Dear Yuletide Writer

[lucathia]

oh man, I wrote up such a long and complicated post, but hopefully this is helpful...I didn't write one last year right away, or did I even write one? Guh, it was so hard to decide what to request! This is my letter for yuletide, an obscure fandom fic exchange. <3

Hi Yuletide Writer! This year, my requests are all manga/manhwa, and fairly obscure ones! The first two are both manga by Tsukuba Sakura. I really love her works and was very tempted to pick Penguin Revolution too. ♥ There were a lot of other fandoms on the list that I love too, but these ones are the ones that either I haven't seen much fanwork for, or the fanwork was mostly done by me...yeah, haha. So I'd love to see someone else's take on these! And if my assigned writer (or anyone else) checks out one of the other fandoms on this list, I'd be really happy to have gotten more people interested in the series. ^___^ I will try to provide info about how long the series are and how you might find them.

1. Yoroshiku Master



Yoroshiku Master is a sporadic Santa & Reindeer story by Tsukuba Sakura, who said in her mangaka notes that she wanted to explore master and servant relationships, and the santa and reindeer one seemed to fit really well. Since this series heavily focuses on Christmas and giving gifts, I think it's perfect for Yuletide and am ecstatic someone nominated it. :) There's no real timeline to the story since Christmas happens many times, yet our main character Kurumi is still the same age. I find it very amusing that even though this is a Santa story, lots of the chapters happen during summer.



I'm the type of fan who zeroes in on a character and would just love to get anything more of that character. For this series, that character is Rihito, so anything with Rihito would be awesome. Above Kurumi and Kaito's relationship, what I really love is Rihito and Daisuke's relationship and how Rihito views his status as a reindeer. They are hilarious! I can't get enough of them and wish there'd be a volume 4 with more of their story. So yeah, if it's Rihito PLUS Daisuke, that'd be even more awesome. I also love any interaction between Rihito and his brother Kaito, or Rihito with Kurumi, or Rihito with anyone really.



Basically, I'd just like more of Rihito, whether it's him interacting with Daisuke or with his family or with someone else (or maybe even just him being introspective on his own~). Perhaps a dark reindeer tries to interrupt Rihito and Daisuke's relationship to no avail since neither of them wanted it the first place? Or perhaps Rihito grows fond of Daisuke but refuses to acknowledge it, only to feel empty when their reins get suddenly cut off for some reason. Or maybe you could explore Rihito's life at a later point in his life, with him reflecting about how it feels to have found his Santa and what it'd have been like if he hadn't found his Santa and continued his life like before. Does he hate his life now, or does he think he wouldn't have it any other way? Does he feel regret for his missed opportunities for not being able to live his life as he had planned? What exactly is Rihito's life like later on, and what's life like for those around him? Has Rihito drifted apart from people, or has he gotten closer with anyone? A fic that explores Rihito and Daisuke growing closer would be cool too! Or anything else you can think of with Rihito as the focus!

If you'd like to include Kurumi and Kaito in the background (or any other characters), that's fine with me! I am also fine with either a platonic relationship between Rihito and Daisuke or a shippy one (I just don't want to see an OC love interest for either of them unless it's not the focus of the story). I think they'd be cute together, though they'd definitely fight a lot IMO. Or, if you'd like to throw a bit of angst in, maybe something happens between Rihito and Daisuke's sister, hm. I'd like to avoid character death though!

Rihito relevant chapters
-chapter 6
-chapter 7
-short appearance in chapter 9

Length and availability
There are only 3 volumes to this manga, though I don't think it has been declared complete (it might still be coming out sporadically?). I don't think it's licensed in English yet. I only have the original Japanese volumes, but you should be able to find scanlations online if you don't own a physical copy. (Try Dragon Voice)


2. Mekakushi no Kuni | Land of the Blindfolded



This is a very touching series about three teenagers who can either see the past or the future when they touch someone. Kanade, who can see the future, goes out of the way to make the future better. Arou, who can see the past, can never turn his power off and sometimes gets overwhelmed by it, but he still tries to use his power to help people. Namiki, who can see the future, takes on a more cynical view and starts off using his power to see the future for selfish reasons (such as buying stocks). People are usually frightened or disgusted by these powers of theirs, so none of them advertise the fact that they can see the future/past. Kanade compares her power as having a defective blindfold when everyone else around her has their blindfolds intact.



My favorite character in this series is Namiki. He is pretty much my favorite character of all time! Which is why I've been writing a long fanfic about him, haha, which can be read here or on AO3 under my username, but definitely don't feel obligated to read it. As long as your fic focuses on Namiki, I'd be really happy. I really love Namiki because he grows a lot through the series. He's not exactly the nicest guy out there, but he genuinely cares. He just doesn't wear his heart on his sleeve. I find it so cute that he has such a cute dog (and later, a turtle as well). I'd be fine with gen fic or a fic that realistically pairs him with anyone in the series (it doesn't have to be in a romantic way. Maybe Namiki finds himself living with someone because of certain circumstances? Would be cool to see this happen with like...Namiki and Arou, for example).

I'd really love to see a missing scene focused on Namiki, or a story that takes place after the end of the series. I love Namiki's pets, so including them would be a plus! I'm also fond of Namiki's younger brother and the guy Namiki works with (Yusuke). Perhaps Namiki finally makes a trip home and tries to make up with his family more? Maybe Namiki finds that he has to move out of his apartment, so he either tries to go home or he crashes at one of his friend's places. How does he feel in his new environment? Why did he choose that place instead of another place? These are just ideas...as long as your story has lots of Namiki, I'll be happy! I'd love anything else you could come up with! I really love Namiki's friendship with Arou and Kanade, so touching upon that would be great too.

There is no one that I don't like in the series (if you'd like to bring in super minor characters like that one classmate of Arou's, feel free to do so, haha). I'd just like the focus to be on Namiki~.


Length and availability
This series is complete at 9 volumes. CMX has published the manga in English. I've seen it around in most bookstores around my area, though now that CMX has shut down, they might be harder to find. The original Japanese versions are becoming harder to find too, but the volumes have also been reprinted into a pocket size edition with very pretty new covers. Even though the series is licensed, I still see scanlations around (and it's sometimes easier to refer to those than to pull out my physical copy), so you should still be able to find those as well.


3. Oresama Sensei | Oresama Teacher (Oresama Teacher)



This is a hilarious series about a girl who tries to change her image once she entered high school. She used to be a leader of a gang and is really good at fighting. Her new teacher turns out to be someone she knew who used to pick on her, so he knows all about her real self already. Her new friend that she makes knows nothing about her fighting abilities, so she tries to hide it from him and uses ridiculous ways to cover it up. I love the humor in this series!

I don't care all that much for Saeki Takaomi, the teacher. I'm more fond of Hayasaka and his obliviousness (as well as Banchou AKA Okegawa Kyoutarou and the disparity between his appearance and what he's actually like). I really love it when Mafuyu crossdresses as Natsuo, so I'd love to see another episode of Hayasaka and Natsuo doing something together. Maybe Takaomi assigns them to another task, and Mafuyu has no choice but to bring out Natsuo again to hide her abilities from Hayasaka. Maybe Hayasaka thinks he's falling in love with Natsuo and gets super worried. I'd love it if you brought in any other characters to flesh the cast out a bit, such as Mafuyu's old gang (maybe they see through Mafuyu's disguise right away or they try to help Hayasaka only to make things worse?), or the student council, or Banchou (bonus points for Banchou and for Morse code!). It'd be cool to see Hayasaka and Mafuyu try to take on an enemy together.

If you'd like to go the somewhat serious route, maybe either Hayasaka or Mafuyu has to transfer or are in risk of expulsion, and the other tries to help out! As long as Hayasaka has a good deal of the focus and shows some of his obliviousness and Mafuyu crossdresses (with perhaps, a dash of misunderstanding somewhere), I'd be ecstatic!

Length and availability
I don't think this series has been released in English, but there are currently at least 8 volumes out in Japanese. I think it's still ongoing, and some of the earlier chapters have been scanlated into English.

After searching around a bit, I think this series is being released by Viz.

4. Noblesse



Noblesse is a Korean web manhwa (webtoon) published on Naver. It's a story about a vampire who wakes up from a very long slumber, only to be greeted by a completely changed world. He transforms his clothes to a student's and ends up attending school. A few human students quickly befriend him, and they get into all sorts of trouble together. There's also a mysterious organization out there that's experimenting on humans. This manhwa is very pretty and is completely in color, and it has great humor.

My favorite character in this series is M-21. If you haven't read far, you'll need to read further on to get a grasp of his character and to learn more about him since he's not at all like how he first appears. I love his loyalty to his comrades and how his situation just really... sucks. I love how he's not all that strong when compared to everyone else, but there's a hint of possibility that he'll grow stronger.

I'd really love to see a story set during the recent chapters with M-21 living with Rai and Frankenstein. It'd be cute to see M-21 sharing stories with Tao or Takio... maybe reminiscing on their pasts and comparing who has it worst. Perhaps they could share advice with each other. Or, maybe M-21 tries exploring Frankenstein's house. Or maybe now that M-21 is receiving hard earned money for an actual job, he has to decide what to spend his money on. Perhaps Regis and M-21 get into an argument about something. I always find their interaction funny. Or maybe Shinwoo tries to make M-21 play video games. Maybe M-21 has to learn how to deal with life without M-24, or learn how to blend in with humans, or relearn what it's like for people to care about him, or maybe he discovers new powers, learns more about his comrades, etc...

If you wouldn't mind going for a more plotty fic, maybe something big happens again (one of the kids get kidnapped? haha) and M-21 somehow gets involved again, and everyone has to go on a rescue mission. :)

Uh, to sum things up, please give me more M-21. It would be awesome to see any of the scenarios I detailed, but it'd still be awesome if none of the above was included (as long as I get lots of M-21). <3

Length and availability
This web manhwa is published online every week. If you can read Korean, you can find it here. That's the official site. :) If you can't read Korean, you can find English translations on mangafox or Raw Crossing. There are currently 158 parts to Noblesse. By the time stories are due, they'll be a few more additions since this is updated each week. :)



Last words!

Generally, I like stories that make me smile. I absolutely adore a touch of humor here and there, or something that makes me go "aww" but doesn't overdo the fluffiness. I also like stories that are very plotty and make me think or go wow, I didn't expect that to happen, but as there's only around a month to write, I'm not expecting anything epic. :) I don't care much for sex scenes or too much focus on romance (things like, "Does he like me? Does she like me? What if he thinks I'm blah blah blah...those types of things kind of bore me).

For these series, I'd especially love any stories that give off the same kind of feeling as the original work. I don't really want to see AUs for these.


Apologies if this is too much to read through. |D What this all means is...

1. Yoroshiku Master -> Please give me more of Rihito. <3
2. Mekakushi no Kuni/Land of the Blindfolded - Please give me more of Namiki. <3
3. Oresama Sensei/Oresama Teacher - Please give me more of oblivious Hayasaka and crossdressing Mafuyu. <3
4. Noblesse - Please give me more of M-21. <3

Anything else is all optional (well, crossdressing Mafuyu is optional too, but I would adore it so much). I hope they are helpful and will jog your creativity rather than limit you. Thank you for writing for me!

Comments

[orechibisama.livejournal.com]

IDK about you but I like Usa-chan Man x Hayasaka XD LOL......
but I think, so far, my favorite pairing is Banchou and Mafuyu......Banchou is too adorable with his manly cat *flail*

_{Ah I wish there were more out. or raws in Japanese. I can barely read trad. chinese;;;}

[lucathia]

AHAHAHA, Usa-chan Man x Hayasaka. That is pretty hilarious too. XD; Ah, how could I have forgotten to mention Banchou? He is so cute too. <3 I quite like Banchou interaction with Mafuyu and Hayasaka too.

I need more of this series. I need to catch up too!

[orechibisama.livejournal.com]

He's so freaking oblivious that it's her....Hayasaka is just......a little brother I wish I could have

The site with the chinese raw is like up past volume 6 and onto chapter 44.

[lucathia]

Hm, I'm wondering if I should add something about Banchou in my sign up form. Because ahhhh, he and Mafuyu are hilarious together too with their Morse code and the letter exchanging. XD I'll probably do that before the 19th. I haven't taken a look to see if Banchou is on the list of available characters though. I knew Takaomi, Mafuyu, and Hayasaka were!

Ah, really? I have up to volume 6 in assorted Japanese and Chinese scans, but I've only actually read up to volume 4 or so and glimpsed through the rest (so all the details are fuzzy). I want to buy the whole series, but I'm wondering if there's a cheaper place than Kinokuniya for me. ):

[orechibisama.livejournal.com]

IKR....*flail* XD; I kind of want to see what happens if they ever found out that they've been talking to each other for awhile. Uh, I might have to write a drabble about their letters sometime;;

Yeah. I'm going through volume 5 right now. But Chinese and me do not get along apparently.

ah. idk if you can find it any cheaper. unless someone is selling on ebay for cheap and with cheap shipping. I know yesasia they're $8 but you get free shipping over $40 i think?

_{Honestly, I'm just glad I have someone to talk to about this series. My sister hates harem/gender benders. and my best friend isn't partial to them. orz;}

[lucathia]

I would love to see such a drabble. *____* Doooo it. When you have time and inspiration. <3 I edited my post a bit to add Banchou in there as an optional character that I'd like to see. I'll have to do the same with my actual sign up. <3

Hm yeah, I think mine is in Chinese too, which is fine, but I've gotten used to seeing their names in Japanese and it's kind of hard for me to remember their names when they're not in Japanese. ): But ahh, now I just want to read the series from the start again.

Hm, well, I do have a yesasia coupon since I just bought something from them. I'll have to calculate if that ends up any cheaper than Kinokuniya since I also have membership with Kinokuniya that gives me 10% off...but then there's tax.

Yay. <3 I'm a huge fan of genderbenders, but I haven't had much chance to flail over this series, so double yay! Haha, I don't think this series is much of a harem? Where's the romance? XD; Mafuyu does not care much about romance. Though maybe there's romance in later volumes. I have no idea. XD; It seemed to me Takaomi would be the main love interest if there's actually a romance theme going on. And... well, I'm not a fan of Takaomi even though this series is called Oresama Teacher. XD

(I was almost going to make my list of requests ALL from gender bender series, hahahaha. I don't know if that would have been kind on my writer or very limiting. I guess it depends on if my writer is a fan of genderbenders as wall, haha)

[orechibisama.livejournal.com]

Hopefully after at least this party clears up. I should have more time. I only have time like seriously tonight and tomorrow. 8D You might just get a xmas gift ♥

My problem with Yesasia is they go out of stock so easily. I was originally going to order Beelzebub vol 1-7 but like everything but 1, 6, and 7 went out of stock. So, I'm hoping by the time i get bday money, they may be in stock. or I am going to keep the current list I have up.

I haven't really read many. The ones I have gotten into I like. I'm just picky about characters really. DX Haha. I like Takaomi....But then, I'm a sensei pervert and like teacherxstudent relationships too much;; But, as for true coupling, I really like Mafuyu with Haya. Even though I have my pairing of Banchou and Mafuyu, I just see Haya or Takaomi taking her away. Unless we get more guys coming in.

(What other gender benders would you recommend? I would like to spend the little free time I have this month reading manga. :P and hopefully you do! SO it'd be awesome ♥)

[lucathia]

Oh, a party? I hope you're enjoying it. And whoot for a possible xmas gift. <3

Ah, that's so true. =/ They also take a while to stock things they list as one week availability (I waited more than half a year once for a game that was listed as 1 week availability...)

Haha, I'm fond of some sensei characters. =P But more of the...fumbling type than the calculating or arrogant type.

I have a lot to recommend. I actually made a list of genderbender manga series I've read and I noted how the genderbending comes into play. I don't recommend all that's in that post though since I read more or finished reading some that started promising but turned out...not so promising. XD; And...the links are now outdated since some manga sites don't exist anymore.

But off the top of my head, I'd recommend these!

1/2 Prince - great humor, and if you like MMORPGs or games, even better! Scanlations are up to date with the chapters. :)

Seiyuu Ka - (not in that post yet) If you like seiyuu~. :D The main character's pretty hilarious, and the main guy character loves cats. It's cute. This series hasn't gotten too far yet though. I've bought three volumes of it so far. I think a fourth should be out soon. There are scanlations for early chapters around.

If you'd like more recommendations, I listed a bunch of series in the post I linked. XD

[orechibisama.livejournal.com]

I totally should recheck my sentences before hitting send;;;*feels stupid* the party isn't til next week, but the preparation..... I just would rather not have it. dad gets so grumpy......_{and the focus is going to be for my gramma not my 21st or my sister 18th P= which defeats the purpose for me. we have too many november babies in my family XD there's like 15;;}

ah yeah. They also canceled something I preordered.......but, I think it's like the only place I can get import manga :T for a cheapish price...and that actually have the manga I want

LOL...yeah we'll go with me being a pervert XD;;

Ah I'll look through. P: ah I think my sister and my friend actually like 1/2 prince. they kept trying to get me to read it. I tried looking at it yesterday, but distracted by the stupid manga ever that I wish I'd never read.

aah D: Have you read Pheromomania Syndrome?

[lucathia]

Ah, I see. It's too bad it's a party that's combining everything. ): But whoa, 15 November babies? Really? Wow.

I'm still trying to find if there are online sites that have better deals, but I've had no luck so far. I'd also like to know if there are wholesale places (like places that sell whole sets) since sometimes I get into series late and by that time, there are already tons of volumes out. I always feel very strange when I go to Kinokuniya and buy a whole bunch of volumes. Who's crazy enough to spend all that money on fully priced manga, geez. x___x

Haha, oh Kuri. =P

1/2 Prince is cool! I really recommend it for the humor, and it has a lot of references for gamers as well. The female lead is fairly strong and is a very amusing character. :3 I've been considering cosplaying from this series (I even bought elf ears alrady, fufufu).

Ah, I have! I'm not sure where I stopped though. It was kind of weird. XD;

[just1kinkybitch.livejournal.com]

I read Mekakushi no Kuni a longgggggggggggggggggggggg time ago. Namiki and Arou needs to get together <3!

[lucathia]

Haha, I totally would not mind if that had actually happened. |D

[darkicedragon]

Geaaaaa~~~ I've now just downloaded all the available chapters for Yoroshiku Master because - eeeeeee! Aaaaah, but when am I going to reeeead iiiiit? *flails* If I do love it, and want to hopefully write for it for Yuletide, I'm gonna have to read it, like, now

...YOU HAVE GIVEN ME SO MANY PLOTBUNNIES FOR NOBLESSE. Aaaah!

"there's a hint of possibility that he'll grow stronger"
Werewolf! He haaaaas tooooo.

one of the kids get kidnapped again?
XD Though only one instance is really sticking out for me.

I want to read through Noblesse again~

Oh jeez, this post has made me so hyper. Gnaaah~

[lucathia]

Ahahaha. I hope you end up liking it! I was happy someone nominated this since it didn't cross my mind to do it. XD; It's a fairly short and episodic series, so I consider it a quick read, especially since you don't have to read all the chapters all that carefully to get into the story. It's really cute though. XD And man, it'll be easy to just make the setting anytime at all since Christmas happens so many times, haha. XD; I don't know if you like shoujo though? :3

Oh man, I've given myself so many plotbunnies writing this post. I didn't think I had any for these series. XD; I usually choose series I like that I know I can't write all that well (so I can leave it to someone else to write it), so where did all these plunnies come from?? T____T

Yess, I hope M-21 grows stronger!! I love it when he gets to show off. |D

Haha, but I feel like the kids are always getting into trouble! XD

...I know, me too. If I do read it again, I'm going to save some pretty panels. XD; It took me a while going through the chapters again to pull a picture of M-21 from it. The drawing style looks so different now!

I too WAY too long writing this post up. XD; I almost didn't have time to write my 1667 words because of getting distracted by Yuletide. I barely managed! Now that I have though, I'm going to add some more to this new part without feeling rushed. |D

...I had such a hard picking 4 fandoms. )': (I actually switched stuff up while I was writing this, haha)

[darkicedragon]

I've finished reading it~ ... There are a lot of beach episodes. O___o And there's been an episode in every season. XD I don't mind shoujo, so long as romance isn't the completely full focus (but I could be wrong. There's probably a few I've read but can't remember).

The plunnies come from wanting moooore~

:D :D I love it when he gets to show off. Or quip. Or anything.

XD I meant I could only think of one time when they were kidnapped, but I knew that they'd been in trouble before. They've been kidnapped at least twice (with Mary and Jake, and with DA5 [uuuh, is that their name?]), but I bet there's been more. Though, that is two story arcs...

XD I know Rai definitely has. Has M-21 changed a lot too?

[lucathia]

That was pretty fast. See, fast read, right? XD All the different seasons really amuse me...wasn't there a Halloween chapter too, haha? I see, I see. XD

Maybe I should have said in my Yuletide letter something along the lines of, "Please let M-21 show off in your story." XDD

Haha, well, they certainly are convenient for would be kidnappers. XD But it was even more hilarious when it happened to Frankenstein. XDD

M-21 looks a little different. It's more the art style than just him, I think. XD I feel the lines were thinner? Not too sure...haven't done any comparisons. XD; But his clothes make him look different too!

[darkicedragon]

Yep! Only twelve chapters, and they were fairly short. :3 Yeah, there was! XDD Aaah, Daisuke and Rihito arguing about the costume.

XD *laughs*

*snerk* *phone rings* *hypnosis is broken* 'Sorry, my master is calling me.'

I think anyone would be hilarious to see anyone getting kidnapped. Rai! ... omg, Rai! *cracks up so badly*

... Do we even need to go get him?
*sigh* Master~ You need to try my 900th batch of ramen.
omg, I wanna write this! *flails* *flails*

;____; I want to reeeeead it again. I'm going to be stuck on what the heck to catch up on when NaNo's all done. Stuck.

[lucathia]

I wonder if the mangaka's still drawing this series, or if this is it. The releases were so random. XD;

LOL! Ah, Noblesse. So hilarious. XD; OMG. Rai. That would be a sight to see. I want to seeee this.

I want to read it again too. D: Are you still reading Noblesse each week, or is it on hold during NaNo? |D

[darkicedragon]

XD I'm nooot. *sad face* Yoroshiku Master and Tegami Bachi are the only things I've read or watched since NaNo started. I haven't been keeping up with manga/manhua/manhwa/tv shows. :(( I will be biiiinging when I'm done with NaNo. I seem to have lost at least one [days pass] thing, and now it seems to be hurtling towards the end. Should finish around 60 or 70k? ...Maybe? You know what I'm like with guessing how long something is.

[lucathia]

I was following my usual series until around three days ago when I just couldn't keep up with writing if I did that. XDD Ahhh, I'll have so much to catch up with later! Ooo, you're reading Tegami Bachi now? XD; (Oops?) Maybe 60 or 70k?? Oh gods. XD; But hey, it's only 20k more than your plans right? XD Not bad. =P