#a decade of kalafina

[putschki1969]

Hi there,

you mentioned earlier that Keiko have luxurious live and her family are well off. im curious whe is this information come from? did she ever mentioned this in an interview ? or are any of her family member also someone famous ? eg; business man / celebrities / etc ?

Hello there!

Keiko never explicitly talks about any specifics regarding her family or their financial status and there's a good reason for it. In the very early stages of Keiko's career (around two decades ago), some fans have discovered that members of her family are quite active in regional politics (an activity that can typically only be taken up if you have some substantial funds available). Naturally, it is in everyone's best interest to keep Keiko's work in the entertainment industry strictly separated from any political activities which is why you'll never get any official statements from Keiko in that regard. That's also why the fandom as a whole is pretty hush-hush about it and why I will not be going into further details here. ❗It is important to be respectful and to keep those things private.❗ But you can imagine that this sort of background affords Keiko certain privileges.

From circumstantial evidence alone, everyone with eyes can guess that Keiko has always led the lifestyle of someone who is financially well-off.

She is constantly decked out in extremely expensive designer clothes/bags/accessories. If you follow my Twitter account where I post my Kalafina fashion finds, you'll know that most of her stuff costs several thousand dollars.

Whenever she has a new hobby, she goes all-in and tends to buy some of the most expensive products on the market (see for example her road-bike era or more recently, her acoustic guitar era).

I'm not going to delve into all of her regular beauty treatments because that's something most self-respecting Japanese women would choose to invest in regardless of their financial status but suffice it to say, an average office worker with a decent salary would not be going to all those fancy places that Keiko frequents (there are much cheaper options out there!).

Then we have Keiko's living arrangements. Presumably, she lives alone in her own place somewhere in the city center which would already make it very expensive. She is able to sing and play the guitar in the middle of the night which is rarely possible unless the apartment is super modern and high-end.

Generally, she doesn't seem to struggle a lot when it comes to connections within the industry. From what we can tell, she has had no issues signing up with a reputable label and agency (something Hikaru struggled with a lot and Wakana might have too if she hadn't decided to stay with Space Craft). Usually, that's a sign that sizable amounts of money are involved but who knows...

The fact that she felt confident enough to apply for the registered trademark of "Kalafina" back in the day could also be an indicator for Keiko being well-off. The legal representation alone must have been quite expensive.

Additionally, Keiko has made some vague references here and there which would suggest a wealthy background (please note that these are just some examples).

She has mentioned small things like playing tennis and golf with her parents on a regular basis. In case you didn't know, those are rich people sports, especially if you use your own equipment (which Keiko does).

The way she spent her hiatus after the breakup is also quite telling. Inspired by one of her relatives, she randomly decided to go to Kimono school to get a diploma. Sufficient funds are required for a school like that and I would assume that most people who attend will probably come from a more "sophisticated" background.

When talking about her super early days in the music industry, Keiko has made no secret about the fact that it has never really been about passion or necessity. She didn't start out as a singer because she felt she had to, it was more of a spontaneous whim. Again, a luxury usually only afforded to privileged people. Back then, singing was something she moderately enjoyed and could casually pursue, something that separated her from her older sister and something that more or less served as the spoiled/rich-kid version of a rebellion against overbearing parents. We get a bit of "rebel"-Keiko in this interview here. I would say that this is the behaviour of someone who doesn't have many worries in life, at least not when it comes to financial matters.

[avoicebehindthestars]

Hellooo!!!

For the good omens ask game :D

Fly ~ queen ~ turtleneck ~ hot chocolate

You're not pulling any punches there!

fly - tell us a secret. shh it's okay we won't tell anyone (except all of tumblr)

When I was in kindergarten, I accidentally puked on the teacher's chair and blamed it on a boy who kept getting sick all day (seeing him was what made me sick in the first place). I'm going to hell, aren't I?

queen - top 5 favorite bands/artists

Tbh that changes a lot over time, but generally: Within Temptation, Spiral Dance, Damh the Bard, Kalafina, Nightwish (both old and new)

turtleneck - show us (or draw) your hottest outfit

I don't think I've had a "hot" outfit for the past decade. I prefer comfy. This one's from 13 years (…and 40kg) ago, but I hope it'll do:

Yep. I was edgy. No need to tell me ;P

hot chocolate - what's your comfort drink/food?

Food - sushi or ice cream. Drink - actually hot chocolate :D Or matcha latte

[you-turn-it-into-light]

A Decade of Kalafina - 2017

[twigstarpikachutroll22]

39

39. What type of music do you like?

Honestly, a bit of everything really. I can pull up the "my mix" playlist YouTube threw together for me and find all eras of Taylor Swift mixed in with some Owl City, a dozen different Broadway musicals (from Mean Girls to Les Mis to Wicked to Finding Neverland to Seussical) and a dozen different cartoons (from Phineas and Ferb to Sofia the First to The Backyardigans to MLP to Hazbin Hotel) and a dozen different movies (from Trolls to Moana to The Greatest Showman to Muppets Most Wanted), some pop rock, a bit of Babymetal, some Lindsey Stirling, a bunch of english covers of anime or vocaloid songs, some creepypasta fan songs, a heck ton of upbeat pop songs, a bunch of more acoustic songs, some DCOM soundtracks, some Starkid, a few Minecraft song parodies, a few sea shanties, a few songs from decades ago that my parents listen to, those songs Elise Ecklund wrote from people's random comments, some indie music from YouTube songwriters (from Dodie to Emma Blackery to Malinda Reese to Madilyn Bailey), some literal parodies of Disney songs, some fan songs for video games (most of which I’ve never played), some fan songs for cartoons I watch, fan songs for a particular horror podcast I’ve listened to, a bit of The Crane Wives, a bit of Lemon Demon, a bit of Kalafina, a bit of Panic! at the Disco, a bit of Nsync, a bit of Thomas Benjamin Wild Esq., a bit of Carrie Underwood, a bit of Avenue Beat, Alec Benjamin, Emilie Autumn, Kacey Musgraves, Parry Gripp, Weird Al, Evelyn Evelyn, Aviators, 4everfreebrony, Karliene, CG5, OR3O, AJR, The Amazing Devil, Brian David Gilbert, Sara Kays, Bo Burnham, Tom Cardy, Ginny Di, Aurelio Voltaire, Rachel Rose Mitchell... You get the idea. My music taste is super varied.

[haro-hawayu]

Anime of the Decade: 2010s, and Other Reflections

Ambitious project I tell you, but it’s easier when I start off by listing my top 3ish series per year :3

Anime of the Decade: So the bolded titles would be like my CLEAR winner for that year. Some have none, and some have more than one, just because I truly could not choose. 

2010: Durarara!!, Kuragehime, Nodame Cantabile 

2011: Chihayafuru, Fate/Zero, Hunter x Hunter

2012: Hyouka, Sword Art Online

2013: Kyoukai no Kanata, Log Horizon, Nagi no Asu Kara, Silver Spoon, Uchoten Kazoku

2014: Aldnoah.Zero, Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun, Haikyu!!, Mushishi, Noragami, Your Lie In April

2015: Arslan Senki, Fafner: Exodus, Hibike Euphonium

2016: Boku dake ga Inai Machi, Bungo Stray Dogs, Macross Delta, Sangatsu no Lion, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

2017: Ballroom e Youkoso, Mahoutsukai no Yome, Made in Abyss, Sagrada Reset, Shoukoku no Altair

2018: Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card, Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi, Violet Evergarden, Wotakoi, Yuru Camp

2019: Carole & Tuesday, Fruits Basket, Kono Oto Tomare!, Kimetsu no Yaiba

Goodbye Forever: Just some manga series that ended this decade, I either really enjoyed the series and/OR I invested a lot of time in them (so even the ones with less than desired endings).

Fullmetal Alchemist (2001-2010)

Naruto (1999-2014)

Assassination Classroom (2012-2016)

Bleach (2001-2016)

Fairy Tail (2006-2017)

Gintama (2003-2019)

Unexpected Happenings: Just some major unexpected things happening this decade, for better, or worse. Probably left some things out, but this was what I got while scrolling through my past posts...

High and Mighty Color breaks up, 2010.

Kawakami Tomoko passes away, 2011.

Hunter x Hunter anime remake announced, 2011.

Ayaka returns after a hiatus of 2 years, 2012.

YUI retires from solo career, 2012.

Fafner new season announced, 2014

Digimon Adventure tri announced, 2014.

Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card manga & anime announced, 2016.

Wada Kouji, Digimon King Forever, passes away in 2016.

Code Blue gets 3rd season after 7 years, 2017. 

Fruits Basket remake announcement, 2018.

Aqua Timez breaks up, 2018.

World Trigger returns after a hiatus of almost 2 years, 2018.

Utada Hikaru is back touring after 12 years of hiatus, 2018.

Kingdom Hearts III is finally released, 2019.

Kalafina officially disbands, 2019.

Next Twelve Kingdoms novel officially announced, 2019.

Kyoto Animation fire, 2019.

World Trigger new season announced, 2019.

Also: a whole bunch of artists have officially gone (initially private cuz everything got removed from YT) international/global and we can find them on Spotify T__T thank you ♥

It’s been a wild decade for sure! One good thing though was just the trend of remakes/reboots/new seasons that started for many beloved series after many years. Never would I have thought series like Hunter x Hunter or Fruits Basket would get a reboot, but here they are and they’re glorious.

EDIT: I watched Kimetsu no Yaiba in 2020, but since it’s a 2019 series, I added it in. It’s great!

[mistress-of-the-obvious]

Thoughts On Hikaru Quitting Spacecraft and Idle Speculation

Hikaru quitting Spacecraft was surprising and also not. Her message months back stating there was “more behind the scenes” could have meant anything.

It could have meant that she was happy, working on a single, and to please wait. It could have meant she was unhappy and planning to leave Spacecraft when her contract was expiring…that could also have meant she was working on a single since we didn’t know when that is. I just sort of shrugged.

Since that message I have been very unhappy when I’ve seen Hikaru and Wakana. Hikaru’s message was deliberately vague and the idea the she was miserable counting down the days to the end of her contract was heartbreaking. The fact that she was clearly getting email, snail mail, and messages sent to her directly asking what was going on because Spacecraft, her own representative company, refused to explain even a tiny bit and thus refuse to do their job upset me. She was clearly upset enough to write a message about and yet Spacecraft never addressed it. I don’t doubt Wakana is getting similar mail.

In more strangeness, Yuuka Nanri is still listed on Spacecraft’s official site. There is going to be a big anniversary event for Flying Dog with FictionJunction Yuuka. This is pretty big news as she’s been inactive since 2016. Nowhere on the site. She has her own little site that while it has its own domain name has the same design as some of the other sites hosted by Spacecraft. Last news: 2016. Her blog has an update from September saying she’ll be at the Flying Dog event. I suspect her to disappear from Spacecraft’s roster either before the event or sometime after.

In the case of Yuuka, I didn’t think much of it before the event as she went inactive when she became married and had a lot of health problems going back to 2013 slowing her career. It’s pretty typical for Japanese society to expect women after they get married to have children and thus be full time mothers. That is changing though, especially as not all married Japanese women want to or do become mothers.

So when I first saw Yuuka some months back, it was “Wait a minute…oh she’s retired and they’re keeping her on there because she’s still technically under contract. If Spacecraft were to terminate her contract before it was up, they would owe her money.” Now, there’s this event…and they aren’t promoting her.

Going back to Keiko’s trademark claim, I have some new information where the results are rather curious.

I found this great youtube channel called TheJapanChannelDcom. It’s by an Australian man with a Japanese wife, children, and has been living in the Nagano region for over a decade at least. While enjoying the channel, I found a video that indirectly dealt with Keiko’s trademark claim.

There was a video dealing the then potential breakup of the huge group SMAP (you can see the video here: https://youtu.be/gPBgFZYu9iw). SMAP was a boy band. The now former members are in their 40s and in everything. Movies, tv shows, and at the time still active in their music group. Their talent agency was Johnny and Associates sometimes referred to as Johnny’s. The group broke up in December of 2016 and it was all over Japanese news.

The big rumor at the time was that four of the five members wanted to quit Johnny’s, but still continue in some fashion together. Fans were worried for three reasons: 1) the trademark was owned by Johnny’s. 2) Johnny’s could make their lives very difficult, as they are a very powerful talent agency. 3) There is a stigma of shame surrounding leaving a talent agency, mostly if you have been with one for a long time. This is the perception that the agency built the talent up and that the talent owes it to the company to stay.

What happened was one member stayed with the agency, one went on to something else, and three went to another agency called CULEN. It seems it’s theirs as right now CULEN is just listed as them. They also have a website called atarashiichizu. At this time they are promoting their individual works and have not released anything together, but it’s only been almost two years.

So what does this have to do with Keiko? Typically a talent agency will decide they want a music group or singer and hire them. They trademark the name and choose the songwriters the singer/group will work with. They also work to have a contract signed with a record company. I might be wrong on a few details, but that’s the general picture. The only thing different with Spacecraft was Yuki Kajiura and whether she owned any of that trademark. The fact that after Yuki left, the name Kalafina continued suggested it was owned by Spacecraft.

Would Keiko not know any of this? Highly doubtful. Not only was speculation regarding SMAP all over the news in late 2016, there were also negotiations with Yuki Kajiura and Spacecraft prior to her leaving that affected the group. Knowing how active Keiko was in her advocating for both herself and Wakana and Hikaru (we see this in the 10th anniversary film), she would have kept tabs on it. This on top of the fact that she was signed with Spacecraft with Ayaka Ito for Itokubo. She seems like she has a good idea how the Japanese entertainment industry works.

Even if she didn’t know, the company she hired to represent her would be able to find out if anyone registered that trademark. As someone who has dealt with civil court paper work here in the US regarding my mom and my uncle, I can tell you lawyers and law firms don’t make much money filing these paper work claims. Most of the fee goes to dealing with the bureaucracy. I doubt Japan is much different. In fact, Japan’s bureaucracy seems worse. They would tell her not to waste her time and theirs…unless there was some other point.

What that point was, I don’t know. What we do know is that after she formally told Spacecraft she was leaving, a few days later she filed that claim. Unlike Kaori’s long blog post when she left or Hikaru’s handwritten letter, Spacecraft posted Keiko’s mere one paragraph statement for her. Then there was the letter released for Harmony 4 where people thought it sounded like they were blaming Keiko. While I wouldn’t quite go that far, it was cold in the English translation.

Japan is interesting in that there’s this spectator sport regarding apologies. When a celebrity screws up, like in the case of a member of SMAP a few years back, whom was caught being drunk in public at night, said celebrity will publically apologize on television. People will watch and discuss this apology: how good it was or wasn’t, whether the person bowed deeply enough, whether they meant it or not, etc. Celebrities will be sent on apology tours on various shows.

With this in mind Spacecraft was at best completely tone death at worst they’re arrogant. Since new management took over they have lost 12 people. Most this year. It’s not just people associated with Yuki Kajiura but also long established voice actors.

Based on the little bit I know, what happened with Yuki Kajiura and Spacecraft is that the new management wanted to add restrictions to her. The previous administration let her do what she wanted for the most part.

With Keiko I suspect something similar. Again complete speculation on my part. What we know is the official line is that Keiko didn’t see a Kalafina without Yuki Kajiura as the songwriter. We know this isn’t quite the case as there was that interview where Yuki revealed she was taking a step back allowing them to use other songwriters, she would likely contribute a few songs, and be more of a manager and mentor.

One thing I found surprising was with the tabloid news articles, which were highly accurate, was the statement that if Keiko had stayed they would have headed to the recording studio early this year. Of course, the three of them were touring all last year, so where would they have the time to vet songwriters and find out how well the interaction is…unless Spacecraft wanted to manage them as a standard pop group where they were the sole deciders. If they were being controlling with Yuki Kajiura, why wouldn’t they do that with Keiko, Hikaru, and Wakana?

I suspect this in part with how Hikaru opened her letter, “I, Hikaru, left Spacecraft on good terms (paraphrasing)…” Why would she say that unless someone left not on good terms recently? Again that’s speculation, but we do have some albeit small bit of evidence Yuki and/or Keiko didn’t exactly leave on the greatest terms. She certainly wanted to squash any rumors before they started.

Interestingly, I also suspect that Wakana has more freedom with Spacecraft being solo since there is less money and expectations.

As far as more idle speculation on my part:

Yuki stated recently she has 18 new songs done for a project and is still at the studio recording more. I suspect Keiko to pop up in some of those songs. It might even be a Keiko centric project.

The reason why Hikaru has a Twitter and was interested in having an Instagram, is in part because she’s floating going solo. She maybe in some FictionJunction concerts here and there, but she’s more interested in going solo. Yuki stated she was considering going solo for some time. Also based on her massive support, about 6,000 followers within around 24 hours, not only fans but Yuki, FMB members, Atsuko from Angela, and a director from Animelo concert series, tells me she’s in good position. It also tells me that industry professionals have an idea what was going on with Spacecraft and didn’t like it.

I find it interesting that while there has been an announcement for Wakana’s new single, there has been nothing about an album. Based on her tour setlist she already has enough original songs for an EP. I’m curious what record company she’s on. Is this a new contract or is she piggybacking on Kalafina’s? That might be the reason why Spacecraft refused to fold the group. They are still listed on Spacecraft’s site as though they’re active. It will be interesting to see if the next Harmony magazine contains the name Kalafina on it or if it turns into Wakana’s fanclub. Simply put, I wouldn’t be surprised if Wakana’s contract ends sometime next year and she chooses not to renew.

If Wakana leaves, I do not see a full reformation of Kalafina. While this can be done under a different name, the three of them do not have the finances to form a special group like the three former members of SMAP (which even they have not yet released something together yet). Instead, I anticipate things like the three of them performing an old Kalafina song or two during a FictionJunction concert or a song released by Yuki Kajiura here and there that is essentially a Kalafina song (Wakana, Keiko, Hikaru and Yuriko and/or Remi as assist).

Be on the look out if Keiko tries to go after that trademark claim after Spacecraft drops using Kalafina. I’m not sure if she will or how long a trademark needs to be inactive in Japan to file a claim, but it will give us a good idea if she filed this last one for mysterious unknown purposes or not.

I suppose that’s enough silly idle speculation on my part. Much of this stuff we will never know and frankly don’t have a right to know since all of this is very personal.

[youturnitintolight-blog]

Why I Will Always Love Kalafina

I’ve realised that I’ve been in denial for the past few weeks. Not over the fact that Keiko left Kalafina, it’s obviously been done. But I’ve been more in denial over what will happen to Kalafina.

I’ve just been thinking about their previous releases, distracting myself by editing videos of them that just get stored onto my computer for nobody to see, and making gifsets of them.

But what I’ve realised is something that makes me sad beyond belief – we will never see Kalafina the way it was.

Even if Wakana and Hikaru perform together again (which is highly unlikely at this stage considering their separate concerts even under the Kalafina name), the group of Kalafina was always defined by three.

Three women. Three voices.

The essence of Kalafina is these three women, spreading their feelings through music to the largest amount of people they possibly can, together.  

I cannot blame them for separating. No matter how many groups have been going on for longer, a decade is a long time. If I had been following them since they debuted, I would have been 7 years old. I can’t remember anything from when I was 7! Ten years is nothing to wave a stick at, so to speak. Am I upset that they basically won’t be the same? Most definitely. Am I mad? A little bit.

Do I still love Kalafina? Yes.

Their music, in my opinion, for the last few years, has been quite mediocre and forgettable save the few exceptions. The reason I kept following them was mainly not for their music – but for their voices. This is why I still love the idea of them being solo – I just love their voices too much to leave them behind. And their personality, the heart of what they put into their work is so amazing I can’t put it into words.

The essense of Kalafina is not their music, it’s their heart. Kalafina is not just good music to me. You can find good music and even much better music and singing voices out there. To me, Kalafina is a still-beating heart made out of many things – Music, Voices, Lyrics, Smiles and Love. I can say that I love other artists like SID, Leo Ieiri and ONE OK ROCK because of specific parts of them as artists, like their aesthetic, their use of instruments to sound unique and cool, or their lyrics. But to Kalafina, I don’t just love their music, I love them for their heart.

Will Kalafina basically disbanding make me stop loving them? Of course not. What made me fall in love with Kalafina is still here – Their songs, their voices, their live concerts, the girls themselves – they are all alive. They might not be active, but they still exist, and that is what matters when it comes to expecting what Kalafina will become in the future.

An item on my bucket list was to see Kalafina live. In my gap year (next year), I was planning to raise money and fly to Japan to see them perform live. I am devastated this will never happen.

On June 9, I will become a legal adult in Australia – I will be on my own, and probably, without Kalafina. Even if they do come to disappear, I will live knowing that those girls that make me smile every day will be out there, making other people smile and singing their hearts out for other people and themselves.

Kalafina may not continue into the future, but they will always be in mine.

[heinkelfingerguns]

I didn't record who I borrowed this ask game from, sorry. But I felt like doing it so there :P

Name/nickname: Quae

Gender: she/her

Star sign: Leo

Height: Either slightly taller than or slightly shorter than Iida Tenya, I forgot exactly

Time: ssshhhhhh

Birthday: apparently

Favorite bands/groups: Talking Heads, The Zombies, MGMT, Kalafina (the PMMM soundtrack people), ... i mostly listen to classical music and anime soundtracks so I know songs and composers more than artists, haha

Favorite solo artist: ....Yo Yo Ma, maybe?

Song stuck in my head: "Cruel Angels Thesis" -- I'm so glad the Nyan version went viral b/c now I know all the words, of one version anyways at least!

Last movie: Conqueror of ShamballaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA send help

Last show: if fan parodies count, SAO Abridged, which is still amazing. If you mean like actual shows then I'm not sure...

When did I create this blog: May 2020, immediately after finishing FMAB, haha

What do I post: FMA fanart and memes. Also occasionally my own Original FMA Jokes and Commentary (TM) -- they are bad

Last thing Googled: the spelling of "Shamballa" HAHAHA

Other blogs: SSSHHHH it's a secret

Do I get asks: nope

Why did I choose this URL: It's my favorite joke in FMAB, and i had to call it something

Following: ????

followers: Mostly people from various discords I think :waves at discord friends:

Average hours of sleep: UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Lucky number: I dunno

Instruments: CELLO BEST INSTRUMENT. I played it pretty seriously for about a decade, took lessons and was in orchestra outside of school and everything, but I've barely touched it since college.

What am I wearing: PJs b/c i'ts 3am and I'm supposed to be asleep

Dream job: NEET

Dream trip: I want to visit my oldest friend who lives in Scotland now. Other than that... idk I did a lot of traveling growing up, don't really feel the need to anymore. Maybe visit more National Parks?

Favorite food: I have many... chocolate is one of my major food groups though, i'll tell you that.

Nationality: United States

Favorite song: Just one?? Well I've been humming "Brothers" from FMA '03 today so let's go with that.

Last book read: The Wizard Hunters by Martha Wells. I adore her scifi series so really excited to check out her fantasy! Also reading Holes for book club, and I've gotten all nostalgic for 1632 so I'm gonna pick one of the sequels to re-read but haven't decided which yet.

Three fictional universes you’d like to live in: The Goblin Emperor (once Maia's firmed up his rule and started infrastructure improvements preferably). Murderbot Diaries but only if I get to live in Preservation Alliance, otherwise heck no. Unsounded even though the world fucking sucks b/c I want to learn pymary... maybe Cresce wouldn't be too bad. (I've seen some people put Amestris on this question and wow, y'all are braver than me about dying on Promised Day even if it's temporary. Alchemy would also be cool to learn, though I'd prefer Pymary.)

I think I'm supposed to tag people to spread the game, but no one regularly interacts with me through this blog (beyond liking things I reblog), so open invitation to anyone who wants to do this!

[destination-kalafina]

Chapter 1 “Old Flames”

Author’s note: HAPPY BIRTHDAY HIKARU!!!

I know it is a few hours past her birthday in Japan, but it is now July 2 in the US, so let’s keep the celebration going!! I had made it my goal about a week ago to get this story up in time for Hi-chan’s birthday, and luckily, I actually got it completed! The past week has been so busy, with working and moving into a new home, that I was afraid it wouldn’t be done in time, but I had to make sure it happened for our adorable cinnamon roll.

I will never be able to thank this woman enough, for catching my attention with her fierceness and being the sole reason I looked further into Kalafina. I am forever grateful to her and so glad that she was born onto this earth to slay our hearts with her talent. May her 30th year of life be filled with joy, laughter, success, and LOTS of anime!!（╹◡╹）♡

Disclaimer: This story has an entirely fictional character, who DOES NOT exist in real life in any way, shape, or form. The male MC is only a figment of my imagination! Also, shoutout to one of my best friends irl @hanjurg for giving me editing suggestions and letting me steal her ideas!

Chapter One

“Ohayoo, Hikaru-san! Ohayoo, Hikaru-san! Okiru jikan dayo!” [Translation: Good morning, Hikaru-san! Good morning, Hikaru-san! It’s time to get up!]

The sound of Hikaru’s morning alarm clock resonated throughout her bedroom, an obnoxious blaring that never failed to wake her up. She had set it to be a loud ringing noise accompanied by a speaking voice, something she couldn’t sleep through even if she tried.

Hikaru’s eyes slowly opened to the bright sunshine gleaming through her window and filling her room with light. As the alarm continued to go off, she ruffled around in her bed, pulling the sheets over her head and groaning internally. Groggily, she reached out one hand out from under the blanket to grab her phone, turning off the alarm clock.

It’s only 8:00… It can’t be time to get up already, she thought, sighing.

Wanting to lay there for a few more minutes, Hikaru closed her eyes again. Being the sleep lover that she is, she always felt a little sad inside when it was time for her to wake up, no matter what the time was. It usually took a lot out of her to find the motivation to get up and start her day.

That is unless… there was something she was really looking forward to.

Remembering why she had set her alarm so early, Hikaru bolted up from her bed and threw the covers off of herself.

Today is the day!!

Excitedly, Hikaru quickly showered and dressed, throwing on a casual and comfortable outfit. She glanced in the mirror, making sure she looked at least a little decent before venturing outside, and then ran into the kitchen to grab a small breakfast that would hold her over for a couple of hours. After turning off all her lights, she grabbed her purse and headed out the door.

It was the day that a new manga series was debuting, one that she had been looking forward to ever since it was announced back in early January. It was now the beginning of November, and Hikaru had been awaiting this moment for months.

Hikaru hopped in her car, started the engine, and took off. She was very fortunate to have learned how to drive because it had become very useful, despite there being numerous modes of public transportation all across Japan. As crazy as it may have sounded, the young girl still lived with her parents a little on the outskirts of Tokyo, and the use of a car became quite helpful at times, especially when she was in a rush like now. When she first joined Kalafina, they decided it would be best and most affordable for the whole family if they all moved closer to the city together, and even up until the present, they had become used to this way of living.

Hikaru didn’t mind it. Rather, with all the traveling Kalafina did yearly, it would have been foolish for her to have gotten an apartment on her own and always have been gone from it. 

While driving, the excited girl turned on the radio to her favorite local station.

“…and the renowned author of the long-awaited manga is expected to be here at any moment. The event doesn’t start for another three hours, but the crowds have already begun to fill up quickly. At this rate, if people don’t arrive in the next hour, there won’t be enough limited copies for them!”

Hikaru’s eyes widened, and she stepped on the gas a little more. There weren’t many things that could get Hikaru up bright and early, but a limited edition manga release where the author was present to debut it was definitely one of them. The other exception was, of course, Kalafina events, but luckily, today was a day off from work. This was a particularly rare moment for Hikaru, to be free from her job while something like this was going on, and she was going to be there no matter what.

There is no way I can miss this!!

Hikaru arrived at the bookstore in due time and was greeted by a swarm of people just like she had heard not too long ago. The radio definitely wasn’t exaggerating when it said there were a million fans waiting for the event.

The crowd was huge and the line was nearly a mile out the door, but Hikaru wasn’t expecting anything less before she came to the store. After all, it was only today when you could get this limited copy of the manga, and moreover get it signed by the author himself. 

As she got into the line, Hikaru sighed a little, relieved that she made it in time. All there was to do now was wait.

Several hours later, Hikaru stood near the exit of the store, holding a copy of the newly released manga, one with a bonus edition toward the end with a detailed publication on how the story came into idea. She couldn’t help but grin from ear to ear while gazing over the glossy signature.

Even though the event took nearly 3 hours of waiting and standing around, Hikaru couldn’t have felt more energized and elated. She was quirky like that, finding joy out of ordinary hobbies many people wouldn’t find this exciting. It had always been this way with her.

I can’t wait to get home and start, she said to herself, deciding she was going to spend the rest of the day dedicated to reading and re-reading the manga, as well as the bonus at the end. I really got lucky, didn’t I?

Hikaru carefully tucked the book away in her bag, making sure it was wrapped and safe from damage. As she was about to disperse from the crowd and make her way out of the bookstore, a certain shelf to her right caught her eye.

“Shakespeare”

There was a huge sign for the section, and the sight of it reminded Hikaru of something important. She walked over to the shelf and began browsing the works, running her fingers over the novels.

Hikaru had forgotten that she made it one of her goals to read another Shakespeare play this year, the plan having gotten lost among all the Kalafina schedules and events. Now that the year was almost over and she had just remembered her goal, she really had to buckle down and complete the resolution.

The avid reader contemplated which work she should read next, glancing over the names on the spines. She pulled out a copy of A Midsummer’s Night Dream, and began reading over the first few pages.

Deep in thought, Hikaru didn’t notice that someone had come up behind her during her time perusing the shelf. Out of nowhere, a male’s voice spoke up.

“Reading the English version, are you? That’s impressive.”

Startled, Hikaru shut the book and turned around. She faced a handsome-looking man with a gentle face, perhaps a few inches taller than she was. He had short, dark hair with strong facial features. Even at first glance, one could really see the kindness in his eyes and smile.

“Oh!” Hikaru replied, blushing slightly. “It’s nothing… I just try to read the original version every now and then to enhance my English knowledge some…”

“That’s pretty cool,” the man said, walking up to the bookshelf himself and taking out a copy of Hamlet. “Masai Hikaru-san, isn’t it?” he asked, nonchalantly looking at his book.

Surprised that this stranger knew who she was, Hikaru turned her head toward him again upon hearing her own name.

“Y-yes,” she stuttered, slightly embarrassed about the acknowledgement for whatever reason. “How do you know…?”

Hikaru trailed off, perplexed by the situation. The amused man looked up from his book and smirked.

“You do know you sing in a group who performs the songs of one of the most famous anime music producers in the country, right?” he noted, laughing.

Hikaru smiled sheepishly. Despite being a member of a popular girl group in Japan, the young woman was always shocked when people recognized her in public, or knew about Kalafina for that matter. Even after all these years, it still amazed her, to know that people she has never met before knew about her.

“Ah, yes, I do…” Hikaru said shyly.

The man glanced back down and turned the page. “And besides that…” he took a small pause. “We were in the same class back in high school.”

Caught off guard by the sudden claim, Hikaru seemed to be frozen in time for a few seconds. It had been nearly a decade since she attended high school and it wasn’t a time she often thought about.

Hikaru searched the depths of her brain, trying to match a name to the face she was looking at. She was not one to forget things easily. In fact, she had a great memory and retained information very quickly. For some reason, however, this one kept escaping her.

Amused by the girl’s silence, the man chuckled and finally closed the book shut, directing all of his attention to the person standing in front of him.

“You don’t remember me, do you?” he asked.

Hikaru scratched the back of her neck, embarrassed and slightly frustrated that she could not recall his identity. She shook her head slowly and frowned, a look of apologeticness clearly written across her face.

“Remember the last school festival…? Before the fireworks…” he began, trying to jog her memory some.

Somehow, those few words were all it took. All of a sudden, all the faded memories from Hikaru’s years in high school came flooding back to her.

“Ken?! Hitoshi Ken?” she exclaimed.

The man smiled and nodded, confirming Hikaru’s assumptions. “So you do remember…”

Speechless, Hikaru stood there, mouth half open. She tried to think of something to say, but the words kept escaping her.

This was Hitoshi Ken. The first boy to ever have confessed his love to her.

Back in her high school days, Hikaru was an extremely shy and quiet girl, significantly more than she was now. She was also incredibly studious and disciplined, so much that she focused all of her time on preparing for her future. In her youth, Hikaru had always known that she wanted to become a singer, and it was around her time in high school that she began to make this dream a reality.

Because of this, Hikaru limited herself from many activities a typical teenager would do and missed out on a lot of experiences, among these the opportunity to date and fall in love. Her mother had told her that it was best not to get romantically involved with anyone, since Hikaru never knew where her singing career might take her. Following her mother’s advice, Hikaru guarded herself and turned down many boys at the time, not allowing herself to get caught up in young relationships.

One of these boys was the man standing in front of her currently. Hikaru didn’t think she would ever face the problem, since she never truly built a stable friendship with any of her male classmates. However, one night, she was completely surprised, by a bold classmate who caught her the night of their last school festival in high school, right before the fireworks show at the end. She remembered standing in an open field by herself, having momentarily slipped away from all the people at the celebration. She was enjoying the night sky that was soon about to be filled with exploding lights when someone came up to her, interrupting her solitude.

“Hitoshi-san! What are you doing here? You should be back with the rest of the school,” she had said to him.

“Masai-san… I am sorry to have followed you all the way out here but is it okay if I ask you something?” he said, nervously fidgeting around his hands.

“Oh, sure! What is it?”

There was a short pause, but the words after that came quickly.

“You see… I have had a crush on you for the longest time! I have always admired your scholarliness and determination! There’s just something about you I can’t stop thinking about and well… I was wondering…” he looked down, still playing with his hands. “…if you would be interested in going on a date sometime?”

Similar to how she was now, at the time, Hikaru was speechless. She didn’t know how to react, shocked that someone actually felt that way about her. Although there were several more incidents like this that occurred, it was the first time anyone ever confessed his feelings to her. In the end, she responded the only way she could.

“Oh, Hitoshi-san. I am so flattered, but I’m afraid for certain reasons, I just can’t have that kind of relationship right now…”

The rejection clearly hurt the young boy at the time, and it saddened Hikaru to an extent too. Part of her wanted to say yes and to be able to have a normal teenage love experience; however, the other part of her knew that under her circumstances, she had to stay true to her dream of becoming a singer.

Hikaru continued to stare at the man in front of her, finally being able to process everything that was happening slowly. Could it really be…?

It was no wonder it had taken her so long to remember who he was. It was a memory she buried deep down in her mind because of the unpleasantness, along with all the memories similar to it.

After what seemed like forever, Hikaru snapped back to reality and found her voice again. “Hitoshi-san… It’s been years, hasn’t it? I never would have expected to see you, especially at an event like this? Are you a fan of this author’s work?”

Ken shifted in his spot and rubbed the back of his head, chuckling. “Well, if I’m being honest, I had no idea this event was going on. I came here by chance to pick up a novel I’ve been wanting to read and was met with this massive crowd.”

“Oh, I see,” Hikaru replied. “Did you manage to get the book?”

Ken put the copy of Hamlet he was holding back on the shelf and looked back at Hikaru.

“I actually just got here not too long ago, so I haven’t looked. I saw you out of the corner of my eye and didn’t want to miss the opportunity to have a chat so I came over here first. Like you said, it has been years after all,” he commented, smiling.  

Watching his face, Hikaru couldn’t help but smile back. “Well, Hitoshi-san, I have to admit it is quite a shock to see one of my old acquaintances from so long ago.”

“It is a surprise for me too…” the man answered.

There was a short silence, Ken thinking about what he wanted to say next. After a moment, he gathered his thoughts again.

“Listen, about what happened back in high school… I was young and naive then, I didn’t know what I was saying or what I wanted. It kind of makes me cringe just thinking about it, the audacity I had to chase after a girl I never talked to,” Ken shuddered playfully.

Hikaru laughed. He definitely is amusing.

“Ah, don’t worry about it. I don’t think anyone knows what they want at that age, and I didn’t hold anything against you. I was young and naive myself. I always wished I put myself out there more and got to know people better back then,” she said, reminiscing about the past.

Ken continued. “Well, I know you are extremely busy, but if you ever have a moment to spare…” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small name card, handing it to her.

“I’d love to catch up sometime.”

[themagnusbane]

I was tagged by the ever amazing @highwarlockkareena. Thanks Kareena!!!!

tag twenty blogs you want to get to know better

nicknames: Noria; iTalk (left over nickname from over a decade ago when I just couldn’t stfu!).

zodiac sign: Leo; Chinese Zodiac: Metal Horse

height: 5′1. Yeah, I’m pretty short

last thing you googled: Self care practices 

favorite musical artist: Rihanna, Bruno Mars, Linkin Park, Tupac, Kendrick Lamar, Beyonce, Within Temptation, Kalafina, Spica, Big Bang, Breaking Benjamin, CNBLUE, VIXX (if I keep talking, we’ll be here for a long while)

what you’re wearing right now: Surprisingly enough a dress. A flowery printed dress (not my ususal outfit choice but it was clean, so *shrug*).

why you chose your url: Magnus Bane is the very air I breathe. He’s my inspiration, my source of strength, my joy. And he’s one hell of a kind.

do you have any other blogs? Yeah. Although I’m not really active on them.

what did your last relationship teach you? That neglect is a form of abuse and I deserve better than to  be treated like I’m not worth the effort, time or consideration.

religious or spiritual: Neither. I’m not really a fan of organised religion.

favorite color: Black

average hours of sleep: 6

lucky number: 1 (but only because I read somewhere that 1 is a lucky number for Leos. I’ve never really noticed if it’s been lucky for me, however).

favorite characters: Magnus Bane, Ifemelu, Sunny, Dizziee Kipling, Christina Yang, Veil, Penny, Amanita

how many blankets you sleep with: Just one

dream job: Writing. As long as I can pay my bills, buy some pretty things and travel the world to gain more experience to still put into my writing, then I’m good.

I’m tagging: @latinalightwood @f-f-f-fight @amorverus @harmonization @harrysbumjr @mel-iorn @asteriaria @abloodneed @maiabaneway @garrobanes @princemagnusbane @capstevierogers @lukegarrowayisamaincharacter @downworllders @itsvarza @thelovelylights @thelushfiles @canislytherinthings @uhuhlala @malectric @banelewis

[putschki1969]

hi hi! I've been listening to tons of Kalafina again lately and it amazes me how you're still keeping up with all the girls more than a decade after you've made the blog! the longest my interests lasted was 3 years xD so I just wanted to commend you for that and thank you for your work! I wanna ask is there any song you wanted them to perform more and is there a particular live that's your fave? I personally can't get enough of ksnsw and 9+one live is their most amazing one for me!

Hello there lovely anon!!

Haha😅Once I'm hyperfixated on something, I'm usually committed for life (in varying intensity). I tend to not get tired of consuming the same media over and over again so there's typically no need for me to move on and find new content to engage with.

You are very welcome 😊I'm always happy to spread the ✨KALAFINA LOVE✨

Oh, what a great question! Generally speaking, I don't have too many complaints in that regard. They performed most of my faves quite frequently so we got several solid audio/video recordings of them. However, I am quite sad about "Gloria", "Utsukushisa", "Yasashii Uta" and "Tombo" because those are the only full-length songs out of their entire discography which are not featured in any of Kalafina's official live video releases. Speaking of "Yasashii Uta", I am utterly heartbroken that there has never been a video release for any of their Acoustic/Christmas Lives. I also wouldn't mind having more recordings of songs like "sapphire", "Hokage" or "sandpiper" but I don't wanna seem greedy, I am honestly super happy with the existing performances.

As for my favourite lives, I am probably most attached to their "FOTW Special Final" and "10th Anniversary Live" since they were the first and last proper Kalafina concerts I had the privilege to attend. Truly the most amazing experiences ever. But really, it's very hard for me to choose a definitive favourite because there is so much to love about all of their home video releases. If push comes to shove I think I'd have to go with their "After Eden Live". I always thought it was pretty much flawless.

I can 100% relate to your feelings regarding KSnSnw. It's one of my all-time favourite Kalafina songs. Watching the music video back in 2010 was the thing that first got me interested in the group. My inner goth felt immediately drawn to the gorgeous aesthetics and all the angst/dramatics.

[knights-of-ishgard]

Random Playlist Meme

Load up whatever you use for music, random it and put the first ten then tag ten.

Oasis - Gackt

Blue Jean - David Bowie

Louder Than Words Celldweller

Magia - Kalafina

Throne - Bring Me The Horizon

Don't be so shy - Imany feat Filatov Karas

Decadence - Disturbed

Du bist schön - Alligatoah

Ghost - Mystery Skulls

Falling - Cee-Lo Green & Paul Oakenfold (I wonder if anyone knows that o.o)

Tagged by @jadestormbrand

Tagging everyone who reads this :D

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A Decade of Kalafina - 2008

[putschki1969]

【Vlog】 Eating My Favourite Foods 【Disney Sea】

Hello, this is Hikaru. Thank you for watching! This time, I am sharing a Vlog of what I ate at Disney Sea together with my friend on my day off! The video is a bit all over the place 😂 I hope you will still enjoy it 🍀 (※This video is not sponsored) I am always looking for video suggestions so please share them 📝

Awww, what a shame, I wish we would have seen more of her actually eating all those delicious looking foods but this was still fun. Kinda makes me want to go to Disney Sea again. And of course it reminds me of the times when Kalafina went to Disney Sea together~

(Can't believe this has been my icon here on Tumblr for over a decade XD)

Hikaru Supports C.C.C. Castmates

Hikaru went to see C.C.C.'s 11th STAGE "PRIMARY ETUDE". She has previously been working together with the theatre group on the play "Ambient Border".

Tweet 1 | Tweet 2 | Tweet 3 | Tweet 4 | Tweet 5 | Tweet 6 | Tweet 7

[you-turn-it-into-light]

A Decade of Kalafina - 2018

[you-turn-it-into-light]

A Decade of Kalafina - 2016