The order of fics in the Dream of the Butterfly series:





And a Smile on the Face of the Dragon
Officers' Training Seminar: Building Trust and Teamwork in the Heavenly Army
The Rules of Engagement
Yozakura
String Theory
White Tiger
Summer Outing
Belling the Cat
Water Sports
Yuanfen
Body of Knowledge

If you were sent or somehow surfed to this lj, odds are it was for this series, so welcome and I hope you enjoy it. It all started out with my second-ever fic, which was written for a prompt on the Anonymous Saiyuki Kink Meme. Some of the feedback at the meme suggested I should: 1) get an lj; and 2) continue the story line, so here is the result.  The series is currently unfinished, so expect to see it continued and expanded upon until you see an epilogue, which strangely enough is pretty much written. It's the middle of the tale that needs some serious work at this point.

There's also a few non series fics here, so feel free to browse. Grand majority is Saiyuki Gaiden, but there's a bit of the regular Saiyuki to be found. All are yaoi, so caveat emptor, people!

Some who have been reading along all this time will be surprised to see String Theory is currently in the series list. Not originally written for it, true, but the whole "what to name this series" brainstorming week brought on an inspiration as to how to tie the whole thing together and end it, and because of that String Theory needed to be included.

Oh, and a shout out of thanks for  the input on the "naming the series" challenge!

Alrighty, since macavitykitsune was so sweet to point out what a scary person I am haiku-wise, here it is; my response set of manga or anime inspired haikus.

Any guesses out there as to what they're about? There's still a few open! Current winners listed below!


1.

Found a cat today,

It looks like he'll be trouble.

Felt heavy, that cat. -Wild Adapter, macavitykitsune

 
2.

Big gun says it all.

What’s the price on my head? No,

tell me in donuts.-Trigun, theskywasblue

 
3.

Eve of destruction.

So short-sighted, she can’t see

she’s hunting herself. -Witch Hunter Robin, yasashii_kawa

 
4.

Which one’s scarier,

The vampire or the blonde dyke?

Tough choice, police girl… -Hellsing, macavitykitsune

 
5.

“Vast and infinite,”

They meld and then disappear

Into cyberspace. -Ghost in the Shell

 
6.

Rebirth by a kiss,

And if you remind him of that

He’ll Rei-gun your ass. -Yu Yu Hakusho, macavitykitsune

 
7.

The dog’s the smartest,

Then comes the Tomato; Spike’s

Waaay down on the list. -Cowboy Bebop, macavitykitsune

 
8.

Absolute power

Corrupts absolutely; Light

Swallowed by darkness. -Death Note,

macavitykitsune

 

 
9.

“We’ve been here before.”

Their forms change and flow, only

Earth remains constant. -Saiyuki Series, macavitykitsune

Marriage, moral rightness, and the undead
Ah, rarely will I feel the need to recommend a book here on my lj, as I find the f-list an incredibly well-read lot, but this book is indeed an exception to such a rule, especially in such case as it might have slipped the notice of one amongst us.  My husband presented it to me last night, a gift from his recent travels in the Dark Lands of Microsoftdom (along with a lovely Totoro shopping bag; thanks, honey!). "I saw it on the shelves at the local Barnes and Noble," he beamed. "And I thought of you." I opened the book to page one, and literally grinned ear to ear as I read aloud the first paragraph;

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains. Never was this truth more plain than during the recent attacks at Netherfield Park, in which a household of eighteen was slaughtered and consumed by a horde of the living dead.
"My dear Mr. Bennet," said his lady to him one day, "have you heard that Netherfield Park is occupied again?"

Thus begins Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith, the book that dares us all to wonder "If Mr. Darcy became infected, would Elizabeth have the fortitude to behead him in time?"  By the time I got to the line "My dear girl," said her ladyship. "I suggest you take this contest seriously. My ninjas will show you no mercy" I was in love.
I have to say it's even better than The Pirates! in an Adventure With Scientists, which is fair praise indeed for any tome of our time. I'm seriously thinking of getting its sequel, Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. But first, I have to find out if Elizabeth's Shaolin training can save her from the uncouth attacks of Lady Catherine's katana-wielding minions.

Hey ho- been long time in posting, so I thought I'd gank this book meme thingee from athena8 who obviously got it from somebody else, etc etc ad infinitum. Now that my evening university qigong class is over I will hopefully have more time to devote for writing. In the mean time, it's meme-time!
OK, I admit one of them is a short story, but it's part of a compilation book, ok? As compensation, quite a few are dead giveaways. And no one said no picture books.

All of them already guessed in a massive sweep by bibliophile extraordinaire 7veilsphaedra , withjedishampoo picking up the spare with #9!

1. Pick 10 of your favorite books or series.
2. Post the first sentence of each book. (If one sentence seems too short, post two or three!)
3. Let everyone try to guess the titles and authors of your books.

 

1. A green hunting cap squeezed the top of a fleshy head. The green earflaps, full of large ears and uncut hair and the fine bristles that grew in the ears themselves, stuck out on either side like turn signals indicating two directions at once. -A Confederacy of Dunces, John Kennedy Toole
2. As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect. (greatest first line, ever)- The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
3. Through the fence, between the curling flower spaces, I could see them hitting.- The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
4. Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin. -Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne
5. Midway in life’s journey, I went astray and woke to find myself alone in a dark wood.- The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
6. Call me Ishmael. (YES, I like that book. So sue me.) -Moby Dick by Herman Melville
7. Brother Francis Gerard of Utah might never have discovered the blessed documents, had it not been for the pilgrim with girded loins who appeared during that young novice’s Lenten fast in the desert. -A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter M. Miller, Jr.
8. Mr. Jones, of the Manor Farm, had locked the hen-houses for the night, but was too drunk to remember to shut the pop-holes. -Animal Farm by George Orwell
9. A is for Amy, who fell down the stairs.- The Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey
10. No one would have believed that in the last years of the nineteenth century that this world was being watched keenly and closely by intelligences greater than man's and yet as mortal as his own; that as men busied themselves about their various concerns they were scrutinized and studied, perhaps almost as narrowly as a man with a microscope might scrutinize the transient creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water.- The War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells

 

 

Now that I’m a co-mod at ever_west I do many modly things, like pimp the game!
A few characters had to be sadly given up for adoption, so now we’re looking for new blood to liven things up there. Even if you’ve never been in an rp before, you might want to give it a try. As the new co-mod I’m there to help anyone who’s interested in a part learn the ropes and get their rp legs in shape, and the co-players are usually more than happy to help as well- so it’s really a nice, friendly, and semi-private way to polish your writing skills. Some of the characters that are currently in need of a good home are: Kougaiji, Nii, Nataku, Yaone, and Hazel. If the major characters seem too daunting for you, some of the lesser-knowns like Zenon and Jiroshin are open, and those can really be interesting to rp since there’s less canon to deal with when writing them, so you’d have a great opportunity to really flesh them out and make them your own.

I’ve been having fun there, and I think you would too! If you’re at all interested, let me know and I’ll tell you more about it, no pressure or strings attached.

Happy dog days, all!

David Carradine behind the wheel: "We like it violent, violent, violent!"

As I do my taichi training at a shaolin kung fu school, I cannot help but have a special place in my heart for David Carradine, the star of  the old tv series Kung Fu and the infamous Bill of both  Kill Bill movies. In honor of his passing from an apparent sex scene done badly (that's the latest word on the subject, anyhoo, upgraded from suicide) tonight we watched my all-time favorite David Carradine movie; Roger Corman's 1975  Death Race 2000, the infamous "cross country car race where you pick up points by running over people" cult film extraordinaire. David played the racer Frankenstein (here's a pic of his car, the Beast); the film is also notable for the scene where he dukes it out with fellow racer Sylvester Stallone. You realize what that means; Rocky vs. Kwai Chang Kane! (Spoiler: the winner is the one with the hand grenade). Ah, yes. David was truly one of a kind. 

We'll miss you, oh grasshopper!

Happy birthday, theskywasblue !

Orange paper plane;
perfect birthday gift for one
called 'theskywasblue.'

Today is the fifth of June, which, as any Saiyuki fan worth their manga collection knows, is pronounced "GO-JUN." 

So today we officially kick off our freshly moved Goujun Appreciation Month, changed to June in deference to jibii  and other Sanzo Appreciation Month afficionados who believe March too small a month to celebrate two pretty boys in the same thirty-one day span.

So, all of you who started something but never quite got it finished for GAM Mark One, you have another chance to Appreciate the Great White and Scaly One!

Remember to bop on over to haku_ryuu  when you get a chance. tj_dragonblade  is doing an outstanding job setting it up. Kudos!

This is what happens when macavitykitsune  says "Why  oh why did you do the Godzilla Edition?" and I answer "Would you rather have had a 50's Scifi Edition?" and she says "Yes!" without truly thinking through the repercussions of such a rash statement.

 

( Cue creepy theremin music )

So, since macavitykitsune grumped at me this morning that she was worried I was filling my movie meme with Godzilla, I felt compelled to do this. It's your fault, girl. All Kaiju, all the time. Betcha thought I couldn't do it.

1. Name a movie that you have seen more than 10 times. It’s easier to name the ones I haven’t; Gorath, Son of Godzilla, and Battle in Outer Space

2. Name a movie that you’ve seen multiple times in the theatre. Godzilla, King of the Monsters  

3. Name an actor that would make you more inclined to see a movie. Hiroshi Koizumi- he always played a doctor. Or Akira Kubo!
4. Name an actor that would make you less likely to see a movie. Baby Godzilla… does he count as an actor?
5. Name a movie that you can do quotes from. Destroy All Monsters. “Listen to the monsters in their cries of horror and sudden death!” “You let all the monsters loose when the chief was gone!”
6. Name a movie musical that you know all of the lyrics to all of the songs. Mothra. “Mosura ya! Mosura! Dongan katta kuyam indomu!” (all Mothra songs are allegedly in Indonesian, you see)

7. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with. Gamera vs. Guiron MST3K wrote a “translation” of the Gamera theme for this film, and I swear you can’t watch it and not sing “Gamera is really neat/ he is filled with turtle meat/ we all love you Gamera!”
8. Name a movie that you would recommend everyone to see. Gojira (1954) Unmarred by westernization or added Raymond Burr footage. Original, uncut, and surprisingly good.

9. Name a movie that you own. All of the Showa series. Half of the Heisei series. ¾ of the Showa Gamera. 2 of the Heisei Gamera… assorted knock offs like the Korean Yongarry, Monster From the Deep.
10. Name an actor that launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops. Yumi and Emi Ito, aka “The Peanuts” singing duo, aka the Twin Fairies of Infant Island
11. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven’t yet gotten around to it. Nope. Seen ‘em all.
12. Ever walked out of a movie? I can’t watch Son of Godzilla. That’s almost like walking out.
13. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater. Ah, well, when I went to see Terror of Mechagodzilla at a matinee the kids were so rowdy they stopped the movie. I was close to tears…
14. What’s the last movie you saw in the theatre? Godzilla: Final Wars
15. What’s your favorite/preferred genre of movie? Kaiju eiga
16.What’s the first movie you remember seeing in the theatre? Terror of Mechagodzilla

17.What movie do you wish you had never seen? Son of Godzilla

18. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed? Bambi vs. Godzilla
19. What is the scariest movie you’ve seen? Matango, the Fungus of Terror giggling mushroom people? *shudders*

20. What is the funniest movie you’ve seen? Gamera vs. Guiron or Gamera vs. Zigra- how does one choose between magnitude 18 earth quakes, sparkly space women with glowing eyes who do the bidding of goblin-shark spaceships… and giant knife monsters with brain-eating alien hotties who feed you donuts? I ask you, how?

21. One movie you loved when you were a child: Godzilla vs. Mothra the giant insect with the mostest, baby.
22. One movie you’ve seen more than once: Ghidrah, the Three-Headed Monster

23. One movie you loved, but were embarrassed to admit it: The X From Outer Space Giant Space Chicken rampages across the Mt. Fuji area. I kid you not.

24. One movie you hated: Godzilla (1988) that thing with Matthew Broderick… ouch.
25. One movie that bored you: Atragon, the Flying Super Sub Absolute snoozeville until Manda the dragon gets his screen time.
26. One movie that made you happy: The South Park episode where Mecha Striesand is battled by a giant moth/ The Cure Frontman Robert Smith and giant tortoise Sidney Poitier (oh, and how could I forget mecha robot Leonard Maltin?) I obviously am not the only one in the world who loves both the Cure and Godzilla movies, as well as hates Babs. I was enthralled.

27. One movie that made you miserable: King Kong vs. Godzilla. Just this side of Son of Godzilla in sheer leg-chewing horroribleness
28. One movie you weren’t brave enough to see: any of the Kaiju Big Battle series
29. One movie character you’ve fallen in love with: Ah, of all of them, I’d have to say Mothra is my favorite. Winged version, of course. You go, girl!

30. The next movie you hope to see: Godzilla 3-D (set for a 2011 release date)

 

macavitykitsune  knows I am a big movie snob fan, so she asked me to do this movie meme. It should be mentioned that I worked for 10 years at an art-house cinema, and I have three years of film school under my belt- and a childhood of sitting in the car while my parents worked concessions and security at a drive-in theater. All that is bound to skew my answers at least somewhat.
So here goes!

 

1. Name a movie that you have seen more than 10 times. Godzilla, King of the Monsters (1954) …though you could easily add a zero to that number.

2. Name a movie that you’ve seen multiple times in the theatre. Creature From the Black Lagoon (1954)-  and in 3-D to boot!!!

3. Name an actor that would make you more inclined to see a movie. Vincent Price
4. Name an actor that would make you less likely to see a movie. John Wayne
5. Name a movie that you can do quotes from. Addams Family Values (1993) “These Addams men, where do you find them?” “It has to be damp.”
6. Name a movie musical that you know all of the lyrics to all of the songs. South Park: Bigger, Longer, and Uncut (1999) Blame Canada!!!

7. Name a movie that you have been known to sing along with. Top Hat (1935) “…and I seem to find the happiness I seek when we’re out together dancing cheek to cheek!”- I also dance to it. A bit. *cough*
8. Name a movie that you would recommend everyone to see. The Secret of Roan Inish (1994)
9. Name a movie that you own. Every one of the films I’ve mentioned so far, actually… as well as such lovely obscurities such as Bride With White Hair II (1993)
10. Name an actor that launched his/her entertainment career in another medium but who has surprised you with his/her acting chops. Buster Keaton
11. Name a movie that you keep meaning to see but just haven’t yet gotten around to it. Akira Kurosawa’s Dreams (1990). I’ve seen pretty much everything else released overseas, so might as well…
12. Ever walked out of a movie? Many. The last one was Mr. Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
13. Name a movie that made you cry in the theater. Bambi (1942)
14. What’s the last movie you saw in the theatre? X-Men: Origins (2009)
15. What’s your favorite/preferred genre of movie? SciFi- the cheesier, the better
16.What’s the first movie you remember seeing in the theatre? 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)… I was six years old at the time, and my folks obviously hadn’t found a baby-sitter for the evening. I kept asking about the monkeys. “Shhh, they’re space monkeys, now be quiet” my mom told me…
17.What movie do you wish you had never seen? Last Year at Marienbad (1961) run far, far from this boring bit of pretentious twaddle. I’ve warned you.
18. What is the weirdest movie you enjoyed? Dr. Caligari (1989) Not the silent film Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, note. Not a remake, either. It’s… trust me, it’s even weirder than Un Chien Andalou (1929), and that’s saying something.
19. What is the scariest movie you’ve seen? An Inconvenient Truth (2006) I’m still haunted by the polar bears…
20. What is the funniest movie you’ve seen? Ooh, that’s a tie between Inframan (1975) and Horror of the Blood Monsters (1970) alternate title; Vampire Men of the Lost Planet. The former a Shaw Brothers rip-off of Ultraman, the other, well… imagine, if you will, a shoddily constructed repackaging of a Filipino caveman vampire flick, where the American release somehow puts it all on a distant planet filled with Filipino vampire cavemen, and in an attempt to cover up the fact the original, not US-made footage is B&W, they give it various color washes and wave it off as “Chromatic Radiations” showering the planet with bouts of being red, green, yellow, blue… you get the picture. John Carradine is involved, so you know it’s good
21. One movie you loved when you were a child: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)
22. One movie you’ve seen more than once: Quatermass and the Pit (1967) Hammer Horror at its best!
23. One movie you loved, but were embarrassed to admit it: Hollywood Chainsaw Hookers (1988) Chainsaw wielding prostitutes carving people up for the blood sacrifice in their Egyptian cult? Gotta love it.
24. One movie you hated: Blonde Cobra (1963) Oh, film school sounds like fun, sure, but you need to suffer through experimental shit like this all the time. This one left scars.
25. One movie that bored you: La Jetée (1962) Experimental isn’t always bad, and I was so looking forward to this one. Talk about disappointing…
26. One movie that made you happy: Tonari no Totoro (1988)
27. One movie that made you miserable: All Quiet on the Western Front (1930)
28. One movie you weren’t brave enough to see: Horton Hears a Who (2008) What next to be desecrated? One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish?
29. One movie character you’ve fallen in love with: La Bête in La Belle et la Bête (1946). You can see a lot of Goujun in him, now that I think about it…

30. The next movie you hope to see: Red Cliff, part II  (2008) Just watched part one. Takeshi Kaneshiro as Zhuge Liang? Made of win!!!

 

Second place in minuswave Fluffy Flash Fiction challenge!!!  YAY!!

Surprised me, since: a) I thought myself incapable of drabble (and so far I am; it's 788 words long so fully into short fic category); and b) I thought myself incapable of writing fluff.  But it's not too very fluffy, just a sort of a goofy little awwww, so if you are as allergic to saccharine as I am, don't worry! It ain't like that.

For those few who might scratch their heads and go "wtf?" on the title- Tenpou tells you half of it, but the other half is a set of pieces by J.S. Bach called "The Goldberg Variations" which if I am not mistaken were written for this guy who had insomnia, and someone would play them at night to put him to sleep. Remember the scene in Silence of the Lambs where Hannibal Lecter had just done terrible things to his guards, and he pauses a moment to listen to this lovely piano music before he finishes them off with a "Ready when you are, Officer Pembry?" Well, he was listening to "The Goldberg Variations." And now you know.

The other "wtf;" Billina is a talking orange chicken in the Wizard of Oz books. No shit.

Oh, and a note to helliongoddess ; this is the fic with a logical error in it. Well, some would say it's one big logic error, but one is rather nasty and shows Tenpou's basic misunderstanding of the mechanism. See if you can find it. ^__~

Title: Goldberg Variations

Pairing: Kenren/Tenpou

Rating: PG

Summary: Love is a chain reaction… which sometimes involves a chicken.

Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer thingee. Not mine, hers.

 

 

( Tenpou Fugit... )

So, ages ago now I was explaining to theskywasblue  that I have a thing for writing bad haiku. Specifically what I call Kaiju Haiku, kaiju being Japanese for "strange beast," of the type huge and rubbery and made famous by Toho Pictures.   Poems like this one, which is my own personal favorite:

Tokyo underfoot
Godzilla's backscales brighten.
Toy tanks no defense.

*bows* thank you, thank you. Brilliant, I know...

Anyway- somehow, somewhere in that conversation there was the idea set forth that I should try writing a seasonal haiku-kaiju haiku hybrid, using the traditional springtime flower-viewing opening line of  "Cherry blossoms fall" and merge it with some thing that likes to destroy huge metropolitan areas on a whim. I felt the calling, and it percolated away in my noggin for awhile (frightening prospect, I admit) and here they are; a selection of brand-spankin' new Springtime Kaiju Haiku. Thanks to theskywasblue  for putting the idea in my head in the first place!

Anyone else who wants to post a Kaiju Haiku here as a response, I heartily encourage you to do so. Hell, I'd even enjoy kaiju couplets, kaiju limericks or even the odd Elizabethan Kaiju sonnet (looks pointedly at macavitykitsune  for that last one).
A new genre of poetry is born!

Cherry blossoms fall,
scattering in the vortex
behind Mothra's wings.

Cherry blossoms fall,
the tree flattened beneath the
foot of Godzilla.

Cherry blossoms fall
unnoticed; Rodan has passed
the Sound Barrier.

MY FIRST DRABBLE!!! 

I know, sounds like a Fisher-Price sippy cup or something. But it's not! It's a ficlet actually under 500 words, written by of all people, verbose me! Really, it was written for aeneus' minuswave challenge- but when I finished it I realized it didn't qualify, since the only "fluff" found in this piece is between bunny's ears. So, nothing for the challenge this time around (I think), but I can at least post this here, and sneak something into April at the last possible minute.
Enjoy!

Title: Heart Sutra

Characters: Nii, Bunny, Kougaiji

Ratings: PG

Warnings: Nii. ‘Nuff said.

Summary: Say anything else about the man, but Nii always speaks the truth. He just hides it under a pile of asshole so that you hardly notice.

Disclaimer: Hers, not mine. Blah blah blah.

 

 

( dribble drabble )

Thanks to all who made Goujun Appreciation Month the love fest that it was. Since it was kindly pointed out that March is really Sanzo month, we'll be moving GAM to June the next time, which means... we get to share the love again in three months! In the mean time, tj_dragonblade  is busy setting up the new community devoted to our beloved white dragons of Saiyuki, Haku_ryuu. It's still being set up, so there may be a broken link or two- but she's done a fantastic job, and I for one shower her with appreciation for all her hard work.

Thanks, everyone, for sharing the dragon lovin'! See you in June!

For anyone who hasn't already noticed, tj_dragonblade  has put up a poll for the Goujun and Hakuryuu Comm. She's been working hard on getting at least part of it up and running before the end of the month, and  she'd like your help in deciding on a name.

So, please, go and vote! The commander has spoken!

This way to the poll

Yes, we're happy to be pimpin' a lovely new fic, written in honor of Goujun Appreciation Month!

Check out purpleicicles  Distraction, pt 1 for shameless dragon lovin'!

And remember to bring many, many napkins. Drooling on your computer might short the thing out, and you'd never get to see part 2 or 3 when they come out!

Name: Tea and Sympathy

Pairings: Goujun/Tenpou implied

Rating: PG (for implying 10Gou in the first place)

Summary: Kanzeon is looking for a new shogi partner. Unfortunately, she’s read Goujun’s character profile.

Disclaimer: Hers, not mine. Blah blah blah and all that.

 

Written in honor of Goujun Appreciation Month! A little bit of humor with a trace of fluff poking out of its ears. I’ve had this plot bunny sitting around even before Minekura told us Goujun plays shogi, so I figured it was time to grow it into a March Hare. Hope you enjoy.

 

( this way to Goujun Appreciation )

 

tj_dragonblade  has been working hard on the Big Dragon Master List, and is asking for your recs on the following items:


RPs: we are aware of two rp sites with Goujun as a character; past_imperfect and ever_west. If you know of another one, please please please let us know!

AMVs: There's lots of video sites out there, and not enough hours in the day to go through them all. If you're aware of an amv with Goujun in it, send us the link asap so we can put it in the list.

DJs: If you have or know of a doujinshi that's Goujun-centric, tell us about it, please! We'd love to get it mentioned or linked on the list.

Thanks to all in advance to everyone!