Secret Keeper: Difference between revisions
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'''Terry''': I can tell you. You can tell me. That's why I'm glad you found out, partner.|''[[Batman Beyond]]'', "Final Cut"}}
Your hero has a [[Masquerade|dirty little secret]] that is central to the character and the show's main plot. He might be a superhero, or he might have [[Dexter's Laboratory|a lab in his bedroom]], or that [[Sabrina the Teenage Witch|she's a witch]]. There will sometimes be one regular Joe who knows about the hero's secret, and will also keep it secret. The
Often, the existence of a
The [[Trope Namer|phrase originated]] in ''[[Harry Potter]]'', where the ''Fidelius Charm'' hides a secret within a living person's soul (that person would then become the "
See also [[Tongue-Tied]], for when a character is ''forced'' to keep a secret. See also [[The Confidant]], someone who keeps non-heroic secrets. For cases in which the hero doesn't ''know'' that someone knows his secret, see [[Secret Secret Keeper]]. Frequently discovers [[Keeping Secrets Sucks]], and is witness to [[The Masquerade Will Kill Your Dating Life]].
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== Anime ==
* ''[[Sonic X]]'' has Chris Thorndyke, his grandfather, and his two servants Mr. Tanaka and Ella right before everyone knows about Sonic and his friends.
* The whole premise of [[Fruits Basket]] is Tohru Honda serving as the
* Melchisedec and Carmichael in ''[[Soukou no Strain]]'' serve as Sara's Secret Keepers despite not knowing just what her secret ''is'', only that she can synchronize with a discarded Mimic.
* Hayate was the Wolkenritter's
** At the same season, there's Arisa and Suzaka discovering Nanoha and Fate's secret as [[Magical Girl Warrior]].
* Despite being in mysterious competition with one another, the members of the SOS-dan in ''[[Suzumiya Haruhi]]'', besides Haruhi herself, fiercely guard each other's [[Secret Identity|secret origins]].
* In the classic anime ''[[Kimagure Orange Road]]'', blood members of the Kasuga family all had psychic powers and a desire to keep them a secret from the general populace. This necessitates that anyone who marries into the family (such as Kyousuke's father) must become a
** Of course, the other major secret that Kyousuke has - his budding love for Ayukawa Madoka - is kept by his sister Manami.
** The Master of the local coffee shop, Abcb, knows the feelings that both Kyousuke and Madoka have for each other.
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** Komamura, Iba, Yumichika, Renji and Keigo are all secret-keepers for Ikkaku's bankai.
** Hisagi is the sole living person who knows the truth about Yumichika's abilities.
* Athrun Zala in [[Gundam Seed Destiny]] is a
* The whole [[Ouran High School Host Club|Host Club]] keeps Haruhi's real [[Wholesome Crossdresser|gender]] a secret since she's working as a Host to pay back her debt.
* Ito and Akane in [[W Juliet]] guard the secret of Makoto's real [[Wholesome Crossdresser|gender]] though a few other people eventual figure it out they have much more passive rolls.
* In [[Genshiken]] it is implied that Ohno knows about Madarame's crush on Saki, as she tries to covertly give him pictures of Saki in cosplay outfits.
* Sena's title ''[[Eyeshield 21]]'' is kept by Hiruma, Kurita, Panther, Shin, the Ha-Ha Bros.
* In ''[[Code Geass]]'', C.C. is a
* A case shows up in [[One Piece]], where Sanji, Brook, Robin and the Risky Brothers all knew about [[Heroic Sacrifice|what really happened]] between Zoro and Kuma, even keeping it a secret from Zoro himself, knowing that if Luffy found out, it would devastate him and Zoro didn't do it so people would praise him anyways.
* A handful of one off characters in the ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' anime find out about one or more of the Sailor Senshi's identities, but they usually only show up in an episode each. The manga has a few more ongoing characters learn of the masquerade (most notably Motoki). It is implied in both during ''R''/the ''Black Moon'' arc that Naru does know Usagi is part of something unusual and important but that Usagi doesn't want her to ask about it.
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** Pete Ross discovered Superman's secret ID back when he was just Superboy during a camping trip. A convenient flash of lightning revealed Clark changing clothes, and Pete kept it secret, not even letting Superboy know that he knew. He once even used his knowledge to become an honorary member of the Legion of Super-Heroes by claiming he had telepathy and knew Superboy's secret ID. Writing the identity on a lead tablet so Superboy couldn't see. Superboy assumed Pete was bluffing and that everyone else was just going along with the joke.
* More people are in on [[Batman|Bruce Wayne's]] secret than one might expect:
** Alfred Pennyworth is his primary
** Lucius Fox is sometimes portrayed as most likely knowing that Batman and Bruce Wayne are one and the same, but not telling anyone, not even Bruce, this knowledge. In the recent movies, this was expanded to him explicitly knowing his secret and being in the loop.
** In "Hush," the Riddler reveals that he deduced Batman's [[Secret Identity]] while taking a dip in a Lazarus Pit. However, Batman convinces him to keep it secret for two reasons: first, having such a secret is no fun for an obsessive puzzler like him if every one knows it, and second, it would give the owner of the Lazarus Pits, the [[Big Bad]] Ra's Al Ghul, a vital clue that the Riddler used a pit without permission and have his League of Assassins kill him no matter where he is. More recently, the Riddler has developed a mental block preventing him from remembering this.
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** In one issue of ''[[Birds of Prey]]'', Barbara Gordon revealed her operations as Oracle to her father, who was initially stunned but ultimately proud of his daughter. Barbara then pulled out her old Batgirl costume, saying, "I'm so glad that you're handling this so well, Dad, because there's more to it, I'm afraid." Jim Gordon's response: "Okay, this part I knew."
* [[Batwoman]] has her dad, Colonel Kane, who is also her main source of logistical support. Also, [[The Question|Renee Montoya]] and [[Nightwing]] deduce her identity in ''[[52]]'' (the former knows her quite intimately, while the latter comments that she has been leaving him clues on purpose as a sign of trust).
* Mary Jane Watson was [[Spider-Man (Comic Book)|Spider-Man]]'s
** MJ is still Spider-Man's secret keeper. They're just not romantically involved at this time.
** Then again in ''[[Ultimate Spider-Man]]'', including former bully Kenny McFarlane. [[Dumb Muscle|Kenny]] actually figures it out on his own, staying up late at night, thinking about Peter's new awesomeness (ie: he flipped Kenny once, broke Flash's hand, replaced Flash on the basketball team, etc.) and Spidey's apparent availability at Midtown High School. Then he tests it. Cue the subverted [[Bruce Wayne Held Hostage]].
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** Whether or not the superheroes' secret keepers are aware of the others are open to debate. Especially considering that Jean Loring knows Tim Drake is Robin, despite Tim having his identity a deep secret even from Bruce's allies.
* Wesley Dodds' girlfriend Dian Belmont knows he is [[Sandman Mystery Theatre|the Sandman]], and even occasionally helps him in his cases.
* [[Green Lantern]] Hal Jordan's first Secret Keeper was his airplane mechanic, Tom Kalmaku. When Tom accidentally learned Hal's identity, he respected GL enough to offer to let him erase the memory from his
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* The [[Trope Namer]] is Peter Pettigrew, the traitorous rat-animagus from the [[Harry Potter]] series. He was chosen by Harry's parents to guard the secret of their location from Lord Voldemort. Bad choice on their part.
** To be fair, Pettigrew was only chosen because everyone would naturally assume James Potter would select his brother-from-another-mother best friend, Sirius Black. Knowing that, the Potters decided to choose a less obvious Secret Keeper and Pettigrew became it. They just didn't know that Pettigrew was a Death-Eater...
** Later, Dumbledore is the
** Note that Harry, himself, doesn't have a
* ''[[Zorro|Zorro's]]'' mute butler effectively hides his secret identity, and even helps him out on more than one occasion.
* Safe-Keepers of Sharon Shinn's ''Safe-Keepers Series'' can be told any secret, no matter how terrible, no matter how much damage may be caused, and will never reveal it until the secret is found out by someone else, Or they get permission. Yes, they really ''will not'' tell. Never. Ever.
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* [[Deryni]] Stivana deCorwyn and her husband Keryell, Earl of Lendour had twins Alyce and Vera. As a hedge against persecution, they passed Vera off as the daughter of the human Howards. Alyce and Vera only learned of this after their parents were dead. They kept the secret between themselves and their tutor of ''ars magica'' Father Pascal until they Named their sons, when Alyce told her husband so he could assist in the ritual, and when King Donal paid a surpise visit to participate in Alaric Morgan's Naming. Alyce blocked Kenneth Morgan's memory at his request, Donal promised Vera that the secret was safe with him, and {{spoiler|both Donal and Alyce died in a few months' time}}. Morgan and Duncan kept the secret between them for many years.
* In the final books of ''[[Animorphs]]'', the Animorphs end up revealing their powers and ongoing battle to their families as part of hiding them away from the Yeerks.
** The Animorphs are also mutual Secret Keepers: their allies include a race of ancient androids who have been posing as normal humans at least since the time of the Great Pyramids, and a colony of alien freedom fighters who escaped from the Yeerks. They also know the identities of two key members of the Yeerk Peace Movement. Later, Visser One figures out that they're human (because {{spoiler|"Andalites don't make human pop culture references!"}}), while they find out that she has {{spoiler|two human children}}
* In [[A Song of Ice and Fire]], only two people survived the battle at the Tower of Joy before the start of the book: Ned Stark and Howland Reed. There are many clues for the reader as to what Ned's big secret is, but it's clear that Howland Reed is probably the only person in-universe who knows. Knowing the author's [[Anyone Can Die]] [[Shoot the Shaggy Dog]] tendencies, Howland Reed will probably still wind up dying before anybody else finds out.
* In ''[[The Wheel of Time]]'', three people know Perrin can talk to wolves: Egwene, Faile, and Elyas.(Who can also talk to wolves, and helped Perrin discover that he had the ability in the first place.) Also {{spoiler|Moiraine knew about it too, but she was out of the picture, and believed dead for 8 books and has only just returned.}}.
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* On ''[[Torchwood]]'', Rhys Williams ([[Action Girl|Gwen Cooper's]] fiance), stumbled onto proof of just what it is that Gwen does for Torchwood. Captain Jack Harkness decides to not dose Rhys with [[Retcon]] (Torchwood's amnesia pill) after he sees how much good it does Gwen to have someone outside of Torchwood to talk to about work.
* In ''[[Dexter]]'', Harry, Dexter's foster father, is the typical example. The second is the Ice Truck Killer, Dexter's nemesis, {{spoiler|who is appropriately revealed to be Dexter's biological brother.}}
* Zach was Claire's
** Ando is Hiro's
** Claire herself was the Haitian's
* Merton Dingle and Lori Baxter in ''[[Big Wolf on Campus]]''.
* Omar (and at least one other kid of John's), ''New Amsterdam.''
* On ''[[Bewitched]]'', Darrin Stephens acts as a
* The writers of ''[[Smallville]]'' have had to let so many people in Clark's secret to keep the show fresh that Lois Lane is about the only one who DOESN'T know by now. Lana, Chloe, Lionel, [[Product Placement]] Pete. And now, as of the Season 7 finale, Lex also knows.
** {{spoiler|Lois seems to know now and is currently a [[Secret Secret Keeper]] as Chloe was before her.}}
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* Gaius from ''[[Merlin (TV series)|Merlin]]'' is the only person (as yet) in town who knows about Merlin's powers, as well as being his [[Mentors|mentor]].
** Lancelot knows too, but has agreed to keep it a secret.
** Likewise, Merlin is Lancelot's
** On the same show, Gaius, Merlin and Gwen are the only ones that know Morgana has precognitive dreams.
*** [[Inverted]] in regards to Morgana in season 3. For the first half of the season only Merlin and Gaius know the secret that {{spoiler|Morgana is evil}}, but they are unable to tell anyone about it without any proof, despite dearly wanting to warn their friends.
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* ''[[Mighty Morphin Power Rangers]]'': the first people to discover the Rangers' secret identities were Rocky, Adam, and Aisha, and they pledged to keep them secret. They weren't able to play this role for very long however, as Jason, Zack, and Trini were soon "[[Put on a Bus|sent to a peace conference]]", and Rocky, Adam, and Aisha became their replacements as Rangers.
* Fran in ''[[Power Rangers Jungle Fury]]'', who discovers the secret identities of her fellow pizza-parlor staff around the time they get their [[Mid-Season Upgrade]].
* The Scoobies are [[Buffy the Vampire Slayer|Buffy's]] Secret Keepers, but this troper is not sure how "normal" any of them actually are. (Many of the Scoobies start outside the fold as "normals" and eventually get pulled in to
* [[Hannah Montana]]'s secret keepers (aside from Bobby Ray and Jackson) are Lilly and Oliver. Later, there's Jake Ryan, Lilly's mother, Oliver's mother, Officer Daria and his daughter. That is until everyone discovers the fact in the movie.
* Almost all the major [[Muggle]] characters on ''[[Kyle XY]]'' end up being this, although in this case it's also to help Kyle and Jessi. At one point, it causes a [[Crowning Moment of Funny]] for Josh as he spills all his ''other'' secrets. Josh also briefly doubles as one for Andy, before her cancer is made public.
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== Video Games ==
* In the second game of the ''[[Eagle Eye Mysteries]]'' PC [[Edutainment Game]] series, protagonists Jake and Jennifer Eagle, as well as your [[The Faceless|unseen player character]], become Secret Keepers in "Case of Blood's Bold Bauble." A distant relative tells you that there's a particular story that has been kept within his immediate family for generations: that three centuries ago, an ancestor found a small but very valuable ruby that was dropped by the titular thief Captain Blood and his gang, who beat a hasty retreat after attempting to break into the Tower of London to steal the Crown Jewels. The ancestor, fearing he would be implicated in the robbery if he tried to return the ruby, kept it for himself and only told its story to his son, who in turn told the tale to ''his'' son, and so on. By the time you, Jake and Jennifer have been told the story, the secret's origins are so distant that the ruby's revelation can no longer hurt the family; the only reason the relative tells you the story is because he thinks one of his three children, who are currently the only other people who know the family secret, might have broken the bond of parent-child trust and told the secret to cash in on
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* Max, from ''[[Batman Beyond]]''.
** As of the ''[[Justice League|Justice League Unlimited]]'' episode, Dana knows as well. Terry considered trying to [[It's Not You, It's My Enemies|break up with her for her own safety]], but was last seen asking her out while palming an engagement ring.
* Ah-Mah and Ray Ray Lee ''[[The Life and Times of Juniper Lee|Juniper Lee]]'s'' grandma and little brother respectively, and later her older brother, Dennis Lee. (Although they're not quite regular
* In ''[[Hey Arnold!]]!'', Phoebe, Patty, Trish Wittenberg, Grandpa Phil and Brainy all know Helga Pataki's most dark and deep secret: her overwhelming love for Arnold.
** As well as Helga's shrink Dr. Bliss, who is a Secret Keeper by way of professional confidentiality.
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* Trixie and Spud, from ''[[American Dragon: Jake Long]]''. In the episode where they find out about Jake's dragon powers, Jake's grandfather gives him a potion that will erase their memories and [[Reset Button|put everything back the way it was]] to maintain the [[Masquerade]] around the magical world. In a subversion of [[Status Quo Is God]] (and possibly as a "screw you" to ''[[Juniper Lee]]'', which had a reset after her friends found out), he pours it out in a potted plant rather than dose their drinks, and they continue to help him in both forms.
* The Holograms (Kimber Benton, Shana Elmsford, Aja Leith, and Carmen 'Raya' Alsono) from ''[[Jem and The Holograms]]'' count here as well.
* In ''[[He-Man and the Masters of the Universe]]'', only a few others know Adam is He-Man: Cringer, Orko, Man-at-Arms, and the Sorceress. In the spin-off ''[[She-Ra: Princess of Power|She Ra Princess of Power]]'', his twin sister Adora had Kowl, Madame Razz, Light Hope and Spirit who share her [[Secret Identity]] as She-Ra. They're
** He-Man also, at the Sorceress' request, keeps the secret that the Sorceress is Teela's mother.
* Both averted and played straight in ''[[Kim Possible]]''. Averted in that [[Action Girl|Kim's]] hero status is publicly known. Played straight with Ron Stoppable when he attended a [[Academy of Adventure|ninja school]]; he promised Yori and Master Sensei that he wouldn't tell anyone about the school, even Kim. Later in the series, Yori allowed Ron to tell Kim (who had already discovered the truth about the school on her own). Presumably Kim then became a Secret Keeper for the school as well.
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