And a Merry Nyanko to You Since we just finished up Natsume Yuujinchou's first season yesterday, I thought we'd take a little break from the show today-- but I also thought I'd steal a page from John's playbook and offer you some nice delicious art instead!    Nyanko-sensei, nee Madara, was originally sealed into a maneki neko (you know, those lucky cat statues you see so often at Chinese restaurants?) at a shrine. While running from other youkai, Natsume accidentally tripped over and destroyed the old barrier holding Madara in his place, though more often than not Nyanko-sensei seems to like staying in his strange calico cat form. Perhaps it's because in his other forms he can't be seen by other humans (and therefore can't be sold manjuu-- his favorite treat), not to mention the other form is a lot larger! (CREDITS - Top image: kado. Above left to right: Sumii Ojimi, hpa, DenDen, kouya, kl@. Below: Page.) After his release, Nyanko strikes a bargain with Natsume. Natsume will continue to try and release youkai from the Book of Friends, and Nyanko will protect him-- in exchange for the book should Natsume eventually die. Which may sound like an odd bargain, since the book only gets weaker as Natsume goes and so it'd be pretty tempting (in theory) for Nyanko to let the kid die and take the book while it's still powerful. But Nyanko clearly winds up having a pretty strong sense of honor and commitment, so it works out okay. (CREDITS - Above, left to right: kl@, kaisen, Tohru Taki, maro nie, starjammer. Below: pancakexwaffle.) The two wind up forming a fairly strong bond of friendship and mutual respect, as Natsume's goodness shines through and doubtless appeals to Nyanko's own sense of justice. Even if Nyanko-sensei still winds up getting in trouble every so often... I also found some really impressive and awesome Nyanko-sensei crafts while I was on my quest, so let's enjoy those too! (CREDITS - Above, left to right/top to bottom: akatonbo, akira, memi, moripantsu, masalion, Matsumoto Yuuji, kanan, shiwasu. Below, left to right: shiroi-hebi, saniika, saniika, d-daisy, blackcatsrule.) El fin: the end. (CREDITS - Below: nagi iori.)
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