Ballet students at the Royal University of Fine Arts, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 1999. Photographed by Derek Hudson.

just saw this, more aru shah art!!!!

Urvashi looks so damn amazing

URVASHI

As seen in the Pandava Quintet, Urvashi is, for many, the most unforgettable member of the Council of Guardians. Urvashi is renowned across the world for her staggering power, beauty, and impossibly high standards. It doesn’t matter which legendary hero you’re the reincarnation of. The only way to get on this aspara’s radar is to embark on a life-threatening quest to rescue all of his existence. Only after you return will she maybe, maybe let you enroll in her dance class.

Well, what are you waiting for? Our bags are already packed.

Absolute queen

I'D LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR SPLATOONS AND SOME BNHA OCS OF YOUR PICK!! also interested in dragon ball too ngl 👀

i hate tumblr so fucking much i was writing this up for an hour and it deleted

splatoon

i have a set of octolings since splat1 that i really like!

ringo, tako, octavia, mimi, quill, pan

but pan is gonna be revamped so i’ll figure out her deal soon

ringo tako octavia and pan are from octo valley

quill is from octo canyon

mimi is from the splatlands

i also have a budding splatband called out of shoal!

the lead is an octoling who came to the surface after hearing calamari inkantation and got paris syndrome so they made a punk rock band about it

there’s also a pencil urchin who is a vocalist and a shellback crab on drums :] might add a jelly as well

i want to make idols also. someday

bnha

here’s the main gang class 2-b!

(they were 2-a before horikoshi showed 2-a in the manga 💀)

my favorites of each row: atsuko kinzoku, koharu nakamoto, miku ueno, emiri abe

atsuko kinzoku (second to last, first row)—quirk melting point! with a touch of her hands she can melt any meltable object and consequently control that molten mess :] more extreme melting points are harder for her to do and cooling herself down can be an ordeal. she went to a dance school and was well versed in ballet before suddenly pivoting to u.a. and hero work. her hero name is tungsten!

koharu nakamoto (middle, second row)—quirk tear jerker! she can force people within a certain radius to experience certain emotions! she can do negative emotions much easier than positive, and these changes often make her feel the same way. she went to the same middle school as toga. she is also very into decora kei :^) did not give her a hero name oops but she is the magical girl hero

miku ueno (last, third row)—quirk sleepy sheep! her hair is actually clouds that when used makes the target extremely drowsy. as a drawback she herself is also rather sleepy most of the time :( her first hero name is bo sleep, with a themed outfit, but after she graduates and the nature of her work changes, she becomes somna

emiri abe (second, last row)—quirk animate! emiri has charcoal like pads on their fingers, which allows her to draw. once a drawing is completed, it can come to life and then be used as a tool. effectiveness is tied to how clear a drawing is. the medium is water resistant but can be washed away. emiri’s hair is naturally blonde but is more ash colored because of how often they put their hands in their hair 💀 in public, emiri wears gloves. hero name ani!

(bonus! hideyoshi maki + kanon katou)

hideyoshi (second, top row)—quirk lucky lottery! he has bands on his arms and marks on his face that appear when good things naturally happen to him. as its stored, he can then expend them to sort of force events to happen as long as there is a chance of it happening. less likely events requires him to spend more luck. it is also automatically used to keep him out of harms way. unrelated to his quirk, he has doll like limbs :^) he’s the lucky hero—chance!

kanon (right of emiri)—quirk stereo! she gains super speed and strength depending on the qualities of the music she listens to! she is also emiri’s gf :] kanon has vitiligo as well, which is being hidden at that point in time. she fails the hero license test going against her older sister kotone and partner chiyo, who go to seiai academy, but eventually gets her shit together and becomes the wabisabi hero—shuffle 👍🏽

dragon ball

i had several saiyan ocs (maiz, kohn, aspara, pumpki, etc) when i was in hs but i havent drawn them since so here are the ones i have!

nati (from naticidae, genus of moon snail) and kitsu (from tsuki, moon) are my namekian ocs! they are bonded in the same was dende and cargo were.

unfortunately they died in the namek saga, and were later revived on earth. during that wait for the namekian dragon balls to be used again, they explored earth and decided to then explore the rest of universe 7 to see what’s out there :D

nati is a dragon clan namekian! they have a shitty keychain esque set of dragon balls that aren’t capable of much besides wishing for the return of a lost sock. they think its cute but don’t use them often because of the hassle of collecting.

kitsu is a warrior clan namekian! he died protecting nati on namek and as a result has become very guard dog-y regarding them. you know how it is. was initially reluctant about not going to namek with his brothers.

i’m still waffling about who but while hopping from planet to planet one of them gets gravely injured to the point where fusion was the only option available to them. as a result this fused namekian has extreme survivors guilt and is reluctant to return to namek. (though they may eventually do to see if porunga can unfuse them)

since we know that zeno erased like 6 universes before the universe survival saga i wanted to make a set of ocs from one of those erased universes (god of destruction, angel, supreme kai). i did not get far in that all tho 💀 only designed the angel and i don’t think they have a name. but i probably wouldve named them kesa (from sake, doubleish meaning with the negative conjugation of kesu, to erase)

Meet Phara Prom, the one and only Spidersrei of Phnom Pehn! She was bit by a radioactive mirror spider that gave her the usual spider powers along with the ability to bend/manipulate light.

I lowkey forgot to post this lol, I drew this spread like months ago and never finished coloring it. She’s more an oc than a sona, but I still love her dearly. I based her suit off of khmer Aspara dance wear and a mix of bokator and muy thai clothes. I imagine that because she can bend light, the suit can appear to change light or has an iridescent quality to her. If she were animated she would constantly have anime sparkles around her lol. Maybe I’ll draw that when I get inspired again haha, I can’t wait to have the movie available lible on stream or dvd so I can watch it over and over again.

神田 強, Kanda Tsuyoshi 

おかめと天女 - “Okame and Tennyo”

Type: Full. Shoulders and arms

Features:

Spiral Botan-Giri Mikiri -  This refers to the black and white scalloped border. “Mikiri” is the term for the outer border surrounding these “full” style tattoos. “Botan-Giri” means “Peony Cut” and refers to the scalloped, petal-like edges. 

Okame Masks - said to be a representation of the Shinto goddess of dawn, mirth, revelry, and the arts Ame-no-uzume. The mask depicts a smiling woman with chubby cheeks. The okame represents happiness and good fortune, especially in marriage.

According to a Japanese legend, the sun goddess, Amaterasu omikami, once hid in a cave and plunged the world into darkness. When no other gods could lure her out Ame-no-uzume performed a sexually provocative dance, making the other deities burst into laughter. This aroused the curiosity of Amaterasu, who then came out of the cave, restoring daylight to the world.

Tennyo - Tennyo i.e "Heavenly Maiden" refers to all female divine entities and goddesses, but most specifically female Tennin or Aspara, attendants of the Buddhist gods. Tennyo are often depicted flying gracefully through the clouds, sometimes playing instruments and scattering flowers. They are protectors of Buddhist law, heralds of the gods, and bringer of love and good fortune.

Maple Leaves - time passing, a symbol of the wind, and lovers. regeneration and resurrection as they cycle through the seasons.

The bas-reliefs on both the temples show Asparas.

Asparas are celestial dancers. They dance to the music for the gods, and entertain and sometimes seduce gods and men.

((I sometimes think about Sovanna and Joe interacting since Joe’s a family friend. For instance, I think Joe would ask questions about aspara dancing, and Sovanna would try to teach it to him. Naturally, he’d lose balance and fall over a few times.))

Angkor temple carving of Aspara dancers

Coffin Cut || Callie&Sofia

         “Okay, what colour did you decide?” Sofia asked as they sat in velvet teal seats, keeping her own hands outstretched on the green marble of the table between her and the technician, the woman starting to prepare her tools to begin working on Sofia with. The young siren already had nails on but there was clearly some of her natural nails showing at the beds which meant she was due for a new fill or for new nails, the latter what she was getting done.

          Aspara’s Beauty Bar was run by a a mostly fae family that actually had a few businesses in town, they owned the nail salon, a dance studio and a takeaway place. Of course, a few others were hired on, not everyone family, but for the most part you could see all of the employees moving about the thriving business in The Commons speaking to one another in Hindi and knew who was related based on dynamic and who was not. 

           “I am thinking of doing like transparent but with like koi or goldfish,” Sofia explained as she gently nudged her knock-off orange purse further beneath the table with the edge of her strappy heels.

@callie-everest​

ok!! i'm sure a couple of you were waiting for this, but here it is:

my fave choreos of 2021!

i'm gonna go in reverse order (top faves are last) this time just to mix it up. i don't think this is as long as my stylings posts but also who knows anymore, honestly.

---

runners' up

lay - flying asparas

this is only a runner up because it's not technically kpop but make no mistake, this is the best kpop adjacent choreo to come out of 2021. no exceptions. this man is king shit no wonder sm won't let him back in korea, he's too powerful now. watch this performance and CRY.

+

area - minho

really late entry from minho, from a rearranged version of area from his fanmeet on dec 21st. it's the most complex or fancy choreography this year but i really enjoy watching it during the fanmeeting, and i love the use of the rolling stool.

+

intro: crown - purple kiss

again with the rbw groups killing the intro choreographies. this was for the intro for their DEBUT!!! it's clean, it's sharp, it's interesting, it's got character, and the track itself is fun even if it is a billie eilish knockoff.

+

vibin' - youngjae

honestly i wasn't expecting a whole lot out of youngjae as a soloist, mostly because i didn't know what to expect. so therefore i was pleasantly surprised by how much i liked vibin'. it's cute and fun and i love that it has a lot of partner work and a bench. there's also a lot of depth of movement and it's very dynamic for a relative simple choreo (as you can tell by the camera shake).

+

not the end - highlight

another relatively simple choreo that's clean and satisfying to watch and doesn't impede vocal performance. choreos don't always have to be revolutionary to be good. also is that their practice room?? it's fucking gorgeous with that light setup.

+

intro: devil is in the detail - oneus

the first entry from oneus, and spoiler alert it's not the last. i love the use of the backup dancers for large multiple leveled formations, like right at the beginning and at 1:03. i also like the combination of really sharp isolated movements and smooth lyrical ones. like the name of the song, the devil really is in the details.

+

waiting - woodz

i liked this choreo a lot but i didn't like it more than i liked feel like, so i bumped it down. but we love a good stool choreo in this house and the dance practice is halloween themed, which is cute.

+

intro: window - oneus

do i even. have to say anything.

+

teardrop - sf9

honestly this is here just for intro, because those tree of life formations are so pretty. it's a bit hard to tell from this choreography video but if you're reading this you've likely already seen a lot of this choreo already, so you know.

---

faves

us - moon jongup

there is SO much lateral movement in this choreo i am obsessed with it. and longitudinal. there's just so much movement in general in this choreo that even though it isn't complicated it's still fun to watch. he's not afraid to have his backup dancers be doing things of equal importance to himself as the solo performer and it adds a lot of texture to the performance that sometimes is lacking in solo stages.

+

black mirror - oneus

that knee move. that knee move. this choreo really demostrates how versatile oneus is in their style of movements and concept execution. although there are a lot of groups that have a very consistent level of skill, oneus really is a step above that. obvious i love the props use, even if it is a bit of a challenge to use mirrors on stage (they ended up not being real mirrors in the stages because mirrors that big are huge hazards in terms of light direction, and can blind audience members and performers alike, especially when they move).

+

ra pam pam - golden child

i'm actually not going to talk about it too much here because addy sent me an ask about this specifically that i'm also in the middle of, but please know that i am deeply in love with this choreography and golden child has had a special place in my flop collection ever since rtk. it is an actual crime that they never put out a proper dance practice for it.

+

spider - hoshi

i don't think i really have to justify spider's place on this list. i really wish more idols were willing to use props like this but also i know that he only was able to pull this off because he's got access to hybe money + power and it didn't have a full promotional cycle attached to it. this choreographer is really good and i know team same has choreographed for svt before, but this was such a nice change from the vast majority of choreos this year.

+

thank u - yunho

listen, any choreo where yunho gets to sit on a throne of his dancers is a good choreo, and that intro image is SO strong i literally forget everything else that happens in this choreo even though so much of it is good. that point move with the hand in the chorus is so simple but such a great image and also it's a really clear example of letting a specific body part lead your movement. again, great example of how a choreo doesn't have to be crazy complicated or insanely difficult to be good.

+

tail - sunmi

i've talked about this choreo a bit in my sunmi posts before but we all knew this was gonna be here. i will always be said that they changed it from her jumping on that dancer's lap but at least we have a record of it. sunmi's choreos are always intricately tied to the themes of her comebacks and tail is no exception. and it's one of only a few choreographies of hers that is sexy sexy on purpose, even if it still is being used as a manipulation tactic. go browse my sunmi tag if you wanna hear me talk more about this.

+

feel like - woodz

not a technically difficult choreography by any stretch of the imagination, but it is difficult because there is so much empty space that relies on the charisma of the performer, which you can see really clearly in the follow shot version and also in just. any performance that he does. this choreo is also built for him; it uses a lot of movements that accentuate his very long limbs (he's about 6') and how much space his body takes up. he's physically bigger than most of his backup dancers and even with the male dancers it minimizes them by changing levels constantly or keeping him at the very front of the formations. although a shorter dancer could cover this choreo easily, just the disparity in size would pretty dramatically change how this choreo looks and it would take on a different meaning; which is the mark of a good and well thought out choreography. also any choreo that opens with someone lying on the ground and flipping up like that reminds me of chanyeol's intro from obsession and that's a big plus in my books.

+

advice - taemin

y'all knew this was gonna be here. there's a lot to love about this choreo but something i want to point out is that, like i previously mentioned with the feel like choreo: advice is built for taemin's size. he uses the fact that he's a little smaller than the average dude to augment the theme of dualities that runs through advice; so when he's with the female dancers he's larger than them, and when he's with the male dancers he's smaller than them, giving him the illusion of occupying two different spaces of power even though the movements are exactly the same. that's why for youngbin's cover, even though it looks right and it sure as hell was ballsy to do the supreme look, it also doesn't look right because youngbin has a totally different body type and he's got at least 3-4" on taemin, so he's as big/if not bigger than his backup dancers. byeongkwan from a.c.e has also done a cover and he gets much closer to how it feels like it should look because byeongkwan is the same height as taemin, and therefore smaller than the backup dancers. even if this choreo wasn't hard as fuck it would still be extremely difficult to cover just because of that, much like every other taemin choreo ever.

+

will make a mistake - blitzers

am i going to lose credibility in some people's eyes because i'm putting a rookie group choreography near the top of my list? probably, but know what's worse? that the industry is so starved for theatricality and character in performances that i immediately latched onto this because it's one of the first times i've actually seen a whole group give 100% to a goofy concept in a while. i've never gotten tired of watching these performances and i watched every single music show stage they did. i love the gimmick of the mouth and they don't overuse it (here's the performance mv so you can see it proper), and they really try to diversify the shapes and numbers within formations. i don't know what else to tell you other than this is what i think 4th gen boy group choreographies should look like.

+

luna - oneus

i know a lot of people are gonna compare this to vixx's shangri la and want to cry foul that it's 'just a copy and it will never compare' and i gotta stop you right there. firstly, i am very sure that some things are in fact, referential to shangri la on purpose (the opening pose of shangri la + the ending of luna, for example) and it's done in homage rather than strictly copying, and also: shangri la has an entirely different theme. shangri la is an abstract work, conceptual (literally) on purpose to invoke the actual meaning of the shangri la myth/story, and it uses something closer to 'generic east asian' as it's styling to highlight the orientalism of the whole as an idea and a term. versus luna, which is very very deeply grounded in very real korean folk traditionalism and pansori, especially in the choreo and costuming. there's at least three instances of korean folk dance moves that i could spot right away, and they use the extended sleeves from talchum, and the fabric sheets are the six traditional colours (obangsaek + green). and when it comes it the choreography itself? it takes all the ideas that the shangri la choreo introduced and built them into something bigger and better, and that is exactly what an adaptation on a theme should do. just watch the dance practices side by side and you'll see; a lot of shangri la's elegance is carried solely by hakyeon and despite the fans it's still a fairly typical bg choreo. luna has the fans built in as an integral part of the geometry AND brings in other elements from korean folk dance, so even though there's a more hiphop dance break, the full choreo itself is a hybrid mix of lyrical and traditional and hiphop. i really love this choreography and this comeback and i am so glad it got them their first win.

---

that's it! i've spent a loooong time mulling this over and there were a couple that just barely didn't make the list, including a.c.e's higher and bad love, as well as a couple others. but i gotta stop somewhere, sadly. fingers crossed for some good stuff this year!

hello yearning: a'plyae mae.

Summary:

Jung Taekwoon, a fourth tier soccer player in the K3 division of Korea's football leagues, juggles the struggle of raising his nephew as well as pushing his career forward when he unconsciously commits an act which bestows a faerie of good fortune upon him. A problem; the faerie is very mischievous. Another problem; the faerie is also very, very attractive.

Rating- Mature.

artwork by @changbaegi​. used with permission.

Chapter 3: Virtuoso (or read on ao3)

There's a silvery-green sheen of light that seems to envelop the man lounging on Taekwoon’s furniture, and he blinks once -twice- to reassure himself that it was not a figment of his imagination. If he squints hard, really hard, it almost seems as though there is a glittering substance present within the sheen, falling like an iridescent curtain over the strange man’s head and down to the bare feet, crossed at the ankle, settled on the white tile floor. His white tile floor. The white tile floor that was the base of HIS kitchen where he ATE.

Taekwoon was still frozen in place, stuck in time as the other man stretches his arms over his head, apparently completely content to lounge in this position all night if need be, and Taekwoon bristled at that. Still, he couldn’t quite ignore the shiver that was running up his spine at the sight of the man, because -while he was certain they had never met before- there was an air of familiarity about him

(Oh, so you’re who I’ve been waiting for?)

He's just going to ignore that strange, otherworldly voice that popped into his head, thank you very much. Instead, what Taekwoon is going to do is he's going to grab the iron skillet on top of his stove and he's going to get some answers. As soon as he can move.

“Oh, right, Oopsy Daisies, you're stuck there until I explain the deal!” Comes the (throaty, rhythmic) insufferable voice of the man in the chair. “Frozen in time until you accept your fate,” he continues to drawl and the soft screeching of the chair’s protest as it is slowly pushed back, bottoms of its legs scraping against the floor, echoes through the tiny room. When the man stands, Taekwoon is disgruntled to find that the pair are nearly identical in height, meaning his above average stature wouldn't be aiding him this time around. That was just fine, though, because he was broader than this stranger from years spent training his body to reach the edge of its endurance and then some. But, he still wasn't able to move. He was trying to will his frame forward, and when that proved futile, his attempts became desperate enough that all Taekwoon wanted to be able to do was twitch his fingers.

All efforts were in vain, as it were. This man seemed to be telling Taekwoon the truth, and the only logical explanation for the phenomenon was that Taekwoon had been drugged. It most likely occurred when he had been searching the home earlier, his mind too preoccupied to notice any odd remnants of ill-meaning dust or liquid splashed along his walls. Or maybe it was the tap water in the sink he had rinsed his face in. That had to be it. Water, the original source for human vitality and the very basis of life as he knew it would be the thing that finally did Taekwoon in. Just the thought was enough to send him seething- if he had the ability to seethe, that was. Which he did not. Because it was as if someone had set a literal pause on him, feet as lead weighing him down to the floor but his body in a state of utter weightlessness. He might say this is what floating felt like if he was paying more attention to the unnatural sensation overtaking him and not on the long piece of yellowing parchment the other man seemed to have conjured from thin air which was now slowing unfurling to reveal bold, black lettering, cursive and slanting and looking very incredibly ancient. Like a prop from a bad history movie. Taekwoon felt like he was in a bad history movie.

The man clears his throat and Taekwoon’s eyes, surprisingly not dry, set to attention once again.

“Yadda, yadda, yadda, introduction to why I’m here, but you should know that already, blah blah blah, HERE WE GO.” A slender finger with nails unkempt and cracking at the edges, though not dirtied, rests pointedly on a section of text that Taekwoon can hardly see and definitely cannot decipher. “When the giall -that’s you- has committed an act of utter sanctity while not under dis-repose influence, shall be granted, for indefinite longevity, an Asparas of one of the following sects to be decided by the council of sects immediately following the act and with due haste so long as no unearthly entity deem is inefficient; i) Sylia, for acts of the kindred spirit ii) Iallea, for acts of the wandering flesh iii) Diamae, for acts in relation to salvation iv) Rutia, for acts that the Oke’trall will v) Nullea, for acts inconceivable by no other means than Thaumaturgy or Mysticism vi) Atua, to grant safe passage into wosh regions.”

Taekwoon is at a complete loss, the words tumbling from the man’s mouth being a language he couldn’t interpret. He was catching some Korean words jumbled in with a lot of jargon and then something that sounded almost Celtic. He would very much like for this man to leave.

The man only whistles through his teeth, smiling brightly up at Taekwoon. His eyes crinkle at the edges and Taekwoon tries not to think about how nice it looks because this was not the right time to be ogling.

“You really did something pretty nice to have me assigned to you!” The stranger sing-songs, seeming extremely pleased with himself. “I’m from the Diamae sect, but your case could have been between the Diamae or the Sylia sects which is why it took a lot longer for me to finally get to you. They said something about a kid and a cliff, but that’s really all I heard before I got too curious and decided to just come and see you even if the entire meeting hadn’t exactly adjourned, but you wouldn’t even give the courtesy of greeting me! You just locked that cute little kid up in that room and then came out with a bat! That wasn’t a very nice thing to do at all, you know. Especially since I’m basically going to be living with you from now on and all that.”

Was this some kind of a fever dream? It had to be. Any moment, Taekwoon would be waking up after being shaken to consciousness abruptly by his nephew who would be chastising Taekwoon for not waking up early enough to take him to school on time and Taekwoon would eventually forget all about this crazy situation playing out as he blissfully went out the rest of his life in comfortable repetition. He might be able to recall the dream when he woke up, but it would soon fade away until the remnants were nothing but forgotten glimpses into a world belonging to his imagination. If Taekwoon could move, he would pinch himself.

He still couldn’t move though, and that was really starting to get to him.

“Aye, we might not have gotten off on the right note, but I’m sure we’ll be able to get along just fine once this is all cleared up. Anyway, you have to accept the acquirement of Asparas (1) amae before we can get the rest of the details sorted out. It’s also kind of mandatory for you because if you don’t accept then it’s going to make a lot of really powerful people preeeeettyyy pissed,” rambled the man in his rapid-fire manner of speech. Taekwoon could hardly keep up, still reeling, but it seemed that it was unnecessary for him to be aware of the goings on because some otherworldly force was tipping his head forward and then back. A nod. He had just accepted whatever the Hell was being given to him.

The man claps his hands together, overjoyed, before snapping his fingers and the action unbinds Taekwoon from whatever chains were keeping him in place. He has to test out his newfound freedom by first curling his wrists and clenching his fists to ensure that his blood was in proper circulation throughout his body. It was, and Taekwoon geared himself to give out a punch that would have the other man sprawled on the floor in seconds, but then-

"A'plyae mae. A'llemenia mae Kalan . But you can call me Jaehwan while we’re here. It’ll make me fit in better,” there was a hand being extended in Taekwoon’s direction, one with long and slender fingers adorned by patterned wooden rings and interwoven with what he could only assume to be moss and petals. The look that he was being given was one of (adoration?) fondness by the man- Jaehwan- and Taekwoon thought that maybe this wouldn’t be the best time considering that if he didn’t try to figure out what had just happened, he might me “pissing off a lot of really powerful people” and that didn’t sound good at all if they were anything like the guy that kept magically appearing in his home. Taekwoon takes the man’s hand and tentatively shakes it.

Now that he’s stepped closer, the football player can see that there are intricate lines running up the stranger’s flesh, dancing, even as he stood still, over the skin like veins but a milky hue in colour. So very strange. Taekwoon can also see the violet bags under brown eyes (or were they green?) indicating that this man was tired even through the cheerful facade that was being put on. If Taekwoon didn’t know better, he might say that the cheeriness was an act. But, what really struck him was the blond locks set atop the man’s head. They were so yellow in shade that Taekwoon was reminded of sunflowers, and at first he thought it might be dyed that way were it not for the consistent colour. He had had his own hair dyed once, and he knew that there were some things that artificial colour could not achieve.

“Why are you here?” He manages to ask without stuttering, his eyes now drawn to the slightly sunken cheeks that sit atop a prominent jawline.

Jaehwan’s smile falters for a moment before he releases Taekwoon from the embrace and squares his shoulders before quickly dropping into a bow at the waist. He’s back up so fast that Taekwoon thought he would have missed the action if he had blinked and surely Jaehwan’s head would be swimming from the disturbance to his equilibrium? But, there seems to be no such inhibition, and Jaehwan’s voice sounds without any hesitation.

“I’m your personal angel! Well, not angel. I’m an asparas, but they basically sound the same, so does it really matter?” Taekwoon thought that, yes, it did really matter. “And the reason I’m here is because you committed an act that was out of selflessness for that boy down at the… Where was it? Some marine place? I think that’s what it was. I wasn’t really paying attention, I just went where they sent me to go, and that was here!” Damn, this guy looked really proud of himself.

“But…” Taekwoon just thought he had done what any other normal person with a moral compass would have done. Besides, it had been an accident; it wasn’t like he willingly went out of his way to save the kid, he was just the one who happened to be standing there when it happened. It just seemed way to circumstantial for any of this to be substantial.

It was like Jaehwan could read his mind, because the asparas was clasping his hands behind his back and looking humbled, and his voice was lowering to a much quieter tone as he spoke.

“Really, I’m only supposed to be bestowing good fortune upon you right now because what you did wasn’t, what do you call it? Totally heroic? But, it was still a really good thing to do, and everyone at the council has to think about that before they send one of us over here to be around the humans and stuff.”

“That doesn’t make much sense.”

“Just think about it like you have your very own personal lucky charm now.”

Taekwoon didn’t really believe in luck. It was hard work and perseverance that had gotten him to where he was, so what did he need this for? Slowly, he makes a grab for one of the chairs at the table, slinking into the cushion-covered wooden seat and resting his chin in his hands as he tried to mull over the new information. He could be crazy. This could be a fever- dream from some bad food he had eaten earlier in the day, because if you asked him, that tteokbeokki from the street vendor in town earlier had tasted a bit off to him. He could also be trying to fill the void of loneliness that was in his heart whenever Minyul wasn’t around, but even that couldn’t really explain what was going on because he should only be experiencing this phenomena when his nephew wasn’t around, and he had heard Jaehwan’s voice in the past when he thought there was an intruder.

“I know what you’re thinking,” he can hear said voice saying, and a pair of bare feet appear in Taekwoon’s peripheral vision underneath the shadow of his fingers. When he looks up, he can see an impish grin. “There’s no way that this could be real, right? I come in here claiming to be some sort of FaeFolk and making you sign some agreement that says I’m going to be here a while? It does sound pretty freaky, but I promise, you’ll barely know I’m here! I can even babysit! Kids love me. Check this out!”

And before Taekwoon can protest, Jaehwan is lifting his hands. In one of his hands, his fingers furl toward his palm but the other hand acts as a stabilizer underneath it in a completely flat position. Jaehwan takes a long breath, focusing intently on one spot just beyond the point of Taekwoon’s shoulder, and then his eyes glaze over as if he is staring into nothingness. Taekwoon waits for something to happen. He waits a minute. And then two. But, then he realizes that there is no motion to Jaehwan’s shoulders that would indicate an intake of breath. The football player wonders if Jaehwan is frozen just like he was and if this would be a good time to try and maneuver the body out of the home while he could, but then he sees it.

The foggy mist begins to collect around the man’s mouth, and Taekwoon watches in horror, sinking into the back of the seat, as the mist clouds just before Jaehwan’s head, morphing in shape like something alive and twisting in the air as though writhing in agony. The same shimmering sheen is present through the mist and it glitters in the air until something… Twinkles? There is something most definitely twinkling in the center of the vapor and disturbing the area around it as it grows in size and brightness. Taekwoon can barely see Jaehwan’s face through the smoggy substance because it is darkening to a deep purple even as the orb becomes brighter and brighter.

Taekwoon finally has to shield is eyes, but when the light dims and he can turn to see what has become of the bizarre scene, the Fae is half- enclosing a sparkling purple tourmaline in his hand and grinning an illustrious grin. The space around him should be empty, but lilac flecks glint in coruscation in the air, teasing and enveloping the asparas in a nebula of placidity.

“Pretty cool, huh?”

Taekwoon hadn’t realized his jaw dropped.

⋯ ◯ ⋯⋯

Excerpt From The Third Work of Han Gyeon (1625)

To be understood as a translation into modern speak of the 20th century. Translation as approved by professors Choi Yongmin and Kim Soyee of Korea University’s Linguistics Department and the International Circle of Korean Linguistics.

Good Fortune bestow the group of Seven, for seven be one of the most magykal of the numbers; no doubt to be reasoned by those we were seeking that these seven were only of the most capable of men to make this journey. For, even though the legs we were to trudge on ached with a fury and e’en if our feet be waterlogged and mud- soaked, we seven did not falter in our task of bestowing the water upon the grounds of the land. Our entry to the place of wonder be granted only from our prowess, and only when granted access through the iridescent gloss that separates the holier world from that of Mankind did we allow for rest. I fear that the first few moments we spent were to set at ease our tired bodies and souls and to mourn for the loss of the good fellows we did leave behind, but we would soon to be reunited; for their Sakes rather than ours. Only by following the streams, the gurgle of the brooks and distant roar of rushing water, were we to come upon this place, nestled in the hills and secret from most but those who know the path to trudge. Here, the spectrum is like nothing that can be sought in the realm of Man, in a place where even the air dances with a mingling of vibrant hue and our guide partakes of the scenery with a satisfaction us seven have come to know, for surely this place will leave us with such longing once our presence had become unwanted. Soon as we are relinquished from this place, it would haunt our hearts until our very last breaths, but we were not to know that until the years of despairing were set upon. In that instant, the brief period of time that passed between myself gathering my strength before taking in the fictitious around me, we would be surrounded. Not a menacing demeanor, nor one of manic, ominous threat, but one that had three of our group whispering in hushed murmurs to themselves. Their eyes would flicker about, though in fascination or fright it cannot be known; all that is for certain is that we were under a watchful gaze while amongst the whimsicality of the unknown, and so would the piercing gazes remain on our backs until we set off once again in search of the meeting place. “Be sure to bring another,” our guide suggested from his place to the stream nearest to us, because water seemed to flow in wavering and winding currents up the hills, cupping his hands in demonstration to us as he fills his palms of the clear liquids of the realm. We were all to follow suit, not to forget ourselves in bewilderment and there were only a few who needed to scramble. The way that we were to go was one flanked on both sides by trees whose branches were heavy with ripening fruit or flowering blossoms even while the floor of this forest, for surely this was still woodland although the thicket was that of pinks and oranges whose bark was littered with fluttering insects. The overhang of twigs offered cool shade against the beating sun, cooling the grass and moss of the woods. There were flowing tides here as well, following the path and intersecting at times, but never crossing over the areas of shade we were subject to. It was something akin to an arch, harmonious. A being of less caliber may seek to lay a hand upon the efflorescence as if in a lovers’ caress, but we were of good and clever men and we followed our guide staunchly so as to ne’er lose sight of the trail we were to take. Even if we were welcomed here now, the men were of unspoken agreement that wandering was only in a Fool’s agenda. Every so often, a shadow would cross the peripheral of my vision, flitting from sapling to timber but never back, always following. I would never turn my head to meet the kindred spirit; it would have been unwise. Instead, when the sun must have reached high noon, our guide instructs us to sit. The wind began to still around us, no longer buffering against the cloth of our cloaks nor whispering through the trees in its song, and so we sat side- by- side on the trail, the length of us spanning just the necessary amount. We would wait until They were to greet us. We would offer our gift to them, one of tenacity and fearlessness and diligence, and then the meeting would commence. Out of the corner of my eye, I remember the shadow sitting down on par with us as well. Faintly, falco naumanni calls.

⋯ ◯ ⋯⋯

“How did you do that?” The football player blurts out once he’s found his voice, the pounding of his heart thundering in his ears. There was no possible way that no trickery was involved. Jaehwan was an illusionist, most likely, and had probably set up lights around the apartment to make the elaborate scheme seem like magic. This was the only possible explanation that Taekwoon could think of, because he was a very logical man and nothing that was happening was happening with any practicality. That, or he was losing his mind.

“See? That’s why kids like me! Even Minyul liked it, and I only did some small stuff.” Without a care, Jaehwan tosses the gem behind him and it clatters against the floor before resting still with a final deep thud where it would stay nestled in the carpet of a rug. Taekwoon followed the action with his eyes, but could hardly process it.

Jaehwan was suddenly very close, and Taekwoon visibly startled in his chair. He didn’t like the way that this man could move like that, soundlessly and so quickly that it was unnerving. Jaehwan’s eyes were quite large as they stared reproachfully into Taekwoon’s own, his arms descending so that the Fae’s hands could grip at the arms of the chair on either side of Taekwoon’s lax body. He was leaning in so close that Taekwoon thought he could scent the faint smell of salty sea water rolling off of him, and that did nothing more than pique his curiosity and send his stomach into a flurry of action. All at once, he felt exhausted and sick, and Taekwoon’s eyes fluttered closed at the wave of nausea that was slowly overtaking him. This didn’t seem to disturb Jaehwan, nor did the faint groan of displeasure that sounded from the Korean man sitting in the chair. Instead, he leaned closer, the aroma growing in strength until Taekwoon was certain that he was standing seaside. If he tried to focus on the darkness behind his eyes and escape into that solitude, images of flotsam and jetsam infested his thoughts until he was certain that he was floating among the waves of the ocean. His palms felt sticky and clammy at his sides before they clutched at the cushion beneath him in an attempt to return to reality, but he could have been a man drowning for all that Taekwoon could do to save himself.

As quickly as the phenomenon started, it ceased. Taekwoon drew in a long gulp of air to steady himself and grasp back into the world that should be around him. He was in his kitchen. He was sitting down. And Jaehwan was still much too close.

“I don’t just do party tricks,” the asparas hums in a condescending tone while something dangerous lurks in the flash of his eyes. It dawns on Taekwoon immediately that Jaehwan had been the cause of the overpowering experience, and that revelation was enough to have him scared. Taekwoon was frightened that this monstrosity of a creature was in his home, and he was frightened that this being was now wont to be around him. The goosebumps erupting on the flesh of his legs, arms and stomach were a clear indication of his emotion. Still, the level stare kept Taekwoon locked in place until the most that he could do was breathe and keep eye contact and pray to whatever deity had cursed him that they would relinquish the contract he was a part of and give him back the previous life that now felt so far away. ( It was funny how time worked like that. Just a few hours earlier, Taekwoon was hoping for some company, and here it was, but not in the way that he expected it. )

Jaehwan pulls away after another moment, the silence broken by a chuckle and then it’s as though a switch has been flicked because the asparas is turning on his heel with arms extended toward the ceiling of the apartment in a show of sheer joy. After a short stretch, Jaehwan lifts himself up onto the counter of the kitchen under which a set of cupboard sit, swinging his bare feet out toward Taekwoon at the table. Taekwoon wasn’t a religious man, but if the Devil were real, surely He was in his home in that instant.

“I don’t usually take up this much space, so this is kind of weird to me. Plus, this human body just feels so… Long? No, that’s not the word. Lanky. It feels lanky,” Jaehwan almost pouts, his bottom lip curling out just slightly in a way that should be endearing but that Taekwoon could only think of as being heinous. “And the beds here are so weird! How can you sleep on something like that? The pillows here aren’t even stuffed with feathers like they should be. That’s what they told us, you know. That the human world was full of all these weird things and that you guys use animals for clothes and stuff.”

Jaehwan must really like the sound of his own voice is the conclusion that Taekwoon is drawing, and the football player begins to ascend from his place of refuge to tentatively move back a hairsbreadth towards the doorway leading out into the hallway.

“You could stay somewhere else?” He suggests in a small voice and then immediately internally chastises himself. Taekwoon’s may have a naturally quiet way of speech, but it wasn’t going to be of use now when he should be authoritative enough to buy time to think of a means to escape. It was that, or somehow undo the deal he was coerced into, because he was going to be taking anything that Jaehwan told him previously into careful consideration.

“Oh, no, no. I… I can’t really. Once one of us FaeFolk are tied to a human, we’re basically bonded. It means I should probably masquerade as your bodyguard or something. Oooh! That would be cool! You could act like you made a mafia boss really angry and that you had to hire protection just like in those movies!” Jaehwan suggests, elated at the idea and Taekwoon didn’t pause to wonder how the asparas even knew what the mafia was if he didn’t even know that pillows were rarely stuffed with feathers anymore. Another thought does strike him, though.

“You said… That they told you what here was like,” he starts, not wanting to picture who ‘they’ were, “does that mean you haven’t been here before?”

“Nope!” Jaehwan shakes his head, crossing his arms in an x over his chest. “Not even once until I got assigned to you. It’s really weird here. You humans don’t even have the nocturna lumos, and that was my favourite part of back home. I mean, you can still see the stars and stuff - I sort of spent the last few nights on a few roofs here- but it really isn’t all that spectacular.”

“Then why send you here in the first place if your home is so much better?” Taekwoon snaps with some regret. He was finding it a struggle just to stand now when his body was weighing itself down so heavily from tiredness.

“Because, it’s our duty to serve the good.” The vague explanation sounds like one that would be given to a child, as if Taekwoon couldn’t understand the full situation so there was no point in telling him. That was irritating, and Taekwoon grinds his teeth together. Briefly, his gaze locks on the bright green numbers of the timer on the microwave set against the wall beside Jaehwan’s head and is unhappy to note that it’s nearing midnight.

“Where do you plan on staying tonight, then?” He resigns himself to asking the man lounging on his counter-top. Jaehwan’s head cocks to the side, lips pursing before he shrugs his shoulders and hops down from his position to land on his feet with all of the grace of an Olympic diver.

“I don’t really wanna sleep tonight. Have you got any movies?”

Taekwoon’s eye twitches but he nods.

“Oh, good, ‘cause I don’t really like it when it gets really dark, so I can just stay in that room with the Big Screen and watch some of those until you wake up. You have those funny ones, right?”

“Comedies?” The only comedies Taekwoon owned were animated because of his nephew and even he could barely get through one of them without feeling as though his brain were leaking through his ears from the sheer stupidity of the absurd storylines. ( He had no desire to find out how a talking, dancing pickle was making his way through life in a cucumber world was all he was getting at. )

Jaehwan only smiles widely at that, and the sight is enough to make Taekwoon’s jaw ache. How could a person’s mouth stretch so obscenely? And in such a square shape? But Taekwoon doesn’t have any more time to mull it over because Jaehwan is moving in his lightning fast way again and tugging on the long sleeve of the shirt the football player is wearing to pull him into the living room that housed the television Jaehwan fondly called the Big Screen. There was no way that Taekwoon was going to be getting away from him, it seemed.

“You’re not going to stay and watch one with me?” Comes the inquiry from the man who had set himself up on Taekwoon’s couch, tucked inside a blanket that Taekwoon was uncertain of where he had procured it from, while Minyul’s uncle abandoned all hope and began to set up the proper configuration for DVDs on the television.

He shakes his head, bending down to insert a disk into the drive before pressing play on the controller in his hand and gearing himself for the loud burst of song that would soon bellow from the speakers. He sets a volume he hopes that his neighbours won’t mind and leaves the remote on the small wooden table in the center of the room. If Jaehwan wanted to use it, he could figure it out himself, Taekwoon reasoned.

“When this one stops just click on the ‘Eject’ button and the disk will come out, then you can put in a different one,” Taekwoon explains to the dejected man on his couch. He doesn’t spare Jaehwan another glance until his legs guide him through the archway that will lead him to the hall. That’s when he hears the faint call.

“What?” He turns in exasperation, rubbing at one of his eyes to attempt to relieve himself of a little bit of the drowsiness screaming at him to sleep.

“Allo’nae. Goodnight,” Jaehwan’s voice sounds in muffled manner from the cocoon of blankets, and Taekwoon can see in the dim light from the television that the Fae had angled himself towards the door to watch as Taekwoon left.

“Oh. Goodnight,” he replies, and that seems to satisfy Jaehwan because his gaze returns to the screen and Taekwoon hears no more from him for the rest of the night.

It’s only when Taekwoon is tucked into his own bed with the blankets pulled over his head and the low din of the television can be heard even through the thick padding of his door that he thinks the familiarity in Jaehwan’s face could be placed. His clothes didn’t give him away, because even Taekwoon had noticed that, save for his lack of shoes, the Fae had been dressed, well, human-like. He had been wearing black denim jeans, for Pete’s sake. No, it had to be something else.

His active mind plagued him until somewhere an hour or so later, when Taekwoon was in the glorious and tranquil state between sleep and wake, he placed Jaehwan’s face. It was the one he thought he had seen etched into the trees in Hallyeohaesang National Park.

aiko bon: Official “Natsufuku” liner notes

aiko’s 3rd album, released under Pony Canyon on June 20, 2001. The album includes two of her biggest hits and went on to sell over a million copies.

Hikouki (飛行機; Airplane)

be master of life

Rosie (ロージー)

Hisoka na Sayonara no Shikata (密かなさよならの仕方; The Subtle Way to Goodbye)

Owaranai Hibi (Endless Days)

Kokoro Biyori (心日和; Weather of My Heart)

September

Ame Fumu Overall (雨踏むオーバーオール; Overalls Stepping in the Rain)

Aspara (アスパラ; Asparagus)

Boyfriend (ボーイフレンド)

Hatsukoi (初恋; First Love)

Natsufuku (夏服; Summer Clothes)

(Thank you parasmichael for the commission!)

☑ The album as a whole

Oh! I’m eating tulips on the cover. I cut my hair outside just before doing the photo shoot at this one tulip place. Where’d we go for this again? Kobuchisawa? We rented out a bed and breakfast and did a little photo shoot in some flower garden-looking place. Has it really only been 3 years since then? It feels like a long time ago. It’d only been 3 years since I’d made my debut but everyone had stopped calling me a ‘newcomer’ by then. I was feeling sort of unsure of myself at the time. I developed nodules on my vocal cords during the tour I did after this album was released. Looking back on it now, though, I feel like there were early symptoms of it during recording. I was so hellbent on making it that I just barrelled on ahead anyway. And because of that, I feel like making this album in spite all of that got me back to looking on the bright side of things again.

☑ Hikouki

Such a dramatic song. I wrote this song on Day 1 of my Gb column. I got lost trying to make my way to the place where we were doing the shoot. The plan was to go to the Metropolitan Building but my manager and I got lost trying to go there by car. Then my manager went outside to make a phone call so I just sat in the car, staring blankly out the window. It was Sunday, so there was no one around. I looked at the sky and saw a plane flying way, way up there, and wrote this song while looking at it. I was feeling the teeniest tiniest bit lonely coming to Tokyo on my own. “I’m ALL ALONE,” I kept thinking to myself. I think that’s where the chorus came from. I worked hard to get to Tokyo and yet I also felt like there was this part of me that’d been left behind. I wrote the song by combining those feelings with emotions you feel when you’re in love. I wanted the arrangement of the song to have a bittersweet feel to it as well so I told them something that made no sense. I was like, “I want you to make it sound like [the comedy duo] Kamaitachi.” (laughs) But the strings sound very ‘Kamaitachi’ to me. We also shot a music video for this song. Both my manager and Nagai are in that music video, by the way. (laughs) Everyone looks so young! I have a lot of good memories from this music video. I feel pretty embarrassed seeing myself smoke in the MV, though. (laughs)

☑ be master of life

This is the one song that features my fans’ voices. I used the voices of everyone who came to see me at a fan club concert. We recorded it and then included it on the track. There was a microphone hanging down above the audience and I went, “On the count of three: one, two, three!” The crowd gets really worked up over this song at concertsーyou just can’t sit still to this song, pretty much as soon as the intro starts. It’s a love song, but my friend from Osaka was the one who inspired it. She’s a really nice person who’s almost like, too scared to come into contact with others in case she accidentally hurts their feelings. But she really is a nice person who’s helped me out a lot. I was trying to think of something I could do to help her out when this song came to mind. It was on the same demo tape as “Hatsukoi,” “Hisoka na Sayonara no Shikata”, “Ame Fumu Overalls”, “Hikouki”, “Owaranai Hibi” and “Kokoro Biyori”. A lot of the songs on this album were made around the same time.

☑ Rosie See ‘Rosie’ single liner notes

☑ Hisoka na Sayonara no Shikata See ‘Boyfriend’ single liner notes

☑ Owaranai Hibi

This is my mom’s favorite song. (laughs) She told me she liked it. I really think it has this sort of ‘one-on-one’ feeling when I sing it. When you take the chords, the overall atmosphere of the song, the melody, the lyrics, and put them all together, it almost feels like I’m just chatting away. In the song I’m saying, “I’m going to say what’s on my mind. I’m a normal girl too. There’s no such thing as a person who is innocent, completely pure of heart, and has never once lied in their entire life. I lie sometimes, and I don’t think that’s such a bad thing. And even though I do, I like you. Is that okay?” I really like how thick the instrumental gets after the chorus.

☑ Kokoro Biyori

I pictured this as a rock song in the very beginning when I wrote it, but then the finished version Shimayan did had a completely different arrangement. Sometimes Shimayan takes me completely by surprise with his arrangements. This song was like a sucker punch to the heart. I said, “Wow, I like this better!!” The strings come in over top of that opening bass lick, and that rhythm! I get so excited about it. I got so carried away that I came up with a dance for it in the studio. Doing a dance escalated to me appearing on stage in a kigurumi. I wrote the lyrics by finding similarities between the weather and my state of mind. One of my friends is a free spiritーshe’s a total mystery, that one. I’m only just now starting to talk about some things with her even though I’ve known her for over 10 years at this point, but she’s a total mystery to me. (laughs) Like, just when I think she’s showed up randomly to see me, she’s gone. I was surprised to hear that she’d been feeling pretty lonely for a while. You could say I ended up modeling it after her. “‘Kokoro Biyori’ is great! I love it!” she told me not too long ago. “I really love ‘Kokoro Biyori’!” (laughs) I was glad to hear that but didn’t tell her she was the person I modeled the song after.

☑ September

I love this song. I mean, I like them allーthey’re my songs, after all. (laughs) This song was created on the radio. When I was on “All Night Nippon” I did this special feature called “The Big Single Campaign” where I’d play 2 or 3 of my singles on the piano. Someone said to make a song about September because it was September so I started singing. Then the mixing guy Kawabeーwho was always dead silentーsaid, “That was great, aiko!” I was so excited that Kawabe said that he liked it, I wrote this song. You could say I decided to make it into a song because of that. So thank you, Kawabe! (laughs) It’s sort of an ‘answer song’. I mean, it’s got the words ‘cry baby’ in it. I sorta have, like, really strong feelings about this song. One time I sang this song just as the sun was setting during a concert I did in Enoshima or someplace like that. It was lovely. This song brought out a whole new side of me, in a lot of different ways. Like, “Hanabi” allowed me to be on TV nationwide and release an album, but the public image of me being this super cheerful girl with a bob cut who wore used jeans stuck. People were always saying that it didn’t seem like I ever had any troubles. I thought it was a pretty good thing to be seen that way. In my mind, if I was making people smile, then maybe that was just fine; I was lucky. But I do worry, and cry, and get mad, and sometimes I feel sad. I feel like I was able to express that in this song. Writing the line “Don’t ever think that I’m always cheerful” instantly made things so much easier for me. I wanted to be closer to the girls who’ve had this happen to them too. I personally feel that writing that one phrase, and then including the song on the album, is what made “Natsufuku” complete. I can’t thank Kawabe enough, seriously. I’ve told him ‘thank you’ a million times and it’s still not enough. I wonder how he’s doing?

☑ Ame Fumu Overall

I love overalls. Really, I do. I’m pretty much as small as they come and can never find my size though, so they’re always big on me. I used to love dressing in super baggy clothes, which meant the hems got wet any time it rained. That’s what got me to write this song. It was already kinda cold out and I was feeling down because I had just had my heart broken. Like, “Ahh… I wish I could just disappear…” I wrote this song in Shounai out in Toyonaka, Osaka after something really terrible had happened to me. The song features a key change in the chorus after the B melody. “Bold choice, there,” people said to me in the beginning. I never like, calculate where I’m going with a song when I do key changes though, so I didn’t really know what to say when people asked why I added in a key change there. I would just say, “Hm, why indeed.” (laughs)

☑ Aspara See ‘Hatsukoi’ single liner notes

☑ Boyfriend See ‘Boyfriend’ single liner notes

☑ Hatsukoi See ‘Hatsukoi’ single liner notes

☑ Natsufuku

I wrote this song while we were recording, on the piano in the second studio at Hitokuchizaka. I told them I’d written a song I wanted them to listen to and they said it sounded good, but we were in the final stages of recording. “We’ve already got enough,” they told me. “Then let’s make it a bonus track!” I said. I almost always write my songs at home. I’ve never really written songs anywhere else, but I always manage to write a song any time I play the piano during my free time at Hitokuchizaka Studio. Oftentimes I’m able to come up with a completely different kind of song because I’m in a different environment. For this one, I wrote the entire lyrics and melody in the studio on the grand piano in this tiny little room at Hitokuchizaka. I wrote it all in one goーit came together super quickly. I don’t think I spent more than maybe 15 or 20 minutes on it tops. When I come up with a song, I’m able to write it super quick. The title of the song was set in stone as “Natsufuku”, but still hadn’t decided what to call the album then. I said, “Alright, I know we made it a bonus track, but why not go with ‘Natsufuku’?” They wouldn’t play the title track on the radio if it were a bonus track though, and that wouldn’t work for a title track. You know how there’s a specific day in school for changing the uniform? It always felt a little bittersweet to me, seeing the guy I liked change into the summer uniform or the winter uniform. It felt like I was seeing a part of them I never knew about. It always would make me feel like I’d been left behind. The same went for my friends, too. Seeing everyone changing while I was still wearing the old uniform was an extremely lonely thing to experience. I wanted to express that sort of sadness you feel when you’re in love, too. The turning point from winter clothes to summer clothes in particular really brings out that feeling of heartbreak in me. Really, it doesーthe words ‘winter clothes’ and ‘summer clothes’ make me so sad. I guess it just… reminds me of being in school. It really breaks my heart to see my crush wearing a scarf, ‘cause I feel like I’ve seen something about them I didn’t know. I get really wistful. I’m the one playing the piano on this track, right after “Bob”. I get nervous doing that because of how excited I get. We also placed the microphone so that it’s taking in everything all at once: one microphone in the middle of the grand piano, capturing everything on a single mic rather than setting out a mic for vocals. We went out of our way to record it like that because I wanted it to sound like I was playing by myself in a little room.

Headcanons on Tara (Ramayana)

(This ended up being much longer than I expected, and also about Sugriva, Vali, and Ruma. Quite rambling and disjointed, but I apparently have a lot of Tara feels.)

[Tagging @avani008, @mayavanavihariniharini, @parlegee, @chaanv, @voldys-sidekick in case you’re interested.]

CW for themes of alcoholism.

1. She and Vali loved and respected each other. Vali (most of the time) believed her to be wise and listened to her advice, but his ego and his desire to never back down from a challenge could override his softer instincts at time. When he gets to Kishkindha, he has unresolved anger about her becoming Sugriva’s wife, but he doesn’t want to take it out on her, so he aims it at Sugriva and Ruma. Despite the things he did, Tara does love Vali and grieves both times she loses him.

2. She often falls into the role of the peacekeeper or peacemaker. Hence why she marries Sugriva both times to secure the succession, tries to keep Vali from fighting his brother, and pacifies Lakshman in his anger. I also headcanon she tries to keep Ruma safe as best she can, and try to save her from her alcoholism. Tara often puts her own needs second, as peacekeepers tend to do, and it eventually leads to her own alcoholism, although she has a better level of control over it than does Ruma.

3. Tara and Ruma consider each other sisters, and carefully never mention the elephant in the room that is their husbands. Ruma does feel sorry for Tara, despite being content to dance on Vali’s grave, and tries to help her as best she can. They’re both struggling with alcoholism, however, and often two addicts don’t make the best relationship. I view Tara as a more functional alcoholic while Ruma is a day drinker and chronic severe type, and it ends up bringing up emotions that neither are equipped to handle without the benefits of modern therapy and it drives a rift between them, sending them into further misery.

4. While she married Sugriva out of political necessity, she still has emotional whiplash from believing Vali dead and marrying Sugriva, only to have him come back to life, then have to deal with his newfound viciousness, then to lose him again and have to marry the brother responsible for his death again. It leaves her with PTSD, hence the alcoholism again.

5. While I think Tara is wise enough to see the justice in her husband’s death, I like the versions where she curses Rama in rage that in his next birth, he will be killed by Vali (the hunter that killed Krishna). Because I do believe she loved Vali truly, and it adds a level of humanity and a “dark side” to her character. I also personally headcanon that during the war she always interacted with Lakshman as an intermediary for Rama and avoided him when she could. After Vali’s death, while she knows Sugriva should follow up on his promise, she’s too overwhelmed by grief and resentment to push him to do so, and so she allows them and the kingdom to sink into carousing until Lakshman comes storming in.

6. At some point, (maybe when they work together to calm down Lakshman) Angad really realizes the burden his mother is carrying and works to alleviate it. As well as planning for war, he also tries to handle the day-to-day burdens of the kingdom, or at least try to keep petty squabbles from his mother’s ears and ensure she only has to deal with the important issues. Nobody, not even Vali, has ever really considered that Tara might want someone else to play peacekeeper for once, and Angad’s efforts are what leads her to cut down on the drinking, at least before evening.

7. There are versions where she’s born from the churning of the ocean or an aspara or married to Sugriva first, but I like the version where she’s the daughter of the court physician. I also headcanon she was married to Vali first. I like the idea of Tara being born an ordinary, though somewhat noble and remarkably wise, woman who just wants a normal life with her family but gets passed around like a necklace and suffers for it. She has no great talent for medicine, unlike her father, but she is skilled in identifying and growing herbs, and finds it’s a healthier coping mechanism than drinking.

8. She and Sugriva both care about the kingdom deeply and find common ground in ruling it. Though they live as husband and wife, some part of her still sees him as her younger brother. Drinking alcohol becomes a normal part of her bedtime routine, even after she cuts down on it during the day. He’s more flighty than Vali was, not as decisive, and she cannot help but draw comparisons. She rarely snaps at him, her intellect checking her temper, but their relationship is more a business contract than a loving marriage, and they both feel it.

9. When Sita is exiled from Ayodhya again, she visits the kingdom of Kishkindha for a spell. She spends more time with Ruma, and Tara figures she is bitter at meeting a woman whose status as queen has always gone unquestioned. But it turns out that it’s only because Ruma and Sita find more common ground, having both been held against their will, while Tara may have been unhappy but was always willing. Sita’s visit reminds Ruma that it might have been worse, that at least she still has her husband’s and her kingdom’s love, and Ruma’s new friendship gives her something to do other than drink. Tara keeps it to herself, but she thinks sourly that of course Rama would do something as undharmic as exile his innocent wife. She has never quite forgiven him for killing Vali from behind. She offers for Sita to stay in Kishkindha, but she insists on returning to the forest.

10. Tara gets to a point where she can wake up in the morning and not have her first thought be of grief or loss. Her smiles are less, and her liver will likely claim her before her time, but until then, every stride is filled with purpose and her hands are never empty. Sugriva, Ruma, and Angada look forward to her presence, the kingdom thrives under their hands, and life settles into a natural tedium. Something she would call soul-crushing were she not wiser.

So I’ve been keeping this playlist all to myself for a while, but if you like my comic and you like eccentric music compilations, you can listen to

☞ The Court Playlist HERE ☜ It is still under construction, so new songs will be added as I find them!

(All songs with links listed below the cut!)

The Night Café • Clint Mansell Aha! • Imogen Heap Mirage (feat. Raja Kumara) • Lindsey Stirling Delilah • Florence + the Machine The Queen and the Soldier • Suzanne Vega Knight Moves • Suzanne Vega King • SAINT PHNX Revival • Serena Ryder The Fog • Rachel Sermanni Dark Doo Wop • MS MR Beekeeper • Keaton Henson An Astrailhad • Beltaine Drive Away (End Title) • Thomas Newman Ghost • Ella Henderson Aspara Calling • CloZee Ally • We The Kings Plenty • aeseaes Feast My Eye • PLYA Magic • SAINT PHNX The Wolves • Ben Howard Atlas • Coldplay I Gave You All • Mumford & Sons The Baudelaire Orphans • Thomas Newman Dust Bowl Dance • Mumford & Sons Are Things Still Burning • Em Harriss Murky • Saint Mesa

                                          𝖔𝖑𝖉𝖊𝖘𝖙 𝖋𝖗𝖎𝖊𝖓𝖉

𝐲𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐝 is looking for her 𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝, 𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝. this connection is open.

unnamed is in her mid twenties to early thirties, she is a faerie, who is connected to yashica anand as her oldest friend. she looks an awful lot like richa moorjani and thinks she may look something like charithra chandran, megan suri, simone ashley, lilly singh, priyanka chopra.

This was the first desi girl Yashica had interacted with since her parents past away and she and her brother ended up on the run, maybe they met in high school or maybe after but this girl grew up in Opulence with her fae family that have lived in Opulence for a few generations. They own three businesses Aspara’s Beauty Bar, Aspara’s Dance Studio, and Masala Maarke - the restaurant being the first business opened and the additional ones opened later. Yash and her are very close and she relies a lot on her opinion because she missed so much time with her own family. I did envision her very much as someone who has very sleek and amazing fashion and would either work or run the beauty bar or dance studio, maybe while she works on creating a Supernatural Fashion line. But make it your own! And obviously would love to see someone who would be open to building a family from this character.

Contact @yashicanand with any questions regarding this wanted connection.

A Dance for Springtime by Tom Gore Via Flickr: with Aspara