Mitama Yakumo
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Author: u/Genprey
Previous: This is the beginning.
Related reading: A Tale of Two Siblings: Mitama and Mikage Yakumo
Mitama is a very polarizing character--from the start of Magia Record, she is presented as an upbeat person, if not a bit eccentric. Intentional or not, Mitama not being in the spotlight like Iroha and Yachiyo makes her backstory more impactful, as you may not assume she is anything but the sunny coordinator she presents herself as until you unlock her backstory or get a suspicion that something is up based on the fact that not much is known about Mitama prior to her becoming playable.
With that said, the name "Mitama" could have clued you in on Mitama's true nature. In Japanese folklore, Mitama is the soul of a deceased person or godlike entity and is defined by two primary natures. Nigi-Mitama refers to an entity's calm/rational side that often leads to joy and prosperity. The Ara-Mitama, however, is a violent aspect that represents ones rage and ability to power through turmoil/crisis. Both aspects receive worship, although typically at separate shrines.
Putting that aside for now, Mitama has two transformation sequences in her vanilla form and her New Years variant. Starting with the former, the primary aesthetic here is a shroud/veil that partially obscures Mitama's room. The background changes from what seems to be a dark, rainy scenery into a bright (and rather familiar) scene with Mitama standing in the center. Cutting to the next scene, the topography of a beautiful field of flowers is shown, but as the camera pans downward, they distort as the scene becomes darker and we see Mitama, whose body is only covered by a shroud. As that shroud slides off, Mitama turns her head toward us, revealing a lifeless expression. The solemness here is abrupt, and we soon see Mitama putting on her attire with the cheerful expression that we're used to seeing.
There isn't really any complicated meaning behind shrouds, as they serve one purpose: to obscure, most particularly the deceased. The phrase "shrouded in mystery" fits Mitama perfectly, as she never really lets on about her past. The Mitama we see is normally very bright, but as we dig past what we see on the surface and get into her background, Mitama carried a lot of resentment and anger in the past.
Her New Years form is a bit harder to compare, as it's primarily themed around that Holiday. This may or may not be intentional, but one of the main themes surrounding New Years is letting go of past burdens/forward progression, and includes such things as writing down something you want to let go of on paper and tossing it into a fire. Midway through the sequence, we are treated with the same BGM present in Mitama's original transformation, but this time, it's a lot more cheerful of a tone.
Mitama's doppel is Totentanz, the doppel of Memento Mori that is described as such:
The master of this Doppel resents her environment and wishes to destroy everything. Her Doppel never forgets that death comes to all things equally. It covers everything with dancing flower petals and escorts girls elegantly with its white gloves. Like its master, it isn't able to attack directly, but its power, which is connected to the end of all things, is utterly terrifying - the magic of anything hidden under its flower petals rots away to nothing. The more the master relies on this Doppel, the closer her left arm will get to becoming completely one with it.
Totentanz isn't based on an entity, rather, a melody written by Franz Liszt, a composer who had a notable fascination with the concept of death. For fellow Westerners, the "Dance of the Dead" might sound a bit more familiar. It is linked with the concept of "Memento Mori", an allegory that refers to the universal nature of death. It is a reminder that death does not discriminate based on age, livelihood, moral character, and so on. When expressed through imagery, it is common to see entities of the dead leading Kings, peasants, adults and children, which alludes to the fact that, no matter who you are, you will eventually die.
As a Mitama's Doppel in Magia Record, Totentanz is presented as a wilting flower dressed in a tuxedo. Flowers carry extra significance with death and the concept of Memento Mori, in that even something so beautiful can wilt away suddenly simply by separating it from its root.
Understanding your own Mortality isn't something that necessarily is a dreadful thing. Rather, it can serve as a driving factor to live your life with purpose. This outlook leads to self-reflection, the ability to view yourself from an unbiased view with the purpose of pushing yourself toward living the life that you want.
After becoming a magical girl, Mitama would soon find herself to be unfit for combat, something that would doom her if she had no means of obtaining Grief Seeds. This would be the lowest point in Mitama's life, where she was faced with two options: be burdened with the despair of this eventual fate, or allow herself to be taught how to manage herself as a coordinator, a position that thrives on the trust and relationships with fellow magical girls. This conundrum is similar to how we should question death: do we let its inevitability burden us until our time comes, or do we use it as a motivator to live a life with purpose?
As a final note, Mitama's Bond CE and the Memoria Circuits you have seen plenty of tell a story when connected together:
The falling cherry blossom petals were beautiful and filled me with pride. The cherry blossom petals reflected in my eyes became a sign of the coming yearlong battle. The cherry blossom petals reflected in my eyes, became a symbol of betrayal. My new student ID was nothing more than a ticket inviting me to darkness over the course of a year.
Crush that which is intangible. Act like you never saw that which you could not process. Pay no mind to that which was lost or left behind. Time weathers and fades even that which should be most important. Advance with only your memories.
There is no longer any way to regain what is lost. Memories lose their shape and form with time, crumbling into pieces. Those memories, scattered from the palm of your hand, will pile up anew in your heart just like snow on a silent night.
Burning your eyes, piercing the eardrums, and driving your nasal cavities insane. It becomes incredibly vivid, and the memory will eventually resolve itself, becoming a single strand in a sea of memories in which many threads are entangled. I continue to extend my being, scrounging around as much as necessary, not missing a single inch.
If observed as Mitama's recollection, these Memoria detail her growth. What was initially her purpose became the source of Mitama's grief, which would lead her to a dark point in her life where, as she remarked, she would face death.
Something that is intangible lacks a physical presence. Although we have all experienced a low point in our lives, such as event, as suggested by Mitama, should not continue to burden you as you push forward. As we experience new things, certain old memories become less relevant as we proceed forward only with what is necessary.
At the end of her sidestory, Mitama recites what we knew of her early on: she is a bright and beautiful girl who will carry herself onward and generate more memories with her friends in spite of her past despair and regrets.