#in hindsight I might want to edit some of the hair shines/lighting

[mizukagami-takamagahara]

Edited some Lobby Sprites!

I figure uniforms (like these, the NOL uniforms, and the Kaka Clan hoodies) are good practice for art/editing techniques, since they're standardized. I don't have to think too hard- once I know how to make the outfit once, I can focus on learning how to recreate it and make small adjustments, instead of having to immediately rush to learning a more complex costume. Does that make sense???

Comparison with the original sprites from CF below.

Noel (also used her Lobby Sprite B that depicts her as in CT)

Mai

Tsubaki (also used her Izayoi sprite, I liked the colors more)

Makoto

Kajun

[captainimprobable]

Here’s a very messy first draft of a fic I’m working on! There will be five parts, which I’ll post together on Ao3 once theyre all done.  This is the first part!

I’ll edit this for ao3 but I was too excited about it and wanted to post it here first before I did RIP

~

~

~

There are many things Luz admits she doesn’t understand.  She can’t figure out how cars work, and she’s not so sure about long division.  But, she thinks, as she watches her girlfriend chop up vegetables in the fading light of the setting sun, some things she does understand.  

“How did you get so good at this?” Luz asks, stepping closer to peer over Amity’s shoulder.  Every cut is perfect, each individual piece almost exactly like the one before.  It makes sense.  It is so Amity.

“Don’t get excited,” Amity warns, tipping the vegetables into a pot of boiling water.  “This is all I know how to cook.  I had a chef growing up.”  She blushes brightly, and Luz grins.  Amity blushing has become one of her Top Five Favorite Things, right under Azura and above Hexside.  

Amity herself, of course, is above them all.

“Sorry,” Amity says sheepishly.  “I didn’t mean to sound spoiled or anything, it’s just- my parents don’t cook, and they don’t have time to-”

“Amity.  It’s fine.”  Luz laughs, and Amity’s blush intensifies.  Luz is about to say something about it when Eda bursts into the room with all the subtlety of a hurricane.  “Look what I foooound,” she sings, proudly presenting something extremely dusty and unidentifiable.  Luz and Amity raise their eyebrows in unison.  

“Uh, what is it?” Luz asks.

“It’s a human-” Eda pauses.  “Okay, I’ll admit, I have absolutely no idea what it is.  But it’s cool looking and I like it.” “Another human treasure? Lemme see!”

“Suit yourself,” Eda says, and hands it over.  

The thing is heavier than Luz expected, and she grunts as she puts it down quickly on the kitchen table.

“Dang, Owl Lady, you’ve got strong arms,” she says.  

“I work out,” Eda responds, flexing her muscles.

Amity and Luz look at each other, and then at Eda.  They blink.

“Fine,” Eda says.  “Buzzkills. I don’t work out. You caught me, congratulations.”  She stalks out of the kitchen, muttering something about “dumb kids and their dumb honesty”.

Luz snorts and turns her attention back to the thing on the counter.  “Let’s see what we’ve got here,” she says, and blows the dust off.  Once the cloud clears, the thing begins to take shape, and Luz squeals.  “A record player! With a record on it!  This is amazing! My mom has one of these back home!”

“Record player?” Amity says.  “What does it do?”

Luz grins, always happy to show off her human knowledge.  “I’ll show you,” she says, and sets the pin on the groove of the record.  It’s silent for a moment, but then a slow tune echoes through the room.  There are no words in the song, and Luz has no idea who wrote it, but she’s in awe.

“Wow,” Amity says, echoing Luz’s thoughts.  “It’s beautiful.”

“Yeah,” Luz agrees, completely entranced by the melody.  Once the song fades away and the next one starts, she gets an idea.  She regards Amity out of the corner of her eye, gathers her courage, and says “Amity Blight, may I have this dance?”

Surprise flashes across Amity’s face, but she recovers impressively quickly.

“I thought you’d never ask.”  

She reaches out her hand and Luz takes it, gently guiding Amity to the middle of the kitchen.  Amity hesitantly puts her arm around Luz’s waist, pulling her closer, as Luz puts a hand on Amity’s shoulder.  It feels familiar, and when they start swaying around the kitchen, Amity starts to laugh.

“What? What’s so funny? Did I do something?”

“No, no,” Amity says, tightening her hold around Luz’s waist.  “It’s just...this is so different from our first dance together.”

“Our first...oh, you mean Grom!”

Amity takes a step backwards, and Luz follows, trying not to trip over her own feet.  

“Yes I mean Grom!”

They dance in silence for a moment, moonlight shining through the window.  

“Hey,” Luz starts, not sure if she wants the answer to the question she’s about to ask. “Who did you wanna take to Grom, anyway?”

Amity stares blankly at her for a few seconds, and for a moment Luz is worried she said something out of turn.  But then she smiles softly, so softly that Luz’s heart does a funny thing in her chest, and she’s pretty sure that, for a second, she can’t breathe.

“It was you, Luz,” Amity says quietly.  “It was always you.”

Luz stops dancing.  She stops blinking.  She stops breathing.

“Uh, Luz?” Amity says, sounding worried.  “Are you okay?”

Luz blinks, comes back into herself, and says “YOU WERE GOING TO ASK ME TO GROM????”

“Yes? Why is that a surprise? You know I...like you.” Amity blushes again.  They’re still not used to saying these things out loud to each other.  It’s a process.  

This time, Luz blushes too.  “Yeah, but like..that long??? You’ve liked me since Grom???”

“Since before Grom, actually,” Amity admits, looking down at the floor.  “It’s...it’s been a long time.”

Luz’s grip on Amity’s shoulder slackens, then tightens again.”Wow,” she says, breathless.  “Me.  You’ve liked me for months.  You!!!”

Amity giggles.  “Me,” she agrees.  

Luz knows that the smile on her face is sappy, but she can’t help it.  She just likes Amity so much it’s overwhelming sometimes.  

They begin to sway again, and Luz feels like she’s in a trance.  She can’t believe that one person can make her feel this happy.  It’s like magic.

“So,” Amity says, cutting into Luz’s inner monologue, “When was it for you?”

“Huh?”

“When did you start to like me?”  

Amity manages, with what looks like supreme willpower, not to blush this time.  Luz does not manage the same.

“O-oh,” Luz says, thinking back to all the times she made a fool of herself in front of Amity before they’d started dating.  “I don’t know? I mean, I realized it that time you saved my life, but I think I’ve probably liked you for a lot longer than that. Maybe even before Grom.”

“Which time?”

“What?”

“Which time?  I save your life a lot,” Amity smirks.  Luz rolls her eyes.  “Okay, fair,” she says.  “But I mean that time at your parents’ presentation.  Right after you...when you called me “my Luz.”

“Oh, no, you heard that?” Amity looks extremely embarrassed as she leans forward and hides her face in Luz’s shoulder.  Luz tries not to smell her hair.  She fails.

“Of course I heard that!” She says when she’s done.  “You practically screamed it out loud to a room full of strangers!”

“I did, didn’t I? Wow, I was so obvious!”

Luz rubs the back of her neck sheepishly.  “I didn’t notice.”

“What??? How???” Amity asks, picking her head up to look Luz in the eye.  “I was a complete mess in front of you for months! What did you think was happening?”

Luz shrugs.  “I just thought you were cute, that’s all.  In hindsight, though, maybe I should’ve picked up some context clues.”

Amity snorts.  “It’s okay.  You being oblivious saved me a ton of embarrassment.  Until I kissed you on the cheek.  That..uh….that was not planned.”

Luz can’t stop the smile that takes over her face.  She remembers that day well.  She was so focused on finding Phillip’s diary entries and also not making a fool of herself in front of Amity, that she was taken completely by surprise when Amity kissed her.  She’s pretty sure she literally fell to the floor afterwards, overwhelmed with the fact that Amity had just kissed her and suddenly realizing that maybe, just maybe, her crush liked her too.  

“Well I’m glad you did,” she says gently, twirling Amity around once, twice, three times.  “I think it’s time for me to return the favor.”

“What do you-”

Before she can think about it long enough to stop herself, Luz leans in and kisses Amity on the cheek.  

The world freezes.  

Amity looks at her, and she looks at Amity, and Luz’s eyes are so wide, and Amity’s mouth is hanging slightly open, and suddenly Luz is completely, entirely unsure of herself.  Her confidence is gone, and suddenly she can hear the ghost of laughter and “Ew, why would anyone want her?” And she realizes she’s made a horrible mistake.  

“U-um sorry I-” She stutters, but can’t get a sentence out, until finally she manages “I’m gonna leave now.”

She backs up slowly until her back hits the door, and is about to turn the handle when Amity says “Luz, this is your house.”

“Drat,” Luz says, slapping a hand to her face.  “You’re right.”

Amity giggles, hand covering her mouth to stifle her laughter.  She’s bright red but so is Luz, and suddenly Luz is laughing too.

They laugh together for what seems like hours, until finally they manage to subdue themselves, tears in both their eyes.

“Hey,” Amity says softly, once the giggles have stopped.  “Come here.”

Luz complies, stepping around the table and over Ghost, who has an unidentifiable animal in her mouth.  When she finally reaches Amity, she finds herself pulled into a bone crushing hug.  Startled but pleased, she squeezes back, marvelling at the fact that she has the most perfect girl in the world in her arms.  

“Look,” Amity says, still wrapped up in the hug.  “I know we’re both new at this, and it’s kind of scary, but you don’t have to run away every time you kiss me on the cheek or something.  You have nothing to be afraid of, okay? You’re my girlfriend, and I’m not gonna stop liking you.”

Luz sniffles a little and squeezes harder.  “You don’t...you don’t think I’m too much?”

“Luz,” Amity says.  “I could never get enough of you.”  

They stand there like that, swaying slightly in the single stripe of moonlight that comes through the window.  When they part, it’s with a sigh, and a silent promise that they’ll come together again.  

“Thanks,” Luz says, eyes rimmed red.  “You’re a pretty awesome girlfriend.”

Amity smiles.  “I know.” 

Then she shrugs shyly.  “And if you ever want to kiss me again...I wouldn’t be opposed.”

“Noted,” Luz says weakly.  She thinks her knees might give out, actually.

When it’s time for Amity to go, Luz walks her to the door, like the gentleman she is.  “Goodnight,” she says, trying to ignore Hooty loudly digesting a mouse.  She doesn’t want to think about where his stomach even is.

“Goodnight,” Amity says.

They smile dumbly at each other, neither wanting to be the first one to leave.  But Amity needs to get home, and the night is moving quickly, so they reluctantly part ways.  Amity turns to wave at Luz when she reaches the end of the Owl House’s property, and Luz waves back, stars in her eyes and a breathless wonder at the fact that this girl, this amazing, brilliant, perfect girl, is hers.  

There are many things Luz doesn’t understand.  

But this, what she and Amity have, the bond she feels growing stronger and stronger every day they spend together; this she does understand.

She closes the door.  She doesn’t know what tomorrow will bring, but she knows that as long as she has Amity by her side, everything will be okay.

[love-bean]

Spectacular - Part 4

alright duckies, this is going to be the final part before the epilogue, which is quite short (might end up uploading that tonight). let’s go!

wk: 1597

-o-o-o-o-o-

On the eleventh of April that year, Benedict began formally courting Anastasia. Having spent countless days together, it was to no one’s surprise when he asked for her hand in marriage not one month later.

Benedict paced nervously across the length of the drawing room.

“You are making me nervous, friend,” Alexander sighed. “What could be so important that you have summoned not only my father, but the four of us?”

Benedict paused, looked at the five men in front of him, and resumed his pace.

After a few more minutes of watching the Bridgerton pace, Arthur stood up.

“If you do not have anything to say then I shall be going.”

“Wait!” Benedict said, eyes pleading.

“Well?” Arthur challenged.

“I-”

The words were caught in his throat. He could not bring himself to stand before these five men and ask their permission to whisk away their most prized jewel.

“If you are going to ask us for permission to marry Anastasia, you have come to the wrong place.”

It was young Augustus, only one year older than Anastasia, who had spoken up.

“Pardon?” Benedict squeaked.

“You would like our sister’s hand in marriage,” Augustus stated.

“How did you know?” Benedict gasped.

“It is obvious,” the younger man laughed. “You have gathered nearly the entire family, excluding the one you favor. You have been relentlessly pacing in front of us for nearly fifteen minutes, trying to figure out how exactly to ask. But you are in the wrong place.”

“I- I do not understand,” Benedict stuttered.

“We know better than to answer for our sister,” Andrew scoffed. “She was raised with only us around. Surely you are not foolish enough to think she should be confined to our opinions when she has so many of her own.”

In hindsight, Benedict knew he was right. It was foolish of him to think that he needed their permission to marry her.

“Mr. Bridgerton,” Lord Mackenzie said, rising from his chair. “Our permission is not necessary for your marriage. If Anastasia wishes to marry you, she will. And we will support her in all of her endeavors.”

“Does… Does that mean I have your blessing?” Benedict whispered.

“You certainly have mine,” Lord Mackenzie said before turning to his sons. “And I would think you four foolish to disagree.”

The young men agreed and with a gracious thank you, Benedict was off to tell his mother of the wonderful plan he had.

By the next afternoon, Benedict had everything planned out. On the coming Friday, he would promenade with her, take her riding, have a romantic picnic, and end the evening with a dinner at which he would stand up in front of their families and confess his love.

Every detail was planned, and yet he never reached that day.

The day never came because the evening after Benedict asked the Mackenzies for their permission to marry Anastasia, the pair were out for another late adventure. However, instead of walking to Mr. Granville’s studio, they simply had a picnic under the stars in the Bridgerton garden.

“I wonder what it’s like up there,” Anastasia mused as she stared at the sky.

“Dark, I would presume,” Benedict quipped. “Dark and very, very cold.”

“What do you think they’re made of?” she asked, ignoring his tease.

“Light.”

She swiveled her head toward him. “Can you be serious for one moment?”

He sighed and scooted closer to her, peering up at the sky above him. “I think it would be beautiful up there. You would be able to see every single aspect of our world without being completely immersed in our society. It would be so quiet, so peaceful. As for the stars…”

He turned his face toward her, studying her features.

“As for the stars, Ana, I would think you should know what they are made of.”

She furrowed her eyebrows. “What are you saying?”

“I believe they are made of every beautiful aspect of life. Kindness, strength, grace. Every star has the courage to shine and give us light in the dark, but the mercy to not obliterate us with one look.”

She hung on his every word, silently begging for him to continue.

“I would think you should know what they are made of, because I see the very same characteristics in you. In fact, I believe I see a bit of stardust hanging in your eyes,” he smiled, tipping her chin up with his fingers.

Despite her racing heart and baited breath, she teased, “Do you say that to all the girls you flirt with?”

“Only the ones whose first names begin with A and surnames begin with M,” he hummed.

She smirked. “I suppose Amelia Mayberry swooned as well, then.”

“That is not fair,” he objected. “I don’t know anyone who would say those words to Amelia Mayberry.”

Anastasia laughed and shook her head. “You are too much, Mr. Bridgerton.”

Before he could say another word, she stood from their blanket and slipped off her shoes.

“Have you ever felt wet grass beneath your toes?” she asked.

“Not since I was a child,” he hummed.

“Come,” she said, offering her hand. “Dance with me.”

Once he had taken off his shoes and rolled the bottom of his trousers up, Benedict stood and took her waiting hand. Anastasia laced their fingers and pulled him into the dew-covered grass. The sound of her melodic laughter echoed through the garden as they swung each other around.

“A jig!” she giggled.

The pair lost track of time as they danced. They only stopped when Anastasia lost her balance on a particularly slippery patch of grass and stumbled into Benedict, sending them both flying to the ground.

“You clumsy girl!” he teased, body shaking with laughter.

Once they had both calmed down and caught their breath, they fell into silence as they realized just how close their bodies were. Anastasia had landed with half of her body on the ground and half of it on Benedict’s shoulder. Their faces were inches apart, forcing them to share a breath.

“I am quite the clumsy girl,” she murmured, peering at him through her eyelashes.

He stared up at her, mind and heart racing. Before he could get his thoughts in order, his mouth opened.

“Marry me.”

They were both taken aback by his words, but he quickly relaxed. There was nothing in his life that felt more perfect than that moment. In that one single second, everything made sense.

“Ben,” she whispered as he sat up and forced her with him.

“You said I should propose when I felt the time was right,” he breathed. “And I feel the time is absolutely impeccable.”

“It is the middle of the night,” she laughed dryly. “Only you would pick the strangest time to ask for my hand in marriage.”

“Ana, when my mother speaks of my late father, she always says that he was her perfect love match. I used to think those didn’t exist. Surely it was not possible for two people to be made for one another,” he said, cutting himself off with a deep breath. “Until I met you.”

She softened, near tears already.

“I want to-” He dug around in the pocket of his trousers before pulling his hand out. “I wanted to give you this.”

He opened his hand, palm up, to reveal a dainty ring. The band was silver and the flower’s petals were made out of shining blue stones.

“Oh my god,” she gasped.

“It was my mother’s. My father gave it to her a very long time ago. She wishes for each of her sons to bestow one of her rings on their wives, as a sort of heirloom. I have chosen this one,” he explained. “The blue symbolizes fidelity and loyalty, which she believes are some of the most important aspects of a true match.”

He took another deep breath.

“Anastasia, I love you. I have always had a soft spot for you, even when you were a child. The older we got and the closer we grew, I realized that it was the beginnings of love. And now that I have spent all this time with you…” he trailed. “I was absolutely devastated when I heard of your engagement to Lord Weston. I thought I would never have the privilege of loving you wholly, openly, for the world to see. When you returned to London, I knew I could not let you slip through my fingers again. So, if you’ll have me, I would like you to wear this ring and be my wife.”

His words hung in the air around them, thick and weighing. He almost began to regret them as he received no reaction from his beloved.

But then, as if the stars above them had aligned, a bright smile curled onto her lips, lighting up her features.

“Of course I will have you,” she whispered, taking his face in her hands.

“You will?” he gasped.

“Of course I will,” she breathed. “I love you.”

He jumped up and pulled her with him, immediately wrapping his arms around her in the tightest hug he could muster.

“I love you,” he whispered into her hair. “I love you, I love you, I love you.”

She laughed as his breath tickled her skin. “I love you too.”

He pulled away and slid the ring on her finger, his hands shaking with nervousness.

“It’s the perfect fit,” she whispered, tilting her hand back and forth to watch the tiny petals glimmer in the moonlight.

“It is meant to be.”

-o-o-o-o-o-

does anyone read these notes? idk, it’s fine. roughly edited, y’all already know. it’s been a few days bc i’ve been swamped with work (8 days straight babyyyyyy). as i said before, this will be the final formal part with the epilogue coming soon and perhaps the bonus part with eloise simply bc i think it’s really funny (no one appreciates my funniness). have a good day/night my dears!

[imastrangeone98]

You Left Me

(A/N: the IG-07 mini series is coming to an end! I decided that two parts weren't enough, so imma have one more chapter then it's on to the main canon)

TRIGGER WARNING: references of slavery- physical and sexual abuse. Child abandonment, and the like. Some light angst. On a lighter note, maybe some ooc behavior? I clearly don't know young Mando well enough XD

My lack of Star Wars knowledge really shines through here I think XD

Mandalorian tag list: @kateb013

They were in Canto Bight when it happened.

Mando and Kyla were doing their best to navigate the bustling streets of the city, keeping their eyes locked on each others' forms so as to not lose one another in the masses. Even a Mandalorian sometimes just wasn't enough to part a massive sea.

But she suddenly stopped, and Din was forced to push back through the crowd in order to reach her.

And what he saw... confused him.

She was watching somethinng, eyes wide in shock, mouth agape. Her skin was pale, damp with sweat. Whatever it was she was seeing, it terrified her.

"Baize?" he asked quietly, letting himself rest a hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"I- I saw..." she stammered, gripping at his hand tightly, to the point her knuckles turned white. "I saw..."

"Saw what?" he encouraged, squeezing her shoulder.

"...My parents," she whispered back, so quiet he almost missed it. "They look just like how I remembered them."

"Baize-" he tried to say, but she slipped out of his grip and stumbled her way towards whatever it it was she was seeing.

And because he wasn't too keen on leaving his partner and medic behind, he made the split decision to place the slowly dimming tracking fob in his pocket and follow her.

...In hindsight, he wished he could have pulled her back.

[...]

They followed the duo all the way to a posh neighborhood. Wealth spilled into every aspect of the area, from the smooth sidewalks and roads to the lavish mansions decorated in lush gardens and precious stones of countless colors.

Mando, beneath his helmet, rolled his eyes. He would never truly be used to the wasteful showcasing of riches.

"I- I don't understand," Kyla murmured beside him, eyes fixated on the duo entering what must've been their home. "Drescant had told me that he sold them to tibanna gas harvesters."

Bespin. Where tibanna gas was harvested by the thousands. Where workers often met an explosive end.

"What are they doing here?" she whispered. Through his helmet, it seemed as though her face was pale. "Did they escape? Why...?" She began to tremble; he fought the desire to wrap his arms around her. She looked so... sad. "If they did, why didn't they come back for me?"

Mando didn't know the answer. But he did know someone who would.

Two someones.

He eyed the mansion.

"Then why don't we knock?"

It was the man who answered. He gave them a nervous smile, obviously eyeing the Mandalorian with suspicion. "May I help you?"

"We're looking for someone," the medic answered. Mando noticed that her voice was slightly shaking. "Would you happen to know anyone by the name of Kyla Baize?"

At the mere mention of the name, the man paled. But for some reason, he shook his head. "Never in my life."

She swallowed. "Don't lie to me... Father."

It worked. The man crumbled, burying his face in his hands and letting out a heaving sigh. "...I suppose you would like to come in."

[...]

The inside was just as lavish as the outside. The plush couches they sat on were proof of it, along with the uncomfortable silence that loomed over the four individuals as they all stared at each other. Tea and a small plate of snacks rested untouched on the multicolored transparisteel coffee table.

Now that they were up close, Din could see the family resemblance. Kyla shared the man's soft eyes and nose, while the mother had the same hair and facial structure.

But aside from that, they seemed to share nothing else in common.

"So..." the mother said finally, fingering her golden necklace. "You've come." She eyed the Mandalorian with obvious curiosity. "And you've brought a warrior with you."

Mando fought the urge to sigh. He knew what was behind her voice, and he wanted no part of it.

Apparently, the husband caught onto it, and cleared his throat. "Kyla... you must have questions."

"Just a thousand." Her voice was so brittle; through his visor, he could see how erratic her heartbeat was. "How did you leave Drescant?"

The mother sighed. "What did he tell you?"

"That you were sold to Bespin miners. To harvest the gas."

"Well, he wasn't lying." The father ran a hand through his hair, a bead of sweat trickling down his forehead. "We were sold off to one of his trader friends of the Empire; they needed more workers at the mines to supply ship fuel."

"And you... didn't take me?" she asked. Her voice was so small, he hated it.

"Yes... Drescant offered to let you come with us," he acquiesced. "But we thought that maybe... it'd be safer to leave you behind. Tibanna gas isn't easy to harvest, or safe. It wasn't good for children."

"We managed to work our way up," the mother continued, fiddling with the handle of her tea cup. "Within years, we became the masters of the company. And now we live here."

Kyla's hands trembled. "And you decided... I wasn't worth coming back for?"

"Kyla..." the man whispered, his hands wringing together. "Please understand. We... we were scared. We were terrified that- even with our new wealth- we would be forced back into slavery."

"Even when you're free," the lady mused, "you never forget that you were chained."

"But it was okay for me to be chained?" she continued. Her voice held so much bitterness that even Din's mouth tasted sour.

"It's not like that, dear-"

"Don't ever call me that." She stood up so abruptly, her knees banged on the table. Tea sloshed out of their cups, and small cookies fell to the floor. "I've heard enough."

"We were so young when we had you," the mother said, still eyeing the Mandalorian. "We weren't ready to be parents at the time. We thought it would be better for everyone if you stayed where you were safer."

"Safe. Right." Her eyes held so much hatred; it made Mando nervous. "I sure felt safe while I was being whipped to death. I sure felt safe while he touch-" Tears now spilled down her cheeks, and she forcefully scrubbed them away. "While he touched me."

Both parents stared at their feet. They had nothing to say- nothing would be able to ease the broken bond between parent and child.

"We never forgot about you," the man whispered, hidden eyes brimming with tears. "We never meant to hurt you. Forgive us."

"...No." And with that, she stormed away, the door slamming shut with a loud bang that made the two flinch.

Mando rose from his seat and strode toward the door. He was no longer needed in this house.

"Wait! Please." The man stood and walked toward him. Behind his back, the woman stared at him, crossing her legs together.

Mando didn't wait for them. He didn't care for their excuses. Silence was more than they deserved.

"There's nothing for you to say," he rushed on. "Just please... look after her."

For a while, they stared at each other. And for once, he didn't feel as disgusted with the man.

"She already is." He turned his back on the miserable couple and made his way out of the mansion.

Kyla was nowhere to be seen. His best guess was that she returned to the ship.

But when he returned to the Razor Crest, she wasn't there. He searched the entire place from cockpit to cargo hold to her room. Nowhere.

His heart sank.

Where could she be?

------------------------------------------------------

A/N: the last part might come out soon, sometime after my finals are over this week. I'm taking my time in order to focus on studying, so hopefully by the end of this week, everything will be over so... yea

In the meantime, resident evil is next! Look forward to it, my nonexistent fans!

Edit: read the sequel! :D

[hazydreamerneko]

Report of LH Live Tour 2017「Shingeki no Kiseki」8/7 Concert in Chiba (PART I)

Original Report (Chinese) found here

Original Text (Chinese) by：初霜翼 Image report by：-流曰-

Translations by: HazyDreamerNeko/LostNeko  (Referencing Lyrics Translations by marchen-v-friedhof)

It’s been a while since I have done any translations, but I was very excited to read the report and have thus sought permission from the Sound Horizon Chinese Wiki site to translate and share the cuteness that is Revo with overseas Laurants ^^ 

It’s SUPER LONG so I will split it to 3 parts, this is part 1 Part 2 Part 3

Any use of the original text please contact the Chinese site/writer to seek permission. Any mistakes with translations please feel free to contact me!

Before the Concert

Merch:

Day 1 merch sales start from 11am in the morning. Perhaps due to the reservation system employed for the Premium seat audiences, the queue for the merchandises is not very long, it’s possible to see the head of the queue.

Right after 11, announcement was made by staff to conduct the sales of merchandises: We will now begin the sales of「Shingeki no Kiseki」Tour merchandises. Shinzou wo sasage yo!! (Offer up your hearts!!)

Linhora Corps Members: …?! Ha!! (Did the Heart Salute by reflex)

It took a moment for us to realize what we did, and everyone started laughing and clapping. This time, the staffs also did the heart salute to customers as they sell the merch. Entering the venue, purchasing the merchandises, getting the stamp, and taking a seat all happened as usual. My seat for day 1 was on row 13, which was rather close to the stage. I could even see the preparations going on behind the screen before the performance began. I could also easily identify YUKI who took his position with his guitar.  

Announcement before the opening. As expected of Linhora opening announcements, even though it was not SH and there wasn’t Sascha making use of various popular SH lyrics, there were still bunch of settings incorporated to emphasize the story elements. The announcer is a female voice, and introduced herself as “Linhora Corps Relay team Recruit Isuka (TN: Iska?)”

Iska: Everyone from Linhora Ichihara branch, good evening. Welcome to the Live Tour organized by Linhora Corps, 「Shingeki no Kiseki」. I am Linhora Corps Relay team recruit Iska. I heard from our squad leader, Vial, that there are a lot of creatures bigger than Titans in the Ichihara branch. They are  called “Elephants”. Even though they are not a species that eat people, I still get very frightened when I see gigantic creatures!

Subsequently it was various precautionary announcements. These were repeated twice, the first time emphasizing that photos and recordings are not permitted, and the second time to test the wristbands. Unlike Sascha, there are not much lyrics thrown into the announcements at these parts. Iska explained everything in a very proper manner. Her sentences always end with 「~dearimasu」(TN: indicating formality (?)).

After the second round of announcements, it was about time for the concert to start. The screen was still down, and the image of the (shingeki) wall was projected upon it. As we waited, a row of people came up behind the screen, presumably the singers, and they stood neatly in a row. Subsequently, someone whose silhouette closely resembled Revo walked to the center of the stage. Everyone screamed and cheered while clapping.

Main

All the songs from the main performance were fully accompanied by videos from SNK anime, it’s quite extravagant. Moreover the contents of the anime and songs are matched almost seamlessly.  

After the show, someone commented that it is “An Ojisan that loves SNK and is a diehard fan of SNK. He brought together the singers and musicians he liked to create the best SNK music from his heart. This was coupled with the best edited anime clips to form the “official” huge MAD with concert music onsite.” That’s true wwwwwwwww.

Especially in the songs for the female supporting characters, the key sound effects completely match with the anime clips. Regardless if it was the sound of Carla being eaten by the titans, the sound of Ilse being eaten by the titans, the sound of the Petra’s body being tossed from the cart, or the sound of Annie’s female titan fingers being sliced by Mikasa, all these scenes was shown on the screen.

01.   Nikagetsugo no Kimi e (To You in Two Months)

The sound of wind and the sea started after the venue darkened. The wristbands turned blue.

The prelude began with the scenes on the translucent screen. Across the wall, through the Titan Forest, and thereafter is the scene from the first episode of the anime. The wristband turned orange. At the same time the stage lit up, revealing the person behind the screen.

The main singer is Commander (Revo), 5 singers stood alongside him for the harmony. This included the chorus part at the beginning, and the refrain. The choreography is the same as ToLH (Theme of Linked Horizon), there’s a strong sense of déjà vu.

Commander’s clothes are the ones on the album cover. The five singers’ clothes are mainly white, with the Linhora style napoleon jacket in black with gold accents. Their hair are styled similarly to the main character of their songs. The other musicians’ clothes are also of the same standardized style.

At the part「Guren no hi wo matoi (Wreathing yourself in crimson light)」the huge screens inside of the stage lit up, showing a red sea.

「Ji ni moeru kusa no me ni wa ( grass buds sprouting from the earth)」the images were of fields with flowers

As the screen in front played clips from the first episode, the screen at the back shows the sea. At around the interlude the translucent screen opens and the anime clip transfers to the screen at the back. The dancers appeared at around「Korekara mo tsudzuku tatakai wa (This battle will only grow harshe)」, performing as though in combat with hand lights that looked like silver lightsabers to express the “Battle” here. There’s a total of four dancers here, theres seven on the concert publications. Unless more people are added during subsequent concerts, it should be alternating between the seven dancers.

The band also appeared during the interlude. During the guitar solo, Commander played along with air guitar.

When Sascha announced the song title in German, it was shown on the screen with the handwritten animation effect.

The dancer’s props were super cool this time. During this song we thought it was just normal silver lightsabre representing the blade of the omni-directional mobility gear. But the light effects are actually adjustable, and it was used in various unexpected ways as the concert progressed…

- MC -

After Nikagetsu , Commander made the scissors hands gesture before he even started speaking. It’s super cute!

He spoke too much during this MC and I can’t remember everything, so this is just the rough idea.

Commander: Good evening. We are Linked Horizon. The tour finally started. Ahh, the rehearsals passed in the blink of an eye. I wanted to practice for a while longer, but on one hand it’s the desire for more rehearsals, on the other hand I still wanted to meet all of you sooner.

Commander: This tour is already longer than the rehearsals. That rarely happens for my concerts.

Commander: I’m very happy to be performing with such excellent members. I hope this tour will become one that makes everyone increasingly love SNK.

Commander: Ah from my perspective the lights on the audiences are so bright. Even with my sunglasses it’s so bright! There should still be a lot of people in the back rows, right? Shine some light there for me to have a look~? Fighting for the opening tickets should have been an intense battle for you all, the seats should be quite full, it should be fine to shine the lights there I hope? If it happens that the back rows are not filled, I am going to feel uneasy.

(The lights are adjusted brighter towards the back)

Commander: Oh oh~ Among those seated here, regardless if it’s for Sound Horizon or Linked Horizon, who is the first time seeing us perform today~?

(A show of hands, mostly among the back rows)

Laurants: \Oh oh oh~/ (Claps)

Commander: Thank you, but I can’t see the show of hands like this! Stop clapping for a while, sorry, can the first timers raise your hands again?

(A show of hands)

Commander: Ah quite a few. For this performance, it doesn’t matter to what extend you like or understand Linked Horizon, you can enjoy it so long as you like SNK. Although I trust that there will be a lot of people here who know us very well, the concert today are irrelevant to past concerts! Everyone is on the same starting line. Perhaps the ones who know us well will feel that I am being too long-winded. But I hope to make this as easy as possible for the unfamiliar ones. (He repeated things to this effect several times)

Commander: We intentionally rearranged the CD song sequence for the subsequent set list. Please anticipate what the next song will be.

02.   Moshi Kono Kabe no Naka ga Ikken no Ie Dato (If Everything Within These Walls were Just One House)

The moment the prelude’s pendulum sound began, everyone started cheering.

Although I had expected them to play this song, I didn’t expect it this early!

In hindsight, it made sense since both Nikagetsu and Guren are Revocal. It might be too tiring for him to sing back to back in concert, as per the sequence in the CD. Thus, it was necessary to insert a song by another singer between them. Inserting this song before Guren is seamless both in terms of music continuity and story timeline. After all, the ending to this song matches the beginning of Guren - it is the most suitable under all considerations.

It’s still fully accompanied by anime clips. The beginning is the same “door” as in Jiyuu e no Shingeki (TN: gate? I’m not entirely sure what they are referring to..) , with a young Armin beside the door.  The subsequent video focused on the trio when they were young, and the part in ep 12 where Armin was shouting at Eren after he lose his mind in his Titan form. There were also home Eren imagined (?) and Armin knocking outside the window. The lyrics「Water made of flames, lands of ice and snowy fields of sand are expanding」were perfectly matched with the images in the video.

Unlike in the CD but akin to all the other songs in 《Shingeki no Kiseki》, Sascha’s German narration of the song title was added, with the title simultaneously displayed on screen with animated effects.

03.   Guren no Yumiya (Crimson Bow and Arrows)

Moshikabe logically flowed into Guren no Yumiya.

The narration is of course the album version. The TV Size part of the song used the season one OP animation, thereafter it’s from the first few episodes of season 1, the start of the first episode and Eren vs Colossal Titan etc.

Narration for「That day mankind received a grim reminder…」used the same scene as where the narration appeared in the anime.

The Dancer’s hand lights which we initially thought to be silver blades changed in this song to look like they were spitting fire, such that when they swung them around they looked like burning arrows. What’s even cooler was when they spun it - the afterimage looked like flames!

The「Jäger」and「Eren」were standard Call & Response，「Wir sind der Jäger」also continued being audiences’ chorus.

Commander’s actions were also the familiar set of actions. Yet they seem subtly less than what I remembered from Kouhaku… 

04.   14 Moji no Dengon (14 Lettered Message)

Sung by Eiko Matsumoto.

Scenes are of Carla’s highlights, so of course it’s mainly from ep 1 and ep 2.

During the thunder background sound effect at「Mata kikime no usui kogoto o kurikaesu (I scold you again, as ineffective as it is)」, the stage lights also flashed, imitating lighting.

During「Jikan'yotomare (if only time would stop)」, the images turned to black and white, and the lights on the wristbands faded away.

It switched to Carla’s final scenes at「Tatoe anata ga (Even if you eventually…)」. The rhythm and the sound effect of the titan’s footsteps starts to be almost in sync with the video.  

The melodica at the end was live by Igarashi.

Finally, the sound effect when the Titan bit down M A T C H E S  P E R F E C T L Y with the scene in the anime.

What was already a very impactful scene became even more emotional with live music accompaniment.

How daRE.

In the end the screen showed CG of three birds flying across a sunset sky, recreating the final image in the BK.

05.   Guren no Zahyou (Crimson Coordinates)

The translucent screen is down. There’s the sound of rain at the start, and there’s also drizzling projected on the translucent screen.

At「Rakuen o samayoeru awarena hitokage (Pitiful silhouettes that wander in paradise)」the four dancers imitated the mindless roaming titans.

「Jäger」and「Krueger」are again standard Call & Response。

The two parts「Sono ishi wa Muda janai (Their dying wish won’t be in vain), Kono mama ja Owarasenai (I won’t let it end like this)」and「Kono ishi yo Toki o koe (Let their dying wish transcend time), Nandodemo Uketsuga re (To be passed on over and over again)」switch between the left and right channels as in the CD, and the light position also change according to the sound channels.  

06.   Saigo no Senka (The Final Battle Deed)

Sung by Tsukika

During the first part of the song, scenes from when Survey Corps depart for the 57th expedition beyond the walls were shown.

They start to use the OAD scenes in the second part.

After「Watashi wa saigomade kusshinai (I will never give up)」,「Kidachi chino kage ni (…from behind the trees)」was immediately matched to the scene of titans appearing. 「Yumiru no Tami… Yumiru-sama.. yokuzo (“…subjects…of..Ymir…” “…great….Ymir…” “Well met…”)」fully correspond to the image of the titan talking on screen. Tsukika will make the gesture of writing everytime she sings「Kusshinai (never give up)」

The second last part of the song fully correspond to final moments of Ilsa in the OAD, the sound (TN: of the notebook dropping?) and the image are totally in sync.

For the last part of the song, the stage was lit with purple lights.

- MC -

When the darkened stage brightened again, Commander is back with a change of clothes.

Commander: Thank you

Commander: As we kept singing, were you all thinking “Are there no MCs anymore”?

Commander (Turning to look behind): Ah-! Why did everyone disappear from the stage once I come up for MC? Is it because everyone at the Ichihara branch are too uncooperative?

\Eh--??/

Commander: Nah (Laughs). The next song will be one that is religious in nature. This song doesn’t need the band, instead there’s a choir – (turns around) Even though the choir is not here today, the singers will sing it with the audio of the choir. There’s no accompaniment, so there won’t be any band performing. But it would be boring if it’s only like that, so the band members will be here dressed as believers (Wallists) . They are now preparing backstage, so I’m here to buy time.

Commander: Does everybody know about the Church of the Walls? I don’t really understand their doctrine, but roughly it’s just that the walls are untouchable! If you touch it, you will provoke them! You can only look at the walls, but not touch it! If you touch it, you will offend them! You will be punished!

Commander: Since we can’t touch the walls, can we dig a tunnel from beneath it? No! Even though tunnels are really convenient, isn’t it? You have all travelled on things like Shinkansen right? Like the Tokaido Line (makes gesture of a straight line). If we can’t dig tunnels things will become very difficult (Gestures a squiggly line)!

Commander: In summary, the wall is sacred, you can’t do anything to the walls!

Commander: Has everyone seen the anime? (Image of the Wallists praying is shown on screen) That’s the feel of the Church of the Wall. Does it give you a sense of foreboding? Despite having considered that it might be fun for all of you to sing it, the song requires splitting the singers into different groups. I’m afraid once we start singing you might get confused like “eh? Which part was I supposed to sing again?”, and some will not be able to keep up. So for now – and it’s only optional! If you want, you can do this Wallists action, and link like a chain with the person next to you. It’s entirely voluntary! Absolutely do not force yourself! It’ll be bad if I’m suddenly telling you to link arms with the strange old man beside you, and in hindsight it becomes “I didn’t want to do it at all! We were sweaty and sticky and didn’t want to touch at all but this bastard Glasses Oji-san forced us to do it!” No, it’s voluntary. The band members know each other so it’s fine. For all of you, casually introduce yourself to the person beside you and ask each other “Do you want to do it?”. If yes, reply “Jäger (Looking very passionate)” , if not, say “No Jäger (Looking very disdainful)” like this. I hope I can let everyone have the sensation of being in a great church. After we are done we will be accepting everyone’s complains ––  it will be received and managed after the tour ~

\(Laughter)/

But from my observations, at least most within my field of vision linked arms.

07.   Kami no Miwaza (The Work of the Divine)

The five female singers were wearing white robes with necklaces of the Church of the Wall. They sang while standing on the stairs in the middle of the stage.

The band members stood on both sides of the stairs, cosplaying as Wallists.

There were three steps of stairs, the singers stood in the formation of 2-2-1 from top to bottom steps respectively. At the 「Thou～Thou～Thou～」part, the singers on each step repeat it once. At「Maria」「Rose」「Sina」, the singer on the first step sings 「Maria」, the second step「Rose」, the third「Sina」, symbolizing the three layer of walls.

(Continues in Part 2)