Amusing how the doctor is always eating something.

I wonder if Yasuko knows about either Sunako's abuse, or her own mother paying Sunako for housework. I suspect not, in either case.

Edit: oh, looking back at Ashes, "I wish I'd been adopted into the Hosoda family", yeah I'm pretty sure Yasuko is totally out of the loop. I'm not sure she even thought much about why Sunako is living with them beyond "our dad died".

last edited at May 9, 2020 1:04AM

AIUI Japan is oddly specific: buying "penis in vagina" sex is illegal. All other acts are okay. And in a "pre-existing relationship" even transferring money for PIV may be legal. OTOH the local age of consent is probably 18, so big problem there.

But yeah, this started out as "compensated dating" without anything physical until the schoolgirl pushed things, so it was okay...

"For once the president of a major company isn't a man."

Yeah, reminds me of that logic puzzle about the surgeon and son. I fell for it here, too, being surprised the president was the mother. Good job, mangaka!

"Honestly this is like the test case for moral incest. There is no chance for any genetic problems in their children, nor is there any power imbalance at work considering they didn't know they were half-sisters before they started dating"

Plus they're not living together, unlike "A Love Smeared in Ashes", so you don't have that complication (which can apply to unrelated step-sisters as in Citrus). It really is a pure case of "welp, we share a lot of genes, but so what?"

looks at Nao
suddenly understands what "useless lesbian" means

At least the stupid drama didn't last long. Yay for happy ending.

last edited at May 6, 2020 11:03PM

I liked it. The second part really completes the original.

Cried at "help me", and Yasuko's tsundere "welp you're family now".

Big kudos to Yasuko-mom for stepping up like that.

Nurse could be an problem, though. :O

Nice to re-read but ahhhh the money.

And the earlier money, buying a $300 bouquet then throwing it away.

From the bridge she was probably throwing away at least $1000, easily $2000 or more, depending on how many 'dates' she'd accumulated, at $300 per date...

"Chihiro is visiting in August (for Obon), Natsu's feet are always very conspicuously hidden."

Are Japanese ghosts not supposed to have feet? Anyway, we do see her feet on page 10. Okay, the toes are hidden, but there are definite heels.

"Ghost" wasn't obvious given Natsu's physical interaction with the letters.

But yeah, well done with the conversation.

Nice story. Glad I got to read both parts. :)

"I never mentioned it, but that article got me really interested in Twelve Kingdoms."

Excellent! Hope you enjoy it. It's one of my favorites.

(Not from a yuri POV though, except in fanfic. It is a strikingly sexless franchise. Even the art on danbooru was respectful and sedate, tending to elaborate clothes.)

Arigatou! Those replies help a lot.

Attempt at a positivish spin:

Sensei was into Suzu (page 12, "I was always watching you"), lied/misled her way into being a tutor, and "tutor". Suzu isn't without agency: she asked for "sex appeal" lessons, and agreed to go further... and she had her own goal, appealing to Hayato (her male friend), so there's a good reason there wasn't any further relationship: Suzu was headed for someone else.

Except she found she had more chemistry with sensei than with Hayato, is still juggling a torch, and Helpful Mother sets them up again (probably not deliberately, though honestly I wonder about her.) Page 14, Suzu uses sex-appeal! ... and going by the mutual blushes, and the last panel, it is effective.

Page 15 tells us that sensei had moved on (just like Suzu) and has a new 'student', Rena. But the first and last panels are in parallel with Rena primping, and Suzu is doing things to sensei even as she thinks "...and rots." Dark thoughts or not, sensei isn't exactly pushing Suzu away.

So it's like she's in a relationship with Rena (probably multiple encounters, given Rena's enthusiasm, vs. just once for Suzu) but her ex/one-afternoon-stand whom she never got enough of has shown up and is having her way with sensei, and sensei's life has just gotten really complicated.

Mom the matchmaker?: so, sensei lied to Suzu, but did she lie to her mother? "Even your mom just said I'll leave it to you", mom knows the real Toudai, mom is shown laughing on the couch while Suzu is 'initiated', mom suddenly points Suzu at sensei again out of the blue. It's an odd choice of framing, at least.

"If she does not enjoy, why does she tempted by it"

Sensei seems more like a sadist-voyeur; likes the effect of pain and misery but not causing it. (Or at least, hasn't explore causing it.)

Bittersweet story, but not necessarily a "terribly bad end". Maho was in an institution and obviously not coping well; she seems genuinely happier. This limits sensei's ability to break up well until Maho comes of age, which is a problem, but even if sensei doesn't fix her own love problem, the whole episode could end up as a flawed but still positive phase of Maho's life.

Or it could go terribly toxic. But why be negative?

I wonder about the logistics, though. Did she formally adopt Maho? I imagine the institution might make noise if Maho simply disappeared a la living with sensei and not checking in.

Hmm, was Uta actually depressed/grieving, or were the others assuming she was because she seemed withdrawn and on edge, but that was actually due to her tension about lusting after Kaoru?

"How the frick-frack would he even find her though?!"

Yeah, I hope that gets mentioned. It kept emphasizing how in the middle of nowhere they are.

Well, I liked both chapters.

"Also guessing that it was Haruka's play that convinced Nao to keep acting."

That's an obvious move, but Nao said there was a famous actor, it was hard to get tickets. Doesn't rule out Haruka being involved, but makes it less likely that it was a matter of a school play or something.

'Chapters 16 & 17: She "came back to fulfill her duty as a mom." She was going to live with her husband and wanted Uta to come with her.'

Right, so at first I thought that she was taking Uta back overseas with her, but obviously not. Yeah, seems like a lame plot device. Disappointing.

last edited at May 4, 2020 1:49AM

Wait, if Uta's mom was a doctor who got suspended and went to work abroad, why is Uta with her nearby in Japan now?

Reminder that it's not just Reichii lying to Kaoru; Risako did too. https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/my_unrequited_love_ch26#24

Stupid boxblocking onii-sans! Whether dead or alive.

There's the whole "needed by one you love" thing from early on: https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/my_unrequited_love_ch09#27

Kaoru's need increasing...

Also man, I'd forgotten pretty much all the side characters until I re-read a lot last night.

Haha, this one and MUL updating on the same day.

We did get "partner who's something like my girlfriend, my pet cat..." https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/a_room_for_two_ch53#5 Followed by grumpiness about labels.

That's also the chapter that had Kasumi spontaneously kissing Sakurako on the lips when she got home.

"We're not exactly dating."

The trolling is strong in this one.

A: "Because they're still not doing it!"

B: "Because they're practically married!"

fight