oh they're so adorable I CANTTTT thats literally her dad!! and hes so proud of coco!!!
this dish in particular being something her mother taught her.. a fond memory of her mother and comfort meal from her old home that coco's sharing with the atelier :')
THIS LAZY BUM- (i say with affection. god knows the man deserves a break)
anyway yeah they're so married. like i know we've established this many a time before in kitchen (and the main series) but just to reiterate i suppose. they're very married in this chapter. turbo married, if you will
Is Tetia "The Princess who married the wind?" Speculations on The Tetia's Arc: Bridge between Magic and Medicine and parallels to Dread Persephone
I'd like to put forward my very long theory for the upcoming "Dragonpass Isles Arc". I have connected many dots and I think Tetia is going to parallel the Princess who married the wind and then have a very doomed royalty arc.
[I came across a lovely post by @agottism after I finished writing this giant monstrosity, that came to a similar conclusion about the WHA myth, focusing on the ominous winds that Vinanna talks about, which everyone should go read!!]
This was a poem that was passed down by a tribe of dragon herders, called the "Song of the Princess who Married the Wind" the details of which are unknown as it hasn't shown up in the manga. (yet)
The dragon she's riding is seemingly the same species ridden by the Dragon Rider King, ergo the dragon herders tribe is specifically the people of the Dragonpass Isles.
I'm pretty convinced that we'll be getting a Tetia backstory or at least a focus on her this arc, because it is long overdue. We'll also be learning more about this poem (pretty self explanatory since its the "Dragonpass Arc"). And we already know Shirahama loves to make a good parallel with a myth, but it also makes a suspicious amount of sense.
We've been speculating that Tetia will be involved in royalty for a long time (more specifically becoming royalty based on parallels to some very doomed women which I'll get into later)
She also wears a similar outfit to the Princess in the ch.96 cover, sporting the same hair buns on either side. Which definitely makes it seem more like a deliberate reference since it marks the start of our Dragonpass Isles Arc.
And then I realized, the bird behind her?
I think its based on a Harpy Eagle or an Osprey (it has the same unique plumage and color). Harpy eagles which obviously are named after the mythical Harpies. Birds with the heads of maidens, often believed to be a personification of storms and sharp gusts of wind. Winged maidens who flew fast as the wind.
The other option is an osprey. In Japan their associated with winter so it could simply be a nod to that, however they are also commonly referred to as a "sea-eagle". And which king of the 5 rulers is called the sea king? The dragonpass Isles King. I mean how much more foreshadowing do you want?
While her signature magic is cloud magic, she's already often instinctively utilizing wind spells when in combat (Flying puppet of diversion, Wall of Wind etc). She is going to be the princess who married the wind.
Plot wise, it's likely they'll head to the Dragon pass Isles to deliver the eggs. From there on we might find out more about Tetia's past and a potential affinity for wind/dragons.
There's also theories that Tetia will be royalty by blood, which I disagree with. While I can believe she has ties to the region, I don't think she is going to be a princess of the Isles. Its not been confirmed whether Dragonpass even currently has a royal lineage. We know of a king but is that by lineage? Witches don't have monarchies, and it wouldn't be strange if they also had a different way to elect a king. Especially considering how their society revolves around Dragon herding.
Similar to witch society is it dependent on skill rather than blood? The other reasoning is her current ties to the Ezrest family which would muddy the water if she was both the princess of Dragonpass and dealing with King Ezrest.
I believe the Dragonpass Isles is set more to establish her skillsets and backstory, an affinity to wind magic, a calm before the storm.(something that Shirahama has stated about how the direction the manga is going)
Hopefully we also get to see more of her personal motivations. She's been connected to sickness and grief, tying into her desire to be remembered, her name spoken even after she's gone.
So we're likely to establish the mythology of the princess' poem first. The subsequent chapters/ arc might be the ones to fully delve into her ties to royalty through Ezrest (similar to the Silverwood myth which was introduced well before we see how Orufrey paralleled it)
Tetia's Future:
Onto more general references to royalty. Her two cone hat, obviously looks like a crown but could also be a reference to the "double hennin" worn by medieval women of nobility.
(technically single hennins are also a sign of royalty but obviously we can't do 1:1 comparisons since pointed hats exist.)
It also works as symbolism for her disobeying the whims of witch society, she is neither a pointed hat nor a brimhat, she is Tetia, a possible bridge between the unknowing and witches like Coco is, or, more likely a bridge between magic and medicine.
(where Coco's destiny is about revolution, Tetia's is more related to medicine by virtue of her interests to help people but also ties to the Ezrest family)
Dread Persephone
One of her Greek mythology references is to the Goddess of Spring and Rebirth, Queen of the Underworld, a direct homage shown in the cover art of chapter 52.
She steps out of a black chasm into a doorway covered in spring foliage akin to Persephone returning to the realm of the living from the Underworld when Spring renews.
This is definitely concerning if you know the story of Persephone. She was ripped away from her mother to join Hades in the underworld, trapped until Zeus pleaded to Hades to let her to return. This does not bode well with her connection to the Eoleo, that is clear. While they might be healers, their treatment of witches as a tool only they can wield is concerning. Ezrest being called the King of Life, a man who controls life itself is elitism at its core, why does he get control it all?
It once again confirms the potential future of Tetia as the "bridge" between worlds, Persephone acting as the bridge between life and death. She's also the goddess of spring, and Tetia has frequently been compared to spring in recent chapters.
It's also the perfect time for her arc to take place since its right at the beginning of winter, the time when Persephone goes back to the underworld (only allowed to return after 6 months, inciting the beginning of spring by Demeter upon her return).
There's another potential tie, through the cover of ch.96 that we just discussed in relation to wha mythos. I believe that the flower drawn around her are supposed to be a variant of a poppy/anemone.
It was said that Demeter created the flower to bring her sleep so she could forget her grief after Hades abducted Persephone. Eventually the Greeks offered poppy seeds in their rites to ensure a bountiful harvest. Thus becoming a symbol for sleep, peace and a renewal of life.
Hypnos (the god of sleep) also became associated with them, often adorned in crowns of poppies. It eventually became associated with eternal slumber and death.
In a general sense, poppies are associated with remembrances of bloodshed and war or vows for peace. Yet another overarching grief/death motif, since ch.96 is coded in layers of wha mythos, I'm inclined to believe the poppies are references to her past.
Of course, poppies are also known for their opium, a medicinal painkiller and frequent medieval anesthetic. More foreshadowing for Tetia's potential future in the medicine or another nod to illness and loss in her past.
Anemones on the other hand came from the myth of Adonis and Aphrodite. Adonis was aphrodites mortal lover however Persephone also fell in with him. They did the usual Greek myth thing and split the year between them so Adonis would spend time with both. However he chose Aphrodite and spent too long, dying in the process. The flowers blooming from a mix of his blood and aphrodites tears. Adonis divided between a goddess who loved him beneath the earth, the other above it. Once again a story where someone is bridging between 2 worlds.
Another possible reference is to Lady Jane Grey:
[The Execution of Lady Jane Grey, 1833]
She was a noble woman, proclaimed to be the Queen of England and reigned until she was deposed only 9 days later, after which she was beheaded for treason.
This one is more speculative than Persephone but its possible the ch.52 art is a nod to her as well, considering how ubiquitous she is as the "blindfolded queen".
If we explore the possibility for a moment, there's some interesting things to note. Lady Jane was quite young when she became the queen, only about 16 years old, and it was quite likely that she was pressured into becoming a queen as she was caught in a political maneuver from the Duke of Northumberland.
He not only orchestrated the marriage of his son to Lady Jane Grey but also instigated he dying King Edward VI to disinherit his half sister Mary and Elizabeth, so that Lady Jane would be Queen instead.
Of course this could potentially tie into the fact Tetia is about to enter into conversations with the Ezrest family with brushbully being a convenient reason to enter the castle. Once inside, who knows what all conversations she's going to have to maneuver through, navigating her increasing curiosity for medicine while protecting the secrets of magic and the Pact.
Eoleo also seems eager to put Tetia into a royal position, giving her the title, "Witch of the Dawn's First Light", almost immediately after meeting her.
Yet another reference to being a spring princess, (also very princess and the pauper coded lol)
All signs point to Tetia getting caught in the midst of royal political drama in the future, used as a chess piece to further their gains. The king of Ezrest was also described by Beldaruit as someone who can't be easily outmaneuvered. Eoleo certainly seems to take after him so there's definitely going to be some coercion and manipulation. Not even considering the fact Beldaruit and Rilliphin are currently stuck in the castle which is just going to complicate this business even more.
I do think these real world parallels are going to be more symbolic than anything, whether she will choose to help their cause, to combine magic and medicine and the likes, but nothing is certain for now. Whether she will choose to disobey the pact to learn the secrets of medicine (something she has already started to do), is becoming more likely than before.
areudirty
snowghoul
vaporwave
romaincrisis
discoholicmusic
