Part 4: The Honey Bee Inn

Of all the areas in Final Fantasy VII, the Honey Bee Inn ranks as one of the most memorable. The staggering amount of unused material here serves as a tribute to its legacy as a fan favorite. Make room in your hearts, folks, because after reading this and watching the embedded videos, you will love this place even more.

There are a total of seven videos in this article showcasing the secrets of the Honey Bee Inn. If you want to see the Japanese rendition of events, you can find them in this playlist. Watching the videos is not necessary in order to understand the article, but reading the article helps give some context to the videos.

Unlike previous articles, a great deal of time will be spent focusing on map analysis. We’ll begin by remembering how the Honey Bee Inn looks in the final game, then comparing it with its older design.

Honey Bee Inn – Final Version


ONNA_2
ONNA_52

ONNA_52
ONNA_4
ONNA_5

ONNA_5
MRKT3

The area consists of the entrance (MRKT3), the hub room (ONNA_4), the dressing room (ONNA_2), the customer room used for both eastern entrances (ONNA_5) and the customer room for both western entrances (ONNA_52). The interior Honey Bee Inn fields are known as “ONNA”, or “women” in Japanese. Normally ONNA_5 is superimposed with a second layer that is meant to make it appear like you are viewing the room through a keyhole. You are never able to roam this room freely and instead only ever see it partially. Quite a renovation occurred before this collection of hexagonal honey comb rooms reached its final stage…!

Honey Bee Inn – The Original Design

First Floor

ONNA_2
ONNA_1
ONNA_3
MRKT3


Second Floor

ONNA_5

ONNA_52
ONNA_4
[Closed Room]

[Closed Room]
ONNA_6

Here, we can spot three unused fields: the lobby (ONNA_1) and waiting room (ONNA_3) of the first floor, and the room for employees (ONNA_6) on the second floor. Via cheat codes, one can enter these rooms, but only in the first Japanese release. Walking up the stairs in the lobby was to lead you to the northern door of the hub room (ONNA_4). As you’ll notice, the red color matches the lobby stairs more than the floor of the dressing room does. In fact, if you open the door of the dressing room (ONNA_2) in the final game, you can spot wall stripes that match the unused lobby. The pattern is nothing like that of the hub room.

The placement of the employee room can be deduced by looking at the texture of the floor on the southern entrance and matching it with the unused field. The distribution of the two customer rooms, ONNA_5 & ONNA_52, is more uncertain. The unused text implies that one was never able to take even a peek inside either of the two eastern rooms, which is why I placed no rooms adjacent to those doors.

Returning to the floor color and texture once more, the opening to the upper western room shows a redder tone than its lower counterpart, a better match for ONNA_5 than ONNA_52, and thus the reason I placed the map there and simply mirrored it.

Further analysis shows that the hub room, ONNA_4, once had a different design which we unfortunately have no footage of.

On a miscellaneous note, the designers made a gross mistake with the doors of the Honey Bee Inn. They open in one direction on one field only to open in the other direction in another, despite the door edge occasionally being on the opposite side! This is true for both the original and final design. It certainly boggles the mind how this was overlooked.

In summary, be aware that the design of the second floor is speculatory and incomplete, while the first floor presents no question marks.

The Garbled Honey Bee Inn Text

Japanese is written with three writing systems: kanji, katakana, and hiragana. These “alphabets” are stored within tables in the game’s code. While the location of each katakana and hiragana character in the game code remained the same throughout development, new kanji characters were evidentially inserted in the kanji table closer to FFVII’s completion, displacing the characters that formerly occupied their spot. This causes dialogue written at an earlier time to be displayed incorrectly. Here is the story of the work that went into making the text of ONNA_1 and ONNA_6 translatable.

When we started this project, BrutalAl gave me complete rips of the script from both Japanese releases, even providing a quick method to compare any two lines of text to see whether or not they were identical. As you may recall, a set of fields that all contain the same text is known as a “duplicate group”, even if a piece of text used in one field was never intended for use in any of the others. Thanks to my own documentation recording which field files belonged in which duplicate group, I was able to compare each group’s files in order to find minute differences between them.

The purpose from the beginning was to isolate any textual differences and then send these pieces to GlitterBerri for translation. However, when looking at two specific field files from the first Japanese release, I noticed that despite being part of two otherwise clean duplicate groups, these fields differed in numerous ways. On reviewing the files, JUNBIN21 and WHITEBG1, GlitterBerri noticed that these two fields contained erroneous kanji. What this meant was that we had isolated cases of messed up Japanese text inside duplicate groups, where we could compare the wrong kanji with the correct text. Had we just discovered a key, a Rosetta Stone, so to speak, to help unearth the true text of the two Honey Bee Inn fields?

After applying the key, GlitterBerri found that the text now actually made sense! A significant portion, although not everything, was corrected. With the combined effort of GlitterBerri and her Japanese friend Hiro, the rest of the kanji could be manually replaced using context as a clue. Now only a handful lines remain confusing. If we ever find a way to figure out the rest of the kanji, the remainder will be fixed.

Personally, I am awe-struck by the results of this combination of resources.

Without further testing your patience, I invite you to taste the nectar of the unused Honey Bee Inn scenarios, starting with the entrance to this perverted fun house.


Entrance to the Honey Bee Inn (MRKT3)

In the video above and in screenshots below, two NPCs are missing from the entrance: the chubby old man and the guard who checks for your membership card. These two characters fill roles that do not fit the early sequence of events planned for the Honey Bee Inn, so I removed them both.

The receptionist in the unused lobby, for example, will be checking for your card and deny you entrance to the upper floor if you do not have it. When the lobby was scrapped, the card check was moved outside the building, meaning you could no longer enter the brothel without one.

Secondly, in the final game the chubby old man moves the plot forward by telling you where Tifa is. After he has told you this, the scene where Aeris suggests that Cloud should dress up like a girl can be triggered outside of Corneo’s mansion.

However, in both the unused lobby and waiting room text, Cloud can hear what Tifa is doing and where from other NPCs. Although none contain an unused prompt that moves the plot forward (something that once changed PPV from 188 to 190), it is obvious that the developers experimented with having other characters be responsible for telling Cloud where Tifa was and leading players to the cross-dressing shenanigans.

My choice to remove the guard and the chubby old man is to help you visualize that these characters’ present roles do not fit their past ones, rather than being a statement that the characters were added later on. We can’t be sure when they were implemented. What we can be sure of is that nothing was to block the entrance, and removing the guard is all that was needed to open your path.

The Return of Motomu Toriyama’s Room

It’s no coincidence that we now revisit BLACKBG2, the room of Motomu Toriyama, an event planner of FFVII. This guy was not only responsible for the Sector 7 events (and no doubt had a hand in the unused scenes therein) but also planned out the Honey Bee Inn scenarios.

Talking to the Bee girl (titled “dancer” in the game code) and selecting “After All” sends you to MRKT3 without manipulating any other variables. Thanks to this, you can start a game early on, use that save, and enter the field before you’ve even visited Wall Market for the first time. In addition, talking to the Bee girl will change the menu/dialogue window color to pink, green and beige instead of shades of blue. Nice touch there, Toriyama.

The scene can also be triggered by activating an unused border to the far left. More details on their differences after the scene.

Right Trigger, Debug Route Scene Activated by Left Trigger
AERITH Aeris:
「CLOUD……!!」 Cloud……!!
「ま・さ・か……」 You’ve GOTTA be kidding…
A: A:  ここは俺にまかせておけ A:  Leave this place to me.
B: B:  ここにTIFAがいるんだ、きっと B:  Tifa’s here, I’m sure of it.


-5 Love Points to Aeris.
A: AERITH Aeris:
「ふ~~~ん! Hmmmmm!
 そういう態度にでますかねえ」 So that’s how you’re gonna be.


No change in Love Points. Aeris giggles.
B: AERITH Aeris:
「女装に必要ななにかがね。 You’ll need something for cross-dressing.
 ……ふ~~ん」 …Hmmm.

There is no reason for Aeris to mention cross-dressing this early on in the story when the two have yet to figure out where Tifa is. Were the writers still experimenting with a proper transition to the cross-dressing quest?

If you triggered the scene via the debug room route, the sequence ends here. Walking up to Aeris will not make her rejoin you. Cloud can, in fact, walk right through her. Obviously, the game just killed her and turned her into a ghost.

The other version, triggered by activating a border further towards the left, does not end the sequence and more script can later be triggered. Although it is technically possible to mod back the later scenes to happen at the border to the right, observing the programming strongly hints that the idea to have the scenes trigger in this border was scrapped in favor of the invisible line to the left, the reason why the remaining scenes can be triggered there.

Before continuing with the flagged text, here is the unflagged text placed in between the flagged entries.

AERITH Aeris:
「はやかったのね、CLOUD! That was fast, Cloud!
 どうだった? よかった?」 How’d it go? Any luck?
C:  よかったよ C:  I got lucky.
D:  TIFAはいなかった D:  Tifa wasn’t there.


C: AERITH Aeris:
「あ……!」 Oh…!
「なんか、想像しちゃった。 I can imagine.
 さ、いきましょ!」 Well, let’s go!


D: AERITH Aeris:
「最初からわかってたくせに。 You knew that from the start.
 ま、いいけど…… Oh well…
 わたしもけっこう楽しんでるし」 I’m having fun too.


AERITH Aeris:
「あ、CLOUD、いいにおい! Oh, Cloud, you smell great!
 どうだった?」 How’d it go?
E:  楽しかった E:  It was fun.
F:  関係ないだろ F:  None of your business.


F: AERITH Aeris:
「あっ!! Oh!!
 なんか、ごまかしてる!」 Come on!


E: AERITH Aeris:
「わたしといるよりも?」 More fun than being with me?
G:  まあ、そんなところだ G:  Something like that.
H:  ごめんよ H:  Sorry.


G: AERITH Aeris:
「ふ~ん!!」 Hmph!!


H: AERITH Aeris:
「気にしない気にしない! Don’t worry about it!
 じゃ、いきましょ!」 Alright, let’s go!


AERITH Aeris:
「あっ……!! Oh…!!
 もういいの? CLOUD」 Are you finished, Cloud?
I:  ああ…… I:  Yeah…
J:  まだ…… J:  Not quite…


I: AERITH Aeris:
「うん! よかった! OK! Great!
 じゃ、いきましょ!」 Well, let’s go!


J: AERITH Aeris:
「なんだ……。 What…
 わかってくれたと、思ったのに。 I thought you knew
 わたしの気持ち…」 how I felt.

After the previous flagged piece, rejoin with Aeris, leave the field then come back, cross the invisible border, and she will split from you and speak again.

AERITH Aeris:
「やっぱり、いくんだ……。 So, you’re really going…
 ちょっと、がっかりかな」 I’m a little disappointed.

Enter the Honey Bee Inn, go back to MRKT3, rejoin with Aeris then approach the Inn yet again to make her split from you. In the Japanese version, the select hand is positioned two rows too high!

AERITH Aeris:
「CLOUD……。 Cloud…
 わたし、待ってるね」 I’ll be waiting.
K: K:  怒ってるのかい? K:  Are you angry?
L: L:  人探しの基本は聞きこみだからな L:  The first step to finding someone is getting information.


K: AERITH Aeris:
「ううん……べっつに。 Mm… nope.
 いつものことだから」 You’re always like this.


K: AERITH Aeris:
「それに、CLOUD、待ってるのって Besides, Cloud,
 楽しいの」 waiting is fun!
「考えるんだ、いろんなこと。 I’ve been thinking. It’s weird,
 変だよね、まだ出会ったばかりなのに」 isn’t it? We’ve only just met.


L:

AERITH Aeris:
「うん……。 Right…
 帰ってきて、はやく」 Come back soon.


AERITH Aeris:
「満足した、もう?」 Satisfied?
   ☞ごめんな、またせて    ☞Sorry to keep you waiting.
   ☞もうすこし、まっててくれ    ☞Just a little longer.

Assuming that no replies are misplaced, the replies to this unflagged piece was never written or previous responses were to be reused.


The next scene takes place after the cross-dressing sidequest has started (PPV=191). All that is required to trigger this, aside from activating the borders, is to delete a line of code that prevents Aeris’ script from running.

AERITH Aeris:
「CLOUD!! Cloud!!
 やっぱり……」 I knew it…
M:  TIFAを助けるためだ M:  It’s to help Tifa.
N:  感じるんだ…… N:  I feel it…


M: CLOUD Cloud:
「TIFAを助けるためなんだ。 It’s to help Tifa.
 わかってくれるよな」 You understand, right?


M: AERITH Aeris:
「な~るほどっ! Oh, I see how it is!
 言いたいことはそれだけ?」 Is that all you want to say?


N: {Cloud} CLOUD
“Looks like I need to go inside 「ここに女装に必要ななにかがある。
to complete my disguise.”  俺にはわかるんだ」


N: AERITH Aeris:
「……はいはい、いってらっしゃい。 …Yeah, yeah. Good luck.
 興味ある年ごろだもんね」 You’re the right age to be interested in that stuff.

Cloud’s line “Looks like I need to go inside to complete my disguise.” is the PC version of what was a famous mistranslation in the English PSX game, where Cloud says “……Hmm. That’s how you’ll fool them.”. It is used in the scene where you enter the Honey Bee Inn in the final game, but also here in this scrapped piece where the membership card check had (probably) not yet been moved to the outside.

Unused Version Used Version


Let us move on to some dialogue by the NPCs. Mention how at one point you can talk to them but nothing happens.

Chubby Old Man
“Welcome!! 「いらっしゃい!!
Even unpopular dweebs like you  もてない君でも、ここ蜜蜂の館でなら
may meet their destiny here!!”  運命の子に出会えるはず!!」
“Pretty good, huh? Ha ha ha!” 「よかったねえ、ゲヒゲヒッ!」

The chubby old man says the same line in the final game, with the difference that it is normally followed by him talking about Tifa. This can thus be identified as his talk-to line before he was assigned to tell you about Tifa and strenghtens the idea that he was implemented early on.


Chubby Old Man
“Ha ha ha !!” 「ゲヒッゲヒッ!!」 Ha ha ha !!
“All the young bucks gather and 「若いもんがよってたかって Youths ganging up
deceive this innocent young girl…”  な~んも知らないかわいい娘っ子を to trick naive
 たぶらかす……」 little girls…
“Ohhh boy!! It’s healthy, 「ウ~ン!! 健全健全!! Ohhh boy!! It’s healthy,
it’s wholesome!!”  若いうちはこうでなくっちゃいかん」 it’s wholesome!!
“You gotta be like this You gotta be like this
when you’re young!” when you’re young!


Johnny ジョニー
“What kind of person are you!?” 「あんたって人は!!」
“You stay out all night at {Aeris}’s 「AERITHちゃんの家に泊まって
and don’t come home till morning!”  朝帰りなんだって!」
“Uhh…little {Aeris}… 「ううっ…AERITHちゃん…。
I, I’m…heartbroken again.”  俺って、またハートブレイク」


Johnny (most likely)
“I heard. You two were gettin’ chummy 「聞きましたよ。 I heard all about it.
in the park together.”  そこの公園でいちゃいちゃしてたんだって」 You two were gettin’ chummy in that park.
“Oh man!! 「あんなにうれしそうな顔で Now you can boast about it
Enter the boyfriend.”  じまん話されるとなあ。 with that big smile on your face.
 やけますよ、じっさい」 I’m actually jealous.

Eyebrows are raised. Johnny somehow knows about where Cloud has been all this time. Was he stalking them or does word simply spread fast in the slums? He speaks of Aeris like he knows her, or at least knows of her. Perhaps she is famous for her flower selling business.

Johnny? Red-Haired Guy?
「チッ!! Tch!
 彼氏のおでましかよ」 So, you’re her boyfriend.
「おいっ! きみ。 Hey, you!
 彼女待たせて、遊んでるなんて Don’t you think it’s a little stupid to be playing
 非常識だと思わないかい」 around and makin’ yer girl wait?
One text entry was deleted from this field in the English game. We can’t be sure of which it was, but looking at the text placement this piece of dialogue is a good candidate.


{Aeris} AERITH
“They bought lots of flowers from me.” 「お花たくさん
 買ってもらっちゃった」

If in accordance with the continuity of the final game, this is a reaction intended for when Cloud comes back from the Honey Bee Inn. It contradicts the final scenario somewhat, where she charges a high price for her flowers (except for Johnny who pays the standard 1 gil, just like Cloud can do earlier in the game).
The final scenario might have been added for the comedy of her demanding more gil from people she dislikes, thus causing the above line to be relegated to the dust bin.

If you return to the area after Scarlet leaves the gas chamber in Junon (PPV≥1008), a Shinra grunt appears at the entrance.

Shinra grunt
“Heee… 「イヒヒ……
The Shinra have occupied this shop!”  この店は神羅が占領した!」


“This shop is now under Shinra rule.” 「占領です」

The unflagged line may represent a sign that the player was to read, or a simplified version of the Shinra grunt’s final line.

Unknown NPC
“Mmm? 「ん……?
That’s too bad.”  ざんねんだね」
“This used to be
where the Honey Bee Inn was!!”
“Now, it’s a barrack 「ここは、蜜蜂の館だった場所!!
for the Shinra soldiers.”  いまじゃ、神羅兵の館さ」

No other NPCs are present if we return to this scene at PPV≥1008, so which character this dialogue belongs to is unknown.

Time to enter the unused lobby! Despite this field eluding FFVII fans for many years, it’s worth mentioning that an isolated line of code related to the Honey Bee girl in Motomu Toriyama’s debug room contain an unused command for jumping to ONNA_1. Aside from this, no other debug commands exist, used or unused, that send you to the actual interior of the Honey Bee Inn.


The Lobby (ONNA_1)


This field is incomplete in many ways. Not only is the kanji hopelessly jumbled, no exits/entrances are programmed into this field. Walking up the stairs, trying to go back outside, and entering either door won’t take you anywhere else. In fact, the doors don’t even have any collision programmed into them, so they can’t be opened by Cloud’s touch.

The slapdash setup of the field does not end there, for players will notice that more often than not Cloud is able to roam the field freely even when talking to an NPC, when he’s normally paralysed as long as the dialogue boxes are present.

All errors aside, ONNA_1 is a treasure trove of secrets and one might argue that its incompleteness is part of its charm. The fact that it can only be visited in the first Japanese release of the game, via cheat codes, seems to enhance its exotic nature. Before delving into the text within this field, let us look at the text that can be seen on the map!

The television displays a total of four different images. Here are those screens, showcasing from left to right the order in which they appear:

The Tifa we know has red eyes, so even though these girls look similar to Tifa, especially the one to the left, none can be her unless the field designers made a mistake or Tifa is wearing colored contacts.

♥蜜蜂の館♥ ♥Honey Bee Inn♥
すべしゃるコース♥ Special Courses ♥
30分コース 30 Minute Course
150分コース 150 Minute Course
美少女との語らい Chat with beautiful women!
わたしの巣箱へいらっしゃい♥ Welcome to my nest ♥
はちみつはいかが? How ’bout some honey?


Here is the rest of the text seen on the map. Not all the text can be read because, even in a clean image rip, the resolution is too low.

今日の女の子 Today’s Girls
はいっちゃダメ♥ No Entry ♥

The text beneath each photo is impossible to read, but according to one of the field’s NPCs, at least one of these girls is supposed to be Tifa. If we look for faces that most closely resemble Tifa’s normal design, the two upper right photos appear to be the best candidates.

お二階へどうぞ Go on up to the second floor.


受付 Reception

The text on the stairs is a reflection of the fans at the front of the room.

待合室 Waiting Room


???・同業者・スカウト・未成年 ???, other brothel owners, scouts, and minors
お断りします。 forbidden.
引き抜いた場合 Poaching hostesses will
「10万ギル」 result in a fine
の罰金です。 of 100,000 gil.

FFVII fans can rest assured knowing that the Honey Bee Inn is a legitimate business.


みつばち美人 Honey Bee Beauties
迎歓 Welcome

The welcome mat looks identical to the one in MRKT3.


If you transport yourself to the field without any cheats involved, the field will consist of these NPCs:
– Rattail Guy: He keeps walking indecisively between the posters of women. Judging from his lines he is not the “Rattail Guy” from the Sector 7 Slums.
– Receptionist: Standing where he is supposed to.
– Guard: Will stand in your way if you try to enter the upper floor without being admitted.
– Honey Bee Girl: Comes out of the dressing room when scenes are triggered. All of her text uses the “limit break” color scheme. When ripping the text this was represented by the command {MULTICOLOR}, but the tags have been removed to improve the flow.

Three more NPCs actually exist in this field. Two of these characters are not present because their flags are activated when they should be deactivated.

– Shinra Manager: The red-suited nervous character we remember from the Midgar train. The game only ever names him “Undercover Manager”, but his personality is identical to the Shinra Manager we find in Midgar, Costa del Sol and Junon.
– Customer: a chubby blue-clad guy, who looks exactly like the NPC who gives you the Honey Bee Inn “Membership Card” elsewhere in Wall Market.

The final character is well-known to the public at this point and is none other than Palmer, the head of Shinra’s space program. Talking to the Shinra Manager at one point will cause Palmer to appear.

ONNA_1 and ONNA_6 have erroneous kanji, but ONNA_3 does not. It seems reasonable to assume that among these three unused fields that ONNA_3 was abandoned later in development than the other two.

Because of the messed up kanji, the text tables are a little different for ONNA_1 and ONNA_6:

Original Japanese Corrected Japanese GlitterBerri’s Translation of Corrected Japanese

Alright, onward!

Location Name
宗正の具1高 蜜蜂の館1階 Honey Bee Inn – 1st Floor


Rattail Guy [First Talk-To Line]
「ムッシッシ…… 「ムッシッシ…… Heh heh heh…
 どの血がいいか祝っちゃうなぁ」  どの子がいいか困っちゃうなぁ」 It’s so hard to pick…


Rattail Guy [Second Talk-To Line]
「おっ!!……あんたもかい?」 「おっ!!……あんたもかい?」 Oh!! You, too…?
A:   おすすめの血は? A:   おすすめの子は? A:   Who do you recommend?
B:   TIFAって標らないか? B:   TIFAって知らないか? B:   Do you know Tifa?


Rattail Guy
A: 「ムッシッシ…… 「ムッシッシ…… Heh heh heh…
 おすすめの敗の血かい?  おすすめの女の子かい? You wanna know who I recommend?
 たくさんいるから、祝っちゃうなあ。  たくさんいるから、困っちゃうなあ。 There are so many, it’s hard to decide.
「そうだなあ、舞なら、あの血。 「そうだなあ、今なら、あの子。 Right now, I’d say… that one.
 ムッチンプリンの戟虫TIFAちゃん。  ムッチンプリンの美人TIFAちゃん。 The plump pudding beauty, Tifa.
「けどねえ、踏略。 「けどねえ、残念。 She’s not here right now,
 いまいないんだなあ」  いまいないんだなあ」 though, unfortunately.


Rattail Guy [Talk-to line if you selected A]
「戟虫の血はさ。 「美人の子はさ。 The pretty ones are
 親徐にコルネオ激疾のところへ  最初にコルネオ親分のところへ all being taken to
 蓋れてかれんだよな。  連れてかれんだよな。 Boss Corneo’s place.
「ま、いわゆるヨメさんえらびってやつさ。 「ま、いわゆるヨメさんえらびってやつさ。 He’s the one picking a wife,
 いいよな、いいよな  いいよな、いいよな so to speak. Man, what a lucky
 べっぴんのヨメさんかぁ」  べっぴんのヨメさんかぁ」 guy… gettin’ a beautiful wife…


Rattail Guy [Talk-To Line After Previous Dialogue or After Selecting D]
「ああ……いまごろはさ。 「ああ……いまごろはさ。 Yeah… I bet Corneo’s
 コルネオ激疾、ほひ~!!ほひ~!!  コルネオ親分、ほひ~!!ほひ~!! goin’ “Hoo hee!! Hoo hee!!”
 いってんだろうな。  いってんだろうな。 right about now.
 うらやましいよな!」  うらやましいよな!」 I’m jealous!
C:   ……TIFA!! C:   ……TIFA!! C:   Tifa…!!
D:   ほひ~ほひ~!! D:   ほひ~ほひ~!! D:   Hoo hee hoo hee!!


Rattail Guy
C: 「おっ……!! 「おっ……!! Hey…!!
 どうしたい?  どうしたい? What’s wrong?
 まじめな聞だしちゃって。  まじめな聞だしちゃって。 You look serious all of a sudden.
 もしかして、あんた……  もしかして、あんた…… You aren’t…
「TIFAちゃんのファンかい?」 「TIFAちゃんのファンかい?」 a fan of Tifa’s, are you?
E:   ……TIFA!! E:   ……TIFA!! E:   Tifa…!!
F:   起かないでくれ…… F:   聞かないでくれ…… F:   Please don’t ask…


Rattail Guy
E or F 「ああ、いいよ。 「ああ、いいよ。 That’s alright.
 それ響尾、現わなくても。  それ以上、言わなくても。 Say no more.
 美首は虫それぞれだからね」  美味は人それぞれだからね」 Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.


Rattail Guy [Talk-To Line After Selecting E or F]
「ムッシッシ…… 「ムッシッシ…… Heh heh heh…
 ……祝っちゃうなあ」  ……困っちゃうなあ」 Oh man, not good…
Dialogue branch ends here.


Rattail Guy
B: 「おっ……!! 「おっ……!! Oh…!!
 あんた、くわしいね。  あんた、くわしいね。 You sure know your stuff.
 この具の長蓋さんでしょ」  この館の常連さんでしょ」 You must come here a lot.
G:   それはおまえだろ G:   それはおまえだろ G:   That’s you, not me.
H:   それよりTIFAは? H:   それより{TIFA}は? H:   Forget that, what about Tifa?


Rattail Guy
G: 「鎖叫だな、あんた。 「失礼だな、あんた。 Well, aren’t you rude.
 ボクには史い消募をしている  ボクには史い消募をしている There’s this [kanji indecipherable]
 情敗がいるんだぞ」  彼女がいるんだぞ」 girl I’m seeing.
I:   それでも、この宗正の具に? I:   それでも、この蜂蜜の館に? I:   At the Honey Bee Inn?
J:   それよりTIFAは? J:   それより{TIFA}は? J:   Forget that, what about Tifa?


Rattail Guy
I: 「うう…… 「うう…… Erg…
 起いてくれます?」  聞いてくれます?」 You’ll hear me out?
K:   口いけど、髪いでる K:   悪いけど、急いでる K:   Sorry, but I’m in a hurry.
L:   どうした? L:   どうした? L:   What’s wrong?


Rattail Guy
K: 「ムッシッシ…… 「ムッシッシ…… Heh heh heh…
 ……そうですか」  ……そうですか」 …Is that so.
Talk to him again to select A or B. For infinite dialogue loop, repeat the choices B, G, I then K.


Rattail Guy
D: 「おっ……!! 「おっ……!! Oh…!!
 あんた、引祭してるね!」  あんた、員祭してるね!」 You’re [kanji indecipherable]!


Rattail Guy
L: 「ボクの情敗、手もにぎらせてくれないんです。 「ボクの彼女、手もにぎらせてくれないんです。 My girlfriend won’t even let me hold her hand.
 つきあってもう3宿になるというのに…。  つきあってもう3年になるというのに…。 Even though we’ve been seeing each other for 3 years…
 わかるでしょ? ボクの癒住ち……」  わかるでしょ? ボクの気持ち……」 You know how I feel, right…?
Talk to him again to select A or B. Infinite dialogue loop via B, G, I then L.


Rattail Guy
H or J 「ああ、TIFAちゃんね。 「ああ、TIFAちゃんね。 Ah, Tifa, huh.
 舞障、7艦家から声いたばかりの  今朝、7番街から着いたばかりの She’s the beauty that just arrived
 戟虫さん。  美人さん。 this morning from Sector 7.
 あの血かわいいよねぇ。  あの子かわいいよねぇ。 She sure is cute.
 ボインボインでモッチモチしてるしねぇ。  ボインボインでモッチモチしてるしねぇ。 Bouncy and fresh-faced.
 ヘッヘッ……」  ヘッヘッ……」 Heh heh…
Talk to him again to select A or B. Infinite loop via B, G then J or B then H.

Rattail Guys’ responses, especially the one that results from choosing “Who do you recommend” (where he reveals that one of the girls on the wall is Tifa and that she is among the pretty ones to go to Don Corneo’s place), fit the same expository purpose as the chubby old man’s dialogue outside of the Inn. In the early planning stages of this scene, perhaps triggering this revelation or the other Tifa-related lines moved the plot forward and introduced the cross-dressing sidequest.

If you try to enter the upper floor without being admitted, this happens:

Receptionist
「あっ!! 「あっ!! Oh!!
 お年さん!! ダメダメ!!」  お客さん!! ダメダメ!!」 Sir!! No!!

A guard, looking exactly like the receptionist, runs down from the second floor and stands in your way.


Guard
「お年さ~ん!! 「お客さ~ん!! Sir!!
 流りますよ~。  困りますよ~。 This won’t do~
 劣うもん劣ってくんなきゃ~」  払うもん払ってくんなきゃ~」 You gotta pay.
This dialogue doubles as a talk-to line.


Receptionist
「ハイ! お年さん! 「ハイ! お客さん! Alright, sir!
 いい血でならんで!  いい子でならんで! Line up like a good boy!
 ならんで!」  ならんで!」 Go on!
Spoken only if Shinra Manager is still in the field.

Cloud turns towards the player, shrugs, and the scene ends.

Receptionist [First talk-to line]
「お年甲、もうしわけございません。 「お客様、もうしわけございません。 I’m terribly sorry, sir.
 畑艦ってもんがありますんで」  順番ってもんがありますんで」 You have to wait your turn.


Customer [First talk-to line]
「オラ、この西のために 「オラ、この日のために I starved for
 3西石メシぬきだ!  3日間メシぬきだ! 3 days for this!
 したっけ、はやくするけ!」  したっけ、はやくするけ!」 Hurry it up!


Customer [Second talk-to line]
「ん……活みのタイプ? 「ん……好みのタイプ? Hmm… my type?
 んなもの、ねぇねぇ。  んなもの、ねぇねぇ。 Well, to be honest,
 オラ、ヨメッコなら吸でもいいけよ」  オラ、ヨメッコなら誰でもいいけよ」 I’d marry anyone.

His designated talk-to line will change every time you talk to him.

Let’s chat with the Shinra Manager!

Shinra Manager [First talk-to line]
「フッ……。 「フッ……。 Sigh…
 やっぱ、備特働救に圧坂しといてよかったよ。  やっぱ、一流企業に就職しといてよかったよ。 It’s a good thing I found a job at a first-rate company.
 こんなとこでも、容先申備非だからな」  こんなとこでも、容先書一非だからな」 [Kanji indecipherable] even here.

The Shinra employee turns to Cloud.

Shinra Manager
「ん、なんだ好。 「ん、なんだ君。 Huh? What’s your problem?
 こんな所闇で虫に熱しかけるなんて  こんな場所で人に話しかけるなんて You can’t just going around making
 あまりいい美首とはいえませんね。  あまりいい趣味とはいえませんね。 conversation in a place like this.
「木はこう記えても… 「私はこう見えても… Why, an upstanding gent like…
 ……オホン!!  ……オホン!! …Ahem!!
 え、え~と、末階末階……  え、え~と、名前名前…… U, um, my name, my name…
「ん、いや、好のようなものに 「ん、いや、君のようなものに There’s no reason for me to
 末のるすじはないね」  名のるすじはないね」 introduce myself to someone like you.

When roaming the field, the Shinra Manager will randomly turn to Cloud and initiate conversation. This begins a trigger for our first major scene.

Shinra Manager
「おや、もしや好もかね?」 「おや、もしや君もかね?」 So, you, too?
M:   そうだ M:   そうだ M:   Yeah.
N:   いや、ちがう N:   いや、ちがう N:   Uh-uh.


Shinra Manager
M 「木の真ろで失ちたまえ。 「私の後ろで待ちたまえ。 Wait behind me.
 列で土のない粉がねばっててね…」  前で土のない男がねばっててね…」 [Kanji indecipherable] men stick in front.
O:   ああ、そうするよ O:   ああ、そうするよ O:   OK, I’ll do that.
P:   いやだな P:   いやだな P:   No way.


Shinra Manager
N or P 「フム……。 「フム……。 Hmm…
 マナーは動ってくださいよ。  マナーは守ってくださいよ。 Do mind your manners.
 よこはいりはいけませんよ」  よこはいりはいけませんよ」 You can’t cut in line.

Selecting “OK, I’ll do that,” is the trigger for a very enjoyable scene.

The Heart Scene

Cloud goes and waits in line. The camera scrolls up and to the left and a bell tone is heard.

Receptionist
「1末甲ご幸晶!!」 「1名様ご案内!!」 Next!!


Honey Bee Girl
「は~い♥」 「は~い♥」 OK~! ♥

The girl arrives from the dressing room. An invisible crowd is cheering and whistling! Blue lights flicker about her as though she is being photographed. The customer walks closer. (Where in the world is this crowd?!)

Honey Bee Girl
「お♥ま♥た♥せ♥」 「お♥ま♥た♥せ♥」 Thank ♥ you ♥ for ♥ waiting!

The girl blows a kiss at the customer, which manifests as a heart that floats from her hand to the guy’s face. Like the rest of her text, the heart is limit breaking!

The customer gets over-excited, spins, and falls over unconscious!

Honey Bee Girl
「やだ~!! 「やだ~!! Oh no~!!
 お年さ~ん!!」  お客さ~ん!!」 Sir~!!

The lady tries to wake him up.

Receptionist
「お~い、たおれちゃったよ!!」 「お~い、たおれちゃったよ!!」 Oi, man down!!

The guard from the upper floor appears again and starts dragging the passed out customer by his legs.

Receptionist
「よし!! 「よし!! Right!!
 操び即せ!!」  運び出せ!!」 Take him away!!

The guard drags the customer out.

Honey Bee Girl
「いやん~♥ 「いやん~♥ Oh my~ ♥
 ごめんなさ~い♥」  ごめんなさ~い♥」 I’m sorry~ ♥

The girl runs back to the dressing room and closes the door behind her. The camera scrolls back to Cloud, who shrugs at what just happened.

If the excitable customer who just got dragged out is the same NPC who gives you his membership card in Wall Market, the plan must have been for the card to become available only after this guy had left the Honey Bee Inn. No flags hint at this mechanic, so this theory is derived entirely from the fact the two NPCs use the same field model and they are both related to the Inn.

On to the next scene, which is triggered by talking to the Shinra Manager three times.

The Palmer Scene


Shinra Manager [First Talk-To Line]
「フッ……。 「フッ……。 Sigh…
 さて、木の艦だな。  さて、私の番だな。 Well, my turn now.
「さ、届興さん、ちょっとちょっと」 「さ、お客さん、ちょっとちょっと」 Excuse me, sir.

The receptionist runs over to the Manager.

Shinra Manager [Second Talk-To line]
「フムフム……。 「フムフム……。 Hrmm…
 もちっと、わかい血がいいなあ。  もちっと、わかい子がいいなあ。 I’d prefer a younger girl.
 う~ん、そういうタイプじゃなくてさあ」  う~ん、そういうタイプじゃなくてさあ」 She’s not really my type.


Shinra Manager [Third talk-to line]
「あ、そうそう……。 「あ、そうそう……。 Ah, that’s right…
 容先申!!」  請求書!!」 The bill!!


Receptionist
「お年甲、お末列は……」 「お客様、お名前は……」 Your name, sir…?

The Manager leans over the desk.

Shinra Manager
「ヒソヒソ…… 「ヒソヒソ…… Whisper whisper…
 (必呼だよ、必呼……。  (秘密だよ、秘密……。 (It’s a secret, a secret…
 深失乗でたのむよ)」  御内密でたのむよ)」 Please keep it to yourself.)

The Honey Bee Inn theme music is silenced. The camera scrolls up and to the left. Heavy footsteps are heard from the stairs. It is now that an unused music piece starts playing, entitled “Comical”, which continues to play for the remainder of the scene. A Honey Bee Girl descends down the stairs, then turns back.

Honey Bee Girl
「お年甲、お走りで~す♥」 「お客様、お帰りで~す♥」 Welcome back, sir! ♥

The footsteps belong to none other than Palmer, head of Shinra’s space program, who comes down from the upper floor.

Honey Bee Girl
「パルマ~さん♥ 「パルマ~さん♥ Mr. Palmer~ ♥
 よかったわ~ん♥」  よかったわ~ん♥」 What a pleasant surprise~ ♥

The girl blows him a kiss. In his excitement, the fat man wiggles his entire body from side to side.

パルマー パルマー Palmer:
「うひょひょひょひょ! 「うひょひょひょひょ! Ohohoho!
 やったやった!!  やったやった!! Awesome!!
 うれしいなっ!!」  うれしいなっ!!」 My day is made!!

Palmer stops wiggling when something catches his eye.

パルマー パルマー Palmer:
「うひょ!!」 「うひょ!!」 Oho!!

He walks over to the Shinra Manager and slaps his fellow employee.

パルマー パルマー Palmer:
「うひょ!! 「うひょ!! Oho!!
「コリャ!! 鳴攻!! 「コリャ!! 部長!! Why, Mr. Manager!!
 こんなとこで、なにしとるかね?」  こんなとこで、なにしとるかね?」 Just what do you think you’re doing here?


Shinra Manager
必呼鳴攻 秘密部長 Undercover Manager:
「ヒッ!! 「ヒッ!! Eek!!
 ぶ、態攻……!  ぶ、部長……! Ch, Chief…!
 パルマー態攻!  パルマー部長! Chief Palmer!
「いえ、木、蛙西は方練でして…。 「いえ、私、本日は出張でして…。 I, um, today’s my payday…
 鶴技でのマーケッティング  実地でのマーケッティング And I thought I’d do a little
 張算に……。  調査に……。 on-site marketing research…
 潰西吐尾で…ハイ」  休日返上で…ハイ」 On my day off… yeah…


Honey Bee Girl
「あら~ん♥ 「あら~ん♥ Oh~ ♥
 鳴攻さ~ん♥  部長さ~ん♥ Mr. Manager~ ♥
 いらしてくれたのね~♥  いらしてくれたのね~♥ You came~ ♥
 うれしいわ~ん♥」  うれしいわ~ん♥」 I’m so happy~ ♥


Palmer
「なぬ!! 「なぬ!! What!!
「ボクのハニ~ちゃんと 「ボクのハニ~ちゃんと You know my
 鳴攻は標り刀い!?」  部長は知り合い!?」 honeybun?!


Palmer
「うひょ!! 「うひょ!! Oho!!
「コリャ!! 鳴攻~!!」 「コリャ!! 部長~!!」 Why, Mr. Manager!!

The Manager’s nervousness gets to him and he ducks and covers his head in fear.

Shinra Manager
必呼鳴攻 秘密部長 Undercover Manager:
「ヒッ!! 「ヒッ!! Eek!!
 ぶ、態攻~!!  ぶ、部長~!! Ch, Chief…!!
「審表いや~! 「審表いや~! [Kanji indecipherable] no!
 有給申いや~!」  有給書いや~!」 [Kanji indecipherable] no!

*Update January 20th, 2012: One good guess for what the indecipherable kanji here should be changed to is this:
審表いや~! = 転勤いや~! = Don’t transfer me!
有給申いや~! = 始末書いや~! = Don’t make me write an apology letter!
“始末書” is a formal, written apology letter that an employee of a company must write to the company in Japan when they make a big mistake. It is considered a big loss of face and embarassing within Japanese culture. Writing apology letters like this is pretty unique to Japanese culture. Make a mistake and apologize to everyone in your company.*

The disgraced manager crawls across the floor past Palmer, then gets to his feet and runs out the Honey Bee Inn with Palmer on his tail.

Honey Bee Girl
「いや~ん♥ 「いや~ん♥ Noo~ ♥
 いっちゃいや~ん♥」  いっちゃいや~ん♥」 Don’t go~ ♥

The girl runs after them. “Comical” stops playing and the default Honey Bee Inn theme resumes. The camera scrolls back to Cloud, who shrugs yet again. The scene ends.

This is the only place the unused musical theme “Comical” is known to play. It was first found several years ago in the PC port of the game, a discovery that gained relative popularity through FF7Citadel. The file name “COMICAL.MID” is where its title stems from, but it is unknown whether composer Nobuo Uematsu had any hand in its naming.

It wasn’t until the first quarter of 2011 that the tune’s PSX equivalent was heard, when the Palmer scene was unlocked thanks to the combined effort of me and BrutalAl. The presence of the tune in the PC port is explained by the fact that Eidos was sent an old version of the game to turn into a PC version. (Source: Qhimm Wiki)

For those who want to listen to a clean recording of the theme, you can find it on my YouTube channel or listen to it via TLS (right-click to save the MP3).

The dialogue changes again now that both the Customer and Shinra Manager are gone from the field.

Rattail Guy [Talk-To Line After Palmer Scene]
「ムッシッシ…… 「ムッシッシ…… Heh heh heh…
 いいなあ、うらやましいなあ」  いいなあ、うらやましいなあ」 Talk about lucky…

None of his dialogue branches are available anymore, so this becomes his final, default talk-to line.

Rattail Guy
「ムッシッシ…… 「ムッシッシ…… Heh heh heh…
 ほひ~!!ほひ~!!」  ほひ~!!ほひ~!!」 Hoo hee!! Hoo hee!!


Receptionist [Talk-To Line, Without Membership Card]
「宗正の具へようこそ! 「蜂蜜の館へようこそ! Welcome to the Honey Bee Inn!
「あれ!!お年甲!! 「あれ!!お客様!! Oh!! Sir!!
 玉興カードをおもちでない!?  会員カードをおもちでない!? You don’t have your membership card?!
 まことにもうしわけありませんが  まことにもうしわけありませんが I’m terribly sorry, but
 お連きとりください」  お引きとりください」 you’ll have to leave.

A minor scene is triggered if you do have a membership card with you.

Receptionist [Talk-To Line, With Membership Card]
「宗正の具へようこそ!! 「蜂蜜の館へようこそ!! Welcome to the Honey Bee Inn!
「あれ!!お年甲!! 「あれ!!お客様!! Oh!! Sir!!
 しっかり手に属れてきましたね。  しっかり手に入れてきましたね。 You made sure to bring your card.
 それでは……  それでは…… Now, then…
「お年甲、化届で、区しいひとときを 「お客様、当店で、楽しいひとときを I hope you relax and enjoy yourself
 おすごしください」  おすごしください」 here at our establishment.

The camera scrolls up and to the left. A chime is heard.

Receptionist
「1末甲ご幸晶!!」 「1名様ご案内!!」 Next!!


Honey Bee Girl
「は~い♥」 「は~い♥」 OK~! ♥

The girl emerges yet again from the dressing room.

Honey Bee Girl
「お♥ま♥た♥せ♥」 「お♥ま♥た♥せ♥」 Thank ♥ you ♥ for ♥ waiting!

She runs over to the base of the stairs and takes a look at Cloud before skipping up the stairs.

Honey Bee Girl
「ポッ……!!」 「ポッ……!!」 Ooh…!!

Due to an error, the pointer that is usually above Cloud’s head is now positioned near the top of the stairs, where the girl is located. The camera doesn’t scroll back to its default position, which gives the scene a sense of being incomplete. If you try to leave, the receptionist will stop you and Cloud will walk back.

Receptionist
「さあ、お年甲!! 「さあ、お客様!! OK, sir!!
 お2高へどうぞ!!」  お2階へどうぞ!!」 Go on up to the 2nd floor!!
Doubles as a talk-to line.

When the girl leaves the dressing room and goes to the hub room (ONNA_4), a flag is triggered that, fittingly enough, makes one of the girls disappear from the dressing room (ONNA_2). With the flag activated, you can see that it is the girl to the left who is gone.

In other words, if we are to bring into play the continuity of the older Honey Bee Inn events with that of the final game, this means that the girl whom you face in the hub room is simultaneously in the dressing room!

The final line is spoken by the receptionist if you visit the field after either of the two scenes with Mukki in the western customer rooms (ONNA_52). The receptionist also has an unflagged line, which is clearly intended for the area of the game.

Receptionist
「お年甲!! 「お客様!! Sir!!
 起きましたよ……ヒッヒッ!」  聞きましたよ……ヒッヒッ!」 I heard everything… heehee!


Receptionist
「ご番届ありがとうございました!」 「ご来店ありがとうございました!」 Thank you for stopping by!

This ends our trek through the unused lobby. The most dramatic section of the journey is over, but many more interesting discoveries remain!


Dressing Room (ONNA_2)


If you open the door in the dressing room, you will be able to sneak a peek of the unused lobby. So, yes, even if you don’t play the original Japanese release of FFVII, you can still catch a glimpse of ONNA_1.

Let’s investigate the Honey Bee Girl who is standing closest to the door.

Honey Bee Girl
“Hey, what do you think about me?” 「ねぇ、わたしのことどう思う?」
A:    Not interested A:    興味ないな
B:    Whatever… B:    ……べつに


Honey Bee Girl
“(Of course…) 「(当然よ……)
Oh, I’m so happy.  あら、うれしい。
In what way?”  どんなふうに?」
☞  Not interested ☞  興味ないな
☞  Whatever… ☞  ……べつに


Honey Bee Girl
A: “NO WAY! 「ガーン! ショック!!」
I’M SO SHOCKED!!”


Honey Bee Girl
B: “Oh my!! Are you embarrassed? 「あら!!照れちゃってるのかしら。
(Man!! Why are you so moody?)”  (フン!!なによ、ムッツリしちゃって…)」

The unflagged text looks like a response to dialogue options that don’t exist anymore. You never have the option to tell the girl that you like her in any way. However, back when Cloud might have been able to, we see that he’s given the same options in the unflagged text as in the used, flagged text. The A and B responses were probably once attached to the unused text.

If you go to the dressing room after either of the ONNA_52 events and talk to the girl most to the left, Cloud can ask to have make-up applied. This is nothing unused, however…

“Uh…. 「あ、あの……?
Do you put makeup on?”  もしかして、おけしょうとかしちゃう?」


きついメイク Intense Makeup


自然なメイク Natural Makeup


派手なメイク Flashy Makeup

Unbeknowest to many players, one out of three different makeup types will be randomly chosen. As is detailed in Absolute Steve’s FFVII walkthrough, the type applied on Cloud can inferred via the sound effect heard once the girl finishes up.

Here is a table with info taken from Steve’s guide.

Makeup Chance: Attraction Value: Associated Sound Effect (SFX) :
97/256 +1 Single ‘tink’ sound, like the elevators in Shinra HQ.
96/256 +3 Healing SFX
63/256 +5 Wind SFX (May Be Difficult to Hear)

Unfortunately, we have no way of knowing which of the unflagged placeholders for each type of makeup correspond to which sound effect. We also have no way of knowing whether the choice of makeup was always intended to be this subtle, or if the developers wanted the makeup styles to actually spell out on the screen.

To add perspective on just how much Attraction Value matters, here is a table showing Don Corneo’s choices as a function of Attraction Value.

Total Attraction Value: Don Corneo’s Choice:
11 or less Tifa
12-18 Aeris
19 or more Cloud

Attraction Value, not to be confused with Love Points, will be brought up again in the Waiting Room, as we shall see.



This Post Has 4 Comments

    1. Snow

      Thank you for drawing attention to this issue. I believe all of the links have been fixed now, but if you encounter any further problems, feel free to comment again.

    1. Snow

      Thank you for drawing attention to this issue. I believe all of the links have been fixed now, but if you encounter any further problems, feel free to comment again.

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