[Uraboku] Bruises and Bitemarks (6/?)

[rooftop_sakura]

Title: Bruises and Bitemarks
Author: masanami
Character(s): Hotsuma/Shusei, mentions of Senshirou/Kuroto, Tsukumo/Touko, Takashiro, Tachibana
Word Count: 4,094
Rating: R
Warnings: Host AU. Suggestive material.
Summary: Shusei's the perfect host and Hotsuma's the perfect person to ruin everything for him.
Author's Note: This chapter is a bit shorter because

Comments

[masanami]

First off, thank you for leaving the comment and the critique! Since this is my first attempt at an AU and you've liked it enough to read it this far I'm glad it seems to be a good read for you!

Now my response to the critique.

I actually did a decent amount of research before starting this AU. I got the idea while I was traveling in Japan and happened to go through Kabuchiko, the red light district, in Tokyo. And thus my host AU idea was born haha a little research on the male side of hosting and that's where a lot of the facts of the story come into place. I really tried to keep the "hosting" aspects as true to the research as I could find (which is somewhat limited in English but I did what I could with the internet and a couple of documentaries) and then colored it with canon and non-canon aspects of Uraboku itself. In defining the characters I felt it important that not all the characters be hosts because a large part of this fic deals with the conflicts of the world that the hosts live in and the perception of their profession and having characters "outside" that sphere is an important aspect to that.

In regards to the description, yeah, that's totally a flaw of mine that I'm aware of! It's happens usually in the first few chapters where I'm still defining the world and characters for myself and the reader--but I do think it lessens to a more tolerable level later on?? I find the later chapters more fluid and not as broken up by long descriptions that aren't necessary.

I hadn't noticed the amount of "he" that I used in this chapter. I'll have to go back and skim through the chapter! I think that's just something I miss because after you've edited something a few times you tend to stop noticing those littler things.

Anyway, I think that's it! There will be more chapters to come and I hope you continue to follow and enjoy reading it~

[fourth_axis]

Ahh, a visit to Japan, no wonder. Should have seen that coming with the amount of detail that went into it and the district. Definitely not something you can get from photos alone and some Googlin'.

"a large part of this fic deals with the conflicts of the world that the hosts live in and the perception of their profession and having characters "outside" that sphere is an important aspect to that."

THAT! That I forgot to mention -- It was very fun to read, no, to explore as a character. It was an original trait given to a predefined character and it really fit with Shusei's coldness as seen in the manga. Also it continues to be a pivotal point of the story. Well played, I must say!

I'll be on the look-out for more. Cheers! :D

[masanami]

Ahh sorry for the late reply--busy week!

I always thought Shusei's personality was perfect for the role of a host--because in researching them you see that they have to be rather cold in order to do the job they do. Seeing this so much in Shusei is really what drove me to write this story because I definitely saw him relating to the job of a host. I imagine that the "girlfriends" he had in the manga were treated in much the same way he treats the girls in my AU--doing all the right things but never really having any feeling behind the actions he was performing--of course until Hotsuma comes along^^

Thanks again for the comment and discussion!