Hibiki

*"Maybe 'heaven' wasn't too far off.."* - Hibiki, upon first meeting Soel'a during season 1

## Hibiki

### Relatives

Unnamed MotherUnnamed Father

Leigh (Half-sibling)

Wynne (Distantly related)

## Appearances

### Appears in

Esoteric Trials Season 1Esoteric Trials Season 2 (Support)

### Debut

12/05/2020

Hibiki was the awkward and socially confused member of the season 1 cast. He never quite grew out of that awkward phase, but it seemed that his training with Shu'n as well as personal therapy has helped him open up over the years.

While he's not the strongest or smartest member of the team, he seems to see a lot more than he lets on.

## Background

*"Yeah-- I. I'm still straight,"* - Hibiki to Rose during season 2

Hibiki grew up without a father figure. His father left his mother and older brother just before Hibiki was born, leaving him to never meet the man. Upon his father's absence, his mother had to work all but constantly to keep the household afloat, accidentally neglecting Hibiki socially and emotionally for years to come. His elder brother isolated during this time, further leaving the growing child alone and leaving him to fend for himself more often than not. He never really learned how to socialize, and as a result was bullied in his early school years. He was eventually enrolled in therapy and this has proved remarkably beneficial for him, leading up into season 1.

## Appearance and Personality

In s1, Hibiki was roughly 6'5 and wore his hair short with a pronounced bang piece. His hair was dyed a whitish gradient, secured with a headband. His outfit rarely had variety, instead being complete with an old, well-worn jacket, a t-shirt, fingerless gloves, jeans, tennis shoes, and a shark tooth necklace. He frequently had bandages on his nose or face from scuffles he had gotten into at school, often as a result of bullying. Throughout this season he was closed off and distant from the main group of Godchosen, but it became more and more clear as time went on that he only wanted a friend. He could act coldly or inappropriately at first. Later in the season, this was replaced with a desperate sort of desire to be heard and understood. Hibiki's feelings came to a head after he had to kill Hatter, promising the rabbit that the group would not hurt A'he. In the end it resulted in Hibiki challenging Key'e and what Key'e believed was right.

During season 1 Hibiki and Rose dated for a brief period of time. However, they broke things off after A'he's death, both finding new partners later on. They have since reconciled and grown as people.

In season 2 his fashion has hardly changed. Hibiki retains the same jacket and outfit combination other than the necklace, which he has most likely lost over time. He grew his hair out, revealing that it's actually quite wavy and curly. He's also dyed it a darker color, trying to match A'id and/or Shu'n to some degree. His socially awkward demeanor has become the default, Hibiki being afflicted with a nervous stutter that rarely doesn't reveal itself. He's also grown to be more aware of the feelings of the people around him, making more of an effort to reach out to others and get to know them. This works for better or for worse, with helping him fix his relationships with the Gods while also allowing him to make new friends, but also putting him at odds with characters such as Amaya.

He misses Shu'n and does not hide this fact. Hibiki still holds onto candy from season 1 that he wanted to give to his patron god, only for him to never return. He hopes that one day his and Rose's calls will bring the god of emotion home.

## Story

Throughout the course of season 1, Hibiki changed considerably. Early on he had a tendency to stand near the people he was interested in without actually addressing them, such as the case with Wynne. During the early A'id quests, Hibiki proved to show an interest in mystery and crime, accidentally revealing an affinity for such topics. It was during these quests that he began to bond with Rose, and slowly began to bond with characters such as Wynne and Finn.

However, as the quests began to stack up, he was unable to keep up his tougher facade. He became awkward and discombobulated and confused, especially as violence became more rampant. When Finn was under control and tried to kill the group, he went as far as to sit on the other boys doorstep to try and talk to him and find out what was wrong. Later, At the reveal of a'he, he was terrified, but he seemed to believe there was something beneath the surface. He challenged her in his own way, offering out a hand to the god of Chaos, even as he was shut down again and again. He offered her a hug and she lashed out, leaving him more confused than before. This combined with his promise to the now deceased Hatter, Hibiki went as far as to even challenge Key'e--the god keeping the revelators safe and providing them refuge--and for a time fractured their relationship. His challenge put him at odds with his fellow revelators as well, particularly Aloe.

He was later able to fix his relationship with most of the others and has formed new relationships as well. With Shu'n now missing, he's instead focused on forming ties with A'id, Na'ji, and Key'e. This lead him to his most recent hair color, as well as affecting his studies, and even resulting in him naming a mole in the god of Creation's domain "Kitty."

As of season 2 he is a college student struggling to get by, and is now dating a biology major named Nettie.

## Revelation

Hibiki was later revelated to Shu'n, god of Emotion. He was granted empathetic powers, most often being used to stun enemies or to try and understand the feelings of others.

Since Shu'n's disappearance, his powers have all but disappeared. Even though he remains a revelator of emotion he has to rely entirely on mortal abilities to understand others, an issue he shares with Rose.