Made this one somewhat last minute, but here goes- my reccomendations for this week are a yuri "mystery" VN that's near and dear to my heart (that goes into processing grief) though it's been a while since I last played it, and a cute and sloppy (not bad sloppy) manga about crossdressing (and if you ask me is honestly at least kinda genderfuckery).
I figured I'd also add BonnieBugsy's "Ranma Lazuli" fanfic series (available on Ao3) to make it a triple feature because why the hell not. The two fics I can recommend (not having completed the other large fic yet though I'm sure it would deserve equal recommendation) are pretty near and dear to me as well.
CONTENT WARNINGS
SeaBed: processing grief
Handsome Girl and Crossdressing Boy: some chapters, particularly the extras, can be particularly suggestive/R18+
Ranma Lazuli: for the two fanfics specifically I'm discussing, "Skies of Blue, Red Roses Too" covers dysphoria and abusive family circumstances, with the premise of the titular Ranma escaping these and finding a place where she can be and grow into herself. "I of the Storm," in contrast, deals with the abusive and unhealthy dynamics of that "place where nothing ever gets better" from the perspective of someone still living within it- Akane- who herself, also has to deal with her anger and the consequences of (being a victim, but also perpetrator of) abuse, apathy, and past mistakes, while moving past that environment herself.
Premise and things I liked about (SeaBed)
Sachiko and Takako were childhood friends and lovers, but unknown circumstances tore them apart. Now they have to piece together the puzzle, as Sachiko keeps hallucinating about Takako, and Takako deals with memory issues of her own.
Personally, Seabed can come across as a bit of a slog (but in a good way- and in a way appropriate to the themes of grief, of mental processing and memory issues, etc). And it can be very heavy. I played it during a time when I was dealing with grief among other things myself and I loved it- I intend to play it again someday (ideally soon), but needless to say it won't be for everyone.
Premise and things I liked about (Handsome Girl and Crossdressing Boy)
Admittedly, this is just comfy, queer (IMO), somewhat suggestive (YMMV, if it were just up to me I'd not even consider it NSFW but it's definitely toeing a line and considering cultural and even circumstantial differences of different online spaces- well yea) and sappy light-hearted romance. Iori is a crossdressing boy(? very eggy if you ask me), and Hazuki is a handsome girl. Needless to say gender is a fuck.
The extra chapters (generally noticeable as something like "chapter 23.5" instead of being an outright "chapter 23" for instance) can be even moreso questionably/maybe "NSFW/18+" (though if you ask me that's all "western puritanism and backwardness/regressiveness" which they then infected many other parts of the world with)
Premise and things I liked about (BonnieBugsy's 'Ranma Lazuli' fanfic series)
The two "Ranma Lazuli" fics I can recommend (the others I either haven't read yet or are very short) are both what I would describe as "coming of age/graduation(?)" plots, wherein Ranma moves from her abusive, overwhelming, demanding upbringing to the welcoming and progressive Beach City from Steven Universe (no knowledge of either series is necessary IMO to enjoy these fics, that said) and is finally able to develop within such a healthier environment, and Akane comes to terms with and breaks free of the fallout and that unhealthy environment in her own way, in her own separate life.
Both fics, I feel, correlate with my own defining experiences on many levels- whether it be Ranma's growth and the liberating feeling of finding a positive, comfy space and escaping the small, shitty, abusive world she was raised in prior, or in Akane's own growth and rejection of that same small world, as well as the permanence of one's actions having come from and having been a part of what made that world so small and unhealthy to begin with, and growing past that and coming to terms with it.
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Is it true that you can see colors and stuff in the milky way if you're somewhere without light pollution? That seems so cool, I wish I could do that, but I'm also too cowardly to travel to somewhere completely dark at night.
I've never seen colours in the milky way but I did see it splashed across the sky, which was pretty neat! Weird to think that that's all the stars we can see - except Andromeda, which apparently you can see with the naked eye. And I've heard you can see the Magellenic Clouds in the southern hemisphere too
I've seen so many people saying similar stuff about seeing the milky way in they sky and I don't understand what it means
Since we're inside the milky way, isn't that just what we always see when there's stars in the nightsky? I don't get what people refer to when they talk about seeing it.
Yeah any stars you see are in the milky way so every night you see at least some of the milky way. In places without artificial light and clear night skies you can also see a big splash of almost cloud looking stuff and concentration of stars. It has to be really really dark with no light pollution to see it properly and most people live in cities and even smaller population rural towns usually have too much light pollution
Oh, so the cloud-like thing is what people refer to as seeing the milky way? That makes sense, it's what I thought of as colors. I really want to try seeing it this summer. It's only a ninety minute drive to get to some very low light pollution areas for me.
I don't have a license though, so I need to convince some of my friends to come with me to the middle of nowhere on a cloudless, moonless night.
Take them on a night time stargazing picnic~ (I know this probably wouldn't convince them but it seems so cute to me)