Household Owners

[katsuwa]

GENERAL NOTES: All of the household owners are spirits of some kind — most of them are human spirits who are working off a debt of their own, but in some cases, they’ve been doing so for hundreds of years. They aren’t that different from the characters brought to the ukiyo for the game - they all had a wish they wanted granted, too. Unfortunately, they didn’t pay off their debt before their human bodies expired, leaving the spirits contracted to finish the work, although they have nothing to return to if they manage to have their wishes granted. This is why some of the household owners appear to be quite young.

Spindle District
| Tsumi | Inoshishi | Tsuyosa | Chousojutsu | Waremono |

Aster District
| Nogiku | Nannai | Hibu | Kawabari | Chuuhi |

Hibiscus District
| Hachisu | Shiruku | Mokuhi | Nadeshiko | Komainu |

Camellia District
| Sazanka | Shishu | Mazoku | Youfuu | Henshu |

Peony District
| Shakuraku | Satouzuke | Iki | Jisei | Kagayaku |





Spindle District

Tsumi Household － Madam Tsumi (Demure - Strict - Unforgiving) Madam Tsumi is one of the few household owners to establish her own house many hundreds of years ago and not give it up since, as you can tell by the shared name. Madam Tsumi was a peasant girl who wished to be like the princesses and noble ladies in the capitol, but her unrefined demeanor and greater interest in the delicious foods of the ukiyo than the clients made her very unpopular when she herself entertained. This never left her, and she still owns the cheapest, most lackluster of all the houses. The only hint of her life as a peasant girl remains in Paper Sky. As a peasant, she made and sold festival crafts, and was surprisingly creative. Around festival season, her works will show up unmarked in the store, and regular clients of Tsumi often seek them out for their beauty and as a token of the household. She's harsh to her entertainers because she sees herself in them and wants to make sure that they work hard enough to have their wish granted.

Inoshishi Household － Sir Ino (Wise-like - Tolerant - He can kick your ass if you abuse his trust) Sir Ino was a Heian-era guard of the royal palace who very modest and lived a simple life, not wishing for anything more. His modesty led him on a constant path upward until he was one of the most respected guards in the palace, but jealousy from his competitors for the coveted position led to him being killed by his comrades, which is why trust is an especially touchy subject for him. Upon his death he wished to have revenge on the people that killed him. His wish was granted, with all of them dying from a mysterious disease a few years later, but his guilt made it impossible to pass on peacefully, so he has stayed in the ukiyo ever since by his own choice. He owns the rebel house simply because he finds them the most interesting, and these rebels fostered his love for the West about one-hundred years ago. On occasion, he goes into the Red Arms to box himself, and usually wins, though whether this is because of actual skill or out of respect for Sir Ino on the part of his competitors is unknown.

Tsuyosa Household － Sir Ito (Cranky - Self-Absorbed - Lazy) Sir Ito was a housebuilder in the Meiji era who wished for peace in the country after losing his daughter - who disguised herself as a man - to the war. As peace is one of the highest priced wishes, rumor has it that Sir Ito is one of the few who is still paying his debt rather than giving up once his body expired. But his work in the ukiyo has changed the once honest and physical man to the pessimistic and lazy man that he now is. The rare female entertainers the household receives are quite spoiled in comparison, since he treats them like he once treated his own daughter.

Chousojutsu Household － Madam Inoue (Reserved - Understanding - Prim - Gentle) Madam Inoue is one of the few non-human household owners, who is, predictably a tsukumogami. As for what she's a tsukumogami of, no one knows, since she's quite tight-lipped about it. Rumors occasionally circle when Chousojutsu gets a rare new entertainer, but otherwise, her household is largely under the radar. Still, to her entertainers, she's very motherly, wanting them to get used to their new lives as much as she adjusted to hers. It's said that her wish was to become human, but the only person that seems to know is the mistress of Kagayaku. Still, it’s said that when Madam Inoue was an entertainer herself, she was the one to start the tradition of dancing, since her dances were so precise and beautiful.

Waremono Household － Madam Chiba (Sweet - Melodramatic - Good-natured) Madam Chiba was a nurse from the 1940s who lived in Hiroshima. Her wish came shortly after the atomic bomb was dropped, and she wished only to leave the horrors that she was seeing. Her debt was paid off quickly, but looking back to her home, she realized that she had been assumed dead in the chaos, and decided to not return and trouble her family with the news that she was still alive and that she had run away when her people needed her most. Shortly after, she opened the Waremono household with the hopes of making up for leaving the people of Hiroshima. She's very quiet about it, but doesn't approve at all of having her entertainers work the sex-trade, though she realizes that it's necessary. Still, she's one of the kinder household owners and treats her entertainers more like patients than like property.

Aster District

Nogiku Household － Madam Nogiku (Headstrong - Greedy - Well-intentioned yet antagonistic.) Madam Nogiku is another of the few "original" household owners who hasn't passed her house onto someone else. She was the Empress Erzhu Ying'e and the concubine of Gao Huan. After Gao Huan's death, when Erzhu Ying'e became the Princess Dowager of Pengcheng, she wished for Gao Huan to come back to life. As this was relatively early in the ukiyo's history, Erzhu was allowed to pay back her wish while still living in the mortal world, but she was killed in a fit of drunken rage by the Emperor Wenxuan, which tied her spirit to the ukiyo. Once she came to the ukiyo, she changed her wish to one day come back to life and be immortal. As such, she's quite set on repaying her large debt (due to two large wishes) and makes sure to get every yen that she feels she deserves. Still, she tends to seem like the nagging mother for her entertainers, taking the money and respect that she wants.

Nannai Household － Madam Higa (Tsundere - Forgiving - Reliant) Madam Higa was a top oiran of Kyoto's red-light district who wished to leave her servitude of the floating world. Of all the household owners, she's widely considered by clients to be the loveliest and often gets offers to take on clients herself because she retained her youthful appearance. She turns them all down without exception, though it's rumored that she and Sir Hidaka are lovers. When asked, she vehemently denies it, though on occasion a bit of flush comes to her cheeks. She paid off her debt long ago, but remained in the ukiyo to guide entertainers along their way without getting lost in the pleasure district like she herself was. Madam Higa is also known to love red bean buns, and they're a quick way to get in her favor, provided that you bring her the ones from a stand that seems to change places every week or so.

Hibu Household － Sir Koga (Charming - Approachable - Overly trustworthy - Melodramatic) Sir Koga was actually a taikomochi (male geisha) who was quite popular when he lived, but he had much more passion for the performance aspect than anything else, so he wished to become a kabuki actor like the men that occasionally came to see him. He certainly had the talent, and once he came to the ukiyo, he was placed in a now-closed household for actors which did perform kabuki plays. But as kabuki went out of fashion, Sir Koga was left with a debt unfulfilled and a lack of purpose, and so decided to open a household for the androgynous, which were always his favorite roles to play. After about one-hundred years of his household being open, he was both successful enough and had enough demand to open the Hiji household for feminine men. Sir Koga still holds many of the mannerisms of kabuki, speaking in a charming, grandiose manner even in quite serious situations. Some of the more “modern” household owners find him hard to understand, since he speaks in the old style.

Kawabari Household － Sir Hidaka (Tough - Brave - Stubborn - Relentless) As one would immediately guess upon seeing him, Sir Hidaka was once a samurai. He was a samurai for the Ashikaga Shogunate, and a close friend of Masamune. As such, Sir Hidaka was one of the first samurai to wield a katana, and with this new weapon, became famous as what would later be known as the archetypal samurai who valued honor and internal peace. However, his wish came in a moment of weakness when the samurai code deemed that he perform harakiri. Sir Hidaka was still relatively young and did not wish to die, but his wish to live caused him shame. Even though his wish was almost immediately granted, he kept piling on more and more trivial wishes so that he could never leave. It's said that he and Madam Higa have a relationship, but when asked, he offers no answer at all.

Chuuhi Household － Sir Tanaka (Charismatic - Greedy - Narcissistic - Image of the house exceeds all) Sir Tanaka was one of the managers of an early Japanese circus. In fact, his circus performed for Emperor Meiji, which he will still gladly boast to anyone willing to listen. After receiving a large sum of money from the emperor for his performance, Sir Tanaka wished for more and more money, working his troupe to the bone, sometimes not allowing them to sleep, and to practice increasingly dangerous stunts. When a wish was offered to him, Sir Tanaka only wished for an immeasurable sum of money. He isn't very kind to his entertainers, seeing them as nothing more than acts in his ploy to get as much money as possible, and if an entertainer tarnishes the household's reputation, he'll kick them out without a thought. Also, even though Sir Tanaka started the ukiyo's kabuki theater as a charming, old-era distraction, Sir Koga never sets foot in it, saying that the charm of kabuki is lost with Sir Tanaka's desire for money more than the art itself.

Hibiscus District

Hachisu Household － Sir Ono (Carefree - Money-Conscious - Luxurious - Self-Centered) Sir Ono was the son of a quite successful confectionery shop owner in Kyoto, but his father lived quite a long life, passing away when Sir Ono was nearing middle-age. By then, Sir Ono had lived a luxurious and spoiled life without having to work very much for himself, so once he took over the business, the stress made him quite ill. Sir Ono was on the verge of death and cursed his father for living so long while he seemed about to die himself, so he wished to be cured of his illness so that he could live the luxurious, easy life he had once had. At first, he owned only the Hachisu Sweet shop (named after his father's business), but was able to eventually open a household. Though he did learn in his brief stint as the business owner to not spend as frivolously, he enforces this much more on his entertainers than himself. Entertainers of Hachisu are rarely allowed to buy things he deems unnecessary, but Sir Ono's quarters are lavish enough to compare with the Peony district.

Shiruku Household － Madam Abe (Sweet - Soft - Timid – Cooperative) Madam Abe is one of the oldest looking household owners, but one of the youngest in terms of experience. She has only been working as an owner for about five years, but her snow-white hair and lightly wrinkled face make her seem one of the most experienced. Madam Abe has a certain beauty and grace despite her apparent age, which is left over from her time as a glamorous movie star in the 1950s. She was exceptionally beautiful and starred in many movies, but as she aged, grew bitter of being given secondary, usually villainous roles because of her age. She carried this bitterness past her retirement, ignoring her children and grandchildren in favor of reminiscing about her past glory. She made a wish to return to her beauty and fame, but within a few weeks, realized her mistake of leaving her children and grandchildren. She took over the Shiruku household when the previous owner left, doting on the residents there like she failed to do for her grandchildren.

Mokuhi Household － Sir Tottori (Distant - Grumpy - Careless) Sir Tottori was a member of the famous Kondo faction of the Shinsengumi. He has never said who he was, but a few drunken conversations have led people to believe that he was Yamanami Keisuke. He has said that his wish was to change Japan, but will not elaborate any further. He is quite skilled in calligraphy, and often his own works end up at Inkstone, though they are quickly bought and are generally very expensive. Sir Tottori took over the Mokuhi household simply because he finds that type of person very easy to deal with, and doesn't interfere much more than he has to.

Nadeshiko Household － Madam Sato (Prim & Proper - Strict - Disciplinary - Doesn't like getting her hands dirty) Madam Sato is a relatively new owner, having been working as the Nadeshiko Household's owner for about thirty years. She was a young woman living in roughly the year 2050 as the heiress of a wealthy technology company. However, she had no taste for technology and instead found solace in the old traditions and beauty of Japan. Her wish was to return and live in the old era, and to her surprise, her wish was granted by her arrival in the ukiyo, and thus, she can never leave. All of the secondary establishments have been renovated since her takeover to be made more traditional and she keeps up the act of being an old-era woman, though her lack of knowledge in some eras often betrays her. The rivalry with Youfuu is also a recent development, since Nadeshiko was neutral before she took over. It's simply another token of her hatred of all things "new."

Komainu Household － Madam Kowai (Sarcastic - Unbothered - Wise - Fun-Loving) Madam Kowai was once a kunoichi, but when she came to the ukiyo, she stopped her training all together. After all, the nature of her wish was to return to a normal life without the pain of losing her comrades. Her human body simply expired, but Madam Kowai devoted herself to creating a household that would have been fit for her brothers and sisters. She doesn't let her strong-willed entertainers phase her at all, and given a confrontation that she's unsure about, she'll offer to spar, where the winner gets their choice. Of course, she's undefeated so far.

Camellia District

Sazanka Household － Madam Suzuki (Brief - Terrifying - Ruthless) Madam Suzuki was a popular shunga artist in the early portion of the Edo period, which was her way of getting closer to the oiran that she idolized for their beauty, wishing to be as beautiful as them. It made her a very good shunga artist, since she wasn't terribly interested in the sexual acts being performed when an oiran and a client were modeling, but ultimately unhappy, since she lacked the talent to be a oiran. So her wish was simply to be able to go somewhere new where he could essentially start fresh and dress as she wished. Her wish was granted by coming to the ukiyo, and ever since, she's been quite dedicated to advancing her household and making sure that her entertainers are the best that they can be. As for shunga, she rarely draws them anymore and only does so when an entertainer particularly appeals to her specific fancy.

Shishu Household － Sir Kaya (Reserved - Intellectual - Hard to read - Good-tempered) Sir Kaya was a buddhist monk of the brief Meiji period, and one especially devoted to spreading the word of Buddha. He traveled all over Japan, performed his trade of acupuncture for occasional money, and did quite well until he arrived in Kyoto. There, Sir Kaya was forced to renounce his Buddhist vows because he fell instantly in love with one of the geisha he met. They never had sex and instead conversed at length about religion and philosophy, but the geisha fell ill from syphilis and died not long after. Despondent, Sir Kaya began wandering again until he came to Hokkaido on the verge of his death. While wandering in the winter, he wished not only to be at peace himself, but for the geisha to also be at peace. Sadly, this was not possible, since she had cursed the man that gave her the disease and ended up in Hell. Perhaps because of this, Sir Kaya came to hate youth and the foolishness it caused and changed the goal of Shishu to only have mature entertainers who would not be so foolish as to fall in love so quickly. He still works his acupuncture quite often, and is a kind listener to peoples' problems, rarely saying a word other than to offer a bit of scripture for advice.

Mazoku Household － Madam Jun (Perverted - Eerie - Invasive - Incredibly Dramatic) Madam Jun is one of the few non-human household owners, the yuki-onna of the ukiyo. She is the oldest of all the household owners and is said to be quite close to the Tradesman. She claims that the Mazoku household was the very first house of the district, since at one time, the only entertainers were demons - up until the clientele came to prefer human spirits for how novel they were. Madam Jun is very invested in her entertainers and can sometimes be seen peering in with a red-lipped smile when the entertainers are finishing off their dealings. She often speaks in riddles and when it snows, disappears for days at a time. Yet, while she's gone, there seems to be an invisible force watching over her household in her stead.

Youfuu Household － Sir Harold (Cheerful - Tempered - Talkative – Kind) Sir Harold is the only household owner who is a foreigner himself. Or, more accurately, half-foreigner. Sir Harold's father was a Portuguese missionary who eventually had a child with a Japanese convert. Sir Harold's blonde hair prevented him from being accepted as Japanese, and his foreign mother prevented him from being accepted as European. When he was about ten, his father took him back to Portugal, but by the time he was in his twenties, Sir Harold longed to return to Japan. It was the first time that a wish was offered to a foreigner. Sir Harold worked diligently and kindly as an entertainer until he found out that his mother had died. With no more ties to Japan, he accepted staying in the ukiyo and offered to open the first house exclusively for foreigners, since they were being offered wishes more and more often since he had come to the ukiyo. All of Youfuu's secondary establishments were ideas of former entertainers that worked under Sir Harold, and he is considered one of the most understanding owners in the district - always willing to listening to his entertainers' ideas and quite friendly with them.

Henshu Household － Madam Mimi (Paranoid - Overwhelming - Smothering – Maternal) Madam Mimi was a famous opera singer, the first Japanese woman to play the role of Butterfly in Puccini's "Madame Butterfly." Tamaki Miura went to Europe to study and was eventually cast to play the authentic part of Butterfly, but the racism she encountered scarred her. After about ten years in Europe, she wished to return to Japan where her talents would be appreciated, but fell in love with the nearby household owner, Sir Harold for his European charms and Japanese manners and decided to stay in the ukiyo. The love was only partially returned, for Sir Harold was quite unsure of how to consider her advances. They still have a very quiet relationship, though they're both very shy about it. Madam Mimi often helps to direct Parsifal's opera venues and can be heard practicing opera every day. As for her household, Madam Mimi's tastes simply go towards the adorable. She's very loving towards her entertainers and will often tease them by doting on their animal features. She's very protective of her darling entertainers and is more likely to smother them with affection than help them out.

Peony District

Shakuraku Household － Sir Miyake (Curt - Humorless - Money-Conscious - Pretentious) Shakuraku is the ukiyo's number one household because Sir Miyake owned a household in life - the top establishment in Yoshiwara during the height of geisha. His wish was to continue his trade because of the pleasure he took in seeing the girls he bought turning into beautiful, cultured women. He appreciates innovation and is the most accepting of the European influences in the district. He has a very harsh attitude, but to his entertainers, he's somewhat kinder. He's unforgiving of any mistakes, but this is what makes his household the best. His entertainers are of the highest quality and beauty. After having an Italian woman as an entertainer, he opened the Starlight Pavilion in her honor, since her name roughly translated to “starlight.” He’s a man who is very gruff, but his entertainers easily get into the soft spot of his heart and are well treated when it comes to luxuries. Any request for material things is usually granted.

Satouzuke Household － Madam Kinjo (Maniacal - Yandere-like - Publicly timid and reserved - She's like a gremlin; don’t feed her after 12 or cross her.) Madam Kinjo is certainly the "cutest" of all the household owners. She's gremlin-like in temperament and in size, standing just below five feet tall. Her sweet appearance is extremely deceiving, however, because she is quick to graphically threaten unruly entertainers and a few have mysteriously disappeared after crossing her one too many times. It's said she took on the unruly household because she can see right through her entertainers' lies and mysteries while revealing none of her own. Indeed, where she comes from and her wish are completely unknown despite her being around for quite a long time. She also has a weird looking dog named Kuniyona who has apparently been around as long as she has...

Iki Household － Sir Nagi (Insane - Self Absorbed - Energetic - Crude) Where Sir Koga wished to be a kabuki actor, Sir Nagi was one. He was Sawamura Soujuro III, one of the greatest kabuki actors of his day. He was an excellent actor, but in personality, he was considered quite odd. He was extremely intelligent and devoured books with a rate that scholars would envy. His only wish was to be forever prolific, which he has achieved with some success in the ukiyo. It's said that he became the household owner of Iki by weaseling his way into the former owner's good favor just before he left. Sir Nagi is certainly intelligent, though not everyone believes that he was qualified to take over the household. He's known to constantly boast, sleep with his female entertainers and constantly keep Paper Sea stocked with books that seem impossible to get.

Jisei Household － Madam Jun (Prim - Sophisticated - Persuasive - Intuitive) Madam Jun was a Heian noblewoman who was noted for her lovely pillow books. It's rumored that she may have been Sei Shōnagon herself, but Madam Jun neither denies nor confirms this. Her wish was to be free of the loneliness of Heian Court, and after the promiscuity of her mortal life, she eventually devoted herself to the Jisei household, not wishing to deal with the complications that came from sex. As European entertainers came into her household, she fell in love with France and all it was and instantly redecorated her household to suit these new tastes. On occasion, a book is published under her name which amounts to a gossip magazine, but these only occur when it strikes her fancy. Despite her household's image, she frequently engages with particularly attractive male entertainers of other households, not giving up that promiscuity that she knew in the court.

Kagayaku Household － Madam Aya (Terrifying - Short Tempered - Lecherous - Sadistic) Madam Aya has an extremely short temper, but the smile never leaves her face, even when she's subjecting her entertainers to humiliating - and usually sexual - punishments. She claims to be a witch, but no one has been able to tell whether she is being honest, or merely mocking the insults often given to her. Either way, unusual events seem to follow her quite a lot. Madam Inoue seems to have some kind of connection to Madam Aya, but Madam Aya merely laughs when questioned about it. She does take great enjoyment in her entertainers' suffering and it's near impossible to actually get in her good graces. Promotion is, to her, merely a sign that you're more willing to do more exotic sexual activities.