Hakuoki: Okita part 2
Jul. 6th, 2018 05:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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SIGH SO LET'S GET THIS OVER WITH.
Since my cold is less terrible now, on to part 2 of Okita Souji, the sickly jerk.
...which I loved???? What??????? IT WAS QUITE A JOURNEY. Without spoiling it, turns out the sickness tropes were just the prelude to a totally different sort of narrative which I found delightful.
** Spoilers**
Seems like this route is determined to keep Okita sick and in his slightly revealing PJs even if they have to use silver bullets to do it.
Huh! So the household they're in right now is Okita, Chiruzu, Yamazaki (as guard) and the doctor.
Instead of Heisuke or Sanan explaining how vampires work, Chizuru and Yamazaki go through Chizuru's dad's notes. And then just as I'm being struck by how nice Yamazaki is...Kaoru comes and knocks him out, and tells Chizuru she should just give Okita some of her Demon blood.
At this point the repeated Sickness Narrative was annoying me so much I decided to look up a plot summary. And aw, Okita was basically raised by Kondou from the age of 8 at their dojo. That explains the loyalty! Well, except Hijikata was there too, and is around the same age as Kondou, yet Okita clearly didn't imprint on him at all.
I also found the rule 63 Fate character, and a summary of his anime arc, and of his route in the highschool AU. But no summary of the game I'm playing!
AND NOW I AM BACK, having used Harada as a palate cleanser. I won't spoil that path here if I can help it, in case anyone would rather read things in character order.
Before I get to it: I added Artist Ibuki to the background post, since he keeps coming up, and discovered the reason he feels kind of pasted in is not that he was added for one of the newer paths, but that he's the protagonist of a prequel game, making a cameo.
I am going to pause for a moment to think about Kaoru going to huge lengths to ruin the lives of Chiruzu and her love interest....but only when that love interest is Okita, otherwise he doesn't do a single thing.
WHO KNOWS, MAYBE HIS RIVALRY WITH OKITA WILL END UP AS ENDEARING AS SHIRANUI'S WITH HARADA! lol
ANYWAY. BACK TO THE PATH.
Yamazaki is arguing with Obita: Obita thinks he's fine to train, Yamazaki thinks he should get the doctor's opinion. Apparently the two don't get along which is kind of surreal because until now all I've seen of Yamazaki is him being polite and professional to everyone.
My options are "I understand where Okita is coming from" and "You're being a little harsh, Yamazaki", with the first the correct decision. Which is more agency than I was worried she'd be giving him HOORAY.
One thing I'll say for Harada, he made "Chizuru is a bit controlling" seem appealing.
Something that interacts weirdly with the "Chizuru mothers Souji" dynamic is that he really is very childish in general. Which on the upside makes it feel less like a disability thing and more like a him thing.
Okita: Ok I'll go to sleep if you lie down next to me ;)
Chizuru: WHAT
Okita: *frowning and blushing* is it so weird to want company? I'm lonely, ok? Ugh, forget it.
So she sits next to him and he plays with her hair as he goes to sleep and she's very "What is this...feeling..."
It occurs to me that the other advantage of a dude being sick is all the lying down in bed and wiping his brow etc. Carry on, game.
Oh god Okita has healed just in time to rejoin everyone for The Depressing Battle Where All The Recruits Die Because Kondou Is A Dumbass.
Except of course Okita is convinced Hijikata is the reckless one putting Kondou in danger.
And no, he doesn't have a cravat either. He seems to be wearing some sort of kimono-esque crossed-over top under his jacket instead of a button up shirt, which is certainly a neater way of showing off his chest than Harada and Nagakura's.
HUH OK so apparently Kondou has lost the ability to sword fight since his injury. Which explains why Okita is extra worried about his safety, and is also interesting in that Kondou has shown zero Disability Angst about it. He does have a tragic arc but it's entirely unrelated.
Dr: So, Chizuru, are you going with Okita into battle?
Okita: Of course, she's obsessed with me and follows me everywhere :3
Chizuru: *blushing* Don't tease :P
Dr: Oh no are you saying you have feelings for Okita? D: D:
Chizuru: Oh no, we were just playing around!
Dr: Hmm.
Me: Hmm!
The arrive late to the battle and of course encounter...Kaoru!
Kaoru: Looking good, Okita ;) You healed up pretty good for a fake. This battlefield reeks of blood, though, wonder how long you'll resist bloodlust...
Okita: Shows what you know, ever since I first picked up this sword I have been drenched in blood >:D
Yeah, I think if Koaru wanted to pick a love interest who would be horrified at the idea of becoming a monster, Okita was maybe not the best choice. He seems to have been consumed with a constant desire for murder since he was, like, seven.
Okita and Kaoru fight. They are evenly matched until Okita goes into vampire mode, and starts to cut with vicious glee into Kaoru.
Kaoru: Owwwwwwwwwww D:
Okita: :D
Kaoru: Ha! You're better than I expected. So, are you really going to murder Chizuru's darling twin brother in front of her?
Okita: Uh... *hesitates*
Kaoru: BYE :D *runs*
WAIT. FUCK. HE WASN'T ESCAPING. HE WAS DUCKING AROUND TO CHIZURU.
SO HE COULD
FORCE HER TO DRINK THE VAMPIRE SERUM????!!!!!!!!!
Kaoru: By the way, Okita, vampire serum doesn't cure tuberculosis, it'll just make your body eat itself trying to cure it. Have fun in hell you two ^_^
Holy crap where is this even going. What happens if a vampire drinks another vampire's blood??? I am assuming none of the mind control stuff that happens when a regular demon drinks vampire blood a la the Heisuke path, that would get weird.
Aww Okita is genuinely apologetic and guilt ridden.
Chizuru: We should get to Kondou.
Okita: There's no point. Can't you hear? The battle's over, and we lost :(
HUH THIS IS INTERESTING. He asks if she's fine in the sunlight, which she isn't, and when she says she's ok he's like "Stop lying, I'm a vampire too, remember?". He calls himself her vampirism sempai :D
She is overcome with guilt about so much bad stuff happening because of her, and starts crying. He's actually really sweet about comforting her. "Chizuru you're a sweetheart, but have got to learn to be more selfish".
She realises she's in love with him, and so is VERY EMBARRASSED when he's the one insisting on rest and pulls her onto his lap so they can sleep comfortably during the day. Just as she's falling asleep she hears him muttering about the weirdness of stopping short of a murder because he didn't want Chizuru to hate him.
Everyone else when drinking Chizuru's blood. "I'm sorry, I will try to be stronger next time."
Okita: I promise, no matter what happens, the only blood I will drink is yours. I'm sorry. But next time, will you be there?
It seems to work exactly the same as before. In general becoming a vampire doesn't seem to have affected her very much asides from disliking sunlight.
PRINCESS SEN ARRIVES!!
She has information on Stabdad's whereabouts: the distant mountain location where Chizuru and Stadad's clan once lived before being wiped out by humans. From other playthroughs I know there's a spring there that was used to create the vampire serum and can also cure vampirism.
They don't know that, but think Stabdad is their best lead for curing vampirism anyway.
Okita is a jerk to Sen, demonstrating that his personality hasn't changed, he's just added Chizuru to his very small group of "people I give a shit about".
Just as Okita and Chizuru are starting to discuss whether she should investigate her dad, they find out that Kondou has surrendered, but that that the rest of the Shinsengumi are free and under Hijikata's leadership.
Okata takes this about as well as you'd expect. He's immediately determined to just go out and kill every Imperial soldier in his path until Kondou is free, despite everyone pointing out there is no way he would succeed. But then he has a coughing fit and falls unconscious.
When he wakes, he gets Chizuru to pull down a sword on a rack. He says he had a dream, the memory of Kondou giving Okita this sword before Kondou was about to go on a dangerous mission. But Okita refuses to let it become a memento of Kondou, and gets Chizuru to put the sword away. He pulls her into a hug and she happily sinks into his arms.
Okita: I'm a jerk, why do you put up with me?
Chizuru: Honestly I don't know.
Okita: And why do you always stay by my side? Is it pity or guilt?
Chizuru: No! ...I can't explain it. Why do you let me stay?
Okita: Since you won't give me a straight answer I won't give you one either :P
OK FINE I SHIP IT
Hijikata visits to check on Okita and ask Chizuru what her plans are now that Edo is becoming so dangerous. The way he treats her as SENSIBLE ADULT CAPABLE OF DECIDING HER OWN FATE made me swoon a little (also he is still the hottest)
Hijikata explains the details of Kondou's capture, clearly heartbroken. He tells Chizuru there's no point trying to persuade Okita that it's not all Hijikata's fault. "I could have done more. And without me to blame, Okita might lose the will to live. It would be less of a pain in the ass just to wake him up and let him kill me." And then he leaves, saying "We're going north. Don't die, Yukimura".
Hijikata ;_;
As they leave Edo, going towards...actually, I'm not sure where they're going? ANYWAY who should pop up but...
...our old pals Demon Lord Kazama and his sensible henchman Amaguri!
Amaguri: Are you off to try and save the Shinsengumi Chief Kondou?
Okita: What if I am?
Kazama: You're wasting your time. He's dead. I hear they put his head on a pike.
OH NO.
Okita, enraged, goes into vampire mode and tries to kill Kazama. Chizuru tries to intervene but Amaguri holds her back, saying she'll just get herself killed. Okita's poor health means he is no match for Kazama.
Kazama sneers and prepares to kill Okita.
Chizuru pushes past Amaguri with all her strength, and as she runs to save Okita...
EVERYTHING GOES RED. SHE IS FILLED WITH A STRANGE ENERGY.
She draws her sword and successfully drives Kazama back.
Okita stares at her in awe, and Kazama with shock. She realises she must have gone into vampire mode.
Kazama: Wait...you're a vampire? That's disgusting. You're DUMPED.
...ok I am sort of looking forward to his path just to see inside this man's bizarre ideas of how romance works, since he apparently assumes she sees him as something other than "that creep who keeps trying to kidnap me".
Later, Chizuru notices that Okita is now using the sword Kondou gave him.
Okita says he wants to rejoin the Shinsengumi, and Chizuru is worried he'll want to kill Hijikata, but he's gone through anger and grief into a cold, empty indifference.
Just as they are settling in to rest for the day, they are discovered by a troop of Imperial soldiers. Okita goes into vampire mode and tells her to hide. But Chizuru draws her sword and says she'll fight beside him.
Okita:... ok :D Don't blame me if they kill you though :3
Sanan, somewhere in the distance: YES MY CHILDREN. GIVE INTO THE DARK SIDE :D
Okita is a much better swordsman, so he's killed like 8 guys before she's had a chance to think. Someone shoots her in the leg and she's like I'M FINE (ow ow can't worry Okita)
And then a soldier comes at her and she STABS HIM IN THE HEART AND HE DIES.
Okita, I'm sorry I doubted you. You are the BEST vampire sempai.
(I mean this is all going to end super badly. But she stabbed someone! Until they were dead! MY DREAM CAME TRUE AND I NEARLY MISSED IT)
After a while Okita tells her to let him handle the stabbing, since she's not the world's best swordsman. Chizuru is like "Obviously I don't like drawing blood but I want to fight at his side" and I'm wondering if this is just her being in denial about wanting draw blood quite a lot and him trying to protect her from it.
A soldier recognises them as vampires and is about to shoot them with silver bullets when he is murdered just in time by...
Everyone's favourite mullet ninja, Yamazaki! He covers their escape, and is shot, barely dragging himself to safety.
Okita: Very convenient you showing up just then >:/
Me: Jesus, Okita, don't be so paranoid.
Yamazaki: Yes, I've been following you for several days.
Me: Fair enough then.
Okita: Worried I'd follow you back to Hijikata, huh?
Yamazaki: ...
Okita: Lol. I'm embarrassed I didn't notice. Anyway....you did save our lives. So, thanks, I guess.
Yamazaki, using a shocked expression I've never seen on him before: DID YOU JUST SAY THANK YOU? TO ME??
Okita: Fine I take it back :P
Yamazaki: What do you plan to do when you find the Shinsengumi?
Okita: I haven't decided yet.
Yamazaki: You know, Kondou and Hijikata founded the Shinsengumi together. Kondou would never want Hijikata to die.
Okita: I am aware :/
Then Yamazaki tells them the location, his breath ragged with pain, and says he needs to rest. They leave him, and I am not sure if he really did need to rest or just wants to die in peace.
Chizuru has a painful seizure, but doesn't find herself wanting blood, and she suspects her body is trying to fight off the serum. Okita has a coughing fit and then laughs about how he's basically dead at this point, dragging his decaying body around with vampire powers. "We're both a mess"
Chizuru asks if he's decided what he's going to do when he finds Hijikata, and instead of answering, Okita tells her about his childhood.
His parents died, and his sister got married, so at 9 he was left as an apprentice at Shiei Hall, the dojo Kondou trained at that eventually became the starting place of the Shinsengumi. Everyone picked on Okita, as the smallest and youngest, and he felt entirely unwanted and alone, until Kondou showed him some kindness. Okita imprinted on Kondou completely and decided he existed to protect him.
Me: OH. HE'S CHARA FROM UNDERTALE.
And of course this explains why Okita never took to Hijikata: he's the rival for Kondou's affections. Worse, one who was 18 to Kondou's 19, rather than a little kid.
Okita, bitterly: Hijikata filled Kondou's head with dreams of becoming a feudal lord. Every time Kondou talked to him his eyes twinkled a little brighter.
I haven't mentioned shipping Kondou/Hijikata before because it kind of goes without saying? They clearly loved each other deeply in one form or another. And god, just...the relationship between Okita and Hijikata is so much more interesting now. Hijikata trying to look after Okita after Kondou dies, but Okita always dying anyway, and then Hijikata not long after him ;_;
Having a better understanding now of their complex relationship, and realising that underneath it all Okita actually respects Hijikata a lot, Chizuru says she understands why it's so important for Okita to see Hijikata.
Okita: Aren't you worried I'll kill him?
Chizuru: I was. But...I have faith in you.
He stares at her with wide eyes, then pulls her into a hug, shakily saying it's been a long time since anyone understood him. "You're a sneaky one, before I knew it you'd slithered into my heart". Then he lets her go and they walk together in the moonlight, sharing playful affectionate glances.
They finally find Hijikata. He greets Okita with sad, tired eyes and Okita grabs his collar and shouts in his face.
Okita: How could you abandon him?
Hijikata: You think I wanted to?!
Okita punches Hijikata repeatedly, and he falls to the ground.
Okita: The old me would have killed you. If Kondou had stayed at the dojo, he could have died with honour. But instead he ended up with his head on a pike.
Hijikata slowly rises from the ground, wiping blood from his mouth.
Okita: So, where are you going now?
Hijikata: North.
Okita: I'm not going with you.
Hijikata, softly: I see.
Chizuru tells him about Yamazaki and he says "I see" in an even more soft, sad voice. He wishes them well, and then leaves.
Once he's out of earshot Okita mutters softly about what an idiot Hijikata is for not realising what a positive difference he made to Kondou's life. He sighs.
Okita: Well, let's go find your father and get you cured of vampirism :3
Romance:
Aww, he says even if she'd had as awful a childhood as him she wouldn't have ended up half as cynical: she's like Kondou and hasn't got a bad bone in her body.
At around this point I went to sleep and woke up with my cold having settled into my chest. Which is going to make Okita's progressing consumption SUPER FUN TO READ. *prepares self a big steaming mug of expectorant and keeps going*
It's funny, I disliked Okita so much and I like him a lot now. He is a jerk a lot of the time, but I thought it was a conscious decision when it's more like his brain is 90% defence mechanism without much room for thinking about other people's feelings. Once you dig under the surface he's a surprisingly believable depiction of someone who never emotionally progressed beyond their traumatic childhood. Like, it's not even clear if there's any sexual element to all the touching he does of Chizuru or if he just REALLY REALLY needs hugs and uses the odd sexual remark as cover. (I'm guessing there is because she seems to be sexually into him and that's how these things work out. But mainly she just needs hugs too) I mean, he is still kind of a shitty person, but the game never pretends he isn't, and he and Chizuru are happy together.
Chizuru dreams of her peaceful village's destruction, and being saved by Stabdad. She hears a voice filled with anger, wanting the death of those who hurt them: it is her own voice.
(The reason her village was destroyed is that it's people, the Yukimura clan, refused to be like Amaguri/Kazama etc and get involved in human politics)
She wakes to Okita's concerned face. She tells him she's fine.
Okita: There's no point lying to me ;)
Chizuru: I'M NOT LYING D:<
She claps her hands over her mouth and wonders if this is the start of the serum destroying her mind. She calms down and starts telling him about the flashback, but as she recalls watching her family be burned to death she is filled again with hate and anger. "I wanted the families of those who destroyed my village to suffer for generations, until they could no longer conceive of hope"
To think I nearly didn't get to experience this tale of two traumatised, angry vampires in love ;_;
Okita leaves to get her some water, and out from the shadows steps...
KAORU
(Oh god I even like him more now?)
He has been using his connections with the Imperial army to track them.
Kaoru: You remember. You understand now :)
Chizuru: ...yes.
Kaoru: At last we can be the siblings we were meant to be. I have been alone for so long.
Chizuru: What do you plan to do?
Kaoru: Isn't it obvious? Restore the Yukimura clan. Destroy the demons who left us to die, and the humans who pollute this country. With the improved vampire serum we can even restore the powers of those half-demons whose blood has been diluted by sinful matrimony with humans. Join me, sister!
Stabdad working with Kaoru like this makes perfect sense but does make me wonder what Kaoru was doing on all the other paths.
I was expecting Kaoru to be all AND DUMP YOUR GROSS HUMAN BOYFRIEND but he says Okita can come too! Aw.
Okita: lol no fuck off.
Kaoru: *calmly avoiding Okita's attempts to stab him* Well, we'll be waiting for your answer, Chizuru. Bye!
Okita: Why are you just staring like that...surely you're not considering it?
Chizuru: ...
Okita: Look, I'm only going to say this once, but...*nnnnnng*
Okita is overcome with bloodlust and curls into a ball of pain.
Chizuru barely has time to react when...THE SCREEN GOES RED
SUDDENLY SHE WANTS NOTHING MORE THAN TO TEAR HIM LIMB FROM LIMB AND DRINK HIS BLOOD
Her head aches uncontrollably and she reaches up and feels horns growing from her head. Her hair has gone white. She cries out and Okita puts his hands calmly on her shoulders but she tells him to look away.
Okita: Chizuru, do you want my blood? It's contaminated and I worry it may harm you...but if it will make you feel better, you can have it.
She looks at him, his hair as white as hers, and recognises him as another demon, one who is as consumed with bloodlust as she is. She feels less alone.
And now the choice I noticed a while ago and was wondering at the context of: "I want blood", "I will endure it"
I was a bit iffy on the right answer being "I will endure it", since she always gives her love interests blood, but have to admit drinking the blood of a chronically ill human with vampirism is probably not a great idea. I GUESS.
Instead she cuts her hand and offers it to Okita, saying that as a demon she doesn't need it as much. He drinks, saying that he is using her blood to keep himself sane. Then he holds her until her pain subsides.
He takes her to a nice spot under the stars and asks if she's decided whether to join her brother and father's plans for world domination. She hasn't decided (CHIZURU!) and he's cool with that.
Chizuru thinks to herself that she hasn't forgotten what Kaoru has done to them both, and may never forgive him. But remembering everything Kaoru has suffered, she imagines how she would react if Okita died, and can't blame Kaoru for his bitterness.
AH OK. She hasn't decided if she wants to try and work towards rebuilding the village with Kaoru and Stabdad, but is unambiguously against the world domination thing.
Chizuru: Maybe I can reason with him...
Okita: Lol, good luck with that. Someone planning on genocide is not going to listen to reason. A lot of us have been dealt a shitty hand by life, but Kaoru isn't the sort where you can just hold hands and be friends.
Okita: Are you thinking of hiding in the shadows now you've had a taste of being a monster? Like hell I'll let that happen. You're too important to slip into darkness. And after all this, if you plan on walking away from me and everything you have...
Okita holds her hand softly and his voice becomes gentle and affectionate.
Okita: Then I'll kill you ^_^
Naturally, she finds this heartwarming. She says she wants to stay with him and pulls him closer, and they share a passionate, bittersweet kiss.
Okita says that for so long, all he cared about was being Kondou's sword, and while he didn't have a death wish he just didn't give a shit either way whether he lived or died. But now he fights for Chizuru, and actually wants a future, even if the odds of actually getting one seem bleak.
We return to Yukimura village, but this time the house from the flashback is a burned out shell.
Stabdad: Chizuru, you look pale, have you been drinking enough blood?
Koaru: I don't know why she doesn't just eat Okita.
Stabdad: We have extra vampires, honey, don't hold yourself back! It's important to eat a nutritious diet to stay sane ^_^
Congratulations, Okita, you have won the prize for Worst Meeting With The In-Laws, in a game where that generally involves someone being stabbed.
Okita: Lol. Chizuru, you're welcome to drink my blood any time :3
Chizuru: I'm good.
Okita: You're damn right you are.
Kaoru is deeply offended that Chizuru isn't up for genocidal world domination family togetherness time, feeling like the alternative is to just let the injustices he has faced slide. Chizuru tries to persuade her father not to perpetuate the cycle of violence, reminding him of his many years as a doctor amongst humans, and Stabdad wavers.
Kaoru laughs, pulls out a vial of vampire serum, and swallows it. He knows how powerful Okita is, and this is a fight he can't afford to lose.
Okita: I get it. You feel like if you lose, your sister, everyone who ever bullied you, they're all vindicated. You remind me of me before I met Kondou. But my life is hers. That means I can't afford to lose either.
Okita draws the sword Kondou gave him, and they fight.
It's evenly matched, at first, both men slashing each other too fast for the wounds to heal. But Kaoru has a demon's energy and Okita is starting to tire.
Chizuru: Kaoru, stop! We don't have to fight, neither I nor Okita want to hurt you, we just want to live peacefully.
Me: Uh, I would not be so sure of Okita's feelings there, Chizuru.
Kaoru: FUCK YOU SISTER *STAB*
He moves so fast Chizuru doesn't have time to dodge let alone draw her sword, but just when she thinks she's going to die...
Stabdad jumps in front of her, and is mortally injured.
Kaoru cries out in frustration and roughly frees his blade, preparing to stab at Chizuru again. But while he's distracted...
Okita: Pipsqueak, I have never wanted to kill anyone more in my life. Some people just can't be saved. *stab*
Kaoru: 'Can't saved', huh? Well, I never wanted redemption anyway *dies*
With his dying breath, Stabdad tells Chizuru about the healing stream. She tells him he will always be her father, and he dies.
We flash forward to a time when Chizuru's family home has been restored. Chizuru and Okita have been cured enough of vampirism that they are no longer plagued by bloodlust or hurt by sunshine, but still enjoy sleeping during the day. So they are lying together in the grass. Okita has not entirely recovered from his tuberculosis, but for now they are happy, and express their affection for each other before falling asleep, curled in each other's arms in the sun.
THE END
We don't hear what happened to everyone else, but this was very focussed on the two of them and their feelings for each other.
AND I LOVED IT??? I was not expecting to! I nearly gave up entirely! AND IT WAS SO GREAT. BLOOD CRAZED TRAUMATISED VAMPIRES STUMBLING TOWARDS A HAPPY ENDING :D :D
It didn't even really have much mutual pining, they both just slowly figured out how the other felt. And yet, I have feels.
Even Kaoru was more interesting in the end than I thought he'd be: he wasn't just torturing Chizuru out of sheer malice, he genuinely thought the only way for the two of them to connect was if he made her as fucked up as him. He made a good foil to Okita, who is also a deeply fucked up dude but only ever tries to help Chizuru be happy.
Also at no point does she have a moment of guilt or remorse about killing that soldier, or see herself as a different person. It's war, you kill people sometimes. AND DON'T JUST CLOSE YOUR EYES COS YOU'RE A LADY, HARADA.
And now...DEMON LORD KAZAMA. Who better get knocked down a peg or two. Anyone THAT SURE the woman he kidnapped will "see sense" and want to marry him despite exactly zero attempts to make himself likeable needs a serious wake up call before I'd be comfortable with him and Chizuru getting together.
But if the game can make me like Okita, anything is possible. ONWARDS.
Next: Harada Part 1 (yeah it's a bit confusing, sorry)
SIGH SO LET'S GET THIS OVER WITH.
Since my cold is less terrible now, on to part 2 of Okita Souji, the sickly jerk.
...which I loved???? What??????? IT WAS QUITE A JOURNEY. Without spoiling it, turns out the sickness tropes were just the prelude to a totally different sort of narrative which I found delightful.
** Spoilers**
Seems like this route is determined to keep Okita sick and in his slightly revealing PJs even if they have to use silver bullets to do it.
Huh! So the household they're in right now is Okita, Chiruzu, Yamazaki (as guard) and the doctor.
Instead of Heisuke or Sanan explaining how vampires work, Chizuru and Yamazaki go through Chizuru's dad's notes. And then just as I'm being struck by how nice Yamazaki is...Kaoru comes and knocks him out, and tells Chizuru she should just give Okita some of her Demon blood.
At this point the repeated Sickness Narrative was annoying me so much I decided to look up a plot summary. And aw, Okita was basically raised by Kondou from the age of 8 at their dojo. That explains the loyalty! Well, except Hijikata was there too, and is around the same age as Kondou, yet Okita clearly didn't imprint on him at all.
I also found the rule 63 Fate character, and a summary of his anime arc, and of his route in the highschool AU. But no summary of the game I'm playing!
AND NOW I AM BACK, having used Harada as a palate cleanser. I won't spoil that path here if I can help it, in case anyone would rather read things in character order.
Before I get to it: I added Artist Ibuki to the background post, since he keeps coming up, and discovered the reason he feels kind of pasted in is not that he was added for one of the newer paths, but that he's the protagonist of a prequel game, making a cameo.
I am going to pause for a moment to think about Kaoru going to huge lengths to ruin the lives of Chiruzu and her love interest....but only when that love interest is Okita, otherwise he doesn't do a single thing.
WHO KNOWS, MAYBE HIS RIVALRY WITH OKITA WILL END UP AS ENDEARING AS SHIRANUI'S WITH HARADA! lol
ANYWAY. BACK TO THE PATH.
Yamazaki is arguing with Obita: Obita thinks he's fine to train, Yamazaki thinks he should get the doctor's opinion. Apparently the two don't get along which is kind of surreal because until now all I've seen of Yamazaki is him being polite and professional to everyone.
My options are "I understand where Okita is coming from" and "You're being a little harsh, Yamazaki", with the first the correct decision. Which is more agency than I was worried she'd be giving him HOORAY.
One thing I'll say for Harada, he made "Chizuru is a bit controlling" seem appealing.
Something that interacts weirdly with the "Chizuru mothers Souji" dynamic is that he really is very childish in general. Which on the upside makes it feel less like a disability thing and more like a him thing.
Okita: Ok I'll go to sleep if you lie down next to me ;)
Chizuru: WHAT
Okita: *frowning and blushing* is it so weird to want company? I'm lonely, ok? Ugh, forget it.
So she sits next to him and he plays with her hair as he goes to sleep and she's very "What is this...feeling..."
It occurs to me that the other advantage of a dude being sick is all the lying down in bed and wiping his brow etc. Carry on, game.
Oh god Okita has healed just in time to rejoin everyone for The Depressing Battle Where All The Recruits Die Because Kondou Is A Dumbass.
Except of course Okita is convinced Hijikata is the reckless one putting Kondou in danger.
And no, he doesn't have a cravat either. He seems to be wearing some sort of kimono-esque crossed-over top under his jacket instead of a button up shirt, which is certainly a neater way of showing off his chest than Harada and Nagakura's.
HUH OK so apparently Kondou has lost the ability to sword fight since his injury. Which explains why Okita is extra worried about his safety, and is also interesting in that Kondou has shown zero Disability Angst about it. He does have a tragic arc but it's entirely unrelated.
Dr: So, Chizuru, are you going with Okita into battle?
Okita: Of course, she's obsessed with me and follows me everywhere :3
Chizuru: *blushing* Don't tease :P
Dr: Oh no are you saying you have feelings for Okita? D: D:
Chizuru: Oh no, we were just playing around!
Dr: Hmm.
Me: Hmm!
The arrive late to the battle and of course encounter...Kaoru!
Kaoru: Looking good, Okita ;) You healed up pretty good for a fake. This battlefield reeks of blood, though, wonder how long you'll resist bloodlust...
Okita: Shows what you know, ever since I first picked up this sword I have been drenched in blood >:D
Yeah, I think if Koaru wanted to pick a love interest who would be horrified at the idea of becoming a monster, Okita was maybe not the best choice. He seems to have been consumed with a constant desire for murder since he was, like, seven.
Okita and Kaoru fight. They are evenly matched until Okita goes into vampire mode, and starts to cut with vicious glee into Kaoru.
Kaoru: Owwwwwwwwwww D:
Okita: :D
Kaoru: Ha! You're better than I expected. So, are you really going to murder Chizuru's darling twin brother in front of her?
Okita: Uh... *hesitates*
Kaoru: BYE :D *runs*
WAIT. FUCK. HE WASN'T ESCAPING. HE WAS DUCKING AROUND TO CHIZURU.
SO HE COULD
FORCE HER TO DRINK THE VAMPIRE SERUM????!!!!!!!!!
Kaoru: By the way, Okita, vampire serum doesn't cure tuberculosis, it'll just make your body eat itself trying to cure it. Have fun in hell you two ^_^
Holy crap where is this even going. What happens if a vampire drinks another vampire's blood??? I am assuming none of the mind control stuff that happens when a regular demon drinks vampire blood a la the Heisuke path, that would get weird.
Aww Okita is genuinely apologetic and guilt ridden.
Chizuru: We should get to Kondou.
Okita: There's no point. Can't you hear? The battle's over, and we lost :(
HUH THIS IS INTERESTING. He asks if she's fine in the sunlight, which she isn't, and when she says she's ok he's like "Stop lying, I'm a vampire too, remember?". He calls himself her vampirism sempai :D
She is overcome with guilt about so much bad stuff happening because of her, and starts crying. He's actually really sweet about comforting her. "Chizuru you're a sweetheart, but have got to learn to be more selfish".
She realises she's in love with him, and so is VERY EMBARRASSED when he's the one insisting on rest and pulls her onto his lap so they can sleep comfortably during the day. Just as she's falling asleep she hears him muttering about the weirdness of stopping short of a murder because he didn't want Chizuru to hate him.
Everyone else when drinking Chizuru's blood. "I'm sorry, I will try to be stronger next time."
Okita: I promise, no matter what happens, the only blood I will drink is yours. I'm sorry. But next time, will you be there?
It seems to work exactly the same as before. In general becoming a vampire doesn't seem to have affected her very much asides from disliking sunlight.
PRINCESS SEN ARRIVES!!
She has information on Stabdad's whereabouts: the distant mountain location where Chizuru and Stadad's clan once lived before being wiped out by humans. From other playthroughs I know there's a spring there that was used to create the vampire serum and can also cure vampirism.
They don't know that, but think Stabdad is their best lead for curing vampirism anyway.
Okita is a jerk to Sen, demonstrating that his personality hasn't changed, he's just added Chizuru to his very small group of "people I give a shit about".
Just as Okita and Chizuru are starting to discuss whether she should investigate her dad, they find out that Kondou has surrendered, but that that the rest of the Shinsengumi are free and under Hijikata's leadership.
Okata takes this about as well as you'd expect. He's immediately determined to just go out and kill every Imperial soldier in his path until Kondou is free, despite everyone pointing out there is no way he would succeed. But then he has a coughing fit and falls unconscious.
When he wakes, he gets Chizuru to pull down a sword on a rack. He says he had a dream, the memory of Kondou giving Okita this sword before Kondou was about to go on a dangerous mission. But Okita refuses to let it become a memento of Kondou, and gets Chizuru to put the sword away. He pulls her into a hug and she happily sinks into his arms.
Okita: I'm a jerk, why do you put up with me?
Chizuru: Honestly I don't know.
Okita: And why do you always stay by my side? Is it pity or guilt?
Chizuru: No! ...I can't explain it. Why do you let me stay?
Okita: Since you won't give me a straight answer I won't give you one either :P
OK FINE I SHIP IT
Hijikata visits to check on Okita and ask Chizuru what her plans are now that Edo is becoming so dangerous. The way he treats her as SENSIBLE ADULT CAPABLE OF DECIDING HER OWN FATE made me swoon a little (also he is still the hottest)
Hijikata explains the details of Kondou's capture, clearly heartbroken. He tells Chizuru there's no point trying to persuade Okita that it's not all Hijikata's fault. "I could have done more. And without me to blame, Okita might lose the will to live. It would be less of a pain in the ass just to wake him up and let him kill me." And then he leaves, saying "We're going north. Don't die, Yukimura".
Hijikata ;_;
As they leave Edo, going towards...actually, I'm not sure where they're going? ANYWAY who should pop up but...
...our old pals Demon Lord Kazama and his sensible henchman Amaguri!
Amaguri: Are you off to try and save the Shinsengumi Chief Kondou?
Okita: What if I am?
Kazama: You're wasting your time. He's dead. I hear they put his head on a pike.
OH NO.
Okita, enraged, goes into vampire mode and tries to kill Kazama. Chizuru tries to intervene but Amaguri holds her back, saying she'll just get herself killed. Okita's poor health means he is no match for Kazama.
Kazama sneers and prepares to kill Okita.
Chizuru pushes past Amaguri with all her strength, and as she runs to save Okita...
EVERYTHING GOES RED. SHE IS FILLED WITH A STRANGE ENERGY.
She draws her sword and successfully drives Kazama back.
Okita stares at her in awe, and Kazama with shock. She realises she must have gone into vampire mode.
Kazama: Wait...you're a vampire? That's disgusting. You're DUMPED.
...ok I am sort of looking forward to his path just to see inside this man's bizarre ideas of how romance works, since he apparently assumes she sees him as something other than "that creep who keeps trying to kidnap me".
Later, Chizuru notices that Okita is now using the sword Kondou gave him.
Okita says he wants to rejoin the Shinsengumi, and Chizuru is worried he'll want to kill Hijikata, but he's gone through anger and grief into a cold, empty indifference.
Just as they are settling in to rest for the day, they are discovered by a troop of Imperial soldiers. Okita goes into vampire mode and tells her to hide. But Chizuru draws her sword and says she'll fight beside him.
Okita:... ok :D Don't blame me if they kill you though :3
Sanan, somewhere in the distance: YES MY CHILDREN. GIVE INTO THE DARK SIDE :D
Okita is a much better swordsman, so he's killed like 8 guys before she's had a chance to think. Someone shoots her in the leg and she's like I'M FINE (ow ow can't worry Okita)
And then a soldier comes at her and she STABS HIM IN THE HEART AND HE DIES.
Okita, I'm sorry I doubted you. You are the BEST vampire sempai.
(I mean this is all going to end super badly. But she stabbed someone! Until they were dead! MY DREAM CAME TRUE AND I NEARLY MISSED IT)
After a while Okita tells her to let him handle the stabbing, since she's not the world's best swordsman. Chizuru is like "Obviously I don't like drawing blood but I want to fight at his side" and I'm wondering if this is just her being in denial about wanting draw blood quite a lot and him trying to protect her from it.
A soldier recognises them as vampires and is about to shoot them with silver bullets when he is murdered just in time by...
Everyone's favourite mullet ninja, Yamazaki! He covers their escape, and is shot, barely dragging himself to safety.
Okita: Very convenient you showing up just then >:/
Me: Jesus, Okita, don't be so paranoid.
Yamazaki: Yes, I've been following you for several days.
Me: Fair enough then.
Okita: Worried I'd follow you back to Hijikata, huh?
Yamazaki: ...
Okita: Lol. I'm embarrassed I didn't notice. Anyway....you did save our lives. So, thanks, I guess.
Yamazaki, using a shocked expression I've never seen on him before: DID YOU JUST SAY THANK YOU? TO ME??
Okita: Fine I take it back :P
Yamazaki: What do you plan to do when you find the Shinsengumi?
Okita: I haven't decided yet.
Yamazaki: You know, Kondou and Hijikata founded the Shinsengumi together. Kondou would never want Hijikata to die.
Okita: I am aware :/
Then Yamazaki tells them the location, his breath ragged with pain, and says he needs to rest. They leave him, and I am not sure if he really did need to rest or just wants to die in peace.
Chizuru has a painful seizure, but doesn't find herself wanting blood, and she suspects her body is trying to fight off the serum. Okita has a coughing fit and then laughs about how he's basically dead at this point, dragging his decaying body around with vampire powers. "We're both a mess"
Chizuru asks if he's decided what he's going to do when he finds Hijikata, and instead of answering, Okita tells her about his childhood.
His parents died, and his sister got married, so at 9 he was left as an apprentice at Shiei Hall, the dojo Kondou trained at that eventually became the starting place of the Shinsengumi. Everyone picked on Okita, as the smallest and youngest, and he felt entirely unwanted and alone, until Kondou showed him some kindness. Okita imprinted on Kondou completely and decided he existed to protect him.
Me: OH. HE'S CHARA FROM UNDERTALE.
And of course this explains why Okita never took to Hijikata: he's the rival for Kondou's affections. Worse, one who was 18 to Kondou's 19, rather than a little kid.
Okita, bitterly: Hijikata filled Kondou's head with dreams of becoming a feudal lord. Every time Kondou talked to him his eyes twinkled a little brighter.
I haven't mentioned shipping Kondou/Hijikata before because it kind of goes without saying? They clearly loved each other deeply in one form or another. And god, just...the relationship between Okita and Hijikata is so much more interesting now. Hijikata trying to look after Okita after Kondou dies, but Okita always dying anyway, and then Hijikata not long after him ;_;
Having a better understanding now of their complex relationship, and realising that underneath it all Okita actually respects Hijikata a lot, Chizuru says she understands why it's so important for Okita to see Hijikata.
Okita: Aren't you worried I'll kill him?
Chizuru: I was. But...I have faith in you.
He stares at her with wide eyes, then pulls her into a hug, shakily saying it's been a long time since anyone understood him. "You're a sneaky one, before I knew it you'd slithered into my heart". Then he lets her go and they walk together in the moonlight, sharing playful affectionate glances.
They finally find Hijikata. He greets Okita with sad, tired eyes and Okita grabs his collar and shouts in his face.
Okita: How could you abandon him?
Hijikata: You think I wanted to?!
Okita punches Hijikata repeatedly, and he falls to the ground.
Okita: The old me would have killed you. If Kondou had stayed at the dojo, he could have died with honour. But instead he ended up with his head on a pike.
Hijikata slowly rises from the ground, wiping blood from his mouth.
Okita: So, where are you going now?
Hijikata: North.
Okita: I'm not going with you.
Hijikata, softly: I see.
Chizuru tells him about Yamazaki and he says "I see" in an even more soft, sad voice. He wishes them well, and then leaves.
Once he's out of earshot Okita mutters softly about what an idiot Hijikata is for not realising what a positive difference he made to Kondou's life. He sighs.
Okita: Well, let's go find your father and get you cured of vampirism :3
Romance:
Aww, he says even if she'd had as awful a childhood as him she wouldn't have ended up half as cynical: she's like Kondou and hasn't got a bad bone in her body.
At around this point I went to sleep and woke up with my cold having settled into my chest. Which is going to make Okita's progressing consumption SUPER FUN TO READ. *prepares self a big steaming mug of expectorant and keeps going*
It's funny, I disliked Okita so much and I like him a lot now. He is a jerk a lot of the time, but I thought it was a conscious decision when it's more like his brain is 90% defence mechanism without much room for thinking about other people's feelings. Once you dig under the surface he's a surprisingly believable depiction of someone who never emotionally progressed beyond their traumatic childhood. Like, it's not even clear if there's any sexual element to all the touching he does of Chizuru or if he just REALLY REALLY needs hugs and uses the odd sexual remark as cover. (I'm guessing there is because she seems to be sexually into him and that's how these things work out. But mainly she just needs hugs too) I mean, he is still kind of a shitty person, but the game never pretends he isn't, and he and Chizuru are happy together.
Chizuru dreams of her peaceful village's destruction, and being saved by Stabdad. She hears a voice filled with anger, wanting the death of those who hurt them: it is her own voice.
(The reason her village was destroyed is that it's people, the Yukimura clan, refused to be like Amaguri/Kazama etc and get involved in human politics)
She wakes to Okita's concerned face. She tells him she's fine.
Okita: There's no point lying to me ;)
Chizuru: I'M NOT LYING D:<
She claps her hands over her mouth and wonders if this is the start of the serum destroying her mind. She calms down and starts telling him about the flashback, but as she recalls watching her family be burned to death she is filled again with hate and anger. "I wanted the families of those who destroyed my village to suffer for generations, until they could no longer conceive of hope"
To think I nearly didn't get to experience this tale of two traumatised, angry vampires in love ;_;
Okita leaves to get her some water, and out from the shadows steps...
KAORU
(Oh god I even like him more now?)
He has been using his connections with the Imperial army to track them.
Kaoru: You remember. You understand now :)
Chizuru: ...yes.
Kaoru: At last we can be the siblings we were meant to be. I have been alone for so long.
Chizuru: What do you plan to do?
Kaoru: Isn't it obvious? Restore the Yukimura clan. Destroy the demons who left us to die, and the humans who pollute this country. With the improved vampire serum we can even restore the powers of those half-demons whose blood has been diluted by sinful matrimony with humans. Join me, sister!
Stabdad working with Kaoru like this makes perfect sense but does make me wonder what Kaoru was doing on all the other paths.
I was expecting Kaoru to be all AND DUMP YOUR GROSS HUMAN BOYFRIEND but he says Okita can come too! Aw.
Okita: lol no fuck off.
Kaoru: *calmly avoiding Okita's attempts to stab him* Well, we'll be waiting for your answer, Chizuru. Bye!
Okita: Why are you just staring like that...surely you're not considering it?
Chizuru: ...
Okita: Look, I'm only going to say this once, but...*nnnnnng*
Okita is overcome with bloodlust and curls into a ball of pain.
Chizuru barely has time to react when...THE SCREEN GOES RED
SUDDENLY SHE WANTS NOTHING MORE THAN TO TEAR HIM LIMB FROM LIMB AND DRINK HIS BLOOD
Her head aches uncontrollably and she reaches up and feels horns growing from her head. Her hair has gone white. She cries out and Okita puts his hands calmly on her shoulders but she tells him to look away.
Okita: Chizuru, do you want my blood? It's contaminated and I worry it may harm you...but if it will make you feel better, you can have it.
She looks at him, his hair as white as hers, and recognises him as another demon, one who is as consumed with bloodlust as she is. She feels less alone.
And now the choice I noticed a while ago and was wondering at the context of: "I want blood", "I will endure it"
I was a bit iffy on the right answer being "I will endure it", since she always gives her love interests blood, but have to admit drinking the blood of a chronically ill human with vampirism is probably not a great idea. I GUESS.
Instead she cuts her hand and offers it to Okita, saying that as a demon she doesn't need it as much. He drinks, saying that he is using her blood to keep himself sane. Then he holds her until her pain subsides.
He takes her to a nice spot under the stars and asks if she's decided whether to join her brother and father's plans for world domination. She hasn't decided (CHIZURU!) and he's cool with that.
Chizuru thinks to herself that she hasn't forgotten what Kaoru has done to them both, and may never forgive him. But remembering everything Kaoru has suffered, she imagines how she would react if Okita died, and can't blame Kaoru for his bitterness.
AH OK. She hasn't decided if she wants to try and work towards rebuilding the village with Kaoru and Stabdad, but is unambiguously against the world domination thing.
Chizuru: Maybe I can reason with him...
Okita: Lol, good luck with that. Someone planning on genocide is not going to listen to reason. A lot of us have been dealt a shitty hand by life, but Kaoru isn't the sort where you can just hold hands and be friends.
Okita: Are you thinking of hiding in the shadows now you've had a taste of being a monster? Like hell I'll let that happen. You're too important to slip into darkness. And after all this, if you plan on walking away from me and everything you have...
Okita holds her hand softly and his voice becomes gentle and affectionate.
Okita: Then I'll kill you ^_^
Naturally, she finds this heartwarming. She says she wants to stay with him and pulls him closer, and they share a passionate, bittersweet kiss.
Okita says that for so long, all he cared about was being Kondou's sword, and while he didn't have a death wish he just didn't give a shit either way whether he lived or died. But now he fights for Chizuru, and actually wants a future, even if the odds of actually getting one seem bleak.
We return to Yukimura village, but this time the house from the flashback is a burned out shell.
Stabdad: Chizuru, you look pale, have you been drinking enough blood?
Koaru: I don't know why she doesn't just eat Okita.
Stabdad: We have extra vampires, honey, don't hold yourself back! It's important to eat a nutritious diet to stay sane ^_^
Congratulations, Okita, you have won the prize for Worst Meeting With The In-Laws, in a game where that generally involves someone being stabbed.
Okita: Lol. Chizuru, you're welcome to drink my blood any time :3
Chizuru: I'm good.
Okita: You're damn right you are.
Kaoru is deeply offended that Chizuru isn't up for genocidal world domination family togetherness time, feeling like the alternative is to just let the injustices he has faced slide. Chizuru tries to persuade her father not to perpetuate the cycle of violence, reminding him of his many years as a doctor amongst humans, and Stabdad wavers.
Kaoru laughs, pulls out a vial of vampire serum, and swallows it. He knows how powerful Okita is, and this is a fight he can't afford to lose.
Okita: I get it. You feel like if you lose, your sister, everyone who ever bullied you, they're all vindicated. You remind me of me before I met Kondou. But my life is hers. That means I can't afford to lose either.
Okita draws the sword Kondou gave him, and they fight.
It's evenly matched, at first, both men slashing each other too fast for the wounds to heal. But Kaoru has a demon's energy and Okita is starting to tire.
Chizuru: Kaoru, stop! We don't have to fight, neither I nor Okita want to hurt you, we just want to live peacefully.
Me: Uh, I would not be so sure of Okita's feelings there, Chizuru.
Kaoru: FUCK YOU SISTER *STAB*
He moves so fast Chizuru doesn't have time to dodge let alone draw her sword, but just when she thinks she's going to die...
Stabdad jumps in front of her, and is mortally injured.
Kaoru cries out in frustration and roughly frees his blade, preparing to stab at Chizuru again. But while he's distracted...
Okita: Pipsqueak, I have never wanted to kill anyone more in my life. Some people just can't be saved. *stab*
Kaoru: 'Can't saved', huh? Well, I never wanted redemption anyway *dies*
With his dying breath, Stabdad tells Chizuru about the healing stream. She tells him he will always be her father, and he dies.
We flash forward to a time when Chizuru's family home has been restored. Chizuru and Okita have been cured enough of vampirism that they are no longer plagued by bloodlust or hurt by sunshine, but still enjoy sleeping during the day. So they are lying together in the grass. Okita has not entirely recovered from his tuberculosis, but for now they are happy, and express their affection for each other before falling asleep, curled in each other's arms in the sun.
THE END
We don't hear what happened to everyone else, but this was very focussed on the two of them and their feelings for each other.
AND I LOVED IT??? I was not expecting to! I nearly gave up entirely! AND IT WAS SO GREAT. BLOOD CRAZED TRAUMATISED VAMPIRES STUMBLING TOWARDS A HAPPY ENDING :D :D
It didn't even really have much mutual pining, they both just slowly figured out how the other felt. And yet, I have feels.
Even Kaoru was more interesting in the end than I thought he'd be: he wasn't just torturing Chizuru out of sheer malice, he genuinely thought the only way for the two of them to connect was if he made her as fucked up as him. He made a good foil to Okita, who is also a deeply fucked up dude but only ever tries to help Chizuru be happy.
Also at no point does she have a moment of guilt or remorse about killing that soldier, or see herself as a different person. It's war, you kill people sometimes. AND DON'T JUST CLOSE YOUR EYES COS YOU'RE A LADY, HARADA.
And now...DEMON LORD KAZAMA. Who better get knocked down a peg or two. Anyone THAT SURE the woman he kidnapped will "see sense" and want to marry him despite exactly zero attempts to make himself likeable needs a serious wake up call before I'd be comfortable with him and Chizuru getting together.
But if the game can make me like Okita, anything is possible. ONWARDS.
Next: Harada Part 1 (yeah it's a bit confusing, sorry)
no subject
Date: 2018-07-06 11:11 am (UTC)I am really curious about how the hell Kazama works as a love interest. I hope there is more flirting with Demon Princess Sen on that route! And Amaguri being all "Let's not kill those people. For reasons."
("Vampire Sempai" feels like it ought to be the name of a manga/anime. Or maybe a webcomic.)
no subject
Date: 2018-07-06 06:46 pm (UTC)Foils/nemeses so far: Saito -> Amaguri Hijikata -> Kazama Heisuke -> Sanan Okita -> Kaoru Harada -> Shiranui Kazama -> Stabdad, maybe? Hijikata? Too early to say.
I can't help but feel Heisuke got the raw end of the deal here :)
And haha I can totally imagine a Vampire Sempai manga. I'd read it :D
no subject
Date: 2018-11-12 01:47 pm (UTC)Yeah, the dynamic where she mothers him was definitely one of the things that I was not into but said, Game, I DARE you to make me like this. And, it did? I think the way it played out - as it looked to me - was that he didn't know how to love because no one had ever bothered to show him how to do it, but once someone did he could pick it up because he's smart and wanted to learn. By the end it feels like the caretaking is mutual.
Okita: Ok I'll go to sleep if you lie down next to me ;)
Chizuru: WHAT
Okita: *frowning and blushing* is it so weird to want company? I'm lonely, ok? Ugh, forget it.
And it doesn't feel like a come-on because it seems like Okita at this point has never heard of sex and doesn't even know it's a thing. Like, hugging is entirely new to him and very exciting, that seems to be all he wants, and even that he'd like to figure out a bit.
I am assuming none of the mind control stuff that happens when a regular demon drinks vampire blood a la the Heisuke path, that would get weird.
I wonder if that even works outside of Heisuke's path. Otherwise, wouldn't Okita be mind-controlled by Chizuru? Which is not a way I think I want that relationship to go.
Stabby vampire Chizuru is great.
The old me would have killed you.
Aw, Okita's really changed!
Once you dig under the surface he's a surprisingly believable depiction of someone who never emotionally progressed beyond their traumatic childhood.
Yes, agreed.
Like, it's not even clear if there's any sexual element to all the touching he does of Chizuru or if he just REALLY REALLY needs hugs and uses the odd sexual remark as cover.
My guess is that they doesn't discover sex until sometime after the route, once they've explored hugging and then kissing a little more. But I think this Chizuru is okay with that, she seems kind of nervous about sex herself.
I was a bit iffy on the right answer being "I will endure it", since she always gives her love interests blood, but have to admit drinking the blood of a chronically ill human with vampirism is probably not a great idea. I GUESS.
I was kind of bothered by that being the right answer, why shouldn't she get to enjoy sexy blood drinking too? Although I get that these aren't the right circumstances, he's coughing up enough blood that he doesn't have a lot to spare.
Okita: Then I'll kill you ^_^
::flails::
And here the game completely won my heart, because Okita never stops threatening murder, but he changes so much that the meaning of it changes and it becomes a way of expressing love. He stays who he is but becomes a loving person. It's amazing.
Okita says that for so long, all he cared about was being Kondou's sword, and while he didn't have a death wish he just didn't give a shit either way whether he lived or died.
It's superficially similar to Saito with the wanting to be a sword, but while Saito finds meaning in being a warrior for Okita it's just a kind of resignation. I think he'll be happy living on a farm with Chizuru and not fighting anymore, in a way I don't think Saito could be.
Okita: Lol. Chizuru, you're welcome to drink my blood any time :3
Chizuru: I'm good.
Okita: You're damn right you are.
And there he is, having grown into a supportive, nurturing partner. I'm happy.
AND IT WAS SO GREAT. BLOOD CRAZED TRAUMATISED VAMPIRES STUMBLING TOWARDS A HAPPY ENDING :D :D
Yes!
Did you see the epilogue? (I'm annoyed we didn't get these in this version, they definitely add.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jJbEnUkE9k
no subject
Date: 2018-11-28 08:47 pm (UTC)And at this point he's still at the "sex is for other people" stage, though I tend to read him as being aware that Chizuru is attracted to him and finding it flattering and amusing.
Yeah everything makes more sense if we assume Fury blood is only a mind control serum on the Sanan path (or it's just Sanan's blood, or only human Fury blood, etc)
He stays who he is but becomes a loving person. It's amazing.
Yes!
And yeah I agree: he defined himself as a sword as a consequence of defining himself by Kondou and Kondou's needs. After the end of the game, his relationship with Chizuru doesn't require a sword, so he could let that go. The hard thing was letting go of defining himself by Kondou, and he's already done that.
I had not seen that epilogue and oh gosh my heart. Thank you!
no subject
Date: 2018-11-29 03:12 pm (UTC)It reminds me that in Rurouni Kenshin the absolute best swordsman in the series (Kenshin's teacher) is also a potter. Something about the precision of that style of swordfighting can translate into skill in crafting beautiful things. If post-canon Okita ever feels ready for a second career I could see him taking up some sort of craft.
All the epilogues are very worth watching, they were in some previous version for all the original six. I especially like the Saito one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xl0QF3CD4Es
no subject
Date: 2018-11-30 09:39 pm (UTC)I love how in the epilogue he uses his skill with his hands to make a flower crown. Because this is what's left once you strip away all the stuff about being a sword: he's just really good with his hands./em>
;_;
I am definitely going to look them all up and watch them once I am done dating dolls. Thanks for letting me know about them!