Anastasia "cuddly lion pit" (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
constellates) wrote2020-01-25 08:03 am
constellates) wrote2020-01-25 08:03 amic inbox.
ANASTASIA
Hello. Call me Anya. (･ω´-ゞ)^☆
VOICE | TEXT | VIDEO | ACTION
constellates) wrote2020-01-25 08:03 am
3/6; action; day after russian intensification
Inside is a comic, with the dialogue in very elementary, sometimes awkward Russian. The drawings are a bit rough, clearly done with no time to spare.
The story starts with the titular Anya, a high school girl who lives a normal life with her mother... until one day, a scarfed cat being chased by masked wolves runs into her house. Anya saves the cat by throwing a bone out into traffic, which the wolves chase only to get collectively hit by a bus.
Anya and her mother take the cat in, and they live in peace for a time. But one day, a ghostly little girl wearing the same mask as the wolves' comes and takes away Anya's mother. The black cat reveals to Anya that he can talk, and tells her that they have to go on a journey to retrieve her mother. He bestows her with (unexplained) magical girl powers, and they set off.
The rest of the comic is a series of humorous encounters with oddly familiar characters whose lives are plagued by masked pests. Like an apple farmer who looks a lot like Mikoto, who can't go outside because there's a masked bee constantly sitting on the doorknob leading outside. Or a peasant boy who looks a lot like Yuri, who likes to skate on a frozen lake but can't because aggressive masked penguins won't stop bullying him off the ice. And so on, and so forth.
One by one, Anya solves their problems by transforming into a magical girl. Except she looks exactly the same before and after, and solves the problems with her own ingenuity or a gently confused, very stunted in vocabulary, but somehow undeniably moving pep talk. With each crisis averted, Anya's new friends all help her toward the foreboding castle of the evil masked girl with directions, rumors, and supplies.
When Anya and the black cat finally reach the castle and make their way to the boss room, the masked girl reveals that she only wanted the cat all along. A masked eagle swoops in and grabs the black cat from Anya's shoulder. The cat is delivered to the girl, who puts a mask on him -- which then turns him into a handsome, tragically sparkling young man who also happens to look a lot like Yato. He is her brother, the girl reveals, and she has been very lonely without him.
With the young man unconscious on the floor, the girl thanks Anya and releases Anya's mother. Anya and her mother are free to go, but Anya is still gently confused. Feeling sorry for the masked girl, Anya gives her a warm hug and tells her that it will be okay. Moved, the young girl begins to cry. She thanks Anya again, this time with sparkly sincerity effects, and then moves on to the afterlife. The masks all disappear and the young man turns back into a cat.
Together, Anya, her mother, and the black cat all go back home. The final page is a more detailed sketch of the three of them happily having dinner together, in what appears to be Anya's actual dining room. Finally, there's a message, still written in slightly awkward Russian: ]
You are already a magical girl. ❤
-- Yato
[ Followed by a date, signature, and little drawing of a winking Yato.
Aaand once he's snuck the booklet into her room, Yato steals away to pass out under a big shady tree somewhere. ]
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However, for someone who had no knowledge of Russian even a day before, she can't imagine it was even half as easy to write.
Still, Anya finds herself enthralled by the book as she goes through it, flipping through the page and letting her fingers touch over the sketches with almost reverent caution, as if she wouldn't be able to forgive herself if she smudged even a single line. The stories make her laugh, make her smile even in the earliness of the morning before she even gets ready for school. She might be late. But she's never late - so it'll be okay just this once, right?
Since she doesn't think she can pull herself away from this. Especially as she spends a long minute looking at the last detailed picture of the warmth of her home, of what Yato thinks of their little makeshift family, and -
It doesn't hit her that she's crying until teardrops fall on her own wrists - and then she's scrambling to make sure she doesn't cry onto the storybook, holding it further out from her with one hand as the other touches her face in confusion as she blinks through the tears. It only confuses her when more come, when her fingers tremble and her nose sniffs as she frets in soft, confused Russian over the state of her own emotions.
Who knew feeling so loved could make her cry?
It's only when she's walking to school that she sees him - and to be honest, it takes less than a second for Anya to make the decision that she'll just miss her first class entirely - because then she's exclaiming:]
Yato!
[Please wake up.
Please wake up and don't be mad when she throws herself at him for a hug that almost makes her tear up all over again.]
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But it looks like it's just the two of them, so he slowly sits back up before putting a hand on her head. He knew she felt down yesterday, but this still seems like a bit much... His brow creases with worry. ]
Anya... what happened?
[ He isn't sure how much time has passed since he fell asleep. Did something happen at school...? ]
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Except she's rather preoccupied with just giving him this hug? It's very important, she thinks. Even as he sits up, she moves with him and keeps her face buried in his shoulder until she's absolutely sure that she's not going to cry again. Even if she sort of wants to cry again a little bit?]
Ah... Well - [It's slow to start, as she's still working on trusting the words that come out of her mouth and the corrections that she has to make.] I feel... Смущенный? Mm. Embarrassed? But happy.
[Okay no, she might need to explain a little bit more than that. She finally lifts her head and looks him in the eye and - she's not crying, ok, it's fine.]
I found your gift.
спасибо... Thank you.
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You're welcome... Нé за что. Sorry, that probably sounded awful.
[ He didn't have much time to practice his oral Russian beyond a few key phrases. And Russian pronunciation is... really hard?? ]
Are you okay?
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It is okay. If you want to learn, I can teach.
[As for whether or not she's okay... she does take a moment to breathe before giving another little nod and answering sincerely.]
Да. Anya is okay. Maybe... even much better now? Because of Yato.
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Was he really able to make her feel that much better? He brightens and swells a little. He was worried that he took too long to finish, but it looks like he wasn't too late... ]
Really? Everything made sense? Good!
[ Still squeezing her with one arm, he pokes a finger into her cheek. ]
Teach me everything, хозя́йка!
[ That was how the wolves in the comic addressed the masked girl... He uses it now to call her a master of Russian, but is the connotation right here, he just doesn't know. ]
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Yato has acquired one (1) Anya.]
Everything was very good... Yato is very умный. Skilled and smart. You learned so fast... I would like to learn that fast too.
Mm, but - still call me Anya? [It's odd, she thinks. She's not sure why she chooses Anya even though she knows the proper nickname for her would be 'Nastya' or something else.] I am... still the same, yes?
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[ Yes!! There is a silver lining here, he sees it. ]
Accents always make people more lovable and charming. I love fluent Anya, but accented Anya has a niche too!
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[IF SHE SOUNDS LIKE SHE FINDS IT DIFFICULT TO BELIEVE THEN WELL.
Well.]
Yato always manages to find the good in Anya...
[it's pretty amazing]
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[ Is language moe even a thing...? If it wasn't before, then Anya is defining it now. ]
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Weirdly enough she can actually manage to fill in what that means even though she's never heard the word before.]
What people find cute?
I still do not know much about marketing... but I believe you.
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[ Speaking of work, what time is it... He checks his phone. ]
... Um. Shouldn't you be in class, Anya?
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Um... I never miss class....
[So being late to one is.
Okay?
She smiles a little sheepishly.]
But - присутствовать. I will still go. I had to find Yato first.
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[ Making a detour for little old him?! He gives her a loving noogie, giving her hair no quarter. ]
I'll walk with you to school! You can say I got hit by a car and you just had to assist!
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still she just giggles even as she adjusts her hair and moves to stand up then. ok time for school]
A ложь? I do not want to lie...
And it is scary to imagine Yato getting hurt. Please do not say things like that.
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Then I'll say thaaat my dog ate your homework and I had to redo it for you.
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Silly Yato. I would get in... беда? Problem... Mad... Ah! Trouble -
If you said that you did my homework.
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[ He stands and off they go to school... he'll complain about school all the way... ]