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haillenarte · 4 years

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white day 2020;

Here is a full translation of the (thus far) Japanese-exclusive White Day 2020 Developer’s Blog post.

First, the dry translator’s disclaimers: I acknowledge that this post is four months old. Once upon a time, I was the sort of fan translator who would have rushed to get this done within a week of its posting, but in this case, I was busy with the Ishgardian Restoration Skybuilders’ Ranking when it was first posted, and then after that... well, I just busied myself with other things. I was tempted to skip doing this one completely, but then I felt obligated to complete the series given that I’d translated the post from 2018, so... goodbye to my Saturday morning and afternoon, I suppose.

This post is intended as a polished translation on par with official content. As such, I have taken certain liberties with the text: though it was originally in more or less a script format, I embellished it to make it a prose post consistent with other English developer’s blog posts. Most of the moogle’s narration was invented by me in order to preserve humor and narrative flow. This is nothing that the localization team itself does not do. I can assure you that the core details remain essentially intact and untouched.

If you would prefer to read a more literal take on this text, I am sure that more than a few rough translations exist of it already, so please look for someone else’s post if you want something that’s more of a word-for-word take.

Special thanks to the person I trust best to write Urianger’s dialogue for helping me with Urianger’s dialogue, and then to a second good friend for Elizabethan grammar-checking the both of us!

Happy White Day, Kupo!

March 13, 2020

It’s ever so nice to speak with you again, kupo!

Do you remember me from the last report, perchance? ‘Tis I, the ever-industrious deputy postmoogle’s apprentice! The rising star that’s, ahem, still training to become a full-fledged postmoogle... kupopo...

This Valentione’s Day — like every Valentione’s Day — we postmoogles were once again entrusted with delivering confessions of love all throughout the realm. So I’m here to give you an exclusive rundown on how my deliveries unfolded, kupo!

First, I tapped into my considerable experience as an aspiring postmoogle to... erm... take care of the most difficult delivery on my list before all the rest. A-As any professional would, obviously!

...Phew!

Oh, it was such a relief that he was asleep when I dropped by, kupopo... I thought my heart was going to thump straight out of my fluffy chest! My paws might have been severed... my pom plucked...

Honestly, I was of the distinct opinion that I had done more than my fair share of the year’s work after that, kupo, but of course I tirelessly flew away to my next destination without complaint!

The second set of Valentione’s Day packages in my delivery satchel were meant for Lord Hien of Doma!

Lord Hien greeted me himself, kupo, friendly as ever. "Ah, the postmaster — right on time as always!” he said, a little breathlessly. “You have my thanks. Would you just leave your deliveries on that table so that they come to no harm?”

What harm? I was more a bit confused, but then I realized that he was in the middle of some sort of... game?

He was running around, being chased by the leader of the Buduga clan, kupo. I suppose they were in the middle of an extremely spirited game of tag! How fun! I remember when I was a young moogle playing tag with my friends, floating in circles with the wind in my whiskers... Oh, for those halcyon days!

Daidukul received a fair bit of stuff from his admirers, too, kupo. More than Magnai, that’s for sure...

Then Isse looked at me as I was laying out everyone’s packages. “Oh, the postmoogle’s arrived?” he asked. “Um, by any chance, are you the one who delivered the year-end gifts from last time? I meant to give my thanks to the person who sent me something then...”

Of course, I told him that would be perfectly fine!

After all, even when it’s not Valentione’s Day, it’s the responsibility of a delivery moogle — or delivery person — to ensure that all the tender feelings they’ve been entrusted with reach their intended recipients. That’s why there’s no better job for me than being a postmoogle!

After my business in Doma was concluded, I flew back to Eorzea, kupo.

I’m a real go-getter — and someone really ought to tell the deputy postmoogle of my great work ethic — so I darted straight to the Black Shroud to unload my paws of all the packages I had for the people there. And what luck! As fortune would have it, I met one of my delivery targets on the road: Sanson Smyth!

“Happy Valentione’s Day, Sanson!” I chirped. “I have some very special deliveries for you and your usual companion!”

“Companion?” Sanson repeated. He sounded a little incredulous. “Er, no, that’s not quite right — it would really be more accurate to call him a vexing subordinate... Regardless, if it is Guydelot you seek, he is no doubt at his usual tavern. Would you like me to walk there with you?”

Oh, but of course I did, kupo! Sanson’s such a thoughtful, helpful man, isn’t he? It was so very nice of him to ask.

Taverns are where travelers go to rest, so they seem like such wonderful places to meet other people, kupo...

Once I’d finished with my deliveries in the Shroud, I let the cool northern winds carry me straight to Ishgard, kupo. And what change it’s gone through! The city was just bustling with the reconstruction effort!

I told Edmont (Count Edmont? Lord Edmont? So confusing!) that I’d come to deliver joyful tidings of love to everyone in House Fortemps again, kupo!

And to Ser Aymeric as well, of course!

And... well, I had a whole sack of things to give to Estinien, but just like last time, he wasn’t anywhere to be found. Since writing his name on it and leaving it by the window seemed to work last Valentione’s Day, I asked Aymeric if I should do the same this year, but... kupopo... He didn’t quite seem to approve of the idea.

“We’ve received word from our men afield that Estinien may no longer be operating in Ishgard,” Aymeric explained, “so it may not be enough merely to leave his gifts by the nearest window and expect him to come across them.”

My pom drooped a bit at this pronouncement, kupo. After all, how was I going to deliver Estinien’s presents if even the Ishgardians couldn’t find him? Was it all hopeless, kupo?! All those packages to be returned to their senders... What a waste!

“No, well... Another report indicated some success in luring him with the scent of roasted kraken, seared by dragon’s breath. We might try that, if you’d like.”

I thought that seemed like a reasonable suggestion, but Edmont looked a little concerned. “Ser Aymeric, do you truly think — ?” he began, but then he seemed to change his mind. “...No, forget that I spoke. That being said, the restoration of the Firmament is proceeding apace, so I would exercise caution around undue use of fire...”

Well, I am nothing if not a cautious moogle, so I very carefully cooked up some delicious grilled kraken over an open fire, kupo. We postmoogles truly go above and beyond for our work!

I left his packages with the salted cephalopod as it was roasting, so I’ll bet he was thrilled to find everything set up for him!

I didn’t forget to make deliveries to this place either, kupo.

Whenever I come here, the atmosphere of the room feels so... so holy, kupo. As if the very air is clear... but empty, too. Do you know what I mean?

I cleaned up my posture before I left, kupo, and then it was off to finish the rest of the deliveries!

I had successfully shared everyone’s expressions of love with all sorts of people in Eorzea, and now it was time for... um... the impossible, kupo. You see, I still had a whole stack of especially challenging deliveries to make to the First!

We moogles have a lot of special tricks up our poms, kupo, but even I can’t possibly visit another shard without a bit of help...

I really hadn’t the foggiest idea how to get there, so I wound up consulting the helpful folks at the Eighteenth Floor to ask them how I could get to the First!

And do you know what? They were so nice, kupo! They said that because Valentione’s Day was such a special day, and because they wanted to accommodate everyone’s heartfelt feelings, they’d let me use a special door that would take me safely to the First. Though it was not without... stipulations...

They handed me an enchanted pocket watch and said that if I failed to return before the hand on the watch made a full turn around the clock, I’d never be able to go back to Eorzea again, kupo.

Terrifying! Utterly terrifying! What other job would possibly ask you to put your existence as you know it on the line, kupo?!

But I am, as I’ve said, a professional beyond compare... so I made up my mind and zipped right through that door!

...I admit, I passed out and lost consciousness as I was traveling between the worlds, kupo. But when I came to, I was in a beautiful purple forest, and I could vaguely hear someone calling for me!

So I bounced back into the air and fluttered off to the Crystal Tower, kupo!

Naturally, the first First resident I delivered packages to was the Crystal Exarch. I had things to give him as the Crystal Exarch, and... other things to give him, too, kupo. Presents from a different time, from when he went by a different name.

Now, I must admit, I’ve never quite understood his situation, but I did dutifully deliver his Valentione’s Day gifts each and every year! I simply wasn’t able to enter the Crystal Tower, so I would leave them at the entrance, kupo. I told him this, and then I asked him if he’d received them.

...But he didn’t answer me, kupo! He just started crying!

What was a poor moogle to do? I mean, you’ll notice our paws aren’t exactly great for wiping tears away. Had I made a terrible mistake after all? Should I not have done that?

“No,” the Exarch said, shaking his head. “No, you... you have done nothing wrong, little moogle. Forgive me. Let us move on. We must needs formulate a plan to keep you safe as you navigate this shard.“

I was very grateful to have made the acquaintance of such a cooperative colleague, kupo! With his help, I charted a path through Norvrandt that would let me finish my deliveries in time.

Next time, though, I hope I’m given a bit more time to take in the sights. I still think of those beautiful flowers in Il Mheg, and all the sights and sounds in that luxurious seaside city, Eulmore...

The Scions of the Seventh Dawn were there on some sort of business trip, I suppose, and of course they received as many gifts as ever, kupopo. I was very pleased to meet young Ryne for the first time, though!

She was delighted to meet me too, I do believe, and when I explained to her what Valentione’s Day was all about, she smiled and said, “It’s so wonderful that there are such beautiful holidays on the Source!”

“I’m sure Norvrandt will begin celebrating its own holidays before long, now that it isn’t under threat of the Light,” Thancred told her. “If you want, you can start a holiday of your own, with your friends.”

“That’s true,” Ryne giggled.

Urianger was especially pleased to see Ryne smile, kupo! Er, what was it he said again? “Pray enjoy thy gifts, to the delight of those who give thee affection.” Something like that, kupo? And also, um... “Have care lest thou shouldst cross paths with pixies and their kin, for therein lieth a penchant for mischief most troublesome.”

Yes, that was it, kupo!

Seeing everyone smile made my heart feel all warm and fuzzy too, kupo. I realize I’m always warm and fuzzy, but I mean extraordinarily so!

After ensuring that all of my packages arrived in the hands of their recipients on land, I then had to travel all the way to the bottom of the deep blue sea. It still boggles my mind that people on the First live beneath the ocean waves, kupo!

It took me some time to find someone who would respond to me, but I managed it eventually. “Why, hello there!” I said. “Yes, you, the tall fellow over there! Do you know where I might find someone by the name of Emet-Selch? I’ve a long story that I haven’t the time to tell, but to cut it all short, I have a pile of presents that I must see into his hands!”

I couldn’t quite make out the tall fellow’s face behind his mask, but I got the impression that he was smiling at me, kupo. “You are troubled, little one. Yes, I understand... If you would deliver these glad tidings to him, then let me give you a helping hand. Here.”

Poof!

I couldn’t believe my eyes, kupo! With a snap of his fingers, the tall man made all my packages for Emet-Selch disappear into bits of light!

This wasn’t in any of the procedural manuals the deputy postmoogle made me memorize back-to-front, so I admit I might have panicked a little bit... but the tall fellow calmed me down soon enough.

“Even sweet gifts such as those you bear are only masses of aether,” he explained. “Once reduced to their base components, they will go to where he is — where all life eventually arrives. Be at ease, child. Whatever his faults in character, our lord of the dead and king of the underworld is an exceedingly clever man. No matter how vast the sea of life may be, he will surely be able to pluck his presents from the aetherial flow... supposing he desires to do so, that is.”

Now, I didn’t truly understand the finer points of this explanation, kupo... but the masked man seemed sincere about getting those gifts to Emet-Selch, so I decided to believe that he hadn’t done any harm.

I wanted to thank him for his help, but then he was gone in the blink of an eye! Even though I was in the middle of speaking with him when he vanished!

The citizens of that place are so mysterious, kupopo...

After all that was said and done, kupo, I had one final delivery to make. Just one last addressee to track down, and then I’d be finished, kupo!

And I really put my all into it. I swear upon my postmoogle’s cap and bag! I looked everywhere, every mountain high and valley low, but I simply couldn’t track him down.

The time left on my pocket watch was starting to run out, kupo, so I had to accept defeat. Disappointed, dragging my drooping pom behind me, I made my way back to the door between worlds, which already looked like it was in danger of disappearing, and leapt through the gates...

Mayhap I had cut it so close to the last second that something went wrong, kupo?

I passed out again, and when I came to, I was rolling around on an unfamiliar grassy knoll... while someone was poking at me to wake up, kupo!

What luck! What incredible luck! It was the very person I’d been searching for, for all that time, up until the very last second — Ardbert!

I almost cried and threw myself at him, I was so happy! To think that I would find him like this! “Ardbert, Ardbert!” I said, like he was an old friend. “I finally found you! I had all these presents to give you, kupo!”

He laughed and took it all in stride, though this must have been greatly puzzling to him. “What’s this? Another reward for the quest we just finished?”

“No, it’s not, kupo!” I replied, perhaps a little more crossly than I should have. “Here, this is for you! Take this, and this, and this! It’s all yours, kupo! Each package represents someone’s feelings for you, kupo! Everyone loves you so much!”

“Careful, now — oh, these look delicious!” he exclaimed, affably embarrassed as he sorted through the boxes I was admittedly pelting him with. “And this is all for me? You’re sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure, kupo! Eat them all up and have more faith in yourself, Ardbert!”

His eyes crinkled at their corners when he smiled. “Hahah! You’ve got a point. Then I’ll share these with my friends just over there. My thanks for bringing them all this way here, postmoogle. You’ve done a great job.”

...

I don’t quite remember what happened after that, kupo...

When I came to, I was lying on the counter of the Seventh Heaven, evidently having dozed off next to that Wandering Minstrel fellow. At first, I thought perhaps meeting Ardbert in that strange world had been nothing but a dream, but when I checked my postmoogle’s bag, I realized that it was much lighter, kupo!

So I really had met him, and I really had completed all my deliveries!

This year’s Valentione’s Day deliveries were arduous and difficult, kupo, but at the end of the day, I really did have a lot of fun.

I delivered all of your love to everyone else, kupo... and now I’m here to deliver their love back to you!

One more time, for everyone’s sake: Happy White Day, kupo!

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silver-wield · 4 years

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FF7R: The Cloud Narrative

While in the middle of one of my replays that involved making different choices for Cloud to get other stuff, I started thinking, “What would Cloud choose?”

And that got me thinking some more about the fact we say it's all what Cloud would choose, but really, it's what we pick to get the best story that suits our preferences.

And since I'm that kind of dork, I decided to replay and let Cloud's personality and development lead me to make the choices so I could try and see what Cloud would've chosen if he had autonomy. It makes for a slightly different game than the one I usually play, but it was fun really thinking over the options and deciding how Cloud would react to every situation and whether he'd choose to engage with it or not.

I didn't actually remember to grab every screenshot of my playthrough, so some of these are from Youtube, but the decisions I say I made are the ones I made because why would I lie?

Ok, let's mosey...

Spoiler warning for ppl who haven’t played – do I still need to do this? Eh ok, (I tag FF7R spoilers as final fantasy 7 remake spoilers) and it’s gonna be long.

The opening decision is in Chapter 2 when we first meet Aerith. None of these decisions affect anything within the game to do with the resolution, it just makes either girl react differently to Cloud.

I'm sure some people would argue he'd buy it because Aerith, but he doesn't know her, has no obligation to be nice to her – especially compared to the Avalanche crew who he needed to rely on back in the reactor and he was a dick to them – he's in a rush and has no reason to buy flowers unless people want to assume he already had Tifa in mind the moment Aerith mentioned it. If we do choose the option to buy it right away, Aerith flirts a little and slots the flower into Cloud's shoulder strap over his heart. We get none of the extended dialogue if we choose this option. For those people who say the more someone talks is a sign of canon, this would make the “how much” option the non-canon choice because it contains the least amount of dialogue and time they spend together.

If we choose “I'm good,” then we hear Aerith insisting he takes it by saying, “When was the last time you saw a real one,” and adding that “it'll make your girlfriend's day.”

Then we get the automatic line from Cloud that happened when we originally chose “how much.”

After some more dialogue from Aerith another choice occurs, one which can make Cloud sound like a royal shitbag or not.

I think everyone would agree that Cloud purposely pissing off a total stranger is out of character, and if you choose the second option he doesn't actually speak and Aerith goes straight into her line about how “lovers used to give these when they were reunited.”

For my choices as Cloud I said, “I'm good,” and then when she insisted, I agreed to take it because to me – and this is how I always answer – it feels the most Cloud kind of answer.

Chapter 3

The next choice Cloud's presented with is during chapter 3 when Tifa offers him a drink. No matter which choice you make he calls Tifa beautiful as the outcome.

By answering “something hard” Tifa goes into her cocktail making routine before pouring Cloud a drink that looks suspiciously like piss, but is actually meant to represent the colour of his hair. Hard and bitter. Like him. He doesn't like it. Colour me shocked. She then goes on to make the red drink that's a representation of her eye colour. This is when Cloud raises the glass and makes the “beautiful” comment.

If you choose the refuse option, Tifa replies that “if you were in the mood” and then goes into the same drinks making routine as the first option, with the exact same dialogue and outcome between them. (And now I know it's almost identical I wonder why the devs did it? It seems like a straw man option tbf. There's no real choice or changes to the dialogue and it's like it's been put there to give the illusion of it being optional).

Since Cloud is secretly into Tifa I figured he'd choose “something hard and bitter” as a way to try and show off how tough he is. However, it’s worth noting that Cloud isn’t a big drinker and only drinks when he’s in a low mood. He’s pretty happy here, so I’d say in general he wouldn’t drink, but because he’s only recently reunited with Tifa he still wants to impress her. So yeah, to drink.

The next chance for Cloud to have a choice concerns the chapter 3 side quests that open up the alone at last which goes towards choosing a dress for Tifa later in chapter 9. If you don't finish the quests or miss alone at last you always get Tifa's blue dress and moon charm earring. That is her canon outfit.

The quests for chapter 3 are all monster related apart from one – which I'll get to in a minute.

Chadley's report involves scanning monsters for data and killing them. Rat problem comes from the item vendor and involves killing doomrats.

Nuisance in the factory involves killing drakes.

On the prowl involves going after a shinra dog thing

Just flew in from the graveyard involves a larger drake.

These are all the type of job that Cloud would accept without thinking about it too much. He's a merc, he's getting paid to kill monsters. It'll show off his skills and build his rep and as Tifa says, the better his rep the more he gets paid. These five quests are ones Cloud would take because that's the type of person he thinks he should be. The monster slayer.

As for quest 4, lost friends, I initially said that Cloud would avoid this because it involves two things he isn't good with: kids and animals. Now, I've heard from people that by AC Cloud is actually pretty good around kids, and I agree, he's got a lot of love from them by this point. But that's at least two years away from now and he's not even slightly good around kids and actively avoids them. Cats seem to have a grudge against him, too, at this point in the game – though Wedge's cat mellows towards him after he helps out. These were my reasons for deciding to avoid this quest because Cloud just wouldn't do it. Then, once I got to it, I realised the reason why Cloud would do it.

Tifa.

Tifa likes kids and animals. Now, as a respectful type of girl, she doesn't usually push Cloud to do things he doesn't want to. She's always considerate to his feelings and to others too. In this case, though, she's not focused on Cloud and if he'd want to do this job, but on helping out a little girl. Cloud's been running around doing jobs all morning, so Tifa's related him to the task of finding the cats.

Usually Cloud would refuse to something that's so obviously beneath his skills, but because it's Tifa who's asking, he agrees.

Alone at last triggers and we get to view a moment between Cloud and Tifa that ends in him choosing a dress for her. Alone as last is narrative canon whether we choose to see it or not because of other hints in the game that refer back to the conversation they had. While they talk about the past we get an above view of the rug that has a reunion flower pattern on it. Tifa and Cloud both take steps towards each other during this scene, which symbolises their closing the emotional distance that's between them.

This choice changes nothing about the game and only matters if you want to go for the dressed to the nines achievement.

If you choose the top option – for her canon outfit, Tifa replies “Yeah, I guess we aren't kids anymore.” If you choose the second option she says, “That's not much different to my regular style.”

If you choose the exotic outfit she says, “really?” and acts a little awkward about it.

She then asks Cloud to dress to match her. The dresses he wears during wall market all have a similar style to Tifa's options, showing he did dress to match her. The narrative canon choice for which dress Cloud eventually went with is something I'll be bringing up later.

By choosing the canon outfit option and getting Tifa's canon dialogue we get a reference to the fact they've known each other for a long time. This ties into the conversation they had which also touched on their shared history. This is a background development scene between them, but isn't necessary to know because we get other info about them over the rest of the game. This extra bit of dialogue is to increase our knowledge of Cloud and Tifa, both separately and together.

Chapter Four

Jessie’s bike ride, which isn’t optional in the sense you can choose how it goes. The result depends on how good you are at the minigame. However, since there’s three endings, this is a choice based result.

Are you, Cloud? Really? When did you get that SOLDIER mandatory training? Of the three optional endings, the narrative canon that makes the most sense is Cloud being really bad at it. This is his first time doing any of that, but it gives him the crash course he needs for later in the Shinra building when he does all those fancy moves. Cloud owes Roche some props for observational bike stunting.

Chapter Five

And our next canon narrative choice is between making Cloud look incompetent at his job or choosing to have an intimate moment with his one true love. Well, seeing how the cloti roll is in the ultimania we know this is the correct narrative choice.

Chapter 8

There's a long gap between chapter 5 and the next option we get for Cloud. Once we meet Aerith again and get her back to Sector 5, we go into her side quests and optional discovery. Aerith's side quests are tied to what dress she later wears during chapter 9.

The side quests for Aerith's chapter are split into groups of 3. This means that by unlocking one, you get the further quests on that branch. One branch is more of a Cloud oriented style set of quests, while the other involves the thing he doesn't do well around: kids.

Kids on patrol → A verified hero + Angel of the slums

Weapons on a rampage → Paying respects + moogle merchant.

If you don't complete kids on patrol first then the other two don't unlock. One of these further quests involves more kids and playing with them. Not really Cloud type activities and unlike with chapter 3 where he'd do something because Tifa asked, he's not got that type of relationship with Aerith that he'd be willing to do stuff that he doesn't want to just to impress her.

Breakdown of sidequests in sector 5 and NPC background dialogues.

Weapons on a rampage is more his style of quest, which leads to the NPC who set it to ask a further favour. This links to the next quest where you have to pay respects for the old man. The thing is, he doesn't have the graveyard key, which leads to the next quest where we have to go buy it off Moggie. This is the only kid related quest on this branch and it's over in moments. Cloud has the minimum amount of contact with Moggie and doesn't show any kind of tolerance towards her while he's talking. There's also no apology for his behaviour – unlike when he said to Tifa he was doing his best when she scolded him for being rude.

The way these quests are set out in blocks of three and the fact one half is heavily reliant on child interaction – which Cloud wouldn't do at this point in his development or association with Aerith – leads me to believe he wouldn't agree to these quests. This means the language of flowers discovery doesn't trigger and Aerith ends up in her second option dress – which I've theorised is her canon outfit because of its design similarity to the OG version, her reaction to the dress, the fact that in OG, Aerith chose her own dress, the hairstyle and accessory match the OG style and Cloud's reaction is a very Cloud reaction to have, compared to the other two outfits – the bad dress has dogs and rats following her and the red dress is so ott she's swarmed by fans, a red carpet and so on, but also her accessories don't fit her symbolism theme of flowers because she's wearing stars.

With all of the above in mind, I surmised Cloud would do the monster hunt branch of quests and quit while he was ahead.

Chapter 9

Where before we had a few choices happening, once we hit Wall Market we're inundated with options that affect Cloud's outfit later on. They also showcase what kind of morals Cloud has. Either way, it's canonically easier to get Chocobo Sam's pts higher than Madam M's, leading me to believe he is the canon narrative choice for this section and that Cloud's black and blue corset dress is the one he ends up wearing.

This contradicts my previous theory about the ultimania in which Cloud is shown very uncomfortable in the loli outfit, which led me to believe that was the one he ended up in if he made the choices in Wall Market. I now believe it's because if you pick this outfit it's his “bad ending”, worse than if you don't make any effort and get the plain black and grey dress.

The maximum amount of pts you can get from Chocobo Sam's options is 6.5, compared to Madam M's 5.

There are several people who offer you options during Wall Market.

The love hotel owner (not a Nojima self-insert lol).

Johnny (discovery) + before the first coloseum match – there's a bottle on the table and the choice is to drink or not.

Madam M x2

Sam x2

The first option you get in Wall Market happens before you've even entered the place. Sam asks you what the girl you're searching for looks like. No matter which option you choose, Sam says that Cloud has a crush on Tifa – which he doesn't deny.

If you choose the first option you get 1pt with Sam.

If you choose the second option you get 0pts

If you choose the 3rd option you get 1pt with Madam M.

I chose the first option because Cloud's a guy, with eyes, and the other two choices don't offer anything in the way of a physical description and if he's describing her to someone then he needs to actually describe what she looks like in some way. This is the only option that does that. It's also the only option that gets a different reaction out of Aerith, whereas the other two options have the same reaction from her.

This is the second option we can choose from and it's the love hotel guy (still not a Nojima self-insert). If you choose “no thanks,” this gets you 1pt with Sam and Aerith flirts with Cloud.

If you choose “how much?” you get a surprised “Cloud!” from Aerith and 1pt with Madam M.

If you choose “back off” you get 0pts and Aerith apologises on his behalf.

Of the 3 choices, I picked “back off” because it's the most Cloud appropriate choice.

Next, we have the Johnny discovery when he literally runs past you as you try to go to Don Corneo's for the first time. By following him to the Honey Bee, we get a lecherous dialogue from him and then a question about Cloud's own preferences. Would he go into the Honey Bee? If he agrees with Johnny, we get a slightly self-loathing assumption of a reply, whereas if we disagree, Johnny says that Cloud hasn't experienced anything yet. Either way, he runs off once he's finished.

By agreeing with Johnny you get 1pt for Sam.

If you don't agree you get 0pts.

I chose to disagree because Cloud isn't a lecherous pig and is actually pure af with no experience.

We learn from Leslie that the only way to get into an audition with Corneo is through the trio. Andrea Rhodea has a 3 year waiting list, so we don't even see him. So, we go back to Sam.

This is a hint that the following event with Sam is a load of bull. Johnny telling Cloud – if you interact with him – that he should've followed his gut is a hint that Cloud should trust his instincts. It’s also confirming that while Cloud is a total cheapskate who doesn’t do anything for free, he’s also a betting man who’ll think little of dropping 1000g on a sure thing (why 1000g? because that’s the amount he says to Barret in chapter 6, showing that while Cloud appreciates having money, he’ll also spend it.) Then it's around the corner to where Sam waits. Who, despite having already endorsed Tifa, says he's willing to help Aerith if she can guess the result of a coin toss.

Ofc it's rigged. But if you choose to gamble, it impresses Sam. You get 1.5 pts for choosing heads or tails. If you refuse to gamble then you get 0.5pts.

I believe the narrative choice is to pick heads, like Johnny suggested because he is the inner voice of Cloud and gives us hints as to real Cloud’s feelings at different points in the game. Either way, Cloud gets the coin and says he had a hunch about the result.

After this it's away to Madam M's and the most hilarious choice I've ever seen! I have to wait until the room's clear before choosing because it's a watch from behind a cushion moment lol

Madam M won't help Cloud unless he agrees to a massage. Since our SOLDIER boi doesn't like being forced into decisions and has issues around touch and intimacy, not to mention he's stingy af and wouldn't drop 3k on a massage when he's previously hounded people for a lot less money. But, he also doesn’t stop to think about spending money if it’s worth this while. 1000g doesn’t seem like much of a big deal to him, if it’s his standard amount of bet on a sure thing. He wants to save Tifa, so he’d likely go with the standard course. The other one alludes to him being a cheapskate like Aerith accused and there’s no reference to the luxury course anywhere in the game except here. This isn't something he's doing for pleasure, he's in Wall Market to save Tifa, so the things he's doing are a means to an end.

If you pick the luxury massage you get 2pts with Madam M.

If you pick the standard massage you get 1pt with Madam M

If you pick the poor man's massage you get 0pts.

I chose the standard course massage because I believe that's what Cloud would choose just to get Madam M to agree to help them.

The next choice comes right off the back of the massage at Madam M's and involves Cloud giving an opinion of Aerith's outfit.

If you choose the first option it gets you 1pt with Sam and a pleased reaction from Aerith.

If you choose the second option you get 0pts and an angry retort from Aerith.

If you choose the third option you get 1pt with Madam M and a middle of the road comment from Aerith. No matter which you choose, Madam M scolds you.

Since by this point in the game Cloud and Aerith are friendly enough for him to pass comment on her outfit, I could see him answering with the second choice, but not the first since he doesn't even notice what anyone's wearing let alone have an opinion on it. The third option sounds the most Cloud-centric choice, so that's what I picked.

The last option is for Cloud to drink an unknown substance or not while waiting for his match to start at the coliseum. Johnny gives the explanation of what it is, who it came from and what it potentially does.

By choosing to drink the mystery substance you get 1pt with Sam.

By ignoring the drink you get 0pts.

Since Cloud is the last person to put weird shit in his body I went with not drinking it.

The final tally for the options that Cloud gets set him on Chocobo Sam's side quests for the blue corset dress that matches Tifa's canon outfit – she said dress to match, remember? It's also the one that in the ultimania Cloud looks the most at ease in.

Chocobo Sam's sidequests are the ones that I got as a result of choosing the options I did. I believe this is the canon narrative that Cloud would take if he were choosing. After several playthroughs I did waver on whose quests seemed more the narrative canon. I began thinking Sam's were, but then the ultimania illustration of Cloud embarrassed in the satin dress led me to think Madam M's were the narrative canon. After playing both sets of side quests, I've come to the conclusion that Sam's would be the narrative choice if Cloud were making the decisions.

Having Cloud's choices result in Sam's side quests we get burning thighs (appears in both), the party never stops and a dynamite body.

Burning thighs is the squats contest that echoes the OG storyline. We meet Andrea's little brother, Jules – who is totally not staring at Cloud's ass through the entire minigame while encouraging him. This side quest touches on egos and being cocky – which Cloud can be. It's a humble pie moment, which is another life lesson that Cloud needs to learn also.

The party never stops features the return of Johnny, who appears as we leave the dressmaker's son who's the originator for the quest. We're sent over into the bar, where we can collect the Midgar Blues single for the cd achievement. This song is canonically Cloud and Tifa's romantic theme in Advent Children. Once we meet the dressmaker, we're sent over to the materia guy who wants “the sauce” in exchange for “inspiration”.

This sidequest is a bunch of tongue in cheek dick jokes and it's hilarious! It's also alludes to the fact that Cloud has zero experience since he had a crush on Tifa until he left the village, spent his time pining for her as a grunt, then got stuffed in a test tube and was in a coma for five years. Ofc he blusters his way through it, handling his balls and making comments about how he doesn't need lessons on “whipping it out”. Oh you poor sweet boi.

Once we get the sauce – fun fact there's no picture in the inventory of it when you get it – and we hand off to the materia guy (unintentional pun but I'm leaving it in now I've done it – and that one) we head over to the next weirdo on the list. The chef. Who literally poisons all of his customers. I suspect he and the pharmacy guy are in cahoots. He poisons people, the pharmacy guy cures them and they both get rich.

The chef asks Cloud to help fix the problem with his kitchen – but from npcs around it sounds like it's just his cooking that's the issue. It doesn't matter which option you pick, Johnny still gets food poisoning. Even if you max your materia, nothing changes. Cloud doesn't even offer the options, Johnny does the talking.

Once we're done with the killer chef, it's over to the pharmacy guy, who asks Cloud to go and deliver medicine. If you maxed your cleansing materia you get 3 packets of meds. The only one that matters is the guy in the pub bathroom since that moves the side quest along. The others are optional, but increase Cloud's rep about town since he's helping more people.

The pharmacy guy gives Cloud a Honey Bee Inn VIP pass, which is the dressmaker's inspiration. Once that's handed back, Cloud chats to the dressmaker's son, who caps the side quest off with the below screen.

This is a reference to the dream that Cloud had during chapter 8 where his mother mentioned he should have a mature girlfriend. This is the contradicting opinion that balances that. The dressmaker's son saying age doesn't equal maturity is referencing Tifa – since these quests are the ones that get you the matching dress to her canon one. This is the same as the Midgar Blues playing in the pub. These are Tifa centric quests, which is the entire reason Cloud's in Wall Market to begin with.

The last quest is a dynamite body, which comes from Sam. Tifa has a bomb bracelet on her default weapon that is part of a matching pair with her chocobo bracelet. Tifa is represented by “da bomb” and everyone knows Cloud’s a chocobo head. This quest is referencing cloti, and a comment from the announcer using a mixed metaphor mentions putting on shades.

Afterwards Same tries to hand Cloud his cut of the prize money and Cloud says he's there for Tifa, not money. Sam replies that Cloud has changed since his arrival and could likely storm Corneo's place all by himself to save Tifa. He also mentions that Tifa is a bombshell and Cloud goes to confront him by taking a step forward and saying “Hey.” This is Cloud stepping up to people sexually objectifying Tifa.

Once the quests are done, it's back to Corneo's where Cloud considers breaking in – like Sam suggested – but Leslie uses Cloud's feelings for Tifa against him by saying Corneo could hurt her if he does anything he shouldn't. This isn’t the first time Cloud’s emotionally blackmailed in Wall Market.

Cloud backs down, but is now operating under the sense that Corneo is a lot more dangerous than he first thought, and he's sending Aerith in. Aerith. Who's useless in a fight. He's now thinking that he'd have to go in and save them both, which is why he says to Aerith that he's not letting her go alone.

We've now reached the point where Cloud's earlier refusal to do kid related quests gives us the result with Aerith's dress. Her theme has been given a slightly rock vibe, which is SOLDIER Cloud appropriate, and the design is something that she has chosen – this is in line with her OG dress which she chose herself. She also has a large hair bow, similar hairstyle to OG and her flower symbolism throughout – compared to the red dress which has stars that haven't been associated with her at any point. The straps on the pink dress – which is her signature colour – also match the straps on the OG design. Johnny’s around throwing cherry blossom petals, which match several of her abilities and are a reference to Zack. Aerith wore this dress for Zack. This is her Zack date dress. This leads me to believe that this is her canon narrative outfit.

The accompanying blocking to this scene is also more realistic than the other two.

Cloud's reaction to the dress is suitably Cloud. His jaw drops a little and he gets a bit soft voiced when talking to Aerith, though it's a quick moment that ends when he asks why she left Madam M's.

And now we're at the point where Cloud has to impress Andrea Rhodea. As long as you get 112pts in his dance sequence (great = 2, good = 1) then Cloud will wear the earrings with his dress, no matter which one it is.

This is the last choice you have and it's the tie breaker between the two girls if you chose to do all of the side quests for them. By choosing Aerith you get her resolution later in chapter 14, but in the meantime you get a short dialogue and then Tifa wakes up.

If you choose Tifa, this goes towards her resolution in chapter 14, but in the meantime you get a longer dialogue concerning the imminent dangers in sector 7 and also she questions Cloud about his relationship with Aerith. This is referencing all of the strange things about Aerith from her initial touch to Cloud’s wrist letting him see the whispers, to the whispers attacking them later in sector 7, to her not letting him leave sector 5, to her crying and wanting to go with him. Tifa’s question makes Cloud suspicious. It’s not romantically motivated on her part because her focus is on saving sector 7.

Cloud doesn't get a chance to answer, as Aerith wakes up.

Chapter 12

Technically not a choice -- in fact it implies the opposite -- because if you run the timer out in chapter 12 at the top of the pillar nothing happens. This is a message that all previous timed events were optional because that’s what the players wanted. This is saying that no matter if you try to choose to ignore Tifa or Barret or any of the plot, that the game will wait for you to move. There are no consequences to running this timer down because it’s implying that the time for optional choices has passed. Narrative canon only will commence from this point on.

The last optional choice in the game comes a lot later with the stairs and elevator, so anything that Cloud says or does between then is canon. All of the resolutions are canon, but we're only able to view one at a time because of how the game operates. Cloud is the witness to the resolutions because they’re Barret, Tifa’s and Aerith’s resolutions.

Barret's resolution is first because the lighting is much brighter indicating it's earlier in the night.

After that comes Tifa's resolution, which is much later in the night, but well before dawn.

The last resolution is Aerith's and she indicates that it's almost morning at the end of hers.

All resolutions are canon

Aerith's resolution is hinted at by Mirielle during the lost wallet and Kyrie sidequests.

Tifa's resolution is hinted at by Tifa, through Leslie in the chapter 14 intel gathering main quest where you hunt down Don Corneo. Tifa relates Leslie's fiancee's necklace to a symbol of reunion. Since the necklace has a reunion flower on it, that she's seen, and the only time she mentions learning about the meaning of that flower is during her resolution, this is the confirmation of it having happened. Also, the fact that Cloud was about to mention the meaning, then stopped because he thought it might embarrass Tifa – who'd been in a vulnerable state at the time – shows that he was aware of both the meaning and the resolution and Tifa's feelings.

Chapter 16

Last choice in the game and it’s between the stairs and the elevator. And as much as I love the stairs, Mayor Domino tells us later on that the stuff in the elevator is what happened.

Feel bad for Cloud having to confront his claustrophobia with Tifa there. He’s not happy at all by the time they reach the top.

In Conclusion.

Playing as though Cloud were the one making the choices was a lot harder than I thought. I tend to choose things either as he would, or close enough in most cases, but there were some choices that had me stopping to debate which was the right choice. Cloud's character development is a slow process and even though I know he's got a whole kid army in AC, I couldn't resolve that with his current personality, so that led me to avoiding the kid quests. This revealed that Aerith should have worn her pink dress in the narrative and the scene between them when she reveals it feels a very narrative canon type of scene.

Tifa's dress is the same no matter what. I also believe she'd be the narrative choice in the sewers over Aerith because of the content of her dialogue and the fact real!Cloud has a crush on her still. He often checks in with her to make sure she's ok and he has an overriding urge to support and comfort her even when he doesn't know how. The way she lands in the sewers is echoed later in several other falls, but there’s one in the opening of chapter 13 where she’s got her arm under her head. This is because Cloud positioned her that way after she got knocked out. This shows he’d go to her if he saw her hurt.

All of the events, options and side quests culminate in Tifa's resolution being the main narrative option we see, with Aerith and Barret as a second and third option through replay choices, though all three do happen. From Cloud’s pov, though, the important one is Tifa because that’s the person he cares about the most. You only get Barret’s resolution by being a closed off asshole and Aerith’s if you act out of character and more like Zack, which is what Aerith wants. The quest dialogue with Leslie shows the resolutions happened, which makes them narrative canon.

People can disagree with this, but I found the narrative canon a really enjoyable way to play – once I got over messing up in wall market with the dress and had to start again (the choices are hard lol). Seeing events through Cloud's eyes, instead of being like some puppet master telling him what to do so I could get the story I wanted to see, was a really fun way to play. I definitely recommend it!

#final fantasy 7 remake spoilers #the cloud narrative #cloud strife #tifa lockheart #Aerith Gainsborough #choice analysis #long post

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unlockthelore · 4 years

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Chivalry

For so long, Kairi had been the one who was protected, but now she had to protect the ones who tried their hardest for her.

Part of the Beyond the Horizon series on Ao3. For more updates, follow the beyond the horizon tag on this blog.

Returning to the island where they played as children was difficult on Riku. As much as he tried to hide his inner struggles, they were there, plain as day in Kairi’s eyes. She could tell how he tried not to approach the Secret Place or the furthermost treehouse with its open terrace where the palm trees shaded enough for a nice nap. Walks along a sandy shore with the surf’s chilled foamy waters rolling over their feet were harder when they looked back and found only two sets of footprints instead of three. She didn’t pretend not to notice when Riku squeezed her hand or lingered on the bent paopu tree long past sunset.

A space always left between them for the one who couldn’t be there with them.

For now, she reminded herself. Just for now.

--------------------------

“Need another pin.”

Riku’s voice roused her from her thoughts just as the waves crashed against the pier’s wooden posts. A spray of water misting against the soles of her feet as they swung back and forth over the damp wooden boards. Kairi tipped her head to one side then glanced toward the calloused palm hovering in her periphery. The scrapes and bruises unable to be healed by healing magic blended into peach tanned skin, but afternoons spent tracing them with her nails reminded her of where they were. She shuffled slightly, a throbbing ache in her lower back from sitting in one position for so long. Her fingers dipped into the small cup of bobby pins left beside an assortment of colorful hair clips beneath the pom of her moogle backpack. Two plucked out and set in Riku’s palm. Sunlight catching on the glossy black surface until his fingers curled around them and a light kiss was pressed to the top of her head.

“Thank you.”

Kairi smiled to herself, one of her knees pulled to her chest as she leant back against him. His fingers working into her hair with the start of another braid somewhere at the right side of her head. “So you’re going on another world tour after this?” She asked, resting her hand against his thigh, the checkered pattern of his board shorts plucked between her fingertips.

It took a moment longer for him to reply. Always so serious with his work, a distracted hum was his only response for a moment. “Yeah…” He murmured, and she felt him tie off the braid after snapping on a rubber band. “Part of being a Keyblade Master is making sure no one has so much as a hurt toe, I guess.”

“Riku,” she scolded gently.

Although, she could understand his discontent with the task. Masters were charged with the world’s affairs, but in Kairi’s opinion, it seemed too big of a job for one person. Or two, in Aqua and Riku’s case. More than that, she knew what he wanted to do with the access he was given to traversing the worlds but someone had to be there to help. Perhaps they were following Sora’s example by trying to do more for others instead of putting themselves first.

She frowned and curled her fingers around Riku’s knee, squeezing gently. “It has been awhile though, and it would be nice to see everyone again.”

The likelihood of new information cropping up was minuscule but they could take comfort in knowing their friends hadn’t given up. Just as they hadn’t. Riku’s thigh tensed beneath her elbow and his hands stilled in her hair. She could tell he was considering her words or at least the implication set behind them. A light ruffle to the back of her head before he started to gather her hair up in a ponytail.

“Just so long as you don’t disappear into the castle for hours,” he said with a playful scolding tone. “I swear, Ienzo will talk to you forever about science if you let him.”

Kairi smiled, keeping her head stilled as he continued combing his fingers through her hair. “He’s just really passionate about what he does!” She clapped her hands together, fingertips pressing and palms barely touching. “Besides, it’s nice to hear it.”

To be included, if she were honest. So often were things done without her involvement or knowledge. Left out. Left behind. She was sick and tired of being the odd one out who wasn’t expected to do anything. If everyone she loved was going to fight then so was she. Even if it did mean going through lectures and notes Ienzo meticulously prepared, far too eager to share his knowledge with someone else.

After a few moments of idle humming and his hands working through her hair, Kairi bounced and pressed her empty hand to her thigh. “Are we done?” She tried to keep the impatience out of her voice but she desperately wanted to see his work. Growing out their hair again had been a mutual decision for the time being.

The unspoken condition not having to be said when they thought back to their journey before the last. Sora lamenting that he was the only one who hadn’t grown between the three of them. When in her eyes, he was one of the two that had changed the most.

Her bangs were swept to one side in answer, Riku’s lilting hum coming with the soft click of a hair clip. Rough palms gently cupped her cheeks and tipped her head back to where his lips were waiting to brush a kiss against her forehead. It was featherlight and fleeting, ending before she could really enjoy it, but a pleasant touch all the same. Her eyes crinkled at the corners as her lips pulled back in a smile, fingers curled over his own to squeeze.

“Are we done?”

“Mmm…” Sharp shadows cast by the fading afternoon sun darkened Riku’s blue-green eyes, half-lidded as his gaze flicked about her face lingering somewhere above her eyes. “Yep.”

Kairi grinned and brushed his hands away, twisting to kneel between his thighs, her arms thrown around his neck in a tight hug. “Thanks Riku.”

“Welcome,” he murmured. His breath ghosted across her bare shoulder, sending shivers down her spine that had little to do with the water dribbling along her toes. Gentle pressure from his hand flattened against her back in the barest show of affection.

Kairi sighed. Her mouth tucked against the curve of his jaw as she held him close and listened to the waves. One day, she wished, one day Riku would be able to accept the love they had to give him. As a friend and hopefully something else. She pulled back enough to hold him by the shoulders, ignoring a faint flutter in her chest when he looked up at her from beneath silver-white eyelashes.

“How about we go tomorrow?”

Surprise flickered across Riku’s features, and Kairi could understand why. Abrupt departures were something they tried to avoid when finding a new normal. But normal was far off for either of them. “Fine by me,” he said after a brief pause, a small smile quirked at the corners of his lips. “Little late today anyway. Your grandpa will kick my ass if you disappear without telling him.”

Kairi stifled a giggle behind a closed fist drawn to her mouth while her other hand thumped against Riku’s shoulder scoldingly. While she could recall the mayor’s stricken face when she returned to the main land, it was his weeping in private that’d made her reluctant to leave so soon.

“He’s been letting up just a little with letting me go more, but I still should tell him.”

The hand against her lower back hovered somewhere near her hip with the other joining it to keep her steady. Riku shifted backward to make room for her to clamor up onto the pier, the items spilled out of their shared backpack stored away.

“Lucky you,” she heard Riku say as he tried to free the moogle’s pom from the pack’s zipper. Her reflection in her gummiphone’s camera smiling and observing the three braids, clip and high ponytail he’d done with interest.

Once their pack was closed and hiked up on Riku’s shoulder, he held his hand out to her and Kairi took it with a light squeeze. She hooked her fingers in the opening of her sneakers and carried them at her side as they walked down the pier. Riku strolling down the steps one by one while Kairi hopped two by two. Their uneven pace dragged him forward a bit and only after he nudged her shoulder did she decide to slow down. Moisture along the soles of her feet made the sand cling between her toes, a soft krrch as she rubbed them together, enjoying the grit and slight sink of her heels in the sun warmed shores.

It only made sense for her to walk in the surf, she pointed out to Riku as she tugged him over. Glistening waters washed over her feet and barely touched the soles of his sandals although he made sure to gripe about it every time it came close. Their talks ranged from his mother’s experiments with the Keyblade out of sheer engineering delight, and their respective guardians’ reactions to learning there were other worlds outside of their own. While her grandfather seemed to accept it well enough, Riku’s mother was infinitely curious.

Like mother, like son.

“My mom’s been worried every time I talk about a new world. Chip and Dale gave her a gummiphone to ease her worry, and they’ve been talking non-stop about prototypes and who knows what else.”

Kairi giggled. “Little victories, Riku.”

He shot her a look of mock annoyance. “Always looking on the bright side, aren’t you? Let me sulk a bit, will ya?”

As they crossed beneath the bridge connecting the island to the smaller one a bit further from its shores, Kairi pretended to think it over. Shade provided by the wood was filtered with glimmers of light between the cracks and openings. It’d been awhile since Sora’s dad came to patch the bridge up. She could hardly imagine what it would be like a few years from now. Rolling her eyes up to the small streaks of sunlight, she hummed then shook her head.

“Nope!” She swung their hands back and forth, smiling despite his withering stare. “Not allowed.”

Riku sighed heavily, exaggeratedly rolling his eyes. “Whatever you say, princess.”

Princess.

Kairi swallowed. She hardly thought of the title much in the recent year or two. Not like when she’d been pulled from their island the first time. Her heart vied after because it was that of a princesses’. Seeing all of those empty faces, vacant eyes, Sora’s pain to strive and get her back but all he saw was a shell. She wasn’t truly inside. She was part of him. The princess who needed saving was right by his side all along but unable to do a thing.

“You’re never gonna let that go, are you?” She asked, trying to keep the mood jovial but the bitter thought soured her tone.

Riku’s half-jesting smile fell, a single brow raised as they slowed to a stop half-way beneath the bridge. “Why would I?”

“Because I’m not really a princess,” she said. Not at all. Even from the world she truly came from, there was nothing about her that was princess-like. Only a little girl who enjoyed flowers and her grandmother’s stories.

“What? You mean like the ones in fairy tales?”

Something in her snapped at the mention of fairy tales. Her grandmother’s face, weathered with age but sincere with greyed eyes and a chipper smile. “Yes,” she huffed. Riku snorted and shook his head. Kairi frowned. Just what was he not understanding? “I’m not a princess.”

She squeezed his hand and the last of the humor drained out of him as he stared down at her, his eyes seeming to glow in the weak light.

“Okay, and what is a princess to you?”

Her mouth fell open and for a moment, she wasn’t sure what to say. Her grandmother described princesses in one way or another with all of the stories of young women scattered across time in different worlds.

“Someone that’s meant to be royalty,” Kairi started, ticking off the traits on her fingers. “Calming, kind, gentle, loving, caring.”

With it laid out before her, she had to attest that she wasn’t any of those things. Hardly calming with the amount of trouble that stirred with her mere presence. Kind was an overstatement. She was nice when she wanted to be and otherwise, if someone really deserved it then she’d let them have it. Gentle, absolutely not. Loving, her gaze flicked to Riku and his thoughtful expression then the image of Sora in her mind.

Caring? If she cared, then neither of them would be like —

“Wanna know what a princess is like to me?” Riku interjected, cutting off the poisonous thoughts and dragging her back to reality. His eyes were glowing in the darkness and seemed to only render her silent as all she could do was muster a nod. “Someone like you.”

With how resolutely he spoke the words, she couldn’t think of anything to say in response. Transfixed on his face and the stern set of his jaw as he held her hand a bit tighter.

“So what if you weren’t meant to be royalty. Half the people who are don’t deserve it anyway,” he seemed to consider something then shrugged half-heartedly. “Sans the king and queen that is.”

Kairi tried not to laugh as Riku mumbled and fumbled with his words. It was sincere and she felt the biting souring thoughts begin to drift backward. Not out of mind but further from the centre of it.

“People have to want to follow you and listen to you. You think Donald and Goofy would’ve chased after Mickey for so long if they didn’t at least like him?”

She had to give him a point on that one. King Mickey, despite all of his faults, was fairly likable if not a little cute. Donald was a bit of a livewire while Goofy could be a bit lazy now and again. For both of them to run around the worlds with Sora in search of their lost king, he had to be something.

Still, that changed little in what she thought. Her fingers pressed against his own, their palms warm and a bit clammy. “Who would want to listen to me?”

Her voice rarely reached. When Sora needed encouragement, when he was at his lowest and felt abandoned by all those around him, she could barely summon a word to help him out. But she could hear him calling to her all the time from where she slept. Assuring her that he would come and rescue her, that he missed her, that they would all be together again. Riku did the same but his words were harsher. He assured he would protect her, that he wouldn’t let anything else harm her, that they’d go elsewhere — all three of them — just like they said.

They were all blinded and unable to hear.

And all she wanted was for them to listen to what she had to say.

Riku tugged her close by the hand, her toes catching in the sand as she fell into the solid warmth of his chest. His hand pressed to her back as he held her close.

“Me. Right now.… Hear me out?”

Kairi curled her fingers in the back of his tank top and pressed her forehead to his chest, nodding slowly. Riku felt sturdy and firm, solid with enough softness that she could be sure he wasn’t made out of stone. His fingers brushed against the swell of her ponytail and she hugged him tighter around his middle.

“You’re kind, you’re caring…” He snorted and flicked the ends of her hair, sending them sweeping against her shoulders with a light tickle that made a giggle bubble up in her throat. “And very stubborn.”

Kairi huffed, patting his back lightly. “So are you.”

“Hey, I wouldn’t mind being a princess,” Riku said in a snobbish tone. Kairi biting back laughter by burying her face against his chest. His own chuckles felt as vibrations beneath her cheek. “Let me finish.”

She nodded slowly and brought her other hand around his middle, her sneakers knocking together as she hooked her hands by her pinkies. Riku’s hand settled against the top of her head and smoothed down her hair. The distant crash of waves, trickling frorm the makeshift waterfall near the little cove they called their Secret Place. Even the gentle creaking of the wood as it groaned beneath a salty breeze rolled in from the ocean. It all reminded her so much of home.

“You’re kind but you don’t let people walk over you. You know your worth, what you put your time into you’re passionate about. And you do your best to help. That’s why people listen to you. You’re always trying, we can rely on you. Remember when we found Chocolina as kids? You calmed her down because you’re you. That’s your power, Kairi.”

She buried her face against his chest. It was difficult to stop herself from doing it. With all of what he said, she couldn’t help but try to find some alternative. When they needed her most — her voice couldn’t reach them, but she was trying now. That meant something, didn’t it? Sora’s infectious cheer, all of his positive-thinking, it might have been rubbing off on them for awhile now. As much as she wanted to be upset with herself, she wanted to take this chance even more.

Riku’s hand settled against her shoulder, strong and unyielding, but gentle as he pulled back from her. His blue-green eyes softened, fingers curling beneath her chin to tilt her head up. Concern stole his smile and his thumb swiped under her eye, smearing a tear against her skin. She sniffed and offered him a smile as her hand came up to cup the back of his own.

“So what if you’re not one of the ones in the story. I never was really into the damsel in distress type anyway.”

Kairi covered her mouth hurriedly, a snort that was definitely unprincess-like left them both sputtering in laughter. Riku leant down and his forehead pressed to hers as they laughed and smiled. If a few tears slipped past then neither of them mentioned it. Only wiping it away with the crooks of fingers and a reassuring glance. Her hand slipped into Riku’s again and he gave it a gentle squeeze.

“But if it bothers you, I’ll stop calling you that,” he promised, and she knew that he meant it.

The walk from beneath the bridge was slower and as they approached the other side of the sands, Kairi glanced up at him.

“Riku?”

He gave a soft hum, his head turned the other way, eyes focused on the ramshackle doorway which led to the other part of the island. She wondered what he was thinking. Would it have been the race he had with Sora? Or when they were finally putting the last touches on their raft.

“… Be my prince?”

His hold on her hand tightened considerably and absently, Kairi had to wonder if he was holding back his real strength all the time. His head whipped around and in the scarlet sunrays, she could see the faint touch of pink in his cheeks. “What?”

She tipped her head to one side, feigning innocence with a small smile. “Too much?”

“W- I mean…” Riku sputtered, and Kairi tried her best not to laugh. It wasn’t often that she saw him at a loss for words or this shy. He lifted a hand, rubbing the back of his head. “I’m not really the prince type, Kairi.”

“Of course you are,” she insisted, feeling just a bit of payback was in order along with honesty. “You’re kind and patient, and you always come to the rescue when you’re needed. Besides, I feel safe around you.”

With each trait listed off, Riku seemed to grow more and more shy. She wanted to pull him into another hug and assure him that it was true. All of the words she was speaking, the meaning behind them, they were absolutely true. Riku always thought the worst of himself and although she knew he was changing to begin with — this wasn’t what she wanted.

He didn’t deserve to suffer for his mistakes forever.

“If you’re really set on having a prince, save that spot for Sora.”

Kairi’s eyes widened as the name fell from Riku’s lips. He didn’t shy away from speaking about Sora in matters of finding him or the deeds he committed for the sake of the worlds. But on their own, in times when it was only them, he seemed to dance around speaking his name as if he was unworthy of saying it. His hand fell from the back of his neck, hanging loosely at his side as he gazed northward past the broken fence partly submerged where it hung off from the shores and dipped into the ocean.

Kairi followed his line of sight and for a second, she could imagine Sora hopping along the posts while they urged him to be careful. His sunny grin wet when he accidentally slipped and fell into the water, splashing about in surprise. Riku ran after him without hesitation and Kairi returned to the treehouses to grab a few of the sheets to help them dry off after. She squeezed his fingers again as the memory faded along with Sora’s laughter.

“Then what are you?” She asked, turning her gaze back to Riku. He surprised her, constantly. Always deflecting positive affirmations to someone else. She knew that he didn’t mean to. That he was trying to stay within the lines that he’d set and not stray from them. Time would help them both but she wasn’t sure what all was needed. How far did they have to go before they could be together without feeling guilty again.

Riku shrugged, sheepish but receptive as he glanced toward her. A pride in his eyes that reminded her of the boy who proclaimed they’d leave their home world with a simple call of ‘Let’s go’.

“The knight who keeps you both safe.”

Kairi shook her head, tugging lightly on their hands. “We keep each other safe, Riku,” she chided gently, tipping her head skyward. “And we’ll save our prince and then…”

“Happily ever after.”

Kairi looked to him in surprise, the vague amusement showing in his eyes as he laced their fingers together then turned his gaze skyward.

“Yeah,” she echoed back as she stared at him numbly, then turned her gaze upward once more. “Happily ever after…”

#kingdom hearts #sorikai #rikai #riku #kairi #fanfiction #my fanfiction #sora

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twin-moons-ffxiv · 3 years

Text

Layers: Vila Tadmhe

LAYER ONE: THE OUTSIDE

Name: “Vila Tadmhe.”

Eye Colour: “Red!”

Hair Style/Colour: “Red with uh... pink-ish highlights? Yes, it’s naturally like that. It’s... longish? It falls to about my shoulders when it’s down but I usually wear it up in braids and a ponytail.

Height: “I am... just shy of five fulms. Over in heels though.”

Clothing Style: “Whatever is comfortable and/or whatever shows off my figure best.”

Best Physical Feature: “Well depends who you ask. If I had to say for myself, I’d say my eyes. But I’m told I’ve got a great arse, too.”

LAYER TWO: THE INSIDE

Your Fears: “... Being left alone, I suppose? Chasin’ off the people I care about and windin’ up alone and broken.”

Your Guilty Pleasure: “... I don’t usually feel guilty about the things that make me feel good but I guess if I had to name somethin’ it’d be checkin’ out folk I ought not be checkin’ out.”

Your Biggest Pet Peeve: “Mmm. I got a lotta ‘em honestly. But naming one is hard. I suppose the fastest way t’ get me irritated with you is t’ call me ‘kitten’. --Except in VERY specific circumstances...”

Your Ambition For The Future: “I... don’t honestly know anymore. I know what I -want- but I don’t know if it’s realistic. So I don’t know. To make it to thirty I suppose?”

LAYER THREE: THOUGHTS

Your First Thoughts Waking Up: “People think shit when they first wake up? I dunno I think I just lay in bed for a while before going to make coffee...”

What You Think About The Most: “I’d say probably whatever work I’m doin’ that day. I try t’ stay focused on my tasks so my mind don’t wander into sad places. If I had to be truthful? I guess I’d say I think about how lonely I am a lot.”

What You Think About Before Bed: “Nothing?”

You Think Your Best Quality Is: “Um... I’m not sure. I guess I’m a good huntress. I can hold my own in a fight?”

LAYER FOUR: WHAT’S BETTER?

Single or Group Dates: -A sigh.- “Any dates? Solo, I guess. More intimate.”

To be Loved or Respected: “... I don’t think you can love someone without having an amount of respect but I would reckon you mean like... in general would I rather have people love me or respect me? I suppose respect. I only want to feel loved by the people close to me. I’d rather folks who don’t know me to at least respect me.”

Beauty or Brains: “Looks. I can tell you that with complete honesty that brains do not matter to me. I am not smart. I don’t like feelin’ dumb next to smart people who know they’re smart.”

Dogs or Cats: “Dogs. Definitely.”

LAYER FIVE: DO YOU?

Lie: “... yes. To myself and to other people.”

Believe in Yourself: “... It... depends.”

Believe in Love: “I don’t... honestly know anymore. I used to.”

Want Someone: “Yes, but I’m not saying who.”

LAYER SIX: EVER?

Been on Stage: “Yes. I managed t’ get a friend of mine to help me surprise someone once by givin’ a performance at the end of a show at th’ Moogle. It was fun but I dunno if I’ll do it again...”

Done Drugs: “Yes. A few times.”

Changed Who You Were to Fit In: “No. There’s no point.”

LAYER SEVEN: FAVOURITES

Favourite Colour: “Pink! But I’m awfully fond of blue as well.”

Favourite Animal: “Uhm... To eat or...? Oh! You mean like... uh, I guess I like those drakes you see out in Coerthas.”

Favourite Food: “Fish! Any and all kinds of fish.”

Favourite Game: “Never Have I Ever. That one’s fun to play in a large group.”

LAYER EIGHT: AGE

Day Your Next Birthday Will Be: “Uhm... 16th Sun of the 2nd Umbral Moon is my birthday. Only know that ‘cause my twin brother won’t let me forget.”

How Old Will You Be: “... Twenty-eight?”

Age You Lost Your Virginity: “Twenty-three. I know, I know. It’s on the older side. But when you grow up in the middle o’ the woods, you really don’t SEE a lotta other people and the group I did interact with was all women. And I’m not into women.”

Does Age Matter: “It... depends? Lived experience I think matters more ‘nn age.”

LAYER NINE: IN A BOY OR GIRL

Best Personality: “Let’s see... I like someone who is kind and generous with affection. Someone who has a big heart and will be a steady companion for anyone he cares about. Loyal and... selfless. I admire a lot of those qualities.”

Best Eye Colour: “People have a preference for this? Uh... let’s just say green for argument’s sake. Or blue. I don’t honestly care.”

Best Hair Colour: “... b... black.”

Best thing to do with a Partner: “I really like... sparring with my partner? Sparring that turns into... other things is really nice too. Other than that? Just... laying with them in bed while they play with my hair and tell me nice things.”

LAYER TEN: FINISH THE SENTENCE

I love: “... completely. When I love someone, I don’t do it halfway. I give everything I am to it. I suppose that’s why I get so hurt when they leave.”

I feel: “...drained? Empty? Most of the time I suppose that’s how I feel.”

I hide: “A lot of things. Myself? My heart? My feelings? Take yer pick.”

I miss: “.. feeling safe and wanted.”

I wish: “... that I didn’t feel like a failure.”

Tagged by: @ythealleycat

Tagging: @missmeela, @duskblackbird, @dumb-hat, @luck-and-larceny, @baxter-ffxiv, and really anyone else who wants to do it. Have at it.

#vila tadmhe #thanks for the tag!

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kazeofthemagun · 4 years

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❤️Favorites❤️

[tagged: @cursedfortune ]

[tagging: @thextremus / @theobscures , @distantlocale , @scarcrossed , @chaton-encore , and you, further the love.]

♡ Color: Black or red. What a surprise! It’s his go-to colors for the majority of his outfit. Maybe not so much the red, (since he wears brown trousers + vest and a black cape) but the color still holds an important symbolism to him. He’d been told as a kid that having reddish-brown hair rather than plain black is a curse, that such people are surely born from others’ blood. In good Black Wind fashion, he pulled a UNO reverse and instead accepted the superstition as an extra flair to his already fierce persona.

♡ Season: Spring. It’s the time nature comes to life, and the spirits are at their most active. Which means, Soil can be heard more clearly. Springtime is the easiest and most comfortable time for young summoners to practice, plus, he has fond memories of simply relaxing upon the plains with his sister, Moogle, and clanmates. Often he would see young gunmages training vigorously and he would go over and offer his advice. All in all, spring was the season his people were at their liveliest. He preferred to watch from the side but it did bring him joy.

♡ Holiday: He doesn’t care at all for Earth holidays, and he already strongly dislikes Halloween thanks to Ai and Yu, so... Well, there were some holidays back on Windaria, and while he couldn’t really celebrate them as a kid, the Esper Fest which summoners of the Wind cult and their followers held once per year during spring was an easy opportunity for resources. Really, it was hard to go hungry during that one. It was certainly a big occasion for impoverished families out there, and even in adulthood, he recalled it fondly. (He hates charity but only in concept. As in, he’s too proud for help but also not too stupid to accept it when he really needs it.) Plus, he trained as a summoner too which meant it was sort of “his” holiday and he was expected to celebrate it properly. Sure, he would dutifully pay respects to the spirits, but the obnoxious festivities after..? Ehhh... he was really mostly in it for the food. >u>

♡ Location: Kaze mostly travels nowadays, hardly staying put for too long. Perhaps he’s wary of getting attached to people and places, since, his life did not exactly go well? But there are times where he just needs to take some time to hang around folks he likes. In a way, his home is wherever he feels he is needed - he is a sort of guardian, after all. Half-summon spirit, Magun and all. There he’ll be at peace, at least somewhat. So if you’re nice enough to him (and make him go all “huh, why does this person even like me? I’m an asshole.) you automatically become his favourite place to be, at least for some time. And I’m sure you’ll find it hard to tell if he likes you or not, what with all the passive aggression and positively disastrous social skills he possesses, but a telling factor is, he’ll follow you around like a stray dog. He’ll drop by and even stay for a day or two, then he’ll buzz off again. Then he’ll come back to check up on you. He’ll even protect you from anyone/anything shady coming your way. But don’t ask him where he’s been. He may come back covered in blood and carrying trophies. Don’t ask him where he got the Soil from, either. Where do you think he gets it? When he isn’t going after Chaos, he’ll take up odd mercenary jobs and slay monsters for their souls.

Then he’ll bring a wholeass set of Behemoth claws to your house and put it in the kitchen sink. You may keep one. (1)

♡ Activity: So I take it, we aren’t talking about hunting things and shooting, right? Well, it may come as little surprise, but he is rather well-read. He likes poetry. He even writes poetry, and not only the Soil kind. (Woe be you if you find any of it, take it as you will) So he’ll hole up somewhere off the side where nobody can disturb him and just spend all the time, motionless and book in hand. ^^

♡ Film / Show: He doesn’t really watch any. It was hardly a popular pastime on Windaria, the furthest their civilization had gotten in that department being black and white, soundless pictures. Moogle Kupo loved those, but Kaze’d just fall asleep. He’ll look at the screen for a moment then lose interest completely - he doesn’t really like quickly changing images. Unless there’s some sports going on. Then he’ll just focus on the ball and follow it with his eyes for a bit, like a cat. It awakens some part of him that would try to toss a dart at the moving object, or, worse, shoot it.

It sounds ridiculous but you could probably get the same results with a laser pointer.

♡ Food: Bread. He can appreciate fresh bread. Anything you can find in a bakery, really? But he will eat most anything. Spicy food does not even register with him. Most plants on Windaria would have burned an Earth human’s mouth off. But, back on track. He can’t exactly afford to be picky. Most days he can go on very little food, or even without, since he doesn’t need sustenance to survive (or, at least, nearly as much as a regular human.) Whenever he does eat something, though, he’ll “disappear” it faster than you could expect. But first he’ll take it away to eat in some corner. Good luck getting him to sit at a table like a proper human being.

And good luck getting him to wash his dishes.

♡ Beverage: Fresh water. Again, fresh water. He did grow up in a desert city, duh. Later on he developed a liking for alcoholic beverages of any kind, except wine. It’s unlikely you will ever see him drunk, though. It would probably take more vodka than it would to kill a grown man in the first place. And he doesn’t exactly appreciate dulling his senses too much, though the appeal of occasionally forgetting some feelings, he can understand.

♡ Animal: Dogs. Woof? He’ll pet one, even. If it wants to come up to him first. It is very likely he’ll be the only person you’ll ever know who had been petted by a dog himself. Okay, a wolf. A werewolf girl who liked him a bit too much but from whom he learned how fluffy his hair apparently was. (Lou Lupus, lol.)

♡ Flower: He doesn’t care. Maybe even lowkey hates them, what with Gaudium’s main army being constructs made of flowers. And the gardens of Chaos... Brrr. Ask him to name one flower and he’ll just stare. Oh wait, that’s mostly what he does anyway. Right.

He can recognize the “sagisou” (white egret flower), however. Lisa may think he doesn’t really listen, but he does. And he thinks it’s even pretty, for a plant.

♡ Song: Lord Huron - Ends of the Earth

[Thank you! ^^]

#[[muse meme #thank you for the tag! ^^#[[headcanon #some of these were difficult to come up with!#breadposting

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commander-ralyle · 4 years

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Tagged by @sssamson. Thanks for the tag. <3

Soo... This is my blog. Temporarily turned on top posts for the pic. XD

1. Icon: My icon is my Jedi Knight main. I did Esseles alone for shits and giggles and got these awesome expressions. <3

2. Content: I can't even remember why I first got on here. Pretty sure had something to do with @galviron. XD I post whatever I want and find cool these days. Mainly SWTOR, art, FFXIV, and stuff about me. Sometimes PSAs and such. I do my best to not post politics, but slip at times. Sorry. :(

3. Letter color: Don't think I really use any? If I did, it'd be purple or blue.

4. URL: came from when I was a baby healer. My friend and veteran healer @galviron said I couldn't be salty so I came up with sulking and stuck with it since. XD Even made a character with that name. Lmao.

5. Header: Drunk Moogles are a mood and no one can tell me otherwise. I took this picture when I first started FFXIV with my first character and lala, Glen.

6. Blog Title: I am always soooo done with people. But I keep playing games anyways. /shrug

Thanks again for the tag! Tagging @ishtar0110 @galviron (multi ping bwahahahaha) and anyone else who sees this post. :3 Please tag me so I can see it if you decide to. 💜

#don't mind me #tag game #no obligations to do it

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ranier-layarte · 5 years

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LONG Character Survey: Ranier Leveilleur

BASICS.

FULL NAME: Ranier Kyran Layarte Leveilleur

NICKNAME: Ran, Raven

AGE: 21-25 (depending on expac)

BIRTHDAY: 1st Sun of the 2nd astral moon

ETHNIC GROUP: Au ra (Xaela)

NATIONALITY: Eorzean – From Ul'dah

LANGUAGE(S): Eorzean,

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: No

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: Isn't this the same as the above?

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Married

CLASS: Weapon Master

• Proficient in almost all martial weapons.

• Tends to carry multiple weapons at all times.

• Prefers Axes out of all the bladed weaponry

HOMETOWN / AREA: Ul'dah

CURRENT HOMETOWN/ AREA: Shirogane Mansion

PROFESSION(S): WoL, Scion, Machinist, Businessman, Crafter

PHYSICAL: Extremely fit, exercises daily. Muscular build

HAIR: Black/Dark Blue

EYES: Crimson

NOSE: Average, straight, roman-esque

FACE: Straight essentially a greek nose. (At least if I had to try and describe it)

LIPS: A bit on the thinner side, very lightly pink.

COMPLEXION: A mix of Fair and Medium?

BLEMISHES: None

SCARS: Scar on left thigh from stab wound, Scar on left midsection, and upper right thigh.

TATTOOS: WoL tattoo on the palm of his right hand. (Working on giving him another)

HEIGHT: 7'4

WEIGHT: 330 LBS/ 150kg

BUILD: Tall, Muscular, Fit,

FEATURES: None

ALLERGIES: None, at least not yet.

USUAL HAIRSTYLE: Long hair parted in the middle framing the face. Pulled into a ponytail and held with a silver bead big enough for the tail.

USUAL FACE LOOK: Around 40% expressionless, 30% Scowling, 20% Reflective, 10% happy.

USUAL CLOTHING: Higher end clothing generally a mix of casual with formal preferring long pants and a short sleeved shirt. Boots of some kind and armor of some kind at all times. Either under or over the clothes having a preference for the bulkier armors.

PSYCHOLOGY.

FEAR(S): Dying and thereby becoming unable to prevent future deaths and incidents. A fear of the unknown. (Which is part of why he tries to prepare for so many things)

ASPIRATION(S): Being able to amass enough wealth to live comfortably and to continue making the lives of the less fortunate easier. Helping create a better society for all.

POSITIVE TRAITS: Empathetic, Compassionate, Humanitarian, Perseverance, Fairness, Courageous, Loving, Self discipline, Reliable, Thoughtful, Patient

NEGATIVE TRAITS: Bossy, Jealous, Secretive, Grumpy, Harsh, Aloof, Stubborn, Cruel (Only to enemies but that doesn't really matter to people does it?) Arrogant (In some things though less now)

ZODIAC: Pisces

TEMPERAMENT: Mix of choleric and melancholic.

SOUL TYPE(S): King, Warrior, Server (In that order)

ANIMALS: Raven, Bear

VICE HABIT(S): Training, Fixing machines, Drinking, Rubbing Chin,

FAITH: The Twelve (Loosely)

GHOSTS?: I mean if you've seen them you can't deny them.

AFTERLIFE?: With everything we see there has to be right?

REINCARNATION?: Yes, it's clear there is.

ALIENS?: Yes.

POLITICAL ALIGNMENT: Leftist

ECONOMIC PREFERENCE: Prosperous, everyone has what they need. Along with the means to go beyond that if they are willing and able.

SOCIO POLITICAL POSITION: I think there’s enough to go on.

EDUCATION LEVEL: Higher end of the spectrum, attended sharlayan schooling for a few years of his life. (Around three) Was home taught and by other teachers. Extensive knowledge in numerous subjects such as Machinery, Technology, Gunsmithing, Gemology, Business. Holding the equivalent of a mixture of Graduate or Masters in the subjects.

FAMILY.

FATHER: Kyran Layarte

MOTHER: Sahar Layarte

SIBLINGS: Kyari Layarte

EXTENDED FAMILY:

NAME MEANING(S): Ranier (Rainier with out the first I Meaning Wise army apparently)Kyran (Beam of Light) Sahar (Early morning or Dawn) Kyari (???)

HISTORICAL CONNECTION?: My families connection to history? My connection? My father was one of the survivors of the hotgo tribe also. Does fighting in the Calamity among all the other events count?

FAVORITES.

BOOK: Whatever has his current interest, it can very.

MOVIE PLAY: Does this mean Movie or Play?

5 SONGS:

• “Shock me” Baroness

• “Up In The Air” Thirty Seconds To Mars

• “Rise” League of Legends, Glitch Mob, The Word Alive

• “Unbreakable” Of Mice and Men

• “Drown” Bring Me The Horizon

DEITY: Halone

HOLIDAY: Valentione's day

MONTH: March

SEASON: Fall

PLACE: Beside his wife or workshop.

WEATHER: Light rain

SOUND: The turning of pages, the sound of rain, metal moving against each other.

SCENT(S): Smoke, Metal, Old books, and sweat

TASTE(S): Dulcet, Spicy,

FEEL(S): Rocks, Silk, Smooth metals,

ANIMAL(S): This was listed before.

NUMBER: 1? I don't know.

COLORS: Black, Blue, Red, Gold, Silver

EXTRA.

TALENTS: Metalworking, Singing, Sewing, Gem Cutting, Technology, Smithing, Machinery, Dexterous.

BAD AT: Getting rest even now, Not over exerting himself, Not overthinking potential scenarios that may never happen. Dealing with almost all animals, Even now sometimes talking about what bothers him too well, but he’s gotten much better over the years/expansions.

TURN ONS: Caring, Helpful, Courageous, Educated, Aggressive. Listening, Reliable,

TURN OFFS: Selfishness, Boastful, Belligerent, Cruelty, Intolerant, Racism, Weak willed, Careless,

HOBBIES: Creating new things be it machines, armor, clothes, weapons, tools, etc. Working on the same as before. Reading, Exercising, Cooking. Shopping.

TROPES: Pragmatic Hero, Bad ass boast, Big Fancy House, Chekhov's Gun, Determinator, Don't You Dare Pity Me, Genius Bruiser, Heroic Build, It's All My Fault, No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction, Super toughness, Friend to All Children, The Chosen One, The Ace, Ain't Too Proud To Beg, Always Save The Girl, Berserk Button, Death glare, Excuse me while I multi task, Game face, Hypocrite, Lady and Knight, Not So Stoic, Not So Invincible After all, Red Eyes, Take Warning, Stern Teacher, Undying Loyalty, The Power of Love

AESTHETIC TAGS: Workshops, Tools, Kitchens, Weaponry, Guns, Armor, Fine Clothes, Rain, Feathers, Azure Skies, Romance.

VOICE CLAIM(S): Keith Silverstein, (Speaking voice) John Rzeznik (Singing) John Baizley (Singing)

FC INFO.

MAIN FC(S): Free company? Azure Talons.

ALT FC(S): What?

OLDER FC(S): What?

YOUNGER FC(S): What?

GENDERBENT FC(S): What the fuck?

MUN QUESTIONS.

Q1: IF YOU COULD WRITE YOUR CHARACTER YOUR WAY IN THEIR OWN MOVIE, WHAT WOULD IT BE CALLED, WHAT STYLE WOULD IT BE FILMED IN, AND WHAT WOULD IT BE ABOUT?:

• I genuinely don’t know. Something with the grandeur of lord of the rings maybe? But with the ability to add comedy and romance in the proper way. I'm all for serious movies but I enjoy the ability to add a well executed joke or sweet moment. It also would probably not just be a single film. Taking the general events and using my fics as material would probably be fine.

I’d have to think about it a lot more than I will right now

As for the name, well, I don't really have many options. But, probably something with Final Fantasy XIV as the main title. Give it a JRPG title I suppose as a sub title. Sort of like Warriors Dissonance or Uncovered Stories.

Q2: WHAT WOULD THEIR SOUNDTRACK / SCORE SOUND LIKE?:

• Ambient, switching to full of energy, able to convey emotion. Again mentioning LOTR, the score by Howard shore is really great and able to accompany many scenes in such a fantastic manner. As for the other bits perhaps the addition of artist tracks such as from favorite bands and those songs that have meaning to him. Like the ones listed above.

Q3: WHY DID YOU START WRITING THIS CHARACTER?:

• As a way to work on and show that, a character doesn't just have to be overly reliant on tropes and cliches. That those are good as part of them but not as defining traits of them. Along with breaking some of those. Like how all protagonists always have dead parents, what's up with that? I enjoy seeing characters that try to break their molds and be more than that.

Q4: WHAT FIRST ATTRACTED YOU TO THIS CHARACTER?:

• My general thing in any game where you can create your own character has always been. To make who you'd want to be in this universe. I did that and then worked on it and reworked things until I got what I have now. So also, yes, he was a self insert.

Q5: DESCRIBE THE BIGGEST THING YOU DISLIKE ABOUT YOUR MUSE:

• Hard one I suppose but. I'd say how he is capable of doing so much. Even though I work with it as it is a key part of him, it's still hard to make him feel right, feel human when he's got these clear incredible strengths. He's very proficient at so many things some would maybe say he's a mary sue type of character. I make an effort to work on how he became that way to offset it. So it's a lot of extra work than if I had him being a more archetypal hero of his type. I may dislike this the most but I also like it. Love hate relationship you know?

Q6: WHAT DO YOU HAVE IN COMMON WITH YOUR MUSE?:

• A good part of our attitudes and personality though on his end they are greater generally. Along with our want to be as best as we can at certain things.

Q7: HOW DOES YOUR MUSE FEEL ABOUT YOU?:

• Honestly, and in my current state. He would probably be very upset with me and to just know me or the hand I have in his creation and self.

Q8: WHAT CHARACTERS DOES YOUR MUSE HAVE INTERESTING INTERACTIONS WITH?

• Alisaie Leveilleur – She is the main one being his main love interest, girlfriend, and wife later. Though overall he sees her as an equal and a partner, which is part of the reason their relationship grows as much as it does. Along with giving someone who he can trust in and rely on, and vice versa.

• Finn Hogveart - Who harasses Ranier often enough especially with his pet and regarding moogles.

• Alphinaud Leveilleur - and him sometimes get along strangely due to Ranier's relationship with his sister. For a long time he tried to spy on Ranier and make sure he was good for his sister even though he knew he was a good person.

• Cid Garlond - Ranier sees him as a mentor of sorts, along with someone that he can bounce ideas off of and work with on projects leading to a solid relationship between the two. The two sometimes bicker regarding their work but it's always just them being passionate for the projects.

• Gerolt Blackthorn – Similar to cid in some ways. Ranier looks up to Gerolt and his ability to continue making such amazing creations. Wanting to learn more regarding the processes means Ranier visits him when possible, bringing some drinks for him when he does. Almost having a relationship like bros. Ranier also sometimes has gone to try and sway Rowena on his behalf to lower his debt.

There are more but I don’t want to make this too much longer.

Q9: WHAT GIVES YOU INSPIRATION TO WRITE YOUR MUSE?

• I do not control the write, also Alisaie.

Q10: HOW LONG DID THIS TAKE YOU TO COMPLETE?:

Uhhhh maybe an hour all together. Over the course of three hours.

==========

Tagged by: @amandafullmetal @lyllyan-weiss

Tagging: @heyafinney @anikisbox and anyone who wants to do it that sees this.

#Ranier Leveilleur #Ranier Layarte #I did the best I could with it with the time i put into it.#I'm not the best at these either Hopefully someone finds new things or interesting #things from it

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menphinasbow · 5 years

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yvaine; neverending survey

BASICS.

FULL NAME: Yvaine Aradia (birth name Yvaine Mhenravi)

NICKNAME: I don’t know if Khit’li has any nicknames for her actually

AGE: I don’t keep track should be around 22-23

BIRTHDAY: 15th Sun of the 4th Astral Moon

ETHNIC GROUP: Miqo’te Keeper of the Moon

NATIONALITY: Gridanian

LANGUAGE/S: Common Eorzean

SEXUAL ORIENTATION: Heterosexual

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: Demiromantic

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: Married

HOME TOWN / AREA: all over Eorzea

CURRENT HOME: Mist, La Noscea

PROFESSION: Bard, Warrior of Light, Slayer of Primals, Moogle Collector

PHYSICAL.

HAIR: Long wavy turquoise with streaks of green

EYES: Emerald green

FACE: Oval

LIPS: Small, red

COMPLEXION: Pale as the moon

BLEMISHES: None

SCARS: Multiple battle scars, nothing permanent except one on her lower back from when she was little - one of her adopted siblings pushed her to the ground because they lost an archery duel with her and she hit a sharp rock

TATTOOS: None

HEIGHT: 5′

WEIGHT: 120 ponze

BUILD: Petite

FEATURES: Three grey clan marks on her cheek

ALLERGIES: None

USUAL HAIR STYLE: Always wore down or on a ponytail, and later on side ponytails

USUAL FACE LOOK: Confused or concerned

USUAL CLOTHING: Practical but chic adventuring gear. Leathers and armor in earthy tones and shades of green or blue. When not working, can be found wearing dresses that are more on the casual side rather than extravagant styles, making sure movement is always unimpeded.

PSYCHOLOGY.

FEAR/S: Failure, loss, being lonely or left behind, rejection

ASPIRATION/S: To be a mother and have a happy family of her own

POSITIVE TRAITS: Dedicated, loyal, responsible, brave, honest, friendly, helpful, optimistic

NEGATIVE TRAITS: Naive, gullible, politically inept, inflexible when it comes to right and wrong, keeps putting others’ needs before hers, map illiterate

TEMPERAMENT: Phlegmatic

SOUL TYPE/S: Server

ANIMALS: She’s basically a puppy

VICE HABIT/S: Doing something obviously dangerous without thinking when the fate of the world hangs in the balance

FAITH: Nymeia, Hydaelyn

GHOSTS?: Those who have died in her name

AFTERLIFE?: She knows where dead people go

REINCARNATION?: She likes to think so

POLITICAL ALIGNMENT: Hates politics

EDUCATION LEVEL: Self taught and a smattering of short term schoolings

FAMILY.

FATHER: Ihko’to Rhisfu (deceased)

MOTHER: Nihva Mhenravi

SIBLINGS: Only tons of foster siblings

EXTENDED FAMILY: Unknown

NAME MEANING/S: None in particular

HISTORICAL CONNECTION?: None

FAVORITES.

BOOK: Romance and fantasy

DEITY: Nymeia

HOLIDAY: Starlight

MONTH: April

SEASON: Spring

PLACE: The ocean

WEATHER: Sunny but not too hot

SOUND / S: The waves of the ocean, the strumming of harp strings, birds singing, Moogle noises, Khit’li’s voice

SCENT / S: Sea salt, the smell of spring, flowers, delicious food

TASTE / S: Sweets, cakes, chocolate, oranges

FEEL / S: The wind on her face, water lapping on her feet, the sure string of her bow and the strength of her arrows, cuddling against the warmth of her husband’s body, and lately the baby moving inside her

ANIMAL / S: Bunnies, cats, butterflies, nutkins, all small woodland animals

NUMBER: None

COLORS: Green, blue, white

EXTRA.

TALENTS: Archery, string instruments, singing, attracting cute animals

BAD AT: Negotiating, determining people’s true intentions, having common sense when it comes to her own safety, reading maps, using magic of any kind, close range/bare handed fighting

TURN ONS: Loyalty, humor, sincerity, steadfastness, dependability, kindness

TURN OFFS: Cruelty, injustice, arrogance, rudeness, selfishness

HOBBIES: Singing, swimming, making music, weaving, helping people, collecting as many Moogles as possible

TROPES: It Sucks to Be the Chosen One, Heartwarming Orphan, Evil Parents Want Good Kids, Skilled, but Naïve

QUOTES : “you know you were never meant for carrying this world your legs tremble beneath the weight yet, you take another step no, you were never meant for this but, that will not stop you from trying.”

MUN QUESTIONS.

Q1 : If you could write your character your way in their own movie, what would it be called, what style would it be filmed in, and what would it be about?

A1 : I don’t know what it’d be called, but I know the style will be epic fantasy ala Narnia or LotR to showcase all the out of this world aspect of it and what else would it be about? Yvaine’s Warrior of Light journey of course.

Q2 : What would their soundtrack/score sound like?

A2 : Same kind of epic fantasy feel. Lots of choral music and string instruments.

Q3 : Why did you start writing this character?

A3 : Because I like to treat every character I play in a video game as a fully fleshed out character with their own story. That’s why I could never use my own name in video games (while my husband always does, lol). And I already had a ready-made RP partner in @keeperprinceling which totally helped. Also the FFXIV story is too good to not play around in to be honest.

Q4 : What first attracted you to this character?

A4 : How she survived in this world when she started out having nothing. Pushing her on this adventure and seeing her discovering things and reacting to them for the first time was interesting to me, made me want to write more about her story and connect all the dots from her past that brought her here, being who she is today.

Q5 : Describe the biggest thing you dislike about your muse.

A5 : I struggle with making her interesting enough for other people to be interested in her. I feel like she’s just this cookie cutter do-gooder who is your cliché Warrior of Light type of character sometimes, but I also don’t want to betray the character to make her “edgier” or more interesting in ways most people probably look for. I like her the way she is, even if she leans toward the boring/bland side.

Q6 : What do you have in common with your muse?

A6 : We both love cute animals. That’s about it, lol. In a lot of ways, Yvaine is the polar opposite of me in that she’s wildly optimistic and extroverted, like she actively seeks out new people while I run and hide every time I hear the doorbell rings and aggressively hiss at the world in general.

Q7 : How does your muse feel about you?

A7 : She probably just wants me to stop putting her through all these never-ending quests and let her have that family already.

Q8 : What characters does your muse have interesting interactions with ?

A8 : Characters that are complicated and are not black and white brings the most interesting interactions out of her, because Yvaine herself is very simple in her thoughts about good vs. evil. But when she comes across people like Iceheart and Nero and any Garlean defector (especially when forced to work with them) her inner conflict and her inability to understand where they stand gives me life.

Q9 : What gives you inspiration to write your muse ?

A9 : The game itself and its story. Sometimes silly things like finding a house side by side with her husband (which spawned our Neighbors AU) and the Scion outfit which looked like school uniforms made me think of a high school AU. But I’m usually triggered to write by events that happened in the MSQ itself.

Q10 : How long did this take you to complete ?

A10 : I filled everything in up to this last set then I let it sat in the Drafts for like a week because I kept forgetting it’s there.

tagged by: @alannah-corvaine ♥

tagging: this is long, so do it if you feel like it!

#character meme

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theaetherhealerffxiv · 5 years

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Hey everyone! Swath and Mun here, I wanted to address something that I get asked a lot in game - and wanted to turn it into something educational! So here we go on a instructional lesson about the differences between the fetish F*ta and Intersex/FTM (trans) characters!

Please know I don’t want to create any discourse I just want to educate!

Now, Let me preface that I am a (mostly) CIS female (uh, moogle I guess.) I have tendencies to lean toward intersex things even though biologically I am fully ‘female’ and am rather happy with being such. So, I in no way speak for anyone that is trans or truly intersex. Everything I know is from educating myself, and having wonderful people around me.

“Wait Mun, We’h get asked ah lot if I’mma ah, whatevah tha fetish ish, wha is it?”

HOHOHO I’m glad you asked my lovely boy, lets start off with some definitions!

Just a warning: As these are definitions I will not be censoring the word for them, my apologies!

Futa, is short for Futanari: specifically a fetish that is accounted to the Anime/Manga [Hentai] industry. It features a character [usually female presenting] with female bodies and a penis.

Usually the term used in these cases are hermaphrodites. But in essence they are not true hermaphrodite.

Intersex in contrast is: when a person is born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that does not quite fit the usual societal definitions of male or female. [Please note there are categories within intersex for simplicity sake I will not go into here.]

These people can grow up feeling like their assigned gender is incorrect in various cases they at birth are put under the knife to ‘correct’ their genitals to ease the parents/doctors concerns. These people can also have varying conditions/genital combinations which I will link below in my reference section.

Transgender is when: a person whose gender identity does not correspond to that persons biological sex assigned at birth.

I’m sure by this point you are saying ‘mun this is great and all but why is it so bad to call a intersex/trans character f*ta? Isnt that what they are? If they have a penis + female form?’

My answer to that is no! Please do not call a Trans/Intersex character a f*ta. Those who participate in the fetish will usually clearly have it in their tags. While trans/intersex characters will clearly state it in theirs. While participating in the fetish f*tanari is not a bad thing many people within the trans community feels that it is a slur and thus we come to the next portion of my talk manners!

Please do not send a tell straight out to someone who’s tags say intersex/trans asking if they are a f*ta.

Not everyone is kind online and for the safety of everyone it is truly best if you work up to the question differently: or at least politely ask.

Proper way: “Excuse me, is your character a f*tanari?”

Incorrect way: “You a f*ta?”

Generally if their tags do not state it the answer will be no. Or, there is a possibility that they will out right block you straight away. Usually for their mental health. Not everyone is say as kind as I with these things, people can get offended, people will ignore you, f*ta’s are a clear community in the RP community and that’s fine, but again I have to reiterate that it will likely 100% be in their bio/tags.

Now I’m sure you are saying “Yeah mun thats great but why are you bringing this up all now.”

Mostly because I constantly get asked this in game rather rudely.

I don’t mind answering. But Swath is not a fetish character: he is a character with real health conditions (that have been slightly fantasized so that his model can be how he actually looks for my sake). His plights exist in the real world, real people are born with his conditions and they are not something to turn into a fetish.

By all means enjoy f*tanari, if you enjoy the fetish please don’t think I condemn you. Far from it, but within the spectrum of rp/the online world fetish’s are often looked upon in a rude/demanding fashion. I am all down for a conversation but I will not take kindly if you demand to have sex with my character because he has boobs and a penis.

That being said here are my references if anyone is curious and have a wonderful day/evening! If anyone has anything constructive to add please do so in the comments!

Definitions:

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/transgender

https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/sexual-orientation-gender/gender-gender-identity/whats-intersex

https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/futanari

Further reading on Intersex:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intersex

https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001669.htm

#I wrote this at 2 am cause i couldnt get it out of my head #ffxiv #ffxiv shadowbringers #ffxiv stormblood #ffxiv heavensward #FFXIV A Realm Reborn #ffxiv mateus #mateus server #mateus rp #balmung #balmung rp #balmung server #balmung ffxiv #ffxiv rp

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derpyslurpy-da-derp-master · 5 years

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@khoc-week Day 3-Friends Or Foes

Welp, this one took a good long while simply deciding which of my Keykids to introduce (along with writing the drabble below that includes the final member of this trio that I didn’t have time to draw) and I finally settled on my actual Main Keykid (my actual Union X avatar) who’s a lad named Kor and he’s basically like a little brother to Chase. He’s also in Ava’s Union just like Chase. He’s smart, a strategist, equipped with good medals, and... Rather timid actually. While Chase doesn’t do the normal missions anymore because there’s just too many to do, Kor is legitimately stuck on his current mission because he’s a completionist and doesn’t want to do a single level without getting all three extra goals finished and that just isn’t possible most of the time. He’s also only an inch or two shorter than Chase but that doesn’t mean Chase isn’t going to lovingly tease him about it. Usually whenever Kor does a mission, Chase will tag along to make sure Kor doesn’t get hurt doing something he really shouldn’t. Kor’s favorite Keyblade is the Starlight Keyblade and he’s upgraded it into the 30′s because he loves it so much for both it’s look and how balanced it is in every element. His favorite medals are a mix between the Foreteller’s (especially Ava/Gula) and this mysterious ‘Xion’ girl, he collects any medal that has the latter on it out of curiosity to learn more about her. The latter also earns him a fair amount of friendly teasing from Chase too. Despite how much Chase teases him, Kor knows that he never intends any harm and Chase never goes to far, it’s more like how an older brother would tease their younger sibling.

Anywho, onto le Drabble!

“Sup Shorty?” Chase grinned as he ruffled his best friend’s already messy, curly hair. Kor gave his usual timid smile and chuckled a small bit.

“Nothing much, I’m just trying to figure out how many Jewel’s I need to get the main medal of this next pull.” Kor replied, returning to his number crunching.

“Let me guess, another Xion pull?” Chase teased, poking Kor’s cheek which caused Kor to shove said hand away.

“Hey, this medal is actually really good stats-wise!” Kor pouted, puffing up his cheeks with a huff as he pulled his goggles over his eyes.

“Riiiight, that’s why you’ve got every other Xion Medal. You just think she’s cute don’t you?” Chase teased further as he sat down, grinning wolfishly at how his friend’s face erupted into a dark scarlet color.

“N-NO! T-THAT’S NOT IT A-AT ALL!” Kor waved his hands in an ‘x’ for ‘no’ frantically as if to physically kick the notion out. Chase broke down in laughter, putting an arm around Kor with a more friendly smile.

“I kid I kid, I know you just want to know who she is. I’m pretty curious about who these people in our medals are too. I mean, there’s two different names for the same guy in different clothes! That’s just weird!” Chase reached into Kor’s satchel sitting on the table where he kept his medals and pulled out two medals, one labeled Roxas and the other labeled Ventus.

“Yeah, that’s pretty weird... Just as weird as all the different ‘Xehanort’ medals. Why would we get medals of the same man in different stages of life? Why is one of them ‘Terra’ but with silver hair? Why is the youngest one labeled ‘Kingdom Hearts III?’ And I swear I saw some guys that looked a lot like younger versions of the ‘Marluxia’ and ‘Larxene’ medals, what could that m-”

Kor’s rambling was cut short by someone else sitting next to them and bopping the top of his head to get him out of said ramble. He glanced up in confusion only to quickly smile brightly.

“O-Oh, hi Anya! I was rambling again, wasn’t I?” Kor chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. The strawberry blonde just chuckled in response, her low pigtails bouncing a bit at the movement, her lavender eyes filled with amusement.

“Yep, you were. I’ve got something for you two actually.” Anya smiled and held up a gift bag, the kind you get from the medals shop. Both boys tilted their head almost in sync, eliciting another chuckle from the girl.

“Chase, this is for you.” Anya reached into the bag and pulled out a rather strong-looking Terra medal, causing Chase’s eyes to light up as she handed it to him.

“Duuuude, I don’t have this one at all! Thanks man!” Chase smiled brightly, checking its stats over before putting it in his pocket along with the rest of the medals he keeps on Moogle ‘O Glory, planning to upgrade and add it onto the Keyblade later.

“And Kor, this-” Anya reached in and pulled out none other than the medal Kor had just been doing calculations to get and handed it to him, “Is for you.”

Kor’s eyes widened then proceeded to dart between Anya and the medal questioningly.

“I did the pull just to get some new better medals, I didn’t really want the main one they were selling since there aren’t any Power slots on this bad boy,” Anya summoned her favored Keyblade, Divine Rose, to illustrate her point. “And I figured hey, if I get it I’ll just give it to Kor. So, there you go little buddy, have fun.” Anya pat his shoulder before taking her leave, probably to upgrade the medals she wanted to keep from the pull.

“Thanks Anya!” Chase called after her retreating figure before glancing at Kor who was still looking at the medal buggy-eyed, pulling his Goggles back onto the top of his head.

“...This is exactly the medal I was missing, not just in my collection but in my Keyblade-” Kor quickly summoned Starlight, taking out a rather mediocre medal out of the power slot directly in front of his already extremely powerful Gula Medal and placing the HD Xion in it’s place.

“...This’ll let me do my second most powerful medal twice. I’ve been looking for a medal like this!” Kor smiled brightly, seeming as excited as a kid on Christmas Morning as he always did when he found medals better than the ones he already had.

“Well lookie there, your obsession with Xion has finally come in handy!” Chase started to tease Kor again but he was too excited to care at all. Chase just chuckled and smiled, leaning back in his seat.

As he sits and thinks a bit, he remembers the three trio’s that always appear in the medals. He definitely gets why they stuck to three, ‘cause while Chase was pretty friendly with pretty much everyone, it was nice to have two close friends too...

#Kingdom Hearts #Kingdom Hearts Fanart #Kingdom Hearts Union X #KH OC Week #Chase KH #Kor KH #Original Art #Original Oneshot

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thedarkrose17 · 5 years

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Chapters: 6/? Fandom: Final Fantasy XV Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Prompto Argentum/Noctis Lucis Caelum, Gladiolus Amicitia/Ignis Scientia Characters: Prompto Argentum, Noctis Lucis Caelum, Gladiolus Amicitia, Ignis Scientia Additional Tags: Mutual Pining, Eventual Relationships, Accidental Baby Acquisition, Bisexual Prompto Argentum, Gay Noctis Lucis Caelum, Asexual Noctis Lucis Caelum Summary:

The first thing Prompto wakes up to is concerned voices and someone fussing or whining.

It takes a few moments to sit up, adjust in the tent and glance around. It’s just Ignis, Gladio and a fussing baby. He blinks and looks again. The baby wasn’t here last night. ☆ ☆ ☆ A.k.a The astrals get tired of Prompto and Noctis' pining and decide to try and get them together

Update~

Read under the cut or on the link :)

He's awoken at Six knows what time. All he knows is it's dark and Prompto is wriggling up a storm next to him. Honestly he's never been awake when Prompto is asleep so at first he chalks it up to something normal the blonde does in his sleep.

Noctis is ready to attempt to go back to sleep until the sleeping blonde starts talking and he notices Prompto's face is scrunched up and he's damp with sweat next to him.

"...No." he practically whimpers on repeat before jolting upright and scaring Noctis as he screams "STOP!" as his eyes spring open.

His scream seems to wake the others up.Solis wails, clearly startled awake. But it seems the blonde is too panicked to even hear it. He's drained of colour.

Noctis quickly flicks on a bedside light, brightening up the room. He's pretty sure his heart just punched his ribcage. Does Prompto normally have nightmares?

The blonde is sweating, panting heavily. He should talk to Prompto. See if he can help soothe him.

"Prom?"

Prompto glances over, eyes wide and filled with fear for a second before a shaky gasp leaves him. He quickly puts a hand over his mouth and trembles. Tears beginning to slide down his cheeks.

Noctis takes in the sight and his heart sinks, he drags him in a hug without a second thought, feeling Prompto grip onto his shirt with trembling hands.

His Moogle onesie quickly gains a wet patch where tears are rapidly falling onto it but honestly he doesn't care not when his best friend is hyperventilating against him.

He keeps a tight hold on him, the blonde muffling a sob of anguish against him. It's heartbreaking to hear along with the frantic gasps in between and tugs at the onesie like he's terrified that if he lets go Noctis will vanish.

He kisses Prompto's head and practically rocks him, holding him as close as possible, muttering over and over how everything is ok as he rubs his back.

"S-S-Sol." he gasps as he trembles.

Noctis glances over to the cot to see Ignis holding the baby, he's trying to soothe the wailing infant the best he can. He wears a concerned expression that honestly Noctis is sure he's mirroring.

"Iggy has him. He's ok I promise. Just breathe. It's ok I swear.." Noctis carefully starts up breathing exercises and looks relieved when slowly Prompto starts to copy him.

Ignis hums in agreement as he looks at Prompto's trembling form.

Gladio even looks concerned, asking what happened to which Noctis mouths nightmare. Gladio winces sympathetically, remembering when Iris used to have awful ones.

"N-Noctis." Prompto gasps. He doesn't say his first name fully often. He glances up at the Prince and touches his face almost like he's checking if he's real.

"I'm ok. Don't worry." Noctis glances at Ignis in concern as he rubs Prompto's back.

"Would you like to talk about this nightmare?" Ignis asks. "We can offer reassurance."

Prompto shakes his head.Noctis is pretty sure it was about losing them or he wouldn't be freaking out this badly.

"I promise it won't happen." Noctis mutters to Prompto. "Just a nightmare. We're not going anywhere. None of us."

"You sure?" Prompto asks with a gasp and sniffle.

"Look at me."

Prompto sniffles and pulls away from the embrace a little so he can look at Noctis. He sniffles as more tears fall.

Noctis gently holds his face and looks directly at him.

"I promise we're not going anywhere. We're still in the hotel. We're safe. I swear." he mutters, gently wiping the blonde's tears with his thumbs.

Prompto sniffles and offers a weak smile.

"Thank you." he says swiping at his own nose.

He still looks shaken so Noctis carefully flops down with him, loosely holding him in case Prompto wants to break free of the hold.

Prompto glances over at Ignis who's putting a sleeping Solis back into his cot. Ignis glances up at Prompto before he heads back to bed, concern in his eyes.

"'I'll be ok." Prompto mutters. "Just a nightmare."

Ignis glances over at Gladio who sighs.

"Kid'll be fine Iggy. Relax."

Prompto hums in agreement and Noctis yawns next to him. After that Prompto goes quiet, trying like the others to settle back down to sleep.

* * * He doesn't sleep again. Anxiety and paranoia keeping him awake. He's checked on Solis and Noctis over five times in the night, got up to use the bathroom about three or four times and paced back and forth in the hotel room a couple of times.

Finally he's back in bed. His stomach feeling awful and his head finally is beginning to erase that awful nightmare. He hopes nightmares concerning Solis and Noctis don't become a regular problem.

He sighs and grips onto Noctis, slowly falling to sleep.

* * * Noctis gets a call around lunch time from Wiz. He answers it while Prompto tiredly plays with Solis. Prompto should really take a nap.

Noctis listens to the call and smiles fondly at the news on the other end he receives. He tries to keep it a surprise as Prompto looks over, completely puzzled and only says: "We're going to the Chocobo ranch."

Prompto cheers tiredly, flopping over on the carpet as Solis decides now is the perfect time to munch on his papa's hair.

Prompto whines and complains but can't find it in him to move Solis.

"You shouldn't have lied in his reach." Ignis says.

"He makes he feel comfortable Iggy." Prompto yawns.

"He's your kid so you should be comfortable with him." Gladio pipes up.

Noctis stretches and agrees before everyone packs for check out.

"We're both comfortable with him. He's a ray of sunshine~" the blonde coos.

* * * The journey back was long. Prompto slept throughout the entirety of it. He even slept through them dropping Iris back off in Lestallum.

Unfortunately for Ignis case having the only female of the group leave means everything starts to slip and certain people get far too comfortable.

Another unfortunate case is the weather being miserable so they can't fold up the roof to gain fresh air since a certain royal is dead set on ruining the breathable air.

"Noctis." Ignis sighs, winding the windows down for the well honestly he's lost track how many times he's had to wind them down then back up due to the miserable weather.

"I-It was Prom!" he cries, looking a little embarrassed.

"Don't blame the kid when he can't defend himself." Gladio huffs, he maybe smelling his book to deal with what little fresh oxygen they have. "Fess up Princess."

The royal squirms in his seat, even Solis on his chest looks angry with the current situation. He's been wiggling angrily in Noctis' arms. The only one who's uneffected by this is Prompto.

The blonde is slumped against the royal, breathing softly and blissfully unaware of the fact he's snoozing against the culprit and has been in a danger zone. He's in too deep of a sleep to even care honestly.

After this minor issue the car goes silent, Gladio returning to reading and Solis' baby rage beginning to quell as Noctis blushes over the whole situation.

Ignis sighs.

"I ask next time you give a warning beforehand or at least open a window."

Noctis feels like he's dying of embarrassment.

"Do you warn when you do it?" Gladio speaks up, snorting a little as the advisor turns a slight red.

"I don't do such a-"

"Yeah you do." Noctis and Gladio reply.

"Carry on this slander and you'll both be served toast." Ignis huffs, smiling to himself as the car fall silent once more.

* * *

The rest of the trip is peaceful. Noctis naps with Prompto and Solis and Ignis and Gladio talk quietly to each other.

The blonde must be exhausted he's only awake for five or ten minute intervals before drifting back off. Maybe the travelling hasn't helped him either.

"What day is it?" Gladio asks.

"Sunday. Our anniversary is tomorrow." Ignis states, a smile crossing his lips.

Gladio smiles softly. "Want anything special?"

"Your companionship is enough. Our funds are dwindling, I can manage without a gift."

"What if this gift didn't need Gil."

Ignis blushes lightly, gripping the wheel.

"I know what you're implying but we're not alone."

"We could set them up camping."

Ignis sighs as he focuses on the road.

"Have them camp closer and I'll think about it."

"So that's a yes babe?"

Ignis glances back at him.

"It's a we'll see...Darling."

* * * Prompto wakes up fully and stays awake when they're about ten minutes away from the ranch. It seems he's forgotten their destination, probably due to how exhausted he'd been previously.

"We're heading to the Chocobo ranch." Ignis says before Prompto asks. He smiles when Prompto does a stage whisper victory jingle.

"I've missed Sugar~" he coos, thinking about his blue Chocobo. He's excited to see her.

"She's had companionship with Spice." Ignis states. "He's rather protective of her." Truly he's baffled how Prompto and Noctis' Chocobos managed to become an item quicker than their obviously pining owners.

"Astrals they're adorable." Prompto sighs, looking out of the window. "So why did we come? No complaints, I'd happily raise Sol here."

"Noct got a call. He's keepin' it under wraps." Gladio answers.

"Suppose we'll find out when we arrive then." Ignis chirps up, earning sounds of agreement from the back seats.

* * * Noctis is just about awake by the time the park up. He's surprisingly the first one out with Solis who's flailing happily back in the baby carrier on Noctis' chest.

Ignis and Gladio are trailing behind, keeping a watchful eye while Prompto decides to rush ahead to catch up with Noctis and Solis.

Solis squeals at his arrival and jams a fist into his mouth. It's extremely cute and makes Prompto and Noctis smile.

"Hi baby~" Prompto coos as Noctis also talks to the baby.

"Hey Sunshine."

Both are rewarded with a cute giggle from Solis before they fall into a comfortable silence as they walk.

"Sooo…" Prompto speaks up after a few minutes. "What's the surprise?"

"If I told you it wouldn't be a surprise." Noctis replies with a smirk.

Prompto snorts and agrees.

"Can I get a hint though? A iddy biddy hint."

"Chocobos."

Prompto gives him an unimpressed look which makes him laugh.

"You'll find out in like a second."

Prompto pouts, it's adorable and too much for his crush themed feelings so he stares down at Solis who's staring at...Honestly Noctis has no idea what he's looking at but he seems happy enough.

Honestly he wishes he could kiss off Prompto's pout but he's sure he'd die of he tried. That or scare off Prompto and that's the last thing he wants. * * * They head off to a stable which confuses Prompto, more so when he spots Sugar and Spice together.

"Is she ok? What's happening?" Prompto asks, anxiety rising. She's sitting down, she doesn't seemed to have noticed the company as Spice preens her.

"She's fine. She's not sick don't worry." Noctis replies.

"Sugar?" Prompto calls for his Chocobo who kwehs softly when she notices him but makes no effort to move which worries him more. She usually heads over.

Spice meanwhile heads over to greet Noctis and Solis. Solis whines, still unsure but the bird is gentle and Noctis carefully let's Solis pet him.

"He's soft." Noctis reassures the baby. "I'll keep you safe."

Prompto melts a little at that as he heads over to Sugar who ruffles her feathers and makes herself look like a blue cloud almost.

It takes Prompto a second to notice as the bird readjusts she's in a nest. He gasps and stares at her before looking over at Noctis.

"Wiz said he found them like this. She's been incubating it for two weeks now but Spice wouldn't let anyone near at first so he waited to call us." Noctis replies. "He's protective. I get it." He pats his bird's neck softly and smiles.

Prompto gets it too but all he can do is sob and babble to his Chocobo about how happy he is. He knows it's an ugly sob but he's too happy to care as he congratulates her.

Sugar kwehs and nuzzles him, almost trying to comfort him.

Ignis and Gladio watch, talking to each other.

"It would be laughable how the birds got together before their obviously pining owners if it wasn't so bloody painful." Ignis mutters.

"Hopefully they confess before the kid turns ten." Gladio mumbles back.

"Ten is extreme. I'd say three." Ignis replies.

"Generous. Wanna bet on it?"

"Name your price darling."

"Twenty Cup Noodles."

"That's ridiculous." Ignis mutters.

"Fifteen then?"

"No Gladiolus."

"Ten that's the lowest I'll go. Deal?" Gladio offers an outstretched hand.

Ignis sighs and shakes it.

"Fine. Ten it is. And if I win?"

"Ten cans of Ebony. Only fair."

Ignis agrees and offers him a smile. "Perhaps we should leave them alone and check on our own birds."

Gladio agrees,putting an arm around Ignis' shoulder and leading him out.

* * * "How long till the chick hatches?" Prompto asks when he, Noctis and Solis head out of the barn finally.

"Three weeks left I think."

Solis flails and Prompto leans down to kiss his head.

"Yeah there's gonna be a baby chick~" he coos to Solis.

"I mean we already have two Chocobos on the party. What's one more?"

"Two?" Prompto asks confused. "We'll have five."

"No. You and our little Chocobo chick he-."

Prompto gasps and covers Noctis mouth, he looks betrayed and a tad disgusted when Noctis licks his palm to free himself.

"Ew!" the blonde cries, quickly moving his hand and wiping it on Noctis. The royal complains a little about that to which Prompto replies by sticking his tongue out.

Noctis laughs and Solis begins to fuss in his baby carrier.

"I think he's due a feed." Prompto says and Noctis agrees.

"I'll do it when we get to the Caravan."

* * * When Solis is fed it turns into an late afternoon nap for the trio. Prompto curled up against Noctis' side and Noctis holding both of Solis and Prompto close.

Prompto snores a little, Solis drools on Noctis' shirt but he loves both of them and wouldn't trade them for the world. Having them next to him usually is warm and comforting but currently it's not helping him out.

He seems to be having a nightmare if his scrunched up face and little noises of discomfort are anything to go off.Prompto cuddles him, nuzzling him in his sleep which seems to help rid the nightmare as Noctis' face relaxes again and the noises of discomfort stop.

None of them seem to notice a certain shield snapping a picture of them and proceeding to send it to Iris saying how he wonders how they're still oblivious pining dorks when they're like this.

He receives back a response of various crying emojis and heart eyes along with cute in capital letters then he feels familiar arms wrap around him and he practically leans into them. He knows by scent alone it's Ignis. He always wears this fancy cologne that he can't name but smells amazing.

"You realise he won't be pleased by this. It would be treason if it was anyone else."

Gladio rolls his eyes and smirks.

"I know."

Ignis watches as he sends photos of Solis to Prompto and Noctis' phone. They beep and Prompto grunts, planting a sleepy kiss on Solis' cheek before going still again.

"Figured they'd want some." Gladio says.

Ignis smiles and agrees.

"I'd like one too." he mutters.

"...A baby or a photo?" Gladio asks.

Ignis sighs and lifts his glasses up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Photos."

Gladio quickly sends them off muttering about how that could have been taken differently.

* * * Prompto is bathing Solis' in the sink. Gladio and Ignis have gone off to set a tent up a small trek away on some nearby ruins. Prompto has no idea why they're doing that when they paid for the caravan but he supposes it can get cramped in here.

Solis is beginning to adjust to bathtime. He's content to just stare at Prompto and smile whenever the blonde talks to him or sings to him. Prompto thinks he's a precious bean but Noctis would be offended at him calling their baby a bean again.

"Hey Noct?" Prompto calls out as he washes Solis' baby hair.

"Mm?"

"What would be Sol's title? Like it doesn't really matter to me but like what's in classed as?" Prompto asks.

"...A Prince too I guess."

Prompto looks confused by this.

"Ok so none of us really have kids before we get married. Granted the Astrals made him."

"...But how can you both be Princes?" Prompto asks.

Noctis shrugs. "Just can work that way. I mean I might turn into a Duke if I got married before being on the throne."

"So what's the female version?"

"Duchess."

"And two dudes are just like Dukes?" Prompto asks, earning a shrug in response.

"I mean there's been gay Kings and Queens but like they also have like three lovers too."

Prompto chokes.

"We don't do that anymore!" Noctis yells, face red. "Rulers can marry whoever."

"What about commoners?" Prompto asks, hoping it didn't give him away.

"Falls under anyone Prom. They'd just become a Duke or Duchess or Prince or Princess if they married a King or Queen."

Prompto drains at the thought, he's not good enough to be a possible future Prince or possible Duke.

He zones out as he rinses Solis' hair before beginning to wash him and it's Noctis' voice that snaps him back seconds later, oblivious to Prompto's reaction due to the blonde's back facing him.

"Prince Solis Argentum-Lucis Caelum...Is kind of a mouthful."

Prompto hums in agreement.

"I like it though."

"Me too." the Prince replies.

Prompto hums before Noctis speaks up again.

"Want to go for a drive?"

"But Iggy will be-"

"I think they're busy Prom. We'll be back before they know."

Prompto sighs and looks at Solis, smiling a little as the baby looks around.

"Fine just let me rinse the suds off him and dry him off." * * * The trio head to the car after Prompto redresses Solis and straps him up in the baby carrier on Noctis' chest. Solis flails at the sight of the car before yawning widely which makes Noctis rub his cheek.

"You sleepy?" he asks the baby who stares before sneezing.

Noctis looks confused and Prompto shrugs before glancing at Noctis.

"Who's driving?" the blonde asks, startling as Noctis lobs the keys at him.

"You drive. Sol will probably mess with the horn."

Solis squeals at the sound of his name and the boys laugh, they take it as his version of agreeing with Noctis.

* * * Prompto flicks on the radio as he drives, Noctis flicking through the songs or turning scarlet when Prompto sings, smiling softly at him but the blonde seems oblivious to that.

A song plays and Prompto taps the steering wheel to the beat. Noctis doesn't have a clue what it is but Prompto sings along happily:

'Show me, show me, show me how you do that trick The one that makes me scream she said The one that makes me laugh she said Threw her arms around my neck Show me how you do it and I'll promise you I'll promise that I'll run away with you, I'll run away with you'

Noctis huffs and quickly switches the station earning a whine from Prompto. Last thing he wants to imagine is some girl throwing her arms around Prompto's neck.

"I don't like it." the prince mutters as flimsy explanation before he quietens down for the new station's song. Neither of them know the song they assume is jazz.

'Love is funny, or it's sad Or it's quiet, or it's mad It's a good thing or it's bad But beautiful Beautiful to take a chance And if you fall you fall And I'm thinking I wouldn't mind at all'

The duo turn scarlet at the song, all sappy and sweet, seeming to be about falling in love and it's cute and all but it's making him die inside imagining Noctis in a suit slow dancing to something similar with him at a fancy event.

Noctis meanwhile seems to have ascended to the Astral plane or he's zoning out honestly it's hard to tell. The only one seeming to have a good time is Solis. Every new song is a new exciting thing for him.

Prompto gulps and quickly switches over the station to something more modern that is less sappy and something he actually knows. Noctis probably has too judging by the look of recognition in his eyes.

'Your love, your love, your love I miss that Your love, your love, your love I want that Your touch, your touch, your touch I need that'

Noctis turns red and stares at Prompto as he sings, the blonde locking eyes with him and pausing. A blush dusting across his freckled cheeks and his mouth slightly open.

The moment feels like it lasts forever when actually it's a few seconds before a squeal from Solis quickly snaps Prompto's attention back to the road. The blonde panics and quickly turns the wheel so they're back in the lane fully.

Noctis gently runs a hand through Solis' blonde baby hair who settles instantly at that. The duo apologise to him, more Prompto for taking his eyes off the road for a second.

Solis coos and attempts to reach the radio, it seems all is forgiven.

* * * They manage to fill the car up and get back just in time as Gladio and Ignis return to check on them. It's a panic dashing into the caravan but somehow they manage.

After that the couple go and pick up supplies for dinner which leaves Prompto alone with Noctis and the baby. He smiles and turns on a portable radio in the caravan and scoops Solis up in his arms.

Solis squeals at the cheesy old pop song on the radio. He doesn't understand it but he rather enjoys his papa holding him and singing.

Prompto laughs a little at him and holds him close, dancing a little to the cheesy song making Solis cling to him and peek over his shoulder.

Noctis notices their son's excited expression and smiles at him. Sure he can laugh at Prompto singing the sometimes gibberish lyrics but honestly it's kind of a cute scene as a whole. Their baby squealing in delight at points and smiling a gummy smile and his crush bouncing around and singing to said baby.

Noctis laughs when Prompto turns around to him and pulls a silly face before going back to singing. Prompto sings out to Noctis in the tune "Come join us~" to which Noctis blushes and shakes his head. He wouldn't be caught dead dancing to a song so cheesy.

Prompto just sighs dramatically and carries on before pausing on the singing to talk to Solis, who has no idea what's being said but he's having the time of his life.

"Daddy doesn't want to have fun with us little dude." he mutters to the baby who attempts to grab a piece of Prompto's hair.

Noctis sighs and speaks up, he makes it seem like it's a hassle but Prompto can tell by the smile on his face he's not too fussed.

"Fine. Next song I'll join you."

"Even if it's a cheesy one?" Prompto asks.

"Sure but all I know is the waltz and there's not enough room for that." Noctis replies.

"We'll lead then. Won't we Sol?" Prompto smiles, voice rising in pitch to Solis who coos. He doesn't understand but he likes hearing his parents speak, bonus if it's to him.

Noctis smiles and waits for the next song.

* * * Ignis finds the small family dancing in the caravan, he was going to say dinner was ready but he can't bring himself to interrupt this moment.

Prompto leads/makes a dance up and Noctis mirrors it, Solis squeals happily when he manages to lock eyes with Noctis making the boys smile at how precious their baby is.

Ignis decides to wait until the song is over before speaking up. The duo startles and Solis reaches out for Ignis with a coo.

Ignis smiles and heads over, taking the baby.

"Apologies, I didn't want to interrupt but dinner is ready."

Noctis' stomach growls and he heads out first with a blush. Prompto meanwhile trails behind and stops Ignis before he leaves.

"Iggy I have a problem."

Ignis looks concerned and goes to reply but Prompto continues.

"N-Not a medical thing or like anything!" the blonde blurts out.

"Are you certain?" Ignis asks, adjusting his hold on Solis so he can place a hand on Prompto's shoulder. "This will stay between us don't worry. Unless it's a safety concern obviously."

Prompto nods and blushes, biting his lip and glancing at Solis. The baby coos and sneezes, whining moments later. He mutters over and over how it's ok before talking to Ignis.

Hearing that it'll stay between them gives him a little more confidence. He swallows and breathes out before looking up at Ignis.

"I'm in love with Noct." the blonde says, surprised his voice isn't shaking. His palms sweat and he gulps, why is he so nervous telling Ignis this?

Ignis smiles at him and Prompto looks confused.

"Aren't you surprised?"

"No. I already knew. I've known since you both were teenagers, you looked rather smitten with him at times. I'm surprised Noct didn't pick up on it." Ignis replies making Prompto's jaw drop.

"...W-Who else knows?" he asks.

"Gladio, Iris, your father to name a few."

"C-Cor knows?" the blonde asks.

Ignis nods. "It's not hard to miss truthfully."

Prompto groans and sighs.

"Any other problems?" Ignis asks, gently removing his hand from Prompto's shoulder and repositioning Solis in his own arms.

"Yeah...One more...I want to...I want to express my love to him. I don't know how."

"How about something simple that will get the message across?" Ignis asks.

"...Can you help me?"

Ignis smiles and nods.

"What do you want to do?"

"Make a message with something sweet." Prompto says. "Like chocolates or something?"

Ignis feels proud of him for gaining the confidence to make the first move.

"We can manage chocolates. What do you want it to say?"

"Um...I like you." Prompto says with a crimson face. Astrals this man is precious.

Ignis can work with this. He would have personally added a 'Will you be my boyfriend?' to the mix. But baby steps, he'll try and see if Prompto's brave enough to add that later.

"What if he doesn't like me?" Prompto asks, looking terrified. It's heartbreaking to see honestly.

"I'm doubtful Prompto."

"But-"

Ignis carefully leads the way out with Solis and Prompto follows.

"Just take a few deep breaths and try to enjoy dinner. I promise you, it'll work out."

Prompto swallows and nods, Ignis handing him back Solis and the blonde heading over to sit near Noctis with the baby.

Ignis sighs.

"He's just as oblivious." the advisor mutters to himself.

#promptis #darkrose17 writes #darkrose17 writing #i pray people like this update T-T

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atsushishelteredinmoonlitjasmine · 5 years

Text

KH3 Grievances and Blessings

As of this date, April 8th, 2019, today marks the end of my KH3 journey. I'm recording the date because I know there's DLC for KH3 coming out within the coming months and I don't know whether it'll be plot-related or just gameplay patches/changes (Like Critical Mode). Regardless, I wanted to write down my thoughts and feelings towards KH3 because, like many others, I had been awaiting the release of this game for a long time (Though not as long as others) and, as soon as the game was released in Japan, I blacklisted/muted KH3 tags so as to not be spoiled. It took me over two months since the worldwide release on January 29th to see what KH3 had to offer and, while the main story part ended on April 4th, today was the true end to everything else.

Now I want to make two things clear. First off, I never played KH3. I watched an LP of it, due to money and I didn't wanna wait months for this game. That's also why it took this long for me to write this. Secondly, as of the time writing this, I haven't read the Ultimania outside of some unrelated details since, before April 4th, I made doubly sure to avoid spoilers because I still wanted to be surprised at the ending, despite my predictions of it. If there are some things I bring up in this that are answered in the Ultimania, then link me those.

I'll also be going through practically every aspect of KH3 I can think of, such as the graphics, the gameplay, the story, etc. However, to keep things organized, I'll talk about the main story towards the end of this, since that's where I believe I'll have the most to talk about. Think of it as if the first half was the minor stuff and the second half the major. I'll even mark where it splits off so as to make it easier to know where to skip to.

Listed below are KH3 spoilers, so if you don't want to get spoiled, now's your chance to stop reading. Otherwise, here are my thoughts!

Let's start with the graphics. They are simply gorgeous, sometimes even breathtaking. As many people have pointed out, the in-game graphics are on the same quality level as the old-school FMVs from the older KH games. Even when the cutscenes go to pre-rendered, they are super beautiful. The only complaints I have are, in pre-rendered cutscenes, character models tend to look weird in certain shots. It's a minor complaint but I feel like the characters come off as being... shiny, if that makes sense. I know one of the complaints for 0.2 was that Aqua looked plastic and it seems like, in an attempt to stray away from that end of the spectrum, they made everyone look shiny. Again, that's only in the pre-rendered cutscenes, not in-game itself so... Another complaint was that, in the beginning with Sora and co. heading off to and their visit to Olympus Colosseum, it's easy to tell that they were using the 0.2 graphics because Sora looked exactly plastic. Afterwards, they switched to the current graphics but it's still kinda jarring, in a way. I feel like it may have been to save money, considering the big amount of money they spent on everything else.

Secondly, gameplay. The gameplay, overall, seems solid. It's using the KH2 combat, combined with the BBS shotlocks, Links/Summons, Keyblade transformations, DDD's Flowmotion, and Attractions. However, it also feels overwhelming to have that many gameplay styles/mechanics stuffed into one game. I feel like Nomura was trying to do the same thing that Sakurai (Creator of Smash) did with Smash Ultimate by taking the positive aspects of the previous games' combat and stuffing them into this game, almost as if it were a love letter to the KH fandom. I'm not saying that that's a bad thing, I just think it was clumsily handled.

This leads into a mini-point I had about the difficulty. As I said earlier, Critical Mode, which has been a difficulty setting since KH2 (I believe?), wasn't included in this game, which was considered weird. The LPer I watched KH3 from had played the previous KH games on the hardest difficulty and he believed he'd play KH3 on Critical. Because of this exclusion, he played on Proud Mode and this was absolutely the easiest KH game. It is so easy to overlevel, it is hard to die unless you're purposefully playing terrible or turned on "No Experience", and some gameplay mechanics, I feel, break gameplay. Attractions in particular are ridiculously gamebreaking, due to the insane amounts of invincibility frames and power some of them have. Speaking of it being hard to die, overleveling goes hand-in-hand with that but the fact that you can buy Kupo Coins from the Moogle shops makes Proud Mode a joke. To explain what Kupo Coins are, they are one-use items that basically make it to where it instantly revives you if/when your HP drops to 0 and you can buy many of these coins. They're essentially get-out-of-jail-free coins which, if you're playing on Hard Mode, shouldn't be a thing. There's also a minigame where you can cook all sorts of meals that can grant you any kind of boosts with Remy from Ratatouille. The stat boosts from even the simplest of meals are ridiculous and they also make dying hard to do. I understand that the crew wanted to make KH3 welcoming to newcomers but I feel this is going a little too far in not making the players feel frustrated each time they die in Proud Mode.

Thirdly, the non-original worlds. It's hard to decide whether or not I like them. On the one hand, they're the largest they've ever been, they're expansive, and the crew were able to successfully capture the look of each movie they adapted. On the other, the stories can be hit or miss, they throw tons of enemies at you (which absolutely contributes to the overleveling I mentioned), and they don't serve much of a purpose in the main story outside of fanservice. Some of the worlds were an absolute delight, such as the Tangled and Monsters Inc worlds, while others were a slog to get through, such as the Frozen and Big Hero 6 worlds. This is merely my opinion so don't take it too seriously. The way they decided to go about the stories within each world was to either: 1, be a Cliffnotes version of that world, or 2, create an original story set after the events of the movie. The first way was not a good decision because, out of all the new worlds they revealed for this game, I only watched Hercules, Toy Story, Monsters Inc, and Tangled, so when the LPer I watched headed to the other worlds that weren't mentioned, I was thoroughly confused. The second way could be pretty hit or miss, because I remember getting tired of the Toy Story world towards the end but I enjoyed the story of the Monsters Inc, due to how cute it was. Going back to what I mean by these worlds not serving a purpose, I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility to say these were meant for the express purpose of padding. The reason given for exploring these worlds is so Sora can learn the Power of Waking and, if he doesn't learn it in that world, he'll go to the next and rinse, repeat. I won't go into detail in this section but I'll explain more about it when I get to the story section.

Fourthly, the music. This is probably the one of the few aspects that stayed consistently good. Although I could tell there were more pieces of music that I had heard in other games, Yoko Shimomura still made it fresh by reorechestrating those. I'll give her some slack with those because I can imagine that, with how far into the series KH is and how many themes to keep track of, it was probably easier to remix existing songs than make an entirely new soundtrack. Still, there were some new pieces of music (Most of which from the aforementioned worlds) that I liked. The Toy Story fight music is an absolute bop and the Monsters Inc world music is so whimsical and fun. There were some really nice mashups as well, such as the Other Promise/Vector to the Heavens mashup and Oscuritia de Xehanort. I haven't had a chance to listen to all of the soundtrack yet so these were just the ones from the top of my head.

Fifthly, the voice acting. This is just a personal thing for me, since I want to become a voice actor someday and I like to observe/take mental notes whenever voice acting is involved. The voice acting in of itself is good. Sora was his absolute best in this game, especially in that one scene we ALL know from the trailer and it broke my heart hearing that in-game. Mostly everyone was good, too, aside from some weird line deliveries and voices not fitting some characters. However, I have to point out how... weird the voice-acting is with Terra, Aqua, and Xehanort. Xehanort was probably the weirdest because I'm so used to Leonard Nimoy's Xehanort that this one was kinda jarring. Rutger Hauer is the new VA and... I know he doesn't have the same raspy, gravelly voice Leonard Nimoy had but I feel his Xehanort just doesn't fit the character as much, especially since I noticed Xehanort sounded like he had a very slight Irish accent in this game. Rutger Hauer is Dutch so I don't know how I heard Irish but I'm gonna chalk that up to never hearing a Dutch person speak before. Terra's definitely the best acting out of these three but compared to the other two, it's not much. While it's not bad, I still prefer his 0.2 performance since it seemed like he put effort into that. Terra seems to share the same problem I have with Aqua in that he never raises his voice up above being low. It's hard to tell if he does because they only got Jason Dohring in for two scenes (the Wayfinder Trio reunion and the stupid Xehanort redemption scene), despite being a main character. Aqua was in more than two scenes but her voice acting was kinda the worst, which kills me because she's my queen. For some reason, her voice never goes up above low talking and I don't know if it's just me but she constantly sounds as if she's being cut off. Like, the sound mixing for Aqua makes it sound as if she's cut out at the end for each of her sentences. This was a problem that was present in 0.2 but I brushed that off since I figured 0.2 was not considered a full game by itself. I don't know whether or not it's Willa Holland herself or the voice director for both games but Aqua can be allowed to be emotional other than angry, raise her voice, and not be cut off.

Oh boy, the sixth point. Let me start off by saying this is merely a personal gripe I have and it's fine if people disagree with me or even don't see what I'm saying. I'm just stating this because I talked about this issue on my Livetweet Thread and I want to bring this up. Now... there are instances in this game where Sora express self-doubt or have other characters express worry for Sora (and Aqua for one time) to Donald, Goofy, and Mickey. Each time this was brought up, we had them saying the answer of "they're strong so they're okay". Normally, I wouldn't really be offended at this if it was for one or two times. KH3, however, has this happen several times and... let's just say I got a little testy. The characters this answer was said to or about were Aqua, Sora, and Elsa (as far as I can remember), all of whom I can safely say have issues with their mental health. Sora's the only one I can't definitively say (outside of headcanon territory) but even then... Sora has problems with his self-worth and his sense of strength, Aqua, for all we know, probably has depression and POSSIBLY PTSD, and Elsa definitely has depression and self-image issues. To the Disney characters, any time these issues are brought up, they somehow correlate physical strength with mental fortitude and think that answer is perfectly okay to say. I'm probably reading way too much into this but the way I take it, each time they say that answer, it comes off as Sora/Aqua/Elsa are being weak and need to get over it. The first example I'll bring up of this is when Riku and Mickey are in the RoD trying to save Aqua the first time and Riku expresses worry for Aqua, who's been in this hellhole for 11 years at this point. Mickey just says she'll be fine because she's strong, which baffles me because how does he not remember how Aqua was the last time they met? She was straight up about to succumb to the darkness when he saved her the first time and when she said to him she wasn't sure how much longer she'd be able to ward off the darkness, he just said she'll be okay. Like, she has been stuck in this hell for over a decade, being tormented and having to fight for her life constantly, all the while losing hope she may get out. The one time she's finally close enough to get out, it's snatched away from her. No wonder she was pissed off at Mickey for leaving her when they met again! The second example is any time Sora was expressing doubt in himself over being strong enough and he had Donald and Goofy say he'd be fine. This, to me, made it seem like they were placing such high expectations on Sora to be strong that he wasn't allowed to have moments of emotional vulnerability which I wouldn't be surprised contributed to the worsening of the self-doubt and the culmination of that despair scene. Again, I know it seems like I'm reading too much into this but this was something that legit made me angry. As someone who relates to Sora's self-worth issues and Aqua's depression, I don't think someone telling me that I'll be fine because I was strong constantly would make me feel better. If anything, I'd probably feel worse because I'd be too afraid to appear being weak around that person lest I betray their expectation of me being strong that I keep my feelings of weakness to myself until I eventually broke down. To give benefit to the Disney characters, I believe they were genuinely saying what they thought was best in those kinds of situations. Hell, maybe they even thought that, by saying that, the character would believe them and think they were silly for thinking they were worthless. But I don't believe the Disney characters are good role models for the importance of mental health, given their track record. Still, this was a personal gripe of mine and everyone is free to disagree with me on this. I don't even know if I made any sense in this but I tried.

Now we move on to the major stuff. This next half will mainly include my opinions on the story, the characters, how they were handled, etc. and everyone is free to disagree with me on any of those. I should also warn that any of the next sections may be lengthy, though it wouldn't be me if they weren't. There may also be some instances where I talk about how I would've rewritten some scenes, since there were some that desperately needed to be rewritten or re-edited or whatever else (which will be marked with *). However, I'll write those up in a separate thing because this entire post is mainly for my thoughts on KH3 as a whole and not just certain scenes. Besides, I don't want to bog this post down even further so...

Where to start? Well, I think it may be good to start with the plot and its loose threads. KH3 seems to have a problem with introducing plot threads and then dropping them off with no resolution, meaning they'll either be answered in the upcoming DLC or in the next game (Release dates unknown on both options). We have Maleficent and Pete looking for a black box (A significant thing in KHX, if you've watched Back Cover), the complete drop-off of Vexen and Demyx, the new seven Princesses of Heart, Subject X, the reveal that some of the New Organization members were Keyblade Wielders from the past, the whole thing of the heroes coming back after dying, and possibly other threads I cannot remember for the life of me. Again, I understand that these threads may be picked up in either the DLC or the next game but we don't know when either of those will be released. In a game that's supposed to bring answers to the many questions that were brought up in previous games, we still end up with many other questions that haven't been answered.

Let's go back to my mention of the non-original worlds serving no purpose other than fanservice. As stated in the beginning, Sora needs to learn the Power of Waking so that he can find and save Aqua in the RoD and, later on, awaken Ventus's heart so it'll return to his body sleeping in Castle Oblivion/Land of Departure. However, every time he reaches the end of a world, he still hasn't learned the Power of Waking and so goes to another world to see if he'll learn it there and rinse, repeat. In the newly-returned Land of Departure, it's stated that Sora had the Power of Waking in him all along, which made the trips to the worlds completely pointless. As someone pointed out in their review of KH3, while the Disney worlds in previous games served little more than fanservice, they at least had a goal in which the protagonists needed to fulfill, such as locking and unlocking the worlds, finding lost friends, and defeating those that pose a threat. In KH3, while the goal has been to learn the Power of Waking, it ultimately becomes meaningless upon revealing that Sora had the power within him all along.

Speaking of which, this leads into another thing that legitimately made me angry. We are never told what the Power of Waking is or what it does, only that it is essential to saving Aqua and Ventus. I had to learn from the comments section on YouTube what the Power of Waking was and it still wasn't fully explained what it was. Whenever Sora would be in Yen Sid's tower, Yen Sid would keep telling him that he needed the Power of Waking to venture into the RoD and everyone chastising Sora for being too impulsive and I'm just sitting there like "If you probably told him what the fucking power was, he'd probably have an easier time trying to learn it". It's one of those things where, if Sora were under my writing control, I'd have him slowly getting more and more frustrated over being told to learn something he doesn't understand and isn't being told on what it is that he'd eventually snap. I have some personal experience with that so maybe it's my bias talking.

Next thing I wanted to bring up was my thoughts and feelings towards the third act and the ending. I'll start from the Anti-Aqua stuff to the scenes right before the ending first. Anti-Aqua, while one of the best fights in KH3 (if you're not overleveled and using Attractions), is very quick. I mean, you do battle her a bit as Riku then switch over to Sora to full-on fight her and then she's saved but that sequence doesn't last long. It goes from Aqua calling out Mickey for abandoning her to fighting her to saving her then going off to save Ventus. Even the way she succumbed to darkness wasn't very... climatic. Earlier in the game, Ansem SoD surprises Ansem the Wise and Aqua as they're sitting on the Dark Beach from Blank Points and, after a pretty pitiful fight between Aqua and Ansem SoD (Totally understandable, though), she gets hit with a Dark Ball and falls into the dark ocean as the darkness consumes her. When I first watched the trailer revealing Anti-Aqua, I had a different idea in mind for how Aqua succumbed to the darkness* and the canon kinda disappointed me with how quick it came and went. Moving on, Sora, Aqua, and Disney (Dolan and Gooby) arrive at Castle Oblivion/Land of Departure to save Ventus and then Vanitas shows up. Aqua's only playable during the fight with Vanitas and she's taken out of the action as soon as he threatens Ven. Cue Sora learning the Power of Waking, saving Ven, Ven about ready to kick Vani's ass, and Sora and Ven meet for the first time. Then we move to Yen Sid's tower where everyone has a little chat and prepare for the fight tomorrow. Nice little scenes ensue (Riku meeting with Repliku, Sora and Kairi FINALLY becoming a couple, Aqua and Ven talking about how they'll save Terra, Lea and Saix eating atop the clocktower) then it's off to the Keyblade Graveyard! After an awesome fight with 10000 Heartless and shit, everyone fucking dies. You think it's a joke, no, everyone straight up dies! Terranort manages to take out Ven, Lea, and almost Kairi as well before Dolan pulls out the Zettaflare and vanquishes his ass. A Demon Tide comes into the mix and after becoming a cyclone, kills everyone except Sora and Riku because they were hit with the Stick of Incompetence. Sora and Riku join soon after and we meet with Chirithy in Purgatory! Sora abuses the Power of Waking to bring everyone back from the dead with Kairi's help (BTW, that's the only useful thing she does in this game) and somehow they forget that they died then proceed to almost die again immediately afterwards! Lingering Will shows up with next to no reason why, keeps Terranort busy while everyone fights the Demon Tide again until the power of Union Cross defeats it once and for all. Many New Organization fights later and Kairi getting the Damsel in Distress treatment YET AGAIN to only die later and Sora finally fights Xehanort. Even then, Xehanort manages to corrupt Kingdom Hearts but he's then used as a time portal for Sora and Disney to go to Scala ad Caelum to fight him there. Xehanort manages to forge the X-blade and actually kills Sora before he revives again with the power of friendship to defeat his wrinkly, veiny old ass. Xehanort then gets hit with a dose of Creator's Pet syndrome, which causes him to somehow be fucking redeemed as he goes to the KH equivalent of Heaven with good ol' brother Eraqus. Sora then decides to abuse the Power of Waking once more to save Kairi and, after he successfully brings her back, gets hit with the Thanos snap and disappears. In Secret Endings, the Foretellers come back, Xigbar is revealed to be Luxu, and Sora and Riku are in Shibuya and Shinjuku respectively, probably about ready to play the Reapers Game! If I missed anything, feel free to disagree!

I may have gone jokey after the Anti-Aqua fight but let me break the last paragraph and a half down. The Land of Departure sequence is nice, except for the part Vani one-shots Aqua in order to get to Ven. She doesn't throw up a barrier or try to deflect the magic with her Keyblade, she just tanks the hit which, if anyone's ever played Aqua in BBS, she ain't like Terra or Ven. It's only because Sora was able to awaken Ven that Aqua didn't get skewered on Vani's Keyblade. Aqua's a Keyblade Master who's fought and won against Vani twice, why the hell did she lose to him here? That, however, is NOTHING compared to her treatment in the Keyblade Graveyard. After Ven and Lea are taken out and Dolan annihilates Terranort, a Demon Tide becomes a Demon Cyclone and, after she, Sora, and Riku decide to fight it, she suddenly gives up and lets the Demon Cyclone kill her*. WHAT THE FUCK?! You mean to tell me that Aqua, a Keyblade Master who's spent 11 years in the RoD fighting for her life and was FINALLY brought back to the RoL, took one look at the Demon Cyclone, which is just a bigger version of the Demon Tides she's fought before, and decided to do suicide by cop? People from the comments section on YouTube try to justify this by saying she had PTSD and/or she was mourning the loss of Ven but I can't see her basically committing suicide over either of these reasons. I'm normally all for Aqua having PTSD because I can imagine that being in a stressful environment with everything trying to kill you on a daily basis isn't good for your mental health but she doesn't show any of the signs for PTSD and she doesn't give up on living the second time the Demon Cyclone shows up. As for her mourning the loss of Ven, I can MAYBE see that but I feel like Ven's death would give her more motivation to defeat the Demon Cyclone because one of the reasons why she fought so hard to get out of the RoD just died in front of her and she'd probably be pissed the fuck off. It may be my love for my oceanic queen coming through but she got hit with the Stick of Incompetence in KH3, along with many other characters.

The one character that was practically killed with it was Kairi. She easily became one of the most disappointing things from KH3 in that she was given the Damsel in Distress treatment yet again and was only killed to give Sora more angst/development. People were expecting her to do something and make herself useful and were instead given shit on a dirty platter. Yes, I know it's stupid to expect Kairi to fight on the level of a Keyblade Master. I don't think anyone was expecting that of her, considering how she literally started training with Lea days, or even weeks, before the final battle. However, we don't see her fighting at all, outside of the battle with Saix and Xion before she gets kidnapped again by Xemnas. She doesn't try to fight back against him and just lets herself be taken, not to mention how she just stares at Terranort after he takes out Lea, not even trying to defend herself*. This girl seems to have no survival instincts, whatsoever. The only useful thing she does in this game is bring Sora back from the brink of death so that he can save everyone else and that's it. While it's a good thing she did that, it's not really explained how she did that, other than 'Princess of Heart' BS.

I'm starting to believe that Nomura genuinely has no idea on what to do with Kairi. To me, he doesn't know what to do on making her stand out from the rest of the cast and has to keep turning her into a faux fighter. In terms of fighting, he doesn't know what to make her as. In my mind, Aqua and Xion (the only female fighters, since Namine is a non-combatant) have two different fighting styles. Aqua's more focused on magic and staying a distance away from her enemy while Xion's more focused on brute strength and getting up in her enemy's face. Kairi then should be the balance between the two, using both magic and strength to her advantage to keep her enemies on their toes. I should stress that I myself am not good at defining fights in general so I may be completely wrong on this but this is merely my interpretation/suggestion. There's a lot more I want to talk about with Kairi but these last two paragraphs pretty much summarize my point. I want to stress that I'm not blaming Kairi for her shitty writing. I'm blaming Nomura because he doesn't know how the fuck to write her as.

Which leads me to my next point of how I feel Sora got hit with a dose of Creator's Pet syndrome in this game. This is probably a point that people will think "Of course it's like that, Airi. He's the main character", which I agree with to an extent but... I'm probably the only one who thinks this but I feel like Sora was made out to be too... important, if that makes sense. In terms of reconnecting lost friends and defeating Xehanort, that's fine. However, also being the one to solve everything by either defeating the enemy or saying stuff from a typical stock shounen series kinda rubbed me the wrong way. It's hard for me to explain in a way that doesn't make it seem as if I don't understand a main character's importance but I'm trying. Here's how I see it: while it's been stated time and again that Sora is the one to connect everyone (Memory's fuzzy on that part) and I know he has to fulfill that purpose in some way, KH3 puts so much emphasis on that, it downplays the other characters' importance or even ruins any chance of development they could've gotten. Sora has to have the spotlight no matter what, even at the cost of characters who need it more. The biggest example of this is Xehanort killing Kairi so it gives Sora more motivation to beat him. Sora was given more development at the cost of Kairi's own. As I said before with Kairi, I'm not blaming Sora for this, I'm blaming Nomura because he decided to give Sora more development than he needed/should've had and sacrificing the other characters in order to boost the already massive value his role has. Hopefully, the DLC will give the others the much-needed development they need.

Speaking of which, it's not only the heroes who got mishandled in this game. Three specific villains (Young Xehanort, Vanitas, and Luxord) come to mind and it somehow got worse down the line. In the Toy Story world, Young Xehanort gets verbally beat down by Woody. In the Monsters Inc. world, Vanitas get yeeted through several doors by Mike and Sulley. In the Caribbean world, Luxord faints because Jack Sparrow had bad breath. These are villains we're supposed to be intimidated by/motivated to defeat and they're made into a complete joke in the world they're antagonizing. Young Xehanort got off easy compared to Vanitas and Luxord, since all he had to deal with was Woody giving him a scolding and brushing it off like nothing. As much as I like the Yeetus Vanitas joke, you mean to tell me that Vanitas, the darkness gremlin himself, didn't sense Sulley sneaking up on him or even try stopping himself from being yeeted through more doors after the first few? What about the Gambler of Fate? He faints because Jack had a little rum in his breath after he got to play pirate again? If that scene was meant to be funny, it accomplished its purpose, just not in the way it was intended to, because how the fuck am I supposed to be intimidated by Luxord when he gets taken out due to someone's bad fucking breath? The way the New Organization's written as is anywhere between being inexplicably strong and able to kill everyone (with the exception of Sora after a despair-induced death and revival) to being laughable and weak enough to be yeeted through doors and taken down by bad breath. That's totally good writing!

Getting back to the story, let's move on to the abso-fucking-lutely stupid Xehanort redemption scene. In the game proper, after he's been defeated once and for all by Sora with the power of friendship, it's revealed that the reason why Xehanort went on this crusade to control Kingdom Hearts was to restore balance and essentially reset the world. He's basically portrayed as this person who, in his pursuit of restoring balance to the world, resorted to extreme methods that almost achieved the opposite of what he wanted. To be fair, that in of itself isn't bad and probably would've made Xehanort an interesting antagonist. However, this completely contradicts what we know about Xehanort before this point! If he really wanted balance, he shouldn't have been spreading darkness to every world he and his incarnations have been to! Even disregarding that point, he's manipulated, controlled, and ruined so many lives. He took control of Terra's body after spending the entirety of his story manipulating him, almost killed Ventus with creating Vanitas if not for Sora's timely intervention, manipulated and controlled Riku, manipulated all of Organization XIII while using them for empty heart tanks, and killed both Eraqus and Kairi! If we're supposed to feel sympathetic for him, why not show him regretting doing all that, hesitating, anything to make us think he didn't WANT to do that but had to in order to accomplish his goal? Then there's the fact Eraqus decides to just forgive him for all he's done, as if he forgot that Xehanort's the reason why he's dead in the first place and almost ruined his pupils' lives, who he saw as his own kids. I get that they once saw each other as brothers but you'd think that relationship would've soured once Xehanort scarred him and dumped a nearly comatose Ven on him. I know Eraqus got a lot of shit from the fandom because of how he acted in BBS but he was at least sympathetic. While he was ultimately wrong in how he treated Terra and Ven, he only decided to kill Ven because he didn't want the X-blade to be forged and cause another Keyblade War and he admitted to Terra he regretted his actions towards him and Ven, all the while crying. THAT’S how you write a character who's majorly fucked up but regrets it and is sympathetic. Not whatever the fuck we were supposed to get from Xehanort. For the third time in this post, I'm not blaming Xehanort for the BS way he was written, I'm blaming Nomura, which is funny since he stated that Xehanort was his favorite character, leading me to think he'd actually try writing him decently.

With that out of the way, we can FINALLY get to the ending. As I said before, Sora decides to abuse the Power of Waking once more to bring Kairi back to life and, after successfully doing that, fades away as if he got hit with the Thanos snap. I'm surprisingly okay with this ending, if only because I know there's going to be more KH games coming out with the confirmation that Sora will still be the protagonist in those games. Normally, I'm against endings where the protagonist dies (unless under special circumstances and even those have to be pretty special) because I like to see stories where the protag, who's gone through a journey full of pain and emotions and any other number of issues, finally gets their happy ending. To me, who writes to escape from the dark and sometimes painful aspects of life, happy endings give characters who've fought so hard for them or characters who were previously unable to achieve them the rest and happiness they deserve (Like the Wayfinder and Clocktower Trios staying together after being reunited). It's hard for me to explain but this isn't the place to talk about that. As I was saying, I'm okay with Sora 'dying' because it showed the consequences of him abusing the Power of Waking too much. From my interpretation of it, the Power of Waking could be used to resurrect the dead, rewrite reality as we know it, etc., but its main purpose is to 'awaken sleeping hearts'. Riku used it properly in DDD to wake Sora up and Sora used it properly in this game to wake Ventus up. The PoW, to me, is the equivalent to playing God, which REALLY goes against my beliefs. I don't know whether it's due to my (loose) Christian faith, my beliefs towards death that I've formed over the years, or because I watched FMA, that mortals messing with things they shouldn't (I.E. Sora bringing the dead back to life) scares me. While the reasoning behind Sora abusing the PoW is understandable (and I'm giving him a pass on what I'm about to say next due to this), he's still a mortal playing God, which HAS to have consequences, no matter what. Just because I say this, however, doesn't mean people aren't allowed to say the ending sucked. Hell, even I think the ending kinda sucks, despite me being okay with it. The only way this ending couldn't have come about is if Sora didn't abuse the PoW and the only way Sora wouldn't have abused the PoW is if no one died and the only way no one could've died is if Nomura could've written something better. The best we can hope for with Sora is that he's given a happy ending down the line and NO ONE DIES OR TAKES HIS PLACE! NO MORE OF THIS BITTERSWEET NONSENSE, ALL RIGHT?!

So what do I think of the story overall? Well, it's... something. It's not the worst thing I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing but it's also not that good. The pacing seems to only have two settings; it's either too slow to the point of it being padded for extra time or too fast to really know what's going on in favor of getting to the next goalpost. I wouldn't be surprised if it's because of the pacing that I don't know where the halfway point of KH3 is. I thought it'd be like the first half being the Disney fanservice and the second half the actual plot but it's not like that here. The first half got WAY more time dedicated to it than the second half did and it REALLY shows with how sloppily written the plot towards the end was. The way I see it, Nomura had the major plotpoints planned and figured out but the details surrounding those plotpoints were left as an afterthought. He had goalposts set up but he got stuck figuring out how to get Sora and co. from point A to point B. I think if he had just finetuned those details or rewritten scenes to make more sense or even asked for help, the story could've been a lot better. Granted, there were probably a lot of factors at work during KH3's production so I won't place all of the blame on solely Nomura, especially with all the news articles lately about game studios overworking their employees to the point of exhaustion/illness/death/eventual breakdown of the company. While I mainly talked about the negatives concerning the story, there were also some positives about it. Sora was at his absolute adorableness in this game. Like, there were so many moments where I just died from how cute he was (which I noted many times in my Livetweet thread) that helped to highlight how Sora's still just a kid who unfortunately carries the fate of the world on his shoulders. The reunions of both the Wayfinder and Clocktower trios just killed me because they had suffered so much up to this point and to see them crying from happiness at being reunited with their friends again and staying together this time had me tearing up. Although she didn't appear much in KH3, Namine being able to exist outside of Kairi was also a sweet moment, especially with her being treated like a princess when she first wakes up and Riku taking her by the hand to the Destiny Islands like a prince. I don't care if it's considered ship tease, that shit was goddamn cute, all right? The scene of Aqua crying after she finally realizes she's in the RoL again hit me in the feels so much, especially after Sora told her she was home. Now thinking about it, I wonder if that's sort of a parallel to KH2's ending with Sora taking on the role of Kairi from that scene. The relationship between Kairi and Lea (What little we saw of it), the ending of everyone on the Destiny Islands, and the occasional Disney stuff I did enjoy were all good. It just sucks that there's so little of the stuff I mentioned featured that I wish more time was spent developing those.

So what is my overall opinion on KH3? It's not my favorite of the series, that honor still goes to both KH2 and BBS. Without running the risk of repeating myself, I won't go into detail about the gameplay or the story because you can just read all the points I've mentioned above. I still enjoyed KH3 but some of my expectations fell through and I felt a bit underwhelmed by everything. In some ways, the wait was worth it but I think I would've been fine with waiting more if it meant some aspects were developed more. In regards to this game being a good entryway for newcomers, I think it is, if only because you're provided with recaps of the previous games right at the main menu so that anyone who hasn't played at least one KH game won't be completely lost playing KH3. I feel like everything I've mentioned in this post may be discredited or even disregarded as an actual review of KH3 because I didn't play the game, I watched an LP of it, but keep in mind these are merely my observations and the conclusions I've reached using those observations. The experience may be completely different to those who actually played it but I won't know until this is posted so...

Where do we go from here? Well, we still have the DLC to look forward to but, as I stated earlier, we have no idea when those are coming out and it's the same with any upcoming games. I'm hoping the DLC will answer some questions while also giving some much-needed development to the characters who aren't Sora. The only thing left to say is, may the DLC guide our wandering hearts.

#kingdom hearts 3 #kingdom hearts 3 spoilers #kh3 #kh3 spoilers

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