#Navi Reads

[pomnavi]

The Apothecary Diaries - LN 1, 2 Impressions

The Apothecary Diaries Volumes 1 and 2 by Natsu Hyuuga, Illustrations by Touko Shino. Published by J-Novel Club.

I watched season 1 of Kusuriya as it was airing, and waited to read the novels until I had completed the 24 episodes. As a result, I noticed two things:

First, that the 1st novel is actually a standalone. I did think it was weird that Maomao was suddenly removed from the Rear Palace, but it makes total sense if you think of it as a standalone ending. The first book basically ends with a sequel hook anyways.

Two, the writing in these novels is pretty dry. I'm not sure if this is part of the original text, or if the translator happens to have a dry writing style. From what I've read, the manga done by Nekokurage adds in a lot of charm and humor, which the anime took and expanded on even more. The light novels meanwhile, are truly from Maomao's perspective, and have her sarcasm and wit.

That's not to say that it wasn't enjoyable, but it was a little shocking to find out that some of the beloved slapstick elements were purely made up for its subsequent adaptations.

Because of this, certain key moments hit a little differently.

It's still early in the series, so I wonder if these aspects of the storytelling will change. Only time will tell.

Maomao is still one of my favorite main characters that I've read in light novels, however.

Dreamwidth Mirror

[navybrat817]

Can these two just take turns wrecking me? Please?

[artshokad2]

Have some more old ddvau doodles (ft a mini @xmaruu11 and @kitsuneisi i did during the livestream)

Close ups

[ailusaur]

figured since I posted these on xwitter I may as well post them here too. Apologies for the two-year-late Stultifera memes lmao I literally made these during the original event run

[fluentisonus]

rambling here (& a little drunk) but it's so interesting coming to les mis from a preexisting maritime/age of sail interest background because like the whole historical situation (well. wrt toulon at least) it's discussing is like. it's very much a side of things you don't think about so much I guess when you're focused on life on board the ships themselves & particularly ships at sea. which -- like tbc my knowledge of this stuff is mostly to do with the royal navy during the same period, which can be very different re: how it functioned, so I don't necessarily know much about the french navy or how obvious this stuff would be if I was reading books about the french navy -- but just the whole existence of the bagne & the prisoners being the ones to help with the ships while they're in port (amongst other things) really makes one think about like idk. how casually you might get someone on the ship referring to 'putting in for repairs' or something in a way you wouldn't think twice about what that might imply. meanwhile then you read this & read the historical background & there's a whole different angle that's absolutely full of horrors. idk idk like I keep thinking about how in post captain (aubrey-maturin series, so written well after les mis & probably deliberately conscious of it while doing this) when they go into the harbor in toulon to meet with christy-palliere during the peace of amiens & there's like half a sentence mention of the convicts on the far side of the harbor unloading stuff from the ships before they go on with their lives (& this is 1802, jvj would literally be over there right then), and it's just background description. and how like every battle you read about, in fiction or non fiction, every time they talk about french ships taking damage or needing supplies etc etc it that it's often toulon (or similar) they'd be limping back to. it's just such a crazy shift in perspective & new consideration of some of the actual sources of this historical labor & how damaging it was beyond what's on the actual ships

[crossthread]

No jokes here. The Navy’s best pilot and the Navy’s best admiral. Between them, eight air-to-air combat kills and five stars. These were men who commanded respect with or without your approval. This was the picture of ruthless competence.

Debriefing (& Other Stories) • part 2 of Easier Done Than Said by @compacflt

[andallshallbewell]

[unlawfulchaos]

Ice: Have you ever read something so explicit that you feel like you need to go to church and wash your eyes in holy water?

Maverick: Send it to me.

Ice: No, you're in a meeting.

Mav: So are you! And you're the one reading explicit things during Cain's rant, so don't you give me the eyebrows of judgement from across the room. I see you, Ice.

[rat-on-string]

My Voice Betrays Me- 4 page comic about being nonbinary.

[uzurakis]

❝LOOKS LIKE THIS NEEDS A GOOD CLEANING!❞

ᵎᵎ ₊˚ meet the janitor, @UZURAKIS ⋮ enjin’s ‘good woman’, kiara, stealing another blunt of his! 8teen fem. megumi’s unshakable character && nagumo’s partner in crime.

❝ 001. LAWS 002. CLASSICS 003. VAULTS ❞

(n)sfw blog for jjk, bllk, & sakadays!

requests: closed! though brainrot and entries/thoughts are always welcome ͙ ࣪ ˖ ੭

ENJIN : my typa gal? a good woman who’s smarter than me, a nice body, not to mention sexy. m’girl kie, for sure.

[navyblueone0w]

“I am fond of lovers but I cannot love, I am too far away, am banished,”

—Franz Kafka, from a diary entry wr. c. January 1917 featured in “Diaries,”

[pomnavi]

A Young Lady Finds Her True Calling Living with the Enemy - LN 1

I'm super excited to talk about this book! I normally like to wait to check out books from the library to see if I actually like them, but I just knew from the premise that this one was going to be something I'd love.

The premise is as follows: Bertine, the woman pictured on the front, a noble daughter of a Marquess from the island Kingdom of Luenne and, is sold off by her country as part of a negotiation for reparations in a war between the continental Empire (who Luenne was supporting), and a southern country called "The Federation". She is forced to go to the Federation and is offered as a bride to winning side's king, a man named Cecilio. Except, the Federation needs money for war damages, not a random noble bride!

After facing some harsh treatment at the King's estate (when Cecilio isn't there), she decides to leave and make a living and life on her own, with the help of her attendant and some friends she meets along the way.

First and foremost, although this is supposedly a romance series, this is mostly a book about a woman finding a way to establish herself in a new country as an independent merchant through connections and wit.

I thought the negative relationship between Cecilio (her primary love interest), and Bertine would drag on through the entire book complicating her goals, but I was pleasantly surprised that Cecilio apologizes right away for how his staff initially treated Bertine. From there on out, Bertine and Cecilio are a team, working to uplift the Federation.

The first book is mostly about establishing Bertine as a merchant, and is quite similar in tone and feel to the first three books of the Ascendance of a Bookworm series. I read this book entirely in one sitting!

I absolutely love the art style, and the story is such a cozy read.

The seeds of a future romance between the two leads have already been planted, and I assume we'll get more development on the romance front in the 2nd (and last book) which comes out on March 29, 2024.

I'll be awaiting it eagerly!

[navybrat817]

Wish these two would've met up.

[herobrine-avm]

[nav-i-nav]

“We found Basil tending to his garden, as usual! He was so confused when we whisked him away towards the forest! Just wait until he sees what we prepared for him! I bet he’s going to love it!”

📷🌻 Happy birthday, Basil! 🌻📷

Small one-shot for my AU below… thank you if you read it….!

"Hurry up, Basil!" Aubrey urged, pushing the mint-haired boy with all of her strength, her large ribbon bouncing on top of her head with each step she took. The girl huffed and puffed, almost tripping and knocking the gardener over in the process. Nevertheless, she continued, her cheerful but bossy tone echoing throughout the flower field the four friends were passing through."Or else we're not going to make it on time for your surprise birthday party! Mari would be really mad if we–”

As soon as those words left her lips, she stopped dead in her tracks, her smile turning sheepish as she rubbed the back of her neck. "Oops.…"

Next to her, a short boy with messy hair let out a loud groan, puffing his cheeks in annoyance.

"Great job, Aubrey!" He exclaimed with disdain. Next to him, Sunny narrowed his eyes and clicked his tongue in disproval. "You ruined it!"

"It was an honest accident, okay?! No need to be such a jerk over it…" The girl snapped back at him, turning around to face him and crossing her arms. "Besides, you almost spilled the beans when you dragged Basil away from his garden anyway, so don't try to act like you know how to keep a secret either, Chico!"

Aubrey then returned her attention to Basil with the same shy expression, ignoring Chico's protests as she clasped her hands together and closed her eyes. “Can you please act surprised once we get to the treehouse? Mari and Hero worked really hard to get everything ready for the party and I’d be really sad if all their hard work went to waste because of me.”

Basil simply shrugged, a small teasing smile forming on his lips as he giggled. “What party?”

The girl let out a big sigh of relief, giving him a thankful nod before she nudged him forward. “Well, let’s keep moving then! We can’t waste any more time standing around here like a couple of lost sprout moles!” As she said that, she shot Chico an accusatory glare, to which the boy  replied with an offended “What?!”

“Oh, quit playing dumb!” Aubrey tapped her foot against the ground, her brows furrowing as she pressed her lips together. “You know as well as I do that if it weren’t for you and your stupid obsession to prove you’re strong, we wouldn’t be running late!”

“It’s not stupid!” Chico argued back, placing his hands on his hips and rolling his eyes. “If we hadn’t dealt with those sprout moles who knows what might’ve happened. What if someone got hurt?”

“Since when do you care if someone gets hurt or not? All you wanted was to show off!”

“Did not!”

“You so did!”

“You’re such a liar!”

“Guys…” Basil let out an awkward laugh, stepping in between the two of them. “If you keep arguing like this, we definitely won’t make it to the treehouse in time.”

Aubrey opened her mouth, ready to protest, but she simply huffed and nodded, crossing her arms and looking away from Chico. “Fine.”

Basil waited.

Three.

Two.

On–

"But we definitely wouldn't have had to take so many twists and turns if it weren’t for Chico always fooling around. Hmph!”

There it is.

“That’s not true!”

“Yes it is!”

“Nuh-uh! Both you and Sunny kept getting distracted as well! Stop acting as if it’s all my fault!”

Basil sighed, giving up trying to get his friends to listen to him. Why did all their conversations have to end with the two of them fighting? He knew neither of them was actually upset, but still… Couldn’t they at least try to get along just once?

At least they managed to find this field of flowers after having to take so many shortcuts. All the flowers were different shades of blue and purple, their petals gently swaying in the summer breeze. Basil had made sure to take note of all the different kinds of plants he found as they made their way amongst the grass. Ah, if only they could stop for a little while so he could take in the scenery better…

Well, there was no benefit in dwelling over it. And he could always come back here another day. But the sky was so pretty… 

Slowly, Basil pulled out his camera, focusing the lens on the flowers. He held his breath, and…

Click!

The photo slowly slid down into his hand, the gardener grasping the Polaroid with care as he waited for the image to fully develop. Slowly, the colors began burning into the paper, all the hues mixing together to reveal a beautiful scenery.

The mint-haired boy smiled, satisfied, and put the photo in his pocket, he didn’t want it to be damaged until he could place it in the photo album, after all. He couldn’t wait to show everyone. Sunny would probably want to draw–

He snapped back from his thoughts, looking back at his friends. 

“Where’s Sunny?”

Aubrey and Chico stopped their bickering, the two of them turning back to Basil with confused expressions, confusion that quickly turned to shame. Basil’s smile soon vanished as he let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. That was all he needed to know. 

“He wandered off on his own, didn’t he?”

No response.

That was all he needed to know. Basil shook his head, looking around the flower field to see if he could find any trace of his best friend. Unfortunately for him, Sunny proved to be quite the sneaky one, as there were no footprints to follow. He pressed his lips together, before taking another deep breath and putting on a bright smile, his tone cheerful and calm. “Th-that’s okay! We’ll just have to look for him. I doubt he got too far away, so why don’t we split up? The field isn’t that big, anyway.”

“Good idea, Basil!” Right away, Aubrey nodded, already bouncing on her feet as she looked around. “I’ll take the left and Chico can take the right!”

“Why do I–”

“And Basil,” Aubrey continued through gritted teeth, shooting Chico another warning stare. “can go back to where we came from to see if Sunny went back.”

Before Chico could try to argue again, the gardener hummed in agreement, pressing his hands together. “Sounds like a plan! Let’s meet up here in five minutes, okay?”

His friends answered with an “Okay.” at the same time, though Chico was clearly still upset about having to follow Aubrey’s lead, grumbling under his breath as he walked away. Likewise, Aubrey’s bow kept bouncing up and down as the girl cheerfully hopped away. She reminded him of a bunny.

Once he was alone, Basil began walking back the way they came, scanning his surroundings as he tried to find any sign of his best friend. As he walked, he couldn’t help but hum a little tune to himself, his hands brushing against the forget-me-nots and lavenders’ soft petals. The flowers’ fragrance filled his nostrils, making him calm down. Despite how he tried to keep his composure, in truth, he was a little afraid. By all means, he didn’t doubt Sunny was strong enough to take care of himself, and he wasn’t one to rush into battle, but this was still an unknown place, as pretty as it was. 

Aubrey always told him he worried too much about them, but he couldn’t help it. He loved his friends more than anything, so if anything were to happen to them….

Basil always made sure his friends stayed safe. It was a bit tiring, sure, but caring for those he was closest to always filled him with a warm sense of fulfillment and peace. He did feel a little bad from time to time, constantly chasing after them and nagging them to be careful, feeling like he was being too pushy or too nosy, but they never seemed to mind. Well, except for Chico… hehe…

He kept walking until he caught a glimpse of a blue rose out of the corner of his eye. Curious, Basil crouched down, reaching his hand out towards the flower. As his fingertips traced the edges of the flower’s petals, he couldn’t help but feel mesmerized by it. He had never seen a rose such as this. What was such a rare flower doing all alone, surrounded by so many different flowers?

He had the urge to take it back with him and care for it so he could show it to his friends. Something about it was so unique and appealing that he just couldn’t leave it here and–

“Ouch!” Basil winced, taking away his hand as one of its thorns managed to pierce through his gloves and prick his finger. He could feel his eyes tearing up a little due to the pain. As he took off his glove and examined his hand, he could see a thin trail of blood slowly dripping from the tip of his ring finger. Despite the thorn’s small size, the cut stung quite a bit. 

“I guess I deserve that.” Basil chuckled, shaking his hand to get rid of the blood. Indeed, he had been selfish and didn’t consider what would happen to the rose had he tried to pluck it. Maybe there was a reason it chose to bloom surrounded by so many different flowers. He hummed, rummaging through his pockets as he looked for a bandaid for his injury. 

As he did, he couldn’t help but muse. He hadn’t changed, had he? He cared for his friends, yes, but he did so because he was afraid they would leave him if he did something wrong. He did his best to smile and be kind, but sometimes it was quite tiring to chase after Chico or to remind Sunny to take a break from drawing. Sometimes he’d even have to stop Hero from taking on another chore even if he was already very busy. 

Just now he had thought about how exhausting it was to constantly have to play peacemaker whenever Aubrey and Chico argued. But, was it so wrong to feel that way? 

Basil ran his hand through his hair as he stood up, a small, resigned sigh leaving his lips. He shouldn’t be feeling this way. He should be grateful he had such good friends! Sure, they could be a little rowdy and careless from time to time, but at the end of the day, they were still kids. And he was one too. He couldn’t act like he was more mature than them just because he wasn’t as impulsive as them, now could he?

To be honest, the gardener wished he could have some of the bravery and enthusiasm they had. Although he didn’t like exploring as much as his friends, he was always coaxed into accompanying them. It was fun, but also a bit too extreme for his taste…

Oh well…

As he heard his friends’ quick footsteps and cheerful voices growing closer, Basil took one last look at the lonely blue rose hidden in the grass. 

Maybe one day he’ll be able to do as he pleases. 

But for now, he’s more than happy simply tagging along in his friend’s adventures. 

[alexxcatboy]

hai.... pls draw Norm Allen bein gay pls pls

idk what ur wantin from me but i would've drawn him shirtless tits out slicked up in oil smoochin up on me(n) if this was twitter dot com