Romantic Two-Girl Friendship

Are they gonna kiss? Are they gonna kiss? Come on, kiss already!
It was perfectly acceptable at Baker & Inglis to get a crush on a fellow classmate. At a girls' school a certain amount of emotional energy, normally expended on boys, gets redirected into friendships.
—Middlesex

The Japanese believe that young girls are expected to have friendships with each other that emulate boyfriend/girlfriend relationships. This is considered safer and temporary in a world where where virginity is highly valued at least concerning fictional characters and where a girl is believed to be incapable of taking away another girl's virginity. This is known as "Class S" in Japan. This is similar to the Western concept of bi-curious teenagers, though the latter is rather played to demonstrate open-mindedness.

The given cultural explanation is that they can then graduate from these friendships to real relationships with boys, now that they have the confidence and experience. To remain in a "Class S" relationship, however, is seen as a sign of immaturity. If especially overdone, the implication is that the girls should stop being close period, romantically or no. No, this should never become physical that way; it would sully the Incorruptible Pure Pureness. Which is then traded in for marriage.

When this is shown in anime, the Western response is usually bafflement, since they're automatically pegged as Schoolgirl Lesbians because of Situational Sexuality, as well as this conflicting with the Western concept of heterosexual and homosexual identity. (Granted, something that's under spirited debate in the West as well.) When the bafflement wears off, most Western viewers' attitudes start taking a very different turn.

Some viewers have to ask... is this really an accurate depiction of a Romantic Two-Girl Friendship; or did writers use Schoolgirl Lesbians to draw in an audience, and then take the easy way out? Depending on one's interpretation this can lead to the perception of Unfortunate Implications even if author really didn't intend any.

It remains to be seen how this attitude will develop in the modern age, as series get more and more daring. It's noticeable that characters who have actually had sex, or even kissed, are treated much differently than those with chaste relationships.

Contrast Heterosexual Life Partners.

Examples of Romantic Two-Girl Friendship include:

Anime and Manga

  • Pictured above: Mugi and Nono from Hitohira quickly appear to enter such a relationship after Nono drafts Mugi for her drama club. Mugi has an obvious crush on Nono for most of the series and their relationship culminates in a very heartwarming ending when they say their goodbyes.
  • Despite being perceived in the West as the "flagship" Schoolgirl Lesbians series, Mariasama ga Miteru only has one couple that actually crossed the line into a full Schoolgirl Lesbians relationship—at which point, one of them promptly left the school to become a nun, probably in an attempt to show how dangerous it is to "go too far". Most of the rest of the cast participate in (much safer) Romantic Two Girl Friendships with other Lillian students.
  • In Ultra Maniac one of the two main girls finds out the other has a crush on her. She scoffs it away, saying that it proves the other girl is just a child.
  • Also: Sailor Moon. Usagi and Rei show a somewhat low key version of this in those quiet, sweet moments they're not acting like Vitriolic Best Buds, particularly the original and R seasons. True to cultural expectations, these moments are less common (but not completely inexistent) as Usagi's relationship with her boyfriend Mamoru (whom Rei once wanted in the anime) matures... and they reappear when Mamoru falls victim to Bus Crash (unbeknownst to them)
    • Rei also has this relationship with Minako in the manga, to the extent that their last scene together in Stars has suspiciously similar vibes to Haruka and Michiru...
  • In Tenshi na Konamaiki, when Megumi insists that she likes Miki "that way", the other girls comment that she really is a kid. Of course it's a bit more complex than that.
  • Much of Futari wa Pretty Cure is based around this precise sort of relationship.
  • Hyatt and Ropponmatsu #1 seem to develop a platonic romance for the short time they are together in Excel Saga. Also, Ropponmatsu #2 has feelings for Excel, as seen in her made-up Flash Back.
    • Although in this case, the Ropponmatsus were programmed to fall for the first person they saw upon activation, which (due to a delivery error) was Excel and Hyatt.
      • And it only lasted one episode.
  • In Love Hina, Motoko has three female groupies, classmates of hers; at least one seems to have a genuine crush on the swordswoman. Also, Suu appears to have designs on Motoko; while the anime only hints at this, Suu announces in the manga that she wants to take Motoko as a lover. Suu is also responsible for giving Shinobu her First Kiss.
  • Best Student Council has a large chunk of the student body in... admiration of the student council president, Kanade Jinguuji.
  • On Keroro Gunsou, all the girls at Natsumi's school seem to idolize her obsessively, and Koyuki actually has a crush on Natsumi (though this is far less blatant than in the manga, where it dives headfirst into the realms of Schoolgirl Lesbians).
  • Nana O and Nana K's relationship in Nana.
  • Shinobu's feelings for Kaede in Ninin ga Shinobuden.
  • Fate's relationship with Nanoha in the first two seasons Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha; the third season toes the line. Post-StrikerS, Fate/Nanoha/Vivio is canonically referred to as the "Takamachi Family", Yuuno's role best described as "Substitute Father" to Vivio when Fate is away from home (All There in the Manual), except ViVid and Force scrap that last one for a good measure.
    • Alisa and Suzuka from the same series are also shown to be very fond of each other.
    • And Teana and Subaru from season three.
    • Vivio and Einhart from ViVid get this treatment from the Genre Savvy Nakajima sisters. Another indication is that one shuttle scene in the beginning of chapter 9, where we get to see Nanoha/Fate, Subaru/Teana, and Vivio/Einhart sitting neatly all in the row. Can you say, "Generation Xerox"?
  • At the beginning of Episode 7 of Lucky Star, Konata starts abruptly acting out this trope towards Tsukasa and Kagami. Kagami is visibly disturbed by this, and her response to this behavior and the explanation that Konata has become hooked on Marimite is "Are you a kid?!"
    • Also, Minami and Yutaka.
    • Possibly Misao and Ayano. Possibly. Though, Ayano says she has a boyfriend and apparently he's Misao's brother. However that still goes hand in hand with many of the popular Alternate Character Interpretation's.
  • In R.O.D the TV Hisami Hisaishi's relationship to Anita King was such that she even turned down the boy who was interested in her because of it. She regularly compares the two of them to Anne and Diana from the book Anne of Green Gables (in Japan it's called "Red Haired Anne"). Both sets of girls refer to themselves as "Soulmates." It also leads to a very heart-wrenching scene when the girls say their goodbyes. Even worse when Anita comes back after the Library puts their plan into action, tearily explains her terrible situation to Hisami and all but begs her for help, and Hisami doesn't remember her at all. The scene was very powerful.
  • Hime-chan and Erika's relationship in Hime-chan no Ribon is very much like this even though they spend a huge amount of time apart, saying they love each, etc.
  • Kaorin and Chihiro in Azumanga Daioh, though it's obvious that Kaorin's growing out of it... into a genuine Schoolgirl Lesbian with a crush on Sakaki.
    • It seems likely from various hints that Yukari and Nyamo were probably like this when they were young. It could easily explain some of the couple-ish mannerisms they still exhibit, and Yukari's taunting of Nyamo over an unexplained love letter (implying that Nyamo may have gotten a bit too caught up in it, leading to the teasing).
      • Then again, writing each other love letters is not out of the ordinary for girls in a Romantic Two-Girl Friendship. It will likely forever be a mystery what happened and why those two are still friends. It may just be straight and simple Les Yay, really. not that the gender of the other side of the love letter is ever specified.
      • In one manga strip that didn't make it into the anime, the two teachers are wearing thier old uniforms [for a costume race] 'from when this was an all-girls school'. How this affects things beyond giving a fanfic setting is up for debate.
      • Yukari and Nyamo's relationship is heavily implied to be similar to that of Tomo and Koyomi. They seem to repel each other in every way and one seems appalled by the other but, for some reason, they still manage to remain the best of friends.
  • This trope appears to be the main element in Venus Versus Virus. There are numerous intimate and tender moments between Lucia and Sumire, causing Sumire to turn bright red every so often. The series has even been called a Shounen yuri manga/anime by the official manga translators, even though it doesn't go beyond subtext. The romantic element is certainly there though, and gets a lot of focus, especially in the earlier volumes.
    • However, once Sumire leaves Lucia and her friends, Lucia's affections for her reach above the most extreme RTGF meter. It's unrequited.
  • In Aria, Alicia and her apprentice Akari appear to be very enamored with each other. Alicia postpones Akari's promotion to Prima since she doesn't want to leave her alone before retiring...to get married, of course.
    • Aika also has a totally obvious crush on Alicia for most of the series.
  • Pacifica and Winia from Scrapped Princess like each other a lot when they first meet. Alas, their relationship gets cut short since Pacifica has to keep on running.
  • Hiro and Sae in Hidamari Sketch are very close and are frequently subjected to Ship Tease. Hiro talks about giving Sae chocolate for Valentine's Day and how Sae watched over her all night when she was sick; the first season OP even has a Not What It Looks Like moment with Yuno walking in on them (with the context not even being given until the second season). Sae spends an entire episode (the 2nd special) freaking out when Hiro gets a love letter in her shoe locker, complete with an excited Yuno and Miyako misunderstanding the letter as coming from Hiro. And then there's the second season's opening...
    • Yuno and Miyako also seem to be a bit closer than average sometimes, which usually gets excused by Miyako's bubbly and innocent demeanor. Miyako also appears to be very open-minded about relationships (see Schoolgirl Lesbians) and hops in the bathtub with Yuno the day they meet, since her own water supply doesn't work. Uh-huh. One time Miyako even tells Yuno that she thinks she is very pretty. Yuno in turn voices her wish to Miyako that they might one day have the same relationship as Sae and Hiro.
  • The most innocent interpretations of the relationship between Alpha and Kokone in Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou falls into this. As for the other interpretations... yeah...
  • The relationship between Ichika and Manatsu from Uta Kata borders on this trope.
  • Akira and Machina in Dragonaut The Resonance have this kind of relationship, and also fit nicely into Tomboy and Girly Girl.
  • Kanade and Yukino from Candy Boy have a relationship that seems to follow the rules of this trope just fine, until you realize that they are fraternal twin sisters.
  • Saya from Bamboo Blade is definitely a bit more than just friends with kendo-captain Kirino. It doesn't appear to be mutual, though the two get along extremely well regardless.
  • Sakura Mikan in Gakuen Alice is absolutely infatuated with Hotaru in this manner. Hotaru goes back and forth between trying to get rid of her and actually returning her affections.
  • Ran and Midori from Telepathy Shoujo Ran become like this as the series progresses—which is rather peculiar, since Ran actually has a boyfriend and Midori is openly smitten with Ran's brother. Perhaps the makers simply didn't want to drop the dynamic that works so well in similar series.
  • In the Gender Flipped Suzumiya Haruhi fanworks, the Ho Yay between Koizumi Itsuki and Kyon is "translated" into "Itsuko" trying to rope "Kyonko" into these dynamics. And here, Kyonko is a tiiiiiiny bit more receptive to Itsuko's flirting than in the original source.
  • Minori Kushieda from Toradora! has genuinely deep feelings for her best friend Taiga Aisaka—so much that at one point she openly questions her own sexuality.
  • Seen several times in Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl: first when an upperclassman dismisses Yasuna's obvious romantic interest in Hazumu as "immature", later when Ayuki reveals that Tomari once got a love letter from another girl, and still later when two unnamed classmates (literally "Girl A" and "Girl B" in the credits) get so carried away by Hazumu's exaggerated tales of Tomari's heroics while defending her from reporters that they openly declare their love for her "manliness", which mortifies Tomari to no end.
  • The relationship between Hanna and Suomi from Diamond Daydreams clearly has some elements of this. They witness the "diamond dust" together, just like lovers would do—and their falling out has all the symptoms of an extended lover's quarrel.
  • Runo and Alice from Bakugan are quite close, even closer then they are with their love interests (Dan (official) and Shun (prominently hinted), whose relationship are borders on Heterosexual Life Partners respectively)
  • Hikari and Futaba from Amanchu rush into this headfirst. Hikari's behavior toward Futaba could be construed as flirting—and Futaba is very responsive. This is no surprise, since romantic two girl friendships are not unheard-of in works by Kozue Amano (who also made Aria).
  • One of the possible interpretations for Licorice and Cleao's relationship in Sorcerer Stabber Orphen.
  • K-On! has romantic tension between the girls in various alignments and levels of intensity. Mio and Ritsu have their moments, especially when Ritsu shows definite signs of jealousy when Mio "dates" another girl. But the most romantically inclined appears to be Yui, who is clearly very enthralled by Mio, only to shift her focus to Azusa once she appears—and she at times even seems to be suspiciously close to her own sister Ui. It's all kept rather light though, in line with the fluffy character of the show.
  • Sakura and Tomoyo in Cardcaptor Sakura are this trope all over, despite Tomoyo's feelings being far less chaste.
  • Parodied in The Day of Revolution when former boy Megumi tries to latch onto Cool Big Sis Makoto primarily because the idea of being courted by her former True Companion bothers her. Makoto's receptiveness varies based on Rule of Funny but her role as Megumi's peer counselor/therapist means her reaction is mostly clinical.
  • Although the friendship / Accidental Engagement between Utena and Anthy in the Shoujo Kakumei Utena series and manga can be interpreted this way (and certainly references the trope a few times over), it more obviously applies to Utena and Wakaba. Wakaba ends up meeting a very nice young man who draws her attention away from Utena as a natural process, and Utena - well, she... grows up a bit too.
  • Even though Marin and Kanon's friendship in Umi Monogatari has some definite elements of this, it's rather Marin's relationship with Urin which seems to go further than mere sisterly affection—fueled, of course, by the fact that they are not actual sisters.
    • In the DVD special, it becomes clear that Kanon experiences her goodbye with Marin much like a romantic breakup--which is curious, since she still goes out with Kojima.
  • Michiyo from Mahoraba is shown to have feelings for Asami, but it's mostly one-sided.
    • There are numerous hints about a such a relationship between Kozue and Tamami, which likely got blown up by Shiratori's arrival at the apartment complex. It does shed a bit more light on why Tamami dislikes Shiratori so much at first.
  • Alice and Nunnally's relationship in Nightmare of Nunnally is quite similar to this.
  • Taishō Baseball Girls has the mild infatuation between girls so typical for the setting of an all-girl high school. Most notable are Tomoe's attraction to Koume and Kyokou's crush on Tomoe, which at times comes close to being somewhat more intense.
  • Haibane Renmei is very much a love story between Reki and Rakka. Chaste, but a love story nonetheless.
  • Miyako Inoue and Hikari Yagami of Digimon Adventure 02 have more than a few shades of the trope, especially in the 31st episode, where they (and Ken) find themselves trapped in the Sea of Darkness. The scene in which Miyako slaps Hikari to calm her down and swears that she won't leave her alone wouldn't be out of place in a Yuri anime. The fact that the very same episode is also when they learn how to Fusion Dance their partner Digimon doesn't help, especially given the part where they're thinking they can hear each others' heartbeats synchronize.
  • A possible and very dark interpretation for Rosine and Jill in Berserk.
  • Meiko Akizuki and Miki Koishikawa had veeeery slight whiffs of it in the beginning of Marmalade Boy, before the melodrama that their love lives are settles in.
  • The plot of The Rows of Cherry Trees centers around a Class S Love Triangle between an Onee-Sama and two of her kohai.
  • Yomi and Mato from Black★Rock Shooter have this going on big time. The moment they meet is basically a "Love At First Sight" affair, especially from Mato's perspective.
  • Moe and Marin in Brigadoon Marin and Melan. It seems to be played for comedy at first, and it's a lot stronger on Moe's side than on Marin's. As the series progresses further they both start to show interest in the opposite sex.
  • The tropes gets discussed a lot in Hanjuku Joshi, but is ultimately subverted by the two main couples.
  • This could possibly be an explanation for Hinagiku's initial encounter with Athena in Hayate the Combat Butler, especially since she's pushed anything resembling romance aside because of her past.
    • Her relationship with Miki may have started as this, but when Miki started to push for it to go further, Hinagiku made it clear she wasn't interested. The two are still close though.
    • Less explainable, but not entirely out of the question for her reaction to seeing Luca's performance, since she now has clear affections for male Hayate, but he's completely oblivious to it.
      • And now there's a definite hinting towards this style relationship between Hinagiku and Luca since their meeting and Luca telling them about her past, which is similar to Hinagiku's, with Luca's issues about lying being equated to Hina's romance issues. Hinagiku steals Luca's hand-made manga before he's able to read it and provide feedback about it.
  • Madoka Kaname and Sayaka Miki from Puella Magi Madoka Magica give such strong vibes that their friend Hitomi Shizuki did sorta believe that they could be a good match-up. However, the example of this trope is given by Madoka and Homura Akemi, specially after we learn that Homura has pretty much going through a HUGE Groundhog Day Loop purely to save Madoka's life.
  • Orihime Inoue and Tatsuki Arisawa's relationship in Bleach could be interpreted as this, too.
  • In the OVA of Battle Athletes, the relationship between Kris and Akari gradually develops into this. In the Victory TV adaptation, Akari has some of this dynamic going on with Ichino at first, whereas Kris' feelings for Akari get ramped up considerably. Eventually, Ichino and Kris start competing for Akari's affections.
  • Sarah's relationship with Yakumo in School Rumble. Though they honestly seem to just be very good friends, some might confuse it for Yuri at times.
  • Tomoko Arikura and Nanako Misonou in Oniisama e....
  • Saya Otonashi from Blood Plus, despite her... special relationship with her bodyguard Hagi, has this with two girls. First there's Kaori in Okinawa, then we have Minh in Vietnam.
  • Yuri Tokikago and Momoka Oginome from Mawaru Penguindrum were too young to play the trope straight, but still gave off huge vibes. Sadly, Momoka died in her pre-teen years, and Yuri never got over it.
  • Haruko and Ayako had this in the early chapters of Slam Dunk, with Ayako teasingly kissing her on the cheek.
  • Eri Kasugano and Natsuki Hayami in Amakusa 1637.

Comic Books

  • Even though the eponymous character from Yoko Tsuno readily bonds with other girls, those relationships never become quite as intense as the one she has with the musician Ingrid in the earlier albums.

Film

  • The Unbearable Lightness of Being.
  • The film Heavenly Creatures (based on a true story) has what appears to be a lesbian relationship between the two mid-teen girls, but one of them claimed in interviews that as obsessive as it was, it was a chaste relationship.
  • Nicky and Pamela in Times Square. (Although the original script apparently contained more Les Yay.) Also a Tomboy and Girly Girl Odd Friendship.
  • Jennifer's Body is a Deconstruction.
  • Kamikaze Girls could be seen as an example of this, though not immediately.
  • Charlotte and Tiana's relationship in Disney's The Princess and the Frog really feels like this.
  • Hanna and Sophie. Though there's also quite a bit of Les Yay going on as well.

Literature

  • Ozma and Dorothy have this in L. Frank Baum's Oz books. Completely innocent, it included good morning kisses. Betsy later gets included. Baum implied this relationship would last indefinitely because nobody in Oz ages if they don't want to. This is especially amusing when you realize that Ozma spent the first 10 years of her life as a boy.
    • This passage from Tik-Tok of Oz, Betsy's introductory adventure, says it all. Context is the discussion of whether or not the orphaned Betsy should be invited to live in Oz. Dorothy's opinion was very positive.

Ozma laughed at the wistful expression in the girl's eyes, and then she drew Dorothy to her and kissed her.
"Am I not your friend and playmate?" she asked.
Dorothy flushed.
"You know how dearly I love you, Ozma!" she cried. "But you're so busy ruling all this Land of Oz that we can't always be together."

  • Very prevalent in the works of Nobuko Yoshiya, an openly lesbian Japanese writer and feminist who wrote young adult novels between the 1910s and 1970s.
  • Anne of Green Gables has a very close, affectionate relationship with her friend Diana. Unsurprisingly, these Canadian novels are also extremely popular in Japan, spawning two anime to this day (a classic from the 70's and a recent 2009 prequel) and are heavily referenced in other Japanese media.
  • Enid Blyton's six-part Malory Towers series has a strong tendency towards its girls pair-bonding and there's hand-holding and arm-linking too, though this is a reflection of girls' behaviour in British boarding schools at and prior to the time the books were written. One of the friendships, between a daughter of the aristocracy and a very tomboyish girl who goes by the male form of her given name has suggestions of butch-femme dynamics, and their future paths after school are described as going into business together to run a horse-riding school.
  • Angela Brazil, writing in an earlier and more conservative age, openly described her schoolgirl characters kissing.
    • The more conservative the age, the more romantically you can describe the friendship, since it wouldn't occur to anyone to read it differently.
  • Main character Alysha Gale and her cousin Charlie in Tanya Huff's The Enchantment Emporium.
  • Mrs. Dalloway. The relationship referenced in that story between the title character and her childhood friend is a pretty good example of this trope.
  • Clarissa and Anna from Clarissa. When Clarissa is stuck in a position between chosing Lovelace or Solmes (neither of whom she likes) Anna suggests they run away together London.
  • Esther and Ada in Dickens' Bleak House.
  • Beau Nash and Mary Innes in Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey. As one character says, 'Would you call their relationship normal? Nice, of course, quite irreproachable. But normal, no.'
  • Many Aes Sedai in the Wheel of Time, at least while novices and restricted to areas of the Tower men are not permitted to enter.
  • Chloe and Liz from The Darkest Powers series share one.
  • Piknim and Craklyn in the Redwall book Pearls of Lutra, in their intro scene, sing alternate verses of a cute little love song from the point of view of a male character about his girlfriend. The two are never seen apart, and speak in tandem. When Piknim is killed, Craklyn sings a lament over her grave, in which she actually addresses her as "my beloved".
  • Believe it or not, this trope was recognised by Agatha Christie in her novel Nemesis:

"Verity had lost her real guardians, her parents, she had entered on her new life after their death, at an age when a schoolgirl arrives at having a "crush" on someone. An attractive mistress. Anything from the games mistress to the mathematics mistress, or a prefect or an older girl. A state that does not last for very long, is merely a natural part of life. Then from that you go on to the next stage when you realize that what you want in your life is what complements yourself. A relationship between a man and a woman...I think Verity adored Clotilde in an almost romantic way."

  • Sheera and Drypettis had one in their schoolgirl days in Barbara Hambly's Sun Wolf And Starhawk novel The Ladies of Mandrigyn. Sheera got over it, although she still considered Drypettis a friend. Until Drypettis went all Yandere, anyhow.
  • Sara and Becky in A Little Princess. It's also apparent in the 1995 movie adaption.

Live-Action TV

  • Act 30 of Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon (broadcast in Japan on 5/8/2004) includes a moment where one of Usagi's female classmates declares in front of a witness that she is in love with Usagi. There is no hint in the reactions of either Usagi or the witness that this is in any way strange or perverted.
  • The relationship between Sam and Carly in iCarly can be interpreted this way. In the episode "iMake Sam Girlier", Sam's Unstoppable Rage is triggered after a bully pushes Carly down.
  • A comfortably non-sexual (well, it depends on who you ask) version appears in the BBC version of the Merlin legend, where the peasant Gwen acts as maid, best friend and general flower-bringer to her mistress Morgana.
  • Serena and Blair on Gossip Girl are really close and oftentimes put each other above their respective male love interests in importance without a second thought. They call each other "sisters", but the vaguely lesbian nature of their relationship is even lampshaded in the series by Chuck. Of course, he's one to talk...
    • It's also acknowledged by the actresses, who in the Season 3 gag reel jokingly pretend to make out in their Trapped In An Elevator scene - which actually fits the tone of the episode quite well.
  • Bennett and Caroline in Dollhouse. Even after Bennett finds out Caroline was only using her to get access into a laboratory, she agrees to help her.
  • Claire and Gretchen in Heroes. They've now graduated to Schoolgirl Bisexuals
  • Willow and Tara's relationship on Buffy the Vampire Slayer looked like it might take this form at first. However, by the end of the season, it was pretty clear the trope in question was being subverted hard.
  • Rocky and Ce Ce in Shake It Up show elements of this, especially in the episodes "Model It Up" and "Break It Up".
    • Shake It Up! Was pretty much a Spiritual Successor to Hannah Montana which featured Miley and Lilly. The finale was loaded with it, so much if one watched that episode alone, and missed the scene where their boyfriends show up, they might think were in a relationship
  • Max and Caroline have something like this in Two Broke Girls.

Music

  • Lisa and Chelsea in Belle & Sebastian's song "She's Losing It" seem to be like this.

Theater

  • Two of the women auditioning in A Chorus Line admit that they used to practice kissing with their best friends so they'd be ready for when they started dating boys.
  • Galinda and Elphaba from Wicked. They have gotten the Word of Gay treatment now, though, so this trope would be averted.

Video Games

  • In Harvest Moon Sprite Station: For Girl this is shown to great lengths. You can marry one of the 4 Special Girls from the boy version (Leia, Witch Princess, Harvest Goddess, Keria) except you don't marry them, and they aren't your wife. You Best Friend them, and they're your Best Friend. It doesn't help that their dialogue is exactly the same in both versions. However, Natsume, when translating it to create Harvest Moon Cute, took this feature out, but left the heart best friend events in.
    • Most likely due to the fact they're needed to pass important milestones in the game, if you want to complete it completely.
  • Project Justice, the sequel to Rival Schools, drops hints of this in the Seijyun High ending, showing Akira and Yurika to be very happy to finally see each other again.
  • Fire Emblem has Lyn and Florina, who share an ending where they both return to Lyn's home on the plains. At one stage, Florina even says that she loves Lyn.
    • Other possibilities include: Florina with either Ninian, Nino or Serra, and Rebecca and Nino.
  • Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones gives us Amelia and Neimi, and Eirika with Tana or L'Arachel.
  • Tales of Legendia has the female lead, Shirley, become extremely friendly with another girl of her own race, Fenimore. Their relationship is Les Yay to the most sincere letter, and Fenimore's death, along with being outright rejected by the man she loves, is what ultimately causes Shirley to snap.
  • Rita and Estelle from Tales of Vesperia suggest in a cutscene in the Play Station 3 version that they wish to remain together (and even raise children together!), be it interpreted as Heterosexual Life Partners or otherwise.
    • Yuri describes it perfectly when he says, "Come on, Ristelle!" in one skit.
  • Latooni and Princess Shine's relationship has strong hints of this in Super Robot Wars Original Generation. It's probably worth noting that the series also has an example of the stereotypical connotations of immaturity lesbianism has in Japan. The somewhat childish and flighty 20-something Excellen Browning, though in a comitted relationship with fellow mecha pilot Kyosuke Nanbu, often flirts with other female characters (male ones, too) and has an especially strong girl-crush on SRW Alpha's Viletta.
  • Jennifer and Wendy in the backstory of Rule of Rose. The only thing that keeps it from entering into Schoolgirl Lesbians territory is the fact that they're maybe ten years old at this point, and despite of the game's reputation it keeps things tasteful in this respect.

Visual Novels

  • Hanako and Lilly in Katawa Shoujo. Hisao even thinks at one point in Lilly's route that their relationship seems to go beyond normal friendship, and the two use "love" to describe their feelings for one another, although it seems to be more of a mother-daughter type situation than romantic. Still...
    • Funny story, in development a lesbian route was in the works, but was scrapped.
  • Solfège: Sweet Harmony is an odd Visual Novel / Rhythm Game hybrid which pretty much exemplifies this trope.

Web Comics

  • Monsterful has Topaz Gem and Samantha Thing, two 19 years old Monsters that show shades and signs of it, like this page, this one and this other one as examples., but it's stated that they're just very good and close friends.
    • Topaz Succubi-like personality often pumps this up to Les Yay moments like in this page or in this other one.(at the bottom).
  • Gunnerkrigg Court has Zimmy and Gamma. Zimmy's reality-warping powers are uncontrollable except when she's around Gamma. Even though Zimmy's normally rude and dislikes everyone, she's outright stated that she loves Gamma, and indeed seems to be happy only in her presence. Their relationship is not all it seems, though. Gamma speaks only Polish, and communicates with Zimmy telepathically, with Zimmy providing translations for her - to make sure Gamma never leaves her, Zimmy intentionally mistranslates what other people say, to make Gamma think all the other students think she's stupid and ugly.
    • Hinted at with Annie and Kat - they're very close, and certain strips like this make it seem like they might be more than just friends. It took Word of God to state that they aren't kissing in the fifth panel, but that seems to be all the author's willing to say on that subject.
    • Then there are inseparable former fairies known as Red and Blue - they even chose to become humans together. It's hard to tell what goes on between them (in part thanks to their wildly non-human background), but both act Tsundere to each other (in different ways) and other Foley kids (other immigrants from the Wood) consider them "such good friends".
  • In Red String Fuuko finds love after she moves to Toyko, Hanae. When Hanae's mother discovers their relationship she chastises them telling that they need to grow out of it because it "Won't get them anywhere" (i.e. won't get them married) clearly disregarding their love as a "Class S" relationship.
  • Kiel'ndia and Naal'suul. Enough said.
  • Bubbles and Jenny seem to have established one of these in Powerpuff Girls Doujinshi almost at first sight.
  • El Goonish Shive stays connected to its anime roots.
    • Nanase Kitsune feared what her mother's reaction would be when she realised Nanase is a lesbian, which turned out to be dismissing the fact as being "just a phase" that she'd "grow out of". Which seems to imply Mrs. Kitsune sees the love being Ellen and Nanase being a class s relationship.
    • Even before that, Justin told concerned Nanase why she shouldn't worry much:

I've seen supposedly straight girls act more affectionate with each other than sailors fresh to port with their girlfriends.

Western Animation

  • With a slight stretch, Tabitha/"Boom Boom" and Amara/"Magma" can be seen as enacting this trope in X-Men: Evolution.
    • It looked for a second that Rogue and Risty Wilde were good candidates for this trope, but it took a turn for the Squick when it was revealed that Risty was Mystique in disguise, planning to use her and the X-Men for her own plans... and Rogue's mother.
  • Courage the Cowardly Dog. Kitty and Bunny from "The Mask"... enough said.
  • Lisa and Juliet in The Simpsons episode, Lisa The Drama Queen as a parody of Heavenly Creatures.
  • Katie and Sadie from Total Drama are "romantic" this way to Sickeningly Sweethearts levels.
  • Much of the My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic Fanon.
    • A slightly more in-universe example would be the backstory with Rainbow Dash and her old classmate Gilda. While their relationship was most likely more platonic than "romantic" (this being both a western show and a kids show), they can easily be slotted into every other point, since neither had any other friends to hang out with and they started growing apart after they both dropped out of school.

Real Life

  • This is somewhat similar to the "LUG", or "Lesbian Until Graduation", phenomenon common to American universities, particularly all-female liberal-arts schools. As the name suggests, the graduate moves on to more permanent, heterosexual relationships afterwards. The reaction to LUGs in the "real" lesbian community varies from amused tolerance to outright hostility.
  • Much closer to the Japanese model, this sort of thing does go on in at least some single-sex schools in the US. Girls develop very close—even obsessive—friendships, hug and kiss each other, and so on - without anyone assuming that it means they're actually lesbians, but instead "just a phase" that they're likely to grow out of... Statistically, 9 out of 10 does. At least as far as the emotional level goes.
    • This isn't unheard of in mixed-sex schools, either. Friendships between little girls can be very intense.
  • This Book By Lillian Faderman shows that 17th - 19th Century Britain had the same attitude to Romantic Friendship as modern Japan. Aristo wants his sons to inherit the Estate. He wants the Countess to take female lovers. If the Countess takes male lovers who knows who the child's father is? Britain only believed that Romantic Friendship is Exclusively Evil after the preachings of Freud.
  • Oprah Winfrey's long time friendship with best friend Gayle King prompting her to humorously declare to Barbara Walters "I am not lesbian, I am not even kinda lesbian"
  • Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez. They were really affectionate with each other., then broke it up for a while, and later they rekindled their friendship.
  • Bella Thorne and Zendaya Coleman's friendship can be interpreted as this. One could think that if they kept going like this, one of them might have to reveal someday (or not) that one of them (or both) would be a lesbian.
    • It doesn't help that they call each other "boo".
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