Himemiya "Toyger" Tori

Player name: Deca

Over 18?: Yup!

Contact: snugglewumps#6130 and decathect-> plurk

Character name: Himemiya “Toyger” Tori

Character canon: Ensemble Stars!(AU)

Canon Summary: Toyger is from an AU of Ensemble Stars in which the canon, a world where boys go to a high school for idols, to compete and learn to be better performers, is but a distant memory, halcyon days remembered hazily by the few who are lucky enough to have their memories.

As the cast grew, a terrible war broke out, as terrible technology was built to fight that war. The world was polluted, corrupted by those in power who craved more, and soon enough they had tapped into dark powers, giving rise to Necromancers. These people could create undead armies, horrors which killed indiscriminately, were faster and stronger than men, felt no pain, and were notoriously difficult to destroy. As this technology advanced, they felt the need to make these undead creatures less indiscriminate in their pain, thus did they create Dolls; undead soldiers which they implanted personalities into, and programmed feelings for their Sisters into, so that they could work together, and hopefully avoid slaughtering innocents.

Some of the remaining members of humanity tried to put a stop to things, as over time it became obvious that the world would surely become uninhabitable by any kind of living thing if these undead abominations were to continue to roam, if the pollution and decay could not be stopped, but in the end it was in vain. The world Toyger came to be in is one where the sea is naught but black sludge, horrors roam the desolate landscape devouring any kind of organic material, and the last vestiges of humanity hide in bunkers, hoping for an end to their suffering with little hope left over to wish for a better tomorrow. This has not stopped the struggle even still, as various Necromancers vie for their preferred kind of control, continuing to create and repair Dolls for their purposes.

Dolls now are both tools, used by the last remaining living people, and likely the only hope left for any semblance of life on Earth- though they come in many different forms and their personalities are made up of (usually somewhat janky) programs and algorithms, they are the ones left to explore the planet, and themselves, a process which is often as messy and emotional as it is for any human, with the added struggle of never knowing if you are who you remember you were, or if you are a copy of a copy of a copy, and... does it really matter if you are?

Character in Canon: Tori was born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Though his family was nouveau riche, he only ever knew prosperity in his youth. He was given all of the modern conveniences, and he even had a dedicated bodyguard and close confidante, Yuzuru. Tori took it for granted, assumed that he would have these things forever, and that he would never need to give anything in return. He was young and selfish and stupid! He realized this when Yuzuru confessed to him, taking himself out of the background of Tori's life, putting them both together in a spotlight that Tori was never even aware existed, and in fear, he fled.

This was his first time alone, but he was never truly alone. When he ran away, he ran to others he knew, spending weeks or months away from home, away from Him. 

When he came back, he was changed- a boy who had spent some time learning to work, learning to love, learning to live, and when he came back, Yuzuru greeted him as if he had only just stepped out. It was a lovely youth, one he would look back fondly upon, if he could only remember it.

There was a war; the war that ended it all, as Necromancers rose to create undead abominations, and the oceans were polluted beyond any recovery. Tori followed a boy, his idol, Eichi. Eichi was who he loved most, but would never be loved most by, but he still believed in Eichi's vision, in his ability to bring the world back, but Eichi was sick. He was never going to get to see that healed world, and sure enough he died with Tori sobbing at his side. He wasn't the first that Tori would lose, nor would he be the last, as one by one, people went away and simply never returned, and even his beloved bodyguard would die in the most cliché way that a loyal servant could, something meant for Tori had taken him instead, and he died clutched in Tori's arms. 

Tori could not afford to let himself drown in his sorrow, and quickly took up the mantle left behind by Eichi, though he did so with much more compassion, and with a stubborn refusal to let anyone else be sacrificed. He did so well, for so long, extending kindness, compassion, and charity to all that he met, but alas, one more sacrifice was made. Working so hard for so long, he had neglected his own health, and it took only a moment of dizziness, and a faulty railing, to end it all for Tori.

It was many years later when he opened his eyes again. He had no memories, and only knew now that he had become a Doll, little cat ears adorning his head, his body returned to how it had been in his youth, when he was healthy and loved. They called him Toyger, and he joined with his Sisters, the other Dolls he awoke with, to go through a house of horror in which they were expected to fight in order to help restore deactivated Dolls to their waking states. Through a Benny-Hill-Themed chase with some Using Music To Solve A Violent Conflict on the side, they did manage to escape, Toyger, remembering some of his life, and retaining his stubborn refusal to sacrifice any more people, insisted on saving the Necromancer and taking his dear Dolls with them in order to make the best of what was left in their ruined world.

So as you could see, the personality Toyger has on the surface is one of a little princess- bratty and entitled, expecting love and adoration simply for being the princess he is. He's bossy and can be overbearing, and he has a lot of pride, too much pride to simply run back to his beloved bodyguard after just a night away. People who meet Toyger/Tori first see him as a spoiled rotten, stuck-up brat who is given to drastic mood swings and dramatic outbursts. Anyone who hangs around him for long enough though will get to see the real Toyger.

He is perpetually stuck in the mind of a little kid who used to get everything he wanted, but soon saw the cruelty inherent in the world; people die, sometimes too far away for you to even know about, sometimes of an illness they can't escape, sometimes sacrificed for a greater good that never comes to be, sometimes simply through an act of violence that no one can predict. Sometimes when you lose people, it isn't to death, but to your own ignorance- you didn't know how sad they were, you didn't know someone who was important to them that they needed to follow, you didn't know how much they cared about you before you left, you didn't know ANYTHING because they never TELL YOU ANYTHING. But no more. 

Even if he is still (will always be)a little bratty, Toyger has taken it upon himself to never be abandoned and to never abandon anyone again. Underneath what seems like a selfish exterior, Toyger had learned to care for people and care deeply, giving all of himself to anyone who he thinks needs it. This is why he worked himself to death, and why when he was arrived and a cruel Necromancer forced him and his Sisters to fight to the death, he still risked everything in order to save that very same Necromancer. He couldn't leave him behind, not anyone, never again.

It is through the lens of a man trying to help everyone to persevere through a world-ending apocalypse that Toyger views everything. Yes, he will yell and stomp his feet like a petulant child if he does not get his way, if he is angered or frustrated, and he will cry and cling to people when the pressure gets to be too much, but ultimately he is not as naïve as he seems, warily approaching new things and people, but still approaching them, with the dream that maybe, someday, the fighting can end, and even if humanity is lost, perhaps there is still enough humanity left in the Dolls that they might live fulfilling un-lives.

Character in Imeeji: Truth be told, Toyger has gone through this before; waking up in a strange place with no memories, with strange people around him that he'll be told he has to work with(some of which he may not get along with!), and so at least at first, he should be about the same as he was upon waking up in the Necromancer's dungeon. He is a little less mature and a little less magnanimous than he was near the end of his life, but he is also a lot less sad and a lot more of the princess that he appears to be.

I expect that Toyger will adapt to Imeeji life easily, craving attention and adoration as he is, and will participate happily in Lives, whether it is just for points or to get the cameras focused on him. As far as games, trauma or no trauma, I can't say for SURE whether he will Embrace Violence or if he will play Malicious Compliance games, though I do not suspect he will play to win unless someone manages to REALLY convince him to. Trauma is nothing new to Toyger, considering his backstory, and he is even used to sustaining injuries of his own, though feeling pain will be new and fun for him, since Dolls don't really do that! It'll be great and give him more reasons to cry and to demand attention. 

As far as his unit goes, he's going to love them. It doesn't matter who they are, if they never speak, if they're a jerk, if they have terrible morals. Toyger will love them, and if they fight it he will love them all the more. In fact, my hope for Imeeji, and for Toyger, is that he is faced with difficult personalities, people who are hard to get along with, and that he ends up as the victim in schemes or events that end up hurting him. I hope for him to experience betrayal(maybe also Betrayal) and despair, because my hope is that someone resilient who has already gone through so much and comes out more compassionate, not less, can show that compassion in the face of apathy and even disdain. I want Toyger to round up as many cranky, grumpy murderhobos as he can and put them in his pocket and say "that's ok, I love you still(YOU BIG, STUPID JERK)", even as they twist a knife in his gut, because that is the kind of person Toyger is. He's got a lot of love, and he has a lot of TOUGH LOVE. And he will punch people with his love and yeah, maybe he will be a little mean about it but you can't STOP HIM.

I do not know what kind of personality will really set him off, truth be told. He is soft to those who are soft and wants to protect them, hopes that he can throw himself on the proverbial fire in front of them so that they can remain soft and sweet and kind. To those who are cruel or aloof, Toyger will throw a fit, but he sees the potential in people, even if they fight that potential(see: Necromancer who wanted him to fight to the death who he refused to stop trying to friendship at), and he is willing to try to meet them where they are at. I think someone who REALLY tries or someone who truly does not care can get Toyger to lay off, but he is otherwise a pesky little meddler, and that is all I want. I want to play a pesky little meddler who tries to friendship people, even if he also thinks those people are dumb and mean.

He might freak out if someone is Too Sincere at him though. He is willing to be your friend but if they turn it on him he might fall apart. Toyger is extremely weak to love(romantic, familial, or platonic, all love is good love), and will crumble if someone makes it easy for him to feel loved.

But make no mistake, my No.1 goal is to get Toyger to mess with grumpy/sad/aloof people in order to try to worm his way into their little hearts(though mostly he will want them to be happy, he does not have to factor in at all actually). Any arc or character growth he experiences is secondary to wanting to mess with people

Unit Preferences: New players and returning players: Rather than judging on unit traits, please give us an idea of what sort of personalities would be ideal for your character, i.e. "I want my character to be the grumpiest person in the unit" or "I want a bunch of whacky personalities so my character can be long-suffering". Current players may also do this, but we expect current players to have a more accurate idea of how personalities in each unit shake out than new or returning players. 

Otherwise, please pick according to what abilities you're interested in playing with, and what fashion you'd be happy playing with! At least 25% of the fun of Imeeji is getting to dress your character up so it's important to get it right! This is a real life made up statistic that is real.

1st Priority: BE=DE, sIV

2nd Priority: HSS, FiN, Zrael, TRR, pep, AlcheME, WC 

Do Not Place: BiT, avante, LiliS

Voice Sample: Please provide a sample of your character in action. We require any one of the following:

• 2 threads, each with at least 10 comments by you, the applicant

• A survey or monologue, prompts given below

SURVEY:

Evaluate yourself honestly: what do you think your soul is worth?

- Hmmm. Well, I don't know. Do Dolls even have souls? Am I the same guy as the one in my memories? If I'm not, does that make it worth less? Hmmm. The man that I was deserves to have a good afterlife, I guess. I would say if I have the original soul, there isn't enough gold, jewels, or riches in the world that I would trade for my soul. Really, I wouldn't trade my soul now either, it's all I've really got left. But it would be fine to trade away, I guess, if that means that the world my friends and I fought for would be recoverable. Souls are really irreplaceable anyway, so even the worst ones are really valuable, so yeah. I guess that’s what it’s worth. It’s worth a wish. A GOOD one, not some backhanded wish from a trickster.

Is there anything you would do anything to achieve?

- I mean yeah. I want people to learn to be happy again, and I would do anything for that, DUH. I don't know if I have that kind of power anymore, but I have friends who I think have a chance.

What does hell mean to you?

- I don't know, hell doesn't feel like a real concern right now. "Hell" is kind of what the world is, so who cares about some made up afterlife where you're punished for whatever dumb thing people tell you you'll get punished for. Like whatEVER.

Which of these nine words is the most meaningful to you, and why? Idolatry, lies, transgressions, vengeance, sorcery, plague, devastation, inquisition, or temptation?

- Devastation, I guess. That's the only word I can think of for what happened to my world. :(

Do you want a puppy?

- HMMMMMMMMMMM!!! I mean I guess a little bit! I don't think I would be a good owner for it though. Like I think I'd like to PLAY with a puppy? I wonder if puppies exist anymore where I'm from. 

Have you previously owned a puppy?

- No. I had... Uhm, I had someone who followed me around like a puppy. He was a lot better than a puppy though, and I didn't have to take care of him. In fact, he mostly took care of me. Anyway. Yeah, no. I never had a pet at all.

Are you worried we've been recording this conversation?

- PFFFT. No, of course not! Why would I even be being interviewed if it wasn't to record it and share it, right?  

Do you have any last words for us?

- YEAH! I am coming soon to a theater near you probably so keep an eye out! I'll be sure to greet you with a blown kiss and a wink, and I will sign whatever merch of me you've got so don't miss out! But if you're a creep I know how to fight now, and don't underestimate me just cuz I'm small or I'll break your fingers, got it?! It might have been a long time since my last 'performance', but I am still in top shape!