karaisis | ﹅ application for hollyheights (Reply)

OOC INFORMATION
Player: Kei
Age: 22
Personal Journal:

panettone
Contact Info: EMAIL | cantus.dulcis@gmail.com ; PLURK | keitastic
Other Characters: N/A

IC INFORMATION
Characters Name: Mitsuba Okita
Age: Unspecified; guessing mid-twenties (23~25)
Canon: Gintama
Canon Point: Post-Mitsuba Arc (ep. 86-87/ch. 129-132)
Species: Human
Gender: Female
Orientation:

Heterosexual. Mitsuba comes from a traditional Japanese society where women are expected to marry men and be a subservient pillar to them, regardless of whether it's a union of true love or one arranged for power. Unfortunately, her ties to the Shinsegumi turn her into a tool for the latter, and her illness leaves her little room to resist, though if she had the chance to follow her heart, Mitsuba would chose only one man to be with—Toushirou Hijikata—even if it meant her happiness could be cut short by the fact his job endangers his life. Nevertheless, her feelings are rejected, and Mitsuba ends up being left behind in Bushuu where she's given the chance to find someone better. Of course, there's nothing like first love, and her love for him is the kind that lasts a lifetime.

History: Gintama wiki

Appearance:

Image. Soft and delicate, Mitsuba shares many physical similarities with her younger brother Sougo, but naturally as a woman, her fine sandy hair is kept longer, tapering past her chin, and her toffee-coloured eyes are larger and much kinder. With a heart-shaped face and Mona Lisa smile that almost glows each time she gives it, Mitsuba exudes and air of frail (but not fragile) elegance, more for her own virtues than for anything else (like her illness). In accordance to social cues and personal taste, Mitsuba dresses unobtrusively, wearing mellow colours and sparse patterns that will not grab unwanted attention or overpower one's vision. (Though the occasional deep pink kimono must always exist in a girl's wardrobe.) She always carries herself with a neat posture and polite attitude, and in effect, such a bearings in a woman solicites respect.

Personality:

Yamato Nadeshiko, the "personification of an idealized [traditional] Japanese woman" and an "epitome of pure, feminine beauty"—such is Mitsuba's typecast and the role she agreeably befits. Mitsuba is a woman remarked for her motherly presence among the Shinsengumi, especially in relation to her younger brother Sougo, who often speaks of her in high prestige. The Shinsengumi commander and a close personal friend Kondou Isao emphatically describes her as "bright, beautiful, and wise," and there is little to nothing about her that opposes such a claim. (Her tragically short life only makes her shine brighter.)

"You can't compete with your sister as usual, eh, Sougo?"

From the beginning, Mitsuba can be described as a mature and elegant woman. Soft-spoken, polite, and humorous, but at the same time modest ("flattery won't get you anywhere, you know!"), grounded, and matriarchal. Her influence over others is subtle yet magnetic, capable of leaving lasting impressions in those who meet her. She is admired and respected for those traits, especially by her brother, who is recognized for his abrasive treatment of others but makes a complete turn-around for his sister, reforming his manner of speech and addressing her with the deferential "ane-ue," to which she replies with utter delight, like a loving mother would towards a beloved son.

Consequently, the same way Sougo crumbles around his sister, so does Mitsuba around her brother. Though she travels to Edo in order to greet her fiancé's family, she appears more engaged in seeing her brother (and potentially Toushirou...) again after a long time and excited to be able to see him more often. However, just like he hides his rougher edges, so does she conceal the progress of her illness, sophisticatedly dodging his concern with a barrage of doting older-sister questions like "Are you eating properly?" and "Are you getting enough sleep even on busy days?" and, most pressingly, "Have you made any friends? Someone you can count on with your troubles?"

Her brother's lack of openness causes her more unease than she shows. As she confesses to Gintoki, she pampered Sougo to the point of spoiling him rotten because she did not want him to feel lonely after their parents passed away, but in doing so she fostered a selfish, unfriendly, and obstinate ego in him that she feels guilty about. Recognizing her flaws, she even says that she can't imagine what kind of person her brother would have become if it weren't for Kondou (and his discipline). Grateful for his fatherliness, she can rest a little easier, but she nevertheless wishes for her brother to be more trusting so that he won't end up alone all his life.

"I must become happy so that Sou-chan can stop worrying."

Despite being so virtuous and exemplar, Mitsuba's love isn't enough to keep those she cares about with her. Men's dreams are greater than having a woman by their side, and when everyone—her brother, Toushirou, and the rest of the rest of the original Shinsengumi—leave her behind, Mitsuba compromises. Even if it breaks her heart, she accepts that, turning her longing into a positive force of encouragement, because she has the strength to let go and the understanding that her obedience is necessary for their goals to be reached. Although it might have gotten lonely, Mitsuba continues to support them from afar, like sending them packs of super spicy rice crackers every month. (She thinks they're the bomb.)

A defining characteristic of Mitsuba is her selflessness. She is the kind of person who prioritizes another's feelings and well-being over her own, quieting her personal opinions and desires and choosing her words carefully so that the other might not lose face. Although Mitsuba would not say it herself, it is a fact that the habit has contributed largely to the degradation of her health—but the tuberculosis is just a condition that robs her of time. Mitsuba's kind-heartedness, gentless, understanding, patience, and persistence are only strengthened by the likely thought she's got a shorter time to live. With all the power "an old, sickly woman" (as she calls herself) can muster, she strives to achieve the happiness of a normal woman as her little brother's wish supplicates. Toushirou, also, wishes the same, even if he disguises it with cold indifference.

"My mouth feels like the Social Insurance Agency coming apart!"
( translation: her mouth is melting. )

But dreary realities aside, Mitsuba is still a young woman with quirks and quintessential wishes. She's used to the lively (read: violent) lifestyle stringing the Shinsengumi together, having lived beside them, watching them grow and become men, so she doesn't flinch when her brother pulls out a bazooka and blasts it at his comrades; instead, all she does is scold him for being rough on his companions, or laughs because she catches the undertone of friendship propelling it and cherishes every moment it brings them closer together. She pushes her worrisome addiction for spicy food onto others, treating it as a gift, saying it helps her appetite when she feels sick, and insisting any food (like ice cream) tastes better when it's doused with enough hot seasoning to make the consumer breath fire. It is a very unladylike characteristic, but it's even worse since she would even go so far as to play up her illness in order to coerce the victim to eat out of guilt...

Who knows, maybe it's a plot to hospitalize someone to accompany her longer than visiting hours—only that such a plot would never come through because, of course, transferring her pain onto others is the last thing she'd ever imagine, much less do. Her wishes ring truer to the tune of being able to be with everyone else a little longer, to watch them grow and fulfill their dreams like they did when they moved forward with so much conviction. Though that would make her infinitely happy, there's no need for them to be granted—because they already have. She may not have gotten married and or managed to live a normal life, but she's found happiness in the life she has lived, in the wonderful people she has met, and the family she's had the chance of belonging to, as she tells Sougo with warm smile and failing voice.

Even if she'll no longer be able to be close to them, watching from the sidelines, to the very end, Mitsuba loves her family and will always remain so proud of what they've become.

Abilites:

Nothing super-anything, but as a stated yamato nadeshiko, she's expected to be wonderful at everything a woman should be skilled in, including domestic activities. But don't trust her with cooking as she tends to make dishes inedible with copious amounts of hot sauce.

Other:

❝ If happy ever after did exist. ❞

SAMPLES
First Person:

[ it takes a while for mitsuba to get a handle of a cellphone, having barely touched a turn-dial telephone back home. she's more of a pen and paper kind of girl. a box of microchips and wires isn't anywhere as intimate as ink and parchment, but she knows she will have to get used to using it if she's going to living in holly heights for a while. (because "forever" is a little too scary a word.)

after all, how else can she more easily check up on her loved ones and ask them to pick up hot sauce for her without interrupting their work? yes, this is part of her job, and by gum will she accomplish it

...but. um. she's concentrated so much on figuring out the interface she's forgotten to come up with something to say and it's already been ten seconds since the feed started...!! ]

...Hello? Ahh, I... suppose this is working, if this red light and timer are on? [ she clears her throat, gathering herself and nodding. ] Hello and good afternoon, everyone! My name is Mitsuba Okita. I... think you could still call me a new resident. I've been so busy fixing up our house that I haven't been able to spend time learning how to use this phone, but aside from that... I don't think I have very much to say... Ah, I hope we could all live peacefully here and make friends.

[ —and that brings a spark to her mind. ]

Oh! I have a little brother named Sougo. It would be wonderful if you could all get along with him too! I apologize if he might seem a little cold when you first meet him, but he's really a good boy and will be a loyal friend to the end! So please, if you meet him, do give him a chance.

[ she stops abruptly, surprised by how much she's spoken, and laughs at herself. ] Oh dear, I've gone over three minutes now. Sorry! Thank you for listening to the end, if you have. I look forward to meeting all of you eventually. May today be a beautiful one for you and your family.

[ and with a quiet but cheery bye bye~~~, she ends the recording. it's surprisingly tiring, she finds, so she takes a seat and helps herself to tea as she waits for responses. ]