Come to think of it Mikoto actually really care about Fushimi isn't he? When I read the manga, it's like Mikoto kind of aware that it seems like Fushimi is seeing something when he stare at an empty seat. I wonder if he kind of know that other clan has smtg to di with it. He was also near the area when the green king "kind of show himself", Munakata even ask are you worried. Iirc I think Kusanagi said that Mikoto probably better being born as lion in savanna, being free and all. Mikoto at some point probably understand that homura is like a chained that bind Fushimi and his power make Fushimi afraid of him. But he can't do anything much about it either, sometimes he also want to just let the power take control and destroy everything. He doesn't ask to be chosen by the slate to begin with. And he knows that Munakata can help fushimi. That's why he let him choose and respect it. Munakata annoy suoh, but he also knows Munakata being genius munakata, can make a place for Fushimi in s4. I guess in his case he kind of have vague feeling about it that he can't help fushimi, and one day Fushimi will leave (similar like Anna I guess). Most of Fushimi' s reaction the more I think about it how he reject relationship and misunderstood Mikoto and Anna come from PTSD. It's like his own mind try to protect him from getting hurt that's why it's like that.
Wasn't it also mention in anime that Suoh probably can sleep well in S4 because there's another king Munakata who can keep up with that power in case it lost control. Suoh probably understand that all too well, that's why on anime he trust munakata to kill him in order to protect everyone. Munanata, you sure does help tons of people. He can be a dork too tho, well there's always a side when it come to genius people lol
Another opportunity to talk about how Mikoto cares about Fushimi because you don’t understand how important that is to me :D One of things I really like about their relationship is how Fushimi just so spectacularly misreads Mikoto, he’s generally someone with good insight but when it involves himself Fushimi tends to be pretty blind and that goes double when it comes to Mikoto. Fushimi gets annoyed at Mikoto for not using his power for anything but also has this instinctual fear of him too which I think makes him hate Mikoto even more, that here Fushimi finally got the power he wanted and he’s still being looked down on from above. I mentioned in an earlier ask that I also think Fushimi tends to use Mikoto as a focal point for his hatred of everything that changed when he and Yata joined Homra, because it’s easier for him to direct that hate at Yata for only caring about Mikoto and Mikoto for ‘stealing’ Yata’s gaze away rather than confront his own insecurities. Fushimi feels awkward being close to Mikoto and he hates that, hates everything that Mikoto makes him feel, and I think he projects that on Mikoto and assumes all on his own that of course Mikoto doesn’t care about him, of course Mikoto would never care how Fushimi feels or what Fushimi thinks.
Meanwhile though, despite Fushimi’s internal narration that constantly complains about how obviously Mikoto doesn’t care about him, reading deeper into the text makes it pretty clear that in fact Mikoto actually does very much care about Fushimi. I know I brought this up in the earlier post but in LSW when Mikoto appears outside the apartment after Hisui confronts Fushimi, Fushimi has this whole mental scenario where he assumes Totsuka must have told Mikoto to go after Fushimi and Mikoto did as he was told — but that’s all from Fushimi’s point of view, we the audience are not shown what actually happened to precede Mikoto’s appearance. Considering he clearly noticed that Fushimi was being messed with in some way (and I do wonder if this was some King sensing the power of another King thing since Munakata was aware of it too, that it wasn’t necessarily Munakata’s insight but a King sixth sense more or less) it’s quite likely that Mikoto took initiative on his own, something he is perfectly capable of doing when people he cares about are in danger, and decided to go see who was messing with his clansman. In the King and the Traitor too, Fushimi spends the whole story thinking about how much Mikoto doesn’t care, when Mikoto asks how he’s doing Fushimi’s all ‘as if you care’ — but Mikoto asked. Mikoto is not really an awkward small talk guy, he didn’t have to ask how Fushimi was, but he did. And ultimately when Fushimi’s spitting his own bitterness in Mikoto’s face Mikoto is fine with it, I think he was in fact actually happy that Fushimi’s finally learned to say what he thinks.
On the Munakata part, I’m not certain that Mikoto really saw Munakata as ‘what Fushimi needed’ and more as what Fushimi chose. When Mikoto shows up in LSW I don’t think it was just Hisui he was checking on, it was Munakata too. Again I really love that moment, that ‘such a man full of reasons,’ Munakata kinda trying to cover for Fushimi in front of Mikoto and Mikoto seeing right through that bullshit and instead being angry not because Fushimi’s leaving but because Munakata’s speaking for and over Fushimi and Fushimi is who Mikoto wants to hear from. I think Mikoto was somewhat aware that Fushimi might leave Homra one day, not a certainty like Anna but he knew Fushimi was uncomfortable and might make a choice one day, but as far as Mikoto is concerned it’s less ‘where is better for Fushimi’ and more ‘where does Fushimi want to be.’ Mikoto is very about free will and being able to make your own choices, which is why he doesn’t let Munakata speak for Fushimi here, instead Mikoto is the one saying directly to Fushimi ‘what do you want to do.’ And I think it’s important that he did so, not letting Fushimi just go with what’s easier but assuring himself that Fushimi is actually making a choice (because if Munakata was making it for him I absolutely think it would have turned into a fight). I imagine Mikoto is satisfied enough that Fushimi ended up somewhere that suited him, not that he would ever thank Munakata for it, but ultimately for Mikoto all he wanted was for Fushimi to make the choice that was best for Fushimi regardless of what that choice was.
