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haloxsaisha · 2 years

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Like To Be You.

Chapter 2: ....Friends? Friends.

[Charles Leclerc x Singer!OC]

Summary: Charles Leclerc, one of the most successful drivers in Formula 1 and Advika Hira, one of the biggest singers in the world seemed to have it all- their dream jobs, love and support from millions around the globe and trust worthy friends. What if life gave them a chance to go back to something that had been missing in their lives?

Warnings: mention and conversations about hypothyroid.

Word count: 3.5K words.

A/N: Thank you so much for the response on chapter one and I'm so sorry for posting this one so late, I was kinda going through a bit of burnt out phase. But today being Charles' birthday makes it the perfect time to post it too :)) I've attached the link of images just incase y'all might be curious about the locations and outfits (the people in the pictures are not the face claims for this series), click on the underlined text! Also do let me know if you want to be added to the tag list <33

December 2023.

"Um, holy shit." was all that came out of Naysha's mouth when she, Ria and Advika stepped out of the car in front of the hotel where they'd been to attend a wedding of their friend.

"Yeah, the reason Nandini asked us to bring all those clothes is making sense now. This is going to be one big Indian wedding." Ria said, referring to the list they received from the to be bride as Advika spoke to one of the hotel staff.

"This is the place where Aditi in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani had her wedding na?" Advika joined, referring to a character of the movie that the three girls adored.

"It is. Holy shit, we're attending a wedding in The Oberoi Udaivilas." Naysha lets out a chuckle of astonishment.

"I think this is going to be the best part of our break." Ria tells, an excited and happy grin appearing on her face.

"Same, I haven't been to a wedding in so long." Advika tells in excitement and then they hear the sound of Ria's name being called from the back.

"Lando?" Ria called out, looking baffled as they recognised the McLaren driver stepping out of a taxi with his teammate Oscar Piastri. And from the back seat, Pierre Gasly stepped out with...... Charles and his mother.

Advika mentally groaned as she thought frantically about ways to hide in a hotel lobby. Charles and her did end their relationship with no bad feelings, but she didn't want to be around him yet. Not when she wasn't over him or the time they'd spent together.

"You guys are here for a vacation?" Ria asked after giving Lando a hug and going towards Oscar, since she worked with both of them.

"A wedding actually, the groom is in the Formula 1 organising team so he invited a few drivers and team members that he's close to." Oscar explained as he pulled Ria into a hug, a big grin spreading on his face which was returned by her.

"I didn't realise Ni's fiancee was close to the drivers too." Advika mumbled in confusion. "Also, you aren't going to give Lando a hug and greet him?" she whispered in Naysha's ear.

"What do you mean?" Naysha replied, feigning annoyance although the colour of her cheeks said something else.

"Ria told me that the both of you always have your eyes on each other." Advika said, grinning.

"I'm being professional." Naysha huffed. "I don't understand how Piastri and Ria can gush around each other so easily despite being in the same team."

"Look I don't want to push you into anything that you don't feel comfortable doing, but I'm pretty sure Lewis wouldn't mind if Lando and you got together or anything. You know he's very fond of both of you."

"Of course he won't, Lewis is the nicest boss anybody could have but...." Naysha just shrugged and Advika let it go, not wanting to force her into a rush of confusions and emotions.

"Hey Advika....how are you?" Charles asked, giving her a friendly smile. Naysha and Ria gave him a wary look, worried because they knew that their best friend hadn't been over the break up yet.

Friendly exes it's going to be.

"I'm alright, how are you?" she asked, returning a small smile.

"I'm good." he nods his head "Winter break has been great so far."

"That's nice...Lorenzo and Arthur haven't come?" she asks, remembering how she got along well with the Leclerc brothers, always having a happy smile in their company.

"They couldn't make it, Enzo has some work related to his business and Arthur has some work with the team. Mama joined me because she wanted to visit India and be here at least once." Charles explained.

"I hope you're liking it in here." Advika asks Charles and his mother. The Indian GP stopped ten years ago which meant that this was their first visit to the country.

"It's a beautiful country, I'm glad I came here." Pascale says, pulling Advika into a hug "I saw that you're taking a break from music? Is everything alright?" she asked Advika concernedly, referring to her recent announcement of a break from the music industry related work and social media for the half of next year.

"I just thought it'd be the best after working non-stop. Six months will be enough Pascale, I'll be alright." Advika assured her with a comforting smile. She always made her feel comfortable and safe, which was one of Advika's favourite things about being around Charles' family.

"The break was a good decision, you definitely need it. Touring for more than a year is a lot." Charles commented and Advika wondered if he was telling it out of concern or taking a dig at the cause of their breakdown and then reminded herself to stop overthinking. They broke up anyways, what was the point of wondering too much about a bond that was already lost?

"Pierre, hey." Advika said after making eye contact with the French driver.

"How are you Advika?" Pierre asked her, giving her a smile and offering a side hug, which she accepted. Pierre and her weren't really close, but they met a few times since he was Charles' closest friend on the grid. So it was safe to say that they considered each other as good friends.

"I'm doing good, great season by the way." she said, her thoughts immediately flew to not being able to watch Charles winning the WDC and the guilt seeped in for the umpth time in the past month.

"It was." he agreed with her, noticing that the smile on her face has disappeared and she was deep in her thoughts after the mention of the recent season.

"Hey hello, I'm finally here." a bubbly voice from the back interrupted their conversation, making Advika turn in recognition. Nandini, their friend who was the bride had finally made it to the lobby to greet them.

"Andddd the bride's finally here." Naysha cheered as she joined Ria and Advika, pulling Nandini into a hug.

"I'm so sorry for keeping y'all waiting here, guests have been coming so I have to just show them to their rooms and all that. The whole room arrangement has been a mess." Nandini groaned.

"It's all right, besides we had them for company too." Ria refers to the Formula 1 drivers.

"Uh, also there's a bit of an issue." the bride to be tells hesitantly.

"What happened?" Naysha asks her. Nobody liked it when a person to be wed was worried at the time of their wedding.

"One of you might have to share a room with somebody else, is that alright?" she asks them.

"I mean, as long as it's somebody we know and are comfortable with, it's alright I think." Advika tells, Ria and Naysha agreeing with her.

"Hey guys." Nandini's fiance interrupted their conversation, standing next to Nandini "Uh Naysha, I just spoke to the F1 guys and Oscar said that Lando and you are familiar with each other's company so would you be alright with sharing a room with him?"

Oh- so Oscar knew about it too.

"Uh-" Naysha said hesitantly, confused between being professional and not wanting to cause the couple a worry "yeah it's alright, I'll do it." she agreed, making Ria and Advika exchange a knowing smirk.

"Thank you so much Naysh." Nandini squealed, giving her a grateful hug and replied with an "it's no big deal."

"Also the engagement party starts at eight tonight, I hope y'all will be following the dress code for the festivities." Nandini reminded them of her very on point planning.

"Don't worry, I don't think anybody would've forgotten it after the billion times you insisted about it in the group chat." Advika teased her.

"Also The Oberoi Udaivilas? You've scored damn well." Ria tells her as Nandini led their way to the rooms.

"I guess I did." Nandini told with a happy and dreamy look on her face. "Naysha, that would be your and Lando's room, I think he's already in so you could just knock the door. Ria and Advika, this is your room." Nandini said and left in a bit, having to finish a few more arrangements.

"Have fun Naysha." Ria tells Naysha with a teasing grin and Advika gave her a thumbs up. The both of them received the middle finger as a response from Naysha making them crack into laughter.

Later that night.

Nandini and her fiancee planned a dress code for each festivity for the wedding, which the guests had been informed about and for the engagement, the women could wear a saree whereas the men in a buttoned up shirt and formal black jeans.

"I look so freaking short." Advika whined, turning around to her back side to look in the mirror. "But I didn't expect this colour would suit me though." she added, referring to the tea green coloured saree that she was wearing.

"It's not a bad thing, you still look cute so don't worry." Ria told in hopes of making her feel better about herself.

"Thanks, it's just that I really like how beautiful sarees are but it just makes short people look like Minions, as if we aren't short as hell already." Advika mumbles in annoyance.

"You say it like it's a bad thing, Charles is going to regret his decision which he sees you tonight, you're a mixture of pretty and cute." Ria tells her and Advika shoots a thankful smile in response.

"And you look stunning by the way, I'm sure Oscar won't be taking his eyes off you tonight. What's going on between you and him by the way?" Advika asked, her eyebrow raised in curiosity. Ria put on a saree which had a seaform green blouse with a transparent material draped over her shoulder.

"Um, nothing. Just two people in the same team, that's all." Ria replied quickly, a red tint forming on her cheeks.

"Sure it's nothing." Advika told suspiciously "You both never stop smiling around each other though, it's cute."

The sound of Advika's phone ringing stopped her from going on about what she noticed between her best friend and the McLaren team driver, the sight of Charles' name of the Caller's ID surprising her.

"Charles?" she said after taking the call "Is everything alright?"

"Uh, yeah. I'm sorry if I disturbed you." he told awkwardly.

"No it's alright, you weren't disturbing me." she shrugged it off and the awkwardness he felt before calling her came down.

"Yeah so, my mum thought of getting into the atmosphere of the wedding so she wants to follow the dress code that the couple chose." he started explaining "But well, she doesn't know how to wear a saree." The way he pronounced the name of the Indian outfit with his accent brought a smile on her face.

"Do you want me to help her drape the saree?" she completed his sentence.

"Yes, I think she really needs that because the both of us obviously don't know how to." he sighed and the smile on her face widened because she could imagine the clueless look on his face.

"Sure, I'm almost ready. I'll be there in a few minutes." she tells him and he cuts the call after telling a grateful "thank you".

"Are you sure this whole friendly exes thing is going to go well?" Ria asks her, having a fair idea of what their conversation was.

"I honestly have no idea." Advika sighed, putting on the jhumka on her ear "But it won't be for a long time, just for this wedding and if we have any Armani related work that's it. I think I'll be able to handle that."

She left the room to head towards Charles' and Ria's question stayed on her mind. Would she really be able to handle the whole friendly exes situation? She had the habit of getting attached to people easily and then getting detached from them always took a millennia. Being around Charles definitely wouldn't make it easier.

"Hey, thank you so much for helping her. She really wants to wear it so I couldn't disagree." Charles started rambling as soon he opened the room's door.

"Charles, I don't mind helping her drape the saree, it's totally fine. You don't have to worry that you disturbed me." she tells him and he nods his head.

"You look beautiful, by the way.” he tells, taking in the sight of her appearance which made her cheeks turn red.

"You too, I mean- you look great." Advika complimented him back. A shirt tucked in with a pair of formal jeans always looked good on him.

“Hello Pascale.” Advika heads towards the blonde woman, giving her a warm smile.

“Advika! You look so pretty chère, I’m sorry if we disturbed you today.” Charles' mum said, returning the smile.

“Oh, not at all. I think it’s really sweet that you want to go along with our traditions, I love the colour of your saree by the way.” she says, referring to the blue saree with some design work at the ends that Charles mum chose for herself and she started unfolding the cloth so as to start draping it.

“I’m glad I asked Charles to call you for help, draping a saree is actually quite complicated.” Pascale told, while Advika was on her knees trying the fold the stiff cloth in the right way as Charles stood in the corner of the room and watched them get along quite well with one another.

“It actually is pretty hard.” Advika agreed with a light chuckle “I remember watching my mother draping it for occasions like this in the family and didn’t want to wear one after growing up because she used to struggle with it a lot But she insisted that I watch and learn because she knew I’d need it after growing up.” she said with reminiscent smile on her face.

“Mothers always know what their kids need, no matter how much they deny it.” the Monegasque woman said, giving Charles a knowing look which went unnoticed by Advika, who had all her attention on the saree.

The sound of Advika's phone ringing cut their conversation and Charles, who was standing near the table where her phone was kept gave a look asking if he could check who it is, since she was still bent down and busy with the saree cloth in her hand, she nodded at him.

"It's Vinaya." he said, showing the screen which had her manager's name on the Caller ID. A confused look came up on Advika's face about how she would talk to her manager, considering she only called if it was something important regarding her work.

"Would you be okay with the call being on speaker?" Charles asked her, indicating that he'd hold the phone near her on speaker so that she could talk and get the saree draping done at once.

"Yeah, that would be alright. Thank you." she said and he came closer, attending the call and switching it on speaker.

"So, your blood test reports came in." Vinaya immediately started and Advika noticed a look of worry appear on Charles and his mother's faces and an addition with Charles looking at her questioningly.

Advika froze, she'd totally forgotten about the blood test she took yesterday at Mumbai before travelling to Udaipur for the wedding. She'd been feeling too tired every day ever since her tour ended and thought it'd be a good idea to find out what was wrong.

"Can we talk about this later please?" Advika asked weakly, not wanting Charles and his mother to hear it. She wouldn't be able to bear the sympathy she'd get, Pascale already seemed to be very worried about Advika taking a break from her work.

"I know you're busy at the wedding so I'll take just two minutes. Alright, so your hypothyroid has gotten way too worse, because of your very messy sleep schedule, stress and food intake during the tour." Vinaya rambled on "So I've fixed an appointment with your nutritionist which will be in the morning tomorrow. I know you're at your friend's wedding now but I'm not going to hear a no for this because you need to start working on your TSH levels before it affects your health even more than it already has."

"I wasn't going to tell a no, don't worry I'll talk to the doctor." Advika tells, letting go of a shaky breath. She did not want to face the tiredness and the disturbed sleep hypothyroid brought in, not again after all the struggle in her teen years "and could we please talk to the tour manager team too tomorrow, I want to make some changes about making the schedules" she said as she inserted a safety pin through the saree cloth, the last request bringing a smile on Charles' face who was glad that she was finally giving herself the first priority. He hated seeing the extreme tiredness on the face because of the tour, right when they started dating, during the video calls and short meets and all the way until their last conversation.

"Of course and please don't forget the appointment with your nutritionist tomorrow." her manager reminded her and then cut the call, making Advika take a sigh of relief.

"And it's done, you look amazing. I hope the saree is comfortable enough for you?" she asked, pretending as if the conversation with her manager never took place.

"It is, thank you so much for helping me dear." Pascale replied and Advika nodded her head, showing that there was no need to thank her.

"I think I'll leave now, Ria and Naysha might be waiting for me at the hall." Advika said, wanting to leave there. She'd already faced a lot of sympathy from people because she lost her parents. She appreciated their emotions but the eyes filled with pity was something she couldn't handle, it made her uncomfortable. And she could already see it in Pascale and Charles' eyes, so leaving would be better than starting a conversation about her health.

Thankfully she understood and let Advika go. A few steps away from the room, Advika heard the familiar voice of Charles calling her and she turned back to see him approaching her.

"Charles." she responded, wondering why he called her.

"You never told me you were suffering from hypothyroid." he told her, heading straight to the point.

"It's not a big deal-" she tried to shrug it off.

"It is, it literally requires life long medication and even sucks out all your energy. Not to mention it also doesn't let you sleep." he went on about the chronic disease.

"How do you know all this?" she couldn't help but express her surprise.

"I just checked about it on Google but seriously though, why didn't you tell me about it?"

"I had it in control then, trust me. It just got really shitty and unhandleable because of my tour schedule. Besides you already had a lot to worry about." she said referring to the F1 season "I didn't want you to have another thing to worry about."

"You were my girlfriend, I wouldn't have minded worrying about you." he looked at her in concern and Advika just sighed in response.

"It doesn't matter now anyways." she weakly said, wanting the conversation to end. How could he break up with her and just say caring words like it means nothing?

"Just because things between us went down doesn't mean I don't care about you Vika." he looked at her softly and it took everything in her to not melt into it.

The last thing needed right now was not being able to let go of her feelings for somebody who let go of her.

"I- I need to go." she fretted and hurried towards the hall where the engagement was taking place. She spotted Ria and Naysha standing in one of the corners and went towards them.

"Advi, are you okay?" Naysha asked her in concern after noticing the tense look on her face.

"Yeah, I just got worried thinking I was late. You look amazing by the way, how did Lando let you get out of your room?" Advika teases her "also, the sarees you and Ria are wearing are similar." commenting about the saree that she was wearing. It was similar to Ria's, a flamingo pink sparkly blouse with a transparent material draped over.

"Haha, you're so funny." Naysha rolled her eyes playfully. "Oscar hasn't stopped giving her heart eyes ever since she came in."

"Told ya." Advika gave Ria a teasing grin.

"I think this trip is going to change our love lives." Naysha suggested.

"Speak for yourself, I'm single at the moment." Advika said with her eyebrows raised.

"With the way Charles is looking at you, I highly doubt that." Ria commented and confusion arose.

•••••

Taglist: @crueloveascities @rosesintj

#charles leclerc imagines #charles leclerc x reader #f1 x reader #f1 fanfic #charles leclerc fanfic #charles leclerc series #charles leclerc #like to be you #charles leclerc x oc #charles leclerc x singer! reader #saisha writes #f1 imagine

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book-girl4eva · 4 months

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I got over 20 notes on a previous post (thanks @hijabi-desi-bookworm :D) so here's the Aru Shah one-shot for new years!

(it's also on my wattpad book so you can read it there if you want.)

So, *clears throat dramatically * here we go!

~12~

Aru layed back on the school roof, looking at the sky. Next to her was an incredibly reluctant Mini.

"This is a good idea because?" Mini asked, hugging her knees. She was right in the middle, and sat on a blanket she bought up.

"Because the view is incredible. Just look!" Aru turned around to Mini, who was hugging her knees very tightly to her chest.

"I guess," she began, "and the roof is flat so that minimises the chance we'll fall..."

"Exactly!" Aru agreed. Mini skooted forward to sit next to Aru properly.

"The earth is so cool," Mini muttered. Aru agreed. Ever since saving the world, she had a much bigger appreciation of it. It was crazy and hectic as ever, but still managed to be beautiful.

The fireworks went off, sending sparks all over the sky.

"Happy New Year, sis." Mini told Aru, holding up her elbow for a bump.

"Happy New Year." Aru elbow bumped her back

~13~

"You guys ready?"

Brynne bolted down the stairs holding multiple bags of chips. "Yup! Who's got the Oreos?"

"Me, naturally," Boo said, holding the packet in his talons.

"Ok everyone," Mini called, waiting at front. "Please mind your arms and legs while entering the elephant."

"This is epic." Aiden said, looking down at his camera. "Do you think they'll have fireworks?"

"Probably," Aru replied, "but like, extra-magiky."

"Is that a word?"

"Probably not."

They entered the Night Bazaar to see the both sides of the sky-roof dotted in bright, colourful stars. They flickered and moved like fireworks and were even more beautiful. Aiden snapped a quick picture.

"Told you it would be extra-magiky." Aru smirked and tossed a chip into her mouth.

"You were right, Shah," Aiden agreed, "super magiky."

Aru smiled.

"Come on everyone, group photo!" Boo announced, pushing everyone into shot. "Say happy new year!"

"Happy New Year!" The potatoes chorused, grinning for the photo.

~14~

"...And that is New Year's in the human world" Aru finished. "It's an annual tradition."

Rudy thought for a moment. "So humans throw rockets in the air, set them on fire and blow them up because they look pretty? All to celebrate another year of existence? That's wild."

"Did you know that the word annual comes from the word annualis, which is Latin for year?" Kara added.

"Nope but that's cool?"

It was the first year that Hira, Nikita, Sheela, Rudy and Kara could all be there to celebrate, so Aru had decided to give them the rundown before they watched it in the human world. And that started with watching Australia's fireworks in the theatre, which were set off 16 hours earlier than the USA's.

They all filed in, holding hot cocoa and sat in a 2 rows: Niki, Sheela, Rudy and Mini at the front; Brynne, Hira, Aru, Kara and Aiden in the back.

When the live feed began, Rudy practically leaped out his seat.

"It's so loud! Who made it that loud!" He said over and over. Mini tried to comfort him while her sisters cackled.

Kara watched quietly, before turning to Aru.

"Happy New Year." She said, beaming.

"Happy New Year right back." Aru replied, but Kara had already turned to Aiden to say the same.

Aru looked back at the screen, stirring the cocoa slowly as the lights covered the digital sky.

~15~

"Why didn't we just go back to your school's roof?" Mini complained.

"Because Home Depot's roof is bigger!" Aru answered, grinning.

"Hold up," Aiden said, "you've done this before!?"

"Yup!" Aru reached up kissed him on the cheek. He blushed bright red and held up his camera to try and cover his face.

They laid out all of the blankets, put Rudy in the middle so he wouldn't fall off the roof when he freaked out over the noise, and brought up all the snacks they could carry.

"This is great! Look at the views!" Brynne commented, as she grabbed a handful of her homemade cookies.

All of them got settled. Aru rested her head on Aiden's shoulder as colour exploded over the sky.

"I guess fireworks are another good reason to save the world." She whispered.

"I guess so, Shah. Happy New Year."

"Happy New Year wifey."

And under the New year's sky, she drifted off to sleep.

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waitmyturtles · 1 year

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Turtles Catches Up with the Essential BLs: Utsukushii Kare Edition

Utsukushii Kare. As I wrote last night in the heat of finishing this series, I’m in hot pursuit of consuming essential BLs, and UK was at the top of my list. I didn’t expect the series to be so short, so I just housed it, and I am SO glad I got this one in. (CAVEAT, as usual in this series of my catching up with past dramas -- I know most of y’all have watched this, I just need to process! This is a long post.)

Why was I turned on to this? I kept reading here and on Twitter that this was a hard series to watch. So, of course, because I’m a glutton for all things that are emotionally difficult, I felt like I had to dive in.

I truly thought it was a remarkable piece of art, right in line as to why I love consuming Japanese media in particular. I think there are two central points as to why I loved this show.

1) Many times, in B/GLs and cishet dramas/doramas, a twist of a script will often have characters NOT reveal their entire scope of feelings, or emotions, or intentions.

At least -- from the VIEWER’S perspective -- that’s how we might see it, that a character is not being fully revelational in a moment where we, as viewers, think that they could say more.

I found myself feeling this way in the last episode of UK, when Hira and Kiyoi are in the classroom, and Kiyoi is asking Hira -- why didn’t you ever ask me about my own feelings?

Hira really doesn’t have a reply. I think we feel like we know why he didn’t have a reply -- I would ascribe it to his social awkwardness, which I’ll dive much more into later in this post.

So a viewer, like myself, might think or say: dude, Hira, ASK KIYOI HOW HE FEELS ABOUT YOU, LIKE RIGHT NOW. NOW’S YOUR MOMENT. SEAL THE DEAL, MY MAN.

But this is what I think I loved first about this show. Hira CANNOT relate to Kiyoi here. Not only is he not able to, but he’s never given an indication that he ever WANTED to. And I’m not convinced that he related to Kiyoi throughout the rest of the episode. Certainly, Hira was on cloud nine, particularly during the bike scene at the end, but I do not think I got an indication that Hira related to Kiyoi’s need for affirmation at all, even at the moment of their intercourse.

And frankly, I think this was brilliant, as I’ll move into my next point.

2) I wrote a ton about empathy/compassion bias during my watch of Extraordinary Attorney Woo this past summer, and I think the same principles of this concept apply here to watching UK, and answers my question of why people found this show hard to watch.

The main crux of this show relies on bullying from Kiyoi and his gang to Hira. Despite the bullying that we, as viewers, see and judge, Hira is and remains attracted to Kiyoi and idolizes him.

What I’ve read regarding why people found this show difficult to watch is that it seems like the bullying continues from Kiyoi to Hira throughout their entire relationship into their post-high school adulthood. Hira even indicates that Kiyoi is upending Hira’s life when Kiyoi re-appears while Hira is beginning to date Koyama.

But here’s the thing, and it’s relatable to something I wrote about EAW. While Hira is the center of bullying, this show clearly demonstrates that Hira has AGENCY.

He very much has agency. He has made the choice and decision not just to love Kiyoi, but to idolize him as a deity, which Kiyoi clarifies at the end of the series as problematic to how Kiyoi sees himself vis à vis his own insecurity. Which means also, that not only does Hira have AGENCY, but Hira is also as much as a narcissist as Kiyoi is throughout the series. As I mentioned before: not only does Hira not relate to Kiyoi, he doesn’t even try.

Now, I actually don’t mean to use the word “narcissist” in as negative a light as it’s usually used in everyday language. Narcissistic tendencies are often identified as co-morbid to some psychological diagnoses in the American Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) (which has problematic issues itself, but we’ll leave that for another time). (And really quickly, I have training in the social services, which allows me to talk about this with a touch of familiarity.)

Anyway: it’s made clear in the first episode of the series that Hira has either social anxiety, a social condition, or a social disorder. And he hasn’t had many, if any, friends or siblings throughout his life, so his ability to relate to others wasn’t sharpened or developed over his lifetime. Therefore: Hira has this innate narcissistic tendency to NOT relate to others, particularly when he is emanating intense feelings towards Kiyoi, without EVER knowing that it might behoove him to check in on how Kiyoi feels about that emanation.

I wonder if previous fans of this show, who were made uncomfortable by the bullying, didn’t see that Hira has massive agency here to make his own decisions about who he likes, and how he likes them. Because, as so happens with characters that are presented as out of the “normal” boundaries of social interactions -- we may have sympathy, empathy, or compassion for them.

While empathy, compassion, and/or sympathy are all wonderful emotions, the bias that we may view others vis à vis those emotions MUST be checked, in real life or while watching art. Because -- these emotions can create unspoken power differentials between a person that has power and one that doesn’t. For us in the social services, this most often comes out between a therapist and a client. An empathy bias may lead a therapist to, say, not believe that their client has agency to make a particular decision, for example.

So even while we feel badly that Hira gets bullied, I see that Hira has STILL made his decision to love Kiyoi, WITH agency. AND, because Hira has narcissistic tendencies, he ALSO hasn’t worked on relating to Kiyoi, which helps to create this whole maelstrom of back-and-forth feelings that Kiyoi tiptoes towards and rejects.

And, as I said earlier, Kiyoi is a narcissist, too, an obvious one. But he ALSO doesn’t know how to relate to others, as he lived a solitary life in front of the television while his mother moved on in her re-marriage in his childhood.

So you have these two guys, BOTH WITH AGENCY, both narcissists, both unable to relate to others, falling in love with each other, and expressing that love by either being a somewhat creepy stalker or a bully.

In other words -- it’s a GREAT high school dorama, ha!

And this is all why, again, I happen to love Japanese doramas. I don’t know why, but Japan just HITS on these AWKWARD (to us Western viewers) emotional displays and wranglings, WITHOUT a ton of explanation. We’re left to unwind this all out. It’s beautifully reminiscent of my childhood as an Asian gal, where so much emotion was left unspoken, although I’m glad I came out of that without so much trauma as to not be able to process these gorgeous pieces of art.

I totally loved this show. It was weird and complicated. I’d highly recommend it to anyone who feels wiggly about the bullying, reminding them that compassion can sometimes have powerful consequences in leading one to ignore the fact that those who we feel sympathy for have their own power and agency to lead their own lives.

#utsukushii kare #my beautiful man #utsukushii kare meta #my beautiful man meta #kiyoi x hira #hira x kiyoi #turtles catches up with the essential BLs

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moonsidiot · 1 year

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As Hira and Kiyoi are shopping and Kiyoi hands Hira that sleeveless shirt and Kiyoi points out that it is sleeveless, Kiyoi replies: "just leave your presumptions at the door."

I feel like that line perfectly encapsulates Hira and Kiyoi's relationship and the show itself.

Kiyoi is either through action or words always fearing and hoping for Hira to leave his presumptions behind and see Kiyoi as his equal and someone who loves Hira as much as Hira loves Kiyoi.

As viewers we have to leave our initial distaste for the one-dimensional premise of the show (bully to lovers) and actually experience and understand the complexities of the characters and their relationship.

It's said so casually but feels like the key to it all.

#utsukushii kare #my beautiful man #utsukushii kare season 2 #kazunari hira #sou kiyoi #im rewatching rn hehe

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loife1m · 10 months

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100% first two chapters

1st chap: the final report - 1

"...and we shall go to the assembly after lunch break. I hope you are proud of your report, and to those who aren't, I'm sure you will do better next time. Class dismissed" Ms. Sherly finished and left the class. Aiden looked disgustedly at his report paper, lying ugly on his desk, shamefully hated on.

"What did you get?" Aiden turned to the voice, even though he didn't have to turn to know who it was.

"Miss Shah! To what do I do the honor?" Aiden exclaimed, sarcastically.

"Shut up, no good loser. What did you get?" Aru Shah crossed her arms.

Crap. He thought by teasing her, she would retort and would forget. This time he really messed up, because he got 98% and was 99% sure that she got higher.

"Go away"

"Lemme guess. You're too embarrassed about it?" She smirked.

"They're at it again" Mini sighed to their friend, Brynne.

"Shh. I wanna see this shit go down" Brynne replied.

"98%" he muttered. A big grin appeared on her face and his heart dropped. She slapped down her report on his desk.

"99%. Better luck next time, sucker" She smirked, snatched her paper away and walked away with Mini who was rolling her eyes.

It was lunch break in their junior college, the only time where people from different departments could meet one another.

The English Story Championship 2023 was approaching quickly, where only one person from their department would get selected to represent the school and fight against many. For the past years, both of them had been preparing. Last year, he got selected, as Aru was not in Junior College at that time. But this year, he wasn't so sure.

It wasn't like a group to group thing. Only one person would get selected. That was his main worry.

"Cheer up dude. It shouldn't be about who's gonna be getting the medal! Our school should win. Period" Brynne snapped him out of his thoughts. Their group consisted of Brynne, her girlfriend Hira, Mini and his cousin Rudy. As well as Aru.

The entire school was super interested in the beef, so both of them were popular. And yeah, it used to be super awkward for the rest of the group at first, but eventually they all got used to it.

"I guess you're right."

"But you still wanna win."

"I still wanna win."

Brynne sighed. "Whatever. Let's join the others"

As they approached the table, Aru was laughing melodically at something Rudy said. Mini was pointing out something he got wrong, from what he could tell.

Yeah okay. Not laughing melodically, he meant snickering.

"Where are you from, Pluto? A microwave isn't a small wave, you small brained-"

"Wait, wait. What did he say? What did I miss out on?" Brynne rushed to sit next to Aru.

"He was talking about how he saw a microwave when he went to the beach last summer, and how excited he was to see megawaves this summer" She cackled. Brynne joined the cackling while pointing at Rudy.

'How on Earth do they get along? How can anyone get along with Shah?' He thought.

Mini frowned. "Guys, that's not that nice. He's one of the best musicians in our department"

"Okay, and? He needs a brain as well" Brynne said.

Rudy turned beet red. "I'm good at loads of things! If you could just see them"

Aru's face suddenly turned understanding and then she looked guilty. "Yeah. I'm sure. Just study hard okay? It's bound to be embarrassing if you tell this to a 10 year old and they laugh at you"

Aiden knew why her face turned understanding. A throwback to their 5th and 6th grade.

"Yeah, I guess so. I need someone to explain a lot to me" Rudy looked down. Aru smirked and nudged Mini suggestively.

"Y'know, I'm in a different department so it might be hard to arrange that. Mini, on the other hand, certainly can and will help you"

"I-um-yeah. I could do that" Mini stammered. Aru checked the time.

"Let's get to the assembly" She said, and rushed to the assembly hall.

Everyone filed in their respective home classes. Aru was in his home class, and the list being in alphabetical order, she was right in front of him.

"It's gonna start~" Aru sang. Everyone knew what 'it' was, and Aiden was dreading it. And sure enough it started.

"Good afternoon, everyone attending Augustus Day Junior College. This is your principal, Mrs. Sharia. I'm sure everyone has gotten their final report by now, and as per tradition, I shall call out the ones who have scored the highest this year to receive the High Achiever reward"

"Ms. Arielle Reddy" She called out. Arielle walked up proudly from the front of Aru, sticking out her tongue at her. "Has scored 3rd place, with a score of 95%"

Everyone clapped, rather half-heartedly.

"Mr. Aiden Acharya" She called. Aiden walked up, all forced smiles and waved to the crowd. He spotted Aru smirking and almost slumped. "Has scored 2nd place, a score of 98%"

As everyone clapped, Mrs. Sharia gave him the certificate and the medal and let him stand to the side of Arielle who shifted closer to him and smiled.

"And now, our highest achiever, the pride of the school this year, please welcome Ms. Aru Shah!" Mrs. Sharia even clapped this time, Aiden grit his teeth and Arielle's jaw dropped. "Scoring 1st place, with a result of 99%!!"

Aru walked up proudly, took her certificate and medal and stood to the right of Arielle. She subtly stuck out her tongue.

"Ah, Ms. Shah, please stand in the middle"

Aru grimaced of having to be in close proximity of him and stood next to him. As the pictures were taken, they all went back to the class line.

"And now, at last. I will reveal who shall compete in the English Story Championship 2023" Mrs. Sharia smiled. "This is a huge surprise for all of us, but I am proud to announce that"

Mrs. Sharia took out an entry form from behind her. But it was not one it was...two?

"Ms. Aru Shah and Mr. Aiden Acharya both shall compete in The English Story Championship this year!"

2nd chap: 8:30 sharp! You snooze you lose, - 2

"Ms. Aru Shah and Mr. Aiden Acharya shall both compete in the English Story Championship this year!"

The entirety of their school, both departments, were shocked to silence. You could hear the whirring of the air conditioning and a single bee inside the assembly hall. You could hear somebody drop something plastic and everyone gasping.

Up there, on the stage, Aiden, Aru and Arielle's jaws dropped.

"This is serious injustice. I worked hard for this!" Aru whispered ferociously. In a way, hate her or not, Aiden could understand what she was feeling. Battling with your rival to get to the top only to have both of you get selected would be really bad. It would mean everything you did was for nothing.

You see, after Aiden found out Aru got higher, he called his mom to tell her that he'd come home that weekend. His mom was so excited, she'd be devastated now.

And then he felt the reality wash over him a bit too late. He was selected for the English Story Championship for the second time in a row! He was gonna represent the school.

With Aru Shah.

She's super crazy smart. Not to mention, she's a nice person too. Maybe she could fill in his place as well as her's.

'Yeah, right. She'd be happy to, but she won't do it because you're asking her' His brain sneered at him. 'She would've done it happily 4 years ago, especially because she-'

Shut up, brain.

'You did too'

Shut up brain!

"Everyone, an Augustus Clap please!" Mrs. Sharia boomed over the loud speakers to gain everyone's attention. People stopped whispering with each other and started the Augustus Clap.

They stomped their right foot and clapped twice. They continued the pattern, and Aiden felt Aru shiver pleasantly next to him. He knew that feeling. The entire school looking at you and clapping for your hard work.

Everyone filed back to their classes and Aiden walked up to Aru's desk, as she was chatting with her friend. Her name was Bethany or something, but he wasn't here for her, so he didn't care.

"Shah."

Aru turned to him with a smile that soon dropped after seeing who it was.

"Oh. It's you. Don't be smug about getting selected, this is completely unfair and you should know that"

"Aiden, darling. Remember me?" Bethany interrupted her. Aru got visibly annoyed.

One thing you should know about Shah is that she doesn't like getting interrupted.

"Uh yeah, Bethany, right?" Aiden replied awkwardly.

He could hear Aru snicker silently and see Bethany's smile dropping.

"Um no. It's Brutta"

Now it was Aiden's turn to snicker, inside his head. Brutta meant ugly in Italian. He coughed and then turned to Shah.

"I don't wanna participate" he continued.

"Whatever" Aru turned back to Bethany. Then her eyes bulged and she turned back to him. "Wait. You what?!"

"Yeah, yeah, tease me all you wa-"

"Are you crazy? How could you miss an opportunity like this? I thought you really wanted this" Aru scolded him (ish) with genuine concern in her eyes. Something passed through them that reminded him a lot about when they were still friends. When they were able to understand each other.

When they were able to hold conversation without fighting.

"I need to go see my mom. You can do this"

And then realization and understanding in her eyes. "Oh. How is she, by the way?"

Aiden chuckled. "Well. She's good. She never really liked you, you know"

She snorted "As if you did. It's okay if someone doesn't like me. I could care less"

Aiden coughed for a second, considering the first part of her sentence was untrue. "How's yours?"

"She's good. Actually, she's recently started-"

"Is this happening? Are you two actually having a conversation without fighting?" Ugly screeched.

Aru winced, looked annoyed and slowly enunciated the words. "Bethany. Don't interrupt me"

"I'm not Bethany for goodness sake! I'm Brutta!" She screamed.

Aiden could tell that Bethany was only talking to Aru for the popularity and Aru to Brutta because her friends were probably busy at the moment.

"Yeah. Okay. Anyway, what do you want me to do about this?" Aru asked, ignoring Brutta annoyingly flirting with him.

"Fill in my place!" He yelled. The class got quiet. All eyes were on them.

"What? No!" Aru replied, alarmed.

"Please. I'm begging you!"

"You'd let Mrs. Sharia down! You know how she feels about this"

"Aru. Please" he replied, using her first name for the first time in a long time.

"No!"

The class started whispering:

"Who are they?"

"That's Aiden Acharya and Aru Shah. They're ultimate rivals and the faces of the school"

"They seem close"

"Yeah they used to be close, but grew apart. Rumor has it that they used to have a thing for each other"

"Really? I could definitely see it"

He felt his ears boiling up and then continued trying to get his point across.

"Just shut up and agree!"

"Why should I? You're the one who's being childish right now"

"Me? Seriously? Who's the one who spilt their leaking pen ink all over my locker!"

"I said I'm sorry! I even cleaned it up for you, so I think it's stupid of what you're asking me to do"

"Do you want me to tell everyone your entire 5th grade?"

The other opened her mouth and then sighed in exasperation. "I can't stand you"

"Then sit down" he replied, slinging his bag over his shoulder as he walked away. "I'll see you at 8:30"

"Fuck you!"

"8:30 sharp!" He replied, moving out the class. He could hear her audibly groan as he turned around the corner.

#aiden acharya #aru shah #aruden #hirynne #snake of death

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hiraya-rawr · 1 year

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scenario where sagau reader full on BAWLS on Tighnari's chest bc they lost their 50/50 on Alhaitham's banner with him, like full on weeping and stuff while mumbling stuff abt him ruining their chance with The Scribe and Alhaitham's just watching on the side while the Forest ranger tries his hardest to comfort them (while also being slightly salty abt them not being happy cus he came home instead of that scribe LMAOAOAOAO)

I'm curious abt what alhaitham would think when that happens lolol

I feel like tighnari and his "im extremely blunt and can hurt you with words alone" tongue wouldn't hold back on lecturing you for being oversensitive about this (after which, he'd be super sympathetic and would try his best to at least work well with you anyway)

#if you read his character stories #you'd definitely understand this #he's just so #i swear his words could get him in trouble one day #tough guy #hira replies #tighnari #alhaitham

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morathicain · 3 months

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Hello Lovely!

For the WIPs thing I would like to have more information on - "The softness of your love was a surprise"

and/or "How far until I miss you"

Really I want information on all of them - though I know I probably know some of them just not based on the titles - but I'll be nice. Okay now I'm off to create my own version of this.

Hello my Dear! Thank you so much for asking and feel free to ask whichever you want to =^^=

Anygay, here we go. I'll copy the reply for the first one "the softness of your love was a surprise" from my other answer ;)

That one is a 3wbf one for Mae and Ter and Mae's thoughts about falling in love with Ter and how HIS tenderness surprises her. It's also about her struggles to accept that she's fallen for someone else and Ter of all people. How she tries to find some kind of logic in her own feelings and also accept them as valid. There's not much yet, sadly, but I can share this paragraph:

Mae had tried to ignore it. She really had.They’d been in extreme situations after all, both of the mourning Phon’s death with violence in their veins. Mae hadn’t recognised herself through it, so of course she was suspicious of her own emotions, second guessing them all the time. And of course, she was yearning for an honest touch, a person to share her pain with.She cared about Ter as the person by her side, the person who connected her to Phon, the one who tried to protect her, the one went into the world to die.When her heart had twisted for him the first time, she’d ignored it, had only seen it as a sign that she was caring for the one person left in her life. A person she hadn’t necessarily liked till now. A violent one, never smiling and always tense.But why, a tiny voice in her head had wondered, didn’t this count as well?

"How far until I miss you" is Of COURSE an UtsuKare one aksdbjaskjdb

Basically it's that Hira actually starts dating Koyama in university because he doesn't believe that Kiyoi is in any way a possibility or in reach for him. I want him to be a little bit more aware of others' feelings (except Kiyoi's of course) and reconsider his own. But also double the angst and pining and jealousy once he and Kiyoi reunite and he's actually with Koyama!

And here a teaser:

Koyama’s smile didn’t waver: “As long as you tell me honestly what you are feeling, I will be okay.” Hira believed him. He wanted to believe him, his heart lurching at the the idea of staying with Koyama, the most comfortable person ever. As he finally took a hold of the hand in front of him, happy to see Koyama’s smile widen, his heart was mended and broken at the same time.

Wip titles you can ask me about

#ask #wip #writing #ommited-miscellaneously

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tragedykery · 11 months

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oh i'd love to see the birate drabbles.. but if not girl moves out but it's dramatic would also be great!

context is that sita is showing hira around the ship. they’ve just arrived at hira’s cabin

Sita wiped the porthole with her sleeve, then made a sound of disgust when she held up her arm and saw the thick layer of dust now clinging to the fabric. “Which temple are you from, anyway?” she asked, looking over her shoulder.

Hira froze. “What? I’m—I’m not– I don’t–”

Sita simply hummed and nodded, continuing to wipe the porthole. “Fully nomadic, then? Or did you grow up in one of the Air Nomad settlements? I’ve never visited one, but I knew someone who lived in one on the Eastern coast before she discovered her bending.”

“I’m not–” She hesitated, then blurted out, “I didn’t know I was an airbender. I had no idea.”

That made Sita stop dead in her tracks. She turned to Hira with a look the latter couldn’t quite decipher. “You…didn’t?”

Hira shook her head. “This morning,” she said, looking down at her hands, “was the first time I’ve ever…“

“Bent,” Sita finished for her. Softly.

#ty for the ask <3 #elli replies #ask #slava tag #wip tag #ask game #oc tag #sita #hira #the birates #wind in the sails

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tofueggnoodles · 8 months

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Extreme Bath Log Disk 2 – Track 5: Cast Comments

Click here to listen to the track on youtube.

Click here for translations of previous tracks.

Summary: The voice actors shared their thoughts on the recording and scenes that left a lasting impression on them.

--------

Hoshi: It’s time for the closing cast commentary of Drama CD ‘Extreme Bath Log’! Yay! Today’s topics are your thoughts on the recording and scenes or lines that make a lasting impression on you. I’d ask each of you to talk about these in turn. All right, I’ll start. This is Hoshi Souichirou, who plays Son Goku. Pappi!

A few of the guys: Pappi.

Hoshi: You sure don’t sound lively. (laughs) No, that’s not lively at all, everyone.

Seki: Must we really reply to that greeting?

Hoshi: I’d like you to reply if possible. And to do it as lively as possible for the sake of the listeners.

Seki: Okay.

Hoshi: Er, let’s continue. Hoshi Souichirou, who plays Son Goku. Pappi!

Seki, Hirata and others: Pappi!

Hoshi: Extreme Bath Log – just by listening to the title, it’s difficult to tell apart [from the title of the main series, Saiyuki]. After all, the difference lies only in the kanji for ‘hot bath.’ [Both titles are homonyms in Japanese. In writing, they differ only by the second kanji, the one Hoshi-san referred to.]

(Morikawa laughs.)

Hoshi: That other title is also ‘Saiyuki.’ It’s been an amazing experience for me. I still played Goku, but in a totally new world and story. Acting together with the other cast of Saiyuki, I got this immense feeling of nostalgia. Also, various characters from Minekura-sensei’s other works made their appearances too, making this story all the more delightful. It’s been such fun that I don’t want it to end – it’d be great if I could go on playing Goku in a continuation of the story. By all means, let’s continue [our work in] Extreme Bath Log! That’s all from me. Thank you very much for today. Next, on to you, Seki-san.

Seki: This is Seki Toshihiko, who plays Genjo Sanzo. Scenes which make a lasting impression... er, that’s right – even in this absurd parallel universe, there are some understated, somber scenes. Such as the one at the veranda at the Genjos’ home, in which Hakkai and Goku talked about the Milky Way – that scene makes a profound lasting impression on me. In addition to that, there’s the question of why Konzen was cast as the grandmother, and what’s more, one that has already passed away**. I just have a brief comment on that: I would’ve loved to play Konzen by channeling the old lady I imagine Kinsan to be. My regret is that I was not able to do that. [Kinsan: one of a pair of long-lived identical twin sisters, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinsan_Ginsan] Then, Hira-san, who plays Gojyo, the floor is yours.

Hirata: Hello, this is Hirata, who plays Gojyo and Kenren. Seki-san–

Seki: Yes?

Hirata: You said that, but it’s tough, you know.

Seki: What’s tough?

Hirata: The conversation between Gojyo and Kenren.

Seki: Ah, yes, you did that! It was like a rakugo performance. [traditional Japanese verbal entertainment, in which a lone storyteller performs the narration and the dialogues for all characters]

(They both laugh.)

Hirata: I just want to say one thing: I love doing Drama CDs, Urasai sections and other stuff outside of the [Saiyuki] main storyline, but please, no more conversations between Gojyo and Kenren, ever! Hey, Minekura, are you listening? That was a terribly harsh experience I was made to go through. The conversation was interesting though.

Hoshi: You did alter your acting a bit [to depict the differences between Gojyo and Kenren], didn’t you?

Hirata: Eh?

(Hoshi repeats what he just said.)

Hirata: Of course I did. They’re two different souls after all. Yeah, that conversation was a tough one. So, what do you think of it [the situation in which one has to play two different characters in the same CD Drama]? Er... Akira-san, please.

(Ishikawa laughs.)

Ishida: Alright, this is Ishida Akira, who plays Tenpou and Hakkai. What do I think of that situation? Well, we both might complain that it’s tough, but I believe that undoubtedly, with their wonderful power of imagination, the listeners will be able to grasp the differences between the characters. We both might wonder if we managed to convey the differences without the visuals, but in actuality, in the listeners are able to picture the different characters in their minds. They can ‘see’ Hakkai and Tenpou as distinct individuals as they listen to those two speak and thus can differentiate between the two characters. At least, this is what I hope–

Hirata: Stop it!

Ishida: Why?

Hirata: Minekura might get cocky so stop it! [He is probably trying to warn Ishida that Minekura-sensei might come up with a scene in which Hakkai and Tenpou actually speak to each other. Unlike Gojyo and Kenren, Hakkai and Tenpou never appear in the same room at the same time in Extreme Bath Log.]

(Ishida and Hoshi laugh.)

Seki: She might make you do it. [the same thing Hirata had to do]

Hirata: She will.

Ishida: You’re right. You never can tell with this Extreme Bath Log series.

Seki and Hoshi: Series?

Ishida: Yes, series. You never can tell what will happen with it, so let’s just keep our anticipation light for now. Regarding scenes that leave a lasting impression, what particularly caught my attention is this: Sanzo-sama not complaining at being aged up into a grandfather, despite the fact that he seems like a character that would definitely object to that sort of thing. I guess, in the end, whatever Minekura- sensei decides goes and there’s no defying her. That’s the only thing that I’m curious about regarding this Drama CD. Well then, moving on, Morikawa-kun, please.

Morikawa: Ah. Thanks, Akira Ishida, for giving me the floor. Hello, this is Morikawa Toshiyuki, CEO of Axlone.

Ishikawa and a few others: CEO!

Morikawa (laughs): It’s been quite a while since I last played Kubo-chan – Kubota, so I was delighted, though also a bit surprised at the fairly different scenario. But, the relationship between Kubo-chan and Tokito remains unchanged from how it was in Wild Adapter – they still live together [in Extreme Bath Log]. I think it’s great that whatever universe they’re in, these two are always together.

Morikawa: Well, the good thing about Drama CDs is that there’s only audio and no visuals, so one is free to play the character as one sees fit. Since I was playing Kubo-chan for the first time in a long while, I felt uneasy when voicing the first few lines. These days, the director and crew are situated behind the voice actors, so we do the recording without getting a glimpse of their facial expressions**. You get this [feeling of uneasiness] when playing a character you’ve not played for a long time, do you? It happens quite often. Yes, it does.

Morikawa: As usual, even in an audio drama depicting this [parallel] world, unpleasant characters would turn up. For a number of reasons, as in a TV drama, there were quite a number of such background characters. The splendid voice actors here are able to depict background characters with great depth, you know. For example, I’m sure they can portray a crowd bursting into laughter on the first take. How about it, everyone? Okay, in three... two... one, go!

(A burst of laughter resounds.)

Morikawa: There! See what I mean? Everyone’s relaxed and roaring with laughter at will, aren’t they? (laughs himself) That’s how thorough they are **. Ah, is my time up already? Got it. Then, up next is Ishikawa Hideo, who plays Tokito.

Ishikawa: Thank you, Morikawa-san. I’m Ishikawa Hideo, who plays Tokito. Well, since Wild Adapter basically revolves around Kubota and Tokito, other characters such as their friends don’t appear much in that series. Say, there’s Kou-san though, right?

Seki: Yes! [Seki plays Kou, a character in Wild Adapter.]

Ishikawa: Aside from Kou-san, there are some police officers who get involved [but only] from time to time. Therefore, while interacting with Goku [in this CD Drama] I somehow felt like I’d gained a new friend. Frankly, it was very enjoyable experience.

Hoshi: So we’re friends.

Ishikawa: Yeah, it felt like gaining a new friend. That feeling made the recording an exceedingly delightful experience. If this series continues, I hope there will be more new friends to be gained. Thank you very much. Then, on to you, Suzumura-kun.

Suzumura: This is Suzumura Kenichi, who plays Mishiba Toki, a character from Bus Gamer. While talking [to the others] about Bus Gamer just now, I realized that it has been ten years since I first played Mishiba. Yes, I was amazed too [at how time flies]. Say, the voice actors who play Saiyuki characters seem to have various opinions on the work, opinions which they express in an apparently carefree manner.

Hoshi and Seki (laugh): No, don’t mention that again.

Suzumura: Taking opportunity of this occasion, I’d like to learn how you guys survived so far. (laughs) [He is probably referring to the fact that the Saiyuki voice actors have not been axed despite their relatively brazen comments on the work.]

Hoshi: So far, yeah.

Suzumura: Is that so? Then I’d like to try to reach your level from now on. So, please allow me to do my best with this sentiment in mind **. In this CD Drama, my role is basically just to serve coffee in a cafe. (laughs) That’s how the plot has unfolded up to now, but perhaps something will turn up down the road. Hopefully, there will be a continuation of this series and more appearances [for my character]. That’s all from me. Then, Hiroki, the floor is yours.

Takahashi (in character): Thank you for your continued patronage! This is Saito Kazuo, heir of Saito Liquor Store, which is still in business even after ten years.

Hoshi: Hello.

(Takahashi exhales loudly.)

Hoshi: Hang on there!

Takahashi: I’m doing my best to. It’s been ten years, huh. The [Bus Gamer] anime was broadcast in 2008. Considering that we’re here today, the franchise’s passably survived. Er, actually–

Ishikawa: They’re not making any more Wild Adapter anime, you know. [The Wild Adapter OVA, first aired in 2014, covers only one of six complete volumes in the manga.]

Takahashi: Is that so? Then, by all means, let’s struggle together to survive.

Ishikawa: Yes, let’s do our best.

Takahashi: And hope for the best too. As for my thought on the Extreme Bath Log CD Drama, even though the main plot revolves around Tanabata, the recording session was performed after Tanabata was over [July 7]. Despite this regrettable condition, I’m pleased we eventually managed to do the recording. Is this CD Drama slated for release in April 2019? Or was I mistaken? Anyhow, it feels good [to have completed the recording].

Takahashi: Well, the Summer Triangle came up in the CD Drama [Track 01-06], right? Vega and Altair are two of the stars in the Summer Triangle. Vega, a star in the Lyra constellation, represents the Weaver Girl while Altair in the Aquila constellation represents the Cowherd. Then, what’s the remaining star in the Summer Triangle called? I’d like Hoshi-san to answer this quiz at the end. Well, on to Suwabe-san, who plays the last of the three Bus Gamer characters.

Suwabe (in Nobuto’s voice): Thank you for giving me the floor. I’m Suwabe Junichi, who’s in charge of voicing Nakajyo Nobuto. How do you find my performance**? (laughs) As my fellow voice actors from Bus Gamer already mentioned, the anime adaptation was broadcast ten years ago in 2008. It left a fond memory in my mind. I certainly recall performing at a Bus Gamer-related event, but it seems that the venue where the event was held no longer exists. Yes, time’s passed to that extent. Even under such a pressure, such–

Suwabe (in his normal voice): Hey, I can’t speak in a nice voice with you guys making such a ruckus. Stop it, everyone!

(The others have been chatting audibly among themselves all this while. Some of them laugh in response to Suwabe’s admonishment.)

Suwabe (back in Nobuto’s voice): That’s how it was [in the CD Drama] – various characters from Minekura-sensei’s works amicably locked in a grapple as they came together in this variety show-like piece. It was a very enjoyable experience for me. It’d be great if another such opportunity or even another appearance in Bus Gamer were to turn up. That’s it from me.

Hoshi: Thank you very much, Suwabe-kun.

Suzumura, Ishikawa and Morikawa: He spoke with a nice voice.

Hoshi: Yes, he did, didn’t he?

Seki: I was taken aback.

Hoshi: What was it again? The question you had for me?

Hirata: What’s the other star in the Summer Triangle?

Takahashi: Sorry for throwing in that question. Just ignore it. **

Hoshi: Er, what’s the answer? Hiroaki.... [I gave up after listening to this for twenty times and scrolling though the google results for the phrase Tanabata+Hiroaki.]

(Takahashi and the others laugh.)

Hirata: I have a bad feeling about this. Why are you looking at my face? [Hiroaki is Hirata’s personal name, but I have never heard Hoshi refer to him by it in all of the Saiyuki cast talks I’ve listened to.]

Hoshi: So, we’ve reached the end of cast commentary of Drama CD ‘Extreme Bath Log’, but I’d certainly be delighted in case of future development to this work. Everyone, I look forward to your continuing support. Thank you very much for listening today. Goodbye!

The others: Goodbye!

Seki: It’s Deneb!

Hoshi: Deneb, it’s Deneb. Pappi! [He finally gave the answer to Takahashi’s question. Deneb, the third star of the Summer Triangle, represents the bridge formed by magpies which enables the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl to meet each other once a year.]

Ishikawa: It’s great you got the answer.

Takahashi: A star’s born, huh? [Probably a pun on Hoshi’s name, since ‘hoshi’ may mean ‘star(s)’ in Japanese.]

Hoshi: Then, goodbye, everyone.

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(Round brackets): actions and sound effects. [Square brackets]: translator’s notes or clarifications. Double asterisks **: Stuff I am not sure of. Suggestions for improvements and corrections are more than welcome.

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Inane comments which I put at the end so that you can skip them:

1. For fans of Saiyuki anime who find Suwabe’s smooth, deep voice familiar, he plays Sai Tai Sai in Reload Blast. The Bus Gamer event he mentioned (YT video with Chinese subtitles).

youtube

A short portion of the video with English subtitles.

youtube

2. Every single one of the voice actors featured in this Drama CD has voiced the main characters (uke and seme) in various Boys’ Love CD or anime, with the notable exception of Hirata Hiroaki (no, not even a role as a side character which does not appear in any of the sex scenes). Is that the reason why Gojyo always gets the short end of the stick in Saiyuki Drama CDs? Or why Kenren and Gojyo appear at the same scene in Extreme Bath Log but not Tenpou and Hakkai? Only Minekura-sensei knows :D

#最湯記 #saiyuki #wild adapter #bus gamer #ishida akira #hirata hiroaki #seki toshihiko #hoshi souichirou #morikawa toshiyuki #ishikawa hideo #suzumura kenichi #Takahashi Hiroki #Suwabe Junichi #saiyuki drama cd #Youtube

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