A common device used in fiction is creating characters that the audience can relate with. Establishing a connection with a character helps you understand them, or by stretch the story, better. I'd like to delve into my relation with a character my mom suggested-- Crona from Soul Eater. Initially I took what she said as a joke, but now that I think of it a number of the aspects of Crona's character are similar to mine. Obviously, a lot of things about Crona are impossible or unrealistic in real life, but if they are looked at metaphorically they can be compared to real world occurrences.
Medusa is Crona's mother, and it is her fault that Crona is the way he is. When Crona was an infant, she drained him of all his blood. In its place she put black blood, artificial blood that enhances the madness in those who have it inside of them. Mixed in with the black blood was the melted down Ragnarok, who was originally a regular demon sword. Medusa forced Crona to slay baby dragons/little rabbits when he was younger to get him used to killing. All of this led to Crona eventually becoming a crazed wreck who doesn't know how to deal with people properly.
Medusa could be compared to the people who have picked on me throughout my life. They're the overall cause of how I act toward people. If they had treated me more kindly, then chances are I would be a lot more social and a lot less paranoid. In my early years of elementary school when practically everyone was friends with each other, I was very talkative and friendly. It was when jerks began to emerge in the later years of elementary school and my struggles through middle school that that personality seemingly melted away, and was replaced by the one I show now. Crona had the potential to be raised as a normal child, and if Medusa had treated him like a real mother should, things would've been a lot different. But that's not how it happened. Medusa was a terrible mother to Crona, and I was picked on. There's no reversing that.
Ragnarok is Crona's Weapon partner, but the two of them share a unique bond. Due to what Medusa had done to Crona as a child, Ragnarok exists within his Meister's blood, and the two are fused together permanently. Even though they share a symbiotic relationship, Ragnarok enjoys bullying Crona. He is displeased with the weakness Crona displays, and at the same time likes to take advantage of this. Of course, he would never seriously hurt Crona, because he depends on him. If Crona were to die, Ragnarok's life would end as well.
It would probably make more sense if I compared Ragnarok with the bullies in my life, because that's exactly what he is to Crona. On the contrary, I'd like to go with something different. I actually think Ragnarok relates to a certain part of my mental being. I always put myself down. I'm always self-critical, and I always say bad things about myself. This certain part of me detects my weakness and sensitivity, and it manages to get the best of me. Of course, it would never lead me to commit suicide or do anything drastic like that, because it doesn't want to die. My self-doubt and lack of confidence also contributes to the way I present myself, and this stems from the part of me that could be represented by Ragnarok. But of course, this part of me wouldn't be there if I hadn't been crushed by the bullies in real life, just like how Ragnarok wouldn't be part of Crona if Medusa hadn't implanted him inside of him.
Maka was able to form a bond with Crona after she delved into his soul and discovered the reasoning behind the way he acts. There are several people I've managed to connect with in real life, despite my paranoid behavior. I act the same way I act on the internet around them. I don't know why it's different with them. Perhaps it's because deep inside, I feel as if they truly understand me? Have these people managed to touch my soul in the way Maka did with Crona?
Crona obviously has it much worse off than I do, but then again he's a fictional character from a fantastical anime/manga in which things can be exaggerated and anything can happen. And as stated above, everything is compared on a metaphorical level. I'm a very sensitive person, so everything I've gone through probably isn't as bad as I've made it off to be. But that doesn't make it right, nor does it mean that it's very minor. It's obviously done something to the way I see and act to others.
Crona is my second favorite character in Soul Eater, mostly because I find him amusing and interesting. But, as my mom suggested, could this also come from the underlying connections I've made with him?

Geez, writing this really reminded me of that Touching Spirit Bear project. By the way, I still need to finish my Archives entry about that...