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meimi-haneoka · 5 months

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Clear Card Trivia 2 ~ Alice in Clockland and its meaning inside Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card

"But in the end...what the heck was that 'Clockland' ?"

Raise your hand if you have thought so at least once! If you did, then welcome to one of the posts of my Clear Card trivia series, an unexpected one I have to say, because I had scheduled to write other posts before tackling this one, but today I suddenly realized, thanks to a conversation in a community, that probably this aspect of the series takes precedence over other things.

I've seen countless of people confused over this matter ever since the play started in the plot, and everybody knows that usually when things get unexpectedly complex, they are quick to be labeled as "useless" and "nonsense".

No, Alice in Clockland isn't just a flex on CLAMP's outstanding drawing skills, it isn't useless, it is very much connected to the plot and DOES have a meaning.

Now that the main story is over, I would like to tackle this issue. I don't presume to have the Big Truth in my pocket, especially cause Ohkawa-sensei was quite eloquent in her recent public speeches: a motto she's going by is "If you think so, then it's surely true....for you", but I feel like the way I understood and reconnected the whole play and the consequent events inside Momo's book do work out pretty well, so I'll just do what I usually do: I'll write my own interpretation out here, hoping that people reading it will find it useful, will find the right angle to look at all this part of the story, and have some of their frustrations with this arc sedated. And maybe share it around to help other people too.

I just want to get my voice out there so that no one can say "no one understood it".

Of course the text below is full of spoilers if you haven't read the chapters from 64-ish / volume 13, also I will talk assuming you know what is Kaito's plan and what feelings moved him to think such plan.

Then, if you're ready, let's proceed to see in details what this is all about, starting from the play.

The Alice In Clockland Play

Let's start from the fact that the play is based on Alice Through The Looking Glass, and that is because….well, Alice in Wonderland is Ohkawa's most beloved book, so she really feels connected to it (and as you might know, this isn't CLAMP's first title inspired in Alice in Wonderland). It's just a preference, but for example many other books are referenced in this arc (as you might know from my other post in the Clear Card Trivia series) particularly "Momo" by Michael Ende (yeah, Akiho chose Momo's name from that book!).

The play (first called "The Two Alice" and then at last minute "Alice in Clockland") is undoubtedly the focal point of the second half of Clear Card. It's during the play that Kaito starts the final stage of his plan (and succeeds). But not only that, the plot of the play itself offers a good foreshadowing to what's going to happen to a certain someone later on. CLAMP used the "parallels" structure a lot in this arc, because it enhances the feeling of interconnection between the characters. "I understand what you're going through because the same happened to me". Sakura is an extremely empathetic character so that fits her and her world perfectly.

So the plot of the play Naoko wrote is quite simple: there are these two twin sisters who get separated by supernatural reasons and one of them ends up lost in another world, becoming Queen of it and forgetting completely about her family of origin. In the play they're both called Alice because of the imagery that twins are initially one same being that gets divided in two… Even the family of origin forgets about the lost daughter, but somehow their feelings for her never get erased, and they keep a chair (which stays empty) at their table. It's like they're feeling that someone is missing and are waiting for her to return, even if they don't really know it. One day, a magical black cat gets to meet the Alice who stayed in her world and ends up guiding her to a magical land: his goal is to lead her to meet her lost sister and reunite them. After wandering for a while. Alice finds her sister/Queen of that land, and touching her hands she suddenly remembers who she is, and what she herself came here for, which is to bring her back home. The two go back home together and we reach the happy ending of the play (which we could only see in the rewritten world, but surely followed the scenario Naoko had written). The most important message of the play is that even if we forget about someone, feelings cannot be erased and those will lead us back to the person we forgot and to remember about them. (Does this ring a bell..?)

The Actual Clockland

It might be useful to remind you that we're currently dealing with two major magical tools shaped like books, at this point of the story: one is the Book of Time Momo is guarding (to which Akiho gave the title "Alice in Clockland" and which will inspire the title of the play), a magical book capable of recording someone's life and, activating the so-called "Forbidden Magic", rewrite it completely. Another one is the magical artifact, shaped like a book, that was engraved into Akiho's body by her Clan and the Association of Magicians, where any magical book that Akiho reads gets "written down" , to store its magical power for use and consumption of those criminals. There's just one "tiny" problem: the more magic gets written on it, the more the book consumes and suffocates Akiho's soul, till the point of no return where the soul will get destroyed. The Clan and Association prefer this outcome as it would be easier for them to manipulate Akiho as an artifact, devoid of any conscience.

In the middle of the school play, Kaito brings Sakura and Akiho to Clockland, which is a "dimension" existing inside Momo's book, to prepare them for the rewriting of the world that he's going to perform afterwards. This world is built using Sakura, Akiho and Kaito's memories (you can see many elements that appeared in past chapters and that come from their memories, like the botanical garden where they had a double date, or the rose garden where Kaito met Akiho the first time). Another thing to be noted is that Hitsuzen (the force of inevitability that rules CLAMP's manga) facilitated Kaito enormously, so much that many things went exactly as he wished and how it was convenient for him (which isn't a good thing, since this led to a big big mess). So following the school play's roles, here Akiho is the Queen of this land, she's the most important character and it makes sense seeing who Kaito is doing all of this for. Sakura keeps being Alice, just like in the play.

In Clockland, Kaito removes Sakura and Akiho's memories and stores them in the botanical garden. He needs to do that for two reasons:

‐ just like the play, he hopes that Sakura and Akiho will follow along their roles and recognize eachother as sisters ‐ as such, this Clockland works as some kind of "primer" for their brain; ‐ he needs to change and rewrite those memories to make them become sisters later on, so he needs to have them collected in one place.

It is to be noted that Syaoran here is an intruder, Kaito didn't initially account for him to join in, and wanted to take on the role of the cat himself. In the play the cat is the one who leads one of the Alices to find the other one and make them recognize eachother as sisters, so this is the one thing Kaito wants to do and the role he wants to take on for himself. Kaito also knows that Sakura trusts Syaoran, even at a subconscious level, so he keeps his appearance to ease her in, believing that she'll follow along without making questions (ha, so much for that, Kaito). Not wanting to be hindered in his plan, he uses the Mirror Sakura Card as a red herring for Syaoran. Syaoran, in that regard, even as an intruder ends up achieving a result very in line with his "cat role", which is to make someone remember (Sakura remembers her identity when he shouts her name). The Clear Cards are inside Clockland because Kaito soon will need to use them to power the forbidden spell. As we know from later events, not all of them are there, and some follow his orders (like Shade), some don't (like all the Cards with appearances of Sakura's loved ones, which are trying to give her hints along the way to wake her subconscious up ‐ this is exactly their role and it worked well because Sakura starts to free herself from the spell Kaito casted to keep her subconscious dormant and to keep her in her "in role", symbolized in the manga by a change of fonts used in the dialogues, a thing that those who have read it in English couldn't recognize because they didn't respect that aspect in the translation).

Another thing that Kaito hopes for, while the two girls interact in this "fairytale" (it is very much considered a fairytale by Kaito, since he calls all of them "characters"), is that Sakura will end up creating the Card he needs to operate the exchange of artifacts between him and Akiho (exchanging his pocket watch for the artifact book inside of her). As we said above, Hitsuzen shamelessly favors him and Sakura does end up creating Exchange at the last minute. Once that is done, Kaito doesn't need to keep them in this Clockland anymore, and by the contract they have, Momo starts to activate the forbidden spell on his request, rewriting everyone's memories to satisfy Kaito's wish to turn Akiho into Sakura's sister after he removed the artifact from her with Exchange.

Now, we know what happened after Kaito activated the forbidden spell. Everyone's memories were rewritten following his wish, and he was turned into a dragon and imprisoned by effect of the Seal of D., which was imposed on him by the Association like some sort of "trap", should he ever mess with Akiho's artifact.

But it's here that the play from above comes back in from the "backdoor", to bring the unexpected parallel: Kaito ends up being the character who's lost in another world and whose existence is totally forgotten by a loved one.

But that loved one got a "memento" of him (the pocket watch, which parallels the role of the chair in the play) and that object causes Akiho to feel strange, to feel like she has to fix it, she's extremely attracted to this pocket watch even if she doesn't know why. In the end, just like in the play, Akiho and Kaito reunite and despite not remembering anything about him, and not even having his true appearance in front of her (cause she meets him as a dragon first), Akiho knows perfectly well that that is the person she loves the most, because her feelings weren't erased (just like in the play).

Sakura's role in the finale ends up being similar to the one of the black cat, making everyone remember who they really are and their connections.

So this is roughly the "significance" of both the play and Clockland in this story. It is to be noted that what happens in Clockland is extremely abstract and full of riddles because Alice in Wonderland + Through The Looking Glass are exactly like that. Have you tried to read the originals by Lewis Carrol? It's quite difficult to follow along and nothing seems to make sense….when actually, with a different reading key, it does. I've had to pause my reading of Through The Looking Glass (that I had started in hope to understand the Clear Card story better) multiple times because it's quite difficult for me to stay focused and understand what's going on. I guess Ohkawa‐sensei wanted to go all out on the references to this story, and give the same narrative vibe. The references of course don't stop at the narrative structure, you can read the others in my post about the literary references that I had linked at the beginning of this post, in the section about Alice in Wonderland.

Kaito's True Feelings

Another thing to be noted about Clockland is that since it's playing a lot with the subconscious of the characters, Kaito's true feelings end up appearing here and there. The Queen's Castle, the most important place, is built on crystals, a reference to his true name (something that Sakura points out immediately and Kaito doesn't reply to, while showing a pensive face). Their memories together are protected and stored inside the botanical garden, once again made of crystals. Sakura hits the bull's eye particularly when she says that the rose garden (where Kaito met Akiho for the first time) feels extremely important to someone (that someone is Kaito, of course), and Kaito (disguised as Syaoran) looks away and urges her to move forward. The "someone" could be interpreted as Akiho too, of course, but the Cat/Kaito's reaction and the fact that the Cards told Sakura that this place is strictly interconnected with someone's "wish", makes me lean more toward Kaito. The garden pavillion appearing with the Repair card is another important place because it's where Lilie told him "you'll find something/someone you'll like, one day". It's quite telling that Sakura, despite not even remembering who she is, is guided by her infinite empathy and recognizes immediately those parts of this land that reveal Kaito's true heart and the core of this whole matter, through the continuous questions she keeps posing to everyone, in a desperate attempt to make sense of what's happening and subconsciously fight the spell that's keeping her in her "role" (she'll do that with Akiho too, later).

It's interesting to note also just how much Hitsuzen played on Kaito's side, guiding Tomoyo's instinct to re-do the outfits for the two Alices and ending up giving to Akiho a serious, dark outfit with a black veil. I remember how me and some friends commented that more than a queen, she looked like a mourning bride. Considering what happened afterwards, the imagery CLAMP chose was pretty spot on. Not only that, but the black veil also served as a metaphor for Kaito keeping Akiho's subconscious dormant, making her act like the role of the play required her to. Needless to say, Akiho was able to slip away from the grasp of that spell basically on her own, without even needing magic, only relying on her strong feelings for Kaito (she didn't even remember her name, but lifting the veil up - a very powerful imagery - she remembered that she had someone she loved, and also Sakura's name. This gets once again conveyed in the Japanese version by the change of fonts in the script). The rose headpiece is also another quite interesting part of the outfit, as Sakura asks to the Cat/Kaito why the roses in the garden are all white, despite being this the Red Queen's land... For sure, that place was referencing the real rose garden where Kaito and Akiho met the first time, where the roses were all white, but that also means that the only Red Rose in that land is....Akiho. I also remind you that the rose headpiece was featured in the color page of chapter 69, with Kaito cradling it in his arms with a sweet smile, as if he were holding something very precious....we could read the color illustration as "that's the only thing he got left of Akiho".

This is the reason why Momo, in a moment where the Alices are on their own, tells Kaito that no matter how much he tries to hide himself behind the Syaoran disguise, his true nature shows up anyway. The whole place is full of elements making reference to very important things in his heart, and his true wish. That is only normal because the whole place is made up of their memories. This is also why Momo says that Kaito gave "all of himself" for the activation of the spell.

Another very interesting part is when Sakura, before meeting the Cat/Kaito, meets her friends Rika, Chiharu, Yamazaki and Naoko in the shape of the corresponding Cards (Appear, Synchronize and True & False). The Cards tell her that what appears in this world depends on what Sakura wishes, but her reply is "This is the Red Queen's land. Shouldn't she be the one to decide what appears here in this world?" which works wonderfully on a metaphorical level to point at how Akiho should be the one deciding what happens from now on, since this place is hers and was built for her alone. Seeing how mad Akiho got at Kaito afterwards for deciding her happiness on her behalf, yes, Sakura's question was pretty legit.

In Clockland we have also lots of meaningful interactions between Sakura and Akiho and words said in conversation that will become absolutely essential to help Sakura reaching the truth in the rewritten world (especially the whole discussion about "memories" and "records"), since they stayed in her heart even with the activation of the forbidden spell.

And I believe this is everything regarding these two parts of the Clear Card plot, a way for CLAMP to undoubtedly experiment with a different kind of storytelling, and to ask their readers to dedicate a little bit more of attention to the story, trying to get out of the logical approach to things, and thinking on a more abstract and metaphorical level.

#cardcaptor sakura #card captor sakura #clear card arc #ccsakura #ccs spoilers #clear card trivia #clockland #sakura card captor #clamp

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lilover131 · 1 year

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Chapter 70 Analysis

I’ll be frank right now. This analysis was hard to write. It’s hard to write not just because of how absolutely wrong all my theories were (lord, were they wrrrrrrrrrrrrooonnng), but because this chapter made me unexpectedly very emotional. I’m just speechless and cannot believe that CLAMP got me again like this. I just find it absolutely amazing how Ohkawa’s writing can steer you in a direction and make you think you know what is going to happen, and every single time, she turns you on your head. Fucking incredible. I honestly don’t know how she manages to do it. Just…everything clicks now and I see the puzzle in front of me showing its picture, and it’s beautiful and also so so heartbreaking at the same time.

I’m not going to post a gif or image of the month this time, simply because I don’t feel like there is one that really is suitable.

Also, I apologize in advance for the crappy quality images in red of the screenshots I took. The English chapter has yet to come out in good quality and is currently only available on Youtube, so I had to make do with the red colored pages for now.

With that said, I’ll get started on my thoughts.

The color page this month is so stunningly gorgeous and it fits the theme of this chapter so well. It is beautiful and warm but also has a melancholy feeling that can’t be shaken. Sakura has a face that looks as if there is something missing, and by the end of this chapter, we know why.

Admittedly, when the chapter first started, I was very confused. It seemed to jump straight to Kaito using the EXCHANGE card without time for anyone to stop it, thus making my theory that Syaoran would fight to keep it from happening completely wrong. Lol. But I’m not upset about this. Not seeing a Syaoran sacrifice made me relieved, at least for the moment…(I’m still not ruling that shit out for the future. Haha)

But I wondered what it meant to see Sakura now as the Red Queen and Akiho as Alice. Did this mean Kaito had switched their lives after all? It certainly seemed to be the way things were going, and I was worried that he had been successful and wondered what the repercussions of this would be. It’s been well described in other CLAMP series (-cough- Tsubasa -cough-) that changing the fate’s design like this ultimately creates huge ripples and damages in the world around it. There is a reason it is considered forbidden magic after all, because of course if one could simply undo things or swap lives with people, why wouldn’t it happen all the time?

The first thing noticed though in particular was that it wasn’t just Sakura and Akiho that seemed to swap in roles. The very outfits themselves were changed. Some of you might recognize them as the first versions of the outfits that Tomoyo had made and decided to start over on as they did not feel right to her. It seems now that this is because these outfits were originally designed for them to be in swapped roles, so Tomoyo’s intuition here seems to reign supreme again but also makes me wonder for the millionth time how she doesn’t have magic (lol). Another difference seems to be that Syaoran has taken on the role of cat in the originally intended method of just voicing rather than acting on stage. Initially, this also worried me as the reason he had done the role on stage physically was to be by Sakura’s side in case something happened, so by seeing him not do this, it made me curious as to whether his relationship with Sakura was still the same.

Moreover, we must keep in mind that the title of the story had also changed from what was originally written. Before, the story of the play was called “The Two Alices” (which now I realize is super sneaky Ohkawa!) before Naoko made a last minute change and titled the play “Alice in Clockland”. Even the story itself seems to have deviated from what we saw before in the previous chapters. Alice Akiho mentions that her family had a fourth chair at the table always open, but she never understood why. And Red Queen Sakura mentions how she doesn’t remember how she became Queen and only ever remembered being in Clockland. The story soon seems to develop to reveal that the Red Queen is actually Alice’s twin sister who was lost long ago. It seems to also have a happy ending with the Red Queen returning home to her family.

Back on the rooftop of the school, Kaito and Momo are speaking. She asks him how he feels now that he has gotten what he wanted, which is still unclear to us at this point in the chapter. He claims to be relieved that Sakura finally created the card he needed before Momo goes on to explain to us readers (bless her) on what has occurred. And boy, is it a doozy.

The first thing was Sakura’s wish, which was simply to switch roles with Akiho and be the Red Queen instead. That seems fairly harmless in nature, but the second wish was for the artifact inside of Akiho to be exchanged to Kaito for his broken pocket watch. Naturally, taking on the artifact is absolutely huge because it was this very thing that the Squid Clan and the Association wanted to keep to themselves desperately. It was their grasp at power, which was all they cared about in this world. Additionally, Kaito had explained before that this artifact had already absorbed so much magic that if it took on anymore that it would crush Akiho’s soul, so what are the implications of that now in Kaito’s body, which undoubtedly already has a ridiculous amount of magic in it? We know already that he has shown no care for his own well being, so this seems to be more dire a situation than he was in before.

Akiho now has Kaito’s broken watch, but she still has no magic in her body, so she could not use it even if she wants to, so this will not impact Akiho in any way. She seems to be completely free of the binds that tied her to her awful family who wished only to use her as a tool and did not acknowledge her as a person.

But Kaito took it one step further…

The scene changes to the end of the play where the girls are being applauded for their performance. Naoko tells them that she knew they were perfect for the role of Alice and Red Queen. And I’ll tell you right now that when I was initially reading this chapter, it was in French (because the English chapter wasn’t quite out yet), and I had to use Google Translate. Upon translating the next speech bubble, I found myself absolutely fucking speechless and wondering if I had typed something in wrong or if Google messed up the translation.

Not only did Kaito take the artifact away from Akiho, but he also rewrote the past so that Akiho was born as Sakura’s twin sister. I think I can safely say that a majority of us had thought that Kaito was intending to swap Akiho and Sakura’s lives so that Akiho could have a happy life and Sakura would take on the misery Akiho endured. And I feel terrible now thinking he would actually do something so cruel, seeing as he honestly hasn’t really done anything to deserve that opinion. When you think about it, he never actually harmed anyone at any time, and even the trouble he caused was still much less dangerous than even what Eriol put them through (think about it, Eriol nearly had Syaoran cut Sakura in half when he controlled him with threads!). And additionally, most of the trouble was actually caused by Sakura herself with her out of control magic.

Was Kaito shady? Absolutely. Was he secretive and somewhat manipulative? Of course. But does that inherently make him a bad person? After this, I just can’t see it. What I’ve always enjoyed about Kaito particularly is that he always keeps you guessing. You never know exactly who’s side he’s actually on, and I’ve rather enjoyed learning more about him because of that. But one thing that always remained unfettered was that he cared about Akiho. In fact, Akiho seemed to be the only thing he ever showed any care towards (other than maybe her mother, but we still don’t know exactly how that story ended, and I’m sure we will learn more soon).

And now that we know what his intentions were, I cannot help but see the clues written all over the wall absolutely EVERYWHERE. CLAMP has literally been dropping hints for years, and I can’t help but be angry for missing it all! Granted, that was the point, but fuck I can’t help but be impressed by the writing just for that alone. Every single mention of how similar Sakura and Akiho were, the mention of them ‘synchronizing’, even Akiho’s fucking name! I have always had a feeling that Akiho’s name wasn’t always Akiho because it felt odd that she had a Japanese name despite being born to English parents in England, but now I can’t help but think that Kaito had her change her name so she could fit neatly into her new life. And still in my head I cannot forget that one scene in the anime (episode 10) with the SNOOZE card where he came to pick up Akiho, and Sakura and Akiho said something with the same reaction at the same time, and Kaito just laughed. I always wondered why he laughed like that, and now it makes complete sense. He was laughing because he had always intended to make Akiho Sakura’s twin sister, and it was funny to him because the two of them were already acting like twins.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlT4JhTNgVg&ab_channel=AnimeCat

Not to mention the many many scenes of Kaito seemingly investigating all aspects of Sakura’s life, like her father, Touya, the house she lived in, her mother, Syaoran, etc. He did all of this because he wanted to make sure Akiho would have a good life with Sakura’s family, and that she would be surrounded by those that would protect her. And like…I know many of us noticed this and theorized he was doing this because he wanted to swap Akiho with Sakura, but I feel awful that I never considered them being twins as an option and assumed the worst. What he proved here by making them twins was that he wanted to save Akiho, give her a better life, but without taking away from others in the process.

But there is one major problem with this wish… or rather two.

Momo looks to Kaito and tells him that even with his magic, he cannot contain the power of the artifact. It is at this very moment that the pages of the book artifact appear beneath his feet, and some of his memories begin to show in the pages. It was when he was younger and had volunteered to go with Akiho on her journey to absorb more magic. Both the Clan and Association did not like this idea and showed distrust towards him, worried that he’d try to use the artifact for himself. But they decided to make a ‘compromise’ (assholes) by stating that he could take Akiho on her journey if he accepted the ‘Seal of D’. This seal is actually a curse that is intended to keep him in check and will activate if he tampers with the artifact in any way.

Kaito seems to agree to this without hesitation and is warned that he can never break this seal, and if he does anything to ‘the artifact’ (god I wish they would talk about Akiho like the human being she is), he “can never return”. Do those words sound familiar? CUZ’ THEY FUCKIN’ DO TO ME.

It turns out that the voice we have seen and heard in the manga and anime several times saying “You can never return” was directed at Kaito. The strange disembodied voice in Sakura and Akiho’s dreams was that of one of the Clan/Association members telling Kaito he could never go back if he broke this vow. And this also explains why Kaito had such a grim reaction when Akiho brought up those words before from her dream. It’s because he knew exactly what those words meant, but he still decided to go through with this anyways. From the very beginning, he knew he was going to sacrifice himself, and although we had our theories about this for quite some time, it is absolutely confirmed now.

A magical seal appears over his chest, almost undoubtedly at this point the ‘Seal of D’, and in my initial read, I again was using Google Translate on the French pages before I saw this text, and it fucking broke me.

I started crying almost instantly. To know that he was a boy that grew up caring for nothing, wanting nothing, liking nothing…to say that the very spell that will undo him is the first spell he ever wanted to use. It’s fucking heartbreaking, and for the first time other than when he laughed, I could see a smile on his face that I knew was 100% genuine in every way. He’s not hiding anymore. It is the smile of someone who feels he has just fulfilled his purpose in life and is ready for the end.

Momo emulates me and most of the fandom by shouting and crying that he’s an idiot before he completely vanishes within the pages of the book. Sakura halts briefly, having felt something, but appears to brush it off, and lord I wish she wouldn’t have. The rooftop is now empty with neither Kaito or Momo, and the chapter ends there (because of course it does).

-Wipes tears and blows nose-

Okay, so this chapter messed me up emotionally, but I honestly loved it. It’s so beautiful and devastating at the same time, but I think I finally have an idea of where the story will go from here. Sakura still should have her magic and she has already developed the ability to remember things despite rewinding of time etc. But I think RECORD will also play a part. The card has been extremely useful in showing things that didn’t even happen in the real world, such as her dreams, but it has also been shown in the anime to show records of past events that happened prior to Sakura even being born and never experienced. I also think the watch will play a part. We know now that Akiho has a broken pocket watch and will likely not be able to remember where it came from but have melancholy feelings when looking at it or some sort of heart ache. I think this watch will assist in bringing Akiho and Kaito back together.

The ‘Seal of D’ also appears to have the same kind of appearance as the dragon from Sakura’s dreams, so I believe that the curse the Association and Clan put on him will have turned him into this dragon, and that he is currently roaming the world of the book. Because Sakura’s dreams showed the dragon in Tomoeda, I think that he will somehow break through the book in this form at some point, but there is still definitely the question about the Cloaked Figure, and it is still debatable who that will end up being. We know that part is still to come as Sakura has yet to wear the ‘sleeve’ she mentioned before that she would have on when she finally meets the Cloaked Figure for real.

God, just when you thought the climax was finally here, it seems we haven’t even reached the tip of the iceberg. This is most definitely why CLAMP needed another full volume to finish it, and I’m all for it.

I am so fascinated to see the next chapter and what this new timeline is like. Does Akiho know about Kero and Suppi etc.? What has gone on exactly in regards to the Clear Cards? And what about Syaoran? Does he still have the Sakura cards? What are the actual ramifications of this massive timeline change? And Lillie? What happened to her if Akiho was never born her child, and how did this affect Nadeshiko?

SO MANY QUESTIONS!!

But we’ll get answers here real soon, and I look forward to talking about them all with you! See you next month!

#cardcaptor sakura #clear card #manga #spoilers #chapter 70 #analysis #chrissy talks a lot #sakura #akiho #kaito #syaoran #tomoyo #momo #FUCK THE SQUID CLAN AND THE ASSOCIATION #this chapter broke me

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kodanshamanga · 5 months

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A Magical #NewMangaDay starts with:

🎀Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card, Volume 14🎀 By CLAMP

🌟After disappearing from the stage in the middle of the Alice in Clockland school play, Sakura finds herself lost in a world of queens, cats, and curiosities.

#cardcaptor sakura clear card #cardcaptor clear card #cardcaptor sakura #magical girl #mahou shoujo

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muthaz-rapapa · 1 year

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[Theory] Kaito's Desired Endgame

Actually, this is more of breakdown of why I don't think the common (?) theory of him aiming to switch Akiho and Sakura's lives is true.

It just bugged me a lot and I need to sort these thoughts out of system. Because if Kaito does want the girls to switch places, then that would count as malicious intent on his part (cuz doing so would harm Sakura which is like the biggest tabooboo in CCS land). And that doesn't align with what I see in the portrayal of his character so far.

Yea, he may be sneaky but there has been nothing to suggest that Kaito is a cruel or evil person. Far from it.

So I'm going to attempt to prove the "switch lives" theory wrong and come up with a possible new one at what his real goal might be. (others may have thought some of this up already but I've been out of the loop on CC as a whole to mentally recover so...just please give me space, thanks)

Remaining chapters

Let's start with the technical stuff first.

CC will end with vol 14 and right now we are currently at 69 chapters with ch 70 to be released at the end of January (so within a few days).

Usually a volume has 5-6 chapters with each one being about an average of 30 pages long. If so, the story should end with ch 70 or 71, right? Since vol 13 ended with ch 65 so ch 66-69, which are already out, fills up 4 chapters of vol 14 already.

Well, final manga volumes can be thicker than the regular volume by having more pages in the final chapter(s).

This happened with Pandora Hearts (the only other manga I have on hand that I can use as reference for this matter). Its final Japanese volume (24) had 70 more pages than the previous vol 23 and the final chapter alone totaled around 100 pages. See below photo for comparison:

Yea, so at the very least I think we might get 1 or 2 more extended chapters after 70 to wrap everything in the story up properly. 3 chapters maximum if we're really pushing it.

It can't be 5 chapters because then the story would end end at vol 15, not 14.

Right? Right. Ok, next.

EDIT: I stand corrected because ANN announced in an article last year (?) it would end at vol 14 but apparently, there was a mistake and now it'll end at vol 15. So yea, there's 5 more chapters of story after ch 70!

2) The possibility of a "simulation" or a dream-like scenario where the two "Alice"s experience switched lives.

Kind of something similar to the final judgement in the first arc where Sakura faced off against Yue before becoming the master of the former Clow Cards. The part where she went unconscious and saw a world where everybody forgot who they loved most?

Yea, that's exclusive to the anime series. It didn't occur in the original manga where Sakura stayed conscious, fended Yue off and won a lot faster.

If such a thing were to be added to CC's finale, you're going to need at least 3 out of the 6 chapters left for the desired...emotional impact. But even so, when we've spent a whole two volumes in the fantasy world of Clockland already, adding another layer to this "dream" the characters are already in...it's kinda superfluous and tiring, to be honest.

Not to mention, you need pages to wrap up other things as well. Like addressing Sakura's control over her growing powers? How are they gonna close that out? What about the European magicians? Will we know what they'll do once they learned Akiho isn't the artifact anymore? So many things to do before ch 75.

Creating and diving into another reality adds a whole other problem to the pile and frankly, even with the Exchange card, I don't believe there's even enough magic to be able to pull off such feat either.

But more on that later because there's something else that I must address before that.

3) Clues aren't direct and premonitions aren't exact.

There seems to be some collective perception that Momo's hint for Sakura back in ch 50-51 is suggesting Kaito intends to have Sakura replaced with Akiho and that's why nobody recognizes Sakura when she runs around frantically asking everyone what's going on.

Bzzt. Wrong.

The hint was not that she was going to be forced to switch lives (because if that were true, where was Akiho then?) but rather, Sakura was going to be thrown into the world of the story of Alice in Clockland. In other words, Momo's book.

Notice how all the houses and trees and stuff resemble props within a play? And how the school play eventually ended up connecting with the story in the book.

Yea, the hint was telling everyone that the finale will take place in a fictional setting.

As for why none of her family and friends recognized her in Momo's simulation, the opposite actually happened when Sakura became "Alice" after entering the book.

In the hint, Sakura remembers everyone but nobody knows who she is.

In the book, Alice!Sakura doesn't remember who she herself is but all the Clear Cards that took on the image of her loved ones (and therefore, are representing her loved ones) do.

In other words, the hint was meant to throw everyone off of what to expect while still giving us a clue of what will occur in later chapters. (side note: this also sorta brings to mind a line that Alice in the AiW books said: "Nothing would be what it is because everything would be what it isn't.")

And the meaning behind the hint became clear quite recently to me too.

Sakura was able to break the spell on her and recall her true identity by remembering the bonds she has with the people important to her. This effectively indicates that the memories we have with others are a large part of what defines who we are.

That if we don't lose sight of our connections with those dear to us, we won't lose sight of ourselves either.

Just like how Akiho recalled much faster about who she herself is by remembering never forgetting her feelings for Kaito.

Next, the premonitions.

Keep in mind that while Sakura's dreams fortell the future, they are also a product of her mind trying to sort things out while she's sleeping.

The things we couldn't readily process while awake (like confusion, shock, etc) would often be set aside in our unconsciousness to be dealt with later. Notably during the time we're not awake.

And I believe that the brain would try process those things to the best of its ability...but it can only do so with the information it already has available on hand. So anything you're not aware of or don't know yet, something else will be used as placeholder instead.

For example, the cloaked figure that Sakura pulled the hood off to reveal (a soulless-eyed) Syaoran underneath. That actually foretold that she will confront the Dreaming Card and an imposter Syaoran (aka Kaito in disguise) in Momo's book.

When she was still dreaming of MCF (sp?), she wasn't aware of Kaito's true identity as a magician yet so she kept seeing Syaoran in the cloak who always wore an expressionless face that she couldn't decipher. Because she didn't know that person was going to be Kaito.

But after she learned Kaito could use magic in ch 54, she no longer saw MCF!Syaoran in her dreams anymore.

Additionally, the Akiho who Sakura saw in her dreams turned out to be different than what's happening now.

In her dreams, Akiho is not conscious and always wearing her ritual dress with a vacant expression on her face. Like an empty doll.

But in the book, Akiho is awake despite the fact that her memory was temporarily subdued and she is wearing a noticeably different outfit. The dress of the Red Queen.

Her expressions are solemn but her eyes are very much alive in contrast to the Akiho in the dreams.

As for the serpentine winged dragon, no one smart should've expected it could represent anyone else other than Kaito.

On the corner of Kaito's robes as well as the back, there is the symbol of the dragon.

But as Sakura didn't suspect Kaito of anything yet at the time when she started having these dreams, her mind used the image of a dragon to clue her in on who she will be confronting later on.

However, it should be noted that none of what Sakura saw in the dreams suggests that she will switch lives with Akiho.

It only foretold that she will meet and confront these figures (the imposter Syaoran/Kaito in disguise, Akiho, the Dreaming Card and the dragon/Kaito as his real self) within the book.

And that future she saw already came to be as of these past two volumes.

4) The creation of the Exchange card

It should be pretty obvious by now that the whole synchro plan was for the sake of creating the circumstances needed to establish the foundations of this card.

Through Akiho and Sakura sharing feelings and bits of memories across their joint dreams, the idea of a "trade" has been incepted into Sakura's mind early on so that she will eventually create a card that can function as a link, a channel, for an exchange to be possible on immediate demand.

Throwing her into the book and making her "Alice" was just the final push to materialize the card into existence. Because the cards are born from Sakura's inner emotions, the events that led up to this point were meant to foster a certain feeling within her for that purpose.

As "Alice", the heroine, she was faced with the dilemma of the Red Queen's loneliness and inability to leave Clockland. That is what developed a wish in her to save the Queen (Akiho).

A desire to help Akiho by saying "I should've taken your place".

With that desire, a new card is born.

My prediction was correct (partially). Kaito was betting on this with the combination of his two plans (the synchro + the story of Clockland). He wanted to utilize the heroine's tendency towards altruism to bring about the card he needed.

As long as Sakura wanted to save Akiho, she would be able to birth the card needed for such a task.

However, none of that necessarily means he intends to use it to switch their lives. The only definitive thing out of this was that he wanted a specific card from Sakura all along...which is also what he's been saying all along, too.

How he intends to use the card may not be what everyone is expecting.

5) Conditions that need to be met + conflicts that may arise in using Exchange.

There are several things we need to ask before we come to any conclusions, chiefly among them the following:

Who can use the Exchange card? (read: is likely to use it in the current scenario)

And do the conditions differ depending on the person using it? Along with what their respective wish is?

First off, let's remember that the four central characters are all within a rather ambiguous space at the moment.

While the Clear Cards are there in the book and were created by Sakura, she was told that not all of them would not outright obey her commands. Or at least, they are following her subconscious will rather than her conscious one.

For example, when Sakura was fighting off the Dreaming card, trying to escape the book with Akiho, only to realize she didn't truly leave the book and what she saw was only a dream. Her attempt to leave was an illusion...a dream that she wished for as clarified by Kaito after it broke.

In other words, it can be interpreted that what Sakura truly wanted deep down was to believe that everything happening around her was not real. That it was a dream.

We should also note that Kaito, as the author/creator of Clockland, has some significant control over this field as well. They are playing on his turf right now so he has a slight advantage over them.

At the very least, the ones that seem to hold the most sway over the turnout of the story are the two most powerful magicians present (Sakura and Kaito) as well as the one whose choice will influence them the most (Akiho).

Moreover, we should also remember that he was able to use Clear Mirror to disguise himself as Syaoran.

As such, who can be called "master" over a Card may have been blurred within the book. It's possible the cards can respond to the will of anyone.

Depending on whose hand they're being held in and perhaps also, provided that the order they give doesn't conflict with Sakura's subconscious desire.

So now it becomes the question of who Exchange will fall into the hands of...

If it goes to Sakura, there are two ways this can play out:

Kaito reveals the truth about him and Akiho along with his wish to Sakura and asks her to use Exchange to fulfill it. If his wish is for her to switch lives with Akiho (and therefore, harmful intent), of course Sakura would refuse and his plan will fail on the spot. So naturally, it can't be that. Frankly, this approach makes no sense and further rules out the switch theory. Kaito cannot afford to fail in his quest to save Akiho so he needs a plan that is as airtight as possible with a higher percentage of succeeding. Relying completely on Sakura's goodwill won't give him that because he knows Sakura isn't a pushover. He knows she wouldn't just say "yes" to anything drastic even if it's to save a friend.

A more likely possibility is that he would offer himself in exchange for Akiho's life. His priority is to save Akiho and the most immediate danger is the book inside her. More than switching lives, he needs that book removed (and there's no guarantee that switching lives will remove the book anyway). He is willing to sacrifice everything he has, including his magic and what's left of his dwindling life, to get it out of her. In which case, Sakura would also refuse because not only would that hurt Akiho if she loses Kaito but it would also be assisted suicide. Which is something she would never consent to (and also extremely inappropriate for a story with a young age demographic). Sakura would never consent to sacrificing someone else no matter what the cause, especially when she still knows nothing about Kaito. And when she does learn the truth about him and his and Akiho's past, it will just make her refuse to let Kaito die even harder.

This part of the theory hasn't taken into consideration of what other cards she might use later (like Rewind) but I think we can say with some certainty that Exchange in Sakura's hands would be a dead end for Kaito so he will probably do his best to not let it go to her.

Now, if Exchange falls to Kaito, then it's a question of what his true intentions are with this card.

Everyone wants to perceive that he wishes to switch the girls' lives.

But I...simply do not believe there's enough time to bring about something that cosmic-sized of a change (along with all the action it entails), prevent it, resolve the issues at hand, have Sakura's party learn everything about Akiho and Kaito's pasts, reconcile...and then dedicate the entire last chapter to SyaoSaku being loveydovey with each other for fanservice. If the last 5 chapters are all 30 pages each.

Also, it seems a little too obvious to be true and there are too many contradictions that can make this go wrong.

For one, if we follow by the rules of magic, magical transactions usually need to be equal in value on both sides to be done successfully. Otherwise it will either not go through...or there will be severe consequences to make the transaction even.

So the definition behind Exchange shouldn't be that different.

Frankly, in the case of Akiho and Sakura's respective lives, they are not in fact equal.

They may share some things in common (being chocomint fans, of the same height, etc) but those are all surface similarities and nothing deep.

Since they've led different lives and had different experiences, they would naturally have different feelings, different hearts and therefore, different values.

What is important to Sakura is not the same for what is important to Akiho. For instance, the people they love most are different and thus, inexchangable.

There are also things that Sakura has that Akiho doesn't (magic, family, happy childhood, etc) and that goes the same the other way around, too. Akiho possesses things that Sakura doesn't have either (passion for books, emotional scars, trauma, and a deeper understanding of darkness due to a sad past).

Adding that up, the exchange would be doomed to fail because Akiho and Sakura are too distinct from each other as individuals to be switched smoothly.

Kaito is a magician so on top of knowing how different Akiho is from Sakura, he must be aware of this rule as well.

Furthermore, if the Exchange card takes into account what the user sees as equal in value for a trade, then he would fail there too.

Because of course he would place more importance on Akiho's life than Sakura's or anyone else's.

The scales would be tipped and maybe the magic might not even start up because the conditions for a fair trade have not been met to initiate it.

There's also the possibility of Kaito exchanging positions with Akiho.

In fact, he and Akiho are on more even standing than Akiho and Sakura are.

They share similar backgrounds (lonely pasts, traumatic and abused childhoods) and both are in danger of "dying" with their time running out (Kaito from using too much rewind, Akiho from the progression of the artifact that will erase her soul).

Since Kaito possesses a lot of innate magic while Akiho has that book filled with magic inside her, he can have Exchange put the book inside him while Akiho receives his magic. Doing so, Akiho's soul is preserved at the cost of his own.

But does he really want that with how much his life has been shaved off already from the multiple rewinds?

Doubt it.

Because besides saving her soul, Kaito wants Akiho to live a long and happy life as well. He didn't do all this work just to extend her life for a few more days or weeks or months. He wants her to have a future.

Moreover, even if it can save her soul, any method that forces magic onto Akiho goes against the biggest principle he's been standing by this entire time: that Akiho doesn't need magic.

That she isn't less valuable because she doesn't have any powers.

Whether it be from Sakura or him, it doesn' t matter. He does not want Akiho to change since she's already fine as she is now. She's fine being a normal person.

Giving her magic goes against the moral of their story and most of all, would validate the cruel criticism Akiho's clan had always thrown at her which is something Kaito would want to avoid at all costs.

So any way that ends with Akiho gaining magic is a no no. Because as long as she has magic, whether as an artifact or a magician, Akiho will always be in danger of being taken back by her clan to serve their own purposes.

They only have any interest in her if she contains power within her. If she doesn't, they will give up trying to reclaim her. That is the best outcome Kaito could hope for. Hence why he wants the book removed because then the magicians will stop chasing after Akiho for good and she can finally live in peace.

One more thing. A switch of lives means uprooting what has established the girls as the people they are now...which is gonna be incredibly hard to do.

Not only does it mess with personal history and relationships and therefore, effectively change who they are, it can screw up world through... some effect.

The girls have already lived 13 years, they made their mark in the records of time. The logic that constitutes them individually are already imprinted on the fabric of reality. This is not easily undone, rearranged and stitched perfectly back together.

And the price to attempt it sounds like it would be too much as well. It's not something Kaito alone can pay for. Not even with his and Sakura's magic combined.

Again, his major goals are 1) to remove the book from Akiho foremost and 2) to ensure that nothing that makes Akiho "Akiho" changes.

That includes the things that are the most precious to her. Her appreciation for books, her cherishment of Momo, the friendships she's made in Tomoeda.

And also, her love for her parents.

She may not have known them but she still treasures the fact that she had parents once, that she is the daughter to someone. The few things she does know about her mother and father, she keeps close to her heart. She wants to hold onto whatever she has of them because she has nothing else of them to keep.

Kaito understands this more than anyone because Akiho told this to him herself.

And the fact that Lilie, Akiho's mother, was also a significant person in his life is more than enough to deter him from ever wanting to sever the connection Akiho has with her parents. Because Lilie is an important part of Akiho, too. If Akiho loses that, she will no longer be the Akiho that she is now.

In short, switching Akiho's life with another's might turn her into a girl who has warm family and friends and a happy, sheltered childhood and all...but that girl wouldn't be the same Akiho in front of him at this moment.

Therefore, I must conclude that exchanging Akiho and Sakura's lives is probably not what he's aiming for. Because that ultimately means changing Akiho from who she is now into someone entirely different.

She would not be Akiho anymore if that happens.

6) Kaito's true wish + the endgame he wants

This is the part where I throw out a new theory.

Even if it's not an exchange of lives or magic, there will still be an exchange of something.

A wish and a price to pay for that wish.

Kaito wants the book that has been carved into Akiho's body to be removed.

The book has been implanted by the powers of many, many magicians from both the Association and Akiho's clan. And over the years, more magic has been added to its pages through all the books Akiho had read.

The amount of magic within her, though not specified, must be enormous. For it to be taken out without harming the vessel (Akiho) would require a very hefty price.

Kaito's life and his magic might not be enough. Hell, even adding Sakura's magic into the equation, overflowing as it is, might not be enough either because she is still only one person against the hundreds of magics and taboos stored in Akiho.

So what can Kaito offer, something that only belongs to him, to make it so the book no longer endangers Akiho? What does he alone possess that can match in equal value for the fulfillment of that wish?

Perhaps his own existence?

As in, erasing it from the world? That's a pretty big offer, isn't it?

Like it was discussed above, any tempering with the events of time is a very difficult thing to accomplish. In the magician society, it is also a widely known taboo. You don't mess with the workings of time and even the altering of one person's life in the flow of it can result in some significant change.

But see, if this is indeed possible...then the task is "easier" to carry out with Kaito precisely because there a very few people who are aware of him. In fact, the less others know about him, the better. It would not create such a big backlash if he were to disappear.

Because he thinks he didn't make enough of an impact on anything that would be hard to forget and also probably believes that everybody wants to forget about him.

He has no blood relatives looking for him so he believes he doesn't have a true home or family to go back or belong to.

The Association only ever saw him as a tool to be used and is out to kill him for taking Akiho (the artifact) away so they definitely won't miss him.

And nobody in Sakura's party really understands what he's after. They only suspect he's scheming something so they think the worst of him because they lack information to consider otherwise. Moreover, Kaito had also went to great lengths to hide his personal information from being discovered. He doesn't want people to know about him because that will make disappearing much more difficult.

Knowing him and his self-loathing, his belief and depression that he'll always be alone, his guilt over that blank book comment that brought this fate upon Akiho (the person he loves most) and how little time he has left to live anyway, Kaito is definitely in the mindset that there would be no problem if he were gone.

For him, it might even be preferable. This way, Akiho can be saved and he (as the "villain" he thinks he is) can exit this story, this world, so that it could have the "happy ending" he envisioned.

Though I suspect he wouldn't request for an ending on such a massive scale either because again, he cannot risk anything that could change Akiho from who she is now.

He'd still want his efforts to remain, to keep everything that built up this story to stay (taking Akiho away from her clan, bringing her to Japan, letting her meet and befriend Sakura, enacting the magic of Momo's book to remove the artifact, etc) so that it preserves Akiho's foundations as her own person.

He would just want to blot himself out. So that only he is forgotten after this is all over.

Akiho can still have Momo, her friends, her memories of her parents, the life she's lived up till now. It's only Kaito who wouldn't be there like he originally was.

There may be blank spots left behind where he used to be but since not many people knew about him, he trusts the world can fill in those blanks on its own. Like history correcting itself by creating little "coincidences" or whatever to explain and make sure things make sense.

For Akiho, he knows he can at least entrust her into Sakura's care after he's gone. That might be another reason why he allowed them to form a close friendship in spite of the dangers it could've posed to Akiho (i.e. the artifact reacting to Sakura's magic and reaching closer to completion, thereby shutting Akiho's consciousness down).

It wasn't just for the sake of the synchro and creating the Exchange card he was waiting for. It was also because he needed a good person to be there for Akiho, someone who is capable of protecting her when he no longer could. And for sure, he has confidence in Sakura because everybody knows Sakura will never abandon a person in need.

As long as the book is removed, the European magicians won't come after Akiho anymore. Sakura and co can take good care of Akiho because they are kind people. They will give her a safe place to stay, away from all the troubles of magic.

Including him, who believes his value lies only in his magic and was the source of this whole mess to begin with because of his affiliation with magic.

To make up for his "sin", for what he accidentally did to Akiho, Kaito is more than willing to step aside and vanish so that he doesn't get in the way of Akiho being happy.

However, he could not be more wrong because he still has absolutely no idea just how much Akiho loves him and therefore, how it's inevitably going to change her, to destroy her, if he erases himself from her life.

She is who she is because of him. If it weren't for Kaito making the choice to take her away from her clan, to save her from the doom of losing her soul, she never would've gotten this far. She never would've survived to become the Akiho she is now. Never to know what love is, to make friends and to realize that she's always had the choice in the matter of her own happiness.

Kaito taught her all that. He gave her that chance when no one else did.

He is the lynchpin of her existence. The reason why he's the most important person in her life.

She was able to become who she was because he was there for her, to support her and encourage her and to protect her and love her as she should've been loved.

Take him away and everything that they both worked so hard for will become undone. It doesn't matter how well taken care of she is by people like Sakura afterwards, they can never fill the hole he'd leave behind.

That void will always hurt her because she knows something, someone, is missing from where they should be.

Only he can fill that spot in her heart. No one else can.

He is the only person for her. He is the only person who knows best how to let Akiho stay Akiho.

And Akiho's greatest task in this story is to make him see that.

To make him realize that there is someone who will be deeply affected if they were to lose him and that's her. The one he cares most about and wants to save the most.

If he doesn't want Akiho to change into something she isn't...

If he doesn't want to see her worst off than she is now, a hollow husk who will grieve the loss of him forever...

If he truly wants her to be happy, then he has to listen to her. He has to believe her when she says "I love you. I will never be the same without you so don't leave me. Stay with me."

With that, I think I can picture the order of what might happen for Akiho and Kaito.

Akiho will be saved first with the removal of the book.

Then Kaito will be saved next through some other miracle means with Sakura's assistance.

But for sure, it is Akiho who will contribute the most to stopping him from dropping off the edge of no return. That loss will be hers to bear if she fails to so the one who has to put in the most effort to save Kaito will also be the person who loves him the most.

And she'll do that all without the need for magic. Just like she's always done to get by.

She just needs to be herself, to just be Akiho.

After all, Akiho is the true main character of "Alice in Clockland" whereas Sakura is the stand-in heroine for the sake of manifesting the magic Kaito needs.

The world of Clockland can bend to her will because she is the Queen.

Likewise, the story of Clockland can end however she wishes it to because she is in fact, the real Alice.

Kaito weaved this tale for her sake, for the real Alice.

Therefore, only she has the power to stop him. Only Akiho, the real Alice, is capable of turning him away from death and giving him reason to want to live.

Kaito wants the best and happiest ending for Akiho? Then don't go. Don't disappear.

He needs to understand the importance of his connection with Akiho. He needs to understand what it is that his most beloved reader truly wants in order to properly give her the most satisfactory "happy ending".

#i'm sure it won't happen exactly like I'm imagining it would and there are def some things I forgot while thinking this theory up...#but w/e cuz I did this to clear my head so I can focus on the things I want to do now #anyway last hurrah to throw in the void before it finally ends #prayer circle for no more sequels cuz i hate this trend to death #cardaptor sakura #clear card hen #yuna d. kaito #shinomoto akiho #kinomoto sakura

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lightaflametoburnmethrough · 1 year

Text

A Study of Love Analysis #5: The Strongest Emotion

“if love was a color, what would it be?”

I kept asking myself variations of this question since ch 68 came out. In fact, maybe I’ve always been asking ever since ch 66.

If love were a shape, what form would it take? When you want to express love without words, how would you do so?

It was chapter 66, the beginning of volume 14, that started filling in those answers.

1) Love as creation

Prior to vol 14, we entered Clockland… but what we saw wasn’t anything that was native to that world. The Clear Cards that came to life, they are just guests invited into this country. They are not original characters of the story itself because they are magic born from another person (Sakura) who isn’t the author of “Alice in Clockland”.

So who is the author? It’s Kaito, of course.

It can only be him. Momo confirmed it herself when she asked him, as far back as ch 31 (vol 7), “will this story have a happy ending?” and she confirmed it again in ch 60 with the line “The story that you prepared for the two Alices, Sakura and Akiho”.”

“Alice in Clockland” is a story created by Kaito. And therefore, the world within it is created by him, too.

Moreover, it is a reflection of himself. A statement of his feelings for Akiho in the most beautiful, poetic way.

First of all, he made Akiho the most important person in Clockland. Its sovereign, the Red Queen.

Among all the white roses in the garden we see later, Akiho is noticeably the only one addressed with the title of “Red”.

The sole red rose among all the white roses. The only one.

Next, the first thing we see upon “officially” entering Clockland is the Queen’s magnificent castle.

This castle, unlike the Cards, is a product of Clockland. And since it’s a part of Clockland, the world Kaito has given to Akiho, then the castle is also his gift to her. To show how highly he regards her in his eyes.

Following that, it’s the walk through that rose garden, which is described by Alice (Sakura) as “a place that seems to hold a very important feeling to someone.”

Because this rose garden draws from Kaito’s very memories of the place where he used to have conversations with Lilie as a child. Lilie, the first person who ever approached and treated him like a human being instead of a tool to be used by magicians.

But more than that, it was the place where he and Akiho first met. The day that he took her away from her toxic clan and gave her a new life where she could be happy started here. The place where their journey began, where their story began.

And that’s when you realize “Alice in Clockland” is a story about them, about Akiho and Kaito. Not a fictional Alice and definitely not Sakura, who only came into its most recent chapters when Akiho arrived in Japan and they became friends.

The book that has been titled as such is a magical one guarded by Momo. Kaito is Momo’s contractor and therefore, the current and true owner of the White Book. The White Book has been “lent” to Akiho, who has named it “Alice in Clockland” because she wished it so.

The book also records all the events of the owner(s’) life…so it stands to reason that its contents revolve around the time Akiho and Kaito spent with each other, of the memories they share together.

With Alice’s (Sakura’s) entrance into Clockland, the world adapts to include her memories as well since Kaito has assigned the role of heroine to her…but even this addition doesn’t nullify the significance of the sceneries the Red Queen (Akiho) takes Alice through.

The botanical garden where Akiho originally took Kaito for an outing (ch 53) before he wound back time to avoid a confrontation with Sakura and Syaoran. The fact that this garden shows up as another important place, more specifically called a “place of memories” with the three “characters” present there. It means it holds a great significance to Kaito, too.

Just like the rose garden from before.

Because it is a place he shared moments with Akiho, even if she doesn’t recall it because of the rewind.

Remember. After their midnight stroll in ch 48, Akiho told Sakura the very next day (ch 49) that Kaito remembered everything about their time traveling together.

“Even down to the smallest things that anyone would easily forget, he remembers them. Every single one.”

Because for Kaito, his greatest treasure is the time he was able to spend by Akiho’s side. Nothing means more to him than her. Nothing is of greater value than every second they are together.

So even if Akiho has no recollection of the day they went to the botanical garden, he does and it stays within his heart as something immeasurably precious.

Thus, it manifests in the world that reflects that heart. In Clockland.

Finally, the gondola through the library.

This is a scenery that reflects Akiho more than the other two because she is the one who loves books the most. They were her only friends before Kaito came along, before she made new ones in Japan, so naturally they occupy a very important place in her heart.

It explains why the shelves are so tall and expansive and goes on as far as their eyes could see. This library is much bigger and grander than all the places Alice (Sakura) has been led through before.

Did Kaito create this as well? For Akiho because he knows how much books mean to her? Or was this picture influenced by Akiho herself?

It’s never explicitly confirmed…but when the Red Queen went on to explain that books were “records” of many things and Alice (Sakura) asked what her favorite book was, she replied “the book I love most is Alice in Clockland.”

“Alice in Clockland”...the story Kaito gave to Akiho. The story about their life together, their time together.

Which leads us to…

2) Love as the constant

Even though the two girls have their roles to play upon entering Clockland, and thus the memories of their true selves were subdued, something in them is always inclining them to remember who they are.

But there is a difference between Akiho and Sakura.

Sakura is closely being monitored by Kaito to make sure that she doesn’t remember who she is as that will cause her to stray off the path he needs “Alice” to take to fulfill this story (aka his plan to save Akiho).

However, for Akiho, there is none of that pressure that Sakura feels when she’s on the edge of recalling something.

When Alice (Sakura) asks her if she’s the Red Queen, Akiho responds that she doesn’t know…but what she does know, what she does remember is that there is someone very special to her.

Someone so special that she can’t forget them, even in another world where she has assumed another identity.

Akiho doesn’t remember her own name or who she herself is…but she remembers “Alice in Clockland”. She remembers this special person (特別なひと).

The manner in which Akiho lifts her veil aside so effortlessly... there is multiple symbolism at play here.

She isn’t in pain nor does she wince like Sakura does the closer she gets back to her true self. Why is that?

Because even in Clockland, even though she’s been made the Red Queen by Kaito, he absolutely refuses to change what fundamentally makes Akiho who she is.

He is soft on Akiho in the way he isn’t towards anyone else because he doesn’t have a love for anyone else like he does for her.

All the important aspects of Akiho, he chose to leave them relatively untouched by his magic. Akiho’s fondness for books, her memory of “Alice in Clockland” ...and unknowingly to Kaito, the greatest love she has only for him.

It is like Akiho is brushing aside the dust of his spell on her as she lifts the veil. The veil that obscured her sight isn't the least bit heavy against her hand. It is lifted without resistance, without difficulty.

Because Kaito made it so. He made it so that this world, this Clockland, can never force or hurt Akiho in any way.

Clockland is a world where Akiho is the most important person. This world embraces and protects her from any harm.

Even when Sakura was told that this world will move as she wished, it won’t go against the creator’s (Kaito’s) law that nothing in it is allowed to defy Akiho. Not his desperation to save her, not even the veil (his magic) covering her face.

Because if she wishes for something, he can’t ever go against her either. He loves her too much to do that.

And that’s how Akiho gradually but surely remembers. How everything becomes more and more clear in her eyes.

Because she never forgot what is important to her in the first place. She’s always had it, she never lost it. She could never lose it because

“I am me because of this person. This person who is like no other in the world. This person who gave me the most precious feeling that I won’t ever forget. This precious feeling is me, the most important part of me.”

“I am Akiho because I had Kaito-san by my side. I am Akiho because he was always there for me. I am Akiho because I love Yuna D. Kaito.”

It’s because Akiho could see this clearly, because she could see her love for Kaito clearly, that she had no trouble seeing Sakura for who she truly is, too.

“I remembered because of my love for him…and so, I remember you, too. You are also someone dear to me, dear to Akiho. You’re not me. You’re not really Alice either. You’re my wonderful friend, Sakura-san.”

That is the extent of Akiho and Kaito’s unbreakable connection to each other, of how deeply they affect one another.

“Alice in Clockland” is the crystallization of Kaito’s love for Akiho.

And she reciprocates by cherishing this gift he has given her. She is telling him “I love you, too. This story you’ve written for me is my greatest treasure because YOU gave it to me. It’s the bond we share, the most important part of me that I won’t ever let go.”

A love that won’t waver and stands against all the currents and storms that hit them. Love that is a constant and won’t ever diminish, not even in the face of magic.

Finally,

3) Love as a formidable force

Now that Sakura has regained her memory and Syaoran has arrived on the scene, Kaito faces the final obstacles to the completion of this story. His plan to save Akiho.

However, Kaito is not bothered by the undoing of his disguise nor is he in any way deterred by this interference standing in his way.

He remains determined, perhaps even a deadly sort of calm in spite of his time running out. Even with his life more than halfway depleted because of too many rewinds.

He isn’t afraid of those trying to defy him because he will definitely use everything in his power to defy them back. Defy Syaoran a way to take them out of the book just like he defied the Association and Akiho’s clan attempts to retrieve Akiho as the artifact.

Kaito will not lose to these two precisely because his love is no less than theirs. It is his deep love for Akiho, his strongest desire to save Akiho, that he withstood even his own weaknesses.

The painful loneliness he’s always felt since he was a child.

The crushing guilt of accidentally dooming Akiho to her fate.

The fear of dying and leaving the one he loves most forever.

All those things are trifles before what’s most important to him.

The salvation of Akiho’s soul. The preservation of her life and her happiness.

True love has no labels. It knows no borders that can’t be overcome. It is not defined by gender, age, race, what a person has or doesn’t have, what a person deserves or doesn’t.

Therefore, it is also incorrect to say this is about good vs evil because it isn’t. There’s not even a good vs evil here because this love being presented is one that stands ABOVE basic concepts such as good and evil.

This isn’t about who’s right or who’s wrong.

This is about fighting to not lose what’s important.

This is about saving the lives of people struggling to survive.

Kaito won’t give in to the bitter end. Even if he were to break into a million pieces, he will see this plan through.

And it’s a given that Syaoran won’t succeed in taking the girls out of Clockland. Not before Sakura does what Kaito needs her to do anyway and that’s to save Akiho.

The cover of a book won’t close before the story is done telling its tale. There won’t be a curtain call before the play is finished.

Because that’s how a story is properly done. It ends with an ending. A happy ending.

And because Kaito is the person who wishes for that happy ending more than anyone, he will get what he wants. He will fight harder than everyone there, down to his very last breath, all for the sake of seeing Akiho live to see the next day.

And Akiho also won’t settle for just that either. She won’t allow anything to take Kaito, her greatest happiness, away from her.

She may not possess magic like the rest of them do…but they are all standing in her world. Clockland, the world given to her by Kaito. The world that belongs to her is at her command.

Akiho has a love as strong as any of theirs. A love that allowed her to be the first one, between her and Sakura, to break the spell of a magician with the rank of D despite not having any powers herself. An unyielding and unwavering love that even Yuna D. Kaito is no match for.

If Akiho, the Queen of Clockland, the actual main character of “Alice in Clockland” does not wish for a tragedy, then it WILL NOT happen.

Why?

Because love is a miracle. Love is the strongest magic in the world.

#cardcaptor sakura clear card hen #shinomoto akiho #yuna d. kaito #yunaaki #akiyuna #🕰️🌾🐇

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gabbylyons · 2 years

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Poor Sakura, she still doesn't know who she is 😔 i can't stop thinking about how distressed she was that she couldn't tell reality and dreams apart and now she is far from home and from everyone she loves thinking that she is alice

And finally, kaho was the only adult to notice that kaito was using time magic to manipulate the situation. Hope that helps eriol and yelan find out what kaito's true intentions are. But like eriol said, it's already in course, with akiho and Sakura meeting in clockland as "Alice" and "Red Queen" surrounded by clear cards.

#i'm so worried about syaoran and sakura #also kaito is obviously in a suicidal mission and im worried about akiho's destiny #cardcaptor sakura #clear card spoilers #ccs spoilers

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ccsthemovie2 · 2 years

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all this alice in clockland talk.....

#the create #in heart no kuni no alice's universe everyone has clocks for hearts hehe #but its NO PLACE FOR CCS' SWEET KIDS....#clear card spoilers i guess ???

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aliceinclockland · 10 months

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Clear Card headcanon: Yuna D. Kaito lies about how Akiho doesn't have any hint of magic (she actually does but it's very little and faint) inside her, in hopes that the magic association would leave her alone and let her have a normal life but the congregation still proceeded making her a walking spellbook...

Years later, Akiho and Yuna D. Kaito went back home but with a few surprise guests (Syaosaku) and the 3 of them— also aided by Eriol behind the scenes, fights the members of the association in exchange for YunaAki's freedom while Akiho, being "magicless", just watches.

Devastated at the site of war that's unfolding in front of her eyes, she desperately screamed, begging everyone to stop— unleashing her hidden powers all at once, burning the entire place down except her cherished people.

Turns out that Lilie sensed Akiho's powers when she was born, and in fear of the association going after her daughter when she's gone, she casted a spell concealing all the magic inside her— except that she didn't fully contain it.

notes:

in this headcanon, Lilie doesn't have the powers to see the future yet, she discovers she can do it a few months before she and her husband passes away from the accident.

same things happen with the canon— they travelled around the world together with Momo and her Alice in Clockland book, went to Japan and meeting the Tomoeda peeps... but here's the part that changes— Sakura discovering the truth about Momo and Clockland book after her gut feeling says there's something more to Akiho (and she and Syaoran, with Eriol & Yelan's aid, did some researching), then Sakura confessing to Akiho that she's Alice in Clockland and offers a helping hand to her. Then they formulated a plan to get both Yuna D. Kaito and Akiho free from the congregation's control.

Akiho's powers here was released because of the intense feelings she's experiencing— guilt, anger, sadness, etc. Her emotions amplified her desire to help the people she cherished because she didn't want anyone to suffer.

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tsubasaclones · 9 months

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Sakura meets momo in person for the first time after learning shes like... a living being and shes like "omg thank you so much for leaving that message for me to help me out even though you didnt really know me, I know how much you mean to akiho I hope we can be friends too some day"

And momo just responds with "hmm... yes you are acceptable enough"

She actually likes sakura pretty well shes just so used to being around shitty magic users it's a bit of a shock to interact with one who is genuinely nice

#since clow tried to use the alice in clockland book it means she would have met him #i like to imagine she had a less than favorable impression of him but i guess well never know

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meimi-haneoka · 10 months

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Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Chapter 75: Comments + JP-ENG translation differences

Hellooooo everyone! Welcome back to my post with the commentary and translation differences for Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card! We finally reached chapter 75!!! I'm glad to inform you all that even this month we didn't have any major (or even little) discrepancy between the ENG and JP versions, there's just some nuance here and there but nothing really impacting the correct understanding of this chapter.

Moreover, we still don't have any announcement for the last chapter of Clear Card, neither on the color spread nor in the editorial text at the end of the chapter (where usually the place for them to advertise stuff related to the next release is). We didn't even get an announcement on the twitter account...

Therefore, I'm confident enough to say that Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Arc won't be over in chapter 76, and they might really keep going till chapter 77 (double 7, lucky CLAMP number!). I know that this month we don't have translation mistakes, but if you still want to read my ramblings about some very important themes in Clear Card, then look at the gif of the month and follow me under the cut!! 😂

(my friends of a certain Discord server will be happy to see this gif, hahah)

The Color Page

The color spread this time is very special, not only because it gives us the opportunity to see the color scheme of ✨The Outfits✨ of the finale for both Sakura and Syaoran, but because there's an additional surprise too! Let's start with the color scheme, which as I strongly anticipated is the same of the costumes for the Alice in Clockland play (white - black - golden). Not only that, but also the poses and elements of the color spread are basically rehashing the color spread of chapter 64!

I absolutely loved this parallel. Especially because you can clearly see some kind of "the situation is very different now" message behind it. If Sakura looked somehow "lost" in the color page of chapter 64, she now looks confident, resolute, she gives off the aura of "leave it to me, I'll make things right!" and I really love it. I love this Sakura who's in charge because she finally found herself and what she wants to do with her powers: helping a beloved one finding her true smile again by bringing back the most important person to her! Syaoran is still looking cool, determined and serious (as opposed to 'snobby' before, but are we really sure that the one in ch. 64 was Syaoran? and not Kaito? 😂the absence of the body -which now is fully visible in the color spread of ch. 75- kinda suggests that that one wasn't the real Syaoran). The clock and clock gears of ch. 64 are now replaced, still in the very same position, by cool metallic elements, Kaito's pocket watch and a big Moon. Precisely the protagonists of this chapter! Now that I listed all the things I liked about this color page, I have also to point out that their expressions kinda look "weird" or "off-model" to me. I can't pinpoint exactly what's wrong, but it's something about the eyes: the irises are probably bigger or darker than usual. Not a big deal, anyway.

Off we go!

We start the chapter immediately explaining the big question that arised at the end of chapter 74: if this is a rewritten world and the Clear Cards have disappeared (and Sakura didn't have any recollection of them), what is the Dream Wand doing there? Kero asks about it and Sakura explains that when she went to open the jewelry box (remember it? It appeared in the very first chapter of Clear Card, and Sakura placed both the hairpin she received from Yukito as a present and the Star Key in there) before going to Yukito's house, she found another key together with the Star one. Sakura thinks that this key is the one that existed in their world before it was rewritten, and Kero can distinctly feel Sakura's power coming from it. Sakura agrees and says that for this reason, this time she'll be going with this wand.

So the Dream Key also survived the rewriting. Makes sense, it either survived on its own (and somehow ended up in the box) or Sakura must have left it at home in the box before the play, probably sensing something and listening to her magic intuition (that got even more refined in the latest period).

Tomoyo intervenes saying that the earcuffs of their outfits are actually transmitters: Sakura and Syaoran can communicate among eachother of course, but also send back audio and video to her device. Nakuru can't help but marvel at the hi-tec device and Tomoyo proudly announces that this is one of the hottest items of Daidouji Toys!! It made me smile to read that company's name again here in the finale, it really feels like tugging at our nostalgic heartstrings (because honestly Daidouji Toy's devices were the coolest thing in the old series!). Sakura can't really help but agree that this is a very special outfit, just like Tomoyo told her! Sakura does something that left me a bit speechless for a second: she summons the Fly Card using the Dream Wand! How cool is that? After all, the Dream Wand is still made of Sakura's power, so it really doesn't change much and she can use the Sakura Cards (also reborn under her power) with that magic tool too! Back with the Clow Cards there was a problem because the wand was made out of Sakura's power, but the Cards were still under Clow's, so that's why she had to make them be reborn under her name. Here we don't have this kind of problem anymore! Sakura supplies Syaoran with a cool pair of wings, and here I really have to say it: fandom, you complained so much about Kaito rewinding time and "erasing" cool winged Syaoran, and CLAMP heard you! Now you can have him back! 😂😂😂Honestly this one made me smile so much because I wondered if they felt guilty about that scene, or they simply had planned to revive it anyway since the beginning 😂I clearly remember Ohkawa said in one of their Spaces that they received quite a number of complaints about that particular scene 😆 Kero asks Sakura why she gave the Fly Card to Syaoran, and what she's going to do for herself: Sakura answers that Momo (how cute, she calls her Momo-san, just like that one time they met back in chapter 49 ❤️) told her that there are still Cards around that didn't disappear, and they used to help her before the world was rewritten (little difference in the ENG version: they made her say "they were by my side").

That said, she confidently calls for the FLIGHT CARD and the cute bow that we learned to love along the series appears on her back, all excited and affectionate like usual! Sakura thanks her for waiting for her and I found that so sweet....this is another one of those scenes that I feel like are catering to the fandom's wishes and preferences, since I've seen countless of disappointed/worried comments during the past months about Flight disappearing along with the other Clear Cards, and this is something that even CLAMP talked about (again in one of their Spaces) so they definitely were aware of it. Eriol and Kaho comment from England, impressed but nonetheless confirming that the Card definitely is made out of Sakura's power, just like the magic circle that appeared under Sakura when she used it (of course it's different from the one that appeared when she used Fly). Sakura walks to Akiho and as I imagined from what she said last chapter, she asks her to let her borrow the precious pocket watch for a while.

Akiho of course agrees. I loved the emphasis they gave to the "handover" of the watch, because it enhances the perception of how important that item is. Akiho is entrusting to Sakura literally the one and last thing she's got left of her most important person, whom she's missing terribly, and the fact that she's willing to separate from it and entrust it to Sakura just goes to show how much she believes in her. And the "handover" is watched carefully by everyone with a smile on their faces.

It's time. Sakura and Syaoran are all ready to go, not before saying "We'll be going, then (See you later)". A word I always loved from Japanese language is 行ってきます, ittekimasu, a word used to announce that you're leaving, but in the same word is also hidden the promise that you'll be back. And I think there's no other word that her loved ones, particularly Akiho, need to hear from her right now. I also love to bits the expression she's having while she says it. Confidence in the shape of a young girl ❤️

Convey your feelings

So off they go, high in the sky, with the big moon in the background and Kaito's pocket watch held tightly in Sakura's hand. Sakura takes the chance to thank Syaoran for coming with her. Her unwavering, loyal beloved boyfriend. He'd never leave her alone, facing something unknown and possibly dangerous like this one. And he takes the chance of their current privacy to thank her too: slightly embarrassed, with a sweet smile, he's grateful to her for saying that he's her most important person, shortly ago. ❤️ This is another thing that I've heard many people being slightly disappointed about last month, the fact they hadn't shown Syaoran's reaction after Sakura said that, and in one of the answers to my asks I said that I would've found it rather inappropriate if Syaoran and Sakura had that kind of conversation and started to be a lovey-dovey mess in front of a person who had just found out that the pain she's been feeling all along was because she was missing her own most important person, but not only that, also that her memories, family and all of her world had been rewritten, it was all a lie. Someone's world is literally crumbling under their feet and I didn't think it was the right moment to show a romantic scene between those two right in front of her. Thankfully CLAMP had already in mind to move that kind of conversation to later on. And since they work on 1/2 chapters ahead of what's been published, they were probably already drawing that scene before chapter 74 was even out.

Sakura, unrestrainable by now in her self-confidence, says something really precious that I'd say is my favorite line of the entire chapter:

JP: "When I've found out that this world had been rewritten, I've thought about it. If there's something I want to say, I have to spell it out. Even if the important words we say were to be rewritten, it's not like they'd be erased, because they'd be staying in our hearts"

Sakura understands that if she wants to make sure that her "important words", her feelings will STAY even after a major rewriting like that, she needs to spell them out. Remember Tomoyo, in the old series? "No feeling will come across if you don't say it aloud". And so in this way Sakura is making sure that the person who hears it will remember it even against the strongest of magic, because those words will never disappear totally. The brain might forget, but the heart doesn't. Syaoran of course agrees with that sentiment. And I really want to say that I think this same concept will be of utmost importance in reuniting Kaito and Akiho too. Their bond, their shared memories, the time spent together, the words that were said (Akiho worked so hard towards the end of the 'old world' to convey her feelings to Kaito in a way that wouldn't scare him), all of that surely stayed inside their hearts and it's only waiting for the trigger to make them remember and reunite.

We switch back to Yukito's home, where everyone goes back inside to spy to check on the flying couple from Tomoyo's tablet (while still in a videocall with Eriol and Kaho), but while Touya is going back in himself, he sees that Akiho keeps standing by the door, eyes fixed on the moon. Out of all of them, she's obviously the most stressed up one. She can't relax and wait like everyone else. Her heart must be in the grips of anxiety, hurt and probably fear too. So Touya, our big brother with a heart just as big as him, tries to comfort her and calm her down, telling her that Sakura might be a tad too impertinent and with a tendency to kick, basically a "monster" (I know in ENG they translated 足癖が悪い with "she got two left feet" and technically it might not be wrong but I've seen the same term used to indicate any kind of bad behavior that makes use of the legs/feet incorrectly, so included kicking - like, using this expression with a horse it would mean that horse kicks a lot. So when I saw that, I was reminded of how Sakura used to kick Touya precisely when he called her "monster" 😂), but she keeps true to what she says. "If she said she'll look (for that person), she'll do so. So let's wait for when she'll call you...together". And while he says so, he pats her head affectionately. Gosh, the way he behaves with Akiho is so different than what he does with Sakura, right? 😂 But that's just an indication of how special the bond with his true sister is...Touya gets tsundere and a bully only with her. 😂 I remember he patted Mirror's head too (while she was disguised as Sakura), back in chapter 38. He's really a kind onii-chan but he only gets stubborn with his little sister 😂 I found so moving the little detail of Akiho wincing for a moment when Touya patted her head....a sign that she isn't used to that kind of display of affection? Definitely. And the more I thought about this, the more the words from the chapter of her backstory came back to my mind, "there was no one who would pat her head".... And then, of course, I just couldn't avoid thinking about all the times Kaito tried istinctively to reach for that head too, to console her, or even to just hold her, and always stopped that hand hurriedly. Seeing Touya managing to do what Kaito always wanted to do on instinct, and sabotaged himself, hurt quite a lot. But it's also a proof of how different their situations are. How different their circumstances are. How different their feelings for Akiho are. No matter how kind Touya can be with basically a stranger that was somehow entrusted to them by another stranger, and how much he can empathize with her situation, he can never be the guy who literally gave all of himself for Akiho.

Still, I think this scene reinforced my idea that when they'll bring Kaito back, Touya will be waiting for him with his fist ready to land on his head 😂because he really just can't stand that he hurt his adopted sister this much. No matter if he did it for her. He'll really be merciless with the most important people of his sisters, if they make them cry! 😅

Akiho is finally reassured by Touya's sweet gesture (there's a lot of love in this rewritten world, my gosh! Everyone is so affectionate or displays affection in a more evident way!). But while here we have a poignant scene of brotherly affection, nearby the group of nosy people just witnessed the scene between the two lovebirds Sakura and Syaoran about the "most important person", so Nakuru sighs at the missed opportunity to see Touya's HP and MP go straight to zero, because he wasn't there with them to watch it! 😂😂Yukito of course doesn't skip a chance to join in making fun of his boyfriend, saying that he would've surely made a scary face. 😆The way the little group makes fun of Touya behind his back moves to compassion even Kero and Suppy, who say that they feel bad for him! 😂😂😂 I think all these little comedy skits of this chapter are probably here to defuse the tension a little bit, probably also because of what's about to come. Remember that sensei is balancing the narrative weight on the total volume, so adding more fun scenes now might make up for later, when it won't (of course) be possible or appropriate to insert any (yea, it'll only be time for tears later, right, sensei?).

Back to our flying couple, Syaoran asks Sakura more clarifications about what she said earlier regarding the pocket watch, that it'll "show them the way". Sakura says that she can feel magic power coming from that watch, and it doesn't belong to anyone she knows. The kids, in unison, say that if they trace the magic back to its owner, and they follow it, they'll be able to meet "the person who's missing". Syaoran got the perfect magic tool for that.

He summons his famous compass, and asks Sakura to place the watch over it. In a very cool scene worthy of the next head of the Li clan, chanting the long and famous activation spell for his compass (which includes Chinese characters but spelled with the Japanese "on" reading), Syaoran traces the owner of the pocket watch....back to the moon. The poor guy is confused and thinks the pursuit failed, because he can feel the watch carrying moon power inside of it (yep, reminder that its owner's magic is Moon type, just like Syaoran! And the ENG said there are "traces of it", but the JP doesn't say it's only "traces", the whole watch might be imbued of Kaito's moon power), so probably that's why the compass is pointing at the moon.... But Sakura suddenly figured it out: the compass is correctly pointing at the moon, because that moon....IS NOT THE REAL ONE!

With a swift movement worthy of the coolest ikemen on earth, which startles even her boyfriend (😂 it's already full of comments about how Sakura is particularly handsome - yes, handsome - in this chapter 😂), Sakura summons Sword! Loooong time no see! So long, in fact, that I've been notified that the Sword Sakura is holding a few pages later is the wrong one! Yes, because when Sword was reborn under Sakura's name as a Sakura Card, its appearance changed slightly! 😅The one Sakura holds in this scene is the "Clow Card" version!

This is how Sword was supposed to look...will CLAMP notice the mistake and fix it in the tankobon? Anyway, Sakura jumps towards the giant moon (that at some point we can see it's literally flat, like a cover for something else), and splits it open!!! I mean!!! What did this girl eat for breakfast, today? 😂😂😂She's absolutely cool and keeps showing how much she's grown both magically and in her capacity to listen to her intuition. Eriol and Kaho immediately comment on that fake moon, and Eriol in particular said something that alarmed me at once: "It's something that was created by a considerable amount of magicians. And they used even an ancient magic ritual, at that." There's no trace of doubt in his speech, so my mind immediately runs to them, the real disgrace of this arc: the Association + Squids (Akiho's Clan). When you talk about lots of magicians, and ancient rituals, you can't just avoid thinking about them right away. But why, and how did they create that fake moon? Too soon to have clear answers right now, but our watchers from England point out that for Sakura to see through that deception as soon as her attention was brought onto it means that her powers really became considerably strong! But here comes the comment that sets this situation apart from what we have seen till now in Clear Card: this growth in power is totally intentional! Because Sakura now has something she wants to do.

You see, this task Sakura gave herself isn't only to Akiho's benefit. This situation also probably gave Sakura the key to not cause her powers to go haywire anymore. Because, as I always suspected (and this conversation gave me more elements to make me think I was right), her power previously went out of control because she didn't know what she wanted to do with it. She didn't find a purpose for it. She didn't figure out yet (nor probably even thought about) what she wanted to do with her natural gift... (and here we go back again to the thematic I talked about in my post of last month, the "what can I do with my innate capabilities?" and Sakura right now decided "I want to use it to make the people I love happy"). She used to look at it as some thing "remote" from her, something that she'd rather not use (remember when she had put her Star Key away in the box saying "it's better if I don't use it anymore"?) but magic is literally part of her, so rejecting it would only hurt her more and cause the mess that we have all seen in these 7 years of serialization. And so probably, no matter what training she might have gone through, the problem wouldn't have been solved anyway, unless she'd set her mind straight on what purpose give to her magic, stabilizing it once for all. I think this is a very important part of this story because it all goes back to the search of her identity, which is such a crucial thematic in this arc.

And you can really see it in how beautiful Sakura looks in this panel. This is the beauty radiating from a person who's confident and knows what she's doing, knows what she wants.

Sakura and Syaoran finally go inside the "door", let's call it like that, which originated from the split of the fake moon. They do not know what awaits them on the other side nor what will happen, but they both bravely proceed ahead.

And what they find in front of their eyes is some kind of very weird environment. Eerie, even. The space is completely white, and they're fluctuating among warped clockworks and what looks like disassembled clocks: I found that very fascinating and I can't wait to see how this space will look like once it'll be animated.... The compass' beam keeps indicating where the owner of the pocket watch is, and Sakura and Syaoran follow it diligently, till they finally reach their goal.

*Sigh*

And then they see it. Trapped inside what looks like a circular cage, sleeping peacefully, a black dragon. Yes. That dragon. The one we've seen in Sakura's dreams ever since chapter 2, the one that appeared on the cover of the book they used the day they engraved the artifact in Akiho, the one that appeared as a decoration on the last outfit Kaito wore till he disappeared, and the one that looked like the symbol that appeared when the Seal of D. manifested to engulf Kaito in chapter 70. And this is also how this chapter ends (of course!!! with the worst cliffhanger!). The editorial text in Japanese present on the left of the very last page says "Guided by the pocket watch, what is it that they found...? Next issue, Sakura will appear with a super luxurious furoku!!"

Now, I'd wait before giving for granted that that thing is really Kaito. CLAMP are absolutely no strangers to lead their readers to think something (especially at the end of a chapter) but then revealing in the following one that it was something else.... Moreover, this dragon appeared in such different situations, that it's really hard to pinpoint (and predict) exactly what it represents. So I'm not gonna go out on a limb and say that Dragon-chan is Kaito. We'll know soon what CLAMP have in store for us.

Sure, I keep missing Kaito like crazy, but I think one way or another in next chapter we'll finally see him. Especially cause it's almost certainly the second-to-last one 😅 On that regard, I enjoyed the content of this chapter and even though it might be normal to think "what are they even doing, wasting time and pages like this? get to the point!", I want to trust Ohkawa and let her lead me where she wants to bring me to. I want to appreciate the journey for how she created it, with the pace she thought for it. Once it'll be over, it'll be hopefully easier to see if this relaxed pace ended up producing a series that is easy and interesting to read, or if it caused things to be rushed at the very end. Moreover, I know everyone is somehow expecting a battle ahead, but I'd be actually surprised if it happens at all. If it does, I don't think it'll be against the Association (because they're simply too many and too powerful for Sakura to fight against them). It might be against the dragon or....it might just be that this will be about finding a way to free Kaito, and then putting him in the condition to choose to go back to Akiho's side. And at that moment, Akiho's turn will finally arrive. I think this finale will be mainly based on emotivity and important talks. If anything, the main "battle" they'll have to win will be convincing Kaito that he deserves to live a happy life too.

Chapter 76 will be published on CLAMP’s Youtube channel on August 1st, while the relative Nakayoshi magazine will be released on August 3rd!

Soooo it's time for me to wrap this post up (where I mainly talked about my thoughts and impressions on the chapter, how lovely 😆) and I'll surely be waiting for you all here once again at the beginning of August!! In the meantime, my inbox is open for your asks! 👍 See you!

#cardcaptor sakura #card captor sakura #clear card arc #ccsakura #ccs spoilers #translation differences #chapter 75 #sakura kinomoto #syaoran li

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lilover131 · 1 year

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Clear Card Chapter 71 Analysis

I’m back! Happy March everyone! I apologize for the delay in posting this analysis! I’ve had some personal stuff going on that has kept me quite distracted, but I finally buckled down and got this done! I sincerely appreciate the patience of anyone who was waiting!

This chapter definitely has a much warmer vibe (although bittersweet) than last month’s, so here is my gif of the month for this chapter.

Without further ado, let’s talk about it!

The color page this month is relatively simple and shows Sakura standing while surrounded by the many different outfits related to the Two Alices play or “Alice in Clockland” depending I guess on which timeline it is. It’s nice to see all of them in full color now (which certainly helps with fanart. Haha), however something about this image definitely gives me the vibe that there is more to come in regards to this. I don’t think they’re done with the original timeline just yet.

The chapter begins with a typical Sakura morning as she runs around frantically getting dressed due to oversleeping. A friend very quickly pointed out that the house actually has an entirely new section added to it that wasn’t there before, and this is very likely Akiho’s room.

I find it really comical that Suppi mentions how Sakura absentmindedly turned off both her alarms and went back to sleep. If you saw it happen Suppi, then WHY DIDN’T YOU WAKE HER UUUPPPPP? Lol. I am somewhat surprised though to see Suppi there (though I guess I shouldn’t since they were seen to be there for the end of the play), because the original reason he and Nakuru showed up was because things were happening in Japan. I wonder what the reason is for their arrival in this particular timeline? Is it just a visit, perhaps to see the play or meet Sakura’s twin? In that case, I wonder if Eriol and Kaho are there as well, since they couldn’t travel before due to the risk of Kaito bringing the plane down.

Can I pause for a moment too to talk about how cute Sakura’s new uniform is? I love the all black look (even the ends of the sleeves are black now instead of white), and the addition of the leggings is just so freaking adorable!

Sakura comes down to see Akiho cooking breakfast, and it warms my heart to see her actually cooking. That was something she wanted to learn before to cook for Kaito (they’re croqueetteeesss toooooo), so to see her doing it independently makes me think of what could’ve been had she continued to learn in the other timeline. I think over time, she would’ve turned out to be a great cook, so this new timeline pretty much proves that. The narration from Sakura explains next that Akiho had bad health since she was little and that she spent a lot of time living with their great grandfather for treatment before recently moving back in with them. I’m not entirely sure why it was necessary for her to move for treatment, but I doubt CLAMP will go into any detail about that because that would probably introduce more plot holes or headaches for them to try and cover up. Hahahaha. I suppose it really isn’t important anyways, but I actually am really happy for Masaki, their great grandfather. He was devastated losing Nadeshiko, so I bet having Akiho around probably made him really really happy. Maybe this also means that Fujitaka and him had a better relationship to start, but I’m not entirely sure what the implications of that is.

Speaking of Fujitaka, in the next page, he arrives downstairs and greets the both of them. He eats alone with the girls since Touya had an early morning shift and one after class too (jeez this boy never stops working), but Fujitaka is eager to try what Akiho cooked. He tries it and immediately loves it, and the way Akiho just lights up after being praised for her cooking is just so precious.

It’s explained how Akiho transferred to her school that year and was in the same class (just like in the original timeline), and despite having been separated most of their lives, Sakura is looking forward to making a bunch of happy memories with her to make up for the time lost. This reminds me a bit of how Syaoran was turned into a toddler after Sakura wished they would have met sooner. But Syaoran reminded her that they had a whole future to build happy memories together.

The two of them start walking to school, and as it starts to snow, Sakura becomes and overly protective older sister and starts wrapping her scarf around Akiho (who already has a scarf) to keep her nice and warm. Hahaha. Akiho asks if Sakura will be cold now without her scarf, but she insists that she’ll be okay and that she doesn’t want Akiho to get a fever. Honestly, I love seeing protective Sakura. Normally, it’s everyone else around her protecting her, but seeing her on the other side is just so freaking cute.

Tomoyo naturally appears shortly after and commends Sakura for being such a good big sister, and Akiho mentions how she’s been feeling better than usual and not feeling any pain (oh lord, she’s been feeling pain? Poor thing…). Sakura and Tomoyo both say they will look out for her if anything changes, but Sakura adds on that Akiho is very precious to her. Tomoyo comments that maybe a sister complex runs in the family, and that one honestly made me laugh pretty good.

When Sakura arrives to school, Syaoran is there waiting for her and the two talk about how cold it got overnight. After being asked if she was under the weather at all, Sakura answers that she is doing just fine as well as the cards. She mentions talking to the Mirror card the night before, and this seems to confirm that the Sakura cards are back with her, though in this timeline, I’m not sure that Syaoran would have ever taken them away. This does call into question though whether the Clear cards still exist or not. Somehow I have a feeling they do but are floating in some place cut off from time (maybe in the book where Kaito likely is?).

Syaoran asks her why she wanted to talk to the Mirror card, and she tells him that she has been pondering on the thought of telling Akiho about everything that happened while they were apart, including her magical adventures. Syaoran thinks this would be shocking for her (though doesn’t seem to imply in any way that this is a bad idea), but Sakura thinks that even if she was shocked by it, that Akiho would likely believe her (I mean, it wouldn’t take much to convince her since you could literally show her). Syaoran seems somewhat saddened by the thought that she can’t use magic, but Sakura focuses on how Akiho is a kind and very strong person (girl, you have no idea). She’s asked if she trusts her, and Sakura answers that she does, to which Syaoran comments would make sense since she’s her twin. But Sakura states that even if she wasn’t her sister, she would trust her, and that time together isn’t always needed to help know how one feels.

Syaoran smiles at her in understanding, and Sakura blushes (naturally) before mentioning that she would also want to tell her about him, such as the day they met and how he always came to her rescue. She finishes by saying she wants to tell her about the “most important person in her life”, and lord I can’t help but swoon a bit at this. And just when I thought my heart was already bursting at this cuteness, they knock it up another notch by holding hands and touching their foreheads together, and OMG I CAN’T DEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAL.

It's so nice seeing them be able to touch again, but I just absolutely adore the way these two show their love to each other. It’s just so pure and warm and *clutches heart again*

Sakura talks about how she hopes too that Akiho can tell her all about her most important person, and it’s at this point that the pain comes back. Lol. Kaito’s absence really does hit hard with these words, but there isn’t much time to ponder on it before Sakura is suddenly thrust into the dream world and sees…the cloaked figure.

Admittedly, I was not at all expecting this whatsoever, especially in the middle of such a sweet scene, but omg the hyyyyyype. I feel hyped because it feels like it’s one step closer to things ramping up again. But I gotta say…when the hood came down, my jaw pretty much dropped. Hahaha. It’s LILLIE!!! She’s younger in appearance it seems, and she claims that she is there to meet Sakura in a dream. I am so so so curious to see what all of this is about and what it all means. Why is Lillie younger? Is this a dream from Lillie’s past (dreams after all bend the rules of time)? Or has she been reborn in a new life and is now the same age as Sakura and Akiho? I really want to know the implications of this timeline on Lillie’s existence, but obviously I’m just dying to hear what it is she has to say. My hope is she has a way to save Kaito, but I suppose we’ll just have to wait to find out.

There are definitely lots of questions to be answered, and I hope CLAMP starts doing so in the next month. Until next time everyone!

#cardcaptor sakura #clear card #chapter 71 #spoilers #analysis #chrissy talks a lot #syaoran #sakura #kaito #akiho #fujitaka #masaki #tomoyo #kero #suppi #manga

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starsrshiney · 5 months

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Cardcaptor Damian AU? Like Damian found a strange book with 87 Sakura Cards (Kinda 53 Sakura Cards + 34 Clear Cards, based on this: "At the end of the Clear Card arc Chapter 80, as a result of Sakura's Staff of Dreams influence on them, the Sakura Cards adopted the Clear Cards's appearance and receive 6 point-stars symbol in their transformed form". So yeah, let's Sakura keep the Clear Cards...) inside the book along with two guardians (it's two in this AU: Kero and... Momo).

Is Raven in the same generation as Damien or is she teamed up with an older Robin? If she's in Damien's generation, she could be a reference to help with the magic shenanigans going on. If not Raven, is there a DC hero around Damien's age that he interacts with (as part of Young Justice or Teen Titans or whatever teen/ young adult/ sidekick hero group is active?)

Also Gotham has enough of its own BS going on, Card Shenanigans would probably Not Go Over Well. Especially if Sakura's magic starts interacting with the various curses that make Gotham Like That.

Also also Damien's soft spot for animals + Kero and Momo's false forms would probably make for some interesting interactions. Possibly even Kero's true form, but not so much Momo's.

But also also also, what would Momo's job be? Kero's the Appointer of the cardcaptor and Yue is the Judge to see if the captor is worthy of being a Master. Momo's duty is to Alice in Clockland. I guess keep Damien or anyone else from realizing the book has more use than just holding the cards?

Also x4, the bat family. Would Damien even try to hide the magic stuff from them? Batman would probably loom over Kero and Momo until he got descriptions of Each And Every Card.

. . . and that's if the cards were released in Gotham, the story changes if its in Happy Harbor/ Jump City/ wherever the youth/sidekick group is.

. . . Wow that's a lot of thoughts for me not knowing Damien outside of DC crossover fanfics.

#holy snap i was actually asked something?#anonymous

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muthaz-rapapa · 10 months

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Losing not one but two children she's known for years.

Losing that young boy she contracted with not because he went crazy for power but because he did everything out of love for an innocent girl who was abused to the point that she was almost beyond saving.

It's too hard knowing how hopeless Momo must've felt about this plan, how much she must've hated its outcome yet couldn't do anything to go against it because one, if she actually did have control over the book she guarded, she would've been too powerful. That's why limiters have been put in place to prevent her from breaking the rules lest she wrecked the world for the sake of her own bias. Otherwise, Akiho and Kaito never would've gone through all that suffering in the first place because Momo wouldn't have allowed it to happen.

And two, because in the end, she had no choice to but to agree with Kaito that they were always going to put Akiho's safety before anything else. Akiho didn't have anything to defend herself from that artifact planted inside her. So the only method they could grab that was within their reach was to switch Akiho out and have someone take her place, eventually losing Kaito.

Then, Akiho wakes up with a whole new history inserted into her head, absolutely no clue about what they both did to preserve her life and enjoying a superficial "happy ending".

Akiho doesn't remember the precious bunny who's been with her since she was just a baby. She doesn't even remember there used to be a person she loved very much, more than anything in the world.

It's no wonder why Momo is not shown by Akiho's side despite there being nothing to stop her from doing so. She likely chose to stay by Kaito, not just to protect him while he's probably in a coma but also because she can't bear to look at Akiho who is only half her true self.

This is not her Akiho. This is not the Akiho that Momo knows. The Akiho who despite all the unfair treatment she received, still found the strength to overcome her pain and keep her pure heart and compassion.

This Akiho is just her surface personality but her real substance is hidden somewhere until the spell of this "happy ending" wears off.

So Momo has to wait, has to wait for all the fail-safes they put in place to activate. The ones that can finally lead Akiho to remember her true past, her love and the only person who can ever make her feel that way.

But there was no telling when that might happen. By the looks of it, weeks have already passed since the Exchange was carried out. Maybe even one or two months by the time Record played this message Momo left in that room. So there's a possibility it could've taken even longer if they weren't so lucky that Sakura managed to talk with Lilie in a dream and sensed the remains of the leftover card shortly afterwards.

Still, this is the only time Momo is shown post-Exchange and it isn't even her real self. It's a recording of her and she still doesn't show up after its playback is done.

She is still patiently, loyally, waiting by Kaito''s side somewhere. She will not go to Akiho, she's waiting for Akiho to come to them. No matter how long it takes or how painful it is to wait for that day to come, Momo chose to believe in Akiho. That Akiho will eventually go to reclaim her true self.

Honestly, it goes without saying that this "happy ending" was never going to last either. The clues (including Kaito's pocket watch) that got left behind and the discrepancies (like the pain in Akiho's heart when she felt like there was something missing, that essentially being her muscle memory that wasn't affected by the rewrite) would have triggered its undoing.

It's been proven before that spells can be broken (Kaito's silencing spell, the two "Alice"s remembering who they really are in Clockland) so this is just another case of that.

Moreover, narratively, this "ending" is very incomplete and leaves a bad taste in the mouth. Because even though everybody and their dog can attest with confidence that Akiho will never be mistreated in the Kinomoto household, the care she's receiving is based more on principle than anything. A principle that is based on the rewrite of their actual memories.

It's akin to showing warm hospitality to a guest and less like true familial love that runs deeper.

Akiho deserves that. Not this façade where she's constantly being viewed as part of a twin set with another person. She deserves to be acknowledged as her own separate individual.

After all she's been through, she should be with people who not only know and accept her entire past but truly comprehend from a similar place how hard it was for her to survive it. People who will know the right words to say specifically to her, who understand how hard it's always going to be for her to remember...but something she's never going to forget because those scars are a part of her. Her sorrow, loneliness, all those darker sides that also make her who she is today.

Nobody else but Kaito and Momo know that Akiho.

And that's why she can never be happy with just "being happy", just being safe with half herself.

No one can be complete by denying the less than perfect aspects of themselves.

You must embrace every part of you to know how whole you really are.

That said, I can understand why Kaito went as far as he did.

With what few ways there were available for him to make use in his situation, too.

It would've been enough to switch his watch for the artifact and then put Akiho in a non-magical family. It didn't have to be the Kinomoto family. He didn't have to alter everyone's memories to make them believe Akiho was born as Sakura's twin.

Another kind family would've been just a good as long as they could provide Akiho with a normal life.

But as spells can break under any circumstances, he wasn't willing to risk that chance of Akiho being in danger again, especially when he wasn't going to be there to protect her.

Should the rewrite become undone somehow, Akiho's clan and the Association will remember who it really was they planted the artifact in and come after Akiho to reclaim her. Possibly even retry the experiment again on her since they failed the first time because Kaito foiled their plans.

That's why he installed her in the Kinomoto house where there would be sufficient protection should that occur. Where there was at least one person (Sakura) who was capable and willing to defend Akiho no matter what.

Nothing about his plan was ever impulsive. Impulsive does not include forethought. Impulsive is acting on the spur of the moment, on reckless behavior or emotions that overtake logical thinking.

Everything he did, he did it meticulously so that there would be no weak spots where Akiho's safety was concerned.

Nobody else could've accomplished this task but him.

Taking Akiho under his protection to escape from a society that sees them as nothing more than tools. Needing to constantly fend off attacks from those magicians, always having guns aimed at his back while on the run. Having to hide all these terrible truths from Akiho for years so that she could grow up in comfort and security and learn to smile without worrying.

Throwing a giant net and luring a young and powerful yet dangerously untrained magician into his trap despite being outnumbered by her group, despite his health rapidly failing him the more he used time magic, and STILL managing to outsmart every single one of them and succeed in his goal.

All for the sake of saving Akiho who means more to him than anything, including his very own existence.

Nobody loves her more than he does so nobody would've been able to go as far as he did for her either. Nobody could've given their everything for her like he did.

That is why only Kaito could ever save Akiho.

#i've been thinking about Momo a lot lately and it led to this #...it made me realize that what makes us feel old isn't aging but sadness #momo #shinamoto akiho #yuna d. kaito #yunaaki #🕰️🌾🐇

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