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wtfsheikura · 5 months ago

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Chapter 5

“THANKS, Hanako.” I MUSTER A genuine smile as my eyes dart between Satoru and his mom.

I was prepared for the Gojos to give me the cold shoulder when I walked in, angry that Satoru and I recklessly got married and were rushing to get it dissolved. Instead, I’m being welcomed as if I were part of the family because satoru led them to believe that I am.

Letting him handle it alone was a huge mistake; now we’re in an even bigger mess.

“This is the best news.” Hanako pulls back, giving my hand an affectionate squeeze.

Her kindness tugs at my heartstrings, reminding me how much I used to love spending time here.

The Gojos are as close to a perfect family as they can get. They love each other unconditionally and have always stood together. As a kid, I envied satoru’s relationship with his parents; they were so caring and attentive. In contrast, my dad was cruel and vindictive, and my mom was more interested in escaping reality and indulging in a lavish lifestyle than taking care of Suguru and me.

“You weren’t this excited when Mia and I announced our engagement or when Ari told us she and Rin are getting a summer home in Aspen Grove,” Akira chimes in.

“He has a point, Mom,” Ari adds. “We shouldn’t be surprised, considering satoru has always been your favorite.”

“You’re just jealous.” satoru sticks his tongue out.

“That’s enough,” Hanako scolds. “I love you all equally and won’t have you argue otherwise. I’m just delighted to have Y/n as a daughter-in-law. It’s a dream come true.” Tears trickle down her cheeks, and she quickly wipes them away.

My chest tightens at her response. She had a soft spot for me when I was a kid, which meant a lot to me since I’ve never been close to my own mom.

satoru gives me a warning look, silently urging me not to break the news that this isn’t real. Nervously tapping my fingers against my thigh, I weigh my options. Based on her initial reaction, Hanako will be crushed if we come clean, but my guilty conscience tells me that deceiving her isn’t right.

This is all satoru’s fault. How dare he make this situation more complicated? We wouldn’t be in this situation if he had told his family the truth. I should have stood my ground back in Vegas, returned to London alone, and let our lawyers deal with the fallout.

Damn that tequila.

“Why is your mother crying?” satoru’s dad emerges from the hallway, his voice filled with concern.

He runs his fingers through his short white hair as his gaze sweeps over his kids, pausing when he notices me standing on the other side of Hanako. A puzzled expression crosses his face; I’m probably the last person he expected to see standing in his entryway.

“Don’t worry, Levi, they’re happy tears,” Hanako assures him between hiccups. “Satoru and Y/n got married yesterday. Isn’t that wonderful?”

Levi pushes his tortoiseshell glasses up on his nose, giving satoru and me cautionary glances. “Yeah, that’s great news,” he says, sounding unsure as he tries to appease his wife.

My conscience won’t let this go on any longer, and my inner voice shouts at me to end this charade.

“Would it be alright if I talk to satoru outside?” I ask.

His face pales at my request.

“Of course, sweetie.” Hanako smiles at me. “Just don’t take too long. The photographer is out back, and we don’t want to keep her waiting.”

“This will be quick,” I promise as I tug satoru's arm, dragging him onto the porch. He closes the door behind us, and as soon as we’re out of his family’s sight, I yank my hand away.

“What the hell was that?” I whisper-shout. “You were supposed to tell them the truth, not make your mom think this marriage is legitimate. She’s going to be devastated when she finds out that not only did we lie to her, but this”—I gesture between us—“isn’t real.”

I’m wary when he flashes me a playful grin.

“What?” I ask with my hands on my hips.

“Oh, come on, you can’t deny our chemistry,” he says, taking a step closer to me.

I shake my head in denial. “You’re imagining things.”

My visceral reaction when he walked into the hotel bar was a fluke. I’m chalking it up to an instinctual reaction caused by sexual tension that’s been building up for the past two years. It has nothing to do with satoru.

If I say it enough times, I’ll believe it.

“If that’s the case, care to explain why you stared daggers at every woman who dared to look my way? Or better yet, why you couldn’t stop eye-fucking me last night?”

“Apparently whiskey makes you delusional because I was not eye-fucking you last night, Gojo,” I retort.

“Sure you weren’t.” He cradles my face, gliding his thumbs against my skin. For a moment, I forget my reservations and lean into the comforting warmth of his hand.

He can get me to drop my guard without even trying. I think it’s because he’s familiar, evoking memories of our childhood friendship when I trusted him implicitly. My instincts tell me I can do the same now, but my mind isn’t so sure.

I take a step back, causing him to let go of my face. “I told your mom we wouldn’t be long. Is there a reason your family thinks we’re happily married?”

Satoru runs his fingers through his hair, which seems to be a family habit. “I was going to tell them what happened, but Ari noticed my ring before I could, and when I saw how happy my mom looked, there was no way I would disappoint her. It’s not that big of a deal.” He tries to brush me off.

“Not a big deal?” I raise my voice. “Satoru, we got married. Even if it was an accident, we have to take responsibility for our error and fix it. Lying to your family isn’t going to make this situation better. We have to go back in there right this minute and come clean. That’s the only option.”

The last thing I want is to cause a rift between Satoru and his family. From what I’ve seen in the past twenty-four hours, he has a laid-back approach to life. He loves his family, and has a big heart, but he doesn’t take things seriously, including himself. Everything is a game, and he doesn’t consider the consequences when he acts rashly.

In some ways, I envy his carefree attitude. He’s not afraid to take risks and doesn’t share my inability to roll with the punches.

“I didn’t lie, I just omitted some details,” he offers.

“That’s literally the definition of lying.” I let out a frustrated sigh. “If you’re unwilling to rectify this, I will.” I try walking past him, but he holds out his arm to stop me.

“Y/n, it’s not that simp—”

We’re interrupted by the door creaking open and find Tomoe and Akira standing in the doorway with suspicious expressions.

They join us on the porch, and Tomoe closes the door behind them. He folds his arms across his chest, studying us both with the intensity of a detective.

His White hair is styled in a tapered fade, and his muscular arms fill out the sleeves of his short-sleeve polo. The scowl on his face strikes me as odd, given that he was the approachable-teddy-bear big brother when we were kids. It appears we’ve all changed to some degree since then.

“You’ve got some explaining to do, Satoru,” Tomoe boldly states with a raised eyebrow. “Last week, you told Akira and me on a conference call that you never wanted to settle down. Now, suddenly, you’re waltzing into Mom and Dad’s, announcing that you’re married—to Y/n Geto. It doesn’t add up.”

“Her name is Y/n Gojo now,” Satoru states with a confidence that makes me want to shake some sense into him.

“It’s still Geto,” I correct him, not caring that I’m lecturing him in front of his brothers.

“Seriously, what is going on?” Akira interjects. “The optics won’t look good if this marriage is fake and it gets out to the board of directors,” he says as he adjusts his glasses.

He’s sporting black slacks paired with a light blue polo shirt, and his White hair is cut short. With his thick-rimmed glasses, he reminds me of a modern-day Clark Kent.

The Gojo brothers have all aged like fine wine, all incredibly attractive, but admittedly, Satoru is the only one who makes me weak in the knees when he looks in my direction.

Tomoe pinches the bridge of his nose. “Akira's right. If the media or the board finds out, this could tank the acquisition.”

My heart sinks as I get the sense that I should know what they’re talking about, but I don’t.

“What acquisition?” I voice my confusion.

“She doesn’t know?” Tomoe asks, alarmed.

Akira snickers as he leans against one of the porch pillars. “Oh, this is going to be good.”

“What are they talking about?” I demand, turning to Satoru.

One thing I cannot tolerate is being the last to know something, which happens often when my father is involved.

His eyes widen as he studies me. “You really don’t know?”

“If you would tell me what you were talking about, I could answer your question,” I retort.

He fiddles with his bracelet, avoiding eye contact.

“Gojo Holdings is in the process of buying out Geto International,” he says reluctantly. “I was in Vegas to meet with our board of directors since Tomoe and Akira both had conflicts.”

I blink at him in confusion. “Come again?”

“Your dad approached me a few months ago with a lucrative proposal for us to buy Geto International,” Tomoe explains, trying to diffuse the tension. “Akira’s team gave the deal a tentative green light, so we’re moving ahead with the acquisition.”

I balk at the realization that my dad withheld this from me. Although I shouldn’t be surprised since he does it all the time. If Sukuna and Nanami had been aware of this, there’s no question they would have told me. I can only imagine they won’t take the news well.

“Wait a second.” I glance over at Satoru, who looks ready to bolt. “If you knew, why wouldn’t you tell me?”

“I assumed your dad already had, and figured you didn’t mention it because of the legal restrictions in place on what can be talked about between companies until Gojo Holdings takes ownership of Geto International.”

“What about this morning when you woke up with a ring on your finger? That would have been the perfect opportunity to broach the subject. Were you lying when you said we’d fly back to London and get an annulment?”

My pulse quickens at the idea that he could be playing me. That this was a sick joke to guarantee the deal goes through. Or this is just another scenario where Satoru flies by the seat of his pants with no concern for repercussions, and I’ll be left paying for it.

“No, of course not,” he says quickly. “I promise we’ll get in touch with our lawyers as soon as we leave and will have this resolved by Monday, just like you want.”

“I wouldn’t advise getting an annulment,” Tomoe interrupts.

I jerk my head in his direction, having forgotten for a minute that he and Akira were here.

“Tomoe is right,” Akira adds. “This would cause a shitstorm if the media caught wind of a fake marriage in the middle of a merger. Not to mention, our board would have a field day.”

I place my hands on my head, attempting to regulate my breathing. This cannot be happening. Any second now, I’m going to wake up in my bed, and this will all have been a bad dream.

“Why should it matter what Y/n and I do?” Satoru asks Tomoe. “Our marriage doesn’t financially benefit anyone, so who cares if we get it dissolved?”

I glance at Tomoe and Akira, who both have serious expressions on their faces, confirming that Satoru is the only one who fails to grasp the severity of the situation.

“How do you think the board of directors will react when they find out you met up with the daughter of Geto International’s CEO right after you left a pivotal board meeting discussing the acquisition? I can spin the story of you marrying your childhood friend, but it’s going to be damn near impossible to convince them if your attorneys file for an annulment come Monday morning. They’ll assume you only got married to disclose sensitive information that could impact stock prices or shape market perceptions. If that happens, the deal will go up in smoke.” He snaps his fingers for emphasis.

When Tomoe puts it that way, it makes the situation even more dire. My hands shake as reality sets in. He’s right. If Satoru and I get an annulment now, we’ll jeopardize our jobs, the acquisition, and both companies’ reputations.

I let the tequila and Satoru's charm cloud my judgment. Now there’s a possibility I could be stuck married to him for an undetermined amount of time. I swear I’m never taking tequila shots ever again.

“What do you suggest we do?” I direct my question to Tomoe. He’s the most level-headed person here, and I can trust that he’ll give it to me straight.

“I would prefer that you stay married and pretend that you’re in love. That includes in front of our parents and Ariri. I don’t trust her not to spill the beans to Mom.” I stare wide eyed at Tomoe while he speaks. “It works in your favor that you grew up together and both live in London. If anyone asks, we’ll tell them you reconnected at a local pub, fell in love, and got married on a whim while you were both in Vegas for work.”

Even anticipating his advice doesn’t make it any less of a bitter pill to swallow.

“It won’t be that bad,” Satoru offers when he notices me wringing my hands.

“Not that bad? Gojo, we haven’t seen each other in fourteen years. Now, suddenly, you think I want to live with you? Tomoe just told us this could upset the merger. When my dad finds out what I did, he won’t be as understanding as your brothers.” I gesture toward Tomoe and Akira, who are observing our tense exchange.

My dad won’t let this lapse in judgment go unpunished.

Akira steps between Satoru and me. “Woah there, lovebirds.” He chuckles nervously. “Why don’t you talk this through in private before determining how you want to move forward? We’re not going to force either of you to do anything you don’t want to.” He looks me in the eye. “Whatever you decide, we’ll support you both. Right, Tomoe?”

“As the CEO of Gojo Holdings, I recommend you stay married for the sake of the companies.” Tomoe gives me a rare smile. “But as an older brother, I would never abandon either of you, regardless of how you want to move forward.”

I’m taken aback by their loyalty. Tomoe and Akira could easily disregard me to fend for myself and direct all their energy on helping Satoru clean up the mess we’ve made. Instead, they treat me like I’m a valued addition to their family, which is far more than I can say for my father.

“You’re right.” Satoru sighs. “N/n and I—” He stops when Hanako opens the door and steps outside with a perplexed expression.

“What on earth are you all still doing out here?” she scolds. “The photographer is getting impatient.”

“Is it alright if I wait in the kitchen for Satoru?” I ask.

“Absolutely not,” Hanako says firmly. “They wouldn’t be family photos without you in them, sweetie. Now come along.” She places her hand on my back, guiding me inside.

Her sentiment is touching, but it’s overshadowed by the knowledge that this illusion will shatter once the truth comes out. I’ll be left alone on the sideline, picking up the pieces.

I look back to glare at Satoru, paying no mind to Akira and Tomoe, who are struggling to stifle their laughter.

It’s official—this day is shaping up to be a complete disaster.

#explict #fanfic #fanfiction #female reader #geto suguru #gojo satoru #jjk #jujutsu kaisen #maki zenin #megumi fushiguro #nanami kento #naoya zenin #panda jjk #reader insert #romance #shoko ieiri #toji fushiguro #x reader

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toujokaname · 7 months ago

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Game master / Episode 11

Author: Akira

Characters: Kohaku, Aira, HiMERU, Hiiro

"That's why, I want to win this time, Aira."

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Season: Winter

Location: Secluded Village

Kohaku: It might be easier to understand if we liken it to ourselves. In our case, it's like, "becoming real idols!" or somethin'.

Aira: Ah, that was ES's slogan for its first year.

Kohaku: But truth is, we ain't got a clue what bein' a "real idol" even means. So, you could say we're all just fakes.

Aira: I see... So, the important thing is that we're motivated by "it," but what "it" actually is doesn't matter much?

Kohaku: Exactly. Sometimes in movies, they leave us hangin', never tellin' us what that so-called MacGuffin actually does.

HiMERU: A certain movie comes to mind. What exactly was that monster that appeared in the mist-covered shopping mall? [1]

Kohaku: Ah, that's also a real interestin' movie.

In that one, it's essentially a negative MacGuffin, motivatin' the characters to flee from the unknown and avoid bein' killed.

Hiiro: Hehe. You all seem very knowledgeable. Do you watch a lot of movies? Though as for me, I learned the term "MacGuffin" from books.

Kohaku: Yeah, I had nothin' else to do back home... Actually, I'm surprised HiMERU-han's weighin' in on this topic.

Figured he'd be the type to say, “I hate lowbrow entertainment like movies and manga~"

HiMERU: HiMERU also indulges in them as much as anyone else, to a certain extent. It's useful to study the public's preferences and trends, you know.

Aira: Hold on, why are we even talking about movies anyway?

Hiiro: Hehe. There's no one here like Crazy:B's Nii-san or ALKALOID's Tatsumi-senpai to summarize the discussion.

And because of that, we keep drifting off topic without realizing it.

Kohaku: Guess even Rinne-han's got his uses, in his own way...

HiMERU: Though it's always unpleasant that he only ever wants to talk about whatever interests him.

Aira: Alright, well—like Hiro-kun said earlier, only the representatives selected by each unit get to do this test of courage.

It's me and Hiro-kun for ALKALOID, and Kohakucchi and HiMERU-senpai for Crazy:B.

Hiiro: Umu. I heard that the rest of them will be "scarers," trying to interfere with our activities.

I'm not sure what "interfere" means. Maybe giving false directions or hiding the stamps for the stamp card?

HiMERU: Hopefully, they won't disrupt things to the point that completing the game becomes impossible.

Kohaku: Right. At the end of the day, it's a showdown between Crazy:B and ALKALOID, and one of 'em's gonna be the winner.

They wouldn't do anythin' to make the competition impossible to continue, probably.

Aira: Plus, this is an idol show. Entertainment comes first, so it shouldn't lead to any developments that nobody enjoys.

I mean, that's why Rinne-senpai going all out in the first match was so out there... It caught me totally off guard, though it's too late to complain about it now...

Hiiro: Umu. Given that I unintentionally aided Nii-san's scheme in the first battle, it's not my place to say, but since then, we've suffered defeat in every battle. It's a pitiful situation.

That's why, I want to win this time, Aira.

Aira: D-Don't expect too much from me, okay...? Somehow I've gotten better at performing on stage, but I'm still not very good at variety shows.

Since this is Hiro-kun's hometown, I'm expecting you to have the upper hand, got that...?

Hiiro: Umu... Well, I'll do my best in my own way!

Aira: Having only Hiro-kun as a partner makes me uneasy... I wish either Mayo-san or Tattsun-senpai were here.

Hiiro: It's because it seems like it's not just about following the route and getting the treasure in the end.

We need to have interesting reactions to the phenomena that occur.

Aira: Yeah... Looks like it's all being filmed, and the viewers will vote and score us.

We get 10 points each time we stamp the card along the route, and we'll get 100 points if we grab the treasure at the mansion.

In addition to that, seems like we can earn points for interesting reactions based on the viewers' votes?

Hiiro: Umu. But when Mayoi-senpai and Tatsumi-senpai are around, Aira feels at ease, so he might not react as dramatically anymore.

So that's why they decided to take the role of "scarers."

Though people often say my reactions are dull, so I'm questioning if this side was the right choice for me.

Aira: That's why if you, Hiro-kun, show fear, it'll be fresh and get high points, right?

Also, as I said before, you should know your way around... I'd probably get lost, I don't feel like I could navigate the route properly—

Hiiro: Because it's dark, right? I've trained myself to see fairly well at night, so I should be fine, but if you walk without thinking, you might end up lost.

Crazy:B, you two should watch your footing, too. It would be terrible if you fell and got hurt.

Kohaku: Don't go treatin' me like a kid. Matter of fact, movin' around in the dark's my specialty...!

HiMERU: Yes, and just in case, we've been given a device so we can call for help if we get injured or lost, so everything is fine.

It's wishful thinking, but surely it won't escalate to the worst-case scenario.

[ ☆ ]

HiMERU's likely talking about "The Mist" (2007), a movie based on the Stephen King novella.

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#akira #event story #matrix #kohaku #aira #himeru #hiiro

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despair-to-future-arcs · 1 month ago

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The only upside for Nikei doing Nikei things is that it means Naoyuki gets to see more of Masa.

Really? You did now?

Yeah, I was able to get her number so meaning I do plan to help Maki out with the investigation stuff she's been doing, I mean - she does seem really cool.

Still, I'm rather confused on her sometimes...

Confused on her? What do you mean...?

Well given you guys accept anyone regardless of talent, I'm rather surprise she didn't join you all given she doesn't seem to like Hope's Peak Academy so I'm a bit confused, can you explain why she didn't join you...?

Ah, well...I did offer if she wanted to join but she refuse...

Her reason mostly because she felt like we were giving up on Future Foundation and she knows that they have the resources to help with her investigation on Hope's Peak.

Wait, really? So that's why...?

Yes, from what she knows; Future Foundation has a lot of documents from Hope's Peak and if she wishes to investigate then she needs the documents.

So if join our organization, she would of had to release all those documents and I think Mr. Kasai knows the reason why she wants to, it's due to her father, Akira Esumi...

Wait, her father? You mean something happen to him?

Yeah, near the start of the tragedy, her father - Akira Esumi, was stuck in a burning building of the company and he was able to save all his employees before it collapse on him.

I'm sure your aware that I did work on helping with those fires, that includes this one which I was able to uncover Masa's father which I did show her.

I was honestly expecting her to cry or even give a reaction, but instead she didn't or at least I didn't see it but instead she decided to turn her tragedy into a strength...

...

Date: April 30th, 2013

*walking into a room, Masa and Shinji walk in and found what look to be an older man face cover*

Is...is that him? Is that my father?

Yes, he was able to save the rest of his employees but he couldn't make it, I'm really sorry...

It's fine, you did the best you could and it's good that he did try to save them as many as he can but I better see how bad it was...

*Masa then pulls the cover and it was indeed her father, or what remain of him* ...Dad, I'm...I'm so sorry...

*puts a hand on her shoulder* I know it's a lot to take in, but if you want sometime to yourself, we can allow it.

Thanks, I think I'll need sometime to myself, if you don't mind so can you leave; I just...I need a moment...

Sure, I'll leave you be...

*As Shinji walks out of the room Masa pulls the cover and looks at the body of her father, she puts an arm over her eye; she look to be crying* (I suppose she needs time to grieve... that's understandable.)

'I didn't see her for a few days, she probably needed some time to herself but the next I saw her... she had resolve...'

...

Date: May 4th, 2013

So... how has Masa been? I understand the weight of losing her father must weight on her, but you think she'll manage...?

I'm not sure, I mean I haven't heard anything from her; probably she just needs to grieve but I'm sure she'll be-.

*CREEK!*

???: Hey everyone, sorry for the wait; but I'm back...

*As turning around, Masa was standing there* Masa, your back are... are you okay...?

I am, again sorry that I had to take sometime to myself, I just needed to prepare my father's funeral...

I see, well... seems your managing, but I'm terribly sorry for your loss, are you... going to be okay?

I...I think so, I just needed a moment but thank you for your concern, really Kyosuke... I know that everyone must of been concern about me but I can assure you I'm managing so you don't need to worry, besides I don't think my dad would be too happy if I was moping around all the time.

So your back at it?

Well of course, after all; if I want to find the truth of what's going on and what needs to happen, then I'll need to investigate and work towards finding the truth; after all - that is what a journalist has to do, so I will do everything to uncover the truth and discover what lead to the tragedy, I can assure you of that.

'I wasn't sure what happen or how she was able to pick herself up, but I can tell... she was determined to investigate and uncover the truth; Akira Esumi's daughter... I didn't really know the man that well, but I think he be quite proud of her...'

#dr #danganronpa #dtfa #despair to future arc #ds:rw #despair side: re write #ds ep 11 #sdra2 #super danganronpa another 2 #dr3 #danganronpa 3 #fuji okamoto #naoyuki harukawa #shinji kasai #masa esumi #kyosuke munakata #anonymous

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flovverworks · 1 year ago

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There's a knock on Akira's door, light of the morning sun pouring in as the door opens, revealing the bundled up youth holding a plate of cookies, saran wrapped to keep them fresh and warm. She gasps, as if it's a surprise they'd be here, but then chuckles, "Um...I know this might be pretty weird, seeing as how we...Well, we know each other, I guess, but probably not enough for this." She's blushing, and trying to make eye contact as best as she can while embarrassment creeps into her expression. "But I didn't know if you were alone on Christmas, so I just thought I'd share some of the cookies I made." She talks as if she isn't alone herself, not really having too many friends still here. Though she truly did make too many cookies in her excitement to try and make stuff that would make her happy, and she couldn't think of who else to share them with. So she just hopes they don't mind the random gesture.

Ah...she's kind. Kinder than they had realized. She could've kept them for herself, or given them to friends and family—people who were closer to her. Instead, she was standing on their doorstep (or maybe, she simply already had prepared theirs already). It wasn't weird, if anything they're touched to be thought of, to be considered, with something as precious as homemade food. It's nerve-wracking to give people something you made yourself, a different kind of emotional investment compared to something store-bought (valentine's witnessed as much...!). It's admirable, sweet, and they vow to pay her back in full.

It's just that, right now, Akira can't help but worry they're about to make it awkward.

"These look amazing...are you sure it's fine?" the gratitude starts. "Thank you so much, that's very kind of you", and while the comforting smile stays, there's a moment's hesitation and an uncertain look in their eyes. She did this under the impression they might be alone today, if they were to thwart those expectations...would she feel embarrassed? Ah, but maybe she was just using that as an excuse to give them something. Or, possibly, it was her way of showing concern for whether they were alone or not, like something of a worried friend hoping you've settled in...even though, as the older one, they should be the one doing that...!

"Um... I'm meeting up with some friends later, would it be alright if I share these with them?" they end up saying, all while carefully considering her reaction. And... "Actually, we're a few people short, so if you and any of your friends doesn't have any specific plans, you'd be more than welcome", …was that too much? Did that make it awkward? Hopefully they had managed to put their own concern and care forward. "Um, some of them are teens so there won't be any drinking—if that's a factor" …t-that should be alright...?

#shymaidxn #im so late on this its almost in season (angel emoji)#overthinker to overthinker communication #'some of them are teens' <-person who doesnt drink at all #ive been going back n forth on this sm but i rly think akira would invite ppl along?!??! in this kind of scenario............#also thinking about it cuz my gran in this kind of situation would be a looot more straightforward and less overthinking vs akira whos....#yeah<3 #DOES THAT MAKE SENSE. ough #thank u again for this 5ever kaitlyn i rly have thought about this once every other week modern diantha makes me. RATTLES CAGE. yknow #shes so precious to me may i adopt her #i rly do think akira would get attached to her/want to look out for her...T_T baby sister time #I FEEL LIKE IVE TALKED ABOUT THIS BEFORE BUT I LOVE HER SM

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heartsaligned · 2 years ago

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Kaneshiro had not been the target Akira had expected to go after, a definite leap from an ex-Olympian high school teacher and a famous artist. While all three of the targets were high profile, the risk of gsing after a yakuza boss was a little intense. But Makoto had seen to it that they got caught up in the ordeal, giving them all little choice other than to change the man's heart. After all, Makoto wouldn't be the only one in danger if they failed. Akira had seen the way the disgusting creep had eyed Ann as well. Even himself. Expulsion wasn't the worst thing on the line.

Luckily for them, they were able to put a stop to the man, successfully stealing his treasure and triggering the change of heart. Showing up the police force was something Akira had grown to enjoy, taking pride in making the cops look foolish. However, in doing so he had also seemed to have hurt Akechi, and despite their clear need to stop Kaneshiro themselves, it was upsetting. Akira had never wanted to do anything to hurt him, even if they were meant to be enemies. Thieves and detectives, opposite sides. Enemy or not, Akechi was still his friend.

He couldn't stop himself from falling in love with him.

So of course when Akira received a text from him, he accepted, inviting him to Leblanc for a quiet conversation. He was tired, but a cup of coffee helped to at least alleviate some of that exhaustion. The Metaverse was draining, and Akira had never been someone to take a battle lightly. No--he preferred to push himself to his limits, relying on his magic more than was probably safe. His gift was to hold multiple Personas, to swap between them and alter the flow of battle. Of course he would use it whenever possible. His team relied on him.

Early summer rain pattered against Leblanc's windows, the amber light inside casting everything in a soft, warm glow. The entire room smelled of rich coffee, and for a moment it was nice to just sit in silence, listening to Akechi talk. Akira loved hearing his voice, thought it was cute how he would often go off on a tangent, but tonight there was something more...somber. Something almost defeated. He hated it.

"Maybe they were trying to show you up," he offered, realizing how unhelpful he was. Of course the Thieves had no idea, too wrapped up in their own troubles to think about how it would affect Akechi. "Maybe it was just coincidence. Either way, isn't it good someone dangerous is off the streets?"

He paused to take a sip of his coffee, dark eyes watching Akechi carefully. Since meeting him, Akira had never been exactly careful as to conceal his identity, even going so far as to outright telling the other boy in a bold attempt at flirting. To his disappointment it had gone straight over Akechi's head. However he had enjoyed the way his face twisted in confusion, the clear implications of what Akira said sinking in. Flustering Akechi wasn't as easy as Akira had anticipated, but it was a reaction he desperately wanted to see once again.

"Approach me?" he asked, feigning ignorance. He knew better than to outright lie about what had happened, and although it seemed Kaneshiro had deleted the damning photo from his phone, Akira still wanted to be careful. "...To be honest, I did meet some shady guy in an alleyway in Central. In the end, he left me alone. I guess I wasn't who he was looking for?"

@heartsaligned -- akechi figures it out

I'm available.

A day prior the calling card had been sent out across Shibuya. After nothing but static since the Madarame incident, the Phantom Thieves had returned to the limelight. The curtain went up and they appeared on center stage. Goro had been trying to keep up to date on any and all news regarding the justice seeking group who stole hearts and operated in the shadows. But aside from a website and the usual pointless chatter, there'd been nothing to indicate them on their next target.

Going after a member of the YAKUZA, however. While Goro knew the word around the city had been sudden severe losses in finances as well as trafficking having taken a drastic rise over the last couple weeks. They'd discovered girls in Shinjuku, working in host clubs and other shady businesses. Many were in high school and a handful were college students. It was utterly deplorable. Goro would be doing the city a favor by removing the scum.

But even with the crime ring increasing its transactions, the one thing he couldn't put his finger on was HOW the Phantom Thieves knew Kaneshiro Junya's name. Only a handful of people had access to that information. Junya controlled Shibuya. With the calling card, it'd turned into public knowledge.

Goro had been stacking a case against him. Once he'd been apprehended, Goro would go in and cause a mental shutdown. He would have still received his glory off the arrest, one that would have easily made his career next to if he could capture the leader of the Phantom Thieves, and Kaneshiro's secrets died with him. He'd been bestowed this incredible power. Whether by the hands of a devil or a god, it didn't matter. It belonged to HIM, and he was destined to use it toward his goal.

A day before Goro could make his arrest, the Phantom Thieves swept in and claimed his target's heart. Goro had been laid off from the case. They had no need for him anymore. Was this an attempt at showing him up, because he'd challenged them by calling out their lofty sense of justice? Even if that were true, how could they have ever deduced the crime boss's NAME... He hadn't mentioned to anyone either what his latest case was. They'd scored a point off of Goro regardless. But he knew that it was going to turn costly as time went by.

He dreaded the phone call he was sure to receive. The media uproar was a different beast to encounter. He'd be walking into the lion's den any day now.

❝As I'm sure you've noticed, I've never been very apt at losing.❞ He twisted a strand of his golden-brown hair around his finger. Leblanc's warmly lit interior complimented the dark and dreary evening outside its windows. Leblanc was more hole-in-the-wall and remote compared to any location he'd been to before. ❝To be completely honest with you, I'm baffled. I was beaten, by a single day no less.❞

But what could he have done to prevent that?

❝Forgive my asking, but did anyone approach you while you were out in Shibuya? I know Shujin was caught up in the phishing scandal. After what happened with your teacher, there seems to be no end to the troubles of that school.❞

#heavenslapse #🌟 —— 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕡𝕙𝕒𝕟𝕥𝕠𝕞 𝕥𝕣𝕚𝕔𝕜𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣┊(akira.)#✭❣ —— 𝕚𝕥'𝕤 𝕤𝕙𝕠𝕨𝕥𝕚𝕞𝕖!┊(ic.)#just casually knocking out a reply while i try to figure out how to give mikaela new life in dbd lmao #here we go :D #time to figure it out!!#tumblr if you fuck up any of my formatting its your ASS

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diedraechin · 2 years ago

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Io has been editing like gangbusters! And actually is indeed almost done with editing the next chapter (reminder, only half of what was going to be the next chapter).

Which means it's time for another sneak peek. I'm thinking: "Yuuri introduces LOVE-ly to Murata and his boyfriend". I was thinking about "Viktor opens his birthday present", but then that would ruin the surprise of what's in the box, and I don't want to be too spoilery in these sneak peeks.

Yuuri gave her a curious look, but Yuuko just waved it off — she didn’t want him worrying about her — so he turned to his friends. “LOVE-ly, you’ve already met Yuu-chan briefly before. This is Murata Akira, silver medalist in Men’s, and…” He paused, since he hadn’t yet met Shiga himself.

“Shiga Ichiro. It’s so very nice to meet you.” Shiga-san bowed quite low while the girls gave him their best cute, media-ready smiles.

“This is Noda Haruka, Yoshida Fumika, Ito Erika, Isobe Satomi, and… Kanon.” Yuuri paused with a frown, digging his toepick into the ice. “I’m not being weird. I’m not supposed to use her last name. I probably should have gone with just first names for everyone, but too late now.”

Laughing, Kanon shook her head and stepped forward. “It’s fine, Yuu-kun.” She looked at the new arrivals, her smile a bit more genuine now. “I just don’t use my last name professionally. It’s very nice to meet you all.” She bowed alongside the rest of the group before looking over at Yuuri. “You’re getting better, Yuu-kun. One day you might actually be good at this.”

Yuuri shook his head. “Where is the bubbly? Keiko told me last night that your personality type was cute and bubbly. I was expecting bubbly.”

Shiga-san stepped forward. “Kanon-chan is cute and bubbly, Katsuki-san, but Kanon-chan also has a secret mysterious side.” His expression was so earnest that Yuuko had to hide her blossoming smile behind her hand. The excitement at meeting some of his favorite idols was definitely evident.

By contrast, Yuuri’s expression was unreadable: he looked straight down at the ice for a second before turning his attention to Kanon. “Is ‘mysterious’ code for ‘skipped a handshake event because you weren’t happy with what the producers did with that one single and decided to fix it yourself’?” he stage-whispered.

“No. It’s code for ‘I don’t use my last name’.” Kanon replied, smiling at him.

Yuuri hummed. “I thought you didn’t use your last name because your mother is the head of a legal department for a multinational.”

Kanon lifted one shoulder in a delicate shrug. “There is that, since my mother was hoping I’d get the modeling and singing nonsense out of my system and settle down and go to university after I graduated from Fukuzawa. But we all know that was never going to happen. So now it’s just ‘mysterious’.” She tilted her head to the side and gave him a small smile. “Don’t you think I’m a little mysterious, Yuu-kun?”

From where she was standing, it was easy for Yuuko to tell that Yuuri was biting the inside of his cheek to try and stop blurting out his initial reaction. “Well, it’s probably a better defining type than just ‘bubbly’. I mean, bubbly? How is ‘bubbly’ at all related to argumentative?” he remarked, forcing Sattan and Erika to hide their giggles behind their respective hands.

Kanon pursed her lips and drew in a deep breath. “I’m argumentative? You’re the one who is so competitive that–”

“Would the two of you stop?” Haruka-chan cut Kanon off, shaking her head before turning to smile at Yuuko. The rest of LOVE-ly were still tittering, but Haruka-chan seemed to be pretending that they weren’t. “Yuu-kun has told us a lot about you, Yuuko-san. It’s very nice to see you again.”

Yuuri groaned. “I hate this sort of small talk, and now I’m no longer allowed to argue with Kanon-chan about what exactly makes her 'mysterious' because No-chan says so. I’d rather skate and leave you all to talk or whatever, so that is what I’m going to do. No-chan, if you all wanted to be super nice to me since I’m doing you a favor… Shiga-san might like a photo or autograph or something. You know, idol-y things. じゃあね。(Ja ne)” Yuuri took off before anyone could say something to stop him, skating straight for the far end of the rink.

However, Kanon apparently had one more thing to say, leaning forward onto her toes and calling out at a volume that Yuuri couldn’t hope to miss, “Does anyone have a one hundred yen coin? I need to test a hypothesis.” This sent Yuuri spinning on his skates to stare at the lot of them, his face suddenly an astonishing shade of crimson.

#bysoti(d)#bear your soul on the ice #sassy writes #these chapters are filled with idol nonsense #there's also some Yuuko and Takeshi stuff #And of course what is Viktor's birthday present and what does he think of it #But for now enjoy idol nonsense #and the 100 yen question #and mom-friend Haruka #there's actually a lot of fallout/Viktor stuff #but again that would be the spoilery stuff #this scene is just nonsense and silly

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kotos-and-smiles · 3 years ago

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Chapter 111 Analysis and Rambling

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR CH.111 OF KOT!

Welp, time to put the ole Uzuki analysis hat back on, which I can’t honestly say I was expecting to have to do again, but Uzuki disappearing from the story altogether felt a little abrupt, so I guess I’m glad we get a bit more resolution with it. Anyway, let’s get right into it.

I don’t really have much to say about the very beginning. It’s nice to get a short review of who’ll be at Nationals as it gets me very excited. I still love Takinami’s stance that the club doesn’t need to prove anything to the people who don’t know them because it won’t really do the club members any good. I like seeing the reporter Tsukaji again because this man has invested his heart and career into Tokise now, and I love to see it. It’s also exciting to learn that Nationals will be held in Hokkaido! I’d been thinking that Nationals probably wouldn’t be super far for Tokise to travel, so this changes the way I’ve imagined it in really fun ways. We can also see that Nationals starts just after Satowa’s birthday (Satowa’s birthday is the 29th of July, Nationals will start on the 31st) which probably won’t be addressed but I still think it’s interesting and it’s nice to have some concrete dates.

I freakin love this panel so, so much! And I’m so happy and proud that everyone’s finally figured out how to play the song, for the most part. It’s nice to see Akira, too. Just a nice wholesome club moment and it’s gorgeous. Also, love how Chika and Takezou have the same reaction here

Takinami loves these kids, but he will absolutely not let them off easy. It’s his way of pushing them to be their best.

Okay, so now let’s talk about Momoya, because his struggle with the fill-in part is something that I actually really appreciate. Disclaimer, Momoya has become my baby, but I like Momoya’s humility when it comes to him not getting the fill-in yet. Okay, not really the comment about how he’s never once had trouble with the drums, but other than that he’s pretty humble about it, and I love to see it. When it comes to characters like Momoya, I like to see them struggle at some point with what they’re usually good at. I don’t just want to see them succeed as expected, and kinda like when they’re taken down a notch and realize they still have work to do. When it comes to Momoya, I like that this acknowledges that while he’s been doing the amount of work he’s found necessary for achieving his sound, he realizes that he needs to put more time and devotion into it now. The entire club is extremely dedicated, and while Momoya has been able to pull off his sound while spending less time on it, I like that he, too, needs to fully devote himself to practice with his sound more like the other club members. Them being devoted is important to their sound, after all, and maybe it’ll help Momoya figure out how to fill in better. It’s not that he hasn’t worked for it before, but he needs to do so now in a more intense way to not pull the club down, and he’s recognizing that.

I love that Chika once again acts as a big brother to Momoya and tries giving him advice. I do find it funny though that Chika gave music advice to Momoya as if he didn’t only just figure out his solo. Like, I know we don’t know exactly how much time has passed since the last chapter, but Chika’s talking like it’s something in the past, but like yesterday he still had no idea how to play it. It’s just a really funny idea to me.

Chika now: giving sage-like advice.

Chika not 24 hours ago: crap, how the hell do I play my solo?!?

I just can't get over how grown up Chika looks. Like, for a little while in chapters like 90-101 or so he was looking really baby to me (part of that was seeing young Chika in 99.5) but now he just looks so damn grown up. Like, hello?!??? But he's still such a precious baby (as he always will be). Specifically the way he was teasing Momoya only to then smile like this

Honestly, everyone's been looking a bit older, or at least the original trio of Chika, Takezou, and Satowa.

Fascinating to learn that Chika was thinking about Uzuki when he finally figured out his solo, and it puts that whole part from last chapter into a slightly different perspective for me. Last chapter where Chika puts his forehead to one of his last physical connections to his grandpa, (other than the club sign Chika always stops to touch and the land for sale sign) the koto his grandfather made him, the instrument that allowed him to get close to everyone and express himself, the symbol representing both his name and love that his grandfather put there, all becomes even more significant with the knowledge that Chika figured out his solo while thinking of Uzuki’s words. Uzuki has never been loved like that. Uzuki doesn’t understand that type of love. But Chika does, because he has it and had someone willing to show him that love, in his grandfather and the club and everyone else in his life. Remembering what Uzuki said I think allows Chika to really connect to that love in his music. Despite what Uzuki did to his grandpa, Chika can find his solo through Uzuki’s words and the connection to his grandpa. And everything that Chika figured out with the solo, that Uzuki’s words helped him to figure out, he wants to show Uzuki in his and the club’s performance.

One thing I’ll give Uzuki is that he’s always a fascinating character to analyze. And the interaction between Uzuki and Chika in this chapter has a whole lot to unpack. I was surprised to see how Chika reached out to Uzuki, but it really shows how mature Chika has become and that he’s now in a place of power, even when facing Uzuki. I also knew that if Uzuki was going to come back in the story, then it’d be on Chika’s terms because no one was going to force seeing Uzuki onto him, not Momoya and not Uzuki himself. The whole mood that Chika is approaching Uzuki with is amazing, and I love that Chika decided to meet on his own terms. Chika really had a straight up epiphany at that underpass, being able to tell Uzuki that he wants him to feel sorry for what he’s done, but also doesn’t want him to be unhappy, because ultimately everyone’s deserving of happiness, even when they’ve made mistakes (at least in this manga), and that’s something Chika has had to learn for himself. It’s the perfect way a to approach it in my opinion. Uzuki’s actions aren’t simply excused out of sympathy or chalked up to circumstance and youth. He is held accountable, but that doesn’t mean it should make him miserable forever. I also like that Chika brings up Momoya and is able to point out to Uzuki that someone is worrying about him. Chika frames it in the way that someone cares for Uzuki in the terms of Momoya, in terms of a brother, in terms of someone who does care about him, and I think that’ makes it an important if small line. I’m very glad to see Uzuki actually be able to communicate with Chika. For Chika to actually be able to hear that Uzuki wanted to be friends I think it gives Chika the understanding and clarity of the situation that he deserves. Uzuki’s whole little ramble finally let Chika see why Uzuki has done what he’s done. Reading Uzuki spiral like that really reminded me of how young Uzuki still is, and while rereading I really just realized how much Abiko was manipulating a desperate child. Doesn’t excuse Uzuki’s actions, but it does make it sadder on his side, too. Then we get back to really what I consider the core of Uzuki’s conflict, which is that he doesn’t understand the type of love and connection some people have with each other, in large part because he’s never had someone care for him in such a way, so he attaches himself unhealthily to anyone who shows him kindness (which thus far has basically been Chika and Momoya). He doesn’t understand Satowa’s declaration of love. He doesn’t understand Tetsuki’s friendship with Chika. He doesn’t understand how they both can stand beside Chika like that. And then, for whatever it’s worth, we do get an apology from Uzuki and admittance that he was wrong.

There’s been a recurring theme lately of ‘you can’t change the past, but we can start doing things differently now and that’s what matters.’ We’ve seen it quite a bit throughout the manga, but specifically we’ve seen it with Chika and Satowa in ch.104. Satowa regretting how she treated Chika in the past, but realizing that what she can do now is never let go of his hand again. Chika dealing with his past and how it will never go away, but with a focus on the present. Yoshinaga in ch.106 telling Momoya that he hasn’t lost anything yet and that he can still rectify things with Uzuki and be there for him now. And with this chapter, we see Chika telling Uzuki that the past will never disappear, but there are things they can start doing now.

Once I saw that Uzuki was gonna be in this chapter, I figured out pretty quickly that Chika was gonna invite him to Nationals, so that didn’t come as a surprise, though it is really interesting. I wonder how that’ll tie in to it all, and if Uzuki will meet anyone else or have more interactions with some of the club.

The physical interaction between Chika and Uzuki is so damn important. Firstly, Chika reaching out and catching Uzuki before he can fall, like that says so much about Chika and not letting people just fall. In fact, catching Uzuki is exactly the type of act that first endeared him to Chika. I feel like so much of the power dynamic between them can be found by simply looking at these panels and comparing them to the ones in ch.105 and ch.106. Chika approached while Uzuki was sitting, surprising Uzuki enough to start falling, but then Chika catches him. Then they both sit on the railing together, on the same level or at least seemingly so. Chika isn’t trying to intimidate Uzuki at all, he tries to get on the same level but through the dialogue we can see that Chika is still the one running the conversation before Uzuki gets off on a tangent.

Then when Uzuki starts crying, Chika grabs his wrist to get his attention. Basically all the physical interaction was not only surprising but also really interesting to see. And finally, and probably most importantly, seeing Uzuki on his knees and then just on the ground in front of Chika while Chika is either still sitting or standing.Chika is not gonna let Uzuki fall, but he’s also not gonna pick him up, either. The different imagery that depicts the change in who holds the power is incredible.

Chika crouching on the ground and getting on the same level as Uzuki, trying to meet him where he is, is a stark parallel to they way Uzuki acted when Chika was on his knees in ch.105. Uzuki was only on the ground after he'd been knocked down or to threaten Chika.

Uzuki didn't meet Chika where he was at all, whereas we saw Satowa certainly did at that time. But Chika bending down and making the effort to be on a similar plane as Uzuki, but also standing up and setting boundaries with his farewell is so important. There's so much to read into just that, honestly.

The, power play feels like the wrong way to put it, but the interaction and distribution of power in this conversation/relationship is very significant. Chika so obviously holds the power in this conversation, but at the same time you can tell he's not necessarily trying to lord it over Uzuki, and it's all so beautifully expressed with their physical orientations throughout.

I love Chika's precious smile as he's saying goodbye to Uzuki. I feel like Chika was able to explore a little of what he was saying to Takinami in ch.104 when Chika was wondering what would've happened had he been friends with Uzuki and talked to him like he talks to the club now. I think Chika was glad to be able to actually hold a real conversation with Uzuki, even down to the detail of Chika noticing that Uzuki speaks in a more formal way and how it fits him better because it’s more authentic instead of something he’s trying to change to fit in with Chika.

Also, it's been mentioned before that Chika feels like it made sense that Uzuki came back because he never really settled that part of his past, and so now he isn't just dropping it. He wants resolution, not just for him but for Uzuki as well I guess, and Momoya is a part of this, too, now.

The fact that the conversation between Uzuki and Chika was at a playground also holds some great imagery. Momoya even says at the end that it’s like Uzuki is shedding the tears he couldn’t as a child, and he’s literally a kid who’s just fallen down in a playground. In fact, the whole thing of Momoya and Uzuki usually meeting at that playground almost shows that due to lack of a good household environment from childhood, it’s almost like they’re stuck in their childhood to some degree. Momoya is only just starting to feel the joy of being close to people and seeing the value in the somewhat childish songs that Yoshinaga sent him. And Uzuki is able to express his emotions and even has someone who’s trying to show him what real connection is like through song. And hopefully this could be the start of a real connection between these two brothers, neither of which knows how to deal with close connections.

Wow, the rest of the club really do be snooping, which is honestly understandable considering how Chika really just ran off on his own in earlier chapters. I love that Takezou says that it's Chika's decision as to how to deal with all this, so they're alright with it. I love that entire aspect of Takezou's character, actually, as this reminded me of when Akira first became the club's teacher. Everyone was worried about how it would affect Satowa, but Takezou asked Satowa if she was okay with it once, and when she answered that it was, he moved on and didn't ask her again, trusting that she'd be able to handle it. Takezou puts a lot of trust in people, and I really love that.

So I know that there wasn’t much Chika and Satowa this chapter, but I’ve, of course, still been thinking about them lately. I think the storyline of Satowa accepting both Chika’s and her own feelings and being able to reciprocate what Chika is seemingly already ready for could be a very important aspect of Satowa learning not to be afraid to express her own feelings, which is still a big thing for her. So basically, to say it more succinctly, I think Satowa accepting her own feelings towards Chika and his towards her will help her move beyond her fear of hurting people with her emotions or sound (not that much more succinct, but hopefully clearer). I think when Satowa decides she wants to be with Chika in a ‘more’ kinda way, she’ll be completely clear on it and be strong in that decision.

Don’t know if this is worth mentioning, or could really even be considered a parallel, but I thought I might shove the images in here for consideration cuz I thought it was interesting

Anyway, new chapter doesn’t come out til May. So…is it May yet? Me wants new chapter now

#kono oto tomare #kono oto tomare!#kono oto tomare manga #kudou chika #kono oto tomare spoilers #kot analysis #kot!#kono oto tomare! manga #kono oto tomare! spoilers

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annie-manga · 3 years ago

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“Brother In Arms”: A Chaos fanfiction

It’s almost eleven in the morning when Adam wakes up, and he feels well-rested, which comes as a surprise to him. He usually has a hard time sleeping at times since he came on this journey, but this was one of the few times he managed to have a restful slumber.

‘Must have been ‘cause of last night’, he thought to himself. Nick and Maria had the idea of doing a mini movie marathon yesterday, they invited Jackson, but he turned them down to focus on his work; they all picked one movie to watch and played rock-paper-scissors to determine which order they’d watch each movie in. Eventually when they finished watching those, they decided to watch some films from a superhero-themed franchise solely to roast them. The three of them began nodding off halfway through the fourth film and by the time it was over, they were snoozing on the couch.

‘I dunno how I got back to my bed, though’, he mulled as he made his way to the kitchen, ‘maybe Mr. Richman carried me back to my room…or maybe it was…’

“Nick, could you put the leftovers away?”

“Sure thing Abieyuwa!”

Nick made his way into the kitchen to put away the remains of breakfast in the fridge; as he did so, he turned and noticed Adam standing in the doorway.

“Hey buddy! I hope you slept well; your plate’s over on the table, but I can heat it up for you!”

As soon as he said that, his uncle called out from the dining room, “Nick, do not touch a single button on that microwave! I’ll reheat your breakfast for you, Adam!”

Nick sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, while Adam moved a bit closer to him.

“Sorry Nick, but I appreciate the thought.” he said with a yawn. “And I did sleep well, thank you for asking. I hope I didn’t keep you all waiting too long.”

“Oh no, we all got up, like, half an hour ago. Well, Maria, Jackson & I did anyway. Actually I think Jackson was awake before we were. Akira’s still asleep, though.”

“Yeah, that makes sense, and I don’t blame him.”

Amandus walked into the kitchen holding Adam’s plate and put it into the microwave to reheat it; he lovingly tousles his nephew’s hair as the two boys made their way into the dining table. Maria and Jackson are sitting across from each other, and Abieyuwa is sitting next to Maria near the end of the table. Maria is watching the older woman complete a word puzzle in a magazine she brought with her, while Jackson is writing notes down on a clipboard while also finishing up his meal, which currently consists of a couple clementine slices and whatever’s left of the tea Maria brewed for him today.

Adam takes a seat on the other side of Maria, and Nick sits across from him in the empty seat next to Jackson.

“So what’s the plan for today?” Adam asked everyone.

“Well, we can expect to be on the road in 2 hours or so once Akira is up and ready”, answers Abieyuwa as she finishes up her puzzle. “Luckily there’s a rest stop a couple miles ahead of where we are, so we will probably stay there for a little while.”

“Oh nice!” Adam says with a smile, and Amandus arrives from the kitchen and places Adam’s breakfast in front of him along with two glasses, a big one with water & a smaller one with orange juice.

“Thank you, Mr. Richman! Oh and thank you, Ms. Okoye, I really appreciate it!” “It’s no problem dear!”

“Hey, what about me? I helped!” Maria said teasingly.

“Thank you too, Maria!” Adam said as he turned to his plate of food, then closed his eyes, clasped his hands together and silently said grace. Though his relationship with his religion remained rocky, he still kept to doing certain rituals, though it was partially out of habit. A few seconds later, he opened his eyes and prepared to dig into his food; he briefly glanced at Nick as he did so; had he looked a few seconds later, he would not have noticed Nick staring at him, but the taller boy was trying to hide it(and badly). Adam’s face became warm and flushed, but made no further reaction to it as he focused on eating his delicious breakfast.

Soon Abieyuwa finished her puzzle, with some help from Maria and Amandus at certain points, then she got up to go do her daily errands. Amandus tells Nick and the others to clean up the table when they’re done, and he follows his girlfriend out the door.

Adam continues to eat his meal, and is nearly halfway through when he suddenly stops, as if he was jolted.

“Oh!”

“What? What is it?!” the others yelped, turning their attention to their small friend.

“I just remembered-no, I’m okay, it’s nothing bad- I remembered I had a really good dream last night. I was back at home and I haven’t dreamt of home in a while, and whenever I do, it’s usually not anything good…”

The other kids didn't say anything at first, the boy’s words had a heavy truth to them that they could unfortunately relate to.

“But you said you dreamt of home and it was good this time, right?” Maria said softly. “You wanna tell us what happened in it?”

“Well”, Adam said “I dreamt I was in my old home, from when I was younger. I was still the same age as I am now, but it was like nothing had changed. I was watching my favorite shows and playing games with Nathan; my parents weren’t there-though that’s not too unusual for my dreams- but I could hear their voices in the house, like they were in another room or something. But soon, Nathan was telling me it was time for bed, and he carried me to my room and told me to go to sleep. And I didn’t want to, cause I was afraid that I would wake up if I did, but I listened to him and did it anyway.”

Adam held back tears as he remembered the dream fondly, and Maria leaned over to hug him, and he hugged her back. “It’s funny though, normally if I had dreams like that, I’d be much more sad about it. But it was a nice dream, and I woke up feeling….okay. It was nice though, to dream of my brother again, even if I can’t see him or even call him right now.”

“I’m glad you were able to dream of him too, sweetie.” Maria said with a sigh she patted his head “And I’m glad it was a good dream. Lord knows we all could use that more often now.”

Her last statement made Jackson and Nick’s eyes widen and the dark-haired boy slightly shuddered as if remembering something horrible, but he quickly brushed it off and focused on the happiness of the boy in front of him. “I’m glad you had a nice dream, Adam. And I promise you, we’ll make sure you and Nathan are reunited once this is all over.”

Adam’s eyes welled as he heard those words, and he let go of Maria as he returned to eat his breakfast.

“So boys, what do you say we have another movie night? We still haven’t finished that one we last stopped at…what was the title again?”

She turned to Nick, because he had been the one who picked it out, but he had forgotten the name of it, too. Rather than admit that to her, he says “you know what? That film was boring anyway, I say we pick something different. But maybe we should also pick out some shows to watch, too.”

“Nick, we’ll be up all night again if we do that!”

“Then we get a head start on that early; we pick some titles & then queue it up after we get on the road! Simple!”

“Hmm, yeah that could work. You up for that, Adam?”

“Sure! Lemme just finish eating, and I’ll be good to go!”

“Great!” Nick exclaimed “Don’t think you’re being left out of this, Jacky! You still get to pick at least one thing to watch with us!”

Whatever daze Jackson was in was immediately broken when he felt Nick jostling his shoulder; he sat up with a start and stared at the others with confusion.

“What on earth are you-?! ....oh I’m sorry, what were you saying?”

“Were you tuning us out the whole time? That’s uncharacteristic of you. Am I rubbing off on you that much, dude?”

“Oh don’t give yourself too much credit for that one!”

“What we said, Jackson”, Maria chimed in, “is that we’re probably gonna do another movie marathon, well movie & TV series combo. We’re gonna pick at least one title per person and start up after we get on the road again.”

“Will you join us this time, Jackson?” Adam said to him, “I know we didn’t really plan the one for last night and you were kinda busy then, but maybe you’ll be able to join us for this one?”

Jackson momentarily meets the bright-eyed stare of the red-haired boy across from him, holding his gaze for a moment before lowering his head and muttering, “I...I dunno, maybe. I’ve still got some stuff to get done today, but I’ll probably come by later if I have the time.” And with that, he gets up to put his dishes away in the sink and his empty cup on the counter, and walks out the dining room without another word.

“What was that all about?” Nick said to Maria “I know he’s still kinda reserved, but that’s not usual for him, right?”

“I mean, he has always been busy with his projects”, Maria responded. “but….maybe…I’ll check on him later today. You finish your breakfast sweetie, and I’ll meet you both back here after we all get dressed.”

“Oh okay. Thanks Maria.” Adam replied.

Maria gives him a wide smile, then turned her attention back to where Jackson had sat earlier. Her smile lessened a bit as she wondered what might have made her dear friend rush out the room like that.

Back in his room, Jackson had changed out of his pj shirt to an equally comfortable long-sleeved sweater; he rolls up his sleeves, puts on his gear and a headband to keep his hair out of his eyes, and resumes his work on his previous projects. He sets a timer so it goes off at a certain point, at which point he’ll get up & stretch before resuming his research on the Maroons.

This would be a good way to spend his day, after all, there was still so much that they needed to find out and he’d spend as much time as he could figuring it out. He was the leader after all, and the others were counting on him. There were times where he’d forgotten that, but he would be reminded again why he’s doing this and who he’s doing it for; he started this for himself and Maria, but also for Nick & Adam, who left everything and everyone important behind to find out the truth about their parents. Parents who, for the brief period they were in their lives, loved them and cared for them. He couldn’t say the same about his own; he felt alone all his life, even when his mother and father were still present in his life. And though he had Maria, her friends, and the others to keep him company, there was still a part of him still alone, even when being amid other people. But it hardly bothered him much now, it didn’t hurt as much as it did before.

‘So why…?’ Jackson wondered to himself before the hum and whirs of the machines and gadgetry enveloped his thoughts.

‘Why does it hurt now?’

___________________________________________

In the late hour of the night, Jackson had been working in the dining room table for quite a while. He closes his laptop and stretches his arms upwards; he managed to finish his usual quota for the day and now he’s ready to head back to his room. As sees how dark it is outside, he decides to change his plans a little bit and grabs a nibble of something from the fridge. Some potato chips and ice water would easily sate his hunger, but remembers Maria’s constant reminders to him to eat more than just snack food, so he ends up making a tuna fish sandwich and eats it alongside the potato chips and a clementine.

“See, it’s not all snack food.” he says to himself as if Maria were here next to him.

He briefly wondered what she’s been up to today before remembering that she and the boys were watching movies on the couch; It was rather impulsively planned, but he had nearly gotten used to it by now. They did invite him to join in, but he got so into his work and research that he lost track of the time. He finishes his little meal and gets up to go check on them. He wonders if he’d be able to catch in to watch whatever they’re viewing now or at least see them before heading off to bed.

He’s halfway down the hall before he gets face to face with Akira, who’s carrying a sleeping Maria piggyback style, and Amandus, who’s leading a half-asleep Nick by the hand back to his room.

“Oh hey, Jackson”, Amandus whispers, “they fell asleep a little while ago, so we’re bringing them back to their rooms. I’d let them sleep on the couch, but they’d probably be achy in the morning.”

“Uncle Amand’s,” Nick slurred drowsily, “I c’n go in on my own…‘m not sleepy.”

“Sure nephew. Oh look, here we are.” Amandus said as he opened the door to Nick’s room and led him inside. Akira was about to head down the opposite side of the hall, but he turned towards Jackson.

“The only one still left is Adam.” they whispered “Would you mind bringing him to his room? And if you can, try not to wake him up.”

“Yeah Akira, I can go do that. You have a good night.”

And with that, Akira nodded as he went to bring the sleeping girl on his back into her chamber of slumber.

Jackson went into the room where the two caretakers emerged from, and saw the TV was off(most likely Amandus’ doing), empty bowls of popcorn on the floor and on the small table across from the screen near the couch. Laying on the couch was Adam, lightly snoring as he slept peacefully. Jackson quietly moved the bowls off the floor and stacked them on the table, making a mental note to put them away later, and gently lifted Adam in his arms so as not to wake him. He was surprised at how light he felt in his arms and how very small he was; Adam was already the shortest one of the group, but he felt so much smaller to him now. He carried Adam out of the room and down the hall to where his room was, he leaned down just a little to open the door handle and put his hand back on Adam’s shoulders.

As he did so, Adam suddenly shifted in his arms and leaned his head closer to Jackson's chest and grasped his shirt with one hand.

Before Jackson could say anything, he realized that the younger boy was still fast asleep and was doing this unconsciously. In the quiet, he could hear Adam murmuring in his sleep. And then he heard him say something more clearly, but still in a quiet, almost woeful tone.

“Nathan?”

Jackson was right outside the door, he could have easily walked, left Adam on his bed, then gone back to his own room and called it a night. But right now, he couldn’t move, he couldn’t speak, his breath caught in his throat as he absorbed the words he just heard.

‘He’s asleep’, Jackson thought to himself, ‘he’s just talking in his sleep, that’s all. What the bloody hell is my deal? Why’d that throw me off?’

The sleeping boy loosened his grip on Jackson’s shirt, which brought Jackson out of his stupor and he remembered what he came here to do. He enters the doorway of Adam’s room, trying not to make a sound. He gently places Adam on his bed and grabs a blanket to cover him with. Before he can make his leave, he sees Adam moving in his sleep and reaches a hand out towards him. Instinctively, Jackson clasps it in his own hands and crouches down near Adam.

Trying to keep his voice as steady as he can, he leans in a little and whispers “Shh, go back to sleep now, Adam”.

Adam’s face scrunches up a bit, then his mouth shifts into a soft smile.

“Okay,” the boy says as he sighs in his sleep. “I will, Nathan.”

Jackson feels a lump in his throat as he hears those words, but he pushes it back so as not to wake him up. He would eventually get up to go back to his room, but for now, he keeps holding Adam’s hand and stays with him to make sure his dream remains uninterrupted.

_________________________________________

“Jackson! Jackson, Earth to Jackson?”

Jackson turned his attention to the voice calling him; Maria was standing in his room’s doorway, her arms crossed and wearing a stern, but concerned expression.

“Ah! Maria! Sorry I was paying attention to something else and didn’t hear you at first.”

“Yeah, I figured you didn’t. You tend to get so focused on your work that you forget everything else around you. And I admire that about you, but it also worries me sometimes.”

Jackson was about to reassure her that there’s nothing to worry about, but she continues, “Because sometimes, you tend to use your projects as a way to avoid things you don’t wanna think about. Or talk about.”

Jackson forgot how much she knew about him to the point where she could read him so well; he doesn’t say anything and hesitantly avoids meeting her gaze.

“I figured there was something bothering you today”, she says as she steps closer towards him, “but I know you’re not as open as the others, at least not yet.”

She knelt down in front of him, staring at him intently.

“The moonstones can read our emotions, but not our minds honey. No one’s gonna know how you feel till you tell them. And I know that there’s some things you aren’t ready to talk about yet, but when you are, I’ll be here. And so will everyone else. You may be a leader now, but you aren’t alone anymore.”

Jackson slowly met her gaze, his expression was vulnerable and his eyes were slightly squinted, as if he was trying not to cry.

But Maria understood anyway; she softly smiles at him and says “I won’t ask you anything more about this yet, but I will ask you this: do you want a hug?”

“...yes please.”

And with that Maria outstretched her arms and enveloped them around her dear friend, which Jackson returned. He buried his head in her shoulders, her long hair covering his face, and Maria added a loving squeeze to their embrace.

‘Where the hell do I even begin?’ Jackson thought to himself, ‘That I’m feeling a lot of pressure lately? That I’m sick of running into dead ends just as much as Nick is, but I’m supposed to keep it together so we don’t fall apart as a team? That I care about you, more than you’ll ever know, but I’m worried I’ll ruin things between us? That a part of me, a small sick part of me, feels jealous of the fact that you and the others came from homes that cared about you? That accepted you and loved you? That I feel lonely, even around people? That there’s a part of me that wishes that there was someone looking after me sooner, so that maybe I don’t have to feel this loneliness right now? That maybe I want to be protected, but I need to protect all of you too, especially Adam, who had to leave behind the only family he has left now?’

But he doesn’t say any of this out loud, he keeps all of those thoughts tucked away in his head and, after a while had passed, removed himself from Maria’s embrace.

“We’re still gonna do the movie TV watch thingy in a bit,” she says in a more lighthearted tone. “Nick and Adam already picked out what they wanna watch, I told them to wait for me before I picked out mine. I just wanted to let you know, in case you wanted to come by this time.”

With that, she gets up and walks towards the door. Before she leaves, she turns to him and says “By the way, make sure you get some lunch today. There’s still some of that soup left & whatever leftovers we got from two days ago; I made sure to mark it so you know it’s yours and you better have eaten it before this day is over. Got it mister?”

“Got it, Miss Flores.” he says in a half-joking tone.

“Good. I’ll see you later, then.”

And with that, she skips out the door and out of his field of vision. He doesn’t move for a bit, still feeling the warmth from the hug they shared. He almost wished she kissed him on the cheek as she sometimes does, but a part of him is grateful that she didn’t this time; if she had done that, it might’ve made him open the floodgates for sure, and that was the last thing he needed right now.

In the corner of his eye, he saw his timer and saw that there was still seven minutes left on it. There was a lot you could do in seven minutes, and with his skill, he could easily make additional adjustments to his work in less than three.

But he thought about what Maria had said, how much he had been trying to push aside lately. How he was using work and research as a distraction for the thoughts that had been buried for a while and the new ones that had formed after going on this journey. The annoyance and amity he felt when he was with Nick, the joy and the silliness he felt around Adam. These feelings of protectiveness he felt for the both of them, the brazen big-hearted boxer and the tiny but mighty archer.

“God. Is this what having siblings is like?” he griped while facepalming himself. “I can’t tell if this is best or the worst thing I’ve ever felt…maybe it’d hurt less if I didn’t care as much.”

But he did.

And he wished he could show it to them more. But what if it just made things worse? What if he was just fooling himself? What if he just needed to get used to relying on himself more? What if-

“You know what? Fuck it.” he muttered to himself as he got up from his makeshift workspace on the floor and went to turn the timer off before it could sound its alarm.

The boy removed his work gear and made his way out the room to where the others were.

As soon as he passed through the dining room, he bumped into Adam, who nearly dropped the bags of popcorn he just finished making.

“Oh Jackson! Sorry, I didn’t see you there!”

“It’s fine, mate. You good there?”

“Yeah, we’re just setting up the list and stuff; I’m just getting the snacks ready for when we start watching!”

“Hmm….you mind if I grab some?”

“Oh yeah sure, there’s still some unpopped bags left, but there’s some kettle corn, too if you wanna have that instead. It’s a bit louder than what I’m used to, so I don’t make it that often, but I’ve had it and it tastes the best when you add spices to it, like cinnamon and-”

“Um, Adam?”

“Huh…oh, I started rambling again. Sor-”

“Before you say anything else, let me just clarify something: I asked cause I wanted to try to join you guys. My bad, I probably should have been more clear.”

Adam looks at Jackson with an unreadable expression, and Jackson starts thinking that maybe that this was a bad idea and almost starts backtracking before the redhead’s face lights up with excitement.

“Y-you are? That’s great!! I’m glad you’re joining us this time!!”

The boy’s happiness seemed to be infectious, as Jackson smiled back at him and chuckled nervously. “Yeah well, I needed to take a break. Plus, I’m kinda curious what stuff passes for American entertainment these days. I have some ideas, but I’d like to see for myself.”

“Well, hopefully you’ll be impressed. Or confused, depending on the choices. But hey, if none of them are your speed, then you can something to watch and we’ll see how that goes. Dunno if it’ll be better than the others, cause I picked out a masterpiece, but we’ll see.”

“Heh, I guess we will.”, Jackson says as he went to the kitchen to grab some bowls for everyone, a bunch of napkins, and whatever was left in the bag of chips he raided from the night before.

With that, he went back to Adam, who was grinning up at him, and the two of them headed to the TV room where Maria and Nick were waiting for them.

At some point, he would try to say it out loud instead of keeping it to himself, but for now Jackson quietly thought to himself how grateful he was for his friends.

And how this duo of hopeful boys were able to be the brothers he never had, and he’s so glad they’re here with him now.

#chaos(2020)#jackson #nick #adam #maria #amandus #abieyuwa #jackson ruth #nick riverson #adam maroon #maria flores #amandus richman #abieyuwa okoye #fanfiction #fanfic #strangeauthor #my writing

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starofgold · 3 years ago

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Concerto on the Theme of a Knight and His Faith - Part 3

Cain: It was hidden by the sleeve so I can’t really confirm, but his arm was wrapped in bandages.

Arthur: Indeed. Judging from his reaction, he’s probably one of the victims attacked by The Cruel Knight. It must have been such a terrifying experience that he didn’t want to recall that again.

Cain: So I insensitively poked at a painful spot of him. I suppose I should apologize next time I meet him.

As he reckoned with what he did, Cain made a face as if himself was hurt.

Akira: (We still don’t know what kind of entity The Cruel Knight is. It must be bothering Cain that someone who bears the title of a knight is said to have committed such terrible deeds)

Cain: What’s the matter, Akira?

Akira: Ah, it’s nothing! Let’s continue our investigation.

We walked around for a while afterwards. Eventually we found an old lady whom we could ask about the matter.

Old woman: You want to know about The Cruel Knight?

Cain: Indeed. Grandma, sorry to bother you, but can you tell us what you know?

Old woman: I can only talk about Roland though.

Akira – Riquet: Roland?

Riquet and I looked at each other as we heard the unfamiliar name.

Cain: Can it be that you mean Roland the legendary knight?

Shino: You know that one?

Cain: Pretty well. In any case, Grandma, why do you mention Roland all of the sudden?

Old woman: The Cruel Knight is none other than the ghost of that Roland.

Cain: ….!

Riquet: Cain, I have never heard the name Roland before. What kind of person was he?

Cain: Roland was a knight said to have done great deeds in Central Country.

Old woman: That’s right. Roland, who was unmatched in swordsmanship and popularity, was said to be an honorable, chivalric knight respected by all. The cruel reality is, he had no chivalry at all. Countless people have been slain by him.

Cain: Grandma, is The Cruel Knight really Roland’s ghost?

Old woman: There’s no mistaking it. It’s said that The Cruel Knight appears at night in the Tranquil Forest, looking the same as when he was alive. Roland’s grave is in that forest too.

Cain: ……..

Old woman: When attacked by enemies, Roland came to the Tranquil Forest with his lord. He managed to help his lord escape, but ended up beheaded by his enemies. Probably his anger lingered on and became a monster. He is really a terrible ghost.

The old lady let out a deep sigh full of disgust and slowly walked past us.

Riquet: Hey, Cain, are you alright?

Cain: I’m fine. Sorry to make you worried. I was in a strange mood because I didn’t expect Roland of all people is the cause of the strange occurrence here.

Shino: What’s the problem? Was he that great a guy?

Cain: We talked about him a bit before coming here already. Remember the legendary knight that I’ve admired since I was a boy? That’s Roland.

Akira – Riquet: Eh.

Arthur: I’ve heard of the name Roland too. It’s written in the ancient records that his skills with the sword were unrivalled in the country. Having witnessed his strength, the then Royal Family invited him to join the Order of Knights.

Heathcliff: A direct invitation from the Royal Family? That’s amazing.

Cain: Yeah. However, Roland refused the invitation and remained loyal to the liege lord he had chosen himself. I… have always admired him, who both stayed true to his faith and excelled in swordsmanship.

Cain murmured, as if deep in his reflection. Cain’s feelings must have been precious to him, just like the feelings one had for one’s heroes in my world.

Nero: If that story is true, then don’t you find it strange? According to our knightly friend here, that Roland guy doesn’t seem to be the type that became a troublemaking ghost.

Faust: It’s just like the old woman said back there. No one knows what personalities of great renown are actually like in real life outside the legends. Besides that, there’s the matter of what appeared within him at the time of his death. Perhaps his hatred backlashed on him and turned him into something like a cursed being.

Cain: Can’t deny that.

Akira: Cain..

Akira: (No one wants to think about the person they admire as the cause of harm for other people)

However, what Faust said couldn’t be dismissed as simply groundless speculations.

Cain: Sorry. No matter how I think about it, I can’t see Roland became The Cruel Knight at all.

Faust: I understand your feelings. You wish to believe in the subject of your admiration. Still, don’t lose sight of your objective here.

Cain: I know. The people we should prioritize here are the residents of the village, not Roland. Even so, I’d like to trust in his honor and his achievements that I admired just a bit longer.

Oz: Cain.

Cain: Sorry, Oz. I know I was being childish just now.

Oz: It isn’t an illusion that flowers bloom in Northern Country. However, it isn’t easy to see such flowers with your own eyes.

Cain: Eh?

Oz: It also happens that that the heart that longs to see flowers blooming in the North will make the flowers of illusion turn into real ones. It’s the same for you.

Cain: Uhm…

Riquet: Come on, Oz. Why are you talking about flowers at a time like this?

While what Oz said made everyone tilted their head, Arthur nodded approvingly.

Arthur: Because Northern Country is a place that is extremely cold, many people think that flowers certainly can’t bloom there. However, the truth is that flowers bloom in Northern Country too if rarely. Even so, if you don’t believe from the beginning that there are flowers and go search for them, maybe you will never be able to realize that the flowers are real. If you stay true to what you have faith in, you may see it become true.

Oz: …….

Arthur: That is what you said, isn’t it, Master Oz.

That was indeed the kind of encouragement Oz would say. As the meaning of the words got to him, Cain blinked as if surprised. Just a moment after that, a smile bloomed on his face as he smacked Oz in the back.

Oz: Don’t hit my back randomly like that.

Cain: Ahaha, sorry, sorry. Anyway, thanks, Oz!

#central concerto

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thelittlebirdthattoldyou · 4 years ago

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no blueberries - dpr ian

pairing: kageyama tobio/kunimi akira

content: fluff, awkwardness, developing relationship

wc: 902

a/n: this is for @diyeoracha‘s second request for my songfic drabble event! you can find her original ask and atsuiwa drabble here. ty to @lumenera and this fic of hers for characterization help :>

Kunimi, Kindaichi had said to him once. You know, the more you care about something, the harder you try to hide it.

It had happened right after he asked Kunimi to go to the Schweiden Adlers-MSBY Black Jackals game with him. Kunimi had pretended to think about it, pretended his thoughts weren’t immediately drawn to the one name he hadn’t let himself say aloud since high school, and then he shrugged and nodded. “Sure,” he said. “I don’t have anything better to do.”

Kindaichi just looked at him, and Kunimi was sure that he didn’t believe a word of it.

He was right, though. Kunimi preferred not to let on that anything bothered him, least of all an old middle school classmate who he really should have forgotten about by now.

There was no reason for Kunimi to care. But then, there was also no reason for Kageyama to spot him and Kindaichi as they stood to leave after the game was over. No reason for him to smile at them and say, “Let’s play together again sometime.”

And before Kunimi, paralyzed by a smile he’d never seen before, could speak, Kindaichi answered for the both of them. “Sure,” he said. “Let’s do it.”

One casual game between not-quite-friends turned into two turned into three turned into one hesitant Saturday afternoon when Kunimi bumped into Kageyama at a neighborhood restaurant and offered to split a table with him.

Only because all the other seats were full, of course.

Kunimi spent the thirty minute meal trying to avoid Kageyama’s eyes, nevertheless wondering if they were still the same shade of blue they’d always been.

Blue. The color of a champion. For all that Kunimi was the one who ended up at Seijoh, he’d always thought it suited Kageyama best.

The sky was blue. So was the ocean, and Kunimi’s economics textbook. He wonders, as they split the check, whether he’ll ever be able to see the color without thinking of Kageyama.

Call it hope or defiance or resignation, but when Kageyama excused himself to go to the bathroom, Kunimi scrawled ten numbers on the back of a napkin and slipped it in his coat pocket.

And as much as he told himself not to expect anything, he remained on edge until his phone buzzed an hour later.

Their first date happened at an aquarium because Watari knew a guy who could get them an employee discount. All the lights there were tinted blue, bathing Kageyama’s skin in an otherworldly cerulean glow, and his eyes grew round and wide as he surveyed the multicolored fish and plants all around them. It was hopelessly endearing. All Kunimi could do was act like his heart wasn’t beating out of his chest as he reached over and folded Kageyama’s hand into his.

Kageyama stiffened in surprise, stared at their intertwined hands and then at Kunimi. Then he relaxed, and his lips curved into something just shy of a smile, and he didn’t pull away as they wandered to the next exhibit together. Even though Kunimi’s fingers must have been cold.

They met up in secret places at odd hours: hotel rooms and hole-in-the-wall diners on narrow streets. It would have felt illicit if Kunimi thought Kageyama was at all capable of that. But the secrecy was unplanned; the balance between them was delicate, stretched thin as a tightrope, and too much attention ruined relationships more often than not.

It was in the privacy of Kunimi’s college dorm, his roommates having gone to visit their families for the weekend, that Kageyama brought it up.

“The season’s started,” he said, taking his usual seat on the cramped western-style bed. His hair was still wet from the shower he took earlier, and he smelled like mint. “Our first game is in two weeks.”

Kunimi knew this. The only reason they’d been able to keep their relationship so quiet thus far was because the volleyball season hadn’t yet begun. With the increased media scrutiny, things would be different for them.

“Oh, really?” Kunimi asked, noncommittal. He set the pen down on his desk with a click and swiveled in his chair to face his… boyfriend?

Kageyama didn’t seem put off by the non-answer. “Are you coming?” he asked.

“Do you want me to come?” Kunimi deflected.

“Stop answering all my questions with questions.” Finally, a reaction; Kageyama’s nose wrinkled in annoyance, and Kunimi got the strangest urge to reach forward and poke it.

He considered the idea. Going to Kageyama’s games, sitting in the front row and cheering him on, wearing a white jersey with a blue number 20 embossed on the back.

Well, he probably wouldn’t go that far.

“Kunimi?” Kageyama prompted.

As much as Kunimi liked to play it cool, it was hard for him to keep up the facade when Kageyama looked at him like that, equal parts wary and hopeful. Hard for him to breathe in the face of something so earnest.

Kunimi cleared his throat. “I’ll see if I’m free,” he said. His voice cracked on the last syllable.

Kageyama, thankfully, didn’t call him out on it. He perked up, correctly interpreting the dismissive response as yes, I’ll be there.

“I’m going to kiss you,” he said.

You don’t have to tell me you’re going to do it every time, Kunimi opened his mouth to say. Then Kageyama’s lips were on his, and he never got the chance.

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tardytothepardy · 3 years ago

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Fruits Basket - Vol. 20

I want to try to break the book into three main chunks. The last time I did that, it was easier to write about. So uh, the first chunk has to do with Tohru and her feelings about Kyo, and Kagura's reaction, the second chunk is Akito and Ren's past being revealed (it's totally a mess but it's to be expected), and the third chunk is about things unraveling.

Ok cool let's do it. (The picture was at the end of one of the chapters, I just liked it a lot idk) (also tumblr needs to increase the character limit for the alt text, it's only 200 characters, which goes by quick. twitter has like,, 420, which is more manageable)

Tohru came to Kazuma's house to visit Izusu, and Kagura came to confront Tohru about something. What possibly could it be (as if I didn't say so in the beginning)? Kagura was talking about it a bit with Kazuma, and he said he just hopes that Tohru's feelings don't come from a place of pity (which is a mild "oof" point for Kagura, because that's mostly why she loved Kyo), because Kyo has had to deal with people either flat out hating him, or being nice to him out of a sense of pity. Even Kazuma admitted (earlier in the series. I don't remember when but I remember reading it) that part of the reason he took in Kyo as a child was because he was making it up for how he treated his grandfather, the previous Cat. Over time, those feelings fell away, in favor of genuinely caring for Kyo's wellbeing, but Kazuma doesn't seem to be the one who would forget about stuff like that. (Also it turns out that the previous Cat's partner basically stayed with him out of a sense of pity, as well)

It turns out that Izusu and Tohru were talking about the same thing, and Tohru worried if her feelings for Kyo were selfish, because she wanted nothing to take Kyo away from her, not the curse, not the Sohma family, nothing. Kagura then bust into the room, smacked Tohru across the fucking room it seems, and said, "Then fucking tell him that!!" (direct quote, 100%) Izusu yelled at Kagura for hitting Tohru, asking what right she had for doing that, but given Kagura's nature, it doesn't seem completely out of nowhere. She just got pretty emotional in that moment.

For Tohru, it seemed to knock the right screw loose for her, and she thought back to when she was talking about her father to Kyo, and if he said really anything against what she was talking about, she apparently would've just zipped her lips and pretended she hadn't said anything, and moved on, but he didn't. Which is pretty nice of him to do, honestly. Anyway, when she came to again (because she got knocked out from Kagura's emotion-packed slap), Kyo was sitting there, because Kazuma had called him, ("Hey dude so there was a smackdown here and Tohru got knocked out lmao" is how I'm imagining the call. kjdhkfgjh can you imagine Kazuma saying "lmao" I can't) but Kyo didn't ask about the fight (which was a Wise Lesson from Shishou™), another nice thing for him to do, though in my opinion it would be a pretty easy thing to explain.

Ok, so now onto the second chunk, which kinda has some of the stuff in the third chunk later on but whatever. Story flow, it's pristine today.

It starts with some of the,, maids? or something that are in the Sohma house (they never get names so far as I can tell, and I don't really know what to call them, but at one point someone referred to one of them as a maid, I think? Idk.) talking about Ren, and wondering why Akito still let Ren wander around freely like she does. Another said that Akito can only do so much, because apparently there is a crowd of people in the house that are "Ren-followers", and if she had Ren be completely contained within an area, there's a chance that those followers might start some shit, which would be a headache to deal with. One of the maids said that Akito has been sick (or holed up in her room) for too long, and the rest of the Juunishi are doing nothing to help, which does not help with Ren, who spouts out stuff about how the Juunishi doesn't really care about Akito at all. The maids seem to have a particular thing against Ren, because they view her as an unsuitable woman who somehow managed to become partners with Akira, the previous God, I think, but also the father of Akito.

Speaking of Akito, she has a box. That same box that Ren tried to use Izusu to get back. Something about that box has to do with Akira, and it seems important to both Akito and Ren, though honestly at this point Akito is probably just holding onto it out of spite for Ren, I wouldn't be surprised (I, too, am a petty bitch. I understand the mindset). She asked Kureno if he has any idea what is in it, and when he says he doesn't, she simply says, "Father."

Now we jump over to Ren and Shigure, who are also talking about about that elusive box. Apparently Shigure was tasked to get the box, but obviously he didn't succeed. He said (thought? He didn't say it aloud, it was one of those thoughts thing--- anyway) that he didn't really care, he didn't even want to touch that box, much less even look at it, it was no loss to him. Out loud, he says that it would be inappropriate for him to hold it, and Ren agrees, saying that only she can have it, just like how only she could have Akira, when he was alive. Are you already sensing where this is heading? Well, I'll say it anyway.

Flash back to Kureno, he's thinking about Akira, from when he was younger and Akira was still alive. He remembers Akira as very beautiful, in a fleeting way. Akira was sickly, all the time, and sad. Everyone knew that he wouldn't live for very long. But since he was the head of the house, of the family, it was imperative that he find a partner and produce an heir. That person was Ren, who was one of his care-takers. The rest of the staff (or something??) didn't like that she was going to be with Akira, it seemed unsuitable, but she was the only candidate. She was the only person who recognized how lonely he was, is what Akira said as a defense when people objected. And so, they were married. The older members of the family despised it, the younger thought it was the beginning of a new change, a new era. Ren said (because this section is flipping between Kureno and Ren) that it was only them two (haha grammar): Akira and Ren, they were all who mattered. She was everything to Akira. So when she had Akito, well, that muddled things. Because now there was another person that Akira loved: his own fuckin child. That's right. Ren got jealous of her own child because Akira loved his very own daughter. That's,, that's something. Shortly after that, Ren decided that Akito would be raised as a boy. Or maybe it was while she was still pregnant. At any rate, she said it was because it would be unsuitable for the head of the family to be a woman, but we all know the real reason: it's so that Akira wouldn't be loving another girl, even though that other girl was his daughter. Jfc Ren is a handful. From Kureno's memory, it seems like even as a kid, Shigure recognized that.

Back to Shigure and Ren, Shigure says that he feels sorry for Ren, probably thanks to all that upset she has. She says the same, that the Juunishi have had to deal with the abuse that Akito has dealt to them simply because of that "bond", and that there's no way that anyone could honestly love Akito. Shigure also comments that sometimes he thinks that if Akito had been raised as a woman, she'd look exactly like Ren, which instantly pisses Ren off. She just starts screaming about "Who do you have to thank for Akito being born! I'm the reason that (insert angry comment about how she's the only reason why x happened)". I'm kinda glad she isn't in the series much, this is exhausting. I know she's in the book later, and maybe a bit more in the next few, but jeez. It's a lot.

Anyway, let's end the chapter with Momiji having his curse be broken. The end is near (for the Juunishi, not this post lmao).

The second that the curse breaks, Akito knows it (that's probably the bond. I doubt it's some kinda "we'll be friends forever uwu" kinda thing, it's just kinda an awareness of each other, or maybe just God's awareness of everyone) and races towards Momiji, begging him to not leave. Now that the curse is broken, Momiji is confused as to how those thoughts he had prior for Akito were even there, now that he sees Akito clinging onto him, whimpering and panicked. Momiji waves her away, saying that he'll keep it a secret, and that Akito should go rest, wasn't she feeling sick earlier?

We pan over to the school, where Haru is asking Yuki if he's noticed anything off about Momiji. Haru can't place it, but something seems off, maybe not. Kyo ends up running into Momiji walking down a hallway, and asks him about it (he overheard the others talking about it), and Momiji just out and says it: his curse broke. He said he imagines that Tohru would be happier about it if it were Kyo's curse that broke, and that he (Momiji) lost. (I guess he lost in some unspoken one-sided competition of "getting" Tohru, because y'know she's not her own person who is capable of deciding these things for herself or anything)

Later, Momiji goes back to the main Sohma estate, to apologize to Akito for how he acted yesterday, but also to say that he won't be staying there any longer. Akito takes it like a champ, slapping Momiji across the face and insulting him, saying that he's a traitor, he has nowhere else to go, his family either doesn't remember him or hates him, he'll never be happy! and Momiji's just like, "Yeah lol I already feel lonely", that he can't be with the person he loves, and he no longer has that One Thing that previously connected him to most of the other people he's close with, and that there's no going back. He does say though, that it's not Akito's decision or place to say whether Momiji will ever be happy or not, because he might not be happy now, that does not mean that he won't ever be happy in the future. He then asks Akito how long she will stay at the house, thinking that eventually, everyone will come back to her, that no one will be happy without her. What if it's actually her that is most afraid-- Akito isn't down for an analysis, she just tells Momiji to leave.

Let's now go down memory lane, down a nice and happy time, especially for Akito and Ren: Akira's death and it's after effects. Happy times. (apparently i was wrong, the thing i said was the third chunk that wove in nicely with the second was just the second chunk, i think this is the actual third chunk)

Akito is thinking back (on a rainy morning, extra points for setting the mood) on her relationship with her parents. With Akira, it was nice, he always was kind and caring, telling Akito that she is what everyone has been waiting for, and that she thought she was the one Akira loved the most. With Ren, however, she was always cruel, from the start. She always glared at Akito, she was always mean. Akito hates her. We're brought back to the day Akira died, where Ren bursts into the room, asking why she wasn't notified sooner, why Akira had to die alone. One of the attendants said his condition worsened too quickly to call Ren close by, but also that Akira hadn't died alone; he died with Akito by his side. The attendant said that Akira's will had been passed onto Akito, she was now the head of the family. Ren was angered at that, there's no reason for Akito to still be around now! She only tolerated her child being around because Akira liked her, but now that Akira is gone, there is no one to love or care about Akito. Akito said that wasn't true, that all of the Juunishi will love her, because of their bond. (Which is basically what Akira said. He put most of that stuff into her head, and she doubled down on it whenever Ren said anything against it, which might as well be every single time they were around each other)

Back to the present, Kureno comes in the room to talk about something, but Akito interrupts him, saying that she was happy when Yuki was born, as the Rat. It was mostly just something she used to prove Ren wrong, and she used it as long as she could (much to the deterioration of Yuki's mental health). She thought back, over the years, to all the bad things that had happened, how she tried so hard to keep everyone close, and how all of them had, one by one, come to "betray" (cough cough, try to live their own lives, cough cough) her. After Shigure and Yuki left to their present residence, Ren said that they had given up on Akito. When Akito again mentioned their bond (which, really, now that I think about it, has basically been the singular thing straining to keep everything under control. Akito's sole sense of identity was being God, she's never had anything else.), Ren waved it away, then challenged that if any of the Juunishi can go out into the world, experience it in all it's freaky magical ways, and not be taken in by it, and instead return to Akito, then she will have been proved wrong, Akito's claims this whole time will have been correct. If they failed to, however, Ren said that Akito would have to give up the Sohma name. But Akito believed it, she truly believed she was right, that nothing big enough would come between her and the rest of the Juunishi (Tohru has entered the chat). She had to believe it, she just had to. But now, it's evident, between how Haru reacted upon learning about Izusu, Momiji's demeanor after the curse broke, the general way that the rest of the Juunishi float away from Akito, that it isn't true, and with that, she has nothing to hope for.

Upon this realization, Ren bursts into the room, knee-length hair floating around her, eyes crazed, knife in hand, demanding for Akira. Demanding for that box, and whatever contents were inside. In response, Akito fuggin yeeted it at Ren, she didn't give a shit. It flashed back to right before Akira died, and he soothed Akito by saying that, despite dying, he will always be with her. He wanted for Ren to be happy. He wasn't upset that he was dying so soon, he knew that he was just a man who was going to die, but he was happy that he was able to have a child, and to have had that child with Ren, and since that child was special, it was proof that their relationship was a special one. Back to the present, Ren scrambles to the box, tears it open hungrily to find,,, nothing. The box was empty. It'd always been empty, said to have held Akira's soul, but it was mostly just something to help Akito with Akira's passing. Suddenly, Akito grabbed the knife that fell from Ren's hand, poised to stab Ren but then--

Hiro's curse broke. Ren can thank that bond she always scoffed at for saving her life. But hey, now Hiro can hold his baby sister, which is nice. Yay for family moments.

Boo for Akito, because it's just really grinding in that the curse is quickly falling apart, and there's absolutely nothing that she can do about it. Ren taunts Akito, asking if she was trying to kill her. The attendants blow up, one yelling at Ren for making such a scene, taking a knife with her, and another scolds the first for giving Akito that box in the first place, it's stupid! The first attendant said that Akito knew from the start that it was empty, common sense would say that much! (idk man it could've held one last letter from Akira to Akito, a letter wouldn't affect the weight of the box significantly, it's not common sense)

Akito leaves the room, and Kureno follows. Akito says that it was both common sense but also not, that there wasn't anything in the box. She wanted to believe there was a chance that something was in that box, some kind of invisible energy that would help her. But even after opening it, seeing that it was empty, she still held onto it, knowing there wasn't anything. And that was her common sense, that's what she thought. She'd never been given any other way of thinking, of living, so why and how should anyone expect differently? Kureno says that she can start learning now, that that was what he wanted to talk about earlier, that she can't stay here, she'll never be able to move on, to which Akito cuts him off with "Fuggin now, bitch?? You're saying that now?? That doesn't help me! It would have helped in the beginning! But not fucking now!" (which btw is true. i doubt akito was even allowed to go to a public school, that she was schooled within the estate. i really believe that she's never really been outside of the the properties that the Sohma family owns) Then she stabs Kureno, with that knife she's been holding all this time. She reasons with it saying that Kureno's "halfway kindness" has been killing her this whole time, that it can't be fixed by Kureno saying that maybe Akito should go touch some grass. As Akito is running from the scene (more like haggardly stumbling), she continues thinking that it's Kureno's fault, it's not on her, until she remembers what Yuki was saying at the New Year's gathering about blame. It doesn't really fix anything, it just momentarily makes you think that you're not in the wrong. *record scratch* What if it's Akito's fault, then? All of this? What if it's her fault? What if it's the fault of the person who made everyone change? What if it's Tohru's fault?? (dun dun dunnnn)

Meanwhile, back at the other Sohma house (Shigure's house?) Tohru has some confessing to do. Before that though, Kyo has some confessing to do, though not about the same thing. He tells Tohru that he knew her mom before she died, and that he was the reason she died. He tells her that they met when he was really young, and how they had kinda become friends (in that way that people become friends by talking often, but Kyo never told Kyoko his name, because he had some weird thing about having a name so similar). That all fell apart the day that Tohru went missing. He promised that he would find her and rescue her, but after finding that Yuki had done it (the evidence was The Hat), he lashed out, and never talked to Kyoko again. Years later, when he was at the crosswalk, who was beside him but Kyoko, who he recognized instantly. He wasn't sure what to do, whether to say something to her or hold back. He was totally able to grab her arm, get her out of harm's way, but he didn't, he was too scared. (plus yaknow the whole cat thing) He beats himself up about, still to this day. He does the same with his own mom's death. It was his fault that his mom killed herself, she couldn't stand having such a monster as a child. It was too much for her, and she couldn't take any longer. (It wasn't. I won't say that his mom wasn't put under strain for having Kyo, for knowing that he wasn't human, that he turned into a weird monster if his bracelet was taken off, but from what we've seen of his dad, it was probably at least 85-90% his dad's fault. He was too caught up in the politics of the Sohma family, ashamed of the fact that Kyo was the Cat, the worst out of them, that he couldn't even salvage having one of the good freaks to have as a child of his, and he took it all out on his wife and later his son.)

And the book ends on that cheery note. (Why do I say stuff like that why I am I like this)

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3w-writer-with-wings · 4 years ago

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10 Most Powerful Scenes in Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS

10) Three things

Starting with probably the most well known quote in VRAINS – three things. It would’ve been probably ranked higher if it was not that repetitive and its impact wasn’t scattered to many different scenes, but it is still a very powerful scene regardless. Yusaku was just an innocent six-year-old child who loved to play a card game and yet that same game was turned against him in the cruellest way possible. Suddenly he had to duel for survival and suffered for each defeat. For half a year, Yusaku was trapped in a never-ending nightmare that didn’t seem to stop until he heard Ryouken’s voice. These few sentences gave Yusaku hope to hold on just a while longer and he started using them as his coping mechanism, even years after the Lost Incident. Like Yusaku said it himself, it felt like the life stopped moving for him and despite therapy he could no longer lived his life like others. Thinking of three things to move forward was the only thing that helped him out and knowing there might be someone else still trapped there made him more determined to find out the truth. Since he used this coping mechanism outside duelling, it may also suggest that three things speech is the only thing that kept him from turning into an empty shell like Jin.

Another thing that makes this scene so powerful is Ryouken’s side of it. Just like Yusaku, he was also just a child who loved the game and most certainly just wanted to play a game with a new friend. It is still unknown if Ryouken was aware of what will happen to children, but it is most likely that he genuinely meant no harm. True his father brainwashed him with his ideas of work for “greater good”, but Ryouken knew it was wrong. He could only report the incident to police and push the memories of it away and yet he reached out to one of the children just before he did. Later it was only further proved just how guilty Ryouken felt and always had a soft spot for the victims. Neither Vyra nor Faust had the courage to report the incident, but Ryouken, a mere eight-year-old child had. Despite his father’s brainwashing, he acted on his own and continued to do so until all the victims were fully safe.

9) Ai saves Yusaku

From the start of the series, Ai wasn’t a typical partner character like Atem or Astral since he was mostly goofing off and wasn’t really useful when it came to duelling. However, in this scene, Ai shows for the very first time just how powerful he really is and even Yusaku is left speechless at Ai’s abilities. Ai even tells him to shut up back and letting him know that he is far too in this duel to just give up. He even refers to him as his partner and shows he is willing to risk his life for him all the same way. Considering Ai was already using Yusaku as his personal weapon against Knights of Hanoi at the time, this may be the first time he actually started seeing Yusaku as his own person and not just as the tool in his plan. Ai has always been sneaky and successfully covered up his true colours, though in this single scene, he genuinely looks concerned about Yusaku.

8) Hope for the future

Hopeful and optimistic scenes are very rare in VRAINS and this is just one of many reasons why this one was included. Shortly after Earth’s death and Go’s decline, Yusaku blames himself for what happened and is again unsure about what they should do. Fortunately, Takeru, Ai and Flame are there to cheer him up and despite the approaching battle, Yusaku is hopeful for the future. Compared to how he used to be, when he told Akira that he can no longer live normally and that he sees no future, this is a major change. Yu-Gi-Oh! protagonists have always been optimistic and even if it was impossible, they believed in themselves and in their actions. Yusaku has always been bold and realistic, so seeing him hopeful and thinking about future in his own realistic terms made it that more impactful. He even smiled several times and ensured both Ai and Flame that they have a plan to keep them safe and if it won’t work, they’ll just think of another one. Watching this scene for the first time really made you feel that despite the hardships, this show will have a happy ending and for a while it really felt that way. Knowing how VRAINS will end this scene may also hint that this is when Ai truly started thinking of Yusaku as his true friend. Ai has been moulding Yusaku into Playmaker from the start and when his so called weapon acknowledged him as a living being and promised to do everything he can to keep him safe – that’s likely when Ai began to realize just how much is Yusaku willing to do for him.

7) Earth’s execution

This scene is probably among one of the most heart-breaking ones as it is among surprising ones as well. Villain very rarely wins in Yu-Gi-Oh! and when they do, it’s a big deal. Earth wasn’t around for long but when he was, he appeared as a very nice, caring and socially awkward Ignis. He was likely also the only Ignis besides Ai that expressed love towards someone and he was willing to do anything to keep Aqua safe. What makes his death that much sadder is that he was captured by Go who was by this point a mere shadow of what he used to be. Both Go and Earth were victims of SOL’s greed and ended up as their tools. SOL did absolutely everything to ensure Earth was not a living being, using scientific expressions reserved for objects and not stopping even when he screamed he is his own person and cried his eyes out when forgetting about Aqua. Another powerful comparison was between Akira’s and Queen’s reaction to it. Akira couldn’t watch while Queen smirked and likely only thought of next step which later turned out to be creation of their own Ignis and putting Earth’s data in Go’s implant.

Other Ignis also felt Earth’s death, along with his own origin. Specter has always appeared to be someone who was entirely devoted to Ryouken’s plans and would do anything to destroy Ignis, despite being connected to one. After Earth’s death he felt like a part of him was gone and he even shed a tear and looked disturbed when seeing Go being fused with Earth’s data. Deep down Specter felt the bond between him and his Ignis and when Earth was no more, he likely felt the same pain as when his beloved tree was cut down.

6) Yusaku defeats Kusanagi

The duel between Yusaku and Kusanagi was anticipated from the start since it wouldn’t be a Yu-Gi-Oh! if it didn’t include an emotional clash between two best friends. What made this duel that more emotional is that Yusaku and Kusanagi seemingly did not have that best friend dynamic that so many protagonists before them had. They treated each other more like caring co-workers and even Yusaku stated many times that Kusanagi was his acquaintance and not a friend. Many times it also appeared like Kusanagi saw Yusaku as Jin and was doing all of this for his little brother and would likely choose Jin over Yusaku. Still there were many moments where Kusanagi showed legit concern over Yusaku and apologized many times for involving him into this. As for Yusaku, he appeared to be more or less stoic about it, showing little emotion, which made it hard to tell just what kind of relationship he really has with Kusanagi, not to mention he always used very polite mannerism towards him which was his surname and –san. Compared to Takeru, whom he refer to simply by his first name, that was pretty polite though then again, Yusaku didn’t mind Takeru nor Kusanagi calling him by his first name either.

It was clear that the reason why they kept their relationship strictly professional was because Kusanagi knew there will be a time where he might need to put Jin over Yusaku and yet he still cared about him. Yusaku also did not want to involve anyone since he knew what he was doing was dangerous and even Kusanagi needed a while before he became a part of his team. Lightning knew well about their bond and did not hesitate to use it against them in the cruellest way possible. Even though Kusanagi played along and tried to make it as convincing as possible he was likely breaking inside. It also does not help that the scene where Kusanagi deals multiple damage to Yusaku looks strangely identical to the Lost Incident flashbacks where Yusaku was electrocuted many times. The duel came to a point where Yusaku couldn’t fight Kusanagi and that’s when it was clear that he also cares about him. The flashback to the promise further proved that this duel was something they anticipated and were ready, but what truly makes this scene so heart breaking is when Yusaku outright cries out after dealing the final blow to his friend. It was clear that Yusaku was ready for something like this, but at the same time he didn’t understand just what this meant for him. It truly broke him and another reason why this was so impactful is that duel was a mirror image to Lost Incident. They again took something that Yusaku loved and turned it against him until he was broken to the core. Only this time, there was no Ryouken who could tell him to think of three things in order to go forward.

5) “You know nothing about me!”

When VRAINS started, no one really had a clue what it will be about besides hover boards and duels in virtual reality. By episode 2 the first hint of Lost Incident was shown and by that point it was clear VRAINS is going to be a lot more complex and dark to previous shows. We all wanted to learn just what exactly happened to Yusaku and what the truth he was so desperate to uncover was. By episode nineteen he is finally close to that truth, but Akira stands in his way, claiming he knows all about what happened and that Yusaku should let Akira handle this. We learn that there were six children who were kidnapped and held captive for months until they were rescued. Akira compared that experience with his own when he lost everything and had to do shady jobs in order to provide for himself and Aoi. He expected Yusaku to accept his help and move on with his life, but instead of that Akira is met by absolute rage. Yusaku and Kusanagi both appeared to be rather cool and collected people, however seeing how Akira was treating everything so lightly made their blood boil and shouted all of their frustrations out. This was followed by Yusaku’s raw description of just what was happening from the point of view of someone who actually experienced this and not someone who merely reported it. It was nowhere as simple as Akira described it and learning that Yusaku still suffers from PTSD and night terrors rightfully justifies his rage. Like Yusaku put it, he tried to move on countless times and did everything he could to forget the pain, but he just couldn’t. Learning the truth was the only cure he knew would help and seeing someone brush it off just like that was incredibly insensitive and gave him all the right to be as mad as he was.

4) Yusaku doesn’t want to fight anymore

It is rare to see Yu-Gi-Oh! protagonist to give up and for someone like Yusaku who will do anything to reach his goal, it was absolutely heart breaking to see him give up. This was the second time he was broken apart, only this time he had no one to give him hope. Yusaku has been fighting his whole life and tried to distance himself from others because he knew that he wouldn’t be able to take it if he were to lose them or if something happened to them. He even was getting better at socialising and trusting others more which is why this scene is so sad. Just when he was seemingly experiencing bits of normal life, Lost Incident happened again and this time it took away his friend. He was outright defeated at that point and despite protecting Kusanagi from Lightning’s badmouthing, Yusaku just couldn’t take it anymore. The pain of loss was so great that he simply shut down. In a way it is similar to when Yuma lost Astral and cooped himself in the room for days, refusing to eat or talk with his friends. And honestly can you blame him? This started out as merely quest to learn more about Lost Incident and over the time it turned into fighting with cyber terrorists, protecting thousands of people and dealing with homicidal AIs. Like suffering from PTSD and night terrors, Yusaku had even more responsibility pinned on him and it is understandable that after such ordeal he could not take it anymore. It was only thanks to Kusanagi’s voice that he found the last of his strength in order to defeat Bowman once and for all.

3) “If losing a friend means your heart breaks, then are you trying to break my heart?”

Now this single quote may as well break your heart. Yusaku and Ai might’ve started off as an odd pair that regularly annoyed each other, but with more episodes, deeper their relationship became. Ai has always appeared to be this happy-go-lucky goofball and that turned out to be a mask. Not only to cover up his true motives for siding with Playmaker, but his own personality as well. When he was cracking jokes, he was really just covering up the fact that he has been torn apart and hiding in network for years in order to protect his friends. Yusaku was his only hope and even though he has been manipulating him to the very end, Ai grew attached to him and especially after losing other Ignis, he felt alone and guilty. What makes this scene so powerful is that Yusaku tells Ai loud and clear that he is his friend and losing him would as painful as when Ai lost his fellow Ignis. A couple episodes ago Ai said there is only one person he fully trusts with his feelings and this person turned out to be no other than Yusaku. Ai also revealed that he was using Yusaku as his weapon and yet Yusaku still referred to him as his friend. This entire duel was probably the first time the two of them were completely honest with each other and out of all sentences they exchanged, this one was the most heart wrenching.

2) Revolver's helmet breaks

Like Yusaku, Ryouken has also been moulded into Revolver, the man in charge of cyber terrorist organization known as Knights of Hanoi. His father who brainwashed him with his ideas to a point when he was willing to blow up himself with the rest of the network has created his entire identity and Ryouken had little to no say in it. Despite closely following the orders, part of Ryouken still rebelled since he wanted to uncover Playmaker’s identity and the fact that he managed to do it behind his father’s back proves that he wasn’t completely loyal to his father. He always had that tiny bit of conscience that made him report the Lost Incident and learn about the victims. After his father’s death he both felt free and lost, so it was a good thing he took some time off to clear his thoughts. He had time to learn everything about the victims and the case of Windy’s child was likely one of the many reasons he decided to outright eliminate all Ignis. And once that was done, the only thing he was left with were sins of his father. He was even ready to surrender himself to authorities and go to jail if that would help Takeru and other victims to move on. They settled this with a duel and when Ryouken lost, his helmet broke, symbolically freeing him from his burden. Takeru didn’t want him to go to jail for crimes he didn’t commit and rather wanted him to be a rightful Knight of Hanoi – the one who protects network and others so Lost Incident may never happen again.

1) Ai means »to love people«

Yu-Gi-Oh! series tend to give their characters rather meaningful names, like how Yugi means “game”, how Yugi’s and Juninchi’s first two letters form a word “friendship” and even in SEVENS, Yuga Oudo translates to “seventh road” which symbolizes Yuga’s wish to invent things for better future. The second Yusaku named Ai, I knew his name will be important part of the story. I already knew Ai means “love” and considering how much emphasis’ series put on relationship between protagonist and his partner, I assumed it will be important someday. VRAINS told a story of an AI who was torn from his world and friends and ripped apart, driven by revenge and goal to get back. In order to achieve his goal, he manipulated a traumatized boy into becoming a weapon he needed, successfully using him until the very end. What he did not expect is that the person he carefully moulded into a tool for his plans would become his closest friend so when he was slowly fading away in Yusaku’s arms and heard what his name meant… that’s when it hit hard in the feels. Ai was an AI with free will, born from the pain and misery that Yusaku had to endure for long months. He was programmed to think freely and yet the fate has drawn him back to his origin, slowly understanding just how much he needs Yusaku and how much Yusaku needs him. Even though there was a way for them to be together, he understood the pain Yusaku has been feeling his entire life, the pain of being used and knowing Yusaku cared about him to the point of protecting him with his life, it was clear there was only one other way. Not wanting to hurt him anymore, Ai sacrificed himself for his partner and once he learned the meaning of his name, he faded away with smile.

What he did was the ultimate act of love for his partner.

#yugioh vrains #vrains #yusaku fujiki #ai vrains #Revolver #kusanagi shoichi

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radramblog · 3 years ago

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Album Discussion- Shinjuku Mad

Usually on a Tuesday I like to take my time with a blog post. Listen to a full album, do a little research, put some real effort into it.

Unfortunately, time is not my ally today. So I kinda have to do one that’s a bit easier- in this case, I think I’d rather go after one of the ones that’s already on my phone, in case I have to do this on the bus or something.

(wait, I drove in today…)

Today we’re going to go into a self-titled album that is somehow not the artist’s debut. Rather, Shinjuku Mad is the second of two albums released under the name- the reason I specify as such is that one of the two (and later, the vocalist would help out again) members would go on to relative fame under a different name- Vaportrap pioneer Blank Banshee.

Peering into this album is like looking at a beta version of what was to come. It’s very much a different genre, an IDM album that completely predates Vaporwave’s explosion of popularity and Blank Banshee’s seminal album, Blank Banshee 0. It’s a solid enough album in addition to this, but it’s kind of hard to talk about seeing as there’s basically nobody who knows about Shinjuku Mad that didn’t learn about it through Blank Banshee. As such, expect a lot of BB coming up in this post.

Also a block of words, because no music videos exist for this at all. It’s one of those obscure albums.

This album opens on Cure for Fear. It’s one of those introductory tracks you often get in albums, at about a minute and a half long, with very reverb-y percussion and vocals and an almost ethereal haze of noise. It’s got these chimes that occasionally come up, reminiscent of some of the tracks from the AKIRA soundtrack, but beyond that there’s not a huge amount going on here. It does introduce a problem, however, one which we’ll get to later. It’ll be pretty evident if you’re listening along, though.

Track 2: Kowloon. I really did forget how short a lot of these songs were, with this being 2:13- the whole 10-track album clocks in at under half an hour. There’s a mix of drum machine and hollow wood percussion on this track that gives it a really interesting sort of feel, and some of the effects on the vocals feel extremely vaporwave- it’s no surprise that the dude behind this went on into that genre. Here’s where I can’t help but hammer on that issue I mentioned earlier, though.

The vocals on this album are quite weak. I know they’re very much trying to be ethereal, the reverb and falsetto make that much clear, and that style very much suits the instrumentation. But it just doesn’t sound great. It kinda comes and goes, but by and large I’d label them as subpar. I don’t really think it’s the fault of the performance either, it’s not like the bloke is missing his lines or mumbling more than is necessary for the album’s aesthetic, but there’s just something about them. They might be too loud in the mix for this kind of genre? I’m not 100% sure.

Resistor, the third track, is the best known song from this album by an order of magnitude. I mean that quite literally, as the track as over 540,000 monthly listens on Spotify as compared to Kowloon’s 32000. It’s kind of shocking, I mean for such an obscure album with zero singles, why is this of all tracks the one people suddenly latched onto?

As it turns out, it’s because again of the artist’s future work as Blank Banshee. Resistor would be reworked into one of the more popular tracks from BB0, Dreamcast, and it would appear that people got curious as to what the source was.

The thing is, aside from sharing a vocal performance, the tracks are very different. As it is, Resistor is a much faster track than the previous, driven by this fast percussion and bassline, making for a genuinely solid exercise track of all things (I say from experience). It’s got a fun little synth solo in the middle, the vocals are pretty solid (aside from like right at the end of the last chorus, holy shit), and the song’s coda and outro are a fun little bit of controlled chaos. I’d put Resistor as one of the better tracks on the album, is what I’m saying.

I’m going to do something I haven’t done in a while when discussing music on this blog- I’m going to jump through a few things. As much as I like this album, the songs aren’t nearly interesting enough to justify a song-by-song breakdown. I think if you listen to Resistor and like it, it’s probably worth chucking on the rest of the album- it is, again, less than half an hour long. But its an album where it’s more valuable on a meta level than it is sonically.

Shinjuku Mad as an album feels a lot like a hybrid between older IDM trends and the synth/vaporwave elements that would become popularised in the 2010s. There’s also tracks like Inductor, which border on rock songs with the power behind that bassline and percussion- in general much of the instrumentation is cleaner than you’d expect from an artist like this, especially considering how muddied much of the vocals get. There is a real focus on the vocals, which as I’ve discussed is a weakness of the album, but I do think it’s possible to look past that issue. There’s some really fun synth lines, some excellent percussion, and real aesthetic. Songs like Human Wave Attack feel stark and lonely, notes echoing into the void, which ironically is not at all like Track 4, Void- with synths and vocals disguising a guitar and drum line that feels extremely garage band. As in, the concept, not the program. Singularity is a song that feels again predictive of Blank Banshee’s future work, a low, slow synth track reminiscent of BB songs like Hyper Object or Metamaterial.

There are some genuine gems on here in addition to Resistor, though. City of No Tomorrow, the eighth song, has got to be one of my favourites- somehow, despite featuring none of the instrumentation typical of the genre, it’s extremely cyberpunk, a sense of struggle and futility resonant through the track. It’s the one song on the album I listen to regularly, getting myself lost in the groove of the bass and tapping my foot along to the percussion. It’s just really good, man.

If this isn’t your first time encountering Shinjuku Mad, reading this might cause you to go back and have another listen, upon which you may notice a few somethings missing. I don’t expect that to be the case for literally anyone reading this…but I needed a segue. This is because, upon the reintegration of Shinjuku Mad and its predecessor Organic Thoughts from the Synthetic Mind into Hologram Bay’s catalogue for the 2019 reissue, two songs were cut, likely for fears of legal issues regarding sampling. The version of this album that I remember has those tracks!

Those songs are Negatives (formerly track 6) and Neon Exodus (formerly track 12). Negatives is another one that’d show up as a Blank Banshee track (in this case, Gunshots), and is actually really solid? Like it integrates a raid siren into the instrumentation without having it sound weird, out of place, or, well, alarming. Neon Exodus is…wow I just don’t know this track at all. It’s fuckin aesthetic though. Welcome to this spontaneous live-reaction, I guess. I recognize the sample this is built around (and thereby why it isn’t on the album anymore) but I cannot name it for the life of me. It’s, uh, interesting. I dunno, 6.5/10?

Anyway, part of the reason I bring this up is that before I want to close this out I have some complaining to do. Said 2019 reissue was something I tracked at the time, and noticed both SM albums were releasing on Vinyl, Cassette (because, you know, nerds), and digitally. But not CD. I threw an email at the website about it, and they did eventually respond (it genuinely took like two months though), but not in the positive. The reissue had no plans to include a CD, unlike all three previous Blank Banshee albums.

But the original 2010 version of the album, along with a few slight differences in songs and in album order, does have a CD release, albeit an extremely limited one, according to Discogs. These CDs have to exist, they’re now listed on the new Shinjuku Mad website. Apparently one sold 6 months ago through Discogs. I need to find a copy, though considering on that site 7 people list it as owned and 72 (including myself) list it as wanted, it’s probably not going to happen.

And that, ultimately, is Shinjuku Mad. It’s a very odd piece of history as far as vaporwave goes, considering it’s both a prototype and also something completely, utterly different. The album is pretty decent on its own, but not mindblowing, and something you could probably live without. There are like two tracks (three if you include Negatives) that are 100% worth it, but the rest are skippable. Which is a shame, but mediocre music has to exist somewhere, right?

That I apparently haven’t discussed Blank Banshee on this blog before (aside from when I was talking about Vaperror) is actually kind of shocking. I suppose, then, that there might be some lacking context. I probably will have to do that at some point, though I probably won’t do BB0 because I like picking the hipster options- so either BB1 or MEGA. Metamorphosis didn’t really pique my interest, and I somehow missed GAIA existing in the first place and still haven’t listened to it. So if you’re interested in seeing me ramble over some of that, I’ll see you then. I mean, it’ll still happen if you aren’t interested, but nobody’s going to make you read it.

Or am I…?

#ramble #music #electronica #vaporwave #vapourwave #shinjuku mad

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