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edenfallingIt's internet housekeeping time again. Sorry for cluttering your reading page! (You may see a few more posts of this nature pop up over the next week or two. I'm trying to rationalize my fic directory posts -- specifically, I'd like them to point to Dreamwidth table-of-contents posts rather than to LJ memory subcategories. For one thing, I can put more information in an actual post! For another... well, LJ. *sigh*)
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The Way of the Apartment Manager: 72,000 words, Dec. 2004 - Oct. 2005. Ayakawa Yukiko retired from being a ninja, and she's come to terms with that. Then the Third Hokage summons her for an assignment that will change her life. AU story, set six years pre-manga. Social ostracism and discussion thereof.
"Apartment Manager" is the first story in an AU continuity. It is followed by a WIP novel -- "The Guardian in Spite of Herself" -- and several sidestories. The basic idea is that when Naruto moves into his own apartment, the Third Hokage asks Ayakawa Yukiko, the building's owner and manager, to look after him rather than leaving him completely on his own. Yukiko is a mostly retired ninja, but Naruto catalyzes her to change her life. Then those changes begin to snowball out to the rest of the village.
The other AU shift is Kakashi's age. When I started writing these stories, I'd never seen Kishimoto's official timelines, so I guessed people's ages based on their appearance and characterization in the manga. I was pretty close with Iruka... but four or five years off with Kakashi. Unfortunately, by the time anyone pointed that out to me, his age had become integral to several character interactions -- for example, Yukiko treats him as a contemporary rather than an annoying teenager -- so I decided not to go back and make wholesale changes.
For a pre-canon story starring an original female character with another original female character in one of the prime supporting roles, "Apartment Manager" wound up ridiculously popular. I think it was one of those 'right story, right time' things that I could never duplicate if I tried. Also, it is absurdly fluffy for a Naruto story, violence and occasional angst notwithstanding.
I advise reading this story on AO3 or ff.net rather than on my journal, since the journal posts were essentially public beta drafts and were noticeably revised before being posted elsewhere. (The comments might be of some historical interest, I suppose.)
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The Way of the Apartment Manager - Table of Contents (72,000 words)
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Chapter 1: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 12/28/04. Chapter the First, in which Yukiko meets a demon, the Third Hokage is blithely manipulative, Naruto doesn't actually manage to douse people with buckets of water, and the author drives herself slightly crazy trying to sketch architectural blueprints of an apartment building.
Chapter 2: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 12/29/04. Chapter the Second, in which we gloss over the months from autumn to spring, Yukiko thinks about her past, the author speculates on the Fourth Hokage's character, Iruka acts adorably harmless, the Third Hokage manipulates things again, and Naruto takes a stand.
Chapter 3: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/2/05. Chapter the Third, in which Naga reveals her lack of tact, Iruka reveals his ability to think strategically, Yukiko reveals her talent at genjutsu, the author reveals her tendency to think way too hard about the mechanics of weird ninja skills, and Naruto is just his usual self.
Chapter 4: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/7/05. Chapter the Fourth, in which we meet some of Yukiko's family, Iruka is devious, Naga threatens to break legs, Naruto and Yukiko strike a deal, and, to the author's surprise, Kakashi decides to join the story.
Chapter 5: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/7/05. Chapter the Fifth, in which we finally get to see Yukiko in action, Iruka gets smacked around, Naga wins a fight, the team elects a leader, a dinner party is planned, and the author reveals Yukiko's hair color. Feel the suspense!
Chapter 6: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/10/05. Chapter the Sixth, in which, to the author's bemusement, Yukiko gets sentimental, Gai appears, Kakashi tries to run away with the story, Iruka is adorably flustered, a fight scene is unavoidable, and the 'issues' surrounding Naga finally come to light. Sort of.
Chapter 7: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/19/05. Chapter the Seventh, in which Naga acts her age, Orochimaru receives backstory (free of charge!), Kakashi manages to irritate everyone, Iruka copes with the pressures of command, and Yukiko does something massively stupid with a handful of explosive notes.
Chapter 8: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 2/19/05. Chapter the Eighth, in which we meet the team that doesn't play well with others, Iruka displays his mastery of puppy-dog eyes, Naga gives Gai a nickname, Yukiko buys souvenirs, and the author has fun inventing political and economic systems for the hidden villages.
Chapter 9: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 3/19/05. Chapter the Ninth, in which Naruto is unspeakably cute, Yukiko and her cousin gossip about their family, Iruka is sneaky, Naga summons a raven, the author makes assumptions about the social structure of Konoha, and Gai and Kakashi don't actually appear.
Chapter 10: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 3/27/05. Chapter the Tenth, in which Yukiko practices kata, Kakashi has an unfortunate encounter with hair dye, Iruka loses his temper, Naga learns Go, Naruto finally figures out the secret of Yukiko's squeaky floor tiles, and Gai doesn't walk around the village walls 100 times on his hands.
Chapter 11: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 4/23/05. Chapter the Eleventh, in which Yukiko plots a grand renovation project, we meet Naga's mother, Asuma makes an uncredited cameo, and the third test starts with an uneven matchup.
Chapter 12: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 6/9/05. Chapter the Twelfth, in which Iruka has fun with mirrors, Naga takes shameless advantage of her role as the team's bratty little sister, Yukiko discovers the perils of celebrity, Naruto learns some new words, and a certain pair of brothers get cameos. Also, an omake!
Chapter 13: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 7/7/05. Chapter the Thirteenth, in which we learn a bit more about Iruka and Naga's families, Naga discovers the joy of mud, Naruto learns origami, two Mist-nin have fun, and Kakashi and Yukiko play a little game. You're getting sleepy. You're getting very sleepy...
Chapter 14: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 8/9/05. Chapter the Fourteenth, in which Iruka gets teased by his aunt, a minor political crisis is peacefully resolved, Naruto distributes presents, Yukiko feels stupid, Kakashi juggles his masks, and Naga kicks someone hard.
Chapter 15: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 8/18/05. Chapter the Fifteenth, in which Yukiko flummoxes everyone, Shinkan has something up her sleeve, Iruka plays with fire, Naruto is actually quiet (briefly), Naga does not actually appear, and Kakashi continues to annoy the heck out of people.
Chapter 16: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 9/5/05. Chapter the Sixteenth, in which Iruka proves that he's better at tactics than Naga, Taizen loses her cool, a bit of political wrangling occurs offstage, Naga tests her boundaries, Naruto gets his way, and Yukiko gets a shock.
Chapter 17: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 10/14/05. Chapter the Seventeenth, in which Naruto proposes a novel use of hair ornaments, the author works very hard to keep Yukiko from derailing the story into a discussion of zoning permits, Kakashi suffers a mishap, the Third Hokage blows smoke rings, Iruka is terribly embarrassed, Naga wears a dress, and Yukiko gets ambushed by a happy ending.
Epilogue: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 10/26/05. The Epilogue, in which Iruka is uncomfortably perceptive, Kakashi continues to sneak up on people, Naga is used as a threat, Yukiko pretends to juggle, and the author throws in another OC as a reminder that this is a divergent universe and there were more than nine students in Naruto's academy class. Also, the author clearly needs to get some saltwater taffy before her obsession gets out of hand. *grin*
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*dusts hands* There, all tidy!
Hmm. I think I should do "Tides" next... which is also a good reason to format that fic and crosspost it to AO3, now that I think of it. Yes. I will work on that tomorrow.
---------------
The Way of the Apartment Manager: 72,000 words, Dec. 2004 - Oct. 2005. Ayakawa Yukiko retired from being a ninja, and she's come to terms with that. Then the Third Hokage summons her for an assignment that will change her life. AU story, set six years pre-manga. Social ostracism and discussion thereof.
"Apartment Manager" is the first story in an AU continuity. It is followed by a WIP novel -- "The Guardian in Spite of Herself" -- and several sidestories. The basic idea is that when Naruto moves into his own apartment, the Third Hokage asks Ayakawa Yukiko, the building's owner and manager, to look after him rather than leaving him completely on his own. Yukiko is a mostly retired ninja, but Naruto catalyzes her to change her life. Then those changes begin to snowball out to the rest of the village.
The other AU shift is Kakashi's age. When I started writing these stories, I'd never seen Kishimoto's official timelines, so I guessed people's ages based on their appearance and characterization in the manga. I was pretty close with Iruka... but four or five years off with Kakashi. Unfortunately, by the time anyone pointed that out to me, his age had become integral to several character interactions -- for example, Yukiko treats him as a contemporary rather than an annoying teenager -- so I decided not to go back and make wholesale changes.
For a pre-canon story starring an original female character with another original female character in one of the prime supporting roles, "Apartment Manager" wound up ridiculously popular. I think it was one of those 'right story, right time' things that I could never duplicate if I tried. Also, it is absurdly fluffy for a Naruto story, violence and occasional angst notwithstanding.
I advise reading this story on AO3 or ff.net rather than on my journal, since the journal posts were essentially public beta drafts and were noticeably revised before being posted elsewhere. (The comments might be of some historical interest, I suppose.)
---------------------------------------------
The Way of the Apartment Manager - Table of Contents (72,000 words)
---------------------------------------------
Chapter 1: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 12/28/04. Chapter the First, in which Yukiko meets a demon, the Third Hokage is blithely manipulative, Naruto doesn't actually manage to douse people with buckets of water, and the author drives herself slightly crazy trying to sketch architectural blueprints of an apartment building.
Chapter 2: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 12/29/04. Chapter the Second, in which we gloss over the months from autumn to spring, Yukiko thinks about her past, the author speculates on the Fourth Hokage's character, Iruka acts adorably harmless, the Third Hokage manipulates things again, and Naruto takes a stand.
Chapter 3: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/2/05. Chapter the Third, in which Naga reveals her lack of tact, Iruka reveals his ability to think strategically, Yukiko reveals her talent at genjutsu, the author reveals her tendency to think way too hard about the mechanics of weird ninja skills, and Naruto is just his usual self.
Chapter 4: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/7/05. Chapter the Fourth, in which we meet some of Yukiko's family, Iruka is devious, Naga threatens to break legs, Naruto and Yukiko strike a deal, and, to the author's surprise, Kakashi decides to join the story.
Chapter 5: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/7/05. Chapter the Fifth, in which we finally get to see Yukiko in action, Iruka gets smacked around, Naga wins a fight, the team elects a leader, a dinner party is planned, and the author reveals Yukiko's hair color. Feel the suspense!
Chapter 6: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/10/05. Chapter the Sixth, in which, to the author's bemusement, Yukiko gets sentimental, Gai appears, Kakashi tries to run away with the story, Iruka is adorably flustered, a fight scene is unavoidable, and the 'issues' surrounding Naga finally come to light. Sort of.
Chapter 7: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 1/19/05. Chapter the Seventh, in which Naga acts her age, Orochimaru receives backstory (free of charge!), Kakashi manages to irritate everyone, Iruka copes with the pressures of command, and Yukiko does something massively stupid with a handful of explosive notes.
Chapter 8: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 2/19/05. Chapter the Eighth, in which we meet the team that doesn't play well with others, Iruka displays his mastery of puppy-dog eyes, Naga gives Gai a nickname, Yukiko buys souvenirs, and the author has fun inventing political and economic systems for the hidden villages.
Chapter 9: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 3/19/05. Chapter the Ninth, in which Naruto is unspeakably cute, Yukiko and her cousin gossip about their family, Iruka is sneaky, Naga summons a raven, the author makes assumptions about the social structure of Konoha, and Gai and Kakashi don't actually appear.
Chapter 10: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 3/27/05. Chapter the Tenth, in which Yukiko practices kata, Kakashi has an unfortunate encounter with hair dye, Iruka loses his temper, Naga learns Go, Naruto finally figures out the secret of Yukiko's squeaky floor tiles, and Gai doesn't walk around the village walls 100 times on his hands.
Chapter 11: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 4/23/05. Chapter the Eleventh, in which Yukiko plots a grand renovation project, we meet Naga's mother, Asuma makes an uncredited cameo, and the third test starts with an uneven matchup.
Chapter 12: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 6/9/05. Chapter the Twelfth, in which Iruka has fun with mirrors, Naga takes shameless advantage of her role as the team's bratty little sister, Yukiko discovers the perils of celebrity, Naruto learns some new words, and a certain pair of brothers get cameos. Also, an omake!
Chapter 13: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 7/7/05. Chapter the Thirteenth, in which we learn a bit more about Iruka and Naga's families, Naga discovers the joy of mud, Naruto learns origami, two Mist-nin have fun, and Kakashi and Yukiko play a little game. You're getting sleepy. You're getting very sleepy...
Chapter 14: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 8/9/05. Chapter the Fourteenth, in which Iruka gets teased by his aunt, a minor political crisis is peacefully resolved, Naruto distributes presents, Yukiko feels stupid, Kakashi juggles his masks, and Naga kicks someone hard.
Chapter 15: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 8/18/05. Chapter the Fifteenth, in which Yukiko flummoxes everyone, Shinkan has something up her sleeve, Iruka plays with fire, Naruto is actually quiet (briefly), Naga does not actually appear, and Kakashi continues to annoy the heck out of people.
Chapter 16: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 9/5/05. Chapter the Sixteenth, in which Iruka proves that he's better at tactics than Naga, Taizen loses her cool, a bit of political wrangling occurs offstage, Naga tests her boundaries, Naruto gets his way, and Yukiko gets a shock.
Chapter 17: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 10/14/05. Chapter the Seventeenth, in which Naruto proposes a novel use of hair ornaments, the author works very hard to keep Yukiko from derailing the story into a discussion of zoning permits, Kakashi suffers a mishap, the Third Hokage blows smoke rings, Iruka is terribly embarrassed, Naga wears a dress, and Yukiko gets ambushed by a happy ending.
Epilogue: (AO3 version; ff.net version) 10/26/05. The Epilogue, in which Iruka is uncomfortably perceptive, Kakashi continues to sneak up on people, Naga is used as a threat, Yukiko pretends to juggle, and the author throws in another OC as a reminder that this is a divergent universe and there were more than nine students in Naruto's academy class. Also, the author clearly needs to get some saltwater taffy before her obsession gets out of hand. *grin*
---------------------------------------------
*dusts hands* There, all tidy!
Hmm. I think I should do "Tides" next... which is also a good reason to format that fic and crosspost it to AO3, now that I think of it. Yes. I will work on that tomorrow.
