This article is part of my Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Analysis series, focusing on the psychology of the prequel story and the reason Mio and Mayu returned home.
In the previous article, I focused on Mio and Mayu’s respective states of mind and examined the differences between the worlds they see.
In this article, I will organize and analyze The Forest Where the Promise Disappeared, a prequel short story written by Keishi Ayasato.
The story is included in Minakami Village Secret Ritual Records / The Forest Where the Promise Disappeared, the official setting materials from the FATAL FRAME II: Crimson Butterfly REMAKE Premium Box.
Note: Because this story contains many scene transitions, I recommend reading the synopsis sections first. Doing so will make the later analysis easier to follow.
Please note that this article contains major spoilers for Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly. If you want to review the main story first, I recommend starting with the Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly main story overview before reading this analysis.
- Mio and Mayu in the Prequel: Psychology and Analysis
- Chapter 1: Recollection — Psychological Analysis of the Album Scene
- Chapter 2: Twin Butterflies — Mio and Mayu from the Backyard to the Woods
- Chapter 3: White Rain — Mio and Mayu While Taking Shelter from the Rain
- Chapter 4: Fleeting Fire — The Fireworks Scene
- Chapter 5: Crimson Dream — The Dream and Its Aftermath
- Chapter 6: To the Forest of Promise — Mio and Mayu Return
- Fatal Frame II Through the Lens of the Prequel, The Forest Where the Promise Disappeared
Mio and Mayu in the Prequel: Psychology and Analysis
- After the death of their father, Misao, Mayu and Mio live with their mother, Shizu, as a family of three.
- They live in a detached house in the city.
- Their home is a two-story house with a garden.
- Beyond the garden is a grove that they can enter freely, almost like private land.
- Judging from the size of the house and their standard of living, including ballet lessons and branded clothing, the Amakura family appears to have a certain degree of financial comfort.
- Shizu is a 35-year-old single mother, which suggests that she has some kind of stable financial foundation, whether through income, assets, or family support.
- In the novel, Shizu is not directly depicted, and many of the household roles seem to fall to Mio.
- Shizu appears to spend long periods away from home, creating a structure in which Mio fills the space left by her mother’s absence.
- The fact that Mio can be left at the home of Shizu’s younger brother, who is the twins’ uncle, suggests that their family relationships are stable. In other words, the twins are not growing up in an isolated environment.
Chapter 1: Recollection — Psychological Analysis of the Album Scene
In Chapter One, the photos in the album cause Mio and Mayu to begin noticing the difference between their past relationship and their present relationship.
One summer day.
Mayu was sitting alone on the bed, looking through an album.
As she turned the pages, her hand stopped at one photograph.
It was a photo of the fireworks from the day of the Shadow Festival.
“Ah… this…”
Mayu tried to take it out carefully, but her hand slipped, and the photo fell to the floor.
As Mayu got down from the bed to pick it up, Mio picked it up for her.
“Oh! This photo… it brings back memories…”
In the photo, the two of them were still children, holding hands tightly and watching the fireworks with bright smiles.
— Back then, we were still one.
Both Mayu and Mio vaguely understood that things were no longer that way.
But neither of them could bring themselves to put it into words.
As if showing her unease, Mayu leaned against Mio, who was sitting beside her.
“…Mio. Together forever… Promise…”
Mio gave a small nod and continued turning the pages of the album.
Then, one particular photo made Mio stop.
It was a photo of the nostalgic forest they had once visited so casually as children.
— We used to be so close. I used to know what Mayu was thinking… but now I don’t know what she is thinking anymore…
“We’ll stay together… right?”
A brief silence passed after Mayu’s clinging words.
Even so, in the next moment, Mio made herself smile.
“Yeah. Together forever. That’s our promise…”
Mio believed there was no lie in those words.
At the same time, however, she also felt that they were not truly reaching Mayu.
She did not know what was wrong.
And yet…
— If things stay like this, Mayu will go somewhere far away. And we won’t be able to keep our promise.
That ominous feeling remained in Mio’s heart.
Mayu’s Psychology ①
The moment Mayu saw the photo from the Shadow Festival, a clear feeling rose within her:
the past and the present were no longer the same.
Mayu sensed that the relationship that had once been unquestionably one was no longer that way.
This was a premonition of loss.
At this point, Mayu clearly understands something.
They can no longer return to those days.
However, this does not mean that she has accepted it.
If anything, the opposite is true.
For Mayu, that fact continues to remain inside her as an unacceptable sense of wrongness.
When Mayu says, “Together forever… Promise…”, she is not trying to make a vow for the future.
She is anxious that their current relationship may already be falling apart, and she wants to confirm that it has not.
For Mayu, being together should be the natural state of things.
The very fact that she has to confirm it already feels abnormal.
Even so, in order to quiet her anxiety, she tries to use words to fix their past relationship in the present.
The reason Mayu leans her body against Mio here is also because words alone are not enough to erase her fear.
By reducing the physical distance between them to zero, she is trying to confirm the feeling that they have not separated.
- Mayu has not accepted the change in their relationship.
- For Mayu, the promise of “Together forever” is not a vow for the future.
- It is a confirmation: “We are still the same as we used to be, aren’t we?”
- It is a phrase meant to keep their relationship fixed in the past.
Mio’s Psychology ①
This scene marks the moment when Mio became aware of the change in her relationship with Mayu.
Mio realizes that she may not truly understand the sister she thought she understood.
The reason Mio could not answer immediately was that she did not know how to receive the meaning behind those words.
To Mio, Mayu’s “Together forever” felt heavy.
Mio did not know how much of that weight she was supposed to take on.
That is why she paused for a moment.
Mio could not understand Mayu’s true intention.
However, she did realize one thing:
if she said something different here, their relationship might collapse.
Mio chose not to break the relationship over understanding it correctly.
Mio tries to make it seem as though everything is okay.
Mio herself has not fully accepted the meaning of Mayu’s words.
However, by reassuring Mayu, she was trying to preserve the relationship.
- Mio is beginning to notice the change in their relationship.
- She feels uneasy about the promise of “Together forever.”
- She has not fully accepted the meaning of that promise.
- Even so, she returns the same words in order to keep the relationship from falling apart.
- She goes along with Mayu without truly understanding her.
Summary of the Album Scene
Mayu
- Mayu understands that the relationship in which they were once one has been lost.
- However, she cannot accept that loss, and tries to keep their relationship fixed in the past.
- She uses the word “promise” as a way to return to the past.
Mio
- Mio realizes that their relationship has changed.
- However, she does not step into the cause or meaning of that change, and instead tries to preserve the relationship.
- She uses the word “promise” as a way to keep the present from falling apart.
The two are trying to preserve the same relationship from different directions.
Chapter 2: Twin Butterflies — Mio and Mayu from the Backyard to the Woods
In Chapter Two, Mayu’s unusual behavior and Mio’s reaction to it are shown step by step.
What matters most here is that, for the first time, the disconnect between Mio and Mayu becomes visible in their actions.
The next day.
When Mio woke up, Mayu, who should have been beside her as always, was nowhere to be found.
Mio searched throughout the house, but she could not find her. Her unease gradually turned into panic.
Looking around, she noticed the curtains swaying.
The large glass door leading to the backyard was open.
“Mayu… are you there?”
There was no answer.
But beyond the door, Mio saw Mayu playing with two white butterflies.
Mayu kept murmuring an unfamiliar word:
“Uttsui…”
Although Mio felt that something was strange, she tried not to think too deeply about it.
— Maybe I should bring her some cold tea.
Thinking that Mayu must have been sitting under the strong sunlight for a long time, Mio went to the kitchen to prepare something to drink.
But when she came back, Mayu was gone.
— No, calm down…! Mayu wouldn’t just disappear. She wouldn’t leave me behind…!
Mio squinted into the woods.
Deep among the dense trees, she could faintly see Mayu being drawn in, swaying unsteadily as she walked.
Mio put on the sandals left in the backyard and hurried after her.
But no matter how long she chased, she could not catch up to Mayu, even though Mayu’s injured leg should have slowed her down.
— I wonder if this is how Mayu felt back then.
An old memory returned.
The day when Mio had left Mayu behind as a child, and Mayu, desperately trying to catch up, slipped and fell from the cliff.
It was the day everything changed.
Mio ducked under a large branch as she ran.
There, she found Mayu sleeping peacefully.
Mio let out a breath of relief.
But that relief did not last long.
Two white butterflies were resting on Mayu’s neck.
They looked almost like pure white hands resting on Mayu’s throat.
— I should be the only one allowed to touch her there… I can’t forgive this.
A memory surfaced in Mio’s mind: the two of them playing as children, placing their hands on each other’s necks.
When Mio approached, the two butterflies flew away into the distance.
Mio lifted Mayu into her arms.
Mayu still seemed only half-conscious.
Then, faint words slipped from Mayu’s lips.
“Mio… together forever. Promise…”
When Mio heard those words, she remembered that day again.
The day everything had changed.
Ever since the moment Mayu’s leg was broken, Mio felt that their promise had cracked.
Eventually, Mayu woke up and apologized, seeming to remember nothing.
Then, looking troubled, she told Mio that her leg hurt.
Wanting to ease the pain even a little, Mio gently touched Mayu’s leg.
Mayu’s expression gradually softened.
Once the pain had settled, Mio supported Mayu and helped her stand.
“Let’s go home together, Mayu.”
At that moment, as if to stop the two of them from leaving, the rain began to fall.
Note: “Uttsui” is a childlike dialect word meaning “beautiful” or “clean,” associated with the Yokkaichi area of Mie Prefecture.
Mayu’s Psychology ②
At this point, Mayu had begun to enter a state in which even being beside Mio no longer satisfied her.
For Mayu, Mio was supposed to be the world itself.
The reason Mayu left Mio behind was that she had encountered something that seemed capable of fulfilling what their current relationship could no longer reach.
Note: The white butterflies give shape to Mayu’s unsatisfied longing and make “somewhere that is not here” appear alluring. They function as an entrance through which she can quietly drift away from reality. White also suggests death, memory, the past, and the boundary with the otherworld.
Here, Mayu’s heart is being captured not by the real Mio beside her, but by the sensation carried by the butterflies.
Mayu was already carrying the fear that, as things stood, she could no longer become one with Mio.
To Mayu, who held that fear, the white butterflies were not merely living creatures.
They appeared to her as something that might guide her toward a place where she and Mio would never have to grow apart—a place where they really could be together forever.
Mayu begins to feel salvation not in the reality she shares with Mio, but in the possibility shown to her by the butterflies.
At this point, Mayu no longer had enough room in her heart to respond to Mio’s voice.
She was chasing something that allowed her to look away from the reality in which she could no longer be one with Mio.
That is why she could not turn back.
If she turned back, she would have to face the Mio of the present again.
But the Mio of the present is not the Mio from the time when they were completely one, the Mio Mayu longs for.
Mayu had no room left to accept that reality. Turning her awareness back toward it was no longer possible for her.
Note: Mio may have been unable to catch up with Mayu because Mayu had become such a thin, reality-detached presence that she was easy to lose sight of.
Here, Mayu could no longer maintain her connection to reality and had let go of consciousness.
Up to this point, Mayu had followed the white butterflies into the woods, constantly moving her heart in a direction away from reality.
She had continued cutting her ties with Mio, with the place she was in, and even with her own will.
As a result of coming too close to the boundary, Mayu could no longer connect to anything in reality, and she fell asleep.
- Mayu can no longer endure the reality of living with Mio as she is now, and her heart has begun to escape somewhere else.
- Mayu’s desire not to lose Mio is extremely strong.
- She is looking away from the real Mio, who might one day be lost.
Mio’s Psychology ②
Mio became deeply anxious because losing Mayu would lead directly to the collapse of their promise.
For Mio, Mayu was not only someone she had to protect.
Mayu was also the person who made Mio feel that, as long as she could keep protecting her, they were still connected.
Because of that, losing sight of Mayu carried a meaning far heavier than simply “she is not here.”
Mio does notice that something is wrong with Mayu.
Even so, she tries not to think too deeply about it because, if she admits that something is abnormal here, the relationship she has been preserving until now may begin to shake.
Mio is not being slow or unaware.
Rather, she is afraid of understanding, and so she stops herself from understanding.
When Mio tells herself that Mayu would never leave her behind, it is not simply because she trusts Mayu.
It is because, unless she believes that, she cannot hold herself together.
If Mayu were truly moving away from her, then Mio would be forced to ask:
What was everything I had been protecting until now?
“I want the sister I have been protecting to remain the sister I know…”
That is why Mio first tries to deny the possibility that she has been left behind.
Mio reacts so strongly not only because the white butterflies are unsettling.
It is because they appear to have entered a place that only Mio should have been allowed to touch.
This scene shows just how special and exclusive Mio’s relationship with Mayu has become in Mio’s mind.
It is too closed off to be described simply as family love, and there is a possessiveness there that almost resembles romantic attachment.
For Mio, protecting Mayu also means not wanting Mayu to be invaded by anyone or anything other than herself.
Mio trying to bring Mayu home is not merely an act of kindness.
She senses that if she does not bring Mayu back here, they may never be able to return to where they were.
Mio tries to save Mayu, while also trying to return their damaged relationship to its original place.
- Mio has noticed Mayu’s strange behavior.
- She understands that admitting the abnormality may cause their relationship to collapse.
- Mio prioritizes restoring the relationship over understanding Mayu.
Summary of the Backyard-to-Woods Scene
Mayu
- Unable to face the real Mio of the present, Mayu is escaping from “here and now.”
- She is moving in a direction away from reality.
Mio
- Even though she notices the abnormality, Mio is afraid that acknowledging it will break their relationship.
- She is moving in a direction that pulls Mayu back into reality.
Even though the two are in the same space, they are moving in opposite directions.
Chapter 3: White Rain — Mio and Mayu While Taking Shelter from the Rain
In Chapter Three, the disconnect between Mio and Mayu is finally drawn clearly as a severance.
A sudden downpour.
If Mio had been alone, she probably could have forced herself to make it back home.
Even so, Mio did not choose to leave Mayu behind.
Because she had promised that they would stay together.
Thunder roared nearby.
The situation beneath the large tree was far from safe.
Mio tried to suggest that they move.
But—
the moment she saw Mayu’s profile, she swallowed her words.
What she saw there was a beautiful, calm expression, one that showed no trace of the girl who had once been afraid of thunder.
Mayu looked up at the sky without fear, and to Mio, she seemed like someone entirely different from the Mayu she knew.
— When did I stop understanding Mayu…?
Mio’s mind was pulled back into the past.
“Together forever.”
The promise.
Words that had been repeated over and over, as if testing their sincerity, as if trying to confirm them.
Each time, Mio felt lonely.
Because she understood something all too well:
the more tightly something is bound again and again, the more fragile it becomes, and the more easily it can fall apart.
“…I…”
Mio almost spoke about that day, then immediately stopped herself.
— If I say this, everything will end.
She was certain of it.
Mio decided that she would not let Mayu notice this ominous feeling.
For that reason, too, she knew it would probably be easier if they lived apart.
But for Mio, who loved Mayu more than anyone and wanted to stay with her, that was something she could never do.
Mio wished.
She wished that she could continue to be someone Mayu could rely on.
Suddenly, as if mocking Mio’s wish, a white flash burst before her eyes.
At that moment, Mayu murmured with overflowing joy, yet in an eerily calm voice:
“It’s like we’re the only two people in the world.”
Mio could not understand that feeling at all.
She even thought Mayu was frightening.
And yet, because she still wanted to believe that the two of them could understand each other, Mio gripped Mayu’s hand tightly.
Mayu’s hand was astonishingly cold.
To Mio, it was a temperature that made her think of death.
Mayu’s Psychology ③
Mayu is not afraid of the thunder because her awareness is not directed toward the reality in front of her, but turned inward toward herself.
Mayu was not looking at “here and now.”
She was looking at the world inside herself.
At this moment, Mayu’s awareness of reality has become so thin that she no longer senses danger in the thunder.
Because Mayu’s world can exist as long as Mio is there, everything else has become unnecessary to her.
For Mayu, the outside world has already become something that no longer matters.
- Mayu is so deeply immersed in her inner world that she no longer senses the danger unfolding in front of her.
- For Mayu, it is not that “Mio exists within the world.” Rather, her relationship with Mio itself has become the world.
- She is not placing the relationship inside reality. She is enclosing the world itself inside the relationship.
Mio’s Psychology ③
Mio correctly understands that this place is dangerous.
This way of thinking comes from the fact that she has always watched reality carefully and responded to it in order to protect Mayu.
For Mio, grasping reality is a means of protecting Mayu.
Mio stops herself from speaking because she no longer knows how to deal with Mayu when Mayu shows her a side she does not recognize.
Because Mio cannot understand the present situation, she tries to return to the time when she still felt she understood Mayu.
She is escaping into the Mayu she used to know.
Mio has realized that their relationship is not something that continues naturally, but something being forcibly tied together.
That is why, each time the promise is repeated, her anxiety grows stronger.
Mio stops herself because she knows that if she says it, their relationship will collapse.
Mio chooses to protect the relationship as it is, rather than speak the truth.
Mio feels that Mayu is frightening.
At this moment, for the first time, Mio recognizes Mayu not simply as someone she does not understand, but as someone beyond the reach of her understanding.
Even so, Mio does not let go of her hand.
This is not only kindness.
If she lets go here, she feels that she may never reach Mayu again.
Even if she cannot understand Mayu, Mio decides that the relationship itself must not end.
After accumulating so many small feelings of wrongness, Mio begins to wonder in this moment whether the Mayu she knows is truly still here.
She is touching Mayu, and yet Mayu feels far away.
That sensation is what makes Mio think of death.
That is why Mio does not let go of her hand.
She grips it tightly, as if trying to believe that Mayu is still here, and as if trying to anchor her back to the side of the living.
- Mio has noticed both Mayu’s change and the danger of the situation they are in.
- She understands that putting this wrongness into words may cause their relationship to collapse.
- Rather than expose the problem, Mio chooses to remain connected without touching it directly.
Summary of the Rain Shelter Scene
Mayu
- Mayu has entered the world inside herself and is drawing Mio into it.
Mio
- Mio understands, realistically, that something is wrong with Mayu, but she still cannot pull herself away from her.
The relationship between the two sisters is beginning to collapse into a distorted shape.
Chapter 4: Fleeting Fire — The Fireworks Scene
In Chapter Four, the distance that had opened between Mio and Mayu seems, for a brief moment, to be temporarily repaired.
Light began to shine through the clouds.
The rain must have been only a passing shower.
Mio spoke to Mayu in a brighter voice, matching the clearing sky.
Then, the two took each other’s hands and went home.
After dinner, Mio suggested something she had been wanting to do.
Fireworks.
Ever since seeing the photo from the day of the Shadow Festival, Mio had wanted to feel what they had felt back then once more.
With Mayu’s agreement, Mio happily prepared the handheld fireworks.
When she lit the first one, bright sparks spread through the darkness.
“Even with just the two of us, it feels like a festival.”
Little by little, the awkwardness between them began to soften.
For a short while, it almost felt as if they had returned to that day.
But like a sparkler that quietly falls at the end, that moment could not last forever.
After they finished several bright fireworks, Mio handed Mayu a sparkler.
Its glowing bead scattered beautifully, then fell as if being swallowed by the dark.
To Mio, it looked like a lonely light disappearing on its own.
Mayu seemed lonely too.
“There are still plenty left. I’ll go get more. Mayu, just stay there.”
When Mio returned, Mayu had not lit her firework.
It was resting on her lap.
Mayu was not looking at the firework.
She was looking at Mio.
Mio lit the sparkler for her.
Then Mayu quietly reached out.
Maybe she wanted them to hold the same flame together.
Their hands overlapped, and the two of them laughed.
Their joined hands looked almost like a white butterfly.
Feeling Mayu’s warmth, Mio felt relieved.
They were still in the same place.
After that, they each held a sparkler of their own.
Two small lights swayed side by side.
Looking at them, Mayu spoke slowly, as if tasting each word.
“I… like the sparks just before they go out…”
The light shines brightest just before it disappears.
To Mio, Mayu’s words sounded like a wish for a brief eternity just before the end.
Mio knew that eternity did not exist.
Even so, she nodded.
The next moment, the two flames leaned close together—and fell at the same time.
Mayu watched them with a tender expression.
Mayu’s Psychology ④
Mayu does not light the firework right away because the firework itself is not what matters to her.
What matters is whether Mio is there with her.
For Mayu, this scene is not about what they are doing.
It is about who she is with.
That is why her attention is barely on the fireworks at all.
Mayu tries to hold the same flame with Mio because she wants to confirm that the two of them are the same.
Simply being next to Mio is not enough.
She can only feel safe when they hold the same thing, at the same moment.
What Mayu loves is not the firework itself.
It is the strongest light just before it disappears.
She is drawn to that light because, in that single instant, it feels as though everything overlaps at once.
For Mayu, a brief and intense moment of unity matters more than something that simply continues for a long time.
Mayu watches the two flames fall side by side with tenderness.
She feels comfort in the shape of ending together.
For Mayu, it is less important to continue separately.
What she longs for is to end together, while still being one.
- Mayu is not looking at the fireworks. She is looking at her relationship with Mio.
- By sharing the same thing with Mio, she seeks unity.
- Being together, sharing the same moment, and meeting the same end have become one connected value for her.
- She feels comfort in ending at the same moment, while still remaining one.
Mio’s Psychology ④
Mio suggests fireworks because she thinks that, if they do the same thing they once did, they might return to the time when she still felt she understood Mayu.
Mio is trying to recreate the past.
As the awkwardness between them fades, Mio feels relieved.
She feels as if they really might be able to go back to the way they were.
As the sparkler falls, Mio unconsciously overlaps it with the possible end of their relationship.
Mio does not want her relationship with Mayu to end.
Even so, somewhere deep down, she has begun to sense that it might.
Mio feels relieved because, in that moment, she can feel that they are still connected.
Their overlapping hands look like a white butterfly because, for that single moment, it feels as though the two of them understand each other from the heart.
But this is only temporary.
It does not mean that their damaged relationship has truly been repaired.
- Mio is trying to recover the relationship by repeating the past.
- For a brief moment, she feels as if the relationship has returned.
- But deep down, she senses that things can no longer continue in the same form.
Summary of the Fireworks Scene
Mayu
- Mayu dreams of reaching the same end through unity.
Mio
- Mio senses the possibility of an ending, but still wishes for a future that continues.
Mio and Mayu share the same time, yet they are moving toward different endings.
Chapter 5: Crimson Dream — The Dream and Its Aftermath
In Chapter Five, reality, memory, and desire begin to blur together, and Mio and Mayu’s relationship starts to tremble on a deeper level.
With the afterglow of the fireworks still lingering, Mio and Mayu went to bed together.
Even now that they had grown older, sleeping side by side still felt natural to them.
“Good night, Mayu.”
After Mio said this, Mayu suddenly mentioned that the mountain where they used to play as children would soon be submerged by a dam.
Her words brought an old memory back to Mio.
“Hey… why don’t we go there again?”
Mio wanted to recover the time they had once shared.
But Mayu did not answer right away.
She only looked at Mio in silence.
Her hand reached toward Mio, hesitantly.
Mio took Mayu’s hand and held it tightly.
“Together forever. That’s our promise.”
Mio made the promise again.
Mayu closed her eyes and gave a small nod.
Before long, the two of them fell into a deep sleep.
When Mio opened her eyes, she was standing by the stream where they had often played as children.
It was warm and gentle.
Everything there felt protected.
— We were one.
That was how the world felt.
But that peace was suddenly cut short.
A gust of wind carrying the smell of blood blew past.
Mio woke up.
The scene she had just seen was so vivid that she could not tell whether it had been a dream or reality.
Only one thing was certain.
Mayu, who should have been beside her, was gone.
— I have to go find her. I have to keep our promise.
Mio rushed out of the room.
At the edge of her vision, a butterfly passed by.
She could not tell whether it was white, crimson, or black.
As if guided by it, Mio stepped out from the backyard and into the woods.
Ahead of her, she saw Mayu’s back.
Mio chased after her desperately.
At last, she reached the cliff where Mayu had once fallen—or perhaps, the edge of the bottomless Utsuro.
Mayu stood at the edge.
Mio called out to her.
“We’ll be together forever.”
At Mio’s words, Mayu smiled quietly.
Then she fell backward, as if collapsing into the dark.
Mio reached out with all her strength.
But she could not reach her.
From the darkness of the Utsuro, countless crimson butterflies rose into the air.
The world gradually turned black.
“Mayu!”
The moment Mio screamed, she woke up again.
She was back in her room.
Everything was the same as always.
Mayu was sleeping beside her.
It had all been a dream.
That was what Mio tried to believe.
But then—
Mayu’s breathing stirred, and a faint word slipped from her lips.
“…crimson… butterfly…”
Mayu’s Psychology ⑤
Mayu brings this up because she wants to trace, almost to confirm, the fact that they can no longer return to the way things were.
The place from their memories disappearing beneath the water is a metaphor for their relationship as it is now.
When Mio says, “Why don’t we go there again?”, Mayu does not answer right away.
Even if they go back, Mayu knows that they cannot return to their past relationship.
But she still has not fully accepted that truth.
Even so, Mayu reaches out hesitantly.
Even if Mio is no longer the same Mio from the past, Mayu still cannot let go of the Mio who is here now.
To Mayu, Mio is not merely someone precious.
Letting go of Mio would mean losing not only the relationship, but also the place where Mayu’s own self can stand.
Mayu standing at the edge of the cliff — or the edge of the Utsuro — suggests that she is moving toward an ending.
The direction Mayu has been moving toward appears in the dream in a form Mio can see.
Mayu understands that the form of “Together forever” Mio believes in cannot fulfill the relationship Mayu wants.
She can no longer remain inside a relationship that she already knows cannot work.
Her smile is the expression of a desire to become one — a desire she knows cannot reach Mio, yet still cannot abandon.
- Mayu understands that they cannot return to the past.
- Even so, she cannot let go of Mio.
- She begins to collapse while still trapped in a relationship she knows cannot truly work.
Mio’s Psychology ⑤
Mio suggests going to the stream because she believes that, if they return there, her relationship with Mayu might return as well.
She is not trying to solve the problem in the present.
She is trying to recover the relationship by recreating the past.
Mio says “Together forever” because, even in that moment, she feels that Mayu might drift away from her.
Mayu’s words about the mountain sinking beneath the dam force Mio to face the fact that the two of them can no longer remain as they were back then.
For Mio, who has begun to feel anxious, the only thing she can cling to is the promise.
Words alone are not enough.
To confirm that they have not yet grown apart, and to show that “Together forever” is not just something she says, Mio holds Mayu’s hand tightly.
This dream is the relationship Mio and Mayu had before they were separated.
For Mio at that time, being one with Mayu was natural.
Mio, too, still carries longing for those days.
The dream of being one collapses.
That is because the real Mio and Mayu are already separate.
Through the dream, Mio experiences the fact that even if they try to become one, it cannot continue in reality.
The Mio of the present is no longer trying to become one with Mayu.
She is trying to preserve a relationship in which they can stay together while still being separate.
That is why, no matter what reality shows her, Mio keeps trying to reach Mayu.
Mio’s hand not reaching Mayu suggests that the way she has tried to stay connected — protecting Mayu in order to remain together — can no longer reach Mayu.
Until now, Mio believed that protecting Mayu was the same as staying together.
But that no longer works.
For Mayu, the relationship has already collapsed the moment they are separate.
Mio’s act of protecting her cannot fill that severance.
Note: The butterfly that is neither white, crimson, nor black represents a state that is neither separation nor fusion. It could become either. It is a wavering ending.
After waking, Mio feels relieved when she confirms that Mayu is still beside her.
She tries to believe that the nightmare had nothing to do with reality.
The important point is that she does not simply believe it.
She tries to believe it.
Mio has already felt that the dream may not have been only a dream.
Even so, she tries to erase that fear by refusing to face it.
But right after that, Mayu murmurs “crimson butterfly” in her sleep.
With that single word, the thing Mio tried to close away as a dream is pulled back into reality.
- Mio is trying to hold together a relationship that is drifting apart.
- She is trying to restore the relationship by recreating the past.
- Even though she senses that it is not working, she continues to act anyway.
Summary of the Dream Scene
Mayu
- Mayu feels that the relationship cannot exist while they remain separate.
Mio
- Mio believes that the relationship can still exist even if they are separate, and tries to hold it together.
They no longer even share the same conditions for what it means for their relationship to exist.
Chapter 6: To the Forest of Promise — Mio and Mayu Return
In Chapter Six, Mio finally begins to face the problem she has been avoiding.
Mio and Mayu walked slowly along the forest path, where sunlight filtered through the trees.
The air was cool.
“How’s your leg? Does it hurt?”
“A little… But I’m okay.”
Their exchange sounded the same as always.
But inside Mio, an unease she could not shake remained.
The nightmare she had seen that night.
The ominous feeling that seemed to follow her.
Even so, she could not stop walking.
The place from their memories would soon sink beneath the dam.
They had to reach it before it was gone forever.
Mio understood where they were going.
It was the place where Mayu’s leg had been broken, and where their promise had cracked.
A memory they had avoided touching.
A relationship that might break if spoken aloud.
And yet—
— If I keep looking away, isn’t that the same as leaving Mayu alone?
That thought quietly took shape inside Mio.
— So I’ll go forward. Maybe I can’t take everything back. But here, in this forest, I want to make our promise again.
With that feeling in her heart, Mio kept walking.
Suddenly, Mayu’s steps faltered.
“Mayu—are you okay?”
Mio reached out at once and supported her.
Then she gently took Mayu’s hand.
For just a moment, there was a slight hesitation.
But Mayu, too, tightened her grip in answer.
Holding hands, the two walked deeper into the forest.
To touch, once more, the thing that had cracked long ago.
Behind them, a crimson butterfly began to flutter.
Mayu’s Psychology ⑥
Mayu is calm because she has begun to accept the flow moving toward an ending.
Even though Mayu has trouble with her leg, she does not try to stop.
That is because she no longer has a reason to turn back.
Normally, she might have stopped because walking was dangerous.
But for Mayu, what mattered more was this:
Mio would protect her and stay beside her until the very end.
After a moment of hesitation, Mayu holds Mio’s hand back.
She is not rejecting the idea of staying with Mio.
But she hesitates because she does not believe they can keep walking in the same form forever.
The place they are heading toward is the place where everything changed.
For Mayu, it is not a place to start over.
It is a place that will confirm the ending.
Mayu clearly understands that their relationship has changed since that day.
- Mayu does not reject the relationship as it is now.
- She understands that it can no longer continue in the same form.
- She has begun to accept the flow moving toward an ending.
Mio’s Psychology ⑥
Mio goes to this place because she thinks that their relationship might still be restored.
She believes they might be able to make the promise again.
For Mio, this place is not an ending.
It is a new starting point.
Mio carries a sense of wrongness and unease.
Even so, she does not stop because she feels that, if she stops here, Mayu will drift away from her.
The moment Mayu wavered, Mio reached out by reflex.
For Mio, the act of protecting Mayu is not only about helping her.
It is also the surest way for Mio to keep her connection with Mayu from breaking.
Mio does not let go of Mayu’s hand.
If she lets go, she feels that their relationship itself may be severed in that moment.
For Mio, letting go here would be the same as admitting that their relationship has ended.
- Mio senses that their relationship may collapse.
- Even so, this time, she is trying to face it without looking away.
- Even if they cannot return to the way things were, she is trying to bind the relationship again.
Summary of the Return Scene
Mayu
- Mayu is moving forward while accepting the ending.
Mio
- Mio is moving forward in order to bind the relationship again.
Mio and Mayu are heading toward the same place, but for different reasons.
Fatal Frame II Through the Lens of the Prequel, The Forest Where the Promise Disappeared
The events of this prequel can be understood as the process by which Mio and Mayu’s relationship gradually changes in form.
At the beginning of the story, Mio and Mayu share the same promise:
“Together forever.”
However, the meaning inside that promise rests on different conditions.
- For Mio: “Together forever” means staying beside each other while remaining separate people.
- For Mayu: “Together forever” means remaining one without ever separating.
In other words, the promise is built on different conditions for the relationship to exist.
As a result:
- Mio refuses to acknowledge the Mayu she does not know or understand, and continues to look away from her.
- Mayu refuses to acknowledge Mio’s growth and change, and continues to seek the Mio from the time when they were one.
This distortion begins to take shape.
- Mio does not love Mayu as she truly is, but the Mayu who fits her own image.
- Mayu does not love the Mio of the present, but the Mio from the past.
- By refusing to face their disconnect, the two continue looking away from the collapse of their relationship.
①Album
The disconnect is recognized as a sense of wrongness.
↓
②Mayu’s disappearance
The disconnect surfaces through action.
↓
③Heavy rain
Their recognition of each other breaks apart.
↓
④Fireworks
The relationship appears to recover, but only as an illusion.
↓
⑤Dream and cliff
The disconnect becomes decisive.
↓
⑥Return home
The relationship can no longer be repaired in its original form.
↓
⑦Main story
The question becomes whether they can face the disconnect.
↓
⑧Toward the ending
The distortion grows over time, until Mio and Mayu reach a relationship where they can share the same event, but can no longer give it the same meaning.
After that, the story branches into several endings: collapse, stagnation, understanding, and the rebuilding of the relationship.
In the end, Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly is the story of two sisters who could not align the distance at which their relationship could exist.
If they are too close, the relationship collapses. If they are too far apart, the relationship disappears.
Mio and Mayu continue searching, until the very end, for the right distance that should have existed between them.
What kind of ending will they reach?
In the next article, I will summarize and analyze the Black Flame Butterfly novel ending.
I hope you will continue reading.
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Analysis Hub
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Analysis Series
Analysis Article #2: The Cliff Scene｜Why Mio and Mayu See Different Worlds
Analysis Article #5: The Opening Scene｜The Unfinished Words and Their Connection to the Endings
Analysis Article #6: Main Story Analysis｜How Did Mio Change Throughout the Story?
Analysis Article #7: Crimson Butterfly Ending｜Why Did Mio End Up Killing Mayu?
Analysis Article #8: Lonely Road Home / One Wing Endings｜Explaining the Price Mio Had to Bear
Analysis Article #9: Frozen Butterfly Ending｜Mayu’s Tearful Smile and the Head in the Hina Doll Room
Analysis Article #10: Shadow Festival Ending｜Why Did Mio Say, “This Time, We Fall Together”?
Analysis Article #11: The Promise Ending｜The Meaning of “I’ll Never Let You Go Again”
Analysis Article #14: Sprouting Wings + Remaining Sun Endings｜What It Means for Mio and Mayu to Return Alive
*This article is part of the “Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Analysis” series.
*The images used in this article include unofficial AI-generated images inspired by the world of the game, as well as screenshots from FATAL FRAME II: Crimson Butterfly REMAKE and Project Zero 2: Wii Edition. All rights to Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly belong to Koei Tecmo Games.
*This article refers to certain official materials that are currently difficult to obtain. Their contents are summarized only where necessary for understanding the story, while the article itself focuses mainly on analysis and interpretation.
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