased ability to feel compassion or empathy for others.

When it comes to Shuu, I believe his apathy has formed over time. I’ve implied this through his regiment as a child; given the fact he is the eldest son and therefore the heir, it’s no doubt going to put pressure on both Shuu and Beatrix to succeed in that - often having Shuu cooped up in the castle spending his time studying - much like Ayato - and just like Ayato, they’d both rather not be suffocated in strict demands by their mothers, and would rather venture and explore their surroundings. By Shuu garnering the vast majority of his mother’s attention and dealing with the copious amounts of stress in regards to his education, he’s naturally going to feel overwhelmed by that, and possibly view his mother’s aspirations for him as overbearing. This leads us to compassion fatigue, at first, Shuu would’ve cared about what his birth right entails but over time, that would have started to wear him down, exhaust him due to the importance of the role he needs to fill; by becoming exhausted, Shuu may have grown to care less and less and his motivation to succeed the family may have decreased alongside it. He no longer had motivation because he constantly felt drained - not to mention, he wasn’t permitted to leave the castle, and so he’s going to feel even less motivated to succeed....he felt trapped by his place in the family - it’s really no wonder why he wanted to escape so badly.

Beatrix: Shuu, are you making selfish requests again?

Shuu: Mother.

Beatrix: You are Father’s precious heir. You do not need to see the filth of the outside world.

Everything you need has been provided inside the castle. …You mustn’t trouble your wet nurse and the others.

Shuu: Yes…

*TIMESKIP*

Shuu runs through the forest

Shuu: Haah….Haah…!

Phew…~ I’ve come quite far from the castle.

I’ve come this far, so I doubt granny and gramps will be able to find it.

If they find out I went out by myself…Will I get scolded?

But just a little bit of venturing should be…

I quite like this flashback section in Shuu’s route as it displays him running away from his responsibilities (a common theme in Shuu’s character), he wants some piece of mind without drowning in everyone’s demands, and the fact that Beatrix openly frowns upon what Shuu wants - to explore outside - and chooses to look upon that as selfish allows the audience to sympathise with his character and somewhat understand why he’s developed such a lack of care towards everything and everyone.  

Beatrix pushed Shuu to his limits more than the other sons; he was forced to become the best by his mother so she would win Karlheinz's favour against Cordelia. This led to Reiji being neglected and quite obviously harbouring feelings of hate and resentment towards that. Throughout all the commotion and harshness, it resulted in Shuu running away from home. While running away, Shuu met Edgar and became the best of friends, often playing together. However this happiness did not last long enough; in an attempt to impress his mother and gain her fleeting attention, Reiji destroyed Edgar's village, resulting in Edgar's ‘death’. Naturally, Shuu began to blame himself for what happened and soon lost interest in everything; thus his apathy came to the forefront.

They paradox each other because they each cause one another pain in their differences, one was neglected for a large portion of their life and tried everything in their path to garner that attention - and going to extreme lengths to do so - and became bitter, controlling and manipulative; one lost the one friend who cared for him and treated him as a person in order to escape his overbearing home-life and became depressed and apathetic. Reiji wanted what Shuu had and Shuu wanted what Reiji had, and the irony of that realisation is honestly quite devastating. The difference between the two at that point in time, is that Shuu tried to wade through his circumstance whereas Reiji let his perfectionism, envy and malice grow, choosing to take his frustration out on Shuu.

Shuu: Edgar! You can’t! Don’t go!

Edgar: Shuu, you should head back home already. Don’t you dare follow after me!

Shuu: Wait, you can’t! You’ll die!!

Edgar: I’ll be okay…See you later…Let’s play in the forest again.

Edgar runs towards the fire

Shuu: Edgar…!!!

Why…Why did you go…!

Humans will die instantly if they get swallowed by such strong flames…!

Edgar…Come back…Please come back…

Reiji arrives to the scene

Reiji: …Wah, such impressive flames.

Shuu: Reiji…? Why are you here…

Reiji: That doesn’t concern you, does it?

More importantly, your friend sure is a little fool. He just jumped right into the fire.

Shuu: Wha…Do you intend to ridicule Edgar!?

Reiji: No, not at all~ You are the only one I’m blaming…Shuu.

Shuu: Eh…?

Reiji: You are unbefitting of succeeding the throne.

You can’t do a single thing, so you should just spend your time in the very back of the castle, wasting your days away like a mute flower that can only sit there and breathe.

Ah…However, putting it that way might be insulting to the flowers.

Shuu: Wha…!?

Reiji: Aah, if I stay here, the smell will get in my hair.

I’ll return to the castle. I’m sure gramps will come and drag you back soon enough.

Fufu…You…Good-for-nothing.

Reiji walks away

Shuu: I’m a…good-for-nothing…?

The fire grows stronger

Shuu: Ah…No good…It can’t be stopped no more…

Am I…A good-for-nothing…? Hey…Edgar…

From what I can recall, this is the first instance where Reiji calls Shuu “good-for-nothing”, which is pretty significant within the timeline of events. Shuu’s basically just lost everything dear to him and the first thing Reiji does is chastise and mock him - clearly this is out of jealousy and resentment, he wants Shuu to hurt like he does - and once Reiji lets his famous nickname out, Shuu buys into that...he’s lost his friend, was too scared to do something and his brother has just called him useless - he’s going to believe him, because he feels responsible for it.

Looking through Shuu’s route, we gain a clear perspective of how utterly horrible Reiji can be. In that flashback it’s heavily implied that Shuu is distraught, and is Reiji concerned for his brother ? No, he shows no ounce of care, opting to fixate on the smell of his hair instead...and in his brother’s bereavement, declares “You can’t do a single thing, so you should just spent your time in the very back of the castle, wasting your days away like a mute flower that can only sit there and breathe”. It reinforces Reiji’s bitterness and how his hate and envy has taken the limelight in his head. What’s truly sad about this interaction, is that Shuu follows suit with what Reiji said - once he’s older all he does is sleep. He lazes around the house, earbuds in and music drowning everything out, he barely speaks, and stays out of the way...sleeping on the floor, sofas, and even outside, which is exactly how Reiji wishes him to be here, not seen nor heard because he’s jealous that Shuu’s seen by his mother and he’s not. The fact that Shuu even question’s Reiji’s lecture by posing the interrogative, “Am I…A good-for-nothing…? Hey…Edgar…” could imply that he feels so exhausted by everything that maybe he does feel useless, and that he does feel worthless because he couldn’t even save his friend; this could be implied when he calls out to Edgar, as though the weight of the situation hasn’t quite dawned on him yet, and neither has the depression yet to follow.

As common as depression is, it still eludes complete understanding. The trigger for depression can be almost any negative experience or hardship. Triggers can be external, such as losing someone, or they can be internal and invisible, such as brooding over the most common of experiences, a failed relationship. People differ in their susceptibility, both by virtue of their biological heritage, their parenting heritage, their styles of thinking, the coping skills they acquire or deliberately cultivate, and the degree to which situations afford them the ability to control their fate. Depression can often be implied to be most associated with the number of stressors experienced in life, and the effect is cumulative - the more stresses that accrue over time, the greater the likelihood of becoming depressed. The loss of an important relationship by death or divorce is experienced by most people as a major stress requiring significant adjustment. Loneliness is both a physical and emotional stressor, and in the absence of a wide array of coping skills, even minor bumps on life’s journey can become significant stressors.

Brooding over mistakes or unpleasant experiences, jumping to catastrophic conclusions from one or two setbacks, overgeneralizing from limited evidence - all are errors of thinking, or cognitive distortions, strongly linked to depression. Such thinking mires the brain in negativity and, if unchecked, breed self-doubt and hopelessness. Research documents that there is a strong relationship between adverse experiences in childhood - such as verbal or physical abuse or household dysfunction caused by a mentally ill parent - and the lifetime risk of depression. Studies show that verbal abuse more than doubles the lifetime risk of depression. Adverse experiences are a significant source of stress. But whether they summon resources for successful coping or lead to despair depends in part on the situation and in part on the person. A child facing verbally or physically abusive treatment at home or school who has no means of escaping continuing injury is at an elevated risk for developing depression. Situations may not be subject to change - but attitudes, interpretation, and meaning of experience are always under individual control and can confer resistance to depression and other disorders..

It can be inferred that Shuu suffers from depression after Edgar’s ‘death’, it’s natural to go through the stages of grief but when those feelings linger - which they do in Shuu’s case - it often leads to depression manifesting. The totality of Beatrix’s demands, Reiji’s animosity and the loss of Edgar would naturally wear Shuu’s mentality down, causing his apathy to grow stronger and his self-worth to shrink, and that’s how we’re faced with the Shuu we see now, the Shuu that Yui sees and the one Reiji still resents. And that’s the paradox, Shuu became what Reiji wanted, and in a sense, became what Reiji was...quiet and out of the way; Reiji became what Shuu was, studious, envious and to some degree, the head of the house - he takes care of everything -. They each want what the other has and that’s how they’re inherently the same, their contrast comes in the form of their behaviour and how they deal with the situations they were dealt with.

Now for the parallel. or how they’re more similar than what they display. I’d like to bring Reiji’s perfectionism back up for some more analysis as I feel it fits better within this portion of the analysis. What I’m referring to, is how perfectionism can link to depression just as much as grief and apathy can. Perfectionism is like an endless pit of negativity. Those in its grip don’t just hold high standards for themselves, they are perpetual self-critics, always judging themselves harshly. They focus on the very thing they want to avoid most - negative evaluation and failure. Perfectionism keeps people completely self-absorbed, always finding fault with themselves, a mindset that prevents them from taking on potentially-rewarding challenges. Even when perfectionists complete a task, they cannot enjoy a sense of achievement - such as when Reiji killed Beatrix -. Relentless concern with mistakes leads them to be haunted with uncertainty about their performance. The constant negative focus leads to a negatively distorted view of themselves, self-doubt, and feelings of inadequacy and worthlessness. Perfectionists are vulnerable to depression because their self-worth is contingent on fully achieving goals - a condition that, by definition, they can never meet. 

Now, am I saying that Reiji also has depression ? No, but I believe that this at least needs addressing - I’m not saying that he does suffer from it and I’m not saying that he doesn’t, I’m not entirely certain of either one but the possibility does need to be mentioned. Reiji is a raging perfectionist who deals with CEN and mild NPD; with that in mind, it can be implied that his self-worth and ego are substantially fragile - which could imply that he might suffer from depression but given the fact that we don’t see inside Reiji’s head, this possibility can’t be confirmed -, as we can sometimes see him lose his composure when confronted with failure, being wrong or having something be out of his control, such as the cave scene in Lunatic Parade. Reiji focusses on being ‘perfect’ in order to prove his worth to his father, and prove that he is the most capable to succeed within the family. Shuu, who was supposed to be the successor could care less about the importance of the family’s heritage; that’s how they paradox, how they parallel is through how they fail to move past their painful circumstances and choosing to let their rampant trauma simmer.

Learned helplessness is a state of mind in which people come to believe, often through experiences of childhood abuse or neglect, that they have no way of escaping difficult or painful circumstances and therefore exert no effort to change distressing situations even when it is possible to do so. The resulting passivity can keep people from taking any measures to avoid a problem or to help themselves when one arises, or to seek help from others, compounding their own suffering and precipitating such feelings as hopelessness that are the hallmarks of depression. Because the helplessness is learned, the belief that no action matters can be unlearned; part of the cure is also gaining a realistic understanding of what can and can’t be controlled in life. Reiji wants to control everything and Shuu wants to control nothing. Shuu within the contents of Haunted Dark Bridal is an apathetic self loathing man with symptoms of PTSD and depression, and has issues attaching himself to anything. He is borderline suicidal and doesn’t want the connection of love with anyone. He is afraid of hurting the people around him and he cares whether he causes it or not. He desperately wants a connection to hold onto to feel something other than emptiness and pain; and Reiji has a severe inferiority complex regarding his older brother. He was severely neglected by his mother and believes himself unworthy of being loved and maintains an intelligent, gentlemanly nature in order to help distance himself from the brother he despises. Both brothers want to be loved unconditionally, and though they both go about different ways of achieving that, their end goal is still the same - hence why they parallel -.

All-in-all, their relationship is very turbulent due to one not accepting the troubles of the other and vice versa - mainly Reiji but the point still stands - and instead of trying to work out their differences and focus on their similarities, they each choose to fester in their own crippling self-worth.

His Bond with The Other Brothers

This will primarily focus on the Prologue due to Reiji’s overall lack of brotherly interactions within the majority of his route. I’m choosing to section the Prologue and the Dinner Banquet Drama CD separately due to the Prologue also including Yui in their interactions, whereas the latter is just the brothers on their own, which could possibly hinder my analysis - hence why I’m separating the two.

Once Yui’s presence is made known to the brothers, their conversations tend to revolve around her rather than the brothers simply conversing with each other.

Kanato: Hey…Why is this girl here?

Laito: Isn’t she part of tonight’s meal?

Ayato: As if! Why don’t you use your imagination for that? This one’s already mine. I’m the one who found her first after all! Hehehe.

Reiji: ーー But you let her get scooped off your plate.

Ayato: Fuck off, Reiji! Don’t mention that!

Subaru: Heh. Lame.

Here we get to view Reiji’s more light-hearted sarcasm, rather than insults and condescension; the fact that it’s directed towards Ayato of all people - a character who can be implied to be his polar opposite - shows that he doesn’t naturally harbour any ill-will towards everyone and can almost ‘play along’ with their apparent traits, such as Ayato’s prolific narcissism and Laito’s perversion. Here we see Laito refer to Yui as a “part of tonight’s meal” - this can be taken both literally and metaphorically - as they do need to feed off Yui’s blood to sustain themselves, but in the context of both Ayato and Laito, the ‘feeding’ part can be taken in a more Freudian direction. However, instead of Reiji chastising the two of them - like how he usually does - he plays into the conversation by suggesting that Ayato “let her get scooped off [his] plate”; by him giving this type of response, it plays into both implications of Laito’s query, not only showing Reiji’s self-contradictory nature but also his hypocrisy. Reiji’s character poses as someone who thrives off of order and serenity, yet he actively instigates Ayato; this could imply that though he prefers to have tranquillity, he also can’t help but have to have the last say in something.

I also find it quite strange that although Ayato is Reiji’s opposite, they both seem to have quite a sarcastic rivalry between themselves. It’s light-hearted and lenient for the most part which is odd since Ayato prefers to cause a ruckus - which could be implied that he represents chaos -, and Reiji tends to pick up the pieces - which could be implied that he represents order, and their relationship to each other demonstrates the balanced yet tolerant dynamic of order and chaos since one cannot exist without the other - ; it’s not hate-filled like how his relationship with Shuu is, and I think that shows Reiji in a better light and somewhat proves to both Yui and the audience that he’s not always full of malice and can be quite tolerant towards the triplets and Subaru’s more reckless tendencies. 

Conversely, by implying that Reiji holds more tolerance towards his siblings, does not therefore mean that he has complete tolerance...I assure you, he does not.

Laito: Phew~ As short tempered as ever, huh? Hahaha.

Subaru: Shut up, you hormonal bastard! Just know that I don’t think of you as my older brother!

Kanato: …This pisses me off. If you don’t shut that foul mouth of yours, I’ll cut it up into pieces.

Subaru: Heh, I’d like to see you try with that stature of yours, shorty.

Kanato: …Teddy. Take a good look. He’s going to be our next target.

Reiji: For god’s sake… Can you people cut it out? No matter how calm and collected I may be, I’m starting to get irritated as well.

I don’t care what you do with this person…Or at least, that’s what I would like to say

I just can’t stand to watch my mischievous little brothers fight it out over you in front of my eyes.

First of all, please tell me loud and clear how you wandered inside of here.

When compared to Shuu, Reiji appears to be the more active party, however, when it comes to his other brothers, he appears to be quite passive, opting to cut in once the conversation has a breathing period. What I mean by that, is when the conversation stops for a second, when everyone catches their breath, that’s when Reiji interjects. He allows Subaru and the triplets to have their say before he ends the conversation entirely - which could be implied to display his ‘politeness’ and ‘gentlemanly’ nature, however, it’s to my belief that it shows his passivity moreover his façade. Furthermore, Reiji specifically uses the adjective “mischievous” to describe his brothers rather than call them “troublesome" or "irresponsible", as “mischievous” can be implied to be quite a playful word - further implying that he may not even view his brothers’ behaviour as ‘delinquent-like’ but more impish, like children playing a prank. However, this does not stop him from chastising them as he asks them to “cut it out”; even the fact that Reiji chooses to vocalise his displeasure through that phrase shows his lax behaviour, he’s not telling them to stop, but to simply “cut it out”, which is the lenient way of saying it - how a parent would say it, firm but not too strict -.

I do enjoy character interactions like this, especially from Reiji because it puts his entire character paradox on display. He doesn’t reprimand Ayato for his language, Kanato for his outbursts or Subaru for his destructive temper...yet he quite literally ‘whips Yui into shape’ for being late, the hypocrisy is crying out to us. I do enjoy how his passivity is presented within the Prologue, as though he just lets his brothers run rampant and he simply picks up the pieces; yet once we follow his route, we see him take complete control and his untreated trauma take a hold of the limelight. However, that’s not to say that he still does not show that passivity - he does -, such as when he lets Cordelia order him around, whip him, and insult him. On one hand he’s simply biding his time; on the other, he’s being passive - yet the two are intertwined since passivity is a form of adaptation, or maladaptation, in which the individual adopts a pattern of submissiveness, dependence, and retreats into inaction - .

Diabolik Lovers Drama CD: The Dinner Banquet by Moonlight

I wanted to mention this specific Drama CD in relation to Reiji’s character, moreover his mini Drama CD since it allows us to view his character in the company of his brothers, and his brothers alone in order to give us a more full perspective of their overall dynamic as siblings.

*Cling*

Reiji: Haah...I simply cannot get enough of the fragrance of this tea. During this short timespan given to me, I get to indulge in the highest of luxuries. At dawn, when everyone is falling asleep, enjoying a cup of tea by myself. A wonderful time just by myself. I even find myself wishing that the fools in this household would just never wake up again.

The door opens.

Shuu: ー Sorry to crush your dreams, but I’ll have to interrupt your ideal time.

Reiji: Hm? ...Tsk, Shuu. You truly do appear at the worst possible times. Hmph. Thanks to you, the best time and space changed to the worst time and space in the blink of an eye.

You usually do not wake up over the slightest thing, so what’s the matter?

Shuu: Hm...For some reason I couldn’t fall asleep. There’s this certain thing missing from my bed after all.

Reiji: ...’This certain thing?’

Right at the beginning of this CD, it’s pointed out to us that Reiji rarely gets his own time, he’s always busy with something and never really has any time to himself to relax - bringing us back to his perfectionism and how that can cause people to become restless until something has been ‘perfected’, leaving sparse amounts of time to simply sit back and enjoy your own company; yet that becomes interrupted, and Reiji’s sour mood returns.

It’s quite fitting that out of all the brothers, it’s Shuu who decides to deflate Reiji’s mood - if you’ve played or followed Shuu’s route, then you know that he’ll frequently do things to intentionally irritate Reiji, and I think that is exactly what he’s doing here. Shuu has a trivial problem, an inconvenience, and who does he annoy ? Reiji, and him being the way he is, voices his disdain for Shuu’s presence. What I find to be quite apt is how Shuu gives a vague hint to his problem and expects Reiji to know what it is. The reason I’ve said that it’s quite fitting of Shuu’s character to do this is because he does the same thing but with his emotions throughout his route - not only does he not elaborate on his inconvenience, but he purposefully makes Reiji question the circumstance; and we all know that Reiji despises not understanding things. To link back to a prior section, notice how Reiji only vocalises his displeasure, he doesn’t physically remove Shuu at any point, implying that he may not hate Shuu as a person, but he doesn’t condone his behaviour. Shuu catches Reiji’s attention and then promptly cuts him off, annoying him. Furthermore, notice how Reiji was the first person Shuu went to, yes Reiji is the most mature, but Shuu still went to him to fix his problem; that could imply that in this scenario, Reiji acts as the ‘caretaker’, the mature figurehead who deals with everything from financial affairs to personal problems - this further shows his need to succeed at everything, and be ‘perfect’ -.

Shuu: Nn...I’m tired...Oh well, I’ll sleep.

He drops down on the couch.

Reiji: Ah...! Wait! Please do not sleep on the couch!

Shuu: Zzz...Zz...

Reiji: Ugh...You...Vampire version of Sleeping Beauty! Shuu! You’re in the way! If you fall asleep there, it’ll ruin my long-awaited tea time! You’re an eyesore, so please disappear from my sight!

Shuu: ...Hm? ー Zz...Zz...

Reiji: ...! Kuh...He won’t wake up. This guy really...!

Hm. Oh well, it’s fine. I suppose he wishes to be killed by me. I’ll grant your wish right now.

Reiji pulls out a blade.

Reiji: Fufufu...If that’s what you want, Using this silver knife I’ve spent days and nights sharpening, I’ll chop off your head in a single motion. This is your punishment for corrupting my wonderful space. You deserve to die while writhing in pain.

Shuu: Nn... (sleep-talking) I can’t...suck no more...Zz...

Reiji: Heh. Dream on for eternity, Sakamaki Shuu.

Notice how Reiji still keeps up his politeness, even when practically yelling at Shuu - it’s fairly easy to see how much Reiji resents his brother, and with that in mind, it’s a natural response to be quick to anger. Yet, with Reiji’s annoyance growing, you’d think that his form of speech would differ and grow more irascible in his wording. I find it quite apt for Reiji to call Shuu “Sleeping Beauty”, not only for the fact that he usually just sleeps all the time, but the fact that Aurora/Talia/Briar-Rose (depending on what source you’re reading from) was a princess within the fable...and given that Karlheinz is the current Vampire King, that would give Shuu a ‘princely’ status. To add onto this, just because I thought it was neat, in the Disney adaptation of the fable, Aurora only speaks 18 lines - which reminded me of how little Shuu tends to speak. There’s not much to analyse for that part but I thought I’d mention it since I thought it was quite apt of Reiji to draw this comparison.

Something that did strike me as strange, was how Reiji decided to draw his sharpened knife at this point in the narrative - if Reiji truly hated Shuu (which I don’t think he does) why wait until now to attempt his murder ? In all honesty, I don’t think Reiji would’ve actually killed Shuu; in my opinion, I think it was more of a ploy to wake Shuu up - put him on high alert - and get him to leave the room. It’s in a vampire’s nature to have higher senses, so one should be able to detect another and or possible danger and it can be implied that Reiji was attempting to use those senses to his advantage in order to get Shuu to leave of his own accord. Additionally, how Reiji claims, “This is your punishment for corrupting my wonderful space. You deserve to die while writhing in pain” could be inferred to refer not only to Reiji’s current dilemma - his “wonderful space” being his time to himself without being interrupted, being surrounded by his own company and relishing in the sparseness of their occurrence; since Shuu has interrupted that, it has therefore become corrupt - however, it could also relate back to Reiji’s childhood and his CEN. It could be implied that if Shuu had been different, Reiji’s childhood might have been different too, but due to that not occurring, Reiji’s once ‘pure’ childhood has now been tarnished and 'corrupted' - pure in the sense that as an infant he would’ve received the care he needed, yet due to Shuu’s importance, that pure, ‘motherly’ care and acknowledgement was lost, and his once “wonderful space” was then only full of loathing and solitude; to me, that makes sense as to why Reiji says “You deserve to die writhing in pain”. Overall, this inference might be considered a long shot, however, it did pique my interest and I thought I’d share it.  

Approaching footsteps can be heard in the distance.

Ayato: ...Aaah!!

Kanato: Trying to kill him in his sleep...What a boring way to murder someone.

Laito: Nfu~ Are we interrupting something, perhaps?

Ayato: Oi!! Don’t try and kill him here, you idiot! Take that kind of stuff outside! You’re in the way!

Reiji: Why are you three here? Did you not say you’d be going to bed and headed to your rooms earlier?

Ayato: Ah, yeah, we did say something like that! But you see, I’m hungry so I just couldn’t fall asleep.

Laito: Nfu~ What were you trying to do while we were asleep, I wonder~?

Kanato: If you want to kill him, it’s the most fun when the other person is wide awake. You wouldn’t want to miss out on their suffering face, would you?

Ayato: Kanato, you really are messed up, huh?

Laito: Eeeh~? But you know, I can understand what Kanato is saying.

Kanato: Fufu...~

Reiji: Haah...

Shuu: (yawns) ...Shut up. Don’t make a fuss right next to the couch.

Laito: Oh dear? Have you awoken?

Shuu: Anyone would wake up if it’s that noisy...Che

Ayato: ...This is the living room, you know!? It doesn’t belong to you, so don’t go clicking your tongue like that! This is my turf!!

Laito: It doesn’t belong to you either, Ayato.

Ayato: Haah!? Every single thing in this house belongs to me!

In this section of the CD, we see Reiji take the passive role when faced with the triplets - which is evidently different from how he is with Yui, or Shuu for that matter - and this could possibly be due to their vast differences. It is to my interpretation that compared to Reiji, Shuu and Subaru, the triplets are rather unhinged and far more bombastic in their whims, desires and means of keeping control - more so Ayato and Kanato moreover Laito since he’s easier to negotiate with -. In addition to this, Reiji’s lack of dialogue in this part could imply back to his passive behaviour compared to the three, as well as present their character differences; and they also tend to listen more to Shuu over Reiji, which would no doubt cause friction, and could potentially link to why Reiji’s presented as passive towards the triplets - there wouldn’t be much point in trying to control their behaviour if they never planned on listening to Reiji in the first place -.

Kanato: Ah...I’m so...terribly hungry...

Ayato: Haah?

Kanato: I...I... *sniff* This whole time...

Ayato: ...Oh fuck.

Reiji: Hm? Kanato, what’s the matter?

Kanato: I’M TELLING YOU I’M HUNGRY, AM I NOT!? I’ve been telling you OVER AND OVER with the look in my eyes! What’s your problem!? Don’t make fun of me!!

Laito: Aha~! He snapped!

Kanato: You see, when I get hungry...I completely lose control...I just get so incredibly angry, I can’t help it!

*THUD*

Shuu: Aah...Noisy...

Ayato: Calm down already! If you throw a tantrum like that, you’ll only get even more hungry!

Kanato: Shut up!!

*THUD*

Kanato: As if you would understand how I feel!?

Ayato: ...!? Fuck, this pisses me off! Oi, Reiji! This is your responsibility!

Reiji: Haah? I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t spout such nonsense. For starters, if you guys had just minded your own business...

I quite like this interaction between Reiji and Ayato here from the declarative “Oi, Reiji! This is your responsibility!“, it not only paints Ayato as a bit of a brat, but it also implements the theme that Reiji is the ‘caretaker’ among the brothers - he cooks, he cleans, he makes sure everyone is okay; more so Kanato, but that’s for an obvious reason. There’s also the implication that the triplets view Reiji as more of a ‘paternal figure’ since their actual father is absent from the majority of their lives, and due to Reiji’s strict and stiff personality, he would naturally be considered as the ‘responsible’ member of the household; hence why Ayato is quick to pass the responsibility of his brother’s hunger onto him - it reminds me of how a child would complain to their parent and then expect them to fix their problem -.

I’d also like to mention the use of aposiopesis, the ellipsis at the end of Reiji’s sentence implying that his dialogue is trailing off or ‘breaking’ and is left unfinished. For instance, it could imply that as he’s talking, he’s had the realisation that the triplets wouldn’t have listened to him anyway, but it could also represent his passiveness in the situation. He was on the verge of ‘killing’ Shuu and now he’s allowing his siblings to run rampant around the living room and declare him to fix Kanato’s problem...that doesn’t seem like the authoritative figure we follow through his route with Yui and I think Reiji’s purposely taking the back seat, and his unfinished sentence could be implied to demonstrate that. From my interpretation, it seems that Reiji’s initial thought process is to simply ‘stick it out’ until the triplets leave, and he can once again attempt to have his moment of relaxation.

Kanato: Uu... *sniff* Anything will do...Anything...Just...FILL MY BELLY!!

*THUD*

Laito: Nfu~

Shuu: Aah...What a pain.

Reiji: ...I understand. I understand so please calm down! I will make you a homemade meal. ESPECIALLY for you guys’ sake, I will do that.

Shuu: It isn’t really special or anything. You’ve always been the one in charge of cooking.

Reiji: Shuu!!

Laito: Nfu~ Either way, we don’t want Kanato to cry and complain any longer, so please get right to cooking~

Reiji: Good grief... (mumbles) Why do I have to do all of this...One day, I’ll kill these guys for sure...

Kanato: Did you say something!?

It’s evident to see that compared to all the brothers, Reiji often goes overlooked or simply does not hold more of a notable presence; and I think scenes like this display that quite well. Phrases such as “I understand. I understand so please calm down! I will make you a homemade meal. ESPECIALLY for you guys’ sake, I will do that” portray Reiji as a character who tries to conform, reason and reassure the situation at hand; the fact that he repeats the verb phrase “I understand” implies that he’s opting to reason with Kanato’s demands and let him know that the problem will be addressed and sorted. By following Reiji’s route, we understand that he’s a character who abhors unnecessary drama and complaints; therefore, he’s attempting to solve the problem quickly and avoid any possible tantrums from Kanato’s end.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: Here you go, now there’s nothing to complain about, is there?

He drops the plate on the table.

Laito: Nfu~ So violent! The pudding you took your time making will become a mess!

Reiji: Even if it looks bad, as long as your stomach gets filled, it shouldn’t be a problem, right?

Ayato: ...Are you happy now, Kanato?

Kanato: ...Pudding! Sparkling...Pudding!!

Reiji: I present to you, Sakamaki Reiji’s special iron-packed pudding, topped with raspberry sauce.

Kanato: *munch much* Mm...~

Reiji: Hey! At least give your impressions first! Like ‘it looks good’, or ‘thank you’ to express your gratitude!

Kanato: Haahn...*munch munch*

Reiji: ...The cold shoulder!?

The notion that Reiji drops the plate on the table alongside his remark presents a passive-aggressive tone, which I think is quite fitting since he likes to display a more ‘gentlemanly’ façade - he’s obliged to Kanato’s whims even though he didn’t want to; passive-aggressiveness naturally comes hand-in-hand with that sort of behaviour, that sort of passive behaviour. Additionally, Laito’s remark of “so violent” could imply that he doesn’t take Reiji’s sour mood too seriously and opts to play off of it - it can be further implied that none of the triplets take Reiji’s efforts seriously at all. This inference can be found when Kanato gorges the pudding without uttering a word, which causes Reiji to grow more irritated since he feels like he’s entitled to an utterance of praise to “express your [Kanato’s] gratitude “. It not only displays Reiji’s passiveness to ‘give in’ to Kanato’s anger, but it also displays his incessant need for praise, acknowledgement and attention from others - which we can clearly see throughout his route, as it stemmed from his childhood and CEN -. It also explains why Reiji becomes quite expressive when given “the cold shoulder!?” by Kanato.

Ayato: Haah...Oh well, he calmed down so whatever? By the way, Reiji, isn’t there any for us? Aah!?

Reiji: ...Why would I have to cook for you guys as well?

Shuu: ...I’m hungry.

Ayato: Exactly, hungry!

Laito: Right~? We’re totally starved!

Reiji: I do not care! Why not cook for yourself?

I find it quite humorous that Ayato expects for there to be food for him and the others, it not only shows his entitlement, but also his treatment of Reiji - the caretaker, the figurehead, the paternal figure, the butler -. It’s at this moment that Reiji shows his more authoritative side towards the brothers and attempts to cut their interaction short - evidently it doesn’t work, but it shows how the other brothers are willing to take advantage of Reiji’s efforts in order to sate their own needs. It both displays the brothers’ selfishness, but also Reiji’s lack of presence - which could imply why he’s as brutal and manipulative as he is throughout the entirety of his route -.

Ayato: If we were allowed to, we would...But are you sure? If we were to cook, who knows what will happen to the kitchen...

Laito: Right? Weren’t you the one who lashed out at us for using the kitchen the other day?

Shuu: Ah...That was...Because you guys made the whole thing explode, right?

Ayato: It wasn’t an explosion! We were only cooking!

Reiji: Would the kitchen really explode from just cooking? ...It can’t be helped. I’ll make an exception and make something for you guys as well.

Shuu: Try and make it as quick as possible, okay?

Reiji: ...! For some reason I just don’t feel satisfied... Oh well, I suppose it’s fine. I will make you something.

Kanato: ...I’m looking forward to it.

Reiji: You’re still planning on eating more!?

Here we see both Ayato and Laito display their slyness, a little bit of reverse-psychology in order to get their way - to eat without cooking -. I find it quite fitting that Shuu also plays into this, not only due to his apathy and laziness, but also because he knows that it’ll irritate Reiji; in turn, their ploy works, Reiji questions himself, something that he does internally quite frequently, showing his more doubtful side, and gives in to their demands. Interactions such as this show how the brothers tend to treat Reiji as a servant of sorts - and can explain why Reiji treats Yui as such, he’s treating her how he himself is treated. It’s both sad and ironic. However, Shuu’s quick remark of “Try and make it as quick as possible, okay?” not only shows his gall, but his ungratefulness towards Reiji, and how far he’s willing to go in order to annoy him; and Reiji’s reluctant to that, he yet again gives in and becomes passive, this can be seen through the phrase “it’s fine”. It’s a phrase we all use when we yield or back down from something, even if we’re not fine with it; it presents our own passivity towards something that may cause conflict. I also wanted to bring attention to Kanato’s dialogue here, as it again presents the brothers’ entitlement, and how they each expect Reiji to rally round each and every one of their problems or inconveniences - but also, the exchange is quite funny to me -.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: Now you can’t complain.

He drops the plates on the table again.

Laito: Nfu~ What a brute. There’s no reason to slam them down like that.

Ayato: Woah!! Despite everything, in the end Reiji’s a good guy! He made all of our favourite dishes! I’m digging iiin~ *munch munch*

Delicious, this Takoyaki!!

Laito: These macaroons as well...They’re sublime~ Almost as if they’re straight from a famous store in Paris. Nfu~

Shuu: *munch munch* The steak’s good...

Reiji: ...!!! Unconsciously...I ended up...making everyone’s favourite dish...I almost seem like you guys’ mother at this point! Damnit!

He slams his fist against the table.

Reiji: ...I can’t forgive myself.

Again, we see Reiji’s passive-aggressiveness through his mannerisms, for which Laito states “What a brute”. The phrase itself holds no deeper meaning in the context and is mainly used to display Laito’s ‘playful’ personality and mockery towards Reiji. Additionally, the praise that Reiji lacked from Kanato earlier is made up for here by Ayato, Laito and Shuu as they each state that: “The steak’s good”, “They’re [the macaroons] sublime” and “Despite everything, in the end Reiji’s a good guy”. I wanted to bring attention to the third comment - made by Ayato - as I find it quite significant towards Reiji’s character. It can not only be used in the context that he’s gone out of his way to please the others and their ravenous stomachs, but it could also relate to his route in general - throughout Reiji’s route he (at first) treats Yui quite poorly yet, when the time calls for it, he’s also there for her; he’s got Yui’s back when all else fails is what I’m trying to say. That despite everything, Reiji does care for Yui, it’s just in his own messed up way.

Furthermore, I find the notion that Reiji subconsciously cooked their favourite meals to be quite telling - implying that as much as he claims to hate his brothers, he’s still meticulous in their preferences; inadvertently showing that he does, in retrospect, care for them. The added factor that Reiji seems to despise the fact that he’s catered to everyone’s favourite dish, and can’t forgive himself for it could imply that to some degree, Reiji views himself as a ‘bad’ person - or that he likes to think that he’s a bad person in order for him to make sense of his childhood; again bringing us back to his CEN and the belief that a child has to be ‘wrong’ in some way for their parents to not love them, and with that in mind, it therefore makes a little more sense as to why Reiji becomes frustrated with himself after this situation.

Footsteps approach

Subaru: ...Oi!!

*THUD*

Reiji: ...! That startled me! ...Subaru?

Subaru: Che...Makin’ a fuss down here...You’re all far too loud, I can’t sleep!!

Reiji: Aah...My apologies for the inconvenience. However, it should be resolved now. Their bellies have been filled, so they should soon...

Subaru: Oi, make something for me as well.

Reiji: Haah...?

Subaru: ‘Cause of these guys I woke up and when I came downstairs, the air was filled with nothing but delicious smells. Now I’m hungry as well.

Ayato: *munch munch* Aah? If you snack at night, you’ll get fat!

Reiji: Speak for yourself!

Subaru: ...Che! Hurry up! I’m starved!

Reiji: Heh. I refuse. I’ve been cooking non-stop since earlier, and I do not wish to return to the kitchen over and over again.

Subaru: Haaah...!?

Reiji: Seeing you sulk that much makes me uncomfortable too, if you are dissatisfied, why don’t you...

*CRASH SHATTER*

Reiji: ...!?

Laito: Ah-aaah~ Look at that hole in the cupboard. Now we get a nice view of the moon.

The added appearance of Subaru to this scene allows us to view Reiji from different perspectives and scenarios. Subaru also desires food and Reiji puts his foot down and denies - showing assertiveness towards his sibling - and from that, Subaru begins to destroy the house - throwing a makeshift tantrum if you will -. It could infer that if either the triplets or Subaru don’t get their own way, they’ll resort to violence, which would no doubt cause Reiji an unending amount of hassle; it links back to the point I made previously, that Reiji is treated as some form of servant by his brothers, and in order to avoid a large scale conflict, he must oblige and become passive (to a degree, he still remains his usual snarky self). It could be implied that when Subaru creates a hole in the cupboard, it’s as if to say “don’t test me”, and we all know that Reiji is a man who prefers to avoid unnecessary risks, and so, he becomes complaisant. It’s a good tactic on Subaru’s end, yet form Reiji’s perspective, it shows his lack of assertiveness towards his brothers, and how he allows himself to be pushed around by them - which obviously allows all that negativity to bubble and fester for him to later take out on Yui -.

Shuu: Nn...It’s cold...

Subaru: Oi...Shall I do more? Aaah!?

Reiji: Haah...

Subaru: I don’t mind wrecking every single wall in this damn place.

Ayato: Oi, oi, cut us some slack. It’ll become something even worse than a haunted house.

Shuu: Father will go on a rampage so cut it out. This is a pain.

Reiji: ...!! Father will!? That’s...You leave me with no other choice, I understand. I’ll make you something.

Subaru takes a seat.

Subaru: Make it quick, got it?

Reiji: Just sit still there and prepare yourself!

Laito: Nfu~ He may be complaining, but he sure looks after us well.

Reiji: Laito! Did you say something just now?

Laito: Noo~ Nothing at all. Nfu~

Once Reiji realises that their “Father will go on a rampage”  if any more damage is done, he’s quick to null Subaru’s behaviour. We know that out of all six brothers, Reiji is the only one to value his father’s opinion and presence - I’ve mentioned why earlier on during the childhood section, but it again links back to his CEN and need for approval. Reiji wants to prove that he’s capable and successful to his father so that he may receive the love he lost out on, he wants to be acknowledged by him and prove he’s worthy enough to be loved. 

I also like how not only Ayato calls out Reiji’s ‘soft spot’, but Laito also points it out too, and - in typical Reiji fashion - Reiji’s quick to dismiss the statement by goading Laito to repeat his phrase, which Laito promptly denies. It links back to the point I made of it earlier, that Reiji doesn’t want to think of himself as a ‘good’ person, this could be due to a multitude of things such as his upbringing, race, resentment of Shuu, the fact he had his own mother killed, his treatment of Yui etc. However, in my opinion, it could also be implied that Reiji doesn’t want to believe that he’s a ‘good’ person because that could allow his brothers to take advantage of him further; that his ‘politeness’ could be his downfall and no one would take him seriously or see him as a threat - especially in regards to Yui -.

*TIMESKIP*

Reiji: This is the last dish for the night, got it!?

*THUD*

Subaru: ...Haah!? What’s up with that attitude!? ...By the way, what’s this?

Reiji: Hmph. You’re always saying how you don’t have a favourite meal, so I made this from the leftovers.

Ayato: Aah? What’s this? Pasta?

Laito: It’s Reiji’s favourite Carbonara, right?

Reiji: Heh. Despite complaining about being hungry earlier, in the end, you have a small appetite. Since I assumed you wouldn’t have much, I figured it would be best to make my own favourite meal, so I could eat it afterwards.

Subaru: Che...Fuck. You made me this sloppy, slimy dish...

Reiji: Exactly. That’s why it might be wise for you to pass up o...

Subaru starts wolfing down the pasta.

The more this scene continues, the more apparent Reiji’s passive-aggressiveness shows; the irony of Subaru asking what Reiji’s problem is, is honestly brilliant. It really shows how out of touch each brother is with one another. I also quite like how Reiji just assumes that Subaru won’t eat the meal and it backfires exponentially - it demonstrates that Reiji not only underestimates Yui but also his brothers; yes, it also shows his manipulation since he more or less goads Subaru into not eating the Carbonara since it’s Reiji’s favourite dish, again linking back to Reiji’s reverse-psychology and anti-conformity tactics.

Subaru: *munch munch* Mm...

Reiji: You’re actually eating it!?

Kanato: Smells nice...Let me have a little too.

Subaru: (talking with his mouth full) Just go ‘head and take some...

Kanato: Okay. Thank you very much. Bon appetite.

Reiji: Hold up! My share! Make sure to leave some for me too!

Subaru: Haah? As if I care...

*Sluuuurp*

Reiji: Aaaah! Scarfing it down like that...! I made a larger portion so at least leave some behind!

Kanato: Thank you for the meal~

Ayato: Woah! They ate it all in one go!

Reiji: ...You’ve got to be kidding me!? That amount...By just the two of them, all at once...

By having Subaru eat the dish, and Reiji consequently being surprised by that, it presents the implication that Reiji’s intellect and ego can sometimes precede him and thus demonstrates his overconfidence. He’s overconfident in himself to always be right, but he also underestimates everyone else around him to play into his tactics. I also enjoy how Kanato also digs in too, it not only shows both Subaru and Kanato getting along for once, but I just find it funny how someone as petite as Kanato is eating so much; it’s also amusing how they both disregard the fact that Reiji made the dish for himself and yet by the end of it, he’s the only one who’s not eaten. Reiji’s dialogue of “Hold up! My share! Make sure to leave some for me too!” could be interpreted as a plea, he’s almost begging for his two siblings to leave him some of his own dish; the ellipsis during the statement, “...You’ve got to be kidding me!? That amount...By just the two of them, all at once...” sells his disbelief at the prospect of the situation he’s just caused himself. I like to think that this shows how his usual cocky behaviour can, at times, backfire. It shows that he’s not as perfect as he likes to think he is and that assumptions can do more harm than good.

Subaru: ...Phew~ It didn’t taste bad.

Reiji: Ugh...Why did you not leave my share behind? Today’s carbonara turned out excellent as well!

Subaru: You made it for me, so I get to decide what to do with it. Stop complainin’...!

Reiji clenches his fists.

Bearing that in mind, we again see Reiji become a little more assertive towards his sibling yet he quickly becomes passive once more. We see this through Subaru’s retort, and again shows how Reiji’s usage of words can backfire; therefore, that then gives him no logical argument to present to Subaru, and so, he clenches his fists. Reiji’s body language within this section is telling of both his passiveness and also his anger, it can be implied that clenching your fists is the result of pent up anger and frustration; with that in mind, this can therefore link back to Reiji and his ‘control issues’ - his perfectionism, his narcissism and his need to monopolise everything -. I particularly enjoy how Subaru calls Reiji out on this by telling him to “Stop complainin’...!”. The declarative itself presents Subaru as a reckless character, but as someone who has more presence than Reiji; it also presents the difference between Reiji and Shuu compared to their respective siblings - both Shuu and Reiji are a lot quieter and reserved in their ways, whereas Subaru and the triplets are vocal, disruptive and reckless in their behaviour. However, this section could also imply that Reiji knows when to hold his tongue so that conflict does not break out on his end, it can be implied that he clearly wants to argue back against Subaru due to his clenched fists (showing his irritation) yet, he holds back. He holds back because as we know, Subaru’s temper and sheer strength can often be a loose cannon, and I don’t believe Reiji would challenge that; hence why his fists are clenched - he’s ‘biting his tongue’ so to speak -.

Reiji: Kuh...

Laito: Aah~ My belly’s filled and we get such a nice view of the moon from here.

Ayato: Yeah! I finally feel satisfied!

Shuu: I feel you.

Reiji: Ah...That’s right! All of you were finally able to fill your empty stomachs, weren’t you? All because of me! That being said, hurry up and...

Laito: Nn...

Ayato: I’ve gotten sleepy... *yawns*

Shuu: Zz...

Kanato: Good niiiiight~

Reiji: Hold up! Will you all be sleeping here!? I was just about to pour myself a cup of tea to lift my mood! Return to your rooms at this instant!

Ayato: ...That’s a pain. Who cares if we sleep here?

Reiji’s frustration becomes more and more apparent as the CD continues and this section displays that, especially through his need for recognition, “All because of me!”. This exclamative demonstrates both his aggression and his thirst for acknowledgement - he wants thanks for his aid -. The personal pronoun “me” can be implied to present Reiji’s self-importance, as he’s stating that his siblings’ stomachs would still be in ‘peril’ if he hadn’t been ‘generous’ enough to provide what they wanted; yet again, he and his remarks are completely and utterly ignored, it demonstrates that his brothers don’t take him seriously and that he’s just the ‘parental’ figure, he’s the butler to them. When you see Reiji’s treatment from the other brothers, it becomes easier to understand why he’s the way he is with Yui, especially his need for reassurance and praise.

Reiji’s demands are again ignored; each line he speaks at the end of this section is an exclamative, he’s quite literally shouting at them and he goes disregarded - as the CD continues his mood decreases and decreases until he more or less gives up and gives in to his brothers’ anarchy. I’d like to link this back to Reiji’s relationship to Yui, much like how over time Reiji wears Yui down into becoming more or less subservient to his whims and desires, here we see almost the same thing - their situations parallel each other - as all the brothers exhaust Reiji and wear him down until he inevitable gives them what they want. It all inadvertently links back to Reiji wanting to cause others the same pain and struggles he feels and this circumstance is no difference; if anything, it displays it to a bigger extent.

Laito: *yawn* Napping in the light of the moon...is another one of my ways to have fun. Nn...I’m sleepy...

Reiji: Don’t actually fall asleep!

Kanato: Uu...*sniff* I’m tired but...You’re being noisy...

Reiji: ...! What is you guys’ problem!?

Subaru: My thoughts exactly! Getting sleepy after eating...You’re all Vampires, aren’t ya!? This is the pinnacle of laziness.

Reiji: Exactly...Indulging in human food and then falling right asleep...Heh! This is unbelievable.

Subaru: As a Vampire...It has to be ‘that’, or I just can’t feel satisfied. Isn’t that true?

Reiji: You’re right.

Reiji licks his lips.

Reiji: In the end...Nothing beats drinking the blood from a fair lady’s neck. Otherwise, our hunger and thirst can simply not be quenched.

Subaru: Heh, so simple-minded.

Reiji: What?

Within this section Reiji’s mood changes rather quickly from Subaru’s remark at his brothers’ laziness, and then it reverts back to his usual sour mood. What I wanted to bring attention to here is how Reiji’s mood lifts when someone is in accordance with him, they have either similar or the same views as him; it relates back to Reiji’s need for approval and reassurance, and for a brief moment, Subaru allows him to indulge in that which therefore lifts his mood.

I do find it quite humorous how Subaru calls Reiji of all people “simple-minded”. It could imply back to Reiji’s lack of presence, he doesn’t stick out all that much compared to the others; therefore he could be viewed as bland by both his brothers and us as the audience, so by Reiji declaring that drinking from the neck is best, it wouldn’t stick out all that much - it’s the typical place to bite within most Vampiric fiction -. With this statement from Reiji alongside his more passive presence, “simple” would be the first word to come to mind - if you weren’t aware of the complexities of Reiji’s character, or, from the brothers’ perspective, the inner struggles and complexities of Reiji behind closed doors, it’d be natural to label him as “simple”. With this implication in mind, it could be seen as quite a meta joke from our perspective.

Subaru: Drinking from the neck is too orthodox, it’s boring. Besides, the taste of the blood is too rich, it’s not my cup of tea.

Reiji: ...Is that your way of indirectly ridiculing me?

Subaru: I just meant to say that an old geezer’s tastes are different from mine.

Reiji: O-Old geezer...!? There isn’t that large of an age gap between us!

Subaru: Hah! Then at least your appearance is that of an old geezer! You’re barely any different from our old man. ...When it comes to blood, you see, it’s best when sucked from a woman’s ankle. When you bite her there, you get a perfect view of how she tries to reject you with her entire body.

Shuu: Heh...Hehehe...

Reiji: Shuu! Weren’t you asleep?

Shuu: No, Subaru’s childish lecture on blood-sucking was simply too hilarious...I couldn’t help myself.

Subaru: Haah!? Child, you say!?

Shuu: If you’re going to call Reiji an old man, then so am I, right? In that case, you’re nothing but a brat. A child.

Subaru: ...Ugh.

It can be implied that when Reiji uses the interrogative, “Is that your way of indirectly ridiculing me?“ he’s not just asking if he’s wrong, he’s posing the question “are you mocking me ?”; therefore, ‘ask’ in this context could be implied to mean ‘demand’ instead - it all depends on how you yourself interpret the tone of this dialogue -. However, with Reiji’s character in mind, it could be inferred that he’s almost offended by Subaru’s comment, as if to say “are you saying what I’m doing is wrong ?” and we all know that Reiji loathes being wrong or seen as “simple-minded” as Subaru put it; Reiji’s a character who enjoys using his intelligence to overpower his prey and back them into a corner mentally - therefore, to have that pulled into question would most likely cause some form of offence to Reiji, he’s intelligent and he’s a man of tradition; I doubt he’d enjoy having that mocked. It also links us back to his ‘retraining’ of Yui, throughout Reiji’s route in HDB as Yui barely calls out Reiji’s behaviour and she never mocks him whereas the brothers do; most likely if Yui went against Reiji she’d be punished with something truly abhorrent. However, in other routes (I’ll pick Laito’s HDB route since it’s the closest to Reiji’s in terms of psychological abuse) she ‘bites’ back a lot more - such as when she quite literally bites Laito’s lip when he kisses her against he will...and what does Laito do ? He plays it off and treats Yui like a game - both Laito and Reiji treat Yui as a psychological game, something to crack and break until they’re subservient, in essence, it’s a game of cat and mouse to these two. I wanted to compare this little section because compared to Laito, Reiji wouldn’t stand for Yui fighting back and would most likely view it as ‘bad manners’, later punishing her for it. My point is that Laito’s the type of character who doesn’t let mockery or resistance offend him, or get under his skin, whereas Reiji is, and I think that’s due to the mockery he endures from his brothers - Reiji is quite often the ‘butt of the joke’ whereas Laito is not and treatment like this would undoubtedly effect Reiji’s tolerance towards his siblings as well as Yui’s resistance. 

I also like Shuu’s interjection here; how he calls Subaru a child when Reiji is called an “old geezer”. It’s not just Shuu saying that Subaru’s the youngest and he doesn’t know what he’s talking about, it’s also Shuu retaliating since he’s just indirectly been called old, but it’s also Shuu inadvertently defending Reiji. By Shuu naming Subaru a “brat”, he’s unintentionally defending Reiji and fighting his corner even though he’s most likely only trying to save his own feelings since he’s the eldest and he’s basically just been told through Subaru’s remark at Reiji that he also looks like an “old geezer”. Shuu - who we know likes to wind up Reiji - has just haphazardly defended the brother he has so many quarrels with; it’s both unintentionally funny and endearing to me.

Shuu: In that case, I can understand why you would suggest something as childish as drinking from the ankle.

Subaru: Then which place do you prefer!?

Shuu: Me...? I...Let’s see...It has to be the chest, right? Piercing through the veins closest to the heart and sucking her blood suits my tastes best. The blood flowing from those veins is so sweet, it’s almost like syrup, you know?

Subaru: Che...So you are an old geezer after all!

Shuu: At least call it an adult’s acquired taste, youngster.

Reiji: Okay, no fighting! Besides, don’t be engaging in such ridiculous quarrels here, but take them elsewhe...

Laito: ...I can’t help but like drinking from the thighs best, I suppose~ Drinking from a young maiden’s second softest spot makes the blood slightly greasy, it sticks to my throat...Nfu~

Subaru: Che...Laito! You were awake as well?

I’d like to bring attention to the aposiopesis that Reiji uses within his dialogue here. Aposiopesis is the device of suddenly breaking off in speech, which can be found within “elsewhe...”, it shows how Reiji’s speech is trailing off in tone, but if we pair it with the ellipsis at the beginning of Laito’s sentence, it can be interpreted that Reiji is once again being interrupted by his siblings, and with the inclusion of the ellipsis at the end of Reiji’s dialogue, it can be further implied that he knows he’s about to be ‘cut off’; hence why aposiopesis has been included, Reiji trails his sentence off - possibly growing quieter depending on how you interpret ellipsis - because he knows he’s going to be interrupted again. It’s a regular occurrence for Reiji’s character to be cut off by his brothers or just ignored in general. I didn’t want to say too much about this section or derail into a tangent since I’d just be repeating myself but I did want to mention the aposiopesis.

 Laito: I was finally thinking of getting some rest, but you guys’ started talking about something interesting so I woke up again.

Reiji: In that case, please use this opportunity to take your leave! All of you have been given your own, proper room after all!

Kanato: Uu... *sniffles* ...Shut up...! I can’t sleep...I CAN’T SLEEP LIKE THIS!! Teddy...My Teddy is saying he can’t sleep either...It upsets him!

Reiji: ...! Don’t suddenly scare me like that!

Kanato: I...Such thing...Whether it’s the neck or the feet, the chest or the thighs...I don’t care about all of that!

*THUD*

Kanato: I...The place I like best...are the fingers. In particular, the little finger - which looks as if you could just bite it off - is my preference.

Subaru: Basically...What you’re trying to say is that, right?  You might just accidentally eat the whole pinkie ー That’s what you mean, isn’t it?

Kanato: Fufu...Haha...What happens, happens, but it’d be twice as delicious.

Shuu: Ugh...I’ll pass up on human flesh.

Laito: Likewise. Picking out the bones is a pain after all. If I were to eat it, it would have to be properly seasoned.

Something to note here is Kanato’s outburst, as soon as Reiji proposes that they all retire back to their rooms so that he may indulge in his own privacy Kanato has one of his famous outbursts - which then scares Reiji -. However, once Kanato begins to talk again, he brings the conversation back to blood drinking; the very ‘argument’ that Reiji was trying to dissipate between Shuu, Subaru and Laito. It not only displays that Kanato uses his violent emotions to get his own way (as per usual with him) but that Reiji’s interests and pleas are of no concern to anyone - Kanato has basically just shut Reiji up in order to carry on the conversation at hand between the other siblings; it genuinely shows how dismissive of Reiji all the brothers are.

Reiji: Right, right. Putting this talk about flesh and bones aside, now that you are all awake, hurry up and...

Ayato: ...If you’re gonna suck her, it has to be the nape, right? I don’t like it to be too fatty. Something a little more refreshing is exactly my taste!

Reiji: ...!? Ayato, you too...

Subaru: But that’s lacking, don’t you think? Then it feels like you barely even had any.

Ayato: That’s not true! To make up for it, you just have to drink plenty!

Reiji: Well, Ayato has always been quantity over quality. That being said...

Shuu: Jeez...Both Ayato and you guys don’t know a thing.

Reiji: Shuu...Please don’t stir up this conversation again...

Kanato: ...Saying we don’t know...*sniff* That’s just...Too cruel! Both me and Teddy...*sniffle* did our best to come up with an answer! Yet you completely disregard it like that...

At this point it’s growing quite clear that Reiji’s giving up on the conversation - he has his little quip at Ayato’s expense, but aside from that and the usage of ellipsis and aposiopesis, it can be implied that Reiji’s grown tired of trying to be assertive towards his brothers; opting to replace his strict orders with reluctant pleas - something we tend not to see during his actual route - and it shows the difference between Reiji and his siblings.

Laito: Exactly! Right above the chest is standard just like the neck, isn’t it? Or perhaps the eldest son standing at the head of this long-lasting Sakamaki household has no other choice but to protect such traditions?

Shuu: Are you trying to insult me? A ‘fake’ pervert like yourself probably doesn’t even understand the profound meaning behind standards.

Laito: A fake pervert? ‘Pretending’, you say?

Reiji: Fine, fine! Who cares if it’s just an act? If you were a true pervert at heart, it would be disgusting anyway. So, everyone, pleaseーー

Ayato: This kind of pisses me off...The way you’re looking down on us. I don’t give a damn ‘bout you being the eldest son of not...The greatest person in this household is this Ore-sama over here!

Shuu: Hah. You’re lame.

Ayato: Aah?

Subaru: He really is. Being the ‘greatest’ or the ‘strongest’, bullshit.

Ayato: What did you say? You wanna fight!?

Subaru: Fine by me. ‘Cause I had my fill earlier...

He cracks his knuckles.

Subaru: ...I’m overflowing with energy now. I need a little something to let off some steam.

First and foremost, I wanted to draw attention to Shuu calling out Laito’s façade, I don’t intend to do a deep dive into the subliminal meaning of this interaction since this is a psychoanalysis of Reiiji but I did think that it was quite funny to see Laito become irritated at the fact that Shuu’s basically just called out his entire defence mechanism with little to no effort at all. Secondly, I like how Reiji chooses to ignore this, his irritation has come back, since by almost removing himself from the conversation at hand, he’s allowed Kanato’s outburst to derail the situation further and allowed for Shuu to cause conflict between the brothers. The exclamations are back and his snappy attitude is coming to the forefront; this can be implied through “Who cares....”. It can be implied that Reiji’s becoming aerated once more since he’s once again trying to control the situation - to no avail again -, everything’s getting out of hand and it’s doing so at a quick pace, and Reiji’s attempting to defuse this; it once again demonstrates Reiji’s control issues that we see quite prominently through his route and his treatment towards Yui.

Reiji: Honestly...So hot-headed. Are you listening to what I’m saying? You lot, I would GREATLY appreciate it if you would all take your leave. Right now!

Laito: Nfu~ If you want us to leave, you might have no other choice but to use brute force.

Reiji: Haah...?

Kanato: Horrible...Telling us to leave...Even though we’ve been expressing our will to stay here...Isn’t there a single place for me and Teddy in this whole manor...!?

Reiji: Hold up, I never said that. I’m simply telling you to rest in your own roー

*CRASH*

Reiji: ...!?

Laito: Ah-ahh~ Here we go.

Ayato: Heh...You vandal! Even if you try to scare me off by destroying our surroundings, you won’t get your way!

*CRASH THUD*

Subaru: Heh! Lame! You’re nothing but a fraud! Nobody has ever thought of you as ‘amazing’ or ‘strong’!

Ayato: What did you just say...!?

*CRASH*

*CLATTER*

The situation quickly devolves into madness and as it does, Reiji’s dialogue reflects that, he emphasises his words alongside his exclamations - and what happens ? It devolves even more, Laito takes this opportunity to aggravate Reiji further by taunting him; and Kanato takes this to an extreme, interpreting Reiji’s words to mean that he [Kanato] has no place within their house and that he doesn’t belong there. 

Reiji: Waiー! The manor...The manor will fall apart! Shuu! Didn’t you say that father would be enraged!? Please stop them!

Shuu: Ugh...What a hassle.

Reiji: It isn’t ‘a hassle’!

*SHATTER*

Laito: Hm...But stopping those two once they’re like that is rather difficult, don’t you think?

*THUD*

Laito: More importantly...Shuu...Let’s continue our discussion from earlier.

Shuu: Hm? What do you mean?

Laito: That I’m a fake pervert. I’d like you to explain yourself.

Shuu: What? You’re still talking about that? You’re surprisingly one to hold grudges.

Laito: Nfu~ I get told that a looot~ ...Well then, tell me your reasoning. Depending on what you say, even I won’t forgive you.

*CRASH*

I genuinely enjoy how Reiji becomes frantic at the realisation that their father would be “enraged” by their reckless commotion. It not only displays how much Reiji’s values his father’s opinion but it also removes him further from his brothers - the rest of them could care less about what their father thinks or feels, yet Reiji persists, he doesn’t want to displease him because he wants to be acknowledged by him; it all brings us back to his raging CEN, but at this point Reiji’s losing his usual calm composure - his composure drops and his control of the situation decreases. The situation has become out of hand and Reiji’s becoming quite desperate for the commotion to end; I think that’s why he states “It isn’t ‘a hassle’!“, Reiji’s genuinely asking for help in order to rein his brothers in. Additionally, the notion that Reiji uses single quotation marks in regards to Shuu’s statement could imply that Reiji’s showing some form of sass towards the situation, and what happens ? Latio cuts in - meaning Reiji is promptly ignored and avoided - so that his and Shuu’s ‘discussion’ can continue, which then spurs another argument to arise.

Reiji: Ugh...These two are starting an argument as well...Just cut it out already!

Kanato: *sniff sniff* Why is...everyone...so loud!? Shut up! SHUT UP!! I don’t understand!

Reiji: You are plenty noisy yourself!

Kanato: ...! That’s why...That’s why you tried to drive us out earlier, didn’t you?

Reiji: ...! ‘Drive out’, you say?  It might have sounded that way but...

Kanato: You’re admitting it, huh? You just admitted it, didn’t you? That you tried to get rid of us!

Reiji: Ah...So what!? I simply wanted to enjoy a cup of tea by myself, that’s all!

Kanato: Shut up!! ...In that case, please brace yourself. Teddy, he is the embodiment of all evil trying to strip us of the place we belong. You don’t have to hold back, okay?

Reiji: Aaah, come on! Why...Why does it always turn out like this!??

Kanato: Teddy...GO!!

*Pow pow pow pow pow*

Reiji: ...Don’t attack me with your stuffed bear! Aah, please!! Just cut me some slack! Whatever happens, don’t come crying to me afterwards...!!

*CRAAAASH*

ーー THE END ーー

Something that I wanted to place emphasis on is the notion that Reiji and Kanato are the only pair left. What I mean by this, is that it’s quite apt for these two to be the only ones left - we know that Reiji is treated as an outcast by his brothers for his dictatorial personality and strict need for rules and control however, Kanato is also viewed as an outcast by his brothers too, most prominently Ayato and Subaru with Ayato calling him a “hysteric” for his unbearable personality and incomprehensible actions. Notice the similarity ? None of the brothers can bear to be around Reiji due to his uptight personality and none of the brothers can stand to be around Kanato due to his mania. The outcasts are grouped together however, it’s also the dynamic of a parental figure and a child being presented too since Reiji tends to look after Kanato - it’s a mature and immature dynamic -.

I also wanted to bring attention to when Kanato exclaims “I don’t understand!”, it’s quite sad from his perspective since it showcases how much of an outcast he is compared to the other brothers, again something we see with Reiji. However, I like how Reiji genuinely shouts back at him with “You are plenty noisy yourself!“, it shows Kanato’s lack of self-awareness and it also displays Reiji’s irritation - he’s lost complete control of the situation and now he’s watching from the side-lines unable to do anything because no one will bother to listen to him. I also wanted to give weight to when Reiji says “It might have sounded that way but...” towards Kanato’s statement as it can be implied that in this moment, Reiji is attempting to show compassion towards Kanato yet he quickly justifies his actions; it presents the implication that Reiji is willing to compromise but he will remain logical towards whatever circumstance is thrown his way - much like how he is with Cordelia within his route -.

Additionally, the image of Reiji being attacked by Teddy is honestly hilarious. But, I wanted to bring attention to Reiji’s last piece of dialogue: “Just cut me some slack! Whatever happens, don’t come crying to me afterwards...!!”. It poses the implication that Reiji is practically pleading with Kanato to leave him be - he’s worn out and frustrated - but it’s the implication that Kanato goes to Reiji when something goes wrong that’s somewhat endearing to me, and it reinforces what I implied earlier, that there’s a parent/child dynamic between the two - one outcast looking out for the other, if you will -. I just think that it’s quite a sweet implication to make between the two given that they are ‘pushed out’ compared to their siblings.

In conclusion, Reiji is mostly dismissed and ignored by his brothers, and can be implied to only be viewed as the butler façade he tends to display; and if you think about it, it’s honestly quite sad, but it gives us the understanding as to why he’s so controlling of Yui and why he craves attention and acknowledgement for his actions. If his brothers are barely willing to appreciate Reiji’s ‘good manners’, then it can be inferred that he’s going to try and find it somewhere else; that being through Yui and her kind nature which Reiji promptly takes advantage of in order to quell his own needs.

A Certain Prophet’s Fate

A Certain Prophet’s Fate, or Toaru Yogensha no Unmei is Reiji’s first character song; it’s introduced to us within the HDB Drama CD package. I didn’t want to dive into his specific mini CD since I’d just be repeating everything I’ve already said and implied; and it would not just bore me, it would probably bore you too - no one wants to listen to the same points being regurgitated for the millionth time -. So, I thought I’d hone in on his character song. A song is also a poem and the two can often become highly metaphorical in their meanings and interpretations; a poem is a story and it’s to our interpretation as to what that story means. 

I’m going to split the song up into single lines and lines of two so that it’s easier for me to analyse without it becoming a jumbled mess - basically, I’m going to analyse it the same way I did the Banquet Drama CD -. So, shall we begin ?

What I found when reading through the lyrics, is that the story being told could be Reiji’s thoughts and perspective - the song may act as his inner thoughts and him trying to articulate them in a metaphorical way. The song itself is quite beautiful to listen to but I wanted to address the lyrics and their hidden meanings in relation to Reiji’s character. We know that Reiji likes to use his intellect to his advantage; so it can be argued that he wouldn’t outright admit his state of mind within this song, naturally, he’d create a more elaborate way to let his ‘story’ unfold, and I think this is what we see here.

In the dense black forest of Schwarzwald, In doting adoration of a virgin, riding on a unicorn’s back

First of all, Schwarzwald simply means 'Black Forest' in German; it relates to a forest so dense that almost no sun ever reaches the forest floor - those who enter are surrounded by darkness -. This can create quite dark imagery, not just physically but also metaphorically as the darkness contrasts with the imagery of light - "a virgin, riding on a unicorn's back" - and this can be implied to relate to the story of Faust as well as the character of Yui.

Within the story, we’re introduced to two virgins, one being named Gretchen and the other is the Virgin Mary herself - both contain imagery of purity and religion, Gretchen prays to God for her soul to be cleansed and Mary carried the son of God. What I wanted to draw parallels on is how that imagery applies to Yui, she was raised in a church - showing that she’s a child of God, and we know that her religion plays a rather big part in her life; she prays to God quite frequently, and - in the literal term - she is also virginal. Virginity can connote to a multitude of things, such as physical virginity (the hymen is intact) but also religious virginity - purity - and not being ‘tainted’ by darker forces at play. If we take the “virgin” to mean Yui - someone pure of heart and spirit, someone who’s not been corrupted by the dark side of humanity and holds truth in her beliefs - then what does the unicorn signify ?

Unicorns can often be linked to purity, freedom, gentleness, virginity, innocence, divinity, and magic. Christians believe that the unicorn symbol is that of Christ and Mother Mary themselves - both being devoted children of God -. By posing the imagery of “a virgin, riding a unicorn’s back”, it could be implied to symbolise Yui and her many virtuous traits - or, to put it simply, Yui is riding on the back of her virtues -. Additionally, symbols such as unicorns and virginity can also be implied to carry imagery of light - the concept of unicorns are more often than not depicted as being pure white and flying up to the Heavens - past the white clouds and into paradise, a place that is also depicted as white or ‘pure’ -. Virginity can also contain those same ‘white’ qualities as white lilies are typically the symbol of virginity. The reason I’m honing in on the colour white is due to its connotations of purity, innocence and light. To put it plainly, purity represents light, and Yui (in this context) represents that purity.

That being said, if Yui is the second part of that phrase, it’s likely to imply that the first relates to Reiji himself. “Dense black forest”, let’s unpack that: both “dense” and “black” contain connotations of darkness and something impenetrable; it contrasts the imagery of light and purity we’ve just discussed. Themes of light are often representative of religion and themes of darkness represent those of hellish qualities; if Yui represents light in this case, then Reiji must consequently represent the “dark”. The “forest” could connote to Reiji’s emotional state as traditionally, the forest has come to represent being lost, exploration and potential danger as well as mystery and other worldliness - all traits we see within Reiji -. Due to Reiji being the narrator (since he’s singing) it can be implied that he’s metaphorically describing his internal struggles, he’s stuck within his own turmoil - and emotions such as this are often referred to as a ‘dark place’, which links us to the symbolic imagery of the “black forest”. It not only symbolises his Vampiric nature - something not of God nor Heaven but the darker depths of Hell itself; hence why they originate from the Demon World within the Diabolik Lovers canon - but it also symbolises his emotional distress and his inner darkness that he oppresses Yui with. The light and dark imagery reflect Yui and Reiji as well as their religious counterparts - Yui represents light, and Heaven, whereas Reiji represents the dark and therefore Hell.

The noun “adoration” could imply that Reiji desires to be ‘free’ of his traumatic ties while Yui rests atop her kindness. However, it could also imply that Reiji wishes to drag Yui down into the “dark forest” with him and corrupt her pure nature.

The brightly shining moon, a stirring breeze, With the fairies’ boisterous rituals, driving pounding hearts ever faster

The adverbial phrase “brightly shining moon” could posses connotations of light - referring to Yui as we’ve previously implied - however, the word “moon” could imply that the ‘light’ is pale, and it’s cold as opposed to the warm light associated with the sun - they both can also be associated with God as he created both the sun and the moon; they both produce Heaven’s light however, one is pale and cold in comparison to the other, leading darker forces to claim the night -. Within the Bible, night represents a lack of faith in God. With this symbolism in mind, it can be implied that once the cover of daylight has faded, Yui is vulnerable, and the “dark forest” would consequently grow ‘stronger’ - which is something we see within the route as Vampires are canonically weaker within daylight.

Conversely, the phases of the moon can symbolise immortality, eternity, enlightenment and the dark side of nature itself. Something that clearly applies to the character of Reiji - Vampires are immortal and spend their eternity feeding into their trials and tribulations, their ‘enlightenment’ in this case, is to be killed and be set ‘free’. It could be implied that as the moon shines, not only is Yui vulnerable in her faith, but Reiji is biding his time to strike her down into his ‘eternity’.

Fairies are often associated with plants and springtime, depicted as pure figures who possess magical powers. However, in the tales of fairies, they are, more often than not, mischievous creatures with dark and evil intentions. The Latin root word for fairy is ‘fay’ meaning fate; this could signify the purpose of fairies within myths, fairies in stories are constantly messing with the fates of humans. Fairies in these myths may be of the more cartoonish variety and signify simply love, magic and springtime, but most signify things like death, sexual depravity, abduction and general immorality. I wanted to draw attention to the imagery of fairies and their ‘rituals’ as their connotations can vary from divinity to Satanism.

It can be implied that this section refers to Yui, as within the first interpretation of fairies, they symbolise purity and life - and given Yui’s age at the beginning of the story, her youth displays the life her body has and the life it can give, she’s pure, untainted and brimming with life. However, ‘fairies’ could also relate to the brothers. With the interpretation that fairies can also derive from a darker ilk, and like to cause mischief, it could represent the brothers - they each have dark intentions for Yui no matter who’s route you play, and they do it for their own entertainment and their own benefit. Reiji purposely dehumanises Yui and turns her into a loyal pet. Reiji’s “ritual” is to strip Yui of her virtues so that she’ll play into his incessant need for control, driving her pounding heart even faster - what I mean by this is fear, throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, Yui was undoubtedly afraid of Reiji and the threat he posed to her; he implemented fear into Yui in order to break her.

Conversely, this line can also be interpreted to contain sexual connotations. We’ve dived into how fairies can also be symbols of sexual intimacy and depravity; if we take into account that sadism can also occur within intimate situations like this, it could link back to Reiji. By him essentially breaking Yui, it can be implied that he gains gratification from doing so; “driving pounding hearts ever faster”, Yui’s heart could be inferred to be beating from fear whilst Reiji’s could be implied to be pounding from the pleasure his sadism grants him.

While unknowing that the contracted “Devil” follows after—

This line could serve the implication that while Yui’s vulnerable in the night, she still holds that naivety; she hasn’t figured out the situation she’s in and Reiji’s closing in on her. I’ve interpreted the “contracted ‘Devil’” to relate to Reiji - a narrative self-reference, if you will -, he’s referring to himself while posing the situation that Yui is unaware of his darker intentions for her. She holds firm to her beliefs in God yet she is ignorant to her state of vulnerability.

Ah, such a foolish thing you are, little girl (Falling to ruin) That glass mask of yours is (beginning to crack) Decide, without looking back at the promises shredded by your sins

Firstly, I’d like to point out that Yui is referred to as a “foolish thing”. This noun phrase could insinuate that Reiji’s chastising her naivety, and the fact that she was blissfully unaware and ignorant to the position she was in. To add to this, the noun “thing” also displays the difference in power as it’s established early on in Reiji’s route that ‘sacrificial brides’ are merely nothing more than blood bags - right from the get-go Yui is beneath Reiji -. However, from a psychological standpoint, it’s clear to say that when one person intends to ruin another’s life in some way, shape or form, they tend to distance themselves - either physically, emotionally or both - as it’s easier to hurt someone when you barely view them as a person at all; and I think this is what that line means, Reiji’s pushing Yui into “falling to ruin” - she’s falling to her (spiritual) ‘death’, she’s losing herself and who she is.

The second line strikes me as ironic as the phrase “glass mask” can predominantly refer to a person’s façade. In the context that Reiji is implying Yui’s innate kindness to be a façade of some form, he could be posing the implication that those who are kind often ‘hide away’ their darker counterparts; their ‘sinful’ side. Throughout most of Reiji’s route, Yui has been posed with the question that she should let her dark and carnal self prevail - proving to Reiji that in all her humanity, Yui is nothing more than a pet, an animal who thrives on her carnal instincts, and we see this within the second ending, when Yui poses herself as Cordelia - enslaving Reiji - and essentially living at the ‘top of the food chain’. In that ending, Yui lets her darker side prevail and - in the context of this particular phrase - it therefore poses the implication that her ‘kindness’ was simply a façade, her “glass mask”. The noun “glass” can have connotations of fragility; that the ‘face’ she ‘prefers’ to show is not how she actually feels. The overall implication that Reiji is giving us, is that Yui expresses feelings that are not her own; and the ‘mask’ she wears is as fragile as glass, and once she’s distracted or vulnerable, that mask will break and her ‘true’ self will show.

This is obviously very ironic since Reiji is the one to hide away his true feelings - he plays the role of a ‘polite butler’ yet we know he is anything but that - he uses abuse and manipulation to cover up his own insecurities and turmoil. If anything, he is the one who wears a mask of glass. Glass is fragile, much like his ego and self-esteem, and that mask begins to crack as his route develops - indulging in Yui’s naïve compassion.

The third line could be implied to mean that Yui must make her decision to stay with him - commit to Reiji without hesitation, without the desire to run and give in to her carnal sins with him. He’s asking Yui to take the plunge into sin with him, revoke her religion and commit to him.

“You still do to that extent, even though I’ve told you so firmly.”

This dialogue strikes me as odd, it doesn’t refer to much within the song, however, it could pair with the second piece of dialogue, implying that Yui is still trying to run from her situation; she’s not ready to fully commit from God to the “Devil” - the “Devil” in this case being Reiji, and quite obviously, “Devil” has quite sinister connotations; given that Yui was raised by the church, her commitment to something demonic (and vampiric) is not going to be an easy or nice feat for her.

It can also be implied that this is taking place throughout the beginning of her ‘training’ as it can be inferred that she’s still resisting him even though he’s “told [her] so firmly”, further insinuating that she still has her willpower at this point. She’s not fully succumbed to Reiji’s abuse yet.

A single enraged horn, able to thrust its way up to the heavens Like a chaotically blooming rose, it’s splattered across your face

This first line could possess many different interpretations, the first could relate back to Faust, a man who sold his soul to the Devil yet still tried to force himself into Heaven, only to fail. However, it could also relate back to the relationship between Reiji and Yui, and insinuate something of a sexual nature. Not only are horns associated with devils and demons, but the noun “horn” can posses connotations of a phallic symbol and sexual imagery. Within Greek mythology, strength, power and supremacy are a part of the symbolism of horns. The other connotation is virility - procreative vigour. Within the story of the ‘Plough’, even the use of the oxen to pull the plough had its sexual connotation. The plough drew its furrow in the soil, and was pulled by reins attached to the oxen's horns. The horns were the force behind the plough’s coitus with the earth; therefore, horns grew a sexual connotation. Alongside the noun “horn” the verb “thrust” also contains sexual connotations; with this semantic field in mind, it could imply that “heavens” relates to Yui’s purity and virginity. Additionally, the imagery of roses also feeds into this interpretation as white flowers are a common symbol of virginity; the imagery of a flower blooming can often be associated to metaphorically represent becoming a woman (losing your virginity) and the flower turns from white to red as the blood pours - and roses are often red or at least associated with the colour red as opposed to white.

Conversely, it could also refer to Yui and Reiji’s emotional relationship, and the dark and light imagery could be a metaphysical representation of that. It could imply that Reiji’s abuse is starting to infect Yui - a child of God being corrupted by something demonic -. It can also link back to her “glass mask” as the corruption allows Yui’s kind nature to drop and her weak and vulnerable state to be “splattered across [her] face”. It could insinuate that the “blooming rose” is Yui’s corruption starting to grow and infest her; yet she’s still trying to fight it - she’s infected by Reiji, and the rose imagery could represent that. Roses are often associated with love and throughout Reiji’s route, we see Yui start to fall into the categories of stockholm syndrome and co-dependency, that ‘love’ is starting to bloom yet it is a twisted form of love.

This deep crimson curse is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to…

The imagery of a “deep crimson” can connote to blood, and not necessarily just Yui’s. The notion that it’s referred to as a “curse” and “family’s fate” offers the interpretation that Reiji views his heritage as a source of evil and misfortune and that tribulations are inevitable and unavoidable for him. It not only relates to each brother’s misery and the misery they force upon Yui, but it also relates back to their mothers and Karlheinz himself as Christa dealt with severe mental illnesses, Cordelia suffered from a multitude of issues and Beatrix was severely bullied by Cordelia - and Karlheinz foresaw all of this and made it his personal experiment to cause each one misery and make sure that instability was passed down onto each brother; with that information in mind, it would be natural for Reiji to interpret this theme to be something akin to a family curse, a terrible privilege that each of them share. In addition to this, “A damned soul, never again to...” could be a self-reference from Reiji, if he views his heritage as a “curse”, then it’s likely that he appoints himself as a “damned soul” - with “damned” giving connotations of misery and turmoil -. I’d like to bring attention to the aposiopesis found within this line as what Reiji aims for is left ambiguous, however, what I interpret this unfinished phrase to mean, is that he’s a “damned soul, never again to” reach the ‘light’ and achieve happiness and genuine love and affection. If Reiji interprets himself as a cursed child, it would be natural for him to crave the love and stability he was never given, he wants what he can’t have and he can’t have it because he’s “damned” to be awarded nothing but tribulations, turmoil and misery.

“You know you can never escape!!”

I’ve interpreted this section of dialogue to link to the other - it uses the passive voice. The passive voice is used to show interest in the person or object that experiences an action rather than the person or object that performs the action. In other words, the most important thing or person becomes the subject of the sentence, for example: ‘the plate was dropped by Yui’ rather than ‘Yui dropped the plate’. The most important part of this sentence is that “[Yui] can never escape”, yet it comes secondary to “I’ve told you so firmly”  - which is the least important part of the phase, yet it is spoken first; further implying that Reiji is using the passive voice to ‘chastise’ Yui into submission.

The phrase itself could pose a few interpretations, one being that she can never escape from Reiji - Yui’s his prey and he’s not going to let her go idly by -. The second is that she can never escape her fate; I think this is the overall theme of Reiji’s song. Reiji is fated to live out a torturous, Vampiric existence, and Yui is damned to be tied to Reiji’s fate due to her father’s involvement. Yui’s fate was decided once Cordelia’s heart was instilled in her; she was damned from the beginning and I believe Reiji knows this - he’s trying to drag her into damnation with him.

A dying science,

Your impressions destroyed, at the hand of a shameless fist

The first line here could be interpreted as an oxymoron, as science is often connected to discovering something new or creating something new - discovering a new ‘life’ so to speak - and this connotation would naturally contrast with “dying”. Science can relate to a multitude of things, biology, chemistry, physics and psychology to name a few. this phrase could link to both Reiji and Yui if we take the psychological approach - the phrase itself could be metaphorical of Reiji breaking Yui’s self-worth. Throughout his route, Reiji has undoubtedly used Yui as an ‘experiment’ of sorts, a ‘science’ to explore and break down into its basic fundamentals; her “impressions” - impressions of herself, those around her and trying to help them as best as she can - are “destroyed”, her self-worth and confidence are decimated by Reiji’s cruelty, by the “hand of a shameless fist”.

However, it could be interpreted in a more literal sense and instead link back to when Cordelia inhabited Yui’s body and chose to destroy Reiji’s laboratory; and in turn, destroy the potion he was devoting himself to that would resurrect Beatrix, devoting himself to a “dying science” if you will. In that moment, Reiji’s impressions of coming to terms with his CEN were destroyed by Cordelia’s self-importance - her “shameless fist” destroyed the very thing (aside from Yui) that was pivotal to him.

As these sins pile up like the falling snow, there is no hope of redemption Their height surpassing even your castle walls, it’s far too late to even pray to God

This section here could be implied to be metaphorical and represent Yui’s inner self and her emotional walls and boundaries. First of all, comparing sins to snow alongside with the sibilance in both can be implied to connote to something light and cunning; the ‘s’ sound can also give off snake-like imagery - which takes us back to the religious themes threaded throughout the game and this song. The snake that bit Eve (the Devil) and ‘awakened’ her can make quite a nice parallel to Reiji and Yui. Throughout this song, it can be inferred that Reiji references himself to be the “Devil” - he’s not the Devil but he is demonic - and Yui (throughout the games) is named Eve in relation to her ‘awakening’; both the Adam and Eve theme threaded throughout More Blood, and the other games hold quite Biblical references and imagery.

Snow also continues this religious imagery as it often symbolises purity, which could mean that this contrast is posing the implication that Yui’s sins are pure (as in [something] is pure envy or [insert sin here]’. However, snow tends to fall slowly and lightly, which could imply that Yui’s submission into Reiji’s abuse is slow and light at the beginning but like snow, it culminates over time. We could even go as far as to compare her submission to the sin of sloth. Sloth has been defined as a failure to do things that one should do; in this case - or rather, in Yui’s case - that failure is the failure to overpower her abuser.

The second part to the first line - “there is no hope of redemption” -  could apply to both Reiji and Yui. Yui has no hope for redemption once she submits to Reiji - to submit to Reiji, a vampire, a demon, she is effectively turning her back on her faith; she’s made peace with her fate and therefore, there is no redemption for her in Yui’s own eyes. As for Reiji, he has no hope for redemption due to the abhorrent cruelty he bestows on Yui; his treatment of not only her, but Shuu, Beatrix and Edgar too. Reiji cannot achieve redemption because he cannot accept when he is at fault. His behaviour towards others and his sadism prevent him from becoming better; therefore, for him, there is no redemption. At least, redemption cannot take place just yet, remember, this is a story being told by Reiji about Yui - his perception of her is going to be vastly different from ours as the audience; therefore, he cannot see ‘redemption’ for her, and in his own way of thinking, he poses the question that maybe she cannot see redemption for herself either.

The imagery of Yui’s sins growing higher than her “castle walls” could be implied to be metaphorical. When a person hides away their feelings, we often use the phrase ‘putting up walls’ to describe their emotional cut off. I believe this can be referential to Yui as throughout the beginning of Reiji’s route, we often see Yui hide away her deeper affections; she keeps her larger thoughts and feelings to herself most of the time - her distaste, longing, uncertainty is wrapped away in her mind (we as the audience see those thoughts and feelings, but Reiji doesn’t). In order to keep herself from facing Reiji’s uglier tendencies, she’ll sometimes lock her emotions away (not all of them, but quite a few). Overall, it could be implied that Reiji’s influence is starting to take a hold of her internally and she can’t block it out or subdue it, and because it’s festering in her mind, it’s already in her subconscious; therefore, it’s “too late” for her to pray to God to help her. Reiji has wormed himself into Yui’s mind and her faith in God cannot overpower that.

Unable to grasp that ‘nothingness,’ that eternal price—

The noun “nothingness” can connote to the state of being nothing, something that is non-existent, lack of being, unconsciousness or death and I think the latter is the main connotation for this noun within the context of the song and Reiji as a character. We know that Vampires within the DL universe crave death, and being killed is the ultimate way for someone to confess their ‘love’ - to die is something that all Vampires crave. This line, to me, could imply that Reiji longs for death, to have the misery end and finally rest for eternity; we know from following Kanato’s route that he [Kanato] is jealous of humans since we can die quite easily whereas he cannot - he can’t grasp that “nothingness” that is death - and I think this can apply here. It can not only be implied that Reiji wants to - in some capacity - die, but that he’s almost chastising Yui for the fact that she can reach death easier than him. The dash (or hyphen) at the end of this sentence poses the inference that he’s being ‘cut off’ or ‘cut short’, not by his brothers or Yui, but by himself; he’s purposely cutting his sentence short and I think this links back to his internal struggle of opening up and lowering his front. Throughout Reiji’s route, his character has always been to-and-fro with his emotions - he’s reserved yet malicious - however, I think this line in particular allows us to see into his head more and could even pose the theory that Reiji may be suffering from depression. Neglect, abuse, perfectionism, paranoia (of being ‘outed’ for his feelings and of Yui leaving him - this is seen throughout Cordelia’s interference), they all add up one on top of another and paired with his need to impress his father and prove his worth, it all culminates to him possibly wanting to be the “nothing” that he feels - that his childhood made him feel -. He’s giving us insight into his mind yet at the same time, it could be implied that he’s scolding Yui for how easily she can die and fade into that “nothingness” yet he is unable to do so himself.

Aah, the punishment you dreamed of (Why did I see it?) This spiral labyrinth is (never-ending) In conclusion, unless I suck you dry, the rules of logic won’t survive

Linking back to the previous line, the “punishment” Reiji’s mentioning could be death. Again, this is a story from Reiji’s point of view and we know for a fact that he implements his own views and beliefs onto Yui; it would be no different how he would force his views of death onto her too. Consequently, it could then be implied that he also believes Yui to crave death as much as he does - which would then make sense as to why he says “the punishment you dreamed of”. As the audience, we know that Yui doesn’t want to die, but Reiji can’t accept that and instead views it as her denying her ‘true feelings’ - he needs to have that corrupt control over her mind in order to relax around her -.

Ironically, the very word “labyrinth” is often used to illustrate confusion and complexity. As such, the symbol of the labyrinth can represent an enigma, a puzzle and confusion. Some view the labyrinth as a metaphor for a spiritual journey, with the entrance representing birth and the centre symbolizing God, knowing or enlightenment. Getting to the centre requires a long, arduous journey of growth. First of all, the spiral is a symbol of change, as all things in this world must change over time. Nothing can live and be stagnant, and as scary as change is, it is also wonderful, because that means that everyday we have a new chance, a new choice, to change ourselves. I think this overall line is Reiji speaking out on his subconscious, he as a person is constantly changing and conflicting with himself - and this is mainly brought about by Yui -. He’s trapped pondering the same path and as he walks on, he delves deeper into his own psyche; however, this “spiral labyrinth” is “never-ending” because he can’t come to terms with who he is - who he is underneath his trauma, his privileges, his race and status - because, in my interpretation, that person is something Reiji would see as weak and powerless, which is the same thing he loathes in Yui - which brings us back to the interpretation that in some ways, Yui subconsciously represents Reiji’s inner self, and his childhood. Due to Yui possibly representing these things, the spiral never ends because Yui’s representation is something Reiji wants to run away from, but no one can run from their past, and until he learns to accept the better things about himself and the things he’s done out of spite and hatred, he can never fully leave that labyrinth.

The third line links more to what we see during the route, which is him biting Yui. However, in this subliminal context, this line could be implied to implement the power dynamic - and the importance of said dynamic -. Overall, this phrase basically states that if Reiji doesn’t drink Yui’s blood, then logic won’t survive; this could imply that Reiji has to drink from Yui in order to continue the power dynamic between them, he needs to be the one in control, the predator, and Yui needs to stay in the position of weak prey. By furthering this interpretation, it could imply that in regards to their races, predator and prey is the only logical dynamic to establish and for that to be disturbed would imply that logic no longer exists; it would mean that Yui has the upper hand, and not Reiji, he would no longer hold the control he desires. If we compare this interpretation to the Manservant Ending, we see that power dynamic flip. Instead of Reiji instigating the blood sucking, this time it’s Yui - she’s in control and she does as she pleases, he can’t drink the amount he wants (he can’t suck her dry) - and therefore, all logic has disappeared, the prey has become the predator and logic has died, Reiji’s control has died, and his self-worth has died.

Following Reiji’s route, we quickly learn that Reiji is a man who values intelligent and logic - his intellect fuels his self-esteem - and unless he has Yui at his mercy (with the threat of draining all her blood) the logic of the Vampire/Human dynamic won’t survive, it’ll die along with his frail ego.

“Kukuku…Or rather, would you like to die right now?”

This piece of dialogue links to the previous ones we’ve seen throughout the song; it’s a string of dialogue weaved into the story, a cross between Reiji’s ‘fantasy’ and reality. He’s told Yui that she can never escape and now he’s giving her the ‘option’ of dying - in reality, there is no option, it’s reverse psychology of giving her the choice of doing something that he knows she would protest against (that being death). It acts as Reiji essentially keeping Yui under his control.

Additionally, the fact that Reiji laughs when saying this could imply that he doesn’t take Yui seriously enough to consider her a threat; furthermore, it could be implied that he’s choosing to mock her in her time of distress - Yui wants to leave but she can’t and Reiji’s taking this opportunity to laugh at her misfortune.

In a storm driven mad with desire, my mind calms, all thoughts cut off Like a vanishing rose, cutting across my mind

When you think about a storm, you probably don’t have many pleasant meanings to connect to it. It’s a symbol of chaos, negativity, trauma, difficulty, weakness, and even depression. Storm symbolism also signifies change and transition since storms are only temporary. However, in literature, storms play a completely different role. They’re used as elements of foreshadowing, which is the act of predicting the future in the story. It’s a very frequently used symbol that can be used in almost any setting. Normally, it predicts something unpleasant, tragic, or even scary.

The storm itself could be implied to represent Reiji’s inner turmoil; how by focusing on that one specific thing can in fact calm him, his mind is steady - it could be interpreted as ‘ordered chaos’, which refers to a complex situation or process that appears chaotic while still having enough order to achieve progress or goals. The idea of organised chaos is more than saying you know where everything is in your messy bedroom or office, even if no one else can make sense of it. It’s also the idea of a looser set of rules and giving yourself a little more freedom to find your own success. it can be inferred that the “storm” is Reiji’s subconscious, or at least his mental state, yet his mind is able to be calm due to him being able to navigate that chaos - it’s something only he can understand, both giving him the satisfaction of surpassing everyone else’s psychological skills but also the satisfaction of being able to hide the mess that is his mind so well.

The last line of this phrase could be implied to mean that Reiji’s mind has become blank, his usual thoughts of resentment and jealousy have ceased, they’ve vanished and so, his mind has become blank. Additionally, ‘blank’ can have connotations of calmness - since the mind has become devoid of thoughts and emotions, it becomes oddly calm in its emptiness. Here we also see the noun “rose” make another appearance, however, roses not only symbolise love and purity, but it also has other connotations too. In the Middle Ages, roses were hung from the ceilings of meeting rooms; it was understood that everyone under the roses was sworn to secrecy. With this in mind, it could be implied that the noun “rose” symbolises secrecy, Reiji’s desires and detriments are to remain a secret - a secret that he and Yui will later share but a ‘secret’ nonetheless -. However, the notion that the rose is “vanishing” could imply that his unchecked mind is starting to dissipate; the thoughts that haunt him so much are ‘disappearing’ from his conscious mind. However, the verb “cutting” gives off the interpretation that his vanishing thoughts are quite abrupt, as though Reiji’s trying to forcefully forget the chaos in his brain - implying that Reiji’s trying to forget his turmoil in order to calm his mind.

This memory is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to…

Memory can often connote to both remembrance and forgetfulness; however, it can be interpreted that “memory” relates to the previous line, of Reiji trying to forget his tribulations. Each person that holds a substantial relationship with Karlheinz is dealt with nothing but despair - whether that relationship is founded from genetics or courtship is of no relevance, as each person is given their own cruel hand by “fate” -. Therefore, it’s possible to assume that Reiji’s memories of pain is shared throughout the family; each brother is wallowing in their own trauma, yet they cannot talk about it or cope in a healthy way, they each let their emotions fester and try to forget their memories, and because that mechanism of trauma is passed through the family, it has therefore become their “fate”.

Here we also see the repetition of the line “A damned soul, never again to…”. The adjective “damned” can have connotations of  being condemned or doomed, especially to eternal punishment - which is quite similar to how the brothers view their long-lasting lives. With this in mind, we can again imply that Reiji is ‘doomed’ to suffer the consequences of ‘fate’s’ cruel hand; he can never again revert to the past, before his trauma was dealt to him, and that is his family’s fate.

“…─I will never let you go”

Once more, we are presented with Reiji’s dialogue, however, this phrase has both sorrowful and threatening connotations. The phrase “…─I will never let you go” has obvious menacing implications, since Reiji’s holding Yui hostage in this overall situation - if Yui tries to leave, then he’ll punish her, or he’ll kill her. This threat enables Reiji to carry on implementing his control over Yui and bending her to his will - breaking her in the process -. Conversely, this threat can also possess quite sorrowful and forlorn connotations. Following Reiji’s route, it can be implied that Yui’s inadvertently and subconsciously helping Reiji come to terms with the type of person he is; without Yui, his bitterness will only fester to a higher capacity, and his abuse tactics and sadism will only grow - thus, it could be implied that Reiji can’t let Yui go because of this, and when you think about it that way, it’s quite melancholic.

“Kukuku… You should understand by now, right?”

“It is your fate to continue to have your blood sucked by me.”

Reiji yet again insults Yui’s intelligence by condescending to her that she should be able to understand the situation she’s in, and how it’s her “fate”. Throughout the entirety of Reiji’s route, his use of language towards Yui is typically demeaning, and here is no exception.

The noun “blood” can have many different connotations and symbolisms, one of which is that it represents life - this is mainly derived from the fact that blood is the very substance that flows through our veins in order to keep us alive; with this connotation, it could be implied that Yui’s “fate” is to have her life drained by Reiji for his own satisfaction. However, blood can also be seen as something that’s a person’s ‘essence’. If there’s something that is so core to your sense of identity or your beliefs, you could say that “it’s in my blood”. This interpretation could imply that Reiji intends to finish ‘training’ Yui until every last part of her has been taken away, her ‘core’ has been “sucked” out by Reiji in his attempts to perfect her - all her aspirations, hope, pain and suffering have been removed by Reiji, as blood can also connote to pain and suffering; something that can be implied to be Reiji’s fate - his fate is to suffer, and he will inflict that same punishment upon Yui, since her fate is to become broken and damned along with him.

“…─This prediction is absolute.” “……So, wake up…”

Firstly, the line “This prediction is absolute.” could imply that both Reiji and Yui’s fates are “absolute”, they’re established and universally decided upon that this is the path they must both follow. The noun “prediction” carries connotations of both science and philosophy. The first comes from the fact that during an experiment, predictions are made in relation to the outcome - the experiment at hand however, can range from physical chemicals to the inside of someone’s mind. Additionally, “prediction” can also connote to something being prophesied. The inference that I’m trying to make, is that both connotations are linked; though this insinuation is mainly derived from More Blood and Dark Fate due to us learning more about Karlheinz and how he’s monopolised his bloodline. Both Reiji and Yui’s fates have already been decided due to Karlheinz effectively using his sons as ‘experiments’ - therefore, the life that Reiji and Yui are to live has already been predicted; thus, it is “absolute”.

The phrase “wake up” is honestly quite a strange line to include in this song however, it could imply that Yui needs to wake up from the dainty person she was, and accept her fate - a ‘wake up’ call if you will -. Conversely, it also reminds me of a darker theme within dreams, that to ‘die’ (in a dream) is to “wake up”; with that in mind, it could infer that Yui’s past self needs to ‘die’ in order for her to “wake up” and accept who she is now, who she is presently while being under Reiji’s control. No longer is Yui pure and untainted, and so from Reiji’s perspective, she needs to “wake up” from that ‘act’.

“Awaken and become a part of our family.” “In the darkness, unable to see anything, with you…” “…─I want to feel it!”

Following my interpretation that Yui needs to let her past self die in order to “wake up” could link to this section here, and it could imply that Reiji believes that Yui needs to let herself go, let her religion, beliefs and self-worth diminish and die in order for her ‘true’ self to “awaken” - let Reiji remould her to his desire and welcome her ‘retrained’ self into his arms.

We’re brought back to this imagery of darkness, and this imagery could link back to the “dense, black forest” we saw in the beginning, showing the song’s cyclical structure. Much like the beginning, the theme of darkness could infer that Reiji desires Yui to fall from her ‘heavenly grace’ and join him in his misery - “unable to see anything” but despair and longing -. Throughout Reiji’s route, it’s been made clear that Reiji wishes to shatter Yui as a person, and rebuild her to his design; therefore, Reiji wants Yui to fall into despair with him, so that he’s no longer alone in his turmoil. The last line of “…─I want to feel it!” could reinforce this implication, that Reiji wishes to have company in his damnation and he wants to know and feel that every part of Yui belongs to him - from her determination to her compassion, he wants to feel ‘loved’ by her, yet he wants to break her in that process so that she can never escape from his abuse.

A single enraged horn, able to thrust its way up to the heavens Like a chaotically blooming rose, it’s splattered across your face

Here the cyclicity of the song is made clear with the repetition of the chorus - it reinforces Reiji’s desire to corrupt Yui and drag her down to ‘Hell’ with him. Conversely, it may simply be the poetic voice (Reiji) attempting to reiterate a certain point, reflecting the continuing nature of time, entrapment through repetition and re-living events - re-living Yui’s downfall and her entrapment in Reiji’s cruel schemes.

This deep crimson curse is our family’s fate A damned soul, never again to… A damned soul, never again to…

Again, this section is repeated, implying that it’s significant, that Reiji’s “fate” and turmoil is significant - and it is, it’s significant to Karlheinz. Each brother’s fate is significant in one way or another as it all ties into Karlheinz’s ‘plan’, their fates have been preordained; therefore, they’re all “damned souls”, they have been from the beginning and Yui is no exception to this, and I think Reiji knows this. The last line is repeated twice, and contains the same wording and grammar; this gives the impression that the ending is inevitable and nothing can be done to stop it. The sense of repetition created through this element of the structure also creates a sense of hopelessness, reflecting the lack of choices that Yui has in this position and how Reiji will inevitable dictate her entire existence.

“…─Have you understood? Very well, in that case, become mine for all eternity.”

This first line is in fact a rhetoric, Reiji’s not asking a genuine question to Yui, he’s establishing their power dynamic and that she should already know to obey his every whim. He’s patronising her intelligence just like how he does throughout his route - it infers that overall, nothing has changed and Yui is still hopeless and Reiji is still bitter and resentful towards others and towards himself.

The very last line however, displays that even though Reiji is as heinous as they come, he still wishes for Yui’s company while he waits for his “fate” to consume him. The pronoun “mine” shows Reiji’s possessiveness and how he wants Yui’s compassion to himself - implying that she gives him the comfort and ‘love’ he’s so desperately wanted throughout his life. He’s dragged Yui down into the pits of despair and she’s had no choice in whether she wanted that or not, that is her “fate”. Though Reiji’s bitterness may not have changed, and his abuse may not have corroded, this line implies that he wishes to have Yui’s company throughout his misery; to not be completely alone.

To conclude, this song is overall, quite sad and it gives us insight into Reiji’s mind; how he wants to corrupt Yui for his own gain, yet he doesn’t want to lose her company because he doesn’t want to be alone. The song doesn’t justify any of Reiji’s actions towards Yui - instead it shows how cruel he can be - but it also shows just how alone he feels, and by the end of this story’s analysis, the overall feeling that comes to mind, is pity.

Miscellaneous

Basically, everything under this section are just little things that I found in relation to Haunted Dark Bridal that had some analytical potential. They don’t really fit in anywhere else without them extending the sections even more, but I thought it’d be a shame not to mention them - like I said, these small sections are nothing more than little titbits of analysis, since I gather that your brain’s pretty exhausted from reading everything above.

Reiji’s Haunted Dark Bridal Popularity Poll Dialogue:

“I am not particularly interested in winning over the hearts of many. Just a handful of people will do... ...Ah! No, it’s nothing! Besides, I already have my hands full with your training. Well then, hurry over to my room!”

First of all, the notion that Reiji only desires to impress a select few of people could link back to his need to feel wanted and needed by his father - he wants to prove his worth to those he cares about; this can even extend to Beatrix - though she’s dead, her image is still alive within Reiji’s mind, which offers the inference that he’s trying to prove himself to her memory.

The fact that Reiji becomes, almost startled, with his interjection of “Ah! No, it’s nothing! Besides” could show that he’s outputting more information that he normally would to Yui; and by doing so, it would give her more ammunition towards him - by Yui gaining more information about Reiji, it would consequently give her the high ground. We know that Reiji’s talking to Yui here since he diverts the conversation and uses the phrase “your training”, the pronoun “your” relating back to Yui. Reiji cuts the dialogue short and quickly makes Yui the subject, rather than his attitude to people’s thoughts of him - this could imply that Reiji doesn’t like to share his more personal thoughts and feelings with others and the inclination that he states “No, it’s nothing“ could suggest to us that he devalues his emotions. Reiji uses the negator “No” after the first section of dialogue ends, which could imply that he was possibly going to carry on with the theme of opinions yet cut himself short; implying he either realised that he was compromising his strict persona or thought that his feelings weren’t worth being spoken about. When people use the phrase “it’s nothing” in contexts like this, it often means “it’s not worth your concern/attention, don’t worry about it”, and people who tend to be conflict averse or passive use this phrase more than most people as they devalue their own opinions and emotions as to not burden anyone or cause trouble; I think this is what Reiji is doing here, he’s realised that he’s caused intrigue for Yui and so he cuts himself off and devalues what he’s thinking in order to bring the conversational control back to himself - and promptly order Yui around.

Haunted Dark Bridal Official Fan Book:

[ CREATOR’S COMMENT ]

“The second son of the Sakamaki household and Shuu’s younger brother. The most book-smart out of all the brothers. His attitude and speech are careful and polite like those of a butler, but the words that come from his mouth are nothing but harsh insults and condescending remarks.

He establishes a relationship of owner and property between himself and the heroine and forces his own rules upon her.”

There’s not too much to look at here since the comment basically just reinforces the analytical conclusions we’ve already come to - it’s just a nice way to sum up Reiji’s outward behaviour. The second section to this is primarily what I wanted to focus on, but I thought I’d leave this bit in since it’s just a little summary.

[ TASTE CHECK ]

“You sure are thoughtful for a servant, wanting to know my preferences.”

- I will not allow my possession to defy me

- Follow my rules

- Honesty is a must

- I hate lies and excuses

- You can rely on me

“Reiji is the type of person who makes the hierarchy between the two of you very clear, so it’s best to listen to everything he says. Furthermore, avoiding lies and interacting with him in an honest and genuine way is the key to his heart.”

The first few lines of this section emphasise how Reiji views Yui, he sees her as a “servant” and a “possession”, two words that establish a power dynamic - something we see that’s crucial to Reiji as a character, he needs to be the one in control and the one to display dominance; therefore, he views Yui as someone who is beneath him.

Furthermore, this section also induces irony, Reiji desires honesty and detests lies and excuses yet he quite often berates Yui for telling the truth. In some chapters, Yui runs into Shuu by accident, or rather, he trips her up - prolonging her arrival to Reiji’s room - yet when she states what has happened, once she tells the truth, Reiji is quick to dismiss it as an excuse or lie (even though we know as the audience that Yui’s telling the truth). With this in mind, this section offers the implication that Reiji deems anything he doesn’t like to hear as a lie or an excuse - which is an unhealthy way of coping with something that has factored into his abuse so much; it’s an unhealthy way of coping with Shuu and a means to deflect his insecurities - the insecurity that Yui will leave him in favour of his brother, which is something we see during the Ecstasy chapters with Cordelia. However, once Reiji begins to mellow throughout the route, we quickly see him admire Yui’s honesty - which is “the key to his heart“ according to the creator’s note.

The last bullet point of, “You can rely on me” could factor into Yui’s growing co-dependency throughout the Heaven chapters - she’s treated almost like a pet and is expected to be somewhat reliant on Reiji’s lead and his desires. Additionally, this could also infer that Yui is to rely on Reiji emotionally. Throughout Yui’s internal battle with Cordelia, Reiji constantly has Yui’s back, he’s protective and though he may be harsh, Yui is able to rely on him to help her gain her body back, and I think this is what this point means overall - that Yui can emotionally rely on Reiji.

Diabolik Lovers Anime Official Fan Book Interview:

Question 01: Why do you remain so well-mannered even towards a human like Yui?

“Please do not ask me such ridiculous things. It should be obvious. Regardless of whether they are human or not, acting in a bad-mannered way is something only people who lack a proper education do.

Therefore, I maintain a proper attitude towards her, and I am also strictly training her so she can become a proper, well-mannered lady as well.”

Reiji’s answer here provides us with a core aspect to his character - his butler-like manners -. It could be implied that he developed this habit from his mother Beatrix. Beatrix was an only child from a high ranking family; her being an only child means that she had to marry well in order to continue her legacy. Due to her lack of socialisation from being an only child, she can be interpreted to be an awkward person. What I’m bringing awareness to here, is her lack of social skills and choosing to be stern and silent - much like how a butler would behave in the presence of others -. Part of Beatrix’s creator note is that Reiji takes after her “serious personality“; “serious” can connote to a multitude of traits, such as being firm and wholehearted. It can be implied that Reiji observed her behaviour from the flashbacks we see within both Haunted Dark Bridal and More Blood, therefore, it could insinuate that he may have ingrained those behavioural traits in order to garner her affection - to be stern and well-mannered, like a butler - and those traits have followed him into adulthood and play a major part in his internal conflict as well as his abuse, which is why he values it.

Question 04: Well then, teach us your favourite brand of tea cups as well!

“Just as with the tea, I like them all. I change up the tableware depending on my mood as well. Let’s see...If I had to point out similarities between the tea cups I’ve purchased, it would have to be the delicate and beautiful designs. When the cup has lines on it which are even just slightly crooked or don’t look very pretty, it makes me want to break them on the spot.”

The most important aspect of this dialogue, to me, is the last line. The fact that Reiji outright states that anything less than perfection makes him want to break it, and that can link directly to Yui. Yui’s a character who has both a beautiful and delicate nature to her, she’s youthful - which is something most people find beautiful - and she retains a delicate frame and personality, much like the tea cups Reiji is describing. However, her naivety and obliviousness can often irk Reiji, she’s not perfect but she’s not broken; therefore, she is “crooked”, and Reiji in turn wishes to perfect that by breaking her spirit and willpower. In a metaphorical way, it could be inferred that within this section of dialogue, the tea cups represent Yui.

Question 09: How do you feel about Yui?

“She’s still miles away from becoming a proper lady. That’s why I will discipline her until I’m satisfied, turning her into a beautiful woman whom I can show to anyone without having to feel embarrassed. That’s all.”

The most important factor here is that Reiji feels embarrassed by Yui, he feels ashamed and sheepish to show her off. Embarrassment is considered one of the self-conscious emotions, quite at ease in the company of guilt, shame, and pride. Given that embarrassment happens in relation to other people, it is a public emotion that makes you feel exposed, awkward, and filled with regret for whatever your wrongdoing happens to be. Potential negative evaluations concerning standards about actions, thoughts, and feelings that govern our behaviour are at the core of embarrassment and other self-conscious emotions. The experience of embarrassment alerts you to your failure to behave according to certain social standards, which threaten the beliefs you hold concerning how others evaluate you as well as the ways in which you evaluate yourself.

Reiji feels embarrassed to show Yui to anyone since during the majority of his route, she defies everything he strives for - he wants Yui to remain calm, collected, reserved and obedient, whereas the Yui we see is bubbly, naïve, oblivious and determined. By Yui possessing those characteristics, her personality contrasts Reiji’s; therefore, he would feel sheepish to present her to others since she lacks what he desires, she’s not perfect to Reiji’s image and standards for her. By Yui contrasting Reiji so much, he would most likely feel shame alongside embarrassment, not only because of who Yui is, but because of what she is. Throughout the DL lore, we know that humans are nothing but prey to vampires, so by Reiji garnering feelings towards Yui, it defies all social normalities and he would most likely face scrutiny from others and face both internal and external humiliation.

5th Anniversary Character Interview:

Question 09. Tell us your most vivid memory with your brothers!

“When we were still children, there was a time when Kanato escaped the castle and got lost. I had coincidentally headed out that day as well and met up with him. I wonder if he was exhausted, but Kanato complied with my offer and we returned to the castle together. Thinking back to it now, that was the first and last I ever saw of Kanato’s obedient side.”

I wanted to include this section for the simple reason that Kanato listened to Reiji. If you follow Kanato’s route, it’s fairly easy to come to the conclusion that he doesn't really enjoy listening to others no matter what the situation is, he’s erratic and temperamental due to his hysteria. However, the interaction between the two here is rather wholesome, instead of ignoring Kanato like the other brothers would, Reiji takes it upon himself to help him, and what does Kanato do ? He complies and follows Reiji. Kanato’s compliance could simply be due to him being exhausted but I would like to offer the interpretation that both Reiji and Kanato have some unspoken bond between them. I’ve covered this interpretation before throughout the Banquet CD since it alludes to Kanato crying to Reiji to ‘fix’ his problems in the past - not to mention the two outcasts are paired together -. It can even be inferred through their Vol 3 Versus Drama CD: Kanato has a problem and Reiji is the one to deal with it. The main difference between these two points is age - we know that Kanato uses tantrums and blackmail as an adult in order to make Reiji cooperate. However, that sort of behaviour isn’t as prominent in Kanato when he’s younger; therefore, it can be suggested that Kanato would be more inclined to quiet down and be compliant in order to have Reiji resolve the problem - being lost -. This interaction shows that Reiji is willing to help others, he’s younger here and so his façade has most likely not completely formed yet.

I mentioned that there may be some unspoken bond between the two, and that mainly derives from the fact that both Reiji and Kanato are pushed aside and treated like outcasts by their brothers; when this happens, they usually stick together instead of being stubborn and going their own ways. I also wanted to mention that this dialogue is in relation to Reiji’s most vivid memory, “vivid” being the key word. It implies that this memory holds a form of significance to him, and I think that’s in relation to Kanato’s obedience. This memory is the only time Kanato has ever been obedient, and it wasn’t to anyone but Reiji - façade or not, he’s going to feel accomplished by that - hence why it’s vivid and therefore significant.

QUESTION 15. What does she [Yui] mean to you?

"I feel like this is not exactly the type of information I should share with someone else though...Let’s see, I like her quite a bit. While she does often cause me trouble as well, I have learnt to perceive that as part of her charm. However, I do not enjoy how vulnerable she leaves herself, so I’d love for her to be more cautious in that regard. She might think of me as nosy...However, I hope she realises that I am saying it for her own wellbeing. Well, no matter how many times I mention it, it might just be a lost cause.”

This section here is exponentially significant to Reiji’s character and his development. Instead of chastising Yui or opting to degrade her, he chooses to praise her - his words aren’t condescending or rude, they’re genuine. This is significant since it’s just Reiji answering these on his own, Yui herself is not present and with that, Reiji drops his guard and offers more sincere feelings. Reiji states that Yui’s clumsy recklessness is a part of her charm, which could imply that he enjoys the fact that she’s not completely predictable - she’s dedicated and that can sometimes land her in quite a troubling situation but it’s inferred that Reiji admires that or at least finds it endearing.

When Reiji says that he does “not enjoy how vulnerable she leaves herself”, I don’t think that’s in relation to how vulnerable Yui is to Reiji but more so to everyone around her - her obliviousness and naivety leaves her exposed to the other brothers, meaning that Yui’s open to be taken advantage of; and that’s what I think this phrase implies. Reiji’s not being cautious for Yui’s sake, but more for his own - we know that Reiji’s naturally insecure and paranoid, so to have the possibility of Yui preferring Shuu or the others over himself is going to affect him greatly and cause his jealousy to spiral out of control. He doesn’t want Yui to be cautious for her own well being, instead he wants her to be cautious so that her loyalty can fuel his ego and his jealousy can mellow.

Conclusion

To conclude, Reiji appears to be a very complex character, his exposure to forms of abuse such as neglect have led him to harbour envy and resentment yet his status allows him to display a small scale of narcissism. As his route continues, and as his character develops, his insecurities are laid bare for us as the audience and for Yui to see - it’s honestly quite sad that his entire façade was born out of a need to feel loved and wanted. His actions and abuse can never be justified but they can be understood and by delving into his psyche, what we find is just a lonely, bitter man who craves the love and attention he never got. His actions are explainable but they’re not excusable and the abuse he’s inflicted onto Yui is only going to add to his guilt. The actions he takes are nothing short of cruel and sadistic, but underneath all his hate and resentment lies a child who felt abandoned by their family.

[lantsovsupremacist]

nikolai lantsov request of exes to enemies to lovers with angst and fluff (happy ending pls)

blondie writes for nikolai lantsov and him alone. i simply translate! 😉

part 1/2 🧍‍♀️you get happiness later!

nikolai lantsov: sad beautiful tragic

time is taking it’s sweet time erasing you, and you got your demons and darling they all look like me.

cause we had a beautiful magic love there; what a sad, beautiful, tragic love affair.

with footsteps pounding down the stone staircase, you locked your eyes beneath you to avoid falling victim to one of the chipped steps. the tears collecting at the forefront of your irises did little to mitigate the matter. the castle still confused you but as long as you could flee from wherever he was, you would manage. for every passageway you put between yourself and the place you left him you breathed a little deeper.

he did not call after you.

he did not care to fight for you.

he did not want you to come back.

perhaps, you would not have acted any differently, but his actions—or lack there of—still stung immensely. it took no longer than a blink of an eye for him to break your heart. the strong hands that had once held you tore it into two without leaving behind a shred of remorse.

you felt overwhelmed and dizzy. you started to hold your breath in an attempt to delay the sobs smoldering in your throat. any more oxygen and they would surely be set ablaze.

when the door finally closed behind you and things quieted, you allowed yourself to tolerate the tears. how unfortunate it was that you fell apart behind four unfamiliar walls. the room was more of a formality than anything else, given you had not spent a night apart from nikolai. that would all change now, of course.

it had been easy to fool around with sturmhond. you did not have to care if every word he spoke was a lie. you were not responsible for either his feelings or your own. you entertained each other for a time.

a knock came at the door. with your fingertips gripped across the back of a chair, you looked up into the mirror ahead of you. puffy eyes hanging above red and splotchy cheeks reflected back.

“go away.”

ignoring your command, the door swung open.

genya shuffled inside, hands behind her back. you started to cry again. it was not nikolai. your breathing grew despairingly shallow. your mind wanted to forget nikolai, but your heart was crumbling without his other half to support it.

“oh,” she whispered, immediately beginning to wring her hands at her sides, “oh, honey.”

your chest battled gravity as it rose up and down repeatedly, “he doesn’t want me anymore.”

genya sunk down on her knees alongside you, bringing a quick arm around your shoulder. she brought your hair behind you shoulders and wiped the tears that had already fell. with furrowed eyebrows, she brought a hand to your wrist. stroking her finger over your pulse point, you began to find yourself relaxing your breathing. she kissed the top of your head, a spot where a crown might have one day rested.

“nikolai is foolish and confused,” genya comforted you, “i think he wants you more than anything else, so much so that he doesn’t know what to do.” a sad smile lined her features, exposing a dimple just beneath one of her scars.

“so many people want him,” you began, rising from the ground with a sniffle, “the entirety of ravka depends on him, and i’m just me.”

“i happen to believe he’ll disagree,” she offered, “i know i certainly do.”

genya sighed, tugging on your elbow with a nod to the door. you tried to dig your heels into the floor, but she guided you elsewhere. you allowed her to carry you forward.

“don’t take me to him,” you hiccuped, “please, genya.”

“no,” she refuted, “you’re not leaving it like this.”

“he did,” you whimpered, finally tugging your hand out of her grasp, “why shouldn’t i?”

“because you either have to let him keep your heart or make him give the other half back.” her words were even and carefully considered.

—

genya disregarded the royal guards. you followed behind her, sparing them a single glance. they settled back into place. you almost laughed. you had become such a permanent fixture of nikolai’s life that his guards relented to genya barging in because of your presence.

nikolai was slouched in a chair, appearing rather exhausted. his hair hung a mess over his eyes. you bit your lip at the sight of his leg bouncing restlessly.

genya sent him a look more threatening than you would have ever been able to accomplish in your current state. he caught himself before he could roll his eyes or argue, unwilling to sacrifice a member of the triumvirate. you supposed he could simply justify your loss as collateral damage.

your eyes trailed genya’s form until she departed entirely from your view. only then, did you dare take nikolai in fully. he looked about as awful as he had made you feel.

“you didn’t come after me,” you phrased your words as a question, begging him to answer.

he shifted, leaning back in his chair to look up at you, “i didn’t want to.” it left you looking down at him.

you breathed out in disbelief, shaking your head at his tone. he knew exactly what he was doing to you. you wanted to rip your heart away from him. maybe if you cut away the remaining strings, he would not be able to control you like he did now.

“what if i wanted you to?” your voice increased an octave, clattering against the walls as an echo.

a scoff left his mouth as he resigned to engage in the breakdown of another fight, “it wouldn’t have mattered. you wouldn’t have listened to me.” before you could respond, he spoke up again, “i don’t have to follow after you.”

you shifted your gaze to the glass of water on his desk. no matter the desperation building in your chest, you wanted to feel angry, instead. it was easier to manage. so, you lashed out at him. building the water pressure in the lone glass, you watched it shatter on his desk and saturate the paperwork.

“missed me,” he mumbled wearily.

feeling like a child, you stomped your foot and sent the water to splash against his face. it dripped past his lips—a sight you chose to ignore, lest it elicit a response rather inappropriate for the current circumstances. they caught in a smile as he laughed bitterly, bringing his hands across his mouth.

“i told you i would marry you,” nikolai pressed onward carelessly, running a hand through his hair as if to dismiss your actions, “certainly not my fault you said no, now is it?”

“because it sounded like something you’d resigned to accept! something that had to be done!” the words tore through your throat painfully, “it should be a privilege. it should be love.”

you detected the exact moment he comprehended the final line. he straightened and swallowed harshly. nikolai lantsov looked inexplicably afraid.

“it should be love?” he questioned quietly. now, he was angry and afraid. you knew it to be a fragile but dangerous combination.

“you assume marriage is enough for me,” your voice grew louder, daring him to fight, “marriage won’t make you love me again, nikolai lantsov.”

“you’re putting words in my mouth!” the fervor in his voice did not go unnoticed.

“someone has to,” a moment of silence passed, “you haven’t talked to me in weeks,” you clung to a whisper, “not really.”

you watched his eyes carry themselves across the room. you cursed your heart for hoping they would find land in you. they kept searching elsewhere, drifting further out to sea.

“again?” his voice was broken.

“what?” you questioned, clearing your throat as the sudden shame washed over you for barging in on the king.

“you said marriage wouldn’t make you love me again,” he dared a step closer, “have you stopped loving me?”

you took a trembling step back from him with your heart beating erratically inside your chest. you could not find the control to move your fingers, not even to curl them into reluctant fists. suddenly, everything felt heavy, and you did not want to carry the weight alone.

“i don’t know, nikolai,” you answered somewhat truthfully, unable to gather an honest answer.

“i suppose that’s fair,” he relented.

“i suppose it is,” you whispered with a frown.

you turned to leave after a moment, taking his soundless stance as an indication of retreat.

“you broke my heart,” nikolai realized aloud, hands deep in his pockets as he stared at you.

“yeah well,” he titled his head at you, “you broke mine first,” you spoke coldly, hardening yourself to ice against his warm body.

taking a step away from him, you gasped as his hand found your jaw. although his grip was firm, you refused to melt at his feet. you did not belong to the whim’s of nikolai lantsov’s heart any longer.

“i’m leaving you, nikolai,” you stuttered out as you backed away, gasping at the shiver in your chest enacted by his touch.

his jaw tightened, “you can’t.” his voice was a ghost of a severe whisper, and you knew it would haunt you forever.

“i have to,” you spoke clearly.

“i-,” he fumbled fervently for any semblance of conviction or persuasion, “you can’t leave me.” he had ran out of personas to pull you in with.

“i already have,” you granted him a final look out of pity before you left his room behind and with it, his wavering silhouette.

[mystic-deep]

“You don’t know how to beg, darling.” part 2 | Nanami Kento x fem!reader

♡ ♡ ♡ description: Moving to your dream home had been more difficult than you had expected. Everything seems so be going well, until you get a surprise guest.

♡ ♡ ♡ warnings: nsfw, fingering, rough kissing, penetration, shower sex

♡ ♡ ♡ notes: part two is here! hope you guys enjoy it, I know I did while writing it haha and as always it's not proofread so please show mercy.

♡ ♡ ♡ part one here:  “You don’t know how to beg, darling.”

♡ ♡ ♡ word count: 3.3 k

“It’s not too big but it’s not too small, and property is selling like crazy in this neighborhood, so I think you’re making a great investment!”

The real estate agent pulled in front of a modest looking house and offered you a hopeful grin. It had been almost a month since you were house hunting and nothing really fit with what you were looking for. Your dream home was proving to be quite an impossible task – either the property was good but it was too far from the beach, or the property was right on the beach but the house was a disaster. The ones that hurt the most? The houses that were just right but they were over budget.

“I don’t know, I’m not impressed.”

With pursed lips, you stepped out of the car and looked at the exterior wall of the house that clearly needed some good repairs. As you followed the agent through the metal gate and into the front garden, you had to admit that it at least had some nice flower arrangements and sturdy trees offered a pleasant shade.

“It has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a small study, a large kitchen equipped with all the newest gadgets, a garage and quite a cozy living room.”

As you stepped inside you had to admit that it looked much better that what the exterior had promised. The rooms were spacious enough, the main bedroom having a nice view of the beach and the kitchen was indeed equipped with everything you’d want a modern kitchen to have.

It might not have been perfect, there was definitely work to be done and the furniture it came with was hideous, but so far it was the best you’ve seen. However, just like you expected, it was over budget.

Sensing your indecisive state, like any good agent would, the young woman pushed you from behind towards the terrace. “Oh, but I haven’t showed you the best part yet!”

You gasped, you just stood there like an idiot and gasped as you stepped out on the terrace and looked straight at the sea in front of you. Forget being near the beach, you were literally on the beach! There was a small wooden trail leading to the golden sand and the blue waves, just a minute walk and you’d be submersed in the cool water.

“Imagine waking up to this every morning and imagine reading a book and drinking a glass of wine as the sun sets.” The devil on your shoulder, that’s what it felt like as she whispered almost seductively in your ear. You were impressed with her skill though - she definitely left the best part for last just to give it that wow factor.

Still, it was a going to drain almost all of your economies and - “The beach in front is private, you own it.”

“Where do I sign?”

The agent gave you a tight hug, more than happy to finally be rid of you, and dashed to the car where she happened to have a bottle of champagne prepared for the wonderful occasion. You thought to yourself that she either was so confident in her skills that she will convince you to buy this house, or prepared to get drunk after yet another failed attempt.

You looked back at the incredible blue sea and took a deep breath. It was scary, it was right down terrifying to jump head on into the unknown and with no current financial stability. You still had a regular income from your previous job since your boss pretty much refused to let you go, but you had half of your responsibilities and obviously half the salary. You would be on a tight budget for the next few months, you had to see if the house needed any immediate repairs and you had to redecorate everything inside.

“And when will your husband be joining you?”

You were brought back to the harsh reality by the excited voice of the young woman who was now pouring the cheap champagne in plastic glasses.

“Soon…he still has some things he needs to take care of back home.”

Your heart began to tighten in your chest as your thumb gently rubbed the golden ring on your index finger. You were so used to wearing it that you simply put it on every morning like routine. When asked, you told everyone that you were still married because you felt you would be safer that way and because, technically, you still were.

After your last exchange of messages Nanami had not contacted you once. He didn’t sign the divorce papers and you were starting to think that hiring a lawyer just seemed inevitable at this point. You had been so caught up with the moving and the house hunting that you just pushed it in the back of your mind like some trivial matter that you’ll take care of once you got around.

“Well I’m sure he’s just going to love your new home! Here’s to a happy family!”

You took a sip from the champagne glass, quickly spitting the liquid back before the agent could see you, and looked outside the window. Family…you felt like you were a long way from achieving that, but owning your very own little piece of heaven in Malaysia sure made things easier.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

With a sigh you pulled the phone away from your ear as the whimpers of your boss were now scratching your eardrums. “No, I’m not coming back, we’ve talked about this hundreds of times already. Also, please stop crying.”

“And I’m telling you that you’ve offered them too much for such a small quantity of products. Last year when we made the purchase we offered them 30% less, what made them spike the prices so high this time around?” You poured the fresh coffee in your favorite mug and skillfully avoided stepping on your cat as you moved to place it on a tray.

“The bad economy has affected everyone not just them.” You propped your phone between your shoulder and your ear as you dropped a tablespoon of sugar in the coffee and began to stir. “Tell them that you’re going to offer them 10% more than what we offered last year and only if they increase the batch by 20%.” Your eyes narrowed slightly as you placed a book on the tray and a freshly baked pain au chocolat. “What do you mean what are you going to do with the rest of the products? Sell them to your competitors at double the price. Have I taught you nothing?”

Several minutes later, after somewhat managing to calm down the older man, you strolled down the wooden path to the beach where a large folding chair and a small table were waiting for you. You placed the tray on the table, sat down and took in the wonderful view in front of you. The weather outside was perfect and you decided to wear just a light summer dress that was slightly transparent.

You took a sip from your coffee and opened your book, deciding that this was a day for lazing around. It had been more than a month since you’ve finally finished with all the repairs and decorations but it was worth the long wait. Everything looked just perfect now, you had flexible working hours and you even managed to adopt a stray cat.

Yes, everything was perfect, everything was going great.

“Took me forever to find you.”

You looked up from your book and blinked once, blinked twice, and still couldn’t believe what you were seeing. There, hovering above you, stood Nanami with his blond hair and sharp blue eyes, with his sand colored pants and his white shirt with the sleeves pulled up to his elbows, the golden band of the wedding ring shinning in the sun.

“What…How…When…” You didn’t even know how to phrase your shock. A part of you was hoping that you were hallucinating.

“It took me forever to convince your mother to talk to me. Then probably just as long to get her to tell me where you were. She’s not really good at remembering small details so she had no idea what your house looked like.” He huffed in annoyance before plopping down on the sand by your side. “Took me awhile to find the house.”

“How did you get in?”

“Strangely enough she remembered perfectly where the spare key was.” Betrayed by my own mother, you thought bitterly.

“Why are you here, Nanami?”

“Not Kento? From what I remember, you’re Nanami too.”

Your face began to burn with anger and sensing that you were on the verge of exploding, he quickly fished out of his pocket a folded paper.

“I’m not here to fight, I just came to give you this.” You took the piece of paper with trembling hands and opened it. The divorce papers, and they were signed. Finally, your marriage was over.

“You could have just mailed them to me.”

“I didn’t come all the way here just to hand you the papers, I also wanted to talk. You owe me that much after pulling that disappearing act.”

Your first intention was to protest, then again maybe listening to him rather than fighting back would make things end quicker. You offered him a little nod to continue.

“I don’t have excuses for cheating on you. No one seduced me, I searched for someone to bend to my will and I found her quickly. I wanted to feel needed…no, I wanted to feel like I was dominating.” His eyes looked down to his hands almost in shame. “You were working so hard, you were so ambitious, it felt like you could truly achieve our dream…while I had so little hope it was possible, it felt like you would leave me behind.”

You listened attentively to every word, trying your best not to let the anger get to you. Just bear with it, let him say whatever will make him feel better and then you won’t have to see him ever again. Although, now that he was in front of you, that thought was turning to be hell.

“I was jealous, I was jealous of the fact that I was no longer your priority. I feared the day you’d realize you didn’t really need me and that you could achieve everything by your own.”

“So you’ve cheated on me and said all those cruel things because you were insecure?” Your eyes became watery as your hands curled in tight fists. “Is this all you had to say? Because I think I’ve heard enough.”

“I’m sorry, y/n. I’m sorry for the pain I’ve caused, I’m sorry for not being strong enough to make our dream come true. That day when you left me was also the day I ended my affair. If I could…but I can’t, so I guess that yeah, that’s all I had to say.”

He stood up and gently patted his pants to get rid of the sand before looking at you.

“For all it’s worth, I really like the house and I like the cat and-” His eyes traveled to your chest that was covered by the thin white material of the dress. “-I definitely like this dress.”

Your cheeks turned pink and your arms quickly went to cover the skin that felt so exposed. Taking advantage of your distraction, he reached for your legs and lifted you up, carrying you princess style, and began to walk towards the sea.

“W-What are you doing?”

You were met with silence as Nanami continued his march unbothered by your kicking and screaming.

“Wait! The water is pretty cold!” Despite your protest, he entered the icy blue water, trying his best to hide the little winces every time a small wave hit him.

“Nanami, if you drop me, I swear-”

“I thought you wanted me to let you down.”

“Oh you’ve let me down plenty of times already.”

With a small glare, he retrieved his arm making you fall unceremoniously in the cold water. You let at a shriek and realized in horror that the divorce papers that you were holding were now being washed away by the sea.

“Oh no, how very tragic.” Nanami’s smirk and sarcasm were the last straw, and you plunged yourself at him, knocking him down in the shallow water.

His eyes grew large and tried to fight you as you straddled him and pinned his arms above his head.

“Move.” His voice was low and dangerous but the adrenaline pumping in your veins made you immune.

“You don’t know how to beg, darling.” There were a series of emotions flashing in his eyes, from shock, to anger, to amusement and finally…sadness.

“But if I learn, will you take me back?”

You looked at him and time just seemed to stop. Right here, this moment, this bickering and playing in the water, this half wet half disheveled man, the way he looked at you, your clothes wet and sticking to your skin, sticking to each other…it was perfect.

Your lips crushed on his in a hungry kiss and he eagerly retuned it. With a quick movement, he wrapped his arm around your waist and lifted your body along with his. Effortlessly, you thought as you your legs wrapped around his waist and let yourself be carried inside the house.

“Bedroom.” You motioned to the small stairs that ledmk to the first floor and he pretty much jogged towards the room, all the while maneuvering splendidly your excited cat that thought it was time to play.

He closed the door behind you before his hand reached for the back of your head and pulled you in for another deep kiss. You both began to shiver, probably from the excitement of finally touching each other for so long but also because you were wet from head to toe.

“Undress.” He pulled slightly away and began to unbutton his shirt, his eyes never leaving you.

“You’re pretty monosyllabic today.” You ignored his annoyed expression and focused on removing your dress, but your hands froze on the waistband of your panties.

What were you doing? Was this enough? Was this all it took for you to forgive him and welcome him back with opened arms?

“I’ll help you remove these.” With a quick movement, he pulled down the piece of lingerie and tossed it on the ground where the rest of the clothes were. You didn’t even realize when he had backed you against the wall, but now here you were, trapped like last time, the only difference was that now you were both very much naked.

He was so close to you that your perked nipples were softly brushing against his bare chest. Slowly, he let his hand travel between your thighs and began to rub gently with his thumb. You inhaled deeply and looked down at his cock, hard and swollen and begging for attention. You wrapped your small hand around it and gave it a few gentle strokes, noticing how his brows began to furrow and sweat began to form on his forehead.

He was hard and more than ready to have you against the wall, and as his finger travelled to your folds, he realized you were wet and needy and more than ready to be taken.

Just as you were anticipating his fingers to enter you, he pulled away and took a few steps back. You were left there, the light of the morning sun shining on your naked body and looked at him in a quizzical way.

“Beautiful…you’re just so damn beautiful.” Your face felt red and hot and the lack of his touch made your body shiver.

Noticing your state, Nanami gently took your hand and guided you both to the bathroom, turning on the shower before letting you step inside.

You left out a sigh as the hot water washed over your skin and glanced over your shoulder as Nanami stepped inside as well, one hand resting on the shower tiles while the other rested on your hip.

“Hard and fast.” He whispered in your ear as you felt the tip of his cock probing at your entrance. “Hard and fast and then I promise…I’ll make it slow and good for you.” With that he entered you with a deep thrust and you let your head fall back in a silent scream.

He wasn’t joking when he said hard and fast, his hips were snapping into you at such a pace you were seeing stars. Your hands fell on the wet tiles, trying to hold your body from collapsing. It had been too long for the both of you so you understood the urgency of fucking you so intensely.

His hand travelled to your clit and began to rub it vigorously, making all your body tremble from head to toe. “Oh! K-Kento!”

“So we’re back to Kento now?”

You turned your head to look at him and arched a brow. “Do you want me to call you ‘daddy’?”

He pinched your clit hard and rubbed your left nipple with little mercy. “Would you like to call me that, princess?” His hand left your clit and landed a slap against your ass. “Although, I suggest next time you put a little more effort into it, just to avoid punishment.” He was grinning from head to toe, the damn bastard was enjoying every single second of this teasing.

Your mouth opened in order to argue back but you let out a loud moan as he began to push himself inside of you even deeper. So close, you were so close and he was hitting just that right spot. The warm water was falling on your already hot skin, the slaps that his hips made against your body were making lewd sounds that filled the whole bathroom, everything was foggy and your mouth felt dry.

“Fuck, I’m so close-” You could hear him mumble some other words but you were so far gone at this point that the only thing that you could concentrate on was your inevitable soul shattering climax.

“Oh god, please, please, Kento, I’m almost, I’m-” You let out a scream as you came around his swollen cock, nearly collapsing in the process. With his hand tightly fixated on your hips, Nanami slowed down for a moment, letting you regain some kind of composer before returning to a fast pace. You were so wet, you were squeezing him so tightly, your little moans and whimpers sent vibrations to his lower stomach, making him shiver.

“You’re just so perfect, my love. You’re always just so perfect for me to fuck.” A few more thrusts and his hands gripped with such force at your hips that you were sure he left bruises. You didn’t care at the very least, not when your husband had just let out the most primal growl you ever heard him making and his cock filled your hole with his delicious hot cum.

You both just stood there for a few seconds, your forehead resting on the slightly cool tile while Nanami kissed your shoulders before finally pulling out of you.

“Now that hard and fast is over…when am I getting slow and good?”

“Always so greedy.” He let out a light chuckle before pressing a soft kiss on your lips. “I love you.” Just like that, he let the words roll out of his mouth with such ease and looked at you with complete adoration.

“I love you too.” You turned around and let your hands gently caress his cheeks, the happiness of being able to say these words again making you feel light as a feather.

“Good, I’ll need you to love me a lot. There will be plenty of other ‘hard and fast’ sessions before this day is over.” And for once, you didn’t open your mouth to argue.

[yuraimi-lee-bunny]

GRAY’S CHARACTER ANALYSIS PART III. AMNESIA AND IT’S FUTURE CONSEQUENCES

Hello! Once again: sorry for the lateness 8'D. My work, some illustrations and personal matters have slowed me down again. The good thing is that there is nothing that can be intervened and this week I will be able to go faster with the writing of my analysis. Thank you very much for the continued support you have given to the previous two parts, and I hope you like this one too!

PS: My analysis will continue as normal, I will not mention anything about the recent interview with the show runner of the series. Perhaps that will be done at the end of the analysis or a separate post, by the time Gray's analysis is complete. Besides that I have already been giving my views on what Duane said about Gray. For the moment I just want my analysis to be about everything that I captured and analyzed before the interview.

Here we go!

Goodbye (for now) to Gray/Crackle, and let's say hi to Graham!

As we know, Crackle had all his VILE-related memories erased, and he’s now a happy civilian at his previous job as an electrician at the Sydney Opera House. On a mission to Australia, Carmen finds him but he doesn't recognize her.

Carmen doesn’t understand how it happened and why VILE did it, but for his sake, she prefers to get away from her, because she doesn’t want to complicate the new beginning that Gray/Graham has now in her life.

To be honest, I don't have much to analyze in depth about Gray in these chapters where he has amnesia, even so, there are several points to highlight about him that speak more about his personality in this episode:

1.- When he taking out Carmen with her phrase "No wristband, no backstage access", I think I can safely say that he’s committed to his job, whatever it is. (as an electrician and also a VILE agent)

2.- He has great self-confidence and temperance for having invited Carmen for a coffee, a girl he barely knew but who shows that he has a slight attraction for her.

3.- Well, let's say that this confirms that he likes to be somewhat "naughty" and daring with his actions.

4.- I may be exaggerating here, but I think that with the previous points that I have said, this can also count: It seems that Gray is a punctual person. He arrived before Carmen. (He’s very punctual or he was very excited about the "date")

Ep.6 S1 served as a small introduction by Gray, or rather now Graham, of how now he has amnesia, he doesn't remember anything about VILE, or Carmen, a whole year "disappeared", as well as the decision of Carmen about being away from Gray so as not to complicate his life. Leaving a slight reminder of "you'll still see him again" for us.

Which did happen, in Ep.7 of S2. In addition to the fact that again there are some data that show about his personality, this time the episode left some clues that it was happening to him and the future that would hold him in the following seasons.

1.- It seems that he was serious that this place is his favorite coffee shop, and it seems that he likes coffee.

2.- That tranquility is to be admired. The girl he invited for coffee who looked like she had dumped him, and there wasn’t a hint of anger/resentment/indignation in him. Again, like when they first met: as if nothing had happened. I love that about him. And he continues to correct Carmen about his name. He is Graham, not Gray (not Crackle). It seems somehow that he cares about being told by his respective name, as if the subject of his "identity" is important to him. We will move on to that later.

3.- Can we look this screenshot for a moment, please? Leaving aside the “Red Crackle” feeling that can emerge at this time for many (myself included), I want to talk about the fact that there continues that communication with only the look that they have always had.

The first two chapters of the series showed you several scenes of how Carmen and Gray just by looking at each other communicated what they thought, they knew they wanted to say to each other. I mention this because to me, these glances between them were purposely done with the following objective: Yes, Gray will have had his VILE memories suppressed, but body memory is another matter, the subconscious is something that NOBODY can handle or manipulate. Gray's body responded to Carmen's glances subconsciously, the body responded because of body memory, because it already has that mechanism in the presence of Carmen.

4.- There is a theory/belief that a few weeks ago they shared which if I can believe it 50/50 because it sounds valid. In summary. Since Gray is an orphan, Carmen knew that by mentioning that she runs an international charity for abandoned children, he would not refuse. Because she knows he's an orphan, and it seems that somehow, Gray has had a mark on it. She left you the link.

5.- Again, maybe I'm exaggerating, b Gray/Graham seems to have very good manners.

6.- He likes Rock. (And before I thought it was a slight preview of Carmen's next cappers, but it was only an idea *sobbing*)

7.- 

This scene causes me a little laugh because of a personal event and because it shows an interesting side of Gray/Graham: 

- Personal event: Several friends and I were watching the episodes of the second season on the day of its premiere, when arriving at this scene, a friend said "Well of course, he will have amnesia but he isn’t stupid" I laughed uncontrollably, and in part, he had a bit of reason.

- This scene in addition to putting tension at the moment because Graham did something that wasn't in Carmen's plans, it shows how Gray/Graham is someone who needs answers/explanations when he something doesn't understand, or when he thinks they lied to him and he just goes to look for them. Because if he were too passive or behaved, he would have stayed to follow orders. Another thing he could do is just make judgments from his perspective, regardless of reality. But no, he stood up, and he couldn't wait another second for the answers. The truth is something that matters to him. And I think he's also somewhat rebellious. He makes sense because throughout the series it's noticed as if he wants/needs something, certainly does what he needs to do. I consider him too independent and confident that he can achieve it.

8.- His peculiar expression of surprise: Crikey.

9.- Another reminder that  his subconscious and unconscious have memories of what he lived in VILE.

10.- Beautiful Red Crackle scenes that in addition to adding feeling, actually matter a lot for Gray / Crackle's empathy in the future, but that will be for part 4 of the analysis.

11.- 

…Seriously Gray? EXCUSE ME Graham. SERIOUSLY? You fell, you could have hit severely or even broken something, Carmen cares about you, and instead of saying "I'm fine" do you say "It's Graham"?! ... Seriously he cares a lot about the name and identity.

As you can see, in this episode there was more about Gray and his personality, but it also hinted that there are still vestiges of memories in the back of his mind of that year in VILE and of having been Crackle. It's very curious about how Graham trusts Carmen so much, I think I know the reasons behind it, the first is because he has an attraction towards Carmen, but the most important are two: the first is because he already knows more about her, because Carmen had the confidence to ask him for help in one of his missions and to tell him in some way what she does. The second reason, again: his subconscious. As I mentioned in the previous analysis parts, Gray appreciated Carmen very much, and although before he could mistake it as "loyalty" and see her as her family, he still appreciated her very much. Her subconscious, her body, her instinct is still there, so I don't hesitate to defend her when she was in trouble with Neel. (His desire to help Carmen was greater than the "great memory and liking" he previously had for Crackle Rod.)

And well, now, let's move on to two last things before ending this episode:

1.- ACME is targeting Gray. Once again, we were told that it would not be the last time we would see him. More events awaited him.

2.-

This phrase left me so thoughtful when I watched it. It left me thinking TOO MUCH.

It left me pondering that phrase so much because I didn't understand why that mattered so much to him. We talked about how Gray/Crackle came into VILE, he agreed to be a villain, he basically agreed to be "bad guy" And now that he has amnesia, he cared about being on the right side. Which I didn't understand because Crackle's memory had been "erased". He had only "eliminated" him the whole year that he lived in VILE, just that. Doing that doesn't change his morale, because Gray had already arrived at the "Vocational School" with his morale of wanting to steal, he was already ambitious before joined to VILE. Which had me very intrigued, believing that something had happened to Graham, in that period of his "normal life" that had made him reconsider his morals and that now he wanted to do something good. I expected everything, whatever, except the change in morals. And so, wild first 5 minutes from S4 comes...

... are you telling me that EVERYTHING Gray thought, did and said in his state of amnesia... WERE LIES!?

I really couldn't believe it and that puts an absolutely huge twist on Gray's arc. Although my boyfriend and I are with a certain difference in perspective to what Maelstrom said:

When he mentioned “suppress the criminal impulse” to me he meant that VILE changed his morale, that they basically took away that “evil impulse” so that he wouldn’t be caught again by the law should it happen at some point. Ensuring that with memory removed and morale changed, VILE was safe.

My boyfriend on the other hand, interpreted it that they only took away the "desire to steal", nothing more. His morals, his beliefs, everything about him remains the same, except wanting to steal or do something criminal. Believing that in reality, Gray is a good person, since before entering VILE.

The perspective of my boyfriend is interesting to me and that is why I want to share it, to know what you think, and also mentioned it because this perspective will be taken up again in part 4 of the analysis.

And here concludes the third part! I hope you liked it. Parts 4 and 5 will be a bit long because it’s the most dense and symbolic part of Gray to analyze, but at the same time, they will come out on time faster, it may be that in the following week both parts are ready and published.  Regards!

Part. I Introdution

Part. II Empathy vs Ambition 

Part. III Amnesia and it’s Future Consequences (HERE)

Part. III.5 Graham Calloway: The Walking Enigma

Part. IV Integrity At a high (and unfair) price

Part. V The final decision and a new beginning

Plus 1. Gray and his strange habit of explaining things

Plus 2. Crossover: Sabrina And Gray: New Beginning

Plus 3. Crossover: Hawk/Eli and Crackle/Gray: Redemption

[taexual]

i’d love you to stay but that’s simply insane // JJK (12)

   jungkook is an uncontrollable lead vocalist of the campus band, and you’re a goal-oriented top student that’s known his rich and complicated family since childhood. you don’t want anything to do with each other, until each other is exactly what you want to do.

pairing: jeon jungkook x reader

genre: college au

warnings: jealous & possessive!jungkook vs. reader who won’t take his shit

words: 8.8k (whoops)

    chapter twelve

Your roommate refused to hide her surprise when you told her you were going to the Parental Advisory party with Jungkook. She couldn’t come with the two of you because she was going to visit her parents this weekend, but the disappointment of missing the party did not overshadow her excitement about you going there with Jungkook.

“Don’t blow this out of proportion,” you pleaded – for the three-hundredth time that evening – unable to relate to her joy. “We won’t be there long, so it doesn’t—”

“It’s your first public date,” Inna spoke—very ceremoniously—as she dug around your closet, convinced that her duty as your roommate was to choose an outfit for you, even if she was the only person – aside from you and Jungkook – who knew that this was all pretend. “Everyone will have their jaws on the floor when they see you arrive together anyway, but a good outfit might just make you feel less self-conscious.”

You had many objections but, knowing that Inna was running short on time before her bus arrived, you chose to only argue about the things that you could have changed her mind about.

“I don’t think it matters what I wear,” you said, your arms crossed over your chest as you watched the several pairs of tights and sweatpants fly out of the closet in reckless abandon as Inna looked for a gold mine. “I’m going to be uncomfortable anyway.”

You couldn’t see her when she had her head in the pile of your clothes, but her voice made the smirk on her lips obvious, “I’m sure he will find a way to make you feel more comfortable there.”

“We’ll only stay there for a little bit,” you said. “We were supposed to return here later. Although, I’m not sure if that’s still happening.”

“Oh!” Inna jumped up, momentarily forgetting about her stylist career. She wasn’t just smirking anymore, she was full-on grinning now, teeth and all. “So, you’ll be coming back to your place later? That calls for a whole different outfit.”

You didn’t realize what she was implying right away.

“We—what do you—oh,” you said, her words hitting you with a wave of hotness that forced your hands to guard your flushed face from her. “Inna, no. You know I don’t like those parties, we just agreed to go there for a little bit, and then watch a movie or something back here.”

“Right, of course,” she nodded and you thought she was relenting but, really, you should have known better as she teased, “that’s why they call it Netflix and Chill, babe.”

“I know you can’t see my eyes,” you said, your hands still on your face, “but I’m glaring at you right now.”

“Here,” she said, picking up a black off-the-shoulder blouse and a velvet burgundy mini skirt – you’d bought them both when you and Inna had lunch at the mall on your first weekend on campus and you hadn’t worn the outfit once – and tossing it for you right as you peeked at her through the gaps between your fingers. The blouse hit you in the chest but you caught it before it fell to the floor. “Now is the perfect time to wear this.”

She didn’t hide the offense in her voice – she was the one who had picked the skirt out for you – as she was evidently still bitter that you’d never even tried it on, aside from that one time in the changing room.

“I thought I’d just go in a sweater,” you said – which was very bold, considering that Inna looked ready to tackle you for wasting her time – and then lamely tried to explain your reasoning, “it’s chilly today.”

“You’ll wear that,” she ordered with an aggressive nod at the clothes in your hands, “and if you’re cold, you’ll ask Jungkook for his jacket.”

“What if he doesn’t wear a jacket?”

“Then you’ll ask for his shirt,” she said and smiled at her own impressive wit. “A win-win situation, really.”

You were going to protest again and Inna knew it, too, so, before you could even open your mouth, she closed the door of your closet – as much as the haphazardly thrown clothes allowed it to close – and stood facing you, her arms crossed and legs parted in a threatening manner.

“Put it on,” she demanded. “I will not leave until I know you’re going to that party in something that’s not sweats. If I miss my bus, it’s on you.”

Inna did not miss her bus – but barely, as she jumped around your dorm for ten minutes straight, in awe over how perfectly the skirt she’d picked out fit you and how “fascinating” (that one’s a direct quote) it made your legs look – and, then, before you knew it, you were waiting for Jungkook to come pick you up all by yourself.

You felt nervous. Granted, you’d felt somewhat worried the whole day today – which wasn’t very unusual, you liked to get your worrying started in advance – but, with Inna here, you’d held yourself together. Now your hands shook—trembled, really—as you sprayed some perfume on your wrists before rubbing them together.

Many things about tonight bothered you: you didn’t want to put up an act for half of the campus – especially not for the people who cared about Jungkook so much, they screeched and ran in the opposite direction when he crashed his car – and you also didn’t want to have to deal with whatever consequences the combination of alcohol and Jungkook would bring.

The first time you saw him drunk, he drove into a pole. The second time – he went home with a different girl, nevermind that he may have been looking for you. You were afraid that the third time could have been the charm – one last hurrah before something finally put an end to your friendship.

But most of all, you were afraid of you and him being there together, because your last conversation hadn’t exactly gone smoothly and now you didn’t know what to expect.

At first, you were almost looking forward to tonight as much as Inna was, especially since Jungkook was ready to leave the party early so you could spend some time together in a place where you felt more comfortable. But then he seemed to take all of his words back with one single phrase.

The only thing that “really mattered” about you and him, was that his parents believed you were together.

You always considered the worst case scenarios – just to prepare yourself – but they seemed limitless tonight as you weren’t sure what to make of his words and which side of him to prepare for: the side that did want to spend time with you and wasn’t afraid to say so, or the other side.

But you wouldn’t have had the time to prepare for tonight even if you did know what to expect; Jungkook -- and all of his sides -- was already here.

When the knock came, you needed at least half a minute to calm your breathing before you finally felt collected enough to open the door.

“Hey,” Jungkook said as soon as he heard the lock turn, sounding out of breath as if he’d ran all the way up the stairs. “Your RA—not a very nice guy—didn’t want me to come in—had to—”

“You ran away from him?” you asked, opening the door properly so he could come inside before the RA came running after him. However, with the door fully open, your outfit was suddenly in full-view for Jungkook and he froze, his breath catching in his throat.

“I—oh, you look really, uh, g-great,” he said, lifting his eyes back to your face – as if to check if this was really you – before sliding them down your body again in a way that you’ve never seen him do before. It didn’t mean that he’d never checked you out before – because, oh, he had – you were just never aware of it. “The dark colors go really well with—well, everything.”

“Thanks,” you said, crossing your arms as you moved to a side. You wanted to give him a compliment in return but could not find the words because the black cargo pants and the ripped jean jacket he’d worn tonight was not much different from any other outfit he’d worn before, and yet, you still hard a hard time looking away. “Come in while I grab my bag.”

“Oh, yeah, sure, of course,” he slipped inside, eyes still on you – his feet tripping over the threshold just slightly – as he closed the door after himself.

You walked over to your bed to grab your phone with the intention of putting it in the handbag that you had thrown over the open door of your bedroom. But when you turned around, phone in hand, Jungkook was standing right in front of you and your nose almost smashed right into his chest.

“Oh,” you blinked, the close proximity nearly throwing you off balance and Jungkook’s hands were already reaching for your waist to steady you on your feet.

You swore you would have suffocated if he’d touched you right then but he realized he’d entered your personal space as soon as he felt your shaky breath wash off on his own face.

In his defense, he’d only walked so near because the smell of your perfume pulled him in – he didn’t mean to cross any boundaries – but, standing so close, he could see the alarm in your eyes. Clearing his throat, he took a step back and gave you an encouraging smile as you slowly walked past him.

He tried not to think of the expression on your face – wary, yet expectant – when you saw how close he was, but he was glad you lingered by the door as you checked the contents of your bag.

“Ready to go?” he asked as soon as you clicked the lock on the handbag and turned around.

You were not ready to go because even though he stood several feet away from you now, his presence still lingered all around you and you could still smell his cologne. You could almost taste the mint strawberry gum he always kept in his car.

Your head was swimming with the feeling of him.

You’d been afraid of tonight and yet you hadn’t realized just how challenging it was really going to be.

“Yeah, we can go,” you said, not pausing to give him a look as you opened the door and waited for him to follow you out of the room. “If the RA hasn’t called the police yet.”

“Ah, shit. He’d do that?” Jungkook asked, more curious than worried about getting fined for being here without an entrance pass – he couldn’t really bring himself to care because it all seemed worth it.

You stopped in the hallway as you closed the door. Surprisingly, your hands had stopped shaking – it was your heart that was restless now.

“He’s done it before,” you said, fumbling with the lock. “But, in that case, we had a squatter and he’d just discovered her three months after she moved in, so he was understandably angry.”

“Well, I haven’t moved in yet,” Jungkook said carelessly, not realizing how your heart decided to skip a beat at the word yet. “And, not to mention, I’ve been here before and he’s never stopped me from coming up.”

“He would have if he knew how much time you wasted sitting in this hallway,” you said, double-checking if the door was really locked and then joining him on the way to the elevator.

Jungkook stuffed his hands into his pockets after he pressed the elevator button.

“I didn’t waste time,” he said. “I was waiting for you.”

The elevator door opened. Your chest did too as your heart rose to your throat.

“I-I mean, you could have waited at home,” you said, walking into the cabin before him and leaning against the mirror. The mixed signals he was sending you made you dizzy.

“You weren’t answering my calls,” he reminded you, pressing the ‘L’ on the dashboard and sheepishly glancing at your reflection. “And, in any case, doesn’t he know who I am?”

You raised your eyebrows at the arrogant expression on his face. Jungkook noticed your look but proceeded anyway.

“No one else has this problem,” he said, “I’m welcome everywhere.”

“You’re making tonight very difficult for me,” you told him.

“What? I’m not trying to show off,” he said, showing off. “I’m just saying.”

You chose not to play his game anymore as you shook your head and hypothesized, “maybe he’s just worried about how often he sees you here. I can talk to him.”

“Good. Because he’s going to have to get used to the blessing that is me,” Jungkook said, extending a hand for you when the two of you stepped out of the elevator in the lobby, the RA nowhere in sight, “I’m not going anywhere.”

You weren’t certain what he expected you to do – surely he didn’t mean for you to hold his hand right now, before you even got to the party? – so you watched his palm for several moments, involuntarily tracing the branches on it with your eyes.

“Well, come on,” he encouraged, taking your hand himself when it became clear that you weren’t going to do anything. “I parked my car out front. And before you say anything – yes, I do know that parking here is for residents only. If anyone asks, I live here.”

“I—” your mind was still listening to him say he wasn’t going anywhere, so it took you a few moments to find your next words and, in that time, Jungkook had already guided you out of the lobby and into the crisp evening.

“I’m pretty sure everyone knows where you live,” you said.

A smirk appeared on his lips but, this time, Jungkook chose not to gloat (too much) about the fact that he was a Parental Advisory member.

“Not your RA,” he countered instead, pressing a button on his car key. A pleasant click informed you that the car had unlocked. “He looked like he’s never listened to anything that’s not Verdi.”

“He actually plays a lot of Liszt in our second-floor lounge room,” you said. “There’s a piano there.”

“That just proves my point, if anything,” Jungkook stopped in front of his car and opened the passenger door for you, casually leaning against the vehicle while he waited for you to climb inside – it was almost unbelievable how easily he managed to act like all was normal.

In all truth, Jungkook found his laid-back attitude hard to believe as well because, inside of his chest, there were hundreds of explosions happening – thousands, actually, when the evening breeze lifted your skirt higher up your thighs – and only half of them were caused by the way you looked tonight. The other half were the result of holding your hand.

“Alright,” he said after having circled the car to enter it through the driver’s side. “Keep me updated on your mood so I know when you want to go home, yeah?”

“I—” you started to say, wanting to let him know that he didn’t have to worry about taking you home, but Jungkook beat you to it.

“If you say you want to go right now, I swear—”

“No, I was just—well, actually…” you looked at him with glitter in your eyes – and if you’d really meant it, he would have taken you home right then and there – and a teasing smile. “No, I was going to say that I don’t want you to feel pressured to leave with me. I promise to stay for a little bit, but you can stay for however long you—”

“I only want to stay for as long as you’re staying,” he said and you thanked the God that the sound of the car engine coming to life drowned out the loud beats of your heart. “We agreed to get back to your place and hang out there, didn’t we?”

“We did. But then—”

“Did you change your mind?” he asked with a quick glance at you before he turned to the rear-view mirror to back out of the parking lot. “Do you not want to spend time with me anymore?”

It was absurd that he was the one asking you this.

“I do want to spend time with you,” you said.

“Well, I should hope so,” he replied, the arrogant smirk now back on his lips again. “I doubt there are better alternatives than me on this campus.”

“Probably not,” you said, rolling your eyes, and then biting, “but only because Inna left to go home tonight.”

Jungkook would have let you know how this wounded his impossibly huge ego if his mind hadn’t drifted elsewhere as soon as you said this.

“Oh,” he spoke, turning out of the parking lot and into the street. “So you have the place all to yourself, huh?”

You raised your eyebrows when you turned to look at him. “You could not have sounded more like a typical college boy as you said this.”

Jungkook smiled and shrugged his shoulders. “I am a typical college boy.”

You smirked. “I thought you were only one of a kind.”

He gave you a proud look – completely ignoring the mocking undertones in your voice – before returning his eyes to the road as he drove towards his house.

“I am, of course,” he said. “Just wanted to hear you say it.”

Much to your – and Jungkook’s – surprise, the party ended up not being so bad, after all. Initially, you thought you’d have to come up with a way to leave after an hour, but several hours have passed now, and you had to admit, you were genuinely enjoying yourself here.

At the beginning, you couldn’t quite get comfortable – all because you could feel everyone’s stares on the two of you when you arrived hand-in-hand – but when you finished a few drinks, the people in the room no longer seemed as strange and threatening.

Jungkook helped you ease your discomfort by refusing to leave you alone – and making his close presence seem so casual, it was as if his parents were, indeed, here, watching you two play a relationship – but even when you finally convinced him to find his bandmates and say hi to them, you still didn’t feel too out-of-place.

You felt relaxed, actually. Excited. And maybe a little irrational or else you wouldn’t have found yourself on the couch next to Brock – the well-known social climber, dead-set on beating Jungkook in terms of campus popularity – discussing your plans for the summer.

“I want to spend at least a few weeks at home with my family,” you were telling him as you toyed with the edges of your third—or was it fourth?—drink tonight, “but only if I pass all of my finals at the top of the class. Or else I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“They’re that hard on you, huh?” Brock nodded knowingly – for someone who seemed so shallow when you first heard about him, he sure had a lot of empathy – and took a sip of his own drink.

“They’re alright,” you said, swallowing the remaining alcohol in your cup. “Although my roommate thinks they’re robots.”

“Oh, your roommate has met them?” he asked.

“I brought her over once,” you explained. “I do that with friends, usually, but only if we’re really close. Most people don’t handle the judgmental looks on my parents’ faces too well.”

“I see,” Brock said but only to win himself more time to find the right way to ask you this, “so, uh, has Jungkook met them?”

“My parents?” you asked. And then, not thinking about it, added, “of course. He met them a long time ago.”

Brock raised his eyebrows in evident surprise. It dawned on you then – albeit slowly – that he didn’t know how long you and Jungkook knew each other. Actually, probably no one at this party knew – you spent the majority of your time at university pretending Jungkook didn’t exist.

“So, you’ve been together for a while then?” Brock questioned.

His eyes didn’t give it away but you were sober enough to understand how this could have been a trick question: Jungkook was probably sleeping around with other girls before you started to talk again, so defining a clear timeline of your relationship was crucial or else you were going to fall down the spiral of “cheating” rumors.

“Uh… no,” you said, choosing to play dumb. “Not very long.”

“So, he met your parents before you started dating?”

“Yeah. My dad’s a teacher,” you said, which was the truth, so you didn’t completely lie, and Brock’s lips parted. You could almost see the puzzle pieces click together in his brain.

“Oh, I would not want to spend the summer with my parents if one of them was a teacher,” he said with a chuckle. You gave him a tell-me-about-it-look and scanned the room for another drink. “Are you going to be on campus during the rest of the summer?”

“Uh, probably, yeah,” you said. “I’d like to get an internship somewhere close, so I could live at the dorm.”

“Busy girl,” Brock said in a way that sounded more condescending than affectionate. His company no longer seemed so pleasant – you definitely needed another drink – but he didn’t seem to pick up on your emotions, “I know that Jungkook is probably going to be on campus as well but, um,” he scooted closer to you on the couch – just a little but enough for his knee to touch yours, “if he’s away, I could maybe show you—”

You didn’t hear what was it that he was going to show you because someone landed on the armrest of the couch right behind you. The smell of alcohol was the first thing you registered, but then you picked up the scent of the cologne, too, and you didn’t have to turn around to know that it was Jungkook.

“I’m back,” he spoke into your ear – whispered, actually -- sending an excited shiver down your spine. “I brought you something to try. It’s—”

It was a drink. Finally.

“Thanks,” you cut him off, not really thinking much of the pale green liquid in the half-empty shot glass and downing it all in one go. You frowned when the drink reached your throat, going down with a fiery resistance.

Jungkook noticed your grimace as you swallowed. He placed a protective hand on your back – and then shot Brock a warning look which prompted the boy to return to his previous spot on the other end of the couch – as you coughed, not really enjoying the anise-flavored travesty he’d brought you.

“You okay?” Jungkook asked, concerned.

“Mmhmm,” you replied, your esophagus still burning, “n-not a fan of absinthe. Have you been—” you paused to inhale through your mouth, cherishing every bit of cold air, “—drinking this the whole night?”

“Yeah, he basically drinks that shit raw,” Brock answered instead, somehow happy to see Jungkook bring you this much discomfort. “And it still takes him a while to get drunk.”

“I haven’t been,” Jungkook answered your question, deliberately ignoring everything the other boy had just said. “Taehyung broke out a bottle he’d brought back from France. Do you want me to get you some water?”

“No, no, I’m fine,” you replied, inhaling a few more times and then clearing your throat for good measure. “It just took me off-guard, that’s all—”

You ended up not finding the end of your sentence as Jungkook slid down the armrest and landed on the couch next to you, his arms sneaking around your waist as he pulled your body closer to his. Your heart would have most likely stopped if the shot of absinthe hadn’t released all this adrenaline into your bloodstream.

“I’m sorry,” he said into your hair – the close proximity and the quiet tone of his voice had quickly cut off all signals from the synapses inside your brain – and cuddled into you until he found a more comfortable position. “I would have warmed—warned you if you’d have given me a chance.”

He was obviously drunk and tongue-tied – but that was nothing new. What was new, however, was this affection, as he held on to you as if you were both stranded on a stray piece of wood in the ocean and he was afraid you were going to slide off into the water and die.

“T-that’s okay,” you said with a nervous chuckle, figuring that he was only doing this to prove a point that you were dating. But no one seemed to care; this far into the party, everyone was either making out with someone or dancing their lives away – except for Brock who was actively trying not to look at you two.

“Hmm,” Jungkook exhaled slowly for no reason other than to see the skin on the nape of your neck shiver from his breath. He wasn’t drunk enough to miss the effect he had on you, but he was far too drunk to be able to hold himself back from deliberately affecting you this way.

“How much have you had to drink tonight?” you asked, not uncomfortable in his arms per se, but certainly tense – even more so when you finally concluded that he was holding you like this specifically because Brock was here.

“Not much,” Jungkook replied, still as quiet as before. He shot the boy across the couch a glance so full of spite, you would have believed him to be completely sober if you’d seen him do it.

Brock only rolled his eyes in response, ready to say something to you but instead, he was forced to watch you strain your neck as you tried to look at Jungkook, his grip on your waist not loosening.

“Really? Because you seem really drunk,” you told Jungkook, your voice no longer passive.

He snickered – you felt his abdomen muscles move against your back as he did – and, purposefully staring right Brock in the eyes, he said, “I’m only drunk on you.”

If he wanted to see you squirm, he would have succeeded, but his grip on you was too tight for you to move. Pressing your lips together, you touched his knee with your hand in a warning manner. You didn’t like being caught in the middle of a purposeless war of masculinity.

“Maybe it’s time we left, then,” you suggested. He worshiped the disappointment that appeared on Brock’s face after you said this.

“Yeah?” Jungkook asked – but he didn’t have to, he was just trying to win some more time to hold you close to him like this – and then, slowly unwrapping his arms from your waist, he said, “I’ll run to say bye to the guys, okay? It’ll only be one second. Meet you by the door?”

“Sure, yeah. Take your time. I’ll stop by the bathroom before we go,” you said, craving some cold water on your face – and not just because of the lingering fire in your throat – as Jungkook released you and stood up, leaving an unnaturally cold sensation behind you, where his body had been.

He walked off quickly, his grin only widening when he glanced at you over his shoulder and saw you stand up and walk away from the couch without saying a word to Brock.

What Jungkook didn’t see, however, was how -- as soon as he rounded the corner to enter the kitchen where his bandmates were searching for sugar cubes for their ridiculous absinthe ritual -- Brock leaped from his seat and grabbed your hand, stopping you from walking away.

“Hey,” he said, pulling away when he felt you flinch in surprise. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to—uh, you headed home, then?”

“Yeah,” you said, taking your hand back and hiding it behind your back in defense. “It was nice talking to you.”

“It really was!” he said, a little too enthusiastically. “Which is why I was wondering if you were free anytime soon. So we could talk again, maybe? I just don’t want this to be the only time I get to hang out with you. I felt like we had a real connection. You know?”

You didn’t. You thought he wasn’t a terrible person to talk to, but you could only tolerate him in small doses.

“Mmhmm. Well, we live on the same campus,” you said, trying to smile politely as you made your way towards the bathroom. Much to your disappointment – and horror – Brock fell into step with you. “I’m sure we will, uh, see each other around.”

“Yeah? Where do you usually hang out? When you’re not with Jungkook, I mean.”

As far away from you as possible, was going to be your answer if he wasn’t going to let you walk away from him.

“Everywhere,” you said and then decided to make yourself sound less available, “or nowhere, actually. I prefer to stay home. With my roommate.”

“I like to stay home, too,” he said. You doubted that very much – unless staying home meant throwing parties at the million-dollar mansion that his parents had purchased for him. “You think we could do that together some time?”

You could distinctly recall the way your heart sped up when Jungkook suggested nearly the same thing one time. Brock’s words seemed to have a completely opposite effect on you, however, as you desperately looked for a way out of the situation and were almost prepared to use the golden I-have-a-boyfriend excuse – which could have been true for all that Brock knew – when he spoke again.

“Just you and me,” he clarified. “You could text me when Jungkook is away.”

Now, if only he could have survived five seconds without bringing Jungkook up – further proving to you that this was all about Brock showing everyone that he was better – maybe you would have stopped and considered this – although you doubted that, too – but now you didn’t even hesitate before you clicked your tongue.

“Don’t you think that’s inappropriate?” you asked.

He clearly didn’t as he retorted, “why?”

“Because this is something that you wouldn’t suggest if he was here,” you explained. “And I don’t really want to go behind his back and plan some secret tête-à-têtes.”

You gave him a smile – instead of saying goodbye – and were already reaching for the handle of the bathroom door when he grabbed your hand again. This time, when you turned to look at him, you didn’t bother to hide the irritation in your eyes.

“You misunderstand me,” Brock said, very matter-of-fact but still wary as he let go of your hand. Good. You were going to need it when you inevitably smacked him across the face. “I’m not implying anything. I just genuinely liked talking to you and would like to do it again without anyone bothering us. If you don’t think Jungkook’s going to allow you to see me, I can talk to him about—”

“No,” you said sharply. “I don’t need anyone’s permission to do anything. It’s my decision. And I said no.”

Brock watched your eyes for a moment, intrigued by how strict they looked.

“Okay,” he said then. “Got it.”

You nodded and, almost tripping over your own feet in your hurry, you finally tore yourself away from the party by entering the bathroom and locking the door.

Alone at last, you exhaled and walked over to the sink, choosing not to look at your reflection in the mirror out of fear of dissociating even more – you already felt disoriented enough.

Washing your hands with cold water and then dabbing wet fingertips under your eyes and down the sides of your face felt refreshing, but it wasn’t enough to stop your heart from working overtime – courtesy of Jungkook and Brock, and their passive-aggressive battle to show the other one who was better.

You weren’t sure what you were more frustrated with: the fact that Jungkook’s touch affected you so much or the fact that he only seemed to touch you to show off to Brock. Obviously, you’d come here to establish your relationship in front of your peers but, considering that Jungkook tried to treat this whole thing as a sort of business deal, only worrying about his parents’ opinion, his actions tonight seemed over the top.

Not to mention, you could have handled Brock yourself. He was the first person who talked to you at this party and he probably only did because he’d seen you arrive with Jungkook, and, just like with everything else, he was determined to replace him. Naturally, Jungkook -- never one to back down from a challenge -- wanted to put Brock in his place.

This really irked you – you liked to be in charge of your own life and hated having to rely on others to do things for you. Jungkook should have known that.

But although you were irritated, you didn’t feel like starting an argument and then potentially having to deal with dead bodies. However, right after you decided to leave the party quietly, your mythical sixth sense picked up a bad vibe and your stomach dropped – all just a second before you heard deep grunts of struggle from behind the door of the bathroom.

For just a split second, you hoped that this commotion didn’t involve Jungkook but all of that hope vanished when one of the voices yelled, “who the fuck do you think you are?” and you recognized the undeniable tenor of your childhood friend.

Cursing under your breath, you shut the water off and, not even bothering to find a towel, walked out of the room with your hands still dripping.

You felt hopeful yet again when you saw the almost empty living room – maybe they stopped fighting – but that hope disappeared soon enough, too, when a tirade of cuss words reached you from the kitchen, followed by the sound of skin slapping against skin, muscle against muscle.

Following the sound, you clenched your hands into fists and tried to brace yourself for whatever you were about to witness. And, just like you expected, a group of spectators – always thirsty for some violence – was watching Jungkook hold Brock by the collar of his shirt.

Brock – who was obviously enjoying the attention of the whole party – snarled something that provoked Jungkook to throw another punch to the side of his face. Brock’s whole head twisted to a side and, roughly pushing Jungkook off of himself until his back hit the fridge, Brock spat the blood out onto the kitchen floor.

“Jungkook!” you called out before they turned this whole house into a boxing ring. He heard you – his eyes drifted to the group of people watching him – but he couldn’t see you through the crowd.

Cursing again, you tried to push past the people even if it involved losing sight of the two boys – you could hear the fight carry on as they slammed each other against furniture – until you finally reached the kitchen island and saw Jungkook carelessly hurl Brock on top of it, his head nearly hitting the marble tabletop.

“Jungkook, for fuck’s sake,” you snapped.

It was hard to say if he heard you this time, because one of Brock’s hands broke free and roughly pushed Jungkook’s chest. The boy stumbled backwards, hitting the cupboard behind him with a loud groan as empty plastic cups scattered all over the tabletop and rolled to the floor.

Recovering immediately, Jungkook lunged for Brock again – but this time you were there to interrupt them.

Grabbing Jungkook’s wrist as soon as he swung his hand back to prepare a punch, you finally got him to tear his eyes away from the opponent and give you a frenzied look.

“That’s enough,” you said, all out of breath as if it was you that’s been in a fight. “You made your point.”

Brock rolled off the kitchen island and coughed loudly as he dusted his shirt off. When you turned your head – both of your hands still gripping Jungkook’s raised fist, even if he was no longer planning to punch anything with it – you saw that Brock’s lip was bleeding, his left eye was starting to swell, and various hues of dark purple decorated the right side of his face.

Jungkook looked better in comparison to him – at least, from what you could see – although his cheekbones were clearly bruised, the skin irritated and bright red.

“You need to learn how to take a fucking joke,” Brock spat just as you let go of Jungkook. Immediately, he jumped past you, seemingly ready to knock Brock out.

Brock stumbled backwards, not yet prepared to defend himself against Jungkook again, but he didn’t have to do anything because you’d sneaked under Jungkook’s raised arms and pressed both of your hands into his chest, stopping him in his tracks.

“Jungkook,” you told him, knowing you had to remain calm in order to make progress, but struggling as fury boiled inside your veins.

Jungkook looked at you, his nostrils still flaring, but his anger dissipating as quickly as it had ignited. He took a step back until you no longer had a hold on him, and snarled at Brock, “you’re a fucking joke. Let’s go.”

The last part was directed at you, obviously, as Jungkook turned around. Knowing how quickly he could change his mind, you took his hand in yours just to make sure he didn’t knock anyone unconscious on his way out of the house.

Everything was already so surreal, you were glad he was clutching your hand so tight it almost hurt, or else you’d have thought you were dreaming. But then, to make this even more hard to believe, Jungkook exited the house and made a beeline for his car.

“What are you doing?” you demanded, stopping and thus pulling him to a stop, too.

“We’re getting out of here,” he shot back as he finished climbing the few remaining porch steps. You remained at the top. “I’m driving you home.”

You could have laughed at the absurdity.

“You are not driving,” you said, resisting his pull as he tried to get you to climb down the steps. “You’re wasted. Do you not realize that?”

“I don’t—”

“First, you need to sit down,” you told him and lowered yourself until you were sitting on the porch, your feet resting on the lowest step.

Jungkook held your hand and watched you, frozen.

“Sit,” you repeated, making it sound more like an order this time.

“I need to get out of here,” he said, growing frustrated with your need to mediate between him and his obvious anger issues. “I’m not fucking sitting—”

“Well, you’re not getting behind the wheel of a car, either,” you cut him off, pulling his hand down.

He still resisted. “I’m fine. Let go of me.”

“Sit.”

“I’m not fucking sitting down, for fuck’s—!”

“Then stop acting like a fucking lunatic and get a grip on yourself!” you yelled, all patience gone as you jumped to your feet. “You’re drunk whether you realize it or not. You can’t drive yourself, let alone someone else, and you’re fucking out of your mind with anger. So, sit your ass down and fucking breathe. Or else I’m calling the police to get you arrested. Maybe that will get through your thick head.”

Scolded to the point where he almost felt embarrassed, Jungkook mumbled something incoherent and sat down.

“God, you truly never grew up,” you said with an exasperated sigh as you plopped back down next to him. “Always looking for different ways to get your adrenaline fix.”

He groaned, leaning forwards as he rested his elbows on his knees and hid his face in his hands.

You wanted to ask him what was it that Brock had said that provoked him to start a fight -- because you had no doubt that Jungkook was the one who threw the first punch -- but decided against it. You didn’t want Jungkook to fire up again.

And so, you sat in silence for a little while – you, fuming, and Jungkook, trying to control his breathing – until he finally sat up straight and dared to look at you. Your eyes were set firmly on the grass, swaying freely in the night wind.

“Are you mad?” Jungkook asked.

Your face didn’t even twitch as you countered, “what do you think?”

“At me?” he tried again.

“What do you think?”

He swallowed. “What did I do wrong?”

You looked at him incredulously. “Do you seriously have to ask me that?”

“Yes,” he said, knowing that he was going to get a lecture but needing to hear it in order to properly defend himself. “Obviously.”

“You got into a fight with Brock,” you said because it was this simple.

“Yeah,” Jungkook confirmed pointlessly and then said with a prideful undertone, “because he deserved to get punched.”

He did not seem to regret it in the slightest and would have probably done it again if he went back inside the house – that’s what scared you the most about this. You may as well have been talking to a wall.

“But that’s exactly what he wants—” you tried, but Jungkook cut you off.

“To get punched?” he asked.

“No—to get a reaction out of you,” you explained, more patient now that it looked like he was finally starting to listen to you, “he wants people to talk shit about you.”

Then, surprising you, Jungkook said, “I know.”

It took you a moment to grasp that he knew the consequences his actions would have, and that made his decisions all the more self-destructive.

“So,” you took a breath, “why do you do this?”

You were scared of his answer but instead of sounding like a lost cause, he just sounded aggressively nihilistic.

“Why not?” he retorted, shrugging one of his shoulders. “What do I have to lose? At least they’re talking about me. About us.”

If he’d asked you – really asked you, not just rhetorically – you’d have told him about all the things he would have lost if he kept this up. But he didn’t ask because he didn’t think there was an answer – a meaningful answer – that would have been worth the change in attitude.

He was simply convinced he didn’t have anything worth to keep: not his relationship with his parents, and not even what remained of his own reputation.

“Well, yes, but what they’re saying isn’t doing us…” you started to say but felt yourself hit a dead-end. You were a conformist. He, clearly, wasn’t. But it wasn’t for you to decide which one of you was right when it came to dealing with campus rumors. “Anyway. That was wrong. You know fighting is wrong. You end up getting hurt.”

“He’s the one who picked a fight with me as soon as you walked away,” Jungkook mumbled childishly.

“That doesn’t mean you’re any less guilty,” you stated. “You were acting weird around him before the fight, so, in a way, you brought it upon yourself.”

Jungkook looked at you, his eyebrows furrowed. “When did I act weird?”

You looked away. “When you brought me that shot of absinthe.”

“What do you mean?” he asked but he knew what you meant. “I was just letting him know that we were dating. Letting everyone know that we were—”

“Right but everyone got that when we arrived together,” you spoke as soon as your face started to grow warmer from the memory of you and him on that couch, “and none of that even matters, anyway, remember? Your parents aren’t here. You didn’t have to—”

“I wanted to,” he said.

You paused. Then asked, “what?”

“I wanted to touch you,” Jungkook clarified. “Is that wrong?”

For a minute, you couldn’t remember if you thought that was wrong or not when he put it like that.

“It’s—” you said and then swallowed, thanking the cold breeze that raised goosebumps on your bare legs for distracting you from his intoxicating words. You had completely sobered up when you had to break up that fight and you’d have liked to remain clear-minded. “Well, if you’re doing it to mark your territory like some dog, then yeah. It’s wrong. It’s disrespectful to me.”

“I wasn’t trying to mark my territory.”

“It felt like you were.”

Sighing, he caved, even though he hated the accusation, “alright, maybe I was, a little. But Brock needed to know that he was never going to get to touch you like that.”

“Ah,” you smiled humorlessly, “and you get that privilege, right?”

“I—well, didn’t we come here to show off?”

“We did, supposedly. But…”

Your voice faded because you realized that one of the biggest reasons why it felt like he’d crossed the line tonight, was because his actions affected you so much. If you hadn’t cared about him the way that you did, you probably wouldn’t have been bothered by the methods he chose to prove the authenticity of your relationship.

Sure, he could have been less possessive, but you knew him well enough to understand that he wasn’t trying to offend you. And yet you couldn’t let this go without standing up for yourself – especially not after he tried to take back every single one of his confessions the last time you’d talked to him.

“We weren’t supposed to do it like that,” you said, sounding a little more confident now. “I just felt like you went too far. Brock wasn’t worth it.”

“There’s a dozen others like Brock at that party,” Jungkook pointed out.

You scoffed. “Right. Even if there are, the only reason why they’d want me is so they could brag about stealing Jungkook’s girl.”

“No, it’s—is that the only reason why you think these guys want you?” he looked at you as he asked this, almost appalled that you would reduce your own impact to this level.

“They don’t—” you started to say with a shake of your head but that was enough for Jungkook.

“They do,” he countered, cutting you off, “and it’s not because you came with me. It’s because you’re you,” he didn’t mean to scan you from head to toe with his eyes as he said this but self-control was not one of his strong suits.

You had your objections but, at the same time, you were able to understand that arguing about this would have been pointless. Your knowledge about how men functioned came from text-books and observations, while his came from personal experience. You’d never see eye-to-eye about this.

“Why do you care about those other guys?” Jungkook asked after you didn’t reply.

“I—I don’t,” you said, still distracted by your own thoughts. “But you clearly do.”

“Of course, I do,” he said with a roll of his eyes. “They want you.”

You looked at him. “So, even if they do, why does it matter?”

“It matters because they can’t have you,” he said, “and they need to know that.”

“Know what?”

“That you’re mine.”

Your hands went numb and the fabric of your skirt that you’d been playing with started to feel foreign – fake, even – so you dropped it and took a deep breath, wrapping your arms around your midriff instead.

“I get that we’re playing a relationship,” you said, quieter than you probably should have, “but I’m not a trophy that you can brag about when you feel like it.”

“You might as well be,” he said, not intending to make it sound like you were some decoration, but realizing how it could have been interpreted precisely like that, “maybe ‘trophy’ wasn’t the right word. I mean that you are something—someone—to brag about. Because I’m proud to call you min—m-my, uh, fake-girlfriend. My friend. I’m proud of who you are. Proud of what you’d achieved. Proud of the way you can call me out on my bullshit and put me in my place—”

You did not acknowledge his slip-up with the label of your relationship – because he was drunk – scoffing instead, “there’s no way in hell you’re proud of that last one.”

“No, no, I am,” he nodded for more effect. “No one has the patience to deal with my shit. But you do.”

You went quiet again, your head spinning. The buzz of the alcohol had mostly worn off but you were unable to find a way to reply to him, and you chose to blame the drinks you’d had for that.

“Don’t do that again, okay?” you ended up saying.

Your thoughts ran a little too fast for him to keep up. “Do what?”

“Get into fights,” you said. “Act irrationally to prove a point.”

“Me hugging you was completely rational,” he said, bringing it up with such ease, it was like he was a completely different person now.

“You know what I mean,” you said. “Don’t treat me like an object. Especially, since it doesn’t change anything with your parents.”

“I wasn’t trying to--w-why are you bringing my parents into this?”

“Because of the other night?” you said, thinking it was obvious. “You were completely dismissive about this – a-about us – and you basically said that—”

“I know what I said,” he cut you off, looking down at the wooden steps of the porch. He remembered. “I didn’t mean that.”

So, here’s the answer, then: he didn’t mean that. But something – fear, insecurity, uncertainty – had still made him reduce your relationship to just an act for his parents.

“Okay,” you said, hesitating. “But we’d agreed to tell each other the truth. So, don’t—don’t say things you don’t mean. Not when it’s just us alone.”

“Okay,” Jungkook nodded, a promise on his lips, “I’ll think before I act from now on.”

You scrunched your nose, looking at him out of the corner of your eye. “Will you, really?”

He considered it, then rephrased himself, “I’ll try to think before I act.”

That got you to smile. “That’s better. Thank you.”

Jungkook smiled back and the tension outside of his house seemed to blow away with the wind. Even the night shadows around you suddenly seemed brighter.

“You have to admit, though,” Jungkook said then, “my plan to get Brock to believe we’re dating worked so much better than your diplomatic speech would have.”

“Why do you think I’d have given him a diplomatic speech?” you asked.

“I’ve known you since birth,” he replied, grinning.

“Fair point,” you couldn’t help but snicker. “We’re still doing it my way next time, though.”

“Alright,” he nodded, not really caring about much else except that you said there was going to be a next time. “So, you ready to go home now?”

You’d been ready to go home for a while now.

“I am,” you said,

He stood up. “Let’s go.”

You stood up after him but, once again, hesitated before climbing down the porch steps.

“Actually,” you spoke slowly, “I think I’m going alone.”

Jungkook hadn’t noticed that you weren’t following him as he headed towards the pavement across the front yard. He stopped at the sound of your distant voice and turned around.

“What?”

“Yeah,” you said, making your way towards him. “You stay here. Stay out of fights and—”

He was shaking his head. “If you think I’m going to let you go home alone, you’re—”

“If you think I need your permission to—”

“Okay, sorry, my bad,” he lifted his hands in a defensive manner that interrupted you. “I didn’t choose my words well. But my point stands. You’re not going home alone.”

You looked away with a sigh.

“Neither of us can drive,” you said, “and I’m not staying here.”

Jungkook rolled his eyes, dismissing your attempt to escape him with a very sarcastic, “oh, and that would sure be tragic if our plans didn’t involve us going back to your place together anyway.”

“I…” you did feel the same pang of excitement in the pit of your stomach as you did when he first suggested you spent more time together at your dorm, but everything that happened since then made you unsure if it was such a good idea, after all. “I feel like going to sleep, actually.”

“Okay,” he didn’t seem bothered by that. “I’m walking you home, then.”

“I’m perfectly capable of finding my own way,” you said.

“I’m sure you are, you’ve walked around campus plenty of times before,” he said, still as witty as ever. “I’m still coming with you.”

“Jungkook…”

“Let me. Please,” he took a step closer to you as he said this and you would have probably let him to do almost anything when you saw the night sky reflected in his eyes. “I don’t want to walk you home so that other people would believe that we’re in a relationship. So that my parents would believe we’re in a relationship. Or because you’re an item I want to show off. I want to walk you home because I want to walk you home.”

You could no longer feel the cold, late-hour wind.

“Okay, fine,” you said, your voice purposefully indifferent and even irritated, just so your real feelings wouldn’t manifest themselves. “Walk me home, then.”

“Way to make it sound like I’m putting you in pain,” Jungkook jabbed.

“You are kind of a pain in my ass, actually,” you pointed out.

“Yeah? Does that pain bother you?”

“Yes, very much,” you glared at him as the two of you crossed the front yard towards the main street where he’d crashed his car weeks ago when you first found each other again. “Keeps me up all night with thoughts about it.”

“Good,” he said with a smirk, walking around you inconspicuously, so that he was on your right side, his body shielding you from the cars that drove past every now and then. One could never know what sort of a drunk lunatic could drive by. “That means my plan has worked.”

keep reading | masterlist

[dialovers-translations]

DIABOLIK LOVERS MORE, BLOOD OFFICIAL VISUAL FANBOOK ー Interview Vol. 1 feat. Saki Ito

Source: DIABOLIK LOVERS MORE, BLOOD Official Visual Fanbook

Release date: 2013

Huge thank you to @keithvalentinex​ for providing the raw scans!

SECTION 1: Q&A

Q1. How did you feel when a sequel game got green light?

A: Not only were we fortunate to receive many passionate messages and feedback from the players, but we also received the news of an anime adaption alongside a game sequel, so amidst the joy, I also remember a distinct feeling of responsiblity and pressure.

Q2. Does the feedback you received from the players reflect in any parts of the game?

A: The series features characters who all have very strong and distinct character traits, so they tend to stand out based solely on these specific elements, which is what made us reflect upon the scenario parts of the previous game. Therefore, in the sequel, we decided to flesh them out so we let Idea Factory know that we would like to create sceranio’s on events of their pasts, so we can give a better understanding of how they think as individuals. We received a positive response but this ultimately required quite a bit of scenarios so later both me and Nakamura suffered because of it. (lol) However, even though there is still room for improvement, I would like to think that we succeeded in creating scenario’s in which the players will get to know them on a deeper level.

Q3. Who did you struggle most with when creating the setting for the new characters?

A: Ruki. Both in terms of design and personality. At first we thought of having him be on an almost equal footing with Karlheinz in terms of power and status, so basically the character who stands at the very top of the Mukami family, with everyone following his lead as they have no other choice but to acknowledge his superiority . But he’s a Do-S...We played with various ideas like that.

Q4. What did the process of creating these characters look like?

A: After settling on their visuals and personalities, we moved on to building a set image of them. I was impressed that at the time of initial recording where we would add the voices to these characters, there was already an agreement amongst the production staff about how they viewed these brothers inside their minds. 

Q5. Were there any moments during the recording which left a strong impression on you?

A: I am sure everyone feels the same in this regard, but I was very much impressed by Midorikawa Hikaru (Ayato’s VA) and his ability to voice a single line in so many different ways and apply minor adjustment time after time. I was baffled how the same phrase could be voiced in so many different ways, and while this may be embarrassing to admit as part of the production staff, I felt as if I could learn a lot from him.

Q6. How did you approach the blood-sucking scenes?

A: We start by creating a fixed image inside our heads of how each character would suck someone’s blood. However, we initially opted to leave things up to the casted voice actors. We figured that if their voicing was somewhat off from how we envisioned it, we would guide them into the desired direction afterwards, but so far that has yet to happen! The voice actors seem to understand that the blood-sucking scenes are a huge selling point of the Diabolik Lovers franchise, so they anticipated on this and had already thought about which personal quirks they want to include in these scenes before the recording. Afterwards they would tell us things such as ‘I wanted to make it sound a little dirty’ or ‘I imagined ____ would suck blood like this’, showing us their effort to voice these characters while thinking about their personalities, which is why we - the production staff - were able to feel the unique traits of these boys through their performance as well, I believe. I cannot express with words just how greatful I am for everyone’s excellent voice work. 

Q7. When writing the scenario’s and the character dialogue, were there any conscious changes you made from the first game?

A: In the first game, there were very little interactions between the different characters, but with the introduction of the Mukami brothers, we focused on these kind of interactions where one of the Sakamaki brothers would fight with one of the Mukami brothers. Additionally, this would allow for us to express the changes in their feelings towards the main character.

Q8. What did you struggle the most with while writing the script?

A: There were just so many different scenarios to write, I recall feeling as if there was no end to it. Every time you think you’re done adjusting one part, you have to move on to the next and by the time you’re done with that, something just doesn’t feel right about the first scenario again...This game includes many scenarios about the characters’ pasts so there would be times where we suddenly went ‘...Hold on!? I feel like the previous scene doesn’t quite make sense anymore...,’ So we’d have to go back and make sure everything remained consistent.

Q9. Which character caused you the most problems while writing the script?

A: Every single one. In case of the Sakamaki brothers, all because of the same reason. For starters, despite this being a sequel game, the intial setting remains the same as before with the main character having arrived at the Sakamaki manor, , so we were worried whether or not the audience would accept this without it feeling weird or off. The Mukami brothers are then added on top of that, so we struggled a lot expressing the wavering feelings of the main character. Each of the Mukami brothers has their own dark past and setting which we came up with beforehand, so it was very difficult to then later add the element of romance to this.

Q10. Is there a character who underwent drastic changes compared to the last game?

A: No. Although the ‘MORE, BLOOD’ games feature the Sakamaki brothers struggling with an immense ‘thirst for blood’ which is different from our previous approach, so we hope this allows the players to enjoy a different side of them.

Q11. The endings are now named ‘Vampire Ending’, ‘Manservant Ending’ and ‘Brute’ Ending. Could you tell us what kind of thought you put into these names?

A: They do each have their own fixed image attached to them. We divided them into the ‘Vampire Ending’ which is supposed to be the most natural ending. The ‘Manservant Ending’ which emphasizes the element of sadism the strongest and lastly the ‘Brute Ending’ which is the most violent. Depending on the character, there might be minor changes such as the main character developing sadistic tendencies herself or it being another character who grows violent. We hope the audience will enjoy this wide array of endings.

Q12. What are parts which have greatly improved or parts you want us to focus on in comparison to the first game?

A: My apologies for repeating myself, but it would have to be the scenarios. Also please pay attention to the upgraded sprite artwork for everyone, as well as the addition of the sprites for the brothers as children!

Q13. Why do you think the series has received such a great amount of support?

A: During the development of the first set of CDs, we made them with a specific niche audience in mind, so never did we expect the franchise would grow this large. We truly are grateful. We would like to believe that Satoi-sama’s illustration are the biggest contributor in this case. I was already acquaintanced with Satoi-sama at that point but due to certain circumstances, we weren’t able to work on a project together. However, when the development for Diabolik Lovers started, I immediately reached out to her. I believe that the way she draws these Do-S Vampires as handsome guys is what the fans enjoy the most!

Q14. Please leave a message for the fans.

A: First of all, thank you all from the bottom of my heart. If it wasn’t for you guys’ reactions, we wouldn’t have been able to deliver this much content. I won’t go as far as to tell you to continue to loving ‘DIABOLIK LOVERS’ and its characters forever...! Even if it’s somewhere in the very back of your mind, I’d be happy if you could at least hold onto the fond memories of these characters. Honestly, thank you so so much.

SECTION 2: THEIR FAVORITE EPISODES

Sakamaki brothers: Laito’s Vampire Ending. It conveys that feeling of loving someone, yet still keeping you on the edge of your seat as he doesn’t quite fully want to admit to his own feelings, even though you can tell that he does properly love the main character, which made me feel joyful inside.

Mukami brothers: Rather than one specific scene, I loved the interactions between the Mukami brothers. When they are all enjoying a meal together, they would fight over the food, or Kou would make a fuss because he wants to eat Vongole Bianco. I found it cute how they would talk in a way you’d expect from normal high school boys. 

SECTION 3: SAKI ITO CHOOSES ー SITUATION-DEPENDENT CHARACTER SELECT

Who would you choose in these situations? What’s the developer’s opinion?

S1. To sleep together with?

Best: Shuu, he probably wouldn’t bother me.

Worst: Reiji, he seems like the type to get upset if you don’t keep perfectly still while sleeping.

S2. To go on a trip together with?

Best: Ruki, I feel like he would come fully prepped. 

Worst: Azusa, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy my trip if I get hurt because of him.

S3. To eat together with?

Best: Shuu, I feel like our eating styles would match.

Worst: Reiji, I’d constantly feel nervous.

S4. To study with?

Best: Ruki, I feel like he’d be able to explain things in a comprehensive manner.

Worst: Laito because he might just blow air into my ear all of a sudden.

S5. To go on a date with?

Best: Kou, he probably knows all the good places so it could be fun.

Worst: Kanato, I can’t stand the thought of him suddenly lashing out at me.

S6. To play a video game with?

Best: Yuma, I feel like he wouldn’t be the best at it, but it’d still be enjoyable regardless.

Worst: Subaru, he would destroy the console!

S7. To play sports with?

Best: Kou, I can imagine his sweat sparkling in the light as it bounces off him.

Worst: Reiji, he seems stiff.

S8. To go on a drive with?

Best: Ayato, it just seems fun.

Worst: Yuma, he strikes me as a speed devil.