~Afterword~ Well that about wraps up the first run of HLA.
Though I can't say it went perfectly in any sense, I find myself satisfied with this conclusion. This was my first CYOA, and it has been a learning experience; I went into this without a clear concept of what to expect, and I come away with a better understanding of what works in this format of writing. Mistakes were made along the way, perhaps there were moments that left me puzzled, but now that I know what to expect, I can apply that knowledge to future CYOA and the next run of HLA to make them even better.
That said, I will be taking a short break from HLA to gather up my notes, get my bearings, and rework my foundation. While I spend my time working on the improvements for HLA's next run, I will be giving WftW some much needed attention, and start working on it regularly once again. In addition, I will be taking the opportunity to write some of the other story ideas that have been bouncing around in my mind; I intend to start a thread on /th/ at some point where I can post experimental bits of stories.
I'd like to thank all the readers who stuck with me through the story, and I'd like to apologize as well. I know there were times when I may have disappointed, and I know that my writing pace has been faltering recently; my own procrastinating attitude has contributed to that, as have the ideas for other stories - I hope that by starting a thread for those ideas, I can work them out of my system and help my focus. Again, I'm sorry.
There's not much else to be said, so I'd like to handle some of the questions that have been posted. If any of you have further questions, please feel free to ask. I will try my best to give you a satisfactory answer.
First of all, there have been several questions regarding what other endings may have been like - I apologize for lumping these together, but it makes them simpler to answer. As has been discussed, there was a Good End, and while I would hesitate to refer to it as a "True" End, there was certainly a bittersweet ending available to you; for that matter, it was just as possible to develop a platonic "Friendship" End, if you will call it that. A Good End would have likely resulted in a much closer relationship with both residents of Hakugyokuro - there would have been no uncertainty in Yuyuko falling for you, and Youmu would have developed into something of a best friend figure; the more bittersweet ending would have involved
your return to the karmic cycle, leaving Yuyu at once enriched for having known you - perhaps even loving you - and yet saddened by the condemnation of never meeting again.
That brings me to the issue of the missing soul, which a score of people discussed even during the story itself. I feel there may have been some misconceptions about it, so I would like to clear them up right now. The most pressing of these is for those of you who speculated that reclaiming your soul was instrumental to the Yuyuko route: in actuality, had you reclaimed your soul, you would have almost certainly locked yourself into the bittersweet ending path. Yuyuko is herself a being severed from the cycle of life and death, her body and soul sealed away along with the Saigyou Ayakashi; the lack of a soul was what denied Higan the ability to judge you, thereby allowing you to remain at Yuyuko's side for her nigh-eternal existence. Had you reclaimed it, you would have been forced into either judgment or rebellion, which would have turned you into a full-fledged "evil spirit," a state which would have had it's own set of problems.
This is not to say that reclaiming your soul isn't an integral part of
other routes, however. For that matter, the options available to you after reclaiming your soul vary from scenario to scenario - just because judgment and metamorphosis into an evil spirit are the only options in this route does not mean they will be the only options on other routes. Do not fall into the trap of believing that what works in one route will work in all others, or the inverse - that what fails in one route will fail in all others.
Next,
>>15229: I believe the afterword has provided you with a good idea of my plans. However, I would like to add some clarification: I may not immediately return to HLA, and may instead choose to develop one of the other stories. Rest assured, however, that HLA will see another run, whether that comes sooner or later.
Lastly, for the moment,
>>15246: a cornucopia of questions here. Allow me to break them down.
>Where were the missed opportunities to explore our missing soul, and did that factor into the end we got? I've explained how your soul affected the ending, but let me say that your choice to deny help to Higan had a profound impact on your ability to find your soul. By expressing no interest in locating it, you effectively demonstrated that you had no desire for it, and were thereby afforded less opportunities to find it. If you had decided to spend some time on your own, you may have been given the option to search for it regardless, but such a moment never came up.
>Aside from backstory, did the dream sequences serve any other purpose? Their primary purpose is, indeed, for back story. They also affect your knowledge of characters in the story, which can give you some additional options.
In addition, completing a set of dreams causes that little outfit change, which has a slight effect on your affinities to other characters, and may prompt different remarks and reactions; the effect is more profound early in the game, but can still make a difference in the late game. You keep the outfits between HLA runs, by the way, as well as dream sequence completion status. >Confronting Yuyuko about her concerns and our confession to her: premature or just as planned? Confronting her was fine, though your confession was premature. This was one of the decisions that tilted you toward Normal End. Confession could have been done at almost any time, but your particular timing actually caused Yuyuko some additional heartache.
>What would have been the consequences of using ghost powers in our tickle fight with Siki? For one, you would have access to the ability to pass through solid objects. You also would have won, which would have afforded you the opportunity to either submit to a "punishment" for your dirty pool, or to argue Siki into accepting the penalty game instead.
>Was the Mima H scene initially planned, or did our dapper little displays during the party facilitate that? Due to the nature of her character, Mima was always a potential H scene, but it was ultimately your actions before and during the party that endeared you to her enough to warrant her little "lesson." It was something that could have been missed.
>What would have happened if we stuck around Mokou's stand? She would have sobered up once she stopped drinking; a result of the Hourai Elixir was that her liver purges alcohol from her system at a much faster rate than normal humans, resulting in her requiring enormous, lethal amounts of booze to get properly smashed. This is also why she would have recovered quickly. From there, she would have harassed Yuyuko a bit, would have kept you both around and chatted for some time; this would have cut into your time enough to make it essentially the last real event of the night.
I believe that's all the questions answered for now, but if anyone has more, feel free to ask.
