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homophones) wrote2011-02-05 11:36 pm
Soul Campaign Application (in progress)
[ PLAYER INFORMATION ]
Player Name: Em
Age: 19
Timezone: Eastern Standard
Personal Journal: safelybeds
Contact Information:
Instant Messenger: AIM; iTakeKids000
Email: 3farthingstone@gmail.com
Current Characters: N/A
[ CHARACTER INFORMATION ]
Name: Yosuke Hanamura
Age: 17
Gender: Male
Fandom: Persona 4
Timeline: March 23rd, a few days after Souji's departure in the Bad Ending path (Namatame killed, Nanako dead).
History: Yosuke's History
Character Personality:
When it comes down to it, Yosuke Hanamura is a kid who doesn’t know what he wants.
He has some idea of what he’s should want, sure. Yosuke can’t forget what he’s supposed to be doing with his life: get good grades, don’t slack off at work, be responsible and begin the transition into adulthood as smoothly as possible. Be self possessed, sure of himself, and a better man than he could ever hope to be. But unlike those who rise to their cultures’ high expectations, Yosuke buckles underneath their weight. Where’s the thrill in adulthood? Where’s the happiness in taxes? Yosuke isn’t exactly a free spirit -- far from it, actually -- and his heavy reservations over growing up are based more off a fear of failing those around him by simply…being himself. Shaken together in an insecurity cocktail, Yosuke finds himself desperate to meet a standard that his low self-esteem is positive he’ll never attain (and doesn’t even want to attain, really). He throws everything into winning the approval of others. But even when he gets the validation he’s after, it’s never the feeling of relief he hopes it will be. His nerves are always there in the back of his mind, terrified of making even one misstep and sending his carefully constructed happy-go-lucky, takes-being-the-butt-of-every-
And, unfortunately, that fear is something of a self fulfilling prophecy. Yosuke’s over eager behavior and desperateness to please isn’t only exhausting for him, but for everyone around him. If you send him a text, he’ll respond within thirty seconds (and then another ten minutes later, asking if his text went through. And then another in an hour, asking if everything’s alright. And then another wondering if your phone is broken. And then six more apologizing for being such a needy idiot, lol, sry man jst me being stupd!). If you already have plans when he asks to hang out, it’s hard for him to read it as anything other than a rejection of his entire existence. No matter how you sliced it, it was hard being friends with Yosuke Hanamura.
Before moving to the small town of Inaba for the opening of a new Junes location his father is assigned to manage, most of the kids at his school are tired of him and the ones still hanging on are mostly in it for the free meals. Once Yosuke leaves his home in the city (and god does he miss it; the lights, the crowds, the noise), responses to his texts get slower and slower until stopping completely. Combined with being dropped in a town that despises what he and his family symbolize, his loneliness reaches a new low. That loneliness and isolation are compounded when it’s revealed that the one person who gave him the time of day in Inaba -- Saki Konishi, whom he had a hopeless crush on -- is killed and shown to have secretly been as irritated and exhausted with him as everyone else.
But things aren’t as bad as they used to be. He has genuine friends now, ones that know who he is and like him anyway. It opens his eyes to the possibility that working and working at making people like him isn’t the necessity he thought it was; that maybe people might actually like him. Although he still has a long ways to go and many maturity hurdles to jump before he really gets there, he is getting there. Slowly but surely.
Yosuke still separates “people” and “people who he trusts to like him” in separate categories. Working in retail for his father’s store -- the mega shopping emporium, Junes -- has given him a knack for customer service. It will be an unsettling day when Yosuke realizes just how good a salesman he is. It's this 'persona' that most strangers get; all bright smiles and politeness and how may I help you, sir or madam? Remember, every day is customer appreciation day at Junes! The people whom he’s close to and trusts, they get a different picture. Yosuke can be solemn, passionate, insensitive, vulnerable, and intensely furious when riled. However, his inherent snark and clumsy inexperience when it comes to being himself around people can lead to a few a lot of unfortunate foot-in-mouth moments. His ribbing and teasing occasionally goes too far, although being called on it (usually) leads to apology. When it doesn’t, a quick threat of physical violence is a surefire way to send him cowering. If there’s one thing Yosuke avoids, it’s confrontation. Even with all the growing he’s done overtime, the fear of losing all he’s gained still lurks in the back of his mind.
And what does he stand to lose? Only the best friends a guy could possibly luck into. While he has an unique relationship with each of his his teammates -- Chie is like a sister (a really annoying sister); Kanji triples as his competition, friend and kohai; Rise is the girl of his dreams (and in the real world, a good friend who actually seems to like his jokes); Naoto, the detective who's serious demeanor clashes with his own (making her all the more fun to tease); Yukiko, the girl he'll probably never be as close to thanks to Chie and his own awkwardness; and Teddie, his charge, little brother, bear-thing (the one thing he truly feels solely responsible for) -- his closest relationship is with Souji, his best friend. Together since the beginning, Yosuke dubbed them 'partners' early on. At first, this was in relation to the case for the most part; they'd made their promise to Teddie to find the murderer together and they were going to solve it together. But as the case wore on, their numbers grew, and their friendship began taking shape into what would be the most important in Yosuke's life, the nickname stuck. In getting closer and working through the leftover ache of Saki's death, Yosuke is unique in that he takes Souji off his pedestal from time to time. He finds him to be 'special' but being true equals is by far his priority. Partners, in the truest sense. Yosuke isn't content to simply act as a leech, pouring all his angst onto Souji without giving anything back in return. That may have been enough for him once, but not now; not when he realizes what it's like to truly have a friend.
At the point in his life when Death City spirits him away, his confidence is on its way to changing for the better. He's more assertive, less of a doormat, and has a hope for his future that wasn't there before. He is still nowhere near grown up, but when faced with an extremely difficult decision, he is capable of making the choice that needs to be made. Well. Most of the time.[In regards to his canon point, there are some slight changes in how Yosuke will react to those around him. Due to ostensibly participating (spear-heading, really) the murder of an, unbeknownst to him, innocent man, Yosuke has some baggage on his shoulders. Even in believing that what he did was right, having months to reflect on it have made what seemed like such a clear choice back in an emotionally charged hospital room less black and white. There's an undercurrent of doubt in him, which manifests itself in an even more vigerous desire to prove himself. He made a mistake that couldn't be taken back or made up for, but that doesn't mean he's going to try. Delusional as that may be.]
Character Abilities: Yosuke isn’t the most impressive kid, hard though he tries. His grades are average to below average, he’s fast but too scrawny to use the skill for much more than running away/dodging, and has an inherent clumsiness that can get him in a tight spot. Still, when his Persona is at the forefront of his mind, the sum truly becomes greater than its parts. Despite his disinterest in most intellectual pursuits, Yosuke can be quite sharp if something truly catches his interest. Be it the murder investigation back in his home town or cataloging playlists and keeping his music folder painstakingly arranged, Yosuke is far from stupid.
In battle, he duel wields any two small hand weapons (either blunt objects [i.e. wrenches], knives, or kunai) and has a flare for the acrobatic. His speed is enhanced even further by Susano-o’s (his Persona) wind oriented skills and it functions as his primary asset against enemies far stronger than he. In a pinch, Yosuke has been known to use that speed in a self-sacrificing manner. If he thinks someone important to him/the mission is compromised, Yosuke will play the hero without question.
Susano-o was originally Jiraiya, but transformed when Yosuke came to terms with the death of his coworker and crush, Saki Konishi.
Susano-o’s Information | Susano-o’s Stats| Susano-o’s Appearance
Character Weaknesses: Yosuke is terrified of being alone/useless/forgotten/disliked. Even after making his connection with Souji and his other friends, those anxieties still exist under the surface and can be brought to the forefront or exploited fairly easily if one has a mind to do so. In the context of the Bad Ending that I'll be taking him from, he also has a paranoia about his actions and how they compared to the murders they were investigating (particularly Saki Konishi, another sore spot of his). If something were to shatter his carefully constructed rationalization (Namatame was guilty, so it's an eye for an eye, right?), it would put his own self image in question.
As for character flaws, Yosuke has an obtuse streak. There are certain things he just Doesn't Get. Sexuality is one of many, and with as diverse a city as Death City, there is bound to be people who make him uncomfortable. There's nothing malicious behind his discomfort, but Yosuke is criminally self-centered. He is constantly in the process of sizing up the people around him and reflecting/comparing himself against them. When it comes to people with attributes he finds uncomfortable to contemplate, Yosuke is more than likely to put his foot in his mouth.
Physical weaknesses include a soy allergy and a sensitivity to electricity. The latter is much less of a problem since his Persona's evolution, but thunder storms and live wires will have him antsy in a psychological sense if not a physical one.
[ WEAPON ONLY SECTION ]
Why your character should be a Weapon: Yosuke says it himself a few days after meeting him. I'm cool playing second banana. I mean, I'm more the advisor type, y'know? Yosuke is a right hand man through and through. Though he indirectly takes the lead from time to time, it's only when his leader can't. He's a powder keg of energy, but it has the tendency to become unfocused without a channeling influence. Another theme of his character is protection; namely, he wants to protect what's dear to him. As a weapon, he would have the best of both these contributing personality cues.
What is your character's Weapon form?: Yosuke's weapon form is a pair of headphones with a meteor hammer weight instead of an audio jack at the end of a sturdy cord. It's basic design is as shown:
The cord is several yards long and made longer when it's stretched to full length, as per traditional meteor hammer design. The weight itself is roughly 8 lbs and extremely painful if used manipulated correctly. The headphones themselves serve as the channel Yosuke's voice filters through. If he and his meister are resonating well, Yosuke's voice will come through clearly (however, if the resonation is poor, all the wearer will hear is static and tinny elevator music).
The most valuable ability these headphones grant is Yosuke's voice itself. He will quite literally watch his meister's back, tapping into the layout of the battlefield and shouting out instructions/the position of enemies/other useful information. In essence, the headphones give their wearer the ability to fight blind (or, if a character is blind, the ability to fight as if they were sighted). That insight, coupled with the long range of the meteor hammer, enables the meister to be devastatingly effective in battle. However, the usefulness of Yosuke's input is incredibly dependent on how well the pair resonate. Even if Yosuke's voice is detectable, a patch of static might serve to garble his instructions and confuse the wearer at a critical moment.
But beyond this second pair of eyes, Yosuke's weapon from has other unique abilities (as follows):
- The meteor hammer (if used correctly) will slowly build up a wind behind it, increasing the speed and force of it's attacks the longer this ramp up goes on. The build up will restart again after each interruption of motion, including some attacks. For the most part, this build up is only a small bonus. However, truly devastating attacks can be 'charged' by preforming routines/kata (a charge becomes clear when the wind supporting the meteor hammer takes on a visible green hue) without striking an enemy. Important to note: as the 'charge' builds, so too does the speed of the weight and the difficulty to control it. A meister must be very, very skilled with the weapon to unleash a hugely powerful single strike.
- If the meister is hurt to the point where death is imminent, a wind barrier will kick up in the face of oncoming attacks. It's duration depends on Yosuke's energy, but the average is about 30 seconds. The barrier is not constantly available and will appear only once per battle, if that. There is no guarantee that the barrier will save the meister, but it might give them enough cover to escape or heal themselves.
[ SOUL INFORMATION ]
Soul Description: Loyal, sincere, insecure, brave, repressed, defiant.
Soul Appearance:
[ SAMPLES ]
First Person:
[The video flickers to life, revealing a nose and eye but not much else.]
Is this the microphone? [There's a tapping sound, loud and full of static. Yes, that was the microphone, apparently. The camera draws away, revealing a flustered face. Deep, dark circles sit under his eyes. He looks as if he hasn't had a good night's sleep in a few months.] Uh, hi! I'm looking for my friends. There's one about so tall, kinda going gray but not old or anything. And if anyone's been kicked by a girl with anger management issues, I probably know her.
There's also...[A pause. This was going to take forever. He ran a hand down his face, dragging the loose skin down a bit.] I don't think I can describe them all, but if anyone knows a Yosuke Hanamura, um...well, that's me. [The teenager waves, just once, hand poised by his face.]
Nice to meet you...I guess.
Third Person:
Yosuke wasn't getting much sleep to begin with. Since their group saw Souji off at the station a week prior, he wasn't getting any at all.
It was the fog, he dimly decided, that made it so hard to clear his thoughts. It was too strong a reminder of everything that had happened, everything they didn't talk about anymore, all the hurt and pain and anger they'd left behind in December. In a display of ingenuity that only made sense when on very little sleep, Yosuke had taken to wearing his glasses to bed. They did the job of clearing his vision of sickly yellow fog, but posed a similar problem. The familiar weight on the bridge of his nose carried a punch of painful memories; more difficult than the ones floating in the fog, in a way. If only because the memories tied to his glasses were happy ones.
Desperation was looming overhead. Yosuke had a morning shift at the store the next day. He needed sleep. In a last ditch attempt at dozing off, Yosuke let his eyes fall shut. Simulating sleep was something, at the very least.
Only, in a flash of black, Yosuke wasn't simulating anything anymore. In a span of time that felt no longer than a camera flash, Yosuke opened his eyes in a room he had never seen before. Columns thick with caution tape stood out like trees, dense enough to make Yosuke feel small and lost. Just a dream, he told himself, only when was the last time he had dreamed? The unmistakable sound of a television whirring to life cut off his panic, replacing it with a whole new dread. The last time he'd heard a noise like that...
No. Not the time to worry about stuff like that. They'd taken care of the killer...all that was over now.
The red haired man explained the situation, and while Yosuke nodded at all the right spots, it didn't penetrate past the surface. Weapons? Meisters? It was all Greek to him. Still, there was a faint stirring of excitement in his chest all the same. A new adventure.
Maybe he'd be the hero of the story, this time.