01 | text (via notebook)

[thorny]

[the first thing that appears is a very elegant string of Japanese kanji. someone obviously doesn't give a fuck about this network's language abilities]

This is a literacy test. Do you pass?

[and then it (fortunately for you non-speakers) switches over to English before continuing onward]

An access code leading me to a secret forum? How quaint. I was almost expecting to be given a decoder ring for my troubles - or should I be expecting one in the mail now that I've made my presence known here?

But I suppose that doesn't matter very much. From what I've seen this board is filled with absolutely fascinating people of the highest intellectual caliber. I can see why we've all been thrown together here; every discussion I've seen has been absolutely riveting.

Hopefully my own contribution will be able to hold up to the impossible standards of my fellow readers. Prepare yourself, I'm about to launch the conversation topic!

How many of you are familiar with the Lolita style of fashion?

Comments

voice

[dorkytracksuit]

[well know he's just going to speak elvish at you. which he doesn't even know well so its sounds awful.]

I know it.

permatext

[thorny]

[and just when she thought that American accents couldn't be ay more repulsive]

I'm sorry, but you may want to remove the dying animal that's apparently become lodged in your throat before attempting to reply. I'm not particularly skilled at lingual puzzles.

permatext

[dorkytracksuit]

Strange. You're smart. [Still Bad Elvish.]

Video|smartphone;

[wannabered]

[Thankfully, his parents actually taught him Japanese as a kid. He also was lazy and took it in college for easy international perspective credit.]

I pass I guess. About Lolita though, I know a bit? I know the basic idea, the different subgroups and the like. Why?

permatext

[thorny]

[hm. well, that's one person to add to her list of those to filter out when she badmouths people in other languages]

I'm attempting to see if perhaps the reason I was brought into the fold of this secret network was to finally find someone else with a decent sense of style. After a lifetime of being spoiled for that sort of thing one feels its absense more keenly.

Video;

[wannabered]

[Style? Probably not going to see much on Thomas with his white scarf and abundance of red shirts.]

Well, I can't really tell you anything about that. Besides the people I've met off the network, I've mostly been getting text or voice from people.

( handwritten. )

[jests]

[ cursive and tidy; in reference — primarily — to her comment about decoder rings: ] The 80s and 90s might be "on-trend" in certain circles at present, but I think we've managed to leave gaudy plastic where it belongs — though I suspect you're a little young to remember much of that.

permatext

[thorny]

[her script is larger but equally neat, even when it's in English like this. seems someone is using her calligraphy brush for all her replies regardless of language]

Thankfully I came into this world at the tail end of that horrid fad, but I wouldn't be so quick to proclaim it completely dead. Some of the things I've seen while wandering these streets would make weaker men scream.

[jests]

To every rule there is an exception et cetera et cetera, though thankfully even the retro trend appears to have its limits.

I'm sure. [ the amount of fucks he gives: zero. nevertheless, it's nice to know that his guess as to her approximate age had been correct. ]

text

[testsonseashells]

Japanese, yes? Might learn it soon. Should read this. Will bring you up to speed.

permatext

[thorny]

Correct. It's a beautiful language if one has the patience to properly study all of its nuances, but I may be biased in my recommendation.

[the manual is useful so she'll save the comment about not thinking foreigners can ever really speak it well for another time]

Thank you for the link. It seems that our prize is a ridiculous adventure rather than a plastic accessory; how exciting.

video {iphone}

[ursoreckless]

[just how old are you? oh well, he's going to respond in Japanese. he has the Okinawa dialect, and it's definitely upper crust despite his use of slang]

If there's suppose to be a decoder ring, then I feel ripped off. It's almost as bad as not getting any special new skill.

Lolita's okay but I prefer a more relaxed style when just hanging out. Corsets can be a killer.

permatext

[thorny]

[well, well, well. she writes back in Japanese, as she'd rather keep her voice and appearance off the network as much as possible. her kanji is delicate and clean enough to make it abundantly clear that she's writing all this with a proper calligraphy pen]

It is a little underwhelming to receive nothing more than an association with out fellow network goers as a prize for all our hard work, isn't it? If I knew where to complain to I'd be sending out a letter right now.

The more demanding aspects of the style is partially what makes it so appealing to me. There's no reason to let oneself slip even in casual situations.

[Text]

[thepiisatruth]

[A thick black marker writes in hiragana "Hey, why are you asking a bunch idiots like us?". Followed by a doodled smiley with an expression at once "BD" and ">8P"]

permatext

[thorny]

[ahhh, writing in Japanese. it's been a while since she's really done it outside of letters passed to school friends and writing home. even if she's going to be snarky it's still nice to reply in her own language]

I wanted to see just how far into the bottom of the barrel I've fallen. There's nothing wrong with being certain of one's surroundings, is it?

text;

[drama8om8]

Hey! Give me your name and address and I will absolutely totally send you a decoder ring.
I will even tape a shitty piece of lace to it! To make it ~*~*lolita*~*~. Just for you!

permatext

[thorny]

Would you do that for me? Well, I certainly can't say no to such compassionate kindness!

[and below that she writes out an address in her most elegant script.



it's the address for a local Weight Watchers organization]

text;

[enrages]

loli shit is for rich bitches who have too much time and money on their hands.
so preemptively-- FUCK YOU.

permatext

[thorny]

Jealousy is quite an unbecoming conversation opener, you know.

[happybirthdaytoyou]

[The following is written in hiragana, although the grammatical structure is sound.]

Too many complex kanji.
:C

[Eugene might be near fluent in spoken Japanese thanks to his late parents, but with one thing or another his command of the written language hadn't progressed much further than being able to reach Corocoro Comics unaided.]

[thorny]

[aaaaaaand Hikari reponds with...absolutely no change to her kanji! somebody doesn't give a fuck if people can easily read what she's writing or not]

Oh, my sincerest apologies! I'll try and keep my words as simple as possible so as not to overwhelm you.

voice; japanese;

[hollowleg]

Wow, did you pull out a kanji dictionary for that? Why so formal?

[not admitting that he doesn't remember what probably 1/4 of those kanji mean oops. But he knows enough that he can understand the general gist]

But uh, the sarcasm isn't appreciated.

permatext, also japanese

[thorny]

No, this was all from memory. There's no conscious formality about it - I merely like to put my best foot forward when entering uncharted territory.

[also she likes being a pain in the ass, news at eleven]

I can't say that I have even the faintest idea as to where you've gotten the impression that I'm being sarcastic. Everything I've said so far here has been nothing but painfully genuine.

[ text | cellphone ]

[hoennmaihime]

[Everything's written in kanji, ofc.]

Unfortunately.

[to what is she responding to? the test? (no) the comment about the riveting discussions taking place here??? (no) familiarity with the lolita style of fashion...?

yes. in haruka's eyes, those girls are kind of freaks. so while hikari gets points for commenting on the inanity of most of the posts, the lolita comment gets them subtracted again and that's why she gets an obnoxiously ambiguous answer.]

permatext

[thorny]

[with a vague reply like that, there's really only one thing this person could be commenting on. Hikari can't say that she's surprised to find yet another person with no taste for lolita; instead, she readies herself for another round of condescending conversation]

My sincerest apologies for your bad experience. It's been known to severely demoralize many people who can't live up to its standards.