Ooooh this episode was a juicy one! I loved how it was so much fun, yet we learned a lot about the Inn and got a glimpses of some of its secrets!!!
The main issue of the episode was having the guests’ kids going missing. Everyone is on a wild goose chase searching for them, and Aoi pairs up with Akatsuki to investigate the basement. Poor Akatsuki is not good with kids. He is the type that unintentionally makes them cry and scare them away.
But Aoi was able to accidentally help him in the most extreme way possible, by making him into a hero when he made the clutch save of using his threads to prevent her and the little girl from falling to their demise. The child had already fallen from the ledge, but Aoi ended up going along with her when she attempted to catch her. It was absolutely hilarious how she immediately regretted her decision and was reflecting on her life, and how she handled it like a champ. I really do love the dynamics between her and Akatsuki. Fortunately for the little girl, Akatsuki was able to find her lost hair ornament, and she adorably rewarded him with a cherry from her Shirokuma! Aha! It was so cute how she fed him and he was so embarrassed about it.
We learned more about what runs behind the scenes of the Tenjin-ya Inn. In the basement is the delicacy production, overseen by the Tesso, that Aoi initially freaked out over thinking they were being worked like slaves until she saw they were all good. There was the lab where Dr. Saraku (Director of Developments) is always trying to think of new ideas and the storage and so on, and apparently the offices as well, where Nobu had eventually led Aoi to what appeared to be Oodanna’s office, where there she encountered some very interesting photographs.
The first was the one like the one she had seen back at home, the only difference is that this one is in black and white, and reveals the Ayakashi’s characteristics. The second one, was Oodanna and the Blonde Zashiki-warashi.
And the weirdest part about this, is that I always had a strange feeling the Blonde Zashiki-warashi and Oodanna had some sort of connection with each other. But the question remains: What kind of relationship do the two of them have? How are they related? Are they business partners or were they something more? Either way, whatever history the two of them had, this could potentially explain why Aoi has a target on her back.
But we have to wonder, why did Nobu lead Aoi to what appeared to have been Oodanna’s office… unless it was actually Shiro’s? Why did he want to show her those pictures? Nobu has the ability to warp her to different spaces, it’s how he was able to get her to the children first.
However if there is something to take away from this, besides the importance of londe Zashiki-warashi and Oodanna’s photograph, I also found it fascinating how the pictures, though they were clearly taken at the same time, Shiro’s coloured version of the photo has the Ayakashi appear Human. However in the black and white version, we can see all of their characteristics. I am under the impression there were two different photos taken at the same time, that’s why we have two different versions. One that belonged in the Hidden Realm, matching its nature by revealing everyone’s true form, and another serving as the “Apparent Realm” version where no one would question Shiro had they ever encountered it.
Another sign that the two are different pictures is the change of Oodanna’s expression. The colored version has him smiling at the camera, but the black and white one has him looking at Shiro. If they intended to make it the exact same picture, I would assume they probably would have recycled the first one and slap a monochrome filter on it. So while I may be overthinking this, I have a feeling there may more to it than meets the eye.
….ANNDDD I JUST REALIZED NOW HATORI HAS BEEN IN THE PICTURE ALL LONG! WOW. I can’t believe I missed that.
Speaking of the handsome devil, it looks like Hatori is not here to make trouble either. Rather he was pretty good about it though he certainly has a mischievous side. I actually found it quite endearing how he teases Akatsuki, in a big brother kind of way, and gave Aoi an idea what to do with her desert she had made for him. We also learned that he and Shiro were good friends… and we quickly learned why through Akatsuki’s description of him. He is also is Matsuba’s third son, err… “was” until he was disowned after breaking the code… Whatever that was.
While Hatori has shown he has a mischievous side, I don’t think he is the one to have dropped the Hair Ornament in the basement. He is of course one of the prime suspects for the case, as he knows the inn inside out, but it appears it was Nobu’s doing, counting on Aoi’s good nature to help out and use that opportunity to lead her to the place he wanted to take her.
And then there is Orio-ya Inn’s Ranmaru, Oodanna’s rival. It’s hilarious to learn that Hatori believes Aoi is the type of woman Ranmaru absolutely hates. We also learned that Shiro had never acknowledge Orio-ya, let alone stayed at his place, and was closely tied with Tenjin-ya Inn enough to boost its popularity just by constantly staying there. So naturally Ranmaru never like Shiro either.
And finally Ginji, who has been busily working off-screen for the majority of the episode. Hatori suggested the fox has a lot of secrets of his own. He commented on it is difficult to get a read on his intentions, which Aoi immediately denied. But the thing is, we know that even though he doesn’t show it, Ginji is a crafty one. A fine example would be whenever he deliberately shift forms to appeal to others in attempt to get what he wants.
Now that he has seemingly overworked himself, it will be interesting to see what will happen during his fever. Will he slip out any secrets, or be more honest about his feelings? Either way, he will need Aoi’s food if he has any hopes of getting better. That is probably why he came to the Moonflower in the first place. He will be Aoi’s third patient (if you include Akatsuki) when it comes to dealing with the health problem.
But a fever is one hell of a way to set things up for the two of them to potentially get closer to one another. While Aoi is definitely starting to develop feelings for Oodanna, Ginji is the one that she constantly thinking about, but I am under the impression she is only sees him as a friend at the moment. She was especially disappointed she wasn’t able to share the Shirokuma she made with him. (Oh my god, it looked so good… I want to eat one too….)
Oodanna is set to return, but I don’t think he will be back until maybe the end of next week’s episode. Aoi is quite excited to see him again. I don’t think she even realizes how happy she is when she is messaging him.
And lastly: So you know the Master’s Ogre Fire that was supposed to have died out by now? Guess, what: because Aoi decided to keep it because she liked it so much, it’s feeding off of her Spiritual Energy to keep itself alive. A part of me a is a bit worried about that, but since Akatsuki didn’t comment on any dangers about it, maybe it will be okay? Either way, it makes her happy to know she’s helping it stay alive, after-all, the Ogre Fire has become a source of comfort for her. I am curious to find out if there will be any perks that comes along with it since she’s the one who is providing the fuel to keep it alive.
Random Note of the Week: Note to self, never trust Chibi with the preview! Moonflower torn apart? No such thing!!!!!
