#mini-arc: big two five

[solxamber]

Hi can I have Ignihyde for # 8, fluff or comedy. Thank you!

Anime Boot Camp || Idia Shroud ft. Ortho

For the Holiday Event! || Prompt: "This is non-negotiable" ; Genre: Fluff with Comedy ;

You should’ve known better. You really should have. But Idia had given you one of those rare, half-excited, half-nervous smiles, and you’d been putty in his hands.

“Sure, Idia,” you’d said with zero hesitation. “I’d love to watch the new season with you.”

A seemingly innocent offer. A simple act of camaraderie. And then, Idia had dropped the bomb.

“Great. We’ll start from season one. It’s non-negotiable.”

Season one?

“Wait—how many seasons are there?” you asked cautiously, trying to keep the panic out of your voice.

Idia adjusted his tablet, the glow highlighting his sinister grin. “Nineteen. Not including the movies, OVAs, or the bonus material. But don’t worry, the filler episodes are only about 35%.”

Your soul left your body.

“I—uh…” you stammered, searching for an escape. “Do we really need to watch everything? I thought we were just watching the new season?”

“You can’t watch season 20 without context!” Idia exclaimed, horrified. “You’d miss all the foreshadowing and character arcs! It’s essential to the viewing experience.”

You looked at him, and there it was: the genuine excitement in his eyes, the rare spark of passion that made him absolutely irresistible. Damn your stupid heart.

“Okay,” you sighed. “Let’s do it. Start from episode one.”

Idia’s face lit up, and if you weren’t already melting, his quiet “Y-you’re the best,” would’ve sealed the deal.

That’s how you found yourself on Idia’s couch, sandwiched between him and Ortho, with snacks piled precariously around you.

“This is the start of a life-changing journey,” Ortho said cheerfully, handing you a soda. “Big Brother has been waiting for someone to share this with forever!”

You glanced at Idia, who was trying to hide his blush behind his hoodie.

“You sure we’re not biting off more than we can chew here?” you asked weakly as the opening theme of season one blasted from the giant screen.

Idia waved you off. “Nah. If we watch at 1.5x speed, skip the ending songs, and only take five-minute breaks every eight episodes, we’ll finish in about four days.”

“Four days?”

“Non-negotiable,” he reminded you smugly, tossing popcorn into his mouth.

By day two, you’d developed Stockholm Syndrome for the characters.

“NO, KAZUTAKA, DON’T DO IT!” you yelled, clutching the blanket you’d stolen from Idia’s bed.

“It’s his tragic backstory arc,” Idia explained, completely unfazed by your emotional outburst. “He has to do it for the narrative payoff in season 14.”

You groaned. “This show is going to kill me.”

“It builds character,” Idia said, smirking.

Meanwhile, Ortho was a model of efficiency, pausing episodes precisely for snack breaks and bringing you hot towels like you were at an anime spa. You were starting to think Ortho might be the MVP of this whole operation.

“Ortho, you’re a saint,” you said as he handed you a cup of tea.

“I just want to support Big Brother’s happiness,” Ortho chirped, beaming.

Idia mumbled something unintelligible and pulled his hoodie tighter.

By day four, you were fully invested.

“THE PLOT TWIST! I KNEW IT!” you screamed, nearly knocking the bowl of chips off your lap.

“Pshh, called it back in episode 47,” Idia muttered, though the gleam in his eyes said he was enjoying this more than he’d admit.

“You did not!” you argued.

“I’ve seen this, like, three times, noob,” he retorted smugly.

Ortho, who had already created a mini shrine for your endurance, clapped in delight. “You’re catching up to Big Brother’s level of dedication!”

When the final credits rolled, you leaned back with a dramatic sigh. “We did it. I can’t believe we actually did it.”

“I can’t believe you survived,” Idia said, looking at you with a mix of awe and amusement.

“Maybe a family sometimes,” you said, stretching, “is just you, your crush, and his technomantic humanoid brother.”

Ortho tilted his head. “Does that mean you’re officially part of the family?”

You froze, glancing at Idia. His face was redder than a lava eel, and he was aggressively pretending to read something on his tablet.

“Well,” you said, smirking. “That depends on your brother.”

Idia groaned, burying his face in his hoodie. “You’re insufferable,” he mumbled.

And yet, when you shifted closer to nudge him playfully, he didn’t pull away.

Masterlist

[dixons-sunshine]

Hey!! I really REALLY love your girl dad Daryl series and I thought maybe I could request something :) Imagine Daryl building a doll house or something (maybe a cute little mini motorcycle) for his daughter I can totally see him doing something like that it’s all I can think about when I see this picture. He would totally get the materials from one of his supply runs because I headcanon that everytime he brings something for his daughter (like a doll or something)

His Motorcycle Princess | Daryl Dixon x Fem!Reader

Summary: When his daughter was born, Daryl swore to himself that he'd do everything in his power to ensure that she remained happy at all costs. So when she asked for her very own motorcycle, who was he to deny her that?

Genre: Fluff.

Era: Alexandria, post Saviour arc (the bridge exploding doesn't happen, so Daryl never goes looking for Rick and he's happily living in Alexandria).

Warnings: Swearing, slight suggestive talk.

Word count: 1.3k.

A/n: Okay but why can't Daryl be the father of my future kids? He'd be the best dad ever. All jokes aside, I hope you like this!

➳༻❀✿❀༺➳

“Daryl, may I ask what the fuck that is?” you asked in surprise at at the sight before you, folding your arms over your chest.

Daryl looked up from his workbench, his ocean coloured eyes meeting your eyes before glancing back down at the big pink object in front of him. “S'a toy bike,” he stated plainly, patting the toy for added effect.

“Okay,” you drawled, nodding your head slowly. “But... Why?”

“S'fer Hazel,” he explained, picking up a screwdriver and resuming his task of assembling the toy motorcycle. “She asked fer a bike like mine, but obviously I ain't 'bout to assemble a real one fer a five year old, so I got this instead.”

You walked down the steps into the garage and walked over to your husband, standing slightly behind him as you watched him tighten the screws of the toy. “Where'd you even get this?”

“I was lucky 'nough to find a toy store tha' was left relatively untouched. Found this hidin' behind one of the shelves,” he explained, glancing over to you and nervously gulping at the close proximity. It amazed him that even after so many years together, you still managed to make butterflies erupt in his stomach.

“Aah, okay,” you nodded, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Hazel is gonna freak out over this. This is gonna be her new favourite thing in the world.”

“Ya really think so?” Daryl asked, looking at you hopefully.

You smiled softly at him. There was lot of things people could say about the archer. People who didn't know him personally would call him rude, obnoxious and cold. Those who knew better would call him loyal, determined and caring. When it came to you, there was a lot you could say about your beautiful husband. He was kind, caring, loving, considerate, observant, and so much more. And you could also proudly say that Daryl was an amazing dad. Nobody was perfect and the archer had his moments that he wasn't proud of, but all in all, there was no denying that Daryl would do anything for your daughter.

“I know she'll love it,” you reassured him, wrapping your arms around him from behind and resting your chin on his shoulder. “You could bring her a painted rock and she'd love it. As long as it's from you, she doesn't care.”

“Nah, she hated tha' bunny I brought back fer her,” he replied, closing his eyes at the warm, soft feeling of you pressed against his back.

“It's only because it was covered in walker blood,” you explained. “After I washed it, she wouldn't let the thing go.”

Daryl couldn't deny that. The aforementioned toy had been a proud edition to Hazel's stuffed animal collection for two years at that point. She loved that bunny more than anything, favouring it to join her when she played tea parties with you and Daryl. It made the archer's heart swell with love, just knowing that his daughter appreciated what he did for her made everything worth it. All the battles he fought, all the blood that was shed, it was all worth it in the end. His wife and his daughter were safe, and he'd never been happier in his life than he was in those moments in the small home you shared in Alexandria.

With you still firmly pressed against his back, he got back to work. The toy was almost done; he only had a few finishing touches he had to do. Admittedly, it was a little harder to do so with you pressed against him from behind, but he refused to ask you to move. He'd much rather work on the toy for a few extra minutes than lose the comfort your mere touch brought him.

You watched his hands intently, your mind unwillingly wandering to a place that wasn't needed at that moment. However, you couldn't help it, the knowledge of what those hardworking hands could do in other activities taking over your senses.

“You know, this gives me deja vu,” you started, breaking the comfortable silence.

“Yeah? How so?” Daryl asked, tightening the last screw into the toy.

“Remember back when you were building your own bike five years ago?” you asked, continuing when he nodded. “Seeing you hard at work, doing something you were skilled at really did something to me. It was because you were building your bike that we even have a kid at all now. And now you're building a motorcycle for our kid.”

Daryl chuckled at the memory. “Never knew grease could turn ya on like tha' until then.”

“When it's on my handsome husband's hands? You best believe it does.”

Daryl turned around and wrapped his arms around you, staring down at you lovingly. “And now we have our own kid.”

“Our own little family,” you agreed, smiling up at him. “I love you, Dar.”

“Love ya too, peach.”

“Mama! Daddy!”

Before Daryl could lean down and capture your lips in his for a kiss, your daughter bounded down the steps. The two of you sent each other an amused look, reluctantly pulling apart. Hazel came over to Daryl and held her hands up in a silent plea to be picked up, and the archer complied.

“Hey there, Hazelnut,” Daryl greeted her with a fond smile, placing a light kiss to the top of her head.

“Hi, Daddy,” she giggled, sending a wave at you. “Hi, Mama!”

“Hi, Baby,” you chuckled, walking over to rub her hair affectionately. “Did you have a good nap?”

“Yeah! I'm ready to play now!” she exclaimed happily, a toothy smile on display.

“Well, how 'bout ya and I race our bikes?” Daryl questioned, capturing Hazel's attention.

“But Daddy, only you have a bike.”

“Not anymore,” you said in a playful tone, sharing an excited glance with the archer. “Daddy got you something.”

Daryl turned around with her in his arms and showed her the bright pink toy motorcycle. Hazel let out a surprised gasp before laughing in excitement, throwing her arms around Daryl's neck and hugging him as tightly as she could.

“Thank you, Daddy! Thank you! Thank you!” she exclaimed in excitement.

Daryl chuckled fondly and pressed a soft kiss to her temple. “Yer welcome, Hazelnut.”

“Now I can be like you!” she giggled, wiggling slightly to be put down. When she was, she ran over to the workbench and stared in awe at the toy.

“Yeah,” you agreed, walking over to her to ensure she didn't accidentally hurt herself with the tools that were still on the workbench. “You just need your own crossbow now.”

Hazel gasped in delight and turned to Daryl. “Daddy, can I get a crossbow?”

“'Course ya can. How else would ya help me on my hunts?”

“Yay!” Hazel happily clapped her hands. “Mama, I'm getting a crossbow!”

Daryl smiled and walked over to the two of you, wrapping an arm around your shoulder and playfully ruffling Hazel's hair. He chuckled at the giggle she let out, feeling content and comfortable as he listened to Hazel's babbling as she regarded over all the places she would go with her very own motorcycle, even to the moon. There was nothing better in his life than moments like these. This was what he fought for. And he would do it all over again if it meant keeping the two most important people in his life safe.

Because without you, his beautiful wife, and Hazel, your perfect daughter, his life would never be the same.

[m1ckeyb3rry]

Synopsis: Despite an initial reluctance, Tabito heads off to a mysterious soccer program by the name of Blue Lock. Luckily, it’s not long before you get to see him again. Continuation of Five Ways to Kill a Crow and How to Drown a Crow!

Event Masterlist

Pairing: Karasu x Reader

Chapter Word Count: 16.1k

Content Warnings: spoilers for the u-20 arc of the manga, otoya slander to an unhealthy degree, reader’s best friend is crazily down bad, the bllk boys have karasu STRESSING, half of them think reader is fine af 💯, did i mention otoya slander because there is a LOT of that, 99% crackfic so don’t expect stunning characterization in this one it’s mostly silly compared to the first two parts, chigiri’s sister is also referred to as chigiri, reader & co. accidentally become famous

A/N: here is the final continuation of fwtkac that you requested karasu anon 💖 incidentally also the longest…w this installment the mini-series is over 30k words LMAOAO i hope you have enjoyed the ride because ik i have!!

Additional: part of my 500 follower event! see the event description and rules to make a request of your own. now closed!

Surprisingly, it wasn’t that difficult to reveal your relationship with Tabito to the rest of your friends and classmates. There wasn’t an official announcement or anything along those lines — neither of you were that big on social media, so you didn’t bother with launching each other there, and since half of the school already thought you were dating, things settled into an even rhythm quite quickly.

Tabito’s friends and teammates weren’t all-too-shocked, either. Apparently, you were just about the last person to find out about the crush he had had on you since middle school, so to everyone else, him asking you out had been all but foregone conclusion. What your respective circles were surprised about, at least at first, was that you had said yes.

You’re way too hot for him. This was what Tabito’s group said upon finding out about the news, which was met with crabbiness from Tabito and nothing more than a snort from you. They were just messing with him in any way they could, considering how difficult it typically was to find cracks in his flawless demeanor, so it was easy to dismiss. On the other hand, your own friends gave you confused looks — weren’t you just talking about how much you hate him? You could only shrug, because they weren’t wrong, exactly. You had been complaining about him only days previously, but it was funny how quickly things could change. They accepted it without much more questioning, however, congratulating you on finally getting a boyfriend, and after that life continued as it previously had, except now whenever your friend groups decided to hang out together, you would find yourself at Tabito’s side instead of as far as possible from him.

Being his official girlfriend was everything you had expected and more. He got along well with your parents — your father remembered his name and asked you how he was doing constantly, and your mother was always pleased by the steady supply of flowers he provided for your kitchen counter — as well as your friends, managing to strike that elusive balance of showing them kindness without being overly involved in their lives. His family adored you, especially his older sister, who frequently took you out shopping or for coffee, much to Tabito’s chagrin. All in all, things were going well, and though you two still competed over your grades, it was without the fervor of the past, so that you were gladder for one another’s success than you were incensed by them.

“I hate couples,” your best friend announced one day at lunch. You had finished eating early, so you were leaning against Tabito’s arm and playing Subway Surfers on his phone while he talked to one of his teammates about their upcoming match. Ever since you had discovered his penchant for the childish game, it had become a personal goal of yours to beat his high score, though you had not yet even come close.

���Hm,” you said. She scowled.

“I’m serious!” she said.

“You’re just mad because you’re single,” you said. “I told you I’m working on it, didn’t I? It’s not my fault all of Tabito’s friends are losers!”

She sighed. “I know. Actually, you two aren’t the ones that prompted me to say that this time, oddly enough.”

“Oh, then who did?” you said.

“You know how I went to visit my cousins last weekend?” she said. You nodded. “Well, we went to watch a movie while we were there, that new one I was really excited about, but somehow it ended up that we got stuck behind this guy on a date!”

“How’d you know that he was on a date?” you said.

“Because there was a girl sitting next to him, and he sucked her face off for the entire movie, thereby completely blocking the screen. Can you believe it? The worst part is, he was totally stupid looking!” she said.

“That’s annoying,” you said, secure in the knowledge that you and Tabito would never do something like that. Public displays of affection beyond hugging or holding hands weren’t really your vibe, and just the thought of making out in a movie theater caused you to feel nauseous. “How’d you know he was dumb looking, though? Wasn’t the theater dark?”

“I confronted him afterwards,” she said.

“While he was on a date? That’s a bold move,” you said. “What did the girl say?”

“Huh? Oh, she had already left. Guess she wasn’t that into him,” your best friend said.

“Yikes,” you said before pouting as your little Subway Surfers character was hit by a train. “Aw, man, I died. At this rate, I’ll never beat the high score.”

“Hey, can I have my phone for a second?” Tabito said, turning to you and plucking the device out of your hand before you could answer. You frowned, so he patted you on the head. “I’ll give it back. I just need to text our coach and remind him to bring my cooler back during the game tonight.”

“Whatever,” you said before directing your attention towards your best friend again. “Okay, describe this guy. I’m really interested in what could have driven you to judge his appearance so harshly.”

“Listen!” she said. “His hair was green!”

“Green?” you said. 

“Yes! Well, mostly it was a grayish white, but there was a green streak, and the undercut part was also green,” she said. You tried to picture it and found you were entirely incapable of imagining anything but the most ridiculous of styles.

“That’s wild,” you said. “Who told him that was a good idea?”

“I just wonder how much bleach he has to use to get it to be that color,” she said. You shuddered.

“I know for a fact that he had the most damaged, dead, crunchy-looking hair ever,” you said. Your best friend shook her head.

“It was actually pretty shiny and luscious,” she said. “If it weren’t for the weird choice of color and his terrible theater etiquette, I could see why someone might consider him attractive.”

“Maybe you can fix him,” you suggested. She immediately scowled in a clear-cut refusal.

“The main thing I’ve learned from your relationship with Karasu is that you can never fix a man’s hair, no matter how much he likes you,” she said.

“Huh? Did you say my name?” Tabito said, handing you his phone back. “What’s up?”

“Nothing,” you and your best friend said in unison.

“That was suspicious,” he informed you.

“Just know that I’ll break up with you if you ever dye even a strand of your hair green,” you said.

He gave you an odd look. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Anyways, that’s my rant for the day,” your best friend said as Tabito evidently decided it would be for the best to leave you to your own conversation, which he was missing far too much context from to possibly understand.

“That really is awful,” you said. “Don’t worry. Someday soon, we’ll find you someone to date, and then you can be the annoying couple everyone slanders. Trust me on that one.”

“I do,” she said. “I have faith that you’re just being picky because you love me so much that you refuse to let me be with a substandard man.”

“Exactly,” you said.

She made a heart with her hands. “You’re the best.”

“I try!”

Now that autumn was bleeding into winter, it was getting chillier and chillier out during Bambi Osaka’s games. Thankfully, Tabito had draped his large jacket over your shoulders before running off to yell at his coach for once again forgetting to bring his cooler back, so you were mostly protected from the frost in the air. You could not say the same for the Bambi Osaka boys, who all looked miserably cold as they jogged in place, trying to warm up in their shorts and jerseys while Tabito and the coach argued.

“Y/N! I didn’t realize you were coming today!” a familiar voice said, its owner leaning over the fence separating the bleachers from the field. You extended your hand to ruffle his hair.

“I come to all of your games, Hiori, why would this one be any different?” you said. He gave you a sheepish grin.

“I know, but now that’s it not as nice out, I thought you might not,” he said. You pulled on the sleeve of your jacket to draw attention to it; Hiori grunted in approval when he noticed.

“Don’t worry, Tabito’s on top of it. Just between us two, I think he would cry if I had to miss one of his games, so he always makes sure I’m as comfortable as possible when I come,” you said.

“He’s a really considerate guy,” Hiori said. As if on cue, both of you turned to look at where he and their coach were still going at it.

“Holy fucking shit!” Tabito screamed. “Give me my cooler back, dude, you’ve had it for weeks!”

“I need it for the party I’m throwing this Saturday!” their coach shouted back. 

“I don’t give a damn about your party! Give me back my cooler!”

“Right,” you said, stifling a laugh. “Super considerate.”

Hiori cringed. “I guess nobody’s perfect.”

Ever since you had started dating Tabito, Hiori had become something of a permanent fixture in your life. He never tried to flirt with you or anything — you didn’t even think he was capable of having those feelings — but he was just so used to trailing after Tabito that, by extension, he began to follow you around as well. It wasn’t really that bad; you both lived close to one another, and frequently he’d ask you to come to the convenience store with him so he could ask you for advice under the guise of buying snacks together. You always went along with it, as you sensed he didn’t have many other sources of reliable help and wisdom.

For his part, Tabito didn’t really mind that Hiori’s attachment to him now included you. The thought of being jealous of the younger boy never even crossed his mind, mostly because he, too, didn’t really believe that the gentle and benign Hiori was capable of anything as underhanded as stealing his girlfriend. Overall, he was more bemused than anything, treating him with the careful fondness of someone who had been given a puppy they had no idea how to care for but found cute anyways.

Soon enough, Tabito joined you and Hiori, dragging his feet and hanging his head as he flopped against the fence. Exhaling, you reached out and stroked the side of his face with the back of your hand.

“Any success?” you said.

“Nope,” he said. “Another week without my cooler.”

“At least it’s getting to be winter,” Hiori said. “You won’t really need it to keep your drinks chilled for a while, right?”

“Tell that to my sister,” Tabito said. “She keeps bugging me about where I put it. I guess she needs it for college or something. Don’t ask me why.”

“I’m sure he’ll bring it to the next game,” Hiori said optimistically. Tabito let out a defeated sigh.

“We can only hope,” he said.

“In the meantime, you two should go over with the rest of your team before you both get yelled at for slacking off and get me banned from coming to anymore games,” you said.

“If he keeps holding my cooler hostage and bans you from games, I’ll fight that dumbass coach!” Tabito said. You pushed him away affectionately.

“Alright, alright, I feel very comforted by that. Thank you for defending my — and your cooler’s — honor,” you said. “Go play soccer.”

With a joking salute, Tabito, and also Hiori, ran off to join the rest of their team, and you settled back to sit with the rest of the attendees of the game, who were mostly parents of the players. All of them knew who you were at this point, though, so you were welcomed with open arms, easily joining in on their discussions about such subjects as how their children were doing in school and what their plans for dinner were.

It was a comfortable existence, and as you pulled Tabito’s jacket tighter around you, you thought that you could get used to it. If only things could stay exactly like this, you would be quite happy. If you could spend every day with Tabito and Hiori and the rest of your friends, you would never complain again.

Unfortunately, life was always changing, as you knew all too well. One day, both Tabito and Hiori received letters summoning them to some soccer training camp far away from your corner of the country, and though Hiori leapt at the chance, Tabito was initially uncertain at the prospect of leaving everything behind for a program that wasn’t even a sure thing.

“What if it doesn’t help me and I give up my schooling for it?” he said, pacing around his bedroom. You raised your eyebrows at him from your seat at his desk, where you were working on a lab report for Chemistry. “Do they really expect me to run there during my last year of high school? What about board exams and college? How am I supposed to get into a good university if I’m playing soccer when I should be studying?”

“Why do you think you won’t succeed in the program?” you said. “You’re amazing at soccer. If you join, you’ll definitely do well, and then you’ll become a professional athlete, so you won’t have to worry about college or anything like that.”

“Of course I’ll do well,” he said. This actually wasn’t anything like his normal self-confidence; when he was in this kind of mood, he didn’t brag, he only evaluated himself and the situation honestly, weighing the costs and benefits until he could come to a conclusion that he was satisfied with. “I just don’t like the thought of not having a fallback option. Even if I become a professional athlete, things like injuries can happen to anyone. It’s not smart to not have a backup plan. That’s why I wasn’t planning on trying out for the U-20 squad until after I got accepted to a university.”

“You can’t give up on your dreams for the sake of a backup plan, though,” you said, finishing up the report and clicking the submit button, shutting your laptop and spinning the chair around so you were looking at him. “I know it’s nerve-wracking, but isn’t that how it’s supposed to be?”

“No,” he said bluntly.

Blue Lock and its outcomes were like the water — entirely out of Tabito’s control, and hence something he was automatically opposed to. But unlike swimming and wading, this was also an opportunity for him to pursue his greatest dreams, so you stood and grabbed him by the shoulders. He halted in his tracks, cocking his head at you as you clasped his hands in between your own and gave him the sternest look you could muster.

“Listen to me,” you said. “You are not going to drown. You’re not because I say you’re not, and have I ever led you astray? You’re going to go to this Blue Lock place with Hiori, and then the two of you are going to come back and be so good at soccer that you immediately join the national team and end up so rich and famous that I can’t help but marry you and become your trophy wife.”

“When you say you, you’re referring to me, not Hiori, right?” he checked with a snicker. You poked him in the chest.

“Obviously,” you said.

“Do you really think it’ll be okay?” he said. 

“I think you won’t know if you don’t try. You’re so smart, Tabito; even if you somehow fail as a soccer player, I don’t think you’ll be unable to go to college. In fact, you could probably do this camp, come back and take your exams while on a break, and still get second in our class,” you said.

“Second?” he said.

“Of course, I’ll be the one getting first,” you said. “Second is still respectable, though. Any university of note would kill to have you, but a chance to improve your soccer career like this might not come around again for a while, if ever. Take it. Take it with both hands and don’t regret it a bit, okay?”

“You’re convincing,” he said, embracing you tightly, burying his face in the crook of your neck. “Thank you.”

“So you’ll do it?” you said.

“I’ll do it.”

A week later, he was gone. Even his phone was taken away, leaving you without any manner of contacting him in the meantime. To be sure, it was lonely, but you were too busy being proud of him to be depressed about it. Besides, you weren’t the type to abandon your friends just because you were in a relationship, so your invitations to events had never stopped coming. Now, you just said yes to them more often, much to everyone’s excitement.

That was what you did while Tabito was busy at Blue Lock: you hung out with your friends, having sleepovers and going for platonic dates with the ones you were particularly close with, and you visited his sister at her college when she was free, so you could hear embarrassing stories about his past, which you carefully filed away for later use. Occasionally, you even met up with Yukimiya’s girlfriend — in a shocking twist, he had also been invited to Blue Lock, much like Tabito — and the two of you would speculate about what your boyfriends might be up to in that strange facility and whether they might’ve met each other yet or not. 

It wasn’t horrible. Undeniably, you missed him, but it was bearable, and you knew he would be back as soon as he could be, so for the most part, you didn’t let yourself grow too sad. Your father was probably the worst off out of anyone, actually, always nagging you about when Tabito would return. He had grown used to having a friend to watch sports alongside, and was now entirely forlorn without any company to discuss his beloved games with. 

Some weeks after Blue Lock began, you received two emails with nearly identical subject headers. With a confused frown, you opened both of them in turn, but slowly, your expression turned to a smile as you read over their contents.

Congratulations, Y/N L/N! Blue Lock 11 player number 6, Tabito Karasu, has designated you as the recipient of his friends/family ticket to the Blue Lock 11 vs Japan U-20 match! Scan the attached QR code upon your arrival to the stadium in order to make your way to your VIP seat.

Congratulations, Y/N L/N! Blue Lock 11 substitute number 16, Yo Hiori, has designated you as the recipient of his friends/family ticket to the Blue Lock 11 vs Japan U-20 match! Scan the attached QR code upon your arrival to the stadium in order to make your way to your VIP seat.

Both Tabito and Hiori had chosen to give you their seats, which meant you technically had an extra one, so you could bring someone along with you. Your first thought was your father, considering how much he loved soccer, but then you pondered it further and decided that you probably did not want to spend the whole match listening to him explaining the rules. Plus, the game was in Tokyo, so if the two of you went together, you both would have to share a hotel room, and he’d make you spend the entire trip with him instead of exploring and possibly seeing Tabito, if you got the chance.

No, there was really only one choice. With an aunt who lived in the city and a deep-rooted desire to get a boyfriend, your best friend was the clear pick to take along with you to the game, and you knew before you even asked that she would agree to it. After all, what better way was there for you both to spend the two weeks of your last winter break before university?

As you had expected, she agreed enthusiastically and readily, texting you that her aunt was alright with you two staying at her place, as long as you didn’t mind that she’d probably be busy with work most of the time. Of course, this was more of a benefit than a drawback, so you forwarded the email containing Hiori’s invitation to her and immediately began the process of packing for your two week vacation.

Since you would be staying with a responsible adult — meaning your best friend’s aunt, not her herself — your parents didn’t mind that you were going on a mini-trip without them. Your father already knew about the game thanks to his subscription to the JFU’s magazine, and he was so exhilarated at the thought of you getting to attend it in person that you almost felt bad not telling him that he could’ve come, too. Then you imagined having to sleep in a twin bed while he snored in the one across from you and stopped feeling guilty entirely.

“Do you think it would be corny if I wore blue to the game?” you said when the day of the match dawned. You had made a mess of your suitcase trying to decide what you wanted to wear, and when you looked over at your best friend’s side of the room, you noticed that it was in a similar state.

“Maybe a little bit,” she said. “At least, if you went for an all-blue Smurf aesthetic. It would kind of make you look like a mascot or something.”

“I was thinking about that,” you said. “Ugh! This is so hard. Normally, I just wear one of Tabito’s jackets or extra jerseys at his games, so that I look all supportive and whatnot, but it’s kind of hard to do that when I haven’t even spoken to him in weeks and have zero clue what his Blue Lock jersey looks like.”

“That one coat you brought is his, right? You could wear that with a blue shirt underneath it so that it’s subtle but still clear which side you’re on,” she suggested. You closed your eyes, mentally putting the clothes on and deciding that it was a great outfit idea, giving off the exact effect you were aiming for.

“I knew ‘Hiori’ invited you for a reason,” you said. She chucked a pillow at you, fully aware that she was only even going to the game because you had been invited by both Bambi Osaka boys.

“I’ll be sure to thank him when I see him,” she said.

“Do you know what he looks like?” you said.

“No, but won’t his jersey say his name?” she reasoned.

“Touché,” you said. “Anyways, what are you going to wear?”

“It needs to be something casual but also cute, so if any of the players — the single ones, anyways — happen to look up at me, they are instantly smitten and ask me for my number once they win the game, after which we date until I’ve graduated college and they’ve made it in the big leagues, whereupon they will propose to me and we will get married in the most extravagant wedding the world has ever seen,” she said.

“Um,” you said, your mind working overtime to comprehend the run-on. “Sure. In that case, maybe you should go with the sweater dress you brought. It’s not blue, but you look really pretty in it, and if you put on a longer cardigan along with some tights, you should stay warm. Maybe your aunt has a blue scarf you can borrow? If you want to look spirited.”

“You’re a genius!” she said. 

“Thanks, I do my best,” you said before a silence lapsed between the two of you, both too busy getting ready to gossip, as you had been non-stop since you had arrived in Tokyo.

The ticket scanner definitely looked suspicious at the fact that both of you claimed to be named Y/N L/N, but there was nothing that she could do about it. After all, you both had unique invitations from two separate members of Blue Lock, so what did it matter what your names were? With a curt nod, she approved your tickets and described which way you had to go to get to your seats, though you were certain she was glaring at you as you walked in the direction she had indicated.

“Are you excited?” your best friend said, rubbing her hands together to warm them up. 

“I’m more excited to see Tabito again than anything. No matter how the game goes, I’m happy if he’s there,” you said.

“I can’t believe you just said that,” she said. “Pining has made you a changed woman. The Y/N I once knew would never say anything along those lines.”

“Oh, but you can plan your wedding and it’s perfectly normal?” you said, raising your eyebrows. She gave you a double-thumbs-up.

“That’s all hypothetical, so it’s not an issue,” she said. “On the other hand, you being all sappy about Karasu is reality.”

“You have a point,” you said. “My apologies. Moving on, are you excited?”

“Just to see if the players are good looking,” she said. “I don’t know that much about soccer.”

“It’s okay, I don’t, either,” you said.

“Your boyfriend is literally on the team?” she said. 

“Look, as long as someone on our side kicks the ball into the net, I’m happy,” you said. “If someone on the other side kicks the ball into the net, then I’m sad. That’s kind of the gist of it. Tabito and Hiori have tried explaining the finer details of the sport, but to be honest, it’s a bit beyond me.”

“Excuse me, but is anyone sitting with you two?” a bright voice said. You looked up to see a tall girl with cascading red hair and a brilliant grin pointing at the seat on your left with a questioning tilt to her head.

“Nope,” you said. Unfortunately, Yukimiya’s girlfriend’s school break didn’t align with the game, and she had regretfully told you over the phone that she would be unable to make it, so you and your best friend were on your own. “All yours!”

“Thanks!” she said. “My mother went to go sit with the other parents, and I was planning on going with her, but you two look closer to my age, so I was hoping it would be alright if I stayed here instead.”

“Believe me, I get it,” you said. “I’ve had to hang out with way too many parents at Tabito’s games. They’re nice and all, but most of the stuff they talk about is hardly relatable.”

“Exactly!” she said. “I can’t explain how happy I am to have found you two. I’m Hyoma Chigiri’s sister, by the way! According to the email we got, he’s number 4. Which players do you both know?”

“I’m number 6’s girlfriend,” you said, motioning down towards where the players were beginning to enter the field, getting some last-minute practice in before the game. “Tabito Karasu.”

You wished he would look over so you could wave at him, but he was utterly focused on his teammates and their warm up, so you contented yourself with admiring him from afar. It was clear to anyone that he was in his element, and a lump formed in your throat when you remembered that he had almost given this up. He had almost stayed back, and you could not even begin to fathom how much he would have regretted it if he had.

“I see him!” Chigiri said, shading her eyes with her hand so she didn’t have to narrow them against the sun. “My brother’s right over by where he is.”

Her brother was almost identical to her, a lean boy with flowing hair and a pointed face, and even if she hadn’t pointed him out, you would’ve made the connection.

“He looks just like you,” your best friend said, vocalizing what you had been thinking.

“We get that a lot,” Chigiri said. “What about you? Who are you with?”

“Technically, I’m not with anyone,” your best friend said. “The thing is, both Karasu and number 16, Yo Hiori, invited Y/N, so I just took her extra — what the fuck.”

“Is everything okay?” you said. Both you and Chigiri shot her concerned looks, but she was too busy staring at the field with her jaw dropped to pick up on it. “Hello? What’s gotten into you?”

“Y/N L/N,” she said. “Why is your boyfriend talking to that — that — that creature? Why is that thing even on the field in the first place?”

“Number 9?” Chigiri said. “Do you know him?”

True to her word, Tabito was speaking animatedly to player number 9, who according to his jersey was named Otoya. He was a slender and clearly handsome boy, his pale hair streaked through with green and his features distinctly sharp despite the distance. For some reason, there was something familiar about his description, and it was only when you noticed that your best friend was all but seething that the conversation came back to you.

“Are you serious?” you said. “That Otoya dude is the theater guy?”

“Deadly serious,” she snapped. “What is he doing here? Shouldn’t he be off ruining innocent moviegoers’ experiences?”

“Playing soccer, I’d expect,” you said. “It looks like he’s starting for the Blue Lock 11, too. He must be good — I mean, even Hiori is just a substitute, and he’s crazy talented, so their starting lineup must be nothing short of spectacular.”

The two teams got into position as the clock was set up, and a hush fell over the stadium as the ball was brought onto the field for the kickoff. Unexpectedly, Chigiri grabbed your hand, clutching it so tightly that your circulation was impaired, and when you glanced over at her, you saw that her shoulders were tense.

“Hyoma tore his ACL recently,” she murmured. “He never said it aloud, but I think he’s wanted to quit soccer ever since. This is the first time he’s starting in a game since before he was injured. I’m worried it’ll happen again.”

You rubbed soothing circles against her wrist. “He’ll be alright. I don’t think they would put him in if it was a health risk. Plus, they have substitutes, and I’m sure he’s much more in-tune with his body now, so the second he feels something off, he’ll probably ask to be put out.”

Chigiri dabbed at her face. “Thanks. You’re right. This is an exciting game! I shouldn’t bring down the mood. Let’s get ready to cheer our lungs out!”

The referee blew the whistle, and then the match was on. You could hardly keep up with the players’ movements, so fast was it all; this was a level of skill that even you could recognize was far above anything you had ever seen. Every single player on the pitch was at least on Tabito and Hiori’s level, if not above it. Unlike Bambi Osaka, where Tabito was the captain of the team and often had to play doubly as aggressively because of that, he blended right into the mix of talents that was this motley collection of high school forwards. You could tell even from so far away that this thrilled him instead of grating on his nerves; he wasn’t the kind of person who craved the spotlight, after all. If anything, it was something he shied away from, preferring to strike at his opponent’s weak points from the dark, and it was only here, with the rest of the Blue Lock 11, that he could finally play how he preferred.

When the first goal on Blue Lock’s side was scored, by the tall, pale-haired number 7, you, your best friend, and Chigiri shot to your feet, screaming and clapping as loud as you could. Your enthusiasm, which was a stark contrast to everyone else’s quiet confusion, sparked a tidal wave. The entire stadium resounded with a roar of approval as the number 7 — Nagi — crashed to the ground before raising his fist, getting tackled by his teammates directly afterwards in celebration. 

“That was amazing!” your best friend said as everyone settled for the restart. “I never realized that soccer could be so exciting to watch.”

“That guy is skilled,” you agreed. “So is everyone else. Including that Otoya—”

“Don’t even mention him!” she said. “Nagi’s the one who scored, so stick to praising him!”

“Hyoma’s doing so well!” Chigiri said, her cheeks pink from the cold and round from her grin. “I can’t believe it. It’s like he was never hurt at all!”

“Honestly, this is way more intense than I expected,” your best friend said, hugging herself tightly. “I really hope they manage to win.”

“They will,” you said. “I’m confident of that.”

Maybe the Blue Lock 11 were the underdogs, but something told you that they were going to win. There was just this fire to them, a heat and a hatred that emanated off of only their side of the field. The docile U-20 boys, who were so dependent on the efforts of defender Aiku and midfielder Sae, could never hope to compete with that overwhelming energy, which was so potent that the bleachers themselves were washed in it.

That was why you weren’t even surprised when number 10, Rin, scored another goal right before half-time, ending the first half with a lead for Blue Lock. You knew for a fact that your voice would be hoarse the next day from how much you were shouting, but based on your best friend’s and Chigiri’s faces, you figured you were in good company and didn’t even take any measures to lessen the severity of the consequence.

As the players began to move towards their respective locker rooms, Chigiri stood up and began to wave her hands frantically.

“Hyoma! Over here!” she called out. Her brother paused in the middle of drinking from his water bottle, whipping around, his face turning the same shade as his hair when he noticed his sister, who pulled out her phone and took a picture of him. “He noticed me! Ah, hello, Hyoma! You’re doing awesome!”

Tabito and Otoya walked past where the younger Chigiri was frozen in place, and before they could vanish into the locker room and out of your sight, you cupped your hands around your mouth.

“Tabito!” you said. He stopped in his tracks before twisting back to face you, his face breaking into such a wide grin when he saw you that it was a wonder his face did not ache from it. He raised his hand in greeting, and you did the same, so relieved to see him again that you thought you might vomit from the giddiness.

Beside you, your best friend stood, drawing herself to her full height. Then, before you could stop her, she jabbed her finger towards Otoya, who had remained at Karasu’s side when he had stopped to greet you. Otoya turned his head this way and that before pointing at himself hesitantly. Your best friend nodded and then stuck up her middle finger at him, causing Tabito to burst into a fit of laughter, his shoulders shaking as he dragged the helpless Otoya away from where he was suddenly rooted to the ground in perplexity.

“That’s what he gets,” she said with satisfaction, sitting back down now that she had accomplished her mission.

“He probably has no idea who you are,” you said, giggling to yourself, finding great entertainment in the one-sided feud she had with Otoya, who appeared to be a great friend of Tabito’s. “Also, you described him horribly back then. He’s really pretty good-looking, and the hair is nowhere near as bad as you made it sound.”

“I’m telling Karasu you said that,” she said. “If I was him, I’d be offended! My beloved girlfriend finds a guy who appears to be fresh out of the swamp attractive? That would really make me insecure.”

“I don’t find him attractive, I just said that he’s good looking. It’s objective,” you said. “And fresh out of the swamp? Aren’t you being a little harsh?”

She glared at you. “No way. He owes me the price of the ticket he made me waste, but since he obviously isn’t going to pay me back, I’m going to make as much fun of him as possible.”

“You do that,” you said, judging that there was no arguing with her. “Chigiri, do you want any snacks? I’m going to head to the concession stands while there’s a break.”

“Could you get me some fries? I’ll send you the money,” she said.

“As long as you save my seat,” you said. 

“Of course! Go quickly, I’m sure the lines are going to be long. There’s a lot of people here,” she said.

“Good idea,” you said, racing off and cutting through the crowds swarming the many concession stands so that you could get some fries for her, candy for your best friend, and chips for yourself.

The second half was even more exciting than the first, though you hadn’t previously thought that that was possible. A boy named Shidou, who had something like a current crackling through him, joined the U-20s as their striker, and in quick succession, he managed to not only tie up the score but actually get a lead, thereby undoing all of the work that Nagi and Rin had put in. To make things worse, right after Shidou’s first goal, Hyoma Chigiri collapsed, earning a gasp from his sister as she shoved a fistful of fries in her mouth. Simultaneously, one of their defenders, the number 3, stumbled before slumping over entirely

“It looks like a cramp,” you reassured Chigiri as one of the other players helped her brother stretch out his leg and then stand. “And I think Niko must’ve sprained his ankle during that earlier play. They’re going to have to put in alternates, but it’s not serious. Both of them just need some rest and they’ll be okay.”

“If you say so,” she said, biting her lip.

“No way, is that Reo Mikage?” your best friend said, her eyes wide as a tall, well-built boy took Niko’s place on the field. He had purple hair tied back in a messy ponytail, and a desperate sort of anger simmered beneath his serene exterior. You squinted and found she was right — the name Reo was indeed written above the large number 14 on his back.

“Like the corporate heir?” you said. Everyone who was anyone knew about the Mikages, but what business did the son have playing soccer? Then again, you supposed even the wealthiest people in the world had to have hobbies. Maybe soccer was just what filled the void for him. You supposed you couldn’t really comment either way.

“I’m sure of it!” your best friend said. “Oh, man, Y/N, he’s even more gorgeous in person…do you think Karasu knows him? Can I get an introduction? He’s so dreamy and perfect and amazing and unreal!”

“I can ask. I’m sure they’re at least acquainted, considering they’re playing on the same team — wait! Look, it’s Hiori! Oh my goodness, it’s Hiori! Yay, yay, Hiori! You’ve got this!” you squealed, pointing at him insistently. He was the one going in for Chigiri, and though he seemed solemn, you knew he must be nothing less than agitated at the moment. You willed him to glance up at you, and whether it was divine intervention or just a coincidence, he happened to shift towards your direction and thus made direct eye contact with you.

Immediately, any gloominess dropped from his shoulders, and you showed him your fingers, which were crossed for luck. He mimicked the gesture before running out to the field, where Otoya patted him on the back in greeting.

“Somebody save that poor, innocent boy,” your best friend said as the game began again.

“Hiori? From what?” you said.

“From being corrupted and turned into a bad-mannered asshole by Otoya,” she said.

“Fair enough,” you said before your jaw dropped as Reo Mikage perfectly mimicked Aiku’s signature defensive move, stopping Shidou from scoring yet again. “Woah. Reo’s rich and a soccer genius? I thought you were full of bullshit earlier, but you actually might be onto something.”

“Exactly,” your best friend said with a smitten sigh. “What a man.”

Despite Reo’s prowess and the goalie’s unorthodox methods, they were ultimately unable to stop Shidou from making that second goal. As the U-20 boys celebrated and the referee called for the ball to be retrieved, Blue Lock’s number 11, Isagi, stomped over to the sideline where their coach was sitting.

“They look like they’re arguing,” Chigiri said. “Do you think everything is alright?”

You weren’t sure when or how you had become the designated soccer expert, but for some reason, both Chigiri and your best friend looked at you expectantly, like you knew what the hell Isagi was pressed about. 

“Maybe he’s mad about his cooler?” you said.

“Huh?” your best friend said.

“Never mind,” you said. “Uh, if I had to guess, he’s probably either asking the coach to give them a new strategy or calling for their substitute to be put in. Shidou and Sae have backed them into a corner, and if they don’t switch things up soon, they’re going to lose.”

“Looks like Karasu and Hiori taught you more than you realized,” your best friend said as Isagi jogged back to the field and the referee whistled to call for a pause to the game. One of the benched Blue Lock members, their number 13, stood up, and you actually shivered when he did. He made every single other player look like a gentle kitten in comparison to his hulking presence, even those towering monsters like Shidou and Aiku. There was no doubt about it; this was a beast amongst men, his fangs bared as he stormed onto the field, and the only thing you could not understand was why he had not been playing from the start.

“That guy is scary,” you said.

“Scary hot,” my best friend said.

“Moving on from Reo already?” you said. “This is why you’ll never have a boyfriend. Too fickle.”

“Listen, I have to keep my options open! Not everyone is lucky enough to have someone who’s good-looking, talented, and has been obsessed with them for years,” she said, elbowing you in the side with a smirk. You rolled your eyes, though you could not help but look down at Tabito when she said that. “What if I get rejected by Reo? I need to have another option, or else I’m fresh out of luck.”

“Looks like he’s replacing Otoya,” you said. “What’s his name? Barou? I’m interested to see how he does.”

“He’s getting rid of that wannabe bog monster? Even better! He’s quickly shooting up in my rankings,” my best friend said.

“Wannabe — okay, I’ll just be happy for you,” you said. “Though his hair isn’t so green as to deserve this much slander…”

“Thanks,” she said, ignoring the rest of what you had said.

“I hope they can make a comeback,” Chigiri stressed. “It’ll crush Hyoma if they lose.”

“No matter what happens now, he should be proud of how he did in the match,” you said. “Pass that message along when you see him, please. There’s no way he’s not going to get scouted by some seriously great clubs in the future.”

“You’re really kind,” Chigiri said, leaning her head on your shoulder with a sniffle. “I hope that Hyoma and your boyfriend stay on the same team for a while. Watching games is so much more fun with you.”

“Thanks! You as well. But speaking of being on the same team…” You whipped out your phone during the lull of the match, pulling up Yukimiya’s girlfriend’s contact and typing out a quick text.

‘are you watching the game??’

She responded almost immediately. ‘i convinced my parents to let me skip school so i could lol. i’m so stressed out right now!! karasu is playing super well btw.’

‘so is yukimiya!!’

‘thx!! omg also i saw you and your best friend on the screen HAHA.’

The last text was startling, to say the least. Nudging your best friend, you showed her the message, after which she took out her own phone, flipped on the camera, and checked her appearance in it.

‘no way. when??’

‘YES it was right after nagi scored in the first half. you two + the redhead were the ones who started the cheering, so they focused on you guys at first!! dw you all looked rlly pretty. as usual <3’

‘ohhh that makes sense. and tyyyy but you’re the pretty one here!!’

‘STOP you are the sweetest. also look at this LMAO they’re already making edits of you guys!!’

‘WHAT?!?!?!’

She sent you a link, which you opened with trepidation, beckoning Chigiri and your best friend over. Turning up the volume, you held up your phone as an edit of the three of you at various points in the match began to play. You were equally impressed and horrified at the speed with which the editors had gotten to work, but you couldn’t even be upset — whether it was the song or the clips they had chosen, the video made you all look magnificent. You saved it to your folder and then put your phone away, vowing to go through the comments later.

Mere minutes after you all tuned back into the flow of the game, Barou somehow pulled off a near-miraculous sliding shot, slamming the ball into the goal and once again tying back the score. This time, nobody was uncertain about what to do; every single person was on their feet, whooping as Barou tore off his jersey and tossed it in the air, flexing his arms and raising his chin as Tabito wrapped an arm around his neck, Nagi jumped on his back, and Isagi clapped him on the shoulder.

“Wow,” your best friend said.

“Wow is right! That was an incredible play. Barou is in another realm entirely!” you said, your palms stinging from how hard you were slapping them together. Your rudimentary soccer knowledge was apparently sufficient enough for you to keep up with the game, though just barely.

“Oh, I don’t know enough about soccer to be in awe of his goal,” she said. “I’m talking about those wow muscles of his. I bet he could carry me with one arm…”

“Ew, nasty,” you said, smacking her, fully aware of where her thoughts had just gone.

“Come on, you know it’s true!” she protested.

“I have a boyfriend. I’m not allowed to answer that,” you said.

“But you’re allowed to say that Otoya is good-looking?” she said.

“That was just me being nice!” you said. 

“I sense favoritism,” she said. “And not even the good kind, because for some reason, you’re favoring the worst guy in the bunch! Since Karasu isn’t around to be disappointed in you, I’ll do it on his behalf.”

“Shut up,” you said half-heartedly. “I liked you better when you were in love with Reo.”

“Believe me, I still am,” she said. “He’s not the kind of person you get over easily.”

“Ah, and remind me of how many times you’ve spoken to him?”

“That’s not the point!”

The match was decided when Sae and Rin — who were supposedly brothers, according to the guys Chigiri had overheard while she was heading to the trash can — got into a fight for dominance over the ball. Somehow, it managed to end up in exactly the spot where Isagi was waiting, and without taking a moment to think, he drew his leg back. At the very last second of the game’s overtime, he sent it streaking into the net.

“They did it!” Chigiri shrieked, tackling you and your best friend in a hug. 

“They did!” you shrieked back, equally as overwhelmed. 

“I can’t believe it!” your best friend said. “They really pulled it off!”

With that one-goal lead, Blue Lock had managed it. They had won the game against the U-20s, thereby cementing their place in the world of soccer for good. Those whispered hopes that Tabito had shared with you, his dreams of being an athlete and playing the sport he loved…they were as you had always assured him: inevitabilities instead of impossibilities. 

After all, you would say to him, over and over until you were sure he believed you. Do you think I would spend so long hating someone if they were mediocre? You can do whatever you turn your mind to. Whether it’s winning a soccer game or managing a company or getting the girl you like, your success is a guarantee.

The Blue Lock boys were ushered back to their facility after the game, so you didn’t get a chance to congratulate Tabito, but even being able to wave at him had lifted your spirits immensely, so you didn’t feel like you had wasted the trip.

In fact, you had a new pastime to occupy yourself with: namely, watching edits of yourself and liking all of the comments hyping you up. There were many of both, and when you weren’t listening to your best friend rambling about her favorite Blue Lock boy of the hour — Barou and Reo were definitely the ones she brought up the most, but Nagi and Isagi were mentioned a fair bit, too — you spent your hours on social media, sending the best edits to the group chat that you and your best friend had created with Yukimiya’s girlfriend and the elder Chigiri.

A couple of days after the game, you and your best friend were lounging in her aunt’s living room when you got a call from a number you had not seen on your phone in ages. Springing to your feet, you answered it immediately.

“Tabito? I thought they took your phone in Blue Lock?” you said.

“Hi, Y/N. Yes, they did, but we just got our stuff back and are on the buses back to the city. We’re on break for the next two weeks! Are you still in Tokyo?” he said.

“Yes! I’m here for about that amount of time — for all of winter break,” you said.

“Perfect. Some of the guys have plans to meet up in Shibuya tomorrow, but I don’t mind canceling—”

“Wait,” you cut him off, an idea formulating in your mind. “Are Barou, Nagi, Isagi, and Reo Mikage included when you say ‘some of the guys?’”

“Uh, I think Reo’s going to be there, but not any of the others. Why?” he said quizzically. Your best friend gave you a puzzled look, obviously wondering why you had just listed off her top Blue Lock crushes while on the phone with your boyfriend.

“Is it okay if we come, too?” you said. Tabito hummed uncertainly.

“Er, I don’t know…it’s not that I don’t want you to or that they’d mind or anything! In fact, they’d probably be delighted if you showed up. Rather, it’s that a few of them are a little bit odd, and you’d probably not enjoy yourself very much if you came,” he said.

“On the contrary, I think we would enjoy ourselves a great deal. Some of us more than others, naturally, but as long as you’re there, I’ll have fun, and as for my plus one…let’s just say that she could probably listen to a speech about the drying of cement, as long as it was Reo giving it,” you said.

“I see what’s happening here,” he said with a snort. “Okay, I got it. I’ll ask them and let you know what they say, alright?”

“If they say no, then tell them you can’t go and come hang out with me,” you instructed him. “I want to be with you tomorrow. I’ve missed you for far too long.”

“Will do. I miss you more.”

The line went abruptly dead, ostensibly from a lack of signal on his part, but now that you knew you were going to see him the next day either way, you just tossed the useless device aside and grinned devilishly at your best friend.

“What was that all about?” she said.

“Just go ahead and tell me you love me,” you said.

“I love you?” she said.

“And I love you,” you said. “So much that I’m making my boyfriend take us along on his group date with his soccer group — where none other than the man himself, Reo Mikage, will be present.”

About an hour or so later, Tabito texted you in the affirmative, sending you the address of the cafe where they were planning on meeting up at and giving you a rough estimate of the time they’d all be there. You and your best friend stayed up late that night, picking out your outfits — well, mostly hers, you were at the point in your relationship where you were positive that Tabito would find you pretty even in a trash bag, so you weren’t anywhere near worried about your own clothing — and planning what she’d say to sweep Reo off of his feet. Once you were done with that, you got in your pajamas and watched romantic comedies to get yourselves in ‘the zone’ and be completely prepared for the day to come, which might have qualified as one of the most important in her life. 

You were the first ones at the cafe the next morning, so you took the liberty of choosing the largest table you could find and setting your things down before looking up their menu online. Your best friend, who was the one that had convinced you to be so obsessively punctual for fear of making a bad first impression on Reo, did the same, though she left two seats in between you and herself.

“Tell Karasu to sit next to you, and then have him get Reo to sit in between himself and me,” she said to you.

“Yup, I know the plan,” you said.

“Good,” she said. “Have you picked what you’re ordering? Since no one else is here yet, I can go in and grab stuff for both of us.”

“Yeah, I want this, and this,” you said, pointing at the exact menu items so that there was no room for misinterpretation.

“Mm, looks good,” she said. “Eek, I think there’s a line.”

“It’s peak brunch time,” you said. “We’re lucky to have gotten a table at all, let alone one so big. Just leave your sweater on your chair so no one else takes it. Unless you want me to go in instead?”

“Nope, I don’t want to look like a friendless loser if Reo gets here before you come back or the others show up,” she said.

“You should hurry up and join the queue before it gets any worse, then,” you said. “It would suck if you were stuck waiting and Reo left before you could even meet him.”

“I’m going!” she said, speeding into the cafe, the glass door clanging shut behind her. You laughed softly at how easy she was to rile up, resting your chin in your hands and regarding the bustling scenery of the street with adoration. Tokyo was different from home, but you didn’t mind the change. It was fun, anyways, coming up with backstories for the people who walked past, inquiring into their lives from the snippets you were shown with the curiosity of a squirrel.

“Is it okay if I sit here?” a light, playful voice said, distracting you from your thoughts. The speaker was a boy in a dark jacket, with headphones slung around his neck and a beanie pulled low over his hair, though a few stubborn strands poked out anyways — grayish-white strands, in specific, which were cut through by brilliant green. You swore under your breath. How had you not realized that he would be here as well? You could only hope that Reo would distract your best friend well enough that she would not flip out over Otoya’s presence

“You’re Otoya, right?” you said. At the mention of his name, he grinned and slid into the seat designated for Tabito, leaning his elbow on the table and batting his eyelashes at you.

“That’s me. How did you know? I’m certain we’ve not met before, because I’d remember a lady as pretty as yourself,” he said. 

“You played in the match against the U-20s,” you said.

“You watched that?” he said. “I was pretty great, wasn’t I?”

“I don’t seem to remember you ever scoring,” you said thoughtfully. “And weren’t you subbed out? Ah, but yes, I was actually in the audience that day.”

Otoya wilted. “Oh. Were you rooting for the U-20s?”

“No, I was on Blue Lock’s side,” you said.

“Hold on, are you one of the guy’s sisters?” he said, stroking his chin and inspecting you. “Probably not Chigiri’s, but maybe Barou’s? I think he mentioned having younger sisters at one point. But I hope not, he’d definitely kill me for talking to you. Speaking of which, what are you even doing around here? Wanna go somewhere a bit nicer together?”

“I’m waiting for my boyfriend,” you said.

“Boyfriend?” Otoya said, face growing unnaturally pale. He inched his chair away from you. “Who’s your boyfriend?”

Before you could respond, a hand covered your eyes, blacking out your vision. “Guess who?”

“Tabito!” you said, standing up, yanking his hand away from you and kicking your chair out of the way so you could hug him. He was already waiting for you, pulling you to his chest immediately, burying his nose in your hair as he did when he was particularly tense or had been missing you.

“That’s correct. Gold star for Y/N,” he said. 

Though it had been a while, now that you were back in his embrace, it felt like no time at all had passed. That was how it was between you and him, a product of the many years you both had known one another before ever dating. Tabito was as much your friend as he was your boyfriend, a confidante and a rival and a companion and a lover all wrapped into one package. There could not be secrets nor distance between the two of you, not when you both had been studying one another’s complexities since before you had even understood what it meant to pay such special attention to another person.

“Sit next to me,” you said, tugging on his coat.

“Sure thing,” he said. “Dude, move over.”

Otoya scrambled to his feet, taking the seat on Tabito’s other side and eyeing you warily, his cheeks flushed a light pink — no doubt due to that brand of humiliation which was borne from trying to get with one’s friend’s girlfriend.

“You’re Y/N?” he said.

“That’s me. Has Tabito mentioned my name or something?” you said. When he realized you weren’t going to rat him out, Otoya relaxed and pretended to gag.

“All of the time. I thought you were his celebrity crush or idol, the way he talked about you! I couldn’t believe you were real when he waved at you during the game. You were sitting a bit too far away for me to get a good look at you, but you waved back, so I had no choice but to believe him,” he said. You recognized that this was his attempt at an apology, and, finding no merit in anything but acceptance, you shrugged.

“I wasn’t that crazy,” Tabito said.

“I don’t know. Otoya doesn’t seem like the lying type,” you said. Otoya let out a sigh of relief, catching your eye and mouthing thank you when Tabito gave you an irritated look.

“He totally is! Don’t believe a word out of this asshole’s mouth, he’s full of shit!” he said.

“So that must be why you’re friends, then?” you said. Otoya let out a choked laugh, and Tabito gave you such a kicked-puppy look that you could not help but lean over and press a kiss to his cheek. “Just joking. Who else is coming?”

“Well, you already know about Reo, but besides him, Tokimitsu said he’d come, Aryu, and Yuki,” Tabito said, counting off each name on his fingers.

“Yuki? Like Yukimiya? You two are friends now?” you said, already planning double dates with Yukimiya and his girlfriend in your head.

“We were in Blue Lock together. That kind of experience can bond anyone,” Tabito said.

“This guy really hated Yuki at first, though,” Otoya said, jabbing his thumb towards Tabito, who scowled. “So fucking funny. Yuki would just be standing there, and he’d go crazy, talking about how ‘one centimeter isn’t a big deal’ and how Yuki was ‘just an average, mediocre guy.’”

“You can stop talking now,” Tabito said.

“But all’s well that ends well, right? Now Yuki and Karasu are great pals. He never did explain what his problem was at the start, however. I’ve always wondered,” Otoya said, in a tone that clearly suggested he was fishing for an elaboration from you. 

“I can’t believe you’re telling on me! And to my girlfriend of all people!” Tabito said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Why does Tabito not like Yuki? It’s a funny story, really,” you began.

“One we do not need to go over,” Tabito said. Now that the misunderstanding was well beyond cleared up, that fight right before you two had gotten together was a point of great embarrassment for Tabito, who still could not quite believe that he had behaved so irrationally.

“What don’t we need to go over?” It was another newcomer, but one who you knew — Yukimiya himself, who beamed when he saw you. “Oh, Y/N! Karasu mentioned you were going to be here, but to be quite frank with you, I sort of forgot. How have you been?”

“Can’t complain. What about you?” you said. “Great job in the game against the U-20s, by the way.”

“Thanks!” he said, sitting down across from you. “I’m in the same boat. It’s nice to be on a break. I actually slept in for the first time in forever, and I got to use my own skin products instead of the crap Blue Lock gave us.”

“I’m happy for you,” you said. “You all deserve a break. It’s obvious you’ve been working really hard.”

“Pardon, madam!” You hardly had the time to react before a spindly man with flowing black hair and dark, painted fingernails was crouching beside you. “I’m sorry if I’m overstepping, but I just — I have to acknowledge glam when it’s so obviously in front of me.”

“What?” you said.

“Here he goes,” Otoya said, steepling his fingers in anticipation.

“It’s just…I was aware that Karasu was bringing his girlfriend and her best friend to this little meeting of ours, but I didn’t know that one of you would turn out to be the most glam individual I’ve had the pleasure of seeing in ages! Please, tell me you’re the best friend,” he said.

“She’s the girlfriend, Aryu, so leave her alone,” Tabito said. Aryu pressed the back of his hand against his forehead.

“In another life, my dear,” he said, fluttering his fingers at you.

“No?” Tabito said. “In no other life! She’s mine in every one, so piss off!”

“Uh, thanks for the compliment. It’s nice to meet you, Aryu,” you said awkwardly. Otoya and Yukimiya did nothing to dissipate the tension, both of them exchanging looks and giggling.

“Sorry about him,” a stocky boy with huge, panicked eyes said, taking the chair beside where Aryu was still muttering to himself about a ‘grand love affair’ that would ‘shock the world with its glam potential.’ “You’re the girl from the edits, aren’t you? Y/N L/N? I’m Tokimitsu.”

“How do you know her full, official, government name?” Tabito said, arching his eyebrows. Tokimitsu shook his head so rapidly you thought his neck might snap or something from the speed of it.

“No, no, it’s not like that, Karasu! She’s just famous at the moment!” he said.

Tabito’s eyes flicked towards you for confirmation. You rubbed the back of your neck, beginning to explain for the benefit of the entire table.

“Right when Nagi scored, the three of us — my best friend, Chigiri, and I — were the only ones cheering, so the cameras focused on us,” you said. “After that, they would periodically show us throughout the match, and people have been making edits of those clips. At first, we were just the unnamed Blue Lock fans, but I think I liked one too many comments calling me hot, because now everyone knows who we all are…”

“Some of the edits are really good,” Tokimitsu agreed. “They’re all over my dashboard. People have even started shipping you guys with the players! Right now, the most popular pairings are you with Karasu—”

“Good,” Tabito said, sticking his nose in the air. You pinched him on the bicep, finding his uncharacteristic possessiveness as endearing as it was unnecessary.

“—and your best friend with Otoya,” Tokimitsu continued.

“Huh?” Otoya said.

“The clip of her giving you the middle finger right before halftime is super popular,” Tokimitsu said. “People have actually taken screenshots and made matching profile pictures. It’s a whole movement.”

“Huh?” Otoya said. “How am I supposed to flirt with girls if everyone thinks I’m taken by some psycho who hates me for no reason? Where can I file a complaint? This needs to be stopped at once!”

“It’s not for no reason, exactly,” you said.

“There’s a legitimate explanation?” Tabito said.

“Legitimate is a stretch, but there is an explanation,” you said. “You know her. She wouldn’t hate someone without having at least some kind of logic to it.”

A shiny black limousine pulled up in front of the cafe, and the back doors opened to reveal Reo Mikage, who stepped out and thanked the driver before walking over to join the rest of you. You were about to tell him to take the seat in between Tabito and your best friend, but then you realized that there was a massive problem: somebody was already sitting there. Namely, Otoya, who was busily swiping through his phone and reporting every account that he came across which had either him or your best friend as a profile picture.

“My apologies for the tardiness,” Reo said. His mere voice had a particular cadence to it that spoke to his wealth and upbringing, and down to the slightest, his mannerisms were genteel and refined. “I had to sneak out from a meeting to come here.”

“Sneaking out from a meeting to come to another meeting? You’re a busy guy, Reo!” Aryu said, evidently completely over his earlier heartbreak. “What a glam schedule.”

“That’s not the word I’d use for it,” Reo said, running a hand through his hair, which fell loosely around his face now that he wasn’t playing soccer. “Anyways, I hope I didn’t keep you all waiting for too long.”

“No, we haven’t gotten started yet,” Tabito said.

“We’ve been discussing the edits people made of Y/N and her friends!” Tokimitsu said. Reo looked over at you and smiled politely.

“I’ve seen a few of them. It’s an impressive marketing strategy on the JFU’s part — by sprinkling in clips of you three, they managed to appeal to a broader audience. Now, people who ordinarily never would have watched the game are watching reruns, therefore increasing their revenue tenfold,” he said, offering you his hand to shake. “I’m Reo Mikage.”

“Y/N L/N,” you said, taking it as professionally as you could, all the while wondering what was holding your best friend up. She ought to be here as soon as possible, or else she really might lose her chance. 

Like she had read your mind, the glass door of the cafe swung open, and your best friend strolled out, two plastic cups balanced in one hand and two scones in a napkin held in the other. 

“Sorry I took so long,” she said, thankfully oblivious to the members of the meeting you were crashing. “The barista got confused and made my drink iced. I told her it wasn’t a big deal, but she insisted on dumping it and remaking it properly, free of charge. Apparently, she’s new or something, so she’s still in that phase where she isn’t entirely jaded by the public yet.”

“It’s okay,” you said. “Tabito. Grab my drink before she—!”

“You!” your best friend said, pointing at Otoya, who groaned in defeat and buried his face in his hands. Your drink slipped from her hands and clattered to the ground, spilling out onto the concrete, though she took no notice of it, putting the rest of the goods on the table and glaring at Otoya.

“My drink,” you said mournfully.

“I’ll go get you a new one,” Tabito said, making like he was going to stand. You grabbed onto his arm and shook your head.

“No, don’t leave me here,” you said.

“What? Why not?” he said. You pointed at the infamous duo, both of whom looked about ready to blow up, and then you looped your arms around his neck, peeking over his shoulder at the pair.

“If they get in a fight, I’ll be stuck in the crossfire,” you said. “You have to stay here and defend me if it comes to that. Quick, take the scones while she’s distracted. I’m going to eat them as payback for her dropping my drink.”

He did as you commanded. “Here you go.”

“Thank you,” you said.

“You owe me ten dollars!” your best friend said.

“What? No, I don’t. We’ve never even met, so why would I owe you any money at all?” Otoya said. “Wait. We haven’t met, right? Or did we go on a date at some point? If so, I’m sorry that it didn’t work out, but you have to understand that things just end up like that sometimes. I’m not going to compensate you for that.”

“Jeez, Otoya,” Yukimiya said with a chuckle. “You’re kind of horrible, man. How many dates have you been on, if you don’t even remember whether you were with her at some point?”

“Do you really want the answer to that?” Otoya said. Yukimiya made a face.

“You were definitely on a date,” your best friend said. “I wasn’t, though. In fact, I was just innocently trying to watch a movie with my cousins, when somebody decided that they would just go ahead and make out with their date, right in front of my face, for the entire one hour and forty-seven minutes of the film!”

“Who’s somebody?” Tokimitsu whispered.

“Probably Otoya,” Aryu whispered back.

“Oh, I do remember you!” Otoya said, snapping his fingers. “You came and yelled at me after the movie, too, right? That was funny.”

“Okay, guys, how about we all relax and get to the point of this meeting instead of squabbling over past grievances?” Reo interrupted before the argument could grow anymore heated. Satisfied that things were now under control, you ceased your cowering behind Tabito, though you did make sure to shove the last of the scones in your mouth before your best friend could ask where they had disappeared to.

“Fine by me,” Otoya said when your best friend did not respond. “Yo, you gonna sit down or what?”

“You guys can have your meeting without us, since I’m quite sure it’s not anything that we’ll be able to meaningfully contribute to. In the meantime, she and I will go and get a replacement drink for me,” you said.

As soon as the two of you were inside and out of earshot of the boys, she let out a wail. “I completely made an awful first impression on Reo Mikage!”

“I can’t lie, you definitely did,” you said. “But at least it was entertaining for the rest of us. Cheer up! There’s still Barou, Nagi, and Isagi, right? You have an entire list for a reason. Reo might be a wash, but that doesn’t mean you have to give up entirely.”

“You’re right, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt. If only that lettuce-headed Otoya weren’t here! Things would’ve gone perfectly, but ruining my life must be a particular hobby of his,” she said.

“You might be better off if you pretend he’s not around,” you said. “How about this? We’ll get Tabito to set you up on a date with one of the others on your roster, and I’ll personally ensure that Otoya stays far, far away.”

“Thanks,” she said. “Here, I’ll pay for your drink, since I spilled it the first time.”

“Yeah, I was going to make you do that even if you didn’t offer.”

Upon your return outside, drinks and additional scones in hand, you were met with a larger group than you had left. Even more of the Blue Lock boys had appeared, and all of them were talking animatedly with one another.

“You’re Hyoma!” you said, taking a sip from your still-hot beverage, waving at your new friend’s little brother. “I sat with your sister at the game.”

“She’s mentioned you a couple of times. Said you thought I did well in the game,” Chigiri said, scratching the bridge of his nose shyly. “I really appreciate it. You’re Karasu’s girlfriend, right?”

“Yes! Thank you for knowing that!” Tabito said, snatching your drink from you and taking a swig, bursting into a coughing fit as it scalded his throat.

“That’s what you get,” you said, taking your drink back, blowing on it to cool it before taking the tiniest sip. “Alright, I know Isagi and Chigiri, but who’s the third one?”

“That’s Bachira,” Tabito said. “He’s a fascinating guy.”

“You know what we should do? Since all of us are together for the first time outside of Blue Lock, we should hang out!” Bachira said, rocking on his heels. 

“That’s good with me. Our meeting ended up not being that productive,” Yukimiya said.

“Mostly due to certain individuals,” Reo agreed, looking pointedly at Otoya.

“Me? Blame her!” Otoya said, pointing at your best friend, who was busy exchanging hair care tips with Aryu instead of putting the moves on Isagi, as you thought she might’ve. 

“Reo’s too much of a glam gentleman to blame a lady for anything,” Aryu said.

“What he said,” Reo agreed. “Though, again, I wouldn’t put it like that.”

“Where should we go?” Tokimitsu said. “I’m okay with anything.”

“Wait, what about Nagi? Isn’t he with you guys?” Reo said to Isagi, who hummed.

“He was supposed to meet up with us, but he overslept, and then he saw an arcade on the way, so he stopped in there,” Isagi said.

“Reo, I bet you have Nagi’s location on your phone at all times, right?” Bachira said. Reo nodded. “Then I say we use that to go and find him!”

“An arcade day does sound like a blast,” Yukimiya said.

“Thanks for the invite, but I think I’m going to stay back and spend the day with Y/N,” Tabito said.

“She can come, too!” Bachira said. “On one condition: she has to be my partner for rhyming ping-pong.”

“That’s a fair deal in my books,” you said. Ordinarily, you would have agreed with Tabito — a calm date with him was far more appealing than the prospect of going to an arcade with a bunch of soccer players — but above all else, you were a loyal friend, and you could hardly abandon your best friend when Reo, Nagi, and Isagi would all be present at this gathering.

“Are you sure? You don’t have to feel bad for me. I don’t mind missing out on hanging with these idiots. I see enough of them in Blue Lock as it is,” Tabito said.

“I’m offended,” Otoya said dryly. “What happened to bros before hoes?”

“Considering she’s his girlfriend and he’s liked her for going on six years now, I’d say she’s probably a bit more than a ‘hoe,’” Yukimiya said.

“I don’t feel bad for you, Tabito, so you can put that out of your mind. I haven’t gone to an arcade or played rhyming ping-pong in ages. It’ll be fun, I think,” you said, kicking him under the table and angling your chin towards Reo and Isagi ever-so-slightly. His mouth formed an ‘o’ in realization.

“Then I guess we’re off to the arcade,” he said. “Lead the way, Reo.”

“Follow me,” Reo said, holding up his phone, which displayed the elusive Nagi’s location on the screen.

You all must’ve appeared an odd group to any onlookers, but that didn’t stop any of you from enjoying yourselves as you weaved through the streets of Shibuya. You walked with Tabito, your hand intertwined with his like usual, both of you pointing out window displays you found appealing or ridiculous. Chigiri and Bachira hotly debated which arcade games were the best, Isagi doing his best to mediate while Otoya egged both of them on in turn. Reo and Yukimiya continued their discussion on the economics of Blue Lock from the earlier meeting, and Aryu described every single step he took in the shower to your best friend and Tokimitsu, both of whom were enthralled by the topic. All in all, it was a blend which should not have worked but somehow did, and more than simply working, it really excelled.

“There you are, pain-in-the-ass gamer prince!” Tabito cackled as everyone entered the arcade and saw Nagi sitting at one of the booths, controls in his hands and a small frown on his face as he gunned down his virtual enemies. Letting go of you, Tabito wrestled Nagi into a headlock, messing with his hair as Nagi whined in protest. “You’re going to lose all of your friends, you jerk!”

“Caught red-handed,” Reo said with a sigh. “Classic Nagi.”

“Now that we’ve found him, it’s time to party!” Bachira said, pumping his fist in the air. “Tokimitsu, let’s go play darts!”

“Okay!” Tokimitsu said.

“I’m heading over to the claw machine,” your best friend said. “Wanna come, Y/N?”

“Sure, I’ll cheer you on,” you said. “I’m pretty bad at it myself, so I won’t waste my money on my own attempts.”

Everyone dispersed throughout the arcade. Tabito, Otoya, and Aryu followed you and your best friend towards the claw machine, much to your best friend’s disgust — you were certain that she had been hoping Isagi, Nagi, or Reo would come with you, but all three of them were preoccupied with the darts competition Bachira had set up, leaving her to side-eye Otoya and stick to conversing only with Aryu. For his part, Aryu was happy to oblige her, as sticking close to your best friend had the double effect of cooling Tabito’s ire from earlier as well as alleviating the hostility between her and Otoya.

“This has got to be rigged!” your best friend said when her third attempt at trying to nab a panda plushie proved unsuccessful. On each attempt, right before she was able to drop the plushie into the chute, the claw would give out and it would fall back into the pile, leaving her out of money and patience.

“Move out of the way,” Otoya said. “Let me show you how the masters get it done.”

“You call yourself a claw-machine master?” you said. “What, do you practice or something?”

Otoya entered a token into the machine and shouldered past your fuming best friend, grabbing the controls with casual ease. “Girls love it when you win stuffed animals for them. Check out my flow!”

“I never put you down as someone with this type of functional glam,” Aryu said, pressing his face against the glass of the machine. “I sincerely repent for the underestimation!”

“You really are a master,” you breathed, doing the same, watching in astonishment as Otoya expertly maneuvered the plushie towards the chute.

“Stop shaking the machine, idiots, you’ll make him mess up,” Tabito said, pulling you and Aryu away from the glass by the back of your collars and holding you there until Otoya had retrieved his prize.

“Bam,” Otoya said, tossing the panda at your best friend. “Ninja skills.”

It hit her in the face and fell to the ground; with a withering glare, she stooped over and tucked it under her arm before stomping away.

“You better not find yourself anywhere near the dartboards! I’m warning you, I have a bad aim, so look out!” she threatened before disappearing, presumably to join in on Bachira’s tournament.

“Isn’t that just a self-insult?” Otoya said. “Sucking at darts is even worse than sucking at the claw machine, don’t you think?”

“She means she’ll hit you with the dart and you can’t blame her for it because she warned you, you dunce,” Tabito said, face-palming. “Come on, Y/N, let’s go see how the tournament’s going.”

The tournament seemed to have split into two sections. On the right side, Reo, Tokimitsu, Yukimiya, and your best friend were tossing darts at the board with precision and care, tallying up their scores and congratulating one another after each round. On the left, Nagi was standing in front of the board with his arms spread and his back to Bachira, Isagi, and Chigiri, who were gleefully taking turns throwing darts in his direction, talking about how this was his ‘punishment’ for standing them up.

“Who’s winning?” you said, right as Bachira sent a dart shooting towards the back of Nagi’s head. Nagi exhaled heavily.

“Sorry,” he repeated for the thousandth time.

“Do you think it’s even possible for someone to win in a game like that?” Tabito said. “Better to ask those guys.”

“I think Yuki is up right now,” Reo said in response to your unasked question. “Although Tokimitsu’s catching up. It’s super close. Could be anyone’s game.”

“Now that you’re here, Y/N, let’s go play rhyming ping-pong!” Bachira said.

“Who will we play against, though?” you said.

“Nagi, for one,” Bachira said.

“I don’t want to,” Nagi said. Bachira raised another dart, causing Nagi’s sleepy frown to deepen. “Okay, I will.”

“Then Tabito can be your teammate,” you said. 

“You’re challenging me?” Tabito said. “You’re going to regret that. Prepare to lose.”

“Bachira and I won’t let you get even a point, right, Bachira?” you said. 

“That’s right!” Bachira said, high-fiving you and charging forwards as the entire group headed over to the ping-pong table. Picking out four paddles from the rack, he handed one each to you, Tabito, and Nagi, keeping the last for himself and joining you on your side of the table.

“If we beat you, then you have to take me to the aquarium for our next date!” you said, brandishing your paddle at Tabito.

“Fine, but if we beat you, then you have to join me during my workouts for the rest of the break!” he said, tossing the ball up and down in the air.

“We have to crush them,” you said to Bachira. “If I have to workout with him, I’ll probably die.”

“Got it,” Bachira said, rolling his shoulders. “Ready when you are.”

“Nagi, get your head in the game,” Tabito said to his reluctant partner. “We need to win this. The aquarium is so creepy and unromantic! What kind of first date back from Blue Lock would that be? I need your talents, prodigy.”

“Okay,” Nagi said. “Are we starting?”

“Yeah, you can serve. Do you know how to play?” Tabito said.

“Not really,” he said.

“Whenever you hit the ball, you have to say a word that the other team can rhyme to, and when they return the serve, they have to come up with that rhyme and say it,” Bachira said. “Pretty easy, right?”

“It’ll be a simple win,” you said. “I’m first in the class for Modern Literature, so I know a lot of words.”

“Don’t underestimate Nagi,” Reo said. “He may look like little more than a typical idiot slacker, but he actually came second in our year without studying at all.”

“I’m so torn,” your best friend said. “Who do I root for?”

“Why’s it a question? Wouldn’t you want to root for your best friend?” Chigiri said. 

“You wouldn’t get it,” she said.

“Hmph,” Chigiri said. “Whatever.”

“Okay, are both sides ready?” Yukimiya said. He had been chosen to referee, mostly because he was the most impartial. All of you nodded, and he whistled. “Rhyming ping-pong, begin! Your serve, Nagi!”

“Um,” Nagi said, tossing the ball in the air and tapping it with his paddle. “Orange?”

Yukimiya whistled again. “Out! Y/N and Bachira are the winners!”

“What was that?” Tabito screeched.

“He must’ve gotten nervous in the face of Bachira and I’s combined prowess,” you said, tossing your hair.

“Not really. I just didn’t wanna play,” Nagi said. “There’s some good aquariums in Tokyo, Karasu. You can probably have a fun date there.”

“You’re the worst,” Tabito said. “I’m taking Chigiri next time. I bet he wouldn’t have picked orange as his first word!”

“I would’ve gone with bat,” Chigiri said.

“Ooh, and then I would’ve said cat!” you said. Bachira had vanished alongside Isagi and Reo, giving some excuse about karaoke before running out the door after them, leaving you standing alone across from the furious Tabito and lethargic Nagi.

“Maybe we should’ve teamed up,” Chigiri said to you. You winked and gave him a thumbs-up in assent.

“Can we go see what Reo and the others are doing?” Nagi said, limp in another one of Tabito’s headlocks, completely unbothered by the vulnerable position that he was being held in. 

“Bachira said they were going for karaoke,” you said. “Maybe we should find Otoya and Aryu before joining them, though.”

“How about just Aryu?” your best friend suggested, though her ideas went unheard.

“I’ll text them,” Yukimiya said.

“No need,” Otoya said, peeking his head into the door. “We’ve been looking for you guys for a while.”

“Such unglam conduct, disappearing like that,” Aryu said in disappointment.

“Sorry!” Tokimitsu yelped. 

“Since we’re all here now, we should be good to head to karaoke,” Yukimiya said.

“Karasu and I are going to do a duet,” Otoya informed everyone as you all followed the signs for the karaoke section of the building.

“Hell yeah,” Tabito snickered. “We’ll knock everyone’s socks off. They’re not ready.”

“What song?” Tokimitsu said.

“Something with a lot of belting,” Otoya said. 

“Please don’t,” your best friend said. “I didn’t bring ear plugs, and I do value my hearing.”

“Wait a second,” you said. “Hey, Tabito, Yukimiya — isn’t that Aiku from the U-20 squad?”

“Huh?” Tabito said.

“It is!” Yukimiya said. “He’s talking to Reo, Isagi, and Bachira, too. That’s unexpected.”

“Looks like the whole gang’s here, in fact,” Tabito said, cracking his knuckles and motioning towards the rest of the U-20 squad, who were glowering at the boys beside you as they approached.

“A fight?” Nagi said.

“Could be,” Otoya said, striking a ninja-pose that caused your best friend to dissolve into a fit of laughter, which he ignored completely. “I’m stoked.”

“Need backup, Isagi?” Yukimiya said, his hands in his pockets and a genial smile on his face. “We’ve got you.”

“Ah, but don’t expect anything from me!” you said, flashing them all a peace sign. “I’ll cheer for you from the corner, though.”

“A girl? Hello—” Aiku began, though he was immediately interrupted by Tabito.

“Nope, don’t even think about it,” he said. 

“Can’t blame a guy for trying,” Aiku said. 

“What are you all doing here?” one of the U-20 boys, whose name you couldn’t recall, said.

“Likely the same thing as you,” Chigiri said.

“But in a more glam way, naturally,” Aryu added.

“The fuck? Don’t think I won’t mess you up, freak!” the U-20 player said.

“Freak?” Aryu said. “Say that again, I dare you!”

“How about we settle this over a game of bowling?” Aiku suggested. “That way, none of us get in trouble with our coaches for accidentally injuring ourselves.”

“Fine by us,” Yukimiya said. “We’ll beat you either way.”

“I’d prefer it if I didn’t have to watch you all pummel each other,” you agreed.

“Same,” your best friend said. “Though I wouldn’t mind too much if you roughed Otoya up a bit…”

“Hey!” the boy in question said.

“The ladies have spoken,” Aiku said. “Bowling it is!”

“Are you going to play?” Tabito asked you as you all trekked towards the bowling alley. 

“Nah, this is a feud between Blue Lock and the U-20 players. I’m just an onlooker,” you said.

“Aw, but you’re the bowling champion! We’d win for sure if we had you on our side,” he said. Going bowling had been a common event for both of your friend groups all throughout high school, so he had been privy to many a round in which you absolutely annihilated everyone else, demolishing him and his friends and yours alike with a careful, needle-like precision.

“You’re not half-bad yourself. Plus, who knows how good the others are? It’ll be alright. Go beat those U-20 boys again, and then let’s get out of here,” you said.

“Just us? Or do you mean everyone?” he said.

“Just us,” you said. “I’ve been downright helpful all day, so no one can begrudge me for being a little bit selfish and sneaking off with you. I’ll only do it if you win, though.”

That was a lie, but Tabito was the type who performed better under pressure. The thought that he might miss out on a date with you — especially one not at the aquarium — would be more than enough to drive him to bowling success.

“Y/N!” your best friend hissed to you as Tabito and the others went to check in at the counter. “Check it out! It’s Shoei Barou!”

“He’s bowling all by himself? Huh, that’s a little startling. The more you know, I guess,” you said. Privately, you had believed the intimidating Barou would have had similarly intimidating habits, like powerlifting, or beating up thugs in alleyways, or activities more along those lines, but of course, everyone had layers, so maybe you shouldn’t have assumed.

“It’s kind of cute, if I’m being honest,” she said. “Like, oh my gosh, you’re a friendless loner! I need you so badly.”

“There’s a lid for every pot,” you said, not at all seeing the appeal in that kind of person but having decided long ago that you were more glad than anything that you and she didn’t have the same taste in men — you had likely avoided many awkward situations in that way. “Well, what’s your plan? You’ve got Reo, Barou, Nagi, and Isagi all in one room. Who’re you going to go for?” 

“Let’s weigh the pros and cons. That should help us come to a proper conclusion,” she said.

“Got it. Cons: Reo finds you super immature for fighting with Otoya, Nagi doesn’t seem to care about you one way or another, Isagi is much more interested in hanging out with Bachira and Chigiri than trying to talk to you, and you haven’t even met Barou yet,” you said. She gulped.

“And, uh, the pros?” she said. You frowned.

“Uh…at least Nagi’s opinion of you isn’t bad?” you said. “And you haven’t had the chance to make a terrible impression on Barou yet.”

“That’s it?” she said.

“Sorry,” you said. “But kind of. It’s not looking good.”

“What do I do, then?” she said. “Is it time for me to give up on my dreams? Am I destined to be single forever? Will the closest I get to a wedding be in the form of attending yours as a bridesmaid?”

“Don’t be pessimistic,” you said. “There’s always Aiku. He seems like he’d take anything on legs for a date or two.”

In unison, you glanced over at Aiku. He, and Otoya for that matter, were talking to a pair of girls, who were hooked on their every word, irises sparkling as they listened to both boys flirt. You and your best friend exchanged looks.

“I’d rather die alone,” she said. 

“That kind of relationship wouldn’t last,” you affirmed. “Don’t worry. I’ll ask Tabito if he can introduce you to Barou. He’s likely your best bet at this point.”

“You might be right about that,” she said, following after you as you made your way towards where the ones not actively bowling were hanging out.

This, unfortunately, was a fatal mistake. The route took you past Otoya and Aiku, and, more importantly, the girls they were chatting with. One of them happened to catch a glimpse of you both, and she immediately gasped, shoving past Otoya to tap the two of you on our shoulders.

“You’re the girls from the edits!” she said. You winced at the murderous expressions on Aiku’s and Otoya’s faces.

“Yeah, we are,” you said.

“No way!” the other girl said to your best friend. “You and your boyfriend are my sister and her boyfriend’s profile pictures!”

“Boyfriend?” your best friend said. “I’m single, though?”

“The guy you gave the middle finger to at the Blue Lock vs U-20 match! Aren’t you two dating?” she said.

“No!” your best friend and Otoya said at the same time.

“Wait, I didn’t recognize you because of the hat, but you’re the confused player that she flipped off!” the girl said to Otoya. “Can we get a picture of the two of you together? We’re guaranteed to go viral if we can post something like that!”

“Oh, boy,” you said. “Aiku, you seem like a nice guy, so I’m going to advise you to run right about now.”

“What?” he said. 

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you!” you said, darting off before you were caught up in the fallout that would accompany the request, not slowing your pace until you were safely over by Tabito and the rest, far away from the brewing situation.

“I think we’re going to do it!” Tabito said when he saw that you were once again at his side. “As long as Nagi is more motivated to bowl than he was to play rhyming ping-pong.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever, that’s great,” you said. “Let’s go.”

“Right now?” he said.

“Right now,” you said.

“Did something happen?” he said.

“This bowling alley is about to turn into a war zone,” you said, gesturing over to where Otoya and your best friend were standing stiffly beside one another, the girl angling her phone to take as many photos of them as possible.

“Uh-oh,” he said. “See you guys later!”

“What? You’re already leaving?” Chigiri said.

“Yup, it was great to meet you all! Good luck in Blue Lock. Hope to see you again!” you said, sprinting towards the doors with Tabito, ducking out right as your best friend went off on a tirade about how Otoya needed to stay a ‘minimum of two bodies’ away from her at all times lest he ‘infect her with the green hair disease.’ “Phew.”

“We made it,” Tabito said. “Now what?”

“Now we do whatever we want,” you said, reaching up and kissing him softly. “No more worrying about everyone else. Let’s do something for just the two of us.”

“Finally,” he said, wrapping an arm around your shoulders as you left the arcade behind. “I’ve been missing you for so long, and when I finally got you back, I had to share you with all of my dumbass teammates. Not fair.”

“I’m sorry,” you said. “It’s like Otoya said — bros before hoes.”

“Otoya’s a jackass,” he said. 

“True,” you said. “But enough about him. I want to hear about everything you did in Blue Lock, so that when you have to go back, I can imagine what you might be up to at any given moment and feel a little better.”

“Gross,” he said.

“You act as though you hate it, but I knew deep down you like it,” you said. He wrinkled his nose, though it did little to hide his prominent blush.

“Nah,” he said, drawing you impossibly closer to his side, as much to be affectionate as to prevent you from further exposure to the redness of his face. “I just like you.”

“Oh?” you said. “That’s good, because I like you, too.”

“I already knew that,” he said.

“Never mind,” you said. “If that’s the case, then I hate you.”

“No, you don’t,” he said. You smiled, playing with his fingers as the two of you walked around the city with no destination in mind, no end goal but to enjoy each other’s company.

“No, I don’t.”

[mari-lair]

Interesting question!

Hanako's lack of communication will absolutely be the main problem with poly (same with kou btw) but because he is so painfully obvious when he is possessive, it won't be a big issue.

Take this scene for example: Nene cheer up Kou after he loses to one of Mitsuba's supernatural arm allies. She is very cheerful and cute! Holding Kou's hand.

Hanako gets jelly by this and inserts himself between the two. He even put his hands on top of theirs.

And this jealousy is instantly killed when Kou and Nene accept his inclusion, Kou even put a hand on top of Hanako's and the ghost isn't bothered by that at all.

The thing about Hanako possessiveness is that while it have started as the typical "Nene is mine, shuush shuush!" feeling with Kou.

It has slowly morphed into "You make me happy so it's alright if you make Nene happy too."

Hanako's smile is genuine after he scared them here, this wasn't a successful "I must separate them!" plan, he just wanted to spook his favorite humans.

The most recent hints of possessiveness I could find felt less like "Don't get near her!!" and more like "don't leave me behind..."

Take his despair when he fantasies of Kou and Nene going to a festival together and having fun.

He is genuinely bothered by the idea of the two getting cozy, but it's less about them having fun together, and more about them having fun without him.

He recovers super quickly when he finds a way to go to a festival with them both after all. Check how he has a tiny blush when Kou is doing well at one of the games.

(Zoom on the blush cause Im insane)

And he clap when Nene tell Kou he is cool instead of trying to downplay what he did or push Nene away from 'the guy nene fond cool'

Even on chap 96 cover (so after his 'i want to be the one to save you. Not kou, me.'), he is still trying to be part of Kou and Nene's high five, not push Kou away.

Speaking of the 'i want to be your savior' panel, during his vent, Hanako pictures Kou with Nene, both framed in the light while he is behind in the shadows: He considers his solution, his 'ideal' scenario, dark and corrupted.

So he does have a desperate sort of possessiveness of Nene/envy of Kou that he isnt proud of.

If a miracle happens and Nene's lifespan increases, he'll become a temporary presence in her life and he wants more than that. Kou already has so much: He can walk her to school, he can grow up with her, he can give her happiness for the rest of his life, but Hanako can't. He is on a timelimit, dead since they met.

He wants to leave a lasting impact, to give meaning to their short relationship and to his empty afterlife, forever haunted by being a killer.

When he thinks too hard about his situation, he becomes restless.

So, while poly would be a very nice "we are a team, we won't leave you behind" reassurance for him. He will need to be convinced that he is a 'forever' to them and that is... very hard to comfort him on.

Hanako is a closed guy though, so he wouldn't go in dept about any of these insecurities.

Nene and Kou would still be somewhat aware of it though, because he is loud about how sad he is by his inability to leave school, only able to sulk and wait while Kou and Nene are out in each others houses or going on dates and having so much fun without him...

Which Nene and Kou would always try to cheer him up by going to any boundary Hanako want! Like the after school beach chapter!

Which does help!

As for Hanako being possessive of Kou... I feel like that would eventually happen (have you seen Hanako?? he is a ball of clingy possessiveness) but it would take some time.

Hanako is a 60s kid, he have a lot of internal homophobia (same with Kou btw but lets only focus on Hanako for now) so when the 'lets date each other!!' idea happened they most definitively pretended that this poly arrangement is two bros sharing Nene cause she like them both and they both like her and trust each other so everyone is happy :D

Hanako will need a mini arc to go 'maybe i can flirt with guys even when i'm not in my girl form.'

And if by some miracle he talks to Kou about his 'I trust you so much and it scares me' issue, (which is unlikely but maybe Nene can push him in the right direction, she is good at making him open up) and they sort thingd out, Hanako will be unbearable.

Look how clingy he used to be! It would get 10 tines worse.

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

The Many Failures of Lila's Writing

There are three main issues with Lila Rossi (or whatever her name is): she was introduced too early, she doesn't fill a unique role in the story, and her lies are too over the top for her to feel like a good villain. Let's go through that list in order because the issues build to create the show's most annoying character even though her setup could have led to a legitimately great character who we would have all loved to hate.

Issue 1: Lila Shows Up Three Seasons Too Early

Lila is introduced in the final episode of season one and then essentially disappears from the show for a full season. The only time we see her in season two is her brief appearance in season two's finale where she takes on the role of Volpina again in order to help Gabriel fake Ladybug's death. That's also the episode where we learn that Lila has been "in Achu" for some unknown amount of time.

[image: a list of Lila's season two appearances (source)]

Season three sees Lila show up with reasonable regularity (8 episodes, none of which are two-parters) and we get a real conflict with her, truly establishing her as a villain who lies like crazy and who wants to destroy Marinette.

Then season four comes and Lila is once again forgotten about. She shows up more than she did in season two, but only as a background character and most episodes don't see her at all. She doesn't have a single line until the final three episodes of the season and her role in these episodes is exceedingly minor. She does a few petty things to remind you that she's awful, but she's not the focus of the plot. She's just there to remind you that she exists and to establish her and Chloe as coconspirators of some sort.

[image: a list of Lila's season four appearances (source)]

Then season five comes and Lila is back to being an active antagonist. She shows up in almost every episode and we even get her very lackluster defeat.

This is some of the worst pacing that I have ever seen. It's honestly impressively bad. I hope the issue speaks for itself, but in case it doesn't, you don't chop a story up like this without a good reason and, frankly, there isn't one. Lila's introduction, villain setup, and defeat should have all take place over the course of a season or two, forming a mini arc.

Just in case you don't know what that is, most stories have a main conflict that drives the whole narrative (ex: getting the butterfly miraculous back) but within that story you have lots of mini stories. Things that get resolved so that it feels like things are moving forward and so that the audience stays engaged. If you don't get any satisfying resolutions until five seasons in (or more), then the audience will start to get annoyed or just stop watching. It's also a good way to keep expectations from getting built up too high. If every season or every other season has a satisfying conclusion to some big conflict, then you don't leave everything riding on the big finale.

By chopping Lila's story up, you made the audience spend four seasons dreaming of her defeat. Expectations were sky high. She's more hated than Gabe! If she's been introduced mid season 4 and had the exact same story arc, then her lackluster take down would be a mild disappointment and not a major issue for most of the fandom.

Issue 2: Lila and Chloe Should Never have Coexisted

When it comes to story telling, characters fill roles. Ladybug is the lead. Alya is the plucky best friend. Gabriel is the big bad. Etc. Etc.

Generally speaking, you only want one character in a given role. Having two or more characters in the same role leads to character bloat where characters are fighting for screen time because they don't have a clear place in the story. This is especially true for key antagonistic roles. It's a lot easier to balance two best friends than it is to balance two big bads.

Enter Chloe and Lila.

I've mentioned before that I thought that Chloe was going to be redeemed. The reason I thought this was not because of anything to do with Chloe. It was because the show introduced Lila and, narratively speaking, Lila and Chloe are the same character. They're both petty school bullies whose main job is to cause trouble for Marinette while she's at school and to give setups for akumas.

However, in terms of perceived threat, Lila is the bigger badder Chloe. No one but Sabrina likes Chloe. Everyone but Marinette likes Lila. Chloe doesn't make plans. Lila lives to manipulate and plot. If you're going to get rid of Chloe, Lila is who you'd replace her with. That's just how this works.

One of the most well known examples of this type of setup is Zuko and Azula from Avatar the Last Airbender. Zuko is the main antagonist of season one, but season two sees him step out of that role as he starts his journey of self-discovery and redemption. And who is introduced at the end of seasons one? Azula, Zuko's evil, more powerful sister. In season two, Azula fills Zuko's former role, but also makes things feel more serious because she's a bigger badder Zuko.

This brings us back to a big part of issue one. Namely, Lila's ongoing disappearing act. She only does that because of Chloe.

Chloe is a much easier villain to write. She doesn't have to hide anything. She is openly petty and evil. So if you're going to pick a character for a petty conflict, you're going to pick Chloe. The only time Lila gets pulled in is when the drama revolves around lies because Chloe is actually a strikingly honest character. She rarely lied prior to her "friendship" with Lila because, for the most part, Chloe doesn't care if everyone hates her. She only cares about the opinions of a chosen few. (Or, at least, she acts like she does.)

For Lila to work, Chloe needed to be redeemed or written off the show. The best proof of this is season five, where Chloe straight up becomes Lila's minion because the writers had to force that relationship if they wanted to have both characters involved in the plot. It's also why season four saw Chloe suddenly obsessed with Marinette when, prior to that, Chloe bullied everyone. The only way to team Chloe and Lila up was to give them a common goal and that didn't exist in the first three seasons.

So, building off of point one, Lila should have been introduced much later and she should have stepped into Chloe's shoes after Chloe either switched roles or completely left the show.

Issue 3: The Lies

I think that we can all agree that Lila is a terrible liar. Even a toddler could see through the BS that spews from her mouth. There are multiple satisfying Lila takedown fics that don't involve clever plots to beat her. They involve Alya or someone else doing a google search because - even with the declining quality of that tool - that's still all that it would take to prove what Lila is.

This is a really bad way to write a character who is supposed to be a master manipulator. Especially when she's going to be the next big bad. They desperately needed to tone her down.

For example, DON'T have her claim to be Ladybug's best friend. Have her claim that Ladybug saved her. That would still go up on the Ladyblog and, more importantly, it would be a lot harder to disprove. I doubt that Ladybug remembers everyone she saves so no one would fault Alya for just taking that at face-value, but Marinette could still instantly peg Lila as a liar.

Tinnitus from saving Jagged Stone's cat? How about tinnitus from being too close to the speakers at Jagged Stone's latest concert? The concert where Lila even got to meet him because she had back stage passes. Once again, hard to disprove. Jagged meets a lot of fans. I doubt he'd be able to tell you that she was lying.

And definitely don't have her openly state that she's a liar. The fact that she did that and was STILL able to manipulate the adult characters is abysmal writing. Especially because it comes right before Lila disappears for a season, giving the impression that her confession essentially defeated her, only for the show to go PSYCH! No one cares about her confession, it meant nothing for the Lila conflict.

I've had someone tell me that they think that Lila's lies were suppose to be a joke and, to be fair, that's plausible. The show relies on a lot of ridiculous humor. If Lila had shown up later, then this might have worked. But because Lila has been around for so long, we've all had time to think about her lies and build up the expectation of how they'd be handled.

I don't just mean Lila being exposed. I mean the fallout of all of her "fans" having to deal with the truth of who Lila really is, an issue that I won't go into here because this is already super long and I think that the issue of how her lies effect characters like Nino and Alya is pretty well understood.

There's also the Chloe thing. Chloe is very over the top, so replacing her with a character who is over the top in a different, more terrifying way would have made some sense. But Chloe's still here and she's more ridiculous than ever, so Lila matching that ridiculous just makes them an annoying duo that we all have to suffer through. Their team up was one of the most forced elements of seasons five. I just do not buy that Chloe would ever subject herself to being someone's minion. When it comes to that team up, the hand of the author is glaring.

Conclusion/Final Thoughts

Manipulative characters are fun. They make for fantastic villains and Lila could have been one of these fantastic villain, especially if Gabriel was played as more sympathetic. If there were lines that Gabriel wouldn't cross, then Lila getting the butterfly would be terrifying. As-is, I don't see how she's any worse than the dude who created Chat Blanc. Plus I'm not even sure why she needs the butterfly. She could already get anything she wanted with minimal effort because her lying powers are so OP. Like, why should I care about that twist? What has changed with the passing of the butterfly? The stakes have not been raised. If anything, they've been lowered.

Lila is just your generic evil villain who is evil for evil's sake. The heroes already hate her. Finding out that she's the big bad is not emotionally devastating. If anything, Marinette should be thrilled that she finally has an excuse to punch Lila.

It's possible that the writers will give Lila an interesting back story, but because she's been around for five seasons, I don't have any faith that they will. I mean, what was the point of introducing her all the way back in season one if you weren't going to use that to set her up in a satisfying way? I've seen people say to just wait and see and wait for what? They couldn't manage to pull off Gabriel's defeat or Chloe's defeat/redemption or Lila's first takedown in a way that was narratively satisfying. Why should I give them a chance to disappoint me with Lila's next take down? Three strikes and you're out!

@tallwriter as requested, there are my thoughts on Lila. As with every character in this show, I think she deserved better. She could have been great. She's one of the worst examples of squandered potential because everything about her was done wrong.

[ecargmura]

A Terrified Teacher At Ghoul School Episode 19 Review - The Ghost Train

This was a fun episode! It’s a nice little buildup for the culture festival and future events as many things are revealed in this episode that will be important later on. I’m just worried if all of them can fit in the remaining five episodes…

Every school anime has to have a Culture Festival and this one is no exception. I found it funny how Hijita suggested a mermaid cafe in that both the girls and boys wear mermaid bikinis but Nyuudou rejects the idea harshly. They decide to go with an escape room after blowing up the school once again. If you think that’s a weird transition, it’s because they cut off a part in the manga where Haruaki chased after his students in rage after insulting sailor uniforms which made the class get the idea of an escape room. I guess now that I’m a manga reader, the fact that the anime cuts off chapters with important little details does make it a little frustrating. There are five episodes left and they’re already revealing a special visual for an upcoming big arc and I’m wondering how they’re going to squeeze all that in…

The episode is mainly about the ghost train, which is basically a two-chaptered mini arc so they got a lot of it animated—as they should because it is an important mini-arc that foreshadows a lot of future events. A lot of family details for the characters are revealed like Akira being Utagawa’s adopted dad, but the anime sort of glossed over that Akira usually takes in youkai that have nowhere to go and he adopted the Zashiki-warashi that Haruaki saved back in episode 12, so Utagawa has an adopted little sister as well. Nyuudou also has a human mom who passed away a few years ago, which was hinted at two episodes ago when Hijita mentioned interspecies couples. In turn, Haruaki reveals he has an older twin brother. I’m surprised that Nyuudou and Utagawa weren’t able to pick up on the fact that they did meet Amaaki back in episode 8 when he took over Haruaki’s class for a day. Akira also has a younger brother who works for Nyuudou’s family who will show up in a few episodes.

If you’re a fan of the freaky Akira, you’re absolutely eating well for this episode because he has so much screen time. He’s absolutely unhinged and I can see why he’s so popular. He’s unabashedly unashamed of anything he does. He injects a serum into a train? Train goes crazy.  I like how that one ghost was eating his neck and he was like “Oh, you like to start from the neck?” He’s freaky AND kinky. I think that Shouta Aoi giving him a rather boyish voice does amplify the creepy factor he has.

I think the best part about this episode is that everyone plays a part. Akira and Hatanaka are in charge of the combat. Haruaki is the one responsible for exorcising the Kasha, even if it means revealing the secret of his exorcism powers to the youkai that were in the dark. Nyuudou was responsible for being able to spot the Kasha. Sano and Ebisu were also in charge of the combat, but Ebisu also got more screen time carrying Haruaki over to the Kasha’s location. Utagawa took Nyuudou and Haruaki to the roof. Marshmallow saved Akira and Hatanaka from getting consumed. It’s really nice to see people playing a part! The cast is so vast, yet the author really does know how to utilize them in mini or bigger arcs.

Overall, I’m anticipating how the anime will handle the remaining five episodes. What’s going to be cut out? What’s going to be kept? What are your thoughts on this episode?

[harusaki-hugo]

Siblings HCs: Baji Edition

Fandom:Tokyo Revengers+Genshin Impact

Plot: What it's like being Tokyo Revengers younger/older siblings

Note: I'M BORED AND I KEEP HAVING IDEA.

Being Baji younger sister/with klee personality:

You like ten (10) in this Hcs, so you have like five (5) year age gap with Baji.

Just like Keisuke, you have black hair, and big doe eyes which is Keisuke weakness and you also have baby fangs just like your brother! You are just the cutest in the Baji family.

A ball of sunshine you are. opposite of Keisuke, like you just the cutest and brightest kid that steals everyone's heart with one smile.

Sometimes Mikey wonders if you are Keisuke's sister because of your endless kindness and happiness that you are willing to share with everyone.

But, he can see why you are Keisuke's sister. You both are arsonists.

While Keisuke burns the car when he's hungry. You burn cars for fun. like you have a certain fascination with burning things, like fireworks or even making a mini safe bomb, which is impressive considering your age.

The smartest in the family. You can easily skip a grade if it's not because of your childish personality. like you are sometimes the one who teaches Keisuke and you are just in elementary grade.

You love everyone. Everyone in your eyes is the best.

Big Brother is the best, Mikey the best, Emma the best, heck even Draken is the best.

Shinichiro is the weird grownup. Why is he always smoking? Is that why he is still single? Let's just say you see him crying.

Keisuke always tries to be the best brother example for you, he tries so hard not to start a fight when you are around. keeping his temper in front of you and heck, he even shares his yakisoba with you because you are his ✨fav✨ sister.

Brings you together to 🔥burn🔥some car with him when you are both hungry, Don't worry it's some old used cars.

Bonus:-

You give every single one of your friends a toy you call Jumpy Dumpty and make them keep it close to them.

Unknown to them it's an invention you make that explodes if something happens to the owner.

Basically, when Kazutora is about to unalive Shinichiro, that toy he keeps in his shop explodes, and no it's not that 💣 explosion 💥 It's just a flash bang that blinds someone for like a minute.

And behold, you save shinichiro.

And Mama Baji has to ground you for making something dangerous. which also means Keisuke accompanies you in a special room for you.

Valhalla Arc;-

You just want to find your big brother because you are bored and Mama Baji like busy so when you hear that Toman is fighting some gang you though he going to be there.

You just straight up sitting between Ran and Rindou, the two like "Whose kid is this?" While Rindou a bit worried about you, ran straight up ✨ befriend ✨ you, like you two now besties.

Fast forward to Kazutora about to go apeshit and bright out the knife, you bring out your 💥bomb💥

Imagine Kazutora seeing a familiar toy being thrown in front of him and he like, "Oh shi-"

Straight up explosion, not a flash bang this time. pure explosion, a loud one and you can see the smoke and things.

Like someone just throw a grenade.

Ran and rindou look at you like 😮 , "Kid, wtf-"

Keisuke having a panic attack because his sister is there and he never once brings you to any gang fights.

OG Toman is yelling and screaming in pure horror when they see you because one; you there sitting with their future enemies and two; you holding another bomb ready to throw it.

But thanks to you, the fight ended without anyone getting killed.

This is much longer than I expected...

Request open. pls, send me something. anything or I keep doing siblings Hcs.

[samglyph]

Hi I’ve heard of dimension 20 before but I really don’t know anything about it. I’d love to hear your take on it if you want to share

(I think I’ve answered something like this before but I can’t find it so get ready for a long winded explanation)

Dimension 20 is an actual play dnd/tabletop show run and hosted by Dropout. While similar to other professional actual play shows, D20 differentiates itself by playing with a different theme every season, and having very snappy arcs imo as opposed to long winding seasons a la critical role. A full length season of d20 is 20 1-2 hour long episodes, and they also have mini seasons that range from 4 to 10 episodes.

If you like improv but aren’t necessarily a classic high fantasy DnD fan, don’t worry! Because of the change in themes, d20 has a season for everyone! Breakfast club fantasy parody? Inside out but it’s a 1920s noir? Game of thrones but the map is candy land (warning: this one will make you cry somehow I swear to god)? All of the seasons have an emphasis on comedy (since this was originally a college humor production after all) but recently they’ve been playing more into horror which I am a BIG fan of. (If you follow me because you like horror, I’d specifically recommend Neverafter and Burrows End for some fun stuff ).

They also don’t just play dnd! They’ve been playing more and more with variations on the “kids on bikes” ttrpg system as well as other indie/original games.

If you’re interested but don’t have a dropout subscription, don’t worry, the first two seasons are available entirely on their YouTube channel. Dropout also offers three day free trials which you could definitely take advantage of to binge one of the shorter seasons. ((Extra edit: dropout is also pro password sharing so you could get a yearly subscription for like five bucks and month and split it between five friends. Boom. Dollar a month))

I love d20. Not every season hits perfectly for me so there have been a couple of skips but it’s fantastic stuff. The more recent seasons have been doing more and more with art and minis too and I’m absolutely obsessed. It just keeps getting better and better.

[physalian]

So you want to turn your one-off book into a series…

As a writer who decided only after publishing book 1 of a trilogy, to then make it a 4 book saga, here are my thoughts on series planning, or at least the insomnia-driven process I went through to reach this decision:

Firstly—I prefer to write multi-book stories with the structure like Lord of the Rings over something like Harry Potter. As in, it’s one long story with various hurdles to overcome split into multiple books, instead of each book being much more self-contained, with a reliable time skip, like years of schooling.

With that in mind, the very first thought I have is this: What are the new threats going to be? I don’t think about my heroes or any subplots or new characters. Priority one is my antagonistic forces: Do I have enough to each carry their own book?

A hero is only as compelling as their conflict, after all.

In my sci-fi WIP, I had 6 main characters and five books planned, and I based it off the structure of the OG Teen Titans cartoon—Everybody gets their own season and while not every episode is about them, the main threat is theirs first, with the rest of the team backing them up. The threat was always a twofer, both an external threat and an internal conflict that they had to overcome in their book. For example I had a character who “lead” book 2, and the external threat was Bad Guys from a different team member’s war, dragging her home into it. The internal threat was her “suffer in silence” tendency and extreme self-reliance, which becomes too much for her to handle when her powerhouse teammate is out of commission physically and unable to help her emotionally.

ENNS doesn’t have an ensemble cast and was not meant to. In this style, if it’s one long story, I’d need three major incidents in books 1-3 that all led up to a final conflict in book 4, all building off each other. I needed essentially two whole “Helms Deeps” for books 2 and 3. Not just in terms of story but literal conflict, as I write high fantasy and not having a big climactic battle for a whole book would flop. But now I need two of them, and I struggle with action scenes.

And without spoiling myself, I have them vaguely defined. For me, at least, so long as I have my little compass pointing toward my “North” of “this is the thing that every major scene should be dealing with in some capacity” it doesn’t matter what path I take to get there, I’ll figure it out. Heavily outlining only ever leaves me with plenty of outline but no book.

For me, once I have my main threat, I then have my main theme. Example for ENNS being that book 1’s main theme/question was “What makes a monster?”

Have yet to narrow it down and split the original 3 themes now into 4, but one I intend on exploring is “Can vampires change?”

Doing this, having your big picture at least in a foggy idea, helps with cohesion across multiple books, and within the same story. If you keep your theme in the back of your mind and relate as many character arcs and mini conflicts back to it as possible, it’ll really start to look like you know what you’re doing.

Otherwise you end up with a bunch of loose ends and dangling plot threads that get abandoned, or characters that feel out of place as their arc has nothing to do with the rest of the story, it’s just here because they had to do something to participate.

So if you want to see now book 1 of 4, check out Eternal Night of the Northern Sky on Amazon.

[batsplat]

at least motogp channel did put sete in valentino’s rivalries vid for their vale tribute HA the valentino snipers did not get to them in time ig https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=63oLIUbRT6M

(video) it's still one of the Big Five Feuds!! admittedly to most people it's fifth of fifth, but it can't be displaced!! he had two title fights with the man!! pepperidge farm will NOT forget!!

genuinely when I sat down to watch the 2004 season for the first time and watched mugello, catalunya, assen... honestly I think I may have watched them straight up in a row because I just couldn't stop myself? like that shit hit SO good and I had this moment of?? why isn't everyone talking about these races ALL THE TIME. I'd never even heard them mentioned?? and okay the answer to that could be 'well they happened in 2004', but they don't even come up that much in discussion of old races!! they're all bangers, they're all DIFFERENT bangers, a real range of flavour that all heavily feature the same two title protagonists. they change the championship picture completely in a way where okay with the benefit of hindsight you can go 'oh ho ho valentino was always going to win that title' - well no he wasn't! valentino showed up in mugello with the wooden medal helmet for a reason! it was his first yamaha season and after that initial welkom high, he did look like he was in trouble! and you get those races to completely change the tone of the title fight?? not crashes, not just dumb mistakes, a direct contest! individually all three of those races would be a decent shout for best or second best race in a lot of seasons, let's be honest. as back-to-back-to-back races, the only trio of races that is even in the same DIMENSION this century are austria/silverstone/misano 2019 - which is undoubtedly a great shout too in all being bangers and having a sort of mini storyline arc with a fantastic conclusion, but it does feature different protagonists and also has less than zero championship implications. plus the biggest interpersonal relationship story we got out of that trio involved a rider who literally wasn't even involved in any of those duels, which is objectively pretty funny and speaks to the lasting power of that particular feud - BUT!! it's not quite the same thing as the 2004 trio

genuinely valentino is so lucky biaggi showed up at welkom to do the dramatic duel with him so that's the crowning achievement everyone remembers from the yamaha switch. like the way the pr works is that - well, people vaguely remember biaggi being the big rival for valentino at some point in his early years and valentino beat him at welkom for his first yamaha win so that might as well be the only important race of that season?? which. the biaggi thing ALREADY wasn't the main rivalry at the start of 2004!! valentino's getting away with a massive act of historical revisionism through dumb coincidence!! literally you can make the argument that this is the only real one-on-one race duel biaggi and valentino EVER have, it's not their only memorable battle (suzuka + phillip island 2001 obviously) but it is the only one in that category of race-long one-on-one! and it just HAPPENED to fall exactly then, which is obviously extremely valentino because he loves having everything work out that way for narrative reasons. but it's also super convenient! by the evidence of the entire 2003-05 period, it is so so so much more likely that duel happens with sete! it'd be unfair to call it a biaggi cameo appearance since he was still a serious factor until honda promoted him to their factory team in 2005 (I have many unanswered questions about what on earth honda was doing with their line up for much of the early noughties) and finished p3 in the standings in both 2003 as 2004, plus there was a time in 2004 where biaggi was super close to the championship lead after... uh. rio? actually no I double checked, after sachsenring he was a point off valentino. point being, biaggi was absolutely a factor but not really in terms of on-track battles!! the actual duels were happening almost entirely between valentino and sete, with ONE exception. of course valentino gets to say his favourite career win was against biaggi. twat

anyway after writing all this out. I did actually click on the video. and. they left oUT ASSEN 2004!! THEY LEFT IT OUT!! THAT WAS THE BEGINNING OF THE END YOU FOOLS YOU AMATEURS THERE WAS LAST LAP CONTACT!! WHAT MORE DO YOU NEED TO INCLUDE A RACE?? IS A LAST LAP OVERTAKE WITH SUBSEQUENT CONTACT WITH OBVIOUS POST-RACE TENSION NOT ENOUGH FOR YOU??? WHAT'S THE STANDARD HERE??

on the other hand, you could say that if a rivalry is so high quality on track that they don't even include a race like that, then it has to be an absolute all timer. I rest my case

[joegualtieri-blog]

Beyond the Moon: More MacKay

Strange vol 1-2 by MacKay, Ferreira, and co. Doctor Strange vol 1-3 by MacKay, Ferry, and co. Avengers vol 1-3 by MacKay, Villa, Fiorelli, Mortarino, and co. Blood Hunt by MacKay, Larraz, and Pichelli Vengeance of the Moon Knight vol 2 by MacKay, Cappuccio,& co.

I read the Death of Doctor Strange some time ago. I probably should have reread prior to reading the rest of his run. MacKay's Strange run isn't the home run that his Moon Knight run is, but it is still very, very good. His Avengers run... is far less successful, but some of that can be chalked up to the choice of cast, and I think to artist. I'm really glad I stopped reading Vengeance of Moon Knight vol 2 when the first issue in it ends leading directly into Blood Hunt, and continuing reading would have spoiled one of the big moments in Blood Hunt. I similarly stopped reading the third volume of Doctor Strange and Avengers when they too led directly into Blood Hunt, read that, and then read all of MacKay's crossovers. That... was not exactly the ideal way to read it, but it wasn't wrong either.

One of the things almost no one remembers about the Infinity Crusade was that unlike its two predecessors in Starlin's Infinity Trilogy, it was not just a six part mini-series. It was actually 16 issues long, with the Infinity Watch and Warlock Chronicles issues being a necessary part of the story. By contrast, the Watch issues during Infinity War fleshed out parts of the story, but weren't really necessary. With Blood Hunt, MacKay goes more for that latter approach, but it leaves the main book feeling very hollow and rushed. The longer version of events from Doctor Strange and Vengeance of the Moon Knight really flesh things out and make the story not feel as bare bones. It is possible to split the difference and not have an event comic feel rushed and barebones, but MacKay badly fumbles the ball on that here. He also errs in regards to set up. I had heard how Blood Hunt built off of work MacKay had done in Moon Knight, and that's technically true, but the Structure hadn't appeared in the book for well over a year when Blood Hunt was published. To suddenly have it reappear with “Blade” as its head, well, that doesn't feel like organic storytelling. The series has some excellent moments and brings back some obscure elements, but it's on weak scaffolding.

Similarly, his Avengers run a disappointment. I complained the other day because the opening arc has the Avengers taking on an ersatz Authority, and living on their “Carrier” after that. It feels so very early 2000s, and not in a good way. That's actually skipping ahead a bit. One of Marvel's Timeless one-shots serves as a prelude to the run. It focuses on Kang, who is looking for the one moment in time chrononauts cannot journey to (I assume this is actually when Peter and MJ sell their marriage to Mephisto). He's got a rival with a mysterious identity who's created heroes based on the Knights of the Roundtable. The one-shot is actually pretty good, and ends with a mortally wounded Kang seeking out the Avengers for aid. Kang bribes the newly reformed Avengers by telling them about impending disasters so they'll take him seriously about the other threat, before collapsing into a coma. The fake Authority are apparently the first of a series of events related to the Missing Moment. After that, the new threat tries to finish off Kang, and the Avengers take on the other team. Kang wakes up, gets pissed, and leaves.

The third Avengers volume opens with a two-parter involving Nightmare, who's also afraid of the coming threat. The remainder of the third volume is the Blood Hunt tie-in, and involves a b-team of Cap (Steve), Hercules, Quicksilver, Hawkeye (Kate), and Hazmat. These three issues are a lot more fun than the rest of the series. There's more banter and compelling interplay between these five characters than the main cast of the run, who are prominently featured in the main Blood Hunt series. The art still stinks though. You've probably seen one panel from here, of Cap talking about how he's met good vampires but never met a good Nazi, with giant ears. Well, that art isn't by some scrub fill-in, it's by the lead artist on MacKay's Avengers run, CF Villa. The art by the actual fill-ins on this run are better, but not by much. It's remarkable given how Avengers is now ostensibly Marvel's biggest team book, and they're not putting their best foot forward in terms of art. And look, there's places for different styles, I like the think I've made that obvious over talking about comics for nearly 25 years with all of you, but I just don't think Cilla is very good at drawing people. The less slick aesthetic is fine, but you need to make up for it with something else, and I just haven't found anything appealing about his work in these three volumes.

After expanding on moments from Blood Hunt, Vengeance of the Moon Knight ends with the resurrected Marc Spector “killing” the Shroud for impersonating him at Khonshu's insistence. Well, that was a big nothing-burger of a plot. There's an essay in the back from MacKay about how to make the deaths and resurrections of superheroes count when we know they'll be back, and I think he conducted a masterclass of it both Moon Knight and Doctor Strange... except for the Shroud impersonating Moon Knight. It doesn't really do anything or add anything to the overall story, except for a cliffhanger hook when his darkforce explodes at the end of #5 to lead into Blood Hunt. But Moon Knight's death in #30? His return in Blood Hunt? Both fantastically well done. The Shroud impersonation feels like it was just done to spark discussion and sales, not for any other reason. It's something of a shame, too, as the concept of the Shroud as a hero undercover as a villain is one that never seems like it's properly explored, and given his ties to Moon Knight and Tigra from their West Coast Avengers days, it could have worked given more space.

While Doctor Strange's return lacks the visceral thrill of Moon Knight's, MacKay also nails that storyline. Clea's grief and commitment to resurrecting him, in a universe where that's de rigeuer is palpable. That Death already resurrected him (sort of) as the Harvestman, who debuts on page 1 of the Strange series, makes for a delightful subversion of expectations. The main villain of the Strange series is a rogue former SHIELD unit (yawn), but their leader, Number None, has a look (a blank void shaped like a person) that could have come straight out of Grant Morrison and Richard Case's Brotherhood of Dada.

Of course the full resurrection of Stephen Strange after defeating the Blasphemy Cartel means a new issue one (MacKay's Doctor Strange run totals 31 issues and has three issue ones). The first trade of the new volume has Strange and Clea adjusting to their married life, Wong co-founding a new pseudo-SHIELD police force for the magical side of the Marvel U, and climaxes with the reveal of a who's been killing magical villains in the background of the book at the wedding of Umar, Clea's mother. It makes for an excellent not-exactly-slice-of-life in the Marvel Universe comic, but not not-that either. Pasqual Ferry is the main artist for this volume, and he's a perfect fit, delivering his own modernized spin on an aesthetic originally created by Steve Ditko back in the 1960s. It's a marked contrast to Hickman and Schitti's contemporary G.O.D.s series, where the redesigns were too radical and obscured what was going on.

The killer revealed at the wedding is Strange himself, or more specifically a 5000 year old version of himself who had gone to war for the Vishanti, and at the conclusion of it, was separated and imprisoned. I have to confess, I'm not nearly as well-read in Doctor Strange comics as I'd like to be. It's not a title I've ever read regularly off the rack; I've picked up some collections here and there, particularly by Steve Englehart (expect entries here when I start on my stack of Epics). One of the few new Strange comics I've bought was Doctor Strange: Sorcerer Supreme #50, with its holographic foil cover. In that one, by Len Kamanski and Geoff Isherwood, Strange has lost much of his power after refusing to go to war for the Vishanti, so this is an interesting change to me. I'm genuinely curious if this is original to MacKay or not. Having a hero fighting an older, more cynical and amoral version of himself is an old trope in superhero comics at this point, but as with so much, MacKay handles with with aplomb. Strange's marriage to Clea also gives the story extra stakes; as a warlord from an alternate dimension, with a lower threshold than Strange for violence and killing, it works as an open question about whether or not she would prefer this version of her husband. She does not, but MacKay's characterization of Clea over the previous 20-odd issues makes the reader believe it's possible. That the story ends not with the War Hound version of Strange banished, killed, or imprisoned again, but in treatment with his younger self to heal is a terrific, Morrisonian conclusion. And MacKay does not just forget about General Strange either! During Blood Hunt, Doctor Strange considers unleashing him and decides not to do it when he sees how much progresses he's made already. It's a tremendously moving scene.

The third and final volume of MacKay's Doctor Strange, which contains the Blood Hunt tie-ins, opens with a delightful tale involving a new Circus of Crime that hopefully will appear again and a Dungeons and Dragons inspired two-parter where Strange leads a party of Black Cat, Taskmaster, and Hunter's Moon venture into a pocket reality generated by a sentient role playing. These stories a relief in between the General Strange and Blood Hunt epics, but also demonstrate the ease with which MacKay operates in the shared Marvel Universe. He's able to build on to that universe using elements both pre-existing and new. I previously compared him Roger Stern and Kurt Busiek for his work on Moon Knight, and these additional volumes just further confirm that he operates at that level of talent. While not everything he writes is successful (Avengers), the highs are more than worth the occasional misfire.

[tenebriskris]

Oshi No Ko Chapter 151 - My Thoughts/Analysis

It’s another setup chapter but we’re still in the beginning of a new arc so that’s to be expected. As always, spoilers for Oshi No Ko Ch 151 below.

The chapter starts with what I can only describe as the narrative glazing Kana’s acting skills. Aside from the fact that it shows that she’s recently premiered in that movie that Shima directed, it really isn’t necessary. The timeline of this manga has always been stuck in some nebulous mess of uncertainty for long enough that it could have been inserted anywhere within the last few chapters or so with ease.

Of course this entire montage of showing how good Kana’s acting ability actually is would ring a lot more true if she didn’t whore herself out to Shima in order to get a role. Much as I dislike how that entire situation went for Kana—and so much of that small mini arc in general—it undercuts Kana’s skills as an actor if her big break was because of Shima taking pity on Kana. Akane and Ruby were able to secure acting jobs without going to those lengths and were able to reach greater heights of popularity without it, so why can’t Kana achieve those same heights without couch casting?

Now that I think about it, I don’t think we’ve actually seen Kana get a role through her own efforts alone. The Sweet Today role was because Kaburagi was taking advantage of Kana in general as an actor; her role in Tokyo Blade was because he wanted to play both Kana and Akane off of each other, and even her role in the movie was because Kaburagi pulled some strings to get her on board. Even the intermission that focused on Kana and Akane basically reeked of industry nepotism, and I don’t need to reiterate what Kana was about to do to secure a role from Shima.

My thoughts on Kana’s acting ability aside, we settle on Kana and Aqua’s “date”. Kana wearing her old uniform even after she’s graduated is uh—a choice. That’s certainly some form of cosplay.

Aqua being surprised that this entire meeting is a date is—well. Kana I think if you want to actually make a play for Aqua you need to actually tell this shit to him beforehand. As far as he knows this is a casual outing with one of his friends. I expected her to do something a bit different when faced with the prospect of actually wooing Aqua, more specifically trying to actually take steps to woo him. Maybe I gave Kana too much credit. Akane’s manipulations aside, she hasn’t intentionally taken many steps to actually steer Aqua into considering her as a romantic partner in the series.

The baseball scene??? Now that’s a callback. I’m starting to see where Kana is heading with this whole mess. While Kana may look back at that time as a casual moment between two like minded people, it’s also the time where Aqua tried to vent some of his frustrations of his own Issues(™) and Kana quite easily rebuked them in favor of talking about romantic prospects. After that encounter, it doesn’t escape my gaze that Aqua hasn’t talked to Kana about his own Issues unless heavily pressed.

Oooooh future talk. Kind of hypocritical from the child actor that didn’t take steps to get into college to press people about their own future, but I don’t mean to pick at an old wound since it’s the equivalent of Kana making small talk. And Aqua’s thinking of applying to medical school??? We’d seen some similar implications go through his head during one of the interludes, but it’s nice to finally get some form of confirmation that he’s at least thought about a life after his revenge—even if he is just saying this to get Kana off his back.

Kana unintentionally dredging up Aqua’s trauma with her whole speech here. It’s a sight better than how she intentionally triggered him in Tokyo Blade, but I’m sure that doesn’t make Aqua feel much better. 

Aqua covering his face when confronted with Kana’s insight is cute, I gotta admit. The fact that it hides his star eyes in this panel here is also noteworthy. 

That dream came true when I was five years old. And Kana suffered through a dry spell in spite of it—or arguably because of it. Perhaps she can look at things with hindsight now that she’s managed to carve out a certain niche for herself in the industry but we know that Kana isn’t there just yet. Frill is a perfect example of what someone at the top of the industry looks like, and I don’t think anyone else in our cast aside from maybe Taiki is there just yet. One good movie and a small hint of stardom does not a national actress make. 

In fairness to Kana, her saying that she’s achieved her dream is a very in-character thing for her to do. Time and time again we’ve seen her immaturity and naivete undercut everything she sets out to achieve. Her inability to realize that she was being taken advantage of by Kaburagi in the earlier parts of the manga; the fact that she wasn’t able to remain professional with Aqua when he was avoiding her; her attempts to secure a role with Shima despite knowing his nature full well—the list goes on. If she really thinks that she’s become a national actress after tasting just a hint of success then that just plays into Kana’s faults even further.

I have a new dream now. I want to be the only person you look at. I couldn’t quite help but laugh as soon as Kana said this. Okay Kana, you want to be Aqua's idol? What have you done to actually achieve that? Because you have some gigantic shoes to fill in the form of Ai and Rubysarina. Her entire arc throughout the story has been towards actually being a successful actress, so this pivot leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I don’t even like Kana as a character and I’m complaining that this entire interaction did her dirty! 

The fact that Aqua didn’t even catch Kana’s baseball when she’s said this has to be some of the most godawful hit you over the head symbolism I’ve even seen from the series. There are college writing students out there that wouldn’t pull stuff like this even if they were held up at gunpoint! You’d think that an actual published series like this would have editors that strike this shit down but apparently not.

It’s not because of the fact that this metaphor it’s simple that irks me as much as it does. It’s the fact that it’s so obvious that it basically spells out that Kana’s attempts at trying to become Aqua’s star are going to be flushed down the toilet. In terms of being an idol, Kana hasn’t done anything else to engender Aqua’s devotion. As Aqua’s friend, she’s certainly become an important aspect of his life, but not so much in terms of being an idol. She does not inspire or drive Aqua’s motivations in the way an idol should—at least in my opinion.

What a fucking chapter. I’m just glad there isn’t a break next week so we can quickly see how this mess is going to turn out. At this point I just want some goddamn consequences to happen to Kana so having her lose Aqua basically sitting on her hands for the entire series is some good fucking karma. Crying and bitching about one’s love life constantly is absolutely not the characteristic of someone going to win it all as the series reaches its endgame.

I was actually surprised that there was so much talk about Kana grabbing death flags in this chapter. I mean, really, it’s like everyone forgot that most of the main cast has contractual immortality until after the interviews. Even then, Kana really hasn’t been important enough to the story since Tokyo Blade to justify any purpose of her dying aside from shock value. Even if there was something like that planned out for the next few chapters, the tension is going to be undercut knowing that most of the main cast is going to survive without any issue.

Once again the elephant in the room has to be Ruby. It’s kind of difficult to root for Kana in this instance—even besides all the reasons I’d listed so far—because we still don’t know what Aqua thinks about the kiss in Chapter 143. Anything regarding romance is stuck in a pool of indecision since that chapter and it simultaneously undercuts everything the narrative is trying to even do with Kana and Akane’s efforts to woo Aqua while leaving the actual plot of the story on the wayside. I just hope that we’ll be getting a peek into Aqua’s head while we’re unfortunately saddled back in with this romance plotline.

[thewitchoftheweed]

Hi! I come to bring you more shittens! Have the second and hopefully last set of Narilamb Shittens, but fislrst I'd like to ask your opinion on this dialogue I planned for in a mini comic of Azrael going against Narinder for the first and last time:

"I renounce my allegiance to you and you yourself, false idol! I will reclaim the Crown from your broken body for my own!"

Does this matches Azrael's speech pattern? Shittens incoming:

Have the two that came after the triplets, an androgynous ram cyclops and a two headed (I was going for a two faced but missed the fact that those shared a brain). Their clothing is heavily inspired by the Turkey Ottoman period. Their body is that of a cat, five fingered hands with paw pads and claws, with legs and head of sheep.

The middle child and fourth, corresponding to Heket and constrasting her heavy set and brutish figure with a very slim, petite, delicate one, that has many mistaken him for a female ewe in many glances, many mistake him for the youngest, especially next to his little brother. He wares many layers of clothing to bulk up his slight frame. The shortest of them.

(He strongly takes so much after his grandmother's side and will never know it)

He/Him, loves gold, jewelry, fine clothing, and counting money. His name is Basgoz/Basgöz, "bas" means "to devour, to crush", and "goz/göz" means eye. His name is a fusion of the protagonist and antagonist of a Turkish fairytale of a cyclops. It also references to how he has his eye return to him, something his parents finds out the hard way as a baby, in a funny way (Will make a comic of that later). He's called "Bas" as a nickname. Carries a prayer bead with a bell on it for stimming and counting. He had his baby bell melted down into a multiple mini ones stringed into a necklace, after it got too damaged in an accident. His hair is in braids, with the main big one being twisted around at the back of his head, with a few dread left in his sideburns. Bas has very long and droopy ears instead of the usual shorter perkier of his parent and siblings.

[Bas is saying: May the Lamb's Grace shines upon those as GENEROUS as They are.]

He is the Tax enforcer, and is VERY good at his job, taking delight in it. Like the Cyclops Tepegoz, he's great in extorting plentiful of gold in a short occasion, and in convincing them that it is all for the greater good (not really a lie as it is for the Cult. Manages taxes and finances with a fine eye for detail, quick finger and a mathematical mind. While he is sneaky and deceitful, his warm-hearted nature shines brightly through his calculating conduct, and meticulous care for both his work and the people he cares and loves are strongly noted.

Bas wears a veil that's fixed to his small horns that's curled over the ears instead, that he flips over in most setting including when he feels overstimulated, except for casual ones and with his family alone. Also to hide the fact that he's currently got an empty socket at the moment. He also does it whenever he sends out his eye to spy on others, and will use hold it up casually in his hand to gross people out. This is inspired by Elias from The Ancient Magus Bride manga. He's always seen with a scarf around him on his arms, like the Chinese hanfu silk shawl.

He is able to send out his eye like Narinder used to, cast chains and fireballs like him as well.

Onto the next child, youngest (then later second) of the set:

The two headed giant baby of the bunch, they are inspired by Leshy as his opposite, being one for order instead of chaos. He/They, likes to dress up in jewelry as well. He's the Loyalty Enforcer to Bas's Tax role.

Their names are Orthrus (meaning "Twilight") and Orthos (meaning "the Straight"), inspired by the Greek dog of Geryon, who guarded the cattle. His tail, just like Bas's, is long like a cat's tail, tipped with a fluffy puff, and in his case, is decorated with a golden serpent tail cuff and can secrete poison, either in an arc of liquid or in a powdery stream of smoke. They both can cast poison bombs and fireballs as well. They have a horn on each one side of their heads.

Orthrus is the one with the hair tied to the front, on the right and to our left, with ears downwards and pierced with a ring on one of them. His nickname is "Rusty", while their other half, the one with dread being piled up into a bun, his eats pointed up and both studded with piercings, is "Orthy". They're both mischievous, with Rusty being more vocal and apparent about it and Orthy is quieter and more subdued in showing it. They both speak like a waxing poet on a rhyme, are fervent in their praise for the Lamb, and VERY passionate in their job of enforcing loyalty and belief in the Lamb. They are quite simple and good-naturedly laidback when they don't have a strong opinion of something. Rusty does most of the talking while Orthy chimes in when he feels invested in the conversation but gestures just as expressively behind their back. Rusty controls the right side of their arm and Orthy has the left.

[Rusty saying, as they both bow : "Such matters will be dealt with, accordingly. For truly, the Lamb's wisdom and beneficence is boundless." They both smile as Rusty says this, Orthy grinning.]

Rusty and Orthy are fairly orderly and disciplined when dealing with followers, courteous even, especially those that are wavering or confused, but when confronted with someone or a follower they have a strong personal dislike of at somewhere private, they do let their glee at that person's misfortune slightly slip through for a quick blink.

These are the only shittens for now, until the final one appears ...

I hope these are decipherable to you! Drink plenty of water daily and sleep early!

Oh wow! These are amazing! Everything is so detailed and well thought out. I love the look of Bas's veil; he would look so cool and eerie when he's wearing it. Also like the detail of his little necklace of bells; it's a nice twist on the lamb's bell.

I adore the design you have for Orthrus and Orthos. They're so cool looking; it's such a neat concept too to have a two-headed sheep god. It feels very fitting for the high/dark fantasy of CotL. I also love that they're also sort of a preacher type due to being the loyalty enforcer. I think they might be my favorite shitten you've designed! They're all wonderful, of course, but these guys in particular are just so fun to look at.

Thanks for sharing these! It's always such a treat to see what you come up with. Hope you're having a good day!

[blindrapture]

july 30 and 31.

so, let's talk about the seventh cipher.

in earlier drafts, this was The Easy Final Level of the Realm King, a much simpler trek through a snowy environment. there were 8 challenges, ranging from "eat a pot noodle" to "play this song on the clarinet," a silly variety of challenges that fit more in line with cipher 6. and there were 5 mini-fights, mainly being the four bikers. a lot of that log was just Having To Walk Big Distances, and so it stretched across two logs. the final boss, on July 31, was just... The Realm King, a big blue guy who sat on a throne and was defended by waves of golden knights. again, more in keeping with cipher 6.

it was like this because I was still not in the right place to write Rapture. I had just returned home to England, in December 2011, returned back to my parents after trying to run away, after that blew up in my face. I came to Rapture because it kept me busy. and while this was at least more creative than the original San Francisco, it was absolutely anticlimactic. and I did at least turn that into a strength: I played on this being an easy final level, a real type of video game trope that usually is not intentional. I played on the strangeness of this for the protagonists, and I turned it into characterisation for this big mythical "Rapture" itself: Rapture gave us an easy final level because Rapture wants these ciphers done. admittedly I am not unhappy with that idea. (it's in keeping with MOTHER 3, in fact. a lot of the interesting ways Rapture plays with video game expectations pretty much comes from MOTHER 3-- when it doesn't come from secretcity. seriously, oh my god play MOTHER 3. it is so worth it. one of the greatest video games ever made.)

but this isn't 2011 anymore. this is 2024. this is Rapture's eighth draft. this is a new Act 2, this is DJay writing at age 29, showing what he-- I-- can do. since early in the rewrite process, a theme has been emerging: "I have to do it right this time, I have to put the work in and make a long story much denser." while I had forgotten about just how empty San Francisco was, I was very conscious of the seventh cipher and the opportunity it presented. to write a new cipher log... god, I've been dreaming of that all throughout my most unproductive years.

so.

I did the work. I put the work in. I took a few days to write this. I think I did two days per log? my first day was pure planning. my first day was this:

I planned out the level, making a map. had to stretch it across two sets of pages, but here I've arranged it so it lines up.

in the July 30th log, we start at the very top-right. we see the destination across the sea of lava, and have to travel our way around the bay and round up to the castle. the july 31st log takes place entirely in the castle on the top page.

a lot of this came rather naturally, as I was inspired by the map design of Elden Ring, how progression feels so driven by the arc of the coastline even when you're exploring these landmasses atop massive cliffs. and I was especially inspired by the layout of Castle Stormveil, which is incredibly imposing on the outside but quite based on a realistic castle inside. all I really had to do was draw a coastline and find the best place to put a defendable castle; the rest came from that.

then I just had to write it.

I was keeping the 8 challenges and the 5 fights. I was keeping the general snow-kingdom aesthetic. making the challenges and fights more cohesive was a matter of finding a unifying Scheme, and for that I chose to base them on Buddhist concepts. the 8 challenges loosely represent the Noble Eightfold Path, and the 5 fights are based on the Five Hindrances. the hardest part here was writing Jordan and Donnie's little Socratic reasonings for the eightfold riddles, though once they enter the castle the riddles are replaced with direct and immediate challenges of staying mindful in an atmosphere of extreme horror, repulsion, and despair.

I quite enjoyed fleshing out the lore here, giving the kingdom its own implied backstory, the tale of a world that could not defend against the Rapture. but of course, the Rapture is different for every world, so we can't even use this world to predict what our Rapture will be.

one of the most important steps in all of this planning turned out to be the simplest. I didn't want this guy to be called "the Realm King" this time. I was prepared to spend a while coming up with a whole new name, but naturally my first instinct was to flip the name around. King Realm? ....King Real? it's a simple name. almost feels trite, something out of a fairy tale. but something about it cut right through my core and spoke to something I wanted to bring out of Rapture this time around. I don't see it as a fairy tale name. I see it as intimidating and holy. this story has something to do with the many different "realities," the relativity of "real." a King gets to enforce a reality on his kingdom. a King enforces it because a King believes in it, that is an important part of how power works on those within the system. this King Real is not a bad guy. in fact, we end up feeling a lot of sympathy for him and his people. but Rapture is not a story where the good guys are named The Good Guys and the bad guys are named The Bad Guys. Rapture is a moral tale, maybe even moralist, but it's excruciatingly modern. it's maybe the "tale" part that's most modern. Rapture is a modern kind of tale. or, really it's ancient. it's an epic. but it's an epic translated into modern techniques. a post-Ulysses epic that is not waiting for readers to catch up with what that means. so. he's called King Real because he was named by a tradition that is not our tradition. if it sounds like a fairy tale name to us, we're still struggling to understand the implications of relativity. ....it's hard to put all this into words right now. but I felt it all in me when I saw the name "King Real."

I wrote the July 31st log while listening to music from the DOOM 2016 soundtrack on repeat. that also feels important. Doom is embedded in my subconscious by now. the original Doom, and the existence of the franchise. this is.. admittedly a really rich subject, ripe for rambles that directly connect to Rapture. just, we absolutely would not have Rapture without Doom. I think even the naming conventions are relevant here. my story's full name is OGTRIB, but I refer to it colloquially as "Rapture." there's even a section of story, currently nebulous, called "Final Rapture," which is absolutely a reference to Final Doom. Rapture and Doom. it's no accident. or, at most, it's a happy accident. why? what similarities do they have? what is it I got out of the Doom games? other than a love affair with midi rock music and the sensibilities of open source communities. a comfort in first-person video games, a love of mazes. firm confirmation that one must face injustice with the stubbornness of a shotgun. I dunno. that's something that'll take a lifetime of interpretation to work out.

/////////////////////

then there's the "other half" of this log, really more like the last fifth of it. I will say a lot less about this section, because this is the beginning of something Rapture will take a long time exploring.

the A-plot has moved out of the ciphers and into what comes next.

Guitar Hero is involved now.

and we finally meet Bones... as well as Fentzy and Danny? in earlier drafts, we actually met Fentzy and Danny way earlier. we met Danny on July 4th, the end of Act 1, and we met Fentzy on July 5th, the start of Act 2. the decision to move their introduction here, towards the very end of Act 2, was significant. it changed many things about Act 2 and basically facillitated the heavy rewrite to begin with. we needed more time with just Jordan and Donnie. that was worth it. but now we have the full party.

who is Fentzy? who is Danny? who is Bones? how will the kids all get along now? these are important questions!

you'll have to wait and see. :3

see you tomorrow.

[dominickeating-source]

Starburst Issue 320 (2005)

THE DOMINIC PRINCIPLE

Steven Eramo finds Star Trek Enterprise's Dominic Keating excited yet strangely uncomfortable- about the shows future.

We can put a man on the moon, but we can't make a spacesuit that's comfortable for him to wear. Sadly, things don't get any better 150 years from now as Dominic Keating, who plays Star Trek Enterprise's Lt. Malcolm Reed, can attest to. We recently finished shooting a story arc where Connor Trinneer [Commander Charles Trip Tucker III] and I were wearing the EV [environmental] suits for three episodes, recalls the actor. Jeez, those things just crucify you. It hurts so bad you have to laugh or you'll cry. 

We probably worked five or six days in those suits over a two-and-a-half week period. All I can say is thank God it was with Connor. He has the patience of Job, and I don't. I was the last in line when they were handing out the patience, and I walked off. I was too impatient, chuckles Keating. Seriously, I love working with Connor. He and I always have a good time on-set together and I've really made a wonderful friend in him on this show.

EV suits aside, these three episodes [Babel One, United and The Aenar] are great. For our bit, Connor's and my character are transported to a drone ship, and sufficed to say they have to figure out who's running the show. It's a fun ride aboard the drone vessel, with a lot of action and a nice partnership between Trip and Reed.

The aforementioned trilogy, which features appearances by the Tellarites, Andorians and Vulcans, is just one of several mini-story arcs this fourth season on Enterprise. At the end of last year, Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) and the Enterprise NX-01 crew were transported back into Earth's past after saving Humankind from being destroyed by the Xindi. Having since made it back to their own time during this seasons two-part opener Storm Front, our heroes are still going where no one has gone before. However, their course is now being charted by a new showrunner, Enterprise head writer/executive producer Manny Coto.

This season of Enterprise is unfolding rather beautifully, and I would lay that largely at Manny's feet, says Keating. A big part of that probably has to do with the fact that he grew up watching the original Star Trek and is himself a big fan. Manny has hired some new writers for the show who share his vision as well as understanding of Star Trek folklore, and together they've kept in the real spirit of Sci-Fi.

Manny has been very smart with his approach to the storytelling and, fingers crossed, this fresh new blood in the configuration of the show might just be its saving grace. I say that not wishing to do any disservice to Brannon Braga [series co-creator/executive producer]. He is still heavily involved in the production of the show. Manny just took over the day-to-day running of things.

As ship's tactical/security officer, Lt. Malcolm Reed received plenty of training as a Starfleet officer prior to being assigned to Enterprise. Over the past three-and-a-half years, his skills have been further sharpened during encounters with various hostile aliens. Keating feels that his tour of duty on the show has been a positive learning experience as well.

It's funny, I was saying to someone just recently that I've grown up on this series, finally, as an actor, he muses. Now I can go to a set anywhere in the world and know exactly what's going on at all times, whereas before I couldn't do that. All the guest-spots and movie roles I'd done previously were, quite honestly, too few and far between. However, almost four years of filming into Enterprise, I much better comprehend the inner workings and rhythms of a film set.

I come from a stage background and I think I have a natural understanding of working in the theatre. Some actors may feel that way about working in front of a camera, but not me. I had to learn it, and believe me I've learnt a lot. That, in turn, has given me greater confidence in myself as well as my abilities and helped me grow more into my part on the show. Malcolm Reed and Dominic have met in the middle if you will, and that feels good.

Just prior to this interview (early December 2004), Keating had been on vacation for a week and was getting ready to head back to work on Enterprise. From what I've been told, Malcolm is featured quite heavily in the next episode we're shooting, so that should be fun, says the actor. It's been an odd year because I didn't have much to do in the first 10 or 11 episodes, but things sort of heated up a little bit in the last two or three. I don't mind, though. Our writers and producers have given me quite a few meaty bits over the past three seasons, so it's not as if I'm chomping at the bit to show them what I can do.

When asked to name his favourite Malcolm moment so far this season, the actor is quick to reply. In one of the episodes I spoke about earlier with Trip and Malcolm on the drone ship, there's a scene where Malcolm rescues the two of them by making a bomb out of his phase pistol. There's a huge explosion and as they're running down this corridor Trip turns to Malcolm and says, 'You did all that with one phase pistol? Malcolm says to Trip, You build things, commander. Well, I blow them up'.

I thought that was a fantastic line. I hadn't had one like it since the pilot where Archer is holding a phase pistol and Malcolm tells him, 'Stun and kill; it'd be best not to confuse the settings, captain'. It's obvious from talking with Keating that he enjoys not only being an actor, but also working on Enterprise. While some might take a regular TV gig for granted, he knows better. "This is an absolute blessing", says the actor. "Yes, sometimes it can get a bit tedious, especially when you're sitting for hours on the bridge with only three things to say, but, you know what, I like it. I'd be very sad if this was our last year. However, the reactions have been pretty encouraging, so here's hoping, things might just work out".

Star Power

As in previous seasons, Star Trek Enterprise has managed to attract an impressive and memorable array of guest-stars this year. "I only had one or two scenes with him, but it was still a pleasure working with Brent Spiner [Dr. Arik Soong] in the Augments story arc," says Keating. "I found him to be a very smart and funny man who enjoys being around people".

"I thought Abby Brammell [Persis] and the Scottish actor, Alec Newman [Malik], did an amazing job as the two lead Augments. Then there's Paul Wight [a.k.a. Big Show], who played the big green Orion in Borderland. The guy is the size of a mountain. He lifted up Jolene Blalock [Commander T'Pol] with no effort at all", jokes the actor.

Joanna Cassidy was inspired casting as T'Pol's mother T�Les, and it's always a thrill to welcome back Gary Graham [Vulcan Ambassador Soval] to the set. Gary is such a gifted actor and he's had a nice run so far on Enterprise this season. Our writers really gave him some good material to work with in the Vulcan story arc.

Wicked Fun

We may know him now as the clean-cut and conscientious Lt. Malcolm Reed on Enterprise, but a few years back, Keating was getting up to no good as the devilish Mallos in the short lived fantasy TV series The Immortal starring Lorenzo Lamas. "They had initially earmarked me for the part of Lorenzos [Raphael? Rafe Cain] sidekick, who, I think, was originally called Joe", says Keating. However, the producers then decided that they wanted the show to appeal to a younger and broader audience so they hired Steve Braun to play Joe, who was ultimately renamed Goodwin.

"As for me, they felt I could play the lead demon and Lorenzo's main onscreen nemesis, Mallos. He was a neat character, wasn't he? You had the devilishness, sheer camp and pure evil all wrapped up in one. I just loved the audacity of Mallos, and the fact that he was also written with a terrific sense of humour. On top of all that, he drove flash cars, wore expensive suits, and had a beautiful woman [Kira Clavell] on his arm. What more could you ask for in a job? I certainly had a good time working on the show".

Source: www.dominickeating.com

[stillness-in-green]

Glad to see someone talking about AFO's spies...or rather the weirdness about them. Hori gave two out of five them names (yet not most of the Advisors!!) and really only Tajima is kinda sorta relevant? I kinda wished Mihaela got a mini-showcase to see her Quirk or her efficiency with her bomb. Concerning their fifth member, I looked back and I think they got caught by Tetsutetsu? Maybe? It's hard to see, but I think I see their black hair when he's pinning Cheetah down?

Howdy howdy, @shockersalvage. ^^

Yeah, Horikoshi’s naming decisions in the back half of the story are so completely ridiculous!  Nowhere more so than with the contrast between Kashi Kashiko and Ordinary Woman, but it’s highly visible in the disparity between named AFO goons and named MLA advisors, too.  Mind-boggling that even the ones that directly come up against 1-A kids can’t get so much as a text box identification, much less a line where they actually announce their names or are identified by someone else on-scene.

As to Mihaela,* I agree it would have been nice for her to get anything remotely substantial to do, in that I wished any of them could get anything remotely substantial to do.  To indulge my jadedness about Hori’s gender politics, though, I guess it’s not really surprising that she doesn’t.  I’d say she and Tajima are the latest in a long list of the same pattern: a male character and a female character connected in some fashion, with no reason for one or the other to get the priority as more important for whatever incidental plot element they’re here to fulfill, but the dude gets to do the important stuff while the gal is just—there.

To list some examples off the top of my head:

Kashi Kashiko and his unnamed girlfriend.  The former is the one ShigAFO tries to unload New Order onto, while the latter is just there to give Kashi someone to talk to for two entire pages they exist.  

Spinner’s Number 1 and Number 2 advisors.  The gal is higher ranked, which you’d think would be meaningful in some fashion, even if it’s just a matter of her being significantly smarter, but Scarecrow gets three whole instances of calling out to rally his people (even when “his people” are just his two fellow advisors!!) and gets multiple chapters of impassioned demagoguery and internal monologue, while Nimble gets…  To accompany him in crowd scenes and yell one line of ineffective dialogue after Shouji has already successfully begun changing the heteromorph mob’s hearts?  

Sticking with the PLF advisors, I could point to a bunch of different configurations that are equally annoying in terms of the dudes getting more attention than their equally-or-higher-ranked peers, but to keep the focus tight, consider the trio of Piercings Dude and the Bindi Ladies, shown grouped together in the big two-page spread of the initial clash of sides at the Villa.  Piercings Dude (a third rank advisor) is the only one of the trio whose quirk we know, thanks to that splashy cliffhanger shot of him attacking Gang Orca.  Grandma Bindi (also a third rank advisor), on the other hand, is never seen again after that spread.  Meanwhile, Big Sis Bindi (second rank!) gets rolled over by Edgeshot in a group shot.  She does a little better than Piercings Dude in that he’s explicitly captured while she explicitly escapes, but her escape hasn’t led to any further attention: she was shown in a shot of the PLF remnants, but has been MIA in the final war arc.  

Per the topic of the ask, AFO’s spies.  While none of them are allowed to be markedly more effective than the rest, of the two who get the most focus, and the only two who get names, the one who gets by far the most focus, dialogue, and internal monologue—more of the above than all of the rest of them combined!—is Tajima, the dude.

That’s just kinda spitballing, so there could well be both more examples that support the pattern as well as counter-examples to it, but just based on that, and on how the manga treats its men and women in broader strokes, it’s sadly pretty typical of BNHA that active characters who get focus, attention and decisive action are much more likely to be men, while women are much more likely to be stuck in support roles.

As to Nondescript Dark-Haired Gal, I pulled up the shot you mentioned, and I see what you mean, but unless I’m looking at it wrong, I think the dark splotch is just Tetsutetsu’s knee?

I parse this as Tetsutetsu having his left knee on the ground, on the outside of Cheetah Dude’s right leg, then Tetsutetsu’s right leg is folded up high and coming down towards Cheetah Dude’s midsection, with Tetsu’s right foot probably planted on the ground right around Cheetah Dude’s groin.  (And if I were CD, I wouldn’t want that knee coming down any harder, either!)

I could be wrong, but my brain’s not connecting the visual dots here in a way that puts the dark-haired lady in Tetsutetsu’s grip.

Tragically, I don’t expect her absence from the scene to really matter at this stage, given that she presumably evacuated U.A. with the rest and is all the way back near the villa at this point, and it’s hard to imagine what she could possibly do that would make a positive or negative impact on AFO’s battle now.

That said, I would be thrilled to have Horikoshi prove me wrong!  By all means, let AFO claw his way out of his encounter with All Might and stagger up to the Shigaraki-Deku fight only to get stabbed in the back at the last possible second because the least prominent member of his spy cadre snuck out of the refugee areas and hid in U.A. before it took off to become a flying coffin.  I don’t know how she would have gotten back out of the sky coffin and down to the Deku vs. Shigaraki fight area, but I’m sure she could be given some quirk that would explain it!

(Thanks as always for the ask; forgive me my High Sarcasm nonsense.)

* And thanks for mentioning their names; I’d forgotten they got them in a volume extra!