#(ALL KAGEPRO GIRLS ARE GOOD)

[davidchiemcore]

its kagepro day so im gonna try to assign lyrics to each drdt character! some of these are more stretches than others but i went through all of the music route songs to find what i felt were the best fits

teruko: "She, however, had disappeared. Her warm words, repeated over and over, easily turned to hatred in my brain" Dead and Seek

xander: "So what do you think of this heat, and our values that just so happen to meet? 'Not so bad, is it?' When we open our eyes, and clasp our hands…" Children Record

charles: "With a hardened heart, I resign to loneliness, living out my days seeing only 'things'" Imagination Forest

ace: "Just as it came to my ears, I heard; 'you want to survive, yes?' Waving over the wriggling world, the skyscrapers seemed to tremble, this voice seemed unmistakable; it was my own, which I tired of hearing" Headphone Actor

arei: "'I'm so lonely' although I said it, I won't ever change. I'm so disgusted by myself, that I can't help but sneer" Yobanashi Decieve

rose: "The meanings and dreams and circumstances cobbled together make a head sunk in endless thoughts" Konoha's State of the World

hu: "With fear in their eyes, they cry 'I'm just a monster' So I tell them, 'That's not true at all, red is the color of a hero, so there's no need to be afraid'" Ayano's Theory of Happiness

eden: "Boys and girls, face forwards, finding hope in only the shimmering heat. Recall, and bring to words, your miraculous encounters and farewells…" Children Record

levi: "The alarm that starts ringing says to the lonely me: 'you're a cold hearted fool'" Transparent Answer

arturo: "The dogwood in the garden was so beautiful I couldn't help but look at it enviously. In contrast, I'm such a hopeless case" Never Lost Word

min: "If you're asking about my results, well, they're fine, I guess. On the recycled paper was a perfect 100% score. While grinning shyly, you sat down on the chair next to me, you, the one with the low grade" Transparent Answer

david: "It's like torture, but i cant say so- I'm drowned in cheering, but... 'Am I really that good?' I'm just a bore - I don't get it!" Kisaragi Attention

veronika: "A lifetime of anxiety awaits you tomorrow 'Now, now, this can't really be it?' If you, swaying, etch the beat into your mind you'll see that this isn't so bad" Mekakushi Code

j: "My face is like an open book, for some reason I get so nervous that even my voice squeaked! What's wrong with me?! This is pissing me off! I'm such a fool" Yuukei Yesterday

whit: "If I'm wishing for a dream that can't come true. then I'll embrace this blurry past" Lost Time Memory

nico: "There was a puppy, rain-soaked like me and i begged it to understand me. I embraced it and said 'you wont bully me right? Let's become friends without words' " Shounen Brave

[yuukei-yikes]

One of my favorite parts of the modern Kagepro fandom is how I feel like there’s this unanimous idea of how Momo uses her powers. It’s like, she is cursed to always be in the spotlight despite her wishes, so there’s this idea of her using it for good. This idea of her being maybe openly gay in some readings, plus sized, or even just being vocal about mental health and depression because of her brother. This idea that if she is going to have everyone’s attention, better not waste it.

yes!!!!! i love it too!! and it's genuinely so in character because you can of course have an ability u can do good with, but u don't Have to, like u can just live ur life. but momo WOULD! she would want to use it to help others, i mean she does it in canon with hibiya!

the fact she hates being an idol, but she still loves the joy she brings to people. augh. i love her doing all that and imagining she actually quits being an idol but stays as a public figure bc she can't really Help it, ability or not, she's already really famous and people love her, but she focuses on making all this nice happy positive content. and momo's also such a weird girl like jin really writes her as like "the girl with pretty privilege who's actually kind of a weirdo" and tbh it's funny. so her being genuine is sooo 💗

mannnnnnn.... her taking control of it instead of being sent everywhere by managers... auughh

momo's ability gathers attention, not good or bad, just attention, so i bet she has a lot of people who dislike her and are like ugh she should've just stuck to singing she's soooo annoying now or lol her career is 100% going downhill. but it never does 'cause erm! she knows how to control her ability now. her popularity is always intact. Heh

[stepswowdsen]

【KagePro】 KuroEne AU: Kuroha/Saeru flirts with Ene 🖤💙

(CW: Suggestive dialogue)

Summary:

Kuroha/Saeru flirts with Ene and gently takes her sleeves away from her face when she gets embarrassed

Maid Kuroha and Ene roleplay game: Ene tries to tease Saeru but he just takes the opportunity to tease her back

Me: The thought just came to me.

KuroEne is Yapper (Ene) meets Mega Yapper (Kuroha)

He'll take turns being the Yapper or Listener to his Yapper GF

Usually Ene's the yapper, but in the KuroEne ship, Kuroha/Saeru becomes the new yapper.

F: People with too much knowledge will randomly spew out something out of pocket that can go on for literal minutes

Me: Reminds of when you were like "I bet Kuroha/Saeru's the type of guy that would give Fun Facts ™️ to Ene, but it's all about snake mating"

He'd do it just to see her embarrassed/flustered reactions

Putting his encyclopedia brain to use 👍

Ene: I DIDN'T NEED TO KNOW THAT!!! (//>~<//)

F: God damn it, I knew it. This guy is nothing but a troublemaker

Me: Kuroha would bring up random fun facts to tease Ene. They'd be "Did you know" level fun facts about snake mating/biology. And he'd tease her including with dirty comments JUST to embarrass/fluster Ene and see her blush.

F: Imagine just dead silence at first, and then he randomly just goes, "Hey, did you know that…"

Me: The fact that Ene's already this embarrassed around KONOHA who is super dense…

Lord have mercy when it's Kuroha/Saeru teasing her... Because he's someone who's actually good at seeing through her and reading her feelings, too.

Ene covering her face with her sleeves is sooo cute. Ily wifey 💙

F: IMAGINE HER REACTING LIKE THIS

Me: OOOGH SO CUTE MY WIFEY!!! God he'd just want to tease her more

F: Girl, get yourself up and tease him back with human sex ed /j

Me: He would laugh and then gently take hold of her wrists and pull them away from her face

Me: Bold of you to assume he wouldn't know about human sex ed. You just know he'd be excited by that.

He likes getting teased, so Ene teasing him wouldn't have the intended effect she was going for. Basically she wouldn't really fluster him as she would've hoped.

Embodiment of knowledge, everybody.

F: OKAY IT WILL NOT WORK 😭

Me: When Ene covers her face with her sleeves after Kuroha teases her, he would laugh, and then gently take hold of her wrists and pull them away from her face

F: And if he's in the mood enough, might as well pin her down as he does it

Me: Ok that's hot.

Me: Small dialogue snippet for now

Kuroha: Wahhh~ Is the little bunny hiding behind her sleeves~? So cute~ I wonder... What should the big bad snake do about this......? (¬ᴗ¬)

Kuroha: ...Should I just devour you whole?

Kuroha: Come on~ Don't hide from me, Ene. But I suppose that's a cute trait of yours. (^-^)

Ene: C-c-c-c-cute!?!?!?

Ene: (Well, of course I'm the cutest, but hearing it from him is just...! Why's my face turning all red!?!?)

F: It's so cute yet so scary to imagine ngl

Me: Ene thinks she can tease Kuroha and actually fluster him...

And then the Expectations vs. Reality hits in fast for her.

Saeru can get caught off guard and surprised (or in some cases, mad), but not embarrassed.

Me:

(Ene in her dreams/imagination)

Ene: Yeah yeah yeah!!! I'm gonna be the one to tease him this time!!! I'm gonna make him WHIMPER!!!

Kuroha: (→ Amused by her antics)

Kuroha: Oh, you never change, little rabbit... You look like you're having fun at least.

Kuroha: Oh, how I envy your baseless confidence… So much I want to taste it on my lips. I wonder if you can still say the same, then?

F: What if Kuroha decided to act out her dream lmao, it'd be funny

Me: Oh yeah I feel like there would definitely be times where he acts submissive on purpose for their intimacy.

And Ene would just be thinking to herself, "This is kinda pissing me off, I know he's just doing it on purpose!" (//>3<//)

F: YEAHH WKSHSK

Maid Kuroha and Ene

Me: I remember I had this one scenario with KuroEne's intimacy but it's maid Kuroha dressing up for Ene and he still teases her and such.

Basically he acts like Ene's loyal faithful servant, while getting a leg up on her, teasing her every chance he can get.

Ene was hoping she'd finally get the chance to tease him, but nah this guy is just doing whatever tf he wants, only acting submissive cuz he thinks it makes their game interesting.

Kuroha is aware of Ene's antics with Shintaro and how she calls him "Master" (ご主人, Goshujin) and such.

Maid Kuroha copies Ene's "Master~" (ご主人, Goshujin) shtick with Shintaro, and calls her Goshujin-sama (ご主人様) and plays up to all her whims.

I should post this set of dialogue scripts sometime... It has really fun dialogue

F: YEAHH WKSHSK

Me:

Maid Kuroha and Ene scenario:

Kuroha: I'll serve you faithfully, Master~ 💞🫶

Kuroha: (→ Blows a kiss) 😘💘

Ene: You're just copying me!!! 💢

F: EEEKKK

This is kind of silly but funny to think about.

(God I wish Ene's b-day was revealed)

Like imagine him acting like this on her birthday as an act of service for her www

Me: UWAHHHH THIS WOULD BE SO CUTE

Also GOD same.

I wanna have a day to celebrate my wifey's birthday!!!

Jin, release Takane/Ene's birthday!!! Why tf is she the only one whose birthday is being kept secret...

[joy-crimes]

I remember on one of Mar's streams recently you talked about this web comic or manga about interconnected characters and why this one girl was important to them, and showed how the anime ruined a certain scene because it was low budget or something compared to a fan animation. At the time of the stream I swore I would look it up because it looked interesting, I guess i forgot & just now remembered. Unfortunately, I can't find the stream you talked about it on, so I was wondering if you could maybe remember please, sorry to ask like this.

that was almost definitely kagerou project (aka kagepro)

the character in question is Ayano

her song in the original story (Told through a series of vocaloid music videos) could be considered to be the emotional climax of the series. or at the very least, its the part where many alluded plot points are revealed.

in the anime, however, it was replaced with a poorly animated 3D CGI music video with INCREDIBLY poor visual representation of what was actually going on.

this, unfortunately is in line with the anime’s visual style, which seemed to have such a low budget that it almost seemed entirely like limited animation, filled with wide shots that allowed the team to barely ever even draw faces on the characters.

This is most egregious when you remember it was made by SHAFT, which has a reputation for making EXTREMELY technically impressive media on extremely small budgets, though 2 other SHAFT products, both part of the monogatari series, were in the works at the same time. which alludes to the idea that resources were clearly not allotted to make the anime any good at all.

Anyways! its a great series! check it out :) just maybe dont watch the anime. the manga, light novels, and music videos all get the job done WAYYYY better.

[harapeveco]

Besties who love vocaloid I need your help! So when I was 16 or so I was obsessed with this song like it was really good and catchy and I listened to it on loop so much so I got bored of it and deleted from my phone. That was years ago so I mostly forgot about it until recently I got it stuck in my head and I’ve been singing it so I still remember it but I don’t remember the name at all so pls help me find it!

Things I remember about the song that may help into finding it:

The MC looked like Levi from aot. There was also a little girl that either had pigtails or a ponytail

There were trains a lot of trains

The singer was Miku

I believe the animator was Sidu (the same person who animated most of Kagepro) and if it wasn’t her then it was someone with a similar art style

I think the MC dies by the end?

I can’t really detail too much of the song itself bc I don’t understand music but the beginning is like really abrupt? It just starts with a lot of force idk how to describe it

Like I said I was probably 16 at the time so maybe it came out around 2016? Maybe 2017? Idk anyway if you know which one I’m talking about pls let me know! I’ve tried all the keywords with the word train I could come up with but nothing similar is appearing for me so yeh….

[alivish]

I Want a Milgram and Prosekai Collaboration

Is this going to happen?

Probably not.

But I still want one, so if by some magic in the next announcement stream that's happening in two days it's revealed that Project Sekai is going to have a collaboration with Milgram I will gladly hand over my soul.

Anyway here's my predictions for what would realisticly happen.

Predictions

We're not getting all 20 songs. It's just too much.

I think realistically we'd get 3 songs, Undercover, a song from trial 1, and a song from trial 2.

It would probably be MeMe and Purge March, the both of them respectively being the most popular song of their trial.

MeMe will probably go to Nightcord, it could also go to Leo/need but they were already in the KagePro collab and MeMe's like one of the most mental illness songs there probably Nightcord.

Purge March is going to go to Wonderlands x Showtime, I don't think I even need to explain. It's just obvious.

For Undercover it'd probably go to Leo/need or VBS because it's definitely not going to MMJ, though I think they'd do great.

However I think it could also be a mixed cover, like the anniversary songs. My personal picks would be Honami, Haruka, Akito, Rui, and Ena.

The reason is that they do not have Into the Night Covers and I feel like they're the most likely to end up in Milgram. It just makes sense.

Funny Thing That I Want to Happen

So, I've already said MeMe is going to Nightcord and Purge March is going to WxS and I still believe that's how it's probably going to play out, but what I truly want is MeMe Tsukasa and Purge March Mafuyu.

Mafuyu and Amane just make sense, Amane tries her best to be a good girl, while Mafuyu's been a good girl to the point it breaks her. Purge March is a song about Amane disavowing Milgram, while with Mafuyu it could be about her disavowing her mother or trying to take control of her life back. It just lines up rather well. Also Mafuyu would kill it.

Tsukasa and Mikoto is more of a weird thing which is definitely impacted by my personal bias of me just liking them, but I feel like Tsukasa fits Mikoto the best. Mikoto's work hard at the exspense of his own health and happiness, Tsukasa does that too. John's desire to protect Mikoto but also kind of failing at it, translates pretty well to Tsukasa's wish to make people smile but also kind of failing at it, anyone remember HEY GIRL!

I do think that if Tsukasa were to cover any Milgram song my first thought would be Double, however we're probably going to get MeMe if a collab ever did happen. I do not know how good a Tsukasa MeMe cover would sound, I think Daisuke could pull it off, but I don't think we've seen him sing anything like MeMe.

Another Funny Thing That Could Happen

MeMe still goes to Nightcord and Purge March to WxS, but the Alt Cover of MeMe goes to Tsukasa and Purge March to Mafuyu.

If you can't tell I just really want MeMe Tsukasa and Purge March Mafuyu.

[chkn-kit]

10 more songs I want in proseka + groups that would fit them

I'M MAKING THE SECOND PART NOW. Here's the previous post.

Again, there units chosen for each song is very much based off vibes and my own interpretations so feel free to switch them around!

And just to make sure everyone's on the same page:

SPOILERS FOR THE JP VERSION

Kisaragi attention - JIN

Unit: MORE MORE JUMP! Singers: MMJ + Rin

First of all, I gotta say that if I COULD add all kagepro songs in the game, I would. The fact that we have an idol character in the series but no MMJ covers is a crime and that's why I'm adding this song.

Haruka, Shizuku, and Airi have all shown hesitation toward being an idol in the main story. One because of the public attention not being what they wanted out of it (Airi), and another because they don't feel like they deserve to be called an idol anymore (Haruka and Shizuku). To be fair, at this point Kisaragi attention seems a little out of character, but the three of them all experienced a lot of hesitation toward their occupations and got over it. I also think Minori (and MMJ Rin) embody the clumsy and insecure nature of the MC in the song.

Dream-eating monochrome baku - Nem

Unit: Wonderlands x Showtime Singers: Rui, Tsukasa, Len

Hmm remember what I said last time about not wanting to repeat the same pairings over and over again-

I couldn't NOT give this song to these three. I think the vibe of the song fits them so well and Rui especially would sound good in the chorus. Also I want to hear the little 'oh!'s in the song LMAO. They already added it's a wonderful cat life so... I vote for this one too :D

A happy death - Kikuo

Unit: Nightcord at 25:00 Singers: Kanade, Mafuyu, (+ Miku)

I think people forget how pretty this song is since it gets overshadowed by Kikuo's other works, but I think it deserves a spot on here. (Not that it isn't a popular song of course but it's just not the first song people think of when they think of Kikuo.)

Kanade's character and her whole 'wanting to save people with her music' somewhat falls into place with the song. 'Saving' is being represented by killing the 'you' in the song, which is definitely not what we're trying to do-

But if we really want to go into the nitty gritty, we can say that we are saving Mafuyu by killing the 'good girl' persona she is putting up. Let's not take the song too literally haha.

(+ Kanade would sound nice singing this song.)

Sugar Guitar - Police Piccadilly

Unit: Leo/Need Singers: L/N + Len

The sound fits well since its instrumental is pretty straightforward for bands. The theme of 'trying to find what you want to do in the future and going for it' fits well since L/N is still trying to find their sound and identity and what they want their band to be (I mean, 'resonating with you' was literally all about what they wanted to do in the future).

Also, it's a bop.

What else can you ask for?

Shinitai Juudai, Koroshitai Nijuudai - Nashimoto-P

(I must add that there is no official translation of the title but I think most people know the song as 'Wanting To Die In My Teens, Wanting To Kill In My Twenties') Unit: Nightcord at 25:00 Singers: Mizuki, Mafuyu, KAITO

I wanted to add in a Nashimoto-P song but I think most of them fall in a genre that don't line up with the game. It was either this one or AaAaAaAAaAaAAa, but after Mafuyu's character development on JP, I think this one fits better.

The N25 crew have all grown to a point where they can do a little reflection on themselves. And as we all know

"you must fight your mother, Mafuyu"

LOL

Kire carry on - Police Piccadilly

Unit: Leo/Need Singers: L/N + MEIKO

I can't believe I repeated the same producer in the same list with the same unit.

But the vibes on this one just *chefs kiss* immaculate.

Corruption - Parsley Onuma

(I put Onuma's self-cover in the post because the Miku version has some gore/body horror in the thumbnail/video in case people don't want to see that.

If you want the original you can just click here instead. The tuning is really nice!)

Unit: VIVID BAD SQUAD Singers: Akito & Toya

Hmmm I love this song sm. The main reason I put this song with VBS is because of how it sounds. I noticed a lot of VBS' songs are more rhythmic...? In nature? I'm not sure how to describe it because I never took music classes (all the terminology is above me).

The themes in the song are what lead me to giving it to the good ol' BAD DOGS with no vocaloids added into the mix. From what I'm getting, the MC despises the life they've been living and they feel like they're stuck in a loop of breaking, fixing, and masking themselves. They start to hate the person they're becoming. I think they end up leading a life of anger and spite, but instead find their salvation (the 'you' in the song) which is probably what the 'corruption' in the title refers to.

The song is pretty hard to interpret considering that the story is told from the MC's perspective, but nevertheless, I think it has enough tie-ins with Akito and Toya that I gave it to them.

Toya needed an escape from his home-life which stemmed from spite and in turn brought him to Akito. Akito needed something to help fulfill his desire to be worth something more which brought him to music (and to Toya).

Now sidenote: the themes are also N25 themes, but I don't know how many other people have noticed this but Toya's and Mafuyu's stories are incredibly similar. They would literally be in the same position storywise if it wasn't for the fact that Toya had the Tenmas to open his eyes earlier on in his life.

But that's a whole different tangent for a different day OOP

Yuukei Yesterday - JIN

Unit: MORE MORE JUMP! Singers: Minori, Haruka, Miku

FINE. ANOTHER KAGEPRO SONG FOR MMJ. SUE ME! (Don't)

Yuukei yesterday is just so upbeat and wholesome. I think it fits with Minori's awkwardness when interacting with Haruka even if she isn't a tsundere like the MC of the song. I think her vocals would be really cute in the chorus ueueue

Common world domination - Pinocchio-P

Unit: Wonderlands x Showtime Singers: WxS + Rin

I had to double check if this song was in the game or not. I think it could work nicely as a WxS cover since the song is so nonsensical and upbeat. I think any of the WxS members could sound great taking the lead in this song.

But despite that I also think they could also just add the original in the game as a VIRTUAL SINGER song instead of a unit cover :0

My discovery - Seeeeecun

Unit: VIVID BAD SQUAD Singers: VBS + KAITO

With 'Light up the fire' being... a thing... and Taiga essentially saying all their efforts are going to waste since it's impossible for them to surpass RAD WEEKEND I think adding this song could be interesting.

From what I'm getting, the MC is reflecting on how useless they've become with their future amounting to nothing despite their best efforts. They see themselves as a failure and see their past confidence as nothing but a falsely inflated ego.

I really wanted to add this producer to the list because I think their music is very interesting. I think the word for what they add is 'dissonance'? Anyway, go take a look if you've got time :D

~~~

If you read this entire thing I APPLAUD YOU. Especially if you listened to the songs as well. Please discuss the choices or songs with me, I love talking about this stuff! I'd love to hear about suggestions from other people as well.

[epicfranb]

Re: describe the female character or anvil falls on thee

Vent about AnXiEtY DisOrDeR under cut

Not rereading that so there may be stupid autocorrect typos

There was a time i made only female characters and struggled to make male ones. All of them had different personalities, as good as a 10 year old could make them. Moved on to making male and non-binary (not realizing they're non-binary yet) a whole lot later.

My problem here is that, while there are female mcyts i like... I'm just not into them as much as Etho and Bdubs. It goes for literally every other mcyt as well. In my dsmp era, there just weren't creators that caught my interest; i really liked Aimsey and Crumb, but i could not for the life of me stay on stream for as long as Tubbo's streams, and after a while i stopped forcing myself because what fun is it, forcing yourself to watch a steamer for some sense of moral goodness? If anything, i think watching a female streamer for the sake of watching a female streamer is actually worse than being honest in saying "there just aren't any that i enjoy" cuz it's true that there are less of them, and/or they are less popular, so you're less likely to come across one you like.

Hermitcraft/Life Series/Empires/whatever is the first time there are female mcyts that i can confidently say i enjoy a lot. Pearl, Cleo and Shelby in particular are my faves. But i watch each of them fairly casually. I probably couldn't write an in-depth analysis of their character as well as i could ethubs. But that sort of goes for literally everyone else on those servers. The post doesn't talk about an analysis, i know, but when harsh wording like this comes up... Not only is it the situation where you're asked for something, and you immediately forget everything about it, it's also like being backed into a corner and forced to answer calmly. Oh AND a "don't think about X" situation where you're bound to think about X.

The post originally doesn't talk about mcyt tho. It's about characters. Last time i was fully into written characters was Kagepro, where admittedly i was also into 2 guys that i shipped the hell out of, to the point of shoving everyone else in the background. I could still write them fairly well - helps that there aren't real people behind them whose decisions often contradict, but also I'd say they're pretty simple characters once you break then down (i could talk a lot about kagepro). I particularly liked writing Ene for how much of a troll she is. Being nerdy about games and technology certainly helped.

Lastly, there's Winx which I am. Sort of? Into rn? Where all 6 of the main characters are girls and the male characters, each of their boyfriends (yeah all of them conveniently have boyfriends) are the one-dimensional guys with very little going in terms of their stories and personalities. But In Winx, their characters are very typical, so it's easy to describe them. All of them can be described as "she's A and B, but also C and D" They're not bad characters, they're certainly not one-dimensional, but they are very simple.

So, what do i want to say with this? I guess this could be called sort of a vent. The deal with those kinds of posts is that i know they address a problem that exists. I know they're targeted at a specific type of person that exists. I know it's likely a rhetorical question just to bring to light how female characters are often treated. But this kind of post also makes me start looking within myself, even when i know I'm ok with writing female characters, i KNOW i don't have the problem being described!!! I'm not saying I'm free from misogyny, but this problem I KNOW i don't have. It makes me feel bad though when i don't want to describe a female character or when i fall flat on any description, whether it's cuz i just don't want to or because I'm not in right mood. Idk, it's just something anxiety does where it makes me question myself.

Tldr I agree with the message of the post but i don't like it because of the way it affects me personally.

[mekatrio]

rambling rambling abt how ive been misunderstanding kagepro for a long time ramble ramble

i will be the first to admit that as an english speaking kgpr fan from ye olden days, theres like.... A Lot of kagepro media that i havent actually consumed. and a lot of my understandings from many of these character are like, not fully complete? and instead formed from various misconceptions, like for example hibihiyo, my understanding of them (poor hiyori and hellish stalker) really only came from that one novel chapter with hibiya's creepy backstory, the scraps from the manga (and even that i didnt completely read in full), and the mvs. but like the novel paints a much more comprehensive picture of the both of them (insanely good parallel to yuukei quartet while also playing the role of 'children' in the adult/child dichotomy?!) that is much much better than what it looks on the surface? especially with just how different otsukimi recital is in the novel vs the mv? and also with how ive been obsessing with seto recently, this is the first time ive ever had a seto phase in all my years of falling in and out of this franchise? and its great??

what im essentially saying, is that bc of the pacing of kagepro media releases and the added hurdle of needing translations.. i havent properly experienced kagepro ever, actually. and im very pleased that a lot of the complaints i held towards it are turning out to be misconceptions, and kagepro is actually wayyy better than i thought it was?!

yes there are still the tints of misogyny, hibiya's creepiness towards hiyori is just something you have to turn away from to enjoy this franchise unfortunately, and the female POVs have pretty stereotypical talk abt maintaining beauty and weight and whatnot, but in spite of that... it still tells a really compelling, fleshed-out story. like Every character is densely developed that its kinda insane. and its especially crazy when you realize just how young jin and sidu were when they were making this project, being overworked to the bone.

when i was a young and dumb teenager, i was really critical of this project but looking back its like.... yeah i was really fucking dumb, bc i had misunderstood massive parts of it. of course a lot of the medias werent accessible to me, and kagepro DOES sound grossly misogynistic on a surface level lol (2 guys who academically excel and 3 girls who dont like huh?), but i was jumping to conclusions when i didnt have the whole picture yet. that was dumb of me. so im really glad i gave experiencing kagepro again a chance, especially with the PLETHORA of background knowledge i have about it... woooooo!!

[fuckyeahkagepro]

some Kagepro fan: 'why do you care about Hibiya and Hiyori so much'

me: wAVING FURIOUSLY IN THE DIRECTION OF KAGEPRO ARTIST WANNYANPUU'S KAGEROU DAZE PV / MUSIC VIDEO FROM 2011 WHICH IS ONE OF THE SOLE REASONS WHY THIS FANBASE EVEN EXISTS (ALSO THEY'RE PRECIOUS)

[kozakuwas]

bro kagepro illness also hitting me so hard rn. i mean, ALWAYS. im always very ill but rn... I FEEL SICK!! anyways. lets join our forces. harutaka and kidomomo. tell me abt them <3 anything u want <3 do u think theyd go on double dates <3 i think kido&takane make a good duo cuz Music buddies and kido is honestly pleasantly surprised to see who they know as ene act very normal for once. they're like i thought ene was batshit insane. and takane's like No i am. but i can also be normal<3 and haruka&momo have little art clubs :3 momo is haruka's first job methinks. as like art lessons. very early str haruka's picking himself up and etc etc and momo's like HI. DRAW WITH ME and keeps insisting to pay him and he's like IM NOT A PROFESIONAL U DONT GOTTA PAY ME ALSO UR A FRIEND but momo's like ratio+i have money+u need money+IM PAYING YOU. erm. sorry that was weird im normal. i swear i was just gonna ask a question not go insane on ur askbox. TELL ME ABT HARUTAKA AND KIDOMOMO:3

AUGH 💥💥 i can absolutely see kido and takane hanging out, and the haruka and momo hangout thing reminds me of my fav kdmm fic where haruka was momo's wingman who got her to finally confess to kido. ough... god haruka teaching momo how to draw is smthn ive had in mind for SO LONG. like them drawing and haruka giving momo both art and dating advice. they're buddies post str. i just know it bugs the hell out of shintaro that his sister has gotten so close with his homie too, but he still prefers that than her hanging with takane (he thinks she's a bit of a bad influence. he does not need his sister turning into takane 2). ALSO IMAGINE MOMO DOING HARUKA'S MAKEUP. girls night <3

anyways back to kido and takane. yes they would get along great i feel, like them sharing their music recs!! kido recommending some radiohead while takane recommends the most skull shattering heavy metal songs ever. and also takane gives kido relationship advice too. like whenever ayano gives kido advice takane comes in after she leaves like "hey, all of that she just told you? Forget It. anyways..." (sorry ayano but we dont need kidomomo becoming like. you and shintaro </3)

and i just think kido and takane would just. sit in kido's room and just talk and Vibe, y'know? like takane is the best to have a convo with and yes its refreshing for kido to finally see takane's more normal side

and HRTK KDMM DOUBLE DATE SO REAL AND TRUE. momo and takane are already like this 🤞so it gives haruka and kido an opportunity to know each other better (their partners are also enjoying seeing them get along too) and ooh imagine them going to an arcade for a double date. kido and takane headphone actor rematch no powers involved. takane fucking SMOKES kido. didnt give them a chance to breathe lmao. meanwhile momo and haruka are trying to win every plushie in the crane machine. hrtk and kdmm end up going home each with like 7 plushies. the end ❤️

bonus-

kido: why does takane call you babygirl

haruka why does momo call you babygirl

kido:

haruka:

sorry if this post isnt organized but none of my posts are lol. also UR KAGEPRO MADNESS IS ALWAYS WELCOME IN MY INBOX WE ARE ALL INSANE HERE ON KAGETUMBLR 💥💥

[emiliosandozsequence]

do you have anime recs for someone who has seen like.. three. :)

I DO!!!!

here are some of my favs :3

aldnoah zero (scifi mecha in space; it has a lot of wasted potential, but i really love it anyway; mainly bc the mech is cool and the score is amazing)

86 (scifi mecha on earth; please watch this one; it's truly the most well shot anime i've ever seen; and the score is fucking amazing)

deadman wonderland (horror psychological; this one has a much better manga than anime, but i thought the anime was good; it should've just gone on longer)

mobile suit gundam: the witch from mercury (scifi mecha in space; contrary to popular belief, this is pretty easy to understand without having seen the rest of the gundam series; make sure you watch the prologue too!!)

eureka seven (scifi mecha on earth; the mech in this one is ALSO really cool and the characters are so lovable <3)

mawaru penguindrum (magical girl slice of life with penguins; kinda sexual for literally no reason, but i think the story is really sweet)

elfen lied (scifi psychological horror; this is the first anime i ever watched all the way through, but it's so amazing; it is also sexual for no reason, but it has a very special place in my heart)

fullmetal alchemist: brotherhood (you've probably heard of this one, but it really is as good as everyone says)

kiznaiver (scifi psychological; this one reminds me of kagepro mixed with dmwl; it was the show that got me back into watching anime)

princess tutu (magical girl fantasy with ducks and swans; it's a story of the swan princess and it's done so well; definitely made for kids, but the meaning can definitely reach adults too <3)

shigatsu wa kimi no uso/your lie in april (depressing slice of life; i watched this originally because the mc is a violinist like i am and it broke my heart <3)

koe no katachi/a silent voice (sad slice of life; i watched this with one of my best friends because she's deaf and i'm hard of hearing, so we connected with this one a lot; i really love the animation also)

bubble (scifi romance; this was such a cute movie omg; i absolutely adored it and the score is to die for)

there is a lot more than this that i like, but this is everything that came to mind right away!! please let me know what you think if you watch any of these anon!! 🥰

[yuukei-yikes]

hie I've just been sitting here thinking about harutaka fighting I know the whole "I knew i was gonna die and didn't tell you" is prime material for them to fight But I like to think about like Long term how they deal with little inevitable conflicts Bc those are gonna happen when you wanna spend your life by someone's side I feel like Haruka's reaction is most often just To immediately apologize He wants to fix things He doesn't want anyone to be upset So he slaps a bandaid over it! Takane however Needs to experience her feelings even if they suck She needs to get mad She needs to get sad (and try to cover up that sadness with angry outburts) I think there's times Haruka apologizes to try and soothe a conflict and she gets upset because it's really not his fault and she wishes he'd get mad instead! I think eventually they kinda learn Takane needs her moment to run through her feelings and just because she's crying screaming punching a pillow doesn't mean it's personal And Haruka needs to learn that sometimes it's okay if things feel bad for a bit, it's better to talk things through than to bury them under panicked pacification. A tense afternoon isn't going to undo their pile of happy memories. Honestly I wanna see Haruka try to get mad about something. Restaurant got his order wrong or something. And Takane's just there like yeah!! Tell them!!! And he immediately deflates when he has their attention (also if this characterization is a little off I apologize!! I hadn't touched kagepro in a while and have just recently gotten sucked back into the hyperfixation but haven't freshly gone through all the material yet. I'm slowly making my way through it again I just really enjoy your blog asjshffj)

YEAH EXACTLY U GET IT SO WELL especially with takane wishing haruka would get mad. they run through emotions differently, takane gets mad/explodes because she cares about something so much, so haruka not matching her energy when she gets like that makes her feel like he doesn't care.

i think that could be a good way for them to learn how things work, like if takane told him its like you dont even care and haruka had the chance to say OF COURSE he cares. how could he not???!!!

so when she's blowing up about something admittedly silly and haruka isnt telling her Hey that's silly and instead he's like ok❤️sorry❤️dont be mad❤️ that makes her madder. but haruka is also capable of getting angry yknow (NOVEL 6 KANO MOMENT) (Still so funny kano is the 1 character that managed to make haruka angry) but i have a hard time seeing him angry At takane. maybe he could call her immature or something lol....

i think he could ask her to stop being such a tease??? haruka's too spineless to ask her to stop teasing him (over the dimension lost days I moment) but by post str i dont think this would be a problem. maybe he could manage to ask and takane would be like AWWWW IM JUST GOOFING cuz from his pov in lost days it REALLY seemed like haruka didnt realise takane was fucking with him. personally i didnt notice in my first read. once i read it again i noticed takane is described to have a mischievous smile and stuff and that just changed the whole context. it was haruka moaning and crying abt having an art block and takane being like girl ur being pathetic and she was right🙏

i mostly have a hard time imagining What theyd fight about. i think they could have arguments but it'd have to be something punctual for that to take place. i dont think couples just Have to argue to work out at all. that bit u said abt "thats gonna happen when u wanna spend ur life with someone" LIKE yeah there are disagreements and all but nothing that could cause An Argument of that nature yknow.

that's why haruka not telling takane abt his condition is like the best potential for it, otherwise more domestic stuff is like. haruka wanting the lights on while playing a horror game and takane wanting them off. thats like the most heated dispute they can have bc theyre both very serious about their stances💔(haruka is scared. takane wants the full horror game experience🙄)

[stepswowdsen]

【KagePro】 KuroEne AU: Rambles

Kuroha and KuroEne doodles

Was thinking about my fave KagePro doodles so far and it'd be these KuroEne (Kuroha/Ene) ones 🖤💛💙

The expressions on these are so slay. The first two are such big faves of mine. Especially the kiss one 😚💗

Last one is based on the Vocaloid song ENVY BABY by Kanaria

KuroEne AU: Set-up

Ok, I'm just gonna ramble about the setting of my KuroEne AU.

I just wrote this quickly before I go to sleep. I have more to say but I think this is a good starter.

In official KagePro media, the present day plot starts after 2 years, on the fateful day of August 15th (Kagerou/Heat Haze) Day.

The Kagerou Daze, the never ending world, swallows up people who die on August 15th, and gives those with especially strong desires, who are compatible with an Eye Ability, a substitute life so that they can return to the real world.

In most Routes, Saeru ends up orchestrating Haruka and Takane's deaths. One thing you'll learn about KagePro is that this guy (Kuroha) is responsible for almost everything bad that happens

Because killing them so that they'd come out with an Eye Ability, is a part of his plan to get the rest of Azami's snakes out of the Kagerou Daze and into the real world.

Haruka's death leads to the creation of Konoha, and Takane's death causes her to lose her human body and become a cyber girl named Ene

There are multiple different ways that a KuroEne AU could go, depending on the Route. KuroEne AU Routes are so fun to write, because any time I get a new idea, I can just put into a different Route (timeline) to explore all the "What if" scenarios that don't fit into a single Route.

Kuroha's Plan and KonoEne

Normally, the rest of the Mekakushi Dan members meet each other in the present day plot after 2 years, the fateful day of August 15th, the day Kuroha/Saeru plans to kill everyone.

Kuroha/Saeru's plan is to gather all the snakes with a new Medusa in the real world (bringing the rest of Azami's snakes out of the Kagerou Daze to the real world), and killing all Eye Ability users.

Then, he forces Marry, "the next Master," to rewind the world using the power of the Queen Snake, Combining Eyes.

In official media, Kuroha/Saeru usually possesses Konoha's body at the end of a Route on August 15th, the day he plans to proceed with the "Tragedy" and kill everyone.

I imagine that in my KuroEne AU, Kuroha/Saeru possesses Konoha's body MUCH earlier. Like, anywhere within the timespan after Takane and Haruka's deaths (1 - 2 years)

Because of this, Konoha and Ene usually end up meeting and befriending each other earlier. Ene recognizes Konoha as Haruka's game avatar from back then, and mistakes him for Haruka. Konoha asks if she has the wrong person, and Ene gets heartbroken at Konoha's seeming amnesia and inability to remember her.

Ene imposes a sense of distance around Konoha due to her conflicting feelings (he resembles the person she loved but isn't him).

In my AU, KonoEne establish a relationship dynamic of some kind (which varies depending on the Route), which either progresses to an acquaintance-ship, friendship, or intimate relationship.

Kuroha introduces himself to Ene for their first meeting in a Route

And then, at some point, Kuroha/Saeru possesses Konoha's body. At this point, when he introduces himself and makes himself known to Ene for the first time, he can choose what information he wants to reveal, and how much.

For example, Kuroha can choose if he wants to introduce himself as Black Konoha, or "Saeru" (and whether he wants to reveal his true identity as the Snake of Clearing Eyes.)

Ene later nicknames him "Kuroha" and "Saeru" to shorten the name.

He knows that the 1st one would be more familiar to Ene. To introduce himself with the 2nd one would make Ene more distrusting/suspicious of him.

He most likely doesn't reveal his true intentions (to kill the Mekakushi Dan) so soon, because he knows that if he does, Ene is (obviously) not gonna want to "play the game" (of being intimate with him) anymore, cuz it means that he is literally putting her and her friends' lives in danger.

Though, across multiple Routes, he probably does play around and experiment with the timing of when he reveals certain information, and how much.

I think in most Routes, Ene is suspicious of him at first, and asks about his intentions and what he's really after, and Kuroha/Saeru just tells her that it's too early to say yet, and that she will find out soon.

(Though, Kuroha could probably quell her suspicions with enough convincing, due to the massive amount of knowledge he carries)

KuroEne's intimacy

Kuroha proposes that he has a solution for Ene not being able to move around in the real world, and introduces the lil invention that he made for her to test out, which Ene eventually agrees to, out of curiosity. Ene feels a sense of gratefulness to him for allowing her to move around in the real world since it gets lonely in the cyber world, not being able to feel or touch anyone on the outside…

Kuroha gets to know and bonds with Ene, anywhere within this 1 - 2 year timespan, and at some point, Kuroha and Ene get intimate with each other.

Ene gives into the sense of longing/yearning that she feels for Kuroha/Saeru, a yearning for warmth and touch after being stuck alone in the cyber world for so long (in spite of everything - if she knows about his true identity at this point), which is in part caused by his vessel (being Konoha, who's in Haruka's body).

Kuroha knows how to react to her and what to say to her and how to act around her due to his knowledge, and so, tempts her with carnal pleasures, and they indulge in "the game/dance" of being intimate with each other.

Because Kuroha/Saeru keeps memories of previous Routes, he remembers memories of being with the Enes of previous Routes, and thus, knows how to react to her when talking/chatting with her normally, knows how to appease Ene's behaviours and whims, goes along with what she wants, knows how to get the responses he wants when he wants something from his partner (so he knows how to seduce them), and knows how to satisfy his partner in the context of intimacy.

Because of the knowledge he carries, he knows the context, past, Eye Abilities, vulnerabilities, etc., of every Mekakushi Dan member, and that includes Ene. So he'd definitely know about Haruka and Takane, and Konoha and Ene's context and relationship together.

The person who's her greatest enemy (whether she knows it at this point or not), very literally knows everything about her.

Kuroha's Nature

Not only does he weaponize Konoha's body by using Konoha's body as a murder weapon to kill everyone at the end of a Route, he weaponizes words, too. Kuroha/Saeru uses "knowledge" as an advantage over his partner, and weaponizes knowledge. Actually staggering advantage. Because he knows almost everything.

Kuroha ships are like the only time I have ships where one party in the ship has THIS much of an advantage over their partner.

Therefore, as I said before, Kuroha/Saeru ultimately has a power imbalance with his partner (any Mekakushi Dan member that he could be paired with).

He has an overwhelming advantage over his partner due to his role (set-up as an antagonist constantly killing the cast) and capabilities. It is ultimately in his favour.

That fact in itself, that the power imbalance exists, isn't inherently a bad thing, it just means that you NEED to tread carefully with portraying Kuroha's ships. I always make sure to depict my ships with as much care as possible, and as healthy as possible.

Ene is one of the characters who is a really good match with him. Because making Ene more assertive and dominant in the KuroEne ship, and making them take turns in leading intimacy, with having Kuroha letting Ene take control through their bedroom intimacy at times, helps alleviate this power imbalance slightly.

Kuroha is literally so fucked up dude cuz even his twisted form of affection that he holds for his S/O (the Mekakushi Dan member who he's paired with), is still in a twisted, selfish, self-serving way. Due to his twisted nature...

Even when he caters to his partner's pleasures, it still ultimately caters to his pleasures the most. That makes him interesting, though. Someone so inherently dark and twisted and sinister, with selfish desires like that… 🥰💖✨

Misc Rambles

So I imagine, in most KuroEne AU routes, he reveals his true intentions either approaching the fated day of August 15th, or right on the day of August 15th.

There's absolutely a sense of betrayal that Ene would feel following the reveal of his true intentions - he built up a relationship with her, on purpose, just to drop the worst possible scenario imaginable.

Like let's be real. The reveal of "I've been killing you and your friends throughout multiple Routes (timelines)" just sounds like a nightmarish scenario, especially if you've been fucking this guy, like come on.

And something that would make Ene get especially pissed at him, is if he decides to reveal that he was responsible for orchestrating Haruka and Takane's deaths in the first place.

(In official media, Ene sees Konoha for the first time, on August 15th, 2 years after Haruka and Takane's deaths)

Though, there are probably KuroEne AU routes where Konoha and Ene don't get the chance to meet each other - Routes where Kuroha/Saeru possesses Konoha's body before the two can actually meet, so when Ene sees who she thinks is "Konoha" for the first time, it's actually Kuroha/Saeru. With this kind of setting, he could even pretend to be Konoha, if he wanted.

And then on August 15th, he proceeds with killing the Mekakushi Dan with sadistic glee (and even his S/O - though if he's feeling nice, then he can spare them, since he doesn't need to kill everyone), and forces Marry to rewind the world.

Thankfully, due to the nature of Ene's body and predicament, she won't feel physical pain when he kills her. And then, a new Route (timeline) begins.

[aotaku12]

𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬 𝚩𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐤𝐲

✧ Summary | Two girls meet up to go to the festival only for their fate to take a turn for the worse.

✧ Warning | Major Character Death (via Firework Accident, Drowning, Fire Accident, Shooting)

✧ Additional Tags/Notes | Modern!AU (No Vision), KagePro!AU, Possible OOC, Time loop

✧ Inspiration | Kagerou Daze by Jin

✧ Word Count | 2k+

✧ Author’s Notes | I made a Kagerou×Genshin AU where Genshin Characters are taking place of the Mekakushi Dan. This is not the first chapter but more of a one-shot related to it. This is my first time writing Sayu and Yoimiya so hopefully they're not too OOC....

A little girl yawns as she walks her way home from her part-time job. Despite being the same age as her peers, Sayu has the appearance of a child thus making it difficult for her to live on her own ever since her Sensei left.

She doesn't know why, but she keeps convincing herself that Sensei is training or learning new techniques as one of the last ninja remaining in modern times and that they'll come back to teach her more.

Of course, that was only wishful thinking...they haven't come back in so long, and didn't even leave with a message. The last thing Sayu has from them, are the teachings he gave and a customized hoodie based on a Mujina, designed in her favorite colors. Even though she was still a novice with her ninjutsu skills, she keeps those lessons to heart.

She always wore it all the time...unfortunately, it was very hot today despite the time being in the late afternoon, the sun setting for night to come.

"Ugh why is it so hot...???" Sayu groaned. She was quite known to seem down all the time, and the heat was just making her seem even more in a sour mood.

"Ah! Hey, little Tanuki!" A familiar, cheerful voice calls out to her. A girl with a messy ponytail, a crop-top, denim shorts and a orange cardigan, an outfit very fitting for the summer heat, runs over to her. The sounds of her sandals clacking with every step.

"I'm not a Tanuki, I'm Sayu." Sayu pouts. Yoimiya ignores her, "Do you wanna hang out at the festival today? The fireworks show is gonna start soon so I would really love it if you would join me!"

Sayu lets out a tired sigh, "Firstly, I don't wanna go to the festival. Its so hot today and the festival area's gonna be crowded. Secondly, I just came back from my part-time job. I wanna go home and sleep. Thirdly, you're gonna ask me to do a ninjutsu trick during the show...again. I'm still learning and I'm not that good at it yet."

"Oh come on, please! I promise I won't ask you to do ninjutsu, but could you at least come with me to watch the fireworks?" Yoimiya pleads. "I can just watch it from my apartment" Sayu mutters. "But seeing fireworks up-close is different from that! You've been declining my invites all the time...you'll never know when we can see the fireworks together." Yoimiya stated. Sayu thinks for a bit and ultimately decides to give up on arguing, "Okay, I guess I'll go."

Yoimiya claps her hands in excitement, letting out a squeal before grabbing Sayu's hand and running off to the festival.

The warm yellow-orange lights from the paper lanterns would've made Sayu fall asleep, if it wasn't from the chatter from other visitors and the kids running around playing. Currently, they were looking for a spot where they can watch the fireworks in a clear view.

"Huh, looks like that spot's pretty crowded." Yoimiya says, making Sayu turn her head over to the area out of curiosity. "Don't worry, I know all the best spots to see the fireworks. They don't call me the Queen of Summer Festivals for nothing!" Yoimiya says with a smile.

The two walk around a bit more, Sayu being dragged along by the strawberry-blonde girl. Yoimiya suddenly stops in her tracks, making the little girl bump into her. "Ow..." She mutters, rubbing her forehead before turning to look at what Yoimiya was staring at.

It was a lit sparkler next to the box of fireworks that was supposed to be used for the show. "Yoimiya I think we should leave—" "I'm just gonna pick this up and throw it into the river."

Sayu had a bad feeling about this.... "Yoimiya, wait—!" But it was too late...the sparklers lit the fireworks.

And as if time froze or slowed down itself, the deafening sounds of fireworks popping along with a muffled scream that came out of her mouth, the two of them were swallowed by a snake that would only let them relive this tragedy time and time again.

Letting out a tired yawn, Sayu realizes she must've slept while she was walking. 'I should've been more careful...' She thought as she looks up to the sky, using her hand to shield her eyes from the setting sun.

Goldfish swim across the sea of orange, now turning into a sea of stars. "What a pretty sight..." She says in awe. "Hey, little Tanuki!!!" A familiar voice calls out to her. "I'm not a tanuki, I'm Sayu!" She says as she puffs her cheeks.

Yoimiya lets out a giggle, "I know. Hey, wanna go to the Festival with me?" she asks. "Eh...? But I'm on my way home to sleep." Sayu said. "C'mon, please!!!" Yoimiya pleaded, clasping her hands together in desperation. "Mngh...okay, just this once." Sayu mutters. "Yay!! Let's go catch some goldfish and watch the fireworks okay?"

When they arrived, it seemed that almost no one was around. Sayu lets out a relieved sigh, "I'm glad there's less people here...it's so hot."

"Mmm yeah, but wouldn't that mean that only we would see the fireworks? Not that I would mind..." Yoimiya mutters the last part. Sayu looked around, before pointing to the goldfish scooping stand. "Ah perfect! Let's see how many we can catch!" Yoimiya exclaims.

The two spent their time enjoying the festival until night came, Sayu was unlucky and couldn't catch any goldfish while Yoimiya managed to catch two. One for herself and one for one of the kids she babysat. "Why don't we watch the fireworks by the riverbank? The view's pretty nice, plus we can look at the entire festival while watching!" Yoimiya exclaimed. "Mkay." Sayu gave a curt nod.

When they found a good spot, the both took off their shoes so that they can let their feet hang off the concrete ledge without worry. Sayu takes a sip of her juice, waiting for the fireworks to start. "You can rest your head on my shoulder if you want to. I don't mind." Yoimiya says with a smile. Sayu immediately plops her head onto her shoulder.

She was about to close her eyes and take a nap until suddenly, the boom of the fireworks startled her. "Look, Sayu! The fireworks are starting! Ah-!" As Yoimiya points to the sky the string of her goldfish bag broke off and fell into the water. "Oh no...I'm gonna try and catch one of them real quick. It would be a waste if I couldn't at least bring one to Iwao..."

"Ah wait...!" Before Sayu could process what just happened, Yoimiya was already in the water. Worry and Panic filled Sayu's face when she looked around and found a sign that says no swimming. "Yoimiya wait!!!" Sayu discards her drink off to the side and canonballs into the water.

It was deeper than she thought....way too deep for her short stature. She opens her eyes and tries her best to look around in the murky water, there she finds her friend's foot tied to a seaweed, not breathing. Sayu panics and tries to save her...only for her time to be up.

Sayu wakes up with a jolt, sweat on the brim on her forehead. "Hey, are you okay?" Yoimiya's voice sends a chill down her spine. 'Isn't she dead...?' She thought as her face pales. "Hello? Sayu? Are you okay?" The summer girl asks again. "I-I'm fine! Just had a bad dream..." Sayu says in reassurance, though it felt like she was trying to convince herself more than anything.

"You sure? 'Cause I was about to invite you to the festival but I found you shaking over here." Yoimiya stated. "Um...I'll be fine. Let's just go to the festival." "Hm...alright. I'm still worried about you so let's take this easy since this is our first time going together!" Yoimiya says with a carefree smile.

'Everything's exactly the same...' Sayu thought as they entered the festival. All they did was play some stall games and eat some food. "Hey, I think I should go home now..." She says. Yoimiya lets out a sigh, "Alright then. It's a shame we couldn't watch the fireworks together." "I could just watch them from the window..." "It's not the same!!"

Unbeknownst to them, one of the paper lanterns fell off it's string due to the wind and it was currently causing a fire. "Hey, do you smell that?" Yoimiya asks. Sayu sniffs the air before seeing a fire nearby, "Fire!"

"Oh no! We have to get out of here!!! Hey, can you do your Ninjutsu trick?" Yoimiya asks. "I only use it for stealth! I don't know how would it help us in a fire!!!" Sayu exclaims. "We can swim through the river-" "NO!!!"

Yoimiya became stunned speechless when she heard that yell from the usually soft-spoken girl. "It's too dangerous. We don't know how deep it is! O-or how strong the current is!" Sayu added. "Well, then I guess we have to go back the normal way." Yoimiya tightly grasps Sayu's hand as they both cover their nose and mouth with part of their clothes.

But no matter where they went, there was fire all around them with no point of escape. "Sayu look out!" Yoimiya pushes Sayu aside, only for the both to be crushed by a burning tree.

Sayu wakes up again. Yoimiya looks at her with worry but invites her to the festival. Sayu gets dragged around and watches the Queen of Summer Festivals over and over again...to the point she has lost track of time and is wondering what's the point of this.

She looks up to the sky filled with goldfish and glares at it, what she once called "a pretty sight" now feels like it's mocking her. As if saying Yoimiya is out of reach and will never be saved.

"Hey Sayu. What's got you in a bad mood?" Yoimiya asks, with concern. "You won't understand..." Sayu pouts, curling herself up into a ball and uses her ninjutsu to turn into a mujina daruma. Yoimiya lends her a hand, "Hey...don't be so down. Let's walk to the festival together."

Sayu desperately wants to yell at her that, "No, I don't want to go to the festival! We'll just die again!" but it was not like she knew any other way out of this. This world only has a road leading to the festival, and yet there was never a car passing by. All the buildings are just like cardboard cut-outs made for a stage play.

Letting out a sigh, she reluctantly changes back and takes Yoimiya's hand. They play mindless games and eat food again, not that it felt filling for Sayu. Though...maybe just this once she can pretend that nothing is wrong.

"It seems pretty crowded over there...Hey, I know a good spot to watch the fireworks! C'mon!" Yoimiya grabs Sayu's hand as they run off to the direction of the riverbank. However, they stop.

"Ah geez, someone left their sparkler! Don't they know that this can cause a fire hazard?" Yoimiya approaches the sparkler like the first time. "Yoimiya! The fireworks!!!" Sayu cried out. "Hm?"

Instead of the crackle and boom of fireworks like she expected, Sayu heard gunshots coming from the crowded area. "What the—!?" Before Yoimiya could react, Sayu slapped the sparkler out of her hand, tossing it into the river and making a break for it.

"We need to leave!" Sayu said, as this time she was dragging Yoimiya around to find an exit. Unfortunately it seemed that they were surrounded. "Sayu, I need you to do your ninjutsu and hide yourself. While I distract them." Yoimiya stated. "Wh–!? I'm not leaving you!" Sayu exclaimed. "I know...but I promise I'll be back. Just wait okay?" Yoimiya says with a smile that doesn't seem to reach her eyes. Sayu reluctantly nods and hides by a nearby stall as her Mujina Daruma.

She tries to keep herself from crying or screaming when she heard more gunshots and screams of pain, resorting to covering her ears. But suddenly...it just stopped. All she heard were cicadas and the wind breeze.

She slowly opens her eyes, and looks around. She was surrounded by burnt debris coming from the first accident, caution tape surrounding the area. Sayu gets up and finds a rope bracelet that once belonged to Yoimiya. Shocked, she picks it up and walks outside hoping to ask anyone if they've seen her.

"Excuse me?" Sayu asks the group, but they didn't seem  to notice.

"Apparently there were 2 girls missing. Like they just vanished." "Do you think it's a ghost?" "Nah that wouldn't make sense. People saw them in the festival."

"H-Hello...?" She asks again.

"It's a good thing we didn't go...lots of people were injured." "Hey, can we change the topic? It feels so gloomy, especially the fact we passed by the venue."

"E-Excuse me!" Sayu tugs on one of their shirts. The group turns to her, faces filled with shock. "Have you seen my friend? She dropped her bracelet." She asks, showing it in her palms.

"Y-You're...one of the missing girls...H-How...!?" "I'm telling you she's a ghost!" "C'mon let's just go."

"Ah, w-wait!" Sayu tries calling out to them but they ignore her. She looks down onto the sidewalk, upset. 'Yoimiya...' Tears slowly fill her eyes but then she notices her hand disappearing. "WAUGH!!! Wh-what's happening!?!" She says in a panic. Her deep magenta eyes, now a vibrant red, are welled up with tears.

"I don't wanna be a ghost! I just wanna find Yoimiya!!!" She cried out in desperation. "Hey." A hand taps on her shoulder. Sayu turns around seeing a blonde haired girl, dressed in white and pale blue. "Are you okay...?" The girl asks. Sayu sniffs and shakes her head. "What's your name?" "S..Sayu..." "Sayu, well...My name is Lumine. Could you tell me what happened?"

Sayu would normally dismiss the girl but after being stuck in a time loop of death happening on the same day, she just let out everything...even though it sounds absurd. But to her surprise, Lumine doesn't care and just listens.

"I understand, you're just like one of us..." Lumine says with a smile. "One...of us...?" Sayu asks in confusion. "Have you heard of The Legend of the Medusa?"

[ceejaykayess]

Throwback to Dazecon for a minute and when my introduction on there ended up digging into a ten minute conversation with others on a Kagerou Daze/AI The Somnium Files group of ideas, of which included Shintaro with the Eneball.

This is my first attempt at doing a sketch page type thing rather than just drawing a solitary figure on a piece of paper and calling it one and done. It means you can also see me testing colours to make sure I got the right shit. This included me practising creating different skin tones with other colours before just getting the pencil I wanted, which once again has left me with a Shintaro that looks like he has spent too much time outside.

I wanted to give him some fresh drip for being in the "future" (literally in terms of when AI takes place compared to when Kagepro can assume to be taken, and sarcastically in that it's 2019 and we all know what people were wearing in 2019), and my friend was like "go triangles over squares," so here we are.

Also, Shintaro's a cop? Of sorts? Which is why he has a gun. And an AI-Ball. I promise he didn't just steal some shit. This is also why he has a necktie, to maintain some level of formality in his dress (read: his Boss forced him to). He also has a black suit jacket that he can actually wear in combination with the tie. I suppose that can be considered the XX equivalent?

It might be hard to see, but he's got a scar over the eye where Ene resides. As well, the Eneball appears bright blue at a distance, but up close has a gradient that shifts from bright blue to dark blue, like Aiba's iris shifting from yellow to orange up close but I used textas and positively fucked it. Anyways, I wonder how he got the scar over his eye~?

Second part featuring everyone's favourite cyber-girl, Ene. Third part featuring everyone's tragic heroine alter, Yaki.

He stared at the shifting summer sky. Bright, bright blue, painted over with oblong streaks of white, as the barest hint of red coul be seen in the corner of his eye. In his hand, a weight pressed down on the skin-tight glove that covered sweating, itching flesh.

An annoyed voice rang in his mind, not at all cute and definitely aggravating. Warning, challenging, mocking, and maybe, just maybe, caring. One that might have looked good in blue, like a bolt of lightning, maybe. Ha, she'd hate to hear that. A much gentler, much more carefree voice followed, openly showing concern and pitifully trying to reproach the former. A voice that felt like a bright green, as full of life as any healer, despite his actual taste in games and characters.

A third voice joined them, one that felt infinitely warm, infinitely kind, infinitely patient. One that felt much like that encroaching red summer sky, that signals endings and departures. It was a voice that suited the colour red much more than anyone else he knew, and much more than the voice thought it suited him.

A conversation played between the three, one that he could almost hear, could almost interject in, if only he would close his eyes, if only he would just listen-

But then an even more annoying voice echoed through his mind, blue as a lightning flash and somehow more irritating to be around.

"Master, Master! Are you okay!?"

He groaned. He wished he wasn't. He wanted to listen more. To talk more.

"Ugh... yeah. Yeah, just peachy."

But, he couldn't. He knew he couldn't. He bid farewell to the hazy figures once more, sitting upright and letting the sky fade from his view.

"Well, good! Y'know Master, if something like this kept you down, you'd be absolutely bullied down at the station! Maybe I should spread this recording around, just to give everyone a laugh..."

"You better not! And, don't you have to hand in recordings anyways? What's the threat here...?"

"Well Master, this super cute cyber girl only has to give in recordings related to cases. Something a bit more personal, though, like a certain leg folder..."

"Alright, I'm up, I'm up!"

As he let that now familiar blue voice fill his head, he stood, holding his Evolver firmly. God knows she would have given him shit for dropping her gun. Even if he tried to placate her in Shintaro's place, Shintaro would have to hide behind her and silently plead before he would be saved from any cruel and unusual punishments.

But, they'e not here.

Instead, he let his head fill with that blue voice. Instead, he thought of that old man with a voice like burnt orange. Instead, he thought of those bratty kids he helped take care of, an annoying orange, a painfully relatable cyan, and a deeply irritating magenta. Instead, he thought of those he might meet again, a kind green, a confident purple, a conniving black, a curious pink, a quiet lime.

Even if he might wish to disappear, he knows that even he has a place in the world. Even he has a place among others. So he'll stay. To protect that sort of peace he has reluctantly come to love.

He brings his Evolver up, and prepares to fight once more.

"Let's go, Ene."

"Of course, Master!"