This week and last week's Tsubasa: Chapters 220 and 221.

[nenena]

Double-whammy. And I mean that in the whammiest possible sense of whammy.



So, where we left off last time: Yuuko Ex Machina brought Cloney back to life, and reuinted him with clone!Sakura, because she can do that now. Also, there was something about saving real!Sakura's body way back when FWR was dicking around with him, because I guess Yuuko can do that now too. And the dialogue of the previous chapter was hella confusing, but here's the breakdown of what Yuuko said:

1. Hey Cloney I saved the soul of that Sakura that you killed.
2. I also saved the body of the Sakura that was cloned.
3. I saved your body when you were killed, and unlike Sakura, I was able to save your soul and bring it "here" too.

So what I'm reading into that is:

1. The clone!Sakura that Cloney has just been reunited with is just a soul, not a body. She hasn't been merged with real!Sakura's body or anything. (And as we're about to find out, she doesn't need a body anymore anyway.)

2. Dunno what happened to real!Sakura's soul.

3. Dunno what Yuuko Ex Machina is planning to do with the Sakura-corpse that she apparently snatched out from right beneath FWR's nose.

So anyway, chapter 220.

"Choose," Yuuko Ex Machina dramatically commands. Again.

"Choose what...?" Cloney asks.

"Choose what is to come," Yuuko answers. Oh, for fuck's sake. (*eyeroll*)

Then! Sakura! Dramatically! Opens her eyes!

Cloney runs toward her dramatically! "MOM!"

But then for some reason Cloney stops a few feet away from her. Cloney and Sakura stare at each other sadly. Cloney has his arm outstretched like he wants to touch her, but he's standing frozen in place... for some reason... Oh, please. I understand that it looks dramatic when these two characters just stand around and stare at each other sadly while Sakura's clothing flutters prettily around her. But why they hell aren't they hugging each other like mad right now?! This is completely out of character. And dumb. The two of them have just been miraculously reunited, and all they can do is stand around and stare at each other?! What do they have to be so sad about, anyway?!

I know, I know, the ultimately not very sad part is coming in a minute. But right now neither Cloney nor Sakura has any reason to look as depressed as they are. They certainly don't have any reason not to be hugging each other like mad.

Well, actually, wait a minute. Now that I think about it... Syaoran's hesitation probably has something to do with the fact that he's the one who KILLED HER, and he might still be feeling a bit guilty about that. Awwwwwwwkwaaaaaaaard.

So Yuuko keeps talking. "You two are 'created' beings, therefore you cannot die," she says. Yes, we established that a couple chapters ago. "And that is also the reason why you have the opportunity to be born again," Yuuko says. "I will give both of you life."

"And the price?" Cloney asks.

"There is no need for either of you to pay a price," Yuuko answers. "For we are the ones who began all of this, therefore we are the ones who must pay the price for you."

" 'We'?" Sakura asks, her eyes wide. Hey guys, this is the first thing she's said since she got over being dead. Great first line, CLAMP. Couldn't she have said something meaningful to Cloney? Instead of just standing around and staring at him? Argh.

"Clow and I," Yuuko says.

And here it comes. Buckle your seatbelts, kids, because CLAMP is about to try to explain all of the inconsistencies that their timetravel-AU-off-the-rails-storytelling-fuckery has generated since Our Heroes hopped into the time-looped Clow Country. And we're off!

"I was on the verge of death," Yuuko says, "but Clow made a wish that I may continue to live. Then Fei Wong attempted to use his powers to actually fulfill that wish. And that was the beginning of everything."

Sakura gasps. "Clow... You mean my father...?"

"To you, yes, he was your father. When Syaoran turned back time, the life path of all who knew about the death seal placed on Princess Sakura changed dramatically. Clow Country's head priestess and queen, Sakura's mother, was now deceased. The person who was once Clow Country's king instead became Syaoran's father. This created a gap in reality, however, since Clow Country needed a king, and Sakura needed a father. So Clow Reed himself traveled to Clow Country and became its king. He left behind those he loved*, in order to watch over and guide you."

* In this panel we are shown Clow saying goodbye to Yue and Kereberos, aaaaawwwwww!

Oh wait, so that's it? That's the explanation?

Hokay, let's pause for a minute and break down the problems with this explanation:

1. Whatever happened to Yuuko's confession that she separated Clow Country from the flow of time in order to prevent those changes from happening? Which in turn turned everyone into goo?

2. If the Clow Country that we saw in chapter 1 of the manga and the Clow Country that Syaoran flashed back to are indeed one and the same, then why did Syaoran and Company stumble back into a Clow Country in which Sakura was still seven years old, and everything was frozen the way that it had been on the day that Syaoran first made his hand-grabbing fail?

The only possible explanation I can think of, at this point, is that things happened like this:

1. Syaoran failed to grab Sakura's hand when they were little kids. Seven years later, Sakura's death seal went FWOOSH! and killed her. Syaoran wished to turn back time.

2. Wish granted, time turned back, Clow Country got hit with the AU-sauce and became the Clow Country that we saw in chapter 1 of the manga. Syaoran, however, is imprisoned by FWR, and Cloney is sent to take his place in the revised Clow Country. The whole thing about Syaoran wanting to correct his mistake by grabbing Sakura's hand at juuuuuust the right moment became a moot point because in this new version of reality, FWR never attacked Sakura when she was seven years old.

3. Time passes in Clow Country, Sakura turns fourteen, FWR strikes again.

4. Shit happens. Also cloning.

5. Syaoran, Mokona, Fay, and Kurogane eventually return to Clow Country - which has for some reason been reverted to how it was in the "original" reality seven years in the past, cut off from the flow of time, and then frozen in an endless loop that encompasses a few hours in the evening of the day when Sakura was originally attacked by FWR. Yuuko, I guess, is the person responsible for this. Which, remember, ultimately turns everyone into goo.

But... why?

Why? WHY?!

If they GOT a new version of reality in which Sakura was never attacked with FWR's death seal, then why the fuckity fuck fuck fuck didn't they STICK WITH that new version of reality?! Why did Yuuko have to revert things BACK to the SUCKTASTIC REALITY in which Sakura got attacked when she was seven years old?! If the whole point of Syaoran's wish was to save Sakura, and if a convenient history re-write accomplished that goal much BETTER than his idiotic and ultimately pointless wish to grab Sakura's hand could have ever done, then--

WWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWHHHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!?!?!

WHY DID YUUKO REVERT TIME TWICE AND TURN EVERYONE INTO GOO?!?!

Oh hey, and still left unanswered:

Why the fuck did FWR attack Sakura when she was seven years old IN THE FIRST PLACE?! And why did he choose such a ridiculously roundabout way of killing her?! Seriously, dude. A 'death seal' that takes seven fucking years to do its work?! Why didn't you just barbecue her like you did Syaoran, or stab her like you did Kurogane's mother, or bash her brains in like you did to Fay's brother?! Come ooooooon, man! VILLAIN LOGIC. GET YOU SOME.

Anyway, Yuuko's still talking. "In preparation for the time when you two would have to make your choice, Clow left behind some of his own life and magical power. Syaoran, that will be the payment for your sake." So I guess this is referring to the fact that Clow Reed ultimately died in Clow Country, some time when Touya and Sakura were still kids, even though it's implied that he could have had a longer lifespan otherwise...? Yuuko goes on. "And Sakura, I will be the one to make the payment for you."

"Why?" Sakura asks.

"Because I am the beginning of this twisted world," she says. What twisted world? This black void? Her wish-granting shop? I think it's her wish-granting shop. "I spent years granting people's wishes in that shop, all so that those labors could be used to pay the price for your life." Yep, it's her shop. So she's been 'paying' the price for Sakura's life all this time? I don't get it. If Yuuko fulfilling wishes is the way that she's been paying a price, then what about the fact that people have to pay HER for those wishes to be fulfilled? And the fact that most of those 'wish fulfillments' horribly backfire anyway.

Also, WTF, why do so many characters in this series know so many details about the future?

Oh wait. Because lazy writing.

Moving on. Now Cloney's talking. "Did Clow attempt to bring you back from the dead? But he should have known that's forbidden..."

"No," Yuuko says. "Clow did nothing. But he wished. For one moment, he fervently wished. 'If only she would open her eyes one more time.' All he did was think that, just once. And unfortunately, Clow's magical power was too vast. With just one heartfelt wish from him, my time completely stopped. And from that moment onward, Clow regretted the strength of his own magic. He resented being the most powerful magician in the world."

Sakura steps forward. "If we choose to be reborn, then what will happen to you...?"

"That is my business," Yuuko says, "and my business alone."

Chapter 221.

What, we don't even get a frontpiece illustration this week? I guess the two-page spread of Cloney and Oediporan fighting side-by-side, from last week, counts as two weeks' worth of pointless prettiness. Or something. Anywhoo.

Yuuko says to Cloney and Clone Princess, "From this point onward, neither of you will have to shoulder any more burdens. You have both suffered more than enough. That goes for the other two you as well."

Sakura thinks of loli!real!Sakura being swallowed by the black goo, and Cloney remembers Oediporan being imprisoned in FWR's own version of the Doom Tube.

"However," Yuuko says. "Even with the payments of myself and Clow combined, it is still difficult to pay the full price of a person's life. You will likely not be truly 'reborn' into a new life, without any memory of your previous selves. Even when you are born anew, memories of your past lives will remain. Both your joyful memories, and your painful memories. And also, you will once more set on the path toward 'this moment.'"

" 'This moment'?" Cloney asks.

"Right now, time is not flowing in a straight path from the past to the future. Rather, the past and future are mixing, all twisted and tangled together."

"Because that man broke the rules of the universe..." Sakura says, thinking of FWR.

"Yes," Yuuko confirms. "However, there is one law that has not been broken. And that is this: the past and the future are both decided by the choices made in the present."

HEY LADY, the PAST is not decided by the choices made in the PRESENT. Seriously, what are you SMOKING here?!

"You will both lead new lives," Yuuko says. "But inevitably, you will once again meet with your other selves. When that moment comes, you and you alone must decide what to do."

Sakura turns dramatically toward Cloney. (It is indeed a very dramatic turn of her head, as it causes her hair to go all HEY I AM TURNING MY HEAD DRAMATICALLY LOOOOOOK AT HOW MY HAIR DRAMATICALLY FLUTTERS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE DRAMATIC MOTION OF MY DRAMATIC HEAD-TURN.) Cloney gazes back at Sakura sadly. "I've hurt so many people," he says, looking down at his own hands. "Even you, Sakura." OH HAY SAKURA REMEMBER THAT TIME THAT I TOTALLY KILLED YOU?!

"But none of that was of your own will," Yuuko tells Cloney. "Fei Wong was controlling your actions."

"But," Cloney says, determined to angst for all that his angsting is worth, "the one who did those thing... was still me." He clenches his fists dramatically.

"Even if that's true," Sakura says, "even if those things are indeed your sins, then... I want to share the burden of those sins with you!"

"...Sakura..."

Yeah, I'm with you, Cloney. I don't think it works that way.

But Sakura goes on. "Even if someday we have to face punishment for those sins, I don't care! I want to live, with you!"

Sakura reaches for Cloney's hand. He hesitates for a moment, then finally reaches back, grasping her hand in his. Sakura gazes at him tearfully as Yuuko declares, "The choice has been made."

Magic circles suddenly appear beneath Cloney and Sakura's feet. Once again, Cloney is standing on top of the Clow/Sakura circle, and Sakura is standing on top of Syaoran's magical circle. I don't know if that's significant or not, but this is the second time that that has happened in this manga, so...

"Wait!" Cloney shouts to Yuuko. "After we're reborn, then...?"

"You will be reborn together, in the same dimension, on the same world, at the same time," Yuuko says, smiling. "You will find each other, no matter what."

Sakura clasps both of Cloney's hands in hears. "I can finally say it!" she says, tearfully. "I... love you!"

"...I love you too," Cloney says. Then giant wings envelop them both, and they disappear.

The chapter ends.

And my head meets my desk.

Okay, CLAMP. Okay. I get that the whole Sakura-trying-to-tell-Syaoran-that-she-loves-him thing has been in play since the very first chapter. If this "I... love you!" scene was meant to be a callback to when Cloney killed dream!Sakura and she died before she could finish whispering the words into his ear, then all right. All right, CLAMP, you win, that was very nicely done. Well played, ladies. Well played. And kinda-sorta emotionally satisfying, too. Especially when coming after Cloney's because-I-wanted-to-hear-her-words line that he uses to explain why he turned against FWR.

Now let's see if that other Sakura, then one who way back in the first chapter of the manga ALSO tried to say "I love you" to a certain Syaoran, is going to get a similar happy ending.

Let's ignore, for the moment, the fact that chapter 1's Sakura was attempting to confess to Cloney, not to Oediporan. I hope she can learn to settle for Oediporan, because it looks like Cloney's already been taken.

Unless leftover!Sakura is able to somehow regain her memories of the original version of Clow Country, she will have had exactly ZERO history/interaction with Oediporan as of this point in the manga. Remember, kids, after the time reset, she spent her childhood years with Cloney, while Oediporan was imprisoned. Oh, and Cloney? Originally fell in love with the real Sakura, remember? But I guess that Cloney is totally okay with giving up on his loved-her-for-seven-years princess in order to be reincarnated with her clone instead.

Ah, young love. So very fickle, indeed.

Comments

[eatsyourface.livejournal.com]

I uh. I like to tell myself that time is basically this big ball of timey, wimey... stuff.

If that helps.

=D

Thank you, Doctor Who!

[neocloud9.livejournal.com]

Let's ignore, for the moment, the fact that chapter 1's Sakura was attempting to confess to Cloney, not to Oediporan. I hope she can learn to settle for Oediporan, because it looks like Cloney's already been taken.

I think I just over-smirked myself.

[atelierjoh.livejournal.com]

Somehow I just knew the bit about Yuuko's death. It just doesn't come as surprising at all. Though, I did initially guess it was FWR that wanted something to do with Yuuko's resurrection/whatever, not Clow.

Maybe Watanuki working at the shop had something to do with the payment for Sakura? Considering Watanuki's another clone thing? I don't know.

Chatting at length here because my FL doesn't give a damn.

[corinn.livejournal.com]

Wait, when was Sakura cloned? I thought it was clone!Sakura who grew up with Cloney, with Clow Reed as her dad. So she IS in love with Cloney. She didn't act the same when she was with "Syaoran" after Acid Tokyo, because she loved Cloney. Unless she's the soul of original!Sakura, and that is why Yuuko has original!Sakura's body...? There's a problem with that guess, too, as CLAMP is playing Musical Bodies with the various souls of various Sakura. A 3D flowchart is needed to sort out when which soul was in which body.

Romance aside, I'm going to try to find some kind of logic, LOL

Perhaps FWR *had* to be roundabout in killing Sakura because she is technically more powerful than him? Perhaps ClowCountry!Sakura was the most vulnerable version of Sakura, Clow's designated heiress who is supposed to be even stronger than Clow? Because if Clow's power was enough to pause time for Yuuko, then maybe FWR thinks Sakura's power would be enough to actually fulfill the full extent of his wish?

If Clow Reed left behind some of his life and power... Are they trying to say that Eriol, rather than being a reincarnation of Clow Reed, actually IS Clow Reed, whose power and life/age were diminished? This implies a couple possibilities, which may or may not be all-inclusive or mutually exclusive:
1. CCS!Fujitaka was created based on a template of TRC!Fujitaka, specifically to be matched with the pre-existing version of CCS!Nadeshiko, in order to ensure the birth of CCS!Sakura. Clow Reed would have to have known to set up the Clow Cards and Guardians for CCS!Sakura before leaving for Clow Country; however, that can be handwaved as his precognitive abilities at work. Also, since CCS!Fujitaka started out with "life" but not "magic," it could imply that making CCS!Fujitaka (further?) de-aged Clow into "Eriol."
2. The timelines of the various worlds/dimensions are not concurrent-- the original events in Clow Country would otherwise take place long before the birth of CCS!Sakura. This could further imply that "Syaoran's" wish that fucked up time was necessary/hitsuzen, in order to create the possibility of CCS actually happening. Which would also probably imply that "Syaoran" is not the son of CCS!S&S, and reinforces the looping nature in which Yuuko says time has become stuck.
3. Randomly, the Sakura and Syaoran who are currently speaking with Yuuko may *become* CCS!S&S.


SOAPBOX TIME!
I don't know why I keep trying to make sense of this plot, though it is an interesting exercise in seeing how a fantasy plot involving multiple versions/incarnations of characters needs to be handled decisively and delicately. That's important to me, because I've been helping my best friend create a universe in which to write, and trying to define a set manner in which that universe functions and thus make the plot stick with the goddamn rules. We've been planning it on and off for more than seven years, and we've only just gotten the skeleton of the mechanics of universe figured out. Now we're working on integrating those laws with worldbuilding. Again. Because there is no way in hell we want to end up like CLAMP and write ourselves into a messy corner that requires shattering our own pre-stated rules in order to resolve the plot. We recognized the need for such attention to background/mechanical detail back when we were 20-- two years into flailing around with story bits-- and have been hammering this out through at least six iterations because we noticed that the story ended up crashing near the climax without underlying laws that would logically lead to the desired conclusion. We know we'll be laughed at if we make something so sloppy that we trip over our own implied rules. CLAMP gives the impression that they didn't sit down and plan out the logic behind the ending of the story from the beginning. The middle is important! That's shoddy storytelling, and cheats the reader. It's sad that CLAMP has become the leader in demonstrating how horribly your work can be received if it has good stories in minor arcs, but lacks overall cohesiveness. It's a valuable lesson: If I break a reader's brain, I want it to be deliberate and in a good way. Not because I've proved myself to have FAILED LOGIC FOREVER.

Re: Chatting at length here because my FL doesn't give a damn.

[nenena.livejournal.com]

RE: The Clones of Sakura

Going back and looking at chapter 178, it's pretty clear that FWR cloned fourteen-year-old Sakura during the moment shown in chapter 1, when she "activated" whatever trap was lying in the ruins. She was also cloned wearing her chapter 1 clothing, which flashback!Sakura wasn't wearing when the original reality ended. Plus, the fact that the "Sakura is a clone" reveal came before the "Syaoran flashback" reveal means that, in that context, it couldn't have been a revelation that original!Sakura was cloned, since we readers didn't even know about the existence of the original!reality yet. Granted, CLAMP may go back and try to retcon that... And to be honest, if they do, it would make the Sakura/Sakura/Cloney/Oediporan love rectangle make a lot more sense. Buuuuuut I really don't see them caring that much. I mean, they apparently don't even care about the INCEST going on here, so whatever.

Also, the reason that FWR cloned Sakura was to send her body on a journey. This is his Plan B, which he formulated after the reality re-set. (Since this plan involved manipulating Fay and Kurogane too, and Yuuko implies that *before* Syaoran re-set time, Fay and Kurogane's realities were also quite different, and presumably less sucktastic.) Plan A, before the reality reset, was apparently just "kill Sakura" for whatever reason. I'm curious to see if CLAMP is ever going to explain why FWR tried to kill Sakura in the first place, or what it was about the reality re-set that made him switch from Plan A to Plan B.

As for trying to get this to fit with CCS continuity... I admire your efforts, because I personally cannot even *begin* to try.

I hear you about making sure that the rules of your fantasy universe don't collapse during your intended climax. ^^;; Not like I've, uh, made mistakes like that before... (*shifty eyes*)

Blah blah blah sleepy rambling

[corinn.livejournal.com]

This story is too goddamn confusing. Keeping track of who was cloned when has evidently broken my brain to the point that I try to force logic. Part of my problem is that I can't recall in which chapters which revelations happened, so fact-checking is UGH TEDIOUS. Flowcharts are necessary. Also, the time between chapters makes my memory fade and forget plot points. This is the reason why I usually try to stick to watching/reading completed series-- getting only a minor trickle of information every few weeks frustrates me. In the past, I have started reading series in progress, only to drop them and wait until they finished to pick them up again because my patience was lacking. (Notable among these is Fruits Basket [...which I really need to pick up again, dammit], Fullmetal Alchemist, Inuyasha, and TRC [until I heard about Acid Tokyo and decided the plot had picked up].) I think the only exception is Bizenghast, but that comes out one whole book at a time. Oh, wait, I guess the Harry Potter books count, since I came into that fandom after PoA. But those were also complete books.

...Randomly, I am becoming fond of the "Clow Reed never died, he just expended a lot of life energy/years to create Fujitaka, and became Eriol as a result" theory. It's interesting in the context of CCS, and frankly makes more sense than the "half reincarnation" business.

Plan A, before the reality reset, was apparently just "kill Sakura" for whatever reason. I'm curious to see if CLAMP is ever going to explain why FWR tried to kill Sakura in the first place, or what it was about the reality re-set that made him switch from Plan A to Plan B.
THIS. The sheer WHY WHY WHY?! of this key plot point must be addressed. And I still want to know the relationship between FWR-Clow-Yuuko, that both guys desperately want her to live. At this point I think I'd just laugh along if Yuuko turns out to be Clow's mom or sister or something else ridiculous. WHY NOT?!

As for trying to get this to fit with CCS continuity... I admire your efforts, because I personally cannot even *begin* to try.
I'm flattered.♥ Really, I think I do it because I love trying to make the most logical Epileptic Trees possible given a certain set of ostensibly unrelated or nonsensical facts/events. I love love love analyzing stories, which started with being taught how to read between the lines in literature in middle and high school. I also have had a lot of practice in working on the history of that fantasy universe of mine: Given certain events my friend and I want to happen, I help work out the events that must happen beforehand to lead to the desired conclusion, then make sure the consequences or effects of the event actually apply to what comes afterward. It's kind of like making conspiracy theories to explain things. I find it immensely amusing to work out connections between things. Apophenia is FUN.

I hear you about making sure that the rules of your fantasy universe don't collapse during your intended climax. ^^;; Not like I've, uh, made mistakes like that before... (*shifty eyes*)
Writing became much, much easier once we created an actual document titled "The Rules of the Universe," which included a brief outline of the major events over its history and a breakdown of how magic was handled/interpreted by several different civilizations. We're still working on the finer details. The big thing is that if we feel the need to change or add a rule, we make sure that that change is universally applied to the whole story.

[annalouise.livejournal.com]

"However, there is one law that has not been broken. And that is this: the past and the future are both decided by the choices made in the present."

:'D

Laws of physics fail.

Seriously. There is going to be a cliff notes for tsubasa right?

[corinn.livejournal.com]

WAIT.

WAIT WAIT WAIT.

Which Sakura sacrificed her feelings/memories for which Syaoran, that clone!Sakura was able to confess to Cloney? Is CLAMP implying that that price is returned after death...? Or am I totally missing something or mixing something up? I must be missing something.


Edit of random: I just figured out that Yuuko's being dead could account for the common xxxHOLiC color style of white skin with purplish/bluish shading. Deathly pallor.

Or I could just be reading too much into it. o____o

[nenena.livejournal.com]

Which Sakura sacrificed her feelings/memories for which Syaoran, that clone!Sakura was able to confess to Cloney? Is CLAMP implying that that price is returned after death...? Or am I totally missing something or mixing something up? I must be missing something.

Aw hell, I have no idea.

I think that CLAMP has completely forgotten about that plot point, actually.

But if I'm feeling generous, I can say that Sakura re-fell in love with Cloney during the journey part of the manga. Granted, now that we know that it's a clone, we can remove the re- suffix and just say "she fell in love with him during the journey." But before the clone!Sakura reveal, there were several points where it seemed like CLAMP was trying to point out that, lost memories be damned, Sakura was falling for Syaoran all over again.

[corinn.livejournal.com]

Sigh. Every time I think about where the story is now in relation to events in the beginning, the plot breaks. I don't know why it still surprises me. Maybe because I keep thinking, "There must be some plot point that they'll be consistent on."

Sakura was falling for Syaoran all over again.
I saw that, too, but thought her price wouldn't allow her to do so, or realize it. Is it fanon that she passes out and forgets every time she realizes she loves him...?

Whatever. Yay, she confessed. Now fix the plot! Or just end it already. *sigh*

[nenena.livejournal.com]

I saw that, too, but thought her price wouldn't allow her to do so, or realize it.

Her price doesn't let her realize that she knew/loved Syaoran in the past. It never stops her from falling in love with him post-payment, though.

Sakura only had one price-related fainting spell in the manga, and that was when she was on the verge of figuring out that Syaoran must have known and cared about her before she "met" him in the first country. Then she immediately passed out and forgot about her revelation. This was in... whatever that VR version of Taisho-era Japan was called. And after that point, the narrative kind of completely dropped the whole "Sakura getting her memories back but without Syaoran" angle completely.

[cykstar.livejournal.com]

...I'm reading a nice summary of Tsubasa and I'm STILL confused. It's like CLAMP doesn't care anymore, or they care too much and tried to make it all deep and meaningful when in fact it's just mindfuck.

For a good portion of your summary, for some reason I read Cloney and Clow, and when I got to the end when they said, "I love you" I cringed in disgust (parent-child incest?) and then realized, oh wait, it's Cloney, not Clow. Psh.

[nenena.livejournal.com]

Except that it's still parent-child incest, just the other way around. :(