#DARK INUOKKO SAVE ME

[mana-jjk]

tw: lisa frankenstein spoilers, jjk implied spoilers, violence, implied suicide, horror themes, im not kidding this is a hilariously violent movie, bullying, non-explicit loss of limbs, you know the works

I AM THE SPIRIT OUTSIDE RATTLING YOUR WINDOWS

i watched lisa frankenstein and immediately thought of inuokko because i am entirely not normal !! the greatest part is that this story would work both ways so just sprint with me right now

my preference for insane yuuta is entirely prevalent btw

option 1:

yuuta’s entire family moves after the sudden death of his childhood friend to give him a fresh start. he struggles to find a place to belong in school, and struggles even more in the bad relationship with his parents. his little sister is one of his last positive relationships and tries her best to keep him included. he spends most of his time in an abandoned ceremony, at a grave of a boy who died at his age, accused of witchcraft.

he has a parasocial relationship with him in that he’s absolutely obsessed with the concept of a loner, rejected by society, just like him. and spends hours just talking to him, taking care of his grave, and staring at his statue like a weirdo !

after a party gone wrong, where he drank spiked punch and after being pestered about a girlfriend, he goes back to the cemetery in time to see the beloved grave get struck by lightning. hence toge rising from the dead, confused but recognizing yuuta’s voice from being the only person to talk to him. his throat is damaged from being hanged, some of his skin has been damaged enough to see the bone, and he’s missing an arm.

yuuta hides him in his room, and toge hears everything. one night, after a particularly bad one-sided argument between yuuta and his father, toge thought he was going to hurt the only person to be kind to him. so for the first time since he died, he used his abilities and killed the man. immediately after he was remorseful and afraid yuuta would hate him, but he got the exact opposite reaction. yuuta was so touched that someone would go to such lengths for him, and strangely delighted by the gruesome scene. enough to where he wanted to recreate it.

so yuuta starts picking off the people who bullied him, harvesting what toge needs to be put together again. they diy a lab with lightning and every time toge looks more and more alive until you couldn’t tell him apart from any other person. he gets more confident in school too, becoming friends with maki and panda who see him as a little weirdo. in the process, yuuta falls in love with him beyond the parasocial relationship of before, especially when toge accepts his new murderous habits so easily.

eventually they’re found out after yuuta ends the second parental figure and his sister walks in on him. she’s devastated, traumatized, and runs out of the house covered in blood. he decides then to join toge and so they can start a new life together. a few months later, they’re not even a thought in anyone’s mind, except for his sister who keeps their existence a secret, living with their uncle gojo.

option 2:

toge has just moved in with a distant relative after the last of his immediate family was murdered. the trauma of witnessing their deaths led to his already selective mutism to complete silence. he is bullied at his new school, especially since he doesn’t defend himself. his classmates maki and panda take him under their wing, but he spends most of the time at the cemetery.

it’s quiet there, abandoned and full of greenery. there’s also a grave of a boy who died of a broken heart after a life of sadness. he spends a lot of time there, just sitting alone and keeping company to this lonely boy. he leaves behind a handmade charm, hoping to give him a little peace. it’s something he hopes someone might care enough to do for him someday. he’s already planning to request his very own burial at this peaceful place.

panda invites him to go to a party, but after being harassed about his voice and separated from his friends, he ends up stumbling home, half-drunk from an awful concoction. it’s there that he finds yuuta, fresh from the grave. he’s missing an eye, ear, leg, and covered in cuts that crisscross across his face and chest. in his hands, he holds the charm toge made for him. after a mini freak out, he cleans him up and hides him in his room. yuuta talks in slurring words but his eyes are full of wonder at the kindness he gives him. he follows him like a hobbling lost puppy, nearly getting him caught several times.

it’s when one of the biological, older, slightly bum kids who has been harassing toge since he came that he moves to protect him. he doesn’t even hesitate before he’s bursting out of the closet to strangle him. afterwards, they take his leg and toge sews it onto yuuta, who almost looks up at him like he’s waiting for approval. toge knows it was wrong, should tell him not to do it again, but part of him couldn’t help but feel protected for the first time in his life. and yuuta, who was so kind to him, was still suffering, wasn’t he? so maybe he couldn’t help but notice that one of his bullies has striking silver eyes.

it’s not hard to lure them, and yuuta takes care of the rest. diligently, toge replaces the lost parts until yuuta looks just as alive as he does. in return, yuuta encourages him to stop hiding his face, enough to where others begin to notice him. the moment yuuta is complete, he swings toge around until he laughs and then kisses him.

they aren’t actually caught before they leave, they both want to start over, and hearing that toge is a suspect is enough for them to book town. he decides to join yuuta, it works as now everyone thinks he’s dead. the only person with their suspicions is maki, who visits his grave with panda regularly, and sees the charm she knows toge made.

listen to me very carefully when i tell you we NEED more dark inuokko, and by that i do not mean sadness. i physically cannot read angst without a happy ending. i mean unhinged, crazy, mutually obsessed inuokko that don’t burn each other, they just burn the world around them. THANK YOU AND GOOD NIGHT !!

also please watch lisa frankenstein, scream about this with me in my asks, and share your dark inuokko fic ideas !!

[tunamayojazz]

Love your art, any Toge/Yuuta fanfic recommendations? Thanks so much!!

hi!! thank you so much...🥺🩷🩷 and i am SO glad you asked this. i have so many!! here are the ones i read/reread more recently along with some of the tags. tried to make every rec here different from each other hehe have fun reading!!! can't help it (if you look like an angel) by glimmiks (12.4k)

tags: college au, friends to lovers, mutual pining, IKEA

THIS WAS SO FUN TO READ PLEASEEEE i absolutely love college aus so much. and you just know the 2nd years would be the most fun and chaotic as college students. their dynamic is just chefs KISS, and it's written so well here. the mutual pining in here is truly a 10-course meal and i always go back for another round.

i'm alright if you're alright by anonymous (14.2k)

tags: spoilers up to ch146, fluff, hurt/comfort, injury recovery, fix-it, love confessions, pining

post-shibuya fic excellence. i always have such a great time reading this like inuokkos really do eat so well in this fandom. yuta pining is always so great to read like he is Longingly thinking about toge at all times im cry

Magnificently Cursed by diggingupthegrave (91.2k)

tags: dark academia, magic au, magic school au, slow burn, angst, mutual pining

i will always always recommend diggingupthegrave fics. they are easily my favorite inuokko writer pls you have to read all their inuokko fics...i saved this particular one of theirs to read for much later bc i knew it was going to change my life (7 chapters ok) and boy did it do exactly that. the way they implemented canon elements into a magic setting was so so brillaint and i savored every bit of it.

Beat the Turtle Drum by CasuallyScreaming (7.4k) tags: major character death, post-shibuya incident arc, angst, minimal comfort, no shibuya spoilers read this before sleeping the other night and honestly how i managed to still fall asleep after was my body trying to protect me from full out bawling and having a mental breakdown...i don't think i've read a lot of MCD inuokko but god this one shook me to my core. almost like the feeling of loss and grief were bleeding through my phone screen. so well written and while it's definitely mostly painful, the ending....well you'll find out :')

a special occasion by Cheshire (2.5k) tags: idiots in love, established relationship, first dates this was so so cute...!!!!!!! panda: but aren't you two already dating? yuta: well yes! no. sorta, kinda. super cozy and fluffy read!!

is this how every day begins? by mitgi (5.4k) tags: roommates, living together, mutual pining, hurt/comfort, angst i will always love me a roommate au. this fic was such a lovely read and i'm actually going to reread this right after i finish writing this! there's so much to explore in inuokko's relationship and also when it's in different settings. every time i think about how the actual source material are literal crumbs, i'm just even more amazed by how writers are able to draw out the most of what info we have and write their mannerisms so well. it all feels right and so WARM UOGHHHHH

haunted by sieling_fan (3.3k)

tags: pining, hurt/comfort, canon typical angst, character study

😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

you showed up just in time by diggingupthegrave (14.6k)

tags: time travel, friends to lovers, mutual pining, hurt/comfort, slight age gap

another diggingupthegrave fic that had me crying screaming shaking throwing up because god. this was so so good. the build up had me at the edge of my seat bc like oh my god what happened? what's happening?? why is this like that? @#$%^&*()_!!!!!!!!!!!!! and when it's all pieced together? oh it ended me. read this again and again for DAYS you would think i was researching it for a thesis or something. take your time reading this btw like im so serious.

okie that's all for me from now, i have so many more to rec honestly....sending out 100000000000 hearts to inuokko writers you are my roman empire....

[mana-jjk]

do you have any song/playlist that reminds you of inuokko?

hey anon !! i’m about to so severely disappoint you with my non-unique music taste but i put as much thought as possible into this ;;

heavenly - cigarettes after sex

my love mine all mine - mitski

rises the moon - liana flores

gilded lily - cults

to love - suki waterhouse

never let me go - florence + the machine

july - sir chloe

past lives - børns

okay that’s my short 30 minute playlist ｡ﾟ(ﾟ´��`ﾟ)ﾟ｡ now i’ll just break down why i picked them ! spoilers under the cut!

heavenly

the best part of inuokko to me is just how gentle and soft they are with each other. this song in the entirety, sound, vibes, etc. gives everything about their dynamic to me. when i hear it, i picture midnight, moonlight, toge running his hands in yuuta’s hair, falling asleep with his fingers still tangled, yuuta looking up at the soft curve of his face while he breathes in his sleep.

my love mine all mine

i think the soft almost possessive vibe of the song with the tinge of loss adds to the same vibe as heavenly. the way that they just love each other so entirely, yet still have to be willing to sacrifice themselves at any given moment. they just want to be together but know how likely it is to have their lives cut short. it’s rocking in the kitchen on socked feet, sharing gloves on one hand and holding the other, a cold hand against a fevered forehead, cherry cough syrup and silver rings. devotion and disbelief all at once with an iron-clad grip that doesn’t know how to let go unless its torn apart.

rises the moon

i think this song especially fits that period where toge was recovering from being traumatically amputated. being by himself, in a haze of pain, in and out of consciousness, and knowing that he’ll never be the same. i can see the possibility of hallucinations, seeing yuuta through bleary eyes and reaching out with his only arm, only to meet emptiness, darkness, desolation. the thought of his friends, of the people he loved, the only thing to keep him going. this line in particular: “days pull you up like a daffodil, uprooted from its garden. they’ll tell you what you owe, but know even so, rises the moon.” just gives so much of toge being pushed back into battle, 17 with blood on his lips and an empty sleeve, but his moon, the people he loves, are there to catch him.

gilded lily

this song can fit both yuuta and toge, separate and together. it’s so easy to forget that they’re so young, yet have endured so much that just cracks their souls apart. yuuta lost rika, inadvertently killed and injured everyone around him, was ostracized by his family except for his sister who was hurt by rika, killed his teacher’s ‘best friend,’ was forced to leave his friends, came back to find the people he loved most hurt or gone, experienced the culling games, fighting in the war on curses, and watched you know who die knowing he was the next line of defense, one of the only special grades left. toge likely experienced an abusive childhood, lived his entire life as a weapon, his voice actively hurts or kills people around him, his cursed speech actively tears apart his throat, was the first to be sent on missions alone, actively sacrifices himself, was amputated a week after his birthday, was allowed to recover for 2 weeks before being sent back into battle, and watched the person who likely saved his life die. their lives are sacrifice after sacrifice, yet the care they have for each other is somehow enough. drunk dreams of running away, hiding in a place where they don’t have to fear every

never let me go - florence + the machine

this song is so finding your person and comfort you never could have imagined coded. having life and the ocean weather you so completely to where you just feel hollow. but then you find someone as broken as you and find that your jagged edges can be filled with gold. oversized blankets and cups of tea, the soft blue of the tv, every flinch from a loud noise soothed by the quiet, by the comfort, cold toes tucked under thighs, soft exasperation with exaggerated sighs, a thumb soothing the wrinkle of a brow.

july

while the rest of the songs are very post-shibuya to me, this is very much the falling in love period before yuuta goes abroad. i see this song in toge’s perspective, heavy pining on both sides but the line: “evil secret, you’re the precious thing i hide behind my tongue,” makes me think of toge afraid to curse yuuta with his feelings. and of course, saying goodbye to yuuta going abroad, resolved to ignore his own feelings.

past lives

honestly, every time i read an alternate universe, reincarnation, or fix-it fic, i think about this song. i think yuuta is so intense in his love and affection that in new lives and alternate universes, he may not remember, but the feeling follows him. so he thinks to himself that he must have really loved this person, and what’s left of who he used to be is like you have no idea. the only tragic fic i’ll read that starts with characters dying, needs to fix it in a different universe or reincarnation so i can have a silly little reunion and not cry my eyes out. like imagine this song as a background to yuuta trying to be charming to toge who is a little wtf, and a little charmed.

to love

oh my gosh, when i found this song, it was so inuokko coded to me that i almost made this entire post about it specifically. the first few lines: “i traveled all corners where destiny called me and it almost killed me, but i got good stories. while you were out somewhere in your own nightmare, but now we’re both here and we talk of how lucky we got.” yuuta being in africa while toge was bleeding out in the remains of citizens he tried to protect, and the worst part is that he was lucky. because so many people died, the fact is that he was supposed to die. that small clip of him looking up, it’s almost like he could feel death coming, but somehow he survived. “kept waking up lonely with voices around me. they tell me you’re out there waiting to hold me.” does this not read of toge waiting for yuuta, confused from pain and reaching always reaching for him. “now i found myself this kinda love, i can’t believe. i’ll never leave it behind. i thought i’d never get to feel another fuckin’ feelin’, but i feel this love.” does this not read as yuuta who never thought he’d love again after rika, but has fallen into it so entirely and hopelessly with toge? the parallels of yuuta calling himself blessed, of saying how lucky they are. the possessiveness, the disbelief, the devotion, this is their song !! it’s so easy for them to say i would die for you, they would die for each other but they would die for maki, panda, gojo, nobara, megumi, yuuji, etc. too. it’s knowing that they’d live for each other that’s far more impactful, that they’d escape fate and everything damning them just to be together in this life and the next.

i’m sorry for the delay, i was out of country for a few weeks and then i realized that my music taste is really basic lol, so i’ve spent a lot of times trying to find songs, then analyzing them, then explaining myself, etc. so i hope this was okay ;;

but i love answering these questions so feel free to send more anytime !!