[Kiryuu Kikyou cosplay] Schale's New Student Mimi — A Lazy Blue-and-White Afternoon

This photoshoot features Kiryuu Kikyou from Blue Archive—feel free to just call me Mimi! From the moment I decided on this character, I spent a lot of time thinking about how to express that delicate balance between student innocence and lazy mystery.

In terms of costume, the white stripes on the sailor collar and the dark navy pleated skirt form the foundation, while the bright blue Japanese-style outer haori robe is the true soul of the look. The white star and petal patterns on it were hand-painted and heat-transferred; to match the texture of the original design, I deliberately chose a semi-matte satin fabric so it would give off a soft sheen under natural light without looking cheap. The animal ears for this animal-eared girl look were handcrafted with flocking material, making them very lightweight. The blue halo overhead was crafted using transparent acrylic wrapped with LED light strips. During shooting, we used a side-rim backlight reflected off a diffuser board, allowing the halo to emit a faint blue glow without overpowering the facial focus. The wig was trimmed into a heavily layered short bob with slightly curled-in ends; since Kikyou's bangs are very distinctive, it took quite some time to trim them so they cleanly grazed the eyebrows while showcasing the eyes. For makeup, I emphasized the red blending at the outer corners of the eyes combined with earth-toned eyeshadow, giving the gaze a quiet yet storytelling depth.

The shooting location was the tea room of an old Japanese-style residence. The tatami mats had a faint aroma of woven rush, the folding screen featured a hand-painted pine-bamboo-plum motif, and sunlight slanted in through the paper shoji doors on the left, casting gorgeous light and shadow divisions across this Japanese-style photography setting. In the first photo, I sat cross-legged playing with a blue cat's cradle string; the string was temporarily dyed blue with cotton thread before the shoot to echo the robe, but I was a bit nervous and the string tangled around my fingers several times. The second pose lying flat on the floor was actually my personal favorite, as I could relax my weight onto my arms while the skirt flared out naturally; the contrast between the white thigh-highs outfit and the tatami texture looked crisp and clean. The third shot shows me holding a tea bowl pretending to sip tea—the bowl was actually empty to avoid spilling on the costume, but the wooden table and two black-glazed teacups had wonderful atmosphere. Resting my chin on the table, I felt just like a real cat basking in the sun.

In the fourth shot lying on the floor holding a book overhead, that posture was surprisingly tough to maintain because I had to keep my feet raised high while holding the book parallel to my eyes. The assistant kept saying 'raise it a bit higher,' which had my core fully engaged, but the captured moment of looking up into the lens felt very spirited. The fifth shot is a look-back standing pose, an angle that perfectly highlights the draped silhouette of the outer robe and the details along the back collar. I didn't grade the color palette too cool, preserving the warm yellow tones of sunlight instead—because even though Kikyou is a cool, detached character, in a daily setting like Schale, she would surely enjoy such warm, sunny afternoons.

Before shooting, I read through her lore dialogue and noted her catchphrases and mannerisms; while not a carbon copy, I did my best to channel that feeling of 'quietly observing everything despite being a girl of few words.' The layering of a sailor suit beneath a haori robe is quite a styling challenge; the outer robe barely covered the pleated skirt and fluttered when walking, so I avoided large movements during shooting, favoring seated and reclining poses to express that leisurely rhythm. Securing the wig and animal ears required several bobby pins; because of frequent head turns, I readjusted them multiple times on set. In particular, lying down easily bent the animal ears out of shape, so the fourth photo was snapped right after a quick readjustment. The photographer's lighting was superb—he placed a reflector behind the screen to ensure shadow details remained clear, especially the highlights on the white stockings, bringing out the fabric's soft sheen.

I love collecting Japanese-style photography inspirations, so shooting in an authentic traditional location was truly delightful. The elderly landlady even poured us tea, making the roleplay feel even more immersive. As for the prop book in hand, it was an old vintage book I picked up, whose yellowed cover fit the retro mood nicely. The entire shoot took about three hours across several poses; though my muscles were sore, seeing the final photos made every effort worthwhile. This is a slice of my daily routine in Schale—a feline girl named Mimi, who loves reading and drinking tea in a sunlit room, occasionally playing cat's cradle.