Wow, so simple! I now welcome this as my official head-canon.
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Well I always thought that Riku found the Keyblade and kept it for himself, then Kairi's heart got stronger in KH2 so therefore the Keyblade Riku had was calling out to her just as the Kingdom Key did for Sora in his first fight with Riku. Ya know?
Why would Riku stumble upon a Keyblade and where would he find it? That among other questions would need to be answered.
Aqua's Keyblade in Radiant Garden was ripe for the picking. And it was the first chronological appearance of Destiny's Embrace.
It'd make sense that Riku would have the intuition that it belonged to Kairi, since that was the Keyblade through which Kairi gained her ability to wield.
As for the exact details of why Riku acquired it, I had figured this would have been something covered as a "fragmentary passage" - more specifically, "the period of Riku's absence." But I mean, something has to happen to her Keyblade (I don't think they'd leave it unaddressed in KH3) and I don't think it's infeasible that Riku broke into the Chamber of Repose. Or hell, maybe Xemnas took it with him to TCTNW after the siege on Hollow Bastion, and Riku found it there.
Aqua's Keyblade in Radiant Garden was ripe for the picking. And it was the first chronological appearance of Destiny's Embrace.
It'd make sense that Riku would have an intuitive sense that it belonged to Kairi, since that was the Keyblade through which Kairi gained her ability to wield.
As for the exact details of why Riku acquired it, I had figured this would have been something covered as a "fragmentary passage" - more specifically, "the period of Riku's absence." But I mean, something has to happen to her Keyblade (I don't think they'd leave it unaddressed in KH3) and I don't think it's infeasible that Riku broke into the Chamber of Repose.
Or hell, maybe Xemnas took it with him to TCTNW after the siege on Hollow Bastion, and Riku found it there.
But I mean, something has to happen to her Keyblade (I don't think they'd leave it unaddressed in KH3)
It's too much speculation without any evidence to give it any credence in my opinion.
I don't know why you would say this?
But you can't close yourself off from the possibility that it isn't hers. Implicit to the whole mystery surrounding Kairi's method of obtaining her keyblade is that very question of whether or not it's actually her keyblade, that's clearly something Nomura wants us to ask.
Aqua's keyblade has not only been sitting around for over a decade, it's also the only other known keyblade to take the form of Destiny's Embrace. To assume that Keyblades aren't capable of changing form automatically is thinking pretty narrow, especially when we already know that Keyblades can do things seemingly of their own accord (whether it's returning to Roxas' hand even when he doesn't want it, or flying around the RoD to aid Aqua).
I don't see how it's hard to imagine that, within Kairi's vicinity and having been without an owner for some time, Aqua's keyblade would change into Destiny's Embrace, the form it took when she first encountered it. She has an intimate connection with that Keyblade, and we know that a master's keyblade can be passed down to a successor.
We can go at this ad nauseum, you can continue to come up with further questions and I will come up with answers.
The more specific you go, the more it's going to sound like a fanfiction with all of the wild guesses, but that's really true of most theories (on story development, not scientific theories lol). That's just how the game is played. It's more a matter of broadly asking if it's possible that Riku somehow obtained Aqua's keyblade, regardless of the minor details.
And if you really think that's a "no" - or if it's "infeasible" then I think your standard for what's considered plausible in this series is abnormally high or you're being disingenuous.
If there hasn't been an instance of a Keyblade changing form when transferred between wielders, then the logical thought is that in this specific point in time in the series this is likely something that does not happen until a wielder claims the Keyblade as their very own.
I prefer using evidence provided within the games to imagine possible causes, outcomes, and relationships between other concepts within the series.
Regardless of whether or not Destiny's Embrace is actually Kairi's keyblade, I don't think it's in question if she will be getting one--she will. Or otherwise it'd be pretty pointless to show that she has the ability to wield.
I don't think anyone is contesting these. It's been pretty obvious since DDD came out that these were happening. This thread is more about proposing a situation where the DE is Kairi's true Keyblade.My guess is that Kairi will be getting similar training to what Lea got, as suggested in the DDD secret ending.
I disagree about it not making her a stronger character. Kairi actually has quite the little side journey in KH2 when you reflect on the game. She displays a lot of bravery without a weapon or anyone to protect her and selflessly throws herself in harms way in order to see Sora. Then she's descended on by Heartless... so if a Keyblade were ever coming to her, that would be when it would. It coming as an after thought during training with Yen Sid feels so cheap to her character when you actually take a minute to think about her actions during KH2.And I don't think the question of ownership reflects on her strength as a character either. It's about what she does with the Keyblade, not where it comes from. Sora, after all, received Riku's Keyblade (rather than obtaining his own) precisely because he had the stronger heart.
I disagree about it not making her a stronger character. Kairi actually has quite the little side journey in KH2 when you reflect on the game. She displays a lot of bravery without a weapon or anyone to protect her and selflessly throws herself in harms way in order to see Sora. Then she's descended on by Heartless... so if a Keyblade were ever coming to her, that would be when it would. It coming as an after thought during training with Yen Sid feels so cheap to her character when you actually take a minute to think about her actions during KH2.
I haven't seen an instance yet that would suggest Kairi has a stronger heart than Aqua either. Given that might be subjective, but Aqua arguably has one of the strongest hearts in the series. I don't see how Kairi would just take that from her.
Now let's say it is Aqua's. Sure Aqua has Eraqus' Keyblade but if he comes back he would reclaim it. Or, let's assume he doesn't and stays gone, she just gives up her Keyblade to Kairi because Kairi has "earned" it? Kairi hasn't really done anything, at least yet, to show she's earned taking someone else's Keyblade. Especially when that someone is Aqua who only let go of her Keyblade to save Terra. But perhaps this was Aqua's and she'll reclaim it as soon as she comes back. There again, Kairi ends up needing a new Keyblade.
So really, realistically, all I see from these theories are the need for her to have a new Keyblade. Which again, I think after looking back on KH2 a bit more, does nothing for her as a character. Also, after seeing her again with the DE in DDD, I find less and less likely to happen. If it were more to do with, they just hadn't decided on a new Keyblade design for her/are saving the new design for KH3 they could have simply left her out of the scene. Namine isn't there.
Okay, I just don't understand whose benefit pointing that out was for, lol. I never thought you were suggesting that.I just want to clarify that the only reason why I was pointing that out--that she will be getting a Keyblade one way or another, is to make explicit that I am not conflating the idea that DE=/=Kairi's Keyblade with the idea that she'll never get one. I'm aware that in the past, people were eager to latch on to it not being her Keyblade because they didn't like the idea of her being a wielder (since they probably didn't like her character in general).
I'm really not suggesting that at all.By this you're necessarily saying that it then cheapens Axel's character and he would have been stronger had he summoned his keyblade when he rescued Sora in DDD--since you're using the time of desperation as the point when it should be summoned. And that training with Yen Sid further cheapens that. I don't see how it does.
The strength there comes from the action of saving Sora, not with what he did it, just as it would be in Kairi's case.
I just don't see how the DE does anything for her character if it isn't her actual Keyblade. If it's Xehanort's or Aqua's, that's just someone once again essentially having to help or defend her.If you're that hung up on the idea of DE being a symbol of strength that is contingent on ownership, then you could just as easily concot a scenario where, in the event that it is not hers, she still would summon her own at a critical moment under Yen Sid's tutelage in the future. We've seen through Sora and Riku's MoM that his methods of training are unconventional and often require great feats to accomplish.
Exactly why I added in that point about it being subjective. I definitely think that, putting aside strength of heart, that Aqua's Keyblade isn't going to abandon her for Kairi though. If anything, I would prefer the theory of Kairi being an intermediary wielder until Aqua returns to it but I still don't like that theory as it doesn't really give Kairi much agency of her own.This is a non-issue and I'm not getting into a debate about strength of heart that is, as you say, subjective. Like people arguing over power levels in DBZ lol.
Well, we already know canonically that Keyblade wielders can use each other's Keyblades so it's not as though I'm doubting that as a possibility.I don't see how you can say Kairi's ownership of DE is reflective of her strength but then in the event that it isn't hers, that she hasn't "earned" it. If you consider someone strong enough to wield their own Keyblade I think it goes without saying that they're probably strong enough to use someone else's.
It's kind of counterintuitive for Aqua to see Kairi's strength of heart and then allow her to keep the Keyblade. Kairi's had the ability to get her own Keyblade for over a decade, so to need to take someone else's isn't necessarily displaying a great strength of heart. Sora was never given the privilege that Riku and (accidentally) Kairi were.And once again, I offer scenarios if that isn't good enough for you: Aqua tentatively lets Kairi keep the Keyblade and then upon seeing her strength allows her to keep it permanently. Or hell, the keyblade itself affixes itself to Kairi permanently at some point, just as the KK did with Sora. It's not even necessarily an issue with Aqua reclaiming a keyblade (or Eraqus) since, as we saw with Riku, you aren't necessarily set with one keyblade for life. One can permanently be replaced by another.
There are a million scenarios you or I can come up with and that's precisely why, as I was saying earlier, I don't think there's much point to arguing these finer details.
I didn't overlook Goofy or Donald. I'm just saying that the choice to have her there at all and to have her there with the DE, when they could have had her and Namine there without weapons or excluded them both (wouldn't be the first time Kairi was left on the sidelines) suggests to me that it's a design they seem to be interested in keeping tied to her character. It was a purposeful scene.Namine isn't there, but Donald and Goofy are. It's showing his warrior friends, not specifically "people who own their own Keyblade."
So to ignore this entire journey and just have her be borrowing someone else's Keyblade just for the hell of it
If it's Xehanort's or Aqua's, that's just someone once again essentially having to help or defend her.
Aqua has done nothing, ever, to lose her Keyblade like that. She only gave it up to save Terra, which is even more proof that she deserves it. Kairi taking it from Aqua and having it become her own doesn't make sense. Aqua didn't do anything to deserve losing it.
I didn't overlook Goofy or Donald. I'm just saying that the choice to have her there at all and to have her there with the DE, when they could have had her and Namine there without weapons or excluded them both (wouldn't be the first time Kairi was left on the sidelines) suggests to me that it's a design they seem to be interested in keeping tied to her character. It was a purposeful scene.
He could have easily accidentally grabbed it like Sora did, but since he's become a wielder of his own at this point, knew what it was and handed it to its rightful owner.I don't see where you're getting that it would "ignore" her journey?
I could rationalize that what hurts her strength of character is Riku's act of passing the keyblade at all to her, regardless of ownership. Riku giving Kairi HER keyblade???? What, she can't do it herself????????
That's why I've been saying this entire time that her strength is defined by her actions. I don't know why you would hinge it so tenuously on ownership.
How am I pushing it? Kairi needing to be given Xehanort or Aqua's Keyblade because she can't manifest her own, even though she has the ability to, is to have to be handed everything and defended by someone else's Keyblade.You're pushing it with construing this as Aqua "defending" Kairi. We don't even know if she'd be aware of it.
That's not what I'm saying?Serious question: Does Sora drawing on the power of his friends not make him powerful?
Of course not, it gives him strength. But even then, Kairi isn't using the power of others to the extent that Sora does. She is using Aqua's weapon, but that does not mean she isn't channeling her own strength into it.
Well, if you could manifest those skates with the power of your heart and had the power to summon your own for 10 years but still needed to borrow a pair, then yes I would say that takes away from it.If I used my friend's ice skates because they were well suited for my feet and performed a quadruple axel, does that take away from my performance? Does that make me less of a figure skater? Action.
What was the point in bringing anything up if you're unwilling to discuss it further? We're discussing theoretical possibilities for Kairi's Keyblade, discussing them at length is going to come down to semantics and opinions. I've never once denied the possibility of your theory or any other theory for her Keyblade, but you seem determined to disprove the theory we like with the theory you prefer. Which, is fine if you want to discuss what seems more beneficial or more plausible, as we've been doing. But don't cop out about it, lol.Am I arguing that Aqua "deserved" to "lose" it?
Semantics.
Really? Because I think that I'm inferring that it being depicted in her hands in the same game where she's indicated to be a Light isn't incidental.And I agree! They tie the design to her character, sure. But that's about as far as you can infer.
Bond of Flames is also tied to Axel, FYI.