PERSONAL QUESTIONS

1. What is your real, birth name? What name do you use?
"M-My real, birth name is Ren Ikuhara," the girl bows her head down. "That's it. I, uh, n-normally introduce myself with my f-full name, a-and, uh, I don't really have a preference as to what people use. M-Most people call me either, uhm, 'Ikuhara-san' or 'Ren-chan', th-though I'm not r-really all that used to, uh, the latter."

2. Do you have a nickname? What is it, and where did you get it?
"I-I don't have any nicknames. I mean! My g-gran'pa calls me d-different things, like 'sweetheart' a-and things like that, b-but there's nothing, uh, official?"

3. What do you look like?
"Oh, gosh," Ren seems flustered. "This is, uhm. L-Let's see. I'm about 160 cm and... I... I really don't like to talk about m-my weight, but... I weight, uhm, about 64, maybe 65 kg? I try not to keep track because I... I already know I'm overweight. G-Gran'pa says I have a 'well-rounded' figure, a-and I guess he's right."

She fidgets before continuing. "A-Anyway. I have, uh, blue eyes and hair... I get that from my mother. That's pretty s-simple, but my skin, w-well... I tan easily. I mean, really easily. I can be in the sun for, g-gosh, maybe ten minutes and I'll b-be a different shade than before! I-It's really annoying, especially s-since I've heard that in Japan that tanned s-skin is, uhm, something like a symbol for party girls. I'm a little athletic, though... well, kind of, so I don't think people g-get the wrong idea. Without the, uh, added tan, my s-skin is actually pretty fair."

"I guess I have a round-ish face? I wear my hair really short so it frames it well. 'Accenting your smile,' gran'pa says. I don't really have any, uhm, distinguishing features, I-I think... C-Compared to other students, I think I'm just, well, uh, average."

4. How do you dress most of the time?
"D-Duel Academia has a school uniform that w-we have to wear all the time, so most of the time I dress in that. W-We're allowed to add our own personal touches to it, but, uh, I mostly wear black or s-some other solid color, b-because it's supposed to be, uhm, ah, s-slimming. I guess the one thing that s-stands out is my choker... I saw s-someone wear one once a-and I just thought it'd be c-cool to try."

5. How do you "dress up?"
"I don't really u-usually dress up, b-but I like more traditional things w-when I do, like qípáo. That's, uhm, normally called a 'cheongsam', or 'mandarin gown'. I-I like to wear colors like w-white or pink, because they compliment my t-tanned skin and d-dark hair."

6. How do you "dress down?"
"J-Just things like, uhm, shorts, a-and a t-shirt... That's pretty boring, isn't it?"

7. What do you wear when you go to sleep?
Ren looks almost embarrassed to say it. "O-One of those... t-two piece Chinese pajamas..."

8. Do you wear any jewelry?
The Yellow shakes her head. "W-Well, except for my choker, but that's just a r-ribbon of fabric... no 'jewels' on it, you know?"

9. In your opinion, what is your best feature?
"Gh!" Ren's shoulders slump. "I-I guess... I... Well, if I r-really worked at it, I think... m-my best feature would b-be my figure."

10. What's your real birth date?
"M-March 3, 1998."

11. Where do you live? Describe it: Is it messy, neat, avant-garde, sparse, etcetera?
"I live with my g-gran'pa in the staff-appointed living quarters in the, uh, Ra Yellow portion of campus. It's p-pretty nice, really! It's k-kind of messy, though, because my gran'pa likes to, you know, collect a l-lot of things. Artifacts, books, herbs, p-peace signs, things like that. My room is pretty neat, I-I think."

12. Do you own a car?
"Eheheh," Ren laughs nervously. "I... I don't even own a license. I can't e-even imagine driving!"

13. What is your most prized mundane possession? Why do you value it so much?
"Oh, gosh, well... I guess it's this bag that I, uh, carry around all the time. It has, uhm, p-patches of things from different places and p-people... Like..." She holds it up, pointing to various pieces of fabric. "T-This is from a dress my mom had... a-and this is from an old shirt of g-gran'pa's... and this is from..." She pauses. "Just, uh, you get the idea. It's like... carrying around m-memories. Or something comforting. That's also f-functional!"

14. What one word best describes you?
Again, the girl hangs her head. "S-Shy..."


FAMILIAL QUESTIONS

1. What was your family like?
"Er, well... We were close when my m-mother was alive. She was really the, uh, h-heart of the family. I-I was closest to h-her, and my gran'pa, e-even though back then he only came to visit every so often... he didn't live with us. After she... she died, the things that we'd... barely scraped together just... just fell apart. Things became a... a lot better after I went to live with my g-gran'pa."

2. Who was your father, and what was he like?
"M-My father's name is T-Takuro Ikuhara. He was... he is, very strict. After my mother died, w-we... my sister and I... referred to him as 'Sir'. I-I don't look like him at all. He works too much, and all he c-cares about are t-things like 'potential', m-mostly his own. He was a lot better when mother w-was around, but after that, I... I think it hurt him so m-much that he just started to w-work more to replace... her?"

3. Who was your mother, and what was she like?
"My mother's name was Song. S-She's my gran'pa's daughter. She was like... like her name. A song. G-Gentle, and always... s-soothing. She let me cling to her a-all the time, and I did. She was a g-great cook, and was r-really imaginative. She liked to sing and d-dance, and hated scary movies and 'ghosts' and things. She... she liked the outdoors, but she had a weak heart and couldn't do all of the things she wanted to... S-So she'd encourage me a-and Miu-chan to go out and d-do them."

4. What was your parents marriage like? Were they married? Did they remain married?
"My parents were married, a-and remained until the d-day mother died. W-When I was really little, everything was, w-well, normal. They were really lovey-dovey. A-Around the time I was... I think three, maybe? They started to drift apart. He still d-did nice things, though, a-at least up until about the last year she was alive. I... I don't really know what happened there. I feel bad for... not knowing."

5. What were your siblings names? What were they like?
"I only have one sibling. Miu-chan is, uhm, two years older than me. She's... she's like... competitive. A lot like dad, I guess. She was his favorite, a-and was good at, well... She was good at everything. School, sports, l-looks... she had e-everything. But she was always... I don't know... angry at me? Jealous? I don't know, but... it always felt like we were competing for something. She'd get even madder i-if I didn't participate, s-so I'd try... a-and then she'd get mad if I did it wrong... I... I guess it's a complicated love?"

6. What's the worst thing one of your siblings ever did to you? What's the worst thing you've done to one of your siblings?
"Miu-chan said... She said some really mean things after mother died. I-I think she was just upset, b-but they really stuck. Things like, 'You're always useless', and 'You only think she loved you', and... and that I wasn't... wasn't really her sister. I've never, e-ever tried to do anything m-mean to her, but... I guess... W-When I ran away, then, maybe I should have stayed. M-Maybe pushing her away... like that... is the worst thing."

7. When's the last time you saw any member of your family? Where are they now?
"I saw my gran'pa just this morning. I s-see him every morning, in fact, just before I head t-to classes. R-Right now, he's probably drinking under a nice tree..."

8. Did you ever meet any other family members? Who were they? What did you think of them?
"I... I was always shy as a child, so I... I've met family members, at reunions and things, but... I never got to k-know them. I just kind of... hid behind my m-mother's skirt."


CHILDHOOD QUESTIONS

1. What is your first memory?
"Being in my mother's kitchen. M-Miu-chan was there, a-and I remember the feeling of soft cloth and the smell of good food. I think my father was there, b-but I don't r-really remember e-everything that clearly. B-But that is the first!"

2. What was your favorite toy?
"It's... It's silly... It was just a ball. An orange ball with a r-red star on it. It was really b-bouncy and I could play with it m-myself and learn tricks on it that my mother r-really liked. It was about a foot around a-and sturdy, so I could even balance on it. I guess... I guess I liked it most b-because I could actually... do something with it."