メリクリスマス！ ＾＿＾
Hopefully, some thoughtful reader will post a good non-spoiler question for next time.
Merry Christmas, everybody!
...I wonder how Shoutarou-kun and Yui-chan are reacting on Christmas morning....
25 December 2009
Holiday hiatus
No questions from readers this week (it is the holiday, after all, so I actually am not expecting any reviews after those that came in the first day of posting the new chapter), but I didn't want to lose the opportunity to wish my readers a very merry Christmas, in Japanese!
メリクリスマス！ ＾＿＾
Hopefully, some thoughtful reader will post a good non-spoiler question for next time.
Merry Christmas, everybody!
メリクリスマス！ ＾＿＾
Hopefully, some thoughtful reader will post a good non-spoiler question for next time.
Merry Christmas, everybody!
09 December 2009
Q: What's with the honorifics?
Q: A few reviewers commented (in the same week, oddly enough) about my use of honorifics, specifically the "-chan" honorific as regards to using it with men. So, this week I'll address the question, "Why do the characters use '-chan' when referring to a man?"
A: Because they do.
Okay, before you blow back at me, let me explain:
I write these characters by my own ear.
A lot of people are used to the "-kun" honorific when addressing boys informally/affectionately, because a lot of games, manga, and anime use this honorific for the male characters. This is, essentially, correct. However, "-kun" as an honorific for a man is not as widespread. In fact, when I was growing up, I was very specifically told by my (Japanese) mother that I should not be using "-kun" to refer to any male over the age of about 16, even if he is my contemporary. It's very baby-ish to refer to a man that way, and in a society such as Japan's, which is built so strongly around respect for one's neighbor, and social standing, and propriety, it's just not kosher to go around using the "-kun" honorific for a man.
The honorific "-chan" is regularly used by men and by women for women and children - and this is commonly addressed in games, manga, and anime, as well. But "-chan" is also used by women for men of contemporary age with whom they have a certain level of intimacy. A woman will very commonly use the "-chan" honorific for her boyfriend, or her lover, or even her husband (though usually only in private for the latter, again, because of the societal idea that men are supposed to be the providers and the dominants).
Chie has pretty much always called Yukiko (as an example) "Yukiko-chan" or even "Yuki-chan" because they are so close; they're practically sisters (or more intimate, though not in my story). And she does the same with the other women, because she's a woman talking to and referring to other women. No problem, right?
Okay, now, let's move on to the point of contention that some readers have.
At the beginning of the story, Chie calls Yousuke simply "Hanamura," the common way to address a peer being by their last name. Even in the game (the Japanese version, anyway, from which this story takes its cues), Chie calls him "Hanamura"...and Yousuke calls her "Satonaka." I kept them at that same level of intimacy (friendship only) for the first Arc of the story.
In the second Arc, Chie and Yousuke get closer as intimates, to the point where they're calling each other by their given names. (The moment in illustration occurs in Chapter 13, "Old Habits," for anyone wondering.) As noted in the Author's Notes for that chapter, this jump is fairly significant, for the reasons stated therein. He immediately starts using the "-chan" honorific because he's a man referring to a woman with whom he shares a deeper level of intimacy. She also starts to refer to him with the same honorific, for the same reason (just switch the respective genders).
By the third and fourth Arcs, Chie and Yousuke are both so far up into each other that I can't see them using any other terms. They do call each other by their given names only with regularity, but the "-chan" honorific adds a sweetness to the exchanges that just wouldn't exist otherwise. It's akin to an English speaker calling someone "sweetie" or "honey" or "baby" ... because those terms just don't really exist in Japanese language. It's pretty much some version of a name or title, or it's the equivalent of "hey, you" (which is quite ill-mannered in Japanese society).
There are some exceptions, of course:
Rise uses "-kun" for all of the guys, regardless of their age, because she's a perpetual girl.
Yukiko uses "-kun" for Kanji because she still kind of thinks of him as a little brother in a lot of ways (it's the same reason why Kanji slips and calls Yukiko "ne-chan [big sis]" in Chapter 33, "Juxtaposition"); she uses the name "Hana-chan" for Yousuke because she thinks of him as an inferior, much like Konishi Saki did (and I just liked to have someone keep that short form of his name alive). What Yukiko calls Souji will be revealed in more detail in the coming chapters....
But what my choice really comes down to is that I write the way that my mind thinks, and I'm a product of my Japanese upbringing. Having Chie call Yousuke "Yousuke-chan" - and vice versa - just makes sense to my inner ear. When I translate the way that I speak with my own significant other, that's how Chie speaks.
So, I hope that clarifies why I made the honorific choices that I did.
A: Because they do.
Okay, before you blow back at me, let me explain:
I write these characters by my own ear.
A lot of people are used to the "-kun" honorific when addressing boys informally/affectionately, because a lot of games, manga, and anime use this honorific for the male characters. This is, essentially, correct. However, "-kun" as an honorific for a man is not as widespread. In fact, when I was growing up, I was very specifically told by my (Japanese) mother that I should not be using "-kun" to refer to any male over the age of about 16, even if he is my contemporary. It's very baby-ish to refer to a man that way, and in a society such as Japan's, which is built so strongly around respect for one's neighbor, and social standing, and propriety, it's just not kosher to go around using the "-kun" honorific for a man.
The honorific "-chan" is regularly used by men and by women for women and children - and this is commonly addressed in games, manga, and anime, as well. But "-chan" is also used by women for men of contemporary age with whom they have a certain level of intimacy. A woman will very commonly use the "-chan" honorific for her boyfriend, or her lover, or even her husband (though usually only in private for the latter, again, because of the societal idea that men are supposed to be the providers and the dominants).
Chie has pretty much always called Yukiko (as an example) "Yukiko-chan" or even "Yuki-chan" because they are so close; they're practically sisters (or more intimate, though not in my story). And she does the same with the other women, because she's a woman talking to and referring to other women. No problem, right?
Okay, now, let's move on to the point of contention that some readers have.
At the beginning of the story, Chie calls Yousuke simply "Hanamura," the common way to address a peer being by their last name. Even in the game (the Japanese version, anyway, from which this story takes its cues), Chie calls him "Hanamura"...and Yousuke calls her "Satonaka." I kept them at that same level of intimacy (friendship only) for the first Arc of the story.
In the second Arc, Chie and Yousuke get closer as intimates, to the point where they're calling each other by their given names. (The moment in illustration occurs in Chapter 13, "Old Habits," for anyone wondering.) As noted in the Author's Notes for that chapter, this jump is fairly significant, for the reasons stated therein. He immediately starts using the "-chan" honorific because he's a man referring to a woman with whom he shares a deeper level of intimacy. She also starts to refer to him with the same honorific, for the same reason (just switch the respective genders).
By the third and fourth Arcs, Chie and Yousuke are both so far up into each other that I can't see them using any other terms. They do call each other by their given names only with regularity, but the "-chan" honorific adds a sweetness to the exchanges that just wouldn't exist otherwise. It's akin to an English speaker calling someone "sweetie" or "honey" or "baby" ... because those terms just don't really exist in Japanese language. It's pretty much some version of a name or title, or it's the equivalent of "hey, you" (which is quite ill-mannered in Japanese society).
There are some exceptions, of course:
Rise uses "-kun" for all of the guys, regardless of their age, because she's a perpetual girl.
Yukiko uses "-kun" for Kanji because she still kind of thinks of him as a little brother in a lot of ways (it's the same reason why Kanji slips and calls Yukiko "ne-chan [big sis]" in Chapter 33, "Juxtaposition"); she uses the name "Hana-chan" for Yousuke because she thinks of him as an inferior, much like Konishi Saki did (and I just liked to have someone keep that short form of his name alive). What Yukiko calls Souji will be revealed in more detail in the coming chapters....
But what my choice really comes down to is that I write the way that my mind thinks, and I'm a product of my Japanese upbringing. Having Chie call Yousuke "Yousuke-chan" - and vice versa - just makes sense to my inner ear. When I translate the way that I speak with my own significant other, that's how Chie speaks.
So, I hope that clarifies why I made the honorific choices that I did.
20 November 2009
Q: Why Yukiko?
Q: Reviewer Viktor Mayrin recently asked the question, "Why does everyone have Souji/Yukiko?"
A: I have no good answer for that.
While other authors may put Yukiko and Souji together, there are lots of other authors who like pairing Souji with Rise, or Chie, or Naoto...as well as with Yousuke and Kanji (though I don't see that one very often). In all honesty, given the open-ness that the player can take with the Hero Main Character (for ease, we'll call him Seta Souji), the romantic/sexual relationships can go any way you want. I've read a few stories that made Ebihara Ai his one true love, and I've seen a few pieces of artwork that put Souji with Ozawa Yumi and even Matsunaga Ayane. As I said, it's really up to the individual's personal tastes and outlook.
As for me, my Hero MC hooked up with Yukiko the first time I played the game, because I thought they just "fit" together. Listening to the Drama CD, I'm even more convinced that Yukiko and Souji are the best fit. Besides, I immediately put Yousuke and Chie together as the bickering would-be lovers who just couldn't admit their own feelings to themselves or each other, and Kanji and Naoto work great as a couple exploring their own feelings as well as the societal barriers and baggage that come along with their personal choices (I like the way that Kanji takes a more traditionally feminine role - sewing, cooking, emotionality - while Naoto takes the more traditionally masculine role - guns, stoicism, logic). And Rise (especially based on the Drama CD) just seems to fit with her fellow kouhai, even though most of the time she's really just playing matchmaker. So, that left Yukiko and Souji.
But that doesn't mean that even in my story, Souji didn't occasionally have feelings for the other girls. In fact, in the most recent chapter update (Chapter 39, "Let Go, Hold On," posted 18 November 2009), Yousuke makes a telling observation about Souji regarding his old leader's romantic proclivities. And Chie jumps to a bit of a strange conclusion on her own (earlier in the same chapter), simply because she's projecting her own fears and doubts. And because we all think the world revolves around ourselves.
Now, there is a snag. Yukiko, as my readers will know from Chapter 33 ("Juxtaposition" - read it here if you've forgotten), is currently on the mend from a relationship upheaval of her own. How will that translate to her affection for Souji...if any of those feelings still exists at all? Curious readers will just have to wait and see.
So, I don't know why a lot of other people choose Souji to be with Yukiko. But those are my reasons.
Hope you're all enjoying the story, and these little glimpses into how I make the story work!
A: I have no good answer for that.
While other authors may put Yukiko and Souji together, there are lots of other authors who like pairing Souji with Rise, or Chie, or Naoto...as well as with Yousuke and Kanji (though I don't see that one very often). In all honesty, given the open-ness that the player can take with the Hero Main Character (for ease, we'll call him Seta Souji), the romantic/sexual relationships can go any way you want. I've read a few stories that made Ebihara Ai his one true love, and I've seen a few pieces of artwork that put Souji with Ozawa Yumi and even Matsunaga Ayane. As I said, it's really up to the individual's personal tastes and outlook.
As for me, my Hero MC hooked up with Yukiko the first time I played the game, because I thought they just "fit" together. Listening to the Drama CD, I'm even more convinced that Yukiko and Souji are the best fit. Besides, I immediately put Yousuke and Chie together as the bickering would-be lovers who just couldn't admit their own feelings to themselves or each other, and Kanji and Naoto work great as a couple exploring their own feelings as well as the societal barriers and baggage that come along with their personal choices (I like the way that Kanji takes a more traditionally feminine role - sewing, cooking, emotionality - while Naoto takes the more traditionally masculine role - guns, stoicism, logic). And Rise (especially based on the Drama CD) just seems to fit with her fellow kouhai, even though most of the time she's really just playing matchmaker. So, that left Yukiko and Souji.
But that doesn't mean that even in my story, Souji didn't occasionally have feelings for the other girls. In fact, in the most recent chapter update (Chapter 39, "Let Go, Hold On," posted 18 November 2009), Yousuke makes a telling observation about Souji regarding his old leader's romantic proclivities. And Chie jumps to a bit of a strange conclusion on her own (earlier in the same chapter), simply because she's projecting her own fears and doubts. And because we all think the world revolves around ourselves.
Now, there is a snag. Yukiko, as my readers will know from Chapter 33 ("Juxtaposition" - read it here if you've forgotten), is currently on the mend from a relationship upheaval of her own. How will that translate to her affection for Souji...if any of those feelings still exists at all? Curious readers will just have to wait and see.
So, I don't know why a lot of other people choose Souji to be with Yukiko. But those are my reasons.
Hope you're all enjoying the story, and these little glimpses into how I make the story work!
11 November 2009
Tanabata and the Duel
- All chapter links listed below will take you to the Fanfiction.Net versions. -
Now that Chapter 37 ("Agonies and Thrills") has been up for a full week and we've moved on to Chapter 38 ("Two Steps Forward....", posted 2009 Nov. 11), I think it's relatively safe for me to go off on a tangent as regard to the duel challenge plot and its culmination.
But just in case, I'm going to SPOILER mark it for those who have not read Chapter 37, so rollover to view the rest.
In Chapter 30 ("Star Princess"), Chie's grandfather Kazunori relates the story of Tanabata. The chapter title refers to a couple of different things. One is the heavenly princess Orihime, the heroine of the Tanabata story; the second is Kuma, whose Arcana is the Star; and the third is Chie, whose fate, at least so far as the duel is concerned, is linked very closely with sweet Orihime's.
Pet names are not common in Japan, but I felt it was important for Yousuke to give Chie the pet name of "hime-chan" or "princess," because that's what she is to him. He's a bit of a chauvinist in this regard - wanting to protect and take care of Chie...not necessarily because he thinks of her as a lesser person because of her gender, but because he thinks she needs someone to protect her and take care of her. (I'm not saying he's right - and she needs to prove time and again that she's the better fighter of the two of them - but that's the way that he thinks. Chalk it up to a patriarchal society.) The princess symbolism doesn't end there, of course...but that's a topic for another day.
Nevertheless, readers who have been paying close attention to what happens in the story will notice that the story of Orihime and Hikoboshi - which Kazunori relates to Kuma and the others - relates almost directly to what occurs with Chie and Yousuke at the conclusion of the duel fight. In the simplest of comparisons:
Chie (Orihime) goes to her father, Hitoshi (Tentei), and begs him to let her stay with Yousuke (Hikoboshi), the man whom she loves. It's specifically Orihime's tears - much like it is with Chie's - that sway Tentei's/Hitoshi's heart in favor of his daughter, despite what his feelings may be for her future or for her lover.
Now, I also felt it was necessary to have Yousuke and Chie grow as adults, as well as both friends and lovers, during the trials of the training chapters. And it was very important for the characters to venture into the Mayonaka TV world, because the Shadows (and Personas) come into play quite significantly in Part IV. And I wanted to build up some tension in the latter chapters, especially, to keep readers interested in seeing what was going to happen in the fight itself. But, for readers who were paying attention, I was giving away the ending of Part III very early on, all the way back in Chapter 30.
END SPOILER
So, this was just a small glimpse into the workings of the mind of an author who's trying to keep everything in a plot moving toward a culminating goal of neatly-woven entertainment. (Or maybe not so neatly-woven. You can judge that for yourself.)
Now that Chapter 37 ("Agonies and Thrills") has been up for a full week and we've moved on to Chapter 38 ("Two Steps Forward....", posted 2009 Nov. 11), I think it's relatively safe for me to go off on a tangent as regard to the duel challenge plot and its culmination.
But just in case, I'm going to SPOILER mark it for those who have not read Chapter 37, so rollover to view the rest.
In Chapter 30 ("Star Princess"), Chie's grandfather Kazunori relates the story of Tanabata. The chapter title refers to a couple of different things. One is the heavenly princess Orihime, the heroine of the Tanabata story; the second is Kuma, whose Arcana is the Star; and the third is Chie, whose fate, at least so far as the duel is concerned, is linked very closely with sweet Orihime's.
Pet names are not common in Japan, but I felt it was important for Yousuke to give Chie the pet name of "hime-chan" or "princess," because that's what she is to him. He's a bit of a chauvinist in this regard - wanting to protect and take care of Chie...not necessarily because he thinks of her as a lesser person because of her gender, but because he thinks she needs someone to protect her and take care of her. (I'm not saying he's right - and she needs to prove time and again that she's the better fighter of the two of them - but that's the way that he thinks. Chalk it up to a patriarchal society.) The princess symbolism doesn't end there, of course...but that's a topic for another day.
Nevertheless, readers who have been paying close attention to what happens in the story will notice that the story of Orihime and Hikoboshi - which Kazunori relates to Kuma and the others - relates almost directly to what occurs with Chie and Yousuke at the conclusion of the duel fight. In the simplest of comparisons:
Chie (Orihime) goes to her father, Hitoshi (Tentei), and begs him to let her stay with Yousuke (Hikoboshi), the man whom she loves. It's specifically Orihime's tears - much like it is with Chie's - that sway Tentei's/Hitoshi's heart in favor of his daughter, despite what his feelings may be for her future or for her lover.
Now, I also felt it was necessary to have Yousuke and Chie grow as adults, as well as both friends and lovers, during the trials of the training chapters. And it was very important for the characters to venture into the Mayonaka TV world, because the Shadows (and Personas) come into play quite significantly in Part IV. And I wanted to build up some tension in the latter chapters, especially, to keep readers interested in seeing what was going to happen in the fight itself. But, for readers who were paying attention, I was giving away the ending of Part III very early on, all the way back in Chapter 30.
END SPOILER
So, this was just a small glimpse into the workings of the mind of an author who's trying to keep everything in a plot moving toward a culminating goal of neatly-woven entertainment. (Or maybe not so neatly-woven. You can judge that for yourself.)
31 October 2009
The value of sex
More than once in recent weeks, I've gotten the question of whether or not the sex in "1 More Chance!" is necessary.
On the one hand, the sex garners the story an M rating, which takes it out of the general listing. This no doubt reduces the number of readers who would just stumble across the story on their own, affecting hit statistics and review numbers and general feedback. That's a bad thing.
On the other hand, the sex in the story is central to the way that the two main characters interact. One of my goals is to create a realistic approach that a couple would take to sex: from the initial sexual exploration, through the early tentative and exciting trysts, as well as through the testing of limits and boundaries as each person starts to realize the kind of sexual being they can and want to be, to an examination of acceptance and equality between two partners based on their own desires. That's a good thing. Chie and Yousuke are about halfway to two-thirds in this progression (Chapter 36 posted on 2009 October 28 - link will take you to the Fanfiction.Net version).
On a side note, it is occasionally amusing for me to see how the chapters with the notably more "mature" events seem to be - consistently - more active in terms of statistics. There's not really any outward clue that anyone would have for these events based on chapter title, so I'm guessing that it's mostly past or current readers who have read that particular chapter before and just go back for more.
I recently considered removing the more explicit sexual moments, to bring the story down to a "T" rating. But as I was reading through some of the previous chapters, I found it difficult to take out the sexuality, and not just because those moments are fun to read over again. They're inherently important to the development of the characters' relationship as both friends and lovers. I think that if I were to remove the sex scenes altogether to make the story more youth-friendly, it would change a lot of the nuances of the story itself.
And I'm not certain I'm willing to make that change just for a higher reader count.
Sexuality is integral to the game, as well. Nearly all of the characters' Shadows are linked somehow to the character's sexuality. This is probably most likely because sex and sexual identity are such important parts of a young person's development, no matter what their preference or orientation. [SPOILER - rollover to view] Kanji's ambiguous sexuality in particular, especially given his acceptance of it at the culmination of his Social/Community Link, is notable for its lack of definition, as well as his acceptance of it. When he tells the Protagonist (Seta Souji in my story) that his Shadow is who he is, that articulation speaks volumes for his own sexuality. It's also the reason why the Kanji in "1 More Chance!" is perhaps the most adult of all of the Investigation Team - his sexuality doesn't scare him, anymore. Some other characters aren't so lucky. [END SPOILER]
I'm not going to go back and rewrite all of "1 More Chance!" in a T-rated version just to get myself more readers (though that thought is occasionally very tempting, especially when the feedback flow is slow). But I do have to wonder if readers are willing to accept some real sexuality in their stories, or if they just enjoy the prurient and pointless sex that's sadly too typical in the wide-spanning genre of fanfiction. [EDIT:] There's a third option, of course: that readers don't like sex at all in their stories. (That's a little sad to me, personally, especially in a story that is most definitely centered around a relationship growing between two adults who are romantically and sexually interested in each other...but that's just my opinion.) [END EDIT]
Thoughts? Comments? I'd like to hear them!
On the one hand, the sex garners the story an M rating, which takes it out of the general listing. This no doubt reduces the number of readers who would just stumble across the story on their own, affecting hit statistics and review numbers and general feedback. That's a bad thing.
On the other hand, the sex in the story is central to the way that the two main characters interact. One of my goals is to create a realistic approach that a couple would take to sex: from the initial sexual exploration, through the early tentative and exciting trysts, as well as through the testing of limits and boundaries as each person starts to realize the kind of sexual being they can and want to be, to an examination of acceptance and equality between two partners based on their own desires. That's a good thing. Chie and Yousuke are about halfway to two-thirds in this progression (Chapter 36 posted on 2009 October 28 - link will take you to the Fanfiction.Net version).
On a side note, it is occasionally amusing for me to see how the chapters with the notably more "mature" events seem to be - consistently - more active in terms of statistics. There's not really any outward clue that anyone would have for these events based on chapter title, so I'm guessing that it's mostly past or current readers who have read that particular chapter before and just go back for more.
I recently considered removing the more explicit sexual moments, to bring the story down to a "T" rating. But as I was reading through some of the previous chapters, I found it difficult to take out the sexuality, and not just because those moments are fun to read over again. They're inherently important to the development of the characters' relationship as both friends and lovers. I think that if I were to remove the sex scenes altogether to make the story more youth-friendly, it would change a lot of the nuances of the story itself.
And I'm not certain I'm willing to make that change just for a higher reader count.
Sexuality is integral to the game, as well. Nearly all of the characters' Shadows are linked somehow to the character's sexuality. This is probably most likely because sex and sexual identity are such important parts of a young person's development, no matter what their preference or orientation. [SPOILER - rollover to view] Kanji's ambiguous sexuality in particular, especially given his acceptance of it at the culmination of his Social/Community Link, is notable for its lack of definition, as well as his acceptance of it. When he tells the Protagonist (Seta Souji in my story) that his Shadow is who he is, that articulation speaks volumes for his own sexuality. It's also the reason why the Kanji in "1 More Chance!" is perhaps the most adult of all of the Investigation Team - his sexuality doesn't scare him, anymore. Some other characters aren't so lucky. [END SPOILER]
I'm not going to go back and rewrite all of "1 More Chance!" in a T-rated version just to get myself more readers (though that thought is occasionally very tempting, especially when the feedback flow is slow). But I do have to wonder if readers are willing to accept some real sexuality in their stories, or if they just enjoy the prurient and pointless sex that's sadly too typical in the wide-spanning genre of fanfiction. [EDIT:] There's a third option, of course: that readers don't like sex at all in their stories. (That's a little sad to me, personally, especially in a story that is most definitely centered around a relationship growing between two adults who are romantically and sexually interested in each other...but that's just my opinion.) [END EDIT]
Thoughts? Comments? I'd like to hear them!
20 October 2009
Q: Who'd win in this fight: Kanji v. Yukiko?
Q: In Chapter 34, one more fighter comes into play: Amagi Yukiko, the sweet young proprietess of the Amagi Inn. Yukiko steps in for a little bit of two-on-two with Kanji, Yousuke, and Chie, and to make the fight interesting, the others suggest a girls v. guys fight. So a couple of reviewers asked: Who won in the Yukiko v. Kanji bout?
A: Kanji (probably)
There's a little bit of author conceit going on here, as there tends to be in every contrived sequence. So, I'll explain that first.
The purpose of Yukiko stepping in to fight is mostly there to give Chie a friend to fight alongside, and to showcase that Yukiko's not just the straight-edged damsel that she may have appeared to be up until this point in the story. It also gives the author (me) the opportunity to create a fun pairing for a fight. We already know that Naoto is well-versed in CQC (close quarters combat - thanks, Kojima-san), and Rise doesn't really have much fighting experience (though she will by the time everything's all over, for certain). And Kuma's not there, so she's out. So, that left Yukiko.
I also wanted Yukiko to step out a little bit more from her self-imposed shell that's been building since way back in Chapter 23 (if not earlier). So I gave her a knowledge of Tai Chi, which I thought would make sense given that the art form has become much more about poise and technique over time, rather than its original martial roots.
But just because Yukiko has some martial arts experience doesn't mean that she's proficient enough - or just plain mean enough - to be able to take down Kanji in a one-on-one fight. Kanji's style is a mixture of classic gendai budo like judo and straight-up boxing techniques. (Sharp-eyed readers will notice that Kanji almost always punches or grapples and hardly ever kicks, with the exception of a couple of stomps. He's a tsuki [punch] fighter, for certain.)
One of the reasons that the fight is not described is because I didn't want to take away from the Chie/Yousuke fight...but also because the story is told essentially from Chie's point of view, and she wouldn't be able to focus on the Yukiko/Kanji fight without being distracted in her own fight. And to be perfectly honest, a fight between two characters who are not my principal protagonists would have slowed down the story unnecessarily. But perhaps I'll write a little fight between Yukiko and Kanji down the line. Certainly, the story will go that way....
If you would like to see the Kanji/Yukiko bout in a later chapter - or perhaps another fan fiction, if I can stomach another one after finishing this one - let me know! I'm always open to new ideas.
A: Kanji (probably)
There's a little bit of author conceit going on here, as there tends to be in every contrived sequence. So, I'll explain that first.
The purpose of Yukiko stepping in to fight is mostly there to give Chie a friend to fight alongside, and to showcase that Yukiko's not just the straight-edged damsel that she may have appeared to be up until this point in the story. It also gives the author (me) the opportunity to create a fun pairing for a fight. We already know that Naoto is well-versed in CQC (close quarters combat - thanks, Kojima-san), and Rise doesn't really have much fighting experience (though she will by the time everything's all over, for certain). And Kuma's not there, so she's out. So, that left Yukiko.
I also wanted Yukiko to step out a little bit more from her self-imposed shell that's been building since way back in Chapter 23 (if not earlier). So I gave her a knowledge of Tai Chi, which I thought would make sense given that the art form has become much more about poise and technique over time, rather than its original martial roots.
But just because Yukiko has some martial arts experience doesn't mean that she's proficient enough - or just plain mean enough - to be able to take down Kanji in a one-on-one fight. Kanji's style is a mixture of classic gendai budo like judo and straight-up boxing techniques. (Sharp-eyed readers will notice that Kanji almost always punches or grapples and hardly ever kicks, with the exception of a couple of stomps. He's a tsuki [punch] fighter, for certain.)
One of the reasons that the fight is not described is because I didn't want to take away from the Chie/Yousuke fight...but also because the story is told essentially from Chie's point of view, and she wouldn't be able to focus on the Yukiko/Kanji fight without being distracted in her own fight. And to be perfectly honest, a fight between two characters who are not my principal protagonists would have slowed down the story unnecessarily. But perhaps I'll write a little fight between Yukiko and Kanji down the line. Certainly, the story will go that way....
If you would like to see the Kanji/Yukiko bout in a later chapter - or perhaps another fan fiction, if I can stomach another one after finishing this one - let me know! I'm always open to new ideas.
14 October 2009
One True Three
Q: Is Kanji with Rise, or is he with Naoto?
Reviewer Kisdota, The Freak Gamer asks: Are you giving hints at Naoto/Kanji?
A: Both.
The answer to this question is actually explained in Chapter 14: Past Transgressions. In that chapter, Rise reveals (among other things) that she is at the very least having sex with Kanji. Chie and Yukiko are somewhat surprised to learn this, as they have for a while thought that Naoto and Kanji were a couple (I have taken this couple as canon, based on some of the events in the game, and the relationships expanded upon in the drama CD). Rise then explains that Naoto is with Kanji, but that she has to share him because "he's just so big."
This conversation was written mostly for humorous effect, because Rise is so straightforward with everything and anything that has to do with her own (or anyone else's) sex life. But it also sets up the idea that Rise, Naoto, and Kanji are in a "non-traditional" relationship, between the three of them.
Later in the chapter, Naoto explains the feelings between the three of them in somewhat less graphic detail:
When I played the game the first time, I thought that Kanji and Naoto should have ended up together. But then I started seeing glimmerings of Kanji/Rise, and I thought that they made a cute couple, too. And then I started to see Naoto/Rise start to pop up, and I thought, Why can't the three kouhai form a threesome? The three of them have complementary personalities (Kanji is the gruff sweetheart; Naoto is the cool professional; Rise is the bubbly perpetual girl), and they're also physically attractive as a trio. So, I made them my "One True Three," as opposed to a "One True Pair" (OT3 and OTP, respectively).
Maybe Kisdota, The Freak Gamer forgot about what was said in Chapter 14 (it has been a long time since that chapter was posted), or maybe he came in after the fact. But, yes, there are very strong hints of Kanji/Naoto. There are also very strong hints of Kanji/Rise. And there are less strong hints about Naoto/Rise...although those will become less subtle as the story progresses into the final arc.
Reviewer Kisdota, The Freak Gamer asks: Are you giving hints at Naoto/Kanji?
A: Both.
The answer to this question is actually explained in Chapter 14: Past Transgressions. In that chapter, Rise reveals (among other things) that she is at the very least having sex with Kanji. Chie and Yukiko are somewhat surprised to learn this, as they have for a while thought that Naoto and Kanji were a couple (I have taken this couple as canon, based on some of the events in the game, and the relationships expanded upon in the drama CD). Rise then explains that Naoto is with Kanji, but that she has to share him because "he's just so big."
This conversation was written mostly for humorous effect, because Rise is so straightforward with everything and anything that has to do with her own (or anyone else's) sex life. But it also sets up the idea that Rise, Naoto, and Kanji are in a "non-traditional" relationship, between the three of them.
Later in the chapter, Naoto explains the feelings between the three of them in somewhat less graphic detail:
Naoto hummed. She inhaled deeply, almost like a sigh. “There is a deep bond between me and Kanji-chan. We are drawn to each other for very specific reasons.” She chuckled again. “But he is drawn to Rise-chan, as well, for other reasons that I can understand. I am drawn to her for those reasons, too.”
Chie sniffed and looked at the younger woman in some surprise. “You mean, the three of you...together?”
Naoto smiled back at her, softly and with a subtle blush along her cheeks. “Neither Kanji-chan nor I discriminate on the basis of gender. So, we share.” She reached out and touched Chie on the hand, her expression turning serious. “As much as we may tease her, and as much as she may still act a flirt, Rise-chan is not the same frivolous woman she once was. I have been close enough with her these last two years to have felt the full power of her love, and to know unconditionally that the whole of her heart is devoted to me and Kanji-chan.”
When I played the game the first time, I thought that Kanji and Naoto should have ended up together. But then I started seeing glimmerings of Kanji/Rise, and I thought that they made a cute couple, too. And then I started to see Naoto/Rise start to pop up, and I thought, Why can't the three kouhai form a threesome? The three of them have complementary personalities (Kanji is the gruff sweetheart; Naoto is the cool professional; Rise is the bubbly perpetual girl), and they're also physically attractive as a trio. So, I made them my "One True Three," as opposed to a "One True Pair" (OT3 and OTP, respectively).
Maybe Kisdota, The Freak Gamer forgot about what was said in Chapter 14 (it has been a long time since that chapter was posted), or maybe he came in after the fact. But, yes, there are very strong hints of Kanji/Naoto. There are also very strong hints of Kanji/Rise. And there are less strong hints about Naoto/Rise...although those will become less subtle as the story progresses into the final arc.
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