Kat | 32 | Virgo | INFJ | She/They Sappy writer obsessed with the power of love and friendship. Recovering anxious perfectionist. HOPE YOU LIKE RAINBOWS. This is a personal multi-interest blog. I adore sports anime, for some reason? Main fandom is Kuroko no Basuke. Links to my fics and Ao3 are on my main page!
OMGGG MORE MEMES, WHAT IS HAPPENING, ALL MY FONDEST DREAMS ARE COMING TRUE AND MY LIFE IS NOW COMPLETE XD
Seriously, I love these so much…?! I keep laughing every time I look at the top one. I MEAN C’MON LOOK AT AKASHI’S FACE. IT’S TOO GOOD. I CAN’TTTT.
AND THE VIOLIN ONE..!! Words cannot express how happy that makes me. (I had so much fun writing that part because it was SO OVER THE TOP and I was like “SERIOUSLY FURI, YOU WANT TO BE HIS VIOLIN, OMGGG YOU ARE SUCH A DORK I CAN’T eVEN DEAL WITH YOU” I mean the whole scene was over the top but… YES. It makes me so happy that people besides me enjoyed that moment XD)
ANYWAY THE POINT IS THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS AND YOU ARE ALSO THE BEST AHHhHH tHANK YOU <3<3<3
I’m a bit late again, but… LOOK AT THIS. LOOK AT THIS PERFECTION. <3
(… Like I honestly don’t know which is my favorite?! The haunted basement one has some spot-on Furi vibes, and the Bokushi one is just… It’s so Bokushi. He would absolutely approve. XD But I might have to go with the two for the violin scene, because for some reason “Is this heaven?” just had me ROLLING and I’m not even 100% sure why???)
Rating: PG-13 (for mild sexual tension and some intense/creepy scenes)
Pairing: AkaFuri
Word Count: 20,000
Warnings: Adorable dorks, poor Akashi dealing with a lot of family issues, brief depiction of dissociation/depersonalization, one G-rated scary moment, and SO MANY FEELINGS. <3 Complete warnings for this story are on this post!
Summary: Akashi and Furihata are best friends, but they’re both holding on to a few secrets. Akashi is struggling to face the darkness of his past, a strict and painful childhood that he doesn’t fully remember. Meanwhile, Furihata has been dreaming about Akashi every night—and not in a platonic way.
Then Furihata has an unexpected encounter with Akashi’s other self, who makes a strange request. Soon Furihata is keeping more secrets than he can count, and fighting to keep his newfound feelings hidden, from both of Akashi’s selves. But what will happen when he learns more about the darkness lurking in Akashi’s past?
A/N: Forgot to post this again! ^^; Here’s the new chapter, in case anyone didn’t see it go up yesterday. Thank you so much again for your patience over the past couple months, while I edited this chapter and also took time to be with my grandmother. And hopefully the length does help make up for the unexpected wait, at least a little. <3 Hope everyone is well, and staying as safe as possible!
Chapter Nine: Heartstrings
Akashi was seven years old, the first time that he was permitted to invite other children to the family estate.
“Your mother and I have discussed it at length,” his father said, one night when the three of them were seated at the dinner table. “Your studies take priority, but you still need to learn how to make the right connections with your peers. Do you understand, Seijuurou?”
Akashi nodded. Even at his age, he fully grasped the value of his family training. He knew how to carry himself with dignity, and speak eloquently, and display the ideal etiquette in every situation. Clearly, socializing was just another area of life in which he would need to exceed expectations.
“See that you choose your acquaintances carefully,” his father added. “Never forget who you are, or conduct yourself in a way that is beneath you. It is not for an Akashi to associate with just anyone.”
Yay, Chapter Nine is finally posted! As I mentioned over on Ao3, I’ve been looking forward to sharing this one for a loooong time. I don’t have much to share in the way of cultural notes, but I still had some pretty big things I wanted to talk about… Like info about the mental health topics from the therapy scene, plus a ton of rambling about things I’ve been researching and/or planning for a while. So if that’s something you’re interested in, well… enjoy? //laughs
As always, I updated the Pinterest inspiration board with images inspired by the new chapter. (I actually did that last month, which was when I originally intended to post the chapter before my schedule fell apart… So anyone who was checking the board during that time got an accidental sneak peak of what was coming next. Oops? ^^;) You can check the board out here.
And with that, on to the notes!
Cut for a writer babbling on and on about mental health research, references to earlier events in the series, and also violins (!!) …
Akashi’s Childhood Friendships
So the first scene of Chapter Nine features a headcanon of mine that has been popping up throughout the series… Which is that when Akashi started going to school, he attended a private elementary school that mainly catered to elite, wealthy families and their children. He was generally encouraged to spend time with his classmates, rather than seeking friends elsewhere, and he never made any close friends from a different social “class” until he started going to Teikou. (Which he joined specifically because he asked his mother if he could go somewhere that was different from his elementary school.)
As this chapter reveals, he never told his father about the friends he ended up making through basketball, because of the values he was modeled earlier in life. This was actually brought up alllll the way back in The Fast Train to Kyoto. (Though it was pretty vague!) In fact, Akashi referenced it in the very first scene:
Maybe it was the echoes of his father’s voice inside his head, just another series of frosty words he ached to forget:
“It is not for an Akashi to associate with just anyone. Your time is valuable, Seijuurou, and so is your reputation. See that you don’t waste it, on trivial pursuits, or persons unworthy of your stature.”
Akashi cringed. ‘Persons unworthy of his stature? What a ridiculous idea. Everyone he had ever known who had made his life worthwhile, had no particular wealth or rank to speak of. (With the crucial exception of his mother.) He had long ago discarded this principle of his father’s as nonsense.
I also explained the backstory with his elementary school and his struggle to make friends in a lot more detail in Chapter Three of Fast Train. (As well as why he decided to go to Teikou, and how he started making friends there, particularly Midorima.)
That aspect of his childhood turned out to be pretty important in the series, so I thought it was worth mentioning that Akashi did talk about it before… Especially since those early values still affect how he sees his friendships, plus it’s one of the reasons why he’s been trying to keep those friends as separate from his home life as possible. (Until Furihata came along and wanted to sleep over at his house, and he just couldn’t say no to his BFF, apparently? //laughs)
Attachment Theory, Disorganized Attachment, and Dissociation
So, uh… I’m not qualified to talk about any of this, like, at all. //laughs That being said, I’ll start with a big disclaimer: I am not a mental health professional, or an expert about this subject in any way whatsoever. So if anything I say doesn’t make sense or I get any of the details wrong, I sincerely apologize in advance! This is just based on the research I’ve done and some first-person accounts I’ve read over the years. As a non-expert, I find a lot of psychology theory to be difficult to research in general… Since a lot of the science is still being studied and verified, and things are becoming outdated all the time.
Okay, so with all that being said… In this chapter, Akashi’s psychiatrist brings up a theory in psychology called attachment theory. If you’d like to learn the basics of how it started, the Wikipedia article has a decent overview of the initial studies. Basically, the theory has to do with the idea that children bond with their primary caregiver (stereotypically the mother, but it doesn’t have to be) either successfully or unsuccessfully, based on how the caregiver responds to the child’s needs. A child who bonds with their caregiver in a healthy, successful way is said to be “securely” attached, while an unhealthy bond is an “insecure attachment.”
From there, it gets more complicated… There are a few different types/forms of insecure attachment, and these types can be classified in different ways, depending on the study. (There’s also something called “attachment style,” which from what I can tell is an idea inspired by attachment theory, that adults will have a general style of bonding that originates from their main caregiver bond in childhood. This idea is often used to help adults work through issues in their adult relationships.) For example, there’s generally an “anxious” form of attachment where the child is overly scared and tends to cling to their caregiver if they try to leave, out of fear that they won’t get the care they need. Then there’s an “avoidant” type where the child tends to push the caregiver away or ignore them, and can seem very apathetic and independent. (Even though they’re actually just as scared on the inside of not being cared for as an “anxious” child.)
As you can imagine, there are a lot of theories about why this happens, and what exactly in the caregiving process could contribute to it. What’s more, some children display both anxiety and avoidance… A form of this is called “disorganized attachment.” As Akashi’s psychiatrist explains, this describes a behavioral pattern where the child clings to their caregiver AND pushes them away, sometimes very close together. This style seems to often develop when the child has been through some kind of early trauma, often severe abuse or neglect. It also seems to be prevalent among people with dissociation disorders, which isn’t surprising, given the common thread of childhood trauma between the two. You can read more about that in this article here.
Actually, I first learned about disorganized attachment—and attachment in general—when I was reading a blog many years ago that was written by someone chronicling their experience with Dissociative Identity Disorder. As I researched the subject in more detail, I came across a few explanations about how children with this attachment style tend to act very confused and distressed around their caregivers, and I found the descriptions really sad… It helped me begin to better understand some of the difficulties that these children go through, and how it affects their minds when they’re still developing. It’s not hard to imagine how a child who longs to be taken care of but also has painful experiences of being denied that care (for whatever reason) can really struggle with trying to make sense of their reality and survive it on an emotional level. And that struggle causes lasting damage.
It’s important to note, though, that some psychologists will caution against assuming that a child’s attachment to their primary caregiver always dictates how they will attach to other people in their life, or in their future relationships. Also, there’s some evidence that children may struggle with attachment issues not just because of the actions of their caregiver, but also due to their own personality/ genetic predispositions. You can read more about both of these topics here.
Way back when I started planning this series, and deciding how to portray Akashi’s backstory, I found myself returning over and over to the concept of disorganized attachment… I wasn’t sure if it would make it into the fic directly, and it’s certainly not the only thing that influenced my portrayal of Akashi’s mental health. But it was definitely something I had in mind from the start, and helped shape the series, so I’m glad that I did end up referencing it in some detail.
The Akashi Family Servants
Since I just introduced the housekeeper, now seems as good a time as any to mention this… Originally, I didn’t plan for the servants who work for the Akashi family to have roles in the series at all? XD Takeda is the only one who’s mentioned in The Fast Train to Kyoto, and he doesn’t have a name. (I refer to him as either Akashi’s “driver” or “valet” depending on what he’s doing… This was actually before I’d decided that Takeda is the one who drives Akashi around when he’s in Kyoto. OTL) Then I mentioned several of the servants during Furihata’s visit in Storming the Castle… But almost no one gets a real introduction? Except for the butler, Ginhara. //laughs
One reason why I took so long to give them names/describe them is that I try to mostly stick to writing about canon characters in fics, instead of creating a ton of OCs. (I consider the families of the KnB characters to be canon, since they’re in the fanbooks. XD) But I enjoy coming up with minor characters, if it feels like a good fit for the story! Still, you can really tell that I didn’t know I would end up using these characters as much as I did, because their names are alllll over the place… Especially Takeda, which is roughly the Japanese equivalent of naming a character Mr. Smith or something? (LOL.) For a while I really regretted that I didn’t come up with a more interesting name for him, since he ended up being in this series CONSTANTLY. Also, I recently received this incredible comment on Chapter 5 of The Fast Train to Kyoto and it’s one of my all-time FAVORITES:
“Yo the drivers probs just sitting in the front like
Mmm this tea is piping hot”
(And they signed their name Yeet too, omgggg XDD)
… So yeah, I have decided this is totally Takeda’s reaction, to Akashi and Furihata’s whole “friend breakup” in the rain in the first story. //laughs
That said, I kind of love that Takeda has such a generic name now? Especially after he showed up at Seirin in sunglasses in this chapter. (Like maybe Takeda isn’t even his real name, because he actually had an exciting former life as a secret agent or something like that, and now he’s working for this super rich kid from a powerful family and maybe he’s actually hiding some epic skills so he can double as Akashi’s bodyguard if he needs to…? I DON’T KNOW, I HAVE WEIRD HEADCANONS.)
In any case, I enjoyed coming up with the characters for the Akashi family staff, even though it took a while! And I’m glad a few of them were able to play an interesting part in sneaking Akashi out of the house, so his dad wouldn’t find out about Furihata. (Though we don’t know what any of them think about that, or not yet, at least. XD) There will be at least one more member of the staff who gets an introduction, which should be coming soon. But for now, we’ve got:
Takeda, Akashi’s personal valet (and driver, sometimes)
Ginhara, the Akashi family butler and head of staff
Umagami Ichiro, Yukimaru’s groom
Inuyama, Akashi’s father’s personal valet
Hanamitsu Atsuko, housekeeper for the Akashi mansion in Tokyo
The Akashi family chef (name???)
(Plus some maids, who I also did not name)
… And as you can see, most of them still don’t have given names, even the ones with family names. That’s how disorganized I’ve been about this. //laughs
Also, I have a feeling no one was actually wondering (lol), but if you happen to remember this scene from Episode 63 in the Teikou arc in the anime:
In my headcanons, this guy is the head chauffeur for the Akashi family household, and he used to drive the whole family around. (Which would mean that he was also mentioned in The Fast Train to Kyoto, in a brief flashback about Akashi and his parents! Where he’s just “the driver.” XD) Now he mostly drives Akashi’s father to work, and sometimes chauffeurs Akashi as well, when he’s in Tokyo. (Whereas Takeda drives him around in Kyoto.) I briefly referred to him as Onoda in Chapter One of The Vanishing Prince, so… I guess that’s the name I came up with for him? //laughs
TL;DR… I’ve really enjoyed writing about the various characters who work for the Akashi family, and I had way more fun including them in the story than I expected. <3 (Maybe I should give in and post character sketches for all the OCs in this series sometime… That would be a project. XD)
Beliefs About Ghosts
I might go into this more in a future chapter, but I did want to briefly discuss how Reo talks to Furihata about ghosts, and how/why they haunt certain places… There are a LOT of different beliefs all over the world about whether ghosts are real, and why they appear. There are also lots of theories about whether they need the help of living humans to pass on or not.
For this fic, I tried to include some of the most common beliefs in Reo’s response, including the “revenge” ghost stories that are super common in Japanese folklore. But it’s not a comprehensive explanation by any means, and there are a lot of people who believe in ghosts and spirits but wouldn’t agree with the ideas Reo mentioned. (Basically, I had to pick among a bunch of different supernatural ideas about ghosts for the fic, and these are some of the ones I chose to include? But that’s not to say that they’re representative of my own beliefs, or of every Japanese person who believes in ghosts, either!)
The Akashi Family Curse (…?)
So I know some readers have been discussing this and making predictions about it in the comments for a while now… And while I don’t want to spoil anything about where the story is going, I’m really excited that I finally got to reveal another piece of the legend/rumors about the Akashi family curse:
Furihata’s mouth dropped open. It never occurred to him that some people might still think that the Akashis were cursed, centuries later. Or that these rumors were somehow connected to their catlike eyes. Was that maybe even how the peasants in the legend came up with the curse in the first place? Were they just creeped out, by this super-rare genetic thing that ran in the family?
Or… could it be true? Could the Akashi family really be cursed?
I can’t remember if anyone specifically connected the dots about the legend being connected to the “catlike” eyes or not… But if you saw this coming, YES YOU WERE TOTALLY RIGHT AND I AM IMPRESSED. <333
As for what the legend/rumors say about how the curse works, and whether or not it’s actually real… I guess I shouldn’t go into that just yet, for the sake of spoilers. XD But hopefully you can have fun guessing for now! And I’m glad I can finally point to the connection between the idea of a family curse and the “catlike eyes” to explain why I kept including so many passages like this one:
He and Akashi were walking through another long passageway. This one was lined with life-sized portraits—and oddly enough, Furihata recognized some of the faces. He had seen them in paintings in the Tokyo house.
“Are these your relatives?” he asked. They didn’t resemble Akashi very much. But a few did have the same unusual, catlike pupils.
Akashi nodded, as he glanced up at the huge frames. “They led the family, several generations ago. This one was my great-great-great-great-great grandfather.”
He gestured to the largest painting. The steel-haired man in the portrait wore a piercing frown. Even his posture was severe, somehow.
… Yeah, there are a BUNCH of descriptions in A Spark of Light of portraits of Akashi’s relatives, and how some of them have the same eyes as him. Also, as I’m sure a lot of people noticed, I mention Akashi’s eyes A LOT throughout the series. And this is one of the reasons why I wanted to emphasize it so much. XD
(Well, okay and also like a lot of fic writers, I enjoy pretty descriptions about eyes. XD BUT I WOULD’VE TRIED TO CUT MORE OF THEM IF IT WASN’T SUCH AN IMPORTANT PLOT POINT… Or so I’ll claim, anyway. //laughs)
And Finally… THE VIOLIN
Ahhh I’m so happy I finally got to post this scene! I’ve been saving the moment of Akashi playing his violin for Furihata for a loooong time… I foreshadowed it briefly back in Storming the Castle, when Furihata notices Akashi’s violin case sitting in his study. But I got the idea for this scene even earlier… All the way back when I drafted that part in The Fast Train to Kyoto, where Akashi plays his violin after he writes to Furihata to tell him they can’t be friends. (YES. IT HAS BEEN THAT LONG.)
So, yeah… I had no idea know how long it would take to get there, but I definitely knew that Akashi would have to play his violin for Furihata at some point. And I wanted it to be a Really Big Moment in their romantic arc. So I did the best I could with it. (Because, I mean… How could I NOT include a scene where Akashi plays the violin for Furihata? That just had to happen, come on. //laughs)
As I mentioned over on Ao3, I do have my own idea about which piece Akashi plays for Furi… I might even mention it directly in the next chapter, but I’m not sure yet? (Either way, if you have a piece that you’d like to imagine him playing instead, you have my blessing. xD I tried to write it in such a way that he could be playing a lot of different songs!) So here was my thought process on that…
I figured Akashi would probably decide to play something on the simple side for Furihata, rather than anything too technical/demanding on the ear. I also realized that he was probably thinking that Furihata would like a sweet, romantic sort of song, because of this scene from Storming the Castle:
“Oh, r-right.” Furihata let go of the flower. He managed a laugh. “Sorry. I’m being weird, huh?”
“I just never realized you had such an interest in roses,” Akashi said, with a hint of humor. “But it shouldn’t surprise me, really.”
Furihata didn’t follow. “Why’s that?”
The edge of Akashi’s mouth dimpled. “Well, you are a romantic, after all.”
And that was when I realized… ROSES. Like, what if the piece had to do with roses, because Akashi was remembering that conversation about Furihata’s romantic side that they had in his rose garden…? So in my head, Akashi plays a version of The Last Rose of Summer, which is this really sweet, old Irish song that was later set to a poem of that name, written by Thomas Moore. It’s an easier piece to play, so it’s a little difficult to find a nice version of it by a professional violinist. But I did find this arrangement that is SUPER old-fashioned and adorable:
And my personal favorite version with strings that I found (and linked first on Ao3) is probably this one. Though I believe the violin doesn’t start until around a minute and a half into the recording?
(My sister and I thought the first soloist *might* be a viola… Apologies if we’re wrong though!! We took band a thousand years ago in high school but didn’t play in an orchestra, so we’re basically clueless about anything with strings. XD)
Anyway, I just thought that the song would be fitting because of the whole “bonding over roses” connection to Storming the Castle, and the fact that they’re still on summer vacation in this story… Plus the words of the poem are kind of the most Oreshi thing I’ve ever heard??? It’s REALLY sad, but also all about friendship. You can hear how it’s sung and see the complete lyrics in this version by Charlotte Church if you’d like (again, the song starts at around 1:30), but I’ll also include the beginning and end of the poem here:
Tis the last rose of summer,
Left blooming alone,
All her lovely companions
Are faded and gone.
…
So soon may I follow
When friendships decay;
And from love's shining circle
The gems drop away
When true hearts lie wither'd
And fond ones are flow'n
Oh! Who would inhabit
This bleak world alone?
… TELL ME THAT’S NOT AN ORESHI KIND OF POEM. It’s all about friendship and being afraid of being alone, and I just… gahhhh. T_____T
Also, you might have noticed that the versions I linked don’t have any parts where the soloist plucks the violin strings, which I described Akashi doing at one point… That’s because I like to think that in between playing a simpler version, Akashi also slips into a few sections of Variations on the Last Rose of Summer by Ernst, which you can see the violinist Midori playing here. (Unlike the other versions I linked, this is one of the hardest pieces ever written for violin, period… Apparently it’s so difficult that many top-tier professionals won’t even play it in front of a crowd! So for those of you who want to picture him playing something more badass, I’ve got you covered. XD)
(And while we’re still on the subject of different versions… My all-time favorite when it comes to different instruments playing The Last Rose of Summer has got to be this one. BECAUSE IT’S A KOTO, LIKE OMGGGG YES. Honestly, if my series had a sound, I’d like to think that it would be this…? Because roses and traditional Japanese instruments, that’s why. //laughs)
Also, I’m not sure whether anyone was curious about this part of the scene:
Akashi chuckled as he unlatched the case. Resting on a bed of crimson silk was a delicately carved violin. Furihata didn’t know how to tell if an instrument was well made, but he was pretty sure that this one had to be.
So I do indeed headcanon that Akashi would have a really nice violin… For those who might not know, violins can be EXTREMELY expensive, most notably at the professional and soloist quality levels. As in, the famous Stradivarius violins are valued at $10 million or MORE, for example. XD Though I personally tend to think that Akashi probably wouldn’t play a Strad himself… He’d have too much reverence for the instrument for that. //laughs (Although I wouldn’t be surprised if his family owns a Stradivarius and lends it out to some world-famous soloist… Which is apparently how it works in real life, by the way!) But I still imagine that his violin would be a super fancy one, maybe somewhere in the $100k range or something? (And now I’m just imagining Furihata finding that out and freaking out, lol.)
And last but not least, since I’m already rambling a lot, I would like to credit a new favorite YouTube channel of mine that I discovered while writing the violin scene… I really wanted to make sure that I described the violin playing correctly, because like I mentioned, I understand nothing about stringed instruments whatsoever. (I was a very mediocre flute player, once upon a time. //laughs)
So while I was hunting for references, I stumbled across TwoSet Violin, and OMG THEY ARE THE COOLEST CHANNEL EVER. I’d recommend them to literally everyone, even if you don’t play the violin or have any interest in classical music! They’re two professional violinists from Australia who make tons of super-entertaining content, like analyzing the way actors pretend to play instruments in movies and Chinese dramas, or trying to play the cheapest violin they can buy on Amazon. And it’s FANTASTIC. XD They’re super skilled and funny, and they even inspired me to listen to classical music again, so yeah, I can’t recommend them enough. <3
Well, this post turned out a lot longer than I expected…? //laughs In any case, I hope it was interesting, and thank you for reading! And as I said over on Ao3, thank you again to all of my lovely readers for your patience, especially while I dealt with my grandmother’s passing. I have the next chapter of the fic drafted, just like last time, but it does have some issues so I’m not sure how long it will take to edit. (Hopefully less time than this one did. OTL) I’ll definitely do my best to post it as soon as I can. In the meantime, I really hope everyone is staying safe, and see you then!
OKAY SO FIRST OF ALL, BOKUSHI AS GORDON RAMSAY, I AM SCREAMING
Also the Akashi one is so perfect, like the whole idea of him flailing in front of his conspiracy board being all, “But how is it possible that Furihata-kun could ever detect that I am less than well???” and it’s like... Akashi, Furi’s not that clueless, and also you haven’t been okay since this story started.
You haven’t been okay since you were ten.
FURI CAN TELL, ALL RIGHT? YOU’RE NOT THAT MYSTERIOUS aNYMORE.
(cue devastated Akashi face)
... Anyway the point is that I love these more than anything?! One of my fics has been made into memes and my life is now complete. XD THANK YOU SO MUCH, YOU’RE AMAZING. <3<3<3
Hi everyone! Im a new proyect of artist and a begginer at digital art so any tips or coments you can give me will be great!
This is a tribute of one of my favorites fics of all the times, a series call it “A Spark of Light” (Still in progress and getting better and better!) by @courtingstars highly recommended even if you arent in this fandom.
English isnt my first language so my apoligies if I wrote something strange.
Oh my goodness, I love this so much!! <3 I can’t even begin to express how happy I was when I found this in my email notifications. It really brightened my week, so hopefully you don’t mind me reblogging it.
Thank you so much for sharing this lovely piece! And for tagging me so I could see it. It means so much to me to hear that you enjoy the series, and I’m really honored that it inspired you. <3
Chapter Eight has been posted! I don’t have nearly as many notes this time. (Which is good, because it took me a lot less time to draft this post. XD;) Still, I did want to bring up a couple of things that I thought might be worth mentioning.
And as always, I updated the inspiration board for this fic over on Pinterest, so feel free to check out the new images if you feel like it/have access to Pinterest. (The most recently added images are at the top, so when you scroll down, you’re basically going backwards through the story.) And with that, onto the notes...
(Cut for the ramblings of a writer who overthinks everything, and also some very important notes about omurice, because I LOVED writing that part…)
Akashi and His Mom, Plus Heian Poetry
This is basically just a note to say that I really loved being able to write the scene with Akashi and his mom. <3 I think it’s the first scene of them together that I’ve posted online…? (Though I’ve written lots of scenes where Akashi talks about his mother, or has a very brief memory of her.) I wrote something short about them for Mother’s Day years ago, but I never finished it, sadly. So it felt nice to finally be able to include a glimpse of how I see their interactions.
Also, the part about Japanese poetry is indeed a thing! A lot of the Heian-era poetry in Japan revolves around themes of courtly love, and because of how courting worked in that time period, they often feature various forms of pining-for-your-lover-from-a-distance. So like Akashi says, there was a folk belief that if you were missing your lover enough, you would appear in each other’s dreams, so that you could at least be together in the dream world. Like this site about the poet Ono-no-Komachi explains, “the intensity of one's feelings for one's lover could induce him to appear in one's dream or could cause one to appear in his dreams.” I always thought that was a fascinating concept. (Also the idea that Akashi would be studying those poems at six years old is just really funny to me? But anyway. //laughs)
Akashi’s Issues, Poor Guy
I don’t want to go into too much detail here, but I thought it might be worth mentioning… One of the things I really wanted to explore in this fic (and the series as a whole) is the reality that working on mental health problems can be a very difficult and often nonlinear process. While it’s not the only plot line of the story—and I definitely don’t claim to have done a great job with it by any means, though I try my best!—I felt like it was important to take the time to show how a person’s struggles with mental illness don’t just get solved overnight. Akashi has been fighting a lot of the same problems throughout the series, because these kinds of emotional hang-ups and coping mechanisms aren’t easy to change.
To be honest, it felt somewhat counterintuitive to me as a writer, because back when I was trying to publish original stories, there was this idea that you weren’t supposed to write characters “brooding” for too long or repeat the same issues/mistakes over and over. Basically, the characters needed to show growth quickly, and passages that could be seen as repetitive should probably be cut, because they weren’t “progressing the story.” While I can understand that idea in a writing sense, I tend to feel like it’s not a very fair representation of what it’s like to struggle with mental health. (Which also applies to a lot of other kinds of personal issues/growth as well, honestly. Change is just hard in general.)
So I’m definitely trying to walk a balance between not writing the same scenes over and over, while also showing Akashi’s struggles as an ongoing journey for him. The latter was really important to me, both as a writer, and as someone who’s had cycles and setbacks with my own mental health stuff.
Bokushi Is Still Kind of an Asshole, Lol
On kind of a similar note… I have no idea how Bokushi comes across as a character at this point in the story? //laughs But if anyone finds him to be kind of a jerk, I will say that’s an intentional choice, at least. Ideally, I wanted him to be likable but still flawed, and I do find him hilarious personally, but… Hopefully it’s obvious that I don’t think he’s a perfect person, by any means. XD;
I think I’ve said before that I really want to use this storyline as a chance to explore my view of his character—and the why/how of how his personality differs from Oreshi—in as much detail as possible. Hopefully it ends up coming across as nuanced in the long run… But if nothing else, I hope it’s at least fairly interesting to read! Because I do find him extremely interesting as a character.
Omurice!
So here’s my major cultural note for the chapter… I’m guessing a lot of people are already aware of the fact that Furihata’s favorite food in canon is omurice, since it tends to pop up in AkaFuri fics a lot. For anyone who’s not familiar with the dish, omurice (a borrowed compound word for “rice omelet”) is a Western-inspired Japanese dish that’s extremely popular as a comfort food. (This type of Western-inspired cuisine is generally called yoshoku. Which I think I also mentioned in Storming the Castle, but… it’s been awhile? //laughs)
So basically, omurice consists of pan-fried rice that’s usually seasoned with either ketchup (often considered the more homey/classic version) or demi-glace sauce (more often seen in restaurants). Like in a lot of fried rice recipes, vegetables and meat are added to the rice, and then the whole thing is served beneath a super-fluffy egg omelet. It typically looks like this, or this. I’ve made it before, and enjoyed it way more than I expected. So while I was writing this chapter, I couldn’t resist preparing one of my own (for research purposes of course, lol):
I’m not a good cook, to put it mildly, but I was proud that this one came out a little better than the last time I tried it. XD
To me, the coolest thing about watching someone prepare omurice is the part where they plate the omelet... This can be done a few different ways, and some take more skill than others. (I totally cheat, by making a single-layer omelet and just setting it on top of the rice as best I can. XD) The most difficult way (and the way Furihata does it in the fic!) is to layer the omelet on top of itself while you’re cooking it, so that it becomes a kind of pouch that you can slice open over the rice. There’s a great animation of this process over on my Pinterest board, and I also really recommend two videos on Youtube if you’d like to see more… This clip features an amazing chef from the most famous omurice restaurant in Kyoto, and this one is an iconic scene from Tampopo, a classic Japanese film. To learn more about the context of those clips, and about omurice in general, I also recommend this really fun article about it.
The thing I find the most interesting about omurice is that it’s such a popular comfort food, so it’s often associated with home and family life. That’s why in The Fast Train to Kyoto, I was inspired to have Furihata’s mom make him omurice when he’s having a bad day. At the same time, though, the dish can also have a bit of a “lovey dovey” connotation to it? Like how in this survey it was one of the top foods that Japanese guys said they would like their girlfriends to make for them. (Hence the trope of decorating the omelet with a ketchup heart, as Bokushi mentions, in his extremely Bokushi way. //laughs)
For all these reasons, I tend to think of omurice as the perfect favorite food for a character like Furihata. It definitely inspired how I write about him, especially when it comes to things like his family life as well as his romantic side. <3
So How About All Those Storming the Castle References Huh
This is just a quick note to say that if anyone happened to be confused by some of the references in this chapter, a lot of them were referring back to events from Part Two of Storming the Castle. (Like the first time Furihata saw Akashi’s dad, the huge portrait of Akashi and his parents in the ballroom, the butsudan altar, the secret passage with the stairs, the ghost, etc, etc… Also the character of Ginhara, since he’s the butler who runs the mansion in Tokyo.)
I tend to be pretty indecisive about exactly how much detail I should use to explain something that happened earlier in the series… Since I know some people might not have read the earlier fics, and at the same time, I don’t want to be too repetitive for those who have? In any case, if anything was confusing/unclear, it was probably a callback to that story. (Oh, and there was also a callback to The Fast Train to Kyoto, about when Akashi and Furihata talked about becoming friends!)
Well, that’s it from me this time around. Thank you so much for reading, as always. As I mentioned in more detail over on Ao3, I really hope everyone is staying safe where possible, and supporting each other in this difficult time. I will do my best to get the next chapter posted very soon. <3
Rating: PG-13 (for mild sexual tension and some intense/creepy scenes)
Pairing: AkaFuri
Word Count: 19,000
Warnings: Adorable dorks as usual, Reo being his utterly fabulous self, tons of supernatural stuff (tarot cards, etc), Furi is Not Straight, and Akashi has a whole bunch of issues, poor guy. Complete warnings for this story are on this post!
Summary: Akashi and Furihata are best friends, but they’re both holding on to a few secrets. Akashi is struggling to face the darkness of his past, a strict and painful childhood that he doesn’t fully remember. Meanwhile, Furihata has been dreaming about Akashi every night—and not in a platonic way.
Then Furihata has an unexpected encounter with Akashi’s other self, who makes a strange request. Soon Furihata is keeping more secrets than he can count, and fighting to keep his newfound feelings hidden, from both of Akashi’s selves. But what will happen when he learns more about the darkness lurking in Akashi’s past?
A/N: Forgot to post this! Here’s the new chapter, just in case anyone didn’t see the notes go up yesterday. And I apologize for the terribly long wait. Hopefully the extra-long update makes up for it, at least a little bit? And I’m hoping to have the next chapter posted very soon! In the meantime, enjoy. <3 And I really hope everyone is staying as safe and well as possible.
Chapter Seven: Between the Lines
Furihata was four years old, and too scared to move. He huddled under his blanket, clutching his teddy bear to his chest, and fought back tears.
His star-shaped nightlight was on. His parents had told him it would chase away all the monsters—and it did, sometimes. Other times, the monsters came into his room anyway. They loomed beside the window, or crouched near his closet.
Furihata didn’t want to see them, so he would shut his eyes and hide. Sometimes they growled, or said his given name. He didn’t know how they found out what it was.
“Kouki, Kouki…”
The monsters were like shadows, or see-through people. They stared at him with empty eyes, from beneath their tangled hair.
Finally, Chapter Seven! This one had a bunch of cultural notes for the first scene, but not so much for the rest. And I tried to keep it brief, but, well, it’s me? //laughs
Also, I’ve been regularly updating the Pinterest board for this fic, so feel free to check it out if you want to see some extra visuals for the new chapter! (Including some beautiful photos of platform dining along the Kamo River, Buddhist temples, the tarot cards that appear in the chapter, and so on.) I update it as I post each chapter, so there are no spoiler-y images.
And with that, let’s get into the notes!
Cut for rambling about things like Japanese temples, Buddhist prayer, shielding, salt, Abe no Seimei, clay bell charms, and tarot…
On Praying at Japanese Temples and Pure Land Buddhism
So I won’t go into a whole essay about Buddhist temples in Japan versus Shinto shrines, or how both are important to many Japanese people in a cultural (though not always religious) sense. But it’s probably worth mentioning that while they do belong to different religious practices, the buildings often have certain features in common, which are connected to Japanese spiritual beliefs in general.
One of those things is the chouzuya (or temizuya), which is an ablutions pavilion placed near the front of the temple/shrine where visitors can wash themselves. There’s a standard way to do it, where you rinse both hands, your mouth, and then your hand again. The process is called temizu. Incidentally, I found this explanation of why chouzuya are included at both shrines and temples to be really interesting!
If you’re curious to learn more about how to pray at a Buddhist temple in Japan, I found some helpful articles about the basics here and here. As for the specific prayer that Furihata prays, it’s called the nenbutsu, which is extremely important to believers of Pure Land Buddhism in Japan. Pure Land Buddhist sects are centered around Amida Buddha, and over half of the temples in Kyoto are dedicated to him. I found a really beautiful video from NHK about the many statues of Amida Buddha in Kyoto here, which I highly recommend watching if you want to learn more. (Unfortunately, it’s only accessible until August 2020!)
As a side note, it’s worth pointing out that a lot of Japanese people don’t consider themselves strictly Buddhist or Shintoist. Some do, but for many others, visiting a temple or shrine can be more of a cultural practice or tradition. (Like the holiday custom of the first shrine visit of the new year, for example.) There’s a saying in Japan about being born Shinto and dying Buddhist that conveys the general idea… I think it’s worth pointing this out because in western countries, a lot of people will casually participate in Christian traditions (like Christmas, for example), but not as often for multiple religions? While in Japan, this spiritual syncretism isn’t considered unusual at all—in fact, it’s pretty much the norm.
Zuisenji Temple
Okay, so to be entirely honest, I chose this temple as a setting mostly because it was close to the yakiniku restaurant…? //laughs I was looking for a temple that Furihata and Mibuchi could find quickly, but would also be appropriate for the scene in terms of the layout and sect. I eventually found this one, which is a small temple located in the middle of the city. It also has an adorable website with some great photos! The site is only in Japanese, but you can still check out here.
Shielding and Salt
This subject is pretty easy to research if you want to learn more—and I’m guessing a lot of people know about it already!—but I figured I should mention that Mibuchi teaches Furihata how to protect his energy through a visualization exercise. People now use this type of technique across many different spiritual and health practices, but it has roots in Eastern meditation, like in Buddhism. The light visualization from the chapter is used in various modern metaphysical circles that believe in paranormal gifts like empathy and clairvoyance, where it’s often called “shielding.”
As for the salt that Mibuchi gives to Furihata, salt is believed to have supernatural cleansing and protective qualities in many different cultures, Japan included! You can learn more about Japan’s long history with salt as a purifier in this article.
Also, I probably should have mentioned this back in the section about Buddhist temples, but Japanese people (as well as people from many other cultures!) believe that smoke from incense is purifying as well. That’s why you can often find crowds of visitors standing around the incense burners at temples, wafting the smoke over themselves. I randomly stumbled across this clip of the Asakusa temple in Tokyo, where you can see the visitors doing just that.
Abe no Seimei, Seimei Jinja, Bellflowers, and Clay Bell Talismans
I won’t discuss Abe no Seimei and onmyouji in any detail here, because 1) I’m no expert, and 2) it’s so interesting/complex that I’d have to ramble about it forever to do it justice? //laughs Basically, onmyouji are Japanese magic practitioners who had considerable social power in the Heian era. (A similar term in English might be “sorcerer.”) They practice onmyoudou, which is sometimes translated as “yinyang divination” or “the way of yin and yang.” It’s a style of divination and esoteric magic that borrows heavily from Chinese beliefs like the five elements.
Abe no Seimei was the most renowned onmyouji from the Heian era, and he’s still incredibly famous in Japan today. There are all kinds of legends about him—like that his mother was actually a kitsune, or fox spirit—and he does, in fact, have a shrine dedicated to him in Kyoto, which is called Seimei Jinja or Seimei Shrine. The five-pointed star, or pentagram, is associated with Abe no Seimei, and symbolizes the five elements. A flower with five petals called a bellflower is also associated with him for the same reason.
And yes, the bell that Mibuchi gives to Furihata does exist! Clay bells or dorei are a type of omamori, or protective charm, which are often sold in the Kyoto area. In Japan, bells in general are believed to have the ability to drive away negative spirits. (This article goes into a lot of detail on the use of bells in Japanese culture, both historical and modern, if you’re interested!) At Seimei Jinja, the bell charms are a hand-painted item that visitors can purchase for protection. Since bellflowers bloom in late spring to midsummer, the bells painted around that time of year have purple bellflowers on them. (Just like the one Furihata receives in the fic!)
You can see the various types of omamori that are sold at Seimei Shrine here.
Yakiniku and Kawayuka
I think a lot of people are familiar with yakiniku, but just in case… Yakiniku means “grilled meat,” and, uh, that’s exactly what it is? //laughs With yakiniku, you typically cook the meat yourself, using a grill that’s placed on your table. The restaurant in this chapter was roughly inspired by the yakiniku chain Hiro, which has a location in central Kyoto that offers kawayuka platform dining in the summer.
As for kawayuka dining, I included an explanation about it in the notes for an earlier chapter, that pretty much covered what I wanted to say… But if you’d like to check out some great visuals, there’s a more detailed explanation of the tradition in this article, along with photos from some restaurants that offer it. (Including the yakiniku one!) I also found a lot of gorgeous photos over on Pinterest, of what the platforms look like at night when they’re all lit up along the Kamogawa River. (“Kamogawa” literally means “Kamo River,” so in English, it’s called either Kamo or Kamogawa depending on the translation.) Like this one and this one.
Furihata’s Tarot Reading, and The Lantern Thing Again
So I mentioned back in the notes for Chapter Three that a few years ago, I did a tarot reading for Akashi, and I was surprised by how the cards I drew fit so well with the storyline of this fic… Well, I did one for Furihata too, which was the same reading I included in this chapter! I did change two of the cards—one was the card Mibuchi didn’t show—because while I knew what they meant and how they related to where the plot is going, I decided that a similar-but-slightly-different card would illustrate it better, for someone who isn’t me? //laughs Still, the core meaning and the vast majority of the cards are identical.
And on that note, now for something SUPER WEIRD… Way, way back when I was working on The Fast Train to Kyoto, I wrote a dream sequence where Furihata carries a paper lantern to guide him through the forest. At the time, I got the idea from his given name Kouki, which includes the kanji for light. Then I started writing Storming the Castle, and included a made-up fairy tale where a boy with a candle represented Furihata. Around the time I was finishing that fic, I started getting into tarot and learning all the card meanings. This was when I did these tarot readings for Akashi and Furihata… And the central card in Furihata’s spread, the very first one I drew for him, was The Hermit. I have to be honest, seeing him represented by a guy holding a lantern kind of had me freaking out…? //laughs Especially when I learned more about the meaning of the card, and how the lantern represents the inner wisdom guiding the Hermit. Which I thought was a pretty great metaphor for Furihata’s intuitive and supernatural gifts, that gradually develop over the course of the series.
So yeah, I definitely didn’t plan all of the symbolism with Furihata and his lantern. But it’s become one of the most important metaphors in the series, and I really love the coincidence/synchronicity of how that all came together. (And I also find it a little bit eerie, but I’m a superstitious nerd, so… yeah. //laughs)
Anyway, this definitely won’t be the last time I mention a lantern in relation to Furihata, you can be sure of that. XD
I Still Really Like Writing Furihata’s Brother, Lol
And last but not least, I would just like to say that I was REALLY SUPER HAPPY that Furihata’s family made a guest appearance in this chapter! Specifically his mom and older brother. For those of you that remember Part One of Storming the Castle, you already know that I have wayyyy too much fun writing about the Furihatas, and about Furi’s brother in particular. (Who doesn’t have a name in canon, but goes by Kintarou in my fics.) He’s just… such an older brother, and nothing like Furi at all. So I really enjoy writing conversations between them. XD
Oddly enough, I wrote most of their conversation in this chapter a very long time ago, before I’d even finished Storming the Castle. (I have a lot of detailed notes for The Vanishing Prince, because I wanted to make sure I didn’t forget where I wanted the series to go… Which turned out to be a VERY good thing, given how long it’s taken to write. OTL) I wasn’t sure whether I was going to include this scene in the final version or not, so I was super happy when it found a place in the story…
… Because I really wanted to reveal that Furihata’s family could TOTALLY TELL that their youngest member had a crush on Akashi! //laughs I knew that back when I was writing those scenes in Storming the Castle, because COME ON, FURI, IT WAS SO PAINFULLY OBVIOUS. XD So I’m delighted to be able to finally confirm that was the case! (Even though I have a feeling that literally everyone except Furihata and Akashi knew already…? //laughs) I also wanted to include the conversation because I liked how it showed that Furihata is still working through how he feels about being bisexual, and a few of the questions that sometimes go along with that.
Well, that’s it for Chapter Seven! As I mentioned over on Ao3, I already have Chapter Eight drafted, so I’ll start editing it this week and post it as soon as I can. In the meantime, thank you so much for reading my random notes! And I really hope everyone is staying well and safe. See you soon. <3
These Wonderful Things Chapter 6: The Road Before Us (MidoTaka)
You can read this fic on Ao3!
Rating: T (language, sexual tension, so much sexual tension)
Pairings: MidoTaka (Other chapters include KagaKuro, AkaFuri, heavily implied KiKasa and AoMomo, and platonic friendship MuraHimu)
Word Count: 15k
Warnings: Holiday fluff, a rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest are being really cute anyway god help me.
Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”
It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.
Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.
…
A/N: IT’S THE MIDOTAKA CHAPTER. <3 I’m so happy I can finally share the last part of this story! This chapter is the longest of the six, and it’s filled with a ton of my favorite things about MidoTaka (and KnB in general, in a lot of ways). I’ve had some of these ideas in my head for a long time, so I’m glad I was finally able to write them down. And it feels like a fitting story to start the new year, too.
Fair warning, this chapter is also the steamiest… I couldn’t keep these two away from each other, apparently? //laughs It still fits squarely in the T/PG-13 rating, though. Enjoy, and happy New Year, everyone! <3
…
Midorima Shintarou wasn’t nervous. Because he wasn’t going on a date.
He wasn’t excited, either, or any other related frame of mind… True, he kept checking the clock on his desk, often enough that it seemed like the minutes were ticking by in slow motion. And true, he had reloaded the weather report on his phone too many times to count. Which was why he kept changing clothes. First a long coat, which he later switched to a sweater, and then he tried to add a jacket but the result was too bulky so he had to start the entire process all over again.
It was purely because of the weather, though. Not for any other possible reason. Absolutely not.
So… Wow. I kind of can’t believe this is the last chapter. And I have to say, this one was a ride—or at least it was for me to write, anyway. //laughs Which seems appropriate, given the overall themes. And it also feels appropriate to be posting it on New Year’s Eve, given what the story ended up being about.
I knew this chapter would be the longest, once I realized some of the things I wanted to include in it. And that hopefully it would include pretty much everything I love the most about MidoTaka, and also about KnB in general. I don’t know how well I pulled that off, but I definitely got emotional writing it. <3
As a matter of fact, the first fic I ever wrote for KnB was a MidoTaka fic! (It’s here on my Tumblr, but I never even posted it to Ao3.) I haven’t written nearly as much about them as I have for some other pairings. Still, I kind of feel like I got my start in the fandom with MidoTaka, and I have a LOT of feelings about them, for all kinds of reasons. So I really, really loved getting to write a chapter about these two, being super amazing partners and also really super in love, and hopefully it shows. <3
I do have some of my usual notes this time around, mostly a few cultural things. (And also some random flailing, about FINALLY getting to write about certain things I’ve had swirling around in my head for a long time. XD) I might write a different post later about this fic overall, and how it turned into something I honestly wasn’t expecting… But for now, let’s get on with the MidoTaka goodness!
(Cut for rambling about things like family headcanons, a few Japanese winter foods, lucky pencils, Takao’s nerdy card hobby, and the symbolism of five yen coins…)
Family Headcanons
This isn’t really a proper note, just some goofy flailing because I FINALLY GOT TO WRITE ABOUT MIDORIMA AND TAKAO’S FAMILIES, HURRAY. I’m also so unbelievably happy that there was a cameo with Midorima’s little sister! I love her so much, especially that she likes nail art. (I have a pointless headcanon that Midorima borrows nail files from her. xD) I’m also overjoyed that I FINALLY got to mention that I headcanon Midorima’s mother as being a surgeon, and his father as a scientist. Because super-successful overachieving green family, that’s why? //laughs
(In case it wasn’t obvious already, I am way, WAY too into family headcanons… There’s probably nothing I love more than coming up with what a character’s family might be like, and how they fit into their family dynamic. To the point that I have a TON of ideas about all of the GoM’s families, some of which I hinted at throughout this story… Because apparently I can’t help myself anymore. XD)
The Rear Car
This is also not a proper note in any way, but… I’m just so happy that the rear car is in this! XDD I hinted at a few personal headcanons about it in the chapter, including that they don’t use it regularly by their third year in high school. But it just seemed like it couldn’t be a MidoTaka fic without it, so I’m overjoyed that I was able to come up with a way to work it into a holiday fic…
… And because I’m a nerd, I love it even more because it just fits the “Sleigh Ride” theme SO PERFECTLY. XD It’s been a while, but I think that was even how I decided on the carol for the fic in the first place? Like, “OMG maybe Takao could decorate the rear car and they could ride around in it and it would be sort of like the song and that way the last chapter actually fits the most and IT’S PERFECT?!” Ah, the things I get excited about as a nerdy writer. //laughs
Hot Water Bottle Covers
… I’m not really sure if I should even make this a note, honestly. XD But I happened to get the idea for the cutesy hot water bottle covers that look like animals while I was doing a search for the Japanese word for hot water bottle. Which is yutanpo (ゆたんぽ), if anyone was curious!
Oden and Oshiruko
And now about the meal… Oden is a type of stew that is super popular in Japan in the wintertime, so it’s one of the foods that tends to be culturally associated with the season. There are a lot of different ingredients that can be in it, some of which can be pretty unfamiliar to people who aren’t from Japan. You can learn more about some of them in articles like this one. And yes, you can totally buy oden in a convenience store! (Which are everywhere in Japan and called ‘konbini’ for short.)
As for shiruko (or more formally, oshiruko!), this is the Japanese version of red bean soup. It’s prepared a few different ways, and the recipe varies by region. KnB fans will probably know it best as what Midorima is always drinking out of a can. XD So no surprise that it popped up in this chapter, really!
Yushima Tenmagu
This is just a quick mention about the lucky pencils Midorima gives Takao… As Midorima said, these came from a shrine called Yushima Tenmagu, which is pretty famous as a place for Japanese students to buy good luck charms to pass their exams. (Also if I remember correctly, Midorima has this running gag throughout some of the series extras about trying to figure out how to get better scores on his exams, and even about a lucky pencil? So it just seemed to fit. //laughs)
Magic the Gathering, Apparently
… Okay so first of all, I know literally nothing about Magic the Gathering. So if you happen to be an MtG fan and I screwed something up, I’m very sorry. //laughs
In any case, it’s a longtime headcanon of mine that Takao plays MtG. Since of course it’s one of the most famous trading card games in the world, and it’s still popular in Japan and played in the gaming communities there. And as Takao fans out there will know, his canon hobby is collecting trading cards, which he specifically shops for at a pretty famous Tokyo shopping center called Nakano Broadway. (All of which got a mention in this chapter!)
Also, if you’re wondering how long I’ve had the MtG headcanon specifically… Well, here’s a quote from my fic The Fast Train to Kyoto, where Akashi and Furihata run into Takao while shopping at Nakano Broadway:
“Why do you like to come here, if I may ask?” Akashi said.
“Oh, right. You guys gotta see this.” Takao started to rummage through one of his shopping bags. “I’m a loser for trading cards. Magic, mostly—play a lot of Magic.”
… Because the point guards in KnB are all huge nerds in my mind, and I WILL STAND BY THAT THEORY FOREVER. XD
(And no, I honestly had no idea that I would ever reuse that particular headcanon, especially in a holiday story? But it’s me, and I can’t seem to stop connecting all these totally unnecessary details, even in my fluff fanfics, so… I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. //laughs)
The Symbolism of Five Yen Coins
Okay, I have to admit really love this one, because of course I just sort of stumbled onto the idea by “accident.” //laughs So a few weeks back, I was trying to figure out what lucky item would work for Takao’s gift in the story. The real-life Oha-Asa has listed coins as a lucky item for multiple astrological signs over the years, so I was playing around with that idea… And that was when I learned about the symbolism of the five yen piece in Japanese currency. At which point I completely geeked out, and decided on the spot that I just HAD to use it.
So a five yen coin is pronounced “go-en” in Japanese. Which also sounds like another word that basically means a bond or connection, and has connotations of fate as well. For this reason, there are a lot of superstitions around five yen coins—it’s often used at shrines to pray, for example—and it’s basically connected to the idea of meeting people and making connections in a fortunate or “destined” way. Which just seems so fitting for Midorima and Takao, and how they met and later became partners! And also how I see all the relationships in KnB in general. <3
For an explanation from a Japanese person about some of the symbolism behind the five yen piece, I really recommend this article here! And Wikipedia also mentions some ways that the five yen piece is used culturally.
Well, that’s it for now! I might end up editing this a bit at some point, since I’m writing it in a hurry to post it on New Year’s. But I really wanted to get the final chapter up as soon as I could, so people could read the completed fic if they wanted.
Well, thank you all so much for indulging me in my holiday fic mood this year! Happy New Year, and I hope you all have an amazing 2020 ahead. I know I definitely have a lot of goals and things I’m thinking about and hoping for, and I might talk more about that soon. (As well as try to catch up on some messages and other to-do’s I’ve been horribly neglecting.) But for now, it just feels right to finally be able to complete this story, which ended up meaning way, way more to me than I ever expected it to. (Like KnB and these precious rainbow basketball kids in general, really. <3)
Finally, it’s the Momoi and Aomine chapter! I tried to make these notes as brief as possible, but I did have some things I wanted to mention. Mostly some cultural notes, and a few personal ramblings.
References to The Seven Wishes
So I feel like I opened this chapter in pretty much the sappiest way possible? //laughs One of the things I’ve always loved about Momoi’s character (which I’m guessing is obvious) is how important her friends are to her, particularly the Generation of Miracles and the bonds they formed while they were at Teikou. So when I write about Momoi, I have a tendency to highlight that part of her backstory.
The start of the chapter is also related to another fic I finished this year, called The Seven Wishes. It was a one-shot about Momoi and the GoM that was included in the KNB 10thAnniversary zine, and I had every intention of posting an edited version of it online months ago. But life got busy, and it’s still not up yet. OTL After I finish posting this Christmas fic, The Seven Wishes is the next thing on my list! So if you’re curious about my headcanon that Momoi started making seven wishes for her and her friends, you should be able to check out the story that inspired the opening of this chapter very soon.
(Cut for some more notes about part-time jobs and highschoolers in Japan, Christmas Eve food, shopping in Ginza, kotatsu tables, and headcanons about Aomine’s backstory…)
Part-Time Jobs and High School Students
This isn’t crucial to the story, but I did want to note that in Japan, schools often have specific rules about whether or not their students can get a part time job. The policy varies a lot from school to school, and it seems like the rules might not always be enforced? But I did read at least one account of a high school that only allows its third-year students to get jobs. Aomine is in his third year in this story, so it’s not too surprising he’d be able to work… But I did think it was worth noting that it’s not a given in Japanese schools by any means.
Budonoki Christmas Cakes and KFC
So I think I’ve already talked in the notes for this fic about how the classic Christmas Eve meal in Japan is KFC chicken and cake… In this chapter, Momoi preorders a cake from Budonoki, a longtime supplier of this type of dessert in Japan. Each year, they even have a special Christmas site displaying their cake specials for the season. There’s generally a classic strawberry cake, a chocolate version, and often a Yule log style cake as well (called Buche de Noel). It’s a great example of what these Christmas cakes in Japan tend to look like!
And yes, there’s also a longtime tradition of eating KFC in Japan on Christmas Eve. XD (To the point that it’s pretty easy to find photos of long lines in front of KFCs in Japan on the 24th. //laughs) You can even order from them in advance, and they have special full meals that are prepared just for the holiday.
I’ve always found these traditions really fascinating, honestly… Particularly because even though these are Western-style foods, they’re very different from what Westerners generally eat on Christmas? To learn more about the history and possible origin of these traditions, you can check out articles like this.
Ginza Department Stores
I included a reference to the Ginza shopping district in this chapter, since the area is generally known for having the most high-end shopping in Tokyo. It has a ton of famous brands, as well as some very fancy department stores. You can read about some of them in this article here.
As for Momoi’s necklace, I didn’t find a specific piece that I was picturing for the story! (What I saw in my head was on the simple side, because I knew it wouldn’t make sense for it to be too overly extravagant.) But I did find plenty of beautiful examples of sakura pendants by companies like Mikimoto, such as this one with pearls.
Kotatsu
I’m sure a lot of people already know about kotatsu tables, but just in case you don’t, you can learn more about them in this article! I’m a huge fan of kotatsu in general. I especially love seeing them in fiction about Japan, because they have a lot of cultural associations with family and general cozy vibes. So it seemed pretty appropriate to feature one in a story about nostalgia between two childhood friends. (Especially one titled “Comfy Cozy Are We”? //laughs)
Aomine’s Backstory
So… I’ve never actually written a fic about Aomine before. Even though his character is really important to me. So important that I hesitated to write about him, because there are aspects of his story that are very meaningful and even personal to me in certain ways. I’ve always felt like would be difficult to do justice to him as a character.
So I guess it’s no surprise that for my first time writing about him, after all these years, his PoV ended up WAY more serious than I planned it to be. (And also way longer, but anyway. //laughs) Even though this was supposed to be a fluffy holiday story. (But I guess I should have known it was coming, if I was going to write about his bond with Momoi, of all people?)
In any case, this chapter ended up drawing on some of my longtime headcanons about him… I know I’m not alone in this, but I do tend to interpret how he changes in KnB canon as connected to mood issues and depression. I also see his issues as going deeper than basketball, and his canon struggles as a symptom of something much larger. (Which is kind of how I tend to interpret characters in general, like in A Spark of Light, for example.)
So while I didn’t reveal everything that’s been going on in his life in this story, I did hint at his background and some aspects of his home life that I’ve had as headcanons for a long time. And I’m definitely planning to explore my take on Aomine a lot more in my future verse/future WIP, which I’ll hopefully talk more about in the new year.
Well, that’s it for this chapter! Thank you all for indulging me in my holiday fic feelings. XD This story is almost complete, but I did save my favorite chapter for last. And I’ll be posting it very soon. <3
These Wonderful Things Chapter 5: Comfy Cozy Are We (AoMomo)
You can read this fic on Ao3!
Rating: T (language, sexual tension in previous chapters)
Pairings: Heavily implied AoMomo (Other chapters include KagaKuro, AkaFuri, MidoTaka, and platonic friendship MuraHimu)
Word Count: 11k
Warnings: Holiday fluff, a rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest are being really cute anyway god help me. (Also a content warning for a brief reference to self-harming thoughts.)
Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”
It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.
Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.
…
A/N: Ahhh I’m so glad I finally get to post a story about Aomine and Momoi! My goal for this chapter was basically to give myself as many feelings as possible, so, uh… yeah. It’s a lot? //laughs Enjoy! And happy post holidays, to those of you who’ve been celebrating. <3 Also, please be sure to check the content warning in the opening notes.
…
Momoi Satsuki smiled to herself, as she folded the last paper star.
It was pink, of course. She liked to do the pink one after the rest of the rainbow was already complete. She had folded origami cranes in these seven colors before, and balloons, and boats. But the stars were probably her favorite.
Tonight, she was making them with extra care, while she sat at the kotatsu in the living room of her family’s apartment. She threaded a string through each one, then carried it over to the miniature Christmas tree she had arranged on a corner table. And as she hung each star on the tree, she made a wish.
Yay, I can’t believe I’m finally getting to post this! I’m going to try to keep the notes shorter, just for efficiency’s sake. But I did want to highlight a few things I mentioned in this chapter, for anyone who might be curious about them.
The Sensouji Temple in Asakusa
Sensouji Temple is one of those temples that’s so famous that I’m betting a lot of people have seen it before, even if they don’t remember what it’s called… It’s the one in the Tokyo area with a GIANT lantern hanging inside a gate. It’s a common stop for tourists, and just in general, especially around important cultural holidays like New Years.
So why did I include it in a MuraHimu friendship fic? Well, because Yousen has actually been pictured visiting this particular temple (or more specifically, the nearby Nakamise Street), so you could argue that the visit I mentioned in this chapter is in fact canon:
(Ahhhh I still get feelings about all the team love in that ending, IT’S SO GOOD.)
(Cut for notes about Nakamise Street, kumihimo, the real-life inspiration for Himuro’s university, and more sexuality headcanons of mine for some reason…?)
Nakamise Street
This is the side street next to the Sensouji temple, that has TONS of souvenir stands. And there’s a lot of good food too, of course! To learn more about some of the stuff you can buy there, you can check out articles like this and this.
As for the store where Murasakibara checks out the kumihino jewelry, that was based on a shop called Kiryudo, that’s located nearby! I found out more about the shops near Nakamise in articles like this one.
Kumihimo Braids
I don’t know a lot about kumihimo braiding, to be honest! But it seems like it’s pretty well known internationally. (To the point that there are a lot of books and tutorials for it in English, for example!) Basically, it’s a traditional Japanese craft, and you can buy kumihimo cords in Japan that were braided by highly skilled artisans. Historically, they were used on things like samurai armor, and they’re still used in traditional kimono clothing. Nowadays, they’re also sold as things like bracelets and key chains. (And even camera straps!) You can search “kumihimo” and find a lot of really cool designs.
I’m not a hundred percent sure where I initially got the idea to have Murasakibara buy kumihimo bracelets. (I’m guessing it was probably during my research about Sensouji.) But once I did, I just had to use it because… COME ON, IT’S A MURAHIMU FIC THAT’S ABOUT FRIENDSHIP BRACELETS. XD Even my platonic friendship fics are super over the top, clearly. //laughs
About Himuro’s University
So it’s been a longtime headcanon of mine that several of the KnB characters end up going to a sports science university in Tokyo! Their university is based on a school called Nippon Sport Science University, or Nittaidai for short, which has trained many of Japan’s most decorated athletes.
Like everything else in These Wonderful Things, this particular headcanon goes with my future verse (and future fic WIP) called The Last Miracle. Some of the characters who go to this university include Nijimura, Himuro, Murasakibara, Ogiwara, and Takao. (And I definitely want to write about that more someday, like in a side story or something… Because that’s quite the group. //laughs)
More Sexuality Headcanons, Apparently
I won’t go into this in a lot of detail, but speaking of The Last Miracle and its related headcanons… Somehow more of my sexuality headcanons about the characters ended up in this chapter? Which wasn’t planned, but I just decided to go with it. //laughs Either way, I was excited to be able to write my personal take on these two as a pair, because it was a ton of fun to write. <3
So I tend to headcanon Murasakibara and Himuro as close friends, rather than a romantic couple. (Although anyone is more than welcome to read my take on them as “friendship that could someday become romantic,” because I can totally see that too!) As for why, I’ll just let Kise and Kasamatsu sum it up from Chapter Three:
“Oh, and Murasakibaracchi was asking me about taste in jewelry. So I’m pretty sure the world is ending.”
“I thought you said he wasn’t dating anybody.”
“He’s not! God, no. No way. I’m pretty sure he doesn’t care about any of that stuff.”
I’ve had a headcanon for a whlie that Murasakibara and Himuro are both on the aromantic spectrum. And that one of the reasons their friendship means a lot to them is because they aren’t as interested in romantic connections. I don’t remember exactly when I got the idea for KnB, but I do remember reading fan headcanons back in the Livejournal days about “heterosexual life partners,” and I always thought something like that would be interesting to write about? (Although Himuro clearly isn’t heterosexual in this fic. But anyway. //laughs)
In any case, this is something I definitely want to explore more in my future verse at some point. But since I did allude to it in this story, I thought it was worth briefly mentioning!
And that’s it! Thank you so much for reading. <3 I thought about including more info on Christmas cakes in Japan, but I think I’ve basically covered that in other chapters. (And there will be more about them in the next one too, probably!) I really did have so much fun writing this—Murasakibara’s PoV is one of my favorite PoVs to write ever, haha—so I’m glad I could finally share it. I hope everyone is still having a great holiday season, and I’ll be posting the last two chapters of this fic very soon. <3
(... And the next chapter is AoMomo ahhhhh I can’t believe I finally get to post something about them, IT HAS SO MANY FEELINGS, DON’T EVEN GET ME STARTED.)
These Wonderful Things Chapter 4: Birds of a Feather (Mura & Himu)
You can read this fic on Ao3!
Rating: T (language, sexual references, sexual tension in previous chapters)
Pairings: MuraHimu friendship! (Other chapters include KagaKuro, AkaFuri, MidoTaka, and heavily implied AoMomo)
Word Count: 8k
Warnings: Holiday fluff, a rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest are being really cute anyway god help me.
Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”
It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.
Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.
...
A/N: Here’s a brand new chapter to this story, in honor of the 2019 holidays! This one is a platonic friendship fic about Murasakibara and Himuro, and it has TONS of headcanons. It was also ridiculously fun for me to write and hopefully it shows. Their PoVs are just a joy. //laughs Happy holidays! <3
...
Murasakibara Atsushi thought Christmas was kind of boring, to be honest.
The cake and fried chicken were good, of course. And the decorations were okay, though it wasn’t like he went out of his way to see any. The presents were fun when you were a kid, and people just gave you stuff.
But when you were older, it wasn’t like that. Then Christmas was about going on super-expensive dates and dressing up and being in a romantic relationship. And, like, making sure everyone saw you hold hands in public. Or something. He couldn’t make sense of it.
It was also about shopping, apparently. Which was the most boring part of all.
These Wonderful Things Chapter 3: The Songs We Love to Sing (KiKasa)
You can read this fic on Ao3!
Rating: T (language, making out and sexual tension in previous chapters)
Pairings: KiKasa(Other chapters include KagaKuro, AkaFuri, MidoTaka, heavily implied AoMomo, and platonic friendship MuraHimu)
Word Count: 8k
Warnings: Holiday fluff, a rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest are being really cute anyway god help me.
Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”
It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.
Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.
A/N: It’s the KiKasa chapter, yay! I hope you all enjoy it, because I really did have a lot of fun writing it. <3 (And a lot of feelings. SO MANY FEELINGS.)
Kise Ryouta didn’t have any plans for Christmas Eve. Which was totally fine by him.
But he probably should have known where he would end up, when it got late and everyone else was out being all mushy with each other.
“Seriously, senpai.” He shook his head. “I know you’re a starving college student. But how do you not even have cocoa?”
Kise said this like it was a staple. Because it was, at least in December. And how did his senpai not get that?
Kasamatsu was rummaging through the cabinets, beside the placemat-sized counter of his apartment kitchenette. He made that gruff noise in the back of his throat. The one that meant Kise had better get ready, because he was about to get told off.
Reblogging this because I added a few edits in honor of the holidays! Nothing drastic, but I really wanted to explore their dynamic in a little more detail. <3
And that’s it for the reblogged chapters! I’ll be posting the three brand-new chapters of this story VERY soon. Next up is the MuraHimu friendship chapter, YAY. <3<3<3
These Wonderful Things Chapter 2: Nothing In The World Can Buy (AkaFuri)
You can read this fic on Ao3!
Rating: T (language, some kissing/making out, mild sexual tension)
Pairings: AkaFuri (Other chapters include KagaKuro, MidoTaka, heavily implied KiKasa and AoMomo, and platonic friendship MuraHimu)
Word Count: 10k
Warnings: Holiday fluff, a whole rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest of them are being really cute anyway god help me. This chapter includes some mild sexual tension.
Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”
It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a very special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.
Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.
A/N: Yay, the AkaFuri chapter! I’ve been waiting to share this one for SO LONG. Also, I apologize for posting this later than I meant to… I’ve definitely been in recovery mode from the holidays. I hope all you AkaFuri fans out there enjoy it! (I do consider it related to many of my other AkaFuri fics, but I was careful to avoid any spoilers for those stories so it can be read separately.)
Akashi Seijuurou enjoyed it when everything went according to plan. He liked using both his instincts and his logical prowess to carefully select an optimal strategy, and all the best methods to execute it. He preferred to feel he had adequately considered the variables, and had enough contingencies at his disposal, in the event something went wrong.
But what he enjoyed the most by far, was when a plan made someone he loved look the way his boyfriend looked now.
“I still can’t believe we’re doing this.” Furihata’s voice was hushed, audibly giddy. He leaned a little closer toward Akashi, elbow resting on the armrest between them. He kept glancing back at the wide window of the train car.
Reblogging this chapter because I made some minor edits in honor of the 2019 holiday season! <3 You can read more about that in my update post here. (And the new chapters are coming very soon, YAY.)
An important reminder: This chapter takes place in the same universe as my AkaFuri series, A Spark of Light, which is ongoing. So it technically has mild spoilers for those fics. (Mostly vague stuff like “Do they get together?”, etc.) I wrote it to stand on its own, but if you’re a reader of that series and want to read everything chronologically, you might want to skip this chapter for now!
