paradox (released October 21, 2007)[]
The episode opens with Chihiro sitting at her desk by the window in the morning. She is reviewing her diary while doing a warm reboot (see below).
Later, Chihiro escorts Renji to the beachfront, where she shows him the introductory page of her diary. It lists some basic rules:
- Read your diary every morning without fail. It is your memory.
- Write in your diary every day: What you did, what you talked about, medical records, etc. Be as precise as possible.
- Try to avoid contact with others as much as possible. Someone might take advantage of your condition and do awful things to you. Conversely, you might cause someone a great deal of trouble.
- If you meet anyone, record their characteristics and information as accurately as possible.
She tells Renji that because she had violated rule 4 on their first couple of meetings, she had failed (at first) to recognize him on his subsequent visits. Renji tries to turn the page past the introductory section, but Chihiro stops him. She explains that "this is me", meaning that to share that information would require a level of intimacy that she is not ready to share with him yet (and perhaps not with anyone ever).
She explains that her life is rather meaningless and uneventful: She can't do anything, she can't go to school, and she has no friends. All she does is read or daydream while sitting at the abandoned train station all day. She says she has no reason to live and nothing to give anyone, and that she is only a burden to others. Then she adds that she forgets even that. Renji reacts strongly but is unable to articulate a rebuttal. He leaves and broods on Chihiro's condition at length.
Because of a heavy rainstorm the next day, Renji does not visit the abandoned train station, thinking that Chihiro would not come outside under such circumstances. He returns the following day only to find Yuu Himura waiting for him. He is not happy. He says that Chihiro is out sick with a cold because she had waited for him all day yesterday in the rain in vain, until midnight, but he never came. Himura had gone out to try to bring Chihiro home earlier but she refused to leave. Himura explains to Renji that it is because Chihiro always keeps her promises. It is because they connect Yesterday's Chihiro to Today's Chihiro, and so they are precious. Renji feels awful about it.
Meanwhile, Hiro pulls another all-nighter to meet his manga deadline, as the tendonitis in his drawing arm flares up. The next day he is a zombie at school. (Kei threatened to kill him if he missed school again.) He goes up to the school rooftop to crash, but Miyako Miyamura ambushes him. She continues to act like a manic pixie dream girl as she drags him out of school for a day on the town.
In the Film Club room, the other film club members continue to complain that Kyosuke's shots are too 'high impact', and that he needs to dial it back for mass audience appeal in order for the club to win the coveted Gran Prix film award. (Kyosuke's shots tend to win the minor special awards.) Kyosuke, who is a true film auteur, walks out.
Miyako Miyamura skips school with Hiro, and they go into town and have lunch at a café where they meet Mizuki Hayama, a middle-schooler who knows Hiro because she is also a good friend of Kei. Hiro tries to introduce Mizuki to Miyako, but he draws a blank on her given name (he has been calling her Miyamura the whole time). This triggers Miyako's phobia about being forgotten, and she disappears from the café while he is still busy chatting with Mizuki.
In a deserted and still-damaged section of Otowa, Emi confronts Kyosuke about his impertinent walk-out from the Film Club. He complains that all anyone cares about is catering to the awards committee, not the creation of a great film. However, he admits he feels uninspired and aimless at the moment, not knowing what kind of film to make to satisfy his creative urge.
Emi tells Kyosuke that she "does not understand him anymore", and she breaks up with him. In response, Kyosuke submits his resignation from the Film Club. (It is revealed in Melodies episode 5 that Emi Izumi never accepted his letter of resignation, so he technically never quit the Film Club.)
As Kyosuke wanders aimlessly through the still-destroyed section of town, the angel Yuuko appears before him, and asks him if he is struggling to find his way. He tells her that he is trying 'to capture a dream' on film, but he cannot find it yet.
The next day, Kei accuses Hiro of cutting class to go out with Miyako (because Mizuki told Kei about it). Kei warns Hiro that Miyako is an infamous delinquent that cuts class at will and ignores the teachers (she doesn't mention that Miyako gets away with it because she manages to get exceptional grades on her tests anyway). Hiro lets slip to Kei that he skipped her Christmas party to spend time with Miyako on Christmas Eve. Kei, who likely assumes they had slept together that night (they didn't), runs out.
Warm Reboot[]
Chihiro explains to Renji that her memories gradually fall away as the day progresses, e.g., at 8 p.m. she loses the memories she had acquired at 7 a.m. However, she can refresh her memory of basic facts (like her age and her missing eye) if she concentrates and recalls those facts over and over. This creates fresh memories that can reset the 13 hour clock. This is called a warm reboot (contrast with cold reboot).
Note that more complex memories, like images and faces, cannot be rolled forward in this manner.
In episode 12, Chihiro discovers that strong emotions will also roll forward, and in fact they will roll forward whether she wants them to or not. This leads to Chihiro's final epiphany.
In her daily regimen she does a warm reboot every night at 9 p.m., where she refreshes basic facts about herself. This prevents her from panicking when she wakes up at 7 a.m., wondering how she had aged or how she lost her eye.