Why did you end it there? This is so well-written that I was completely consumed and I didn't expect to finish there.I was hoping to read more of their relationship and what it changes to.Anyways, this is a great story and defines the mirror in a whole new way.

What a magnificent examination of what turns a man into a monster. In illustrating the history behind his brutality, you have given Mirror Kirk a depth and character which effectively transform him into so much more than a one-dimensional parody of his Federation counterpart. His regrets, his rationalisations, and his capitulation to the accepted, violent social norms of his universe--all make him terribly feckless, yet only too human, and in showing us this Kirk's inner world, you show us so much more than the hysterical, paranoid rage which was very nearly his only response to the other people in the original Mirror episode. A very sympathetic portrayal, and by the end I found myself very much hoping for that revolution.

Excellent peripheral treatment of Spock's character as well. I like how you've determined a reason for Sarek to disown him in this universe, effectively maintaining the 'mirror image' TOS universe.

I also very much enjoyed your use of proverb in the title. Very clever, and beautifully apt.