A Rather Odd Characterization Issue

[Pacific Pikachu]

Okay, I'm looking for some advice here...

I'm currently writing a little post-series Wolf's Rain ficlet called Charcoal Skies. In it, I'm centering on Tsume, who, in the series, is cynical and unwilling to put his trust in anyone. By the end of the series, this changes quite bit, but--well, he's still who he is.

My problem is that I want to show he changed with the experiences he had in the show, but I still want to keep him in character. This is a problem, because the very character traits that I know have changed are, in a large part, the character's essence for the majority of the show. You know that his attitude has changed in the end of the show (after [spoiler event] happens), because you see little hints towards the end, but he...ummm..."disappears" (I'll just put it that way to avoid spoilers) shortly after his transformation (from cynic and loner to someone who accepts belief and friends to a certain extent), so you never really get to observe how he acts in his new frame of mind.

My other problem is that he cannot have any memory whatsoever of what changed him. The events of the show took place in another life that he has no memory of whatsoever, other than a few fleeting dreams and odd thoughts he doesn't understand. (I'm not going to go into detail about the whole "another life" thing, because it involves spoilers from the last five minutes of Wolf's Rain, and I know there's a couple people on the board following Wolf's Rain on Adult Swim.)

I know, it's complicated. But does anyone have any suggestions at all on keeping the character himself, while still showing his new side, but having no memories to explain the transformation at all? And it's going to be probably 10 pages, all considered, so I don't have forever to build up anything too complex.

Help?

 

[Luna Tiger]

You're worried about spoiling the last five minutes of the show, yet you spoiled us on *now censored* mid-post. -_- Fix that. Right. Now. *is very upset*

 

[Trainer-c]

A few cliche ideas.

You could write that the truama forced him to forget the events of the past.

Or you could write a forked destiny. (Like, this could take place after an altetnate endind to Wolfs Rain.)
Thats all I have off the top of my head.

 

[Pacific Pikachu]

You're worried about spoiling the last five minutes of the show, yet you spoiled us on [insert spoiler] mid-post. -_- Fix that. Right. Now. *is very upset*

Gomen gomen gomen gomen GOMEN! I'm really, really sorry about that. It's a habit-- on the Wolf's Rain boards I inhabit, all of the n00bs to the show went immediately and read all of the spoiler discussions (very annoying), leaving them knowing everything except the final, shocking plot twist at the very ending, so I'm in this awful mindset where I think nothing is a spoiler except that last twist. I should have thought the post out better, and it won't happen again. *Feels apologetic*

Anyway, thanks for trying Trainer-c (^_^), but... It's pretty complex, and I'm having trouble explaining this here...

The story basically requires the real ending to Wolf's Rain (that's kind of the point of the story--is to reflect on the ending without the characters even realizing they're reflecting on the ending because they don't have any memory of the ending), so an alternate ending would eliminate any sort of point to the fanfic.

And it's not that I'm having trouble explaining why he doesn't remember (the readers of the story will know why he can't remember)--it's just difficult writing him acting different than he does for the majority of the show, and not being able to talk about what it was that changed him (it's written almost as though it's his POV, though it isn't). I can't talk about it because he can't remember it. The readers will know what happened to him--but I'm trying to make them understand that that is why he's acting different, without mentioning what happened. (Other than trivial things, like Tsume noting to himself that rainy days make him melancholy.)

Thanks for trying to help, and I'm sorry again, Toraphim-Honor.

 

[Luna Tiger]

Gomen gomen gomen gomen GOMEN! I'm really, really sorry about that. It's a habit-- on the Wolf's Rain boards I inhabit, all of the n00bs to the show went immediately and read all of the spoiler discussions (very annoying), leaving them knowing everything except the final, shocking plot twist at the very ending, so I'm in this awful mindset where I think nothing is a spoiler except that last twist. I should have thought the post out better, and it won't happen again. *Feels apologetic*

*clip*

Thanks for trying to help, and I'm sorry again, Toraphim-Honor.

Ah, s'okay. ~_~ It's a general problem I suffer. Either I'll go spoil myself out of sheer curiosity, something already hinted to a spoiler (while looking for something completely different) and I merely go and confirm it, or someone out of the blue states it (like now and with the 5th HP book -_- oh, that steamed, but I got the book as a gift in payment).

I think the only mediums I haven't been spoiled on are the ones with no big spoilers. It's a nuisance.

Anyway, you're totally forgiven. =) Just be more careful, as this isn't your Wolf's Rain board.