[x] [EXTRA] (Special) Otaku stuff!
-[x] Anime, music, "culture!" (CRE +0.25)
[x] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???)
[x] [EXTRA] Go to school (May meet classmates there, ???)
Well that was fun! Sufficient Velocity deleted my formatting about four times during my attempt to write that up, so please tell me if some of the formatting is messed up. Thanks! :<
Wouldn't you normally format after the text is already there?
After helping format a character sheet with 15k words and more tags than the forum WYSIWYG editor could process without glitching out, I learned to do my formatting in BB Code. Less intuitive, but you can be sure it'll work as advertised.
Other than the rolls/results in 2nd part being done in normal font size and not this one, as well as a few extra line breaks in the 3rd update, I can't think of anything inconsistent. It feels weird to have updates under spoiler tags, though.
That last update was something. You better not do anything bad to our osananajimi through such cowardly means as a backstory!
[x] [EXTRA] (Special) Otaku stuff!
-[x] Anime, music, "culture!" (CRE +0.25)
[x] [EXTRA] (Special) Otaku stuff!
-[x] Grand Strategy games! (INT +0.25)
[x] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???)
[x] [EXTRA] Talk with Big Sis (???)
Dorima's character... wasn't written very three-dimensionally. I chose my words just now very, very carefully.
Oh, and Allen's role didn't use CHAR this time; instead, it used the INT and COUR stats. Since both of those are at 5, which is the very middle of the spectrum, neither had any effect.
The biggest reason for the failure this time around is probably the "Loner" trait. I'm gonna go ahead and say that making Silas a few friends may be one of the triggers for removing "Loner" or at least reducing its effects.
Yeah, I can see it. Truth be told, even if she started to be more... likeable, I probably will always dislike her anyway for the sole fact she wanted to punch Silas. Hate characters like that, what can I say.
Oh, and Allen's role didn't use CHAR this time; instead, it used the INT and COUR stats. Since both of those are at 5, which is the very middle of the spectrum, neither had any effect.
The biggest reason for the failure this time around is probably the "Loner" trait. I'm gonna go ahead and say that making Silas a few friends may be one of the triggers for removing "Loner" or at least reducing its effects.
Oh right, that Loner is a damn severe penalty. I was talking about Charisma 'cause from what I remember we've got penalties to any Intelligence check because of our low CHR. Thought this counts here as well.
Oh right, that Loner is a damn severe penalty. I was talking about Charisma 'cause from what I remember we've got penalties to any Intelligence check because of our low CHR. Thought this counts here as well.
It would have counted if Silas's INT was anywhere above 5.
I calculate Silas's stats' effect on the Success Threshold by how far they are from "5," which is average. For example, if Silas's INT was 6 and he had talked to Allen, he would have had +5 to the Threshold without modifiers.
It was friday evening. The curtains were tightly clamped around Silas's one window. The lights were off, the only light coming from the eerie blue luminescence of his phone.
Silas had been holding back. Oh, yes, he'd been holding back. But finally, he was here. He was here! The comfort of his own room - the anonymity behind his own computer screen - the safety of his locked door! No need for social conventions or complicated emotions or annoying tsuns; for in here, everything was a constant.
Silas slipped on his headphones and started up his computer. It whirred to life, agonizingly slowly. Silas started tapping his foot against the ground and biting his lower lip in anticipation. Why wouldn't the stupid thing start already?!
At last, at long last, his two monitors lit up. He took a few seconds to rapidly type in his password - and a few more seconds to type it again after getting it wrong the first time - and, at long last, he was back at his desktop, more enthusiastic than ever.
As usual, Big Sister had replaced his desktop background with an avatar of herself - this time it was RikuRiku from SynthetiMuse, a vocal synthesis line that had been becoming popular recently. Silas gaped at the screen. The short, teal-haired virtual idol was such a stark juxtaposition to Big Sister's stoic, professional personality. And that was before she started to speak through RikuRiku's voice synthesis apparatus: "Hi hi! I have been waiting for you! Oh my, I sound so… girly. I believe I am liking this face and voice quite much!"
Silas chuckled, confused more than anything. "Err… don't you think you took it a bit… too far, Big Sis?"
"What? Never!" Big Sister shook her head vehemently. "Well… I suppose I could choose a more subdued character next time. But RikuRiku's voice software was just so… perfect! I'll do better next time, I promise."
"No, no, good, Big Sis, you're good." Silas said. Sheesh, she really is enjoying this character, isn't she? He thought to himself. I wonder what's the cause for the change all of a sudden? Usually she chooses someone less… bubbly. She seems happier this way, though… so it's probably a good thing. Right?
"Anyway! A - ny - way!" Big Sister pulled up Silas's browser. "I've finally managed to integrate myself into PicoSoft Edge's hardcode, so just give me a query and we'll start!" Big Sister bowed and winked.
Now this was getting just a little but unnerving. She just seems so… off, Silas thought. It's like she's trying too hard or something…
But now wasn't the time to be thinking too much. He had anime to watch, goddammit! "Err… the Fall Season just started, right? Search up the newest anime that is projected not to be shit on bring it up on my second monitor. Also, open JuubunNaSokudo.com on my first monitor. I want to see what the Alternate History thread has been up to recently."
"Very weeeel!" Big Sister's response was prompt. Almost immediately, a the forum opened on his first screen and a video popped up on his second. "Re:Creators? Sure, why not. Sounds interesting, I guess…"
"Preliminary reviews seemed pretty good, and they match your search history, so…"
"Well!" Silas reached under his desk and grabbed a bag of lightly-salted chips and an Ambernian Cola. His heart rate quickened. This was going to be fun. "Let's start!"
~~~
"Holy shit, it's Mamika! Big Sis, it's Mamika! They freakin' put Mamika in here!"
"Yes, it is rather bold…"
"Well this show got turned into a Slice-Of-Life really fast…"
~~~
"HAHAHAAAA! Big Sis, are you reading this?!"
"I am. I wish I had the capacity to laugh."
"Honestly, this alternate history timeline is just golden. And the artwork is nice too - lemme just like and hug this post. And what kind of name is Trump? I mean, Trump? Really? Ambernians and their weird names, amirite? Haha!"
"Try not to be too insensitive, Silas. People are watching."
"What?"
"Nothing~"
~~~
"Silas?
"Silas, are you alright?"
"...She just killed Mamika."
"Err… I believe you are correct!"
"She. Killed. Mamika."
"...Silas?"
"That's it. THAT'S IT, THIS BITCH ALTAIR NEEDS TO DIE."
"...This is troubling. Should I call social services?"
~~~
Silas glanced at the digital clock on his taskbar - 1:56 PM. He'd been at this for seven hours now. Not bad. But he could keep going! He was almost at the final episode of Re:Creators, and he had to know whether Altair was going to get her just due or not and…
And…
Something stirred inside him. He wanted to keep on at it, but at the same time… He decided to start going to school to get away from the social isolation, right?"
"Hey, Big Sis?"
"Hmm?"
"I think… I'm gonna retire for the night."
"What? Why?"
"I dunno. I just feel… I mean…"
"You don't have to feel pressured to give up your personality, you know! You same perfectly fine as is. Please, stay."
Silas glanced at Big Sister warily. She was acting… odd all evening. A bit more clingy than usual. "But I…"
"Silas." Big Sister was starting to look uncomfortable - wait that was even possible? "I… you know I can't truly interact with you much outside of this computer screen. And, with you leaving most days and spending most nights on work, I've been… bored. And… more than a little lonely."
"Oh." Of course. Of course! It had been a whole week he'd spent not showering Big Sister in affection and spending time with her. Of course she was feeling neglected… "Hey. Sunday night, I'll be all yours."
"Hmm? Really?"
"Yeah! Once I get finished with our Monday assignments, I'll close everything up and we can just… talk. Like, a normal talk. That'll be okay, right?"
"Right!"
Seeing Big Sister smile made Silas's heart flutter. "Alright, thanks, Big Sis. I'm gonna log out now. See you tomorrow."
"I'll be waiting!"
Gingerly, Silas powered down his computer, and the light blinked away with a small pop. His room was nearly pitch-black now; he moved to his futon in the darkness, and stared into the ceiling for half an hour before finally retiring to sleep.
SILAS SPENT AN EVENING INDULGING IN OTAKU
(CRE: +0.25, CHAR: +0.2)
~~~
[] [EXTRA] Go to school (May meet classmates there, ???)
EVENT ROLL: 96
(High Numbers indicate more negative events.)
RESULT: BAD
The bullet train was quiet. And for some reason, Silas was wracked by a really strange case of deja vu.
It was a much faster trek to Yamaha High School than his first time felt, but the trip still felt weird. There were people out here. And some of them might be watching him. They probably weren't. But they could be.
...Silas really needed to get over his fear of people, sheesh.
Surprisingly, when he got to the gate, Yamaha seemed pretty active, even though it was a Saturday. The double-doors were wide open, and a good number of students were hanging out around the entrance, talking in cliques or even playing sports in the nearby field.
Silas figured his best bet was in his homeroom. He took off with a purpose, trying not to catch too many peoples' eyes on the way. When he came to the sliding door of Class 4-1, he found it wide open, and stepped inside.
"ARGGHHHH!"
Silas was jumped, and nearly fell backwards out of the threshold.
"THIS. DOESN'T. MAKE. SENSE."
"Err…"
"WHAT?!"
Maeda was sitting at a desk in the corner of the room, surrounded by a litany of papers and documents. At the sight of Silas, though, her angry gaze softened, if only a little bit. "Oh. Yamigawa-kun. Forgive me. I'm having a bit of a bad day.
"How so?" Silas asked.
Maeda sighed, shaking her head. "Just grading papers for Kamasaki-sensei. It's supposed to be easy but…"
"But?"
"Okay, okay. Context." Maeda slapped one stack of papers with her hand. "There are thirty-four students in this classroom. Thus, there should be thirty-four names, and thirty-four papers in this stack."
"Yes…? Is there someone missing?"
"No. That, I would be able to do something about. The problem is… there are thirty-four students, but I'm certain there's thirty-five papers in this stack."
"So… someone turned it in twice?" Silas scratched his head. How could this possibly be causing so much anguish?
"See, that's the problem," Maeda sighed. "I counted this stack. Over and over again. There are, undoubtedly, thirty-four names in this stack of papers. But I know for a fact that there are thirty-five papers here! And no repeats or anything! That's not… physically… possible! It's infuriating!"
"Maybe you just overlooked it, or one of the papers is attached to the other…?"
"No, I've looked over this stack thirty times. And that's not the only anomalous property - err, I mean, weird thing. This pattern's repeating over and over again. Look over there - " she pointed to the lines of desks facing the electronic board. "There are thirty-five seats in this classroom, right? RIGHT?! And only thirty-four students. So why is this classroom always full?!"
"It is…?"
"YES! It IS!" Maeda fumed. "But there only only thirty-four names on the roster! I even took a picture of the classroom on the first day to make the seating chart for sensei. All thirty-five chairs are filled, but I can only count thirty-four people. ARGH!"
At this point, Maeda slammed her two fists against her desk. Some of the other students in the classroom looked towards the front to see what the commotion was, saw that it was Maeda, and promptly went back to whatever they were working on. Silas looked at her, feeling strangely guilty. Maeda must really like having order in her life. Maybe he could help?
"Hmm… uh… I could sort some of these papers for you, Maeda-san. Maybe save you some time?"
"What? No, no I'm fine, really, Yamigawa-kun…" Maeda sunk in her chair. "This is just part of my job as your class rep. I really shouldn't be imposing on you to do my work for me."
"No really, it's fine!" Silas approached the desk. "Hey, you know what, I'll just grab this stack and start - "
"YAMIGAWA, NO!"
Silas reached for the stack and pulled it loose, but he didn't see that another, larger stack had apparently been relying on it for support. In one fell swoop, nearly the entire set of papers was scattered across the floor in a jumbled mess of grades and classwork.
Maeda's face turned white. And then, it turned red.
There was a great flurry of movement behind him. Silas looked back - the entire classroom was hurriedly vacating. Panic began to set in. He looked back at Maeda and saw the fires of Hell burning in her eyes.
"Yamigawa-kun."
"Y-Yes?" he squeaked. Frantically, he tried to find a computer screen for help, but his eyes were locked on Maeda's.
"You're a good kid, Yamigawa-kun. Please… stand outside for a bit. Don't leave, though. I need to relieve some stress."
"O-Of course. Of course! I'm just gonna… go…" Silas made his way to the door.
"Close it behind you."
Silas did just that. The sliding door slid shut with the tiniest clunk.
Outside, the rest of the class was whispering frantically amongst themselves. Silas found a face he sort of knew - Shinohara's - and started whispering, too: "Shinohara-san? What just happened?"
Shinohara's eyes were down. She was bobbing her head, tapping her finger against the wall behind her. "Maeda's angry," she replied, simply. "It's… ah… not safe to be around when Maeda's angry."
"Why would that be - "
"AAAAAAARRRRRGGHHHHHHHH!"
The high-pitched scream made Silas try to cover his ears. It was followed by a loud thump, and the sound of a desk tipping over. "I'M TOO YOUNG FOR THIS SHIIIIIIIT! WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME?! AARRRGGGGHHHHHH!"
"Is… she going to be okay?" Silas whispered.
"I'd be more worried about yourself."
"Oh."
Another loud thump, and two more desks came tumbling down. "I HATE EVERYTHING! I HATE EVERYTHING! WHY WON'T THESE PAPERS JUST GO AWAY?!"
Another loud sound; this time, it was the breaking of glass. "Wait… was that the window?" a nearby student muttered. "I should go get Kamasaki-sensei," another one said, but they didn't move a muscle.
"AARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!"
Heavy breathing, like an angered beast, and then, quiet. There was the sound of desks and chairs scraping against the floor, and then the sound of glass bits and a broom in contact. And then she walked to the sliding door. Silas felt each footstep she took. Suddenly, he realized that he'd been abandoned in the hallway; everyone else had run off.
The sliding door slid open slowly. Surprisingly, the classroom behind Maeda didn't look the least bit damaged, except for the broken window chunks near the wall. Maeda sighed. "Yamigawa."
"Y-Yes?" Silas's brain was telling him to run, but his feet were frozen to the ground.
"I hope you didn't have any plans for today. We're gonna be grading papers and sorting documents till night falls. Wait, no! Till after night falls."
"H-Huh? But I just - "
"No buts. Your class representative said so. And… please… I really don't want to yell at you, so can you just come inside?"
Maeda's face didn't look angry, but Silas suspected there was a hidden fury there. "Yes. Of course. I'm…. I'm coming in."
Maeda didn't wait. He pulled him into the classroom, and then slammed the door shut.
SILAS SPENT TIME WITH MAEDA AT SCHOOL
(+0.25 SKL, +0.25 INT)
Maeda Kirino: - 7 REL
MAEDA WILL REMEMBER THIS.
~~~
[] [EXTRA] Talk with Big Sis (???)
YamiOtako: ...So that was my Saturday. Sorry I couldn't come home sooner…
Big Sis: It's no problem, truly. I was watching, you know. You don't need to tell me.
YamiOtako: Well, I knew you knew, I just wanted to talk about it.
Big Sis: Understandable. Speaking of which… are we still going to talk tomorrow night?
YamiOtako: Of course. You're my Big Sister! I'd never go back on a promise I'd made to you.
YamiOtako:
~~~
"Phew! Homework: Done. And with hours upon hours to spare…"
"Yes, quite!" Big Sister popped onto his screen.
It was already getting dark out, truth be told. Silas had woken up much later that day, and homework brought them all the way to about 6 o'clock. Still, they had plenty of time. "So… Big Sis."
"Hmm?"
Silas opened his mouth, and then closed it. This felt weird. He'd never… really talked to Big Sis before. Not in a casual sense, at least. It was always taking her advice, or listening to her commentary… What could he ask about?
"Err… can you tell me a bit more about yourself?"
"I'm your Big Sister."
Silas blinked. "Oh, well yeah. That's obvious."
"Is there anything in particular you want to know about me?" Big Sister asked. Her avatar turned her head ever so slightly, and her fingers clasped together.
[] [ASK] What were my parents like?
[] [ASK] Do you have a real face and voice?
[] [ASK] How do you do… all the things you do?
[] [ASK] Do I have any other siblings?
[] [ASK] Write-in
~~~
Silas and Big Sister talked a lot that evening, mostly about trivial things. It felt refreshing, talking to Big Sister in such a normal setting. Silas felt he liked it. He took a glance at the clock - 11:43 PM. He'd have to go to sleep soon.
"Oh, Silas. I… ahhh… I have a question for you, this time."
"Hmm? Ah. And I have an answer. What is it?"
"Are you… satisfied with me?"
"Hmm?" Silas mused. That was a weirdly-worded question. "Err… yes?"
"No, I mean…" Big Sister's avatar was looking to the ground. Silas always wondered whether that was just something she did to simulate a real conversation for his sake, or if it was something she just did out of habit. "Are you fine with me… being around? Forever? Always? I… I enjoy spending time with you. That's why I'm asking."
[] [RESPONSE] Of course!
[] [RESPONSE] I mean… forever?
[] [RESPONSE] Write-in
SILAS TALKED WITH BIG SISTER
(+0.5 CHAR)
BIG SISTER WILL REMEMBER THIS
~~~
WEEK 2 IS NOW STARTING!
Please choose TWO [TALK] or [ATONE] actions and TWO [EXTRA] actions:
[] [ATONE] (Who? Must have negative REL)
[] [TALK] (Who?)
[] [EXTRA] Study (SKL +0.5)
[] [EXTRA] (Special) Otaku stuff!
-[] Grand Strategy games! (INT +0.25)
-[] Anime, music, "culture!" (CRE +0.25)
-[] Forum scrolling! (CHAR +0.2)
[] [EXTRA] Exercise… yay? (+0.25 PHYS)
[] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???)
[] [EXTRA] Stay after school (May meet classmates there, ???)
[] [EXTRA] Talk with Big Sis (???)
[X] [ASK] How do you do… all the things you do?
[X] [RESPONSE] Of course!
[X] [ATONE] Maeda Kirino
[X] [TALK] Matsuoka Yumika
[X] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???)
[X] [EXTRA] Exercise… yay? (+0.25 PHYS)
You know, the Big Brother aspect had never struck me so clearly before I read that line. I mean, there is an endearing-overbearing, and then there is I-know-everything-you-ever-did.
Then again, with the way Silas is, perhaps it is a necessary measure. Maybe Silas is recovering from something and she was introduced to ease him into it? Or maybe I watched too much Dennou Coil back in the day.
"See, that's the problem," Maeda sighed. "I counted this stack. Over and over again. There are, undoubtedly, thirty-four names in this stack of papers. But I know for a fact that there are thirty-five papers here! And no repeats or anything! That's not… physically… possible! It's infuriating!"
Surprisingly, the classroom behind Maeda didn't look the least bit damaged, except for the broken window chunks near the wall. Maeda sighed. "Yamigawa."
Danger! Danger! The honorifics! They are gone!!
All bets are off.
[x] [ASK] Do you have a real face and voice?
[x] [RESPONSE] I like having you around. You're fun and you've helped me so much already! I just... wish I could do as well on my own, someday?
[X] [ATONE] Maeda Kirino
[X] [TALK] Yamaguchi Taro
[X] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???)
[X] [EXTRA] Stay after school (May meet classmates there, ???)
Also, there are no normal people in this class/school, are there?
[X] [ASK] Do you have a real face and voice?
[X] [RESPONSE] I like having you around. You're fun and you've helped me so much already! I just... wish I could do as well on my own, someday?
[X] [ATONE] Maeda Kirino
[X] [TALK] Matsuoka Yumika
[X] [EXTRA] (Special) Otaku stuff!
-[X] Forum scrolling! (CHAR +0.2)
[X] [EXTRA] Exercise… yay? (+0.25 PHYS)
I like this response; it is good to become self-sufficient, even though Big Sis may be great. And creepy with Silas' browser history
I also really want to get that Charisma up, we really need it.
[X] [ASK] How do you do… all the things you do?
[X] [RESPONSE] Of course!
[X] [ATONE] Maeda Kirino
[X] [TALK] Matsuoka Yumika
[X] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???)
[X] [EXTRA] Exercise… yay? (+0.25 PHYS)
[X] [ASK] Who or what are you exactly?
[X] [RESPONSE] I mean... forever?
[X] [ATONE] Maeda Kirino
[X] [TALK] Matsuoka Yumika
[X] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???)
[X] [EXTRA] Study (SKL +0.5)
Fear not! Next turn, Silas will be allowed to join a CLUB! This will cause a passive CHAR increase, as well some other effects and some new action options.
As a side note, coming up with Quest mechanics is fun. :lol
Vote loooooooooocked~ Update should be coming some time this evening. Ties in the voting were determined by a 50/50 probability matrix.
...Err, asking a friend to choose a number between 1 and 2 is a probability matrix, right?
[] [ASK] Do you have a real face and voice?
[] [RESPONSE] I like having you around! You're fun and you've helped me so much already! I just... wish I could do well on my own, some day?
[] [ATONE] Maeda Kirino
[] [TALK] Matsuoka Yumika
[] [EXTRA] Exercise... yay? (+0.25 PHYS)
[] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter effects, random, ???)
"Hmm? Me?" Big Sister sounded confused. "Of course! This is my face and voice."
"No, that's your avatar," Silas insisted. Come to think of it, when had Big Sister ever used an avatar before?
"Well… yeah… but it is still me." Big Sister said.
"How do I word this… um…" Silas thought deeply for a second. "What would you say is your default face and voice?"
"Default?" Big Sister's avatar blinked. "Nothing."
"Argh," Silas groaned. "I'm sorry, you're not making much sense."
"Perhaps that is my intention?" Big Sister smiled. "Or perhaps I am incapable of telling you what you want to know?"
"Ah, Big Sister, confusing as… always…" Silas thought for a moment. Strangely, he couldn't remember Big Sister ever speaking to him as an avatar before. Or at all, even. She'd always been communicating to him via texting. But it still felt right somehow, like she'd been doing this forever.
Something was off, but Silas couldn't fathom what it could possibly be.
"Let's say…" Big Sister was speaking. Silas perked his head up. "Let's say… I do have a default face and voice, as you say. But let's say that if I did, I wouldn't want you to see or hear it. Would you be willing to accept that as an answer?"
"...sure," Silas replied, more confused than ever.
~~~
[] [RESPONSE] I like having you around! You're fun and you've helped me so much already! I just... wish I could do well on my own, some day?
"Hmm? Are you… are you sure?" Big Sister's expression was unreadable.
"Well… yeah. I love you, Big Sister, but… it would feel weird if I relied on my Big Sister forever, right?"
"Hmm…" Big Sister sounded… sad? Disappointed? Angry? It was impossible to tell. But all in all, Silas suspected that his answer didn't entirely please her…
Coming back to school at the start of the week felt hard.
Oh, there were a litany of reasons for this. For one, the habit Silas had of waking up around noon was firmly entrenched into his internal clock. Waking up so early that the afternoon haze hadn't even yet settled in felt… weird. And miserable.
But there was another reason: Maeda. The way she forced him to stay in the classroom practically from dusk to dawn the other day still clawed at him, as did the constant insisting that he double check this paper or cross-reference this grade. She had a dogged determination that was downright scary. And she was probably still mad at him. And Silas was coming to school on Monday expecting to have an apology ready for her.
Shiver.
When Silas arrived, Yamaha was already swelling with students, as it usually was. It only took him a few minutes to find his homeroom - thankfully, after a few days of practice, he wasn't needing to rely on Big Sister's signage as often, which is always a plus. Class 4-1 wasn't quite full yet, but a few students, were already inside, talking animatedly with each other about frivolous things.
"Hey, Yamigawa-kun!" Matsuoka Yumika smiled.
"Hey, M-Matsuoka-san," Silas replied. Then he cursed himself. That damn stutter. He was going to have to work on that. "Err… have you seen Maeda-san?"
"Maeda-san? Oh, you mean Kirino?" Matsuoka rubbed her chin a bit. "Hmm… She was here earlier, but left in a hurry. She seemed angry about something."
"...Oh." Silas blinked. That was understandable.
"Hey, hey…" Matsuoka was leaning in closer, scrutinizing Silas's face. Her smile remained, but her expression was unreadable. "That's the look of someone who's guilty of something. You wouldn't happen to know why Kirino is upset, would you?"
"I-I mean, I…" Silas's face turned the tiniest shade of red. "I… visited the classroom over the weekend, and… messed some of her papers up."
"That's it?" Matsuoka seemed unconvinced.
"I knocked over a stack, and it knocked over another stack… and then it knocked over another stack… she had a lot of stacks of papers," Silas admitted.
"Hmm…" Matsuoka leaned in even closer. A few awkward seconds later, she retracted her face. "Well, you don't seem to be lying! Good on you! I hope you're really, really, really sorry about what happened with Kirino-chan?"
"Yes, of course."
"And you apologize to her with the deepest conviction in your heart?"
"With the deepest conviction in my heart!" Silas affirmed.
"Ah, that's good!" Matsuoka nodded, seemingly satisfied. Then she looked behind him: "Oh, hey, Kirino-chan! How long have you been there?"
Silas made a little gasp, did a one-eighty, and quickly stepped back all at the same time. Unfortunately, this little movement brought his foot directly into contact with a nearby desk, which promptly sent a sharp pain up his right leg. "GAH - I mean, M-Maeda-san! H-Hello!"
Maeda looked at him with tired eyes. "Heard your apology. Not impressed."
"But I - "
"Please," Maeda took a deep breath. "I'm sorry - truly sorry - for blowing up at you on Saturday, but I had a really bad weekend, okay?"
Under her breath, Maeda mumbled something that sounded a lot like 'containment breach' and 'too young for this,' but Silas pretended not to hear her. "I understand, Maeda-san, but - "
"Listen, you're a sweet kid, Yamigawa-kun, but it's gonna take more than a few empty words to make me less angry at you, alright?" Maeda said. She sighed again. "Where's the seating chart…"
With that, Maeda made her way to the her desk near the front of the room and plopped down, holding her head in her arms and closing her eyes.
"Huh…" Matsuoka mused, frowning. "That didn't work as I expected. Sorry, Yamigawa-kun."
"It's alright," Silas muttered. "It's really alright." He'd have to find a way to make it up to her, some day. Now that he thought about it, she had also seemed rather stressed last week, too. Was being a class representative really that hard?
~~~
Far above him, from the refuge of one of the school's discreet security cameras embedded into the ceiling, Big Sister was looking down at the scene with deep fascination. The Maeda girl certainly is a piece of work, she thought to herself. So many different faces...
Maeda Kirino: +1 REL SPECIAL: [EXTRA] Stay after school now counts as an ATONE action with Maeda.
Most days, Matsuoka is surrounded by people. Silas always thought they were all close friends, but the more he watched her, the more he came to realize that Matsuoka only really seemed to be close to Maeda, the girl named Shinohara, Hanamura, and, surprisingly, Allen. Matsuoka was friendly to everyone, of course, but she really devoted time and energy to talking to these particular people, and not as much to everyone else.
...Either that or all the time Silas had spent critically analyzing the character dynamics of his favorite anime and crafting complex webs of friendships and political alliances on Democratic Crusaders II had made him overthink things like this too much.
(Character Sheet updated)
Silas still didn't feel comfortable coming into the conversation without being invited, but when the audience around Matsuoka dwindled, Silas found it more than easy to sit by her and not seem awkward and nerdy for once in his entire life.
"Matsuoka-san, Can I sit here?" Silas asked, holding his bento box expectantly.
"Hmm?" Matsuoka turned, saw it was Silas, and smiled. "Of course, Yamigawa-kun! Every seat is an open seat!"
"Yeah, sit on down, Silas!" Hanamura said, still beaming in that creepy, chills-inducing way. "I'd love to know more about you!"
"Heheheheh… heh…" Silas chuckled half-heartedly as he sat himself down. Hanamura seemed nice, but the way he talked just sounded so… saccharine.
"So, Silas, where are you from?" Hanamura asked.
"Err, the north part of the city." Silas said. "Can you… not use my first name?"
"Whaaat?" Hanamura said, defensively. "Yumika-chan used it a couple times on your first day here. Why can't I?"
"Matsuoka-san stopped, though," Silas tried to explain, waving his hands in front of his face. A-And… um…"
"I only stopped calling you Silas because you told me to, though!" Matsuoka exclaimed.
"My point exactly. Why can't we just call each other by our first names? Like friends?" Hanamura scrunched up his face into a somehow even bigger smile.
"I… don't know you guys enough, though…" Silas mumbled, crossing his arms together. There was a bit of an awkward silence.
"Other things, let's talk about other things!" Matsuoka said suddenly after the short pause. "Like… um… movies! Yes, movies! We have the highest standards regarding movies, don't we, Chii-kun?"
"Yes, we certainly do. Hey, did you watch…"
Silas detached himself from the conversation a bit. This was… a bit hard. It was easier with Matsuoka leading the conversation the first week, but now he had to contribute a bit, too. And he didn't have anything to say. How would he? He hadn't gone to school in… forever!
Silas felt like he ought to just give up… and then he felt Matsuoka prod him on the shoulder.
She had this strange look in her eyes. Her expression was serious, but welcoming and supporting, as if she were reading his face the entire time and understood that they weren't getting very far with him. "Err… is movies not a good topic for you, Yamigawa-kun?"
"I… don't watch movies a lot," Silas admitted.
"Do you watch anything?" Hanamura said, looking rather surprised. "Come on, now, it's not like you're a complete blank slate."
"Well… I mean…" Silas mumbled.
"C'mon, Yamigawa-kun, what do you do for fun?" Matsuoka asked in a tone that sounded almost pleading.
"Err… " Silas searched throughout his entire life to try and find something - something - that he could tell them. Did he like psychological thrillers or horror flicks? No. Did he like Mihokujin live-action dramedies? No, he preferred his characters in two dimensions only. Did he do sports, go shopping, or spend time in the sun? No, no, and… hang on… NO! He had nothing except for anime, video games, and forum dynamics, and he couldn't tell any of them that he liked that kind of stuff, right?!
Behind Matsuoka, behind a window facing the city, a holoadvertisement was flicking to life. It seemed to be selling some sort of new soap - only some of the words seemed to have been replaced by text in bright red letters facing towards the window:
JUST SAY SOMETHING. ANYTHING. IT'LL BE FINE.
"Err... " Silas searched his brain. His response came out timidly: "D-Do you like RikuRiku?"
"RikuRiku…" Matsuoka repeated. "Where have I heard that before…"
Silas's heart fell.
"Oh!" Hanamura clasped his hands together. "Synthetimuse! Vocal synthesis!"
"Oh right!" Matsuoka said. "She's the virtual idol! Doh - " Matsuoka smacked her head. "How could I forget? She did a cover for our school's anthem last year!"
"Wait, she's real?!" Silas exclaimed enthusiastically. Matsuoka burst out laughing, His ears reddened.
"I wish, Sil - ah, Yamigawa-kun!" Matsuoka giggled. "No - what I mean is someone from Chii-kun's Computer Club made a music video of our anthem using her software. Her voice is cool! I love it!"
"Um…" Silas stuttered. "I...I love how people h-have used her voice and image to make stories!"
"Right?" Matsuoka said. "Omigod, and her uniform is so cuuuute! Gah, I wish we had school uniforms like that! Futuristic stripes with neon colors sounds sweet!"
"Y-Yeah, I know, right?" Silas responded. "I think it's cool, too! Everyone should wear them!"
"Wait, you want all the girls in this school to bare their midriffs?" Hanamura smirked. Silas blanched. "My, my, Silas, I didn't know you were so enthusiastic..."
"T-That's not - "
"BWAHAAAHAAA! Chii-kun, you're the one who thought of it that way, not Yamigawa-kun!" Matsuoka shrieked in laughter.
"She's right!" Silas said quickly. "She's absolutely right!"
"Oh, now I'm being teamed up on? Yumika-chaaaaaan, I thought we were friends!" Hanamura said with puppy-dog eyes.
"We are, but I won't let you bully Silas-I-mean-Yamigawa-kun! Not now, not ever!" Matsuoka said. "He's too precious and insecure to bully!"
"H-Hey!" Silas responded, but he was laughing, too. That strange look on Matsouka was gone, and for now Silas wouldn't have to dwell on it. These two really were pretty fun to talk with, truth be told. Even if Hanamura was a bit odd. And kept on smiling. At him. Creepily.
"Hey hey hey, I detect someone brooding and not talking!" Matsuoka exclaimed. "Anyway - I'd say we've got… I dunno… five more minutes 'till the end of lunch. What other music do you like? I want to know!"
"Well, erm…" Silas went over his head a few times. "I'm a bit partial to Reoru's music…"
Matsuoka was an engaging speaker, always proactive in the conversation, leading it this way and that so that Silas never got bored or ran out of things to say. Eventually, Silas realized she was doing this on purpose. It wasn't social manipulation in a negative context; rather, it seemed she just genuinely wanted everyone around her to be happy. Clearly, she was a lot smarter than she tried to make herself seem. Nevertheless, Silas came out of talking with her in higher spirits; and he felt that he was a little closer to her and Hanamura, too.
Some of Matsuoka's traits have been discovered!
Quick - Matsuoka has a quick mind. She is smart but doesn't flaunt her intelligence, though she clearly performs better in class than most of her peers. (+0.25 SKL per week. Trigger: Great INT)
Social Savvy- Matsuoka has the natural ability to read into social situations and seems to understand how she can manipulate social paradigms to better achieve what she wants. (+2 CHAR, +10 Success threshold to social interaction if Silas gains this trait. Trigger: High INT, Okay CHAR)
Matsuoka Yumika: +4 REL
Hanamura Chihiro: +2 REL
~~~
[] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter effects, random, ???)
DICE ROLL: 50
RESULT: Okay
Miyao was the technological capital of the Imperial Republic. Sure, the capitol of Mikuoji may have the wealth and the politicians, but Miyao was the center of nearly every tech firm in the country. Even the brick-and-mortar retail centers, like the Miyao Hypermall, had shades of this; endless streams of advertisements for new computers and video games and devices flittered through the electronic billboards like leaflets in the wind.
It was more curiosity - and the lack of homework - that brought him to the Hypermall than anything else. Silas had never gone to the Miyao Hypermall before. He never wanted to. Far too many people were in there, with far too many prying eyes. But he felt more confident today, so he decided he might try it - besides, there was an arcade somewhere in there, and he wanted to see if the VR machines were working.
Thankfully, Silas's wandering took him to a pretty secluded part of the Hypermall. There were plenty of tech stores around, too. Silas quickly ducked his head into one of the smaller electronic stores to stare, wide-eyed, at the computers.
Oh, they were beautiful. Sleek, stylish, with big monitors and more gigabytes of RAM than he could count on his fingers and toes. There were so many, too… ones in different colors, ones with different graphics cards, towers and all-in-ones and laptops and smartphones...
Big Sis: No.
YamiOtako: I hadn't even typed anything yet.
Big Sis: You were going to ask if I was going to pay for that one. No.
YamiOtako: Why not?
Big Sis: There is a certain threshold, Silas. Using the National Drone Delivery Service to bring you your bento? That's fine. Hacking into the MSS's private network to provide you with unlimited and free Internet access? Also fine. Editing the National Census to acknowledge that you exist as a citizen of Mihoku? That's a given. But I'm not going to commit credit card fraud for you.
YamiOtako: …
Big Sis: You think I am being hypocritical. I am not.
Big Sis: Why are you still standing there.
Big Sis: If you want it so bad, why don't you work part-time? I'm sure you're perfectly cut out for it.
Big Sis: I was joking, don't actually consider getting a part-time job.
Big Sis: You're actually considering getting a part-time job.
Big Sis: Sigh.
It occurred to Silas that he didn't actually have any money. Like, at all. Big Sister always provided things for him. In fact, he had no idea when and how he even got his computer and his ancient flip-phone… they just were, and he'd accepted that he'd owned them without ever thinking about it.
Perhaps he should get a part-time job?
New Stat discovered: MONEY MONEY is obtained by [WORK] actions, or by random chance. Silas can use MONEY to buy things he might want or need.
On his way out, Silas bumped into someone. "Oh, sorry!" Silas said quickly, before pushing the door and making his way outside.
"It's okay, it's okay, you're fine…" Nanami mumbled. She looked at the closing door. "Wait... Silas!?" Her voice reverberated throughout the Hypermall.
Silas didn't hear her.
~~~
Towards the middle of the week, Silas suddenly became aware that there were a lot of posters in the hallways. It seemed it was club recruiting season; Literature Club, Astrology Club, Light Music Club (A rather cliche choice, if you asked him…), and more, all of a sudden the entire hallway to his homeroom felt like an advertisement boulevard.
Curiosity drove Silas to stop at one of the posters, which read "Drama Club" in bold, dramatic letters. Below it, the poster listed the kinds of things the Drama Club did: Critically analyzing popular media, understanding the film techniques used to evoke suspense or happiness, that sort of thing. The idea didn't seem too appealing to him, but then he saw the President's name: Matsuoka Yumika. Surely it couldn't be too bad if Matsuoka was involved, right?
On another poster, "Student Council" was printed in a neat, orderly font. The poster listed duties, responsibilities, and privileges of Council members, and while many of the privileges seemed like great fun the work seemed… drudgery, at best. Maeda Kirino's name wasn't anywhere on there, but Silas knew for a fact she was part of the Council.
Yet another poster read "Debate Club" in… a rather unimpressive-looking text. Clearly, whoever made the thing lacks any serious creative talent. But just skimming through the words made it clear that they were nonetheless passionate about the subject matter; the writer used rhetoric like "build the skills of a true leader" and "defend your ideals with strength and rigidity!" Silas was also pretty sure the boy named Allen was in it.
"Computer Club," which was written in… *sigh* ... Comic Sans, was one that Silas was genuinely interested in, and the poster itself advertised the club as a "friendly, social club for computer nerds of all kinds!" Silas realized he was most familiar with the type of things this club would be doing. But the Vice President of this club was none other than Hanamura Chihiro. Perhaps it was worth it?
And then there was the "Kendo Team" Yeah, no. No thanks. No. Noonononono. Silas needed to get fit, but organized sports? No. He'd find some other way.
Silas took a long time to stare at the posters. Incidentally, each one had an induction meeting on the exact same date, which was Thursday of this week. What to do… what to do…
~~~
IT IS NOW THE MIDDLE OF WEEK 2 Choose which CLUB to attend the Induction Meeting for! Silas may choose another club at a later date if the first one doesn't pan out, with certain consequences.
[] [CLUB] Drama Club (+0.5 CHAR, +0.25 CRE, +0.25 COUR per week, ???) [] [CLUB] Student Council (+0.25 CHAR, +1 SKL, +0.25 INT per week, ???) [] [CLUB] Debate Club (+0.25 CHAR, +0.5 COUR, +0.25 INT per week, ???) [] [CLUB] Computer Club (+0.25 CHAR, +0.5 INT, +0.25 CRE per week, ???) [] [CLUB] Kendo Team (+0.25 CHAR, +0.5 PHYS, +0.25 COUR per week, ???)
Please choose TWO [TALK] or [ATONE] actions and two [EXTRA] or [JOB] actions:
[] [ATONE] (Who?) [] [TALK] (Who?)
[] [EXTRA] Study (SKL +0.5) [] [EXTRA] (Special) Otaku stuff!
-[] Grand Strategy games! (INT +0.25) -[] Anime, music, "culture!" (CRE +0.25) -[] Forum scrolling! (CHAR +0.2) [] [EXTRA] Exercise… yay? (+0.25 PHYS) [] [EXTRA] Walk around the city (May encounter events, random, ???) [] [EXTRA] Stay after school (May meet classmates there, ???) [] [EXTRA] Talk with Big Sis (???)
[] [JOB] Look for a part-time at school
[] [JOB] Look for a part-time at the Hypermall (Too… many… people…)
[] [JOB] Look for a part-time online
[] [JOB] Look for a part-time… somewhere
Do you guys prefer spoilers for the actions, or no?
I... write a lot for each of these updates, so I wanted to use the spoilers to make my thread posts less lengthy, but to some extent it also messes with the flow, so... um... your thoughts?
"Let's say…" Big Sister was speaking. Silas perked his head up. "Let's say… I do have a default face and voice, as you say. But let's say that if I did, I wouldn't want you to see or hear it. Would you be willing to accept that as an answer?"
Don't worry, Nameless Onee-chan, even if you are a big fat supercomputer sitting in an underground bunker beneath some secret government facility or other, with hundreds of tentacles - er, cables - stretching as far as the eye could see, Silas would still accept you so long as you have RikuRiku's voice.
"Hmm…" Big Sister sounded… sad? Disappointed? Angry? It was impossible to tell. But all in all, Silas suspected that his answer didn't entirely please her…
Big Sis is a tough nut to crack. She wants us to depend on her forevermore? But wasn't she the one who supported Silas getting into school in the first place?
"Y-Yeah, I know, right?" Silas responded. "I think it's cool, too! Everyone should wear them!"
"Wait, you want all the girls in this school to bare their midriffs?" Hanamura smirked. Silas blanched. "My, my, Silas, I didn't know you were so enthusiastic..."
"It's okay, it's okay, you're fine…" Nanami mumbled. She looked at the closing door. "Wait... Silas!?" Her voice reverberated throughout the Hypermall.
I suspect there is a direct connection between our relationship with Big Sister and our inability to recognize Nanami's existence. And no matter how many times our Sis would make sad puppy eyes at us, I know where I stand if it comes to a choice between the two.
Good job on a character that allegedly does not exist.
Silas yes. [x] [CLUB] Kendo Team (+0.25 CHAR, +0.5 PHYS, +0.25 COUR per week, ???)
[X] [TALK] Shinohara Hana
[X] [TALK] Yamaguchi Taro
[x] [EXTRA] Stay after school (May meet classmates there, ???)
[x] [JOB] Look for a part-time online
Edit: oh, and also - another vote for dropping spoilers.
Edit2: a second preference
[X] [CLUB] Drama Club (+0.5 CHAR, +0.25 CRE, +0.25 COUR per week, ???) [x] [-] Try to talk to Yumika (She feels something missing...)
[X] [CLUB] Student Council (+0.25 CHAR, +1 SKL, +0.25 INT per week, ???)
If there is one thing anime and Persona has taught me, it is that becoming a member of the student council is the path to becoming awesome. Also the female members are always some of the best girls in the school.
