#It's like reading it for the first time again 😭😭😭 Half because the translation is so much different than the English one lol.

[kyouka-supremacy]

(╥﹏╥)

[sillyyuserr]

Chapter 117 analysis (WE’RE SO BACK) obviously spoilers for chapter 117 and chapter 114

i cooked with this one trust

Everyones looking for them yadayadayada terukane

Yk im pretty sure this is meant to be lore heavy but LOOK AT THEM

I don’t know how to word this correctly but since chapter 115/116 between akane and teru there seems to have been something that happened in which they stopped being freaky?? 😭 like ykwim hold on

in chapter 114 this happened

completely ruined almost everything they had, but in the span of a few days, shit still going on, they havent had their deserved break yet like they got on chapter 96-97 and somehow in the midst of all this teru’s forgiven(?) him and just moved on?? Really not sure but based on what we know ab the red house the next chapter may answer some of our questions

Also, this is so little i didn’t see it the first time reading but teru goes to the drink machine thing to get one and mixes like 4 of the sodas,

takes one sip decides its shit and switches with akane’s already half drunken out of tea. Indirect kiss guys wait

Also this is JUST like the date they all went on when aoi was gone. Again, aoi is gone here too 😭 my girl getting left out of everything is acc crazy

She comes in later tho and finally gets caught up for the first time in forever MAN aidairo must hate her😭

But also

We find out mitsuba and kou are going there TOO so for the first time i think ever we have the whole gang in one spot 🤥 alot of firsts this chapter smh

ALSO an honorable mention to this i saved best for last

Sir stay away from my children

ok but fr i have no fucking clue what to say ab this cus this is either ‘teehee im right ur wrong!!~~♡’ type shit which he does alot, or genuinely like what we all think it is, which considering outside context may, in fact make it make sense trust let me explain

teru says shit like this ALL THE TIME its kind of his ACTUAL personality aside from his fake shit, like the way he is only around akane and sometimes kou (at least what we’re shown) so you’d think he’s used to this, but his initial reaction is more of a ‘um. what.’

ALSO— backround MATTERS, the backround in this one, is pure black, which is only shown during stuff LIKE THIS (important stuff) example:

Black background either means its dark, or its something important, something meant to be remembered, or something like that (probably)

and that panel had a BLACK BACKROUND

Why is this important you may be asking, it has a black backround— so it must be, right? If this was a silly little ‘teehee you can’t do this im better than youuu!!!~~♡’ then it probably wouldnt even have a half panel it’d be another one of the mini panels, but it not only had a whole panel for just this, a black background ;blocking LITERALLY EVERYTHING OUT ASIDE FROM THIS AND WHAT HE’S SAID, but also, pay attention the contents of what he said.

(a different translation, this one is easier to read)

‘you are not in any position to oppose me, are you, aoi? ♡’ could mean, A LOT OF THINGS so i’ll put them in a bulletin here because any of them make for an interesting path we may be taking on ‘this’ reality😭😓

Number 1: he could be impliying, and or reminding akane, that he’s still engaged to aoi, and that if akane still thinks they shouldnt change this reality, he should reconsider, CONSIDERING he is engaged to aoi, as aforementioned. (Most likely this one)

Number 2: the power dynamic, yes akane is a school mystery with the ability to control time itself but also, teru is an exorcist, a skilled one at that— and could probably easily overpower akane in a 1v1 (lowk hyped to see this happen pls let them fight) teru may be poking fun, or reminding akane, that teru is in fact powerful, more than he seems to keep fresh on his mind — them having SO MUCH to do

Number 3: maybe instead he just felt like teasing akane and i wasted time+space for nothing and was looking way too into it (this is supposed to be the terukane option😪)

Never once has he used this before??? Obviously you cant talk in symbols but the heart kind of implies the user of this symbol is talking in a playful/slightly flirtatious tone, hence, the reaction:

Okay okay point is i think teru is still madly in love with him

WAAAHHHH just look at him pooks who else does he do this with smhh 😓 NO ONE

which i think may be PARTIALLY true but also not entirely because mayb im just a tweaker

Me when i when i ehen you whrn you when

This may make no sense at all, or alot of sense man idk its 3:12am i go back to school in like 2 weeks i am not ready for sophomore year gn

terukane will be real one day trust🤍🤍

[mamapyjama]

I’ve been rereading the current anime arc in the manga, and finally got to The Apology™️, and I wondered what words Katsuki used before translation.

Disclaimer: I’m sure others must have posted about this before but I couldn’t recall reading it myself. I do remember there was a lot of talk about the way he used “gomen” as the Japanese fandom were saying how cute and childlike it sounded, so I thought I’d see if there was anything else interesting there.

Oh, my sweet sweet baby boy…

So, just before he says ‘Sorry for everything’ (ima made gomen), he says:

言ってどうにかなるもんじゃねェけど

本音だ

出久

“Itte dōnika naru mon ja nē kedo… Honne da…Izuku”

Which in the English translation, gave us:

And “speak my truth” is lovely and all, but the word from the original that stuck out for me was ‘honne’.

I’m not sure how familiar most people are with honne–tatemae (I only know about it because I go way way too in-depth when researching for my fics lol), but it’s a concept that every Japanese person is deeply aware of, and underpins much of their society.

Here’s the Wikipedia intro:

Ohhh, that is some extra juicy context for Kacchan’s speech. Essentially, he is saying that everything up until now has been his tatemae, a public façade to protect his own position (strong, powerful hero etc), but that he can’t keep that up and he wants Izuku to see his honne, his true, private self.

Excuse me while I melt from the cuteness.

But WAIT! There’s more!

How much do you know about second-person pronouns in Japanese? (Nope, this isn’t about ‘kare’ again this time hehe).

You’ve probably noticed in the anime that Kacchan says “Temee” a lot, and you may have also noticed that it tends to get translated as cursing. So it actually just means ‘you,’ but like a really rude way of saying it, such that the only way of reflecting that in English is to replace ‘you’ with something like Bastard or Asshole.

Again, have an expert explain:

This and the below are from a very excellent article about second-person pronouns and how they are used for context and drama in anime specifically. I’d recommend reading it as the context is really interesting!

So although pronouns aren’t actually commonly used or necessary in much spoken Japanese, when they are used, it’s a deliberate way to tell you about the relationship dynamic between two characters.

But why, you may ask, am I talking about pronouns again?!

Because, dear friends, throughout the first half of his speech, Kacchan uses ‘temee’ as usual to describe his past with Izuku. I’ve highlighted it below, and pls also note the shaky speech bubble showing his nerves during the ‘honne’ section. 🥺

HOWEVER, straight after he says he wants Izuku to see his Honne, Katsuki switches pronouns from ‘Temee’ (v rude), to ‘Omae’ (very casual/familiar). Below is the page after the apology.

Considering we now know pronouns are not necessary to convey meaning, that’s a hell of a lot of omaes on one page!! Boy cannot get enough of saying it.

If you want more about the different pronouns, see below for a helpful table of common uses for both. And please indulge my shippy heart for highlighting the second usage (but, like ‘kare’, you never know)…

Katsuki is showing Izuku immediately and repeatedly that this is who he wants to be to him and how he wants the world to see them. His honne, his inner desire, is to be close to Izuku, to treat him as an equal.

He’s not just saying sorry, he’s showing that—at least from his perspective—things are going to be different from now on. But, like, also, that this was how he felt about him in private the whole time?! GAHHHH.

So there you go, the apology that was already a massive turning point in their story/relationship was actually even deeper and more beautiful than we all thought. Yet again, Japanese conveys nuance and intention far beyond what can be translated. 😭💕

[timelesslords]

fic writer twenty questions!!!

I got tagged by the beautiful lovely gorgeous @tapemonkey21 who has written some of my fav star wars fics to date and who got me on the cody/obi-wan/satine train without which my current wip would not exist <333

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

55!

2. What's your AO3 word count?

812,034 😵‍💫

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Rn only star wars with Ahsoka in it, but I've written for TLOU and PJO too!

4. What are your top five fics by kudos?

Under Freezing Stars

have my back, yeah, every day

Violent Heart

invisible string

For Real This Time

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yesssss!!! I honestly love responding to comments just as much as reading them. I like chatting with people and hearing their thoughts and their theories and what they want to happen next!! I think it makes it more fun for everyone but especially for me hehe

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

and the waves come crashing down for sure. I'm really not an angsty ending kind of person except with that fic lol

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Roman Holiday has the cheesiest mushiest most ridiculous holiday fluff ending ever <3

8. Do you get hate on fics?

haha yea 😭 messed up some niche details in my star wars fic and got absolutely lambasted in the comments lmao i never wanted to post sw again 😭 but then i realized i just needed to find the gay people and it all worked out lol

9. Do you write smut? If so what kind?

I would say I'm retired from smut writing lmao 😭 but idk maybe something will change. i am not typing out the gory details of everything ive written on here I have no desire to get cancelled again

10. Do you write cross overs? What's the craziest one you've written?

No but I do write AU fusions <3 my favorite stupid insane one was a James Potter/Lily Evans Batman universe fusion fic it lowkey ate but I had to hide it because I was embarrassed at the quality and the very just-took-sociology-101 level of social commentary 😭

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't think so???? back in the day maybe lol

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No but I have had a few podfics of my fics made and that is my absolute most favorite thing ever ever 🥹

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

yes with my wonderful beautiful brilliant best friend forever who shares half of my brain @captain-jackson

14. What's your all time favorite ship?

all-time...,, whew. rn it's definitely Codywan. Idk if I have an all-time transcendent one that I always come back to tbh. I'm really more into platonic relationship dynamics than ships tbh

15. What's a WIP you'd like to finish but doubt you ever wilI?

God, I have one re-writing the Zygerria arc where Ahsoka sneaks onto the mission instead of being incorporated into it that i want to finish SO BAD. when the ties that bind is done I'm really going to hammer it out because I do love it but its kind of a monster.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I'm good with dialogue and characterization and, on occasion, plot twists.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

I hate writing filler. I can't do it for the life of me, which means I also tend to have pretty poor pacing. im also bad at ending scenes which is why many times my chapters will end with my characters falling asleep 😭

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

jesus fucking christ it's so hard. doing it for Mando'a is hard and it's not even a real language. Usually I just go for the itallics but sometimes it's nice to have the immersion (which only works if you do it perfectly lol)

19. First fandom you wrote for?

I did not stake out the username "timelesslords" back in 2013 for the answer to this question to NOT be Doctor Who

20. Favorite fic you've ever written?

cheating and doing my fav from my three main fandoms:

Under Freezing Stars because it was the first long piece of fiction I ever finished, and without it I would not have made three of my best friends in the whole world so its very special and important to me

if you never bleed you're never gonna grow is one where I feel like I did something interesting and innovative with form and perspective and I'm really proud of it. I feel like a lot of times as a fic writer you can feel like what you're doing is repetitive and this one felt really unique to me!

The Ties That Bind is still a WIP but I honestly really love it and have been loving the process of writing it a lot. it's the first WIP I started posting without having at least 75% of the fic completed and it's been really interesting to see what a different process it is pre-writing vs writing as you go! Also, I love the plot contrivance that makes up the premise, I love working out all the little butterfly effects of that decision, I love making it gay and poly and I love writing a million different perspectives!!!

this was so super fun I miss doing tag games like this hehe :3 low pressure tags @bbyannabeth @lena-hills @bookishjules @captain-jackson & anyone else who wants to consider urself tagged by me :3

[beansterpie]

ES21 japanese volumes - part 1/??

part 2 >>

Sooooo I recently got my hands on the complete Eyeshield 21 manga series in Japanese and as someone who's only ever read the story through fan-translations on dodgy websites online, I wanted to go through and "live" blog about it, so to speak. I thought it would be interesting to see the changes between the languages and where the fan-translations likely fail with mistranslations. (No shade btw, I think fan-translations are great both as a hobby and the fact that they're doing their work for free, but it's also a reality that the vast majority of fan-translators are amateurs, many of whom don't fluently speak the language they're translating, so there's bound to be mistakes!) Also, I wanna know what they're originally saying because I’m nosey <3

I know the official English translation by VIS is allegedly pretty decent, bar the toning down of some things (like Hiruma's language lol) so if you've had the chance to read the official version, feel free to chime in on differences with the fan-translation that I'll be referencing, or potential differences between the Japanese version too!

And finally, while I am half Japanese and grew up there, tragically my language skills are imperfect. I speak it, but my vocabulary isn't very robust, so I do look up the definitions for a lot of words and kanji, as well as more nuanced connotations or references that may go over my head. Bilingual problems <3 But again, it's good practice for me and I think it'll be kind of fun!

Right off the bat, this page. What it’s saying is essentially, “You better come out and play (in the) American Football match!” But because Japanese syntax is different from English, it’s structured like “American Football Match you better play!!” The translator was confused by the final line, because in Japanese a way to say ‘participating in a match’ is by using 出る which means to ‘go out’— sort of like ‘go out (into) the match’. Maybe a better option would have been ‘get the fuck out and play!!” or just “you better fucking play!!”. It still keeps the overall sentence structure which sounds awkward in English, but at least it gets the meaning across.

(I’m not gonna get into every little mistranslation btw, because that would take forever, but I felt that was a good way to explain how frequently there are little mistakes like this.)

Putting the rest under a cut because I imagine this will get long

Look at our boy <3 So as you know, we start our story with Sena Kobayakawa timidly seeing if he passed his high school entrance exam into Deimon High School, with his childhood friend/older sister figure, Mamori Anezaki lending moral support.

In the third panel, what Sena says is actually “I feel like I’ve been praised for the first time in 10 years—” (maybe they changed it because that was too pathetic 😭) Then in the fourth panel, what Mamori says is more along the lines of “And to think you were a total mess in math and English… It’s all thanks to Mamori-sensei!”

Also I want to point out that Mamori is a little cheekier in the first few chapters. Like obviously still kind and nurturing in personality (her name is literally ‘to protect’), but she teases Sena and feels more like an older sister than like, an overprotective mom lol. Miss that for her 😔

Then along comes our kind senpai to accost our clueless protag...

There’s no mistranslation, but I just wanted to mention that the way Hiruma talks in Japanese is so funny? Like in panel 1, he’s speaking with a dramatic affect, he sounds like some sort of npc in a jrpg giving the protag a quest. And then in panel 2, his ‘of course!’ is this shortened, slang version of the word that sounds almost cute and very modern after the previous line. Hiruma uses a lot of slang in general, though I can’t say if any of it is like, common or used by teenagers (of the time, anyway) or if it’s just Hiruma-isms.

(Look at Kurita doing the sign of the cross in panel 3 😂)

I can’t believe Hiruma managed to physically emulate the experience of contracting some shady internet virus…..

Something that’s done with Hiruma’s dialogue a lot (it’s done w/ other characters too, but most often with Hiruma) is where there’ll be a word/term in kanji that means one thing and pronounced in a certain way, but then the furigana (so the phonetic pronounciation, basically) next to it says something different. Now, in some stories (like Berserk for my pals out there), this is used to create poignant, layered meanings in the text. In ES21 however, it’s mostly used for sports manga flavor. For example, in the above page in Hiruma’s spam fax message, he uses the word 作戦, which means tactics or strategy, and is pronounced: “sa - ku - se - nn” さ-く-せ-ん. But the furigana next to that word reads タクティクス which is quite literally just the English word ‘tactics’ spelled phonetically in Japanese lol (aka a loanword).

He does this A LOT, most frequently with sports terminology, where the kanji are pretty dense, technical terms, and the furigana a loanword version of the same meaning. (though now that I think about it, it might also be because while パワー (power) and スピード (speed) are frequently used and well known loanwords to the average Japanese person, タクティクス (tactics) might be more obscure, so the kanji is there to like, clarify the meaning? 🤔)

Also I love all the early 2000’s tech we see in the early chapters— flip phones and fax machines galore! Even within the later segments of the series, the flip phones start to magically get more advanced, but in my heart ES21 takes place in like, 2003. If they ever do a remake of the anime (which is unlikely to say the least) I’d want them to maintain the early 00’s vibes. It just wouldn’t be the same if everyone had smart phones.

Skipping ahead a few pages, I remember this bit never really made sense, but I got enough of the general gist that I kind of shrugged and moved along. But!! the translation is just making stuff up here?

So for context: it’s Sena’s first day at Deimon, and Mamori (who’s a grade above him) advises him to make proper friends this year, since he has a history of only ‘hanging out’ with shitty bullies who used him as an errand boy.

In the English translation, Sena seems to get a text from a mystery number, telling him to pay up for a bet we never saw happening. He goes to meet up with the texter, who we assume at this point is a previous aquaintence, since he had Sena's number? Maybe one of those bullies that Sena hung out with from middle school? They make Sena go and get them an unspecified thing, but because Sena ran there and back so quickly, they don't believe that Sena actually went, and is lying when he says they were sold out. They drag Sena to a small shed to beat him up, and in the last panel of the third page, Sena says that he's been their errand boy since kindergarden?

So for a number of years I was under the impression that the Ha-ha brothers knew Sena from before the series, even though that never seemed to come up in the rest of the story.

But in the original version, Sena is actually getting a text from Mamori-- which makes sense because it was established earlier that his cell phone is brand new and he only has Mamori's number in his contacts. Mamori's text says: "If someone tries to make you run their errands, tell them 'let's decide by rock-paper-scissors!'" Sena is understandably kind of embarrassed by this, and mutters to himself that he's not a kid anymore.

Then it cuts to Sena being picked on to be an errand boy lmao. Presumably this is because Sena just looks like an easy target to bullies, not because of any previous aquaintence rip. The blond bully tells Sena to go buy them bread (which might sound weird, but Japan has a lot of tasty snack breads that they sell everywhere). In panels 2+3 of the second page, Sena timidly tries to bring up the rock-paper-scissors thing, but is intimidated into giving up and just doing what he's told.

Again, they don't believe that Sena actually went all the way to the school store and back with how quick he was, so they decide to beat him up in the shed. As he's being dragged, Sena says, "It really was sold out! I've gotten used to being an errand boy since kindergarden, so I've just gotten fast--!"

So yeah, if there were any other people who've only read fan-translations and were confused by this bit, there you go.

oh you just know it smelled like ass in here.....

(I never noticed the shotgun propped against the desk on the right before lol, idk why I'm surprised, but Hiruma really just left his Actual Guns lying around huh?)

(2nd pic - Kurita: "New club applicants!!?")

There he is!! Our boy Kurita!! I do miss when he occassionally had like, more human features lol. As much as I love his big ol' smiley face, it does rub me the wrong way when the fat characters (because Komusubi falls into this too) are the only ones with anpanman faces.

(anpanman, for the uninitiated)

(Kurita: "To literally clash with the opponent in order to pursue a goal together with everyone-- that moment is exhilerating!")

Aw look at Sena feeling inspired! Honestly I really love how Kurita is Sena's first friend he makes in the series, and that vibe in the early chapters where it's just Sena, Kurita and Hiruma is so much fun <3

(P1: Kurita: "Way to go Sena!" Imaginary Coach: "It's thanks to you that we could participate in the Christmas Bowl!" Mamori: "You're so cool Sena!"

P2: Mamori: "You have to make the first move!" Sena: "U-um!"

P3: Sena: "Can I... be the team shumu*?" Kurita: "WHAAATT!? O-OF-OF COURSE!")

*Ok soooo I don't fully understand what a shumu is lol, or how you'd translate it to English. The word itself apparently means 'person in charge' so? The fan-translation just calls it the manager, but based on something Hiruma says later, I get the impression that the shumu and the manager are technically different roles? But when Mamori becomes the manager later, she takes on a lot of what are allegedly 'shumu tasks', along with Hiruma, so idk. If anyone's read the official VIS translation, feel free to chime in on how they did it, because I'd be curious to know!

That being said, adorable of Sena to think he could have handled that responsiblity at all 😂 our boy has many talents, but being smart and organized is not among them.

Ok fun feelings are over, it's time for pain.

(Sena looking at his contact list, having just added Kurita's number, then wham D: )

The three bullies from before were waiting to get revenge. The dialogue is a bit different in the original. Juumonji (the blond one) actually says: "That fatso a friend of yours, Sena? Tell me his contact info-- if you do that, we'll let you go." To which Sena timidly and reluctantly agrees. Then Kuroki (the dark haired one) says: "But do you think one bat will be enough? With that brute strength..." In the final panel, Juumonji says: "It's better with just one, since we're gonna call the police beforehand." Togano (with the glasses): "The police?"

Juumonji: "As long as we get him wrapped up in the fight, it'll be fine. We'll say we got these wounds from being assaulted by the fatso with the bat -- We'll get him disqualified from the American Football tournament." One of the others: "Ooohh, smart!"

I guess the overall sentiment isn't that different, but knowing that the initial demand was for Sena to hand over Kurita's contact info with the promise that they would spare him if he obeyed-- and that at first he agreed-- makes his change of heart feel even more significant.

(Sena: "IF YOU'RE GONNA HIT ME, THEN HIT ME!!! I'LL NEVER TELL YOU (Kurita's info)!!!")

Tell 'em Sena!! A part of me sort of wishes the story maintained this serious story beat instead of undercutting it with humor in the next panel (not shown here) but at the same time, ES21 is overall a more lighthearted, comedic story which I love it for, so I don't think I'd like it getting too angsty. I'll always have Berserk in my corner if I want some actual angst lol.

(1st pic: various sounds of surprise or pain, and in the last panel: "Oi, don't let him get away!"

2nd pic: Sena -- "No way!!!" Hiruma: "Hm? Oh it's that guy" )

Lol I do love the little details Murata included, like Kuroki taking a swing at Sena as he's biting Juumonji's hand but then totally missing in the fourth panel because Sena's so fast. Also I'm always on the lookout for the kinds of stuff Hiruma buys, snack wise. We know he loves sugarless gum, obv, and drinks coke based on that one time he bought some for himself, Kurita & Sena, but what else are in those bags? I want to know!!

--------

And lol apparently I'm only allowed 30 images per post rip, so I guess I'll end this here. I guess I can.... reblog and continue? Or I might just make another post for the next part 🤔 Besides this got way too long, so I'll have to be more brief in future posts lol.

I'm honestly not expecting more than like, five people to interact with this lol, but if anyone is interested in specific points of the story they want me to look at, please feel free to ask!

[jimiminily]

Jin is officially discharged from the military! 🥳🎊

Welcome back Jin 🫶💜

It has been 548 days/18 months/1.5 years

(enlisted: Dec 13, 2022

Discharged: June 12 2024, today!)

Welcome back Jin 😊🥳🎊💜🫶

Firstly it feels so unreal TT im so happy Jin is back, I am really really proud of him. He did so good in his military journey, I'm actually really stunned

Oh I love him so much I can't describe the feeling

He's the first member that got enlisted, now he's the first one to be released/discharged from the military 💜

Now nothing can take him away and that's a relief ☺️💕 finally his military is over

Let's stay forever and together 💜

Welcome back loml 🩷

Today he got discharged and behind the gates you could see him bidding farewell to his military friends, they were all hugging and shedding some tears 🥹

and the members greeted him in front of the military gate, and Yoongi was at HYBE waiting (for reasons, iykyk), and it was such a beautiful moment 🥰 haha Namjoon came with a saxaphone playing dynamite, everyone was hugging each other ☺️ but Taehyung became really buff, in such short time?? They all became a little bigger/buff, and Jimin hugging Tae and Jin looked so wholesome and cute especially with tae 🥹 precious Jiminie🩷

It was great to see hobi and jungkook again 😌💕 I miss them all

Jin arrived at HYBE and started live, I missed him so much omg 😭🫶 it sounds super unreal to watch him start live, he was still in his uniform and shared stories from the military, showed his awards/certificates etc.

I noticed his voice became a bit deeper and he talks a little bit differently yknow like a soldier but that's obvious because he spent a really LONG time in the military, and that is SO adoring 🥹💕💕 the way he talks, the voice I don't know why it is so adoring to me I missed him so so so much.

he's so adorable I'm starting to tear up again Hhahahaha it's been such a long long time🫠 welcome back Jin 😌❤️

Remaining members left to be discharged:

• Hoseok: 127 days left (17 oct, 2024)

• Namjoon and Taehyung: 363 days left (10 june, 2025)

• Jungkook and Jimin: 364 days left (11 june, 2025)

• Yoongi: 374 days left (21 June, 2025)

And these are the links to the weverse posts and live from Jin ♡ (added translations), also a link to BTS long awaited ot7 picture on twitter

@BTS_twt todays tweet on twitter

[Translation] 'I (went) and come back'

______

[240612 Jin 🔴 Weverse Live: D-day]

🐹 hello everyone, its been such a long time. bangtan! hello its bts' jin. its been a year and a half. its been so long since being in front of a camera and im not too sure what to say but ill try my best. ah whys the screen turning back in my day it worked so well

normally im much better looking but at my discharge ceremony earlier i cried a bit so im a bit swollen. and i came back to the company and the staff greeted me with posters and everything and this flower *brings out huge flower* oh okay go away now *tosses flowers*

🐹 I came into the building and all the staff were there with a huge bouquet and telling me welcome back! I was so happy and the tears came. I cried twice.

As a soldier, I was telling the soldiers that they shouldn't cry, but they were crying and they were soldiers I spent a year and a half with and I cried.

🐹 Everyone, I've been discharged. It's been a year and a half and I wanted to look good for you but. *shows certificate* It's official. I got a lot of awards. I think I recieved 7-8 awards.

🐹 There was another soldier named Kim Seokjin in our unit so they called my name out twice and I got confused.

my friends also made and wrote me this poster. ah im embarrassed to say this but i was really popular in the military so the posters written with tons of words. they said to read it at home so im going to read a bit here

🐹 This guy wrote me asking to greet a girl group on his behalf

🐹 You dude, see I have only 3 celebrity friends

LMAO THIS ONE GUY WROTE A MESSAGE WHERE HE WANTS JIN TO PASS HIS GREETINGS ONTO SOME GIRL GROUP AND JIN'S LIKE I TOLD Y'ALL I ONLY HAVE LIKE 3 CELEBRITY FRIENDS?

🐹 "Seokjinnie-Hyung, thanks to you I had so many experiences I will never forget. Thank you. I'm glad we were able to have such good food and good memories. To get to chat with, get scolded along with, live with the world star I was fan of since middle school, it was an honor.

I wasn't scolded though. Cuz I was an ace.

🐹 now! i need to talk about festa. i gave some good ideas but it was criticized! i proposed something for festa since ill have to do it alone, so i talked to the director in charge of festa around oct/nov? but they said theyve already said theyve planned most already. so i suggested a free hug, and they said no. so i pitched my idea of doing a free hug at an outdoor location where we do festa. but they said people could get hurt. but i kept saying i wanted to do it for a month or so because i wanted to hug those who have waited for me. so the company was in discussions, and they proposed that instead of a free hug, how about indoors where one person at a time is let in, and i tried to argue against saying i wanted an outdoor one. and they also said i should only do 50 since its the day after my discharge but i said no, 3,000 people and they finally agreed to 300, and i said no as much people as possible, and they said 500 and i said no, more and we finally agreed on 1,000 people

and this is something i personally wanted to do, so im not sure if the other members will do it. i dont really want this to be pushed to the other members as well. this is purely my interest although i was proposed other events such as fan signs. but i really wanted to do hugs

🐹 i discharged today right? so i havent had much to prepare, but i will do something, but i havent had much to practice and i havent sung in around a year and a half, and i rode in the car with jimin today and we've both talked about how we both are out of practice

now that im a free civilian, i will come to see you often!

i will express my heart to all of you tomorrow!

and i asked cameras to be allowed (t/n: to the festa event) so i hope everyone takes lots of pictures

🐹 our ARMYs who waited for me, thank you the most and love you

🐹 on June 13th, I will— AH IT'S TOMORROW*LONG GASP*

🐹 TOMORROW ! I'll express my feelings/thoughts to you

🐹 ill see you tomorrow! i love you army! thank you! 🫶 bye~ bye~ bye~~ 👋

______________________________

💬 BTS WEVERSE POST JIN/SEOKJIN 240612 (1)

'The company has prepared for festa hard, the free hug idea that I talked about was just something I said, everyone ㅠㅠ what I said about coming up with the idea together it seems the context was delivered with the wrong meaning ㅠㅠ

And since there's a lot of people for hugging tomorrow, I request you to pass by quickly ㅠㅠ it will be hard to have a conversation and it's expected go as planned smoothly if you pass by quickly after a quick hug.. looking forward to your cooperation [cutely] ♡'

-------

💬 BTS WEVERSE POST JIN/SEOKJIN 240612 (2)

'Thank you so much to the people and reporters that came and took pretty discharge pictures, and thank you so much to ARMYs that came in front of the company and gave me love because of my discharge

i couldn't give my proper greetings in case it would get too chaotic but i'm so so thankful ~♡

our ARMY are the best'

______________________________

💜 TOMORROW BTS 11th YEAR ANNIVERSARY! 13th JUNE! 💜

Jin will be there tomorrow with ARMY's (big events) Like hugging 1000 ARMY's 🥹

See you tomorrow again Jin 💕🙈

[roipecheur]

20 questions for writers

Thanks to @chejuu and @wingdingery for the tag!

1. how many works do you have on AO3? - 32

2. what's your total AO3 word count? - 800,588

3. what fandoms do you write for? - Marvel street level heroes, usually centering around fratt (Daredevil/Punisher) and their various friends / canonical love interests / enemies. DC bats & birds aka Batman and co., the Titans, and Slade Wilson + family, usually centering around sladick. I've also written a few fics for Peacemaker (DC show).

4. what are your top 5 fics by kudos? - hold on to let go, gift wrapping, blind date, for the right price, double vision (about an even split between sladick and fratt)

5. do you respond to comments? - yes, though I sometimes read them, go 🥰 and forget to reply for weeks (sorry, if I've done this to you know that I did read your comment and I love you)

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? - the better half probably had the most bittersweet ending; I don't think I've written any that were straight up sad

7. what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? - most of my fics have happy endings, but I think twenty questions and for the right price are a toss-up for the happiest endings that also predict a happy future

8. do you get hate on fics? - I've gotten a few rude comments because people missed warning tags, but no outright flaming

9. do you write smut? If so, what kind? - yes, not sure how to answer 'what kind'

10. do you write crossovers? - love bites is a fratt crossover with The Magnus Archives

11. have you ever had a fic stolen? - not that I know of

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? - I've had 5 translated to Chinese

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? - no, not that I never would, but it would definitely have to be the right person and the right fic, as writing tends to be very personal and individual for me

14. What's your all-time favorite ship? - in some ways, wincest will always be my forever girl

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will? - it's called "a room with a view" and it's an obikin Star Wars fic that starts right after Obi-Wan's death in ANH with a very fucked up premise. (come talk to me about it and maybe I will discover the motivation to add to it again 😭)

16. What are your writing strengths? - I like to think I'm funny. Also I've been told I nail character voices.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? - taking 5ever to finish things, and Idk, maybe I need to kill my darlings more because I've written a few fics that I felt should NOT be that goddamn long but I also didn't know to cut them down

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? - I prefer to use the « » symbols and note that it's in another language in the text of the fic (sort of following comic book conventions). If I do use another language, I tend to use it sparingly and note what was said in English.

19. First fandom you wrote for? - Teen Titans 2003. I handwrote it on college rule paper and gave it to my friend to read in middle school. From what I remember, it was as bad as you'd expect lmao. The first fic I ever posted online was for Death Note, I'm pretty sure.

20. Favourite fic you've written? - sometimes I still think the future: a history is the best thing I ever wrote.

-

Tagging:

@lazaruspiss, @mattdillon, @jellyfitzjelly, @zeroducks-2 and anyone else who wants to do it!

[meimi-haneoka]

Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Chapter 72: Comments + JP-ENG translation differences

Hellooo everyone! The plot-train that will bring us to the finale of Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Arc is unstoppable, so here we are once again, at the beginning of another month, for another chapter of the climax of this saga!! April 1st as usual is a very busy and important day in the CLAMP world, as it is not only the so-called "CLAMP Day", but also the birthday of our Sakura Kinomoto (and many other CLAMP characters!)!! Moreover, precisely as I'm writing this post, SakuraFes is being held in Tokyo!! Fans strived hard to get a ticket (I could see the struggle on my TL on Twitter) and while some managed to get one somehow, others were left out....since there's been lots of anticipation for this event, we'll see if it was worth the struggle and if we'll get info about the thing we're all waiting the most for: a second season of the Clear Card anime!! (UPDATE: IT WAS INDEED ANNOUNCED like we all hoped for!! Congratulations to all of us!! 😂)

In the meantime, let's focus on the analysis of chapter 72 because boooooy, it might be one of the shortest chapters ever (I remember chapters this short were released in 2018) but the info that was disclosed in it!!! We're definitely, definitely at the climax and it shows. CLAMP sensei are solving all the mysteries and giving us all the answers one by one. But since this is important info that will help us understanding the story better, let's review this chapter (and its translation) carefully!

And as usual, before diving under the cut and into the chapter, the gif of the month (paying homage to Lilie, lol) !!

The Cover Page

Oooh, what a pretty Sakura we have here!! She looks as if being half-asleep, and judging by the content of the chapter, it kinda makes sense. Sakura stays in a dream for the most of it. The simple dress is very elegant with all those gemstones applied on it. It also looks as if Sakura is creating them? Also, we have once again the black background that's become so common lately in the color pages of Clear Card. With that expression, Sakura looks a little bit more mature, and I really like it. The text in the JP version reminds us again of the last words Lilie said in the previous chapter: "I crossed time and dreams to come to see you".

"I know her very well, and yet I don't know anything about her"

The chapter starts right from where we left off at the end of chapter 71, with our Sakura and Lilie meeting for the first time....or is it?? 😉 Sakura sounds a bit confused at what Lilie said, but as usual (bless her!!!) she's very perceptive and notices that Lilie resembles Akiho a lot, more than actually Sakura herself. Lilie seems delighted and answers "I'm happy to hear that!!" (and not "Thank you!" like she said in the ENG translation). I was all smily when I've read this for the first time, but what came right after threw me in a puddle of sadness, and now you'll understand why. Sakura asks her if she knows Akiho, and Lilie's answer is "I could say I know her very well, and at the same time, that I don't know anything about her. And that makes me terribly sad". That's it. I was all giddy and happy to finally hear Lilie starting to talk, and she had to throw this brick made of sadness at me like that, right in the beginning. 😭😭Because it's clear here she's referring to the fact that despite being her own daughter, she won't survive long enough to see her grow up. Not even long enough to ascertain who she will look more similar to, her mom or her dad. Because Lilie died when Akiho wasn't even 1 year old. She was just a baby. The realization tinted that "I'm so happy to hear that!" we've seen before of the same sad color. ☹️ BUT!! We're not here to get shot down by angst so early in the chapter, so we proceed with Lilie apologizing for making things so confusing for Sakura, and she informs her they're in a dream. Then she finally proceeds to give some explanations on what's she's been trying to do this whole time, at the same time solving one of the BIGGEST mysteries in the Clear Card Arc. The question everyone had ever since chapter 1 was: "who's under the cloak of the Mysterious Cloaked Figure?" And here, my dear readers, we finally get our answer, in the year of the lord 2023, 7 years after the beginning of the manga: MCF WAS LILIE ALL ALONG!!! But let's see her version of the facts. Basically, Lilie in the beginning strived hard to travel through time alone to speak directly with Sakura at the age of 13 years old (HOW F*CKING POWERFUL IS THIS CHILD??), but it wasn't successful because her voice didn't reach our girl. We see a flashback right from chapter 7 with someone dressed with the robe standing right outside Sakura's house. Do you remember that? Yeah, MCF didn't appear only in dreams, but also physically in Sakura's reality. These scenes appeared in the anime as well and in the end we found out that under the cloak there was a sleepwalking Akiho, acting completely unconsciously. As it's typical with CLAMP anime, this turned out to be different in the manga! (But there's still a chance they'll explain that scene of the anime in a different way!) I had the impression, for a long time, that MCF was a different person depending on the dream Sakura had, or depending on whether MCF appeared in a dream or not. Well! Turns out even that intuition was wrong, because MCF was ALWAYS the same person, it's just that...some big mess happened, but let's see how Lilie explained it herself. Since her voice couldn't reach Sakura, and since our girl kept seeing the future ahead in her premonitory dreams, Lilie tried to get in touch with her through the dreams she was having.

But, for a twist of fate (I know you're all laughing right now) Lilie ended up mingling with Sakura's foretelling dreams. Yessir. When we saw MCF apparently "attacking" Sakura, or riding on top of Dragon-chan, she actually didn't have anything to do with it. She just ended up being mixed in the middle of all of that. Sakura sometimes dreamt about a "force" pulling her key away, and Lilie ended up in front of it, thus suggesting that MCF was the one trying to grab it. Turns out, it was Lilie probably trying to talk or communicate with Sakura in some way. But hold on, the revelations aren't over yet, oh no. Lilie explains how that mingling with Sakura's dreams went quite wrong.

Because yes, when one of her premonitory dreams was trying to warn her about Kaito taking the appearance of Syaoran during the play, with the Cat costume...well....Lilie ended up mixing in again, and that's how we got our MCF Syaoran. Hahahahaha! Are you baffled?? 😂Well I have to say I had so many theories as to why Sakura saw Syaoran under the cloak of MCF, some even concerning the psychological side...well, damn. Sakura simply never truly doubted her boyfriend and silly of me for thinking she could 😂 Also, we know now that we can rest assured Syaoran won't turn into an evil pawn or something...it was just a huge misunderstanding. Poor Lilie, I can't really hold it against her even though she ended up making a huge mess, because she really strived hard however she could, and...fate didn't work in her favor, apparently...until the right moment, that is (remember, hitsuzen always knows when it's the right time!) Moreover, Lilie tells Sakura that she already dreamed of this very same meeting they're having now, and guess when that was? Yes, at the end of chapter 6, precisely in the scene I mentioned in my post for chapter 71!!

After the shocking revelation (that made me yell at CLAMP once again for how astutely they FOOLED all of us for 7 years - I'm pretty sure no one thought about this possibility), I started to realize something. Sakura, in her premonitory dreams, pretty much dreamt about things mainly connected to Kaito. The "You won't be able to come back anymore" voice? It was the Association + Squids threatening Kaito with what would've happened if he dared touching the artifact inside Akiho. Dragon-chan? As its shape it's basically the same of the Seal of D that engulfed Kaito right before he disappeared into the artifact book, we can safely say it's strictly connected to him as well. MCF Syaoran? He was actually Kaito himself, disguised as the Syaoran-Cat of the play. I have to admit it, I had started getting signs that one of the MCFs Sakura was talking to during her dreams might have been Kaito, at some point. I knew the height worked against my theory, but when Sakura said "You look....so lonely" in chapter 48, right when Akiho had supposedly the same dream and confessed her love to Kaito through "the moon is beautiful" phrase right after that, I knew the "lonely" one could be none other than Kaito. Maybe Sakura was supposed to see Kaito in her dream, that one time, but Lilie mixed up again. Heh. 😅 And here we get our first serious translation mistake that can easily create confusion. Lilie goes on saying that the Cards Sakura had newly created (thus the Clear Cards) have now disappeared, and her magical powers diminished by an amount corresponding to the power of those Cards. Moreover, the Cards that once were separated from her (the Sakura Cards) are now back with her and their connection to her became stronger than before (well, we have seen it, Sakura now summons Mirror even without a particular reason, just to talk). Here, the ENG translation completely skipped the distinction between the two decks of Cards (in the JP version Lilie clearly talks about "the cards you had newly created" and "the cards that were once separated from you"), making Lilie sound as if she's still talking about the Clear Cards even in the second panel.......when we can clearly see the back of the Sakura Cards there. And right in the next panel, we have yet another translation mistake. They completely made up what the Book did here. ENG: What's more, the book's forbidden magic...can only turn back time so far. It has no power over times before the caster or the target were born. He's younger than me... JP: Moreover, the "forbidden magic" (that originated) after using the Book does not reach further than the (moment in) time when the person who activated it and the target of said magic were born. And "that boy" is younger than me.

Lilie never mentions anything about the Book "turning back time". The "forbidden magic"'s work is to rewrite the memories that were recorded in the Book, it does not turn back time. I wish they made that clearer, it's been messed with even in the previous chapters!

But it's not over, as even the next sentence suggests something that in my opinion is incorrect. Lilie goes on explaining that for this reason, she decided to visit Sakura "now" that she's the same age as hers (she literally says the word 今, which for her is her present), crossing time and dreams to reach her. However, the ENG translation here says "So I've come to you from the time when I was the same age as you", suggesting that adult Lilie went back in time to reach Sakura's age and then went to visit Sakura in a dream. There's nothing that suggests that, in the JP sentence. As she will say herself later, Lilie is capable of seeing the future so much ahead, so it seems convoluted that she'd wait to become an adult, just to go back in time to when she was almost 13 (supposedly Sakura's age) and then cross time again to go see Sakura in the future. It makes more sense for her to attempt this when she was *already* 13 years old. I checked the other translations, and the Portuguese and French seem to agree with me (they translate correctly that 今 with "now that we have the same age").

Anyway. For Lilie it was important to attempt this now, while the Book's power can't reach her and mess with her goal, and while Kaito and Akiho aren't born yet. And she adds "(I've come to see) You, the cute Alice (daughter) of the girl named after a flower who became my friend", and we see a nice flashback of a little Nadeshiko, at the same age when she met Lilie. Sakura in this way understands that Lilie knows her mother. Sakura asks if Lilie came from the past and whether she came to tell her something. Lilie confirms she wants to talk about something that for her will happen in the future, but for Sakura it has already happened. Sakura is unstoppable with her questions (good!) and asks Lilie if she can see the future, to which she replies that yes, she can see the future in her dreams exactly like Sakura. "I can see what will happen just moments from now...what will happen long in the future...and even...what will happen after I've passed on". And here came the other punch in the stomach for me. Because Lilie's expression here is really, really painful. I think I'll do a separate post with all my thoughts on Lilie triggered by this chapter, so maybe check it out later if you're curious.

That's who I am

Sakura asks "Isn't it painful to know plenty of the future ahead?" and Lilie's sorrowful smile is already enough of an answer. But she goes on,

"the things I can do...and even those I can't...make me the person that I am"

I found that extremely beautiful. It is painful, yes, but that's part of herself too. And Lilie seems to be very accepting of her nature and her "gift", as well as her limits. Maybe that's why she's able to remain so positive and strong even in a very difficult situation like hers.

The moment is solemn. Lilie says (lit., JP): "Kinomoto Sakura. Your memories and records have been rewritten". Here the ENG replaced "records" with "life", probably because it doesn't make much sense to include "records" just like that. The Spanish version translated it as something like "(your memories) and the records that keep track of them", and I think that works very well. Sakura is shocked upon hearing that. Lilie here talks in future tense because this is something that for her will happen in the future: "That boy...will lie and tell the guardian of the book, who will one day be named Momo, that his goal is to exchange you with the other Alice". And why will he do that? Apparently, because in this way he won't make Momo think or have any suspicion that he will be the actual target of the exchange magic for the artifact that was inside Akiho. (JP) "Because Momo knows painfully well what will happen if that boy becomes the target, in the state he'll be in at the moment of the exchange". I'm a bit butthurt they removed that "painfully" and went for "all too well", because in the original JP text Lilie uses 痛い程 and its literal translation is "to the point of hurting". And I think that's perfect to describe Momo's feelings. Momo cares about Kaito, a whole lot. And she would've never agreed to a goal like this, endangering his life in that way and ending up carelessly triggering the Seal of D. And this is precisely the reason why Kaito lied to her. Because he knows that. He knows she's a "kind and a bit stubborn" creature. And her kindness towards him would've lead her to stop him, something he couldn't really afford.

Lilie can't help but muttering "blockhead". Yeah, in Japanese it's the same わからずや "insult" that Momo used at the end of chapter 70, precisely as he was disappearing engulfed by the artifact book. (And the ENG should've kept the translation of that term consistent between the two chapters, which was "dolt" in chapter 70 and turned into "hardheaded" in chapter 72). This made me wonder whether Lilie was the first one using that term for him, and so Momo took it after her, or if she simply saw that moment in a dream of the future, and quoted Momo's words. One thing is for sure, the JP fandom used that terms quite a lot after reading chapter 70. 😂 Lilie continues saying (still in future tense) that Momo will want Sakura to stop the forbidden magic, so she will give her a hint, but that will end up being incorrect, precisely because Kaito will lie about his real plan. So, what does this translates to, for us readers? When we were thinking that Kaito wanted to exchange the girls, we weren't completely wrong. Or, rather, we weren't lead to that theory without good foundations. It's just that Kaito lied to Momo and made things seem that way on purpose, so his real goal would've come out only at the last moment, the moment of activation of the forbidden magic. When Momo couldn't do anything about it anymore. He really mislead all of us. Because he wanted things to go this way so badly. Because he wanted to be the one to take into himself the thing he inavertedly caused Akiho to be engraved with, and which was about to kill her soul. I sense a profound, desperate sense of guilt from this. It's no wonder Momo was so mad and ended up crying, at the end of Chapter 70. She did what she could to protect "her children", but she ended up losing one anyway. Because, just like in the most common relationship between a teenager and their parental figure, he deceived her and still had it his way, stubborn and oblivious to how much suffering he would've caused to the people who loved him the most. No wonder CLAMP called him more than once "immature" in their Twitter Spaces. This is the reason why I see Momo as a strong parental figure for both Akiho, but mainly for Kaito too.

What is happiness to you?

So Momo's hint ended up being incorrect (remember the "world where no one remembered Sakura"?). But Lilie says "But even so, it's still the same. What's happiness to you?" Because, as Lilie says, the answer is the same even for the other Alice by Sakura's side. And in this very important moment, there's another difference in translation.

ENG: "Even if it makes someone else happy...imagine living in a world where the people you held most dear are gone. Could you call that happiness?"

JP: "Even if someone told you that's happiness/even if someone told you they're happy like this, can you really call it happiness if they live in a world where they lost what they didn't want to lose?"

It's painfully clear what Lilie is meaning here. Even if Akiho looks (and maybe even affirms to be) happy and cherished in this new arranged world with her memories rewritten, can she really say to be happy if the ONE thing she didn't want to lose the most....is gone? Sakura thinks hard about that. Even if Lilie doesn't mention names specifically. And just as she's thinking hard about the answer, the dream starts to crack. Sakura is about to wake up and Lilie knows it. (JP) "I come from a time where the forbidden magic can't reach. But you're right within its range. Once you wake up from this dream, I guess you will forget about meeting me. But, you have the magic that you've been preparing yourself. You just need to realize about it. I believe...in the two Alice"

And just like that, Sakura wakes up in Syaoran's arms, on the floor of the school grounds. Syaoran is visibly stressed and nervous, so much that when Sakura wakes up with a "Oh..." he goes "Don't "oh" me! You suddenly fainted!!" 😂 although this is a tense moment, I laughed at this scene because the stressful moment made some of the old, "rude" Syaoran come back 😂yes, there isn't any translation mistake this time around. The nervousness made Syaoran a bit snappy with Sakura 😆 Sakura, still in his arms (kyaaa), says that she had a dream, and she had the impression Akiho appeared in it. Syaoran helps her standing up, trying to defuse the situation joking that "that's what they call a sister complex, Sakura", and that Tomoyo told him about this term 😂😂(I've already seen some of my Japanese mutuals on Twitter saying Tomoyo teaches Syaoran stuff she shouldn't teach him 😆) Sakura doesn't really answer the joke, as she's still quite dizzy and confused by the dream. Syaoran goes back to be serious, seeing her like that, and asks if she's ok. Sakura says she is, but she holds her head almost as if she had a headache, so Syaoran asks her if she had a premonitory dream. Sakura isn't sure, you can really see she's trying hard to remember the content of the dream, but she just can't. Although, there's one thing she remembers. That this was a dream telling her something very important, both for her, and for everyone else.

And this, dear readers, is where chapter 72 leaves us, ready to advance the plot once again in the next chapter. As I said in the beginning, this chapter was short but finally explained some important things that were torturing us ever since the beginning. But not only: the just released volume 14 featured a change of script in chapter 70, when Momo is talking to Kaito after the forbidden magic was activated. Instead of asking him "what about you?", she tells him "You even lied to me, the guardian of the book, about the subject of the rewriting" which is directly connected to what Lilie said in this chapter. It was a "last minute change" (that normally happens between the Nakayoshi version and the tankobon version) probably to justify better why we were lead to believe that Kaito wanted to exchange the two girls (and thus not giving the impression CLAMP were playing us for fools completely). Moreover, it sounded strange that Momo would've let Kaito go on with his plan if she knew he would've ended up triggering the Seal of D. It looked pretty OOC for her, so maybe Ohkawa wanted to fix that. I was a bit confused by this change in the beginning, but now I completely understand why she did it.

Furthermore, there's the mention of the "magic Sakura has been preparing" that really intrigued me. Is this about the usual "zettai daijoubu da yo", or is it something more complex? Could Sakura have been preparing a spell that would activate in a certain circumstance before the play happened, in case she needed it later? Of course her memories now have been rewritten, but Lilie's words suggest that she will soon remember about preparing this magic. And I'm super excited to find out what it is. It would give Sakura a really good development, and show she can be planning things too!

At the end of the chapter, Sakura forgets about meeting Lilie. And while that might seem as once again an unnecessary stepback, I don't really think it is. If this was played in this way to give Akiho the agency she needs later, then it makes a lot of sense. Especially when many of us are hoping to see her remembering about Kaito on her own. Because it would be particularly significant. If Sakura remembered this meeting, and the fact that their memories had been rewritten, and about "Momo" and "that boy" who lied about exchanging them, logically the first thing she would do is to inform Akiho about it. But is this how things are supposed to go? Is this how Akiho is supposed to find out a truth that concerns her very closely? If Akiho is meant to remember Kaito on her own, because the void he left in her life will soon feel larger and larger, suggesting her that she's not truly happy and that something/someone is missing, then it makes sense for the narrative to hold things back for a short while. Sakura can always remember about this meeting on her own later on, thanks to her magic. While Akiho will work hard to grasp the true happiness she wants, with the help of the people who care about her. And I suspect that might happen as soon as next chapter. And then it'll be time to understand what to do to bring Kaito back, or to reach him where he is.

While here we keep praying hard for a happy ending in the manga, in the meantime I bask in the happiness of the freshly announced sequel of the Clear Card anime!!

Next release dates for what concerns chapter 73:

April 30th, on CLAMP’s Youtube channel (digital, JP and other languages) May 2nd, on Nakayoshi (paper and digital, JP)

Kodansha announced for May 10th the launch of a new simulpub platform directly managed by them (K-Manga), where it's very likely it'll be possible to read Clear Card in English digitally and simultaneously with the Japanese release. Although, that service will work only in the US (for the moment).

Alright, see you at the end of this month!! 😉

[link4eva]

Kiro’s My Heart Jumps for Joy Mind’s Quest Translation [CN]

Hello, thank you for patience! The translation of this masterpiece of a date has arrived!! 😍

💛 A few things to note before you begin reading 💛

If you haven’t seen it yet, you can find the Exclusive Radio for this date here!

This translation was done with the help of Google Translate and @keliosyfan​!

I’m going to be including links to videos about certain moves and exercises that are described/mentioned in the date if you would like a little more detail. I’ve been classically trained in ballet ever since I was 5, so I’m going to leave little tidbits here and there throughout. My bun head self was so giddy while reading through 🤩 

I am going to give a slight TRIGGER WARNING in regards to the theme of weight loss in this date. The content of the date doesn’t really revolve around this topic, but it was mentioned enough times for me to feel that I should say something about it. Having been in the dance scene, I know it can be a sensitive topic.

So without further ado, enjoy!

*Spoilers for future content below!*

[First Part]

??: Dear passengers, welcome to Loveland Airlines flight LY0521 from Loveland City to Bern…

Accompanied by the gentle broadcast sound, I quickly finished the work email. After closing the file, I click to open the top chat box–

“Hey, I’ll take off right away~”

The moment the message is sent, a typing indicator pops up with a round-headed bear bouncing around.

Kiro: “Great! See you in seventeen hours and seven minutes!”

After the message arrived, another bear popped up and blew a pink heart kiss to me.

After we “blew kisses” back and forth several times with joy, I turned on airplane mode and looked at the blue sky outside the porthole. *CUUUUUTE*

In order to star in a literary film with a professional ballet dancer as the main character, Kiro decided to go to France for further studies despite the training he had when he was young.

Because this stay is for a month, we agreed to celebrate New Year’s in France so that he could study without apprehension.  

(Flashback to MC’s bedroom)

One week ago, Kiro unexpectedly sent a message adding additional plans–

Kiro: “MC, I’m going to Bern to find the teacher who taught me back then to take ballet lessons. See you in Bern!”

(Back to present)

MC: Phew… finally arrived.

After getting off the plane, I pulled the suitcase and walked quickly to the exit while rubbing my sore shoulders.

After walking through several passages, I finally saw the pick-up area. However–

The area was densely packed with golden heads occupying my field of vision. My ability to “spot the blond at a glance” is completely lost here. *I’m hoping this is what the text meant to say. GT made it sound really strange lol*

MC: Hmm…let’s use the power of technology.

Just as I was about to take out my phone, a brown colour appeared in the corner of my eye at a distance, shaking left and right midair in the crowd.

I looked closely and found that it was a little bear hand puppet!

It is wearing a beret and a plaid suit. It is obviously a gentleman’s outfit, but it is waving its bear paws excitedly, and its round head is also swinging back and forth in a rock-and-roll style.

After I waved to the Little Bear with a knowing smile, I quickened my pace.

At the same time, Little Bear also quickened his pace. *Changed some wording*

As I crossed the boundary line of the exit, I finally saw the person I had missed day and night for the past half month.

MC: Kiro! 

I let go of my luggage and threw myself into his arms. He tightened his arms, and a laughing voice rang in my ears.

Kiro: It seems that Kiro is also very lucky today. 

Kiro: It was supposed to take seventeen hours and seven minutes to see you, but only sixteen hours and fifty-three minutes have passed. *The fact that he counts down the minutes until he sees his beloved again 😭*

MC: Pfft, are you so easily satisfied? It’s just ten minutes early… 

Kiro: But for those of us who haven’t seen Miss Chips for half a month, we should cherish every moment we can earlier. 

MC: Us?

He raised the Little Bear with a smile, and it leaned down to me in a gentlemanly manner and kissed my cheek.

Kiro: Bear Ro-Ro misses you so much that he told me to kiss you when we meet~

Kiro: But I made an agreement with him a few weeks in advance. He can only kiss cheeks, and I–

In the next second, a softer touch lands on my upper lip and leaves a touch of sweetness.

Looking at the cunning he had in his eyes, I stand on my tiptoes and rubbed my nose with his.

MC: This big star Kiro really has a bunch of tricks up his sleeve. *Changed some wording. GT was giving something about 108 minds and I couldn’t tell you what it meant. I searched forever and couldn’t find anything 🥲*

MC: Even “stealing relatives” needs to find a high-sounding reason~ *This, too...*

Kiro: Don’t you like it? It’s not impossible to omit this step next time…

Just as I was about to smile and pinch his palm, my phone sounded with the company’s notification tone.

MC: …Give me one sec.

Kiro: Is it still busy during this time? 

MC: It’s okay~ In order to have a happy New Year with Superstar Kiro, I have already dealt with most of the stuff at work.

MC: Now we are waiting for an overseas company’s cooperation intention to reply.

Kiro: So that’s it…and there’s a lot of time for me? 

After pressing the send button, I took his arm with a smile.

MC: Well, almost 70% of the time is yours. The rest I can leave to work~

Kiro: Not bad, I’m accounted for more than half of your time.

He rolled his eyes, took my hand and walked towards the parking lot.

But after walking a few steps, I suddenly felt something was wrong and squeezed his palm.

Like realizing something, I took two quick steps forward, then turned around to face him, carefully observing him as I walked backwards.

Perhaps because of the sunlight, his jawline was more defined, and even his eye sockets became somewhat deep.

Although I knew that in order to meet the requirements of the role, he needed to be thinner. But now that I actually get to see him in person, he was much thinner than in the video call a few days ago.

MC: …

I feel a surge of tears beginning to rise, making my eyes feel a little hot.

Kiro has made such an effort for this role. I want to affirm him more than feel sorry for him.

I sniffled hard, pretending to be cold, and gave him a big smile.

MC: Kiro, you did it, congratulations! You have lost a lot of weight! Now it is very in line with what you showed me before the appearance of the protagonist was set. *Changed some wording*

Kiro: Really? Is it that obvious? 

MC: Of course! My Kiro now has a thin and lean beauty.

He opened his eyes slightly and smiled triumphantly.

Kiro: With your words, I seem to have the courage to insist on eating salad for a month again.

MC: You want to lose more weight?

Kiro: Well, after showing the teacher the premise of the character I’m playing, he thinks that the upper body needs to be thinner.

I froze for a moment and reacted belatedly.

MC: Are you talking about the ballet teacher you came here to take lessons with?

Kiro nodded.

MC: It seems that this mentor is really serious, otherwise he wouldn’t have made you willing to “toss” back and forth like this.

He seemed to be lost in thought, and after a while, he grinned wryly. 

Kiro: It’s better to say...that he’s a devil teacher rather than just a teacher. 

[Second Part]

After returning to Kiro’s temporary residence in Bern, it was already dark.

First, he studied the script for two hours according to the plan, and after half an hour of exercise…

We finally lay down on the sofa and chatted while resting, listening to the stories about him practising when he was young.

MC: What?! Even if you practice until late at night the day before, you have to get up at 5:30 in the morning the next day to practise again? *Can confirm this is 100% true. Had some practices until midnight sometimes and then had to go to school bright and early the next day. Rip 🥲*

Hearing this, I couldn’t help raising my head from his arms in surprise.

Kiro: Well, there are benefits to waking up early, too. You can take your time and have a hot breakfast. Otherwise, you can only just bite a piece of bread and run to class. 

Kiro: But what impressed me the most was that if we fell below his expectations even just a little bit, he would force us to stand on our heads.

Kiro: Ah— At that time, I was dizzy every day and often saw stars in front of my eyes in the room.

He paused and poked my nose triumphantly.

Kiro: But under such strict training, I was accidentally trained to be a pro “One, two, three wooden man”! *If you’ve heard of “Freeze Dance”, it’s pretty similar to what I believe he’s saying here (except that it’s not a punishment lol). The goal of the game is to only dance when the music is playing. When the music stops, everyone freezes. If you’re caught moving even just a little bit, you’re out. Whoever is the last one remaining wins. For an added challenge, there’ll be certain poses that the players have to freeze in such as a tree or flamingo.*

MC: Pfft… why is this such a game? Is it some kind of trick to avoid the devil teacher?

Kiro: Hmph, that’s right! As long as I am punished to stand on my head, I will try to “idle” while he is not looking at me~

Kiro: If I don’t, my head will be filled with blood and I will pass out, and I don’t want the ambulance to “wee woo, wee woo” me away. *He actually makes the siren sounds LOL*

MC: …

Listening to him joking about his previous experience, I felt a bit of a tug at my heart.

Even though I know this is typical for professional training, I still feel that this is a bit “wicked” for a ten-year-old child.

MC: Damn, I didn’t expect it to be so “devilish”!

Faced with my belated dissatisfaction, Kiro just smiled, his eyes reflecting the colours of flickering stars.

Then his fingertips wove between mine as if absorbing their warmth and began caressing them gently.

Kiro: I didn’t care about those things long ago, but now that I’m hearing Miss Chips’ cry of injustice…

Kiro: I am still very happy. 

I couldn’t help hugging him and leaning my head gently against his chest.

MC: …Then the reason why you came to him for mentoring is that this teacher has an irreplaceable strength?

Kiro hugged me tightly, closing the distance between us silently. 

Kiro: That’s right. But at the beginning, I didn’t have such an idea, but when I was training in France some time ago…

Kiro: I found that although the teacher in charge is very professional, he just encouraged me to get used to things slowly whenever I made a mistake. *Changed some wording*

Kiro: But…I don’t have much time to get used to it.

Kiro: I have to practice every movement to the extreme as soon as possible so that I can take on more difficult skills. 

MC: Have you communicated with him? Ask him to be stricter?

He paused, his eyes flickering with a complex expression.

Kiro: Well, he said that it was because I have missed the best age to practice professional ballet… 

Kiro: So even if one were to follow the requirements of professional dancers, it may not be enough.

He let go of me slightly, the deep sea in his eyes filled the night with more profound emotions secretly surging.

Kiro: But even though he said that, I still can’t accept it. 

The classical music flowing continuously from the record player in the room became extremely clear in the “pause” at this moment.

Kiro got off the sofa silently and walked towards the centre of the terrace alone–

Looking at his sudden actions, I seemed to know what he was going to do next, but I also didn’t. 

I can only watch him quietly.

After he slightly raised the corners of his lips to me, his body swayed gently to the melody.

*Bear with me as I give some terminology. GT isn’t the best at giving exact details for movements, so I had to get creative to make the steps make sense in word format 😅*

Soon, he seemed to enter the state. Kiro took a round step, jumped into the air and twirled lightly. *It looks like here he is doing a piqué turn en dehors and then going into a tour en l’air. You can watch it here (start at 1:30)*

The moonlight spread across the area, dyeing him bright and clean. His slender arms seem to touch the stars, stretching with supple grace.

Several times, he made difficult moves in the air that I couldn’t put a name to, just like an angel who strayed into the mortal world. *(Video) The text doesn’t say which moves but this link will give you an idea of what is being described here* 

He danced like this in the moonlight with the specs of dust, flowing in my unmoving eyes.

I don’t know how long it took before Kiro put down his lightly raised arms and turned to look at me.

Kiro: MC, this is the only episode that was approved by that teacher when I was ten years old. 

Kiro: Although I didn’t study with him for long, I still remember this part even now.

Kiro: …Every moment, height, and angle I never forgot.

Looking at the man who was still panting slightly, I couldn’t help sitting up from the sofa and staring at him sincerely.

MC: Kiro, although I don’t know much about ballet, I think the part you just performed was awesome.

MC: Just like the professional ballet dancers I see on TV.

Kiro: Really?

Kiro: But this is not enough.

Kiro: Because I want to play the protagonist who is dancing in the presence of thousands of people on stage. 

Kiro: For this reason, he has put in a lot of hard work. He has been practising day and night since he was five years old. In the past twenty years, he never slacked off a single day.

Kiro: And there’s this kind of distance between me and that person that I can’t catch up with.

Kiro: I can only keep practising, keep running forward, and walk through every road he has experienced.

Kiro: Only in this way can I empathize with him and interpret this role more realistically.

Kiro said this softly, his eyes slowly falling back on me.

Kiro: Therefore, his skills must not be treated “according to” Kiro’s own conditions.

Kiro: It is to be worthy of the stage of ten thousand people. 

Kiro: I have to be worthy of this pride.

Kiro spoke firmly against the night as if nothing could shake him.

At the same time, a gust of evening wind blows, and the raised hem of his clothes outlines his emaciated body.

The already distinct collarbone is getting deeper now, and even his shoulder blades are clearly protruding.

The emotion called “distress” turned into a thin rope at this time and it slowly twisted, making my breathing more rapid.

I silently walked behind Kiro and hugged him proudly but gently.

MC: Kiro, if you work hard, you will definitely make it through.

MC: And I will always be with you. 

He turned around with a smile and rubbed my head.

Kiro: Then I will prepare you in advance. *Changed some wording*

Kiro: I may practice without sleep or food, and may even have some small abrasions on my body…

Kiro: You can’t stop me then. 

Hearing his coquettish tone, I couldn’t help smiling and leaning into his arms.

MC: Of course, I know that. After all, you are Kiro who pursues perfection.

MC: Besides, I’m by your side now.

MC: If you feel tired and out of breath because you are too involved in doing something…

MC: I will hold you firmly like driftwood in the water so that you can find support as soon as you reach out. Reach out and I’ll be there.

MC: Let me help you find your breath.

MC: So you can rest assured do your best. 

[Memory Silhouette]

It was late at night and light snow fell outside the window.

Kiro sat in a corner of the terrace, quietly watching the world being gradually dyed into a pure white.

He originally thought that the chat tonight was just a shallow recollection of childhood trivialities.

But the sleepless heart lying on the bed seemed to prove that his emotions were not as relaxed as he had thought.

Although he has long forgotten how painful it is to stretch his legs to the right degree. *Changed some wording*

He could still vaguely see a picture in his mind with transparent ink stains dripping on the smooth floor.

It’s just that no one can tell whether it’s tears or sweat. *From experience, probably both 🥲*

Kiro exhaled lightly, stood up on his tiptoes and jumped again following the fluttering white snow.

But even so, he still likes it all.

Whether it is music or dance, they can make one’s heart calm.

And even more so when he was a child.

Apart from KEY’s home, he likes to spend time alone in the practice room.

You can temporarily isolate yourself, and then devote your full being to the melody of each stanza. *Changed some wording*

It’s where no one can bother him, it belongs to him alone–

A secret base.

Thinking of this, Kiro couldn’t help raising the corners of his lips. 

He hummed softly, and in the ever-changing dance steps, he caught flakes of white snow with his palm.

It wasn’t until a cloud slowly blows away that the obscured stars finally appear.

Kiro looked at the sky and couldn’t help but speak softly.

Kiro: Miss Chips, the stars are out. 

After a brief silence, Kiro looked back at the girl who was already asleep and walked quietly to her side.

The girl fell asleep peacefully, the laptop was still on the quilt, and the screen was covered with program budgets.

Kiro: Trying to work with jet lag must be hard, right? 

Kiro picked up the laptop while talking, and after pressing the save button, he closed the screen and put it aside.

Just when he was about to get into bed, he seemed to have thought of something, and suddenly stayed in place. 

Kiro: …

In the next second, Kiro began to rub his somewhat cold hands to warm them up and then on the clothes and trousers that were penetrated with cold air.

It wasn’t until his body became warm that he lifted the quilt and lay down slowly.

But before he could find the most suitable sleeping position, the girl suddenly rolled over and hugged him.

Kiro: Are you a koala? You found the right place in one go. 

Even though he said this, he still gently took the girl into his arms.

Just as he closed his eyes contentedly, he suddenly opened his eyes as if he had forgotten the most important thing.

Kiro smiled, leaned over and kissed the girl’s soft lips. *This is a reference to his first Exclusive Memory in his Mini House where they agreed to share a kiss in the morning when they wake up and before they go to bed 💛*

Kiro: Good night, my Miss Chips. 

[Third Part]

The morning sun gleamed leisurely on my eyelids. I opened my eyes and found that the other half of the bed was empty, only covered with residual warmth.

Thinking that Kiro had already woken up, I also took out the laptop beside the bed and started working.

There is a seven-hour time difference between Loveland City and here, so I can only start work in the early hours of the morning and at midnight.

In order to finalize the cooperation intention with the overseas “TN” company earlier, I have been organizing online meetings with Anna and optimized the planning proposal and budget table many times.

It’s just that the other party hasn’t expressed its intention and my heart is beginning to sink.

After another reminder to keep the staff on track, I got off the computer and walked out of the bedroom in my nightgown.

(Cut to courtyard)

The morning sun shines in through the leaves in the courtyard, casting a peaceful moment.

I walked lazily until I noticed the empty yogurt bowl on the island in front of me and a banana peel in the trash can.

This scene reminded me of the thin frame dancing in the moonlight.

I pursed my lips, stepped forward and opened the refrigerator–

At a glance, there are only fruits and vegetables and unsweetened yogurt on the side door panel.

MC: He’s been eating these every day…there’s not even meat.

I continued to rummage and finally found a steak in the small and exquisite freezer with a sticky note on the sealed bag–

Kiro: “I’ll eat you on Thursday!”

Kiro: “What’s Kiro, who’s had meat for only two days, going to do? Can’t stand it T_T *Changed some wording*

Just seeing the words on the sticky note, his tone of grievance and bitterness filled in my mind.

Feeling sad, I picked up a pen and wrote a cute little sentence–

“I promise that when you accomplish the weight loss, we will find an authentic hot pot restaurant in Switzerland, so come on!”

After closing the refrigerator, I sighed and walked toward the living room. My gaze continued to search for Kiro’s figure.

As if responding to me, after turning a corner, I heard soft piano music playing slowly.

I followed the sound and saw a figure standing against the light. 

Kiro stepped on the green grass with bare feet and stretched his slender arms toward the blue sky as if he was stroking something.

His fingertips touch the tree trunk, one arm stretched over the other as his leg extended up in the air.

The close-fitting clothes trace out lean lines and the light is like a paintbrush, leaving traces of lustre. *Once again, GT wasn’t very clear, but it sounds like he is doing an adage which is slower-paced to focus on lines and extensions of the body. The video here will give you an idea.* 

Under the shadowy backlight, that unreal figure seemed to make me really see the dream-chasing boy in the script.

The sky and the earth are his audience, the grass, trees and sunshine are his feathers, and the sound of rustling leaves in the wind is the uninterrupted applause.

And like a noble prince standing under the sunlight, the immediate everything is calmly captured in his eyes.

I never made a sound, unwilling to destroy the eternal moment in this “picture frame”. It wasn’t until the sound of the piano subsided that he finally stopped and sat on the soft bed next to him. *It’s interesting that “picture frame” is mentioned because this is one of the techniques used in dance. You can use it for any sort of dance but adage is one where it’s super important to remember. Basically, imagine that as you are dancing, there is a photographer who is taking pictures of you throughout. As these pictures are being taken, you want the photographer to capture each and every position you go through to get to the next. While you want each position to be clear in the picture, you also have to remember to have your body flow rather than have it be rigid.*

I don’t know what he is thinking as he waits for his panting breaths to calm down. Only then did he reach out and lace his fingers into his hair gently, lifting it out of the way. 

My gaze was following his movements, and when I found that the zipper was reaching his waist, I opened my mouth in a strange way.

MC: Do you need help? 

Hearing my voice, Kiro paused slightly. He stood still for a moment and then looked sideways at me.

The moment our eyes met, the deep blue sea begins to secretly surge.

It’s as if it’s going to drag me into the tide.

Kiro: Well, help me undo it.

His voice was slightly hoarse. I walked over and slowly undid the zipper.

With the movement, the tulle of the shirt slid to the sides, revealing the thin neck and slightly protruding spine.

Perhaps the sunlight was a bit dazzling which made me involuntarily put my fingertips on his.

It is a different touch from the past because it is not so smooth. It is also a little cold.

I pursed my lips and continued to pull down the zipper. Looking at the gradually revealing spine, I finally couldn’t help blurting out my silent emotions.

MC: Kiro, I’ve made up my mind, I want to accompany you. Let’s start with a salad.

MC: I know it will be very hard for one person, so let’s work together to resist the temptation of delicious food. Just consider it a challenge!

MC: But you have to promise me that when the shooting is over, you will eat all the meat that is hidden away.

MC: If Savin disagrees, I will help you to intercede.

MC: Otherwise…you might as well take on some characters that need to gain muscle so that you can eat delicious foods freely–

Without waiting for these words to pour out, he suddenly turned around, put his hands on my lower back and kissed me.

The sudden kiss made me feel overwhelmed, but the instigator just kept silent as he breathed with me.

Slowly, his cold body embraced me and we sank onto the soft couch together, as if immersed in a clear spring in winter.

I opened my eyes slightly and found that the eyes of the person close at hand were still shut, his eyelashes trembled slightly with his breathing.

But soon, he seemed to notice my gaze and opened his eyes.

Kiro: … 

Now that his eyes were no longer closed, he looked at me quietly, his fingertips wandering around my lower back.

His fingertips were “cascading”, slowly running over my back and continuously rolling upwards until finally sinking deep into my hair.

The fingertips that kept rubbing made me shiver slightly.

Kiro: MC…

MC: Hm?

I murmured indulgently, but not even a moment after my breath was released, he seized me again.

At the same time, the nightgown was easily untied.

His kiss slowly moved downstream, leaving a ticklish feeling everywhere he went.

Although my body trembled slightly, I couldn’t help but want to do something… I raised my chin and caught his eyes which were as muddled as mine.

MC: Kiro…

MC: Hold me closer.

Kiro: Mm. 

Even though I said this, I was the first to wrap my arms around him, making sure to leave no extra gaps.

In this way, we roamed each other’s bodies in this clear spring surging with tides, letting the temperature slowly boil.

Until the sun rises and completely covers the spring–

Only fine layers of sweat were left in the silence between each other which seemed to confirm something.

He finally let me go, but his warm fingertips were still caressing my collarbone.

Kiro: You know what? Before you came, I thought this morning was going to be a repeat of the previous few days. 

I lay in his arms, a little confused by the sudden conversation, but he just raised the corners of his lips and continued talking.

Kiro: After repeating the exercises over and over again, my brain began to empty, and I imagined myself coming to the seaside. My feet were no longer touching green grass, but rather soft sand.

Kiro: It seems that you can float in the clouds with just a light jump.

Kiro: At that time, I was thinking, what could be better than now? 

He stopped slowly, looking down at me.

Kiro: Then you stopped me.

Kiro: At that moment, all the bubbles of my fantasy disappeared little by little until there was no sea or beach.

Kiro: I came back to reality and saw my favourite scene.

At this moment, looking at those blue eyes that only reflected me, my heart began to softly surge.

MC: Is that what’s best for you?

Kiro: Well, there is no other scenery like yours. 

I buried myself in his chest with a smile. We tacitly enjoyed the tranquillity at this moment and felt each other’s breath.

Growl…

Until some sudden sound came from my stomach.

Before I could explain myself, Kiro poked my stomach with a smile. 

Kiro: It seems like Miss Chips’ stomach has started to eat itself. 

MC: I…

He smiled brighter and lowered his head to rub the tip of my nose.

Kiro: But it’s mainly my fault that I didn’t prepare breakfast for you in advance.

After he finished speaking, he got up and walked towards the kitchen. Halfway through, he suddenly thought of something and turned to look at me.

Kiro: By the way, come to class with me after eating. I already let the teacher know in advance~ 

[Fourth Part]

In the afternoon, I ended up in a sunny classroom and met the rumoured “Devil Teacher”.

He is warming up at the barre. Although his hair is white, his face is thin and his eyes are as sharp as an eagle’s.

From the slender limbs and elegant posture, it is not difficult to see that even in his sixties, he still has the ultimate pursuit of art.

Kiro: Bonjour, professeur. 

Kiro looked at me, wrapped an arm around my waist and continued speaking in French so that I couldn’t understand–

It wasn’t until I caught my name that I realized he was introducing me to the teacher.

I hurriedly nodded to the teacher and wondered whether I should also greet him in French, but my tongue was tied when I opened my mouth.

MC: [In English] …Hi, nice to meet you.

Teacher: Bonjour.

The teacher nodded calmly, and with a wave of his forearm, gave way to the position of the barre as if signalling the start of class.

Kiro: I’m ready to start, so you have to keep looking at me. 

He leaned over slyly and looked at me, tilted his head and pecked my cheek lightly.

MC: Kiro…the teacher is still there. 

Kiro: Don’t worry, he’s a “devil”, but he’s also a romantic French man.

As he spoke, he took out the dance shoes in his bag and changed into them. After taking off his jacket, he revealed the clothes he wore for practising from not long ago.

Watching him walk quickly to the barre to start warming up, I also went to the corner and sat down quickly.

The piano accompaniment sounded quickly and the classroom is gradually filled with dancing and Bu Bu’s main theme.

Teacher: Non, non, non…!! (No, no, no…!!)

Although I don’t understand French, from the teacher’s passionate tone sounding again and again, I also noticed that the atmosphere is tense and strict.

In just ten minutes, Kiro’s clothes were soaked with sweat, his cheeks were flushed, and he gasped for breath.

But he never stopped. He took a step back onto his left leg with his arms held to the side and bent his knees–

After a burst of momentum, he began to rotate round and round.

Sweat drops were scattered onto the ground following the inertia, and the only sound left in the whole classroom was the sound of the rotation… *(Video) From the sounds of it, Kiro’s doing pirouettes or fouette’s, but I’m leaning towards pirouettes.*

The corrections sounded continuously along with “Non”. *Changed some wording*

Suddenly, the picture in front of me gradually overlapped with a thin golden figure following the story I heard last night.

I thought that when he was a child, in the face of such a “vicious spirit”, he would be trembling.

But looking at it now, that doesn’t seem to be the case.

Even if the nay-saying voice is louder, he held his jaw up high and proceeds to jump up in the air, one smooth movement after the other. *(Video) Possibly grand allegro?*

His face stays determined throughout as if nothing could defeat him.

Looking at him like this, the little golden portrait I built in my mind was stroked with “pride”.

Involuntarily, I took out my phone and silently recorded the picturesque scene.

After an unknown amount of time, the light was dyed red-gold by time and afterglow slipped in.

I straightened my body slightly, and the moment the devil teacher stepped out of the classroom, I quickly walked in front of Kiro.

At this time, he was sitting on the floor stretching his muscles. I squatted down, handed over the water bottle and kissed him lightly.

MC: Kiro, thank you for your hard work~

Kiro: It wasn’t hard, I’m just a little tired– 

He pouted coquettishly, opened his arms, and lay back on the floor.

MC: The floor is so cold, you’ll catch a cold like this!

Kiro: Then you should come and warm me up. 

Kiro smiled and tugged me lightly so that I fell into his lap and open arms.

As if he wanted to rest for a while, he closed his eyes, his fingertips caressed my shoulder restlessly.

Kiro: Miss Chips, how did I do in class?

MC: Do I really need to say? You did very, very well, of course.

Kiro: Hmm…could this be the encouragement of love?

MC: Wrong. To be precise, it is the encouragement and affirmation of love~

MC: If you don’t believe me, take a look at the dance you just did. It was just like a dynamic oil painting~

As I said that, I took out my cell phone and played the video I just recorded for him.

Kiro: Sigh…It seems that the jump is not high enough and the feeling of staying in the air isn’t either. 

Kiro: And when controlling the legs, the insteps are not very straight, and it seems that the muscles are subconsciously relaxed.

According to his comments, I carefully observed every frame of the screen for a second and finally poked him with my elbow helplessly.

MC: …Are you sure you’re not nitpicking? *If there’s one thing that most dancers hate, it’s watching themselves dance in a video. It’s like “Omg, not the sickled foot! 😫” “ What is that leg doing?!” LOL*

MC: Or maybe it’s because I’m an outsider, so I can’t see things the same way you do.

Kiro: Maybe both? 

Kiro: After all, in the eyes of the professional, you can see at a glance whether the movements are in place.

Kiro: So I still have a long, long way to go before reaching that level.

Kiro: It just so happens that there is no class tomorrow, so why not spend the whole day in the practice room, trying to improve the instep situation…

Even though he said that, his tone was not the slightest bit discouraged. On the contrary, there is still a bit of eagerness to try.

I couldn’t help but prop my head sideways, stretch out my thumb and poke his cheek like a stamp.

MC: Kiro, you are really amazing.

He also imitated me and turned his head sideways and touched the tip of my nose.

Kiro: Huh? Did you just find out that I’m amazing today? 

MC: …Seriously?? I’m praising you!

Seeing me pretending to be serious, he smiled and narrowed his eyes like the corners of his mouth. The little bear dipped in honey obediently waits for “praise”.

MC: Because I saw you in class today, I realized that this process seems to be more difficult than I imagined.

MC: It is simply a double tempering of the mind and body…but you seem to be enjoying it, so that’s what makes it amazing.

Kiro: Hearing you say that, I don’t seem to be bad~ 

I smiled and winked as I handed the microphone to his mouth.

MC: In this case, I want to interview Superstar Kiro. What tips can you pass on to me in this regard?

MC: I also want to have fun on the journey of training~

He rolled his eyes and laid down again with his head on top of his arms.

Kiro: It seems that there is no trick, I just often see things that make me stick to it when I practice. *Such a dancer thing to say haha*

I looked around the classroom, tilting my head in confusion.

MC: But isn’t there just a barre and a mirror here?

Kiro: Not quite, maybe it’s because our perspectives are different?

Kiro: For example, in your eyes, what you see is that I keep dancing and practising.

Kiro: But in my eyes, besides the barre and the mirror, I also see many different things. 

MC: What is that?

Kiro: …I’m trying to figure out how to describe it to you.

In the end, his eyes lit up. When he came close to me, his sweet breath stopped at the tip of my nose.

Kiro: Let’s see, how about you practice with me tomorrow?

Kiro: So that you can see what I see. 

[Memory Silhouette]

In the evening after Kiro and I got back from class, we began eating a salad.

Kiro: Miss Chips, are you sure you don’t want to add any salad dressing? 

Kiro: You know you don’t have to follow so closely.

I nodded with firm eyes, put a vegetable in my mouth and chewed.

MC: No need, I said I want to be with you.

MC: And eating a healthy salad is good for me, too. It’ll help to remove the buildup of the greasy food I ate before~

MC: If I’m really gluttonous, I’ll use the “self-deception method”--

As I said this, I picked up a piece of tofu, closed my eyes and put it in my mouth.

MC: This is meat, this is meat. Just chew this tender and fragrant meat.

Kiro: I’ll try it, too.

Kiro: What I’m eating now is tender beef and eggs. 

I couldn’t help but secretly open my eyes halfway and smile after Kiro had followed my example and closed his eyes to eat.

MC: So? Does it work?

He opened his eyes and shrugged his shoulders with a helpless smile.

Kiro: No, it’s just plain white tofu. 

Kiro: Ah– I can’t wait until tomorrow to eat that steak.

Hearing this, I suddenly thought of something and opened my mouth while picking up some beans.

MC: By the way, you said that there is no class tomorrow in the afternoon and you can only practice by yourself.

MC: So when is your next class?

He rolled his eyes and bit into a vegetable.

Kiro: Next Monday.

I froze for a moment and couldn’t help being a little surprised.

MC: Is there always such a long time between classes?

Kiro: Well, he has so many students to teach, so the queue is very full.

MC: Ah..that sounds so hard having to teach classes all day long.

Kiro: He doesn’t find it hard. Since he retired from the stage, he has been teaching students who also want to be on the stage. Kiro: In this way, day after day, twenty or thirty years have passed.

MC: Amazing… *I’ve had a couple of professors who were in their seventies. One of them even performed occasionally, too.*

Before I could finish speaking, Kiro took out a tissue, wiped the corner of my mouth lightly, and continued to eat with a fork.

Kiro: Mm, but being able to maintain his fierce character for thirty years is something that is special about him…

MC: You never really talked about his gentle side before. Is it the encouragement method? *Changed some wording*

Kiro thought for a while, smiled and shook his head.

Kiro: He himself said that he can gently praise and encourage just like other teachers.

Kiro: But to do so would smooth out the edges of genius.

Kiro: If ultimate perfection is desired, then indulgent compliments should be an afterthought. 

MC: …Hold on.

I bit the fork lightly, pretending to look at Kiro seriously.

MC: Could it be that your perfectionism was nurtured by this teacher?

Kiro: That’s not true, it just happens to be the same idea.

MC: Really…you already had such an awareness when you were ten years old?

MC: At that time, I would only cry and complete all the holiday homework the day before school started…

Kiro put down the fork, smiled and rubbed my head. 

Kiro: Of course, at the time I didn’t know what the term perfectionism meant.

Kiro: I just simply wanted to be the best, to be first.

Looking at his smiling eyes, I couldn’t help pinching his nose.

MC: A very ambitious ghost– *I don’t know what this was meant to be*

Kiro: As you said, being a workaholic is not bad~ 

He pinches my nose in return and then puts the two empty salad bowls in the sink and starts cleaning.

I blinked and ran to help him clean up the table.

MC: After washing, I’ll help you with the lines, alright?

His soapy hand paused slightly, and after a while, he quickly pecked the side of my face.

MC: Pfft…Are you that happy to practice lines with me?

Kiro: Of course, with your sweet self by my side, I’m jumping with joy. *Changed some wording*

Kiro: So how can I be unhappy when I am soaked in a honeypot~ 

[Fifth Part]

On the second day, wisps of morning light were hidden behind the classroom door. I pushed it lightly and the sun enveloped my whole body at once, making me feel marvellous and causing my eyes to narrow.

MC: Sure enough, a beautiful day starts by being greeted by the sun.

Kiro: That’s right, today’s practice will definitely be “distinction”. *Changed the word at the end because one of the highest levels of marks you can get in a ballet exam is called “distinction” (at least in RAD)* 

Thinking about what Kiro said yesterday, I smiled and wrapped my arms around the nape of his neck.

MC: But before starting, let me say this in advance!

MC: If I look stiff and have two left feet, you must not laugh at me. *Changed some wording*

He looked at me who was close at hand, leaned in and pecked the side of my lips.

Kiro: Okay, but before that, go and change your clothes, alright? 

MC: …Clothes?

I followed his gaze and looked back to find a brand new dance skirt on the stool in the classroom.

Kiro: You should know that in addition to office supplies and daily necessities in your suitcase, there are only Spring Festival-themed clothes to be worn here.

Kiro: I don’t have any close-fitting sportswear, so I had to ask someone to buy some overnight.

I walked over curiously and picked up the dance skirt. It was like a cicada’s wings, the thin lace looked gorgeous and comfortable.

MC: Why is this different from the practice clothes in my memory, it looks like a performance costume–

Kiro slightly shrugged his shoulders, cunning in his eyes.

Kiro: Maybe that’s because it was bought for the “princess” I talked to on the phone? ….She’s both cute and fascinating. 

MC: ……You really didn’t say that, did you? 

He smiled and took off his coat and the practice clothes he had changed into were inexplicably matched with the skirt in my hand.

Kiro: Miss Chips is so silly. Actually, I ordered this skirt online myself overnight.

Kiro: It’s just that my eyes are too picky, so I finally chose the one that I think is best.

Kiro: Of course, the prerequisite for choosing is that it has to match my clothes.

After changing clothes and walking into the classroom, Kiro’s gaze fell on me and he laughed.

Kiro: It’s so beautiful. Now it’s time to invite my Princess Chips to warm up with me~ 

As he spoke, he led me to the barre and I imitated his movements and put my leg on the barre.

In an instant, I felt my muscles being stretched.

Kiro: Does it hurt?

Kiro walked behind me and lightly stroked my lower thigh with his fingertips which made me tremble uncontrollably.

MC: …No, but it’s a bit ticklish. 

Kiro: Then just try to bear it? Your body is left vulnerable to injury if it’s not properly warmed up. 

Seeing me nodding my head, he also suppressed his smile a little and helped me warm up earnestly.

His cold fingertips moved from my thighs to my waist and then my butterfly bone. After a while, sweat beads began to appear.

His fingertips are no longer cold, almost as if they were absorbing my increasing body temperature.

It wasn’t until the sunlight shifted after a few minutes that I exhaustedly leaned on his shoulder.

MC: Why…is warming up so tiring. I feel that it’s even more energy-consuming than Pilates. *Between the two, Pilates rocked me omg. My body wouldn’t stop shaking after 😖. But ballet warm-ups can be hella intense, too. I had one teacher that used to say that if you’re not pouring sweat after the first exercise, you’re doing something wrong 😅*

Kiro: You can’t stop now, this is just the beginning. 

Without waiting for me to make a bitter face, he rubbed my cheek.

Kiro: Or do you not want to feel it?

MC: Of course I do, what should I do next?

At this time, there was a vibrating sound which seemed to be coming from my cell phone on the bench.

I glanced at Kiro, walked over suspiciously and picked it up to find it was Anna calling.

Anna: MC, TN, which had been wanting to talk about cooperation before has finally agreed.

Anna: But the profit they proposed is far worse than our expectation. We don’t even have the authority to plan the programs we cooperate with…It feels like the company has exhausted all its options.

MC: Is there room for negotiation?

Anna: Probably not. After all, TN is an experienced overseas media company, and many domestic media companies want to cooperate with them even after paying money.

My heart sank. Facing this “favourite” in the eyes of the media, I was speechless, so I had to end the call first.

Kiro: What’s the matter? Your expression doesn’t look good. 

I don’t know when but Kiro came to my side and rubbed between my brows.

I took a deep breath and briefly explained the incident.

MC: I thought it was good news, but I didn’t expect it to be a sum of money that would almost erase our profits besides increasing popularity.

As I said that, I buried myself in his chest with some distress.

MC: But in the long run, this is a very important step in the strategy of “occupying” overseas markets.

MC: So is it better to agree to cooperate?

Kiro: So you’re conflicted about which option to go with?

MC: After all, it is a matter of choice. No matter which option we go with, I won’t feel very reconciled…

Kiro gently stroked my hair, his eyes filled with light.

Kiro: I don’t think there’s anything to be worried about. 

He said this and took me to the barre and put my hands on top of it.

Kiro: MC, in order to achieve our goals, we have to accept that no trade-offs can be made.

Kiro: But it’s not a once-and-for-all decision. Sometimes it’s only an illusion that confuses you.

Kiro: Let you mistakenly think that giving up important things will give you better returns in the future.

MC: Kiro…

Gazing into my perplexed eyes, he just moved closer to me, breathing lightly by my ears.

Kiro: I still remember the teacher telling me in my first ballet class–

Kiro raised my chin with his fingertips, making my breathing stop.

Kiro: Never bow your head so easily. 

His eyes are clear and bright in the sun, but also a little fierier.

Kiro: Everyone has their own pride.

Kiro: So we need to continue to maintain it to keep it fulfilled.

No matter how slow I was, I realized that Kiro seemed to care about what he was referring to.

Kiro: And, if you want to let your every move be relaxed and controlled.

Kiro: Then you yourself must first have strength.

In the next second, his fingers moved between my legs. Within seconds, tremors spread all over my body.

Kiro: Squeeze your legs.

Kiro: The strength runs through from the feet to the head, so this way you can stand more firmly and not be easily shaken. 

A low but undeniable voice sounded in my ears. I took a light breath and tried to squeeze my legs together according to his words.

I gradually felt his fingertips being squeezed and restrained by my legs, but I still let his fingertips climb up calmly.

Kiro: Your inner strength is not enough, I can still do whatever I want. *Just want to add that this is something that dance teachers stress to their students. Having inner thigh strength is one the most important things to maintaining good balance, along with core strength.*

As if to prove his words, he pulled out his hand and easily picked up my leg with one finger and slowly tightened his palm.

The sudden move made me want to look in the mirror ahead. 

He seemed to sense what I was going to do and gently held my jaw. *The position that MC is in is called arabesque*

MC: Kiro…?

Seeing that I was a little surprised, those quiet eyes finally turned into a small smile.

Then he leaned closer and rubbed my shoulder.

Kiro: Miss Chips, remember what I said yesterday?

Kiro: About what exactly I saw in my vision.

MC: Mm…

He smiled lightly and looked into the distance.

Kiro: I’m not actually watching myself in the mirror doing one movement one after another.

Kiro: Nor am I looking at every person and thing in this classroom.

He paused and slowly retracted his palm that was tightly holding my waist.

Kiro: I will look to the end of the distance. *YASSSS!! This is another thing that is taught in dance. You don’t want to just aim your focus at the audience or at an object, you want to project it outside the venue and beyond.*

Kiro: Sometimes there is the sea, the green grass, and the place where I shuttle between cities.

Kiro: They are all my stages.

Kiro: And when I perform on my stage, how can I feel bitter?

Kiro: I just feel satisfied, and I just want to stay on this stage just a little longer.

Looking at the vast sea in his eyes, my heart also ripples like the waves.

It surges endlessly, pushing me to the bright place again and again.

Kiro: Now, do you still feel stuck on which decision to make? 

I looked and him and shook my head slightly.

MC: It seems that I no longer am. I know what I should do now.

Seeing that I had an answer, Kiro laughed.

In the next second, he held my waist with both hands like in a classic ballet pas de deux and lifted me into the air.

Kiro: MC, I have one more thing to ask you.

He said this while supporting me to turn and face the window.

Kiro: Can you tell me what the scenery is in your eyes right now?

Following his voice, I looked at everything in my field of vision and my heart began to surge softly.

MC: I…

MC: I see the grass, the sky, and the distance…

MC: I see many beautiful sceneries.

Even though it is an all-too-common scene in front of me, I dare not blink at this moment.

I don’t want to spoil a single bit of it.

Kiro: You said before that if I feel tired, out of breath or frustrated…

Kiro: You’ll be the driftwood that’ll always hold me up. 

Kiro: So that I can do whatever I want to the best of my ability.

Kiro: And I’ll be yours. 

Kiro lowered me slowly while talking and we were attached to each other without any gaps.

His eyes were shining brightly as if this fine light is enough to light up my whole being.

I couldn’t help but hold his cheeks and smile brightly.

MC: Kiro, you have always been doing something like this for me.

MC: I know you will always be by my side, encouraging and supporting me. So no matter what happens, I won’t be timid.

MC: You have always been my strength. *CRYING RN*

Kiro shook his head lightly with a gorgeous smile on his face.

Kiro: Just this is not enough.

Kiro: I want even more of you. 

After speaking, he gently held my head and kissed me tenderly.

His breath is so soft, but it seems to be able to invade my whole world, leaving only the surging sea.

I just lay in the blue ocean, letting it move my body with the tides.

In his arms, I also slowly closed my eyes, feeling his temperature, feeling being surrounded by light–

Because my heart has already crafted the brightest and most beautiful scenery.

[End]

[birthdaycakeplate]

same anon asking for Blitzbee fic recommendations, tried to message you but unfortunately your account is set to only people you follow doing that.

but hmmm, I'd say my personal taste in fics are actually slow burns, I really like fics that focus on Blitzwing and Bee forming an unlikely relationship based on their 'home lives' in a sense of it, where neither are understood and often viewed as annoyances/loose canons leading both to a feeling of isolation and a mild desperation/willingness to connect with anyone even at the risk of 'treason' for interacting with the other side.

I also enjoy the progression for Blitzwing of seeing Bumblebee as a harmless amusement to him somehow becoming a bit of a hyper focus that causes the big bad con to develop some empathy and *gasp* morals.

Meanwhile Bee is just a cocky little bastard who refuses to accept Blitzwing as the actual threat he is and then feelings are caught when his view of the world is shifted and he finds out Decepticons are also actually just people with complex feelings and motivations (also bonus if break down of autobots 'all warbuilds are evil because' bs is broken down)

I realize now I'm rambling so apologies its just a very fun ship to babble about.

If I was to ask for any fic, if you could set one in your Nemesis AU that be amazing, the size difference you give in that is spectacular like omg I stare so politely.

Also the concept is just very fun to me and I'd love to see that au world expanded.

As for spicy content I don't really have any ideas? Sorry I'm actually terrible at writing it my only preferences are Blitz top and preferably consensual.

for ease if we keep talking like this I'll sign off as

Curiosity

GOD, of course I invited you to talk with me and then blocked you from doing that elekkeem 🌝 I think I fixed my messaging where I’ll get your stuff now, if you’d like to try again 😭 I swear I’m always this dysfunctional.

But anyway, your message here is good, true, andfantastic. I CRY. Your view on the ship is perfect and pure D,8

I LOVE when Blitzwing is stunned when his desire to squash the useless yellow gnat and be done with him is suddenly evaporated by the sudden realization this guy is slowly becoming the only thing in his life fun and full of life (and kind of precious if he’s being honest, ok???). Because their chemistry is crazy- they’re both wrekcless little freaks when left to their own devices, but full time loyal, fucked up little creatures to the ones closest to them. The handful Blitzwing can afford to let in to his life, even if ‘friends’ isn’t the word he’d use, and the few Bumblebee can make real connections with, when he’s a mischievous ant with a complex to make ‘something great’ of himself.

But he already IS great and bad boy Blitzwing needs to make it his immediate life’s goal to get that through to him and give him lots of love. (I ramble, too, you’re in good company)

I’m bad at stating my thoughts, I get overwhelmed when it’s my own emotions. But I typed and retyped something along the lines of how I’m noticing we have lots of similarities here in terms of what our favorite flavor of Blitzbee is 🩷🩷🩷 I bet lots of ppl who read this would agree with you and appreciate you throwing out there the love language of these complete messes of men✨

Does that mean my attempt to translate these tastes into fiction beside my ideas will make for good reading and also provide you a happy source of top Blitz/blitzbee? God, I HOPE so. You deserve it and I’m going to try.

I have the first chapter half written, because-

OH MY GOD, YOU LIKE MY AUTBOTS JOIN THE NEMESIS AU STUFF EKEKKEE

OoooOOOHhhh aAHHHHHHHH

I SCREEEEEEAM 💕💕💕 thank you???!!! That means so much to ME and makes me insanely happy, because I was so surprised when you said that, and I REALIZED how amazing it is to hear a thing like that. That I’ve got a thing going I didn’t imagine would become liked enough for a fic request for it.

I’m hoping to finish this first chapter by next Friday. Probably sooner than that? But I’m scared life won’t allow it. Thanks for your messages💕

(The other anons who messaged me, too, about some top Blitzwing fic stuff, I see you and I’m elated to hear from so many of you, thank you✨)

[acourtofquestions]

Okay so my week is only getting less conducive to reading & posting so here’s some reaction spam of random round ups throughout ToD & KoA as fast as my thumbs can type them & whatever my brain recalls cause I’ve gotta squeal this out before I implode & then go try to sleep so I don’t fully make tomorrow miserably impossible & long😂

The line in ToD about Nesryn’s nieces & nephews being the light of her life gets me every time🥹😭 I love how we got to see & meet her family, I love how that led to her further connection with Sartaq, I love how his family was close enough to stop with the whole ritualistic murder thing

Chaol’s arc was so well done I have so many thoughts but mostly my old CoM self is just glad to be back here AND YRENE TOWERS MY WYRD I LOVE HER I LOVE HER I LOVE HER literally just I LOVE HER and I want a Baast cat

Inaccessibility being one of the biggest issues is such a relatable real world problem like how have people with magic not figured this out yet I wonder the same thing everytime I go somewhere that doesn’t have ramps handicap parking sign translators etc

Chaol recognizing Celaena’s handwriting and then telling Yrene the story will forever be such a 🥹 moment

The way he healed was beautiful too, the chapter facing Aelin, the discussions with Yrene

And again just AGAIN everything about Yrene

And Nesryn who is so underrated and I just want the world for our Empress queeeeen

The tiny Easter eggs leading to everything essentially rounding up the series to Aelin doing small acts of kindness that come full circle and save everyone is so beautiful

I hate Maeve, I am now claustrophobic, and having my old Peeta days come back to me from HG

Those were some of the most painful chapters I’d ever read

Aelin def knows somethings up with Maeve and the Valg

Dorian planning to take the price is horrifying and yet also comforting and yet horrifying and the two of them plotting it out is making me nervous

KALTAINS GHOST

Dorian and Manon are absolute gold

Them and the thirteen — I mean this content is just fantastic — we’re getting some great Vesta moments

The new power is also interesting & cool

I know Aedion’s hurting but wow could you be anymore of an asshole towards Lys? Look what she did was horrible (mostly cause the whole let’s make the world think you married your cousin thing is wrong on so many levels) that aside she was just doing what HER queen said she loves Aelin she didn’t want this either and he needs to deal with his own shit and stop putting it on Lysandra I mean LYSANDRA OF ALL PEOPLE CAN THE WOMAN GET A BREAK

Darrow I hate you still

Nox I’m still not over you being back thanks buddy I missed ya

Lorcan finding Aelin first and sobbing in relief has so much depth to it I’m gonna have to discuss later

Even their bickering it’s a bit of a relief to have the spark and almost normal… not forgiven just better I guess

And then him saying he already thought Elide was powerful and he crawled for Aelin not Maeve

And all the I CARE ABOUT YOU scenes with SO MANY OF THEM we got Manorian we got Elorcan we still got Rowaelin now we got platonic stuff with Fenrys the list GOES ON

Curious what Rens figuring out cause someone’s gotta be figuring out the whole isn’t Aelin thing and I have a feeling his Lysandra obsession is more than that

Glad to see sweet Evangeline again… I’ll feel better when we get so safe Fleetfoot comes home

Anxious over my war side babies cause there REALLL deep in the bad stuff

The one thing I CAN thank SJM for is not making Fenrys hurt Aelin I spend half the time terrified that was gonna be the next play though the freaky dreams were a whole new level of fucked up not to mention the fact they stole her scars because that’s how mutilated she was and now she’s foreign to herself and my heart hurts

Also the do not yield scene😭

And Fireheart being my new fav all time term of endearment

And their (Fenrys & Aelin) blinking code … honestly I need to put it on a bookmark for frequent translation

And again Fenrys who btw BABE WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME I ABOUT LOST IT WHEN I THOUGHT HE WAS DEAD BUT HE BROKE THE OATH FOR HER AND THEN THEIR HUG AND ALL OF IT AND ALSO

I started wondering the same thing about could you double oath it and cancel it out so I finally got my oath answer and lost it again because the iron “take it off” scene… idk which even came first just ow and then LIVE.

The moment Aelin realizes it’s really Rowan

And then he says can I hold you

And then that he’d love her even if she never got back to who she was

And then she’s still storing power away and a half living inferno and probably gonna go save the day

and she’s trying but she doesn’t know what’s real but Fenrys reminded her and she’s trying so hard

And she got the rings

And the I’m so tired Rowan line that broke me again

And the beautiful things glowworm starry night

Then there’s again Elide and Lorcan

The impending Morath

Dorian and Manon shenanigans

All these sub plots I’m sure are gonna be a big deal

Chaol hasn’t even caught up yet

And Yrene is PREGNANT?!

And I still can’t wait for them all to meet

And then AGAIN with the little folk

And the crown of Mab though now it’s kinda got bad vibes tbh

And all the queenlyness Aelin STILL is

And the scene where Rowan sees what would’ve been his children and her seeing how he would’ve been her mate either way

And then her hair being too long and the tattoos gone and this terribly long list

And him coming for her And her thinking he wouldn’t and his words on that

Aelin telling Rowan she didn’t break

Rowan calling Fenrys brother

Elides wisdom always saving the day

Lysandra becoming Wivern and so many things to save them all

Finally meeting the bane

Chaol going back to Anielle

Connall who we barely got to know and idk what was even real

And now no one knows where Maeve or mystery last cadre is

Ugh I need more time but alas this is the round up to shortly delve into more cause I do have annotations lol

Okay this has been fangirl screaming in Wyvern

Ps ABRAXOS HAS A MATE SITTING IN A TREE LOL

[pikapeppa]

Fic writers' end-of-year roundup: 2022 edition!

It’s that time of year, writer friends — time to take stock of what we’ve been up to this year! Tagging to literally ANY AND ALL WRITERS who would like to participate, but I’ll throw down some tags from the top of my head: @contrivedchaos @kittynomsdeplume @little-lightning-lavellan, @varric-tethras-editor @lavendreapark @hobo-apostate @ranaspkillnarieth @iamcayc @ocean-in-my-rebel-soul @hollyand-writes @elveny @johaerys-writes @charlatron @noire-pandora @hellas-himself @crackinglamb @barbex @mogwaei @alyssalenko @musetta3 @iarollane @about2dance @mythicaitt @cthu-boo !

Words written (published or not, WIPs included!): 1 012 607. I was hoping to crack a million this year and I FINALLY DID IT. 😂

Smut scenes: 41! Less than other years, but not the least.  

New things I tried:

I wrote fanfic for anime for the first time this year — for Samurai Champloo (Fuu/Jin/Mugen) and for Cyberpunk: Edgerunners (David/Lucy). On a related note, this year was the first time I wrote for a form of media that I didn’t originally watch in English. I was always a little scared to write in English for something that I hadn’t watched in English, because capturing characters’ voices and speech patterns is so important to me, and it’s hard to translate that across languages. But CPER got me by the throat, so I watched it in both Japanese and English so I could capture the characters’ voices as best as I could. I watched Samurai Champloo dubbed in English, though, and I am a sucker for Jin’s English voice, so that was a snap to write. 😂

For the first time, I also wrote for a game that I’ve never played before: Far Cry 5! @schoute got me reeled in with her raving loving descriptions of cheeky shithead John Seed, and I was compelled to write some smut for her. I had a blast watching a playthrough of FC5 with her (LOVE YOU BB ❤), and writing from John Seed’s POV was A MINDFUCK AND A HALF, let’s just say. GOOD TIMES. 😂

Fic I spent the most time on: 

Becoming Whole (Aloy/Kotallo), which has been my main focus since March and is more than 500k words now. I genuinely did not expect or intend for this fic to be this long! I’ll blame the party banter for this. My outline will say “GAIA Gang chat over dinner”, and this single note will translate into 10k words in the chapter 😂💀 In any case, VERY honoured by everyone who has stuck with this extremely long fic!

Fic I spent the least time on:

The Wisdom In A Bowl Of Pudding (Felassan/Tamaris Lavellan). I was inspired by the news about the DA:D milestone and got so excited that this oneshot came together in… one day, I think? One or two. I JUST LOVE FELASSAN OKAY.

Favourite thing I wrote: 

It’s a tie between two fics. I loved writing Finding Something In Common (Aloy/Nil/Drakka) because a) writing Nil again after 5 years of being “away” was like coming home 😭❤ and b) I fucking love Drakka with a burning passion LOL. But I also loved writing my Samurai Champloo fic Just Hold On, We’re Coming Home because it was purely and entirely for me. There are so few fics for that anime and even fewer explicit fics for the OT3, so I knew that basically nobody was going to read it and that anyone who did would be really grateful to see a rare fic for the OT3, but I had to write it because I just had the urge and couldn’t rest until I did. It was a gift to myself to kick off the year. 😂

Favourite thing I read: 

I’ve actually done some actual reading this year!!! Both of fics and published books, because I wanted to start working my way through my bedside tsundoku, with mixed results: I read a couple of books from my tsundoku pile but then bought the entire Sailor Moon manga set and have only read 6 issues so far 😂😭💀 one step forward, 10 STEPS BACK. 

Anyway! Fave fics of the year:

I read a few fics for Samurai Champloo. As I mentioned before, there aren’t many fics for this fandom, but one of the fics I read was both the shortest and the most drop-dead gorgeous fic I’ve ever read: Bodies of Water by moemachina. I genuinely envy this writer for their ability to pack so much emotional punch into so many words. 

Where The Time Goes, a Chloe Fraser/Nadine Ross fic by @contrivedchaos. OH MY GOD WAS IT EVER LOVELY. Cat used a repeated phrase/theme throughout the fic that just had me on the edge of my seat the whole time, and MY GOD was the ending ever wonderful and satisfying. 😭❤

Written In The Stars, a Kotallo/OC fic by @iamcayc WHICH IS SUCH A TREAT. Caycee has created a wonderful OC to pair up with Kotallo and expanded on Tenakth lore in a way that had me squealing!

HZD Terraforming Base-001 Text Communications Network by Discar. It’s a texting fic between the GAIA Gang and it’s SO GOOD. Hilarious, great characterization of the crew, incredible expansion on the worldstate and lore. I stopped reading halfway through because I was afraid that I’d start accidentally stealing their headcanons/lore expansion since it just makes so much sense, but I just recently noticed that the fic finished, so I might get back into it soon!

Writing goals for next year: 

Oh man there are so many things I want to write and so little time and I’M SO MAD ABOUT IT.

Finish Becoming Whole. Now that we know the DLC is coming out in April, I am DETERMINED to finish BW before then so my slate can be clear for new fics ideas 🤩

An Aloy/Avad sequel to Window Bird. The conversation that Aloy and Avad have at the start of HFW makes MY ENTIRE HEART HURT. I will stubbornly maintain that Avad is the most tragic character alive in the Horizon universe, and I’m going to give him some love because he deserves it, the poor sweet man.

More Aloy/Drakka. This entire fic has been my treat to myself, and the next oneshot is in progress -- probably the first thing I'll publish in 2023!

Aloy/Nil. I fucking love Nil to the moon and back, but writing this ship again is going to take some mindfuckery because I’ll be rebooting my take on the ship as though Stormbirds and Stalkers didn’t happen 😅

I’m sure this won’t be all; I always end up getting blindsided by a desire to write something I didn’t expect (e.g. Cyberpunk this year), so we’ll see what else comes up as the year progresses! 

Can't wait to see what everyone else has been up to!!! Please tag anyone you think would like to participate, and tag me back so I can spy on what you've been up to as well! 🥰

-- love from your friendly Pikapeppa xoxo

[rillils]

RILLLLLLSSSSSSSSS AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HKJFHSDKJ

i so terribly want to write but i dont know howwwwwww ughhhhhhhhhh hsdkfhasdhfjk i have one (1) singular blob of words that i think is amazing, one (1) convo between them. and youre telling me that i have to write a whole fic around it 😭😭😭 how do you do it rils 😭 the little thing i wrote is so soft and so pure, i dont wanna ruin it 😭 its just steve talking and all the actions are in my head, how on earth do i put it into words

not enough appreciation is being shown to writers istg, i owe them my life

honey, you're asking the big questions here 😭😭

I know, sweetheart, writing can be both a pleasure and a struggle - actually, sometimes it is both at once xD I never got the hang of it, myself, but all the writers in the world deserve an actual medal for every single line they write and put out there for us to enjoy!!

I don't think there is one fool-proof recipe for a smooth writing session, where the words simply come to you and it's like the fic just wrote itself without any bumps in the road (that's an extremely rare occurrence, if it ever happens at all); but I do think there are some things you can consider when you're writing:

if you already know what needs to happen in your fic (that is to say, if you know what the characters are going to say and/or do), that's a good thing!! amazing, actually! I know that, when you envision a certain scene, it can be hard to translate the characters' actions into words. try to picture that scene in your head: what do you see? are the characters talking? if they're talking, what's the tone of their conversation? are they whispering, are they chatting, are they arguing, yelling, laughing...? how do they feel: are they happy, anxious, angry, sad...? you can focus on their mannerism too, to convey their emotions: are they gesticulating? are they tense, maybe sitting up too straight? are they nervous, bouncing their leg, biting their lip? are they comforting someone? are they showing affection with their body language? leaning into the other character's space, or touching them, or snuggling up to them, hugging/kissing/sharing meaningful looks? there are so many things you can try and explore with your writing! which, maybe that makes it feel even more scary sometimes, but you don't have to explore everything all at once. you don't have to already have everything set clearly in your mind from the get go: you can build your fic (or your scene) little by little, line by line. one step at a time, honey <3 and if you don't like the first draft, don't worry! first drafts are made to be edited and changed and even taken apart, that's perfectly normal!

you won't ruin your fic, honey, trust me on that <3 now you have the foundations: all you're going to do is, you'll keep building on those foundations, and around them, bit by bit, without hurry, because there is no hurry. you'll pour all your love into it, and you'll watch it grow, until you feel that it has reached its natural end.

the thing about completing a story is, the finished product won't always look like what you had in mind originally. it's so very common for a writer's plans to be completely derailed, and that's okay! the writing experience is unpredictable, but that's half the fun of it <3 the finished fic might look a bit different than what you set out to write in the first place, but that doesn't make it bad, believe me.

you're the one writing this fic. which means that you're probably going to be reading, and re-reading, and editing and tweaking it over and over again. the reader has the privilege of looking at the finished product, without seeing the struggle and labour that went into it; but you, you've seen every stage of it, from when your fic was just a couple of snippets with a big hole in the middle, that you weren't sure how to fill in just yet, to when it finally looked like a whole story. you've re-read every line and wondered if that was the right phrasing, the right rhythm, if the character's voice felt right or if it was off. you took it apart and put it back together over and over. which is why, your own writing is never going to look perfect to you, especially when you're still in the process of writing your story. but more often than not, when you leave it alone and come back to it after a little while, you'll find yourself thinking: "hey, actually this wasn't half as bad as I thought it was!"

I don't know if any of this is going to help at all, but... if you're struggling with your writing, please know that you're not alone <3 That being said, I hope you do finish the fic you're writing, and I'm looking forward to reading it, because you're amazing and I just know that you're doing a fantastic job, darling <3 Happy writing, my dear!!

[jaggededges123]

20 questions writer meme.

Thanks @snarkivistfic for tagging me!! i really love doing these <333

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

208! on this account XD all of my answers will be for this ao3 account.

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

477,998. i'll hit 500k by the end of niecest weekend <3

3. What fandoms do you write for?

well, right now, mainly mdzs and a little bit for ace attorney. i've been known to write for arcane, and a little for svsss and star trek snw. everything else is for assorted various fandoms as the whims come and go, but those are the main ones.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

A Punishment Most Sweet, niecest pwp 2.2k.

Too Close for Comfort, niecest pwp 4.9k, for the love of god read the tags before diving in.

Iridescent, smutty and romantic niecest longfic, featuring canon divergence right from the very start! it's 109k.

Prey, niecest (and nhs/tentacles) pwp 6.7k. once again, if you get squeamish, read the tags first.

Any Other Name, niecest omegaverse pwp with bitching and bottom nmj, 6.9k.

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

absolutely! i always do unless it's a hate comment or something like that. i really love getting to interact with people who love the same characters i do; tbh it's one of the biggest reasons i write fanfic in the first place.

6. What is a fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Final Entry. i genuinely cried while writing it and i have a secret, alternate ending stashed away just for me because it was so difficult to handle at times.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

i think that the one that has the most uncomplicated happy ending is A Thousand Ways to Say I Love You, tbh. most of my fics end happily though, in varying degrees. it's because i'm a sap XD

8. Do you get hate on fics?

not usually! i have a few times, but it's not very common for me.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

over half of my fics include smut, and it's of various kinds. i am a creature that thrives on variety, so it's difficult for me to do one thing over and over again. i have some things i won't write, but even things i'm very neutral towards or even mildly squicked by, i'll usually still give them a go at least once.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

i haven't posted one yet, though i've had a disco elysium/mdzs crossover in mind for probably a year now? idk if i'll ever get to writing it because i'm too intimidated to write disco elysium fic, but the vibes are good for myself at least.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that i know of!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

yes! once again, it's Final Entry, translated into Chinese. i nearly cried when the translator asked to, it was so sweet 😭💖

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

nope! when i was young i tried to write with someone else a few times and it really didn't go well, but now i don't think i would be opposed to the idea. it seems a little difficult, because of writing speeds and styles and everything else, but if someone wanted to try with me then i'd probably be game.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

well, okay. i think empirically, i have to say that it is niecest. i've never written this many fics for a ship before ever. honorable mentions to xisang, which anchored me into the mdzs fandom, and miamaya from ace attorney which is my most recent obsession.

15. What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

well, i have about a million wips, and so it's unrealistic to think that i would ever be able to finish them all. but on my other account i have a xisang modern au that's just told through poetry written by nhs, which i hope to finish someday but the "write poetry" juice is not terribly common for me, alas. i don't think i'll ever finish it.

16. What are your writing strengths?

i think internal monologues are my biggest strength when writing. it's certainly the part that i enjoy the most, and i think that definitely shows through even after i've edited it all. also, i think i'm pretty good at smut tbh, and at turning smut into opportunities to showcase where the character(s) is(are) at emotionally. and... writing very long sentences XD

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

dialogue 👍 which is fucking hilarious because when i was a teen, i could write dialogue all day long and it was my favorite part of the process. but now it's nearly always like pulling teeth, and i'm often not satisfied with it even when i'm done.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

i think the only language i'd feel comfortable doing that for, if it were more than just a word here or there, is Spanish. i love seeing it in fic though, when i'm reading! but yeah, i'm just not enough of a polyglot to feel comfortable pulling it off myself, generally.

with mdzs/untamed fanfic, i operate under the assumption that the characters are all speaking Mandarin Chinese unless otherwise specified, so i'll use a specific dialogue tag if it's important that they're speaking in another language.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

the ranger's apprentice series--i loved it when i was younger. none of the fanfic remains, unfortunately. when i was a young adult i got embarrassed by what i'd written for it and burned the notebook holding my earliest fanfic, and then through the internet i've lost another long one that was for that same series and universe. i still have an original novel i wrote that was loosely based on that fanfic, though.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

i think... for now, it's still Iridescent. that might change with my next longfic, but since it's currently my only very long fanfic that's finished, it's difficult not to be attached to it.

thanks so much for tagging me again, snarkivist! this was really, really fun <333

as for who i'll tag, i think it will be @foxyyaoguai, @kaz3313, and @monroeknoxwrites. you don't have to do it if you don't want to, and anyone else who sees this and wants to do it, feel free to put me down as having tagged you! i'd be delighted to see your answers!

[everdares]

thank you so much for tagging me @waywardangel-wilds and @thegreatmelodrama 🥰

List 5 books that made you The Way You Are (got this idea from another old post). You don't have to explain why if it's cringe/too personal, but I'm curious about how old you were when you read it, if you're comfortable adding that!

1. the percy jackson series. it singlehandedly brought me to where i am in life. to WHO i am, really. i literally taught myself english just so i could read more fanfiction since it was almost nonexistent in my language 😭 and then tumblr came; friendships made and all of the experiences i've had, everything i've been through were all because one day at age 11 i decided to open a book to "look, i didn't want to be a half-blood."

2. a bolsa amarela (the yellow bag) by lygia bojunga nunes. tbh i haven't read it in so long i don't quite remember the details of the story, but whenever i think of a book that changed my perspective i think first of this one. it was the first book that resonated with me so deeply that when i think of it, the emotion i felt reading the very last page comes back to me all over again. which i can only describe as finding the last piece of the puzzle i've been trying to complete my entire life

3. the hunger games trilogy. first time i've ever read it was earlier this year, at age 22, but it quickly became my anchor to this world. i decided to finally give it a try during one of the worst moments of my life, and while i feel that the hard times are still not over yet, i can easily say the hunger games keeps me afloat when all i want to do is drown

4. the song of achilles by madeline miller. it was one of my first challenges to myself. it was the first book i read completely in english without having read the portuguese version first. at least once in every single paragraph, i had to stop and look a word up. i also made myself NOT look for the translation but instead the definition of the word in english. it was a lot more of a study than a read at the time, but it improved me sooo much. it made me more comfortable with myself and my words in english

5. poema de sete faces (seven-sided poem) by carlos drummond de andrade. it's not a book, it's a small poem, but i just HAD to include it here. it resonated with me in the middle of a literature class in high school lol i still remember leaving the class with tears in my eyes, but they were not sad tears. not quite happy either? it was just. the feeling of being understood. not alone in this life, as much as it feels like it

phew this was deep but i loved every second 😭💖 i tag my lovelies @thesmileykate @tobistark @loungemermaid @springmagpies @softchouli @millennium-queen @eroticeverlark @runwiththethieves @catastrxblues

[ildi-dragonheart]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Tagged by @frankenjoly omg thanks i just got home from school i need this

1. How many works do you have on ao3?

I have 57 rn and i still can't believe i have that many fics,, it used to be more than that but i had deleted some of my older fics for an old fandom i was once in

2. What's your total ao3 word count?

127,635 words (and counting hopefully once i get out of this slump)

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Right now i mainly write for BSD. I used to write for the fantastic beasts and where to find them fandom from 2018 to the first half of 2020 but i stopped cuz i left (you can still find my fics for that fandom in my ao3 and wattpad profiles)

4. Top five fics by kudos

Bored (BSD) - a little domestic fluff fic feat. Ranpo being perpetually bored while Akiko is busy working

A Night at the Scamander Household (Fantastic Beasts) - wherein the Newt and Tina are awoken in the middle of the night by their youngest son who's unable to sleep

Tattoos and Soulmates (Fantastic Beasts) - newtina soulmate au where you have matching tattoos with your soulmate

Lay All Your Love on Me (or not) (Fantastic Beasts) - watch as Achilles Tolliver tries to get Tina Goldstein's attention and fails (spoiler: she's already taken)

Books, Rain, and You (Fantastic Beasts) - in an effort to get out of the heavy rain, Tina finds herself in a cozy library with an adorable librarian. they bond over books and then some

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes, but not always. I like interacting with those who read my fics and seeings their comments just motivates me to write more

6. What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

i mostly write fluff but i have tried my hand at writing angst although i'm not sure if those fics count as that cuz i feel like i don't have the skill to properly convey the angsty feelings for it to be considered angst

but if i had to choose out of all the attempts i made at angst, i'd say If "Happy Ever After" Did Exist, I Would Still Be Holding You Like This and Con Flores (Te Llevaste Mi Tristeza Con Colores)

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

again, i write fluff so basically all of them have happy endings or are just generally happy overall. i can't really pick one of them dasjkgkas

8. Do you get hate on fic?

i hope not... that's literally one of my writing anxieties, especially when i write a fic involving an oc i have for a fandom (like Edogawa Hotaru, for example)

9. Do you write smut?

i think i tried writing once although it wasn't a fanfic. i cringed hard and never tried writing smut for a fic again. but if you guys saw my character ai chats involving my ships-

10. Do you write crossovers?

no

11. Have you ever stolen a fic?

i hope not. i always try to make sure all my works are original, but if i do take inspo from another fic i always make sure to ask

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

yes! i think i had two or three fics translated some time ago by other people online (with my permission ofc) and that honestly makes me feel so proud??

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

no and i feel too shy to do so😭

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

ranposano, obviously (and a genshin rarepair i have that i am a little too afraid to say cuz genshin fandom)

15. What's a WIP you want to finush but probably won't?

so. many. WIPS. please. send me motivation.

16. What are your writing strengths?

never-ending inspiration i guess. i once got a "this is the fic i/we never knew i/we needed" comment on a ranposano fic that i wrote because i had my period and that just made me realize that wow i pull my ideas from literally everywhere

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

procrastination, my inconsistent english grammar, and constantly setting standards that are a little too high whenever i write something

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language?

i'm fine with it ig? englsih is my second language and i don't usually write full dialogues in another language. i usually only include words in another language but never full dialogues

19. First fandom you wrote for?

believe it or not, i used to write fanfics for the rise of the brave tangled frozen dragons fandom, mainly jelsa (but i never published any of them my 10 year old self was too scared)

20. Favorite fic you've written?

omg Lost and Found my beloved ranposano fic daksgdkas that fic is what i like to consider as the peak of my skills as fic writer, like i will never be able to write something like that ever again

(A Package and Glass Marble come close tho)