Sofie > Recent Status Updates

LOVE noé’s viewpoint of humans and vampires and how it compares to vanitas’. noé recognizes that both humans and vampires can be evil, like vanitas stated before, BUT the part that vanitas doesn’t want to see is that both humans and vampires can be KIND too. noé knows that, and so he takes neither side. both viewpoints are neutral and looked down upon but for different reasons

noé feeling an intense loneliness from vanitas saying that both humans and vampires are selfish, ugly creatures is so striking. he realizes that there is some truth to vanitas’ words, and he can empathize with the loneliness that comes with such a worldview. he feels it too. they both have viewpoints that isolate them from both worlds they’re part of, but they’re both desperate for connection anyway

insane vanoé crumbs here, first with vanitas KNOWING that noé attaches to anything and anyONE when he’s sleeping (as if it’s happened to him already) and then being all coy about jeanne’s message to meet up???? FOR WHAT???????

i’m sorry what has been the sleeping situation???? vanitas and noé are supposed to sleep in the same room assumedly cause it’s easier to keep an eye on them that way, but vanitas has his own room, BUT he hasn’t been sleeping there?? he’s been sleeping on the roof i guess??? and NOW he’s decided to actually sleep in the shared room. the catacombs mission really changed everything huh

noé realizing that he and vanitas are more similar than he thought???? they’re both desperate for salvation without knowing what it even means???? and have both decided to cling to their goals and ideals as temporary respite for that bottomless well of desire????? and THIS is why vanoé is so superior to vanijeanne to me, they are truly two sides of the same coin

and THIS moment solidifies the shift in their relationship in this arc. i want this panel tattooed on my brain and i am SO glad it’s an entire page because it really is that serious. noé wondering if he’s allowed to ask vanitas more about his past and before he can verbalize it, vanitas LEANS ON HIM. it’s unspoken but a wall has been irreversibly broken down between them

it is truly beautiful that when roland’s entire worldview is flipped upside down all he can feel is utter joy and delight. we could all stand to be a bit more like roland when we’re proven wrong about something

roland is such an ally and i really did not see that for him but i’m living

both noé and vanitas are people who have struggled with survivor’s guilt and self-hatred, so the fact that they laugh about how preposterous it is that they’re still alive after this really shows a new understanding between them. they’ve both laughed at the other in separate instances but i think this is the first time they’ve laughed together???? it’s such a turning point in their relationship i think

noé and vanitas having to jump into the darkness together to save this curse bearer from his own personified evil shadow is so thematically relevant i could scream. it’s not an accident that this is the first mission where they’re really acting as a TEAM, and the one where noé realizes parts of vanitas’ past, and this is the malnomen they have to deal with??? fantastic writing

it didn’t click when i was watching the anime but seeing vanitas get his courage back after reminding himself that what he is is a doctor REALLY makes me think that part of his insistence to save vampires is to spite moreau, not just luna

VANITAS' FUCKING EXPRESSION HERE?????? noe getting stopped in his tracks by it too cause he's been trying to catalog all of vanitas' expressions in his attempts to understand him and then all of a sudden there's THIS. he looks like a scared little kid who's only been halfway woken up from a nightmare. it's heartbreaking after he's spent this chapter convincing everyone that he truly can't be hurt by moreau anymore

moreau mostly just being a nuisance who's completely detached from reality REALLY makes this last gab at vanitas hit so much harder cause you're not expecting it at all. vanitas was able to keep his cool and remain unaffected and IN CONTROL throughout the entire scheme so far, but moreau pulls out the trump card right when he needs it most to disarm vanitas. and it WORKS. he is not as unaffected as he thought he was

PROTECTIVE NOE LETS FUCKING GOOOO
he's so righteous and GOOD that he just cannot play the game anymore, even if it jeopardizes the mission AND all of their lives. to only refer to vanitas by his test subject number???? to ask to take one of his eyes for examination???? for vanitas to have his entire past laid out for everyone to hear and have to pretend to play nice through it all????? it's too cruel for noe to watch

UGH all the emphasis on every time moreau lays his hands on vanitas??? the hugging and petting???? this scene couldn't be more perfect at giving us a glimpse into vanitas' trauma and which parts of it affect him most today. we understand instantly why he's so touchy about power, especially in a PHYSICAL sense

this scene is absolutely stomach-turning and gut-wrenching. this is EXACTLY why vanitas tried to sneak out by himself, why he didn't want to work with the chasseurs. he knew this mission would lead him to moreau and that he'd be splayed out on that operating table yet again, vulnerable and powerless as moreau spills his baggage in the worst way possible

roland immediately clocking noe and vanitas and vanitas HISSING LIKE A CAT ABOUT IT??? mmhmmm and we all know noe is a cat person

vanitas blowing up at noe here is so importantly different from the other times they've had petty disagreements about which course of action to take. this is WAY more personal. it's struck a nerve, and noe realizes it too. vanitas is freaking out over the reality of his life being in someone else's hands, someone who is much less familiar with cruelty than vanitas is. he can only lash out in the face of that fear

"you have all that power, yet you handicap yourselves until it destroys you" i love these glimpses into vanitas' obsession with power, and you can really feel his resentment in this quote in particular. he spent his entire life being made to feel powerless, and so he cannot STAND when someone who has always had power (in his eyes at least) is throwing it away for something as disadvantageous as mercy

noe's bleeding heart for vanitas is so fucking sweet oh my GOD. the concept of feeling/acting detached from one's past trauma is so foreign to noe because he wears his pain on his sleeve. and vanitas admitting that he thinks both humans and vampires are selfish and ugly creatures cause he's seen all of that ugliness firsthand?? and noe HATING to see that utterly jaded look on vanitas' face?????? absolutely delicious

noé getting a kick out of vanitas meeting his match in roland’s undying good nature is SUCH married couple behavior. and the ellipses in “i’ve started to rather like…….HIM” is so pointed wtf was THAT translation choice???? was noé about to say that he’s actually starting to like VANITAS because of everything he’s begun to understand about him????? i’m gonna read it that way for my own enjoyment

“he wants to use me as a shield, but he doesn’t want me to shield him of my own accord?” THIS REALIZATION FROM NOÉ IS WILD!!!!!! so much of this volume is him starting to understand vanitas’ strange, usually contradictory, actions, and this is a massive step in solving that puzzle. agency is EVERYTHING to vanitas. if he’s decided to risk his life, then he doesn’t want ANYONE standing in his way

fantastic how this volume is pretty much bookended with noé standing between vanitas and ruthven and then vanitas standing between noé and roland. AND both of them being pissed at the other for being too careless with their safety. for vanitas i think it’s a general lack of care for his well-being and for noé maybe it’s more naïveté? he hasn’t seen much REAL combat and cruelty in his life yet

love that the moment that roland mentions luna and pities vanitas for being taken in by them, THATS when vanitas instinctively shoves him away and claws at his face. he could handle roland assuming that the vampires were forcing him to cure them but as soon as pity gets involved??? he lashes out like a wild animal

noé waiting for vanitas in the middle of the night cause he just KNOWS he’s gonna try to sneak out and investigate all by himself???? saying that he’s not FOLLOWING vanitas, he’s going WITH him????? and vanitas repeating “do as you like” from the bell tower scene as a way to keep some distance and use the excuse of passivity while still accepting the company and help?????? the bond is bonding

i am obsessed with the character quirk of vanitas hanging out on the roof whenever he can and always finding the highest spot to perch himself on in any situation. he wants the high ground as a tactical advantage so he can’t be ambushed, but also so he can be as far away from the catacombs as possible, and then ALSO so he can feel some semblance of freedom even if it usually means isolating himself. brilliant

noé is so completely locked in on vanitas, he is documenting every single expression like it’s his 9 to 5. he’s really starting to notice how often vanitas hides his true feelings by acting silly and grandiose instead, and he wants to UNDERSTAND WHY

noé has no idea how charming and gorgeous he is and it is Infuriating

there’s definitely something deeper to the fact that vanitas’ excuse for not dancing with jeanne was because he didn’t want to step on her toes and then noé steps on HIS toes at the end of the chapter!!!! vanitas doesn’t want any real feelings to blossom between him and jeanne, he doesn’t want to overstep the boundaries he’s set. but noé??? he’s all about challenging vanitas and wanting to KNOW him

“i have absolutely no interest in the sort of person who would fall for me” i could run laps over this line and these gorgeous panels. vanitas is SO traumatized that he really believes that he’s better off never being loved and never fully being vulnerable with someone in an equal relationship like that. AND he hates himself so much that he wouldn’t like anyone who fell in love with someone like him anyway