#makoto wears lighter purple
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
outletcrash · 23 days ago
Text
Tumblr media
a year ago my friends got me hooked on genshin. i havent played in a while but i love when people redesign these guys
anyways, some archons!
42 notes · View notes
bokutosbiceps · 2 years ago
Text
getting married
Tumblr media
kirishima ikuya, nanase haruka, matsuoka rin, shigino kisumi, tachibana makoto, yamazaki sousuke (separately) x f!reader | fluff | 1.3k words
summary: how would marrying the free! boys go? 
warnings: none! pls enjoy 💞
a/n: i cannot write nagisa or rei x reader because i ship them so hard. they’re literally so cute together + i can’t even imagine them not being together so 🙂
Tumblr media
you marry kirishima ikuya in a traditional ryokan with a temple attached. he’s not religious, but temples have always been important to ikuya since some major events in his life have happened there + he always somehow feels hopeful there. your colors are a wine red/purple + white. he insists that you guys should have the perfect wedding, w all the bells + whistles. the ceremony at the temple lasts for like 2 hours, + you’re so thankful that it’s nice outside. ikuya is shedding tears the whole time but trying to seem composed + elegant. but you can feel him trembling because he’s clutching your hand the entire time. the ceremony is held in the only “party/conference room” in the ryokan.
it takes ikuya a while to get out of his shell + loosen up enough to dance. thankfully, hiyori helps him in this department by giving him a few drinks. then the rest is history. ikuya still can’t remember the small details of the reception, but he does remember trying to talk to the koi fish in the pond adjacent to where the reception was held. there’s videos of it, rin made sure of that. you have to drag ikuya up to your room on the 2nd floor of the ryokan + you nurse him back to health the entire next day. which was kinda nice, since ikuya is absolutely adorable when he’s all pouty. your honeymoon in stockholm, sweden doesn’t start till the following week, so you spend your first couple of days married to ikuya cuddled up to him and snoozing.
Tumblr media
you marry nanase haruka at the beach, most likely the beach that he grew up on in Iwatobi. the man did not want to wear a suit + you, of course, know of haru’s love for water. so you compromise + he agrees to wear a nice, white cloth button down with khaki calf length pants. your main colors would be a lighter, almost turquoise blue paired with white. when he sees you walking down the aisle, all he can hear is the ocean waves behind him and your soft footsteps in the sand before him. the only thing he’s focused on is this moment, and the fact that you’re the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen.
he doesn’t know what to do with his hands or how to express his emotions. will likely shed a tear or two. haru doesn’t write vows, because he thinks it all seems so rehearsed, so he will say what he feels in his heart when the time comes. you’re all left sobbing. haru doesn’t really like huge parties so your reception has music, of course, + he has a great time just dancing w you + his friends. the reception ends a little early because he wants to be able to spend time with you alone before being whisked away to your honeymoon in santorini, greece
Tumblr media
you marry matsuoka rin in an aquarium in tokyo. he wanted to get married in Australia but didn’t want to make his mom + sister travel, so he opted to make his Australian teammates travel instead. both the ceremony + the reception are held in the aquarium but in different areas. he —surprisingly —wanted to take over most of the planning for the wedding. he has had this dream of being married in the soft blue glow of the huge fish tank, so you guys get married in the jellyfish viewing room of the aquarium.you don’t have set colors because of the darkness of the inside of the aquarium, but it works out because the light reflecting off of the jellyfish make for the most beautiful blues, pinks, and reds.
he cries like a baby the entire ceremony. from the time he stands up at the altar he’s crying. sousuke has to read rin’s vows for him because he can’t stop sniffling + no one could understand him the first time he tried to read them. the crying doesn’t end until the reception is held in the main viewing room since it has more space + the main tank has sharks! there’s tons of photos ops for the guests and lots of dancing. he wants the reception to end semi early, like around 10p, because you guys have to catch an early flight to your honeymoon in sydney, australia (y'all just stay in the apartment you share in sydney but you go on little adventures to somewhere new every day)
Tumblr media
you + shigino kisumi have a destination wedding! he really can’t decide between paris and rome, but you guys agree on paris since it’s known for it’s romance, just like kisumi is known for his own cheesy romance. your colors are a dusty pink + gold or white. kisumi wants the ceremony to be short so you guys can spend the rest of your wedding partying with your closest friends + family! so the ceremony only consists of your vows + the official “do you take…”. he 100% makes the dumb “kiss-me” joke during the “you may kiss the bride” moment. kinda ruins it but is also so cheesy you can’t help but smile.
he lowkey cries during his vows but you can only see glossy eyes + hear little sniffles. people in the audience most likely will not know he’s crying. BUT BOY CAN THIS MAN PARTY. you guys plan for a tonnnn of wedding games that get the entire party up + bumpin. the party lasts literally till like 5a + you guys just head back to your hotel to begin your honeymoon, since you’re honeymooning in paris anyways
Tumblr media
you marry tachibana makoto in a garden. it’s a super small wedding consisting of only both of your families + your closest friends. your colors are pale yellow + orange which mix nicely w the deep greens of the garden. he’s had his vows written since he decided he was gonna propose to you + getting through reading them was so difficult for him. his ears + cheeks are a furious red that contrasted w the watery look in his eyes. he makes it through, though, but the paper his vows were written on ended up soaked in his tears. you + makoto ended your ceremony by releasing butterflies into the garden, which was entirely makoto’s idea. he’s crying the entire time.
the reception is held in the greenhouse that belongs to the garden. makoto actually made most of the decoration, which consists of tealights in mason jars, beautiful floral arrangements, + little wooden barrels w cute photo op accessories on them. you have to practically carry makoto home from the party because he’s all partied out. he didn’t drink a drop but the dancing + laughter + fun he shared w you + his friends tired him out. makoto has always wanted to go to new york city in the usa, so that’s where you guys have your honeymoon.
Tumblr media
you + yamazaki sousuke have a traditional wedding in tokyo. sousuke isn’t religious but he likes the architecture of old churches + wanted to have his ceremony somewhere with high ceilings. the wedding is huge, though, because of sousuke’s huge family. all of his relatives, whether immediate family or distant relatives, are invited because sousuke felt it was the right thing to do. your wedding colors are turquoise + coral, + the church looks beautiful decorated in these colors. the ceremony lasts about an hour + a half + sousuke is fidgeting the entire time. you couldn’t tell from his face that he was nervous but you could tell from the way he was cracking his knuckles, shuffling his feet, + adjusting his tie. you take his hand in yours + immediately feel him calm down. he whispers a thank you to you + the rest of the ceremony goes by much easier for him.
he says his vows with ease + doesn’t shed a single tear, but once you guys are on your way to the reception in a nearby hotel, he’s all sniffles + watery smiles. this man parties quite hard, especially w his friends. he’s overall responsible, doesn’t drink much, but he’s almost competitive when it comes to dancing. he will outdance all of his friends + even you if you try to challenge him. because of all the dancing, he’s complaining that he’s sore the entire flight to hawaii the day after for your honeymoon. 
343 notes · View notes
fleetwood-cheese · 1 year ago
Text
Phantom Thief outfit breakdown: pt 4
This is a continuation of my previous post and series regarding my opinions on the phantom thieves' metaverse costumes, prompted by a poll by @waywardsalt. I will like all of these together as they're finished.
Akechi - Ann - Makoto - Futaba - Yusuke - Akechi 2
Next on the docket is Sumire, as her outfit is another I have very strong opinions on.
Tumblr media
My main gripe with Sumire's outfit is that, by and large, its NOT her costume, as thus her idea of justice personified, its JOKER'S. The real-world reasoning for this is because she's the mascot and marketing character for Persona 5 Royal specifically and thus must match the promotional material, which is the thematic black and red, but it does drive me up the wall that this character, whose entire arc is learning to be and embrace herself and not cling to idealized versions of the people she loves as things to mimic and mold herself into, has a costume based entirely on another character's costume. This outfit tells me nothing about her except that she admires Joker and is probably romanceble.
Firstly, I would make efforts to incorporate an additional motif to her overall design inspiration. Her design is largely lacking them as it follows Joker's theme but lets go of many of his gentleman thief and Arsene Lupin inspirations in its desire to be more feminine. My preference is either for more fairytale/Cinderella motifs, to match her persona, or to add an element of the black swan from swan lake, as it would be a nice bit of foreshadowing to the way she's pretending to be Kasumi for confidence and validation, like how Odile impersonates Odette to charm the prince.
I would change up the leotard a bit. As it is, it's very basic, which I think is a disservice since we see her prettier leotards for competitions. I would add the skirt and some of the filigree decorations of her competition leotard, which only appears very briefly as Sumire mostly wears Kasumi's pink one instead of her own blue, and which provides some delicacy and a nod to her status as a gymnast to the outfit, as well as tying her to Cendrillon stylistically.
Tumblr media
If you wanted to lean into the black swan motif, you could instead have the leotard incorporate feather embroidery or an edge that looks like primary feathers (the stiff ones, not loose like down).
I would also make the stockings a lighter color and make the ribbons on her shoes more obvious and climb higher on her legs. They are an interesting detail that gets lost against the similar color of the tights, which is really a shame, as they tie in nicely to her position as a rhythmic gymnastic specifically, which we can tell she is because her of her dance-like routines and the involvement of the ribbon over elements such as the bar or trampoline. Again, it would also play nicely into a ballet and specifically a swan lake theme. I also don't love the heels but I don't have anything specific in mind to replace them, so they can stay for now.
If you want a really big change, I would go with a color palette overhaul. If you incorporate more blues or pinks over the red, or the violet that's her literally code name, I think it would freshen her up and make her stand out a little more. Maybe you could even lighten her base color to a grey or a very dark purple if you really want to drift from game colors. I'd say go all the way and make the black elements white, but that wouldn't contrast well enough against Maruki's palace enough to stand out and would make her monochromatic in a way equally bad to the monochromatic she is now.
Overall, most of my problems with this outfit stem from the fact that it has so little of her personality (or even Kasumi's) and so much of Joker's for branding reasons, and think that the incorporation of another theme or a change in color palette would really do it some justice. If they had acknowledged that her outfit was modeled after Joker's and tweaked it during her second (true) awakening, I would have been happy with that, but they didn't. I rank her 9th place out of 10 outfits and a score of 2/10 overall.
24 notes · View notes
mb-blue-roses · 3 years ago
Text
June 18th - 25th pride art!
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A transparent drawing of Amira from Subway Surfers. She is an Egyptian woman with brown hair and eyes. She has her hair in a ponytail. She is wearing a short top in the colors of the lesbian flag and a pair of pink pants. A signature, a stylized A_G, is above her shoulder. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A drawing of Dennis from Fortnite: Save the World drawn over the demisexual flag. Dennis is a man with brown hair that covers his eyes. He is wearing a dark blue shirt and pink pant with purple on the knees. He hangs upside down over the purple bar in the flag, smiling. A signature, a stylized A_G, is next to Dennis' head. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A transparent drawing of two Meg Rosemans. The first Meg is a normal human, wearing a dark purple shirt and dark pink glasses. She has short brown hair. She is offering a lesbian flag to the other Meg. The other Meg is a pink rabbit, wearing red pajamas with a blue collar. Both are smiling. A signature, a stylized A_G, is over the human Meg's outstretched arm. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A drawing of five characters done over the sapphic flag. Meg Roseman is in the middle, wearing a lavender tank top and dark pink glasses. She is flapping her hands. On the left side is Haru Okumura, who is wearing a pink dress with a lighter pink jacket. She is kissing Meg's cheek. Futaba Sakura is leaning in from the far left, wearing a yellow t-shirt. She is doing a peace sign and smiling. On the right is Ann Takamaki, wearing a short beige top. She is also leaning in to kiss Meg on the cheek. Makoto Niijima leans in from the far right, wearing a black jacket and grey shirt. She is also smiling. A signature, a stylized A_G, is between Meg and Ann. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: The same image as previous, but without Futaba and Makoto. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A transparent drawing of a humanoid design of Austin from the Backyardigans. He has purple hair and blue eyes, with dark purple ears and tail. He is wearing a shirt in colors of the trans flag. A signature, a stylized A_G, is next to Austin. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A transparent drawing of an AU design of Mortimer Brown from Detectives United. He is wearing a white plauge doctor-style mask, dark red shirt, and a dark blue jacket with the sleeves torn off. The jacket has five patches on it. The top patch is a genderfluid flag. The next patch is a red rectangle with 'He/Him' written on it. The next patch is a purple rectangle with 'She/Her' written on it. The next patch is a blue rectangle with 'They/Them' written on it. The final patch is a yellow smiley face. A signature, a stylized A_G, is in front of Mortimer's face. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A transparent drawing of Viktor Hargreeves from the Umbrella Academy. He is wearing a black hoodie with white strings, and holding a trans flag while smiling with his eyes closed. They say, in white text, "Actually, yeah. I do." Diego replies, in dark blue text, "Good. Cause you are." Are is underlined for emphasis. A signature, a stylized A_G, is next to Viktor's head. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: The same drawing of Viktor, but without the text. End ID]
Tumblr media
[Image ID: A transparent drawing of Larry Butz from Ace Attorney. He is smiling with his eyes closed. They are wearing an orange jacket and a shirt in the colors of the bisexual flag. A signature, a stylized A_G, is next to his head. End ID]
12 notes · View notes
cannondisabledcharacters · 3 years ago
Text
Tumblr media
Today’s disabled character of the day is Makoto Kenzaki (Cure Sword) from the Precure series, who has dentophobia
Requested by @nerdy-espurr​
[Image Description: Drawing of a girl and her magical girl transformation. On the left is the girl outside her magical girl form. She has short purple hair and purple eyes. She is wearing a white button up long sleeve shirt, gray pants, dark gray tie, a long purple vest, and white boots. On the right is her magical girl form. In this form she has long pink hair in a high pony tail, with a white hair band and purple heart pin. She also has slightly lighter purple eyes. She is wearing a long pinkish purple dress with a white mid section, white underskirt, long purple boots with white tips, long purple sleeves with purple ribbons, and a pink choker.]
10 notes · View notes
cobaltusami · 4 years ago
Note
May I request some naegiri, with lee!makoto, cause we all know that Makoto is babey
Hi! Yes, Absolutely! I love Naegiri, and lee!Makoto Is super adorable! ^^ Makoto Is sweet sunshine child who must be protected.
I had fun writing this! for some reason my mind immediately jumped to Angst/Comfort for the topic.
I’m also sorry If this isn’t long enough, This Is the shortest fic I’ve written...
This takes place either right after the school went Into lockdown before the killing game started or in the middle of a non despair AU, It’s open for interpretation :)
Hope you enjoy!
Words: 1395
Characters: Lee!Makoto, Ler!Kyoko
SPOILER WARNINGS FOR THE FIRST GAME AHEAD
Weight of the world
“Good morning.” Kyoko greeted her classmates as she entered the dining hall, met with greetings in return she scanned the room, she noticed It was more quiet than usual this morning. Her purple eyes fell on an empty chair, one that was usually occupied by… 
“Where’s Makoto?” She asked.
“He said he wasn’t feeling well.” Sayaka answered, hand In front of her mouth as she spoke. She swallowed her food and set her fork down. “He said something about a headache.”
Hmm… That’s not like him. He doesn’t ever skip breakfast. 
Kyoko lingered for a moment longer before wordlessly going to the kitchen and preparing a plate of food for Makoto, Grabbing a bottle of water on her way out. “I’m going to go check on him.” She said over her shoulder as she made her way to his room.
She pressed her elbow against his doorbell and waited patiently.
Inside the room, Makoto groaned and pulled himself out of bed.  “Just a minute.” He called to whoever was standing at his door.
After realizing he was still In his pajamas, He quickly pulled on some jeans and a t-shirt before shuffling over and opening the door. “K-Kyoko?” 
“May I come In?” She asked politely. He nodded and stepped aside so she could.
She set the plate down on his table and turned to him. “I wasn’t expecting you to get dressed, You must be feeling a little better.”
Makoto’s cheeks flushed. “Uh, Not really. I just thought you might appreciate It if I answered the door wearing pants.”
Kyoko smiled a bit to herself In amusement. “I know that Sayaka said your stomach was hurting, But I brought you some breakfast. I think you should try to eat some of It.” 
She purposely threw out the incorrect ailment, trying to trip him up.
Makoto, Being a terrible liar, forgot what he told Sayaka to get rid of her this morning. So he just nodded and went along with it. 
“Makoto. What’s really wrong?” She asked, Stepping closer to her boyfriend. “You can tell me.”
“W-What do you mean? I just--”
“You told Sayaka you had a headache, And then just agreed to telling her you had a stomach ache.” 
Makoto bit his lip and looked away, knowing better than to lie any further to the Ultimate Detective. “Alright. I’m sorry for lying to you, But I just didn’t feel like eating and I didn’t want everyone to make a big deal out of it.” 
Kyoko put her gloved hands on his shoulders and guided him over to the bed where they sat down. “What’s bothering you?” She asked, setting her hands in her lap.
“I don’t… It’s just…” The brunette looked away from her warm gaze, biting his now trembling lip. “I feel… Hopeless.”
His eyes filled with tears as the feelings he’d previously pushed aside came festering back. “I’m supposed to be the Ultimate Hope, But I feel so…”
“So full of Despair.” She whispered.
He nodded, blinking away the tears.
“It’s hard being locked up here, I know. I can’t imagine the weight on your shoulders, You feel like you always have to uplift everyone and give them Hope. Even when you yourself don’t feel Hopeful.” Kyoko started, prompting tears to spill down his cheeks. “You feel alone, Isolated. You might even be angry to an extent that no one can see past that to your pain.”
She took his trembling hands in hers and stared Into his eyes as if searching the contents of his very soul. “But you aren’t alone, I’m here. And I see your pain. Your feelings are valid.”
Makoto wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and cried into her shoulder.
Kyoko ran her hands over his back in a comforting manner, not saying anything else so he had some time to process his feelings.
After a few minutes he calmed down and pulled back, wiping the tears away from his face. “S-Sorry about that…” He meekly apologized.
She offered a small smile in response. “It’s okay. Do you feel any better?”
“Yeah. I’m feeling better now.” He mustered up a smile and went to stand up but was pulled back down.
“No you aren’t.” She saw through his lie yet again. “I don’t like being lied to, Naegi.” 
She spoke In a stern voice, However there was an unnerving edge to her words. Something that resembled playfulness.
Something that resembled ‘Makoto’s in trouble and about to get wrecked.’
“I-I’m sorry Kyoko! I didn’t even realize I was doing It!” Makoto panicked, His words flooding out like a waterfall. A very panicky waterfall. 
Kyoko pushed him down and straddled his legs to stop him from getting up and running away. “I think you need to be taught what happens when you lie to a Kirigiri.” She smirked, shoving his shirt up.
“W-Wait! Can’t we talk about this-- Pfft n-no! Kyohohohokohoho!” He dissolved into a fit of giggles as he felt her gloved fingers scribbling all around his sides.
She smiled, The air In the room felt ten times lighter now that he was laughing. “Sorry, But no. We’re done talking for now. Now you get to laugh and think about how unwise It is to lie to me.”
“I’m sorryehehehe!” He giggled, writhing underneath her. He didn’t try to stop her though, subconsciously he must have realized he needed this attention right now.
“It’s too late for sorry, Makoto.” She teased, fluttering her fingers across his stomach. “Does this tickle?”
Makoto squealed and arched his back, which only pressed her fingers further into his ticklish stomach. “KYOHOHOHO!”
“Yes, Makoto?” She asked innocently.
“IHIHIHIT TIHIHICKLES!” He whined, covering his quickly reddening face.
“Does It?” She smiled in amusement. “I had no Idea.”
The smooth texture of her gloves tickled like hell, and she was well aware of this. Kyoko wasn’t even tickling that fast or hard but Makoto was damn near In hysterics, Especially when she suddenly dipped down and blew a raspberry on his belly.
The Ultimate Hope screamed, Unable to form words as he laughed his heart out. After the third raspberry, He began pushing at Kyoko’s head In an attempt to escape. “KYOOHOHOHOHO! PLEHEHEHEHEASE STAHAHAHAP!”
“Hmm. How can I be sure you really want me to stop?” She asked coyly, Dipping a finger into his belly button. “You keep lying to me, So for all I know… You want me to keep going.”
Makoto girlishly squealed and tried to suck in his stomach. “I’M SOHOHOHOHORRY FOR LYING TO YOUHUHUHU!” 
“I don’t know, That could be another lie…” She smirked, Wiggling her finger faster. “Are you really sure?”
“YEHEHEHES! I’M SOHOHOHOHO SORRY!” Makoto cackled, Tears slipping down his cheeks for a second time today, Though this time It was for a happier reason. “PLEHEHEHEASE! I CAHAHAHAN’T!”
Kyoko pulled her hands back and climbed off of her giggling and panting boyfriend, coming to rest right next to him. “Are you feeling any better now?” She asked, turning over onto her side to look at him.
Makoto nodded slowly as he wiped his tears away with the heels of his hands and pushed his shirt back down. “Yeah… Thank you, Kyo.” He turned his head to look at her for a moment before leaning closer and planting a soft kiss against her lips. 
“You’re welcome. Just remember, You may have a lot of weight on your shoulders, But you don’t have to carry It alone.“ She smiled, her cheeks tinting a pale pink. “Now come on! Let’s go get some breakfast.” 
Kyoko got out of bed only for Makoto wrap his arms around her waist and pull her back down into the bed with him. “Can’t we just stay here for a while? I’m kind of tired…”
She giggled as he nuzzled into her neck and closed his eyes, gently she pushed him back. “No. I’m hungry, And you haven’t eaten either.”
“You can have the plate of food you brought me.” He offered.
“Nice try. It’s cold by now. Come on, Get up. Everyone Is probably wondering where I am.”
She had to practically drag him behind her, but at least he had some life back In him.
While things may still be super tense and stressful for Makoto, It comforted him to know that he wasn’t alone, And didn’t have to shoulder all of this responsibility alone.
49 notes · View notes
hyperfixationtimego · 4 years ago
Note
Happy little hcs to atone for my sins
Taka and Hina are study buddies
Sometimes Aoi manages to get Taka off track because she’s just so enthusiastic and wants to hear about all of her friends’ hyperfixations and special interests
37.2 minutes later
Taka’s infodumping about how he despises moral philosophy but also thoroughly enjoys it bc that’s how moral philosophers are
Or he’s infodumping about political science and debate tactics and how speeches were effective or not for various reasons
Sakura and Mondo work out together
It started off as a coincidence when they were in the gym at the same time but it kept happening so they called it a schedule
They talk about their SOs and they’re smiling
Sakura teaches Mondo certain stretches and exercises to help relax different muscle groups for whenever he pulls a muscle or has a flare up from the thing with the bikes
Leon constantly asks Chihiro to turn alter ego into a vocaloid or at least program a bit of that tech into their system
Bc he would rather shave his head again than talk to Sayaka about producing music
He just has so many ideas
And it’s cool when there are kinda punk rock songs that are covered in an 8-bit or a vocaloid style
Byakuya and Celeste have a small series of bets with low stakes about what their inferiors classmates will do to lead up to them jingling away morosely like the fools they are
Sayaka shamelessly advertises her group’s mercy to her classmates and friends
Everyone gets their nails painted at some point
Nobody knows how Byakuya got roped into it but it worked
Makoto has rainbow loom
Atua forgives you
anyway YEAH LEGIT?
Hina has fully and thoroughly fallen in love with all of her friends and classmates’ expressions whenever they’re talking about something that excites them omg 🥺
she sees someone rambling and having a good time and hears the enthusiastic pitch of their voice as well as the general Vibe™️ that they’re giving off and she just???? [Y E A R N]
Tumblr media
:)
and also just???? her and taka being study buddies is so valid oh my god??? they’re really close because of it!!! And Taka always loves hanging out with her because he knows she’ll let him just Talk??? and he adores that about her????? And she’ll be ENGAGED which!!!!!! oh my god!!!!?????
hi in this house we love and adore hina
And Sakura and Mondo???? absolutely?????
they have friendly competitions over who can lift the most weights/do the most reps/etc. (they do it sparingly, ofc! bc Sakura at least knows that they’ll both be subconsciously trying to beat the other as opposed to listening to what their bodies need in the moment. Sakura is the single braincell of class 78 no I won’t take it back because it’s true)
and they totally doooooo like they both get such cute loveydovey pining expressions whenever it’s Their Turn™️ to discuss the latest cute thing their partner(s) did. and listening to the other talking???? oh my god it’s literally the neatest thing????
Sakura looking at Mondo: I would die for this man
Mondo looking at Sakura: this woman is literally beauty and perfection in human form
THEY’RE SUCH GOOD FRIENDS OKAY???
also chihiro joins them for training sometimes!!!! She obviously isn’t able to do as much as the other two are, but both Sakura and Mondo are always so proud of her progress??? They’re like “you are so cool and strong do you know that??? you better know that”
and speaking of chihiro hdbdvdvdvdvdvdvdvd on GOD Leon will Not leave them alone abt it and they’re just like
“y....you do NOT have the attention span,.......you’re gonna get frustrated within like the first five minutes......and then I’ll have done all that work for nothing..............”
but Leon’s >:( no I won’t!!!! music is my Passion!!!!!!!!
so it’s like *sigh* okay
and anyway leon genuinely does rlly like it???? like he gets burned out very easily and can only compose things in short bursts, but he’s always so so so proud of the finished products??? (Even if nobody else likes it but shush 😌)
and it makes chihiro :D to know that something she made (even if it was done with reluctance) has brought one of her closest friends so much happiness????? she’s also like good for Leon but also if he ever bothers them about something like that again they are Literally Going to Snap but that’s another story for another day vwv
AND YEAH LIKE. HE DOESN’T MIND TALKING TO HER ABT MUSIC IN GENERAL BECAUSE IT’S AN INTEREST THEY SHARE (quite possibly one of the only times they will have a conversation without one constantly insulting the other ❤️) BUT. ADMITTING TO HER THAT HE NEEDS HELP WITH IT IS THE WORST HE HATES IT HE HATES IT HSBDBSBD
god okay so. his first impression of her when they had just come to hope’s peak and met for the first time was “oh my god!!! she’s a pop idol!!! so she must know a lot about music!!! maybe she’ll help me become a popular musician!!!” and her immediate reaction when she first heard him ask was to literally roll her eyes and he was like oh okay fuck her actually
and then slow burn enemies-to-friends 💛
WHEBDVSVS CELESTE AND BYAKUYA JUST BEING RICH ASSHOLES IS SO FUNNY??? LIKE THEY HAVE WEALTH SOLIDARITY AND THEY ACT ALMOST LIKE alright your status makes you worthy of my time, I suppose-
they’ve had bets on everything from how many times kirigiri will pass out from exhaustion by the end of the school day, to how long it’ll take before Kirumi finally Loses Her Shit, to how many people will be harmed by Komaeda’s luck while hanging out with him.
Mfs about to die smh
and dhdbwvwbsvwvwb yeah like??? sometimes a normal conversation with maizono will turn into her being like “yeah, and by the way, if you’re looking for a change of style and wardrobe, you should check out the newest shirt my band just released as part of our merch drop, and-”
Makoto is the one who gets baited into her merch ads most often sndbsbsbdbdbw
even mentioning the word “merch” around Leon or Kaz will earn her a lot of groaning and sighing, and occasionally a pillow or other soft object being hurled at her face 💛
oh my god they all have a manicure spa day,,,,,,,class bonding 🥺
hdbdvdvdv they got Jill to break into his dorm and kidnap him ngl like the specifics they gave her were something along the lines of “use as much force as you need to without killing him” and she was like “DONE”
and okay I’m not gonna talk abt everyone’s nails but now I’m thinking about it and like-
Sayaka gets like a lighter violet background with gold and white stars smattered around them, more concentrated in some areas than others, and it’s generally very pretty 🥺
chihiro’s are a different solid pastel color on each finger!!! it’s very kidcore and fun and they love it so muchhhh!!!
leon gets a little self-conscious when it’s his turn because his nails are highkey disgusting from all the time he spends playing baseball - there’s dirt trapped under them and everything so he’s just like hhhhhhh anxiety go brrrr but anyway he gets solid black because he’s edgy and cool like that 😎
I think Taka gets a French manicure with little dark red flowers pressed towards the tips because!!! simple yet pretty!!!
Celeste probably takes the longest because her request is sooooo complicated like it’s black and red and long ass acrylics with overlapping patterns and everyone else just kinda sits there feeling h o r r i b l e for that poor nail stylist
Toko gets a checkerboard pattern, with each nail having a different neon color in place of white!!! Because she knows that Jill will find it cool and pretty and colorful the next time she fronts (visual stimming jill?? 👀)
Togami just picks whatever will get him out of the chair quickest hdbsvdvdvdbdbdb
anyway Makoto????? rainbow loom????? absolutely
he has so many bracelets!!!!! so many so many so many and he knows how to create such a wide variety of styles it’s so cool!!!!!! he wears a bunch of them at any given time because they are so fun to fidget with!!!! and rubber texture hvvvvhvv!!!!
and he creates personalized ones for his friends, too, like he knows their favorite colors and sometimes picks up on whether they prefer a certain style or not from the way they react to the other ones he’s made and it’s!!! just so neat!!!!!
I’m thinking about it and!!! he has a bi pride fishtail, a trans pride arrow stitch, a black and neon green railroad, a pastel pink/blue/purple/yellow ladder, a jelly yellow and green dragon scale, a rainbow double cross, and a bunch more!!! he also has a bunch with charms and beads added into them!!!!
He also makes them for his friends even if he knows they won’t wear them!! Like Toko, for example, isn’t the biggest fan of jewelry because she doesn’t like the texture, but he creates one for her anyway and fills it with so much love (it looks like a daisy chain!!!! because at least she’ll be able to look at it and hold it and still be interested in it without it needing to be on her wrist!!!)
he makes a ton of bright colored ones for Mukuro (usually either single or inverted fishtail because he knows she wouldn’t enjoy wearing anything too heavy or overbearing) so that she has more mobile visual stims!!!
similar for Jill!! although most of hers tend to be black and bright neon rainbow in various bulkier styles!!!! Jill will also force him to let her look at his bracelet-covered arm whenever they hang out because. my god,,,,,,so many Colors™️
he’s found that togami prefers black and white simpler styles, and that Kyoko absolutely adores singles, fishtails, and double fishtails in any shade of purple, and that Mondo likes any of the larger styles in darker colors + blacks and grays!!! Chihiro loves anything with jelly and glitter bands!!!
Leon usually only wears one at a time, but he cycles through every single one that his boyfriend’s ever made for him because????? GOD they’re so cool and his boyfriend is so crafty and incredible and just,,,,,,,,,hvvvhvv every time he looks at the one he’s wearing he’s able to calm himself down and remember that Makoto loves him........it’s also very good for stim and fidgeting <3
anyways sorry yes Makoto with a rainbow loom is filling me with serotonin and it’s canon now
54 notes · View notes
rinharu-purple · 5 years ago
Text
MakoHaru vs. RinHaru is like Apples vs. Pears
Ooohhh, how nice that we have a horrific pandemic hugging our from us fellow humans cruelly treated earth, so that we could stay at our homes, bake our own bread, have hundreds of zoom talks and try to learn how to knit a sweater for our dog. Everybody chooses another recreational activity to spend their time at their homes...Me? Well. I can  finally write my thoughts on Makoharu vs Rinharu ship war because that's my business and knitting has never been my forte...oooor writing gramatically perfect essays and yet here - we - are.
I think Makoharu and Rinharu are veeeery different and I will try to tell you in this post why is it that I think so...(nope, not because I'm a Rinharu shipper, why would you think that, and no there will be no Makoto shaming, he's a precious baby boy and I love him)
Lets start with the context, in which these two kinds of relationships can be found in.
Makoharu is the “We have been best friends since we were in our diapers and now we are like siamese twins, like salt and pepper, like Ernie and Birt, like avocado and lime juice” type.
Mako and Haru got to know each other while they were 6 years old when Makoto tripped on a sand castle on the playground and Haru helped himto stand up. Ever since then, it's almost always has been Makoto's mission to help Haru stand up, get up or get out of any situation, pool or bath. They are neighbour kids so they've spent their entire life together. Day by day, year by year. They've started swimming in a SC together,  went to the same school and then attended to the same university. Even when they were on school trips outside the city, they would share the same room. So unsparable they've always been. Considering the fact that they are currently in their early twenties, they must have spent almost 15 years together. In that point they no longer need to use words to communicate or Haru has to tell Makoto about his problems. Makoto can always be spot on about Haru's concerns whereas Haru can sense when something's up with Makoto, even though he's not so spot on as Makoto. Haru is not the best when it comes to seeing through the souls of people. He has a quite accurate sense of detecting suffering souls though.
Makoto is always observing and following Haru in a not creepy way. Makoto is loyal to Haru and givies Haru a safe space, where he could always go to, when in distress. Makoto is the translator to Haru's thoughts and feelings, when it's far too uncomfortable for him to express his thoughts himself or the replier to his unasked questions, when its too embarrasing for him to pose them. He gives him handkerchiefs, when he sneezes, tells him to get out of the pool because its still too early to swim outdoors. He also guides other people in their handling of Haru, so that he wouldn' be put into unsettling situations. Makoto is taking over the role of a protector for Haru. Some also see Makoto in a maternal archetype. Even though I find this a little bit far fetched, Makoto is definitiely the mother figure in the team, that's for sure. Just not in this duo.
What is then Haru's role in this relationship? What does Haru think of Makoto canonically? I really had to skip this part and give it some thought before writing anything about this, because I didn't have any straight answer at the first time. Haru cares a lot for Makoto. I mean, we all saw how he freaked out when he's nearly drown in the ocean. He also reacts frantically, when Makoto tells him about his plans to go to Tokyo.Haru is also very sensitive about Makoto's fear of the ocean and always tries to stay between Makoto and the ocean while taking walks at the beach. But Haru usually goes his own way, doing his own things, regardles of Makoto. Sometimes it's almost like he would take Makoto for granted, especially when he's lost way too much in his own problems. He doesn't see Makoto as a basic part of his swimming career and also doesn't confide in him in topics regarding Rin. For example he never told him why he'd quit swimming and he also didn't mention him about the “fence tension”. Makoto is transparent with Haru, but can we say it other way around as well? We saw Makoto struggle with his feelings towards swimming in High Speed and Haru could only catch up to this after quite some time. The same goes for Makoto's dilemma about his future plans in Eternal Summer, because Haru was dwelled way too deep on his own dilemma. What about their team relay in the first season? When he's shattered to pieces because Rin won the 100 m freestyle race, he just disappeared and discarded anyone else. This might be te only unbalanced element in the MakoHaru relationship.
Whatever the roles in that ship might be, due to their closeness and co-dependence Makoto and Haru are extremely comfortable around each other and trust each other completely. It is an established relationship which has very strong roots. It is an unbreakable bond. This is the main context of this ship. What about RinHaru?
Rinharu is the “Ever since I've met you my life hasn't been the same and I can't stand you yet you complete me trope... like yin and yang, like Mr. Darcy and Elisabeth, like two polars of a compass, same same but different” type.
Rin and Haru have always been rivals but also friends. They would compete in every single silly challenge out there, but then set the prize in rather questionable things like “the winner carries the loser bridal style”. They are responsible for the most of the emotional meltdowns of each other but then again they are also the ones to gather the broken pieces of each other and “save” one another. On the other hand, they contuniously keep taps on each other, observe one other from behind the scenes. They also are not using words to communicate like in MakoHaru, the only difference from MakoHaru ist that not only they fail to understand each without words but they also misinterpret each other and therefore have many quarrels along the way. Then again we have many intimate scenes between them, mostly at night, in a car, on a bench, in Haru's room or in the same bed abroad, in which they express their thoughts and feelings very straightforward with clear sentences. No innuendos, no sugary coats, no ego-masks. As honest as they can be. More interestingly, those feelings and thoughts usually turn out to be mutual. They think and feel the same way, they just don't confess them often. It is a relationship of two opposing ends all the time and yet they crave to be next to one another, swim together, see the world together, be like one another, cherish their moments and memories together.  They appear to be  the “opposites attract” stereotype, but they keep growing, expanding and evolving. Neither them nor us viewers know what the next scene in their relationship will be like. It's a relationship that's still in the making, they dont' have an established pattern.
As much as MakoHaru will stay being best friends RinHaru will also stay being friendly rivals, regardless- of any other direction their ship may take. Imo those are the foundations of these two ships, so how are they played out in the series? What is the tone of these relationships?
Makoharu is green and blue, you mix them and you have either a darker or a lighter shade of green
I've just described MakoHaru as an established, safe relationship. It's not only that, but its also a harmonious one. Makoto and Haru are harmoniously compatible with each other. They don't argue much, or have completely opposite opinions, wishes, desires. Even when they differ in their ways, they still manage to find a common ground and keep theit relationship on track. So that's why the producers always give MakoHaru scenes a stabile tone. They don't have drama, but they also don't have emotions on the extreme end of the spectrum. The comforting atmosphere is the basic of their interactions. When they have an argument, they work this through swiftly, and close the deal. They don't carry the burden along the way, they just leave it there.
In illustrations Makoto and Haru are mostly portrayed facing the same direction, wearing the same uniform (obviously), in the same setting, in cooperation. Their Drama CD stories are also that of two characters getting along well. Makoto pampers Haru to his good health as a firefighter and protects him from the police or they cook a meal together and Haru plays to role of a trainer to Makoto. But hey are also portrayed like a somewhat married couple in a domestic seeting. Even Nagisa mentions in the first season that hey look like a newlywed couple. Btw I really think that Nagisa is a hardcore MakoHaru shipper.
RinHaru is red and blue, you mix them than you have motherf#cking purple!
“.. like yin and yang, like Mr. Darcy and Elisabeth, like two polars of a compass, same same but different”  of course they are red and blue! Red and blue are two of the three main colors so they are not harmonious. When mixed they try first to dominate each other but when they finally blend, they make the sophisticated yet charming purple. Something that is neigther blue nor red, something brand new and that's RinHaru. When they are together they clash, they compete, they try to dominate each other but once they finally give in, it's a sight we've never seen before. The ever unforseeable atmosphere sets the tone of RinHaru, which is why both Rin and Haru are still insecure about each other and because their reactions are unpredictable to each other. They appear to be indifferent or comfortable when together and yet there is a certain lack of confidence in their  interactions. They break their heads while contemplating about each others actions and carry the burdens of the unanswered questions in their own heads for quite some time.
In the official artworks they are mostly looking at each other, provoking each other or“mirroring” each other. They are moving forward on their own paths, but in the same direction. Their Drama CD stories show Rin as a policeman, who try to arrest the trespassing merman Haru but then end up showing him his favorite sights and Haru offering him his blood to save his life. In the second one, Haru and Rin, on their way back from the high school regional tournament, at night, using the only time to spend some time together, reminiscing about their eternal summer together and making promises about the future. In another one, Rin is spending the night at Haru's and they once again reminiscence about their childhood and then it takes a misleading turn which includes teenage boys keeping books under their beds. There are always some intimate sparkles in those stories and Haru and Rin always have a romantic moment, in which either one does something romantic to the other or they share theit romantic thoughts about their relationship. RinHaru in my opinion is handled like a "beginning of the relationship" couple. They are exploring their feelings and their relationship progresses with time.
And that is an important point. MakoHaru might be portrayed like a married couple but they are not one. On the other hand, RinHaru really is an everevolving relationship. MakoHaru's setting hasn't changed ever since the first season but RinHaru is taking a different turn in every single one.
Here is a brief comparison of the first and last highlighting interactions of the both ships in each season.
First Season:
Tumblr media
In the first season MakuHaru starts as it always does. Makoto pulls Haru out of his bathtub so that he could go to school in time, much like in the past. And there are important scenes in which they express their appreciation for them sticking to each other. RinHaru on the contrary, starts on a bitter note due to their dispute from the middle school and keep a cold face until they both speak or in this case shout/cry out their true feelings and make up.
Second season:
Tumblr media
Second season also starts with Makoto pulling up Haru out of his baththub and ends in the same manner, even though they also have a fight because Makoto also tries to bring Haru to his senses about giving more serious thoughts to his future plans. RinHaru starts the second season with a new set of feelings. They set a new tournament record and reach the finish line at the same time, giving each other high five and experiencing this new “fired up face” sensation. At the end of the season we see them again at the starting block on neighboring lanes, but this time they give each other a confident, challenging and yet playful smile before diving in.
Third season:
Tumblr media
In the final season up to date Haru and Makoto are attending university in Tokyo and to my surprise aren’t living together. Their first scene is as usual Makoto helping Haru out of water but Haru, this time, pulls Makoto right into the pool, pointing to the fact that Haru, indeed, has become more assertive and confident in his actions. At the end of the season, we see them both still meeting as best friends and studying together. Rin and Haru set off for the final lap of the series miles apart, nonetheless we find them thinking about each other, while they’re in water. Being far awy no longer bringst fear to their relationship, since they know that they are working towards the same goal and that their paths will cross again. And exactly this is what we see in the very final scene. Haru and Rin, standing side by side, at the international stage. Wondering what the future holds for them, but one thing is for sure...They’re diving into the future as a duo.
So when we leave every other scene out of the discussion and solely focus on what are the starting and ending status of these two ships are, we can see that MakoHaru stays stable over the years and don’t show much change, whereas RinHaru evolves and progresses over time and these guys are feeling closer to each other despite spending most of their times apart.
So how do the other characters react to these ships?
Well as mentioned earlier Nagisa is definitely a MakoHaru shipper. He makes suggestive comments about their relationships amd is also very attentive to Mako’s worries about Haru which brings me to Makoto’s reactions to RinHaru. Why was Makoto jealous of Rin and wanted to race him in freestyle? I think Makoto was jealous of Rin because he’ realized that there is someone, who occupies a certain area in Haru’s life, which he cannot be involved in. This would make any best friend uncomfortable and he also confides in Rin after his fight with Haru. Rin on the other hand accepts MakoHaru as best friends and supports it and tries to cheer up Haru about his fight with Makoto by saying that Sousuke und him fight all the time. Sousuke also seems to be aware of the dynamic of RinHaru and is quite cold towards Haru while messing with Rin about his fixation on Haru. He is also quite aware about Rin’s expressions changing while tlaking about Haru, so he senses something out of the ordinary there. Rin’s homestay parents also give Haru a wink while telling him that Rin used to mention from someone whom he looks up to. Ikuya as a newly introduced character, also shows some jelaousy like behaviour towards Rin, although this behaviour is pretty mutual. but I could see Ikuya having more concerns than Rin here. Let’s also not forget about how even Kisumi’s realized that Haru appeared to be lonesome, when Rin was in Australia during middle school (which Haru silently confirms during Ikuya’s heartfelt burst out in Starting Days). People know, that there is something more then what meets the eye for RinHaru.
Tumblr media
In total, MakoHaru has always been a relationship, which owed its strength to its stability and therefore is a very rooted and powerful relationship. Makoto is without a doubt Haru’s best friend and he will remain being that. However I don’t think there has been more than that and also don’t see it turning into something romantic. I mean, like 19 year old college students in Tokyo, don’t you think that they would at least get into a flatting situation if they were more intimacy there? (or maybe this isn’t something common for Japan, I dunno). Since Makoto’s journey takes a different orientation than Haru’s I wouldn’t be surprised if Makoto would soon have a girlfriend. I see Makoto more of a heterosexual guy tbh.
RinHaru on the other side, is still a story in the making and their strong feelings and obsession for each other and most importantly, their paths finally meet and they will be able to finally spent more time together and get to know each other even more. Considering the passion, intimate moments and their desire to be together could turn into something in romantic. I think the romantic feelings between Rin and Haru have been there right from the beginning, but they had to live through all kinds of experiences and form their personas as professional swimmers and find their true identities, while establishing their relationship first before giving thought to what other feelings might be there. So its just a matter of time, that they become aware and act upon these feelings, so we could just hope that we got more Free! productions.
Thank you everyone, who’s made it this far. I know it’s been a long post, but there was no way for me to cover it any shorter than that. Please excuse any typo or grammatical mistakes. I checked the whole text twice, but I’m pretty sure, that I’ve oversaw many mistakes. Did you like it though? Would you add/change something in it? Let me know. I would love to hear your opinions!
44 notes · View notes
zenonaa · 6 years ago
Photo
Tumblr media
Read here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17987960
Comments: I wrote this as a bday fic for Fukawa! While there is referenced TogaFuka, the focus is on Fukawa’s backstory/development. There’s a zine going on about characters’ growth, but I didn’t apply for it after much consideration. ^^ Still, this idea sat with me, and I decided to write it for today.
Listen to this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H10mhHNW1Rs for the mood and for the song that the fic is named after. This makes it the third fic I’ve written named after a song by The Mountain Goats.
There is a lot of one-sided talk about past abuse, FYI.
***
Her story didn’t begin on a train. It could be traced back to Touko’s childhood, to her birth, to her conception. Further. Far, far back. To when her parents met, to when they were her age, or even younger. Whatever made them the way they were, how she remembered them.
However, at that moment, Touko was on a train, hunched up sitting on a patchy purple seat. Thoughts whirled in her head, stirred rigorously, so thick that she could barely breathe as her knuckles turned white on the stanchion beside her. She sat with an unoccupied seat beside her, duffel bag pulled onto her lap, graciously lent by Aoi Asahina. Ever since she had sat down about three hours ago, she hadn’t really moved. Sometimes, her feet shifted so her toes pointed inward, only to drift and face out again, and sometimes, Touko twitched as she cleared her throat and her gaze would flicker.
Her clearest memory of being on a train was coming back from Shikoku on a pitch black night, teeth chattering, head pounding, the smell of blood hanging in her nose from the scissors in her bag that she planned to bury in her garden when she finally got home. While the woman, most likely a mother, who helped her to the station some time after Touko stumbled out of an alley, didn’t treat Touko as anything but a lost little girl, Touko remembered feeling like everyone stared at her, constantly, as she sat alone on the train, and even now, on this train, she felt like people were secretly watching her.
No, Touko had never liked trains. She breathed in a vinyl odour.
Eventually, the train stopped for a second time. Everyone rose except Touko, but after a delay, she stood up too. Touko trooped out of the train, just one of the crowd, swept up by a rush of people.
Stairs led up, up off the drab station, and after a series of grey corridors, she reached some gates. She inserted her ticket. The machine spat it out on the other side and she passed through. Her heart bumped around in her throat and she finally stepped out into evening’s birth. Overhead, the sky was a gradient between deep blue and rusty red, with yellows and a slither of green nestled between them.
Had it not been for a gust of wind, she might have stared up for longer. Touko jutted her head forward and took off sluggishly. Though a lot of the shops that she had known were long since replaced, boarded up in cases, and the hard pavement underfoot beared cracks that she didn’t know, only their predecessors, long gone, she recalled the layout of the streets. It didn’t matter that she hadn’t been here for a long, long time.
When she walked to school, she would have crossed the road here, for example, and then headed right, but Touko wasn’t going to her old elementary school. She veered right instead, and her feet dragged her through several streets until she arrived at a gradual slope of stone steps that led up to a foreboding metal gate.
At the bottom of the steps was a modestly size flower shop with a polished marble storefront and large, gaping windows. Pots of flowers littered the space just outside, trying their best to brighten the scenery. Touko didn’t smile. With hardened features, she took a deep breath and opened the door.
A bell jingled. Inside were even more flowers, but also boxes stacked on top of each other, and on one wall hung a framed painting of a mother and daughter, presumably. There wasn’t much space to maneuver around in, but Touko didn’t have to. Upon her entering, a woman turned away from a hanging pot, and her eyes glinted on her candle lit face.
“You,” the woman blurted. If Touko was to guess, she would place the woman about ten years older than her. The woman had beads in her hair and wore jeans dirty at the bottom. She lowered the watering can in her hold. “I’ve seen you before...”
Touko stayed silent. Let the woman piece the memories together by herself.
“You used to come here,” the woman said, and she approached slowly, staring like Touko was a trick of the light and could so easily disappear and become the shadows in the nooks of the room.
Neither spoke for a bit. She studied Touko some more, then nodded, mostly to herself.
“Yes. I saw you a few times when my mother worked here,” the woman explained. Her mother was the person in the framed painting with her teenage daughter, now the woman in front of Touko. “Wow, it’s been so long...”
A small smile split the woman’s face. Touko didn’t waver.
“I need to borrow a bucket and dipper,” said Touko. Her voice seemed loud in the otherwise still room. “I’d also like to buy some chrysanthemums.”
The woman blinked. “Huh? Oh, right, of course.”
She fetched them for Touko, who unzipped her duffel bag and got out her purse.
“No, no!” The woman lightly clutched Touko’s wrist. “It’s free, for you.”
Touko tensed.
“Do I look poor?” she snarled, and the woman cringed.
“It’s not that,” the woman said. “It’s just nice to see you. I didn’t know if I ever would again...”
“I don’t need your charity,” huffed Touko, but if the woman wanted to lend her the things for free, that was on her paycheck, not on Touko.
Accepting the woman’s offer, she slipped the flowers into her duffel bag carefully and zipped it up again.
“How have you been?” asked the woman.
“I’ve been. I am,” said Touko, and she left. The woman didn’t try going after her and probably didn’t hear the small “thanks” that Touko added under her breath.
With the bucket and dipper in her possession and the duffel bag strap slung over her shoulder, Touko returned to the steps and ascended. Touko trudged up and up, and she came upon the metal gate. She had visited this place in the past, a lot, and she saw it whenever her gaze became vacant and sometimes in her dreams. Before she opened the gate, she puffed out her chest, but the heaviness in her bones wouldn’t budge, her heart stayed lodged in her throat and the fog in her head didn’t disperse.
This, she would have to accept, because she would never be more ready than this, and the gate creaked as she opened it.
All around her were graves. They striped a huge, steep hillside. At this point, the numbness brought on by determination had started to dissolve, and Touko realised how tired she was. Breathing grated the back of her throat and walking forward, she discovered her feet had turned to sludge. The colour of the sky had deepened, and without the occasional lamp post, she would have struggled to differentiate between checkered slabs and grass. She wound through rows of headstones and statues, each marking life and death. To her relief, she didn’t see anyone - she was alone.
Mixed in with the relief, however, was a hard knot in her stomach. Her fingers itched. No one would see her leave if she slipped out before... before she... before. And while her friends knew her destination, she suspected that none of them would broach the subject until she brought it up. Not tactless Komaru, or nosy Yasuhiro, chatty Aoi, tense Kyouko, open Makoto, or enticing Byakuya Togami...
Touko licked her bitten lips and walked some more, stopping at a certain family grave, dirtied by loneliness and time, overgrown with weeds. It consisted of stone blocks closely packed together that reminded her of high rise buildings of different heights, low walls bordering the space allotted to it. Her legs creaked as she crouched down.
Shaking slightly, she set the bucket and dipper down and removed the duffel bag from her shoulder, fumbling a bit. She left the duffel bag on the ground and picked up the bucket and dipper again.
The grave towered over her, and for a moment, she felt like a child again. Or a stink bug, so easy to step on, and then to forget about after being stepped on. Touko steeled herself and stood up, then she began washing the grave. Water ran down stone, streaking it, staining it. Later, it would dry, and later still, it would become dirty again. Regardless, she cleaned it anyway.
She poured water over it several times. Then she put the bucket and dipper down, placed her hands together in prayer, and she said, “Father. Mothers...”
A pause. Touko scraped her teeth against her lips, panting already, and clenched and unclenched her fists. Multiple times. Her mouth had become very, very dry. Many years had passed, but she could still remember them clearly. One mother liked her hair short, always wore makeup and preferred western breakfasts, while the other was younger and had lighter brown streaks in her hair, and she would always make an eastern breakfast. Then, there was the father, with his square jaw, thin lips and bushy eyebrows over beetle eyes. Mostly, she remembered his rotten teeth, and his hands, and his...
“I’m here,” Touko said. Her nails dug into her palms. “I’m still here.”
They didn’t answer. Even if they could, would they have recognised her? She wasn’t a wispy little thing that they could play and have temper tantrums with anymore, who would keep their secrets behind tight lips and wear long skirts and sleeves to hide bruises and handprints, both visible and not. The marks that she couldn’t see, just feel, wouldn’t wash off in the shower, not that she could ever stomach taking those. Being naked, being exposed, like that, her permanently dirtied body on display. No, she was taller now, not just in height but how she stood too.
“I’m helping start up a school with my friends,” she said, voice quivering. A smirk still made its way onto her lips. “And they’re real friends, not... not like the paper dolls that you ripped up, or the one you thought I made up that was really my alter. Or the people in my school who used to lead me on, make fun of me when they thought I couldn’t hear or see them... who would use me and throw me away.”
Like a girl who pretended to be her friend, only to discover who Touko had a crush on and blackmail Touko into giving her money in exchange for her silence. To get the money, Touko sold her lunch, and when the school found out that Touko wasn’t eating and told her parents, they punished her. Touko wasn’t smiling now. She could remember that traitor hanging out with another crowd afterwards. They would ask Touko if they could set her on fire, but if they laughed when they said it, which they did, that made it okay.
Her fists trembled.
“Who I’m with now... they're not just my friends, they’re my family,” said Touko, jaw clenched, and her breathing hitched. She almost let out a sob, but she continued talking, sneering. “They’re the only family I’ve ever had. You... You three... you were terrible guardians. Terrible, vile, despicable people.”
Dead people couldn’t grab her shoulders and shake her. They couldn't slap her, or lock her in a closet without food, or bang her head against a wall or burrow between her legs. To call them monsters would be a compliment. Monsters were imaginary, misunderstood. These were people, and it was dangerous to acknowledge them as anything but.
“No one should go through what you made me go through. I thought... I used to think it was normal. Or that... that I was a bad, difficult child, and that’s why...”
She nearly choked on a sob.
“But... after spending time with people who do care about me, I accept... that I was a child, no more, no less, just a child, and that you didn’t love me.”
Despite what the father said when the lights were out, when her mattress grunted, when they ‘played’ together. He just liked using her. The mothers never pretended to care about her like he did. She didn’t know if that was better or worse. Syo had taken care of Touko a lot more than any of them had, and Syo had been created from unspeakable evil. They all just liked the money she made, that she used to bargain with them so she could move away for high school and live by herself so long as she paid them. None of them cared about her writing, her passion, her escape, of course. Not like Makoto, who read her I-Novel first, and her other friends, who read it later, especially Byakuya, who even went on to read more of her works.
While she could still dream, still breathe, she could never truly be rid of those three. Even now. But better days were more frequent these days than earlier in her life.
“My friends... can get on my nerves at times... It took me a while, but I know they care about me, really. They don’t just tell me, but they show it too, and it took me so long to appreciate it because of you. The abuse you put me through... didn’t make me stronger, like the hollow movie plots society churns out. I was always strong. I had to be, to survive.”
They still didn’t respond. Even if they were alive, Touko didn’t know if they would have. She tried to imagine what they would do. Probably act like she was overreacting, or lying. Perhaps they would slap her. Or, maybe, they wouldn’t be able to say anything like they couldn’t speak now.
“I survived, and I learned what real love is.” Her words tripped over each other as she heaved them out, but she still continued talking. Tears blurred her vision. She didn’t wipe them away. “I learned that everything you did wasn’t right. I thought love and friendship would just cause pain in the end and lashed out at it, but I learned that those things can make me stronger. I opened up, and I went from having no friends, from being hated and hating the world in response, to supporting and appreciating others who deserve it and receiving the same back. I learned about love and friendship from my former classmates, my dear friend, Komaru... and my boyfriend, Byakuya Togami.”
Touko shuddered and gulped. Her lips twisted as she regarded their grave.
“Yes... I have a boyfriend. Does that make you jealous?”
That was directed at all three of them.
“I used to hope that the right person would come along, a prince or a white knight like from some kind of fairytale, or from the sorts of books I’m known to read and write, and then my life would get better. That’s what I believed. But... But I learned to fight for my love, to seek it out, not sit idly, yearning, and submit myself to my demons.”
Indeed, she had rescued Byakuya from his imprisonment in Towa City, and since then, she had given her all to achieve her goals, to be dependable and help the world. Her fantasies about Byakuya saving her from her despair shifted to ones of Touko protecting him. He inspired her to get stronger, for them, for herself, for those she held dear. Not just for her romantic partner, but her friends too, like Komaru. By the end of the mutual killings, Touko had started to consider letting other people in, not just Byakuya, and Komaru, loyal, bubbly Komaru, she had gone and shown Touko that friendship was important as well, and she also meant the world to Touko.
Without realising, Touko had set an example for Byakuya. Proof of the power of love and friendship. When they got together, she had worried that she wouldn’t be able to write anymore, as she had written from her misery, from her fantasies of a better life. However, she had found that she still could write, maybe even better than before, projecting her love for Byakuya into different universes where things played out in varying ways, with all their different nauences, and in the end, the protagonist would reach that love, would embrace it. Despite all her daydreams, being with him in real life had been overwhelming at first, but they walked through it together, hand-in-hand.
“He’s rough around the edges, like me, and though my heart knew we belonged together, the course hasn’t already been smooth. We both... didn’t understand love, properly. Weren’t raised with it. But... But we both get each other. We’re both strong. And he doesn’t touch me after I say no, or hurt me, or want me for my earnings and he doesn’t gaslight me or... or anything like that.”
She covered her mouth and retched. Even now, Touko saw the father in her nightmares, in the shadows of a room, or when she heard that tune he used to whistle. With a painful twinge in her chest, she straightened.
“We’ve been exposed to love, come to feel it ourselves. One day, I will marry him, and we will have children, and I will love him and them, and I will not love you.”
They wouldn’t be stung by that, but her heart gave a skip of pleasure at the thought of the mothers widening their eyes, rendered speechless, and the father’s face contorting in pain. Really, they would just be angry, but she wasn’t scared, because they couldn’t hurt her anymore. She doubted they would apologise, but she didn’t need them to.
“I’m happy now. I’m still here,” she said. “And you’re dead. So... it looks like...”
A humourless grin crept onto her face as she lowered her hand from her mouth.
“... I win.”
Touko didn’t say anything else for a while, standing almost as still as the stone grave. Then her smile crumbled and tremors set in. She took a drag of cold air.
“Anyway, I came here... to see someone else. If not for them being here, I wouldn’t have come at all,” she revealed. Touko drew closer to the grave and skimmed through the names on it, staying on one in particular. One that had been engraved onto it the last time she visited this place.
Born on X. Died on X. The same day. Their birthday.
“My sister,” she said softly. She rested her palm flat on the stone. “Eiko Fukawa.”
When Touko learned of her half-sister many years after she had been and gone, a spark of life, Touko had often wondered what having a sibling would have been like. The closest she had was Komaru, and in a way, Syo. Part of her thought that it would have been a comfort, to have someone going through the same thing, to support her in solidarity, but she couldn’t wish the pain that she went through to be placed upon another.
She bent down and unzipped her duffel bag. From it, she retrieved candles, which she set on the grave and lit. Then she placed the flowers from the shop and a small bottle of milk on the ground in the grave, and she clapped her hands together in prayer, muttering under breath.
What she said was for only herself and sister to know, and as she came to an end, her shoulders shook more, and by the conclusion, her eyes stung. Touko didn’t know how long she stood there for, but it felt like both a long time and no time at all. With a sniffle, she pulled out her phone. Evening had passed its prime, matured into night, but before she saw the exact time, she saw she had texts from her friends. A missed call from Komaru. She called back.
The call connected.
“You called me?” asked Touko, croaking, and she paused, listening, and slowly walked away with the phone held to her ear. “I’m... I’m going to be okay... I’ll phone Byakuya when I’m closer... I’ll let you know too. I’ll see you both soon.”
In the darkness, the candles burned bright, but eventually, they extinguished, but Touko continued shining.
26 notes · View notes
169pd · 6 years ago
Photo
Tumblr media
If anyone’s still here, I have this sheet of Smash Bros styled alt costumes for some of my characters.
Mr. Morris: The main star of the show, being present since the S64 era, and changing over the years to reflect my interests. He is associated with the M6D Pistol, M7 Caseless SMG, and H&K MP5. 1: Since blue is my favorite color, I thought it'd be appropriate to have it as his default outfit color. 2: He wears the colors of his national flag, complete with maple leaf. 3: He wears his outfit with a CADPAT camo pattern, used by the Canadian Army. 4: His outfit is a tan color, based on flat desert camo. 5: His armor is on full display. 6: His armor is gold plated, which is an idea I have for a side-scrolling platformer which he will be playable. 7: Based on an outfit he had during the Gaia Online Prom. 8: Based on a winter themed outfit he has from Gaia Online.
Vanessa: She's been around from at least, as far as I'm concerned, the Era of the 7 Power Stones, with origins stemming from some MTV Cribs style show. 1: The colors and outfit I imagined that she would wear by default. 2: Borrows some colors from Usagi Tsukino. 3: Borrows some colors from Ami Mizuno. 4: Borrows some colors from Rei Hino. 5: Borrows some colors from Makoto Kino. 6: Borrows some colors from Minako Aino. 7: Borrows some colors from Queen Serenity. 8: She wears a Mario-esque outfit originally designated to Mr. Morris. The hat has a V in the white circle.
Mikey: He hit the scene during the Azu Theft Halo: The Homestar Park era. He is associated with the M19 SSM Rocket Launcher. 1: A color often seen on Chevrolet Corvettes, his favorite car. Also based on the maroon armor color from Halo Multiplayer. 2: A color swap with Mark, and also based around the orange armor color from Halo Multiplayer, associated with Grif from RvB. 3: An olive green color associated with Spartan 117. 4: Based around the cobalt armor color from Halo Multiplayer, associated with Church from RvB. 5: His armor is on full display. 6: He wears an outfit similar to Eric Cartman from South Park. 7: He wears an outfit similar to Kyle Broflovski from South Park. 8: He wears the colors of the US Flag.
Mark: He debut during the Azu Theft Halo: The Homestar Park era. He is associated with the MA5B Assault Rifle, and was once called Stinker. 1: A color sometimes seen on Dodge Challengers, one of his favorite cars. Also based on Halo's orange color in Multiplayer. 2: A color swap with Mikey, and also based around the maroon armor color from Halo Multiplayer, associated with Simmons from RvB 3: Based on the Blue Team color from Halo Multiplayer, associated with Caboose from RvB. 4: Based on the Teal armor color from Halo Multiplayer, associated with Tucker from RvB. 5: His armor is on full display. 6: He wears pants similar to Patrick Star from Spongebob, with a matching pink shirt. 7: He wears an outfit similar to Stan Marsh from South Park. 8: He wears the colors of the US Flag.
Reiner: He was added to the cast during the Azu Theft Halo: The Homestar Park era. He is associated with the M90 Shotgun, and later became a medic thanks to Team Fortress 2. 1: His color is based on scrubs worn by surgeons. 2: His color is based on scrubs worn by doctors. 3: His color is based on scrubs worn by nurses. 4: He wears a lab coat with pants that are the same color as the Medic's pants from TF2. 5: Based on the "Unlicensed Doctor" alt costume for Dr. Mario in Super Smash Bros. 6: His armor is on full display, with a lighter color to indicate his role. 7: Based on the purple armor color from Halo Multiplayer, associated with Doc from RvB. 8: An army-style uniform, with ribbons arranged to look like the German flag.
Joe: The big man who joined during the Azu Theft Halo: The Homestar Park era. He is associated with the SRS99C-S2 AM Sniper Rifle. 1: No real basis, aside from the common color associated with the Wild West. 2: Based on the Red Team color from Halo Multiplayer, associated with Sarge from RvB. 3: Based on the flat Navy camo from Rainbow Six: Vegas 2. 4: Based somewhat on outfits worn by UNSC troops from Halo 2. 5: Based on Wild West outlaws, which was his initial base design. 6: Based on a tuxedo seen during weddings. 7: He wears the colors of the US Flag, mainly on his hat. 8: Based on Waluigi from the Mario universe.
Chihiro: A character who became the focus of the Azu Theft Halo: The Homestar Park era during the tail end of 2004. She was once associated with the Covenant Energy Sword. 1: She wears colors based on her initial sprite design, but with a refreshed outfit. 2: Wears an outfit based on a commission by StarPyrate. 3: Wears an outfit based on a commission by Geekbot. 4: Wears an outfit based on a commission by Magikarpdoodles. 5: Wears an outfit based on a commission by Danica Brine. 6: Wears an outfit based on a commission by Kinda W. 7: Wears an outfit based on a commission by EmiMac3D. 8: Based on a gym uniform worn in Japanese high schools, which was her most common outfit.
Kaori/Karin: She hopped on the bandwaggon of the Azu Theft Halo: The Homestar Park era, and might just be the most litigious character here. 1: Her current design, which is also seen in a commission by wyrmskin. 2: Based on a gym uniform worn in Japanese high schools, one of her common outfits. 3: Based on an outfit during a summer break episode from Azumanga. 4: Based on an outfit during a new years episode from Azumanga. 5: Based on an outfit during a field trip episode from Azumanga, but with a red shirt to keep with the team colors theme. 6: Based on her pajamas from the same new years episode. 7: Based on a design made by @geibuchan based on a dream he had. 8: Based on her initial outfit before the rework and restructure of the universe.
Sprites by Gonzo233, FRAG, Foxx and myself.
5 notes · View notes
parrot-blues · 2 years ago
Text
modern au senses of style
as always, just my favourite characters (will probably continue updating this)
MONDSTADT (travellers get put here since they arrived in this country 1st)
aether: mainly casual; hoodies, jeans, croptops+shorts, likes hair accessories (esp flower crowns) and jewellery; mainly goes for warm/neutral colour schemes
lumine: preppy; casual slacks, collar shirts, crewneck sweaters, sometimes earrings; mainly goes for neutral colour schemes
venti: loves shorts and crop-tops, hoodies, and bucket hats; loves pastel colours (but also absolutely rocks darker colour schemes)
LIYUE
hu tao: mainly goes for casual/prep; shorts, hoodies, rings, and slacks are her jam (w/the occasional croptop); prefers darker/neutral colour schemes with pops of warm colours
yanfei: preppy bordering on almost formal; unironically wears suits to class, loves earrings as well; prefers pastels and neutrals
zhongli: semi-formal (most casual he ever manages is preppy); unironically wears suits almost daily, also likes earrings; only has neutrals/darker palettes
xiao: heavily prefers techwear (for comfort tbh); hoodies, windbreakers, combat boots, rings, and cargo pants are his jam; almost exclusively wears black with neon/silver highlights
beidou: athletic wear and techwear; mostly just athletic clothing but loves shorts in general (she's the person wearing shorts when it's snowing), techwear is her dressing up; doesn't care too much to coordinate palettes but has a bias for darker, warmer colours
xingqiu: preppy and semi-formal; has joined the "unironically wears suits to school" club, and is obsessed w/collar shirts; loves the colour combo blue and gold (prefers darker blues)
chongyun: casual and techwear; practically lives inside hoodies (wears cropped ones on hot days) and cargo pants; also likes blue+gold combo but prefers lighter blues (he and xingqiu became friends after realising they were accidentally matching one day at school)
INAZUMA
ei: preppy, casual; mainly likes sweaters (most of her clothing has traditional inazuman elements); favours purples, gold, and sometimes pink or white (usually to match Miko or Makoto (yes Makoto lives in this au))
yae miko: preppy, lolita; always goes all out on aesthetic, even if it tends to be simple; mostly wears pinks and whites but also goes for purples/reds to match Ei
kujou sara: techwear, prep; more concerned w/practically than style; favours darker purples or black (often adds touches of red and/or gold)
kazuha: favours traditional inazuman wear, casual, and sometimes athletic or tech- wear; loves his clothes to be looser but not oversized; tends to go for oranges, whites, and browns
SUMERU
tighnari:
cyno:
1 note · View note
monochrome-typewriter · 7 years ago
Text
Here’s a pointless list detailing the traits I find most attractive in animated character designs. This is pretty much exclusive to 2d characters because when we start getting into 3d, what’s appealing to me starts leaning more towards what I find attractive in real people. It’s also important to note that these traits aren’t what make a character my favorite. They just have an appealing design for me.
I apologize in advance for how all over the place this is. It was kind of inevitable when talking about character designs.
Really big or really long hair - It really doesn’t matter what the style or color is. If a character has loose hanging hair that’s bigger than the rest of the design, they immediately catch my eye. Some good examples are Kamukura Izuru, Vocaloid SeeU, and Stevonnie from SU. I’m also fond of a lot of 80s anime designs, even ones that don’t have hair that’s especially long. The hair can still get so big and fluffy that it’s nice too look at. Adding waves or curls is always a bonus, as well as any accessories or clothing that add to the flowiness (a good example of this is Taiwan from Hetalia).
Very light shades of green, purple, or blue hair - This doesn’t work if the hair doesn’t look soft, so I’m not as drawn to a character design like CC from Code Geass. When the hair is allowed to be fluffy or soft looking, though, these colors can look really pretty, especially on female characters. I tend to favor purple and green over blue, but blue looks great, too, especially when gradients or highlights are added. Bonus points are added for colored eyelashes or dark skin. Speaking of which...
Dark skin with light hair - Actually, it’s generally hard to go wrong when you give a character dark skin. The darker, the better. I don’t mean for this to sound like fetishizing or anything. I just find really dark skin very pretty to look at. It makes the lighter features pop a lot more, which is why I like it combined with light hair colors.
Round faces and tummies - I’ve made no secret of the fact that I like tummies. Any tummy is automatically a good one as long as it’s realistic. Disney’s Jasmine doesn’t have a very great tum, but Nani’s is amazing. Let me see muscles and chub and heck, even bone structure if the position calls for it. Obviously, this combined with my fondness for round faces leads to me just liking chubby characters who aren’t designed for comic relief. It’s especially likable when the character is allowed to be bubbly energized (like Yuri’s mother from Yuri on Ice) or confident and stylish (like Akimichi Chouchou). Again, I do know there are people who fetishize chub, and that’s not what I'm intending here. I just appreciate when characters are allowed to have realistic body types and not be treated as comic relief.
Defying gender norms - This is pretty self-indulgent since I’m a trans dude who likes cross-dressing, but yeah. As long as it’s not treated as a fetish or joke, I’m always excited for girls in tuxes or boys in dresses. A good example is Saber from Fate/Zero. While her main outfit is an armored dress, she’s shown wearing a suit multiple times. It looks so good. I get even more excited when I see a transgender or nonbinary character. Again, as long as they’re treated right, I’ll watch anything with a transgender or nonbinary character. This is very important to me.
Some kind of quirky design or animation - Some good examples of what I mean by this are small or thick eyebrows, multicolored hair, freckles, dimples, thick rimmed glasses, or an odd but not unrealistic hairstyle. It doesn’t have to be anything big, but anything that makes a character’s design more interesting to look at is a huge bonus. This can also apply to the general art style, as is the case with something like Little Witch Acadamia, where all the designs are fun to look at. If I had to pick my favorites from that franchise, I’d go with Sucy, Lotte, and Constanze. This can also come from how the characters move. Nonaka Masayuki is great at adding in really expressive and bubbly animation that makes characters look great even if their designs aren’t fantastic, for example. There’s also a subcategory I have for characters with more extremely quirky designs.
Extremely quirky designs - I’ve stated multiple times in the past that I don’t find anthropomorphic animals very appealing. It’s that reason that makes me avoid monster girl shows or anything with furries outside of stuff put out by Disney. However, if a character has some sort of design that’s bizarre and doesn’t obviously borrow from a specific animal, I get a lot more interested. Non-sexualized plant people are really cool to look at, as are people made of water or other liquids. Weird skin colors or extra limbs are cool, and I’ve yet to see an anime girl with one gigantic eye that I didn’t find adorable. Stuff like the fusions in Steven Universe, that spring sprite from Fantasia 2000, or any monster girls that clearly aren’t just part animal are really creative and fun to look at. The only exception I’ve ever made to the “no part animals” rule is dragons. Because I freaking love dragons. I’d marry a dragon.
And finally, Really Likable Personalities - This one’s kind of cheating since it’s not about the artistic design, but I think it counts since this isn’t about having a complex or fascinating character. When a character is given an already cute or otherwise appealing design, they become even more attractive if they have a likable personality. This includes characters who are really cheerful and fun, characters who are extremely kindhearted and like to help others, or characters who are energetic and hot-blooded without also being angry or mean. These characters can be complex, but they aren’t always. Sometimes, their simplicity is part of the appeal. Some good examples of this are Mioda Ibuki, Tohru from Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, the obvious Naegi Makoto and Furukawa Nagisa, and fug it, I’m gonna throw Penelope Garcia and Disney’s Giselle in here even though they’re (mostly) live action, because their likability makes them that much more appealing.
And I think that covers the most important stuff. This was pretty pointless, but eh. It was fun to put together and I have a lot of time on my hands. Plus, it’d take a lot less time than just listing a bunch of random characters I think are pretty. I have so many, including characters from franchises I know nothing about. If you actually read all this, I apologize and hope this wasn’t a complete waste of your time. It’s over now, so go do something fun. You deserve that much.
4 notes · View notes
zenonaa · 6 years ago
Link
Chapters: 2/2 Fandom: Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Fukawa Touko/Togami Byakuya, Fukawa Touko & Naegi Komaru, Togami Byakuya & Naegi Komaru Characters: Togami Byakuya, Fukawa Touko, Naegi Komaru Guest Starring: Asahina Aoi as herself, Masaya Matsukaze as Hagakure Yasuhiro, Kirigiri Kyouko as herself in spirit, Naegi Makoto as himself
Summary:
'“Didn’t you know about it, Togami-san?” she asked him. Byakuya eyed her and slowly said, “I did not know about it.” Komaru balled her hands into fists, grinning excitedly. “That’s because it wasn’t on your list, but you definitely have to see it,” said Komaru. “It’s the first one of its kind.”'
Togami, Fukawa and Komaru visit Towa City. Komaru may or may not have ulterior motives. Set after Fine Dining.
Comments: My part of a trade with the talented @otomegrandma. <3  Her art is here and here.
***
When Byakuya woke up, he felt like he hadn’t actually slept. His head throbbed and as he tried to move, his body was impossibly heavy. Sitting up proved too difficult to accomplish at the moment - all he could manage was a twitch as he lay on his side, and doing that caused the arms around him to tighten.
He froze.
Those weren’t his arms.
This wasn’t even his bed.
Memories of last night seeped through the cracks in his congested mind. Byakuya had gone out for dinner with Makoto, Kyouko and Touko, to a restaurant for a social engagement with the purpose of evaluating a particular individual. They had drank during the night... then Yasuhiro or someone came to drive them home... and they had all arrived back at their apartment block, and Byakuya had gone with Touko to her apartment.
Ah.
He felt behind himself, patting around until he found a curve of flesh, and gave Touko’s shoulder a shake.
“Hey. Fukawa,” he drawled, and he  breathed in through his nose, but his head was so full of fluff that he couldn’t even smell anything. She groaned and cuddled him more firmly.
Byakuya gritted his teeth, and squinting against the harsh light of the pale morning, he wiggled, trying to turn to her. Touko whined but relaxed her arms around him, just a little. He propped himself up, leaning back on his elbows with his bare chest on full display, and looked at her.
The bun that had trapped much of her hair the evening prior had collapsed, and her curtain of aubergine pooled around her, tangled in places, strands sticking out like reed breaking through the surface of a body of water. Its rich colour stood out against Touko’s pale skin, and with her indigo dress on the floor somewhere near her red underwear, there was a lot of her on show.
She fluttered her lashes and stared up at him tiredly with her lips curled in a cute pout. Without her glasses, her face seemed too bare, even with the grey smudges by her eyes.
“Fukawa,” he said again.
“Wazzizit?” she went, lulling her head. Purple-grey teased him from the small slits made by her eyes.
“It’s morning,” he told her.
Judging by the gradient of blue outside, late morning. He reached into his back pocket, only to not find his phone there. The world swayed as he shifted about, searching around him until he spotted his phone on the carpet within arm’s reach.
Byakuya made a swipe at it and picked it up.
Past eleven ante meridiem.
Very late morning.
His frown tightened.
Did he really refer to her pout as cute?
“We need to get moving,” he said.
“We dun hath walk,” she mumbled, draping her hand over her forehead, palm facing outward.
Byakuya was fluent in many languages, including all of hers by this point. He made to push up his glasses, only, he wasn’t wearing any, so his fingers pressed against the bridge of his nose. His brow furrowed.
“We’re supposed to be meeting the others for lunch,” he told her, lowering his hand to his lap. “Therefore...”
Too much time passed. Touko lifted her head.
“Therefore...?” she prompted, peering up at him blearily.
He knew that without her glasses, her vision was incredibly poor, so he suspected she could make out his frame, slouched forward, but she couldn’t, wouldn’t see how he averted his eyes, how tousled his hair was, what the dull ache on his neck looked like from last night’s makeout session that ended with them falling asleep instead of with them having intercourse, tangled in each other’s limbs.
“Therefore,” he said, feeling fingers claw at the inside of his head, “I need to go back to my place to get ready.”
Her chest rose, then fell. Rose, then fell.
“... All right,” she said quietly.
Byakuya found his glasses at the foot of his bed. When he put them on, the world refocused. Now, when he turned back to her, he could see each of her eyelashes, every crevice in her lips and the reflection of his face in her eyes. He grimaced, shuffled to her front door and cracked it ajar. No one was there, so he strode over to his door across the landing, unlocked it and then slipped inside his apartment.
The door clicked shut behind him. Byakuya heaved a sigh and slumped his back against the door.
At this stage, no students had enrolled at the new Hope’s Peak, unless one counted Komaru Naegi and four of the former Warriors of Hope. Though, with the amount of studying Komaru actually did, including her was debatable.
There were no structured lessons, anyway.
Despite the school’s original purpose, the plan was not to have the school function the same way as it did before. Any student could attend with no extra fees. No students would be scouted for their talents. Here, they would be allowed to explore different fields and work on various skills of their choosing alongside mandatory work. While a lot had been done in rebuilding the school so far, more work was needed before students could enroll. Right now, there were seven staff members if one was to include Hiroko, who had offered to be the school nurse when the school officially opened. Other than her, none of them had much culinary experience, and together with Komaru, Byakuya and the others had complied a roster detailing who was meant to make which meal and when.
By the time Byakuya arrived at the cafeteria, his head had cleared considerably, and the clash of mustiness and what smelled like hairspray in the corridors became tinged with a waft of fresh food. He spotted Makoto, Komaru and Aoi at one of the tables. Rice, soup, salad and wonkily-shaped donuts sat at the centre, available for anyone to help themselves to, and Byakuya didn’t need to guess who had made lunch. The donuts gave it away.
“Good afternoon, Togami-kun,” said Makoto as Byakuya joined their table. “How did you sleep?”
Byakuya shot him a hard look.
“Kyouko’s not feeling well, so I’m going to take some lunch to her a bit later,” said Makoto, seeming to accept Byakuya’s silence as an answer. He pushed out a small smile and scratched at his cheek. “She already missed breakfast...”
Crockery clunked and cutlery clinked as Byakuya put his lunch together.
“You can just say she had too much to drink,” said Byakuya without looking up. Some rice, some soup, a bit of salad... the donuts, as asymmetrical as they were, reminded Byakuya of the bagels that he sometimes had for breakfast when he lived with his mother, so after a few moments of deliberation, he plucked one and set it onto his plate, even if it lacked seeds and the trout that would typically be inside of it.
“I’m surprised you’re here, Togami-san,” said Komaru. “I mean... if you’re really here, that is. You look like a zombie. A freshly shaven zombie.” He heard her chair creak and glanced up. She leaned forward, sniffed, and added, “With cologne.”
“What part of me is supposed to resemble a zombie then?” asked Byakuya, quirking his brow.
“Your face!” Komaru nearly thrust her finger into his eye. He flinched back, just a bit. “Your eyes are like, dead. Did you get any sleep at all?”
Byakuya pulled a face and bit into the donut. It was sweeter than a bagel, lighter and fluffier. She withdrew her hand, settled back into her seat and picked up her fork. He decided to leave the donut for now, and he was part way through the salad when Yasuhiro came in, ponytail of dreads bobbing energetically behind him.
Yasuhiro, who had been a sober spectator to the tailend of last night’s events, grinned way too much as he slid into the chair on one side of Byakuya.
“Good afternoon, guys!” he said, and he turned to Byakuya into particular. “It’s nice to see you, Togami-chi! Sleep well?”
“Well enough,” said Byakuya. Yasuhiro jerked his head back and let out a bark of laughter.
“That’s good!” he said. His eyes bounced between everyone and then skidded over to Byakuya. “Hey, where’s Fukawa-chi? Didn’t she come with you?”
Byakuya didn’t reply, postponing for as long as possible in case they decided to move on to another topic, but all eyes were on him. He frowned.
“She should be here soon,” said Byakuya. “But why are you looking at me? Kirigiri isn’t here either, you know. Remember her? Your old boss?”
Yasuhiro rubbed the underside of his nose, unperturbed.
“‘Course I remember our old boss,” said Yasuhiro, emphasising ‘our’. Byakuya narrowed his eyes at him but Yasuhiro took little notice. He began assembling his lunch, being generous with his helpings, and not meeting Byakuya’s eyes, Yasuhiro added casually, “After your double date, you went back to Fukawa-chi’s place, ‘right? And obviously, you spent the night together, didn’t you?”
So did Kyouko with Makoto. Byakuya wanted to say that, but when he opened his mouth, no words came out. Aoi tensed and Komaru stared at him, but neither of them seemed shocked, and neither did Yasuhiro and Makoto.
“Why is it ‘obviously’?” asked Byakuya slowly.
Everyone exchanged looks. Yasuhiro rested his cheek in his palm, pinching his lips together.
Aoi pulled out the metaphorical shortest straw and flicked her wrist. “I mean... you’ve both become closer.”
“We’ve become closer to everyone.”
“But not like that,” said Aoi in a smaller voice.
“Kirigiri and Naegi went home together,” Byakuya pointed out.
“And they’re dating,” said Yasuhiro, his countenance the most serious it had been for a long time, bordering on frustrated despite how he tried to hide this with a lopsided smile.
“It wasn’t a double date,” said Byakuya, raising his voice a bit. “It was...”
“... a social engagement with the purpose of evaluating a particular individual in a comfortable environment,” finished Touko from the doorway.
Byakuya froze.
“Ah, good morning, Touko-chan!” Komaru piped up, lifting her butt off her seat and waving with her whole arm. Her other hand pressed flat against the table.
He stiffly turned around. Touko trotted over with her head slightly bowed forward, facial features too blank to not be deliberate, dressed in a clean blouse and long skirt. Not what she had worn in high school, and for a while past high school, but a white blouse that buttoned up at the front. A work blouse. She hadn’t reined her hair into braids but she had made a notable attempt at brushing it. Her hair had puffed out and resembled a cloud. Stray hairs grazed his suit as she sat on Byakuya’s free side.
His eyes stayed forward now. Touko acquired a bowl for herself and served herself a light lunch. Some bland salad that could do with dressing, an asymmetrical donut and satisfactory rice.
“Sorry, I burned the mackerel,” said Aoi. All Touko did was shrug and grunt.
They all ate some more.
“Are you both going to be up for going to Towa City today?” Makoto asked Byakuya and Touko. Like the others, he must have began to feel an awkward silence start to settle, and he slapped on a smile as he waited for their answer.
“Of course,” said Byakuya calmly. He gave his glasses a small nudge upward. “We’ll leave early evening - that is much after the eight hours stipulated for being legally able to pilot after consuming alcohol, and we’ll be back some time tomorrow.”
There was a reasonable explanation for Byakuya and Touko going together. Of the seven of them, Byakuya knew how to operate a helicopter, and of the seven of them, Touko and Komaru knew the layout of Towa City, including its shortcuts and the people there, the best. Though lately, Komaru had been skipping her turn to go to Towa City, and Touko had been accompanying him instead on those occasions.
Komaru set down her fork. “Hey, can I come?” she asked.
Touko paused, her blob of rice hovering close to her lips, and she eyed her with a frown.
“Instead of Fukawa-san?” asked Makoto, raising his eyebrows.
“No, with,” said Komaru. Her mouth twitched into a smile and she stroked behind her ear. “There’s something I want to do, but I need Touko-chan and Togami-san with me. So I’ll spend some time with you guys, and then I have some errands to run by myself.”
“Errands? Like what?” said Byakuya with a faint squint.
“Like... um, buying panties, and stuff,” said Komaru, mumbling herself into a flatline by the end.
Byakuya thought that was fair enough and there was no cause to pursue this. Judging by Makoto’s face, he agreed, while most of the others seemed to be pretending that they hadn’t heard, too interested in another part of the room.
“So have you finally developed some modesty then?” asked Touko in a low sneer. “Usually, you don’t have any qualms flashing them to anyone and everyone while you dart about like a fly trapped in a jar... or are they special panties for Nakajima? Who you’re still too cowardly to ask out...”
Touko’s stubby nails bit into her palms as she clenched fists. Byakuya glanced down. She had enough pressure down there to snap a neck. He looked away quickly, betraying nothing with his face.
Komaru puffed out her cheeks. “Hey, I’m one of the most modest people around. Now that I’m not rushing everywhere like a video game character, I can think about this sort of stuff, and there’s some other stuff that I have to do, alone, okay? Like buy you Christmas presents... but I also want to spend some time with you guys. We’re like The Towa City Trio!”
She punched the air. The others stared.
“Or the Another Episode Unit!” Komaru whooped.
They blinked. Byakuya thawed first and cupped his chin. It was approaching that time of year...
“Fine,” said Byakuya, and Komaru beamed, positively sparkling. Meanwhile, Touko picked at her food, and now it wasn’t just her hair that was like a dark cloud.
However, when Touko came into the teachers’ room an hour later, a cup of luwak coffee on her tray, she grinned as she presented it, seemingly returned to better spirits. Byakuya braced himself, but she didn’t even bring up last night, and he dismissed her strange mood before as Touko still getting over her hangover, and after she babbled her greetings, she seemed more than content sitting at his desk with her laptop. Most people would occasionally break out into small talk, but not her, not him. They both hated that. With just the two of them there for the remainder of the afternoon, working in peace, no one saw his glances, even the ones that developed into looks longer than that, but he still felt a quiver of unease whenever he caught himself doing it like someone would catch him and whack him with a cane.
Or worse. Look down on him. He pursed his lips rather than chew on them like she did.
That evening, the three gathered in the helicopter. Soon after he listed the places that they were due to inspect, and very soon after they took to the air, Komaru seemed to fall asleep on Touko’s shoulder. Touko’s face shriveled like she had taken a long draught from a lemon, but she didn’t shove Komaru off, spending the rest of the uneventful ride reading a book, though Byakuya only noticed after he landed the helicopter and saw her slip the book into her satchel.
After the rotor blades stopped whirling and it was safe to get out, they stepped onto the roof of one of Towa City’s skyscrapers where armed guards were waiting for them, all with the same uniform, same stature and same bulk and only slightly different facial characteristics, like thicker eyebrows or thinner lips behind their identical helmet shields. The guards checked the new arrivals over, with Byakuya being searched away from his companions, but once they were deemed safe, they were reunited and escorted down through the building.
To think there had been a time in Towa City when the sky had been a constant red and Monobear units roamed the streets, tearing to shreds any human in their line of sight. A corpse had been as commonplace as a broken window, or a rubbled pavement. Now, the sky had mellowed into a deep blue as night began to settle, drained of its bloody hues, and large parts of the city had been rebuilt by the now largely defunct Future Foundation, sleek and modern.
Despite the amount of progress, at least two armed guards patrolled a street at all times. From where Byakuya stood, he could see a pair of them, armed with a firearm each, though none had been specifically assigned to Byakuya and his two companions.
“Let’s start the inspection,” said Byakuya. He pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket and began to unfold it. “The city hall...”
“ - Yoink!” Komaru snatched the piece of paper from his hand and danced back.
Byakuya whipped his head up and made a feeble grab at it, but she dodged him with ease, grinning openly.
“If we want to check how the city is doing, we should pretend to be one of the citizens, shouldn’t we?” said Komaru, coming to a stop a short but safe distance away. She positioned her hands behind her back, peering up at him excitedly.
He did not share her enthusiasm.
“How do you propose we do that?” he asked while Touko wrung her hands beside him.
“Cool!” Komaru said, even though he hadn’t actually promised to do anything, and she pressed one hand against her hip. She brought her other hand forward and wagged her index finger. “I was thinking, how about we whizz around the shopping district? Ordering stuff online is fine, but it’s not the same as experiencing a real life shop.”
Before Byakuya could respond, she tucked the piece of paper into her blouse pocket and squeezed between him and Touko. Komaru hooked her arms around their elbows and pulled them along with her. Despite how casually she skipped, the grip with which she held their limbs hostage was surprisingly firm, and they had two choices - be dragged or reluctantly keep up. Touko and Byakuya opted for the latter, though they walked quickly, not skipped.
They steered into an alleyway between two austere buildings. The narrow passage could barely accommodate a width of three people. On both sides of them, signs glowed, some above their heads, some that they had to maneuver around to avoid walking into them, and others in a spectrum in between those heights. Some were paper lanterns, radiating soft warm colours, marked in black paint, while others were boards with straight edges and neon lighting. Where the light didn’t reach, shadows were tinted purple by the maturing hour. Storefronts for various bars and cafés boasted heat, not just inside, but outside too with small heaters under the tables, and strong flavours crooked ghostly fingers at passersby, cutlery and glasses clicking like a tongue, all trying to entice potential customers. Byakuya pinched his nose to keep out the stench of hot, sizzling food and alcohol.
Komaru hesitated by a window, staring in. Some way inside, silhouettes of people hunched over a bar, their backs to the outside world, bled into the pale light in front of them, and they didn’t seem to be moving much.
“You’re not old enough,” chided Touko, following Komaru’s gaze, and she stuck up her nose. “And I’m not buying you any, before you ask.”
“Hey, I didn’t say anything!” Komaru pouted at her. “Besides, I don’t want anything from here. I’m just taking a shortcut.”
Her shortcut led them through a maze of other alleyways until they finally emerged into a shopping district, with wide streets and open space.
“See? I knew where we were going,” said Komaru. She rubbed her nose, having to stoop her head as she lifted her arm rather than do the obvious alternative and just let go of Byakuya’s arm. “I got a bit rusty. That’s all.”
Touko gave her a sour look. “And whose fault is that?”
While those two bickered, Byakuya surveyed their surroundings. Many vibrant colours popped out at them, to the extent that certain buildings looked like they had been splashed with luminescent paint. The alleyways had contained several signs but couldn’t compare at all to the vast number here, stacked one on top of the other, some in English, most in Japanese, bright and drawing attention away from the black void of sky high above their heads.
And it worked, going by how many people were still here, browsing, buying, or standing around and talking.
To be fair on Komaru, Towa City was huge and a lot of establishments had been shuffled around to different buildings. Off the top of his head, in this district, the library had been moved somewhere else while its original building underwent reconstruction, for example. Towa City had five notable shopping districts. Touko and Komaru had spent the most time in Towa Riverside, which ran across a river leading into the city.
“Makikawa-ku,” said Komaru in awe, gawking at everything around her. “A magnificent shopping and entertainment complex with over three hundred shops and restaurants, specialising in unique souvenir shops and fashion.”
“Are they paying you to publicise this place?” asked Touko accusingly. “Is this conversation being recorded to be used for advertisements?”
When those two worked together, they could accomplish great things. Other times, however...
Byakuya slid his arm free from Komaru’s loose hold and folded his arms over his chest. He glared at them. “Focus, you two. Komaru, as this was your idea, I will trust you to show us the way.”
Touko and Komaru turned to him at the same time.
“Eh?” blurted Touko, unable to do no more than stare.
Komaru started to smile. He pushed up his glasses.
“... Besides, you’re the most common out of the three of us, so you will be able to give us the most authentic, ordinary experience,” he finished.
That wiped Komaru’s smile off. Now came Touko’s turn to remove her arm from Komaru. She put one hand on her hip and pointed at Komaru with the index finger on her other.
“You can’t sell Byakuya-sama’s trust on My Figure Collection dot Net, so you better not waste it!” Touko told her. Komaru huffed.
“Yeah, yeah,” said Komaru. Her pout lasted a little longer before softening into a smile. “You can count on me, okay? So first, I read that there’s a bookshop here. You both like books, so you’ll enjoy that.”
Komaru motioned for them to follow and then broke into a jog. Behind her, the other two set off, with Touko the closest to running after her, though Touko managed to restrain herself to an awkward stagger. They kept their eyes on Komaru, trying to not lose her among the clusters of shoppers milling around, but at the same time, they had to avoid bumping into anyone, twisting their bodies this way and that as they avoided elbows and bulky shopping bags. Apparently, their pace didn’t suit Komaru, who darted back and grabbed their hands, wrenching them after her. She led them down a street, then another, and then, when they arrived outside her chosen destination, she released her hold, and they raised their heads.
The storefront ahead of them was all glass panels with straight black frames that connected at right angles. Komaru stepped up to the doors, which opened for her, and they walked inside. Though the colours became more muted, with wooden flooring and neutral lighting, there was no less to see in here than outside. Displays and cases brimmed with books with glossy covers, creating a labyrinth for shoppers to explore. By the entrance was a noticeboard with a map of both floors, detailing which section of the stop that certain genres were in.
Predictably, Komaru scanned it for the manga section, and jabbed her finger against it when she located it.
That girl really was Makoto’s sister.
“I’m going to the manga section,” said Komaru, like she thought they wouldn’t have figured this. She turned to them. “I don’t suppose either of you want to tag along with me?”
“No,” said Touko and Byakuya simultaneously. Komaru smirked.
“You’re not so different, huh,” said Komaru, and she made her expression a little more serious. “But you know, manga isn’t so bad.”
Byakuya wrinkled his nose. “We may share this in common, but that’s just having taste. A lot of manga is contemptible, and there is a filthy culture around much of it... but Fukawa busies herself with romance, while I hold much disdain for that too. The similarities only go so far.”
Touko’s eyes flashed wide and she spun around to face him, chin up, shoulders back, and though she drew herself to her tallest, the top of her head barely reached his shoulders, but despite her short height, her presence, the gleam in her eyes, every minute detail, they demanded his full attention.
“I’m a romantic, but that doesn’t mean I’ve only delved into that genre,” she told him, wiggling her fists. “As an author and a keen reader, I’ve dabbled in reading and writing for other genres. Fantasy, adventure, mystery, detective, even science fiction...”
One of her passions was Byakuya, but her other was literature. Byakuya tried to tame the curiosity that parted his lips as he studied at her. Pink had flushed into her cheeks, and her glasses were very slightly askew. While he knew that she was capable of writing for other genres - he had read her I-Novel, some of what she listed caused his lips to faintly pucker.
“Oh?” he said quietly, his eye contact just as strong. The lack of volume helped smooth his tone. He raised his eyebrows and spoke louder, but kept his voice casual. “As you know, I like reading, and detective and mystery novels have always captured my interest. Which have you read?”
“Well, I’ve read some Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Agatha Christie, and Kanae Minato and Natsuo Kirino...”
Komaru shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
“Yes, yes. I’ve read their works. What about Seichō Matsumoto? Do you know his works?”
Komaru picked her nose.
“Of course! Someone who made such an impact on the genre... how could I not? Have you read anything by Soji Shimada?”
Komaru turned away.
“What did he write?”
Komaru walked off.
“The Tokyo Zodiac Murders.”
Byakuya held his chin. “No, I don’t believe I’ve read that.”
“You should read it, Byakuya-sama!” Touko said, almost bursting with excitement. He couldn’t look away. “It contains a locked-room mystery, and I think that it might challenge even someone with your incredible intellect. It’s fairly gruesome, but that shouldn’t be a problem for someone of your composure...”
She waited for a response, eyes wide in anticipation and her breathing fast but shallow. His skin prickled, but his features hardened.
“Oh, really?” He tore his eyes from her and moved slowly to examine the map on the noticeboard and tapped the mystery section. “I will be able to stomach it, don’t concern yourself about that. Let’s see if they have it stocked here, shall we? I will have to find out for myself if it is as good as you claim.”
“It’s was published in the early eighties, but it was a bestseller and nominated for a prestigious award, so there’s a chance that you’ll find it here,” she said. Byakuya gave a single nod.
He checked the map again before striding off. Touko hurried after him, and when she was by his side, she kept with his pace. They wound through bookcases and passed faceless shoppers until they arrived at some shelving units crowned with a sign each, all with ‘MYSTERY’ written on them. On the shelves themselves, small labels had been taped on with different author names.
Old books tended to have a sweet, musty stink, but ultimately that came down to their previous owner. Byakuya avoided aged books - he didn’t know whose sweat had streaked pages, or whether the previous owner washed their hands before touching them, and the information could have been out-of-date. Newer books, if they had a scent, were that of paper and ink. When he breathed in through his nose, he couldn’t smell one particular book, just a plastic aroma that wasn’t exactly unpleasant which seemed to exist throughout the whole place.
As he cruised through the section, hunting for the book that Touko recommended him, he could hear her footsteps as she drifted after him. He stopped and straightened up.
“Seeing as you’re here, you can find it,” he said.
“Y-Yes!” Touko squeaked, more than happy to do so. Byakuya stood nearby, and his gaze flicked up when she rose with the book in her hands.
She gave it to him. He inspected it with a slight frown. It wasn’t brand new, but it wasn’t scuffed or marked. At least, not at first glance, but in any case, he stowed it under his arm.
“Are there any books that you intend to purchase?” he asked.
Her forehead creased.
“I don’t have any in particular in mind,” she admitted, wringing her wrist. “But I’ve been meaning to find something new to read...”
“Then I will repay you by recommending you a book,” he announced.
Touko’s breathing suspended for a moment or two. She clumsily laced her fingers together. “A recommendation... from you? From Byakuya-sama?”
A grin spread across her face. Touko wrapped her arms slowly around herself. The shape of his mouth distorted and warped at the sight of her being so open, so emotional and unashamed. He turned away and tried to focus on the different books around him.
It should have gone without saying that he wasn’t going to recommend her a romance novel. The only books belonging to that genre that he had ever read were actually written by her. Why not? Byakuya had been soon to enroll at Hope’s Peak, he liked reading, and one of his classmates was a writer whose works frequented the bestsellers. Of course, he had been curious, and of course, though their romance had rolled through him in waves of nausea where others would have shuddered with glee and swooned, he couldn’t not admit that she had talent.
“Have you read Points and Lines?” he asked, keeping his eyes forward.
“Yes,” she said.
“The Tattoo Murder Case?”
“No.”
He glided his finger across book spines. Fortunately, he located a copy of the book, and he presented it to her, though she didn’t retrieve it from him right away.
“We can discuss these books later,” he said, and when she still didn’t accept the book, he flourished it at her. Touko took it from him now and cradled it against her chest. “Points and Lines ended somewhat anti-climatically, in my opinion, and I prefer to try to work out the mystery rather than have pages of explanatory monologuing. This book is more reader-orientated, so it’s more satisfying.”
Touko nodded.
“I’m sure I’ll enjoy it,” she said, holding the book close to her, like a mother with their newborn child. She gave him another smile, full of teeth, blushing softly.
Byakuya felt a shiver in the warm shop - Touko had stared at him too long. No. It was that he had stared back for too long. He pushed up his glasses. “I suppose we ought to locate Naegi’s sister,” he said, eyes trained on the rest of the shop, but his mind very much focused on something, someone else.
***
***
To the surprise of neither of them, they found Komaru in the manga section. She had sank into a large cushioned seat and had a light novel in her hands, which she must have obtained from the section next to the one for manga. A few volumes of manga rested on her lap. Her eyes eagerly lapped up the words on the pages, and she hadn’t seemed to have noticed them.
“Oi, Omaru,” said Touko with a dull glare.
“Ah!” Komaru’s head snapped up, even though Touko hadn’t spoken loudly at all. She tucked her finger between two pages and showed Touko the front cover of her book, which depicted a young girl with big eyes, wearing a loita dress. “Hey, Touko-chan, did you know that Endō-sama released another volume and I didn’t realise until today?”
Touko gave a quiet scoff and rolled her eyes up deliberately.
“I didn’t, because I don’t care about that trash,” replied Touko, hugging the book from Byakuya tighter.
Komaru extended her arm and jiggled her book. “I’m telling you, you’d love it! It’s full of action, and suspense, and drama! And girls kicking butt!”
Despite Komaru’s best efforts, the scorn on Touko’s face sank in deeper.
“I don’t trust male writers who dedicate so much time to works like that. It’s not so much a deconstruction as taking a genre for young girls and perverting it and making it twisted. Besides, if I wanted to read about girls suffering and killing each other, I’d read my I-Novel,” said Touko, in a tone that very much indicated that she considered this conversation over. “You’re fortunate I read as much as I did. Now, hurry up. We’re supposed to be working, remember?”
“Hey, I was waiting for you, okay?” said Komaru with exaggerated petulance. She added the book to the top of the pile on her lap, picked the entirety of it up and then lurched to her feet. “I thought you two had forgotten about me, and that I’d have to ask an employee to call your names over the intercom to come collect me.”
Touko’s face screwed up. Komaru jutted out her chin, smirking, on the verge of sticking out her tongue. They could have gone on like this for a while. Byakuya felt his features darken.
“We’re wasting time,” said Byakuya curtly.
The tension flooded out of Touko’s face. She yelped and stood to attention, while Komaru blinked before looking over at him with a much calmer demeanour.
He turned away from them. “Let’s go already.”
They headed to the checkouts, with him walking a little ahead while the other two talked quietly behind him. This section, in the centre of the floor, resembled a grocery shop. Where people lined up to pay, best sellers had been arranged in wire racks on wheels in an attempt to entice shoppers to buy one more item before they were called up.
If there had been a longer queue, then the shop’s scheme may have worked better, but Byakuya glanced at their covers as he passed them, going straight to pay at one of the tills. The cashier scanned his book.
“Anything else?” the woman asked.
Byakuya looked over his shoulder. Touko and Komaru had stayed a short distance behind. Short, but notable.
He faced the cashier again. “I’ll pay for the both of you.”
Komaru didn’t question him and darted forward. Not hearing Touko approach, he checked behind him. Indeed, Touko hadn’t moved, clutching the book that Byakuya had recommended to her, had chosen for her.
“You too, Fukawa,” he said.
Touko dragged her feet over and passed him the book. His gaze lingered on her as he gave the book to the cashier. She didn’t meet his eyes, fixed on some point below that he couldn’t deduce. His chest, perhaps? He narrowed his oceanic blue eyes and turned back to the cashier. After he made the payment and was bid a chirpy good day, he strode toward the exit with the other two close behind him.
The exit gradually grew larger in his vision, and when it loomed over him, instead of stepping outside, he stood still.
“Fukawa?” he said bluntly, making her twitch.
“Huh?” she went.
Byakuya peered down at her with what he meant to be a blank, if not stern expression. “... Are you feeling alright?”
She cringed, then drew herself up and out of her hunched posture.
“I’m fine!” she assured him.
He didn’t believe her.
“I don’t believe you,” he said. She squirmed.
“Being with you makes me incredibly happy,” she told him, and nothing in her tone suggested she was lying, but then she seemed to hesitate.
It sounded like she had more to say, like her tongue had curled around a whole other sentence, but the words dissolved in her mouth, leaving a foul taste. Touko swallowed uncomfortably and said nothing more, but Byakuya refused to waver. Refused to back down. He continued staring at her.
“Can we get ice cream?” asked Komaru, her light voice trickling in between Touko and Byakuya. “There’s a cute little place that makes them here that I really want to visit.”
Byakuya squinted at Touko, who didn’t reply. Komaru’s eyes flickered between them. It wasn’t that she hadn’t picked up on the tension in the air prior to now. Quite the opposite.
“Touko-chan hasn’t been feeling well since yesterday,” explained Komaru. She put her hand on Touko’s shoulder but looked at Byakuya. “Since last night, I’d wager to say.”
Ah. Yes. Then. That. Was after the meal at the restaurant, which he invited Makoto and Kyouko to, as well as Touko, for a social engagement with the purpose of evaluating a particular individual in a comfortable environment. Touko had been that particular individual.
She still was.
That thing.
“I think she’s still hung over,” said Komaru. She bumped her hip gently against Touko. “But you know Touko-chan... she can’t pass up the chance to spend time with you! And I can smile for the both of us.”
Komaru prodded Touko’s shoulder blade with her free hand, grinning, but rather than grinning enough for the both of them, it just highlighted Touko’s downturned mouth.
“... I see,” said Byakuya. He frowned. “Fukawa, if you were still feeling unwell, then you shouldn’t have come.”
Touko’s shoulders shot up, then dipped. So did her chin. Byakuya knitted his brow, and in his chest, he felt a twinge. Years ago, he would have thought this a pathetic sight and not thought about it anymore. His lips felt dry, too dry, and they stuck together as he tried to open his mouth, but even after he peeled them apart, he didn’t speak. Just stared until he couldn’t bring himself to do so anymore.
It wasn’t with disgust that he looked away.
“If you’re feeling so unwell, we should find a hotel for you to retire to for the rest of the evening,” he mused. Komaru’s eyes flew wide open.
“But then she would miss the light parade!” Komaru cried out.
Her exclamation lasted a few seconds before disappearing from the shop, but it rang on in Byakuya’s ears. He blinked. Next to Komaru, Touko lifted her head a bit. Judging by her face, she was as confused as Byakuya.
“The what?” asked Byakuya.
Komaru winced. Her expression softened, became pensive.
“All right, I have a confession to make,” she said, and she held her hands in front of herself. “The reason I wanted to come wasn’t just to help Touko-chan... or buy manga... and I didn’t even plan to buy panties. It was to see the parade!”
There was a pause, like she expected them to say something. No one did, and Komaru tilted her head a little.
“Didn’t you know about it, Togami-san?” she asked him.
Byakuya eyed her and slowly said, “I did not know about it.”
Komaru balled her hands into fists, grinning excitedly.
“That’s because it wasn’t on your list, but you definitely have to see it,” said Komaru. “It’s the first one of its kind.”
“How did you find out about it?” he asked, but not with any urgency to know the answer.
“Because I search for certain things,” explained Komaru, and he could tell she was getting impatient by how her legs jigged.  “Like... on social media, and stuff. It’ll be starting in this district in the next half hour, so if we hurry, there’s enough time to buy ice cream. Come on!”
She sprinted off, and Touko groaned before chasing after her. Byakuya pressed two fingers against his brow, gave himself a quick massage and then followed after them at a brisk pace. Thanks to the bright eyes of shop windows and the luminescent signs that their buildings adorned, as well as the artificial glows of lamp posts, he could see the pair from a fair distance away despite the deepening darkness of the night drinking up the finer details of his surroundings.
However, when he arrived at the plaza, it was filling with people. Clumps of citizens were scattered about, decorating the plaza like lint on a well-worn sweater. He hesitated, unable to see them. They couldn’t have gone far. Komaru had even told them that she wanted to buy ice cream. That limited the number of places. Only, that still left a lot of places that sold ice creams, and he didn’t know the locations of each one.
Library? Yes. City hall? Yes. Police station? Yes. He could find those easily. Everywhere that sold ice cream? No. Why would he?
“Byakuya-sama!” Touko cried out, and he turned sharply. She staggered over to him, spat out from a crowd of people who threw her dirty looks, and she rested her hands on her thighs, panting.  “S-Sorry. Omaru was too eager, and... went on ahead. I know where she is though.”
“Whatever,” he replied, and he glanced around. No one was paying them any attention, and his gaze slunk back to Touko, who was giving him her full attention.
With so many people wrapped up in the event and their own lives, bundled up in the same layer of darkness as him and Touko, the two of them were no more, no less, than anyone else, a silhouette on the street. To some, the darkness hid the unknown, but what it hid wasn’t always dangerous. Sometimes, it protected the unknown.
Byakuya clicked his tongue and reached for her hand. His heart skipped as his fingers scratched lightly against her cold skin, but with a deep breath, he steadied himself and gripped Touko firmly.
“I have no choice. I’ll have to keep you close to me, so I won’t lose you,” he said, barely audible above the rumble of the crowds.
Holding hands was something that Touko did with Komaru without thinking, a facet of their friendship, but this innocent touch made her stiffen, made her breathing falter. Byakuya wasn’t a hand holding person. He shook hands, but that was the limit, and they both knew this.
“This way, we won’t get separated,” he said. That had happened enough times to them. “Now, let us find Komaru. You said you know where she is?”
“Right.” Touko’s hand shifted, but she didn’t pull away from Byakuya’s grasp. He could feel her trembling, and her voice quavered, but she could still talk, could still talk coherently. “I left her at a milkshake parlour, so I’ll... take us... her... to her, I mean.”
She tugged on his arm and he followed after her. More people were gradually dribbling into the plaza from all directions. Byakuya moved closer, shrinking the gap between their bodies, in case someone barged between them and broke their hands apart. This way, they stayed together.
He furrowed his brow, letting Touko take charge of navigating while he stewed in his thoughts.
They arrived outside of a modestly sized shop, which according to the cursive text on its storefront, was called ‘The Sweet Corner’, spoken in English. A bell jingled as they slipped inside. The interior had a pastel colour scheme, and in front of them was a queue of half a dozen people, with Komaru third from the front. Komaru spotted them almost instantly and waved them over. Byakuya and Touko sidled up.
“Sorry for ditching you, Togami-kun,” said Komaru, not sounding particularly apologetic. Or apologetic at all. She sounded chipper. “I wanted to place our order as soon as possible, because they take a bit of time to make. But Touko-chan found you quickly, so we’re going to have to wait after all...”
Komaru trailed off. At first, Byakuya thought that she just didn’t know how to end her sentence, but then he followed her gaze. His eyes fell onto his hand, which was still holding Touko’s hand, their fingers entwined.
Byakuya’s chest jolted. He jerked his hand away and then casually pushed up his glasses. Touko jumped at the sudden movement, then drew her elbows into her sides and fidgeted her hands, eyes downcast. They stood around quietly, waiting. As the line in front of them shortened, Byakuya studied the decor. Paintings of cartoon animals hung on the walls, and there were sofa seats of single block colours arranged around simple tables. In a wooden holder on the counter were laminated menus with small images of certain items, and further back, overhead, was a less extensive menu displayed across several boards like in a fast food restaurant. Other than milkshakes, the establishment also sold ice cream, hot drinks, waffles and pancakes, as well as other sweet treats.
They reached the front of the line, where they had a better view of the kitchen area behind the counter. Boxes of different chocolate and biscuit brands sat on shelves on one of the walls. Komaru sprung into action immediately, smacking her hands onto the counter.
“Yes, hello, I would like an Apollo milkshake, the ones with strawberry,” she said, pressing close, and the edge of the counter dug into her.
While the cashier made quick note of the order on a piece of paper, Komaru turned to Touko.
“The milkshakes here, you can ask for them to be made from different chocolate bars,” said Komaru. “But they can use chocolate biscuits here too. I was thinking, you could have Kinoko no Yama?”
Touko’s face drew into a look of disgust.
“Those are the ones shaped like mushrooms. I don’t want those,” she said in a sour tone. She craned her neck to better examine the chocolates available, and in the end, after some deliberation, she said, “I’ll have a milkshake based with Black Thunder.”
Byakuya didn’t know the chocolate biscuit brand that Komaru recommended, but he recognised the name of Touko’s suggestion. Not because he liked it - they were inexpensive chocolate bars with rice puffs that he wouldn’t go near willingly, but in the business world, Black Thunder bars were seen as a modern rags-to-riches story, persevering despite their unpopularity until they received better endorsement and marketing. They were a hit with university students and young women.
The cashier scribbled Touko’s option down, and Komaru turned to Byakuya. Despite his lack of answer, she wouldn’t avert her eyes. He restrained a sigh and skimmed through the menu behind the counter.
“... Coffee,” he decided. He glanced at the cashier. “I don’t suppose you have luwak coffee here?”
Behind the counter, the cashier shook her head. Just as well he didn’t get his hopes up, then.
“Give me your finest, black,” said Byakuya. He turned to the other two. “Who’s paying?”
“Me!” Touko blurted, before anyone could volunteer themselves. She pulled up her small satchel, slung over her shoulder with a strap, and got out her small purse.
After Touko paid, the drinks needed a bit of time to be prepared, so Komaru claimed them a table by the window and sprawled herself across an entire sofa seat. Byakuya and Touko sat opposite her, next to each other. Pop music played over speakers, the sort of track that Komaru and her brother would be able to give the name of, that Touko and Byakuya didn’t recognise and listened to for probably the first time.
They might have heard it before. If so, it was a forgettable tune.
“Do you like the music?” asked Komaru, glancing out of the window before smiling at them. “It’s a banger.”
Small talk. A spasm quaked in his cheek. Byakuya folded his arms over his chest and looked away.
“It’s not a genre of music that I care for personally,” said Touko in a low voice, resting her arms on the table. “Pop music... is created to appeal to a general audience as opposed to certain sub-cultures, though it can take elements from different genres. They’re usually short pieces, with basic, predictable structures and hooks. They’re the sort of music that people like you,” Komaru, “would dance to. The themes and topics are often basic, and it’s too commercial... I don’t care for it at all.”
“I know that’s what you think,” said Komaru. She cocked her head. “Togami-san, what about...?”
“I’m of the same mind,” he said.
Komaru took a moment to process what he said, and with two against one, she sulked, but her features weren’t hard enough to suggest anything other than temporary indignation, and she stared out of the window.
“I much prefer instrumental music,” said Touko. “Good instrumentals are able to bring about emotion without a single spoken word. When I write, think about writing, or want to get into a certain mood, I listen to that. I let it fuel me. It’s that sort of power that I wish to evoke with my written art...”
Byakuya propped up his chin in his hand, not just listening but also watching her with interest. Yes. Interest. He allowed that adjective. Her eyebrows squished in concentration, and she moistened her lips before curling them into her mouth, only to relax her lips moments later so they popped out again. As if to compromise their state, she pursed her lips and kept them like that. She drew him in, and when he realised, he lowered his gaze to her fidgeting hands.
One of the employees came to their table with their various drinks. Komaru slurped loudly through her straw. Touko gritted her teeth, and noticing, Komaru tried to gulp less conspicuously. Byakuya sipped his coffee and deemed its taste acceptable.
Another track played over the speakers that he didn’t recognise.
“While I can’t say I listen to that music for the exact same reason as you, Fukawa, I too prefer instrumentals,” said Byakuya, reviving the conversation. He held his cup with his fingers hooked around its handle. “I find them less distracting. However, there is some music with lyrics that I don’t mind listening to. The voice is an instrument too, after all.”
Touko’s cheeks had hollowed as she tried to suck out some of her thick shake through her straw. At the sound of his voice, she relaxed her muscles and lifted her head, then sat up straight when he said her name.
“You’re right, Byakuya-sama,” she said, oozing a smile. She placed a hand over her heart. “I have to admit that a few times, I’ve found a song with lyrics that resonate with me. Most of them aren’t mainstream. I don’t care who it’s by, or how many fans they have... like there’s a song called Save Me by Aimee Mann, which was in the soundtrack of a movie I once watched. It’s in English, and...”
The rest of her sentence played out in her head and she mouthed some of it, but he couldn’t read her lips. She lost steam and her lips ground to a stop. Even so, he continued looking at her.
“... I may investigate,” he said. “Your works have been known to be powerful enough to create trends in society. Fishermen became incredibly popular with women and young girls due to one of your books... and butlers with another of your releases.”
He could recall Aloysius being given phone numbers by a variety of women for a period of time.
“Therefore,” Byakuya said, under her intense gaze, feeling like he was walking against a gale, “I would be interested to see what fuels you.”
Touko gasped and clasped her cup of milkshake tighter, causing the plastic to crackle. The corners of her lips threatened to tear through her rosy cheeks as they soared upward.
“I’ll clear my schedule!” she promised, face shining. “We can share our recommendations together... together!”
Byakuya clucked, but he almost smiled. For a short time, they quietly enjoyed their drinks, until one of Komaru’s frequent glances to the window eventually prompted her to jolt to her feet.
“It’s starting!” Komaru yelled. Touko nearly tossed her plastic cup into the air, and even Byakuya, as unshakeable as he thought himself to be, tensed. “Come on!”
Komaru gestured wildly for them to follow and without explanation, she hurried to the door and wrenched it open. Byakuya rose. Then Touko, with a mix of annoyance and confusion sculpting her features into a glare, the cup in her hands bent out of shape.
“Come on!” Komaru whined, bobbing restly as she held the door open, and then her impatience boiled over and she disappeared outside. The door jingled casually, and everyone in the parlour stared after her.
Through the glass storefront, they could see the outside world. Byakuya had left behind a sponge of darkness that oozed light from its pores when he entered the parlour, but now the whole street seemed aglow. He abandoned his coffee cup on the table and crept to the door, with Touko close behind him. When he opened the door, he could only take one more step before being forced to a standstill.
Strangers swamped the street, tightly-packed, confining him and Touko to the doorway. Strings of lights stretched over their heads, hanging over the empty plaza, one end attached to the shops behind them and reaching all the way over to the shops on the opposite side of the plaza. Orbs of hazy light speckled the sea of people, and on closer inspection, Byakuya discovered that they were phone screens.
“What’s going on?” asked Touko, though he could barely hear her over the noise of unseen speakers belting out another pop song that he didn’t know, and the excited twittering of those around them. Perhaps by accident, she pressed into his back lightly and clung to his jacket.
The touch, as indirect as it was, spluttered sparks up him. He shifted but she kept hold of him. His face twitched but he didn’t say anything, forcing himself to focus on his surroundings. A thick crowd had collected in front of the shops, spanning the entire row of buildings, and another swarm of people had gathered on the other side of the plaza. However, they didn’t seem to have any interest in the shops, instead looking into the unoccupied plaza.
Everyone here must have been spectators of what Byakuya presumed was the light parade that Komaru had mentioned.
He scanned the crowd for Komaru, but the mass of people had swallowed her up. Komaru was nowhere in sight. Despite her young age, she could take care of herself in a place like this, so he wasn’t too concerned. She must have tried to wiggle her way toward the front, to give herself a better view of the parade when it passed through.
While he wasn’t particularly interested in the parade, he definitely didn’t care for being trapped inside of a milkshake parlour, so he felt around behind him. Byakuya found Touko’s wrist and seizing it securely, he began to push through the crowd, worming through until they resurfaced in a small pocket within the crowd, big enough for the both of them to breathe their own air.
“Do you-?” Byakuya started, only to pause because he couldn’t hear himself. He turned to Touko. When he spoke next, he raised his voice a few decibels below shouting. “Do you know anything about this parade?”
Touko’s brow crinkled.
“No,” she said, watching his lips, but she may as well have mouthed it.
He looked around and glimpsing a certain combination of black and white, he did a double take. Two small figures of child height stood nearby, and though their bodies seemed human, their heads seemed smooth, like helmets, with ball-shaped ears stuck onto them, the right side of the head white and the other black.
A roar rippled through the crowd, nearly yanking his soul from his body. The mighty bellow echoed, trembled, causing everything to vibrate, and Byakuya tightened his hold on Touko as he searched frantically for the cause. In the distance, approaching the plaza, was a cluster of lights. Thanks to his height, he could see over most people’s heads, and as the lights drew closer, he could see that they were worn by people in costumes, and he flinched. His mouth was agape.
Their outfits were large, mascot-shaped, lacking fingers, instead boasting paws, and the right side of their bodies were white and the other was black like the children’s were.
And they were spilling into the plaza.
“There you are!” cried out Komaru from nearby. She practically popped up beside them.
“Why are they here?” he asked, voice rasping dry. He coughed.
Touko had managed to spot the costumed people invading the plaza through gaps in tangles of limbs, and she stared wide-eyed at the progression, lips quivering.
“It’s the parade! They’re not really Monobear units, just people dressed as them,” said Komaru. She flapped her hand, directing his attention elsewhere. “See, some of the kids are dressed up too.”
His eyes wandered. Not only were there the children that Byakuya had stumbled upon recently, but others too. In fact, not all of them were kids, but some seemed to be teenagers or even adults, wearing Monobear’s likeness. Some waved glow sticks. Some waved their phones. Some waved hotdogs or cotton candy, and some waved a combination of these things.
“But why!” Byakuya snapped, temperature rising to his face that had gone cold.
Komaru was unfazed and flung out her arm. “Look!”
He wasn’t in the mood for guessing games, but he followed where she motioned toward. A fair distance behind the marchers dressed as Monobears, who travelled in two lines, one after the other, was a parade float towed behind a plain white van that blended into its surroundings, tinted with shadow in places but blushing light in others. His breathing hitched as he tipped his head back and comprehended the float.
Beads of light decorated the platform, and on it stood two effigies that towered over everyone. One had a short brown bob of hair, saturated green eyes that glowed from within and a sailor fuku with a white blouse, red tie and blue skirt, and in two hands, grasped a megaphone that was held out like a gun. The other effigy had wild hair, circular-framed glasses and a purple sailor fuku, only this skirt didn’t go halfway down the thighs but could reach near the ankles had it not been sculpted to be flying up, showing off scars on the thigh. Spotlights at the feet, pointed upward, washed them in colour and definition.
“That’s... us,” said Touko, almost rendered breathless as she stared into her own violet eyes.
“Yep! It’s a parade... in our honour!” explained Komaru, sporting a wide grin. “Cool, huh?”
Touko’s lips trembled. She swallowed and then turned her head, narrowing her eyes at Komaru.
“What did you search to know about this event? Don’t tell me you googled yourself,” said Touko with distaste.
“We look so cool, don’t we?” asked Komaru, looking up at the effigies like a proud mother.
As the float drew closer, approaching at a slow but steady pace as performers danced and spun ahead of the van, Byakuya drank in the face of Touko’s likeness, its features sharp and deadly. Yet, he remembered the real thing this morning, which had been soft, which had been pressed into his bare back, which had scrunched when a tired mewl escaped, which had been caressed by his hands when they kissed on her bed the night before.
They were the same person. He shivered slightly. It was getting cold. Yes.
“They’ve made me wield scissors,” grumbled Touko, sticking her chin up as she took evident umbrage at this detail. “Don’t they know... that’s my alter’s thing?”
The float passed them slowly. More costumed marchers pranced around behind it, and after them drove another float with different effigies. This time, there were three, and the one in the middle caught Byakuya’s attention first. That one was bound to a cross with rope at the wrists, its defined chest bare and dangling legs contained within ripped, black suit trousers. Byakuya’s gaze climbed up the body, from the polished shoes that overlapped, all the way up to the face. Blond hair, slightly windswept, framed the head, and blue eyes behind familiar white-framed glasses stared out from an expression contorted with pain but hardened with determination, perseverance.
Either side of the effigy were two women who had the same billowing hair, the same torn sailor fuku and the same mole by their lips, but on his right side, the effigy sat slumped by his likeness, arms wrapped around the blond’s legs. On the other side, the left side, the effigy had red eyes and a long tongue hanging out of its mouth. This effigy stood tall, one arm wrapped around Byakuya’s likeness’ middle and the other arm holding a pair of scissors to the underside of his likeness’ chin.
Phones flashed as people furiously tapped them, snapping photos.
“I’m going to take a better photo of the first one,” Komaru shouted. The wind and chatter and music smothered her voice before it could carry far. Not waiting for a response, she slipped away, chasing after the float that had her and Touko on it.
Byakuya turned back to Touko, who ogled the second float with more interest than the one prior.
“They got your physique right,” she said, in reference to the abs, and Byakuya quirked his brow at her. Though reluctant, she tore her eyes away from it and hunted for her phone. By the time she found it, the float had passed them.
She shrieked and staggered through the crowd to catch up to it. He pinched the bridge of his nose and walked briskly after her, ignoring the next group of dancers and the next float - a large structure, that of a whack-a-mole game with nine holes, where instead of moles, five holes contained different sausage-shaped cushions painted to resemble the disbanded Warriors of Hope, while the remaining four corners housed a Monobear cushion in them. There were more floats, further and further away, of Haiji Towa in the midst of being torn apart by featureless blue people, and another of Taichi Fujisaki floating on a cloud of binary while meditating, and Hiroko surrounded by featureless blue children.
People shuddered and hissed, scowling at him as Byakuya forced his way through the crowd. He glimpsed Touko up ahead and flitted between slithers in the crowd. She hadn’t noticed him yet, distracted by the float of her, Byakuya and Genocider Syo. When he reached her, he put a hand on her shoulder.
Touko whirled around, brandishing her phone like a sword. Byakuya blinked, almost going cross-eyed as he tried to look at her phone.
Her face relaxed, and her hand wilted. He exhaled and took his hand off her, tucking it away as he folded his arms over his chest.
“To think that it used to be that you were chasing after me,” he mused in a quiet tone, peering down at her.
Now he was chasing after her.
But it wasn’t the same.
It wasn’t.
“Sorry, I got excited,” said Touko, flashing a nervous, apologetic smile that didn’t budge his frown. She turned her phone toward herself and tapped the screen a few times. Her eyes flickered. “Komaru says she’ll meet us at the top of a tower closeby. I think it’s that one.”
Touko raised her head and pointed a finger at a lattice tower in the distance much like Toyko Tower in structure. During the day, its body was red, standing out against shades of blue and grey, then, once night fell, as it had done today, it lit up with a gradient of brilliant light, glowing hot yellow at its centre and spreading out into a blazing red toward its edges.
The tower was open to visitors but in the daytime, the queues to even go into the area underneath it were hours long. However, at night, the queues dramatically shortened, and it took Byakuya and Touko longer to burrow through the crowd than it did to reach the front of the queue. Once there, they were objected to two security checks, with the first one resulting in the confiscation of the scissors in the holster on Touko’s thigh, which would only to be returned when they left the premises later.
Then, finally, they were let in through the gates, and they walked onto the paved area below the tower.
Stalls selling foods were dotted here and there around the edges. Byakuya ignored them all and went straight to a booth to buy tickets for a ride to the top. While the tower offered the option of taking the stairs, which didn’t cost anything, he didn’t feel like climbing up so many, so he paid extra for the luxury of a lift.
Each lift was located in a different leg of the tower. Touko stood close to him in dim lighting as the lift ascended, stopping about halfway up the tower. Cold air smeared across their faces. Wire fencing enclosed the area, with big enough gaps that the city could be seen through it if one brought their faces near enough. There were also telescopes, available at a fee.
Touko and Byakuya approached the fencing together. The city twinkled in places. Steadily shone pinprick light in others. Everything else was hidden in a blanket of darkness, way below them.
“You can see the parade,” said Touko, pointing. Her finger trembled. She drew her hand back so she could squeeze and rub her hands together. “The lights are all congested there... Everything seems so small from up here. People aren’t even ants. They’re not perceptible... like they’re not there.”
Her breaths were short and shallow.
“Even with all the lights down there, it’s so dark,” she said, shaking. It was cold. It was dark. “Who knows... what’s hiding in there...”
Byakuya raised a hand to the fencing and fitted his fingers through the gaps, hooking his digits around the thin lines and feeling the metal press against his skin. He thought to himself how while they couldn’t see a single human on the ground, all of those people surely wouldn’t be able to see them up here either. They could see the tower, sure, but not the man in his grey pea coat or the woman beside him, huddled up in her coat.
“The dark doesn’t always hide danger,” said Byakuya. “Sometimes, it can hide you from danger.”
Touko’s face looked like it had been carved out of marble, pale and smooth. She didn’t say anything as she considered what he said, or even move, like she hadn’t heard him, but seconds later, she let out a quiet laugh and turned to him.
“You always say such inspirational things, Byakuya-sama,” she said with a smile, with quivering light in her eyes that very much indicated she wasn’t a statue but real, and she blinked, and the light was still there afterwards.
“I say my truth,” he said, and he knew she liked that about him, and he realised that his mouth had widened into its own smile without him realising. He tried to pull it back in, but his lips resisted, fighting the whole way.
Then the fireworks started, distant but flying as high as them. Touko widened her eyes at the bounty of colour they threw up, and Byakuya watched too. Some didn’t bang but sprayed glitter. Red. Green. Blue. Some started dazzling gold and when they exploded, they spread wings of purple stars that crumbled away before their very eyes. Byakuya absentmindedly touched his blond hair and thought of braids, thought of long wild hair beside him. As yellow disintegrated into purple, more fireworks shot up. Lights pulsed in and out of existence, replaced by another display, and as the show progressed, smoke began to build. There was a flash, and Byakuya saw a smoky figure, tall, who pressed into another smoky figure, shorter with a long skirt, and the two joined together into a gnarled embrace until they became unrecognisable.
“Without the dark... you wouldn’t be able to appreciate the light,” said Byakuya.“It’s beautiful,” murmured Touko, agreeing.Light whipped against her face. The sky sputtered.“It is,” he said.
She looked at him, meeting his gaze, and feeling his face start to tingle, he turned back to the firework show first. It was cold. For the next fifteen minutes, neither spoke, and then the last batch of fireworks dissolved in their eyesight. All they could hear now was the wind whistling and other visitors to the tower talking amongst themselves somewhere behind them.
Byakuya removed his fingers from the wire fencing. He faced Touko, and she gazed up at him, and he inhaled to speak, only to pause, tongue scraping against the back of his teeth.
A beat of silence passed between them. Something about how she stared at him caught him off-guard. Something about her face, her eyes, all things that he had seen plenty of times, focused on him, but now was different somehow, and he could feel her reeling him in. That had to be it, because otherwise, he was slowly leaning in on his own accord.
“Byakuya-sama,” she said, her brow creasing, and she dragged a foot forward, setting off an imaginary tripwire.
“Let’s go up,” he said, straightening. His stomach gave a strange flutter, like he missed a step, like he said the wrong thing. The dark would help mask his expression. “Komaru might be expecting us on the top.”
She gaped at him and then nodded, wringing her fingers. “Right...”
They took another trip on the lift and arrived at the very top of the tower. A large mesh dome surrounded them, protecting them from the wind and accidentally falling off. Much like the previous floor, if one wanted to take a photograph of the city without any wire blemishing the picture, they were required to place their camera right against it, with the lense positioned in a gap.
Touko hugged herself, staying a short distance back from the wire dome.
“Where is she?” asked Touko, looking around. She grimaced. “I bet that fool is still down there taking photos...”
Byakuya padded over to the wire meshing. Even the tallest buildings, not including this structure, struggled to be as big as a fingernail in his vision. Over the howling of the wind, he heard Touko sidle up to his side, glimpsed her shadowy figure, but he didn’t turn. His eyes traced over freckles of light way, way down on the ground. The tower was in this city, yet he felt like he was in another place entirely.
“I suppose we should find Komaru,” he finally said. He made to turn, but then she grabbed him, and he wavered. “Fukawa?”
“I can’t take it anymore. I need to know,” she said, striped in light and shadow like war paint. She clutched his arm harder. “I need to know what we are.”
It should have been easy answering her.
“Are we... together?” she asked, her tone restrained, but he could hear the rawness in her throat, the power she was holding back that she couldn’t hide in her large eyes.
One word. Two options. Byakuya should have been able to answer right away.
“This isn’t the time,” he started.
“When is the time?” Touko asked, voice cracking.
She gulped noisily. He could feel her shaking.
“I don’t want to keep on second-guessing. I want to know,” she pleaded. “It’s fine... when I’m making it up in my head. I know where I stand. But all this... today... last night... as far back as that night before we lost our memories so long ago... it’s making it hard to know what’s real and what’s not.”
The person standing in front of him wasn’t a girl who muttered and fiddled with her skirt, but someone who muttered, fiddled with her skirt and could also stand tall, who knew what she wanted and had the determination to back it, who could cry and smile and both and was brave enough to hold out her heart with her fingers spread, who would risk herself for those she held dear.
One of those people was him. Him, someone who caged his heart, who thought that made him stronger, but who she had shown wrong. Who had taught him otherwise.
His heart raced. His throat thickened. Her strange behaviour today began to make sense.
“People say life is short, but it’s the longest thing we have and it’s our only one,” she said. “And I know... we’re still young, but we don’t know how long we have left, and even if we have the rest of our lives, I don’t want to waste any more time. Our time apart before... was difficult, even with our video calls and my best friend beside me. I want to make the most of it.”
Byakuya shook. It was cold. It was cold. It was cold.
But his face was growing unbearably hot.
“Komaru’s right, even if how she compared it to anime... I want a resolution, darling,” she said with wide, determined eyes brimming with tears. They must have had that conversation when he wasn’t paying attention. “Even if you say ‘no’, I will respect that, but my heart will always be for you. As your partner, or even as a friend... I’m loyally yours. You don’t have to be afraid.”
She reached for his shoulder and gripped it tightly and though her tug was small, Byakuya’s head swooped down like an avalanche. Without thinking, he placed a hand on her hip, and without thinking, he cupped his palm against her cheek, and without thinking, he kissed her.
Well, the corner of her lips. They bumped together and receded, just a little, just for a moment. Wordlessly, they adjusted their angle, shifted their feet, modified their holds on each other, and then they kissed again as Diamonds by Rihanna played through the city streets far below. But here, they heard the wind, the ruffling of clothes and their hushed breaths, smoky figures joining together.
He didn’t feel weak. He felt powerful.
Other people on the tower turned to them. Some politely pretended not to see them, others grinned at the show of love, but none grinned quite as much as Komaru, who watched the screen on her phone as she recorded them.
29 notes · View notes