- ̗̀ aj ! ̖́- 🍉

ALT An illustration of the OP’s OCs, Karasuma Kazue (on the right) and Miyata Kenta (on the left). They are shown through an oval-shaped cutout, peering down on it. Miyata is crouched down, arms settled on his legs while Kazue towers over him and what they’re looking at, one hand on her hip, while she uses her other hand to shade her vision. Miyata is wearing his usuaal sukejan, that has a pair of komainu on the sleeves along with a white shirt and black jeans. Kazue wears a red bodycon dress that has a pair of diamond cut outs on each side.

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: “Haruto.” Haruka gently placed her hand on her son’s cheek so he could look at her as she spoke. Haruto’s teachers told Haruka that while Haruto was soft-spoken, he was easily one of the most considerate students they had. It made Haruka proud to know that Haruto was growing up to be a good person, but it also worried her. He always looked out for others, always put everyone before himself. It was admirable, but when Haruka saw the way Haruto interacted with his classmates, she felt like she was watching herself when she was a kid. It was then that Haruka realized that she didn’t want Haruto to grow up as fast as she had to. “I want to be on stage with you, playing this song.” Haruto frowned. Haruka could see the questions swimming in his head, but all he was able to ask was, “But why?”

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: “It’s just—” Haruka sniffed as she forced a smile. “It’s silly. I don’t know why I’m still crying over the fact that I can’t come up with a name for this song.” “Is that it?” Yuta asked. “Let me help, then.” “Huh?” “If it’s too much for you, then I’ll help,” Yuta said. “Let’s start with the names you’ve already come up with.” “Well…” Haruka leaned against Yuta. “I thought about naming it after Tachibana-san first. But after hearing more about the song, I didn’t think it’d be right. And then when I started to think about everything the song meant to him, his sister, Uncle Kaz, to me…” “It wasn’t as simple as you thought it’d be?” Haruka shook her head. “And giving it a straightforward name doesn’t feel right anymore. It’s not simple at all. It’s so much.” “…So Much More?”  Haruka frowned and lightly elbowed her partner. “Yuta!”

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: Whatever Kiryu showed Haruka, she echoed with near perfection. Kiryu figured that if someone else taught it to her—like Tachibana—she would’ve been better and learning how to play faster. But any mistakes he made, it reflected in the way she played. If he played a part too fast, then she’d do it too until Kiryu corrected himself. In between it all, Haruka would ask Kiryu questions: when did he learn how to play, who did he learn it from, how come he hasn’t played since then. Kiryu tried to answer as honestly as he could without accidentally stepping on a landmine hidden in his memories. “Does the song have a name, Uncle Kaz?” Haruka asked as she watched her dad’s fingers work the chords. “You know what, I don’t think I ever got a name.”

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: It wasn’t as if Kiryu didn’t want to stay in contact with Makoto. He did. But keeping an eye on Dojima, making sure the Tojo Clan would never go out of control like this again, was the choice Kiryu decided to make. Unfortunately, it meant that he couldn’t stay in touch with Makoto. It’d be far too dangerous for her, and she had gone through enough already. The last thing Kiryu wanted was to endanger Makoto’s life again, after everything Tachibana had done to ensure her safety. Still though, none of this seemed fair—to either of them. They were both left to grieve over someone they didn’t have enough time with. They were all that they had left of Tachibana, and soon, they wouldn’t even have each other.

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: Tachibana waited for Kiryu to start the melody, his fingers ready to start playing the chords. Eager to impress Tachibana, Kiryu focused on the keys as he committed each note to memory. This was a lot like singing karaoke, except instead of memorizing the lyrics and the pitch, he had to memorize the notes and which was the right key to hit. With that in mind, Kiryu found himself smiling as Tachibana played the chords with his left hand. For such a somber-sounding song, it felt fun playing it with Tachibana. As disappointed as Kiryu was that their lesson was going to end after this—and by proxy, their drinking session, it made Kiryu want to learn more from Tachibana. Not just playing the piano, but other things.

ALT The format is the same as the promotional image as the first chapter. The following is a portion of the excerpt shown. The rest can be read on AO3: “Here, careful now.” The words were so achingly familiar, it made Makoto weep. She grasped the hands that eased her out of the cage as tightly as she could. The fear she had of him evaporated at that moment. After all, why would she be scared of someone who reminded her of her big brother? The more Makoto talked to Lee, it only confirmed her thoughts that they were a lot alike. They both seemed to be rough around the edges, but had a hidden warmth they’d reveal every once in a while. No one had ever been patient with her like her brother was. When he left, their parents withdrew into themselves—their mother, especially so when their father fell sick and passed away.

ALT A promotional image for the OP’s fanfic. The layout is somewhat reminiscent of a music sheet, with the title of the fic, “what we carry with us” and the author’s name, “audrenes” written at the top. The chapter title is written on a music staff, where the time signature is “1/7” and the chapter title is, “Li Hua & Xiao Qiao”. The following is a condensed version of the excerpt on the image. The rest is on AO3.: This song was more gentle and slow. But it was difficult in the sense that Li Hua only had his memory to go off of to replicate it. He would only hear it whenever he was in the same room as his mother, at certain hours of the day. It was a simple song, but Li Hua knew that it could be more, so he added some chords to it and repeated it so that it wouldn’t be so short of a song, adding different inflections on the chords to give it more variety.

ALT A promotional image for the OP’s fanfiction, the layout reminiscent of a music sheet and inspired by Red Velvet’s Feel My Rhythm graphics. The title is, “what we carry with us”, using a cursive font. The description is, “A simple song on the piano gets passed down over the span of fifty years.” On the right, is the OP’s AO3 handle, audrenes, in place of where the composer’s name is written. The chapters are listed below using the same cursive font as the title, but in a lighter weight. They are placed on musical scores, with the time signatures responding to the chapter number. The list is as follows: Li Hua & Xiao Qiao, Makoto & Lee, Tachibana & Kiryu, Makoto & Kiryu, Kiryu & Haruka, Haruka & Yuta, Epilogue.

ALT A series of portraits of Tachibana and his subordinates in the gang he used to lead. Each member is framed by a red diamond, in a 3x3 pattern. From left to right, top to bottom are: Oda Jun, wearing a yellowish-brown shirt. Tachibana Tetsu, wearing a light blue-ish gray suit jacket over a white button up. Ishida Hiroki, wearing a cyan windbreaker over a lime green button up; he also has yellow tortoise shell glasses. Iwasaki “Tacchan” Tatsuro, wearing a purple suit and tie over a black silky button up. Morita Junpei, wearing a brown plaid jacket over an olive button up and a maroon tie; he also wears round glasses. Wakui Kenji, wearing a forest green jacket over a black button up; he has multiple piercings along his ears. Ichikawa “Ryucchi” Ryuunosuke, wearing a red hoodie. Miyata “Miya” Kenta, wearing a sukejan over a white shirt. Sakamoto Yuuki, wearing a white button up, with a loose bowtie hanging around his neck; he is also wearing rectangular, frameless glasses.

ALT An illustration of Tachibana Tetsu and the OP’s OC, Karasuma Kazue, rendered using pixel art. They’re posed in front of a red and a nearly black, but tinted blue background that fades into each other through jagged squares. They’re both looking at the camera with a determined expression. Tachibana wears a dark blue suit and a striped yellow tie that he’s adjusting with his left hand. He doesn’t have his prosthetic yet, so his right sleeve flows over the end of his right arm freely. Kazue is upside-down in this version. She’s wearing a dark blue dress with a dramatic neckline. The hem of her skirt is short and through the slit, the magenta lining can be seen. The color of the lining matches her lipstick, her nail polish, and the gems on her earrings. Her left leg is propped up slightly, her right hand resting over her waist, her right hand rested over her forehead.

ALT The same illustration as the first image, except it’s rotated so Kazue can be seen right-side up while Tachibana is upside down.

ALT A sketch of the OP’s OCs, Miyata and Kazue passionately singing karaoke. Miyata is singing with his eyes clothes, hands firmly gripped on the microphone, as he is most likely scream-singing into the microphone. Kazue is next to him, holding the mic with her left hand, her right hand pointed to herself with her thumb. Miyata can be seen wearing his signature jacket, but with a button up and a vest underneath. Kazue is wearing a body con dress with a long-sleeve shrug.

ALT An illustration of Takeuchi Ryoma and Kento Kaku as Kiryu Kazuma and Nishikiyama Akira, respectively. They’re both standing in a dark space, with Kiryu in the background and Nishiki in the foreground. Kiryu stands in a pale, desaturated blue light, the shadows in reds and pinks. His shirt is off, incomplete irezumi exposed. Nishiki wears a dark suit, his family pin on his left lapel. He stands in a pale yellow light, with reds used for the shadows of his skin while indigos are used for his hair and suit with a bright green spotlight. He’s holding a gun, and it’s aimed high, his eyes focused on the target. Between Kiryu and Nishiki is a blood-red target that’s centered on Kiryu’s heart and positioned behind Nishiki’s head. There’s accompanying text that matches the color, which bears the actors’ names and the series logo. At the bottom, is white text that reads, 24.10.24, which is the release date for the show.

ALT An illustration of the OP’s OCs, Miyata and Kazue. They’re wearing formal attire, one befitting for a wedding. Miyata is wearing his signature jacket over a tux, with small details that matches the red komainu and peonies embroidered on his jacket. Kazue wears an open back gown with off the shoulder sleeves, with her earrings and nails matching Miyata’s outfit. They’re holding each other as if they’re each other’s world, completely at bliss.