Work Text:
Yayoi squealed, “Aah, don’t look at this!”
In a bluster, Yayoi clamped her hands over the school computer to hide what was on the screen but through her fingers, the electronic glow permeated. In the white, luminescent light, parts of what she hid still peeked through the slats of her concealment which allowed for Miyuki to get an idea of the picture that Yayoi was trying to hide.
“Whoa!” Miyuki exclaimed. “What chapter of Transformers is this? I’ve never seen two male characters kiss before, I didn’t know that was allowed!”
“It's not!” Yayoi squeaked, embarrassed. “Oh, wait, not like that! It’s not allowed in official media and… um… This isn’t on the official Takara Tomy website…”
“Huh? It's not?” Miyuki echoed. “But that’s what’s his face, that guy you like from that mecha manga.”
“It’s… It’s from a doujinshi…” Yayoi whispered.
Yayoi’s cheeks burned red. It was over! Her social life was over! She was surrounded by normies but this is exactly what she got for being naughty at school and looking at illicit uploads of derivative fanworks. But in her defence, she was bored and it would only take a few minutes to read a twenty page artbook… full of kissing.
“Doujinshi, like… Indie published works? Like that bullet hell video game?” Miyuki asked.
Yayoi sighed. She eased her hands off the warm computer screen and placed them in her lap. She hunched in on herself, shoulders up to her ears as she contended with the conversation afoot.
Well, Yayoi supposed that if she had to have her secrets and indiscretions happened upon by anyone… She was glad it was Miyuki. For multiple reasons. Most pressingly, as far as Yayoi’s best friends went, Miyuki was the closest to fandom out of any of them. Nao and Reika were total normies, Akane was a complete casual who enjoyed her nerdy interests like video games in restraint, but Miyuki… Miyuki was on the fringe since she famously had a crush on Peter Pan and that made her ripe for conversion.
But to what extent, Yayoi wasn’t certain and she knew she would have to step carefully.
“Kind of?” Yayoi replied. “That’s the traditional use case of doujinshi but it can also refer to fan published materials like this, it’s an artbook dedicated to the coupling of Megatron and Optimus Prime.” She explained a little too quickly whilst her face went redder and redder.
“But they’re both male characters, aren’t they?” Miyuki said.
“Well, yes but that shouldn’t matter.” Yayoi pouted. “They’re progressive on Cybertron because it's so male dominated.”
Miyuki took a pause at that and seemed to rethink whatever her line of thinking had been. It almost seemed as though she were on the cusp of some sort of epiphany. There was an ever so brief expression through her face – grim but curious, thoughtful – that upended as she had a new burst through as to why boy x boy shipping was distasteful.
“But they’re enemies!” Miyuki insisted. She made an exasperated gesture similar to jazz hands.
“That’s what adds spice!” Yayoi insisted back.
“And you like that?” Miyuki tilted her head.
Yayoi nodded shyly with an all too sweet smile for the absolutely taboo topics they were talking about in class no less. She was flush with all the fun and fizzy feelings that came with getting to fangirl out over her one true pairing. Even if she was nervous as heck to share it with Miyuki.
So far, Yayoi had only shared her original creations, like Miracle Peace, with her friends. Her fandom activities, which is where she got her start, tracing and learning to draw her favourite characters, was something she kept more close to her chest to save face.
“I see. So people “ship” that yes?” Miyuki slowly seemed to compute the information Yayoi had shared with her thus far.
“Mm, mm, lots of people, not just me.” Yayoi said. “This artbook has around fifteen artists contributing pages to it, comics and illustrations. Aah, one day, I’d love to be able to submit something for a project like that.”
Miyuki giggled, “That’s cute, I hope it happens for you.”
“Aw, thanks, Miyuki.” Yayoi said.
The two paused. They checked the temperature of the classroom before they continued because Yayoi was all bubbly but Miyuki had turned sheepish. It was peculiar. They were meant to be doing work but Yayoi was on top of things and Miyuki was, well, Miyuki about it but for now. The coast seemed clear. The teacher was distracted, the other students were doing their work. So, these two kept chatting.
Miyuki leaned in. She cupped her mouth and Yayoi listened intently as Miyuki had something to art.
“So, um, if there are people who ship two guys together and people who ship girls with guys, there’re probably shippers who ship girls with other girls, yeah.”
“Yeah.” Yayoi replied. “I’m a die hard fujoshi though but I’ll put respect on my distaff counterparts, no problem.”
Yayoi’s heart fluttered. She wondered… Was Miyuki a secret himejoshi? Was she a yuri soldier? Was it even possible… She liked girls, too, in real life, not just on paper?
Because here’s the thing… Yayoi has a huge crush on Miyuki.
It was a feeling that had always been there in one form or another. The way they clicked from the get go, with Miyuki being new to school and Yayoi being shy, despite seeming like complete opposites as an extravert and introvert respectively, they had similar values and interests. Them becoming PreCure, of all things, only brought them closer and once all the thrills and spills were done, the happy ending achieved, Yayoi realised she cared deeply for Miyuki.
Beyond being a friend or comrade but romantically. It gave her butterflies in her stomach and provided a well of inspiration for yearning or pining. Everything about Miyuki sparkled so bright, Yayoi couldn’t help but not only admire it but memorialise it in her art. Strange as that may sound but look at them. Love and practice was never wasted for there was an opportunity in front of Yayoi, she realised, with this burgeoning fandom interest of Miyuki’s.
Yayoi really wanted to get closer to her friend, to find out those kinds of things in the vain hope that perhaps her feelings were requited but until then. Yayoi kept quiet. Even though her heart thumped in her chest as she was mesmerised by the expression on Miyuki’s face.
She was furtive and pretty, with dreams in those big, ruby eyes of hers. Yayoi held her breath. Only to have her flights of fancy dashed by what Miyuki said next.
“Are there shippers who ship themselves with their favourite characters?” Miyuki asked shyly. “Be-Because honestly, I never liked Wendy! As a love interest, I mean. I just want her and Peter to be friends but could I…? Would I be allowed to…? Or am I even weirder than you.”
“Ah.”
2D really was better than 3D. Somehow, Yayoi had neglected to consider that as a possibility but it kind of went part and parcel with Miyuki being straight in all likelihood. But it did confirm at least some of what Yayoi suspected about Miyuki and her potential fannish tendencies. It really did seem like there was a full fledged fangirl inside of her just looking for an outlet. So, Yayoi hazarded a smile.
“Yup, there are people like that. Self inserters, original character shippers, it's perfectly common in fandom, too.” she assured Miyuki.
Miyuki’s eyes lit up like stars. A huge grin followed on her face as she got all giddy inside. It made Yayoi all so happy to see.
“I think… I think that gives me an idea.” Miyuki announced.
Yayoi giggled. She wasn’t sure what that idea was but Miyuki snapped back in place into her plastic chair. And not a minute too soon either because their teacher had finally cottoned onto the fact that two of his students were goofing around.
He swanned past with hawk eyes. Yayoi prickled and at the speed of light, she changed tabs back to the history assignment they were all meant to be researching. She forced a grin and pretended to go back to normal but she had this feeling that she wouldn’t.
After all, when Yayoi glanced at Miyuki beside her, she buzzed with obvious creative energy. It was amazing to see and several hours later, when the final school bell rang, Yayoi got to see exactly what Miyuki was so excited about.
Outside the school gates, whilst their other friends went their separate ways to go home or attend their clubs, Miyuki grabbed Yayoi’s attention and begged for her to stay. She was alight with smiles and joy and she had something folded up in her hand: a piece of printer paper.
“So I was thinking about what you said earlier,” Miyuki said, “about shippers who ship themselves with their favourite characters, well… I made my own! My own original character, she’s just like me but way cooler, her name is Emily and she’s Peter Pan’s girlfriend! Tada!”
Miyuki rattled off a thousand words a second and unravelled the piece of paper she held. Yayoi was curb stomped by it all, jaw dropped, and she couldn’t have been happier for Miyuki to have made her own original character for the first time and oh boy did it show. The character in front of Yayoi, as she examined the piece of paper, screamed “baby’s first OC” but she couldn’t help but be endeared.
Emily had asymmetrical limbs and her eyes were too big for her face, there were ribbons aplenty and bows, too, and no sense of design or style but she was the epitome of the love that Miyuki had for Peter Pan. She was adorable with her drill spiral hair in twin pigtails and a huge smile. It was obvious that, even with Miyuki’s lack of experience drawing, there was an attempt at artistic precision. It showed potential.
“Do you… Do you think you could draw a story about her and Peter Pan?” Miyuki asked in a small voice. “I know you would probably prefer a project about your favourites but earlier, you mentioned, you would love to work on a doujinshi or artbook and um… I want to make one. Together. With you. I-If you’ll have me.”
Yayoi was thunderstruck. Her heart skipped a beat.
“I-It’s probably out of the question,” Miyuki sheepishly brushed herself off, “I’m such an amateur and you're such a pro, it wouldn’t be good at all but… I wanted to ask, just in case–”
“I would love to.” Yayoi blurted out.
“Huh? You would?” Miyuki perked up.
“It sounds like a great way to bond with my friend.” Yayoi said. “I would love to.”
Miyuki’s face split into a grin, she squealed, “Eek, this is going to be so much fun!” She vibrated on the spot, shaking her piece of paper.
Yayoi smiled fondly. The baby fangirl was already flourishing. It was almost nostalgic for her, bringing an ironic tear to her eye.
“So, how would you like to approach it? Do you have a story in mind?” Yayoi asked.
“Oh, um. What would you recommend?” Miyui asked in turn.
Yayoi tapped her face and her foot with a hum, “I’ll need a character sheet. I think we should aim for a simple one shot. A cute moment, slice of life kind of thing, how Emily and Peter Pan met, you know? Or their first kiss. Something that makes you squee, you know? Ten pages max. I think anymore and we’re biting off more than we can chew. How about, you come up with the thumbnails and I’ll draw the comic around them.”
Miyuki’s eyes spun. That was a lot of jargon to take in all at once.
“Um. Got it. I think.” Miyuki said. “I’ll come up with the story, you’ll do the art.”
“Bingo.” Yayoi replied and she threw up a peace sign reflexively.
“Ultra Happy!” Miyuki cooed in reply. She mirrored Yayoi’s peace sign and that was that.
They went home separately after that and Yayoi felt really good about the interaction. She was excited by the prospect of the project. Sure, when it came to her original projects, she preferred sagas of great friendship and when it came to her fannish activities, she was more into slash than not but she was more than willing to suck it up if it was going to make Miyuki happy.
The rest of the afternoon, Yayoi was on cloud nine. She couldn’t wait to find out what kind of story made Miyuki’s heart sing. That night, as Yayoi put herself to bed and rested her eyes, her head on her soft and fluffy pillow, she had brand new scenarios to fall asleep to with Miyuki intertwined with them all.
With the new characters of Emily and Peter Pan introduced to her pantheon, Yayoi imagined all her favourite tropes and cliches as she fell asleep. From long distance relationships full of yearning and jealousy, the fraught tension of two enemies who had as much lust for each other as they did respect, and beautiful shots of symbolism and flowers. Any and all of that would make Yayoi a very happy artist as she did her best to fulfil Miyuki’s vision but only time would tell and as it would reveal.
What made Miyuki’s fangirl heart sing was very much not what resonated with Yayoi.
And that was based on what Yayoi could end up parsing as the storyboards that Miyuki provided the next day were unhinged madness on paper.
The next day, Miyuki and Yayoi met by the schoolgates. Miyuki was full of vigour for a Friday morning and Yayoi did her best to match that energy as they made the exchange. Miyuki had a stack of printer paper in a large white envelope that she gifted to Yayoi with a squeal.
“Gosh!” Miyuki exclaimed. “I had so much fun making these, I totally get why you want to be a mangaka when you grow up.”
“Aw, I’m glad to hear you enjoyed yourself.” Yayoi said and she opened the seal on the envelope.
She peeped inside and her stomach dropped. This project just got a lot more complicated because based on what she could see of Miyuki’s scribbles, she had no sense of rhythm or pace. Her anatomy was all over the place. Her story structure was terrible, too, but hey.
Miyuki had had a lot of fun making it and that was the main thing, right?
It was all either she or Yayoi could talk about all day. They chatted about it at recess, they chatted about it at lunch, they chatted about it in the little in–between breaks, too, as their teachers changed over between classes. It was excellent – and great help, too, as Miyuki helped to contextualise her more… abstract thumbnails to Yayoi in between all the gushing and squealing.
All their excitement was driving their other friends up the wall because they were so off in their own little world. Reika thought it was wonderful, though, but Nao and Akane couldn’t make heads or tails of it as Yayoi schooled Miyuki in everything she needed to know about nerdery and other, assorted subjects.
Yayoi’s hopes of the project bringing her and Miyuki closer together already seemed to be paying off.
Once more, they were on the threshold of the school grounds. Their peers teemed around them. Some on their way home, others on their way to extracurriculars but here they were, against the brick wall and the shady trees that lined the perimeter, the azure sky and the white clouds. It was lovely weather as they checked in with each other one last time as contact was likely to be sparse over the weekend. Unless they wanted to run up a huge bill on their parents’ landline.
“Okeydokey, I think I have everything sorted. It’s all up here now. Or in the notes I took.” Yayoi said, ever prepared for all things artsy.
But Miyuki’s expression shifted. Her eyebrows upturned, her shoulders hunched as she looked guilty almost.
“And you're absolutely sure you're right to do the rest of it?” Miyuki asked. Implored, really. “I don’t want to be a demanding leech is all.”
“I’m certain.” Yayoi nodded.
Yayoi bounced where she stood, her arms swung to and fro. She had never been more certain than anything in her life and that appeared to assuage Miyuki’s worries. Her expression changed: she shed her sheepishness, elation gave way to where she was once hesitant as she threw herself into the joy and smiles of her usual self.
Reaffirmed, Miyuki took Yayoi’s hand suddenly. Yayoi’s heart could have leapt from her chest. The sensation of their palms flush together was warm and electric. Yayoi could only stand there like she had been struck by lightning as Miyuki told her the sweetest possible things.
“I truly cherish our friendship, Yayoi,” Miyuki said ever so lovingly, with half-lidded eyes, she swung their hands side to side gently, “I feel guilty saying it because we’re all best friends but genuinely, you are my bestest friend.”
“Oh.” Yayoi intoned thickly, like a cliche straight out of a fanfiction.
“I really appreciate everything you're doing for me.” Miyuki told her. “Take your time, don’t rush but,” she giggled giddily, “I can’t wait to see the finished comic.”
“Y-Yeah.” Yayoi stammered. “I can’t wait for you to see it.”
She jittered on the inside. Her heart raced a million miles an hour but if only they could have stayed like that a little longer. Hand in hand, eyes locked, emotions high but alas. It was time to go home but if nothing else, at least Yayoi was turbo charged with inspiration as Miyuki reluctantly let go.
Their fingers brushed against one another as Miyuki made not only the first move to retreat but to farewell Yayoi, too. She waved Yayoi goodbye and Yayoi could only think one thing: she was completely and utterly head over heels in love with Miyuki. There was no way this was a mere crush anymore as Yayoi vowed to draw the best love story ever for Miyuki’s reading pleasure.
Needless to say when Yayoi got home, there was no time for anything but the comic. She holed up in her bedroom and got to work. She pushed her homework aside and only ventured out several hours late for dinner. Her Mother scolded her for being late but Yayoi shrugged it off. This was important! It really, truly was as Yayoi had all kinds of ink stains up and down her hands that she couldn’t bear to fully wash off as she thanked her Mother for this lovely meal in front of her.
But right afterwards, it was back to the grindstone.
For the next forty-eight hours, Yayoi lived, breathed, and ate her and Miyuki’s comic. It was all she could think about. The extra brain power absolutely needed as she deciphered Miyuki’s storyboards and radically changed what she could of the chicken scratch and entropy that Miyuki had whipped up for her.
She had lots of good ideas. Themes and symbolism. That kind of thing. The sole coherency of her drawings was a throughline of unconditional love and friendship, the embrace of the eccentricity and Yayoi resonated well with that.
She especially loved Emily as the epitome of all of that. Miyuki had described Emily as being “like her but way cooler” and Yayoi could see why. The feats that Emily managed to accomplish in as little as five pages were certainly impressive and even reminiscent of what Cure Happy could achieve but there was something else to her which Yayoi was fond of.
After all, she liked the real Miyuki much better than Emily but Emily had her merits as a vehicle for the symbolism and themes of the story, the agent of action on her arc of kissing Peter Pan. The ship was sailing and Yayoi did her best to captain it.
Even if she was still a diehard fujoshi by the end of it, but still. Yayoi was proud because by the time she put her pen down on Sunday night, with plenty of time to spare since it was a school night, she was finished.
All up and down her arms, Yayoi was stained with black ink but she couldn’t be happier. It was proof of the effort of her labour. The manuscript was stacked neatly on her desk, ready to go into a manila folder that she had customised with stickers and doodles: the highest of honours. She really, truly hoped that Miyuki would enjoy reading it tomorrow morning, and again and again later on, too. When Yayoi had a favourite doujinshi, its newness was a novelty that didn’t wear off until at least the fifth reread in a single day and she wanted that excitement for Miyuki, too.
Her story was full of ups and downs, action sequences that challenged Yayoi’s ability to draw in perspective and more. And of course ended in true love’s kiss. Emily’s love for Peter Pan permeated each and every page, Yayoi’s love for Miyuki did the same.
And to think that Yayoi had drawn all of that in ten pages, too, or well twelve because Yayoi couldn’t help herself: she had to include a cover illustration, and an ending credits scene as well. Actually, she quickly whipped up an acknowledgements page complete with a dedication and a warning that the derivative work was just for fun and not profit – oh, why couldn’t Peter Pan be in the public domain already, she wouldn’t have to worry about that sort of thing if that were the case.
Still, these little finishing touches gave Yayoi such pleasure as she fed the manuscript page by page into her folder. She closed it in on itself gently and smiled to herself. Her heart raced. She had no idea how she was going to fall asleep tonight but goodness, just look at the time. Yayoi left her desk as is and put herself to bed. She put her head on her pillow, closed her eyes, and dreams came for her swiftly.
Yayoi dreamt of robots that kissed and children who flew through the night skies with the power of pixie dust. She dreamt of holding hands with Miyuki and accepting awards for a manga which was all of her own. It was restorative bliss and the next morning, she was so ready to go to school.
In the morning, Yayoi had breakfast and got changed. She carefully packed her manuscript last before heading out for the day. The morning was still cool and brisk as she walked with a skip in her step.
The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and with each and every step closer, the silhouette of the school began to enlarge on the horizon and with it: all kinds of strange and bizarre worries for Yayoi. What if Miyuki didn’t like the changes that she made? What if she was totally overblown on how good her art was? What if, what if, what if? Every step felt like a brick over Yayoi’s head and as she looked around, she couldn’t see Miyuki anywhere.
Yayoi quaked in her little, brown loafers as she held onto the strap of her backpack. She looked left and right and left and right. The school bell was going to ring any minute now and Miyuki hadn’t arrived just yet until she heard it. The telltale squeal of a protagonist late to school, slice of toast stuffed in her mouth.
“Don’t worry, I’m here!”
It was such a familiar sight, Yayoi couldn’t help but let loose a sigh of relief: the breath she didn’t know she had been holding. All whilst she watched how Miyuki managed to beat the buzzer.
She soared past Yayoi and Yayoi’s heart fluttered. Miyuki looked like a comet as she came through the schoolgates before they closed and raced into the quadrangle. Yayoi gave chase and she couldn’t wait for recess.
The hour and half of home room and mathematics for first period were absolute torture. But it was worth it. As soon as they dismissed, Yayoi pounced on Miyuki and they holed up together in the library. There was nowhere better to enjoy literature than a library after all.
Amongst all the shiny hardbacks and volumes of on-going manga, they sat on beanbag chairs together and finally, Yayoi had the distinct pleasure of introducing Miyuki to the very first doujinshi of Emily and Peter Pan’s love story. She drew out her folder from her backpack and shyly handed it to Miyuki who sat next to each other.
Their shoes bumped up against one another. The grains inside the bags shifted as they sank in together, shoulder to shoulder. Miyuki beamed as she accepted the gift.
She opened the folder carefully and gasped, “It's beautiful!”
“Aw, shucks, it was just a li’l something I threw together last minute.” Yayoi blushed.
The cover illustration was of Emily being carried bridal style by Peter Pan over the city skyline at night. There was lots of half tone and heavy ink involved but the faces were delicate and full of elegant line work. Yayoi had really put her heart in soul into drawing it all to please Miyuki but what really mattered was the next page.
That’s where the dedication was and when Miyuki picked up the stack, she found it. The illustration was moved to the back and up next was a page which was near blank save for Yayoi’s neat handwriting near the bottom of the first third of the page: not quite the middle but not too high either.
Miyuki read it. Her eyes scanned each word and Yayoi blushed. This was where the true agony began. Not during roll nor during trigonometry but in this little moment.
With all the effort she put into the comic, Yayoi knew it was now or never.
She couldn’t help herself. All the syrupy sweet and trite dialogue had brought out a romantic inside of her that she didn’t know she had. Up until last Thursday, Yayoi was fairly certain she would have been content with never telling Miyuki how she felt about her but not now. Not anymore.
So, Yayoi put it in the dedication that Miyuki read again but this time aloud, “For my wonderful, Miyuki, whom I love and adore, I hope one day we can like each other like our couplings like each other.” Miyuki sounded breathless. Until she read the acknowledgements and warnings, “This fanbook is just for fun, no profit, and could not have been made possible without my bestest friend in the world.” Nevermind, cute again.
Yayoi blushed. What in the world was she thinking in hindsight?! It sounded so corny to her now as Miyuki looked up and met her eyes. She looked scared but the hopeful kind of scared.
“You like me?” Miyuki asked.
“I do.” Yayoi said. “I’ve liked you since the minute I met you but ever since, you inspired me to open up, to pursue my dreams, and live every day in, well, happiness. I… I really like you, Miyuki.”
“That’s… That’s, wow…” Miyuki was dazzled by the confession.
The softness of it, how it brought them closer together still, until they were hip to hip as the beanbags shifted under their weight. Miyuki moved the comic closer to Yayoi so they could share it, too, over their laps.
“I had no idea.” Miyuki mumbled.
“Yeah, well…” Yayoi didn’t know what to say to that but that was kind of how crushes worked. They were often secret, filled with pining and yearning from afar. That’s how Yayoi thought of it anyway. And shipped it, too.
But Miyuki was a lot bolder than her.
Just like in the storyboards she provided. Instead of “I love you”, she believed in actions that spoke louder than words. She leaned in and she kissed Yayoi without thinking.
Yayoi had never been kissed before but she had seen lots and lots of pictures of it. Some animations, too, and in movies and had listened to music about it but all of it paled to the truth of what it was like. Miyuki’s warm lips, they were soft as silk, and the taste of strawberry jam on her breath and a hint of butter, too. She was so sweet and so eager to please as she took an active role in kissing Yayoi and naturally, Yayoi kissed back.
She had daydreamed about this so many times. In her heart, she felt like she knew what to do, how to move. Their noses brushed up against one another as they met every ridge in their lips in this kiss until lack of oxygen dizzied them.
But somehow, Miyuki still saw clearly, with stars in her eyes. She moved her right hand next to Yayoi’s face. It hovered, her fingertips grazed the edge of her cheek and she smiled. Yayoi was enamoured by it all, how fantastically storybook it all was.
To be fair, could it be anything less with Miyuki? She smiled as she returned all of Yayoi’s sentiments and more.
“I can’t wait to read this story with you, Yayoi,” Miyuki whispered, “a-and I can’t wait for the next chapter of our story. Let’s keep writing it together, yeah?”
“Yeah.” Yayoi exclaimed.
Miyuki beamed and they shuffled in again, all cosy. Yayoi rested her head on Miyuki’s shoulder and they read the finished fanbook together. With a flick of pixie dust from Tinkerbell in the corner of the first page of the comic and so much mirth on Miyuki’s face, Yayoi knew she had done an excellent job of bringing Miyuki’s vision to life. She was increasingly overjoyed with each panel on the pages and Yayoi was over the moon to have made something so lovely for Miyuki.
They read quickly and absorbed it all eagerly. Yayoi shared trivia here and there, Miyuki elaborated on her ideas where applicable, too, she was blown away by how Yayoi had managed to improve on the foundations that she provided. It was truly a labour of love as page by page, until it culminated on the final page with a happily ever after for Emily and Peter.
And hopefully them, too.