This is a sweet little shrine to Tales of Destiny's Swordian Master duo of Stahn and Rutee. It covers why they make a good couple as seen through evidence in the game itself, as well as my own beliefs and opinions. If you have any ideas for this section or want to link to your Stahn/Rutee fanfiction then drop me a line with the header being "Stahn/Rutee Shrine" so I don't delete it on accident. Note that this is far from complete so I will be updating it a lot.
There will also be information from ToDR found on this shrine, so forgive any errors with things marked as being from that game. My Japanese isn't good enough to translate so I have to go with what I see on the Translation Wiki (which I'm helping as an editor for). Since I don't want to listen to everyone's different opinions on how the scenes are supposed to go, then don't e-mail me about it. Instead, get involved with the project so we can hammer out the best script possible.
Full Name: Rutee Katrea (though some might argue that it's actually Rutee Gilchrist or Rutee Katrea Gilchrist and that Hugo had to change it when he left her at the orphanage, in fanfics Rutee Marie Katrea), later Rutee Aileron (if she takes Stahn's name after getting married)
Age: 18 (ToD), 36 (ToD II)
Birthday: Unknown (For fun, I made it July 19. This makes her a Cancer, a water sign like her element. Water signs are emotional and Cancer is extremely family oriented)
Birthplace: Darilsheid, Seinegald, Hugo's Mansion (most likely, unless they were out of town or there is a hospital not shown in the game)
Race: Human
Family: Father (Hugo Gilchrist, deceased), Mother (Chris Katrea, deceased), Younger Brother (Emilio Katrea/Leon Magnus/Judas, deceased/brought back to life/finally able to rest in peace...long story), Son (Kyle Dunamis)
Swordian: Atwight (Water)
Battle Skills: Ninja or Thief like style of quick fighting swordsmanship, thievery techniques, ability to heal with Atwight's power, ability to cast Water and Ice magic with Atwight's power, ability to use any other Swordian she might borrow
Full Name: Stahn Aileron
Age: 19 (ToD), 37 (ToD II), approx. 27 (when he died in the altered timeline before Kyle saved it)
Birthday: Unknown (For fun I made it April 5. This makes him an Aries, a Fire sign like his element. Fire signs can be rash at times and respond physically to the world but at the same time very warm, and Aries is considered a sign of leadership and are known for hasty actions)
Birthplace: Lienea, Fitzgald
Race: Human
Family: Parents (Names Unknown, deceased), Grandfather (Thomas Aileron), Younger Sister (Lilith Aileron), Niece (Rimul Idunnowhatherlastnameis), Son (Kyle Dunamis)
Swordian: Dymlos (Fire)
Battle Skills: Swordsmanship, ability to cast Fire magic with Dymlos' power, ability to use Sacred Skills when Dymlos is equipped and he's learned them, ability to use any other Swordian he might borrow
Stahn Aileron left his small village of Lienea shortly before the story began, stowing away on the Draconis to look for passage to Seinegald. However, he was attacked by monsters and had to escape with his new "Partner" the Swordian, Dymlos. Landing in the frozen forest between Seinegald and Phandaria, he was now stuck because he didn't have a border pass for either country.
Meanwhile, Rutee had been a Lens Hunter for at least two years (seeing as she met Mary at that time) and probably longer. Currently, she's trying to get money to save the orphanage she grew up in from demolition and replacement by an art museum. Being hired to head to the temple near Janos to look for an Old Cane seemed like a simple job at first...until she activated the trap and got caught. Mary rushed off to find help, but Rutee was left quite literally hanging out.
In Janos, Stahn literally ran right into Mary, who asked him for help in saving Rutee. Not one to let a girl be left in danger, he agreed and rushed back to free her. Upon arriving, Stahn too was caught in the trap and Mary had to set him free before they'd saved Rutee, leading to their first ever verbal spat. Though initially unwilling to thank him, the arrival of a group of Seinegaldian soldiers out to arrest them for the break in shows her Stahn's true prowess and the fact that he has a Swordian.
Thinking she can use his help in her work, Rutee puts on the "Innocent Girl" act, thanks Stahn and invites him to go back to Janos with her. She reveals her own Swordian, Atwight, and the old war comrades (and former lovers) are reunited. With her and Mary's insistence and Dymlos and Atwight's desire to be together adding to the momentum, Stahn agrees to join the team. What Rutee thinks as an opportunity to get more money and what Stahn thinks is a simple way to see the world will eventually blossom into something much more...
Stahn is naive; there's no two ways around that. He'd do anything to help anyone else in need and trusts people without pause. Being from a small village where everyone was like an extended family, Stahn treasures those he meets as friends and wants to believe in them no matter what.
On the other hand, Rutee is a manipulative liar. She's great at spinning tales to her side of the story and not what truly happened, as well as convincing people to believe her. This trait prevents her from trusting wholeheartedly in someone; she knows that she lies so why should everyone else tell the truth? There's also a certain business sense about her, most likely inherited from her father. Though she too treasures her friends, and feels kinship with the people who raised her and others who are orphaned, she is willing to do anything to protect them, even if it seems underhanded.
These two personality clashes lead to small fights over nothing on several different occasions...
Temple Near Janos: Stahn comes to help Rutee, who is hanging upsidown in a trap. However, he pushes the button when Mary specifically says not to, and is trapped as well. Rutee, pissed that her help is not listening to what he has to do, yells at him for his stupidity. He then makes the dumb remark about not wanting to be verbally abused by someone suspended in midair...which he himself currently is. After they finally get down, Rutee brushes off his efforts as simply Mary asking him and because she didn't ask then she doesn't have to thank him.
Janos, Tavern: Rutee inquires where Stahn is from and he tells her the name of his village. When she is confused as to where it is, he informs her it's in Fitzgald. Knowing that the only real city in Fitzgald is Neustadt, Rutee explodes with laughter and calls Stahn a "Country Boy." Indignant, at her laughter, Stahn asks where she's from and she tells him she was born into a good family in Seinegald (though what she meant by that is unknown, true she was born into a high class family but she doesn't remember anything about her origins since she was left alone when she was small). This becomes the model for a running gag throughout the game (you'll see more "Country Boy" arguments later on).
Janos, Inn: The next day, Rutee and Mary discover the hard way that Stahn is a late sleeper. When they finally get him up and are ready to leave, Rutee wants to exchange her Lens for Gald. Of course, Stahn doesn't know what it is. No matter if he admits his lack of knowledge or tries to act cool and say he knows, she teases him about how dumb he is and calls him a Country Boy again. Then, she tells the Lens Girl to explain it to the "Country Boy," which angers Stahn. She silences his complaints and tells him to listen.
Darilsheid, Prison: Stahn mutters about what he did to deserve this with Rutee echoing his sentiments. After he yells at her for stealing his lines, she blames him for fighting with the soldiers which in turn leads him to blame her for the events leading up to the mess they were in. Rutee still insists that Stahn take responsibility while Stahn yells back. She tries to get Mary in on her side, but all the older woman can tell them is that they fight like a married couple...causing Rutee to get even madder. The fight is broken up by General Isard coming to take them to see the king.
Ship to Cavalese: On the way to Cavalese, the ship encounters darkening clouds. Stahn wonders if the weather is bad or if it's something else, so Rutee teases him about whether or not he's scared of Demon's Reef. When he seems to suggest that he is, she tells him he's a coward and it's just a fairy tale...right before a sailor comes in to warn them of monsters.
Cherik, Baruk's Office: An optional scene. After talking with Baruk, Rutee begins examining a bookshelf to look for something. Stahn stands next to her nervously, wondering what she's doing. Rutee seems to be taking something from the shelves and Stahn gets mad at her, telling the girl it's stealing. Then, she tells him to run but insists it was all a joke in the end.
Heidelberg, Jail: The duo is captured when they wait for Mary, who has met someone she knows among the enemy forces. After Mary is taken upstairs and they realize she remembered her past, Rutee mutters about having to escape. Stahn, remembering what happened when he last listened to Rutee's plans, reminds her of the last time they were in jail. Rutee still won't admit it was her fault so she blames Leon...only to be shocked when he enters to save them.
Straylize Forest: Stahn lets the thug go if he promises to not steal ever again. When Rutee points out that that type of person will never go straight, he tells her to have more faith. She chalks it up to female intuition but Stahn calls it a thief's intuition...making her yell at him before saying they should just go.
Lienea, One Year Later: During the reunion, Stahn looks upon his friends but sees Rutee missing. The others are trying to hide something and he's getting worried...until she jumps down from the roof right on top of him! Rutee chalks his softness up to living it out in the country and Stahn gets mad about her constant teasing of his village. She informs him that all the other towns are rebuilding and renovating but Lienea is just the same. Of course, Karyl's attempts at pacifying the situation don't do much good.
It should be interesting to note that most of the fights occurred in the first half of the game. Perhaps, during the second half, Rutee's identity crisis and Stahn's concern for her prevented them from their playful banter; this was much more important.
A hilarious point to make that in the remake, Rutee had disappeared after the final battle and Stahn was worried because she never came back. After she jumped down on top of him, she tells the group that she's going on a journey with Stahn (see below in "Protector of the Heart" for where he asked her about that). It shocks Stahn (since she'd run off on answering him a year ago) and the others...but they give their best wishes. And somehow, either due to the camera angles or because I'm such a fangirl, it appears as if Rutee is leaning against Stahn after she gives her answer.
Rutee may deny all she wants that she is in love with Stahn, but her actions speak much louder. Whenever other girls are seen with him, no matter how he feels about the person in question, she feels anger at the fact that he's in her company. She wants to be the one in his company, the one he feels for.
Neustadt, Date With Ilene: No one really wants to hang around watching Leon interrogate Batista. Rutee tells Mary to go with her to take a nap but they don't head to the room right away. Instead, they overhear Ilene asking Stahn out on a date with her. After he agrees and they leave, Rutee mutters about how she can't stand him going out with an older woman. Rutee tells Mary to come with her and they leave the mansion to follow. The duo trails Stahn and Ilene around the whole city, Mary only breaking to get a Softy Kreem, until Ilene buys tickets for the arena. They follow, but most likely realize they need tickets and Rutee doesn't want to spend her money (you don't see them again in the arena).
Neustadt, Rembrant Mansion: In the morning, the team wakes up to find Batista has escaped. Rutee, who rushes to conclusions easily, blames Philia seeing as they knew each other in the past. Stahn rushes to defend his friend from a sudden accusation and Rutee takes it as a personal insult; she believes that Stahn likes Philia more than she. Luckily, Leon picks that instant to come in and inform them of his plan and how it involved Batista's escape before the other Swordian Masters got into a large brawl.
Cresta: Stahn and Philia (and perhaps Garr if you got him first) go looking for Rutee so they can reunite the team to track down the Eye of Atamoni again. However, upon finding her happily playing with the orphans, they decide to allow her to stay while they go on the journey. Rutee hears them as they argue with Dymlos and Clemente and butts in before the team leaves without her. She thinks Stahn is happy being with Philia but still refuses to be left out and demands to come along anyway.
Helraios (remake only):After they hear Ilene's voice on the PA, Rutee is angered by her words and wants to go after her. She later says in a skit that she can't forgive her, causing Garr to wonder if something happened between them in the past and Philia to say she didn't think so; Garr's reply about not understanding women makes me think that he might detect jealousy but not know where it's from. Finally, she is the first to draw her sword when they actually face Ilene (at the same time that Ilene brings up her barrier). Perhaps they're instinctively squaring off over a guy.
Even in the remake, where the date was edited out, there still is some jealousy toward Ilene before leaving Neustadt. First off, Mary looks at Rutee strangely when she mentions Stahn and Ilene talking about ideals; she insists it's nothing, but this is Rutee we're talking about. Second, when Stahn and Leon had their "man talk" (which consisted of Stahn talking about Ilene and trying to figure out which girl Leon liked) she stood far away and insisted on looking at the water (maybe she figured what was on Stahn's mind and thought more on Ilene).
Rutee has had a troubled life. She was all alone since she was probably about two or three, doesn't know any blood relatives and her only clue to her origins is Atwight who doesn't talk about it. Then, she learns about her family at long last...only to watch them die in front of her at her own hands. Add in her responsibilities to protect the orphans of Cresta, and she has a large weight on her shoulders. However, Stahn will do whatever he can to take care of the woman he truly loves...
Caves to Moreu (remake only): Deep in the cave’s center, Rutee stops to check her Gald inventory. However, the pouch breaks and her money scatters all over the place. The team picks it up, only to have the last piece still unaccounted for. When she finds it, however, the ground gives way. Stahn makes a desperate lunge to protect Rutee, but they both fall down into the hole.
Draconis, Deck: Philia brings to Stahn's attention that Rutee is missing and she's worried because the girl has been sad since Mary left. He looks for her and finds her on the deck. Though Stahn initially is mad at her for leaving without telling them, he soon admits the concerns the two of them had for her. Rutee admits to missing her best friend, and then feels she can confess her true intentions as a Lens Hunter to Stahn. It almost seems to get really emotional as she says she had to tell him in case they never again met, but then Rutee turns it into a joke that lightens the mood. Right before Philia enters the scene, Stahn begins to ask Rutee to spend time with him after the journey, but then their minds shift to the priestess.
Darilsheid, by Draconis Launch Site: Everyone is saying their goodbyes to Stahn before he leaves. However, when he gets to Rutee, she starts getting upset and claims he wants to see her cry. Garr, taking the hint, gets the others to leave the two alone. Rutee calls Stahn a fool for not accepting the award money from Hugo earlier (he'd asked for her to get it all) but he says he knows it was the right thing to do. She thanks him and says he'd changed her life for the better just by being himself; originally, she wanted to use him until she didn't need him anymore but through the adventure she saw things in a new light because of his goodness and purity. Stahn believes she had it in her all along though she doesn't agree. He hopes they'll again meet and Rutee knows they will. Right before leaving, Stahn gives Rutee all of his money and Lens so she can fulfill her financial issues.
Libra IV, Natural Caves: Leon blocks the team's advance towards Hugo in order to keep him from hurting Marian. As Rutee continues to yell at him, he begins telling her about her true origins as Hugo's abandoned daughter and Leon's own sister. Even seeing her shocked and depressed, the boy still continues to taunt her. Stahn jumps to Rutee's defense instantaneously, yelling that Leon has said enough.
Radisrol (remake only):Apparently, the team didn't know that Hugo was Rutee and Leon's father (they'd seemed to figure out Leon was her brother, however since Leon only said that Hugo's wife was his mother they didn't pick up on the subtext). When Bruiser said that he'd mess up Hugo, she got upset as she remembered their connection. However, since it was Rutee, she tried to keep it in and insist that she didn't care about either of them...even upsetting Chelsea when she failed to understand. Knowing the tension was rising and not wanting to break down in front of the others, Rutee stormed out.
Helraios: The only real time Rutee has to do the reverse to Stahn, but this is still the best section for it. Ilene commits suicide by jumping off the Aethersphere and Stahn feels anger and sorrow radiating from the act. After Igtenos is revived, Rutee returns to talk with him and cheer him up. Though initially unsuccessful, Stahn turns the conversation towards how she feels about the world. She says that there are both good and bad people and they're fighting to save it; the world shouldn't be thrown away. Stahn admits that all he wants to do is protect his family and Rutee agrees because her goal is to protect the orphans she considers as her family.
Belcrant: After the fight with Hugo, the control of Kronos (who has been posing as Berselius), is broken and he can freely admit to Rutee what really happened all those years ago; his mind was enslaved and he failed to fight back, but he had been able to abandon Rutee in a place where Kronos couldn't find her to make her a slave as well. Though he indicates he's dying with his last request to look upon his daughter's face, Rutee is too emotionally charged to think about healing Hugo until it's too late. Crying over the loss of her father, Stahn steps up to tell Rutee that Hugo must have found his happiness in telling her the truth as Hugo Gilchrist and not as Berselius posing as Hugo. She feels comfort in his words, and who knows how that could have developed further had Kronos not picked that moment to show himself.
Darilsheid, Night Before Dycroft: Right before the final battle, Stahn is making the rounds to see his friends (he's having trouble sleeping). At this time, Rutee has curiously asked Philia about her opinions of Stahn; while the priestess responds all positively, Rutee keeps making negative comments (maybe to tell herself she's not in love). After being told to be honest with herself, Rutee leaves to go take a walk. Stahn enters a moment later and talks with Philia. Upon hearing Rutee is out, he goes to look for her. Note that Philia tells Clemente, "This is the way it should be," when he tells her she isn't honest; she seems to realize that Stahn loves Rutee and will let her own happiness slide for that of her friends.
When they come to, Rutee is initially hostile towards Stahn’s attempt to save her and his concern for her safety. She doesn’t believe he could ever understand her need for money. However, as she continues to talk, Rutee lets slip her uncertainties about being poor and her knowledge that she can’t protect anyone without money. Stahn begins to understand Rutee’s issues, though not exactly, and tells her that he knows her family would be sad if she was hurt. Trying to get up, he reveals that he hurt his leg when he softened Rutee’s fall. Rutee is totally embarrassed over the whole situation, and tries to hide it, but Stahn calls her an important comrade and that’s why he protected her.
Of course, to make up for this extra early Stahn/Rutee scene, the two scenes by the false ending are changed into one.
Though the scenes changed a bit in the remake (and, subsequently, the Director's Cut), I'd still leave this gem of conversation at this point. Apparently, when Stahn goes to talk to Rutee on the cape, Chaltier questions what they're doing and tries to get Leon to spy...something Leon doesn't find funny at all. Just kind of cute how other characters seem to get "that impression" on the two of them when the conversation is innocent.
Stahn went to look for her, discovering Rutee in the room with the recovery pods. She continued to insist that she had no feelings for Leon or Hugo, and that Stahn probably just wanted to see her cry so he could laugh, however he saw past her front. The young man told her that nobody could help her in that state, and Rutee was finally able to admit that she did feel for Leon despite the fact that they never seemed to like each other. Then, he said they could cry together, and she let her tears flow in his arms. Rutee apologized for showing him her weakness, but then thanked him for making her feel better. Finally, she vowed to fight Hugo to put it all to an end.
Interesting to note that when they go back to the others, Stahn said he realized the weight of his duty by talking to Rutee, and how he had to focus on the future instead of simply fighting to avenge Leon (those thoughts had clouded his head and made him act like a moron a few times earlier). Perhaps it was because he found someone to mourn his best friend with him. Or, it could have been due to the fact that she could continue fighting, knowing the enemy was her long-lost father (even if she didn't care for him, she still had to kill her last living relative). Nevertheless, it was something about Rutee that had inspired Stahn, just as he had helped her to let her grief out and not bottle it up.
In the remake, interestingly enough, Stahn gets Rutee into his feelings on justice right away. Rutee gets him to say what he's fighting for, and he mentions his ideals of having a loving family in the future. She then reminds him that he also has their group as a family, and he should get stronger to protect them...including her.
Interestingly enough, the only two people he mentions his ideals to are Ilene (his first crush) and Rutee (his future wife). In addition, the theme music, Silent Night, has only been played while he's talking to Ilene or Rutee. Sure, there was the Swordians' death scene in the original as well as some Mary/Dalis moments, a scene with Stahn and his sister, the Dymlos/Atwight scene and a few miscellaneous Title scenarios in the remake. However, none of the other uses of this song relate to Stahn and a lover. And some of them relate to other pairings as well...maybe there's something about that song that the directors wanted to get across.
In the remake, however, Kronos uses Hugo’s body to revive his own, and the man doesn’t get a moment with his daughter before the enemy appears. When the team is beaten back by their enemy, he decides to execute Rutee first. The evil king’s laughing about her situation with her father, and his concern for her wellbeing, angers Stahn. He steps up to defend Rutee and insult their enemy, earning a nice hit back and a threat by Kronos that he’ll be the next victim. However, his plan to murder is thwarted by the last struggling remnants of Hugo’s will as he attempts to protect his only remaining child. As Hugo moves Kronos’ body to release Belcrant, hoping it will save the others, Rutee tries to follow despite her injuries. Stahn moves in to catch her as she wobbles, telling her to respect her father’s wishes and survive.
Eventually, after talking to his friends who are hanging around in the halls, Stahn discovers Rutee at the tavern. She is thinking back on her past, the orphanage and her family. Stahn offers to listen to her story, but Rutee insists it isn't time to get sentimental and that his words were enough to cheer her up. Both go back to bed, waiting for the final battle.
It should be known that in the remake, Philia visits Stahn in his room, he seems ignorant about things, but he eventually goes off to find Rutee. She's in front of Hugo's Mansion, sitting on the bench; Stahn also sits down at this point. The two talk a little bit, eventually leading to Stahn getting up and asking her to come on a journey with him after the final fight, using such choice words as "I just want to be with you from now on," which is expanded upon in the next line, that he wanted to "stand in the same place, to look in the same direction, and to walk the same path". Rutee, after trying to deflect the conversation, tells him that her answer is a secret, and if he wants to know he has to survive the final battle. Note that in this part of the scene, she gets right up in front of him with her hands behind her back so cutely; she may even be leaning up against him (he has a shocked look on his face, his arms immediately are outstretched when she comes over) but the camera is tricky sometimes and it could just be my overactive fangirl imagination again. He agrees, telling her to survive as well. Of course, Rutee tells him that it's her, so she'll be okay.
Despite their differences, Stahn and Rutee work well together. When they put their minds to it, and neither has a reason to insult the other, they can accomplish a great deal. This segment deals with any other scene between them that doesn’t really fit anywhere else, symbolizing their togetherness.
Cresta (remake only): A silly skit that occurs in the remake. Once Rutee re-joins the party and the team is back together, Stahn asks her what her dream is (it’s a sequence of skits in the game where every character at some point or another has to share a dream of theirs). Rutee tells him that her dream is to be a cute wife. Stahn is embarrassed, but Rutee assures him that she’s joking.
Boat to Libra IV (remake only): Though not a scene between them, per say, I find it quite interesting that it was Rutee who was sent to check on Stahn when he was on the deck. You'd think someone more emotionally sensitive like Philia would be better to calm him down since he was upset at Leon's betrayal and wanting to get to the bottom of why he'd done it. But they sent Rutee, who is not the best at handling situations like this (and she doesn't like Leon too much, so she wouldn't be able to sympathize with his concern for a friend).
Anywhere If Rutee is Fainted (remake only): A silly skit that occurs in the remake. If Rutee is incapacitated in battle (the same with any other character), there will be a special skit about reviving her. Stahn tries to get her to wake up (which is the sentiment of the first line of all these skits, it seems) and Dymlos tells him to get a Life Bottle. Stahn reaches for his pack and attempts to give Rutee what he brings out…not realizing that it’s an Apple Gummie. Dymlos yells at him for his stupidity and Atwight tells him to pay attention.
Note that I only have translations for this one and Garr’s (which is about Chelsea’s devotion so Stahn isn’t really a key figure in it) but I did see Leon’s and Philia’s and didn’t sense the same level of worry (Leon’s seemed to be about Rutee trying to sell Stahn a Life Bottle, and Philia’s he didn’t seem as dumb with fear).
Anywhere If Stahn is Fainted (remake only): I don't have a translation for this one, but it's interesting to note that only Rutee, Dymlos and Atwight appear in it. Also, Dymlos and Atwight looked to be putting pressure on Rutee, perhaps even slightly teasing her. I wonder if it was hinting at something that Rutee was either playing dumb or not picking up on...
Swordian Lab, Main Story (remake only): When you beat Dymlos, Rutee is the first to appear. I'm not sure if this is significant or not, but just thought I'd make a note of it here. After all, she'd be the first person he'd see after the trial was over.
Night Before (remake only): Part of the conversation is about Rutee saving Stahn from something. Since it's not completely translated, I'm not exactly sure. However, considering I heard the words for "Flying Dragon" (aka the Draconis) in one of the untranslated lines, Stahn was rescued from the captain by a mysterious person throwing something at him (before the monster attacks caused the guards to scatter) and Rutee was on the ship at the time, I'd say they were talking about that incident. Granted, she'd probably thrown the item to create havoc for her own search, but it's still kind of ironic how she helped him out long before they even met and then they eventually fell in love.
Straylize Temple (remake only): When visiting the temple late in the game (with the Strange Sword User Title equipped on Stahn), some punks come to attack Ayles. While I don’t have the scene fully translated, I picked up that the duo knew about Stahn & Rutee having Swordians. Together, the two masters bring out their weapons and drive the thieves away, earning Stahn his True Master Title.
Swordian R&D Lab, Sidequest (remake only): Once the dynamic duo has saved Ayles and gotten the True Master Title, they return to the Swordian R&D Lab and examine the console they’d used to power their weapons up earlier. A flashback occurs where they see Dymlos and Atwight talking together, then the two talk with their Swordians about it.
Note that I don’t have a translation to this script. However, the use of the four characters in this scene intrigues me. As revealed in ToD2 (as well as hinted at in both incarnations of ToD), Dymlos and Atwight were lovers. Then, they end up in the hands of two people who go on to marry and have a son. It makes me wonder if the scene and flashback were all about Dymlos and Atwight’s relationship, and any ironies and parallels could have been between the two. I believe Stahn walked out when Dymlos was getting huffy, most likely embarrassed about whatever romantic moment was on the screen.
The Tales Of…Series has produced quite a few spinoffs and side-games. While not having much to do with the original Destiny’s story, there are still little gems of dialog that either suggest Stahn/Rutee or just feature silly little interactions together.
The duo was playable in Tales of the World: Narikiri Dungeon 3 (along with all the characters in Phantasia, Destiny, Eternia, Destiny 2 and Symphonia) and Tales of the World: Radiant Mythology (along with Leon, while Philia and Garr were NPCs in Doplund’s guild). In the former, they were recruited along the way as Frio and Kyaro traveled to fix the mess their stolen time machine had caused. In the latter, they were recuitable in Doplund (though Stahn appeared in Hallowed Bastion for a plot point and then joined you on your next chain quest). They also made appearances in Tales of the World: Narikiri Dungeon 2 and Tales of Fandom: Volume 1, but I don’t have enough information on either to explain what they did. Will research it and see what I can come up with.
In addition, Stahn and Rutee (along with Leon/Judas) made an appearance as a Partner Unit in the huge crossover TRPG known as Namco x Capcom. As playable characters, the two entered in Prolog 2 as an introduction to the Phantom World and its denizens. They reappeared in a scene in Chapter 15 (along with Arthur of the Ghouls & Ghosts fame) and officially joined the party in Chapter 19.
Though not the strongest unit, they were highly strategic in use due to several factors: 1) one of three Healer Units (along with Rose and Shion & MOMO) that can heal all allies on the battlefield (for only twice the points of the Fighter-type self-healing skill), 2) one of several (too many to count, though all three Healer Units fit into this) who can heal another ally instead of just themselves (though it does cost more and leaves them vulnerable to Stun since their gage won’t drop for a heal), 3) a natural Fairy Ring ability (allowing them to use their Heal Someone skill for just a point more than the Ninja-type self-healing skill and the Heal All skill for just three points more than the Heal Someone’s natural points), 4) the ability to gain MP back by being hit (though that does add to the Stun issue) and 5) once they learn Bloody Rose, Rutee can use large combos to gain a lot of EXP Bonuses in battle (I’ve gotten at least 200-220 EXP if the enemy survives long enough to get hit by all my skills late-game when they’re in the late 40s and early 50s).
Rutee tells Stahn that taking care of orphans is good practice for when she has kids of her own. He asks if she's picked a father out (geez...what does he think she's doing? shopping for a pet?) and she says she's looking for someone rich and cute...to which Stahn mutters about being a country boy. Jealous much, Stahn?
The duo is sighing about all the recent incidents they’ve been dealing with. Rutee says the stress will give her wrinkles, and offers to sell the chance to look at her wrinkle-free face for a Gald a minute. When Stahn complains, she says he can look for five minutes for four Gald. Philia tries to get them to stop fighting, but Rutee insists that it’s just how they say “hello.”
Granted, this isn’t the most romantic scene in the world, but it’s funny. And it’s giving me a serious “Slayers” vibe: in Season 1, Lina (who reminds me of Rutee) says to Sylphiel (who reminds me of Philia) that her somewhat rough treatment of Gourry (who reminds me of Stahn) is how she shows affection. And, if you must know, Gourry and Lina are the main canon pairing of “Slayers” as well.
Shisha no Mezame double whammy alert! Stahn is sleeping in Doplund’s plaza. When Teefa and Mormo can’t wake him, Rutee appears to show them how to use Shisha no Mezame; she even tells them that Stahn’s sis taught it to her. Waking him up gets Stahn all huffy, but he’s back to sleep when you’re in the plaza again. If you talk to him, another skit pops up where Mormo uses Shisha no Mezame. He then tells Stahn that he woke the lazy bum up because Rutee needed to speak to him. Stahn runs off, and Mormo apologizes to Rutee…
Couldn’t resist that reference. After all, even though timeline-wise Lilith was the first to use it, the first shot we see of it is Rutee using it on Kyle, who is so much like his daddy it isn’t funny. The fact that she learned that attack shows how much she’s committed to their relationship; Rutee gets mad about his sleeping in at several points in the original game, after all, so she’s finding a way to get around one of the trouble spots in their relationship. Again, not the most romantic but it is funny.
One note here…Stahn and Rutee are a Partner Unit. I don’t know if it’s just my TV, the squishy graphics or my obsessive fangirlish mind, but the two of them almost look like they’re latched onto each other…and a lot closer than other Partner Units (even the ones [i.e. Gil & Kai or Reiji & Xiaomu] that are considered romantically involved).
In Prolog 2, once Leon’s death-cutscene is over, Stahn and Rutee are at the Tower of Druaga, waiting for Gil & Kai to show up. Stahn is wondering if he did the right thing, feeling guilty over Leon’s death. Rutee reminds him that he didn’t have a choice; it was kill or be killed. And if he’d died, there would be no one left to go after the Eye of God. Stahn then says he’s not fighting for the world, but fighting to protect his friends and family; he feels that a farmboy (I’m guessing Rutee teased him in this world, too) couldn’t possibly care about the world. Rutee tells him she’s in the same boat as him, making Stahn cheer up. She says she couldn’t “click it” with the other, depressed Stahn.
And yes, this is eerily similar to what happened after Ilene’s death in ToD, except he was a lot less depressed. I guess they had to move this little scene to someone’s death since there is no Ilene in NxC (hell, there isn’t even a Philia or Garr, and while both Hugo and Marian are mentioned in Prolog 2, they never appear nor are given another shout out).
Immediately afterwards, Rutee begins complaining about Gil being late. She gets so antsy that Stahn calls out “Oh! The Golden Knight!” in order to see her get flustered. Rutee yells at him for that, but their argument is interrupted by the attack of some Slimes.
Still in Prolog 2, Klona & Gantz show up to look for Gil as well. Gantz yells at them to take their “date” somewhere else. Rutee gets all flustered at this, loudly exclaiming that she’d never date “this country bumpkin.” Gotta love it when she’s in denial.
Gotta love innocent minds. In Chapter 19, Stahn & Rutee and Arthur are assaulted by Lilith. She says that she wants to play, and Arthur deduces that it means she wants to fight. Rutee doesn’t get how that’s fun, and Lilith tells them that “blood is so sparkly and pretty.” The succubus also says that the more it hurts, the better it feels. Stahn asks if that’s true, leading to Rutee getting embarrassed and telling him not to ask her that. I shudder to ask how she came to that conclusion, when Stahn was naïve in asking.
Later on, when Saya appears and calls her monsters, Rutee blames it all on Stahn staring at her so much. Is that a hint of jealousy I detect? Knowing Rutee, yes.
Much later on, after a ton of united anger at Leon/Judas for his decision to side with Black Valkyrie, the two make it to the Infernal Village for a final showdown with their former friend in Chapter 34. Stahn insists that he be the one to handle this (like Morrigan had done with Lilith earlier) and Judas calls him a fool. The young warrior playfully says that Rutee does so all the time (ahhhhhhh…her pet names) and Black Valkyrie says that his naïveté will destroy him. Rutee, defending her closest comrade, yells at her that “Naïveté and compassion are two different things,” and then insists on joining the fight.
After they get on board the Balrog in Chapter 38, Stahn is commenting about how good it feels to fly the ship. Rutee immediately complains about him being a bumpkin, and Stahn snaps back…only to have Gil and Kai try to quiet them down so they can complete the mission.
In Chapter 45, after you send Eden (along with the Eye of Atamoni) out into deep space, the team returns to Earth on the Gezelschaft before (presumably) being sent back to their own worlds. Stahn says that they should eat now that the fighting had passed. Rutee sighs, saying he’d never even heard of “tension.” But then she agrees with him right away and decides to go eat.
During the Epilogue, they rehash Stahn and Rutee’s first appearance. The duo is waiting for Arthur to show up and Rutee is complaining that he’s ten minutes late. Stahn spots him coming and tries to warn her, but she remembers his last trick and continues to rant. When Arthur enters and embarrasses her, she looks to Stahn who reminds her that he did tell her this time.
There were also several, minor one to three line conversations between them, but most of it was either united comments on the situation or short arguments that really wouldn’t warrant an in-depth summary. Besides that, their interaction included a united front on the mess with Judas and discussion on either him, why he’s with Black Valkyrie or vows to bring him back to his senses. Since they weren’t the most main characters in the game, their lines weren’t on the forefront. Nor do I have translations for anything else they might have said in other chapters; the script doesn’t cover for all character combinations so I’d have to wait for the patch since I use them all the time.
Due to the lower graphics engine and the fact that the camera doesn't leave its fixed position, I will not be able to do as in-depth an analysis for this as I did for the Jet/Virginia Shrine. However, I can still put a few pieces of pictorial clues for your reading pleasure...
Rutee vs. Philia: Rutee's closest competition in the game was Philia. However, Philia saw that Stahn was in love with Rutee, and even pushed him to go to her the night before the final battle instead of admitting her own feelings. And from how she spoke to Clemente, she knew that she was doing what was best for Stahn....
Official Art: Thanks to the nice people on the Tales Series Forums, I located a site housing Mutsumi Inomata's artwork for ToD, ToE and ToD II and there were some nice Stahn/Rutee moments in the pictures. One has Stahn and Rutee in the foreground with their Swordians drawn while Philia is in the back (just her head) with the Draconis. Another shows Stahn right up in front with a larger pic of Rutee right behind him, Philia sitting in the background and the Eye of Atamoni overhead. A third has the two of them alone; Stahn is kneeling down with a bird on his right arm and Rutee sitting pretty right in front of him. There is one of him standing near Philia as they throw their Swordians into the Eye of Atamoni, but the effect of that pic didn't seem to be going for the "togetherness" of the characters involved so much as to show that particular scene. The other artwork pieces had either one or neither of them in the picture, and a lot were simply of single characters; Leon seems to be a favorite to draw.
The Book & the Box: There are exactly 65 pictures in the book that show Rutee directly under Stahn in the lineup, 23 where she is not in the second slot (one of those was actually a pic where she was hacked out of the party with a GS or similar device...seeing as she never leaves except at the "false ending" and you will not have a full six person party at that time; 20 of the others didn't have her in battle formation and a lot of those were for using the non-essentials in battle for their Tech sections; and another was of Stahn and Garr so it was an early save), and about three or four battle pics where she could be second but the menu is either cut off or covered so I can't tell for sure. And Page 26 has a real impossibility...Rutee and Stahn alone in the party (considering she didn't join the first time until after Mary had gotten Stahn to help her out of the trap and the second half she has to be visited in Cresta when you've at least got Philia and maybe Garr).
Anime Introduction: Near the end of the opening movie, right before they show the Swordians flashing across the screen followed by each of their masters and after Leon's shot in the rain, there is a scene of Karyl looking up towards the sky. There, standing on a tall plateau next to one another, are Stahn and Rutee. They appear to be looking to the sunset, a general shot used to identify a couple's emotions.
I took a poll while playing ToD through to discover the number of times Stahn would be next to Rutee and not Philia and vice versa ([# of times he stands next to Rutee alone] - [# of times he stands next to Philia alone]). I came up with Rutee +18 as my answer. This does not count scenes that do not involve both girls or scenes where one was away for a good amount of time and then came back (with the exception of the ship cabin scenes cuz they probably were all sitting in the same seats before Rutee went on Guard Duty those two times...and that gave Philia some of her points, just to show I'm not trying to erase all of Philia's influence). I also didn't count scenes where they moved somewhere and didn't change position (that took some points away from Rutee cuz she was next to Stahn alone in three different positions right before they met Karyl in Moreau).
In ToDR, however, the count was much higher at Rutee +48. It may not be exact since my interpretation on how they stood might be different than others. However, a good deal of these had Philia off to one side while Stahn was near Rutee, or Stahn and Rutee were in the front row while Philia was a distance behind them. Certainly the ones in question wouldn't drop the count down the full 30 points to put it even with my other tally. This extended count was obviously the product of the better Remake graphics, since characters were no longer in a 3x2 box for most scenes (they were in much more complex formations). Just as before, I cut out any scene where only one of the girls was in the scene, or one of the girls came in later.
In addition, any time the party reforms after a separation cutscene, with the exception of picking people up one at a time, Rutee is in the second slot. Though Mary is second when she first joins, it was due to the fact that she joined to get help for Rutee. And since Philia came to pick up Stahn, she would be the second person when the last half of the game began. Most of these might be due to the fact that Rutee was always second in my games, however she also did take the second spot in the morning after she, Mary and Stahn partnered up.
Note that in the remake, there are three scenes where the party splits up and Stahn wanders alone to find Rutee...putting her in the second slot once the party reforms. The first is when they go to retrieve her in the beginning of the second half (everyone decides to split up and search, but only Stahn can find her). Second is during her mental breakdown in Radisrol (after he comforts her, they walk back to the control room together). Finally, we have the night before the final battle (instead of just showing what they were doing in their rooms, then automatically making Stahn find her, you control Stahn solo as he goes to the inn and then again as he finds Rutee and returns).
One of the most telling things, however, was the ending pic shown after the credits for both the original and PS2 Remake. In the original, the pic was of Stahn and Rutee standing together in a fighter's stance upon a dusty ground with their Swordians being drawn from their sheaths. The remake features them simply standing next to one another, walking towards the future as the camera moves upwards to eventually show "Fin" in the sky; it is also the only full screen pic out of all the character artwork (the rest of the pictures are either small rectangles or ovals that are set on the white background where the credits are) and is separated from the last pic (Five Swordians in human form) by a whiteout (said pic was also separated from the other pics by a whiteout). Generally, when characters are shown next to each other on the ending screen, the developers are trying to tell you that they're in love.
As for the ToDR book and box, there wasn't as much. Mainly because they either mixed up party formation based on the first four or five characters, and the rest of the time they left the default party of Stahn, Mary, Rutee, Leon. However, in ToDR: DC, though they stuck with the defualt settings for all their screenshots, they were from Leon Mode most of the time. And the Default Party in Leon Mode was Leon, Stahn, Rutee, Mary. Interesting as to how Mary was after Stahn in the Default for Stahn Mode, but in Leon Mode it was Rutee instead. Most of the switched parties simply took Mary out for Philia, so Stahn was still next to Rutee.
Though the PSX Boxart is just a picture of Stahn with Dymlos, the back has two screenshots of battle...featuring Stahn then Rutee then Leon then Philia in that order on its picture. On the boxart for the ToD Remake, Rutee is in the front with Stahn right behind her. Garr is at Stahn's lower right and Leon is at his upper left, with Philia totally on the top of the pic. Looks like our leading man and lady are the largest figures there, as well as being in the forefront. Note that this pic is also converted into one of the special wallpapers you can get with special codes from Namco.
The Director's Cut version of ToDR didn't have as much, since it focused on the duel hero nature of the game (being able to play as both Stahn and Leon). However, in the background of the back of the box, you can clearly see the Stahn/Rutee anime scene from the opening (see below).
A list of random merchandise pics that feature Stahn and Rutee near one another. From what I've noticed, when looking at the different pics out there on these specific goodies, most are Stahn and Rutee, full group pics where the two are closest together, or feature ToD's two sibling duos, with next to nothing to even suggest alternate pairings (yaoi, yuri or het).
Pencil Boards: There are two of these, and Stahn and Rutee stand close in them. One has all five Swordian Masters in their manual artwork with Stahn and Rutee in front of all the others (it should be noted that Rutee's in front of Philia with Garr behind Stahn and Leon in the middle of the line...showing that other girls are not close to him). Another phone-card has their heads (taken from the anime intro) on the back of a black background with a few icons and the center being filled with anime pics. On that one, Stahn is right on top with Rutee to his left and Leon to his right...Garr and Philia are off to the bottom.
Planner: There is only one of these that I know of, for the year 1999, featuring Stahn on the cover and a chibi Stahn and Rutee standing together on the opening page.
Ads: I saw an add for the original ToD on a Japanese site, and it had the ending Stahn/Rutee picture on the front.
ToD Drama CDs: On the Earth Book boxed set, it features Stahn and Rutee's faces together.
Manga: On the official Manga (at least, the more accepted one since I've heard of a second series with more WTFery) I've seen Rutee with Stahn on the cover of Volumes 1 (alone in the background), 4 (with Leon, but he was in the background of Stahn and Rutee who are fighting back to back) and 5 (all Swordian Masters sans Leon). Stahn and Rutee are also together on the index of Volume 1 (he's kneeling and she looks to be sitting against or on top of the edge of his leg). She's also together with him on the colored title pages of Volumes 3 (with Philia), 4 (with Leon) and 5 (with Philia and Garr, but the two of them are closest together). The Stahn and Rutee pic from Volume 4's cover (sans Leon in the background) is reused for an opening black and white artwork piece at the beginning of said volume.
Remake OST: On the cover, Stahn is standing in the front row with the girls right behind him and the guys in the back, and while parts of his clothes and sword overlap with Philia's image, the end of his hand and his leg overlap with Rutee. The back cover features pics of the Swordian Masters' cut-ins going (from top to bottom) Stahn, Rutee, Philia, Garr and Leon. A picture of the Narikiri dolls (on the back of an add that came with it) follows the same list order, only left to right. On the Track List insert, Stahn is on Disk 1 and Rutee on Disk 2, which happen to be on the same foldout pages (the other three are together on the next insert for 3 and 4). Finally, in the profiles at the end, Rutee and Atwight go right after Stahn and Dymlos.
Guidebook: On the add paper wrapped around it, Stahn's picture is first, followed by Rutee's. On the profiles and chat faces, the duo appear with Stahn on one page and Rutee on the one right after, while the Status Illustrations put them on the same page. When they show the list of characters that can be in your party during the walkthrough (lighting up the ones that are with you) Stahn is shown first with Rutee right after (note that the Leon Mode on in the DC's guidebook is the same, except Leon was moved to the front since he's the main character there). Several lists have Rutee's name right under Stahn's, namely the Tactics, Arena, Secret Dungeon Characters (dunno what it's saying about them) and Narikiri Dolls in Cyglorg's shop. For the big list of character data (each section including stats, skills, S. Device and combos) Rutee's section is right after Stahn's, and she's the only one in the same box featuring a quick list of BCs (in Rutee's section) and pictures of cut-ins (in Chelsea's section), with the same thing happening for the small boxes of chat faces in the Director's Cut guidebook. For the DC's profile pictures, Leon goes first with Stahn and then Rutee after that. Finally, when the Narikiri Dolls are saying goodbye to you at the end of the book, Rutee's is right next to Stahn's.
Director's Cut Artbook: The artbook follows a five chapter format, one for each Swordian Master. It goes by the order of Stahn, Rutee, Philia, Garr, Leon. Not only does Rutee follow Stahn in the chapter order, but in a lot of other orders as well...
Unknown Items: While searching Japanese sites, I came across what appeared to be a four volume set of books (though mousepads came up in one of my Google Translations). Due to my limited Japanese, I'm not a hundred percent sure of what they were. But Stahn and Rutee were on the cover of what was labeled Volume 1, and the four included pics featured one with the two of them as well (both featuring the artwork from the campaign adds). On the other pics, Leon was alone while Garr was with the Phandarians and Philia with the other guys (maybe those four were the mousepads).
On the campaign adds for the remake, they feature Stahn and Rutee's new character art standing together. Also, the same picture of them is found on the Orange Gummi DVD that came with pre-orders of the remake. The Remake Official Site, once you click into one of the sections, features the same art transposed into a banner.
Quick note, that the only people with individual pics alongside Stahn are Philia (Volume 2 cover) and Leon (Volume 3 index page), but they don't have as many appearances as Rutee does, nor are they as close to him as Rutee is on the Volume 4 cover or their Volume 1 index page.
Interesting note that in the Director's Cut guidebook there is a character relations chart. Note that my translation here is rough, using JWPce, but it's all I can do at my current level of studies.
There are two characters that appear on a bubble on the line between Stahn and Rutee, as well as the one between Stahn and Philia and Philia and Bruiser (though that one has some added characters in it too). Note that the Stahn and Rutee one has arrows going towards both characters, while the Stahn and Philia one only has an arrow going from Philia to Stahn, likewise the Philia and Bruiser one only has one arrow going from Bruiser to Philia. Translation I get for them says "Koui" which literally translates to "good will, favor, courtesy." However, considering the feelings held between the characters in question, I wonder if it might also be trying to say "these characters have crushes on each other." Note that the same characters also represent the one-sided crush Chelsea has for Garr, and past feelings held between Fayte & Eleanor.
There are a number of two page spreads that have Stahn to the left and Rutee to the right (yeah, it's set up like a western style book and not a manga). They are the ending pictures in Chapter 1, PS2 art in Chapter 2, facial pictures from the front of the PSX trading cards in Chapter 5, and their drawings from the Inomata artbook in Chapter 5. There's also the trading card backs (minus their vital datas) in Chapter 5, but Stahn was on the right side of Garr's face page with Rutee to his back with Leon to her right (this is due to the fact that both halves of the cards were done back to back and there are only the five Swordian Masters).
In addition, there are some segments where the two are next to each other (well, below/above really) with Stahn not boxed in at all. And for the skit cards in Chapter 3, the order goes Stahn/Rutee/Philia. The BC cut-ins in the same chapter go Stahn/Rutee/Leon. Stahn is also directly below Rutee in a bunch of colored facial sketches, however Philia's art is under his.
The final note is on when they are alone on the same page of the book with other characters next to them. That occurs at two times in Chapter 5. First, they show the PSX character art. Stahn and Rutee are on the left page while the other Swordian Masters are on the right. The other instance would be the sketches where the two are on the left while Leon is with Philia and Chelsea on the right.
In the end, the Swordian Masters defeat Kronos and end his ambitions. However, the Eye of Atamoni goes wild and the only way to stop it from destroying the surface is to throw in the Swordians and sacrifice them. With some reluctance and emotional goodbys in which Rutee learns about her mother's promise with Atwight and Stahn learns about the hearts of people, the Four Heroes do what needs to be done. They escape, the calamity is prevented and the world is saved.
A year later, Lilith attempts to wake Stahn up because he has visitors. The entire team has come over for a reunion...but he can't seem to find Rutee. While the others try their best to hide what's going on, she jumps off the roof and begins teasing Stahn for getting weaker. The conversation quickly turns to the rebuilding effort and back to the Swordians' sacrifice. Stahn invites his friends inside to have their party.
Though not shown on screen, Stahn and Rutee eventually become a couple. By the time another year has passed, the two are living together in Cresta and raising the orphans of Dunamis; they are most likely married as well, unless for whatever reason they didn't think that was necessary. When another year is gone, Rutee has given birth to a son whom they name Kyle and give the surname of Dunamis to so he can be like his foster siblings.
However, approximately five years following Kyle's birth, a stranger shows up at the orphanage and attacks both Kyle and Loni, one of the other orphans. Loni protects Kyle and is taken hostage. When Stahn and Rutee try to save the boys, they are ordered to drop their weapons. Then...the enemy assaults the two with his ax, killing Stahn and wounding both Rutee's body and soul. Losing the one man she could ever love causes Rutee to become extremely overprotective of her son. She allows him to go on believing his father simply left on a journey, because that prevents her from having to think about the horrible day when her world was destroyed again.
Despite this, Rutee's love for Stahn has not wavered. When her fifteen-year-old son wants to go on his own journey, even running away to investigate a ruin against her wishes, Rutee goes outside and talks to the night as if she was talking to him. This helps her to allow Kyle to grow up and be a man. Later, when Kyle needs advice to help him make an important decision, Rutee begins to see how much like Stahn their child has begun and apologizes for keeping his death a secret (Kyle'd found out on the quest). Before he leaves, she is able to tell the boy that both his parents are proud of their child.
In the end, Kyle's quest restores time to what it should be. Without the interferrance of Elraine, Stahn's assassin never comes back to life and thus the hero never died. Instead, he lives a happy life with his wife and son in Cresta. Eventually, he convinces Rutee that Kyle is man enough for his own journey, a journey that leads to him being reunited with the woman he loved in the other timeline. But...that's the subject of another shrine.
Here is where I state my opinions on why the pairing works and how it fits the game’s story. I will also bring up counter-arguments that others have made and show why they don’t dissuade me from liking the pairing. Keep in mind that these are just my opinions, not facts. I do not need to be flamed over this section because your opinions on pairings or even reasons differ. I don’t spend my time flaming others over their pairings, and would appreciate if they give me the same respect.
With that disclaimer out of the way, let’s begin…
Stahn and Rutee, to put it lightly, embody the plot device of two people that seem to not get along but are either canonically paired together or, in cases where there are no canonical love interests for the two characters, have a strong fanon following. Generally, the two characters in question have opposite personalities that clash, and are both very headstrong; they don’t want to give in during an argument because they want to be right. However, either through some tragic event that causes at least one of them to be put through pain or simply the course of their adventure, they begin to gain an understanding of one another. Their fights grow less and less and their supporting the other grows more and more.
Lack of a Lead:One of the major arguments against this pairing that I’ve seen is that it was all of a sudden, that it happened in the second half and thus really had nothing building up to it. Some of the yaoi fans claim that he only moved on to liking her after Leon died (a few going as far to say that he only fell for her because she was Leon’s sister, despite the two being nothing alike personality-wise). Maybe they weren’t head-over-heels in love from the get go, but that doesn’t mean that there was no buildup at all.
Now I will get into the various alternate pairings, why people say they’re better and my explanation for the relationship. First off, I want to say that I can see where the fans of these pairings are coming from, and have nothing against their opinions; they’re free to like whatever they want. I’m not flaming any particular person, nor the pairings themselves, just giving why I think that the reasons don’t make said pairing better than Stahn/Rutee.
Leon: I’m starting here because these fans are the most vocal about bashing those of us that do like Stahn/Rutee (not naming names, and I’m not saying all Stahn/Leon fans are immature pairing bashers either…some like both pairings, some are very general and like all pairings but find Stahn/Leon one their favorite and some are just more partial to yaoi than het). I can only really see this pairing happening in the Remake where they actually interact for more than a few “hey man, don’t treat us like we’re nothing” lines (whereas in the original I saw it as the typical “pair the hero with his rival” trend in yaoi). But even there, I can explain how Stahn’s friendship with Leon is not equal to love.
Philia: Okay, I won’t rant half as long for this one because the fans aren’t nearly as annoying about this pairing. It makes sense at first glance: they get along well, they both seem to care for each other and they share similar thoughts on friendship and trust. Stahn can protect her physically while she casts spells and Philia can explain what he doesn’t understand without teasing him (as Rutee, Leon or Dymlos would do). However, as we see from the game, Philia was fated to play the “other girl.”
Ilene: Though Stahn has a crush on her after their meeting in Neustadt, it is obvious that they won’t get together by the end of the story. For one, 9 times out of 10 the hero is going to either get with a member of the party (regardless of whether or not they stay the whole game) or the NPC he likes becomes a late joining member of the party. And for two, she doesn’t seem like a major character when she first comes on the scene (of course, she has more of a role later on but we’re talking about when they meet her). After you leave Neustadt, she’s rarely mentioned again (unless there was a skit in the original, since they were cut out of the NA version, the only times she’s mentioned are added in for the Remake…the boat scene where Stahn talks about his crush, a skit or two between Lienea and Neustadt in the second half and him asking to go visit once they actually arrive in Neustadt). You don’t meet her again until Helraios, halfway through the Aeropolis dungeons.
All information is taken from the original and remake versions of the game. I won’t be using original scenes from the Manga or Drama CDs because they aren’t directly written by Namco (that and I have no translation for said Drama CDs). However, in the event that I see something in the Manga’s version of a scene already in the game, or covering an emotional state seen in the games but the game scenes aren’t there for whatever reason, I might bring it up. Basically, only if the Manga is backed up by facts in-game will it be mentioned. Keep in mind that there will be scenes covered in the various sections mentioned here, however that time was more the facts of those scenes while here we have opinions on why it matters and how it ties in to their affection.
You first see direct signs of Rutee liking Stahn after Ilene asks him out on a date. She literally drags Mary out of the mansion, around Neustadt and even to the arena (though they don’t buy tickets so they don’t go in). Right before making that decision, she’d planned on taking a nap in her room. However, the second she found out he was going out with Ilene, she was instantly angry, saying she couldn’t stand the fact that he was going out with an older woman.
The next morning, her rage hadn’t ceased and she lashed out at Philia after finding out Batista had escaped. However, when Stahn takes the priestess’s side, she immediately jumps to the conclusion that he liked Philia better than her, even though she was being unreasonable. Perhaps, her blaming Philia was less something she believed and more an unconscious attempt to make herself seem more desirable to Stahn.
Though the previous two scenes were struck out from the Remake, due to the lack of a date with Ilene and the Batista escape thing being done a lot quicker, they were made up for with some other scenes in the Aquaveil area. First, after Stahn and Leon had their “guy talk” moment on the ship, Rutee seems to get pensive and tries to stare at the water. Though Rutee didn’t hear any of their conversation, I often wonder if she might have known that Stahn was talking about Ilene (she had seemed to question when Stahn mentioned their talk on ideals). Perhaps it was a more subdued form of her showing jealousy than following them all over town to spy on them.
In the caves to Moreau, Stahn and Rutee both fell in a hole. While Leon and the others returned to Sheeden for rope (as confirmed in the Director’s Cut during Leon Mode), Stahn told Rutee to be more careful, seeing as it was her decision to count Gald and freak out over one missing piece that caused the mess. Rutee began yelling that he didn’t understand, inadvertently blurting out that she couldn’t protect anyone if she was poor. However, instead of pushing Stahn away, she showed him her more vulnerable side. He began to see that she was nobler than she appeared, and told her that her family probably worried about her. Of course, when the team was about to split up, she tried to tell him the full story of her money issues and the people she was protecting, but said she was kidding afterwards.
Her telling him about her issues with money was less accidental and more deliberate in the original version of the game, but she eventually let him know the truth all the same. On the Draconis, as they returned from defeating Lydon, Stahn found her on the deck after she’d left her room. There, Rutee told him all about how she needed money to save the people who raised her, the people she owed her life to. In this instance, her motive for telling him was to get it off her chest, thinking the two would never see one another again. Though she tried to joke around afterwards, she never backpedaled about her intentions as she did in the Remake. And let’s not forget him deciding to give her the entire reward, as well as his stash of Gald and Lens, before leaving for Lienea.
Another telling thing was when Stahn came to pick her up when the second half started. In the original, you would have at least Philia and possibly Garr in your party at the time and the human members of the party wanted to leave Rutee behind, seeing her happy with the children at the orphanage. They were met with complaints from Dymlos and Clemente, both who saw the need for Rutee’s abilities as a Swordian Master. Said argument was overheard by Rutee, and she immediately jumped to conclusions, thinking that Stahn just wanted to be with Philia. She demands to go along since “being left out in the cold is no fun.” That line may or may not be a reference to her having been abandoned as a kid, but is definitely alluding to how she wants to be with Stahn. As they question the fact that she’s happy with the orphans, Rutee says she wants to protect the children.
Though Stahn still doesn’t want to take her in the Remake, and for the same reasons, he’s all alone so her jealousy doesn’t come out as much. However, since he’s come back to her home, Stahn realizes that she wasn’t lying before; she really is protecting orphans. Once she’s caught onto him being there, he has no more complaints about her coming. Note this is also the home of the “Cute Wife” skit, where Rutee tells Stahn about her dream, only to have him hope she fulfills it.
We move on to after Rutee has been informed about her past. In the original, Leon did it as they were fighting, practically mocking her in the process. Stahn noticed she was upset and told him to stop tormenting her. However, the Remake didn’t have such a scene. Instead, Leon told her after he put them on the lift and prepared to sacrifice himself. Seeing as the guys were better friends this time around and were not about to skewer each other, he was more worried about his friend’s death than a cryptic statement about the girl’s past. Instead, the developers made up for this change with something even better…
Rutee managed to keep her problems from being known to all but Mary until after the team found the R Key (mainly because nobody sans the two girls and Stahn knew Hugo was Leon’s father, he told Rutee the truth in such a cryptic way and Stahn was absorbed in his own anger over Leon’s death). Finally backed into a corner and forced to admit the truth, Rutee immediately begins acting like she doesn’t care about Hugo or Leon.
After arguing with Chelsea, she runs off, leaving Stahn to go after her. The girl keeps insisting that she doesn’t care, even telling Stahn that he just wants to see her cry after he notices she’s lying to herself. Finally, after he tells her that she can’t get helped like this, the girl finally admits that she is upset. Even though she didn’t like him, Leon’s death is causing her pain. Stahn offers to let her cry with him (in his arms, no less) and she does…feeling much better afterwards. Not only did his cheering Rutee up allow her to get over her pain, it helps Stahn to finally come to grips with his emotions following Leon’s death…as if to say that the loss of someone close to them both allowed them to come together.
But what is really interesting about this scene is that Mary insisted Stahn be the one to take care of Rutee as the younger girl wouldn’t listen to her. She didn’t want to open up to her best friend, but she would open up to him. Perhaps Mary knew what Rutee was feeling (from comments made earlier) and wanted her to find happiness with Stahn.
We skip ahead two dungeons, until Ilene jumps to her doom after the fight in Helraios. As she was Stahn’s first crush, he was greatly upset by what happened. You’d think they’d sent someone sensitive like Philia to go talk with him and leave Clemente with the other Masters as they did the repair work on Igtenos. However, instead Rutee goes on her own with full intent of cheering Stahn up. In the original, she does so by telling him that she values the world, even though there are bad people in it, and that she also fights for her family as he does. In the Remake, she tells him that fighting for his ideals are important, and that he can protect the people he cares for at that time in addition to the family he hopes to raise someday. But both versions have Rutee’s words be the thing that cheers him up in the end.
Their next major scene is after Hugo’s defeat. In the original, he has time to tell Rutee the truth before passing on. Seeing her upset over her father’s death, now knowing that she really was loved, Stahn tells her that getting the chance to speak with her in that manner allowed him to find his happiness, seemingly cheering her up (of course, Kronos’ revival cut short what could have been a very fluffy scene).
In the Remake, however, Kronos is revived before Hugo gets that moment (he possesses Hugo until he is revived, and even consumes the other man’s body to recreate his own). But when Kronos begins taunting Rutee about what happened with her father, Stahn immediately jumps to her defense, yelling that he doesn’t have a human’s heart if he laughs at her family issues. Of course, he can’t quite back up his bold words with actions, but he still aimed to protect her nonetheless. And when he wakes up in Fayte’s ship, the first thing on his mind after getting his bearings is whether or not Rutee is safe.
But perhaps the biggest scene, the culmination of all the ones so far, is the night before the final battle. Though both versions differ in intensity, both are ignited by Philia practically sending Stahn out to find Rutee instead of admitting her own feelings for him. In the original, she is in the bar, thinking about all that happened in her past to her and her family. Stahn offers to listen, but Rutee tells him that his words are enough and they need to rest up for the final battle.
It’s the remake where this scene really shines, however. Instead of finding her in the bar, he finds her sitting on the bench outside Hugo’s mansion. Since Rutee doesn’t mention that she’s thinking about her past in this version, the venue was possibly chosen to reflect those thoughts instead. They begin by thinking of how it all started, and Stahn’s being saved by an unknown person when he was cornered by the Captain of the Draconis. Rutee admits that it was her (though her intentions were most likely far from honorable, it serves as dramatic irony considering all he helped her through during the game). As the talk goes on, Stahn asks Rutee to come on a journey with him. Though she’s wary of his reason, he admits that he wants to be with her from then on. Rutee still won’t tell him her decision, instead making him promise to survive the last battle so she can tell him then.
Finally, we get to the end of the game itself. Stahn is upset to find that Rutee hasn’t come to their reunion party, only to have her jump off the roof of the house and knock him down (he doesn’t fall down in the remake, and is just shocked by her actions). Originally, she simply teased him about becoming soft from living in the country, showing the playful nature he knows all too well. However, in the Remake she finally gives him the answer to his question…announcing that the two of them will be going on a journey together. Of course, everyone else seems to realize that it’s more than just a friendly journey, but Stahn is embarrassed by their responses. Most likely, he didn’t quite understand what he was saying, only telling her what he truly felt.
Personally, I found this type of build up to be refreshing. While the tough girl heroine is more common in anime, RPG heroines are generally the shy, demure types that always get captured…even when they display the argumentative factor with their love interest. And even the tough girls end up needing to be saved in most RPGs (I’ll name Grandia as an offender here). Stahn has only had to rescue Rutee one time, and that was from a trap in some ruins rather than her being captured by the enemy. Not only that, despite their opposite personalities, when push comes to shove they work well together.
The reason that the romance isn’t there from the beginning comes right back to those personalities. Rutee isn’t the type to outwardly admit romantic feelings for someone else. While not as cold and distant as Leon, she still feels that she should rely on herself in life and not lean on other people (instead, just get what mileage she can and run away). That’s probably a reason that her jealousy over Ilene and Philia was the first thing shown…it’s an easier emotion for her to grasp than outright affection. Stahn’s influence begins to change her, as she herself says by the Draconis in the original, and she feels more honest and open. Certainly, she was attracted to him long before that, but it was only before they were about to go their separate ways that she felt comfortable enough to confide in him.
Besides…ToD was not marketed as a romance game. If you wanted that, you’d play ToD2 where Kyle’s relationship with Reala was a focal point in-game. Here, we have a story more focused on struggle to protect the world, not the conflict between protecting the world and the one you hold most dear (though that was in ToD, it was for Leon and Marian).
One thing often cited is the fact that Stahn tries his hardest to befriend Leon, despite the boy pushing him away at every turn. To me, I saw this as just another example of Stahn’s overly friendly personality. He believes in trust and friendship a great deal, and wants to be friends with everyone (heck, he spends a lot of time in-game approaching the Black Wings in sub events…even though they really aren’t his good buddies, he speaks to them like they are). Leon, on the other hand, does not trust anyone, admitting in the Director’s Cut that people only want to get close to him because he’s Hugo’s son. Between this and his messed up childhood, he can’t see such an approach as anything besides another attempt to use him for personal gain. What he doesn’t realize is that this is nothing more than Stahn being Stahn.
Out of the party, Leon is the only one who doesn’t show any real interest in being friends with him. Philia is like Stahn in her feelings about trust and friendship, Mary is a kindly big sister figure and Rutee doesn’t mind joking around and teasing him (she still hides herself and doesn’t open up, but unlike Leon she doesn’t try to push him away completely). And when other characters stay in the party for a short period of time, he quickly befriends them as well. So he wants to make a friend out of the last member of their group, because that’s just how Stahn is.
Then there is the factor of the two being the only young men in the group, and the only two human men period that are in the party for most of the first half. As Stahn says on the boat to Sheeden, “But it’s good for just guys to talk, isn’t it?” He’s hanging around with three girls all the time and thus doesn’t have many opportunities to talk about guy things (such as the person they like, as was the conversation he brought up in that scene when he talked about Ilene). Back in Lienea, he hung around with Baccus and possibly had “guy conversations” from time to time. Here, he either has to talk to Dymlos, who might not understand due to an age and time period gap, or Leon.
As to the scene where Stahn rescues Leon from being petrified, it seems to serve more as a plot device. Leon chooses to go back for the rest of the party instead of searching for Lydon (revealed in the Director’s Cut to be because of what Baruk says to him when they meet in town). Being rescued by Stahn allows him to realize that he isn’t just looked at as his father’s son…these people actually care about his wellbeing. Considering Leon eventually decides to sacrifice himself for them, he has to eventually realize that he too cares for the others…though not necessarily in a romantic way. And what better way for him to find that mindset (or the beginning of it) than to have someone show him that he’s more than just a disposable pawn to their group. Stahn’s overly friendly personality and desire to protect his friends makes him the most likely candidate to use (Rutee would seem too OOC, Mary might seem OOC and while Philia would be IC saving someone, she’s not as forward as Stahn).
Finally, we have the whole fit Stahn pitches over Leon’s death. Think of it…someone he called his best friend just died. Not only that, he was used and thrown away by his own father, going down a path that he didn’t want to walk on for the sake of someone he cared for. Even Ilene, whom Stahn had a crush on and who had good intentions, chose the path of her own free will. A kindhearted man like Stahn would definitely find a mindset of avenging that friend immediately. He’s kept on that track by his own single-mindedness to a cause…only broken free when he has a talk with, you guessed it, Rutee. Perhaps this too was used as a plot device so that he could realize something while talking with her, and his kind emotions make it easy to not sound contrived when he makes his vows to avenge Leon.
Their initial closeness is what most people cite as evidence for this pairing. Now how many times in real life do people think that they like someone, only to fall in love with a completely different person? Just because they were good friends from the get-go, doesn’t mean they’re gonna be lovers. And in those early stages of the game, Stahn finds a crush on Ilene to distract him from any affection for either Philia or Rutee...
Philia is also a very self-sacrificing person. Through any and all incarnations of Destiny (games, Manga, spin-offs ala Radiant Mythology), she sees the closeness between Stahn and Rutee (in the Remake, Manga and Radiant Mythology, she even deals with feelings of jealousy). However, in the end of both the original and Remake, she sends Stahn off to find Rutee instead of telling him how she feels. When Clemente questions her about that act, she tells him either “This is the way it should be” (original) or “This is what my will leads me to do” (Remake). And in the Manga, when Kronos’ Philia clone tries to convince her that she hates Rutee due to the bond she shares with Stahn, she admits that while she does like Stahn and want to be with him, she also cares deeply for Rutee and wants to fight to protect the world they live in. Obviously, she has made the decision to keep her own emotions inside because she believes Stahn is in love with Rutee, and is willing to sacrifice her own happiness for that of her two friends.
If she had survived, I’m sure the story might have shaped her into a possible source of competition for Stahn’s affections (since he did have a crush on her). However, she died after being defeated in battle and deciding to commit suicide by jumping off the Aethersphere. All it ended up causing was a chance for Rutee to comfort Stahn.
Ilene’s purpose in-game, and the crush Stahn had on her, seems to have been intended to act as a plot device. First, it ignited Rutee’s jealousy, seeing as it was an easier emotion for her to exhibit at the time than actually admitting to her crush on Stahn. Second, it gave a chance for her to comfort him, to make up for the emotional support he showed her throughout the game. While I won’t discount the feelings each had for the other, I believe this is why such a bond was created for Stahn in the first place.
Just some little things you can do in battle to have fun with the romance of Stahn and Rutee. To accomplish things, it might be good to have a buddy operating Rutee via a Channeling Ring and second controller; it's so much easier to get a human to keep her out of trouble than the AI. In order to make sure she's still there when the second half starts and you can't change, then use a GS or similar device to hack someone in to either the second slot after you regain control of Stahn, or into the third slot after Philia joins (this is advisable in the event you hack in Lilith because it's hard to find her in the house to talk to when you need if she's invisible). Before the change is ready to take place, so you don't erase characters in attempts to shift the formation (I had 3 Liliths once along with Philia and Rutee due to this mistake), turn the CHARACTER NAME IN SLOT # code off. They stay there and you can freely move your party around (e-mail me if you need more help in this).
Defender!: Rutee has Atwight, right? That means she's got access to all those lovely defensive/healing spells. Well, she's permitted to use them on the others only in emergencies! For the most part, have the third and fourth characters use gels on one another (if you really want, never allow Rutee to heal the other characters). However, she is required to take care of Stahn if ever he's injured as well as enhancing his abilities with her status skills.
My Dear Brother: Remember how Stahn was trying to defend Rutee when Leon was pestering her about her past? Well, nows the time to see him go all out in doing so. Order your AI to not use skills and/or always defend; your two controlled characters are the only ones in the fray. If ever Leon tries to attack Rutee, Stahn should do everything in his power to get in front and either take or block the attack. Rutee should defend Stahn only if it won't cause her to take damage; he's supposed to be the one protecting her here.
Cat Fight!: Rutee sure was jealous of Ilene for flirting with Stahn. Have her run at the Oberon Manager before anyone else takes a move. Stahn should act really indecisive (he doesn't know whether to run to Rutee's aid or stop the fight). But if Rutee is in danger at any point, let him rush to her and protect her. Make sure in that even that you have her thank him...it always helps to be polite.
A Father's Love: Rutee was thoroughly PO'ed at Hugo for what happened to Leon. Let's see her show her anger and solo him. Again turn all your allies to Use no TP or Defend, but this time Stahn does not charge into the fray. Rutee goes ahead on her own with Stahn moving to keep up with where Hugo has gone to. He is only allowed to step in when she is in danger (i.e. throw a gel at her, take the lead so she can cast a healing spell).
Alternately, if you can get your hands on the remake of ToD, you can easily set up your party the way you want it and have two players. If you have the funds to import, and a copy of Swap Magic, you can use that to have your fun instead. That way, you'll not have to waste accessory space for a Channeling, or worry about switching party order the hard way.