Wolfwood Spin Off - Free Bird forever haunts me because of how Wolfwood continues to call Maylene dumb, yet he goes out of his way to protect her multiple times. He redirects Orekano’s violence onto himself, covers Maylene after the explosions, and then uses his body and weapon to cover and defend her. Meanwhile, during these scenes he continues to insist that she prioritizes her safety over freedom. The assumptions he makes within their first conversation, telling her congratulations on being engaged. He’s so blunt and rude about it, but he keeps looking after her. Wolfwood doesn’t coddle her though. He shows her the consequences of her actions and tells her how it is. Maylene doesn’t listen when he says to run away and Wolfwood protects her, shoots at Orekano and the others. The contrast of memories where we see him caring for her to the violence he commits. There’s something in that that I can’t name right now, but it makes me go a bit wild because Wolfwood brushes off that she doesn’t remember him, even though he expected her to - that bit of hope upon talking with her, remembering the time he spent caring for her and here they stand, complete strangers to another. Wolfwood’s wood carvings and the chapter ending with Maylene tossing her own carving to Wolfwood. An exchange of something that goes beyond wooden birds and drifting. Wolfwood wants her to be safe even if it means being caged, and Maylene doesn’t want to be caged. I wish my brain was working right now because there’s so much in that chapter!!!