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#the one who learned from Shiki that lies can be good sometimes?
purplelea · 1 year
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Everyday I think about how Neku lied to all of the Wicked Twisters, including Beat, about who sent him to Shinjuku. He looked at them in the eyes and said "I have no idea." when he absolutely knew it was Joshua. He knew it but he also knew that 1. Joshua wouldn't want him to reveal that and 2. it wouldn't help anyone, just confuse things more. So he didn't say anything and focused on saving Shibuya. A true king.
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Hourglass [Chapter One] The Juror [Orihara Izaya]
Summary: Kirika hates Ikebukuro; the gangs and the crime. All she wants is to survive and live a normal, happy life. However, without help she can't survive on her own.
The Awakusu-kai hire her once they learn of her unusual ability to read and manipulate emotions, and promise to pay her for every job she completes. However, when a job lands her in the clutches of Orihara Izaya - someone from her past - she has to either sacrifice her dream or give the Awakusu the person they have been searching for; a man named Nakura.
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The district is blind; its residents carry on without a care, oblivious to the strange happenings around them: the gangs and the crime. I can hardly stomach it. Fear is not a reason for ignorance; silence is not the answer.
But who am I to argue with their reasons?
I work in the shadows of the Awakusu-kai, a member since high school. Though none of this matter. What matters is that I hate my role; lying to the masses; a woman behind a mask.
A juror, Dougen calls me.
So why do I stay? Simple … I need to survive.
Money fixes everything.
“So how much am I getting for this job?”
I turn to Haruya Shiki – executive of the Awakusu – for the answer. He is a handler; the one in charge of caring for me.
“About the same,” he replies. Enough for rent and expenses. “Why? There something you want?”
I hum and follow him through a rundown building set for demolition – I believe sometime next week it's set to be torn down.
“It's nothing. I don't necessarily need them,” I reply.
Running my hand across the wall, paint falls to the floor in chips. I wonder how long this building has been here?
Shiki groans in annoyance. “Come on, kid. You want it something, then ask for it. Boss Dougen says I'm supposed to give you what you want; you're special to us.”
I've been told this countless times. And he's right. No one can do what I can; no one can read and manipulate the emotions of others. I am a valued asset to the Awakusu.
Why not ask for more.
“I want to buy a new wardrobe. My former set is too small on me,” I explain.
He agrees. “When we're done here, I have someone I need to see, then you can go shopping.”
“Thank you, Haruya-san. I appreciate it,” I say with smile.
He briefly nods and continues through the complex. For the remainder of the stroll, we don't speak. Business comes first. Leading me to an apartment at the end of a deserted hall, Shiki knocks then opens the door and allows me to enter first.
I see a man; he's rather young – perhaps younger than me. He sits on a worn-down couch in the living room, eyes wide in fear; eyes that move with me as I move.
In the corner is another man.
I know well who he is. I have seen him before during previous jobs. His name is not important, never has been; what is important is that whoever this young man on the couch is, he's done something to anger the Awakusu, something bad.
Ignoring the executioner, I take a seat beside the accused. He is beyond scared; I can tell and I don't blame him.
Beads of sweat are present across his forehead, wetting down his short bangs. His scared eyes dart between Shiki and I desperately as if he's confused.
“Easy, kid.”
Shiki stands in front of us.
“Who is the woman? Ya said it would only be you,” the man says with unease.
Shiki nods. “She's a partner of mine. Don't mind her. She's here to listen.”
“I'm Kirika,” I say while extending my hand. “It's nice to meet you.”
He stares at me a moment, then shakes my hand. He is terrified. I take a calm and deep breath, faking a sense of ease. His tense shoulders begin to droop and as expected, my influence begins to work.
“You good?”
I nod to Shiki.
“Your name is Yamazaki, right? Yamazaki Eita?”
He nods and tries to pull back his hand, but I won't let him. Yamazaki struggles a bit.
“Relax,” Shiki tells him. “Keep your hand in hers.”
Yamazaki stops moving and stares at me. “This some kind of way to tell if I'm lying or not?”
“More or less,” I reply.
Not exactly.
Through skin to skin contact I can read and manipulate the emotional state of another person. Even my emotions can be passed along.
So, if I stay calm, Yamazaki will stay calm.
“Like in those American spy movies? You can feel my heartbeat and read when I'm lying.”
I laugh and nod. Whatever keeps me at ease.
“Focus, Kirika.”
Shiki crosses his arms and deeply sighs. “I have some questions.”
He doesn't wait for Yamazaki to consent before he starts.
“The merchandise we had you deliver. Where did it go?”
I don't honestly care. Knowing the Awakusu the merchandise can be anything from guns and drugs to people or animals. My only job is to listen and read.
“To the buyer in Ginza like the order said,” Yamazaki mentions.
Shiki narrows his eyes. “So why did the Buyer inform us that it didn't? He claims he never even got notified about the truck coming in.”
Fear radiates inside him. Yamazaki shakes his head and laughs. “I did as you asked. I took the truck to Ginza and handed off the merchandise to some guy named Nakura who took the truck to the buyer. You have to believe me.”
“You sure that's how it went down?”
He nods. “Yes ... I swear.”
I ease my hand from his and excuse myself from the room, going back into the hallway. Shiki comes out moments later, waiting for an answer.
“He told the truth. Whoever this Nakura person is has the merchandise.”
Shiki takes out his cell and dials a number. I hear him tell the caller that everything is good, then he hangs up.
“You ready?”
More than ready.
He leads me outside the complex and onto the street. There is no one around; no witnesses to hear the gunshot if Yamazaki had lied.
I'm thankful he didn't.
“Something wrong?”
He motions for me to follow him and I do so.
“No … it's nothing,” I lie.
He hums. “If you say so, kid. The money will be in your account by the time we get to Shinjuku.”
I pucker a brow. “What's in Shinjuku?”
Glancing over his shoulder, Shiki grins. “It's not what, it's who. We have to meet with an informant. And who better to ask about this Nakura person than him.”
I honestly don't care about this informant. All I want is to shop.
We head to the subway and board without much to say. It takes about nineteen minutes to get to Shinjuku, then a ten-minute walk to the building the informant is in.
“He does well for an informant,” I say in awe upon seeing how large the building is.
Shiki nods. “Everyone in Tokyo uses him.”
Seems dangerous to be out in the open, without a care as to who he might anger. Oh well. To each his own.
We wait outside a door on the top floor until it opens. A woman motions us in with annoyance in her tone and orders us to sit down.
“Don't be so cruel, Namie. How are we to get clients if you scare them away?”
That voice sounds familiar.
Namie rolls up her eyes and leaves the room as we sit on the couch. An identical couch sits parallel to the one we are on with a table between the two.
And on the left is a computer desk; the person who scolded Namie is in the chair, facing towards the window away from us.
“I have another job for you, Izaya.”
Izaya? Could it be him?
My face heats up. Please don't be him.
“And here I thought I'd be bored all day.”
Izaya stands and comes around the desk, meeting my wide eyes. He stares a moment, then grins and sits on the opposite couch.
How unfortunate. I never thought I'd see Izaya again. He looks the same as he did in high school.
“It's good to see you again, Kiri-chan.”
I narrow my eyes. “Likewise, Orihara-kun.”
“You two know each other?”
Izaya laughs. “We're old high school friends.”
No, we're not. We've never been friends, or close for that matter.
“You both can catch up later,” Shiki mentions. “I need to find someone. His name is Nakura from the Ginza district.”
Izaya puckers a brow. “A last name, perhaps? Or an online name?”
“I considered that probability,” Shiki mentions.
An online name? That might prove hard to find.
“And what would you like me to do once I find Nakura? Destroy his life?”
Shiki disagrees with a shake of his head. “Call us once you locate him and we'll take over from there.”
“Scary,” Izaya teases.
He has no idea.
The Awakusu will kill Nakura; no excuses. For his sake I hope he escapes from Ikebukuro and stays off the grid.
“You’ll get the money once you're done,” Shiki concludes.
Izaya nods and leans over the table, extending his hand to me. “It was nice seeing you again, Kiri-chan. Don't be a stranger and come see me some time.”
Not a chance.
I stare with uncertainty at his open hand, but take it regardless of my worries.
Sheer excitement runs through him. What could he be thinking?
Izaya knows too well my unusual gift. I did use it against him time and time again.
My worry grows.
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Hoping to Help
An AU story about who I thought might have been Swallow for a while. Neo spoilers (moreso in the AN than anything, I think, but still maybe stay away if you haven't finished the game, to be safe).
https://archiveofourown.org/works/33528064
Author’s Note:  Just imagine that in this AU, Rindo and Shoka just fall for each other because of the Game and the Game alone:)
‘Don’t worry, Rindragon. I’m coming to get you,’ Eri thought, as she typed a message to her most recent friend and prayed beyond measure that Neku and Shiki might be able to get him out of the Game.
For you see, Eri was none other than Swallow: Rindo’s online friend he’d been worrying about so much during his Reapers’ Game.
And Eri, honestly, was only ever in the UG a few times (the instances that Joshua would let her in to help Neku and Shiki with whatever mission they were on about something called an “Inversion”. And the Composer was far more lenient with Shiki coming and going from the UG than her… probably because if Josh had his way, Eri never would have been told about the Reapers’ Game at all). So Eri sometimes being in the UG (the times Josh would let her) explained some of the reason that she and Rindragon were still able to text.
But the other, Eri imagined, was that maybe in being around so many Ex-Players… they had somehow touched her, so that fate itself thought she was one of them and always in the UG, too.
And Eri would of course happily take being able to still talk with Rindragon this way, over Neku’s situation… where he wasn’t a Reaper yet, but every day Joshua was getting closer and closer to breaking his defenses down so he would choose that, Eri thought. Though part of her did wish that she was in the UG constantly, so she might be able to do anything for Rindragon.
And, yeah… Eri had technically lied to Rindragon, something she never wanted to do, about her being in the UG (all the time)—but it had been simpler than explaining her actual situation. And she really wasn’t even supposed to do that, according to Joshua, since he warned her that the Higher Plane would probably strike her down for knowing so much without being a former Player, if she wasn’t careful.
So, most of the time, Eri was mum’s the word about it at all, over anything that could be traced, and wouldn’t talk to Shiki, Neku, Beat, or Rhyme about other Plane stuff over the phone and might even go so far as to only whisper to them about it in their houses… but now Eri was almost willing to the risk of being murdered by the Higher Plane, just if it gave her one shot at saving Rindragon!
He was younger than her—Eri had been able to tell that right away—but she didn’t mind it. She’d always been popular with most ages, honestly, and he had been there for her when she’d been somewhat left out of Reapers’ Game talks with her friends (they tried with her. They really did. And Eri appreciated them for it, but it was clear that there were some things about it that they could really only share with each other) and wanted to start a game of her own with a new friend, like Shiki had new friends… it was why Eri had started playing FanGo to begin with.
But now, it almost seemed like her dream of playing FanGo with Rindragon was going to fade, too. And Eri was a go-getter, who worked so very hard and usually achieved her dreams that way… so lately, the fact that she’d been losing so much (like with Neku’s death, that had mortified her until she got to see him again) didn’t sit right with her at all, and she wanted to fix some of it… somehow and someway. And so, she’d try.
“Neku… I feel like you’re the key to going in and saving him, oh, Legendary Player. Any chance you can do that for a friend here?”
And if Eri wouldn’t have known better, she would have thought it was just a normal night with the three of them, sitting around her apartment, casually eating pizza… but of course with her luck lately, it was anything but.
“I’ll try, Eri,” Neku promised her, sending a small smile Eri’s way (he saved his big one’s for Shiki), while he pulled the cheese off his pizza (he was thinking about going vegan lately, Eri knew). “Even though the Reapers are trying hard to create walls I can’t pass—and will be on my ass the moment I try it--…but you do know there’s a chance we’ll have to fight him, right? If he remains Kubo’s lapdog? I’d say it would just be me doing that… but the way Josh is, the asshole may try to recruit you guys into the UG, too.”
And as Neku was clearly starting to get worked up here (at the idea of having to fight an innocent, or the two of them entering the UG again like him), Shiki reached over on the couch they were on together and ran soothing circles all over Neku’s back. And Eri found that she couldn’t blame Neku for being stressed… especially since he was pretty much a murdered specimen right now. Eri was stressed, mostly for Rindragon, but she didn’t even have the half of Neku’s issues going on for her. “Hopefully it won’t come to that!” Shiki encouraged Eri too, sending the large smile her way that Neku had been incapable of—but Eri thought it was kind of nice, in that regard. This couple clearly completed each other… even if it made her feel a bit lonely to see sometimes. “I’m sure Neku—and us, if it comes down to it—will find a way. Like when Neku got the Red Skull Pin off of my person, so he wouldn’t have to defeat me… We’ll think of something, Eri, I know it. And Rindragon seems strong,” Shiki continued on, proving that she was still very much was the new Shiki who believed in things, and not the old one who so easily got tripped up.
But Rindragon most certainly was that, Eri knew. You didn’t become one of the top FanGo players for nothing; you had to walk all over and work hard for it, to be strong enough and savvy enough catch the best creatures. So Eri knew that Rindragon was clearly fit—and had gamer’s hands, and therefore fast reflexes—but she was still so paranoid about him here.
“Shiki’s right, Eri,” Neku promised, squeezing her hand—that had still been on her keyboard—in an aim to comfort her even more now. Was she really that shaken up? “I’ve been in so many Games now, that I’m not going to make them say that I can’t have my way without a fight. And even though I don’t think I’m as reassuring as Beat would be here… If I need to carry all of us in the Game, I’ll do so.” And Neku did end up attempting to do that for them—which Eri knew she would always appreciate him for—but she ended up helping Rindragon (Rindo, who she properly knew the name of by then) against the Plague Noise, too (and Shiki aided in it as well, whose Imagination had gotten so powerful, that she didn’t even have to be a Player or Reaper to use some of her powers now. Eri got desperate and did kill herself for Rindo’s sake—and entered the Game that way—and that was something that Rindo gave her a mouthful for: and Eri had smiled amusedly at that, because in some ways… it felt weird to be chewed out by a kid. But it was a kid she adored, so she would take it… especially since she knew that if she survived, Josh had promised he would bring her back, so Rindo would no longer be able to be mad at her for throwing her life away for him then).
But it was no easy thing. Eri imagined she had as much trouble finding a psych she could use, as Shiki once had. But eventually, Eri had learned that if she carried pieces of fabric around, and something to draw on them with, the clothes would transform into what she’d drawn on them and she could then use them for a bomb… that took a while to set up this way, but did massive damage when it was done, so she could try and really best the bird that giant phoenix.
Then, everything was finally over. Peace rained in her friends’ lives again, and Eri couldn’t have been happier for it… and that Joshua kept his promises.
And now, Rindo was meeting up with Eri after he had aided his girlfriend, Shoka, find a better apartment to stay in, than the one Joshua had rented for her.
“It’s still so weird to think that you’re Swallow…” Rindo remarked, as the two of them played FanGo on their phones and headed towards 104 to shop some. “One of the lead designers of Gatto Nero. Damn, what are you doing hanging out with a loser like me?”
And at that, Eri had to laugh and give Rindo a quick hug around his waist, because he didn’t even know! “…Actually, I was starting to feel like the loser in not having played the Game… it was why I got into FanGo and met you. And I’m so glad that I did! But then when I found out you were in the Reapers’ Game… well, it was ironic, for sho, but I was afraid I would send Shiki and Neku to save you, and I would do nothing… and so you’d have no good opinion about little old me, when you finally met me at all! So, it meant a lot when you actually chewed me out for joining you in it, and throwing my safety away!
“You’re a good kid, Rindo. A good kid, I’m happy to be friends with,” Eri said, as the two of them dug out the lollipops they’d bought and sucked on them now… She hoped she wasn’t sounding too much like a mom here now, and scaring Rindo off, but when she looked over at him, she could tell that he still looked happy and deep in thought about this all. Good. “And you should totes intern with me for Gatto Nero, if you want. Your friends can too, really!!”
Rindo was guffawing now, as the two of them decided not to go into her and Shiki’s store, but rather up the stairs of the 104 building just to get a nice view.
Eri had no doubt that the girl who had given Rindo lots of advice in the past had finally reared her head, unlike the scared version of her, who had only been able to send him a few scared words in texts lately. And Rindo must have realized that, and been moved by it, because Rindo suddenly took Eri’s hand to shake it, and he smiled. “Sounds like a good deal, Swallow. Count me in!”
Author’s Note: Man, I had so many theories about Swallow while I played the Game… that all turned out to be wrong. Hahaha.
At first, I REALLY thought it was Rhyme, because Swallow sent Rindo a squirrel picture (essentially) and her name is “Swallow.” And I was like, “Squirrel Noise? And Rhyme got SWALLOWed by a Shark Noise?” Also, she’s around Rindo’s age. Ehh?!), but it quickly became clear that that wasn’t the case.
Then my next best guess was Eri for the longest time (which I wrote here), mainly because for a second, I was thinking the person at the computer (Rhyme) and Swallow were the same person, so all of this jumped into my head as to how it COULD have been Eri, even though I really didn’t think they would go this way (because I kind of figured they wouldn’t include Eri, sadly). Though it would have been cool.
Then I thought it was Shiki, for the same reasons I thought it was Eri (and I know that when I was thinking girl at their computer—Rhyme—was Swallow, the color palette should have been a dead giveaway that it was Rhyme. And really, it was. But I thought they MIGHT try and pull a fast one on us, sort of like they did with the Neku and Beat twist, and change the character’s color palettes or something), though clearly they didn’t. But then I didn’t think they would do that, because it might seem like Shiki was in love with Rindo over Neku or something… even though that would be kind of silly, because girls CAN have guy friends that are JUST their guy friends. So, I was really thinking Eri the most, out of the two of them.
I also thought it could be Joshua, for obvious reasons, but mostly I knew Swallow was a girl from the way they talked… typed.
And I think I thought it could have been Neku for five seconds, because when I thought the person at the computer desk and Swallow were the same person, and we then saw “Neku” come and save the Wicked Twisters (like computer-desk-person, Rhyme, had said about coming to save him [Beat], but at the time I thought she meant Rindo), I thought it was Neku because of that, fulfilling the promise, maybe. But I don’t really think I ever truly thought it could have been Neku. I think he was the one I imagined the least, because it would be too obvious.
Somehow, I missed the Shoka thing entirely… even though it seems so obvious now. But I’m kind of glad that I did, because it was a cool twist for me that way.
But here’s the Eri idea. I might the rest of them for fun, too (I already wrote the Shiki one… before this actually, so I hope in doing that, I didn’t steal some of this one’s thunder). Who knows?:)
Hope you all enjoyed!
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whirlybirdwhat · 5 years
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“Nami Gets Kidnapped by the Big Bad” is something that is often seen in One Piece, particularly in the earlier chapters. What I like about how Oda spins it, is that in comparison to other pieces of media, Nami is never a ‘damsel in distress’ who can not do anything to save herself, even if Luffy does save her in the end. 
With Arlong, and where most of her trauma at being under control began, she was actively seeking was to get out of her imprisonment. She fought, she stole, she lied, she gave up her own happiness, did anything she could to get her and her village out from his thumb. Luffy does save her in the end - but only because Arlong was a cheating grand line level threat and Nami, as tough as she is, could fight only with her wits and meager weapons.
In the end, however, Nami is not set apart from the rest because she needed saving - all of the crew needed saving and Luffy saved them -  and doesn’t fall into the damsel in distress trope. She is not weak, not to the crew, or to the readers
With Enel - Eneru?? I’m going to go with what the wiki uses - Nami still fights back, although the situation must remind her of Arlong and how trapped she was. She’s trapped by the big bad guy again, and while, yet again, Luffy saves her, she’s still fighting back. She’s by no means completely helpless, and even stays true to her character by manipulating Enel to survive! 
The last example I'm going to use is from One Piece: Strong World, with Shiki, which is where the inspiration of this post came as I am watching it for the first time. The entire plot of the movie is that Nami’s is kidnapped. But every time she is, she finds a way to escape or fight back. 
And - like with Arlong - she only ever gives in when her crew and family back home are in danger, or stops fighting when she literally cannot physically or mentally do so. (And then gets up and does it some more)
The common theme in all of these instances of Nami’s character is that she fights back and doesn't spend half the time sobbing at how helpless she is despite being in a position which 1) would make anyone want to cry and 2) being in a situation that specifically parallels her trauma. And  she keeps fighting back nearly the entire time. In my experience, especially with this genre, female characters will and do fight back during almost every one of their thousand captures/in-trouble/ etc. etc. But a lot of times they stop at some point halfway through and just give up, start sobbing for the rest of the time before the hero whisks them away. Even female characters depicted as ridiculous strong, and stronger than the main character will fall into this trend.
Nami doesn’t, which is one of the reasons I adore her character! 
However - this is not to say that damsel in distress/characters being saved by others is bad. Sometimes its entirely in character. But -  Its only good when its done right.
With Nami, it would be very easy for someone to turn her into that kind of character - but the thing is? She’s not. She always fights for herself. And it’s so nice to see that consistency every single time she ends up under the thumb of the Big Bad of the arc/movie. And!! Its even more nice to note that as her character develops after Arlong, she learns to depend on her crew to save her - or at the very least come for her if she's already saved herself!
Characters often get saved in One Piece, and usually by Luffy. Nami is one of the few characters who gets saved often, which is why I’m choosing to focus on her instead of say, Usopp, Robin, or Sanji. Because being saved from oppressive figures is a big part of her character, as well learning to live with and around that oppression. 
Its one of the things that makes Nami, Nami, and separates her from the rest of the also very unique straw hats, and also a thing that plays on a trope but doesn't demean her while doing it.
So - in conclusion, while Nami does tend to get kidnapped/trapped by the big bad very often (comparatively), her character throughout stays consistent and true to her instead of bending to be a ‘crying weak character who can't save themselves’ for the plot. These experiences shape her and develop her character while not demeaning her and simultaneously using a common trope!
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radiowrites · 5 years
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Beautiful Liar
He would settle the mask of lies on his face and tell himself that it was all meant to be. 
Read it on: AO3.org / FF.net / Below the cut!
[Ghost Hunt fanfiction short story. 4300 words, three chapters in the links above - one whole piece below. Koujo Lin. Pre-series, set before 1997. Originally written on 11-24-15. Heavily inspired by the music video with the same name by VIXX LR. I guess it’s a fanfiction of the MV, too...?]
Part I
Koujo Lin stood in front of a nondescript office building crammed between two identical structures.
Though Lin was well versed with the history and studies of the SPR, he had never visited its British headquarters. Perhaps he had never really intended to. He considered his training to be quite complete. One could even say his family was well known for producing fine sorcerers.
He had been in England for three months, and it had been a surprise to learn that the professor Lin had attended lectures from was a parapsychologist on the side. The man had invited Lin to visit the SPR. The professor was interesting and had earned Lin’s respect. The professor did not shy away like most people.
That was because most people did not know why Lin frightened them. They only knew that sometimes things worked in his favor in a way that was difficult to explain. The professor was well aware of the dark arts and the like that Lin practiced.
These dark arts were the presence of his shiki in the back of his mind, floating in the ether, hollow and ready to be filled with his commands. They held no physical forms, had no voices.
The street was quiet, and Lin could feel the eyes of curious office workers looking through slatted blinds on the other buildings. He was certain that the watchers had seen far stranger visitors to the SPR than this tall man of Chinese descent dressed in a simple black business suit. The only thing that could be remembered as unique was the fringe of sleek black hair that covered one eye.
The door opened to a short balding man in his late forties with a beaming grin.
“Mr. Koujo,” the portly man shook his hand vigorously, though he was barely holding on to the tips of Lin’s fingers. “I’m Jeffrey Smith, and we are so glad to have you here. Welcome to the Society for Psychical Research.”
“It’s Lin –”
“Of course, and you can call me Jeffrey. We’re all on a first name basis here too. Come in. So you’re from China?”
Lin hesitated on the stoop for a moment, a frown directed at the man’s back as he went inside, expecting Lin to follow. Lin was used to being referred to from his surname as a level of respect. He had never had someone mistake it as his given name before. “Actually,” he said as he entered the building and remembered to answer Jeffrey’s question, “Hong Kong.”
“Oh, so you’re practically British already. You’ll fit right in.”
Lin had to remind himself that it was self-indulgent to have a shiki wring Jeffrey’s neck for such a minor offense.
Jeffrey took Lin’s elbow – though he barely came to Lin’s shoulder – and started leading him down the hallway. “Let me show you around quickly. Headquarters isn’t too big, as you can see. You look so young. I’ve heard you control shiki already? How many?”
It had been a small hope that a society for psychic research didn’t linger on idle talk. “I control many,” Lin said. The lie was thick on his tongue. If there was someone who wanted to cause him trouble, how many shiki he controlled would be a valuable asset, so it was information he didn’t give away easily.
And he only had three so far.
“That would be such a stress at any age. You must be very balanced.”
Before he could reply to Jeffrey, the older man muttered, “Speaking of young…” He let go of Lin’s arm and backed up a few paces where they had passed a stairwell going up. Two young boys sat on the sixth step up. The twins – for that was clearly what they were – looked to be barely over the age of twelve, and were of Asian descent.
Jeffrey clapped his hands when they didn’t acknowledge him. “Boys! Where is your father?”
 “He went to get a cup of coffee,” one of the boys said. Lin thought he could detect a hint of an American accent, though he wasn’t well enough versed to know exactly where. The silent boy wore a mask of indifference, something Lin was well practiced in.
“Then you should be in the office he’s using, not out here,” Jeffrey said. From the abrupt tone in his voice, Lin had a feeling that Jeffrey was even worse with kids than he was.
“He locked us out,” the first boy said, the only one who had spoken so far.
“On purpose?” Jeffrey asked.
“No,” said the first boy.
“Yes,” said the mirror image of him at the same time.
They looked at each other, then repeated together, “No.”
“So if you just unlock the door sir, we’ll get out of your hair.”
Jeffrey shook his head. “I don’t have the key to that office; you’ll have to wait on him. Please stay out of trouble.”
The quiet boy watched Lin with cold eyes. The boys were Japanese, but Lin did not know where the thought had surfaced from. He felt a swell of fierce loyalty to his grandmother and horrific stories she had told about the war.
Lin sensed a shiki come to attention without a request from him. The talkative boy looked at Lin, or more specifically, past his shoulder. The boy turned away, the faintest shudder passing through his small body. The fact that a shiki had materialized enough for the boy to sense it alarmed Lin.
Jeffrey had taken off down the hallway, though with his stature, he had not gotten very far before Lin’s long strides met up with him.
“You watch out for those two,” Jeffrey said, throwing a glance over his shoulder, presumably to make sure the children were not following them. “Especially the older one. Or is it the younger one? How are you supposed to know that, anyway? Orphan twin boys, could have been mixed up at birth, for all they know.”
“They’re adopted?” Lin asked.
“Yes, they’re Martin’s boys. Whatever possessed him and Luella to adopt them is beyond me. They only look like trouble and heartache to me.”
About the time that Lin was ready to leave – or escape, Martin Davis came in through a side door to the kitchen. Davis was older than one would have expected by the youth of the two boys. Behind Davis was a young woman with dark cherry-colored hair. She looked too young to be his wife, so there was a good chance she was adopted too. Lin ignored the smile she tried to give him.
Davis came up short, a cup of take-out coffee in one hand. “Oh, Mr. Lin – I didn’t know you were coming today.” He transferred the coffee to his left and offered his free hand. Lin took it. It was a firm, confident handshake. “I’m glad you were able to make it. This is my associate Madoka Mori. I trust Jeffrey didn’t bore you?”
 “No, he was very informative.” And he was dropping gossip about you to a complete stranger, you probably should be aware of that.
Davis looked at him, a steady gaze, and proved there were levels of intelligence and strength in any society, big or small. Lin felt the urge to sit down on the steps and tell this man his problems, with Vivian, with moving from his home country, and from his third shiki…
So he thanked Davis, letting him know he would be in touch, and left.
Part II
Vivian wasn’t home yet. Lin dropped onto the bed without bothering to turn on the lamp. In front of him, the mirrored closet doors caught the light of the hallway, throwing shadows across his face in the reflection. His good eye glinted. It was wrong to have a mirror facing the bed. It invited the third party into your sleeping space.
Maybe he just disliked mirrors all together, because sometimes the shadows moved differently than they did in the real world.
Stopping at the SPR had been a waste of time. It was basically Jeffrey not knowing what to do with Lin, and yet wanting to not lose hold of him. They’ll try to get Lin on a team, if research was what he was interested in. Or he could apply for some grant money if he had projects to work on. Or, Jeffrey had continued, peering at Lin’s fringe of hair, if Lin wanted to have people study him instead…
Why isn’t she home. The thought came unbidden, and the angry undercurrents made it a statement, not a question. Lin could not push the irritation aside.
Jeffrey had called him balanced. Lin believed the last time he had been balanced was before he had left Hong Kong, before he had added the third shiki.
Shiki were hollow. They should be empty and detached until he was ready to use them. When Lin probed the presence, the third shiki felt…full. Of emotion.
Lin had been upset during the preparation and through the ritual. Vivian and his relationship had been rocky again even though they were not only moving in with each other, but out of the country as well. He was angry about the changes coming to his home country, how he was being forced to move if he wanted to keep his ways of life. He had wanted one more shiki before leaving for England, as if the shiki gained later on in another country would be somehow different.
It was possible that the lack of control in his own life slipped through into the spiritual ties with the shiki, that he had transferred these very human emotions right into the being. And Lin didn’t know what to do about it.
In reality, he needed the master, his grandfather, who had passed away suddenly three years ago. The death certificate said it was a stroke. Lin knew it was from a shiki his grandfather had lost control of. It was very possible that was the path Lin was heading down.
 The front door to the apartment clicked open. Her soft steps came closer down the hallway, and he heard them hesitate in the doorway. She turned the light on.
“Koujo, you’re home,” Vivian said in Cantonese. When they were young, they were taught English in school, but it was a comfort to drop into the language of their heritage. “How was the SPR?”
He could see her in the reflection. Her glossy black hair was pulled up, her eye makeup done to exaggerate her eyes. Her mother had named her Vivian after some actress – which one, Vivian wasn’t sure; the story had changed every time it was told. Her family’s elders had been appalled that a child could be named on a whim. Her mother had said it was simply being prepared for the time they would leave Hong Kong, which was inevitable due to the Chinese takeover.
“They seemed impressed by the paperwork I sent to them,” Lin said. “Yet they didn’t know what to do with me. The man who showed me around looked like he hadn’t done any field work in a decade.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. After a pause, a tentative smile crossed her face. “You’ll be pleased I found a job. It’s a modeling gig. He said that my face was exactly what he was looking for.”
“Of course he would, Vivian.” Lin turned around and her smile quickly faded. “Just another foreigner with an Asian fetish.”
“Maybe you’ve forgotten that we’re the foreigners here, Koujo. What was I supposed to do? You didn’t want me just sitting around the apartment.”
“But was your only option to sell yourself?”
“I didn’t –”
“Was I just your free ride out of the country?”
She stiffened. “Look, it’s just a few pictures for a catalog. Some type of artisan jewelry. It’s not like I’m taking off my clothes!” By the end of the last sentence, her voice had risen in pitch. She heaved in a breath. “Why do you always assume the worst when it comes to me? What have I done to earn your distrust?”
Tears she could not hold back marred her makeup, and she spun on her heel.
When he heard the bathroom door slam down the hall, he dropped his head and leaned his elbows on his thighs. He hadn’t paid her way. Vivian had plenty of her own family money. Why did he always lash out at her?
Lin looked up and he could almost see the outline of a shiki behind him. The shadows curved around the preternatural being like a water droplet.
He closed his eyes, slowed his breath, and attempted to settle his mind.
 Lin sat up when Vivian reappeared in the doorway. Because of the way the room was situated, she had to walk past him as she went to her small dresser. She handed a card to him as she went by, not taking the time to notice if he took it or not.
The paper was dark, and Wedding Invitation was written in silver foil across the front. “What’s this?”
“My cousin is getting married. I forgot to tell you. My aunt gave me the invitation this morning.”
If Vivian’s mother had been odd according to the elders, she had nothing on her older sister, who had up and moved to England a quarter of a century ago. Her youngest of three boys had been born here, and he was the one getting married.
Vivian and Lin had carefully not discussed marriage, and the unexpected invitation in his hand had brought the topic into focus. They should have been entertaining the thought by now. He opened the envelope, and saw that it was only addressed to her. Apparently her family had never planned on him marrying her.
He had intended on marrying her once.
She went to the wrought iron hat rack in the corner and started pulling off clothes she had strewn on it. She could have been simply looking for an outfit for tomorrow. Or she could already be packing to move out. The clothes accumulated into a pile on the floor until she sat down on the bed behind him, her body language sharp and irritated. He shouldn’t have been able to see her drop her head into her hands, but the mirror violated that privacy. She looked up and their eyes met through the reflection.
“Just go away, please,” she said.
Lin inclined his head, watching his face through a lowered eyelid in the mirror. His expression was emotionless, except for the taut lines around the corners of his mouth and eyes. Beautiful memories were being tainted as he struggled to remember why they were together in the first place. Would she be happier if he just let her go?
In the kitchen, the phone rang. She made no move, so he left the bedroom to answer it.
“Hello?”
“This is Martin Davis speaking. Have I reached Koujo Lin?”
“Yes. What can I do for you, Mr. Davis?”
“I want to offer you a side job. Outside of the SPR. If you are interested.” Davis’ sentences held an agitated undertone. “It’s one of my sons. His abilities are…well, I certainly won’t boast them as unique. But they are unusual, and he needs to learn how to control them.”
“I doubt I’m qualified, Mr. Davis,” Lin said, though he knew there was a very good chance he would be.
“That was quick,” Davis said. “I thought you would have at least waited to meet with him once.”
The problem was Lin had already met them. “I’m not good with children,” he said. Especially Japanese children.
“That would not be a problem. Oliver is more mature than most adults I meet.”
Lin was sure every parent said that at one time or another, whether the child was of their own blood or not. But to deny this opportunity would be a step backwards from the direction he was wanted to take.
“Would tomorrow be all right with you?” Lin asked.
“Yes, the hospital does not intend on holding him overnight.” Davis rattled off the address.
Lin stood there holding the phone after Davis was gone, trying to process the last statement.
The dinner dishes had been cleared but Lin and Vivian still sat across from each other at the small table. The hanging light above them was lightly swinging back and forth. Maybe a breeze was filtering in through the open window.
Vivian leaned forward to take his hand, and he instinctively pulled away. Her shoulders slumped as she stood up.
Lin almost reached for her hands. He assumed pride made him hesitate.
“I’ll spend the night at my Aunt’s,” she said. “Good night.”
 That night, he dreamed.
A man sat next to him on the end of the bed. They didn’t look at each other directly, instead making eye contact in the mirror before them. His face was similar to Lin’s in the way that each artist would draw a face differently when given a basic description. Minor changes in the cheekbones and jaw line made the face a different man. Then the artist had added flairs of their own: the other man’s hair was stark white, and both of his eyes were visible. They were an electric blue, like the eye that Lin kept so carefully hidden. The man smiled at him in the mirror. His teeth gleamed white, contrasting with a brightly colored suit. Red and blue clashed in an erratic tie-dye pattern.
Lin liked black. It was professional. It didn’t draw the imagination back to soothsayers found in the dark corners of brightly lit festivals.
Behind them, Vivian slept fitfully in a white silk nightgown that bared her thighs. The other man slid off of the bed and came around close to her. He leaned down, a hand straddled over her waist. He hovered over her lips, but he didn’t touch her. She gasped softly in her sleep.
“Don’t let her go,” the other man murmured. “She’s a good catch. Obedient, if trained right. I want you to keep her.”
Lin found himself agreeing with him.
Lin sat up with a quick intake of breath, completely alone, and still jumped at his reflection across the bed. His hair was tousled away from his face, and he had an alarming sensation that the mismatched eyes were no longer his own.
Part III
The next morning, he found Vivian at the door, not proud and composed as he expected, but a mess of tears.
“I need to talk to you,” she said.
She paused in the kitchen, and wiped her tears on her sleeve. It didn’t stem the flow. “I’m sorry,” she murmured. “Walking out last night wasn’t the answer.”
Vivian came close and cupped his face.  This wasn’t what Lin had anticipated. It was not how their last serious argument had panned out. He wondered, suddenly, if she had dreamed last night.
He lowered his gaze. It felt wrong to meet her eyes.
Vivian let go and collapsed into a kitchen chair. As she ran her fingers through her untidy hair, she said, “I guess I expected you to take your words back. That was stupid of me.”
He nodded. His body ached with the falsehoods he was piling on his shoulders, and his heart shuddered against the cage he secured it in. It didn’t matter anymore what he wanted. Her well being was what mattered.
 “I guess it is not fixable this time,” he said, and smiled wanly. He hoped it looked authentic, because it felt like thin plastic film was across his face, holding everything in place.
He sat down across from her, and she slid her house key across the table. The keychain was a brass padlock with its own heart-shaped key. It gleamed from the light overhead, taunting him. She had left the keychain on since he had given it to her.
As he reached for the key, the shiki in its human garb was there, standing at the table between them. He slapped it away from Lin’s outstretched fingers. The brass clinked onto the floor.
Lin blinked, and the keys were still on the table, for the shiki could not yet manipulate the physical realm.
Vivian twitched, as if she had heard the sound too. She looked up, and seemed to stare right at the shiki’s face. Then her eyes shifted away to Lin. They were unfocused and hurt.
It’s alright if you leave, Lin thought.
She got up and started down to the short hallway to the front door. The shiki started after her.
Lin caught its wrist. The shiki snarled as it jerked and twisted. When the shiki had almost escaped Lin leapt up and pinned its arms, and was tossed off with another growl.
Lin still held its wrist, and was forcibly dragged down the hall.
He could feel the pain in his arms, and he had to question if his body was actually still just sitting at the table.
 When he heard the front door open, then shut, he grabbed at the shiki’s legs and upended the demon. He soon had an arm around the shiki’s neck and his legs around its waist as it struggled.
Lin could feel love and fury, rage and desire churning through the being, and in turn, himself. It seemed like it wanted to speak, to make Lin understand, but Lin shut it out. Communicating with a shiki outside of a command was a dangerous dead end. When it seemed to know that Lin was not going to give it an audience, it attempted to rake its fingernails – which were now claws – over Lin’s face.
Every person had their own way to cut a spiritual cord. If the cord was thick from a good relationship that had gone sour, it could rebound on you if cut suddenly, causing physical pain. In the past, Lin had allowed during meditation a candle flame to gently eat away at cords that no longer served him. It let the strands go one by one, and when there was only one left it just fell away.
If there was the first plane of existence – where Lin’s body still sat, watching the door with a brooding despair – and the second plane was where this fight was taking place, yet another level came into prospective – where the shiki and he stood, calmly.
The shiki embraced Lin.
Don’t do it, it whispered into his ear, and Lin could feel its sharp teeth at his neck.
Lin imagined a machete and hacked at the cord which bound him and the third shiki together.
The shiki gasped and choked, though if it was from the cord being cut or from the arm that was blocking his windpipe, it was uncertain. The shiki should never have had the physical presence to feel the pain the lack of breath was causing.
The first hit didn’t sever the cord.
The second strike did.
The shiki melted from his hands, and reassembled into a vague shape behind Lin. Lin turned without getting up, watching the shiki fade as it walked, or rather stumbled away.
The remaining two shiki were silent. They did not have a concept of camaraderie. 
Lin, still sitting on the kitchen floor, closed his eyes. Weariness settled into his body from the violent removal. He tried to visualize Vivian happy and moved on from their relationship. The images wouldn’t come.
There was a flicker of hope that she would come back in, say one more time that they could make this work. He had no right for that thought, since he had already rebuffed the offer. He had done so for her safety and freedom, but that wasn’t something she was aware of. He had come to terms that he had never shared enough with her. Yes, his craft was a secretive work, but if he had allowed her to support him at times, maybe he would not be on the floor after the breakup, wishing there was a way to fix it.
He felt their spiritual cord snap. He had not prepared for it, so the sudden hollow ache in his heart hit him hard.
He knew tears were in his eyes, but he didn’t allow them to spill over. The cord had been tainted by the wants of the shiki, so the fact it had been broken wasn’t wrong. They could easily forge a new one, if he got up, followed her, and apologized. For everything.
In front of her aunt and cousins, who would see a broken man incapable of living without a woman.
In front of his remaining shiki, who might just be paying more attention than he gave credit to.
In front of the memory of his father, who had said to never grovel for a woman. Don’t give her that power over you.
The phone rang. It took all of Lin’s remaining energy to get up.
“My cousins will pick up my possessions tomorrow,” Vivian said. There was no pain in her voice. She sounded happier than she had been in months. If it was an act or the truth, he had no right to ask.
“I won’t be home,” he said. His voice was smooth and steady. “I will leave the door unlocked.”
He knew he had given free rein to protective men who viewed Vivian as a sister, but at that moment, he didn’t care if they emptied the whole apartment. He had nothing to lose.
There was no more conversation. They simply said good bye.
 He returned to the bedroom. To shatter the mirror was tempting but not worth giving an explanation to the landlord.
He stopped and examined his face, with its reddened, shining eye. He wondered if the other was capable of tears. The question should have been absurd, but he suddenly couldn’t remember the last time he had shed tears.
He wiped his hand across his face and smiled in the mirror. The expression was not believable, so he let it slip.
“I won’t miss her,” he told the reflection.
What a liar.
 “No woman is worth chasing after.”
Oh, and a coward as well.
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ryuukia · 6 years
Text
[Translation] Tsukino Empire - The Third Fleet「Seiryou」
I’m in the middle of my post-graduation exams, so I’m slow with translating. Here’s the third fleet, including both SOARA and Growth.
Special thanks to @clearui and @ryota-kunstranslations for proofreading (I can’t tsukipro to save my life so I needed additional help this time)
If this is your first time reading about Tsukino Empire, you might want to read the stage play plot (especially about the collective affinity)
Profiles under the cut, don’t repost my translations!
07. SOARA - Ohara Sora & Arihara Morihito
Ohara Sora
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Cast comment
Hello! I’m Ohara Sora! SOARA's composer, guitarist, and vocalist!
Lives are fun and great, and I love them, but this is my first time in a stage play, so I’m a bit nervous (sweats). Everybody from SOARA has been set in the same fleet as me though, so I am happy to do my best with them all. I will work hard with all my heart and power. \\\┗(' ω ')┛////
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) ※Commandant ① Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou1 and ryuu2 type) ※First rank (Main ring ①) 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
An individual with similar attribute values who picked up a ring by chance while coming back from school. Certain that the ring was The First Rank’s Seiryuu, he coincidentally shared it through collective affinity. In a sense, he has become a legendary person.
Seiryuu, known as the most friendly type between the First Rank spirit beasts, says “Although messing around with everyone was fun, it was tiresome to do the compatibility exams carefully on each of them, so I ended up searching for hosts who looked fun”. ※Among [them], the First Ranks are similar to phantoms due to being able to use the space-time gate even in ring forms and without resistance.
He’s innocent, but even so he’s quick-witted. Although in general he follows others’ suggestions exclusively rather than coming up with his own ideas, however, in critical situations, his bold ideas and tactics during confrontations are acknowledged to be superior even by the First Fleet’s Hajime.
Ryuu-san’s type is “For now, let's just go and bam~!”
T/N:  青龍 (seiryou)1 = The Blue Dragon 龍 型 (ryuu kata)2 = dragon type
Arihara Morihito
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Hello, I am Arihara Morihito. I think this might be the first time you're meeting me but I play a lot of enjoyable songs with my unit, SOARA. The Tsukino Empire story is our first job unrelated to SOARA’s songs but…… I'm already overwhelmed by the fascinating world setting. SOARA, together with Growth, who debuted at the same time with us, will do our best!
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
One of the people who participated in the collective affinity. He’s calm, smart, and has an exceeding ability to grasp the situation, so, in short, he's the type born to be part of the military staff. As his attitude is also gentle, he’s popular.
With a father who is an instructor in the military academy and also a host, Morihito was glad to become a host too. However, he didn't expect it to be the friendliest type…...
He is the group’s peacemaker, and even though he would like a different role from how he usually is, there are times when he goes easy on the others (example: Sora & Nozomu), something which Soshi tends to make fun of.
Ryuu-san’s type is “First of all, grasp the opponent and the situation carefully. That’s the most important thing.”
08. SOARA - Kagurazaka Soshi & Munakata Ren
Kagurazaka Soshi
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I’m Kagurazaka Soshi, who’s been randomly told that the military uniform suits me. Hello.
Today I welcome you to the Empire stage play. Putting music aside, I’ve just started to learn about acting. The five of us who don’t have real abilities nor popularity at all got to stand on such a large stage. In order not to let the chance go to waste and make everyone remember our names, we will give the best we can.
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
Albeit being the same age and being childhood friends with Sora, he's always had a calm personality to balance with Sora's recklessness. Even though he says it’s troublesome, he’s very good at taking care of others, which made him gain the trust of many mothers from the neighbourhood. He was asked many times to look after the children.
In the military academy he was on good terms with Iku and got along with Rui too.
His father is the chief engineer in the Sixth Fleet and his mother fills the lawyer position in the regional legal affairs bureau​. Soshi thought that eventually he’d become a soldier, but becoming a host was an unexpected turn of situation.
Lately, he’s been really into strolling around with Ryuu-san.
Ryuu-san’s type is “Good grief, don’t force yourself”
Munakata Ren
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Hello, I’m SOARA’s Munakata Ren. I’ve watched stage plays with my mother who loves dramas ever since I was little, though I never thought I would stand in one myself. I am a bit nervous, but I will do my very best. I hope I can bring everyone to the Empire world…… just like how I used to experience, a long time ago.
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
His parents are biologists and researchers working for the UMA Research Bureau. He intended to take on the researcher position as well, but after being persuaded by Seiryou he became a host, too. He’s aware that his personality is unsuitable for combat, but if assistance is needed in his surroundings, in some way or another he ends up participating.
He’s calm, kind and delicate by nature. When he became a host, he slept for an entire week, and during that time it looks like he became friends with Ryuu-san. Now, even among the members, he’s one of the best when it’s about precision.
Since he is very polite, he speaks very formally to his superiors. However, because he was taken care of by Soshi a long time ago, Ren sometimes refers to him as "Sou-nii" with a very pleasant smile on his face.
Ryuu-san’s type is “I will give my utmost effort.”
09. SOARA - Nanase Nozomu
Nanase Nozomu
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Nanase Nozomu-kun, bring it on the Empire Stage~!! With this we’re suddenly advancing in the universe on our first stage appearance! My character is basically pretty ordinary & during the comedy parts, he’s in charge of making things lively! With this spirit beast, thanks to his personality and his noisy attitude, he can make even his superiors go along with him. He'll prove that he can make everyone laugh. We might even go in the audience and interact! When that time comes, let’s laugh together!
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
He’s a bright, cheerful, and foolish. Always lively, happy and energetic!  Although he doesn’t plan on reading the mood in particular, he’s a good guy and seems to naturally get along with Ren, who is calm.
He can easily get along with almost everyone and treat them normally, even toward Hajime, Shun, Shiki, and Dai. However, it seems there are no problems from the other party since they seem to be enjoying it.
Originally from a family which had a large scale business in the republic, it looks like he managed to escape in the Empire during the republic destruction. His household is now quite the common middle class family. His parents work in the private division and his older brother (※who is not a host) works for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. When the two of them are together, they are very nois-... … lively.
Ryuu-san’s type is “Let's do it let's do it let's do it let's do it”
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10. Growth - Eto Koki & Yaegashi Kensuke
Eto Koki
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Hello, I’m Growth’s Eto Koki. Welcome, to Tsukino Empire. A magnificent story will unfold in a distant side of the Universe…. A dream will spread out. The story’s genre is my personal favourite too, so I want to perform with all my might. Sometimes in stage plays, we're given adlibs that are not part of the main script. Being able to portray that as well as the scripted parts is also part of my objectives.
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) ※Commandant ② Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank (Main ring ②) 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
He’s part of a noble household, with a mother who is a member of the Supreme Council and a father who is a high official.
He can be clueless at times, but he has been taught to do anything by himself as much as possible, and in addition, he is very capable in housework. Especially in cooking, he seems to be receiving requests from people around him, even though the person himself thinks that it’s a good change of pace.
Kensuke and Ryota are his childhood friends. Belonging to the upper class, they were born and lived in the same district.
He met SOARA and the others in the military academy. With music as their common hobby, while at it, he was actually hooked by Seiryuu.
Ryuu-san’s type is “Don’t push yourself, let’s take steady yet effective steps forward”
Yaegashi Kensuke
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Hello! I’m Yaegashi Kensuke, Ken here! In collaboration with our companions and the Gravi members, we’re going to follow this story from the same positions as everyone in the audience. The setting and world view reveal a quite heavy story, but no matter when I’ll always smile ♪ I will persevere without giving up on hope, so let's go through this together until the end!
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
Although he’s the son of a good family, he’s very friendly, cheerful, sociable and can get along with anyone. There are times when he can’t read the situation, though even then he’s fun.
His specialty lies in his instinct, so it will either lead to safety from problem or probably to danger.  Because his curiosity is strong, he comes in contact with the mysteries around the story’s heart and, without realizing, is drawn towards it.
He’s the Third Fleet’s operator. Occasionally, the sight of him handling information seems to be very manly. He doesn’t think hard & has a positive attitude, which can be someone’s hope in a way.
Ryuu-san’s type is “Let’s go smiling!”
11. Growth - Sakuraba Ryota & Fujimura Mamoru
Sakuraba Ryota
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Cast comment
This stage play’s curtain finally opens. I want to thank everybody who came to the theatre. I’m Growth’s Sakuraba Ryota. I have worn military uniform costumes several times until now, but this is actually the first time that I will do that in a military stage play, I feel like I stretched my muscles more than before. I will do my very best, so please take care of me.
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
Despite his delicate appearance, he’s a cool junior with a realistic point of view whose parents are both high officials. He’s very smart, excellent in making strategies and he’s the one supporting the Third Fleet with his diplomatic skills.
Since he had not kept animals so far and also because he did not interact with the organization too much, it looks like he kept some distance between him and his spirit beast, Ryuu-san, for a while. After he recognized himself that it quite resembles him, it seems they started to get along and became good pals.
Not just that, actually Ryouta’s Ryuu-san deals with machinery, which is negotiating with outsiders through devices. Unlike Seiryuu who loves to fool around, it actually works its job properly.
Ryuu-san’s type is “Well now, shall we make some negotiations?”
Fujimura Mamoru
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Cast comment
Finally! I finally got to work! … that’s not it (laughs). Who would have known that as a consequence for changing my job, I’d enter the show business world, make my debut and overall reach splendid accomplishments. I’m Growth’s Fujimura Mamoru. Besides composing and singing, this is the first time our work includes a stage play. Just about everything is new and exhausting, we’re in a pretty difficult situation, but we will give our best in practising more than …… no, twice, even three times more than the others. Enjoy yourselves by all means, okay?
Story data
Affiliation: Third Fleet (Ao) Spirit beast: Ryuu-san (Seiryou and ryuu type) ※First rank 【STR】★★★★★★★ 【VIT】★★★★★★☆ 【DEX】★★★★★★☆ 【INT】★★★★★☆☆ 【HP】★★★★★★★ 【MOFU】★★☆☆☆☆☆
A junior who came from an orphanage without any relative, and who enrolled in the Classified Intelligence Bureau, just like You. It seems like he tends to act giddy whenever he observes the higher-ups when they talk or even when he enters the research laboratory.
He joined The Third Fleet and became Seiryuu’s host after Kou picked him up when he got injured. As a result, he seems to feel in debt particularly to Kou.
He is laid back and cheerful by nature, so each member of The Third Fleet are having fun while playing around with him.
Ryuu-san’s type is “Narrow places are calming”
Tsukino Empire Plot | Six Gravity | Procellarum | SOARA | Growth | SolidS
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safitheartist · 6 years
Text
A look at the relationships of Neku and his partners.
Shiki's relationship to Neku is by far the most important in my opinion since it builts the fundation of the ones to come.
Their relationship starts out as two people who are very insincere about themselves and their feelings. Both have preconcived expectations based on the superficial appearance and attitude of one another but learn to genuinly care about eachother and start to act sincere about their feelings to the point where one literally doesn't want to live in a world without the other.
No seriously,
I think people don't even begin to understand why Shiki being Neku's entering fee is so important for both characters.
For Neku it's the obvious implications that he managed to open up to somebody to such a degree that said person became the most important thing in the world to him. It's a show of genuine character progression which feels natural and relateable to people who had been in Neku's situation.
At the same time though it also provides solidity to their relationship as we get that after the big reveal about Shiki's appearance. Neku, as he says goodbye to Shiki, is absolutely sincere about his feelings for her, and this detail leaves no room for other interpretations.
Neku cares for Shiki on a deep personal level, if you view it as romantic or platonic doesn't matter. It clearly shows that his attraction to her goes way beyond any superficial layers.
And the game goes out of it's way to let Shiki know this. Neku didn't have to tell Shiki that she was his fee, however he decides to do so anyways. This solidifies their connection and in a way gives Shiki even more reasurment that Neku will like her real self no matter what.
As a person who had to struggle with selfestime issues myself (and still has) I know for a fact that even if people tell you they like you just the way you are, you always still will have doubts. However, any kind of doubts Shiki could have felt were erased.
In a way their relationship is based 100% on sincerity. Yes Shiki lies to Neku in the beginning, however that wasn't due to her actively searching out to desive Neku but due to being put into a situation she herself didn't have 100% control over. It ends with both parties being absolutely honest to eachother and themselves and builts the fundation for a healthy relationship.
This in a way is paralleled in Neku's partnership with Joshua, with the difference that Joshua doesn't end up redeming himself to Neku (at least not in the same way Shiki did). He keeps his secret until the very end, leaving Neku confused and feeling betrayed. Joshua's relationship with Neku is built on deception and insincerity. Now that doesn't mean he doesn't end up developing actual feelings for Neku, that's not what I mean, however his character never comes to the point where he can actually convey his feelings and truly be honest to Neku about what their partnership meant to him. Joshua, similar to Neku, is scared of being hurt. But instead of pushing people away, he proposefully hurts them before they can hurt him. The most telling sign that he truly came to care for Neku and the others probably is the ending, where he looks at them from a distance and mister H talks about how his actions probably made people 'upstairs' mad. His actions most likely refering to telling Neku he is the composer and letting Neku and the others keep their memories of the reaper game.
This relationship has a bit of a role reversal where the big emotional development actually is more on Joshua's part then on Neku himself. However due to the incapability of Joshua to actually be sincere and connect with other people it ends up being a unhealthy relationship, showing that friendships not always are going to work out. This was a very bold move on Square's part and shows true faith in their target audience.
It's also important to note that there is the possibility of said relationship to improve if Joshua works on himself and starts being honest to the people around him. (Heck, maybe that's what the additional content will be about if the theory of Hype-chan being a new reincarnation of Joshua ends up being true.)
Then there is Beat's partnership which also is directly influenced by Neku's connection to Shiki. Beat as a character archtype would be the kind of person Neku actively would try to avoid. He is loud, impulsive and a bit slow on the brain front. In fact, Neku does try to push him away, Shiki is the one who befriends the siblings. However, as time passes Neku learns to look beyond the superficial aspects of people's personality thanks to what he learned from his friendship with Shiki and begins to recognize Beat as the caring, good hearted and strong willed person he truly is. Taking intrest in Beat's personal struggles and aiding him as a true friend.
Their relationship doesn't show much emotional progress on Neku's part as said was already accomplished earlier in the story via his relationship with Shiki and partly his relationship with Joshua.
It's basically there to show off what kind of person Neku could have been if he just let himself open up to people earlier. Their friendship is based on mutual understanding and respect they developed over the time they had known eachother.
I think the interpersonal relationships in Twewy's narrative are comparable to things like the Breakfast club or Oshiete! Galko-chan. Your superficial understanding often doesn't hold true to who said people truly are. It would have been easy for Neku to write the people around himself off as other people who are out to hurt him, however as he was forced into a situation where he was forced to see everyone as they are truly are he starts to recognize that there is more to live then he first thought. Everyone has their short comings and strong points. Everyone has their struggles and their personal enjoyments. If you push people away based on their appearance and your first impression of them you might end up missing out on a very deep and meaningful friendship. And likewise the opposite is true, sometimes people you believe are your friends are out to harm you, however, letting these kind of people dictate how you live your live will lead to a very lonely existence and in a way lets these kind of people win.
Anyway, have I mentioned how much I fucking adore this game?
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shuttershocky · 7 years
Text
Character Opinion: Tamamo No Mae (Fate/Extra)
I just realized I haven’t written some good old Type-Moon meta in a while, but I think I’ve found a topic I really wanted to write about.
Hi I’m Shuttershocky, and I’m here to convince you that Fate/Extra’s Tamamo No Mae was the best thing to happen to the Nasuverse since Shiki Ryougi killed a building.
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I’ll admit, Tamamo wasn’t exactly my first choice of servant when I started Extra. All I knew of her was that she was a fan-favorite, fanservicey character well liked for her cheerful personality and ample bosom. A ready-made waifu complete with a ditzy personality and an obsession with getting a husband (but whether that husband is male or not is no concern of hers) was not something that sounded very appealing, since I usually dislike Manic Pixie Dream Girl characters in my media, and certainly don’t like ones dressed as furries. But then she was also the hardest servant to use, thus, liking challenge, I thought I’d have to tolerate what would be an annoying servant.
And then I was proven wrong. Dead wrong. Tamamo was a lovesick ditz, a weak fighter, obsessed with becoming a wife and being seen as helpful and adorable true, but she was also a character with a good amount of depth whose nuances were done so subtly (a lot of it hidden through her own actions) that she often walked a fine line between flat fanservice and having an actual character, deftly balancing herself on the right side. 
See the thing is, Tamamo wants to be seen as a mere waifu. She’s acts sickly sweet and adorable, constantly flirting with and complimenting Hakuno like so 
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She even constantly agrees with and validates anything Hakuno says or does, to the point where she’s less of a servant and more of yes-man, to the point where  Hakuno occasionally gets annoyed with her. She sometimes oversteps her bounds and becomes overbearing, and her need to always agree and validate her master tends to oppose constructive criticism that helps Hakuno grow as a person and a master (which the game is, thankfully, aware of. Hakuno’s inner narration often shows Hakuno is aware of Tamamo being a kiss-ass.)
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So how does Tamamo differ from all the bland waifus this trope is filled to the brim with? Well, she has a tendency to slip.
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For someone who’s supposedly a lovable airhead, she sure doesn’t like the insinuation that she’s not the sharpest tool in the shed. It soon becomes clear that Tamamo is very touchy with criticism coming from Hakuno, quickly getting angry if her flightiness and poor fighting skills are pointed out. She would much rather receive compliments on how cute and helpful she is, occasionally even directly asking Hakuno to compliment her after battles. She also clams up as soon as the subject of conversation draws close to her real identity, claiming that its so other masters cannot read Hakuno’s mind, before later admitting its because she’s worried that Hakuno would no longer like her if they were aware of her true name.
As the player proceeds through the game, we get the picture of a character who, for some reason, has become obsessed with making her master’s image of her perfect, to the point where she can be caught contradicting herself. She wants to be seen as a cute ditz in one moment, but a crafty fox with a sophisticated vocabulary that will have you reaching for a thesaurus in the next.  Her master is perfect and makes no mistakes, but don’t worry about that mistake that almost got us killed master, Caster always loves you. She’s a slender, small, weak girl who needs a big and strong master to support her, but don’t worry about the enemy master, because Tamamo is invincible, the strongest on earth! 
At some points, she completely forgets she’s supposed to be putting on an act for Hakuno and instead makes it very clear that she is indeed only acting.
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So why? Why is she so taken with the idea of being seen as the perfect wife? 
Her answer is that she just wants someone to love and devote herself to. A weak otaku-bait answer that almost wrecks the amount of work put into her character...
...at first glance.
When the pair have their backs against the wall, Caster reveals her true name. She is Tamamo-No-Mae, the original fox spirit of Japan and once a beloved courtesan and adviser to the Emperor. Her true nature as a fox spirit revealed by a fortune-teller, she was chased by the Emperor’s army and slaughtered screaming on a grassy plain far from home.
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Suddenly the player (through Hakuno) is invited to view her in a different light. Tamamo had no idea why she was chased away and killed mercilessly. Perhaps she blamed herself. Perhaps her overly eager efforts are her trying to make up for what she did wrong, for whatever she did wrong. Even if its obvious to everyone that she in fact, did no wrong. 
Still, this would not explain her nearly inhuman form of ass-kissing. There is after all, a difference between sucking up hard and straight up risking your life to do so. It often comes off as awkward, yet another Nasu-ism fans have long since learned to mentally filter, and then we find out Tamamo-No-Mae is not a heroic spirit, but a god. Specifically, an aspect of Amaterasu who became curious at the sight of people worshiping her, proclaiming they loved her. Attempting to learn more about what this “love” is, she descended to earth as Tamamo-No-Mae, and died at the hands of those who claimed to love her.
With that last piece, the picture becomes all too tragic. It wasn’t ass-kissing, it was worship. It’s all she knows, and thus its what she thinks she must do in order to show and receive affection. Her mania over her master’s image of her? She was put to death the last time simply because her true self with her ears and tail did not match the emperor’s image of her. The little slips she makes in her act and her sensitivity to criticism? She is a god, who is far older, wiser, and more powerful than any mortal soul. And yet, she gave herself a weakened body in an attempt to understand the love that was beyond the reach of divine beings, for it was the invention of mortal, fragile lives.
Just imagine; she’s been trying to navigate all that on her own, without access to most of her incredible powers and wisdom, while simultaneously trying to keep her hopeless master alive in a brutal war. And because she’s so afraid of the reputation she carries with her true name, she shuts out the only person who can help her, the person she claims she love more than anything else in the world, Hakuno. 
And the  Pièce De Résistance? Throughout all this, behind all the deception and comedy she brings to every scene, the game still builds a real, true relationship between her and Hakuno. Sometimes her words of encouragement end up lacking the tinge of a suck-up, instead being imbued with an air of honesty. Despite the lies she puts out and the airs she puts on, her heart was always in the right place and she truly cares.
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At the finale, when both Tamamo and Hakuno face the empty void, they face it hand in hand, having both reconciled Tamamo’s insecurities of her past existence and Hakuno’s lack of a current one, with Tamamo promising to stay right by Hakuno’s side until the very end.
It would be an understatement to say I found her characterization extremely impressive, especially since it involved walking such a tight line between real depth and waifu trash that a slight mistake (a common sight in Nasu’s works) could push her over the edge and ruin her character, but I think Tamamo was pulled off marvelously. Her motivations are clear, her behavior and methods all understandable and in-character, and, most of all, her characterization was brave.
What do I mean by that? Well Nasu is no stranger to writing strong female characters, but a lot of them are not traditionally feminine (is this the right word? Someone correct me if it isn’t) in their outward traits or behavior, such as the rude, crude Shiki Ryougi or the stone cold Saber. Tamamo on the other hand, is very outwardly feminine. She likes cooking and cute things and hot guys (and sometimes hot girls), she’s not a particularly capable fighter when every strong female character(tm) in fiction is apparently a black belt in 10 different combat arts, she really, really, really wants to be married off and be a housewife and thinks being a hero with demigod powers is a drag.
And she makes it work.
Tamamo also ticks off every box in the checklist for making a terribly flat manic pixie dream girl heroine. She’s unfocused but cute, revolves around the protagonist, is unbelievably kind and sweet but also reliant on the protagonist to get through the day. She’s also quite fond of sex, sometimes laying on the double entrende for Hakuno, sometimes telling them to straight up ravish her this instant (though they never agree to keep the ratings 15+, and, to my pleasant surprise, never show Tamamo in any compromising/sexy poses or anything. )
And she makes it work.
Tamamo defies the conventions of strong female characters (to be fair, anime in general does this way, WAY better than mainstream Hollywood), and that’s fucking great. Women can and should be allowed to be like that, to be whatever they feel like, and deserve to be seen as every bit as badass and valid as the sexless killbots and hypercompetent adventurers that dominate the discussion. And she does all this while being a side-splittingly funny character and a genuinely experienced, confident, quick-witted servant, whose tactical know-how and ability to get under her opponents’ skin proved a great help in winning the war. 
So when I see that the majority of the fanbase know her for her sexy outfits, squeaky voice, and comedic scenes, I can’t help but feel a little annoyed at the thought that they might be missing out on who I think is one of Nasu’s best written characters.
The ironic thing of course being that Tamamo herself would prefer it that way.
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subasekabang · 6 years
Text
Title: Anything To Make you Stay, Chapter 7 Rating: T Word Count: Total: 15,761, chapter: 2,647 Characters: Joshua, Neku, Shiki, Eri, Beat, Rhyme, Hanekoma, Kariya, Uzuki. Pairings: Josh/Neku. Warnings: Suicide, Major Character Death, Depression, semi-detailed depiction of dead bodies, mentions of ableism, one minor allusion to transphobia Summary: Joshua and Neku have been best friends since they were 11, but their friendship starts to fall apart after Joshua goes missing for a week, soon after his 14th birthday. Lies corrode the bond, and Neku’s vivid nightmares of finding someone’s dead body does not help. A year and a half later, they hit the boiling point. Always look before crossing the road, kiddos. Author’s Note: Autistic Josh and Neku! Afab demiboy Josh! Agender Rhyme! Usage of sign language! This was a fun fic to write please enjoy it.
Chapter 7:
The heavy air, weighted with the shouts from earlier, explodes with a scream that tears from his throat. Tires screech as the driver tries to break, and the smell of burned rubber permeates the air. There’s going to be skidmarks there, both on the road and on his heart.
Joshua makes a dash into the road, fueled by the crimson staining the asphalt and the body lying where the truck slammed into it, purple headphones crushed to bits, like the shattered bones in Neku’s body.
He knows this is fatal, there’s no way to sew the body back together, to heal the wounds inflicted. Not by any normal means, and this is no place for a miracle. Even so, he kneels down, shaking Neku, begging him to stay alive.
The driver has pulled over, mouth agape and horror splayed on his face. Some grotesque corner of Josh’s mind says serves him right, he should see this nightmare he has created by hitting Neku, but he knows it wasn’t the man’s fault, not really.
A sob bubbles up from his chest, and tears streak down his face, hot and wet. What a sight he must be, covered in blood and guts and crying over a body that resembles roadkill more than it does his friend.
A thought freezes his despair. The Game. If Neku wins, then he can come back to life, no miracle needed. Some law-breaking required, if he wants to ensure that Neku has the best shot of winning he can.
After all, it’s hard to lose when the Composer is your Partner, and doing all he can to get you a win.
With rigid motions, he conjures up a Player Pin, placing it on Neku’s chest. Joshua takes a step back from the scene of the murder and his emotions, letting them fall away into blank space. He can deal with the distraught panic later. For now, face blank, he walks away, vanishing into the UG as he rounds a corner.
He has a Game to prepare for.
Joshua oversees Neku’s entry into the Game himself. He can’t afford to leave this up to anyone else. He makes sure Neku has the standard knowledge of the Game that all Players should have, before it’s time to take the Fee.
He pauses, sighs, and knows exactly what he’s going to take. Threads of Music wind away from Neku’s body, laid out in the Room of Reckoning. He bundles up the memories into an orb, sealing it away. Maybe a Neku who doesn’t remember him will be easier to deal with in the Game, given their last encounter.
He repairs Neku’s headphones, placing those around his neck. It’d be rude leave Neku without part of his signature look.
The first Day is a blur of activity, as always. He’s quick on his feet once Neku wakes up, offering up a Pact, and then they’re fighting the Noise together. It’s only frogs, for now, but Joshua can feel that pulse beneath the surface as they do battle, Music thrumming in the air, as he and Neku take down the enemies. As the battle ends, Josh lets out a laugh, he hasn’t felt this alive in ages.
Neku takes off, heading for 104 immediately, of course, and no, that won’t do. Players don’t last long if they don’t bond with their Partner, and while Josh knows everything about Neku, feels their old bond on top of the Pact, Neku doesn’t have any of that.
So he drops hints. Between this isn’t my first Game, I’m here by choice, and the mention of his original Fee (he didn’t take one from himself, this time around), he hopes Neku has more than enough material to ask him about in the future. Mentioning languages helps too, nothing like multiple shared languages to bring people together. It might be needed, if either of them go nonverbal, anyway.
Like on Day 2, when he wakes up with acid clawing at his throat, bile building up in his stomach. Neku is dead because of him, None of this should be happening. Neku was never supposed to learn about the Game, he was never supposed to die. Joshua should never have killed himself, should never have jeopardized their friendship in any way, because look where that’s gotten them.
When Neku wakes up, 10 minutes later, he takes one look at Josh, and raises his hands. [Bad day?]
Josh nods. [Bad day. Bad thoughts. Bad memories. If you want, you can speak, but my throat isn’t going to do words.]
“Alright,” Neku says, which Josh responds to with another nod.
Both of their phones beep in unison, and they each grab their own.
^Set the cursed sculpture free. Fail, and face Erasure. You have 60 minutes - The Reapers^
[Hachiko,] Josh fingerspells, before Neku can say the name out loud. [Has to be. Cursed sculpture.]
“That’d make sense. This is the Underpass, yeah? So Hachiko should be that way,” he says, pointing. Josh nods. “Let’s get going then.”
Nothing is ever that easy, because there’s a wall to take down, but luckily the mission is just to take out a bit of Noise.
“What’s up with those guys in red, anyway? You said something yesterday about Reapers?” Neku asks, as they walk out of the underpass.
[Reapers are part of the Game. They test Players, whether by creating enemies, as the Harriers do, or by issuing challenges, like the Wall Reapers do. At the end of a Game week, if a Player survives, they have the option of becoming a Reaper. It’s a fresh start, a way to escape their life, if it was bad, but in order to survive, Reapers need to either Erase Players or continue to issue challenges, depending on if they’re a Harrier or Wall Reaper. If they don’t score points, they’re the ones that get Erased.]
“That’s rough,” Neku says, and it looks like he’s going to say more when a big loud shouty guy comes running up to them.
“Gotchu punks now!” says the guy. Daisukenojo Bito, Josh thinks to himself. Nickname Beat, Partnered to his sibling, Raimu, aka Rhyme.
“You got us good yesterday, but today I’ma crush you, yo!” he continues, and Josh sighs.
“What are you talking about? Who are you?” Neku asks, and he has every right to be confused about a person he’s never met shouting at him like this.
[He probably thinks we’re Reapers. You can’t scan Reapers, and Player Pins make it so you can’t scan other Players, either,] Josh signs to Neku, right as Rhyme points this out themselves.
“They’ve got Player Pins. Players must not be able to scan each other. Remember? You couldn’t scan me either,” they say, and Beat deflates.
“… Oh. Yo, sorry I jumped to conclusions.”
[It’s fine,] he signs, but that makes Beat scrunch his eyebrows together in confusion.
“Yo, whatchu doin’ with your hands?”
“He’s speaking in sign language,” Neku says. “Sometimes verbal language can be hard, we happen to both know sign though. He just said it’s fine.”
“That’s neat! Maybe you could teach us some signs!” Rhyme says, flashing a smile. “Oh! We should introduce ourselves. I’m Rhyme, and this is my Partner, Beat.” Something flickers across Beat’s face, and Josh recalls his Fee as Neku introduces the both of them. Rhyme’s memories of him. He feels a pang of sympathy, knowing intimately the heart-stabbing pain of the most important person in your life forgetting you.
He decides to brood, letting Neku talk with the other pair about phones and Reapers and the mission. It’s not like he can contribute much to the conversation without having to go through Neku.
Then Rhyme is suggesting they work together, and Neku looks at Josh, the question he’s asking obvious by the raised eyebrow.
[Sure. Our odds are better if we have more people working to solve the problem.]
Neku raises his hands to reply. A silent, secret, conversation then. [Can we trust them, though? What if they’re Reapers? I can’t scan them after all, could be a ploy.]
[They aren’t. If you don’t trust them much, then that’s fine, but working together benefits us all. You can suggest we split up to cover more ground.]
Neku nods, and turns back to Beat and Rhyme. “Sounds like a plan. We should split up, we can cover more ground that way.”
The others agree, and off they go.
His brain is fog today, so he contents himself to drifting by, letting Neku figure things out. The battles they fight help to clear the air, but he’s moving through jello, and this headache keeps pounding away. Josh hasn’t kept his vibes tuned down for this long in a while, and he hopes that his body will get used to it, because acidic brain fog is not a fun experience.
Neku can tell that something’s up with him, and once the Moyai is cleared of its Noise, he asks, “Hey Josh, is everything alright?”
[Fine. Just thinking. Don’t worry about me,] he signs, and before Neku can ask anything else, he walks off, heading for Hachiko.
He already knows how to solve the missions this week, of course. He had a hand in creating them, so it’s easy to point out how Hachiko is looking dirtier than usual, less friendly, and they get to polishing.
The Garage Wolves that spring out of Hachiko are easy to take out. The Metal Corehog that Uzuki summons is easy too, but it seems Neku doesn’t feel the same. When the next swarm is summoned, Neku looks ready to pounce on Uzuki instead.
“Please tell me you’re not planning on fighting me? Ha ha ha ha! How stupid can you get? You’ll never win against a Reaper! But all right. I’m game. I was getting bored anyway,” she says, and Josh can only sigh.
Leave it to Neku to challenge a Harrier on day 2.
The fog in his head is blown away by the coming challenge, and he feels his throat open up. Finally. “Neku, Harriers aren’t going to be as easy to beat as Noise.”
Neku spares him a glance, surprised at his voice, no doubt. “She’s just going to keep throwing more at us. Take the problem out at the source.”
“Ha! As if a pair of Players on day two could even stand a chance! You got guts, boys.” She’s laughing and them, and Josh wonders where Kariya is, because he should be here keeping her in line. They balance each other well.
“If you fight with us, it won’t be us who end up Erased, Uzuki Yashiro,” Joshua growls. He lets some power leak, eyes taking on a faint glow, as the wind picks up around them all, his hair flowing in it. He’ll pass this off as a trick of the light, later, but the intimidation works, and her stance falters.
“Hmph, you’re boring. I know, let’s have some fun! A special bonus challenge, just for you, orangeylocks! If you pull it off, I’ll let you out of the Reaper’s Game!”
“Bullshit.” Josh cuts her off, rolling his eyes. “You don’t have the authority to do that.”
“And how would you know? Awfully knowledgeable about how us Reapers work for a Player. Here’s your mission, Erase your Partner here, and you’re out of the Game!” She’s got a smug grin on her face, and Josh frowns, seeing Neku waver.
“I have my reasons for knowing what I know, and I promise, Neku, I will tell you them. Don’t listen to her.”
Neku doesn’t have time to decide on who to listen to, because Kariya, followed by Hanekoma, come swooping down to the rescue. Koki gives a nod to him, and projects a thought, We felt the surge of power, figures that she’d be at the center of it. I’ll keep her off of your back.
Josh sends a quick Thanks, to Kariya, watching as he tries to herd Uzuki away.
“Leave the kids alone, you owe me a bowl of ramen, girl. I bagged more Players yesterday,” he’s saying, grabbing her hand and tugging her off in the direction of Ramen Don. Josh can’t help but laugh at the sight.
Once the pair have gone, Josh turns to grin at Hanekoma. “I see you brought in the cavalry to get her off my back this time. Hopefully Koki keeps her from bothering us much more.”
“You should know better than to egg her on, Josh,” Mr. H replies, and Josh can see how annoyed he is, from his hair sticking up to the barely-concealed splashes of color on his skin. Stress-painting again, he figures. He’ll have to apologize for this fit of anxiety later.
“She started it. Anyway, she’s gone now, so it’s time for introductions. Neku, this is Sanae Hanekoma, he runs the WildKat cafe on Cat street. Mr. H, this is Neku, my Partner.” He doesn’t need to add on anything else, Hanekoma knows all about Neku.
“Nice to meet ya, ‘phones. You’re gonna be in for a long week with J here as your Partner. I’ve known him since he was a kid, always had a knack for getting into trouble.”
“You had a knack for getting me out of it.”
Neku looks between the two of them, eyebrows raised, before he takes a deep breath, and sticks out a hand to Hanekoma. “Nice to meet you. How are you connected to the Game?”
Hanekoma shakes the hand. “Think of me as a sort of…guardian. I watch the Game, to make sure shady types don’t start bendin’ the rules.”
“Alright… And how did you two meet?” He gestures to Josh and Hanekoma.
“I visited his cafe, he caught me staring out the window at things I had no right to be seeing. I’ve always been able to see the UnderGround, the Game, and he saw me flinch when some of the Players were Erased. Took me aside, told me all about what I was seeing. First time in 10 year I heard that what I saw was real. Everything about the Game I know, I learned from him.” He’s nonchalant, as if revealing his sight was no big deal.
“Josh here is a trouble-maker, I’ll say that, but he’s a pretty good kid. You’re lucky to have him as your Partner. There’s only one way to stay alive in this Shibuya. Trust your Partner! Especially you, Phones. I saw you considering the offer.” Josh chuckles as Hanekoma goes on one of his speeches, he’s heard them all before.
Josh lets Hanekoma answer Neku’s questions. A better teacher than he could ever be. When Hanekoma lets the title Composer slip, Josh raises an eyebrow, but says nothing. He’ll fill Neku in on that more later. Once Hanekoma tosses Neku the fusion pin and explains it, he departs, and Josh gives Neku a little smile, before everything goes fuzzy.
“Why the hell did you stop me? I had those two in the bag!” Uzuki says, pouting at Kariya.
“Trust me, you didn’t. The orange-haired one, maybe, but the other? Don’t mess with him, if you know what’s good for you,” Kariya says, and she’s always thought that his laziness was a facade, but never is it more obvious than here.
“Who is he?” she asks.
“A kid I met a while back. You know how those people who have some sense of the UG are stronger in the Game? He’s always been able to see it, hear it, and he’s Played before. I’m a little surprised you don’t remember him, honestly,” he says, and he has that knowing look in his eyes that pisses her off.
“Oh, and why is that?”
“The last time he Played was about a year and a half ago. His name is Joshua. If you’ll recall, that was the name of your Partner.”
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uncheckedtomfoolery · 7 years
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So I wrote this piece for a friend a while ago, but since I’m grumbling about Eiki anyway, I might as well put something up. Story below the cut.
Once, there was a stone. It was by nature a gentle stone, a kindly stone, with all the sun-drenched warmth that a rock might carry. It was the sort of stone that, were it thrown at someone, would do all it could to veer off-course and bury itself in the mud. It owed this to its shape: A Bodhisattva statue in the shape of Ksitigarbha (a mouthful by anyone's standards), who had once sworn not to ascend to buddhahood until all the souls in hell were free. The kindly stone stood there, and it watched over the road. Watched over those who passed by it, its unmoving face smiling gently at them, guiding their steps so they would not wander from the path. They would come to it, the lost and the frightened and the confused, and they would pray. It could give them no miracles, but it hoped to give them peace, hoped to give them guidance.
One by one, they prayed. Prayer is a buoy. Enough of it tied to a thing or a person will carry its object up, making it soar, whether it chooses to or not. The stone resisted for as long as it could, lingering through spring and summer, autumn and winter to guide just one more traveller along those dangerous roads. Finally, after four seasons, it passed.
But this is not the story of the stone.
Once, there was a traveller. She was a stone before, an irony lost on the host around her. So much seems to be lost on those quiet, stoic figures that row their boats all around the one she occupies; enough to make one wonder if they are even alive, or if they have forgotten such things. Their eyes turned unnaturally in their heads, one fixed perpetually on her, one on the route ahead. Was it a route at all? The silent rowboats made their way across an endless, mist-wreathed black river, hours from the other shore. She could only assume her entourage had some destination in mind.
Eiki Shiki, they called her. Eiki of the four seasons. The one who lingered, who clung to earth, who resisted being carried upward by a thousand prayers. It was not praise or condemnation for her stubbornness. They did not judge. It was not their place.
"So you're the new hire, huh?" The ferrywoman that shared her boat was animated enough to make up for all the others, though not without a certain sense that she was forcing much of it. She called herself Komachi Onozuka, and of all those rowing the small, quiet ships, only she had volunteered a name. It was explained to the traveller that she was to be a yama. A judge of the dead, who examines the life of a soul, its character, and sends it either to heaven or to hell. The thought sent a shiver of inexplicable fright down the spine she had not even had for very long. They told her that she was to represent all that is just in the world, the law sewn into its every fabric. Her every action, by her very nature, would be right, would be just and good, beyond reproach.
"What if I'm wrong? What if I make a mistake?"
The seven rowing around her said nothing, but there was something in their one-eyed stare, something strange. Not pity, as such, but it struck her as a look they might reserve for a dead woman walking. Komachi laughed instead, shaking her head, wearing an expression of utter amazement.
"Shiki, was it? Or, ah... Lady Eiki? I think you might be the first one to ask that! Don't get your type around here often."
That stood to reason; most yamas, she was given to understand, were made for the task, not ascended, if that is even the right word. Her nature, as much as a piece of rock might inherit that of a Bodhisattva, is to empty the hells, not fill them.
Komachi told her that this was nothing, that she made no mistake; indeed, that she could make no mistake no matter how hard she might try. Komachi told her that the ride was a long one, finally, and urged her to sleep. Everything would be alright; there was no harm in her question, or in her sentiments. That was when Eiki learned how easily a yama can discern a lie.
Condemning soul after soul was a task that would call for only the purest sort of person, and a task that would grind down any such person very quickly indeed. The solution, she realised, was to create judges tailor-made for it, a far cry from a person of any sort. It was not an answer, she realised, that left much room in the equation for her.
Quietly, gently, the ferrywoman prayed that this one would last longer than the others she had heard such stories of. That she would be the exception to the rule. Prayers could soar, even then and there, ever higher; far enough to find themselves in the same hands that sent the weathered statue down this river.
But this is not the story of the traveller.
Once, there was a judge. She had travelled far, and lived in the yama's courthouse, opulent and vast, built up in intimidating gold and black. Its full extent was covered up in river mist, and the stories said that the mist only showed itself to a sinner's eyes. It was only a legend, but it was one that struck fear into the souls that walked in. For all its size, the world seemed to narrow down to a point as they stand there: The judge, Eiki Shiki, on her massive throne, inscrutable and imposing.
She hated that throne. Hated the decadence of the courthouse, and all its splendour and finery that might be better put to use elsewhere. It was almost painful, sitting there on something so clearly made as nothing but a show of grandeur to inspire terror in petitioners. Seeing the ones she was supposed to guide looking up at her with frightened eyes, making their case and staring into the cleansed mirror that sifted through their lies. Even the ones they thought to be true.
She was not meant to be filling the hells, but emptying them. And yet, one by one, away they went: The misguided, the ones who had made their little missteps, even the ones who likely deserved their place, but left her wishing to see some good in them. They filed away to their fates, given to them from on high. The judge held fast, implacable and impassive. She had to be, in the courtroom, through case after case. She could not let them see anything else. It was just work, she realised one day, that she did here. It did not call for a cruel woman who reveled in this, much less a kind one who mourned over every petitioner; something she had pieced together on her first day, and tried to ignore every day since then. It was work best fit for a machine, a gear in Samsara's workings. She was no machine. She had heard stories of others like her, now and then, the ones who failed to fit their role. One by one, they were ground down and replaced by someone- by something more fitting.
Another soul stood before her now, and prayed to the judge, to the gods, to whatever mercies may be listening. His prayers soared, as they always did, until they were caught in the rafters, going no further.
But this is not the story of the judge.
There is a prisoner, who calls herself judge. Whispers in the ministry turn to rumour, then to decree: She will be stationed in Xanadu, an affectionate title among those who remember their old posts fondly, as much as they are capable of fondness or affection. Gensokyo by another name. She will be the yama of paradise. Do they think her fitting for it? Is this some strange mercy? Over a century later, she still doesn't have so much as an inkling.
Days of sentencing fade to the small mercy that is mindless paperwork for the ministry. Here, at least, not a soul is hurt. She works day after day after day in her cramped office - cramped by choice, rejecting the luxury that would be customary for her - toiling over endless sheaves of papers, and sometimes collapsing face-first into them for the briefest moments of sleep. She does not rest, even in the rare breaks she is given; instead, she wanders Gensokyo, trying to guide whoever she can away from the paths that would force her hand in a cruel sentence. It's a mercy to them both, not entirely selfless, in her mind.
They never listen, of course, and it never seems to make a difference, but perhaps some day it will.
She is trapped here, in the courthouse that is so clearly not meant for her. She does not begrudge it, not consciously. The thought never occurs to her. She only works in her pursuit of mercy, as much as she is allowed to give any, day after day. She says little of this to Komachi, but after so long, they have an understanding; some of it comes through, try as she might to keep quiet. The yama is small, almost childlike in appearance. Some call it a symbol of innocence or purity. Others, a small piece left over from her days as a diminutive stone statue. To Komachi, she only looks terribly fragile.
The prisoner of the Sanzu works day after day, tirelessly, but nothing she can achieve seems to be enough for her. There is a mirror in her office, a badge of office carved from purest crystal, said to scour away all lies and show even the smallest sin in the hearts of those exposed to it. Some days, Komachi notices her staring into it, sometimes for hours at a time.
It's a shame, Eiki reflects to herself at times, that she has risen so high on the backs of prayers; there is no one, in turn, that she might pray to, whether for help or simple guidance.
But this is not the story of the prisoner. As she would be quick to say herself, there are far more important ones to be told.
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subasekabang · 6 years
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Title: Anything To Make you Stay, Chapter 8 Rating: T Word Count: Total: 15,761, chapter: 1,961 Characters: Joshua, Neku, Shiki, Eri, Beat, Rhyme, Hanekoma, Kariya, Uzuki. Pairings: Josh/Neku. Warnings: Suicide, Major Character Death, Depression, semi-detailed depiction of dead bodies, mentions of ableism, one minor allusion to transphobia Summary: Joshua and Neku have been best friends since they were 11, but their friendship starts to fall apart after Joshua goes missing for a week, soon after his 14th birthday. Lies corrode the bond, and Neku’s vivid nightmares of finding someone’s dead body does not help. A year and a half later, they hit the boiling point. Always look before crossing the road, kiddos. Author’s Note: Autistic Josh and Neku! Afab demiboy Josh! Agender Rhyme! Usage of sign language! This was a fun fic to write please enjoy it.
Chapter 8:
They wake up at the Concert Stage, because of course they do. It’s pitch black, and Josh groans. He shouldn’t use his power to light the place up, that would be irresponsible. So when he and Neku get the mission mail, Josh takes the longer time limit as an excuse to drag Neku around and go shopping.
First stop, Lapin Angelique. He insists on paying for everything, it’s only polite, of course. And it lets him dress Neku up in stat-boosting gothic lolita clothes like he’s always wanted to.
“Josh, is this really necessary?” Neku asks, as he tries on the vampire dress.
“Yes, it absolutely is. This is a Game, and the stuff you equip will effect your stats. We’ll be taking what we can get right now.” He grins, paying for the Bunny Parka and throwing it on. “We should also probably be level grinding, fighting more Noise and whatnot, getting the drops.”
“Whoever thought that making this work like a video game was a good idea is out of their mind,” Neku says, and Josh snorts. Neku’s got a point, it’s not something anyone would reasonably expect from the Reaper’s Game.
“That’d be the Composer you’re talking about. Head honcho here in the UG. The Composer is tied intimately to the city, unable to be separated from it. The Composer is the god of the UG in which they are connected to. They’re the one that brings the Players who win back to life.” Josh buys two capes, putting one on and tossing the other to Neku, who frowns, but puts it on.
Josh grabs the lace-up dress, rolling his eyes at Neku’s scrunched up face as he slips into a changing room to put it on.
“We both look ridiculous and this is awful,” Neku says, when he comes back out.
“You’re just annoyed because I can rock it better than you.” Josh smirks, before turning back to Princess K and chatting with her a bit, purchasing at least one of every pin in stock, tossing them to Neku as they leave. “Here, you should have a use for all those. I don’t use pins. I channel the pysch through my phone, and drop shit on the Noise.”
Neku takes the pins tossed at him, and follows Josh out the store. “How in the world did you learn to do that?”
“Just felt natural, I guess. I input commands by tapping some buttons, and the stuff I summon falls out of the sky and hits them. It’s very satisfying to see happen.”
As Josh steps out the door, a girl runs into him, and she steps back and yelps. “Oh gosh! I’m so sorry! I didn’t see you there!” It only takes a glance at her to know who she is, Shiki Misaki, and the other girl behind her must be Eri. Joshua had hoped those two would Partner up, it’d let them settle some issues.
He shrugs. “No worries. I’m Josh, that’s Neku, my Partner. I’m assuming you two are Partners as well?” he asks, and hides his laugh as both of them look at him in surprise, jaw dropped and eyebrows raised. It’s bizarre, seeing two people with the same body do that.
“Are you two like, twins, or something?” Neku asks.
Shiki shakes her head. “No, no, we’re not. Just friends. I had some… Jealousy problems, my Fee was my appearance. I’m Shiki, by the way. Eri’s fee was her voice,” she says, and motions to the pad of paper and the pen in her friend’s hand. “We picked that up so she could have some way to say stuff.”
“Useful, if you don’t know sign language, I guess. Neku and I both know sign, which was handy yesterday when I went nonverbal.” Neku rolls his eyes at the repeat of the pun, and Josh just gives him a grin. He slides out of the way of the door, standing to the side with Neku while they speak to the girls.
“Ooh, maybe you could teach us sometime!” Shiki says, and Eri nods.
“I’m not opposed to that. Neku?” he asks, looking over at him.
“Sure, whatever. How about after the mission?” he says, and Josh rolls his eyes.
“Fine with me. Do you ladies know anything about it yet?” Josh asks.
Shiki shakes her head. “Not much. There’s some guys hanging around front of the concert stage, they’re from a band. Their tech is missing, said he went off to get fuses and should’ve been back by now.”
“Makes sense, it’s dark as hell in there,” Neku says. “If the fuses blew, then no wonder we can’t see anything. Maybe if we get the lights working again, we’ll find whatever we need to fight.”
“Let’s split up, we can share any discoveries we make with each other, and do more apart than we could together. There’s another pair of people running around, Beat and Rhyme, if you see them, be sure to fill them in,” Josh says, and with a few quick goodbyes they part ways.
It takes some running around, and they stop by Sunshine and Dragon Couture for some food and threads. It’s here that they also run into Beat and Rhyme again.
They swap notes. Rhyme tells them about memes and Imprinting, Neku tells them about the tech and getting the lights back on.
They’re about to part ways when Josh speaks up. “Hey, Beat, can I have a chat with you?” he asks.
Beat frowns, but nods. “Sure, whatchu want?”
Josh looks over at Neku and Rhyme. “You two wanna go try Imprinting some people? I promise I’m not trying to pull anything, there’s just something I want to talk about, and I’m sure once Beat knows the topic, he’ll agree that the conversation should be private.”
It takes a moment, but both Neku and Rhyme agree to give them a bit of privacy. Once they’ve gone, Beat turns to him. “What’s this about, yo?”
“Rhyme’s your sibling, aren’t they?” he asks, blunt. He’s never understood why people would dance around a subject.
A look of shock crosses Beat’s face, eyes wide. “How’d ya know?”
“Resemblance, matching skull motif,” Josh flashes a grin, but drops it as he moves on. It’s not the time for humor. “The way you reacted when Rhyme said Partner, like you were hoping for a different word to come out of their mouth. Entry Fees can be nasty things. Seeing the most important person in your world forget about you? That’s a special type of pain. A jab to the heart anytime they can’t connect the dots between the missing memories and you.”
Beat flinches. “Shuddup. You got no clue what it’s like yo.”
“I’ve known Neku since we were both 11, he remembers nothing from before the Game,” Joshua deadpans. “Your experiences are not unique, there are others going through the same stuff as you. Take comfort in that, and know that you are not alone in what you feel.”
Before Beat can reply, Josh walks off to go see how Neku and Rhyme are doing. Which is bothering a business man, apparently. They’ve both taken to Imprinting what they have on him. Josh cracks a smile, grabs Neku, and decides that it’s time to visit Dogenzaka.
They find the tech at Ramen Don, and send him on his way to get the fuse. Then it’s just a matter of waiting until the boss appears.
When the bat does, Neku and Josh hop into battle. He has some fun throwing objects, while Neku pummels the big boss with fire and lightning.
They have a bit of time to spare, but the timer hasn’t disappeared yet. It doesn’t, not until Beat and Rhyme appear from their battle with the small, golden bat.
Things go fuzzy after that.
They all wake up at 104, and Josh has a chance to appreciate the fact that he budgeted a lazy day. Get to Towa Records, no time limit.
It’s a bit of a blur. Shiki and Eri rope them all into a ton of shopping, and Josh can’t deny he had a part in that. He’s not being stingy, tossing out yen pins to everyone. It’s not a blur like day 2 was, it’s exciting, he can feel the pulse of the city beneath him as they all take turns between battles. The rhythm vibrates through him, the Music flowing around them all like the wind, and really, how could he ever want to stay on the higher vibes, when the rush, the thrill of the Game had adrenaline coursing through his system.
Throughout the day, Neku and Josh show off some sign language, teaching the others some basics. They aren’t bothering with grammar for now, just showing the signs for what they encounter.
The flow comes to a halting, cacophonous, stop as they arrive at Towa Records.
Instruments tumble over, unsure of whether to continue, as Rhyme pushes Beat out of the way of the shark trap.
Time slows.
Time stops.
Rhyme is halfway static as the world goes grayscale and freezes. Joshua takes measured steps to her side. A simple zap of power to the Swing Shark vaporizes it, the static flowing past them, back into ambient Shibuya, as he presses a hand to Rhyme’s forehead, pulling their Music back into one place, rebinding the body and Soul. He lets Rhyme shift into timeless space with him, and they look around first, panic evident, and then at him.
“What did you just do?”
Josh shrugs. “Erased the Noise, froze time to do it, reassembled you. You were almost shark bait.” He pauses, lets out a short laugh. “This is why Composers shouldn’t Play in their own Game, huh? Getting attached isn’t good when you need to be an impartial judge.”
Rhyme’s eyes widen, mouth dropping. “You? Composer? What?”
He smiles. “For about a year and a half now. I’ve always seen the UG. I’ve been friends with Neku since we were 11, became Composer a few days after my 14th birthday. He died after we got in an argument, he marched off and into the road. I… owe it to him, to keep him safe. Didn’t expect to be doing that for others, but I don’t think I’m gonna regret this.”
“Does he know?” they ask, and Josh shakes his head.
“No. I’m planning on telling him everything after we win the Game, but his Fee was his memories of me. Gotta get him those back, first. So I’d appreciate it if you could keep this secret for me.”
They mime the motion for zipping their lips, and nod. “I won’t tell anyone. You have my word.”
Josh smiles, falling back into place with the others. Their minds will accommodate, Rhyme was a near miss, the shark disappeared when it failed, things happened too fast for everyone’s brain to process. He snaps his fingers, and time resumes.
“RHYME!” Beat shouts, as he lands on the ground. He’s on his feet in seconds, ready to do whatever it takes to protect Rhyme, no doubt, but instead he finds them brushing off their knees, otherwise uninjured.
Shiki and Eri run forward, Eri signing [Are you okay?] as Shiki asks it, hands and voice messy with worry.
Neku hangs back, but an aborted yell hangs heavy on his lips, eyes wide. Josh takes a singular step forward, playing the part of surprised and worried friend.
There’s a lot of hugging and worrying over Rhyme, but Joshua looks beyond, at the Reaper who placed the trap. Uzuki looks annoyed, yes, with an eyebrow twitching and frown set on her face, but she’s eyeing him. She suspects his intervention, no doubt.
Kariya must have informed her of their previous Partnership.
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