#formatting was written on mobile so I hope it’s ok!

[kcgarashi]

"It's...you know...when he looks away!" A hushed whisper, the shyness apparent in her tone. Public displays of affection weren't alien to her, she'd. But that's the problem, isn't it? It's not really a public display of affection when there's only one member of the public around. If it weren't for their little bystander, it'd have been easy to kiss Shisui without a second thought. Instead, Rera melts into his touch, her cheeks turning warm. She lived for the little touches, the small gestures that made them seem normal, a perfectly ordinary couple in perfectly ordinary circumstances.

"Then let it remain with the village. They knew what would happen when they..." she trails off. The village knew what they would be inviting into their territory when it was decided that Shisui would live. She's unaware of the situation, all she knows is that he turned up one day. Someone she'd written off as practically dead, back from the grave and closer than ever. Ok, she knows more than that, but the internal politics of it all are lost to her. She’s a teacher and a loyal shinobi, it’s never been up to her to question the thoughts of those who make decisions.

Yet he tells the story any way and Rera can’t hide the concern in her eyes or the frown on her face. There’s an urge to tell him to be more careful, admonish him. Seeing her isn’t worth his life or any kind of pain, whether he feels it’s deserved or not. She should hate him, turn away from him but it’s hard to do that when she’s cared for him for longer than she can remember. But what’s the point? It’s impossible to change one’s nature. “The moment that jutsu was broken it would’ve been easier for your bodyguard to kill you, in anyone’s eyes you were a liability the moment that happened.” Like a wild animal in a cage, she could only imagine the moment he had been freed from the jutsu. The freedom, the excitement and the trepidation all at once. “But maybe that was the collateral.”

She took a quick sip of her tea, not quite as enjoyable as the coffee she preferred but a caffeine rush wasn’t what needed right now. The teacher nodded intently, missions lasting a while weren’t new to her. But it was strange to have been the one unknowingly waiting around. A slight smile played on her face briefly, perhaps he’d grown fonder of Toshizo than he’d cared to admit. Or perhaps it was all pragmatic. That eye of his was valuable, best to eliminate whoever actively sought to take it. It sent a message to anyone else who wished to try.

"Ah, I see. Clearly not the most intelligent lot then, you'd know it was a trap, you wouldn't have fallen for it." A soft tone as she trails her fingers across his wrists, rubbing small, soothing circles into his skin. She's not sure if she believes her own words. The other plan was better. There's a cynical part of her who thinks it's better he has the excuse of self-defence, less suspicion, less doubt of his intentions.

He pouted when she said she wouldn't kiss him. "Not now? When then?" That annoying Toshizo wouldn’t move anytime soon. He turned to glare at Toshizo, who just shrugged; this was not his idea. But when she touched him, nothing else mattered. Her fingers brushing against his skin left a tingling warmth, just as it always did as if it were the first time. She was the light in his darkness, guiding him and pulling him out of his hell. She had his full attention; he was hers. If anyone could control him and calm him, it was her. He looked into her eyes, his palm rubbing her cheek, his fingers sinking into her hair.

"Probably not. I wouldn't even share that information because it's a matter that needs to be resolved in this village. An old grudge has been reignited by the discovery that there is still a living Uchiha. Normally, I would never discuss a mission, and my guard dog wouldn't allow it either. As you know, missions are kept secret. I was once part of the Anbu; it feels like it was in another life."He sighed, taking her hand between his palms, toying with it while talking and drinking tea.

"One moment I was walking toward your shop and the next I was attacked by five shinobi who claimed that they are taking revenge for killing Sasuke. Full of pride and all alone I grinned to their faces drawing my sword. Pretty bad idea when my own blood my own body was shackled with this jutsu." He empathed his story by touching black brands on his wrists. Fear settled in my bones when pain bend me in half, but not fear that I will die but fear that I will never see you again. Instead of dying, I was free. The jutsu was undone. But how was that possible when this dog is still alive to follow me" He points at Toshizo. "At first I thought he undid it, but he didn't one of my opponents did. They were not Leaf nin, it was a clever ploy coming from Cloud Village. They want my eyes, they wanted my guard dog dead and me to follow them."

He placed a mug on the wooden counter. "I wasn't allowed to see you. Quickly, Leaf Nin intervened and took both me and Toshizo. Toshizo was accused of conspiring with them and promising me freedom in exchange for my eyes. We needed to prove Toshizo's innocence. We were sent on an undercover mission where I could seek my revenge and punish them for separating me from you, and for the very idea that they had first."

"Their initial plan was to abduct you and force me to come after them."

[thefuzzzz]

Jasico Week 2024 - Day 1

Words: 3,058 Rating: General Audiences Type: Oneshot

Description: Nico, Camp Half-Bloods demigod with the largest contraband collection, helps Jason have a quiet birthday devoid of all Stoll pranks. Birthday cake and Mario Kart included.

Sidenote: This fic was written for @jasico-challenges Jasico week 2024 event!

Full fic under the cut! However, the formatting is a bit better on AO3 since I’m posting this from mobile lol.

Alone time at camp was hard to get. It was even harder if you happened to go to camp at a time that aligned with when the Stoll brothers went to camp. Unfortunately for Jason, he fell into that bracket of poor souls.

Not only did the Stolls insist on knowing everyone’s birthday, they also insisted on making a personalized prank on that very day. Beyond that sphere of horrible intent, they also told everyone they knew that it was your birthday—they knew everyone at camp.

Jason was still shuddering in remembrance of the last camper who the two of them had gotten their hands on. The prank wasn’t pretty, nor was the aftermath. Said camper still walked a wide circle around those two.

Nico had somehow managed to scrape away with never enduring one of their birthday pranks. Wether he paid them off or if they just respected him enough to leave him alone was up for debate. They were his first two real friends at camp, and was known for aiding their pranks when needed, so maybe they just couldn’t do as good of a prank without him that they didn’t bother.

However it happened didn’t matter to Jason. All that he cared about was Nico never got pranked, and he was determined not to either.

Jason slammed his breakfast tray down on the Hades table with enough conviction to conjure several glares from other campers. He didn’t care enough to look back, but he’d certainly gotten Nico’s attention.

Nico pulled off his headphones, hardly taking the time to set down his fork. “Good gods, what?” Nico said, pausing his iPod. It was the closest thing to updated technology that all of camp had, and Nico clung to the thing rather strong.

Jason sat down, ignoring the rules saying he should be at his own table. “I need a favor,” he said.

“Great?” Nico said, picking his fork back up.

Jason groaned. “Come on!”

“I didn’t say no.”

Jason took a breath, hope singing his name on the horizon. Maybe he was being dramatic, but he hadn’t had a birthday to himself in years, and he would’ve killed a titan by himself for one right now.

“My birthday is tomorrow,” Jason said leaning forward like it was a huge secret.

Nico picked at his oatmeal. “I’m aware.”

Of course, Nico was the only person other than Piper and Leo who knew his birthday at camp. He’d told him on the Argo II one night when they were both not tired enough to sleep but too tired to go to their own rooms. Nico had also told him his birthday, and they made a pact to not tell anyone and have secret birthdays.

Jason picked up his one apple. “I need you to keep Connor and Travis at bay.”

Nico raised an eyebrow. “You don’t want camp to know?”

Jason shook his head. “I just…want some alone time.”

Nico nodded, thick black hair falling into his eyes only to be pushed back into place. Jason watched a ringed hand settle back comfortably with his plastic fork a little too closely and happened to notice that he held it like it was the finest silverware in the world. Jason pried his eyes away.

“Ok,” Nico said, taking another bite.

“Really?”

“Yup.”

Jason felt mildly silly for all his forcefulness earlier. He really didn’t expect this to be so easy. However, knowing Nico, he should’ve known he caved easy when it came to asking favors—at least ones from Jason.

Jason nodded. He took a bite of his apple to punctuate the conversation. He stayed in his spot, deciding he’d just eat breakfast with Nico.

“Thanks. By the way,” Jason tacked on.

Nico shrugged, reaching for his iPod. “No problem.”

He put on his headphones again, defending his ears from the chatter of the rest of the camp currently eating breakfast. The two ate in silence, something Jason wasn’t particularly used to but couldn’t say he minded.

The next day, Jason woke up late and decided to just skip breakfast. He stretched, realizing like a kid on Christmas that it was his birthday. His birthday, and he had the whole day to himself.

He stayed in his pajamas, stretched out on his bed with the Nintendo DS Nico had leant him and played Pokemon White for an absurd amount of time.

Just as his beloved Pikachu was about to faint, he felt this sudden naggin in the back of his head. Something ebbed at his mind. He glanced towards the clock and realized that it was well into the afternoon. Secondly, he was bored.

Very bored.

He wasn’t sure when the boredom became so apparent, but it was there now. He chewed his lip, too distracted in his thoughts for pokemon, and willingly lost his currently battle before saving and tucking the DS away in his nightstand.

Jason laid back, listening to campers outside. He had assumed a day alone would be the best day of his life. After spending his whole life around everyone every day all the time, he figured some much needed alone time was in order. However, this was downright miserable.

Jason’s mind wandered to Nico, which it seemed to be doing very often as of late. He wondered how the Ghost King spent his time alone so frequently. Did he get lonely too? Was he ever bored cooped up in that cabin?

Jason glanced at the clock again, hoping some substantial time had passed. It hadn’t.

He groaned and pulled himself from his bed, lazily walking to his door and starting the trek to the Hades cabin. He walked around the back of the cabins, praying that training was keeping everyone distracted enough for them not to be crowding the back path made by sneaky teens looking for some alone time of their own.

He was lucky, as everyone was too distracted by whatever atrocity was happening on the rock climbing wall to notice him slinking around.

He walked around the front of Nico’s door, banging with enough urgency to get the point across. Nico called a “What?” mildly exasperatedly.

Jason tugged open the door before darting to hide behind it and slam it closed.

“Great Hades, Jason,” Nico said, setting down his controller and looking up from Mario Kart.

Jason let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “Hello to you too.”

Nico rolled his eyes before raking them over Jason. “Nice pajamas.”

Jason looked down at his purple plaid pants and white shirt with a few too many holes in it to be written off as well loved. “Thanks. And to you as well.”

Nico’s hair was pulled off his neck with a hairband, and he wore a black camp hoodie, shorts, and fuzzy socks. It wasn’t the most practical summer wear, but Nico’s cabin was cold as ice.

“Happy birthday,” Nico said. “I assumed you would stay in your cabin all day and enjoy your day off.”

Jason shrugged. “Thanks. I got bored.”

Nico scooted over in the floor, letting Jason see into the bottom of his closet where all his contraband was hidden. A TV and a Wii U sat, accompanied by several video games.

“Wanna join?” he asked, patting the spot beside him and digging for a second controller. “I’ve been trying to beat Connor’s high score for an hour.”

Jason sat beside him, taking the controller. Nico had taught him how to play the Wii, but it still felt foreign in his hands.

Nico flipped back to the menu screen, letting Jason pick a character. Nico was playing as Rosalina. When no one was around, he was always Rosalina. Otherwise, he was Shy Guy. Jason was slightly embarrassed that he knew this and had committed it to memory, but decided it just meant Nico trusted him. Even with something as small as Mario Kart, Nico trusted him.

Jason picked Yoshi. Unlike Nico, he didn’t have much preference.

They began the game, Nico effortlessly in first place. Jason was dead last, but he couldn’t care less about that. It was probably because he couldn’t get his eyes off Nico’s screen, and to make matters worse, couldn’t get his eyes off Nico in general.

Jason hadn’t quite come to terms with his crush yet, if you couldn’t tell.

Nico knew every secret of every track. He knew how to cheat the game, to go backwards and still somehow win. It was almost as if he had the coding in his mind, mouse hovering and fingers clacking to will the game in his favor.

Some may think this made playing with him boring, seeing as no one but Connor could ever manage to beat him. Jason disagreed. This was something akin to Elysium.

Watching the way Nico’s hands worked against the controller, the way he scrunched his eyebrows just slightly in concentration, and most importantly, the glimmer of youth in his eyes that was so rare now. It was fun to lose. It was fun because Nico got to win.

Nico passed the final lap, throwing his arms up in celebration. “Finally!” he grinned. Jason watched as Nico wrote something down on a notebook beside him, stopping a stopwatch that looked older than both of them. He leaned over to see a list of names, each scratched one and replaced by one beneath it. Most of the names were either Nico, Connor, Travis, or Clovis, but a few other campers had weaseled their way into the leaderboard.

Nico scratched out an all-caps Connor and wrote Nico in his neat handwriting, accompanied by his winning time.

Jason struggled for a moment, but eventually passed the finish line in last place, also grinning.

“You did better this time,” Nico said, smiling at him.

“Still got last.”

“At least you didn’t go backwards the whole time this round.”

Jason watched the excited youth fade off Nico’s face, leaving just a mildly happy boy in its wake. He wanted more than anything to see the pure joy on Nico’s face again.

“Quite the improvement,” Jason said, matching his lopsided smile. “How’d you get so good at video games anyways?”

Nico shrugged. “Lotus Casino,” he replied, as if it cleared up anything. “Wanna go again?”

Jason nodded, letting him queue up another map. Nico eventually passed him controller 1, a sign of great respect.

“You pick.” He said. Nico had a very firm ‘you win, you choose,’ rule because he was very particular about his maps.

Jason threw up his eyebrows. “Really?”

“Yeah. Birthday boy picks. Just don’t pick Moo Moo Meadows.”

Jason picked Moo Moo Meadows. Nico groaned, but took controller 1 back and accepted his fate.

About halfway through the game, Nico was in first and Jason was, yet again, dead last.

Nico’s eyes flicked over to Jason’s hands. He sat down his own controller, putting his hands over Jason’s.

“If you just…” he started, guiding Jason’s hands over the controller.

Jason was a bit too flustered to fully take in what Nico was saying, but the slight burning sensation in his hands and face was enough for him to partially remember the hand movements.

This time, Nico finished in eighth, and Jason in fifth. Not Nico’s personal best, but definitely Jason’s.

Nico grinned. “You got top five.” Jason cheered. “Another?” Nico asked, dutifully writing down Jason’s place in the page of the notebook titled “Jason Grace’s Personal Bests”

Jason nodded, and they continued their game until light no longer poured in the windows, and the only thing illuminating them was the TV screen.

They finally tired themselves out on the game. Nico won every round after that, but Jason slowly climbed the leaderboard. Nico wrote down each small victory until one round, where Jason was second and Nico was first.

Wether it was on purpose or not, Nico’s Rosalina slipped on a banana peel at the last second, letting Jason win.

Jason cheered. While it didn’t earn him a spot on the notebooks leaderboard, considering his time still wasn’t all that good, Nico wrote down “Beat reigning champ, Nico Di Angelo” in the notebook with his pretty handwriting, only making the victory sweeter.

They both smiled and laughed together about the whole thing before realizing with sudden horror that they’d both missed dinner, and were starving.

“Guess we lost track of time,” Jason smiled. “I’m sure I have some snacks in my cabin somewhere.”

Nico held up a hand, stopping him. “I’ve got something better.”

Jason raised his eyebrows skeptically. “Better than trail mix?”

“Way better.”

Nico stuck his hand in the back of his contraband pile, digging around video games and other technology before his hands landed on what he was searching for.

He pulled out a box. Not just any box, a box of vanilla cake mix. Soon after, it was accompanied by a bottle of sprinkles and some questionable icing.

“Not even the Stolls know I have this,” Nico smiled, letting Jason gaze upon his treasure.

Jason looked at him quizzically. “How do you intend on cooking it?”

“I’ve got some arrangements with the harpies,” Nico smiled. “Kitchen’s all ours tonight.”

Nico pulled himself to his feet, watching Jason stand beside him.

“Just tonight?” Jason asked.

Nico shuffled his feet. “Yeah, I’ve been planning this for a while,” he said, slightly more bashful than usual. “Why do you think I got vanilla instead of an obviously better flavor?”

It was true, vanilla was Jason’s favorite. While he didn’t appreciate the slight roast from Nico, he did enjoy knowing that not only was he planning for his birthday, but he remembered his favorite flavor.

“Vanilla solos,” Jason corrected.

Nico rolled his eyes, stepping towards the door and slipping on some sandals. Socks and sandals, bold. “You just love being wrong.”

He silently led Jason through winding paths in the dark, secret pathways carved by hungry campers years before them. Why Nico knew of them was anyone’s guess, but Jason could appreciate it.

Once inside the kitchen, Nico flipped on a light, laid out their ingredients, and crossed his arms.

“I’ve never made a box cake before,” Nico said.

“Me neither,” Jason agreed, putting on his glasses to read the back of the box.

The two were oddly connected in that way. They were both so utterly separated from the teenage experience that they got to experience it themselves, together. Jason couldn’t ask for anything better.

Nico hunted down everything they needed and got to work, letting Jason hover over his shoulder.

“This was very nice of you, by the way,” Jason said, attempting very desperately not to blush all too hard as Nico pulled the cake from the oven.

Nico smiled. “It’s the least I could do. You’ve always been a good friend to me.”

Jason was ready to get on his knees and inform Aphrodite that love was, in fact, real. He held off for now, though, and settled on a soft smile.

He watched Nico do his best at icing the cake. He passed the sprinkles to Jason letting him pick his amount of sprinklage as he licked icing from his hands. Jason switched the top to the largest possible opening for the sprinkles, and proceeded to douse the thing.

They cut into it, both deciding it was walking a fine line between the most delicious and most disgusting thing they’d ever had.

Jason couldn’t tell if the cake was just exceptionally good, or if something about the lighting made Nico look quite like his last name wasn’t just a coincidence.

The golden lights above them bathed him far too beautifully. Nico was tanner now, happier than he had been on the Argo. He had vague tan lines that you could see if you squinted at where his bracelets usually laid. His hair curled up into wing shapes, making him look like a harpy himself.

Nico must’ve noticed him staring, as he sat down his plate and looked at Jason quizzically. “What?”

Jason shook his head, shaking himself from his thoughts. Maybe he was tired, maybe the cake was poisoned, but he just couldn’t manage to hold his tongue. “I…I think I’m in love with you?” he said, words falling out of his mouth with the grace of a strangled goose.

Nico sputtered. “I’m sorry?” he said, face getting redder.

Jason only now realized what he had just said, and was utterly mortified. “Sorry. I don’t know why I said that. Act like that didn’t-”

Nico interrupted him swiftly. “No, no. I didn’t mean to say that.” he said, leaning over the table to look at him. “I just mean…are you sure?”

Jason looked more confused than Nico now. He nodded slowly, watching Nico for signs of discomfort.

“Oh,” Nico said quietly. “Oh.”

Jason clicked his tongue. “It’s fine if you don’t feel the same, I totally get it-”

Nico slapped a hand over Jason’s mouth. “I have been flirting with you for the past month. I feel the same. You just surprised me.”

Jason’s face flushed red yet again. “Oh.”

“Yeah,” Nico said, shuffling his feet.

Just then, a harpy slammed open the door. “Times up, Di Angelo. We need the kitchen. Go back to your cabins before I tell Chiron.”

Nico groaned, but grabbed Jason quickly and pulled him out, shoving the cake into his arms gently but hard enough to get the point across.

“We’ll talk tomorrow. Happy birthday, Jason,” he said quickly. Even quicker, he pressed a kiss to Jason’s cheek, and promptly shadow traveled away before Jason could say anything.

The harpies practically dog piled Jason, who narrowly escaped punishment from Chiron by offering some cake. Turns out, harpies weren’t too hard to bribe.

That night, as he walked back to his cabin, grinning to himself, he passed the Hades cabin. Inside, he heard the roaring laughter of two Connor and Travis Stoll.

“You kissed Jason Grace?” the voice of Travis hounded.

“You let Jason Grace beat you in Mario Kart?” Connor demanded, followed by angry yelling from Nico.

Jason grinned to himself, and found his way back to his cabin. Maybe he didn’t get a lot of privacy at camp, and maybe he was ok with that. So long as it was Nico, his newly decided boyfriend as of the next day, it was fine by him.

[wild-karrde]

One Step at a Time - Part 9

Master List | Previous Part | Next Part

A/N: IS THIS THING ON??? OK HI HELLO I HAVE RETURNED WITH THIS FIC AND I KNOW I ALWAYS PROMISE THIS, BUT I PINKY SWEAR THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL NOT TAKE AS LONG (in fact, I already have a good chunk of it written). I'm super excited to introduce some new characters (and also maybe make a reference to a certain mechanic that I haven't yet named in this series). But anyway, I AM VERY EXCITED FOR THIS CHAPTER AND I HOPE YOU ALL LIKE IT. THANK YOU as always to the wonderful @teletraan-meets-jarvis for beta-reading this for me and helping me hash out characters and plot and just generally screaming encouragement at me!

Chapter Rating: T

Warnings: language, copious amounts of new OCs (because I cannot help myself)

Word Count: 8.3k words

Lothal wasn’t nearly the paradise Sorgan had been, but it would have to do. Instead of lush green foliage and thick forests, the planet’s landscape was dotted with rock formations that broke up the dead, yellowing grass that covered its plains. Everything appeared to be a different shade of tan or grey.

Arni had told them that the planet had experienced famine and drought during the war, crippling its agricultural industry. But where the farmers had floundered, the mining industry had flourished. The planet was peppered with veins and cave networks that were rich with various metals and minerals that the Empire found useful, so of course it hadn’t wasted any time in swooping in and setting up shop.

Chuckles had been hesitant to travel to any planet that had an Imperial presence, but as Arni pointed out, it was almost impossible to find a world where the Empire didn’t exist in some capacity. Their best option was to find a planet with plenty of rural areas to disappear into, and Lothal provided that. There had been a moment where Chuckles considered returning to Sorgan, but he knew that Ry and Oks had likely had to come up with a story for the drunk that had stumbled out and never returned. Showing back up, especially if the Empire was still around, would only complicate things for them, and that was the last thing he wanted to do for the two women.

So Lothal it was.

Chuckles and Arni had selected a small, family-owned mining operation to target for their next place to settle. The Kern Brothers Mining Company was well away from any major cities, and as a result, a small sort of township had cropped up around the mine itself. It seemed to be a fairly new establishment based on the many job postings that Arni was able to find on various forums, and by all accounts, other than the occasional inspection and weekly supply drops, Imperials largely steered clear of the small community, instead relying on shipments delivered by droids or automated vehicles. 

It wasn’t perfect, but it was about as close as they could hope for. 

As Chuckles settled the freighter into one of the crude landing zones outside of the township, the two younglings pressed forward to get a look at their new home. Aside from the mine, there appeared to be one strip that served as a main part of town, and the area was peppered with buildings that had clearly gone up in a hurry to accommodate the workers. Many of the dwellings seemed to be built from whatever could be salvaged in a hurry, or like the Ayyshus, it appeared many families opted to live out of whatever vessel had carried them there. With opportunities coming and going everywhere across the planet, it made sense to remain mostly mobile should they need to pull up stakes and move on. 

Chuckles could see Nita was less than impressed, and Arni was chewing the inside of their cheek, eyes darting around and taking in every detail. Chuck grinned as the two kids turned to him, clearly trying to hide their disappointment.

Not much of an adventure compared to Sorgan. But, it’s quiet. And probably boring. And we could use boring.

“Not much to look at, is it?” he teased, and he could see both of the younglings relax, apparently considering themselves released from having to pretend.

“It’s very… dusty,” Nita concluded.

“And dry,” Arni added.

“But it’s ours,” Chuck countered. “And we’ll make it what we want. And if not, we’ll find somewhere else.”

Nita nodded, appearing to find this an acceptable compromise, but something had drawn Arni’s attention. They giggled, pointing out the front viewport of the freighter. “Nita! Look! A tooka!”

Nita leapt into the co-pilot seat, leaning forward on the control panel to peer outside. “WHERE?”

“RIGHT THERE BY THAT ROCK!”

The speckled creature scratched at an oversized ear, surveying the ship with disinterest.

“TOOKA!” Nita squealed. “Open the hatch Chuckles! I wanna go make him my friend!” She leapt down from the seat, sprinting towards the ramp and bouncing on her toes eagerly.

Chuck tried to stifle his laughter, releasing the hatch and lowering the ramp. He watched as the two younglings raced outside in the late afternoon sun, Nita at a full sprint with Arni calling for her to slow down so as not to frighten the creature. 

The tooka was most definitely not looking to make new friends, lowering its ears and hissing at the approaching younglings before bolting off of the rock it had been sunning itself on. The clone pilot couldn’t help but grin as he watched the two children chase the Loth cat through the grass, shrieking and squealing as they raced in circles after their furry quarry.

We’ll find a way to be happy here. Dust and dryness be damned.

The sun was beginning to approach the horizon already, casting everything in hues of orange and pink as the cool evening breeze kicked up, rustling through the grass. Chuckles strode down the ramp, leaning one shoulder against a landing strut as he watched the two younglings. 

Yeah. We can make this ours.

—

The following morning, Chuckles headed into the small settlement to look for work. From all of the notices Arni had looked through for job postings, it appeared that the mining company had plenty of positions to fill. Chuckles had opted to once again cover his face, deciding it was a risk not worth taking yet. 

Actually entering the settlement did little to improve his first impression of it. The town was far from a booming metropolis, and while he hadn’t expected to find anything close to the scale of Coruscant’s glittering skyscrapers, he also hadn’t anticipated the rusted out husks of buildings that lined the dirt road that appeared to serve as the main street of the settlement. Even though the sun was barely beginning to break over the horizon, the township was already bustling with activity. Groups of children scampered by, stopping to stare at the stranger with the covered face as he made his way towards the mine entrance. Chuckles had become accustomed to children staring at him during his time as a pilot. The ground troopers were fairly commonplace on Coruscant, but the pilots always seemed to garner special attention from any younglings in the area, wanting to know what it was like to soar among the stars and shoot down vulture droids. 

However, it was the stares of the adults that made a certain tension take root between his shoulder blades. It seemed that there was no shortage of variety in terms of species and homeworld, but they all knew one another, and they also were easily able to identify anyone who wasn’t part of the community. Wary eyes seemed to follow him, and after a few failed attempts at a friendly wave, Chuckles shoved his hands in his pockets, fixing his gaze on the large building in front of him. 

The mine’s main office was certainly one of the most well-maintained structures of the settlement, which he supposed made sense considering it was likely the first thing built, and also the structure that largely sustained the entirety of the small settlement. It was the only multiple-story building in the entire community, well-lit windows glowing in the early morning haze. It was easy to identify the employment office with its freshly painted signage. What did surprise him was the lack of activity inside. He’d anticipated a line out the door, or at least a few applicants waiting around to be met with. But the lobby was completely empty when he entered, a soft chime announcing his arrival, seemingly deafening in the silence. He had to fight the urge to flinch. 

The only other occupant of the employment office was a burly Latero at the far end, who glanced up when Chuckles entered. His eyes roved over Chuckles’s frame, clearly surveying his build and physical usefulness before he heaved himself to his feet with two of his four arms, unleashing a deep sigh and making his way over to a large desk that appeared to be the most central piece of furniture in the room. There, he plopped down heavily on a stool, glancing up at Chuckles again and clearing his throat impatiently. Chuckles took his cue, striding quickly up to the front of the desk, trying not to nervously rock back on his heels. 

“Well?” the Latero prompted.

His voice was gravelly, and he raised a bushy eyebrow at Chuckles, toying with the ends of his facial hair, which was streaked with grey. His forearms were thick and scarred from years of hard labor, and he wore a jumpsuit that was stained and torn in various places. A stitched on name tag on his breast identified him as Jerrno. 

“I’m uh… looking for a job,” Chuckles replied, internally cringing. 

Jerrno snorted. “I figured that much. What kind of work?”

“Whatever you’ve got.” 

The Latero paused, glancing up at Chuckles as though he was an idiot. 

Maybe I am. 

“If ya don’t have career aspirations, do ya at least have a chain code?” 

Chuckles hurriedly produced his chain code disk, handing it to the Latero, who scanned it, eyes glancing back and forth over the lines appearing on his datapad before he glared at Chuckles. 

“No employment history.”

“I worked at a common house. Off the books.”

“How long?”

“Five months.” 

Somehow, Jerrno’s expression became even more judgemental. 

“I’m guessing there’s no references available then. Since ya were ‘off the books.’” 

Chuckles flexed his hands nervously. “‘Fraid not.”

The Latero leaned heavily on the desk, steepling his fingers on his uppermost set of arms while his bottom two gestured at Chuckles. “Son, I know ya see there ain’t exactly a line out the door here. We are hurtin’ for people, but I can’t hire ya if I don’t even know who I’m hiring. ‘Specially with no relevant experience.”

“Listen, I’m strong, and I’m stubborn, and I’ll bust my ass however you need me to.”

Jerrno heaved a sigh. “I don’t even know what species ya are with that getup, and that makes me think you’re hiding from somethin’. I do need people, but not ones that are going to land me in hot water. Understand?” 

Chuckles’s palms were sweaty. 

“I’m human.”

“Can ya take off the mask and prove it?”

We don’t have enough supplies to get anywhere else. It has to be here. We have to make this work. 

Maybe enough time’s passed. The war didn’t really make it to Lothal anyway. Maybe he doesn’t know what a clone looks like.

He sighed, tossing caution to the wind as he pulled off the mask and goggles. 

The Latero’s eyes widened in recognition. Chuckles’s heart fell. 

“You’re a clone.”

Chuckles’s fingers itched for his blaster. He’d left it on the ship.

“I get that a lot,” he replied steadily, hoping a lie might get him at least to the door. 

Jerrno raised an eyebrow. “Son, I served the Republic. I’d know that face anywhere.” 

Chuckles’s mind was racing, but before he could come up with a solution, the Latero heaved another sigh. 

“Well, at least I get the lack of work history now. You’re right, you’re a hard worker. Never met a clone that was a slacker. We can find something for ya. Maker knows there’ll be more of ya with the decommissioning happening.” 

“Decommissioning?” The question was out of Chuck’s mouth before he could stop himself. Jerrno paused. 

“Yeah. Was just announced a handful of rotations ago. How come ya don’t know?” His beady eyes narrowed suspiciously.

The lie came easily this time, and Chuck delivered it as flawlessly as his nerves would allow. He tapped the scar on his cheek. “Bad accident towards the end of the war. They weren’t sure what to do with me, so when it ended, I was released from duty. Guess you could say I got decommissioned early. But being a clone hasn’t exactly made work easy to come by.” His mind was racing, trying to come up with a lie while simultaneously attempting to process what decommissioning would mean for his brothers. 

Some of them surely survived. What the kriff does that mean for them? 

“Accident, huh? It affect ya too much physically?” Jerrno asked, his eyes still slightly narrowed.

Chuckles forced a dry laugh. “Not exactly winning any beauty pageants, and sometimes have some aches and pains, but I promise you won’t find a harder worker than me.” 

Jerrno surveyed him one final time, eyes raking over the scar on Chuck’s face, how he was standing, his overall manner. His gaze felt like an inspection, and Chuckles straightened to attention out of habit. The Latero huffed a laugh. 

“Alright, I think we can find a place for ya. Opening up a new vein first thing tomorrow. Forewoman’s a Nautolan named Anjii. I’ll let her know you’re comin’.” He popped open a drawer, pulling a badge from it and scanning it with his datapad. “Mine entrance is just through the main gates and on the right. Be there tomorrow morning at 0815. Anj will be waiting for the crew, and you’ll get up to speed on the job. We’re expanding in a hurry to meet Imperial quotas, so it’ll be trial by fire. Got a name?” 

“Chuck. Chuck Ayyshu.” 

The Latero punched a few buttons on his datapad, his brow furrowing. “Chain code says Chuckles.” 

“I’d prefer to go by Chuck if that’s alright with you.” 

“No skin off my ass.”

Chuckles assumed his face would draw enough attention on its own. He didn’t feel the need to also have a name that made him stand out more. 

The Latero handed him back his chaincode, and Chuckles tucked it hurriedly away along with the badge he’d been given. 

“Make sure you pack a lunch and water. And don’t be late.” 

“When do I get paid?” 

Jerrno glared at him as if he’d asked an impertinent question. 

“Got two kids I’m feeding,” Chuckles explained.

The Latero’s expression softened. “I didn’t think clones had kids.” 

Chuckles couldn’t help but giggle at that. “I’m sure there’s plenty of kids out there that have my genetics. But these two are adopted. They lost their families in the war, and I lost mine when I left the GAR. So, we found each other.” 

Jerrno nodded. “A fairly common story nowadays,” he said quietly. “How old?”

“Ten and five.”

The Latero’s mouth crinkled into a smile. “I give ya your credits every two weeks. If ya can hold out to the end of this week, I’ll see if I can get ya a bit of an advance. To help ya get settled.” He extended a hand. “Name’s Jerrno by the way. Jerrno Kern.” 

Chuck clasped his hand in, giving it a firm squeeze. “I take it you’re one of the Kern brothers then?” he asked, jerking his head at the logo on the back wall with the Latero’s surname emblazoned in bright orange lettering. 

Jerrno nodded. “Yep. Me and Teef are makin’ a go of it here. Seems promisin’.” He gestured out the door towards the street. “There’s a school on the main drag for your kiddos. The second largest building here. Got a little red sign and some flowers out front. Not a fancy education by any means, but the teachers there care about the kids. Even have a few getting ready to apply to university in a few months.” 

Chuckles smiled. “Thanks. I’ll be sure to look into it. My oldest certainly would like that.” His chest tightened as the words fell from his lips. 

My oldest. Arni is my oldest kid. 

It came so naturally, but his eyes were suddenly a bit misty at the realization. 

“And your youngest?”

Chuckles giggled. “I’m sure she’ll hate it, but she’ll go. Might take some bribing with her favorite snack. But the older one keeps those well-stocked, so shouldn’t be too much of an issue.” 

Jerrno nodded. As he finished punching information into Chuckles’s newly-created employment file on his datapad, the clone noted a holo on the far desk he’d originally been sitting at. It was an old image, but it showed a much younger version of the Latero that sat before him, a female Latero he assumed was his partner, and two squealing younglings, their heads tipped back in uproarious laughter. The image seemed at least a decade old, and he wondered what had become of the children. There was a certain grief in Jerrno’s eyes that made him think the story didn’t have a happy ending. 

“School starts at 0800. I’d drop the kids off on your way to the job tomorrow.” 

“Got it. They need to bring anything?” 

“The teachers have managed to keep a small stockpile. They should be set unless there’s a shortage.” 

“If that’s the case, is there a store I can shop at?”

“The only store is Grinz’s place. He has a pretty good selection normally. Should be able to find what ya need there. But if ya ever can’t, talk to Grinz. He’s got a few good connections that are able to get just about anything ya might think of.” He paused. “But if it’s ever an emergency. Medicine or the like, ya come to me. I can get anything expedited.” 

“That’s kind of you.” 

The Latero huffed a laugh. “We take care of our own out here, Chuck. We have to. That’s the only way this all works.” He pushed himself to his feet, the stool he was perched on making a loud scraping noise as it skidded out from under him. “Don’t be late tomorrow,” he repeated. 

“Thanks. I won’t.” 

—

“Why can’t we just stay on the ship?” 

While he’d anticipated perhaps some resistance to the idea of school from Nita, Chuckles could honestly say that the fight she was putting up was far more than what he’d expected. She’d appeared to be somewhat receptive to the idea the night before when he’d brought it up over dinner. But now, she appeared to be completely changing her tune when confronted with actually having to go.

“Honey, we’ve been over this. School is a good thing. Right Arni?”

The young Twi’lek shrugged, their nose already buried in their sketchbook. When they looked up, Chuckles gave them a pleading expression, hoping they’d provide some sort of support.

“Sure. It’s great if you like to learn,” they mumbled. 

Not what I was hoping for, but sure. 

The little Pantoran was still digging her heels into the dust with every step, making the short walk to the schoolhouse take an eternity. Chuckles was already beginning to feel the margin of time ticking away that he’d allotted himself to get the kids settled into their classes before dashing off to his first shift. 

I promised I wouldn’t be late. I have to believe kriffing up before I even get started won’t give the best first impression. 

He attempted to lengthen his strides, but Nita tugged firmly, and he almost tripped over her, stumbling and biting his lip hard to keep himself from swearing in frustration. Mercifully, the building that served as the schoolhouse was within view, and he finally readjusted the small pack of food and water on his back and scooped Nita up, tossing her over his shoulder. Her protests grew louder, drawing some additional attention from the townsfolk that were beginning to emerge from their dwellings for the day. Chuckles gave them a tight smile and sheepish wave as Nita thrashed in his grip. 

“I DON’T WANNA GO.” 

She’s never done this before. WHAT is HAPPENING?

“She seems upset,” Arni mumbled.  

“Yes, thank you for that very astute observation, kid,” Chuckles muttered, finally setting Nita on her feet when they were within a few steps of the school’s front door. He could hear children squealing and laughing inside, and some round faces were pressed against the windows, their attention drawn either by Nita’s shouts or just the fact that there was someone new and exciting outside. 

Reaching down, he patted Nita’s head in between the buns that Arni had carefully styled that morning. “Honey, you’re gonna have a great time. I know not everyone can get as excited about school as Arni, but I still think this is gonna be good for you.” 

The little Pantoran was completely unswayed, her large golden eyes brimming with tears as she realized she wouldn’t be convincing her adopted parent to let her stay home. “Chuckles,” she whimpered. “Please don’t leave us.” 

He squatted down, holding out his palms towards her. “I’m never leaving you, honey. It’s just temporary. I gotta go to work, but I’ll be back to pick you up before you know it.” She took his hands, and he pulled her closer, speaking quietly enough so only she could hear. “This is just something we need to do in order to blend in here. School is supposed to be fun! Plus, don’t you want to learn some new stuff? Hang out with other kids?”

Nita’s golden eyes were still shining with tears, and she buried her face in his shoulder, muffling her voice as she whispered to him. “All of the other kids I used to hang out with are dead.” Arni stiffened next to her. 

Chuck’s heart stuttered in his chest as the realization sunk in. He pulled Nita into his arms, wrapping her in a tight hug. 

“Oh honey. I’m so sorry. I didn’t put it together.” 

“It’s not your fault,” she said quietly, some of her tears finally breaking loose. “I’m just scared.” 

“We’re about to start this morning’s lesson!” a voice called from the door. “Will your children be joining us today?” 

Chuckles peered around Nita’s shoulder, meeting the golden eyes of the tall, blue-skinned woman standing in the doorway. She was watching the three of them patiently, some of her dark hair blowing in front of her face in the early morning breeze. Chuckles gave her a helpless smile, and she nodded, seemingly understanding his current predicament.  

“I promise that won’t happen here. You won’t lose your friends again like that. You know that, right?”

Nita nodded into his shoulder. He knew that was little consolation. He’d held similar fears during his entire career, fears that his ship would come apart around him again, fears that he’d lose his entire squadron again. He’d known then he was playing a statistics game, and even though he thought Nita’s likelihood of living through a second once-in-a-millenium genocide that included children was almost zero, he knew that wouldn’t do anything to dissipate the fear she was feeling. His eyes drifted back to the teacher, who was still waiting patiently in the door for her new pupils. 

“Look, your teacher is just like you, honey,” Chuckles tried, nodding at the woman.

“Actually, she’s a Wroonian, not a Pantoran,” Arni corrected. Chuckles glared at them. They shrugged. “They’re different.” Turning, they called over their shoulder to the teacher. “Just a minute. My sister’s a little nervous.”

A sudden thought struck Chuckles. “Arni, are you alright doing this?” he asked, suddenly fearful he’d missed a cue from them too, something that would indicate they shared Nita’s fear. But they nodded, their lekku jiggling with the motion. 

“I’m fine. I want to go to school. But I’m worried about her.” 

The Wroonian woman approached them, squatting down next to Chuckles in front of Nita. “Hello, dear girl. What’s your name?” 

The little Pantoran examined the woman in front of her, her large golden eyes raking over the newcomer from head to toe. A gentle waft of the woman’s perfume filled Chuckles’s nose, inundating him with the smell of vanilla and cinnamon, but he resisted the urge to look over at his new compatriot, instead focusing on Nita and her reaction. 

The wrinkle between Nita’s eyebrows appeared to soften as she observed the teacher for a few more moments before she finally replied, “Nita. My name is Nita Ayyshu.”

The woman smiled at her gently, extending a hand. “It’s lovely to meet you, Nita. I’m Endoline, but you can call me Teacher Endi. Does that sound alright?” 

Nita nodded, slowly taking the teacher’s hand. Chuckles saw Endi squeeze it lightly in greeting before turning to Arni. “And who might you be?”

“Arni,” they replied with a shy smile. 

“Excellent. Well, would you both care to come and join us? Today, we’re focusing on mathematics in the morning with sciences in the afternoon. Do you like either of those things?” 

“I like both of them,” Arni replied eagerly, their large brown eyes lighting up in a way Chuckles hadn’t seen from them before. 

Endi turned to Nita, clearly hoping to elicit a similar response. Chuckles was internally churning, praying to whatever deity was listening that she’d take another step closer. 

“I don’t know about math, but I suppose I like science,” the little Pantoran conceded. “I like the flowers that Arni draws and the notes they make about them.” 

Endi’s smile widened as she clapped her hands excitedly. “Well the two of you couldn’t have picked a better day to join us then. This afternoon, we’re walking out towards the rock formations to see what sort of native flowers are out there and document their life cycles. Does that sound fun?”

Arni appeared to understand that their enthusiasm was noted by default. The three of them all seemed to be holding their breath as Nita mulled it over. 

Finally, she smiled slightly, wiping at her eyes. “That does sound fun.” 

“Very good,” Endi said gently, pushing herself back to a standing position. “Would you like to come and meet the other students? They’re always excited to make new friends.” She reached out both hands towards them. The two children looked up at Chuckles, who gave them an encouraging nod. 

“Go with Teacher Endi. I’ll be back to pick you both up at the end of the day. Ok?”

“Pinky swear?” Nita asked. 

Chuckles huffed a laugh, extending both pinkies. “Pinky swear.” 

Both younglings locked their little fingers with his as Endi stood by patiently. Once their oath had been sealed, they both took her outstretched hands, and she began leading them towards the door. Chuckles stood, trying not to bounce nervously as his two children disappeared inside the school.

Never trusted them with anyone besides Oksann and Ry. And I knew them pretty well before I ever let this happen. I just met this woman. 

He took a deep breath, releasing it slowly. 

And it’s going to have to be alright. 

Just before closing it, Endi cast one more look over her shoulder, giving him a soft smile. It was then that he noticed how strikingly beautiful she was, her golden eyes twinkling at him in the early morning sun as she tucked a dark curl back into place behind her ear. 

Dark curls. Just like… 

“I assume you’ll be at the mine if there are any pressing issues?” she asked. 

Chuckles dug his fingernails into the meat of his palm, chasing away the memory of someone he’d long kept buried. “Yep. I shouldn’t be too late picking them up.” 

An indignant shriek ripped through the air, and Endi’s head whipped around as her brow furrowed into an authoritative stare that even made Chuckles’s insides ripple. He couldn’t tell who she was looking at, but he certainly didn’t envy the kid. 

“Dez, what have we discussed about pulling Ooni’s montrals?” she asked firmly. A sheepish response that Chuckles couldn’t make out came from somewhere behind the windows. “Thank you for apologizing,” Endi replied. “Now let’s all take our seats.” She turned back towards the door, giving Chuckles another warm smile. 

He mouthed good luck at her. 

Her smile widened and she winked before she shut the door the rest of the way, and Chuckles couldn’t ignore the way his heart fluttered this time. 

Well. That’s new. 

His feet carried him towards the mine as he tried not to think too hard about the heat in his cheeks. Or the other individual with dark curls and sharp eyes. 

—

Whatever Chuckles had imagined Anjii might be like, he’d never have gotten close to reality. The Nautolan was about as rough and tumble as anyone he’d ever met. She swore more than even his most vulgar brothers, was covered in tattoos, and took no shit from anyone. He hadn’t met many Nautolans in his lifetime, having only bumped into Master Kit Fisto once or twice in between briefings during the war, but whatever impression Fisto had given him of Nautolans, Anjii quickly dispelled. 

0814. Cutting it close, he thought as he’d sprinted into the shaft, scanning his badge and almost tripping on his way through the entry point in his haste. As he hurriedly clipped his badge to his belt, he ran into something solid that knocked the wind out of him with a loud oof. He stumbled backwards, clutching his chest and wheezing as the obstruction in his path whipped around and stared at him with piercing black eyes. 

“You the new blood then?” the Nautolan asked, hardly seeming phased by the collision. 

“Yep. You Anjii?”

“You see any other water dwellers lining up to work on this dried up husk of a rock?” she grunted, glancing down at her datapad. “Go by Anj though. And you go by… Chuckles?”

“I prefer Chuck,” he muttered, mentally making a note to find out if Jerrno had given his real name as some sort of hazing exercise. 

“I would too with a name like that,” Anj cackled. “Doesn’t exactly make you sound like a serious person.” She circled him slowly, eying him up and down. “Clone then, eh? The name makes more sense, I suppose. But why not something cooler like ‘Zap’ or ‘Comet’?” 

Chuckles shrugged. “It’s a family name.” 

If Anj got the joke, she didn’t let on, only responding with a muted “hmph.” As she circled him, he felt his shoulders immediately draw up and back, his spine straightening to attention out of reflex. 

“At ease, soldier,” she guffawed. “We’re not like that here. I’m just sizing you up since you didn’t have a position listed.” 

“And?” he prodded. 

She stopped in front of him under one of the dim tunnel lights, and he finally got a good look at her. She was at least half a meter shorter than him, but he sensed that didn’t bother her. Her skin was a dark grey, and every visible piece of it that wasn’t dappled with light scarring was covered with ink, although he couldn’t discern any of the symbols from this distance. Several of her tendrils had woven bands wrapped around them, and each tendril shifted from grey to a bright green at the tips. He also noted one or two of her tendrils were missing, cut off at various lengths like a bad haircut and scarred at the ends. She didn’t appear concerned with his appraisal of her as she tapped a long finger against her lips. 

“We’ll put you in the clearing crew to start. I assume Jerrno told you we’re blasting into a new vein today.”

“He did.” 

“Good. Deploying droids is a pain if we’re not certain about a vein, especially since we don’t have enough in the fleet yet. So we’ll be clearing manually until we’re sure about the new prospect. Then we’ll redirect a few of them down there to help.”

“Jerrno and Teef planning on upping their droid fleet?” he asked. “Figure if they’re serious about expansion, might want to do that rather than relying on manual labor.” 

Anj scoffed. “Course they are. But you need to make money in order to do that. I don’t know how long you’ve been out of the tube, but in case you can’t tell, this is a fairly new setup.” 

Chuckles huffed in exasperation, trying to keep his temper in check at the reference to his creation. “I suppose it was too much to hope for to not have what I am get talked about, but if it’s alright with you, maybe we keep the tube jokes to a minimum.” 

“A sense of humor is necessary for the job,” Anj replied with a shrug. 

“Yeah, well when you’ve had the term ‘tube-bred freak’ screamed at you enough times by the people you’re supposed to be protecting, it somehow loses its charm,” he muttered through clenched teeth. 

Something shifted in Anj’s expression. She rocked her weight to one foot. “Fair enough. I didn’t know that’s how it was. I apologize. Won’t happen again.” 

“Sorry to be a buzzkill,” Chuckles mumbled. He wasn’t used to being apologized to, and as a result, wasn’t sure how to react. He felt his knuckles creak as he released the fists he didn’t even realize he’d clenched. 

Anj huffed a laugh, stepping forward and slapping him on the shoulder. He’d assumed she was strong, but her grip was still surprisingly firm. “Another thing you need to survive down there is a good sense of trust. I don’t know how many mines you’ve been in, but it’s dangerous work. We watch each other’s backs and make sure everyone goes home at the end of the day. You spend enough time down here with the same people day in and day out, you become a bit like family. And that means we don’t make each other feel shitty or othered. Unless they’re an asshole and deserve it. Got it?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he replied with a lopsided grin. 

“None of that shit, now. Not when I was just starting to like you.” She stepped past him, heading towards a set of lockers. “Now, let’s get you fitted for some gear and get down there. If you survive the first week, we’ll work on getting you some personal stuff more fitted to you.” She popped open a locker, and a pile of helmets spilled out with a clatter. “See if one of those will fit your dome.” 

Chuck squatted down, picking through the battered plastoid helmets. “Not everyone lasts the first week?’’

Anj barked out a laugh as she popped open a different locker that appeared to be her personal one. It was more well-organized, and she pulled out a bright green helmet that matched the tips of her tendrils. “Most don’t make it three days before they pack up and bug out. Jerrno’s assured me you’re made of sturdier stuff. We’ll see how you fare.” 

—

Anj hadn’t over exaggerated, not by a long shot. By the end of the day, standing felt like an overwhelming physical endeavour, and Chuckles leaned heavily against the interior of the lift as it carried them out of the mine’s depths. It had been slow going, but they’d managed to successfully open the vein, finding more doonium than they’d anticipated. When the dust from their blasting had finally cleared enough to see again, they’d cheered when they caught sight of the glittering metallic streaks in the walls around them. Even Chuckles had giggled like a maniac, his breathing filter making his laughter sound like mechanical hiccups. 

Now, every muscle in his body was screaming with exhaustion. When the hissing of the lift’s purge system finally ceased, the crew around him all removed their breathing gear and helmets. Chuckles followed suit, running his fingers through his sweat-soaked mohawk. His hands were blistered under his gloves, and every exposed bit of skin was covered in a thick layer of grime. As he hooked his breathing mask to his belt, he inhaled the sharp, fresh air, nearly choking on how cool it was compared to the filtered warm air he’d been breathing all day. His stomach growled loudly, reminding him that he hadn’t packed enough food or water for himself, something Anj had teased him about before offering him half of a protein bar she’d stuffed in her pocket. 

“The new ones always underpack on their first day. You’ll figure it out. Or you’ll quit,” she’d joked.

With heavy eyes, he observed the rest of his crew that were jammed into the lift with him. There were two other human men in the crew whose names he’d already forgotten. They’d eyed him warily when Anj introduced him, and for the most part, they’d kept their distance throughout the day, which was just fine with Chuckles. There was a tall Nikto that had identified himself as Lu, who also appeared to be Anj’s second in command. He was quiet with fiercely observant eyes and always seemed to be at Chuckles’s elbow any time he had a question, answering quickly and firmly before moving off down the line to help somewhere else. It was a bit unnerving, but Chuckles’s appreciation outweighed the nerves. The technical specialist was a young Rodian that had enthusiastically introduced herself as Helly before talking Chuckles’s ear off about the type of droids they’d need and how she calibrated them to precisely mine the doonium, ensuring that there was minimal environmental contamination from the surrounding rock which made purification efforts down the line less difficult. He was positive he couldn’t regurgitate any of the information she’d shared back at her with any sort of accuracy, but she honestly just seemed excited to have anyone listen to her for more than five minutes. She reminded him a bit of Arni. 

“You alright back there, rookie?” Anj called over her shoulder as she undid the wrap that was holding her tendrils in place under her helmet, shaking them loose. 

“Yeah,” Chuck managed to reply. “Easiest first day I could have asked for.”

Anj chuckled at that, and even Lu huffed a laugh. “Then we didn’t work you hard enough,” the Nautolan replied. 

“Make sure you take it easy tonight and consume plenty of water and electrolytes,” Helly chattered at him rapidly, offering him a flask of water. “It’ll help your muscles heal, and-”

“Hells, don’t overwhelm the guy just yet. We want him to come back tomorrow, remember?” Anj teased. “He’s been kind enough to endure your dumping all day. Let him have a moment of peace.” 

Helly seemed unbothered, but Chuckles still felt a twinge of guilt. “Thanks,” he rasped, returning the flask after taking a massive swig. “I’ll be sure to put down a few more liters before bed.”

Helly nodded silently, but her eyes sparkled. He wasn’t sure how she still had so much energy. 

Maybe I’ll get there eventually. 

Several minutes later, the lift doors slid open and Chuckles shuffled out along with the rest of the crew to the lockers, where he replaced the items Anj had outfitted him with at the beginning of the day. The helmet had been a little small, and he made a mental note to try and size up the following morning. 

Anj squatted down next to him, removing the air monitor she kept strapped to her ankle. She leaned over, speaking quietly to him. “I’d recommend at least two canteens of water tomorrow and plenty of protein bars. Dried fruit is good too for the sugar. Nothing greasy or you’ll be looking at your lunch again before the day is out. Got it?”

“Got it,” he mumbled. “It always like this?”

“What, sore to the point where you think you’re gonna die and ready to collapse on the first flat surface you see?” She laughed quietly. “Yeah. Seems about right.” She clapped him on the shoulder. “See you tomorrow, Chuck.” 

He managed to get his gear put away into the correct lockers before limping through the checkpoint. His legs seemed to get a little less sore as he walked, but he could feel the blisters on the bottom of his feet promising retribution at a later time. He rolled his shoulders and was greeted with the burn of muscle soreness. 

I think even my eyebrows are sore. Not sure how that happens. But Maker, everything hurts. 

His feet somehow carried him back to the schoolhouse’s front door, where he found a handful of children filtering out slowly. When he poked his head inside, he saw Arni sitting at a desk furiously drawing in their sketchbook, their tongue poking out of one side of their mouth. Nita was perched on a bench in the back of the room, weaving flowers into a chain with Endi. At the sound of his boots thudding on the hardwood flooring, Endi’s eyes snapped up, her warm smile lighting up her face again when their eyes met. Chuckles was suddenly very aware of how filthy and unkempt he looked. He ran his fingers through his mohawk again, trying to muss it into something presentable. 

Endi leaned down, saying something softly to Nita, whose head whipped around. Her eyes lit up when she saw Chuckles, and he almost melted with relief as she launched herself off the bench with a chain of flowers clutched in her hand and raced towards him. 

“CHUCKLES!” 

Despite his knees screaming at him in protest, Chuckles managed to squat down to the little Pantoran’s level as she eagerly danced in front of him.

“Teacher Endi helped me make this crown with the flowers we found today. Isn’t it pretty?”

“Fit for a princess,” he agreed, taking the delicate blossoms she held out to him. He grinned at her before leaning forward and putting the crown on her head, nestling it around her buns. “See? Perfect.” 

Nita giggled, bouncing on her feet. 

“What about you, kid? You have a good day?” Chuckles asked, glancing at Arni. 

They nodded quietly, but an irrepressible grin was spreading across their face. 

“Good stuff.”

“Do you have a moment?” Endi asked, coming to stand next to him. 

“Uh… yeah sure,” Chuck replied. “Nita, Arni, why don’t you two go wait outside while I speak with Teacher Endi?” 

The two younglings nodded before sprinting out the door, laughing loudly. 

Chuckles watched them go before trying to push himself to a standing position. He grunted as one leg cramped up, and he would have toppled over if Endi’s hands hadn’t caught his arm, helping him lean against one of the small desks. 

“Sorry about that,” he mumbled, trying to ignore the heat rushing to his cheeks. 

“It’s quite alright. You look like every other miner that’s just survived their first shift with Anjii.” 

“That bad, huh?” he joked, sitting heavily on the top of the desk. 

A silence hung between them for a moment before Chuckles cleared his throat. “So, everything alright with the kids? Did Nita settle in?” 

“She did,” Endi assured him. “And everything’s fine. I just like to meet with new parents to see if there’s anything I should know about their children. And…” she paused, searching for words. “I can tell by your family dynamic that it’s likely there’s a good amount I should know.” 

“Because I’m a clone?” he asked, bristling slightly. 

“Because you’re all different species, because they call you by your first name, and yes, because you’re a clone. It’s not for the reasons you think. I just know that you can’t have been a parent long yourself. You were a soldier, bred for fighting.”

“I can take care of my kids.”

She sighed, raising her hands in surrender. “I’m not saying you can’t. That you haven’t. They obviously love you, and I can see how much you care for them. All I’m saying is that it must have been a large adjustment. I can only assume that they’re orphans, and judging by Nita’s reaction this morning, they haven’t been separated from you very much. I just… I just want to see if there’s anything I can do to make this transition easier for them. And for you.” 

Chuckles nodded, some of his defensiveness melting away. “You’re right,” he conceded. “They lost their families at the end of the war. I was discharged early due to injury.” 

Mostly true. If I hadn’t of hit my head hard enough, I’d have been another cog in the Imperial machine. 

“We’d tried to make a home on a different world, but it’s been hard to find work because of what I am.” 

“But now that the decommissioning’s happening, you’ve had a little more luck?”

“Yeah. People don’t think I’m a deserter,” he joked. 

She laughed softly. “Well, I think what you’re doing for them is something special. I’d argue that you’ve done enough with your service during the war, but taking on two orphaned younglings is something else entirely.”

“It hasn’t been easy,” he agreed. “But never because of them. The two of them just fit with me immediately. There were growing pains of course. Still are at times. But… but I can’t think of them as anything other than my kin at this point. Weird as that may sound. They’re my kids. And I want them to be happy. And I want to give them a sense of normalcy. I think them going to school here will be good. Arni loves to learn.”

“They are a very special student,” Endi agreed. “Their journal is impressive. The way they document everything in such detail and then can recall it later. It’s astounding, frankly. They’re quite advanced for their age.” 

“And Nita is a bit of a firecracker.” 

“That she is,” Endi giggled. “She was shy at first, but I’ll be surprised if she doesn’t unionize the entire class come the winter. I may be facing a mutiny.” 

Chuckles tipped his head back and laughed loudly at that. “Well, be sure to comm me when that happens. I’ll stand with you against her uprising.” Leaning forward, he whispered conspiratorially. “I’m not saying bribery should be your first tactic, but a bag of fried crispy snacks will get you a long way.” 

“Noted. You’ll be my first consult should such an uprising occur.” Her eyes were sparkling, and there was a purple blush in her cheeks. She had darker blue freckles, Chuckles noticed. They dotted over her cheeks and nose, and one or two larger ones were visible on her neck. She cleared her throat, and his eyes snapped back to meet hers. The purple hue in her cheeks had deepened, and suddenly, his face felt like it was on fire. 

Way to leer at the teacher on the first day. Good job, you kriffing nerfherder. 

He pushed himself to his feet hurriedly. 

“Well, I suppose we should get going. I appreciate you helping them along on their first day.”

“Of course,” she replied, standing quickly as well. “There is one other thing.”

“Oh?”

“Yes, Nita did tear a hole in the knee of her leggings today while climbing on a rock. She skinned her knee slightly, but a little bacta should do the trick. We bandaged it the best we could here.” She stepped forward hesitantly, and it was then that he noticed a piece of flimsi in her hands. She held it out to him. “I know new clothes are expensive, and seeing as you’re just getting settled, I imagine credits may be a little tight. If you want, I know how to mend clothing. I’d be more than happy to patch up her knee.” She tapped the flimsi. “This is my comm frequency if… if you’d like that.” 

Chuckles was fairly certain his face was going to melt off of his skull. His stomach was churning and a tingle ran up his spine. When he looked from the scrap of flimsi to Endi, her cheeks were somehow even more purple, and he imagined his entire face had to be glowing with how hot it felt. 

“Th-thanks,” he stuttered. “I just might.” 

“Alright then.” 

They stood awkwardly for another moment before Chuckles carefully folded the flimsi and stuck it into his pocket. “See you tomorrow?”

“I’ll be here.” 

“Good.” It felt like a silly thing, but his brain felt completely scrambled, and it was the best response he could come up with before he turned sharply on his heel and stepped outside. 

That was not how I expected this day to end. 

Nita was twirling in circles, kicking up dust as her hair ribbons fluttered around her face. The flower crown was still firmly perched on her head. When she caught sight of Chuckles, she raced towards him. Arni was sitting on the steps, still sketching. 

“The princess of the Starlight would like a piggyback ride home,” Nita stated, her spine erect as she attempted to address him as regally as she could. 

“Nita, he’s sore. I don’t think-” Arni started, but Chuckles put a hand on their shoulder. 

“I can do it. If you carry this,” he said, handing off his lunch satchel. Arni took it, looking on nervously as Chuckles sat down on the steps, patting his shoulders. 

“Your chariot awaits, my lady.” 

Nita squealed with delight, racing up the steps and wrapping her arms around Chuck’s neck. He tucked his arms under her knees and stood, teetering for a second before regaining his balance. Arni looked on with concern, but Chuckles tossed them a reassuring wink. 

It was a good day. I may not be able to walk tomorrow, and they might not like school as much, but I’m counting today as a victory. 

“Faster, Chuckles!” Nita demanded. 

Huffing a laugh, Chuckles whinnied like a fathier as he broke into a gallop, the blisters on his feet forgotten. Nita shrieked with laughter, and Arni jogged patiently next to them. When Chuck looked over, they were laughing too, their deep guffaw that they seemed to reserve for only their most joyous moments. For the first time since they left Sorgan, it felt as though Chuck’s heart might burst out of his chest with happiness. 

We can make a home here. We can make it ours.

Tag List: @seriowan @partofttheeternalsoul @rosmariner @misogirl828 @ellichonkasaurusrex @zoeykallus @the-sith-in-the-sky-with-diamond @gjrain20-starwars @staycalmandhugaclone @redheadgirl @fordo-kixed-rex @wizardofrozz @ariadnes-red-thread @extrahotpixels @justanothersadperson93 @leftealeaf @meekaielmyerhs99 @kaminocasey @echos-girlfriend @lucyysthings @obihiddlenox @merkitty49 @littlemissmanga @clonecyaree @baba-fett @sleepingsun501 @rexxdjarin @samspenandsword @babygirlrex0504 @ladytano420 @fxlsealarm @runforrestr @rennyboo9 @djarrex @rain-on-kamino @ladykatakuri @arctrooper69 @hidden-behind-the-fourth-wall

[beneathsilverstars]

how about some artist commentary on the I'm Still Here songs?

omg all of them… since you asked for the whole folder i’ll include the completed songs too!

these songs are grouped together bc i was hoping to making an album. they were probably all written between 2015-2017 ish! that era of my life includes: dropping out of college, dating my first partner, getting engaged to them, moving across the country to live with them (and my now-wife and their then-wife who is now both of ours ex), breaking up with the fiance bc they stopped including me in their life at all, and then starting to date my now-wife and our now-ex. it also includes dragon age, overwatch, and the adventure zone fandoms, but that’s not relevant to the songs that’s just how i measure my life.

1. Any Color We Want

this song is completely written, but not recorded, and not my style anymore (plus it’s about my ex) so i probably never will. it’s cute enough for what it is, though, it’s very baby gay’s first relationship. here’s a verse and chorus (ugh formatting this is annoying on mobile, so no line breaks so this post isn’t a thousand screens long)

A white wedding dress / We say “I do” as our mothers cry / A groom dressed in black / The honeymoon will be paradise / I want a white wedding dress / Or at least I’ve been told / It’s what I'll want / When I grow older

I used to be scared / Of the things I thought I’d have to do / Then I found a different path / Then I found you / I feel so safe when I’m with you / I know that i want to be with you / It’ll all be ok if I’m with you / If we get married we can wear any color we want to

the first iteration of the chorus ends with “we can paint our house any color we want to” and the third ends with “we can live our lives any color we want to” which i think is a cute conceit, if very cheesy. i love a chorus that changes!

2. Boredom is complete and recorded. i wrote it during the half a year i spent rotting in bed at my parents’ house after i dropped out of college due to anxiety/depression. i still think the “reveal” of the last verse is fun, and i like the percussion!

3. break up ambivalent

wait wtf is this song doing in here i wrote it in 2022. ok here’s baby’s first aro song. i only wrote two verses, and a chorus i later stole/changed to use in a different song. i still like it i think, i did a better job than usual at not getting too nursery rhyme about the cadence, lol

If you left me, my nights would- / Well I’d probably sleep just fine / With no one stealing blankets / And no cold toes next to mine / But I’d prefer to sleep crowded against you

If you left me, what would I- / Well I’d still have things to do / I have all my own hobbies / And my friends who don’t know you / But I admit I’ve been waiting for a chance to introduce them

You don’t need to be / In love with me / I’ll never fall in love with you / But I like how / I feel right now / And I’d like to see this thing through

4. I Wish You Everything is complete and recorded. it’s also about my first ex, so it annoys me that one of the verses is very specific to their interests, but it’s cute if i ignore that. :|

5. Near You

this one was meant to be more EDM, so the lyrics are just simple/catchy! here’s two of the verses.

I can't say what I wanna say / I can't do what I wanna do / I can't be where I wanna be / I just wanna be, near, you

I can’t say it to your face / I can’t hold you while I do / You’re just way too far away / I just wanna be, near, you

6. We Are Still Here

this one i wrote like the day after trump got elected for the first time, and there is basically nothing interesting or unique about it. ig focusing on it made me feel a little better at the time, so it did its job! you get two lines ONLY

They talk their talk rub in the salt / They say it’s unfortunate but not their fault

[druckkugelschreiber]

Ok, so hungarian nicknames, I thought to mainly compare the ones I saw in your post. I actually logged in to desktop to write this ask cause formatting kept screwing me up on mobile.

Mein(e) Liebe/Liebste - my love/dear - szerelmem/drágám(kedvesem) (drágám is often used, the others aren't foreign but might get you called cheesy, I personally like kedvesem a lot) 'szerelem' (love) is the base word that turns into 'szerelmem' to signify that you're My love. 'drága' (expensive) turns into 'drágám'. 'Kedves' (nice or kind) is the base word that turns into 'kedvesem'.

Mein Schatz - my precious - drágaságom (used more jokingly, especially if one knows of Gollum) drágám is more like an adjective while 'drágaságom' is the noun version and yes hungarian Gollum says this

Mein(e) Spatz(el)/Taube - my sparrow/dove - verebem/galambom (will get you teased if used very publicly but i think it's cute) 'Veréb' turns into 'verebem' and 'galamb' turns into 'galambom'

Mein Herz - my heart - szívem (very common pet name, szívecském too as a very diminutive form, used more jokingly) 'szív' is the base word, turns into 'szívem'. It's written with a long "í" that is pronounced as a long "í" in szív but is pronounced as a short 'i' in szívem (usually, dialects differ everywhere tho)

Schnucki - cute (cutie?) - cuki (aranyos) I'm pretty sure cuki comes from 'cukor' which means sugar. Aranyos is the less slangy way of saying it but it's not used as a pet name (arany = gold, aranyos could mean cute or endearing or golden, though the golden use of aranyos is old fashioned and not really used)

Hasi - bunny - nyuszi(m) (used frequently) 'Nyúl' is the base word that turns into 'nyuszi' or 'nyuszim'. Nyúl isn't used as a pet name, it's always turned into nyuszi first and maybe nyuszim to signify 'my'.

Kätzchen - kitten - cica (cicám) I put this here cause kitten is so prevelant in fic and i have the great fortune that my mom has called me the equivalent ALL my life and still. So whenever I see it now it gives me the most visceral of icks. (:

The rest of the nicknames don't really have a counterpart but i do wanna ask what "Däubsche" means cause google translate doesn't help.

Well, I hope you'll find this interesting, I went and checked google translate and it pronounces the words quite well if you're wanting to know how they sound like!

Thank you for such a thorough list/ explanation! I need to remember to look the pronounciation up because I am very curious!

Also drágaságom makes me think of dragons 😂 and just based on how I pronounced them in my head I really like aranyos. The word is giving me ✨ vibes ✨

Which brings me to some you mentioned I didn’t.

So I left out the literal translation for cute/ sweet would be Süße/Süßer but that‘s only used when you flirt with people as far as I know and not when you’re longer in a relationship.

Kitten I left out on purpose because I’ve never heard anybody call their significant other that though it could get more prevalent with fanfic but idk. Also something that might be used as flirting or teasing.

I think a lot of people use Baby nowadays, especially millennials and under. My mom uses Schatzi/ Schatz a lot which I’ve also heard with younger people.

Okay for Däubschen: there are some German dialects where certain hard sounds like T and P are turned into softer sounds like D and B as well as ch into sch. „Chen“ as an ending or „schen“ in dialect always makes a word mean the cuter (and usually smaller) version of whatever you have.

Taube -> Täubchen (cute version of dove) and in dialect (don’t ask me which dialect lol) it then would be Däubschen which truly sounds atrocious

Hope this made sense I wrote this after waking up from a nap

[bakughosts]

ahhhh! hi hi!

so i found your tumblr because i saw a repost with your tumblr on my dash and briefly thought it was mine when i scrolled past it but was like o? not me! haha. and i hope this isn’t weird lolol! i even considered stayin on anon but i made this blog purposely so i could interact with creators 💌

buuuut anywhooos i’m so glad i stopped and clicked your blog because i just spent my morning reading two of your fics (organic chemistry/i like to call myself wound but i will answer to knife)! and ahhh you write a) so well and b) write bakugou soooo perfectly. you capture his personality/charm/angry side/hidden soft side so amazingly. and the entire squad too! i love how you captured all their interactions together…just so fkin good. 😩🙏🏼✨. (esp loved the scene where the reader/ y/n is stuck in the tonkatsu restaurant and the squad just up and leaves them to talk with bakugou to deal with their tension…and how sero just up goes despite reader bein like eye pleading him to stay. just felt so real and like something my friends would do to me/what i’d do to them 😆 and the movie night dynamics ahhhh! ) i also think you’ve written y/n / the reader to be wonderfully relatable…so even while i’m reading in like YES this me i too would be awkward and overthinking scenarios haha. like you’ve managed to encapsulate a perfect balance of sweet/funny/angst/spicy/swoon-ey/action/character depth in your writing. ok i hope this isn’t too much haha i just really appreciate content creators like yourself sharing your writing with us. 💕🥺 (also i work remotely at home for now so thank goooodness no one could actually see me slackin off to read fics all morning ☺️😆. ) i cannot wait to dig into more of your fics but just wanted to pop in and share my appreciation!

- rin ♡´･ᴗ･`♡ (ok last note i’m on mobile and i swear this ask looks like it’s formatted all strange so have no idea how/why/i cant fix it haha. but ugly format or not i’m sending this (ง'̀-'́)ง)

hi rin!!!!!!!! this is SO NICE OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!! sorry I am answering this a little late 😅 but seriously omg. i am so glad u liked my stuff!!! I also saw your blog name when u sent this and was like omg my twin.... haha we are two people with exquisite taste in urls

ty again so much for leaving such a kind long ask omg I like teared up reading it... I never know if I make the reader character like TOO overthink-y so it is nice to hear that it is relatable I am like a chronic overthinker so sometimes I read my stuff back and go like.... would a regular person worry over this extremely small and most likely insignificant thing or is it just. me lmao. ANYWAY omg I am rambling but stop by anytime!!!!!!! thank u for reaching out and for reading my work in the first place!!!!!!!!

[srbachchan]

DAY 4414(i)

Jalsa, Mumbai                       Apr 7/8,  2020                   Tue/Wed 8:14 AM

Alright .. tempers cooled a bit though not entirely .. the Tumblr format has again changed and it is off putting .. but what .. an alternative is not available , so one endures .. 

Please find below the social media links for the film, you can retweet this link on twitter on Facebook and can share this link, however since the duration is longer you will have to upload the video natively on IGTV on Instagram.  Attached is a google drive link of the film from where you can download the video and then upload it on IGTV on Instagram.

Twitter- https://twitter.com/SonyTV/status/1247187306764619779 FB- https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=983267872088458

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/tv/B-pQ_7yFW7n/?igshid=i8f5n3jua5au

Google drive link with mp4 for IGTV

SO ... these be the links that were given to me by Sony PR and when displayed at various platforms gave the enthusiasm that was written about in the previous .. yes .. appreciation came in waves upon waves .. known and unknown alike .. connected and unconnected .. all .. from and without too .. pro and anti .. those in support and those in non support .. they that cooperated , and they that distanced themselves from support and the coop .. we are all mere beings .. the universe fills itself with so many .. many of difference and different kind .. when the grains on each leaf .. when the microscopic elements .. of virus shape size and disposition exist in natures creation .. what are humans .. ?

Blessed be all .. they all contributed .. contributed in applause and in reject .. reject is most important .. gives fight a chance .. without it fight would be an imbecile .. unarmed, weak and without prepare .. unpreparedness is a curse .. prepare .. keep ready for use .. it comes in use , anytime without warning .. so eń gardè  .. or whatever the correct French is  .. French , yes the beauty of its rendition .. the sweetest in the world .. next valued be Bengali , the tongue .. the delicacy of its existence, its presence in the many wondrous elements .. 

BUT .. I stray .. 

Yes the completion of the ‘film’ was a task .. a gentle idea shared by Prasoon Pandey, Director of Ad., films and with whom I had worked several times .. with him and his elder Piyush Pandey, head of that Ad., conglomerate O&M .. and when it came across to me , the thought of its extension in the format seen finally gave incentive to bring in greater value to it .. so I thought, I worked , I reacted, I shared , I got approval and then went to each of those stratospheric stars and celebrities with the idea .. calling them several times .. connecting them all .. all over the World all over the places they lived .. and then their agree .. the designing of the Demo by Prasoon .. the passing it on to the respective and in explanation , each one , each location .. convincing them .. and then the wait for their portion to arrive and putting it together .. the creatives all being followed up by the team .. each little protocol to be put in place .. diplomatically .. politically .. egoistically .. to be CORRECT and accepted .. yes .. all .. all done in this wonder world of internet wires and the mobility of the hand phone .. the modern day invention par excellence .. oh , done and covered with suitable time difference delays .. some within the time zone some not .. some really really far away .. but their love and support impeccable .. 

That done the negotiate with what to be done with it .. in times of trial it does not bode well to be seen in frivolous acts .. so consider who we are , how we are , and what we are .. and who they that make us who we are .. the workers and their plight in this locked out premise .. without a daily earning , without their normal existence , without the essentials .. 

We must give back to them .. so .. worked on sponsors TV outlets , personal contribution and arrived successfully .. TV shall be Sony .. sponsor shall be Kalyan Jewellers .. and the distribution shall be pan India , pan workers of all the Industries of film in the nation .. NSEW .. and which is why NSEW in the representation of the artists .. Hindi, Marathi, Malayalam, Kannad, Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Punjabi .. pan India in representation .. pan India in language .. pan India in the work force .. just a pan India film .. a film titled ‘FAMILY’ .. for we are one and we are one family .. this film Industry of the country .. !!

NOW .. then .. as the tech readiness readies itself .. the promotion .. 

Promotion promotion .. back to the net and the con calls with concerned and with the GANG GANG .. gang gang .. the title given by the girls in house .. Navya Naveli and Shweta .. who find it amusing our confabulations on these con calls, hence an amusing title .. its accepted .. SO .. yes promo .. the written from the obvious sources ‘reeks of garlic from every pore’  .. it stinks .. and then a suggestion ans endeavour to do it by the self .. done and agreed upon after con calls and net issues with the masters .. no disrespect .. but yaa , it not happening people .. ok .. so do it yourself , fine .. sitting and designing it in the mind and WHAM ! .. got it .. now to shoot it in these conditions .. so Abhishek come on assist me with the camera work .. out in the back yard .. a quick shoot .. and a quick forwarding in sense first to all the concerned and then approval of it to be given final tech touches .. done .. 

So then put it out .. time running ot .. get the tech right .. net mobile and every other communication in use .. and done and out on the required platforms ..

BUT .. within all this, setting up the personal shoot of the film continues with able help again from the children .. re takes and re shoots .. and delivered to the tech team .. they work .. the ideas continue to improve or adjust or remove .. some have come in time others delayed , time running out again the 9Pm slot has been advertised .. 

FINALLY .. on air .. 

BUT .. and there are so many buts .. other works continue .. domestic pre cautionary checks on sanitation and sanitising .. staff reduced , staff homed within, staff looked after in excess .. 

.. and also the monitoring of the personal feeding that continues in various parts of the city .. 2000 packets of food each day .. lunch and dinner .. for the poor and needy .. and the bigger 3000 bags of essentials delivered to take care of 3000 families provisions for a month .. average of 4 per family works to the reach of approx 14,000 .. 

Working then for the FAMILY out reach and devising methodology of the distribution to the mentioned workers .. the data access with the Head of the Employees Nation wide Association .. retailer sought and fixed .. gift coupons and cash to be given out to the approx 100,000 of them, with the sponsor and personal fund collected .. to last them for month .. 

THEN .. back to the desk .. there is urgent need from the Capital on a campaign design and completion within urgent needs .. lat night getting that done .. 

AND .. also in simultaneous work on the poem of hope from Babu ji .. rendering it here .. con calls with recordist there .. music directors in another there .. they be two in respective homes and no studio set ups .. but the ingenious working force and minds successful .. it is after 72 attempts that it looks like going on platforms .. perhaps to day .. perhaps .. apprehensive for that too .. how what where and when .. ahhhh .. just let it be say the girls in the house .. the main girl stuck away from home in Delhi .. attending Parliament when the shut happened .. so she remain where she is .. and Face Time WhatsApp .. ZINDABAD !!

OH dear forgot .. another request for the voice rendition on the conditions we are in .. at it till 4 am .. and now from 6  .. rendered in rough waiting approval .. damn the files have not gone through .. WeTransfer warns .. damnnn .. 

Ok shall try resize and getting the email ID correct .. .. ahhahahahhhgggrr ..

this post is sounding like a brain damaged ‘haemoglobin of the country of the system’ devoured and entirely consumed by the chemical ChSo2 .. sorry that be a College insensitive linguaexpletiva .. !!!! Pardoń .. is the French right .. eh .. who cares .. 

BUT .. I tell you .. in all this mesmerising work schedule .. the imagery of Babuji his words his thoughts his books his voice keep me company in excess .. they bring the water in the eyes .. 

I must leave now .. cannot allow it to drip on the post pages ..

Amitabh Bachchan

[oldtypenewtype]

7 years ago I had this article professionally translated. 1986 is considered to be one of if not THE defining years of the medium. In this article Newtype intervies 21 anime industry leaders to discuss what’s wrong with the industry, ways it can be fixed or just their gripes with with it all. A true snapshot of some of our anime heroes while they were younger.

*reposting article altogether in one post.*

アニメの予言者21人

21 Prophets of Anime アニメ大予言'86 Grand prophecy of Anime ‘86 今、アニメ界に求められているのは、こんな企画だ！私はこんな企画を出す！1986年のアニメ界をリードする21人が業界の問題点と自らの解決策を語る。これを読めばアニメの未来が見える。 This is the project needed by Anime world now! I propose this project! 21 leading personnel in Anime world in 1986 talk about problems in the industry and their solutions. You can see the future of Anime by reading this.

Page 46 & 47

(Article Title)

1985 was a flat year in the animation world.  Let’s ask the hit makers who hit the home runs on how to put an end to this situation.

HAYAO MIYAZAKI (writer and director of “Laputa: Castle in the Sky”)

(Blurb)

What are the animated works that the young ones, the ten year olds to fifteen year olds want to watch? Doors will surely open if you keep them in mind.

It’s unthinkable that new hope can come out of TV when one episode from a TV series needs 3500 cells to be drawn. On the other hand, in movie theaters as well, there are no films that will mobilize moviegoers other than anime fans. I think that filmmakers have forgotten the basics of selling movies.  Collaboration films intended for overseas markets are all the rage,  and even though I want the fans who are in Japan to see these films, they can’t and all I’m left with is frustration.  Only deterioration can come out of this situation.  Actually, there isn’t even one anime today that is aimed at older kids in elementary school to kids in middle-school - the very kids who should be watching anime.  (The anime available now) is aimed at younger kids at elementary school and then jumps straight into anime for college kid anime maniacs. It’s a tough time for fifteen year olds who are put aside by society.  Twelve year olds to fifteen year olds are the kids who need the most comfort and yet the situation now is that they get their comfort from handheld video games.  Those who produce animation are losing sight of their targeted audience.  The remaining anime fans are making anime that they want to watch, and this is a symptom (of the present situation) that is beyond redemption. This is why video animation is still backward in terms of its production, and only its format is new.

If one has an earnest approach, children will definitely react.  This is a real example - in a run-down middle school, in his morning greeting, a new principal said, “I don’t determine a person’s value by his or her grades or appearance”.  Miraculously, all misbehavior was gone from that day’s afternoon onwards.  What children want has always had just one theme - an adventure that saves the mind and heart.

(Caption for illustration at the top of the page)

The hero “Pazu” and heroine “Sheeta” from “Laputa: Castle in the Sky”.  Mr. Miyasaki comments that “For a young lad, living at all times in itself is an adventure.  The reason why Japanese adventure novels are boring is that the hero (in these novels) makes a living out of going on an adventure.”

SUGII GISABURO (executive director of “Touch”)

(Blurb)

What people want nowadays can’t be found in data.  What is the secret of the hits “Night on the Galactic Railroad” and “Touch”?

Honestly speaking, if anything, I genuinely make animation to match my desires, not thinking that today’s animation is trending towards this way, or future animation should be this way.  In other words, I think a great deal about my daily life, figuring out what is lacking and coming up with desires felt by everyone else.  I just happen to be a person who creates, so I vent out those accumulated desires and discontent and let them combust in my work.  

My works are quite heavy in terms of cycle and tempo, whether it be “Night on the Galactic Railroad” or “Touch”.  I sometimes think if this kind of heaviness is ok or not.  But that is because I have a desire for this heaviness, and also because I have this easy pleasure within me.  Instead of work that is borne out of being hung up just on data, I think work that is borne out of my inner natural desires is more acceptable to people.  In the meantime, “Touch” will be shown as an hour and a half movie in the spring so please look forward it.

ISAO TAKAHATA (producer of “Laputa”)

(Blurb)

Movies that make the mind and body come alive are what’s important.  As for me, I am trying my hand at my first live action film.  I am shooting a documentary.

I think nowadays, the thing that a lot of people working in anime has forgotten is the excitement they felt watching adventure movies when they were kids, the kind of excitement that even your body moved spontaneously.  In that sense, I think that works such as Hayao Miyazaki’s films should be brought out to the rest of the world and after (producing his) “Nausicaa”, I am still producing.  When kids’ minds are liberated, there’s no reason to think that they won’t spontaneously move.  In this day and age dominated by computer games, a lot of kids’ play involve just using the brain and nerves so I’d like them to experience things that energizes the blood and makes the body dance. The difficulty is, I think it’s a difficult time now to have a situation in place wherein you let them experience adventure.  If you can’t make people believe in the world portrayed onscreen, you can’t pull viewers into the adventure onscreen.

It’s not that I’m not doing my real job as a producer.  I am now producing a live action documentary movie set in Yanagawa in Kyushu.  It is about how our Japanese ancestors developed towns which utilized waterways.  There is also a part in the movie that has graphic illustrations using anime.  It’s less than 2 hours and is slated to be shown after the summer.

MAMORU OSHII (scriptwriter and director of “Angel’s Egg”)

(Blurb)

This is a warning!! Please reduce the number of collaboration animes before Japanese animation is annihilated.

If I’m going to be severe about it, I’d say that I want all collaboration animes gone.

Those who work in big studios and places with systems in place may not feel a sense of crisis yet.  But in the case of freelance animators like us who work together and put together a workplace and disperse once our anime is done, a part of our actual work is outsourced.   Recently however, the small video studios and finishing studios that we outsource to are loaded with collaboration work.  Japanese animes can’t compete with collaboration animes in terms of profit so when that happens, we just have to rely on the goodwill of the studio bosses, or make them feel the same way we do with regards to the contents of our work, or by chance see an opening and aim for that, or appease them or plead with them.  We can’t work in just that kind of a situation.  That’s why it’s almost impossible to make highly compact and solid animes in Japan now.  Even without going that far, it’s almost impossible to make even decent animes in the country today.  In fact, anime TV series are almost all in shambles, and I can’t even be optimistic about the video quality of the anime we have now.  In this kind of situation, I can’t help but seriously think if next year, our ideas can be made into anime.

(Caption for illustration at the left side of the page)

A girl from Mamoru Oshii’s original video anime “Angel’s Egg” (drawn by Seikou Nakura).  Mr. Oshii revealed that he is having a hard time because there aren’t enough animators to make even just one anime video.

YOSHIKAZU YASUHIKO (director and screen director of “Arion”)

(Blurb)

I haven’t decided yet on what I will make after “Arion”.  I will not take part in the new Gundam series.

I am very busy now with screen work for the anime “Arion” which will be shown in theaters on March 8th.  But as far as I’m concerned, I’m conscious  of the fact that this is my anime for 1985.  Therefore, I haven’t decided yet on what my anime will be for 1986.  I feel like I want to take a break for a year.

“Arion” is quite restrained for an anime to be shown in movie theaters.  I’m happy that this movie is being touted as “the” main animation movie this spring but conversely, it’s a shame that there aren’t a lot of big anime movies for theaters.  It’s already been decided that “Arion” is going to be shown in top-class movie theaters throughout Japan.  It just shows how much anime has received recognition.  I’d like to wait for animes that will pick up on this trend.

With regards to anime TV series, I was in charge of character design for “Z Gundam” this past year but I’ve decided not to be involved at all in the sequel’s new series.  I think it’s better to relegate “Gundam” to the younger animators, starting with Hiroyuki Kitazume, who have grown so much in their craft.  Now I sincerely think, if only someone as good as Kitazume were around eight years ago to help with “Gundam”, I would’ve been saved…

(Caption for illustration at the bottom of the page)

The heroine “Lesfina” from “Arion”, which was produced, character designed and screen directed by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko.  This is the drawing touched-up by Mr. Yasuhiko.  As we have discussed in a series of character designers in last month’s issue, he breathes life into his anime characters, showing genius capabilities.

(Box at the lower left side of the page)

If there were animes like this I’d watch it!

MASAMI YUUKI (manga artist)

As a rule, the three things I’d like to see are: “something that isn’t originally from manga”; “robot animation that isn’t dark”; and “in one year, a collaborative anime by Osamu Dezaki and Akio Sugino for release in Japan”.  I can watch TV anime while casually lying around but I’d like anime that I wouldn’t be able to take my eyes off of the screen, something that is both easy to watch and amusing.  And as written in other magazines before, I’d like to see Mr. Hayao Miyazaki’s version of “Atragon”! (Translator’s note: “Undersea Warship” in Japan)

YUUKI KUDOU (actress and singer)

I’d definitely watch anime that’s fun to watch, anime that will make me happy.  At any rate, I’d like a hero on the side of justice who will beat the hell out of the bad guys and put them in a bind.

RYOKO YAMAGISHI (manga artist)

If there were an anime like Disney’s “Fantasia”, I’d watch it!

Pages 48 & 49

(Article Title)

Major producers from each of the anime/production companies talk about their hits for 1986 and foresee what their companies will be producing

KENJI YOKOYAMA (Toei Animation Co.)

(Blurb)

The new hit TV show Gegege no Kitaro from the fall of 1985 which received top ratings reflects modern times.

This is what I’ve been thinking with the third conversion of Gegege no Kitaro into animation.  One is the change in children’s thinking with regards to ghosts/monsters.  Of course “Ghostbusters” and “E.T.” have influenced this change, and now kids consider ghosts almost as pets.  So in this way I think that if you match the present mood and go in the direction of lighter anime, you’ll be able to create different things from before.  Children’s lives are too managed now, so they’d want an outlet to vent too. And in a society that has too many things and where, if you have the money, you can buy anything, things like the Toyoda Company fraud scandal and shady investment journals can also be construed as monstrosities. This anime has this overall theme: In the ideal world of Kitaro, monsters, people, animals, grass and trees should all co-exist so I thought I’d have various new approaches within the anime.

As a new endeavor, our company is going into video anime.  It’s called “Amon Saga” and we’re not just going to sell it in video format, (I’m also hoping) we can show it in any movie theater even for just one week otherwise it’ll just be too sad.   Especially with regards to original works with names that aren’t well known, I think it’s dangerous to rely on just one production studio. After “Konpora Kid” ends, beginning February, we’re planning on animating “Kinka”, a serialized manga in the weekly magazine Shonen Jump.

(Caption for illustration on the left side of the page)

A figure from the very popular “Kitaro”.  They can’t keep up with the demand for a ghost eraser that they’ve produced and now it is a hit product.  It’s also been decided that there will be new movie releases for this anime in the New Year and in the spring.

EIJI YAMAURA (Nihon Sunrise Co.)

(Blurb)

Find common ground with your viewers and defeat this lethargic mood!

Sunrise has now expanded into six studios and at any given point in time, we plan to work simultaneously on two to three anime TV series, video anime, anime for movie theaters and collaboration anime.  Overall, anime today is manga magazine-driven, so our question is how far can we go in staying on an original anime track. Robot animes have vastly decreased in number, so conversely, I think this is a chance for us to come out with epoch-making anime.  I’d like to make anime that will allow us to seriously converse with our child viewers.

TOSHIMITSU SUZUKI (Artmic Co.)

(Blurb)

Making anime that will be understood by the whole world!  The robot anime boom is shifting from transformation-type robots to robots that merge into one.

Speaking of Japanese products in the international market today, mechanical products come to mind.  This is also true in the animation world since Japanese robot animes are extremely in vogue.  Especially in the American market, they already have transformation-type robot animes, so animes that have robots that merge into one are new to them.  We’ve already exported “Beast King GoLion”, following that, (we’re going to export) “Dancouga Super Beast Machine God”.

We at Artmic plan to make animation that can be exported to foreign markets and we also are also keeping in mind to configure these anime with universal values.  The video anime “Gall Force” is the first step in that direction.

NOBUO INADA (Tokyo Movie Shinsha Co.)

(Blurb)

Our track remains the same - making collaboration animes for foreign countries but we also have new anime.

I can’t necessarily say that the present state of anime is good.  But the passion for anime during the anime boom of “Gundam” and the like was an anomaly so I feel that the state of anime now is the real one.

As you may know, not only do we make anime for Japan but we also produce anime for foreign countries.  It’s a difficult situation for us now to concentrate on anime just for Japan because of production costs.  It can be said that Japanese anime should be improved from the very basic level.

In 1986, we plan to have “Little Nemo” and in the fall, an anime for movie theater release by the duo Desaki and Sugino.  At any rate, we’re doing our best.

JUNZOU NAKAJIMA (Nihon Animation Co.)

(Blurb)

We’re aiming for improving the quality of our masterpieces and we’re also trying our hand at new anime!

As you may know, our company has mainly been making masterpiece animes for more than fifteen years but I think we’ve made a habit of making similar anime.  But we’ve been able to improve on our animes’ degree of perfection precisely because of the buildup of our experience in animation.  We’re also working hard on our technology, and on the authenticity of our masterpieces.  At any rate, we’re trying to make anime that is still interesting to watch even after five or six years have passed.  Next year, we plan on making “Pollyanna” after “A Little Princess Sara” ends, and a new SF series called “Space Sagittarius”.  We’re also going to have one TV special around May.

HIROMICHI MOGAKI (Tsuchida Production Co.)

(Blurb)

Just like what we did in “Tsubasa” and “Kimengumi”, we’re adding our original flavor to animation adapted from manga!

Even with regards to animating manga, the time when you aren’t creative when adapting something is over - just like our approach to our anime “High School! Kimen”.  In manga, the fun is enclosed in a comic cell.  Differing from that, we were able to bring out fun that moves freely (in the anime format).  (Our decision to) put two episodes in one anime has also been well-received.  We are also planning to have an anime TV series next year but all will depend on how long “Captain Tsubasa” will last.  Captain Tsubasa’s storyline is that the finals will end in March, and the European leg will begin.  This will catch up with the manga version’s storyline so I’m thinking of making a new one or taking a temporary break.

MASAYASU SAGISU (Eiken Co., Ltd.)

(Blurb)

Please watch the cooking scenes in the manga  “Oishinbo” animated in a live-action format.

The anime “Sazae-san” is going to be seventeen years old.  I think that the things that last for a long time are not manga for boys or manga for girls but manga for adults such as “Sazae-san” that has a family theme.  But there aren’t many of this kind of anime today.

There has been a lot of SF space anime but nowadays it’s quite possible for kids to go to space someday.  But the world of “Sazae-san” where the grandma, the grandpa, the old maid and the troubles they encounter while living together is farther than space in today’s world of nuclear families.  Conversely, this makes Sazae-san’s storyline fresh.

For next year’s anime, we are developing our plans to animate Mr. Shinji Wada’s manga “Pigmalio”.  We’d also like to do SF action animes, and a totally new genre -  animating Big Comic Spirit’s serialized manga “Oishinbo”.  Following a ten-year cycle, monster animes might come out next year but we’d like to try out new genres.

HIROSHI KATO (Ashi Production Co.)

We are developing original videos for the anime “Dancouga”

Our company has concentrated mainly on original anime and we are continuing with this direction in 1986 and beyond.  Even though our animes are popular, I don’t know why we are edited a lot.  Even “Dancouga” which originally had fifty-two episodes was reduced to thirty-eight and the final story was changed.  We are going to sell a one and a half hour video in March and we’d like to include the real final story in it.  Seventy percent of animators in Japan today are working on collaboration anime. The pay (for collaboration anime) is more than double, so we have to do something about it.  

TOSHIHIRO NAGAO (Kaname Production Co.)

I’d like to see different kinds of SF anime.  “Windaria (Once Upon a Time)” is the first step in that direction.

Generally speaking, I’d like to go with polar opposites - simplistic anime that has funny gags and anime that explores heavy themes.  I think our company would like to take a short break after “Windaria” ends and then we’re going to do a lighter anime.  We’ve also talked little by little about producing an anime TV series, but can we really do it with the present situation?  Companies we outsource to are doing a lot of collaboration anime and we don’t have the confidence that we will win the price war and if we dabble in (anime TV series) incorrectly, it will be a death blow.  With this situation, it seems like we will be concentrating on video anime for now.  With regards to the direction of our anime, we’d like to consider doing SF anime with our own touch and foray into different parts, for example, making modern anime like “Radio City Fantasy (Machikado no Marchen)” that merges footage and music.

(Caption for illustration on the left side)

“Mujigen Hunter Fandora”, one of the original video anime from Kaname Production Co..It is said that the second part will be released in March.

YUUJI NUNOKAWA (Studio Pierrot)

(Blurb)

“Magical Emi, the Magic Star” will end in February.  We’re working on the anime that will follow this.

Ever since our “Dallos” anime, anime in the video anime genre have increased, and it’s becoming more and more difficult to foresee what’s ahead.  But I feel our viewer base will return to children after the continuous increase in anime fans.

In our animes’ genres, it seems that we foray into unprincipled things but through trial and error, we are at that stage where we are aiming for our own style.  In 1986, we plan to stop producing transformation-style anime after “Emi” and we are now working on an anime with a witch theme, with a nod to our very first anime.  We have also decided that we will make a sequel to “Rumic World”.

(Box at the lower left side of the page)

If there were animes like this I’d watch it!

MIKI TORI (manga artist)

And yet there are only a few animes wherein you can feel each anime’s distinct character.  I understand that anime is a group effort, but like manga, the director’s tastes dominate.   If the time comes when the writer can say “that is good but this is also good”, I think that anime will become more vibrant.

AKIO YOSHIDA (manga artist)

If I’m going to watch, I might change the channel if they’d revive anime like the long adventure animes of Toei.  It would feel just like watching the movie “Mothra”.

YUKI SAITO (actress and singer)

I was in a manga research group when I was in high school so all I watched were anime from Sunrise.  I like “Gundam” and “Ideon”.  If there were anime in that vein, I think I’d be obsessed again.

Pages 50 & 51

(Title)

A Glance at the Anime World: The Hit men and their Predictions

SHOJI KAWAMORI

(Blurb)

It’s important to have interesting anime that will be universally accepted!

I haven’t really watched TV anime these past two years.  Once you get rid of a habit, it’s not good.  Once you distance yourself from anime, you won’t even be able tell which anime is good and which is bad.  It’s scary to think that I’ve been watching anime by force of habit.

I also haven’t watched that many video animes to be fussy about it but I feel that video animes have become closer in form to manga.   I can’t say though that it’s already at the serialized manga level, but it’s just a matter of time.  But if you’re going to make video anime and you don’t make it differently from TV anime, it will be a waste.  Probably change the design a bit…just like what Mr. Oshii is doing.  Once your attempts go beyond the realm of attempting things and once you’ve achieved something basic, I think we’d probably be able to see the direction of video anime for the first time.  If I were to create video anime, I’d like to make a short sixty minute one, something that is highly concentrated and can’t be fully “digested” in a TV anime format.  Sixty minutes is too short for a movie and too long for TV, and I think it is a length that is untapped and put aside.

Compared to video, TV’s strong point is that you can make serialized anime on TV.  Nicely put, TV is a medium wherein if you don’t have “ordinariness” (badly put, “mass appeal”) you won’t succeed so in this sense TV is a more demanding form of media than video.  I also don’t like the trend wherein anime that don’t appeal to the masses are turned into video anime.  I think that video anime should also have universal appeal.

For 1986, if there are proposals that come my way, I’ll do them.  I still don’t know exactly what I’m going to do.

TOMOKO KONPARU

(Blurb)

With regards to video anime, I have “The Super Girl” and I’d like to try my hand at a new kind of animal anime.

Anime is said to be on a low note right now but I think that the number of anime being produced now is just right because there was a time when the anime that was being produced went over the production capabilities of those in the anime world.  I even think that the number should be reduced by just a little bit more, but only if the quality is improved.  It seems that 30 animes will be released in 1986, but I think that in terms of quality, (those that aren’t good) will be culled.

I don’t have any children yet but as a housewife I don’t think that anime has a bad influence on children.  Since I was little, I myself grew up watching anime.  Even now, from the standpoint of someone making anime, I don’t want to forget about the children.  But on the other hand, I also think that mothers who just park their kids in front of the TV to watch anime isn’t good either.

The anime following “Hai Step Jun” will be “Maple Town”, an animal anime but I don’t want it to be anime with just “good” characters in it.  I want to try making anime for young girls, which will be a new thing for me.

ICHIRO ITANO

(Blurb)

There must be anime that only young animators can do!

I think that mass media has a very strong influence on children.  I want people to be more conscious of that.  I feel that anime that is being made today just to make money is overly increasing - animators don’t question things, or assert themselves.  An extreme example is the Lolita complex boom of late.  If a person is being shown something like (a Lolita anime) from way back (from childhood), that person’s imagination takes precedence instead of the ability to adapt to another human being, and stress builds up as a result.  I think we should oppose this current reality, and as for myself, I plan to try different things.  I wonder what I’d be able to do before I turn thirty-five, and I also think that you can learn from failure.

MITSURU KANEKO (MK Productions)

(Blurb)

The computer is absolutely infiltrating the anime world.

It’s possible to think that in the future, the possibilities of computer graphics will first be used in the industrial fields.   For example, the depth maps of the Japan Coast Guard just have numbers on them now but if you input these numbers into a computer, you’ll be able to see valleys (under the sea) that continue for miles as video images.  And if this (technology) presses forward, for example, there is an (American) masterpiece special effects movie called “Fantastic Voyage” wherein they (physically) made the sets and then shot the film but in the future, you can make the movie set by inputting data in a computer.

Speaking of another side (of this technology), take the example of video images shown on large screens that have been demonstrated at an expo.  Just like what was shown in the expo, video images and 3D images shown on dome-like screens can only be made using a computer.

In this way, the spotlight is now aimed at anime as a means to (showcase technology).  Animation’s possibilities will also become limitless as it will need to respond to the diversification of people’s demands.

(Caption for illustration on the right side of the page)

This is Cindy, a young girl from a biker gang in the anime “Megazone 23 Part 2”.  Mr. Yasuomi Umetsu’s character design is original, as personified in this drawing.  This anime has a different kind of appeal compared to Part 1.

KEISUKE FUJIKAWA (scriptwriter of the anime “Once Upon a Time” or “Legend of Fabulous Battle Windaria”)

I researched and compared the recent trends, the trend in fans’ consciousness about anime and anime programs and from around last year, it seems like the age of wanting “salvation” has come.  I think that in so many ways, we are being stifled and we are seeking breakthroughs.  I think that how anime as a medium is going to lift this issue up is going to be important.   Even “Once Upon a Time”, which we will show in 1986, takes up issues of the present times.  I’m putting emphasis on what I will say to the youth of today through SF that has stories of people in it instead of just hardcore SF.  For this year and the next, I’d like to dig into aspects of the youth in different ways.  I’d like to make anime that makes viewers think that there is something out there that matches their present selves perfectly.

(Caption for illustration on the left side of the page)

This is Anasu, the heroine of “Windaria”.  Illustrated by Ms. Mutsumi Inomata, this character personifies the pure themes of Mr. Fujikawa’s anime.

YOSHINOBU NISHIZAKI (producer)

(Blurb)

I’d like to make a video anime that will be a preview of a movie theater anime

With regards to “Odin: Photon Sailor Starlight”, I didn’t make excuses and I haven’t commented on it but there are clear reasons why that movie ended in failure.  That anime was originally a one-hour program, twelve episode TV anime - in other words, it was an anime made to be aired for twelve hours.  I think there was a big mistake in the producers’ thinking that they could digest this into a two and a half hour movie.

I used to say that after 1955, there wouldn’t be a hit anime made for movie theaters.   The same thing is about to happen in the video anime world.  If the overproduction of low-quality anime continues, there will definitely be a backlash.  It seems that the most basic idea during planning anime has been forgotten.  And this basic idea is this: things expressed through anime must rouse people’s imaginations.

We’re planning on releasing an anime for movie theaters on July 9, 1986 based on “Desler”*.  But before that we’re planning on selling a promotion video about the movie in April.  In making this video, budgetary issues, which have always been a concern in video animes, have been set aside so I’m planning on making it in the same high-quality as the movie.  I’m also thinking of releasing a trailer of the movie at the same time.

*Translator’s note: Desler is a character in the anime “Space Battleship Yamato”.

(Box at the lower left side of the page)

If there were animes like this I’d watch them!

FUJIHIKO HOSONO (manga artist)

I like the works of Mr. Hayao Miyazaki.  I heard that he said that he wanted to make an anime about the Period of Warring States (in Japanese history) so if that anime is made, I’d definitely want to watch it.  Personally, I’d also like Mr. Miyazaki to make ninja anime.  With regards to other animators, I like Mr. Mamoru Oshii, the one who made “Beautiful Dreamer.

SHOJOTAI (a singer/actress trio)

Reiko: Among animated characters, I like Peter Rabbit.  I’d like Peter to guide me into a dreamy nature scene.

Miho: I really like Phillips. I’d like to plunge into a world adventure with a kitty cat.

Tomo: More than anything, I like Snoopy.  I’d watch any number of animes with Snoopy in it.  I’d like to watch happy animes.

[ladymacbeths]

hey guys!! so i just hit 1k and i have 2 say.... thank y’all so much this is wild omg......... thank you for supporting my screaming and for just. being here. so as a celebration i decided to do themed blogrates and name aesthetics!!

to join, you have to:

mbf this marecal stan

reblog this post

send me a 🥀 for a regular blograte, 🌩 for a harry potter themed blograte, 👑 for a red queen blograte, ☀ for a grishaverse blograte, or ✨ + your name for a written name aesthetic!!

you can send more than one at a time!!

check out my net maybe?

if you don’t wanna see this on your dash blacklist #margs celebrates 1k

and that’s all!! tysm again and hope y’all have a wonderful day!! the blograte formats are under the cut.

blograte

url: keyword smash/could be better/n i c e/omg how…/TIBERIAS CALORE

icon: what/eh its ok/im feeling it/imam steal it/MARE BARROW

mobile theme: honey no…/kinda cool/a whole ass vibe/nut/HARRY POTTER

desktop theme: zero flavor/nice I guess/seccsie/leak code/JUDE DUARTE

posts: not my type/could be better/u have TASTE/chef’s kiss/PERCY JACKSON

creations: need a glo up/getting there/u made Several Points/teach me your ways/NINA ZENIK

overall: pass/cute but not my type/I’m into it/quality. fucking. content./MAVEN CALORE

follow: nah fam/now I am!!/of course/you’re never getting rid of me

harry potter

House: Gryffindor/slytherin/ravenclaw/hufflepuff

School: Hogwarts/durmstrang/beauxbatons/ilvermorny/castelobruxo/mahoutokoro/uagadou/koldovstoretz

Blood: pureblood/halfblood/muggle

Wand: phoenix feather/unicorn string/dragon heartstring/thestral hair

Job: auror/professor/journalist/potion master/cursebreaker/healer/quidditch player/legislator

Patronus: otter/swan/horse/raven/thestral/dog/butterfly/stag/runespoor/dragon/hippogriff/rabbit/frog/wolf/rat

Era: founders/marauders/lightning/next gen

Character: harry/ron/hermione/draco/luna/neville/ginny/pansy/cho/cedric

red queen

Blood: silver/red/newblood

Country: norta/lakelands/piedmont/Montfort

House: calore/samos/merandus/iral/jacos/lerolan/skonos/viper/haven/arven

Ability: burner/healer/electricon/nymph/telky/gravitron/whisper/silencer/magnetron/greenwarden/strongarm/bomber

Alliance: royal/rebel/citizen

Character: mare/cal/maven/Farley/Evangeline/kilorn/iris

 grishaverse

Country: ravka/fjerda/shu han/kerch/novyi zem

Grisha order: corporalnik/materialnik/etheralnik

Gang: dregs/razorgulls/dime lions/black tips

Series: grisha trilogy/six of crows/nikolai duology

Character: alina/nikolai/the darkling/zoya/genya/kaz/inej/jesper/nina/Matthias/wylan/kuwei

[alpha-imagines]

Opening Up- Billy Hargrove

A/N: It’s been a while but with season 3 out my Billy inspo has been replenished! As always send in requests because this time they might actually get written haha (also I’m on mobile so excuse the poor formatting!)

“What are you waiting for?” You asked, eyes flicking away from the mirror in the sun visor and across to Billy in the drivers side “I have to be back before by mom wakes up”

“Yeah yeah I know” He replied with a sigh, turning the key in the ignition before reversing out of the quarry.

You and Billy had been seeing each other for a few weeks now, nothing more than hooking up. It started at one of Carol’s get togethers and had been going on ever since. It was summer so you didn’t have to worry about everyone in the school finding out, you had made Billy promise he wouldn’t mention it to Tommy because he’d inevitably tell Carol who’d end up telling anyone that would listen.

“Between us ok?” You said as you undid your seatbelt, gathering your bag before opening the car door.

“Got it” He nodded curtly, you seemed to say the same thing every time he dropped you off, as if you never fully believed he was capable of keeping a secret.

Billy was used to this routine by now, he’d pick you up after work, you’d drive somewhere quiet, usually the quarry, sometimes to the lake when it was a particularly hot night. More often than not you’d both end up falling asleep in the back of the Camaro after you were done, you’d wake up and Billy would drop you home. The whole situation was ideal, at least that’s what you thought.

•••

“Look I can’t stay out tonight” You explained throwing your bag into the back of the car as you pulled out the hair tie that had been holding your hair out of your face all day “I told Michelle I’d stay the night at hers”

Billy didn’t dignify your story with an actual response other than a snort of bitter laughter.

“So I mean I’ve only got like 20 minutes” You said with a small laugh, wondering why Billy wasn’t yet driving.

“Billy?” You asked, taking the time to properly look at him since you’d got in the car.

He was just staring out the windscreen, his face seemed blank but you could tell his mind seemed to be racing, you couldn’t tell if he was distracted or pissed off.

“Billy? Everything ok?”

“Fine” He replied abruptly. He was definitely pissed off.

“Ok” You said, voice unsure of whether or not you believed him “should we get going then?”

That seemed to annoy Billy even more as his hands slammed onto the steering wheel, making you recoil back in shock. You knew Billy had a temper but you’d never seen him angry at you.

“Billy?” You asked warily, you weren’t entirely sure what you’d done to anger him

“I’m not in the mood” He growled out lowly

“Ok” Your voice trailed off in reply, “You didn’t need to come pick me up you know” You said with a shy laugh

“God you really don’t get it” Billy laughed, shaking his head as he spoke

“Get what?” You asked, brows furrowing in confusion

“Jesus it doesn’t matter ok” He said, eyes averting away from yours as he started the engine “I’ll drive you to Michelle’s”

Your mind was racing with possibilities of what Billy could have meant. Maybe Billy felt like he owed you something, maybe he’d been trying to tell you he didn’t want to sleep with you anymore, maybe’s were running through your head all night.

“What is up with you?” Michelle asked kicking you lightly with her foot from her position on the other end of the sofa

“Huh?” You asked, mind snapping out of your thoughts to focus on your friend

“You’ve been distracted all night” She said, sitting up and crossing her legs underneath her

“I was just watching the movie” You lied with a shrug, pretending to return your attention to the film

“Yeah?” She asked disbelievingly “Well don’t think I didn’t miss the nice blue Camaro dropping you off” She troll you with a smirk which immediately caught your attention

“I don’t know what you mean” You feigned ignorance

“Yeah well you might think you’re being sneaky but you’re not” She deadpanned

With a little more insurance from Michelle, you told her about Billy and about the conversation you’d had in the car before he dropped you at hers.

“Oh my god” Michelle exclaimed “he totally likes you”

“Are you mad?” You cried with a laugh “I’ve literally never heard anything more ridiculous in my life”

“Why else would he come and pick you up despite not being in the mood?” She began, “and what else could he mean by you not getting it? You’re clearly oblivious”

“And you’re clearly crazy” You snorted, you may not have known what Billy meant but you were sure it wasn’t whatever Michelle thought.

You hadn’t seen Billy all weekend. Michelle’s was the Friday night and you didn’t work Saturday nights so you’d expected to see him at the lake Saturday evening when you went with Tommy, Carol and the others but he was a no show. Sunday night you’d expected to see his car outside Starcourt Mall when you finished but it wasn’t so instead you walked home, wondering what it was you’d done to piss him off so much.

You’d finished earlier on Monday night and this time you’d decided it was your turn to wait for Billy, so you’d walked to the swimming pool and took a seat on the hood of Billy’s Camaro and waited until closing time.

Billy stumbles lazily out from the pool, he looked worn out until he saw you perched on his car and he stopped dead in his tracks.

He shook his head and carried on walking towards his car.

“What’re you doing here?” He asked with a sigh, he was in two minds about seeing you waiting for him, on the one hand he was annoyed because he was supposed to be keeping his distance, to help himself get over you, but on the other hand maybe you showing up meant that you cared too.

“Well you went MIA on me so thought I’d come to you this time” You said with a laugh, sliding off the bonnet and standing in front of him

“This time? So you’re just here for a quickie?” He said, he couldn’t help the anger seeping through his words

“Well I also came to see if you’d calmed down but evidently not” You replied with a frown. You began to walk away from him before stopping in your tracks and turning back to face him.

“What did I do to make you so mad” You asked, back still turned to the boy “the past few days have felt like you hate my guts”

“Well you couldn’t be more wrong” Billy answered, he wasn’t sure whether it was because your back was turned so he wouldn’t be able to see your reaction that was making him brave enough to confess his feelings or just because he was sick and tired of not knowing if you felt the same.

“What do you mean?” You asked, slowly turning to face him

“Are you really going to make me spell it out?” He asked, he was frustrated but he couldn’t help but smirk at your cluelessness

Your dead silence told Billy that he would indeed have to spell it out for you.

“I like you” He said, matter of factly his eyes desperately scanning your face for hints of a reaction

“You what?” You choked out with a small laugh, Michelle had suggested it but you were so adamant that she was wrong you hadn’t anticipated that it could for one second actually be true.

Billy’s face fell, the reason he’d bitten his tongue for so long was out of fear of rejection and you’d pretty much laughed in his face

“Just forget it” He snapped, opening his car door and slamming it shut

“No wait!” You shouted running over to the passenger side

“Billy I’m sorry” You began “it just took me by surprise that’s all”

“Well I get the message” He huffed, unable to look you in the eyes

“No Billy” You said, placing your hand atop of his on the steering wheel “you don’t”

Billy looked at you, hope wild in his eyes as he noted the smile on your lips. Maybe opening up wasn’t so bad after all.

———————

Billy Hargrove Taglist: @hargrovesgirl

[prorevenge]

Wanna use my name to steal and make me the unknowing fall guy?

Some people (according to the comments in my previous posts) thinks that you are allowed to have only ONE negative experience in life. To those I say, life is all just a combination of smaller stories within one big story that we live in. In that big story,  as you are the narrator of your own story, you will be the hero of your story; even if in reality you maybe the villain in someone else's story. And of 100 percent of those smaller stories, many will be a negative one. Someday when I find a sub about happier stories I will attempt to write the happier memories there, as I like telling stories.

I can't decide whether this too is a @prorevenge, so please do let me know if it is not and I will move it.

Disclaimer: English being my second language, I still make a mistake or two and I hope those of you English connoisseurs out there, can ignore that. Posted from Mobile. Might have formatting issues. TL;DR at the bottom.

Preface: Going back to my college days, I was a executive member of a club. So whenever we had a large event that incurred some expenses, we can request the Student Government Association (SGA) to cover those expenses and they will directly oversee and finance it if it is for a positive cause. For those that does not know, our club was among 56+ other mini clubs in the college and SGA is the main student government body elected by all students. SGA gets a yearly budget allocated to spend for the student wellness or entertainment related activities.  The rule was after you provided all the proof, if the cost was 10 Dollars, the check for that 10 dollars won't be written to one person in the club. It will be written to all Four executives of the club; $2.5 per person. So no one person can steal from that. In SGA, the treasurer (Let's call him SGAT) was not exactly a friend but was friendly and known to some of us. Come to think of it, almost all of the members of SGA was known or otherwise friendly to us. After all, we all had to work together.    

Main story:  So, it was summer of 2007. Just finished Spring 2007 semester and with it, our club held the biggest cultural event of the year in our college. It did cost some good amount and of course SGA agreed to oversee the finance. At that time I was going through some personal problem and angrily kind of ran away from my house (stayed with a friend for that duration) for a few days despite not having my personal finances sorted. After the end of the show, SGA have mailed out the checks to 3 other club executives for the costs of the show. But I did not get one (the one quarter that I was responsible for). At first I thought since I am not at the address that they may have mailed it out to, maybe they sent it and I am not there to accept it. A few days later, another executive of the club calls me and calls other executives and members to a meeting. We meet there and this guy says, "I got a news. The fourth check that you are responsible for has been accepted and cashed!" I was in shock. Now my friends were thinking that since I am having financial difficulties and ran away from my house,  I must have cashed the check and not admitting it. They are essentially accusing me of stealing. Looking back, if it was someone else in my shoe, I would have done the same.

Then right away, I go to college SGA office to get to the bottom of it. They produces a copy of the check and other paper works and it shows it was not mailed, but instead it was picked up from SGAT. SGAT made an exception and instead of mailing, let the person pick it up. The paperwork shows that it contains my name as the person who picked it up, but the signature suggests some other name (You have to print your name and then sign it). Then the copy of the cashed check was produced from the bank. it shows some other name and I knew who it was!

I call all of the club executives and members for another off sight meeting and have someone else call the SGAT there under a different pretense. Armed with all of the proof, I go there to meet the SGAT and he was surprised to see all of us. I just had to make it extremely dramatic as only two other people (of about 10 met us there) knew what I had in the paperwork.

Me: Hey SGAT, I am supposed to get the Check for that one Quarter of the total expenses, do you know anything? SGAT: I do not recall now but I am sure it was mailed out to you. As it was my last business process for the year.

Me: Are you sure? Because I did not get it.

SGAT: Hold on, let me call the office (he calls, finishes his query). Yap! the check was cashed and it shows that you picked up. So, what's going on?     Another Member: Looking confused and tells me, THEN WHERE IS THE MONEY? YOU SAID YOU DID NOT GET IT. DID SOMEONE STEAL IT?

Me: That is what we are here to find out.  Now, I produce all of the paperwork and point to the SGAT,  Me: is this a real copy of proof of the check acceptance from your office?      

SGAT: Yes it is! And it shows that you have accepted the check.  Me: So, is this your signature that shows that I accepted the check from you?

SGAT: Yes. Me: But you said you mailed it.

SGAT: I do not remember every tidbits now! Me: Ok, So this signature on the check acceptance form, does it says my name? (The acceptance signature was distinct enough to make out the person's name.)

SGAT is quiet. Everyone says NO!

Me: Hold on, that's nothing, Here is the proof of the cashed copy of the check. Whose name is this? and whose signature is this?  SGAT gets up by this time and attempts to punch me: Tells me are you calling me a thief?

Me and few others get up and say to SGAT: Seat your ass down and do not try to even touch me! You know I will waste you (he knows I am well versed in self defense, since I told him previously on an unrelated prior conversation, why I thought this line mattered in my head was he was 6.2 185lb. I am 5.8 and was less than 150lb)!  Tell me what's the name here?

Other executives and members that initially accused me says: "The name hear clearly says SGAT's Wife!"

Me: Boom! I rest my case here. SGAT is in full denial and still attempts to shift the blame on me.

But at this point, our other executives have decided that I was of course not the bad person here and since the SGAT was in the country on Student Visa, if we go to the COPS he will get deported. And so SGAT agrees to pay us up the next day as long as we do not call the cops, completely defeated and humiliated.

He did refund us the money and I did end up making unofficial complain to SGA. They makes him resign and since there was no official complain, they could not prosecute him. But after that, he lost all of his creadabilities and always looked like a dirty little rat to us.

TL; DR: Someone steals money from college by using my name and throwing me under the bus. Gets caught and humiliated.

(source) (story by bebgaltiger18)

[dlucets]

stargazing | oikawa tooru x reader

Title: Stargazing Fandom: Haikyuu!! Character: Oikawa Tooru Genre: Fluff? Extra Notes: Once again... wrote when i was #goin thru exam season. mess. hate exams. cross posted from dA, originally written in 2017. formatting issues maybe.

The night sky was awake, staring down on the earth and shrouding it with a warm cloak of darkness. The sun had long ago crept behind the staggering horizon that stood far beyond them. The skies had long since transitioned between colours, colouring the skies with mellow pumpkin shades that bled into blushing pinks, then royal purples had begun to dominate the sky.

Thus, the night had once again reclaimed its throne, reigning over the Earth as it slept, safeguarding it from the glaring heat of the sun for but a few hours like a doting parent watching over a child as it slept.

Yet not the entire  country over which the night had taken up residence had subjected itself to sleep. This time ruling over the skies of the Miyagi prefecture, in Japan, the moon was casting a luminescent glow down on the ground that should’ve lulled them to sleep. Yet with every passing moment, every tick of the clock that reminded that dawn was crawling toward them slowly, they only lay evermore awake.

A sigh escaping from your lips, your eyes flitted to the window once more. You knew, really, that it was time to be asleep. Yet there was an irrefragable force that pulled at your mind, coaxing your soul away from the utopian land of your dreams and leading you blindly towards the confliction of your mind as you stared awake.

Two o’clock, and your mind was yet again battling in a war that had gone on for far too long.

One that had been the causation of the dark circles imprinted underneath your eyes and the halfway-there dazed look that always lived in your eyes, even when you were focusing so intently.

“Are you okay?”

“Is everything okay?”

“What’s up?”

Casually spoken words that you’d answer with a lie, a lie that was easier to you than breathing. Just simple syllables that would pass your lips, masking your emotions with an opaque, thick wall that was impenetrable.

Two o’clock, and your mind was treading water in inky liquids that were threatening to drag you under the surface. Threatening to fully submerge you into the freezing, murky waters. Trap you underneath the heavy surface and anchor you to the bottom of what seemed to be an endless pit.

Helplessly treading water; too afraid to yell out for a hand to grasp your’s and secure your safety.

And it was at times like these, when the earth as you knew it had come to an absolute standstill, when the conflict worsened. A conflict that could seemingly only ever soothe once your eyes made contact with the dozens of constellations that decorated the night’s sky with a shimmering, ethereal glisten that lasted but a few hours before fading back; retreating, blending into the dawn’s skies once more.

With a leaden heart, you threw back your sheets, gingerly laying a foot on the floor as though testing foreign waters before they fully connected with the ground. Feet that were softer than felt on the floorboards padded over to the curtained windows, and delicate hands pulled them curtains away, allowing a river of moonlight to stream in through the window. The breathing was caught in your throat once more - this ephemeral beauty that your eyes could behold every night for as long as your heart beated would never once grow old.

Even though the moon was as ancient as anything you could comprehend, it never gave up in its impressiveness. Never once.

And for a while, you were content, cheeks resting in your palms as your face fell into a serene smile that was illuminated by the soft glow of the moon. For a while, you forgot about the conflict, as though the scenery had been enough to fog over the draconian thoughts that taunted your soul.

Then, something snagged your attention. Through your peripheral vision, you could make out a vague silhouette; a male stood underneath a lone streetlight. He was clad head-to-toe in thick clothing to prevent the cold from digging deep into his body, his hair a mass of cowlicked curls that flew off his hair in amber-chocolate soft wisps. He wasn’t doing much, one hand shoved into the pocket of his coat whereas the other held a mobile - the only other source of light sans for the moonlight and streetlight that he was stood under.

But there was something about him that tugged at your memory. A drifting thought that you knew him, the mysterious boy that was out strolling in the early hours of the morning before the sun had dared rise.

There was something about the casual way he stood, the angle of his head as he surveyed the mobile held in his hands and the way his hair sat atop his head. Something in you wanted to pause time, to zoom in on the boy if only to quell the unwavering curiosity that was poking away at your thoughts. Though in a way, this sudden curiosity was something of a blessing in disguise; another layer that masked the conflict in your mind.

In the space of not even thirty seconds, he’d pocketed the phone, his keen eyes searching the vicinity before he went to start off on his walking once more. After a brief scan, he seemed satisfied, and once again went to walk again. But then keen eyes whipped around once more, and for a brief second you felt your heart plummet into oblivion. You could’ve sworn he was staring into your soul, dissecting every thought you were having at that very moment, pinning you to that place alone with his liquid cocoa stare.

He could’ve been anyone, you noted warily. Anyone in the world. A thief, a murderer, perhaps an arsonist. Hell, he could’ve been anyone in the entire world, and he’d noticed that you’d been looking at him. He’d noticed, before walking off at a brisk pace, retracting his phone from his pocket once more. His facial expression unreadable from your distance, you only hoped he hadn’t spied your curious (E/C) eyes despite looking in your direction twice.

You jerked into movement, every nerve awakening at once with a jittering tremor throughout your body as your phone vibrated with a notification.

Shaking hands reaching to it, your arms enclosed around the phone and watched the screen brighten up with a wary, cautious eye. Had he somehow found your number? Was he a stalker? What was he doing, walking around at this time?

1 New Message from: Tooru

Your nerves visibly eased at the name that was displayed on your screen, and you clicked onto the notification to read the message.

Tooru: [02:14] (Y/N)-chan, what are you doing awake at this time?

You: [02:14] … how do you know I’m awake?;;

Tooru: [02:14] Educated guess from my usual neighbourhood stroll^^

You: [02:15] Wait that was you?

Tooru: [02:15] Yep!!^^ Did you wake up to watch my beautiful figure pass by your house?

You: [02:16] Ok first of all, why were you walking around at 2am do you know how dangerous that is tooru???? Second of all, what beauty Third of all, the moon is especially beautiful tonight.

Tooru: [02:16] I agree! The moon is gorgeous~ Next time you’re awake, you should text me. We could go watch the sky at night sometime~

You: [02:17] Hahah no thanks Tooru, why are you walking around at this time, though??

Tooru: [02:18] The moon is especially beautiful tonight, as you said. We should stargaze. Sometime. After exams. Maybe. Sleep well, (Y/N)-chan!

You frowned at his answer, beating around the bush through his round-about way of inviting you on a date. Yet you said nothing in return sans for a quick goodnight message, shutting off your phone entirely before returning your focus yet again to the masterpiece that was laid out in the skies above you. A massive, open canvas of endless blues and sparkling whites.

Stargazing with Tooru… a small smile graced your features as you watched the scene above you.

Perhaps it wasn’t a bad idea.

[jira-chii]

Thoughts on the Shoumetsu Toshi Anime before it even airs

The Shoumetsu Toshi anime will air in April 2019, which fills me with both excitement and trepidation... 

Warning for long post. And a bit of language. I may have spoiled the bare minimum of the game in order to explain why it is awesome. There are no spoilers for the anime because it doesn't air until April 2019. 

NB: This whole post is my own personal opinion. I don’t claim to be an expert in anything anime or game related. In fact, I don't play many mobile games at all, and usually steer clear of anime adaptations of such games because I know how shit they can be. I sincerely hope Shoumetsu Toshi will be different because of the quality of the writing. Also yes I am very biased. And passionate. And this whole thing is written on the assumption the producers actually want to make this anime good and worthwhile, rather than just a quick money-grab. I just have a lot of feelings about this ok. 

During Shoumetsu Toshi’s fourth year anniversary, one of the projects announced was an anime! I'm sure everyone playing knew this was going to happen eventually. After all, the game has an all star cast of seiyuu, an amazing storyline, and has been marketing itself for quite a while now (collabs, live concerts, CDs, keychains and more). I have no doubt Shoumetsu Toshi has the potential to become an amazing anime if done correctly, but it will face many challenges on the path to adaptation. Here are some of them.

Too many tamashii

One of the game’s greatest strengths also becomes one of its greatest barriers to adaptation. Shoumetsu Toshi has done an amazing job at creating a huge community of characters (like, an actual city). We get to see their stories unfold and their characters develop bit by bit through various events and quest stages. Within the game, we meet characters that are strong and inspiring, characters with complex relationships, characters that are good-natured and goofy, characters with tragic pasts and so much more. There are characters with stories in this game that will tear your heart to shreds, stories with plot twists nobody saw coming until years later, and stories that were so impactful I had to write a 3000 word essay on it before I was satisfied.

Unfortunately, the anime cannot afford to invest the same amount of time and effort in its characters as the game does. Though we love them, including too many would be detrimental because 1. It wouldn’t fit the tone the anime is going for, 2. There's actually no point because the majority of these don't affect the main story whatsoever and 3. They won't be developed enough for first timers to become invested in them. Especially the ones with more serious stories.

The producers will need to carefully choose which characters to include: characters that are not only distinct and easy to invest in, but will actually contribute to the plot and make the time getting to know them worthwhile. Because one of the worst things an anime can do imo, is bring in a character nobody is invested in, who contributes nothing to the story, has zero character development (i.e. their character is based completely on cliches and tropes) but also gets about 200% more screen time than any other side character, because there is the assumption that they’ll be popular based on their character design alone. That is just lazy writing and is disrespectful not only to the audience, but also the character (I don’t care if they’re fictional, good characters deserve respect too).

I fear there is a very real danger SPR5 could become that. The in-game idol group got a real world debut, and, while I don’t mind seeing promotion in an anime (we live in a capitalist society after all), they shouldn’t contribute much to the overall story, and I will be very disappointed if the anime give them more screen time than they need purely for the sake of marketing.  

Complex storyline

If there is one thing I absolutely don't want this anime to get wrong, it’s the story. The Shoumetsu Toshi main storyline is frickin’ amazing. It is an epic quest that spans four worlds, involves characters literally jumping through space and time, and breaks the fourth wall in the creepiest way possible. The creativity that comes with that is my absolute favourite thing about the game, however I acknowledge some heavy changes would need to be made to make it fit the traditional anime format…

I have heard the anime will be an original story, however the PV suggests it will still retain key plot points from the game. Contrary to my general opinions regarding anime-original content, I think this is the right way to go. I think fans innately despise original stories in anime adaptations for one of two reasons: the story will either be too complex for non-fans to enjoy, ruining the reputation of the series, or the story will be too watered down in order to appeal to said non-fans and consequently lose much of what made the original actually great. Achieving harmony is an incredibly difficult balancing act, and part of this involves the series living up to its own greatness. Which very rarely happens. If Shoumetsu Toshi goes for a retelling of say, World 1, it is invariably going to be compared to the original. Also it becomes predictable for anyone far enough into the game. If the producers do want to go the extra mile and make it worthwhile for the OG fans (which is nice in theory but, admittedly, unlikely), they would need to add some meaningful original content that still retains the essence of what makes Shoumetsu Toshi, Shoumetsu Toshi. That is, it retains the same themes and atmosphere, conveys a similar message, keeps all the characters appropriately in character...basically anything that would not feel out of place if it were to be inserted into the original. Luckily for us, Shoumetsu Toshi writers have loads of experience with this. I am talking, of course, about the mountain of ranking quests, side stories and events.

I will admit not every single minor story in Shoumetsu Toshi is fantastic, particularly many of the ranking events, which usually only allow about three stages to tell a story focused on one character. However, what I think the game does do very well in respect to these short ranking stories (and many other events and side stories open to lower level players), is make them accommodating to both old and new players. This is usually achieved by including Easter eggs and hints to a greater plot for the former, while keeping the actual main story for that particular quest straightforward and accessible for the latter. This strategy avoids alienating newcomers and will be absolutely vital if the anime is aiming to appeal to a larger audience, namely the international one who are mostly not even aware of the game. Failure to adhere to this strategy is also partially why many anime adaptations of games have such a shitty track record. They try to pack in too much, usually by explaining multiple complex concepts without devoting enough time to see them properly work in action. The story might take a backburner in favour of the more technical stuff, leaving newcomers confused and bored. Then when it’s time for the climax, nobody actually understands what is happening on screen. “Just play the source material”, actual fans will say, but really, unless the premise or characters appealed to me, how likely am I to invest even more time into a game if I thought the anime was boring as hell?

I do not think Shoumetsu Toshi will be able to showcase its full potential in one anime season. But if the goal of the anime is just to promote the game, there is no need to. If the goal of the anime were to be an actual good anime though, I think the creators would need to take the same approach as the game does for its stories.

Shoumetsu Toshi’s most epic moments are its unpredictable and creative plot twists. The amazing thing is, they don’t just come out of nowhere. This game’s strongest stories are the long ones that build up gradually to spectacular and emotional climaxes, which are possible because characters are given ample time to establish their values and motivations. This helps us as an audience better understand important plot points without the story having to beat us over the head about it, allowing the game to weave a subtle yet sophisticated narrative that actually makes total sense by the end. This means the story needs to be planned out from the very beginning, and will need some time for setup. Which means it won’t truly shine until the metaphorical ‘late-game’.

Stories like these are at a disadvantage these days because, especially with the Internet giving us so much more choice, a lot of anime watchers now tend to drop a show if it fails to impress them from the very start. After about three episodes, the audience should have a good feel for the anime’s main characters, setting and a hint of the main plot. If by then, absolutely nothing about the series appeals to you, you would start to think there are better things you could be doing with your time. Unfortunately, sometimes a show just needs a long time to set up a good story (or sometimes producers dick around too much with filler episodes).  

On top of probably needing a slow start, the Shoumetsu Toshi anime is at another disadvantage in respect to one type of audience, because the game does not have an English version. Which means a lot of the Western anime audience will have had no prior interaction with it and don’t know what to expect. They have no idea who the characters are, what the story is, and why its fanbase considers it so much more than just another gacha game. We just have to hope the anime is compelling enough in the beginning to ‘hook’ these newcomers, and make them stay on board long enough to make their time worth it...

A good Shoumetsu Toshi story needs to take risks. I hope to God nobody at that studio makes the executive decision to ‘play it safe’, because the last thing any fan wants is a disappointing anime adaptation with a mundane story even a non-fan wouldn’t be able to enjoy.The writers need to be given complete autonomy and trust to fully realise their creative vision, because that is exactly what is needed if this adaptation wants to use Shoumetsu Toshi’s biggest drawcard to its full advantage.

Animating exposition

This is a pretty minor thing compared to the other two I mentioned previously, but the most iconic thing that sets an anime adaptation apart from the source material is, well, the animation. Visuals and animation are probably the biggest things influencing a new audience’s first impression. Unfortunately, the PV portrayed some pretty lacklustre animation for Madhouse standards and I don’t think people were that impressed.

Good animation is time-consuming and can actually take quite a lot of effort on the part of the director (not that I have that much experience to speak to). Where to place characters in the shot composition, when and how far to zoom in for a close-up, how to best direct movement for maximum impact, but also keeping the scene direction consistent enough that the audience can still understand what is happening on screen. Dynamic scenes are hard enough, but on the other end of the spectrum, how do you animate a static character reciting an information dump in an interesting way?

Shoumetsu Toshi has a lot of talking. It's just something that comes part and parcel with a game of this format. In the game it's alright because you can read at your own pace, and it's important information. Plus they usually keep you engaged by switching up characters’ facial expressions (Shoumetsu Toshi 0 does this in spades) or by distracting you with the stellar soundtrack. I expect the anime is also gonna have a heap of exposition. I mean, from the PV alone I already see at least three expositional characters: Geek, Eiji and Kikyou.

Personally I think expositions are the hardest things to animate. And I don't mean difficult to actually draw and turn into animation, but to actually direct something like that in a satisfying way takes brain power. There are an infinite number of ways to animate characters talking, ranging from the super boring still-image-with-moving-mouth-flap, to using dynamic camera angles to keep the composition interesting, or overlaying a montage of some sort to visually convey the message without having to look at a static character. The game provides only a generic idea of how the scene might play out when animated. While this opens the door to a heap of creative possibilities, I’m concerned that if it comes down to time and budget, or if someone gets lazy, it is very likely we could end up with one hella boring sequence of exposition. Which could be a serious problem if the action scenes aren’t able to impress.

Ahh, you guys have no idea how much I want this anime to do well. There's just so much potential there.

In my opinion, traditional anime can be seen as an incredibly limited medium that must, in the span of about 12 episodes, tell a good story to its audience, invest them in its characters, and keep them engaged for half an hour each episode through pretty visuals/cool animation. If they can’t do that the audience will probably drop the series because they a) get bored, b) don’t care, and/or c) fall asleep. This also means a good anime can’t afford to sacrifice story for character development or vice versa. They need to happen concurrently.

It is not easy to make a good anime, and even more difficult to make one that lives up to the hype of its very amazing source material. As a general rule of thumb, I keep my expectations of game adaptations low, and that is what I said to myself when the Shoumetsu Toshi anime was announced. But then one day I got linked a Shoumetsu Toshi drama CD, and I was blown away by how well they did it. The title is The Vanished Elephant, a literary reference to Murakami's short story of the same name. I'm trying not to spoil but basically, the CD fully utilised the fact we can't see the characters (but can hear them) to craft a mysterious original story with a wonderful plot twist. It works just as a stand alone story, but actual players who are familiar with the characters and motifs immediately get that sense of unease at the very beginning, which is finally paid off with the reveal at the end.

Thanks to that, I can't help but be excited for the anime. If they do fuck it up, I won't be surprised but I will be very, very, sad.

If you have read this far, thank you so much for your time. If you are unfamiliar with Shoumetsu Toshi, could I ask you to please give this anime a chance? And if after its run, it does turn out shit, by all means, complain to your heart’s content (because I will be doing the same).

[dontfeeltoohot]

Here’s a quick little thing I wrote about Bucky having a seizure. Most everything I wrote is medically correct (aside from the fact that if it is someone’s first seizure, an ambulance should be called, regardless of time). If someone you know has epilepsy and a seizure, and they haven’t hurt themselves, as long as it is under five minutes, you shouldn’t immediately call emergency services.

I hope you enjoy! This was written on mobile, so let me know if formatting is messed up!

*********

Bucky’s sitting on his and Steve’s couch. He’s been deprogrammed from the Winter Soldiers trigger words for almost a year, and things are finally starting to get better. He and Steve have a small red stone in New York. They’re close enough to the Tower that if something happens, they’ll be minutes away, but far enough that they can feel like they have a life beyond being a superhero.

Sam and Nat visit a lot, like to come by on slow lazy nights and watch movies and drink beer. Bucky thinks this must be what normality is. Sitting with friends, drinking beer, talking about stupid movie inconsistencies while Steve tries not to burn the pizza they’re baking. He’d never thought he would have this.

While Nat and Sam argue about what movie to watch next, Bucky gets up to check and make sure Steve’s okay in the kitchen. He walks the few steps and wraps his arms around his guy, kissing his head. “How’s the pizza? You burn it yet?” Bucky joked, nuzzling into his neck.

Steve rolls his eyes, but there’s a fond expression on his face. “No, I’ll leave that to you,” he smirks, and Bucky gasps.

“Yeah right! We all know I’m the better cook,” he shakes his head, hair falling into his eyes. Steve brushes it away and kisses him quickly. “We’ll see about that.”

Steve makes sure the pizza isn’t burnt and let’s it stay in the oven a little bit longer. They both walk back into the living room. “So what’re we watching?” Steve asks, looking at their friends on the couch. Sam holds up their dvd of Batman and Bucky laughs.

“You just wanna feel like you’re not the only winged superhero,” he say, but takes it and pops it into the player. Tony had offered to install all the latest updates when they’d moved, but they had politely declined, wanting to feel more human.

They’re about twenty minutes in, pizza sitting on the coffee table with beers all around, that Bucky feels a sudden wave of being unwell. His head suddenly hurts, his limbs feel heavy, he feels nauseous and sick and likes he’s far off. The beer bottle slips from his hand and onto Natasha and her pizza.

“What the hell?” She says and turns to look at her friend and then stops. Bucky is sitting, eyes unfocused, and he’s swallowing convulsively. Steve and Sam look up at her words, and instantly Sam is standing up.

“Hey JB, what’s going on? Can you hear me?”

Bucky doesn’t respond, and Steve looks terrified. He tries to get his attention but freezes when Bucky’s whole body tenses up. The long haired man lets out a low, almost feral noise from his throat and then his head snaps back and he starts shaking. His right arm shoots out, trembling the whole time and he starts foaming at the mouth. Sam can see his teeth are clenched and he yells at Nat to start timing the whole thing.

“What...what’s happening?! Can we help him?!” Steve asks, voice tight and scared. Sam shakes his head.

“Don’t touch him. It’ll do more damage. Don’t restrain him. It’s best for him to be on his side but he’s not doing damage to himself like this either. When he stops we’ll move him.”

Steve’s never been so grateful for Sam’s medical training.

Slowly, Bucky’s body stops convulsing. Sam moves him so he’s lying on his side on the couch. He notices a damp patch on Bucky’s jeans, and sees blood coming from a place where he’s bit his lip.

“Ok, Steve, talk to him. He might wake up quickly or stay out of it. He’s going to be groggy and confused. Nat, how long was it?”

Natasha looks at her watch. “3 minutes 27 seconds,” she finally breathes out. Sam nods and sends a text to Stark.

“We’re going to need to take him in, at least have one of Starks doctors check on him. I can see if Tony will send one over,” Sam explains slowly to Steve, knowing the man is shaken up enough already. Steve nods and starts running his fingers through Bucky’s hair, murmuring soft words of love.

It’s another six minutes before Bucky’s eyes flutter open. He groans a little and looks up, confused and scared.

“It’s okay JB, you had a seizure, but you’re okay. It’s gonna be hard to remember, and you’re going to have some trouble talking and putting together thoughts. We’re all here though, and you’re safe,” Sam assures in that calming voice he has. Bucky’s eyes connect with Steve’s and he visibly relaxes.

“Sss’ee,” Bucky mumbles, and Steve moves closer.

“Yeah Buck, it’s okay. I’m here.”

Bucky feels like everything is happening in clips. His body hurts, like he’s been rolled over with a truck. He feels like everything is disjointed and when he tries to speak, it comes out garbled and wrong. He feels his heart rate pick up and looks at Steve again. Steve squeezes his hand as Sam talks to Tony on the phone. Nat pets his hair and he lets his eyes fall shut again

He’s safe.

[tofu-beifong]

I am in desperate need of kiribaku fics right now :/ do you have any recommendations?

Hiiii anon YES! (I’m blogging on mobile so sorry I can’t format this and make this look better)

There’s 3 really good ones I’ve read on AO3, I’ll paste the links here:

title: Acceptance and Denial

http://archiveofourown.org/works/8136106/chapters/18649705

Kirishima came out to his family, but they don’t believe him so he asked Bakugou to be his pretend boyfriend (((( ;) ;) ;) ))))

VERY cute and wholesome, it’s so in character and very well written you will laugh and I really enjoyed reading it

title: a heart swelled to bursting

http://archiveofourown.org/works/7350946/chapters/16697356

A bit more angsty, Bakugou is dealing with trauma/PTSD after the training camp raid arc and it worries Kirishima (there are some warnings in the fic description that it may contain triggers and graphic descriptions so please heed those if you think it applies to you!)

Title: 2am knows all secrets

http://archiveofourown.org/works/8738770/chapters/20035240

Written by @unbreakable-red-riot

(Ok THIS is the fic that turned me into a diehard kiribaku shipper,

I was bored at Uni in my dorm so I decided to read this fic and now I’m here today weeping for kiri and baku & how gay they are I highly recommend this one 10/10)

(I actually haven’t read a lot of kiribaku fics~ these 3 stood the most out to me and I really enjoyed reading them!! Hope this helps~)

[rairii]

Daelos Campaign: Alternate Employment

After a few hours of resting, Tom and the interviewer harelequin came to the full recovery room.

As soon as he spotted the interviewer, Damerion edged in his seat towards his father, keeping his eyes on her instead of on Tom, who cleared his throat.

"Greetings everyone. We’re going to take a three day break after the festivities in this location! Do not worry - we are staying mobile, but so long as you are within a 15 minute run from our supplies we won’t be leaving you behind! We’ll be performing in the next area, thought not the next scheduled event.”

He turned, peering through the crowd of people, until he found what he was looking for. “There you are!” and he waved a hand, gesturing the party over as he sat at a table. “Please gather around, please please.” Lily barely waited until she had reached him before asking, “Do we get paid?”

“Don’t worry, as long as you are doing things you of course still get paid. Now, this is more concerning your unique situation, as it is.”

“Unique situation?” Clara sat down carefully, settling her bulk between two chairs that creaked ominously. The others began to take their places around them as the crowd behind murmured and a few began leaving to tell others the news.

“Yes, see I wasn’t expecting more than a few months of casual help, so and so, but there have been a few interesting developments.”

“Yes we’ve noticed. Do you need our help with something?” Clara looked at him with an earnest expression of helpfulness.

“Well, well,” began Tom, “It has come to my attention, with a few of my old friends - they’re really old, its nice to be the young one for once amongst them, even if only for a few weeks.”

Tarron dealt a hand of cards to Damerion, settling in for a long tangent. “Although once you reach 80 you don’t think of yourself as young-” a card was flipped, “but considering some of these friends, it makes sense that-” flip, “they’d consider me a young one”, Damerion put a card on the table, “but really, some of them are calling me a young shrimp-” flip, “Oh, I’m sorry I’m getting off topic aren’t I?”

“You do whatever you do, anyway“ interjected Saika, who had pulled out another cigarette and was in the process of lighting it.

“I know that is possible that not all of you would want to continue in this venture, as we strive to perform where we can, and with the increased threat of war coming on, there is an increase in danger...”

“Are we getting a raise then” interjected Damerion, who looked up from his cards with mild interest.

“That is a great question we can decide on once we’ve gone through all the options! For instance, you might not want to continue with this line of work with the increased threat. There is is also the prospect that war entices you, in which case I have some friends who would be most interested in hearing from you.” Damerion’s eyes were slowly glazing over. One look to the side showed that Tarron’s had already glazed over as he looked at his cards. “Or I might be misreading you and you are simple adventurers, in which case there are some other matters that are bothering us in the more classic adventuring type”

“Technically I hunt adventurers, and am not on one” commented Saika from his corner of the table.

“Well, there is always something for new experiences! Good on you for keeping an open mind and open heart!” Tom beamed at Saika, as if he was a teacher puffing out in pride at a student who had just volunteered for a task.

Tarron looked up from his cards. “Are you going to get to the point anytime soon or will I have to deal a second hand?”

“Alright, let’s uh“ and Tom looked at a piece of paper “Skim notes. Do you want to continue working with us? Do you want to continue your separate ways and explore the world? Or do you want to take one of the opportunities we have that involves war and adventuring, or do you want something I have no idea bout and involves this person!” and he dramatically waved towards the interviewer.

Damerion winced.

“So if we take option C, I assume our paygrade goes up as well as the risks” Saika was looking at intently.

“Possibly. It’s open for negotiation”

“Right so you don’t want to pay us more. Got it” and Saika looked back around the party, before leaning forwards. “I’m not the only one in this, but I’m ok with a little more risk.”

“I would like to know what it entails before signing up for more risk.” drawled Tarron, eyes still fixated on his cards. That was when the interviewer stepped forward.

"With recent events coming to rise, others are using it as a distraction to achieve their goals. There is someone that my group wishes to have killed, that we cannot interfere with personally.”

“Why do they have to be killed?” asked Clara, but Tarron interrupted before the harelequin could respond.

"You realize that sort of request requires a lot more information, even if we were interested, which for the record, I’m not.” Damerion nodded absent-mindedly as he took a card from the pile.

The interviewer looked at Tarron, considering,  “This assignment has some information that would be useful for you concerning your wife.”

Damerion dropped his hand of cards.

Tarron: “Are you - is this information you have, or information they have?” “They need to be -” and Tarron cut through, speaking more harshly. “Is this information you have, or information they have.”

“We know that she was working with them concerning runes.”

“So technically its what they have”, Saika commented, keeping his eyes trained on the interviewer.

“Why does this person have to be killed" repeated Clara patiently.

“We believe they are  trying to work on reviving some of the runes from the rune wars, and that cannot be allowed.”

Silence enveloped the party as they considered it. The rune wars had decimated nations, had shaped the land. There was a reason there were rune knights hunting down those who would bring the runes back.

"I’m happy to help” began Clara, looking around the group. "I don’t need a raise, if there are people who would bring hurt back I will stop them.”

Saika huffed at her. “I’m all for bleeding hearts and everything, but at the end of the day, I gotta earn money, so uh, what’s your price.”

“You can take my part!

"I’m not going to take your share, that’s your share!”

Clara smiled at Saika. “I don’t need it.”

"You need it for - oh never mind.” and he subsided in time for the interviewer to speak again.

“1000 gold each, a 250 gold each bonus if you can obtain all their research.“

While the two had been discussing, Tarron had slipped a piece of paper to Damerion, written in cypher.

"Thoughts?" said the paper.

"I am curious... We haven't had a lead in a while"

"True. But we can get the information without necessarily signing on."

"Not if they take the research and refuse to deal with us"

"I meant more with these people" and Tarron jerked his head.

"If we tell Saika what to look for he might be a good source"

"Maybe. I don't like signing on to something with the explicit purpose of killing someone."

"Me neither. We should get more information"

Saika was speaking. “I’m down but I know I can’t do it on my own. I’ll take it if you guys do too”

Clara jumped in with a “I’m in too”.

Tarron looked up from the notes he’d been exchanging with his son. “Still considering”.

Tom gestured at them expansively. “Well part of the reason I wanted you to rest before this information is so that you may think on it clearly and then can sleep on it and decide! Like I said, things are really, what’s the word for it, things have really gone to shit, and now a lot of people are willing to pay to have people to sort it out!”

Saika just looked over to Tarron and Damerion. “You know I am a detective. If you need some help in looking into something - you said your wife? - I can help out. I’m already getting paid, so I won’t ask for more money from you. It’s a practical solution.”

"Let us ... we’ll get back to you.” said Tarron.

The Interviewer just nodded and reached into a bag, and tossed over a trinket at the table. Both Saika and Tarron reached out for it, but Saika caught it, and turning to look at it, found a rabbit’s foot that looked like it had been ripped off its leg, still bleeding and splotching the ruffled fur.

“Oh god... Clara you want this thing?”

Clara took it as the interviewer spoke again. “If you wish to contact us, use that.”

“Do we squeeze it, do we shake it, do we suck it like a dick what do we do” Saika asked roughly as she put it away. The interviewer merely stared at them, told them “you use it”, and then left.

Tom sighed in relief a bit. “Um, she actually intimidates me. Either way, I’m going to leave a wide variety of options at your table and you can consider this a favour repaid and I’m going to take care of some important paperwork. You feel free to get some nice well deserved rest.”

Before Tom had finished talking, Tarron had already gotten up, Damerion after him, following the harelequin, who once outside, paused and turned around, silent and expectant, almost as if she had said “yes?”.

“You are asking us to ask for something for the explicit goal of murdering someone. I’d like to have more information. You should know from my interview that this is not something I’m ok with, and I don’t appreciate information being held hostage over it“

They seem a bit confused. “It’s simple. They’re trying to recover runes from the rune wars.”

“I would like to know how you know this“

She stared at him, almost as if unbelieving his questioning. “We’re the harelequins. if something needs to be killed we know about it“

“Vague and unhelpful. I’m looking for real answers here” challenged Tarron.

“It is all slightly private, unless you want to share all the cyphers to your maps” There was silence, before Damerion piped up “Excuse me, um, first off, are you sure it isn’t innocent investigation for knowledge’s sake.”

She shook her head. “No. We know from receipts that most likely your mother was helping translate, but didn’t know what they were translating. It is believed they are most definitely trying to revive some ancient rune practices“

Tarron challenged her again: “Who, who is?”

“We do not have the exact details. We are hoping that you will help us find some.”

Damerion considered this carefully. “Would you accept a modified deal, where we get more information for you, instead of possibly killing someone.”

They shrugged. “If they end up dead within your contracts parameters, it doesn’t matter how it happens, you’ll get paid.”

“Who are you to decide that” asked Tarron.

She stared at Tarron again, as he remembered the rumours surrounding harelequins.  Despite the official force charged with matters pertaining to the rune wards, the harelequins were rumoured to be routinely hired due to their information network, to find a person, and kill them. 

“So why can’t you deal with it yourself. You go through all the show and bluster...”

"We tried. We’re trying a new approach. Besides, personal investment tends to get better results as well.”

She looked between Tarron and Damerion, before asking “Anything else or may I move on”

Tarron stepped forwards, grim. “What guarantees do we have... you have your suspicions about my wife. But what if she is curious. What if you decide that she doesn’t deserve to live. What assurance do I have that she is not a another name to be struck off on your list.”

She stared at Tarron, as if it were the simplest thing in the world. “Because if people revive the runes from the rune wars, we’ll have a much bigger issue to deal with than the war between orcs and gnomes.”

“That’s not the assurance I’m looking for”

She waved him away. “That’s all I’m allowed to give”

“If you have additional information and want us to deal with this, why don’t you give it to us, give us the full story of what you fully know so we can make a more informed decision. You’re holding shit back on us, and that is not a good way to entice someone into a deal. By your own admission you are holding things back.”

She sighed, and rubbed her temples.

“We’re offering because you are unrelated to other things, you’ll have a personal interest, and because the situation was supposed to be deal with at an earlier time, but when we did, your wife was one of the many that was hired, and when we sent an operative to deal with this, someone else intervened and almost everyone ended up dead. We are sending you over too, because you want answers, and we want answers, and you can find the answers for us while we try to deal with the new situations that have arisen, and if you aren’t interested in that, than you can let one of your best leads that you know of to find your wife drive by. You aren’t needed, you are an extra expense. Is that all?“

“Yes. Thank you for perhaps the first honest statement you’ve made”

They turned, mutter to themselves, and left.

Damerion twisted his hands, and turned to his father. “I think we should be involved, at the least.”

“I don’t like it”

“We don’t have to fulfill the contract. It will mean, not getting the money, but it means, possibly getting the information”

“You’re probably right”