#Terra's writing

[luanna801]

I feel like a thing I wish was more generally acknowledged across fandoms is that "I don't find this character sympathetic" and "This character was not intended to be sympathetic" are obviously connected but are, ultimately, two completely different statements that may not overlap at all.

Ultimately what you think about any given character is a completely subjective issue that has no right or wrong answer. The narrative may be trying to evoke sympathy for them, and you may just feel that it flat-out was not successful in doing that. You may look the author straight in the eye and say "Nope, I see what you're trying to do, but f*ck this guy actually, he's The Worst and that's all there is to it". And no one can tell you that you're wrong for doing so.

But when it comes to picking up on what the story is trying to do, whether you ultimately think it did a good job or not, I would argue there's at least some measure of objective reality. And I feel like people sometimes end up conflating them, so you end up with these posts like "I can't believe people sympathize with this character when the story clearly just wants you to hate them!" and it's like... yeah, I think people sympathize with this character because the story is very clearly and intentionally painting them as sympathetic. I could point you at a dozen different scenes that are clearly meant to evoke sympathy for This Character. You don't have to have found any of it compelling, but at a certain point recognizing it's there is a simple matter of reading comprehension.

[terracyte]

punk reiner 💥 , emo bert 🖤 , and the girlie pops ⛓️🥀 from

sugar we're goin down :3

[suguruslut]

Still not over how well characterized and balanced every character is portrayed in the Teen Titans 2003 series: every single Titan can be funny, dejected, serious, determined, silly, angry, optimistic, vulnerable and tough without major inconsistencies in their overall portrayals.

Huge props to the writers of that show who knew exactly how to give each Titan a realistic range of emotions without deviating away from their basic personalities--it's an extremely difficult feat to accomplish, depicting characters through many different phases and arcs while keeping them consistent, and they did it flawlessly.

[lockandkeyblade]

do you ever think about the fact that Terra and Ventus had no idea what became of the other?

do you ever think about how Aqua probably had to explain to her tiniest best friend why Terra wasn’t there when he woke up?

Like…god. These poor kids had no idea reality was gonna come for them like this. Imagine being 18/19 years old and you have to explain possession to a 16 year old.

imagine being a 16 year old who just came out of a 12 year long coma, and thinking that your Darkness was right. By the time you caught up… he did become a different person. Just not in a way you could have ever dreamed, not even in your worst nightmares.

[ghostbsuter]

I'm on the writing grind, you can see that I just finished rewatching the Teen Titans (2003).

Edit: Here is some art I did for Titan!Phantom

.・゜-: ✧ :-

(The end is near.)

Gripping the communicator, the bright yellow case with a cartoonish 'T' on top glared back at him.

(The portal was growing.)

He presses the button, the communicator switches on and he calls out.

"Phantom to Titans, do you hear me? Phantom to Titans."

The crackling sound came as a sign of connection, It didn't take any heavy weight off, however.

"Robin here, Phantom? Everything alright?" The soothing voice of Teen Titans leader answers him, and he suppresses a sigh.

"Robin," he bites his lip, the portal only growing.

The ghost zone is eating Amity and all just because fucking Vlad couldn't, for one ancient time, sit still.

"I—" a deep breath. "I'm sorry," he apologises with a wince. "You're gonna be really angry at me when you... find out."

Concern leaks through the voice as Robin speaks. "Phantom? What's going on?"

Thr screen on the communicator switches on and Robins brow knitted expression stares back at him.

It quickly changes, alarmed. "Phantom." The vigilante says. "Is Amity Park okay? Do you need backup?"

Always on the right track, dear leader. Danny shakes his head fondly.

"It's too late for backup," he admits quietly.

"Phan—"

"Just tell new members of me, okay?"

Danny doesn't let the other finish, giving a bitter smile before throwing the communicator on the ground, breaking it.

The familiar yet threatening green of the ghost zone welcomes him.

—

"Titans! Emergency call, Phantom got a situation!"

The bright red lights is enough for the rest of the team to flood to the common room.

"Rob?" Cyborg asks. "What's the situation?"

"We don't know!" The bird answers, stressed. He's pulling the audio and video recording of the call up to the monitor, replaying it for the team.

They don't figure it out until they are at Amity, landing with the jet and jumping from their seats.

Raven and Starfire fly ahead, and they all reach the border of Amity.

Or what of Amity remains.

Because–

The entire city is gone—!!

Complete annihilation.

(When robin finds out who did this, he will have words with them.)

"Robin," Raven waves them all over to her side. She's crouching, hand in a sphere of black, her magic. "Amity wasn't destroyed. It was relocated."

Her expression is grim. "Someone abducted a whole city."

All he does is nod, looking at the team before him.

"Someone call Herald, Titans, we got work to do. Our mission is to find Amity Park, Phantom, and save both." With sombre nods, they prepared for take off.

"Titans! Go!"

And they separate.

[thousandyearphantombunker]

"we want more mentally ill/disabled characters with ugly symptoms!"

You guys can't handle lapis lazuli tony stark or hank pym! You guys can barely contain your ableism toward the hulk! You guys hate the good doctor for all the wrong reasons! You made fun of his speech patterns and his meltdowns wtf like I'm sorry the only autistic person you've supported have been the perfect non annoying type- but too many of especially as children are like shawn- they talk weird and don't understand what's so offensive about what they said

You guys keep saying Lapis should just be rewritten into a villain! I don't like how the show handled her but like your really gonna make the girl who shows ugly bad symptoms of ptsd into villain? You guys keep trying to make hank into a villain or rewrite his past- god forbid a character have really sevre ugly symptoms that causes them to make decisions that permanently effect the story but have them still be heroes! God forbid Ironman have npd and be a hero! Let's shame MCU Bruce for his mental illness for being unable to do things because of it! God as soon as a character with a mental illness or developmental disorder or low IQ shows actual symptoms and behaviors (ei: acts like how someone with the disorder in question acts- you know the main part of having a fucking disorder) you get pissy and pile on the shame- yeah jen you do control your anger better than bruce- you can also stand better than Charles fucking Xavier! Yeah your smarter than a guy with a low IQ want a cookie?

I'm never gonna be one of those people who tell others to stop writing disabled villains or that writing a character that deals with internalized ableism (disabled people like any group of people can be total prices of shit, and I'm sorry not everyone is content and accepting of their disabilities and some of us take comfort in characters that struggle with being angry because of their problems) but Jesus Christ when a heroic character with ugly symptoms who makes cruel decisions or has 'bratty' or 'immature' moments can we let them stay heroes? Can we let them have a disorder without piling on the shame that we are inferior because we can't do something everyone else can- because that's literally what a disability is! Can they still be heroes?

Do we have to use intellectual/developmental disability as a shorthand for anti intellectualism and being a gross annoying psycho

Do we have to make every heroic character with aspd or npd into a villain or change their disability to autism because it's 'more sympathetic' as if lack of empathy isn't a goddamned symptom of many disabilities like PTSD and autism- You can headcanon tony as having autism- that's cool by me but it's clear some of y'all do it to make him a 'woobie'- which is infantalizing btw but also it's because some of y'all are ableist toward people with npd

I hate that the only acceptable 'ugly symptoms' are things like forgetting to shower or brush your teeth every once in a while or being a bit irritable and not stuff like burning bridges or having explosive outburts

Also it's not a mental illness unless it effects your behavior?

Im not saying that we should just accept and allow mentally ill/intellectually disabled people/characters to get away with bad behaviors unpunished but can they stay heroes? Can they still be respectable?

"we want more characters with ugly symptoms"

Yet

You people get offended by low functioning autistic people existing! You get mad at them for being incontinent or nonverbal/making strange noises or having scary anger issues or IQs low enough that they will never be independent you get mad at them for not showing the 'appropriate' reactions to things they may or may not fully understand- you hate people with sensory issues -

You don't want mentally ill/disabled characters- you want characters with the labels of mental disabilities without any of the ugly strange or off putting behaviors mental/intellectual deficiencies/issues cause- you want a romantic tragedy!

You shame people with Alzheimer's for FORGETTING stuff and LOSING SKILLS 'yeah yeah you are superior to your uncle because you can remember stuff but can you remember it's a fucking disease! you people are cruel

Yes you are technically superior to disabled people because you are capable of things we aren't and you have better character and you can control yourself but guess what? Those people you hate for being incapable of that shit have disabilities it's not our faults! It's the fucking definition of a disability! Like yeah it is a skill issue and we're just 'worse' than nondisabled with us lacking self control and having lower IQs and bad mental processing- yeah it is because we're lacking in some capacity that's like the definition disability you can't say you support disabled people and then turn around and say shit about how your better than these people because you can talk or take care of yourself

Hank Pym and Lapis Lazuli should get called out for acting like assholes and pieces of shit but I am firmly against turning one of few heroic characters who actively struggle with psychosis and delusions into another 'psycho' villain and I'm firmly against saying Lapis is just as bad as Jasper and using symptoms of her PTSD as signs she should be rewritten into a villain- I want them to be held accountable not turned into straight up evil guys or dear god washing out their problematic qualities until they're palatable/relatable to a neurotypical audience to make them good guys when they are already good guys!

Can people who do bad things because of their disabilities still be heroes? Can they be allowed to get better or do they have to accept that having ugly symptoms means being the bad guy? Fucking hell this is why I side eye anyone who acts like mental illness/developmental/cognitive or mental etc disabilities are more destigmatized than physical disabilities (trust me they aren't)

Tldr let characters with ugly symptoms be heroes let your characters with mental disorders act like they have a disorder and let said characters be heroes inspite of it!

[writingtraumaforever]

A Courtship Christmas: Chapter 3

Notes: The movie got my Courtship Series heart racing, y'all. And I'm also so pleased that the movie didn't actually differ too far from the minimal assumptions I've written in this series so far. So the series is still readable and makes sense even after the movie! YAY!

Summary: Sonic and Shadow arrive at the Robotnik's for Christmas, and are greeted by a very... very shocking person.

Courtship Masterpost!

Link to my AO3!

Start:

Preparations turn out to be a very serious matter to Shadow, which honestly isn’t much of a shock to Sonic. After hearing his quite extensive preparations that led to the whole ‘courting’ misunderstanding the first time he came to have dinner with his family, it’s not surprising Shadow would do the same for Maria’s family. 

Things were cool between Maddie and Shadow. He had returned back home with Sonic that night and he and Maddie had gone for a walk. Sonic isn’t sure what all was said on this walk, but when they came back, they were both smiling and back to acting as if nothing had happened. Sonic assumes his mother made things right. She rarely doesn’t. She’s a great role model, honestly, and very empathetic and tactful.

After they returned, they all sat down for a talk that went much more swimmingly. Tom and Maddie agree to let Sonic go with the conditions that he calls every night before bed to check in and always answers if they call or text. 

Since then, Sonic and Shadow have been preparing for the trip. Which means lots of Youtube videos on meeting long-lost family (which there are actually a lot of, much to Sonic’s surprise) and practice runs with Knuckles and Tails’ help. Knuckles even wore a blonde wig to try and help “get into character”, insisting on being Terra Robotnik. This didn’t turn out too great since Knuckles himself was.. a terrible host. For example, Sonic seriously doubts the Robotniks will be insisting on Shadow participating in a battle of the arenas.

Rouge had gotten as many files on the family as she could find, which wasn’t much but it was enough. Shadow had been going through and memorizing faces and names and dates and marriages. The surprisingly extensive Robotnik family tree. Turns out they had pretty much outcasted Eggman’s side of the family after everything that happened, which is understandable but also kinda sad since it wasn’t Eggman’s fault his grandfather was a smidge psychotic. Then again, the egg didn’t seem to fall too far from the nest, so..

They were well off, having been compensated by GUN since the tragedy on the ARK. On top of the geniuses in their family having sold many of their creations to the US government in the past as well as exploration escapades and more. They were a pretty impressive bunch of eggs, honestly–

Shadow made Sonic promise no egg jokes while they were visiting, by the way.

Turns out Terra does a lot of philanthropy and charity work, donating most of her time to causes for children with chronic illnesses and such. Which makes her sound like she’d be pretty nice despite her relatively stern tone in the letter to Commander Walters. That was written out of frustration with the deceit she had endured, though, so Sonic had high hopes. Besides, what sister of the saintly Maria could be evil???

When Shadow saw her picture for the first time, Sonic swears he sat perfectly still for a solid ten minutes just staring at it. She looks just like Maria… she just has more ginger colored hair, like a strawberry blonde. And older, obviously. Much older. Her files say she’s 54. Shadow can’t seem to get over that number. Sonic isn’t sure if it’s because it shows how much time has passed since the tragedy or because it shows how old Maria should be now..

Probably a little of both. Or a lot of both.

Sonic makes sure to be there with him through all of it, though. By his side and preparing along with him while constantly reassuring him that Shadow doesn’t really need any preparation since being himself is plenty good enough.

Shadow prepares anyway, to no one’s surprise.

It all comes down to the moment they’re standing in the living room with suitcases packed and warp ring in hand. Maddie hands Shadow his and Sonic’s freshly pressed suits that she had tailored for them, Shadow neatly and very carefully draping them over his forearm and holding them to his torso as if they’re something to be treasured.

“Alright you two,” Maddie sighs, stepping back to get a good look at them, “It’s around 6:30 PM in Poland, right now, and it’s going to be pretty chilly.”

Tom nods, zipping up Sonic’s jacket all the way before stepping back with Maddie as well, watching Sonic immediately roll his eyes and unzip his jacket again.

“Uh- guys? We have fur. We’ll be fine,” Sonic points out with a shrug.

“Some of us have more fur than others,” Shadow mutters under his breath.

“Hey! We talked about this. My lack of chest fur makes me more aerodynamic!” Sonic defends scandalously.

“Right,” Shadow nods before looking to Maddie and Tom, “I’ll make sure he stays warm, Mr. and Mrs. Wachowski.” “I don’t need a babysitter,” Sonic rolls his eyes, but Shadow just rolls his eyes right back.

“They’re your parents and they’re worried. Let me reassure them.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Sonic sighs with a little smirk.

“We know you’ll take good care of him, Shadow,” Maddie assures, leaning down to give him a little hug.

Tom moves then to do the same, muttering in Shadow’s ear as he does, “And if you don’t, I’ve heard of some real mean hedgehog recipes from Egypt..” Shadow’s eyes widen slightly at Tom when he pulls back, Tom doing the thing where he points at his eyes and then points at Shadow’s as if to let him know he’s watching him.

Shadow just swallows hard then nods.

“I’ll have him home safe in three days, sir.” “I know you will,” Tom smirks then, winking playfully as if he hadn’t just threatened to cook Shadow dear God–

Maddie moves over to Sonic then, giving him a big hug that has him grunting from being squeezed so tight, “And you, little mister, better behave. I don’t want Shadow calling me saying you’re embarrassing him by being too rowdy.” “Me??? Rowdy!?” Sonic gasps as if absolutely baffled by such an accusation, “I would never!” 

He then hugs Maddie right back, smiling all soft as he leans into his mother’s touch and squeezes her just as tight, “I’ll send lots of pictures.” “You better,” she instructs with a little kiss to his forehead before she pulls away to let Tom hug him goodbye now.

“Seriously though. Behave. And be safe.” “Always do, always am,” Sonic grins, hugging his dad back before he pulls away.

Shadow clears his throat then, glancing down at his watch, “I really hate to rush, but we’re going to be late..” “Right, right,” Maddie nods, knowing Shadow is very serious about being exactly on time, “We’ll let you two go. You have your emergency warp ring??” “Always!” Sonic says with a grin, Shadow already tossing another warp ring into the air so that a portal to Poland appears.

“Phone charger?” “Yup.” “Toothbrush and toothpaste?” “Check.” “Underwear??” That earns a pointed deadpan look from Sonic to Tom.

“Right, you don’t wear that– okay! We’ll see you two when you get back!” Maddie grins then, waving as she leans against Tom and watches the two grab their luggage and begin stepping through the portal, “Have fun!! Keep us updated!” “We will!” Sonic waves back cheerily, stepping through the portal that Shadow is already on the other side of and waving from as well. He hates he couldn’t say bye to Knuckles and Tails before he left. But they said their goodbyes the night before, and waking Knuckles and Tails up early was like pulling teeth– the echidna being lazy and the fox always staying up too late tinkering. It’s best they just sleep in and Sonic call them later. It’s only three days, after all. Then he’ll be back for Christmas!

As they stand waving, the warp ring eventually closes and they’re left standing on a snowy driveway, a large fountain appearing behind where the warp ring had previously been.

“Welp,” Sonic sighs, grabbing his suitcase with a grin, “Stage 2 of OSITRASIHB is a-go. Can’t believe we’re on our first trip together! We have to do some sightseeing while we’re here. What even is there to see in Poland?? They have castles, right??” Sonic looks at Shadow and finds him staring at whatever is behind them, “Shads..?” He turns and looks then and–

“Woooah..” It is a castle! ‘Robotnik Manor,’ the large stone sign above the gate reads. Behind it is possibly one of the coolest homes Sonic has ever seen. Donut Lord seriously needs some upgrades.

“Dude, this place is..,” Sonic starts, but he never quite finishes as he walks up to the fenced gate in awe, leaning against it with his hands gripping the rails–

“Odejdź od bram!”

Sonic jumps back from the fence with wide eyes, both he and Shadow looking to the source of the noise and finding a camera peering down at them from the corner of the stone column.

“Did he just speak Sim??” Sonic snorts with a quirked brow at Shadow, but Shadow just gives him an unimpressed look before turning back to the camera. “Um.. Jesteśmy tutaj, aby zobaczyć Terra Robotnik..?” 

There’s a long pause of silence from the other side of the camera. Sonic is just completely baffled that Shadow seemingly spoke another language! Then again, he’s like– super smart, so it shouldn’t be that surprising. 

After a moment of waiting, the light under the camera beeps green and the gate slowly begins to open itself up, Shadow and Sonic watching with wide eyes as the path to the manor is opened to them..

“...So you speak Sim, too?” “Polish,” Shadow answers, grabbing his suitcase and beginning to roll it behind him as he walks, “And yes. The Professor spoke it often in moments of frustration.. It.. didn’t take long for me to pick up on it..” Sonic frowns a little at that, finding the implication of Gerald often getting frustrated with or in front of Shadow a bit heartbreaking. He catches up to the hybrid, lugging his own suitcase behind him as the gate begins to shut once more.

“That’s pretty cool!” Sonic encourages, focusing on the positive, “You never told me you spoke a different language!” “You never asked..” “Well– do you speak any other languages??” “A few,” Shadow nods, “Not fluently. But Maria and I learned some Spanish during schooling. She was far better than I was at it, but we’d watch tv novellas together and make fun of how dramatic they were a lot. I picked up from that more than anything.” “Seems like you’re more of a hands-on learner than a sit down and reading learner.” “Yeah, I.. have trouble concentrating when it comes to studies,” Shadow admits, though it’s obvious with the tone of his voice that his thoughts aren’t really with the conversation. As they get closer and closer, Shadow gets tenser and tenser. His eyes stare wide at the castle before them, fist clenched tight around the handle of his suitcase, jaw locked and teeth grinding nervously..

Sonic keeps talking, hoping to calm his nerves some with distraction. The driveway up is a good ways, after all.

“Me too, man,” Sonic chuckles with a shrug, “I struggle with sitting still in general, though. Let alone doing it and concentrating. Mom tries real hard to homeschool us, but I’m more interested in learning from experiences than books.” “Books can be very entertaining,” Shadow counters, “..However, books chosen for me are often last appealing than the ones I choose for myself.” “Ditto,” Sonic snorts, “Definitely prefer my comics.” “Those aren’t books.” “Uh– wrong. Comicbooks. Emphasis on the books part.” Sonic is smiling, expecting Shadow to flash that classic tiny smirk of his at Sonic’s shenanigans but finding the hybrid too focused on the stairs they’re now approaching that lead to the door..

“...It’s all gonna be fine, Shadow,” Sonic assures as they begin ascending the steps, “They’re gonna love you..” Shadow takes a deep breath, eyes never leaving the door as he climbs the stairs beside Sonic. He simply nods. Not convinced but trying to stay optimistic and not let his anxiety get the better of him.

Sonic sighs a bit at this and moves closer so he can gently reach out to take Shadow’s free hand. Shadow flinches slightly at this before looking to Sonic finally.

Sonic is looking right back with that same soft smile he gave Shadow on the moon..

Shadow smiles back after a moment before sighing and looking back to the door. 

Sonic was with him. He can do this..

Stopping right in front of the door, the two stare at it a long moment. Sonic doesn’t rush Shadow. Doesn’t knock for him. He just waits.

Eventually, Shadow’s eyes settle on the door knocker a few feet above them.. He can’t quite reach, so he lets his air shoes slowly lift him up until he can. Taking the knocker in hand and rapping at the door three times before slowly letting himself descend back down.

There’s some scuffling from the inside, Shadow’s hand squeezes Sonic’s a bit tighter. Sonic squeezes back, nervousness now rising in him as well.

What if these people were awful to Shadow?? What if they treated him horribly and this whole experience just adds to the list of scars Shadow already has?? Maybe Sonic shouldn’t have encouraged him coming. Maybe they should’ve just stayed away and let things stay normal. Maybe–

The door slowly opens, warm and thick light from the inside pouring out into the dark cold of the evening outside. Shadow and Sonic’s eyes rise to the tall, lanky man dressed in a butler’s attire.

The man’s eyes scan around in a confused manner a moment, looking right over the two before Sonic clears his throat and the man finally lowers his eyes to their level. He flinches in surprise at the sight of them, eyes blinking wide once then twice. Then he offers a wide and breathy smile, “Sir Shadow! And you brought a guest! Wonderful!  My Madam has been expecting your arrival! Please, do come in.” He quickly scoots away from the door and opens it wider for the two, Sonic and Shadow exchanging a glance before entering with a grateful nod and muttered ‘thank you’s.

The door is shut behind them, and inside they’re met with a sight just as awe-inducing as the outside. The inside has a large and grand staircase that leads to the second floor, wooden hand-railing with Christmas florals  and lights decorating all the way down them. There’s a chandelier immediately above their heads, lit with golden lights that make the wooden ceiling seem to glisten. It all feels very noble and traditional and vintage but simultaneously well-kept and warm and classy. It looks like something out of a movie! To their left it opens up into what appears to be a dining room: a long table with white table cloths and bouquets of poinsettias and holly and pinecones. Very festive but elegant. There’s large red candlesticks as centerpieces down the table, tiny globes with lights in them scattered along it as well. The chairs look large and comfy, a wreath placed on the backs of each one. There’s a smaller chandelier than the one in the foyer in there as well. A large, glass window behind the head of the table..

To their right, they can see what appears to be a library of sorts. Shelves and shelves of books, a few comfy couches and floor pillows sound a festively decorated fireplace. The mantle is lined with stockings with initials on them.. ‘A’ ‘J’ ‘M’ ‘S’.  

“I can escort you to your rooms if you’d like to be relieved of your bags,” the butler offers, “Madam is currently in a meeting, but I will inform her of your arrival as soon as it is finished. She will be so pleased you’re here, and want to introduce you to everyone.”

Shadow and Sonic just look at him, staring a moment before Shadow eventually nods. “Thank you, Mr..”

“Tanaka,” the butler replies with a little bow towards Shadow, “Call me, Mr. Tanaka. And I will be happy to assist you anytime during your stay.” “Mr. Tanaka,” Shadow nods, swallowing before glancing back to Sonic who is smiling politely at the man, “thank you.. This is Sonic.” “Of course. We know of Sir Sonic’s heroic reputation. It is an honor to be hosting you sir,” the butler bows to which Sonic very dramatically bows right back with a “Likewise, dude.”

The butler stands then, “Now right this way! Let’s get you settled in.”

They follow the man up the stairs, taking in the sights as they go. The walls are lined with framed art and pieces like vases and sculptures. Shadow notes that he’d like to pause and take them all in at some point if he has the time, pondering their meaning and purpose. The hall at the top is long both to the right and left, shut doors that have shoes on the outsides of some of them or coats hanging from the knobs..

It occurs to Shadow then that they may be having more guests at this party than he anticipated..

Stopping at the room on the end of the left hall, Mr. Tanaka opens the door to show them the inside.

“We do hope this room will be fitting,” the butler says, “We prepared it just for you. And there’s even a second bed if your guest will not be sharing one with you.” Shadow blinks at that, looking at Sonic who looks back to him a bit shyly before blushing and looking away.

They aren’t supposed to be sharing a room..

But Shadow is too nervous right now to request anything else. It feels rude.

He’ll deal with it later.

“This will be perfect,” Shadow assures with a small nod, “Thank you again.” “Of course, sir,” the man smiles, moving then to gesture to a small button on the inside of the door attached to what appears to be an intercom system, “If you ever need anything, please do not hesitate to buzz this button and myself or a maid will quickly come to see what we can do for you. There is also a bell system that will ring when certain things are about to take place such as dinner or breakfast. You are in no way obligated to attend these things if uncomfortable or needing rest. It is simply there to keep the household on a schedule.”

“I like schedules,” Shadow says without giving it a thought, Mr. Tanaka smiling at this. “As do I, Sir Shadow.” Shadow smiles a bit then, and this seems to light up the whole room for a moment in Sonic’s opinion.

“Well I will let you two settle in,” the butler comments, nodding his head at the two as he exits the room, “Again, feel free to buzz if you need anything.” “We sure will,” Sonic smirks, walking into the room to take it in.

Shadow gives a small wave as the man makes his leave before shutting the door and sighing against it.

Sonic is scoping out the room. There is, in fact, two sleeping areas. One being the king-sized bed in the center of the wall and the other being a twin bed pressed up longways against the large window on the right side of the room. Sonic immediately moves there and puts his suitcase on top of it, turning to Shadow with a whistle, “Damn. This place is huge!” “Very,” Shadow mutters as he turns to Sonic, walking to the bed and placing his own suitcase on top before sitting down on the edge beside it.

“And they’ve got butlers and maids?? A dude could get used to living like this,” Sonic grins, looking out the window now at the view. He can’t see too far since it’s dark out, but there’s golden Christmas lights that light up a large garden below. Whoever their landscaper and decorator is, they need a raise.

“Mm,” is all Sonic gets from Shadow.

Sonic turns to look at him then, seeing Shadow staring down at the floor from where he sits on the edge of the bed..

A small, sympathetic smile curls onto Sonic’s lips as he approaches him, plopping himself beside him as Shadow’s seemingly absent gaze lifts to his, “Hey.”

“Hello,” Shadow murmurs back, leaning into Sonic’s palm when the hedgehog cups his cheek. “I know it’s all overwhelming,” Sonic begins, thumb lightly caressing the apple of Shadow’s cheek, “But you’ve done the hardest part, right?? You got here. You showed up. That takes mad balls, Shads.” “That’s a really distasteful expression, Sonic,” Shadow grumbles with a scrunch of his nose and disapproving look in Sonic’s direction. “Oh-ho, look who showed up at a Manor and got too classy for his American boyfriend,” Sonic teases with a Italian accent. “..That’s Italian. This is Poland.”

“Whatever, dude, I don’t know what Polish sounds like.” “You said it sounds like the Sims.” “Good point! Let me try that. Bow deesh you’re super geneva.” Shadow blinks at him, a slightly amused tilt growing on his lips, “What?”

“And now you know how it feels,” Sonic smirks to which Shadow just chuckles and rolls his eyes at him. “You’re idiotic.” “And you’re brave,” Sonic smiles, tilting his head to get Shadow to look back at him again, “..Seriously. I would’ve chickened out the second I saw the camera staring at me at the gate. You’re seriously awesome, Shadow..” Shadow just sighs a bit at this, nuzzling against Sonic’s palm a bit before moving to scoot closer to him with a quirked brow, “Shouldn’t you call your parents and tell them we’ve settled in??” “Oh yeah, you’re right!” Sonic nods, pulling his phone out now and pulling up his contacts to FaceTime his mom.

It only rings once before he gets an answer.

“Hey, baby! You get there safely?? We miss you so much!!” “He just left!” Tom can be heard yelling from a few rooms away.

Sonic chuckles at this, “Yeah, we just got to our room.” Maddie’s brow quirks, “...Room?” Sonic smiles a bit nervously and rubs the back of his neck, “Uh.. yeah. Apparently they only prepared one room for us– but it’s got two beds, see!” Sonic turns the phone to show his bag sitting on the twin-sized bed by the window, “I’ll sleep there! And Shadow will be sleeping here.” He then turns the phone to show Shadow sitting on the bed beside him.

Shadow gives a small wave with a quiet “hello”.

Maddie is about to argue with Sonic some more on these sleeping arrangements.. But then she sees Shadow and her heart instantly melts.

“Aw honey, you look so frazzled. You doing okay?? They treat you well??” “We’ve only met the butler,” Sonic explains, scooting closer to Shadow so the phone can now see both of them in the frame, “But he was super chill.” “Mhm,” Shadow nods, looking a bit sick still.

“So you haven’t met the mystery sis yet??” “Nuh uh,” Sonic answers, Shadow shaking his head in response.

“Why didn’t she greet you two?? Ain’t she the host??” Maddie frowns, seeming a bit off put by the woman who invited them not having the common courtesy to welcome them.

“She was in a meeting apparently,” Sonic shrugs. “She planned this meeting for when you two were suppose to be arriving??” “Well.. most people don’t arrive exactly on time, in her defense,” Sonic smirks, elbowing Shadow a bit playfully to which the hybrid just huffs and shrugs his shoulders.

“Don’t be so defensive, Maddie, you’re gonna freak the guy out,” Tom adds, entering the frame beside Maddie. He waves at the two with a little grin, “Hey guys.” “Hi, Dad!” “Hello, Mr. Wachowski.” “I’m not trying to freak him out, I just–.. It’s weird is all I’m saying. But I don’t know anything about the woman, so what do I know,” Maddie shrugs, putting on a smile for Shadow.

“Maybe it all boils down to a different lifestyle and culture,” Tom shrugs, “Butlers answering doors ain’t so uncommon in some countries.” “Yeah, dude. Don’t look too much into it,” Sonic agrees with a reassuring smile, “And if her butler is being honest, then she’ll be super pumped when she realizes you’re here.”

Giving a small hum at this, Shadow just shrugs his shoulders and looks at the floor again. Sonic sighs at this, looking at Tom and Maddie on the phone screen before offering a sideways smile, “Anyway- we just wanted to call and let you guys know we got settled in. Think we’re suppose to have dinner soon.” “Thank you for calling, sweetie. Please call again before you go to bed! Wanna say goodnight. And your brothers will wanna talk to you.” “Can do,” Sonic winks with a grin, “Love you guys.” “Love you too, kiddo!” “And we love you too, Shadow!” Shadow smiles a bit at that, looking at the screen again and showing his slightly lifted spirits at the sentiment. Love is a hard emotion for Shadow. Sonic doesn’t think he’s ever heard Shadow even say the word ‘love’ when referring to himself. But they all know that he loves them too, even if it’s difficult to voice. 

“Later!” “Bye, boys!!” Sonic hangs up.

Tossing his phone on the bed behind him, Sonic turns his attention back towards Shadow and moves to lean his head on his shoulder and lightly nuzzle against him. Shadow just sighs and returns the gesture, seeking comfort and hoping to ease the pounding in his heart and the nausea in his throat some. 

“We ain’t gotta sit in here,” Sonic offers, “We could go look around? I saw a garden outside, maybe we can go walk it and get your mind off of just sitting here brooding.” “I don’t brood,” Shadow huffs. “Right, right, Hot Topic, you’re definitely don’t brood.” 

Sonic smiles a bit and pulls back to look at Shadow, “Seriously, though. If you just sit here in your head, it’ll just seem worse than it is. Nothing bad has happened. Everything has gone super smoothly so far. There’s no reason to let your head scare you–”

He’s interrupted by the sound of thumping outside, resembling footsteps sprinting down the hall towards their door.

“He’s here!? He’s really here!?”

Sonic and Shadow exchange looks at the voice. It certainly doesn’t belong to a 54 year old. 

“Which door, Mr. Tanaka, which one!?”

The steps stop right outside their door.

“This one???”

They can hear the mumbled voice of the butler further down the hall.

And then there’s knocking on the door.

Shadow’s heart leaps right up into his throat, Sonic’s eyes widening a bit as he looks at the door and then Shadow. “...Are you gonna answer??” Shadow doesn’t move. He doesn’t budge from his spot on the bed, frozen there with wide eyes and his lips parted with slightly panicked breaths.

“Okay, okay, calm down,” Sonic hushes gently, rubbing through Shadow’s quills, “Just breathe.. I’ll tell them you’re resting or something..”

Shadow nods. Nothing more.

Sonic swallows and pushes himself off the bed, walking to the door and reaching for the knob.

There’s a few more knocks just before he opens the door.

Sonic’s eyes go huge at who he finds on the other side..

“Oh! Sorry,” the little girl smiles sheepishly, “I wasn’t sure you heard the first time..” She looks Sonic up and down a bit curiously, only a foot taller than him at most.. Her head tilts, her brow quirking, “...You’re quite bluer than I imagined..”

Sonic can’t answer. He can’t find his voice.

He’s only seen Maria in pictures or old found footage from the ARK..

He stares at the little girl, his brows knitting up tight and distress slowly growing inside him despite it being dampened by the pure shock.

“...I’m..,” Sonic eventually manages, voice coming out weak and quiet, tight from the lump in his throat, “..not Shadow..”

“Oh,” she blinks, her head tilting again with a little giggle, blonde hair falling over her shoulder at the motion, “that makes more sense. Then who exactly are you??” Sonic tries to answer again, but once more, he finds himself not able. His brain isn’t working anymore. All it can do is play the same thought on repeat.

‘You’re dead. You’re supposed to be dead. How are you here???

Maria Robotnik..’

[yuesya]

“You need to eat me.”

The white-haired girl in front of him blinks, “That’s an odd way to start a conversation.”

Eligius briefly chokes at that uncaring, blasé response. “… I’m being serious here.”

“So you are.” Even so, the girl’s voice remains unperturbed, and her expression does not change. “Would your strange request have anything to do with the visitors who passed through recently?”

… That is a remarkably understated way of referring to the most recent Sarkaz travelers who’d visited Arkos. Travelers who’d come specifically in search of Miss Salome, too. From the heavy robes and tight wrappings that consisted their attire, from the necrosis-type Arts that they commanded, it had been obvious that they were Nachzehrers.

Nachzehrers –beings who were the very personification of war; gruesome, relentless warriors known to be devoted to the battlefield, who reveled in the slaughter.

But the standing policy of Arkos is that all visitors are welcome. Save for those who threaten the stability and wellbeing of the settlement itself, or commit crimes within its borders.

And so the Nachzehrers had been allowed to enter Arkos, just as so many others had been allowed before them, and no doubt far more would be allowed after in the future.

Eligius had regarded their Nachzehrer visitors with wariness and curiosity in the beginning. Which swiftly morphed into shock and outright alarm, when they had accosted Salome on one of her routine patrols around the mountains.

“You’re Herleva’s daughter, aren’t you?”

“My name is Naftali, a soldier who once served under Commander Herleva of the Withering Court. I apologize that it took so long for us to find you –I’ve come to bring you home.”

…

Salome had refused to leave with them.

… Much to the relief of many, Eligius included. Though their numbers were steadily increasing, it was undeniable that Salome was the heart of Arkos, and if she left, then in all likelihood they would end up scattering across the land once more. Misfits and travelers and wanderers with no place to belong, and no place to rest.

(No place to call home.)

…

Eligius had known that Salome was Sarkaz for a long time now, but he hadn’t realized that she was Nachzehrer Sarkaz. She certainly didn’t look the part; Nachzehrers were said to possess bodies that easily withered and rotted away like the necrosis Arts that they commanded, and Salome did not display any of those traits. She had a pair of distinctive Sarkaz horns sitting on her head, and that was it. Were it not for those curved horns, she probably could’ve passed as a Pythian girl with her pointed ears and long, snake-like tail covered in glittering white scales–

Or so Eligius had thought.

Because he’d seen it, the other day. Salome usually wore clothing that covered most of her skin, including a veil across her face, but he’d glimpsed her taking off her gloves –only to reveal blackened fingertips, eerily reminiscent of necrotic rot, which caused Eligius’ blood to run cold.

Was it because of her Nachzehrer blood? Was she –was she somehow rotting away? Was her Pythian blood not enough to offset the horrifying effects of her inheritance?

Wracking his brains and ruminating over what he’d overheard from the Nachzehrer visitors, there was only one potential solution that Eligius could think of. Through devouring the dead, Nachzehrers were able to add the strength of the fallen to their own, so–

“You need to eat me,” he repeats. Because if she doesn’t, if her situation worsens, then…

Salome arches an eyebrow. “Do you want to be eaten?”

…

… No. Of course not.

The day that Eligius had left Kazimierz, a broken husk of a knight who had failed his family and could no longer even properly swing a blade anymore… Eligius had thought that there no longer remained anything left for him to protect. Not that he even possessed the strength to protect anything, not as a disgraced, crippled knight driven out of his homeland.

Fate had led him to Arkos, eventually. He’d aimlessly followed a merchant caravan as a cheap hired hand, and somehow ended up staying in Arkos when a Sarkaz girl killed the head of the caravan. The man had a sexual proclivity aimed towards children, and had acted on those urges in Arkos –Salome had sliced the despicable merchant into bloody pieces for it.

Eligius had thought of his days as a knight in Kazimierz, of all the harsh training he’d undergone… only to be helpless in face of injustice and wrongdoing all the same. A knight must be honorable above all else. But what worth was there in honor when it was something that could be traded and bought by the monolithic corporations that ruled Kazimierz?

Arkos… is not perfect. The buildings are shabby and run-down, and the rooftops have a tendency to leak when it rains. There is no particular schedule for when merchants are passing through, and resources are always running tight. Sometimes, brash mercenaries end up causing trouble, even with the threat of Salome hanging over their heads.

But at some point, Arkos had grown to be precious to Eligius. The tenacity of the people that lived here, with all their storied pasts, and the young leader who never allowed the opinions of others to prevent her from doing what must be done.

Eligius is no longer a knight. With a body had been ravaged by vicious poisoning and missing his dominant sword arm, his days as a knight of glorious Kazimierz are long over.

But even so, there must be a way that he could still protect what was important to him. Even if he wasn’t the one holding the sword himself.

Eligius squares his shoulders and looks towards Salome determinedly. He knows that he is not the only one who is willing to become her strength through being devoured by her, but it’s better that a useless cripple like him becomes the first to die, so that the others–

“You don’t look like you want to die,” Salome says. Then, turns around to pick up a… shovel? From behind her? “Here.”

Eligius falters, automatically accepting the dull shovel with his sole remaining hand, “What is this?”

“A shovel,” Salome responds. Fair, but that’s not what Eligius meant– “Seeing as you have enough time on your hands to be thinking about useless things, you can go work with the others on developing the terraced gardens first.”

Eligius gives a small start, “But you–”

“I’m not interested in cannibalism. Let me know once you’ve figured out how to grow potatoes properly here.”

With that said, Salome turns and walks away.

Leaving Eligius standing in the street by himself, holding a shovel.

…

… It’s nothing but a rusty shovel, given to him haphazardly by a girl who doesn’t even bother to toss a second glance back towards him as she departs. But for some reason, the shovel rests in his hand with a greater weight than the sword he’d once held during his knighthood ceremony, and there is a strange emotion welling up within his chest–

Eligius tightens his grip on the shovel, exhaling slowly.

[auriidae]

the amount of em dashes i use when writing ethubs is frankly embarrassing

[awoogayanderes]

KISS KISS OUT OF TROUBLE

➪ request : “HI there! I just thought of this while I was making my new account but like think off this Dazai, Atsushi and Akutagawa are on a mission at a party with their s/o and they get caught so they are running from the guards or something so them and their s/o had to pretend to be a couple making out in a hallway as to not get caught anyways love your writing! have a wonderful day!” - @ghostlyintervention

➪ warnings : slightly suggestive

➪ other notes : hey guys i’m back, it’s finally summer break, I’M SO HAPPY TO BE OUT OF SCHOOL !!! and thank you for the sweet message anon :) and also this was honestly trash but i wanted to write at 2 in the morning

Osamu Dazai :

- you two are often paired up, the agency knows how you two bounce off of each other making most missions successful

- however this one didn’t go as planned, your distraction didn’t woe over the people you wanted to woe over, instead it created chaos of anger with dazai right behind you

- this wasn’t a mission where physical altercation was a good idea, so when there’s no other plan, you and dazai fled

- your escape plan didn’t exactly work, with dazai purposely leading you to the wrong places

- your mind was spinning, trying to think of a plan before both of you got arrested

- that’s when you turn to dazai, a small smirk on his face, already knowing what to do

- you sighed, knowing this fell under his plan the whole time, in matter of seconds he was basically eating your mouth as disgusting as that sounds

- once the coast was clear, you pulled away, wheezing to yourself trying to catch your breathe while side eyeing dazai

- “how about we continue this later,” the bastard smirks at you before taking your hand and leading you to the proper exit

Atsushi Nakajima :

- it’s not too often that you’re paired with atsushi, everyone knowing how flustered he is around you, even months after starting your relationship

- now the dispute at this party wasn’t either of your fault, it was just someone recognizing you as an imposter, and that’s when both you and atsushi fled

- now, both of you didn’t exactly have a plan b, you didn’t think you’d need it

- obviously now it was a regretful mistake as you’ve wandered into the third dining hall, with guards right on your heels

- finally having some to breathe after being tucked into a corner, you quickly thought of a plan that involved both of you

- without a second thought, you lunged at atsushi, kissing him like your life depended on it, the poor boy was caught in shock but he went along with it

- he genuinely didn’t know it was some type of twisted plan of yours until the guards passed you by running not suspecting anything

- once that happens, you pull away, atsushi breathing hard being taken aback

- “please let me know the next time you do that, my heart can’t bare it” the white haired boy said with rosy cheeks

Ryūnosuke Akutagawa :

- it’s extremely rare for you and akutagawa to be together on a mission, mori doesn’t like to mix relationships with work

- his temper is what got both of you in trouble, he snapped at one of the party hosts, and with that, it started a huge fight

- while akutagawa was willing to kill everyone there, you managed to persuade him to not spill any blood on the shiny floors, instead just run

- both of you didn’t know where you were and aku’s grumbles of displeasure didn’t quite help

- that’s when you thought to yourself what the hell were you going to do to keep everyone alive and both of you out of trouble

- then an idea lit up, you slowly turned to akutagawa, “ryū please just go along with what i’m about to do,” you say and right as he was about to question you, you pushed your lips onto his, him almost pulling away

- it took all his might not to freak out on affection overload but it worked as no guards were chasing you now, instead running in the other direction

- as you pull back, akutagawa immediately turns around from you, face beet red

- “let’s just leave” he said, coughing into his hand, not looking back

[terracyte]

happy rba for the soul

related fic for ur consideration: please, find me

[anarchyduck]

“Nobody’s seen you in days."

Ventus feels the tension coiling as Terra sits down beside him. It’s wrapped with guilt, with shame, with a need to run away. He keeps his eyes forward on the mountains and cliffs of Departure. His heart sits heavy in his chest. His skin itches.

Terra waits for him to speak. He sits beside him patiently, so much more patient than Ventus remembers him being. Or maybe he was always like that. Wouldn’t be the first time he’s forgotten something.

“I needed to get away for a while.” Ventus says finally. There’s flowers blooming on the side of the closest mountain. It’s all rock and stone except for the speck of green and purple that moves in the breeze. “Everything is just like we left it. Like… no time has passed at all.”

Pristine halls with polished floors that still shine. Too clean thrones in a too clean hall in a too clean castle. Ventus looks at his hands and wonders if the dirt beneath his nails is from the garden or the graveyard.

“It's all the same but we're not.”

[stelladess]

I find it odd when people frame lore revelations as being some sort of opposite to character development as they often are pretty heavily connected.

There are tons of examples like the mechanics of how the seaborne works being actively thematically important for multiple of the stories with them for example.

Kal´tsit being a synthetic being created by a now gone precursor civilization isn't just random lore fluff, it informs her character. Why she feels isolated and set apart from people and it makes her strong love for the people of Terra more meaningful because it would be easier for her to justify that she does not have to care about them because she is not one of them. But she does care about them! She considers herself part of Terra and responsible for helping people, something which clearly makes her feel very guilty for "failing".

spoilers for Babel event and chapter 14 below:

The doctor´s entire motives for betraying Theresa only make sense from their past and the goals of the precursor civilization. Those reveals do not undermine the character drama but enhance it, the contrast between the doctor wanting to be able to help people like Kal´tsit, Amiya or Theresa clashing with their mission to ensure originium absorbs everything. They know what they are doing is wrong but they feel like all choices are wrong and the one they have a duty to fulfill is the one that required betraying Theresa. I also think a nice detail is after the doctor made up their mind to betray Theresa they start referring to Kal´tsit as AMa-10 in their inner monologues and stop trying to think about Amiya at all. Pressumably sort of trying to dehumanise or ignore the people they know they will hurt because it makes it psychologically easier for them to go through with it, this is especially notable since the doctor gave Kal´tsit her name in the first place.

And when we get a bunch of weird reveals about originium and the past civilization in chapter 14... its mainly used to get some interesting character interactions between Kal´tsit and other characters and to facilitate the situation that allows for the confrontation with Theresa, also the stuff relating to the sarkaz souls stuck there is to explain why Theresa would willingly work with Theresis despite his uhm... evil aspirations, furthermore it is also to finally reveal a bit more about what Priestess was actually like as a character.

Heck back in Lone trail while the stronger character stuff was elsewhere (I especially love the Ifrit and Rosmontis focused stuff) the sarcophagi and Friston stuff is mostly to give some more insight into characters like Ho´oleyhak, Kal´tstit and doctor, introducing us to Mark Max and giving an actually believable reason for Kal´tsit having to burn her bridges with the Tin Man, causing Rhodes to be in pretty hot water with the Columbian government.

I find the idea that the story is deciding to "stop doing character focus to do lore" absurd quite frankly.

World building is important! What makes Arknights unique compared to a lot of other popular gacha games is in large part the world and history. Arknights characters are well written, but in particular they are well written in the sense that Arknights is good at showing how the world they live in shape people into who they are. Learning more about that world to explore it in greater depth is not contradictory to the goal of interesting character writing, it helps it.

[yzafre]

The thing about Ventus as we're introduced to him in BBS is, for me, that he has a lot of right instincts and feelings, but not (yet) the maturity to properly communicate and act on them.

Because if you look at what he says in the game - hey something bad's coming, we should stay together, we should support each other, we should not spy on each other and mess with other's agency at an outsider's behest - I mean... he's right! He is, in fact, right about that!

I very firmly believe that if they'd stuck together a lot of the issues in BBS would have been either avoided or mitigated. Like imagine if you had this unshakeable understanding of what's going wrong and what you need to do to fix it but no one will listen to you. Without experience and maturity guiding you on how to handle it, I can see why he gets very yell-y and snappish and impulsive.

The problem, of course, is that just because it's understandable does not mean it's a good way to handle things. It's still an immature course of action! I know there's been people that find him very whiny, and on top of that, uh, telling Aqua she's awful was not the best look, Ven, what the heck.

I think another aspect of this is he's still filtering these things he instinctively knows through a rather... self-centered? Point of view. He's more focused on how their actions are making him feel, rather than understanding why Terra and Aqua are acting the way they are, why they don't see the truths he does.

We joke a lot about "your experience is not universal" but honestly I think realizing that is a huge stepping stone in a person's path of growth. Looking outside yourself to realize other people are have their own internal worlds guiding them.

That's why the "What you are is Darkness?" scene in KH3 hits so well for him! He's both finally able to communicate why he finds his and Vanitas' situation so awful rather than just yelling a lot, but also he understands and acknowledges Vanitas' point of view, even if he probably still knows/feels its not the best one.

[strayheartless]

I feel like Terra accidentally older brothers Ven and Riku a lot. Well, I say “accidentally”. He knows what he’s doing. So here have some examples:

He ruffles Both boys hair in passing. Never does it with the others, just Riku and Ventus. Ven loves it, Riku pretends it annoys him, but if Terra ever stopped doing it he’d be very sad.

He lets Ventus fall asleep on him all the time. Riku is chronically mistrusting of falling asleep near anyone but Sora, but he will close his eyes and doze near Terra.

Terra is more likely to fly off the handle if someone is rude to Riku.

Ven is a fan of piggybacks. Terra is okay with this.

He absolutely favours them during training and yes it has been brought up by the others as an issue.

He can always tell the difference between Ventus and Roxas, but still catches himself calling Sora Van or Van Sora. Roxas is just glad he’s not being mistaken for Mr golly gosh over there (Ventus resents that nickname but still refuses to swear properly.)

Terra genuinely forgot Sora was present the day he met Riku. Sora would be offended but he forgot he’d even met Terra and Aqua or that Ven was in his heart so….

Riku generally doesn’t like to be touched but he’ll go to Terra for a bear hug when he feels like he needs the deep pressure and Sora isn’t there to lie on him.

Ventus likes to put his chin on Terras shoulder and bother him while he writes training reports or is reading. It usually gets him a flick to the nose or forehead but he doesn’t mind.

Both Riku and Ven have secretly stalked Terra and Aqua’s missions to see if they’re dating. They have also tried to push them together like they are scuttle and Sebastian and this is the little mermaid… or maybe like their Timone and Pumba… the trip wire did work but the effectiveness was limited. Back to the drawing board for plan H. Damn.

Terra teases them over their own crushes and relationships. This is a mistake because Ven has years or TerAqua receipts and he’s not afraid to use them. Riku finds this hilarious.

Terra and Riku have both had a good heart to heart and a cry about what happened to them. There a lot of “im sorry” from both parties and they end up coming to the conclusion that it’s just how things went and nobody but Xehanort was to blame.

During the time Sora is missing Terra goes to Squall to ask him how he supported Sora when the roles were reversed. There was a mutual recognition from both parties that these were their kids/ little brothers, and seeing them hurting was awful.

Ven likes to play “think fast” without telling Terra. Terra has been hit in the chest/head/groin too many times by various high speed projectiles.

Terra claims he doesn’t have favourites. Everyone else thinks Terra is a lying lier who lies as Kairi dangles by her foot from a bahemoths mouth; Roxas is trying to extinguish the fire Lea caused; Xion returns from training hagard and with leaves in her hair; and Sora and Van lay starfishes on the training ground looking like they went 100 rounds with Sephiroth. Meanwhile Ven and Riku have had multiple water breaks and are now sat cross legged on the grass eating out of homemade bento boxes chatting with Aqua about their favorite flavours of cake.

I’m not saying Terra has a dreams and honour speech but… there’s a reason Zack looked up to him like a mentor.

[nellasbookplanet]

The three tiers of queer sff:

Broke: what is worldbuilding? Made in a lab to be as blandly inoffensive as possible. Time to randomly namedrope terms like 'nonbinary' and 'ace' while doing zero work actually incorporating them into the world or characters and have someone give a speech about how valid they are. Lines like 'I'm too ace for this' while never exploring the concept of asexuality or aromanticism and still having very central romance plotlines is common. I hate it here learn how to write realistic dialogue and fully realized characters I'm begging.

Woke: more ore less typical sci-fi and fantasy but It’s Queer Now. Might include in-universe queerphobia to be struggled against or may have queer identities be fully normalized. Can be done bad or well depending on the skill of the writer. A good way to explore our contemporary ideas of gender and sexuality or to have a bit of a power fantasy with lesbian princesses and trans knights. There will probably be a bisexual love triangle.

Bespoke: what is a gender. What is monogamy. What is polyamory. What is romance. What is platonic. Time to show you the most fucked up uncategorizable relationship you’ve ever seen. There may be weird ass metaphorical sex