History Main / RedStringOfFate

* In ''Anime/TenchiMuyoWarOnGeminar'', Chiaia accidentally breaks Kenshi's necklace. When she can't repair the chain, she replaces it with a red cord that she wove herself, which he likes. When Lashara's OldRetainer tells her about an old custom about red strings symbolizing love, she gets really embarrassed and unsuccessfully tries to get the cord back.

* Gepetto from the ''ShadowHearts'' series uses this literally as his ultimate weapon. It's acquired after his sidequest, where it's revealed that his dead daughter's soul lies within his puppet, saving him from a demon. The string manifests as their filial love; Her devotion to her father, and his to his daughter (For reference, he attacks with the puppet, and puppet strings are the weapons, adding attack power and the like)

* In an episode of the "alien arc" of ''SailorMoon'' (R) Usagi states to her love rival En/An/Ann (urgh, [[SpellMyNameWithAnS transliteration problems]]) alias Natsumi Ginga that she is connected to Mamoru by the red string of destiny. Which appears on screen, only to have Natsumi cut it.

->-- ''{{TiMER}}''

* The concept is used for comedic effect in the ''TenchiMuyo'' series ''TenchiInTokyo'', where Tenchi is connected by red strings to just about every major character. For the unlearned, that's [[HaremSeries around 7 strings total]]. There's a reason MarryThemAll used to named after him...
* ''RanmaOneHalf'':

* Toward the end of the ''UruseiYatsura'' movie "Remember My Love", notorious lech Ataru is shown to have multiple red strings attached to every one of his fingers. It's implied that he might ''like'' to be faithful to Lum, but...

* A Red String appears in a flashback of Juri's recollections of her time spent with Shiori and an unnamed male character in ''RevolutionaryGirlUtena''.

* In ''{{Nana}}'', Reira writes a song about her seedy relationship with Shin by describing it as taking the red string off someone's finger.

* In the manga's 139.5 omake of ''GakuenAlice'', the hands of baby Mikan and Natsume are seen as connected by a (likely red) string.
* ''DetectiveConan: The Time-Bombed Skyscraper'' concludes with Ran selecting [[WireDilemma which color wire on a bomb to cut]]; the bomber had designed the bomb to go off if the red wire were cut, having overheard that red was her favorite color, but Ran couldn't bring herself to cut it, seeing it as the red string of fate between her and Shinichi.

* ''YuYuHakusho'': Kuwabara claimed that the way he found his love interest, Yukina, was simply by following the red string tied to their fingers. The anime provides a visual; in reality, he probably just sensed her spirit energy.

* ''KannazukiNoMiko'''s opening features the two heroines tied by a red string. It appears in the show itself in the form of Himeko's bloodied bandage which twirl around the arms of both females [[spoiler:as the gods take Chikane away in the last episode]].
* The opening of ''{{Potemayo}}'' has Mikan wearing a literal red string that supposedly attaches to Sunao, and she makes it clear during the series that she believes she and Sunao are "tied" to each other.

* ''{{Mononoke}}'' contains a variation involving a red cloth between an unborn child and their parents. A much more traditional example appears in the OP, with a red string tied to the pinky finger.
* The first ending to ''[[OddlyNamedSequel Zoku]] SayonaraZetsubouSensei'' contains lyrics mentioning this, in their usual depressing way:

* In the manga ''{{Wish}}'', when the main character Shuichiro confesses to his adoptive mother that he loves her, she tells him that she is not the one meant for him and that he needs to find the person on the other end of the string on his finger.

* This becomes a plot-point in ''MahouSenseiNegima'''s summer OVA when Yue (an IneptMage at the time) uses this on Nodoka and Negi, creating a physical red string tying the two together by their pinkies for a day.
* The trope is name-dropped in ''{{Inuyasha}}'' when Kikyou tells Inuyasha that the red string of fate, once cut, can't be restored.
** The final shot in the first ED sequence for ''{{Inuyasha}}: The Final Act'' shows a literal red string tied to Inuyasha and Kagome's fingers.

* In the ''Lightnovel/FullMetalPanic'' manga, Gauron implies that this is what [[HoYay fatefully keeps bringing him and Sousuke together]]. Sousuke does not react well to the suggestion.
* Used in an official ''[[HigurashiNoNakuKoroNi Higurashi]]'' art, for [[http://i511.photobucket.com/albums/s355/Sokumei/twin.jpg Mion and Shion]] drawn by the Watangashi/Meakashi manga artist. [[{{Twincest}} Make what you will of this]].

* In ''{{Nabari no Ou}}'', Miharu is shown with a red string on his finger after [[spoiler: erasing Yoite]].

* In ''Anime/{{Naruto}}'', we have a literal example. The titular character meets the spirit of his mother, who tells him that the reason she fell in love with his father was because, during an incident when she was kidnapped, he was the only rescuer who noticed that she had been leaving a trail of red hair. She commented that her red hair was her "personal red thread of fate", leading her to her soulmate.

* {{CLAMP}}'s romances pretty much run on this trope. Every character in the multiverse has a destined person who - as we learn in [[TsubasaReservoirChronicle Tsubasa]] - they will meet in every dimension they exist in. Which, in some cases, sucks ''[[DeconstructedTrope terribly]]'' because they can't help loving that person no matter what the hell they do to them. Some poor bastards come out of that. *cough*looking at you [[TokyoBabylon Sumeragi Subaru]]*cough*
* Done literally in MysteriousGirlfriendX in the non-manga OVA story.

** In ''Videogame/PokemonXAndY'', the Destiny Knot is given another function in breeding. If one of the Pokemon parents is holding it and is put into the daycare, the children will inherent 5 of their [=IV=]s as opposed to just 3. This makes breeding strong Pokemon much easier then in previous games.

** In ''Videogame/PokemonXAndY'', the Destiny Knot is given another function in breeding. If one of the Pokemon parents is holding it and is put into the daycare, the children will inherent 5 of their IVs as opposed to just 3. This makes breeding strong Pokemon much easier then in previous games.

* In ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica,'' Madoka giving her red hair ribbons to [[spoiler: Homura]] before [[spoiler: AscendingToAHigherPlaneOfExistence can be considered a reference to this trope. After [[spoiler: Madoka's disappearance,]] her hair ribbons are [[spoiler: [[TragicKeepsake the only thing Homura has left of her]] and the only trace that she ever existed.]]

* In ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica,'' Madoka giving her red hair ribbons to [[spoiler: Homura]] before [[spoiler: being [[RetGone Ret Gonned]]]] can be considered a reference to this trope. After [[spoiler: Madoka's disappearance,]] her hair ribbons are [[spoiler: [[TragicKeepsake the only thing Homura has left of her]] and the only trace that she ever existed.]]

* In one episode of ''RanmaOneHalf'', Shampoo attempts to use an actual magical red string to bind Ranma to her romantically.

** In the song "November Rain" from one of the albums (which is basically an angsty subversion of the [[TogetherUmbrella Umbrella of Togetherness]] trope), the lyrics strongly imply that Ranma and Akane are bound together by the Red String of Fate, even though it is currently, as Ranma puts it, "loose."

* In the ''{{Sherlock}}'' fic "[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/452818 With Your Crooked Heart]]”, most people (except those supposedly incapable of love) have words on their forearm which appear as if by magic at some point in their lives, usually during childhood. The words are in the handwriting of your True Love and may be a name, address, or cryptic clue like a poem or obscure reference. When the clue is obvious, like an address, you can hurry fate along by turning up on their doorstep, but if its as vague as a line of poetry, you may have to get to know your True Love before the clue begins to make sense.
* In the ''{{TiMER}}''-inspired ''{{Sherlock}}'' fic “[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/287582 Blue Veins]]”, everyone has a magical configuration of veins near the surface on the inside of the wrist that count down to the moment you meet your True Love.
* In the ''{{Sherlock}}'' fic “[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/440801 Put a Smile in Your Name]]”, everyone is born with the first name of their True Love in their True Love’s handwriting on their palm. Databases of this information exist and, for a fee, matchmaking companies will check for any matches between your name and the name on your palm.
* In the ''{{Sherlock}}'' fic "[[http://archiveofourown.org/works/322377 Finding John]]”, everyone is born with the first name of their True Love like a tattoo on the inside of one finger. With only a limited number of first names, it’s usually not enough information (unless you’re The British Government) to lead you to a person but once you meet your True Love, they’ll have your name too and the particular color and shade of your names will match.
* This trope is defied in the ''{{Sherlock}}'' fic, "[[https://archiveofourown.org/works/435055 To the Limits of Your Choice]]" when Sherlock chooses not to care, or perhaps not to accept the consequences of acknowledging the person symbolized by the soulmate mark on his wrist. When John finds his soulmate, Sherlock asks John to choose between camaraderie with him and romance with her [[spoiler:and John also defies this trope, choosing to continue adventuring with Sherlock]].

* In the ''{{Naruto}}'' fanfic "[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4139575/1/One_Small_Step One Small Step]]", a young Naruto can't find a partner to play Cat's Cradle - a game that involves using string to create complex patterns between the fingers - which could help him learn the handsigns necessary to work ninjutsu. After searching for someone to play the game with him, he finds Hinata and asks for her help. The two end up tying each other's hands together (with red string, naturally), which leads to them becoming childhood friends and starting to develop feelings for each other.

* {{CLAMP}}'s romances pretty much run on this trope. Every character in the multiverse has a destined person who - as we learn in [[TsubasaReservoirChronicle Tsubasa]] - they will meet in every dimension they exist in. Which, in some cases, [[DeconstructedTrope sucks ''terribly'']] because they can't help loving that person no matter what the hell they do to them. Some poor bastards come out of that. *cough*looking at you [[TokyoBabylon Sumeragi Subaru]]*cough*

* ''{{Friends}}'': WordOfGod [[{{DiscussedTropes}} mentions]] this in regards to an alternate universe episodes where [[{{OfficialCouple}} Monica and Chandler]] still end up together, despite having vastly different lives.
--> Kevin Bright: "What it says is that these two were destined to be together. That it doesn’t matter if they were skinny or large, or successful or not, that these two had something in fate that was meant to be."
** Interestingly in-universe Chandler, while viewing Monica as the love of his life, claims not to believe in soul mates. Monica is borderline as she agrees with him in one episode but calls him her soulmate in their wedding vows.

* In ''KamenRiderTheFirst'', a partially-suicidal Haruhiko runs away from the hospital to a field where he can grieve alone, only to realize that a red string had somehow caught on his clothes. Behind him walks up Miyoko, his love interest, and the string was a thread from the red sweater she was wearing which had caught and began unraveling as he ran. She directly quotes the concept, and he proceeds to hug her for all he's worth. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, since they were both [[IllGirl terminally ill]], things don't [[LoveMakesYouEvil turn out]] [[RedemptionEqualsDeath very well]].]]

* In contrast, a red string in India is usually a Rakhi and is a physical demonstration of a bond between a brother and sister. It can be tied to [[LikeBrotherAndSister any boy a girl considers to be like her brother]] and is usually used effectively to kill unwanted romantic/love interests.

* While not necessarily the romance aspect, it is heavily implied throughout ''Series/WizardsOfWaverlyPlace'' that Justin and Alex are destined to be by each others sides through thick and thin.
** ''"I'd never leave you"'' - Justin, at the end of the movie.
** Don't forget the way Alex always ends up with her head on Justin's shoulder during the last scene in break-up episodes, mainly "Wizards vs. Werewolves" and "Wizards vs. Angels".

* The concept is used for comedic effect in the ''TenchiMuyo'' series ''TenchiInTokyo'', where Tenchi is connected by red strings to just about every major character. For the unlearned, that's [[HaremSeries around 7 strings total]]. There's a reason there's a [[TenchiSolution trope]] named after him...