Izumi Takimoto

## Signature

> ***"Does it matter that I look happy? Does it matter when I look so stupid?"***
>
>

**Izumi Takimoto** is a second-year student at Haneoka Girls' High School and the drummer of AMBiTiON.

## Background

Izumi, being afraid of being judged by people for her rambunctious personality, hid her true tendencies under a withdrawn and quiet shell. She has a mother who chides her for traits like her withdrawn nature, and who instead prefers Izumi's younger sister, Kiyomi Takimoto.

## Appearance

Izumi has bright teal eyes and curly, dull purple hair cut just below ear level. Her bangs are swept to her right and is held with a hairclip resembling three white pearls. She is short for her age.

Her voice is high and squeaky with a dynamic tone. However, she talks quietly and monotonously when angry or talking to strangers. She may also speak with a growl or hiss when angry.

Her casual outfit is boyish, with a gray tanktop that reads "ALFA" worn under an oversized jacket, which is half white and half black with teal highlights. The jacket has the word "BADGIRLS" printed along the sleeves and a small logo over the left chest depicting a black skull with rabbit ears and teal, heart-shaped eyes. She wears purple running shorts and black sneakers.

## Personality

Izumi is an energetic girl, always on the ready for excitement. She is playful and enjoys cracking jokes, as well as making up random phrases for fun. She is also quite air-headed at times, though it is unclear when her idiocy is genuine and when it is done to be entertaining.

In spite of her fun-loving personality, she is also intensely distrustful of others, believing, sometimes irrationally, that everyone is out to betray her. Izumi approaches all strangers with a cautious eye. Even with her friends, Izumi only reveals harmless things about herself - She is careful not to reveal weak points that can be used against her.

She is mischievous and likes to tease her friends, in particular Chihiro, but past the band story, this becomes a way for her to direct her resentment towards Chihiro.

## Relationships

Chihiro Satou: Fellow band member. Izumi frequently teases her, thinking her an entertaining target of mischief. However, after learning the truth of Chihiro's lies, Izumi also holds a deep grudge towards Chihiro because she thinks of her as a selfish liar.

Aki Hoshinomiya: Fellow band member. They get along well with each other, with Izumi bringing out Aki's playful side.

Sorae Ishizawa: Fellow band member. Izumi enjoys teasing her since she is so meek. She also likes drawing out Sorae's excited side by talking about anime and the like. Izumi dotes on Sorae, seeing her as a "softie".

Mai Moriuchi: Fellow band member and schoolmate. Izumi likes trying to break through her serious personality by annoying her or encouraging her to act out, though Mai ends up taming Izumi's energy instead.

Kiyomi Takimoto: Her younger sister. They find each other annoying, and they get into scuffles when around each other.

## Etymology

* **Izumi** (いずみ), when written with the conventional kanji (泉), means "spring, fountain".
* **Takimoto** (滝本): **Taki** (滝) means "waterfall" and **Moto** (本) means "root, source".

Together, her name means "A spring that is the source of a waterfall".

## Trivia

* In the early stages of Summery/AMBiTiON's conception, Izumi was a quiet and smart girl who was actually a loud and rambunctious tomboy on the inside. However, she hid this side of her in annoyance of her own obnoxiousness.

## References

1. ↑ Chapter 7, as told by narration: "It earned Izumi a sarcastic "Oh, you finally made friends?" from her [mother] but, oh well, Izumi was used to that kind of off-handed comment - The woman always preferred her sister, Kiyomi, anyways."