#1. Crystalbond. I think about this one all the time

[hadesknockedupintheunderworld]

Saw your ship name post, and I'm curious. What made you decide to make crystalbond and Metalicchaos? What type of dynamics did you have in mind for both of them?

Also own any thoughts on PhantomFox? It's definitely an odd one, but I'm willing to be sold on it.

Okay, so before I say anything, here is the rarepair list (in case someone reading doesn't know what these ships are)

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Crystalbond/Crystalbondshipping

Why:

The "why" for this one is fairly simple honestly. The short answer is that as far as S3 of Prime is concerned, the reason we explicitly saw Nine create Alpha Grim Sonic and call him friend (despite proclaiming all of the Grim robots were his new friends) was so we would understand just how Sonic backstabbing Nine (in his eyes) affected Nine. In short, Nine pretty clearly was trying to fill the hole Sonic left in his life (while acting like he and Sonic can just easily part ways). Creating someone as a replacement for someone you try to pretend you don't care about anymore can be handled in a compelling fashion, especially when you add in that Alpha Grim Sonic is supposed to be a "mindless" robot on top of that.

The longer answer is that between S2 and S3 I actually became compelled by the idea of Chanine (or, more specifically, Nine using the prism to revive Chaos Sonic after the ending of Prime S2). I thought making Chaos Sonic Nine's companion and giving them complicated feelings (for example, Chaos Sonic being a robot who has feelings for Nine, but it's true these feelings began because Nine reprogrammed him to be loyal to him vs Nine very much using Chaos Sonic as a stand in for Sonic and to ignore his lingering feelings, but it’s also true that Nine is coming to value Chaos Sonic's existence too (and not just because he's his only link to Sonic without having Sonic himself)) was just a fascinating thing. And although I would be sad not seeing Chaos Sonic in S3, I sort of naturally channeled this disappointment into Alpha Grim Sonic

Or, to be more specific, I carried the basic idea from my chanine thoughts to Alpha Grim Sonic and Nine and imagined how their dynamic would be in this situation. I also thought "I mean, if people can imagine this situation with Chaos Sonic and Nine and ship them, then what if I shipped Alpha Grim Sonic and Nine for this same reason?"

Dynamic:

As for the crystalbond dynamic, this one is largely focused on the idea that the Alpha Grim robots aren't actually mindless thoughtless robots, and the idea that Alpha Grim Sonic is growing a soul. Post canon, I know Nine would miss Sonic a great deal, so it’s only natural for me to come up with the idea that Nine would try to rebuild Alpha Grim Sonic (so he doesn’t feel lonely and so he doesn’t feel unprotected against the universe).

For Nine, Alpha Grim Sonic becomes a comforting presence. But as time goes on and Nine grows more attached, he deals more with his hang up over the idea that he'd created Alpha Grim Sonic to do his bidding and protect him. In other words, on occasion, he feels stupid finding comfort in the robot, asking him to stay with him or hold him or do anything intimate, because this robot cannot feel back or think or make its own choices. To Nine, it feels stupid to be attached to a robot who cannot feel for you, a fact that (to Nine) can never change.

For Alpha Grim, he's slowly growing a soul, attachments, feeling new things. He is aware of what a robot like him should be capable of, and he isn't sure exactly what he is feeling at all times and why. But as time goes on, he yearns for Nine to understand just how much they care for him. They want to be considered someone important to Nine. And yet, he is unwilling to push boundaries or overstep their position, even by accident.

This dynamic is built upon a mutual slow burn yearning + miscommunication that revolves around Nine's statement that he'd made the Grim robots to be unable to talk back or think or have minds of their own so they'd obey unquestionably. They are both hung up on how Alpha Grim should be like as a robot despite the truth of what is going on, and it's tragic for the longest time (because Nine can't believe the robot could learn to feel for him of its own accord, and Alpha Grim refuses to possibly push boundaries or do what he has not been commanded (because to him, even as he wants to be important to Nine, he also makes himself okay with his place as long as he can be with Nine and protect him forever))

I'm not sure if it's ever resolved, but this relationship is meant to develop over time as Alpha Grim develops his soul and Nine grows more selfish at wanting the robot with him.

If you'd like to see more about this dynamic, though, I'd heavily suggest reading this post, this post, and this post, or looking through the #crystalbond or #crystalbondshipping tags.

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Metalicchaos/Metalicchaosshipping

Why:

Okay, so there actually was a brief period before S3 dropped that people shipped Alpha Grim Sonic and Chaos Sonic. When all we had was a clip and a design, Alpha Grim Sonic was quickly dubbed "Chaos Shadow" and all depictions of this ship labeled as "Metal Sonadow".

However, as far as I can tell, after S3 properly dropped and Alpha Grims Sonic's name was revealed, this ship sort of died down.

I actually shipped this ship for funsies during this period, but even though these two never ended up meeting I didn't see a reason to give up on the ship. So that's pretty much it. I shipped it for funsies because I'm a Sonadow fan and I kept shipping it when S3 came out and we learned more about Alpha Grim because I still liked the ship idea

But, of course, they can't very well be called "Metal Sonadow" at this point (even if I do still feel like Alpha Grim is more Shadow's robot countepart than Sonic's), especially with the name reveal. So I collaborated with a friend to come up with a proper ship name for them

The other "why" is that I was shipping Chanine and Crystalbond and was like "why don't I just complete this triangle?"

Dynamic:

In all honesty, two different dynamics exist for them in my head.

The first is considerably less "shippy" than the second, but it’s their dynamic during these post prime S3 au ideas I've been rambling on about. Essentially, at the beginning, the two start out growing jealous of each other's interactions with Nine. Each one wants to be the one™ at Nine's side and is afraid the other will be confirmed as Nine's #2, even though each refuses to believe they'd be replaced. Alpha Grim Sonic gets irked when Nine talks to Chaos Sonic more and treats him more like someone who lives and cares about him (Nine), and he dislikes how much more insubordinate Chaos Sonic is to Nine (since Chaos Sonic is willing to call Nine out, collaborate in the conversation by coming up with plans, talk back, is unconcerned at times with annoying Nine, etc vs Alpha Grim Sonic who cannot speak and largely only does what is commanded of him). Chaos Sonic fancies himself Nine's one and only best friend, so he's stuck between jealousy for how Nine trusts Alpha Grim Sonic and cares for him and being prideful, putting stock in the fact that Alpha Grim Sonic is a mindless robot (in other words, he covers up his own insecurity by insisting Nine would never replace him because they're best friends and because Nine couldn't become best friends with some soulless robot anyways). If he believed Alpha Grim Sonic had a soul and thoughts and feelings, he'd probably imagine the robot to be haughty (although I'm sure Chaos Sonic can feel Alpha Grim Sonic's feelings about him exerting more freedom in general and in his interactions with Nine than it). Over time, though (a lot like Clara and Asmodeus from M!IK), the two grow to understand each other. While I don't think either would ever admit the jealousy, they grow to understand each other and form a pact of sorts as other people start to enter Nine's life. They bond over their mutual protection of Nine from others, from their shared/similar experiences, and they grow to feel secure in the fact that the two of them will be constants in Nine's life.

Now, the second dynamic is very different. I have a hard time thinking over the first dynamic as a shippy one so much as I imagine it as a strong platonic bond (although it's not impossible for it to be romantic/queerplatonic/what have you), which is why I created a second sort of dynamic for them I can muse over for shipping purposes. This dynamic revolves around creating a situation in which the two are rivals.

So, I propose a brief concept. Nine revives Chaos Sonic post S2, who ends up getting lost in the void or something like that. Then, he creates Alpha Grim Sonic and the other Grim robots. At some later date, Chaos Sonic returns (perhaps claws his way out of the void?) and comes across Alpha Grim Sonic (who is either performing a mission for Nine or also looking for Nine for some reason) while looking for Nine. Chain of memories Sora and Repliku style, the two begin to fight about the fact that both consider themselves the robot in Nine's life and believe the other is lying about their assertions of their place as Nine's friend. Each starts out believing the other is an imposter meant to hurt Nine, and neither wants to believe that they could be replaced/be a replacement for the other. While this kind of dynamic can be coupled with the first, giving them this kind of dynamic to start out with I think gives them more of a reason to be specifically fixated over each other and to be rivals before they inevitably bond over Nine.

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PhantomFox/Infinine

Why:

Well...why not? I don't have any particular profound reason for liking this one, I just seem to have an affinity for shipping versions of Tails with different characters and I think (with their aesthetics) they look really neat paired up together.

Although, all in all, I must confess that when I was thinking over rarepairs for the post, a friend of mine posed the idea of this ship and sold me on it in like 2 seconds

Dynamic:

The cool thing about having a ship where the characters haven't met is you can do whatever you want. Personally, I kind of like the partners dynamic with them.

To explain, I like to think about the au idea my friend came up with. Essentially, the idea is that Nine gets ahold of the Phantom Ruby somehow and, while studying it, ends up freeing Infinite. Of course, depending on the point in Nine's life, this situation could go differently, but in general I think of Infinite (a jackal I personally read as a bit aimless, without true passion) ending up following Nine, and Nine who (even if he rejects it a bit at first) ends up willingly taking Infinite on as his companion.

While Infinite/Tails to me is interesting because of Tails' trauma and the idea of why Infinite might fixate on Tails, Infinite/Nine is interesting to me simply because I think it would be neat if the two worked together as partners (and maybe Infinite finally found ambition along the way?)

Not sure how well I'm explaining this but yeah.

If it's pre-canon, I can see a lot of freak out from both of their ends, and if it's Infinite who proposes a partnership, Nine would probably need more confidence/assurances to agree to partner up with him. With that being said, I can see Nine being naturally interested in the science behind Infinite and the ruby, and the two sort of holding each other at arms length initially as they use each other to perform their goals.

If it's post canon, I can see Nine being a bit more open to companionship (I mean. He *is* pretty much alone in the Grim as far as we know), though he'd naturally be a bit guarded.

Either way, no matter what time in the timeline Infinite and the ruby are placed in, I can see these two getting into a situation somehow where they end up choosing to work together for some reason. My ideal dynamic with them is like. Two people who hold each other at arm's length but choose to work together initially due to mutual gain of some kind and initial interest in the other person –> morally grey partners who are a power couple

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Thank you for the ask, anon! I enjoyed getting to talk a bit about these ships🥰

And with that being said, if you'd like to know about/have any questions about/want me to talk about more of my rarepairs, more about these rarepairs specifically, or anything else, don't hesitate to send me an ask! I love the excuse to talk about ye old hyperfixation and make up relationships that don't exist