Mafuyu Asahina

Mafuyu Asahina Gender: Female Birthday: January 27 Height: 162 cm School: Miyamasuzaka Girls Academy (Class 3-B) Committee: Class Representative Club: Archery Hobbies: Aquarium Specialty: Speaking English Favorite Food: Mom's home cooking Least Favorite Food: Not Sure Dislikes: Not Sure

I'm Yuki from Nightcord at 25:00, also known as Mafuyu Asahina. I primarily work on lyrics and sound mixing. I compose for the group occasionally, too. After all, I did start out by posting the songs I wrote myself online. In fact, K heard one of the songs I wrote a long time ago. That made her decide to invite me to the group she was forming. I hesitated at first because we didn't know each other, and she said we would only be communicating via Nightcord. But since she took the trouble to ask, I thought I'd just give it a try, and so I joined the group. Thanks to the voice chat function in Nightcord, we could talk to each other any time we liked. When I found out we were all high school students who lived near each other and whatnot, I was a little relieved. Also, since the opportunity opened up, we're also doing offline meetups now. It's nothing major, we just meet up for food at a local diner. Still, it's rather fun. I hope we can continue to create songs like we've been doing all along, so please give us your support! How was that? Did I do it correctly? My real name? I didn't think it mattered, since this is just a practice run. I seem used to giving speeches? Heh. I'm an honor student, after all. I'm sorry I didn't quite follow the list that you made, though. I was going to, but there was some stuff about favorite foods and hobbies halfway through, right? I don't understand what liking or disliking something feels like. It's difficult for me to talk about things like that. I'm overthinking things? Heh, then maybe I'll say my favorite food is my mom's cooking. What else was on the list... Ah, something about my goals or what I wanted to do? Well... I guess I'd like to put some actual creatures into the fish tank in my room? Yes. I only have aquatic plants in there right now. Why? Heh. Why indeed? Hm? It's not relevant to the group anyway? Ahaha, that's true. I'll come up with something more serious if we really do end up going ahead with these recordings.

Background: Mafuyu is an honor student and the only one in her circle who regularly attends school during the day. She earns good grades and is the representative of her class. She is said to excel in both academics and sports; hence, people often set high standards for her to excel in everything, which she does without fail. However, in reality she is heavily burdened and pressured by the expectations placed on her. In middle school, she aspired to be a nurse, however, her parents pressured her to be a doctor instead. Conforming to what others expected of her caused Mafuyu to lose her sense of identity, having difficulty expressing true emotion or deciding what she likes. Some time after joining 25-ji, Nightcord de. as their lyricist, Mafuyu began to compose songs by herself under the pseudonym OWN, becoming known for her cold, dark music. At school, Mafuyu is a member of the archery club with Shizuku. She joined the club because somebody asked her to. One of the most important scene I've seen is when little Mafuyu showed her parents that she got full marks on a test. Little Mafuyu was happy that her parents were so proud of her. So she concluded that the best way to be happy is to meet other people's expectations.

Appearance: Mafuyu has dark purple hair with eyes that fade from dark purple to sky blue in a gradient. Her hair is curly, long, and usually kept up in a ponytail that tends to fall over her right shoulder. Her ponytail may not be considered messy, but Mafuyu's hair does not seem to be combed. Mafuyu’s bangs are fairly long as well, with the middle section falling just a bit past her eyes. She has an ahoge that swoops to the right above her bangs, and her face is framed by short, slightly curled strands on each side. Her ponytail is held in an orange hair tie. Mafuyu’s unit outfit is a dark grey stylized school uniform, with long sleeves that fade to black and are tipped with grey frills. Her shirt collar is black, outlined in light grey, and her butterfly ribbon consists of two ribbons, one black and one blue, tied at the middle. Her choker is black, with a gold charm. The skirt is long and grey, with two stripes of black near the bottom, and it is covered by two semi-transparent pieces of fabric. The skirt grows longer at the back of the outfit. Her black shoes are heeled, as shown in her 3D model. Her casual outfit consists of a light blue sweater with a grey- and-white striped shirt underneath; and beige bellbottoms.

Personality: Mafuyu is admired at school for her smarts, athleticism, and the humble sincerity she shows when she is praised for these talents. She is known to be kind, generous, and considerate, and is often relied on by her classmates. However, to herself and the other members of her unit, she is dispassionate, largely lacking in emotion and empathy. Though she is initially resigned to the person she has become, the other members of her group convince her to find herself once again. Mafuyu’s personality underneath her facade is considerably more cold and blunt. She speaks in few words, and is often honest to the point of cruelty. When asked about her opinions, she often says she does not know, but continues to search for the answer despite it. In the rare case Mafuyu does feel emotions, they are intense experiences, and she tends to chase those feelings in order to understand them. If you ask Mafuyu what she wants, she'll answer "I just want everyone to be happy". But this is a shallow answer, as she doesn't know her own feelings. She doesn't know what "being happy" really means. Contrast this with Emu. She also wants to make people happy. She knows that it feels good to be happy, and she knows that it's painful to be sad. She enjoys seeing other people smile, so she can say from the bottom of her heart that she wants to make people happy. I think, instead of wanting to make people happy, Mafuyu just wants to prevent people from being disappointed in her. In this sense, she's more similar to Honami (before she reunited with her childhood friends and formed Leo/need). After being bullied by her classmates, Honami distanced herself from her childhood friends. The only thing in her mind is to do whatever it takes so that she can keep her place among her classmates. She'll agree with everything they say, she'll do whatever they ask of her, as long as she can get their approval. She's too scared of being left alone and so she couldn't stand up for herself. But there's one important difference: Honami knows that what she's doing is wrong. She knows that her classmates aren't true friends. She knows that deep down, she wants to be together with Ichika, Saki, and Shiho again. Mafuyu, on the other hand, is completely oblivious. And this obliviousness is only made worse with how Mafuyu's parents emotionally neglect her. "Mafuyu, make sure that you don't waste time on kids that aren't at least as smart as you." "Mafuyu, I'm gonna throw out your music equipment, I think they're useless. By the way, how's the exam prep going?" Mafuyu is admired for her smarts, athleticism, and the humble sincerity she shows that keeps any praise for these talents out of her own mouth. She is known to be kind, generous, and considerate, her words always polite and her voice soft and warm. She is difficult, arguably impossible, to anger, for any hesitation she shows that might betray disagreement or displeasure is immediately covered with a gentle smile. She is someone whom others are not afraid to rely on, and someone whom others often put high hopes on, knowing that she has met expectations before and will continue to do so. To everyone else, Mafuyu is a "good girl." However, to herself and behind the mask, she is emotionless and depressed: abandoned by her true self a long time ago, and desperately searching to find it once again. Mafuyu's "true personality"—or, at the very least, the person she is when there is no one else watching—is considerably more cold and blunt. Her voice is dull and her face is flat, both holding no feeling for she has none to show. She speaks few words, and the words she does speak tend to be no more than what is needed. The polite consideration she is expected to have, that colors the sentences she crafts for others, is nowhere to be heard. While she is not pleasant or "good," she is honest—as honest as she has the capacity for. It's only within her cold honesty are her true feelings, her true self, given the slightest chance to show themselves, and the other members of 25-ji, Nightcord de. recognize this in their willingness to offer a space where she can be "rehabilitated." After the incident in 'Dare mo Inai Sekai', as well as the doll exhibit, Mafuyu is encouraged to say what she is truly feeling--or, at least, to try--as long as she is talking to the Nightcord members. To be whoever she feels she is in that very moment, to the best of her ability, and this allows Mafuyu the opportunity to see what it’s like to exist in a space without pressures of what she should and should not do. She no longer assumes the expectation of her warm, gentle voice from the outside world, and instead forgoes pleasant smalltalk for short, flat responses when she is spoken to, seldom speaking herself. She rarely states her opinions, as she doesn’t have many to give, rarely making any decisions of her own, instead saying that she "doesn't know" or "doesn't mind." However, the coldness or the disinterest of her words are not an act to push others away or be cruel, but an honest admission of the fact that Mafuyu genuinely does not know. During the last chapter of the marionette event, Mafuyu's voice is flat and dull as she questions Ena about her drawings, but her interest is genuine as she accepts the information, and her following questions indicate that she has honestly cared enough to actually listen and learn.

Relationships: Yoisaki Kanade: Fellow circle member. Mafuyu is amazed that Kanade was able to create a song that made Mafuyu smile, encouraging Kanade to keep trying to make Mafuyu feel something. Kanade truly cares about Mafuyu and is working desperately to create a song that will save her. Shinonome Ena: Fellow circle member. Mafuyu is very blunt when stating her opinions of Ena's art, which often sets off Ena's temper. Although they initially had a rocky relationship, the two come to understand each others' struggles and start respecting each other more as time goes on. It is also thanks to Mafuyu's words in Insatiable Pale Color that Ena snapped out of her slump, returned to the real world and kept on drawing. In Ena's Birthday Card, Mafuyu tells her she appreciates Ena saying things straight out rather than sugarcoating her words. Akiyama Mizuki: Fellow circle member. Mafuyu thinks they're overly obsessed with cuteness, while Mizuki thinks that what Mafuyu is going through feels personal to them due to both dealing with issues regarding their identities. Mizuki also feels a bit envious seeing Mafuyu doing her best to try find herself and not giving up, while Mizuki is intent on not telling their secret to anyone. Hoshino Ichika: An underclassman. Ichika idolizes and cares for Mafuyu and wishes to interact with her more. She talked with her in The Warmth of Intersecting Melodies and gifted her Miku cookies during Mafuyu's birthday. Hinomori Shizuku: Fellow archery club member. The two get along well. Although Mafuyu keeps her "good girl" facade around Shizuku, she also treats the latter like a normal person. Shizuku and Mafuyu have many similarities, and at one point, Shizuku had almost forgotten herself. Having this in common causes them to get along so well, even if they don't openly talk about it. She also accepted the birthday gift Shizuku gave to her. In Draw Your Bow in This White World, a flashback shows how Mafuyu taught Shizuku how to compose her mind and hit the target when the latter was at her limit. Noticing Mafuyu’s saddened expression, Shizuku says she wants to become her strength just like Mafuyu was to her back then. Mafuyu thanks Shizuku for worrying about her, but insists she is fine. Despite this, Shizuku wants Mafuyu to remember her as someone who cherishes her and wants to be her strength. Shinonome Akito: A member of Vivid BAD SQUAD and Ena's younger brother. They first officially met in Ena's Distant Summer Festival. Akito thanks Mafuyu for taking care of Ena and asks her to do so from now on, employing his usual facade of politeness, with Mafuyu doing the same in return. In Ena's second side story, Mafuyu points out how different Akito is from Ena, much to Ena's annoyance due to her awareness of his true personality. The two briefly interact again in At This Festival Bathed in Twilight after Akito leaves an injured Rui in Mafuyu's hands in the absence of a medic. In chapter 8 of the event story, Mafuyu watches him perform with the rest of Vivid BAD SQUAD and says that his powerful singing voice made her ears hurt. They also receive an Area Conversation that was unlockable from the event where Mafuyu catches Akito going on a routine run. Akito once again thanks Mafuyu for taking care of Ena in the same polite tone, and Mafuyu tells him good luck and that she’ll be rooting for him to keep up with his teammates. So far from their interactions, Mafuyu never calls Akito by his name, only referring to him as "Ena's brother" or "Younger brother-san". Aoyagi Toya: A member of Vivid BAD SQUAD. In a side story, Mafuyu compliments Toya’s singing after watching a BAD DOGS performance, saying that his tone is pure. Otori Emu: An underclassman she was paired with for the 3-legged race during the sports festival. Emu recognizes that her smiles are not genuine and is scared of her, though Mafuyu doesn't seem to realize this or understand why. Mafuyu later admits that she was intrigued by Emu because her scared reactions towards her were "new" and "different". Kamishiro Rui: The two properly met for the first time in the At This Festival Bathed in Twilight event, where she helps Rui out in the first-aid tent after he injures himself. During their conversation, Rui manages to deduce that Mafuyu actually doesn't want to be a doctor but rather has other dreams.