things are not so hot

the rat isn't doing very well, as a few of you already know. There's nothing to be done really, he's just old, but he stopped eating yesterday, even when offered fried rice or soup.

I've spent the last two days after school essentially just laying around with him and watching Prince of Tennis, figuring that he was there when I started and he ought to see the end.

It's not helping, of course, because the closer I get to the end (i'm in the last half-dozen now) the more it just makes me cry. And cry some more. and then there are montages of Momoshiro and Ryoma's love. Not like I'm hard to set off at this point, but montages.

I think there's likely to be an unfortunate announcement in the next few days. I'm starting work at the library again tonight and I'll probably write to keep busy, but things'll probably be a bit maudlin for a while.

Fic, hikaru no go, Warikomi

As I've mentioned to several of you, after doing quite a bit of online Go research for the sake of fic, I was struck by how the moves themselves, both the names and the shapes, could suggest fics all on their own. Most of my information came from Sensei's Library, if you wish to do your own research.

Although I have not planned any meaningful progression of fics inspired thusly, and you will perhaps see no difference between them and the other HnG one-shots, I have decided to label all fics written this way as the Shudan Arc.

Literally meaning 'hand talk', shudan is the understanding that the way you play a stone physically (tetsuki) shows your intentions and your emotions; no words are needed in Go. A little more info can be found here. I think this is the most appropriate idea possible to apply to virtually everyone in the HnG universe, but Shindou and Touya especially, who talk of seeing others and each other in their Go in a casual but constant way.

If right now you are saying "I do not care, ply me with fic!", worry not. The only real differences between these and the other HnG one-shots will be the titles, and possibly slightly more Go terms used than normal. All Go terms will be defined at the end of the fic, but in general I doubt you will find them to be problematic since I've used them the same way in essentially every HnG fic I've ever written.

Title: Shudan Arc: Warikomi [Shindou, Touya]
Rating/Warning: PG-13 for random schoolboy violence
Summary: Touya finds Shindou's idea of 'the proper move' to be questionable.
AN: Thanks to marksykins for the beta and for listening to the Go babble. I think this may be the first time i've ever written something you might label 'gen' in this fandom.

( Warikomi [Shindou, Touya, PG-13] )