History: The wikipedia link above contains a pretty good overview of the series, although there are only short blurbs for each character. Maruko is a pretty minor character in the series and she doesn't have much relevant history to speak of. An extremely advanced, human-like robot living in post-apocalyptic Japan, Maruko left her original "owner" many years ago to strike out on her own. In a show of independence, she even chooses her own last name instead of taking her owner's, an act that is highly unusual for robots. She works at several jobs over the years while she works towards her dream of making a living as a painter. She meets and becomes friends with Kokone, one of the main characters, one day when Kokone delivers a message to her. They continue to hang out off and on for the next several years, with Maruko being pretty obviously attracted to Kokone the entire time. She becomes very jealous of Alpha, the main character of the series and the woman Kokone herself likes, and is initially hostile to her when they finally meet. Once Alpha stands up for herself and calls Maruko out on her behavior, however, she begrudgingly starts to respect her and before long they develop a good friendship, although Maruko is still playfully competitive towards her.
Appearance:Here she is looking cute. Maruko is pretty boyish most of the time, but she cleans up nice if she can ever be bothered to give a shit.
Personality: Upon first meeting someone, Maruko usually comes across as a relaxed, happy slacker. She's friendly and outgoing a lot of the time, bright and cheerful and almost always willing to make friends. She's a little lazy and kind of a slouch, but when she's in a good mood she's really easy-going and fun to be around. Kind of a physical person, she's totally comfortable with getting in someone's personal bubble to throw an arm around their shoulder or grab their hand to lead them somewhere. She can also be bold and flirty- with men and women. Not all the time, mind you, but let's just say that if she sees something she likes she's going to make a bid for it, okay? Nothing wrong with that. ;) It can be a little overwhelming though- she has a tendency to not notice the discomfort she's causing the person she likes. She has a particular attraction to gentle, quiet types, partly because they're cute and partly because she wants to be the one to bring them out of their shell. She doesn't necessarily do this actively...she just has an eye for potential (or at least she thinks she does), and will try to draw that out whether the other person likes it or not. Her tactic for this is pretty much to keep bugging them until they open up. She loves a good conversation and she loves to learn about people she's interested in; she can even get rather nosy at times with her endless questions, but she knows when to back off. That doesn't mean she WILL back off, but she certainly knows when she's supposed to.
If you know the buttons to push it's easy to rile her up (and boy, does she make the best flustered faces when you do), but Maruko normally tries to act fairly collected and even-tempered in day-to-day life. She's not as wise or worldly as she'd like to pretend, but she possesses an odd kind of maturity that she rarely takes advantage of. For example, being a robot, she has become a bit jaded and accustomed to the idea of humans as impermanent things that will inevitably grow old and die without her. But while other robots in the same series will sometimes angst about this or use it as an excuse to detach themselves, somehow it's never stopped Maruko from getting close to others. She refuses to shut herself away from the world at all.
On the other hand, she has an independent streak a mile wide. Maruko is unique among robots for having changed her last name to one of her own choosing, instead of taking her original owner's name. This is highly unusual- pretty much unheard of - and Maruko wouldn't have it any other way. She wants to be her own person and make her own dreams come true more than anything. What dreams? Maruko is an artist- a painter, to be exact. Canvases and paints cover her tiny cabin, and she has a strong appreciation for the beauty of the world. For now, she's working part time in an art supply shop, but she refuses to be stuck in that kind of job forever. If nothing else, Maruko is determined (though some might prefer the word stubborn). She has a great passion for her art and never gives up on trying to improve or make a career out of this love. She dislikes taking orders from people, but she's perfectly content to toil away doing chores and odd jobs if it brings her even a tiny bit closer to making it on her own. She can be a big lazy slob when it comes to busywork or things that don't interest her, but if there's something she wants she'll work as hard as she needs to.
Sounds nice so far, but Maruko is far from perfect. It's not that hard to get on her bad side, and it's impressive how bitterly this girl can hold onto a grudge. She's strangely critical and nitpicky about certain things, and she's blunt enough to tell you about your failings to your face. She can be snarky as hell whenever something annoys her, which again, isn't hard to do. Naturally, this has the potential to earn her quite a few enemies. She also has an insanely jealous nature- the one guaranteed way to seriously piss Maruko off is to get at all close to someone she really likes. Whether it's her current crush or just a good friend, she can't help but feel like they're being "taken away" and will react as though her property's been threatened. She can get pretty damn mean when this happens, making not-so-subtle digs at the other person or flat out telling them they suck, but never admitting the actual reason behind her dislike. This can get her in big trouble, because at times like this she never even stops to think about how her friend feels, much less the person she's actually mad at. It's one of her worst traits, and it can be a huge pain to try and knock some sense into her.
Another thing that really riles her up are moochers and people she sees as "fake". She may not be the hardest worker in the world, but at least she takes responsibility for herself! It really bugs her to see other people skating by on the kindness of others, playing nice to get people to take care of everything for them.
But even this is actually pretty hypocritical, since Maruko can be a skilled manipulator when she wants to be. Though she's usually blunt and scruffy, just comb her hair and dress her a little nicer and Maruko instantly turns into a sweet, bubbly young lady who can charm the heck out of anyone with some blatant flattery and coy giggles. She's used to presenting this as her public face at work to get friendly with customers and convince them to spend more money. And she's pretty damn popular too. But she's not exactly happy about doing it, and if anyone she knew ever caught her acting that way she would die of embarrassment and never live it down.
But sweet talking a couple customers isn't the same as using people just so you can have an easy life, right? ...Right? Well, that's what she tells herself. Maruko hates admitting that she's wrong, and she'll sulk like a child if she's ever caught at something. But when she is wrong, she'll try to make it up to you, even if she finds it hard to apologize directly.
Abilities: Robots in YKK are ridiculously human. They eat, sleep, get drunk, get hurt, etc. They have no super strength or magical robo powers. However, they are very resilient; they need much less food or drink than humans do to survive. Their skin is self-healing to an extent (a sunburn heals completely in a few hours, for example). And, of course, they don't age. Due to their construction (which is intentionally vague in the series), they have a deep level of connection with certain machines, with sound and music, and with natural elements of the world such as the ocean and the sky. On the mundane side of things, Maruko herself is a talented painter. Other: ~ROBOTS~
SAMPLES First Person: [Voice]
...right. One question.
What the heck did I drink last night.
No, seriously, I can't remember a thing...! Argh, didn't I just get off work and go to bed early? I definitely don't remember signing any contracts about houses and- and cars and families or whatever that paper was saying! Well, to be sure, my place could use some fixing up, but still. I don't need a whole new house, much less the rest of that stuff, okay? Right, this is all just a big misunderstanding. So yeah, if someone could just tell me how to talk to the landlord, I can clear this all up! And then...figure out where exactly this is and how to get home, I guess.
...you know, I might keep the car though. Waaay better than the shop's old junker! I've never even seen one like that; it can't seriously be free, right? There's got to be a catch...
Third Person: [note: this sample is pretty old and reflects a slightly earlier canon point; her personality hasn't changed, but her attitude toward another character has. Let me know if you need a new one!]
Maruko let her brush drop to the side with a clatter, sitting back and stretching tremendously. Every joint popped and cracked and she winced, glancing around to try and figure out how long she'd been sitting there. Her clock had gotten buried somewhere, again, but outside the sun was rapidly sinking towards the horizon. More than an hour, then, at least. She rubbed her eyes and blinked at the canvas in front of her, eyebrows furrowing in annoyance.
It was a rather plain landscape, a view of the small lake nearby. A warm-up piece, something simple. At least, it was supposed to be. Right now it was just a mess. The trees looked like toothpicks, the water looked like mud. It looked more like a child's drawing than something she should be proud of. Maruko grimaced and pushed the easel away, clambering to her feet. This wasn't working. She needed a break.
She wandered over to the window and slid it open, leaning on the sill and letting the late afternoon breeze blow in. Nothing had been turning out right lately. Was she going through some kind of art block? Had her talent suddenly, inexplicably peaked? No...this had all started after she took a trip out to that little cafe in the middle of nowhere. No matter how much she tried to forget it, she kept going over it in her mind. She was beginning to be way too preoccupied with that woman.
Alpha...what kind of person was she? She seemed like an idiot, as far as Maruko was concerned. Too nice, too sheltered. Tripping all over herself to please others and looking like a fool while doing it. Maruko supposed she could see what her friend saw in her, but man...how annoying. It bugged her just thinking about it. Who did she think she was, waltzing in and stealing away other people's friends? What a pain! What did she have that Maruko didn't?
Maruko slumped forward, resting her chin on her arms and letting out a heaving sigh. Stupid Alpha with her stupid coffee shop. Stupid (beautiful) Kokone falling for her stupid naive charms.
Stupid Maruko, losing to someone like that.
OTHER Housing Request?: Nah. Did you read the rules and FAQ?: Of course! Would you like your application to be unscreened?: Sure, doesn't matter to me.
Um...sorry, but I'm confused. I did fill out the Orientation section. I'm not sure what else I'm supposed to put? She is canonly bisexual, with a demonstrated preference toward females. She would be fine with either gender for a spouse, but probably happier with a wife. Could you please explain what exactly you're looking for so I can fix it?
Yes, but it asks for more than just the sexuality stated, it asks why. So to meet that requirement, it's perfectly fine to say "Bisexual with a preference to females because it's stated in canon."
Ah, I see! Well yes then, in canon she has stated attraction to both males and females, so I'm glad that's acceptable. Thank you for the clarification!
ACCEPTED Congrats, your application has been accepted! Your character is now living at 1448 in Holly Heights, with a spouse slot. In order to get the ball rolling, here's what you need to do:
Comment back with the journal you'll be using for your character so that they can be accepted into the communities.
Create an IC Mailbox post on your characters journal that is not friends only. You are also free to treat this as an information holding post with your character's family and address listed if you wish.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Maruko Maruko | Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou | Not Reserved
Player: Mizu
Age: 22
Personal Journal:
Contact Info: email: cohboyland@gmail.com, aim: m1zure, plurk: eviscerator
IC INFORMATION
Characters Name: Maruko Maruko
Age: Not stated/ageless, but definitely over 18. Physically, early-20s.
Canon: Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou
Canon Point: Post-Chapter 107
Species: Robot
Gender: Female
Orientation: Bisexual with female preference
no subject
Appearance: Here she is looking cute. Maruko is pretty boyish most of the time, but she cleans up nice if she can ever be bothered to give a shit.
Personality: Upon first meeting someone, Maruko usually comes across as a relaxed, happy slacker. She's friendly and outgoing a lot of the time, bright and cheerful and almost always willing to make friends. She's a little lazy and kind of a slouch, but when she's in a good mood she's really easy-going and fun to be around. Kind of a physical person, she's totally comfortable with getting in someone's personal bubble to throw an arm around their shoulder or grab their hand to lead them somewhere. She can also be bold and flirty- with men and women. Not all the time, mind you, but let's just say that if she sees something she likes she's going to make a bid for it, okay? Nothing wrong with that. ;) It can be a little overwhelming though- she has a tendency to not notice the discomfort she's causing the person she likes. She has a particular attraction to gentle, quiet types, partly because they're cute and partly because she wants to be the one to bring them out of their shell. She doesn't necessarily do this actively...she just has an eye for potential (or at least she thinks she does), and will try to draw that out whether the other person likes it or not. Her tactic for this is pretty much to keep bugging them until they open up. She loves a good conversation and she loves to learn about people she's interested in; she can even get rather nosy at times with her endless questions, but she knows when to back off. That doesn't mean she WILL back off, but she certainly knows when she's supposed to.
If you know the buttons to push it's easy to rile her up (and boy, does she make the best flustered faces when you do), but Maruko normally tries to act fairly collected and even-tempered in day-to-day life. She's not as wise or worldly as she'd like to pretend, but she possesses an odd kind of maturity that she rarely takes advantage of. For example, being a robot, she has become a bit jaded and accustomed to the idea of humans as impermanent things that will inevitably grow old and die without her. But while other robots in the same series will sometimes angst about this or use it as an excuse to detach themselves, somehow it's never stopped Maruko from getting close to others. She refuses to shut herself away from the world at all.
On the other hand, she has an independent streak a mile wide. Maruko is unique among robots for having changed her last name to one of her own choosing, instead of taking her original owner's name. This is highly unusual- pretty much unheard of - and Maruko wouldn't have it any other way. She wants to be her own person and make her own dreams come true more than anything. What dreams? Maruko is an artist- a painter, to be exact. Canvases and paints cover her tiny cabin, and she has a strong appreciation for the beauty of the world. For now, she's working part time in an art supply shop, but she refuses to be stuck in that kind of job forever. If nothing else, Maruko is determined (though some might prefer the word stubborn). She has a great passion for her art and never gives up on trying to improve or make a career out of this love. She dislikes taking orders from people, but she's perfectly content to toil away doing chores and odd jobs if it brings her even a tiny bit closer to making it on her own. She can be a big lazy slob when it comes to busywork or things that don't interest her, but if there's something she wants she'll work as hard as she needs to.
Sounds nice so far, but Maruko is far from perfect. It's not that hard to get on her bad side, and it's impressive how bitterly this girl can hold onto a grudge. She's strangely critical and nitpicky about certain things, and she's blunt enough to tell you about your failings to your face. She can be snarky as hell whenever something annoys her, which again, isn't hard to do. Naturally, this has the potential to earn her quite a few enemies. She also has an insanely jealous nature- the one guaranteed way to seriously piss Maruko off is to get at all close to someone she really likes. Whether it's her current crush or just a good friend, she can't help but feel like they're being "taken away" and will react as though her property's been threatened. She can get pretty damn mean when this happens, making not-so-subtle digs at the other person or flat out telling them they suck, but never admitting the actual reason behind her dislike. This can get her in big trouble, because at times like this she never even stops to think about how her friend feels, much less the person she's actually mad at. It's one of her worst traits, and it can be a huge pain to try and knock some sense into her.
Another thing that really riles her up are moochers and people she sees as "fake". She may not be the hardest worker in the world, but at least she takes responsibility for herself! It really bugs her to see other people skating by on the kindness of others, playing nice to get people to take care of everything for them.
But even this is actually pretty hypocritical, since Maruko can be a skilled manipulator when she wants to be. Though she's usually blunt and scruffy, just comb her hair and dress her a little nicer and Maruko instantly turns into a sweet, bubbly young lady who can charm the heck out of anyone with some blatant flattery and coy giggles. She's used to presenting this as her public face at work to get friendly with customers and convince them to spend more money. And she's pretty damn popular too. But she's not exactly happy about doing it, and if anyone she knew ever caught her acting that way she would die of embarrassment and never live it down.
But sweet talking a couple customers isn't the same as using people just so you can have an easy life, right? ...Right? Well, that's what she tells herself. Maruko hates admitting that she's wrong, and she'll sulk like a child if she's ever caught at something. But when she is wrong, she'll try to make it up to you, even if she finds it hard to apologize directly.
Abilities: Robots in YKK are ridiculously human. They eat, sleep, get drunk, get hurt, etc. They have no super strength or magical robo powers. However, they are very resilient; they need much less food or drink than humans do to survive. Their skin is self-healing to an extent (a sunburn heals completely in a few hours, for example). And, of course, they don't age. Due to their construction (which is intentionally vague in the series), they have a deep level of connection with certain machines, with sound and music, and with natural elements of the world such as the ocean and the sky. On the mundane side of things, Maruko herself is a talented painter.
Other: ~ROBOTS~
SAMPLES
First Person: [Voice]
...right. One question.
What the heck did I drink last night.
No, seriously, I can't remember a thing...! Argh, didn't I just get off work and go to bed early? I definitely don't remember signing any contracts about houses and- and cars and families or whatever that paper was saying! Well, to be sure, my place could use some fixing up, but still. I don't need a whole new house, much less the rest of that stuff, okay? Right, this is all just a big misunderstanding. So yeah, if someone could just tell me how to talk to the landlord, I can clear this all up! And then...figure out where exactly this is and how to get home, I guess.
...you know, I might keep the car though. Waaay better than the shop's old junker! I've never even seen one like that; it can't seriously be free, right? There's got to be a catch...
Third Person: [note: this sample is pretty old and reflects a slightly earlier canon point; her personality hasn't changed, but her attitude toward another character has. Let me know if you need a new one!]
Maruko let her brush drop to the side with a clatter, sitting back and stretching tremendously. Every joint popped and cracked and she winced, glancing around to try and figure out how long she'd been sitting there. Her clock had gotten buried somewhere, again, but outside the sun was rapidly sinking towards the horizon. More than an hour, then, at least. She rubbed her eyes and blinked at the canvas in front of her, eyebrows furrowing in annoyance.
It was a rather plain landscape, a view of the small lake nearby. A warm-up piece, something simple. At least, it was supposed to be. Right now it was just a mess. The trees looked like toothpicks, the water looked like mud. It looked more like a child's drawing than something she should be proud of. Maruko grimaced and pushed the easel away, clambering to her feet. This wasn't working. She needed a break.
She wandered over to the window and slid it open, leaning on the sill and letting the late afternoon breeze blow in. Nothing had been turning out right lately. Was she going through some kind of art block? Had her talent suddenly, inexplicably peaked? No...this had all started after she took a trip out to that little cafe in the middle of nowhere. No matter how much she tried to forget it, she kept going over it in her mind. She was beginning to be way too preoccupied with that woman.
Alpha...what kind of person was she? She seemed like an idiot, as far as Maruko was concerned. Too nice, too sheltered. Tripping all over herself to please others and looking like a fool while doing it. Maruko supposed she could see what her friend saw in her, but man...how annoying. It bugged her just thinking about it. Who did she think she was, waltzing in and stealing away other people's friends? What a pain! What did she have that Maruko didn't?
Maruko slumped forward, resting her chin on her arms and letting out a heaving sigh. Stupid Alpha with her stupid coffee shop. Stupid (beautiful) Kokone falling for her stupid naive charms.
Stupid Maruko, losing to someone like that.
OTHER
Housing Request?: Nah.
Did you read the rules and FAQ?: Of course!
Would you like your application to be unscreened?: Sure, doesn't matter to me.
Revision Request
Your app is looking great so far! However, there are some changes to be made before full acceptance can be given:
Please reply with your changes within three days time. Thank you!
Re: Revision Request
no subject
no subject
Accepted
Congrats, your application has been accepted! Your character is now living at 1448 in Holly Heights, with a spouse slot. In order to get the ball rolling, here's what you need to do:
I hope you enjoy your stay here!
Re: Accepted