Although what you are about to see is a work of fiction

Devil Summoner ficlet- Narumi and That Cat

2011-09-18T07:27:11Z

Narumi and Gouto hadn’t been on the best terms at first. Circumstances had made it impossible and impractical for Narumi to kick out his high school demon tamer and gofer, but a cat hadn’t been part of the deal.

But it had. Any normal male high school student wouldn’t be caught dead with a cat following him all around town, but Narumi was constantly reminded of how normality didn’t seem to apply to Raidou. Knowing that, it was a wonder it’d taken Narumi so long to figure out that Gouto wasn’t quite a normal cat.

But the clawed up furniture, broken glasses, and dirty paw prints everywhere made it hard to remember. It was when Narumi started catching Raidou staring—just staring—at Gouto that he began to wonder. But then the cat would find a dust ball and go crazy for it and Narumi would shake the weird feeling off.

Then, one day, Raidou had somehow left without his feline friend. The two were rarely ever apart, and it was a bit disconcerting to see the cat just snoozing away on the (thoroughly slashed) sofa. Narumi was reading the paper, but he couldn’t help it. He glanced at the cat, back to
the article about Third impending armagedon this year in Kabuki-cho! and back at the cat. Narumi took a quick look around him. Raidou had gone off not twenty minutes before. He had time.

Narumi loudly folded up his newspaper while staring at the cat. Narumi cleared his throat. That cat didn’t budge.

“Er…” said Narumi.

Nothing.

Narumi got up from his seat and walked over to the sofa until he wasn’t two feet from it. Gouto’s left ear twitched and Narumi took it as a sign. He squatted down and stared at the cat. There was something a bit different about it. It didn’t have the….Narumi didn’t know how to explain it.

Narumi rubbed at the back of his neck, wondering how to start. Gouto twitched again and Narumi thought to hell with it.

“So…Gouto. You’re a pretty swingin’ cat. I can see why Raidou likes you. You’re pretty uh…sleek…and seein’ as you follow the kid around, I guess you’re pretty keen on him too…”

Nothing.

“Now, the kid ain’t here, so I wanna be straight with you. You’re not a normal cat—I got that much—but I’m not really sure what you are. Raidou’s a good kid though, aces, and I’m inclined to believe that whatever you are, you’re a straight deck too.”

Narumi rubbed the back of his neck some more and watched the cat for any signs of unfeline actions. He wondered how to say the next part, the realized he was wondering how to talk to a cat and figured he best just get on with it.

“I’d appreciate it if you’d square with me, Gouto. I know I send him a fair share of work—I have things I need done, and he’s good at doing them. But I don’t send him on errands that call for coming home at 2am, looking like a sack of beaten tomatoes, savvy? I know something’s up and I know you know what it is.”

Gouto’s fur shined a little in the fading light. Narumi sighed. Of all the things he’d done (and he’d done a lot), talking to a cat had to be up there on the crazy list. Expecting it to actually respond was the cherry on top. But if he started, he may as well finish.

“He’s special. Got something extra, that kid. I just want to help the him out if I can. ”

Narumi looked at his shredded sofa. He’d ordered that from one of the old Dutch traders that was still around. It’d been expensive. A will o’ the wisp on the ground next to it didn’t look much better. The detective was glad he didn’t have a landlord.

Narumi made to stand, feeling a right fool, when the cat cracked one of it’s eyes open. It looked back at Narumi, and they locked eyes instantly.

Narumi stared at Gouto and Gouto stared straight back at him. For almost a whole minute, they continued that way.

Then Gouto twitched his whiskers, turned to his other side, and went right back to sleep.

“Well I’ll be a monkey’s uncle,” Narumi said, blinking, “if that isn’t the most boring cat I’ve ever met.”

A Gay Story - Bog's Down Part 1

2011-08-26T16:56:30Z

I started writing a short story for pilot_star based on a prompt she'd given me, and it just keeps growing and growing.

The hansom that splashed a puddle of Bogs Down slush on me was a flash one. Nice drives, or the swanks in ‘em, only go to the Downs for three things--things they can’t be seen getting or doing in the Uppers. A loose purse strings can get you anything in the Downs, invisibility included. Funny how the Uppers always wanna stand out until they get that gnawing need for something they want just enough less than status and power. Then they’ll swear over their mother’s ashes, up and down the rivers, that it wasn’t them you saw at the Brassy Horn or Boar’sHead.

I coughed out that mixture of dirt, stale water, and waste that is the soup of Lower Ismus. The Downs were always the rankest, the waste the freshest there, sloshed up into the streets from the Ismus. The river was a giant slide of it. Made for one hell of a laundry day.

I mumbled a sloshy curse as the hansom safely rounded the corner onto Harraway Street.
That meant the swank in it was hitting the holy trinity of the Downs: moonsheen, sex, and dice.

Harraway Street had Little Bitsy’s Hall. Little Bitsy’s Hall isn’t a hall, per se, and Bitsy sure as hell ain’t little. Well, maybe at one time, when she worked the cobbles, she was. But I doubt the front of her’s ever been anything other than...imposing. All of Bitsy’s imposing, and that’s part of the reason why Little Bitsy’s Hall was making more coin than all the other whorehouses in all the Downs, hell, maybe even all of Lower. Bitsy runs a dirty joint, but no one messes with her or her people, and no snoops or blackmailers are allowed unless they’re buyin’. Thus all the coin in the joint. Well, that and the fact that you can find anything at Bitsy’s. Girls, boys, things inbetween, and sheets that get washed at least once a week.

I Couldn’t help thinking I’d love me some clean sheets as I mopped myself up. Truthful, a bit of mud didn’t make much difference. I’d been working the rivers. As in, a few houses along it. I know it’s not good and I ain’t doin’ right by no one, but I didn’t care. It’d been a few years since I had clean sheets too.

When you don’t sleep much, sheets ain’t very important. Drink is. I’d had a good night’s work, and a good night’s-worth of drink. No one cared how old or how young you were if you could pay. Sal at The Bloody Boar’d been serving me amber for seven years--since I was ten. Still, the thought of clean flesh and perfume was enough to send a guy stagger-drunk down the street. So I staggered toward’s Bitsy’s. At some point I fell, too, ‘cause I never made it to there.

I felt the cobbles pressed cold on my face. I didn’t fall on it, ‘cause my arms hurt, not my nose, and if I’m a smooth mover when I’m sober, you should see me drunk. Like a cat. S’why I chose to wet up before a job. Well, one of the reasons. Anyway, I wasn’t hurtin’ none when the posh boot appeared in front of my face. All I could think was I was fucked over, if it were the constables and I still had the rest of the night’s work in my pockets. I must have had one too many though. If I were sober-drunk instead of drunk-drunk, I’d have known those were too shiny for constable boots. Even constables can’t get the Lowers muck off of them entirely. Could say the same about their souls.

Someone, hauled me by my arms and I was off my face. Now, I’ve had to haul my fair share of person around before, and there ain’t no easy way about it. A drunk is as good as a corpse and corpses are about the hardest thing to carry. Just try it. Whoever this behemoth was though, he picked me up good and quick. Knew I was in for trouble then. I felt the world tip a bit and saw part of a top hat before everything went all black.

When I came to, I was laying in a posh bed. I coulda sworn it was made outta feathers and angel breath. Smelled like it too. I scrambled to sit up, worried about my Downs-filth clothes ruining a bed I couldn’t pay for, but someone had changed me into a nightshirt. My hair still had cobbles dirt in it, but my clothes were lyin’ in a clean pile on a chair next to the bed. The room I was in was crisp--white and blue everything. Real posh, not that sparkly naked baby angels crap and all that. I didn’t have much time to take it in, though, when a maid came shuffling in. To her credit, she didn’t yell none. I musta looked ten feet to death. I had a hangover that felt like it. The maid didn’t say much at all. Can’t really blame her.

“The Master is expecting you downstairs for breakfast. You may wear this ensemble. I will wait outside to take you to the dining room.”

And that was it. I knew I was in deep shit. I was tryin’ to figure out who’d go through this trouble for revenge, and the problem was that I could think of too many people, but not too many people with this kinda money. So I washed my face in a wash basin and tried to fix my hair a bit. I put on my “ensemble”--including jacket and bow tie. Here I ran into some trouble. I didn’t wanna stick my head out and holler at the maid. I stared down the bow tie and finally decided I could eat without something around my neck. And if the swank who’s house I was in didn’t like it, he could deal. I did button the jacket all nice though, like I’d seen on men by Bitsy’s place. I wondered about bringing my old clothes with me and figured, if I were kicked out right after breakfast, I could make do with my new ones.

My head was right pounding when I opened my door and I had a hard time focusing on the maid as she led me down a hall that was too bright for a hangover. I closed my eyes as much as I could without running into something. We went down the hall, down a staircase, and wrapped around, going down another hall, less bright. I saw pictures of swanks all over the walls, all of them dressed in exactly the same clothes. Black top hat, black cape, black vest. Great, I thought, I’ve found myself a rich undertaker.

The maid showed me into a dining room. It was posh, but not all shiny and decorated like some of the places I cased. The dining table was long, but not crazy long wheres you can’t hear no one on the other end. Which I guess is good, ‘cause, like the maid said, the Master was waiting for me. I froze a bit. Not because I knew him, but because I didn’t. I knew the faces of most the regulars that went by Bitsy’s, merely from being around the area. I began to panic. I wondered if we were along the river. The house didn’t look familiar though.

“Please, sit,” said the gentleman in front of me.

I looked at the maid, who motioned towards the table and made her way out. My mind screamed at me to stay standing. Easier to run. Or dodge. But both the man’s hands were on the table, no gun in his lap, and it didn’t look like the house staff was very big. I moved slowly to the chair and sat down on the opposite end of the table from the man.

He was swank. All class and high cheeks. A careful pretty, but something serious and strong about it. The cobble girls woulda tripped over themselves to hang on his sleeve. He had on a dark grey suit and white gloves sat by his plate. His bow tie was tied perfect. Even if he wasn’t the upper of the Uppers, he seemed to think he was. The only problem was his skin. It was a light brown color. Real Class didn’t have that. That meant he was foreign, or new money. I got more and more uncomfortable as the maid brought me a beautiful breakfast. I looked at all the forks by my plate and reached for my water instead. I needed it for that headache anyway.

“Please, make yourself comfortable for now, Mr. Brenin. Or do you prefer Mattox now? You do still go by your original given name, Leif, correct? Leif Mattox, is it? No matter, you’ll need yet another new name soon enough. And, use the outer fork first.”

I nearly spat into my water. How’d he know my name? My real name? I’d been going by Mattox for nigh on ten years. Figured Mattox sounded a bit more frightful. Easier to dodge people you don’t want to meet if they don’t really know who they’re looking for too.

“Mattox. Er, much obliged...”

“Lira. Raphael Lira.”

I almost smiled and he caught it. Sharp eyes.

“May I ask what’s so amusing, Mr. Mattox?”

I figured I’d try my luck. The swank obviously knew more than I liked anyway. Probably knew even more than that.

“Nothing. Just, your name is even more fake than mine.”

Lira’s lips curled up into a vague smirk. Yeah, the girls woulda been all over him.

“I suppose you’re right. But in this day and age, can you blame me?”

I shrugged, “Everyone in the Lowers needs a fake name, elites included. When they’re doin’ things they ain’t supposed to be.”

This seemed to please the guy immensely, though I didn’t have the foggiest why. I didn’t like the guy already, but I picked up the outer fork. Might as well eat while I could. I could run faster with a bit of food in me to sway the hangover. The food was delicious. Eggs and fresh biscuits and marmalade.

“Is it to your liking?” Lira put down his fork and laced his fingers together, looking forward.

I stopped chewing for a minute. All I could think was that it was poisoned. But Lira looked almost bored watching me, so I figured it safe and swallowed it.

“Yeah. Great.”

“Good, then I hope you’ll listen to me while you eat,” he signaled for more water and the maid from before poured it.

“Last night, you robbed two estates along the river.”

I chewed my food slowly, staring at him. It hadn’t been a question. So I shrugged. If he was a captain of the patrol or something, he would have had me in cuffs already. That meant I was in something far more serious. Shitter-deep.

“You stole some very valuable things. Things thought very well protected and treasured by their owners, who are, I dare say, livid and besides themselves.”

Yep, sounding better and better. I gnawed on a biscuit. The fact that he’d gone through the trouble of looking everything up on me meant he had a deal for me. People never do research unless it’s for a deal or revenge. Not much I could do, so I waited and played along.

“If you’re wanting me to turn myself in, you can’t prove I did anything.”

The man smiled, both sides of his mouth quirking up. I wondered if he practiced that in the mirror every morning to make it look so charming and goddamn creepy.

“I don’t want you to turn yourself in. I want to take you on. As an apprentice, of sorts.”

At that, my food nearly did kill me. He waited while I choked coughed through it. Real refined-like.

I took a huge swig of water and managed to choke out, “You what?”

I was gettin’ real worried by this point. I wasn’t the finest lookin’ head in the Lowers, but richees like this man were known to make favorites in the Lowers and disappear with them. Dungeons, whips, or just plain servant stuff. I didn’t want none of that, but I also didn’t think Mr. Lira wanted it none either. There weren’t many more guesses for why I was where I was. I wasn’t a merc, so he wasn’t wanting someone snuffed.

“I don’t like repeating myself. If you accept, I will take you with me for jobs and you may have the room you were in last night. On top of that, I will give you ten percent of any sales made from jobs. I only ask that you do not bring anyone to this estate, do not tell anyone in the Lowers where you are living, and keep renting out your old residence. I will pay for it.”

And then it started to add up. I almost laughed right there. I wiped my face with the napkin on the table and started to get up from the chair.

“Please sit,” said the gentleman thief across the table.

“Look,” I says, “I’m....er...honored that you thought of me, Mr. Lira, but partnerships ain’t ever a good thing in the Lowers. No offense, but someone always ends up stabbing and someone always ends up with a knife in their back.”

Lira nodded solemnly, but I his lips were curled up just a little. He said lowly, “But you won’t be in the Lowers, Mr. Mattox. Different rules apply here.”

“Rules is rules for thieves. You can dress ‘em up, but in the end they’re just people who steal. They steal long enough and they stop discriminating. They steal coin and loot just as easy as lives, if it’s needed.”

“Do those rules apply to you, Mr. Mattox,” he unfolded his hands and leaned back elegant in his chair. I could see he had strong shoulder lines and muscled arms that I someway didn’t see before. He was lean but strong. Perfect for a crook.

I was starting to get mad.

“Yes. Rules is rules.”

“Then you have already broken a cardinal rule of thieves and I have no reason but to trust you. You were honest just now.”

“I think you’re wrong in the head.”

He smiled primly at me, obviously enjoying every bit of it all. That was the last time I’d ever get him to smile so easily. Not that I tried much.

“I could be wrong in the head, but you’d be a fool to turn down the offer. Try the apple strudel, it’s quite savory today.”

Writing commissions!

2011-04-02T04:56:09Z

I'm trying to fund a trip to Sakura-con! I am going to do this by writing WHATEVER YOU WANT.

Here's the deal: You provide a prompt or characters or setting--anything you want (or I can just make up a fresh story for you) and I will write you a short story (at least 1,000 words) for a $20 donation to my Sakura-con fund :)

GREAT IDEA, YES/YES?

stolen from rosa_acicularis

01. Make a list of 5 things you can see without getting up.
-A wall of four Diet Coke cans. Seriously. It's like being in college, only being a writer instead.
-Diana Wynne Jones' "The Chronicles of Chrestomanci"
-A watercolor of Doumeki from XxXHolic that steam_pilot gave to me for Christmas/birthday present.
-A beautiful Natsume Yuujinchou figurine
-Ten to-do sticky notes of various colors

02. How do you style your hair?
I wash it then brush it. Sometimes I put it up.

03. What are wearing now?
Sweats, slippers, and a sleeping shirt.

04. What's your ringtone?
Queen's "Somebody to Love".

05. What do you hear right now?
The Cloudscape Anthology crew doing their perpetual comic jam which you can watch here.

06. What's your favorite guilty pleasure treat?
Yaoi. And Chinese bakery sponge cake.

07. What are you thinking about right now?
How much longer is this meme, I have to pee.

08. Write the first word that comes to mind.
Psychometry (no idea)

09. Dog person or cat person?
I've had tons of both. Right now, I plan to have five cats with my girlfriend. They will be named Phoenix, Miles, Professor, Sissel, and Gouto.

10. If you came across $2000 (or other currency) would you keep it or turn it in?
If I just found it on the street, I would keep it and use it to go to cons and pimp books/see friends.

11. What was the last thing you bought?
Diana Wynne Jones' "The Tough Guide to Fantasyland".

12. If you could afford to go anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Back to Rome. Or somewhere warm and fun with my love.

13. Where do you see yourself in 5 minutes?
In the bathroom. This meme is SO LONG.

14. Last book you read?
The Twelve Kingdoms: Skies of Dawn

15. What are you doing this weekend?
Tomorrow I'm going to Union Square to have early dinner with friends. Sunday I am sleeping and writing.

16. If you could play any musical instrument, which one would you play?
I sorta play the piano. I wish I could play it better.

17. How are you?
Alright. Unemployed, feeling insecure about my abilities, and missing my love. But I am alive and that is more than I can say for many people.

18. What are you doing tomorrow?
Food, as mentioned before. I do it every tomorrow. Mm.

19. What are you looking forward to the most?
Writing Raging Love Ranging Rangers Love Ranger and Seeing the The Shadow Story when steam_pilot finishes it :) It's going to be amazing.

memememe

2011-03-31T17:53:02Z

Stolen from kiwimangoodness

01. Anyone who looks at this entry has to post this meme and their current wallpaper at their Live Journal.
02. Explain in five sentences why you're using that wallpaper!
03. Don't change your wallpaper before doing it! The point is to see what you had on!

Yeah, didn't expect that, did you.

1. The whitespace and blues make for a good backdrop on which my icons are easy to see.
2. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is practically a national treasure among manga.
3. Look at his spandex-like suit.
4. It's fucking Giorno, bitches.
5. Secretly....I WANT TO BE A GANGSTER STAR

R.I.P. Miss Jones. Oh, but she was amazing. She was dyslexic.

2011-03-26T17:43:16Z

Diana Wynne Jones passed away today after battling with illness for a very long time. I am unreasonably sad about this. Or maybe not so unreasonably. The woman was a genius and touched so many people in twelve different worlds. So, for everyone, my favorite sentence from Howl's Moving Castle, which makes me laugh like I'm 8 all over again, and which I like to pretend shows exactly what kind of woman she was:

"But finally he discovered the stairs, all except the bottom one, and fell up them on his face."

Two Keys Volume 1 order online!

2011-03-25T00:29:33Z

steam_pilot 's and my comic, Two Keys (volume 1) is now available to order online! You can grab it HERE <3

FREE HONEYDEW SYNDROME BOOKS AND POSTERS!

2011-03-15T00:02:49Z

It's easier than your mom!

:cross-posted to honey_syn and new_shoe

Comic/Writing schedules! Advice?

2011-02-26T07:44:32Z

I realized that I have a tendency to focus on one story for a week or two, and only work on that, then switch to a different story and do the same. As a result, I get really into whatever I'm working on atm, and lose a lot of steam on other stories. So, I made this.

Does anyone have any advice, tips for handling multiple stories/projects at once?

Intelligent Conversations and Deep Thoughts

2011-02-18T05:53:23Z

schumie: you know, the hedgehog dilemma

Nuu: ...hedgehogs have a dilemma?
you mean the fact that people think hedgehogs are blue and spin really fast?
before you know it you have no flipping clue what a real hedgehog looks like
cause it's not something you see day to day unless you own one
and the only hedgehog in pop culture looks like a sarcastic shark

schumie: ..............
uhh
anyway
the hedgehog's dilemma is that they want to be close to other creatures or hedgehogs but when they get close they stick them

Nuu: that's ridiculous
who needs to be close to other creatures when you can spin realy fast
also, HOW DO THEY HAVE SEX

schumie .....they use gold rings. Golden cock rings.

Some day, I'm going to collect all of our conversations and put them in a book, title pending. On another note, sudden journal spamming, I am sorry.

If it looks like a hack and hacks like a hack

2011-02-18T03:50:31Z

Sometimes, very rarely, I like to pretend like I can draw. Then I try and remember that I cannot. Then I forget again.

The bust of Raidou was done with a writing fountain pen given to me by steam_pilot . I should probably try to do better by the lovely gift.

I will always, and forever, require Nuu's talent.

Con Hoppin'

2011-02-17T06:30:43Z

steam_pilot and I are gearing up for Momocon in Atlanta (March 12-13). After that, this is our tentative schedule...

1. Momocon (march 12-13, Atlanta)
2. Sakura-Con (April 22-24, Seattle)
3. Anime North (May 27-29, Toronto)
4. A-Kon (June 10-12, Dallas)
5.Otakon (July 29-31, Baltimore)
6. New York Anime Fest (October 14-16, NYC)
7. Yaoi-Con (?)

It's gonna be a packed con year and I'm totally looking forward to it! Anyone hitting any of those? It'd be awesome to meet/see some of you again!

I only care about memes when they care about me

2011-02-16T17:53:33Z

You totally expected to see a sad keanu, didn't you? Anyway, I thought this was a nice (appropriately dorky-literary) meme, so bam! I got it from pollums .

The rules: Don't take too long to think about it. Fifteen books you've read that will always stick with you. List the first fifteen you can recall in no more than fifteen minutes.

1. The Phantom of the Opera - I read this in high school (ironically while I was supposed to be paying attention in French class) and it has always stuck with me. I remember some parts were pretty boring and wordy (which, I'm going to get stoned for saying, also happened with the LotR for me a little too-- Tom Bombadil what?). The Phantom was just so twisted and sad. No musical can ever compare. The Phantom had the most heart-wrenching ending for a character I've ever read, except maybe the dogs in Where the Red Fern Grows, but those are dogs and this is a sad, crazy genius living under the Paris opera house.

2. Little Tricker the Squirrel Meets Big Double the Bear- Shut up. This shit is GENIUS for a little kid book. And my mom read it with the best bear voice you will ever hear.

3. If On a Winter's Night a Traveller- This book, you can't even discuss because there is so much to discuss. I never knew a book could be written in that format and it was awesome.

4. Invisible Cities- More Calvino. I never liked vignettes much (even as a licensed English teacher), but this really opened me up to vignettes, probably because it's so cohesive and poetic in its structure. I owe my love of Calvino entirely to tongari , in case anyone wondered.

5. The Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul- I actually don't remember a ton about the book, but I always remember the book. It was a really good time for me and the book was loads of fun. That's all I know. And who doesn't like some Douglas Adams?

6. The Little Prince- I feel cliche with this on here, but I don't care. I didn't read it until I visited Paris, and I don't think it's meant to be understood until you're too old to understand it.

7. Howl's Moving Castle- I was really late on the Dianna Wynne Jones uptake (I blame being a US citizen) but her writing in this is just awesome. There are a few sentences that are so illustrative, but totally ridiculous and I adore this author. Her plotting is gold too, especially for being a YA-mostly author. I think steam_pilot is the one that first turned my onto Mrs. Jones, so I must thank her.

8. Brave Story- I've never seen an author take so much time to set up a character's life BEFORE they get transported to a magical world. Great book, all 800 pages.

9. The Picture of Dorian Gray- Oscar Wilde has some of the best quotes ever. Ever. Plus, it's really gay.

10. The Phantom Tollbooth- This is sort of the precursor to Mrs. Wynne Jones for me. Tollbooth had crazy characters, puns, sleight of words, everything. It's just so fucking clever for a kids book that's meant to be read by kids (unlike, I think, The Little Prince, which is a kids book meant for adults). Tollbooth is adorable, witty, and Tock is so cute. I think I just like dedicated characters.

11. Catch-22- Introduced me to the great genre of super satire.

Comics below:
12. Tekkon Kinkreet- I love The Rat. The story and the art just mesh perfectly.

13. Immortal Rain- Hardly anyone has heard of this series. It's still not done and comes out disgustingly slow, but if I see volume 15 come out when I'm 50, I'll still read it. It's a weird mix of shounen and shoujo, and the result is something very fun and engaging that is also fully capable of ripping out your heart at any moment. Literally. The backstory volume had me in tears while laughing and that's something I don't do. I'm too cool for that.

14. X/1999- Yes. I will shame myself and say this. X is one of the very first manga I read (back when my local Borders only had DBZ, X, and Vampire Princess Miyu) and while I have a weird love-hate-hate relationship with CLAMP, X really influenced me and blew my mind. It was dark, super angsty, beautiful, super angsty, and more scarring than any other comic I'd ever seen. I think it really showed me how to set up characters and relationships. I'd give that credit to Card Captor Sakura, but at the time I was too focused on Yue and Toya to give a damn. Now I look at X and feel a bit ashamed, but I still have every volume, and I'm keeping them.

15. Words of Devotion- yes, yaoi. Why? Because it was the first yaoi I read about regular, every-day life between men living together. It's warm and realistic without falling into the angst trap. Warm, every-day life and devoted characters are my ultimate hang-ups. I am not ashamed.

Honestly, I think this is all a little unfair, as I have so many books I love, but these were the first 15 I thought of. :)

It's like leaving a puppy alone in a shoe factory...

2011-02-13T07:38:54Z

This is what happens when I'm home, hating my family, and have no friends to talk to.

Harraway Street had Little Bitsy’s Hall. Little Bitsy’s Hall isn’t a hall, per se, and Bitsy sure as hell ain’t little. Well, maybe at one time, when she worked the cobbles, she was. But I doubt the front of her’s ever been anything other than...imposing. All of Bitsy’s imposing, and that’s part of the reason why Little Bitsy’s Hall was making more coin than all the other little whorehouses in all the Downs, hell, maybe even all of Lower. Bitsy runs a dirty joint, but no one messes with her, her people, and no snoops or blackmailers are allowed, unless they’re buyin’. Thus the coin. Well, that and the fact that you can find anything at Bitsy’s. Girls, boys, things inbetween, and sheets that get washed at least once a week.

Chinese new year comic resolutions

2011-02-07T09:01:36Z

So, I was talking to steam_pilot about my shortcomings as a writer (of which there are excessive amounts, and let's not even talk about me as a person). I hate serious conversations with her because they're always insightful and make me realize I'm a horrible human being. So, I made one New Year's resolution and forced her to make one too. The focus is on our comic creation process.

Everyone knows resolutions are usually impossible to keep up with when they're personal, so I encourage all the comikers/artists/writers out there to do something related to their trade/passion. It's a lot easier to keep promises about things you like.

EDIT: Along these lines, anyone feel like reading a script? 8D (very excited about wip).

I work hard for nega-money.

2011-02-04T19:26:52Z

Despite what it may seem, I have been working on some new stuff. There's a special one-shot in development, and excerpt from which is:

Suddenly, Ty’s face appears next to Landon’s in the reflection.
Ty: I heard about a dude that died one time because he looked at his reflection too much.

Landon jumps, soaking his pant legs a bit. He doubles over, coughing. We see this in perspective from the puddle.

Ty gives him a weird look, hands on his backpack strap, leaning back on his heels.
Ty: Woah, dude. Did you just choke on your own spit?

Landon coughs, his head to the side.
L: That’s a myth. Didn’t happen. Not spit.

Ty leans back on the balls of his feat, hands on his one-strap backpack. The kind that goes across your chest.
T: Oh, really? Anyway, what were you doing? Looking for frogs? Find any?

Thus Landon and Ty meet. I don't want to say much yet, but it's much different than anything we've done before and I'm super excited. I hope steam_pilot is too. :D

Two keys is rolling along well, too. The first book is going to print soon. It will be dark and noir and art deco and full of detective and dame and quite fantastic. That's all for now. Over n' out!

Our comics on Mangafox

2011-01-08T07:20:51Z

steam_pilot and my comics, Two Keys and Honeydew Syndrome are both on Mangafox for your reading enjoyment now. Go read and bookmark <3

What's better than one key? Two Keys.

Get your Honey and a little Syn here.

You call that a crisis? Where are the mutated devil piranha? Come back later.

2010-12-18T03:40:41Z

This cheered me up a bit. This and watching the Kuragehime ending five times. I am obsessed.

I really like this song. The lyrics are a nice pep talk too.

A boy and a janitor....true love.

2010-12-17T04:01:03Z

I'm cleaning house today and finding a lot of old (crappy) stuff. I found a comic script that's about two years old. It's about an imaginative janitor and an annoying high school boy. I don't think it will ever make it to comic form, so if you'd like to see it, here ya go:

Characters:
Janitor (Mr. KK): A fairly young, but definitely adult man. Probably in his late 20’s. He’s a hard worker but hates his job. Mostly because of one student, whom he nickanames Bernard.
Student (Bernard)- B: A quiet, fiendish sort. Honest almost 98% of the time, and does well in school, but has a mean streak when it comes to Mr. KK, whom he seems to torture with trivial difficulties. He’s fairly expressionless for the most part.

*school bell rings*
Janitor is cleaning a hallway. Students are leaving the classroom near him.

A shot of a girl flirting with a guy against a hallway wall
[Jessica. She's a princess. Her mom spoils her because her dad's never home. And...She throws parties at her parents' house on weekends when they aren't around, but she's a good girl in the end.]
-->Almost right

A white kid with his pants way too low subtly slipping another kid something leaves the classroom...he's one of the last kids to leave.

[Hm....Zeke. It's gotta be Zeke. He's failing his classes, and makes his money from drugs. He has a pet rat named Thizz. He gives it beer for dinner. It likes him somehow.
-->Not right

The teacher leaves the classroom, saying goodnight to the janitor. The janitor takes his broom and mop into the classroom, where a student is sitting.

Bernard is sitting, reading a book.
Janitor takes a glance at him.

[He's a good kid overall. Gets good grades, works hard when he needs to, and helps take care of his little sister. His name is Bernard and his parents are both caring, but work long days...]

Bernard knocks over his water.

[so he's learned to take care of himself. He likes reading and watching old cartoons with his little sister.]

Bernard stares at the puddle dripping off the desk onto the floor. Bernard looks pointedly at the janitor.

-->TOTALLY WRONG.

(Little punk.)
Mr. KK brushes it off, and grabs his mop. Bernard sits on the desk behind him and watches Mr. KK clean up the mess.

B: It must be weird working in a place where you don't talk to most of the people. You have a weird job.

Mr. KK: ....

B: What do you think of the students here?

Mr. KK: (I think they need to clean up their own damn messes.) I don't know. I'm usually working.

B: No, you watch people while you work.

Mr. KK picks up Bernard's soggy homework sheet, waiting for Bernard to take it.* (Creepy-ass kid.) If you insist.

Bernard blinks at it. Mr. KK shrugs and tosses it in the bin.

Mr. KK: Stories. I make up their stories. rings mop and throws away paper towels or whatever he's cleaning with.

B: What about me? What's my story?

Mr KK: *leaving the classroom* Your story is that you should be going home before your parents worry, Bernard. *walks out the door*

Bernard sits there for a minute.
B: …“Bernard”?

______

It's a little later during the day. Mr. KK goes into a classroom to clean it and gets a pleasant little scare when Bernard's sitting on a desk, staring at him with a dead fish statue look.

KK: (GAHH!!) Holy--! What are you doing here? *frowns* School's over.

B: Waiting for a study partner.

KK: I lock these rooms after I clean them. Your friend won't be able to get in. *empties trash bin into a bag and goes to leave*

B: Where are you going? Don't you have to clean the room?

KK: The room's clean. I mopped it yesterday.

B: It's not. Look, over in that corner, there's some coffee spilled on the floor.

KK: *looks from corner to Bernard's desk, where a coffee cup is sitting*

(Is he doing this for kicks?)

Well, what do you know. I think you'll have to leave the classroom, then. I have to use strong chemicals to remove sticky messes like that.

B: .... *stares*

KK: *stares* ....Well?

B: My name's not Bernard.

KK: What?

b: Yesterday. You called me Bernard. That's not my name.

KK: I'll keep that in mind. *scrubs floor*

B: ...Do you work every day?

KK: ....

B: Do you work nights, too?

KK ....
(I am SO glad I only have three more weeks of this shit job).

B: Wow, your job sucks. I would never pick a job like that.

KK: *pissed* (Calmly, calmly...) *stands up* It's my job. Most people work when they have jobs. You should probably go home soon, Bernard. Good night.
Mr. KK leaves the room.

B: *frowns*

__________

Mr. KK is fixing a light bulb in the hallway.

B: *appears* You really do have a sucky job.

KK: (ACK!)
nearly topples off ladder, steadies himself, and refuses to look at the kid
KK: How's your little sister doing, Bernard?

B: ...I don't have a little sister. Do you?

KK: You're here awfully early today, Bernard. (They say evil never sleeps.)

B: I had swim practice. I came to tell you that one of the toilets in the boy's locker room is clogged.

KK: I'll get around to it.

B: The coach sent me right after practice to find you.

KK: I promise you, the toilet will be fully operational by tomorrow. In the meantime, there are three other bathrooms the swim team can use. *climbs off ladder*
(Just two more weeks of this and I have my new job.)
I have to see to other things now. School should start soon, you should go to class. Don't forget to pick up your sister after school. *waves*

_______

Mr. KK walks into the classroom to see a MESS. The desks are scribbled on and there's junk all over them...papers...etc.

B: Hi.

KK: ..... (twomoreweekstwomoreweeks.) Hey, Bernard.

B: Looks like they had a party in here during seventh period.

KK: --> RAGE
Yeah, looks like it.

B: I think they had pizza.

KK: ....Looks like it.

B: What type of pizza do you like?

KK: (This kid couldn’t be creepier if he creeped.) I like....ham and pineapple. With olives. And sardines. And artichokes. And cream sauce. And pickles.

B: *blegh* Gross.

KK: *grins with his back turned to the kid* You asked. (little bastard.)

*voice comes over Mr. KK's walkie talkie*
"We've got flooding in the girl's bathroom, KK. Can you fix it?"

KK: I'll head over right now. *goes to leave*

B: What about the mess in here?

KK: It'll have to wait. Have a good weekend. *leaves*

_____

Mr. KK opens the door to the classroom.

KK: (Guess I'll mop all the rooms... should clean the place up nice and go out with a bang.).

B: *looks up from books* Hi. There's a mess at the teacher's desk.

KK: (I'm not even surprised anymore.) *cleans up mess while kid watches him*

B: You're in a really good mood today. Did something good happen? Did you see your girlfriend last night or something?

KK: After today, my life's going to be a whole lot easier. Big changes. *finishes cleaning by the desk* Have a good weekend, Bernard. *heading out the door, when he hears a "sploosh", turns around to see Bernard tipping a water bottle sideways, the contents dripping off his desk*

B: I didn't mean to. *stares straight at KK, the bottle still in his hand, dripping on the floor*

KK: You know what? No problem. Here, catch. *throws mop at kid*.

B: *catches and frowns at the mop*

KK: It's now five o'clock and you know what? I don't work here anymore! HAHAHAH, Peace out, you little dipshit! *slams door behind him*
______
[Two weeks later...]

A random person is ordering a drink at the counter of a cafe.
" I'll have a large regular coffee with nonfat milk..."
[She's a librarian. Has a dog, not typical for a librarian, but it's a small dog.]
"...and can I have caramel syrup in it?"

Mr. KK smiles
--> Living a peaceful, normal, happy life.

KK: Of course! Is that all?

girl: Yes, thank you.

[She treats it like it’s her own child, and talks to it while she does crossword puzzles in the mornings.]

KK: Then please step down to the end of the counter, and your order will be ready soon.
--> Very, very peaceful and normal.

KK: May I please help the next custom-- [GAH!]

There is Bernard, staring up at the menu above.

B: Hm... I'll have…

Bernard realizes who is standing behind the counter and has a moment of dumb shock but gets over it very quickly and gives a gloriously evil half-grin.

B: …a small mint mocha frappacino...hot, not cold, a tiny bit of whipped cream but no chocolate, two extra shots of espresso and a shot of sugar-free hazelnut syrup....

KK: [How is this possible?!] (More like, how is that order possible?)

B: *looks down from menu and smiles huge* ....double-blended.

KK: .....*evil, evil pissed off look.*
--> Living a peaceful, normal, happy life.

KK: *gritting his teeth* Isthatallyou'dlike,youngman?Okay,goodpleasestepdownandyourorderwillbeready,bye!

______
{Next day}
B: I'll have a small caramel chip cafe latte with white chocolate sprinkles, low-fat whipped cream, two shots of.....

{Next next day}
B: I'll have a small hot chocolate, but without the chocolate, and just a spoonful of....

{Day after next next day}
KK: Let me guess. you want a coffee without the coffee, but with the heat and steam, no milk, two espresso vanilla shots and-

B: Actually, I want a chocolate chip cookie.

KK: *leans over counter and growls under his breath* You sit your ass in that chair over there in the corner, as far away from me as possible, and you wait until I'm on break in ten minutes, and we're gonna have a talk. A good, hopefully very, very short talk about your problem.

B: *actually looks a little startled.*

KK: *smiles, and says in normal voice again* Your order will be ready at the end of the counter, dear customer. Next in line, please step forward!

________

*ten minutes later, In alley behind the cafe*

KK: *stomps away from the back door, Bernard follows, KK turns back to him* Okay, Kid. What. the. hell. is your problem?

B: *smiles happily and leans against the brick wall*

KK: *grabs kid by shirt collar* Look, Kid. I don't know who you are, or where you come from, but I don't need a goddamn stalker.

B: But you do know who I am. My name is Bernard. You said so yourself. I have a little sister. I pick her up from school, and I-

KK: Look, you little shit- *spits with anger as he speaks. Literally.*

B: *looks shocked and touches his face where the spit hit him. *

KK: *lets go of Bernard and wipes mouth with hand* ....Sorry. That was gross.

B: Totally. * wipes his face*

KK: Well, I don't know what the hell you have against me, but can you just leave me alone? I quit my job at the high school for a reason, you know. I don't want to see you around here again. *walks back to the back door of the cafe and opens it*

B: I won't leave you alone.

KK: *stops in the doorway*

B: This place makes the best coffee. Plus, I like y-

KK: *slams door behind him as he shouts* A DOUBLE-BLENDED CHOCOLATE MINT CREAM MOCHA ISN'T EVEN COFFEE!!

B: *is left standing in the alley and smirks*

_______

[Two days later]

B: I'd like a large coffee. Black.

KK: ....

END. I swear my scripts are a bit cleaner and more descriptive than this now. Maybe.

HoneySyn- Jay/Odette OTP wait what?

2010-12-17T03:24:33Z

Long, long ago , I was trying to figure out character dynamics in the "Jay group". Coincidentally I also had a creative writing class, with creative writing assignments. I used it to my full advantage. Originally I thought maybe Odette had dated Jay (shuttup). Since HoneySyn is completely done, there's no harm in posting this for the curious.

This is for those people that can't look away from car wrecks. You know who you are.

Jay consciously blew the cigarette smoke down on his coat. It gave him an excuse to cover the smell while not looking at her. Two birds. He thinks she looks pretty today and lets out another cloud of smoke that seems to bounce off and soak into the black cloth on his chest. Odette motioned slightly and he knew what she wanted automatically and that she wouldn't mind if it was half-smoked already. So he handed it to her, then realized as it touched her lips and cursed himself. He hoped desperately that she couldn't taste it and it killed him a little. Her hair shined so nicely in the fat, ugly light of late afternoon.

"Thanks. It's so cold out. I hate these things when it's warm, but today it just kind of works."

Jay knew this without her saying it, and knew she knew it, but if they never spoke any of the things that were just understood between them, they'd never speak, ever, and Jay liked her voice. So he waited for her to continue and was surprised when she didn't. Maybe it was because what she said wasn't true, even if it was understood. Nothing was working. At least, not on his end.

Odette turned to him and he made a quick atheistic prayer that his lips weren't still swollen, because hers looked good today, and that his shirt was buttoned right because she'd notice, since he was such a neat dresser.

"It's strawberry banana."

"What?"

"My lip gloss. You were looking."

Jay blushed slightly and turned his coat collar up. The night breeze was beginning. Odette's hair moved softly, defying the cold.

Jay rubbed his cigarette out half-heartedly. He didn't like it when people ground them in. Odette followed his lead, not grinding hers either. He liked her, but not right. He wondered why she couldn't see it, though, the space between.

Odette sat down on the concrete wall that looked like a giant, crushed cigarette itself. Jay almost yelled for her to stop, that she'd get ash on her pants.

"You know….your hair looks different now," Odette said without looking at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Suits you better. Like, it was nice before, and I liked it, I liked it a lot, but this looks more like you."

Jay subconsciously reached up to touch his hair, wondering if somehow he'd missed a spot when he was combing it back down. Or maybe a different comb made his hair look different? Maybe it was the shampoo. He never used that type of shampoo but that was all that had been there and he wasn't about to be late meeting Odette. In some way, using his shampoo felt far less like betrayal than being late meeting her. Jay started to move his fingers. A song he'd played before somewhere. He was panicking, and he knew it.

But then her fingers were wrapped around his hand and he lost the song he couldn't remember. But instead of making him even more antsy, because what if she could smell it on him at this proximity, smell how shallow and horrible he was, the promises he had broken, her hand warmed him throughout his body and he knew he loved her so much, but not right, and maybe she….

"Odette, my hair… the reason…"

"I like it like this. As long as it's still on your head I'll be happy, even if you cut it and shave your initials in with a thunderbolt in between them." Jay scrunched up his face in tangible disgust that they both could feel and Odette laughed. Jay loved her voice, even if it wasn't in the right way or enough. Maybe it would be okay. After all, Jay thought quietly, it's easier to love a girl. Especially one that doesn't grind her cigarettes.

I REALLY hope my writing's matured since then. This reads like a 7th grade drabble fic.

Bite the itch that scratches and it'll fuck with your mother.

2010-12-07T04:44:24Z

So, question, what pisses you off?

I'm not a generally angry person (though I'm getting more pissy as I get older--I'll have 20 cats in no time), but the one thing that gets to me is when I feel like someone I care about is being taken advantage of or wronged. This weird sense of justice for those I care about has recently developed fully the last few years, though it's always been hiding there somewhere behind my nerdy quiet bookishness.

Also, video ads on internet sites. Nothing ruins yaoi-reading mood like a commercial for Lysol. BOY DO I HATE THOSE.

So what really chews on your boner?

And, in more happy matters, have a piece of trivia for the day:

Brooklyn Comic Fest and Peter Pan

2010-12-05T19:25:26Z

So I went to the Brooklyn Comics and Graphics fest with thepapermouse (who, btw, has the most AWESOME apartment ever--somanycomicsandartbooksandeeeeee!) yesterday. We drank gin outside on church steps with the cool amuk and went to dinner with the always-lovely hamlet_machine . The Fest itself was fun but too crowded and stuffy. It was hard to really get to look at stuff, and at an indie con, that seems the most important as you really don't know what you're in for until you crack some of that stuff open.

Afterwards, amuk 's friend's were having a Peter Pan Party at their apartment. A PETER PAN PARTY! How awesome is that? We wore paper PP hats, drank apple cider, and watched the animated Pan and then Hook. Dustin Hoffman was so fabulous. They were all cool cats and it was a load of fun. thepapermouse had drawn me a shapely Peter Pan on the church steps while drinking gin (we decided the lost boys weren't eternally young, just eternally drunk), so I demanded a Hook to match.

Fantastic, y/y?

Overall a very good time.

I love pervert artists

2010-11-22T04:58:41Z

I realized that I never shared the Kimabe picture that banjocatbanjo so lovingly drew for me at Yaoi-Con and that is cheating the world out of awesomeness.

Box of manga/yaoi?

2010-11-14T20:16:14Z

I cleaned out my bookcase today. Would anyone be interested in buying a box of manga with these titles in it? I'm thinking like 60 bucks for 21 books (including media mail shipping). I don't really want to ship out of the US though.

Solflege (Yaoi)
Love Full of Scars (Yaoi)
Red (Yaoi)
Switch: Volumes 1--11
Dogs: Volume 0
Tramps Like Us: Volumes 1+2
Ooku: Volume 1
After School Charisma: Volume 1
Utahime
Land of the Blindfolded Volume 1

Let me know :)

What's up with that?! (new June/DMP books)

2010-11-10T23:03:01Z

So I just received my Amazon order of June's (DMP) releases of Seven Days and Caffe Latte Rhapsody, both titles I really like (one of which I typeset in the VnD scanlation group) and I am unimpressed. Let me explain.

My copy of Sugar Milk, purchased last year:
Size: 6''x8.5''
Printing quality: normal
Cover: matte cardstock AND nice matte dust jacket
Price: $12.95 USD

My new copy of Seven Days:
Size: 5.25''x7.25''
printing quality inside: normal
Cover: glossy cardstock
Price: $12.95 USD

Now, I realize that manga is supposed to be a disposable form of entertainment, and I personally have no problem with them producing smaller books, however, I DO have an issue with them shrinking the books, not including dust jackets, and still charging the same price.

As a person working in a literary agency and having talked to various editors at different publishers, I do know that this is a hard time for publishing companies, especially for North American manga ones. I wrote a whole article on it. However, they are building and no one is coming, so they shrink what they are building and charge the same price to see it? It doesn't quite work logically. Considering I typeset one of these titles, I might as well just buy the Japanese version to support the artist and print out my scanlation script :/

Okay, that was cruel, but a more proper strategy would be to cut back a lot--go with shounen-sized volumes and the same cheap covers, and charge less for each book. Ideally, more people will purchase the book if it costs cheap enough that they don't care about the quality. However, I'm assuming June assumes that the people buying will continue buying or stop buying and the people not buying won't start, even if it's cheaper, so charging more per book is the only way to get out of plumetting sales.

Still, wtf, man. Wtf.

The evolution of Hammerpants

2010-11-05T20:04:09Z

So when steam_pilot and I decided to do a joke comic for Yaoi-Con, we took it very seriously. There was a script and thumbnails and all of that professional shit. However, the outcome is not always what you expect. Especially when I start singing 80's music while writing and Nuu says,

"HEY YOU SHOULD MAKE THE ENTIRE SCRIPT 80'S SONG LYRICS!" (great idea!)

Boku to ai no Hamaapantsu
Characters: Miki and Haruka

Page one.
Big panel:

[I never imagined that fifteen years of loving my best friend]
Miki is pressed up against a wall in a storage room, a fellow student wearing only a gakuran, holds one of his arms against the wall, and is bent over Miki’s far shoulder, his face hidden by miki’s.

Final script: He’s my best friend. I’ve been with him such a long time.

panel 2
Haruka kisses Miki’s neck, his hands going into miki’s hair and pulling his head to the side so Haruka can get access. Miki is wincing.
[would end up with secret trysts in a school lstorageroom.]

Final: He doesn’t know...the things that he does, they make me live.

panel 3
[I watched him go through girlfriends, cheering him on while secretly withering inside a little after he left each one for someone newer and more beautiful.]
Haruka licks Miki’s neck under his chin.

Final: I want to tell him, “I’ve loved you since I knew you.” As I watch him go through girls and wonder, “Is he really gonna take her home tonight?”

panel 4
[I’ve loved him since I can remember. So even though this is all I can get....]
Haruka moves down and sucks Miki’s nipples, one hand still holding miki’s left arm in place against the wall, the other holding the shirt up.

Final: But you can’t always get what you want.

Page 2
Haruka looks up at miki from miki’s nipples. His eyes are piercing.
[I happily take it, even if it pains me.]
Final: Love is so confusing.

Haruka grabs Miki and spins him around, pinning him against the wall again.

He leans over Miki, his face by miki’s ear, his hands in his pants. Both of them are breathing hard.

Miki moans and Haruka bites into his shoulder.
[That’s how Haruka is. He never kisses me. He does not love people. He will never love me.]
Final: There’s no peace of mind.

Page 3.

[I will never touch Haruka the way he has touched me.]
Final: Hoping for the best but expecting the worst.

Miki’s free hand is gripping Haruka’s side,

Miki reaches back towards Haruka, his hands on either sides of haruka’s hips.

Miki pants and says:
M: Please....ahh!....
Final: [You keep your distance with a system of touch.]

Harkua grins evilly: You’ll have to speak louder if you want me to hear.
Final: [I want to touch you.]

M: Please, I--AH!--I want to touch you too!
Final: [But you just smile and say,]

Haruka grins: Oh? Well....

page 4

U CAN’T TOUCH THIS!
Haruka in full on Hama gear.
Oh-Oh Oh Oh Oh-Oh-Oh!!!!

Miki is crying as Haruka crab dances by.

[I can’t touch this beat!~~.]
M: ;____;

And thus, the final version of Boku no Ai to Hamaapantsu was born.

Nuu is amazing for putting up with me. I think she secretly likes knowing I'm far more retarded than she will ever be.