The Vanishing Prince: Chapter Nine

You can read this chapter on Ao3!

Rating: PG-13 (for mild sexual tension and some intense/creepy scenes)

Pairing: AkaFuri

Word Count: 20,000

Warnings: Adorable dorks, poor Akashi dealing with a lot of family issues, brief depiction of dissociation/depersonalization, one G-rated scary moment, and SO MANY FEELINGS. <3 Complete warnings for this story are on this post!

Summary: Akashi and Furihata are best friends, but they’re both holding on to a few secrets. Akashi is struggling to face the darkness of his past, a strict and painful childhood that he doesn’t fully remember. Meanwhile, Furihata has been dreaming about Akashi every night—and not in a platonic way.

Then Furihata has an unexpected encounter with Akashi’s other self, who makes a strange request. Soon Furihata is keeping more secrets than he can count, and fighting to keep his newfound feelings hidden, from both of Akashi’s selves. But what will happen when he learns more about the darkness lurking in Akashi’s past?

A/N: Forgot to post this again! ^^; Here’s the new chapter, in case anyone didn’t see it go up yesterday. Thank you so much again for your patience over the past couple months, while I edited this chapter and also took time to be with my grandmother. And hopefully the length does help make up for the unexpected wait, at least a little. <3 Hope everyone is well, and staying as safe as possible!

Chapter Nine: Heartstrings

Akashi was seven years old, the first time that he was permitted to invite other children to the family estate.

“Your mother and I have discussed it at length,” his father said, one night when the three of them were seated at the dinner table. “Your studies take priority, but you still need to learn how to make the right connections with your peers. Do you understand, Seijuurou?”

Akashi nodded. Even at his age, he fully grasped the value of his family training. He knew how to carry himself with dignity, and speak eloquently, and display the ideal etiquette in every situation. Clearly, socializing was just another area of life in which he would need to exceed expectations.

“See that you choose your acquaintances carefully,” his father added. “Never forget who you are, or conduct yourself in a way that is beneath you. It is not for an Akashi to associate with just anyone.”

Keep reading on Ao3

Notes for The Vanishing Prince: Chapter Nine

Yay, Chapter Nine is finally posted! As I mentioned over on Ao3, I’ve been looking forward to sharing this one for a loooong time. I don’t have much to share in the way of cultural notes, but I still had some pretty big things I wanted to talk about… Like info about the mental health topics from the therapy scene, plus a ton of rambling about things I’ve been researching and/or planning for a while. So if that’s something you’re interested in, well… enjoy? //laughs

As always, I updated the Pinterest inspiration board with images inspired by the new chapter. (I actually did that last month, which was when I originally intended to post the chapter before my schedule fell apart… So anyone who was checking the board during that time got an accidental sneak peak of what was coming next. Oops? ^^;) You can check the board out here.

And with that, on to the notes!

Cut for a writer babbling on and on about mental health research, references to earlier events in the series, and also violins (!!) …

Notes for The Vanishing Prince: Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight has been posted! I don’t have nearly as many notes this time. (Which is good, because it took me a lot less time to draft this post. XD;) Still, I did want to bring up a couple of things that I thought might be worth mentioning.

And as always, I updated the inspiration board for this fic over on Pinterest, so feel free to check out the new images if you feel like it/have access to Pinterest. (The most recently added images are at the top, so when you scroll down, you’re basically going backwards through the story.) And with that, onto the notes...

(Cut for the ramblings of a writer who overthinks everything, and also some very important notes about omurice, because I LOVED writing that part…)

The Vanishing Prince: Chapter Seven

You can read this chapter on Ao3!

Rating: PG-13 (for mild sexual tension and some intense/creepy scenes)

Pairing: AkaFuri

Word Count: 19,000

Warnings: Adorable dorks as usual, Reo being his utterly fabulous self, tons of supernatural stuff (tarot cards, etc), Furi is Not Straight, and Akashi has a whole bunch of issues, poor guy. Complete warnings for this story are on this post!

Summary: Akashi and Furihata are best friends, but they’re both holding on to a few secrets. Akashi is struggling to face the darkness of his past, a strict and painful childhood that he doesn’t fully remember. Meanwhile, Furihata has been dreaming about Akashi every night—and not in a platonic way.

Then Furihata has an unexpected encounter with Akashi’s other self, who makes a strange request. Soon Furihata is keeping more secrets than he can count, and fighting to keep his newfound feelings hidden, from both of Akashi’s selves. But what will happen when he learns more about the darkness lurking in Akashi’s past?

A/N: Forgot to post this! Here’s the new chapter, just in case anyone didn’t see the notes go up yesterday. And I apologize for the terribly long wait. Hopefully the extra-long update makes up for it, at least a little bit? And I’m hoping to have the next chapter posted very soon!  In the meantime, enjoy. <3 And I really hope everyone is staying as safe and well as possible.

Chapter Seven: Between the Lines

Furihata was four years old, and too scared to move. He huddled under his blanket, clutching his teddy bear to his chest, and fought back tears.

His star-shaped nightlight was on. His parents had told him it would chase away all the monsters—and it did, sometimes. Other times, the monsters came into his room anyway. They loomed beside the window, or crouched near his closet.

Furihata didn’t want to see them, so he would shut his eyes and hide. Sometimes they growled, or said his given name. He didn’t know how they found out what it was.

“Kouki, Kouki…”

The monsters were like shadows, or see-through people. They stared at him with empty eyes, from beneath their tangled hair.

Keep reading on Ao3

Notes for The Vanishing Prince: Chapter Seven

Finally, Chapter Seven! This one had a bunch of cultural notes for the first scene, but not so much for the rest. And I tried to keep it brief, but, well, it’s me? //laughs

Also, I’ve been regularly updating the Pinterest board for this fic, so feel free to check it out if you want to see some extra visuals for the new chapter! (Including some beautiful photos of platform dining along the Kamo River, Buddhist temples, the tarot cards that appear in the chapter, and so on.) I update it as I post each chapter, so there are no spoiler-y images.

And with that, let’s get into the notes!

Cut for rambling about things like Japanese temples, Buddhist prayer, shielding, salt, Abe no Seimei, clay bell charms, and tarot…

These Wonderful Things Chapter 6: The Road Before Us (MidoTaka)

You can read this fic on Ao3!

Rating: T (language, sexual tension, so much sexual tension)

Pairings: MidoTaka (Other chapters include KagaKuro, AkaFuri, heavily implied KiKasa and AoMomo, and platonic friendship MuraHimu)

Word Count: 15k

Warnings: Holiday fluff, a rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest are being really cute anyway god help me.

Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”

It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.

Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.

…

A/N: IT’S THE MIDOTAKA CHAPTER. <3 I’m so happy I can finally share the last part of this story! This chapter is the longest of the six, and it’s filled with a ton of my favorite things about MidoTaka (and KnB in general, in a lot of ways). I’ve had some of these ideas in my head for a long time, so I’m glad I was finally able to write them down. And it feels like a fitting story to start the new year, too.

Fair warning, this chapter is also the steamiest… I couldn’t keep these two away from each other, apparently? //laughs It still fits squarely in the T/PG-13 rating, though. Enjoy, and happy New Year, everyone! <3

…

Midorima Shintarou wasn’t nervous. Because he wasn’t going on a date.

He wasn’t excited, either, or any other related frame of mind… True, he kept checking the clock on his desk, often enough that it seemed like the minutes were ticking by in slow motion. And true, he had reloaded the weather report on his phone too many times to count. Which was why he kept changing clothes. First a long coat, which he later switched to a sweater, and then he tried to add a jacket but the result was too bulky so he had to start the entire process all over again.

It was purely because of the weather, though. Not for any other possible reason. Absolutely not.

Keep reading on Ao3!

Notes for The Road Before Us (MidoTaka)

So… Wow. I kind of can’t believe this is the last chapter. And I have to say, this one was a ride—or at least it was for me to write, anyway. //laughs Which seems appropriate, given the overall themes. And it also feels appropriate to be posting it on New Year’s Eve, given what the story ended up being about.

I knew this chapter would be the longest, once I realized some of the things I wanted to include in it. And that hopefully it would include pretty much everything I love the most about MidoTaka, and also about KnB in general. I don’t know how well I pulled that off, but I definitely got emotional writing it. <3

As a matter of fact, the first fic I ever wrote for KnB was a MidoTaka fic! (It’s here on my Tumblr, but I never even posted it to Ao3.) I haven’t written nearly as much about them as I have for some other pairings. Still, I kind of feel like I got my start in the fandom with MidoTaka, and I have a LOT of feelings about them, for all kinds of reasons. So I really, really loved getting to write a chapter about these two, being super amazing partners and also really super in love, and hopefully it shows. <3

I do have some of my usual notes this time around, mostly a few cultural things. (And also some random flailing, about FINALLY getting to write about certain things I’ve had swirling around in my head for a long time. XD) I might write a different post later about this fic overall, and how it turned into something I honestly wasn’t expecting… But for now, let’s get on with the MidoTaka goodness!

(Cut for rambling about things like family headcanons, a few Japanese winter foods, lucky pencils, Takao’s nerdy card hobby, and the symbolism of five yen coins…)

Notes for Comfy Cozy Are We (AoMomo)

Finally, it’s the Momoi and Aomine chapter! I tried to make these notes as brief as possible, but I did have some things I wanted to mention. Mostly some cultural notes, and a few personal ramblings.

References to The Seven Wishes

So I feel like I opened this chapter in pretty much the sappiest way possible? //laughs One of the things I’ve always loved about Momoi’s character (which I’m guessing is obvious) is how important her friends are to her, particularly the Generation of Miracles and the bonds they formed while they were at Teikou. So when I write about Momoi, I have a tendency to highlight that part of her backstory.

The start of the chapter is also related to another fic I finished this year, called The Seven Wishes. It was a one-shot about Momoi and the GoM that was included in the KNB 10thAnniversary zine, and I had every intention of posting an edited version of it online months ago. But life got busy, and it’s still not up yet. OTL After I finish posting this Christmas fic, The Seven Wishes is the next thing on my list! So if you’re curious about my headcanon that Momoi started making seven wishes for her and her friends, you should be able to check out the story that inspired the opening of this chapter very soon.

(Cut for some more notes about part-time jobs and highschoolers in Japan, Christmas Eve food, shopping in Ginza, kotatsu tables, and headcanons about Aomine’s backstory…)

These Wonderful Things Chapter 5: Comfy Cozy Are We (AoMomo)

You can read this fic on Ao3!

Rating: T (language, sexual tension in previous chapters)

Pairings: Heavily implied AoMomo (Other chapters include KagaKuro, AkaFuri, MidoTaka, and platonic friendship MuraHimu)

Word Count: 11k

Warnings: Holiday fluff, a rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest are being really cute anyway god help me. (Also a content warning for a brief reference to self-harming thoughts.)

Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”

It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.

Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.

…

A/N: Ahhh I’m so glad I finally get to post a story about Aomine and Momoi! My goal for this chapter was basically to give myself as many feelings as possible, so, uh… yeah. It’s a lot? //laughs Enjoy! And happy post holidays, to those of you who’ve been celebrating. <3 Also, please be sure to check the content warning in the opening notes.

…

Momoi Satsuki smiled to herself, as she folded the last paper star.

It was pink, of course. She liked to do the pink one after the rest of the rainbow was already complete. She had folded origami cranes in these seven colors before, and balloons, and boats. But the stars were probably her favorite.

Tonight, she was making them with extra care, while she sat at the kotatsu in the living room of her family’s apartment. She threaded a string through each one, then carried it over to the miniature Christmas tree she had arranged on a corner table. And as she hung each star on the tree, she made a wish.

Keep reading on Ao3!

Notes For Birds of a Feather (Mura & Himu)

Yay, I can’t believe I’m finally getting to post this! I’m going to try to keep the notes shorter, just for efficiency’s sake. But I did want to highlight a few things I mentioned in this chapter, for anyone who might be curious about them.

The Sensouji Temple in Asakusa

Sensouji Temple is one of those temples that’s so famous that I’m betting a lot of people have seen it before, even if they don’t remember what it’s called… It’s the one in the Tokyo area with a GIANT lantern hanging inside a gate. It’s a common stop for tourists, and just in general, especially around important cultural holidays like New Years.

So why did I include it in a MuraHimu friendship fic? Well, because Yousen has actually been pictured visiting this particular temple (or more specifically, the nearby Nakamise Street), so you could argue that the visit I mentioned in this chapter is in fact canon:

(Ahhhh I still get feelings about all the team love in that ending, IT’S SO GOOD.)

(Cut for notes about Nakamise Street, kumihimo, the real-life inspiration for Himuro’s university, and more sexuality headcanons of mine for some reason…?)

These Wonderful Things Chapter 4: Birds of a Feather (Mura & Himu)

You can read this fic on Ao3!

Rating: T (language, sexual references, sexual tension in previous chapters)

Pairings: MuraHimu friendship! (Other chapters include KagaKuro, AkaFuri, MidoTaka, and heavily implied AoMomo)

Word Count: 8k

Warnings: Holiday fluff, a rainbow of basketball dorks, some of them are on dates god help them, the rest are being really cute anyway god help me.

Summary: “So what are your all plans for the big night, huh?” Kise eyed the three of them, and waggled his well-shaped brows. “With your lovers, I mean.”

It’s Christmas Eve, the most popular date night of the year in Japan. Kuroko is going to Disneyland with Kagami. Akashi has a special plan in mind for his date with Furihata, but he won’t tell anyone what it is. Kise has no plans at all, but ends up at a certain former captain’s apartment anyway. Aomine and Momoi spend a friendly night in, as usual, and Murasakibara is bribed with cake.

Meanwhile Midorima is telling anyone who will listen (and also those who won’t) that he does not have romantic plans of any kind, whatsoever, even though Takao did ask to see him but it does not mean that, no, absolutely not.

...

A/N: Here’s a brand new chapter to this story, in honor of the 2019 holidays! This one is a platonic friendship fic about Murasakibara and Himuro, and it has TONS of headcanons. It was also ridiculously fun for me to write and hopefully it shows. Their PoVs are just a joy. //laughs Happy holidays! <3

...

Murasakibara Atsushi thought Christmas was kind of boring, to be honest.

The cake and fried chicken were good, of course. And the decorations were okay, though it wasn’t like he went out of his way to see any. The presents were fun when you were a kid, and people just gave you stuff.

But when you were older, it wasn’t like that. Then Christmas was about going on super-expensive dates and dressing up and being in a romantic relationship. And, like, making sure everyone saw you hold hands in public. Or something. He couldn’t make sense of it.

It was also about shopping, apparently. Which was the most boring part of all.

Keep reading on Ao3!