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#and clearly rhyme's dreams are big if they were her entry fee and were the key to the portal in ddd
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There’s a part of me that wants to write Joshua and Rhyme fanfiction again (but not as a pairing).
Because, listen: I think us Joshyme fans were onto something, back in the day, in thinking these two would be good for each other in some ways. Because, yeah: Sunshine Girl Rhyme always saying positive things would probably help out this jaded god. But Joshua would actually show Rhyme that some people aren’t worth it? And to not be naïve and let herself be taken advantage of? It works. It works well, imo. 
I think the only thing you need to watch out for, was when we were accidentally making Rhyme too perfect and a Mary-Sue.
But there are definitely reasons you could write Joshua and Rhyme interacting, imo, since he brought her back to life when he really didn’t have to (since she lost the Game). And many theorize that Rhyme comes back to life without her dreams (since she didn’t win), and I’ve at least read one fic where she confronted Joshua for that reason.
And in Dream Drop Distance, Rhyme seems to like Joshua. And Joshua insults all the guys in that game (Sora, Riku, Neku, and Beat), but not the girls (Shiki and Rhyme).
There’s also that part in Another Day when Joshua figures out that Rhyme’s the spy, and she says she knew that he was the smart one. LOL
#back on my joshyme bullshit in 2021? it's more likely than you think. but just as friendship#I want to see these two as friends dangit. man if Neo gives this to us or something i'lldie#I almost died with the Joshua and rhyme interaction in ddd#twewy spoilers#spoilers#the world ends with you spoilers#basically they're a more extreme version of neku and Shiki. but not romantic#though a lot of people think maybe neku could help Joshua this way given the time and chance. and that works too#I guess Joshua saved her life in ddd too. like he saved neku shiki and beat's#and even though it wasn't his intention... he maybe kept her safe from the dream eater boss#when he grabbed her to get her dreams to use for the portal#and rhyme seemed to feel safe with him in ddd#she also laughed at all his jokes. despite some of them being at her brother who she loves' expense#and seemed excited when he joined them in the ddd credits#there's also that whole spiel Joshua one into about dreams and dreamers in ddd#and clearly rhyme's dreams are big if they were her entry fee and were the key to the portal in ddd#and Nomura said that part of the reason they put rhyme in ddd was to better figure out her personality for a sequel#so maybe her seeing Joshua as a friend could be canon#and joshyme used to be so big that it was even mentioned on the twewy tv tropes page#maybe Square Enix noticed this and decided to do something with it#companies do sometimes do this#like when the madoka team put Charlotte in rebellion after all the fan ideas about her#though there was a bit more to it than that#there's really a lot that can be done with Joshua and rhyme if one thinks about it
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https://archiveofourown.org/works/33155107
Of all the people in the Hachiko Group, aside from Neku… the person that Joshua had always valued the most, was Rhyme. Neo spoilers.
The Joshyme here is platonic, but you can see it as romantic if you want.
Beam of Sunshine
Of all the people in the Hachiko Group, aside from Neku… the person that Joshua had always valued the most, was Rhyme.
And so, he supposed it was a good thing he’d brought her back to life, when he really hadn’t had to, then.
And there were a few reasons for that he did love her… It was for the fact that the clever girl could keep up with him (so much so that she had said she’d known he was the smart one in the Tin Pin universe, when he’d rightly called her out on being a traitor)… for her laughing at his jokes at her brother’s expense (though she did clearly love Beat more than anything)… and since they could think alike sometimes.
Joshua had heard Rhyme thinking during her week of the Game, that everyone in Shibuya’s values were trying to come in the loudest, much like how he had later said it was impossible for people to understand each other.
…Rhyme was also nice. Much too kind for her own good, really, and he hated to see when she got taken advantage of (and almost wanted to give her a stern talking to when these moments happened). And Joshua knew that that was a lot of the reason he adored about her, since part of the reason he’d wanted to destroy Shibuya was because of its sin, after all.
But the reason he was making himself known to the girl now? And preparing to compliment her? It was because he owed her, that’s why.
At the moment, Rhyme was buying herself an ice cream cone at Miyashita Park. And while Josh himself didn’t like the stuff, he thought Rhyme certainly deserved the treat, if she herself did. “All work and no play made Rhyme a dull girl,” like she had told Beat earlier in the week.
Making sure that no one was watching him, Joshua sat on the bench beside the younger Bito sibling, willed himself into the RG, and touched Rhyme’s hand, so that she would know he was there.
…Though he supposed he shouldn’t have done the latter, because that seemed to startle the girl more than anything. She nearly jumped forty feet into the air, Joshua thought (quite impressive, for a non-flier) and her heart rate had gone quite high. Joshua was almost worried she’d have to start playing the Game again, if it shot up any more, and that just wouldn’t do.
He held up a hand and offered her a small smile to try and calm her down. “Sorry to startle you, Raimu. I admit, I could have gone about that all a bit better… This whole thing I’m about to do is largely out of character, and I’m out of my depth.”
“C-can I help you, then?” Rhyme breathed. Her heart calming down, as she caught her breath and cautiously took a seat beside the Composer.
Joshua could hardly blame her for her caution. Because while they had hung-out a little bit in the past, it had been three years since they had seen each other last, really. And he doubted she remembered when she’d been soul fragments in Traverse Town.
“After all, two people working as opposed to one lightens the load!” Rhyme carried on.
Joshua smirked and “hmmed” at her comment. Because he could have expected that she would use an adage, but for some reason he never would have guessed she would have directed one at him. Was he becoming too human for her to have done that, or was he not enough human, that he thought the little ray of sunshine wouldn’t try to win him over with her words, too?
“Normally, Raimu, I would take you up on the offer. And it’s quite nice of you to ask… But not now, when what I’m here for is quite simple. Just know that I’m here to tell you… I’m proud of you. And these words don’t leave my mouth easily. I don’t think I’ve ever even spoken so candidly with Neku. But… while I don’t know if I necessarily want you hacking my Game ever again, young lady.”
And somehow, Rhyme had it within her to first look guilty for what she’d done, but then also challenging—as if thinking that she would do it again, if she needed to—and Joshua, despite himself, found himself respecting her all the more for it. He resisted the urge to pat her head, for the good little girl she was.
But she was so much more than that, too, wasn’t she? And that was why he was here.
Forming an arch with his fingers, and placing it over his forehead, Yoshiya continued on. “But you really helped to save the day. Shibuya would not be standing now, were it not for your efforts. And that is something. Hacking is not the dream you originally had. You lost your dreams—your original Entry Fee—but you didn’t wallow in despair, but instead filled in that hole with something new, and saved the day when duty called… And if I didn’t know any better, I’d be thinking that maybe I should be calling upon you when the UG needs someone, and not Neku anymore.”
Rhyme gasped at that. And while Joshua was very much not human—especially not now. The Composer had come out to play at this moment. Joshua had never meant to make that proposition to Rhyme… and to get “creepy”, and so “god of death-like”, as it were, but perhaps Yoshiya had all along—he could allow her being so human as to be shocked, as he tried to get a handle on this horrible situation he’d just screwed up, when he’d just come to give the poor kid a solid… not give her cardiac arrest. Really.
After she had gotten her breath once more, it seemed it was Rhyme’s turn to surprise Joshua. The girl’s ice cream was starting to melt: again, this was Joshua’s own fault, for having such a conversation with Rhyme, when she was eating such a substance. And he comforted himself in the fact that it was vanilla ice cream (white), at least, matching his shirt. If the disgusting, overly-sweet gelatinous stuff got on his top, as Raimu leaned towards him now, he should be able to get the stain out with his powers, just fine.
“…Not that I’d ever really want to go back to anything involving the Game, if I had the choice, Joshua. I enjoy being a hacker, thank you very much. And I think I might try to work for the NPA… I have been thinking about it some… and if it ever came down to it, I wouldn’t mind trying to ascend to try and help everyone, if I needed to. But only then! Because where there’s no light, be the light, right? Kind of like I was the other da-.”
And here Joshua had to put a hand to the girl’s lips to keep her from finishing that sentence. What a minx Raimu Bito was! Who would have guessed it?! Because, yes: the lonely part of him would have been far too happy to find a way to make her into an angel now, so he could have someone with him forever; it was the same way that he desperately wanted Neku to be his Conductor.
Well, Joshua supposed he deserved this temptation for getting as off-track as he had. He tried to grab control now—as he got off the bench, backed away from Rhyme, and bowed to her slightly… which was all too weird, because even this was how Japanese politeness worked (Joshua knew it well), he couldn’t help feeling, she should have been bowing to him, and not the other way around. But he would stifle that feeling. “I, uhh… apologize I guess, Rhyme Bito. Thank you again for your assistance. But do keep out of the RNS, unless I specifically ask.”
Rhyme had sobered up now, too. And was somehow gracefully licking at all the melting spots on her ice cream cone, to try and salvage it so she wouldn’t have a complete mess, before she waved at him, “And thank youfor showing up and helping us, Josh! I know Neku doesn’t show it that much—still more than he used to back in the day, though—but it meant more to him than you know… And thanks for what you did for Shoka and Rindo, too! Don’t be a stranger!”
And Rhyme beamed at Josh, being very much like the ray of sunshine he’d referred to her earlier.
And so… Joshua decided that maybe for that—for her… for all of the Hachiko Group, really—he could try and keep the life-and-death things to a minimum, and be a normal person people would appreciate around them, and show up to these events that Neku and Rhyme had invited him to.
“Yes, Rhyme… thank you, indeed.”
Author’s Note: So, for those who don't know, Joshyme was a pretty big deal in the fandom, back in the day.... 
And I guess I've brought it back in the year of our Lord 2021. But this might be the last fic I write for them. Or it might not. We'll see.And I kind of wrote this by accident? I wanted to write some Bito sibling stuff... but that'll come later. 
But Joshua and Rhyme's possible relationship (platonic) has always fascinated me, because I feel there's some interesting stuff there. And I think Joshua could potentially be proud of her for what she did, even after she lost her dreams.
Hope you all enjoyed?
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