#nezumi is too much like me

[utopianparadoxist]

Hey guys! As a treat, I thought I'd provide some context for this seemingly random line Davepeta gives us in the latest upd8.

So It turns out this is a reference to a catchphrase used by Higurashi: When They Cry character Rika Furude, which is later used in that series' spiritual successor, Umineko: When they Cry. Imagine my surprise when this update dropped right as I was in the middle of writing the first Homestuck article I've posted in years, where I actually talk about some of Umineko's themes!

In Umineko, the line is specifically spoken by the Great Witch of Miracles, Bernkastel, a character who operates very much like an Ultimate Self incarnation of Rika Furude:

Current Homestuck: Beyond Canon contributor @mr-foods has done some spectacular Umineko fanart that's very worth checking out, so I guess it's not too surprising to see an in-text shout out.

But also, if you're looking for something to dig into in between Homestuck^2 updates, Umineko could be a good pick! Especially considering notable Homestuck YouTuber @nezumiva is just wrapping up her stream series where she voice acts the entire series live in a truly spectacular live performance. making it more accessible than ever.

And Umineko and Homestuck share some nearly jarring thematic similarities!

https://www.tumblr.com/mr-foods/758726208161792000?source=share

In particular, Umineko's structure lends itself very well to further imagining the Ultimate Self, with some characters existing "outside the game board" and treating the reality of the story as a metaphorical chess set, reusing the pieces that are the main cast--even including alternate piece versions of themselves-- in different ways over and over to tell different versions of the same story, in an effort to uncover the truth at the heart of the tale's mystery.

As I watch it draw to a close through Nezumi, I can also say that Umineko is one of the most heartfelt and moving narratives I've ever read, and has some spectacular musical bangers like Bernkastel's main theme, and several tracks that sound pretty damn Homestucky.

That's all for now. Let me know if you check Umineko out! Til next time, keep rising.

[demonslayedher]

A funny thing happens when you shop with a friend--you tend to purchase things you had not intended to. Like a Corp uniform cosplay. I've probably always wanted one, but my "I'm not a cosplayer, I (kinda) save money and effort with only closet play" attitude got in the way. It would need some adjustments if I were to use it for actual cosplay activities, but it's a good base.

These photos are just as impromptu as the purchase. @reicchel will have a companion post with how I dressed her in basic hakama and we cycled through a bunch of props both from my closet and her suitcase, wrinkled new cosplay and all. The following photos will be silly (but dang, I nailed that Giyuu cover art pose so it goes above the cut).

This, after:

Day 1, with @reicchel arriving in the Giyuu cardigan and me arriving to meet her in a Nezuko shawl. This was unplanned.

Day 2: USJ, Low-Key Giyushino style! I had thought I'd go with a Swordsmith Village theme to match the USJ events, but since she brought the haori, I simply had to switch to spending a day in Shinobu homage. USJ post(s) coming... eventually

Day 3: work : (

Day 4: Also unplanned: the Surviving Hashira homage day for going shopping! We were a hit. With borrowed, gifted, and impulse-bought items, she contributed the Sanegiyuu and I contributed the flamboyance. I love this t-shirt so much. I'm so honored that almost all of my muki muki nezumi merch has been gifted to me. (I had my stuffed muki muki nezumi displayed in an ita-bag and at one of the places we went shopping, the clerk commented that my wallet must be safe from anyone trying to steal it (you hear that, Muzan??).

(It's too bad my wallet is in the most danger if I'm the one holding it.)

And now work again : (

[shunin-gumis]

Nagi Birthday(2024) SSR Story

Best Wishes Snap

Happy Happy Day! (1st part)

The Yellow and white marker is Toi, Red is Ryui, Beige over black is Yodaka, Neon Pink is Netaro, and the All-black is (probably?) oshisha-sama (iykyk)

Messages Toi: Happy Birthday Nagi-kun! We love you 💖 Ryui: Happy B Day, show some energy. 🐙 Netaro: Birthday Boy 🌟🌟🌟 Yodaka: All happiness on your birthday ✨ Oshisha: My pet ➡️ Fun fact the rat ears doodled on Nagi is in reference to his radio persona named 'Nure Nezumi' meaning Drowned Rat!

Nagi: Haa.....

Boy: Mama, that man on the swing set has been staring at the ground for so long now.

Mother of the boy: It's not good to stare, we should leave him alone.

Nagi: I couldn't tell anyone it was my birthday today in the end.

Nagi: The "Random Present System"... I wonder if I was counted in it too.

Nagi: I'm sure the person who was selected to gift me a present has been decided, but no one actually knows it's my birthday today.... Besides, it must have been a hassle to get me something when the system was only just implemented....

Nagi: ...... Well, I guess it's fine even if my birthday isn't celebrated.

Nagi: Sonia sent me off with a smile and told me to enjoy the party, so I can't just go back to the shop now. I'll just return to Hama House, take a nice hot bath and sleep.

Nagi: I'm ba...ck?

Ryui: Finally! Where the hell were you off to all this time? You're late!

Nagi: Huh? Um, I'm... sorry?

Momiji: Welcome back, Nagi-kun.

Yodaka: We were just about to set off to find you.

Yodaka: It wouldn't do for the birthday boy to be absent for his own party, now would it?

Nagi: But I thought no one knew my birthday...

Netaro: What a silly goose you are Gii~ Surely you must remember the fact that you had to note down your birthday on your profile.

Momiji: It was in the company's documents too.

Nagi: Ah... you're right.

Toi: Ushio-kun prepared the cake -"Blooming Happiness ⭐ Full Bloom Flower Cake"! The flowers on top of the icing are all edible, isn't that amazing?

Nagi: Not just that, the entire table is packed with all kinds of food...

Nagi: You prepared all this... for me...?

Momiji: Nagi-kun, I've prepared a ton of vases so I can receive as many flowers as you want to give me later, so enjoy tonight as much as you want!

Nagi: ....!!

Everyone at Hama Tours: Happy Birthday!!

Renga: As fellow team leaders... let's do our best to get along and hype up HAMA.

Renga: This pink rose is my birthday gift for you.

Renga: It's thanks to your advice that my roses grew so beautifully, so you can have this one.

Nagi: ....hic.....

Renga: ...Wait, huh!? Are you crying!?

Ten: Ah... look at those tears. Renga-san, how could you do that to him....

Renga: Is this my fault!?

Renga: It's not like it's something specia- I mean, I did put a lot of thought into it, but!

Renga: O-Oi, stop crying already...!

Nagi: ....hic, I've never seen such a beautiful rose before. It's the most beautiful one in the world, no, in this entire galaxy!

Renga: I-Is that so...!

Muneuji: Hachinoya-san, please accept this watering can from me. I hope you can make use of it at your store. I wish for 'Flower Laundry' to continue to flourish and prosper.

Nagi: I-I promise to make my store one that everyone loves for the next 1000 years.

Liguang: ... He keeps crying every time someone greets him.

Ryui: He's a pain...

Nagi: Liguang-san, and Ryui... Even the two of you prepared a present for me?

Liguang: That's right. Grease and cloth included, I've prepared a maintenance tool set that you can use on your beloved bike.

Nagi: Thank you very much....

Ryui: This is a little something to ward of bad luck.

Nagi: Band-aids? It's even got a nice design...

Ryui: It's because you keep getting hurt all the time and getting Toi all worried. And stop bawling so much it's gross.

Nagi: ... Thank you for getting someone like me a gift. It's the first time my birthday's been celebrated like this...

Chihiro: Oh em gee, isn't Nagipeko crying a lil too much tho? You'll shrivel up at this rate!

Nagi: It'll be ok if I drink water right after letting it out.

Raito: Haha, guess I should prepare a pitcher for you in that case.

Nagi: I would really appreciate that.

Nagi: I want to give back all this gratitude I'm feeling. So that all of you can smile just like I am-

Nagi: I'll do a stand-up comedy right now.

Momiji: Eh, all of a sudden?

Tao: That's not what I was expecting from that speech!

Nagi: Even if you feel like cringing, please don't look away. I'd like you to accept my honest feelings of gratitude.

Momiji: Huh, wait, Nagi-kun...!

Nagi: Presenting my short skit, "How I surprised myself on my own Birthday."

Part 2

[estarion]

　　　you've been called into his office.

@ nobody 3 - you are much better at cheating than your peers vela and nezumi - they saw answers and still only got 8 correct. @ VELA - EXPELLED. luna too for helping you cheat. @ PERFECTION - then why did you only get 8 !? @ NEZUMI - E X P E L L E D . @ GALE - genuinely impressed by you. the ACTUAL top score. +4 for being on my good side now. @ LUNA BASKERVILLE. - very nice. i see us as equals. @ EMMA - a valiant effort. why do you think i want bitches so badly? @ HANA - you pay more attention than i'd have given you credit for. your wrong answers are inoffensive, also. @ BETTY - you got all the ones that matter correct. well, except one. darling, i'm hurt. you're not still upset, surely... @ oof - this was probably nezumi. @ oh no - or this was ... . . . or was it @bloodtwin ? @ AMAY - attention doesn't matter to me that much, you know ? @ CASSIAN - you got the last one correct. +5 to your score. bravo. @ TARA - your complaining got me in trouble. @ UMBRAL - this isn't a bad score. the final question matters most and you did not hesitate to utter the correct words. +5 for you. @ SIVIR - we've only just met, so this is a sane result. impressed that you guessed my birth city. @ wouldn't you like to know - i need to know who's almost as bad at guessing as i am. are you nobody 3's alter ego ? @ FALL FUCKING ESTO - there are things more important in life than bitches. @ 🥺 - @selunaris, is this you ? you're expelled, luna. understand me, luna? @ RAKATAK - i would have helped you cheat. @ RAPHAEL - it pleases me that you know so little.

[skrunksthatwunk]

GUYS. guys

nezumi: we're in the death torture murder site basement (which i entered for your sake) so if you get fucked up i can't take you with. but i will pity you enough to give you a quick murder death and also give you a kiss bc it's the height of tragedy and i am in way too deep with you

shion, covered in blood, shaking, mouth still tasting like vomit, like 5 mins after watching his [???/gay] suffocate an old man for his sake, about 10 minutes after crawling his way out of a mountain of fresh corpses (very much not a normal occurrence for him), wondering if he's even a person anymore now that he's witnessing such hell and feeling less and less about it: ffuckk that's hot

not gonna elaborate for now but why did none of y'all tell me the no.6 light novels were Like That (/pos in like a mildly baffled and mostly enthralled kinda way)

[deathmetalunicorn1]

I loved that! Can I request a Part 3 of the Yandere Platonic Straw Hats with Eri Reader? Arlong Park

Reader wants Nami to come back and learn why she left, and after learning about Nami's past, feels very sorry about Nami's situation and wants to help her, like how Nami helped Reader

Reader reveals a small part of her past, that she doesn't remember much about her mom, only that she gave her away because of her 'Curse', but says Nami's mommy sounds like an amazing person

(Both Zoro and Luffy become absolutely pissed, and want to find Reader's mom and beat the crap outta her)

-You were curled up in Luffy’s arms, sniffing softly as you rubbed your eyes with the back of your hand again as he walked through the small town with you.

-Nami had been traced to this island, in Cocoyasi Village, where her big sister, Nojiko had found the 5 of you, looking for Nami.

-After learning she had stolen the ship to return to the island, Nojiko was sympathetic, especially seeing you, and brought you all to hers and Nami’s childhood home.

-You ate some mikan, ignoring Nojiko’s laugh as you didn’t care much for the slightly sour taste, as she told you why Nami had stolen the ship.

-Nami had been working hard to make whatever money she could, to buy the freedom of everyone on Cocoyasi Village, and while furious at first, the four men of the crew slowly calmed, hearing about how hard she had worked.

-Zoro was still annoyed with Nami, “She could have just asked us rather than just taking the ship!” Usopp agreed with him.

-You looked up at Luffy, holding onto his vest, “Are we gonna help Nami?” he instantly grinned down at you, “Of course we are!”

-Your eyes were as big as saucers, learning from Nojiko that she was part of another pirate crew, Arlong, a fish-man, who took Nami after seeing her map-drawing skills, and after killing Bell-Mere, their adoptive mother, in cold blood in front of them.

-Your eyes were full of tears, biting your bottom lip which made the five adults panic, trying to calm you down as you curled in on Luffy, which is what you did when you were scared.

-You sniffled loudly, trying to curb your tears, “I want Nami’s mommy to be my mommy too! My mommy was mean; she gave me to mean- mean men who hurt me. They made me use my quirk to hurt others. I-I want a mommy like Nami’s mommy!”

-Luffy’s blood was like ice and fire all at the same time, they all knew of the scars you had on your body, scars from years of torture, not just physically, but also mentally and emotionally, even Sanji, being the newest member of the crew, had gotten filled in, at least with the basics, that you had been abused and tortured for your unique ability that was not a Devil Fruit ability.

-Luffy looked furious, hearing of your past, of what your mother did to you, they all looked furious, ready to seek out your mother and get revenge. Nobody is allowed to hurt you.

-Nojiko took you from Luffy when he announced they were going to go get Nami back from Arlong, but you couldn’t shake the sense of dread as Luffy gave you a grin, “I’m gonna get Nami back! She’s our friend!”

-Only a short while later, you were hiding behind Nojiko and Genzo, hiding from the marines and Nezumi who were attacking the mikan field, looking for the money Nami had buried there.

-You were scared, not wanting anyone to get hurt and Nojiko swallowed hard, not willing to risk your safety and she nudged you away, “Go hide!”

-You hesitated and ran, doing as you were told, and you heard Nezumi, “Don’t let her escape!”

-The sound of a punch filled the air, but you kept running, tears nearly blinding you as you ran, looking for a place to hide.

-You found Usopp and Zoro shortly after, Usopp bleeding just a bit from a minor wound, but the amount of blood made it look worse than it was, while Zoro had been attacked by Arlong and left to die, his wounds reopened.

-You held Zoro’s hand to your chest, crying loudly, which alerted the members of Arlong’s crew, and they were able to find the three of you as your horn grew dramatically as an aura seemed to surround it.

-You ignored him, telling you to stop as you helped heal the wound on his chest at least partially before you were grabbed, a sharp cry leaving you as you were pulling to the arms of an unknown fish man.

-Usopp tried to grab you back but was instantly kicked down by the other two fish man, your eyes were wide as your hand was stretched out to him, crying out, “Usopp!”

-You were dragged to Arlong Park where you found Luffy, without his hat, and most of the park was destroyed around you, Luffy was injured again, but so was Arlong, who looked scary.

-The fish man holding you held you out, “Hey Arlong! I found a new kid! She can heal others!” Luffy turned, his eyes wide as you were struggling, as he was holding you up by the back of your shirt, trying to get free.

-Something hit the fish man holding you and instantly you found yourself in Nami’s arms, after she had knocked him out, leaping away with you.

-Your eyes lit up as you hugged her around her neck, “Nami!” she said nothing, glaring at Arlong before she spoke while setting her down, “You won’t take Y/N!”

-Arlong looked amused, laughing loudly, seeing Nami acting in a similar way to Bell-Mere, remembering her from so many years ago.

-Sanji was doing his best taking care of the other fish men, as was Usopp, Zoro, and Nami, who were all injured but fighting hard, while Luffy was fighting with Arlong.

-You were crying heavily, your quirk activating, the horn growing and glowing brightly as your hands were over your years as panic quickly took hold of you.

-It was hard to breath, you could barely see out of your teary eyes, sharp panting gasps were making your chest hurt.

-Nami was blown head over heels, but quickly saved by Sanji and you noticed a locket fall from her pocket, falling nearby.

-She didn’t notice but you quickly grabbed it, so it wouldn’t get stepped on, clutching it tightly to your chest.

-A blinding light surrounded you and the locket, stunning everyone; it felt like you were screaming, but no sound was coming out as swirls surrounded you, the locket disintegrating into dust, revealing a lock of bright red hair which then began to swirl.

-Eyes went wide, everyone gawking at you as Bell-Mere slowly appeared as the day she had died, minus the gunshot wound, kneeling down beside you, holding you close before she gasped loudly, returning to life.

-She looked down at her hands in shock, as she remembers dying, looking at the gun being pointed at her before she looked down at you, now drenched in sweat as a heavy fever took over your body, unconscious.

-She then looked around, seeing Nami, now an adult, fighting against Arlong and his men, alongside other humans and she set you down, cracking her knuckles, “Seems to me nothing’s changed! Arlong you bastard!!”

-You woke up four days later, after being nursed back to health by Nako, long after Arlong and his crew were defeated, Cocoyasi Village was safe, and Nojiko and Nami were reunited with their mother.

-Luffy, Usopp, Zoro, Sanji, and Nami, alongside Bell-Mere and Nojiko, had all refused to leave your side while you were recovering.

-Usopp told Nami of your past, of what little you told them when searching her out and she was just as furious, as was your new mother, Bell-Mere, who immediately adopted you.

-Luffy held you while you both ate, sitting you on his lap, as he refused to eat until you woke up, being unnaturally quiet for once.

-You were scared he was mad with you, once you were done eating, turning to look up at him and you cupped his cheeks as he bit into another meat-stick.

-He looked down at you, cheeks full and instantly he grinned down at you, “I’m glad you’re awake! You scared me!”

-You apologized to them all, giving them all, unknowingly, puppy dogs eyes, which lead to you being passed around for the next ten minutes, getting hugs from everyone, some, Usopp and Sanji, crying more obnoxiously than others.

-Your eyes were sparkly when you were passed from Nami to Bell-Mere, getting introduced to her and she beamed down at you, “So you’re Y/N~ I guess I owe you a big thanks for bringing me back to life!”

-Your eyes went huge, holding your cheeks, “I did that?” they all nodded, Zoro lightly scolding you with no real malice, that it was the reason you had been out the past few days.

-Once Nako said you were safe to leave his clinic, Nami hugged her mother tightly, who was going to stay in Cocoyasi Village and rebuild it, giving Nami her blessings to continue on her journey and every single one of them promise her that they were going to keep you safe, which made you beam brightly up at her.

-Nami put a couple of mikan trees on the Going Merry, as a piece of her hometown, as well as to have fresh fruits available.

-Luffy pointed out to the sea, “To Loguetown!” the rest of the crew, including you, all cheered out loudly.

-You were all unaware of the looming storm as a shadowy figure looked at the photos he was just sent, of you using your abilities, seeing you return a woman who had been dead for years, back to life from only a lock of hair.

-He scowled lightly, knowing this would be something that would be very dangerous if you were to fall into the wrong hands.

-He turned to another person, holding out the best photo he had of you, taken just before you left the island, when Bell-Mere was patting your head, bidding you goodbye, showing only you and her hand on your head, smiling shyly up at her.

-He inhaled deeply, “Put a bounty on her, alive and intact only. Her name is Y/N. Make it for one hundred billion.” His subordinate gawked, but said nothing, doing as they were told before he leaned back into his chair, a deep sigh leaving him.

[ecargmura]

A Terrified Teacher At Ghoul School Episode 2 Review - Physical Exam Madness

Oh, I like this episode a lot more than the first one! It flowed so much better and the gags are a lot funnier! The entire first half mainly revolved around the students�� physical exams and how excruciating youkais can be when needed to be examined. The second half revolved around the aftermath of the physical exams and how Haruaki has to be punished for breaking the principal’s windows. It’s nice seeing Haruaki spending time with his fellow teachers and his students as well!

The episode introduces several new adult characters. We have fellow teachers Miki and Hatanaka. Miki is an ogre youkai and Hatanaka is a Kamaitachi, or a scythe weasel youkai. Miki is very chill while Hatanaka is very stern; he’s the one hounding Haruaki to do various tasks during the physical examinations like helping Nyuudou with his eye examination which consists of him having to call someone in Tokyo because of how far Nyuudou can see. Another one of his tasks is to gather Tamao and Maizuka as animal youkai need to have special injections conducted by Takahashi, a doctor specializing in youkai treatment. I’m not sure if he is a youkai himself, he probably is as this is a youkai island. Anyways, Takahashi is a freak and I love how he just has a giant syringe in tow. What the heck. Also, poor Nezumi and Hatanaka; they’re teachers but also had to get injections in their animal forms alongside Tamao and Maizuka. The last of the major tasks is to measure Oota, who is a Daidarabocchi, which is some kind of titan youkai. However, climbing Oota is a task in itself. This doesn’t make sense because why can’t he just ask Oota to lift him up? Then again, Sano was also climbing him, so I guess that’s normal for him? Anyways, the fact that climbing Oota is a feat in itself and that he’s 130 meters tall. Still, it makes no sense that Haruaki had to climb Oota when the second half revealed that he knows how to be human-sized. What the heck? Regardless, it was still funny with how Sano caught him by the ahoge and both Sano and Haruaki were blown away by Oota’s sneezing, which then caused them to crash into the principal’s office which then transitions to the second half of the episode. Like I said, this was a nice episode to help get to know the other teachers and more of the students.

The second half was hilarious too! As punishment for breaking the window, Haruaki and several of his students are sent to clean the school pool which has been abandoned for a while. The students didn’t even know they had a school pool. It makes sense because it’s filled with miasma-like substance. I wonder what’s in that water because when Hijita fell in, he got yassified the heck to the point of being unrecognizable. Miasma? More like Mi-yass-ma. Apparently, the pool is home to Kappa and a human faced fish Youkai. The kappas tried to kidnap Maizuka, which got him scared because he didn’t want to be yassified like Hijita, which then causes Sano to rescue him. This was the scariest Sano has been; he likes Maizuka’s small size. I do wonder what would happen if Maizuka ever became taller. Would he become devastated? The human-faced fish caught me by surprise because I didn’t expect that blob face on it at all. Fortunately, Oota was able to catch him. It turns out that the fish youkai is very weak-willed, as Haruaki pointed out. Unfortunately, Oota was standing in the miasma water, and it burned him, which caused him to fall backwards and destroy the area. Poor Haruaki, this caused his pay to get docked. Don’t worry, Hijita makes it out alive. I think the gags were a lot more hilarious in this episode because it’s not Haruaki being miserable this time; it’s the students being the the comedy this time.

The voice cast for the new characters are pretty interesting. Miki is voiced by Shun Horie. I usually associate him with young boys since his roles mainly consist of them like Aether from Genshin Impact and Amethio from Pokemon Horizons. It’s interesting to hear him do a Kansai accent. Hatanaka is voiced by Ryota Iwasaki, who voiced Hayato from The Yuzuki Family’s Four Sons who’s also a teacher, except that Hatanaka is a lot more stern. What surprised me the most was Takahashi being voiced by Shouta Aoi. I always associate him with cute roles as he’s usually typecasted into those roles, so for him to voice an adult and a rather sadistic one caught me off guard. He should voice more adults because the range is crazy. This was the guy who voiced Kumatte-chan from My New Boss Is Goofy. For the students, Tamao is voiced by Yuki Sakakibara, whom I’m not too familiar with but I did watch Ayaka which he was a supporting cast in. Nyuudou is voiced by Akira Takano, a new face. Oota is voiced by Reiji Kawashima, who you might know as Fushi from To Your Eternity. I also hear Sugita as one of the students and the kappa. It’s always super interesting to see who’s in the cast. The cast is mixed with veterans and new faces.

Because I liked this episode so much, I can’t wait to see what sort of antics Haruaki and his students will deal with. What I like about this anime so far is that the story isn’t just limited to Haruaki and his class, but it also involves the faculty too. It’s nice to see more adult characters and it’s nice to learn more about some of the newly introduced characters. Hopefully, Haruaki will be reunited with his lost school uniform catalogue. What are your thoughts on this episode?

[tickledpink31]

So, I have been rewatching Corpse Bride and immidiately thought of a Corpse Bride au in Twisted Wonderland, so basically the MC (Yuusona) as Victor, Riddle as Victoria (its makes sense since Riddle is from a seemingly important family) and Vil as Emily, so yeah. What are your thoughts if Minako we're to be in a Corpse Bride au?

Thanks for waiting! Just got back from my vacation!

Honestly, Riddle being forced into an arranged marriage by his mother is on brand, and in a Victorian era setting too.

I guess in this AU, the Nezumi family are more closely tied to their noble ancestry, and therefore, making them rich nobles too. That, or Minako is the adopted daughter of Crewel. Minako, though, doesn't have shitty guardians/parents, unlike Victor. They're probably just exploring options with people like Riddle, just to see if Minako finds a good match.

Minako has loads of marriage prospects and proposals, and I can see Mrs. Rosehearts wanting her son to marry into a very influential family, especially since they've become destitute at the moment.

As much as Vil is my favourite, I see Malleus as Emily more because of how clingy he is and his melancholy. I can see him crying, "But you're married to me! He's the other man!"

I don't have much else to add other than that wedding gift Minako/Victor recieves. Minako also has a deceased dog, and she'd be thrilled to see Pluton again, even as a corpse.

[torrentialstardust]

UMINEKO X DRAWTECTIVES: OGALVY AND MARIA, YORK AND BATTLER

I have much to say, so sorry in advance for the length!

I was rewatching some of Drawtectives before attending one of the NezumiVA Umineko streams and I thought it would be fun to cross the two over! They're both mystery "games" but with vastly different tones and settings.

The first drawings I sketched aren't even the ones finished here but I'm sure I'll get to them soon enough. The one I started lining first was Ogalvy and Maria, or specifically Piss Boy and Sakutaro! They're cuddlie~ I even had my own Piss Boy plush next to me while drawing fo reference! I think Maria just deserves good things and she'd be such good friends with Ogalvy, I had them doing drawings together. The outfit swap was also fun, though a little tricky with how cartoony Ogalvy is. Maria's clothes were a bit tricky to put on him, but I like the way it turned out! Also proud of the facial expressions, hope I got the right kind of "enthusiastic to the point where you don't even smile, you're just totally focused and excited".

York and Battler got compared to each other a while back so I thought they'd be good to draw together, and I love the idea of Battler being a goofy bi disaster. Not only that but given how him being tall is mentioned repeatedly, I wanted to bring in the energy I feel whenever I see someone taller than me. I basically just hardcore projected onto Battler is what I'm saying.

The outfit swap part was a lil tricky but still fun, since York has two key design traits: he keeps on his armband with his outfits and he can't wear sleeves. "The technology just doesn't exist". I took off the sleeves of Battler's outfit, but I still decided to swap the armband around, mainly because the part of York's arm it would go on was geometrically confusing and I didn't want to draw attention to that. The hair was also fun to swap. Battler looks like that one rando from Overwatch and I'm not sorry, but I'm not proud either. It does still look nice to me.

OK! That's the process explained! And now: a call to action.

Hey, peeps on the YouTube stream and on the Umineko tag: you should watch Drawtectives! It's a fun and silly mystery series! There is murder in it but it's still lighthearted for the most part, it's got charming characters, and season 3 is on the horizon! You could catch up pretty easily in time for it to start and have a gay ol time!

Hey, peeps on the Drawtectives tag waiting for season 3: you should read Umineko! It's an incredibly engaging and emotional mystery series! It's got a massive cast with lots of character depth and many puzzles to solve! It's on Steam (but please don't use the new sprites they made they're so much worse than the OG sprites, switch to them), a few other places too, and I'm pretty sure there's even a Kindle Port, but I've been enjoying the readthrough by the delightful NezumiVA!

We've got a really nice community of people who've read it before and people like us who don't know what's going on there. It is a bit longer than Drawtectives I'm afraid but it may not take too long to get caught up on the playlist. Nezumi's also pretty good at warning for the more sensitive content in the Novel which is always a big help. Only thing I'd watch out for is some gorey stuff toward the end of episode 2, which isn't even visually depicted.

OK! I think that's everything I needed to say! Comms open as per usual and have a lovely day!

[beanghostprincess]

Favourite One Piece openings and/or just songs in general?

You can't ask this to a music student and guitarist/singer! I can't choose! there are too many good songs in this anime-

Sogeki no Shima deeee. Umareta Ore waaa. Hyaappaaatsu Hyaku Chu. Lulu Lala Luuuuuu. Nezumi no Medama mo (Lock on!!) Omae no Haato mo (LOCK OOOON!!!) SOOOGEKI NO SHIMA KARA KITA OTOKOOOO LULULU LULU LALAAA SOOOOREEEENIIIGEEEEROOO Sogege Soge Soge SOOGEEEKIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING

Okay, no, jokes aside (it isn't a joke. I genuinely ADORE Sogeking's theme) my true rankings (No. I'm not writing essays about them. This post would be too long. If you're curious about my genuine long opinions about a song, send an ask bc otherwise this post will be too long):

Openings:

Crazy Rainbow (this is the song I want all of you to think about when you think about me because it's MY song. I LOVE IT. It's me. It talks about me, actually. I am crazy and I'm a rainbow and a star. Twinkle twinkle rainbow star!!! I heard it once and it became my favorite ever. It's my alarm. I wake up with this banger every day. My friends hate me for this take but honestly, they're the ones who don't appreciate a good set of trumpets and guitars with tropical imagery as background).

Hope (The chorus is WILD. The visuals are so comforting it makes me cry every time. This is the energy I want all of my fanfics to have. It's the representation of my writing turned into music, I think. These are the vibes I want. The lyrics??? Are fucking insane??? Also, Sanji-themed, and it hits close to home).

We go! (I don't need to explain this one, but I wanted to mention that the way he screams BRRREAK OF ROMANCE DAWWWWN rewired my brain completely and that lyric appears on my mind every damn day)

Jungle P (Average opening. Not even that good. It's just cool and happy. HOWEVER! Have you considered that LIFE IS ADVENTUROUS BE AWARE IT'S DANGEROUS WHO'S GONNA BE ONE OF US AND THE TRIP GOES ON BECAUSE WE DA PIRATE OF THE MASS TO THE WEST TO THE EAST GONNA FIND MY WAY SAIL AWAY ALL THE WAY TO ONE PIECE)

Brand New World (The energy this song has makes me literally want to scream in the happiest of ways. The chorus, man, it's insane).

Hikari E (The Catalan Dub makes it better. I'm staying loyal to my native language this time. This is fucking amazing in Catalan. The lyrics are so fucking good they make me want to cry. It's very dear to me, too).

The peak (Really cute! Fun! Such a relief opening to end Wano <3 It's just beautiful visually and stunning. But also it has such peaceful and joyful vibes!! My beloved).

Kokoro No Chizu (This one is awesome. I love everything about it. My fav thing about it is my reaction to watching OP with full screen for the first time. Really fun experience of 'what the fuck is this and also THIS SONG IS A BANGER??')

Bon Voyage (Also my alarm because no other thing besides BON VOYAAAGE being yelled against my ear wakes me up in a better mood. Also, really fun opening. The chorus are basically the best part, ofc, for obvious reasons).

Believe (Once again saying this one hits different in the Catalan Dub. The lyrics are beautiful but also it gives sooo many 2000s opening vibes. I enjoy this song every time)

Endings:

Raise (I am not explaining this one because I think it's obvious why it deserves top 1)

Run! Run! Run! (Who the fuck is focusing on the song when Sanji being silly is right there???!?!??! Fun fact, I had a whole ass moment when I saw this ending for the first time and I had to take a break from watching the show because I went on a full crazy spiral of 'Sanjisanjisannijssnaisanjisanjisansajisanjisanji'. But also, really great song and it makes my brain go brrrrr).

Shouchi no Suke (BROOO THE VIBESSSSS THIS IS SO FUCKING GOOD I COULD LISTEN TO THIS FOR HOURS)

Dear Friends (This one makes me want to k word myself so I think that's a very good way to express how fucking good this ending is and how much it hurts me every time)

Eternal Pose (I am vibing. I like vibing. It's the vibes only).

Free Will (I want to hug Robin so tight. This one makes me so emotional. I am in so much pain, please).

(Not even a top 10, this was supposed to be a top 5 but I couldn't leave Free Will behind).

Character songs (with little to no explanation because I work tomorrow and I have to go to sleep but I want to post this now):

River of Freedom (I want to fuck Sabo nasty after hearing this and I am so not ashamed of posting this publicly. My thoughts aren't in the bible).

Dr. Heart Stealer (I want to fuck this man to oblivion and I am a lesbian and asexual. Imagine how hot you have to be for this to happen).

47 Todoufuken Gen Ima Cruise (Yakko Warner would love this).

Hajimari to Owari no Machi (They put drugs in this one).

Girls ni Kubittake (I like submissive Sanji).

Smile for Freedom (I kin Nami)

Save My Heart (The depression of some is the fav song of others)

Headliners (Kidlaw sex)

Usopp Drop (I am in love with Usopp)

Moulin Rouge (I am in love with Sanji)

[duckielover151]

OPLA and Garp and Worldbuilding

Okay. I think I've finally figured it out.

I've seen some polarizing takes on Monkey D. Garp's character in the live action adaptation of One Piece. I generally like how they brought his character to life, but there was something that wasn't quite sitting right with me. It just took me a bit to pinpoint exactly what the problem was.

So for one: I do like his live action portrayal. The live action series remains goofy and faithful to the original in a lot of ways but does give everything a bit of a grittier feel, as would be expected-- and is almost required-- of a live action story about pirates. When you're seeing real people in front of you, as opposed to cartoonish drawings, your tale kind has to reflect the real world and its darkness.

Garp's character in the live action absolutely feels... not dumbed down, but simplified from who his character is in the original tale.

And I think that was necessary. The biggest change from one medium to the other was the pacing. The live action just could not have been done with the anime's pacing, (though there's honestly very little that was missed, even with how much faster the story moved). And the pace of your storytelling really affects how your characters get developed.

So yeah, live action Garp comes across as just the tiniest bit unstable... (he's still got a bit of a wild side) but mostly in control. And a lot more proactive about his goals.

The most important thing is that I think this storyline about him chasing around after his rebellious grandson... just to give him one final test before setting him free, accepting that he's ready to handle the dangerous life he's been dreaming of-- even if it will pit them against each other more seriously in the future!-- is just more accessible to an audience used to live action storytelling. It kind of makes sense. Quite a lot of the time, anime Garp's actions and choices regarding his family... just don't make a ton of sense. And the live action does not have time to explore that complexity properly. (Hell, the anime doesn't even always do the best job of exploring it in a way that justifies his actions and beliefs, but that's a tale for another time.)

But there's still a problem.

Garp's actions in this adaptation are fine for his character... but really bad for the worldbuilding.

One of the only real complaints I have about the One Piece live action is that they do not succeed in getting across just how corrupt the world government is truly supposed to be.

And a lot of that is because of Garp, following around and cleaning up after our heroes and acting like a responsible adult for once. (That alone is enough for some people to-- honestly, rightfully-- cry that live action Garp is out of character.)

Garp shows up and reforms Morgan's base in both versions... But the live action never really addresses how much of a tyrant Morgan was. That his own marines and even the people of the town, who he was supposed to be keeping safe, were terrified of him. Garp's derision and treatment of Morgan in the live action honestly seem a little unjustified. And it's even worse that he stepped in with Nezumi. Don't get me wrong, it was fantastic to see Nezumi put in his place... But that satisfaction was brief.

Live action-only viewers will never truly understand just how hopeless the situation in Coco village was. That Nezumi was the last line of authority. Their only hope for salvation and justice, and he was all too happy to accept Arlong's bribes and let the villagers suffer.

I recently watched the Honest Trailer for this series. And it was reliably entertaining... but you could tell the crew who made it was missing some key context for understanding the vision behind this show. They make fun of Luffy for not understanding what it really means to be a pirate. And it's not a terrible joke. They're kind of right. But I think what's missing from this adaptation is the understanding that the appeal of being a pirate isn't just the potential for riches. It's about freedom. It's about being strong enough and being in a position to protect yourself when even the people tasked with keeping you safe are all too happy to take advantage of you. It's that siding with the law in this universe is often the choice that makes you the bad guy. Honestly, Koby's got a harder path to walk, as far as morality goes, than Luffy-- or any of the pirates who live honorably.

But I try to remind myself that this is just the tip of the iceberg...

Nami's backstory is what a lot of people tend to pinpoint as the place where the anime starts to get really good. And I think that's because it's where the deal with this world starts to become really clear.

That yeah, it's totally reasonable to root for a group that would normally be the villains in any other story. The civilized half of this world really is that fucked up.

I don't feel like that point really hits its undeniable, no-going-back mark until we get to Robin's backstory and the tale of Ohara... And I cannot tell you how much I hope this adaptation gets to get there.

It's okay that the live action hasn't properly established a tale where an everyday person is going to want to root for the anarchists in this story, because the anime was barely there at this point also.

There is still time to redeem this.

[badass-queer-couples-battle]

Do you mind if I ask your top 5 (or top 7) favorite BL and your top 3 (or top 5) favorite GL? And why do you love them? It can be from any media : books, manga, anime, manhwa, tv series or movies.....

Hard question again! I'm going to do 7 for GL and 7 for BL, again under the cut!

In no particular order:

GL:

Revolutionary Girl Utena - is including it on this list cheating since it's not primarily GL? I don't care, it's too good to not recommend. A teenage tomboy fencer gets 'engaged' to a mysterious girl by winning a duel, many more duels happen alongside symbolism, feminist messages and a really mature handling of topics like depression and abuse. REALLY dark though, but worth it! Deserves its place as one of the classic anime.

Bloom into you - incredible handling of internalised homophobia, first love, high school relationships both in the platonic and romantic sense and golden child syndrome. A heartwarming but occasionally heartwrenching story that felt very real. Bonus points for the author actually being a sapphic woman.

The Handmaiden - sapphic thriller from Korea set in the early 1900's! Dark but incredibly engaging, surprisingly happy and hopeful despite how much the girls have to suffer to get their happily ever after. The book it's based on, The Fingersmith, was also great!

GAP - Thailand's first GL series and got so popular there are now multiple other projects coming this & next year! The protagonist is a uni graduate hired in her idol's company only to discover the lady is both meaner and hotter than she thought. Lesbian crisis and full-on romcom shenanigans follow, though the series also comments on traditional family values in Thailand acting as an excuse for homophobia (the idol, Sam, is in an arranged engagement to a man as ordered by her grandma). Don't worry though, the show is mostly very fun and light & ends very very happily for the ladies.

Whisper Me a Love Song - look, as a former band kid I can't not mention the band lesbians manga. It's a highschool romance full of miscommunication and funny/cute shenanigans with occasional sadness to balance it all out. Very relaxing. It's getting an anime adaptation next year so looking forward to that!

Riddle Story of Devil - as an action series fan this was pretty incredible. A school full of assasins, everyone is sapphic and they're all badasses? High school me was obsessed and I still am. The manga is much better though, the anime is both way less gay and develops the characters much less due to the story being compressed into 12 episodes.

Legend of Yunqian - short fantasy drama from a small Chinese studio, it's about a regular young lady going back in time via a magic fan and falling for a magical warrior woman. Lovely and available on Youtube for free!

Honorary mentions: Flip Flappers (anime), Clear and muddy loss of love (novel), She likes to cook and she likes to eat (manga & TV series)

BL:

Heaven Official's Blessing - come on, it's incredible. Dark fantasy with immortal love that breaks even the most powerful curses, a complex and deeply human protagonist, a lot of emotional moments and incredible use of flashbacks to slowly reveal his backstory to the readers- what's not to love? Just a warning, when I say it's dark fantasy I'm not kidding. The series has funny and light moments but when shit gets real, it gets REAL.

No.6 - just like RGU isn't technically GL, this isn't technically BL but I am gonna talk about anyway, it's incredible. It's a dystopian sci-fi story about Shion, a teenager who discovers a government conspiracy and works to stop it alongside his new friend/love interest Nezumi. It treats the gay relationship super casually, there's no sexuality angst or anything, it was super refreshing! Read the novels though, the anime compressed the story a lot.

The Untamed/Mo Dao Zu Shi - love the intrigue, love the main romance, love the fantasy elements! My first Chinese series and one I hold dear for introducing me to the wuxia (Chinese fantasy) genre. Any version of the story is great but I'd recommend to start with the series and then read the books.

Kinnporsche - it's deeply insane and I love it for that. Everyone is gay, everyone commits crimes (they're in the mafia, so. Yeah) and it makes for a really entertaining show even if its darker elements aren't always super well handled.

Not me the series - Motorcycle gang of young anarchists against corruption! Very radical and critical of capitalism and the police system, engaging and fast paced. The director/showrunner is a trans activist/filmmaker so it's not like she doesn't know what she's talking about. It's very universal so I'd recommend it even to people who normally don't watch BL. One minus point for minor queerbaiting with 2 side characters, nothing major but it did bother me a bit + felt unnecessary in a series full of queer characters.

Cherry magic - queer office romance + mind reading! If that combination sounds interesting please do check it out, it was super cute. Bonus for very realistically human protags and an explicitly aroace side character.

Semantic error - opposites attract-type romance between an introverted, collected STEM prodigy and an extroverted art student partnered together for a project. The protagonist is autistic and written pretty well so I latched onto the show immediately, bonus points for side queer representation (bi character who's a super cool and pretty lady, love her).

Honorary mentions: Word of Honor (series), Yuri on ice (anime, only homoerotic sports anime to make the gay explicit, iconic), Nobleman Ryu's wedding (series, short but v heartwarming!)

[syntheticmortal]

I got tagged by the lovely @crownedinmarigolds! Thank you so much mate!! I'm absolutely charmed 🥰

Now my rat bastard spouse stole most of my tagging options on their post so to not double-tag I will add:

@skaerdir, @klaciate, @tzimizce and @vamp-orwave!!

If anyone who sees this wants to be an honourary tagee, then go for it XD

For those who don't know - Hi I am Alex! (He/They) and I'm a writer and an English immigrant to the USA!

3 ships: oh mate all of these are OCxOC with @c-n-i-d-a-r-i-a-n

Victor and Gloria – A Nos and his unbound Ghoulfriend. Making your touchstone one of your mission Ghouls is dangerous af but live fast love hard, lads.

Jeff and Lamb – Another of Vic's unbound Ghouls and the Thin Blood Nos that joined the Warren. Disgustingly fucking cute injected into the den of the rejected and disgruntled.

Ventan/Taakur Rig and Rozanin Rig – My and Daz's SWTOR PCs respectively. A Chiss Cipher Agent that ends up having to go hide with his Mandalorian hireling with her Clan and Roz's unrequited love becomes hella requited and suddenly Ventan/Cipher Five-now-Taakur has step kids??

I love it so much.

first ship: Oh god this takes me back to being little. Probably a Sonic one??

Shadow and Rouge if I had to take a guess??

last song: Temptation by Sean Paul! A proper bop

But honestly massive shout out to the second Nostalgia Synthwave mix by Odysseus on youtube

This thing keeps me sane, and has all the songs marked! – that opening one, Realign by Cerulean, can usually just melt my brain into peace whenever I hear it

last film: Snatch – Like VTMB it's a problematic fave that oozes style and characterisation throughout. Watched it as prep for a Setite I'm going to play in a V5 game >:D

currently reading: Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan as part of genre research. Finished The Vampyre recently too! Really I should pick AC up today, I've been working hard on my editing and outlining of my own pieces and neglecting the reading part of the craft for a few weeks >.>;

currently craving: So I'm drinking far less booze to save money whilst I'm out of work trying to get some Proper Writing done. So when I hit a good worthy milestone I'm getting a bottle of whiskey and I am ready.

fav color: Green! Sometimes purple!

relationship status: Maaarriiied to @c-n-i-d-a-r-i-a-n

last google search: I had to double check the spelling of Taakur for the ship section, so it was 'mandoa' :')

and before that I'm pretty use I searched Scryfall last night to go look at MTG cards even though I have no one to play with right now :'D (at least it's saving me money >.>)

current obsessions: Was tempted to add my own work here but I'll tag that on the very end XD

There's a lot of fandoms I don't leave – World of Darkness and Warhammer 40k predominantly as settings I always have another angle I want to see explored in!

I do however have the Magic the Gathering bug, even though I haven't really played in years and years now – but card interaction as a generation for narrative has always kind of captivated me? Like there's a couple big mean Ogre cards that make Rats more dangerous, but due to the way the systems work they also empower the Ratfolk of Kamigawa, the Nezumi, as they count as 'Rat' cards still. So big Ogre spellcasters improving Rat people as part of a contained bit of narrative kind of fascinates me as a concept.

Plus each deck presupposes a Planeswalker character who's casting those spells – and I was always intrigued by that notion and so most of my OCs are representative of decks I played (or wanted to :P) and then in turn each Planeswalker needs a Plane to come from, probably from a still existing culture on that Plane too, and so it can kind of wonderfully reverberate inspiration.

Like how every VTM Kindred OC presupposes a Sire!

BONUS ALEX SECTION

So if you want to get to know me, let me tell you about what writing I'm working on/have made recently.

Out now!

The Mutilation of Finley Reid

A short story of masculine horror, about a young man by the name of Finley who suffers in the pursuit of having his place as a man affirmed by his peers.

The world of Torranham Nights is an anachronistic reflection of England set in the coastal city state of Torranham, drawing from contemporary culture and folklore as well as the legends and reality of the cultures that came before – without being fetishistic about it like a lot of stories will.

Handle It

A short retail horror, about working the cash register of a butcher's counter, and the customer who orders increasing amounts of ground beef...

Inspired by my own work in a same spot, anyone who's done service work should get a kick out of this – plus it's free and only takes 20 minutes to read! XD

On the way!

Defector – name subject to change

A short story of grief, shame, suicidal ideation, alcoholism, and community. On the moon.

A Special Recon mech pilot, “Crash”, from Earth has defected to the Moon rebels, and now lives in Magnolia City, rotting away in her tiny apartment. Then the Provisional Government sends one of its elite commanders, a former enemy of Crash's, to pull her out.

Elhart: Arrival

The first of a short story fantasy anthology about a city of refugees at the edge of time and space, hiding from the end of the multi-planar universe. A super soldier has washed up with a near-fatal headwound and no memory, and she must learn to live in a far more peaceful world than the one her instincts suggest she came from. But who was she? And can she earn the trust of people who fear her potential to kill?

Neon Sun

A novel! Cyberpunk Vampires! If we're mutuals you can come ask about this but I'm not ready to share things too publicly for this one yet, but the outlining has gone beautifully in my opinion, and the worldbuilding is singing.

Speartip

I'm making a TTRPG!! It's a Powered by the Apocalypse engine game, about serving as the primary field agents of a faction of people who need your support and protection. Because if you're going to be a hero, who are you doing it for if not your kin?

Setting agnostic as hell, excluding some implicit need for magic in the class moves – I'm prepping to playtest this in sci-fi and fantasy settings to see how well my mechanics hold up in both swords and firearms based stories. Plus I'm going to explore a variety of perspectives of what the faction can be – from ethnic groups, to gangs, to guilds, to neighbourhoods.

I'm VERY excited about all this!!

[no6secretsanta]

Tonight's Mood

From: ren @minamiren

To: @bee-archivist https://www.tumblr.com/bee-archivist

The sky is grey, and there are no stars, and it is raining. 

Shion had gone outside about an hour ago as the water had dripped sluggishly down the stairs, carrying mud and sludge down into the library entrance. The rain wasn’t heavy—nothing like that storm in which he’d met Nezumi—but the drizzle was cold and oppressive, wetting his bangs against his forehead and seeping into his clothes. 

The dull rain left a haze over the horizon, covering the existence of any stars that might have otherwise shown. It had already been well past midnight, even then, and Nezumi hadn’t come home yet. 

Nezumi often does not come home until late, and it has been made clear to him that Shion isn’t to concern himself with Nezumi’s comings and goings, but something about tonight feels different. Something in the air. Shion sits on the couch and watches the door, trying to ignore the exhaustion tugging at his eyelids and making his head swim. He is not good at getting less than the required amount of sleep. 

Hamlet runs in circles, and Cravat curls into an uneasy ball on the table. The mice are acting off, too—maybe picking up on Shion’s mood. Maybe they’re the reason he realized something was wrong in the first place. He couldn’t be sure. Doesn’t remember anymore.

Shion’s ears catch the sound of something shifting outside—footsteps in the mud, out of sync enough to be heard even over the mind-numbing drizzle of the rain. He feels proud of noticing in the moment, although Nezumi would likely simply laugh at him, having heard the approaching figure ages before. 

Still, the steps most likely belong to one person. 

Shion rises off the couch, stumbling a bit as he makes his way over to the door. He opens it just as Nezumi approaches, hand tucked into his shirt for the key he keeps strung around his neck. 

Nezumi frowns at him as he stuffs the key back into his shirt, displeased. “You didn’t know that was me,” he accuses, although his heart doesn’t seem into it. Something in his voice feels…empty. “Why do I go through so much effort to keep you alive when you offer yourself up on a silver platter to anyone who wants you otherwise?”

“The chances were good enough that it was you over anyone else that the risk was worth it,” Shion says simply, frowning as Nezumi shoves past him and into the library, trailing muddy footsteps. He’s not usually so rough, nor so careless with how he tracks into their living space. For a rat, he likes to keep things from becoming unduly filthy. 

Shion wanders after him, rounding the corner into the library to see Nezumi shucking off his boots, leaving them where they fall and rising from the couch, only to collapse face-first into his bed. 

“Nezumi?” Shion asks hesitantly, after several moments of nothing but labored breathing from where Nezumi’s face was smothered in the dirty pillow.

There isn’t an immediate response. Then, “Not tonight, Shion.” His voice sounds tired to a degree that worries Shion, but it also makes him want to listen.

Shion stands there quietly for a bit, over Nezumi, wondering how Nezumi could simply ignore him when his energy is usually so frantic, so alert, to the point that he’d never leave his body open to the whims of someone standing above him. Three days ago, he tripped Shion and nearly dislocated his arm for startling him. His reflexes had been amazing, Shion had asked him four separate times to repeat the move for him later. This Nezumi…it is almost like he isn’t even here.

Finally, Shion gets ready for bed.

The morning dawns still grey and drizzling and wet, and Nezumi wakes Shion up by shoving a mop and bucket at him and telling him to get cleaning before his shift with Inukashi. Shion laughs as he accepts the bucket willingly, not minding the work—especially not when Nezumi seems to have come to life again.

———

Shion had thought it was a one-time event, but it wasn’t.

Sometimes Nezumi comes home sad.

It’s not anything drastically different than his usual moods, except it still feels like it is. There’s something subtle about it, a dark cloud a shade too black over all of his movements.

On these nights he doesn’t cook, doesn’t clean, doesn’t read. Doesn’t do anything. He stalks through the library past everything and gets in bed, just like that, no matter how filthy his clothes are, and then he doesn’t leave.

The first time it had happened, Shion thought it was a simple bad mood. The second time, Shion thought he was sick. After that, he realized that there was something different going on.

———

“Yeah, he gets like that sometimes,” Inukashi tells him when Shion asks, feeling a bit guilty to be talking about Nezumi to anyone behind his back, but Inukashi is one of Shion’s few connections that aren’t Nezumi himself. “Just goes off the rails for a night or a few days, disappears, misses practice sometimes. Gets away with it by being the best we’ve got here.”

“So he’s not ill?”

Inukashi waves Shion off. “Just a mood. He always snaps out of it. Now keep working, I’m not paying you to waste soap.”

Shion nods and goes back to the German Shepherd that he’d been washing. 

———

The weather is nice tonight. On nights like this, with clear skies and a beautiful view of the walls of No. 6, Nezumi likes to sit outside and watch. Shion believes that he likes to imagine what he’ll do to the city when it finally falls, the way he believes. 

When Nezumi comes in before twilight is more than a few minutes past, Shion looks up from his book curiously. When Nezumi falls onto the couch and doesn’t move, Shion realizes what is happening.

For the first time, he has the thought to do something about it.

Shion approaches slowly, cautiously. Nezumi is always unresponsive and uncaring in these moods, but he knows better than to antagonize the man unnecessarily. It won’t end well for him. 

When Nezumi fails to respond to his approach, Shion settles onto the couch next to his shoulder, frowning down at him. Nezumi faces the back of the couch, his legs pulled up under him in what strikes Shion as a shockingly vulnerable position. Shion feels his hip brush the back of Nezumi’s shoulder, but Nezumi doesn’t move. “I’ve heard of things like this, in class,” Shion ventures. “Safu was better at neurological issues and chemical imbalances, but—“

“Saying my head is fucked up, Shion?” Nezumi laughs hoarsely, tilting his head just enough to look up at Shion out of the corner of his eye. “I thought we were well past establishing that.”

Shion shakes his head. “No, I’m saying that at home, my mom was like this, back when I was a top student. Before—“ 

Before Nezumi.

Shion shakes his head, recovers. “She was tired all the time, and sad, and she was happy for me but never had the energy for anything other than being sad. My failing out of the program helped her, in a way. She always said people brought her life.”

“I perform in front of hundreds at a time,” Nezumi says acerbically. “I doubt more people are going to do anything other than making me want to start bashing heads in more than I wanted to before.”

“No, but…maybe one person?”

Nezumi rolls his eyes, returns to his previous position staring at the back of the couch cushions, but he doesn’t say no. Doesn’t push Shion off the couch or yell. Maybe he doesn’t have the energy to. Maybe he simply is waiting to see what Shion has planned.

Shion is waiting to see what he has planned too, just a bit.

He leans over to Nezumi’s feet, loosens the laces of his boots. Nezumi’s shoulders tense when he starts, but slowly loosen back up. When he finishes, he tugs the mud-crusted boots off of Nezumi’s feet and tosses them to the floor. He shucks off his own shoes, then fits himself onto the couch behind Nezumi.

He’s forced to tuck close in order to fit on the couch, his knees bending into the curve of Nezumi’s. His arm goes around Nezumi’s waist from behind, and Shion tucks his nose against the back of Nezumi’s neck, not bothered by the low ponytail tickling him.

The whole time he positions himself, Nezumi stays stiff as a board. But when Shion finally falls still, Nezumi lays his hand over Shion’s arm, long fingers gripping around his wrist. 

“You expect a hug to fix things?” Nezumi asks, and it seems like he’s trying to sound acidic, but his voice shakes just a bit too much to hit the mark.

Shion shakes his head against the back of Nezumi’s neck, glad his smile is hidden from Nezumi’s view. “No, just trying to prove you’re not alone,” he says instead. “I don’t think things are going to be fixed. But this isn’t terrible, is it?”

A long silence. Shion finds himself focusing on Nezumi’s warmth, on how it feels to hold a warm body against his chest. It’s nicer than he might have expected, and it comes to his own attention that this is his first time doing anything like this with someone. He likes it, thinks he would like to do it more often—especially if Nezumi is the one he’s able to do it with.

Nezmui’s fingers tighten around his wrist, then let go. He turns all the way over, shoving his body in such a way that nearly shoves Shion off the couch entirely. Nezumi grabs him at the waist, pulls him close just so that he doesn’t topple off the edge. 

Nezumi settles down a moment later, letting go of Shion’s hip, leaving a brand of heat where he’d grabbed. Shion wraps his arm back around Nezumi’s waist; the move feels far more intimate when they’re facing each other than it had when Nezumi had been resolutely pretending that he hadn’t been there.

“No,” Nezumi finally says, shocking Shion out of his momentary stupor.

“No?” Shion repeats, a bit stupidly. Nezumi’s eyes are not often so close to his—they’re a gorgeous grey, Shion thinks.

“No, this is not so terrible,” Nezumi reiterates. “Going to soothe me physically, until I forget my worries, city boy?”

The words are teasing, an entendre that even Shion can catch, but he finds himself reacting to them anyway. He leans in, catches Nezumi’s hips in a clumsy kiss. His lips are softer than expected, although maybe he should’ve known—Eve always takes care of her appearance. Shion pulls back a moment later, smiling wryly.

“Not what you expected?” he asks.

Nezumi looks a little bit shocked, but his recovery is quick enough. He raises his hand to cradle Shion’s jaw, push back into his white hair. Uses the leverage to pull Shion into another kiss.

This one is sweeter.

Nezumi pulls back and grins. “No, but I wouldn’t complain if you knocked me out of my moods like this more often,” he teases.

Shion is tugged to his feet by Nezumi, dragged to the bed, and bundled in. In a reverse of their position from earlier, Nezumi shoves Shion down first before manhandling him into a spooning position, Shion tucked up against Nezumi’s chest.

“You have my permission to do this when I need it,” Nezumi mutters finally, right as Shion is finally falling asleep. Shion nods sleepily.

————

Nezumi doesn’t have the moods often, but when he does—when he tracks mud through the library and collapses onto the nearest surface that he can pass out on—he isn’t alone anymore. Now Shion is there, to get into bed with him, to hold him, sometimes to kiss him when Nezumi permits it.

The moments are quiet and stolen and peaceful and theirs.

[tsukiyo-7]

I'd ask you ALL questions if it didn't feel way too impolite. Let me try and keep myself to three, four (sorry). all-time favorite pairing? least favorite headcanon? Craziest thing you've ever done as part of a fandom? Least favorite fic trope?

fandom asks game

ahahah well, feel free to dm me to ask the rest at this point?

all-time favorite pairing?

okay this is an hard one... setting my current obsession wit Wincest aside, I think I'd go with Nezushi (Nezumi and Shion from No.6). No.6 has a very deep personal meaning to me since I read it in 2012 that goes beyond the simple wow this book is amazing. I'm actually called Tsukiyo after one of Nezumi's mice 😂

least favorite headcanon?

probably when people fall in the old yaoi uke/seme trope when talking about top/bottom dynamics. It's a preference in the bedroom, not a personality trait AND entirely different from the sub/dom dynamic. (Saying this as person who millemnia ago made fanarts of Junjou Romantica, I know of what I'm talking about trust me💀 )

Craziest thing you've ever done as part of a fandom?

I think my entire cosplay carreer could be considered a crazy fandom thing. I once licked off something from a piece of polyurethane I was shaping to determinate if it was blood or paint: it was indeed my very own blood💀 hot-glued eva foam to a cotton glove while wearing it (I had weird marroon spots on my hand for a while). Painted my eyebrows with acrylics or alternatively nail-polish. I could go on forever ahah but at least I'm a fucking good cosplayer.

Least favorite fic trope?

You know, it used to be omegaverse 😂 now not so much anymore (the fault can be found partially in my answer for least favouret headcanon ndr). As of now, I'd say Fuck or Die/Sex Magic/Sex Pollen and everything under that category and Self-Insert like "Y character x Reader" (Of course no hate to those who enjoy them).

[translationandbetrayals]

Neuroqueer representation in a post-apocalyptic world.

I would like to share a personal analysis about my favorite manga, anime and novel of all times. No.6 anime is the first adaptation of a Japanese novel series written by Atsuko Asano, which finally got a manga serialization after the original novel series with the same title finished. I think it's important to mention this detail because isn't the "regular" adaptation order and the original work was done by a novelist, not by a Japanese comic artist (a.k.a mangaka). And since the original work is a novel, the genre and topics are not that easily "labeled" as, for example, a classical shoujo or BL manga. 

The story is set in a post-war dystopian world, in which one of the six parts of the earth still habitable for humans (in the city-state named "Number Six", exactly as the title of the novel), lives Shion, a 12-year-old boy and the protagonist of the story.

Honestly It's too dificult to me to write a lot about this amazing story without make any spoiler, but, anyways, i'm trying. lol

Shion is part of a social elite that he himself seems unaware of at first, due to a number of privileges that he and his mother enjoy thanks to an intelligence test (IQ test) that is given to all children at 2 years of age and in which he obtained one of the highest scores, so he was assured housing, security and the best possible education because the government "invested" in children "with a great future" like him. 

Although he had everything a citizen could wish for in that context and that city, somehow felt uncomfortable with that reality, and one day, on his twelfth birthday, he meets "by accident" a boy of his same age at home with an unknown identity and nicknamed "Nezumi" (rat, in Japanese).

Nezumi is the antithesis of Shion, he has a sarcastic personality and is constantly on the defensive of the people, also he has many enigmas around him; and breaking into Shion's room, these two characters begin to develop a bond with that fleeting encounter, in which they leave an kinda emotional mark on each other without realizing it at first.

After many events (sorry, I don't want to make many spoilers), they meet again four years later, when both of them are 16 years old boys, and then, Shion, who begins to realize that too much "perfection" in the utopian city in which he lived all his life could not be possible, due to a series of events is forced to follow in Nezumi's footsteps to save his life, and ends up knowing "the real world" that the utopian city in which he grew up has been hiding from all citizens: basically a city with crime, dirt, danger, inequality, poverty, hunger, social injustice, etc. And all that was just the tip of the iceberg that Shion had left to continue discovering.

As Shion tries to decipher the mysteries of No. 6, he begins to spend his days living with Nezumi, and discovers many "new" things for him: art, theater, libraries, musical instruments, books in physical format, everything that the "mega-advanced" city had been censoring from the population. And as time passed and he learned more about this real world, Shion and Nezumi gradually influenced each other without realizing it. It's like an emotional bond that transcends friendship began to be forged in each one's existence, and the treatment of this dynamic is very interesting and emotional while their lives are in constant danger in the midst of a "depressing" and rather hopeless panorama such as the apocalyptic landscape of a city used as the garbage dump of another city that appears to be perfect.

This story had a strong personal impact on me, as it touches on some pretty "intense" topics, such as politics, religion, social criticism, and even sexual minorities and neurodivergences in the background.

Perhaps the author wasn't fully aware, but Shion is clearly an autistic headcanon for the series' fandom. As an autistic person, I identify my behaviors with those of this character: the motor clumsiness, the poor use of oral language and literality, the certain degree of "naivety" that he shows at the beginning and the lack of prejudice, in addition as the hatred of injustice and hyperempathy, among others.

Shion was a character considered "smart but stupid" at the same time, and although he was clumsy and had no sense of survival, the people around him somehow developed affection for him, because it was rare for them to see a "person without bad intentions."

This story, especially the original novel, seems very complete to me and it gives important lessons about life and about the modern "developed" societies in which we live, that's why from 2011 to the present, No.6 is my favorite story, and I highly recommend it to everyone.

-Alejandra Lermanda.