mayonness

[mayonness]

Otome Isekai x Text Post Meme

(Originally posted this on r/otomeisekai, but I'm posting it here too on someone's request)

[mayonness]

hey you look really cute today

april fools you look cute everyday keep it up 

[mayonness]

So we talked about how Tamarack's color palette matches with her favorite colors before. And since then, I've been wondering if Qiu has similar explanation behind their color palette as Tamarack does with hers.

But unlike Tamarack, Qiu's favorite color is only gold, and they don't even have it in their color palette. I guess their sweater can kinda fall on the gold spectrum, but this still doesn't explain the green jacket, the red scarf, or the other colors in their outfit.

So... does this stop me from trying to find some secret explanation behind those colors?

*Puts on tin foil hat*

Nope! Quite the opposite actually, I'm taking this as a personal challenge.

Let's start with the green jacket. It's easy to miss this line, but if MC says their favorite color is green, Qiu will mention that they like green too—the darker kinds, like how their jacket is.

Earlier, we considered their sweater looking pretty close to gold, but it is stated in the game that their sweater is orange, which is the color that both Qiu and Ren like.

(I personally disagree and think Qiu's sweater is brown, but maybe it's just me )

And following that pattern, I think we can also assume that the red in Qiu's scarf and sneakers comes from the color that Ren likes too.

But if their close friends' favorite colors is the pattern here, then what about Baxter?

Well, Baxter's favorite colors are black and white.

And guess what the colors of Qiu's bike (and helmet) are?

Okay. Yeah. I know I'm going overboard with the color analyzing. This is the kind of stuff your brain came up with on 3 am when you thought you had a big epiphany but then realized how silly it sounds after you write it down.

But intentional or not, I still think it's interesting that Tamarack's palette is mostly formed of her favorite colors, while Qiu's palette has their friends' favorites but lacks the one color that they like the most.

(Interestingly, though... step 2 is the time where they actually have gold in their color palette, but the colors they originally had in step 1 seem to disappear in that stage)

[mayonness]

Tamarack the "I'll stand up for what's important to you and be on your side no matter what"

[mayonness]

So... I noticed that Qiu wear their jacket slightly differently in step 1, 2, and 3.

In step 1, they leave their jacket open without bothering to button or zip it up.

In step 2, they do the exact opposite by wearing their jacket closed and completely buttoned-up.

And in step 3, they loosen up their jacket again, but not completely. Ending up with a middle ground where their jacket is partially open and partially closed.

I just think it's interesting that the changes in how they wear their jacket parallel really well with their character arc in every step.

Also the way their outfit went from warm palette (brown green jacket) -> cool shades (blue jacket) -> mix of both (blue-green jacket).

And the way they went from wide grin -> not smiling -> soft smirk.

Yeah.

[mayonness]

So, let's talk about Tamarack and Qiu's "fancy outfits"!

I was looking back at the fancy outfits post from two years ago, and I find it interesting that gb patch said they're for two different occasions, because I initially thought they're for the same events (like a school play or something). So I figured it'd be fun to look more into them and guess what those "two different occasions" are!

Totally not because of favoritism, let's start with Tamarack!

It seems like she's wearing a dirndl dress. The overall shape and design match the key features you can usually find in a dirndl (close-fitting bodice with cross lacing and low neckline, blouse underneath the bodice, wide high-waisted skirt with apron), and I think it'd make sense for her to wear it since she's part German.

While I was searching about this, I actually found some kid dirndl designs that look pretty close to the one she's wearing. I think these might be the vibes that gb patch/the sprite artist were going for? So pretty!

But what prompted Tamarack to get all dressed up with such a pretty dirndl in the first place? This is just my personal guess, but I think it might be for Oktoberfest. It's one of the events where dirndl is usually worn, and the time frame will really match the autumn setting of olnf.

As for Qiu, he's dressed in black tights and has his hair in a neat bun like he usually does in ballet class, so it's save to assume that he's wearing a costume for a ballet performance.

I was looking at ballet costume designs on the internet a while ago, and I think his outfit might be a combination of these two:

The first design has similar-looking buttons, floofy sleeves, and overall shape of the lower part, while the second design has matching belt, collar, and overall shape of the upper part. Though, this is just me guessing and the outfit was most likely created with different inspirations in mind.

Sadly, we can't really tell what kind of performance he'd be doing from his costume alone. My best guess is he's dancing for a ballet recital, though it'd be unusual to have one in autumn since they're usually held in spring. So it's also possible that he's dancing for other kind of performance or for a competition.

So... To sum it all up: we will probably have a Qiu-focused ballet recital moment and a Tamarack-focused festival moment in step 1. It's pretty exciting to think about the possibilities!

[mayonness]

Qiu is a mind reader

Let me explain

So... remember that scene where Qiu calls the MC pretty?

A lot of people might assume that you need to be at crush with Qiu to get this scene, or maybe say, "you're so pretty!" when you first meet each other. But the thing is, that's not the case at all!

All you need to do is think that they're pretty when you first see them. Yep, that's right. Just think. You don't even have to directly voice it out to them if you don't want to.

And by the power of sorcery called a script variable, they will magically know what you think at that time and say that they also think you're pretty.

This isn't the only time this kind of thing happens, by the way. If you're unhappy about going to a new school and choose to hide your feelings, Qiu can somehow tell that something isn't right and ask you about it, trying to make sure that you're ok.

(If you choose to show that you're unhappy, Tamarack will be the one who ask you instead)

So... The MC might really be onto something.

Qiu is a mind reader. Or at least they're as good as one.

[mayonness]

So I was looking at Tamarack and Qiu's expression sheets a while ago and noticed that they have two versions of blush.

I thought: "Huh. I guess blush 1 is a soft blush and blush 2 is a deep blush?"

And since I was curious, I tried to compare the two by layering the images on top of each other.

That's when I realized...

TAMARACK'S NOSE TURNS RED WHEN SHE BLUSHES DEEPLY

AND QIU DOES THE SAME WITH THEIR EARS

THAT'S SUCH A CUTE DETAIL I-

Fic writers, this is a free real estate. Do what you want with this information.

[mayonness]

I always assumed that Tamarack's Step 1 tears were going to be her realizing that this is her new life and not just a fun visit with her grandparents. Her attitude in the prologue gives me the vibes that she doesn't really register just how long-term the situation is. (Whereas Qiu understands the situation, hence why he berates himself when the topic of his mom comes up, since Tam's parents left her there.)

Ohh, yeah. That makes a lot more sense and seems much more plausible!

I had just assumed that Tamarack didn't really mind moving in to Golden Grove since she was used to her parents being busy with work and was fine playing around on her own when she was homeschooled. But looking at how easily she accepted it, it's possible that the situation hadn't really dawned on her during the prologue!

On that note, I'm curious about Tamarack's relationship with her parents and whether they will play a significant part in her story arc. Being left by your parents, regardless of the circumstances, is never great for any child. I wonder if this might have some influence in her character arc (though I'm not sure what since it's still pretty hazy for me).

[mayonness]

Who said what to the child

I just wanna have a nice and happy convo 😊

[mayonness]

OK, has anyone got this yet????, like dam, he was worried

[mayonness]

Some of my most favourite scenes in ol2 demo because i love this game sm and I’ve replayed it way too many times

[mayonness]

hc that probably won’t happen in the game but like. hair sparkles

tamarack’s hair sparkles are super noticeable in step 1, dim so much you have to squint to see them in step 2, and then go back to being noticeable in step 3, where they shimmer and dim depending on her mood- but usually are glittering brightly, fitting her reborn confidence.

[mayonness]

I think step 1 MC and Tamarack would make a cute double trouble/partner in crime duo who like to conspire and assist each other in silly mischievous schemes, only to get caught red-handed because Tamarack (or both of them) are bad at lying.

[mayonness]

Something that I noticed about Qiu is that he often does moves that require balance with his feet: standing on his tiptoes, balancing on one foot, twirling and turning around smoothly, etc. Even the MC took notes on how he balanced so well.

I almost disregarded it as just a weird habit until I remembered that Qiu does ballet. It was all because he has ballerina feet! (Or maybe he's just showing off. Who knows)

I was wondering why there are a lot of narrations about Qiu's feet movements and how good he is at balancing on them, but now everything really makes sense.

He is beauty, he is grace

He leaves papers all over the place

[mayonness]

Pov : you're walking in the rain with Tamarack

Song idea by @dustiscium

The sprites and background are from gb-patch posts, I just edited them together!

Still version :

[mayonness]

So you might already know about the scene where Qiu calls the MC pretty, but there's actually another cute and underrated version of the scene that's rarely talked about.

To be fair, though, this scene is pretty uncommon to get since it requires you to do some specific steps.

For starters, you need to go through the "Maybe... I'm looking for you" convo when you first meet Qiu...

...and then respond by telling Qiu that you like him already.

But you can't think that he's pretty before this. Otherwise, it'll be overridden with the "MC is pretty" scene.

Also, for all of you who are wondering: No, Baxter is still unhappy in this version. I guess there's no way around that.

Between this and the "MC is pretty" scene, I think both of the versions are equally cute, but I think the former would be a great option for platonic playthroughs.