Tsumugi Tsukioka/A Peculiar Grim Reaper

The Tsukioka Circus

Backstage Stories

Part 1Part 2Part 3

Homare	Tsumugi-kun, I hear you are doing a circus ringleader role this time, yes?
Tsumugi	That’s right. Specifically, with all of the members playing as grim reapers.
Homare	If you are ever troubled, you are welcome to come to me for advice. As I’ve done a ringleader role myself, I’m certain I can be of help if you need it.
Tsumugi	Thank you for the offer.
Izumi	But with everyone playing as grim reapers, won’t it be troubling to have too many eccentrics in one place?
Tsumugi	It probably would. It only makes me wonder— If the circus cast is full of grim reapers, what kind of demeanor would their top member give out?
Izumi	Hmm… I imagine showing some aura of majesty would be good. Like having the disposition to force things onto others, if that makes sense…
Homare	In that case, how about presenting the intention that you would give punishment to those who don’t listen to your orders? Might be suiting for a ringleader of Grim Reapers.
Tsumugi	Giving punishment, huh? A grim reaper would likely be merciless in that regard, you’re right.
	I was wondering how I should go about doing role studies this time. I suppose I could start with the idea of “majesty” and “disciplinary action” and then go from there.
Izumi	Sounds good! Ah, but how will you role-study the “disciplining” part of that?
Tsumugi	It’d be difficult without a partner to play it with, but finding one is just as much of a problem.
Homare	Then how about making up your own circus for the time being of this role study? Instead of focusing on the grim reaper aspect of it.
Tsumugi	That’s a good idea! You made your own circus before as well, didn’t you, Homare-san?
Izumi	The one-liner acts, right?
Homare	For Tsumugi-kun’s circus, it’d be a good idea to choose members who’d normally be too much for even you to control.
Izumi	That’s true… If they are more willing to oppose you, then it’d be a good leeway to practice the disciplinary act of the role study, too.
Tsumugi	You’re right. I’m gonna try asking any members that would fit the bill then.
	(Someone who would oppose me and are out of my control… Is there any member like that—)
Banri	Man, what the FUCK!!
Izumi	Woah! That gave me a scare!
Homare	Oh dear oh dear, it would seem Banri-kun and Juza-kun are starting a fight again.
Tsumugi	A fight…. Ah! That’s it!
	(If those two are quick to start fights, then they might just be the kind of rebellious and uncontrollable types I’m looking for.)
	I’m gonna go head over there for a bit.
Izumi	EH?! Tsumugi-san!?
Homare	It seems he has found some members he wants to drag into the Tsukioka circus.
Tsumugi	Hello, you two. Sorry for barging in the middle of your fight.
Banri	Huh??
Juza	Tsumugi-san….?
Banri	…Do you need us for anything?
Tsumugi	I have something to ask of you two, actually.
Banri	Tsumugi-san barging to say something in the middle of our fight… Doesn’t this feel like deja vu?
Juza	Sure does….
Banri	Anyway, what was it that you wanted?
Tsumugi	Right. I was hoping to ask you guys… Would you care to join the Tsukioka Circrus?
Banri & Juza	…”Tsukioka Circus?”

Banri	What do you mean by us joining the “Tsukioka Circus”....?
Tsumugi	I’ll be playing the role of a circus ringleader soon, so I figured I’d form together my own circus troupe for the sake of role study.
	I’d invite members outside of Winter Troupe, then test out my act as ringleader with everyone altogether.
Juza	And that led you to us….?
Tsumugi	Right. So, will you join in?
Juza	If that’s the case, it’s no problem at all. If I can be of any help, I will.
Banri	Count me in too.
Tsumugi	Great to hear! Thank you.
	(I don’t want them to switch into a specific role mindset, so I have to keep the rest of the details a secret for now if I need them to act as themselves instead.)
Banri	Though, I might end up being the superior member of this troupe. More than Hyodo, that’s for sure.
Juza	Hah? It’s a circus troupe, so someone like me who can do sugar boxes is the one who’s gonna be on top instead.
Banri	Like hell you are. Ain’t no way I’d forget your stupid cigar box hitting my head!
Juza	You seriously still have a grudge against my rehearsals from back then?
Banri	HA? That’s no way to talk to the victim of your mess-up!
Tsumugi	(Ah! They started fighting again! But wait, this could be my chance for the role study…!)
	Oh dear….. Are you two fighting again? As the ringleader of Tsukioka Circus, I can’t just leave you two on your own like this, can I?
Juza	Eh……..
Tsumugi	You two let the tide of your emotions run through your mouths, and that’s why you’d get into fights immediately. Am I wrong?
	From now on, I suggest both of you should think twice before letting the rest of your words spill. Do you hear me?
Banri	Ah……..Yes sir, sorry sir.
Juza	It’ll be as you say, Leader. We’ll be careful.
Tsumugi	(....H-Huh?)
	Uhm…. Yes, I hope you will.
	(....I thought I was pouring oil, but I ended up dousing the fire instead.)
	(Well, it’s only the first day. I’ll keep trying hard with my role study from here on.)
Tsuzuru	Ah! Tsukioka-san! Do you know where Miyoshi-san is!?
Tsumugi	Ts-Tsuzuru-kun!? You’ve got the eyes of a killer, what happened?
Tsuzuru	Miyoshi-san ate my pudding without my permission! Again!
Tsumugi	Is that so? Are you sure it wasn’t like last time when the suspect actually turned out to be Juza-kun?
Tsuzuru	No, this time it’s Miyoshi-san for sure. I have Furuichi-san as my eyewitness.
Tsumugi	I-I see…
Tsuzuru	I’ve been wanting to eat that pudding so bad. It took me so long to decide on it too, since one piece of it was worth 3 times the regular.
	As soon as I got my salary from my part-time, I went ahead and finally bought it. And now…..
Tsumugi	Is that so… That’s such a shame then…..
Kazunari	Woah, you two have the most serious looks on your faces! What’s wrong?
Tsuzuru	FINALLY FOUND YOU! MIYOSHI-SAN!
Kazunari	WAH! YE-YES!? What’s gotten you all wound up, Tsuzuroon?!
Tsuzuru	Miyoshi-san, you went and ate my pudding again, didn’t you?
Kazunari	HUH!? So that pudding was yours!?
Tsuzuru	It was! Agh, and I was so looking forward to eating it too…..
Kazunari	Sorry!! I had no idea it was yours! Really!!
Tsumugi	Sorry for butting in, but what exactly happened?
Kazunari	See, Mukkun bought some pudding on his way home from his outing today. I thought the one I got was one of those.
Tsumugi	Then… Is it possible that two kinds of pudding were left in the fridge?
Tsuzuru	Ahhh… I do remember seeing some more pudding at the very back of the fridge. I suppose if that’s the real reason, it can’t be helped…
Tsumugi	(...The mood has gotten awkward now.)
	(I thought of a way to make things end peacefully here, but if I were to do that, I wouldn’t get a chance to practice my role study…)
	(Hmm…. I feel bad for Tsuzuru for doing this, but this is for the sake of my role, I have to purposely come up with a method that even Tsuzuru would hesitate to do.)
	In that case, if you want to reconcile, why don’t you two go and buy the same pudding again— but together this time?
Tsuzuru	Ehh…. With Miyoshi-san?
Tsumugi	If you guys don’t want to make amends even worse than it already is, then I think this would be the best way.
Kazunari	That’s an awesome idea, Tsumu-tsumu!
Tsumugi	Fufu, you think so?
Kazunari	Let’s get going then, Tsuzuroon! I’ll even buy you two of those pudding packs as an apology!
Tsuzuru	Well…….I suppose that’s fine. But seriously, I’m fine with only one pack.
Kazunari	FR? Then I’ll welcome that kindness before you change your mind! Time to head out!!
Tsuzuru	AH! Hang on a minute!! Tsukioka-san, thanks again for the help.
Tsumugi	No trouble at all. Take care.
	*FOOTSTEPS RUNNING OFF*
Tsumugi	They didn’t even try to oppose the suggestion, but it’s good to see those two back to their usual selves

Tsumugi	(SIGHS)....
	(Ever since that situation, I tried to see if I could get any sort of resistance out of the usual confronting pairs like Tenma-kun and Yuki-chan, or even Sakyo-san and Azami-kun…)
	(But every time, I’d wind up settling their disagreements with each other. I never got the chance to invite them to join the Tsukioka Circus.)
	(In the end, the only members I have are still just Banri-kun and Juza-kun...)
	Why is it that every fight somehow gets resolved every time I pry into them…
Izumi	Is anything wrong, Tsumugi-san? You’ve been looking pretty down over something…
Tsumugi	Ah, Director.
Izumi	Well, I asked, but I’ve been hearing all about it! You’ve been mending quarrels within the dorm one after another, right?
Tsumugi	Ahaha… Yes, that’s me. Though it seems the results got steered differently from my intentions…
Izumi	So… I take it the role study hasn’t been going that well?
Tsumugi	You can say that…
	I’ve been trying to talk to people to get some acts of defiance out of them, but everyone kept taking my words so honestly…
	Before I knew it, all of the arguments were settled better than I would’ve expected.
	Though, I suppose being able to resolve any kind of argument isn’t exactly a bad thing.
Izumi	So that’s the case… I do get how everyone feels though.
Tsumugi	Eh?
Izumi	It probably has something to do with Tsumugi-san’s character as a whole. It’s because you’re you that they were able to resolve things well.
	No matter what kind of people are involved, the ability to resolve their arguments is already part of one of your strengths, Tsumugi-san.
Tsumugi	I see…. I truly never noticed that.
	When you put it like that, I can see it now. It kinda makes this role study worth it in the end.
Izumi	My pleasure!
CHOICE 1: It’s just like you, Tsumugi-san [+] Izumi In fact, I think this role study was done in a way that’s very much like you, Tsumugi-san. Tsumugi Very much like me, you say…? Fufu, you might be right about that. If it’s like that… Then I should try to give more thought to making a ringleader character that’s much like me after I apply whatever I’ve learned from this experience. I’ll look back at all the conversations once more to try and deepen my understanding of the role. Izumi (As usual, when it comes to acting, Tsumugi-san is endlessly strict as ever with himself…!)
CHOICE 2: Thank you as well. [+] Izumi I’d like to thank you as well. Tsumugi Eh? Izumi After all, you still helped settle the arguments within the dorm, didn’t you? Tsumugi I wouldn’t put it that way…! I just happened to be doing it for the sake of role study. Izumi Even so! The mood in the dorm has gotten better thanks to you, Tsumugi-san. That’s why I’m expressing my gratitude to you now. Tsumugi Well. As long as it’s made you happy, Director, then I’m glad to have helped.
Tsumugi	I sincerely wanted to try getting people to oppose me and get disciplined as part of the role study.
	But even if I never got to the disciplining part, I still think it became a good chance to confront my ringleader role.
Izumi	We’ve got Homare-san to thank for this role study suggestion.
Tsumugi	Indeed. But it’s not just Homare-san. You took part in it just as much, Director.
Izumi	Me?
Tsumugi	It was both of you who listened to my worries, after all. So, thank you.
Izumi	It’s no big deal at all! But still, you’re welcome.
Tsumugi	It’s too bad, though. I was looking forward to saying a line fitting for a Grim Reaper ringleader. “If you do not follow my orders, I’ll have to discipline you!”, or something of that vein.
Izumi	Your chance will turn around soon enough, I’m sure of it!
Tsumugi	You think so…?
Taichi	Haaaaaa… I’m exhausted.
Izumi	Taichi-kun, whats the matter?
Taichi	Banri-kun and Juza-kun started fighting again, see… They were literally about to throw hands so Omi-kun and I tried our best to intervene!
Tsumugi	I see. So those two are at it again, huh…..
	(Wait. This might be it— Maybe I could finally try giving them disciplinary action with this…?)
Tsumugi	You both understand the reason why I called you here, yes?
Juza & Banri	…..
Tsumugi	Honestly… You two start fighting like it’s nothing. This time you even went as far as involving Omi-kun and Taichi-kun into your mess….
	Did I not tell you to think twice before you start making a fuss?
Juza	…..You did, sir.
Banri	Very sorry, Leader.
Tsumugi	(...These two are already so well-behaved that they’re apologizing right away. Even though what I want is for them to not listen to my orders at all….)
	(... No choice.)
	Now then, for being such troubling members, it seems punishment is in order.
	Sit on the floor right there, you two. If you do not follow my orders, I’ll have to discipline you.
	(That should do the trick, right? Alright you two, let me see you defy me with all your will—)
Banri	Yessir.
Juza	On the floor here, right….?
Tsumugi	H-Hold on a second! You two seriously aren’t gonna just go along and kneel on the floor that easily, right…!?
Juza	??
Tsumugi	I’m begging you two, at least show some resistance!
Banri	Even if you say that……
Juza	There’s no going against the Ringleader’s words.
Tsumugi	Still….!!!
Tasuku	…(SIGHS) What on earth are you up to this time, Tsumugi….
Tsumugi	Eh, Tasuku!? How long have you been here!?
Tasuku	Just a little while… Settsu, Hyodo, sorry that you two got involved in one of this guy’s nonsensical role studies.
Juza	S’all good.
Banri	This much is no problem at all. Though, Tsumugi-san is probably the one who’s the most into it.
Tsumugi	Uuu……
Tasuku	Good grief. I understand getting absorbed into your role study, but you’re overdoing it this time. Look at the people you’re troubling with it.
Tsumugi	You’re the last person I want to hear that from.
Tasuku	‘Scuse me?
Tsumugi	….Banri-kun, Juza-kun, I’m sorry for having you guys follow my unreasonable demands.
	I wanted to try giving disciplinary action pretty badly since I’m supposed to play a ringleader of a Grim Reaper circus.
Banri	It's all chill…. But y’know, that last part seemed pretty much like how a Grim Reaper ringleader would act, didn’t it?
Juza	Yeah, I think you’ll be able to keep your fellow Grim Reaper members in line with that act.
Tsumugi	(Banri-kun and Juza-kun are truly the sweetest kids, aren’t they?)
	Thank you again for playing along with my role study, you two.

Dita