Part 32: Homecoming

Chapter 1: Homecoming

After the cut scene of Hikari running after Goon's moving truck and crying, the game rolls the opening movie featuring a now-teenaged Hikari, then throws you to Disc 2. The opening song is sung by Hikari's voice actress and is still a personal favorite, 15 years later - it's just so much happier than the first game's opening song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPMLJSJ84Tc

4/5: Let the games begin!


Goon: It's been 7 years...
Goon: ...And I really have come back.
Goon: Hey, it's Hibikino High.


Goon: This is our new house...
Goon: If this was the old house, I would've been so much closer to school.
Goon: Well, I start high school tomorrow. Time for a fresh start!


Goon: Hibikino High... it hasn't changed a bit, has it?
Goon: Let's see, my class is... wait, what?


Goon: Hinomoto Hikari? Could it be...
(THUMP)
Goon: Whoa!
Goon: Ow, what the hell...


Goon: Are you okay?
???: Ow ow ow... sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going, and... oh!
Goon: Hmm...?
???: Gunma-chan.
Goon: Are you... Hikari?


Hikari: Yeah!
Goon: I haven't seen you since grade school.
Hikari: Idiot... do you have any idea how sad I was when you moved away all of a sudden?
Goon: S, sorry...
Hikari: Don't worry about it. You still remember me, so I'll let it slide.
Hikari: Oh no, the opening ceremony is starting!
Goon: Let's head over.
Hikari: Yeah!

My old roommates used to jokingly call Hikari "the puppy" due to her vocal tic "un!" sounding like a happily yipping puppy. I'll rotate between translating it as "Yeah" "Yup" and "Uh-huh" based on how bored I am of writing any of those words. At this time, I would like to express sadness that no one chose D. Poor Hikari.


Bakuretsuzan: Welcome, new students, and congratulations!
Bakuretsuzan: I am the principal of this school...


Bakuretsuzan: BAKU
Bakuretsuzan: RETSU
Bakuretsuzan: ZAAAAAN

The kanji that appear behind him mean "Exploding Mountain". It's his last name. And it's awesome.

Bakuretsuzan: The motto of our school is "Freedom"!
Bakuretsuzan: Our mission is to respect and nurture our students' independence!
Bakuretsuzan: I want all of you to live your high school lives with no regrets, from academics, to sports, to hobbies, to romance!

Goon: ...What an awesome school. Academics, sports, hobbies... romance?


Why didn't any of you jerks vote for Hikari it would've been so eeeeeeasy, even the game wants you two to get together

Bakuretsuzan: That is all!
Goon: Wait, it's over?


Hikari: Gunma-kun.
Goon: Oh, hey Hikari.
Hikari: Hehehe, I'm glad we're in the same class.
Goon: I just moved back, so being in the same class with you really helps calm me down.
Hikari: If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask me anything.
Hikari: Oh, the teacher's here. Later!

Biggest difference between Tokimemo 1 and Tokimemo 2: Your childhood friend acknowledges your existence. And actually acts like your friend.

Goon: (Time to head home...)
Hikari: Gunma-kun! Let's walk home together.
Goon: Hmm? Yeah, let's go.


Hikari: ...
Goon: What's up?
Hikari: You haven't changed, have you?
Goon: Y, you think so?
Hikari: Yup!
Goon: Have you changed, Hikari?
Hikari: Hehehe, I'm not the crybaby you remember anymore.
Goon: Yeah, you really did cry a lot back then.


Hikari: Hey, you're the one who always made me cry!
Goon: Ack!
Hikari: Ahahahaha!
Goon: Ahahahaha!
Goon: (I had fun walking home with Hikari.)


Here begins the first week of Tokimeki Memorial 2! You'll notice a couple of big changes from before:

-The top right of the screen conveniently keeps a list of this week's appointments.
-Goon's stats don't start at flat 40s, and have changed slightly based on his childhood gaming habits. He leans slightly toward science and guts now, while suffering a bit in general knowledge.


The Hibikino Watcher has a lot more going on, so it'll take a few screenshots to see everything.

The bulk of the left page shows the schedule for Hibikino Stadium. Every summer, there's baseball, and every winter, they play soccer.


The far left is an ad for a mail-order product. In this case, it's "Browalker", a product that will make you muscular and popular with the ladies! This section mostly matters for the secret character Maeka.


On the bottom left, an ad for Rehearsal Weapon 4, an action-packed movie that'll be playing until June 9th. And is totally not Lethal Weapon.

The bottom right is an ad for the next movie that will play starting on June 10th, Chinobotsusen Koimonogatari, AKA "Love Story on a Sunken Ship". I wonder what that could be!


The right page has a note on when the museum will open. The exhibit from 6/20-8/31 will feature glasswork.
Hidden behind the text box, is the website "http://www.hibikino.net/walker" - a site that is sadly defunct.


And the last feature that's new - you can actually look ahead more than one month in the calendar! And, more importantly, you can see the 7-day forecast, which affects what events and dates can and can't happen. It sure is nice living in the future!


Our activity for the week doesn't actually matter since I'm going to reload based on the poll result. What's important is the people we're about to meet in the first couple of days. However, I chose to exercise because first of all, those pink shoes have to be shown. Second of all, look! It's the third dimension again! Hello, third dimension! I haven't seen you in 7 years!

4/7: Meet the Guys


Goon: (Time to head home...)
???: Yo!
Goon: H, hey... Sakaki-kun, was it?
Takumi: Yeah, that's right. I'm glad you remembered.
Goon: Umm...
Takumi: I'll get straight to the point. What's the relationship between you and Hinomoto-san?
Goon: Huh?
Takumi: Are you dating?
Goon: N, no, not at... all. We're just childhood friends...
Takumi: Oh-ho... can I get you to give me some more details?
Takumi: And not just stand around talking...
???: Takumi! you ready yet?
Takumi: Hey, Jun! Come on over here and say hi.
???: Geez...


Takumi: This is my friend, Hokari Jun'ichirou. You can call him "Jun."
Jun: My name is Hokari "Jun'ichirou." Nice to meet you.
Goon: Y, yeah, nice to meet you too.
Goon: (Jun'ichirou and Jun...?)

Translator's note: The Jun in Jun'ichirou's name means innocence/chastity. So Takumi's making fun of him every time he says it.


Takumi: Anyway, why don't we stop by a cafe on the way home, so I can ask you the real questions?
Jun: I don't care, so I'll pass.
Takumi: Don't say that, Jun.
Takumi: This is an important meeting about how we can spend our high school lives in being all lovey-dovey with a girl!
Jun: L, lovey-dovey...
Takumi: See? He's pretty innocent, isn't he?
Goon: Y, yeah...
Jun: I, I'm going home!
Takumi: Aw, man... well, whatever. Let's hit up that cafe.
Goon: Um, sure...
Goon: (I ended up answering a ton of questions about Hikari...)


Takumi: Oh yeah, have you ever heard the story of Hibikino's legendary bell?

No, I haven't. Thanks, Exposition Fairy!

Goon: Legendary bell?
Takumi: Yeah, the bell in the courtyard tower.
Goon: What about it?
Takumi: They say that if you successfully confess your love on graduation day and receive the blessing of that bell, you will live happily ever after.

Geez, that's a lot of conditions, don't you think?

Goon: Wow, that's pretty romantic.
Takumi: Well, I don't believe in it myself, but maybe it'll work for you?
Takumi: Whoops, gotta go. Oh, by the way, if you need to talk to anyone about girls, just give me a call.
Goon: Um, okay.
Takumi: It's a matter of give and take. I'll tell you whatever you need, as trade for everything you told me about Hikari-chan today. Seeya!
Goon: (Sakaki Takumi and Hokari Jun'ichirou, eh...?)

Takumi and Jun tangent


Remember how I said that there's a lot more character interaction in Tokimemo 2? Well, Takumi and Jun are a big part of it, and it really helps flesh out the cast to have a couple of high school buddies who don't measure their little sister's busts and aren't secretly girls. While Takumi is the Exposition Fairy just like Yoshio was, Jun and Takumi both have their own lives and interests, which they pursue off-screen to build their stats. Takumi tends toward looks and general knowledge since he's not in a club and just likes to gossip. Jun tends toward exercise and guts, since he spends a lot of time at Kendo practice. Both of them are willing to hang out with you on weekdays and train their stats along with you.

Why do their stats matter? Well, because these two knuckleheads are not only your best friends (non-Hikari division), but they're also your rivals.

That's right - each of these guys will pursue and try to win the heart of one of the girls. If you're unlucky enough be targeting the same girl as one of them, then you'd better be ready to compete with them for it. They'll fight you tooth and claw for the girl's attention, scheduling dates and trying to beat you to the punch. And, if it comes down to it, they're perfectly willing to throw down in an old-fashioned rumble to see who's going to have to back down.

Jun tends to gravitate toward Kotoko because they're birds of a feather, while Takumi... well, Takumi is one of the biggest potential obstacles to a Miho run, to the point where certain guides tell you to give up and restart if Miho is Takumi's target.

Oh, and that Forever Alone ending I mentioned earlier, with the three of you singing away your sorrows at the karaoke box? That's only the ending if all three of you fail in your pursuits - which you can accomplish by actively cockblocking the both of them. It's kind of amazing. No, I won't do it.

End Jun and Takumi tangent

4/9: Hikari's best friend


Goon: Alright, time to head home.
???: Hmm... not really a remarkable guy, are you...
Goon: (What's with this girl? It's pretty rude to stare like that...)
???: Hey, Hikari. Over here!


Hikari: Sorry, Kotoko!
Hikari: Oh, Gunma-kun. Are you heading home too?
Goon: Yeah. Say, Hikari, who's this...
Kotoko: Hmmm... you really have strange tastes, Hikari.


Hikari: Ko, Kotoko! I have no idea what you're talking about!
Kotoko: Sure, whatever you say.
Goon: (??)
Goon: Hey...
Hikari: Oh, sorry! This is Minazuki Kotoko. My best friend.
Kotoko: I'm Minazuki Kotoko. But enough about me, though, let's talk about this girl's...
Hikari: Ko, KOTOKO!
Kotoko: Fine, fine...
Kotoko: Well, nice to meet you.
Goon: Um... nice to meet you too.
Hikari: Hey, let's all walk home together.
Goon: S, sure...
Goon: (Minazuki-san, eh? Hikari said "my best friend", but they're polar opposites.)

Have I mentioned that Hikari would've been easy mode? Because it would have been. I hate you guys.

4/11: A visit from the Exposition Fairy


Takumi: Yes, this is Sakaki.
Goon: Hi, it's Fudou.
Takumi: Yo, glad you called.
Goon: You said you'd tell me about girls, right?
Takumi: Yeah, you can count on me. So, what're you curious about?
Goon:
Option 1: I want to know what the girls think of me
Option 2: I want to know more about a girl
Option 3: I'd like you to tell me about a date spot

This is slightly different from Yoshio in Tokimemo 1, but not really that different. Since I just want to show you Kotoko's profile, it's time to pick option 2.

Takumi: Yeah, sure. So, who is it?
Goon: Minazuki.
Takumi: Gimme a second.
Takumi: Okay, listen up.


Minazuki Kotoko
Born December 2nd
Sagittarius, Blood type AB
Height: 166cm
B86 / W58 / H84
Club: Tea Ceremony
Memo: A traditional woman who loves old-fashioned Japanese ways.
Kinda scary when she's angry.

Well, that's promising. Hey, have I mentioned lately that Hikari would be really easy? Because I feel like I haven't talked about that enough.

Speaking of which, it's time to narrow our focus, since it's almost time to join a club and meet some more girls. Based on our previous poll, there are three eligible routes left (well, five technically, but let's not split hairs here):

So, whose story will we concentrate on in this first run?


A: Minazuki Kotoko
Hikari's best friend, who didn't like Goon at first sight.
Hates Western culture so much that she's allergic to curry.
Spends her spare time practicing traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony.
Favors the Lit stat.
Compatibility with O-Goon: Average
Relative difficulty: Normal (Moderately Hard if Jun is your rival)


B: Shirayuki Miho
Member of the drama club. Good actress.
Hopeless romantic, who loves fantasies.
Spends her spare time reading books and telling fortunes for classmates (and going to karaoke). Collects antique dolls (and designer brands).
Favors the Art stat.
Compatibility with O-goon: Good
Relative difficulty: Normal (Hard if Takumi is your rival. "Oh My God Why" Nintendo Hard under certain circumstances. Actually unwinnable under one specific set of circumstances.)


C: Yae Kaori
Quiet. Aloof. Mysterious. Excellent chef.
Already held back a year for some reason - at serious risk of dropping out of school.
Favors the Sports stat.
Compatibility with O-goon: Great (which could be a problem!)
Relative difficulty: Normal (Moderately Hard if you want to hook Jun or Takumi up with her)


D: Hinomoto Hikari
It's worth a shot.
Relative difficulty: Easy

Voting will close on Friday night Pacific time, when I plan to stream the prepwork for the run that you Goons choose. Unless by some miracle D wins, and I play Tokimeki Memorial 2 Puzzledama in celebration because I get to relax and not have to reload 50 times for some of these paths.

Next time: The 3 year plan!