Sometimes things were just meant to be. And when they do fulfill themselves, it seems to happen in the most amazing and appropriate ways.

This is the story of me and a cel...

I have been in love with an anime series called Nightwalker from the moment I saw the first episode. The main character is a very yummy vampiric detective named Shidou. I won't go into the details of the show itself but I will say that it was done on a low-budget. This doesn't stop the series from having some beautifully drawn scenes. The best of the best are a handful of sepia-toned shots that showcase Shidou's debauchery-filled past.

A fellow cel collector was actually able to grab one of these in one of Animaxis.com's infamous cel updates. (The rest have supposedly been seen in private collections in Japan.) It was a pan shot of Shidou fully vamped out and bloodied. It was also the single best Nightwalker cel that any of us had ever seen. To make a long story a little shorter, it was eventually opened up for offers. I missed out because I had been under the impression that we'd all be allowed to make a second offer if we wanted - I was wrong. I was quite upset about it for awhile, because I had been willing to pay a lot of money. And that isn't easy for me because I tend to have these weird issues with money. Nonetheless, the cel had gone to a great new home.

On a certain Wednesday night in March, a couple months after the cel had been sold the first time, I got a sudden and rather spontaneous urge to send an offer to the new owner. I generally don't do that sort of thing because it's rude and annoying, particularly on a cel that is clearly marked as never leaving. But I just couldn't ignore it. On Thursday morning when I heard back from her, I found out that she actually really needed the money because something had just come up. (And that otherwise, she would never ever sell it.) By that afternoon, the details had been worked out and Shidou was mine! He was shipped on Friday and I got him on Saturday.

I can't say I've ever had a cel call out to me before. But I don't see any other way to explain it. The timing was too perfect to be simple coincidence. It's very creepy, but undeniably appropriate for a cel of a vampire. Everything about it was fitting and makes the cel all that much more special to me. Even the way I had to take advantage of another's situation. He was just meant to be with me, I guess.

The cel itself is really amazing - but I'll let him speak for himself since he certainly wasn't afraid to speak up to me.

My plans from here involve getting him in an overly fancy framing job. Something dramatic and gothic. I almost always go with a simple mat and a thin metal frame for cels, but something about this one says otherwise. I'm not sure when I'll be able to do it, but I hope it's sooner rather than later.