>>3775673We do get information about his situation: he’s an active Hero (he has his bangle) and is apparently helping/watching over Kotetsu in his free time (since Kotetsu reminds him he could go home instead and the law of conservation of detail says that’s relevant). He’s clearly doing what he wants and one of the core things about Barnaby is that if something is in his power to overcome, he does. Between Kotetsu and him, he’s the one who can always take care of things. It’s very telling that in The Rising novel, Kotetsu thinks the scene where Barnaby saves him from falling basically epitomises their entire relationship.
>But on second thought, this was just so them. Kotetsu and he. >Even their very first meeting had been the same; with Kotetsu caught in circumstances pushed well past disaster, he had lifted him up and saved him.>It was always he who came running whenever Kotetsu was in trouble, as if drawn to him by the magnetic force called fate.Barnaby the protector, the saviour, the one who has his shit together and who keeps Kotetsu safe. Kotetsu is Barnaby’s emotional comfort, but Barnaby is Kotetsu’s literal lifeline. That’s a tough pill to swallow for Tiger and at the time of TR Bunny doesn’t think of himself as such, but in S2 we gradually see them embracing those roles, with Kotetsu deferring to Barnaby’s judgment pretty much unequivocally and Barnaby handling most of the heavy-duty and protective parts, be it strategic or physical. This epilogue feels like the culmination of that, with Bunny openly expressing that he wants to be Kotetsu’s protector and Kotetsu accepting that protection despite feeling a bit guilty about it.
