Ok So If Tumblr Wants To Stop Eating My Posts I’d Really Like To Share A Few Thoughts I Sorted Out

Ok so if tumblr wants to stop eating my posts I’d really like to share a few thoughts I sorted out for myself about yuchi. I tried to put this under a readmore but I think that might be what’s screwing my tags up, so sorry for the slab of text.

This is all really obvious stuff, but somehow never clicked properly for me until now, so I thought I’d share:

Ok, so Yuki’s always said that the reason he cannot be with Tohru romantically is because whilst her kindness has helped him in endless ways, he cannot give back to her in the way that she needs, right? That the relationship he is looking for is one where there is both give and take, essentially a “balanced” relationship that yukiru cannot be. So it always bothered me, then, that although the relationship he ended up in has both elements of give and take, the balance always felt a bit off.

Whilst Machi does immediately understand Yuki on an intrinsic level, Yuki takes a lot more action to help Machi, as his direct efforts to get to know her as a person humanises her from the blank slate ‘perfect’ shell that she had been forced to inhabit for all of her life. Yuki makes a conscious effort to understand her interests, her way of viewing the world, and her traumas, encouraging her self-growth and giving her the support and guidance that allows her to gradually become more comfortable with the world. In return, she sees him as his true self, devoid of all facade and pretenses he puts up. But…she doesn’t really take direct actions that “help” him? That isn’t to say that she doesn’t do anything, ofc there is the door breaking and the present buying, but when you compare her relationship with Yuki to Tohru’s or Kakeru’s, it’s obvious that Yuki is the one who is proactive and encouraging her growth.

It always bugged me, because I love yuchi, and I knew Machi helped Yuki, but I couldn’t figure out how, because on the surface level it always seemed like Yuki who was doing everything. But then I remembered…that literally one of Yuki’s strongest motivators is his desire to be needed. That above all, what Yuki needs to feel is that his existence is worthwhile, because he has made a difference in another person’s life. That whilst it may not be Machi directly giving him her kindness or friendship, she “gives” to him in the way that she specifically needs him and him alone. No one else is able to fill Yuki’s role, and so in helping Machi, Yuki gains fulfilment and self worth in return. Yuki grows through the process of helping Machi, as he begins to understand his own importance, and the difference he can make in the lives of others.

Just as Yuki “saves” Machi by giving her a reason to exist, Machi “saves” Yuki by giving him a purpose. And I think that’s pretty neat.