#i bought a yusuke charm. love it

[milaisreading]

5th times the charm?

Pairings: Itoshi Sae x Isagi's sister!Yn

Warnings: Reader uses she/her. Requests are open. This is just a small Valentine's Day idea I had, since the day is approaching us quickly.

⚽️Blue Lock belongs to Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomura ⚽️

Ever since he could remember, Yoichi thought of of his sister as someone who could be described as a hopeless romantic at heart. And while that was something he really admired in (Y/n), her faith in love and finding the right person, it also worried him. He loved his sister a lot, she was a kind and very caring person, so he always wanted the best for her. He mainly wanted her to have a good partner, since finding one was always one of her goals, but Yoichi noted one thing about her crush and dating history. And that was, (Y/n) always seemed to find assholes as love interests. While he doesn't remember much about (Y/n)'s pre-school and elementary school, he would sometimes hear his mom and her talk about those things in the kitchen, a random memory popping out here and there. Middle school and high school was something he does remember pretty vividly the two times she would come home crying. Sure, back then he didn't know much about these things and would try to cheer (Y/n) up, but now that he is older he is more aware of these things. That's why he took it upon himself to keep his teammates away from (Y/n). They were good football players and friends, don't get Yoichi wrong, but he couldn't imagine them with his sister.

Then, to his horror, when his career took of in Re Al, he was confronted with the harsh truth that Sae Itoshi of all people asked (Y/n) out, to which she ended up agreeing! Yoichi tried to keep his opinion at the time to himself, not wanting to offend Sae. But, once the siblings were left alone, he warned his sister about dating him.

'Don't worry. I am sure this time it will be different.' Yoichi recalled her words, and he just hopes she was right. And if she wasn't, an accidental kick of the ball into Sae's face will help him calm down.

Looking at the digital clock, (Y/n) yawned as she read the time.

"Already 23:30... and I am not even done decorating this. I shouldn't have waited till last minute." She muttered to herself, looking down at the homemade chocolate and at some of the decorative items she bought the day before. It was the night before Valentine's Day and (Y/n) was doing her absolute best for the chocolate to turn out as good as possible. She really wanted to impress Sae with it, but also see his reaction. It's something she would do ever since she was little. Her mom would tell her to always look at how a guy will react to the little gifts, and make her judgement based on that. And well, so far (Y/n) faced disappointment after disappointment.

'Eww. The card looks stupid, and pink isn't even my favorite color! I am a boy, are you stupid?!'

(Y/n) flinched as she remembered one of the first boys she liked rip her Valentine's Day card into two and throw it at her. That was disappointment #1.

'I don't like this chocolate brand. Next time get me something else.' Safe to say she never looked at disappointment #2 again. Why were elementary school boys so into brand named chocolate? (Y/n) hummed as she mixed some blue and green into the white chocolate.

'The chocolate tastes nice, I didn't know you could cook or whatever. But, you aren't my type, thanks for the chocolate, tho.' Disappointment #3 came up in middle school. (Y/n) wasn't sure why she cried that day, possibly because he was the first guy she had a serious crush on? It was a mystery to her.

'I don't like girls like you. You are way too much of a high maintenance. And besides, I found someone else. She looks more like a football players girlfriend.' Disappointment #4 came along in her final year of high school. Oliver was someone she met by chance, he wasn't her classmate or anything. Just a boy she met at a local café she met and secretly dated for a while. (Y/n) knew je was someone who liked women, a lot, but she held out hope that he might change for her. Well, she came to realize that the hope was foolish.

(Y/n) bit back her tears as she put the chocolate into the fridge, her heart pounding in fear.

'Please, please be different.' She thought, praying that the 5th time will do the trick.

Now, Sae wasn't a romantic person and never really saw the appeal in relationships or acting all lovesick for another person. In his mind football and practice were the only things that should occupy him... until he became one of those lovesick individuals. Although he tried to hide it, and failed according to Rin and Yoichi, Sae was completely in love with the older Isagi sibling. Always being more gentle and mindful of his words around (Y/n), and doing his best to show off his skills in front of her when she would watch a Re Al match. So, to nobody's surprise, Sae spent 2 weeks preparing a gift for Valentine's Day for (Y/n), something Rin wouldn't let him live down if he found out.

'Hope she likes this.' Sae thought as he finished wrapping up the plush toy he found. It was a limited edition item he saw (Y/n) eyeing for a while, so he had to be fast and get it before it was sold out.

The next day, the two met up in a nearby park to exchange the gifts and go for a stroll through Madrid later.

"Happy Valentine's Day!" The two said at the same time, presenting their gifts in front of each other.

"Huh? You got me a gift as well?" (Y/n) raised an eyebrow as her heartbeat quickened, earning a nod from Sae.

"Of course."

"But, White day is-"

"I don't care. I will get you a gift for Valentine's Day and White Day." Sae shrugged as (Y/n)'s face turned red.

"You... you shouldn't do that." She argued, but the redhead shook his head to her words.

"No. I want to."

"O-oh..." (Y/n) felt like her heart was about to explode as she handed Sae the chocolate. Neatly wrapped in a pink and white package with a few heart stickers here and there. Sae kept quiet as he inspected the box after handing (Y/n) the gift he got her. The girl felt her heart sink for a moment when he didn't say anything, already fearing the worst.

'The colors are probably wrong-' Her thoughts got interrupted as she saw Sae smile softly and unwrapped the gift.

'He... He doesn't mind the colors?!' She gulped, hugging the gift closer to her form, watching as he took a bite from the chocolate.

"It's not much and not a brand-named item, but I hope you like it." (Y/n) said timidly as Sae raised an eyebrow.

"I don't care. This chocolate is better than any store bought I ever had. Can you make more when you have time?" Sae wondered, eating more as (Y/n) eyes widened in surprise.

"Y-you like it?! You want me to make more?" She asked, face getting redder as her heart was close to burst out of her chest.

"Of course. You made it. Why wouldn't I like it? I love it, actually." Sae smiled at the girl. There was a silence for a moment and (Y/n) felt a few tears escape her eyes, which caused Sae to panic and move closer to see what the issue was.

"Are you alright? I am sorry. Did I say something wrong?-"

"I love you." (Y/n) sobbed out, hugging Sae tightly. The player was taken aback for a moment, but quickly recovered and hugged her back as a small smile was formed on his face.

"Love you, too."

[deus-ex-mona]

The Sisters' Secret Seaside Trip: Epilogue

everyone loves mona fr

previous part: (chapter 7)

One day, after Sena was done with work—

Photographer: Hey, Narumi!

Sena: Ah! Long time no see. Thank you very much for working with me the other day.

Photographer: Likewise to you. How did it go after the shoot?

Sena: It all went well, thanks to you.

Sena: The swimsuit pictures were really well-received… And the number of followers I have on social media has visibly increased.

Photographer: I’m glad to hear that.

Sena: I was really surprised myself. I didn’t expect the pictures to have turned out so beautifully…

Photographer: Oh, no, the pictures only turned out well because of their subject.

Photographer: If the subject of the pictures didn’t have any charm to begin with, us photographers won’t be able to bring anything out no matter how hard we try.

Photographer: But… while you were certainly very beautiful during the shoot, my favourite pictures of you are the shots I captured of you and your sister.

Sena: Eh…? Is that so?

Photographer: The two of you were absolutely overflowing with your natural beauty, to the point where I felt as though it was the very first time that I was able to capture the love between sisters on camera.

Photographer: Would you like to give modelling for me as a pair of sisters a try?

Photographer: Tell your sister that it’ll be better than working as an idol, okay?

Sena: Haha, she’s my adorable little angel, so persuading her to work for you is out of the question, got it?

Photographer: Hmm, guess that’s a no, huh?

Photographer: Well, I kinda expected that. I’ll ask for you again if I need you for another shoot! I look forward to working with you when the time comes!

Sena: Got it, thank you very much!

Sena: (I’m really happy that she liked the photo of me and Mona… but…)

Sena: (I want to keep that smile of Mona’s a secret between me and our family… just kidding.)

~~~

Mona: Eh?! Dad, all this place has is hot springs! There’s nothing else to do there aside from going into the hot springs!

Yusuke: Ehh? I think it’s a good place to go, though. Hot springs are relaxing.

Ayako: Okay, you two. Dinner’s ready so put those pamphlets away. You can continue to look over them later.

Mona: Got it.

Sena: (Hehe, they’re at it again.)

Sena: I’m home!

Ayako: Ah, welcome back, Sena! You’re just in time for dinner.

Mona: Welcome back, Big Sis!

Mona: Hey, listen to this. All of the places Dad suggested for our family trip are hot springs!

Yusuke: But it’d be better like this, right? We won’t attract that much attention if we stay at a remote inn…

Sena: Hehe, but, Dad, won’t you be lonely in the hot springs by yourself? The three of us can go into the baths together, but…

Mona: Ah, that’s true! Dad’s the only one who’ll be in the men’s baths!

Yusuke: Ah—... I see… that… does sound lonely…

Ayako: My, oh my. Stop bullying your Daddy, you two.

Ayako: The two of you used to fight over who would get to take a bath with him, you know?

Sena: Ah—, I remember that!

Sena: We were supposed to take turns, but then Mona said “Today, I’m going in with him no matter what!”, right?

Ayako: Ah—, yeah, that happened. You then let her take your turn, just like a good big sister would, right, Sena?

Mona: Eeh? Did that really happen? I don’t remember it at all.

Yusuke: That’s because you were still young, Mona.

Ayako: Since the two of you were kids, you have always loved your Daddy, just like me!

Yusuke: Hey, do you remember that other incident too? They fought over the bag we had bought for Sena, with Mona claiming it was hers…

Sena: I remember! I definitely didn’t want to give it up to her at the time, huh.

Mona: Ehh, I’m the only one who remembers nothing of this again! Somehow, it’s just so frustrating!

Sena: (Ah… she’s sulking.)

Sena: (But is it really a problem if my adorable angel’s moods easily swing from good to bad... I wonder?)

[pugs-cats-bb-8]

Vanilla-Okumura

Oh, yeah this arc. I like Morgana. I just get PTSD from Okumura's battle. I hated doing the song in Dancing.

"Stress is the enemy of beauty". 🤣🤣 I can see Sae pulling this out later on.

Unvoiced conversation.

Help Futaba get rid of her unease. I want to say its worded differently in Royal, but I don't remember.

Ohya's boss sucks.

Unvoiced conversation. Pretty big one too. You would think it would be voiced.

I like to throw Yusuke under the bus.

Unvoiced conversation.

Ann and Ryuji, the blond extrovert twins.

"Don't worry about it". As he asks for the guy's personal info. Honestly, how fucking charming/trustworthy is Ren? I'd be kinda suspicious if a dude asked me for the full name of my problem and told me not to worry. I'd think I was about to be caught up in a murder charge.

Unvoiced conversation. Again, another big one.

Unvoiced conversation. Big one.

I love Futaba scaring that fuck head.

Does anybody actually use Fate Reading?

Unvoiced conversation.

I love how they just bought her a swimsuit without knowing her taste or size.

Batting cages aren't open at night.

I never knew what that building was I thought it was an office building, not a movie theatre.

I worked at the Beef Bowl twice and never went back. I got my precision elsewhere.

Unvoiced conversation. Eternal Lockpick became Perma Pick.

Kawakami doesn't ask questions, she just makes a lock pick and other things for you. 🤣🤣

No wonder I forgot Akechi has a first name. He barely says his first name.

Trauma dump and rank up.

I love how there's two pronunciations of Medjed, depending on the person.

It's more flirty when it's not an auto rank-up.

Futaba's trying to drag poor Sojiro outside.🤣🤣

Me and my brother used to light the Smoke Bombs and run through the smoke. Probably not the best idea.

They're going to light the basket on fire. And kill Morgana.

You don't need a stat requirement to work at Crossroads? Kind-3, Precision-3

Lala's not voiced.

I would love it if he cross dressed. Morgana speaking the truth.

I swear in Royal there's four customers you can choose from. There is they added an Office Worker who gives you knowledge.

You only get 5,400 Yen (38.67 Dollars) for a Sunday😨😨. In Royal, it's 12,000 Yen (84.59)🤑🤑.

No mention of Sundays being the day to work.

Christ sakes, Ren 😋😋🥵🥵

I like how Makoto's top has kitty paws on the straps.

I love how Ann pulls one over on Ryuji.

I'd die if Ren look at me like that. Like I'd be a puddle.😍😍

I don't think Ren has any trouble stealing hearts.

Unvoiced conversation.

Yusuke and his lobsters🤣🤣

I like how in the anime, Ren asks if he has enough money for the train home.

Unvoiced conversation. 

like how they know they're in high school, but they still hit on them. 😠😠

Unvoiced conversation.

I can only imagine what Futaba hears.

Ryuji needs to stop putting his foot in his mouth.

Does Ren not like to type?

Unvoiced conversation.

No, not human Morgana 🙅🏻‍♀️🙅🏻‍♀️.

Don't you get Harisen Recover at R.6?

I never knew he grunted/thinking noises if you stayed on the map too long. Honestly, I thought it was some sort of intestinal distress. I also didn't know they moved it outside, to the city in Strikers. I heard it one night when I was alone. Scared the shit out of me. Took me three times of hearing it to figure out what it was. Look, I'm happy they're giving Xander lines, but can they give him more than simple sentences and sound bites? I ain't saying he has to read the phone book, unless that's a key story beat.😋😋😍😍 But I wouldn't mind more lines. Let's hope Tactica gives some new lines, or at least said in a new way.

The fountain pen was sold in Shinjuku? 

think they changed the descriptions for the 2nd tier Personas new moves.

Unvoiced conversation.

Unvoiced conversation.

120,000 Yen=849.55 Dollars.

Unvoiced conversation.

Unvoiced conversation.

I love how Sojiro doesn't care that you take Morgana to school.

Unvoiced conversation.

So Kin-Ki lost his Psychic weakness.

I think they made Ren faster.

I love driving down every floor of Mementos.

Sneezing while frozen is an accomplishment.

High Counter used to be called Counterstrike.

Hole Gold🤨🤨

I confuse Neko Shogun and Nekomata for some reason.

I think when most of your team is statused. The AI should prioritize whoever can hit a weakness, or Ren. Because a dead leader is game over.

I didn't know in my first playthrough, that Harisen Recover worked on all teammates. I thought it was only you. Imagine my surprise the first time it activated for someone else.

He's going to backhand somebody one day.

I know it's the game keeping you from doing things. But damn, Morgana rules with an iron fist.

Slight different question. Macadamia nuts are expansive.

As much as I don't like Kawakami. I do hate that her romance response is delayed. When I romanced her to get the award. I thought I messed up and didn't hit a romance flag. (Like Takemi or Chihaya). I get why but, it still made me think I messed up.

Mishima used to text you after every completed Mementos Mission?🙃🙃

Softer "yes" after you help Kawakami. Royal's is a bit louder.

Dude, you pay so much more money for the Big Bang 🍔 challenge in the morning. I mean I'd heard that you pay more but not 700 and then 1,000 Yen more.

Ren's going to drop dead of a heart attack.

Unvoiced conversation.

I love how if you lose at the crane game enough. Morgana won't let you play it anymore that day.

I hated going to the Maid Cafe. 🙅🏻‍♀️🙅🏻‍♀️

Was there always a conversation on the night of 9/6?

I thought when you're on probation that you can't leave the country. Or is that house arrest?

Unvoiced conversation.

They moved the picture to after they get to Hawaii.

Sexy pics are a no go.

When they question how long you're staying and why. It sounds like they don't want you there. Reminds me of when sales people bug me too much in a store. I'll walk right out. Although, you can't get back on the plane.

I'd rather room with Ryuji than Mishima.

These trips seem like they're PR for the school.

"The good-looking one". Okay Mishima.👌🏻

Unvoiced conversation.

Random Yusuke.

Unvoiced conversation.

I don't think Ren is a big photo guy.

Unvoiced conversation.

I love the lei loading scene.

Wouldn't it be funny if Ryuji's roommate's girlfriend was Ann's roommate?🤣🤣

They never thought of sharing.

I love how all those options apply to Akechi.

I don't think "I don't have a type" is in Royal.

Poor Mishima. The tap water thing is Mexico. Not the US.

Think Hawaii's boring. Try Hawaii without much voice acting.

"You'll get fat". Dude is cruisin' for a bruising.

Are Garlic Shrimp really foreign? They sell them at restaurants over here in the US. I can't imagine it's hard to make.

Unvoiced conversation.

I'm sure Mishima could get a girlfriend if he didn't seem like an incel. That and the fact that I think if a girl hugged him he'd cream his pants.

Unvoiced conversation.

"Secret lover coming after me with an axe".🤣🤣

As funny as that is they don't know that they met Haru, yet.

Also, are the localizers British? They just stuck the gift scene in there. Bye, potato 👋🏻👋🏻

Morgana should talk to him. I know Ren would listen.

"Here's your gift". 🎁 "Your principal's dead".🤨🙄 Nice greeting. Why would they care?

Morgana's at fault because he doesn't talk about his problems. Ryuji's at fault because he repeatedly calls Morgana useless and says Makoto and Futaba are better than him. He gets impatient when they stake out Mementos. Then he says "We don't care if you're useless". 🦶=👄

Unvoiced conversation.

That's because the principal sucked.

Cute Akechi face x4.

Unvoiced conversation.

I love how Ren and Futaba are the only ones worried about Morgana.

Different question.

They added the Morgana lives here things in Royal. Claw marks on the table leg. Paw prints in the dust. I think there's one more, but I don't remember it.

Different sound for the holographic screens.

I love this scene in the anime. Ren's line is 😋😋😍😍 "It means to help the weak and dethrone the mighty".

Women can be evil too, Ryuji.

YouTube comments led me to believe Haru was the black mask.

Different question.

I've lost track of where Ren was in the Mementos scenes. Because he's allergic to colour. I mean sure he looks drop-dead gorgeous, but he also blends in.

Foot meet mouth.

So help me God, Ryuji. We were so close.

Ann so should've smacked him.

I think he jumps out of the way faster in Royal.

Unvoiced conversation.

Did they change Haru's dad's voice?

There's no turning back now. Jesus, does the game expect us to marry and have kids with whoever you date? Hasn't they ever heard of breaking up?

"You'll be awarded an extraordinary gift". Yeah, a trip to the hospital for bypass surgery or a trip to the morgue.

Different question.

No chest to the left when you enter.

Black Ooze in Okumura's? I mean it makes sense but...

Smarf man.

What a creep.

I wish you could choose who it kicks out when you get a new teammate.

There's a sound when you hit the safe room doors? Maybe my fan's just too loud.

Different layout.

How is there like nowhere to hide?

Munching on sweets? Oh! Are they talking about the real-life counterparts?

If Queen's Necklace is weak to Gun. Then what is Koh-I-Noor weak to?

We're burglars🤨🤨

He was alone where did the other two come from?

New cut scene.

Haru has 6 Ammo!? Why does it go down to 1 in Royal?

I like the way they did the eavesdropping sections.

Yusuke learns Counterstrike way later in Royal. Like 2 whole palaces later.

"We're not far".🤬🤬 It takes so long to get there.

Different layout.

The robot's bopping to the music.

Different layout.

Unvoiced conversation.

Lilim is weak to Gun, Wind and Bless?

I've never seen a Treasure Demon that knows healing moves or buffs/debuffs.

Different layout.

Different colours for the hydraulic presses.

Different sounds for them too.

Koh-I-Noor has no weakness?

No lasers. Different layout.

I always thought Ryuji's 2nd tier Persona had an "N" at the end.

The urge to use every Persona, just so I can hear his voice. 😋😋

Different sounds for breaking the arms.

I didn't know you could pause the timer by opening the menu.

Unvoiced conversation.

No lasers.

Unvoiced conversation.

I don't like the airlock puzzle. But at least you get a nice view. 😏😏

Scathath? I don't see her till Maruki in Royal.

Different switch noise.

Different layout.

Really wish they gave the option to leave directly after clearing a path to the treasure. They stopped doing that after Madarame.

Wait, you could get an invitation for the next day even if you went to the palace that day? In Royal, that doesn't work even if you use Kawakami. That's why you do Futaba as soon as it opens. So, you can get the aquarium date.

Mishima definitely creamed his pants.

Even Chihaya knows Mishima isn't your friend. 🤣🤣 I've never gotten that scene because I'm always battling Okumura. They straight up just leave him. 🤣🤣

Takemi used to sell Homunculus?

Unvoiced conversation.

Doesn't tell you how many items you can make.

3 categories instead of 2.

Elemental throwables were grouped together.

Couldn't make multiple at once.

Different question.

I don't like Life Will Change instrumental.

Taking the long way around.

No enemy there.

Oh yeah, we have to go the long way.

No dialogue after you hit the door.

So, a minute in Vanilla versus roughly 20 secs in Royal. Although, you do miss out on a chest. But it's nothing that game-breaking.

There's no way this dude would change. He's better off dead.

"I will crush you all". More like you'll use other people as cannon fodder. 🤬🤬

Why does the timer still run when the dialogue's going? I mean it's like seconds, but still.

I like how he backflips.

You have to do this without Haru's baton pass. 😨😨🤬🤬

Mix of robots makes it a bit harder.

Okay, he does add more if you don't beat all of them.

No targeting specific people.

Same number of waves.

I hate the Executive.

"I need sushi". 🤣🤣

The first time I used Izanagi-No-Okumi-Piacaro. The second I used Magatsu-Izanagi. Third and fourth I shot him.

He has a lot more health in Vanilla.

You could take him on at LV.40-42? In Royal, you should be at least 44-45 or higher.

"He'll be fine". 🤣🤣 If dead means fine, then sure. He'll be fine.

What made him change?

Unvoiced conversation.

Added a question to Iwai's R.1.

Unvoiced conversation.

You could get skill cards out of chests in Mementos?

Added a question to Shinya's R.1. 

I like Shinya.

Different question.

When Bullet Hail activates the camera angle changes slightly. Same for Treasure Demons, although there's a bit of pause when that happens. It pauses a bit with Disaster Shadows too.

Depending on how much money you have. Getting 100K Yen could potentially help you.

"Just make sure no one sees you". Sure Morgana, nobody's going to see me building bombs and lock picks in class.

"Please leave". 🤣🤣 Look I know Akechi reads more as a yandere in Vanilla, but holy shit. 🤣🤣

Even though Chihaya's older than you. Her romance is pretty cute.

Slightly different question.

I love all the Sonic references.

Morgana doesn't tell you if there's any targets left in the area. Nor does he tell you about where they are. You just have to keep going down and wait till he says something at the start.

Treasure Demons Null all elements they're not weak to. I've only seen that in Strikers, on Merciless. In Royal, they resist.

Also, Stone Of Scone is weak to curse, not fire.

Orlov is weak to curse and found in Sae's Palace.

Different question.

"You're always free". Damn, Futaba.🤣🤣 Poor man has to solve the whole of Tokyo's problems+save the world and you deliver that sick of a burn.

"It's not like there's any customers here". 🤣🤣

"You just had to get close to me". 🙄🙄 Dude, you're the one who wouldn't leave me alone! I've been trying to stay away from you!

"Please leave"x2

They moved Mishima-Dome Town back from 10-9 to 11-3. I've taken that meeting once. I wanted points on Shinya.

They turned 10-10 into a normal hangout. In Royal, you go to Nakano and meet Iwai.

Slightly different question.

"Oh please, give me a break". 🤣🤣 I love the way he says that.

[orcelito]

I don’t think I’ve mentioned it but I have been at a con

I... have bought more things than would be advisable. I’ll probably post about them later cause I love them.

Not done with the con yet but it’s almost done

Fun things: I saw the voice actors for naruto, sasuke, & Temari all in one panel!! Of course with sasuke that’s yuri lowenthal and I was so fuckin stoked. Went to a panel for just him answering general questions and tbh he’s such a chill dude. Put heavy emphasis on making sure everyone was safe and comfortable and encouraged us to reach out if we felt we weren’t. I grew to know his voice from yosuke and now ages later I’ve seen him in person & he’s really cool. I would’ve gone to his autograph session but the line was... so long. I did see them up close tho!!! I was leaving the bathroom after his panel and he was Right There, with his wife. Apparently she’d been in the bathroom with me lol, so I can say I have been in the bathroom with temari’s voice actress.

I also!!! Saw Axel’s voice actor. He’s pretty chill too, in a different way. It was a real relaxed panel. I also got to hear, in Axel’s voice, “Axel is bae”, Bc one of the fans said that & this guy was like “you know what? Axel IS bae.” I will always remember that.

[shadow-scenarios]

Hey, I hope you're okay right now! I know I still have an earlier request and if you can't write for it then I won't mind if you discard it and just do this instead. For the boys, what about a rich s/o who loves taking care of the boys, giving them gifts and just worry about them in general, but not in an overly clingy way, just sort of like casually? (Does that make sense I feel like it doesn't 😅)

Hey moonflowerpetals !! I’m doing pretty well, I’ve got a bunch of time off now so that hopefully means more writing.

I hope you don’t mind that I discarded the other one, I just wasn’t really sure what to write? This one was a lot easier though.

- Nexus.

Joker { Akira Kurusu }

✧ He really appreciates the gestures but often remarks about how they should be more careful with their money. If they were to listen out during conversation & buy something that he mentioned, Akira would be eternally grateful. Though he has a lot of funds, most of it goes to Phantom Thief business & he often struggles to know when to spend money on himself.

✧ Gifts are not particularly his thing, it is more that he likes to gift them to others. However, if they make something for him, his heart will soar & they may even catch a glimpse of a flustered Akira, as he cannot process anything to say. Even if it is only small, the amount of care they show makes him feel warm. No one has cared about him as much as they have.

✧ Taking care of Akira can be difficult... Quite often he ends up throwing aside his wants & needs for the sake of others. Though he claims that he is fine & that it is all for Phantom Thief business, being the primary source of emotional comfort in a variety of different situations can take a toll. Affection can go a long way & he appreciates simply being able to spend time together. Frankly, he is quite easy to please.

Skull { Ryuji Sakamoto }

✧ Treat him to a night out of unlimited ramen & he will love them forever. Though he has mainly simple wants, sometimes letting them pay for things makes him smile a little because they seem to care so much. The amount of money they have does not particularly matter to Ryuji, as he likes them for the way they are, not the things they have.

✧ He has the opposite problem of some of his friends. Sometimes is he a little to indulgent of what he wants so a significant other than can allow him to balance things such as school work & relaxation time could be good for them. Despite all his grumbling about having to revise for tests or completing homework, he finds himself grateful that they are there to make sure that he keeps on top of things.

✧ In return, Ryuji often helps them to unwind. Dates become common & he pays for a lot of things, even if they insist that they can. Although he feels as though his locations are often underwhelming compared to where they take him, he enjoys the urban areas of life such as the arcade. Besides, he feels out of place in anyplace that seems to be fancy.

Fox { Yusuke Kitagawa }

✧ Though he hates the idea of using his significant other for their money, he is broke to the point where sometimes he will struggle to feed himself. Gestures such as paying for lunch or a drink he bought without asking warms Yusuke’s heart & he expresses this freely.

✧ Talking to him about how he manages his own finances could be healthy as well, for he often impulse buys gifts or anything that he thinks would be good for him. Art often comes first & though he needs these supplies, purchasing two lobsters is not the best idea when Yusuke barely has the money to afford a train ticket back home.

✧ Most of their concerns should be about his diet. Yusuke commonly undereats, even if he tries his best to have a balanced diet. He is not purposely doing so but if they ever made him a meal, his gratitude would never be able to fully expressed. Aside from his disdain towards particularly spicy food, he is not all that picky.

Crow { Goro Akechi }

✧ Akechi is not vain in nature. Money is easily made from both the Metaverse & his sideshow as a detective but he is often quite cheap with his own selections. Even places such as his apartment are bare, lacking any signs of life aside from the paperwork scattering his desk. Giving him something to make the place feel more homely would be surely appreciated. Every time he comes back from work, he takes some time to look at what was gifted to him.

✧ Fancy dates are quite common, as Akechi finds it easier to play up the role of the charming detective in high class areas. At least once, there will be a small debate about who pays & it will often end with him insisting but failing to win the argument. Deep down, he appreciates the gesture a lot & he mentions this in private at least once or twice.

✧ Self-care is something he does not practise on the regular, as he does not believe himself to deserve it. If his significant other were to encourage it he would eventually come to accept it with a heavy heart. A lot of it involves simply staying at home & not working but it is a good start.

Word Count: 790

Publish Date: 22.10.20

[honeydots]

"61. “Were you drawing me?”" for the ask meme? 👀

“Were you drawing me?” 

akira sleeps in and yusuke takes advantage of that. because of COURSE if im given the opportunity to write shukita im going to take it of course i am 

-

(ao3 link)

-

Slugs were okay. 

Akira didn’t have much of an opinion on them, to be honest. Nothing negative. They were a little goopy, sure. But that wasn’t a bad thing. Sometimes you’re goopy and squishy and occasionally poisonous, it happens to everybody. Akira was sure he’d had a Saturday just like that. They were just little creatures. Slugging along. 

…That said, he didn’t like them much when they were on his face. He especially wouldn’t like them if they were the poisonous kind. He didn’t think these ones were, but still. That would be completely unpleasant. And then he’d be goopy until he died. Just terrible all around. 

But not these bad boys. Akira was sure they were just your everyday slug. Lucky for him! But they were still on his face. He didn’t really want that. Slug along anywhere else, please. He was trying to relax. This wasn’t the time. 

In his limited periods of consciousness, Akira often thought about how weird it was that he never realized when he was dreaming. Once he was in the dream, he was there. No second thoughts about it. The slugs were on his face now, and that’s where they belonged. But pointedly, again, they were not poisonous. Nice to know his subconscious wasn’t going for a gastropod themed execution. 

He woke up blissfully slug-free. Thank god. What a morning surprise that would’ve been. He also woke up alone, which wasn’t too unusual. Yusuke tended to be an early riser. Up and about, doing his creative stuff. He had picked up sculpting, recently. So far, he’d made a lovely bust of Isaac Newton (and if not him, it was a not-as-lovely bust of Haru), and a pistachio (this one really was a pistachio). Akira was happy he was expanding his repertoire, since he seemed to be enjoying himself. He was keeping busy, and he had a career after all. 

But the bed was meant for two. 

He shifted a bit, peeked his eyes open and, oh. He was surprised to see Yusuke sitting not far across from him. He was staring deeply into his sketchbook, very focused and very quiet. 

You know, he could always draw in bed. It’d be warmer that way. “Good morning.” Akira lazily stretched out his back. “Sketching?” 

Akira probably shocked him, because Yusuke jumped. He usually felt just a little bit bad when he did that, but today there was something mischievous dancing around in his brain. A tiny goblin who had wanted so desperately to cuddle, probably.

You and me both, Goblin-kun.

Yusuke looked up to him, and he seemed a little stoic. “You’ve awakened. Good afternoon. Please do not move.” 

Technical technical. Akira treated afternoons like mornings, anyway. He relaxed his body back down, trying to look as natural as possible. “Were you drawing me?” It wouldn’t surprise him. It’d hardly be the first time. Yusuke liked to make him blush by calling him things like his Muse, or his Starry Night, or his Lobster Fra Diavolo.

“Ah… I suppose,” said Yusuke. He swiveled a turn in his chair, and swept up a dab of paint with a brush. “Now, close your eyes again.” 

Akira did. So he was painting him. Again with Yusuke’s technicalities, his this’s and that’s. It was endearing. There was something very sweet about his specifics, since Akira knew he was included in them. 

He wondered if he could go back to sleep. If Yusuke wanted him to keep his eyes closed, the chances went up. He could already feel himself falling into it. Anyone who knew Akira was well aware that he wasn’t one to pass up opportunities to sleep in. Well, sleep in more than he already had. Yusuke knew better than to let him stay in bed, Akira couldn’t be blamed. And it was for art after all. 

But the afternoon did have plans for Akira. Goddamn. For example, something cold and wet being splattered onto his forehead. It was… weirdly familiar?

He jumped, but in like, a groggy half-awake confused boy way. “Ghh?” His eyes flickered open. Yusuke was there? He hadn’t heard him come over. “What are you…doing.” 

Yusuke remained focused as ever, eyes glued to, uh. Uh? “Akira, please. I do not want it in your eyes.” The wet spot moved and spread across his brow. 

The dots were sleepy and the lines were wiggling, but all connecting nonetheless. “Are you painting,” Akira said, flinching at the sloppy feeling, “on my face?” 

Yusuke lifted his paintbrush and looked very thoughtfully at the smear he’d created. “Do not speak much. I would hate for what has dried to crack.” He turned away, probably to get more paint. 

Akira squinted at him. It was already drying? As in drying drying? “How long have you been… at this.” 

Yusuke sighed, and shook his head. “Please, my love, if you must talk,” he said, turning back, “Try to be minimal. I will be finished soon.” 

He returned to Akira’s side, this time with a pool of paint on the back of his hand, probably for quick access. Akira stared silently at him. He wasn’t mad at all, more completely amused. Unique way to spend a morning. He’d woken up before with drawings on his face, but that was usually Futaba scribbling squiggles and mustaches with her sharpies. Oh, but he’d always get back at her for that. He’d refuse to wash it off and make her be seen with him, Mr. Sharpie Face Man, in the all forbidden public. She was one of those second-hand embarrassment people. 

Wow, the paint felt weird. He was all too aware of it sitting on his face. It was thick. And the actual spreading of it had been really strange. There were out of body experiences, and then there were all too aware of what is happening right now on your body experiences. Akira was the former. He was pretty surprised it hadn’t woken him up, actually. 

Wait. 

The slugs. 

The non-poisonous slugs. 

That made sense. 

Yusuke continued painting. Little swirls and pointed dots. Akira tried to guess what he was doing. The paint he had was blue, so maybe a bird? A fish? He was sure Yusuke would do something more outlandish, though. Maybe a bird with glasses. He wondered if Yusuke would let him name it. 

Inevitably, they made eye contact. Akira had been staring pretty relentlessly, and boy he was good at that. Yusuke held it for a moment, before something visibly clicked. There it was. Akira had been thinking about if he’d remember to answer. He didn’t, always. Yusuke had quite the way with concentration. He’d just about have to shake him out to come to dinner some nights. 

Yusuke had run out of paint on his hand, and he turned back to get more. A short silence hung. “A few hours,” he said. 

So, a while. His projects usually took a bit, so he was glad to hear this hadn’t been some all nighter. That could’ve been nice too, though, because then Yusuke would certainly take a nap. And of course then Akira would get to take a nap. Which would be great. But he’d have to wash all this paint off first. He hoped it would come off easy. 

It wasn’t like Yusuke had never painted on his body before. But that was usually, you know, doodling with a pen on his arm. Or some grand experiment on his back. Face painting wasn’t technically something to be considered out of the ordinary, but unconscious face painting was. Yusuke’s inspiration strikes were always charming. 

Akira watched as Yusuke readied his brush again. He felt him very gently move some hair out of his face. This wasn’t really a view Akira usually got. Hello there. Thank goodness he was nearsighted. 

But, all good things must come to an end. Yusuke looked down at him. “It really is imperative you shut your eyes, now. This would sting.” 

He probably spoke from experience. He already knew Yusuke had drunk paint water before. It was an accident, he said, but it wasn’t like he couldn’t also accidentally get paint in his eyes. Akira also doubted that the paint water incident was entirely accidental. He had evidence. But, despite all that, he heeded his advice. Yusuke was kind enough to wait until he did so. Akira wondered how long it would take for Yusuke to just start painting, anyway. 

He felt the brush fit into his eye socket and curve around down, above his cheek bone. Very confident but delicate strokes across his eyelid, and then repeated on the other side. He decided this was much better than slugs. Though still just as goopy.  

The brush lifted, and did not come back down. “There,” Yusuke began, “Now, please remain very still. I will return in just a moment.”  

Akira obliged, keeping his eyes shut tight but careful not to scrunch. He heard footsteps, and a door opening. Yusuke was probably getting their camera. They’d bought a very nice once for situations like this. Non-portable art, or anything that would wash away. Akira supposed he wouldn’t mind being on display for an art show. Ehh, that was, as long as it didn’t last too long. He didn’t really get fidgety, but he did get bored. 

He heard Yusuke come back, accompanied by some clicking and clunking. He probably also brought in a light, since he tended to be very particular about his art pictures. Akira appreciated that his face-canvas was being given such fancy treatment. He hoped he was doing the art justice. 

There was shuffling. The sound of curtains opening. The buzz of a lamp. And eventually, many, many clicks. Yusuke always took bunches of pictures, with light adjustments and in different positions. He’d learned how to use a camera very well, at this point. Akira was glad to see it, because initially Yusuke had been a little helpless with one.

He took pictures all the time now. It was much more convenient, since instead of pulling over and waiting thirty minutes for Yusuke to be satisfied with a sketch, they’d pull over and spend just ten minutes taking pictures. They still had to leave an hour early for events, but they were late less often. They were also a little poorer, because memory cards didn’t come cheap. Yusuke’s new cocaine, he guessed. 

The clicking went off and on. Akira sat through it, beginning to drift back to sleep again. When Yusuke had said ‘afternoon’ that could’ve meant 12:01, right? Which meant it would be perfectly reasonable to sleep for a few more hours. Just a little catnap. He’d bet anything Morgana was still sleeping. And how was that fair? 

He was thoroughly lost in cat-jealousy thoughts, and did not notice the clicking stop. So, the sound of Yusuke’s voice scared him right out of his drowsiness. “You can move about now. I’ve finished.” Gah. 

So, no naps for him. Yet. But Akira guessed he was getting a little bit cramped anyway. He stretched out again, properly this time, and opened his eyes. He watched as Yusuke turned off the extra light, and carefully put the camera down. 

Yusuke looked to Akira and smiled very sweetly. Akira smiled back, entirely sure he probably looked very silly. His whole face was (presumably?) blue, after all. He was still thinking of a bird name. 

Yusuke sat down at the foot of their bed. He fiddled a bit with his fingers, and scratched at the drying paint on his hands. A learned habit.“I do hope you slept well.” 

“Mm,” Akira replied, pushing himself up. “I think you gave me weird dreams.” He felt around a little for his glasses. If paint got on them, oh well. He’d curse the glasses god today. He wanted to see. 

Yusuke reached out and picked up Akira’s pair. “Did I?” He handed them to him. 

This tended to be a typical morning procedure. “Thanks.” He was pretty sure Yusuke’s hands were covered in paint. Maybe it was inevitable his glasses would get messy. “You did.”  

“I apologize. You seemed to be sleeping quite soundly.” 

“Don’t worry about it.” Vision at last. 

Yusuke seemed relieved. Akira was sure if he told him about his slug encounter, he would take a good fifteen minutes connecting it to art and philosophy. Which would be fine, but Akira’s face was kind of itchy and scratchy. He could tell him later. He picked at it a bit. 

It wasn’t like Yusuke wouldn’t notice, obviously, but it probably gave him the wrong idea. “The paint is thoroughly non-toxic. There is nothing to worry about.” He rubbed hard on his hand. 

Akira wasn’t worried. There were things to worry about with Yusuke, but he wouldn’t consider this one of them. Yusuke was particular, it was a completely defining trait of his. No, Akira would not trust him with their grocery money. He would also not trust him left alone in a candy store. But he was considerate, and precise, and attentive. Especially to his art. And especially, Akira would bashfully admit, to him. 

He could still tease him a little though. “It’s not at all?” 

Yusuke straightened himself up. Which was a little bit funny to watch with his typically impeccable posture. It was more like he shuffled his shoulders around and puffed out his chest. “Absolutely. I would never let you near such toxins, not even dream of such a thing.” It was hard to not constantly give Yusuke fond looks. 

He failed. He was a fond look giving machine. “So a kiss would be fine?” He grinned a very bluish grin. Give him a smooch, art boy. It would probably be better than paint water. Actually, he really really hoped it would be better than paint water.

“Ah.” Yusuke said, giving a sigh. “An innocent request turned devilish, I see.” Yusuke was also a fond look giving machine. They could make it a competition. The most sugary and sweet one in the world. The kind that would give Morgana hairballs, the poor cat. 

Akira didn’t say anything. He looked at Yusuke, guilty but not regretful, and waited. It was only a little devilish, he thought. He could do much worse. He could do better, too. But there was no fun in that. 

Yusuke stood up, and walked right up next to Akira, standing just where he was before. Akira gave him an innocent look; he was good at those, and it made Yusuke smile. Which was only more reason to get even better at them. Lying at interrogations was just an added bonus.

Yusuke was an all or nothing kind of guy. Akira knew this. So he wasn’t surprised when Yusuke cupped his face and leaned down, to give him a kiss, first on the cheek, then on the lips. Soft and sweet. Lovey and dovey. 

Akira was very unhappy to see that when they pulled away, a grand total of none of the paint had gotten onto Yusuke. A foiled plan. He wiped at his lips anyway. How rude, you mean to say he didn’t want second-hand (second… face?) paint on his mouth? Like some kind of moderately health conscious member of society? You drank paint water, Yusuke. You’ve eaten grass before, Yusuke! The thought made him chuckle.

“What is it?” Yusuke asked, sitting himself down on the bed. 

He probably wouldn’t appreciate the thought. “Nothing.” Akira fiddled with a piece of hair. “Did you get the picture you wanted?” 

The question made Yusuke beam. “Indeed. I took several. Adjustments do need to be made, however.” 

“That’s good.” He was glad Yusuke had become accustomed to editing digital photos. He was very against it at first, pretty much because he didn’t really understand what the editing was. Not like, photoshopping things in. Just things like saturation and lighting. This was another little hobby he’d picked up. He had never accidentally recreated Isaac Newton in Adobe, though. 

“I will most certainly show you the completed product.” 

“I’ll look forward to it,” Akira said. His nose itched. Not really in a sneezy way, but it was annoying him. He wanted to sniff, but he also didn’t exactly want to snort up Yusuke’s project. Yucky. “I think I want to wash this off, now.” 

“Ah, of course.” Yusuke moved to let Akira off the bed. He hovered there quietly as Akira got up, and followed him to the bathroom. 

Okay? “What’s up?” 

Yusuke pressed his lips together. “Oh. I simply wanted to help you. As a penance, perhaps.” 

Akira scoffed. “Strong word.” He didn’t mind Yusuke helping. He’d probably need it, or he’d give up halfway and finish by midnight. What wasn’t inherently tender about getting paint rubbed off your face. Ugh, and the peeling. It wasn’t a super great smell, either. He was gonna have such a look going on for this. Cute. 

They walked in. Akira turned on the light and readied himself for a face scrubbing. He wondered if there had been any that got in his hair. That would suck getting out. He looked in the mirror, his mind set on checking, and thoroughly surprised himself at his reflection. 

So the bird guess? He was kind of sort of close. 

He’d made his whole face very lightly blue. There were feathers painted around his eyes that very gracefully formed into wings bending out and upwards towards his forehead. Little patterns of flowers and leaves framed his face and fell in swooping designs. It was all done in different shades of blue, you had to really look at it to see all the detail. Except on his cheeks. In a thick gold sat long tears, layered on top of each other. They traveled all the way down to his chin. 

It was pretty. 

He wanted to touch it.

He pressed his fingers into his cheeks, and squished upwards. It was sticky, and it didn’t give way much. But the farther he went, the more it moved. It got on his hands. He was all smudgy now. This was incredible. 

He was also being watched. “I’m not sure that’s the most effective way.” Yusuke commented.

“I feel like,” Akira kept on squishing, “the slime in those stim videos.” 

He laughed lightly at that. “I suppose we do all experience art in our own ways.” 

Akira watched Yusuke absentmindedly through the mirrors reflection, while still giving his face a very blue massage. He grabbed a rag, and turned on warm water. He also took out a bottle from one of their cupboards. Yusuke had all sorts of painting things stored away, so it wasn’t all that surprising. Akira had found about eight bottles of acetone in Yusuke’s dorm room years ago. He remembered gaining a certain understanding of Yusuke’s budgeting problems.

He placed his materials down. “Will you be satisfied soon?” He asked, now watching him closely. 

Akira paused mid-squish. He looked at Yusuke from the corner of his eye. “You want to give it a try?” Why not. 

Yusuke blinked at him. And then visibly considered it.

“I’ve no reason to object, I suppose.” 

Double the squish. This probably could’ve gone fifty-fifty. Akira dragged his fingers off his face, careful not to touch anything. They didn’t need a blue bathroom too. He held his own hands, and let Yusuke reach over to him. 

Yusuke, who gave this a little more forethought than Akira had, removed his glasses first. Yeah, smart move. He couldn’t exactly wear them while they washed his face, anyway. He followed Yusuke’s hands as best he could when he put the glasses down, and followed them back up as he rested his palms on Akira’s face. 

He pressed inwards and held him there for a second, and then moved his palms farther up just past his cheekbones. It made Akira quietly giggle, just quick little exhales. It felt way weirder when someone else was doing it. Not that it hadn’t felt a bit weird when he’d done it himself. 

Yusuke was smiling too. Akira was very adamantly keeping his eyes open, which sometimes proved to be a challenge. He was gonna sit there and stare him down like this was the height of romance. 

Yusuke placed his thumbs on the crook of Akira jawline, and swiped with his fingers outwards on his cheeks. He stayed there. Akira leaned into it. “Having fun?” 

Yusuke tapped his fingers. “As much as you will let me.” 

Akira nestled himself farther into Yusuke’s hands. It scrunched his face up more. He felt so squashed. Now this was amore. He was the king of romance. 

It made Yusuke laugh, just a little. “You know, we are wasting water.” 

In reply, Akira (very masterfully) kept as blank as an expression as possible while giving him fish lips. 

That got a real laugh out of Yusuke, and he took his hands away. It was always nice to get laughs out of him. He didn’t used to often. That was, other than his occasional hearty chuckle when he was feeling an odd kind of inspired. Akira liked those ones, too.

Yusuke scrubbed his hands as well as he could in the water, and then wet down the rag. “Let us get to work, then.”

He was very gentle, wiping off big pieces and rinsing the rag whenever it got cold. Alright, this may have been better than Akira had anticipated. Yusuke was considerate and routined. Working through section after section, and making sure no water dribbled down onto his clothes. It was almost nice, even with the inevitable scrubbing that came with it. Yusuke picked up the mystery bottle. Akira gave it a look.

Yusuke had always been good at reading him. “It is coconut oil.” He unscrewed the cap. “Oils do well to get paint off of skin.” 

He made a little noise of understanding, and Yusuke went back to his work. It was less rough this time. He felt super greasy, though. He was pretty sure coconut oil was good for your face? Maybe this would turn out to be a miniature spa session. He wondered if Yusuke was any good at nail art. 

“Close your eyes, now,” said Yusuke. Akira was also pretty sure coconut oil was not good for the eyes. Just a wild guess. He did as he was asked, and Yusuke went to work, very careful on his eyelids. Very very careful around his eyes.

That reminded him. “I have a question.” 

Yusuke hardly hesitated. “Anything.” 

“Why was I crying?”

Yusuke stopped, just for a moment. “Ah,” A silence sat. “It was only that, in your rest… you simply seemed horribly melancholic.”

He sounded so sad. 

And Akira about choked. 

Yusuke retreated immediately. “Have I gotten some in your mouth? I am terribly sorry.” Understandable question, he’d made him start coughing like a maniac. 

He cleared his throat. He was fine, he was chill. “No, don’t worry. That’s not it.” He wiped around his eyes. Oil was kind of gross, actually. 

“Oh.” 

He should probably elaborate. Yusuke looked confused. “It’s just funny you say I looked sad.” He leaned down onto the counter. “I was dreaming about slugs.” Or, the everlasting woes of slugs, apparently. 

Yusuke paused. Processing, a little bit. “Slugs… you say?” 

Slugs… he said. “Yep.”

“Were they… causing you any discomfort?”

Akira shook his head. “They were just hanging out.”

Yusuke was obviously considering this. It made him smile too, of course, but he was certainly lost in thought. 

He’d come to his conclusion. “Perhaps they meant something more profound. The ways of the subconscious are ever mysterious.” He wet down the rag again, and poured more coconut oil. 

Did they need that much? “Maybe.” 

Apparently, they did. Less is more, but more is also more. He started up again, lightly scrubbing. “You know, due to ancient influences, a slug is considered to be more of a spiritual being than an earthly being. In symbolism, that is.”

“Is it now?” He’d known this would happen. Of course it would, it was Yusuke. He always kept little random pieces of knowledge about symbolic references in art and literature. 

Which, you know, was fine. He was happy to hear it. He was covered in paint and coconut oil, sure, but they were working on it. Sometimes, this was what your days were like. Lazy, and a little slimy. He hoped that his skin would glow like goddamn Polaris after this.

They’d fly down a list of topics, starting at one point and ending at another. Yusuke would lose himself in talking, and Akira would always love to listen. 

So, the morning ended the way it began. Feeling goopy.

And slugs. 

[nexttrickanvils]

Day 5 of @shuharuweek: AU/Song & Dance

Yup it’s time for more roleswap AU. So enjoy Haru starting up the Empress Confidant. ;)

Title: Foolish Empress: Empress Confidant Rank 1

Characters: Fool!Haru, Empress!Akira, Morgana, others are there briefly

---------

It was official… the Phantom Thieves were low on money.

Then again Haru shouldn’t be too surprised. After all between buying new weapons for everyone and buying a cell phone for Yusuke so he could actually communicate with the rest of the team it was no wonder that their funds were low.

Haru pulls up the group chat to let everyone know what was going on.

HARU:  Some bad news. I just looked at our funds and we’re running low. We may have to make do with our current equipment and supplies.

ANN: Can’t we just hold up some Shadows in Mementos?

RYUJI: Yeah but we just finished up Madarame’s palace. I wanna take a break before we get back to work.

HARU: I agree with Ryuji-kun, I don’t want you all to overwork yourselves.

YUSUKE: I apologize. I know you three had to use that money for this phone and equipment for me.

ANN: Yusuke, don’t. You needed a phone and like hell was Madarame gonna give you one.

RYUJI: Yeah and we couldn’t let you face shadows without good stuff. Plus we all bought new junk so it ain’t all on you.

YUSUKE: I appreciate your words but that still leaves us with our current situation.

HARU: I guess the best option would be take a job. I saw some job postings at the subway, maybe I can take a look at those.

ANN: You sure Haru? You just said you didn’t want us to overwork ourselves.

HARU: I’ll be fine Ann-chan, thank you.

With that Haru closed the app and put her phone away. From his spot next to her on the bed, Morgana gives her a concerned look.

“I think Lady Ann has a point. You can’t lead Les Fantômes if you exhaust yourself.” said Morgana

Haru smiles in response and starts petting her (not) feline companion

“I appreciate that you’re all looking out for me but we can’t solely rely on the Metaverse for our money. I promise that I’ll be looking for something that’s simple and won’t take too much time.”

“...Well I should come with you and help, just in case.”

Haru briefly thinks of saying to Morgana that he’s always with her outside but instead she just thanks him.

---------

“How about this one? It’s that beef bowl place in Shibuya.” Morgana said as he looked at the flyer from over Haru’s shoulder

“I don’t know. I’ve been there with Ryuji once. It was so crowded and there weren’t a lot of people working that night.”

“Maybe it won’t be so bad if they hired more people.”

“I suppose, let’s consider it a “maybe.””

So far the job search turned out to be more difficult than Haru thought. There certainly wasn’t a lack of openings but for one reason or another they simply didn’t fit what Haru was looking for. One didn’t work because she was too young to apply, another was too strict with its scheduling, and so on.

“This one won’t do at all.”

But she refused to give up.

“Hm… not this one.”

There had to be something…

“No...”

...Just right…

“Oh! Mona-chan look at this one!”

Rafflesia Flower Shop Now Hiring!

Located in Underground Mall at Shibuya Station

Looking for charming employees to build and give our customers their dream bouquets.

Willing to provide flexible hours

Starting salary is 3200 yen.

Haru smiles as she pulls out her phone and calls the number on the flyer.

---------

“Thank you for taking this position, Kurusu-chan. I can tell that you’ll be a very good fit for Rafflesia.”

Haru gave her thanks to Hanasaki-san as she tied the apron around her waist.

“Now Kurusu-chan since this is your first day, I’m going to ask you to shadow me and Amamiya-kun. We’ll do the work and you observe us and try to learn the ropes.”

“Amamiya-kun?”

“Another employee, he’ll be here soon. Just keep your eye out for a young man about your age with dark hair and glasses. Now let’s get to work shall we?”

Haru did as she was told for the shift, learning as much as she can about the job from Hanasaki-san, and all the while keeping her eyes out for someone matching her co-worker’s description.

She was in the middle of watching her boss put together a bouquet of scarlet roses, care-nation, and justice jasmines when Amamiya-san arrived.

He was just as Hansaki-san described though Haru couldn’t help but giggle a little over how his headband was just barely containing his mess of hair. Thankfully he didn’t seem to hear (or mind) Haru’s laughing and instead went straight to their boss.

“I apologize for taking so long Hanasaki-san.”

“It’s no problem. Kurusu-chan, this is Ren Amamiya. Amamiya-kun, this is our new hire, Haru Kurusu. She’ll be shadowing you for the rest of the shift. So give her a good example to follow, alright?”

“Heh, heh, don’t worry I will.”

Amamiya then turned to Haru and smiled. For a brief moment she felt her breath caught in her throat.

“It’s nice to meet you Kurusu-chan. It’s good for have an extra set of hands here.”

“Oh! I-I I’m glad to be here.”

For the rest of the shift, Haru watched and followed Amamiya-kun. His passion for the job was something to be admired. He happily explained the different meanings of each flower, connecting those meanings to the type of bouquets people wanted, and really laid on the charm for the customers.

Honestly Haru found herself blushing more than once.

She was so focused on him, that she almost didn’t notice when Hanasaki-san approached her with an envelope of money.

“Here’s your pay for today. It’s just standard wages. Good work, Kurusu-chan. Come back again when you have the time.”

“Thank you, I will.”

She waved good-bye to her co-workers and made her way to the train back to Yongen-Jaya

---------

As soon as the bell rung, Haru made her way upstairs to meet with Ann and Ryuji to discuss going into Mementos today.

Just as she reached the second-year’s floor, Haru found herself nearly crashing into another student.

“Oh, my apologies...!”

“It’s fine Kurusu-chan I wasn’t looking where I was going and...”

Wait “Kurusu-chan?”

Haru looked up to face the student and found herself at a loss for words.

The boy in front of her wore a black sweater over his school turtleneck but what caught her attention was his messy dark hair and grey eyes. If he pulled his bangs back and wore a pair of glasses he’d look just like...

“...Amamiya-kun?”

“I-I’m sorry! Y-you must have me mistaken for-for s-some... ” and with that the boy rushed downstairs.

---------

The next day, Amamiya-kun didn’t arrive at work. Hanasaki-san had said that he called in sick but after what happened yesterday, Haru couldn’t help but worry. Why did he run away when she recognized him? Not to mention how different he was from the charming confident young man at the flower shop. Was he hiding something?

Whatever was wrong, she wanted to help him. She wasn’t going to let someone struggle in silence.

For the next few days at school, Haru kept her eyes open for Amamiya. She tried to ask around about him but anyone who was actually willing to talk to her only seemed to vaguely know who she was talking about.

She finally found him one day, exiting the library with a small stack of books.

“There you are!”

The dark-haired boy froze and looked at Haru with a nervous expression.

“Please don’t run away. I just wanted to talk, I’ve been worried about you.”

“Wait… Worried? About me?”

“You haven’t been to work since we bumped into each other the other day. Is there something the matter Amamiya-kun? Please whatever it is, I want to help...”

With some hesitance, Amamiya walked toward Haru.

“I’ll explain, just follow me.”

The two make their way outside the building and eventually sat down in one of the alcoves by the vending machines.

Amamiya looks around to see if anyone was near, takes a deep breath, and faces Haru.

“The truth is… my name isn’t Ren Amamiya. It’s Akira. The glasses and the headband are part of the… mask I wear for lack of a better word.”

“Why use a fake name? Why disguise yourself… are you in trouble Ama… I mean Akira-kun?”

Akira sighs, “No but I would be. Certain people in my life… wouldn’t approve of my choice of hobby. They want me to be more of a proper gentleman and well “proper gentlemen ” don’t plant and tend flowers. So I came up with the disguise so I could just get away from my regular life and do something I love. When you recognized me here, I was afraid that word would spread and everyone would find out.”

Haru sadly stares at him. She can’t imagine what it must be like to hide your passion in such a way. Without even thinking, Haru places her hand on top of Akira’s.

“Kurusu-chan?”

“Please, just call me Haru. And I promise Akira-kun, your secret is safe with me. You obviously care about working at the shop and it makes you happy. I never want to take that away from you. And if you ever need someone to confide in, I’ll be there.”

A tinge of pink covers Akira’s cheeks before he smiles.

“I… thank you Haru-chan.”

Haru squeezes Akira’s hand as she can feel a new power within her and time seeming to stop.

---------

She felt dizzy, her mouth was dry, and everything hurt.

Haru faced Niijima-san who seemed to pondering something.

“One of your later jobs involved probing into a certain conglomerate. There’s a possibility you even infiltrated their company building. Perhaps you had some sort of connection… Tell me about this person.”

Just as before with Niijima-san’s previous questions about her confidants, Haru stayed silent.

---------

I am thou, thou art I…

Thou hast acquired a new vow.

It shall become the wings of rebellion

That breaketh thy chains of captivity.

With the birth of the Empress Persona,

I have obtained the winds of blessing that

Shall lead to freedom and new power…

Akira cleared his throat and Haru immediately pulled her hand away.

“I’m sorry, I just kind of...”

“N-no it’s fine. I just… I know I already said it but thank you. I’ll be back at Rafflesia in a couple days. Then… then maybe I’ll take you up on your offer. I should head home now, my father’s… well I don’t want to worry him. I’ll see you later, Haru-chan.”

“See you later, Akira-kun.”

She waved goodbye as Akira walked away. However she soon heard a familiar laugh from her bag. Haru quickly opened it up and found Morgana grinning like… well like the cat that caught the canary.

“Mona-chan, I thought you were napping! How much of that did you hear?”

“Enough. Don’t worry I won’t tell anyone about your boyfriend.”

With that Haru zipped her bag back up, stood up, and made her way to the station. All the while ignoring Morgana’s protests.

[youmeanlove]

all of them for yusuke !!!!!!!!!

SCREAMS thank you SO much im bout to end this mans (my wish to keep answers short) whole career 

update: sorry this took so long i decided to become a novelistKJF LITERALLY its so long thank you soooo much for sending this ask i had a field day

fresh mown grass: what is your f/o’s favorite scent? does it remind them of anything specific?

paint is the obvious answer so ofc that but he rly likes the smell of a smoked out kitchen. probably because thats what happens every time he tries to experiment w food but it still makes him happy to hav fun with it

pastel sunrise: what was your f/o’s first impression of you? yours of them?

hehehe…he thought i dressed really weirdJFJF he was like one part intrigued one part ‘wtf ew’ but either way boy did he stare at me! for like, minutes straight because he has no self awareness. once we started talking he thought i was um..like, inspiring i guess. that sounds conceited but he just thought i was a cool ‘care-free’ model of life! i thought umm..he was very tall and kind of intimidating! i felt bad because the other students shunned him for being involved with his mentor nd thought he could do with like, literally any social interaction. i thought he was really kind, despite being very straightforward w everything! OH and i thought it was admirable how focused on his passions he was

blooming flowers: what is your f/o’s favorite part of nature? do they even have one?

the ocean!!!! we went to the beach once and he went ape over how the moon looked reflecting over the water

four leaf clover: does your f/o have any good luck charms or superstitions? do you? do the two of you share any?

yusukes really superstitious actually! unlucky words/numbers and stuff like that. one time he broke a comb on accident and threw it across the room lmao. we both go absolutely ham and wont sleep w/ our heads to the north bc we dont feel like dying young

ocean breeze: have you and your f/o ever traveled together? what is your dream vacation?

hoyah! we dont travel because we’re both poor ass art students but we do go to the park a lot! theres some really pretty ones near the schools so we’ll go stare at geese and flowers n stuff! we talk a lot about traveling to spain bc sexy

lemonade stand: what is your f/o’s favorite beverage? and yours?

yusuke my mans rly likes lemonade but like when its kinda bitter? he doesnt like really sweet foods but lemonade and tea are 👌👌. i really like cola uwu

fireflies: how do you light up your f/o’s life?

hehHEHE U///U show that boy how to have fun!! let himself go and chill out sometimes!! he’s always so hard on himself and i help him remember that he doesn’t need to be so focused and stressed all the time anymore!! lov that guy

music festival: what is your favorite type of music? your f/o’s? any overlap between your favorite genres?

yusuke likes chill out music like classical and stuff because hes a NERD and it helps him focus on work! i’m a speedcore rat. we both like swing music because we’re gay

pumpkin latte: what is your guilty pleasure as a couple? 

sometimes we drink juice out of the carton and put it back in the fridge because like who has time for cups..nasty nasty. also idk if this counts but we’ll take those stupid buzzfeed quizzes for like an hour and judge our results OH we stan ‘accidetally’ falling asleep in our day clothes bc we were too tired to change

costume shop: do you wear couples’ halloween costumes? what’s your favorite thing the two of you have ever gone as?

HELL YEAH WE DOOOOO yusuke was like dude remember that time i turned into a mouse can i dress up like a mouse and you dress up as a giant block of cheese and i was like (slaps the desk) absolutely babe

cozy sweater: how does your f/o make you feel secure and safe?

ahejegfahjkgehaheehaejh tall. hes vv straightforward to every1 so i know he’ll always have my back if someone does something to upset me! and he’s always like Bro You Are So Beautiful Dont Ever Say You Arent Bro I Love You Bro except he doesnt say bro ofc hes Fancy

bonfire: what’s one thing your f/o has done to warm your heart?

ONE TIM OH one time he told me that i was one of the few ppl that never rly seemed like i judged him for not being very good at social stuff and that it made him want to talk to even more ppl and like get his childhood back and im :”) also one time he let me hide a stray cat in his dormKJF

ski slope: do you and your f/o play any sports or do any athletic activities together?

lol no we both have an iron deficiency we dont do anything about. we do like to play hand clappy games a lot tho he can beat my ass in slide

snowball fight: how do you and your f/o playfully tease each other?

HONESTLYFKJF we dont tease each other that much bc like. yusuke literally doesnt understand teasing most of the time and i cant bring myself to risk hurting his feelings! i jokingly made fun of his emo bang once and he was like What Is My Hair Bad Should I Get It Cut Do You Not Like It and i was like OH NOOOO!! he doesnt rly know how to tease either but its okay we just compliment each other a lot! no room for teasing in this house

gift wrap: what’s the best present your f/o has ever given you? what’s their favorite present they’ve gotten from you?

OH MY GOSH eheh one time he gave me a winter coat and that sounds lame but it was the best thing to ever happen to me bc i had been talking for like 3 weeks abt how gosh darn cold it was and this poor fool bought me a whole coat!!! raaaaaa!! yusukes fave present i bought him would probably be okay this also sounds silly but a dvd player! he kept buying dvds that were interesting and then realizing that he couldnt watch them anywherejkhf

rosy cheeks: tell us about a time your f/o has made you blush!

hehHEHEEJH okay so at lunch we used to trade so that id give him like food and hed draw me something bc his foster dad be like (whips and dabs) financial abuse but anyway his sketches used to be like scenic stuff or still life or random stuff he happened to see outside while we ate but then one time he gave me a sketch of me!! and was like cause u looked rly nice today i had to draw it and BOYYY WHEN I SAY A BITCH WAS RED!!!!!!!

OKAYFKJF I WROTE WAY TOO MUCH THANK U SO MUCH LEGEND im in love with an anime boy

[leonalmalsy]

In my version of Persona 5, Ryuji’s Mom would be the Team Mom.

I’ve been replaying Persona 5 in conjunction with the new anime when a thought came to me. If Sojiro is the Team Dad, then Ryuji’s Mom should be Team Mom. Think about how awesome it would be to watch his mom interact with the Phantom Thieves

I see her as a woman with fading black hair. She would have a sweet smile. But you’d be able to see some bags around her eyes. She has a job that requires her to be out of the house by seven in the morning and can’t get home until five. In her spare time, she makes charms (ofuda) to sell for extra cash. She will give you one every time you visit her. These charms act like buffs and debuffs. Also, there is a random chance that she will give you one that will increase experience or money.

Ryuji would introduce his friends to his mother quite early. The gang would watch how differently he is with his mom and be confused. He doesn’t swear. He helps out around the apartment. He’s a complete 180 around her. Sometimes, she calls him Ryu-chan, a name that makes him embarrassed when she says it. Of course, she’ll have baby pictures that she’ll pull out to show. As much as his friends may tease him, they can see how much he loves his mom.

Each of the Phantom Thieves would have a different interaction with his mom. (Let’s call her Aya for simplicity.)

Morgana: Morgana is there with Ren when he meets Aya. Of course, all she sees is a cat. She can’t understand what he is saying. Morgana can’t believe it. He was expecting someone just like Ryuji, loud and obnoxious in his own words. He can’t fathom how someone like her is his mother. Aya, for her part, treats him like the cat that he is. She asks Ren to pet him. Morgana doesn’t want to be treated like another cat but Ren makes him do it, just to make Aya happy. Aya starts petting Morgana scratching his belly. At first, Morgana struggles. But then, Aya finds that one spot that actually makes him purr. How can Ryuji’s mom have such magic fingers? It’s worth being a cat for fingers like this.

Ann: Aya remembers Ann from middle school. She comments that Ann’s become a beautiful young woman. They bond over middle school memories. Aya brings out the dolphin that Ryuji bought for her. He blushes and begs his mom not to bring up that incident but she can’t help it. He was so cute at that age. Aya would ask if she could brush Ann’s long hair. Of course, she would agree. Aya is gentle with the brush and hums a melody that Ann doesn’t recognize. Ann, for her part, begins to tear up at the kindness Aya has and wishes that she was this close to her own mother. Accidentally calls Aya mom by mistake during one brush session, making Ryuji blush. Aya is fine with it.

Yusuke: Aya doesn’t understand how Ryuji is friends with Yusuke considering they have completely different interests. Yusuke sees Ryuji’s apartment and is amazed on its kitsch design. Neither Ryuji nor Aya understand what he means by that. Yusuke is immediately inspired to draw. Needless to say, it is quite avant-garde. But Aya takes it in stride. She notices that Yusuke is rail-thin and asks if he is eating properly. Yusuke replies that he eats thin rice soup and soba noodles once a day. His stomach growls, embarrassing him. Aya decides to give him a meal. Yusuke will try to object but Aya has none of that. She resolves to feed him every time he comes to their apartment. He may be a bit strange but that doesn’t mean she should be a discourteous host.

Makoto: Aya knows she is the student council president since the beginning of the school year. She gave a speech in front of the students and parents. Aya is glad that Ryuji is friends with her. Perhaps his grades will improve. (A mother can dream.) Makoto helps Ryuji with his homework, even though very little of it sticks with him. She also asks if she can help Aya with the cooking. Aya smiles and says that she could never ask that of a guest. Makoto insists on putting out the plates and cutlery. Aya knows that Makoto won’t take no for an answer here so she relents. Eating like this reminds Makoto of the times she had dinner with her father and sister. Now, she spends most of her time eating alone ever since her sister changed, becoming more and more obsessed with getting ahead in life. When she realizes that she said that out loud, Aya tells her that she is welcome to have dinner with them any time.

Futaba: It’s difficult for Futaba to open up to Aya. The death of her mother is still fresh in her memories. Plus, she has a hard time talking to strangers. For three visits, Futaba curls up into a ball. Aya doesn’t take it personally. She patiently waits while taking care of some housework. On the fourth visit, Aya asks Futaba if she wants to help her make cookies. Futaba is a bit reluctant but agrees. They make a big mess together but it’s still a lot of fun. After cleaning up and putting the cookies in the oven, Aya notices that Futaba’s glasses are a little crooked. Without thinking, she adjust it for Futaba. This small action reminds her of her mother. Futaba breaks down crying. When Aya asks why, she tells her that that was something her mom use to do. Aya puts a friendly hand on Futaba’s head and tells her that it was a sign that her mother loved her very much. Now, every time Futaba comes over, they make cookies.

Haru: Haru meets Aya after the death of her father. Ryuji tells his mom about Haru’s situation. Without even thinking, Aya hugs her. Haru breaks down in tears. She feels so conflicted about her father. On one hand, he is responsible for the suffering of his employees and the mental shutdowns of his competitors. On the other hand, he’s still her father and she still has so many good memories of who he used to be. Aya tells her that it’s okay to feel conflicted. After getting to know Haru, they bond over gardening. Haru asks if Aya would like to work for her, promising her better money and better hours. Aya smiles and declines. As hard as she works, she does enjoy her job. Haru does give Aya some of the vegetables she grows at Shujin, telling her that she’s giving them to Ryuji’s mom so she can get honest feedback on its taste. Aya realizes that this is just Haru’s way of helping out.

Akechi: Aya never meets Akechi. Ryuji doesn’t like him and he’s not invited to his place. Plus, by the time he joins the group, the gang is suspicious about him, figuring out that he’s actually working for the enemy.

Ren: You can begin Aya’s confidant right after Kamoshida’s Palace.

Rank 1: Aya already knows about you. She heard the rumor that you had been on probation because of assault. She’s very suspicious and hopes that you aren’t corrupting her precious son. She makes you a deal. If you keep her son out of trouble, she’ll make you charms.

Rank 2: Aya finds out that you and Ryuji are Phantom Thieves. She finds one of the calling cards Ryuji used on Kamoshida. She puts you on blast for bringing her son into a life of crime just like you. Ryuji comes to your defense, saying that they exposed Kamoshida’s crimes of physical, verbal, and sexual abuse. He also tells her that Kamoshida broke his leg on purpose because he didn’t want anyone else to bring glory to Shujin’s sports teams other than Kamoshida. He also tells her that he enjoys being a Phantom Thief. Aya relents though she does tell you that you have to be careful next time. Don’t let her son do anything that could get him arrested.

Rank 3: Aya asks Ren to help her and Ryuji with some grocery shopping. If these two are going to be Phantom Thieves, she should at least get to know him. He asks why he was arrested for assault. Ren explains his life story. Aya tears up and apologizes for treating him like a criminal. Just be careful being Phantom Thieves.

Rank 4: Aya asks Ren what is his favorite food. When Ren asks why, she replies that she wants to make him a meal. She is so happy that he and Ryuji are friends. Ryuji hasn’t been this happy since he was running. She asks if Ren’s parents talk to him. Ren admits that he hasn’t spoken with his parents since he started living with Boss. Aya hugs Ren and tells her that she will be there for him.

Rank 5: After taking down Madarame, Aya asks Ren what does he wants to do as a Phantom Thief. Best answer is to fight for people who are in the same position as him. Aya then asks what would happen if it came to protecting himself or protecting his teammates, what would he do. Best answer is protecting teammates. Aya tells him that that’s good but he also needs to look out for himself as well. He is the light that draws others to his side. It’s now not just about him. Be careful.

Rank 6: After bringing down Kaneshiro, Aya asks Ren why they targeted a mafia boss. Best answer is because they targeted students and no one could stop them. Aya sighs. She’s scared for her son and for his friends. Fame shines a spotlight on them and could be their downfall. She wonders if Ryuji becoming a Phantom Thief was her fault. When Kamoshida broke her son’s leg, it felt like it was her fault. She heard Ryuji tell her about the abusive training. Aya thought that it was just his way of encouraging the team. When Ryuji was laying in that hospital bed, all she could think about was how she failed him as a mother. If only she had taken his complaints seriously.... Best answer is “It’s Kamoshida’s fault, not yours.” Aya smiles like her son. Thank you.

Rank 7: After their trip back from Hawaii, Ren and Ryuji go to Ryuji’s house one day only to see Aya being hit by a man. After yelling at him, the man runs off. Ryuji runs after the man while Ren takes care of Aya’s wounds. Ren asks who that man was. Aya says nothing. Ryuji comes back and swears up a storm, talking about getting back at that bastard. He couldn’t catch up to him because of his bum leg. Aya tells him that it isn’t worth it. Please don’t get revenge. I can’t lose you, Ryuji. Ryuji tells him that he can’t forgive his father. Aya begs her son to let this go but she loses consciousness. The two take her to Takemi. She has a couple of bruises and a black eye but she’ll recover. Aya thanks Ren and Ryuji for taking her to a doctor.

Rank 8: Ryuji asks the gang to help him change his father’s heart. Of course, they agree. Shinji Sakamoto’s shadow is found in Mementos. He tells them that Aya spent more time taking care of Ryuji when they were together instead of doing what he wanted her to do. That’s when he started hitting her and Ryuji. He is the dominant person in their relationship and he’ll do anything to make sure they know it. Ryuji yells at him that his mom is better off without him. Shadow Sakamoto is Hanuman, weak to Electricity. After beating him, Shinji explains that his father beat him and his mother. It’s the cycle of violence. Ryuji tells him to shut up. Just because he was abused, it doesn’t give him the right to abuse his mother. Shinji agrees. He’ll turn himself in. He apologizes and tells Ryuji to be a better man than him. They steal his treasure, a home run bat for Ryuji. After completing the mission, they go to Aya after she fully recovers. She tells them that Shinji called and apologized for hitting her and for being a terrible husband. He also told her that he would turn himself into the police. She asks if they had something to do with his change of heart. They tell her yes. She thanks them but also tells them that she was scared that something could have happened to them. Aya can’t stop them from being Phantom Thieves but she couldn’t bear it if something terrible happens because of it. Don’t do anything reckless. Be safe.

Rank 9: Aya is back in the apartment. Ryuji and Ren are doing everything for her: cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping. Aya thanks the boys for helping her. Ryuji tells her that he is always going to look out for her. He’s going to be a better man than his father. This makes Aya cry. That’s all she ever wanted. She looks at Ren and thanks him. It’s because of him that Ryuji is becoming the man that she always suspected he could be. Thank you. (Note that you can’t romance Aya. Bros don’t date bros’ moms.)

Rank 10: Happens after Ren fakes his own death. She visits Ren at Leblanc after hearing the news. She breaks down in tears after seeing that he’s alive. Aya panicked, thinking that he was dead. She tells him she can’t lose him too because Ren has become her son in all the ways that matter. All of the Phantom Thieves are her children and they have become fine people. She knows that they need to complete their mission and change Shido’s heart for the sake of Japan. Hugging him, she tells him that she will do everything she can to help him succeed. So call her day or night and she will come running. You will always be welcomed in her apartment.

When Mementos starts taking over the Real World, Aya is scared but she cheers them on. She knows they can succeed at anything if they put their minds to it.

When Ren is imprisoned, Aya takes it on herself to find Ren’s parents. She will tell them that she spent the entire year with him and told them that he was an excellent kid. They should be fighting to get him out if they were good parents. If they would’t, then she will do it herself. Parents should always do their best for their children, supporting them when they need it the most.

When Ren is preparing to return home, he meets with Aya one more time. She tells him that she is thankful for having met him. He turned out to be a good influence on Ryuji after all. She gives him a good luck charm (her NG+ item) and tells him that this will protect him on his next journey. Please be safe and remember, you will always have a home here.

So that’s my idea. I think that there is great potential here. Ryuji can’t be best boy without having best mom.

[boop-ba-doop]

Preview for the other PT’s backstories in my Pegoryu Week Day 2 (Fantasy) world because I went way overboard and, like, none of this is gonna be in the actual fic I’m writing, so, might as well put it here. I’m kinda proud of it tbh.

Fantasy AU, based loosely on the PT's halloween costumes.

Akira is a witch, has a braid with some string/hair in it, beads and such are tangled into his hair. He's an earthy witch, if that makes sense.

Morgana is Akira's familiar. Akira accidentally hit him with a spell that made him gain human-like intelligence and the ability to speak. Eventually he made Morgana an enchanted yellow scarf. His first attempt allowed Morgana to change forms between cat and van, but he perfected it later, letting him transform between cat and human. After some complaining, he made another one, this time allowing Morgana the option between cat, human and van, since he got so used to being a vehicle. Most people find this hilarious until Morgana claws their faces off.

Ryuji's a werewolf, loyal pupper he is. He heard rumours about a witch that asked for payment in favours and ingredients rather than money, so decided to try it out in order to stop the aggression he can't control during and around the full moon. He's almost immediately attracted to Akira and the crush just grows as they get to know each other (little does he know Akira is just as, if not more, enamoured with him). His mother is a non-aggressive werewolf, but his father was a strongly aggressive one, and since aggression is a more powerful genetic thing, Ryuji got the aggression. Kamoshida broke his leg and as a result his pack bonds broke with the track team. Both physical hell and emotional hell for best boy. Akira became his first pack bond after Kamoshida, and the rest of the PT followed. Akira also became his first, and only, mate (wolves mate for life, dontcha know).

Ann is a succubus and fucking hates it, so she decided to follow the rumours as well, especially after hearing that Ryuji had apparently been asking around and the very next full moon had been perfectly calm- or as calm as he ever got, anyway. She asked Akira to help her nullify her sexual appeal/charm. She ended up getting an enchanted tattoo to permanently get rid of her biological nature, and lives life as a human from then on. Something something she and Shiho are ina healthy and loving relationship.

Yusuke's a male yuki-onna, more a jötun, actually. Sometimes, he makes masterpieces on walls and windows using frost and ice. Akira likes it when he does the windows because it makes it more mystical. And also, he gets more customers. Can't shapeshift, no fire affinity, etc. Madarame used him for his perma-frost, leaving him physically weaker, always just too warm for how he was supposed to be. He collapsed one day, and Ann found him, dragging him to Thief Arsène and to Akira. Akira had to call Takemi (a banshee) for help, to make sure he didn't die or anything. They jerry-rigged a magical device by pooling their respective knowledge, it kept him cool and stopped him overheating. Akira wasn't too well-versed in ice elementals, let alone a jötun, so while he likely wouldn't have died, it was still touch-and-go for a while, making sure nothing he made would make anything worse. But even Akira knew how bad using too much perma-frost could be for someone.  Yusuke got interrogated hard when he woke up. He had no idea it was so bad, and didn't believe it at all, until Takemi dragged him to her clinic, the current PT dogging her footsteps, and showed him proof. They were all horrified, and Yusuke took a while to snap himself out of his shock. With Takemi legally required to tell the authorities, they all band together to help him get out from under Madarame's wing. He ends up staying with Akira for a week or so, before finally getting the money he was due for both the perma-frost and the plagarised paintings, and bought a place near his school. Luckily, as he was a minor, his name was kept out of the papers, but it still became more of an open secret at his school. Due to it all happening at a young age, he still has trouble with his temperature, often either overheating or freezing anything he touched, with not much in between. Akira helps him regulate it with an upgraded version of the magic device, and it can be turned up or down, allowing Yusuke to slowly heal and recuperate, body slowly learning how to self-regulate its own temperature. It's much better, and much safer, for him now. A few more years and he could have been past the point of no return.

Makoto was born a human. After her dad died, and Sae was taking care of her, she got caught up in an attack by a group of flesh-eaters, all banded together- zombies, ghouls and vampires mostly, but also a couple of drougrs and some rarer species of flesh-eaters. One attacked her, and she was turned. Makoto became a ghoul (think Tokyo Ghoul, but without the kikoku). Sae was distraught, yelled about how horrible and inhuman she was now while Makoto was still on the hospital bed- since then their relationship became strained. Makoto rarely if ever mentions her 'condition' as Sae calls it in front of her sister due to the distress it causes Sae, and by extension, herself. Sae still loves her and Makoto knows this, but she also hates ghouls with fiery passion, after all, they were what killed and ate their father, leaving behind a barely recognisable body covered in bite marks (and not the sexy kind). Makoto lived off the government-given stuff for the first six months as per the law. Luckily, the news never got out due to her status as a minor, and despite the rumours, no one at school aside from the teachers knew. She mostly got her meals from the school and from the Society of Anonymous Bodily Donations to Flesh-Eaters (SABDFE), which was slightly shady and one sometimes had to be cautious with some of the donations. She was still never not hungry, and despite only having to eat a couple times a week, her food costs were still higher than what it would have been had she still been human. They may not have been poor, but Sae was only paid so much. Then, Makoto heard about a Trickster, a witch called Joker who granted any wish he could conceivably grant. She asked around, but people, unsurprisingly, did not want to talk to her. Her last resorts were Ann and Ryuji, but they kept tight-lipped. She overheard Mishima talking, however, and narrowed the place down to a few streets.   In the end, she didn't actually find it, but she did run into Akira when taking a break in a quaint-looking coffee shop, LeBlanc. He asked her what was wrong, and she mentioned trying to find a place that could help her. Akira asks if she's looking for a witch, if so he can help her find the place. She follows him to his shop and, despite her surprise at him being the witch, explains her situation at his gentle probing. He asks for some DNA- spit, a tear, blood, whatever. She hesitantly goes for blood (she later learns how dangerous choosing blood was, with it being the most powerful bodily liquid, and thanks every deity she knows that it was Akira). She comes back two weeks later at his behest. He gives her fifteen identical potions - “Twice a month for four months, once a month for six months, and finally one more time after a month of not taking it and you'll be golden.” She thanks him, and starts taking it. She stops getting food from SABDFE and starts relying solely on the small portions from school. She tries human food a few days after taking the first potion and cries after tasting it. She goes back to Akira and thanks him, crying,oblivious to the rest of the PT who were hanging out there. They all become friends. Sae comes home and sees her eating a crepe that Ann had suggested to her, smiling fondly over her phone and not giving any sign that it tasted like garbage as most things are supposed to taste like to her.  There's an argument, Makoto tells her that she found a way to lessen the ghoul part of her, Sae tells her that that's all of her, and  starts to talk more about Makoto's uselessness and inhumanity, but Makoto snaps. “I thought you wanted it! You keep saying I'm a monster! A burden! Useless to you! You wanted me to be human! And now you suddenly want me to stay as a ghoul?! Make up your damn mind!” Sae is speechless, Makoto has never lost it like that. At this point, Futaba is part of the group now, she was curious and texted the others something was happening. Akira calls her phone, interrupting them. Makoto picks it up, not losing eye contact with Sae, “Futaba listened in, need a way out?” “Ah, I'm sorry, I forgot our studying session.  Thank you for reminding me, I'll be by right away.” Makoto deliberately doesn't take her books, and leaves, ignoring Sae's attempts to speak. Eventually, they do talk, and Sae apologises. They mend their relationship in time.

Futaba is an eldritch abomination. Her mother was too, and Sojiro definitely had an attraction for danger. After Wakaba died, Futaba couldn't really control herself as well, it didn't help that she had still been learning at the time. Sojiro overhears an old couple at LeBlanc talking about a witch that would grant any wish he could conceivably grant. Sojiro knew his fair share of witches and knew that kind witches were few and far between- after all, there was a reason there was a law against witches fulfilling wishes for favours or 'ingredients' as payment. When he arrives at the shop (“Thief Arsène: stealing your hearts one person at a time” weird, Sojiro thought, that there's almost no gap between person and at, and a small, nearly unnoticeable gap in the middle of the a and the t... just a shitty decorator, then). He was surprised to see the witch was a regular at his shop, Akira or something similar. Or was it Ren? The kid had always seemed to be the good sort, if a bit quiet and rough around the edges. He really hoped the kid was like the rumours said. Akira agreed to help, and made a bracelet (he asked what kind of thing Futaba would like, or wouldn't mind wearing. Sojiro had no idea, but his phone went off, and Futaba had asked for a piece of Featherman jewellery. Both were surprised, but Akira shrugged it off quicker, asking if a bracelet was okay. The rest was history). It helped her keep control, but she could override it if she wanted to, and lower the 'power level' of it if she wanted to test herself and her control. She loved it with all her heart. She missed having a regular form.

Haru's a dryad and her tree was placed in her father's mansion. She was forced into plenty of things by using her tree as leverage. Before meeting Akira, her hair flowers were dull, a couple wilted or missing flowers. She actually ended up meeting Akira when she was working at a flower shop and he came in, looking for a few ingredients for a enchantment or two (roses, lavender and wolf's bane?). They became friends, and when Haru accidentally mentioned her upcoming marriage, Akira started pressing. She trusted him, he was her first friend, so she told him everything she'd been bottling up. Akira was livid and told her who he was. She was surprised, “You're the Trickster? The one people are calling Joker?” He hadn't even known the name Morgana had jokingly called him once had caught on, but apparently so. He offered to give her a new home, a tree if she wanted, or he could make something else. Haru decides to get a new, smaller tree and asks if she can leave it with him. He's utterly taken by surprise, and completely flattered, too. He agrees, says she can see it whenever she likes. He asks her to take a few cuttings from her original tree, and she does- it's barely a few pinches, so she's fine with it despite Akira's worryings. She takes them back to him, and less than a month later, after all the annoying astronomy and alchemical parts, it's done. She asks Akira for another favour. When Okumura and Sugimura show up after she all but orders them to, she grins at them, huge double-headed axe in hand, metal from one of Akira's contacts, and wood from her original tree. She chops it down in front of them, throws the axe at their feet and spits at them. “I'm done.” she says, cold anger radiating off every part of her as she leaves them to their shock and horror, “Neither of you will ever touch me again.”

[johndhu]

Coming Back

              Mishima was the first one to the get the news. Akira mentioned during an online chat that they raised the prices on tickets to Tokyo just a day before he bought his. Of course he asked Mishima to keep it a secret, but Mishima wasn’t the only one reading that chat. Futaba paused her music, saved the program she had been writing and brought the window up full screen. She straightened her glasses and read through the messages a few times just to be sure. A little hopeful smile grew into an ear to ear grin. She started to put together a group chat of everyone minus Akira, but then thought better. He did want it to be a surprise. But there was one person who really would want to know. She’d rather have time to prepare than be surprised. She sent a shorter message, just to her. Only three words. “He’s coming back.”

              Makoto Niijima was enjoying the special hell that all young adults got to as the end of high school approached, college searching. She was sitting in Leblanc when she got the message. She’d taken on a serious love for Sojiro’s particular taste in coffee. She had a few different applications and brochures spread out in front of her and was twirling a pen between her fingers. Tokyo University was there obviously, but she didn’t necessarily have to study in Japan. She could go somewhere in America, or maybe Germany. Of course, learning German on top of everything else would be a serious pain. Her phone buzzed and she glanced at it just long enough to see Futaba’s picture. She smiled fondly, she probably wanted her to bring something to eat. Futaba knew Makoto liked to hang out at the café when she was busy and that meant it was a short walk to bring curry to her when she was glued to her computer.

              Sojiro had just disappeared into the back so he would probably be a minute. Makoto tucked her pen behind her ear and unlocked her phone. She was a few keystrokes into a reply asking what she was in the mood for when she finally read the message. He’s coming back. She gasped and nearly lost her grip on the phone. With her heart drumming in her ears she quickly tapped out “When?” and sent it. Makoto could practically hear her friend’s dexterous machinegun fingers tap out the short response. “Didn’t say, I’ll find out. Supposed to be a surprise. Shh!” She set the phone back down and put a hand to her mouth, a little flush coming into her cheeks.

              Sojiro poked his head out from the back room. “Hey, you all right?”

              “Huh? Oh, yeah. I’m fine.”

              “You certainly look happy about something.”

              Makoto brushed her hair behind her ear and cleared her throat. “Just read something funny Ryuji sent me.” Sojiro nodded and emerged with a bundle of bedding and a pillow. Makoto watched him as he went around the counter and upstairs to the attic room. Akira really was coming back, and coming back soon. She put a hand to her mouth and stifled a laugh. She couldn’t help it, she was so excited. He was coming back. She sent a quick “Thanks :)” to Futaba, then gathered up her things. She had work to do.

              Akira stepped off the last train on his route back to Tokyo and stretched; it had been a long journey. “Uuuuugh what a trip,” Morgana groaned from inside Akira’s satchel.

              “Hey, at least you got to spend it in there. You got to lie down, I had to sit on the lumpiest seat ever,” Akira replied.

              “I’m stuffed in a bag!”

              “No pets allowed on the train, remember?”

              “Who’re you calling a pet?”

              Akira rolled his eyes and smiled knowingly. “As far as everyone else around here can tell, you fur brain.”  

              “Hrrrrn.”

              “Hey, we’re off the train. Give it a few and you can poke your head out.”

              “Walk fast, it smells funny in here.” Akira chuckled and followed the familiar route up out of the station towards Le Blanc cafe. Walking it again was strange, like the time since he’d left had been nothing more than a dream. Up the stairs out of the station and…

              There she was. Same blouse, same headband, waiting for him. She spotted him and her eyes lit up. She beamed, blushed, curled her hair behind her ear and started towards him. Akira started towards her. A walk become a trot, became a run, then after far too long Makoto threw herself into Akira’s arms and he hugged her tight. They closed their eyes, Akira curled his fingers into her hair and whispered “Hey you.” Makoto let out a little happy hum.

              “Welcome home,” she replied.

              They held each other at arms length and looked into each others eyes for the first time in so long. “What are you doing here?” Akira asked.

              “Waiting for you, obviously.”

              “How did you know I was coming?”

              “In a word, Futaba.”

              “Heheh, shoulda figured. Can’t keep a secret with Oracle around.”

              “Mmm.” They hugged tight again.

              Akira’s satchel rustled. He unzipped the top and Morgana’s head popped out. “Hug later, breathe now!”

              Makoto chuckled and ruffled his fur. “Missed you too Mona. Before you ask, Ann is just fine.”

              “I’m sure Ryuji has been a perfect gentleman,” Akira added, giving Makoto a teasing look. She gave him a gentle nudge.

              “Hmmmmnnn,” Morgana mumbled. “He’d better have been. Or I’ll scratch him in places he didn’t even know he had.” He settled into a comfortable nook of the satchel where he could still see out; Akira and Makoto laughed and looked back at each other.

              “Ready to go home?” she asked.

              Akira slid his hand down over her elbow and interlaced their fingers. “I’ve been ready for a long time.” And off they went, hand in hand, cheeks rosy and hearts lighter than air.  “Anyone else know?”

              “Just me and Futaba, and Sojiro of course. I take it you were planning on surprising everyone else?”

              “That was the idea. Track down the Thieves one at a time, bring everyone together for a party at Leblanc.”

              “Hmhm! I like it. Going in order I presume?”

              “Of course. Ryuji first, then Ann, Yusuke, we can skip you,” Akira said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. “Futaba already knows, and we finish up with Haru.”

              “Sounds perfect.”

              They walked for a block or so in comfortable silence, enjoying each others presence. They’d kept up online of course but long distance was only ever a hold over. The warmth of their hands together again after so long was something they’d both remember forever. “Ever miss it?” Akira asked after a minute.

              “Being a Phantom Thief?”

              “Mhm.”

              “Sometimes. It was hard finding something that let off steam the same way punching a shadow did. You?”

              “All the time. Not half as much as I missed you.”

              Makoto grinned the way only Akira could make her. It was a cheesy line, but that was why it was so charming. It could only have come from Akira Kurusu. “The feeling is mutual.” She rested her head on his shoulder.

              “So how are Ann and Ryuji doing?”

              “Oh you know them, they drive each other crazy but they’re crazy about each other. Most arguments end when their hands touch by accident.”

              “And they can’t stop blushing?”

              “Exactly,” Makoto said with a small giggle. Morgana grumbled again.

              “Futaba and Yusuke?”

              “Practically inseparable.”

              “Is Sojiro okay with them?”

              “Surprisingly so.”

              Akira nodded. “Yusuke is quite the gentleman. I get the feeling there was a ‘break her heart I break your legs’ conversation too.”

              “Hahaha! Without a doubt.”

              And they were there. Outside of Leblanc again. They looked at the sign, then at each other. “Coming in?”

              Makoto nodded. “I’d love to.”

              It was a slow afternoon in the café, no customers when they went in. Akira did catch sight of an orange and black something before he was tackle-hugged by a familiar face. “Nyaaaah! Hahaha! Hi Futaba.”

              “Mmmf! Mssd yrrr!” Futaba said, muffled by Akira’s jacket.

              Akira hugged her back and ruffled her hair. “Missed you too.”

              Morgana poked his head out again with a quiet “Mrow!”

              Futaba eased out of the hug and spotted him. “Kitty! Hey Mona!” She ruffled his cheeks.

              “H-hey! Easy! I’m not just…some…cat ooooo, riiiiight there…”

              Makoto giggled and said “As far as boss can tell you’re a cat, remember?”

              “Futaba, let the poor kid breathe,” Sojiro said fondly, looping out from behind the counter. Futaba gave Morgana one last pat on the head and then took a step back to give Akira some room.

He smiled up at Sojiro and gave him a quick bow. “It’s good to see you boss.”

To his surprise, Sojiro pulled him into a hug as well. “Good to see you too.” He smiled back and scratched his head.  “Believe it or not, I’ve actually missed having you around.”

“Heheh, gee thanks boss.”

“Uh sorry, that came out wrong.”

“It’s okay, I know what you meant.”

Futaba nudged Sojiro. “I’ve been tryin’ to teach the old guy to stop putting his foot in his mouth but apparently it just tastes too darn good.” Everyone chuckled. “I’ve got a hard drive to defrag, but I’ll be back first thing in the morning!” She hugged Akira one last time on her way out the door.

“Sorry to cut the reunion short but it is getting late,” Sojiro said.

“It’s all right, we’ve got all of tomorrow,” Akira replied.

“The attic is just how you left it. Lock up when you’re ready to turn in.”

Akira nodded. “You got it.”

Sojiro put a hand on Akira’s shoulder. “Seriously. Welcome back.”

He beamed. “Good to be back.” Sojiro left, the door closed behind him and a comfortable silence fell. Akira looked to Makoto, she blushed and looked away. “It ah, it’ll be kind of tricky to catch a train back by now. Do you want to spend the night?”

“Oh! Uh, I-I’d love to.”

Akira scratched the back of his head and met her eyes again. “Would it be okay if it’s just sleeping tonight? I’m really tired.”

“I was going to ask the same thing,” she said, sounding a little less nervous. She realized that could have come across the wrong way and quickly added “I-it’s not that I don’t want to! Last time was really great I’m…”

Akira smiled knowingly and took her other hand. “Hey, it’s okay. I was the one who asked, right? We do have an impressionable cat keeping us company.”

Makoto laughed and looked back at him. Her eyes sparkled and her usual smirk reappeared. “…We could kiss…a little though…if you want…?”

Akira chuckled and hugged her tight. “That sounds perfect.”

                Morgana tunneled under a blanket on the couch and gave Akira a grumpy look. “Sorry Mona. It’s just for tonight.”

              The cat sighed and gave Akira his version of a smile. “Eh, I don’t mind.” He yawned and set his head down. “I’m tired enough to sleep anywhere.”

Akira gave him a quick pat and pulled the blanket up to his ears. “Sleep tight pal.”

              Footsteps on the stairs made him turn. Makoto smiled bashfully and tucked her hands behind her back. “I ah, just realized I don’t have anything to wear to bed.”

              “Oh, yeah of course. You can borrow one of my shirts,” Akira offered.

              “Thank you.”

              “Ah, or…” Akira blushed and scratched the back of his head. “It is pretty warm tonight. We could just…”

              “Hm? Oh! Uh…” Makoto flushed and shifted her weight.

              “S-sorry, dumb idea. Let me find a shirt.” He turned to his dresser.  

              Makoto collected herself, cleared her throat and softly said “Not so dumb.”

              “Hm?”

              She smiled and met his eyes. “We are still broadening our horizons aren’t we?”

              Akira’s eyes shone, he’d missed her so very much. “I guess we are.”

              For a few seconds they paused, lost in each other’s eyes. Makoto shook herself lightly and said “I’ll admit it’s a little silly to ask, but, a little privacy?”

              “Oh! Right, sorry.” Akira turned around and shed his shirt. He glanced around the room while he was waiting; a fair bit of dust had accumulated while he was gone. He could always enlist Kawakami to help, it would be nice to catch up with her.

              Makoto switched the lights off. Akira took that as the signal that it was okay to turn back around. Makoto instinctively hugged her chest but gave him a sly smile and said “Left, or right side?”

              “Huh? Wha?”

              She giggled. “Do you want the left or right side of the bed?”

              “Oh, uh, I guess I’ll…” He settled under the covers, somewhat awkwardly as he didn’t want to look away. Makoto crossed the room and crawled in after him. Arms wrapped around hips, pleased sighs passed lips, skin met skin. The weight of her on his chest after so long was nothing short of bliss. They settled, resettled, then once their eyes had adjusted to the darkness Makoto rolled over and pressed her forehead to his. Akira beamed, two beautiful red eyes had filled his view for the first time in far too long.

              “I missed you so much…” she whispered.

              “Come here.”

Makoto closed her eyes, let out a tiny mewl and drifted into a kiss. Akira’s hands softly wandered up her back and one into her hair. He held her close with a gentle firmness of love and longing, like savoring the first taste of water after a day in the desert. They kissed without order or method, but with the joy of being together again, with the simple desire to please each other and share the moment. Lips massaged lips, hands held and stroked until they broke apart, finally too tired to continue.

Makoto nestled her head under his chin. Akira smiled with perfect content and resumed stroking her hair, etching the moment into his memory. Finally, feeling bold he whispered “Sleep tight my Queen. I love you.”

She let out a tiny surprised gasp, then gave him a gentle squeeze and replied “I love you too.” Makoto found his hand and took it before adding “My Joker.”      

[keyboard-clicks]

Colossalcon 2018 Haul Part 2!  AKA: holy shit Leah how much money did you fucking spend?  (don’t ask, okay?)

I’m super excited about like all of these purchases!  I didn’t intend to buy the Investigations manga but the vendor was selling it for a really good price and it’s in great condition so I figured why not.

The Pikmin patches are gonna be great I’m gonna iron them onto a jean jacket, and they’re official merch from the Pikmin 3 release!  

Then I just bought a couple of patterns that I’m gonna use for my eventual Taako cosplay, and the vendor was selling all their patterns at 2 for $5 which like???  What a deal???

New Pokemon Friends are very good friends and I love them.

I finally faved and got an ita bag because my love for Yusuke Kitagawa is that strong and so now I will go broke filling it up.

The Jin figure is official from the release of the Persona 3 movies.  He isn’t my first choice for a figure, but was the last P3 one the vendor had left and I do like him as a character so yeah I’m stoked.

The Saiyuki DVD and Goku charms are gifts for my gf @konadoesart bc I love her and she loves Saiyuki, and then I also got some dnd dice bc I’m getting into my first campaign soon!

[todorokishouts]

5 Things 🐸

Tagged by @history-rover

5 things you’ll find in my bag:

My laptop! I use my backpack now more often than my bag bc of school fml

A Yusuke-themed (Persona 5) pencil pouch ((where I keep my 20 or so ink gel pens bc I prefer those over pencils))

PB&J sandwich aka my lunch aka the thing I’ve been eating since September so it’s become a permanent fixture in my bag

The Norton Anthology of English Literature, 9th ed., The Victorian Age (Vol. E)

Car/house/work keys on my favorite astro birb lanyard <3

5 things you’ll find in my room:

Persona 5 wall scroll (the one with protag+arsene)! I bought it at the last Anime Expo (2017)

My budgie’s cage

My succulent plants: Fiona (jade/ogre ears), Izu (sedum rubrotinctum aurora/pink jelly bean), and Tama (echeveria blue star)

A low table I’m altering to double as a kotatsu even though I live in California and it’s eternally 90 degrees fahrenheit here

A shitton of hero aca merch (fanmerch like prints, charms, cushions as well as the nendos and a couple pops)

5 things that make me feel happy:

Same as Liz here with writing! I’m a creative writing major--been writing since elementary school, went into journalism, was on the yearbook crew and I’m currently working with a magazine. I write when I’m happy, when I’m stressed, heck, my mom had to ground me from writing once since I do it so much

My budgie, my baby, my son/sun/WORLD: Kubera! He’s been with me since last Christmas Eve and is a little over 1yo now. He’s my go-to when I’m down, before anyone else.

All my awesome friends (on and offline), mutuals, followers, readers! You guys put up with me hahahaha and I’m thankful everyday (shout out to the discord server bc y’all have made being in this fandom 100000000x more fun!)

Plants <3 I love flowers and succulents

During late-fall/winter when you’ve gotta wake up at 5am for classes and the roads are clear, the air is crisp, morning hasn’t yet settled in and THERE’S LESS TRAFFIC, B L E S S

5 things I’m currently into:

Hero Aca

Anne of Green Gables

To the Moon

Pokemon

Being a Good Student and actually not procrastinating

5 things on my to-do list:

Watch Stranger Things with my best friend!

Finish this gosh darn fic I’ve been working on

Trying out this new corn chowder soup recipe

Start buying xmas gifts before the post office kaboooooms

Getting an A on my English midterm again to spite my professor (who always proudly says “oh I rarely give out As.” Well, screw u i’m gonna get it i hate u)

Tagging 5 people (as always, optional! I know I spam y’all a bunch hahahaha): @azreto @grey-skies-over-cold-water @kvrloz @daevuy (or @fynnn-s ? not sure which you prefer)  @periapse -- and anyone who wants to do this!

[ask-greedfma]

I love your Yusuke ita bag!!! Can I ask where you found the charms?? I want to make my own bag for Yusuke but only have a couple of pieces of merch

All of my yusuke charms I've bought at cons this year along with akira too but there are some artist on store envy (also tictail) who have charms and pins on there aaahh I hoped this help ;;

[tigerlover16-uk]

Anime I need to watch (July 2017 update)

What do you know, I’m on time with one of these things? Been a pretty good month for me and I’ve got plenty to talk about, so see you after the cut.

I started the month off watching another arc of Yu Yu Hakusho. I thought about watching the show as a whole, but I decided to wait on the Three Kings arc for another month since I heard it’s a fairly lackluster one. So I just watched to the end of the Chapter Black Saga.

It wasn’t as good as the Dark Tournament Saga. It was... good, but I have a hard time calling it great, though it certainly had ambition. It starts off really well, the first few episodes were great, Kurama in particular got one of his best showings, but the actual main plot felt a bit meh in places.

I don’t really know how to describe it, there weren’t a ton of flaws to the story, but personally I just had a hard time getting invested and at times I just found myself tapping the side of my laptop wondering how long things were going to go on for. But the actual content of the story was fine. The world building was good, the action was... mostly good, outside of a few mediocre brawls. The side villains were entertaining, though the newly powered teens Genkai recruited (I can’t remember any of their names because they didn’t interest me) felt largely pointless and boring after their initial introduction. I really didn’t care about their send off at the end. And the main characters all got some pretty good moments, even Koenma got some great ones. And there was plenty of tension to the story.

And yet, while I enjoyed the saga for the most part... at times it felt kind of like a drag.

Maybe it’s just that the Dark Tournament Saga was so great before it that everything here just didn’t measure up. The villain was definitely a downgrade. Sensui has an interesting thing going for him, being the previous spirit detective who went rogue and his weird views on morality. But he felt extremely meh as a villain, bordering on boring. The thing about him having multiple personality disorder felt too sudden and, kind of pointless overall (and feeding into the media’s problem of demonising the mentally ill, thank you very much), and his personality wasn’t all that entertaining. He just felt like kind of a mixed bag of a character that fell short of being excellent.

I had other issues, like Yusuke being descended from demons came pretty much out of nowhere and was a blatant plot convenience that made the climax a bit unsatisfying. But I think the thing that put me off this saga a bit was just how incredibly serious and dark things were throughout. Yeah I know, that’s kind of the point and it fits for this show, but when things are constantly tense and grim with very little levity here and there to ease the tension, I tend to get bored and anxious more than entertained. So that’s probably more of a me thing, but I don’t get this feeling with most other anime I watch like Dragon Ball Z. I didn’t get it with the first season of Yu Yu Hakusho. The Dark Tournament saga dragged on a bit, but that felt more like because of how long the story was more than anything, and I still thoroughly enjoyed it. The chapter Black Saga... this is the only arc I overall liked from a show I’m a fan of that felt like a chore to get through.

I suppose that says more about me though and what I want from my shows than it does about the saga. Apart from the issues I mentioned and some others, there’s not a lot that’s objectively wrong with the arc. It was good.

Onto something lighter, One Punch Man is great. Yeah after watching that story, I decided to watch something more light hearted, and I wanted to watch a short series that wouldn’t take long to get through, like a  lot of the long running shows I’ve been starting. And I had started watching it before, so why not?

There’s not a lot I can say about the show that others haven’t already said, so I’ll just say it was a blast. Saitama and Genos are fun and likeable characters with endearing personalities, the humour and casual tone of the series are fantastic, the animation is stunning, especially in the action scenes, and the supporting characters are fun to watch too. It’s a really charming show that’s just fun to watch and easy to get invested in, and even has some genuinely touching moments surprisingly.

I don’t think it’s the best thing ever like some people do though. For one thing... IT’S WAY TOO SHORT. Seriously, the twelve episodes we have are great, but it feels like it ends right as the story is starting to pick up. There’s really not a lot of tension to be had because of Saitama’s strength, and while the execution of the show and how Saitama’s handled make that a minor issue, it does feel disappointing that all but one of the villains goes down incredibly easily and get killed off, so there’s no chance to build a cool rogues gallery. Oh, and Puri-Puri-Purisoner is one of the worst, most uncomfortable gay stereotypes I’ve seen in a while, so that definitely knocks a few points off the show.

Still, there’s nothing majorly wrong with the show and it was a good time to watch. I just wish Madhouse would hurry up with season 2, if that ever happens.

Next up is a bit of an odd one for me, Tenchi Muyo!. I usually stay clear away from Harem anime for many reasons. Most of them are boringly formulaic and have annoying clichés (especially thanks to love Hina), the premises are often dull, and a lot of them feel like they care more about fanservice and accidental pervert comedy than good storytelling or characters. Which is what I care about watching, I really don’t care that much about fanservice in my shows (One reason I hesitate to start Kill La Kill).

But I did remember watching something Tenchi related as a kid and I think I enjoyed it, so I figured in this case it was worth checking out, so I looked up the original OVA series and watched the first two seasons of that (I hear season 3 was terrible, so I’m a bit hesitant to get into that). Soon after I started watching, I came to a realization that what I had actually seen as a kid was the tv series Tenchi Universe. Come back next month to see what I felt about that, but I decided to keep watching the OVA’s anyway for the sake of it.

The story is kind of a mess. Tenchi feels like almost a completely different character in the first episode compared to the rest of the series for one thing, there are a number of noticeable plot holes and conveniences, and there are some weird writing choices here and there. Like everything to do with Sasami in episode 9, that was weird and awkwardly handled and felt really pointless as a shoehorned excuse for drama, and I don’t really want to go further into it because that would take all day. And while I like Ayeka, I can NOT get over the thing about her being Tenchi’s great aunt and yet wanting to be romantically involved with him, and having wanted to marry her half brother. No I don’t care that she’s an alien with much different cultural beliefs and practises on this stuff, to me that’s still squicky as all heck!! And while the fanservice surprisingly never feels forced and is better handled than in many other series I can think of, I could have still really done without it.

Honestly it wasn’t very good at all as a story... but it kinda makes up for that with it’s characters. Tenchi may be a bit dull if still likeable, but all the girls in this show are really fun and endearing characters that I enjoyed watching, even in spite of some weird moments. The comedy was really good too, there were some stupid jokes and stuff that just really wasn’t funny, but I laughed more watching these two seasons than I have with a lot of other shows I’ve seen in a while. For all the awkward writing problems, it was fun just to sit back and see this colourful cast of characters just be themselves. Which is why I probably liked season 2 better. The main villain of the first season was underdeveloped and nothing special, but he was pretty cool and enjoyable to watch anyway, so props there too.

Tenchi Muyo! is a HUGE mixed bag of a show, and I don’t know if I’d recommend it to people. But I enjoyed it. It’s flawed and not great, but I do have a bit of a fondness for it, so I’ll definitely check out the Tenchi Universe tv series to see what that’s like. Not sure whether I’ll see anything else from the franchise though.

And rounding thing up, I recently bought two DVD sets for One Piece, so I've been watching that the last two weeks. I actually watched the 4Kids dub of the show as a kid, and remember actually enjoying it... I was a kid that knew nothing about the series going in, don’t judge me. I do remember really loving the show, but I don’t remember anything past the Alabasta arc and I just never got back into the show for the longest time. so recently I figured, why not?

It’s been fun watching the show again, seeing all the little things that are different about the show than I remember since Funimation didn’t edit it so heavily. The first few episodes were pretty meh admittedly, and I don’t really care that much for Luffy’s character up to this point (Just feels like a less endearing Kid Goku crossed with Naruto, but with different powers, though he’s still likeable enough usually), but once we get to the arc with Usopp things really pick up.

I don’t really know what to say about the show thus far, since I knew what was going to happen for the most part all the time I was watching since I remember everything I saw before fairly well, so really I just feel like I’m waiting to get to the parts I don’t remember all that well to experience the show fresh again. But everything I’ve watched so far has been fun to revisit, my favourite arc so far definitely being the Arlong arc (Even if Bell-Mere was a bit more of an idiot than I remembered), and the characters are all likeable and entertaining to watch.

I probably won’t be watching the show as frequently as some of the other series I’ve been catching up on, what I’ll probably do is buy a new season on DVD every other week and see how long it takes me to catch up, but I am looking forward to watching more.

Well, that’s about it for this month. It’s been an interesting month for anime for me, to say the least, gave me some stuff to think about and I had plenty of fun overall. Hopefully I’ll have plenty more to talk about next month. Until then as always, I’m open to suggestions as to more anime I could add to the list below, and I hope everyone had a good month.

Series:

Mobile Suit Gundam

Outlaw Star

Cowboy Bebop

Digimon Frontier

Digimon Data Squad

Digimon Fusion

Yu-Gi-Oh 5D’s

Yu-Gi-Oh Zexal

Yu-Gi-Oh Arc-V

Sailor Moon (Watched the entire first season and was about halfway through season 2. Should really get back to watching the full series)

Sailor Moon Crystal

Yu Yu Hakusho (Up to episode 94)

Ranma 1 ½

Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure (2012-onwards series)

Hunter x Hunter (2011)

Fullmetal Alchemist

One Piece (Up to episode 53)

Astro Boy (Any series. I just want to be able to say I’ve watched something from this franchise).

Kill La Kill

Gurren Lagann

Fairy Tail (Up to episode 203)

Little Witch Academia

Tenchi Muyo! (Finished watching the first two seasons)

Tenchi Universe

Death Note

Yuri On Ice

Fist of the North Star

Soul Eater (Up to episode 28)

Code Geass

Food Wars: Shokugeki No Soma (I watched about 9 episode, need to catch up)

Your Lie in April

Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Mob Psycho 100

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex

Phoenix Wright anime

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid

Natsume’s Book of Friends

Revolutionary Girl Utena

Eureka 7

Black Cat

Black Shooter Rock

Gunbuster

Afro Samurai

Space Dandy

Vision of Escaflowne

magical girl lyrical nanoha

Shin Sekai Yori

Baccano

Cyborg 009

Gaogaigar

Danganronpa

Yo-Kai Watch

Pretty Cure

Future Boy Conan

Yona of the Dawn

WataMote

Space Patrol Luluco

Rurouni Kenshin

Steam Detectives

Movies:

Your Name

Garden of Words

Paprika

Tokyo Godfathers

The Boy and the Beast

5 Centimeters per second

Millenium Actress

Lupin III: The Castle of Cagliostro

The Digimon Adventure Tri Movies

Yu-Gi-Oh: The Dark Side of Dimensions

Pokémon: Genesect and the Legend awakened

Pokémon: Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction

Pokémon: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel

Pokémon: I Choose You

Ghost In The Shell

Memories

Perfect Blue

Naruto: Guardians of the Crescent Moon Kingdom

Naruto Shuppuden: Bonds

Naruto Shippuden: The Will of Fire

Naruto Shippuden: The Lost Tower

Naruto Shippuden: Blood Prison

Naruto: Road to Ninja

Boruto Movie

Fairy Tail the movie: Dragon Cry

Godzilla: Monster Planet

Mary and the Witch’s Flower

Princess Arete

Tekkonkinkreet

[genkigratification]

fifth palace spoilers

It’s a plan that won’t fail -- that can’t fail -- and Akira is determined to do all he can to play the part he needs, no matter what.

At least Akechi is admittedly easy on the eyes; a sarcastic remark about the guy’s looks to a girl in the newspaper club hadn’t been untrue, he really was pretty, but behind that casual veneer was someone who thought he was already ahead of the game, who thought he had the Phantom Thieves dancing in the palm of his hand.

Akira smiles behind his coffee cup, because Akechi couldn’t be more wrong.

“I think it’s great and all that you’re keeping him off our trail by being nice to him and stuff,” Ryuji starts when they’re hanging out, “but don’t you think you’re going a little far? I mean, it’s not like you’ve gotta date the guy or anything, dude, none of us would force you to do that.”

“And you won’t be,” he replies, eyeing the clothes he’d bought with Ann yesterday. “Right now, he’s as much a teammate as anyone else, and I’m going to treat him like it until he shows his hand. Maybe he’ll even call off whatever he has in store for us and drop the blackmail.”

“Yeah, and Morgana’ll get over his stupid unrequited love--”

“It is not unrequited love! I just-- I admire Lady Ann a lot! There’s nothing stupid or weird about it!”

Akira chuckles at the two, laying out his outfit and nodding to himself. This’ll wow the socks off of Akechi. That is, for the plan. To lower his guard and ensure that the detective doesn’t deduce that they know what he might be up to.

... It didn’t hurt to be nicely dressed going out anyway.

Akechi, for whatever he is as their enemy-turned-blackmailing-teammate, is fun to talk to. He’s charming and witty, as pleasant to the ears as he is to the eyes, and Akira thinks that Akechi has been doing the same thing to him as he is to Akechi now -- being charming and cute and witty with words like “interest” and comments on how happy he’d been to see Akira, to talk and hear his thoughts. They do get into debates while out at Dome Town (a sneaky move on Akira’s own part, in his opinion, a little hint to when Akechi slipped up that would go unnoticed by the detective), mostly on the public’s mentality and the Phantom Thieves as a group. They almost always butt heads when it comes to “justice,” but never to a point of no return; Akira and Akechi both seem to want to avoid that, both for their own reasons, and it’s after a particularly detailed vent in the Phantom chat that Ann gives her two cents too.

It, uh, sounds like you two are getting long! She says. Makoto agrees, and Ryuji makes a comment on how it was preeeetty unusual for their leader to talk so much.

Akira’s not sure how to respond, so he pockets his phone for later and shakes his head of the jabbing tease, ready to throw Akechi on the next roller coaster and see how long the detective’s composure could last.

“I-- don’t think I’d like to go on that one again, Kurusu-kun, but you seem to be just fine...” Akechi’s look of defeat and slight admiration makes his lips turn up, hands sliding into his pockets. “I shouldn’t have expected anything less. Should we find a seat?”

Akira agrees to it and they find someplace out of the sun, people milling about them. Akechi props his chin on his hand, watching them with a small, almost thoughtless smile-- no, more practiced, something for the general public. It’s different than the one he has when facing down a cup of Boss’s coffee. When asked about his thoughts, Akechi laughs a little, that same hand catching every sound.

“Oh, nothing. Do you like to people-watch, Kurusu-kun? It’s easy to do in places like these, and as a detective I like keeping my skills sharp by guessing every now and then.”

“Yusuke likes doing the same thing, but for art purposes.” Akira leans on his hands, watching the crowds, and asks Akechi to start.

The detective adopts a similar position, smile fading into a look of concentration. It’s a better expression, in Akira’s opinion, and he turns his gaze away from Akechi when the other starts to tell about a businessman who’s taking his wife and child out for a treat. He’s clearly tired out, and the wife doesn’t have much love for him or his apparent waste of money from the lines of her face, but they’re not arguing for the sake of their son, who seems to be happy to have both of them around. Akira can’t help but think of the oversharing of information Akechi had spilled out once, about his mother and some no-good guy, and wonders if it’d been intentional... or if it’d been the comfort of LeBlanc itself. No, it had to be intentional, Akechi was a calculating detective who worked alongside Makoto’s sister, everything had a purpose to it.

... This outing did too, for the both of them, but it’s easy to relax around Akechi in a way that’s similar to his teammates, and Akira has a feeling that it isn’t entirely faked on Akechi’s part either.

It’s just a hunch, but it makes him try a little more, toeing the line of pretending to like Akechi and actually liking him, but he’s never offended when Akechi turns the conversation around on him instead. It’s just a game they move their pieces on, and lately Akira’s become very good at shogi.