Here's My Love, Abandoned.

Life is a journey, don’t be afraid to see where it takes you.

from the flash 80-page giant (1998) #2

Many thanks to @1000sunnygo for translating the remaining fourth light novel story. 🙏🙏 It's bookended by segments in 2050, but the main portion is set on January 28, 2046.

The ending that was included for this story's rerelease in the light novel is the inspiration for the top two photos in the series' fourth anniversary art:

Which is 🥺🥺🤧

Small smattering of reactions under the cut:

Emma knowing deep in her bones how amazing Don and Gilda are, even without her memories 🤧🤧

REAL FUCKING DON AND GILDA APPRECIATION HOURS HERE 👏 👏

(Chapter 59)

Me, treasuring any crumb of Don and Emma interactions:

They take their responsibility so seriously 🥺🤧 goodest kids

FJLDSFLJEASD Gilda immediately shutting that shit down after what happened with Emma fainting two weeks ago…

…only to come to the conclusion this is exactly the kind of shit the trio would pull, in the same way that's conveniently summarized in "The Chess Proverb" short story:

With the spark of unconventionality that Emma brings and her drive to achieve the seemingly impossible to balance out Ray's wisdom and pragmatism and Norman's cunning and ruthlessness in execution.

They admire the trio so much after all the years they spent looking out for them and they want to do them proud, and then the look on their faces when Emma and Ray choose them to accompany them on the search for Cuvitidala and the Seven Walls without hesitation because of how much trust they have in them after everything they've been through—

Also this is hardcore I'm so proud of these two little ten year olds and how in sync they are throughout this whole thing.

"smiled softly" oh son I'm soft

Also yes you better be heaping praise on them after everything, including making Gilda cry which is a tragedy in its own right

And a little bit of Raydon banter at the end too to complement what we got in "Operation Stormy Night," beautiful. 🖤❤️🙏

all sorts of echoes in these caverns

Just three words: Norman. Cursed hair.

Do your thing.

Could I make a drawing request for Draxum finding out about Raph's telepathy? I just really wanna see that expression in your style!

as requested by a few different people : )

Draxum's rethinking all his life choices while getting bullied by two of his kids. Raph's just a bit in shock. lol. I don't think he even notices Cass at the moment.

Thank you!

op on the version of this I saw has turned off reblogs while posting lots of frustrated messages about how they don't care about people's actual responses. I'm adding some things they didn't think of.

I care about y'all's actual responses.

I wanna hear all about your writing in the tags. do tell.

Could i please get a small mammal cursed bio fact if u have one

the grasshopper mouse of the southwestern United States looks like a standard house mouse but is almost entirely carnivorous and is known to kill and consume everything from less homicidal mice to goddamn rattlesnakes, which they kill by jumping onto the snake’s back and gnawing through its spine

Assorted bits/trivia/propaganda: • Favorite volume cover poll can be found here, and favorite inner volume cover poll can be found here. • Chapter 47's art is Kaiu Shirai's favorite color chapter cover art per the "Tracks to the Neverland" exhibition book interview (from December 2020): "Amazingly drawn upper arms (and legs!) Everyone is drawn differently for their different ages! I adore the happy smiles of a mother and her daughters. It's a color page published on One Piece's 20th anniversary, so let me applaud the use of the straw hats and One Piece theme. I love it. Only Emma's hat is fringed and that's the best!" • Chapter 75's art is Demizu's fifth favorite color chapter cover art per the exhibition interview: "The theme was graduation, and I had a lot of trouble deciding the color of the clothes, which left a lasting impression on me. The color scheme is a bit mismatched thanks to the combination of bright colors like foreign uniforms and cherry blossoms, but I think I turned out beautifully." • Chapter 119 was the inspiration for the "The Guiding Star" short story originally published in Shounen Jump GIGA 2019 Summer Volumes 1–3 and eventually reprinted in the fourth light novel, "Films of Memories." (First part can be found here, translated by @presumenothing.) • I included the original spread of chapter 153 in WSJ because the "he is always alone" line kills me. This is also Shirai's fifth favorite color chapter cover art per the exhibition interview: "God. Representing Norman’s mental landscape like this..? I want to take a peek inside Demizu-sensei’s brain! The expression on Norman’s face, a burnt land's grief, frailty; Emma and Ray appearing there. It hit me so hard that I used the metaphor for the main story as well. I love it!" • Chapter 181 propaganda by @tutubola and some tag ramblings:

"i really like this actually. ray carrying one of the younger kids? norman w rolled up pants? the vulnerability???? all of them w rolled up pants/skirts actually. gilda looks so cute. and look at sherry she's so obsessed w norman it's so cute. i would make this more elaborate but i cant think rn be back in 46-79 business days (#it's the more-than-earned casualness of it all combined with it being one of those pictures you can hear the sound of #the soft ebb and flow of the waves and cry of the seagulls #with the warmth emanating from this scene of this family that against all odds was able to overturn destiny #and come out together just as close as not more so than where we started with them in the very first chapter #enhanced by the gentle hues of the setting sun to parallel the end of their long and hard-fought journey #and the warm air that's carried by an equally gentle sea breeze~ #shoutout specifically to seeing Anna‚ Don‚ Norman‚ and Ray naturally falling into their elder sibling roles #showcasing one of the fundamental cores of this series #healingly wholesome)

They deserve a proper goodbye I think