Forge new friendships, become a leader, and find love while trying to survive Band Camp!
~*BAND CAMP BOYFRIEND NOW ON KICKSTARTER + FREE GIVEAWAY!*~
After over a year of working on our Otome Game, it’s finally on Kickstarter!
Please help us fund the game by supporting us on Kickstarter and REBLOG this post to be entered for a chance to win a prize in our free giveaway! Two winners will be chosen randomly and receive an acrylic charm of a character of their choice.
Only 10 MORE EARLY BIRB SLOTS left on the Kickstarter! Snatch ‘em up while they last!
And, don’t forget to help spread the word by reblogging the original kickstarter post! <3 Two random users who reblog will win a charm of a character of their choice. If we reach a certain number of reblogs, we will pull more winners!
This is our submission for @dicesuki’s Cinderella Phenomenon Character Contest! We created two original characters for the writing portion and ended up weaving them into the same story.
Thank you very much for the opportunity. We adore this game and its characters, and it was a lot of fun to write a story set within the universe of Cinderella Phenomenon!
(A summary of the Fairytale Curses can be found after the story below. ^^)
Disgusting.
With the thug’s face so close to her own, she could see every inch of imperfection. His crooked teeth, his boil-laden skin, the gargantuan growth under his eye...of course, who knew what was real in her warped reality?
Revulsion replaced the fear on her face and only served to make the two men angrier. A knife flashed in one’s hand, catching what little light the alley had to offer. It occurred to her that if she died here, the hideous faces before her would be the last she ever saw.
“Lady Greta!”
Hearing the sound of his voice, Greta’s heart leapt. “Friedrich!”
At the end of the alleyway, outlined by the silver moon, stood Friedrich, his bow and arrow drawn. Before either thug could move, he fired off two shots. One arrow struck the first thug’s knife, knocking it out of his hand. The other lodged in his foot and a scream tore from his throat.
Greta took the opportunity to kick the second man in the groin. She sprinted to Friedrich’s side.
“Let’s go!” he shouted, grabbing her hand and pulling her to safety.
The two didn’t stop running until they reached the town square of Angielle, which was abandoned this time of night.
Once they were safe, Greta snatched her hand away.
“You never fail to show up at the last possible second,” she huffed, dusting herself off.
“Maybe if you weren’t such a magnet for trouble,” Friedrich muttered, tucking an arrow back into its quiver. “I hope the wound I gave that man won’t become infected.”
“I hope it does,” Greta hissed without thinking.
Friedrich gave her a withering look. “You shouldn’t wish for that. That would actively work against breaking my curse. ‘For every life you have taken, you must—‘”
“’—Save a life.’ I am aware,” Greta said grumpily. “And yet, you’ve never shared what your curse is or why you were given it. It’s unfair, really. Aren’t we supposed to be helping each other? You already know my secrets.”
Friedrich said nothing. He often fell silent when she pushed for more details of his curse. Instead, he gazed at her with ice-blue eyes. With one gloved hand, he reached for her face and idly traced the jagged scar that sliced through her left eye.
Greta blushed scarlet with shame. She pulled away.
Friedrich knew she was given Snow Queen’s Curse as punishment for her shallow criticisms of others, for even the tiniest of flaws. A witch had noticed and now she could no longer see beauty. Even the roses blooming by the town square’s fountain appeared wilted, and the water murky.
However, that was nothing compared to the people she encountered. Their ugliness was beyond compare, making it hard to look at them.
But not Friedrich.
She knew the hunter was under a curse the second she laid eyes on him. Over time, his appearance alone had become a drug to her. His features were fine, his icy eyes piercing. He moved fluidly, with the grace of a swan. He was the one thing of beauty in her world of muted colors and distortion.
“I have no idea how to break your curse. What can one do to prove they have seen ‘true beauty?’” Friedrich said.
Greta’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t change the subject. We know how to break your curse, so let’s focus on that. But first, you need to tell me more.”
Friedrich’s hand dropped. He was silent again.
He’d already made it clear to her that he thought breaking his curse was an impossible task. He’d hunted so many animals over the years for pure sport. Saving a life to make up for every one he had taken would not be easy. But she was desperate to help him, even if it meant throwing herself into the heart of danger (like some kind of special idiot) so he had to save her life over and over.
“You said you were cursed for killing a witch’s familiar, weren’t you?”
Friedrich nodded. Greta waited for him to provide more details, but he didn’t. Instead, he looked to the east.
“The sun will rise soon. You should get back to the Marchen,” he whispered.
“What about you?”
“I have to go.”
“Back to your wife?” Greta growled.
He rolled his eyes. “For the hundredth time, I’m not married.”
“Then why do you always rush off before the sun rises? I’ve only ever seen you at night.” Greta’s eyes widened with sudden understanding. “Is it part of your curse?”
By his expression, Greta knew she had guessed right. Friedrich turned to leave. She forced herself to grab his hand, holding him back.
“Stay,” she begged.
He strained to break free, though it was a halfhearted effort. Her pleading eyes were having the intended effect.
“Please don’t leave me alone. I…” I need you. The words died on her tongue. She couldn’t bring herself to say them. After all, she and Friedrich had banded together out of necessity. She was certain he didn’t feel the same affection she felt for him. Why would he? She was a snooty, critical damsel who looked down on people of his social status. She never would have associated with him if fate hadn’t brought them together.
In the distance, the sky was lightening. Panic seeped into Friedrich’s expression.
“Stay with me,” Greta murmured. “I can help you.”
Friedrich’s eyes softened. For a moment, she thought she had convinced him. Then he tore his hand from hers.
“I’m sorry,” was all he said. Then he left her standing in the middle of town square, alone. As he did at the end of every night.
Not this time, Greta growled. She took off after him.
Friedrich was faster than her, but she never lost sight of him. She followed him into the woods, continuing to run even after she lost sight of him. With each step, the stars above faded as the sky turned a pleasant shade of pastel blue—though to her, it was as dull as an overcast day.
Finally, she stepped out into a clearing to see Friedrich standing at the edge of a lake. They locked eyes and his filled with anguish. Gazing upon him, her heart was filled with content.
Then the sun peeked over the horizon.
There was a brilliant flash of light. Greta recognized the magic of a witch. It swirled around Friedrich, concealing him from view.
Then, from amidst the glow, two pearl-white wings unfolded and a swan burst from its core.
It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Even before her curse.
Greta felt a tear come to her eye as the magic faded and the magnificent swan settled onto the still water of the lake. She couldn’t take her eyes off it. The graceful arch of its neck, the glossy feathers, the plumage as pure as snow.
If I haven’t yet seen true beauty, then I never will, she thought.
Greta took a step towards the lake. “Friedrich?” she asked cautiously.
The swan flinched slightly, its entire body tensing as though it might take off.
“Stay. Please,” she whispered. Very slowly, she got down on her knees at the edge of the water and held out her hand.
The swan did not move. He looked at her with suspicious, dark eyes. Eyes that did not belong to Friedrich.
Greta closed her eyes, holding back tears. “I’m going to help you break your curse,” she whispered. “I promise.” Even if I can never see beauty again, this will be enough for me. You will be enough for me, Friedrich.
A light touch on her cheek opened her eyes. The beautiful swan was before her. With all the gentleness in the world, he traced his beak down the length of the scar on her eye, promising her the same.
The daughter of a nobleman who only saw flaws in potential suitors, physically and otherwise. A mischievous witch noticed her pettiness and cursed her to never see beauty, however she still sees witches and other curse victims as they are. The curse also marked her with a nasty scar across her left eye.
To break her curse, Greta must “prove she’s seen true beauty” but it’s vague what that entails.
FRIEDRICH - Six Swans Curse
A skilled hunter. He used to hunt out of necessity to provide food and clothing for his struggling family, but over time it warped into a source of pride for him.
When he killed a witch’s familiar, she vengefully cursed him to live as a swan by day, although he reverts to human form at night. He cannot speak in swan form. To break the curse, he must save a life for every life he stole needlessly over the past seven years.
A twist: Sometimes it’s necessary to kill in order to save a life...but if Friedrich kills more than six times, regardless of how justified the killings are, he will lose his humanity.
We wanted some kind of name for ourselves instead of using our real names so we were throwing around a lot of ideas. We’d like to keep making otome-themed games in the future so it hit us that “Lovebird” would fit the theme perfectly. Plus, there are two of us and we love each other (we’re sisters)!
We also like to think of it as a nod to Hatoful Boyfriend, which got us into this whole mess in the first place. :)
Hi, I'm really excited for this game! One question, is there a reason why the snare drummer isn't dateable? Thanks and keep up the good work!
I wonder that all the time and I’m the one writing the game.
In all seriousness, we like him a lot too, but by the time we developed him, there wasn’t really room left for him in this game. He’s happy enough to play his snare drum anyway, he’s not really looking for a relationship. If you’re interested in getting to know him, I’d recommend playing Doug’s arc.
