#and shirayuki learning just how she feels about kids

[iamumbra195]

The other day I saw someone say that the plot of Bleach is mainly driven by the distrust and lack of belief in their friends’ character most of the main cast has in their friends, some examples being Chad and Orihime thinking that Ichigo will run away from the war if given the choice when Urahara told him to do what he believes is best despite Ichigo giving them no reason to doubt him And uryuu not telling anyone what he was doing with yhwach and the other Quincy despite obviously knowing before hand, thus making bleach very different then most shounen around the time it was created, given that those were driven by the trust and friendship the main characters had in one another. Even Ichigo himself refuses to rely on others, a fact of his character that’s made obvious in the arrancar arc where he think Rukia and Renji won’t go to heuco mundo with him to save Orihime and even refuses Ishida and chad’s help at first

and for some weird reason my mind has been fixated on a crossover between one piece and bleach where ichigo and Rukia end up in the one piece world

this is basically an AU where aizen attacks again after yhwach’s gone and everything goes kinda bad

ichigo ends up on an island near punk hazard three years before canon and five years before the timeskip (I’m making it up on the go). The island is a black smithing place where Mihawk’s Yoru and several other swords were made. Not going into details but it’s basically ruled by a tyrant and based of something in mythology

Rukia ends up at a revolutionary because a) I think she’s a great contrast to Sabo since she went from street kid to noble while sabo did the opposite and b) she’s a soldier in a corrupt military organization, the irony of having her end up with ppl who directly oppose an organization similar to the one she served, and being forced to acknowkedge the twisted corruption of the marines, a military organization headed by nobles. sound familiar? (Central 46 and the Gorosei)

like she technically knows that the soul society aren’t exactly the good guys they’re just the lesser evil most of the time so yeah, I think it’d be a great character arc also I think her sabo and koala would be a cool trio

you know what’s even more fun, neither of them have their original shinigami powers (yes, I nerfed them but I kinda have the reason why planned). They have their base swordskills and stuff but none of the fancy powers they had before, No zanpakuto, no kido. Just the basics.

They spend the next like five years adjusting, learning haki and or in Ichigo’s case, learning how to make a sword from the man who made Mihawk’s sword after making a deal to save the island from the tyrant

I love him and the weirdly fast way he learns everything so I’m applying it to this, where he wants to learn how to make a sword because none of the ones he tries feel right in his hands and he wants zangetsu back but obviously doesn’t have him so he goes about making a sword and eventually manages it after like four years

rukia on the other hand, gets her hands on a devil fruit in the second year since her arrival there— the cold cold fruit, the opposite of that Oven dude in Whole Cake Island. Obviously she eats it and learns how to use it. She’s not too creative with it at first because she misses Sode No Shirayuki but after a while she breaks that habit. The awakening would be something like her bankai because I love it and I really love her ice vibe. Also once again contrast to sabo’s flame flame fruit

blah blah blah, timeskip stuff happens and the straw hats, Law, and our favourite samurai hitch hikers get caught in a storm on the way to dressrosa and get blown into Ichigo’s island. More blah blah blah stuff that I haven’t planned and then Ichigo joins them. anyways back to my original point, the straw hats trust each other in a really great way like yes, they’ve had some bumps here and there but they would trust each other with their life AND lay down their lives for one another in the blink of an eye and that’s like a direct contrast to relationships in bleach and I think Ichigo would probably benefit from the knowledge that there are ppl that fully trust him and that he can also put his trust in

some one said in another post that luffy doesn’t have daddy issues, he has daddy solutions because he makes everyone’s daddy issue go away and Ichigo needs that shit on his life

also I think it would be really cool that since Ichigo’s whole life had been surrounded by the idea of death and a large part of his character arc in bleach is accepting death as part of life and finally moving on from his mother’s death, it would be another great character arc for him to genuinely start living his life as he likes and Luffy, the embodiment of freedom and working towards achieving your dream so you can live your life without regrets, is the best person to make Ichigo finally start living his life

this part is pretty much AU and kinda based off a fic but Ichigo’s dream in this AU would have to do with his fascination with languages and that he wanted to see the whole world to explore it and soothe the itch to run into the unknown headfirst. Pretty much wanderlust ichigo + language nerd ichigo

since he’s a blacksmith/sword smith as well, his conversations with zoro, Franky, nami, and robin would be cool plus his dad is a doctor so he’d have some medical knowledge as well so he and chopper would get along

also how could I forget the man himself, soul king brook? Brook knows there’s something fucky going on with Ichigo cause his soul is weird and brook has an awareness of souls as seen in canon. He’s basically a plus soul that’s piloting a skeletal body in a way. He’s able to see hollows and all that weird shit

this is such a fun idea I could talk about this for hours 😭😭

[best-underrated-anime]

Best Underrated Anime Group G Round 2: #G7 vs #G3

#G7: A romance between a prince and a herbalist

#G3: Slime farmer kid travels around helping people

Details and poll under the cut!

#G7: Snow White with the Red Hair (Akagami no Shirayuki-hime)

Summary:

Although her name means “snow white,” Shirayuki is a cheerful, red-haired girl living in the country of Tanbarun who works diligently as an apothecary at her herbal shop. Her life changes drastically when she is noticed by the silly prince of Tanbarun, Prince Raji, who then tries to force her to become his concubine. Unwilling to give up her freedom, Shirayuki cuts her long red hair and escapes into the forest, where she is rescued from Raji by Zen Wistalia, the second prince of a neighboring country, and his two aides. Hoping to repay her debt to the trio someday, Shirayuki sets her sights on pursuing a career as the court herbalist in Zen’s country, Clarines. Akagami no Shirayuki-hime depicts Shirayuki’s journey toward a new life at the royal palace of Clarines, as well as Zen’s endeavor to become a prince worthy of his title. As loyal friendships are forged and deadly enemies formed, Shirayuki and Zen slowly learn to support each other as they walk their own paths.

Propaganda:

This is my absolute favourite romance anime of all time. The characters are delightful, and the romance is well-paced, with plenty of healthy communication between the two leads. The story never feels boring, managing to pull off both gentle slice of life and exciting adventures with ease. It features gorgeous animation by Studio Bones and a lovely soundtrack.

Trigger Warnings: None.

#G3: By the Grace of the Gods (Kami-tachi ni Hirowareta Otoko)

Summary:

Deep in the forest, far from any human contact, there lives a child named Ryouma Takebayashi. He engages in the rather strange hobby of keeping various types of slimes as pets. Furthermore, despite his young age, he has a sturdy physique and good compatibility for magic. All of this is because, having endured much hardship in his previous life, three gods grace Ryouma with a second chance to pursue one goal: savor the wonders of life.

After three years of comfortable solitude pass by, Ryouma meets people that will change his current life forever. When he encounters and helps some soldiers tend to their wounded comrade, the group convinces him to accompany them to visit the nearby town's ducal family. Ryouma agrees and soon embarks on a journey to explore the vast world beyond his home.

Propaganda:

It’s a calming, adorable anime about helping people and being fulfilled with life. Honestly, not much happens, but it’s the sort of series that you can just watch at the end of the day and feel healed. The protagonist is an adorable and levelheaded kid, people around him are NICE and everything feels good.

Trigger Warnings: None.

When reblogging and adding your own propaganda, please tag me @best-underrated-anime so that I’ll be sure to see it.

If you want to criticize one of the shows above to give the one you’re rooting for an advantage, then do so constructively. I do not tolerate groundless hate or slander on this blog. If I catch you doing such a thing in the notes, be it in the tags or reblogs, I will block you.

Know one of the shows above and not satisfied with how they’re presented in this tournament? Just fill up this form, where you can submit revisions for taglines, propaganda, trigger warnings, and/or video.

[sebfreak]

Who are your favorite female characters? ^^

Oh i have a lot and it´s a very interesting question because I don´t talk that much about them lol. But yeah I have some.

Kurokami no Onna in death parade she was beside Decim my favourite character. I love her story, it´s very tragic but i really liked her personality.

Kagura, Mutsu and Tama from gintama. Well i have a lot more in gintama i like but i would say these are my top three. Kagura because she is very strong. Mutsu because she is very cool and Tama because omg I love her look and I also like her personality. The way she behaves around gintoki and how these two are such good friends is really cool. My most favourite stories were where she and gintoki had a free day, then when she made a friend with this cigarette machine and when she was attacked bei Kintoki but Gintoki rescued her.

Sophie Hatter love her personality ( i mean the fact that i like these girls/women is mostly because their personality is cool) but i like her fighting spirit?! and how she handles things. F.e. when she confessed her feelings to Howl i thought: "damn girl, yes go and catch your man!" Amazing <3

Maomao because i love her passion for medicine and also how she sees the world and thinks about it. Also I love people who have an opinion they share with self confidence. (uh these characters all have so much more but i try to shorten it okay?)

Akane Tsunemori is a very special character to me because with her i´ve witnessed psycho pass and came back into the anime world. Her character development throughout the whole story is for me one of the best. At first i was a little bit confused about her behaviour but the more you watch, the more you understand her. And now I can say: "she is a very brave women and has her own opinion about the world she lives in!"

Chihiro Ogino one of my childhood heroines. She is brave, amazing and although she is very scared at first I can sense her fighting spirit. She tries everything to save her family and Haku and yeah. I´M JUST WAITING FOR A SECOND MOVIE HERE YEAH? THE PROMISE YOU ALL!!!

Violet Evergarden her story is tragic but although she witnessed such horror, she chose to help people with her job. And yeah I really like that she learns so much through her costomers. <3

Hitori Gotou the fact that i can see so much of me in her is so funny to me. She is a very funny character but I can also understand her struggle and being a very shy, introvert person is sometimes a big struggle. But she shows me that you can still be brave and fulfill your wishes if you don´t give up. <3

Re-l Mayer amazing woman. The whole story is amazing but she alone is such cool. I really love her design and her personality. She is so strong and very cool.

Sawako Kuronuma the whole story around her makes me a little bit sad because she is such a heartwarming character. But people misunderstand her so much that she loses her self confidence but slowly regains it after finding new trust in people around her. And I think this the main aspect why I love her so much.

Shirayuki my beautiful shirayuki. Her red hair are something but also her whole personality is something that draws you in. <3

Arte in times where a women wasn´t equal as a man she tries to learn art although she knows it will be hard vor her. And this makes her so brave. A really strong woman if you ask me.

Hitoka Yachi oh yachi my little sunshine. Her story with her mom is my favourite in hq. Yes it´s not that long but it was really cool the see the changes and Yachi is motivated to learn something from a new world. A sport she doesn´t know but she supports Karasuno and soon becomes a very big part of this team. Love her. <3

Maron Kusakabe my heroine since my childhood. <3 Strong, beautiful, amazing and nobody catches her. She is always fighting for the good ones and wins against the demons on this earth. When I was a kid I always wanted to be like her. <3

(and i have many more, but here is a little view who my favourite one is. I think I like women who are brave and with brave i don´t mean "oh she has to fight with fists or swords" yes it´s cool when they can do it but for me fighting is so much more. sometimes it´s the little things, f.e. "when somebody tries to force you into a role and you don´t want it, so you don´t listen to these people and choose a different path" this is for me also fighting and being brave. or having an opinion about something although the mass of people don´t think like that. also fighting and being brave means also to learn new things and change your opinion. maybe i could say i like them because they seem to me realistic?! if we ignore the fantasy aspect in some stories lol. XD)

[sabraeal]

Keeping Up with the Joneses

[Read on AO3]

Written for @aeroplaneblues for her birthday! When I asked Anne what she would like for her birthday this year, she suggested we do a birthday exchange-- she drew me a wonderful piece for All Pain Turns to Medicine; and in return, she asked me for an AU I’d already been hoping to get an excuse to write: a Spy x Family AU!

Marta doesn’t often take the train, not at her age. Oh no, old women like her are sedentary creatures, staying in their gingham kitchens with their Wedgewood china while they wait for their children to call. Maybe they might get out for a walk, just to the market and back, to get dinner and see what they neighbors were up to. Why only last week, Dita’s youngest fell from a tree and broke his clavicle, and Lotte’s granddaughter eloped with the postman. Not the one from their village, of course; Arnie was seventy if he were a day, and due to work until the hour his poor body gave up the ghost-- probably delivering the post, too.

But today, she was supposed to be on the train. All fine and good for her; it’s been some time since she went into town, and even if she can’t afford any of the fancy frocks on King’s Street-- ah, Chancellor’s Street, now-- then she can at least get a good look at them. All she needs is a few minutes, and she’ll be able to whip them up with her own machine, maybe even make a second for her daughter, if it’s fashionable enough to please her.

The car lurches to a stop, but Marta’s used to the rhythm of it; she hardly drops a stitch. Back when she was a girl, it’d take a town or two for those big steam engines to slow to a stop, creaking and carrying on the entire time, great gouts of steam spewing from their stacks. Now they stop on a dime without so much as a by-your-leave.

She preferred it, to be honest. All these sleek engines were fine enough, but if you were going to ride faster than a horse could gallop, well, there was nothing wrong with a little drama. Well deserved, in her opinion.

Ah, but that’s not what the children like nowadays. No, it’s all clean lines, shiny and chrome, hurtling toward the future without a care for what came first. Why, when she was a young woman--

“Excuse me, ma’am.”

Marta glances up from her stitching, expecting the sort that’s usually heading toward the city, all shuttered eyes and wary expressions. Jaded, that’s what they call it, all above the finest suits the continent has to offer. Style over substance.

Instead, she’s met by wide eyes set over a wider smile, the sort of earnest innocence she hasn’t seen since she was a girl, not much older than the one in front of her. Her suit might be cut close and cinched like the ones in town, but put her in a skirt and shirt and she could have walked right off the farm.

“I’m sorry to bother you when you’re working so hard.” One neat hand gestures to the seat across from her. “But may I sit here?”

She should say no; there’s a body she’s waiting for, one supposedly getting on at this very stop. But still, Marta takes in that autumn red twisted above her tweed and tastes crisp in her mouth, the brisk breezes of her youth chapping her cheeks.

“Well,” she says, straightening on the vinyl. There’s plenty of room for another passenger, should one come along. “I don’t see why not.”

Those pretty eyes crinkle at the edges. “You’re too kind, Miss...?”

“Kino.” A lady doesn’t shake hands-- no matter what’s in fashion now-- but Marta does bob her head, a gesture the girl returns with an even sweeter smile. “Are you traveling far--?”

The speakers crackle overhead, a terrible noise. “Next stop,” it announces with a man’s hard voice, “Express to Tanbarun City. End of the line.”

“Ah,” Marta sighs. “I suppose not.”

Humor catches light in her eyes, setting all its facets sparkling. “It’s a long enough ride between these two stops, so I’ve heard. And I’ve already traveled quite a bit already.”

“Is that so?” She’s not in practice of putting down her stitching once she’s started, not even for the people she waits for, but there’s such a becoming flush to the girl’s cheeks, Marta can’t help but find herself drawn in. “What brings you all the way to town? Can’t imagine you’re going for the shopping, the way I am.”

“Oh, I’m afraid it’s not for anything interesting.” The girl waves a hand, too humble. “Just work.”

“Work?” Marta blinks, taking in that pretty suit again, unassuming with its olive tweed, and retakes her measure. “You might not think that’s remarkable, but when I was your age, a girl wasn’t allowed to have an occupation. Just a baby in each arm and house she kept for her husband. But here you are, going to the city.”

The young lady flushes; it’s not the precise sort of pink that’s considered pretty nowadays, but there’s something honest in it. “Oh, it’s nothing. Really!”

“Now what is it you do?” She has the sort of face that could sell flowers, or maybe cakes straight from the bakery window. School mistress wouldn’t be out of the question, save that the capital’s a long way to travel for that salary. “Keep shop? Oh, but you’re dressed so sharply, you must be a secretary for someone very important.”

Marta’s hardly prepared for the rueful smile she gives. “A doctor, actually. For the hospital at Lilias.”

Her mouth works. “A...a doctor. Oh my. At Lilias?” The foremost hospital in the country didn’t just hire anyone, not when the Chancellor was one of their patients. “That’s very...prestigious. Are you a, ah, pediatrician perhaps? Or maybe one of those, what do they call them? The skin people.”

“Dermatologists,” the young lady corrects, so polite. To think, she’s a doctor. She hardly looks old enough to sit at a bar, let alone save a life. “And no. I’m a gynecologist. And obstetrician, of course.”

“Oh my.” She might as well be a broken record for as much as she’s been saying that lately. “I hear that’s where the Chancellor sends his wife. Maybe you’ll see her, er...”

There’s no delicate way to complete that thought, no way to wish her success that wouldn’t imply something improper. Still, the woman smiles, wider this time, if a bit distracted. “I hope so, Mrs Kino.”

Marta’s hands twitch, reaching for her stitching if only for something to do. Anything to keep her eyes from wandering, to keep her from wondering whatever happened to the one she was supposed to meet, the one from--

“Approaching Tanbarun City. Final Stop, Tanbarun city,” the speaker cracks, loud enough to make her jump. “Please make sure to remove all your luggage before exiting the car.”

“Oh my, do you mind if I take that paper? The one just under your arm-- yes, there.” Two of her slender fingers resting on the paper’s edge, right where it reads TANBARUN CITY TIMES.

“Oh...” Marta stares down, looking at the bright red 14 written at the top, circled twice. “I’m afraid I’m simply...there’s someone...”

“Ah, of course.” Her eyelashes flutter, nervous, but those fingers don’t move. “But you see, I’m looking for an apartment. Do you think there might be one on White Street?”

Marta drags her gaze up, meeting those wide eyes, green as the fields in spring. If the girl hardly looked like a doctor, she looked even less like-- like--

Expect them on the train to Tanbarun City, the message had said yesterday morning, buried in a personal ad about tropical fish. Last stop before the capital. They’ll ask about an apartment on White Street.

“Oh dear.” Her arm lifts, numb. “You better go ahead then. I hear those ones sell like hotcakes the moment they open up.”

“Then it’s a good thing I’m starting early.” Her mouth quirks as she takes the paper, more rueful than sly, but when she glances over it’s with genuine interest. “What is it you’ve been working on, Mrs Kino? I haven’t had the chance to take a very good look.”

“Bees,” she says, stilted, tipping the hoop toward her. “I’ve always quite liked them.”

“Bees,” the girl breathes with a nod. “Code B.”

Marta can only stare as she opens the paper, this girl with the face of her childhood, murmuring, “What’s the world come to when girls like you have to do jobs like this?”

Again, her mouth twists, regret in every wrinkle. “The one we live in.”

She flips it to the first page, pressing it flat on the table, and then, then--

“Oh.” The blood drains from her face, eyes glued to the headline. “Oh no.”

It’s only because the cypher gives her an address that Shirayuki has anywhere to go. Any purpose being in this city, since now, it’s clear, she has none. Not when every corner holds a flag at half mast, and over every doorway hangs a swag of black. On the street corner, the paper boys call out the only headline anyone cares to hear: Extra, extra! The First Lady of Tanbarun Has Died!

She nods when the super offers to show her around the apartment, pointing out the extra bedrooms, the extravagant square footage. It had taken months for Clarines Intelligence to hunt down a place like this, humble yet chic, not too run down for a royal physician but also not too grasping, something that wouldn’t draw too much attention with a single woman living in it. To hear Zen talk, the Director had rejected almost fifty flats out of hand before he finally-- reluctantly-- put his stamp on this one. And now the only amenity she cares to hear about is--

“A phone?” Her head whips around. “Did you say there was a phone?”

“Oh, yes.” The super grins, puffed with pride. He’s a larger man, at least in one dimension, looking positively jolly when he tells her, “A private line, too. No need to share with the neighbors! The city just came by to install it a week ago, free of charge.”

The city. She stifles a sigh. The Director’s truly brazen, sending men to impersonate the government.

Still, once she’s finally seen the super out, it’s hard to fault him. It’s never been the plan to speak over the wire, not when it was child’s play-- Kiki’s words, not hers-- to tap one. But there’s still a number scrawled in her address book, filed under “Sampson, Osamu S.” that’s for emergency use. Not something to use on the first day, but, well-- her first day is an emergency.

Making a call like this is already twisting her nerves in knots, but just the thought of making it on a party line, having to twist this situation into something so oblique the nosy ladies in the building can’t find it suspicious enough to report...

Shirayuki grimaces, anxiety building with each turn of the dial. Sometimes one has to be grateful for small miracles. Even if they’re orchestrated by a meddlesome Director.

“Shirayuki?” Her stomach twists at the familiar voice, thick with sleep. It’s only nine, and already this whole mission has fallen to pieces. “Is that you? Are you all--?”

“Darling,” she says, clipping her words to keep them from shaking. “I have bad news.”

“D-dar--?” Zen coughs, feet hitting the floor with a thump. Or at least, she’s hoping its just his feet. “W-what is--?”

“It’s the dishwasher.” Her heels clack as she paces the floor, leashed by the phone’s coiled cord. “It looks like the unit doesn’t have one, even after we paid all that money to have it installed.”

“Dishwasher?” His voice is crisper now, more awake. “What do you--? What’s going on?”

“Super says the dang thing didn’t arrive, can you believe it?” Shirayuki claps her hand over her mouth, stifling the squeak on that last word. She can’t do this; she’s a doctor, not a spy, but still, still-- 

With a shake, she continues, too bright, “I called the company though, and it’s the damnedest thing. They think it’s gone to the wrong apartment. Do you think you could check the, uh, papers?”

“The...papers?”

“For the address.” Her fingers tangle in the cord, the only thing keeping her grounded. “You know, in case I made a mistake. Silly me.”

His snap is muffled through the phone, but she can make out, “Get me the paper. Tanbarun Times, on my desk, yesterday. There we are. Now--” the line goes utterly, terribly silent, a clear sky before a storm. “Damn. Damn. The First Lady--”

“Oh, yes, it definitely looks like I’m the first lady to live here,” she giggles, tight and nervous. “And those pictures we saw of the bedrooms were certainly generous. Our mattress looks so big in there! Maybe we need to change the scale of things.”

“Right.” Zen’s breath shudders through the line, his distress enough to make even her knees wobble. “Change the scale. I-- I think we can do that. Just let me--” she can just imagine him now, eyes closed, nose pinched between his finger; how between one blink and the next he’d grow steady, a solid place to put her weight upon-- “just hang on, honey. I’ll see this gets all sorted out.”

“Thank you.” Relief radiates down her spine, her limbs trembling. “I don’t know how I would have handled this all myself.”

“Don’t worry about it.” This is where he’d lay a hand on her shoulder if she was with him, exuding the sort of easy confidence only man like him can. “It’ll be handled. Just...take care. Until I see you again.”

Her breath catches. “Right, right. Until I see you.”

The line goes dead, silence ringing in her ears. And into it, Shirayuki scowls.

“All right.” She glares down at the dial, hoping it travels through the wire as well as her voice does. “I know you’re there.”

It’s silent for a long moment, just that empty space of a line disconnected, but-- then there’s a laugh.

“Oh, what?” Izana Wisteria, Director of Clarines Intelligence hums. “No darlings for me?”

 “You must understand, Ms Lyon,” the Director begins, once she’s taken a seat. She’s found most conversations with him are improved upon by sitting down, preferably with a strong drink. Unfortunate that he didn’t see fit to send her a housewarming gift; she’s missed the wines here, and with his budget, he could afford the best. “We are in a tight spot with regards to Tanbarun.”

It’s impossible to imagine the Director ever being in a tight spot, not unless it was one of his own making. “So there won’t be any rescue.”

“I wasn’t under the impression that you were the sort of woman that needed rescuing.” If she closes her eyes, she can picture his smirk, so self-satisfied and sly where he lounges behind his desk. “This is your dream, isn’t it? A post at the much vaunted Lilias Hospital. The opportunity to work with like-minded colleagues that can keep up with you.”

Her cheeks burn against the receiver. “That was a private conversation. And I believe I said keep pace, not...that.”

“You should know by now, Ms Lyon, but privacy is merely a matter of how many ears you perceive hearing you, not how many there are.” His drawl rankles, but the Director’s not in the habit of leaving her space to reply. Oh no, instead he tells her, “You’ll stay at Lilias for the time being.”

I earned this position myself, she wants to say, I don’t need your permission to keep it.

“I thank you for the opportunity,” she manages instead, words eking through her teeth. “But really, I don’t think this arrangement--”

“I understand that your mission’s parameters have changed.” She can hear his grin as he adds, “You can hardly serve as a private physician without your patient. However, it would take us years to place someone in as trusted position as yours. Very few people can come across the border and have the potential to access to the First Family so quickly.”

“I’m a doctor, Izana.” Her fingers clench white around the cord. “Not one of your assets. I only agreed to this because it was supposed to help--”

“It still will,” he insists. “Just in a different capacity than the one we planned for you. One that won’t interfere with your duties at the hospital.”

“Why me?” It’s the same question she’s been asking since he approached her with this offer. She’s simply a doctor, not some diplomat trained in the ways to keep countries at peace. “Don’t you have anyone else who can--?”

“No.” The word freezes her to the tips of her toes. “Didn’t you read past today’s headline?”

“I...” The paper’s just on the table, within arm’s reach. It only takes two fingers to pull it toward her, a pinch to open it. Print sprays down its columns, tight and concise, and it takes a moment for her eyes to focus, for them to find-- “Oh.”

TANBARUN SECRET SERVICE BUSTS ESPIONAGE RING IN CAPITAL. Beneath it, there’s a picture of three men on the ground, the masked servicemen putting knees into their backs. Clarines corruption ranges far and wide so close to home!

“There are others,” Izana murmurs, softer now. “Positioned well for the game we thought we would be playing. But now it will take time to gain the toehold we lost. You’re our best bet at getting close enough to the Chancellor to make a difference.”

“All right,” she breathes, fingertips brushing over the woman in the corner, sobbing as a serviceman hauls her away. “What do I need to do?”

“That depends.” She can hear his smile as he says, “How do you feel about children?”

This meeting is going on forever. Ren might be getting paid by the hour, but this is ridiculous.

“You think this guy can get on with it?” he huffs, leaning against a pillar. “I know it’s the dream to blow your wad on girls and cigars, but c’mon. It’s been two hours.”

“What?” Jun huffs, his ugly mug getting uglier as he grins. “Jealous he can last that long?”

“Fuck you. They’re just eating or whatever.” He shrugs. “Seems a waste when they’re nickel n’ diming you every minute. Not like it matters to them if they get dinner first.”

Jun’s hulking shoulders lift and split like mountains. “It’s the principle of the thing. You get some girls, you show them a good time, you f--”

Ding.

They both straighten, glaring at the elevator as the arrow settles on 13. This floor. One that the boss had made sure to rent out, all private-like.

“Is there another girl?” Jun asks, getting to his feet.

Ren squints like he might be able to see through the metal if he tried hard enough. “He’s already got four. What’s he gonna do with another? Human body doesn’t even got that many holes.”

The doors slide open, slow like a striptease, and standing there--

It’s some guy. Average height, dark hair, dressed to the nines in some suit Ren knows didn’t come off the rack. Foreign, now that he’s got a good look. Not from around here.

“You think the boss sent for him?” he mutters, but Jun shakes his head. “Hey, you lost, pal?”

“Dunno.” The guy shrugs, tugging at his glove. “This where the party is?”

“Party?” Jun frowns at him. “Don’t think you’re invite--”

He never finishes his sentence. He’s too busy trying to pull the knife from his throat.

“Let’s try this again.” The guy saunters up, hard soles clacking against the marble. With one tug, blood sprays across the floor, spattering onto his cuff. Jun hits the floor. “That’s gonna be hell to get out. Anyway.” He spins toward Ren, knife pointing toward the door. “That where the party is?”

Oh hell, he’s not paid enough for this. “Y-yeah.”

The guy nods. “Brennan?”

“Uh...uh-huh.”

His mouth splits into a grin. “Good. Hate to get the wrong guy.”

The double doors on that room took both him and Jun to open, but this guy flings them wide, standing there like some maestro in front of his ensemble. Like he’s the conductor, and oh boy, is this band gonna play. “Councilman Brennan?”

“Wh-who are you?” the boss cries out, but Ren can’t bear to look. Not when he closes his eyes and all he sees is red. “Get this man out of here.”

“Terribly sorry to interrupt.” Another knife leaps to his hand, the way cards do during a trick, but oh, Ren knows this one won’t shock and amaze. “But may I have the honor of taking your life?”

[jostenneil]

I would like some shoujo recs! I haven't read any in a longtime. I don't mind if they have love triangles or love quadrangles as long as the dynamics are good.

i’m sorry for getting to this late! and i hope it’s okay to rec some josei as well, the only difference between shoujo and josei strictly speaking is the age demographic, otherwise both traditionally cater towards women (not that other ppl can’t read these obv!) 

princess tutu (anime) - this is one of the greatest pieces of shoujo i’ve ever been exposed to. it centers on a rly clever and cathartic adaptation of the swan lake mythos, and what’s most interesting about it is its focus on storytelling. the primary tag line of the show is “may those who accept their fate be granted happiness. may those who defy their fate be granted glory”. it’s all about the characters making choices and realizing their own ability to write the story that follows, rather than remaining shackled to the insidious story penned by the primary villain, drosselmeyer. the relationships are complex and dark but also rly healing in the long run, and the ballet aesthetics are exquisite! 

kanata kara (manga) - this isekai manga centers on noriko, a girl suddenly dropped into an alternate world where she’s referred to as “the awakening”, fated to awaken the monstrous sky demon. everyone in this world is bent on getting “the awakening” first to use it to their own benefit, but noriko is actually found by the sky demon, a boy named izark, and they start to travel together through various countries while on the run. the rly charming point of kanata kara is that noriko doesn’t magically know the language of the world, she has to learn it entirely from scratch. she’s also someone who works rly hard to be useful and a source of solid support for izark and the friends she makes, and i think that coupled with the narrative message of each person having their part to play in the betterment of the world is rly inspiring to read about 

akagami no shirayukihime (anime/manga) - shirayuki is a girl with rly vibrant red hair, and the prince of her country wants her as his concubine bc of it, so she decides to run away to the neighboring country. there she meets the country’s second prince, zen, along with his friends at the palace, and she makes a new living for herself as a palace pharmacist. it’s a rly sweet manga that i appreciate for delving into the behind the scenes part of court politics, particularly bc we tend to think that fantasies imply battles, but that’s not necessarily the end all, be all of relations between countries. there’s also a wonderful focus on shirayuki’s work as a pharmacist, and how her knowledge of plants and medicinal herbs helps her support zen as he works to become a prince more involved with his people 

legend of basara (manga) - this series focuses on a post apocalyptic japan ruled by an oppressive emperor. a child of prophecy is fated to be born into a village and save the country, and when twins are born, the villagers assume the brother is the fated savior. when they grow up, however, one of the emperor’s sons, the red king, kills the brother, and so his sister, sarasa, has to pretend she’s the one who died so she can carry on the revolution as her brother, else all hope is lost. all of this is tied in with the fact that in her rare free time, sarasa happens to meet a boy named shuri, who is actually the red king! neither of them know each other’s real identities or that they’re the ones facing each other on the battlefield, so it makes for a rly angty romance, coupled in with excellent political commentary on privilege and oppression. shuri has one of the best antagonist to protagonist developments i’ve ever seen, and sarasa is a great example of a character vested with so much responsibility, who wants to bring her people to freedom but also be just a normal girl 

honey and clover (anime/manga) - this is one of my all time favorites! it follows some university students attending art school and their day-to-day life as they struggle to create, maintain relationships with each other, graduate, etc. i think chica umino’s works in general can be exemplified by her portrayal of every day life, and how it’s not so mundane and actually carries a lot of emotion. there’s so much catharsis present in this work for me bc it really reaches out to people who feel lost of purposeless or alone in their lives and feel like they have no reason to continue creating or moving forward. i think it also has a rly realistic portrayal of romance in the sense that its focus is on how characters grow through romance rather than whether they end up with a certain person. esp if you’re a college student, i think it’ll rly resonate with you 

kobato (manga) - this was serialized in a seinen magazine for some reason but i think most ppl agree it feels shoujo in delivery. it’s probably my personal favorite clamp work. the floral aesthetics and artwork of angels is absolutely gorgeous, and it features a rly endearing story about a girl, kobato, who must collect “healed hearts” in a bottle in order to return to a certain place. i can’t really reveal what i most enjoy about it without giving away serious spoilers, but there’s that classic clamp execution of the binding nature of contracts and weighing the things we want against the things we must do, which makes for some rly heartfelt, angsty progressions. mostly i just love seeing the narrative unfold kobato, as she starts off as is this seemingly naive girl who we come to realize is actually hurting deeply inside

lovely complex (anime) - this is a classic so if you’ve already heard of it i wouldn’t be surprised but nonetheless it’s probably my favorite in that area of early 00s shoujo romcoms. the story follows risa and otani, who are known as a comedic duo in their high school bc she’s unusually tall and he’s unusually short. there’s lots of gags and kidding around, but ultimately the story delves into how both of them subconsciously fall for each other despite treating each other like gag men at first. there’s comedic love triangles and plenty of miscommunication galore, but i think it takes these shoujo tropes and puts a rly refreshing twist on them that drives you crazy in a way that’s actually very entertaining. the infamous bear curry gag has practically been immortalized in shoujo fandom 

yumeiro patissiere (manga) - this is another one most people have probably heard of BUT, that’s usually bc of the anime. the manga is actually much shorter and different in some ways, and at the end of the day i think i prefer it, esp art wise as the charm in matsumoto’s art style is just impossible to replicate anywhere else. it follows a girl named ichigo, who has a very sensitive taste palate and is spontaneously selected to attend a patissieres academy, despite the fact that she can’t cook for shit! she’s placed in the a-level class alongside the academy’s three genius students, commonly called the “sweets princes”, and they befriend and gradually help her hone her skills until she’s at a level where she can compete with them on a team. all in all it’s a rly endearing story about perseverance, hard work, and the desire to make ppl happy with the food you make for them (kitchen princess is also a predecessor to this series that i think may even have heavily inspired it and i would recommend it, too! it’s just a little on the darker side in terms of dramatics) 

this is just the start of a list tbh but these are some of my all time favorites that came to mind! do let me know if you try out and enjoy any of them, i would love to hear about it ❤️

[darisu-chan]

whatever our souls are made of (his and mine are the same), pt. 1

Hi!

Welcome to my first entry for IR Month.

This is a new collection of interconnected one-shots, that you can also find here.

Hope you like this first chapter!

See ya!

but if i know you

Prompt: once upon a dream

Summary: And she believes she would wait for him for lifetimes. Yet she’s not sure she wants to wait any longer.

But if I know you, I know what you'll do

You'll love me at once, the way you did once upon a dream

Rukia has never been one to ponder the meaning of dreams.

 When she was a young, hungry child, she never allowed herself to daydream, much less to dilly dally in whatever nocturne vision she had had the night before. The only way for her to stay alive had been to keep both feet steady on the ground. Never looking back. Only ahead, to another day of struggle. And that’s how her life went. Day, after day, after day.

 She finds that being a Shinigami is not that different.

 From the moment she had entered Shin’ō Academy, Rukia hadn’t dared look back or stall. And when she had been adopted into the Kuchiki Clan, she had forced herself to not yearn for what she couldn’t have, and instead be grateful for all the wonderful things she now got to enjoy.

 What were dreams when you got warm food in your belly, a soft bed, clothes and a job?

 Rukia had always been pragmatic, and so, most of her days had become dull.

 Although it is true that Hollow-hunting brought some action into her life, between training, filling out paperwork, attending meetings, and the occasional get-together, decades have passed her by without much excitement. Even after becoming a lieutenant, her life hasn’t exactly been colorful. It just means she’s busier and that her responsibilities have increased.

 But there have been times, sprinkled here and there in the past four years or so, when she has felt more alive than ever before. When her days have been filled by sunlight. When she has been painted orange by more warmth than she had ever known before.

 And it has been in these moments, when Rukia has allowed herself to dream.

 Back in the Human World, back in Karakura, she has learned the true meaning of wonder.

 When she was powerless and lost in a foreign place, she had finally felt as if she were more than what she always had been. She had finally felt human. And even though such feelings had ended up burdening her, Rukia cannot help but cherish every single one of them.

 Because Shinigami have ambitions and emotions, but they don’t let themselves experience the beauty of life, as they are, by all effects and purposes, dead. So they go through their afterlife fighting, and working, and drinking, and eating, and worrying about, quite frankly, nonsense.

 And Rukia had been like that as well. Trying to become a better Shinigami, but failing in both her duties to her division and her duties to her brother. There had been only one ray of hope that had soon been extinguished by her own failings.

 But in Karakura, she had felt lighter than ever during those couple of months.

 And she had had dreams.

 Dreams about the manga she would read, the bunnies she so liked, the spirits she had encountered, the people she had met at school, and even what went down in the lessons she hadn’t been quite able to grasp. It had all been so very mundane and simple, yet wonderful at the same time.

 There had been a beauty to it, to these dreams any normal human had every day. The ordinary had seemed so rich to Rukia, in comparison to the tediousness of her dead life.

 But there had been nightmares too.

 Some humorous, like when she had dreamed she had failed an algebra quiz ─ only to find out later on that she had done so indeed.

 Others were more gruesome.

 (Mistakes from her past, rain, blood, Grand Fisher)

 She didn’t like to dwell as much on those dreams, preferring to forget about them once morning would come.

 But, most of all, she had dreamed about Ichigo.

 Rukia hadn’t stopped to think at the time what it meant to dream so often about him.

 As they had spent almost every waking hour together, it had been obvious to her he would have to appear in her dreams as well.

 It was to be expected.

 However, even when they were apart, Rukia had found herself dreaming about him.

 About his stupidly bright-colored hair, his scowl, how he would complain each time he had to fight a Hollow. How good he was with kids, particularly his younger sisters. How nice he often was to her, bringing her food, asking if she had been hurt during a tough fight, teaching her school stuff, and even lending her money.

 (How heroic he had looked when he had saved her from her execution)

 During their time apart, Rukia had figured Ichigo so often appeared in her dreams because she missed him. He was so ingrained into her life, into her soul, that she wouldn’t even be surprised if, somehow, he shared space with Sode No Shirayuki in her inner world.

 However, now she has to question this idea.

 And it’s not as if Rukia doesn’t miss him ─ she does, oh so much ─ but the nature of her dreams is much different than it used to be.

 Because, after the war, things have changed.

 In the Soul Society, in the Gotei 13, in her division, death looms everywhere she goes. Tragedy had struck in the afterlife as it had never before. They had lost so many great Shinigami, and their absence is felt even two years after the war was won. Rukia, who had to deal with the tragic death of Captain Ukitake, feels it more keenly. There is now an even greater responsibility on her shoulders. To do right by her division, by Ukitake-taichō, by Kaien-dono.

 Yet it is frustrating.

 Rukia cannot help but wish she was anywhere but the place that was supposed to be her home.

 When she’s all alone and no one is looking, she often thinks about clear skies, green grass, the breeze gently blowing on her face, the sun, shining brightly from above, warming her from inside out, as she walks the streets of a sleepy town. She envisions classrooms, the mall, the park, and a house next to a clinic. Soft dresses, delicious food cooked by young hands, lion plushies, and orange at every corner. It’s peaceful in this corner of her mind. But whenever she catches herself having such thoughts, she admonishes herself. Because the Soul Society is where she needs to be. She is a soul, and this is the place where souls live. It is time to stop pretending she is human.

 At night, when sleep takes over, it is a different story. Her treacherous thoughts make a comeback, and it is when she dreams about Ichigo again. She sees him, not broken or defeated, nor as a hero, just him, standing next to her, and smiling at her so tenderly, as he had done back at the Soul King Palace, when their blades had crossed as they had trained. And Rukia believes this is what happiness is all about. What she had been missing her whole life. The feeling of standing next to Ichigo as her equal. Side by side. Always together.

 However, her dreams are not as calming as they could be. Because each night, just as she is enjoying his presence, Ichigo will suddenly give her his back, and walk away. Far away from her reach. And before vanishing, each and every time he would look back at her only to cryptically say, “You know what to do.”

 And what the hell is that supposed to mean? Rukia thinks every single morning, upon waking up. Because she does know what needs to be done. Ichigo is a human, and thus had returned to his home, his family, and the life he had been meant to live before she had gotten in his way. And she needs to continue down her own path. Guiding her division, making nii-sama proud, fulfilling her duties, and being the best Shinigami she can be.

 They are from two different worlds and no matter what her dreams tell her, this is how things have to be. Forever apart. Meeting once in a while. Each of them moving on. Finding their own place in the universe.

 Such is the way things must be.

 The natural course of their existence.

 The unavoidable truth.

 Yet there are some things that not even destiny can stop.

 Everything finally falls into place one evening when Renji comes to pick her up at her division, claiming he needs to talk to her. Rukia is not sure what is going on, but she walks away with her friend to a secluded area, where Renji pours out his heart to her. He confesses he has loved her ever since they were children. But that when she had been adopted into the Kuchiki family, Renji hadn’t felt good enough for her, and had decided to wait until he was finally worthy of her. And now, after several battles won, after the end of the war, with both alive, he has decided it is time to make his intentions known. He wants to love her, to marry her, and even to have children with her. Whatever she wants, Renji swears he will give her.

 Rukia is stunned into silence, not knowing how exactly she can respond to such a confession. Renji, most likely fearing her refusal, tells her to sleep on it before giving him an answer. He leaves her there with the promise that, surely, in the morning everything will be clear for her.

 But when she goes back to her room, she doesn’t think about Renji. Instead, a distant memory resurfaces in her fogged mind. Suddenly she’s back in Karakura Town, to a time when the Arrancars had left them rest for at least one day, just before things had gone south. Yuzu had wanted to watch a movie that night, Rukia recalls. She had chosen a romantic film about a princess, one Karin and Ichigo hadn’t cared to watch, but had accepted out of love for their sister. And, as they had watched it, Rukia had been mesmerized by what she had seen. She still isn’t sure how humans had managed to make drawings move on a screen, but the combination of the animation’s fluid motions, the colors, the music and the voice acting had made for an unforgettable experience. Yet, the plot perhaps had been what had intrigued her the most. The story about a young girl, the same age as Ichigo, cursed to sleep for one hundred years, with the only cure being true love’s kiss. Luckily, in the film the heroic prince had defeated the witch and had kissed the princess that very night. No harm had been done and the two had lived happily ever after. But how sad it would have been if the girl had slept for a lifetime, wasting her life away, Rukia had wondered. She had told Ichigo as much later that same evening.

 “But she does, in the original story.” He had interjected. “Or at least in the version I know.”

 Rukia had been clearly surprised by this statement, so Ichigo had continued explaining. “In the story, there is no prince at the beginning. So when the princess pricks her finger, she falls asleep for a hundred years, just as the curse intended to happen. And once that period of time had passed, a prince did find her and kissed her, breaking the curse and waking her from her deep slumber.”

 “But why didn’t he appear sooner?” Rukia had questioned, clearly outraged.

 “Well, the story comes with a lesson. That it is better to wait for a hundred years for your true love than to just marry anyone else just because.” Then Ichigo had become inexplicably bashful, and as he scratched his cheek, he had told her, “but it’s just a story. Don’t think too much about it.”

 But she had.

 Rukia had often wondered since about the cursed princess.

 One hundred years is a long time for a human.

 It is more than a lifetime.

 So many things can happen during that time, and upon waking up, the world would have definitely not been the same for the princess.

 And when she slumbered, what had she dreamed about?

 “Her prince!” Yuzu had quickly answered Rukia. “She probably dreamed about her true love day after day until she finally got to meet him. So that when they met, she knew him by then!” The young girl had exclaimed, gushing about the romance in the story.

 But that answer, if lovely, was not truly satisfying.

 Because who would wait for a hundred years for a promised love? And what would one do during that time? Would you truly be happy not living as you wait for someone that may not come at all?

 And what about dreams? What do they even mean? Can they truly show you your true love? Or is that just wistful thinking?

 Would a sleeping princess dream every night about her true love?

 Would someone who is awake only be able to feel alive in dreams?

 And now, as Rukia lays awake considering this, she may have found her answer.

 There might be some truth to that story.

 Because, even though she should be thinking about Renji and his proposal, all she can think about is Ichigo. Him and his deep eyes, his ever-present scowl, his calloused hands and the way they feel against her skin. They fill every corner of her mind. She thinks about his passion, his will to protect, how he pretends he’s not as kind as he really is. How he never fools her when he’s sad and about to give up. How he believes he’s weak, ignoring that his strength goes beyond his muscles and fighting abilities. And she wonders what he’s doing right at this very moment. Perhaps he’s studying or working on a project. Maybe he’s already asleep. Or it could be he’s out, hanging out with his friends. Then, Rukia cannot help but ask herself if Ichigo ever thinks of her as much as she thinks of him.

 It is then that it clicks.

 The reason why she has been dreaming about him for as long as she has.

 And Rukia can only conclude that Ichigo is who and what she wants.

 It has always been this way.

 And, yes, she believes she would wait for him for lifetimes. Wait until his remaining human life is over. Until he can join her in the Soul Society as a true soul. And it could take eighty years or more, but that doesn’t matter to Rukia. She is willing to wait for him, no matter what.

 Yet she’s not sure she wants to wait any longer.

 Because, even if life and death should separate them, the issue is not as clear cut as others have made it seem.

 There must be a way for them to be together now.

 “You know what to do.”

 Yes.

 Rukia knows that now.

 So the next morning she wakes up with purpose, beyond doing what it is expected of her.

 She talks to Renji and explains as much as she can why she cannot accept his proposal. To his credit, her friend doesn’t get upset. He’s visibly sad but understanding at the same time. As if knowing what she is about to do, Renji simply tells her to take care of herself, and to tell Ichigo he better be good to her. Rukia can only thank him for the kindness he has always shown her, and watches him walk away, finally able to move on.

It is a bittersweet affair.

 Telling Byakuya, on the other hand, is altogether a different story. It is supposed to be more difficult than talking to Renji was, yet she soon learns that it is not, as it takes nii-sama one look at her to know what she intends to say.

 “It took you long enough, Rukia.” Is his mere reply.

 It goes without saying that his reaction leaves her flabbergasted.

 Of all people, Byakuya should be the first one to oppose her. But she forgets he is one of the few people that gets her decision.

 Nii-sama manages one soft smile at her, before talking again. “He’s waiting for you. Go. I will handle things here.”

 As astonishment becomes understanding, Rukia can only nod. She feels a tightness in her throat that she can’t unravel. She turns around and she’s almost out of the door when her brother speaks again.

 “And Rukia.”

 She turns to look at him.

 “I’m very proud of you.”

 She could’ve hugged Byakuya right then and there and cry in his arms, but she controls herself. It would make the two of them uncomfortable and, besides, there is no time left to lose. So, instead, Rukia sprints away from the Kuchiki Mansion and opens a Senkaimon to Karakura Town. As she enters, she never looks back, and when the gate opens, she finds herself directly in front of Urahara’s store, who is already waiting for her, with a knowing look on his face.

 “I had a feeling we’d have a visitor today.” The former Shinigami explains to her, as he shows her the new gigai and the set of clothes he’s carrying.

 Rukia is once again overcome with emotion, but before she can thank him, Urahara interrupts her.

 “Don’t make him wait anymore.” It is what he tells her before shooing her away.

 She doesn’t think twice and, now inside the gigai, she leaves to her destination.

 The trek to the Kurosaki household is much more peaceful than Rukia remembered. As she walks under blue skies, with the sun shining brightly from above, she feels lighter somehow. As if this is the place where she’s meant to be. And when she sees the house in the distance, she can’t help but grin.

 As she reaches the door, there is a single moment of doubt. Rukia cannot stop herself from questioning if she made the right choice or not. But as she takes a calming breath, she assures herself. Because if there is one thing in this world that Rukia knows better than she knows herself, it is Ichigo.

 And he has never failed her.

 So, with her heart leaping through her throat, she knocks the door.

 Not a second later, he is there, openly gaping at her.

 “Long time no see, Ichigo.”

 Rukia can’t help but smile.

 He looks just the same as always, if a bit out of breath.

 Then, warm arms envelope her.

  She’s made it home.

[recentanimenews]

Bookshelf Briefs 6/20/21

As Miss Beelzebub Likes, Vol. 12 | By Matoba | Yen Press – When you have a main couple as innocent and naive as this one, it’s going to take a lot of struggle to get them together. Indeed, even figuring out what love actually is is tough for Miss Beelzebub, much less that she’s in love with Mullin. And then, just as she’s ready to tell Mullin how she feels, he’s seized by self-hatred and doubt, thinking she’s far too high a station for him. This leads to her being depressed and avoiding him, which… repeat as needed. Thankfully, they do eventually manage to confess to each other. The series may not end with the wedding on the cover, but this is good enough. It was sickly sweet at times… but that’s why everyone read this series in the first place. – Sean Gaffney

BL Metamorphosis, Vol. 4 | By Kaori Tsurutani | Seven Seas – While the series is based around the premise of a teenage girl and an elderly woman bonding over BL, it’s become apparent that this is Urara’s book. Which makes sense—she’s the one searching for a goal. The creation of the doujinshi is very much an up-and-down process, one which we see throughout this volume. It ends at “Comitia 128,” with our unlikely friends manning their own booth. Sadly, said booth—at least so far—has no actual buyers. Honestly, I would have hoped the sheer oddity of the pairing behind the table would have been a draw, but I suppose it’s hard to look beyond the tables. I think this ends with the next book, so it’s time to binge before the finale. – Sean Gaffney

Her Royal Highness Seems to Be Angry, Vol. 1 | By Kou Yatsuhashi | TOKYOPOP – This seems to be a classic case where I’m really intrigued by the ideas this brings to the table, but the execution is not as stellar. A young woman has it all—powerful magic, her isekai’d-from-Japan boyfriend, and a kingdom who loves her—then it’s all destroyed and she’s killed. When she wakes, she’s in the body of a noble far into her future. Magic is a sad shadow of its former self, and she herself is, essentially, a villainess. Most of the book, unfortunately, then sort of slips into standard shoujo romance, but I like the idea that she doesn’t HAVE any memories of her current self, and has to fake it and deal with everyone’s hatred. I might check out the second volume. – Sean Gaffney

Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, Vol. 12 | By Izumi Tsubaki | Yen Press – It amazes me how this book can still be so funny even after all this time, and I credit this to its central premise, which is that everyone in it is a complete dumbass—but never all at the same time. It’s a comedy rule; there has to be someone to react. Sometimes it’s Sakura, despairing about a relay novel that gets out of hand. Sometimes it’s everyone else in the cast watching the continuing car crash that is Seo trying to get Wakamatsu to recognize her feelings. And sometimes it’s Hori and Kashima, where his confession turns out to be, perhaps appropriately, a giant excuse for drama. These kids are all terrible at life, and are all so endearing, I don’t know what I’ll ever do without them if this ever ends. – Sean Gaffney

Snow White with the Red Hair, Vol. 13 | By Sorata Akiduki | Viz Media – It’s good for you! Builds character! That’s what it feels like most of the first part of this volume feels like, as Shirayuki is off to the North, meaning she and Zen will be spending a long time apart. That said, it’s as much about their little group of five than it is about the couple, as it’s clear Shirayuki is going to miss Mitsuhide and Kiki just as much. And as for Obi… well, the love triangle that dares not state its name comes pretty close this time around. (It’s a well-known fact that a majority of the series’ fans, at least in the West, want her to hook up with Obi instead, so the plot twist is not surprising.) All this plus a long, unrelated short story to pad out the volume! Still great, though. – Sean Gaffney

Spy x Family, Vol. 5 | By Tatsuya Endo | Viz Media – A large chunk of this book focuses on Anya and her difficulties at school—not only is it an elite private school, but she’s a girl who spent her life as an orphan, experimented on and abused, and she’s lied to Loid about her age to seem older. So, needless to say, schoolwork is proving tough. Normally she can get by by using her powers (i.e. cheating), but that doesn’t work during the new moon—which matches with exams. It’s tense, but also leaves us plenty of choice hilarious bits. Elsewhere, Yor attempts to learn to cook, and we introduce a colleague of Loid’s who is obsessed with him and VERY upset she was not chosen to be his fake wife for this mission. Everyone should be reading this Eisner-nominated manga. – Sean Gaffney

Teasing Master Takagi-san, Vol. 11 | By Soichiro Yamamoto | Yen Press – One of the reasons that folks seem to be more tolerant of Takagi than they are of Nagatoro or Uzaki is that, for the most part, Nishikata enjoys hanging out with her, and while he finds the teasing frustrating, it’s not because she’s bullying him, it’s because he’s so competitive. Half the time Takagi doesn’t even need to tease him—he shoots himself in his own foot. Even when he literally ends up fanning her like a queen, it’s on him. And, once again, the fun comes from realizing they already ARE a couple, it’s just he can’t really admit that. The most interesting chapter has one of their friends briefly ponder using Nishikata as a fake boyfriend, but it doesn’t even last long enough for Takagi to ponder jealousy. – Sean Gaffney

What Did You Eat Yesterday?, Vol. 15 | By Fumi Yoshinaga | Vertical Comics – The back cover blurb for this volume says, “A hard-working middle-aged gay couple in Tokyo experience new challenges both at work and at home.” Really, that about sums it up. Kenji has taken over management of the beauty salon and must figure out how to delegate some of his new responsibilities so that he’s still able to have dinners at home with Shiro. Most of Shiro’s story is about his parents, who are considering selling their house and moving into a retirement home. In between, there is some shopping for ingredients, a lot of veggies getting chopped, many burbling pots, and incalculable TBSP of soy sauce. Oh, and also everyone tries not to eat too many carbs, which is extremely relatable. I’m particularly keen for the next volume, as Shiro will be meeting Kenji’s family for the first time. Good, as per usual. – Michelle Smith

By: Sean Gaffney

[cyanoscarlet]

2020 writing review

Thanks for the tag, @gladiowrites​! (I know it’s not a tag, but this is fun to do lol)

I.. honestly wrote a lot this 2020. No kidding. Quarantine productivity was real, but so is residency languishing by the wayside while everyone was busy surviving and adjusting. I highly doubt 2021 will be the same, but I’ll always cherish 2020 just because of the writing and nothing else.

This is gonna be long.

FIRST CREATION + MOST RECENT CREATION OF 2020

8:15 am  - Final Fantasy XV. Lunafreya. February 2020. - First piece ever written for the year. - Intended to be a Luna-centric AU, in which the Nox Fleurets were deposed and she’s now a regular teacher. Never managed to write anything beyond that, though, because residency. (Back then, I didn’t know it was gonna be the beginning of the end, so I had hopes. Oh well.)

irresistible!, or the summer ramblings of nene yashiro and everything that followed - Toilet-Bound Hanako-Kun. Nene, Hanako. March 2020. - First one published on AO3 for 2020 (yes, there’s a distinction). - If you think the title sounds familiar, you’re right.

versus

first yuletide - Final Fantasy XV. Nyx. December 2020. - Written for the FFXV Secret Santa event on Twitter. - Before y’all object and say what unwinding is, that’s an old fic uploaded late.

ONE OF YOUR FAVORITE CREATIONS FROM 2020

Do I seriously have to choose? Omg.

take heart - Bungou Stray Dogs. Dazai/Chuuya. Gods/Humans AU. - Discovered so much about myself writing this. Also (hopefully) I managed to get into Dazai’s headspace correctly. He’s an extremely difficult character to write, so finishing this brought so much gratification.

you don’t raise heroes, you raise sons - Final Fantasy VIII. Laguna, Squall. Post-canon. - Probably my most heartfelt work of the year- scratch that, ever. Also happy with how I just let myself go writing this and didn’t need to think twice.

A CREATION YOU’RE REALLY PROUD OF

oneiric moments (or, five nights with you) - Bungou Stray Dogs. Dazai/Chuuya. - Written for the SKK Fic Exchange for Summer 2020. - Five interconnected fics. 18,985 words. - Might not be a big deal for others, but this was taxing because I don’t usually write long, multichaptered stuff. I got carried away, though. It ain’t as well-polished as my more recent stuff, but I’m proud of myself for pulling this off.

A NEW STYLE YOU TRIED THIS YEAR & A FIC THAT USES IT

I... don’t think I have tried anything of the sort. My repertoire is sorely limited compared to others, I’m afraid. I’d probably have an answer for “explored new themes,” but again, I’ve a limited arsenal, too, in that regard.

A CREATION THAT TOOK YOU FOREVER

all in a day’s work - Bungou Stray Dogs. Atsushi, Akutagawa. Cells at Work AU. - It’s still being written, with a lot of side stories planned but never drafted. - I fell out of love with BSD, recovered from that, then got busy with residency.

YOUR CREATION FROM 2020 THAT RECEIVED THE MOST NOTES KUDOS

Also take heart. While I am proud of it, I guess it hit the right spot for mainstream shippers, too, somewhat? My feelings about mainstream things have changed a lot because of things, but I am still happy.

A CREATION YOU THINK DESERVED MORE NOTES KUDOS

amīcitia - Bungou Stray Dogs. Dazai, Chuuya. Final Fantasy XV AU. - Petty indignancy for my self-indulgent baby aside, I’m also proud of how I wrote Dazai in this one, similar to take heart.  the fun they had - Bungou Stray Dogs. Kajii, Port Mafia Ensemble. - ... Guys. Please notice genfics.

A NEW FANDOM YOU JOINED AND A CREATION YOU MADE FOR IT

Everything I wrote for Bungou Stray Dogs. (I kid you not.)

If you want a single answer anyway:

on the flaming mountains - act-age. Chiyoko, Kei. Princess Iron Fan Arc. - arc words: “what shall i do with this ire?” - I wouldn’t really say I “left” the fandom, more like it fizzled out after Matsuki-sensei got arrested.

A CREATION YOU MADE THAT BREAKS YOUR HEART

a cycle of; - Bungou Stray Dogs. Dazai/Chuuya. Medico-legal AU. - Written out of much anger and frustration over things. Also because this in itself was frustrating to write.

Also  you don’t raise heroes, you raise sons. Because no matter how much I hate my family at so many points in my life, I know I can’t truly hate them from the bottom of my heart. This fic is a reminder of that.

A SIMPLE CREATION THAT YOU REALLY LOVE

express delivery for love - Bungou Stray Dogs. Dazai/Chuuya. Real World Quarantine AU. - It’s funny. It’s orthodox. It’s sweet. I don’t think it can get any better than that.

A CREATION THAT WAS INSPIRED BY ANOTHER ONE

rather be - Bungou Stray Dogs. Yosano. Pre-canon. - Inspired by yesterday is another world by @wctercress​ - The whole of primum non nocere, actually, but specifically this one, and the rest followed. - This is also my first BSD fic. Ever.

A FAVORITE CREATION CREATED BY SOMEONE ELSE

... You sure? There’s a lot, and this is just on the surface. (unleashes the proverbial waterfall)

The aforementioned yesterday is another world by @wctercress​

silencer and snow white days by EKmisao - Bungou Stray Dogs. Dazai, Chuuya. Dead Apple canon-divergent. - The aftermath of Dead Apple, in which one of two goes wrong. - They’re unrelated, I know. But they’re both sisters! Just trust me on this. - The proper entry for this would be silencer, but I can’t very well mention one without the other, so have both anyway. I read both only this year, after all. Waiting for Godot by @eternal-aegis​ - Bungou Stray Dogs. Dazai, Fyodor, Chuuya. Canon-divergent. - Amazing theme, amazing philosophy, amazing writing. It makes you think. It makes you analyze and explore. This writer definitely knows her stuff, and it shows. Catharsis by @gladiowrites​ - Final Fantasy VIII. Rinoa, Gen. Caraway. Post-canon. - The denouement to the Caraway family drama we all deserve. I love how Rinoa is presented in this fic. She’s a normal person who makes mistakes and learns her lessons. So is Fury. Burned bridges don’t always have to stay down, and this fic illustrates that wonderfully.

Culmination by @gladiowrites​ - Final Fantasy VIII. Squall, Rinoa. Post-canon. - We can’t all have happy endings. This fic also illustrates that very well. While I, a Squinoa fan, personally ascribe to the happy ending Squall and Rinoa must have had after the events of FF8, this fic is so compelling and grounded and reflective and I totally buy this. 

Here Without You by @muselover1901​ - Akagami no Shirayuki-hime. Zen/Shirayuki. Real world quarantine AU. - One of the sweetest stories I’ve ever read this year. I can definitely relate to a lot of things in this fic. I’ve been rereading all of Muse’s ANS stuff whenever I feel down, and they all hit the spot.

Savor The Moment by @joeys-piano​ - Bungou Stray Dogs. Oda. Pre-canon. - Yes, yes, YES. One of the best stories I’ve ever read this year, ever. (And I mean stories, not fanfics.) Great character study about a man named Oda and a day in his life and a page (or three) out of his book of relationships. The love poured into this is simply overflowing and precious. I’ve been following Joey since this fic was being written, and I’m so proud of him.

False Equivalences by @slowquotesquill - Dai Gyakuten Saiban. Asougi, Ryuunosuke. Fullmetal Alchemist AU. - This fic also! Oh, My Heart. The cynicism of a state alchemist and the optimism of a foreign doctor. It perfectly hits the spot for everything FMA, and we all know that SQQ’s Asouryuu fics are always to die for. It’s the ultimate combo.

The whole Promptober Leo/Will/Despair series by @eternal-aegis - Kekkai Sensen. Various themes, many of which are dark/mature. - I’ve said this with Waiting for Godot, and I’ll say it again: Aegis knows her stuff. This is her exploring further in that direction, and you can feel the improvement with every fic in the series. I really love how adventurous these stories are, and how much depth you can go with every one. Her characterization is layered and exquisite, and the underlying lore is well-thought-out. - tl;dr: B3 Goddess.

Predestined by Galkimasera - Final Fantasy VIII. Rinoa, Squall. Reverse/Fateswap AU. - A very well-written reverse AU! The circumstances of Squall and Rinoa in this ‘verse fit so well and are so well thought out. I love this AU so much, you don’t even know. It also fills my nostalgic shipper’s heart with much joy at seeing quality content in this Year of our Lord 2020.

For auld lang syne, my dear by @by-nina - Fullmetal Alchemist. Roy, Riza. Canon-compliant + post-canon. - Holiday feels, snapshots through time, and all over showing Roy and Riza’s budding relationship over the years. And it does remind me of a lot of the SKK fics I’ve written (thematic-wise). This was such a treat to read and to follow. All her FMA fics are. She does Royai so much justice. Am not yet finished reading smoke without fire, but I’ll get to that, too!

SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE CONTENT CREATORS FROM THIS YEAR

Everyone in the answer above. There’s honestly a whole boatload of more, but this is getting too long already lololol

(might edit this when I feel like it, tho!)

[realtacuardach]

Acts of Bravery

Entry 4 for Obiyuki Bingo - Medical Drama AU

...

Zen leaned against the counter as he watched Shirayuki grind at her medicines with a pestle. “Isn’t that a little old school?”

The pharmacist looked up from her work. “Better get off of there before Garrack sees you.” Zen smiled sheepishly and pushed himself away; lead surgeon or not, no one messed with the director of pharmacy. “And it might be old school, but if I’ve got the spare time, I like using it. It makes our ointments and medicines more potent.”

“Always working, even in your spare time,” Zen shook his head grinning. “No wonder my brother says I need to learn from you.”

“Really? I didn’t think he was too wild about me.”

“No, he wasn’t too wild about us dating - big brother’s snobbish.” Zen shrugged. “He never had anything but respect for your skills.”

Shirayuki flushed. “Well, thanks. I think.” She busied herself with the pestle.

Zen reached up to the ceiling, and she could hear his shoulders pop. “I’m taking advantage of the rest while I can. i know the medevac went out not too long ago, so it’s a matter of time before I get paged back in there.”

Right on cue, his phone began vibrating and buzzing on his hip. He undid the clasp holding the phone in place and looked at the screen. His face went pale.

Shirayuki felt her blood run cold. For as dramatic as Zen could get off the clock. While on shift, he was as cool and unflappable as they come. For him to have any sort of visceral reaction was out of character and concerning. “What is it?”

“Medevac’s coming in; the OR just got radioed by Torou.”

“Is it bad?”

“Kids having to get to the hospital by helicopter is never good, but his injuries aren’t too bad.” Zen continued in a level tone. “The other injuries, though -”

“What other injuries?”

The look in Zen’s eyes as they met hers made her heart stop. “It’s not good, Shirayuki.” He sighed, and his voice just barely wavered. “It’s Obi.”

“Obi?”

...

The day had started out so normally - with their colleagues in the hospital cafeteria struggling awake to be alert and ready for the upcoming shift. Shirayuki was rubbing her eyes and yawning as Obi was reaching the end of another story.

“And I leapt out of the window, just out of reach of the flames, and made it to the helicopter in the nick of time!”

Shirayuki turned to Torou, who watched Obi’s storytelling with a resigned detachment. “The window?”

“Don’t ask me,” Torou shrugged, her large earrings clinking softly against her shoulders. “He went inside through the window too, even though there was a perfectly serviceable door not far away.”

“You want me to give the fire more oxygen, Torou?” Obi asked. “The window was open and available, and I saw an injured person. It made sense.”

“Whatever, rogue,” Torou snorted, examining her manicure, “you just like living dangerously.”

“How,” Mitsuhide asked, “did you get the patient through the window? I didn’t see a scratch on him when I assessed him.”

Torou rolled her eyes. “Because we carried him out through the door.”

Mitsuhide groaned and turned back to his perfectly portioned, well-balanced breakfast. Kiki raised an eyebrow over her plain bagel and dark roast. “Can’t do anything the easy way, can you?”

“Nope,” Obi replied cheerfully, taking a big bite of his bacon, “that’s why I don’t fly the helicopter.”

“You don’t fly the helicopter,” Torou countered, slight fire in her eyes, “because you’d crash in two seconds, rogue.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, “I leave the fancy flying to you - lets me get to jump through windows and be all heroic.”

Zen rolled his eyes. “Just try not to get yourself or our patents killed being a hero.”

Shirayuki snorted into her granola and fruit at Obi’s affronted look. “Boss,” he lay a hand on his heart dramatically, “I would never -”

“Don’t worry, boss,” Torou interjected, “I’m also there to keep him in line.”

...

Shirayuki had managed to smother her impulses towards worrying until she and Obi were in the locker room. “Did you really need to go through the window?”

“It made sense at the time, Miss,” Obi closed the locker and looked at her seriously. “I didn’t know if it would be safe to go through the door, and when I saw someone unconscious, the first thing I had to do was check on them.”

That made sense, but Shirayuki still felt uneasy. It must have shown on her face, because Obi took a step forward and placed a hand on her shoulder. “I’m always safe, Miss.”

Shirayuki didn’t say anything, but her eyes strayed to where the pale lines of long-healed scars gleamed past the sleeves of his shirt and above his eye.

“I know my limits.”

Shirayuki sighed. He was good at what he did, despite his bravado there was no doubt about that. But she spent as much time worrying about his stunts as she did being impressed by them. And by his bravery. Maybe she could be brave, too. She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped.

Obi looked puzzled. “Miss?”

Do you maybe want to go to dinner with me? She sighed. Not brave enough yet. “Just be safe, please?”

He grinned at her, making her wish she was braver. “Cross my heart,” he promised, “I’ll always come back to you.” He coughed and blushed, turning away just as Shirayuki to hide the own hopeful burning in her cheeks.

...

Shirayuki was a seasoned professional, and had seen her fair share of blood and injury, even as far removed as the pharmacy was from the OR. But it was with trembling legs that she stepped outside after she could no longer force herself to focus on her medicines. She took a deep breath of air, and felt it burn her lungs as she shut her eyes. There had been so much blood...

“Head wounds always bleed a lot,” she muttered, continuing the mantra that had kept her from storming the OR or breaking down crying. “It might not be as bad as it looked.”

“Here’s hoping.”

Shirayuki gasped and turned to face the source of the sound. Torou sat at one of the picnic tables, a lit cigarette smoldering between her fingers. As Shirayuki looked over, she brought it to her lips and took a deep drag on it. “Hey, Red.”

“What happened?” Shirayuki asked, rushing over to where she sat. 

“Kid was hurt.” Deep drag. “Got himself stuck up a tree. Crying, scared.” Another drag. “I know we should have landed, but that damn fool swore to me that he could make it. I believed him too.” She let out a laugh that sounded like she was close to becoming unravelled. Shirayuki noted her hair, normally somehow contained in its chaos, was in disarray. “Two damn fools. Climbed that tree like a monkey, got the kid to laugh and let go of the trunk. The limb could hold one, but not two. Next thing I knew, he was throwing the kid through the open hatch. And then he was gone.”

She sniffed. “He hit a lot of branches on the way down, so that hopefully slowed him down.” She took another drag, and looked to where Shirayuki was staring at her cigarette. “I know, I know, these are going to kill me one of these days.”

Shirayuki didn’t launch until her typical lecture on the addictiveness of nicotine. She simply reached out a hand. “Give me one, please.”

Torou drew back in surprise. “No chance, Red. Obi would never forgive me if I got you hooked on this stuff.”

Shirayuki had to swallow hard. Torou never referred to Obi by his name, just by a myriad of colorful and occasionally bizarre nicknames. And she never cried, but neither woman could ignore the tears building up in her eyes

The redhead reached forward to place a comforting hand on the pilot’s shoulder, and she was so upset she allowed it.

“He’ll be okay, Torou.”

“Yeah,” she sniffed roughly.

Shirayuki bit her lip. He has to be.

...

She settled back in the uncomfortable chair and stared at where Obi was resting in the hospital bed. It hurt to see him lying so still, when he was usually by energetic and full of life. Only the slight rise and fall of his chest, and the reassuring beeps of the monitor showed he was alive.

Boldness and desperation made her reach forward to take his hand in hers, to feel the warmth and pulse beneath her fingers. Please wake up.

His face was mottled with bruises, his head wrapped snugly with bandages, and the stark white of the casts stuck out beneath his hospital gown. She shuddered and began rubbing her thumb against the back of his hand, whether to comfort him or herself she wasn’t sure.

“I wish I had been in there,” she whispered, “I wish I could have been more help.”

It had been all hands on deck to care for the injured. The child fortunately only suffered a wrist fracture and skilled knees from being flung into the medevac. Obi had taken much longer, and the faces of her friends had been grim when they came out.

“I’m not going to lie to you,” Zen had said with an expression that looked painfully like the one he wore when passing bad news to grieving loved ones. “It was touch and go for a while. But it’s up to him now.

Why did I have to be a pharmacist? She thought bitterly. I could have been in there. I could have helped instead of just waiting and feeling helpless.

A tear dropped. “I’m so useless.”

“Don’t...say...that.”

Shirayuki jumped at the slight pressure on her palm. “Obi?”

“Don’t ever,” he opened his eyes blearily, “ever say that. You could never be useless.”

She held back from hugging him with an effort. “You’re alive!”

He tried to strike a pose in the bed, but winced and coughed. “Mostly.”

Shirayuki could have said a lot of things right then.

Don’t ever do that again, you idiot.

So did, You nearly scared me to death.

And, I love you.

Instead, she settled for - “Do you want to go out for dinner with me? Once you feel better?”

Obi looked puzzled, and then inordinately pleased. His grip tightened almost painfully, but Shirayuki didn’t care. “Yes.”

[chasehermes]

If the Bleach anime won’t magically switch it up to IchiRuki, I would love to see Hitsugaya and Rukia getting together.

It’s fresh, new, and completely unexplored. These two beautiful and powerful and lovely shinigami finally getting their much-deserved screentime together.

I can just imagine

The visuals. The panels. Hitsugaya and Rukia are beautiful on their own. Now imagine them—together.

Watching them transition from subordinates to comrades to friends to close friends to confidantes to—well, until one of them has the guts to confess

Hitsugaya calling her “Rukia”, after years and years of addressing her as “Kuchiki” (and realizing he liked the former so much more)

Him asking her to stop calling him”—taicho” and to please switch to “—san”

Somewhere along the road of their relationship that takes years to build, he thinks he understands why he hates it when people call him by his first; because when says it, it feels like someone has finally gotten it right

Rukia hiding her obsession with Chappy and all the cute things

Him finding out and trying to deny that he doesn’t find her cute

Her asking him to help her with her bankai since he’s immune to cold anyway

Him confused with all the hormones because he doesn’t do. . . love... and attraction...

Their development finally crushing the childhood trope that seems to perpetuate throughout the series

Their kids having the most beautiful and strongest snow and ice zanpakuto

Also having white hair and purple eyes

Or black hair and teal eyes

Hinamori and Matsumoto having a field day because their little Shiro chan is finally growing up

Matsumoto giving Rukia the girl talk

Rukia delivering paperwork to the Tenth, and their captain tries to focus on his work but he just can’t

People trying to understand how these two got together but having a difficult time because they’re not into PDA

All the bets around Soul Society—will they or will they not?

The Kuchiki elders freaking out because he isn’t a noble but a child prodigy (so their criticims are completely cancelledt)

Their conversations and silences

How beatiful they’d look together

Him apologizing for not trying harder to save her from her execution

Her saying it isn’t his fault; that he shouldn’t put so much burden on his shoulders unless he would share it with her

Hitsugaya trying to adjust to clan affairs, only because Rukia

Introducing her to their grandma

Rukia denying that she may have feelings for him because it doesn’t make sense

Hitsugaya slowly establishing respect for her because he grew up in Junriran but she managed Inuzuri

Ukitake (because he is alive, which should be the case this time around because killing him is a wrong move) trying to matchmake them in the not so subtle manner

People having conversations about them being opposites but actually complimenting each other in the ways that count

Renji and Ichigo initially threatening him then realizing that he is a captain and he can also freeze their sorry asses

Ichigo and Renji calling them the “midget couple” (and getting frozen into big blocks of ice afterwards)

... scarf couple works too

The meet-cutes. How their relationship would progress. All the in-betweens

Kurosaki Isshin rejoicing that his third daughter got together with his talented third seat whom he learned to love as his son

The most priceless of all: Kuchiki Byakuya lowkey shipping them because of all people who could be with Rukia, it’s Hitsugaya whom he trusts the most (and deems most likeable)...

(also, he had bet almost a fortune that they’d get together and the Kuchiki clan wouldn’t appreciate having their entire savings wiped out)

Kuchiki-Hitsugaya being cute and—scarf family

Of course, it will take some time. And it’s by a long shot. But I can just imagine all the omakes and extra episodes they will make—not to mention their visuals as a couple.

Like wow. If I’m not getting IchiRuki, HitsuRuki would be more than sufficient. It is a shonen manga, but a ‘lil bit of romance won’t hurt—most especially when it’s concerning these two cute ice-wielders. ;)

For the last one, the last arc of Bleach and their interactions kind of says it all.

Also that chapter where Hitsugaya is concerned and he just asks for Kuchiki and Kuchiki; then asks if Rukia is okay

Also that zanpkuto story where Senbonzakura and Sode no Shirayuki threw a party and Rukia was apologizing profusely... and Hitsugaya was letting it slide??

If not IchiRuki, it’d be nice to have another slice of chemistry >>> history

I wouldn’t get my hopes up. Since the likelihood of that happening is close to zero.... I’ll just write fanfics and cute one-shots about them in and these events instead. That or you can read the recommended fanfics of HitsuRuki in my other post. Glacial Treasures and Mon Ceour are jewels.

Shameless plug @/idiosyncrasies on fanfiction.net and @/silvercastles on ao3. Who knows, I might drop a chapter or one shot soon ;)

[queenofwordsandnerds]

AnS Characters as D&D Classes

Honestly this is kind of difficult because all the AnS characters are so beautifully complex and it's hard to fit them into one class, but I tried my best

Shirayuki - Cleric/Ranger

I think Shirayuki might be the most difficult to classify. When I think of her, the first word that comes to mind is healer. She's very focused on using her skills, knowledge and research to help people. In the AnS universe, she's not a fighter. Not physically, anyway, although the longer the manga goes on the more skilled she becomes with using words to cut and discover. But Shirayuki is primarily a healer, and the Cleric class is the closest I could get to that. In the D&D world, she might be more of a fighter and maybe(?) have a god she devotes herself to? (There aren't really any deities or religious systems in the AnS world that I know of).

This is the closest I could get, and maybe Shirayuki could multiclass into a Ranger or something, since she also has a strong connection to nature and could probably use that knowledge to survive out in the wild.

(Plus I just love the idea of Shirayuki with a bow. Very Yona-like.)

Zen - Paladin/Fighter

I feel like 3/5 of the Zen Squad will be either Paladins or Fighters, tbh. Zen, Kiki and Mitsuhide could all multiclass into one or the other. The lack of any deity or religion makes it difficult to classify the knight-figures as full Paladins, which is the closest I could think of to Zen's princely natures.

Fighters can easily be knights too, but they tend to focus more on the art of combat and physical prowess. Paladins have a stronger sense of justice, right and wrong, and a desire to uphold goodness, which I feel characterizes Zen very well. He's a prince, and his primary responsibility will always be to his kingdom. Zen has a strong sense of duty but also fairness and rightness, which is why I classed him primarily as a Paladin and not a Fighter.

I mean, "knight in shining armor" heLLO?

Obi - Rogue/Monk

HOOOOOOOO BOY. If you know me at all you know my obsession with the Obiyuki ship (I WILL GO DOWN TO HELL OR UP TO HEAVEN WITH THEM) and Obi as a character particularly.

Obi is obviously a Rogue. For so many reasons. I even rolled up an actual D&D character for a campaign based off of him. That's how much I love him. Obi in the D&D-verse would be amazing.

"A scoundrel who uses stealth and trickery to overcome obstacles and enemies" (DNDBeyond) if that doesn't SCREAM Obi, idk what does. Especially pre-Shirayuki Obi. Before he met the Zen Squad, Obi was the classic rogue. Master of a wide variety of skills, putting those skills to use in mostly illegal or at least illicit activities, prioritizing cunning over brute strength...yeah. I don't really need to go on.

After Obi joins the Squad and becomes an official knight, he's not really a stereotypical rogue anymore in that he has a family, a home, something to protect beyond his own self-interest. He becomes much nobler, more loyal, a true knight. He just happens to be a different sort of knight than most others, putting his skills and cunning to use in a different capacity.

I would also definitely multiclass Obi into Monk because of the martial arts. Obi has extraordinary control over his physical self and can use his body to devastating effect in several ways, which is very Monk-like (sword-flipping handstand AHEM). I debated making Monk primary, but I realized pretty quickly that Rogue fits Obi first way more. The biggest reason against putting Monk first is that Obi doesn't have much of a spiritual connection to his skills, nor did he come from a monastery/academy nor have traditional training. Definitely a Rogue first.

Mitsuhide and Kiki - Fighter/Paladin

Mitsuhide and Kiki's fighting styles are very similar, especially because of their occupation as Zen's aides and guards. "Well-rounded" specialists" is a good way to describe them. They are dedicated knights and skilled warriors for sure.

The only reason I wouldn't make them Paladin-Fighters like Zen is because they have different goals and duties. Their primary goals as Zen's knights is to protect him. They don't have the same responsibility of running a kingdom and navigating politics the way Zen does. Okay, maybe Kiki does somewhat as the heiress of Seiran, but still not in the same capacity as Zen. They have strong senses of justice, etc, but it's just not the same feeling as Zen. I think of Mitsuhide and Kiki as warriors first and diplomats/nobles second, which is why I'd make them Fighter-Paladins.

I'm not gonna go through the whole cast of characters of course, I mainly wanted to describe the Zen Squad. But I'll add a few more here:

Ryuu - Wizard

Ryuu is a NERD™. Yes he's a healer like Shirayuki, but he's always been more prone to scholarly pursuits, staying up until ungodly hours to research something highly specific. He also has a fantastic memory, and of course he's a pharmaceutical prodigy by age 12. The kid's a genius, and he would be very much at home in any library, researching plants, medicines, diseases and cures.

Ryuu is very much a Ravenclaw, and Wizard is the most Ravenclaw, nerdy class there is. Learning magic from books, scholarly knowledge of the arcane, that's what Ryuu would be doing.

I could multiclass him into either Cleric for the healing powers like Shirayuki, or Ranger for the nature connection and knowledge. I mostly see him as just a wizard though, probably specializing in compounds and minerals to create complex magical effects.

Izana - Paladin/Wizard

Our King Izana is hard to classify, man. He's such a complex character but we don't know all that much about how he thinks or works. He might be even harder for me to classify than Shirayuki.

I don't really see Izana fitting any of the D&D classes strongly. He's very much a skilled warrior for sure, like Zen, but he doesn't really fit the Paladin bill in the same way his younger brother does. He's much more mysterious. He's also very very smart, skilled in politics and diplomacy. He's good at manipulating people too and using any means necessary to protect what's close to him. Very much a Slytherin. There's not really any D&D class that deals with the political side of things a whole lot. Charisma and Intelligence yeah, but most of the classes are focused more on fighting style or something else like music/art (Bard).

If I had to choose, I'd probably go Paladin anyway, just because of Izana's relation to Zen and the Paladin's focus on Strength and Charisma. I'd make him an Int-heavy Paladin though, and multiclass him into Wizard because of the strong emphasis on Intelligence and Wisdom.

Izana's tricky man

Raji - Bard

This one's mostly just for fun

Solely because of his violin skills

Also Bards have a reputation for being horny af, and although I feel bad, I think of how he wanted to make Shirayuki his concubine at first just because of her beautiful hair

I know Raji has changed and I think he's a great character who obviously learned from his mistakes

But it's just funny

I love Raji and him being a stereotypical horny Bard who loves his friends is absolutely hilarious

[drshojo]

The World, My Childhood And My Hero Academia: Vigilantes

Hello friends!  

Its Dr. Shojo coming at you with a post that will be divided into three parts!

Part One: The world as we know it! 

The world has changed a lot since we last connected. For starters, TOILET BOUND HANAKO KUN HAS NOT ONLY A PHYSICAL RELEASE BUT A GORGEOUS ANIME! And not only that, but MY NEXT LIFE AS A VILLAINESS: ALL ROUTES LEAD TO DOOM! IS GETTING AN ANIME AS WELL! The last time I wrote about Katerina there wasn’t even an official English translation of that long-ass light-novel-title. And now?

A WHOLE ANIME. A BISEXUAL HAREM AWAITS! I am JAZZED!

Do you think it’s my fault? No matter, I’ll take all the credit. All the manga I talk about are getting anime adaptations. I’LL DO MY DUTY AND TALK ABOUT SOME MORE!

But first. Let us address the Covid-19 shaped elephant in the room

I deeply regret that it took a whole-ass pandemic to get me back to writing. In my defense, I bought an iPad and started drawing like 900 kokichi oumas. I was really busy with that. And then I started reading fanfiction. Then that got me thinking about how fanfiction such an interesting look into how people interpret fandom, use it for wish fulfillment and escapism, and good god is everyone OK cause that bulimia fan fic was super detailed....and I am officially on a tangent. Off track. Ahem.

We are all staying inside a whole lot more which means y’all probably need some reading material and Dr. Shojo has your back! Go read “Horimiya”! It’s amazing! Ahhhh, my work here is done! I'm serious, if you’re here for a Shojo rec, that’s it! There's also like 8 million more Otome Isekais to check out now. It’s like they’re multiplying like rabbits..............

As a Doctor, I must advise you to stay inside and read some manga and practice social distancing. Embrace your inner hikikomori. 

Allright? All good? Okay now one final disclaimer:

This post is going to be talking about something a little different than usual and I want to start by giving you some context about who Dr. Shojo is in real life. 

Part Two: Dr. Shojo Exposed 

You see, when I was little I was obsessed with Japanese media. This doesn't surprise you at all I can tell. Probably because I walk around calling myself Dr. Shojo and shout about manga that you should read.

Anyways, the reason why I was obsessed wasn’t because of the big eyes or the spikey hair or the interesting new culture. It was because it tended to have more character development and overarching plotlines than the media I was used to in Canada. Dexter’s Lab, Magic School Bus, pretty much everything I saw on TV was episodic in nature, so imagine how much my mind was blown when I saw Naruto and Card Captor Sakura, heck, even Pokémon had the Indigo Plateau! Here were kids that were learning more and more each day and got to see enemies become friends and vice versa. They lived and grew older just like me. Except they were cooler than me. And had more interesting lives than me. I gotta tell you, I was so sad when I was 12 and Kero didn’t tell me I had latent magical powers. But there was magic in my life and it was the magic of a complex narrative story. And not only that, it had a sense of movement and had cool costumes. I was hooked immediately.

Also, fun fact, at that age I happened to be a complete and utter tomboy! I loved pretending to fight my friends in the playground and was really worried that puberty would ruin my life because being a girl sounded so CUMBERSOME.

Which leads me up to my confession. Before I became Dr. Shojo, I was in fact......Dr. Shonen.

Bleach? Naruto? One Piece? I've read every single chapter there is.  

Hundreds of hours of watching fight sequences. Another fun fact, I only got into shojo because my aunt bought me volume 7 and 8 of Fruits Basket thinking “all mangas like the same right? Kids love comics?” It’s a tribute to how episodic western media was back then that she thought buying volume SEVEN and EIGHT was a REASONABLE PLACE TO START READING.

Now you might also say, Hey! Dr Shojo! Cardcaptors was a shojo! And you are right! but back then the anime was marketed to boys over here in the west and they actualy like, edited out episodes that they thought wouldn't interest boys?! Second fun fact, Once when I was in Grade 3 I was told I was not allowed to join a club under the stairs cause I was a girl and it was BOYS ONLY. The point of the club? To talk about how great Cardcaptors was! I Kid you not!

So anyways, your pall Dr. Shojo loves Shonen manga to this day!

The only reason I made this Dr. Shojo blog specifically about shojo is because, being a tomboy with no female friends, reading shojo manga was the first time I really thought about what it meant to be a girl and fall in love. And y i k e s. Shojo manga, like most media, fails miserably most of the time in displaying real world relationships. Or at least, it  doesn't prepare you for how disappointing everything can be. When I had my first kiss, I was thinking about how it didn’t feel at all like how I felt reading Zen and Shirayukis kiss in Akagame No Shirayuki Hime. Those were formative years, and shojo was one of the only places I saw romance being talked about for younger audiences. I liked reading romances where no one had any sexual experiences and were figuring out what love meant to them. But let’s shelve this topic for now.

The point is that gender roles are dumb and if you have an open mind there's a world of stories out there for you. Take this time inside to read something you wouldn’t normally. Critically think about the ways that the worlds you see in stories and how you experience the world differ. What are the messages a story is trying to tell you? And why do you like the stories you do? Reflect on how the stories you tell yourself color your view of the world. Even mindless entertainment leaves an impression on us. Anyways.

Whilst you're doing that, I'm going to absolutely lose my hecking mind over the Shonen Jump series MY HERO ACADEMIA: Vigilantes!

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!

Part Three: I downloaded the one month free trial of the Shonen Jump app and made you read all that, so I can tell you that today Dr. Shojo is going to rant about a spin-off of a shonen manga

THAT’S RIGHT, OF COURSE I READ HERO ACA AND YES I DID PICK UP THE SPIN OFF SERIES. SHONEN JUMP LETS YOU READ ALL THE NEW CHAPTERS FOR FREE ON THEIR APP. KIDS, IF YOU LIKE SHONEN AND YOU’RE PIRATING ON A SCANLATION SITE STILL GET OUT BECAUSE YOU DON’T NEED TO SEE THOSE WEIRD PLASTIC SURGERY AND DENTISTRY ADDS ANY MORE.

SHONEN IS HERE AND ITS LEGAL AND ITS FREE FOR YOU. GET OFF MANGA FOX OR MANGA ROCK OR WHATEVER THE KIDS ARE USING THESE DAYS.

OK, so by this point in the article you have learned two very important things about me: 1) I love Shonen manga and 2) I read a lot of fanfiction.

Specifically, I read an absolutely biblical amount of My Hero Academia fan fiction and let me tell you, A solid chunk of it is vigilante/ Deadpool / criminal with a heart of gold themed.

So when I saw Hero Aca had a spin off, and it was about vigilantes, I was NOT SURPRISED IN THE SLIGHTEST. Ao3 sure is powerful.

Now, if you will permit me a tangent in a post full of tangents—HOLY CRAP, THERE ARE TOO MANY VIGILANTE AUS. I CAN'T KEEP TRACK OF EM. IT’S THE ISEKAI PROBLEM ALL OVER AGAIN. I GET AN EMAIL A FIC HAS UPDATED AND I’M LIKE IS THIS THE FIC WHERE DEKU HAS AN ABUSIVE MOM OR THE ONE WHERE HE HAS SPLIT PERSONALITY DISORDER OR THE ONE WHERE HE’S VIGILANTES WITH HITOSHI. OH WAIT, nvm, it’s the one where deku has a healing quirk.

OH WAIT WHICH OF THE 6 DEKU WITH HEALING QUIRK VIGILATE AU FICS IS THIS ONE?! ARGH WHY DIDN’T I WRITE A DESCRIPTION IN THE BOOKMARK FOR THIS!

My gripes aside, there's a reason why there's such an abundance of vigilante story telling—

Deadpool made like an absolute buttload of money and people love sass and memes.

People have a desire for a story in which they see themselves. Or, how they think of themselves.They like a story about someone who maybe came from nothing. Someone who has less money, maybe someone who is unlucky and had some bad breaks. Someone who never learned they had magic, never got their Hogwarts letter, never saw Kero, someone who never got that God-level quirk from All Might. And if your on Ao3 They want someone who also has seen a lot of memes and kind of wants taco bell and is also questioning their sexuality a bit?

Enter our new hero VIGILANTE DEKU.  

But the cannon can't do this, cause hey, Deku is the chosen one. Albeit, chosen by All Might, He’s got his own thing to do. But how can we still cash in on a vigilante story?

And thus enter our New-New hero KOICHI HAIMAWARI—code name Nice Guy and then later The Crawler. True to his relatable roots. He’s just a dude in an hoodie who can go about as fast as a bike.

First off, I love Koichi. He wants to be a hero and fight crime, but most of the time he has to run away because at the end of the day he's just a dude.

He’s cute but not wildly good-looking, A bit of a nerd but not like an extreme okaku. He’s got a part time job and hates violence.

And this is where Koichi really shines—in every day stuff. He helps out wherever he can. Often, that just means listening to people complain and maybe helping his friends out with whatever they’re going through. He’s the kind of guy who smiles, not because he's especially brave, but because he just takes things one at a time and doesn't sweat the past. I think it’s really telling that he missed getting into hero high-school because he skipped the entrance exam to help someone. He’s the kind of person who lets us experience the superpower of human decency and empathy. And you know what? That’s something the world need desperately.  

This theme of human decency is really the driving force of Vigilantes—it’s a manga about how the laws are there for a reason but sometimes they unfairly impact the poor and vulnerable. It's about how a lot of criminals are just people who fell into bad social circles or on bad times. People have the capacity for cruelty and violence but that’s never all they are.  

Now, speaking of crime, the entirety of Hero Aca falls into some murky water when it comes to its evil doers. Much of the fandom has a huuuuuge problem with how much the franchise is willing to sweep under the rug in the name of redeeming their baddies. RE: people getting mad about forgiving Endeavor’s child abuse, or Bakugo’s suicide baiting. Or Mineta’s blatant sexual harassment.

But this theme is in Vigilantes even more than it ever was in the main series. To start off with, there’s this guy who tries to rape Pop Step early on, and the later he later winds up befriending everybody. It becomes a running gag that each new villain winds up befriending the other villain guys and then they all open a cat café together.

Using jobs as a way to lift people out of lives of crime is great and all but in the story there is no nuance or consequences for past wrong and well.....it feels very weird.  It's like Vigilantes plays at having an opinion about moral ambiguity and the complexity of human existence and then just.......lets everyone get along because who has time to get into all that. Make of that what you will but it sits weird for me personally.

Anyway, let's move on and talk about POP STEP our main girl!

I love pop stars and I love vigilantes and a guerrilla performer is defiantly a character I could get behind. And I think they do a good job with Pop. She is actually kind of shy, but has this secret edgy persona she puts on when she performs. She is every girl on tumbler in the early 2000s. I also looooove that they make her not that great a singer. SHE’S GOT PASSION AND CHARISMA and maybe not born talent but like why should that stop you! Talent can be earned through practice and this is a great lesson to show people.

Unfortunately, Pop is also a great example of everything wrong with romance in Shonen.

It’s established early on that Pop loves Koichi because she is the girl he rescued all those years ago and yada yada yikes we’ve heard this one before. Many times before.

Sure, it's fine that they’ve met before, but gosh am I sick of damsels in distress. It's like she can't love him just because she respects what a great guy he is in her life and in the community at large, no no, she just needs to be rescued on top of that. And LOLOLOL isn't it funny he never noticed she was a girl because she was a child with short hair?! Once he realizes she has boobs now they will for sure fall in love! That’s how love works!

She's just with him all the time—nothing romantic ever happens she just gets a little tsundere.

I am never ever going to believe Koichi likes Pop because he spends like sooooo much time with her and they never have like, a moment. The first time he considers her is when Makoto is like, ‘hey I would love to get together with you, but have you thought about if you are crushing on Pop’. (Also this entire plot point is suspect—she's arbitrarily falling for Koichi cause he.......is the protagonist?)  

Say what you will about shojo, they give you the emotional conversations, the moments where you think.....ahhh I can see why she is falling for him. They give you context! Shonen likes to just say HERE’S A GIRL YOUR AGE. YOU CAN DATE LATER WHEN THE ADVENTURE IS DONE.

Just when they might get together, Pop suddenly turns evilllllll. The evilllll beeeees made her eeeevilllll (and more sexy).

*Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh*

Because why on earth would they get together if Koichi didn’t get to rescue Pop one more time?

I’m tired. These troupes are tired. I’m sure you are too. HOWEVER! If your still with me, Let’s move into why I'm really writing this post. Let’s get to the part that got me screaming to my friends, who by the way, don’t even care bout Hero Aca….but listened anyways. May you all find nakama like these my friends.

Anyways,

HOLY FUCK ERASERHEAD’S ENTIRE BACK STORY IS IN THIS AROUND CHAPTER 60 AND IT IS WONDERFUL AND ABSOLUTLY HEARTBREAKING AND IS ONE OF THE BEST CHARACTER BACKSTORIES I HAVE EVER SEEN AND IS THE REASON WHY THIS SERIES IS A MUST-READ FOR MAIN SERIES FANS.

AND BY ALMIGHT.  

WHY. IS. IT HERE.  

I present to you my late night text messages to my friends

ALSO, AIZAWAS TEACHER IS PRINCE?!?!?!

AHEM, so as you can see, I kinda lost my shit.

And now, I would like to formally defend my claim that DESPITE HOW AMAZING IT WAS, ERASERHEAD’S BACKSTORY HAD NO BUISSNESS BEING IN THE VIGILANTES SPIN-OFF MANGA.

Eraserhead, aka Aizawa Shouta, is a side character who is working with the police on some crime stuff. He is not a main cast member in this spin off. He’s a guest character that fans of the main series will be like OH COOL. GRUMPY CAT MAN LIKES CATS ON HIS OFF HOURS TOO. LOVE THAT FOR HIM.

So, my imagine my absolute surprise when Aizawa runs into Koichi and the following happens:

It starts to rain, so, like in any good manga, this means some great FORCED BONDING TIME

Except no. It doesn't because rather than start talking, Aizawa JUST STARTS REMEMBERING—ABSOLUTLY SILENTLY TO HIS OWN PRIVETE SELF—HIS ENTIRE TRAGIC BACKSTORY.

AND THIS GOES ON FOR CHAPTERS.

THIS GOES ON LONGER THEN ARC ONE IT FEELS LIKE.

I LOVE IT, BUT KOICHI IS ABOUT TO JOIN ATSUSHI NAKAJIMA IN THE DUBIOUS CATEGORY OF “PROTAGONISTS THE SERIES FORGOT ABOUT IN LIEU OF COOLER SIDE CHARACTERS”.

AND LO IT HAS NO BEARING ON THE REST OF THE PLOT, CHARACTERS, OR STORY

What the ever-loving-just WHY?

WHY?

WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?

SURE, IT’S A COOL TIE-IN.

YES, OF COURSE I LOVED IT. I SHIP ERASER MIC, I DREW THIS FOR HECK’S SAKE:

AND YET I AM ANGRY.

I AM ANGRY BECAUSE MY FRIDAY WAS RUINED BECAUSE VIGILATES SUCKER PUNCHED ME WITH AN AMAZING STORY THAT REALLY WASN’T PLOT RELEVANT AND PROBABLY SHOULDN’T HAVE BEEN THERE.  

IS THIS WHY THEY TOOK LIKE NEXT-TO-NO CARE WITH POPS ARC?!?

I mean its ongoing, so it’s too early to say but—

In conclusion—

Excuse me one more,

AIZAWA WAS TAUGHT BY PRINCE!?!??!?!?!?!? PURPLE RAIN PRINCE!?!??!?!?!? WHAT!??!?!?!

It’s so ABSURD that I HAD TO WRITE SOMETHING ABOUT IT. I HAD TO WRITE PARAGRAPHS TO JUSTIFY YELLING ABOUT THIS ONE THING. WHAT THE ABSOLUTE—

Ahem,

Anyways, I hope you liked this weird rant/personal-story/random-diatribe in three parts.

If you’re reading this, thank you, stay safe, and I’ll be back with more shojo manga next time.  

Ciao!

Dr. Shojo

(aka Dr. Shonen)

[akainekoaika]

Today was a beautiful day, just as it always was around these parts. The sun shone down onto the Earth in tranquil rays, heating things up to a comfortable 75°F. In most every way, it was an ideal summer day in (C/N). The grass was green, the birds were out chirping, and yet you walked to school wearing a heavy coat. To everyone you passed by on your walk, you looked rather ridiculous, but everyone in your classes understood completely. Every single one of your classrooms had been absolutely frigid as of late, and no one could explain why.

You'd talked to each of your teachers about the severe cold, with their classes usually being about 40 to 50°F, but none knew of rhyme nor reason for it. The only lead you had to go off of was the transfer in of a girl from some unknown school overseas. The temperature drops had lined up with the girl's arrival at your school after all. What was more, each of your teachers had told you that the temperature was only different during the class periods in which you in the classroom - at all other times, those classrooms wouldn't be so frigid. But it wasn't just you in there at those periods; this mysterious girl from overseas had somehow ended up with a schedule that was identical to yours, meaning that you were always in the same classes at the same time. But surely such an odd phenomena couldn't be caused by a person, could it?

Those were the words that ran through your mind as you stepped into your first period English class to see that the girl's assigned seat was empty. The classroom was a normal, bearable temperature so you took off your coat as you took your seat. You couldn't help but feel relieved that you weren't going to have to bundle up like it was winter for once, leaning back in your seat with an enthused sigh. Such good fortune would never have lasted however, and mere seconds later the purple-haired girl trudged into the room and instantly the room was plummeted into the cold that you'd become used to at this point. As you tugged your coat back on less than a minute after you'd initially removed it, you couldn't help but ogle at the girl as she took her seat directly behind you. She wore the same outfit everyday - a white sweatshirt with blue sleeves and a tank top underneath, coupled with a light brown checkered skirt, with long dark and light purple striped stockings along with ordinary white shoes and a yellow pendant hanging from a necklace around her neck. Like she always was, she was sucking on a lollipop as she took her seat. This was Mizore Shirayuki, the new kid who had seemed to usher in the cold.

Slowly, the classroom filled up as the other students began filing in and taking their seats, each of them wearing heavy coats much like your own. Class started out as it always did, your teacher taking roll of the students. You mumbled a bored "here" when your name was reached, and began to zone out.

However, you were almost immediately brought back to your senses as you heard your teacher repeatedly call out Mizore's name. You turned to look at her since apparently she wasn't answering the roll call, and found yourself staring directly into her eyes. She was completely motionless and unblinking, laser focused on just one thing: you. A shiver that had nothing to do with the cold ran up your back as you quickly wheeled around to face forward again. Eventually you heard the girl mumble the word "here" in much the same way as you'd said it, same inflexions and everything. It was as if she were trying to say it precisely as you had.

That thought was a little too creepy for you as you began to space out once more, but throughout the entire period you could feel the icy stare from behind you.

The next period, biology class, went much the same way as English had gone. The staring, the strange attempt at copying the exact way in which you'd said here, the whole shebang. In a strange sort of way, you found it to be sort of fascinating; you'd really never had any contact with Mizore - you couldn't even truly say that you knew what her voice sounded like.

As per usual, biology was a slog to get through. As you walked to your third period class, geography, an idea popped into your mind. Why not test out just how much Mizore was copying you? You were so caught up in your own mind that you never noticed the girl who you were thinking about stalking mere feet behind you.

You took your seat in geography class and Mizore took a seat directly behind you, just like always. Roll call began soon, and your idea came into play. The teacher called out your name and you quickly jumped up onto your feet.

"(Y/N) reporting for duty, sir!" You shouted out, raising an arm into a salute before quickly falling back into your seat. Everyone else in the class gave you strange looks - everyone except for Mizore. She continued to give her unblinking stare. You bit your bottom lip in embarrassment, knowing that you had just made yourself look rather foolish in the name of trying to learn more about the foreign girl behind you. Soon after all the buzz had settled down, Mizore's name was called. Sure enough, the girl slowly stood and saluted.

"Mizore reporting for duty, sir." She said, though far less enthused than you had been when you'd said it - this girl was fixated on you for whatever reason. About halfway through the lesson you excused yourself to the restroom, feeling Mizore's eyes on you all the way to the door.

In the restroom you went up to the sink, leaning upon them and looking at yourself in the mirror. Your mind was racing at a million miles a second.

Why was she copying you? Had she always been doing this and you'd just never noticed? What was it about you in particular that she wanted to copy?

You took a deep breath and turned on the sink, splashing your face with cold water as you gently sighed.

That's when the screaming started.

Your head whipped to the side as you became conscious of another temperature drop, this one much more severe than all the others: it couldn't have possibly still been above freezing. The door to the bathroom flung open and in walked Mizore Shirayuki. But she looked different: her hair had turned into large shards of ice, and so had her fingers.

"Mizore," you managed to choke out. "Mizore, what the fuck is going on?"

Mizore's cheeks reddened as you said her name, causing her to look briefly away from you before returning her gaze, staring directly into your eyes.

"You don't have to worry anymore." She said calmly, deaf to the continued screaming coming from up and down the hallways. "Because from this day forth, I swear that I'll protect you."

You took a step backwards away from her as the bathroom door swung shut again, leaving just the two of alone. You shuddered as the temperature continued to plummet and Mizore continued to approach you. Within seconds, her face was hovering naught but inches away from yours.

"Please, tell me what's going on right now." You said weakly, struggling to keep your voice from cracking under the stress. Mizore smiled at you and reached out, taking her hand in yours and pulling you out into the hallway. What you saw could only be described as nightmarish.

The hallways of your high school had turned into an icy hell, completely frozen over. That wouldn't be too horrific, but what actually made you want to vomit was all of the bodies that were impaled on long icicle spikes, staining the ice beneath each body red with blood. No one was moving as far as you could tell, as they each body was almost completely frozen. You could count at least nine in your view, but you had no doubt that if not the whole school, the classroom that you had just left would be the scene of a massacre as well.

"What do you think?" Mizore asked in a tone that was sickeningly sweet given the situation.

"I... I..." You tried to speak, but before any real words could come out, you vomited. You couldn't hold it back any longer, throwing up all over the ice beneath your feet. While you were busy puking your brains out, you felt something cold wrap its way around your neck. On one hand, you wanted to know what it was, but on the other hand you just didn't care. There was so much more than that on your mind at that point in time.

"Do you know why I did this for you?" Mizore said in a cold voice, still squeezing your hand. You remained silent, retching to try and fully vacate the contents of your stomach onto the floor. She took your lack of a response as you wanting her to spell it out for you. "You see, you and I are the same. Neither of us have any friends, we're both outsiders. We both know what's it's like to be different from everyone else. But it doesn't matter anymore, now does it?"

"What..." You sputtered out. "What are you?"

You watched a very menacing grin form across Mizore's face.

"I'm your guardian angel."

(´・ω・`)?

How much time had passed?

You honestly couldn't tell. Your entire life, uprooted and shattered in just a single afternoon. Who could see something of this magnitude coming? You reminisced on the thought you'd had pertaining to the fact that no human could've possibly been affecting the temperature in the way that Mizore had been. Well, as it turned out, you were right. No human could be capable of such a thing. In this case you weren't dealing with a human at all.

You'd passed out in the school shortly after Mizore had proclaimed herself your guardian angel, awakening sometime thereafter on a soft mattress in an unlit room. It took some time for your eyes to adjust, but once they did, all that you could make out was the mattress on which you'd just woke up, a few pillows strewn about the place, and a shut door up a flight of stairs across from you. From what you could tell, you were in some kind of unfinished basement. Every fibre of your body screamed at you to get up, bust down that door if it was locked, and then run away without ever looking back. But of course it would never be just as simple as that. You hadn't even realised how much the pace of your breathing had quickened as you looked down at yourself, finding that you had been stripped down to nothing but your underwear.

Before you had the chance to truly question the strange scenario in which you had found yourself, the air around you suddenly dropped in temperature, causing you to hug yourself tight to try and stay warm. Of course, you knew that this sudden chill could only mean one thing, as up the stairs you heard a lock click and watched as the door to the basement creaked open.

It was Mizore. The girl was wearing the same outfit that she'd been wearing at school, as if not all that much time had passed since you'd lost consciousness. Mizore flicked a light switch as she stepped through the doorway, illuminating the basement fully. Looking around again, you realised that in the darkness of the windowless room, you'd already put together everything that there was to see down there. Mizore shut the door behind her before she walked down the stairs, you know seeing that she carries a space heater with her, something that you're rather overjoyed to see.

As Mizore walked up to you, you reached out to grab the space heater so you could try and stay warm, but Mizore held it out of reach.

"Good morning," she said pleasantly. "You've been out for quite some time."

"M-Mizore," you replied, teeth chattering. "P-please, give me that."

In response, she gave you a warm smile. Unfortunately, that warm smile provided you nothing but shivers.

"I can't let you have this yet." Mizore, pushing you back down onto the mattress as you tried to get up to your feet. "I just need you to be quiet and listen to me for now."

"I-I'm going to get frostbite!" You loudly protested, once more hugging yourself and just looking up at this psychopath. Her smile turned to a nasty grimace in an instant, as if an internal mood switch had been hit.

"I'm sorry, did you not hear what I just said?" Mizore asked bluntly. "I told you to be quiet, did I not?"

You quickly nodded and averted your eyes downwards, not wanting to anger this girl who had already showed that she was capable of and willing to commit great violence. A few tense seconds passed before Mizore exhaled deeply and began to orate.

"Listen, (Y/N). You probably don't understand what exactly is happening right now, so allow me to explain it to you. You are now my property, and you will be until we're both pushing up daisies."

You started to say something but you quickly cut yourself off.

"I know that right now, you don't love me." She said, reaching down and gently caressing your cheek. "But you will in time. It's not like I'm going to give you much of a choice on the matter."

You slowly nodded in fearful understanding, not pulling away from her hand.

"You're going to be down here for a long time, my love." She said, causing you to flinch in response to the bluntness and the gravity of her words. "Perhaps I'll let you go upstairs in a few months," she mused. "But only if you behave yourself."

You could do nothing but look down in response, feeling tears form and run down your face, pooling and eventually freezing on the ground beneath you. Finally, Mizore gave you the space heater, though she had a begrudging look upon her face.

"You should try to get used to the cold." She chidded before wheeling about and walking back up the stairs, shutting the door behind her. Soon after, you heard the click of a lock.

As you turned on the heater, you had just one bitterly simple thought.

Who knew that Hell would be so cold?

[reaperthegenius]

Invisible Ties (Part 1?) - My Hero Academia AU

    The monotony of a school day is a familiar feeling, one I almost missed, but not quite. Studying to be a hero at UA was a dream and every day was so exciting. I was happy just getting to be around so much talent and to learn what I would need to be a hero one day. Yesterday those days were put in my past when I got bumped to the general studies path for my lackluster performance. I thought I was improving, but for a second-year student, it wasn’t enough. Now I am back to monotonous school days and trying to fit into a group of people where I’m the odd man out. It won’t be easy going, but I’m determined to win my spot back in the hero course and in the meantime, I’m going to try to survive the general studies path.

    I struggle to find my new classroom since I’ve never been to this part of the school, but it doesn’t take me long to get going in the right direction. Within a few minutes, I’m standing outside of class 2-G and trying to build up the confidence to walk in with my head held high. I take a deep breath and just as I reach for the door, someone comes barreling toward me in a rush to enter the classroom. I step back to avoid colliding with the student and he throws the door open to run into the class. Before I can begin to enter myself, another student comes chasing after the first and flies after him through the door. Maybe my school days won’t be a monotonous as I thought.

    I finally enter after the boys to see them still running around the classroom. Luckily, the teacher quickly tells them to both sit down or risk getting detention. The threat of more hours spent at school stop both in their tracks and they sit down in their seats, but not without grumbling as they do so. I start to head for the teacher when she catches sight of me and calls me over.

    “You’re our new student from the hero path, correct?” She asks.

    “Yes, that’s me. I’m Shirayuki.” I tell her.

    “Nice to meet you Shirayuki, I’m Ms. Adachi. I’ll be your teacher for the rest of the year. Once everyone shows up, I’ll have you introduce yourself to the class and assign you a seat. Sound good?”

    “Yes. I hope for a good year under your care.” I say and bow my head slightly. I decide to wait near the door until the bell rings and I can be introduced to my new classmates. While I wait, I observe the people I’ll be with every day from now on. There are the two boys from before, one is a bit taller and has dark hair while the other boy is shorter with silver hair. They seem to have a playful relationship and there is a third boy sitting with them who seems a bit more reserved than the other two, but he still joins in on their banter. Sitting just outside the small circle the boys have created, there is a beautiful blonde girl who seems to be their friend as well, but she doesn’t seem very interested in their playful conversation at the moment.

    I continue to scan the room and spot several groups of friends chatting before the school day officially starts. Almost no one seems to be anyone special which is jarring after spending over a year with the hero course kids who are all someone special. Looking back over at the dark-haired boy, he seems special in some way, though I can’t seem to place how. He doesn’t appear to have a quirk, but the energy around him feels different. I can’t seem to stop looking over at him until the bell rings pulling me out of my thoughts. Once the bell rings and everyone is in their seat, Ms. Adachi calls me over to stand next to her at the front of the room.

    “This is your new classmate, take care of her. I’ll let her introduce herself.” She tells the class.

    “Hello everyone, I’m Shirayuki. I’ll be joining your class from today on, please take care of me!” I say and bow at my peers. Most of my classmates yell out a quick hello before Ms. Adachi begins to speak again.

    “Shirayuki, the only open seat is in the back beside Obi. You may sit there and if you need any school materials, you can share with Obi for today.” As I go to the back of the room to take my seat, I observe my new seatmate is the dark-haired boy from before. At least I know his name now and maybe sitting next to him will give me an idea as to why he seems so interesting.

    I go to sit down and Obi leans over and whispers, “Do you need the math notes or textbook? That’s our first lesson for today.”

    “I’m good, I have my own but thank you,” I tell him and pull my notebook and textbook from my backpack. I hold them up for him to see and open to the page Ms. Adachi wrote on the board after my introduction. We don’t speak the rest of the morning besides to share a textbook for English since we were using a different one in my previous class. When lunch comes, I decide to ask about sitting with Obi since he’s really the only person I know in our class so far.

    “Obi, would it be okay for me to eat lunch with you and your friends? I don’t really know anyone yet and I would love the chance to get to know you more.”

    He stops to think for a moment before answering, “Sure, why not? My friends could probably use the excitement of someone new to talk to.” He says that but thinking back to his morning chase I doubt I’ll be any more exciting than his friends already are.

    We move to sit a couple of desks away closer to his friends who all sit right near each other. “Shirayuki is going to join us for lunch, hope that’s okay with everybody,” Obi announces to them as he takes his seat and gestures for me to follow at the desk next to him. “So, to introduce you to everyone. Zen is the resident rich kid with silver hair. Mitsuhide is the handsome guy who keeps me and Zen in check. And our lovely lady friend is Kiki, the most beautiful girl to grace UA’s halls, besides maybe you.” At that last comment, I feel my face heat up a bit, but I just laugh it off.

    “Nice to meet everyone. Thank you for letting me sit with you guys, it’s kind of hard adjusting to being in a new class partway through the year.” I comment as I open my lunch box and start to eat like everyone else.

    Zen is the first one to speak, “Nice to meet you, Shirayuki. It must be hard coming here like this. I am curious though as to how this happened. I didn’t think transferring into UA was possible.”

    “Well, I didn’t transfer. I was originally in the hero course here at UA and I got bumped so now I’m in the general studies course. It seems I wasn’t performing up to the standards of a second-year hero course student. It kind of sucks since it was my dream to graduate from UA’s hero course, but now all I can do is make the best of my time here. I’ve also gotten lucky to meet such nice people already so that makes it a lot better.” I explain to Zen and the group.

    “Wow, I didn’t know that was even possible but I’m glad I got to meet you because of it,” Obi tells me and smiles at me. I smile back at him and the conversation starts to drift into our interests and what we all like. I spend the whole lunch period getting to know everyone more and when lunch comes to an end, I’m sad to go back to learning. I want to keep getting to know everyone, but I have all year to do that, so I go back to my seat. I managed to finish the rest of the day out without any real hiccups and when it’s over, Obi asks me if I would like to exchange numbers and said he’d give me the other three’s numbers as well.

    After exchanging numbers, we go our separate ways for the day. It doesn’t take long before Obi creates a group chat for the five of us after school and by the time, I go to bed that night, we’ve all been sending memes back and forth for hours. It’s nice to know that despite the sadness of my transfer to general studies, I’ve found friends who make me happy. I go to bed thinking about the friends I’ve made and all the things we could get into together.

    The next morning, I awake to find texts from the group about making plans for the upcoming weekend.

Who needs a silver spoon when I have silver hair: So, karaoke and maybe hitting the arcade?

MitsuHottie: Didn’t we do that last week?

Who needs a silver spoon when I have silver hair: Yeah, but not with Shirayuki! Besides, karaoke is always fun!

Rogue One: I’m down, I’d love to see that performance of “Love Story” again! You’re gonna give Shirayuki a real show, Zen?

Who needs a silver spoon when I have silver hair: Why do I have to sing Taylor Swift? Why can’t you embarrass yourself in front of her? Be a good guy and let me keep my dignity for at least a little longer.

MitsuHottie: Did you have any to begin with?

Can and will kick your ass: I haven’t seen it since I’ve met him. Also, karaoke is good with me.

Who needs a silver spoon when I have silver hair: Oh, come on you guys! You shouldn’t gang up on me, I’m your friend.

Rogue One: But that’s what friends are for, mister

    After reading through the messages I figure it’s time for me to respond and put Zen out of his misery.

Hero to Zero: I’m down with karaoke and I’d love to go to the arcade. I’m ready to kick some serious ass at air hockey. I’m excited to see Zen’s performance as well, seems like quite the show!

           Once I send my response, I hop in the shower and get ready for the day. The school day was pretty much the same as yesterday and went by fast. The rest of the week followed suit and flew by in no time. It was time to get ready to hang out with the gang before I even realized it. I decided to keep it simple with a t-shirt and a pair of jeans. I quickly made sure I had everything I needed and headed out to meet everyone at the karaoke place.

Hero to Zero: I got here a bit early so I’m going to head over to the café across the street to wait for you guys.

    Right after sending the message to the group, I run into Obi who also got here early it seems. “Want to go sit in the café with me?” I ask him and point across the road to the storefront.

    “Sure, it’ll be nice to spend a few minutes just us. We haven’t really gotten much one on one time; it’ll be a good change of pace.”

    “Yeah, it’ll be nice to just chill together for a bit. Let’s head on over.” I say and start off towards the café. Once we get there, we both order a drink and sit down for a few minutes to chat and wait for our friends.

    “So, Shirayuki, how are you doing? I know we all joke around a lot, but I know it must be hard losing your dream. I just want to make sure you’re okay and let you know that I’m here for you.” That was a lot heavier of a conversation topic than I thought we would discuss, but I’m touched to know Obi is concerned about me. Maybe that’s why I thought he was special that first day, he has this warmth about him and despite him acting like he doesn’t want to get attached, he really cares about those around him.

    “I’m okay, honestly. It has been hard on me but meeting you and everyone else has made this all so much better. I had no idea what I was walking into on that first day, but I met people who accepted me right away despite my shortcomings. I couldn’t have asked for better friends even though we’ve only known each other a week. Thank you for checking on me, it’s really sweet.”

    “You’re welcome, I’m just glad to know you’re doing okay. I know what it’s like to not get to live out your dream. The other three don’t know this, but I originally applied to the hero course at UA. I took the entrance exam and didn’t make it through. I never really saw much in myself but for once I really wanted to try and I failed. It really hurt to only get into the general studies course but like you, I found some amazing friends there so it’s worth it.” Obi smiles faintly and I can tell he’s thinking about Zen and the others. He’s really lucky to have such great people at his side.

    Obi starts to speak again, and he almost sounds hesitant as he asks me, “Can we keep this between us?”

    “Of course, it’s your story to tell. I’m glad you trusted me with this, it’s nice to know we have a little something in common. I have to ask though, you never mentioned your quirk, what is it?” I ask him.

    Obi looks around a second and gestures for me to lean in and he whispers in my ear, “Invisibility.” He leans back and grins at me. “It’s our secret though, you can’t tell anyone. The only people I’ve ever told were the school because I had to, I like to keep it under wraps in case I ever need it.”

    “Makes sense,” I tell him and pull out my phone to check the time. It looks like our little heart to heart is over since it’s time to go meet the others. “Looks like it’s time, want to head back over to the karaoke place?” I ask and start to grab our drinks to throw away.

    “Sounds good. Let’s go.” Obi says as he takes the drinks from me to throw them away and he heads for the door. I follow behind and as we walk over, I start to wonder how many more secrets Obi holds and when I’ll get to know them.

[hidetheremote]

Word Count: 2,053

Rate T for mild violence

“Stupid, stupid, stupid.”

Obi stomped in the dark, hitting his head at the same time. He looked toward the entrance—and he wasn’t too far away—hoping to see Shirayuki still standing there. She wasn’t.

What was he doing? In the short time he had spent with her, Obi had never been this comfortable. Not since his master died.

He leaned against a crooked bamboo and closed his eyes.

“Do you have someone waiting for you?” His tattered clothing must have given his status away. He was an orphan. A poor boy who hadn’t eaten for a few days now. And just his luck he ran into men who wanted to rob him for the one coin he had in his pocket. The man in a black silk kimono stretched his arm out, offering his free hand to Obi. “You must be tired and hungry.”

Obi narrowed his eyes at him, then flicked them toward the man’s bloody sword, head tilted back as he looked up from sitting down in the dirt. At 12 years old, he learned that talking to strangers was a dangerous game, even the ones who offer to help him. No help was ever with good intentions. “Leave me alone,” he said, slapping the man’s hand away. “I had them. I didn’t need your help.” Obi scanned the ground in front of him, noticing the three men who had attacked him. They were unmoving, most likely dead considering the amount of red that was mixing quickly with the cold brown dirt.

The man wiped the blade, then sheathed it back inside against his waist. “That’s not a nice way to thank your savior. What’s your name, young man?” The man crouched down next to Obi, and golden brown eyes with a gentle expression stared back at him. “O-O...”

No. He couldn’t trust him. Not anyone, and especially not now. He had been duped his whole life. Even the most innocent face hid dark secrets. He couldn’t give him his real name.

“N-Nanaki.”

The man stood up and offered his hand again. “I’m Tanaka Hiro. You don’t have to fear me, Nanaki. If I wanted you dead, I would have kept walking. No man, especially a kid like you, should have to fight three men alone.”

“You just did.” Obi wiped the blood off his mouth, accidentally rubbing dirt on his face. He rubbed his face some more, using his forearm and wrist to wipe instead.

Chuckling, Tanaka grabbed Obi by his collar, forcing him to stand up on his feet. “True. And what a shame. Those men had no chance against me.” He patted the dirt off of Obi’s shoulders, which caused the younger man to swat him again.

“Don’t touch me.”

Putting his hands up in defeat, Tanaka retreated and watched Obi pat the rest of the dirt off his clothes. “You still have a little dirt right there.” He pointed to Obi’s leg. Obi shot him an annoyed look, then patted his leg to remove the dry mud off.

“Where did you learn to fight like that, anyway?” The man’s technique had piqued his interest. He had envied the kids that could afford to attend a dojo, learning how to wield a sword and defend themselves. But the families that took him in could barely afford to feed him. And when he turned ten, he was thrown out to fend for himself.

“Call me Master and I’ll teach you.”

Rolling his eyes and crossing his arms, Obi scoffed in response. “I don’t want to call you...” Before he could finish his snide remark, Tanaka swept a leg under him, and Obi found his ass sitting on the ground again.

“Ow! What the hell, man?” The man stretched his leg out again, this time swinging it toward Obi’s face. Obi blocked the foot and rolled backwards to avoid getting kicked again. Tanaka continued to attack him, not quite the same way he did with the three thugs that had tried to rob him, but Obi knew he wasn’t safe standing still.

After a few minutes of chasing Obi, Tanaka finally stopped moving and bowed lightly to him. “Well done, Nanaki. You have fast reflexes.”

Obi panted, catching his breath as he stood a good distance away from him. He looked at the man with bewildered eyes, unsure of the situation he was in.

“With a bit of training, you’ll make a great warrior soon enough.” Tanaka slowly walked toward him, smiling. In his mind he wanted to run. But there was something different about this man. He was dangerous, but at the same time, he did just save his life. So Obi allowed him to get closer.

“So, Nanaki, ready to go home?”

The Lion Tea House had more customers tonight than Shirayuki could remember ever having on other nights before. What a relief. She needed the distraction. After having an odd encounter with that rogue samurai, Shirayuki needed to forget about him real quick.

“Order up, sweetie.”

“Shirayuki rolled her eyes as she carried empty plates in both hands. She hated being called “sweetie.” It made her feel like a child. “Father...” she said, voice chirping like she was about to throw a tantrum. She threw the dishes into a large basin, behind her father who was grilling. He turned his head slightly, puckering his lips to give his daughter air kisses. She stuck her tongue out, then smiled at him, grabbing new plates in front of him.

“Love you, Dad. Just keep the terms of endearment to a minimum while I’m working.” She winked at him then disappeared back into the dining area.

“Okay, sweetie!”

There were familiar customers and a few new faces in their tea house. The mood had become lively, like there was a celebration in the village.

“Shirayuki, when are you going to accept my proposal?” A man shouted from the corner. She danced around the tables, setting hot plates of fried tofu and refilling empty teacups.

“I’ll marry you when you pay the rest of your tab, Master Harada.” She winked at him, which likely earned her an extra coin.

“Mukaze! My debts are paid. How about I take Shirayuki off your hands?” Another man shouted, his words slurred as he gulped down his tea.

“Keep talking that way and your wife will have me fry your head tomorrow.” Mukaze was smooth with his words as well. A talent Shirayuki learned quite early after her mother had died when she was young.

The man took another sip of his tea, frowning as he muttered softly, “I was only kidding.”

Teasing and flirting were part of her job, and the more she interacted with the customers, the easier it was for her to forget the man who had rejected her kindness.

Maybe he had to be somewhere. Rogue samurais do not stay in one place. Even though he had insisted he wasn’t a samurai, he was obviously not a commoner. His clothing indicated he came from nobility, possibly a daimyo. No, not a chance. He was hunting for his food, a sure sign he had no money. Maybe he wasn’t lying to her.

Oh, what does it matter?! He was long gone. Most likely already at the next town. If he were pretending to be a samurai, the shogun’s enforcers will surely kill him.

Raji—the current shogun—was not a nice man. He was a fool, of course, but ever since he took over his father’s duties, he was using the people for his own entertainment... and pleasure.

The shoji doors slid open with so much force, they nearly tore off the wall. The entire tea house turned their attention toward the group of men. They were wearing brown haoris, with golden eyes embroidered on their backs. Raji’s enforcers—coming in to disturb her once again.

The room was silent, and many of the customers kept their eyes down—afraid of attracting unwanted attention from them.

“Forgive us, gentlemen, but we have no open seats available tonight.” Shirayuki glared at them, her tone straightforward.

“Master Raji has ordered us to take you with us,” the shortest of the three men said, grabbling Shirayuki’s arm. “That stunt you pulled the other day...” His eyes flicked from her eyes to her bright red hair.

“He can have my hair, but he cannot have the rest of me.” Shirayuki yanked back her arm, nearly falling back from the motion. Mukaze rushed out of the kitchen and immediately stood next to his daughter.

“Please, we don’t want any trouble tonight. Give us a few minutes to clear this place out and I’ll personally cook and serve you,” Mukaze said, standing in between the men and his daughter.

“We just want the woman.” The other two men flicked the handle of their swords, releasing them from the sheaths. It was a clear threat. They gripped the handles, ready to release them with one quick stroke.

Pushing Mukaze aside, the shortest of the three grabbed Shirayuki’s wrist and pulled her in to him. She resisted and slapped his face, causing the man to react aggressively with more pushing. The two other men joined in, toppling over the other and kicking the tables along the way. The customers had spread out, with some of them running out the door.

Shirayuki fell to the floor and curled into a ball, using her arms to cover her face. She cried out as a heavy foot stepped on her leg. She could hear blades clinking, a fight ensuing as she continued to cower underneath a table. A couple of men groaned and grunted, bodies falling on the floor. She silently prayed that one of those bodies weren’t her father. She kept her eyes shut, but it didn’t stop the tears from falling down her face.

After a few minutes, the room fell silent and Shirayuki finally got the nerve to open her eyes. She saw feet scuffling and the three enforcers down on the floor with her. All three were covered in blood, not breathing. Two strong hands picked her up, helping her stand up on her feet. She still felt weak and when she turned around to see who had helped her, she fell into his arms.

“O-Obi,” she gasped, her eyes blinking rapidly like she was waking up from a dream. “When did you get here?”

Obi lifted her off the floor, carrying her out of the tea house. “I got here just in time, Miss.”

The fresh air was a relief and Shirayuki took a deep breath that brought her back to life. The sudden cold of night made her shiver, and she wrapped her arms around Obi’s neck, burying her face underneath his jaw. He turned his head, and their lips grazed.

“Would you like me to put down now, Miss?” he whispered.

Shirayuki shook her head, then nuzzled the side of his face. He was warm. And safe. She held him tighter, wishing she could stay in his arms forever. “Not yet, please. Not yet.”

By the time the patrolling soldiers arrived at the Lion Tea House, the scene had already calmed down. Mukaze dragged the bodies out in the back, while Shirayuki and the customers cleaned the dining room, covering the blood with old tatami mats.

“We were informed that there was a rogue samurai here,” one of the soldiers said, eyes scanning the room.

Harada raised a hand, while sipping his tea slowly. “Nothing out of the ordinary here, sir. It has been quite boring, actually.”

Another man chimed in, tilting his head with a confused look on his face. “Rogue samurai? In our village? Preposterous!”

Shirayuki walked out of the kitchen, holding a tea kettle in one hand and a plate of fried tofu in her other hand. “Just our usual customers tonight,” she said, pouring tea into an empty cup.

Obi reached for the cup, giving Shirayuki a small smile. “Thank you, Miss,” he said softly, winking at her as she maneuvered toward another table. He popped a few pieces of tofu into his mouth, then raised his hand to gain the soldier’s attention.

“You might want to check the forest, sir,” Obi said brightly. He flashed him a wide grin then took a long sip of his tea.

[xaphrin]

Bad Luck, You Are a Terrible Laughing God

Stevens had been staring at him for two minutes straight, and it was starting to make him uncomfortable at this point. His stunted, black tail was flicking back and forth, as if waiting for Obi to say something. But Obi just sat there, silently staring at the cat, feeling as if he should snarl or bark or something to get the cat to just stop looking at him.

The cat should learn some damn manners.

“What are you looking at, Stevens? Is there a bug on the wall?”

Obi looked up from the cat to see its owner walking through the townhouse with a stupidly joyful grin on her face. His lips twitched and he felt a strange need to glare at her from underneath the hooded shadows of his eyes. Here she was - invading his space as if she was the only one here. And, she looked ridiculous, as if she had won the lottery and was spending her winnings as though there wasn’t a care in the world. Tch. It was just a stupid house, it didn’t matter that much.

He watched her tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear and opened a box of dishes, setting the coffee mugs into the cabinet next to the sink. She was humming under her breath, her cheeks pink from the summer heat and all the moving she had done. Obi watched her quietly for a moment, trying to decide how he felt about her in a few, snap thoughts. The girl was cute, but it didn’t really matter all that much anyway. Well, at least he got to have some company for a little bit, and that was something. Maybe he wouldn’t feel so… it didn’t matter anyway.

His lips twitched and he slunk from the kitchen to the living room just to stop looking at her. He didn’t want to admit how nice it was to have someone close to him again. He’d been almost lonely after the last couple had left, and it had been a whole six months before someone else had rented the townhouse. He’d spent his days and nights laying on the floor, staring at the ceiling, hoping one day someone would know he was there.

So far, no luck.

“You could at least ask if you could come move in with me, Miss.”

No response.

Obi sighed and sunk his form onto the sofa, watching out the window as a few cars drove by, hitting the pothole just outside the front step. He sat there, watching a truck pull up, somehow avoiding the pothole, and crawled out of a battered, mud-covered pick-up truck. Obi watched with half-interest as the stranger walked up the steps and threw open the door. He was older, a sort of strange kind of ruggedly handsome, like he rode a Harley and lived out in the wilderness all alone and made friends with misunderstood forest animals. Obi kicked his feet up on the sofa and watched him walk into the living room, all confidence and strength, as if he knew how to command a room.

And then it happened - eye contact.

There was a solid two seconds of eye contact, to the point where Obi felt his heart fall into the pit of his stomach and thunder wildly. It felt like he was dying all over again, or at least what he thought his death had felt like. He sat up, propping himself on his elbows as he watched the other man walk farther into the living room. Everything felt tense, as if he was balanced on a knife and could easily slide down the edge, slicing him open.

Did he… did this man actually see him? Obi pause, every part of him still as he stared back, trying to race through every explanation in his mind, and somehow coming up empty. It wasn’t possible - couldn’t be possible. As long as Obi had been trapped here in this house, there wasn’t a single person who saw him. No one had even seemed to acknowledge his presence, or even know that they shared their home with him. He’d been three families and two single girls, and not one of them had ever seen him. Sometimes they were uneasy, as if they sensed him, but no one had ever actually made eye contact with him. This was… this couldn’t actually be happening.

The man walked through the room, his boots pounding on the hardwood floor as he made his way to the kitchen. “Get your damn feet off the sofa, kid. Have some respect.”

He did see him.

Obi, without thinking anything of his actions through, scrambled off the sofa and stumbled after the other man, moving like a newborn foal. Every thought that Obi could ever have was running through his mind as he chased after him. How could he see him? Who did this man think Obi was? Was he dead too? Obi’s mind was spinning, as if he’d been pushed down the stairs and he was tumbling head over heels for eternity. Swallowing the words and thoughts that were still bubbling in his throat, Obi crossed the threshold into the kitchen and watched as the man placed a tender kiss on the girl’s head.

“I brought over the rest of the furniture, Shirayuki.”

Okay. Shirayuki. Cute name.

“Oh, good!” Shirayuki set her last mug into the cupboard and smiled up at him, practically elated that he was here. “Let’s get it out of the truck and set it up. I know you’ve got some things you need to take care of back home.”

He smiled at her, eyes crinkling at the edges. “Nothing that can’t wait for my favorite girl.”

The man shifted, and Obi watched as his eyes slid across the room, waiting for Shirayuki to acknowledge his presence. But… nothing happened. Shirayuki didn’t even seem to notice that he was there. A few seconds slid by as Shirayuki chattered away, neither Obi or the other man paying attention to what she was saying. Instead, they were just looking at each other sizing the other one up as if readying for a fight. Obi waited, knowing the look that was hiding in the back of his eyes - he wanted to speak to Obi, alone.

Finally, the other man nodded and reached into his back pocket for his wallet. “Hey, you know what? I’m getting a little hungry. I saw a deli two blocks away on my way over.” He pulled out few bills and handed them to her. “Why don’t you grab a few sandwiches and a couple of drinks, while I finish bringing in the last of the furniture?”

Shirayuki pursed her lips, her eyes narrowing. “You can’t get all of that yourself, dad.”

Ah. Father. That made sense now.

“You have no idea what I can do.” He winked and shoved the bills into her hand, ushering her to the front door in a way that somehow didn’t seem strange or out of place. “Pastrami, if you don’t mind. And get me a tall boy.”  

Shirayuki looked as if she was going to tell him something else, but instead shook her head and  ducked out of the front door. Before the wood of the door even hit the frame, the man had whipped around and glared at Obi from across the room. Obi thought about glaring back, but he was so surprised someone could see him that it seemed pointless at this point. All he wanted to do was ask why in the world this man could see him. A second skipped by, and Obi watched as Shirayuki’s form slid by the front window before disappearing down the street. One more second, and then-

“Mind telling me who the fuck you are, kid?”

“I’d ask the same thing.” Obi’s eyes narrowed, confused about the elated feeling in the pit of his stomach. He knew he should be cautious and nervous, and most of all worried. He hadn’t had a real conversation with anyone that he could remember, and now this strange man was in his space and seemed more than just a little frightening. He looked like a bulk of muscles and force, and he seemed like he knew things that Obi had no idea to consider. But, at the same time, Obi was just glad that someone could see him and talk to him, at this point he didn’t care what the conversation was. “I mean… you can see me. No one can see me - ever.”

“Yeah… I can see you, kid.” The other man’s eyes narrowed and something akin to a growl slid from the back of his throat. “Okay, so let me clarify - what the fuck are you?”

Obi blinked, not expecting that question to hang between them like a slap to the face. He… he wasn’t sure what he was. He’d never really considered that, honestly. He knew that he was dead, so he assumed he was a ghost, but then again, he could be something else entirely. Maybe he wasn’t dead, maybe he was, and maybe he existed as… no. His head spun, and his thoughts started to careen out of control again. Obi swallowed, the feeling rippling through him, and he lifted his eyes to the other man again.

“I… I don’t know.”

“Poltergeist?” He leaned back on his heels, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

“I… no? I mean…” Obi didn’t understand what that meant. What in the world was different between a poltergeist and himself? He lifted an eyebrow and mimicked the other man’s stance, if only to gain some ground in this conversation. “No. I’m not.” Honestly, he wasn’t sure, but it was easier to pretend if he did. Maybe he was, but then again, maybe he wasn’t. How in the world was he questioning his existence in front of the first person would ever saw him?

The man regarded him carefully, his chest puffing out as if to make himself seem bigger. He was trying to control the situation and the conversation, and Obi didn’t want him to try and force the conversation without Obi getting a chance to handle his own weight. He wasn’t going to back down from this, and definitely not when he had his first real conversation. Obi took a few steps forward and waited, squaring his shoulders with the same kind of determination. It felt like eons of heavy, tense silence weighed on them both, waiting until someone broke it.

Obi glared. “Do you want to tell me how you can see me?”

The man lifted his eyebrows. “Sure. Just as soon as you tell me one thing.”

“What?”

“How did you die?”

Obi jerked back, feeling that weightless, careening feeling again. He hadn’t ever been asked that, although to be fair he hadn’t ever been asked anything before. Shifting a little, he kept his face as blank as possible and shrugged. “I don’t know.”

His face didn’t change, but there was a curious tilt to his head. “How long have you been here?”

“Answer my question first.” Obi crossed his arms over his chest again, taking another step forward. “How can you see me?”

His lips curled up at the edges in a humorless smile. “Family curse.”

Obi blinked, thinking about Shirayuki without any real force behind it. If he could see him, did that mean that she had the same curse? Would she eventually be able to see him too? A bubble of excitement fizzed in his chest, unstable and nervous, and Obi felt the question escape before he had a chance to stop it. “And your daughter?”

“Shirayuki has nothing to do with this, and I’d like to keep it that way.” His lips twitched, as if he was going to say something more, and Obi waited for more of an explanation that never came. Another heavy silence pressed between them, finding all the broken cracks and parts of Obi that made him feel human, until finally he man tilted his head toward the sofa. “Let’s talk, kid.”

“About what?”

“Oh, I don’t know…” That charming, tilted and rugged smile filled the man’s face again, and his dark eyes seemed to pierce whatever little armor Obi had. “…I think we have a lot to discuss.”

Obi found himself following the other man, sitting down on the end of the sofa as he took up the other end. Another stretch of silence slif between them and the man swiveled his head to look at Obi, eyes narrow enough to say a million words and nothing at the same time. Obi waited, hoping that there was more than nothing between them. He waited, feeling like a child that had managed to meet their idol, and he waited for the stranger to relax back into the sofa.

“Mukaze.”

Obi blinked and stared at him, unsure of what he should follow that with.

“Name’s Mukaze, kid.”

Obi nodded and watched as Mukaze turned to look at him, a different kind of smile filling his face. This one was all jagged lines and teeth, as if a warning was being placed between them without saying anything at all.

“And, before we have this heart to heart, let me just preface it with this.”

Obi waited, unsure of what was coming next.

“If I ever hear of weird stories of something or someone watching my daughter while she sleeps or showers, I will hire every priest, rabbi, and shaman in a thousand mile radius to exorcise your ass.” His smile turned more uneven, all the promises and threats mingling into one expression. Mukaze kicked his feet out and looked at Obi, somehow managing to say nothing and everything at the same time. “Are we clear, kid?”

“Crystal.”