#nene is very much the “cares a lot but also wishes everyone would stop being reckless and will complain about it” kind of healer

[w1f1n1ghtm4r3]

have some random wd au doodle pages. mafuyu settling in with the dark knights and grumpy healer mage nene

[amane-by-together]

I do adore || Yashiro Nene

Yashiro Nene x Female! Reader

genre: fluff and shoujo ai (girls love)

summary: when yashiro gets tired for having unrequited love towards men starts to have romantic feelings for [name]

“When every little thing you do, I do adore.”

Yashiro had always been head over heels to tall and handsome guys. The senpai whom she liked for three years, spent herself learning how to cook, sew and gardening, ended up getting rejected and calling her a radish.

Teru Minamoto. The president of the student council, known for his good looks and a kind personality. Yashiro had woken up from her fantasies and knew that she didn't deserve him, but he'll be the person she'll look up to instead.

The cream haired girl was frustrated about her love life and wanting to get a boyfriend to make her fairytale come true. It's hard being a romantic, that's what you get from reading romance and fantasy novels.

That's where Yashiro dropped her wishes on having a boyfriend due to her having unrequited love and insecurities because of her legs, decided to focus more on studies and friends. Guess what? She failed to do so.

[name] [surname] was a new student, she transferred a month ago and immediately got along with everyone. [name] and Yashiro started to become friends and had a lot in common, making them even closer.

For whatever reason, [name] never failed to make Yashiro's heart skip a beat. “Yashiro-chan~!” [name] skipped over to her seat and grins sweetly. “Guess what~?”

“Yeah?” Yashiro asked, a little nervous on [name]'s closeness. “Do you need something?” she winced. [name] started to talk about what happened about her day as Yashiro listened on every word she says.

Voices from other classmates started to fade around her and Y/n's voice is the only thing Yashiro can hear. The cream haired girl watched her small movements such as tucking hair behind her ear and the way she smiles brighter than the moon.

Yashiro's heart started to pound inside her ribcage. Her cheeks suddenly warming at the longer she stared at [name] while her thoughts are racing. ‘I don't understand why [name]-chan isn't popular, I mean she's very pretty, kind and caring and...’

Her thoughts were interrupted by a small giggle from [name]'s lips. Yashiro could've fainted right there, her giggles are very endearing, oh how she wished she could make her laugh like that.

Yashiro had never felt this much romance from her previous crushes. Most of them came from pure admiration and looks, seems like [name] outshined all of them. Other than wanting to be like [name], she wanted to be with hers also.

“[name]-chan, what do you think about my legs, by the way?” Yashiro twiddled her fingers, her magenta eyes darting away from the pretty girl's direction. [name]'s expression turned soft, she tenderly wrapped her hands around Yashiro's. This made her heartbeat quicken and her whole face turned into a beautiful shade of vermillion. "Sorry for the sudden question though, I j-just wanted to k-know..."

"Your legs look fine to me, Yashiro-chan." [name] replied, reassuring her with the sweetest smile she could ever give to someone. “I think you are cute too...” she said.

“R-Really?” Yashiro lights up and beamed. [name] nodded sheepishly. The cream haired girl was swooning so hard, she felt like a leading lady in a kdrama with cherry blossoms all around. [name] went back to her seat, leaving Yashiro to fan her blushing face in between stutters. ‘[name]-chan, called me pretty...’

Its not everyday where someone calls you pretty, for Yashiro, its more like a one in a million moment and the compliment was from [name] herself. And Yashiro absolutely adores her for that.

Yashiro glances towards [name] across on where she was sitting. [name] was looking over to the window while her cheek is resting on top of her palm, admiring the falling cherry blossoms during spring. “I'm falling for you everyday...” she whispered under her breath with a pink color tinting her cheeks.

[name], a certain girl who is currently running around Yashiro's mind that night. The naivete couldn't stop thinking about her, she just got her first female crush. “[name]... why are you making me flustered...” she murmured against her pillows. Yashiro notices her hamster, Black Canyon, munching on a sunflower seed silently. “What should I do Black Canyon?”

Maybe she could write her feelings about [name] in her diary. Yashiro stood up and went over to her study desk to get her diary. She begins to write, wholeheartedly pouring out her love for [name].

“I want to hold her hand and whisk her away. I want her in my arms protectively. I wish we could be like feathers that softly fall for another. I want to feel your soft lips against mine. I wish you were mine...”

Yashiro sighed and slumped her shoulders with a flustered look on her face. She was too in love for [name] its driving her crazy. Who knew a girl who dreamed about a prince giving her a romantic fantasy dream would fall for a pretty and kind girl?

If only she was a guy, she blamed fate for being a girl who had fallen head over heels in love for [name]. Yet she feared a lot of things: What would [name] think about her sexuality and knew that she likes her? What if she starts to avoid her for it? It will be another rejection for Yashiro if that happened.

All Yashiro ever wanted, was to be together with [name]. The relationship where she can hold her hand, cuddling her in her arms, smothering kisses all over her face, she always wished to do that to [name].

Ring Ring!

Yashiro picked up the phone since it was her dear friend, Aoi, who was calling. She took a deep breath and answered. “Aoi...” she said.

“Good evening Nene-chan, I got bored and I decided to call you!” Aoi cheerfully said from the other line. Yashiro wanted to tell Aoi about her crush towards [name], yet she feared that Aoi is going to judge her for it. There's no way she could do that, right?

“Hey Aoi...” Yashiro held the phone near her ear, her hands slightly shaking because of nervousness. “There is something I want to tell you, please don't judge me for it...”

“You know you can tell me anything, Nene-chan.” Aoi assured her friend. Yashiro inhaled deeply, her cheeks warming up just by thinking about [name]. She was straight from the beginning yet she never saw it coming when she starts to fall for [name]. “So what is it you want to tell me?”

“There is someone I like...” Yashiro can feel herself getting hotter and hotter. ‘I never felt this gay towards someone, I swear...’

Aoi suddenly became excited and squealed slightly at her friend, she's a sucker for anything related to romance, she even fangirls in Yashiro's love life. “Was he an upperclassmen? Is he from another class or is he in our class?!”

Then, Yashiro finally told her. “Its from our class...” she paused to lick her lips and looked down on her feet, embarrassed that she's going to come out to Aoi. “And it's a her...”

“I have fallen...for [name]...” The cream haired girl admits. “And I really don't know how I came to love her, it's confusing me lately because I just really love her—”

“Kyaaa~!” Aoi squealed from the other line. Yashiro stopped from talking all of a sudden. “You're in love with [name]-chan? That's wonderful!”

“Y-You're okay with it?” Yashiro asked for confirmation, making sure that Aoi wasn't joking about it.

“Of course Nene-chan.” Aoi gleefully replies. “What do you like about [name]-chan?”

“She's very pretty Aoi...” Yashiro laid down on the bed and covered her eyes using the back of her arm. “Other than being pretty, she's kind, sweet and soft. There are times that I wished that she was my girlfriend but somehow I think it's impossible...”

“I don't even know if she likes girls...” Yashiro laughs bitterly. “Even if she does, she wouldn't like me back...”

Day by day, Yashiro's crush for [name] continued to grow. With her blushing and her heart racing whenever [name] comes around. She also seeks advice from Hanako on how to win [name]'s heart, he was weirded out on how Yashiro came from liking guys to girls but he shrugged it off and helped her.

Their first method was her sneaking flowers and letters inside [name]'s locker. Yashiro filled her letters with her adoration and love for [name], unbeknownst to herself that a certain someone sneaked behind her. “Yashiro-chan~!”

“Gyah!” Yashiro jolted up in surprise, turning around and saw that [name] was grinning sheepishly. The cream haired girl stopped all of a sudden, her heart started to race and her cheeks turning red. “[n-name]-chan?!”

“Ah, I didn't mean to startle you!” [name] stepped back and swatting her hands. Cute. Yashiro thought to herself, staring at her even more.

‘Nene, you're too in love with this cutie—I mean person!’ Yashiro yelled inside her mind. [name] tilted her head and smiled, giving her a slight wave before walking off. ‘What should I do?’

Should she confess to [name]? Would this affect their friendship after that? Yashiro lifted her head and looked at the cherry blossom tree across the window, at that moment she had her decision.

‘I'm going to confess to [name]!’

[name] was hiding behind the wall, clenching her chest as she sneaked glances from Yashiro who was talking to Aoi in a rushed manner. [name] smiled before leaving her hiding spot. “Aoi, what am I going to do?”

“Hmmm~” Aoi thinks for a moment as she pointed at the cherry blossom at the distance. “How about confessing to her under the cherry tree from outside?”

Yashiro blushed. Thinking about confessing to [name] was already nerve-wracking. The problem is the result of the confession, the answer lies whether she's going to be rejected or accepted. “Should I really do it, Aoi?”

“We won't know unless you try, Nene-chan.”

'Are you really going to confess again?' Yashiro's inner voice asks her. The second thoughts of hers kept echoing in her mind and then she blinked. All of the negative thoughts were gone. “I'll try!” Yashiro cheered and Aoi clapped her hands happily.

”You can do it Nene-chan!”

Yashiro finally made her decision, she's going to confess to [name] on the cherry tree outside their classroom. There's no turning back and she would rather do this than hiding her feelings forever.

“I can't tell [name]-chan to meet her by the cherry tree...” Yashiro teared up while shakily holding the love letter, she was too shy to ask her and [name] might take the hint that Yashiro was going to confess. “Oh well, there's no turning back now...” she tucked the letter inside [name]'s locker and ran off to the cherry blossom tree to wait for her.

[name] got out of the classroom minutes after Yashiro puts her letter. [name] went to her shoe locker to change her shoes, but when she opened the locker door, a letter fell out. ‘Hm? A letter?’ she raised the letter to her face and checked the sides. ‘I guess this is addressed to me...’

The [hair color] haired female puts the letter inside her bag. She quickly ran outside to the cherry blossom to see her admirer. [name] tilted her head in confusion to see Yashiro standing there. “Ah, Yashiro-san.” [name] scratched her cheek as she walked over to the cream haired girl. “I assume that you're the person whom I'm going to meet here, right?”

Yashiro saw [name]'s smile again, she can feel her apple cheeks burning again and her heart beating faster. “There's something I wanted to tell you, [name]-chan...” she said, her voice was slightly cracking.

A huge gust of wind blew over them, carrying the petals of the cherry blossom along with the sway of their hair. Yashiro clasps her hands together near her chest and shouted out her feelings. “I like you, [name]-chan!” Yashiro confessed with tears brimming out of her ruby eyes, betraying her straightness right there. “Please go out with me...”

[name] stood there speechless at Yashiro's confession, she assumed that the cream haired girl was attracted to prince-like males like Teru Minamoto. “B-But Yashiro-san, I'm just a normal girl.” [name] stuttered out. “I-I'm not like those prince charming that you always fantasize about!”

“So?” Yashiro asked in verge of tears. “Even if you're not those, I still like you despite of that!”

Yashiro couldn't handle this anymore and by the looks of it the confession wasn't running smoothly. Yashiro tried to runaway to hide her tears until [name] caught her hand. “Wait!” [name] yelled out.

[name] saw that Yashiro was crying after that confession. “Yashiro-san...” [name] gently holds her hand, preventing the cream haired girl from running away. “Don't go...” she croaked out.

“[name]...?” Yashiro stared at her, thinking why did [name] stop her from going. [name] teared up also, still holding Yashiro's hand with hers.

[name] mustered up a tearful smile and confessed also. “I have always liked you Yashiro-san...” she said.

Yashiro couldn't believe what [name] just said. Did she just say that she likes her too? [name] likes her back? Yashiro cried even more and smiled. “R-Really?”

“Mhmm.” [name] and Yashiro felt happy now that they both confessed that they liked each other. “It's true that I like you Yashiro-san, and I want to go out with you too.”

Yashiro immediately hugged [name] which the latter returned the affection. “I'm so glad.” Yashiro softly cried, the person she had a crush on is finally hers, it seemed impossible that [name] would like her back, but the supernaturals lingering around the school looked so real, then maybe anything is possible after all.

Yashiro and [name] pecked each others lips, pulling away with a smile now that they shared their kiss. “Nene-chan, wanna go on a date this Saturday?” [name] suggests.

“Of course.” Yashiro laced their fingers together as they walked back to their houses. This is one of the fantasies that Yashiro had dreamed of, being [name]'s girlfriend. There's nothing more she can ask for other than this realistic serenity she's feeling right now.

[larathia]

theorypost the first: Amane’s bruises.

Hokay. So. This is gonna be long, possibly triggery for abuse survivors, I’m just going to start with a cut so everyone has the option of ignoring it up front, before things get squishy.

There. Now.

Firstly - that abuse happened is not in question. Tsuchigomori is about as close as a disinterested third party as you can get, and the damage was extensive enough to make him take notice and try to intervene, even though he didn’t really care because he was sure Amane would pull through it and grow up to be a science teacher.

He uses rubbing alcohol and bandages. He comments on bruises, but you don’t use rubbing alcohol and bandages on bruises. You use them on scrapes, cuts, and burns.

We know that Amane dies after killing Tsukasa. Shortly afterward, too; the Red House arc mentions that a family of four dies all in one night. That it was ‘suicide’, or at least looked like it. We know that the twins’ mother, shortly after Tsukasa’s return, was damn sure that what came back was not her son. We know that Amane was being abused by someone he loved greatly. (And we know that because he forgives them, unconditionally. If it were just a school bully, he might keep quiet but I strongly doubt he’d forgive.)

Now. On to the options.

What people seem to forget, a lot, are two not-insignificant facts here. One is that eight years passed between Tsukasa’s return from the red house, and the death of the Yugi family.

The second fact is that it was the whole family that died - not just Tsukasa and Amane.

I mean. That’s kind of important. Yes, we have hints from Nene’s time travels that Tsukasa was sometimes violent. But we also have, from the priests, that Tsukasa’s mother was reacting badly to Tsukasa’s presence fairly soon after his return...yet she did nothing for eight years? While, apparently, Tsukasa got more dangerous?

Take a moment to consider what she knew. She knew that, prior to Tsukasa’s disappearance, Amane was sickly. Like, near-death sickly. Not-gonna-live-to-see-four sickly. And then...boom. He’s better. It’s a miracle. Nobody knows how but suddenly bam. Healthy child. And RIGHT AFTER THAT - Tsukasa disappears. He’s gone for six damn months. There isn’t a parent alive who wouldn’t be out of their mind with worry.

(One of the things I really, really want to know is how Amane’s parents treated him during that six month period. Did they cling harder to the son they still had, or did they ever think Amane’s sudden health and Tsukasa’s disappearance were linked somehow?)

And then - Tsukasa comes back. But he comes back different. He comes back able to grant wishes, for one thing. The boy we see in the Red House couldn’t stop offering wishes if he tried, but that’s the entity in the seat of its power. Let’s figure that maybe it took time for the entity to grow strong again, in Tsukasa’s body. Maybe.

You know what else we know? That right around this time - right around when Tsukasa disappeared and returned - a rock fell from the sky that Amane truly believes was a moon rock. That Tsuchigomori also believes was a moon rock.

And we know that Tsukasa thought, at this time, that Amane would go to the moon and bring back pieces.

I wonder how much power it took to pull that one off?

We know that Amane loves Tsukasa. Loves him so much that even when Tsukasa gets violent, he’d rather do anything than lift a finger against him. Yet there’s all these bruises. And Amane wants to be an astronaut - which is pretty much peak 60s escapist fantasy, let’s be real. It’s the ultimate fly-away fantasy. 

What if the abuse was coming from the parents. What if - and I’m saying ‘what if’ because we DO NOT KNOW, okay. We have no evidence. Zeeero. Pure speculation. But so is saying the abuse came from Tsukasa, so bear with me a minute here.

What if - the parents knew that Tsukasa came back wrong, and they feared him, but Amane was just really glad to have his brother back? The parents can see shit going wrong - Tsukasa doing things, or things happening around him, that are straight up impossible. But Amane’s a child. And Tsukasa loves him. He’s not going to have the same perspective. Even if Tsukasa is occasionally Violent and/or Weird in ways that don’t benefit Amane (like leaving him alone at a festival) if overall Tsukasa defended him and was loving, Amane would probably forgive a lot.

The parents, though. The adults in the room know something’s wrong. Tsukasa’s at the heart of it, but we’re talking identical twins here and Amane’s encouraging it. What if - the parents tried to forcibly separate the twins? What if - they were hurting Amane in an attempt to prevent whatever was corrupting Tsukasa from spreading? Hell - what if it WAS spreading and the parents were panicking about it, coming down harder on Amane in an attempt to stop it?

Before y’all rip my throat out on this - bear in mind that Hanako is capable of being just as much of a trickster as Tsukasa. He’s less mean about it, most of the time, but that reputation for being a deceiver did not come out of nowhere. And that boy can fight. That, too, doesn’t come from nowhere.

What if the abuse was coming from the parents, and Tsukasa killed them for it? And then Amane, forced to accept that this is a bad line that’s been crossed, kills Tsukasa and then himself? What, then, is the breaking point?

The breaking point is Amane.

The thing about being bullied, about being abused, is that sooner or later fight or flight kicks in. You snap and fight back, or you snap and run away...or you just snap, all the adrenaline and fear turning inward.

I think it’s a very real possibility that while the bruises came from Amane’s abuser, the cuts were self-inflicted. That when Amane said he ‘wasn’t going anywhere’...he’d snapped. He gave his precious moon rock away (which is one of those things people do right before killing themselves) and he resolved to die. (Remember his snarling at Teru that exorcism would only be a release.)

I really doubt Tsukasa would have taken that idea well. And we do know that whatever Amane intended, it apparently blew up bigtime.

I do not present this as Definite Fact - only a theory that I think is a reasonable interpretation of the evidence. Trust me, I have others. I’ll get to them.

[sunnnfish]

Rambling about tbhk thoughts & theories n stuff

Hi I’m thinking too much about how much is still unanswered in tbhk :) this is all over the place but i tried to organize it a little bit but it is very very ramble-y and it might not make much sense. Please feel free to talk to me i have so many thoughts (but also not many answers)

I also bolded some of my favorite thoughts for maybe easier reading

(Also crazy spoilers about literally everything watch out)

Gonna put it all under a cut bc its long but please read 🥺 i talk about like straight up everything and everyone (tsukasa, Sakura, natsuhiko, amane, tsukasa, nene, kou, mitsuba + what is going on with them)

Tsukasa, Sakura, natsuhiko:

Okay so like why did tsukasa only recently appear after supposedly being dead for like 50 years cause like hanakos been around yknow ? Does it have something to do with the seal? Cause like tsukasa is clearly very clingy to hanako so you’d think he’d stick by him as soon as they died but they apparently hadn’t seen each other in a long time. and how did Sakura get into like a contract or whatever with him ? and why can natsuhiko see and interact with supernaturals ? Natsuhiko is so weird what is his deal. why in the world does he know how to turn into a supernatural ???

GASP i just had a thought so like tsukasa says he only grants wishes for the dead so like how would Sakura get into some kind of deal with him if she’s alive? She could be dead but idk it kinda does and kinda doesn’t work.

Hanako, tsukasa, seals:

And as for hanako and tsukasa like when did they get those seals and why ??? And like during the part where kou asks yako about rumors being changed hanako at the end like touches the seal on his cheek and ?????? What does that MEAN ??? Did he have to get sealed because his rumor was changed ? Like what was that about ??? Also why in the world are hanako and tsukasa so powerful? They are so strong and its crazy. Also I REALLY wanna know what hanakos boundary and yorishiro are and what purpose his boundary serves.

Tsukasa, plans, rumors:

Also why is tsukasa changing the rumors ? Is he trying to like kill the 7 wonders or what ? Or remove them from power cause like yknow breaking their yorishiros removes their control over the boundary and like he did straight up kill number 3 to put mitsuba in control so does he want to do that with all of them? He also keeps messing with nene and like why.... i just wanna know his plan...

Also how come they haven’t like put anyone else in charge of the boundaries after their yorishiros got broke? Also also why is hanako the leader despite being like the youngest like what did he do ??? He is also pretty bent on breaking the yorishiros too like couldn’t they just change the rumors instead of breaking the yorishiros? Like they did with the mokke? I think hanako has some other agenda too.

Amane:

Also thinking about if tsuchigomori knew about tsukasa ... like when amane was alive yknow like where was tsukasa ? Did he go to school? Was he in a different class or what ?? Also did amane immediately kill himself after he killed tsukasa or did he like go on for a bit afterwards ?

I’ve also had a little theory about the whole “I’m not going anywhere” scene, so like amane gives his lunar rock, that he has had and treasured since he was 4, to tsuchigomori and that seems a little odd to me, but its seems especially like su*cidal behavior yknow? If someone’s got a plan to, yknow, die, then they sometimes start acting different and start giving away things that are important to them. I’ve also seen recent theories about how maybe tsukasa got them involved with something supernatural while they were alive so maybe amane was like planning to die or something... and I’m also still super intrigued that amane was the only human to defy what was written in their book, and it makes me wonder about what was written in tsukasas book, like was he supposed to die? Was it written in amane’s book that he killed tsukasa or was that different too?

The severance:

Also thinking about the whole lead up to the severance and like how that went down—like number 6 shows up and kidnaps Aoi of all people and like sacrifices her and stuff and it all makes me wonder if hanako planned it? Like he clearly thinks the severance is a good thing and that aoi being sacrificed extended nene’s lifespan so like did he plan it? Did he ask number 6 to do a sacrifice cause like they haven’t done that in YEARS like why would they suddenly do it again? Number 6’s rumor hadn’t been changed or anything so there was no reason to do that (unless i missed something).

Red house, mitsuba:

And then there’s the freaking RED HOUSE like my goodness like what does it have to do with mitsuba??? Why did he have a picture of it? Why was the picture black until nene found it? Like the house is cursed and it seems like the picture might be too, since nene and kou mysteriously showed up at the house. There’s of course all the theories that its probably the yugi family and that it might be connected to Nowhere now so that’s fun but I still really wanna know what this has to do with Mitsuba

OH i also just remembered yknow like at the beginning of the hell of mirrors arc mitsuba is like different mitsuba and doesn’t remember anything but at one point nene mentions hanako and he like reacts like “hanako?” Like he knows the name but like stuff keeps happening so that’s quickly forgotten BUT like what does that MEAN !! Why does he know hanako !!! When he’s not supposed to remember like anything !!!! Zdfghgjhfdhfj

Oh also also what in the world happened to mitsubas arm and why does he keep it hidden?? It clearly still works cause like he grips things but he still keeps it hidden so ??? Also like his eye too idk if something happened to it or if its stylistic but its only shown vaguely like once or twice, and in scenes where he’s alive it’s much more visible so ?

Nene:

I also think nene is totally gonna die or at least turn into a supernatural somehow because like so much official art and stuff really points to it. With like pictures of the four (nene, hanako, kou, mitsuba), nene is always tied in with hanako and mitsuba while kou is shown separately or with different motifs. The ones that really come to mind is the one where nene, hanako, and mitsuba and tied together with a rope, it being tied around mitsubas neck, hanakos chest, and nenes leg, while kou is positioned away from them. With the recent chapter with that dolls leg coming off and like the references to dolls n stuff like i think something crazy is gonna happen to her leg at least. The other one that comes to mind is the one with the four pictures of their middle school entrance ceremonies, where hanakos, mitsubas, and nenes families faces are scribbled out, while kous is fine. At first you think it’s because teru and tiara are like actual characters, but in amane’s and tsukasa’s, one of their faces is scribbled out too so its not about whether or not we know the character. So like nene is continuously shown with the same symbolism as the supernaturals soooo....

Kou:

Also thinking about how kou was WAY to ready to die for mitsuba like he’s 14 !!! And do y’all realize he ACTUALLY for REAL fell off the building right then and there, not expecting mitsuba to save them ! He was fully ready to die at the drop of a hat and as much as it shows how much he cares about mitsuba like that is not healthy babey. Like think about yourself for once kou, stop hurting yourself to help others !!! People care you !!! (I’m people)

Misc:

And then i still have thoughts about the minamoto family but mostly i just wanna know more about their family and history like where are their parents ? Also that reveal that teru like protects the whole town was like crazy.

Oh also gotta wonder like why so many of the ghosts are attached to the school ?? Like i dont think any of them actually died at the school so why do they haunt the school? Shijima died at a hospital, mitsuba died like in the town supposedly, and we dont know about the yugis but idk how they would have a knife at the school unless they were doing some kind of after hours ritual. Also no adult ghosts.... all the adults are pure supernaturals.... hm.

Anyways that’s all i can think of right now and its a lot :) I’m so sorry

[alvacchi]

Imagine if Hanako was Literally a Flower Spirit

@rapidfur Surprise, surprise! XD hehe

What happens:

Once upon a time in Kamome Academy

Yashiro was busy in the school's practice garden

Since she's a member of the gardening club, she helped out with tending to the plants and vegetables

One day as she was walking through a field of red camellias

She spotted a blue rose that stood out yet was nearly hidden by the others

'So pretty!' Yashiro immediately thought.

'What's a blue rose doing in the middle of the field of red camellias?'

She was also thinking how romantic it would be if someone gave her one

She's never seen a blue rose before nor even knew if they existed.

The rose was drooping a little from lack of nutrients and Yashiro quickly tended to it

Giving it plenty of water

And putting the blue rose in its own flower pot

She decided to keep the rose for herself in the garden

Perhaps it would bring her good fortune

Yashiro wanted to name the blue rose

Naming it "Aoi" for its color would be confusing since she had a best friend with that name already

So she decided on Hanako

Hanako would be a nice female name for a flower

Yashiro left the blue rose in the garden as she went home for the day

The next day

She came back to the garden to see how the blue rose was doing

To find a strange boy sitting around near the plant

The boy saw her come by and he floated towards her all excited

"Ah! You're finally here!"

Yashiro blinked in confusion

Was she dreaming right now? Did he just float?

"Who are you?" Yashiro asked.

"Who me? I'm Hanako! That's the name you gave me! I'm the blue rose you saved yesterday!"

Yashiro: "Huh?! Wait, you're a boy?!"

That really shouldn't be the first thing she asks. There were far bigger questions.

Hanako: "Yes! I am and I'm a flower spirit! It's nice to meet you!"

So, that's how it all began.

In the beginning of their relationship, Yashiro had freaked out and went to go show Aoi the blue rose

Aoi looked at her in confusion though

Aoi: "Nene-chan, are you daydreaming again? That's a very nice flower pot you have but there's no rose there."

And that's how Yashiro came to realize only she could see the blue rose spirit Hanako

And she got used to him over time

During Yashiro's gardening activities, Hanako would come bother her.

Hanako: "Pay attention to me, Yashiro! I need water!"

He would roll around the dirt and whine

And often clung onto her as she removed the weeds from the garden with everyone else

He loved to greet her with a "Flower you today, Yashiro?"

And teased her to "smell the roses"

Yashiro reacted by saying that while she understood the phrase, she would not do that to him literally

Yashiro would rant to him about her latest attempts to confess to her crushes and asked Hanako to bring her good luck

Hanako: "What am I? Your good luck charm?"

Yashiro: "Yes!"

There was a time when Yashiro wanted to play a trick on Hanako

She brought in some fake plants and watered them for a couple of days

And then she told him, "Ha! You've been watching me water these fake plants for a few days now!"

Hanako's response surprised her

Hanako: "I thought it was really nice that you cared a lot for them despite them not being alive."

He had a solemn look on his face for a bit before he went on to tease her about how she thought he fell for it

He claimed he was able to feel the spirits of the flowers so he could tell right away if they were fake

Yashiro became flustered and playfully hit him

To think that her trick backfired on her

The other gardening members noticed Yashiro was being more talkative than usual

But it wasn't weird to them

Talking to plants actually helps them grow faster (more so to a female's voice than a male's)

They thought Yashiro planted a seed in her flower pot and wanted to help it grow faster

Aoi later commented on Yashiro's recent behavior to her best friend

Aoi: "Nene-chan, you seem more happier than before. Did something good happen?"

Yashiro: "Huh? What do you mean?"

Aoi: "Well back then, you didn't actually talk that much to plants and you weren't crazy about the club. It was as if you were only gardening to impress someone. But now, you seem like you're having fun! It's so nice to see you being genuinely happy to take care of your new plant."

Yashiro was astonished but as expected of her best friend to notice.

She really did have a good time with Hanako.

...If only she saw what was coming

It was almost a week already and Yashiro stopped by to see Hanako again in the garden

To see him kneeling strangely on the floor and breathing funny

Yashiro started to panic at the sight as she ran towards him

Yashiro: "Hanako-kun?! Hanako-kun, what's wrong?!'

Hanako: "Ah, Yashiro...."

Yashiro: "Did you not get enough sunlight? Should I have moved you to a different location? Did I give you enough water? Wh-"

Hanako: "Yashiro! Calm down, Yashiro..."

Yashiro was crying now

Her tears were falling onto the ground and dampening the soil

Yashiro: "What did I do wrong...?"

Hanako: "Yashiro, it's not your fault. I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

Yashiro: "Huh?"

Hanako: "Roses only last up to about a week."

Yashiro: "No...."

She completely forgot

Hanako: "You've made me really happy, Yashiro. You could say you were my sunshine..."

They both tried to laugh but failed horribly.

Yashiro continued to sob

She never cried so hard for a flower before

Yashiro: "I don't want you to go, Hanako-kun..."

Hanako: "I'm afraid I can't grant that wish. Besides, I wasn't even supposed to exist. I don't exist."

Yashiro: "Huh?"

Hanako: "Blue roses are a myth. A fantasy of longing and desire. Did you know, Yashiro?"

Hanako intertwined his fingers with hers.

Hanako: "They could mean an unattainable love."

Yashiro: "Is that why I have such terrible luck with confessing?"

Hanako: "Eh-? Well you don't have to interpret it that way!"

Already, Hanako was slowly fading away

Hanako: "Yashiro...thank you"

When he completely faded, all that was left was the flower pot. No wilted flower. Nothing but soil in the flower pot.

Yashiro hugged the pot to herself as she cried her heart out.

She later buried the soil that nourished Hanako back in the field of red camellias as they represented his ashes.

Yashiro started speaking aloud

"Did you know, Hanako-kun? Red camellias mean love, passion, and deep desire."

[polar-stars]

PSD Quartet plz?

 Ofc, fellow PSD-Stan

Shun Ibusaki

Why I like them - I like how mysterious he is and it also adds great comedy how emotionless he always is when surrounded by the PSD-members who more than often get utilized for reaction shots and are therefore pretty expressive. I also loved seeing his hidden depth and ambitions, shame that there was no work done with it.

Why I don’t

Favorite episode (scene if movie) - Episode 23/Chapter 55 (AE Premlins), Chapter 96 (This is where he has the moment with Ryoko), Chapter 116 (That’s the Stagiare-Moment of his)

Favorite season/movie - Season 1

Favorite line - “Like hell I can give up! I’m turning things around…” (Chapter 116)

Favorite outfit - I’d say his “Prince of Smoke”-Outfit

OTP - Him x Ryoko Sakaki ❤️ 

Brotp - Him and the Rest of PSD, mainly Zenji Marui ofc. For someone outer-PSD: Akira Hayama and/or Ryo Kurokiba and him sound like a nice friendship.

Head Canon - His favorite song is “Bring Me Back To Life” by Evanescence, no you can’t change my mind on that. 

Unpopular opinion - uuuuUH, a few fanworks (x-Readers) tend to portray him as this straight-forward, smooth guy and I can’t really see that? He strikes me as a shy bean, who would be really unsure about confessing his love for a great amount of time.

A wish - I mean, it’s all over now but….It would have been nice if his obvious grudges from the Autumn Elections would have been explored with more depth. 

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen - Exactly what happened, he never got to do anything ever again ; 7 ;

5 words to best describe them - Silent, Mysterious, Stoic, Ambitious, Blunt

My nickname for them - “mop” ahhdhdGHG SORRY, I LOVE YOU SHUN

-

Ryoko Sakaki

Why I like them - Ryoko is just such a gentle and caring soul, how can you not like her? I like how mature she is in comparison to most of her classmates, but is still made out to be a person you can have fun with. She just has an insane amount of grace and elegance to her in all of her sophisticated calmness and I love her established role as big-sister-figure within the dorm and how it shows specifically when she interacts with Yuki and Megumi.

Why I don’t

Favorite episode (scene if movie) - Episode 23/Chapter 54 (AE Premlins), Chapter 63 (She helped out Soma for his Shokugeki against Alice and it was interesting seeing them interact o3o), Chapter 96 (This is where she had the moment with Shun)

Favorite season/movie - Season 1

Favorite line - “…is that what you’re thinking?” (Chapter 96)

Favorite outfit - hmmmMMM…Maybe that one dress she wears when Erina joins the dorm ovo?

OTP - Her and Shun

Brotp - Her and the PSD Members, most notably Yuki Yoshiko ofc. Outer-PSD, I’d say Ikumi Mito (+ Erina wether or not you count her into PSD)

Head Canon - Has shampoo that smells like cherry-blossoms and therefore carries the fragrance of cherry-blossoms around at all times. 

Unpopular opinion - Don’t oversexualise her please 🙃 Also in a few works, she tends to be portrayed as rather lewd or the girl who had everyone in their bed already, and I could never really see that. She kind off strikes me as someone who would want to “save herself up” for someone special so to speak and also needs a bit of time before agreeing to get physical.

A wish - Again, too late now but welp, it would have been great to see her cook again. 

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen - *mutters* the thing that happened…her never getting proper screen time again

5 words to best describe them - Mature. Calm. Friendly. Gentle. Patient.

My nickname for them - Meep, I like to call her a “Lady” but that’s it ;w;

-

Yuki Yoshino

Why I like them - How can one not like Yuki? She’s such an adorable, supportive, little sunshine girl! Her bubbliness and joyful attitude are just very endearing and it’s always massive fun to watch her. She also has a bunch of funny moments and I enjoy how overdramatic she can get sometimes. To me, she’s a very fun and lovable example of an energetic character. 

Why I don’t

Favorite episode (scene if movie) - Episode 22/Chapter 56 (AE Premlins, though I think her part was done better in the anime), Chapter 60 (First time of her crying, because bby didn’t made the AE and still she throws a party for her friendos afterwards…BBY), 70 + 69 (Her supportiveness for Megumi in her match with Ryo was just the cutest thing ever, change my mind) Chapter 141 (This is where she breaks down crying in-front of everyone), Also Chapter 63 because this is where she asks Zenji if his glasses are just for show and that’s ✨ OTP ✨(next in line for “Great OTP Moments” would be Episode 13/Chapter 28)

Favorite season/movie - Season 1

Favorite line - “I really don’t like this! I don’t want the Polar Star Dorm to be gone!! I wanted..to be with you guys and together….I…I wanted to, cook more with you!” (Chapter 141) + “We of the Polar Star are so fearsome even kids stop crying!” (Chapter 14)

Favorite outfit - Her “Red Riding Hood”-Outfit is hella cute, if it’s something casual I’d say this outfit from that one chapter cover

OTP - HER AND ZENJI MARUI, f O RE VER AND E VERRRRRRRRRR

Brotp - Her and PSD, most notably Ryoko Sakaki. Outer-PSD, Ikumi Mito and Alice Nakiri would be my picks (+ Erina Nakiri, depends on where you count her in -w-)…also hear me out……Her and Kuga. (Or her and Nene for my self-indulgence, hi)

Head Canon - She likes fruit-patterns, tropical fruit-patterns. Especially those with citrus-fruits. 

Unpopular opinion - Hm…I am sure there’s something, but idk as of now

A wish - preCIOUS BABY SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN THE REWARDS FOR THE TEARS SHE SHED. JUSTICE FOR YUKI MY FRIENDS. SHE ALWAYS SUPPORTED EVERYONE. I WAN T TO SEE HER SUCCEEED. 

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen - (I actually kinda like seeing her in the world of business in Les Dessert so kudos for that I think),  AHEAM her being reduced to a mere reaction character 

5 words to best describe them - Energetic. Spunky. Supportive. Childish. Overdramatic.

My nickname for them - Sunshine bby, Precious Sunflower

-

Zenji Marui

Why I like them - *deep breath* I like smart characters and his very role in Shokugeki is to be the smart guy, but there’s more to that…I like how he’s still shown to be a hard-worker who studies hard to survive in Totsuki’s harsh environment where he’s surrounded by natural geniuses and how he truly excels in the intellectual area. He’s also just great fun to watch wether he’s onto explaining something solemnly or greatly upset about something. I also do like the “Everybody’s-Doormat-Character” who complains about that status a lot because….that’s quite literally my life. Zenji is very relateable for me, because I too have to deal with people who never listen to me and I too am DAMN EASILY EXHAUSTED. Zenji has both serious moments and comedic moments and both work for me and I ju ST LOVE HIM SO MUCH. 

Why I don’t

Favorite episode (scene if movie) - CHAPTER 23/55 MY DUDES (AKA. AE PREMLINS) I GET EMOTIONAL EVERY SINGLE TIME, Chapter 152 (He has some damn nice panels in this, don’t judge me), Chapter 235 (listen, I also just get enjoyment out of my fave-glasses-person explaining the villainy of my other-fave-glasses-person, doNT JUDGE ME) also once again….Chapter 63 + Episode 13/Chaoter 28 because ✨ OTP Moments ✨

Favorite season/movie - Season 1

Favorite line - “I don’’t have an outstanding cooking sense, and my physical strength is below average. That’s exactly why I have a strong desire for ‘knowledge’. All so that an ordinary man like me can fight against all those geniuses!” (Best Chapter Chapter 55)

Favorite outfit - That one shirt he always wears I guess + his “Professor of Taste”-Outfit because he SMART !!

OTP - Him 👏 and 👏 Yuki 👏 Yoshino

Brotp - Him and PSD, most notably Shun Ibusaki. Outer-PSD, as I’ve said…I would have loved to see him interact with Alice Nakiri some more, given that I’d say they’re the smartest members in their Gen. Him and Hisako Arato also sounds like a nice duo. (Also hear me out, his interactions with Etsuya Eizan would be hilarious, I deserve to see t h a t. Someone give it to me, pls. Additionally…..Nene. Just give me the Glasses-Characters-Of-SNS-Spin-Off come on)

Head Canon - I’ll just pretend he also went into the world of business in Les Dessert, because he kind off does in SnKimiko as well….Try to Stop me. Fumio and him have occasional, but intense battles in chess.

Unpopular opinion - *DEEP BREATH* My son tends to get underestimated a lot and be brushed off as just a comic-relief and no-E10-Material and I just…..*sighs* People in the past, did consider Shun E10-Material and Zenji had the exact same score as Shun in the AE Premlins, so I can’t see why he shouldn’t have the same potential. I mean it doesn’t matter because we never got to see any of the two in the Elite 10 so meep, but I am just….sad about the fact that barely anyone is giving Zenji even a chance. 

A wish - *cries* I just wanted to see him cook again*

An oh-god-please-dont-ever-happen - *LOOKS STRAIGHT AT LES DESSERT 3 IN CONTEMPT*, (also honestly him (+ Daigo and Shoji) lusting after those two “hot” judges in RDC felt really out of place, out of character and just cringe…and I hate it.)

5 words to best describe them - Intelligent. Cautious. Calculated. Whiny. Serious. 

My nickname for them - NUMBER ONE SON

[donnerpartyofone]

21 Questions

Tagged by @getoutofmyhouse who had oddly similar answers to mine

Nickname: only the one I use here, that I gave myself--Claire Donner, which has to do with my famous love of cannibalism. Claire is my real first name, though.

Zodiac: I am so very cuspy. I was born at about a quarter to midnight on April 20, so I tend to relate to, and feel insulted by, the suppositions about Aries and Taurus equally. I’m one of those jerks who will tell you astrology is a bunch of hoo ha...and then drone on with my Many Esoteric Ideas about it, so I’ll just stop myself right here.

Height: 5’ nuthin is what I prefer to say...because saying I’m 5 and 3/4′ sounds a little like saying I’m 10 and a half years old.

Amount of sleep: It’s all fucked up. Until I got into my 30s I could, and would prefer to, sleep endlessly. Now I go to bed around 10 (depression), get up around 5 or 6 (being old), and for extra fun, I’ve developed this insomnia that often keeps me up from about 2am-5am. I try make the most of it by getting up, getting high, watching a movie or two, writing...basically just having a secret private day by myself. I’d really rather go back to just sleeping constantly though.

Last movie I saw: I saw GRETA in theaters tonight, which was ok. I guess I thought any Neil Jordan film would be headier than this, but watching Isabel Huppert just running around acting like an absolute maniac is a rare treat! My last video experience was RAW, which I put on to bother my husband right when we got home from the theater. (I think he liked it more than I originally did, to my surprise)

Last thing I googled: The correct spelling of Sylvia Likens’ last name. I’m obsessed with this type of crime where a group of people (usually a family and/or some of their friends and neighbors) fall into some kind of shared hysteria where they protractedly torture to death an acquaintance for no particular reason. Some times there’s an element of mystery as to why the victim didn’t leave while they were still able to, which suggests to me that the murdered person was just as much a victim of the groupthink as the perpetrators. Other example victims include Suzanne Capper, Vera Jo Reigle, and I think to some degree Sophie Lionnet, James Bulger, and Junko Furuta. (Also a crime they briefly discuss in the book Lords of Chaos, where several people murder a friend in their trailer, but I can’t remember it specifically enough to look up the names--the other last thing i tried to google) I keep thinking there should be a psychiatric and/or legal term for this kind of crime, but I’ve never heard one, so let me know if you got one!

Favorite musician: I have trouble with questions that involve ranking anything, so I’ll just say that right now I’m listening to a lot of old White Zombie. I didn’t know anything about their origins as an East Village noise band, and I’m fascinated by the stories about how apocalyptically miserable it was to be in that group. I’m increasingly obsessed with people who work their asses off doing something they barely even enjoy, for what must be borderline spiritual reasons.

Song stuck in my head: Nothing right this second, for which I am very grateful. There’s something awful in my brain that causes me to wake up with some maddening, babyish tune stuck in my head more often than not. It is most frequently the Ten Little Indians nursery rhyme. This is literally killing me.

Other blogs: @anhed-nia, which started as a dumping ground for long posts about mental illness, and turned into almost only movie writing. at some point there was just so much movie shit that i started to feel awkward about posting anything personal there again. i also got @getoffyrass which is a group blog, and a repository for images that make great drawing references. everyone is encouraged to post their drawings, too, although it is seldom used. i still like having it around, for when i have time to draw. my “real” drawing blog is @neveratendermoment but i don’t draw often enough anymore...

Do I get asks: i used to get tons! i really enjoy them, even the trolls to some degree. i must have seemed like more of a regular tumblr geek girl back in the day. also tumblr has just changed a lot since then. my blog was definitely a casualty of Best Stuff First, i think my follower count stopped dead forever right when that happened, and now that practically every single fucking thing on this entire site is either fandom shit or *discourse*, i really have nothing to offer tumblr anymore, anyway.

Blogs following: 1,057. 

Lucky numbers: 2! Also 5.

What I’m wearing: black wool long john pants from Chrome, and a white v neck teeshirt with the words BLACK MAYONNAISE on it in black Rocky Horror font. i live near the notoriously toxic Gowanus Canal, and “black mayonnaise” is the actual term used to describe what’s on the bottom of it, by the scientists who are trying to figure out what to do with it.

Dream trip: i am really excited by travel, it’s hard to pick. i’m hopefully making a dream trip soon though: my father’s mysterious finno-swedish family is from the åland islands, and my husband and i will be planning part of our honeymoon there, whenever that happens.

Dream Job: i think about this a lot, because the older i get, the more i object to the entire concept of having to work to live. i’m into the whole universal basic income thing. i’m at this point where i can barely stand to think about capitalism in any way--like i think about how the need for money is so mortally serious that there’s a lot of physical stuff in the world that only exists because someone was scared of starving, tons of useless products and packaging and factory byproducts and all kinds of fucking straight up garbage that was only invented due to the lethality of poorness. i would rather be left totally alone forever if possible. however, if i HAD to do something and i COULD do anything, it would probably be film criticism. this fantasy takes place in a world where people care so much about what i have to say that i can make a career, not only out of movie writing, but out of only writing about the specific movies i want to write about, referring to nothing other than my personal reactions.

Favorite food: i wish the answer weren’t just “cheese”, but it probably is. also mushrooms. anything cinnamon. i’m a pretty adventurous eater though. the most important thing for me is a variety of flavors and textures.

Languages: english. i took several years of italian in junior high-high school, and did nothing with it. i taught myself to read french pretty fluently, but i would fold right up if someone tried to speak to me. i learned a bunch of swedish on duolingo, shoulda kept it up. i’ll get back to it! i really regret never learning spanish though, so i’m easily torn on what to do with my time.

Play any instruments: clarinet in junior high/high school, also alto sax which i did not enjoy at all, a little guitar. i bought a used electric bass last year that i have really been enjoying, but i feel a lot of guilt around not playing enough. so much of it is just strength training. that’s probably what i like about it, though. also i got a lot of electronic music software and midi controllers and stuff...and then i realized that it could take me months to sort through the thousands of samples i have to program this stuff, and i only got so far into it before i started to get discouraged. i need to get back to it, it’s ridiculous to let that stuff lie around. this is a rare example of me wishing i knew someone local to play with, who could speed me along on how everything works.

Favorite songs: another one of these impossible questions! anybody who is even reading this can probably guess the answers from the handful of music posts i reblog over and over and over. the other night i got all hyperactive and forced my husband to drop everything and listen to “buffalo stance” by nene cherry, which i never ever get sick of. real top contenders for favorite song might be “Stand By the Jamms” by the klf, and this recording, which has gotten me through many difficult hours:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8k1HsF3EvY

https://www.forcedexposure.com/Catalog/sunray-sonic-boom-music-for-the-dreamachine-cd/STRAWB.003CD.html

Random fact: i’m sure i’m missing out on something really funny and cool, but for now it’s just the well-known fact that i read palms.

Describe yourself as aesthetic thing: man, how do i answer this without being totally pretentious? maybe nobody can! i’m coming up with something really hard to describe but it will be worth it. the other day i watched this insane, completely unnecessary movie about lorca and salvador dali (played by robert pattinson) as gay lovers. there’s a scene in it where lorca does that “pick a hand” thing to dali, and dali picks an empty hand. of course, they’re both poor students who couldn’t be buying any gifts, so they do this obnoxious pantomime where dali pretends lorca actually gave him something--but then it turns out that lorca really DOES have something. he opens his other hand and gives dali...SOMETHING. i don’t know what! they make such a big deal out of it, but what the hell? you see it for a second in this closeup, but it’s shot from like, behind and slightly underneath, and it is just unrecognizable. it’s sort of an orange blob? it’s probably meant to be a sculpture. but, i love the idea of doing the “pick a hand” thing to somebody, and the other person is just like...hey wait a minute, what the fuck even IS this?? 

it reminded me of one of the most amazing things anyone ever did at my school, bard college. this genius art student who I WISH I COULD NAME TO CREDIT HER did her senior project as this like...made up product. i saw them at the senior show, hanging off a spinner rack, like you’d see next to the register in the drug store. they were called Toilet Buddies. they were these plastic, brightly colored objects that looked like toys, but they didn’t have a familiar earthly shape, and because of the title, it was IMPOSSIBLE to imagine what to do with them. so, she gets the lipstick cam from the film department, and shoots this video of herself sneaking some Toilet Buddies into Walmart. then she takes them to the register and BUYS THEM--the baffled cashier looks for them for a while, and eventually just rings them up as a general grocery or something. then in part 2, the artist TAKES THEM BACK TO THE STORE WITH THE RECEIPT AND GETS A REFUND.

so anyway, i see myself as like a fake product--something that looks just familiar enough to exit, and that appears to have a designated purpose, but it’s just kind of cheap and foreign and it becomes nightmarish to try to imagine what to do with it. 

I don’t know if anyone i know will want to do this, but i tag @negativepleasure @moviesludge @former-contender @dimestoreman @thefuzzydave @darkarfs @theoddsideofme @blueruins ...um, i don’t really know who would enjoy this. the ultimate would be @garbagenacht

[megaboy335]

Mega’s Top 2017 Anime

Another year as come and gone so as usual it’s time for me to list my top 5 favorite anime of the year. Also included are a short list of disappointments and my favorite OP/EDs of the year. I actually didn’t watch as much this year because Amazon and Netflix started aggressively going after anime so I ended up passing on some of them. As always this list is in no particular order and this is simply my opinion. There are some small spoilers. This post is of course too long for the dash, so its under the Keep Reading. Enjoy!

1) Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid

This may come as a surprise to some since I am usually not a fan of the monster girl genre, however this anime did things a little differently. The plot follows Kobayashi, Tooru, with a handful of other characters and the weekly hijinks they get in. Unlike most monster girl shows, there is only one species highlighted in this show: Dragons. In fact there are even male dragons. The show doesn’t glorify the monster girls but instead focuses on the idea of family. Kobayashi, Tooru, and Kana all make a precious family unit. Kobayashi has a day job, Tooru takes care of the house, while Kana attends school. All along the way learning from each other and growing closer together. Showing that people from different backgrounds can all come together, living cohesively in peace. I always felt relaxed while watching and always looked forward to the next episode. Lastly, I’ll just say Kana was one of the most precious characters in anime this year.

2) Tsuki ga Kirei

This anime really caught me by surprise. The show was a very cutesy pure teenage rom-com and it completely won me over. The best part was definitely how it played with the tropes of the genre. It would act it was on that path but divert before getting there. For example, we have a main couple who will of course get together by the end, but there’s also a male and female side love interest who naturally exist to stir up drama. Yet… they really don’t. They both knew their place and respected the main couple. I also just really liked the atmosphere of the show. The main characters usually spoke very softly and their mannerisms were often very well animated. It gave the show a very natural feeling. Overall a simple show, but with one of the purest romances in recent memory.

3) Re:Creators

What kind of relationship does a creator have with its creation? What about creation and the readers? Or even the creation and its creator? These are the questions Re:Creators explored and how it managed to hook me. The story follows a handful of fictional characters who are suddenly brought into our world, the world of the gods, as they call it. We got a wide assortment of characters from strong females, to the hot-blooded male character, a girl from an eroge, and even a magical girl along with most of their respective authors also in the story. However the character that I enjoyed the most was easily the villain Altair. She is basically an doujin creation in the same style as Black Rock Shooter. As such her powers are limitless as the fans have an infinite amount of interpretations of her. The only way our main characters could fight this was making one of the biggest crossover collaborations ever. They had to create a setting where it was possible for the readers to accept the characters having stronger powers. I thought this was a really creative concept. The anime overall felt very much like a love letter to creative process of making a story. I fully believe this would have been the most popular this year if hadn’t been on Amazon’s Anime Strike service.

4) Eromanga-Sensei

I enjoyed Oreimo a lot during its prime in the early 2010s. The first season was one of the first non-shonen simulcasts I ever watched which ended up being a gateway into the world of late-night anime. Eromanga Sensei has been on my radar ever since the author first announced it several years ago and here we are with an anime at last after several years.

Eromanga-Sensei lived up to and even exceed expectations in some areas. In Oreimo the author was always ambiguous about if he would follow through on the title’s namesake or not, but this time he couldn’t care less. By the end of the arc it’s very clear the story going to the incest ending. The show was much better animated than it ever needed to be. There was even someone on the staff who was tasked with just animating Sagiri. I also want to mention that Akane Fujita, Sagiri’s seiyuu, did extremely well in this role. They really wanted to go to the extra mile on Sagiri’s cuteness. I really hope it gets a 2nd season at some point.

5) Owarimonogatari

It’s been a long ride but the Monogatari series has finally finished its main story. The only novel left is Zoku-Owari which already has an anime confirmed for 2018. I was really happy to finally see it end. The final arc begins with Araragi and Hachikuji coming back from hell, then a date with Senjouhara, and lastly the final showdown with Ougi. Oshino even came back for the finale. Overall the Monogatari remains as one of my favorite series of all time. Nisio’s character focused dialogue and interesting cast of characters really makes this something special for me. One of these days I plan to re-watch the entire series in chronological order.

Bonus Round: Strong Sequels

Boku no Hero Academia Season 2 - Episode 10 (Todoroki: Origin) was a major stand out episode for me this year. It was jaw dropping in the manga and the added spice of Yutaka Nakamura animating the final scene made it jaw dropping once again for the anime. As a whole season 2 was a lot better than season 1. Two cour and having stronger content made a huge difference. I’m really hyped for season 3. Next up is the best arc in the series to date.

New Game!! - What was already a near perfect show was made even better with season 2 taking a new direction with the daily work of our main characters. While season 1 showed Aoba working on a game already in production, season 2 follows the creation of a game from conception to release. We got to see Aoba face the struggles of game development and grow from it both professionally and personally. Then the second half introduced two new characters and even made Nene a permanent part of the cast. Sadly its caught up to the manga for the time being, so getting any more anime seems unlikely in the foreseeable future.

Honorable mentions: Shows that were also really good but for one reason or another just not good enough to reach the top of my list

Made in Abyss - It was a really solid show. I really wished it could have spent more time exploring each level but unfortunately the characters must always be pressing forward. The only thing really stopping me from rating the show higher is the fact its not over yet. I didn’t feel satisfied. Instead I only wanted to continue the adventure. The cliffhanger heavily implies that we’ve barely scratched the surface of lurks ahead. I have high hopes for the next season.

As per my tradition next up are my biggest disappointments of the year.

Shokugeki no Souma season 3 – Here we are again. Souma season 2 was on the disappointment list last year for rushing an important arc. While that did happen again I felt it was the least my concerns. The bigger issue this season was the lazy adaptation. They just copy and paste the manga and it feels like there was very little thought put into it. Even the animation itself was lackluster. If the arc has to conclude in the 2nd cour in April, I think it’s only going to get worse.

Black Clover – I know this hasn’t ended yet but I doubt my feeling about this show will change. I’ve been reading the manga since day 1 so I knew it wasn’t that good but I never wished for it to get the kind of anime it ended up with. It’s airing during late afternoon on TV Tokyo which means its airing for an entire year. So to make that work it’s loaded to the brim with filler upon filler. Sure it fleshes out the setting and slows the pacing compared to the hyper paced manga, but it all feels so pointless. There’s also Asta’s voice though I’m sure everyone’s heard it by now. Regardless I’ll be sticking with it all the way to the end because I am way too faithful to Shonen Jump titles for my own good sometimes.

Top Anime OP/EDs

1) Eromanga-sensei ED – Sagiri’s dance is so precious + Trysail song makes it even better

2) Attack on Titan S2 OP – new season, new arc, still another hype opening. Animation and visual choices were really well done.

3) Symphogear AXZ ED – Nothing like a hype song that overruns the last 5-10 seconds of the episode. It always increases the hype of the cliffhangers.

4) One Piece OP 20 – Easily the best One Piece opening since the time skip. It really highlights everything that makes Whole Cake Island a seriously great arc.

5) Boku no Hero Academia S2 OP1 – perfect song to pump you up for some high energy shonen action.

2017 wasn’t the best year for having a large amount of standout anime, but as usual there were a few good shows this year. 2018 is already looking promising. There’s an anime for the new Cardcaptor Sakura manga in just a few weeks from now. David Productions is animating a new Captain Tsubasa. (Come on David Pro, where is JoJo Part 5.) There are also many Jump titles with anime potential coming up in the later half of 2018. So there will be plenty to look forward to in the coming year.

[polar-stars]

I was a little inspired by Kana, to write something for @isshinene as well to make her feel a bit better on her recent anon spams ;w; 

So here, have a small insight into Nene in Star Wars AU (with some? some? IsshiNene? Because c’mon it’s for Asuka. And honestly everything can be canon in Star Wars AU ^^) 

It’s also rather angsty (I hope) but since Asuka tends to like it, I hope it won’t be that much of a problem.

Also I will get to the remaining asks in my inbox relating to the AU as soon as I can ;w; (I’ll get some writing done in my vacations)

Anyways, it’s a bit sloppy and all over the place but I hope you can find at least a little enjoyment in it:

Coruscant. The famous capital of the Galactic Republic and undoubtedly the center of the their world. When arriving in your ship, you were greeted by the imposant sight of the high skyscrapers of the city planet in their competition who could get nearer to the sky. Many ships then began to set their course on some of the most impressive buildings of the enormous city. Like the Opera house for example, or the Senate building or the Jedi Temple. Her home. As far as she heard from the Master who used to train her, she was originally from Naboo. However, as her force-sensitivity was recognised early on, she had been taken from her parents as a baby to learn the ways of the Jedi. And so she had been living on the booming city planet Coruscant for all her life. To others, it tended to sound shocking and frightening, having to think being taken away from their parents but to her it was a necessary step, as she couldn’t allow herself any strong emotional bonds as a Jedi. This was just simply how they operated. They committed their life to the force and the maintaining of peace in the Galaxis. This required a cool head and a full-on dedication to your duty. Jedi Master Nene Kinokuni. From the day her training begun on, she had always been one of the most diligent and hard-working Padawans among her fellow peers. Her precision, attention to detail and willingness to learn could only be rivaled by few and quickly she grew into one of the most talented Jedis the Order ever had, claiming the rang of Master at a rather young age. She earned great respect because of that and more than often her name was brought up to young Padawans to set an example. When she passed through the halls, she felt eyes following her and minds calculating if it would be appropriate to talk to the legend. She sensed that each and everyone of them, was trusting her with their life. Too bad, that they did not sense that she was not much of an reliable protector anymore. Nene was analyzing her fellow Jedis a lot and sometimes she would inspect their talks and their fighting. In all her observations, she noted how more and more Jedis became a lot more brash and recklesss. Focusing more on looking 'cool' than to keep the mind in balance. Nene lost count on how many Jedi customs she had already seen being abandoned. In the beginning she tried to tell herself that this was the fault of the currently ongoing Clone Wars and that it's circumstances where the reasons why some Jedi felt a need to alter their behavior a little. But after taking on a mission directly in the supposed heart of the Republic, her home, that lead her directly into the dark shadows of Coruscant....Nene had truly been able to witness just how much criminal activities and unjust where committed in their very area. Much was broken. And there needed to be a change. And as she was presented to a chance, she grasped it. --- As she left the council meeting today, she knew that it would be their last time together. As she bid her fellow council members goodbye, she knew it would be one forever. With the exception of Master Somei Saito, who shared her views on the Jedi abandoning their customs more and more. As she finally got into the great halls of the temple, she planned to make her way to one of the ships immediately. She had thought long and hard about this and believed it would be the right choice. But even if she did, there was still a part in her that couldn't deny the guilt that was building up in her. Her, the remarkable and heavily respected Jedi Master, would be nothing but a backstabber and traitor by the time this day would end and she knew it. Mentally she shook her head, telling herself to not let the guilt win over her and to keep rational. After all, being emotionless was the way of the Jedi. And change was necessary, even if it meant what it did. She had nearly reached the gate as she suddenly heard a familiar voice behind her, calling her name in such a jolly and happy way. "Nene!" She flinched immediately and for a moment considered just continue on walking. She didn't want to have this confrontation. She didn't want to. Out of sheer politeness, or so she told herself, she turned around in the end to face the brightly, smiling face of her childhood friend and fellow Jedi Council Member, Satoshi Isshiki. His Padawan, Shun Ibusaki, standing a bit farer away with an unreadable expression as always. "Isshiki." She greeted dryly, while her mind was in turmoil, having to look into these shining, blue eyes that had always been near her since birth, that she had often eyed them so darkly but at the same time she always found herself lost in them ever since. "Fantastic" didn't even begin to describe his talents. He was sheer wonder. Within the span of only a few minutes or hours he had mastered tasks that others needed weeks for from the day his training began on. No matter what the subject to learn was, he always exceeded perfectly. He invoked a feeling in her that no Jedi should ever feel for even a second, jealousy. Of course, she always denied it and suppressed it. After all, jealousy was considered a sufficient way to get lost on dark path, which would be a shame for a renowed Jedi like her. But whenever she saw him mastering a skill, she had sharpened over the course of weeks in just a hour, she felt the jealousy burning up. Did she hate him though? No absolutely not. It was possibly straight-up impossible to hate Satoshi Isshiki and his kind smiles, his care for the younger ones, his loyalty and his willpower to do the good deeds. And this rumbled up the emotions, she wasn't even supposed to have, even more. "What do you want?" She spoke, averting his gaze, not wanting to be directly pinned under the stare of a man, close to her, that she had already betrayed mentally. "I wanted to ask if you're not too busy." He responded. Before continuing. "I wanted to ask you if you could assist me in the training of Shun today?" Now she frowned and actually did turn to him. Was he trying to make fun of her? "Why?" She asked. "He's not my Padawan. Also..." Her tone got frosty. "I do not know what I am supposed to teach him that you can't." With that she was about to turn around. But his voice stopped her movement. "What are you talking about?" Again, she met his gaze, still frowning. But in return he looked at her so warmly and so...honest. "Don't talk yourself down like that. I know for a fact that you would make a great teacher. No one has spend as much time in the liberty as you, so your theoretical knowledge and information around the Jedi history and customs is outmatched. I saw you talk to children before and it was evident that you are a caring, patient and understanding person. Exactly what they need." This made her brain freeze for a second, as her eyes only widened and she stared at the man with a more than bewildered expression. He only continued. "Truth to be told, the real reason why I want you to assist me today is that you get a taste of what teaching Padawans is like. I do believe you should get your own one. You would be a fantastic one and a gold-catch for any Padawan considering your status and skills." Nene was at a lost of words. She felt a forbidden blush emerge on her cheeks and her heart furtively accelerating at the praise she had just heard. Suddenly the yells of the suppressed guilt in her got louder and she had to clutch her fist to restrain herself from spilling what was actually going on in her mind right now. Satoshi only continued to look at her expectingly. "Maybe, when you come back we can look at the current Padawans and search one for you." His smile got even brighter, making her heart form a knot. "What do you say?" She couldn't deny that her tongue was aching and that a piercing pain went through her chest when she gave her answer. "Alright, as soon as I come back we can do as you wish. But now I really have to leave." To strengthen her inner turmoil, he laughed. "Nice to hear! I'll be waiting. Have a good flight." Nene nearly choked when saying "Goodbye, Isshiki" in return before turning around to make her way to the ship that would get her to the meeting Azami Nakiri had requested, so that his plans could be finalized at last. And so she left the building she grew up in, knowing that she would never return.