@LivyBob @LivyBob I'm glad that you agree. I toyed with the idea, but at the time I wrote the original ending, I was not brave enough to do away with one of my particularly beloved characters (and I really loved Freidrich), but I ended up doing it, and I have not once felt that it would be better the other way. I think the ending it has now fits better, no matter how sad. :'(
The main failure of the new ending, though, is that it doesn't really give as much insight as the old one did into the fates of the other characters in the story. If I ever get around to editing, I might change it just enough to address what happens to the other characters.
