Rational Thinking

Writing in her journal:

"Jun-chan,

It's alright so far. After the first few hours of terror, I met Etsuko-chan. And her and I are togehther right now. I can trust her not to kill me for now. I'm really happy that I can do that at least. I'm not sure how much she trusts me, but I'm glad that we're togehther. We can fight this - and I'm positive we'll win!

Guess what my weapon is Jun-chan?! A sponge! I'll be sure to win with that, huh?

-Maki"

What would Jun-chan (her brother) do if Maki got picked?

Ding Dong.

"Junsuke, dear, would you get that?" Maki's mother asked in her quiet voice. She was working in the kitchen on some figures for the new government building. Her mind wasn't incredibly knowledgeable in the area but being a single parent of three children, she took any and all offers for work.

Junsuke sighed, minimizing the window he had refreshed on the computer. His mind was greatly involved in a new kind of scientific and mathematical equation... He could have easily done his mother's work for her, but she never wanted to burden him and he never wanted to talk to her. It was Maki that always asked to help and was turned down.

Wishing Maki hadn't gone on her stupid field trip, making him worry like crazy, Junsuke walked over to the door and looked through the eye-hole. His whole body froze as he saw government personnel outside. He staggered backwards and fell onto the steps behind him. "Okaa-san!" He had never felt so frightened in his life. No, not for himself. For the only one who understood him.

His mother walked quietly into the room, the doorbell ringing once again. She glanced at Junsuke and asked, "What's wrong, Junsuke, dear?" He jerked his head up towards her and then closed his eyes tightly, forcing his head toward the floor. He had to remain calm. After all, these guys had power. They could kill him in a heartbeat. And Junsuke was all brains, no bronze.

Silently, Junsuke's mother opened the door. She blinked at the sight of the government officers. "Ma'am. We have news for you," the tallest one stated monotonously.

"Yes?" she asked, wondering if it had anything to do with her latest job.

Junsuke kept his head lowered, but raised his eyes to peak out through his bangs. There were multiple men and he could never fight them. Plus they would never tell him where she was...

"Your daughter has been chosen for the BR Act."

Junsuke froze. He knew it was coming and yet hearing it made the whole even worse. How could he say it like it was a normal everyday occurrence? A HAPPY event? Junsuke clutched his fists and closed his eyes tightly once again. He had prepared his whole life to undertone his emotions... He just never thought it would be this difficult.

Silence came. But then Junsuke's mother simply nodded and whispered a thank you. The men turned and she shut the door behind them.

Instead of doing what a normal mother would do, instead of crying and bawling, instead of attempting to get her daughter back, instead of comforting her other children, Junsuke's mother walked back into the kitchen to continue her work.

It was THIS act that made Junsuke crack. He stood up straight and marched himself into the kitchen. He was ready to scream, to yell, to force his mother to have some compassion. His mother looked up when he entered and as she did, silent tears fell down her cheeks. Junsuke stopped his invectives before they began. "Okaa-san..."

Before he knew it, his own eyes held wet droplets. He walked over to his mother's seat and hugged her from behind, resting his forehead on her shoulder. His tears were wetting her shirt, but all she did was touch Junsuke's arm with her hand. She didn't realize it at all. All she could do was cry - she was practically immune to the government's doings and so, the BR Act couldn't phase her anymore than this...

Junsuke cried for a long time. For once in his life, his feelings came full force, engulfing him. Even if Maki survived, even if she came back to him, she would be a different person. He had trained her, told her what to do and what not to do, gave her his most prized pocket knife... He wanted her to come back to him more than anything. But what would Maki want? Would she want to live with the guilt of knowing her classmates died while she lived? Would she want to live with death lingering in her mind's eye forever?

She would fight for him. He knew that much. Maki would fight until the end for Junsuke. She would never give up because she knew...she knew that she was the only one who understood him. She knew he couldn't live right without her. He would turn rebel and probably be killed by the government... She always kept him in check...

And now...either way, Maki Kitamura would be gone forever. Junsuke cried, knowing he might never hear "Jun-chan~~" from her lips again.

APPLICATION FORM:

Player Name: Melanie
Player LJ: harada_sis_08
Player Contact: AIM: writerbabe90
Player E-mail: Takutofangirl101@aol.com
RP Experience: Not an extreme amount and not fully on all-year-round, but I’ve done about 3 or 4 different Harry Potter OC characters, 2 or 3 Digimon OC ones, and a few original characters over the course of perhaps...3 years? Or 4?
Other than that, I write my own stories, so I’m pretty decent in writing different characters - 3rd person limited. But you can decide that for yourself with my example. Feel free to criticize and tell me I’m horrible. As long as you give a reason.
Character Name: Maki Kitamura
Character Age: 15

Appearance: ((Based off Erika Toda from Liar Game and the Death Note movies.))

Slightly past shoulder-length dark brown hair, always puts two segments of her hair in two pigtails and lets the rest hang down or all up at once, for the game, she decides to put it all up, hazel eyes, heart-shaped face with small ears and a small nose, full lips, she's basically got a really cute face, but she's not whatsoever pretty. She also wears contacts and/or glasses.

Short (5'4"), but not too fat, she's average for her height with weak arms and bigger hips. Her legs are pretty strong, but her current lack of exercise doesn't help them.

She usually wears her school uniform. She loves it way too much. Other than that, it's comfortable clothing at all times for her.

Skills/Talents:
She has an amazingly friendly attitude and hates no one. Also she’s hard-working. Also she’s an extremely rational thinker. She doesn’t have a specific talent, but she is average at about everything except she’s below average in intelligence. Sports are decent, but she also hasn’t exercised in forever - even though she used to have fun running... Now she’s dead weight almost....

Backpack Contents:
–contacts materials including solution, contact case, and a mirror
–three granola bars (she loves them way too much and decided to simply bring a few for snacks for herself)
–journal (she always carries it because it’s her life basically - it contains her mother’s finances, her thoughts on life, and most importantly any information her little brother told her to remember)
–pen (always carries it - everywhere)
–Book (her favorite book because she’s usually alone a lot on class trips - unless her friends ask her to do something)
–Hairbrush (and all the other female products she’d need, especially hair ties)
–Coat (slightly heavy but not huge)
–brother’s pocket knife (her brother forces her to carry it whenever she leaves for an excessive amount of time - he doesn’t trust people)
-extra clothes (mainly something remotely like the school uniform)

You said only useful objects but in the face of opposition, everything can be useful.

Government Standpoint:

Was your character brought up by someone who worked for the government?
Yes. Her mother works currently for the government. But she’s not in any kind of hierarchy at all. She’s a simple puppet. And her mother doesn’t like to talk about it at all so Maki isn’t so sure about what she exactly does...
And she also has no idea what her father does... Who knows?

Are they pro-government in a sense that they agree with what they're doing. Or are they anti-government in a sense that they completely disagree? Or are they neutral? Do they agree in some points or disagree in others?
Maki is basically against everything the government is doing. She can’t stand the oppression the government is handing out. BUT and this is the HUGE BUT, she doesn’t state any of her beliefs. How can she when he mother WORKS for these guys? Anything she said would be turned against her mother and she refuses to harm her mother in any way. That’s why she wants to go along with it. She HAS to go along with it. It’s not a matter of belief anymore with her, it’s a matter of survival.

On another note, Maki gets most of her hatred from her mother’s pain (she blames her father mostly, but also the government) AND her little brother. He’s the pinnacle of anti-government and breaks laws frequently (he loves to search the internet and listen to American music). Maki, of course, thoroughly opposes his doing this because she doesn’t want him in trouble. Especially when he starts looking for information on Battle Royale:

Maki: What are you doing, Jun-chan?
Junsuke: You were curious, right?
Maki: Get out of there right now!
Junsuke: Don’t worry, it’s not the government site. Like I’d be stupid enough to hack into there without perfect hacking skills. It’s just a random website.
Maki: No! No website, Jun-chan!
Junsuke: I’m not losing my sister because of a law against searching the web.
Maki: Fine. But don’t let mom see that.

Personality:

Maki has always been a quiet girl, living her life soully to help her mother. She has been trying to get a job since she was thirteen, but only recently grabbed one. She lives for helping others out and feels pity for the players in Battle Royale. But at the same time, she's not stupid. Her intelligence isn't great; no, in fact, it's nowhere near good. But she believes that anyone can be pushed to their limits in a situation. Everyone has the power to live and die, to kill and be killed. So, she's a realistic optimist. She wants to believe the good in people, but she won't admit to there being bad.

And Maki also feels the need to be friendly at all times, even if she might have suspicion about others. She can't hate anyone - even an enemy. She merely pities them greatly.

Plus Maki always thinks rationally - even in a tough situation. Knowing about Battle Royale has taught her always to think clearly. The ones who go insane are the ones who die first.

But on the opposite end, her rational thoughts sometime end up making her feel guilty. If I had run out, I could have helped... She takes guilt to the extreme at times. And thus, she could never kill anyone unless they were truly going to hurt someone else. She would try not to kill if she was defending herself, she'd hate killing just to defend herself. But if that's the only option left, she has to take it.

Because of her quiet nature, Maki only has a few close friends but her friendly nature gives her an aura of kindness. So she doesn't have many enemies either.

History:
- born Maki Lina Kitamura - January 4 (in Japan)
- Right between an younger brother, Junsuke whom she calls Jun-chan (one year younger) and an older sister, Sachiko (two years older)
- Father + Mother divorced when she was 4-years-old
- Father remarried that same year
- General “C” student throughout school with a few B’s and the occasional A - no D’s though
- Recently received “job” helping clean neighbors’ houses just over the summer before this year

I don’t know what else to put here. Her “past” is basically explained in “Family” or somewhere else. She’s just a normal school student trying to pass her classes.

Family Relationships:

Her mother is a single parent with three children. She has a younger brother, Junsuke “Jun-chan,” and an older sister, Sachiko. Her sister apparently got all the beauty and her brother apparently got all the brains. So, she's stuck in the middle, literally. Her mother works for the government (a puppet) so Maki knows about Battle Royale and has been forcefully preparing herself if she were ever to be chosen.

Her father has remarried and moved away so she doesn't see him often. She doesn't even know where he works or what he does since he left when she was only four. She blames him for making her mother work so hard as a puppet for the government.

She adores her younger brother, Junsuke, and has an amazing relationship with him. Basically, her brother is the one who listens to her problems and tries to help her get through them. He’s the mature one in the family even if he’s younger (but only by a year). He can easily understand Maki’s mind because he has the same emotions as her, but can never show them. So he envies Maki for her quiet yet emotional nature and Maki envies him for his brains and knowing. She also gave him the nickname “Jun-chan” because she feels that Junsuke is such an old name for her younger brother and he deserves a cute name.

Sachiko, Maki’s older sister, on the other hand wants nothing to do with her family. She just wants to live, love, and have fun. So Maki and her don’t get along. Maki’s older sister and Maki have entirely different viewpoints on life. Maki wants to survive and do something for the world while her sister wants the fun and enjoyment of life. Also, Maki is the one who helps out her mother while her sister goes out.

Maki and her mother have an almost friendship more than a mother-daughter relationship. Maki pities her mother, knowing everything she has to go through. And she hates the fact that her mother has turned into a puppet. But it’s for the best after all. That way her mother isn’t targeted for anything. She’s safe. And Maki can help in any way possible. Basically, Maki feels like she has to take care of her mother. She believes her mother to be more of an old friend than a mother. They take care of each other and love each other.

Writing Sample: Your character has just woken up in a classroom, all of their classmates asleep around them. The last thing they remember is riding in the bus, on the way to the class trip that everyone had been looking forward to.
[write your character's reaction in 250+ words]

Drowsily, Maki opened her eyes. She groaned slightly and rubbed her head. Wait, she fell asleep, right? They stopped moving so they should have arrived. Why did no one wake her?

She opened her eyes fully and noticed first the desk she sat in. She blinked for a while, staring at it. Then, she lifted her eyes to look around. Everyone in the class sat around her and it seemed as though she sat in her exact same seat in her regular class back home. Wait a second, was everyone...asleep?

Maki turned slightly to look behind her. Yes, everyone was definitely asleep. Suddenly, she felt something deep in her stomach. It started out as a slight pain, but it suddenly got worse. Fear was growing inside her. It can’t be...

She reached up to her neck and felt what she had been waiting for the past few years... Her breathing hitched suddenly as she took her hand down and looked around for her bag. It couldn’t be true, right? No way was her class chosen...they had a one in a million chance Or at least, one in a thousand or something, right?

Maki found her bag sitting next to her and she reached inside the side pocket for her compact mirror. She needed it for her contacts and was suddenly glad to have it. With a deep breath, Maki directed the mirror towards her neck and saw her worst nightmare. She touched it again in disbelief. It couldn’t be one of those collars for the BR Act, right? Was this some sick joke?

Closing her eyes tightly, she slammed her compact mirror shut. Why did it have to be her? She had been preparing for this, but ... only one survives, right? Only ONE. If she is that one, she’d die of guilt. And if she isn’t...who’s going to take care of her mother? And Jun-chan? And who will keep her sister out of trouble?

“If you ever get chosen, think of me. When you have to decide whether to kill or be killed, think of me and make the right choice. Don’t die without a fight,” her brother’s words rang inside her head... ”Don’t die without a fight.”

And right then and there, Maki’s optimism flew out the window. She opened her eyes once again, examining her classmates for a last time. It was really happening. Death came so quickly.

Other: [specify what kind of clique (if any) your character is, leader or follower, how they are in social situations, what kind of strategies they would use in a Battle Royale type situation, how easily they trust, how close they are to classmates, and anything else you can think of]

Clique: Definitely the slightly geeky, creepy, weird girls who love everything from anime and manga to the newest J-Pop idol. If you wanted to characterize them in American language, it would be the Band Geeks. But she only has a few close friends. And she’d be on the outside of the group. So she wouldn’t be a “Band Geek” but she would be friends with a few lower scaled ones. But she always stays friendly with the other cliques.

Leader or Follower: Follower. She would only lead if no one else took charge. And since she has never done that before, she’d probably fail. But no one could blame her for trying. In a Battle Royale situation, she could pass for a leader only because she has a rational train of thought, but in a school club or group, she’d probably get impeached...

Social Situations: She doesn’t talk to people first. If she MUST, she only says something after thinking about it for a while. She’s a quiet girl who doesn’t like to bring up conversations. But she’s extremely friendly if someone asks her something. And she’ll answer truthfully. She’s very bubbly with close friends, but it’s a toned-done bubbly. In a party atmosphere, she’s stick close to her friends and would only speak if spoken to.

Strategies: BR Act. She would run as far as she could from the school at first and find some place to stay the night. The dark is NO place for someone looking for someone else. Even finding a place in the dark would be better than making noise by running or yelling. Next day she would definitely try to find a friend. But she would only move at a certain cost. She has rational thoughts so she’d definitely steer clear of any gunshots. But then again, it’s basically up to luck and she knows that. So she has to make her luck better than everyone else’s.
If she found a friend, a good friend, she’d protect them at all costs. Without her mother to protect, she’d substitute someone else. And she would definitely rather die herself than let a friend die.
If faced with a choice to call out to someone she didn’t know well, she wouldn’t. Cautious, yes, but if she doesn’t trust them already, how can she trust them when they could KILL her?

Trust: She doesn’t trust easily, but she doesn’t refuse to trust others. She definitely tries to trust her friends - all of them. But it’s hard. As Shogo said in the movie, “Really trusting someone...is a hard thing to do.” But she would definitely have a few friends she could trust whole-heartedly.

Classmates: Like in her profile, she’s the friendly type of girl. Quiet and friendly. She will help a person in need. Like say someone asks her for an eraser: “Sure ” with a smile. Or perhaps a compliment: “You look so cute!” Her response: She blushes slightly and blinks and then says, “Thank you!” with a huge smile. In a group project, she’d only give her opinion if asked and she’d nod when she agreed.
So she doesn’t have many friends because of her quiet and shy attitude. But she doesn’t have enemies because of her friendly and comforting atmosphere. Even the popular clique really can’t have a complaint about her. They could easily pick on her for her brains though - she’s no genius.

Anything Else: This isn’t about Maki, but I’d like to say that I’m really excited for this. And Maki is a really fun character to portray. Of course, I’ll have fun with her reactions to certain situations. Thank you for reading and I hope to have fun! ((Also sorry for the extremely extensive character information...))