Shousetsu Bang*Bang

by Takiguchi Aiko (滝口アイコ)
illustrated by calintz



The first thing Keith Manning had taught him was the workings of the Lair's database."You're the one who wanted to be useful to me," he had said when Elias had complained. "Utilizing your existing skills, that's useful." It had taken months of system administration before Keith finally relented and began schooling him in field work. Even then, Elias' first martial arts lesson had been breath control.

( ... )
 

by Takiguchi Aiko (滝口アイコ)
illustrated by calintz



PART ONE

( ... )
 

by Roselia Grimm



( Title Image )

Dov woke up with a warm body on either side of him. He lay still for a second, hoping against hope that he was having a particularly vivid dream. But no, there was light shining behind his closed eyes and he could feel, very distinctly, the cold air around him. The climate control was broken; probably citywide since he didn't hear any alerts beeping. One of the bodies next to him moved on top of him. There was a sound like someone beginning a very long and involved kiss over his chest with someone else. He said, without opening his eyes, "What did I tell you two about this."

( ... )
 

by Shukyou (主教)
illustrated by calintz



Treat it like it's a movie. Opening scene, some rich kid's house, parents gone for the weekend, low light, booze and joints, inmates running the asylum. Credits in some trendy font roll while guitars rock out some overplayed pop hit. Zoom in on the kids, who have by this point all sprawled over the furniture in various states of fashionable disarray. Keep zooming until you get to the guy slouched in the middle of the nice beige loveseat, knees spread a mile wide, joint poised between two fingers, the one who's telling the joke that everyone's laughing at, the one responsible for no fewer than six of the beer cans that'll be gracing the recyclables bin come tomorrow.

( ... )
 

by Shinju Yuri (真珠百合)



( cover image )

The first person Walter had ever fallen in love with had attracted his attention by hitting him over the head with her wax-headed doll, and bursting into tears when he started bleeding. The resemblance was sometimes striking, he thought, looking over at Frederick. He wondered what type of little girl Frederick had fallen in love with. Not someone like Walter's first love. If Frederick had been hit over the head with a doll, he would have hit her back harder, and then they would have clung together in angry tears. Walter chuckled.

( ... )
 

by Kagamino Kage (鏡乃　影)



( title image )

"The fourth one in a week!"

"What d'you suppose'll happen if this one turns it down too?"

"Who knows – nothing, I expect. But I do wish someone would take it. It unnerves me so, the way it just lays there and stares and stares and stares."

The two servants bustle about the cellar, lighting up the lamps in preparation for their master and his guest, looking furtively over their shoulders at the young adolescent boy in the corner. Enshrined in a large cage, he lies naked on the cold stone floor, curled listlessly on his side. His eyes, however, yellow-green and cat-like, follow the two women as they move about the room as a beast might watch its prey. ( ... )
 

by Shinju Yuri (真珠百合)



When Hyun-woo rose up from his seat and said, "I should go back; Sung-min's mother is visiting", he silenced the entire room.

"....Lee Sung-min's mother?" said Eun-jae finally.

"Yes," said Hyun-woo. "She's been criticizing his housekeeping all week, so he's a little upset." He turned and seemed to realize the room was staring at him. He seemed to feel some further explanation was needed. "I thought it was pretty weird too. I mean, I always thought he'd risen out of some puddle of venom or something, but I guess he has actual parents."

( ... )
 

by Shinju Yuri (真珠百合)



"The sun is shining," said Walter. "It's a beautiful day outside."

"Please die," said a lump in the middle of the bed. The lump had curled all of the blankets around itself and as Walter watched, attempted to tuck itself more tightly together.

"It's wonderful out," said Walter enthusiastically. "It's all snowy and look, there's a cardinal outside the window, waiting for you!"

"Please die horribly," amended the lump. "Somewhere else."

( ... )
 

by Shinju Yuri (真珠百合)

The author offers her apologies and notes that this makes at least as much sense as half the doujinshi she's read.



Richard Mapleton did shoots with ball-jointed dolls, by preference; he said the dolls pretty much expressed everything he wanted to say about the state of current fashion and design. The dolls sat and posed with realistic backdrops or huge, dew-covered lilies or peonies or roses. Their knowing blank eyes stared at you from the photos, as if a little amused and sad. They used to say that he never wanted to work with a human model unless they were as perfect as the dolls.

He had one human model; a person with the clear precise features of an androgynous angel, who sometimes posed in yearning poses with the dolls, as if he -- she -- it was only a larger version of them. The model's clear grey eyes stared into the camera. They were remote and lovely, like a mountain. Goth teenaged girls cut out the photo spreads and stared at them, telling the image all of their secrets.

In point of fact, Shin was very much a boy and the least angelic person Richard knew, but that was all right with him.

( ... )
 

by Shinju Yuri (真珠百合)

(as always thank you to everybody who ever listened to me whine on LJ and then told me what I was doing wrong, and also to Sakkit, zee partner in crime. ♥)



( ... )
 

by Shinju Yuri (真珠百合)



He'd never fallen in love before but he'd always thought it would be like the feeling when you slotted something into place and knew, even before you turned on the steam and watched the gears begin to move, that everything was where it was supposed to be. Even before the gears began to move smoothly, faster and faster, until everything was a steady contented hum. He'd heard that it was something like a chemical reaction, though. If it was, that was all right, because he was used to them. The trick was to make big, gloriously horrible balls-ups of the thing and remember to duck if it blew. And do it over and over again until you got it right.

( ... )
 

by Shinju Yuri (真珠百合)



When his master died, Jin Hyun-Woo set off to take on the world. He had Queenslayer, his master’s sword and he was going to find the bastards that killed his master. No matter how long it took or what happened.

Three years later all he had to show for himself were a scar on his back, a weird panther thing that stole most of his bed despite everybody assuring him it was an astral projection and not a real panther at all, and the most annoying man on the face of the earth as his partner. It wasn't what he had thought he was getting into.

( ... )