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rallamajoopNot so much in the way of new notes to go with this part for a change. ^^; I'm mildly stalled on Watanuki and Doumeki's first scavenging mission now, but I've still got a couple more bits in reserve to post before I get to it, so there's a good chance I'll have it sorted by then.
Still need a definite title for this thing too.
In the morning, Watanuki commenced the process of sitting up with a visible wince to accompany ever movement. By the time he’d made it half way out of bed, Doumeki was already so sick of watching it that he made Watanuki lie back down again and stay there, and ventured out find breakfast alone. Sakura took pity on their guest at once when she heard what state he was in and immediately volunteered to bring him food and see if she could do anything to make him feel better. Of course, Syaoran could hardly have left her in there all morning with a virtual stranger without personally being there to keep an eye on things, so the task of border patrol fell to Doumeki for that day. It was probably about his turn anyway.
Kurogane joined him later and they talked for a while in the usual manner that had them both exchanging as few words as possible. Patrolling should have been Syaoran’s job and keeping an eye on their new guest Doumeki’s, but the Watanuki’s presence had already managed to rearrange their plans, even so slightly, and neither of them were pleased by it. It would all have been much simpler if they only knew for sure Watanuki was dangerous and crazy, at least then what had to be done with him would have been clear.
When Doumeki went back in later after Sakura had left, Watanuki was still lying down but looked more at east.
“Feeling better?” Doumeki inquired.
“I told you, this is nothing!” Watanuki replied. “I’ve been through whole supply missions feeling worse than this.”
Nevertheless, Doumeki could see the bravado behind that those supply missions had not been ‘nothing’ by any stretch, and Watanuki appreciated the opportunity to rest more than he was letting on.
“Did you tell Sakura the same?” Doumeki asked, and Watanuki feel briefly silent.
“She seems like a sweet girl,” he offered quietly, after a bit, the subtext of the simple statement hanging heavily over the room. This wasn’t world that had much use for sweet girls.
“No-one here would ever lay a hand on her,” said Doumeki firmly. After a moment’s thought, in the interests of accuracy, he added, “If they did, Syaoran would rip it off.”
Even so strangely worded, the reassurance made Watanuki relax a little. “I think I gathered that,” he said, with the faintest trace in his voice of something that might have been humour. “Are they siblings?”
“Unlikely,” said Doumeki, and left it at that.
By dinner that evening, Fye had decided to take to what remained of any ice that needed breaking with a sledgehammer.
“So, Kimihiro,” he began, as soon as they were all a few bites into whatever monstrosity they were eating that day, “Any good stories to tell?”
“Stories?” Watanuki echoed, visible confused.
“There’s nothing like a good campfire story,” said Fye, oblivious to the fact no-one else present showed much sign they shared his enthusiasm. “But the five of us have all been here so long we must know all of each other’s stories by now.” He looked at Watanuki expectantly.
Watanuki himself fidgeted nervously. He must have been out of practice at dealing with anyone as friendly as Fye – if he’d ever even met anyone like their tech at all, which was doubtful. “But – I really don’t know any stories. I’m sorry.”
“How about telling us something real then?” suggested Fye, undeterred. “Someone who has ghosts leading them on treasure-hunts across the countryside all the time must have at least a story or two to tell.”
Watanuki hesitated. Doumeki could sympathise to a degree, it was terribly hard to tell whether Fye was being genuine or mocking behind that smile, and Watanuki would be venturing into territory which was alternately treated with superstition and fear. He glanced at Doumeki apprehensively. Doumeki met his gaze steadily, keeping his expression neutral.
“Well…” Watanuki began, “the last time I got a lead, it was to this giant building in an old city. I… there were miles and miles of tunnels to go through to get there. Inside – it was enormous, bigger than this whole camp, but nearly everything was ruined, the roof had fallen in or the floor wasn’t safe, or… well, you had to be careful getting through or you would have put your feet somewhere that wasn’t stable. But there was one corner where nothing was damaged. There were all these, um, shelves of electronic things. Lots and lots of each kind. Most of them were broken though, or I couldn’t figure out how they worked. I’m sure something there could have been useful, but the gang wasn’t interested. They’d been hoping I was leading them to food. They got angry and broke a lot of things, so I never got a good look around.”
It was very different, Doumeki had to appreciate, to hear a story about the April Fool from his own mouth – for the first time it started to seem possible that the stuff of those stories ad the real world could exist together.
“A room full of broken gadgets?” said Fye, openly fascinated.
“Um, yeah,” said Watanuki. “I know it doesn’t sound like much use, but…”
“Oh, it’s plenty of use!” Fye corrected him. “With just a little work, six broken devices can mean three workings ones plus spare parts. Do you think you could find the same place again?”
Watanuki considered, but hung his head. “Sory, but it was over a week ago, and the gang had been travelling for a long way since then. I don’t really know where it was, and even if I could get close again, I don’t know whether I’d be able to find my way in unless I found the same guide again.”
Doumeki couldn’t help but notice how careful Watanuki was being to avoid saying ‘we’ with respect to himself and the dead gang, but it was hard to blame him
“Ah well,” said Fye. “I’ll just have to hope there’ll be others like that to come.”
“By guide, you mean a ghost, right?” said Syaoran.
“I… suppose so,” said Watanuki cautiously. “They’re usually ghosts, but this one didn’t look as human as most of them. He was short and yellowish, and he had these big ears, and no hair. When he was close by there was this strange feeling – like before a thunderstorm…” he trailed off, looking embarrassed.
“The other ones look human though?” Sakura wondered.
“Mostly they do,” said Watanuki.
“The supply trips you take people on,” said Kurogane, the beginning of a frown creasing his face, “how often can you do them?”
“Um, it depends a lot,” said Watanuki, even more nervous under Kurogane’s scrutiny. “Sometimes…”
“On average,” Kurogane interrupted.
“On average, probably a couple of times a month,” said Watanuki, “but… that’s counting the times when there isn’t anything useful when I find it.”
“And you find, what? Other than broken toys.”
“Sometimes it’s weapons or ammunition or food if I’m lucky. Fuel. Clothing. All kinds of things. Anything the ghosts find that they think might be useful to someone.”
“And how often do they get that wrong?” asked Doumeki, spotting the problem without trouble.
“It’s less than half the time. It still happens quite a bit though,” Watanuki admitted.
Kurogane glowered at him, but let the topic rest.
***
“You lot must be the strangest gang I’ve ever seen,” Watanuki complained later that night.
“How so?” said Doumeki, though he wasn’t really interested. Comparisons between Kurogane’s unconventional idea of how to run a campsite and any of the crazed gangs who’d fight over someone like Watanuki didn’t have much appeal. “Not used to questions?”
“I’m more familiar with demands,” said Watanuki. “Demands and a whole lot of people not wanting to talk to me at all, in case they catch being dead from the other people I talk to.”
“Then this is better, right?” said Doumeki simply, unsure what the problem was.
Watanuki made one of the his choked laugh-sob noises. “I don’t know what ‘better’ is.”
For a moment there, something clicked for Doumeki, and there was an image of what it might have been like for someone in Watanuki’s position, shuffled from one keeper to the next so often that misery became comforting simple because it couldn’t get worse. Poor bastard, he thought, then pushed the thought away.
Watanuki had simply gone on talking. “…and between that pale guy and the dark one, I don’t know what to think yet.”
“Fye likes everyone,” Doumeki explained, “and Kurogane doesn’t like anyone. Don’t take it personally. As long as you pull your weight he won’t abandon you. He just doesn’t like surprises.”
“No wonder I’m so popular,” said Watanuki bitterly.
Doumeki considered reminding Watanuki just what circumstances he’d been found in, but thought better of it.
Edit: Er, so apparently I didn't say this loud enough in the last entry - these ficbits are very much just drafts I'm posting in the hope it'll help me keep momentum going. They're utterly unbetaed and may well be substantially rewritten before I get to the finished version, so it's more likely than not that a few typos will slip in. ^^; By all means, point out mistakes if you spot them and I'll fix them, but their existence shouldn't come as any surprise.
There'll be a more polished version of this fic up eventually (and if people would rather wait for that, I'd entirely understand) but it may take some time for me to get that far. ^^;
Still need a definite title for this thing too.
In the morning, Watanuki commenced the process of sitting up with a visible wince to accompany ever movement. By the time he’d made it half way out of bed, Doumeki was already so sick of watching it that he made Watanuki lie back down again and stay there, and ventured out find breakfast alone. Sakura took pity on their guest at once when she heard what state he was in and immediately volunteered to bring him food and see if she could do anything to make him feel better. Of course, Syaoran could hardly have left her in there all morning with a virtual stranger without personally being there to keep an eye on things, so the task of border patrol fell to Doumeki for that day. It was probably about his turn anyway.
Kurogane joined him later and they talked for a while in the usual manner that had them both exchanging as few words as possible. Patrolling should have been Syaoran’s job and keeping an eye on their new guest Doumeki’s, but the Watanuki’s presence had already managed to rearrange their plans, even so slightly, and neither of them were pleased by it. It would all have been much simpler if they only knew for sure Watanuki was dangerous and crazy, at least then what had to be done with him would have been clear.
When Doumeki went back in later after Sakura had left, Watanuki was still lying down but looked more at east.
“Feeling better?” Doumeki inquired.
“I told you, this is nothing!” Watanuki replied. “I’ve been through whole supply missions feeling worse than this.”
Nevertheless, Doumeki could see the bravado behind that those supply missions had not been ‘nothing’ by any stretch, and Watanuki appreciated the opportunity to rest more than he was letting on.
“Did you tell Sakura the same?” Doumeki asked, and Watanuki feel briefly silent.
“She seems like a sweet girl,” he offered quietly, after a bit, the subtext of the simple statement hanging heavily over the room. This wasn’t world that had much use for sweet girls.
“No-one here would ever lay a hand on her,” said Doumeki firmly. After a moment’s thought, in the interests of accuracy, he added, “If they did, Syaoran would rip it off.”
Even so strangely worded, the reassurance made Watanuki relax a little. “I think I gathered that,” he said, with the faintest trace in his voice of something that might have been humour. “Are they siblings?”
“Unlikely,” said Doumeki, and left it at that.
By dinner that evening, Fye had decided to take to what remained of any ice that needed breaking with a sledgehammer.
“So, Kimihiro,” he began, as soon as they were all a few bites into whatever monstrosity they were eating that day, “Any good stories to tell?”
“Stories?” Watanuki echoed, visible confused.
“There’s nothing like a good campfire story,” said Fye, oblivious to the fact no-one else present showed much sign they shared his enthusiasm. “But the five of us have all been here so long we must know all of each other’s stories by now.” He looked at Watanuki expectantly.
Watanuki himself fidgeted nervously. He must have been out of practice at dealing with anyone as friendly as Fye – if he’d ever even met anyone like their tech at all, which was doubtful. “But – I really don’t know any stories. I’m sorry.”
“How about telling us something real then?” suggested Fye, undeterred. “Someone who has ghosts leading them on treasure-hunts across the countryside all the time must have at least a story or two to tell.”
Watanuki hesitated. Doumeki could sympathise to a degree, it was terribly hard to tell whether Fye was being genuine or mocking behind that smile, and Watanuki would be venturing into territory which was alternately treated with superstition and fear. He glanced at Doumeki apprehensively. Doumeki met his gaze steadily, keeping his expression neutral.
“Well…” Watanuki began, “the last time I got a lead, it was to this giant building in an old city. I… there were miles and miles of tunnels to go through to get there. Inside – it was enormous, bigger than this whole camp, but nearly everything was ruined, the roof had fallen in or the floor wasn’t safe, or… well, you had to be careful getting through or you would have put your feet somewhere that wasn’t stable. But there was one corner where nothing was damaged. There were all these, um, shelves of electronic things. Lots and lots of each kind. Most of them were broken though, or I couldn’t figure out how they worked. I’m sure something there could have been useful, but the gang wasn’t interested. They’d been hoping I was leading them to food. They got angry and broke a lot of things, so I never got a good look around.”
It was very different, Doumeki had to appreciate, to hear a story about the April Fool from his own mouth – for the first time it started to seem possible that the stuff of those stories ad the real world could exist together.
“A room full of broken gadgets?” said Fye, openly fascinated.
“Um, yeah,” said Watanuki. “I know it doesn’t sound like much use, but…”
“Oh, it’s plenty of use!” Fye corrected him. “With just a little work, six broken devices can mean three workings ones plus spare parts. Do you think you could find the same place again?”
Watanuki considered, but hung his head. “Sory, but it was over a week ago, and the gang had been travelling for a long way since then. I don’t really know where it was, and even if I could get close again, I don’t know whether I’d be able to find my way in unless I found the same guide again.”
Doumeki couldn’t help but notice how careful Watanuki was being to avoid saying ‘we’ with respect to himself and the dead gang, but it was hard to blame him
“Ah well,” said Fye. “I’ll just have to hope there’ll be others like that to come.”
“By guide, you mean a ghost, right?” said Syaoran.
“I… suppose so,” said Watanuki cautiously. “They’re usually ghosts, but this one didn’t look as human as most of them. He was short and yellowish, and he had these big ears, and no hair. When he was close by there was this strange feeling – like before a thunderstorm…” he trailed off, looking embarrassed.
“The other ones look human though?” Sakura wondered.
“Mostly they do,” said Watanuki.
“The supply trips you take people on,” said Kurogane, the beginning of a frown creasing his face, “how often can you do them?”
“Um, it depends a lot,” said Watanuki, even more nervous under Kurogane’s scrutiny. “Sometimes…”
“On average,” Kurogane interrupted.
“On average, probably a couple of times a month,” said Watanuki, “but… that’s counting the times when there isn’t anything useful when I find it.”
“And you find, what? Other than broken toys.”
“Sometimes it’s weapons or ammunition or food if I’m lucky. Fuel. Clothing. All kinds of things. Anything the ghosts find that they think might be useful to someone.”
“And how often do they get that wrong?” asked Doumeki, spotting the problem without trouble.
“It’s less than half the time. It still happens quite a bit though,” Watanuki admitted.
Kurogane glowered at him, but let the topic rest.
***
“You lot must be the strangest gang I’ve ever seen,” Watanuki complained later that night.
“How so?” said Doumeki, though he wasn’t really interested. Comparisons between Kurogane’s unconventional idea of how to run a campsite and any of the crazed gangs who’d fight over someone like Watanuki didn’t have much appeal. “Not used to questions?”
“I’m more familiar with demands,” said Watanuki. “Demands and a whole lot of people not wanting to talk to me at all, in case they catch being dead from the other people I talk to.”
“Then this is better, right?” said Doumeki simply, unsure what the problem was.
Watanuki made one of the his choked laugh-sob noises. “I don’t know what ‘better’ is.”
For a moment there, something clicked for Doumeki, and there was an image of what it might have been like for someone in Watanuki’s position, shuffled from one keeper to the next so often that misery became comforting simple because it couldn’t get worse. Poor bastard, he thought, then pushed the thought away.
Watanuki had simply gone on talking. “…and between that pale guy and the dark one, I don’t know what to think yet.”
“Fye likes everyone,” Doumeki explained, “and Kurogane doesn’t like anyone. Don’t take it personally. As long as you pull your weight he won’t abandon you. He just doesn’t like surprises.”
“No wonder I’m so popular,” said Watanuki bitterly.
Doumeki considered reminding Watanuki just what circumstances he’d been found in, but thought better of it.
Edit: Er, so apparently I didn't say this loud enough in the last entry - these ficbits are very much just drafts I'm posting in the hope it'll help me keep momentum going. They're utterly unbetaed and may well be substantially rewritten before I get to the finished version, so it's more likely than not that a few typos will slip in. ^^; By all means, point out mistakes if you spot them and I'll fix them, but their existence shouldn't come as any surprise.
There'll be a more polished version of this fic up eventually (and if people would rather wait for that, I'd entirely understand) but it may take some time for me to get that far. ^^;
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Date: 2007-08-16 03:48 pm (UTC)You mean been there, right?
Man, I seriously love reading this story. Can't wait for the next chapter!
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Date: 2007-08-17 01:44 am (UTC)I'm not sure whether these little draft snippets deserve the description of 'chapters', they're still so rough at this point. ^^; But I'm glad you're finding them worth looking forward to, and I should have at least a couple more bits to post before the plot gets tricky enough to slow me down
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Date: 2007-08-16 06:17 pm (UTC)I just find anything between Watanuki and Sakura heartbreakingly sweet (in a non-ship way), because they're both just so terribly nice. And yet... Doumeki and Watanuki still have this kind of understanding. It's really really interesting.
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Date: 2007-08-17 02:48 am (UTC)There are a lot of interesting relationships coming out of this world. Kurogane's camp was filled with strange enough characters to begin with, and now that they're all dealing with Watanuki and trying to figure out whether to trust him or not it's only gotten all the more complicated. I've got so much backstory for these versions of the characters coming together now I may have to write a couple of extra side-stories off from the main plot just to explain it all.
It's getting to the kind of level where I'm going to be thrilled if readers get half as much out of reading about the world as I'm getting out of developing it. ^_^ And if you enjoy Watanuki/Sakura interaction, you may well enjoy some of the next part I've got to post too.
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Date: 2007-08-16 09:40 pm (UTC)There's a few typos here and there, but I'm not sure if you're posting this officially or as continued teaser. >_>
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Date: 2007-08-17 02:46 am (UTC)Yeah, about that, see the new note at the end of the post above. Continued teaser is about right. ^^;
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Date: 2007-08-17 03:27 am (UTC)^_^ Oh, good! This is why I did not go crazy with the listing of edits. ♥ That's all right, then.
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Date: 2007-08-17 09:04 am (UTC)Hmm, can't wait to read more Doumeki and Watanuki. ^_^ I wonder how their first trip will go. Successful, I hope. Wouldn't Kurogane to get scarier than he is already.
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Date: 2007-08-18 09:32 am (UTC)There are a couple more scenes to get through before we get to their first trip. Kurogane's really not so scary that he'd give Watanuki much trouble for stuffing up his first try, but it shouldn't be a problem either way.
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Date: 2007-08-19 12:42 am (UTC)I love this whole story, but more than that I love Watanuki in this. Despite being in a totally different situation from canon, he's still so totally in character and he just needs a hug. The talk about the bruises in the first installment, especially some of the placements of them, were really heartbreaking. I've got to admit to being terrible at picking up on hints, and maybe I'm not reading and comprehending this correctly, but does the bruise on his thigh hint to some nastier abuse than a few beatings? Or at least the intention?
I'm also curious to see if the spirit that butchered Watanuki's previous gang is going to make an appearance or be significant later on. It must have been strong to cause physical harm, not to mention very attached to Watanuki. And it seemed like Watanuki wasn't too heartbroken to be away from the spirit, so it is all very intriguing. You have such a wonderful world set up here, and I can’t wait to see all you have in store!
So much love! ♥ ♥ ♥
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Date: 2007-08-19 05:11 am (UTC)but does the bruise on his thigh hint to some nastier abuse than a few beatings? Or at least the intention?
Not really, we're talking outer thigh - just somewhere someone could land a kick when they're angry at him. I couldn't blame anyone for wondering, but I think I've already been nasty enough to Watanuki in this world without needing to get into sexual abuse territory.
I'm also curious to see if the spirit that butchered Watanuki's previous gang is going to make an appearance or be significant later on.
It may not have been to clear from Watanuki's fairly brief explanation, but that was more like multiple spirits. You can certainly expect what happened there to be significant later on though, one way or the other, but that would be one of those areas I still have to sort out in more detail before I get to it.
I'm glad you like how Watanuki comes across in this. Everyone's a bit different in this universe - I was quite surprised how easily some of the characterisation stuff fell into place, and it's great to hear others find it works. I'm hoping to be able to get new bits of this up on something like a weekly basis, so there should be more to look forward to too.
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Date: 2007-08-26 07:50 am (UTC)Anyway, I like the interactions of Watanuki with the rest of the camp. His baffled response to Fye -- not sure if he's being made fun of or being set up -- but trying to respond in a friendly way. If you're ever inspired, I think it could be amusing to read about breakfast with Sakura and Syaoran... especially if they're accidentally playing good cop, bad cop.
I get the feeling that already, Watanuki would take a beating to protect Sakura... I think they could have a very endearing relationship. Platonic, entirely.
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Date: 2007-08-26 09:13 am (UTC)I don't know about breakfast specifically, but I've got a couple of important scenes in mind with Watanuki and Sakura and/or Syaoran coming up. Though I do like the good cop/bad cop idea too.
If you've seen the scripts for any of the Horitsuba AU drama CDs, Watanuki and Sakura are close friends in that world. I hadn't planned for it specifically, but Watanuki certainly picks up a strong attachment to Sakura very quickly here too. My main concern now about these plans I've got to introduce Kohane later on is that I may be overdoing things with her and Sakura around the camp at the same time. (I think she'll still be in there though - she's picking up all this plot significance and what. ^_^)
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Date: 2007-08-28 02:15 pm (UTC)Watanuki...how I want to hug the poor thing so much T_T And your Fye and Kurogane are just wonderful. A really nice contrast.
you don't mind if I friend this so I can pounce on any updates, do you? >.>
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Date: 2007-08-28 02:30 pm (UTC)Watanuki's been getting that kind of reaction a lot, I notice.
can't imagine whyI've written a lot less for the Tsubasa characters than the holic ones, so I'm glad to hear you think I've done Kurogane and Fye justice too. ^_^Go right ahead, I'm not fussed in the least.
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Date: 2007-08-28 02:36 pm (UTC)I think you're doing a remarkable job on all the characters so far, especially in the 'verse you have them in. I wouldn't have really been able to tell that you hadn't written much for any particular character...though I can see you've perhaps written a lot more for Watanuki and Doumeki?
You live in Perth? Excuse me while I take a moment to squee that there's actually a GOOD XXXHolic fic writer that lives in the same city as me.
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Date: 2007-08-28 02:45 pm (UTC)Holy crap, you're from Perth too? XD That makes you the third person from this city who's run across my fic! I had no idea we had such a big xxxHOLiC fanbase in a city this small. If you're involved in active fandom at all, there's even a decent chance I've run into you somewhere. o_O
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Date: 2007-08-28 02:50 pm (UTC)You might just have! Though it's been an eternity since I've had the chance to go out a hang with the Anime/Manga crowd. I was a regular at JAFWA for a good long while a couple of years ago.
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Date: 2007-08-28 02:59 pm (UTC)I was a regular there too for ages, up until a couple of years ago when the line up started going downhill. At least we've still got Wai-con and Swancon related events now and then.
Excuse me, it's always slightly surreal when I run into people on the web who I've probably run into before in real life. o_o
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Date: 2007-08-28 03:03 pm (UTC)It's...a little odd to be realising we've probably seen each other in real life. Specially since it sounds like we were at JAFWA at the same time...
And yea, I'd agree with you on the lineup. Same reason why I stopped going though I miss hanging out with a group of people who I could talk to outside of the net about my fandoms without them giving me a blank look XD
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Date: 2007-08-28 03:14 pm (UTC)We very probably have. ^^; Have you ever been to a Wai-con, since they started up? (If not, I'd highly recommend you do so.)
I was lucky enough to find other social stuff to do with like-minded geeks after JAFWA stopped for us, but it did leave a bit of a hole in our lives for a while.
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Date: 2007-08-28 03:18 pm (UTC)And yes. I went to the first one a couple of years ago but I had to miss out on the last one unfortunately. I want to go again though since I had a blast the first time around. It's been a while since I flexed my cosplay muscles too.
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Date: 2007-08-28 03:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-08-28 03:44 pm (UTC)And no. Unfortunately I didn't get to cosplay the first time I went to Wai-con. Didn't have time to make a new costume and my Kamui one was FAR too hot for summer time XD Though at least now I have a few more half started costumes to work with XD
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Date: 2007-08-28 03:59 pm (UTC)If you're into cosplay at all, I think I'm also obligated to point you to info about the Wai-con cosplay ball (http://www.panic-wa.org/) that's coming up on the off chance it might interest you. A couple of committee members are panicking about them not getting enough advance ticket bookings to be able to go ahead with it, so it's being promoted a little aggressively around the place right now. ^^;;
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Date: 2007-08-28 04:06 pm (UTC)And oooh a ball! I might have to look into that *grins* Thanks for pointing it out ^_^