Cure Grace/Daruizen
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Cure Grace/Daruizen |
| Alternative name(s): | DaruNodo |
| Gender category: | Het |
| Fandom: | Precure |
| Canonical?: | |
| Prevalence: | |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Cure Grace/Daruizen, also known as DaruNodo, is the non-canonical het pairing between Hanadera Nodoka (Cure Grace) and Daruizen from Healin' Good PreCure. They are a common pairing in the Healin' Good sphere of the Pretty Cure Fandom but not without controversy. It is more popular amongst Japanese and eastern fans than western fans.
Symbolism important to this ship includes: angel/devil, the Madonna/Whore complex, as well as flowers. Both are united by a flower motif as well as different takes on the phrase "I feel alive".
Relationship History
Pre-Canon
Nodoka first meets Daruizen when he infects her and she becomes his host. Both are oblivious to one another as Nodoka believes she has fallen ill for other reasons, not magical ones. Daruizen, meanwhile, has not yet taken a human-like form and his sentience in this stage of his species' lifespan is questionable.
Enter! Cure Grace
Nodoka first encounters Daruizen when he infects a flower field with a Byougen.
Mid-Canon
Daruizen infects Nodoka with a Mega Part and gives 'birth' to Kedary.
King Byougen Arc
Realising that his own King intends to eat him and take his power for himself, Daruizen steals all the Mega Parts he has access to and hides. He tries to ask Nodoka for help, that he wants to return to her as host and parasite but Nodoka refuses.
Defeating Daruizen for the last time is his last appearance on screen and their final encounter with one another.
Controversy
Due to the toxic, enemies to lovers nature of this ship, it has not been without controversy. It has also been accused of being an incest ship due to the fact that Nodoka 'birthed' Daruizen. There are a lot of questions of bodily autonomy around this ship as well as the rejection of girls needing to 'fix' bad boys.
Fans who are pro-DaruNodo do wonder if Covid-19 had impacted his storyline as his departure from the story feels unsatisfying as they would have liked to see him learn to respect Nodoka's boundaries. Fans who are anti-DaruNodo praise Healin' Good for its rejection of the common trope in which villains are redeemed and rehabilitated, stating it is role modelling excellent boundary setting for young girls, the intended audience of Healin' Good.
Fanon
Fanon typically explores Daruizen's redemption, if he had been given a chance by Nodoka for him to infect her once more or similar.
Often times as a joke, Kedary is referred to as or depicted as their son due to the nature of his creation.
Fanworks
Specific Examples
- Art by oddeyesarcpendulumdragon featuring the enemies to lovers angle.
- Graphic/Edit by merryfortune exploring the "I want to feel alive" parallel between them and their common flower motif.