Shijima Mei/Relationships

Table of Contents

Home • Shijima Mei (四島メイ) • Yashiro Nene (Shijima-san of the Art Room • "Brush-chan" • The Real Shijima Mei) • Mitsuba Sousuke • Hanako • Yugi Tsukasa • Minamoto Kou

References

Background
Shijima Mei was a 3rd-year high schooler attending Kamome Academy before she passed away due to an unknown illness. While attending school, she was shown to have an aptitude for drawing and painting, amassing encouragement by her parents. Her last project was to paint a tower, to which she drew a tall Atelier tower on her sketchpad while being situated in a hospital bed. Already understanding that she was unable to live much longer, she decided to envision that a healthier version of her would live inside the tower, continuing her painting after her legacy. Enduring through the pitiful remarks, she took solace in the comfort of her fictional version. Because of that, she still retained her confident, positive, and self-reliant nature. Several of her traits were then passed down to the supernatural, Shijima Mei (also known as No.4 of the School Mysteries), who was simply a proxy or replication of her human version. However, she took full responsibility for granting Mei's wish before the rumors spread. Because she couldn't do anything against the rumors, she lost hope in trying to make fiction into reality; therefore falling into a sense of hopelessness and distraught.

Shijima Mei (四島メイ)
Shijima, the supernatural, was created by Mei when she was tasked to create a painting of a tower. Shijima is Mei's ideal healthy self, who is able to live on within the Atelier tower and draw in her place. While Mei quickly forgets the encounter, the supernatural remains by her side until the end, observing all of her struggles and anxiety.

Shijima is fiercely protective of Mei as a result, vowing to complete her painting. Soon after Mei's passing, the School Mystery Number 4's rumor spread and drastically changed the story to that she had taken her own life. Shijima became distraught, believing that she had failed her duty and that there is no point in fiction, as it won't change reality.

For a long time, Shijima held a wish deep within her heart that she "wants to meet [Shijima Mei] again". Tsukasa later grants her this wish and allows her to visit Mei's dream before her death. Shijima begins to attack her other-self, making Mei think that she was a crazy person. She believes by killing Mei, the painting would never be completed and "Shijima-san of the Art Room" would have never been born. She does not wish to remain as a piece of fiction that only caused Mei harm.

Mei, on the other hand, is flattered by the attention Shijima gives her. She believes Shijima is her drawing, her dream and her hope. Because of her alter self/fiction, Mei was able to live on in spite of the cruel reality. Not only that, she reassures Shijima that being a School Mystery is cool, like the rumor about the school's stairs.

As they part ways, Shijima was unable to say anything, only watching as her other-self return to her reality, looking onwards.

Shijima-san of the Art Room
Nene first met Shijima in the picture world's Atelier tower after Shijima jumped to grab her ankle, fascinated by its size. Initially, Nene thought of Shijima as a reasonable supernatural after she readily tells them of the way to escape the picture world, but would change her mind after hearing her in full. Shijima believed deeply the fictional did not have any value and encouraged Nene to kill the main characters in order to return to the real world.

Throughout the Picture Perfect arc, despite being on opposite sides, Shijima never directly antagonised Nene. However, she is able to monitor the picture world with her clones and confront Nene's escape attempts. After Nene was captured, she appeared at the jail cell to check up on her. When she found her crying, she attempted to cheer Nene up, drawing her a box of chocolate and even ending Nene her hands for comfort as per request. Nene explains to Shijima that despite everything she learned about herself, by escaping the picture world, she will be okay. This frustrates Shijima as it reminds her of someone in her past who had said the same thing, but to no avail — drawing out her real wish for Tsukasa.

After travelling to Mei's dream with Nene, Shijima once again agreed to assist Nene escape. She prevented Hanako-kun from using his Hakujoudai powers within the picture world, allowing for Nene to sneak away unnoticed.

When Nene escapes from the picture world, they meet again in Shijima's boundary, but finally, for the first time, this time — the Shijima inside the fake world was also a clone. Shijima chastises herself for dragging Nene into the picture world, but Nene refuses to accept this. Nene instead thanks Shijima for the chance to experience a beautiful world, a statement that Shijima accepts with gratitude.

"Brush-chan"
This paintbrush first appeared to help Nene on her escape from the picture world's Kamome Academy. Nene nicknamed it "Brush-chan". The paintbrush is able to take down a patrolling Shijima clone in order to gain Nene's trust.

After being fixed by Kou, the paintbrush returned once more to aid Nene and company. It was revealed the paintbrush is a failed clone of Shijima Mei that wasn't destroyed. The paintbrush has a mind of its own and contained reflections of Shijima Mei's real feelings — that she always wanted to help Nene all along.

The Real Shijima Mei
Upon being transported by Tsukasa back in time, Nene finds herself inside Mei's dream before her death. Mei rescues Nene from a quarrel with Shijima by pressing the emergency call button, summoning the ghostly nurse apparitions in the hospital ward.

The two were able to bond after Mei asks Nene to hear out her wish — being able to eat pancakes with a friend. Mei is very friendly and affectionate with Nene, feeding her a piece of the pancake to cheer her up and making 'girl talks', asking Nene to call her "Mei-chan". Like her counterpart, she is also fascinated with Nene's big ankles and doesn't refrain from poking fun at it.

Mitsuba Sousuke
We don't know much because they don't interact much, but Shijima and Mitsuba seem to be on friendly terms, since we saw them talking to each other while smiling before capturing Hanako.

Hanako
Shijima despises Hanako, and they are very tense when talking to each other, but Shijima can tell that Hanako cares a lot for Nene.

Yugi Tsukasa
While talking to Nene, Tsukasa comes suddenly to grant her wish. In fact, he sends the two girls to the human Shijima Mei. However later on Tsukasa, when everyone is back to normal, would eventually come back to collect his fee, which is another clone of Shijima.

Minamoto Kou
These two are just acquaintances, but they do have some beef, given how Kou tried to threaten her and she just tied him up with no effort.