character story [ amagi rinne ] sub-story 1

[mandytl]

Rinne: What up~! One idol fresh from the shop.¹ ☆

.... whoa, whoa. Uh, huh?

Not even a single response. City folk are real cold, man!

Even a ridiculously healthy guy like me’s bound to catch a cold livin' in this concrete jungle! 

( … aaas if. My prediction was off for the first time in forever s’all. )

( My luck’s been on fire lately. Guess some bad luck was bound to follow. ) 

Hmm? Heyheyhey — someone’s back there, yeah?

Awesome. Which means the god of gambling has yet to ditch me! Kyahaha. ☆

‘Kaykaykay — konnichiwa! Guten morgen! Hello hello²? 

What kinda greeting do you prefer? One look tells me Japanese is the right answer.

I nailed it? So you’re cool with “good afternoon”? 

Aww yeah. With this, I'm gonna have more wins than losses today, ten to three!

Getting lucky really perks you up, am I right, sis? 

Wahah. Can't answer when I’m talkin’ at full-throttle? 

My bad, sis! When they say the only thing Amagi Rinne-kun’s good for is his energy, they mean me! 

Uh? Uh-huh. That’s right — the name’s Rinne!  

You read it like the ‘rinne’ in Rinne Tenshou³, the cycle of rebirth, but the fact that the kanji for ‘rin’ can be read like the "onibi" fire that appears after you burn a dead body makes it sound like a bad omen.

Khahah. ☆ Pretty easy to remember though, am I right? 

In a way it sounds cute, and that kinda charm’s crucial lately when folks're shoppin' for guy idols.

Don’t you think so, sis? Don’t you? We’re speaking the same language here. Marry me!

Eh? Marriage is a no-go? Figures. I’m just sayin', though!

My cute little bro might be searching for friends, but I'm always on the lookout for my soulmate, okay!

Not that I’ve found ‘em yet, but that’s what makes life such a blast!

Marriage is one of the most ultimate gambles, something you can’t just repeat over and over again! That’s why I dig it!

… ah, right, right. Talkin' about all this junk just reminded me that I didn’t come here to ramble. 

Egh—ahem. Now that I’ve pulled myself together.

 

You part of this agency, sis? You gotta be. I mean, you’re actually plugging away at your work behind that desk. 

You don’t say. Mm-hm! Then you probably know who my little bro is, right? 

I heard a little rumor about him being affiliated with this agency.

Kyahahah. ☆ It’s been ages since we've had a good time reminiscin' about stuff.

So I’ve got a little favor to ask… I mean, I kinda wanna meet him if possible.

It’ll be a hassle, but—think you can pass on a message for me? That sorta thing’s gotta be your job too, right, sis? 

It’s okay? Woohoo! You’re seriously the best. We’ve gotta get married!

Ah—but before we do... can you tell me your name? 

Hm? Ah-hah. If I want you to talk I better give you my little bro’s first? 

Oh, yeah. That was my original goal. 

Man, I’m no good. I go totally crazy over whatever exciting thing’s right in front of me… 

Well, not that it’s ever bothered me all that much. This is just how I’ve always been!

Changin' yourself’s hard, man, even if it’s what I need most right now… 

—whoops. I went off track yet again! Pardon!

Uhm, so. My little bro’s name is Amagi Hiiro. 

Write the kanji for “one” and “color” together to get Hiiro-chan. A real pretentious name⁴, right?

He’s a super goody two-shoes in comparison, though. 

That’s why he should’ve been happy being all cooped up in our hometown. 

Why’d you have to follow in your big brother’s footsteps and step “outside”? 

… oh. You think you can do it? You found the name “Amagi Hiiro” in the registry? Aw yeah. Today’s really Rinne-kun’s lucky day!

Eh? But you can’t be my liaison since the phone’s not connecting? 

He’s definitely affiliated with this agency, but his contact details aren’t… registered… ?

What the hell? C’mon, get it together, agency! Are you gonna be okay when you don’t even know your own idol’s number?! 

Wait. My little bro’s probably in the wrong here since he didn’t list any contact info, right?

I know what it’s like, though, since I went through the same crap. It's gonna take some time before he's used to these city systems.

Okay, I got it. Not much I can do about not havin’ a way to get in touch. The stars just aren't alignin' for me today.

I’m throwing in the towel this time and going home, then.

I’ll give you my digits just in case, so tell my little bro to at least give me a buzz if you happen to see him.

And I’ve got one more thing for you to pass on.

Tell my little brother… “Once a fool, always a fool”. 

Welp, that’s that! I’m heading out the door, so good luck with your work, sis! 

Farewell! We’ll meet again somewhere, someday, when the starts next align. ♪
___
¹Here he's using a made-up term that implies a "turning things into people" phrase, aka. an Idol Shop (アイドル屋さん)  It's being presented in a way where Rinne sounds very much like your friendly neighborhood grocer boy coming to deliver cabbage. Only he's the cabbage here.
²The Japanese was left untranslated here to keep the sentence consistent.
³The Buddhist theme of endless reincarnation.
⁴The "one color" of Hiiro's name implies a type of purity. The original four primary colors in Japanese were seen as genuine enough for compound terms.