An Inexhaustive Yet Thorough Look at Interrelated Headcanons Pertaining to One Osceola Redarm
Where It All Starts
Kinfleter's Syndrome
This manuscript, which may or may not reach essay-like proportions, (I cannot be sure of this fact in writing the first sentence) starts in a fairly innocuous place: Klinefleter's Syndrome.
Klinefelter's syndrome is a chromosomal abnormality in which one inherits one extra chromosome, to be specific, an extra X chromosome in a person whose other two chromosome are XY, making them biologically male, yet inheriting female characteristics such as enlarged breast tissue, broader hips, greater belly fat, and lower testosterone.
I subscribe to this head canon for two main reasons. Two noticeable Klinefelter's symptoms are unusually tall height, and gynecomastia, or enlarged breast tissue. Osceola reaches over an estimated 6'5 in his "short" form, and an estimated 8 something feet in his larger form. That is, without, of course, mentioning his Qaletaqa Taiowa form, which likely reaches over 10 feet tall. So you get the point- he's tall. Unusually so. For gynecomastia, I think all the proof you really need to see my viewpoint is the Volume 31 cover.
Of course, being a chromosomal abnormality and an intersex condition, Klinefelter's is not without it's more unsavory symptoms. Some of these include: difficulty gaining muscle mass, infertility, and delayed development. We'll come back to the last one later, but first, let's address the elephant in the room: infertility.
In accordance with the character ages revealed in the recent character book and the narration from Mephisto throughout Rin's journey to the past, we can surmise that when Osceola met his wife, Isabella, Osceola was approximately 18, with Isabella likely being in the same age range. They seemed seemed to start a family together remarkably quickly, and two teenagers in the seventies likely would not have been able to pay for intensive and expensive fertility treatments. I do believe Osceola was aware of his condition before meeting Tina, but did not actively seek out treatment, such as testosterone therapy, before joining the True Cross and gaining access to their healthcare system, due to the difficulty of obtaining hormone therapy on the reservation or while traveling. This means Osceola would have known himself to be infertile, and in accordance, likely would not have used protection with Isabella, believing conceiving a child to be impossible. However, infertile is not necessarily the same thing as sterile, and while it's true some men with Klinefelter's produce no sperm whatsoever, others simply produce a very small amount. So while the chances of having biological children naturally with Klinefelter's are very, very, very low, it's not impossible.
This would have made Tina a true miracle child, and could have deepened Osceola's attachment to her- the only daughter of a man who thought he could not have children, and likely the only child he would have biologically without medical intervention. Miracles don't often strike twice.
This mentality would also explain why Osceola latched onto family life as his purpose so quickly, and would of course contribute to his devastation over Tina's death. He not only lost his only daughter, but perhaps his only chance to ever raise a biological child. For a man who seems to treasure fatherhood, this was, as we know, completely devastating.
Now, let's circle back to on of the other symptoms I mentioned earlier, which will lead us into our next two head canons, developmental delay.
Stuttering
Most children with Klinefleter's syndrome experience one or multiple forms of developmental delay, the most common delay being speech or speech impediments. It just happens that I additionally head canon Osceola to have a stutter.
Osceola pauses very often while speaking, indicated in the text by the presence of ellipses. While not an unusual flourish when transferring to one speech bubble to another in manga, Osceola does have an unusual amount of them. While this could be shorthand for the fact that he speaking slowly or thoughtfully, I prefer to read them as breaks in the speech pattern, which could be considered unusual. Why would one pause so often when speaking? To me, it reads as what is occasionally referred to as silent strutter and more traditionally referred to as speech block, an obvious sign of a stutter.
Speech blocks happen when the vocal muscles tense or freeze, causing no sound to be produced. Generally, these occurrences happen when the speech processing system becomes overloaded, it could be compared to a computer freezing. Additionally, stress and anxiety will exacerbate a stutter. While a confident and imposing presence on the battlefield, I get the sense that Osceola is a naturally self conscious person. He seems to deeply dislike talking about his personal life to those outside of his direct circle, as seen when Shura asked him about his relationship status, and seems to be easily flustered, which we see on multiple occasions.
All of this would likely make Aria work substantially more difficult, but not impossible, as long as one pronounced all the words correctly. But it does give a second meaning to Osceola's position as frontline fighter- a stutter likely would mean that he's not the safest choice to cast barriers or provide defense- but he can handle the short arias required for his own summoning. As I mentioned earlier, the frequency of a stutter also has to with confidence, and it seems like Osceola has truly found his place on the battlefield, so I imagine it would be less of an impediment in combat.
Autism
As I mentioned previously, children with Klinefelter's often experience developmental delay. Then it should come as no surprise that one of the common commodities is Autism, a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by challenges with social communication, restricted interests, and repetitive behavior. While Osceola doesn't display outstandingly obvious traits of neurodivergence compared to characters like Lewin and Shiemi, I do believe he displays enough compelling traits, that with a particular reading of the text, could qualify one for a diagnosis of Level 1 Autism Spectrum Disorder, or the lowest level of support needs on the Autism Spectrum. Many people with Level 1 Autism live well into middle age without receiving a diagnosis, or in Osceola's time, never did or currently never do.
Starting with challenges in social communication, I feel this is best displayed by the comic strip extra in the back of Volume 31 and the flashback to Osceola's conversation with his grandmother when he was a child. Now, it's not unusual for young children to grasp firmly onto concepts imparted to them at a young age, it is unusual with the intensity that Osceola grasps onto this concept, using it a guide for how he lives the rest of his life. As well, he seems to grasp this concept very literally, only really grasping it's metaphorical nature in late adulthood.
Let's take a brief foray into repetitive interests while we examine the comic strip. Osceola likes cooking. Osceola really likes cooking. He sees it as a science he can puzzle apart, and Shirou compares him to Lewin for his focus and intensity on the subject, indicating an unusual level of interest in the subject. It is also an entirely fair comparison to make, considering Osceola asks Lewin for a 0.2c millimeter dropper for his cooking experiments. As well, the type of interaction Osceola and Lewin are having, where two people do two different activities separately while next to each other, is called parallel play, and is a hallmark of Autistic communication and connection.
Going back to social difficulties, when Shirou makes the remark that Osceola and Lewin look like father and son due to the similarity in their choice of activity and mannerisms, referring to a previous conversation the two had, Osceola seems confused, as though he either doesn't realize the similarities between himself and Lewin, or doesn't understand how their similarities make them seem related, perhaps not registering their parallel play as an unusual activity.
On the subject of rigidity, or repetitive behaviors, it feels notable to me that we do not see Osceola in a wide variety of outfits, compared to the other characters Kato draws, who are known to often vary their uniform and clothing, a unique and enjoyable hallmark of the series. Aside from commemorative art, we see Osceola wearing one of two things- his modified uniform with the same pair of pants and boots, or a plain white t shirt and jeans. This could imply a need for routine and sameness, or a sensory issue that limits clothing choices, or both.
I enjoy the idea of Osceola having autism because I read Lewin as a strongly autistic character, and the idea of Lewin having someone, particularly a parental figure, who understands him due to living with the same condition and the challenges that comes with it speaks to me deeply as an autistic person who often feels isolated due to their differences.
In Conclusion
Thank you for reading my ramble. Wether you agree with my interpretations, can see the vision, or found this to be an utter waste of your time, I appreciate those of you who read all the way to the end and I would love to hear your thoughts, as their is nothing I like more than talking about my favorite character. I found it really interesting how all three of these head canons aligned and play into each other, and the way the could potentially effect canon events and relationships in between the charcaters.
[ID: 1. Blue Exorcist Volume 31 cover. Osceola Redarm is the cover character. He is a very large muscular man with brown skin and white hair in a long braid. His chest is noticeably prominent and defined beneath his shirt. He is also wearing a sleeveless long black trench coat and black pants with various dream catchers hanging off his belt. His right arm is glowing a hot pink. His left arm is burnt red.
2. 4-koma strip titled "Shiro Asks Osceola About Fatherhood."
"I'm less Lewin's father than his supporter or servant," Osceola tells Shiro.
Later he is seen in a messy kitchen space with Lewin nearby while Shiro is seated behind him. Lewin is noted as "performing a difficult experiment" while Osceola is noted as "developing an anti-demon recipe", various small bowls around him and a pot steaming on the stove.
"Hmmm," he says, sipping at a bowl in his hand. "A fewdrops could make a difference..."
"Ever tried a dropper?" Lewin suggests.
"Got one for 0.2 milliliters?"
"Yup."
"Seem like father and son to me," Shiro comments while Osceola turns to face him, confused. /end ID]
