Title: Blue Feather ~A Proposal to Yoshiko~
Anime: Love Live!
Pairing: YoshiMaru (Yoshiko x Hanamaru)
Disclaimer: Love Live! and all of its characters are owned by the creator, Kimino Sakurako sensei.
Author owns this story and all of the randomness that going on in this story
This fict is a birthday present for my friend, Aya, whose birthday already passed by a month lol. I'm so sorry, but I am writing this for you, so I hope you'll like it!
Alright then!
Without any further ado, let's get started~
Enjoy!
It was another--usual day for Aqours, and another--usual way for them to end the day by waving and greeting each other a goodbye at their club's room. Every each of them walked out the room and find a way out to the road that will bring them back to home. But, just when the first years gang were going to walked out, Hanamaru suddenly stopped her feet to find out that Yoshiko hasn't even moved from her seat. Yoshiko--from what Hanamaru saw, was really concentrating on something. She didn't really know what exactly Yoshiko was doing, but Yoshiko was holding something and her eyes were looking at it so intensely that she thought Yoshiko glued her eyes on it.
'What was that thing she is holding?' Hanamaru thought to herself, thinking of voicing her curiosity towards Yoshiko, but Ruby was there to interrupt her mind.
"What's wrong, Hanamaru-chan?" Ruby asked; wondering why her friend suddenly stopped moving when they were just a bit closer of leaving the club's room.
Ruby then following Hanamaru's gaze and found out what was bothering Hanamaru's mind. "Oh, Yoshiko-chan." Ruby spoke again. "Don't you want to go back home with us?"
"No." Responded Yoshiko. "You both go home. People at your kingdom must be worried hell if you come late." Her eyes still glued on the thing she hold, not bothering to look at either Ruby or Hanamaru. Yoshiko was dead serious, doing something nobody even knew about.
At that response, Ruby laughed awkwardly. "The people at your home must be worried as well" was the words she murmured. But it seemed like no one but herself could heard the quiet murmur.
"Yoshiko-chan, what was the thing you had on your hand?" Hanamaru asked.
"A console"
"What is a console, zura?" Hanamaru asked again. She was not familiar with the word, let alone seeing that 'console' thing.
"A console is a device for you to... um play a game. In this case, it is!" Ruby stated, helping the lost Hanamaru to find a track.
Hanamaru nodded lightly, seemingly understood (well, more or less) about the thing that Yoshiko was holding. But, what game could possibly made Yoshiko became that serious? it even made her stayed longer at school! Hanamaru just couldn't help but wondering--and feeling really curious!
...But, Ruby, once again, interrupted her trail of thoughts "Yoshiko-chan. It will be dark soon, and you will miss your bus, you know?"
"Oh!!" The serious Yoshiko came back to life. Slamming the console down to her bag, Yoshiko looked at a clock on the wall. "Good! I can still make it!" She said, then running as fast as she could.
Waving a quick goodbye, Yoshiko then dashed out like she was about to die. Seemed like missing her bus was worse than losing the game she was playing.
"Then, shall we go home, too, Hanamaru-chan?"
"Yes, Ruby-chan"
The next day was still the same. There was this time again when Yoshiko stayed a bit longer to play a game with her console. Hanamaru curiously approached Yoshiko to find out what game she was playing--despite having no knowledge about game at all.
"What game are you playing, zura?" She asked.
"Oh, this?" Yoshiko left the game from her sight to look at Hanamaru (which is quite different from the seeious Yoshiko from another day!) "This is Harvest Moon."
"Harvest Moon?"
"Yes. Harvest Moon. A game about being a farmer."
"A farmer of the moon?"
"Of course not." Yoshiko remarked, "How are you supposed to harvest the moon anyway?" she added.
'She was right' Hanamaru replied on her mind. But on the other side, Hanamaru really didn't get it. Why does it named 'Harvest Moon' when it doesn't let us harvest the moon? Weird.
"Then what are we supposed to harvest?" She asked. Yoshiko let out a small sigh before opened her mouth to reply.
"Anything." She said. "But, of course, the things we can harvest are something normal like vegetables, eggs, milk or anything that a normal farmer can harvest."
"I see."
"And it's not only about farming and harvesting! You have to build your social skills by interacting with villagers there!"
"Oohh. I see, zura"
"You can also attending every events they held, and participating in them!"
"Interesting, zura"
"Right?!" Yoshiko beamed. "And my favourite part is that you can marry to one girl of your choice!"
"You can get married?? But why girl, zura?"
"Because that's the setting. Oh, didn't I tell you? You will be playing as a guy, so the people to marry are girls."
"I see, zura..."
"But, it's not easy! Before you propose them, you have to build up your house, farm, your relationship with the girl, and the most important point is... you have to posses the Blue Feather and give it to them as a marriage proposal!
"Heeh, so, Hanamaru-chan was interested in Harvest Moon, huh?" A voice of the cheerful leader of Aqours echoed through the club room. It was a nice, sunny afternoon when they happened to use the club room to have their lunch together. "I think I have heard about it, but, I haven't actually play it" Chika added.
"I think it was a game about farming?" Riko said, "If you look at the name, that's it."
"Um, I thought so, too, zura. But, Yoshiko-chan said that we cannot harvest the moon, zura."
"Well, yeah, definitely not harvesting the moon. Like, obviously not." Riko said, giving a quick reply over Hanamaru's statement.
"But, anyway, why the sudden interest? Do you find that game interesting?" Chika asked while chewing on her egg roll.
"I have that game at home, if you want to play it!" Ruby gave a follow up.
"Actually, I want to ask about something, zura"
"Oh, decided to play the game after all?" Chika asked for confirmation.
"No, I am never good with games. I just want to know about the relationship building."
"The relationship building? With the girls? or boys?" Ruby asked after she packed all of her empty lunch box neatly.
"With girls, zura. Yoshiko-chan said that we can only married girls"
Riko chocked a bit, making Chika who sat beside her kind of worried and offered her a drink. Riko drank it slowly and spoke. "We are still talking about the game, aren't we?"
"Yes. But Yoshiko-chan seemed to be so happy to get married zura.. She even mentioned that her favourite part is to be married by the girl of her choice."
"Well, but it's inside of the game." Riko replied. "It doesn't mean Yoshiko-chan will actually marry the girl that she choose on the game. The game will not offer actual girl for you to marry" She added.
"Ooh! Then, why don't Hanamaru-chan build her relationship with Yoshiko-chan so that Yoshiko-chan doesn't choose any girl in the game but choose Hanamaru-chan instead??" A sudden, excited beam came from the mikan-haired girl. Her ahoge was twitching as if telling that her idea was the brilliant idea she was ever propose.
"Did you even listen to what I was saying?" Riko gave a quick come back. "I was saying that Yoshiko cannot be married to the girl on the ga--"
"Okay! I will do it, zura!"
"Huh?" Riko glanced real quick at Hanamaru.
"Ooh!! That's the spirit you have there, Hanamaru-chan!!" Chika exclaimed.
Riko glanced at Ruby, and she saw Ruby awkwardly laughing while watching the conversation between Chika and Hanamaru. "What was going on here?" Riko asked Ruby, face palming. "I wonder what..." Ruby replied, still with an awakward laugh.
"So, you will be in charge in this project of 'Hanamaru-chan proposing to Yoshiko-chan' project, Ruby-chan!"
"Eehhh??" Ruby anxiously whined. "Why me?"
"Be-cause-! none of us had ever play the game but you!"
Riko was looking at Chika with a desperate look. Also, wondering why she was here to accompany them doing things that she didn't really understand "Why does her tone sound like a ninja who wants to teach a ninja technique?" she remarked. "Also, Chika-chan. If you suddenly asked Ruby-chan like that, it will make her feel troubled her, don't you think?"
"Eh? Is that so?" Chika looked at Ruby, who seemed so fragile and anxious "Ruby-chan, do you feel troubled?"
"Not really.." She replied. "But, are we really doing this?"
"Do you not want to, zura?" Hanamaru looked at Ruby, feeling a bit down. "If Ruby-chan doesn't want to then..."
"No, no! I want! I want to help Hanamaru-chan!"
The mikan girl smiled. As if she had grasping the shape of victory, she then put out her fist on the air. "Good!! then, let's begin girls!!"
"Seriously, what are we even doing exactly..." was the only thing Riko could say.
"Okay, so, in building your relationship with the girl of your choice--and of course, to be able to marry her. There was seven stages of hearts that you have to pass before you can finally propose her"
That was a fine afternoon. It was a weekend, exactly on Sunday afternoon. They were gathering at the Kurosawa's. And for some reasons, Ruby had been gathering materials and was now explaining about the relationship building of the girls and the farmer of Harvest Moon.
Hanamaru, Chika, and (for no exact explanation, but still forced to come) Riko, was nodding towards the explanation. It was really impressive of Ruby to be able to explain to them and they feel like they just gained a new knowledge of the game--despite the knowledge wasn't really has a meaning in real life. But, they were paying attention nonetheless.
"The first stage of heart is the Black heart. Do you know what does Black Heart mean?"
Someone raised a hand. "Yes, Kurosawa-sensei!"
"Okay, Takami-san!"
"It is when the girl hate you so much that it hurts!"
"Warmer."
"Yes!"
"Yes, Kunikida-san!"
"It is the state when she just think of you as none but a stranger, zura!"
"Good. Kunikida-san gets one point"
"How did you able to know it, Hanamaru-chaann?" Chika whined in defeat.
"He he he. I looked up on the intranet, zura"
"It is called 'internet'. Also, Hanamaru-chan, you looked up beforehand? That's so very diligent of you"
Hanamaru looked on her notes. So many words and important things that she highlighted. The thing she noticed was that the seven stages of heart was her only obstacle she had to pass through in order to propose to Yoshiko-chan. But at least, she already certain that she had passed two stages; the Black and Purple hearts. It makes her being in a Blue heart stage where Yoshiko already acknowledge her as a friend. Now, Hanamaru was thinking to raise her stage to become Green--the state where the girl are starting to like you.
Hanamaru decided to follow everything that Ruby--Kurosawa sensei taught her. Hanamaru will give Yoshiko presents, and will praise her as much as she can so that she will level up to the next heart stage.
"Ookay. Let's fight, zura!"
And so, the exciting challenge begin.
...Or so she thought. But, reality was never as easy as we wanted it to be.
The first day of trying was a mess (at least that what Hanamaru thought it seemed). Hanamaru had given Yoshiko a bucket of flowers, but, Yoshiko was having a pollen allergies and it makes her sneezing all day that their homeroom teacher asked her to go home and take a bed rest instead.
The next day was much more worse. Hanamaru made Yoshiko a bento, with super spicy takoyakis as one of the menu. Yoshiko was quite happy because spicy food was always been her favourite dish. But the thing is, it was so spicy that it made Yoshiko got diarrhea and had to skip practice because she had not feeling well. Hanamaru noticed that she bad put way too much of spicy flavours.
Yoshiko began to notice that something was strange. To Hanamaru's surpise, she didn't even guess that Yoshiko would brought Hanamaru to the back of their school and asked why Hanamaru created and made all of those weird events and things. But, albeit being introgated, Hanamaru didn't want to spill the reason, she was still quiet and told Yoshiko-chan that it was just Hanamaru being kind and she was actually done the same thing to the other Aqours member. Such a lie that Hanamaru made out to make Yoshiko believed that Hanamaru didn't have any ulterior motive. And again, to Hanamaru's surprise, Yoshiko believed that.
After a month, Yoshiko had finally getting used to Hanamaru's treatments. And, Hanamaru had began to get better in guessing what would Yoshiko like as a present, or what stuffs that Yoshiko wanted to do. On the other hand, Yoshiko had began to treat Hanamaru the same way as how Hanamaru treated her.
"In a span of a month and it's already orange? That's impressive..." There come a voice of a beautiful girl in a School Idol Club Room.
"It's not 'orange', y'know~ It is 'mikan-colored', Riko-chaan~!"
"Okay, okay~ It's mikan-colored"
"Mikan-colored? What are you guys talking about?" A sudden voice came out from the back of Riko and Chika.
"Oh, nothing. We were talking about Hanamaru and Yoshiko-chan heart sta--hwaaa--Yo-Yoshiko-chan?! Since when did you were here?!"
"Heart stage?" Yoshiko asked, curious.
Chika looked like she was about to cry, as she shifted her eyes to reach for help. And yes, she was looking at Riko--in which made Riko quite confused as how she should give a follow up so that Yoshiko will not know about Hanamaru's plan. She wanted Hanamaru to harvest on her own effort after all.
But, before Riko was able to make an excuse--or create a story for Yoshiko to deceive her, Chika spilled everything on Yoshiko. Riko was about to cover Chika's mouth (to shut her for talking!), but Yoshiko pull the hand out so that Chika had some space for her to keep talking. Such an intense fight of Riko and Yoshiko, before Riko finally gave up and let her hand go.
Riko then facepalmed on herself, feeling guilty for Hanamaru, but the words cannot be taken back and Yoshiko had already know anyway, so she couldn't help it.
But, it was really strange to her that Yoshiko handled the story with a really calm facial expression instead of being embarrassed or maybe shy about it.
"How silly of her, getting all worked up over a game I was playing. It's not like I would actually marry one of the girls anyway" Yoshiko said, in which be followed by a quick nod by Riko. 'Finally, someone who understands' was probably the thing that Riko quietly declared on her mind.
"Besides..." Yoshiko covered her mouth with the back of her palm. Seemingly blocking her voice, but it was probably not the case, since they can still hear--clearly--the continuation of her sentence. "I was already in a Red Heart level to begin with. Stupid."
"Huh?" Chika was dumbfounded, looking at Yoshiko who dashed out from them. She then looked at Riko, who was doing the same as Chika. "Riko-chan, did you hear that?" asked Chika.
"Yes." Riko confirmed, smiling at Chika. "It means, Hanamaru-chan just have to give her the Blue Feather."