But I don't waaaaaaant to do homework today

[brigdh]

Results of the 'Five Things' Meme:

quixotic_sense wanted "5 best drinks on a cold morning".

1. Green tea, with honey.
2. Hot chocolate. Maybe with some marshmallows, or a peppermint melted in it.
3. Coffee; I drink mine incredibly diluted. Here's how I fix coffee: pour sugar in until it stops dissolving, then add milk until the drink reaches a color best described as 'beige'.
4. Orange juice, the sort with lots of pulp.
5. Eggnog. Mmmm. It is deeply unfair that this is so hard to find outside of December.

And "5 things Hisoka makes Tsuzuki".

1. Tsuzuki likes the doughnuts with the jelly in the middle and the powdered sugar on the outside, but there's only two of them in the standard box, and they go quickly. Hisoka takes one when Tsuzuki is late, and gives it to him once he shows up; it doesn't count as making anything, because it's not like Hisoka cares. He doesn't like any of the doughnuts, and Tsuzuki will whine if he doesn't get one.
2. Learning to cook for himself is more complicated than Hisoka expected, so the first time they share a hotel room, all he makes for breakfast is instant miso. Tsuzuki eats it as enthusiastically as if it were apple pie.
3. Practice makes it easier. After a late day at work, Hisoka sets Tsuzuki to chopping vegetables, then puts together a stir-fry for them both. He pauses later, while washing dishes, and thinks that he hadn't thought about any of it- a recipe or the invitation or Tsuzuki himself- but Tsuzuki says something and Hisoka shrugs away the strangeness.
4. Hisoka isn't as good at baking as Wakaba is. He doesn't try. He prefers entrees; solid, simple things that are necessary, if not as extravagant. Tsuzuki doesn't make as much as a fuss for them, but Hisoka isn't jealous. He also prefers Tsuzuki's quiet contentment.
5. "Happy," Tsuzuki says, but Hisoka rolls his eyes and pretends he didn't hear.

kessie wanted "Five Things that Konoe-Kachou Secretly Thinks About His Employees But Will Never Tell Them (Through Random Observations or Otherwise)".

1. Of course, no one becomes a shinigami without having a few problems; Konoe has his own reasons for not moving on. Still, he wonders how to suggest to EnmaDaiOh that an on-staff psychologist has probably become a good idea, if not a necessity.
2. Konoe knows that Tatsumi has come to hold more power than any previous secretary of the ShoKan Bureau, he just doesn't care. Tatsumi can have the budgets, the paperwork, the meetings; Konoe retains the most important of his rights. He can order his employees to bring him souvenirs.
3. Konoe stopped attempting to follow fashion shortly after Kurosaki-kun arrived. If a mature, quiet teenager would favor blinding orange, the other choices must be horrifying.
4. He does feel sorry for Terazuma; it must be difficult for a young man like that not to be able to touch women. It's a good thing that Kannuki-chan is such a smart girl, and Konoe doubts that her creativity is limited to baking.
5. Watari dyes his hair. No one past five is that blond naturally.

vom_marlowe wanted "5 ways Tsuzuki shows Hisoka he loves him".

1. Once, Tsuzuki grabbed Hisoka's shoulder in the middle of a joke; Hisoka jerked away without thinking, and Tsuzuki flinched in sympathy. Hisoka hadn't meant it, he'd just- It wasn't Tsuzuki's fault. Hisoka still wasn't used to people touching him. He had to swallow anything he would have said though, because Tsuzuki kept telling the joke, speaking around the hurt and guilt that had washed through him.

A minute later, Tsuzuki reached out again, more slowly this time; any idiot might get hurt once, but Tsuzuki had to be the only person stupid enough to seek it out again. Whatever. Hisoka refused to notice how Tsuzuki's hand curved around his shoulder.
2. Alright, alright. So Tsuzuki was in love with Hisoka. That didn't mean anything; Tsuzuki was in love with everyone. Hisoka tried to remember that when Tsuzuki smiled like happiness was a fairy-tale he'd heard a long time ago, or looked at Hisoka like he'd forgotten how to breathe; Hisoka couldn't, shouldn't accept so much responsibility.
3. Tsuzuki woke up on Hisoka's couch one morning, hung-over; for a long time he pretended to be asleep, and through half-closed eyes he watched Hisoka where he sat in the kitchen, facing the other direction. Hisoka knew, and after a while Tsuzuki realized that Hisoka must know, but he didn't stop until Hisoka turned and snapped at him to do something useful, since he was awake.
4. Tsuzuki knew how Hisoka took his tea, and his coffee, and which of the snacks in the cafeteria's vending machine he liked best. It wasn't much, but Tsuzuki enjoyed doing it anyway; he knew he could do little things, after all.
5. It's not that Tsuzuki deserves to live. It's that Hisoka thinks he does; Tsuzuki doesn't know how not to feel awed when they kiss.

And "top 5 favorite ways to procrastinate".

1. Yahoo's Mahjong solitaire. I can't figure out the rules of real Mahjong, but damn, I'm good at the solitaire version. Warning: possibly considered addictive by the Surgeon General.
2. Spending two hours on Giga Quotes, reading through endless pages of poetry and quotations and lines from plays, is totally a useful way of spending your time, because hey, your piece needs a title, right?
3. Similarly, dictionary.com's thesaurus function is invaluable, and I have and will continue to waste immense amounts of time on tiny, tiny word choices. It is absolutely vital that my readers know that Alec's expression is disgust and not disdain, after all.
4. Did you know that you can read other people's friend's lists? And sometimes they update more quickly than your own!
5. If I set solitaire to score my wins Vegas-style, how long will it take me to lose my entire savings account?

threewalls wanted "5 reasons why everyone should read Swordspoint".

1. You people realize that "deadly killer + insane scholar = angst, intrigue, sex, witty dialogue, and gorgeous writing" is a valid summary of the book and not just what I wish was in it, right?
2. It's a love letter to the city! And I love cities, and everyone should love cities, because they're such wonderful examples of humanity at its best and worst. (Which city? Well, that's up to you.)
3. Oh, Alec. You are brilliant and broken and self-destructive and haughty and manipulative, and if there's anyone who doesn't understand the sheer glorious appeal of that, I have no idea why they would be reading my livejournal.
4. It's a politically responsible choice supporting gay characters in fantasy novels. It's an interesting exploration of anti-heroes. It's a creative attempt to write outside genre categories. Seriously, do you people want me to keep going? Because I already said pretty-amoral-boys-in-love, and yet somehow a few of you remained untempted, so now I'm trying the deep, complex angle.
5. Because I said so. And then they should write me fanfiction.

Comments

[gamera.livejournal.com]

These are all fantastic. Particularly the last one, since I just finished The Privilege of the Sword yesterday and I'm still in the Swordspoint fan squee state.

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

Mmm, eggnog. Like watermelon sherbet, I mourn that it's a seasonal thing. This is the twenty first century, dammit! No foods should be seasonal! I mean, it's ice cream with artificial flavoring and. Well. Sweet cream with artificial flavoring. Not like these are ingredients that aren't available all the time.

I love, love the Tsuzuki/Hisoka lists, both of them, but Konoe's wins. And don't knock the orange sweater, for it is the orange sweater of LOVE. Which is a joke arising from a mental epic, and someday Rune or I will explain it.

Everyone should read Swordspoint so they can wallow in your fic. Yis.

From a total stranger...

[arcanelight.livejournal.com]

And this is where I embarrass myself:

These Yami snippets? Totally wonderful and made my WEEK. To me, you are one of the quintessential writers for the Yami fandom. Seeing this was like getting a visit from old friends that you never expected to see again. And this is so much more coherent than my initial response of writing "I love you" twenty times.

Okay, I give. I'll check out Swordspoint. You have dangled the shiny description of Alec before me and I am entranced. Add another to the list of converts.

[parallactic.livejournal.com]

You and I have entirely different tastes in coffee. I prefer mine fresh, black, and with a spoonful of something sweet. Occasionally I like it fancy, with a big production of accessories and froth.

The YnM lists were a lot of fun and sweet. My favorite was Konoe's.

I too know of the procrastinating power of Mahjong solitaire, and reading other people's f-lists. Actually, other forms of procrastination pale to lj. For instance, this very comment was brought to you by the powers of procrastination.

[animadri.livejournal.com]

So glad I stayed up a little past my bedtime. Tsuzuki/Hisoka + Brigd = LOVE

2. Hot chocolate. Maybe with some marshmallows, or a peppermint melted in it.

Yummy!

[p-zeitgeist.livejournal.com]

I'm sorry. You know that my judgment ordinarily marches with yours, at least in all important respects; but Konoe is right. The orange sweater is an abomination unto the Lord. Or was an abomination, before we burned it.

The lists, on the other hand, are all to die for.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

And hooray for Privilege of the Sword. Now you should come join _riverside. *trying to increase number of fandom members to something more than 3*

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

I'm telling you, the orange sweater is the symbol of a great and stoic love. Which is not to say it's not an eyesore too. It's multi-purpose. *G*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Hee. Thank you.

It's an excellent way to use up candy canes after Christmas, as I don't like them as much by themselves.

[gamera.livejournal.com]

I'm actually already a member of _riverside. I should stop lurking there and actually participate in fandom, though.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I'm not surprised; I'm used to people making faces at the way I drink my coffee. Apparently it's more normal in New York, though- the guys at the little store next door to the building I have classes in actually put what I consider an appropriate amount of sugar in, even without being told that I want a lot.

Thank you! That seems to be the popular one; he's fun to write for a different perspective on the other characters.

*laughs* Ah, LJ. I would have so much more free time without it, but life would be less fun.

Re: From a total stranger...

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Aw, no. If anything, this is where I get embarrassed and blush a lot. Thank you so much; clearly I've gone too long without writing YnM, because I still do love my boys, and they need more fic from me (Well. I don't know if they need it, but I want to write it).

Excellent! If everyone changes the world somehow, apparently my contribution will be having created an actual active fandom for Swordspoint. I can't say it's a bad thing.

[p-zeitgeist.livejournal.com]

I'm telling you, the orange sweater is the symbol of a great and stoic love.

All right, we can accept that. Because really, it would almost have to be, wouldn't it?

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Good to hear you like eggnog too. I know too many people who are grossed out by it, when clearly it is the creamy beverage of the gods.

Thank you! But I'm with Phoebe; I'm afraid you'll have to explain the joke, or admit the sweater deserves to die. Slowly.

Ha. I'm not quite self-centered enough to include that on my list, but I will admit that more feedback would make me happy.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

You should! You've already made the first important step of joining, all the rest should be easy. *grins*

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

Well, it could also be a complete and utter lack of fashion sense, but where's the fun in that?

[parallactic.livejournal.com]

Heh, people give funny looks when they hear about the way I drink coffee where I live. I'll actually take coffee any way as long as I get my caffeine fix.

If it wasn't lj, it would be something else for me like organizing my sock drawer. But lj is so much more fun.

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

Eggnog is the food of the gods, but I'm just fine with other people not liking it. More for me. *G*

Once upon a time, Rune and I brainstormed a Weiss/Yami crossover. It had a soundtrack and everything, and it was Tatsumi/Ken, Aya/Hisoka. Note that Aya and Hisoka both own hideous orange sweaters. We determined they bought the sweaters for each other, and thus was born the saying "Orange Sweaters Are Love."

It's not self-centered, it's fact. Your work is excellent. People should do themselves a favor and acquire the background to appreciate it.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I agree completely about the sweater. Burning is really the only appropriate response.

Thank you!

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I can do without milk, or with less sugar, but I can't drink it black. It's too bitter for me; I hate the taste. I drink it less for the caffeine and more for the privilege of sitting in a coffeeshop and using free wireless for a few hours.

I think I might actually resort to doing the work before I organized my sock drawer. Good thing there is a lj, so I don't have to make about such terrible choices.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Hee. Good point.

...okay, that is kind of funny. And cute. But, but- orange sweater! Giant, baggy, orange sweater, even! They couldn't get flowers or chocolates like normal people?

*is pleased and blushing, now*

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

They couldn't get flowers or chocolates like normal people?

....

This is Hisoka. And Aya. The obnoxiousness of the color is probably more than half the reason they went with the sweaters. "I love you, and I will proclaim it by offending the eyes of everyone who sees me. Because your hatred for humanity is just one of the many reasons I love you."

I keep considering replacing this icon, but really, it's the perfect exemplar of how I view Hisoka, as shown above.

It's all true. Swordspoint is one of those sources I love, and know I could never do justice. So I had to wait for someone who could, and here you are. *G*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ha! *dies* Yes. I can't see Hisoka doing anything with flowers or chocolate, really, except perhaps glaring at them before enduring the gifting irritatedly. At least sweaters aren't sappy.

Don't; it is the perfect icon. I'm getting a huge kick out using all my Hisoka icons in this thread. They've languished for too long.

See, and how am I supposed to respond to that? Except to say you're too kind, and thank you, and squee. Although ch, I'd adore seeing what you'd do with it.

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

Flowers are Aya's cover job, and given the way his psyche is kinked, I suspect he views them as anything but appropriate to give someone you love. *G* And yeah, neither of them strike me as the chocolate sort (unless it was chocolate with chilies, and then all bets are off).

That would be one reason I signed up for stagesoflove again. I was feeling a bit rusty in that realm.

You could always write more. *G* You could also post a request for Richard/Alec at wishkisses. Perhaps Alec could try explaining cloven fruit to Richard. *G*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ah, true! I forgot he was a florist.

I think I might have, but it's such a busy community I took it off my flist, and missed the sign-ups. Maybe next round, though I do still need to finish my set from the last one I participated in. At least I have your lovely ones to read.

Having never heard of cloven fruit, I googled it, and oh my god, you're trying to kill me, aren't you? It's foodporn plus kisses, and oh, yes, I want it.

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

How could you forget the florist assassin part of the insanity that is Weiss? Fifty lashes with an orchid stem. ;-)

I have Spren on my flist rather than the comm, and she's good about announcing sign-ups. The plan was to give myself little somethings to work on when I needed a break from SSGSP, except I seem to be establishing a tradition of clearing those things off my plate almost as soon as I add them, and this was no different. And I'm glad you like them so far!

Ah, the benefits of a misspent youth in the SCA. *G* Did you run across the tradition of what was done when there was only one clove left in the fruit? Could have been just a Caidan tradition, but I believe a friend mentioned they also did it in An Tir.

[solo.livejournal.com]

I love these! It's so nice to read good Yami no Matsuei again, like a special treat that comes round every couple of months or so. I wish you'd write it more...

Never really thought of Kanoe Kachou as a person before, so thanks for that! He must feel like a circus director sometimes.

I read Swordspoint about ten years ago... and I wanted to like it, I really did. But I didn't. It still bugs me, but there you are.

[kessie.livejournal.com]

ajsdhajdha I want to write Konoe-POV fic now! *_* Eeeee! Thank you for writing these. ...consider writing more YnM fic? OMG, I didn't realise I missed your YnM stuff so much until now!

I have never had Eggnog. The first time I saw it was when Starbucks brought back their christmas line. My flatmates have warned me about it, but now I'm slowly considering it.

[vom-marlowe.livejournal.com]

You write such wonderful Hisoka/Tsuzuki. It always makes me smile. And the procrastination list is awesome. :) I confess my usual gaming poison is Tomb Raider, but maybe I'll branch out into Mahjong. Working at a library, I get fun time-killers like the complete OED online--so addictive--and too many encyclopedias. I love them.

Have you tried eggnog hot? So delicious, especially with whipped cream and a sprinkle of nutmeg. Why don't they sell this year round? It's even better totally homemade, which I do once every ten years, with handwhipped cream, vanilla sugar, and free range eggs. So damn good.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I've written several drabbles from his perspective; it's very fun. You should do it! Tee, thank you.

Well, Starbuck's isn't real eggnog, it's eggnog latte or something (at least if the Starbucks there are the same as the Starbucks here). I think I've tried it, though, and liked it, so it might give you some idea of the taste.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I really should write more; I like it so.

He's so interesting, but he's almost got an outsider's perspective on all the drama around him. I like him.

Alas! But I've heard at least one other person say it didn't appeal to them, so I suppose you can't except everyone to love the same thing.

[p-zeitgeist.livejournal.com]

No. No, we think not. It would and does explain the initial acquisition -- and after all, Hisoka would not have had a great deal of opportunity to shop for himself before the time he bought it, which was presumably within a few hours of accepting Enma's offer of employment -- but it does not explain the part where others looked at it without saying anything. Its survival for as long as it did survive does seem to be a symbol of a great and stoic love; the love and stoicism would both be necessary to continue to tolerate it.

Okay, this is Phoebe. For the record, I have no clue why Muraki-sensei feels so strongly about this particular issue. But evidently he does, since I seem to be unable to comment on it without his feelings making themselves paramount.

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

Hisoka's an empath, and Muraki killed him. If Muraki hates the sweater so much, that would be another reason Hisoka wears it, and I'd love to see anyone in Meifu dare to comment on it. *G*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

It would not be quite the crack that it is if they weren't florists.

Same here, but I must have not being paying attention when she announced it. Lucky you! I delay on everything. But hey, this way I get to read your fic, so I can't really complain. *laughs*

*googles it* ... *flails*
This desperately wants to be a story. I can so see it being the sort of random thing Alec would think was amusing- maybe if he actually won at gambling, for once. And he would be wandering along, looking for something to buy, considering if he wanted something practical or diverting, something for himself or for Richard, and then he noticed lemons in a window and was inspired. And Richard would have no idea what it was ("Oh. You got me a lemon."), so Alec would be annoyed, at himself mostly- maybe it's a noble game, so of course Alec wouldn't want to explain how *he* knows it- but Richard convinces him to tell what it means. And then Richard would have nothing to do wih it but to give it back to him, and then *he* gets to pick the kiss, and then Alec can trade it back again, and so on, and then I have this last clove thing now, and *incoherence yay!*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Hee, I adore Tomb Raider, but I don't have a Playstation here (it's at my parents' house), and I don't like the computer version as much, so alas, I can't play it very often.

Ooo, I haven't, though I've done whipped cream and nutmeg with it cold. But hot sounds excellent (and homemade even better!); I'll have to try that this year.

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

That they're florists and assassins is actually one of those brilliant details that you know the creators have no clue is a brilliant detail and so do not exploit properly. Just as well there's fandom to do it for them. *G*

It just came at the right time, really. Obviously, I've resisted signing up for any number of rounds in the past, but this time it hit me right. *G*

Or Richard could know exactly what it is, from his time on the Hill, and Alec could know he knows what it is, and buying it is a bit of a confession (he keeps making small ones) to his own past. Or Richard could bring it home after it was pressed on him by some young thing at a party where he fought a duel. He'd think of Alec's long fingers as he kissed the back of her hand, and there are only a few cloves left in, but it's enough for his purposes. And Alec had been mumbling something about how fish just wasn't the same without lemon earlier.

See? It would totally make a good kiss request. You should do it. *G*

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ah, fandom. Where would cracked-out series be without you to exploit their potential depth?

Ohhhhhhhh, that is love. *happy sigh* I can't even decide which I like best; they're all exactly right.

Can you ask for details, though? I thought you could only do fandom and pairing.

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

This is one reason I roll my eyes at creators who freak out about fans and fanfic. Most of the creators who do said freaking would not have the media attention required to do it publicly without fans who love their work despite it's crackiness or cracktasticness or other flaws, and some of those fans? Write fic about it.

Due to the wordcount limit, you can only expect fandom and pairing. You could, however, include a link to this conversation, with the stated understanding that running with the details would be completely optional. And even if someone grabbed the request and wrote it without cloven fruit, it'd still be Richard and Alec kissing. *G* There is no bad there.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Yes. Not to mention that the fans who are most dedicated also tend to be the ones who spend the most money on the canon, thus, you know, supporting it. Fanfiction: not actually hurting anyone's bottom line.

...you win. I resist the temptation no longer! And now I need to go think about which request I want to fufill.

[vom-marlowe.livejournal.com]

I'm addicted to the Mac version of TR, because you can use the mouse to view everything from any angle. And I just love doing the swan dive thing.

Most of the cafes now have Eggnog lattes--I just order them without the espresso. So very very tasty. Mmmm. It's kind of hard to evenly heat eggnog without curdling the egg in a pan, but somehow when it's steamed, it works great.

[parallactic.livejournal.com]

I like the bitter taste because it perfectly suits my mood for having to wake up.

I probably wouldn't organize my sock drawer, but I know I'd find some other way to procrastinate.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Yes! The swan dive is excellent; I adore using it every chance I get.

I never thought of ordering it like that! Thank you; I'll have to remember to do so.

[p-zeitgeist.livejournal.com]

But Hisoka wouldn't know that Muraki detests it so until such time as their relationship has altered a little. Or at least, he wouldn't if we posit that his empathy either fails when it comes to Muraki or is at least much less acute than when he's dealing with normal people. (Which I think is a fair thing to posit. My own plot needs aside, it would explain how he got close enough to Muraki to witness that murder in the first place. If he'd been aware of Muraki in the way he's aware of most people, everything about that night would have been different.)

And after their relationship has taken on a new character, and Hisoka does know -- well, I can certainly see him continuing to wear it, for precisely the reasons you suggest. Still, I'm not sure he'd tell anyone in Meifu about what an incentive it creates. Because then, what if they wanted to know how he knew? His is a scary glare, but still.

[mistressrenet.livejournal.com]

Swordspoint keeps getting more and more intriguing. The Tsuzuki and Hisoka pieces are so lovely.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

Swordspoint is excellent. *tempts you*

[ranalore.livejournal.com]

My own theory of Hisoka's empathy, based in part on the canon and in part on past experience, is that it strengthened up to the time of his death, then strengthened and altered on his death. So he might well pick up now that Muraki hates the sweater without any change in their relationship, and continue to wear it as a result.

I don't think Hisoka would explain to anyone any of the reasons he'd wear it, but I don't think he'd have to. It doesn't seem to me that anyone would or did comment on it. *G*