#And only picked it up when the manga was updating

[frobby]

Nothing is stronger than the bond between a girl and a piece of media they brushed off 10 years ago that they now realized is the greatest thing ever made

[lyneira]

♡ reuniting with him ♡

-> how would the blue lock guys greet you after being away from each other for a long time?

Simply hugs you

ISAGI, Chigiri, Reo, Yukimiya, Tokimitsu, Ness

They moment they see you, they're pulling you into their embrace. However, don't underestimate the force and resolve that was put behind it.

Through the way they'd hug you, it said a lot. The way he held you so close and so tightly that you could feel his heart beating out of his chest said, "I'm not letting you go again". And indeed, he wouldn't be letting you out of his embrace anytime soon.

Kisses your lips immediately

Sae, Kunigami, Aiku, Kaiser, Raichi, Karasu

They wouldn't care who was looking, he was going to give you the deepest kiss you've ever had when you two reunite. An uncharacteristically desperate kiss from him, one that claimed you his, and reclaimed you, over and over again. Lord, he missed your taste so much. He missed you so much.

Picks you up and spins you around

BACHIRA, Shidou, Hiori, Nanase, Aryu

He'd be too overwhelmed with excitement to stay still. If you don't come running up to him, he'll be the one running up to you. He'll swoop you into his arms and spin you around, and the long-awaited laugh he had yearned to hear for so long would bless his ears at last.

He'd want this moment to last forever if only it didn't make either of you so dizzy, hehe

Leans their forehead against yours and gazes deeply into your eyes

Nagi, Barou, RIN, Noa, Niko, Eita, Gagamaru

These would be the type of people who wouldn't express much affection, especially in public. Their affection is rather quiet, more subtle, and intimate, meant to be shown only to you.

And when you're finally right there in front of him, he's finding himself cupping the sides of your face and leaning his forehead against yours, so close that your noses were barely touching.

"...I've missed you", he'd whisper, and if that wasn't evident from the intensity of his tone, then it was evident in his eyes, full of longing and adoration.

He'll leave a kiss on your forehead if he's quick enough ♡

a/n: imma be honest, I still haven't gotten so far in the manga, so I actually don't know much about characters like Kaiser, Ness, and Oliver. Though, based on the previews I've been seeing of them on my dash, I feel like this would suit them? but again, they might be ooc, idk 🥲 Maybe I'll update this post once I've read and gotten to know more about em 😭

© 2023 lyneira. PLEASE DO NOT COPY, PLAGIARIZE, OR REPOST MY WRITING ONTO OTHER PLATFORMS

[sleepynoons]

TIP TOE BY HYBS – higuruma hiromi (jjk) x afab!f!reader, post-canon!au, nsfw / 18+

genre – fluff, smut word count – ~2,900 warnings – manga spoilers, brief sub!higuruma, oral (giving), body worship, marking, edging, cum eating, praise kink synopsis – it's been weeks since the last time you and your husband have spent quality time together, and now that it's christmas, the two of you can finally spend an intimate evening together.

HIROMI: Be there in 10 minutes.

Promptly, you head downstairs, making your final adjustments as you slip on a vintage gold watch and rub a spritz of perfume behind your ears. Your clutch, coat, and shoes are already at the front entrance, and as you finish adorning the accessories, you’re all set. 

You stand in the entryway, fiddling with your phone to send your final work updates for the night before setting it aside and concentrating all of your attention at the door, waiting.

The silence and idling are unfamiliar, you think. Usually, there’s never a moment of peace in your routine. In a typical day, you wake up at dawn to the sound of your husband already brushing his teeth and washing his face; afternoons are spent driving around, enduring the Tokyo traffic that is characterized by impatient businessmen and consecutive red lights, as you drop off sorcerers at their missions and make subsequent reports; by nightfall, you return home completely spent, but you still rush around, pitter-pattering about, so that you can quickly make dinner.

It's Christmas, though, so your day's been anything but routine.

There are five more minutes before Hiromi comes, yet they feel never ending. You can only chalk the feeling up to your restlessness, eagerness, to see your husband, who’s been away for a few days on a business trip. And even before this business trip, he was out every day from morning to midnight to tend to shorter missions. When the top brass said they would work him to the bone, they weren’t lying, and it’s been months since the two of you last had any time to yourselves.

The sound of wind, gravel crunching, a slow roll into a stop echo outside. Glancing at the mirror one last time, you shake your shoulders out and stare at the door handle. As soon as the knob twists and the door moves, you look up and beam as his face comes into view.

Though he’s clearly exhausted, there’s also a small smile adorning his face, and he steps forward to kiss you gently on the crown of your head.

You laugh, soft sighs under your breath. “You should’ve asked me to pick you up instead. It’s not good to drive when you’re already drained from fighting.”

He shakes his head. “It’s no problem. Thought you needed a breather, since you’re always in the car. Anyway, here.”

From behind his back, he pulls out a small bouquet, a bundle of red and fuchsia peonies wrapped in white tissue paper. Delighted, you take the flowers into your hands, being sure to handle them with care, and you let your eyes wander over every bulb and petal.

“These would look great in our bedroom,” you muse, already sliding off your heels to put the bouquet into a vase.

You’ll arrange them once you get back, you think, as you head up and down the stairs.

Soon enough, you and Hiromi are on your way to your favorite restaurant. It’s a spacious, quiet place, on the top floor of a hotel where diners have a picturesque view of the Tokyo skyline, and it serves the best wine you’ve ever had. In fact, the two of you come here whenever there’s a special occasion, and the waiter recognizes the two of you and immediately gestures towards a table near the windows.

As always, Hiromi’s the perfect gentleman. He pulls out your chair and helps you settle into the seat before sitting down himself. He extends his arm out on the table, so you can hold his hand in yours. He chooses one of the two desserts you’re debating between, so that you don’t really have to make a choice in the end.

But you can tell he’s a little distant, or rather, distracted. When you glance at him, his eyes aren’t on yours like normal. His grip is looser, and you’re pretty sure he isn’t breathing much.

“Hiromi?” you mutter.

“Yes, love?”

You tilt your head. “Are you here? With me?”

His stoic expression breaks into one that is more embarrassed, shy even. He runs his other hand through his hair, sighing at being caught.

“Sorry,” he chuckles.

“What are you thinking about?” you ask, peering over the rim of your wineglass.

“Work. And how great you look, of course.”

You take a pleased sip. “You as well, handsome. But tell me, how was your mission?”

“Fine, as always.”

You roll your eyes. “Hiromi, that doesn’t mean much coming from you. You say ‘fine’ even when you’ve been told a colleague has died or when you’ve been hacking away at cursed spirits for days on end.”

“I suppose that’s the new norm for me. Though, not surprising to you, is it?”

You can’t help but huff unhappily. You’ve been an assistant manager to jujutsu sorcerers for years now, so you’re more than used to the inevitable fate that most of your colleagues succumb to. Arguably, you have it the worst because, sometimes, you’re the last face they ever see before they die on the frontlines. 

Sometimes, you disassociate from that realization. How haunting it must be, to die and share your last words with a mere acquaintance, to die without getting to see your most beloved one last time. Your job is to send sorcerers off to their death, only able to offer trite platitudes before you enforce the veil that separates them from the rest of humanity.

While you worry about Hiromi, you have no doubt he’s as much of a genius as Gojo Satoru when the latter was still alive. Truly, nothing can kill your husband. Besides, Hiromi’s no stranger to death, even before becoming a sorcerer himself.

You hum, barely bothered. “Not really. But it’s important that you take care of yourself, and I’m here to help, of course.”

The food comes, and you think it’s time to pivot. You clear your throat and say, “Now, if you’ll excuse my callousness, it’s Christmas, and I think my husband should have a full night off. Let’s eat!”

And like that, Hiromi nods and follows your instructions.

That’s the crux of your relationship. While Hiromi’s incredibly responsible and intelligent, he’s no different from any other person, and needs a shoulder to rest on at times. You’re witty, optimistic, and, most importantly, willing to provide him that support, so you’ve grown to trust and respect each other immensely. 

When your husband’s especially tired, like tonight, you steer the conversation, guiding, leading, redirecting. It’s all part of your ruse to get his mind off of miserable things, to distract him before his pondering thoughts and moral compass overtake his sensibilities once again.

As you’re eating, you inform Hiromi of Itadori Yuuji’s latest adventures and progress, as well as any updates you’ve heard about the higher-ups through the grapevine. You also tell him about the radish stew recipe you perfected the other day and the neighborhood cat that’s somehow been getting thicker. He also speaks of the missions he’s been sent on, the outcomes of criminal cases his juniors have been in charge of, the latest email he received from one of his law professors. 

The evening’s pleasant, and just as you’re taking your first bite of raspberry tart, you watch as Hiromi’s brows furrow, his eyes staring at the tufts of snow drifting down.

“No need to frown, my dear,” you comment.

He asks instead, “Are you cold?” 

You shake your head, but he insists on standing up and sliding his blazer off to drape over your shoulders. You thank him with a quick kiss on the back of his hand, but in your mind, you know your usual tricks don’t seem to be getting him. You internally sigh, knowing you won’t be able to discern the real reason for his listlessness until you get back home.

Luckily, upon arriving home, Hiromi visibly is more relaxed. His brows are no longer wrinkled with concern, and his jaw, though always defined, is not as set or tense. You lead him to the dining table, gesturing him to sit, as you pad over to the kitchen and fill up a kettle. As you wait for the water boil, you feel around in your cupboard for containers of lemon zest, ginger slices, and honey, in addition to your favorite set of teapot and teacups.

But Hiromi can never stay still for too long. When the kettle’s switch flips, he makes his way over to you and takes the handle before you can. He mutters something about the boiling water splashing onto your bare arms, and you can only giggle as he begins pouring on your behalf. It’s his consideration, his constant attentiveness towards your needs and surroundings, his protectiveness – just a few of his many admirable traits that you deeply appreciate, and there’s no better time than tonight to let him know.

You excuse yourself to the bathroom briefly, before coming back to find that everything’s already set on the dining table. You remain standing, however, sauntering over to your husband and resting your hands on his shoulders, dipping down to kiss the top of his head. Slowly, your hands slide down the plane of his chest, feeling the definition of his brawn and muscle underneath his shirt, fingertips stopping right before they hit the buckle of his pants, then treading back upwards. At the same time, you line kisses down to his shoulder, slight traces of your gloss and lipstick marking your path, before pulling away and leaning close to his ear.

“Hiromi,” you murmur, “what was on your mind during dinner?”

You press your palms a little more firmly against his body, applying pressure as you drag your hands back down. This time, you don’t lean back up, so your fingertips stay and fiddle with the leather band of his belt.

“Sorry, love,” he says. “I didn’t mean to be so aloof.”

You click your tongue, though there’s no ill-intention behind it. “That’s not what I asked, my dear.”

He chuckles. He knows nothing can get past you, yet he still tried. “Just you,” he mumbles.

“What about me?” You manage to undo his belt, so you stand up and walk around to kneel in front of him.

He sucks in a breath as your hands come to rest on the insides of his thighs. You spread his legs apart and, resting a cheek on one, you look up at him expectantly.

Hiromi scowls, his ears an adorable pink, and with shaking hands, he rakes one through his hair. The other comes down to rest on your face, where he rubs a thumb gently into your temple.

Finally, he answers. “Everything about you, love.”

Your heart flutters. “Tell me more,” you urge him.

He shakes his head, in disbelief at your insatiability. But it’s only fair, he supposes, after all this time apart. And so, he continues.

“You look gorgeous in red. Your blush, lipstick, dress… The dress is new, right?”

You nod, very pleased to know he noticed.

Quite uncharacteristic of him, Hiromi trips over his words. “It’s… very lovely on you.”

You trace a nail over the zipper of his pants. You’ve got him now. And so, you continue to press, musing, “What about it is lovely?”

Your husband knows what you’re up to, so he sucks in a breath through his teeth before letting himself go, throwing all embarrassment and caution to the wind – because, really, why should he be shy in the first place?

Hiromi admits, “I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable, love. I haven’t seen it on you before, and there aren’t any sleeves…” He gestures vaguely around your bare shoulders and collarbones.

He’s so darling like this, you think, as you try to stamp out the laughs bubbling in the back of your throat.

“I appreciate your honesty,” you say. “I love it when you’re so good to me.” You look up at him, down at his zipper, back up again.

And that does it for him. You can see him swallow thickly, as well as the slight bump in his pants. His face is also completely flushed, and the kitchen lights reveal some sweat lining forehead. You can’t help but purse your lips, more than ready to give him some loving.

Biting the metal zipper of his pants, you pull it down as you undo the button and pull out his tucked shirts. He lifts his hips slightly to make it easier for you to roll down pants just enough so that you can see his boxers and the obvious bulge it barely covers. Using your teeth yet again, you peel down the band of his boxers, until his leaking cock is freed of all confines.

You resist the urge to drool and lick your lips. If you did, it would ruin all the lipstick you had used in the bathroom earlier. As a result, to keep your mouth busy, you begin kissing and biting everywhere, except for his cock. Hiromi’s lower belly, square hip bones, even his balls – you leave splotches of stubborn, messy rouge and bruising hickeys in your wake. From the corner of your eye, you can see your husband fisting and unclenching his hands, but you quickly put a stop to it when you reach over to redirect his hands to the back of your head.

“Do you want me to?” you ask, peering up at him with smudged, wet lips.

He bites at his lips, clearly holding back a moan. With a barely concealed groan, he nods and pleads with a shaky “yes.”

Immediately, you take the head of his cock into your mouth. Moaning around it, you suckle on it and lap at the generous amounts of pre-cum that coats it. The pre-cum’s a little bitter, but nothing you can’t handle, especially when you love the way your husband tastes in general.

Then, you begin to take more of his cock into your mouth, adding centimeter by centimeter of his length. The entire time, Hiromi’s holding the back of your head, neither shoving or tugging, but you need him to use you with a little force, want him to let go just a bit more. He can be quite stubborn, so you know you need to push him more.

You decide to assist with your hands. One hand clings onto his hips, while the other holds and plays with his balls. Occasionally, when you need to take a quick breath, you leave a trail of red from the base of his cock to the tip before swallowing him whole again. You can feel his legs shaking, shuddering, with every bob and suck of your throat, and from above, you can hear him take breath after shaky breath.

Finally, as you take him in your mouth completely one last time, you time everything perfectly. Your nails bite into the skin at his waist, your palm tightens slightly around his balls, your tongue grazes over that particular vein on his shaft, you glance up at him with pearly, teary eyes – it’s more than enough to throw him over, and his hands tighten and shove your head down.

He groans, “Cumming!” He holds your head down, causing you to gag and tighten your mouth around him, as he shoots rope after rope of cum down your throat. You can’t help but moan at the stronger, stickier taste, and you do what you can with your tongue to extend and help him through his high.

After a few seconds, Hiromi pulls you off of his cock, watching as you use a finger to scrape up the cum that’s dribbling down your chin and push it back into your mouth. He sighs at the sight of your seductive beauty and the masterful way you handle him. Just a few teasing remarks, slight gestures, a cunning smirk, and you have him losing his mind over a slow-paced blowjob.

He leans over, loops his arms underneath your shoulders, and lifts you up from your knees.

“They must be bruised,” he notes with concern.

You pat his cheek and settle down on his lap. “It’s worth it,” you say with a shrug.

Hiromi thinks you’re quite stubborn, too. He knows you won’t give in or say yes, so he takes it upon himself to take initiative.

He slides his hands underneath your dress and traces up your leg until he reaches the thin string of your underwear. You shiver at the fleeting touch of his fingertips, and he glides his palm over the top of your thigh until he’s close to the heat radiating from your core.

“You’ll let me enjoy myself more for a while longer, right?” he asks as he inches closer and closer to your core.

You can’t help but squeeze and press your thighs together, but to no avail as Hiromi slides his hand down your panties, his fingers nudging your legs apart.

But then, he stops. Right as he’s about to reach your aching bud, he retracts his hand.

You’re about to whine, complain under your breath, but he silences you immediately by rasping into your ear, “Let’s go to the bedroom.”

You wrap your arms his neck as he picks you up, hugging you tightly to his chest and sharing wet, desperate kisses with you as he takes the stairs, two or even three at a time, to your bedroom.

And as he places you on the edge of your shared bed, he tells you what’s exactly been on his mind throughout this whole evening.

With a smoldering gaze and a gravelly, deep voice, he says, “I can finally undress you, love. I promise I'll give you all of my attention.”

winter event masterlist

[hannie-dul-set]

줄다리기 / JULDARIGI [MASTERLIST].

SYNOPSIS. the moment you step foot into the neighborhood you’d sought to forget, you find yourself caught in a seven sided tug-of-war with the longings of the past, and the restraints of the present.

FEATURING. seventeen’s yoon jeonghan, nct’s na jaemin, txt’s choi soobin and choi beomgyu, enhypen’s park sunghoon, zb1’s shen quanrui, bnd’s han dongmin. GENRES. drama, suggestive, psychological, yandere reverse harem (yeehaw!!!), college! au, richkid! au GENERAL WARNINGS. obsessive and possessive behavior, lots of emotional instability, stalking, violence, self-harm, swearing, many many stressful situations. i’d like to make clear that none of any of depictions are romanticized in any way. i just wanted to explore characters and dynamics outside of the usual silly cute stupid ones i write. and whose personalities i can fuck up better than all of my ults!!! yippee!!!

UPDATE SCHEDULE. as usual, who the fuck knows. i’ll update whenever, if ever BWAHAHAHHA. TAGLIST. open, ask to be added!

NOTE. this has been in my drafts since june. it has only seen the light of day now bcs i only pick it up when i’m in the mood to ruin my favorite boys’ personalities BWAHAHAHHA. this was also a result of that time in the summer where all i read were yandere manhwas/mangas. this is really just a major, self indulgent guilty pleasure. don’t like, don’t read.

posting the first chapter sometime tomorrow. chapters links will be posted under the cut once one is out. for now, have a preview! 

one — there is an aquarium at the kim household.

two — na jaemin is fully aware of the fact that everything in his life is predetermined.

. . . more chapters to be added.

줄다리기 / JULDARIGI. © hannie-dul-set, 2024.

[loveriotss]

[ 🥐 ] LOVE ALLIANCE : ALLIANCE D'AMOUR ⸻ MEET : katsuki bakugo's crew | k.bakugo x gn! reader smau series

→ explosion hero : great explosion murder god dynamight - katsuki bakugo → gossip channels and hero update accounts love to see him coming (they can depend on him alone to keep their shit running because of how much trouble he gets himself into 😭). → plays drums for jirou's music. → he has a faceless cooking channel, kinda like asmr ykwim. he has never openly admitted that the account belongs to him but his fangirls and boys can recognize him anywhere.

→ sturdy hero : red riot - ejirou kirishima → is in a relationship with mina ashido. → apart from his official hero accounts, he has a very successful workout channel.

→ stun gun hero : chargebolt - denki kaminari → has the feels for kyoka jirou (yes his bio is about her). → is a huge collector. it can vary from figures to comic books to mangas to rocks. → plays the guitar for jirou's music.

→ taping hero : cellophane - hanta sero → occasionally streams. he mostly plays games and talks to his audience. → currently learning the electric guitar. → adopted a cat that he saved from a tree.

→ acid hero : pinky - mina ashido → in a relationship with ejirou kirishima. → another big fashion girlie!! always pulls up to events in the most stunning looks. → does dance covers too!

→ hearing hero : earphone jack - kyoka jirou → has a prosthetic for her left ear. → she is also a music artist! she doesn't do concerts yet because of her hero schedule, but has been posting song covers and releasing songs for a while! [ a/n: cologne by beabadoobee is the song i picked for her! ]

ᯓ★» LOVE ALLIANCE !

< previous | masterlist | next >

ᯓ★» ALLIANCE SECRETS !

୨ৎ : for a long time, jirou was quite shy and wasn't really confident enough to post her songs/covers but her friends encouraged her and she ended up gaining popularity! ୨ৎ : denki LOVES collecting funko pops. there will be stacks and stacks of them on his shelves and walls. ୨ৎ : sero is like a crazy cat lady except he has only one cat. spoils his little princess so much and it's hard to imagine that once upon a time he didn't really like cats that much. ୨ৎ : mina does crocheting in her free time. she complains about how much she hates it and how time consuming it is but will continue doing it (ME FR). ୨ৎ : kirishima's hair is lowk dying because of how much he dyes it. ୨ৎ : bakugo's highschool stories keep popping up now and then and it HAUNTS him. he'll be having a perfectely good day and then one of his friends will send a picture of him and his hair slicked back when he interned for jeanist.

ᯓ★» AUTHOR'S NOTE !

im having so much fun giving them their little side jobs/hobbies.

ᯓ★» TAGLIST !

( comment on masterlist to be added + pls check ur settings if you're unable to be tagged ) @chsvok @ch3rryjampi3 @emmab3mma @pikachuzhc @cholios @zaiban2989 @hearts4heidi @ikissfade @themultifandomgirl @god-hangry-otter @solecitoszn @sunlix143 @rikislove @fackeraccount @chaoslibra @4rmins @harryzcherry @luvvvamy

©loveriotss — all rights reserved to me. don’t try to copy/steal my work. do not use any of my ideas/translate my work without my permission.

[batmanisagatewaydrug]

reading update: july 2024

full disclosure: I started out July in a bit of a mental lurch, really feeling stuck in a rut. there are a lot of reasons for that, absolutely none of which need to be shared with the general populace of tumblr dot com, but suffice to say that I was feeling listless and reading was not a high priority. I was pretty content to accept that this was going to be another month where I didn't finish a lot of books. I was too busy for most of June, and now too unfocused and bummed out in July.

and then that ended up not being the case. I think I can chalk that up to three things:

very early in the month I realized that none of the reading I had been planning on getting to was grabbing my interest at all, so I did something drastically different: picked up a YA memoir that I bought at pride on the recommendation of a bookseller. not my usual kind of reading at all, but YA is very readable and memoirs grab me fast because I'm nosy, so I figured it might be great for getting out of a rut. and boy, was I right!

Akwaeke Emezi also has a new novel out, and if you don't know then please note now that I'm a person second and an Akwaeke Emezi fan first. their newest novel was a sinister joyride, non-stop twists and turns that I couldn't put down until I saw the characters through to their bitter ends.

and, of course, over in the Dungeon Meshi manga I got to Mithrun. I've only had Mithrun for a couple of chapters, but if anything happened to him I'd kill everyone in this dungeon and then myself. even if I hadn't been able to read anything else, that would have kept me running back to the library for more Dungeon Meshi.

all of which added up to a fairly voracious appetite for books being reignited in my brain, and my second most book-heavy month of the year so far (still haven't beat May, but there's time). sick!

so - what have I been reading?

Delicious in Dungeon Vol. 7-10 (Ryoko Kui, trans. Taylor Engel, 2019-2022) - mannnnn I know I'm not saying anything that hasn't been said elsewhere, but Dungeon Meshi is so. fucking good. the way that Kui starts to raise the stakes of the story and grow the world beyond the core band of adventurers is so conscientious and well-done, timed perfectly so it never feels like having an undercooked heap of fantasy exposition thrown at you all at once. instead everything proceeds at a perfect simmer, leaving me feeling like the frog in that pot of boiling water who didn't notice how dire things had gotten until it was very suddenly too late and I was screaming bloody murder at a book. things have gotten so dire that I'm yearning for the days when fighting a red dragon was our biggest problem - and yet, through it all, every character remains rendered with humanity and compassion, no matter how scary, dangerous, or outright alien they first appear. I'm not naming any spoilers, but I need [REDACTED] to fix shit ASAP in Vol. 11 and [SUPER REDACTED] is on my shitlist fucking forever. also Mithrun sweetie you're perfect, do as many crimes as you want.

Heart and Hand (Rebel Carter, 2019) - my romance novel of the month, as picked by my lovely patreonites! this self-published historical romance promised some messy f/m/m, following a biracial (half Black, half white) young lady, Julie Baptiste, as she responds to a marriage ad that takes her out west to the fictional town of Gold Sky, Montana. Julie's sort of a standard historical heroine - she doesn't care for the silliness of high society and vastly prefers the company of books, looking forward to becoming Gold Sky's schoolteacher - but her marriage has a twist: rather than marrying one man, she's agreed to marry two, a pair of friends who have been inseparable since they served together in the Civil War. this book is charming, for sure, but I can't help be more intrigued by what isn't there than what is, namely: are these men having sex with each other or not? Rebel? hey, Rebel? why is there no DP in this two husbands mail order bride book? that was, like, he bare minimum that I expected. for the love of god, why did those men never put both of their dicks inside Julie at the same time? why did we spend so much time on emotional conflict that could be easily resolved if anyone just talked to each other when Julie's two beautiful husbands could have been having sex in front of her? HELLO?

also, listen, this is such a nitpick, but I am FROM Montana and it feels personal: I know that the general poverty of frontier life isn't sexy, but god these people are WAY too well off. at one point Julie enjoys some fucking BANANAS, something that I goddamn assure you were not easy to come by in late 19th century Montana. a banana. as fucking if.

All Boys Aren't Blue (George M. Johnson, 2020) - as is proudly advertised on the back cover of my copy, in recent years All Boys Aren't Blue has been the second most-challenged book in America behind Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer. reading through All Boys Aren't Blue it was initially hard to see what exactly was so objectionable, until I realized that a queer Black person living their life with compassion and joy is the scariest thing some of these motherfuckers can possibly imagine. Johnson writes about their life growing up in the nexus of racism, homophobia, and masculinity with wisdom and endless compassion, directly addressing young people who may find themselves in similar positions to offer them assurance that they, too, can be okay. more than anything, All Boys Aren't Blue is a plea for young people to live their lives without fear and shame. it's a beautiful blessing of a book that I hope brings comfort to every innumerable kids who need it.

Little Rot (Akwaeke Emezi, 2024) - how do I even begin to describe Little Rot? definitely not for those who feel squeamish about sex crimes, I guess that's an important place to start. this novel starts with the breakup of a long-term Nigerian couple, Kalu and Aima, and follows both of them into a weekend that starts with drugs and sex parties and spirals increasingly out of control from there, drawing more and more characters into a complicated snarl of money and power. Little Rot has the seedy, lurid draw of an episode of SVU if SVU ever grew up and realized that cops don't do shit, reveling in the nastiest that Emezi's imagined city of New Lagos has to offer. cannot say this book is for everyone - few of Emezi's novels are - but god, it's a thrilling study in corruption.

The Persistent Desire: A Femme-Butch Reader (editor Joan Nestle, 1992) - this is a massive and fascinating historical document, assembled by Nestle as part of her work with the Lesbian Herstory Archives. within this collection are letters, interviews, academic essays, poems, and transcribed oral histories from all manner of self-identified butch and femme lesbians. while some of the contributors are recognizable names in the history of American queer activism (including Pat Califa, who's a bisexual trans man now lmao), others are women who were just trying to live their lives with as much authenticity, comfort, and dignity as was possible in their time. (although, notably, the vast majority of these women are white, and all but a very few are Americans. racial and cultural diversity is not one of the collection's strong suits.)

the personal narratives span all over the twentieth century, and I was really delighted to see the very frank discussions of what would be written off as "bad representation" by a lot of queer resources today: butches overdosing on toxic masculinity and getting in messy bar brawls, femmes committing outlandish acts of adultery, lesbian sexual awakenings taking place between fairly young children, and one extremely memorable instance of a butch getting unexpectedly pregnant and decided to do a little sex work on the side since she couldn't get more pregnant than she already was. I was particularly fascinated by the many, many accounts of "second wave" self-identified lesbian feminists who tried to do away with butch/femme identities and "politically incorrect" expression of lesbian sexuality altogether (that's everything but mutual cunnilingus, btw) in pretty eerie echoes of contemporary radfem arguments. at close to 500 pages it's definitely better suited to skimming and stopping to read whatever catches your attention rather than trying to read cover to cover, but I think this is a really invaluable piece of history.

American Mermaid (Julia Langbien, 2023) - this was a novel, for sure. American Mermaid is a novel about a broke, anxious high school teacher named Penelope whose novel, also called American Mermaid, is a runaway success that gets optioned for film. Penelope quits her teaching job and moves across the country to Hollywood to work on the script with two dude bros who don't really Get what American Mermaid is about, and set to work turning Penelope's weird, unsexy female empowerment novel into an MCU-style action romp with a hot young lead. the novel's strongest when it's deep in the spirals of Penelope's frantic mind, probing the conflict between her fairly desperate need for cash (she wants to be financially independent of her conservative father, she has good reason to suspect breast cancer is in her future, she wants to start a family someday) and the artistic affront she feels at watching her story be disrespected and dismantled. where it's weaker is in the extensive chapters of the story-within-a-story; while useful for context, I straight up didn't need to read that much of Penelope's novel. and the plot overall kind of felt like it fell off the rails near the end once Langbien finishes making her point about how Hollywood sucks. it's not bad, but it's also just... fine. it's fine!

How to Taste: A Guide Discovering Flavor and Savoring Life (Mandy Naglich, 2023) - how do I put this so nicely? this book is for people who are kind of dork ass losers about food, a group that I do very much count myself as a part of. I first became acquainted with Naglich's work when she appeared on a podcast called the Sporkful, which claims that it is "not for foodies, it's for eaters." I'm a fairly devout listener, and after listening to Naglich describe her efforts to become a master cicerone (one of the world's most elite beer tasters, a distinction that is taken Very Fucking Seriously) I thought sure, whatever, that's a book I can get behind. Naglich is maybe a big more entertaining as a podcast guest than a nonfiction author. in places the book can be dry or roughly constructed in a way that suggests another pass by an editor or maybe a co-writer would have helped. and straight up, there are just weird fucking typos in this book that are like. crazy to me, I cannot believe they got through. the cheap-ass cover art also suggests this was not exactly a high budget production.

but having been very mean about it, there are a lot of extremely interesting tidbits about the world of professional tasting here! it sounds awful and you couldn't pay me to do it, but here's the cool thing: Naglich is extremely aware that what she does is insane and she knows that the average reader doesn't want to learn how to identify where a coffee bean was grown just by sniffing the bean from across a room. what she offers instead are really approachable ways to be more conscientious about how you interact with and appreciate food! and she also shares some really cool info about tasting snobbery that IS bullshit, to help you sort out the stuff that actually matters and emphasize that fun and personal taste ultimately trump any "rules." it's a very dorky book but I, personally, did have a good time.

Sex Criminals Vol 3: Three the Hard Way (Matt Fraction and Chip Zdarsky, 2016) - every time I read another volume of Sex Criminals I find myself thinking "man, hang on, do I ever actually like Sex Criminals? am I enjoying this?" but then I end up placing a hold on the next one. I don't know, it's charming! it's like so very VERY 2010s in its dialogue, by which I mean it's like. you know. it's giving Joss Whedon before we all found out how bad he sucked and collectively booed him. but man, I love a story that's down to get weird, and Sex Criminals is sooooo about being weird. and yet also very normal where sex is concerned! considering this is a series all about people having freaky world-altering powers that activate when they cum, sex is treated as an incredibly ordinary thing, warts and all. I like that! I like seeing that! idk, I don't need every comic to be perfect, as evidenced by the fact that I'm actively enjoying Azrael: Angel of the Bat. sometimes the vibes are just good.

[mostlymilkwood]

Their Story and The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't a Guy at All

Recently I've been thinking about the success of The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't a Guy at All and how it feels like seeing where Tamen de Gushi could have ended up, had its publishing issues not lead too various hiatuses during its peak.

To give a quick summary of events; Tamen de Gushi (aka Their Story/SQ Begin W/Your Name!) is a manhua created and posted online by Tan Jiu. It was incredibly popular around 2015 to 2018, during which time it had big ad campaigns, cute merch, animated promos and a print volume of the manhua itself. Just the one though. Sadly a the start of 2018 Tan Jiu announced that volume 2 would be indefinitely postponed as their publisher had requested several scenes be removed, which they refused to do. People speculated the scenes were the romantic ones between the leads, particularly the Big Kiss that would have been in that volume, but it was never specified. Regardless, this had a pretty disastrous effect on the manhua, as without the revenue from volume 2 Tan Jiu understandably began working on other projects and updates basically stopped altogether outside of occasional illustrations and short comics detached from the main storyline.

Meanwhile The Guy She Was Interested In Wasn't a Guy at All (lets go with the insane shorthand tgswiiwagaa from here on) is a manga created and posted online by Sumiko Arai. First starting in 2021 it has become incredibly popular, which has lead to big ad campaigns, popup shops and cafes, a drama CD and print volumes of the manga itself.

So there is some surface levels similarities between the two: both are released via the author's social media account, both feature a high school slice of life stories, both gained a huge followings outside of their original language due to scanlation efforts, and both were/are the the face of digitally published yuri.

I don't think we'd get tgswiiwagaa without Tamen de Gushi, or at least I don't think it would be as big as it is without the groundwork Tamen de Gushi lay within online spaces. I can't speak too much on Tamen de Gushi's domestic fandom, or even its Japanese one, (though it was clearly popular in both) but at least in English-speaking yuri circles it was the breakout hit that brought in a lot of new readers to the genre. (Which is crazy to think about since it was before Mangadex became the dominant host of scanlated works, so it was primarily released on Tumblr! with only some chapters showing up on Dynasty Reader later.)

And I don't wanna say it was the only game in town back then, as around 2015 was a real golden age of manhwa and manhua popping off with the likes of Her Tale of Shim Chong, What Does the Fox Say? and PULSE. They're all still popular recommendations when people ask for top yuri picks, deservedly so. But as I said, there's something about tgswiiwagaa that reminds me of Tamen de Gushi in particular.

That popularity which lead to fanart, edits and fancams in the English side of the fandom feels kind of important to totgswiiwagaa's future international success. Like it widen the net so when totgswiiwagaa came along with a story that had even more western pop culture touchstones than a manga reader might normally get it was able to scoop up way more fans than ever before.

I think when it comes down to it, It's just nice to see tgswiiwagaa go even further than Tamen de Gushi did. There's been plenty of talk about if tgswiiwagaa will get an anime and/or a live action adaptation, and honestly I hope it gets everything and more! Because just like Tamen de Gushi before it, I know tgswiiwagaa is laying the groundwork's from some other wildly popular yuri that will come to surpass it in the future. And I can't wait to read whatever new stories come out next!

[accio-victuuri]

it’s been a while since i’ve shared my recent reads! so here’s what i have picked up in the past months. felt inspired cause i’m really enjoying the story i’m reading now, w/c i initially picked up as a manhwa but i’m impatient so i switched to the novel. it’s called the hunter is gonna lay low or the hunter wants to live quietly. it’s such a gem! cause it starts of pretty simple and funny then the author manages to put in the plot and well, it’s plotting. lol.

if you like systems/dungeons, cast of characters, time travel, mystery and the most delicious slow burn then this is for you. i hope this gets animated at some point cause it’s so good! 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 this is the only novel on the list so it’s pretty special that the story led me to WANT to read the source.

i’m literally listing what i’ve read so yeah. and pretty much a v short reaction to it cause there is a lot (53). it’s a mix of ongoing and completed works at the time of writing and when i read it so i’ll mark that too.

1. Sweetie, Sweetie, Sweetie - this title is so misleading cause you would think it’s a modern story full of sweetness when it’s not. this deals with kingdoms/royalty, superpowers — and isekai.

2. How my Daddies Became mates (completed) - first foray into mangas because i most prefer manhwa/manhuas — i know, sacrilege. but yeah, it’s a cute story of two dad telling their kid how they met and fell in love. It’s so wholesome! a short read when you feel tired of all the toxic bl stories. 😂😂😂

3. Unintentional Love Story (completed) - pick this up! it’s so good! slice of life kind of vibe and falling in love in a small town.

4. Someone like You (completed) - this was something i started before and went back in now that it’s completed.

5. Isekai no Sata Wa shachiku shidai - i don’t really go for Mangas but this one pulled me in! I love myself some isekai plot. it’s just sad that no one has updated the translation for so long so that may put some people off in picking this up.

6. Bend over Backwards (completed) - corporate slave x international model. if you like this kind of dynamic then go ahead. Only 40 chapters plus a bunch of side stories so this kind of thing is a good choice.

7. Dinner with a Vampire - pretty obvs with the title.

8. Mister Wonderful teases me

9. Romance but not Romantic - omegaverse! the kind where the omega needs the alpha but initially hated him.

10. Be, Be. - omegaverse with modern royalty!

11. Smoky Nectar 1 - a short read that continues to a part 2 and it’s good ✌🏼

12. Smoky Nectar 2

13. Reincarnated to Devil King Evelogia’s World - this is so uniquely unhinged that it became. endearing. No. I swear. I haven’t read anything like it. I love it tho. Maybe some people will find it over the top but it’s now one of my personal faves.

there’s an animated version of it if you wanna start with that just to see how cute they are lol.

14. Bullying the Dog - an MC who didn’t get much love then he meets the ML who shows him what it’s like. it’s so somft.

15. Bittersweet Martini (completed) - i’m gonna cheat here and copy/paste the first comment on this story cause i think it perfectly describes the story: “If you're looking for a casual pleasure read with a green flag story with heavy flirting, which leads to a lot of blushing but also deals with a more serious topic towards the middle, without leaning too much into the drama, then look no further.”

16. Over the Paradise - guideverse with zombies!

17. Hero vs Villain - what happens when the supposed hero and villain become friends and fall in love? this was so nice!

18. Night of London - vampire and werewolf pairing! come on! Let’s gooooo! 🙌🏼

19. Kill my love - omegaverse and assassins!

20. Turning - Another work that i would most likely pick up the novel version cause it’s that good! Regression theme! ❣️plus the setting is they are in a kingdom where people have powers.

21. The Moon is coming to me - I have already talked bout this before and it’s one of my absolute faves! I didn’t know the Manhua was released! So i was so happy to enjoy it in that form. The translation for this is very close to the end so pick it up!

22. Cozy Obsession - transmigration where the MC knows how the story goes so he is trying his best to change the ending.

23. Summertime (completed) - one of my favorites! love it when friends become lovers and some may say the ML here is manipulative but i wanna say in a good way. lol. anyway, it’s classic, atleast from the MC’s side that you’ve known this person some time and that summertime everything has changed.

24. My way with you (completed) - gonna cheat again with this one by pasting here what someone commented: “LISTEN UP GUYS this one has everything: healthy happy relationship, supportive friends, trauma and healing, mysterious past connections, beautiful men, hot af smut, 100% consent, cutest lovey dovey couple, NO drama, NO “misunderstandings”, NO second ml, NO annoying interfering side characters. You will cry, but because it’s just so good.” 💯

25. Netkama Punch - i haven’t finished and progressed much as i would like tho i know a lot of people have this as their favorite! I will get back to it! The premise of hidden identity and online gaming is one of my fave so i will surely pick this up again.

26. Through the Years - i haven’t finished this yet but it’s a lot of people’s fave

27. Fools (completed) - disillusioned guy meets excitable puppy 🤍

28. Moonquake (completed) - a very unique concept. people on earth have powers and then some of them decided to rebel and live in the Moon. Our MC is one of the best ones on earth and is supposed to bring down the leader of the rebellion. but you all know what happens, they fall in love! AHHHHH! and i have to say the art in this too is exceptional.

29. Men’s wear store and the Royal Princess (completed) - this may be weird for some or slow / not enough action lol. i enjoyed it tho! the MC cross dresses and finds someone who loves and accepts him!

30. Ex Hot Neighbor (completed) - a story that centers around a misunderstanding! MC thinks he can’t date the neighbor cause he’s his friend’s ex. but nope!

31. Forest Sea (completed) - A good and solid fantasy story. Please give it a try! The whole birds vs snakes thing was kinda weird at first but the author made it work.

32. When you were asleep - this hasn’t been updated in a while and it’s so sad because the art is topnotch! the plot is good too, especially the dreamscapes but there’s still a lot to discover cause we wanna know what happened in the past. Why is MC even having these dreams and all that.

33. Beum & Go’s Unholy…. - still ongoing and read few chapters

34. Spring, the color of love (completed) - what a wonderful story. Oftentimes, as a reader, you have that sense of boundary with the narrator. But this one — you can feel and understand what the MC is thinking and going through. even tho i haven’t experienced what he did, i can totally get it. this is one of those tropes where they fall in love during their school years and some misunderstanding happens, they meet again years later and try again. something i would love to re-read even if there are parts of it that hurt. and it’s just proof that if something is meant to be, it will come back to you.

35. Keep Holding On (completed) - a short and sweet read with friends to lovers trope!

36. Wolf in the House (completed) - i am so late with this cause i feel like every list has this story as one of the best. I have to agree! it’s so good! tho i have to say i’m more attached to the second pairing. this one is a perfect mix of fantasy, action, comedy and romance. A solid recommendation!

37. Touch within the Abyss (completed) - AAAAAHHHHHH! a hitman x blind cinnamon roll! read it now! please! it’s so sweet! their love and care for each other is so pure 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹

38. 99% in love season 1 (completed) - from bestfriends to lovers in the cutest way! they start fake dating and it leads to more obvs.

39. 99% in love season 2 - their college life and this one has smut scenes!

40. Alpha Trauma ( novel ongoing ) - if you know Omega Complex then you might be aware that this is a sequel of sorts but follows the second lead’s love story if you may. Everyone loves Dohyun so i’m one of those happy readers who is happy that he gets his own story, tho the POV in this is not his but his Omega. If you like ABO and campus setting then this may be for you.

41. Soul Sealer’s school life - The MC is the soul sealer who has to do good deeds to prolong his life, then he meets the ML who has a strong spirit in him. It’s a perfect blend of fantasy, comedy and not so much romance as of the moment. The art is 💯 and i really like to see where this goes!

42. Guidance with Benefits - still ongoing and read few chapters

43. Chiguha Kuna Kisu (completed) - if you like a short read that will make you have overall good vibes then this is it. school setting, two cute boys, a fortunate miscommunication and starting a relationship. it’s so good and made me want to look for more mangas! 🤍

44. Spicy Milk Candy - yandere but in a good way. that’s all i’m gonna say.

45. Ruby Red wo Kamikudaku (completed) - i’m just gonna add the summary below but it’s truly a unique read!

Akane is an Omega who can see people's pheromones as multicolored "crystals”. During his school days, when he was lonely because of his peculiar constitution, he meets Makise, a school nurse teacher. 5 years later, they are miraculously reunited, but Makise has a secret

46. Yume Nara Doko Made Yurusaremasuka (completed) - corporate slave x young policeman. 6 chapters of sweetness!

47. Sparkling Baby (completed) - this is supposedly a sequel for the second lead, but i haven’t read the first story. I just love how the MC/ML first met and then made a mark on each other as strangers — but it wasn’t there time yet. and so they meet again later and navigate their lives together. What attracted me to this story is how the MC changed because of love. For years, he had this sense of what he think is love and looking back, maybe it didn’t work out because love isn’t supposed to be like that. What he found with the ML is real and why it feels different.

48. Ashita kimi no mono ni shite (completed) - this so wholesome! school setting and friends to lovers. quiet boy x cool guy

49. Koibitu Keiyaku chu ni suki (completed) - friends to lovers! fake dating. and well, look at them. so precious together:

50. Camboy Bunny (completed) - i think the title says it all. A delicious read!

51. Beyond the Memories - AAAAAHHHHHHH! the story in itself should be sweet and fluffy but the author manages to squeeze in the undercurrent of there is something wrong. as a reader, there is something big that we don’t know and once it comes out — all of it will be shattered. it looks like there is some sort of regression and MC doesn’t know this but the ML does. The question here is when his memories will come back and will he forgive the ML. We are not in that part yet with what’s available right now so i’m excited!

52. Private Call (completed) - another omegaverse.

53. Senza Replica - guide/esper. very few chapters out and something i will go back to.

I read everything except the novel at BATO. 🫶🏼 covering my may-october 2024 reads.

[mishy-mashy]

Lucky timing for me that I get back into Black Clover (specifically over Nacht, Morgen, and the Grey Deer), right before the manga updated with 3 chapters around Nacht, Morgen, and Yami

Was working on an old fic to do with the Grey Deer, but anyway, things to note that are canon:

Nacht seems to suck at magic sensing

He's got a record of not sensing something or someone is there unless it's right in his face and he can see it himself.

When we first see him in the manga, investigating in Dante's room, Nacht didn't notice the Dark Disciple behind him until they said something.

(Ch. 246)

He wouldn't just let someone see him and think 'Oh, nothing will happen here' as he senses them. Nacht couldn't let anyone see him do this. He actually mentions he acted "audaciously" here, but I don't think being caught was ever on purpose.

This was someone directly behind him. Nacht is supposed to be undercover and on high-alert for himself, but couldn't recognize a guy was behind him until they spoke up. This guy wasn't trying to sneak up on Nacht, either; they noticed him, asked what he was doing, and immediately picked a fight

Maybe Nacht was just focusing on reading the papers before dealing with that guy? But he didn't react until the guy spoke up. He could've just dealt with the guy and continued reading his papers. No one noticed the blatant scream either.

(Ch. 246)

Look at that. "Husssh". It was immediate silence right after Nacht dragged him.

And it's not like his reaction was only after the verbal threat. The Disciple already had his grimoire out. And grimoires are an important magic item that boosts magic capability and such, so it's not like the grimoire has no presence.

(Also the Spade warriors are quick to fight and all, but eh)

It's not just the instance with the Dark Disciple, either. Nacht couldn't sense powerful demons just a few paces away from him (Lucifero and Adramelech).

(Ch. 317)

Did everyone just have a slip in mana sensing? Did they not notice the whirling storm right above them?

Nacht was with the Black Bulls, turned his head away, and happened to see Adramelech (the devil sitting on a rock). That's when he noticed the guy; the others had Adramelech speak up before they noticed, at which point Lucifero showed up and flattened them.

Nacht just saw them. He didn't sense them. He just happened to turn and walk that way, probably intending to have gone to Yuno to bring him to Loyce for a reunion.

And when Dante was still kicking and using his Body Magic to regenerate himself, Nacht watched the guy go down and went, 'Alright, he's done now'.

(Ch. 294)

Nacht didn't sense the fact his mana was working to regenerate himself? (Luck didn't either, but it's Nacht I'm focusing on here)

Nacht has a history of being bad with sensing magic. There are instances it could've blown his cover or cost his life, but he was lucky each time

Being a sensor for magic is uncommon, but Nacht missed a soldier right behind him. Said soldier belongs to a Kingdom that believes in absolute strength.

(On the point that the others didn't sense the devils or Dante either—I'm going to consider it being for the sake of the Plot™. But I still think Nacht is bad at magic sensing, even if it can only exist as an HC later on)

Morgen and Nacht are twins, with different birthdays

Nacht is older, born during the nighttime of April 30th.

Morgen is younger, born during the morning of May 1st.

Morgen and Nacht look like their mother

(Ch. 286)

That smile they both have? Genetic.

It's hard to see because her eyes are shaded, but it's the same closed-eye curve smile. Their dad's eyes are a bit droopy / flat, but Nacht and Morgen both have narrow, slanted eyes.

They got their mother's facial features, smile, and probably hair too, since their hair is silky and long. Look at their long hair, and how their mother puts it in a bun; the twins' hair grows fast, and has always been longer than others'.

(Ch. 286)

Not as cohesive of a panel, but look at them.

The twins got their mother's smile, her eyes and long lashes. Even the nose and chin, and her face shape and jawline.

Nacht and Morgen are girly in appearance, and they look just like their mother.

(Volume extra)

Nacht is a damn troll.

I know we get a few examples of this already. He might look like Morgen and try being a good guy, but this is still someone who got on like a room on fire with Yami, and still does at 29 years old.

His shared spell with Yami is called Children's Playground.

When he brought Asta to fight and subdue Liebe, he waited until Asta stepped onto the summoning circle and just sprung it on him, knowing all he had to do was say "Summon".

(Ch. 266)

When he came back from near-death, the first thing he did was trade remarks with Yami like children, going "No u" "No, YOU".

When Asta commented on Nacht's similarities to Yami (something that Nacht KNOWS and acknowledges himself when Yami saves him), Nacht gets a shaded smile and strings up Asta with his magic

When facing off against a devil with Yami, there's a parallel shown of them when they were kids, cutting to near-30-year old adults. And they just say, "Shall we play with him?!"

Y'know, one of many examples of Nacht actually just being a big kid that still likes causing trouble.

(Kind of?) Black Bull robes seem to have changed after Nacht became frequent in the squad

I could be wrong since I haven't looked at their robes in a while, and don't want to go back and forth to check at this point (tacking this point on after it's already queued), but weren't the robes shorter before?

After Nacht becomes a common part of the Black Bulls as their vice-captain, the squad robes got longer, right? Nacht made his own Black Bulls robe a lot like the one he wore at his debut, but it's darker, covers the body more, and has the logo blatantly on it.

I'm at the image limit, but when Nacht agrees with the Black Bulls that they're going to look for Asta, some of their robes look upgraded to the longer cape look? I could be remembering wrong, but if the robes are different, I'm betting Nacht had a say in it. The new robe is literally a version of what he wears everyday

[qwardivior]

DEMON BUSTERS!— Zenitsu Agatsuma

Next Part>>

<<Previous Part

Alright! It’s been awhile since the previous ad campaign but it’s finally here! (Fun fact, this was supposed to be out in time for Zenitsu’s birthday but uh…. yea). This time we’re gonna talk about Zenitsu! If you’re new here, in short this is a modern kny au where people have been dying to demon attacks at alarming rates, so the Demon Slayer Corps went through a massive update and rebrand in the 1980s and now they’re called the Demon Busters!

You can view the previous installment here!

—LORE DUMP INCOMING!—

Zenitsu gets quite the bad rep in this au. As one of the most disliked busters, it’s safe to say the public isn’t impressed by his service. Instead of comforting victims he’s screaming along with them! Plus his sleeping habits are the worst! I mean what kind of professional falls asleep on the job?! When they’re supposed to be protecting you from man-eating demons no less?! In fact it seems like he only puts on his brave face around the girls (any of his attempts at being “cool” fall flat on the floor.) But he’s trying his best! Honest!!

Like in canon, Zenitsu never even wanted to be a Buster in the first place. The only reason why he’s here is because his adoptive grandfather Kuwajima Jigoro decided that minimum wage jobs were not gonna cut it after he racked up some pretty intense debt trying to please one of his exes. After successfully completing the final selection, you’d think he’d gain some self-confidence or a back bone but nope! He actively runs from danger and tries (and fails) to pick up any girl that looks at him for more than 5 seconds. Hell, he even tried his best to pick up Nezuko, according to her, until he got his act together that wasn’t happening! But there’s more to him than what meets the eye.

In this au Zenitsu is often paired up with Inosuke (much to his chagrin) due to Tanjirou and Nezuko’s status as “part time busters”. He also ends up becoming friends with Kanao as well. Him and Nezuko’s relationship also isn’t as one sided mostly due to Nezuko keeping her sense of self. They get to know each other, become friends, fight demons together, and hey, maybe that leads to something more. But the most important change in this au is that Zenitsu is more actively pushed to better himself. He’s essentially forced (encouraged) by his friends to keep up with them and stand on his own two feet. He stops panicking at the mere echo of a demon, and learns how to fight when he’s awake much sooner. And who knew that once he learned how to be a reliable buster and stopped panicking like it was his first day on the job that his rating would go up?! Shocker, right?

Of course, his new found popularity didn’t stop anyone from looking at him sideways when they’d heard that (allegedly) somebody he knew was giving out Buster secrets to the demons for free. Naturally, Zenitsu thought they were targeting Tanjirou at first, but he quickly learned that wasn’t the case after a couple of odd “demon” sightings an one arrest later. The mole wasn’t related to Tanjirou at all! It was…someone else he knew. Just the thought of it makes his blood run cold, no one would stoop so low as to do that right? And he’s such a talented buster too… oh well. There wasn’t much he could do about it now. He just hoped that he could keep the people closest to him safe and alive…

Also did you know? Zenitsu is the first of Tanjirou’s friends to meet his mom! (And subsequently, the rest of the Kamados. Their bakery’s Danish is absolutely superb by the way!)

(P.S.: Photographer’s note here! No, we couldn’t stop him from posing like that. He was insistent that we “get his good side for the ladies”…)

———

Thanks for reading this lore dump! Despite all the ragging I did on him in this au, Zenitsu is actually one of my favorite characters and I honestly hated how he didn’t seem to get as much lasting character development throughout the manga as Tanjirou and Inosuke. I mean yeah, there was his fight in infinity castle, but throughout the plot nothing really changed for him. So in this au I wanted to correct that! I also wanted to make him and Nezuko’s ( eventual) romance more plausible and less weird. I know she eventually fell in love with him, but I really want to show that development now that Nezuko has a voice in this au. (Same for the other canon couples, but we’ll get to that later ;) ). As always thank you guys so much for your support on this silly au! See you guys in the next one!

[shigayokagayama]

The Beach Omake And Authorial Intent

initially i was going to save this for a big teru analysis i had cooking however i eventually ended up deciding that it would feel like a really long tangent in its original context and probably deserves a separate post.

when it comes to the whole "teru's parents" thing i generally see two competing ideas on it

a. terus absent parents are the real villains of mob psycho and are the direct cause of everything wrong with his life and any and all teru analysis must center around this fact

b. terus parents being absent in the first place is only revealed in an omake and only exists for plot convenience and is not something that should be focused on at all when writing him

and whenever i see either of these my mind always drifts to the question of authorial intent. i know how people are reading this information, but how are we supposed to? i know death of the author is becoming more of a common thing in fandom spaces (albeit usually misused) but i feel like a better understanding of why this omake exists and how we're supposed to read it might help to better synthesize two takes that seems to be completely at odds with each other.

okay first i want to go over the actual placement of the beach omake in the update schedule of the manga because, unlike most other omakes, i feel like this ones placement in the schedule of page releases is actually super relevant

the vast majority of omakes come at the end of weekly updates. you finish reading the usually 15-20 pages ONE put out and then you get a little bonus comic at the end, usually something funny or a slice of life but but occasionally more serious. multi part omakes are usually spread out over multiple updates, making you wait a couple weeks for a punchline.

beach omake is not that. between chapters 99 (mob gets hit by a car) and 100 (the whole rest of the omake) there was a 6 week hiatus from normal pages and in this hiatus is where we get beach omake. reading it all together immediately cuts away the sort of "slice of life sunday paper comic" tone other multi part omakes have and make you read it as a part of the actual main story, since that's how you're used to reading these weekly updates.

now the actual tone. generally the multi part omakes exist to be long punchlines and the rare emotional ones are a single page for maximum impact. beach omake has a very different structure compared to, say, the haunted doll omake or the pot of happiness.

off the bat from the first two pages there's not really a joke. the tone mostly seems kind of melancholic. mobs expression for the middle section of the second page (maybe purposely) is obscured by the panel breaking off, it's hard to tell his reaction, all our attention is directed at teru. with all of the panels taken up by dialogue (primarily his own), we're being asked to focus on what he's saying:

-teru lives alone

-he lives alone because his parents live overseas

-he hasnt seen them in a while

-he doesnt like having nothing to do

-he doesnt like being alone

all of this information is delivered with an extremely casual expression from him, implying that it's not something that seems ll the out of the ordinary for him. mob, on the other hand...

the hesitation before he says anything and the way his expression is obscured seems to imply something is... off... about this information to him. this isn't a handwaved "oh mob is walking home from school after passing out because he needs to for plot reasons", we're reacting to this information like it's weird.

the next two pages are, mostly, a lot more of what we expect out of a mob psycho omake. the first one works as a standalone joke page, teru is bad at identifying animals which leads to him showing reigen a roach, something reigen is terrified of, instead of a beetle.

the second page starts similarly, we get a dumbass joke about reigen trying to pick up women at the beach (note: i think this is the singular time we get an indication reigen is even into women) but then the next two panels take on a more melancholic tone again. we get a small panel of mob and ritsu playing on the beach and a much, much larger panel of teru sitting on the beach, watching them. the dialogue bubble forces us to pay attention to the fact that he is silent.

the ending of this omake is where we bring it home. generally the last panel centers the punchline of the page, or of the whole omake, but the final panel of this isn't really what was being built to in this case.

we start our second page on teru. his expression is obscured, reigens speech bubble is shoved to the side so we can see that teru's hat is being held in his hands.

when we see his face in full view he looks... confused. he looks like he doesn't know how to react to someone going through all this trouble for him. teru is a character who, up to this moment, we have seen as extremely independent. he always rushes into things alone, he always has to be the hero, he always has to be the one to save the day. hell, this omake is immediately followed by the confession arc. where... you know.

so what are we supposed to get out of this omake?

teru's been doing everything on his own up to this point

but he doesn't have to anymore

[tanoraqui]

Dungeon Meshi Liveblog: In Which Chilchuck Begrudgingly Has Feelings for his Coworkers, and Kabru Has...Something. He Sure Has Something Going On Over There.

Before we continue, I feel I should clarify 2 things:

I've been trying, ish, to avoid spoilers for this comic, but I've watched through the Golden Country episode and more importantly I'm so bad at not reading spoiler-y but interesting- and insightful-looking analysis. So, much of this commentary isn't wholly original and any particularly genius theories of future events are likely made with actual foreknowledge.

When I said on the first post that I was starting the comic because "I need to know what happens", what I specifically meant was "I need to know how the Laios-Kabru dynamic ends up, and the general geopolitical situation, so I can accurately daydream what sort of tariffs they'll set in the kingdom of which Laios is definitely not going to be the one managing the political, economic, or social minutia." Tariffs are going to be important, okay. They're a key way a nation-state interacts with other nation-states, especially one with rare materials to trade, powerful neighbors who want them, and the natural barrier of an ocean. Truly, every fantasy series ever should be required to have an epilogue or many an additional book/season/etc of a The West Wing-style depiction of day-to-day governance of whatever resulted from the story's climactic finale.

Okay, back to the liveblog.

.

Inch resting. The manga characters, having met the Mad Mage, keep using she/her pronouns for them, where in the anime they used he/him. I assume one of these is just, like, wrong - some translation choice was made before truth was revealed later in the course of publication?

But it makes SENSE that the characters wouldn't necessarily know, at this point! The Mage's appearance is pretty gender-neutral, especially as an elf, an notably gender-ambiguous race. So the characters in the manga picked one guess and stuck with it, and the characters is the very slightly alternate timeline of the anime picked another and stuck with that!

Now: having used they/them throughout this musing and previously he/him because a) the show and b) that's what I saw in fandom, I think I'll switch to referring to the Mage with she/her pronouns now. Because A) that's how the thing I'm reading apparently will be doing it, and B) they still call her "Lord of the Dungeon", which is obviously the greatest gender option of all.

...however, the manga does keep saying "lunatic magician" rather than "Mad Mage" (caps mine), which is a TOTAL failing in drama. Always alliterate, preferably archaically.

.

Orc woman: Ugh, this halffoot sucks. I'll tolerate his company only as a favor to the vegetable guy.

Orc woman after listening to Chilchuck complain about his coworkers for an hour: Nvm, this halffoot is a worthy and loyal friend of the vegetable seller, and I guess those other guys too. He's just emotionally constipated about it.

.

Laios just has these soft little fond smiles sometimes and I? want to hug him?

.

MY MAN IS BACK!! Kabru wink count: 1 this chapter, 4 total [updated as I read]

.

Corpse Retriever: If you don't report us for trying to get you guys killed so we could collect a retrieval fee, we'll let you kill those two of our guys who are already unconscious and collect that fee yourselves. We'll just take 30% of it, for not telling on you.

Kabru, internally: Hm. Well, I'm not king of this dungeon yet, but nonetheless I feel comfortable passing and executing a just judgement upon you for your many known, presumed and planned crimes. Emphasis on 'executing.'

Kabru aloud: I accept!

Kabru: [starts killing them with a classic faint, wide-eyed smile]

What a guy. He's even holding that knife so well. Look, next he's analyzing social trends and acting ruthlessly to adjust them toward the direction of the greater good!

What a guy. Truly this is a "so my type that it's embarrassing" situation.

.

I can't efficiently crop panels to show all this, but favorite parallels in these chapters full of parallels:

Kabru's breakdown of the Touden party is like Laios eagerly explaining and analyzing the behavior and anatomy of monsters (including, though we don't know it yet, calculations for killing them - though we DO see him saying that humans are easy to kill because he knows all the physical weak points!)

The references throughout these two chapters, by Kabru and his party, to the interconnected socioeconomic dynamics of the island and dungeon - the corrupted system fails to check corpse retrievers, the Island Lord as an annoying but necessary bulwark against the Elves, the dungeon growing hungrier as fewer adventurers go down because there's less money and more risk - are so so so like Senshi and Laiois discussing the dungeon biome's ecosystem and food pyramid.

The whole vibe of the party re: their respective weirdo tallman leaders. We watched Team Laios develop this, recently crowned with Chilchuck's near-tearful argument to turn back for a rest, which means we can recognize it when we're dropped into it with Team Kabru: that "this guy is SUCH a goddamn weirdo, but I already followed him into some level of hell, so I'm obviously not turning back now." Kabru's party does think he's weird - "You remember so much about other people that it's creepy." "Why are you enjoying this?" But they're also pitching in on the speculation like Team Touden all hel cook monsters. Compare:

Also!! Something something predisposed beliefs and presumptions of others... This party is so eager to assume the worst of our party, even though our party objectively saved them from perma-death twice, once from ghosts and once from being eaten by fishmen. Chichuck is greedy and bossy, Senshi smells so...notably...that he's judged to be sketchy af... Kabru is trying his best with what info he has, he knows it's not enough to pass a judgement and he wants more, but it's very...uncomfortable? To see this sort of discussion of people we know are great, when we're so used to watching monsters be killed with exquisite understanding and respect.

...I'll chew on that angle of theme more later. Man, you know how, say, what makes the musical Hamilton so good is at its heart it's just like 5-10 leitmotifs that interweave to create every single song? Dungeon Meshi is like that. Hmm a Dungeon Meshical...

.

"Yeah, yeah, we've all heard your weekly lecture about how someone responsible and sociopolitically conscious needs to take the dungeon and the throne or everyone in this region is doomed. None of us can wait to see you flip off the Island Lord to his face. Eat your rations, buddy."

.

JUST THE CUTEST, INNOCENTEST, POLITEST, HELPFULEST (WITH NO ULTERIOR MOTIVATIONS WHATSOEVER) YOUNG MAN!! LOOK AT HIS BIG BLUE EYES AND EAGER LITTLE SMILE!

[3 seconds earlier:

I'm obsessed. In the spirit of this comic: I want to eat him with a spoon. I want to take small divots out of him and lick each one carefully off the spoon, luxuriously exploring and enjoying the complex texture and flavor. Like he's a really good pudding. And then I want to see if, if he and Laios kiss, do they both explode in antimatter.

[bontenten]

METAMORPHOSES 03 || An Heir

Pairings: Zenin Naoya x f!reader, Gojo Satoru x f!reader (unrequited) WC: 3.9k Series Genre/Warnings: smut, noncon/dubcon, emotional/physical abuse, yandere, Naoya, misogyny, arranged marriage, pregnancy, miscarriage, birth, lactation, manga spoilers, more dead doves

A/N: oh i veryy much enjoyed writing this chapter, ty for patience since last updates! 

Series Masterlist

“My lady, your condition can be considered stable now. Since this is your first pregnancy, there are still many things your body is not used to. The young master’s energy is also dense, causing your body to become frail. It’s paramount that you meditate everyday to keep your energies in balance for the developing child. I will write a prescription for a tonic which you should take three times daily. Rest and keep a stress-free, open mind until your delivery date.” 

The Zenin physician placed his tools back into his chest. He flipped open his notebook and began to scribble a list of ingredients. The tense atmosphere in the room settled down. 

“You will be the one responsible for bringing the medicine. Should anything happen, you will answer with your life in the disciplinary pit.” Naoya threatened. 

“Y-Yes, Young Master Naoya, of course. I will do everything in my power to take care of the lady.” 

You squeezed Naoya’s hand and tried to comfort the doctor currently scared out of his wits. “Thank you, Doctor. You may go now, I’m a bit tired.”

The earlier spasms of pain and vertigo had everyone in a panic. It came so suddenly, you were unprepared and before you knew it, you woke to Naoya’s immense killing intent burying the room.

To say that this pregnancy was difficult was an understatement.

--

After that incident, Naoya forbade you from having any form of excursion and threatened servants left and right to take care of menial tasks. You had to tell him to stop yelling so much lest he scared the baby in your belly. Only then would he quiet down a bit and mutter, "My son isn’t that useless."

“You know…we could have a girl too.” You waited for a response.

Naoya wrapped his arms around you, a hand resting over your belly. “I will have no weakling girl.” 

Then the two of you, along with the one growing inside of you, fell into slumber.

--

Akiko, having gone through the process of pregnancy and childbirth, often checked in on you and answered any questions you had. She was very strict about the pregnancy meditation exercises. Under her watch, there wasn’t a single day you could slack. The medicine tasted awful, but Akiko insisted you finish the whole bowl. Often, she watched you finish everything, with a piece of candy waiting to wash the bitter taste away. In many ways, she was the mother figure in your life.

Mai and Maki stopped spending time with you after they began their lessons. You wondered if you made the right choice in sending them to training, but ultimately, in this clan, you knew they had no choice. You knew they were talented, in ways that you could never amount to. Strength meant everything.

--

One evening, while Naoya was still at a clan meeting and Akiko was away, you decided to charge your old phone. You weren’t allowed anywhere near it during your pregnancy, not that you had much need for it. It was bad for the baby, was what they told you. But the device was still something for you to fiddle with, the size felt like it just belonged in the hand. You flipped it open. To your surprise, you had gotten a number of missed calls from someone you would never have imagined—Gojo Satoru. You hesitated, but dialed back, wondering what could have happened.

The sound of his voicemail was playing in your head already. Except he picked up.

“Finally, it’s been ages. When will your clan ever embrace new tech?”

“Satoru,” you greeted. “What a surprise, I didn’t think you would have anything come to me about.”

He chuckled. “Can’t I call if I missed you?” 

“I’m married now, if you need to be reminded.” You looked down at your midsection. “And very pregnant.”

“Oh, I know you’re knocked up.” The breathy voice seemed to tickle your ear. Gojo was probably laying down, on a couch or a bed. “A main branch Zenin spawn is probably pretty difficult I assume? How are you still doing?”

“Pampered suffocation.”

“Good, good. It’s probably best you’re relaxed, take a seat. How is the Zenin young master?”

“Naoya…yes, he treats me well.” You smiled at the memory of him during lunch. He had personally sliced and plated fruit for you.

“Honestly, I didn’t even think that his spouse would end up being you. Glad to hear it though. And have you talked with your father at all recently?”

No. 

“They’re busy,” you explained.

“Too busy to even visit or inquire about their daughter?”

Gojo’s question stumped you. The question that you had wondered about ever since the first day was finally spoken out loud. Even for a clan as strict as the Zen’in, surely if you couldn’t visit home, they could’ve paid you a visit? A phone call?

“I figured. What wonderful parents you have.” Gojo’s lighthearted voice switched to a serious tone. “I suppose you still deserve to know the truth.”

He explained that he’s been working on a perplexing phenomenon of curses in a few districts. There was typically some sort of pattern to where they appeared, their type, and their strength. The data was odd and Gojo had studied each of the cases in detail. But it didn’t make sense to you. 

“Satoru,” you interrupted him. “I’m not really following?”

“Did you not understand? I just explained—”

“Yes, but why,” you exasperated. Images of your clansmen, covered in a white cloth, being brought back from the streets flooded your mind. Blood-soaked bandages and screams while the clan physician strained himself to attend to all the wounded. The nights your mother stayed up late waiting for your father’s team to return. The visceral chaos and stench of death loomed over everyone you loved. "You know what happened. The cursed spirits had been growing in power and they were overrunning the clan's wards. If Naoya hadn't helped, more the sorcerers would've—"

A dry laugh cut you off. "Would've been just fine if not for the youngest son of Naobito trying to win you over. Helped your clan? Who even told you that? Was it your father when the Zenin proposed? And you really just believed them? You're more stupid than I had thought. Were you a shy, bashful bride eager to be a little plaything for your clan’s hero? You never even wondered why it was only your clan's ward that was badly affected? Time to wake up, princess. Why would anyone from your family want to speak to the sacrificial lamb and reason for all their suffering?"

Hang-up, your mind screamed at you. How dare he point the blame at you. Where were you when I was in trouble Satoru?

“And why should I believe you?” 

“Oh, you don’t have to. A bastard and a dimwit make a lovely pair.”

You swallowed as your head grew dizzy and began breathing heavily in an attempt to intake more oxygen.

Gojo realized his harsh tone and sighed. “Are you still there? Listen, I know there wasn’t much you could’ve done anyway. I’m just telling you this because I suppose we were acquainted in our youth.”

Acquainted. Just acquainted. But more importantly, all that you have known, all that you believed for the past years were being torn apart and rearranged in the span of fifteen minutes.

“Yes. Thank you, Satoru,” you managed to whisper.

“I realize this is probably a surprise, but I also want to assure—” He was cut off by the sound of a woman calling his name in the background.

“I’m needed elsewhere; take care.” 

You set the phone down after Satoru hung up and sat in silence trying to piece together the information that was just dumped onto you. You fell back onto the mattress, a hand over your belly. A heaviness weighed down your chest. It was madness to believe the words of the man on the other side of the phone. What was he to you now? No one. Your father and mother explained everything to you. Who was he to tell you what was the truth?

The relief when everyone saw the Zenin clan symbol on the guest’s hakama couldn’t have been fabricated. The hope in people’s faces wasn’t a lie. Even though you were hiding behind the screen doors at the time, the sincerity in his voice when he asked your father for your hand had to be true. That man saved the whole clan. Serve him well. If Naoya was the hero, why were those the parting words from your family on the day of your wedding?

A quiet knock pulled you out of your thoughts. “My lady, I have brought your tonic.”

The room was completely dark already. Who knows how long you’ve laid there trying to make sense of everything? 

You dragged yourself to the door and found a young girl holding a wooden serving tray with a bowl of bitter, black liquid. “Lady Akiko is currently away. She tasked me to bring this to your ladyship.”

You picked up the bowl and quickly downed the contents. It didn’t taste quite as foul as you had remembered. “Is the meeting over?” 

“It should be ending around this time. Should I escort you to the main hall?”

“No...I can go by myself,” you said, dismissing her. 

You had to hear it from Naoya himself. He was your husband.

Every week, the main branch had a formal meeting. As you got closer to the main hall, you could hear the footsteps shuffling as the men in the room were wrapping up. Quite murmurs and grumbles over the meetings slipped through the cracks. The first person to exit the sliding door was Naoya. He had a scowl on his face, no doubt, the meeting took a turn for the worse as well, but it faded into a relaxed grin when he saw you, coming over.

“What a change to see you here waiting for me. I am starving—”

He was about to check on you when he noticed your blank expression and puffy eyes. You got straight to the point, spoiling the atmosphere in an instant.

"Naoya…”

Naoya’s eyes lost their initial glimmer. He noticed a few other clansmen looking your way.

“If there’s anything to discuss, you may bring it up later in our room,” he said firmly. He didn’t know the reason for your unsettling expression, but whatever it was that was on your mind, he did not want a scene.

Naoya thought back to the irritating meeting and the currently disintegrating relationship with the Gojo clan. The Gojos were being extremely selfish, trying to take control of the Jujutsu Sorcerer Committee's favor. All of them were envious of the Zenins, trying to push the clan off its pedestal. Naoya fumed at the thought of the six-eyed Satoru who had always been treated as the pride and hope of the jujutsu society. They were close in age, and despite the two never meeting often, Naoya heard more than enough about society's adulation of the infamous sorcerer.

He couldn’t hear what you were mumbling under your breath, but the few words he caught and the name of his nemesis told him that it was definitely not going to be a pleasant conversation. He easily scooped you up despite your protests and pounding fists on his shoulders. With a few long strides, entered the hallway near your quarters. Only then, away from prying eyes, did he set you down.

 “Is it true?”

Naoya heard it clearly this time.

He eyed you for a moment and scoffed, looking away in disdain. "Woman, what are you rambling on about right now? Can't you tell I'm not in a good mood? I said, let's go back."

“No.” Your irritation struck a nerve. “Tell me right now. Is it true that you were the one responsible for planting  those high-level curses into my clan's ward?"

Ignoring the squeeze on your arm, you continued, “Satoru told me everything.”

Naoya felt a vein throb in his temple when he heard the name slip from your mouth.

“How you plotted and controlled the curses to attack our sorcerers right after a battle. Those curses, they were all picked from the disciplinary room right? Special Zenin locked curses. You would let my people get hurt till they were close to death before showing up. Satoru told me everything, what more do you have to say?"

"Satoru, Satoru, Satoru. Do you just blindly believe anything he tells you?"

"Who am I supposed to believe, you?” you snapped back. “Satoru told me how you threatened my family, that's why they never said anything to me up until now.” Maybe you would still be at home, with family and loved ones.

You glared at Naoya in shock as the sting on your face settled into a sharp burn. He took a step back and pointed at you, confused and disoriented. “You. You forced me.” 

 This was the first time he actually struck you in this way. 

"What are you going to do Naoya? Kill your own wife and child? Is that how you solve all of your problems? With your oh-so-powerful, inherited Zenin techniques?" You turned and began to walk away. "You're fucking pathetic."

"Don't you dare turn your back on me!" he roared after you. "Stop right there!"

There was no room for fear while fury lit your eyes. You ignored the rest of Naoya's threats and stormed back to your room. Naoya was responsible for everything. He lied to you. He manipulated everyone and oppressed your clan. And you believed all of his sweet words, and enjoyed his kisses and touches. Your numb cheek taunted you.

You slid the door open, but your feet couldn’t budget. You gasped and felt excruciating pain stabbing in your belly. You clutched your midsection as cold sweat ran down your back. The last thing you heard was someone frantically calling your name.

–

“Do something!” 

“Young Master, t-there’s no response.” 

“I don’t fucking care, do something!”

“W-We’ll have to induce labor…and—”

Naoya glared.

“Yes! Yes understood!”

--

The lights in the room were so bright. In just a couple of weeks, a life could have filled this space. It would have been a boy, just as everyone had hoped. Now only silence accompanies you and your breasts that ached painfully. You never even got to see him. Did he look like you or his father? 

You sat in the empty nursery room that you had spent the last few months pouring your time and feelings into. As if the loss of your unborn child hadn’t been difficult enough, the hushed whispers of the clan had been torturous. You had felt eyes from members of the main branch to the attendants, all hundred pairs of eyes surveying you whenever you had walked down the hall, scrutinizing the woman who was incapable of carrying the Zenin heir to full term.

You lost track of how long you sat in mourning. Time ticked by slowly, but eventually, a day became two days. A week passed by and to your horror, your breasts full and swollen with milk, finally had to empty its contents. Milk leaked out your nipples uncontrollably.

Perhaps it was the presence of the milk and no child in your arms to feed the liquid to. Reality finally hit you while you poured another cup of milk down the sink.

The door slid open. It was Akiko bringing your meal. She knelt down next to you and pulled you into her arms. Her steady hand ran over your shoulders as she quietly said, "If you want to cry, then just let it out. There's no one else here."

You felt your nose prickle as the familiar sensation of tears spilled from your eyes. They soaked through Akiko's kimono, but she did not seem to mind, only resting her hand on your back while you wailed. You blamed everything on the father of your unborn child. It was Naoya who was responsible, you were sure of it. He took the child from you with his temper and violence. You cried for yourself and your unborn child.

Mai and Maki had once confided in you that their mother gave up on them. They had told you that their mother never stood up for them in front of their father and that you had been the only one who tried to give them care and love. And here you were crying in their mother's arms as a failure. Akiko may not have been able to do everything for her girls, but you couldn't even protect your child's life. 

–

You just finished a bath and were about to go to sleep in the nursery again. It was the only place you had some privacy and peace. Except, the room wasn’t empty at all.

“What are you doing here?” you asked coldly, arms folded.

Naoya saw you enter, and placed the decorative toy back on its shelf. He crossed over languidly, arm resting on the frame right over your head. His presence made you dizzy, but you refused to yield a single step. He also recently bathed, a bitter herbal scent clung to skin.

“Did you think that you could avoid me forever?” he murmured next to your ear.

Your eyes met with his. At this distance, you could make out the details of his irises. Naoya’s eyes were undeniably beautiful and intoxicating. “One day at a time, I’ll get there eventually.” You made a move to push him away.

“Foolish woman,” he chuckled and took your hands. “It’s time to go back to normal.”

Naoya pressed his lips on your palm. “I missed you. I need you,” he crooned. 

“Naoya, we can never be the same anymore. Not after—” You gestured to the room. “This.”

“We’ll have another. Once you’re with another, the clan will naturally stop talking.” 

“Don’t touch me. As if I’m some breeding cattle.” Naoya didn’t seem the least bit fazed by your attempts to break out of his grasp. His silence taunted you, daring you to challenge his authority. 

“I’ll never forgive you,” you snarled. All you could do was glare at him. “It’s all your fucking fault.”

Naoya tilted your face towards him. Fingers traveled down your neck and tightly squeezed. Your cheeks burned.

The air thickened as Naoya’s cursed energy began to fill the space. “In this lifetime, you belong to me. Accept your fate.”

Lips roughly closed over yours. The pressure around your neck made your head spin. Your fists hammered his chest in a futile attempt. 

Naoya yanked your robe open. Your nipples were heavy and swollen. Wet. He cupped your breast and squeezed the soft flesh, completely fixated on the spray of white milk spurting out. Your cheeks burned in embarrassment, but the relief you felt from the release felt so good.

“Did that feel good?” he sneered before tugging and pressing on your breast some more. The front of his robes was covered by wet splatters. 

 “N-No,” you rasp, feeling Naoya’s hand travel towards your navel, tugging the waist-tie that was barely circled around your waist. He lifted one of your thighs to expose your dripping entrance. Cold air brushed against your thighs. “Not in here. Not in this room,” you begged, tears pooling in your eyes.

“Troublesome woman,” Naoya muttered and set you down. He clasped his palms together and began to draw an immense amount of cursed energy. “Domain Expansion: Time Cell Moon Palace.”

The nursery melted away as the space transformed into a dark void. This was the first time you’ve been taken into a domain, and it made you feel both weak and nauseous. A giant eye stared down at you, iris dilated, prying, and peering into your existence.

“No complaints here, right? Don’t even think about escaping.” 

Everything happened so quickly. You felt your back sink into a fleshy substance, legs folded and knees pressed up against your face.

“Wait, Nao—” And he was in you. You gripped Naoya’s biceps to stabilize yourself, nails imprinted deeply. A shudder escaped your lips after the initial jolt of pain. By reflex, you clamped tightly around him.

“Fuck,” he growled. “How are you still so tight?”

The dull ache remained from the recent trauma remained with every thrust Naoya made. Pleasure and pain are tightly bonded together. Disgust at the moan that slipped from your throat that earned a predatory smile. It drove him to pound you harder. His rough hand squeezed your breasts, spraying your overflowing milk supply. It splashed onto his face dripping down his jawline onto your face and lips. This was perhaps the first and only time you could imagine tasting your own milk. Naoya wiped his face and licked the opaque fluid off his fingers.

“It’s sweet,” he remarked, surprised by the taste. And almost feral, as though he had discovered something rare and precious, he dipped his head down to lap up the tiny puddles on the contours of your body. His tongue traced your enlarged and pert nipples, sucking on the sensitive bud to encourage more milk flow. You arched your back towards him, grinding your hips desperately in tears as you reached your climax.

Naoya grunted, feeling close. He held onto your hips and increased his pace until he came in you, filling your womb with a load of hot, white seed.

The darkness that surrounded you began to falter under Naoya’s distraction. The momentary weakness that came with the sexual release was like a pinhole in a balloon. Darkness melted away. The voyeuring eye disappeared, replaced in your vision by a mobile with soft plushies hung on a cotton rope. Nausea washed away the lingering, twitching pleasure.

“Get out,” you hoarsely whispered.

Still drunk on hormones, Naoya felt dizzy and confused. “What did you say?” 

Milk and semen stuck to your skin. Mustering all the energy remaining in you, you repeated. "Get out. Get out. Get out."

The demand-plea came out in constricted wheezes as your body convulsed and shook.

"Tch. "A scowl replaced Naoya's drunken expression. Completely fed up, he left you laying among the stained blankets. "You make me sick, woman," he spat at you. 

The room was finally empty. You laid there unmoving and naked, staring blankly at the ceiling.

[empressofthewind]

Hey there, Meronia fan! Do you mind if I ask for Meronia fics recs? And, do you have any fav ships (from any fandom) that the dynamics remind you of Mello/Near?

You can't imagine, how excited I am to find your blog. Let's just say in my older anime/manga group who love Death Note mostly ship Lawlight & Matt/Mello, anti Meronia and are Near haters. So when I said I love Meronia, some blocked me and said I was the weird one. So, I never said it again. But now, after I got out from that group I feel better. Then finding your blog with amazing Mello and Near's metas, I'm so happy! Thanks for your blog...

Thank you very much!!! I'm so happy to hear this :-) in my experience most people on Tumblr are pretty normal about Meronia, and it's SO easy to block/filter users who aren't.

Unfortunately re: ships with similar dynamics, I can't think of any off the top of my head, but I'll put this post in the ship tag; I'm sure someone else will have an answer!! In terms of fic recs, I've actually set up my bookmarks page on AO3 to function like a rec list. I have 36 fics there each with a little blurb and I'm constantly updating it, so hopefully a decent amount that you haven't read! I'll pick 10 of them to link here for easy access (ordered by rating in case you can't/don't want to read the mature ones):

the roof by @lightningblade | 3692 words | Rated T

This is a college AU focused on the development of Mello and Near's relationship through a series of encounters on a rooftop. The writing is GORGEOUS, the progression is masterfully done, and it removes the element of the rivalry without removing the core of what makes Meronia such a great ship! There's also a companion piece up as of yesterday which I'm still recovering from (very very positive).

Dear Mello by @tzviaariella | 4158 words | Rated T

This fic is written during the canon timeline through a series of emails. It's an AU where Mello survives, originally written for the 2023 Meronia Zine but also posted on AO3 (which is what I've linked here). The format is really creative and I'm OBSESSED with the way Mello and Near's dynamic is written. The petty back-and-forth is very entertaining and in-character, and there's a certain familiarity and fondness underlying it that I adore. There are also a few artworks throughout which is a nice treat!!

How to Get Any Guy to Fall in Love with You by Sick_head_Sweet_heart | 7025 words | Rated T

This one has such a late-2000s fandom classic feel to it that I'm surprised it's only a few years old??? It's set at Wammy's House, in which Matt gives Near advice on how to make Mello fall in love with him. The dynamic is insanely cute and I'm obsessed with the way Matt and Near's friendship is characterised here. Them scheming together is something I need more of in fics!!

The Mihael Factor by spiritcrimson | 16 chapters | Rated T

One of the longest completed works I've ever read for Meronia and I have been DYING to find something like this ever since. It's a talent agent x singer AU, and it's literally everything I could have asked for in a longfic. A unique idea, compelling progression and a fun antagonistic dynamic that blossoms into a really sweet romance. It's a slowburn but it doesn't drag on at all, and the ending is SO well worth the wait.

3 + 1 by @squidish | 2423 words | Rated T

x + 1 fics are a favourite trope of mine, as is the general concept of Mello and Near behaving inappropriately in the workplace, and this one combines both of those perfectly. The premise is 3 times Mello and Near got walked in on by one of the SPK members, and 1 time they were caught by the whole group. The writing is SO delightful and there are several lines in this that are permanently lodged in my brain. I find humour in writing immensely difficult to pull off so I'm always in awe of authors who can integrate it naturally, and squidish's writing is a great example of that! (Worth noting that this one is slightly more mature than the other T-rated fics here, so I've put it closer to the M & E section; however the smut scenes are not explicit)

it's friday, i'm in love by @neallo | 2676 words | Rated M

You could read literally anything by neallo and it's guaranteed to be good, but to keep this list short, I've included one angsty fic and one lighthearted fic so you can pick the vibe. This one is more lighthearted, and it depicts a very tender moment in which Mello shows up at Near's door drunk and dances with him in the kitchen. This is a prequel to a bigger AU focusing on a casual relationship between them, but it also holds up as a standalone fic! It's unbearably sweet and there are many lines in there that made me audibly laugh.

Speculation on Demisexual Sex Drive by SayHiDestery | 4069 words | Rated M

The smut scene in this fic is so intimate and perfect, I'm melting just thinking about it. It's an established relationship fic in which Near has PTSD and has certain struggles with intimacy, and Mello guides him through it. It's quite slow-paced and takes its time to linger on the small details, which I absolutely adore, and the writing itself is vivid and beautiful. It also features demisexual Near!!

Winning the Game by clearmain | 4134 words | Rated E

This one is a PWP set mid-canon, immediately after the raid on the SPK. I'm a huge sucker for bold & bratty Near and that's EXACTLY what this fic serves. The way this introduces elements of rivalry and competition into their relationship is excellent and makes this fic feel faithful to their canon dynamic. It's a compelling push-pull with an open but hopeful ending that very succinctly captures the complexities of their relationship.

A Certain Hush by BlueberryAsh | 5434 words | Rated E

One of the first fanfics I read for Meronia and I'm not exaggerating when I say it changed my life. This fic has had SUCH a massive influence on the way I view and write the ship. It's a little glimpse into Mello and Near's relationship immediately after getting together. It's really cute and sweet in a way that feels authentic to the characters, and I'm incredibly impressed by the way it manages to give just enough backstory for their relationship to make sense without getting caught up in the details. Genuinely a masterpiece!

i want to hold you (hostage) by @neallo | 4 chapters | Rated E

The aforementioned angsty neallo fic! This one is an exes AU set during the canon timeline, and it is, as you can imagine, a very fraught dynamic done SO incredibly well. The tension is absolutely delicious and there are earnest moments littered throughout that are guaranteed to have you tearing up. Brilliant setup, brilliant writing, brilliant dynamic; just an absolutely stellar fic on all counts!!

[jjunberry]

HE LOVES ME NOT ˚* ❀ part eight ✎

y/n rushed out of her dorm towards jake’s car. she had her tote bag ready. “should i be worried with how big that bag is?” jake asked when she got in the car. “no i never actually fill it.” the girls laughed. jake sighed before starting the car again. “don’t sigh today will be fun!” she cheered.

jake stopped and got the girl coffee and finally pulled into the parking lot of the bookstore. she squealed before hopping out of the car. jake following behind. her first stop was the new romance books. she picked up a few but was having a hard time balancing all of her belongings. jake noticed and held his hands out. she smiled and placed her phone and coffee in his hands.

jake even wore her tote bag with embroidered flowers on his shoulder. “i think i like this one.” she said putting it in the bag. she ventured over into the next genre which was manga. her fingers grazed over the different books. she finally settled on her sailor moon.”can i get two of these?” she asked. jake nodded. “of course.” she smiled and grabbed the next two in the series she didn’t have yet.

she placed them in her bag before scurrying off. jake tried his best to keep up with her. “y/n?” he called out when he finally did end up losing her. he couldn’t call her because he was holding her phone for her.

he decided to just go look at the different collectables since she’d have to find him anyway. he had her tote bag after all. her phone kept buzzing and buzzing. curiosity got the better of him and he peaked at her lockscreen. multiple messages flashed across her screen.

his eyes widened when he took notice to the name and contact picture. heeseung. “no way.” he said. “no way what?” her voice startled him. jake jumped and turned towards her. “no way you only want three books.” he laughed it off.

“i told you not to be worried!” she laughed and took all of her belongings back. her tote bag on her shoulder. she unlocked her phone and frowned. “is everything okay?” jake asked. she sighed and nodded. “i think so, my boyfriend is messaging me.” she started walking towards the check out. jake followed.

unsure if he should tell her he knows about heeseung. he knows what heeseung has been up to. “how..how long have you been dating him?” the girl furrowed her eyebrows. “just about a year and a half now.” she said placing the books on the counter. jake felt his stomach drop. in the last few months all the girls he’s seen heeseung with. not one of them being y/n.

he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. does he tell her? would she be mad he’s friends with him? would she be mad he read the messages? would she not be his friend anymore?

their day was cut short when y/n had to meet up with her friends. jake didn’t protest. he needed time away from her to think. think about what he was going to do with this new found information.

masterlist

tag list ˚* ❀ @jjunieworld @304files @mrchweeee @sionshiii @kayleeshinee @crybqbyme @yizhoutv @jaeyunluvr (if your name is bold i couldn’t tag you)

author’s note ˚* ❀ i need to start updating this more often! im sorry y’all 😭 forgive me

love, echo ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪

© jjunberry

[marcia-11111]

Daffodils. III. The broken souls pt. 1

I apologize for the very late update, however last half a year was quite hectic and unstable for me - from a toxic job to the exams. But now, I'm better.

Tag list: @idk-bro-gay @kiopanxp @hellothere9597 @hsxhype @mareonyan @is2sae

TW!

Breakup, angst, and heartache

Sae Itoshi is a Japanese prodigy pursuing his dream of becoming the world's best midfielder. In the race to his own goals, he loses the person dearest to him: you. 

(y/n) (l/n) - Sae’s ex-partner. You are an exchange student from a Spanish university who came to Japan. You met him a few years ago during your year abroad in Spain and became his partner. You have moved on, or you thought you had. However, what will happen when the one who wanted you to avoid him the most finds himself again in your life? Is he going to prove his love to you? Or will everything turn into another heartbreak? Does your heart want the Japanese prodigy back?

All "Blue lock" characters belong to the authors of the manga and anime "Blue lock".

Please don't translate, plagiarise nor use my works on other social media platforms, etc.

----------------------------

Trying to find a student job abroad was such a hassle. Only a couple of days have passed since you came to Japan in search of a peaceful year, having known of him not being fond of his homeland. However, fate is full of surprises. 

For some, love was simply not a part of their destiny. It must've hurt, but it was the truth, especially for you. Why would a heart decide to suffer instead of leaving all the emotions behind? 

You have already been jobhunting for a couple of hours, but everywhere seemed to be well-staffed or you're unqualified for the job. Regardless how hard you tried, you're left with no option. 

"What a hassle." A sigh escapes your lips. Out of nowhere, a window pops out—a job offer for a soccer club manager, part-time. “Blue Lock? That popular programme?” You read it out loud. The description seems quite fitting, and you lack any other options. “But if it is soccer...” You released a sigh. No need to worry; the possibility of Sae coming there is low. You decide to apply. Fortunately, it's a smooth process that you could finish quickly. 

“Now, there is some time for myself!” You chuckle and turn on the TV. The sight of the next minute causes you to flinch. “Sae…”

“Itoshi Sae, the prodigy midfielder’s last assist, caused Royale Youth to win against the FC Barcelona team; however, the soccer player refused the interview offer!” You sigh once more and load a (f/m) to watch. “No need to think about him.” Still, the lingering feelings in your heart remain unchanged, no matter how much time passes. A single tear streams down your cheek. 

“...”

“Hah. What a time we had.” You focus on the movie instead, struggling to abandon the sadness in your heart. 

Sae’s POV

Everything has seemed bland since that day I had discarded everything I deemed worthy of my attention. All of my life had lost its color. I destroy everything I came across as it should (not) be. 

I walked across the beach aimlessly - the shore reminded me of the better days before Madrid, fame and the force of expectations, insatiable greed and hurtful pride. I became a hope of Japanese soccer, but… No, I am not like that. Whom I wish to fool? The outside world crushed me and molded in a form the child self of mine wouldn’t recognize, a cynical person whose mean words hide the hurt.

“Ugh.” I sigh. The sun shone brightly, blinding me for a moment. A moment later, I notice something (f/c) on the sand. Usually I wouldn’t give a damn about an item, but some unknown force convinced to pick it up. My eyes widen. “W-wait.”

Breathe in. Breathe out. It’s (y/n)’s handwriting. But how come they’re? Especially, after everything that has happened. I didn’t dare topen the diary, but when I stood up straight, a photo fell out. It looks drenched with tears. Tears, which didn’t have time to dry up yet. It means they’re here not that long ago. But how do I dare think about her? Finally, I leave the beach, hoping that my past mistakes wouldn’t haunt me.