Coming out of a reread of Sunflower (as one does) and sliding into your ask box to ask: what WOULD have happened if Ritsu left Mob during the Claw "revolution" or whatever? They're so tied up in each other in the story and even in the flashbacks but when Ritsu talks about it during their therapy session he talks like he WOULD have done it. That he didn't know if Mob would've wanted to help them so he would've left with Shou and Teru to go fight Claw on their own, without him. It got me thinking like,,,,,how would THAT have gone? Not at all well, I imagine, but I am incredibly curious 👀
Waaaah ♡♡♡ Thank u so much, this is a really interesting question :3
Saying that is actually more of a #cope for Ritsu, it helps him feel like he has a sense of control if he imagines that he could have made other choices and isn't debilitatingly emotionally dependent on his brother's company. He's trying to feel like his own person while still also keeping the security of always having his favourite person around, like having his cake and eating it too
I haven't reread it so I'm not sure I was able to get it across in my old writing but that is how I imagine it at least X)
If it actually did happen, if he left or something happened with Mob, I think he'd regret it and crumble immediately, or get very closed off and be a shell of himself. He got his "independence" but it was more like having a crutch ripped away before his legs had healed
They absolutely did make those plans for real but I think that both Shou and Teru had Big Doubts on whether Ritsu could really handle that, meanwhile Ritsu doesn't WANT to be self-aware that he couldn't do it so he chose not to acknowledge it. He would've had to face that when it was already too late
I feel like Shou always knew he'd be number 2 and felt at peace with it, while Teru always knew he'd have to fight to even be on the list and was willing to do that
But Ritsu could never quite cope with Mob placing anyone or anything above him, and Mob would just sort of swallow it and believe that if Ritsu placed anything above him it's the right call because Ritsu is good & smart and Mob doesn't deserve anything good
I also think if there was a situation where Ritsu and Mob ended up facing each other in genuine battle, Mob would be forced by the organization and Ritsu would be forced by his sense of justice. Mob would probably let Ritsu kill him because he thinks that's what's best for everyone and it'd be a way to "pay Ritsu back" for the kindness and support Mob felt undeserving of, as if it'd somehow be a good thingy for Ritsu to kill him and not the ultimate two-way betrayal