Iwanako: Mean Time to Breakdown {updated 2015-4-1}

[Mahorfeus]

Eh, I think any potential shock value from it turning into a yuri route would have been minimal anyway. It's not like it actually spoils anything.

[Leaty]

Given the pace of release, there's something comforting in knowing there will still be new chapters of this well into the next decade...

I'll get it done faster than it took 4LS to make the visual novel, at least.

Sorry, I ship entirely too frequently. It's a problem. In my defense, Shizune seems unlikely, Rin is almost never seen outside of brief cameos, and the Emi bridge burned with such intensity that it almost ignited the atmosphere. Right then, I'll try to keep romantic speculation to a minimum from here on out. (And use it all on Developments.)

Oh, don't get me wrong, I love speculation. It fuels me, even. I just don't want people getting hyped for scenarios that I might not actually deliver on, and I don't want readers to misunderstand what kind of fic this is (I don't consider it a route fic, and I don't want to be limited to the binary of only one person being pursued and ultimately romanced. I'm also not doing branching paths, or phasing out half the cast (as I've mentioned before, I disliked the alienation of Rin's route.) I'm also not ready to deliver on a determination of who Iwanako will wind up with as early as the Yamaku Festival.

In terms of the plot structure, think of it more like a tightly-paced television drama than a route (albeit one that runs parallel to the normal course of events in the VN.) Just because X ends up with Y doesn't mean the show is over. And no, this shouldn't be taken as an admission that I'm going to make the fic drag on till the end of time without a satisfying conclusion.

I hate Wuthering Heights more than most people hate Hitler.

I'm actually really keen on Jane Austen, but fuck the Brontës. Or at least Charlotte and Emily. Screw Colin Firth, too, while I'm at it.

There are six boys in room 3-3, not counting the missing Hisao: Taro, Akio, Haruhiko, Takashi, Lezard and LeLouch(or whoever that other guy is).

I never liked the idea of the cameo characters, so in the continuity of this fic they border on nonexistence. They're there, but I won't ever use them, and I won't ever mention their names in my fic. It clashes with the atmosphere of dark realism that I'm trying to create.

Iwanako refers to a "mousy girl with shoulder-length brown hair" in Scene 7. Is this one of the cameo characters? Maybe, maybe not.

Even if you eliminate Taro, Takashi, and Haruhiko

Taro is obvious, but why the other two?

because Iwanako seems to have a superficial outlook (yeah, I went there),

That Iwanako is secretly a bit of a brat is one of my favorite contributions to the character. In her defense, her family obviously doesn't have the best role models.

During the festival Lilly does demean herself enough to drink some tea out of Styrofoam cups.

Damn it!

No, you're right. It's process of elimination. For Hisao, sex poses a very real threat (elevated heart rate, yada yada). For Iwanako, heterosexual sex is surely a death sentence. It's already established she doesn't handle physical trauma nearly as well as Hisao (Emi hospitalized her, for god's sake), so unless feeling like you're fucking a china doll is your cup of tea, it ain't gonna happen. Plus there's the added risk of pregnancy and childbirth, which definitively would kill her.

Heterosexual penetrative sex is potentially deadly, but there are obviously other options available. Ultimately, the options are approximately the same on either end of the aisle.

That said, I wouldn't place bets on Iwanako becoming the blowjob queen of Yamaku Academy.

Yes, Leaty confirmed this would be a yuri story quite early.

Actually, virtually everything I said prior to the release of scene five can be safely disregarded. That's all from Summer 2012, and at that time my vision for the story was almost completely different from what it is now. The first four chapters of this story are essentially from a different, aborted fic, other than the fact that they're obviously not. At the time I posted them, they were really just intended to be a proof of concept. I was sharing what I believed (and still believe) to be one of the only effective ways to utilize Iwanako in a story. That's why they're almost word-for-word similar to the scenes in the game (or were, before I went back much later and touched them up a bit.) They're like a slightly off-model pilot episode.

Well that was a dumb thing to go and give away...

What is a yuri fic, exactly? Is it a fic where the central point is the sapphic relationship, or is it simply a fic with sapphic content?

I like yuri. Personally, I'm not especially attracted to most men, with the exception of the most remarkable specimens (Roman Reigns can almost make me pregnant through the computer screen,) so obviously I want to include yuri content in my story. That shouldn't be taken as a promise that Iwanako will wind up with a female, only that, at some point, at least one female will have some kind of sexual or romantic relationship with at least one other female. That's all I've told anyone, and it doesn't preclude a heterosexual relationship, either.

The future is a mysteryyyyyyyyyyyyy~~~~~~

[Helbereth]

I hate Wuthering Heights more than most people hate Hitler.

I'm actually really keen on Jane Austen, but fuck the Brontës. Or at least Charlotte and Emily. Screw Colin Firth, too, while I'm at it.

It was a damned shock when I realized I was basically writing a modern version of those sort of books.

There are six boys in room 3-3, not counting the missing Hisao: Taro, Akio, Haruhiko, Takashi, Lezard and LeLouch(or whoever that other guy is).

I never liked the idea of the cameo characters, so in the continuity of this fic they border on nonexistence. They're there, but I won't ever use them, and I won't ever mention their names in my fic. It clashes with the atmosphere of dark realism that I'm trying to create.

I don't see why that would be...

Iwanako refers to a "mousy girl with shoulder-length brown hair" in Scene 7. Is this one of the cameo characters? Maybe, maybe not.

Sounds like Misaki, actually.

Even if you eliminate Taro, Takashi, and Haruhiko

Taro is obvious, but why the other two?

Takashi has a big bandage on the side of his head, and Haruhiko identifies as unusually effeminate (he has a damned barrette in his hair).

because Iwanako seems to have a superficial outlook (yeah, I went there),

That Iwanako is secretly a bit of a brat is one of my favorite contributions to the character. In her defense, her family obviously doesn't have the best role models.

Indeed. It's woven subtly underneath her polite exterior, though. It comes out in her monologue when she starts describing the people she encounters, and usually in rather harsh terms.

That said, I wouldn't place bets on Iwanako becoming the blowjob queen of Yamaku Academy.

I hadn't even thought of that, but now you've gone and put that idea into the heads of a few dozen adolescent-minded authors. Rule 34 ensues.

That shouldn't be taken as a promise that Iwanako will wind up with a female, only that, at some point, at least one female will have some kind of sexual or romantic relationship with at least one other female. That's all I've told anyone, and it doesn't preclude a heterosexual relationship, either.

As an author who has dangled the proverbial carrot on a stick in front of my readers for a year and a half, I commend you on the attempt to maintain an air of mystery, even if that means contradicting your previous statements.

*raises a glass* Skoal!

[Mahorfeus]

I figured that it was because Haruhiko was in himself a joke/cameo character.

[Steinherz]

Even if you eliminate Taro, Takashi, and Haruhiko

Taro is obvious, but why the other two?

Takashi has a big bandage on the side of his head, and Haruhiko identifies as unusually effeminate (he has a damned barrette in his hair).[/quote]
Haruhiko/Haruki Suzumiya (people seem to be unable to agree on his name) is a genderswap of Haruhi Suzumiya, and one of her "iconic" items is her headband.
Then again, most people tend to turn Haruhi's headband into headphones for her genderswap, but he lacks them in KS. Maybe they're against school rules?

I figured that it was because Haruhiko was in himself a joke/cameo character.

Most people in the 3-3 classroom are joke/cameo characters. Ritsu Tainaka, Misaki Kwana, Lelouch Lamperouge(though he was replaced in the full VN), Haruhiko Suzumiya, Ikuno Komaki, and Lezard Valeth to be specific. Molly is ambiguous, since according to the devs she's also a cameo, but appears in the last CG of Hanako's good end soo.... yeah.

[Helbereth]

I don't know any of them, so I just see what's there.

[Leaty]

There are six boys in room 3-3, not counting the missing Hisao: Taro, Akio, Haruhiko, Takashi, Lezard and LeLouch(or whoever that other guy is).

I never liked the idea of the cameo characters, so in the continuity of this fic they border on nonexistence. They're there, but I won't ever use them, and I won't ever mention their names in my fic. It clashes with the atmosphere of dark realism that I'm trying to create.

I don't see why that would be...

Because it's hard for me to take a story seriously when one of the characters in it is better known for piloting giant mecha. It would be like if Harrison Ford's character in The Fugitive were named Han Solo.

[Helbereth]

Because it's hard for me to take a story seriously when one of the characters in it is better known for piloting giant mecha. It would be like if Harrison Ford's character in The Fugitive were named Han Solo.

Ah, well that puts me at an advantage. To me, they're just faces in seats with no background information, so I can make up whatever I want if I choose to pluck one of them out and give them a life.

[Leaty]

It's the names that get me. I'd change them if it wouldn't feel like tampering with the source material. I'm not having a character named Lezard Valeth in my fanfic.

[Mirage_GSM]

I also didn't want to have a character named "Lelouch" in my story, but I wanted to use the one with aphasia... I went with a compromise

„Behind those two are Leon and Ooki, both from 3-3. Ooki is short for Motoki, and before you ask, he picked that nickname himself. Leon is short for... something French no one can pronounce.

[Steinherz]

I also didn't want to have a character named "Lelouch" in my story, but I wanted to use the one with aphasia... I went with a compromise

„Behind those two are Leon and Ooki, both from 3-3. Ooki is short for Motoki, and before you ask, he picked that nickname himself. Leon is short for... something French no one can pronounce.

Clever.
Also, the guy who guy who can control people's minds with his voice (Lelouch) has aphasia (the inability to comprehend language, either written, spoken, or both, depending on the person), is pretty damned hilarious. Also, Akio looks a hell of a lot like Kyon

[Mader Levap]

Meanwhile, Iwanako crushes on Lilly rather spectacularly though I believe she's straight if I'm recalling her route correctly...?

Since when this is problem for fanfiction world?

Meanwhile, over here in the apocalyptic wasteland that is my mind, I'm trying to figure out why everyone is predicting a yuri situation with this story.

Two words: Yuri googles. When you put them on, everything is lesbian, NO EXCEPTIONS.

Yes, Leaty confirmed this would be a yuri story quite early.

Actually, virtually everything I said prior to the release of scene five can be safely disregarded. (...) The future is a mysteryyyyyyyyyyyyy~~~~~~

No offense, but I doubt anyone will believe.

[Leaty]

Seriously, nothing I said before chapter five holds any water anymore. If I'd known anybody was going to take those comments seriously, I'd have deleted them.

I mean, you may as well go on believing that I'm going to give Iwanako a first-year roommate with blue skin, while you're at it.

[Blank Mage]

I mean, you may as well go on believing that I'm going to give Iwanako a first-year roommate with blue skin, while you're at it.

Iwanako X Liara T'Soni CONFIRMED

[Leaty]

This is now canon