Shattered Wishes

"Secret wishes...  How painful they must be to bear."

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Interpretation:
    Caution: If you do not like Ruka, you will most likey not like this interpretation.
        While riding in the car, Juri says she doesn't care if her wish never comes true. She's abandoned that with the goal of saving Shiori from Ruka.  Is this really true? If that's all she wanted, she wouldn't be clinging to the memory, she could let it go as something that could not be. She could take the necklace off. But when Ruka does so, and threatens to crush it, she's furious.  Somehow, she still believes her love can be possible, somehow Shiori will turn into the girl she used to be.
        The locket represents her own coffin, the memory she is trapped in that both sustains her and holds her back.  Ruka knows this is hindering her, but it takes Dios (the power of miracles, perhaps?) to smash it, to break her free from this memory.
        A few more notes on Juri and Ruka.  During the notorious scene where he rips the necklace from her throat, does Juri seems a bit on the defensive (fists?) not just of Shiori, but of herself as well.   They weren't.....talking about Shiori that entire time.  He was talking about dating her, and her being in love with him.  Oh yes perhaps this is the ultimate insult... but still... perhaps he was hitting too close to the mark?  People tend to lash out at truths they'd rather not see.

For a theory of mine on Ruka that has relevelance to the end of the episode, click here.
 

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Brief Overview:
        Ruka dumps Shiori publically.  She's upset and doesn't come to school for several days.  After having another moralizing covernsation with Utena, Juri tries to go talk to Shiori, but Shiori will have none of it. Juri tries to convince Ruka to go back out with Shiori, but he can't understand why anyone would want to date her, and rattles off a long list of her faults.  He then turns his attentions on Juri...maybe he'll date her next?  Juri tries to hit him, and he kisses her. While kissing her he somehow detaches her locket (the boy has fast hands, ne?) and threatens to crush it. She slaps him and rescues her locket.  Ruka agrees to go back out with Shiori, and then Juri challenges him to duel. If he wins, she'd do whatever he wants. If he looses, he goes back out with Shiori. He agrees.
        Juri looses, and Touga and Akio appear with the car. Juri says she doesn't want her wish, her only goal is to free Shiori from Ruka.  Ruka is rather tacturn, because his goal in this is to free Juri from Shiori.
        They set up for the duel, Ruka drawing Juri's sword. As the duel proceeds, we see flashbacks of the earlier Juri/Ruka duel.  Juri appears to have the upperhand as Dios descends.  Dios aims not for the rose but breaks the chain that holds Juri's pendant.  It smashes on the ground as Juri stumbles drukenly in shock.  As it starts to rain, she pulls off her rose, forfitting the duel. Ruka tells her not to worry.
       The next day at fencing practice, a girl gets hurt. Juri goes to visit her in the hospital. The Shadow Girls, posing as nurses, talk about a patient who died. He had wanted to free the woman he loved in the fencing club with the power of miracles.  Juri walks outside, composing in her head things to say to Ruka when she sees him. She wonders what he wanted the power of miracles for. As Shiori runs behind her, she hopes whatever Ruka wanted comes true.