Fool Yachiyo Tsuruhime/Bond Story

*He arrives. He arrives at his land together with the young girl. "I'll be waiting. At the end of the moonlight. At the promised paradise." What is this promise at the end of journey? What is paradise? The curtain of the final stage rises. From "Performance Festival" Play - Act 6.*

*(Part 1 and Part 2 of Arcana Arcadia Stage Girl bond stories are viewable in the Gallery under Arcana Arcadia - Intermission.)*

* Part 1
* Part 2
* Bond Level 15 Talk
* Bond Level 30 Talk

Quo Vadis Part 1

 **Yachiyo:****(Dying King)**
"The ruby of passion from the general, the jade of compassion from the marquis..."

 **Yachiyo:****(Dying King)**
"The pearl of potential from the young knight, and the sapphire of knowledge from you, Grand Chancellor—"

 **Yachiyo:****(Dying King)**
"I owe you. Thanks to you, I can now return—"

***\*click\****

**Secretary:**Examinee numbers 11, 19, 35, and 47 seem to have potential.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**The potential candidates for future "Edels", I see. ...Yachiyo? You're reading a play again?

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
Oh... Yes, mother.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**Let's see... A play from "Elysion's" trilogy. Oh, why is it so messy here?

**Secretary:**That's great, though. She's already able to read such difficult plays at such a young age... She'll have a bright future ahead of her.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**I'd rather she think about what's in front of her.
Yachiyo, you quit the theater troupe again? Why did you do that?

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
It was boring. All they do is read the script... The stage just goes as planned.

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
In which case, I'd much rather act with Chitose.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**Yachiyo... That again?

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
Look, look! I came up with this new costume design! It's for Chitose's role as the "dying king"!

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
I learned lace stitching from the "Celestial Goddess" costume, so for the "dying king"—

**Yachiyo's Mother:**Yachiyo. You don't have an older sister. You're an only child.

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
I-I do! I do have an older sister. She reads plays together with me and acts with me... I can see her.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**\*sigh\* Fine. Do as you wish. But don't spend all your time reading plays. You should go out and play with your classmates too. Okay?

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
...Okaaay.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**I'll be back before it gets dark. I have a board meeting later, so I'll be late though...

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
Don't worry. I have sis with me. See you later.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**...Right. Okay, see you.

**Secretary:**Chitose... The person Yachiyo was talking about... That's...

**Yachiyo's Mother:**You could call it... her imaginary friend.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**She's probably been reading too many plays. What am I going to do with her. That's all she ever does.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**At this rate, she's never going to be able to make friends her own age.

**Secretary:**But... Her acting skills, understanding of plays, and costume design is enough to put adults to shame.

**Yachiyo's Mother:**...I suppose. I'm sorry, but...

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
Right about now, she's probably apologizing and asking her secretary to find me another theater troupe to join.

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
There's no way there'd be a theater troupe we'd like. The only stage for me is one where no one else can see, no one else can join...

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
A stage where it's only me and my sister.

 **Yachiyo:****(Child)**
We've read every play and acted out every ending. There's no stage we can't predict...

 **Aruru:**Ngh... \*achoo\*!

 **Yachiyo:**Arurun, you must be cold. I'm almost done patching it up.

 **Aruru:**Oh... No, I'm totally fine! Thanks for sewing my practice outfit for me.

 **Yachiyo:**This is easy-peasy. But you sure ripped a big hole in them.

 **Aruru:**Yeah! It's been a long time since I've joined the Performance Festival rehearsals, so I wanted to give it my everything with both the read through and the ad-libs!

 **Yachiyo:**That you did. Let's see...

 **Aruru:**Whoa... The way you weave the needle in and out is amazing! I could just watch you sew forever!

 **Aruru:**I heard about your costume making skills from Tsukasa-chan.

 **Aruru:**You also fixed up her costume when she ripped it during Kiryuin-sensei's play, right? I'm happy I get to see it in action!

 **Yachiyo:**I see. But it's kind of embarrassing when you're staring like this...

 **Yachiyo:**Hey, Arurun... Did you grow a little? Maybe you ripped your practice outfit because it was tight?

 **Aruru:**I dunno. But my appetite has been bigger recently!!

 **Yachiyo:**A growth period maybe?

 **Aruru:**Perhaps a rebellious phase? Heh!

 **Yachiyo:**...? Ever since you came back to the stage, you're like a different person.

 **Aruru:**Huh, really?

 **Yachiyo:**When we first started the Performance Festival script reading... you always looked so down.

 **Yachiyo:**But after you came back, you became so cheerful and even more energetic than before. Your acting is exceptional and steals the show...

 **Aruru:**Hm... I guess it's because they headbutted some sense into me.

 **Yachiyo:**What?

 **Aruru:**I ran away and was lost, unable to move forward... So they headbutted some sense into me and dragged me up on stage...

 **Aruru:**It feels like I've finally woken up... I finally realize exactly how much I LOVE the stage!

 **Yachiyo:**That's...the headbutt?

 **Aruru:**Oh, but more importantly! Yachiyo-chan, why did you stop yourself?

 **Yachiyo:**Huh?

 **Aruru:**The ad-lib earlier! I could tell you were going to say something not in the script!

 **Yachiyo:**No, I wasn't... You're mistaken.

 **Aruru:**No, I'm not! I know I felt it. A new breeze trying to come from you.

 **Aruru:**So, why? Why did you stop!?

 **Yachiyo:**At the time...I thought not having an ad-lib would make yours stand out more.

 **Aruru:**What...?

 **Yachiyo:**Your ad-lib... It was a wonderful line that portrays the "Moon's" brightness, energy, and strong will.

 **Yachiyo:**You could even say it digs deeper into another side of the "Moon". I'm sure it was an inspirational line for the script team... That's why I didn't want to get in the way.

 **Aruru:**You wouldn't be in the way... If you'd added your ad-lib, then the "Fool" would have become even more charming!

 **Yachiyo:**It'd just give it a messy impression.

 **Aruru:**You won't know until you try!

 **Yachiyo:**I do know. Because... I can see it. Both the days gone by and the days to come—

 **Aruru:**Days...gone...?

 **Yachiyo:**Days gone by and days to come. Like, where it came from and where it'll go.

 **Aruru:**And you can see that...?

 **Yachiyo:**At the time, the center of the play was your "Moon". That's why I didn't do any unnecessary ad-libs. That's the role the "Fool" should be playing at the time.

 **Yachiyo:**So it's fine. Plus, your performance was able to inspire Amemiya-san.

 **Aruru:**You're saying that...you know all of that?

 **Yachiyo:**By not doing anything unnecessary, it went just as expected. A happy ending for everyone.

 **Yachiyo:**Okay... I'm finished. Everyone's probably waiting for us, let's hurry back.

 **Aruru:**...We're not finished yet.

 **Yachiyo:**Huh?

 **Aruru:**It's amazing... You're amazing, Yachiyo-chan! I can't believe you can see the days gone of the stage!

 **Yachiyo:**Days gone... It's days gone by and days to come.

 **Aruru:**Yes, that! I have my hands full with just what's in front of me. Yet you're able to see how the stage began and where it'll go...

 **Aruru:**I can't believe it! And you're a first year, just like me...

 **Aruru:**So, why!? I don't understand!

 **Aruru:**I know the stage would've been more exciting with your ad-lib! We would've dug deeper into both the "Moon" and the "Fool"! Yet...!

 **Yachiyo:**If I did that...we'd just end up clashing.

 **Yachiyo:**That's not like me... Or more like, that's not the smart way to go about it... I don't really like clashing on stage.

 **Yachiyo:**Not to mention, the stage also has Akira-senpai and Michiru-senpai... And also Maya-san, Clau-san, Tamao-san, and Shizuha-san... As a first year, I should know my place.

 **Aruru:**But that's... It shouldn't matter what year you are!

 **Aruru:**Just because we're first years... That's... You can't think like that!

 **Yachiyo:**Arurun, are you okay? The practice outfit I've just fixed...

 **Aruru:**It's such a waste! You've got limitless possibilities right in front of you. How could you just give that up?

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Why can't you say out loud what you think and feel? Let me hear those words inside your heart!"

 **Yachiyo:**...! Oh, stop it, Arurun. I don't want to do an etude here...

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Where do you want to go? What do you want to become?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"This is our stage. Let me hear it, 'Fool'. Let me hear your words."

 **Yachiyo:**...! Ngh...!

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...Because I know. I know my journey leads to nowhere. I know there is nothing at the end of this journey."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Because I know. These...are the words I wanted to say....'Moon'."

Quo Vadis Part 2

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"You know this journey leads to nowhere? That there's nothing at the end of it...!?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...Correct. I know. Where the stage came from and where it will go—"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"This world is a stage... Even the king is a player. The truth that everything can only proceed as it was written in the play."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Why...? 'Fool', just who are you?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Who am I? 'Moon', I should be the one to ask."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Huh?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"It was completely unexpected... I never thought you would appear in front of me once more."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"I have seen numerous stories on this long journey of mine. I have met many people and experienced happiness, love, sadness...and farewell."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"You were once surrounded by friends, overflowing with love. 'Faith', 'Charity', 'Hope', 'Judgement'... Your beloved friends who were like sisters to you."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"But the last I saw were you fighting and clashing with one another. You turned into each other's opponents... I saw you were afraid."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"You who gave off such gentle light...turned dark and sunk like the lunar eclipse. I saw a rift that could not be resolved on the stage."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"It was most likely the 'Moon's' problem that can't be solved by anyone else. So you ran away from your suffering...from the stage... Am I right?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"...!"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"One who has stepped down from the stage never returns. That is what I have learned from my long journey—a truth of this world."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Yet...you returned. You went against my expectation and leaped towards the empress' throne. Something I have never seen before."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Entirely unexpected... 'Moon', why did you come back?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"...If I tell you, will you tell me? About your secret?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Why you can see where the stage came from and where it will go. Why you give up on the limitless possibilities in front of you... Will you tell me?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...Fine. I promise you. So tell me. What happened to you?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"...I had nothing."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"What...?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"I—The 'Moon' had no light, no air, no life, no water... Nothing."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"That's why...I tried to give off light by myself. I hid the desolate desert of the moon and pretended to be bright and happy... Because I wanted to see everyone's smiles."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"But...the desert inside me never went away. It was always there."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"That's when they made me realize. They made me wake up."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"They told me not to give up on myself and trust that there's a better way. To keep going and not lose hope until the day of judgement..."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"'Charity', 'Faith', 'Hope', 'Judgement'...!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Not for the sake of someone else's smile, but for me to smile and stand on stage."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"If I want light, air, water, and life...I must go and find it by myself. I must become the lead of my own stage."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"And it will definitely lead to the answer of this journey in the future... That's what 'Star'—"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"It's what my daughter taught me."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"S...'Star'!? Your...daughter!?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"That doesn't make sense... 'Star'... She was never casted in this play!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"A young girl in the library continues to spin out this grand story with her small eyes... She grew up and came to see me...on stage, surpassing time..."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"The young girl in the library grew up...?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...! That can't be...!?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Yes... The girl who was watching from the audience was showered with our brilliance and went up on stage—our daughter in the future."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Her existence...is proof that I am somebody. It's proof there is meaning behind me standing on this stage right now."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"So that's why you came back...to the stage."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"\*sigh\*... This is entirely...completely...utterly...beyond my expectation!"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"I can't believe your play has another character aside from 'Faith', 'Charity', 'Hope', and 'Judgement'!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Heh heh, do you believe me?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"What else can I do after seeing that smile of yours. But it's unexpected! This play! This stage!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"The stage can become anything. Any miracle can happen on stage..."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"All right, it's your turn to tell me now as promised. About yourself—about your secret."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"What are you able to see? Why can you see the days gone by and the days to come?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...This world is a stage... Even the king is a player."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Because I've seen it. I've seen the ending of every play. Because I've played them all. All the roles in every story."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Huh...?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...I was born to a poet and a playwright. I've been surrounded by plays since young and have touched all sorts of stories."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Tragedy, comedy, romance, revenge tragedy—my young heart was immediately stolen by that world... Read and act, then read and act some more. I did that repeatedly."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"From chronicles of the Eastern Empire to heroic tales of the Western Pirates. I've fought as the Pearl Knight in the nation of wind-blown hills."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"I've slept in the twilight of gods and sang of love as the Earth Goddess."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"A play is the story of one's life. I've read numerous plays...and experienced every life...together with her."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"With her?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"I had a co-star. Someone who only I can see and only talks to me—my sister who I can only see on the stage."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"We traveled the worlds of different plays over and over again. Every time one play finishes, it changes into the world of a new one..."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"But only I can see my sister. Every time I meet an unfamiliar play, I'll sew a new costume for her so everyone can sense her existence."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"I see... If there's a costume, then we know there's a co-star. So that's how your costume making skills..."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"That's how we've continued our journey... And that's how we ended up acting out all the plays."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"And that's how I came to understand. Because I've acted out all the plays and all the lives... The flow of plays...the movement of stories..."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Actions of mankind, subtleties of emotions... Days gone by and days to come of every stage... I came to understand it all as if it were the back of my hand."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"This world is a stage. Even the king is a player. Our lives could very well just be another play written by someone. How our lives will end has already been decided. Nothing unexpected ever happens."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Haha, that's why they found me creepy when I was young. A young child who could foresee exactly what happens next—like a wise prophet."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"It's not a prophecy. I just know how humans think and how they act. Because I've acted out every play."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...No matter what I said, no one could understand me. That's why I set out on a journey together with my sister."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"I see... That's why you've been able to continue your journey. Because you have your sister with you."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Do you believe me? That my sister exists?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Of course. You also believe my daughter exists, right?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...Yes. So 'Moon'... That is my secret."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"I can see it. The days gone by and days to come of the stage. From the moment the curtain rises to the other side of the final curtain. I can see it all as clear as day."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Even the king is a player... No matter how much power you hold, we are simply another role in the play. It could be a turbulent life, but even that is within expectations."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"But do not grieve. Because a play...is simply a dress pattern of the stage. As long as you act according to the dress pattern, a beautiful play will be spun."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"As long as you act according to the dress pattern to a T—"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"'With no expectations'?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Because you've acted out all the plays and experienced all the lives, you know all the endings, huh. I see how it is!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"That's why you don't do anything extra and only play the role you've been given... Because nothing unexpected ever happens. I see now!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"In that case... Why do you continue on your journey?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Huh...?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"You know this journey leads to nowhere, right? That there's nothing at the end of it."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"So why do you keep on going?"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Th-That's...!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Because you have expectations, right? You want an unexpected ending."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Because you believe there's an even better journey that surpasses your expectations. That's why you hold onto your hope until the day of judgement."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"...D-Don't speak as if you know me! You who can only see the far night sky...What do you know about me!?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"It is true I don't have your experiences. Neither can I see the days gone by and the days to come. But...I know one truth about the stage."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"The one who changes the stage forcefully, arrogantly, and selfishly...is the 'lead'."

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Huh...?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"The lead shines in the center of the stage... Violent and arrogant brilliance goes over the wall and surpasses time..."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Brilliance the lead releases at Position Zero can bring out the final page of the play. It can create an unexpected stage!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"This world is a stage. Even the king is a player...? But the only one who decided the 'king' is the lead is the play's author."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Even without power or a beautiful dress...the 'lead' can release a strong brilliance and change the world overnight!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"If you play the role that someone else wrote in a play that someone else wrote, OBVIOUSLY only the expected will happen!"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Wha—?!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"You read a play that someone else has written...and now you think you know everything."

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"If you want to see an unexpected ending...a play that's never been seen before...then you must play the lead!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Your own play where the ending has yet to be written. A play that's never been performed before. Your own leading role!!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Days gone by and days to come—you can change them! You can keep on changing with your ad-libs!"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"That's... There's no way—!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"Are you scared!? Are you scared of clashing on stage!? Because that's not you? Because it's not the smart way!? Because you'll have to bare your true self!?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"A brilliance that's never been seen before can only be born when you clash and compete with your true self!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"I want to see...your brilliance! Leap into the play someone else has written and perform with abandon—a stage where the 'Fool' is the 'lead'!"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Me...as the lead...!?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"If you bared yourself in your performance, my 'Moon' will shine even more beautifully!"

 **Yachiyo:****("Fool")**
"Why...Why do you force yourself onto my stage!? Don't try to use me!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"I will use you! Because I am forceful, arrogant, and selfish!"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"'Fool'... Where do you want to go? What do you want to become?"

 **Aruru:****("Moon")**
"If you don't know, I'll light the way for you! I'll help you find what you've lost on the path at night—"

***\*rip\****

 **Aruru:**"I'll find it for..."
—you. EEK!

 **Aruru:**I...I ripped them again! It was JUST sewn back together!

 **Yachiyo:**\*huff\*... \*huff\*... Huh?

 **Yachiyo:**Arurun... Take this towel. Wrap it around your waist.

 **Aruru:**Thank you, Yachiyo-chan! But what am I gonna do? I ripped them again...

 **Yachiyo:**I'll just sew it up in a jiffy.

 **Yachiyo:**...I might be the one who was ripped apart though.

 **Aruru:**Huh?

 **Yachiyo:**No... Just talking to myself.

 **Aruru:**Heh! But the etude was fun!

 **Aruru:**Let's throw a lot of ad-libs at each other again! We'll aim for a stage no one's ever seen before!

 **Yachiyo:**A stage no one's ever seen before... Nothing like that...

 **Aruru:**It exists! It does, it does!

 **Yachiyo:**The "Fool" Arcana...

 **Yachiyo:**Arcana number "0" with the picture of a traveling youth. It's said the story of the tarot cards itself is his journey. A card that means the beginning of everything.

 **Yachiyo:**The upright position means "change", "future", "possibility"... The reverse position means "adventure", "lack of cooperation", and "preoccupation".

 **Yachiyo:**..."Stage-crazy". There's a king who called me that.

 **Yachiyo:**That king showed me a classic play.

 **Yachiyo:**It's a play that's been performed over and over again... Yet the stage the King and Grand Chancellor put on went beyond my expectations of the play I've read many times over.

 **Yachiyo:**The lead's brilliance...surpassed my expectations.

 **Yachiyo:**...The brilliance I was showered in today might be the same as what I saw that day.

 **Yachiyo:**The stage can become anything. Any miracle can happen on stage...

 **Yachiyo:**Become the lead and create a stage no one has seen before...? Rip the dress pattern and make a new stage that surpasses expectations... Me...?

 **Yachiyo:**That is something...I have never imagined...

 **Yachiyo:**Isn't there a theory about the "Fool" being the main character in a tarot card story? It's awesome, isn't it.

 **Yachiyo:**"Fool"—a foolish youth who knows nothing. But that just means they'll meet all sorts of people and learn from here on, right?

 **Yachiyo:**Having "knowledge" doesn't equate intelligence. Knowing too much can make you into a frightened and wary coward.

 **Yachiyo:**That's why I want to continue to challenge new stages. Because that's where I'll find a brand new me. Don't you agree?