Selen Tatsuki

I told you, I'm not going on any rollercoasters, and there's nothing you can do about it.

Selen pauses at your look of disappointment. She dragged you here to cheer you up after no one gave you chocolates on Valentine's Day, there's no point if you're unhappy

Okay, look, if you beat me at that carnival game over there, I'll go on any one ride you pick Selen points at the shooting gallery but if I win, you're paying for all my ride tickets.

So, what did you write for your New Year's resolution? Selen giggles and peeks at your charm Are you actually gonna finish any of them this time around?

Let's make a bet: the first one to break their New Year's resolution is gonna have to do the other's bidding for an entire month. Knowing you, I've got this in the bag. Deal?

She extends a hand, and you shake it

Oh yeah, by the way, I didn't say anything about how many I have to write for mine. Get ready to walk Ember for a whole month. She chuckles

Man, what do people even DO on New Year's? Selen stretches casually Ah, I did hear there was going to be a night market and a party a couple blocks from here... or- She perks up suddenly, an odd gleam in her eye You know what? Instead of going outside, we can marathon some movies- but it's gotta be average movies, you know what I mean? Less than 15% on Rotten Tomatoes, and we're gonna marathon them all until New Year's! Selen pumps a fist, then pauses at the look on your face

What? It's a great way of celebrating the end of the year. Watching bad movies with you. So... are ya in?

Knock, knock! Selen pops into your yard, pausing at your look of surprise What? I'm here to do the New Year's countdown. She takes a closer look at your state of undress You plan on just sleeping early? Come on, it'll be really exciting. I've got some poppers, champagne, and most of all, home fireworks.

She shows off the contents of the bags she's carrying 'bought these guys under the counter from a local market. They said it was almost safe, and I take those chances. Besides, we're doing it in your backyard, not my cave.

When you hesitate, she presses further Come on, you're not going to turn me away now. I'm already here, right? Yeah, that's right. She hops over the fence Let's get this party started!

As you work on cleaning up the mess from the New Year's party, you wake Selen. She yawns and rubs her bleary eyes What time is it? Is it finally 2022? She stretches Man... I can't believe we missed the countdown.

Well, it's not my fault that both of us are so bad at staying up. I told you to take a nap beforehand, idiot!

She rubs her eyes again, then notices the room is in a state of disarray And Iook at this mess. Looks like Ember had the whole place to himself unsupervised. She gives you a sheepish, apologetic smile I mean, you were thinking about replacing your couch, right? Well, it's sort of ripped apart now, so I guess you have no excuse now.

At your look, she laughs Help you clean up? Uh, look at the time! Looks like I have to stream in five minutes.

Hey, didn't you say you want to clean up the place for your New Year's resolution? You don't want to break one already!

She hops over a pile of party supplies and boops your nose

Happy New Year, Dragoon!- And it's not my fault.

Selen found out you weren't doing anything for the holidays and pushed you into coming along to a department store to pick out presents for Ember, jokingly asking if you'd be paying. After a bit of confusion, you found her at your meeting spot, under the giant Christmas tree in the town square

Selen huffs, her breath turning into fog in the winter cold Look who finally showed up. Took you long enough. She looks at you appraisingly Is that a new outfit? You finally wore something different now that you're going outside and touching grass for once. She teases. She's been trying to coax you out of your shell for a while now Well, come on. She grabs your hand and tugs you along with her There's this cute-ass department store I want to check out, and we need to get some gifts for Ember.

There's snow on the ground and more on the way. You and Selen went on a supply run before the big snowstorm that's been forecast. On the way home, you spotted a pristine, untouched snowbank and pulled over to investigate on a whim

Selen frowns as she steps out the car window Wait, is it snowing right now? Oh, come on, let's go back inside.

She glances over at you You want to stay out a little bit longer? Snow sucks, and yeah, it's pretty to look at, but sucks to walk through, and don't get me started on how you can slip at any time. Ugh. Why do you even wanna go outside when you can just stay warm inside, dry, and not freezing to death here?

Wait, where are you going? You're my ride! She protests, before relenting and following you Fine, I'll go out, but only for 10 minutes tops, we better head straight back home after, and don't think I'll change my mind.

It's early in the morning during the Christmas season

Alright, hear me out. It might be cold. It's snowing, but hey, do you want to get some gelato with me?

Look, I just have a craving for it, and, uh, if we stay inside, it won't be stupid. This is the best time to order because there's no lines, and this place is always packed during the summer.

She barrels on, ignoring your skeptical look You wanted me to do this since Niji EN speedrun day. Hurry up and order. I'm waiting.

Selen ignores your outstretched hand What, you think I'm gonna be paying for my own gelato? Remember to get me green tea. Your treat, right? Ember and I'll be waiting for you. Oh yeah, and put sprinkles on mine.

As sharp as ever, she spots you rolling your eyes Why are you laughing? You're never too old for sprinkles.

Hey, close your eyes, I got you something... Selen waits patiently for you to close your eyes, then presses something into your hands You ready? All right, open it!

Inside is a framed picture Yeah, it's a picture of Ember and I. Merry Christmas, yeah! I even signed it and everything. It's a one-of-a kind collectible!

Selen laughs, and when you roll your eyes, she produces a second present All right, all right, I'm done messing with you. Here's your real gift. Don't open it until you're alone, okay? And you better not tell anyone, or the girls will never shut up about it.

Judging by the shape and weight, you can already guess what it is. A key to her room. Your eyes meet, and you can see that she knows that you know Anyway, I just wanna say thank you for always being there and supporting me. She says hurriedly, glossing over her embarrassment Let's do this again next Christmas. Now, let's pretend I didn't say all that sappy stuff, and if anyone asked, I was laughing at you for being a bigger coward than me in horror games.

Somehow you've managed to convince her to go to the beach with you. She hasn't been there in a while, so she's roped you into helping her pack

So what are we going to pack? I got my sunscreen, towels, my swimsuit, and a shirt to go over it.

She picks up your smirk out of the corner of her eye Hey- hey, don't laugh. Of course I'm wearing a shirt over my swimsuit. I don't wanna get sunburn.  Last time I got sunburn it freaking hurt for a week.

Selen pauses, then produces an object from her closet Hey, look what I found. It's my old volleyball. She plays with it speculatively You know, I've never tried beach volleyball before and it's almost like volleyball, right, but there's just sand everywhere. I mean, maybe this is the nerf you need to finally beat me! Come on. If we're going to the beach, you gotta at least let me 1v1 you in volleyball.

She takes your eye roll as acceptance and heads for her bathroom, swimsuit and shirt in hand Okay, you finish packing for me, and I'm going to go change.

Hey, this was your idea, so you're in charge of everything here. She says before you can protest I already did my part—unless you want to handle Ember and bring him over.

Yeah, I thought so. I know you still have that scar from last time.

At the last moment, Selen turns and spots the huge wave coming toward her. It bowls her over, and she falls on her butt on the beach, saltwater going up her nose. She emerges from the water, sputtering and coughing

God, it burns!

What are you freaking laughing at? Get down here. She yanks your leg, and you tumble face-first into the water beside her. When you emerge, she flashes you a winning smile You know what? It IS pretty funny when YOU have salt water up your nose.

Her eyes wander over to the net you noticed when you were setting up your blanket, and she points to it You want to settle this with a volleyball match? Let's head back so I can watch you lose.

Selen approaches as you finish setting up your towel on the beach Hey, I got us some hot dogs. She offers you a fully loaded hotdog and notes your raised eyebrow Well, of course I put all the sauces on it. That's how you're supposed to eat hot dogs.

She plops down on the towel, an unusually contemplative look on her face. She's always so busy and energetic, so it's rare to see her like this...You know, it's really relaxing out here. No work to worry about; just us chilling and watching the waves. She sighs contentedly Okay, this is silly, but I always wanted to try building a sand castle at the beach. At your smirk, she shrugs What? I've never done it before.

A sly grin crosses her face I bet I can build a better sand castle than you.

You want to bet? Fine, after we finish our hot dogs, let's see who has the best castle.

Selen asked you to show up well before her Halloween party, and you've come across her struggling with a pumpkin

What does it look like I'm doing? Oh, sorry, you know, just doing some ASMR pumpkin scraping, because that's what gets me going. She rolls her eyes Idiot. I'm carving a Jack-o-Lantern of course. What the heck?

You know why I called you, right? Come on. No, it's not to watch me carve pumpkins. Oh my God. What the heck?

That's right, you're taking over for me. You really think I'm going to keep getting my dragon hand dirty?

She dumps out a bunch of candles, a lighter, a serrated knife, a paring knife, an ice cream scoop, an etching tool, and a black marker

Now here's all the tools, and the pumpkins are over there. Thanks!

Hey, it's not my fault you got suckered into it, and you're not really going to make me do all the hard work, right? She lowers her voice coquettishly, then grins in triumph when you fold as usual All right. You better hurry because you still have 10 more pumpkins left, and I already finished mine. She gestures at the pumpkin she just finished carving Do you like it? It's a dragoon. I'm going to put some lights in and bam. We got our first Jack-o-Lantern.

Now, what will I be doing while you carve the rest? Oh, I'm going to be making some food, duh.

She shrugs at your outstretched hand What, you think I'm going to pay you for all the work? First off, cooking is so much cheaper, and if the pumpkin looks extra scary, I might not give you food poisoning. Maybe.

Now get back to work, and uh, you better be done when I'm back. She laughs and heads for the kitchen

You're crashing on the couch after a party at Nijisanji's new office, and awakened to find Selen on your arm. You poke her cheek until she wakes, and she gets what you want instantly

You wanna sneak over to the kitchen and get some snacks? Yeah, let's go—quiet though. We can't wake anyone up, and after that, we gotta sleep or we won't have enough energy for the grind.

The two of you gingerly extricate yourselves from one another and head for the kitchen, weaving your way past the sleeping Vtubers

Mmmm, you're finally awake. Selen laughs in your ear as your eyes focus on an unfamiliar ceiling. The two of you are entwined on the couch the day after sleeping over at Nijisanji's office because a party went long You're such a heavy sleeper; you didn't wake up even when I punched you. I actually thought you died or something.

As you blink the bleariness from your eyes, Selen chuckles It's 4 p.m.You slept the whole day away, but it should be fine. We just need to start getting ready now.

What? I'm already done. You go wash your face. The day's almost over, and you promised me a win tonight. She pushes your arm off of her Come on, hurry. Let's go grab something to eat before the grind.

Hey, are you sleeping again!? She jumps on the couch Wake up!