ok no I need to talk about this
the reason ralsei is changing is because of susie
the way he said it, darkners that are based on memories of loved ones can "only appear in specific darkness". meaning, originally, ralsei was kris' memory
and, similarly, gerson was presumably Alvin's?
except. gerson came back. it's the third sanctuary. a different dark world. but he's still here. and why?
because SUSIE remembers him. she wrote alvin the letter from him. she fought him and won and came back to look for him. because now he's in her memories, too.
following that logic, of course ralsei is in her memories too. more prominently, too, each time she returns to an adventure. he strays further from the blurry memories kris has, into something that's both theirs and hers
and, while we're at it, maybe ours, too. we shape him with our choices because we're part of this team too