#the second two are when he makes the connection between the Yuki he knows and the Yuki Sy knows~

[blues824]

Would it be possible to request a male Kyo Sohma reader (for the Remarried Empress) who's a (begrudgingly) visiting Prince sent with his cousin Yuki (who, also begrudgingly, acts as his secretary despite being a Prince as well) to gain favor of The Emperor during the New Year Ceremony. The Empress catches Reader's eye (platonically, since he's already interested in someone from his country) and they form a bond.

He's outraged on her behalf (though he can't really act on it) but offers to gather any information she may need, even dragging his cousin into it as well. Her Majesty finds herself getting letters from an orange cat and a pretty silver rat.

A small time issue ends up with the cat being exposed as Reader being the cat who admits to it being a pretty risky idea to begin with.

(I don't know where I was trying to go with this, I was mostly wondering about the cast's reaction to such a strange pair)

Preface: You are originally from this world and not isekai’d. You are the Crowned Prince of the Southern Kingdom (completely made up place), sent by your family to go gain the favor of the Emperor of the Eastern Empire.

Sovieshu

Even before you met the Emperor, you were still pretty disgusted that he had the audacity to take up a mistress. You didn’t do anything to hide your distaste for this action either, and would announce it to the world if you could. Unfortunately, your family was counting on you to make a good impression.

The second you laid eyes on His Imperial Majesty, bile started to rise. You didn’t hide it either, much to the dismay of your cousin. But, you used your charisma to win over the nobility of the Eastern Empire. They all felt the same way you did, and they told you about it.

Then, you made eye contact with Her Imperial Majesty, and you felt an instant connection. It wasn’t love, but rather two souls who know how to hide their true selves have found each other. So, you decided that the only logical thing to do was to go talk to Navier, and the conversation was really relaxing for the two of you.

Sovieshu was absolutely angry that his wife was conversing with another man, especially a man who had high authority in a different region of the world. It didn’t matter if the two of you weren’t romantically interested in each other, the fact that you had the audacity to converse with his wife while they were going through a rough patch was frustrating for him.

When it was revealed that you were the cat who assisted in delivering letters from Heinrey to his wife, he would have ordered your execution had you been one of his subjects. Unfortunately, because you were the Crowned Prince of the Southern Kingdom, which was an ally to the Empire, you were spared (albeit hesitantly).

Rashta

Honestly, you couldn’t really blame Rashta for being thrust into the life of a mistress since it was all Sovieshu’s fault for making that decision. That doesn’t mean you liked her though. It was like if someone tried to take Tohru’s place in the palace. The thought alone made your blood boil.

The moment you saw the new mistress, a hairball was rising in your throat. How could she be so happy knowing that she’s only in the palace for the Emperor’s pleasure? It’s not like any nobles actually liked her. Plus, she smelled of filth covered with different perfumes.

Rashta saw how you went straight to the Empress and struck up a conversation between yourself, her, and your cousin, and she was incredibly jealous. You were doing it on purpose too, all under the guise of ‘preparing the concubine for what is going to happen both in the castle and outside of the castle’.

She could see that Sovieshu was getting increasingly angry at you talking to Navier, and she was angry that his attention was off of her. She wanted you out of the Empire, but it was way out of her jurisdiction because not only were you there for the party, you were there for the regulation of trade between the Eastern Empire and Luipt as well. Basically, you were there for political affairs she couldn’t mess with.

When your identity as the cat was revealed, she didn’t know how to feel. It’s not like you were trying to hide it, but she’s just so naive that she didn’t even notice you disappearing for times on end to see a cat roaming around in your absence.

Navier

You had received a personalized invitation on behalf of Her Imperial Majesty of the Eastern Empire, stating that you were welcome to an extended stay in the palace to act as ambassador to the Southern Kingdom dealing with the trade routes between your kingdom and the Empire as well as Luipt.

However, the minute you saw Navier, you could sense that she was upset. So you went to go talk to her, ditching all proper etiquette that your cousin had talked you through. It was a pleasant surprise for her, and you both got to learn a lot about each other. You heard that Sovieshu hadn’t even asked for permission before bringing Rashta into the palace, and that made you unbelievably angry.

To distract herself from the pain, she asked why an eligible bachelor such as yourself attended the party with your cousin rather than a date, and the conversation turned into you spilling tea about Tohru. Navier wished you the best of luck in your romantic pursuit of the girl. That night, she became an older sister figure to both you and Yuki.

But, when she went back to her bedchambers, she was a bit suspicious upon finding a cat and a rat ‘conversing’ with each other and seemingly understanding one another. She didn’t piece everything together, but when Queen wasn’t allowed to fly in, you used your cat form to bring in letters.

When it was revealed that you were the cat who delivered her the letters, she hugged you. A few tears definitely did slip, but then she scolded you for being so reckless with your life. 

Heinrey

Your Kingdoms were in an alliance with one another, and that’s how you both knew each other. The two of you were Crowned Princes who were acting as representatives of the Kingdoms you hailed from at Navier’s party. But, the two of you didn’t always get along. It wasn’t until Tohru came into your life that you really established a friendship with Heinrey.

Mans was partnering with your cousin to try and get you to hide your obvious disgust at His Imperial Majesty, but you always wore your emotions on your sleeve. Plus, you weren’t doing anything too bad. You just kept shooting death glares at Sovieshu.

Heinrey was definitely jealous when you started a conversation with Navier, but he was glad that it seemed platonic rather than you just trying to woo her. You even introduced the two, and gave him a thumbs up from the side of the ballroom as they danced. You best believe that you were one of the groomsmen at their wedding.

Anyways, during the time where any birds sent to Navier would be shot down as declared by Sovieshu, you wrote to Heinrey and offered your help. You would use your cat form to sneak in and deliver the letters yourself so that open lines of communication between the couple could continue. You can consider yourself a hero. We salute you, soldier 🫡

[rifki16]

At 25:00, in Akasaka Episode Eight Review

Let me just cut through the chase here. This episode really confused me and angered me to an extent. However, I have to praise this episode for one thing: the coloring of Asami Hayama. I have two other topics I would like to talk about from this episode.

On Asami Hayama Being the Standing Sage Still Oak Tree

I have written in the previous episode review essay that we are getting to know why Asami seems to just be like standing there. Asami turned out to have a bad childhood, upbringing, which made him to be this very closed off person. He tried acting in a film project with his uni’s film club; he found the activity to be fun. As he was polishing his craft as an actor, he crossed path with this guy whom he became fond of, Shirasaki Yuki. He observed and observed quietly this guy’s acting. When he got scouted, the guy whom he has been observing told him that he was making a mistake in going to the world of modelling – an action that cemented his crush to Shirasaki Yuki.

We were brought to the last scene from the sixth episode; Shirasaki just broke up with Asami. Context note, I really forgot what caused the breakup between Shirasaki and Asami. I watched episode six again, simply put, Shirasaki was overwhelmed by the kindness of Asami-kun even though he was immensely busy. To add to the enormous pressure, Shirasaki also snapped because he knew that Asami-san already likes someone else. I will talk about Shirasaki’s standing in the second theme.

Just after Asami got broken up with Shirasaki, acting became a hassle for him. A scene taping with Asami needed to be redone many times because he kept forgetting his lines. Asami then wandered through Akasaka to clear his head.

He then went to the bar where he found Asami trying to find a hookup partner. The same bar where Mihara worked. The supposed, androgynous, playful, confident Mihara. I’m going to talk more about this encounter in the minor theme section at the end of this essay. Mihara gave the idea to Asami that he should go back to his hometown – which would be Shirasaki’s as well right?

He then went back to his hometown and visited the university, where Shirasaki and Mihara went too as well. He then went back to the club’s private mini viewing room, where he used to borrow the supposed classics from which he could learn acting. He was reminiscing about acting in those days. He watched the first film in which he starred, then proceeded to critique his own acting by saying, something to the effect of, “was I really that bad back then?” and “it used to be difficult for me to cry”.

This is the main argument I want to present: his nostalgic reminiscence of his first acting job/opportunity made him realized why he loves acting so much. He said that his first acting role was so fun because he could make something, a work of art I presume, with a team. More importantly, acting is his venue not to be him. It was a chance for him to be someone else, to express, to cry, to get angry, and all sorts.

I’m glad that we could see more of Asami. It’s a win for me, even though that I couldn’t really understand the connection between his, I think, depressive mother and the compulsion for him to conceal his emotions, at least we know how it has progressed since his uni years.

After that, I think he got back to Akasaka, and as he was just walking out of the train station, I suppose, he replied to the fake drama director and said that he was alright again. Her reply was really weird for me, “You’re our finest product, give it your all until our last shoot”. Gurl, he’s not a product.

Also, after that reply, he became sure that all he wanted with Shirasaki was just to be costars. Why? What is it that I can interpret from that? Is it that because he found his reason to act, he became confident again in his acting despite breaking up irl with Shirasaki? Or the more sinister one that, he had been acting all this time, to catch up and to match his crush’s acting ability. Now, that he knew he couldn’t make it work with Shirasaki as boyfriends, he decoupled, wink wink European Union-China relation, his motivation to act from his goal to be worthy in the eyes of and eventually to be with his crush.

Je. Ne. Sais. Pas. It was just so weird for me as to what about his realization of his true acting motivation made him think that he needed to back off from Shirasaki, completely.

On Shirasaki Yuki’s Standing

So, we know that Shirasaki was a pretty daring and confident person and actor during his uni years. What happened that now he is not so uncompromising or self-assured after the uni years? We really don’t know as the show hasn’t told his side of the story.

I want to highlight that one of the effects of Shirasaki’s low self-esteem/worth is how easily swayed Shirasaki is, emotionally or in aspects of decision making, by other people. We did see the first example of this when he broke up with Asami. In essence, the way that Sakuma and Yamase gushed about Asami’s one true crush was the one that snapped Shirasaki into breaking up with Asami.

This episode brought a second example of it.

Shirasaki was just studying his lines again, and he found out that in one of the last scenes of the fake finale that he needed to make love with Asami. During his study, Yamase banged on his door and practically made himself at home at Shirasaki’s. Sakuma told Yamase an info which he relayed to Shirasaki that Asami headed back home because he was troubled by his one true love; this angered Shirasaki of course – something which was very visible to Yamase.

Yamase then brought Shirasaki to this speakeasy underground bar. Huge side note, why did they make Yamase this bad boy, bad influence on Shirasaki? In the manga, Yamase is more than just a rascal who practically tests the strength of the couple’s relationship, he is a legitimate actor. He wanted to better his acting skills, he consulted, genuinely, Shirasaki about his skills, during the play , in the third volume, which Shirasaki and he are in. Yes, I know that Yamase also talked about honing his acting skills in the LA, but it seems to be secondary to him being the bad bot, oops slip of the keyboard, I mean boy, bad boy.

Anyhoo, in this speakeasy bar, Sakuma was already there. They then proceeded to talk about Asami’s previous works and acting skills. Drunk Shirasaki then tried to prove to the group that he is the biggest fan of Asami. Yamase then pointed out how Shirasaki seemed to know so much about his costar and pressed him whether the two are couples in real life. Shirasaki replied, regrettably I suppose, no. Shirasaki then pressed Yamase back as to why he ridiculed him and Asami so much. Sakuma suggested that Yamase might have a crush on Shirasaki, which Yamase immediately denied. Shirasaki then replied by saying, “you must like, Hayama-san then?”. Yamase then answered, “a little bit”. Bro, no. Noooooo, WHERE MY QUEER REPRESENTATION AT? Yamase has this hard-rock crush on Asami in the manga. What possible reasons the LA has in watering down his crush to Asami? It’s just a crush it will NOT destroy the LA’s PG, family friendly vibes.

I think they just want to couple Yamase and Sakuma, however, I think the train has left the station there. There are only two episodes left. How can you build side characters’ love relationship that quick?

Shirasaki then sat at a different table, drunkenly kept drinking more of his wine. He thought to himself as to how he will stop seeing Asami after the series shooting ends. He became very sad about that prospect. The devil then came in the room. After drunk interactions among the group, Asami then piggybacked Shirasaki to home, very Perfect Propose.

At home, Shirasaki then asked to have sex with Asami, he asked drunkenly. The episode cut off there. Of course, Asami would not say yes to that, even the manga Asami is not that much of a horndog.

I asked to myself, why, why did Shirasaki do that? My argument is that Yamase’s proclamation of his fondness of Asami, as well as him flaming about the one true love of Asami at Shirasaki’s, caused Shirasaki to miss Asami even more to the extent of wanting to have sex there and then with him.

Oh Shirasaki, my Shirasaki, what have they done to your character.

Minor Theme

The interaction at the supposed popular, crowd-filled gay bar between Mihara and Asami was really telling as to how PG they made Mihara. The bar was empty because Asami came before opening time. I mean, why couldn’t they just make this a popular, yet secretive, gay bar that Mihara owns? They could easily avoid making such excuses just for this scene if they use that description of the bar.

Asami : “Nothing’s bothering me”

Mihara : “Right, I can’t comfort you anyway”.

Was that a BJ reference? Was that the only extent that we can see the playful side of Mihara? I don’t understand why he kept on talking about his hometown. His sagesse mainly revolves about healthy relationship advice. I don’t get why he chose to use his hometown as an example, I see Mihara as this very detached-from-his-backward-root person, not as someone who is too nostalgic about his upbringing.

At least, this episode made me understand Asami more. I appreciate that win.

[mindfuljujutsu]

No Strings Attached

What starts as a clandestine arrangement between Yuki and Gojo quickly turns into a rollercoaster of emotions, with unexpected twists and turns. As they navigate the complexities of their connection, they'll discover that love doesn't always play by the rules.

| Part 1 | Part 2 |

words: 1 820

a/n: This was originally intended to be a simple Gojo one-shot, but it kept on getting longer and longer. So, I decided to turn it into a short series. I'd also like to mention that some things don't exactly align with the jjk plot, but they have been adjusted for creative purposes to enhance the story's flow and coherence. I hope you enjoy it regardless. The next part is coming soon. Happy reading!

2013

Yuki spotted Satoru the moment he entered the room where the party in honor of Kento Nanami's birthday was being held. Nanami wasn't the type to celebrate his birthday, let alone join any celebration or party. So, it was safe to say that Nanami wasn't too enthusiastic when his group of friends decided to throw him a birthday party. He looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here—a room full of teenagers dancing, drinking, and making out in Gojo's massive apartment.

Satoru Gojo looked incredible. His messy white hair was styled as usual, he sported his signature round sunglasses (despite it being nighttime), and he rocked a tight-fitted black t-shirt with matching skinny black jeans. Saying that Satoru looked good was an understatement.

Yuki watched as he greeted people, making his way through the crowd of party-goers. He shook hands, accepted hugs, and gave fist-bumps to people he probably didn't even know, but who definitely knew him. He was the quintessential popular guy straight out of a book—handsome, rich, confident, cocky, and undeniably self-absorbed. Things that Yuki had initially despised about him but had come to accept.

Satoru moved towards his group of friends, consisting of Geto, Shoko, and Nanami. They were all sitting at the bar located right next to Satoru's kitchen (what teenager had a bar in their apartment? They were all just under the age limit to drink), engaged in their own conversation. When Satoru arrived, he immediately got pulled into a chair and included in whatever discussion they were having.

"He's hot, isn't he?" A feminine voice remarked from beside Yuki on the couch she was relaxing on.

She turned to see an unfamiliar face, a girl she hadn't seen at Jujutsu High or at any of the parties she attended. She must've been new to the school or the area.

Seeing the confusion on Yuki's face, the girl extended her hand for a shake and introduced herself. "I'm Iori Utahime. I recently moved to the area from Kyoto."

Yuki nodded and shook Utahime's hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Yuki," she said before sipping her beverage. "Do you attend Jujutsu High? I've never seen you before."

"No," Utahime shook her head. "I graduated from high school two years ago, but I'm attending Jujutsu Tech to become a Grade One sorcerer."

"Wow, you really don't look your age. You fit right in with us high schoolers."

"Thanks," Utahime smiled. "What year are you?"

"I'm a second-year semi-Grade 1."

"How did you get invited to the party? Do you know Nanami or something?" Yuki asked curiously. She had never seen or heard of Utahime, and if she were part of Satoru's group, she would've definitely heard about it already.

"No, I got invited by my dorm mate who's around here somewhere," she said, waving around the room vaguely. "We met Shoko, that girl over there," she pointed towards Shoko who was laughing at whatever Geto had just said, "outside the Tech while we were having a smoke break. She got us invited to the party."

"The guy you've been staring at, he's pretty hot," Utahime shrugged casually, nodding towards Satoru and his group.

"Gojo?" Yuki asked, feeling herself slightly flush at the thought of getting caught watching Satoru. She cleared her throat, "Uh, yeah, he is, but he's totally out of my league."

Utahime gave Yuki a once-over, analyzing her features and clothing. "I think you're pretty. You should go up to speak to him."

"What? Are you crazy?" Yuki laughed, shaking her head at Utahime's audacious idea. "I was only staring because he's hot. I don't like him like that or anything."

"Well, then, if you won't take him, I will," Utahime stood up from the couch and straightened out her tiny skirt. "Are you coming?"

Yuki nearly choked on her drink. "Over there? To Gojo?"

Utahime rolled her eyes at Yuki's incredulity. "Yeah, obviously," she pointed over her shoulder, "I'm going to go over to Shoko. I'm sure she'll introduce me to all her friends, including Gojo. I'll make my move then."

"I get that. I just don't understand why you want me to tag along."

"We'll get you introduced to him so that he at least knows you exist. Besides, you'll get to stare at him up close too."

Yuki set her empty cup on the coffee table and hesitantly stood up to follow Utahime as she made her way towards Satoru and his friends. She looked down at her little black dress and made sure to brush out any wrinkles it got from sitting on the couch for so long.

"Utahime!" Shoko exclaimed when she saw the two of them approaching. "You came!"

Utahime smiled at Shoko, "Yeah, Chichi came too, but I somehow lost her in this house."

"Everyone, let me introduce you all to my new friend, Utahime. She just moved here from Kyoto," Shoko said. Everyone introduced themselves, either waving or shaking Utahime's hand.

"Oh," Utahime said, realizing that Yuki was still there, practically hiding behind her. "This is Yuki. She attends school with all of you."

Yuki shyly waved at the group, who were already looking at her with tiny smirks, almost as if they knew a secret that nobody else knew. And they did.

"Yes, Yuki," Geto mused, smirk still on his lips. "I know you from somewhere, but I just can't put my finger on it."

Yuki felt her entire face flush in embarrassment, knowing what he was getting at.

"You're right," Satoru chuckled, staring at Yuki with those bright blue eyes hiding behind his glasses. "I feel like we've met before. Do I know you from somewhere?"

Yuki felt her eye twitch in annoyance. She had a sarcastic response on the tip of her tongue but decided against saying anything. "No. You're probably confusing me for someone else."

"Probably," Gojo agreed, but he still had that smirk on his face.

"It was nice meeting you all, but I gotta go," Yuki said, already backing away from the group, who watched her in amusement. Utahime watched on in confusion, probably not understanding what was going on between all of them.

Before anyone could say anything, Yuki bolted out of there and made her way straight out the front door of the apartment. Feeling as if she needed a breather, Yuki made her way up the tiny staircase hidden further down the hallway outside of Satoru's apartment. She followed the stairs that took her up to the empty rooftop of the fancy apartment complex.

There was a beautiful garden and barbecue area up there, but she walked right past that and instead made her way to the edge of the rooftop where she leaned against the railing to look out at the twinkling city lights below.

"I don't think I've ever seen you run that fast.”

Yuki screamed at the sudden appearance of a deep voice directly behind her. With a hand on her heart, she quickly turned around to face the culprit, who was laughing at her wide eyes.

Yuki punched Satoru's arm for scaring her. She hated it when he sneaked up on her, and he knew that well. He was always trying to get on her last nerve.

"You're such an asshole, Gojo," Yuki said, shaking her head and then turning back around to look at the view again.

Strong arms wrapped around Yuki's body, and Satoru pressed tightly against her back. She could still feel him laughing at her jump-scare earlier.

"I'm sorry," he said, sobering up, though not sounding apologetic at all.

"How did you know I'd come up here?" Yuki asked, tilting her head to get a better look at Satoru.

"When I saw you bolt out of the apartment, I knew you'd come up here."

Yuki groaned at the reminder of her hasty exit but turned around in Satoru's arms and glared at him a moment later.

"You and your big mouth," she said, poking him on the chest with her finger. "You just had to tell your friends that we were hooking up, didn't you."

"You don't think they would've found it suspicious that I kept turning down girls and going home alone all the time? I was saving us from having them on our backs all the time, and trust me, they would've found us in some kind of compromising position eventually."

With that, Gojo leaned down and smashed his lips to Yuki's, pulling her body tighter against him in response. Yuki couldn’t help but moan into the kiss. No boy had ever kissed her as good as Gojo did. 

Yuki felt Gojo’s hand trailing up her thigh and going under her black dress, but before he could get any further, a tiny yet familiar voice broke them apart. 

"Are you both seriously doing this up here?"

"Jeez, kid," Gojo groaned when he saw Megumi sitting cross-legged on the ground in the garden area. Yuki hastily pushed Gojo away from her, not wanting Megumi to see more than he had already witnessed.

Yuki heard Gojo groan and swear under his breath, knowing that he probably wasn't going to get any alone time soon. Yuki smiled at Megumi as she approached his tiny figure sitting criss-cross-apple sauce on the ground.

"What are you doing up here, Gumi?" Yuki asked, holding out her hand for him to take. After staring at it in contemplation for a few seconds, he took it and pulled himself up.

"Gojo said that I should stay in my room during the party, but the music was too loud and distracting, so I came up here for some peace and quiet," Megumi explained, tightening his gown around his tiny Batman pajamas.

"You know not to come up here alone, Megumi," Gojo scolded the young boy. "Especially at this time of night."

"I tried sleeping, but all those people were too noisy!"

"C'mon," Gojo said, moving to pick Megumi up. "You're going back to your room."

Megumi whined but surprisingly didn't argue. "Can I at least get some cake before I go to bed?"

"There's no cake at the party."

"What kind of party is this?" Megumi asked, looking at both Yuki and Gojo with wide eyes.

Yuki couldn't help but chuckle at his antics. "How about we go for a milkshake at Diddi's?" Yuki suggested. Diddi's American-style diner was open all night on weekends and was a favorite place for the three of them to hang out.

"Yes, yes, yes, please!" Megumi exclaimed in excitement. "Please, Gojo, please! Let's go to Diddi's, and after that, I promise I'll go straight to my room."

Gojo sighed but agreed anyway. He had trouble saying no to Megumi sometimes.

"Fine. Let's go."

a/n: The interactions between Gojo and Megumi are absolutely adorable and were one of the main reasons why I decided to extend this fic. You can look forward to more heartwarming Gojo and Megumi interactions in the future 😉

I'd also like to mention that the posting of this series won't strictly follow its timeline. I thought it would be more interesting to include time-skips in each part. See you soon!!

[yukisdomain]

If you don't mind, can I ask your top 5 (or top 3) favorite characters from Jujutsu Kaisen? And why you loved them? And your top 5 favorite moments from the series? Sorry if you've answered this before.....

Hi! Thanks for the ask :)

Yuuji is definitely my favourite. If you've seen my recent post about what I think makes him a good character you probably already have an idea about what I think of him.

However, what initially drew me to him was how kind hearted he is. There is a certain childlike (not childish) innocence about him that makes him so endearing and sets him apart from other characters. I know Miwa is a sweetheart too, but something about Yuuji makes it feel more earnest. Of course he isn't that "happy go lucky" kid after everything that's happened to him, but it seems to me that he did preserve some of that purity. Mahito said it himself - Yuuji saves people without a second thought. And while that doesn't have to be the best thing one can do in a certain situations, I still love that about him.

There was that scene when Gojo tells Megumi he needs to be more selfish and not throw his life away. That tendency of his was evident during the game of baseball they played against the Kyoto students. But here's the thing, while Yuuji might be more "selfish" in the way Gojo put it (and even compared himself to him), I still think Yuuji is more "selfless" on the battleground. Megumi knows what should be done. Yuuji feels. Megumi will do something because he knows it's for the better (based on his set of values), Yuuji will do something because he feels it's for the better. Because he genuinly cares (not saying Megumi doesn't, but not as much as Yuuji). What I'm trying to say is that if Megumi sacrifices himself it's because it needs to be done, if Yuuji sacrifices himself it's because he feels for those who would suffer if he doesn't. At least that's how I see it.

Then there's Kenjaku - someone who would cause the apocalypse because they are bored. Here's the thing, I didn't read the manga and go, oh I like this one. I started posting silly little scenarios of them and then it hit me like, wait, they are quite interesting. A mad scientist. I do quite like that. I like how curious, playful and unpredictable they are. Plus I have a habit of liking those who think outside the box.

Which brings us to Yuki. Her character is probably the most similar to Kenjaku's in jjk universe - a playful non-conformist who studies ways of the cursed energy. She wants to treat the root of the problem, not simply exorcise curses - finally! It is interesting because her ideals directly oppose Kenjaku's. She thinks breaking away from cursed energy is for the best, while Kenjaku believes that optimising cursed energy is the way to go. Both of them also have a connection to Tengen, she as a previous Star Plasma Vessel and Kenjaku as Tengen's friend. I wish Gege delved deeper in both of their pasts, or at least showed us how two of those traveled (Kenny across Jappan, she abroad) and studied cursed energy.

Also, she's damn cool, okay? I don't make the rules. She just is. I also love how tall she is (probably because I'm tall too 😂 and you don't see many tall women in the media).

Some other characters i like are Shoko, Nobara, Nanami, Choso, Hakari...

As for the favorite moments, the first two on this list are my actual no. 1 and 2, the rest is listed in no particular order other than me remembering them in that way:

1) Yuuji vs Mahito's last fight in s2

2) Yuuji and Nobara vs Eso and Kechizu, then Nobara comforting Yuuji in her own way, s1

3) the trio spilling coffee on Gojo's shirt, s2

4) Nanami saying everything is shit, s1

5) Yuuji vs Mahito first fight, s1

Sukuna vs Jogo was great too imo, and I love the animation of the Star Plasma corridor scene. Actually all scenes with Amanai Riko were well animated.

There are probably more scenes but this list is off the top of my head.

Sorry for the long answer 😅

Have a nice day :)

[ultraericthered]

Anime Update V2 34

Wolf’s Rain - You know shit’s hit the fan when the guy we thought was getting set up as the main villain gets offed at the start of the episode. Yeah, Lord Orkham got assasinated by the forces of the as of now unseen Lady Jaguara, and Hubb Lebewski, who was taken captive by the late noble’s forces, is now on the run, while his ex-wife is still held captive by our other main antagonist, Lord Darcia. And oh man, Darcia shows just how scary and efficient he is here, and by the end has Cheza back in his possession and has thwarted the four main wolves on what could’ve bene a clear pathway to Paradise.

Hunter x Hunter - Caught up to the second anime’s version of where the first anime ended, and then Chrollo used the fortune-telling ability he stole from Neon to read the futures of all Troupe members while Kurapika finally recieves Hisoka’s text message that the Spiders aren’t really dead. And so we’re approaching this arc’s real ending!

Fruits Basket - The episode that introduced Rin Sohma, the Zodiac horse who unfortunately does not meet our main characters this time and doesn’t even transform. The episode was mostly about how Hatsuharu was dealing with his and Rin’s breakup, and how his angst and potential danger to even his loved ones is paralleled with Kyo. Yuki also resolves to return to the Sohma family estate to visit Haru, which took a whole lot of courage and maturity on his part.

Rozen Maiden - My fears were confirmed - “middle school Jun” who has been communicating with adult Jun is not really middle school Jun, but Kirakishou decieving adult Jun into making a body for her. The real middle school Jun is trapped in another realm with Canaria and has been recieving adult Jun’s replies to things he never sent him to begin with! The one character who catches onto what’s really going on here is Suigintou, who of course proceeds to not alert Jun or Shinku to this because she wants to fight Kirakishou when she emerges so that she may claim her Rozen Mystica, oh you evil little shit! This is “Vegeta allows Cell to reach his Perfect form” stuff here! 

Fate Zero - Not much in the way of plot advancement this week, just more solid interactions between Saber and Irisveil, and between Gilgamesh and Kirei, who continue to provide some of the best stuff.

Revolutionary Girl Utena - 'Twas the series finale, what all can I really say about it? It was trippy and mind-blowing and eye-opening and heatwrenching and inspiring and...well, revolutionary! And I just loved the conclusion it came to. The Rose Bride/”princess” role truly is worthless to the girl who has it and only benefits the Prince, the “Prince” role itself is toxic and ultimately incapable of breaking through the Rose Gate, Anthy’s lack of self worth and internalized sexism failed her as much as Utena’s own wrong-headed idealism and aspirations to be a Prince failed her, what actually saves Anthy is Utena reaching out to her not as a Prince trying to save the damsel in distress, but as herself believing in her friend, as one young woman in need to another - one lover to another, as their hearts and hands connect. And getting to see Akio get exactly what he deserved twice was so damn satisfying. In the end, Utena did bring the world revolution, but not in the way Akio had ever understood or intended. Everyone’s own “world” is now in revolution, the Rose Bride is slave no more, and Utena is out there somewhere, waiting to be found...

Senki Zesshou Symphogear - The last thing I’d been expecting after last episode was Chris getting taken to Miku’s house and becoming her new friend, that was so sweet! And seeing Chris step up to protect Miku and other civilians put in danger from the Noise attack, Genjuro coming in to protect Chris (who takes off afterwards), Miku taking action to protect others including her estranged friend Hibiki, and of course, Hibiki coming to her rescue as the two of them rekindle their beautiful friendship afterwards. The OTP sails again!

AMC: Tengen Tonpa Gurren Lagann - Got to episode 5, which introduces characters that aren’t exactly favorites of mine, but had a central conflict that was interesting enough to hold my attention the whole way through. Kamina immediatey hating on the high priest due to him reminding of his old villages leader was hilarious, and while he’s left unable to really understand the ways of this village, he turns out to not be entirely off the mark - the high priest essentially is just the village leader disguised by religious doctrine and beliefs he doesn’t truly hold dear. By far the weakest part of the episode was the fight. I could barely make it out, the lighting was so dark and dull!

AND

Akudama Drive - Had to watch this in addition since I’d have no room for it anywhere later in the time remaining of this year. And yeah, I’ve certainly reached the halfway point of this one cours anime. I know this ‘cause main charactes have begun to fucking die!

[nitunio]

uggggghhhhhhhhhh i need more gentle ryou (looks at wip) and im Not creating it (aaaa)

i know that none of the ryomomo past interactions were shown and his backstory was not explored at all, and it really works as a story choice to keep him detached from the rest of the cast, alienated from the emotions they share (which is also detailed in how he has zero empathy) BUT i would die for even one scene of their interactions in the past

because it's interesting to think that their relationship kept escalating until pt 3 came and Oh, Momo is still in Re:vale? which is a plot drive for Ryou to start his plan of destroying idols.

who else for would he wait 5 years? WHICH IS OH LORD . THAT IS SUCH A CONTRAST TO THE YUKI/MOMO PROMISE. if for Ryou it was five years of inaction, stagnation, as they kind of just were friends (to not assume sex/romance, which i always do but its half-relevant here specifically), with Yuki it was five years of uplifting each other and reaching new heights, hence their popularity in spite of their small agency, and IT'S ALSO DETAILED in Re:vale (as mentioned by Yaopapa) having more of a "grounded" image, of idols that are closer to people, more earnest and sincere, which draws many different people in. the whole concept of Re:vale goes against Ryou's lack of emotion, lack of connection with others, be it friendship or simple relatability.

and to think that Momo was kind of between FUCK LET ME SHOW YOU IN COLOURS BECAUSE THEY BROUGHT IN COLOURS INTO THIS TOO

SO HOW DO I EXPLAIN IT WITHOUT SOUNDING LESS NORMAL THAN I AM.

From the cards in the game the takeaway is Red = Shout, Green is Beat, and Blue is Melody. (i have zero skills to articulate that into emotions expressed by people, but go off the feels please this will make much sense probably later)

Yuki and Momo are polar opposites, they lack that which the other can help them with (Yuki has no red colour in him, which is mostly what Momo has, Momo has no green colour in him, which is mostly what Yuki has). When they meet halfway, they create a harmony, that which is gray and calm, and when they sing, they blend into an explosion of both of them, together like patterns of vivid colours.

And the person closest to Yuki is Banri, with his colour that has equal parts green and blue, and less red, WHICH IS REFLECTED IN HIS PERSONALITY, and that's why Momo is much better fit for Yuki, and that's why Banri looks after Momo too.

AND THEN WE HAVE RYOU AND I'LL USE TWO COLOURS BECAUSE THERE IS NO COLOUR THAT IS HIS (since he has no idol image)

it's not getting more clear is it

We have purple, that which is dull and bordering on grays. perfectly balanced (lists his own talents and skills) and nothing special (hated and overlooked by family) at the same time - that is Ryou, and we have Momo, full of red, full of Saturation and Contrast, someone that Ryou spent five years with, albeit their time together got shorter and shorter ---------- When we're talking about these five years, I like to imagine Momo having No Colour, and as time goes on, it starts showing up on him, and Ryou sees that the distance between them is far more than it was.

BECAUSE WHEN YOU OVERLAY RYOU AND MOMO'S HAIR COLOURS, YOU GET THIS. Momo is closer to Yuki and Banri colour-wise, and Ryou is there, near, too. And seeing the dynamic between Yuki and Momo, the obviously better matchup they have, starts escalating what Ryou and Momo have -- into resentment, hatred, expectations not being met, and it hurts both parties.

And when we move past part 4, we have Ryou's second colour, which is his eyes, and most importantly, probably his true colour (like Momo's colour being his eye colour also). Not only is it "past" Momo (thinking about moving clockwise, as time goes on), but it's also perfectly inbetween Re:vale. Rather than being in the idols' way, he is now standing as an observer (it's his Eye color after all of course it's about observing)

Not only that, but you can also see with this colour choice that he has pulled himself upwards, more saturated and bright, closer to Momo, but not near. It's also worth noting that the colour has lots more red and green in it than before (Re:vale influence + ZOOL, Haruka esp since he's green, and most ZOOLs having somewhat of a red-ish orange-ish brown-ish colours you get me?????)

And with that, I say,

I truly need more gentle RyoMomo

[destinylordoffreaks]

Here is batch 1 of my art of iris Hau’oli 

As mentioned in my re-blog of her doll, her original design comes from a unnecessarily edgy, alternate future just exactly the kind of things a 14 year old, who grew up on the 2003 ninja turtles and watch Transformers the movie on repeat has a kid would write you know 

So about the color choices I made with the original design they’re questionable right worst part is I remember making this design and thinking to myself, it’s a post apocalyptic future  clothing Options are going to be limited, and nothing is going to match and I took that concept to heart the second picture is also from that same unnecessarily, edgy future it’s actually part of a whole piece that I can only describe has being as some sort of movie poster, but I hated the rest of it so much that I cropped it out 

After that, we have the beach photo that was also pictured featured in Benjamins pictures because it’s a giant group photo. I think this is probably the first possibly the second design of her outside of the post apocalyptic feature. 

I’m gonna level with you I don’t know if the third or fourth picture came first one of them is her first design has a character in the normal timeline instead of the crazy  future. One big problem with both of them is that they were both were made using a drawing bases, and I had no idea how to appropriately draw characters to proportion, so Iris seems to tower over everyone else, despite the fact that Iris is the shortest member of the cast, thankfully I eventually figured that out

Next up, we have Chibi iris, I actually attempted to make chibi designs for all of my characters at that point, but I didn’t like the way most of them turned out. Iris I didn’t mind though, so here she is. 

Than we have a Disney princess like design, which had been inspired by a dress up game on a website called azaleas dolls if I remember correctly, it’s like heroin creator or something like I’ll have to see if I can find it. Unfortunately, this was back when l flash player was a thing, so it doesn’t work anymore unless you have a browser that can run flash might be on flashpoint though I haven’t looked, I run it through the browser that Azalea dolls recommended, which is called y8 browser or something that you downloaded your computer so I still played all the time. I actually have irises original design I made her on said doll creator, so if you guys want I can post that and maybe even an updated version but you guys will have to actually comment and tell me to do it

After that, we have a picture of featuring Iris‘s family her mom pua, her older brother kekoa, and her older sister Maylea  Iris is the baby  although he is it depicted in this picture I think because I hadn’t decided to stick him in the store yet I was also has a stepdad named Craig irises biological dad had been a Navy doctor, who retired from the Navy, and became a first responder who ultimately passed away when Iris was 11 and her mom remarried when she was 13 to Craig Craig is actually a really sweet guy. I was just dislikes him on the principle that he’s not her dad she does eventually come around though

And finally, we have a group photo of Iris and the rest of the Yuki’s friends. Remember that picture back in Benjamin stuff where him and his family are all dressed up nicely. Well this was supposed to be the other half of that picture, like it was supposed to be two parts but I hated it so much. I never colored it I just left it like this and moved on to something else  like I should apologize to Sorin, for whatever I did to his eyes, and to Pete, for not connecting his face to the rest of his body 

Now that I remembered that you can put blocks of text in between photos. I have to go back and edit all of my ones for Benjamin so that they flow better instead of just being a giant block of pictures followed by a giant block a text.

that’s all for now. 



[juyeoniemyhoney]

make you feel my love

Losing means nothing to Ishikawa when he has you.

pairing: ishikawa yuki x reader

genre: fluff, established relationship

warnings: i don’t think there’s any!

word count: 2074 words

A/N: i honestly dont know who wants to read this but im just gonna post it anyways HAHA so here all you ishikawa simps pls enjoy<3

--------

It all happens at once.

The noise— screams of all pitches and encouragements of all sorts, forming a raucous cacophony in the large gymnasium— halts almost immediately; like a vacuum has sucked it all up and the only thing that is left is an eerie stillness as everyone waits in antsy anticipation for the player to serve.

And then he is running up, throwing the ball great lengths into the air and jumping to meet it halfway, hitting the ball with such force and determination you can almost feel the impact yourself. The ball hurtles through the air and crosses the net with such speed you almost don't see it.

But the Japanese team does. Their libero, Yamamoto, crosses the court in a flash and bumps the ball up so high up it gives his teammates half a second to breathe before they are rushing to connect it, the setter, Sekita, tossing the ball higher in the air for Ishikawa to hit it.

The tall Brazilians loom over him like a curse, like bad karma, as determined as the Japanese are, but not nearly as desperate. Ishikawa does not mind them and he bravely hits the ball with as much strength as his worn out body allows him, sending every last bit of energy into this spike, hoping, praying, practically begging for it to work, for the ball to hit the other side of the court with such violence that the Brazilians would not be able to even react before it hits the floor.

The next thing you know, the ball hits the hands of the Brazilians and is spindling down towards the floor at breakneck speed. Yamamoto, Sekita and Ishikawa (when he lands), all throw themselves to the floor in a desperate bid to save it, to not let it touch the floor, to not let all their hard work be washed down into a drain. But to no avail.

The ball hits the floor with a resounding thud. The whistle blows and all at once, the Brazilian supporters leap from their seats and yell and scream and shout with unadulterated joy. Because they have won! They have won the game! And the Japanese have lost. The Japanese team and their supporters are quiet in the wake of their loss. You do not move, almost as if if you did, the bleachers would crack open, the earth beneath the gymnasium would cave in and you would be falling to the floor, through the soil and to the core of the earth.

The three men lift themselves up from the floor with the weight of defeat on their shoulders and their teammates pat their backs silently, looking solemn but trying to be as encouraging as possible. The team gathers at the end line of the court and another whistle blows, signalling both teams to bow. When Ishikawa's eyes hit the floor, so do the tears.

He cries in silent agony, somehow feeling like it is all his fault. He is the captain, he should have led them better than this. He is the ace, he should have been able to hit pass those blocks. He knew hitting hard was risky, he should have been more careful. He should have moved faster, reacted faster, gotten to the ball faster. He should have been sharper, more alert, better. He should have been better.

His teammates shed a few tears too, but not quite nearly as much as Ishikawa. It's unrelenting— his tears. It doesn't want to stop, even when Ishikawa roughly wipes at his eyes in frustration, desperately wanting the raw showing of emotion to stop. Everyone can see him cry in this moment and he hates it.

When Ishikawa and his team begin to move off the court, is when you break from your stunned daze. Quite frankly, you were shocked speechless. You knew Brazil was a tough opponent but your faith in your boys would always trump any form of doubt. You knew they could do it. You knew they would be able to do it. Until they didn't.

You do not see the tears from quite so far away, but when you do, you are ripping yourself from your seat with such great speed, the people around you jump in surprise. You do not care, you do not even really notice before you are sprinting down the stairs, leaping from each flight, ignoring the desperate calls of your best friend and the shocked expressions directed at you as you race to the exit of the court.

"Ishikawa Yuki!" you yell just in case you don't catch them in time. You know you could just call him or meet him at his house but you came as a surprise, and though you'd wish you could surprise him after his victory, you think that surprising him and being able to comfort him in his loss will mean just as much.

At the sound of your voice, his head whips around, eyes wide in shock as he desperately searches the people for your face, eyes glassy with unshed tears and vision slightly blurry. You jump off the rest of the stairs, running to him with flailing arms. And when Ishikawa sees you, you swear you see his lips pout, eyes glossing over as tears run down his face.

You grin and run to him and he drops everything, his water bottle, his towel, his jacket, everything, so that he can hold his arms open for you to run into and give him a big hug. And you do exactly that. You run straight into his arms, wrapping your arms around his torso and shoving your face into his chest, not caring at all that he is drenched in sweat (and possibly tears), not caring at all that almost the whole gymnasium full of people can see the two of you have such an intimate moment, not caring at all because Ishikawa Yuki, the love of your life, is in tears and you have to do everything in your power to stop that.

Ishikawa's arms wrap around you too, holding you so tight and dear to him, you swear the both of you stop breathing. And with you in his arms, he finally crumbles to the floor, tears spilling from his eyes and sobs escaping his throat in ugly, high-pitched hiccups. But he doesn't care, you don't care, he's safe as long as you're here.

"When did you get here? I thought you were only going to touchdown tomorrow," he whispers in between sobs, his shaking, swollen hand coming up to your hair and entangling his fingers with the strands messily. You pull away slightly and pull Ishikawa down so that your chin rests on his shoulder and he can bury his face into your neck, your hand coming up to his sweaty hair to run your fingers through the corse, tangled strands as Ishikawa continues to cry in your arms. This position is so incredibly uncomfortable. After all, Ishikawa is insanely tall and the top of your head doesn't even really reach his neck, and you're sure Ishikawa's back is going to hurt a little later but he doesn't seem to mind at all at the position change, indulging in you as he shoves his face into the crook of your neck, hot breaths that tickle your skin, coming out in pants as he struggles to control his sobs.

"I wanted to surprise you," you say with a fond smile, the hand that was idle on his back coming up to send a wave to his teammates when your eyes meet, even sending one to his coach, who just smiles bitterly at you. His teammates send you rueful smiles and thumbs-ups of approval before they make their way back to the locker rooms, leaving you and Ishikawa to continue embracing at the exit of the court.

Ishikawa lets out a tearful laugh, saying, "Well, I'm surprised alright. I was just thinking about you when you called my name. I almost thought I was seeing things.".

You laugh but do not reply, allowing a comfortable silence to take over as Ishikawa lets all his emotions out in the form of hot, regretful tears. Your hand continues to soothe him with pats and strokes to his back and your hand remains in his hair. Ishikawa's large hands fist your shirt at your waist as his tears and sweat seep into your shirt. You don't mind. Of course, if this were anyone else you would. But this is Ishikawa Yuki, and you love him more than anything else in this world.

"You played so well," you whisper after a while of silence. You can feel Ishikawa wanting to pull away from you but you do not allow him, knowing full well that he wants to pull away to argue with you, to debunk your words with his incessant humility, so you do not allow him. You do not allow him to deny himself the praise he very much deserves because he's worked hard for this, no matter the outcome, he and his teammates have worked his ass off for this, and the least you can do is praise him.

"Yuki, you played very well. Don't try and deny it," you say with a firm voice, hand on his head keeping his chin to your shoulder. At this, he finally laughs and you loosen your grip, allowing him to pull out of your embrace just enough for him to see your face.

His cheeks are tear-stained and his eyes are beginning to puff up with all his crying, red beginning to bloom at the corner of his eyes, slowly taking over the white. His smile is nothing short of breathtaking, swollen eyes and red lips curled up brilliantly, smile lines and the corners of his eyes creasing sweetly. You can't help but grin back when you see his smile, nose souring with endearment.

"You know me so well," he comments, fingers coming up to tuck strands of your hair behind your ear, fingers trailing down your jaw to your chin, tilting your face up just a little bit more. His fingers guide your head just slightly forward before he is meeting you halfway in a sweet kiss, grinning immediately after your lips meet his.

Ishikawa's eyes trace over your every feature, observing, remembering, ingraining; tracing over the curve of your eyes, the slope of your nose, the perk of your lips, the peak of your eyebrows, and the line of your jaw, fingers ghosting over each feature along with his eyes, all the while maintaining the smile on his lips.

Then, he is giving your forehead a sweet kiss before pulling out of your embrace fully, turning around to pick up the things he had dropped when you came running into his arms. He brushes off his jacket and drapes it across your shoulders, holding open the jacket for you to slip your arms into the sleeves, to which you do, before he is hooking the zip and zipping it all the way up to your chin.

In his mind, he laughs at the way you are dwarfed by his jacket. Your hands can barely be seen, only the tips of your fingers peeking out from the sleeves, and the jacket, where it usually ends at his hip, ends almost at your knees. Unconsciously, he smiles and has to physically restrain himself from pinching your cheeks.

After he zips up his jacket, he bends down to pick up his towel, draping it over his shoulder before he is bending down once again to pick up his water bottle, having set them down to help you put on his jacket. Then, without a word but with the largest, goofiest grin, he takes your hand in his and leads you out of the court and to the locker rooms in a comfortable silence, fingers intertwined with yours.

For a second there, he almost forgets that they lost the game and are not able to proceed to the quarter-finals. For a second there, he almost completely forgets about his regrets and anger and frustration. And it's all because of you. And of course, he is eternally grateful to you. After all, what on earth would he do without you? He would still be crying his ass off, that's what, though he would never admit it out loud. And it is because of this reason— though he would do it without a reason at all— that he kisses you a little longer, hugs you a little tighter, loves you a little more.

[sunfish-studies]

Acceptance

✄・・・ Feathery Ink [Karasuno Manager Series]

➜ Pairing: Karasuno x Manager! Reader

➜ Warning: none

➜ Notes: This is a separate series from Crisp Leaves. Similar to Crisp Leaves, manager in this story will be portrayed as a girl. She will be tall, around 170.5 cm (along 5’7’’). This is just my appreciation towards tall girls, you guys are amazing!

Previous:  ‹ Worth › | Next:  ‹ Greed ›

↷ SUMMARY ↶

Acceptance; that’s what you’re searching for this whole time.

“OOOH!”

You stopped on your steps, immediately stiffened from the sudden loud voice–resulting someone bumping into you quite hard. Stumbling on your feet, the person immediately had their grip onto your arm–preventing you to kiss the ground face first.

“Sorry, you okay?” looking over your shoulder rather stiffly, eyes resting on the figure towering over your figure (still, the top of your head reached his cheek bone, but he’s tall alright). That and he had a rather… unique black, spiky hair.

“T-thank you,” you replied meekly.

“Sorry about him, he means no harm,” the taller boy apologized for his friend over there who… cried and kneeled on the ground? Is this having something to do with your existence!? Your height!? Anything!?

“There’re three girls now! Now they’ve got a pretty one, a cute one, and a model-like one!”

“Is he okay, though…?” you questioned, feeling the taller boy letting go of your hand and proceeded to pat your head lightly–which kind of reminds you of Daichi’s gesture.

“Yes, sadly.” He sighed in resignation. “Oh, by the way, I’m Kuroo Tetsurou. Third year, Nekoma’s captain, and this is the first time I see you around, along with that girl over there.”

The boy, Kuroo, pointed to Yachi’s figure who’s escorted by Kiyoko–you thought she somehow forgot about you, but you instantly erased the thought from your mind when noticing her not so subtle glare directed towards Kuroo.

“Ah, I just became an official manager yesterday,” you said, finding talking to Kuroo comfortable–he did kind of intimidating for his height, still standing taller over you. Maybe he’s almost 190 cm. However, he exudes this comforting aura much like Daichi as a captain. “My name is Otohaku [Name] and the girl you mentioned before is Yachi Hitoka, she’s my classmate.”

“That explains a lot.” Kuroo hummed. “And I have to say, this is the first time I’ve seen a girl as tall as you. At least Yamamoto is right about the model-like part.”

Instantly, you found your face hot as if it was engulfed with fire–stealing a laugh from him and earning another hair ruffle for you.

“I’m happy you’re getting along with our manager and all,” Daichi soon interrupted by pushing his way in between you and Kuroo while removing the captain’s hand from your head. He smiled, but his smile was far than nice–which made you swallowed thickly even though it’s not directed towards you. “But, not too close, would you?”

.

.

“They screamed powerhouses already,” you muttered, watching teams practicing. “Especially the dark blue ones.”

“You have good eyes,” Coach Ukai suddenly said, making you turn to face him. “That’s Fukurodani Academy.”

“Fukurodani…?” your eyes slowly widened in disbelief, trying process the extremely familiar name in your brain. “The Fukurodani Academy? One of the top players in Japan is in that school.”

“Just like Ushiwaka, he’s one of the top five aces heading to nationals.” Takeda-sensei continued.

“Bokuto Kotaro.” Somehow you couldn’t control your inner monologue and just plain blurted it, earning a surprised look from the older men and your girls. Also magically, the person you just mentioned immediately snapped his head to look over his shoulder and looking straight at you. He immediately grinned and you tried to reply back with a nervous smile and a wave.

“[Name]-chan, how did you know that!?” Yachi asked.

“Well, my big brother hasn’t shut up about him, so,”

“Your brother is a player, Otohaku?” Coach Ukai asked. “That’s why your last name sounded familiar for a reason.”

“Does Otohaku Hisahito sounded familiar to you?”

“I’ve seen him in the volley magazine,” Coach Ukai nodded in understanding. “He’s a candidate for one of the top middle blockers for around three years. He’s sure has an impact in plays.”

“To think [Name]-chan has connection with a very famous person,” Shimizu chuckled.

.

.

“Hey, hey, hey!” There’re so many unexpected things happened in one day and you wondered on how your heart could keep up with it. One of them would be this–being approached by one of the top five aces in the country. “You’re from Karasuno, right? The assistant coach!”

“Bokuto-san, don’t decide their position on your own. You’re being rude.”

“But she looks like one!”

“I’m sorry for his poor introduction skills.” The black-haired boy with calm atmosphere apologized–he has a really contrast personality with Bokuto. “My name is Akaashi Keiji, and this is Bokuto Kotaro-san. The captain of Fukurodani team.”

“Uhm, nice to meet you. I’m Karasuno’s manager, first year. Otohaku [Name].” you bowed slightly to show your respect.

“What!? You’re a manager!? And a first year!?” maybe it’s instinct or his outgoing personality much like Hinata, he didn’t hesitate to close the gap and stood only a few centimeters away from you. “You’re so tall, though! It’s awesome! Man, first years this time are really something!”

“Bokuto-san, you’re being too close.” Akaashi interrupted and slightly tugged on the captain’s shirt, preventing him from taking another step forward and ended up scaring you away.

“But, Akaashi look at her!” Bokuto didn’t even hesitate to point at you enthusiastically. “She’s only a little bit shorter than me!”

Getting away from Akaashi’s grip, he threw an arm around you and plainly pressed his cheek on top of your head–where your height stopped. It all happened too fast to the point your brain short-circuited. “See!”

Akaashi’s brow twitched. “Bokuto-san, you’re making her uncomfortable.”

“Excuse me,” Sugawara interrupted with a smile, however, the smile was far from friendly–dark auras looming behind him menacingly, which made Bokuto stiffened. Why? Because it was directed to him. “Could we have our dearest manager back, please?”

“Of course, we apologize if we took her time,” Akaashi said and pulled on Bokuto’s shirt to drag him away, essentially saving him from Sugawara’s wrath.

.

.

“Wuaah, it’s finally nice to meet you!” Ubugawa’s manager, Miyanoshita Eri, didn’t think twice to tackle you into a hug–sending you two sprawling onto the laid futon. You yelped in surprise as your back hit the fluffy material. “Sorry, you’re just so pretty!”

“Yeah, you have to know that Bokuto hasn’t shut up about you for even a second!” one of Fukurodani’s manager, Shirofuku Yukie, commented.

“Our boys are also getting rather distracted!” Shinzen’s manager, Otaki Mako, nodded and smiled. “Well, I wouldn’t judge them because I’m distracted too! Who’s not when they see a pretty lady not far away?”

“I guess [Name]-chan has her own charms between the boys,” Shimizu giggled, enjoying seeing you flustered.

“Riiight?” Suzumeda Kaori grinned widely. “Everyone’s more fired up than before.”

“By the way, how do you have this kind of height?” Eri questioned, loosening her arms around your shoulders. “Do you do intense sports or workout?”

“It’s genes, actually,” you answered, rubbing the back of your neck nervously. “My dad’s around 190 cm and my mom’s around 180 cm. Both of them are athletes.”

“That explains a lot,” Yukie hummed in understanding. “Just like Nekoma’s really tall first-year. He’s half Russian I guess.”

“H-half? That’s amazing,” Yachi stuttered.

“I could just imagine [Name]-chan being flaunted on in school!” Mako hugged her pillow close to her chest. “Ah, a goddess among mortals-“

“People… don’t like my height,” it’s rude for cutting her off, but you couldn’t help it. Not when it tasted extremely bitter upon your tongue. “The boys said I’m too tall and girls are supposed to be petite. The girls don’t want to get too close because I’m a giant, they’re intimidated. I… kind of wish I was smaller…”

“WHAT!? WHO SAID THAT!?” Yukie shrieked full of disgust. “How dare they judge you by appearance!?

“[Name]-chan, I need names! Names!” Kaori demanded, placing firm hands upon your shoulders and shook. “And I will strangle their neck tomorrow!”

“Please don’t murder anyone!” you raised your hands in front of your chest instinctively.

“Who do we have to kill tomorrow, girls?” Eri smiled darkly.

“Anyway, don’t listen to them, okay!?” Mako added. “You’re absolutely gorgeous!”

“Y-you have our backs, [Name]-chan!” Yachi followed. “W-we’ll fight them!”

“We and besides, if the boys somehow heard about this, there will be homicide.” Shimizu smirked.

Their support and full acceptance were alien to you.

“Thank you.”

Alien but you couldn’t help to feel warmth blooming in your chest–because this was something you’re looking for a long time.

[yuki-the-master-of-demons]

Sensitive Spots Part 2 (NSFW smut/angst) Mammon X Male MC

This is a continuation of another post: Part 1

Yuki is FTM (he/him). I just wanted to write smut but characters decided to go for angst

"What? Did I say something weird?" Yuki asks as all the demon brothers stare at him.

"Oh, Yuki." Asmo coos. "You really don't know what you do to us do you? Giving Mammon's wings special attention and then asking to do the same with everyone else."

"We weren't doing anything like that!" Mammon barks. "And even if we- If we were, what's the problem, huh?"

Yuki shrugs. "It's biology, and I like biology. I wanna learn about demon anatomy, and, while books can teach a lot, a diagram is nothing like touching the real thing."

"Well, that statement isn't wrong," Satan chuckles. "I suppose I should have leant you more descriptive books."

"That would be nice." Yuki comments. "Though, I'd still like to poke and prod y'all if y'all'd let me."

"You can poke and prod me all you want, Darling." Asmo giggles. "I can show you just how different demon anatomy can be."

"Me first." Belphie buts in.

Beel pauses chewing. "I wouldn't mind it either."

Satan chuckles. "I'd be happy to help educate you with a private lesson, Yuki."

"Oh no you don't!" Mammon growls. "The only one giving Yuki an anatomy lesson is me!"

Levi whines. "How can all of you say this stuff so casually?!"

Lucifer sighs and rubs the bridge of his nose. "Yuki, why is it that you always seem to rile them up?"

"I don't fucking know, but it's nice to know I can study y'alls' demon forms, at least most of you it seems like." Yuki smiles. "This is gonna be fun."

"I can't wait, Darling." Asmo leans in closer to Yuki, but, before he can respond, Mammon yoinks him out of his chair.

"I call dibs!" Mammon yells before running off with the human as an uproar comes from his brothers. The demon pulls Yuki into his room, slams the door, and shifts into his demon form as he faces the human.

"So that just happened?" Yuki looks at Mammon with confusion.

"Can you not be a nerd for 5 seconds?" Mammon grumbles with his cheeks flushed. "Do you have any idea what you've been saying?"

Yuki stares blankly at Mammon. "Uh..." Yuki shrugs.

"Well, if you really want to be a nerd and study demon anatomy, you'll be studying me first." Mammon pouts.

"Oh uh, okay. So how do you wanna do this?"

Mammon gulps and takes Yuki by the hand, guides the human to sit on the bed with him. "Ya can go ahead and touch me..."

Yuki hesitates. "Where am I allowed to touch you?"

"Anywhere. Just- Touch me."

Yuki looks over Mammon's torso before tracing the markings on the demon's chest. Mammon's breath hitches.

"They're a different texture." Yuki mutters. "Are these tattoos or...?"

"They're kinda like birth marks." Mammon answers. "I didn't pick 'em."

"They look good on you." Yuki begins to undo the buckles of Mammon's top. It doesn't take long for the leather to fall from Mammon's shoulders. Yuki scoots himself to sit behind the demon.

"Ya really like my wings, don't ya?" Mammon chuckles softly.

"Yeah," Yuki answers easily. "They're really cool." Yuki delicately pulls at Mammon's wing and sees how far it can spread. He feels the thing leathery like skin and follows the white edges to the demon's shoulder blades. Mammon bites his lip. Yuki's hands feel up along Mammon's back, feeling how the muscles connect to the demon's wings. Mammon swallows his moan.

"You said the tissue here was sensitive." Yuki comments. "What does it feel like?"

"Good." Is the only word Mammon can get out without letting a groan slip past his lips. Yuki rubs the area where the leathery wing joins Mammon's back. The demon's wing twitches. Yuki rubs it again, the wing twitches again. Mammon can feel his cock stirring in his pants. Yuki tries rubbing another spot, this time Mammon's wing flutters. Yuki does this again and again, finding different spots at the base of Mammon's wings, seeing how the wings move depending on where he touches. A soft curse from the demon catches Yuki's attention.

"You good?" Yuki asks, looking over Mammon's shoulder. The human notices how Mammon's chest is heaving, cheeks and shoulders are flushed. Yuki's eyes widen as he looks further down and sees Mammon's cock straining against his pants. "Oh..." Yuki mumbles. "Oooooh, so they're that kind of sensitive."

Mammon turns to the human and growls. "Now you realize it?"

"Huh."

"'Huh?' 'Huh?!' Is that all you're gonna say?" Mammon tries to calm his breathing down.

Yuki shrugs, eyes not leaving the tent in Mammon's pants. "It's interesting anatomy. Is this kind of reaction common with all demons or is it-"

"Are you seriously still acting fucking like a nerd right now?"

"Should I not be?" Yuki asks.

"Fucking-" Mammon grunts. "You really are something else."

Heat rises in his Yuki's cheeks. "Are demons different down there as well?"

"I- Yeah." Mammon gulps. "Do ya... wanna see?"

Yuki slides off the bed and sets himself between Mammon's legs. "May I?" He asks.

"Fuck yes." Mammon groans.

Yuki hesitates for a moment and then undoes Mammon's belt. He unconsciously licks his lips as he pulls the zipper down, leaning closer as he does so. When Mammon's cock springs free, Yuki's eyes stare in amazement.

"Wow." Yuki mutters. White markings line either side of Mammon's cock, and rows of ridges are stacked along his shaft. Yuki leans in closer, fingers wrapping around the base of the demon's cock. Without thinking, Yuki leans down and licks the tip.

"Fuck." Mammon moans.

"Sorry, I don't know what came over me." Yuki pulls away.

"Don't fucking apologize." Mammon reaches down and runs his hand through Yuki's hair. "Go ahead. Study my cock with your mouth."

Yuki leans in closer again, looking up at the demon to make sure what he's doing is okay, and takes the tip of Mammon's cock between his lips. He runs his tongue over the slit, savoring the taste of the demon. His hand slowly begins stroking the demon.

Mammon groans. "Fuck, Yuki."

Yuki takes more of Mammon into his mouth, mind going fuzzy as heat grows in his lower body. Yuki's other hand wanders down and begins rubbing circles against his clit through the fabric of his pants. Yuki strokes faster and begins to bob his head, taking in more and more of Mammon's cock each time his head descends. When he looks up, Mammon's blue eyes are staring back at him with flushed cheeks.

"You look so good with your lips wrapped around my cock." Mammon moans.

Those words both embarrasses and encourages Yuki. He tries to take Mammon deeper, trying to take the demon down his throat. He chokes and has to pull away, but he does back down, determined to take all he can. He closes his eyes as his head bobs faster, both of his hands working Mammon's cock.

"Y-Yuki-" Mammon pants. "I'm- Fuck, I'm close."

Yuki pulls Mammon's cock from his lips and strokes the demon's cock. He opens his mouth, tongue out and ready. The human looks up, watching as how Mammon's shoulders shudder and how the demon's bottom lip bleeds as he bites it.

A guttural groan escapes Mammon as he cums, his fingers digging into Yuki's scalp. Yuki keeps staring at the demon, taking note of every detail he can, as rope after rope of cum shoots into his mouth. Mammon stares back, watching as Yuki licks his lips clean and sucks the tip of Mammon's cock, making sure every drop is in his mouth. For a moment, the two stare at each other in silence. When Yuki swallows his cum, Mammon pulls the human onto his lap, and they kiss each other desperately.

"Mammon!" Yuki gasps when the demon bites the base of his neck. "Fuck- Your teeth."

"Too much?"

"No." Yuki grinds on Mammon's cock. "Do it again."

"Fucking asking to touch all my brothers." Mammon growls in Yuki's ear. "If you're gonna pick us all, I'm gonna be your first."

Yuki moans loudly as Mammon's teeth sink into shoulder, and the demon bucks his hips. "On you back." Yuki commands.

Mammon's pact pulls him down onto the mattress. He gazes up at Yuki with wide eyes.

"Was that okay?" Yuki asks as he rest his hands on the demon's chest.

"Y-yeah, ya just surprised me."

"Sorry." Yuki chuckles and lifts himself, pulling his leg free from his pants and underwear. His shirt is just long enough to cover himself. Mammon can't see it, but, when Yuki sits himself back on the demon's abdomen, Mammon can feel how wet Yuki is.

Mammon's hands trace up Yuki's thighs and pushing up the human's shirt. "Damn." He mutters.

Yuki flushes and pulls the shirt back down. "It's okay. You don't have to pretend to find me attractive."

Mammon's eyebrows furrow. "'Pretend?' What the hell are ya- Yuki, you're hot as fuck!"

"I'm really not." Yuki shrugs. "I accidentally got you horny, now you need a release, and I'm a warm body close by. It's okay, I'm mediocre. I get it. You don't have to lie."

"I ain't lying!" Mammon grumbles and flips Yuki over, laying the human face up while he cages Yuki in with his arms. "What the fuck are you talking about? Yuki, you fucking drive me wild! You drive so many demons nuts with how hot you are!"

Yuki stares blankly at Mammon for a beat and then laughs. The human yelps suddenly when Mammon flips Yuki on his back. "Mammon?" Yuki gasps.

"You're fucking sexy." Mammon growls. "If you don't believe me, I'll prove it to you." The demon licks up Yuki's neck, making the human gasp. Mammon's hands sneak under Yuki's shirt, feeling up the human's torso.

"Ma-Mammon-" Yuki moans. "You don't have to-"

"I want to." Mammon pulls Yuki's shirt over the human's head. "I want you."

Yuki looks back silently before nodding. "Okay, just- If you want to stop at any time, I won't be mad."

"Ya don't need to worry about that." Mammon mutters as he trails kisses down Yuki's torso. "Spread your legs for me."

Yuki gulps and does what he's told, opening his legs and revealing his hard clit and wet folds. Mammon rests his hands on the human's thighs and licks his lips. He leans in closer and blows on Yuki's sensitive bud. Yuki gasps, hips jumping forward at the sensation.

"Mammon, please-" Yuki mewls.

"Don't worry. I got you." Mammon says before running his tongue across Yuki's hole. The human's hands shoot to Mammon's hair, one of them gripping one of the demon's horn. Mammon goes deeper, pushing his tongue into Yuki and savoring the human's taste.

"Fuck- Mammon, I- ." Yuki moans, back arching. Mammon shifts his his focus, tongue twisting around Yuki's clit, as two of his fingers slowly enter the human's hole. Yuki's legs encase Mammon's head, pulling him in even more.

"M-Mammon, yes- Mammon." Yuki squirms in the demon's grasp as he repeats Mammon's name again and again. Mammon's fingers pump into Yuki, making the human's legs shake, as the demon sucks and nibbles on Yuki's clit. With a final curse and whimper of Mammon's name, Yuki cums. Mammon feels Yuki's walls squeeze his soaked fingers, and the human's clit pulsing on his tongue.

Mammon pulls away and licks his lips as he looks over Yuki's body. Yuki's chest is heaving, and his body still twitches as he comes down from his high. Yuki's arms have pushed his glasses up as he covers his face. "Yuki," Mammon pulls himself up and kisses Yuki's chest. "Lemme see that handsome face of yours."

"I'm sorry." Yuki chokes out, not moving his arms.

"What the hell are you apologizing about?"

"I just- This is-" Yuki sniffles. "What we just did- Why? How could you- Why me?"

"Ah fuck, are ya crying?" Mammon panics. "Did I hurt you? Did I-"

"No! No, I just-" Yuki wipes his eyes. "It feels so impossible. Mammon, you're- I know I'm not ugly, and that I can be cute sometimes, but I know I'm not sexy. You said that's not true, but you're- You're fucking gorgeous Mammon. You have it all, the looks, the voice, the confidence, the experience, but me- I just- I don't understand how you would ever do something like this with me. I'm just the mediocre nerd who's lucky enough to not be repulsive on a good day."

"What the hell, Yuki? Is that how you see yourself?" Mammon pulls the human in for a hug.

"I mean, how else can I see myself." Yuki murmurs. "Look at me."

"I am, and you're fucking sexy."

"I don't understand how you can say that."

"Because you are!" Flushed, Mammon leans in and kisses Yuki with agrowl. "You don't know how often you drive me wild."

Yuki is silent for a moment before speaking. "I don't understand, but... I know you aren't lying to me. I just- You're you, Mammon, a model with tons of fans who flirt with you, while the only people who try and get my attention want to copy my assignments or ask to cheat off of me during exams. It's obvious what people think of me, so how- Why do you, of all people, think I'm sexy?"

"Yuki, have you seen your face? Have you seen your body? Do you know how often you leave me all hot and bothered? I-" Mammon's face turns a darker pink and takes Yuki's hand, guiding it to hard cock. "Your voice, the way you called my name. The way you moved and moaned for me, I'm hard again because of how fucking sexy you are."

Yuki kisses him.

[lilyginnyblackv2]

Furuba The Final - Episode 3 - Thought Post - SPOILERS!

Okay, so not only did I take a nice, long hot shower, I also watched the dub and my feelings on this episode have changed. I really think that the dub script helped me appreciate this episode more. The sub script wasn’t able to really capture the humorous moments and some of the translations were a little stilted and disconnected, so it messed with the flow of the episode. That combined with the fact that during my second time through I was more prepared and aware of how the events were going to unfold, so I could feel the connections better. Watching dub allows for me to focus more on the visual imagery as well, which really helps with this episode too.

First, let's talk about the Ayame x Mine, Hatori x Mayu, and Yuki x Machi scene. In one of the omake (which is likely never going to get adapted) the women in Ayame's shop talk about how Ayame always helps Mine into her shoes when she goes out. The women find it weird, but Yuki thinks about how he would probably do that too. In the moment with Ayame and Mine, we see how Mine already knows about the secret and how, even though her and Ayame are very equal in how they work together, is still in a sub-servient role to Ayame in strictly workplace kinda way (he is her boss). With Yuki we see something similar, Machi is the secretary to Yuki's president status within the Student Council and he is thinking about how he wants her to know about the Curse. He wants her to be on level footing with him when it comes to that.

So with Yuki and Machi and Ayame and Mine, we see the two brothers approaching the person they care about (or are coming to care about) in a similar way. Their relationships are also highlighting the idea of letting people in. Ayame and Mine's scene, especially, talks about happiness. Mine wants to stay with Ayame because he makes her happy and that's all there is to it. These two ship moments then contrast with Akito's scene of staying held up in her room and her statements of Shigure being cold hearted. 

With Hatori we have a contrast with him and Ayame. Ayame connected with Mine, a total outsider just like Machi. Both Machi and Mine are completely disconnected from anything Sohma related. However, Hatori, like both Shigure, Kyo, and Momiji, is connecting with someone who *is* connected to all of the Sohma drama and messiness. Shigure, of course, to Akito who is also cursed and at the center of the Sohma family, and Kyo and Momiji to Tohru who is an outsider like Mayuko, and also entangled with the Sohma's in some way (Mayu through dating Shigure and Kana, Tohru through, well, this entire series lol). Hatori and Mayu's scene involves talking about travel, taking a trip, which ties into Momiji's plotline of setting out on a new journey.

We also see a parallel in Ayame's, Hatori's, and Shigure's movements with that of Yuki's, Kyo's, and Momiji's. Ayame and Yuki have both either told or want to tell the people precious to them about the Curse (aka, they reach out to them), Hatori and Kyo are both staying silent and not really allowing themselves to further their bonds (we see this in the scene between Kyo and Momiji on the rooftop, while with Hatori we see him saying no to going on a trip), and both Momiji and Shigure want to move forward and both in connection with Akito. Shigure wants Akito to join him, while Momiji wants to leave Akito behind.

Now, how Hiro and Kisa fit in is the freedom of their relationship, I feel. A lot of people see Hiro and Kisa as kinda mini Kyo and Tohru in their character personalities and general overall relationship dynamics. But Hiro and Kisa have a certain level of freedom that Kyo and Tohru just don't. And we can see that in this episode when we Hiro and Kisa are just there at Shigure's place. Even Haru and Rin don't necessarily have that same level of freedom, because Rin is still recovering. But this theme of freedom then, of course, connects to Momiji and his Curse breaking.

Everything about those moments and scenes were excellent. Great voice acting for both the sub and dub and I'm always so, so proud of Momiji. It's awful and painful to think about, but Momiji has lived with loneliness. Momiji had a bond that is often viewed in society as unbreakable (that between a mother and her child) break on him, and he survived it. He was able to live and grow, so I think a part of Momiji knows that he can do that again after his Curse broke. Akito wasn't able to move beyond the breaking of a bond with a parent like Momiji was, and lost to the loneliness, which is why we see her lashing out here - as Momiji even notes. 

Now, another element that we see running through this episode are parent-child bonds. This is an overall theme for Fruits Basket in general, of course, but this episode has a lot of actual talk and discussion about that:

Shigure talking about his bond with his parents (or his apathy towards having one to begin with)

Shigure talking about not wanting to be a father figure for Akito like both Hatori and Kureno kinda are.

Momiji with his mother at the end of the episode.

Akito's dream about what her father, Akira, told her when she was younger.

The symbolism and imagery of Momiji and Akito when they talk about the Curse breaking.

In the scene at night, they have Momiji looking down at Akito from above and she looks at him through her her fingers - this gives the imagery of a parent/adult and a child. The way Momiji talks to Akito the next day also gives off this parent/adult and child energy. Momiji, like Haru, has now seen Akito clearly.

So now we have these threads of parent-child bonds, zodiac members either stagnating or trying to move forward, the idea of freedom, and the mention of Rin and her recovery. All of these thread lines will flow well into next week's episode.

Some other additional thoughts I have about this episode:

I always really love the scene of Kisa saying hello to Kyo (the dub script handled this really well - greetings don’t hold the same level of significance as they do in Japanese culture - students properly greeting their fellow classmates and teachers is like drilled into them in junior high school especially). Since they are both cats, there is that element to the interaction, but it is also nice to see Kisa just speaking up when she wants to and seeing the kindness of Kyo. Her talk with Hiro after also shows how even the young kids are picking up on Kyo's feelings for Tohru.

Tohru's face here. It was so beautiful and sad at the same time.

Also, Laura Bailey's delivery of "Kyo" in that hallway scene was so precious! T0T

Shigure's statement about the Curse. Him feeling so unaffected by the Curse is one of the reasons why I wish he hadn't ended up with Akito, because for him that isn't really moving forward. It's just staying the same. I could probably talk more about that, but it would go off into another tangent and this post is long enough already as it is! Though, one last thought, I do wonder if the dub will have Momiji drop the accent from now on, also that scene with Momiji and his mom gets me every time! TT0TT

[papers4me]

Fruits Basket Manga Review , ch 109

-The Tragedy of a an episodic format attempting to connect narrative in a series: (Tohru’s Background or Kyo’s Focus?)

One of my issues with se03, ep6 (other than it being 3 chapters combined horribly with new material added for shock value) is that it was weakly undecided who would be the focus? who would the narrative follow?: Is it tohru’s own pov abt herself? is it the gramps giving boring exposition abt tohru over weak still images of flashbacks or is kyo thinking abt tohru’s pain?

The truth is, it was all the above in the manga, but the manga gave each a chapter focus so that the chapter is well-directed with focused narrative. The anime weakly jumbled the 3 chapters together as they always do. You mix chapters & tada~ you got an ep, you only need a broad weak theme that connects the dots! here: it is tohru! & that’s it. As long as the 3 chapters discuss tohru in any form & manner, nothing will seem off if we put them next to each other in a 20 minute ep! right? riiiiiight ????

.. this was never a correct way. Just like a chapter needed a narrative direction, the ep is the same!!

ch 107: The beginning of tohru’s pov on her realization abt loving kyo.

ch108: tohru’s full pov of shock upon reaching the conclusion that she loves him & the beginning of her mom’s issues & abandonment.

ch109: Kyo’s pov abt tohru’s pain & his involvement, guil & the sheet hug.

ch110: (completely cut from the anime!!!!!!!!!!!!!) Kyoru’s part: the aftermath of kyo & tohru crossing the line of being in the most vulnerable & intimate, building towards a more crushing impact of the climax. The stronger & more painful their love is, the more it will hurt. Also a yuchi buildup?!!!!

-so, you see each chapter has a direction i& a narrative it follows independently that is weaved together to make a connected tissue of the overall plot. The anime puts the 3 chapters next to each other & we are lost on who to follow? kyo or tohru or the gramps. That’s why it feels tohru is weak & her two chapters worth of pov is stolen from her cuz it cut or shortened to include the grandpa, kyo, isuzu, shigure & let’s not forget (kazuma, yuki & haru) at the beginning, the dramatic shock value addition & OP & ED. All these take valuable screen time. The ep shocks us by moving from tohru to kyo. One minute she’s crying with him on the streets, next he’s at the grave & she’s visiting isuzu.

Kyo said he isn't going to the grave in the ep, upon seeing him actually going, I just assumed he wanted to avoid, hana, cuz I’m so invested in his story that I remember sth happened in se1, ep 14.. ages ago, The anime didn’t even allow kyo to inner talk abt avoiding hana... In their weird mind, kyo only inner talks in dramatic situations..See the difference!

Not only the writer (a) reminds us why kyo avoided the grave visit, she also (b) seized the opportunity to shine lifht onto an issue that will be the center of kyo’s struggles: Running away!

The anime introduce this in kyo’s pov only when kyo confronts tohru. Only when it was needed & couldnt be avoided. This is sth that will be the core of all the climax & the aftermath as well! Kyo running away.. How bad are you if you avoid inserting one line only that can be said in few seconds & establish great deal & foreshadow plenty!!!!!!!!!! I can’t for the life of my understand why short lines are cut from kyo when in the anime they have him be standing silent in the graveyard. Like slap the line above the silent scene!!!!! But doing so means the anime team understands tohru & kyo’s issues. They don’t. Not the slightest.

-Ep 6 signals the beginning of the anime moving from episodic format of se1, 2 & 5 eps of se3 & entering a connect plot. The anime doesn’t know how to do that & screwed tohru in the process. The protagonist’s main issues are one ep worth only. The antagonist main issues are one ep only (ep7).  Ep 6, was treated as a stand alone ep (minus the inserted shock scene to create a lingering issue that needs a following ep to explain. TOLD YOU they don’t know how to make a series!). Thus the following ep 7 is akito’s focus. Everything that was established in ep 6 was pit on hold until akito reaches the craziest mindset for the climax. See why ep 6 was so bad? it is Should NOT be a stand alone ep.

-The plot connects kyoru emotional & physically: (Kyo’s chapter with a tohru’s focus:

Unlike the anime, the chapter knows what it’s presenting 7 where it’s going. Kyo’s issues. This ch focuses on him uncovering parts of his past as it connects with tohru’s. Unlike the anime, we know why kyo's connection to kyoko’s past. The anime is hiding this for the climax, no problem, it can still work both ways. However, hiding kyoko /kyo connection doesn't necessarily mean hiding kyoko/tohru connection. But the anime is cutting this to milk it in an ova or series next year~ no problem,  it can still work if you handle this ep’s  flashback better. for all the artistic creativity they inserted in the added scene, they failed miserably in tohru’s flashback portion. how?

By choosing a frontal pov shot in tohru’s grandpa flashback as if the audience are the ones who abandoned tohru or opening the door to find her alone. it does NOT work at all. why? the audience are encouraged to be like tohru since ep 1 as tohru is the mother, angel, fixer & endearing hopeful girl. The audience will NEVER abandon tohru, that’s why tohru’s story felt disconnected & weak in the anime. Not knowing what kyoko did, who would abandon such child?! differently not us. so why use the frontal pov shot? -_-’

-tohru confesses her pain to kyo without being ushered by isuzu, without any outside factor. She simply visited the grave & came home. hiding her pain. once again. like she always do. One question by kyo, prompts her to “ complain a little” call back to se1, ep5 as he advised. we see tohru get out of her shell little by little. NOT SCREAM OR SLAP. She opened up. why? cuz the story is abt “ opening the lid” not abt “ snatching the lid”. No need for shocks. Yuki opened his lide slowly, tohru even slower, kyo is resisting opening his altho it is cracking in this chapter. When your story focuses on character buildup it pays!

-I’ll give the anime credit when it due. The hug scene is so good both in manga & anime. but so awesome in animation, colors, music & voice acting. It’s breathtaking & painful. The most beautiful kyoru scene in the whole anime.

-It represents their mutual vulnerability, understanding, pain & determination to love the other but not also let go. kyo has made his mind to be locked in order not to hurt tohru & tohru has made her mind that she can’t let go of her mom.

You see, the scene’s meaning hits different between manga & anime; In the anime: tohru has already challenged the sohmas & screamed to be with kyo, while kyo is still decided to leave her. In the manga: they’re both at the same spot (undecided). I like both interpretations but I’ll choose the manga’s version. Simply cuz it means tohru is still uncovering her issues which means more focus on her, & more explanation of why cant tohru love her mom & kyo at the same time.

-This expression on tohru’s face is a the complete opposite of the shock value expression in ep 6! T_T. I do’nt even hate the shocked scene addition itself that much, I just think (a) this is NOT its time! Tohru deserved better spotlight! (b) kyo didn’t friggen forget! ah! THIS I HATE! (c) the whole shocked scene was so wasted in ep 7. tohru return to her stupid dumb lalala~ land, cooking & forgetting kyo. what growth? what determination & screams to isuzu? what enduring kagura’s slaps? nope! just happy & cooking, lalala~ no one was freaking over her mom’s picture~ lalala~ & kyo just slept it over~ shhhh... its okay. he’ll forget again... see? totally wasted!

The anime knows nothing abt connected narrative! augh!

Side Notes:

We see kyo asking the gramps why he’s offering him info abt tohru which is so logical! XD. I love it.

I’ve read ch 110 & wanted to insert the kyoru scene in ch 110 here, & put yuchi alone in a different post, then I realized I’ll need to talk abt it again once I analyze yuki’s own expressions! XD. so, I’ll put all ch 110 together in one post. It kinda half written by now, so I’ll publish it very soon in two days time. I didn’t read ch 111 yet tho.

I hope ch 110 is the last I feel this much disappointments in furuba’s anime & by ch 11, it hopefully be be minor changes altho I doubt that cuz the manga needed to dwell into tohru’s mindset & the anime kinda stopped after ep 6. so, yup! more big changes coming!

The sheet hug is so brilliant in theory & application! so romantic & so endearing! love it so much! The anime did it so well, too!

I love kyo’s narration & pov cuz it’s so refreshing change from the anime where he rarely does!

I really wish they kept the kyoko abandoning tohru part in the anime... sigh~ it has nothing much to affect her story with katsuya. so it won’t ruin the spin off/ ova or whatever it’s called. 

I love the light focus on tohru in this chapter & how organic & natural it is opposed to how forced the plot seems in the anime....

[jesswritesthat]

Kyōtani Kentarō: Exchanges

Fandom: Haikyuu!! — [ Masterlist ]

Summary: Fluff ofc

• Seijoh know there’s something between Mad Dog and yourself, but that doesn’t make his unique behaviour toward you any less shocking.

Warnings: Mature language

A/N: Can be read as a stand alone or a follow up to Tame if you wanna.

>>>>——————————>

In preparation for the following year, practices between both the girls and boys Volleyball Clubs were more frequent which allowed the current Captains to collaborate ideas and strategy for the second years who'd soon be taking their places. Safe to say the third years weren't overly involved having finished their final season but remained present to issue advice and techniques to underclassmen making their mark.

It was suspected that Oikawa would recommend Yahaba for the Captains role - you'd agree, considering he's the only one Mad Dog really listens to besides Iwaizumi (he is improving you'd noted). During that time, it had become even clearer to the Volleyball players of Seijoh that there was definitely an unyielding connection between the two of you - the boys learning that a little more harshly during one particular session.

Kyōtani was marginally later than usual since the Coach issued instruction regarding his attitude, so the teams were already training by the time he arrived. The Spiker went to swap the lighter material of his black armhole vest for his #16 Jersey, the lower half already sporting the VBC uniform due to the heat and convenience - however, any intention was overshadowed the second he'd heard your cry.

It was a whine from across the gymnasium, a pained one if he'd deciphered it correctly - within a moment he was towering above you, softened glare silently questioning your seated stature.

Your fingers cautiously skimmed over the bruising mark on your left thigh, a fresh one to his knowledge and before he could tease or voice concern - he hadn't decided yet - Kindaichi desperately interrupted.

"(L/n)-senpai I'm so sorry! I was practicing my serves and my aim was - I didn't mean to hit you, please forgive me -" It was sheer rambling now, the Middle Blocker guiltily apologetic as he attempted to make amends.

Though before he could kneel down to assess the damage, Kyōtani had jumped in front of you rather protectively like a wolf guarding a wounded member of its pack, he issued a dangerous warning look to the spiky ravenette, who understandably, looked to the older members of the team for assistance.

Kentarō was about to murder him - that is until you'd placed a gentle hand on his exposed shoulder, the Spiker snapping to you with his fiery gaze dwindling to concerned frustration once taking in your unbalanced stance.

Instinctively his arm wrapped around your waist for stability, the force of it narrowing the distance between you somewhat so you could lean on him if necessary and you couldn’t help but think the underlying softness of his actions greatly contrasted his vicious demeanour and sharp tongue.

"Fucking watch it First Year, I'll-"

"’Tani, help me to the bench please? I should be fine in a minute or two, don't worry Kindaichi."

The two teams looked on in pure horror as, if you were going to ask anyone for help, it'd be based on their subliminal tiered list of the most compassionate at the top - regarding Seijoh, your first choice should've been Oikawa or Iwaizumi, Kyōtani ranking at the very bottom of the list (if he was even on there at all). So the fact you'd casually requested assistance from the most aggressive soul in the gym meant you were crazy, the only thing crazier being that he actually did it.

Oikawa went to check on your well-being once Kyōtani had left you on the bench, only to be intercepted by your own Captain - Yuki wearing a suspicious but hopeful expression as they noticed Mad Dog return with furrowed brows and ice pack in his possession.

Of course, you reached out for it - only yelping when Kentarō slapped your hand away with a grunt and you couldn't resist backchatting him. The Captains were prepared to intervene now, before tripping over their own disbelief and attempting to silence one another's adoration as Mad Dog crouched before you.

Though such a considerate action was something you'd experienced on rare occasions, seeing Kyōtani exhibit such decent behaviours sent shockwaves through the entirety of Seijoh.

"Keep this in here to prevent any swelling, Princess." His barking orders coincided with his movements, the blonde lazily resting his free forearm over your right knee to alleviate pressure in his stance whilst the other hesitantly held the ice pack to your left thigh.

"That's the only reason you did this isn't it? So you could relevantly apply that dumb nickname." You didn't receive a verbal answer for your accusation, instead a small smirk and flash of mischief in his eyes was confirmation enough once he'd fluently risen to stand again.

It only took a minute for the mark to disperse, the injury not at all serious much like you'd foretold so you were back to your feet and standing beside an unbothered Kyōtani within moments.

"Hold this." There wasn't an opportunity to rebuke his claim, barely having a second to block the soft material aimed at your body and once identifying the top, your widened gaze graced that of a shirtless Spiker.

You knew he was toned, Oikawa had even acknowledged the incredible muscle prowess of his back and abdominals but he severely understated it. The lad was sculpted like a Greek statue, the team practically paling in comparison and you'd never be able to compare them the same way again after seeing the definition his torso displayed.

Heat flooded your cheeks and god you needed a wall to hold yourself with the sheer breathlessness he’d left you with, the blonde only noticing once drawing his jersey from his bag and nonchalantly placing the back of his hand to your forehead with furrowed brows.

"That ball knock you outta your senses (Y/n)?" His utter obliviousness to the ordeal only made your reaction worse, flustering you the point of no return whilst you waved his hand away.

"Huh? Wha-I no! You just, you didn't e- there's changing rooms ya know!"

"And?"

"Use them!"

"It's just a vest." He gestured to the item hung on your fingers with a dismissive tone, now fully dressed in the Club uniform and ready to play.

"Okay, okay, so if I changed my top right now you'd be cool with it?"

"...Yeah?" He tilted his head incredulously with detectable confusion, still not seeing the issue with your flustered behaviour and crossed his arms defensively.

With a determined pout (and thanking the heavens you opted for a camisole underneath), you did just that, removing your jersey and tossing it at your friend before precariously scanning for a replacement - smirking once landing on the previously put aside vest rather than your own T-shirt.

In a swift movement, you donned Kyōtanis’ airy clothing with a proud smile and hands on your hips in accomplishment - the latter scoffing with a prominent flush crawling across his skin whilst he directed his sharp gaze to the side.

"It's just a vest Kentarō~"

With your smug finalisation at proving your point, you headed back onto the courts with your aggressive friend briskly skidding in front of your path.

"Are - aren't you gonna change back dumbass?" Internally cursing himself for stammering, he once more found his fierce expression faltering at the sight of you.

"Nah, in all seriousness, this vest is much better for the heat. If you don't mind, could I keep it on, I'll wash it afterwards?"

Meanwhile the Team anxiously watched the intense staring competition, expecting Kyōtanis signature deadly glare to send you pleading into submission - yet, instead you cheerfully smiled, ending the standoff with a wink as you strolled past him.

Aobajohsai was left dumbfounded once again, you'd grown more confident in your time around him and Kentarōs’ inflamed irises followed your retreating figure, searing lasers into your back for an extra few seconds before rolling his eyes with a scoff.

“Idiot.”

Upon reaching the Court the guys had possessed, he noted the odd animosity in the atmosphere and multiple sets of surprised eyes lingering on the scene which only sparked up his standoffish attitude once again.

"What?!" Mad Dog savagely barked, glaring at the onlookers who mostly diverted their gazes with a muttering of 'nothing' - of course the Great King wouldn't allow such a favourable opportunity to slide.

"We're just surprised that you have a heart Mad Dog-chan~"

"Tch, at least I have someone to show it to." He snarkily bit back at his Captain as he ducked under the net, the remark sending the Third Years into howling hysterics and Oikawa childishly pouting over his renowned single status.

You overheard the mocking ‘Ooooh’s’ of someone presumably receiving a savage burn from the boys court but essentially shook your head with a snigger, Yuki left smirking at your ongoing obliviousness.

Obliviousness that seemed mutual at this point - or, Mad Dog-chan stubbornly refused to admit his growing feelings to himself, let alone you.

<——————————<<<<

[ Masterlist ]

[danitheweeb]

Mistake ~ 3

Summary : Kuroo's had some time to think about what had happened at the party, stewing over who he truly wants. But what about you, the one in pain.

warnings: Angst!!!! So much angst that it hurts author-chan, reader become depressed.

After spending the entire night crying. you woke up with red puffy eyes, you know everyone would be able to tell if you went to school today. Not that you really felt like going to school today, deciding that you just want to stay home today which works in your favour for avoiding Kuroo. You text Yaku telling him about your plans to stay home telling the short boy that your not feeling very well and think it's best that you stay home. This isn't completely wrong, you felt lost and unsure on what you should feel.

The school day went pretty quickly for Kuroo, truth be told he was hoping to at least see you at school today but nothing, he just thought that you had gotten really good at avoiding him, but when he didn't see you at practice it confused him. You were the manager so why weren't you here? did you quit because you never wanted to see him again, worry began to flood through his veins, thinking that your not at school because of him, which was correct. He was off the entire practice, veins filled with worry which made him get hurt and miss some blocks. Leading him to be scolded by mumma Yaku.

While practice was going on you were laying in bed, where you had been all day. Your mother checked in on you before going back to work at the hospital. You had gotten a few messages from your friends and the team but you didn't have the energy to answer them, constantly feeling tired but not being able to sleep. You recall spending the whole day trying to sleep but it never came. hours have passed since practice was meant to end, and you suddenly hear a knock on the door. When you open it you are faced with a short boy with strawberry blonde hair. Yaku. You let him in wondering why he's at your house, "So what's wrong?" he asks, breaking the silence between the two of you, and all you can muster up is a shrug of your shoulders, Yaku sighs, sitting on the couch patting the spot next to him, "I know something is wrong so talk to me, tell me everything because I know something happened, with Kuroo too." He looks at your worriedly, you hate making your friends worry.

Sending a quick text to your mother, telling her that Yaku will be staying over tonight which you guessed considering he has the bag he always has when he's spending the night over at your place. You consider Yaku to be your best friend, the only one on the team other than Kuroo that you connected with. You sit down on the couch and start "Well, remember the party that happened well....." you start from the very beginning, well as far as this situation of yours goes. You swear you spent most of the night talking, tears were shed on your behalf, but Yaku listened the entire night, hugging you when you needed it. The both of you eventually fell asleep on the couch, but at least you felt. little relieved.

At school the next day Yaku barely wanted to leave your side, making sure that you were ok after every class and hanging with you away from the team during lunch. This caused Kuroo to grow even more anxious, he started to believe that there was something doing on between you and Yaku, jealously bubbling inside of him once again, no that he could do anything about it and boy did he know this. You weren't his, because he said that you were a mistake, that what you two did was a mistake. He is now slowly realising that what he has done was a mistake. When he turned to look at Yuki, he realised he felt nothing, he finally realised that he didn't want her, he wanted you.

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I honestly feel this one was so much better than p2 and I'm considering making this the second chapter instead. I will make the chapters longer in the next few ones. Also since it was requested I will be doing a tag list for my small series posts like this one, And further ones. Thanks so much for the support you guys have a great day

taglist: @cuddlesslut @random-fandom-girl-24 (the only one for now, but send me messages if you want to be added :D)

[thefinalcinderella]

Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru Chapter 9 - To Beyond (Part 3)

Full list of translations here

Previous | Next

For Jouta, his younger twin brother Jouji was truly the other half of his soul.

Jouta and Jouji's parents never mixed up their sons. When the twins were younger, they would often play pranks on the adults by pretending that Jouta was Jouji and Jouji was Jouta. But their parents were the only ones who never mistook one for the other.

That’s strange, Jouta would think. Sometimes when he looked in the mirror, even he couldn’t tell if he was Jouta or Jouji.

The twins’ parents never compared their sons. There was no comparison to make, they were completely different people. They loved them as their equally treasured children.

That was a natural attitude for parents, but Jouta learned as he was growing up that some parents couldn’t maintain that natural attitude; some parents compared their children and thought of them as their own property. I’m glad our parents aren’t like that, Jouta thought.

Even though their faces were identical, their souls were different.

Jouta was able to easily and naturally accept this fact because of the way their parents treated them; Jouta naturally loved his twin brother as the person closest to him, and as a person who was completely different from himself.

Jouta and Jouji were always together. They slept in the same room, went to the same school, and played soccer together. They made up as many times as they fought and played with their mutual friends.

Jouta knew almost everything about Jouji—he knew his favorite foods, he knew that he had a small mole on his right ankle, and he knew who had been his first kiss and when. But he also knew that Jouji had a very different personality from him.

Jouta and Jouji had many friends. The people around them thought of them as cheerful and fun. This was quite true, and there was nothing to complain about being thought of like that, but when it came to himself, he felt that that wasn’t the right expression.

Jouji is more innocent than me.

He really makes the atmosphere more relaxed just by being there. Whenever Jouji laughs or gets angry, it’s an uncalculated and honest outpouring of emotion.

Jouta wasn’t so simple and naïve—he sometimes acted in a calculated way, thinking, “If I do this, people will like me.” If anything, people who were as carefree as Jouji were in the minority. That was why Jouta loved his younger brother all the more.

I don’t think Jouji is aware of it yet, though, Jouta thought. It’s time to go down separate paths. We’ve always been together, we’ve always done the same things, but we can’t stay like this forever.

He headed south from the Hamasuka intersection and entered Shonan Kaigan Road. The wind was blowing from the front as they ran along the coastal road.

Jouta and Jouji were almost the same in scholastic and athletic ability; that was why they had gone to the same high school and were both regulars on the soccer team.

However, Jouji was the one who was more suited to running.

Right now, their times weren’t that different. But Jouta, who knew Jouji better than anyone, had noticed.

This is probably as far as I go, but Jouji is going to get faster. He can go places I can’t even see. He’s got that talent in him, and he seems to have a passion for running.

Jouji was loved by many, and he loved everyone equally. Jouji’s enthusiasm and obsession with running had come as a surprise to Jouta.

He had thought he would get bored soon, but Jouji devoted himself to running day after day.

It seemed like even Kiyose hadn't noticed, but Jouji sometimes snuck out late to train on his own; he quietly slipped out of his futon so as to not wake Jouta, and came back after an hour’s run outside.

When it was just the two of them in their room, Jouji would constantly talk about Kakeru. Kakeru’s running was amazing today. I wonder how I can run like that. In order to get even a little closer to Kakeru, he would pose on the tatami and say, “Nii-chan, check my form.” There was a sparkle in Jouji’s eyes in those times.

Jouta and Jouji often fought with Kakeru, partly due to the familiarity and ease of being in the same school year. From Jouta’s point of view, Kakeru seemed unbalanced because of his purity. This sometimes irritated him and he would end up lashing out at him.

But Jouji looked up to Kakeru; he was embarrassed at himself for acknowledging Kakeru, so he was trying to rebel against it.

You’ve grown up, Jouji. Jouta thought desolately—but also happily. For the younger twin brother, the one who had been his biggest rival until now was Jouta. They had always been each other’s goals and had influenced each other through their lives. But now Jouji had finally found a rival and goal named Kakeru.

If you hadn’t run, you never would have known. We can still be together, still see the same things.

But this is as far as we go, Jouji.

As if dragged along by Jouji’s enthusiasm, Jouta also began running. He and the other residents of Chikusei-sou had reached the point where they could run in the Hakone Ekiden. And Jouji would still aim further. He would go beyond, where Jouta couldn’t catch up to him no matter what.

It doesn’t matter, Jouta thought. It doesn’t change the fact that Jouji is my precious little brother. I have to welcome my little brother becoming independent. From now on, all I can do is run with all I've got and give a farewell gift to Jouji as he takes his time to reach newer heights.

I hope that one day Jouji will win. No matter how many years it takes, I hope he will become as fast and strong as Kakeru, if not more so than him, and a runner that no one can beat. Jouta still didn’t know what he would be doing then. But he knew that he would still be cheering for his brother with all his heart, just as he was now.

As he ran, his view was blocked by the barrier of trees planted to prevent the movement of the sand, and he couldn’t see the sea. Only the scent of the tide was carried by the wind over the traffic restricted road.

They say it’s plain, Jouta thought, but it’s really tough, this course.

The third leg, from Totsuka to Hiratsuka, was often thought of as a connecting leg. They left Route 1 at Higashimatano and headed south. After passing near Fujisawa Station at the eight-kilometer mark, the road became a plain town road, and after turning right at the Hamasuka intersection and entering Route 134—commonly known as the Shonan Kaigan Road—the monotonous scenery continued. There were not many houses and the road was far from the station, so even the cheering crowds along the road were sometimes interrupted here.

For Jouta, who was motivated just when expectations were placed on him, he was not good at running with no one watching. It was also difficult for him to run because the road was flat and almost straight when they were along the sea, in contrast to the minor ups and downs before they reached the Shonan Kaigan Road.

The temperature was 5.7 degrees. The tree barrier was on his left. On top of that, the sunlight, which was strong for winter, shone down on Jouta. The wind was still blowing from the front. It would not be strange if he could see Mount Fuji right in front of him, but there was no time to check.

As expected, the Hakone Ekiden is something that should be watched on TV, Jouta thought. While eating osechi and lazing around. We were promised that we'd enjoy aerial shots of the sea, the endlessly stretching road, and Mount Fuji in the third leg; a peaceful and festive scene that excites the New Year's mood.

But what about the pain of actually running?

After receiving the sash from Musa at the Totsuka relay station, Jouta’s Hakone Ekiden had started off with an uphill run. At Totsuka, the runner from Kita Kanto University who had received the sash in seventeenth place furiously outpaced him, but he didn’t care. Tokyo Gakuin University, who had started six seconds later than Jouta also overtook him, but he didn’t panic. I’m not good on roads with ups and downs, Jouta thought.

The Kita Kanto University runner's time was top-class even among the participants; Jouta had made sure to have Yuki show him the data of the runners who were running in the same leg as him. It would be impossible to stubbornly try and compete with them on equal terms. The Tokyo Gakuin guy was already breathing hard when he passed me. I’m sure I’ll be able to catch up and overtake him again.

The Shonan Kaigan Road had good visibility—Jouta could clearly see Tokyo Gakuin University and Shinsei University, as well as Maebashi Kouka University and Jounan Bunka University, which seemed to be dropping in the rankings.

At the fifteen-kilometer water stop, he was told, “The gap between you and the runner in front is closing.” Alright, I can do this. His legs felt even more energized. From the coach car, which had been silent until then, he heard the landlord’s voice.

“Jouta, are you concentrating? You’re not thinking about something else, right?”

I was thinking. About Jouji and all sorts of other things. Jouta cocked his head, wondering how he knew. Was there something wrong with his form?

“There's a message from Haiji. The last kilometer is where you have to hold on. Don’t get shaken no matter what you see, okay? That’s all.”

So it was Haiji-san, Jouta understood. There’s no way the landlord would know. Kiyose must have seen Jouta running on his portable TV and thought he should give him a boost.

But he didn’t know what was waiting for him on the road that would shake him.

Jouta was excited. He thought that Kiyose really could read his personality, but Jouta had been told that there was something exciting, so he couldn’t help but go and check it out. No matter how much he rebelled against Kiyose, in the end he felt like he was dancing in the palm of his hand, which was a little annoying, but also enjoyable.

First, he passed Tokyo Gakuin and Shinsei.

At the 18.5 kilometer mark, there was the Shonan Bridge over the Sagami River. There was a break in the tree barrier, and Jouta was finally able to catch a glimpse of the wide ocean out of the corner of his eye. Fresh water and sea water collided and mingled together, creating large white waves near the mouth of the river.

It was almost time to catch up to Jounan Bunka and Maebashi Kouka. I’ll go on the attack when they cross the bridge, Jouta decided and looked further ahead.

It was TSU.

There it was, the blue TSU uniform with its light blue lines, something he hadn't been able to see until now. He couldn’t reach it yet, but he could get closer. He could close the distance even just a little and then leave it to Jouji. TSU’s Sakaki, who had tormented Kakeru and caused problems for the residents of Chikusei-sou. Jouta was always irritated by Sakaki. I feel sorry for Kakeru, who can’t come up with good responses to him and ends up falling silent, and I’m actually a pretty pig headed guy myself with a lot of worries, but I’m not a shady bastard like Sakaki.

I don’t have anything against the other members of TSU, but they’re our rivals because they’re the team Sakaki is on. They’re the enemy who should be thoroughly beaten to a pulp. Of course, unlike Sakaki, we’ll do it fair and square through running.

Jouta breathed wildly through his nose and put on a spurt. He was next to Jounan Bunka and Maebashi Kouka. The opponents weren’t going to let him pass so easily. However, Jouta was no longer so concerned with the other runners—he only saw the Kikui and TSU runners ahead of him.

There was a sign at the twenty-kilometer mark. The 21.3 kilometers of the third leg were almost over. What is it that's going to shake me? Jouta suddenly thought, and as he approached the last kilometer, he realized what Kiyose had meant.

Because of the straight road, they started to see the Hiratsuka relay station from a kilometer away. The presence of the destination conversely made him feel that no matter how hard he ran, he still couldn’t get there. But he couldn’t get impatient; he had to stick it out here, outrun the other runners, and hand over the sash to Jouji with even a slightly better time.

But then something else happened that surprised Jouta. Two hundred meters before the relay station, he noticed Hanako furiously pedalling a bike on the sidewalk next to him.

Beyond the crowd, Hanako was desperately pedalling the bike.

“Jouta-kun, just a little bit more!”

Mixed in with the cheers, Jouta could clearly hear Hanako’s voice.

Hana-chan, you never say “Do your best” to us. It’s because you know that we’re working so hard that there’s nothing more we can do. Why do you support us this much?

Jouta thought of the expression on Hanako’s face when she looked up at him and smiled, and almost shouted, “Oh!”

It came to Jouta like a divine revelation.

Could it be that Hana-chan likes me?

When he thought about it, Yuki and Nico-chan’s smirking attitudes every time Hanako came to Chikusei-sou, and Musa’s extremely enthusiastic words and actions in encouraging him to walk Hanako home every time all made sense now.

Wait a minute. Jouji and I always walked Hana-chan home together. And she never seemed unhappy with that.

Which one of us does Hana-chan like?

Jouta was confused by the mixture of happiness and doubt, and before he knew it, he had completely overtaken Jounan Bunka and Maebashi Kouka.

---

A little before that at the Hiratsuka relay station, Jouji and Nico-chan were watching Hanako ride away on her bike, stunned.

“She left.”

“She sure did.”

Hanako had been attending Jouji along with Nico-chan at the Hiratsuka relay station, but when she found out that Jouta was finally approaching, she ran off. She grabbed a spectator’s bike and said, “I’ll return it immediately,” and almost forcefully snatched it away.

“She’s a good girl, isn’t she,” Nico-chan said.

Hanako had been her usual self at the Hiratsuka relay station, making sure that Jouji was comfortable during the pre-race time. She worked with Nico-chan to bring him towels and drinks, and talked with Jouji as he stretched to calm his nerves.

Nico-chan liked the open-hearted and good-natured Hanako very much. Mmm, she’s the perfect daughter to be my son’s wife, he thought.

But there’s a problem. Nico-chan rubbed his stubble. Which one of the twins does she like?

He thought that since she decided to attend Jouji, she must like him, but then Hanako had gone to support Jouta as well—to the point where she had seized a stranger’s bike like she couldn’t stay still.

Which one is it? Maybe both of them?

With this thought in mind, Nico-chan said to Jouji, “She’s a good girl, isn’t she.”

Jouji said with a grin, “Yeah, she is.”

This guy really doesn’t know.

Nico-chan sighed and turned his attention back to the top group that had arrived at the Hiratsuka relay station one after the other. Manaka, Rikudou, and Bousou in that order. It had seemed like it was going to turn into a battle between Rikudou and Bousou, but the spectators got excited at the unexpected strong performance of the ambusher.

Behind them, the figures of the runners from the other schools grew bigger and bigger as they approached.

“It’s Nii-chan, Nii-chan got ahead!”

Jouji was in high spirits. “Where?” Nico-chan leaned forward into the road. Jouta, in his black and silver uniform, had just passed the Jounan Bunka and Maebashi Kouka runners. Even Hanako, who was pedalling the bike on the sidewalk, couldn’t keep up with his speed. In the meantime, the sashes of the top teams were being relayed at the relay station.

“Oh, he’s running, he’s running!” Nico-chan clapped Jouji on the back. “He’ll be here soon. You ready?”

“Okay, okay. I’m not going to let Nii-chan be the only one who looks cool. I’m going to run my heart out too,” Jouji said brightly, and rotated his ankles to loosen them up. There was still a considerable distance between Kansei and the schools in front of them, Kikui and TSU.

“Don’t force yourself just because Jouta raised our ranking; you won’t be able to overtake them because of the difference between your abilities and times. Just closing the gap between you and the team in front of you is all we can ask for.”

“Got it.”

Jouji nodded, answered the staff member’s call and went out to the relay line. Nico-chan stood to the side, waiting for Jouta’s arrival and Jouji’s departure.

TSU came to the Hiratsuka relay station in ninth place. Three hours nineteen minutes and fifty-eight seconds had passed since the start from Otemachi. Ten seconds behind TSU, Kikui relayed their sash in tenth place. Fifteen seconds after Kikui, Jouta handed Jouji the Kansei sash.

Up until now, it had been three hours twenty minutes and twenty-three seconds. Kansei University had finally moved up to eleventh place. Jouta, who had run 21.3 kilometers in the third leg, finished in eleventh place with the time of one hour four minutes and thirty-two seconds.

However, Nico-chan had no time to be happy about that. That was because Jouta, who had been running with a ghastly look on his face, said, “Hana-chan might like us!” as he passed the sash.

“What, no way!”

That was the shout Jouji left behind before running off. The looks of the people who happened to be present at the relay station were painful.

“Are you guys even taking this seriously?”

Nico-chan held Jouta’s shoulders after he finished running and dragged him to the back of the relay station as if to hide.

“We are.” Jouta put his hands on his knees and gasped for breath. “Why didn’t you tell us before?”

“You mean about Hana-chan liking you guys?”

“Yeah. Or am I misunderstanding something?”

“No, you didn’t. But why did you realize that now of all times? What if Jouji loses focus?”

“What is it? What’s going on?”

They turned around at the clear voice and saw Hanako standing there. She seemed to have returned the bike to its owner. She wiped the sweat from her forehead and smiled at Jouta. “You were amazing.”

Jouta, who was crouching down, turned red all the way to his neck. “Mm, thanks,” he said, unable to look Hanako in the face.

Oi oi, if Jouta is in this state, then Jouji is also… Nico-chan scratched his head.

“We gotta call Haiji about this.”

Hanako looked at Nico-chan in puzzlement.

---

Kakeru and Kiyose were waiting in front of Hakone-Yumoto Station for the bus to Lake Ashi. They had to finish climbing the mountains of Hakone before the traffic restrictions were put in place, but many people seemed to be thinking the same thing, and the single road leading to the mountains was congested.

“We’re in eleventh place, Haiji-san!”

While stomping his feet in place to distract himself from the cold, Kakeru turned up the volume on the portable TV. The announcer’s voice sounded excited as he reported the situation at the Hiratsuka relay station.

“The first to relay their sash at the Hiratsuka relay station was Manaka University! Rikudou University, aiming for their fourth consecutive Hakone win, was twenty-nine seconds behind in second place. Third place went to Bousou University. The gap with the top is less than fifty seconds. Well, things have taken an unexpected turn since the third leg haven’t they, Yanaka-san?”

The commentator, Yanaka, took over.

“Yes. It was thought that this tournament would be a battle between Rikudou and Bousou, but Manaka have firmly planted themselves in the fray. I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of developments will occur in the fourth and fifth leg, which is the mountain climb.”

“The Hakone regulars—Doujidou, Yamato, Kofu Gakuin, Saikyo, Kita-Kantou, TSU, and Kikui—are occupying the rankings from fourth to tenth place. Not only the rankings for the outbound route, but tomorrow’s return trip and overall victory will also be unpredictable.

“And everyone should be paying attention to Kansei University in eleventh place,” Yanaka said, unable to suppress his admiration. “Even though they were in last place for the first leg, they steadily rose through the rankings afterwards. Their team only has ten people, but all the runners have their own strengths. There is a possibility that they will be seeded, or perhaps in an even better position by the end.”

“I’m not sure if I should say surprisingly, but Kansei is showing a surprisingly good performance. But Yanaka-san, there are three fourth-year students in Kansei; even if they do get seeded, what will happen next year? They won’t have enough members.”

“You have a point,” Yanaka laughed. “I don’t think there has been an instance of a team competing with only ten members, at least not since the Hakone Ekiden began being televised. If they get seeded, they might have no choice but to ask the fourth-year students to repeat a year.”

“No, that’s not a good idea.” The announcer seemed to be enjoying himself. Yanaka’s voice became a little more serious.

“Staying an extra year was a joke, but I’m sure they’ll be fine. There will surely be new students who will want to join the team after seeing the success of Kansei. A powerhouse school is good, but it is also good to have a school where young people who have never run before are given the chance to do it. The purpose of the Hakone Ekiden is both to nurture world-class runners as well as to expand the range of the Japanese long distance world at the same time.”

“That’s a good one, Yanaka-san,” Kiyose muttered.

“Who is this person?”

“You really don’t know much about track and field athletes, do you? He was the ace of Yamato University about thirty years ago? He was the Japanese representative for marathons and also participated in the Olympics. I believe he’s currently the advisor for a corporate sports team.”

“Huh.”

People who run on the world stage really do have different things to say, Kakeru thought.

Just then, the screen showed Jouji running in the fourth leg.

“Why is Jouji running while grinning like that?”

“He really is. His face is slack.”

“Come to think of it, at Hiratsuka, Jouta’s face turned red from exerting himself somewhat.”

“They’re not the nervous type, what’s wrong with them?”

Right when Kakeru tilted his head in confusion, Kiyose received a call on his phone. This time, without hesitation, Kiyose pressed the speakerphone button.

“Hey, Haiji, we've got a bit of a problem.”

It was Nico-chan.

“What’s wrong?” When Kakeru exclaimed that without thinking, Nico-chan seemed a little confused.

“Wait, did I accidentally call Kakeru’s phone?”

“It’s my phone.” Kiyose didn’t seem to feel like explaining the speaker phone function. “What’s going on?”

“Mmmm, so Kakeru can hear me too? If that’s the case, I don’t know if I should say it.”

“Just tell me, please.”

Perhaps sensing the aura of irritation that Kiyose was emanating, Nico-chan began to speak.

“The twins realized Hana-chan’s feelings. Because of that, Jouta went limp and flabby after running, and Jouji was also flabby when he started running.”

Kiyose glanced at Kakeru. Why is he looking at me? Kakeru thought.

“They realized just now?” Kiyose said into his phone with a sigh.

“Yeah, just now. What should we do?”

“I don’t think there’s anything we can do, now that they know. We’ll see how Jouji runs, and if it’s necessary, we’ll figure out what to do.”

“Got it. Then, I’m going to the inn in Odawara with Jouta. Is it alright to have Hana-chan go to Yokohama?”

Hanako was going to stay at the Yokohama hotel with Prince. Jouji would join her there after running the fourth leg.

“Leave that unchanged.”

“Is there anything you want to tell Jouta?”

“Not at all. He ran perfectly.”

“I’ll tell him that.”

After hanging up, Kiyose cracked his neck and said, “Well then, Kakeru.

“Don’t get into any fights at the Yokohama hotel tonight. I don’t think Prince and I can handle you guys brawling.”

“Fight? Why would that happen?” Kakeru asked back seriously. Kiyose stared at him closely.

“So you’re the one who didn’t realize it until the end,” he laughed. “The bus is finally here. Let’s go.”

“What do you mean, Haiji-san? Hey, wait!”

Kakeru and Kiyose boarded the bus that would take them on the old road that went around Lake Ashi and sat down side by side in a double seat. The route ascended while they took a detour down a narrow road, but as there was no congestion like on Route 1, it was probably for the best.

Obstructed by the mountains, the TV and radio signals were no longer being received well.

“We won’t be able to get news until we get to Lake Ashi.”

Kiyose pointed the antenna of the radio this way and that, as though looking for a water vein, but eventually he seemed to give up. He took out his earphones and leaned his shoulder against the window.

“Hopefully Jouji will drive away his wicked thoughts and concentrate on running.”

“’Wicked thoughts’, oh no…”

Kakeru smiled wryly. Hanako’s feelings had finally gotten through to the twins. Isn’t that a good thing? Yes, it’s a good thing. But why do I feel so gloomy? My chest hurts, like when I’m panicking because I can’t run well. It’s like my cells are doing incomplete combustion, and all I have is useless heat inside my body.

Kakeru kept quiet and withstood Kiyose’s gaze on his cheek, resigned to being teased again. He wanted to run immediately. He wanted to feel the wind on his face, to be freed from these indescribable and vague feelings.

The air in the heated bus was vaguely uncomfortable, similar to when you want to sleep but can’t fall into the depths of sleep. To avoid Kiyose’s gaze, Kakeru shifted his hips and sank deeper into his seat.

“We need to get Jouji’s attention back on the race,” Kiyose said. His tone was unexpectedly sincere. Kakeru looked up; Kiyose was looking outside the window. The cedar trees were so close that they almost touched the window.

“If it was you, what would you say to Jouji?”

“Well…”

Kakeru thought about it for a minute, then answered.

Previous | Next

[sobdasha]

had a few more thoughts about the Honda family

and all the Souma parallels.

(and by “a few” I apparently meant “a lot”, I did not mean to write this many pages)

In the other post I’d made a comment about how Katsuya’s romance with Kyouko, severe age difference issues aside, is just plain pathetic, a point which I believe to be Upheld by canon. And I wanted to talk more about that, the implications of that, and how that further builds the Akito and Tohru parallel. And also, Why Tohru Can’t Love Her Mom And Kyou At The Same Time.

The ideal, in Fruits Basket, is that when you make a connection with one person who loves you and sees you, this will enable you to make further connections with the people around you. Tohru does a whole heck of a lot of this; for one example, see Yuki explaining this to Kisa in the liking-yourself speech. Yuki does some of this for bitty Haru and later for Machi. Kazuma does this for Kyou. And so on and so forth. The positive experiences are meant to have a ripple effect.

It’s important to be grateful for what you have (Yuki and Machi’s “just one person would be enough” scene), but it’s human to crave more than that (Kyouko telling Saki that it’s probably normal to want other people to accept you even if you already have a loving and supportive family). It is important to crave more than that.

This was, in fact, the entire point of the curse. God meets cat. Cat’s companionship allows god to form connections with other animals. Cat is dying and god decides that 13 friends is the perfect number of friends and starts the reincarnation cycle. Cat says, “god you never once left your house. I wanted to see you go down and make friends with the humans. I wanted to see you experience the world and laugh in the sunlight. God you made 13 new friends but you’re still lonely and closing yourself off to the world forever, this is wrong and I am sad.” The banquets were supposed to be the gateway drug of friendship and meaningful connections, not the place where 14 souls stagnated alone and isolated until it became a curse.

That same wrongness happens in Ren and Akira’s relationship, where finally making a connection with one person who loves you and sees you made their world smaller and smaller. It wasn’t healthy, probably because 1) they remained in a toxic environment, 2) Kureno implies that Ren has mental health issues and I assume those existed prior to Akira’s death and were exacerbated, rather than created by, her grief; also I can’t imagine she actually came from a non-toxic family herself, and 3) Akira’s “you’re going to die an early death and the only thing we need from you first is a successor” trauma. Akira never found anyone other than Ren who understood how upset he was. Ren never formed a relationship with anyone other than Akira, partly because she was now trapped in a toxic family that despised everything about her and she refused to Prove Them Right by leaving. They both viewed their child as an object rather than a person; Akira seeing proof that he and Ren were definitely OTP and the Souma could go shove it, and Ren seeing a Rival.

I have a memory that I said at some point—probably in a Talking About Shigure post—that Kyouko helps Katsuya connect with other people. But this, I think, is not really true. I was thinking of how Kyouko helps bridge the non-relationship between Katsuya and his father. But that’s just one person.

Really, Katsuya and Kyouko are more like Akira and Ren.

Marrying-someone-who-just-graduated-ninth-grade aside, the fact that Katsuya and Kyouko meet is genuinely a good thing. Katsuya finally connects with the humanity in another person. Kyouko is finally cared about as a person. Their misanthropic-jackass-and-abandoned-cat relationship improves both of them, probably. Their connection is definitely the reason Kyouko decides to go to high school and quit her gang. It’s harder to tell with Katsuya, but you could argue that seeing Kyouko struggling and fighting and screaming against the world, as honest about her joy as she is about her loneliness-channeled-into-rage, causes Katsuya to say screw it and pursue the career in pharmacy that he’s interested in, instead of fake-politely submitting to the world’s expectations and internally resenting and disdaining everyone around him.

Katsuya softens in his relationship with his father. Both Katsuya and Kyouko see their child as a person in her own right, Tohru, rather than an object. Katsuya, in fact, is adamant about that fact when Kyouko is terrified of her pregnancy—that they can treat their baby as her own person, and if they aren’t perfect parents and they hurt their child, they’ll apologize—because Tohru is a person and an equal—and admit that what they did was wrong and why it’s wrong. They’ll treat Tohru with the respect they should have gotten all along.

But I don’t think it ever goes any farther than that. Like god, the Honda family becomes more and more isolated.

Does Katsuya make any work friends? We don’t really get a complete view of their lives, because Takaya is one person who can only do so much and space is very precious, so we only see what’s crucial to the story. But I would be really surprised to find that Katsuya had made any close friends outside of Kyouko. I honestly doubt that he has anything more than casual work acquaintances. (In contrast, we repeatedly see Kyou together with the two guys who got names in the anime that I forgot in his class; his friendship with them doesn’t get explored much in the manga, presumably because it doesn’t do any heavy lifting for his character development, but Kyou clearly has casual friends who seek him out and whom he doesn’t mind being with. See also the way Saki and Arisa also interact with those guys as a part of the group, while Tohru really only interacts with Saki and Arisa or the Souma.)

And I don’t think Kyouko fares any better. Does she have any close friends, other than her husband and daughter? Does she make friends at work? I don’t know what kind of work Kyouko does, and if she would have the opportunity to take her breaks socializing with coworkers. But it appears she spends her work breaks in an abandoned area socializing with a first or second grader. Kyou is the only person, as far as we know, that mid-twenties Kyouko can start to open up to. She doesn’t get all the way there—Kyou doesn’t connect the dots until much later—but it’s the closest she comes to talking about how she hurt Tohru after Katsuya died.

Where are the family friends? It doesn’t strike me as weird that the Honda family doesn’t have them, because I have also grown up in a poorly socialized household, but even I am used to running into unfamiliar people in public who explain that they know my mom or dad. I’m pretty sure family friends are a normal thing, and that’s how you get aunts and uncles that aren’t related to you, much in the same way that I’m pretty sure it’s normal to be friends with your cousins (especially if they’re in a similar age range and live nearby) and it is very common for grandparents to bring grandchildren with them to the grocery store because the grandchildren are staying over and they’re having a relationship.

Where is anyone but the Honda family at at Kyouko’s funeral? Kyouko made friends with Arisa and Saki, but did she ever make friends with Saki’s parents? Where are Saki’s loving and supportive mother and father and grandmother when the Honda family is arguing about who has to take on the burden of Tohru? Where are they, if they knew of the bad blood between Kyouko and the Honda family (and the disinheritance between Kyouko and the Katsunuma family), to sweep over Tohru’s protestations and tell her that it will all be fine, they’ll make it work out (they packed up and moved house for Saki, after all), it’s not Tohru’s job to worry about being a burden, it’s the job of people who love her to take care of her?

It can be both “because of the necessity of the plot” and “because they didn’t know.”

Tohru inherits this small, isolated world. And because of the trauma of being abandoned by her grieving, depressed, absolutely-not-coping mother, Tohru picks up on that Souma curse mentality. Tohru’s dad left, and Tohru’s dad tried to take her mom with her, leaving her with no one but Grandpa (who is not intimately part of their world but is not fully outside it either). Tohru’s dad is now a Rival. Tohru’s dad is now an Outsider. Clearly, a bond with an Outsider weakens the True Bond that Tohru had with Kyouko. Clearly, Tohru’s dad is Not Needed (because the other alternative is that Tohru is Not Needed). Clearly, only one of them can have Kyouko.

And it’s going to be Tohru.

Tohru picks up Katsuya’s fake-polite speech, equally disingenuously but from the opposite direction (ie, Katsuya was fake-polite to be an asshole, and Tohru is genuinely polite but faking the words). Tohru is pretty sure this is a form of wicked manipulation (much like Yuki is convinced that “be kind unto others as you would have them be kind unto you” is a form of wicked manipulation). Tohru keeps up with it anyway. Kyouko, as Kyou suggests, was probably comforted by this; rather than going full Akira “you exist to prove that I lived and loved a woman”, seeing Katsuya’s mannerisms in Tohru reminds her that her husband did exist without having to erase Tohru as a person. Kyouko does a lot of growing on her own, but with no support system and no friends outside the family and being fresh-out-of-college age, it’s not surprising that she fails to talk with Tohru about this, and tell Tohru that she knows why Tohru’s doing this, she knows how she hurt Tohru and it was wrong, you don’t have to do this anymore. This is a hurt between them, a grief, that they never talk about, even though they both know it’s there and Kyouko tries to smother it with love and affection and Tohru tries to shut it up in a box of denial.

Tohru’s world is now just Tohru and Kyouko. Tohru doesn’t make any friends until middle school. We know she gets bullied and doesn’t fit in throughout her entire school life. She is a riceball in a fruits basket and probably just manages to scrape by in conformity culture. When she does make her first friends, Arisa and Saki don’t count as Outsiders who compromise Tohru’s bond with her mom because Arisa and Saki are also misfits on the fringe. They are outcasts Tohru can bring into the circle. They are all monsters together, like the cursed Soumas (the only reason no one refers to Akito as a monster to her face, the way they do the rest of the Zodiac, probably has less to do with the fact that Akito doesn’t transform and more to do with the fact that Akito being in a position of power is useful for their own ends, so best not to undermine the head of the family by pointing the whole monster thing out).

And then Tohru’s mom dies.

Tohru isn’t god and she can’t make an eternal banquet. Tohru doesn’t know how to process her grief and how not to fall to pieces. Tohru knows how to empathize with other people, but she doesn’t know how to be vulnerable. Did she remember Kyouko wanting to follow Katsuya, and think about doing the same? But Tohru also wants to keep living, somehow.

So she makes her mom not be gone. Her mom is dead, Tohru knows that, just like Akito knows that Akira’s soul isn’t in the box choosing her over Ren and showing her the way to happiness. But maybe. So she talks to the portrait of her mom. She tries to rescue her mom from suffocating inside a mudslide. She takes her mom on holiday to the onsen. Her mom gets kidnapped once by Hiro. Tohru’s mom is definitely not gone. Tohru and her mom definitely still have an eternal bond. Tohru’s mom will always be first in her heart, so that Tohru will always be first in her mother’s heart. Tohru will never abandon her. Tohru will never leave her behind.

(Tohru will never be left behind.)

Tohru’s world is just Tohru and her mom.

Tohru has two best friends, Arisa and Saki, but she won’t let them in. She won’t depend on them. She won’t tell that that her grief is crushing her and that she’s living in a tent because she’s terrified of being abandoned. Tohru makes a lot of new friends in the Souma family, and she’s very happy, but she won’t let them in either. Tohru can’t open up to any of them freely.

I don’t think I saved it anywhere the survived the computer death, but I saw at least one post in the fandom talking about the growing disappointment of the reboot anime, and they had a valid point, so I’ll bring that in now.

I really like the reboot, but I am losing my passion in the final season. Adapting a story from one media to another is hard, and at the beginning I thought they were doing a good job. Small things were being cut, scenes were being rearranged and stitched together, but there was a definite purpose behind it. Instead of literally following each chapter, each episode tried to be a self-contained theme in the same way a manga chapter would be. Because themes repeat again and again in Fruits Basket in a slow build, this was working well. But small things that didn’t quite fit got cut. Scenes I liked and was sad not to see, but that I accepted had to be left out to make the episodes stronger.

But they’ve been piling up and piling up. Small holes have accumulated into big plot holes that the third season is tripping over. I’m sad that we don’t see the small progressions of Yuki and Machi’s relationship, the quiet scenes that show Machi is trying to pay attention to Yuki the way he has paid attention to her, and also all the Mogetas. I’m sad Komaki is the new manga-only character. If we don’t get Kyouko’s full backstory, we lose a lot of the context that’s in this post. I could go on and on.

But most importantly, as that someone else pointed out, we missed out on the progression of Kyou and Tohru’s flirting. It’s too late to cram all of that into a montage episode, and so now we’ve been given episode after episode of Mom Tohru, and hardly any Tohru Struggling With Romance In Addition To Struggling With Grief before suddenly everyone is confessing their love and I’m not as into it in the anime as I am in the manga.

So many of the Souma love and accept Tohru, but Tohru remains an Outsider—not because of the curse, but because she hasn’t formed close friendships with them. Tohru has a lot of people among the Souma she likes who like her, but she’s always a Mom to them. Tohru shares some of her own pain with them, but it’s shared for their benefit, not for Tohru’s own catharsis. Tohru shares so she will be loved, not so that she will be accepted.

Except Kyou.

Kyou, who looks at Tohru and thinks, “I’m pretty sure she’s that lonely person even now, even while she’s smiling and genuinely enjoying every moment with us.” Kyou, who’s falling in love with Tohru. Kyou, whom Tohru’s falling in love with.

Kyou is the only one that Tohru takes a desperate risk with. Kyou is the only one Tohru ~disillusions~ and ~disappoints~ in the hope that he’ll accept her regardless.

Kyou is the only one Tohru tells, “I don’t talk about my dad because I kicked him out of the family. I know my dad loved us and I loved him back, but I pretend to talk like him so my mom will forget about him and love me instead. He came between me and my mom and now I pretend he doesn’t exist. And I know I’m an awful person for behaving like that, so I keep his picture and pretend I don’t, and I pretend he’s the Bad Guy who earned it.”

The idea that Tohru can’t love both her mom and Kyou is, in a way, true. (I think that same post I’ve been referencing also talked about how dropping the budding romance also dropped a lot of the clues that this is Tohru unable to process her grief? Which is also very true. But if Tohru has the Souma mindset, then actually she has a legit point about not being able to love two people at once despite being a very loving person. Both can be true. Multitudes.)

Kyou is an Outsider to the world of Tohru and her mom. And if Tohru chooses to love him, it will weaken her bond with her mom, which is predicated on loving her mom more than anyone else. If she expands her world to include him in it, she will be betraying her mom. Tohru will be the Bad Guy who left her mom behind and abandoned her. Tohru will be her own villain, condemned for the same crimes she pinned on her dad.

Kyou 100% gets where she’s coming from with this, because he turns this exact argument on her when she confesses to him and he panics (akin to when Tohru chases him down in his true form and he slashes her and, in the reboot, yeets her into the lake, so that she will be hurt so bad she’ll never pity/love him again). He asks her if her love for her mom—her bond—was just a lie.

Tohru making friends after Kyouko’s death has been a lot like Akito letting Yuki and Kyou out into the world, certain that it would drive them back to the bond. Yuki getting character development is a huge betrayal. Tohru wanting to be together with Kyou, when she should only want to be together with her mom, is a huge betrayal.

Tohru has no model for expanding her world. She’s good at loving people, but bad at letting them in (Kyouko was bad at that too—like Mom Tohru, she was very good at sharing anecdotes about her violent youth, but very bad about sharing how she’d failed Tohru as a mom). Like Akito, she only really knows the bond—the certainty that her mom would love her. She’s been so terrified of not being loved that she’s acted this entire time like her mom is still around. When Kyou’s love is a possibility, she can only conceptualize it as a betrayal of her relationship with her mother.

It always seemed a bit too abrupt that Tohru looked at Akito with the knife and went “oh shit we’re literally the same”, but now that I’ve thought this all out, it makes eloquent sense. The whole time Tohru’s been working against the curse, she’s been in denial about her own blessing-burden-curse. Now that she’s just admitted it and had it thrown back in her face, she can look at Akito and see another person in an insular little world, isolated and lonely and walled-off from the world. Of course Tohru desperately wants to make friends with knife-wielding Akito—she just decided to let go of her ties to her mother that were suffocating her, and take her first steps into the world, and got immediately dumped by the person she loves. Of course she wants to make friends with someone who knows exactly where Tohru’s coming from and how terrifying what Tohru just did is and how awful it is to be rejected even though she’s got other friends she loves out here in this world she’s decided to finally step into.

Tohru is so damn lonely, and Akito is there, also lonely and screaming and crying and undeniably human.

(Smile, Tohru tells herself in the hospital. Smile and tell Kyou you were happy to meet him and just let him go. Don’t be a curse. Smile and let him find his own happiness. Which is more or less the same struggle Akito is also going through. But maybe they’re going through it together. Maybe they used their words, together, when they couldn’t confide in anyone else. Although it feels a bit unlikely that Tohru let herself break down about Kyou in front of Akito, and Akito already had one pity-party in front of Momiji and may not have wanted to burden Tohru with a second.)

One thing I really love about Fruits Basket Another is that Hajime alludes to the fact that Kyou probably won’t inherit Kazuma’s dojo after all.

Kyou inheriting the dojo is something both Kyou and Kazuma have wanted, and it gives me many warm fuzzies. It is very narratively satisfying. The dojo, while Souma property, is not actually part of the main estate.

What I love is that Kyou probably won’t take over the dojo specifically because he and Tohru have made so many friends in their new town that they don’t want to pick up and leave. Kyou finally succeeds in freeing Tohru from that small, lonely world, much like he’s been freed from the fate of the Cat Room. Their relationship enriches them personally and also enables them to make so many new connections. Kyou has friends at the dojo! Tohru has friends at work maybe! Friends where they buy groceries, friends among the parents of their children’s classmates, friends outside of their extended Souma family! They’ve kept ties that don’t hold them back and made new ties that don’t weaken or steal away any of their old ties!

When they left Tokyo, Tohru was prepared to go anywhere as long as it was with Kyou. Now, she and Kyou both don’t want to leave because their world is so much larger than just their nuclear family and they’ve put down roots. They’ve seen each other not only lonely in the moonlight and worn thin by death and loss, but they’ve gotten up and gone down the mountain to where the people live and made friends among them, laughing in the sunlight. Just like the cat always uggghhhhh I’m not crying I’m just so damn happy for them I can’t