brian wrote:

As to whether she can fully overcome her wounds, no one can say but I prefer to be optimistic. She has peered beyond the end of the world and seen a world beyond it.

I agree with your optimism. Even if she can't completely recover from her pain, at least she is dealing with it instead of spending eternity wounding herself with it.

Blade wrote:

The man smiled indulgently.  "I once thought as you did. Back before the
words 'time' and 'place' had meaning, I believed there was goodness in all
people.  Shall I tell you a story of that time?"
    The princess, not quite knowing what else to do, simply nodded.
    "Very well. Once upon a time, there was a prince.  He stood in a high
castle, and all the world was without.  And atop the tallest parapet, the prince
would gaze into the world, and see the troubles that plagued mankind.
    "The people loved the prince's benevolent gaze, for when it fell upon
them, their troubles were no more.  Even though many of their hearts were filled
with malice and jealousy and greed, the prince loved them all, and he aided them
all equally.  For he saw in them the pure things they could be, rather than the
base things they were.
    "And of all the peoples of the land that loved the prince, those who
loved him most were the girls.  For in this land outside the castle walls, all
girls were either princesses or witches.  And no matter how dark their heart
was, any girl the prince's gaze fell upon became a princess, and she need not be
a witch any longer.
    "And yet, there was one girl who was always a witch.  The prince took
her into his home behind the castle walls, and he loved her like a sister.  But
no matter how much love and affection the prince gave her, she remained a witch.
Perhaps a happy witch, but who can say what lives in the hearts of witches?
    "In time, the witch, who was the only one to see the prince in his own
home, came to understand the prince's great sadness.  For all other things he
could elevate, but he alone had to endure the malice and greed and jealousy he
was taking from the world.
    "And the witch, seeing this, decided that she loved him, and wanted him
to endure it no more."
    The princess was rapt in the man's words, which had the measured cadence
of a master storyteller.  She had fallen back upon the couch, her legs unwilling
or unable to support her.  The witch's brother's velvet voice encircled her, and
he drew her ever deeper into the story.
    "One day, while the prince was resting from his heroic endeavours, the
witch stepped outside his castle doors, and barred them forever.  She declared
in a loud voice: 'You people of this world, who give nothing to him but malice
and jealousy and greed, do not deserve the prince any longer.  I alone have not
burdened myself to him, and so I alone deserve his love.'
    "A great uproar rose across all the lands beyond the castle, and the
people came to the castle, drawing their flashing blades and demanding entrance,
but the witch was adamant.  And so, in their rage and grief, they fell upon her.
And that would have been the end of it, except such sins can not be punished
merely by simple death.  And so the witch has lingered, forever tormented by the
swords of those who had been deprived of their prince, since time started again.
And with each passing day, she grows more twisted by her punishment."
    The man's voice died away, and there was a moment of silence almost
immediately broken by a loud honk as the princess blew her nose.  Then she threw
her head back, wailing, "That's a terrible story!"
    The witch's brother smiled slightly again.  "Only storybook authors
should believe in happy endings."
    "But... but what happened to the prince?  Can't he come out of his
castle and help the poor witch?"
    The man shrugged, holding up his hands helplessly.  "I tried."  The
princess' eyes widened, but the witch's brother continued regardless, "But I
found that the only way to escape the castle walls was to leave behind all that
made me a prince."  Now he did pause, and his next words sounded reflective.
"At first, it was quite novel.  I enjoyed living without having to take all the
burdens of the world upon me.  At first, I truly believed the witch had done it
to save me, out of love.  And for awhile, I thought that my belief in the
goodness of all things had been justified."  His expression darkened, lip
twisting slightly.  "In time, however, I came to understand: what she had done
had not been done out of love for me, but out of the same malice, jealousy and
greed that all other people had within them.  And I hated her for it.  With each
passing day, I grew less and less interested in saving her from her eternal
punishment, and more and more interested in saving me from mine."

Though this fanfic is written well stylistically, I don't think Dios/Akio ultimately turns on Anthy because he loses faith in her goodness. It's possible guesswork, but I don't see any supporting evidence in the series (do you have any?) and I'd rather not draw conjectures merely because they sound poetic.

My interpretation of why Akio stops caring about Anthy is this: Anthy is the only thing standing between Akio and a million swords. If Akio truly loved Anthy as a selfless godess, he'd feel obligated to release her from the million swords and her eternity of suffering---but if Anthy stops shielding him as the Rose Bride, he'll become the pincushion instead. Thus, the only way for Akio is to avoid the swords is to make sure Anthy suffers for eternity in his place. Akio then most likely underwent a process psychologists call cognitive dissonance, the tendency of human beings to morally justify actions which are morally unscrupulous, but highly beneficial to themselves. For example, colonial Americans wanted more North American land, so they persuaded themselves that the Native Americans were savage, uneducated beasts so they could feel better about exiling, enslaving, and massacring them. Likewise, Akio ultimately convinces himself that Anthy is a witch who enjoys torturing children (not that he doesn't), so he can feel better about leaving her over and over again to be skewered. As part of his cognitive dissonance, he also insists that Anthy saved him out of selfish reasons rather than mostly selfless ones. (I'm in the camp of Anthy fans who believes Anthy sacrificed herself because she genuinely wanted to save Dios. Sure, a part of her hated the world for hurting her brother so, but no one risks their life and stands up to bloodthirsty mobs if petty jealously is their main motivation.)

Last edited by Nights1stStar (03-31-2009 11:38:10 AM)