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pries-t · 8 months ago

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I don't think I've ever seen anyone trying to analyze Lilly's route, in particular the choices that lead to the Good Ending, despite her being by far the most popular girl. It took me years to understand the logic of the choices, but I think I got it.

As a recap: to get the Good Ending, you need to make three correct choices, making Lilly's route the most delicate of the five: it's possible to mess up in Act 2, and not see any repercussion until Act 4.

The repercussion is that Akira drops the bombshell that Lilly has been planning to rejoin their parents in Scotland, permanently, and hid this from Hisao. If you failed to get the Good Ending, the story simply... stops, and Lilly and Akira leave forever leaving Hisao and Hanako behind. If you do get the Good Ending, the story continues and Hisao gains the inspiration to chase Lilly down to apologize for not being there for her during such a difficult time.

The difference between the Neutral Ending and the Good Ending is that Hisao in the former never realizes that he took Lilly for granted, and he only saw her as the perfect girlfriend and person, so when she goes away, he simply lets her, powerless; while in the Good Ending he recognizes that she too is human and she too needs help, and he gains the courage to do so. But how did he come to this conclusion?

The three choices are, apparently inconsequential and fairly obvious. In those three circumstances, Hisao has the choice to be honest or keep things to himself: as the player has learned in the Mind Your Step scene, in Act 1, being secretive leads to your death lol. Lilly values honesty, that's something that she insists on frequently; but the logic can't be so simple. Why would Hisao completely give up on Lilly if one day months before he didn't feel like sharing his thoughts?

Let's go through a rundown:

A Brief History of Thyme, choice 1:

LILLY: "Are you all right, Hisao?" HISAO: "Sorry?" LILLY: "You just seemed to go very quiet, that's all." HISAO: "Ah, sorry. I was just thinking." LILLY: "Oh?" NARRATOR: "Ah, now I've piqued her curiosity. It feels kind of overly personal to talk about though..."

Hisao is caught being lost in his thoughts, and Lilly innocently asks what they're about. He feels self-conscious as he was thinking of her, her life, and her relationships, so he's hesitant to answer.

If you "Tell the truth":

HISAO: "It was just kind of... I was thinking about how you seem to have everything so sorted out, even with Hanako relying on you. I can admit that even I kind of relied on you when I first transferred in. I think it's a good quality to have." NARRATOR: "I turn to Lilly, surveying her reaction. She's forcing herself to look forward and furrowing her brow quite a bit. Her face looks a bit awkward, as if she was trying to find just the right words." HISAO: "...Lilly?" LILLY: "I would thank you, but... assuming that I don't rely on the presence of others is too much. You'd be wrong to think that Hanako simply depends on me with nothing in return." NARRATOR: "She seems to have a bit of trouble saying it, even though it's largely what I'd thought already. If she's tried so hard to maintain her independence, as anyone would have had to in her position, sighted or not, maybe she finds it hard to talk about her own needs. It's only now that I realize an omission in what she says, though. I decide to follow it up, largely in jest, to avoid things getting too personal." HISAO: "Oh? And what about me?" NARRATOR: "She suddenly runs ahead of me and turns, blocking me off. With a smile, she holds her hands behind her as she leans forwards." LILLY: "You're different."

So, not only Hisao and Lilly gets a cute bonding moment, but Lilly already reveals the core message of her route.

Hisao believes Lilly "seems to have her life set up and going just as she wants," and has everything sorted out. Lilly, however, admits that it's not true and she too relies on the presence of others. Both her words and her reluctance to say them are key to what follows in her route. "Maybe she finds it hard to talk about her own needs," oh my sweet summer child.

Contrast with "Just what is she thinking now? I look up to the dark sky as I slump my shoulders. I think this is something I have to sort out for myself, rather than relying on her for everything," which is what Hisao thinks if you "Avoid the subject". If he's honest, Lilly passes the message that everyone relies on someone; if he's not, Hisao thinks he'd better only rely on himself... leaving Lilly in the same position.

Prelude, choice, 2:

LILLY: "If you want to sleep more, you should really go to bed earlier. I heard the television going long into the night." HISAO: "Sorry about that. My medications have been interfering with my sleep for a while now. Even if I'm tired I have trouble actually sleeping." LILLY: "I'm... sorry for bringing it up, Hisao." NARRATOR: "I sigh. This is exactly the kind of thing I wish others wouldn't do."

Hisao is still self-conscious about his condition, and doesn't want to be pitied, even more so by the naturally caring and motherly Lilly.

But we must "Address it":

HISAO: "Come on, you worry about me more than I do at times. It just means I have to sleep a bit longer, that's all." LILLY: "But still..." HISAO: "I'd say that I look absolutely fine, but I guess that wouldn't have a lot of meaning for you." NARRATOR: "She gives a sigh of consternation before trailing off with an amused chuckle, giving up the point." LILLY: "If you say so. Please do take care of yourself, Hisao."

Not doing so has Hisao awkwardly telling Lilly to help Hanako, which she doesn't appreciate.

This choice is mostly about Hisao, and it picks back one of the most important lessons of the game. The story is very, very clear that he must not wallow in self-pity and denial: he has a medical condition, and that condition comes with challenges, but that doesn't make him any lesser. If his shame makes him push people away, he won't get far.

Hisao's conception of Lilly is of a loving, but fretting figure that at worst pities him from her position of superiority. If he waves her off, too ashamed and prideful to open up, he doesn't fully challenge his misconception, and doesn't fully realize that she's more vulnerable that she lets on.

Out and About, choice 3:

LILLY: "But on that note, what of your confessions, Hisao? I'm sure someone like you must have had at least one admirer." NARRATOR: "As I open my mouth to speak, I can feel my face turn slightly dour. At times like this, I secretly appreciate the fact that she can't see my expressions." HISAO: "Just... one. Her name was Iwanako. It was when she confessed to me that I had my heart attack. There in the woods, during winter." NARRATOR: "Lilly finds herself speechless, not expecting for the topic to move into such an area. My condition has always been something of a concern for her, something that I strive to minimize despite my body's best efforts to the contrary." HISAO: "Afterwards, she visited me for a while when I was in the hospital. For weeks she came in and talked. It was usually just smalltalk or classroom gossip, but that was enough. But eventually... she just stopped coming. She was there every day. Then every other day. Then once a week. Then finally, one day, she just stopped visiting entirely." LILLY: "Did you ever... see her again?"

Lilly has inadvertedly hit a sore spot for Hisao. The two are together and having a sweet romantic date, but he understandably wouldn't like to talk about what was effectively the lowest point of his life.

It would be understandable if he "Dropped the subject", because as he points out, their date is about them, not a girl that broke up with him months before. But it's best if we "Mention the letter", because the following piece is crucial:

NARRATOR: "The memory of that single letter Iwanako sent me comes back to my mind." HISAO: "I never saw her again, but after I was sent to Yamaku... she wrote me one letter." NARRATOR: "Lilly's face shows an expression I know well. I've piqued her interest. I'd be slightly offended that it's simply a matter of curiosity for her, but she's never been very good at masking her reactions." HISAO: "In hindsight, it really didn't say much. What was going on in my old class, how she was faring, and, almost as an afterthought, that it was probably best for the both of us that we don't see each other again. After reading it, I ended up reassessing a lot of things I thought I'd managed to work out. For the most part, that letter reminded me that the world around me was still moving, and just how much I'd become isolated from it. And... I guess it also reminded me of what I'd lost." NARRATOR: "She gives the information some thought before her face lights up in realization. No doubt she's worked out that it was this letter which had contributed to my angst during that lunch on the rooftop. It's a rare sight to see Lilly quite so lost for words, her entire persona is a little deflated from her earlier rapt interest. As charismatic as she is, in the end that isn't any replacement for life nor relationship experience." LILLY: "Perhaps... it is better she sent it than not." HISAO: "How's that?" LILLY: "It can be difficult to work out how best to communicate with those you haven't met in a long time. All the more so, considering your separate situations. Instead of doing what was easiest, she built up the courage to talk to you one last time; not only for her sake but, from how it sounds, for yours as well." HISAO: "Maybe. I don't hate her for it, not that I really ever did, but... I don't know." NARRATOR: "Probably a more noncomittal answer than I should give, but it isn't without cause. I've never looked at the situation from Iwanako's perspective like that before."

We have a lot packed here. Hisao admits and puts into words how much Iwanako's letter shook him and forced him to reconsider that he hadn't moved on as easily as he had thought. He realizes that Lilly may be charismatic, which I suppose is a way to say that she looks mature and reliable, but she still lacks life and relationship experience. Lilly commends Iwanako for having the courage to speak to Hisao one last time to have a proper closure. Hisao is seeing the situation for the first time from the girl's perspective.

With all of this in mind, it makes perfect sense that only by being honest with Lilly three times, he can reach this conclusion in False Cadence:

"I had thought her sense of independence to be a good and admirable trait. It was in stark difference to my reliance on my parents before my heart attack, as reluctant as I may have been to admit it. However, it also meant that she never let people get too close to her. She lost her family likely due to her blindness, went to a different school from anybody she knew because of it, and worked all the harder to make sure she didn't end up a burden on her sister and those around her. And now, Akira's going to Inverness, just like the family she thought she'd lost. She never told me of her plans, as conflicted as she was about them. Lilly didn't want to be a burden on anyone, including me. ...I'm an idiot." "I never questioned it. I never tried to be there or asked when she needed me to. I just set my life up and expected it to stay that way forever, with the two of us having a nice long relationship where we pushed forwards towards our future together. A small pit of frustration and anger at myself wells up in my chest. I just let everything happen, never even trying to help Lilly. Just her being there was enough. I thought I could keep going on if that were true. But that could never have been enough. It was a childlike dependence on somebody, without any attempt to understand or help their situation. Thanks to that, I lost Lilly. I lost the one person I loved most because I wasn't there for her when she needed me."

And why he would even have the idea of chasing her down before it's too late, much like Iwanako chose to be brave enough to send him one last letter.

While I still think these three choices are very obvious to pick, which takes away the fun of guessing what would be the right thing to do, I really like how everything ties together and subtly conveys the message of Lilly's route: no one is perfect, there is no shame is needing help, and two lovers have to be there for each other and allow the other to be there for them. Poor Lilly lived for years with the convinction that if she just was perfect and went beyond the limits of her pesky blindness, her parents would love her again. Hisao has the chance to teach her that she doesn't need to pretend to be flawless, as long as he too challenges himself and his own shame.

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