#though this does seem very in-character for Ritsu

[quirkle2]

something i've noticed in my obsession with ritsu kageyama is that he underestimates people a lot

i think the first example of this is in episode 8, and it's absolutely littered throughout the rest of season 1. it starts with koyama, and the way ritsu says, "that guy is finished—it's over," when shigeo reaches 100%. while he Does have good reason to believe this, and so does the audience, koyama still manages to "win" by pulling a trump card that completely negates anything shigeo would be able to throw at him

when he's locked up with the awakening lab kids, his first idea is to act like he and the others don't have powers at all, which Wildly underestimates claw's communication between members. ritsu was literally noted to be an above-average esper, and "special treatment" was suggested for him. the fact that he even thought that would work at all suggests he either thinks they're incompetent (which, since all he's seen from claw is koyama so far and koyama can pack a fucking punch, is a little silly) or he's panicking and clinging to desperate, sloppy plans. it also kinda reminds you he's Literally Thirteen. god . he'sso small

also, the fact that ritsu doesn't even remember the awakening lab's kids names is another example of this—he deemed them "unimportant" during his arc, and continued to think this for a good while (i'd say he even holds onto some of those views well past the show's runtime, if his little comments about the twin's telepathy in the transmission arc is anything to go by) (also also, that <- deserves a post all on its own bc the fact that he meets another pair of siblings with esper abilities and sees that it's brought them closer instead of torn them apart . wow that makes me ill)

reminder that he listens to one of the kids "get killed" in another room and then watches a claw member drag the kid back out and throw his bloody, lifeless form to the floor. This Happens To Him. he watches this go down, and then he Continues to misjudge them. his little comment about the claw lackies "underestimating them because we're kids" is a bit funny to me now, given this entire post

he does it to shou immediately. he doesn't see a scar on him, so he immediately assumes he's lower tier and about as strong as the lackies. even after shou stomps and cracks the fucking hallway in half, ritsu walks right up to him and doesn't seem threatened. i doubt he's trivializing this situation just bc shou is a kid—that just wouldn't make sense from ritsu's perspective on things

he's already seen the biggest baddest esper in town—he lives with the guy. he knows the strongest esper is his own brother, so his view on other people's powers are very skewed. ritsu is so caught up in his trauma that he thinks shigeo is unbeatable, and i think part of that is because he was so young when The Incident occurred. anything scary that happens to you at that age is going to seem insurmountable to you, if you've never tried to overcome that fear. ritsu fully believes ???% is completely invulnerable (and yes, that's largely true) but he seems to carry that idea over to shigeo as a whole

maybe dimple's comment about ritsu being able to reach shigeo's level got more into his head than i originally thought it did—he "knows" he's at least close enough to shigeo to eventually surpass him, and since he puts shigeo's powers on a pedestal built with shaking hands, he thinks, hey, i must be pretty close to that. i must be pretty invincible too

he tends to mentally call fights finished before he's seen everything his opponent can do. ritsu straight up responds "i don't believe that," to shou's little you can't defeat me, and he's seen basically nothing in shou's arsenal

to his credit, once all the scars show up, he shuts his mouth and admits he's no match. and i think after the 7th division arc, he stops brushing people's abilities aside so much

this is why the shimazaki fight is so important for his character.

he fights him even though he Knows he'll lose. the shimazaki fight is Not ritsu underestimating him—previously, he's lost battle after battle because he truly and fully thought he'd win. he does not think he'll win this, and he's doing it purely to distract shimazaki from shou's position

ritsu kageyama is 1000% ride or die, especially when it comes to his own beliefs and trauma. i think if shou's situation wasn't as similar to ritsu's as it rly was, ritsu wouldn't have tried so hard to help him. ritsu risks his life to give this kid just a few extra minutes to deal with his father, and the way he enters the fight speaks pretty highly of how much he Wasn't underestimating him

he enters the fight by blinding shimazaki, by pulling a trick from his pocket underhandedly, and even though it obviously doesn't work, it shows that ritsu believes he'll need to do more than just use his powers like he normally does. i believe this is the first time he fights this way as well, with this covert trickery that uses his environment to his advantage—he keeps doing it throughout the fight; throwing cars, dislodging rocks to collapse ceilings. he's truly trying to think outside of the box because he entered this fight with the knowledge that he'll likely lose, and he needs more than just Himself to stay alive

but enough about ritsu underestimating claw, or awakening lab kids. i think the person he underestimates most of all is his own brother.

maybe i'm stretching the definition of "underestimate"—maybe there's a better word for it that i can't think of right now—but the way ritsu seems to think that shigeo will snap at the slightest issue in his life is... well. it's a little,,, patronizing, isn't it? he doesn't seem to have faith in shigeo's ability to keep a cool head, and even though he knows for sure that shigeo is Powerful (and even, sometimes overestimates that aspect of him) i think he tends to undermine his control over that power, tends to believe he'll blow up and scarcely doubting that assumption. he grew up like that, constantly in fear of his brother unleashing that "monster" again, and that in and of itself is an example of ritsu not having enough faith in his brother

when he sees onigawara talking to shigeo loudly in the hallway, ritsu sees how nervous shigeo is and narrows his eyes, like he senses something building in him. when reigen gets slashed during the 7th division arc, the fear in ritsu's gaze is not directed to reigen's "killer," it is directed to his brother, in fear of an oncoming explosion. and i Would say he gets better at this, but even at the tail end of s3, at the beginning of confession arc, ritsu fully believes (until he sees the car that hit shigeo, i think) that ???% came around because tsubomi rejected him. he thinks his brother would react so negatively to that, that other side of him would come out to wreak havoc.

when mob Does actually ask tsubomi out, he just cries when he's rejected. he reacts like every other teenage boy reacts, by quietly crying to himself. it's a very normal thing—after the absurdity and the sheer vastness of power and destruction the audience was just put through, mob walking away and crying quietly about being rejecting by a love interest is the first taste of normalcy we've had in like three episodes. what ritsu thought would spark this is actually the thing that calls the story and the audience back to a place that is solid and grounded

i'm not saying ritsu is a bad brother—that is so so SO far from my point—i'm saying that he's young and he's full of multitudes, and that includes mistakes. and that is Refreshing

this little guy is So full of faults, and it's one of the many things i love about him. he's a character that's practically built upon flaws with "good traits" as an afterthought, instead of the other way around, and the fact that he's been written like that, but introduced to be the polite, honor student, supportive, younger brother type is So Fuckin Cool!

it compliments his arc perfectly, because the reason big cleanup arc starts is because he's tired of being all that. he's tired. i never stop thinking about his maybe i wanted to find out what it would feel like to be a fool, it's Such a good line, and even if his reasonings for big cleanup arc seem nonsensical to some, i think it makes perfect sense in this odd, fucked up way. he literally Says it, right there. he explains everything in those few lines during that rooftop scI'M GETTING OFF-TOPIC

ritsu is a good character and his numerous flaws are what make him interesting to me. if he stayed that polite, honor student, supportive, younger brother type, i probably wouldn't give a shit about him. he is interesting Because he's made some pretty bad choices, Because he's made some pretty disgusting assumptions. he's a kid, fumbling along, with trauma dragging him by the wrists. i could talk about him for hours

[labulemon]

Blood Types in Tokyo Debunker: Why it Matters (or Why it Doesn't)

Blood types are basically the older version of MBTI in Korea and Japan. Each blood type is supposed to more or less have a specific set of traits that define your personality. OFC this isn't true, but it's incredibly high popularity in KOR/JP is the reason we get character blood types at all. Anyways I went scouring google.jp for a compilation of what seemed like the most popular stereotypes and listed them by ghouls. Not sure if I accidentally spoiled anything (I can say it's pretty much nothing from EP 15) so proceed at your own risk. xo i hope you all find it interesting

A-Type: Lucas, Alan, Romeo, Ritsu, Subaru, Rui, Yuri

Meticulous, serious and earnest. Introverted, creative perfectionists. Patient and modest, responsible and organized. Determined and reliable, prudent with money, sincere. Very polite. Detail-heavy.

Nervous, stubborn, and neurotic. Negative and sometimes mentally weak. Loves cleanliness to a freakish extent. Prioritizes appearance over true feelings. Overly considerate towards others, so acts according to expectations instead of true feelings. Judgemental. Very sensitive.

Typically assigned to characters that are calm and analytical in some way, or have a certain specialty.

Lucas: Strongly A-type but seems to lack the stereotyped nervousness. Fits many of the 'meticulous and polite' traits to a T. Very determined, prudent, etc. Judgemental of others and holds them up to the same standards as himself. Could he be considered mentally weak, since he's easily baited and charges ahead so often?

Alan: Very much A-type in his positive traits. I don't know if he's negative, but he doesn't really seem like the positive type, does he… Definitely overly considerate sometimes. Not very nervous, but probably a little neurotic and definitely stubborn.

Romeo: Well, if you remove the patience and modesty and take out being polite… Definitely the neurotic, nervous type. Not considerate towards others, but values his appearances more than anything. Deeply judgemental and obsessed with cleanliness. He seems sincere in his own way.

Ritsu: Not very modest or patient or polite, either. Maybe it's just a Sinostra Type-A thing? Not very mentally strong, since he's easily thrown off by small insults. Definitely detailed, meticulous, and responsible. Seems to share/lack the same traits as Romeo, but expresses them differently.

Subaru: The mentally-weak type A stereotype to the max. Like Lucas, he fits this type to a T, but worse. He never gives up on the self-deprecating worldview no matter what you tell him, so maybe he's surprisingly stubborn in his own way? He judges himself heavily, but I don't know how he judges others…

Rui: A bit of a surprise, since he doesn't have any seriousness, or modesty. But he definitely seems like the type to prioritize his appearance over his true feelings, and maybe that's also an over-consideration of others… Definitely patient and responsible. Is he sincere..? Probably more than he personally wants.

Yuri: Mental-weakness to the max! Even more neurotic, and way more judgemental, but lacks Subaru's polite interpretation of this blood type… He's definitely meticulous and very earnest when it comes to his research, though. Doesn't act according to expectations over his true feelings very often, but you can kind of tell that going against the grain makes his mental state worse.

B-Type: Jin, Kaito, Sho, Haku, Jiro

Eccentric that goes at their own pace. Creative, unpredictable, and optimistic. Passionate, assertive about what you love. Thoughtful quick-thinkers. Relaxed and adventurous, cheerful. Active rather than passive.

Uncooperative, self-centered, irresponsible, intolerant, lone-wolf. Moody and careless. Easily bored, closed-off, too-blunt honesty, inconsiderate. Contrarian.

Seems popular with characters that are very loud and very goofy. Generally unserious types with a surprisingly thoughtful side.

Jin: He's pretty firmly stuck in the "negative" B-type stereotype zone. I don't think I've ever seen this man even close to optimistic, cheerful, or actively pursuing a passion. But we did hear he used to be the perfect captain before the clash, so maybe he had a very positive B-type stereotype personality before? A passionate and assertive person who had their passion crushed could become like Jin, right?

Kaito: I don't know about lone-wolfing or having any blunt honesty, but he definitely seems like he fits the other B-type traits really well. Since he feels so inexperienced, he really ends up going at his own pace compared to other ghouls, doesn't he? He's at default relaxed and very cheerful. A thoughtful person who balances out Lucas's judgemental side. His cowardice encompasses many of his negative traits. And he's very assertive about his desire for a girlfriend, at least? There's a certain unpredictability to him: Is he going to chicken out this time? Or will he find enough courage to fight back?

Sho: If you remove the love and light from the description, you'll pretty much get Sho. Optimism and cheer aside, he definitely has a lot of passion for cooking. Maybe not entirely irresponsible, but definitely not the most considerate guy on the block. Hating boredom feels like Leo's thing, but they hang out so much that I don't doubt he hates it either. Totally refuses to get swept up in anyone's (emotional) pace, which is probably part of the reason why he gets on so well with Leo. He seems to want to lone-wolf, but ends up caring for people anyways...

Haku: Surprise! I thought he was type A. But type B fits his easiest-answer philosophy really well. Honestly, I thought Rui would be a B and Haku would be an A… But Rui does have a certain sincerity to him that Haku tends to bypass, right? Maybe Haku distances himself naturally, while Rui is forced into it. He doesn't seem super proactive... Although he does take charge of smaller situations very often, now that I think about it! Super thoughtful, and good at thinking on his feet. He's the one they sent after Taiga, after all... He's really contrarian if you consider the fact that he's switched houses once for every year of Darkwick. Somewhat has the air of "someone who hasn't discovered their passion yet." Jiro: He's a definite match for thoughtful-quick thinker. Maybe he was more of the cheerful and adventurous type before he died and was revived? It doesn't seem like he has a specific passion, but that can largely be attributed to his memory loss. And he did seem interested in learning more. The Clash really messed with him...

AB-Type: Leo, Haru

Dual-faced, mysterious, complex. In-control, high charisma, dependable, ambitious. Adaptable, rational, calm diplomat. Intelligent. Has good senses and reads other people well. Gets things done.

Cold-hearted, indecisive, unstable, irresponsible, forgetful. Critical to others, lacks humility, and is either a genius or a psycho. Make poor teachers. Moody, bad at close relationships.

Popular with slightly deranged or offbeat characters that tend to go entirely off the rails to complete a goal.

Leo: 100% Textbook AB, right? Probably the both the psycho and the genius. Fits the definition so well that I have no notes.

Haru: A super surprising designation at first, but I thought about it and it makes sense. He's pretty charismatic, gets a LOT of things done, and super ambitious. Mysterious by way of having never mentioned anything about his past before. We only learn about him from third-hand conversations... He's definitely got a good sense for a bad situation. I can't tell if he's stable or unstable. He seems to lack the cold-hearted, crtical, irresponsible negative stereotypes. Makes a good trainer, but that's not really being a teacher necessarily... Maybe this was also a personality switch from the Clash? I believe he was from Ultio, by the way.

O-Type: Tohma, Ren, Taiga, Zenji

Rough, easygoing, laid-back. Resilient, independent, and loyal. Self-confident, extroverted, and relies on intuition. Very passionate, likes peace. Don't care about small things. Outgoing and bold. Values honesty and dislikes liars. De-facto leaders with good memory and charisma. Devoted to people they love. At their best when people are relying on them. Tolerant of mistakes.

Jealous, rude, cruel, insensitive, unpredictable. Cold, self-centered workaholics. Arrogant, dominating, bossy. Can't control their anger. Can be too enthusiastic and become forceful.

Popular with characters that have a strong desire to take care of others in one way or another. Sometimes has an air of sunshiney innocence.

Tohma: Super O-type. I originally thought he'd be type A, but now that I think about it, you kind of have to be all of those things to boldly put up with Jin's crashouts the way he does… He's a liar himself, though, so i don't know if he values honesty that much. Or maybe because he's a liar, he values honesty more? Not sure. A de-facto leader that stepped up when Jin broke down. He's allegedly a surprisingly easygoing person. He's not rough or angry in the current depiction, but since he's ex-Vagastrom, maybe it represents his original personality. He does have a certain arrogance, doesn't he?

Ren: Well, if you remove the love and light from the description, you get Ren… I don't know about being rough or resilient or extroverted or workaholic-ing or having any charisma at all, but otherwise it fits him, right..? He's 100% the type that's at his best when relied on, even if he doesn't want to. The type to unwillingly come in clutch at the very last minute. He's definitely devoted when he gets attached, given the way he was running around all of Jabberwock for Calamari's sake. He's got a lot of negative O-type stereotypes. Not necessarily bossy, but tends to complain a lot when things don't go his way... It seems like he's bad at anger management.

Taiga: He's like if you took every O-type trait (minus liking peace and workaholicing) and dialed it up to 100!!! A lot of his presentation depends on his mood at the moment, so sometimes he's got a lot of positive traits, like being easygoing, independent, and super duper loyal. He really hates liars, especially after the mysterious traitor. Like Ren, he shines when people are truly relying on him. He must have some type of charisma for his students to follow him so diligently... But when he's mad, he's pretty much all of the negative O-type stereotypes, and his anger's got a gun.

Zenji: He seemed like a B-type at first glance, since that's considered the "creative" type, but he doesn't have any of the negative traits, does he? O-type fits him way better. Since he's an artist who wants to show off his work and shine, he's a strong combination of that outgoing and bold version of the type-O personalities. He's definitely devoted to his brother and also honestly a lot of people, and he seems to value integrity a lot. He's not particularly cruel, angry, or cold, but he does seem to be made jealous easily, at least about his art… Maybe it's not anger, but he seems to have trouble controlling his emotions in general. And you have to be resilient to withstand being a ghost, right? A little self-centered, or at least super prideful of his work. He's not insensitive, but he seems to have a hard time predicting people's responses to him.

Unknown: Edward, Towa, Lyca

lol

these are just predictions

Edward: Right now, I'd probably call him an AB type, but he's been alive for so long that his personality is a little warped. Being "the strongest vampire" could be considered being a genius? Towa: B-type, maybe? Eccentric, and not easily swayed by a situation unless he has personal investment in it. When he's not with Haru or MC, he's really not the most cooperative... Lyca: It's really hard to say, since he's in such a different setting than what would be considered "natural" to him. But I would guess O-type. You have to be resilient to put up with that situation. MC: Little miss so surprised... A-type? The closest character parallel seems to be if Subaru was less self-deprecating. Definitely overly considerate and acting as expected of her, if you consider how much she puts up with in Darkwick... Here's some random facts:

Sinostra has the most A-types (grand total of 2). Probably because you need two high-strung people to balance out Taiga.

Frostheim has the most B-types (2). That's a little surprising for such an uptight house... Or maybe you have to be that way to successfully survive that same uptightedness.

AB only has 2 members, so I can't really comment. That said, thinking that "Haru has the same personality as Leo" is really strange, isn't it?

O-type is evenly spread across Sinostra, Hotarubi, Frostheim (ex-Vagastrom), and Jabberwock (1 each).

[danieyells]

i am politely begging for lucas lines 🤲

LUCA MY BELOVED LITTLE BRIT KNIGHT. Luca is a darling but the thing about him is that he's so focused on his goal that he really seems to have no mind for anything else. . .well it's not a problem, but it does make him feel a little distant I guess.

Hello: (the first time the game is opened after that character is set as home screen NPC. Only happens once per day, unless the character is switched out and back.)

"You're here 10 minutes early—I'm impressed. Let's check the details for today's mission."

You've Got Mail: (whenever there's something in the inbox, usually Arena rewards)

"A letter's arrived for you. It could be important—you'd better open it right away."

Default: (requires no affinity, has no time constraints)

"So this is all we have to go on for the next mission... Don't worry. No matter what anomaly awaits us, I'll keep you safe."

"I haven't trained nearly enough. I need to go on more missions... I have to do more, to find a way to subjugate them..."

bby you're already doing everything you can. . . .

"If you're ever in trouble, you can always come to me. I want to be there for my friends."

"Do I find it tough training every day? Those with strength have a duty to use it for others. I'm perfectly all right."

"I'm sorry. I haven't troubled you again with my thoughtlessness, have I?"

BABY YOU ARE THE MOST THOUGHTFUL MOST OF THE TIME DO NOT EVEN WORRY YOURSELF.

Affinity 1: (between 5am and 11am)

"{PC}, good morning! An early training session will warm you up for the day. Would you care to join me?"

Affinity 2: (between 11am and 4pm)

"I'm sorry, I'm about to head out. A dangerous anomaly is wreaking havoc on campus again, and it's a threat to the general students."

Affinity 3: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"I invited Kaito to train with me, but he turned me down. Apparently, he's got a lot on his plate, but I'm worried about his lack of strength..."

Affinity 4: (between 8pm and 5am)

"There's something I want to investigate a little further… You'll join me? Thank you. You really are very kind."

Affinity 5: (between 8pm and 5am)

"Phew... I'm finished with today's revision. Still, it's not quite bedtime. Perhaps I could fit in a casual training session."

Affinity 6: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"I've heard in Japan it's believed you're more likely to encounter evil spirits at twilight. Let's go find out if it's true."

hey let's go wander out alone at night and see if we can find demons to fight! don't worry tho i'll protect you nbd.

Affinity 7: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Kaito invited me to have ramen with him again today. He says it's Tokyo's signature dish."

Affinity 8: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"Jin has been calling you to his room a lot lately. Is everything okay? If you feel uncomfortable, I'll have a word with him."

let's say she was uncomfortable, what would that resolve? you think jin's gonna listen to you? but lmao it's kinda funny to me that like Ritsu and Luca see Jin putting you to work and go like "hm. that seems concerning." IT'S FINE THO WE'RE INTO IT EVERYTHING'S GOOD.

Affinity 9: (between 8pm and 5am)

"You think everywhere in Frostheim is cold? That's not true—the bedrooms are properly heated, like the cozy spot in front of the fireplace in winter."

everywhere outside of that though, freezing. including the bathrooms. especially the bathrooms.

Affinity 10: (between 10pm and midnight)

"If you're struggling to sleep, the Sandman will come and pay you a visit. That's what one old folktale in the UK says, at least. He must have been some sort of anomaly, too."

Affinity 11: (between 5am and 11am)

"I'm fond of the morning air. My brother, on the other hand, always said he found the nighttime more relaxing. Which do you prefer?"

Affinity 12: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Today in Anomalous Combat I was scolded by Professor Dante for defeating a mock anomaly. I believe I made the right call, so I'm quite confused..."

PAY ATTENTION IN CLASS JESUS CHRIST THEY EXPLAIN THIS IN EVERY SINGLE CLASS THAT WE ARE SUPPOSED TO CAPTURE THE ANOMALIES NOT DESTROY THEM. Jesus christ is that what they teach in Emrys?

Affinity 13: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"In many ways, Frostheim etiquette is quite different from etiquette in the UK. I wish I could escort you, but I still have a lot to learn myself."

okay consider frostheim etiquette is shitty anyway most of the time so don't even worry about it they're assholes.

Affinity 14: (between 5am and 11am)

"We still have some time until class starts. Why don't we go and fetch the documents for our next mission from Tohma?"

buddy isn't the main building across campus from Frostheim. . .do we have that kind of time. . . .

Affinity 15: (between 5am and 11am)

"You need to make sure you eat a proper breakfast. You lose muscle mass if you do things on an empty stomach. That's why I always have biscuits on me."

Affinity 16: (between 11am and 4pm)

"In classes I sometimes notice discrepancies between what is taught at Emrys and what is taught at Darkwick. I wonder which is correct?"

Affinity 17: (between 10pm and midnight)

"You worked hard today. No matter what ordeals await us tomorrow, I trust that you'll both be able to overcome them."

Luca believes in you! So believe in yourself too! You'll make it another day.

Affinity 18: (between 8pm and 5am)

"I've heard about the bushido ritual of seppuku. It's a rather extreme way of punishing oneself… It must require a great deal of mental fortitude."

IT'S NOT REALLY. . .A REGULAR WAY OF PUNISHING YOURSELF. . .I MEAN YEAH KILLING YOURSELF WITH RITUAL DISEMBOWLMENT REQUIRES A LOT OF MENTAL FORTITUDE BUT IT'S NOT EXACTLY. . .please keep your insides inside. . . .

Affinity 19: (between 10pm and midnight)

"You should go home and rest, {PC}. I won't allow the Devil's hour to pass tonight without finding some sort of hint..."

i feel like he doesn't find many hints and should worry about sleeping instead. . .what's with ghouls and not sleeping and eating enough. . . .

Affinity 20: (between 5am and 11am)

"Did you manage to get a good night's sleep? Rest is the best medicine. Don't push yourself to stay up too late, all right?"

Affinity 21: (between 11am and 4pm)

"Did you see they've announced what our next test is going to cover, {PC}? I hope your studies are going well. I'm happy to help you with review if you need me to."

Affinity 22: (between 4pm and 8pm)

"I'm going to have a chat with Professor Hyde about demons before I leave today. You and Kaito should go on ahead."

he's so studious! but i bet hyde wishes he'd y'know live a little.

Affinity 23: (between 8pm and 5am)

"Is a "pajama party" some sort of important event? Kaito was insisting that we invite you to one."

please teach this boy to relax a little. . .teach him a little fun social stuff. . . .

Affinity 24: (between 10pm and midnight)

"Sometimes I feel out of sorts, like I'm not myself. I still have a lot of training to do."

i think that's called exhaustion and having emotions, buddy. . .you can't train yourself out of that. . . .

Affinity 25(max): (no time constraints)

"We have experienced many joys and sorrows together since becoming friends. I'm very glad we met. I look forward to walking the road ahead with you."

Spring: (March-May) (between 5am and 11am)

"I saw a lot of flowers in bloom while I was jogging through the campus this morning. It really brightened up my run."

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Spring in Japan is quite similar to spring in the UK. The weather gets reassuringly warmer, and the air is filled with the scent of flowers."

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"Kaito has been nodding off in class a lot recently. I wake him up right away, but I'm still worried he'll fall behind..."

(between 8pm and 5am)

"I've never seen cherry blossoms lit up at night before. They looked very different than they do in the daylight. I feel it taught me something about differing viewpoints."

i feel like i learned something! not sure what tho.

Summer: (June-August) (between 5am and 11am)

"Summer days are long and productive, but in Frostheim the days are short all year round. It's easy to get caught in the dark if you're not careful."

(between 11am and 4pm)

"Kaito's going to teach me about Japanese summer again today. This is the first time I've spent the summer with friends— it's been a lot of fun."

;;;; please be a good first friend to him

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"There's a summer festival being held in Hotarubi this evening. I've got a yukata for it… Could you help me put it on?"

(between 8pm and 5am)

"The sun stays up until late at night during summer in the UK, so Japan's dark, sweltering summer nights feel quite odd to me."

Autumn: (September-November) (between 5am and 11am)

"Tohma has been going out on a lot of private errands lately. I wonder where he's been going? You don't think he's doing secret training, do you?"

no sweetie i don't think he's secretly training without you. he's doing important administrative business. don't worry about it.

(between 11am and 4pm)

"I like that autumn is considered the season for reading here. I'm reading two books at the moment—this one's in German, and this one's French. Can you read them?"

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"Tohma just gave us some chestnuts, so Kaito and I are going to try roasting them in the kitchen. Would you like to join us?"

once again the Frostheim Family interactions are strong lolol HERE KIDS HAVE SOME SNACKS. KEEP IT DOWN YOUR FATHER IS TRYING TO SLEEP.

(between 8pm and 5am)

"Anomalies are more active in summer in Japan, whereas in the UK, they're more common in the autumn. I suppose Obon and Halloween are to blame there."

obon is in august that is barely summer tbh. i mean some places celebrate it in july i guess. but that's an interesting worldbuilding observation. local spirit and 'monster' related festivities influence the amount of anomalies that spawn in a region. so halloween in america and the uk result in a lot of anomalies. maybe there are lots of love related anomalies and like doves around valentine's day? then again Luca said they don't have them in the UK that he's aware of.

Winter: (December-February) (between 5am and 11am)

"{PC}, your hands are red from the cold. Come on, let's run to the classroom. It'll warm you up."

while that is a realistic way of warming up who tf wants to go for a run in the cold. i mean it probably feels good the contrast in heat and cold but also HOW ABOUT WE GO TO THE STORE AND GET SOME MITTENS OR SOMETHING. but it is a very in character response for him lol. . . .

(between 11am and 4pm)

"When Kaito put a satsuma on his head and said, "I'm a New Year's decoration," Tohma fell silent and walked away. I'm confused— was it some sort of spell?"

satsuma are those little mandarins they put on top of kagami-mochi at New Years! if you've seen japanese winter/new years art you may have seen characters with them sat atop their heads while they relax in kotatsu. in the japanese version Kaito says "kagami-mochi" and Luca likely doesn't know what kagami-mochi is, so he thought it was magic.

(between 4pm and 8pm)

"The sun sets early this time of year. It's easy to feel down when the nights are long, but that's why it's especially important to stick to a routine like an exercise schedule."

Luca wards off his seasonal depression with exercise. good to know.

(between 8pm and 5am)

"On a clear, frosty night, you can see an aurora in the sky above Frostheim. It's very inspiring—like a beacon of hope in the darkness."

His birthday: (March 22nd)

"I suppose today is my birthday. Thank you. If you don't mind, will you join me in praying for my twin brother's safety?"

i gently rag on him for caring about nothing else but. it's clear how much his brother means to him and how worried he is about him, that even his birthday is dedicated to worrying over his wellbeing. idk who or what he prays to, or if it's just a general hoping thing or a 'since i'm in japan i'll make my pleas to japan's gods, in case those entities might have any power to help' type thing, like going to a shrine just because it's what everybody does, but. idk. i hope he can have a nice birthday outside of worrying about his brother. then again, it's hard to enjoy your birthday when you know it's your twin's birthday too and not knowing where they are, i guess.

Your birthday:

"Happy birthday, {PC}. There is a reason you were born into this world, and it's something that should be celebrated."

New Years: (January 1st)

"Happy New Year. I've heard it's customary to visit a shrine, so I'm planning to invite Kaito to go with me. Would you like to come along?"

Valentine's Day: (February 14th)

"Thank you! This is all very new to me. In the UK, it's men who express their gratitude to women on Valentine's Day."

i was gonna say something questioning because i'm american but when i think about it women in relationships with men don't really/aren't expected to give something to their boyfriends/husbands are they. it's much more of a day to give to/do something for your girlfriend. usually the idea of a gift for a man on valentine's day is ~dress sexy for him and have sex with him~ or whatever because other material stuff like stuffed animals and candy and flowers are seen as non-masculine gifts and things men wouldn't like. . .but that's kind of sad to think about. idk i guess i never really thought about it because valentine's day is a day that has no meaning to me. and 'valentine's day is a day men express their gratitude to women' is a very kind perspective on how it seems like people treat valentine's day haha. . . .

White Day: (March 14th)

"Thank you for the chocolate you gave me last month. This is a token of my appreciation. They're Thorntons chocolates— I just received them from back home."

do you think his family sent them and he decided to give you something lovingly sent to him by his family, or that he ordered them for the occasion specifically. . .i think it's sweet either way.

April Fool's Day: (April 1st)

"How odd... Kaito has been acting peculiar all morning. I wonder if he's coming down with something. Did you notice it, too?"

homie's really been living under a rock huh.

Halloween: (October 31st)

"Is that you under that mask, {PC}? I could just tell. I don't really understand what's so fun about this holiday."

on one hand, maybe if you got him to dress up and go trick-or-treating he'd enjoy it more? on the other hand i feel like he'd be on edge about it. More anomalies around in the UK around halloween, and he'd be so busy thinking about if there are demons around under his nose he wouldn't be able to have fun. . .poor guy probably grew out of halloween early huh.

Christmas: (December 25th)

"Happy Christmas! It's a shame I'm not able to celebrate Christmas Eve with my family this year, but I'm glad that I have all of you now."

you're his family now ;;;;;

Idle: (about 20 seconds without interacting with the game) (below 13 affinity)

"Penny for them? I'm happy to lend an ear if there's something troubling you."

'them' being 'your thoughts' in case you aren't familiar with the expression

(13 affinity and above)

"When deciding on your next move, I do think it's important to think carefully. That said, hesitation can cost lives. Balance is crucial."

boy it ain't that deep i am idle because i am checking emails or something would you relax--

Absent: (logging in for the first time in 2 or more days?)

"I knew you'd be back. If you're prepared to work to overcome this ordeal once again, I will gladly lend you my strength."

THOSE ARE MOST ALL OF HIS VOICELINES he's very. . .focused. it makes him a little repetitive but considering what's happening to bring him here i don't blame him. . . .

Of course finding his brother is important but the poor guy doesn't even see the world around him really, which is kind of sad. . . . On one hand, it's good that he's able to focus on his goals and desires, on the other hand it feels like those things are all he cares about because he feels like he has to and other aspects of life fly by him even if he'd otherwise enjoy them. . . . But even as his affinity goes up it feels like he focuses on so many of the same things. He sees you very much as his family and the first real friends he's ever made, which does lend to a positive relationship, but even then it feels like he keeps you at arm's length and sees you as someone to protect more than a loved one. . .maybe if he can find his brother or find out what happened to him he'll lighten up a little someday. then again given he isn't familiar with things like pajama parties and april fool's day he was probably serious even with his brother around! I assume they're going to be opposite type brothers, where his brother is a very jovial and relaxed person, but Luca is serious and strict. but only time will tell!

[aayakashii]

I'm going through the Sinostra chapter right now and I can't stop making theories omg there might be spoilers below so be careful, although I'm just enumerating my questions tbh lol

According to one of Taiga's home screen dialogs, there might be some sort of time loop happening which he's KINDA aware of? Or maybe just aware when triggered somehow.

He said "long time no see! You decide to ditch this future too? Sorry I'm not dead yet" which is INCREDIBLY ooc as to how he behaves during the story which leads me to

His extreme memory loss, which apparently lasts less than 24 hours. Why is that? Did he go through so many time loops that it started affecting his memory? There was one small moment in which he remembered Ritsu because he saw the MC face though...

The Clash. What the fuck was it

What's Taiga relationship to Haru? Haru sounds eerily nonchalant regarding Taiga even though the man keeps on threatening Peekaboo. And aftewards, Rui briefly mentions that Taiga has a "destroying what others hold dear" schtick, which leads me to believe that Taiga is seeking revenge for losing something important maybe???? Is the fanfic brainrot too big rn

WHY DOES HE HATE LIKE DOVES??????? I dont wanna go full romantic mode, but is he just resentful of seeing a bird that is the physical representation of someone else's feelings or something......

The spy. Honestly no idea. There's some theories floating around that Haku is the spy, but I would rather see him during the Hotarubi episode before jumping to conclusions, but it's understandable how people might think that I guess...? He IS very nice and helpful and randomly finding the MC fleeing by train was way too much of a coincidence... he does seem to always tie the MC to Darkwick somehow, firstly by KIDNAPPING her and then by talking her into staying. If the MC is the trigger to a bigger event, then one could see that as suspicious. But I would like a bit more evidence first lol

Back to Taiga, why is he. Like why

Okay no but seriously. If we take the timeloop thing seriously + Haku being a spy, here's the theory:

Taiga knows the MC is the trigger for an awful event and tried killing them back in the Prologue in order to cut the problem on its roots. Haku, if we consider him as the spy, WANTS the event to happen (considering he could also be aware of the loop), which is why he saved us and took us to Darkwick, therefore letting it all play out once again.

If Haku isn't the spy, then we would have to chalk it up as Taiga knowing and trying to kill us, but destiny (???) being a bitch, therefore putting Haku there as a pawn to make things play out again

Maybe the spy can control other ghouls? Who know tbh

Finally, what is going on during the first scene we see in the game? Darkwick on fire and the first character we choose jumping off of the building? I wonder what would happen if we choose Taiga as our first card....... maybe I should create a sub acc

Anyway if anyone has more questions/theories PLEASE SEND THEM MY WAY IM OBSESSED WITH THIS GAME I NEED TO THINK ABT IT

There is also a good theory on reddit made by u/imonlybr16 that states this:

"Before the prologue, when you open the game for the first time, you're greeted with the opening scene involving MC running through the halls of a ruined Darkwick. The question is asked "When the world is collapsing around you, whose hand will you take?"

There you're taken to your character choice screen. The guy you choose is later shown on the railing of a balcony, about to jump off.

Now I think I have a very far fetched and vague idea as to what is going on.

In chapter 2, we learn that the person that Alan killed was Dante or at least he thought he did. But we meet Dante and he's very much alive.

This comes theory number one.

***You can't actually die on campus.***

Note the use of actually here. You can 100% still die, you just end up coming back to life.

If Rui is your home screen he talks about accidentally killing someone else in his dorm and being annoyed with having to lift them back to Obscuary. This struck me as a particularly odd dialogue because Rui's curse causes people to die.

Unless, you can't die on campus.

This would explain Dante pretty much instantly. Yes Alan killed him but yes he's alive.

The campus itself is an anomaly, stopping people from dying doesn't sound too far fetched. I expect this to be revealed with the other two members of Obscuary, as that dorm seems to have a connection to death. One of the things that always pops up is that ghouls aren't immortal, no matter how quickly they heal.

Also explains how Calamari didn't die in chapter 3. Ren ran from the dorm > the caves > the jetty and Calamari was already pretty dehydrated in the beginning.

But OP you might say, aren't all the guys talking like they believe they're going to die.

Luckily, that brings us to vauge and far fetched theory number two.

***The campus is on fire due to a rebellion***

In the very last chapter of the prologue we get to see Kaito's wickhive. There we see three pretty interesting threads.

. There's gonna be an uprising soon

. One of you is a demon

. There's a guy who could see the future

Kaito is surprised at something he sees in this scene but we don't learn what it is. This chapter's 'preview' is one of the scenes we see in the very beginning. Blood and a Lily.

I believe that the first thread is foreshadowing and will . After you meet your chosen guy standing on the railing you get a line of dialogue (or not if you picked Towa) that changes depending on who you picked. Some imply that what they're doing is going to save you(Jiro, Zenji and Sho), some apologize stating that they could protect what they cared about until the very end (Luca,Kaito,Haru and Yuri) but three characters caught my attention

Leo: Life sucks and then you die,right? I just want to make the assholes responsible regret it.

Ren: This is exactly why I didn't to do this! I knew this was how it was going to end.

Subaru: This is all my fault. I don't expect you to forgive me, but this is the least I can do. Please take this as my final act of good faith.

Especially Subaru's and Ren's, that seemingly imply either the MC's (Ren's) or their (Subaru) involvement in the current situation. Now what does this has to do with a potential uprising?

One of the things we learn from the very beginning is the inter-politics of the houses and by extension the ghouls. Especially after the fallout of the clash. Things are pretty tense and an uprising or rebellion seems to be the most likely thing.

As to what happened and why? I have no clue. Though one thing to note is that according to the prophecy, as long as the ghouls are in Darkwick, they prevent a disaster from coming. If Darkwick is destroyed however, the prophecy can't be fulfilled, or can it?"

This is such a good theory too, I really think u/imonlybr16 has probably gotten a lot of things right.

Although it's weird that death is such a big threat to us specifically, but maybe the Academy can't prevent death by curses, much like the Mesmer Matches dont work on someone who's cursed. Hhmm...

[bizarre-blues]

Curious about your shoumob thoughts 👀👀

Apologies for the essay I am about to write you. Genuinely it's a self indulgent ship for me- I don't particularly see it ever happening in canon, but the potential for their dynamic is so severely underexplored that it drives me insane- not even romantically, just in general. I honestly get why at a glance it doesn't seem like there'd be much between them, but this is fanon and I'm allowed to pour my heart and thoughts into my favorite characters. Lemme break it up into two sections. Platonic Shoumob (something I could see as more canon based):

Even being platonic, I do think this dynamic would only show up post canon. Like there's a long period of time where they're vaguely in each other's circles but don't directly interact. On Mob's end, I think this is purely because he's got his own life and own concerns. Sure, his younger brother's friend hangs around sometimes, but it's not his business to meddle around in Ritsu's business. This is really well stated in August's post. But to add on a bit:

Mob is a good big brother + trusts Ritsu

I don't see Mob holding a grudge against Shou for the house being burnt down. Did Shou aim to stir Mob's emotions a bit? Yeah, it wasn't right. It was ALSO to protect Mob's family since Shou knew Claw was sending folks after them. With the bodies of the remaining Kageyama family burnt, Claw would not longer be after the Kageyamas. I think after fully understanding this, even if there are bitter feelings Mob would let em fade over time

What about the seventh claw division? Saying he's disappointed in Mob? Beating up Ritsu to lure Mob in so they can both be captured? First off Shou's insult pretty easily rolls off of Mob's back. Secondly, I think it would be very interesting to explore the dynamic of Mob discovering Shou's part in the seventh division. Again, I don't think this would really come up for a long time, long enough that Mob wouldn't really be a bitter mess about it.

If Mob can find in his heart of hearts that Toichiro is someone worth saving, I really struggle to think he dislikes Shou in anyway.

On the other hand you have Shou. I already talked about how I think Shou would feel a bit in the tags of August's post above. Also, I really like to keep this post in mind too when thinking of Shou's view of Mob.

Shou entirely wrote Mob off in their initial interaction. He saw he had power and was unwilling to use it- therefore was taking the side of a bystander. He saw that as genuinely a crime to waste such protentional. Shou was raised by Toichiro, and even without agreeing with how Toichiro used his power, Shou does agree that power is power and must be used in some way. For him, he needs to use it for justice. That's why, in my mind, Shou was so quick to like Ritsu. Ritsu wasn't afraid to use his powers for what was needed to be done to protect people, even if it was an uphill battle he couldn't win.

Cut to their second interaction. Shou's fighting his dad, Shou's losing the fight- it's barely even a fight with how bad he's losing. In waltzes Mob who's entirely different from the last time they interacted. He's prepared to fight, to protect everyone else since he's the only one capable of doing so. Hell, he even told everyone else to stay away since they'll only hinder what he has to do. Suddenly Mob is aligning with the moral code Shou WANTED to see in him to begin with.

That entire interaction is so short, but it's genuinely so important to me. Mob stands up for Shou, he gets angry on his behalf. Who knows the last time someone did that for Shou, and it's someone Shou had entirely written off.

Last time they interact is the confession arc. Shou sees the power Mob is capable of, how his dad is no match for him when he's like this without it being fatal. It even convinces Shou to lay off using his powers (though idk how closely he sticks to that post canon)

Basically you have this development of complete dismissal > admiration for his moral code? > a warning sign to how dangerous psychic powers can be. Which is insane given that Shou's SEEN how dangerous they can be his entire childhood

I feel like it leaves us in post canon with a LOT of potential for how they might see each other or interact. Here's some of the thoughts that have been plaguing my mind.

I really feel like Shou would have this torn admiration / uncertainty about Mob. Mob is powerful, more powerful than his dad, and I don't feel like Shou fully knows Mob's strict moral code yet. I think that subconsciously he might be a lil cautious around him to begin with even if he doesn't outwardly acknowledge that in anyway

They get to know each other and now there's potential to actually chat about some of this stuff. One thing in particular I like to think about is the power level they both have. Idk the exact power scaling of all the Mob Psycho espers, but I'm under the impression that Shou is pretty up there and will likely only get more powerful with age. Shou and Mob, having this kinda power, have taken such opposite views to it growing up. Mob believing it can never be used while Shou thinking it MUST be used. This is what's inspired the comic I'm currently working on that I'm SO excited to finish up

Also??? this might be ooc but the potential jealousy Shou might have of how easily Mob and Ritsu appear to get along once it's all said and done. Meanwhile his family dynamic is... complex. Shou obviously cares about his dad, but Toichiro will probably not see life outside of prison and I'm certain there's just some oddness between them. Between Toichiro calling Shou a failure and using his powers to straight up fight him, I just feel like it would be complex for Shou. It could really lead to some interesting conflict, especially given Shou and Ritsu being besties

IDK !!! OTHER STUFF TOO!!! Between em I just see a lot that could be said between the two of em.

I feel like when I first joined the fandom I didn't really see much between Shou and Mob. Of the four main esper boys, obvious it's easy to see how much dynamic there is between Mob and Ritsu (the entire show hinders on the trauma they share) and between Teru and Mob. There's also plenty of interactions between Teru and Ritsu. Same to say with Shou and Ritsu since the majority of Shou's interactions are Ritsu centered. But honestly post canon I really do feel like Shou and Mob's dynamic ought to be explored a lot more, even if I must do it myself.

Romantic Shoumob (way more fanon based but hey what can ya do, we have fun out here):

As a disclaimer, I honestly prefer platonic shoumob. HOWEVER I absolutely think romantic shoumob is adorable so I will happily ramble about it. Take most of what I've said above and apply it down here.

In my mind I think it would be Shou who ends up with a crush on Mob. Mostly cause of the amount of emotions Shou has towards Mob post canon, I feel like it could easily develop into a real curiosity towards Mob. Thinks about him a lot and oops, now it's a crush

Also hilarious to me cause I don't think Shou would know how to handle a crush no matter who it was. The classic "writes you a letter that says 'get out of my school' in attempt to flirt" dynamic

Except I really don't think that would work on Mob?? Mob isn't dumb but I really just. Don't think he'd get the hint that Shou likes him. Just knows for Some Reason Shou acts a certain way around him. He'd probably assume he did something to offend or upset Shou somehow tbh

Cue Mob attempting to do things to make it up / even directly trying to ask Shou about it which would only lead to Shou getting flustered or trying, yet again, to keep playing it off

Whenever Mob DOES realize Shou likes him back I imagine he'd get equally as flustered in the beginning. Mostly cause we know Mob is such a lover who is super easily flustered in most scenarios. Very much just! Cute to me

Outside of just the puppy love phase I really do think there's potential for such sweet or dramatic interactions. Again there's all the complex parts of the platonic parts of their relationship, but something significant would be the way that both Mob and Toichiro have this insane amount of power and yet opposite approaches to it.

I think Shou would find a lot of comfort in seeing how gentle Mob could be. I'm also a HUGE softy for the idea of like- we KNOW Shou isn't super soft. He wasn't raised that way, it's not his ideals, there's not many situations where I think he'd feel comfortable having his guard down, even post canon. But I like the idea that Shou lets himself be soft when it's just him and Mob.

No pressure to be anything he isn't, no need to be snarky or guarded, he KNOWS Mob ain't gonna judge him, hell Shou is probably the safest he ever could be by hanging out with Mob. It's all so SICKENINGLY sweet to me.

On Mob's end, I can see him enjoying having someone who understands him in some ways yet has such a different approach to life? Mob craves human connection throughout the entire series, and by the end he has plenty of it, but to have someone who he can have deeper convos about psychic powers in particular with I think would be a huge relief. Obviously there's other folks in his life, but Shou's just from a unique background.

Even more, Shou is blunt and upfront about everything. Communication would come so naturally to them. As someone with autism, nothing is a bigger relief to me than a person who just says what they're thinking straight up.

I can really see a fun balance between them as one person who's calm and kind vs someone who's energetic and chaotic. I feel like there'd be a constant push and pull between Mob's side of simple and sickeningly sweetness and Shou's side of outrageous acts and mayhem.

Hope this all makes sense. Sorry for any typos, I didn't proof read anything. Thank you sm for the ask!

[aptericia]

💚,🤍, and 💔 for the unpopular opinion ask game? :3 (Oh and don't worry it's fine if you take a while to answer or don't answer at all! Don't feel like I'm waiting for a response I understand if you don't want to or can't!)

Answering this for Octopath 2 since you are an Octopath 2 mutual!!

💚: What does everyone else get wrong about your favorite character?

Temenos would not be allo!!!!

I’m actually going to answer this for Ochette, even though she’s not my fave (listen if she were in any other franchise besides the one that has Temenos and Throné she would be ok XD). I wish more people realized that she is, like, not a child. Yes she’s very goofy, and she’s inexperienced with human culture, but those things do not make her immature. Throughout her path she’s shown to comprehend difficult and dangerous situations, acknowledge her emotions in healthy ways, and guide and lead others with compassion, logic, and experience.

🤍: Which character is not as morally bad as everyone else seems to think?

I’ve only heard this second-hand because I swear I’ve never seen a single post on this website about her, but apparently people hate Reiza?? Now don’t get me wrong, I’m aware that she’s very definitely a Bad Guy™️, but the whole point is that she is being pressured by a system designed to appeal to fear and strip her of her agency. Her attempt to break free from that really is an incredibly moral action. And the fact that her worst crime is attempted murder really puts her quite low on the list of crimes that Octopath characters have committed. Anyway I love Reiza.

💔: If you had to remove one major character from the series, who would you choose?

🥺

I do not have the heart to answer this with any of the travelers so I’m gonna chicken out and pick an NPC.

Ok hear me out…. do we really need Mugen. He has so little personality, and his over-the-top EVIL VILLAIN behavior honestly clashes with the rest of the writing. I think everything he does for the story could be filled by some creativity with Jigo, Ritsu, and Ageha.

[twilightmalachite]

Yuuta Aoi - Little Bro Talk

Author: Yuumasu

Characters: Yuuta, Ritsu, Hiiro

Translator: Mika Enstars

"Myyy bad. Unlike Aniki, I don’t have many friends."

[Read on my blog for the best viewing experience with Oi~ssu ♪]

Season: Winter

Location: Garden Terrace

Yuuta: (…Sigh. Eating alone at the garden terrace is so dull.)

(And I was having fun spending time with Shinobu-kun, too. But then he had to leave immediately to run an errand for the student council.)

(You dare take Shinobu-kun away from me, you damn Student Council~…)

Ritsu: Hmm, it’s one of the light music club twins.

Since your hairstyle’s different and you’re all alone, you must be Yuuta-kun.

Yuuta: You’re right, but please don’t recognize me in such an unpleasant way.

Myyy bad. Unlike Aniki, I don’t have many friends.

Ritsu: I’m not saying it's bad, am I? It’s not like a person’s worth is based on their amount of friends.

In the past, I used to not have anyone I could call a friend, after all.

Some people prefer broad and shallow relationships, while others prefer more narrow and deep ones.

Everyone’s different when it comes to relationships.

Well, no need for one person to occupy all four seats here~. Can I sit here with you?

Yuuta: Go for it~.

But, allow me to correct you on one thing. I wasn’t alone here from the start.

My bestie, Shinobu-kun, was with me. But he had to leave earlier to do something for the Student Council.

Ritsu: Oh, what a coincidence. My situation’s like yours too.

I was gonna eat with Maa~kun, but he dumped me for a student council meeting.

Dreaded Student Council~. I hope a meteorite hits the Student Council room.

Yuuta: Ahaha, that’s pretty extreme~. It’d be a catastrophe if a meteorite hit.

Ritsu: It’s fine~, I’m sure if there’s an emergency, Ecchan will do something with all his authority and financial resources.

And even if the world is destroyed, Maa~kun and I will survive through the power of love…♪

Anyhow, compared to last year's Setsubun Festival, you guys seem to have moved on?

It’s like I never see you along with Hinata-kun at school anymore.

Did you finally understand what I meant back then? Did you finally get sick of being compared to your older brother?

Are you trying to make a point that you’re different from your older brother, that you’re your own person, perhaps?

Yuuta: …

…Back then, I thought that our values were different. But now, I think I can understand what you were trying to say, Ritsu-senpai.

It’s almost like you knew this was going to happen…

Ritsu: Heheh. It’s because you haven’t lived a long life unlike me. ♪

Yuuta: You’re only two years older than I am…

Ritsu: It still doesn’t change the fact that I’m older, does it?

Anyways. I might not exactly dislike your change in character, Yuuta-kun.

Like I said before, the creature called the “older brother” has no value in living if the “younger brother” does not exist.

All you have to do is step back and treat them just well enough so that they do not die. For those like us, they are a constant nuisance that won’t leave us alone for the rest of our lives.

Hiiro: —Hello, Yuuta-kun, Ritsu-senpai! Can I sit with you?

Yuuta: Oh, Hiiro-kun. Go ahead.

Hiiro: Thank you! So what were you two talking about?

Ritsu: We’re talking about how younger brothers can bother their older brother all they want~

Yuuta: I’m sure you have it rough too, Hiiro-kun, having such a horrid big brother in your family.

You’ve been inconvenienced since the very start, haven’t you?

Hiiro: The start? Back at my hometown, It was me who was being an inconvenience.

Nii-san protected me ever since I was little. He loved me a lot.

I hope to return the favor, and all the love he gave to me. If possible, I’d like Nii-san to be an inconvenience to me, too.

Ritsu: You want to be caused trouble? Aren’t you a weird one.

Yuuta: I’m sure he’d give you plenty of trouble even if you don’t want it, wouldn’t he?

Hiiro: That’s not true. I still have a lot to learn, I’m not strong enough to support Nii-san.

Though… Nii-san did praise me once. That made me very happy.

I had gotten a phone call and had brought home Nii-san drunk, but… He told me I’ve been doing well lately.

I’m sure Nii-san’s forgotten all about it, though. But it’s one of my most cherished memories from my birthday.[1]

Yuuta: Ooh, so something like that happened?

Yuuta: …Wait, wha? He had you do things for him on your birthday?

He seriously is diabolical… I hope a meteorite would hit Rinne-senpai.

Hiiro: A meteorite, huh? Yuuta-kun, you often get to have exchanges with Nii-san, don’t you? I’m envious.

Yuuta: Is it really an exchange, I wonder~? We just end up having a lot of contact since we work at the same agency.

Hiiro: Still, it seems nice from my perspective.

I’d like to ask you about something, who gets along well with my Nii-san, Yuuta-kun.

Yuuta: We don’t get along, but what is it?

Hiiro: I’d like it if you could help me pick out a birthday present for Nii-san with me.

We’ve got a long time until my Nii-san’s birthday, but we weren’t able to celebrate last year. And this is the first time we’re celebrating it in the city, so I’d like to get him something special. Think you can help me out?

Yuuta: A birthday present, huh~…

Yuuta: (That’s kinda a hassle, though? As if I’d know what’d make Rinne-senpai happy. Why not just take him somewhere to gamble?)

(Though that’s just a joke—but Hiiro-kun’s got such a pure heart he’d take anything as genuine advice.)

(…Wait, hold on a sec. This might be my chance to legally (?) play a prank on Rinne-senpai! ♪)

Yuuta: …Hehe. ♪

Ritsu: Whoa. That’s a horrible face you’re making, Yuuta-kun~.

Yuuta: Oh come on, don’t say such bad things about other people.

I’ll help you out if you’d like, Hiiro-kun.

Hiiro: Thank you! It’ll be reassuring to have you, Yuuta-kun!

Yuuta: Yeah, yeah! Let’s take pleeeenty of time to pick out a gift he’ll remember for his entire life…♪

[ ☆ ]

story directory

A reference to the events in Rinne’s idol story, A Cup's Worth By Yourself, from this card.

[floatingcomet]

hello i see you like mp100 and life series so it is my sworn duty to ask: if whatever mp100 characters you can think of were shoved into the life series, which gimmick do you think each of them would like/hate most

HEY im very new to the life series lol I havent seen them all yet (Ive only seen some povs on Secret, Wild, Double (In that order)) So I may get some things wrong but ill try lol :D

3rd Life -

Likes: This is basically the base gimmick i believe. I believe pre-character arc sho would like this one. Its literally unhindered by gimmicks, and is just a true show of strength and battle intellegence.

Dislikes: I dont really see anyone really hating simply the base gimmick. Maybe the telepathy club as a whole, since they operate more on

Last life -

likes: I believe this is the boogeyman one? From what I hear it kinda sounds like Mogami? Since people distrust eachother alot, Day one allies (like Bigb and cleo (?)) Betray eachother at a whim, and red names are kicked out of the group immediately, it seems like this gimmick is meant to brew inate distrust and hate for eachother so I think its the closest to his. Maybe pre-character arc Teru would thrive here to, i think.

Dislikes: Honestly Mob likely dislikes this one alot for the same reason mogami clearly likes it. If mob ever got the boogeyman curse i dont think he could willingly go through with it, and if anyone boogyemaned him he would break. All of the body improvement club would hate this one as well as it encourages betraying temates and not working together towards end goals.

Double life - This one I think goes to Serizawa the most Honestly. A lot of the times he relies heavily on other people to get out of his shell, so an assigned partner would help him out alot here. I feel like mob would be inn a simalar boat here,

Dislikes: Pre-character Arc dimple would hate this. The fact he would have to work with people he would generally disregard otherwise. I also think Tsubomi would dislike this, as she'd have fundamentally lose what little independence she would have, and her self inflicted responsibility to upkeep her perfectly calm and polite personality in a murder game while constantly being observed by her partner.

Limited life - This gimmick is easily the one im least famaliar with but I think Ritsu could atleast work with this gimmick decently. Not nessacarily sure if he would like it, but between his ability to study keep up with the student council and maintain heavy respect among his peers in the school, he already knows how to micromanage time. Its really not to different as to what he does now.

Dislikes: Reigen easily. I think a constant indecator of how his life is being wasted right above his head would drive him crazy. He already feels like he wasted it now, but seeing it getting closer to the end by the second while he cant do anything about it would break him.

Secret life - I feel like Mezato ichi would like this one honestly. She enjoys observing and documenting strange events and behavior from people, and since this . She'd be great at guessing people's tasks on yellow I think. Reigen probably wouldnt enjoy this one as much as mezato but he could read and get through his tasks pretty good as well.

Dislikes: IDK i think mob again dislikes this one. not being able to really read or trust people here would bother him alot. I dont really see anyone hating this one to badly though honestly.

Wild life - I feel like Tome would like this one alot. It seems to be the most lighthearted of the series, and its all about discorvering things about the unknown. Theres been no major betrayals that im aware of, even in late series superpower episode people still just want to hang out and discover whats happening around them.

Dislikes: Ritsu. I feel like he likes the familiarity he's built for himself and constantly changing day to day gimmick would mess with him alot.

Sorry its alot lol feel free to disagree on these lol :D

[lunchboxe]

Okay I feel like I've been playing this game and posting about this game for too long without any sort of actual opinions so I'm gonna now talk nonsense about The Traitor™

First of all, we know very little about this traitor. We know it's a ghoul, (obviously,) we knew them B4 we met Taiga, Taiga knows we know them, it's been brewing for a while, and objectively that's kinda it. Like that's pretty much all we know.

So, what does that mean? We can cross out Subaru and Zenji, anyone from Obscuary, anyone from Sinostra probably and probably any of the first years too, meaning Sho, Leo, Ren, Ritsu, and Lyca. And Luca too ofc, since he's a transfer. And Kaito. I mean look at him. He's a mess.

Who does that leave? Jin and Thoma, Alan, Towa and Haru, Haku, and Mortkranken.

Yuri has too obvious of a god complex to make him being a traitor creative or a twist at all, and Haru is stretched way too thin for that.

Jin, Thoma, Towa, Haku, Yuri and Jiro.

Jiro seems like he's being held together by a piece of string ngl, and he doesn't seem to be focused enough to make a careful and calculating traitor.

Jin, Thoma, Towa, Haku, Jiro.

Towa, as aggressive as he may have been before as evidenced by his dialogue with Ed, is currently obsessed with love of all forms, cares deeply for Haru, an anomalous dog, and even an anomalous tree. He may be capable of betraying everyone, but it doesn't seem like he would.

Jin, Thoma, Towa, Haku.

Jin is rich, has a powerful Stigma, has status, and clearly is far more concerned about himself than others. On top of that, he appears bossy and unconcerned, with more than enough time to plan traitorous activities. But he's also been seen saving Luca, Kaito, MC, and some random kid, then saving Luca and MC again, then slapping Luca for putting MC in a potentially dangerous position. Also, with how often Thoma and MC enter his room, it would be next to impossible to hide possible 'plans'.

Jin, Thoma, Haku.

Thoma is suspicious, seemingly loyal, regularly has midnight rendezvous with another captain, and wears a monocle. He also has a powerful Stigma, as we have literally seen him use it to level a building. Ngl, he would make a convincing traitor. But there is one more option that seems, storytelling wise, far more compelling.

Haku.

Firstly, he's one of the few people Taiga would know MC knows. He was there when Taiga nearly threw her off the train. And honestly, the fact Taiga remembered him enough to not have to ask who he was is kinda concerning in of itself. What's more is that Haku's reaction wasn't "don't do that, it's gonna kill her" but instead "I don't want to see that, I don't want to have to tell the academy," and "I'm not tryna swipe your prey."

Secondly, what house is Haku in? That's right, Hotarubi. A house for the creative and those value individuality and difference. We know Subaru is an actor, and Zenji plays the Biwa. But what of Haku? To my knowledge, he doesn't have an exclusively *him* artistic hobby. You can't exactly make traitorous plans without a bit of creativity though.

And yes, Zenji does usually follow him, which would usually make it difficult to get plans made, but what do we learn nearly as soon as we walk into Hotarubi? The students there are extremely respectful of others privacy. And with Haku actually being able to see Zenji, he's probably about as easy to hide things from as any other student.

How did Haku act when he saw Lyca stuck in that cell? He didn't seem very surprised. Pretty much the first thing he said was that it could happen to any of the ghouls. He was also the only one to know about the Hotarubi teahouse, is one of two people so far in Darkwick to own a skeleton key, and remind me how he reacted when MC said they need to stay out of trouble for the Gala?

Haku: "So the fate of the Gala depends on whether or not is Ghouls stay out of trouble? Oof."

That alone isn't very suspicious, I mean all the other ghouls get into trouble like it was what they were born to do, but when Zenji says it'll be a paradise in no time, Haku says "Hey now, don't put words in our mouths." Also not too suspicious, but it would be pretty damning foreshadowing.

And what about his Stigma? We still don't know it. All the other ghouls we either see their Stigma in action, know exactly what it does, or just never see/hear of it. It seems pretty pointed that Haku is the only person who MC asks and she *conveniently* gets cut off while asking.

Plus, the juxtaposition of The game starting with Taiga trying to kill MC and Haku saving her, and it possibly ending with Haku being a traitor and Taiga being the only one that knew, would be really satisfying.

I'm sure I'm forgetting something more, and I'll add it here later if i am, but first I have a character design thing about Haku to point out.

Look at these characters' eyes. Look closely. Now this is gonna seem like a bunch of complete nonsense I'm about to say, (stay with me here,) but I'm gonna say it anyway. Firstly, Jiro. Eyebags, rectangular eyes, looking away from the camera, that little highlight in his eyes is very small, and he doesn't seem to be squinting at all. Tired, fairly stoic, non-sociable characters have eyes like that. His eyes are also red, usually a staple for characters that are either seen as dangerous by others or secretive.

Leo, on the other hand. Firstly, the highlight is on the other side of his eye. From what I've seen, the only other character like that is Yuri. By the looks of it, in this case it means a character is shady. Or it means nothing. Case by case. The shape seems fairly ubiquitous, if a bit lidded, but the *color* of his eye? Yellow is the most common eye color for snakes.

What does this mean? On its own, absolutely nothing to do with the topic. This way just a segue into mentioning Haku's eyes.

His base expression alone seems to be of fear. His eyes are sharper than others, both his irises and his pupils are practically needle width, and, much like Leo's, his eye color is that of a snake.

Look at him. His irises don't even reach the bottom of his eyes. He was built to look suspicious and psychotic.

(smth I used to confirm my obvious suspicion ↓)

(I tried to look up stuff about the knot earring he's wearing, I swear I looked it up before and it meant luck, apparently it's a Buddha Knot..?)

I still don't know how to end these, so... Lucky summoning!

[taiyaki-translations]

A Gift to Spring Breeze - 3

Season: Winter Characters: Subaru, Mao, Mika, Aira Translator: taiyaki-translations

Mao: Whew… Today I managed to get a really good workout for the first time in a while. 

Well, recently, I’ve been in the student council room handling work after school. Without realizing it, I’d end up staying in the same posture for a long time when going through those  documents and signing things. I feel like my joints have gotten stiffer~

Subaru: Why is Sally~ talking like an old man~? If you keep sighing like that, you’ll get wrinkles, y’know~? Poke poke ☆

Mao: Uwah!? How did you suddenly hit my pressure point with such precision!? Could it be you learned about acupuncture locations that can wake people up from the producer!? 

Anyway, Shiratori, why are you standing there in a daze? Basketball club activities are over for the day. You can leave after you’ve changed into your uniform?

Aira: Ah, i-it’s nothing! Please don’t pay me any mind, senpai, and continue your super rabuii teammate interactions. Ehehe…♪

Mao: Super rabuii…?

Subaru: Oh, oh, I know! It must be because Sally~ and I put on a sparkling performance on the basketball court, right? Don’t be shy, don’t be shy, go ahead and praise me ☆

Aira: O…Okay! The image of Isara-senpai playing ball with Akehoshi-senpai was really dazzling and cool. I couldn’t even bear to look away. I really wanted to record it on my phone~!

Mao: Ahaha… You flatter me, Shiratori-kun. Though it does make me happy to hear my junior’s praise and being told I look cool ♪

But this is a chance to do team training in the basketball club. So that you don’t waste this opportunity, isn’t it better to focus on basketball and work hard to improve your skills~?  

Aira: Yeah! From the bottom of my heart, I feel like it was a great idea to participate in club activities! Just being able to watch my seniors’ daily lives at school up close is the ultimate happiness for me ♪

Well, I'm probably mistaken, but I feel like Akehoshi-senpai is not as “sparkling” as much today. Of course, it’s just a very, very small difference from usual!

Subaru: Eh~? Even though I’ve tried my best to hide it, you were still able to tell~? 

It’s nothing major. When I was doing “Sports Survivors” activities yesterday, I picked up a bunch of sparkly, shiny buttons near Starmony Dorms, so I posted them as lost and found items on HoldHands. 

Because of that, as soon as I arrived at school this morning, Mikki came to see me so he could claim them. It turns out that his coat pocket got a hole at some point, and all of the buttons he just bought fell out.  

Although it’s a good thing to see them returned to their rightful owner, I really liked those buttons so it was hard to part with them~...

Mao: Hey now, Subaru. Didn’t Kagehira also give you one of the buttons as a thank you? So shouldn’t you consider this a happy ending~?

Aira: …Wait, wait, Kagehira-senpai’s business can’t be considered a happy ending yet!

It looks like when I saw Kagehira-senpai at Starmony Dorms yesterday afternoon, he was probably looking for those lost buttons and that’s why he seemed to be in such a hurry…

But that still doesn’t explain why Kagehira-senpai has been returning to the dorms after midnight for a week in a row… Mm, I’m so worried!

Mao: …Hm? Is Kagehira experiencing other problems? 

<After school the next day, outside the handicrafts club room of Yumenosaki Academy>

Mao: (After hearing what Shiratori said yesterday, I couldn’t help but be concerned…) 

(Ritsu also sent me a message that Tenshouin-senpai has his eye on Kagehira for some reason, so it’s best if I also paid more attention to Kagehira’s current situation.)

(I feel like things are not so simple~ Regardless, as the current student council president, it’s my responsibility to look after every student.) 

(One of the valuable lessons I learned from participating in the Shuffle project is that instead of wasting time trying to make random guesses with nothing to go off of, the best method is to directly ask the person involved.)  

(According to the secret investigation report I commissioned from Sengoku, aside from when he’s attending classes, Kagehira has just been in the handicrafts club room. So it’s possible that he’s there too today.) 

(Huh? The door to the handicrafts club room seems to be unlocked… But let’s still knock first.) 

Mao: Hello, excuse me~ Is Kagehira here?

Mika: ……

Mao: —Wah!? W-Why are you just lying on the table all motionless with your eyes closed!? Are you still alive!? 

Ok good, he’s still breathing… Kagehira, are you okay? Please answer me!

Mika: Hmm… Hmm~? What’s that sound? It’s so noisy~......

Huh…? When did I fall asleep…? And why is Ikkun suddenly here? Am I still dreamin’…?

Mao: Oh, so you just fell asleep? That’s a relief~ You gave me a big fright just now. 

(It’s the same as that time when Shiratori and I visited Tenshouin-senpai at the hospital… Though in that case, he was pretending to be dead…)

Kagehira, you don’t look like you’re doing so well. Do you need me to take you to the infirmary? 

Mika: Nnah, no need~! I’m just a little sleep deprived. I’ll be okay after a little rest. Ikkun, is there somethin’ ya want?

Mao: I actually wanted to know the specific reason for why you’re not getting enough sleep. Shiratori and the others have noticed you’ve been returning to Starmony Dorms very late every day recently, and they are worried about your condition. 

For example, could it be that the vice president of CosPro arranged a job for you that’s difficult to refuse? Or is there some other reason? 

In short, as student council president, I can’t just stand idly by and ignore this situation. If possible, I would like you to speak candidly with me.

Mika: Nnah… Alright. As I thought, I still ain’t that good at lyin’ and I can’t hide it from everyone at Pretty 5. 

I received a letter from the kids from my hometown last week. They said they hadn’t seen their Mika-nii fer a while ‘n they missed me. 

It just so happened that I was plannin’ on goin’ back to meet them fer the New Year. As I was replyin’ to the letter, I couldn’t help but think o’ the fraud incident that happened at the orphanage this year… 

Although the process of raisin’ funds has been a lil’ difficult, thanks t’ the help of many kind people, all the loans have been paid off and the orphanage is slowly gettin’ back on track. 

An’ I thought about what else I could do fer the kids so they won’t feel lonely no more and be able t’ welcome the new year with a smile? 

After thinkin’ it over fer a bit, I realized I’m best at needlework, so I bought a ton of sewing supplies so I could make some cute toys as New Years gifts fer the kids. 

Though I’m naturally an absent minded person ‘n I accidentally lost those buttons two days ago… Akehoshi-kun was thankfully able t’ pick ‘em up and return them, otherwise I would've had t’ buy them again. 

Mao: ……..

Mika: Around the end of the year, the number of idol jobs I had t’ take on suddenly increased. So that I wouldn’t be holdin’ back both sides, I spent my spare time sewin’ as much as I could, ‘n I ended up staying up late without realizin’. 

By the time I would return t’ the dorms, Ritsu-kun would already be asleep. That way I could work on my plan without disturbin’ anyone~♪

No, wait, there were a few times when my secret was almost exposed… When Oshi-san called me from overseas, he noticed that I sounded tired, so he asked me to take on less jobs ♪

In short, this is completely my own matter and has got nothin’ t’ do with the vice president or anyone else. I hope you didn’t  misunderstand him~?

Mao: Hm… You don’t want to rely on others for this, and it’s not like I don’t understand. However, this is too much work for just one person. 

If you continue like this, it’s likely that you won’t be able to accomplish your goal because your body has given out.

Mika: No wonder I’ve been feelin’ a little out of it these past two days, and the speed I’ve been makin’ those toys has slowed down… Ahaha. I’ve always been slow ‘bout my own condition.

Mao: You’re preparing New Year’s gifts for the kids at the orphanage, right….? I just came up with a rough idea, but I would appreciate it if you could listen to it. 

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[jewwyfeesh]

The Lost Tome - 6

Writer: Mitsuki

Characters: Narukami Arashi, Tsukinaga Leo, Sakuma Ritsu, Suou Tsukasa, Sena Izumi

Translated by: jewwyfeesh

Note: no you didn't see me forget to add the quote, no you didnt. (magics it away)

Arashi: Goodness, Izumi-chan, don’t just snatch it from me so roughly! I promised Ou-sama that I’ll take good care of this.

[ ♪ ]

Season: Autumn

Location: Empty Classroom

The next day…

Leo: LMAO, Sena’s the one who’s late today! Yesterday he was nagging me non-stop with such a deadpan expression, should I nag him back today? Hahahaha!

Arashi: Ou-sama, did you forget? Today Izumi-chan’s taking the day shift, and had already notified us via text message earlier on.

Leo: Ah? Really? Lemme see— Oh… Sena really did send us a message.

Arashi: It’s not my intention to scold you, Ou-sama, but you should pay attention to your messages every once in a while. If Izumi-chan were to see this, he’s definitely going to blow his top… again.

Leo: Yeah I know, I know ☆

Tsukasa: Speaking of which… Leader, what’s that in your hand?

Leo: Ah! I’ve been caught red-handed by Suo~! This is my weapon of choice, hahahaha.

Was I too loud earlier on? Did someone notice us?

Tsukasa: Leader, what’s wrong? Why are you acting so frantic?

Leo: It’s nothing, I just snuck this sword into school. So if the Student Council found out about it, they’ll definitely confiscate it.

Tsukasa: But… secretly bringing weapons in like this is a very dangerous matter, Leader. For yours and everyone else’s Safety, it’s better if you kept it away.

Leo: Suo~, there’s no need to be so uptight~ Not to mention, it’s not sharp or anything! If you don’t believe me, look!

Tsukasa: Wow, its edge has actually been made blunt. Furthermore, it… is rather Beautiful. It does make for a rather exquisite weapon… Oh, no. Kindly allow me to refer to it as a work of art.

Though… Leader, I would like to enquire as to why you’ve brought it today? Do you intend to Perform with it or something?

Leo: Well, it’s because of this book~

I went back to study its contents, and they’re super duper thought-provoking! Not to mention, it allowed me to better understand more about being a knight-errant. See, see! These parts at the back talking about weaponry and stuff are super cool!

After reading it, my inspiration surged forth! So I wrote a piece about knight-errants, but felt that it was lacking a little something-something. So I got my friend to help me buy a sword to try and find that knight-errant vibe.

Then again this method is hella useful! I managed to fill the missing piece, and also managed to channel a better understanding of knight-errants into the piece! Even though I spent a lot of effort on this, seems like the end product makes it all worth it ☆

Tsukasa: Even though your drive to keep on improving is something we should learn from, Leader, please allow me to enquire — why is this book still in your hands? Weren’t you supposed to return it yesterday?

Leo: Err… Y-you see… After saying my goodbyes yesterday, I walked towards the lost-and-found while reading the book…

But I was too engrossed, somehow walked into an unrecognisable area, and got lost…

It took a lot outta me to get myself back somewhere familiar, but by then the sky was getting dark, so I just went home…

Tsukasa: Leader, are you aware that the Student Council is currently in a frenzy because of this book?

I had dropped by the archery range after practice yesterday in the hopes of getting some solo practice. Instead, I bumped into Hasumi-buchou, who was desperately looking for this book.

Back then, I was comforting Hasumi-buchou, saying things like this book could’ve already made its way to the lost-and-found, and that he didn’t need to be so frantic, only for you to… Sigh…

(I remember Hasumi-buchou was desperately trying to find a book, saying that it was something that Tenshouin Onii-sama had borrowed from Hibiki-senpai, and that Hibiki-senpai wanted Onii-sama’s suggestions for one of their scripts…)

(Onii-sama had found the script and its setting particularly engaging, thus borrowing this book from Hibiki-senpai. He had wanted to give it a very thorough look-through, before providing detailed suggestions.)

(But Hasumi-buchou didn’t know of this; when the Student Council were tidying things up, perhaps Tori-kun accidentally lost this book while rearranging the books. And Hasumi-buchou, who was in the dark, didn’t realise when he was making an inventory.)

(It was only after Onii-sama returned, looking for said script, that everyone found out about Tenshouin Onii-sama having borrowed it from Hibiki-senpai. Afterwards, the Student Council was in shambles.)

(At present, Leader has yet to return the book… Hasumi-buchou was so distraught, so guilty. Hh… I wonder if he’ll think I was trying to prank him when he was so down-trodden?)

Leo: Suo~, don’t wear such a heartbroken expression…! I-I’ll go return it now!

Ritsu: I don’t think we’d feel very reassured if we let Ou-sama run off on his own, so I’ll accompany him.

(If I accompany the King to return the book and bump into a Maa~kun who’s gone berserk from searching, Maa~kun will definitely praise me, hehehe.)

Leo: It’s rare to see you so energetic, Rittsu~; not to mention, you accompanying me there is gonna help a ton!

Oh, right! I’m entrusting this sword to y’all to safe keep. If the Student Council finds out about it, I reckon we’re gonna be in a whole lot of trouble ☆

Arashi: Relax, Ou-sama. You can leave this to Tsukasa-chan and I.

Leo: We’ll take our leave first, bye bye!

Izumi: Grr, to be inconvenienced on the day that I have to work the day-shift, how frustrating!

Kasa-kun, Naru-kun? Why are the both of you alone here? Where did everyone else go?

Arashi: The King and Ritsu-chan went to return a book — yep, that book from yesterday. So it’s just the two of us left. Since you’re here, Izumi-chan, let’s start practising~

Izumi: That book from yesterday? Shouldn’t Ou-sama have returned it already?

Arashi: He got lost en-route, so he needs to make another trip today. But Ritsu-chan’s accompanying him, so I don’t think we’ll have any more problems on our hands.

Izumi: Ou-sama that f**king idiot! What the hell! What’s that thing in your hands?

Arashi: Oh, this? It’s the King’s sword. Isn’t it very……

Goodness, Izumi-chan, don’t just snatch it from me so roughly! I promised Ou-sama that I’ll take good care of this.

Izumi: Hmph, this King! I can’t believe he even brought this stupid toy to training!

First, he ditched practice, then he doesn’t attend our activities, and now he decides to bring some… some toy to training! Seriously, it goes to show how much he prioritises Knights! No, I must teach him a lesson today!

Arashi: Wait a minute, Izumi-chan, you should hear my explanation first—

And there he goes. If Izumi-chan goes to look for the King in this state, who knows what kind of disaster would happen? I should notify him first, and give him a chance to hide.

Tsukasa-chan, let’s chase after him. If the both of them bump into each other, we can try to soothe their ruffled feathers.

Tsukasa: Understood, Narukami-senpai. Should a Conflict truly arise, I will do my best to mediate the situation.

[ ☆ ]

← Chapter 5 | Story Masterlist

just a little note of appreciation: thank you to all my wonderful friends who've never stopped supporting me and listen to me ramble about these squishies for ages, and to the readers who enjoy my tls!

special shout out to book club as well, thank you for being so amazing. i hope to hear from y'all soon <3

[himemiya-kun]

Secret Swan (Chapter 4)

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Chapter 4: The Truest Self

Summer

Characters:

• Hajime Shino

• Ritsu Sakuma

• Eichi Tenshouin

• Makoto Yuuki

• Tori Himemiya

<Meanwhile, in the garden>

Hajime: Come on, the tea is ready, let me pour it for you ♪

Ritsu: This tea smells even better than the one I drank at the Tea Party event just now. Ha-kun~ It looks like you are very happy, right?

Hajime: Although I was very happy at the Tea Party event, right now, it’s just the three of us from the black tea department so it’s a rare opportunity for me ♪

Ritsu: But isn't Ec~chan in a particularly busy period of work? Did he keep us here without meaning to catch up with us?

Eichi: Haha, why can’t I have a moment of rest in the midst of a busy schedule?

Hajime: Hey hey hey… No matter what the plan of Eichi-onii-chan is, I am already very happy if I can sit with the two of you and drink tea and enjoy snacks ♪

Ritsu: Alas, Ha-kun~ You are always like this, it is really easy to make people worry.

Let me satisfy Ec~chan’s wishes and talk about things that Ec~chan is interested in.

I’ve heard the rumours about STAR PRO and COS PRO competing for the same clothing endorsement.

Producer is also very busy because of this recent issue, so I don’t see her very much in Yumenosaki.

Hajime: Ah, I've heard of it too. But our Rhyth Lin itself is not very inclined to work in this area, and the seniors seem to be busy preparing for other things recently, so I don't know much about it.

All I know is that Tori-kun seems to be favoured by the brand and is going to participate in the audition. As his friend, I sincerely hope that he can get a chance to get an endorsement.

Eichi: Haha, I will convey your blessings to Tori, he will be very happy.

Although I am very curious about how Keito and Sakuma will deal with such a situation. Unfortunately, as Hajime had mentioned, this incident has nothing to do with Rhyth Lin.

Ritsu: So, Ec~chan, what do you mean, do you think this matter has something to do with our NEW DI? Because the designer of the clothes is Aoba Onii-chan? Or one—

Eichi: Haha, I never said that.

I was originally the kind of character who was often thought to be manipulating everything behind the scenes... This time I experienced the feeling of being manipulated by others, which was quite interesting.

Ritsu: Oh? I don't think Ec~chan really thinks he is being manipulated. You STAR PROs must have taken some unexpected actions, right?

Eichi: Not necessarily. The matter has not been carried to the end, and no one knows how it will develop.

After all, this time it's not just about me, it's also about Lovely Tori... If the situation ends up getting out of control, I will have to put an end to it.

Ritsu: Wow~ Ec~chan just now was so scary~

(I have to say, even though that magician hates people saying that he is very similar to Ec~chan, they are still very similar in some ways.)

(Hmph, I'm slightly looking forward to what will happen in the end. Come on everyone, please let me watch a good show ♪)

<Meanwhile, at Yumenosaki Academy>

Makoto: Was that okay? Acting isn’t really my strong point…

Wow, if Producer is applauding so vigorously, that means my performance should be pretty good, right?

What does Himemiya-kun think? If it still hinders you and Tenshouin-senpai, I need to practice a little more…

Tori: —Hey!? AHHHH don’t come here?!

Makoto: Hime—Himemiya-kun? Hiding behind Producer?!

Hey, Producer, do you think it’s a bit scary to see me perform with such acting skills all of a sudden because it’s different from my usual acting skills...?

Tori: I-I wasn't scared! It's just that Yuuki-senpai completely changed, and I felt very surprised!

Makoto: When you describe it like that, you sound like you were actually frightened…

Tori: Shut up, tarsier! Did you secretly go to special training? Hurry up and tell the truth!

Makoto: Eh, eh? Do you want me to shut up or explain it to you!?

Tori: You are so annoying! I order you to tell me now, now, and at once, all the reasons why you are so good at it!

Makoto: Ahaha, it seems that although some people have graduated, they have left a negative impact on the younger generations…

When I was filming Fist of the Shangri-la Idol, I had a lot of rivalry scenes with Fushimi and Hidaka. Just now I was simply imitating their acting skills at that time…

I remember when I first started filming, I was often intimidated by Fushimi. He was really good, right?

Tori: Hm, imitation… Maybe it's the way...?

Huh? Producer, why did you suddenly pat me on the shoulder? Are you comforting me? Well, then I guess I will thank you.

You said, I am not the only one who was suffering...?

Makoto: At this point, I can be sure.

When I was collecting information in the intelligence department, I met Saegusa, and he was also preparing for this job. Judging from what I got from our conversation, it’s most likely that he’s not the one who is auditioning for the leading role this time.

It seems that COS PRO also encountered some difficulties, which means that they did not underestimate their opponents, and did not underestimate you.

Himemiya-kun has studied how to play this role so seriously, maybe we have already gone ahead of them.

Tori: Yuuki-senpai…

Makoto: Ah, Producer seems to have something else to tell you.

Tori: Huh? Is the content you sent to me through the “Hand in Hand Space” (Note: I'm not sure what this is but the original text says 攜手空間) just now the plot plan of the commercial short film?

I hope I get some inspiration from this... I'll meet you in ES's clothing room tomorrow after school.

Well, I see, I will definitely come! Don't be late!

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[wishlikes]

From episode 1.6

“Oh, it’s you, Kageyama-kun.” “Ah, Vice President Tokugawa.” “Loitering, huh? I guess even people like you feel like doing that at times.” “Like me? I’m just a normal middle school student you can find anywhere. Totally simple and normal.” “You won’t find a totally simple and normal middle schooler anywhere on this planet. But, for whatever reason, you want to be one and are trying to act the part. “I’m not sure if I understand what you’re saying.” “Despite having abilities that always make you the center of attention, you try to play the minor role and let others have the spotlight. Don’t try to act like your brother.”

What the FUCK is Tokugawa on about.

I’m pretty sure he listens to gossip (and/or is super observant) because he’s a third year and thus probably only sees Ritsu during student council. He has met Mob one (1) time. Why the fuck does he feel confident enough in his information to roast Ritsu like this.

Especially because I’m pretty sure he’s wrong? about Ritsu’s motivations. Ritsu hates crowds and loud noises. He does not seem all that stoked about people in general. His parents are always comparing Mob to Ritsu. He is. very anxious about Mob’s emotional state.

It’s a little more obvious in the manga, but Ritsu is very much a ‘popular against his will’ character. He wants people to Leave Him Alone. And to stop telling him he’s better than his brother, because that’s always going to ring false. And possibly upset his brother which would be Bad.

Like, yeah Tokugawa, you’re kinda right. Ritsu does have brother issues. Not that one though.

[of-stars-and-fireflies]

Mina and Nyssi - Dynamics with the Men

I realized only later that Obscuary isn't in this image I nabbed off google LMAO, but here's the Crush Chart.

Since Mina and Nyssi are both "MCs", I imagine that all the guys have a crush on both of them, but they all have stronger feelings for one or the other. The Obscuary guys have crushes on them equally, and I've changed it to where Towa does as well. (This is all subject to change.)

Edit- Okay, I unlocked the Obscuary chapter and I'm getting vibes that Ed likes Mina more and Lyca likes Nyssi more. Rui still likes them both though.

Mina is the blue heart, Nyssi is the purplish-pinkish heart.

As for some individual headcanons with different characters:

Mina:

> Being around Tohma makes her very (oddly) relaxed.

> Kaito likes Mina a lot, but thinks Nyssi is a little bit cuter.

> Mido finds himself thinking about Mina from time to time.

> Bonnie is more comfortable around Mina, which obvi draws Sho to her even more.

>> I had a random romantic headcanon where in the Sho Route, he calls her "Firefly" (Or IceFirefly), so I changed her hair accessory to vaguely resemble one.

> Taiga will call her a different nickname, and will use "Kitty-Cat" for Nyssi (just 'cause I think it sounds cute-), but I haven't decided what it will be.

> Mina finds Romeo the most attractive, but his personality turns her way off.

> While Nyssi dedicates her time to Zenji pretty quickly, Mina doesn't hone in on any particular guy for a while.

> Though I don't ship them primarily, Subaru makes Mina's heart flutter, though she can't pinpoint why.

Nyssi:

> She finds Luca reassuring to be around.

> Leo knows Nyssi isn't as passive as Mina, so he's more careful about approaching Nyssi so he doesn't chase her off. He also low-key blackmails her into spending time with him.

>> Truthfully, since learning about something he shouldn't have, Leo's become more obsessively attached to Nyssi, having his ego tested bcause he thought it was easier to get her attention.

> Towa calls her a different flower name, and after a lot of research, I think he'll call her "Azalea".

> Peekaboo seems more comfortable with Nyssi, which obvi draws Haru to her even more.

> Ren finds her annoying like how he views Haru, but thinks she's still kinda cute.

> Haku knows Zenji and Nyssi are mutually interested in one another, but can't seem to shake his crush on Nyssi.

> There's a rumour going around that she's dating Yuri because of how often they meet up.

> Both Yuri and Jiro like her more because they've gotten to know her so well.

I was also thinking that, depending on who one of the girls hooked up with determined who the other would too for some reason. So my current "endgame" possibilities (assuming everyone survives to the end+Zenji stays permadead) are:

Nyssi/Haku -> Mina/Sho

Mina/Ed -> Nyssi/Towa

Nyssi/Taiga -> Mina/Romeo

Mina/Ritsu -> Nyssi/Haru

[xitty]

what are your favorite pairings (romantic or no) for each of the fine characters?

Eichi and Wataru for each other. Forever and ever.

I like many friendships for both too though. Eccentrics and Theater Club for Wataru of course, I especially find Wataru's friendship with Shu fun. Wataru seems to have fun with his current dorm roommates too. And for Eichi: Keito, Leo, Chiaki, Subaru, Ritsu, Hajime, ex-fine (although some of it is Complicated(TM)), Rei... <- well dunno if it's actually a friendship or what but they are funny together. I really like Eichi interacting with Tatsumi, Kaoru and Mao too.

One thing I really want is Eichi, Wataru and Nagisa to hang out together because Nagisa is friends with both but even when they all three are there (like SS Finals, Altered), they don't really interact, three of them.

For Yuzuru it's Midori. They are super cute. I find Yuzuru and Ibara's banter and competing very funny and their past interesting but I don't ship them. I like Yuzuru's interactions with Keito too because they are both knowledgeable and competent and their work ethics fit together.

I don't ship Tori with anyone. But his friendship with Hajime is cute. And... his rivalry with Tsukasa does provide some good content but I'm not actually super invested in it. Blasphemous I know... I do like White Brim/Headdress story a lot though, for example.

And of course I like all of fine's relationships with each other.

[estakes]

op, i apologize, this response will get long. putting it under a break.

ritsumao is not cute. at all. i don't know if this is a "cancellable" take, but i do think it's enough to get several shippers and some ritsuP out for me. my personal dislike and discomfort towards ritsu is a factor, but i just cannot see it in a positive light. almost every interaction ritsu has with mao is him either being overly clingy to the point that he seems obsessive or incredibly bratty at anyone who tries to "steal" mao from him (it's just people who wants to talk to mao/has business with him and mao is not a property to be owned). it's weird, and weirdo behavior. i don't like how ritsu gets mao to just carry him around all the time, mao having to worry about where the hell ritsu fell asleep in, like ???

on a related note, it really annoys me that enstarries would immediately slap on the she/her label to characters just because they look feminine (hajime, tori, fuyume), when some of these characters have a very complicated relationship with gender (hajime). no, enstarries, a character who looks feminine does not automatically make them a girl.

also, if i remember correctly, didn't ritsu bite mao when they were kids to the point that he screamed so loudly and passed out? and mao's fear of sharp objects is most likely ritsu's doing? i'm not shipping a guy with the person who caused one of his fears and treats him like that. polytrick5tar always and forever ☆

she/her on the canon male characters. okay, i'm going to have to explain myself here or else i'll really get canceled. i don't mind gender hcs, i personally hc hajime as genderfluid and tori as nonbinary anyways. what bothers me though, is the fact that some enstarries would treat their headcanons as canon and be mad about a different interpretation of that character.

fine is better than undead/valk/knights combined and i will forever stand by this. and rainbow circus is the best song in the game.

people who constantly parade that arashi is trans, that she's a trans icon, but never really bother to learn anything about her beyond her being trans. i actually go a bit more in depth about it here.

okay but what's your ES hot take that would definitely get you cancelled if it went viral?

Mine's about the system in journals being unfair, some of the popular ships are just meh, some of the characters are way too over hyped and some of them just feels like OC's rather than actual canon characters