#kotai

His Best Friends Are Iyuni, Rocky and Beek

     What these combined features could mean for the wearer in intriguing. The Aoi-tabo style was commonly worn by the daughters of aristocrats and the kottai was specifically worn by tayu-rank courtesans when performing during a formal tea ceremony so as not to distract the audience from the beauty of the tea ceremony itself.

[They pour into the studio and introduce themselves to the photographer and makeup artist. First they take a team photo against a plain white background. Ren sits in seiza just left of the center front. They all crowd together so that there is no negative space except for a perfectly nuzleaf-shaped hole dead center in the frame. Everyone smiles. It takes a while and it isn't easy, but it comes out beautifully. Pleased with themselves, they head into the rest of the photoshoot with good attitudes. Next is a long series of full body portraits of Ren with each of her pokemon in the order that she got them. 1) Her photo with Tāraki involves the photographer getting out his high speed camera. Ren dons a track uniform and puts her hair up in a tight braid. Ren and Tāraki sprint opposite diagonals and cross paths right in front of the camera, with Ren slightly in the foreground. 2) Next, Ren puts on a black leather jacket, white tank top and dark jeans. The makeup artist puts white streaks in her hair and gives her some black lipstick and eyeshadow. Ren and Akahata pose back to back, Akahata’s hackles raised for full effect. 3) For Ikki’s portrait, Ren puts on a full set of samurai armor, complete with frightening mask, and Ikki strikes a power pose next to her in the air, flashing her false eyes menacingly. 4) For Panahi’s, Ren wears a diaphanous pink gown with a large blue necklace to match Panahi’s as well as blue flowers tucked into a long braid. She stands in profile, showing her right side to the camera and Panahi perches on her arm so that she and her incredible bill are in profile facing the other way. 5) Once again using the high-speed camera, the photographer captures Māia shattering a vase in midair with boomburst. Her wings are fully flared, tips pointed skyward, her mouth is wide open, and her forked tail is swinging forward to help stop her momentum. Ren strikes a classic trainer pose just behind her. 6) For Putenga's, Ren ties a bandana over her head and they both put on boxing gloves and sweatbands. They touch gloves, pretending to square off. 7) Mele and Ren get done up like pop stars and sing a duet into old-fashioned microphones. 8) Ren and Hauoro get done up like rock stars and Ren shreds on an electric guitar while Hauoro provides the bass. 9) Thanks to greenscreen, Ao and Ren are hikers surmounting a cliff over a breathtaking vista, their hair shining in the sun. 10) Kata cocks a hip and winks at the camera as Ren’s pose is completely ruined because she is turning to see what is poking her. 11) For Kōtai's photo, Ren wears nothing but a sports bra and briefs. She faces the camera dead on, legs shoulder-width apart and well-muscled arms flexing, with her head turned to her right to show off the full extent of her scars. Kōtai stands next to her with his back to the camera to show off his own. He looks over his shoulder, arms splayed at his sides so that we can see his impressive claws. 12) Ren wears a wetsuit and leans on a surfboard while Roma zooms past her, water sphere distorting from the speed. 13) Finally, for Pohaku’s portrait, Ren puts on a charcoal grey dress with a pink silk scarf and coral bracelets and necklace to match him. She holds him in her arms without his water sphere. Ren looks up attractions in the area on her nav and reads them to her pokemon in the downtime so they can plan out their day tomorrow. Kata helps a lot with setting up equipment and props with psychokinesis. She seems very interested in the camera and the whole process and the photographer shows her some things. Ren also has the photographer get plain headshots of everyone to use for her trainer card. By the end of the shoot they have all had enough, but everyone is pleased with the results. The photographer in particular is very happy and asks if she can use some of the shots in her portfolio. The makeup artist also had a lot of fun helping out and they congratulate Ren on being able to pull off so many styles. They both give Ren their cards in case she wants to do this again.]

And together they at make a whole and it’s worth a lot!

Both by Fumino Yuki

He’s so TENDER