en	We either win by pulling some weird shenanigans, or lose so badly we get mercied. There's no in between.

en	So most teams we play aren't exactly eager for a rematch.

en	We had to swear up and down you guys would be normal this time.

en	So y'all better not be weird.

en	Alright, we yakusoku...

en	What?????

en	That's how you say "promise" in Nihongo...a.k.a Japanese.

en	..............

en	Is everyone ready to go? The other team got here early.

en	Team Global Warming walks over to the field, where the Killer Whales are already warming up.

en	The [teamName!t] walk over to the field, where the Killer Whales are already warming up.

en	Thanks for being willing to play us again, guys.

en	No problem. Time for our revenge!

en	Yeah, right. We destroyed you guys last time.

en	Well, that was before our secret weapon joined the team.

en	Secret weapon?

en	We got a new guy who's pretty good.

en	Oh yeah? Where is he?

en	Jun-seo and Hayden look around amongst their teammates, but as the seconds pass, their faces grow more and more alarmed.

en	...I'm actually not sure...

en	Maybe he got lost on his way driving here?

en	Yeah, that seems typical of him.

en	It's fine, we can wait a few minutes for him to show up.

en	20 minutes later

en	No one came...

en	He's decidedly late at this point.

en	I can't believe this. Where the heck could he be??

en	Did you try calling him?

en	He didn't pick up.

en	Well, it's not like he can answer the phone if he's driving.

en	You guys are pathetic. Making up some guy to blame your loss on...

en	We're not making him up! He's real!

en	And we didn't lose yet?? Stop jumping to conclusions...

en	Is it okay if we start playing without him? If he turns up later, he can join the game then.

en	Yeah, sure...

en	Umpire

en	As the Killer Whales file into the dugout, Noelle starts trekking to her spot in right field.

en	She scowls disdainfully at a barren patch of grass as she passes it.

en	Chryssa likes pointing to that tiny patch and going, "I'll defend that area, so you cover the rest of the field, okay?"

en	I hope that grass grows back soon so I don't have to keep hearing that joke.

en	Hey, wait!

en	Noelle, you're playing second base today.

en	I am? Why?

en	Yeah, why?! She ducks and covers whenever the ball comes her way.

en	That's exactly why she needs to do it.

en	I'm taking AP Psych and I found out there's something called exposure therapy.

en	It's where you make someone do something they're afraid of until they stop whining and get used to it.

en	That doesn't sound like the textbook definition to me...

en	Chryssa, then how come when we went on that Demon ride at Great America, you had your eyes closed the whole time?

en	That was before I knew what exposure therapy was.

en	Uh huh.

en	Wait, but I was second base. What happens to me then?

en	You're playing left field now because you run fast.

en	We're moving a whole bunch of people around, not just you two.

en	Chryssa thinks she's a mega mind master now because of AP Psychology.

en	Hey, I never said that!

en	Noelle begins trekking to second base.

en	I do feel a bit better equipped to man second base now than I did when I was first roped into this club.

en	I don't like to appear under-informed, so a bit after our first game, I read the baseball rulebook from cover to cover.

en	Still, I really hope no one hits the ball my way...

en	To her surprise, Akarsha is already standing by second base.

en	Bonjour!

en	Why are you here?

en	I'm the shortstop? I'm supposed to be here.

en	What...? Aren't you supposed to be closer to third base?

en	Says who?

en	The diagram in the baseball rulebook.

en	Nah, the shortstop's position mirrors the second baseman's.

en	You're supposed to work together and vary your positioning to anticipate what the batters and runner do, you know.

en	See?

en	R-right, I knew that...

en	So we're both covering the same base? Won't that make things unnecessarily confusing?

en	You're like a duo! It's a good thing.

en	Yah, we should negotiate who does what in different situations.

en	Alright, fine.

en	How about you cover second when there's a runner on first?

en	And field the ground balls close to us?

en	And also take care of the fly balls?

en	You're just trying to get out of doing as much work as possible!

en	The game kicks off and to her relief, Min quickly strikes out the first batter.

en	Good! Just do that two more times and we get to bat!

en	Hayden digs into the batter's box next.

en	Min throws a floater that curves up toward his head for a moment before dropping back toward the strike zone.

en	Agh!

en	Instead of swinging, Hayden flinches backward out of the way.

en	Strike!

en	What's with you?

en	Nothing! I'm just making sure I don't get hit in the mouth.

en	I had a dream last night that my teeth were falling out.

en	THAT'S what you wasted your dream on?

en	It's not like I can control what I dream about!

en	Min hurls another pitch his way, but instead of dancing like usual, it pretty much just sails straight down the middle.

en	Rragh!

en	Hayden manages to make contact and drives the ball into grass!

en	It bounces into the air and for one singularly terrifying moment, Noelle sees it coming straight at her!

en	Egad!!! I hate ground balls!

en	Noelle covers her face with one arm and half-heartedly attempts to catch the ball with the other.

en	She braces for impact, but nothing hits her.

en	On the mound, Min managed to intercept the ball by catching it behind her back without looking at it.

en	!

en	Whoa!!

en	Even Min herself looks shocked that she caught it.

en	Just because it's cool doesn't mean he's out!! Throw it to first!

en	Min hastily lobs the ball to Liz. It just barely beats Hayden to first base.

en	Out!

en	Aw man...

en	That was close!

en	As Hayden heads back to the dugout in defeat, there's a distant shout.

en	Sorry I'm late!

en	Some guy is sprinting down the hill to the Killer Whales at top speed.

en	Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!

en	Subhaan!

en	WHERE WERE YOU???

en	Subhaan

en	The Killer Whale player sighs despondently as he joins his teammates.

en	I was driving over when all of a sudden a spider crawled up my leg...

en	So obviously I crashed the car.

en	"Obviously"?!

en	Are you okay...?

en	Don't worry, I'm fine. I just knocked a street sign over.

en	Isn't that a crime...?

en	How big was the spider?

en	Like this big.

en	He pinches his thumb and index finger together to demonstrate.

en	So small.

en	But it was all hairy! So practically speaking, it was equivalent to a spider twice as big.

en	Even if it WAS twice as big, isn't crashing kinda an overreaction?

en	No?

en	Whatever...Just get up to bat already, it's your turn.

en	This guy seems like a coward.

en	I wonder what makes him their secret weapon.

en	Subhaan digs in behind home plate.

en	He's standing on the other side of the plate. He must be left-handed.

en	Min hurls her next pitch, and the batter shifts into a bunting stance at the last second.

en	He's not even going to try to hit it?

en	He starts to run toward first base as the ball glances off his bat, sending the baseball bouncing toward Liz!

en	She's forced to rush forward to field it, leaving first base unmanned.

en	I got it!

en	By the time she's scooped the ball up, Subhaan is well on his way to first base.

en	He's fast!

en	FRANCE!! Frenchman!

en	Oh, I need to cover first base since Liz isn't there!

en	Noelle belatedly runs toward the base so Liz can throw the ball to her, but Subhaan beats her there.

en	The Killer Whales cheer as Subhaan overruns the base.

en	Yeah!! Sub-Zero!!

en	...Sub-Zero??

en	"Sub-Zero"

en	That's me. They call me Sub-Zero 'cause I'm so cool.

en	Huh?? No fair, I want a badass nickname, too.

en	Oh, please. Like what?

en	Like...Sub-Zero.

en	You're just going to copy him?!

en	Sayeeda shakes her head as Sub-Zero basks under his teammates' praise.

en	Tch. Who the heck bunts to get on base?

en	I mean, if you're fast, it's doable.

en	Lefties have a huge advantage when bunting, too, because they’re already two steps ahead of where righty batters are when they lay down the bunt.

en	That's so cheap!

en	Well, that's the essence of baseball, no? Cheating and being cheap.

en	I thought the essence of baseball was friendship and teamwork.

en	Oh, yes, that too.

en	Jun-seo is up to bat next.

en	He swings at the pitch! The knuckleball suddenly swerves outward as if sensing the bat, dodging it entirely.

en	Uogh??

en	?!

en	Diya misses the ball by a mile, too. She rips her mask off and chases after it.

en	Yaaaa!!!

en	Subzero takes off running toward second base!

en	He's taking the chance to steal! I need to tag him out!

en	Diya secures the ball and throws it to Akarsha.

en	Got it!

en	...Never mind, looks like Akarsha's supposed to cover second base here.

en	Sub-Zero skids to a halt halfway between the bases.

en	Oh no!

en	Because it was his choice to run, we need to actually tag him with the ball!

en	Akarsha charges toward him, and Sub-Zero turns around and flees back toward first base.

en	Throw it to me!

en	Hrah!

en	Akarsha lobs the ball over, and Liz tags him out.

en	Noooo...

en	Nice one, Akarsha!

en	...Akarsha? Who's that?

en	You???

en	I dunno what you're talking about.

en	My name.........is Sub-Zero.

en	NO, IT'S NOT.

en	The teams switch sides.

en	As Noelle crosses the field, she's struck with a peculiar awareness of where she is.

en	Barely a day ago, I was on the opposite side of the planet.

en	I was in Taiwan, where the garbage trucks sing Beethoven's Fur Elise while collecting the trash.

en	And now I'm here, playing baseball. I'm wearing a little cap, sweating, and running on grass.

en	Why am I here? It's a mistake that I'm here.

en	Hello? Earth to Frenchman?

en	What?

en	You didn't hear a thing I said, huh?

en	My apologies. What was it?

en	I said, it's hot as balls out here!

en	Not this again!

en	So what were you so lost in thought about?

en	Nothing really...

en	It's just strange knowing I would've led a completely different life if my parents had stayed in Taiwan.

en	I would've been someone who was close to her family. Someone who wasn't ignorant of her own culture.

en	Maybe I would have been a better person.

en	Aw, I like you the way you are, though.

en	And if your parents didn't move, we would never have met.

en	Of course, because obviously that makes up for everything.

en	Akarsha grins, and the inside of Noelle's palm prickles.

en	This is so peculiar...

en	Is this what extreme anger feels like? But right now I'm only pretending to be annoyed for comedic effect.

en	The sensation is so unbearable, she wants to scratch at it until it goes away.

en	I mean, you went there on vacation. You're probably looking at it through rose-colored glasses.

en	They probably have tons of struggles over there that you're clueless about.

en	Even so, the standard of living there is on an entirely different level.

en	This is backed up by actual statistics, not just my personal opinions.

en	I dunno, man. It's not good to wallow too long in self-pity.

en	Or else you'll get lost in the sauce.

en	...The sauce? What sauce?

en	It's a metaphor for being out of touch with reality.

en	But I like to imagine barbeque sauce.

en	!

en	The rest of Team Global Warming erupts in cheers as Diya bats Chryssa in.

en	The rest of the [teamName!t] cheer as Diya bats Chryssa in.

en	Oh, they're not just walking Diya like last game?

en	I told Jun I'd shave his hair off in his sleep if he did that again, cuz it's not fun for Diya.

en	Who's up next?

en	Me! Time to unveil my special technique!

en	Wait, she better not be trying that "getting hit on purpose" thing again!

en	Oblivious, Junseo throws a fastball to Akarsha.

en	Akarsha leans in to the pitch, causing the ball bounce off her elbow guard.

en	Hahah! Free walk to first base!

en	Huh?! You can't do that on purpose!

en	The guy on the Niles team who's serving as their umpire pages through his rulebook, lost.

en	Uh...Does it say that in the rules?

en	Actually, it's not relevant whether Akarsha caused the ball to hit her or not.

en	Per rule 2, section 40 of the NFHS rulebook: There is no distinction between the act of touching or by being touched.

en	Seriously?!

en	Thank you, baseball lawyer! Muah!!

en	Actually, just last summer Rule 7-3-4 was added, stating that the batter shall not permit a pitched ball to touch him.

en	But it's not really my job to remind them to update their rulebook.

en	But...but still, that's not fair!

en	You may not like it, but this is what peak baseball looks like.

en	Even the Major League Baseball logo is a guy getting hit by the pitch.

en	Wha...what're you talking about?

en	It's a guy swinging at the ball.

en	No, really picture it.

en	The ball is too high up, and look how close to him it is.

en	It's too late, there's no way he's gonna be able to hit it in time.

en	It's a guy who's about to get beaned.

en	No way...

en	She's right...It really is a guy about to get hit...

en	I rest my case.

en	Akarsha jogs to first base, victorious.

en	Alright. I'm up next.

en	There's already two outs. I'd better not strike out.

en	But on the bright side, Diya and Akarsha are both on-base. If I can somehow hit this, we could end this inning with a massive lead.

en	Noelle swiftly strikes out, missing by a mile with each swing.

en	Drat! I blew it.

en	There, there...

en	Did you try? Yes. But did you fail? Also yes.

en	Wait, I think I said those in the wrong order.

en	Forget the order! Why mention me failing at all?!

en	The teams switch sides.

en	As Noelle trods to second base, she crosses paths with Diya on her way to the catcher's box.

en	Diya, do you have any tips for hitting the ball?

en	Diya considers it for a moment.

en	It's easier to hit the top of the ball than the bottom.

en	Bad for hitting home runs but you'll strike out less.

en	Diya, at this point I'd be thrilled to hit ANY of the ball. You think I can differentiate between the top and bottom halves??

en	Diya appears not to have heard Noelle's response and has walked away.

en	Thanks, I guess...

en	The Killer Whales cheer as a batter hits a grand slam off one of Min's pitches.

en	Woohoo! We're tied now!

en	EAT SHIT AND DIE!!!

en	Min strikes the next two batters out in quick succession, but the third gets a solid hit!

en	Maybe I can catch this!

en	Noelle leaps for the ball, but it flies over her head and bounces into center field.

en	Got it!

en	Chryssa fields the ball, then tosses it back to Noelle.

en	I need to throw this to first base!

en	Noelle throws the ball with all her might! It plops almost straight into the ground and begins rolling away...

en	..........

en	Liz leaves first base to grab the ball. By this point, the runner is approaching second base.

en	It's another pickle! Liz and Akarsha need to box him in again.

en	Akarsha!

en	Who?

en	She's not cooperating because she wants to be called Sub-Zero!

en	Call her Sub-Zero

en	Don't call her Sub-Zero

en	...Sub-Zero...

en	Oh hey, that's me!

en	Akarsha catches the ball Liz throws her, and quickly tags the Jun-seo out.

en	Nooooo...

en	Heh! Another win for Sub-Zero.

en	YOU'RE DISGUSTING.

en	Thanks to Noelle's noble sacrifice, Global Warming maintains their deadlock with the Killer Whales for the next few innings.

en	Thanks to Noelle's noble sacrifice, the [teamName!t] maintain their deadlock with the Killer Whales for the next few innings.

en	It's the bottom of the last inning. We just need one run to cinch our victory.

en	AKARSHA!!!! YOU VILE CREATURE!!!!

en	Hmmm? I wonder who this "Akarsha" you keep referring to is.

en	Liz throws the ball to Akarsha, but she pretends not to see it and lets it land on the ground.

en	REALLY???

en	Shit!

en	I mean — shoot!

en	Noelle rushes to grab the ball instead, but the runner is already long gone.

en	She shrieks at Akarsha as he crosses home plate.

en	THEY SCORED BECAUSE OF YOU!

en	Because of me? Or because you were a big meanie and didn't compromise like a good teammate?

en	Really makes you think...

en	NO, IT DOESN'T.

en	Thanks to Akarsha's antics, Global Warming enters the bottom of the final inning one run behind the Killer Whales.

en	Thanks to Akarsha's antics, the [teamName!t] enter the bottom of the final inning one run behind the Killer Whales.

en	We need to get at least one more run, or we'll lose.

en	Unfortunately, Sayeeda and Chryssa rack up two outs right off the bat.

en	Gomenasorry Diya-sama, you're our only hope!

en	After letting two balls go, Diya swings at a fastball.

en	....!

en	She drives the ball into right field, and everyone holds their breath as it rockets toward the fence.

en	It smashes into the middle of the fence, just a couple feet too low to clear it.

en	Too bad it wasn't a home run.

en	Too bad I'm about to beat the shit out of you!!

en	Kidding! Kidding!! Diya did great!

en	Diya sprints round the diamond and slides into second base, just barely beating the throw.

en	Safe!

en	Akarsha cracks her knuckles as she gets up from the bench.

en	Time to use my special technique.

en	Wait. Are you going to get yourself hit by the pitch again?

en	Ya.

en	Back when I was in Little League, I saw a batter get beaned in the face.

en	Chryssa, do you remember? He was on your team.

en	Huh?

en	...Oh, yeah! That was so scary.

en	He collapsed and was just lying motionless on the ground for a while.

en	He looked like he was dead. Poor kid had to be carried off in a stretcher.

en	I think it knocked out one of his teeth, right?

en	Yup.

en	Actually, maybe he even have died for real later.

en	"Maybe"??

en	Anyway, you trying to get hit on purpose just reminded me of that.

en	O-oh...Okay...

en	This must be a new scare tactic they're trying.

en	Plus, this is our only real chance to bring Diya home. We have two outs, and Noelle will probably strike out at her at-bat.

en	No offense, Noelle.

en	None taken...

en	So getting walked here would just delay the inevitable. You should try to create an opportunity for Diya to run.

en	So I gotta actually hit the ball? Aw, man...

en	No pressure if you can't manage it! But do your best!

en	Say no more. I'm goin' serious mode.

en	As Akarsha walks up to the plate, she tosses her bat in the air, spins around, and tries to catch it behind her back.

en	She doesn't spin around fast enough, so the bat just clatters to the ground.

en	...........

en	Akarsha picks the bat back up and points it at Jun-seo.

en	Your pants can't wait for my pee.

en	Wha...what is that even supposed to mean?

en	She's trying to confuse you! Don't let it get to you!

en	Disturbed, Jun-seo quickly pitches to Akarsha.

en	Akarsha whiffs it for a strike.

en	Whoopsie!

en	We're all going to be haunted by that pee comment now and it didn't even work???

en	The team holds their collective breath as Jun-seo lets his next pitch fly.

en	Akarsha smacks it into foul territory.

en	Strike two...

en	If you waste Diya's double, I'll hit you!!!

en	Chryssa taps the sign she and Liz taped to the dugout's fence.

en	No hitting allowed.

en	Ha!

en	Then...then I'll scream really loud in your ear!

en	So it destroys your eardrum!!

en	Liz taps the second sign they taped to the fence.

en	No screaming allowed either.

en	Goddammit...

en	Jun-seo winds up again. In the meantime, Akarsha has gone suspiciously quiet.

en	.........

en	Akarsha leans in so she gets hit by the pitch again!

en	Not again!

en	Great going, you just lost us the game!

en	YAAAaaaaaAAAAA!!

en	Akarsha races toward first base like her life depends on it!

en	G-guys? Why's she's running?

en	Tag her if she tries to steal second!

en	Hayden quickly throws the ball to Subhaan, the first baseman. Akarsha hastily stops in her tracks.

en	Uh-oh!

en	Come back here!

en	Akarsha turns and scrambles back the way she came with Subhaan at her heels.

en	What is she doing?! There's no benefit to her retreating all the way back home!

en	As Akarsha nears home, Subhaan hurls the ball back to Hayden, who lunges forward to tag her.

en	They've panicked and forgotten the basic rules of baseball!

en	All they have to do is tag first base for a force out!

en	{i}Can{/i} they do that? She was hit by the pitch — she's entitled to first base.

en	...Good point...

en	GUYS, DON'T FORGET DIYA'S RUNNING TOO!

en	HUH?

en	Diya slides home in the confusion!

en	YEAHHHHHH!!!!!

en	...!!

en	Min runs over to home base and starts furiously kissing Diya as Hayden chases Akarsha back toward first.

en	GET OFF THE PLAYING FIELD!! THE GAME'S NOT OVER YET!

en	It's not? I thought we won?

en	The run won't count if Akarsha is the third out before making it to first base!

en	Er, if they even can tag her out? I don't know anymore.

en	GET OFF THE PLAYING FIELD!! YOU CAN CELEBRATE LATER!!

en	The run won't even count if Akarsha is the third out before making it to first base!

en	Er, if they even can tag her out? I'm not sure anymore.

en	As she's trying to weasel past Subhaan, Akarsha trips on her own shoelaces and collides with him!

en	Agh!

en	Akarsha bangs her head on Subhaan's knee on her way down!

en	Oh my god!

en	Akarsha!

en	Without thinking, she runs over to where Akarsha is lying motionless on the ground.

en	Akarsha! Are you alright?

en	Akarsha doesn't respond.

en	Coming from Akarsha, the silence is a thousand times scarier than if she'd been screaming.

en	Please be alright...

en	Her voice comes out all choked and funny, and Noelle realizes with horror that she's crying.

en	The world would be an awful place without you...

en	Owww...

en	Dazed, Akarsha slowly begins to sit up.

en	Noelle is so relieved that she tearfully pulls Akarsha into a hug for a moment before a mixture of other emotions catch up with her.

en	Wait, what am I doing?!

en	Her heart pounding, Noelle hastily shoves Akarsha away, sending her crashing back to the ground.

en	Whuh?!

en	YOU ABSOLUTE ARSE!

en	YOU SCARED ME! DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN!

en	Noelle frantically wipes her tears away as Akarsha wobbles back to her feet.

en	Soon, the others have gathered around her in concern.

en	You okay?

en	Yeah, just woozy...

en	What year is it?

en	1834...?

en	Just kidding, 2009.

en	HOW CAN YOU BE CRACKING JOKES RIGHT NOW?!

en	Can you tell me what happened?

en	I got myself into a pickle, tripped, and ate shit.

en	Okay, good...

en	Ask her if she feels nauseous.

en	Do you feel nauseous?

en	Naw.

en	As they run through a series of tests for concussion, Chryssa and Liz relax a bit.

en	You seem fine...It's good that you can remember what happened and walk.

en	It looked like you lost consciousness for a second there, though.

en	I wasn't knocked out, I was thinking the whole time.

en	Huh?!

en	I was just stunned 'cause it really hurt.

en	So...you remember what I said to you?

en	Yeah, that I'm an arse?

en	What about before that?

en	Um...Before that, everyone was screaming that I fell.

en	It was so chaotic, it all kinda blurred together.

en	Why, did you finally call me Sub-Zero?

en	I most certainly did not.

en	What a relief! It would have been mortifying if she'd heard me falling to pieces over her.

en	We should still get you checked out by an adult.

en	Aren't you and Liz technically adults now?

en	You know what I mean. {i}Real{/i} adults, like the school nurse.

en	Does that mean the game's over?

en	Yeah, sorry...We'll have to rematch you guys some other time.

en	Wait, so did we win? Did Diya's run count?

en	Wait, so did we tie? Did Diya's run count?

en	Unfortunately, no.

en	My understanding is that Akarsha ultimately violated Section 4 of Rule 8 — She made a travesty of the game.

en	A {i}travesty?{/i} That's such a dramatic way to put it, I love it.

en	I'm so sorry! You can hit my head super hard too as payback!

en	Like with the bat or something!

en	Why?! It wouldn't help at all!

en	I'll do it.

en	NO ONE'S HITTING ANYBODY IN THE HEAD WITH THE BAT!

en	Noelle, could you escort Akarsha to the nurse's office?

en	Alright, fine.

en	Noelle and Akarsha trudge back up the hill toward the school.

en	Suddenly Akarsha touches her own cheek, confused.

en	Why is my face wet?

en	What?

en	There's something wet on my cheek. Like water.

en	It's from when I was crying over her!

en	That...that must've been someone's spit that fell on you.

en	Huh?! Ew!

en	Man...If only I hadn't tripped, I totally would've saved the day.

en	You should thank me for tryin' to save you from making us lose.

en	Now that she mentions it, I do feel a bit bad that she got hurt trying to help me...

en	I actually am a bit impressed you wrangled such an improbable outcome out of a walk.

en	I truly marvel at your creativity sometimes.

en	Whuh??

en	Who are you, and what did you do with Noelle?

en	Contrary to common belief, I am, in fact, capable of being nice.

en	I know, but you usually look like you're passing a really hard poo while you're doing it.

en	Akarsha grabs Noelle's hand and vigorously shakes it up and down.

en	Congratulations! You've learned basic human decency!

en	You should try it more often.

en	To Noelle's dismay, she feels a strange, almost electric undercurrent of something running between their palms.

en	Why am I so sensitive to her touch all of a sudden? It didn't used to be like this.

en	Noelle thrashes her hand free and seizes Akarsha's wrist!

en	Wah!

en	Could it be that I'm still excited from the game?

en	There's probably still adrenaline in my system.

en	Lemme go!

en	War crime! War crime!!

en	IT'S NOT A WAR CRIME TO GRAB SOMEONE'S ARM!

en	Oh, the humanity!

en	To be captivated by a court jester — a circus clown juggling five bowling pins!

en	One week later

en	Diya blearily looks up from her textbook as Akarsha takes her usual seat in front of Noelle.

en	How's your head.

en	Oh, I'm all good now!

en	The nurse just told me to rest up for a few days.

en	My parents made me see a doctor over the weekend, too, and he said the same thing.

en	That's good to hear.

en	I wish I could've used this as an excuse to get outta the Bio test today, though.

en	At least we have the Multicultural Week Assembly in third period.

en	You can use it as extra time to cram.

en	I wanna watch at least some of it, though. I heard there was gonna be a K-pop part.

en	Noelle's heart does a nervous little stutter as Akarsha turns all the way round in her seat to face her.

en	Do you remember the poster that was in the nurse's office?

en	No. What poster?

en	It said if your hand is bigger than your face, you have cancer.

en	That doesn't sound right.

en	Why would that be the case? Swelling?

en	Just to check, Noelle puts her hand over her face to compare their sizes.

en	Akarsha slaps Noelle's hand so Noelle smacks herself in the face.

en	AKARSHAAAAA!!!!

en	Akarsha bolts, and Noelle chases after her!

en	The bell rings!{w=0.26} This concludes Noelle and Akarsha's daily morning scream fest.

en	Once they're back in their desks, Noelle glowers at the back of Akarsha's head.

en	I can't keep my eyes off of her. It must be my body's natural defense mechanism in response to threats.

en	If I hold her hand, it'll prevent her from doing the "Why are you hitting yourself?" move.

en	And if I embrace her, she will be completely immobilized.

en	Yes. There are perfectly reasonable explanations for all of these strange urges I'm feeling.

en	In third period, Noelle's teacher leads the class to the gym to watch the Multicultural assembly.

en	Most of her classmates have their heads buried in their Biology textbooks as they walk, desperately cramming for the impending test.

en	Pistil.

en	The ovule producing part of the flower. Next.

en	Xylem.

en	Plant tissue that moves water 'n stuff around. Next.

en	What's "stuff".

en	Like, stuff. Y'know...Stuff.

en	You know, Akarsha, I've never actually seen you study for something in earnest before.

en	Ya, well, I decided to actually try normally for once.

en	I think I have too many lies and weird plots goin' on at the same time, and it's tiring me out.

en	You fool...You nuisance...You liar...

en	I want to know everything about you...

en	I want you to tell me every thought that's ever crossed your mind...

en	Sepal.

en	The outer part of the flower, the green leafy part.

en	Why am I so infatuated with her?

en	It can't possibly be that I fancy her.

en	No...Surely not!

en	I may have grown used to the concept of Diya dating Min, but I have no intention of being in a relationship like that myself.

en	Even now that I'm aware it's possible for two women to...copulate...that changes nothing!

en	Homosexuals can't even legally get married anymore. It seems unwise to pursue a lifestyle reliant on the mercy of a government as unreliable as our own.

en	Akarsha gives her an odd look.

en	...Why're you glaring at me?

en	Oh...Is that how my face looked?

en	I haven't even done anything yet.

en	YET?

en	Oof!

en	Noelle walks straight into someone in the class walking ahead of them.

en	Kyaaaa!

en	Oh hai, it's you guys!

en	Oh hey! What's up?

en	I posted the first chapter of my webcomic.

en	I saw! Every page has like, four comments!!

en	Is that good...? I have no idea how to gauge webcomic success.

en	Ester, you're like, you're a celebrity now!

en	Ooh, I wanna see!

en	Here, I scanned all these comic pages from my sketchbook.

en	She holds her sketchbook out so Noelle, Diya, and Akarsha can read it as they walk.

en	This is not scientifically accurate...

en	But at least it's easier to follow than that accursed English video we made.

en	Hey, were you really in high school if you didn't act in a completely incomprehensible movie with your friends?

en	?

en	Is that Noelle.

en	Huh? Where?

en	Diya points at a panel showing a character crumpled on the ground.

en	Wait a minute...is this traced from a photo of me?!

en	Er, yeah...But don't worry, I made sure to tweak some things!

en	Her personality is completely different from yours. And I changed her hair color to white.

en	Why white...? Is she old?

en	No, it's because she's albino. She has red eyes, too.

en	Okay...But what if people still realize this is based on my likeness?

en	Looks like someone already did.

en	Sure enough, Min has left a comment on the page where albino Noelle is getting her ass kicked.

en	God_Of_Halo

en	LMAO GET REKT NERD

en	That's the price of knowing an Artiste.

en	Sorry, next time I'll ask for permission first...

en	Ester, you're coming to Fanime with us, right?

en	Yeah, I begged my parents to let me go.

en	We should cosplay as your characters to help promote the comic!

en	What?! No!

en	The anatomy's so bad. And I made a bunch of mistakes on everyone's outfits...

en	You're famous and you're still saying that BS?!

en	You created this with your bare hands! So what if it's not perfect? You're god!

en	Okay whatever, do what you want, but I'm wearing normal clothes.

en	You're seriously gonna be too cool for anime while ATTENDING an anime convention? It's not like you can wander in by accident.

en	I call dibs on Stellaluna!

en	Then I get Kagami Izuna!!

en	Wait, I wanted to be Kagami Izuna!

en	Noelle hangs back with Diya as the others argue, trying to process a confusing tangle of feelings about not being the center of Akarsha's attention.

en	She watches Akarsha's ridiculous gait as she walks, the one that apparently marks her as an American in India.

en	Question: Do you ever feel like love is a choice?

en	?

en	Like you could {i}potentially{/i} fall in love with someone?

en	You're {i}not{/i} in love with them, but if you wanted to feel that way, you {i}could.{/i}

en	But if you ignore it, it'll pass, eventually.

en	Isn't that just regular love?

en	No, I'm not talking about regular love, like what you and Min experience.

en	There was no preventing that. The two of you were drawn together with the force of a freight train.

en	But this isn't like that. This is more comparable to someone reaching a fork in a road.

en	Because I can obviously control my emotions, especially ones that aren't useful to me. I'm not a wild animal.

en	...Even if you could control your emotions. Why don't you think they're useful?

en	Because they would derail my entire life.

en	There's insufficient evidence to suggest the subject in question would reciprocate my feelings, so perhaps this is putting the cart before the horse...

en	But in the unlikely event that things actually did work out between us, it would be extremely inconvenient for my plans.

en	What plans?

en	You know, just the default ones.

en	Essentially, to secure a respectable job, marry a similarly successful man, and spawn two well-behaved children in the suburbs before I'm thirty.

en	I'd be throwing away my prospects of leading a normal life just for the pleasure of being tormented by a silly little clown every day.

en	............

en	Diya gives her an odd look. She looks like she's struggling to piece together a very complicated puzzle.

en	What?

en	Nothing...

en	If the...person...doesn't fit your goal, shouldn't you update the goal?

en	I can't. It's the only outcome my parents see as acceptable.

en	If I don't adhere to it, they'll badger me day and night. They'll never let me hear the end of it.

en	Don't they already do that anyway?

en	...Oh...Yes, they do.

en	You're right, no matter what I do, they'll always find some new issue to latch onto.

en	Why am I so desperate for the approval of two people whose opinions I don't even respect?

en	I wish I could rewire my brain to only crave approval from people I hold in high esteem.

en	Like me?

en	You would be included, yes.

en	Then I'd want you to adopt a thousand dogs and start exercising.

en	A thousand?!

en	But you can read some books too, as a treat.

en	Your manner of discussing this makes me sound like your pet hamster.

en	Noelle follows her class into the rafters.

en	Diya! Over here!

en	!!!!

en	Min worms her way over to them through the crowd.

en	I escaped from my class.

en	Escaped? Are they gonna come looking for you?

en	Nah, I lost them.

en	You'd better have. I'd rather not get caught harboring a fugitive.

en	Did it hurt? When you were born with that huge stick up your ass?

en	I'm not even going to dignify that with a response.

en	What the hell is this, anyway?

en	Multicultural Week?

en	Yeah, that. None of the other schools I went to did this.

en	At lunch, there's samosas. And Coldstone cupcakes.

en	What? For free?

en	No. You buy them.

en	All the clubs sell something to fundraise.

en	I heard there's also musubis.

en	What's the baseball club selling?

en	Curry pizza, I think.

en	Akarsha takes a seat at the end of the row against the wall. Min begins to sit down next to her...

en	!!!

en	Suddenly, Diya grabs Min by the shoulders, turns her round to face her, and kisses her full on the mouth.

en	Mmmph?!

en	...What brought this on???

en	Hot damn! Get a room!

en	Baffled, Noelle squeezes past them and sits in the spot Min was about to take next to Akarsha.

en	Wha...What was that for?

en	Not that I'm complaining...

en	.......

en	Diya whispers something into Min's ear that Noelle can't catch.

en	WHAT?

en	That doesn't make sense. Are you sure?!

en	Maybe half.

en	Class president

en	Tinikling is one of the most popular folk dances in the Philippines. This dance originated on an island in central Philippines...

en	Noelle and Akarsha continue to cram as their fellow students showcase a variety of cultural performances.

en	Diya lets out a huge yawn and rests her head on Min's shoulder.

en	You tired?

en	Stayed up late studying.

en	I'll wake you up if anything cool happens.

en	Man, I wish I stayed up late cramming too. I'm so dead...

en	We have the entire assembly to study. If you want to live, stop whining and start reviewing.

en	Yes, ma'am...

en	What part of the flower will turn into a fruit?

en	Petal

en	Ovary

en	The petal.

en	Huh?? You really think that?

en	When you see flowers with like, a billion petals, are you like "Wowie! Can't wait to eat a billion fruits!"

en	SHUT UP!!!! I DON'T THINK THAT!!

en	Then why'd you say it?

en	It's obviously the ovary.

en	Wait, is it cuz you're too much of a prude to say ovary?

en	All along, instead of debating whether you're straight or gay, we should've been asking whether you get turned on by flower private parts.

en	SHUT UP!! SHUT UP!!!!

en	If you wanna shut me up so bad, why don't you just kiss me?

en	Noelle smacks her in the arm!

en	Ow!

en	The ovary.

en	Ding ding ding!

en	You didn't by any chance ask that question just to make me say "ovary", did you?

en	No way! How immature do you think I am?

en	Last period, you asked me to guess what number you were thinking of, and it was 69.

en	Well, you're the immature one for guessing it right.

en	HOW AM {i}I{/i} THE IMMATURE ONE?? I GUESSED IT BECAUSE I KNEW YOU'RE ALWAYS LIKE THIS!

en	SHUT THE FUCK UP!!! DIYA'S SLEEPING!!!

en	Not anymore, she isn't...

en	The Tinikling dancers bow and run off the stage.

en	Now that they've reached a lull in the conversation, Noelle is hyperaware of the way the side of Akarsha's thigh is pressed up against hers.

en	Why did I have to meet you?

en	Why do you have to be so funny and make me so happy?

en	You've ruined everything.

en	Next up is Chinese dance. Chinese dance has thousands of years of history...

en	A troupe of student dancers wave colorful fans to an idyllic sounding Chinese song.

en	Do you know what the song's about?

en	I wish I could tell you. I haven't the faintest idea.

en	When I was younger, I was so eager to cast the Chinese part of me aside because it was difficult. And now I regret it.

en	Hey, no judgment. I'm whitewashed, too.

en	Does it ever bother you that you can't speak any Indian languages?

en	Maybe a little? It would be cool to know.

en	That's all? You don't feel guilty for being uncultured?

en	Excuse you?? I'm plenty cultured!

en	Today I'm gonna eat curry pizza, destroy the sport of baseball, and even enjoy the company of a Frenchman.

en	You know what I mean. It's not the traditional culture your ancestors experienced.

en	Is that such a bad thing? It's different, but it's pretty cool in its own way, too.

en	And if I really want, I can always pick up Hindi or something someday.

en	But you've already missed the window of time when children pick up languages the most readily.

en	Don't plenty of people learn languages later in life though?

en	I feel like Diya and Min've learned a ton just from teaching each other.

en	That may be possible, but it's not optimal.

en	Dude, whose life is optimal? You're not a robot.

en	Just take what you can get, and be happy.

en	Easier said than done, but duly noted.

en	Speaking of robots! Did you try playing Portal?

en	I did.

en	What did you think?

en	It made me motion sick. I kept having to pause because I was on the verge of throwing up.

en	Oops. Sorry...

en	But I did enjoy the witty dialogue. And the song at the end.

en	...So you still played all of it?

en	Yes.

en	Even though it almost made you hurl?!

en	What choice did I have? You told me to play it.

en	Oh...yeah, I guess that's friends do.

en	Isn't GLaDOS so hot?

en	The sadistic artificial intelligence who's trying to kill you?

en	That's the whole appeal! She's scary in a seductive way!

en	Like, her voice gets all low and sexy when she's insulting you!

en	Did you hit your head again? Something's definitely not right in there.

en	Girls in the crowd

en	K-Pop as we know it would not exist without the—

en	WOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

en	The K-Pop dance troupe's introduction is completely drowned out by a chorus of high-pitched screams.

en	Aw, that's cute.

en	I'm not sure I would characterize those banshee-like screams as "cute".

en	No, not them! Next to you.

en	Noelle turns to see Diya sound asleep in Min's arms. Min's gazing at her like she's an angel that just fell down from heaven.

en	It makes Noelle's skin crawl, so she quickly looks away.

en	They're so disgustingly in love, I can barely bear to look at them.

en	Right? It's like staring directly at the sun.

en	All obvious.

en	Sometimes I kinda wish that were more my style.

en	Do you really?

en	It's not exactly my style, either.

en	Yeah, I guess not...

en	..........

en	Noelle carefully maintains a mildly disgusted expression as she watches Akarsha read, just in case she's caught staring.

en	If I cast this part of myself aside because it's difficult too, will I come to regret it later?

en	Hey....

en	Do you remember that time my brother hijacked my computer and typed all this crazy stuff to you?

en	What?

en	It was a few months ago, after school. Remember?

en	Oh, I forgot about that.

en	That was odd.

en	Yes, I remember now. Why?

en	I lied.

en	That wasn't my brother, that was me.

en	O...kay?

en	.........

en	Akarsha goes back to reading her Biology textbook, though her leg's now jittering up and down.

en	I feel like I was just told a joke whose punchline flew straight over my head.

en	Why would it matter that it was her and not her brother...? What exactly did she say?

en	As she wracks her brain, a dozen costumed seniors take the floor.

en	Thank you, K-Pop! Up next, we have Senior Bhangra!

en	Bhangra was originally a folk dance from farmers in Punjab...

en	There's Chryssa and Liz!

en	{font=korean.ttf}공주님!{/font} Wake up!

en	...!

en	Seniors, c'mon down!

en	It's okay if you don't know the moves! Follow our lead!

en	...How is it okay if people don't know the moves?

en	I guess they all try to copy the group that's learned the dance.

en	Won't that look hopelessly unsynchronized, though?

en	They can't possibly dance in proper unison on the fly.

en	Why don't we see for ourselves?

en	Let's dance!

en	Akarsha stands, yanking Noelle up with her by the arm.

en	What?! We're not seniors!

en	C'mon, no one's gonna notice. I can't focus, anyway!

en	Noelle balks as her friends weave their way into the crowd of amateur dancers.

en	I don't dance!

en	C'mon, you don't need to be good at something to do it.

en	They all try to copy the others, clapping and raising their arms a beat late each time.

en	This looks like shit!

en	Oh balls! This is harder than I thought!

en	I told you! We look like fools!

en	T-that's okay! So does everyone else!

en	Already out of breath, Noelle looks around at the chaotic blur of Asian nerds flailing their limbs around them.

en	It's true...This must be a group of some of the worst dancers in the world!

en	With renewed confidence, Noelle spins in what turns out to be the completely wrong direction. Diya rears back to avoid crashing into her.

en	..........

en	To Noelle's surprise, Diya belatedly bumps into her, sending her flying into Akarsha!

en	That almost seemed deliberate?!

en	Wah!

en	Pardon!

en	Akarsha tries to pull back, only for Min to smack the back of her head in retaliation.

en	OW!! What was that for?

en	This...This air is mine!

en	Huh???

en	Noelle grabs Akarsha's hand for balance as they collide again.

en	Isn't this fun?

en	This is a hellhole!

en	This is paradise!

en	Akarsha laces their fingers together, and Noelle can feel it — a hairline crack racing through something foundational within her.

en	It's an utterly terrifying yet exhilarating sensation, but she doesn't let go.

en	I have feelings for you.

en	She whispers it, as an experiment, so that it's impossible to hear over the roar of the crowd and the music.

en	But it feels like a small, daring victory, like the first step on the moon.

en	Like a butterfly breaking out of its chrysalis all soft, naive, and crinkled.

en	Maybe with two left feet and a few days late to the party, but alive, so alive, trying to process the blinding, beautiful, wild world she's broken her way into.

en	...What'd you say?

en	Akarsha twirls her, and Noelle gives up on suppressing the giddy smile on her face.

en	Nothing. Maybe I'll tell you later.

en	Be that way. Burger King.

en	That's not even the slogan.

en	They dance and dance, all stupid and struggling and happy.

en	There's so much pain and misery in this school.

en	It's twisted us all into strange and flawed shapes, like butterflies born in a fool's spring.

en	But it's the circumstances that gave us you and me, right here, right now.

en	Kant wrote, "Out of the crooked timber of humanity, no straight thing was ever made."

en	And how we long to be straight — Forgetting there's beauty in the crooked things, too.

en	We'll never live the lives our parents wanted us to lead.

en	And that's okay.

en	Because we'll forge something brave and new instead.

en	It won't be the same.

en	But it'll be ours.

en	And I won't ever let that go.

en	The future

en	Well? Were they open?

en	What do you think? It's 1 in the morning.

en	Of course Home Depot wasn't open.

en	There's gotta be somewhere else you can buy bolt cutters.

en	At this hour? I'm not optimistic.

en	Guess I'll die then?? How else are we gonna get them off?

en	I'm afraid we need to go to the fire station for help.

en	Stop laughing, this isn't funny!

en	This isn't funny???

en	We're goin' to the fire station with me half naked and handcuffed, and it's not funny?

en	You really can't get more dressed than that?

en	I mean, my arms can't go through the sleeves.

en	Hold still.

en	I give up. Good enough.

en	Go—good enough?!?

en	If only I had a humiliation kink, this would've been perfect.

en	Doesn't Min have a katana?

en	They do?

en	Or at least some kinda sword. Maybe we could use it to slice the handcuffs off.

en	What, you want a surprise amputation tonight? No.

en	And you're SURE the key didn't fall behind the dresser?

en	I looked everywhere; it's gone.

en	I'm convinced that in these scenarios, small objects stop obeying the laws of physics.

en	This never happened any of the times I handcuffed YOU.

en	That, my dear, is called luck.

en	Whatever you say, Skunky...

en	STOP CALLING ME THAT.

en	Fine, Skunko Pop...D.Gray-Man...

en	AND DON'T BRAINSTORM HORRID NEW NICKNAMES FOR ME!

en	But you're basically begging for it with your hair like that.

en	It's not as if I grew gray hairs on purpose!

en	Then how come I don't have any?

en	You're intolerable.

en	Noelle seizes the front of Akarsha's shirt and yanks her forward, crushing their lips together.

en	Akarsha makes a small noise of surprise, then grins as she deepens the kiss, coaxing her lips open so her tongue can slide inside.

en	At the start of the night, she tasted like watermelon lip gloss, but that's long been kissed and smeared away into oblivion.

en	Noelle can't help but think, why bother? When will you learn?

en	I'll always kiss through every layer of crap you put between us until it's just you and me.

en	When they part, their breaths ragged, neither of them can come up with anything witty to say.

en	I love you.

en	I love you more.

en	That's impossible.

en	No, it's not.

en	I love you times infinity. There, I win.

en	You can't multiply infinity.

en	Infinity is a concept, not a number. So is "love", for that matter.

en	Well too bad, I did it.

en	Love you times infinity.

en	Noelle sighs, but she doesn't bother hiding the half-smile tugging at her mouth.

en	If you're going to speak nonsense, then I love you times infinity, plus one.

en	Now get in the car. I have work tomorrow morning.

en	Akarsha tries to respond as Noelle opens the door for her, but she's laughing so hard, it takes her several attempts to get it out.

en	The firefighters! They're gonna look outside and see...

en	Prius driver dressed like Frog & Toad...and me...

en	What's wrong with driving a Prius? Just get in already!

en	I love you times infinity, minus one.

en	I love you times infinity, minus two.

en	Okay, okay! How mean!

en	Butterfly Soup 2

en	Save

en	Skip

en	Prefs

en	New Game

en	History

en	Load Game

en	Settings

en	About

en	End Replay

en	Main Menu

en	Quit

en	Return

en	[config.name!t] Version [config.version!t]

en	Game by Brianna Lei Made with {a=https://www.renpy.org/}Ren'Py{/a} [renpy.version_only].

en	Music:

en	Bubbles, guiding light, Thought Projection, Holding Your Breath, Illicit Activities, and Jello by {a=http://ketsamusic.com/}Ketsa{/a}

en	Romaras, Blooming, pas a pas, side by side, and Campagne_sound363 by Miltata (CC BY-NC 3.0)

en	{a=https://miltata.bandcamp.com/}This artist has songs available for purchase! Please support him here!{/a}

en	{a=http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Bloodgod/Catharsis/}Valar Morghulis{/a} by {b}Bloodgod{/b} (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

en	{a=http://www.hurtrecord.com/bgm/24/the-flame-of-love.html}Flame of Love{/a} by {b}YOSHI{/b}

en	{a=https://www.hurtrecord.com/bgm/104/toys-house.html}Toys House{/a} by {b}Teada{/b}

en	{a=https://www.hurtrecord.com/bgm/23/kurayami.html}{font=japanese.ttc}クラヤミ{/font}{/a} by {b}{font=japanese.ttc}カモキング{/font}{/b}

en	{a=https://thricedotted.itch.io/looptober-2021-variety-pack}Fell{/a} by {b}Studio Meow Meow{/b} (CC BY 4.0)

en	{a=https://www.void1gaming.com/}Comatose Dreams{/a} by {b}VOiD1Gaming{/b}

en	My Heart Will Go On - Recorder By Candlelight by {b}Matt Mulholland{/b}

en	{a=https://mattmulholland.bandcamp.com/album/matt-mulholland-sings-covers}This song is available for purchase! Please support the artist!{/a}

en	Sound:

en	{a=https://github.com/NormalVR/CutieKeys}Cutie Keys{/a}

en	{a=http://freesound.org/people/LittleRobotSoundFactory/packs/16881/}Electric Sound Effects Library{/a} by LittleRobotSoundFactory (CC BY 3.0)

en	{a=http://freesound.org/people/Peacewaves/sounds/317334/}Metal Locker{/a} by Peacewaves (CC BY 3.0)

en	Rain loop by {a=https://www.freesoundslibrary.com/}Free Sounds Library{/a} (CC BY 4.0)

en	Translation producer:

en	{a=https://queerscriptors.org}Queerscriptors{/a}

en	Russian Translation:

en	Mikhail "KornyPony" Burov-Kosolapin

en	Polish Translation:

en	Max "Toasty" and _adoracja with the help of panini_bredd

en	Traditional Chinese Translation:

en	{font=traditional_chinese.otf}鬼怒川{/font}(KINUKUROletsplay)

en	Spanish Translation:

en	{font=myriad.otf}{size=24}Martín "SevenFalcons" Eyheralde{/size}{/font}

en	Brazilian Portuguese Translation:

en	Maria "Maaz" Laura

en	Cocoonase font:

en	Redwood

en	Page {}

en	Automatic saves

en	Quick saves

en	%B %d %Y, %H:%M

en	empty slot

en	<

en	{#auto_page}A

en	{#quick_page}Q

en	>

en	Display

en	Window

en	Fullscreen

en	Unseen Text

en	After Choices

en	Screen Motion

en	Background Pan

en	Screenshake

en	Music Volume

en	Sound Volume

en	Test

en	Voice Volume

en	Mute All

en	Text Speed

en	Language

en	{font=chunhua_chinese.ttf}{size=30}中文{/size}{/font}

en	{font=myriad.OTF}{size=30}Español{/size}{/font}

en	{font=myriad.OTF}{size=30}Português{/size}{/font}

en	The dialogue history is empty.

en	Help

en	Keyboard

en	Mouse

en	Gamepad

en	Enter

en	Advances dialogue and activates the interface.

en	Space

en	Advances dialogue without selecting choices.

en	Arrow Keys

en	Navigate the interface.

en	Escape

en	Accesses the game menu.

en	Ctrl

en	Skips dialogue while held down.

en	Tab

en	Toggles dialogue skipping.

en	Page Up

en	Rolls back to earlier dialogue.

en	Page Down

en	Rolls forward to later dialogue.

en	Takes a screenshot.

en	Toggles assistive {a=https://www.renpy.org/l/voicing}self-voicing{/a}.

en	Left Click

en	Middle Click

en	Hides the user interface.

en	Right Click

en	Mouse Wheel Up Click Rollback Side

en	Mouse Wheel Down

en	Right Trigger A/Bottom Button

en	Left Trigger Left Shoulder

en	Right Shoulder

en	D-Pad, Sticks

en	Start, Guide

en	Y/Top Button

en	Calibrate

en	Yes

en	No

en	Skipping. To stop skipping, click anywhere on the screen!

en	Back

en	Auto

en	Menu

en	{font=YunusH.ttf}{white}{size=+25}Thank you for playing!{/size}{/white}{/font}

en	English

en	{font=myriad.OTF}{size=30}Русский{/size}{/font}

en	Polski

en	{font=chunhua_chinese.ttf}中文{/font}

en	Español

en	{font=myriad.OTF}Português{/font}

en	Diya

en	Min

en	Noelle

en	certified brain genius

en	depressed elf nightmare man

en	albret einstong

en	Yuki

en	Sakura

en	Chryssa

en	Liz

en	Mom

en	Self-voicing disabled.

en	Clipboard voicing enabled.

en	Self-voicing enabled.

en	bar

en	selected

en	viewport

en	horizontal scroll

en	vertical scroll

en	activate

en	deactivate

en	increase

en	decrease

en	Font Override

en	Default

en	DejaVu Sans

en	Opendyslexic

en	Text Size Scaling

en	Reset

en	Line Spacing Scaling

en	High Contrast Text

en	Enable

en	Disable

en	Self-Voicing

en	Off

en	Text-to-speech

en	Clipboard

en	Debug

en	Self-Voicing Volume Drop

en	The options on this menu are intended to improve accessibility. They may not work with all games, and some combinations of options may render the game unplayable. This is not an issue with the game or engine. For the best results when changing fonts, try to keep the text size the same as it originally was.

en	{#weekday}Monday

en	{#weekday}Tuesday

en	{#weekday}Wednesday

en	{#weekday}Thursday

en	{#weekday}Friday

en	{#weekday}Saturday

en	{#weekday}Sunday

en	{#weekday_short}Mon

en	{#weekday_short}Tue

en	{#weekday_short}Wed

en	{#weekday_short}Thu

en	{#weekday_short}Fri

en	{#weekday_short}Sat

en	{#weekday_short}Sun

en	{#month}January

en	{#month}February

en	{#month}March

en	{#month}April

en	{#month}May

en	{#month}June

en	{#month}July

en	{#month}August

en	{#month}September

en	{#month}October

en	{#month}November

en	{#month}December

en	{#month_short}Jan

en	{#month_short}Feb

en	{#month_short}Mar

en	{#month_short}Apr

en	{#month_short}May

en	{#month_short}Jun

en	{#month_short}Jul

en	{#month_short}Aug

en	{#month_short}Sep

en	{#month_short}Oct

en	{#month_short}Nov

en	{#month_short}Dec

en	%b %d, %H:%M

en	Save slot %s: [text]

en	Load slot %s: [text]

en	Delete slot [text]

en	File page auto

en	File page quick

en	File page [text]

en	Next file page.

en	Previous file page.

en	Quick save complete.

en	Quick save.

en	Quick load.

en	Language [text]

en	Open [text] directory.

en	The interactive director is not enabled here.

en	⬆

en	⬇

en	Done

en	(statement)

en	(tag)

en	(attributes)

en	(transform)

en	(transition)

en	(channel)

en	(filename)

en	Change

en	Add

en	Cancel

en	Remove

en	Statement:

en	Tag:

en	Attributes:

en	Transforms:

en	Behind:

en	Transition:

en	Channel:

en	Audio Filename:

en	Image [index] of [count] locked.

en	prev

en	next

en	slideshow

en	return

en	Select Gamepad to Calibrate

en	No Gamepads Available

en	Calibrating [name] ([i]/[total])

en	Press or move the '[control!s]' [kind].

en	Skip (A)

en	Back (B)

en	Renderer

en	Automatically Choose

en	Force GL Renderer

en	Force ANGLE Renderer

en	Force GLES Renderer

en	Force GL2 Renderer

en	Force ANGLE2 Renderer

en	Force GLES2 Renderer

en	Enable (No Blocklist)

en	Powersave

en	Framerate

en	Screen

en	60

en	30

en	Tearing

en	Changes will take effect the next time this program is run.

en	Performance Warning

en	This computer is using software rendering.

en	This game requires use of GL2 that can't be initialised.

en	This computer has a problem displaying graphics: [problem].

en	Its graphics drivers may be out of date or not operating correctly. This can lead to slow or incorrect graphics display.

en	The {a=edit:1:log.txt}log.txt{/a} file may contain information to help you determine what is wrong with your computer.

en	More details on how to fix this can be found in the {a=[url]}documentation{/a}.

en	Continue, Show this warning again

en	Continue, Don't show warning again

en	Change render options

en	Are you sure?

en	Are you sure you want to delete this save?

en	Are you sure you want to overwrite your save?

en	Loading will lose unsaved progress. Are you sure you want to do this?

en	Are you sure you want to quit?

en	Are you sure you want to return to the main menu? This will lose unsaved progress.

en	Are you sure you want to end the replay?

en	Are you sure you want to begin skipping?

en	Are you sure you want to skip to the next choice?

en	Are you sure you want to skip unseen dialogue to the next choice?

en	Contacting App Store Please Wait...

en	Failed to save screenshot as %s.

en	Saved screenshot as %s.

en	Skip Mode

en	This program contains free software under a number of licenses, including the MIT License and GNU Lesser General Public License. A complete list of software, including links to full source code, can be found {a=https://www.renpy.org/l/license}here{/a}.

en	display

en	transitions

en	skip transitions

en	video sprites

en	show empty window

en	text speed

en	joystick

en	joystick...

en	skip

en	skip unseen [text]

en	skip unseen text

en	begin skipping

en	after choices

en	skip after choices

en	auto-forward time

en	auto-forward

en	Auto forward

en	auto-forward after click

en	automatic move

en	wait for voice

en	voice sustain

en	self voicing

en	self voicing volume drop

en	clipboard voicing

en	debug voicing

en	emphasize audio

en	rollback side

en	gl powersave

en	gl framerate

en	gl tearing

en	font transform

en	font size

en	font line spacing

en	system cursor

en	renderer menu

en	accessibility menu

en	high contrast text

en	audio when minimized

en	main volume

en	music volume

en	sound volume

en	voice volume

en	mute main

en	mute music

en	mute sound

en	mute voice

en	mute all

en	Clipboard voicing enabled. Press 'shift+C' to disable.

en	Self-voicing would say "[renpy.display.tts.last]". Press 'alt+shift+V' to disable.

en	Self-voicing enabled. Press 'v' to disable.

en	The Ren'Py Updater is not supported on mobile devices.

en	An error is being simulated.

en	Either this project does not support updating, or the update status file was deleted.

en	This account does not have permission to perform an update.

en	This account does not have permission to write the update log.

en	Could not verify update signature.

en	The update file was not downloaded.

en	The update file does not have the correct digest - it may have been corrupted.

en	While unpacking {}, unknown type {}.

en	Updater

en	An error has occured:

en	Checking for updates.

en	This program is up to date.

en	[u.version] is available. Do you want to install it?

en	Preparing to download the updates.

en	Downloading the updates.

en	Unpacking the updates.

en	Finishing up.

en	The updates have been installed. The program will restart.

en	The updates have been installed.

en	The updates were cancelled.

en	Proceed

en	Open

en	Opens the traceback.txt file in a text editor.

en	Copy BBCode

en	Copies the traceback.txt file to the clipboard as BBcode for forums like https://lemmasoft.renai.us/.

en	Copy Markdown

en	Copies the traceback.txt file to the clipboard as Markdown for Discord.

en	An exception has occurred.

en	Rollback

en	Attempts a roll back to a prior time, allowing you to save or choose a different choice.

en	Ignore

en	Ignores the exception, allowing you to continue.

en	Ignores the exception, allowing you to continue. This often leads to additional errors.

en	Reload

en	Reloads the game from disk, saving and restoring game state if possible.

en	Console

en	Opens a console to allow debugging the problem.

en	Quits the game.

en	Parsing the script failed.