#hope this made sense asdfas

[icybreaths]

So in regards to Jewel's zanpakuto, 1. In the canon a Shinigami can fall out of harmony with their zan and lose the ability to communicate with it. Is this ever a danger to Jewel, considering how she goes against her zan's wishes? And 2. Are the apocalypse zanpakuto different than regular ones, which are mostly a reflection of the wielder's soul? And if she is a reflection of Jewel, what is she reflecting and does Jewel accept that or rebel against it?

|| Asks || @sunniestshark ||

1. Losing communication isn’t a danger because the very nature of Jewel and Hyouhakyoku’s connection is tumultuous and it's where they thrive together. Jewel also knows that she can’t let Hyou have everything she wants (ending existence in ice) by feeding into her rage, so she’s gotta walk a tightrope of finessing her zanpakuto to vent Hyou’s energy but not so much that Hyou runs out of her control.

They are constantly communicating, even subtly – and Jewel doesn’t always choose violence to indulge her.

When Hyou hums a violent tune, Jewel may sooth her by cleaning the blade and brushing through its plumage of fur. Jewel has also made ice sculptures for Hyouhakyoku while visiting the spirit in her inner world. Hyou obsesses over them and hoards them in caves to stare at and hold for hours. Jewel figured out ways to temporarily temper Hyou without making her feel like Jewel was forcing her to calm down. So, while Jewel does goes against Hyou’s wishes, she does it sneakily to keep the beast from throwing a body destroying fit.

2. My brain’s a wee fuzzy on my own lore; it doesn’t get asked about much but I’ll try!

So yes- apocalyptic zanpakuto are different than a typical zanpakuto.

There were originally four blades that were split into eight blades to keep the power of one zanpakuto from being too great. Jewel wields the ice catalyst zanpakuto, which is different than one of the primary element holders (fire, water, air, earth). If she and her zanpakuto’s apocalyptic half (Megumi’s ‘Water God Burial’) fight together in battle, it’s meant to create a force strong enough to wipe out something on a continental scale.

Apocalyptic zanpakuto are basically Shinigami Hard Mode because of their inherent nature and the risks that come with wielding them. They still reflect a wielder’s soul but it comes with a stormy flair, highlighting ones most destructive aspects and making the person face them… and destroying them if they can’t handle it.

Jewel, whose Shikai incantation was, “Tear asunder,” hints at the nature of her relationship with Hyouhakyoku and what is being reflected. Hyou is the culmination of Jewel’s discontent in her previous life. Of the mess of family dynamics and feeling out of place without a solid identity, fighting for a home she wanted to be hers despite it not feeling like home, being hunted by hollows, ultimately murdered by samurai, and nearly hollowfying from being left alone for so long. The loneliness and isolation. The rage – how she wished she could freeze the world just so she could sit with time in peace. She became a storm where her soul rested at the eye.

Jewel both does and doesn't accept her reflection. While she may not have the memory of the root of Hyou's nature, she understands what Hyou represents. Past aside, there are plenty of traumas and events in her current life that continue to fuel her unsettled soul, but Jewel's a solution oriented person with an iron will wrought over centuries. She's determined to conquer her demons.