#tune in... later inevitably lol

[skyward-floored]

Okay I have stuff written or at least ideas for days 1,2,3,4,8,9,12,13, maybe 14, possibly 20, 22, maybe 25 and maybe 28 which means I just have... eighteen left to think of

[tamamatango]

“Keroro Gunsgo To The Polls”: The Possible Behind-the-Scenes of the Ad-nime Short Nobody Expected

A much less existentially depressing display of political campaign buffoonery.

Here’s yet another unplanned post from me. The other long-form ones I was talking about before I keep putting off because of work and also another pretty ambitious project I’m putting together taking my attention—I don’t know how or when to talk about it here juuuuust yet, but it exists in public and some of you already know what it is/have seen it, so stay tuned perhaps.

As you can see from the video link/photo, this post is a writeup about a surprise video apparently commissioned by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government that uses the Keroro characters to encourage young people to go out and vote in the upcoming elections for the Governor of Tokyo. It came out about a week ago, but I initially glossed over it because…well, I thought it wasn’t new. After all, the copyright DOES attribute the copyright to 2014 and it looks very similar to the Flash anime at first glance, so…this must be a reupload from the 2014 Tokyo gubernatorial election or something, right?

Upon looking more deeply into it, no. There’s no record of this ever existing before this week, and it was later confirmed to be new via social media channels. Which means this is technically a brand new piece of animated Keroro content, which I pledged I would report on. So here I am. Whoopee.

This post is going to be about the short from a production standpoint, primarily. I’m not going to spend time on the plot (if you want to call it that lol), as it was already pretty succinctly summarized by this post here by @unfo11owmelol , and I can say it’s more or less accurate, so thank you! I will make a comment in that the Dororo ranting about plastic thing seems to just be a running gag he has now—he was always an environmentalist of course, but his hatred of plastic specifically is kind of new; it was even a major punchline in this month’s manga chapter. In fact, this short has the manga’s quirks written all over it. It’s almost as if Yoshizaki himself was heavily involved in it. Oh wait, he was. But we’ll get to that.

The Context

As previously mentioned, this short was commissioned by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and posted exclusively to their YouTube channel. This is where I was going to have a few sentences about how it was literally exclusively on the YouTube channel because none of the official social media accounts posted about it, but as I was writing the last 40% of the post, Keroro PR and one of the Tokyo government accounts finally mentioned it. So give a pat on the back to ol’ Kirb’s amazing procrastination abilities. Anyways, for the whole week before they finally decided to acknowledge its existence, it literally just dropped on YouTube with no warning and the only reason anybody on social media knew about it is because people whose YT feeds it popped up on were like hey what the fuck is this.

“What the fuck is this” is a pretty good question. While the fact that it’s about the gubernatorial election specifically isn’t directly mentioned in the video, it was pretty obvious given the timing, as it’s set to occur on July 7. I am not the most knowledgeable about Japanese politics as a whole, but this year’s race for governor is apparently particularly competitive, with over 50 candidates running. Here’s a short article giving a rundown of the race so far. The top issue is unsurprisingly the low birthrate, which has been causing panic over the fate of Japan’s economy for a considerably long time now. That’s why the government is very concerned that the voter disparity is incredibly polarizing, with young people voting much less than the elderly.

Well, what better way to fix low youth vote turnout than with anime? After all, the Zillenials want nothing more than to obsess over fictional characters while the world crumbles around them into inevitable disrepair I’m not projecting at all. The irony here is that, when the anime was originally in its prime at least, Keroro’s target audience was elementary schoolers. Indeed, the short definitely has the aura of a PSA they’d show to children, but obviously children are not voting. There’s even a point in the video where Tamama says going to the polling place is an opportunity to visit your childhood school, which is a statement more relatable to young adults. I guess at this point the main audience for Keroro really is considered to be the people who grew up with it in their child/teen years—unless the actual new anime gets a primetime kids’ TV slot, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

Considering this is the most viewed PSA about the election on their YouTube channel by far, I guess it worked to an extent? It’s currently hovering just under 20k views, which isn’t really too much in the grand scheme. But now that it’s been officially shared on social media, perhaps that’ll give it a boost. Will most of these viewers actually go out to vote is the question…

Production staff peculiarities

As with any animated Keroro content following the end of the Flash anime—which until the new show airs has basically just been this, the new project announcement trailer, and some anti-piracy ad they were doing in movie theaters that they ironically scrubbed from the internet—BN Pictures is credited as the animation studio (though the studio Sugarless Factory assisted; they pretty much exclusively do production assistance for various projects). This is interesting because it looks completely unlike anything they’ve ever done. Unless I’m missing something, none of the anime they’ve produced before have been done in a similar Flash-like style.

Now, as we Internet addicts all know, Flash has been officially dead for a few years now. However, it might still be used very rarely in lowkey web animations like this, although a friend who knows more about anime production than I do told me even those are more commonly made using Live2D now. The credits for this short are very…short, but the director and a couple of other animators worked on a particular Flash-animated series called Oshiri Kajiri Mushi (“Bottom Biting Bug”) that first aired on the TV channel NHK in 2012. I’m guessing these staff are freelance, as that show was produced by the studio Kinema Citrus (a team founded by ex-members of Production I.G and Bones), and were possibly brought on to this short because they had experience with the software. If it is animated using something like Live2D, the experience still applies, as it’s apparently more similar to Flash than something more commonly used in anime like Clip Studio Paint. The director also has 3D CG credits and there is a credit here for “motion” that includes his name, so maybe a little of that was used as well. (Wouldn’t be able to tell myself—most experience I have with 3D animation is a one semester Maya course I took in high school lol).

Curiously, despite the potentially similar animation software and very similar artstyle + color palette, none of the animation staff, as far as I can tell, worked on the 2014 Flash anime. That is, except for…Mine Yoshizaki.

On all animated Keroro media, Yoshizaki’s primary official credit is “original creator,” of course. As the series creator, he would of course participate to a degree in most things related to the 2004 series, doing stuff like sitting in on some writing and recording sessions, contributing ideas/concept art here and there, and so on. There’s actually a Newtype article from around the announcement of the first movie I dug up that was officially translated into English, in which Yoshizaki talks about the pressure of being in that role. Most mangaka interviews I’ve seen about their involvement in their works’ anime adaptations are pretty overwhelmingly positive, but he was definitely more mixed. This might be a post for another day, since I have some speculations about his relationship to the anime as a whole. Damn, I need to stop coming up with essay ideas that are probably too big for my pea brain.

Anyway, Yoshizaki was quite a bit more involved in the 2014 series. He served as one of two people responsible for series composition (scriptwriting), though that could be because the Flash anime was a much more direct adaptation of the manga than the original anime, which might as well have been an entirely different series. IIRC, some episodes of Flash were literally 1:1 with the manga’s script…so I guess that counts as writing the anime too lol. He also storyboarded a few episodes and wrote the opening theme song’s lyrics. The next Keroro animation after that was the anti-piracy theater ad in 2021, which he storyboarded for. But you’ll notice with all the credits we’ve discussed so far that he was never involved with the animation proper past the storyboarding stage…until now!

Not only was Yoshizaki credited as original creator as usual, he also did directorial supervision, storyboarding, and was a key animator—the only key animator, in fact! I know it’s just a five-minute short, but the Flash series’s episodes were even shorter than that and had multiple key animators per episode, so this is kind of a big deal. It also might explain why the character designs look just a little bit more on-model to the manga designs than Flash’s did, even though they look almost identical at a cursory glance. It’s easiest to tell by looking at the less-rounded head shapes, plus a few minor details like Tamama’s eye highlights and the bridge of Kururu’s glasses. I am very normal, how could you tell?

So yeah, this makes this short the most Yoshizaki has ever been involved with the actual animation process. I can’t say it gives him the most additional credits, as it’s tied with the Flash series for three extra, but it’s something!

Closing out the staff section, some notes about the cast. As you might expect, the usual actors reprise their roles. Most notably, Mamiko Noto is back to play Mois for what I believe (unless I’m missing a random collab or something) is her first time in the role in ten years, and she pretty much didn’t miss a beat! In addition to Fuyuki and Natsumi’s VAs playing them recently at the Keroro expo, that’s three additional voices besides the Keroro Platoon’s that presumably are still going to be able to return for the new anime.

Otherwise, the platoon sounds pretty much like they did in the anniversary trailer and various other small projects like the anti-piracy ad and Tales of the Rays collab from last year (they each had multiple spoken lines there). Keroro sounds a tad deeper; Tamama has some of the Jibanyan nasal now; Giroro didn’t really talk much but sounds mostly the same; Dororo is also a bit deeper and sounds kinda awkward but I think that’s less the voice direction and more Yoshizaki possibly wrote the dialogue and he speaks more assertively in the manga lol; Kururu sounds literally the exact same because Koyasu is a magic man.

Made in [Insert Year]?? (Ft. A lesson in trademarking)

I mentioned this at the beginning of this post, but for a solid few days, I really thought this video was just an ancient (2014 feels ancient now anyway) reupload. After all, the copyright string says 2014, and only media produced during the Flash series era has that copyright year, so I brushed it off. Here, let me show you all the anime copyright strings per the current anime portal:

There’s no 2004 date on the TV series’s copyright, probably because it covers the entire series from 2004–2011, plus now 2024 onward (and possibly the anti-piracy ad from 2021 as well), and also most anime-branded merch and things. But when the show was airing proper, it was attributed to 2004 (you can see this in the opening credits of any season). The 2006–2010 dates are for each individual movie. And there’s the 2014 copyright that’s the exact same as the video’s, though here it is for the Flash anime, as there’s pictures of it on the anime portal site. As an aside, before 2015, Sunrise was listed instead of BNP. At some point all anime rights got retroactively transferred from Sunrise Inc. to BNP—not sure how or when exactly that occurred. For the movies, there were slight shakeups in the production committee as well (you can see my new project trailer analysis for more on that kind of stuff).

As you can see, copyright strings for the series are attributed to the year each individual “product” came out in, for the most part. But now we know that this ad is brand new. So…does this mean this political ad is counted as part of the Flash anime? They obviously didn’t plan to include this specific video ten years ago (unless Kadokawa bought out an oracle or something, wouldn’t surprise me). Maybe they left the door open to more episodes of the Flash anime proper, but that isn’t what this was advertised as.

Well, I have a theory. A theory that might be totally wrong, but a theory nonetheless. Let’s go on a massive tangent about the Japanese trademark system! (Disclaimer: I have no formal training in the legal field. I just have really weird research hobbies.)

I’m going to focus on two basic principles here. First, once trademarks in Japan are officially registered, they are active for ten years before the copyright applicant must reapply to renew ownership of the trademark for another ten years. Second, trademarks have to be filed under certain classifications that basically tell the JPO (Japan Patent Office) what goods and/or services the applicant plans to use the trademark for. This means that sometimes the same trademark will be filed multiple times for different use classes. The classifications are each given a two digit class number, which is further subdivided into five-character group code(s).

You can actually search through all public patents yourself on J-PlatPat, and the site is machine translated into English (though you still have to type the copyright you’re looking for in Japanese). Let’s take a look at the three different filings for ケロロ軍曹 (just the name of the series itself, not the logo).

I’m on my phone so I couldn’t fit the entire window, but the important information is here. Kadokawa Corporation is the filer for all of these, though Yoshizaki’s name is probably also on whatever application documents they sent, which aren’t viewable. The three versions of the trademark were filed on different dates about a year apart. You’ll see that class 16 is there twice. For the first filing, it was class 16 and multiple group codes designating different kinds of goods (class 28 also contains goods-related things); the second filing covers a single group code protecting “printed matter” (presumably this was to cover any physical distributions of the manga).

I’m going to take a closer look at the third filing, which was officially registered in 2004. Class 09 covers a shitload of different goods and services, like way too many to list. What I’m thinking is that the first set of goods trademarks filed in 2001 was just to cover the kind of stuff they’d attach to issues of Shonen Ace and volume releases as giveaways—paper goods, board game-type items, and toys/dolls are all covered under it. Then in 2003, in preparation for the inevitable merchandise and collaboration dump the anime would lead to, they opened the floodgates to literally any Material Thing they could think to cover. Like, I’m pretty sure we never got any Keroro-branded egg candlers, fire alarms, or “cigar lighters for automobiles”, but might as well cover all your bases. Wouldn’t want the local fire department handing out emergency gear with your cartoon frog on it without permission, you know.

Included among these materials are some items that might be a bit more relevant to our case here. There’s a number of clauses related to physical and digital film, photography, and other media: “CD-ROM and DVD and other recording media, electronic publications, downloadable music, downloadable image[s]”. Now, while this doesn’t cover “animation” specifically, it can possibly be stretched to fit that definition. This is especially because, in Japanese, the term the MTL output as “images” is actually eizou, which can refer to both images and video.

So, the version of the trademark registered for the brand in 2004 likely covers certain media-related things. There are other classes that include the word “animation” specifically, but it’s possible that those classes weren’t classified the same way back then as they are now, and maybe anything film-related could’ve been interpreted by the law to include animation. Nowadays, though there are specific classifications for animation, specifically “animation available for download.” This subgroup actually happens to fall under class 09, though other classes contain similar items as well, such as class 41. You can search classes by number or keyword if you’re curious about this.

As I pointed out before I presented this data, all of these particular filings are for specifically ケロロ軍曹, not ケロロ. If ケロロ is to be used in isolation, it would have to be specified as such in the registration data, because what’s actually stopping someone else from coming along and trademarking just ケロロ? Now, remember the name of the Flash anime? That’s right—ケロロ. Just “Keroro”, not “Keroro Gunso.” Incidentally, this video is actually not formally titled under ケロロ軍曹 (despite what the thumbnail says). The only name in the title of the actual video is ケロロ.

So here is my theory. Maybe it’s a hypothetical, but I’m going to treat it like it’s concrete for argument’s sake. In 2014, to prepare for the Flash anime and related branding, Kadokawa filed for the trademark ケロロ—individually, without 軍曹. Because it was the 2010s at that point, it’s possible that downloadable animation was more specifically defined in the group codes filed for, even though the Flash anime did air on TV (again, the strategy to this is about covering as many potential use cases as possible for maximum copyright protection). Maybe it was under class 09, maybe it was another class, or even more than one. For whatever reason, the trademark is not publicly available. But because of what kind of animation/video/whatever that specific trademark covers, this little election video is covered under that 2014 trademark.

You might recall how I said trademarks have to be renewed every ten years. Incidentally, it just so happens that 2014 was ten years ago. Most likely, the (secret?) trademark was recently renewed so that stuff like this would be allowed to be made and can continue to be made in the future, independently from “Keroro Gunso” as defined by the 2004-verse and the manga proper. And because 2014 is the original filing year of that trademark, that is the year that is displayed with this project, even if the trademark was renewed in 2024, or some other recent year. By the way, all the ケロロ軍曹 trademarks I covered were also renewed this decade, so Kadokawa can keep on doing whatever exactly they were doing with those. There’s probably even more hidden-from-public-view trademarks, who knows, there’s a thousand potential asterisks here but you get the picture.

Fascinating, isn’t it? As I said, it’s possible that I’m just talking out of my ass and all of this is either way more simple or way more complicated than I’m making it out to be, in which case I just wasted multiple paragraphs of your time. But hey, at least it was a fun lesson, right? I’m not the only one interested in this, right? RIGHT?!?!?!

Okay, I’m just about done here, but I’m going to tell you something plot twisty. Do you know what actually first clued me in to the fact that this was not made in 2014 before it was confirmed to be the case? Not the upload date. Not the fact that nobody ever talked about it prior to a week ago. Not even all the probably useless copyright shit I just spent a whole other post’s worth of words on.

It was this part of the video:

See, in this screenshot, if you look really closely, you’ll notice that Kururu is using an iPhone parody with three cameras. The first iPhones with three cameras were released in 2019. Therefore, this could not have been made in 2014. This stupid detail is what it took to get me to think about this video for more than thirty seconds.

Thank you, Kururu’s crippling iPhone addiction.

So yeah, go out and vote or whatever, wherever you guys are. Otherwise you’ll have to look Mois in the eyes and tell her no, and that will make her very sad, and she might blow up the planet as consequence. Not that the planet isn’t already being destroyed. Any of my fellow Americans want to join me for a screaming session following the last few days of federal fuckery? I’ll bring chocolate-covered pretzels to snack on and we’ll write the names of corporate lobbyists on them, it’ll be fun.

[botmilf]

Botmom: Optimus Affiliation Debrief

Wyatt (Botmom) considers him her closest friend and confidant. He was probably the quickest to earn her trust simply by how he carries himself, and the gentleness in his tone. Optimus is usually the one to pick her up from work late at night (she’s a bartender at a local strip club) and during their drive back to base, she lets him talk about whatever’s on his mind. She’s made sure to create an environment for the bots where nothing is off-limits for discussion. If they have questions about things, she wants them to ask.

Optimus and Wyatt’s talks during their long drives aren’t always Q&As about Earth culture, though. He sometimes talks about the things that happened on their journey to Earth. Some would say that Optimus never directly talks about his inner conflicts most of the time. But if you pay close attention to his debriefs, or how he manages to find a way to criticize every decision he’s made, it’s all laid out for you. Wyatt has figured this out over time. She has an entire google folder of blogs and articles she’s favorited by therapists and psychologists, and even dabbled in attending a little bit of grief counseling after her sister died. All of this has helped her navigate these deeper conversations with Optimus in such a way that allows him to know he’s truly being heard and understood.

Given the fact that the bedroom at the missile silo is shared by everyone on Team Prime, they mass displace to conserve energon while recharging and so that Botmom/Wyatt doesn’t have to spend a mint on mattrasses to cover the floor with—even though, admittedly, she already has lol.

At night when Optimus is comfortably mass displaced, Botmom will invite him to rest his helm on her chest if he can’t sleep. She strokes his finials, his crest, anywhere she knows is receptive to gentle touch. While Optimus doesn’t have any concept of what breasts are, necessarily, he does find them very comfy and warm, and he’ll just, like, press his face into her cleavage. It doesn’t make Botmom uncomfortable in the slightest. She knows it’s completely innocent, especially because the bots have zero sense of what body parts on humans are viewed as sexual.

There are only two times when Wyatt has begged for anything in her life. The first was when her sister was slipping away—she begged the doctors to save her, even though deep down she knew there was nothing else they could do. The second time was during the missile silo attack in Season 3, when Optimus volunteered to stay behind. Wyatt begged him to let it be her instead. Because she knew that without him, Team Prime would inevitably fall apart, and Earth would be doomed anyway. She knew sacrifice would mean nothing then.

Wyatt was ultimately dragged away by Bulkhead and Miko. While they were wandering the States, waiting for Autobot life signals, Wyatt made Bulkhead pull over a few times so that she could go off for a few precious moments to collapse behind a tree and sob/panic. She didn’t want Miko to have to see that.

Later, when Optimus was resurrected by the Forge, Wyatt told him that by sacrificing himself, he practically handed the fate of the Earth to the Decepticons, because again, without him, Team Prime would’ve completely deteriorated and the Decepticons would’ve fucked up a whole lot more than just Jasper. She basically has that pissed off, panicked Sandra Bullock in Birdbox moment with him where she’s like, “If a situation like that arises again, you fucking leave me behind and don’t stop for even a SECOND to look back. You don’t sacrifice yourself for me, don’t come back for me. You save yourself!”

I'm going to do one of these for each of the bots because believe it or not, quite a few of ya'll have asked for this! Stay tuned. Ratchet next.

[jesterofcringe]

hi, my friend showed my your account and i really like your writing, i was wondering if you could write one where laura lee and reader meet at church but reader isn’t religious but is there because of family or something?

thank you :)

Read Me a Verse [If That's All They Let You] Laura Lee x Reader

thx for the request mx.lefttoe :3 also sorry if we have any christian readers out there i called it bullshit at one point but its for the plot sorry for being a dick lol also?? i think i used some church terminology wrong? i havent been the church in a minute feel free to correct me if i did i'll make edits ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────

★Your family is religious. Or, at least they claim to be. God fearing Christians who only happened to go to church once in a blue moon. You were taught about God, but you didn't believe in that stuff. Not much, anyways. Religion wasn't for you- you didn't need a big man in the sky to motivate you to do right from wrong.

★As such, you were less than delighted to go to church the days your family dragged you along. It was a familiar tune- your parents would suddenly gain inspiration to attend, you'd go for a few weeks, the momentum would wear off and the cycle would continue months later. It was inevitable, whether you liked it or not. You could bitch and moan, you could drag your feet, but you'd still find your way in the isles, kneeling and pretending to pray with the rest of the church goers. May as well get it over with.

★You sat back, tuning out the pastor as you glanced around the church. You twiddled your thumbs, you tapped your shoes together- you even considered taking your phone out, but once your parent saw it on your lap they swapped it out for a bible. Cool.

★You were a patient person, but you couldn't deny how agonizing it could be waiting for service to be over. Your eyes followed the rotation of the fan until you got dizzy, you did the mental math of how much longer you would be there, you even started to count the pillars, subtracting the ones with chipped paint or a cracked foundation. You sighed, eyes darting around as you tried to find something more interesting to look at.

★And then you spotted her. Easily one of the prettiest girls you had ever seen, across the isle in the pews opposite to yours. She sat up tall, listening intently and nodding every so often. She seemed to even be taking notes as the pastor spoke. You tilted your head subconsciously, unaware that you were totally staring until she turned to face you, making a sudden eye contact.

★You damn near screamed, scrambling to make it appear that you were not, in fact, staring at her for god knows how long. You flipped through the bible on your lap, trying to make it seem like you were reading along. Until you realized that you were lost as hell, and had no clue which page you were suppose to be on. You fumbled cluelessly, until you heard the girl across the isle obviously fake cough.

★Sheepishly, you glanced back at her. She pointed at your bible, and then held up three fingers. Three turned into two, which turned into five. Three, two, five. 325..? Oh shit, the page number. You turned to the page, finally aware of where you were supposed to be, before shooting her a grateful thumbs up. She returned a soft smile before turning her attention ahead again.

★And you once again, were bored out of your wits. You half listened to the pastor... something something jesus loves you... something something pray for forgiveness... something something utter bullshit... but then you caught something interesting. There was going to be coffee and pastries after service, and they were encouraging folks to stay after and chat about god or whatever. Fuck. Your parents were definitely going to make you stay.

★You groaned as you watched your parents socialize. You considered pickpocketing them for the car keys, until a voice you didn't recognize rang out rom behind you.

★"Are you new here? I don't think I've seen you here before."

★You almost jumped out of your skin, but then you realized you knew her. Well, not really. It was the same girl who caught you staring earlier. You didn't feel like strangers from the way she helped you when you got lost, but you also didn't quite feel like friends- you hadn't gotten a chance to introduce yourselves yet.

★Her smile was so kind, and you felt like you could get lost in her eyes. Not that you'd mind- her gaze was warm, welcoming. You felt like old friends when you looked into her eyes... Ah fuck you're staring again. God how cringe.

★"Yeah kinda," you managed, blinking back to life, "I've been to church before but I haven't gone in a while." You paused, still a bit embarrassed about what happened earlier, "Thanks for the help earlier, by the way."

★"Oh of course! If you ever need help, you can always come find me :)"

★Maybe showing up to church wouldn't be so bad after all.

★Either way, you sure as hell would be turning up next Sunday, and you just might fumble your bible just to see her smile at you like that once again.

[keresnotceres]

MW2 CHARACTERS: School AU

[sfw] cw(s): none !!! As a girlie who has been reading fanfiction for god knows how long, it was inevitable that I came through with a High/Secondary School AU. As a reminder, I don’t know shit abt the British school system so we’re going with my experiences with the American public school system. enjoy dovies <3

Ghost is that one upperclassman in every single one of your co-grade classes that just sits there. He doesn’t say a damn word and you don’t even see him writing down any notes, but somehow, he has the best grades in the whole fucking school. Principal’s honor roll, scholarship recognization galore.

It takes so long for you to work up the courage to talk to him and ask him for help on an assignment and when he admits he doesn’t know they had an assignment to do, you’re a bit dumbfounded. You realize that he quite literally just sits there and vibes the entire time. He proceeds to turn back to the window and stare out of it.

Eventually he warms up to you, though. It takes, like, three months of pestering him until he actively begins conversations with you and you find yourself with a very stoic cheat sheet. He has kept all of his tests and is perfectly fine with just giving you them bc what are morals???

Gaz is the local “i know him but we aren’t friends” kid. Literally everybody knows his name, he’s on the school’s soccer (football, i guess) team and is relatively well known as a nice person, but he only has a few close friends. His grades are also insanely high, you don’t understand how he manages to ace every test while also spending most of his time practicing sports.

He’s the type of person to forget a pencil, however, and usually ends up leaning over to whoever is next to him and asking for one. He usually gives it back, unless it’s someone he doesn’t particularly like. When he tries to give it back to you and you just tell him to keep it, he likes you automatically.

He’s always inviting you to watch his games after the two of you get closer. He also sits with you during shared study halls or lunches regardless of if you or he has other friends in the lunch. Gaz is also the type of person to lean over and ask if you wanna share the copy of an assignment document or swap essays to proofread.

Soap is absolutely the really loud jock kid that people either really like or really hate, and there’s just no in-between (i’m so sorry Foap 😭). Despite this, he’s actually one of those really nice sport boys that will start punching if someone disrespects his friends. He’s also in an abundance of art classes.

In class you can see him scribbling down notes until he gets bored and starts just doodling in his notebook, tuning out the lecture. However, if your science teacher decides today is not a teaching day and puts on something like Bill Nye or The Magic School Bus, he is enraptured. Is also the person to quietly chant “Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill!” during the theme song. Used to hate the Amoeba Sisters until he binged their videos before his Biology final lol.

You start being friends with him on complete accident after you help him with a question on a pop quiz. He gave you puppy eyes! How could you refuse! He proceeds to talk to you the next day like the two of you are best friends and you are now stuck with him until graduation. But hey! You basically have a bodyguard now.

Price is an Honors English and AP Literature teacher through and through. He originally wanted to be a history teacher, but the English position was open and he took it with little complaint. He’s absolutely the teacher you can launch into tangents for the entire class and will take half a point off of your essays for misusing a comma.

If you're his favorite student, he tends to grade your FRQs and other assignments much harsher than he would others, but it ends with you having well rounded essay skills afterwards and acing your assignments later in the year. Will let you hang out in his room during your study halls and is always open to helping you on assignments if you ask.

Hangs thank you notes from students on his walls, has a wild collection of them and shows them off any time another teacher asks him about them. Has cried reading some from students he liked having in his classes.

Laswell is a Geometry, Pre-Calculus, and Calculus professor. Idc what u think she is absolutely a math teacher and would absolutely have a doctorate. People who don't like math probably go into her class also not liking her, but come out at the end of the year wanting to be in her class next year.

If you're one of her favorite students, she absolutely gives you little notes on your graded tests like 'good job :)' and always says she's proud of you if your grades improve during the year. She also lets you and your friends eat lunch in her room because she understands why you'd rather be in a math room than the cafeteria.

Has never been seen without a coffee during the first four periods of the day and a random beverage during the last three. She always has a drink with her and it's become a bit of a game between a few of her students. Sometimes she'll give someone who asks a drink as well. A student she particularly liked tried to pay her to bring them coffee; she gave them their money back and brought them a coffee.

Nikolai is a history teacher that also coaches the school golf team. And yes, golf team; that man radiates golf energy and I cannot be told otherwise. He doesn't understand the kids' obsession with things like Kahoot, but makes them because it keeps kids engaged with the class and mostly keeps grades up.

Being one of Nikolai's favorite students is hard if you don't golf, but if you are a favorite, he tends to give you extensions of assignments if you're struggling to find time/motivation. Also will give you candy under the table if you win a Kahoot, or if you visit him during a study hall he will also give you candy. He gives out Smarties (the American version) because he thinks the name is funny.

If you show interest in learning Russian and ask him how to roll your Rs or how to pronounce the Cyrillic letters, he will automatically like you more than the others. As long as he feels like you're earnestly learning it out of interest and not just to make him like you, that is. If you already know Russian he'll like you anyway. Sometimes it's nice to speak his native tongue.

[a-casual-kpopfan]

Now Streaming: Game of Life - Sakura

A/N: I guess Ghost and I are really expanding our tastes to other groups and idols. Lol

~~~~~

Sakura doesn’t understand love.

Or more specifically, romantic love.

Working at a manga café, Sakura has been exposed to every kind of manga there is. Among them, romance takes the cake for the most liked genre of all time. She always hears teens gushing over a certain couple and how “sweet” they are. Even in action or horror manga, she can always hear people talking about how these characters are “OTP”, and they are “sailing the ship”.

Sakura doesn’t get it.

She tries to understand it by reading about it a lot, both manga and novels. But she just can’t bring herself to imagine what love feels like. Is it a deeply passionate kiss? Is it a candle-lit dinner at a fancy restaurant? A public confession or proposal? The nervous feeling of ‘butterfly in stomach’ or the giddiness of being close to the ‘crush?’

When she asks other people, most, if not all of them give her answers that are basically the same as in the manga and light novels she read.

‘The feeling of wanting to be with someone, despite their flaws.’

‘The attractiveness they feel towards their loved one.’

‘Wanting to keep all of them to yourself and not sharing them to anyone.’

It’s not like Sakura has never felt loved. Her family loves her. Her mom, her dad, her younger brother. They love her unconditionally and would be willing to do anything for her. And she would do the same for them. After all, she loves them as much as they love her. Although, familial love and romantic love are two different kinds of love. So back to square one.

In one of the vain attempts in understanding love, Sakura tried dating apps. Though she quickly finds it boring. Most people are either too flirty, saying that they can give her a hell of a time later (aka, trying to get into her pants) or aren’t even confident enough to hold a proper conversation with her. Needless to say, she has never gone on a second date with anyone.

Though, there’s another kind of love that she understands, one that most of her friends don’t even start to comprehend. Video games. Sakura can be categorized as the rare specimen known as a gamer girl. She plays a lot of games, from action, to horror, to multiplayer, she’s played it all.

 She doesn’t understand why her friends don’t play them. They are fun, entertaining, and sometimes, wholesome or heart wrenching. Though Sakura usually focus on more multiplayer games. She likes to interact with other people when they are focused in the game, and not in trying to flirt with her. After all, playing games is how she got to meet her best friend, after all.

Anyways, no matter how much effort Sakura put in, she still can’t understand that kind of love that she hears her peers love to talk about, so she just gives up on understanding it. Why waste time on something that she can’t figure out? It’s not like she needs it to live anyways.

Not when she has video games.

-----

Today was supposed to be a chilly day for Sakura.

It’s the weekend, her day off, and she decides to spend time at the PC bang, playing games to her heart’s content.

All is well, until a certain guy starts to bother her again…

“Hi Sakura.”

The receptionist greets Sakura warmly. Since Sakura is a regular customer at this place, it’s inevitable that almost all employees recognize her. And as the receptionist of the PC bang, he obviously knows Sakura very well.

Politely, Sakura offers him a smile back and heads to an empty PC, doing her prep of checking the headphone, mouse and keyboard to make sure everything is ok.

As she boots up the PC, excitedly thinking about what games to play today, a less than favorable voice appears from behind her seat.

“Haven’t you seen you here for a while Sakura. I was sad thinking that you won’t be coming here anymore. But seeing you here is great! It seems like you still miss me huh?”

As soon as Sakura hears his voice, she automatically tunes out his words, and opens a music tab to drown out the ‘noise’.

That plan doesn’t last long though, as her headphones is promptly yanked off her ears, the man who’s been yapping away is now facing her, his expression less than happy.

“Hey, I’m giving you my precious attention, why are you ignoring me?” The man then raises an eyebrow, his lips curving into a smirk “Oh I see, playing hard to get huh? It’s ok, I know how hot I am, hehe~”

Now, Sakura doesn’t understand the concept of love and crush and whatnot, but she isn’t oblivious enough to not recognize that this guy is trying to chase her and has been for a while now. His insufferable attitude causing most, if not everyone, employees include, to have a less the favorable view on him. However, since he doesn’t break the rules, they don’t have a reason to chase him out.

“Who said I want your attention?” Sakura rolls her eyes, taking her headphones back. “I just want to play games, so please go away.” She turns back to her screen, promptly ignoring him.

“Hah, games? Girl you are talking to one of the best gamers at this place, I will carry you in any games you want, as long as…” he wiggles his eyebrows “you accept to be my girlfriend~”

Sakura doesn’t even need to take off her headphones to hear the sigh of everyone in the vicinity. Ever since she caught his eyes, he’s been flirting nonstop, and it’s driving her insane.

What do I do now? Sakura groans, her fingers pinching the bridge of her nose. How do I get this guy off me?

“Come on, don’t be shy, I know you want to be my girlfriend, you’re just playing hard to get.” The man continues “No one can resist my charm~”

Amidst his yapping, Sakura suddenly thinks of someone. Her best friend. If it’s him, it should be fine, right? Sakura thinks to herself.

“I’m waiting for your answer~” With her patience at the boiling point, she turns to the man suddenly. “Sorry but I already have a boyfriend, so please don’t bother me anymore.”

Her answer instantly stuns the man…alongside the employees and other regular customers who know Sakura.

“You…you have a boyfriend?” The man stutters, not believing in his ears.

“Yeah, it’s Lunar, the streamer.” She fearlessly announces her friend’s online alias. Her fingers seamlessly search his streaming channel to see that he is also coincidentally streaming right now.

“You’re bullshitting me. There’s no way your friends with the Lunar, not to mention dating him!” The man voices his disbelief, and for good reasons of course. Lunar might not be a big-time streamer, but he is still pretty popular, due to his good looks, charming personality, and insane gaming skills.

“Don’t believe me?” Sakura asks with a grin, to which the man shakes his head profusely. “If he’s a streamer, why doesn’t he come here to play?”

“Are you stupid? His set up at home is better than most pc bang, why should he come here?”

His stupid question earns some snickers from nearby customers, but he has yet to give up. “I still don’t believe that you know Lunar.”

Snickering, Sakura takes out her phone and dials a number. Mere moments later, Lunar can be seen grabbing his phone on stream and talking the call with his shoulder holding the phone to his ears, pushing his right earphone to behind his ear. His eyes are still trained on the screen with his fingers tapping rapidly.

“Annyeong, Kkura?”

Everyone gasps the moment they hear his voice, fully not expecting her to actually know him.

“Annyeong Lunar, what are you doing?” Sakura replies cheerfully. “Uh, streaming Elden Ring, what’s up?” His constant typing can be heard through the call.

“Nothing, just feel like calling you.” She smiles mischievously, although Lunar doesn’t know that.

“Oh ok- YAH, STOP SPAMMING THAT SKILL! I’ll call you back later. Kind of busy right now.”

Sakura bursts out in fits of giggles as she glances at the screen, seeing Lunar constantly dodging Malenia’s infamous attack while still in an awkward position with his shoulder propping his phone.

“Okie, see you later Lunar.” Sakura hangs up the call, turning to look at the man. “Questions?” she asks in a sassy tone.

The guy can only stay silent, then goes away.

Sakura finally lets out a sigh, leaning back against her chair, before someone else approaches her.

“So, you really know Lunar?” an employee asks her.

Sakura can’t help but chuckle at how the employee’s eyes just glow when she confirms it.

Glancing back at the screen, she sees Lunar finally giving his attention to the game again, focusing on beating the boss.

How ironic, that the first time they met in a game, they yelled at each other almost every time they met. And now, he becomes her best friend, her confidant, when she wants to share things that she is too embarrassed to share with her parents.

She then thinks back to the declaration that she made just now, about him being her boyfriend.

It’s not like he’ll ever go here anyways, Sakura shrugs. What’s the harm?

----

True enough, Lunar never really visits the PC bang. Until today.

It’s been a few months since that particular incident. Things have gotten better than before.

That man annoys her less than before, seemingly not believing her lie, but still a bit cautious about it. Which Sakura doesn’t particularly care about, as long as he leaves her alone while she is at the PC bang.

Surprisingly enough, most people don’t bother her about questions relating to Lunar. Is it because they are afraid of him? Or is it because they are polite enough to not ask questions, unlike a certain guy? In any case, Sakura is glad she doesn’t have to deal with it anymore.

Well, until today.

Lunar’s parents seem to be visiting him. They nag so much about him sitting in one place and not doing anything else. He does protest that he works out a lot, but it has fallen onto deaf ears. This results in Lunar not being able to play or stream games with his usual schedule.

So, how else does he play games without being nagged by his parents? PC bang, of course.

He casually asks Sakura about her most frequent place. And like any good friend, Sakura first teases him about the fact that he must go to the PC bang to play games despite having a set up at home, then she tells him about her usual place, completely forgetting the lie she made a few months ago.

It isn’t until they meet up together, and walk to the PC bang, that Sakura suddenly realizes what she has just gotten herself into. The realization hits so hard, she stops mid-step, completely still like a statue, causing Lunar to notice it as well.

“What’s wrong?” He turns his head to her, tilting it slightly. “N-nothing! I just remembered that I forgot to do something.” Sakura tries to find a way to stop Lunar from going to the PC bang. “Should we take a raincheck?”

Immediately she could see a light pout on his face. “I’m only free today, Kkura.”

“O-oh…”

“I’ll just go alone then, you go do your stuff, Kkura.” Lunar shrugs, start heading towards the PC bang. “W-wait!” She catches up to him.

“Hmm?”

“I can just do it tomorrow. It’s not that urgent anyways.” Sakura plays it off. “Are you sure?” Lunar raises an eyebrow, looking at her. “Yeah! Besides, it’s been a while since we play games together, no?”

“Mhmm, it’s really been a while.” Sakura’s attempt to divert the topic seems to be successful, as they both head off to the PC bang again.

With no way to persuade Lunar, Sakura decides that it’s better to do damage control instead of letting him go there alone and let things potentially go even worse.

Arriving at the place, things happen almost like how she imagined it would be.

Employees greet her and recognize the youth besides her.

A few customers recognizing Lunar and start to fanboy/girl.

A certain guy who smiles when he saw her, only to be fuming with anger at the sight of Lunar. Sakura tries so hard not to let out a smirk at the sight.

“So, you finally decide to bring your boyfriend here huh?” An employee teases her, causing her breath to hitch slightly as she glances up to Lunar’s face. (As much as she hates to admit it, Lunar is one head taller than her, a fact that he’s been polite enough to not mention, but one that still makes her feel unfair.)

Instead of a confused expression like how she predicts, Lunar keeps a calm face as his eyes seem to scan around the room, taking in every bit of hints that he can get from other people before he flashes his iconic ‘streamer smile’, putting his arm over Sakura’s shoulder.

“Well, I’ve been quite busy recently, so I have not been able to follow Kkura to her usual place.” His words shocked her greatly. Out of all the things she guesses he would do, playing alone was not one of them.

Lunar seems to not notice her expression, as he expertly socializes with the employees and other customers before asking for a VIP room for the both of them, then leads her to it.

“Is there anything that I need to know, my girlfriend?” Lunar teases her right after they enter the room. “I don’t remember asking you out, you know.” Instead of being angry to confused about this, Lunar seems to be…relaxed? Sakura can’t really tell.

Nonetheless, Sakura still tells him the full story with the other guy, and how she uses Lunar as a shield against him.

“That explains his gaze from earlier…” He muses to himself.

“I’ll go clarify with the others later, don’t worry.” Sakura feels quite guilty about pulling her friend into her business but was cut off midway by Lunar. “Why?” He asks her quizzically.

“Uh…because we aren’t really dating, and I just use you to deter the guy?” Sakura is now truly confused. “Don’t bother, I don’t particularly care.” Lunar shrugs “As long as it keeps you safe, I can play your boyfriend.”

“Jinjja?” Sakura’s round eyes stare at his side profile, while Lunar is just booting up their PCs.

“Yeah, why not?” He glances back at her. “I’m not dating, and you need protection, so I’ll gladly provide that.” He shrugs.

Sakura only stares at Lunar for a long while, before saying: “Have anyone told you you’re handsome?” Bursting out laughing, Lunar clutches his stomach lightly. “Yeah, my fans.”

His answer earns him an elbow to the ribs. Gently.

“Ow-” Lunar rubs his ribs. “Let’s play some games!” Sakura pointedly ignores it, rushing him to play games with her.

For the first time in a while, Sakura really, really doesn’t enjoy her time playing games. It could have been that because she was too worried about the other guy, she couldn’t focus 100% on her games. Or maybe it’s because Lunar is here today with her. Who knows? Sakura doesn’t.

But she doesn’t care either. She manages to resolve the gnawing issue that is the other guy following her, and she can enjoy games with her best friend. And that’s all she asks for.

----

“Hey Kkura, I need my girlfriend’s help.”

“Huh????”

----

“So, this is what you meant by, ‘needing your girlfriend’…” Sakura murmurs, standing in front of a restaurant.

“Yeah, my parents have been nagging at me to find someone, and I don’t exactly have someone else to help me with this….” Lunar scratches his head sheepishly.

“It’s ok, I got the gist of it already. Besides, you agreed to play my boyfriend, so it’s time I return the favor.” Sakura lets out a giggle, patting his shoulder, before wrapping her arm around his. “Now lead the way, boyfriend~”

“Also, one more thing.” Lunar says, “Don’t call me ‘Lunar’ in front of my parents.”

“Then what am I supposed to call you?” Sakura raises an eyebrow. Throughout the time she knows him, she has always been calling him by his nickname ‘Lunar’.

“My real name, of course.” He rolls his eyes.

“Alright then, Hyunwoo~” Sakura deliberately calls him in a cutesy voice, causing him to shiver visibly.

“Ugh, let’s get this over with….” Lunar, or Hyunwoo, leads Sakura inside the restaurant, where they proceed to meet with his parents. Little did they know, their lunch might have gone a bit…. Too well.

A few hours later….

“Your parents were a bit too excited, weren’t they?” Both are currently at the PC bang after their lunch.

“Yeah, it’s the first time I ever introduced someone to them, so they overreacted.” Lunar lets out a sigh. “Don’t worry, they’ll go back home next week, so you don’t have to worry about them for long.”

At his word, Sakura turns to stare at him, ignoring the fact that she is letting her character be shot to death. “Aish, what are you doing Kkura-” Lunar complains while trying to save her character, only to be asked a question instead.

“You’ve never dated anyone?” Sakura asks curiously.

“Hmm? Why are you asking that?” Lunar now glances at her face instead of the screen, letting both of their characters die in-game.

“I don’t know, I just felt like you’ve good a pretty good grasp on being a boyfriend.” Sakura muses, thinking back to the lunch date. Despite what his parents say about him, never introducing anyone to them, Lunar, or rather, Hyunwoo displays most, if not all the points of what a perfect boyfriend would be like.

Attentive, respectful, charming, keeping his parents from asking something that might be sensitive while managing to not let the atmosphere become tense, all around an almost perfect boyfriend.

“Me not introducing anyone to my parents doesn’t mean that I’ve never dated, Kkura.” Hyunwoo lets out a small chuckle. “I’ve dated a few people, but it just didn’t end up well.”

“Why?” Sakura is genuinely curious, just by interacting with him one can see how gentle and kind he is.

“Well, let’s just say I couldn’t keep up with them, so we fall out of touch.” Hyunwoo lets out a self-deprecating laugh.

“Anyways, should we start over the heist?” Hyunwoo points back to the screen. Sakura wants to say something, but she ends up swallowing it back as she smiles at him. “Yeah, let’s start over.”

----

It’s been a few months since then.

Sakura and Hyunwoo still pact as each other’s boyfriend/girlfriend when they need to. Having Hyunwoo act as her ‘boyfriend’ whenever someone tries to flirt with her eases her up a lot. It’s nice to have a shield.

On the other hand, Sakura agrees to act as his ‘girlfriend’ whenever his parents video calls him. Watching them nagging at him for various stuffs, while doting on her greatly is a great contrast, especially to see him pouting whenever that happens.

Unbeknownst to them, whatever slight awkwardness they might have between them has faded, as they become increasingly familiar with each other’s habits. Hyunwoo always seems to avoid anything red bean paste related snacks when they go out, knows how to act accordingly whenever a guy comes up to her, and even automatically grabs her hand while at crowded places to not lose her.

Even in-game, Hyunwoo seems to pick up on her little quirks and acts according to it, allowing her to have a great time playing games whenever she’s with him.

Sakura, in her own way, learns more about Hyunwoo in ways she’s never known. How he acts while streaming compared to how he is in real life, although the changes are miniscule and not worth paying attention to, Sakura did. She learns of his self-discipline by going to the gym every day, without missing a day off. She notices how he tends to scrunch up his nose whenever he’s in deep thought.

Despite how much they have progressed, they still regard themselves as nothing more than best friends. Sakura once joked that they are “friends with benefits” to the amusement of Hyunwoo. They do have benefits being friends, just not how people would expect.

.

.

.

“Your boyfriend really is something huh?”

One of Sakura’s coworker comments randomly, catching her off guard.

“Who?” She asks confusedly.

“Your boyfriend Lunar? The streamer?” her coworker points to Hyunwoo who is helping with loading the boxes of manga at her workplace.

“And?” Sakura is too busy with her own work to reply.

“How did a bum who has never dated someone like you manage to snatch such a fine guy?” Her coworker sighs disappointed. “He’s literally the perfect boyfriend described in almost every romance manga ever, and a bum like you snatched him away first.”

“I told you many times, already, we aren’t dating.” Sakura seems annoyed at this point.

“Yet he comes here in his free time to help you, he always brings you latte, he does whatever you ask for, and on top of that, he does free advertising for us on his stream! Do you know how much people would pay for him to advertise something?”

“He’s just being kind.” Sakura shrugs. “Mhmm, keep telling yourself that, hun.” Her coworker rolls her eyes, before a naughty glint appears in her eyes.

“Say, you said that you guys aren’t dating, right?”

“Yeah, and?”

“Can I date him, then?” Upon hearing that, Sakura immediately glares at her coworker before yelling “No!”

“Heh, and you say you guys aren’t dating.” Her coworker snickers, walking off, leaving only Sakura at the reception.

Sakura, meanwhile, was shocked at her own action.

Did she just get angry at the thought of Hyunwoo dating someone? She thinks to herself, then glances at him.

She never realized how dependent she was on him. How she smiles lightly whenever she receives his messages. How much more natural she is as playing his ‘girlfriend’ in front of his parents. How she wipes the sweat off his forehead like it’s just a natural thing for her. How their hands automatically intertwined with each other when they went out together. How she sometimes misses his warm hugs late at night.

Hyunwoo isn’t just a friend to her anymore. Sakura has a revelation to herself. She still doesn’t feel romantically interested in him, but she is sure that she can’t just view him as her best friend any longer.

But…If they aren’t best friends, what are they?

----

“Hyunwoo?”

“Yeah?”

“How long have we been doing this couple act?”

Currently, Sakura is just laying on Hyunwoo’s bed, as she watches him mindlessly fight a random boss in Elden Ring.

“Uh…. Close to a year now.” Hyunwoo answers absentmindedly. “Why are you asking?”

“Nothing, just, thinking about stuffs…” Sakura answers, staring up at the ceiling for a while. “Should we stop?” Hyunwoo freezes at her question. “Huh?” he turns around on his chair to look at her, controller thrown onto the table. “Why?” He asks.

“Well, it’s just been going on for long enough, I think.” She raises her head to look at him, then proceeds to sit up on his bed with her legs crossed. “Don’t you think so?”

She watches as Hyunwoo falls into contemplation, his nose scrunching up as usual as he leans back onto his gaming chair, his feet tapping lightly against the ground as his eyes wander to whatever seems to catch his interest.

The silence stays for a while, each second seems heavier than the next as Sakura eyes Hyunwoo intently, until he finally looks back at her with an unreadable expression on his face.

“What if I don’t want it to end?” Hyunwoo stands up and moves to the bed, sitting down next to Sakura, but still facing her. “It doesn’t matter that it was an act at the beginning because it benefits us, it means something now, at least to me.” He looks straight into her eyes. “I might not understand what romance feel like, but this, what we have right now.” He points to her, then to himself. “I don’t want to lose it.”

Hyunwoo has no idea when it happened, or how it happened, but he knows one thing for sure that he doesn’t want anyone else besides Sakura. And it is the same for her.

Hyunwoo becomes the novel’s definition of how a loving partner should be, and Sakura has no idea when it happened. Sakura might not still understand what romance is, but what they have here, commitment and care, is a form of love between them, and Sakura refuses to abandon it.

That’s why she pounces at him, shoving him down on the bed while she’s straddling him, giggling. “I was just kidding~” Hyunwoo is dumbfounded. “You were?”

“I just wanted to confirm to myself if you feel what I feel as well.” Hyunwoo starts to sit up, his face so very close to hers as she sits in his lap instead of straddling him. “So…what are we then?” Hyunwoo asks her, chuckling. She joins him as well.

“We are whatever we want to be.” Sakura answers. “Best friends, boyfriend and girlfriend, partners, anything.” Sakura’s arms wrap around his neck. “But you’re mine.”

His eyes soften at her words, his arms wrap around her waist.

“Always.”

[a-x-s-c-e]

Long time no see :')

I just remembered this account exists and finally logged on for first time in a decade. And possibly to the surprise of no one, I still write fanfiction and it's still SasuHina. Go figure.

Some general updates:

"Differently" - AU, Divorce, Rated M, Cross-Posted on FF and AO3 is updated pretty frequently, maybe too frequently, but I've become kind of obsessed with where it's headed. I just updated today! It's posted on AO3 first but I'm about to upload the newest chapter (9) on FF. Maybe it's because I use AO3 a little more, but the review traction is a lot slower on this. If you happen to like this story or give it a go, feel free to review. :')

"Inevitable Reality" - AU, Rated M, only on FF was last updated September 2023, a whole 8 years later from previous chapter. Don't jump me. :( I'm planning on finishing this story this year, or early next. I re-read it recently (and cringed at my old writing) but somehow didn't hate it as much as I thought I would. I forgot how much I love weirdo Hinata and anxious Sasuke, they're too cute to give up on. I was searching the title of this and found it surprisingly on a few recommendation lists. Thanks to those that read it/still message me about it! I promise to work on it this year. I would offer to re-write and fix, but I am not as motivated to do that. We'll see.

SasuHina Month 2024 - I am considering doing it...we'll see! I want to work on writing in universe - I've been so stuck on AUs because I'm always hesistant to write something incorrect with the series. I'm actually re-reading Naruto (and in deep, nostalgic pain from it) and plan to give Boruto another chance. So, if I participate, I'm hoping to write it entirely in universe as a challenge. Stay tuned!

Finally (and just as a bonus wtf comment)

"You're Welcome" - that one's from 2011 (I was a child when I wrote this) and I will never read it again. I cringe at the thought LOL. I want to delete it but I love reviews and sometimes I read them (even if they're old) for a confidence boost. Idk why some of you read it within the last four years, I know it's not well written and that's just me assuming who I was back then - out of all my other stories, this is simply one I physically cannot re-read without my face scrunching up. Anyway TL;DR I won't delete but I wish I had the guts to. Read my other fics instead LOL

In an effort to avoid spamming the SasuHina Discord, I'll just post chapter updates here. I don't know if I'll post as read-mores whatever linked there, and I haven't really been active on tumblr in forever either, so we'll see. I'll likely prepare a fanfic recommendations post soon but don't be surprised if non-SasuHina fics make the cut - I've expanded the net when I run out of things to read heh.

Thanks for reading!

[marrowcrunch]

What are your top 3 favorite vtm clans (or bloodlines)?

Bonus: which clan do you think you'd fit in with? :3c

Oh boy, this is going to be long lol

Favorite: Tzimisce 

Gosh, what a surprise :O

But yeah. I mean, firstly, the cool factor is undeniable. It's always such a joy designing Tzimisce characters because even toeing the strictest borderlines of canon they're allowed to get real weird with it in a way that most other clans aren't. I don't mean this as hate at all so I hope it doesn't come across like that, all clans are beautiful <3 but if you're playing Ventrue, Brujah, Tremere etc to some degree you'll always just be playing as Some Guy. With a Tzim it’s like…Do you want some sick-ass bone blades on your arms? No problem! Another pair of arms to put more bone blades on? Sounds good! Do you want to be bioluminescent like a squid? Great! Go crazy! 

Second: Full disclosure, I am the “My fursona is my TWOO SELF” flavor of furry. And the idea of having near total freedom of form— to be able to give myself a tail, claws, fangs, horns, [long censor beep], whatever I want, to abandon my human shape, fills me with Yearning. 

In the complete opposite direction, I also find personal meaning in the clan as someone who suffers from chronic pain. Shamelessly copy-pasting a reply to another post: 

The flavoring of Vicissitude as a creeping infection, as the actual body of the Eldest spread from generation to generation, able to rise up and consume its bearers at any moment, resonates with me very deeply as someone whose pain is caused by congenital tissue defects and which will inevitably get worse over time.

The idea that…there’s something horrible lurking inside your body. It can’t be cured. It can’t be removed. It is part of the very fabric of your being. And it is going to eat you alive, it is going to eat and eat until there’s nothing left. That no matter how you struggle, eventually it’s going to win. But you struggle anyways, because what the hell else is there to do?

The clan also has its revenant families, who are all collectively my most Specialist Little Guy in the world. I am a huge sucker for ye old trope of Special Family Bloodline Technique, and they scratch that itch for me in a really fun and interesting way. 

Second favorite: Giovanni. I actually don't have any deep reasons for this one, I just think that “fucked up necromancer vampire crime family” is such a fun concept lol. I like organized crime stories. It's also another one for the “bloodline technique” category— in v20, they even have their own associated revenant family, the Rossellinis! 

Third favorite: Salubri. The vibe I get is that they’re deeply underappreciated because people feel like their designation in both fluff and crunch as “the nice ones” means that they’re boring and clash with Masquerade’s overall tone. But I STRONGLY disagree— I think that's exactly what gives them so much potential for the sort of personal, existential horror that is supposed to be at the heart of Masquerade. I actually want to write a much longer post sometime that really gets into why, but part of it is this— being a magical pacifist unicorn prancing in a sunny flower field isn't “horrifying,” but being a magical pacifist unicorn in a dark forest where the only other animals are wolves that want to eat your face sure is. I also think the contrast between mainline (healer) Salubri and Salubri antitribu is a really rich thematic vein— again, I want to write more on this later. 

Bloodline lightning round:

Ahrimanes: Cat-themed woman power. I like the concept of Gangrel in tune with the spiritual elements of nature. Spirits in World of Darkness are fun because they can be anything. 

Ventrue antitribu: Knights in modern settings are cool.

However, if the question was “Which clan are you most like?” instead of “What's your favorite”, the answer is far and away Toreador. I love making art, and while I mostly just write now because my body has kind of fallen apart, I used to dabble in a bunch of different mediums and loved them all. That and I already do the “oh that flower/painting/ random pattern of light on the wall is really pretty *zones out and stares at it*” thing in real life lol so that would just be business as usual. If I couldn't be a Meat Criminal this is actually the clan I'd choose to be embraced into. 

Thanks for giving me a chance to talk :)

[ask-serendipity-sky]

Story time- Making Music

Gather around the bonfire, it's story time, (not just because because I want to inform you all about my life, this has a purpose for reals lol).

Anyways, let's get it...

When I was a wee teenager, I decided to join the church's band with other teenage people. I was around 17ish.

Now, this church was insanely conservative and insane, in general, and dating was prohibited and if you dated anyone, people would watch you like a hawk and make up rumors, and try to break you until you repented.

(I know...this place was toxic but I went because my parents took me and I didn't know any better.)

So as time went on, I began spending a lot of time with guitar boy....

Guitar boy had hair the color of gold, played soccer, and he had a six-pack.

We clicked right away. We had chemistry. Our voices were complementary. Like puzzle pieces. Our instruments blended together.

I thought he was the funniest person I'd ever met.

I felt all butterflies in my brain. Even the sky had a prettier shade of blue.

I would see him practically everyday and I couldn't get enough.

We liked each other bad.

And this was all while having eyes on us at all times.

So to escape those eyes, we began doing duets. Just me and him practicing for hours and hours. Hiding behind the excuse that we needed to practice so we could spend time together and be able to be ourselves without anyone judging. We would use any excuse to work together.

Christmas? Say no more, we can put some songs together.

New Year's? We got you covered.

Birthday? We can get you some music for that.

We spent so much time together that it was inevitable.

We fell in love.

We had no label for a while because it was all scary and that way if they asked if we were in a relationship, we could easily say no.

But it was thrilling.

Since we couldn't openly hug, kiss, or hold hands in public, we would sit next to each other.

We would hold each others pinky fingers because we thought that didn't look as suspicious lol

He would come to me so he could tune his guitar and lightly brush my hand when I was giving him the key to tune to.

We would sneak out of our houses and take a blanket to the park so we could watch the sky. We had a list of promises to each other about the future. We knew each other's deepest secrets.

All of this went on for a long while...and no one found out until years later.

After doing well on a song, we would glance at each other. It wasn't just to let each other know we did well on the song, but to transmit our feelings to each other.

People thought that it was just us acknowledging that we had done a good job, but it was more than that. It was magic and love and all those pretty things.

So when I see Jikook, I think "Yeah, it's exactly like that."

Anyone who has fallen for a band mate and for some reason couldn't be in a relationship with them will understand. And they will see it immediately when they see Jimin and Jungkook interact.

There is something about making music with the person you love. It's unexplainable.

Music becomes the axis your relationship gyrates upon.

For guitar boy and me, it was permitted because we were just making music, it's not like we were making love.

But here is the catch, for a musician, those two concepts are pretty much the same thing.

[ectogeo-rebubbles]

I have kind of a niche Garashir fic idea I want to write but I’ve never posted anything publicly before, so I am nervous. But I can’t seem to get over the idea? You’re one of my favorite fic writers, any advice? 💕🥺

Ooooh, you gotta try to write it!!! I always love to indulge my new ideas that are driving me insane as soon as I can hehe (because part of writing often has to be done after the initial idea no longer excites you quite the same way).

I like that you said it’s a niche idea, too! I do enjoy most of the common fanon tropes and worldbuilding, but it’s always so refreshing when people add something brand new to the Garashir body of literature. And the nicher and stranger the better, in my opinion!! One thing about writing something niche is that maybe it won’t get the same amount of attention as quickly as something that has broader appeal, HOWEVER... I can tell you from experience that when your niche stuff does find its audience (which may take patience and persistence) that audience will likely go absolutely WILD for it. And I always find that very rewarding <3

Is the reason you haven't started yet because you don't quite know how to start? If that's the case, I would recommend writing an outline first. I even sometimes will outline really short oneshots lol, not because I think I really need to, but because that way i at least have a good record of my idea and ALSO because sometimes I can trick myself into just starting to write by taking notes on in outline format until I get to the part I'm REALLY excited about, at which point I realize I'm just writing full sentences instead of notes and I just let it flow from there and go back to fix the beginning later. XD You could also just try to summarize the plot for a friend, that often reveals to me where any structural issues are tripping me up, and identifies what I need to think about more before I set words down on the page.

Idk if you haven't written before or if you just haven't posted any of it, but I want you to know that a few years ago, when I was easing myself back into writing, I worked on writing like 3 or 4 different garashir fic ideas privately before I actually figured out which idea I wanted to write all the way to the end and actually post. Most of those first wips never got posted (and my wip graveyard is still massive and always growing lol) and that's for the best bc I either got bored of the idea or could not yet achieve the story in the way I wanted to. Which is NOT to tell you that this is inevitable or that you should let your inner editor shut you down, but I just want you to know that it's perfectly okay and normal to, like, have to noodle around a bit before you've written something you're happy with.

Speaking of your inner editor, you gotta tune them out while writing a first draft. Don't even worry if the sentence makes sense, just get the words out, and then get the next words out, and then the next... If there is something stopping you from writing the next sentence (a name you need to make up, or something you need to research, or uncertainty about what a character would be doing, or even if you are just blanking on a word) and you are trying to maintain a flow of writing, then write a note for yourself (e.g, "[insert title of a Cardassian novel here]" or "[Julian makes some kind of expression. Surprise? Anger? idk]" or "[synonym for sinister, bc I've used sinister three times this fic already]") and then MOVE ON. You can go back in and fill in those blanks later.

Also, I really really really really like the writing advice of thinking of your first draft as your worst draft or stupidest draft. It's so true and it helps take the pressure off. One related amazing thing about writing star trek fanfic is that if ever you begin to doubt yourself, you can just fondly think about a beloved episode of Star Trek where something very silly or buckwild happens in a very contrived way, and then remind yourself that people LOVE that episode anyway. This is a genuine way that I have reminded myself not to be so harsh on my own writing lmao.

I really working with beta readers, but I know that's not something everyone enjoys and it's def not required. Still, a beta reader can give feedback on your writing to make it clearer, and they'll likely become invested in your fic and will cheer you on, and if it’s longer than a oneshot you can have someone to talk it through with during the writing process. But it might be hard to find someone you work well with and everyone’s beta reading style is a lil different, so I recommend always being very clear about what kind of feedback you want from them (grammar/typos, plot structure, clarity, brainstorming ideas for how to fix this plothole, does this one specific line of dialogue work, etc! whatever aspects you are uncertain about and want help with for that specific fic). And you should know that it’s okay to not take someone's recommendations too, it’s ultimately your fic, so anyone giving you feedback should just be trying to help you achieve your own vision. Still, even in those cases where you don't go along exactly with their idea for what to change, knowing what parts confused them can help you figure out how to get your vision across more clearly.

If you think concrit might actually be demotivational and intimidating (totally get that, back in high school I actually solicited concrit on my fics publicly, as was the custom back then, and received some critiques from some truly well-meaning friends, and the experience STILL rattled me so bad that it turned me off writing for awhile), or if the process of finding someone to beta read sounds overwhelming, I’d recommend that you instead just find a trusted friend who is willing to read over the completed draft, with the understanding that they must simply give you a sanity check and then tell you yep that’s good! Cannot stress enough the power of encouragement and support and having someone hype you up. ^_^

If you are too nervous to post it under your own name, you can post it to the Anonymous collection on ao3. This is a reversible process, so if you want to reattach your username to your fic later then you can!

Anyway, feel free to send follow up questions about any of this or let me know if there's an aspect of writing I didn't mention that is what you're actually stuck on. I hope this helps and good luck and HAVE FUN! Have fun is actually the most important writing advice haha.

(P.S., anon, if you want me to beta read a draft of a oneshot or at least look over a chapter or two if it's multichapter, I am down to do so, just DM me. If not that's fine too, I'm just so so flattered that you reached out to me and I want to encourage you in any way I can! <3)

[jpeg-dot-jpeg]

heyyyyy jpeg~ im back with more ask game numbers 😎 as always, feel free to pick and choose <3

10, 16, 17, 20, 27, and Karyogamy for 76 please!!

10. Cltr+f "blinks" on your WIP & copy paste the first sentence/paragraph that comes up

This is from the wip i've worked on most recently, something I originally was gonna post for TimKon week last year, but it didn't feel ready

“Fire away,” Kon responded. The monitor in front of him blinked to life displaying a beach at sunset, pink sky and golden sand and soft waves lapping at the shore. He recognized the beach as one on the island of Oahu. He remembered the feeling of low tide lapping at his toes and near constant sunlight soaking into his bones, so unlike the weather of the mainland.

16. How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Share one of them?

Okay so uhhhhh haha I currently have 22 WIPs I'm actively working on, 3 completed fics in short term storage, and *checks notes* approximately 69 fic ideas in my notes app. Like, actually 69. That's not a sex number joke. Four of those ideas are specifically for a TimKon AU where Kon comes out of the tube late and imprints on Tim since he's the one who saved him.

17. What do you do when writing becomes difficult? (maybe a lack of inspiration or writers block)

I like to go back and read through WIPs i haven't worked on in a long time and inevitably there will be a typo that I can't resist fixing and then whoops! i've added two pages to that old thang. Badabing badaboom, we're back in business baby.

20. Have you noticed any patterns in your fics? Words/expressions that appear a lot, themes, common settings, etc?

Like every other dc fic write, situations be happening in alleys, warehouses, and safehouses. I also have a tendency to make my blorbos madly in love with each other because thats what makes me happy to write <3

27. What is your most and least favorite part of writing?

Favorite Part: The Writing

Least Favorite Part: The Writing

lol but for real i think my favorite part is writing something goofy and then rereading it later and being like 'goddamn i am so funny.' also the validation from strangers on the internet. my least favorite part is in longer fics when at some point i have to trudge through necessary plot stuff so the fun stuff makes sense. also group dialogue scenes. so much fun to think about, hellish to write

76. Did you have any ideas that didn’t make the final cut of Karyogamy?

I have a few things that i think i'm going to spin out into separate fics for the Where Babies Comes From series, including a big, fat TimKon wedding, the Kent family reacting to the baby, and another i like to describe as: the fic where everyone finds out about Kai's powers before his parents do (probably a 5+1). Stay tuned!

[chaoscheebs]

Mm, yes, you know a fandom has latched into my brain when the inevitable “but what would their P4-style Shadows/Personas be?” question wafts into my brainmeats.

Which means, welcome to Yu-Gi-Oh Persona Hell, in which my brain decides, if Yugi was tossed into the TV World with the Millennium Puzzle, the result would be both he and Atem (who suddenly has a body because Weird Shadow Bullshit(tm)) both get to face their Shadows!

Yugi handles it shockingly well, because he’s self-reflective enough to know he’s a bubbling mass of suppressed rage and hurt under the surface.  His Shadow is borderline feral with rage in a very “we’re tired of being nice, we wanna go apeshit” kinda way, and Yugi is like... “yeah, pretty much.”  Because he is angry.  He’s pissed about how he’s been treated by his peers.  He’s pissed how people treat his friends (e.g. lookin’ at you, Jounouchi’s dad).  He’s pissed there are people who look at the unfairness of the world and go “that’s just how it is” and do nothing, or worse, use it to justify being shitty.

But Yugi’s also like, “but that’s what’s kept me going.  That’s what drives me to be a kinder person.  Someone has to take the first step to making things better, and it might as well be me.”  And his Shadow never goes Full Blown Symbolic Horrorterror(tm) as a result.

Atem’s experience?  ... not as peaceful.  He is a writhing mass of insecurity under the surface and the lack of firm identity makes it 500 times worse.  His Shadow looks like he was as a Pharaoh, but... constantly shifting, like multiple layers of a picture being moved in and out of place all at once, like it has anime afterimages even when it’s standing perfectly still, speaking with multiple out of tune voices,  like the voices of the people sacrificed to make the Millennium Items are trying to speak with it in an out-of-sync chorus.

Poor Atem, he can’t deny or accept his Shadow, because who is he, really?????  Is the past he’s forgotten one as horrible as the literally ill-defined Shadow is making it out to be?  Is it lying?  He doesn’t know, he can’t possibly know, and he just... kinda breaks down trying to sort it out and that waffling does make his Shadow go Full Blown Symbolic Horrorterror(tm).

Congrats, Atem!  Your Full Blown Symbolic Horrorterror(tm) Shadow is a big outline of you!!!!  WIth a hole where your face is!!!  And where your heart is!!!!  And swirling, howling, shifting forms of the people sacrificed to make the Millennium Items rising and falling like waves about it!!!!!  Mostly likely all adorned with gold decorations!!!  \8D/

Good thing the others are probably not to far behind to protect you from it, Atem, plus Yugi 100% accepts his Shadow and pleads with it to help him help you.

Yugi’s new Persona, by the way, is 100% Agi-based, i.e. fire-elemental.  Because.  Y’know.  There was a lot of people being set on fire in the early days of the manga.  Lolol.  Want to say it’s Anubis, because further lolol, but will do research later.  Yugi is 100% the squishy wizard type, too, and possibly a navigator-type.

If Atem can ever resolve things with his Shadow, I don’t know what the resulting Persona’s name would be, but it’s 100% dark attribute.  Because also lolol Yami.

Have not sorted out anyone else’s stuff, aside from Seto’s Full Blown Symbolic Horrorterror(tm) Shadow would be a horrible skeletal dragon with a puppet-like version o0f him dangling from a string on his arm and a collar and leash around his neck connected to the rib-bones, while puppet-him clutches a doll that suspiciously looks like Mokuba protectively with its free arm, and the resulring Persona (which would take FOR-FUCKING-EVER to happen because Seto is in denial of any weakness) would be light-element, because lol dark attribute’s weakness and weak to dark itself.

Also, one last note: Atem does get spit out of the TV world after being rescued still with a body.  It.  Takes getting used to.  Grandpa Muto is surprised but takes it in stride; he grandson gets caught up in the weirdest things sometimes.

... and I’m dome for now.  Hi, Persona 4 had a really fucking cool concept for character-building in Shadows and Personas.

[romilly-jay]

THIS ONE ALSO REALLY LANDED FOR ME (and - why?)

***spoilers*** [probably - mild ones, anyway - safer to assume there WILL be some :) - yeah, actually on reflection need some if I'm serious about trying to pin down why this was //IMO// successful ]

Just a reminder that the intention with these pages is for ME to work out for ME which kinds of stories land for me and why they do.

Even the reminder is mainly for my own benefit, honestly.

I've sat here for a few minutes wondering who cares what I think and I realise that, if no-one else, Future Me is going to be grateful that Present Me took the time to tease this apart.

Frankly, Future Me is highly unlikely to remember that Present Me wrote this but I have to continue to believe that there's, nonetheless, a benefit to going through the cognitive process. That words are not, in the end, wasted, but contribute to future insight and possibilities.

Understand from the Wikipedia page that this is the first Amazon Prime movie shot in Australia - which chimes with discussions I've heard on The Rest is Entertainment about the streamers as "the world's TV channels" - actually I think that was in context of Baby Reindeer and the issues with relatively light compliance on shows across multiple legal frameworks and jurisdictions. (And, incidentally, bless you, Wikipedia contributors - you are a most wonderful first port of call in an increasingly bonkers and unreliable internet.)

LOVE that the lead female actor, Shuang Hu, is also the co-writer with Nathan Ramos-Park and for me this is closely reflected in the significant (I think?) screen time / plot time given to Hu's character, Lia, and her gay current/Sydney-based BFF, Mason. Not too hard to imagine the writers putting snippy, comedic avatars of themselves into the centre of the action?? And Mason definitely has the best This Is Not A Hallmark Movie lines, shows up A Lot and *marginally* succeeds in having a life that isn't simply about supporting her.

BTW, think it's sort of hilarious that I assumed Townsville was a made up place - it SOUNDS like a name you would make up, Hallmark style? Like - Valleydale (surely not an actual place?) or Christmaston?

Though I don't know that the Australian setting is so hard to tune into that the movie requires an entire translation/remake. Apparently it's getting one, just the same - Picture This, fronted by Simone Ashley of Bridgerton, Sex Education, and, I'm sure, plenty of other things, too :) *pic below, from sth else. Already in post-production at March 2024?

I prefer to think that this is more about good ideas being in relatively short supply* - do I mean that? - or an idea that works in one place having potential to work, suitably tweaked, somewhere else, too.

*Ah, okay, I think it's terror about finding *bankable* good ideas. There's such a proliferation of Great Content today, non? - BUT more content than audience or, at least, more content than attention span?

This article by Carla Teng of the Asia Media Centre gives a breakdown of the plot and a link to the trailer, ahead of transitioning into an interview with actor Yoson An, who plays the ex-best friend.

It talks explicitly about the influence (existence and rising profile) of Asian diaspora citizens in Australia and New Zealand. And - thank you! - one of the things that I really enjoyed, after a lengthy diet of Hallmark-adjacent Amazon offerings, was the all-Asian lead cast.

Inevitable hat-tip to Crazy Rich Asians and *one* of the characters certainly walked right out of that movie world. The rest, not so much.

[LOL token white guy who is referred to by the fortune teller as a good catch specifically because he's a "lapdog" of a man - and v nice that they still gave him a little scene later on that shows genuine warmth between the lead and her new bro-in-law and portrays him as genuinely sweet, plus holder of a key piece of missing intel for her.]

So, what worked [IMO] in this movie? LOTS of things.

The article I've shared above uses this pic of Lia and Richard which references a really nice piece of character work from early on, from the sister's PINK engagement party, which Lia attends in a black suit/white shirt combo, meaning that she starkly stands out from everyone else, while also looking cute AF - and it gives the "we understand each other" moment with the ex BF because he's the only one who remarks on the Reservoir Dogs reference ("Why am I Mister Pink?"). Loved this. Thought it worked. And it's a far-from-subtle hint that What Lia Wants Was Right In Front Of Her All Along. Actually, she knew that and so did he, but they had to sort out their historic misunderstanding and also find a way to Be Together in [Place].

Although some very traddy romcom elements were there /// she runs a tea shop! - her sister's getting married! - she doesn't have a date! - her parents want her to settle down! /// the underlying dilemma feels real, significant, relatable: Namely, tradition versus independence? Nicely twisted around the idea that Lia isn't running away from ALL aspects of tradition - she's specifically trying to make a traditional concept Chinese tea shop work in a modern city context.

So, thank goodness, it's absolutely not a story of "all my childhood influences were bad // but wait, my new life isn't working out // must be because all my childhood influences were Right After All // back to a traditional life and a traditional role for me!" Rather it's about finding away to integrate suburban and urban influences together.

This HEA has her still running a tea shop - but she's embraced Taiwanese bubble tea and takeaway tea orders. And she's still living in Sydney - and this time the ex-best friend is there with her.

This actually IS a pretty much ideal HEA for me. Living her truth works out for her - and her confrontation with her family leads to apologies and acts of reconciliation from both directions <3 <3.

[soundtestmenu]

i LOVE the design of susie's face and how she expresses. like in a large majority of her sprites her eyes are open 1 pixel tall, and this seems to be the default for her (it also makes her look extremely tired; she even has bags under her eyes...)

and this allows a lot of room for her to express with just her eyes, letting them be wide open to showcase a huge variety of emotions:

or express something more subtle, more nuanced:

(don't even get me started on how well her mouth is positioned on her face)

it's even more interesting when you look at her chapter 1 faces vs chapter 2

her eyes add a completely different energy to what should be the same expressions. her neutral face doesn't feel so cold anymore. her smile has a genuine, awkward softness to it rather than being very visibly joyless. even when she bares her teeth there's this new edge of mischief to it...

i think one of the most important things her sprites convey is how actually happy she looks after chapter 1.

her pupils are bigger on this sprite than any other, her mouth gives just the smallest grin and her whole look is so... soft. she doesn't make this face often, to the point where ralsei is caught off guard by it when she (arguably sincerely) makes it during a bit she does with kris.

(he also refers to it as "using that face" which. ralsei how much do you know)

it's just so heartwarming that you can see how much happier she is. she explodes with emotion and expression after being shown so much trust and kindness for the first time in what could be her whole life. someone jumped to take a bullet for her! they changed her life!! and now she would undoubtedly do the same for them! and when she comes back the next day she's SO EXCITED TO SEE THEM AGAIN!!!

she's such a warm character, and it's no secret that toby (who has stated that he personally draws all of the face sprites in the game) wanted to convey that in every way he could, and her facial expressions are a key part of it. faces are very clearly where he thrives in character design and susie is maybe the highest example of this

[kabuwu]

Canceling stream again today ! Something has come up 😔

[kyriolex]

I'm sorry if this might come off as crude but I really wondering about this for a long time...

Do you have any headcanons on how Aubrame Reproduction might work?

Like we know Aubrame carry Insects inside them and all around them and it obviously passes onto their offspring...

But it also makes me wonder... What would happen if a Non-Aburame married into the Clan?

While a Female Aubrame and a Male Non-Aburame probably wouldn't have too many problems copulating, how would the other way around work? 🤔

But if a Male Aubrame (Let's just take Shino for example)...Uh.. Does the "Deed" would the Insects transfer over to the Woman's Womb? Or would insects just mysteriously form inside? 🤔

Would the Woman become basically a living "Hive" while she carries her Baby?

Again, I hope I didn't make you feel uncomfortable with this Ask. 😅 I'm not asking this to sound crude or nasty or anything. Just genuine curiosity on a scientific level lol

But you can still ignore this ask if this kind of discussion ain't up your alley lol

I appreciate the respect for boundaries Anon. I normally keep things PG-13 on this blog, but I think I can answer this scientifically without getting too graphic.

We know from canon material that Aburame get their hives at birth. The infants are offered up to several species of bugs, at least one of which forms a pact.

So from this, I think we can rest assured that there aren’t bugs chilling out inside the mother’s womb. The hive can’t make a pact unless it is inside you, and bugs aren’t going to set up shop inside a fetus halfway through construction. This is probably a good thing, since pregnancy is hard enough without a semi-conscious fetus performing jutsu inside your torso.

I get the feeling that an Aburame’s hive is its own contained biological system, like your blood vessels or lymph nodes. The hive is present all throughout the body, but it’s typically not going to be involved in sex any more than your stomach acid would be. (I say “typically” because you know at least some clan members are going to get kinky. It’s statistically inevitable that someone is going to get their freak on behind closed doors.)

But like you said, there is clearly some inheritance going on. After all, Torune is the only member that can use rinkaichu, solely because his dad was also a rinkaichu host.

My theory is that the Aburames have some gene that makes their bodies receptive to bugs. Almost everyone can host kikaichu, but other species seem to be pickier about who they’ll bond with. Like blood type, you inherit a certain level of compatibility from your parents.

Some people, like Shino, are compatible with almost any species, while others like Torune are highly specialized to bond with one niche species.

We also know that Shino added species to his system as he got older. Given that fact, it’s clear the bonding ceremony in infancy isn’t the end all be all. An Aburame who never got a hive as a kid could conceivably get one later in life, albeit with a lot of catch-up training. But like learning a new language, it’s probably a lot harder for an adult brain to learn InsectSpeak than a child. And they would probably never be as in tune with the hive as someone connected from birth.

I don’t know whether it would be possible for someone with zero Aburame genes to host their own hive. I don’t think many people would be willing to try. Even if someone loves bugs, it’s probably a huge health risk for them to introduce a parasitic animal to their system, so I can’t see the Aburame just handing out hives to partners as a romantic gesture.

I could see the bugs in the hive getting attached to a host’s spouse though, maybe buzzing over to say hello or defending them in an emergency. I don’t think the hives are “adoptable” though.