#kaneki ken

[magicalks]

Inspired by: X

[crash-and-burn-ghoul]

I, like 90% of other Tokyo Ghoul fans, hate the anime adaptation for messing up the story and characters. However I do think it could’ve worked, if they’d committed to their weird “What if…?” scenario.

I think what they should’ve done, was had the anime be a bad ending. Since Kaneki joins Aogiri, he ends up going through a corruption arc and most of the events in the manga would never happen. Thus :re wouldn’t happen, and if it did it would be completely different and Kaneki would genuinely have a really bad outcome.

Yeah it still wouldn’t have been a good adaptation, but at least it wasn’t trying to be the manga, it was doing it’s own thing.

[crash-and-burn-ghoul]

The reveal at the end of Tokyo Ghoul :re, that Hide’s parents were CCG and were killed by ghouls is genuinely so heartbreaking and shocking. When I first read it I was literally stunned but I actually love this choice. I mean, holy shit, Hide knew the entire time that Kaneki was a ghoul and not once did he show any resentment towards him. He continued to support and defend his best friend, even after he’d disfigured him, and it’s just… wow.

It’s also parallels him surprisingly well with Akira Mado. Both of her parents were also killed by ghouls, and she followed in their footsteps to become a ghoul investigator as well. So when her human best friend and her lover is turned into a ghoul, she doesn’t really know what to think. She eventually ends up fine with it, but having to go from hunting ghouls daily and murdering them being a casual thing, to suddenly your closest companions are ghouls, it is a tough thing to process.

Yet, this makes Hide even more intriguing because he remains loyal to Kaneki and even Touka after discovering the truth. Of course it’s because Kaneki was there for him after his parents died, but still. Interesting thoughts.

[cupsofhottea]

I don't think I'll ever get around to writing this because every time I open the document, I feel like this 💔

But adult Ichika's perspective in a story where she tells us about the loss of her father, her mother's life alone, and how she knows her mother feels lonely—yet deep down, deep down, she knows her mother was always stronger than her father and copes with the pain better than her father ever could have.

And there are little moments, like Touka praying in the small space dedicated to Kaneki’s memory, tending to the little garden Kaneki left behind, seeing how the others who are still alive keep Touka company, and her father’s birthday, when Touka fell asleep next to his gravestone. And how Touka doesn’t want to leave the house where she raised her children and lived with Kaneki until the very end.

[oneeyedmusings]

could you write headcanons for reader with a sad mopey Shironeki who is averse to touch?

〖 (Shiro) Kaneki who is averse to touch 〗

Kaneki is often in a distant, almost mopey state. His hair falls over his eyes, and his fingers twitch restlessly as old phantom pains and more recent traumas linger at the edges of his mind.

Because of the relentless agony etched into his nerves and the fragile state of his fractured psyche, physical contact is a minefield for him. A sudden hand on his shoulder is enough to make him flinch violently, his breath catching as his eyes widen with panic.

You know this better than anyone. You’ve learned the art of existing in the same space as him without ever asking for a touch he isn’t ready to give. You never crowd him. Even in the smallest moments, you’re careful to leave him room to breathe, and he smiles gratefully when he realizes you’re respecting his boundaries.

However, he desperately craves warmth and affection, but his own skin feels as though it’s crawling with memories of torture. Even when he wants comfort, his body often recoils before he can allow himself to accept it.

On the days when his mood sinks particularly low, Kaneki curls up on the edge of the sofa with his knees pulled tightly against his chest, staring blankly at the floor. Somehow, he seems smaller like this, completely swallowed by the dark clothing he favors.

You never try to force him out of it. Instead, you quietly bring him a cup of coffee, setting it down onto the table just within his reach before retreating to a comfortable distance.

Kaneki’s gaze flickers toward the cup, then slowly rises to you. His fingers fidget nervously, a guilty, self-deprecating frown tugging at his lips. He hates being like this around you. More than that, he hates that he has become a burden.

"I’m sorry." He murmurs, his voice barely carrying through the silence. "I’m not… very good company today."

You simply offer him a gentle, understanding smile before sitting on the opposite end of the sofa, or into the armchair across from him. You make no attempt to coax him into conversation or convince him to feel better. You just show him that he doesn’t have to perform, pretend, or apologize for not being okay. The tension in his hunched shoulders gradually vanishes. After a while, he picks up the cup, wrapping both hands around it, taking comfort in its warmth.

Sometimes, when the night grows heavy and Kaneki begins spiraling into despair, you notice him trembling, his fingers digging into his own forearms as though he’s desperately trying to ground himself in a body he barely recognizes.

You never rush to grab his hands, speaking softly instead and grounding him with your voice. You ask him simple questions or read aloud from whatever book happens to be nearest, giving his overwhelmed mind something steady and familiar to cling to.

Hearing your voice works like a slow balm against his frayed nerves. Kaneki eventually releases a shuddering breath, his fingers gradually loosening against his arms. When he finally looks at you, his gaze holds devotion that he rarely knows how to put into words.

If there is ever a rare moment when he initiates touch—a hesitant brush of his knuckles against your sleeve, or the briefest moment of resting his forehead against your shoulder—your breath catches, but you remain completely still. You let him decide when, how, and for how long.

Those fleeting, almost imperceptible gestures cost him an immense amount of courage. When you don’t pull away or look at him with pity, the relief in his eyes is unmistakable. He feels as though he has reached for something without being punished for it.

Even without embraces or intertwined fingers, there is something profound in the space between you. An unspoken, deep-rooted bond that requires no constant touch to prove its existence.

Kaneki may be sad, distant, and terrified of affection, but he knows one thing without a shadow of a doubt: you are the safest place he has ever known.

▶ Masterlist ◀

[crash-and-burn-ghoul]

It’s funny that Tokyo Ghoul is considered an “edgelord” story, mostly because of the anime, when in reality it’s rather hopeful and wholesome.

It feels more akin to a Superman story, and actually reminds me a lot of “What’s so funny about truth, justice and the American way?” With its deconstruction of good and bad.

Don’t get me wrong, Tokyo Ghoul is very emo and alt, but edgy? No.

[briarboundblog]

Imagine how short Tokyo Ghoul would have been if Kaneki had gotten therapy.

[crash-and-burn-ghoul]

My absolute favourite Tokyo Ghoul scene of all time is when we see the flashbacks to Kaneki before he became Haise, and he keeps tearing his eyes out. Then Arima gifts him Sen Takatsuki books for him to read, that way Kaneki has to stop hurting himself so he can actually read them, oughhghh it’s so good. The fact that Eto signed them for him is so good too. I love this scene man.

(I also love the part where the shitty anime decided not to adapt any of it!!)