Yurei Alphabet (SFW Edition)
(NSFW Edition coming soon)
A = Affection (How affectionate are they? How do they show affection?)
Yurei starts off very reserved and a bit standoffish and indifferent to the MC. He's not big into PDA, and it's difficult for him to express his feelings. He comes from a family that tends not to show affection, and bottles their emotions, so this is familiar and safe to him. He mainly shows affection through his actions and how much he is willing to do for the MC.
This can sometimes mean he is "interfering" with Kage's attempts to manipulate the MC, like when he secretly breaks something of yours so he can fix it for you, Yurei might beat him to it and offer to replace it for you for example.
He also likes to do things like cook for the MC and is always worried about your personal comfort. He's a natural nurturing type once he opens up. And being a musician, he would also do more indirect things like compose music with you as an inspiration, but not tell you that.
B = Best friend (What would they be like as a best friend? How would the friendship start?)
Yurei would be a solid best friend, reliable and responsive to your needs, but also ready to call you out if he thinks you're making a bad decision. It always comes from a place of concern about your well-being/safety. He's good at reading the motivations and intentions of others and will warn you about Kage and become increasingly confrontational with him the more Kage tries to force himself into your life.
He's the straight-talking voice of reason sort of best friend.
C = Cuddles (Do they like to cuddle? How would they cuddle?)
He's not particularly cuddly and getting physical affection out of him takes a while. It's not that he isn't attracted to MC or doesn't want you to touch him, he just doesn't know how to receive affection and gets very nervous about intimacy. He's got some rejection sensitivity and so needs the MC to initiate and kind of lead this aspect of things.
Over time as you build more of an emotional bond with him, he becomes a lot more receptive to your physical affection
D = Domestic (Do they want to settle down? How are they at cooking and cleaning?)
His family expects him to get married, so he feels a lot of pressure about that. He's fastidious about cleaning and very detail-oriented, and that carries over to his cooking as well. He learned a lot of family recipes from his grandmother, so domestic work is familiar to him. He's the type who will work hard to both provide financially and try to take care of everything at home, because he learned early to be very self-reliant and independent, having 2 parents with ambitious careers meant he had to take care of himself in a lot of ways from an early age.
He's not the type who wants to quickly move in together, as he's a private person who values his space and would want to spend time getting a read on you first to make sure your lifestyles are mutually compatible
E = Ending (If they had to break up with their partner, how would they do it?)
He absolutely hates having to have emotionally difficult conversations, and would spend several days in his head trying to figure out the least hurtful way to say things, write it out beforehand, practice what he's going to say and how, and still feel immense guilt about hurting MC's feelings. It would tear him up inside but he would remain calm externally, because he's weighed things out carefully and rationalized his decision already
F = Fiance(e) (How do they feel about commitment? How quick would they want to get married?)
He would expect a strong commitment upon entering into a relationship and isn't interested in a relationship with someone who doesn't have an end goal of marriage. His family has instilled this in him as a core value, but he would be slow about the marriage and wants a minimum 1 year engagement.
G = Gentle (How gentle are they, both physically and emotionally?)
Physically he's a very gentle person, careful not to do anything he perceives as pushy, rough, or impolite. He has clear boundaries and respects the boundaries of others. He's generally very measured in his choice of words too and fairly adept at handling things delicately, because he thinks his words and actions through very carefully. Basically the complete opposite of Kage.
H = Hugs (Do they like hugs? How often do they do it? What are their hugs like?)
He's not really a hugger and will go a bit rigid if you hug him; he'll kind of just sheepishly put his arms on your back in return initially and might even slightly recoil at first. But if you build a bond with him you might find him slowly squeezing back with increasing pressure ('w')
I = I love you (How fast do they say the L-word?)
Not fast, at all. Again with the rejection sensitivity, he'll wait for you to say it, turn bright red, avoid eye contact and choke out a reciprocation, spending the rest of the day fighting his own mind's urge to plan out a future with you (assuming you have a bond with him at this point; otherwise he will still turn red and avoid eye contact but try to evasively side-step the interaction)
J = Jealousy (How jealous do they get? What do they do when they’re jealous?)
He doesn't tend towards jealousy easily, but it's possible for him; if you get him to that point he becomes passive aggressive and withdrawn/sulking.
K = Kisses (What are their kisses like? Where do they like to kiss you? Where do they like to be kissed?)
He's never kissed anyone before, so he doesn't know much about it, but it's something he secretly idealizes in his head. Because he's naturally perceptive and intuitive, he can figure out where MC likes to be kissed and he goes for that. He's very soft and sweet about it. He's also fairly conventional and shy and hasn't given much thought to being kissed anywhere other than his mouth ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
L = Little ones (How are they around children?)
He tends to talk to children like they are adults (adjusting for content that is appropriate for maturity level, knowledge, conceptual understanding etc.). He has the same aloof formality as normal, though he doesn't dislike children or anything. He would be more than happy to support and take care of a child/children if MC wanted that. If it was his own kid, he would be extremely protective to the point of probably being a helicopter parent
M = Morning (How are mornings spent with them?)
He has a structured routine he prefers to adhere to and feels it sets the tone for his day, so he probably won't budge on this. He would likely be awake before the MC and already have breakfast on the table and coffee or tea ready, and some outfit options laid out for you depending on the weather forecast for the day.
N = Night (How are nights spent with them?)
He likes to wind down from his day and it can take some time for him to decompress, so he tends to get an early start on that. He makes a balanced dinner and meal plans to save time on that, accounting for MC's preferences, and prefers to keep the lighting low and the environment calm and peaceful. No blaring TV, just some soft ambient music. He would try to make sure MC is as comfortable and relaxed as possible, giving massages etc.
O = Open (When would they start revealing things about themselves? Do they say everything all at once or wait a while to reveal things slowly?)
He's extremely closed-off and will only volunteer surface level information for a while. As he learns more about MC (either through observation or conversation) he will slowly open up about himself in order to relate to you better, like empathizing with a situation or feeling you have by sharing a personal story
P = Patience (How easily angered are they?)
He tends to bottle his anger more than any other emotion, so it takes a lot to get him angry. He's also very rational, so he tends not to get angry in the first place as he would rather make sense of a situation and work through it than react to it.
This makes Kage's manipulation tactics largely ineffective on Yurei directly. The key to getting under Yurei's skin is when he becomes aware that MC is being manipulated by Kage
Q = Quizzes (How much would they remember about you? Do they remember every little detail you mention in passing, or do they kind of forget everything?)
He's always observing and absorbing and fixates on details so that he can be as helpful as possible. He wants MC to see him as an asset to their life, and believes this is achieved through sustained small actions of thoughtfulness and consideration. He won't announce his efforts, but hopes you will notice and appreciate them
R = Remember (What is their favorite moment in your relationship?)
It would probably be MC opening up to him for the first time (as long as it isn't too soon). Once he's invested, he would actually really value a direct and straightforward MC who initiates things with him, because then he knows it's a mutual investment
S = Security (How protective are they? How would they protect you? How would they like to be protected?)
He's extremely protective of MC once invested. Seeing Kage mess with MC in any way actually gets him far more aggressive and confrontational than he would ever be otherwise, and he has no problem confronting Kage directly about his behavior and standing up for MC.
He does feel awkward about others protecting him, as again he's very self-reliant and also tends to minimize his own feelings, so he doesn't want any drama stirred up or perpetuated on his behalf.
T = Try (How much effort would they put into dates, anniversaries, gifts, everyday tasks?)
Like Kage, Yurei is a meticulous planner in these matters. He listens to what MC says, what they do and don't enjoy doing, and factors that into his plans. For example if MC likes hiking but prefers overcast days where it isn't too warm out, he would plan around that, bring cooling fans and a shade umbrella just in case etc. He's one of those over packers who tries to account for everything and he would also try to make sure the mood is right (booking a restaurant at a quiet time where it's not too crowded for example).
He's much better about managing everday tasks than Kage is, this is kind of where he thrives
U = Ugly (What would be some bad habits of theirs?)
Not speaking his mind or acknowledging his own hurt feelings until he starts becoming bitter and resentful about his own unmet needs, and overthinking
V = Vanity (How concerned are they with their looks?)
Not very. He keeps himself groomed but doesn't like to be flashy. He's not particularly insecure in this matter as physical appearance isn't of high value to him. He understands looks are transient and values other things about himself, like efficiency and competence.
W = Whole (Would they feel incomplete without you?)
He's not really a codependent type, but if things were to end, he would definitely feel MC's absence for a while, though outwardly he can carry on as normal because he knows he has to.
X = Xtra (A random headcanon for them.)
Random fact about Yurei is he does have a secret competitive side when it comes to Kage. If he likes MC and sees Kage doing something for MC, he'll try to one-up him.
Y = Yuck (What are some things they wouldn’t like, either in general or in a partner?)
He does not like headgames or feeling manipulated. He understands when it's happening and tends to shut down and start detaching. (Where with Kage, it just fuels him to retaliate in kind). He also doesn't like his routines being disrupted or sudden changes in plans.
Z = Zzz (What is a sleep habits of theirs?)
He needs white noise to sleep, and probably washes his bedding more than necessary
