[Darial]

Originally Posted by TwilightHack

Then I read the other threads and understood.

Yeah, Cheese had two excellent posts dissecting this scene as to why it felt so bittersweet and unfulfilling. So I'll cross-post it here for the folks too lazy to look it up in the romance thread :

Originally Posted by crisis

Spoiler for Brief Analysis of Episode 22:

I may need ackem, tak and musouka's assistance for this, so feel free to correct me as I offer this out for thought.

The hug scene between Alto and Sheryl is all about walls crumbling down and unresolved feelings. There were so many revelations and misunderstandings that came out of this one little scene itself. There is so much pain in Sheryl's declaration to sing, because she feels that singing is all she has left; it is all she could live for in her days to come. She believes she had no future with Alto, she believes that her love for Alto is unrequited, and I won't be surprised if she keeps her love a secret from Alto and carry it to her grave without Alto ever knowing how she feels about him.

Does Alto realize why she's so determined to sing?

Just as Alto failed to understand Ranka, he failed to understand Sheryl's heart, though in no fault of his own. It is a heart-wrenching scene for Alto too, because he sees that she's fighting with him for her singing; he just didn't know that she had no choice. He has no idea that she loved him, he didn't know that she intends to sing for the rest of her life because she believed she had no future with Alto, he probably didn't even know how much he meant to her to the point where she could place himself first before her, seeing how he led the topic away when she was beginning to talk about the issue.

It was only after Alto saw her desperate for her singing, that, after a moment of pain, he hugs her and promised to stay by her side and support her as she sings. But by doing so, Alto has chosen to take a passive stance on Sheryl's death issue, he remains idle by the sidelines, pretty much resigning himself to supporting Sheryl on what he thinks is Sheryl's true wish, until her death. He has no idea that she was singing Northern Cross at her most painful moments.

Ozma's conversation with Alto in the end is a move that urges Alto to find his way and be resolute in it, just as Ranka had done when she flew with Brera to space, as the flashbacks indicated. Is Alto going to stand there and watch Sheryl sing until she dies? Or will he fight for her by fighting against her wishes? Will he allow her to slip away from him like what he's doing now?

Emotional barriers were torn down, but at the same time, Alto has no idea Sheryl is in love with him, and Sheryl is more or less content with Alto's presence near her as she sings to her death. But you could also see that Sheryl is at the peak of despair, and you have to truly wonder if Alto is really there for her, or how much Sheryl is allowing Alto to be. Look at the very nature of Northern Cross and the reason she sings this song.

"...a Sheryl in love that conveys a sad and painful feeling to the point of tears. The lyrics from the heart are straight forward and deeply moving."


May'n: "...this is Sheryl at her most painful moments - pretending to be strong, when she’s struggling to not show her weakness. So when I sang it, rather than ‘carefully’ sing it, I sang it like I was shouting in tears."

This closed a chapter and opened up a new one at the same time.