one of the reasons I like Book Arrietty as a character is that, despite her being heavily flawed in a lot of ways, it seemed like there was something in her that wanted to improve, a slow and steady upward trajectory, I guess. I kinda want to write a story where that's allowed to breathe a little bit, where it is mostly her who determines who she is and isn't, what she does and doesn't want to do.
I would think adulthood would be the time where that could happen for her, and where she would have the retrospect to know that she had said and done some regrettable things. Or something.
In a way, maybe its just me, but I think her story would be best left with the note of "her future is firmly hers to create". Or something.
Norton had her reasons for ending Arrietty's story the way she did, I suppose, and that will always be the "canon", I suppose, but this is something meant to. I dunno. Bolster? Some things??? I dunno. The first book had a lot of themes about the lack of agency in it, so how about the inverse of that? Where a character once deprived of complete agency is bestowed it, and must figure out ways to use it for the better? What happens when they must face that someone who was in a similar situation never got the chance she has, and only lives on as a second fiddle to her story???? I don't know. Apologies for the ramble i'm just trying to iron out if this is a stupid idea or not.
