Our hero of Inaba's long journey has concluded, and so has this project! We are honored to announce that $2,750 USD has been donated to the Transgender Law Center. Thank you all for your support of this project for such a wonderful game ๐
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With the zine's conclusion, we will no longer be monitoring the social media. Please direct all inquiries regarding orders to our email address at [email protected]. Thank you! It's been a pleasure to host this zine over the past ~1.5 years! โMod Rio
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This is my absolute FAVOURITE thing ever, I always DREAMT of making charms and this one went into production!! I physically have them!! I'm lead to believe I'm not the only one!! :DD SO HAPPY- ๐โจ!!
My contribution to @p4zine !! :D It was so cool to work on a group project like this, everyone's work is awesome, and in the end I'm pretty happy with what I wrote too!! A Kanji&Yukiko bonding fic with childhood nostalgia and pondering about the future on the side, s'il vous plaรฎt :3
Full text under the cut; my fics are only visible to registered users on the Archive.
Kanji was good for heavy-lifting.
Despite changing his ways, dying and restyling his hair and giving up the leather, Ma was still reluctant to let him out front when the shop was open. Tatsumi Textiles had a reputation to uphold, she said, and Kanji would have to earn back the family name. It stung, but he got it.ย
He knew how things worked in the back though, and had the work ethic for it. Ma wasnโt young anymore. He owed her that much.
It was Sunday, the store was closed, but there was always something to do. It wasnโt like Kanji had anything else going on. The last, purple bunny of his Rainbow Crochet Series was finished, his students wouldnโt be arriving until afternoon, and homework could always wait. But yesterday had been hectic, and the new arrivals werenโt quite in their right places yet. He had time to be moving boxes.
And man, if these boxes werenโt ready to be moved. Kanji soon reached the farthest corner of the store: an old storage they dumped everything they had no use for, but โmight one dayโ. Ma could dress it up as frugality all she liked, but the truth, Kanji presumed, was more on the lines of some of it being difficult to dispose of after his old man passed.
This meant he was currently moving stuff into practical piles near the backdoor for easier pickup. He would have to ask Ma about local garbage collectors later. Or anyone that could use a miscellaneous assortment of old shit.
Kanji picked up another box from the floor with gusto, and almost fell on his ass. This one was much lighter than the others.
It also had his name in hiragana scribbled on top with a thick marker.ย
And oh, boy. Opening it brought a wave of tears to his eyes.
These were things he had thrown out years earlier, keepsakes he had come to deem too childish. An almost heart-shaped rock from Samegawa. His old bug catching net. A kimono-wearing doll with a porcelain head and fabric body.
Oh, Ma. She must have saved these in secret. Boxes abandoned, Kanji took the doll with him to inspect in the better lighting of the storefront. No dignity in the storage room for something of its status.
He wasnโt sure when and how he had acquired the doll, but he remembered loving it. The kimono was smooth navy silk with a leaf pattern. The dollโs hard and heavy head with carefully painted facial features working in contrast with the soft body gave it a regal feel his regular toys didnโt have. Watching the doll sitting on its shelf had felt like being in the presence of royalty, and Kanji had handled it with appropriate respect.
He could play it rough with his figurines. Being entrusted with this doll had made him feel so mature.
***
With all the reminiscing going on, Kanji almost missed the faint knock at the front door. He quickly sniffed the tears away as he got up, yelling โShopโs closed!โ, and grimaced at how harsh his tone had come out. He still had a lot to learn.
Surprisingly, the person at the door was Yukiko in her inn kimono. Had Ma mentioned anything about the Amagi Inn latelyโฆ? Surely Kanji would remember something like that.
โUh. โSup, Senpai?โ Dammit. Hadnโt he promised to try being more polite? He still didnโt know how to behave when caught off guard.
Yukikoโbless herโwas used to his clumsiness. She greeted Kanji with an uneasy smile, and apologized for appearing unannounced on an off day. Apparently, Mrs. Amagi thought the inn needed new towels and had sent Yukiko to scope out the selection. Mrs. Tatsumi had agreed to the arrangement and told them to borrow samples to compare at the inn.
Kanji had no idea how he had missed that. Had Ma not told him in the first place? Was he not reliable enough to even show his friends some damn towels?ย
Whatever.
Kanji asked Yukiko to come inside, grateful for the opportunity to look away for a second. He liked Yukiko, and they were undoubtedly friends, butโฆ it was still a little awkward to be alone with her with no prior warning. It was the same with pretty much all of his friends (bar Souji and Naoki) but Yukiko was a bit of a special case. They had history together.
Amagi Inn and Tatsumi Textiles were both old, all-Inaba family businesses. The Inn needed textiles. They worked together a lot, and Ma and Mrs. Amagi were good friends. Kanji and Yukiko had also occasionally met as children.
It sucked to feel so out of place around someone who was technically a childhood friend.
Kanji showed Yukiko the towels, telling her to take her time.
Yukiko went to nod, but stopped midway. Her eyes lit up in delighted surprise, the awkwardness from mere seconds ago all forgotten.
โIsnโt that the doll we got you for your birthday years ago?โ
Kanji followed her eyes and noticed he was still holding the damn thing.
โUh, yeah. Found it while cleaning.โ
Was there a nostalgia bug in the air or what?
***
Yukiko didnโt take too long picking out the towels. She had a good idea of what patterns and materials would suit the innโs image and needs and her motherโs tastes. Kanji couldnโt help but admire it. He had always taken Yukiko for a bit of an airhead, but she had clearly been paying attention. Her assortment was aesthetically consistent, the fabrics sturdy material that would keep their feel for a long time even after frequent washing. She was well on her way to becoming a fine manager.
Yukiko gathered everything into a neat pile and lifted it onto her arms. The pile of towels reached well past her chin. The positioning of her arms didnโt look comfortable either. Her kimono would restrict her leg movement.
Kanji was good for heavy-lifting.
โSoooโฆ dโya need help carrying all that back?โ
Yukiko hoisted the pile a little. โThank you, but I think Iโll manage.โ
Sure she would.
โCome on, Senpai, let me help. Ainโt got much else to do.โ
Yukikoโs eyes flickered from the top of the towel pile, to kanji, to her feet. She sighed a little, taking a careful step closer.
โThank you. If it isnโt too much trouble.โ
***
The walk to the inn was mostly quiet, but at least the feeling of doing something of importance made it less daunting.
Yukiko broke the silence after a few minutes.
โHelping out the family business is tough, isnโt it.โ It was a neutral statement, but Yukiko had a faraway look in her eyes that Kanji couldnโt quite parse. He grunted something in response. โStill. It can be rewarding, too,โ she continued, โand I donโt want to run anymore. I want the inn to prosper, and itโs up to me to make sure it does."ย
She sighed, barely noticeably. "Stillโฆ Iโm expected to be so proper in my free time, too. Sometimes I would like to let my hair down."
Kanji was puzzled. Was that why Yukiko kept her hair in a bun these days? He knew the Amagi Inn took pride in tradition, but to such an extent?
"Seriously? Is even your hairstyle that important?"
Yukiko glanced at him. Her eyes crinkled at their corners, her lips quivered, and she let out a decidedly uncute snort.
"Ghhsnrk! Kanji-kun, I didn't mean it literally! It's an expression!"
She guffawedโactually guffawedโthankfully unaware of how furiously Kanji was blushing.
Having fun was preferable to awkward silence, but damn, if Kanji hadn't embarrassed himself in front of a senior enough times already.ย
Eventually, Yukiko settled back down. Wiping her eyes, she extended a question to Kanji: โBut you know what I mean, right? Donโt you also help out at the textile store these days?โ
Kanji nodded. โYeah. Ma wonโt let me sell shit, but I know how most of it works. โCept the math side of things, I guess.โ Kanji had neither the talent nor the will to figure out pricing; so far heโd made his little crafts for free, content to be paid in praise. He barely knew what taxes were. He didnโt know much about who their suppliers were, nor how and how much they paid them.
He would have to learn all of that sooner or later. Dammit. And all the customer service stuff, too; people were less afraid of him now with his more conservative look, but his demeanor was brash as ever.
He wondered if it was possible to take a leaf out of Yukikoโs book. They seemed to be opposites in that way; Kanji hid his sensitive soul under layers of masculine roughness, while Yukikoโs refined, feminine front concealed surprising edge and humor.
Then again, Yukiko didnโt seem to be doing it on purpose. At least not to the extreme Kanji did.
Maybe he would just have to keep doing what he was doing.
***
They eventually reached the inn and Yukiko showed Kanji to the textile storage room. This was the first time Kanji saw the staff side of another business, and their difference in scope was obvious. Everything at the inn was so much sleeker, more polished. Despite both Amagi Inn and Tatsumi Textiles doubling as family homes, the inn had none of the homey shabbiness their store did. It was traditional, but not old-fashioned.
The only thing they had in common were the textiles. Kanji recognized many of the designs. The ones he did and those he didnโt were all high quality, neatly arranged and sorted.
Being near fabrics always filled Kanji with inspiration to create. Mesmerized, he tried the feel of some clean linen close to the table they had left the towel samples on.ย His head swirled with ideas of what he could make with it given the chance.
Yukiko watched him admire her familyโs property with another unreadable face, shuffling nervously. Eventually she cleared her throat to ask: โDo you think you could... Teach me? About sewing, I mean.โ
Kanji blinked. Didnโt they teach that shit in home ec?
โDonโt they teach that shit in home ec?โ he asked.
โIโve missed many lessons,โ replied Yukiko, โbecause of manager practice. And, truth be toldโฆ the teacher is a bit scary.โ She blushed lightly at her admission. โIโm not terrible at it, but I could use more practice.โ
Kanji considered the offer. Yukiko probably wouldnโt need to know how to make clothing from scratch. Maybe if she were to have chilโย
Scratch that. Too soon. Bad idea. Kanji mentally slapped himself on the cheek. He would not imagine his friends growing up and having kids. Too weird.
He could teach Yukiko better mending and patching. Yeah. Back on topic.
โOk, sure. Letโs meet at my place when you have the time.โ
***
They met up at the Tatsumis a few days later. Ma prepared them cut-up fruit and tea and left them to their task, a soft, pleased smile in her eyes.
Kanji had decided to start with a stitch to repair clothing discreetly. Yukiko was a conscientious student, focusing intently and nodding at everything Kanji said and did. Soon enough she started trying it out in practice. Kanji instructed her at first and, seeing that she was indeed not terrible at it, went back to his own sewing.ย
โWe ran away to play when the adults werenโt looking.โ
โHuh?โ
Kanji lifted his gaze from his work to find Yukiko gazing wistfully at his old doll, now sitting on a dresser. She wore the same wistful expression from earlier.
โAt your party. Donโt you remember?โ
Of course Kanji did. โYeah. The adults were being boring, so we ran off to play at the shrine.โ
Yukiko snorted. โThat was so reckless.โ Her stitch was longer than the last, and shorter than the one before that, but Kanji didnโt comment on it. They seemed like they would hold up well enough. First try was always a first try; fine-tuning would come later.
โThinking back, it almost feels like that little Yukiko was a different person.โ
Kanji couldnโt help but agree.
Before Dad died and everything went to shit, Kanji had been soโฆ free. Other kids had already looked at him weird, but at least he hadnโt been a pain in the ass to his folks. At home, and at the shop, he had been able to admire the pretty colors and nice textures of fabric without shame. He had enjoyed sewing lessons with Ma with no restraint.
And even when Dad had chastised him for crying, he had done so with more love than scorn.
Kanji wondered if he could ever go back to being so open.
The sewing continued in comfortable silence.
โOw!โ Yukiko pricked her finger and stuck it into her mouth.
โThatโs not very ladylike, Senpai," said Kanji, and asked to take a look. It wasnโt bleeding; just an average, everyday prick that seemed to happen inevitably at some point. Yukikoย furrowed her brows as she inspected her finger.
โI wonder if we could do it again.โ
โWhat?โ
โOh, no, it would cause trouble, wouldnโt it?โ
Kanji took a second to process. Ah. She was still thinking about their stunt from back then.
Logistically, it wouldnโt be too hard. In fact, it might be easier now that they were bigger. Yukiko could definitely use the release of doing something fun and dumb. And, shit, so could Kanji.
***
โThis is a bad idea.โ
โItโll only be for a while! Besides, thereโs nobody around at this time.โ
Kanji had Yukiko pegged for someone more cautious, but maybe she did have her thoughtless moments. There was something comforting about that.
They were at the shrine, where they had played hide and seek after escaping that fateful party. The adults had been furious at their little escape act after they had been found sitting on the roof, unable to get down.
That part shouldnโt be as big of an obstacle now. Hopefully.
They had circled to the back of the shrine where there were trees to hold onto. Reaching between them and the shrineโs walls would be easy for someone of Kanjiโs stature, and Yukiko was probably tall enough to pull it off too. Kanji still planned on keeping an eye on her, just to be sure.
His eyes landed on the offertory box. He only ever visited the shrine for New Yearโs; it only occurred to him now that it was indeed a holy place all year round. Maybe their parents hadnโt only been angry at them for endangering themselves, but also for disrespecting such a site.
This was an even worse idea than he had previously thought.
He voiced this thought out loud. Yukiko was caught off guard, and quickly started looking around. She was not willing to let this go just yet.
โI wonder if the prayer stand would support our weightโฆ Or we could climb one of the trees?โ
Kanji sighed. โIf weโre really doing this, letโs just cross the street to the old hobby shop. Itโs empty, and weโll be hidden behind it.โ
And so they did. The shop had a fire ladder, which made climbing anticlimactically easy, but at least they were finally sitting atop of something they werenโt supposed to.
They had bought snacks from Shiroku. Not looking too suspicious had proven to be difficult; Kanjiโs nerves manifested as a mean scowl, and Yukiko had more than a bit of a hard time keeping her giggles under control. โDoing something forbidden is so exciting!โ she had whispered, making Kanji look over his shoulder to Lady Shiroku. She had seemed occupied, and Kanji had relaxed into fondness for his friendโs childlike glee. Snow Queen, his ass.
Yukiko struggled with her ramune bottle; the roof didnโt provide an even surface to push the cap down against. Kanji extended his hand, and Yukiko passed the bottle to him. No words were necessary when Kanji clinked the glass ball into its rightful nook and passed the bottle back. Smiles successfully filled the role of both โthank youโ and โyouโre welcomeโ.
The silence between them stayed comfortable.
Yukiko was the first to break it again. She pointed at a house in the distance. โI think thatโs Watanabe-sanโs house,โ she said, โone of our cleaning staff.โ Her smile had a tint of wistfulness to it. โHer son started school this spring. I still remember when he was born so clearly.โ
โThatโs crazy,โ said Kanji, and meant it. His carefree childhood seemed both like yesterday and light years ago. Last year had packed several yearsโ worth of events, yet been over in a flash. Even sitting with Yukiko doing crafts was like both a minute ago and last week. Time worked strangely.
***
โWhat the hell are you kids doing up there?!โ
โOh shit!โ
ย Kanji and Yukiko winced and ducked. That was Detective Dojimaโs authoritative voice.
โKanji, I can see the top of your head! Get down here right this instant!โ
Curse his height. Even though they were close to the roofโs lower edgeโฆ
The two adventurers had no choice but to climb down and face the music. Just like before.
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
โ Live Streamingโ Interactive Chatโ Private Showsโ HD Quality
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A reminder that our leftover sales last for another ~2 weeks! ๐โจ
Don't miss our on our giveaway, linked below! This will be your last chance to acquire an A-grade zine/full bundle if you weren't able to purchase one ๐ฅน
Leftover sales are on for @p4zine, it's got some insane art in it!
I got the opportunity to do this wild spread of Izanami no okami
WHICH LEET ME TELL YOU was wild to draw, IDK what I thought she was going to be like but?? GODDAMN I'm really pleased with how it turned out as well. It's such a moment in the game (if you get there, like hello atlas?)
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
โ Live Streamingโ Interactive Chatโ Private Showsโ HD Quality
Anya is LIVE right now
FREE
Free to watch โข No registration required โข HD streaming
Hello all! Thank you very much for your support of our first day of leftover salesโwe have now sold out of full bundles and merch only bundles! However, there are still plenty of a la carte merch and B-grade zines available! ๐โจ
If you missed out on full bundles/merch bundles/A-grade zines, we may have an announcement incoming! ๐
Anya is live and ready to show you everything. Watch her strip, dance, and perform exclusive shows just for you. Interact in real-time and make your fantasies come true.
โ Live Streamingโ Interactive Chatโ Private Showsโ HD Quality
Anya is LIVE right now
FREE
Free to watch โข No registration required โข HD streaming
getting to work on this zine was like a dream come true for me :'D leftover sales just opened so if you're interested go check them out!! everyone who participated did amazing work!!!
everyone put so much love and care into this zine and i am so honored i got to work alongside artists and writers i look up to ๐๐ over the few months i worked on this piece, i felt like i improved a lot!! i'm still very proud of how this piece turned out ๐
a better look at the kanamin and yukari cameos below the cut ^-^
my piece for @p4zine ! this zine was such a fantastic experience, and I was so happy to be a part of it leftovers sales are open now, so get your copy while you still have a chance!!