#tummyache works hard but i work harder

[izel-scribbles]

strangler fig - the crane wives

(click for hd/closeups under the cut)

every single crane wives song fits malevolent (fight me on this. i'll win)

ty to @ganem-ouchie for giving me this idea last month in the replies of a random shitpost

[joyburble]

So, we see Donfang Qingcang reading on screen several times, and I think it's an important character message.

On encountering a problem, in episode 4, that can't be addressd by violence, what is the first thing our character does? He RTFMs. He sends Shanque to fetch the Fucking Manual, and he Reads It. What. In fact, they both read it, at least until they find the right bit.

Iconic. And adorable.

Definitely much less surprising in a Chinese genre than it would be in any English-language genre. But this section is so spectacular I want to give it a lot of weight.

The scroll is extremely long. He baulks, for a second, at the length,

but this, his face says, cannot possibly defeat him: he backs himself (I love it) and gets down to work.

It's illustrated. I'd love to hear from someone who can read any part of the text. He engages in detail with the content.

He continues in episode 5, having made some progress, and still backing himself to work out what it all means.

He takes it out on the balcony to study it by daylight. When his plans don't succeed at first, he doesn't reject the information, he thinks about it harder and compares it with the data.

Then something interesting happens: after making Orchid's tummyache better, he sits down, and without any stated reason tries to read something else, which looks like a completely normal book:

He can't focus because she's so sad, but we get a glimpse of the corner of a title label. When he puts it down, we can see it's a paperback stitched in the traditional Chinese manner.

It could be anything, but looks a reasonable size for a novel. There are also some other books on the table. Maybe they're technical works from Xiao Lanhua's library, and he's just bored and curious?

This wouldn't be as clear if it was the only example, or if we saw other characters repeatedly reading. But I don't think we do.

In episode 18 post-whump we learn again that what he does to relax and distract himself, when in pain and/or wanting attention, is read a book. It's a slim volume with a vertical format and a pretty, embellished cover. Perhaps a book of poems?

In Episode 26, now knowing he is loved, he is reading for fun again, with no explanation asked or given. Another sewn book, but in this case it has a hard cover with a shiny and colourful design. What could it be? Who knows? It seems to be making him smile a little.

The message we are getting, here, is that what he does when he wants to relax and enjoy life, is read. We’re supposed to understand that in his natural disposition, minus his father’s crimes and his profession of violence, he is a gentleman and a scholar. He is curious. He is capable of handling new information. He has brains and capabilities and ingenuity. He has a big ego, but he can put it in the engine room, not the driving seat. It's a gently-delivered message, but I think it contributes a lot to our perception of the character.

In dream-world episode 31, he is reading a scroll with Xiao Lanhua. Are they reading a story to each other? Doing the voices?

So apparently in his imagination it's a bonding activity too: you can read together with a person you love and share your reactions. A bit like you and I are doing now.

Finally, I think they published this behind-the-scenes shot for a reason (thank you @moonsupremesblog, and I'm sorry this probably should have been a reblog of this post but I got too far in before I remembered)

We can see it's Dylan Wang referring to a script, but we do a double-take because it's totally in character, the lighting, composition, and depth-of-field intentionally reinforce that effect, and we have to look at the plastic cover and the little place-tags to realise it isn't.

[trashytummiez]

Dabi the Teapot

This was 100% inspired by a perfect sequence from @fungusfangs that features an incredibly burpy Dabi suffering a really bad quirk-induced tummyache <3

Warning: contains bloating burps indigestion nausea tummyache tummy noises tummy rubs

mmmmmMMMMMRRRHHPP!!!!!

A thick raunchy closed mouth burp rumbled heavily inside of Dabi's mouth. It got so thick at the end that Dabi's cheeks puffed and he had to press a fist against his mouth just to keep the gas from escaping his mouth.

He huffed and blew a plum of smoke out of his mouth.

"Unnngh fuck..." Dabi moaned.

The scarred villain slumped back against a few crates he was using like a makeshift throne. The shift made an audible slosh and gurgle erupt from Dabi's tummy. He groaned and put a hand on his stomach. When he started rubbing it he lifted his shirt a little to expose his belly which was looking bloated.

The villain looked miserable when he very firmly dug his fingers into his belly and rubbed it up and down in some failed attempt to settle his noisy stomach. It gurgled and bubbled so loudly that Spinner could hear Dabi's belly from halfway across the room. "Jeez, man, your gut's pretty angry there, huh," the lizard commented.

Dabi held his belly in one hand and took a breath. He pressed a fist against his mouth and muffled another raunchy burp. It was so deep that it rumbled in his mouth almost as loudly as someone burping out loud might let out. Another thick closed mouth burp erupted inside of Dabi's cheeks and was followed straight away by another. Dabi grimaced and pushed against his belly with his other hand. A longer burp rumbled in his mouth getting really deep and rumbly in the last second or so.

All that gas in his belly was stirring around so much that he just couldn't help it anymore. Dabi grabbed his belly tightly with one hand and lurched with a huge nasty sounding burp. It rocketed out of the young cremator so hard that a proverbial smoke screen spewed out of his mouth as that burp pushed out for almost five seconds.

"Dabi! Oh my god!" Toga shouted from afar with an annoyed pout on her face. "Would you stop burping so much?!?"

UHHHUUUUURRRRRRP!!!!

That was a 'no.'

Dabi spat onto the ground and gave another big closed mouth burp. Those were getting much harder to hold in. "Ungh...hrrrmHHhp!!! Unf...urp...can't help it..." Dabi barely mumbled then stifled another thick burp.

The villain felt a really painful gurgle erupt from his belly. Dabi took a breath and firmly slapped his stomach hard. He cringed when he felt the thick soupy contents inside of him slosh heartily. But it worked to bring up the gas. Dabi burped so hard in his mouth that his cheeks almost ballooned before the smoke just spewed out of his mouth with a breathy blow from his lips like he were a smoke machine.

"Whoa! You can belch up fire?!" Spinner said with the awe of a child. "That's awesome! You're like a dragon or something!!" He was a reptile so of course it was a bigger deal for him.

An especially noisy gurgle erupted from Dabi's belly followed instantly by another sonorous burp that Dabi couldn't hold in. "Ungh...urrrrrp!! Fuuuuu....ohhh, not fire-thank god," Dabi mumbled then clenched his lips shut in time for a short but nasty sounding burp to worm its way up his throat. Dabi again blew the smoke past his clenched teeth and spat onto the ground near his boots. "Nrgh...if I use my quirk too much when my stomach's full-" dabi cut himself off with a deep closed mouth burp then a softer one he let escape past his lips. "Ungh...it just makes everything inside'uh me boil..." Dabi burped again, not bothering to try and hold it in anymore much to Toga's chagrin. "...Urrrp! It'll stop once I cool down...urp..."

"Ah~so less a dragon..." Mr. Compress paused to hold his hand near his masked mouth and chuckle all exaggerated-like, "...and morrrre like a teapot!"

Even in his sickly state Dabi glared daggers at the magician. "MRRP...fffuckin' end you, old man..." Dabi would've growled if he had the energy.

Some time later Dabi was stuck in the backroom. It looked like a sauna in there with how much steam was clouding the entire room. That was because Dabi hadn't stopped burping the entire time he had isolated himself from the others. Every thick eructation brought up a small cloud of smoke from the contents within Dabi's tummy simmering away. He continued nursing his aching stomach the whole time trying to rub it and settle it down to no avail.

Then the door swung open and in entered Shigaraki. "Oi! Take this," The lead villain handed Dabi a bag straight out of the freezer. "Try holdin' that against your stomach for a bit."

Dabi muffled another burp and tugged his shirt down over his puffed out tummy. He held it in one hand stroking into it to still try and relax better while holding up the bag with a skeptical glare.

"Unf...mmMMMRBP!!! Fffrruuuh...frozen stir fry...? Why would you be tryin' to help me...?"

"Yeaaaah I don't care," Shigaraki said dismissively and scratched into his neck idly. "That's the kinda stir fry that cooks in the bag."

Dabi glared quietly as more smoke simmered from the corners of his mouth like a dragon.

"Hey you're set to "steam" as is. Might as well take advantage of it."

Shigaraki left Dabi be and told him to text when the stir fry was ready. He'd be playing games so he wouldn't hear if anyone called out to him.

Dabi just stared off then gradually looked down at the bag.

"...Are you fuckin' kiddin' me...?" Dabi murmured.

He looked around in silence safe for the gurgling and the burping. Then he begrudgingly lifted his shirt up again and pressed the frozen stir fry against his exposed tummy.

Dabi held it there while the chill ran through his stomach. He felt his stomach turning heavily. A second later Dabi squeezed the bag against his tummy then let rip a really throaty burp right on the bag itself. It lasted a few seconds and spewed smoke all over the bag. Hey best case scenario it might actually cook the damn thing. Worst case scenario the bag stinks like his stomach gasses and he can give that back to Shigaraki to spite him.

A few seconds passed after that though and everything inside of Dabi's tummy began to burble a little more quietly. The stir fry was already warming up against his body but seemed to dull the ache in his stomach.

Dabi realized that the bag was actually helping to settle his tummy and cringed for a whole new reason.

"...God dammit...I hate when Tomura's actually right about shit..."

"Huh? Did'ja say somethin' Dabi?" Toga asked again apparently having walked by when Dabi murmured to himself. The villain cursed himself when Toga continued. "What was Tomura right about it?"

Suddenly Dabi got an idea to cover up his foot in mouth moment.

"Oh naw I said this..." dabi said right before swallowing some air down until it made his stomach hurt anew. Then he squeezed his belly with the bag and let rip a giant burp. It was easily the loudest he'd let out yet and made smoke spew out of him like a really small smoke grenade had just gone off.

"EWWW!!! GOD! YOU'RE ALL SO GROSS AND STUPID!!!" she shrieked in annoyance and stormed off with that childish pout of hers. Dabi grinned when he heard her mumble something about Stain having better manners than Dabi did and then go on about how much she wanted to drain Stain dry of his blood.

Dabi blew a last little bit of smoke out of his mouth and patted his belly giving one final soft burp afterward.

"Fhew...if anyone ever tries fuckin' with us the next time we order BBQ? I'll just tell Toga he has really bad table manners and let her bleed 'im dry for me instead..."

[lickstynine]

I’d love to read about kit getting super sick from too many laxatives , that ask really caught my eye. That’s such a specifically lousy tummyache. In an effort to relive one kind, he’s stuck with an (arguably worse) one

A/N: written with @ocsickficsideblog. We started this as a mindless thing before your ask came in, so it’s not like… great. I struggled with it some, cause for some reason, I struggle with Kit more than others in this sort of scenario. But scat stuff is never brilliant and plot-heavy, so enjoy while I’m buzzed enough to have the balls to post it.

Alistair knew Kit well enough to be able to tell when his cousin didn’t feel well. He also had a pretty good idea what was wrong when Kit wouldn’t say. Nonetheless, he couldn’t help worrying as they sat at the dinner table. Kit was shifting around uncomfortably, picking at his food more than really eating it.

“Kit…” Alistair ventured. The subject embarrassed him too, especially with Kit. It was easier with Julius, who’d just ask if you’d been to the loo recently if you casually mentioned a stomach ache. “You’re not eating.”

“I’m fine, Al. I’m just not hungry. That’s not a crime.” Kit had finally caved and taken some medicine earlier, and judging by the growing discomfort in his stomach, it was starting to take effect. His stomach was churning so loud he was afraid Alistair might hear; he was actually a bit queasy, and awful cramps kept shooting through his tummy.

“Are those…is it your stomach making that noise?”

Kit’s cheeks flamed with embarrassment. “I told you, I’m fine.”

“You need some pepto or something?” Alistair said, ignoring him.

“Pepto tastes vile.”

“Yeah, well, it’s medicine. They’re not known for taste.”

“I’m fine, Al. I’m going to go get some tea.” Kit mumbled, excusing himself from the table. Standing up made his stomach twist, and his face paled a bit. He took a deep breath before shuffling off to the kitchen.

Alistair followed him, still worried. “I know something is going on.”

“What’s going on is you won’t leave me alone.” Kit huffed. His stomach rumbled loudly again, and his face turned a ghastly white colour. He fought the urge to clamp a hand to his tummy, tensing where he stood.

“I can literally hear that’s not true.”

“It absolutely is. You’re standing here bothering me as we speak.” Kit’s voice was tight, and his stomach cramped sharply again, nearly making him cry out.

Alistair went to peer at Kit’s face. “Are you gonna puke? You’re a weird whitish-green colour.”

“No. Please, just give me some space.” Kit stepped as far back as his legs would allow before making a sharp detour around his cousin and down the hall.

“Kit?” He peered out the door, remaining in the kitchen even so. He thought he knew where Kit was going. The bathroom door was already slamming down the hall. Alistair kept his distance for a while, not wanting to embarrass Kit more than necessary.

It was a good twenty minutes later when Kit returned, looking more ill and wobbly than ever. He didn’t even bother returning to the table, flopping down on the couch instead. Alistair went to find him, going to check his forehead. Kit wasn’t warm, just clammy, and he instinctively pulled away.

“Chill out, I was just checking,” Alistair muttered.

“Sorry.” Kit had lost all energy to be grouchy. He was pale and limp on the couch, miserable and trembling.

“You want something for your tummy? I have Imodium,” Alistair said.

Kit shook his head. He couldn’t imagine that would react well with the medicine already wreaking havoc on his system.

“How about belly rubs?”

“Please don’t touch me.” Kit instinctively scooted away.

“Okay, calm down. I won’t touch,” Alistair said.

“Sorry, I just… sorry.” Kit sighed, curling up around his aching stomach. Alistair sat by him and stroked his hair instead, looking worried. Kit was only able to lie down for a little while before his stomach started stirring again. His face had gone grey, and he shifted on the couch.

“Bad again?” Alistair asked.

Kit nodded tersely. He forced himself to sit up, slow and careful and clutching his stomach. A cold sweat was dripping down his forehead. Alistair tried to help him up, looking terrified. “I hope it’s not serious…”

“I’m fine, really. Please don’t cling onto me.” Kit scrambled away down the hall. Alistair was a bit hurt, but he left Kit alone again. The older boy slammed the bathroom door, trying not to cry out as his stomach cramped. Alistair crept to the door and listened, too worried to just sit in the living room and wait. The sounds weren’t exactly nice - muffled, pained groans, and violent, gushing liquid.

“Jesus…” Alistair muttered to himself. Though he was mostly distracted, Kit’s sharp ears picked up the sound, and his voice was hysterical.

“AL! I told you to go away!”

“I’m worried about you!”

“Well if you really cared, you’d respect my dignity!” Kit wailed, dramatic as ever.

“Oh Kit, do shut up. We’ve literally been in the other’s shoes in this situation, and you were right outside too,” Alistair said.

Kit made an irritated noise - Alistair was right, but that didn’t make him happy. “What do want from me?”

“I want to make you’re alright! That sounds flipping painful.”

“So is being interrogated by my cousin while I’m on the loo!”

Alistair rolled his eyes. “I’ve known you since I was born. I’ve seen you on the loo before.”

“Not by my choice!”

“Look, how is your tummy?”

“Miserable, now go away.”

“I…I can’t.”

“What the hell do you mean you can’t? Are you glued to the door?” Kit asked.

“Because it sounds really bad and I’m worried about you.”

“It wouldn’t sound so bad if I weren’t also humiliated.” Kit groaned. Even he knew that wasn’t true, but it was still mortifying to know Alistair was listening as his stomach turned itself inside-out.

“Can I Come in?”

“No!” Kit wailed.

“But I want to help!” Alistair cried, exasperated.

“And I want to be miserable in peace!”

“Well, I’m either staying outside or coming inside.”

Kit groaned. “Go away!”

“Kit, you were out here writhing in pain, and with your fainting record I think I have a right to be worried!” Alistair called.

“I was not writhing!” Kit was struggling to bicker with the pain in his tummy. His voice was getting shriekier.

“Fuck, is it bad?”

“I’m fine!” It would’ve been more convincing if Kit’s voice hadn’t cracked.

“Oh god, Kit, please, let me help.”

“Why do you hate me?” It wasn’t a direct no, so much as a last-ditch plea to make Alistair leave.

“Shut up, drama queen. I’m here because I love you.”

Kit just groaned. He didn’t have the energy to argue any further. Alistair cracked open the bathroom door cautiously. Kit instinctively cringed, but he couldn’t exactly run away. He was pale and shaky, hunched over so severely his head was almost touching his knees. Alistair knelt because him, rubbing his back. “God, what brought this on?”

“Hell.” Kit mumbled uselessly.

“Did you eat something dodgy?”

“No, it’s not… It’s… medicine. Stupid thing works too bloody well.” Kit’s pasty cheeks were flaming red, and he wished a sewer monster would crawl out of the drain and swallow him so he could escape the conversation.

“Oh god… Did you take a laxative?” Alistair asked.

Kit didn’t think he could blush harder, but he nodded. “I didn’t want to. I’ve been feeling lousy for days…”

“How many did you take?”

“Not that many, I think. I don’t remember.” Kit was terrible about just haphazardly pouring pills into his hand and taking however many came out.

“Jesus… Well it sounds like too much.”

“Obviously.” Kit snapped, his voice tight as his stomach cramped again.

Alistair rubbed his lower back firmly. “Breathe through it.”

Kit groaned, hugging his knees as he hunched over. “I’m trying. It hurts.”

“I know. Laxatives suck.”

“You don’t have to stay here. You’ve checked on me.” Kit mumbled.

“I’m staying here.”

Kit sighed. “Of course you are.”

“I’m trying to help,” Alistair grumbled.

“I don’t need help.” Kit argued.

“Tough shit.” Alistair paused. He couldn’t help himself. “Or loose shit.”

“Get out!”

“Sorry sorry! Seriously, try to calm down and slow your breathing.”

“It’s hard to calm down when I’m miserable and humiliated.” Kit huffed.

“It’s just me,” Alistair said. “I’m not going to tell anyone or invite an audience.”

Kit sighed. “That’s so much better.” He muttered sarcastically.

“How’s your tummy?”

“Lousy.” Kit didn’t have that much in his system, it was mostly just painful cramps now.

“Can I rub it? Will that help?” Alistair asked.

“No. Please don’t.” Kit bit his lip, still far too sensitive for that to feel good.

“Okay. You know, I’m not going to do anything if you say no, Kit.”

“I know, sorry. I just… I hate this.”

“I know.” Alistair said. “I could give you an Imodium? It might help. Battle of the medications.”

Kit sighed deeply, burying his face in his hands. “I suppose.”

“Though maybe I should check online..? If you’ve been constipated, you may as well get it out.”

“For the love of god, whatever you want to do, shut up.” Kit groaned.

“Fine. I’m just trying to help.” Alistair huffed.

“I know. I know, I just… I hate talking about this.”

“Okay, sorry,” Alistair said.

Kit was quiet for a long moment, then finally spoke again. “Al?”

“Yeah?”

“Can you scoot closer? I’m cold…”

“Of course.” Alistair shifted over, wrapping his arms around Kit. The older boy leaned against him, weak and shivery. Alistair rubbed up and down Kit’s arms. “You’re freezing…”

“Yeah, the porcelain absorbed what little body heat I had.” Kit sighed.

“Wouldn’t take much.”

Kit sighed heavily, leaning on his cousin for a while before piping up. “I still feel horrible, but… I think I’m done.”

“Okay. Do you…need help with standing afterwards?” Alistair asked.

“I’ll be fine, but if you could find a blanket…”

“I’ll get right on it,” Alistair said, going to leave Kit to sort himself out.

As expected, once Alistair left, there was a flush, and the sink ran for a while. Eventually, Kit shuffled out of the bathroom, still sickly grey and wobbly. Alistair took him to the sofa, wrapping the heated blanket around his shoulders. Kit curled up, leaning on his cousin with a shaky sigh.

“Al?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks.”