If I were to name the two most important things in this story, it would be Ethan’s issues with his mom, and his relationship with Lu. This scene weaves both of those two things together. That weaving makes this scene very important to me! I’m happy to share it with everyone, and I look forward to the next big scene where the weave takes the center stage again.
Lushaka looks very young here due to delayed development that affects his mane and his kitty form. During childhood, it also affected his humanoid form, too, although you can’t really tell anymore. He’s not sure whether this delayed development is related to his tentacle thing, or if he has two very unusual, unrelated conditions.