#mizu's mother

[winter2468]

If you think about it for about 5 mins, Mizu's husband was the one who turned them in.

The story we have is:

Mizu's husband claims he had his sword out to help Mizu, and that Mizu's 'mother' sold Mizu out to buy opium

Mizu's 'mother' claims she sold herself to get the opium and that Mizu's husband sold Mizu out to the lord when he visited

Except that Mizu's 'mother', always, for Mizu's entire life, insisted upon serecy so that nobody would claim the bounty on Mizu. Not only that, but selling herself for opium is something Mizu's 'mother' did for years.

Sure, Mizu's 'mother' was paid to hide Mizu until the money ran out, but we already see what happened when the money ran out - Mizu's 'mother' turned to prostitution to pay for food and drugs, and looked for a husband to provide for Mizu. She could have turned Mizu in straight away, but she didn't.

Mizu's 'mother'-'s story holds up as completely in character for something she would do. Mizu's husband's story is just his word.

[ceruleanskies48]

Dead Mothers of BES pt. 4 (Mizu)

Mizu, Taigen, Akemi, and Ringo are very different characters, but the two things they all have in common are shitty fathers and dead mothers (at least from our Season 1 knowledge). The shitty fathers part is pretty self-explanatory, but let’s dig into what we know about their dead mothers and what we might speculate.

Part 1: Akemi's mom

Part 2: Ringo's mom

Part 3: Taigen's mom

To close out this series, let's talk about the elephant in the room, Mizu's (biological) mom.

How do we know she’s dead?

At the end of Ep. 8, Fowler says that one of the remaining white men (Skeffington or Routely) killed Mizu’s mother. While it’s true Fowler could be lying, I personally don’t think he is. This is the piece of information he leads with when trying to convince Mizu not to kill him, so it’d be very risky if it were false. He doesn’t know what Mizu knows, so if her mom were alive and she knew that, she would just kill him for lying. In addition, if Mizu’s mom were alive, it would be more advantageous for Fowler to say that and dangle information about her whereabouts to entice Mizu to keep him alive. 

When did she die?

Assuming Fowler is telling the truth, she died at the time of the fire we see at the beginning of Ep. 3, when Mizu was an infant, assassins were sent to kill her, and she was passed to her maid to be put into hiding. Presumably her mother was killed shortly before or after that scene. 

How did she die?

Either the assassins killed her, Skeffington/Routely personally killed her, or she died in the fire.

What was she like?

The fact that she had a maid taking care of Mizu suggests that she was well-off. This is also implied by the fact that the maid was paid to hide Mizu. The maid did so for 5 years (according to the character designers, Mizu was 6 when she met Swordfather, at which point her hair had grown back, so she must have been around 5 when the hut burned down since she was bald at the time), but the maid was likely paid enough to support them for all of Mizu’s childhood if she had not become addicted to opium.

Mizu’s mom was most likely married to someone of the same race since she was able to carry the pregnancy to term and give birth without issue. This presumably would have been very scandalous if she were unmarried. Mizu thinks her mother was raped, but it’s more likely her parents were in love given that her mother took great risks in going through with her pregnancy and had the means to terminate it.

If Mizu’s mom was Japanese, she must have been a noblewoman who fell in love with one of the white men. If she was white, she must have come to Japan with one of the four white men, perhaps as his wife or sister. In this case, her father was likely a very high-status Japanese nobleman given the size of the bounty put specifically on Mizu’s head. Assuming Fowler is telling the truth about either Skeffington or Routely killing her mom, it’s more likely that she was the wife of one of them, so the killing was motivated by betrayal at her infidelity. 

The fact that Mizu was carried to term, not killed by her mother shortly afterward (once she saw her blue eyes), and put into hiding also implies that her mom loved her deeply. She knew her daughter’s existence and her blue eyes would cause huge trouble and danger for both of them, but she decided to keep Mizu anyway. This is also why I tend to believe Fowler that she’s dead. Given how much she loved Mizu and wanted to stay with her, it seems unlikely she wouldn’t have tried to find or contact Mizu if she were still alive.  

[evaglass]

I keep thinking about Mizu's mother

To clarify, her birth mother. I want to know how exactly she died because I don't think it was when Mizu was a baby; I think she died the same night Mizu's childhood home went up in flames.

Maybe she really loved Mizu more than anything. That she thought she was the most beautiful thing in the world when she was born, like any loving mother would think after seeing their baby for the first time. Maybe she tried to find a way to make sure she could be with her in a safe environment but failed.

[trashfactorysstuff]

I’ve been thinking on a Au where Mizu was raised by Abijah but soon everything is starting to go downhill once she’s start meeting Taigen and questioning who is her true father.

I animated that short scene because my friend kept insisting too much on it. Scene from “The Legend of Korra”

[xjdkg89q]

Happy mother's day, here's Mizu for y'all :D (YES SHE'S MOTHER FR rrr RRRR)

[mahlersgirl]

I think about the assassin who refused to kill baby mizu a lot

[isitwrongtotrytopickup---dragons]

Was that first glance truly a gay little moment between Mizu and Akemi, or was she actually surprised (maybe even a little jealous?) that femininity could even look like that? Lavish, spoiled, seemingly loved or at least, something to be desired. I think it's pretty sure that she does not grasp how Akemi's life is a prison just as much as hers. That much is clear in their dialogues and her behavior towards her.

What if that dialogue (you, magical forest creature spoiling your good chances at a good life etc etc) was actually lowkey jealousy? of a life she herself would never get to experience as a woman? of being allowed to be a woman AND have a chance at happiness?

[waterfire1848]

Akemi: Mizu, stop! You are many things: friend, confidant, occasional guest star in some confusing dreams that remind me a woman's sexuality is a moving target-

[multifandombullshitbabes]

(Context: im thinking abt my post canon au, i explained on my ao3, u dont even have to read it just know its there)

Mizu revealing her being a woman to taigen AFTER he confesses his feelings to mizu AFTER being bested during their duel once again is literally so fucking personal to me. Jesus fuck... FUCK. Like. How overwhelmingly loved she must feel. How SEEN. Truly for once n not just but loved and wanted!!! Its so personal to me. Just. Taigen, losing, n then immediately leaning in for a kiss. Mizu is lost cuz what?? Why?? N taigen just. Confesses, but hes holding back cuz mizus reaction was not great and he doesn't wanna ruin the friendship they've formed these past months, they've grown so close so fast n its scary but so exciting n so right but if mizu doesnt want this then nothing is happening n its ok he has a CHOICE. Like. FUCK!! N then mizu telling taigen to wait and that night she reveals it. And its just sooo fucking intimate. Its so soft. And maybe taigen is confused but one look at how small mizu is making herself, like shielding herself from him. Like he gets it. The danger of it all. And its his promise to protect her if she ever needs to that does her in cuz. SHE HAS A CHOICE. TO BE PROTECTED OR NOT. THATS SO IMPORTANT TO HER. Yes, she can protect herself. Yes, it feels good to be protected. Yknow??

Mizu revealing her being a woman to akemi totally by accident AFTER they just had an argument abt women's choices in society AFTER mizu accidentally took one (1) big sip of sake, n then deciding fuck it im gonna win this argument, guess what akemi. And that's how akemi finds out. N Mizu thinks akemi is going to hate her, n she does for a bit in silence, but mostly shes just hurt? For herself AND for Mizu. Cause she understands, so suddenly, so intimately, how hard being a woman is and how mizu has had to hide as a man to survive (not even for plot reasons that we know, mizu being mixed AND a woman? Death sentence). And she just hurts. And they thought they'd always have this weird rift between them but they cry and they let it out (for Mizu, for the first time in YEARS) and its just. Its so emotional n so important and so personal and intimate. Its maybe winter all over again, a year has passed since theyd seen each other in kyoto, so much has changed and yet not rly and. They've grown but in different ways. Akemi, in taking life by the reins n being assertive and strong and so dangerously intelligent like shes always been but now, now its crucial to be that. And Mizu in realizing that she truly, truly wants to be loved so badly but to be loved is to be vulnerable and thats what scares her the most, to be weak; but ure only strong if u can be weak too, and thats what she learns. And i think this is where they really get deep into their feelings. Before it was a crush, an annoying one. Now? Oh bby theyre down bad. Yes they are.

[cocoishere-23]

My two hyperfixations combined

[appetite-pen]

An impurity in the right place is a quality

[everyonesfavoritejehovahwitness]

Idk how to feel about mikio calling mizu’s mother a whore because on one hand i’m like “tell em’ unc!!“ but on another hand I can use that against him.

[ceruleanskies48]

Dead Mothers of BES pt. 1 (Akemi)

Mizu, Taigen, Akemi, and Ringo are very different characters, but the two things they all have in common are shitty fathers and dead mothers (at least from our Season 1 knowledge). The shitty fathers part is pretty self-explanatory, but let’s dig into what we know about their dead mothers and what we might speculate.

This is a four-part series, starting with Akemi's mom.

How do we know she’s dead?

In Ep. 4, Lord Daichi states that Akemi’s mother is no longer around. Seki confirms this in Ep. 7 when he says he tried to prepare Akemi for the world after her mother died. 

When did she die?

The evidence we have points in two different directions. One possibility is that she died not that long ago, when Akemi was already in her teens. Akemi’s half-brother Tomoe is not that old (pre-verbal), and Lord Daichi likely remarried and had his second child shortly after his first wife died due to the need for a male heir. Indeed, when he talks about Lord Saito being on the market for a new bride, he mentions blithely that Lord Saito’s wife just died in childbirth, suggesting that new brides are sought quickly afterward. In addition, Lord Daichi in Ep. 8 says that Akemi used to look at his with admiration. This is definitely not the nature of their relationship when we first meet them, so it could be that Akemi’s regard for her father changed when he remarried. Young children typically are more accepting of step parents, and Akemi might have been especially upset at her father if his new bride wasn’t that much older than her. 

That said, it seems like Seki has been taking care of her since she was little. He, not her mom, brushed her teeth, taught her to read and paint, and was the one who let her sneak into her father’s library to read books. That said, the fact that he replaced her mom (instead of a nursemaid) implies that Akemi was not young enough to need breastfeeding. Either he started taking care of Akemi when she was around 3 and her mom died around then, or he was taking care of her even when her mom was still alive. 

How did she die?

She could have died from illness, but my guess is that she died from pregnancy-related complications. Akemi was her only child, so there must have been significant pressure for her to bear a male heir. The fact that Akemi doesn’t have a younger full sibling suggests that her mother might have struggled with subsequent pregnancies, perhaps having miscarriages/stillbirths, which were much more dangerous at the time. 

What was she like? 

Lord Daichi said that Akemi’s mom was like her in that she talked back. That said, she knew how to please him as a wife. My guess is that she was a strong woman who knew how to influence her often pig-headed husband. The fact that Seki took over from her as Akemi’s “mother” suggests that he was close to Akemi’s mother. Otherwise it’s a strange position for her father’s counselor to be put into. In addition, Seki raised Akemi to be a future leader, which is very progressive for the time, so my guess is that he had high regard for Akemi’s mother and was perhaps her advisor as well (especially if she was the one actually pulling her husband’s strings). This would also inform the direction Seki pushed Akemi into—marrying up and working within her constraints as a wife to become a leader through her husband. 

[valkerymillenia]

You know what would be a really interesting plot twist?

If Mizu actually did find her father and it turned out he just wasn't evil. Like, if the man, even as a foreigner, was a genuinely decent person.

It would be interesting to see the moral struggle for Mizu after her whole life's mission was to eliminate the guy. Plus, they vilify the white men so much but it would be interesting if one of them was just a man, not a colonialist horror.

[merrysithmas]

lol i literally couldnt care less about fandom drama but i will i say i saw an entitled cishet say "NO ONE BETTER START SAYING MIZU IS they/them!!" and if you cannot consider Mizu, an outwardly gendernonconforming character who shows a distaste towards 'feminine' dress/makeup/roles and penis-in-vagina sex as potentially nonbinary, trans, or otherwise ... then like who is ok for the trans fans out here to imagine as trans??? like who will you give us permission for, Your CisMajesty?

lmao kiss our collective trans azz tbh

[atlaswav]

me looking at mizu with hearts in my eyes after she killed an entire army of men all by herself and is "incapable of love" according to the princess: