#TFYLiM

[shreddedleopard]

just wanted to quickly say the biggest ty for tfylim 😭💙 literally so starved out here for cgis content I reread it every week and it still just hits me right in the feels everytime!! you portrayed cgis so so well oml 😭 I would love to hear any headcanons for their relationship post fic if u have any!!

Aww omg Anon you are SO WELCOME, honestly to hear from anyone who enjoys this ship means so much to me 🥹 I’m so happy that you enjoyed it enough to reread, ahh!!

I have so so many thoughts about them post TFYLiM honestly — I had planned to write a bunch of follow up one-shots portraying their journey together through the rest of Blue Lock after this, but I got completely consumed by a new manga accidentally (actually because of the lead character sharing the same anime English dub VA as Chigiri 🤦🏼‍♀️) and have just not had the time to get back to it.

But anyway, let me shut up rambling and share my actual thoughts:

In my head, they never really fully address what happened between them during the break, but it becomes this sort of, typical, ‘okay we both know we really like each other but we are awkward and aren’t exactly sure how to discuss feelings at length and anyway, FOOTBALL!!!’ So it’s sort of like this undercurrent of romantic tension between them both which everyone else is maybe vaguely aware of to varying degrees. For example, Bachira in my head totally knows what’s up, and Kaiser absolutely picks up on it during BM’s match with Manshine and immediately latches on to using Chigiri as a means to wind Isagi up further, which works especially well when Isagi himself is still trying to figure out how to approach his feelings for Chigiri.

Due to the setup of the NEL, they rarely get opportunities to be alone, especially where there are no cameras, but I absolutely think there would be moments in between matches where they manage to snatch time together and the competitive and romantic tension spills over yet again and they maybe have some rushed kissing or awkward fumbles, but there’s never the time or privacy to really talk about it properly.

And in my head, this is how they would continue even into their later professional careers, where it almost settles into this unspoken contract of, football comes first, but god if I was ever going to admit to loving anyone, it would be you.

They snatch time together when they happen to be in the same cities, or for BlueLock reunions, and by this point everyone kinda knows but it’s never mentioned or acknowledged until one day finally, one of them has the courage to ask what are we doing, and the answer for them both is the same: I love you equally as much as I love football, and that actually makes them the perfect match for one another, because it means that the boundaries and the priorities in their lives are clear. I can actually never imagine Chigiri asking Isagi to choose him over his football career, and vis versa, and I think that’s why they really are soulmates. They share a passion which actually is organically their passion, not because of some childhood trauma or because they’re chasing recognition from family members or to distance themselves from family or because another area of their life is lacking or any other secondary reason.

They are just both in love with the game for the sake of playing the game.

That got kinda out of hand but I start talking about them and I can’t stop 🥹 I don’t think BlueLock is really about ships at all (despite the creators teasing us constantly with innuendos and heartfelt moments which could be taken that way) but I do think, realistically speaking, if any two characters had the best basis to be thought of as soulmates, it would Chigiri and Isagi 🥹

This already got so long but since it’s been a good while since I got to yell about these two, here’s a couple of random bits pulled from WIPs for them (can’t remember if I’ve shared these before tho).

Set post BM & Manshine match:

Chigiri and Isagi stealing a moment to practice together in one of the outdoor pitches on the complex, late in the evening, and things naturally become heated, and they’re taken back to their intimate time together during the break:

[shreddedleopard]

Waking up to that cute official art and then the very sweetest comment on TFYLiM in my AO3 inbox honestly just has me 🥹🥹🥹

It’s a very Chigisagi morning and I am HERE for it!! 😌

[shreddedleopard]

I'm so glad my ask made your day! And honestly can't wait for the next installments of the The Fire You Light In Me!! Can't help but think of the fic while rereading the Neo Egoist League arc. Isagi and Chigiri are in different stratums and were only reunited during the Manshine City vs Bastard Munchen match!! The tension, the yearning —!! It sucks how we never got them talking post-match ( just the two of them ! )

Anon did you get a free pass inside my head, or what? I am on your wavelength 🥹

I had the idea for TFYLiM after thinking about Chigiri’s reaction to Isagi leaving the get together in Shibuya early —

Aw.

Same, Chigiri.

Why not invite him for a one on one catch up before your break is over? 😏

But then okay … the next direct interaction between them as we head into the NEL arc is this, right? —

Chigiri naturally looking straight at Isagi to ask where he’s going first. And Isagi’s face … the sweat drop, the pout, the pause … I mean. Why you so nervous, Yoichi??

It’s just giving such ‘I am crushing hard but trying desperately to be subtle about it’ vibes.

Chigiri: yeah so it’s not that I care honestly because I’ll do my own thing anyway, but where are you going, Isagi? What are your thoughts? Just gonna keep tabs on you because, you know. We’re rivals and stuff. That’s the only reason I’m looking at you doe-eyed right now. Intense rivalry.

Isagi: OMFG I KISSED HIM LAST WEEK AND WHY IS MY HEART BEATING SO HARD RIGHT NOW HOLY SHIT I MIGHT’VE FORGOTTEN HOW PRETTY HE IS HELP WHAT WAS THE QUESTION??

This is just my personal Chigisagi head-canon for this moment if I insert TFYLiM in the break 😂 but it was this that sealed the deal and made me want to write it. I was planning on writing up to here in the first part, but I ran outta words and patience lol and it felt fitting to end it where it did.

But now we know they can visit other stratums too!? I might’ve capitalised on the idea of a private reunion after their match together …

They decide to re-enact their one on one training session, but this time there’s a bit of role reversal as Isagi takes Chigiri off his feet with a tackle:

I just need more tension. All the tension. All the yearning. You are 110% talking my language, Anon 🙇🏼‍♀️

[shreddedleopard]

Thanks to you, I cannot listen to love somebody like you by joan the same way ever again. :") it's so chigisagi coded! something so beautiful of how Chigiri grew up in a team that never took him seriously due to his fragile appearance, and here we have Isagi coming into his life and believing in him and his abilities since day one. I'd like to think that they don't get together right away, and Chigiri tries to find Isagi in everyone he dates :"))

Ahhh I’m so happy this song for Chigisagi resonated with you Anon!

I can totally see them doing that, actually. I have a bunch of one shots as a series in my head, spanning their time in and after Blue Lock, and while it’s not exactly this idea, it’s similar vibes I feel like, haha!

I just think they’re a little too football-focused for anything concrete, at least for a long time. But I can imagine it getting to the point where even their friends are wondering when they’re gonna make it official and just date. 😂

Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts, I love reading them! 🥹

[shreddedleopard]

used to be a huge isagiri shipper when i first read blue lock, then forgot about it because of how they badly got sidelined in the story (which is a crime btw!) but found your fic and now i'm in love with them all over again. thank you so much!!

Eeee this makes me so happy 🥰 thank you so much!

I think we’ll get more of these boys towards the end of, or after, the NEL. I’m excited for what’s to come for them all, but especially Isagi and Chigiri! 😍

In the meantime, I’ll just keep writing my silly little stories and smushing them together, and hopefully keep that fire burning! 🔥💖🥹

[shreddedleopard]

thank you so much for feeding the isagiri fanfom with your fic! it's such a shame how underrated isagiri is when isagi is literally the reason why chigiri is still in blue lock 😭

Aw man, this is so sweet!

Thank you for reading, Anon! 🥹

I completely agree; there are so many moments where these two support each other — they seem to bounce off one another after Chigiri’s initial awakening. I think there’s something really beautiful about a partnership where two people continually inspire and push one another to be the best they can! 💖

[shreddedleopard]

Your Chigisagi fic was so good! 😭❤️ Loved that little, subtle angst where they choose to not act on their feelings and the playlist was so good too?! Hoping for a Chigisagi marriage after the Neo Egoist League. 😭

Anon!? 🥹

Thank you so much, you’ve no idea how much this made me smile.

Do not fear, the story in my head definitely does not end here 😏 I already have some bits written for the next instalment, and those after, too, because I’m incapable of just leaving things be until everyone gets their happy ending. Wedding bells when!?

I’m also so happy you enjoyed the playlist! I’ve had it on repeat at every opportunity for the last month, haha.

Appreciate you so much for popping into my inbox! 💖