#frau faust SPOILERS

[teddybear-arakawa]

(Frau Faust, Kore Yamazaki / Trouble, Tender)

[7rus7m3]

BIG 101 PENTAGON THEORY // SPOILERS FOR CANTO VI, DEMIAN (book), LITTLE PRINCE (book), LEVIATHAN, LIBRARY OF RUINA, a little bit of Divine Comedy too

RG - Red Gaze, PT - Purple Tear, LP - Little Prince, DC - Divine Comedy. Grammar mistakes can appear due to me not being very fluent in English.

So… After the new Demian scene appeared, I found it convenient to finally unleash my Dante=Sinclair pentagon theory, based on some assumptions I made from reading the source books of all of these characters. Before I start, I need to aknowledge some other things:

1. I don’t find this theory as something that actually will happen, since it may be based on my own biased opinions towards some of the characters included

2. Most of my assumptions are made through reading into intertext of the source books and how it would look more cool to potentially appear in a game. PM interpretation of books may be completely opposite from mine, so ig we will see how close I was later

3. I don’t use other sinners for my theory, since most of them are not marked, can’t use shin from what we know and/or mostly have finished self-centered story. The only one that probably will be added to pentagon is Faust, since her source is too important for Hesse as a writer and the motif of soul duality exists as an important topic in both Demian and Faust books. Also she knows too much about the Stars from what we can see in the prologue and later in her dialogues with us.

Part 1. Purple Tear

PT=Demian’s mother feels like canon already for me, but maybe just because I discussed it too much with my friends. So the main point of this theory is that Demian and PT appear to have the same main themes as characters and have similar powers, so him being Iori’s son will be natural. For example, the snake theme being introduced to us with Iori’s snake eyes in Leviathan manga or with the blue snake representing Demian on LCB Sinclair art. Multidimensional traveling powers, Shin being mostly PT’s disciples thing etc etc. Also Demian had purple eyes on his first promotional art and even though it was changed later, it is still an important thing that was planned by PM. For me it's an obvious moment for a lot of reasons, but in reality they just feel like relatives and the more you think about it the more it becomes obvious. 

As Demian’s mother, she becomes frau Eva naturally and potential Sinclair milfhunter’s interest. 

Also I believe in Iori as a higher-up person in Limbus Company assumption. As a person, who sees countless possibilities, her choices on sinners of LCB feels natural and the fact that Vergilius out of all people becomes our guide just approves it to me. 

So I added ‘Demian’ to her as a source just to start, but we can also add ‘Little Prince’ as I believe that she also represents the snake from the start of Prince’s adventure on Earth and his end on it. The Snake claims to have some sort of space-traveling power after all and while representing Birth and Death of Prince on Earth, she's a good pick for a mother figure representation.

Part 2. Red Gaze

Not too much to say here, but the obvious things we know. The Shin user triangle, even though Verg and Demian probably ain’t ever met each other once, still exists in the context of this theory. We can or can not draw a line between Demian and Vergilius, but I like to do it for the sake of making a point how they both are PT’s disciples. 

The christmas trauma line here is mostly for funsies, but it’s obviously not a coincidence on how the whole Sinclair’s family killing incident happened at the same time as Vegilius’ orphanage incident and how both suspicious shin users just watched them suffer to mentor them later. 

Dante and RG are connected through Divine Comedy, which is told directly from the game. 

Part 3. Demian

The most interesting and most intertextually written character in the game.

Sinclair being the rose became more believable to me than him being the fox after a new scene, but I still think both can be true. As we know from Demian book - Sinclair is final destination of Demian’s journey, from whom Max parted for unknown reasons (basically not answered his letters while doing his own fun stuff ig) and even tried to adapt to live in the world ignoring his marked nature (the “I am actually a lieutenant” scene in the 7th chapter). He is meeting Sinclair at first to part with him later just to end up becoming a metaphorical part of him at the end, probably dying physically. The same happens with Prince and Rose relationships in the LP. From them meeting suddenly to part later because of Prince’s complicated feelings to Prince finally coming back to her after learning how to love her and realizing her importance for his existence as a person in the metaphysical form, leaving his physical body behind. The story is too similar for Sinclair to not be Rose. The main counterargument here is the fact that we don’t know when Demian started his journey and Sinclair quoting dialogue of LP with fox. I still believe that Sinclair-Rose theory is more likely though, but Sinclair-Fox is still leading us to doomed yaoi in the end.

The Demian-Beatrice part comes from ‘Demian’ as a source too. Sinclair met Beatrice as his muse and basically Demian’s replacement as an image of his own ideals in life, she became a reason for him to stop his self-destruction path. Young love for Sinclair here is more of a reason to keep moving forward to become a better person than actual loving feeling. She is a mythological muse, but not a romantic interest fully. And in an attempt of engraving her image (haha engraving aspect), he accidentally draws Demian instead. We can put it as a direct equation of her to Demian and as a method of inserting an androgynous archetype into Demian’s character. I think of Demian-Beatrice as a cool way to introduce us to Paradiso later with him being our new guide instead of Vergilius. It will become a more logical guess later, in the context of the main part of this theory.

Part 4. Dante and Sinclair

So… Dante is a book version of Sinclair with part of Demian’s soul inside him theory… The main thing from where we should start to think about this is the whole number dilemma within Sinclair’s coat. He should’ve been the 10th Sinner before Dante appeared, but then got changed to 11th. Which is funny since 1.0 and 1.1 is a funny version number calambour. So, questions that theories answers:

1.Demian having sudden interest in Dante and giving him riddles that mostly answers the nature of more of a Demian himself as a person, than giving Dante actual usable information

2.Dante seem to have mark 

3.”What will become of me who have been robbed by me”

4.Sinclair is the only sinner we resonated with out of his Canto

5.Sinclair Canto only focusing on the first two chapters of the book, but not taking it as full. His Canto takes not even half of a book, but focuses on a really small part of it. Moby-Dick is a pre-story in Canto V, same basically for Canto I and Canto IV, we are close to the ending of CaP in Canto II and we have seen the true ending of WH in one of the Mirror Worlds with Cathy and Hareton.

6. Why they aren't changing numbers on Sinclair's coat for six Canto already

7. How Demian is able to understand us and how we are able to deeply understand Demian's feelings

8. Why we have any connections to Demian in the past and why we owe him a drawing of all things (Sinclair was a painter in the book)

9. Star is the main motivation of Dante

10. The whole engraving aspect thing. Again, Sinclair was a painter in the book and used drawing as a way to analyze his instinctive feelings

11. Dante having religious motifs and powers associated with either Tree of Life or Tree of Knowledge. Sinclair’s EGO “Branch of Knowledge” naming based on that

12. Dante’s White Night motifs. White Night is basically an Antichrist, but also a God, which connects it with the concept of both god and demon and connecting it with an Abraxas

Maybe some other questions are answered too if you think about it for a little. This is just a very solid assumption that will explain why Demian is so important for us and why Dante seems like a descendant of the Star in the prologue. As a character having another big source book I also believe in him having his own Canto and if he is a part of Dante's character then we should have the duo Canto for both Dante and Demian.

Main thing is how it happened. It's mainly fanfiction from now on. We know that there are Mirror Worlds where the whole book plot is already happened at some point (Cathy and Hareton scene in C6). So one of these basically is the one where Sinclair journey happened some other way. Maybe it was the one, where Demian helped him before the whole Kromer situation happened. After that moment in book Sinclair fastly falls back to his family and stops questioning their beliefs, so in my theory he could after all have a prosthetic operation that he was destined to before incident. That way we have his life going more calmly and as a son of prosthetic factory owner he could become a big and rich person. That would explain why Panther, Lion and Wolf were very excited over killing him. So, Sinclair of this universe goes over his way just like book Sinclair and participate in the whole June-985 thing. What else happened in June? World War 1 start. Sounds stupid, but WW1 is the main thing to change the world in Demian as a book. So the start of new world is destined to be in June-985 in the City setting, which represents WW1 starting in the Real World. The whole thing happens, and Demian either dies or merges with Sinclair to become some sort of part of him. To prevent the whole June-985 thing from happening, Sinclair travels back in time (which basically not the same, but another Mirror World) using Golden Bough and tries to engrave something that is a key to preventing the whole mass death thing. Limbus World Demian is pissy with Demian from future trying to stop the new World from happening, so he confronts us, but tries to do it in his own way. That way Dante is Sinclair from future from other mirror world and is partly a Demian himself.

In the LP, Pilot also is a child-like adult, really similar to Little Prince in some way. I personally like to read his journey with Prince as a metaphor for himself maturing and letting go his childish side, which Is again connects Dante to Demian.

So, Dante=other Sinclair=Pilot=partly Demian.

[starberriemilk]

I think Demian might be from Outskirts

Okay so I just wanna say that before I explain what I think, I didn't finish playing LoR (and I don't rlly want spoilers). I watched a video about Lob Corp but I don't remember much from it (here I'm okay with spoilers) so I'm sorry if this makes no sense

So anyways. Ever since the christmas event I realized that Demian might be from Outskirts and the more I think about it the more it makes sense

I was always wondering what the hell Demian meant when he said that he was in Outskirts, what a kid like him was doing in Outskirts?

And then we found out that there are villages in Outskirts in the christmas event... So maybe that's the place he lived in before he moved to the City. Maybe that's why he talks about how the Outskirts are so free. I was spoiled that in LoR there ARE characters that used to live in Outskirts before going to the City... So it's possible (he was a kid so he probably moved in the City with Frau Eva if she exists in PMverse)

Another interesting thing I noticed, with how Demian is always talking about the stars and how he's associated with them. As far as I know- you can't really see the stars in the city, at least not fully, due to all the lights from the buildings and stuff... The only place where you could see the sky clearly would be Outskirts

and we saw that in chapter 5 with Tearful Thing's memories...

Which leads me to what Faust said at the end of christmas event. She said this

Dante assumed that this is a metaphor she's using to say to first focus on the Sinners and themselves before focusing on the stories from the Outskirts... But Faust never uses metaphors. I think she means it literally. What does this have to do with Demian? Well, I've seen theories that Faust may be from Outskirts (because there are like 3 other characters who are from Outskirts who have blue eyes and white hair, and there are other things but I won't go deep into this). Demian may not have white hair but the fact he's not the only person that talks about stars in this way and the fact they both might be from Outskirts... It makes me think it's important

Does this theory have holes? Yes. Does it make sense? Maybe??? But I think I'm getting somewhere with this

[fieryskies]

So I started reading a manga called Frau Faust today (which I recommend! It's from The Ancient Magus' Bride creator and it's only 19 chapters long)

And not to get too spoiler-ish with it, but it made me think about an AU in which it is Sebastian who allows himself "to lose Ciel's soul forever" and turns him immortal before his master could die

Ciel is...actually not too happy with getting cheated out of his promised death. Cut to a centuries old chase in which one immortal is running left and right to find some way to die

While the other puts pebbles in his road at every turn

[tomtefairytaleblog]

The Witch That Whirls in the Air: The Folkloric Roots of Walpurgisnacht in “Puella Magi Madoka Magica”

“On this night, I became a Magical Girl.”--Homura Akemi, Puella Magi Madoka Magica Drama CD: “Memories of You”

(The Witch Walpurgisnacht descends on Mitakihara.)

Walpurgisnacht casts a shadow—both literally and figuratively—over Puella Magi Madoka Magica from the very beginning, first appearing in Madoka Kaname’s dream as a looming figure floating ominously in the sky, while Homura Akemi tries in vain to defeat it (the scene accompanied by the appropriately ominous song “Magia”). It isn’t mentioned again until the sixth episode, when Homura tells Kyoko Sakura that Walpurgisnacht will appear in Mitakihara in a couple of weeks, and again in Episode 10, when its importance to Homura’s story and the overall plot are revealed. In the eleventh episode, Walpurgisnacht finally makes its appearance in the city, creating a supercell storm and forcing the civilians into a shelter, leaving the city abandoned while Homura faces off against it on her own. It appears in the middle of the storm, an upside-down giant of a woman dressed in medieval clothing, with gears where her feet should be, heralded by a surreal, circus procession, and accompanied by shadowy, ghost-like Familiars. While Walpurgisnacht may at first glance appear to just be a generic monster with a distinctive name, it has many roots in folklore, not just in its name, but also in its appearance and methods.

(Spoilers incoming.)

(1668 woodcut of the Witches’ Sabbath, by Johannes Praetorius.)

Walpurgisnacht’s name is a reference to the German name for “Walpurgis Night,” named after Saint Walpurga; it is also known as “Hexennacht,” or Witches’ Night. It was in 1668 that the Brocken—the highest peak in the Harz mountain range in Germany—was designated as the meeting place for Walpurgisnacht, as recorded by Johannes Praetorius’s The Blocksberg Performance (Davies). It was this idea that was further expanded on by Goethe in Faust; a footnote for George Madison Priest’s translation of Goethe’s tragic play specifically refers to Walpurgisnacht as a time that witches hold “carnival” on the Brocken, the highest peak in Germany’s Harz Mountains, a fact that is visually referenced when Walpurgisnacht arrives in Mitakihara with a parade of colorful animals signaling its arrival (Goethe 95). While traditionally set on the evening between April 30th and May 1st, no exact day is given in Madoka for when Walpurgisnacht appears; however, it is not a stretch to assume that it is also meant to be on April 30th.

(Dame Baubo as illustrated by Ernst Barlach, c. 1923.)

While Walpurgisnacht being a name for a specific witch associated with the day is new, the idea of a central, witch-like figure is not. One example appears in Goethe’s Faust, when Faust and Mephistopheles travel to the Brocken on May Eve, following a Will-O’-The-Wisp to the sight where the witches gather. There they see a group of witches, making their way to the celebration. Among them is a figure riding on a sow—this figure is recognized as “old Baubo,” to which the witches’ chorus responds to with “In front, Dame Baubo! Lead the crew! /A sturdy sow with mother stride, /All witches follow in a tide” (Goethe 96). This figure, Baubo, actually originates from Greek Mythology, as she was a demigoddess most known for making Demeter—who, at the time, was grief-stricken over the disappearance of Persephone—laugh by exposing her genitalia (Theoi). Just like how Baubo is associated with laughter, the Walpurgisnacht of Madoka Magica is portrayed as constantly laughing as she floats in the air; additionally, one can see that Baubo, a Greek figure, has been demonized into being associated with witches and the Christian Devil. This phenomenon of such a figure being turned into a demonic creature is not unique to Faust.

In their article “Becoming the Labyrinth: Negotiating Magical Space and Identity in Puella Magi Madoka Magica,” Sara Cleto and Erin Kathleen Bahl point out that Walpurgisnacht has many visual similarities to European nobility, shown in her “elaborate, blue gown with exaggerated bell sleeves and a cascading, tiered skirt,” while her head has a headdress that “tapers to two sharp points, suggesting horns or a crown.” “She resembles nothing so much as an evil queen,” Cleto and Bahl write, “a figure popularized most by Snow White tales” (9). Indeed, with the other folkloric/fairy tale imagery (both traditional and literary) referenced in the series such as “The Little Mermaid,” The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, and Goethe’s Faust, it would not be too far of a stretch to draw comparisons between Madoka and Snow White, especially since, as Cleto and Bahl point out, a central theme in Snow White is the generational conflict between a young girl and an older woman, which echoes the war between the Magical Girls and the Witches they will inevitably become when they are consumed by despair (9).

But if one looks at Walpurgisnacht’s general appearance—a queenly figure that rides out in the sky and terrorizes the land, especially children (the Magical Girls)—then one can also draw a parallel to the Biblical queen Herodias; specifically, the version of her that became a part of witch folklore. In the Book of Mark in the New Testament, Herodias was the wife of Herod who opposed John the Baptist, as the latter spoke against her marriage to Herod, because she had been Herod’s brother’s wife beforehand. She eventually gets rid of John by having her daughter dance for Herod at a party, who, impressed, offers to grant her anything; she then asks for John the Baptist’s head (New Living Translation, Mark 6:14-29) .

(Herodias, as painted by Paul Delaroche, c. 1843.)

That is where the story ends in the Bible, but folklore expands a bit on the aftermath. In Ysengrimus, a collection of folktales in Latin written by the poet Nivardus around the year 1148, Herodias is conflated with her daughter as the figure who danced for Herod; after receiving the head of John the Baptist, Herodias attempts to kiss it, having been infatuated with him. However, the head hisses at her, “with such force that she was blown up into the air and out through the skylight;” and since then, “she has been driven through the skies on John’s implacable anger” (Ridenour 135-136). Jacob Grimm writes in his Deutsche Mythologie that the winds in Lower Saxony were believed to be caused by Herodias constantly whirling, eternally dancing in the sky; additionally, she was believed in some places to be a child-stealing demon (Ridenour 136). Just as Herodias is associated with eternally whirling in the air, Walpurgisnacht in Madoka is described as symbolizing “the fool who constantly spins in circles” and whose nature is “helplessness” (Puella Magi Wiki). And Walpurgisnacht, as a Witch who was once a Magical Girl, certainly is helpless, being now nothing more than a pawn in the Incubators’ twisted plans.

In his book Witchcraft in the Middle Ages, Jeffrey Burton Russell refers to the Canon Episcopi, a text written in the early Tenth Century; the text itself refutes the existence of witches, in that it claims that any such stories are the result of people being deceived by the Devil, upholding the opinion that it is impossible for a human to wield magic (Russell 77). Within the Canon are references to witches who rode out in the night with “Diana, goddess of the pagans,” a reference to Diana, the Roman goddess of the hunt (Russell 76). Russell then adds that Diana is one of many goddesses demonized to be associated with Witches by Christianity; another example being the Germanic Holda, who is mentioned in the Corrector by Buchard of Worms, another important document of witchcraft (80-81). In Eisenach, Germany, Holda and her host are said to emerge from the Horselberg Mountain (“Hear-Souls Mountain”) with her horde of spirits on Christmas, Eve, New Year’s Eve, or the Winter Ember Days (Ridenour 132). This idea of a witch-like figure emerging on a certain day is echoed in Madoka with Walpurgisnacht’s arrival creating a deadline that the series’ plot hinges on.

Those familiar with Madoka may also note the idea of a figure being seen as both a goddess and a witch as paralleling Madoka’s status as being both Ultimate Madoka (a goddess) and Kriemhild Gretchen/The Witch of Despair (a witch); in fact, the idea of a goddess being demonized into a Witch by the Church is a pretty close parallel to the Incubators turning Magical Girls into Witches for their own plans. (There is some debate on whether Holda was a goddess or not, due to records describing her as such being made long after Christianization set in; nonetheless, the similarities are there (Ridenour 120).)

(Frau Holle, or Holda, traveling through the air with her spirits, by Joseph Sattler, c. 1927.)

After her initial attack on Walpurgisnacht—during which Homura throws an entire arsenal of weapon fire at it, barely putting even a scratch on the Witch—Walpurgisnacht manifests a horde of shadowy figures that begin to attack Homura. These minions are described as “countless souls drawn to [Walpurgisnacht’s] vast magical power,” and bear more than an uncanny resemblance to ghostly Magical Girls (Puella Magi Wiki). In concept, as ghastly beings flying amongst the storm, they are akin to the European legends of the Wild Hunt, a folkloric archetype that combines elements of stories regarding “hunting and diabolic hunters, lost souls, and slain warriors” (Ridenour 156). Slain warriors and lost souls—kind of like the Magical Girls of Madoka’s setting, who are shown to often die in battle at a young age; and whenever a contract is made with Kyubey, the result is the girl making said contract having her soul removed from her body, effectively rendering her undead, and therefore able to endure the physical strain of battling horrific entities. While the Wild Hunt is said in many cases to be led by Odin, there are stories where other leaders have been recorded; one such example being, again, Herodias, said to have sway over a third of the world, said third including “unbaptized children,” amongst other supernatural creatures such as elves and gnomes (Kloss 100). A similar belief is attributed to the figure Perchta, who is sometimes associated with Holda, and said to lead the spirits of the unbaptized and unborn out into the night (Ridenour 132).

(Top: Asgardsreien, by Peter Nicolai Arbo, c. 1872. Bottom: The Clowns serving Walpurgisnacht.)

Finally, while the influences on Walpurgisnacht have thus far been entirely Biblical and European in origin, there is also Japanese folklore to look to for a possible link between the legends of the West and the country of Madoka’s origin. Japan is full of stories regarding supernatural creatures, or “yokai;” there are also stories regarding the event known as the “Hyakki Yagyo,” or “The Demon Horde’s Night Parade,” when yokai were said to swarm through the city of Kyoto. In many ways, it was less of an attack and more of a swarm or manifestation that went throughout the city, akin to the Western concept of “pandemonium,” a “raucous revelry of creepy-crawlies” (Yoda and Alt x-xi). This legend is in many ways similar to the Wild Hunt of Europe; as such, while Walpurgisnacht’s imagery in Madoka is heavily-inspired by stories of witches and slain warriors swarming during a storm, the knowledge Japanese viewers may have of the Hyakki Yagyo would just as easily make Walpurgisnacht’s attack resonate with them, much like the term “Walpurgisnacht” resonates with those in the West familiar with the word as a serious threat in a series whose main enemies are Witches.

(”Hyakki Yagyo,” by Kawanabe Kyosai.)

While Walpurgisnacht makes only a few appearances in the whole of Puella Magi Madoka Magica, its influence is greatly felt throughout the series; and while ultimately just an obstacle keeping the main characters from reaching a happy ending, it also has a lot of mythological, folkloric, and literary archetypes of witches and hauntings caused by spirits, all rolled into one enigmatic figure (indeed, even after the origin of Witches are revealed, Walpurgisnacht still remains a mystery in everything from backstory to motives). Like a lot of the folkloric and literary references in the show, it is not necessary to be aware of all the history behind Walpurgisnacht to understand the narrative; that being said, if one does choose to look into it, they will find quite a lot of interesting stories.

Bibliography

“Agrarian Gods and Goddesses.” Theoi. Web. Accessed 23 April, 2019.

Cleto, Sara and Erin Kathleen Bahl. “Becoming the Labyrinth: Negotiating Magical Space and Identity in Puella Magi Madoka Magica.” Humanities, 5:20 (2016). 

 Davies, Owen. “Witches and Walpurgis Night.” OUPBlog. Web. Accessed 27 April, 2019.

 Goethe, Johann Wolfgang von. Faust. Translated by George Madison Priest, William Benton, 1952.

 Kloss, Waldemar. “Herodias the Wild Huntress in the Legend of the Middle Ages.” Modern Language Notes, 23:4  (1908), pp. 100-102.

 Ridenour, Al. The Krampus and the Old, Dark Christmas: Roots and Rebirth of the Folkloric Devil. Feral House, 2016.

 Russell, Jeffrey Burton. Witchcraft in the Middle Ages.  Cornell University Press, 1972.

 Sekien, Toriyama. Japandemonium Illustrated: The Yokai Encyclopedias of Toriyama Sekien. Translated by Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt, Dover Publications, Inc., 2016.

 Shinbo, Akiyuki and Gen Urobuchi. Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Studio Shaft, 2011.

 The Bible. New Living Translation, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1996.

 “Walpurgisnacht.” Puella Magi Wiki. Web. Accessed 23 April, 2019.

 Yoda, Hiroko and Matt Alt. “About The Books.” Japandemonium Illustrated: The Yokai Encyclopedias of Toriyama Sekien. Translated by Hiroko Yoda and Matt Alt, Dover Publications, Inc., 2016.

[stacks-reviews]

New Releases 7/4/17

Happy New Release Day! A bit of a slower week than I’ve covered before but each is still a gem and worth checking out.

In Books --The Ancient Magus’ Bride volume 7 by Kore Yamazaki In case you have not heard of this wonderful series Chise Hatori is an orphan who see’s strange visions. With no home to call her own Chise decides to sell herself at an auction where she is bought by a magus with a head of bone; named Elias. Elias wants to make Chise his apprentice and his future bride. Volume 7 picks up right where volume 6 ended (where Elias gets a tad jealous when Chise makes a friends and runs off while Chise chases after him). Later Chise accidentally puts Elias under a sleeping spell. While trying to wake him Chise has a run in with Cartaphilus in the dreamworld but this is not the Cartaphilus that she is used to. All the while trouble is brewing and the dragons are part of the cause. It’s a really great serious. Easily one of my top favorites. The anime will start this later this year. If you enjoy this series you should check out The Girl from the Other Side Siuil, A Run by Nagabe. It has a similar feel to it but a bit more sinister. Kore Yamazaki has another series that will start releasing later this year called Frau Faust (8/26/17). 

--The Demon Prince of Momochi House volume 9 by Aya Shouoto Himari Momochi inherits a house on her sixteenth birthday but upon her arrival she finds three handsome men squatting in the house. Momochi House is actually a barrier between our world and the spirit world and Himari was supposed to be it’s guardian but one of the squatters has already taken over the role while the other two are spirits that serve him. I’ve fallen behind on this series. The last volume I bought was volume 6; I just haven’t had the time to pick up the rest, so I’m not quite sure what is going on in the story right now. It is a cute series. If you enjoy Kamisama Kiss by Julietta Suzuki then you might enjoy The Demon Prince of Momochi House.

--Riverkeep (in paperback) by Martin Stewart The Fobisher family has tended a wild, treacherous river for generations. Clearing it of ice and weeds and occasionally fishing corpses out. Wull dreads the day he will have to take over for his father and that day comes suddenly when his father is pulled under while trying to pull out a corpse. Wull’s father is no longer himself when he is pulled out. A dark spirit has possessed him. Wull hears rumors of a cure for his father lurks in the belly of a sea-dwelling beast. He then embarks on a journey down the river. Along the way he’ll face death countless times, meet people and creatures touched by magic, and find the courage he never knew he had. I almost bought this book last year when it came out in hardback but with shelving space rapidly growing smaller I decided to wait for the paperback.This book has an amazing cover and sounds fantastic. I can’t wait to give it a try.

--The Water Dragon’s Bride volume 2 by Rei Toma Modern girl Asahi is whisked away from her happy home and finds herself in a strange world. With her unusual hair and eyes some of the villagers think she is a sign of evil. They decide to use Asahi in the Water Dragon God’s Ritual where she will be offered to the god as his bride. But this god is not all that he is supposed to be. Sick with fever, Asahi is rescued by the Water Dragon God. Does this mean that he has awakened to feelings of compassion? Then, he realizes that Asahi is afraid of the adults of the village and decides to destroy it. Until Asahi gets caught in the flood along with them. This series is really good. You think it is going to be this cute little series cause Asahi and the friend (Subaru) she makes are young children but then Subaru’s mom turns out to be kind of evil and tries to kill Asahi by pushing her into a lake to marry a god. And the god isn’t this gentle loving guy. He’s a jerk that only cares about himself and could care less if Asahi dies. At first anyway. But going in any further might reveal some spoilers for volume 2. 

In DVD/Blu-ray --Cardcaptor Sakura Complete Collection Standard Edition (blu-ray) Ten-year-old Sakura was a normal girl until she found a glowing book in her father’s study. The book contained various cards that escaped when she opened the book. Now Sakura must collect all the cards again while trying to continue living as a normal girl. I bought the premium edition of this series when it came out; roughly, three years ago. But now it is out in a standard blu-ray set for anyone who missed it. I remember watching some of this series when I was younger so I was very happy for the rerelease.

--The Zookeeper’s Wife Based on the true story of Antonina Zabinski who helped with the Resistance in Poland during WWII to hide Jew’s from the Nazi’s. They hid them in the animal pens of their zoo and to alert them of soldiers exploring Antonina would play the piano very loudly so everyone would know when to hide and stay quiet. I didn’t get an opportunity to catch this while it was in theaters. I heard good reviews about it and still want to watch it.

[timespire]

Send me a note when you love Mahou Tsukai no Yome, post, reblog and do such things here. I rly would love to follow more fellow Mahoyome fans! I don’t mind spoilers since i’m mostly up to date (and I also like Frau Faust when you post about that too ♥)

[sunnysleben]

Psychopathinnen - Licht ins Dunkel bringen!

Ich habe heute in der Buchhandlung angefangen, das Buch „Psychopathinnen“ von Lydia Benecke zu lesen. Die Inszenierung als Roman, mit der Mischung an Fachwissen und wichtige Informationen hat mich so gefesselt, dass ich das Buch kurzerhand gekauft habe und erst um viertel nach eins am Morgen endlich bewusst entschieden habe, für heute eine Pause zu machen und Morgen weiterzulesen.

Als es um den Missbrauch ging, welche der ersten beschriebenen Psychopathin Elizabeth Diane Dows von ihrem Vater angetan wurde, erfüllte mich an vielen Stellen Ekel und tiefe Empathie für die Frau, die damals noch ein Opfer der Umstände war. Ich muss sagen, dass mich Kindesmissbrauch schon immer angewidert hat. Die Vorstellung, dass es tatsächlich Menschen gibt, die so etwas ihrem eigenen (oder auch irgendeinem anderen) Kind antun ist absolut befremdlich und ekelerregend für mich. Einmal wurde mir von einem Mädchen erzählt, dass diese missbraucht wurde, als sie jung war (Manchmal Segen und manchmal Fluch ist, dass meine Ausstrahlung anscheinend jene anzieht, denen es im tiefen Innern schlecht geht und diese sogar dazu bringt, mir von schlimmen psychischen Problemen zu erzählen. Ich bin zum Beispiel Beziehungsberater und Trennungshelfer, obwohl ich selbst erst eine Trennung und noch keine lange Beziehung hinter mir habe.) und anstatt ihr meine Schulter zu bieten, bin ich gegangen. Ich musste gehen, weil ich es nicht ausgehalten habe. Zuhause habe ich gekotzt. Heute würde ich so nicht mehr handeln, weil mein Fell dicker wurde. Ich bin ein Mensch, der die Harmonie liebt und generell gerne Positives verbreitet und der deshalb mit all den Destruktoren (Wie ich Menschen, die mehr kaputt machen, als sie aufbauen bezeichne) nur schwer zurechtkommt, die für fast alles Böse und Schlechte in der Welt verantwortlich sind. Als ich mit 16 von dieser Situation erzählt bekommen habe, hat mir dies klar gemacht, dass das Böse überall ist. Damit komme ich jetzt, nach vier Jahren schon viel besser zurecht, weil ich gelernt habe, dass man die Dunkelheit nur mit Licht bekämpfen kann und es daher wichtig ist, sich nicht von ihr einnehmen zu lassen, sondern so hell zu strahlen, dass man sie nach und nach in kleine Schatten bannt. Diesen Abschnitt konnte ich daher ohne viel Leiden durchlesen, doch sehr wohl mit tief empfundener Abneigung dem Vater, sowie dem Bedürfnis zu helfen und einem tiefen Mitgefühl der Tochter gegenüber.

Als ich die Passage gelesen habe, in welcher beschrieben wird, wie sie auf ihre Kinder feuert, musste ich weinen. (Keine Sorge, es waren seeehr männliche Tränen.) Ich wusste ja schon vorher, was passieren würde, doch die genaue Beschreibung und auch die Panik ihrer Tochter und ihr Sohn, der aufwacht, um den schrecklichen Todeskampf zu kämpfen war überwältigend. Dows hat darauf jedoch analytisch und sogar erleichtert reagiert, was ich nicht verstehen konnte.

Ich habe mir dann noch einige Ausschnitte aus Interviews von Diane Dows angesehen, weil ich wissen wollte, was das für eine Frau ist, die (Achtung: SPOILER!) ihre eigenen Kinder erschießt und nicht einmal Tränen vergießt. Zum Glück habe ich es geschafft, der Frau zuzugestehen, auf dieser Welt nicht ganz verkehrt zu sein und konnte still die Videos ansehen und die Merkmale erkunden. Dabei erfüllte mich kein Hass, nur eine Wut, aber nicht auf Diane Dows, sondern auf das Böse an sich.

Wie diese Psychopathin selbst auch dachte ist der Grund für alles Böse eben das Böse. Die Dunkelheit breitet sich aus und verschlingt früher oder Später jeden „Mittleren“, bis es nur noch die wenigen Guten gibt, die der Übermacht der Bösen gegenüberstehen. Denn die Innere Dunkelheit hat ihren Ursprung ja meistens in Misshandlungen und anderen schrecklichen Dingen, also in der inneren Dunkelheit von anderen.

Früher, als ich noch sehr, sehr jung war, nämlich im Alter von 11 Jahren, wurde ich gemobbt und habe diese Dunkelheit hautnah zu spüren bekommen und in mir aufgenommen. Ich war dann zeitweise der Ansicht, dass ich gezwungen wäre, ein Monster zu werden, um die Monster zu vernichten und dann mich selbst. Mein starker Charakter, meine gute Erziehung, meine Sicherheit in Bezug darauf, dass alles irgendwann besser wird, diese Dinge haben mich davor bewahrt, dieses Monster zu werden. Hätte ich diese Verwandlung durchgeführt, dann wäre die Sicherheit von keinem Bösen mehr garantiert gewesen. Stattdessen entschied ich mich für den Weg, den schon die Religion seit Jahrhunderten diktiert. Es geht nicht darum, das Böse zu zerstören, sondern Gut zu machen. Wenn ich ein Feuer in mir habe, dann kann ich auch eine kleine Kerze in anderen entflammen, die dann mit etwas Glück zu einem lodernden Feuer entflammt, wie dem meinen. Wir alle haben einen Platz! Und manchen muss man den Weg erhellen, damit sie auch mal strahlen können. Seit ich das weiß, konzentriere ich mich darauf, Positives zu verbreiten und in anderen zu fördern, anstatt das Negative zu vernichten. Denn kein Mensch kann gegen die Dunkelheit mit Gewalt gewinnen. Keine Faust ist hart genug und kein Schwert ist scharf genug, keine Lanze ist spitz genug und kein Pferd ist schnell genug, um die Dunkelheit zu vernichten, denn nur das Licht besiegt die Dunkelheit!