#aqua is everyone's mom

[mythicalartistx]

How the English Translation makes Kairi characterization worse...

Why I'm going to say is about her character and it doesn't have to do with liking her with Sora or not, it's fine if people like the ship, it's completely valid but it's not about that.

The English translation had sadly change lines that gave her strength or character to lines that kills her character or even romanticizes it with Sora instead.

I'm not here saying there's anything wrong with the ship, there's not it's fine. I'm here saying how they ruin good character moments for romance or other reasons as well.

They give other people all the credit or just make it lackluster.

For example in MOM she blamed Xehanort for Sora's disappearance in the ENG version, but in truth she blamed herself. Now this changes it so she's blaming someone else, but her blaming herself gives her character like it's her fault than just her blaming someone else.

And I think that is a neat take that she blames herself because Sora wanted to bring her back so he could go home with all of his friends. I find her character to be more interesting if she blames herself and feels guilty over what happened.

Here she's taking action and feeling guilty rather than being like oh it's definitely this guy's fault. And just blaming the obvious choice — the villain is kind of like really...

I mean it sort of makes sense because Xehanort caused Kairi's heart to shatter which then Sora went to find her... But still... It just sounds better if she blamed herself, not sure why they changed it to blaming Xehanort?

Another is a dialogue that Sora says, "I'm strong with you, Kairi." And like it's fine whatever, but the original dialogue is something like "You're strong, Kairi." Now this one kind of bothers me because it uncharacterized her.

It is showing that she's strong here. Sora believes she is strong and that's nice considering how her character is always left behind. However they take that all away in the English, when he says "I'm strong with you Kairi"

It could be saying oh Sora just is strong with her because his friends make him stronger or something. But it removes that fact that Kairi is strong by herself as stated in the JPN version. And it slightly romanticizes it when there wasn't any before and because it wanted to romanticize it, it took away development for Kairi.

It also could be her along with Riku helping him get back and it seems Sora believes it was only Kairi who helped him after restoring everyone (he probably forgot what Riku did and how he sacrificed for him) so saying you're strong could also be like Oh you're strong and helped me.

And it just shows to her character she's strong and can do things, she's not the weak person who is always being left behind or needing to be saved but that's it

And taking that away just kills her character more.

I really have hopes for Kairi in future installments, if you seen any previous post I made I have stated it would be really interesting for her character to make new friends since she is Always being left behind and there could be potentially some interesting interactions and development between other characters such as the sea salt gang or Wayfinder Trio.

I also had stated that if we get to see her finding out about her past with Aqua or even Lea it would be interesting.

So far her best interaction is with Lea in kh3 and I liked how they became friends, but I really hope for more

[trapastrology]

~Astro Notes From Aris~

~11H Virgo tends to be the "mom" friend of the group. They make the schedules. Make sure everyone gets home on time & in one piece. The one who's always prepared. Make sure everyone is fed & okay. Usually, the friend ur parents will always let you go out with because they know you'll be okay.

~Sag & Pisces Mercuries (sometimes aqua) sound more attractive in their native tongue/accent to ppl. So instead of hiding ur accent, embrace it! These are usually ppl who don't ever lose their accent even if they've tried to. It will also feel more natural/comfortable as well.

~Ppl tend to be very jealous & don't believe that 2H pluto ppl deserve the good things they get/have which in return, overtime, will cause the 2H pluto person to feel this way as well.

~Aries NN usually keep the peace & avoid conflict when they should be doing the complete opposite. They will only find true peace when they learn to stand up and stop letting ppl trample them.

~7H Uranus in Solar Return doesn't always mean a breakup for a romantic breakup; it can be an ending of any relationship where you deem the person to be ur other half or y'all are just very close to one another.

~North Node in Pisces must learn forgiveness towards SELF

~For my fellow steven universe lovers, moon sq pluto synastry is equivalent to the relationship & situation between Spinel & Rose Quartz. Spinel would be the Moon person.

~12H ruler in the 3H-keep a lot of things to urself becuz more often than not ppl don't want the best for you & things will go array after you speak about it. If your 12H is in libra with the ruler in the 3H, things pertaining to relationships esp should be kept under wraps. As well as ur gifts, talents & things that bring you peace

~Air sign/house Chiron & Lilith's, were you ever bullied for being a "nerd" or having an interests that weren't the norm then but is now?

~Venus (trine/sextile) NN synastry is the way the Venus person shows love is what the NN person needs. For example, A Cap Venus's love is steady, stable, longlasting, devoted & gives true old romance which is something that a Taurus NN needs but would also be foreign to them due to their Scorpio SN. The Venus persons way of loving will bring the NN person closer towards where they need to be.

~2H/Taurus plmts are usually big cookers/bakers. Or at least they should, it's one of the many things that'll bring them peace.

~12H Libra/5H Pisces love romance/fantasy/magic/supernatural shows & movies!

~11H Cancer are the "emotional support" friend. The one you can go and talk to about your feelings, emotions and family issues. The one that is the more emotional person of the friend group & sees their friends as their family.

~Sag stells/nep-asc/1H Jup- Do people easily guess ur ethnicity or suspect ur from somewhere else? You may not know what gives it away, but someone will ask "oh are you from ____?"

Follow & Like for more!!!!!!!! Dm to book a reading with me. Dm to purchase my book on 12H synastry. Prepare for the new content aheadddddd!!!! Comment any content suggestions as well.

[astrophileblogs07]

ASTRO OBSERVATIONS PT.20

⚫ Opposite to the stereotype of Leo being a narcissist, its the Aquarians who are more narcissist than ANY other zodiac. Esp its the Dhanishta naks out of the Aqua naks who are so.

⚫ I have seen 3 Aquarian moons (of Dhanishta nak) who had a poverty stricken first half of life (childhood, teenage years) but then they become well off like rlly very well off in their second half (esp after marriage). They marry rich 🤑 too. What i am saying here is the dramatic transformation of their financial life.

⚫ Pisces men are physically abusive. That's it. Esp the March Pisces. They literally are a bully. (Dont be fooled by the beautiful doe eyes lol)

⚫ "WOW What voluminous and luscious hair he's got!" -my ♌ rising and moon mom commenting on a side character with insignificant role in a movie 🤣. I wasn't noticing that at all...but she seemed to be stuck on that feature 😂.

⚫ Martian influence on a chart can actually have a liking to dangerous weapons and ammunitions. (Like idk I weirdly love them 😂😂)

⚫ Females with Ketu ruled naks are the first group of people whom male perceive as "threat". (Second is mars btw). Like if the other person is a typical male (egoistic, chauvinist) they will literally hate you to the core coz they know you equal them in all ways (except you know what LMAO 🤣). So they'll try to pin you down or belittle you etc. (sad, but since I have experienced I wanted it to share w you guys)

⚫ Also I love the way Ketu Nak women get along becoz mostly they have so much in common. And by that I mean how the society (male dom) treats them. I am not saying they're an "outcast" but the reaction they face just coz the male species get intimidated by us which has an cascading effect on our mental peace is beyond tolerance.

⚫Ketu naks are sexyyyyyy 🖤👁️🫦👁️❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

(I always imagine a smokin hot biker girl 👩🏻‍🎤with leather jacket and smoky eyeshadow whenever I hear "Ashwini, Magha and Mula")

⚫ I have seen a Chart which was totally "Mars" chart and I'll tell you, that person has Aries asc, Moon, Mars and (Mercury ig is in Scorpio?idr) along with Scorpio sun. And that person is like personified version of the planet itself. So cunning and so shrewd, potentially be a mastermind. Statergic. Secretive af. (Might be their middle name to exaggerate). Close to their mom. Loves friends (friends over anything). Also they have a "reddish" tint to their skin (no health probs, but yeah that planet does that). Knows how to tackle any embarrassing moment in public and deal with it. (I am jealous of him coz i wanted to be like him in every way 😂)

⚫Lilith and Pluto aspects in natal chart can actually survive 8H synastry. Almost same energy and themes. 💀

⚫Why are Maghas the "scapegoat" of the family? Like they be framed in a situation with which they have no relation with. Its annoying to see. Its like you're locked in your room chilling and as soon as you step out, everyone in the family is blaming you for something or the other. Now you're the "bad guy". (Yo wtf 🤡). Added to the generosity of Leos, people target you often. 😕

⚫Libra men CANNOT stand loneliness and being ostracized at all in any way. I have seen this in every Libra I came across. For eg: if you're the "black sheep" they won't talk to you and will go with what the crowd says. And if people have outcasted them just becoz they're with you/involved with you, they'll drop you like hot potato. People say and stereotype Capricorns for being the one who cares about reputation and all, but her 'Venus-ruled-Saturn-exalted' sister also is same. 💀

(no wonder they're besties lol)

P.S: I read a post here which said "Eye contact with 8H synastry hits different" ( i am not copying, i don't remember the username) and boy is that true 💀💀💀. Like I was -->😯😳🫣. Coz I have experienced that 🤣🤣. It does, than any other eye contact I have seen. Lmao 🤣🤣.{Edit: its @zeldasnotes 🖤😁}

Hope you liked it 😁😊. Until next time! 👋🏻

Love you y'all ❤️❤️❤️

[vanibear]

oops i kind of ended up writing a mini essay in the tags my bad 🙏

@vanibear my thoughts precisely. yes sora needs it the most but he’s also the most likely to get it. y’know. if recoded is any indication of how much the writers do care about all the pain they’ve put him through then i firmly believe sora’s issues will be addressed and resolved at some point. my thoughts were more like ok who do you think is least likely in canon to be helped. who is the underdog that you most want to uplift. also yeah strelitzia might take him to therapy herself lol

[lagomoz]

Everyone so far seems to be theorizing Amane’s victim as her dad, her mom, or an unnamed child also in the cult. I’ve got my own theory - it was Gozake.

That’s Gozake, from Magic. The blue guy. He’s one of the four main figureheads of the cult, and possibly a music teacher of some kind to Amane, conducting her to sing in Magic. The very first shot of The Purge March is Amane playing the drums.

The mindscape Amane’s wield flags representing the four cult leaders (teachers? elders? propaganda peddlers? high up members? whatever, important cult people), but Gozake’s flag in particular is given special attention. 

Same color scheme, same three dots over a narrow rectangle like design, same ear thingy to the side, same orb-like design features - that’s Gozake. Before we see it flying though, we see it crumpled up on the floor by Amane’s feet, something not true for any other flag.

We then see an Amane messing up her flag routine, dropping Gozake’s flag in particular and falling over. The other Amane looms over her, preparing to punish her for a failure related to Gozake. Once the punishment starts, rain pours down.

Then, the punished Amane begins to drown. You can even see the flag while she’s sinking.

She drowns further, and we get another shot of just the flag, lying on the ground, and then the drowning Amane reaching up towards it. She’s reaching toward Gozake, the one responsible for drowning her.

And he is the one drowning her. We see it directly in Magic.

It cuts to the real world, with Amane actually being drowned, and her placed below the one drowning her like she is placed below the flag. 

Take note of the framing, with one hand stretching from out of frame.

I can’t find a better picture for her undercover card, but her location shows a bathroom. Undercover also has a shot of a victim lying on a blue tiled floor (we can’t see the floor, but the shower in Purge March has blue and green wall tiles) with water coming down. Blue and water are representations of Gozake (Amane’s character color is aqua), and it’s framed as a single hand stretching out while the rest is (mostly) obscured, and takes place in the bathroom (or at least a bathroom) that Amane was drowned by Gozake in.

Throughout the MV, there’s a lot of blue, too. Amane’s school uniform is blue, the cloth she heals the cat with is blue (the cloth later becomes bloody, another thing representing Gozake being damaged), the sky and general background and lighting is blue. Symbols of Gozake are present everywhere in the MV.

The suit man with the briefcase could be Gozake, I’m not sure. Gozake would fit the profile - a cult member, adult male, disapproving of medicine, willing to put Amane in harm’s way - but I don’t have further evidence.

Before Amane goes all in on the cult’s doctrine, she has an umbrella, but it’s unopened. The baton she uses to kill and to represent her as fully converted and the opening umbrella are overlayed. 

The lyrics show her motivation for the murder, as both a means of protection and revenge. She’s been horrifically abused for years, and has taken on the role of the punisher to avoid being the punished.

“It’s my turn to tear you apart / So there is no second time, I’ll give back the judgment that you gave to me /  It’s now your turn to say that hopeless “I’m sorry” /  You’re sorry? I don’t care! / Please, go ahead and die already / Remember MY cries, MY repents, MY words of “I’m sorry” that I said to you?”

Beyond showing a lot of resentment and disdain for the one she’s speaking to - her victim - the phrasing clearly shows that she’s not just punishing a sinner, she’s turning the tables. She’s returning the favor to someone who’s been violent to her in the past.

The umbrella is symbolically her murder weapon and what she uses to punish others, but also literally and obviously a tool to protect from the rain. What she uses to kill is what protects her from Gozake. She can’t take the abuse anymore and tries to become the cult sanctioned violent avenger that’s hurt her so many times. She can’t be the victim if she’s the perpetrator.

The final shot has her over the corpse, having tracked in water from the rain. The puddles lead right to it and the framing is the same as both the Undercover victim and the one drowning her - a single hand, reaching from out of frame.

Amane killed Gozake.

[hana-no-seiiki]

HELLO??? WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABOUT THIS MASTERPIECE??? especially the last line holy shit im scared yet excited at the same time 😬😬

YANDERE! AQUAMARINE HOSHINO x REINCARNATED! READER x YANDERE! RUBY

Guess I gotta do a full fic about it huh. Here we go. Link to previous part in the ask!

tw/cw: yandere themes, gaslight tactics courtesy of aqua, girlkeep tactics courtesy of ruby, girlboss [y/n]. mentions of suicide. reader is gn but gets described as beautiful.

is this really a yandere fic when both the twins are canonically insane tho-

IT WAS SAID THAT DURING THE NIGHT OF YOUR BIRTH THE SUN WAS AT ITS HIGHEST POINT AND FULLEST BLOOM.

Its rays buried humanity under a blanket of heat and devastation. Fortunetellers would wax on and on of the disasters you would soon bring upon the world.

That was your experience in your first life.

Many could only wish of being born to a worldwide pop-star, but to you it was a reality. You resented those that vied for your place. How could they romanticize such a life when every single day was torture for you. Some predicted you to be world-class singer before your first cry. People knew you before you could even speak to them. Everyone already idolized you, expected you to do great things before you’d even learn the alphabet.

The pressure had already been insurmountable the moment you took your first breath.

Your second life was terrifying to say the least. It didn’t matter that way you died before, just the thought of experiencing the same motions again frightened you to your bones.

And so you pretended. A shining star to a dim moon that barely reflected any light. Ever so meticulously making sure none knew of your so called genius. The last thing you wanted was to be labeled a prodigy even with the more lax nature of your new family.

But art will always call to you, a sunflower drawn to its source of energy.

You kept everything as lowkey as you could, reconnected with contacts you knew would keep their mouth shut, and even kept your identity away from prying eyes.

To the world you were just this masked musician that was oddly reminiscent of their previous luminescence.

You were satisfied with that life. Fame wasn’t something you agonized about or wished for. But now that veil had been taken away, it’s as if everything was crashing down yet again. Emails, messages and articles about your success as a young star was beginning to show its true weight. Stress began accumulating further and further as you had distanced yourself from your family and threw yourself to work as a distraction.

On one such ‘productive’ night, you were met with a face you didn’t expect.

“Aqua-niisama! Nice seeing you here. Thought you would be staying at that director’s place for the night—“

“Why didn’t you tell me? Didn’t you promise to tell me everything? Don’t you trust me?”

Aquamarine had this knack of being utterly terrifying without meaning to. He had the talent to frighten at a glance. His beautiful sea-like eyes turn dull, murky. Capturing all the light, and drowning you in the same pressure your old family would throw you under repeatedly.

With his arms caging you between his form and the wall, you knew there was no escaping this. So in spite of the crippling anxiety, you gulp it do

“I wasn’t confident enough with my skills. Your mom is the Ai Hoshino and Ruby is so talented I—“

He lowered his face, nestled it right beside yours. You could swear he was breathing in your scent. “You looked anything but ‘not confident’ up on the stage.”

“Liar.” His hands then moved from the wall to encircle themselves around your body; his face to your the top of your head and nose between your hair. Yet even in this tight embrace you still felt chills down your spine. “I scare you don’t I? You were worried that I would stop you like I did with her.”

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry. I’m a terrible brother.”

“No, I understand you. You just wanted to keep her safe and I—“

“Not for that.” He pushed himself away for a couple of moments, and for that short amount of time you were ashamed to say that you felt utterly relieved until— “This.”

— he kissed you.

You’ve seen Aqua kiss Akane before. Both on and out of camera. You respected their relationship despite knowing of how unhealthy it truly is. They’d eventually break up and things would go smoothly you thought.

Pfft, as if. You knew shit would hit the fan. You were just too much of a coward to get in his way. Akane could suffer for all you care, she chose to date your psychopath of an adoptive brother anyways.

But you didn’t expect him to fall for you.

He never seem interested. Despite your mother telling you time and time again that Aqua cared deeply about you, you just couldn’t see it.

He was the deep, dark ocean. You were at the highest point of the sky, sailing across the cosmic sea. There was no way you two could meet eye to eye much less love normally.

You did the only thing your body could muster at the moment and slapped him.

“You’re right. You are a horrid brother.”

As you ran away, sobbing, Aqua couldn’t help but feel aroused.

Oh, how charming you looked with tears streaking down your cheeks.

It felt like hours when you first started crying nonstop. You never cried in your original life. You had no time or energy to. You never expected that your second, mundane life would be the one that shattered you.

And shattered you it did. You felt sorry for the future you who had to wash off all the tears and snot on your pillows and bedsheets, but it had to be done. You knew if you didn’t let it all out that day it’d happen sooner or later at a more inconvenient time.

Aqua only entered once to leave a tissue box and water bottle before he left. The sounds of typing outside of your room never ceased however, indicating he never actually went too far.

Ruby arrived far earlier than you expected as well. Her schedule that day should have had her busy til midnight but you had the feeling Aqua told her what he’d done.

“Ruby-nee—“

“Ssshhh…” Ruby silenced you with a kiss to the forehead.

“Why would he do that— he - he has a girlfriend.” You stuttered and hiccuped throughout your speech, still crying as hard as you did back then.

“Do you really think he loves her?”

“No.”

“But that isn’t what you’re worried about isn’t it?”

Ruby brought you up to her shoulder, massaging your back in a circular motion. “Trust me, nothing will change. He loves you very much. We both love you. I’m just sorry we didn’t make you feel comfortable enough to share your passion with us. You’re amazing [Y/N] in every shape, way or form. You don’t have to be the brightest to the world, you have no obligation to.”

“To us you’re already perfect.”

You never knew she had the capability to be this comforting in a mature sort of way. She always radiated a loud vibration; refreshing most of the time, though it did get tiring.

Never have you been afforded this kind of consolation. It was always you against the world. Being reminded that there are other stars in the sky beside you gave you a strange sense of solace. An odd variety of relief borne out of being insignificant in the sky.

“This incident just means he loves you in a different way alright?”

“But what about Aka-neesama?”

“I’ll talk to him about it.”

“You should thank me. I left them all vulnerable for you.” Aqua spoke, his right hand quickly moved across his laptop’s keyboard and his left held a can of Monster.

“You felt it too didn’t you?” Ruby exhaled. It took a while to get you to lull you into sleep; a necessary step to have the conversation she was partaking in.

“Yeah. . . I did.” Aqua took a sip from his drink, his starry eyes laser focused on the recording of your performance. He had set up several fan accounts and gotten footage from all sorts of angles. He couldn’t wait for your next stage. May it be from sheer excitement or the caffeine in his blood, but the man was absolutely shaking all over over in anticipation. “We have a second chance, don’t mess things up.”

“I should be saying that to you. Break up with Akane by next week. And be careful with how forward you are with your feelings.”

“Already done.” Aqua held up his phone without breaking moving his head at all, in his phone were a few texts between him and a panicking Akane. “and no promises”

Ruby sighed one last time that night, leaning her head back to your bedroom door. “. . . You were right.”

“Hm?”

Both of her eye’s stars hard turn tar black, a blush covered her cheeks.

“[Y/N] does look enticing when they cry.”

[luxmoogle]

I'm loving your Vampire AU!! Aqua looks gorgeous, as does everyone else! My favorite panel you drew is Aqua discovering a baby left on her doorstep. Aww, Aqua as a mom is so cute! Heaven forbid any harm comes to that child, Aqua can be fiercely protective XD Is there a story behind this moment? Is the baby another vampire like her, or is it a human?

The baby is Ven~! :)

He's abandoned on the steps of the castle, and Aqua takes him in, and so Ven grows up to be her familiar~

[thefreshprinceofjunes]

soriku endgame: an imagining

OKAY WELL HERE IT IS

TEN WHOLE PAGES OF HOW SORIKU ENDGAME MIGHT ACTUALLY PLAY OUT

i was rewatching vin play RE2 and fsr this invaded my thoughts and wouldnt leave

this is barely proofread and i reused a lot of the same words/phrases BUT its just meant to be an outline/abridged version so keep that in mind

(if i got any lore wrong tho pls let me know)

btw if you dont want to read this on tumblr for whatever reason, heres a link to the google doc

note: this is going off the assumption MoM saw everything (or at least everything soriku) through the gazing eye

scene is quadratum probably. master of masters (or whoever the bad guy in kh4 is) has sora and riku caught in a bad situation (for temporary visuals im picturing something similar to the dark guardian restraining aqua and ven in kh3)

sora and riku are struggling to break free, while the MoM just laughs. some kh dramatic banter occurs, before MoM changes the subject and starts monologuing (with sora and riku probably interjecting here and there)

MoM: [to sora] you still havent figured it out yet, have you?

MoM: dont you ever wonder why rikus heart holds as vast of a darkness as it does?

MoM: its not because of jealousy, or ansem, or even his desire for strength since you were children.

MoM: no, its much simpler than that.

MoM: remember that dream you had, sora? before the islands were destroyed?

MoM: there was a voice speaking to you, from deep within your heart:

MoM: 'the closer you get to the light, the greater your shadow becomes.'

MoM: well, the road goes both ways, kid. the deepest of darknesses can only come from the brightest of lights.

sora: wh-what are you saying?

MoM: its been in front of all along, but you were too blind to see it.

cut to voiceless flashbacks of all the times sora encountered the brightest light: when receiving the keyblade, when almost pulled out of sleep by the memory of aqua on DI, during the dive to heart at the beginning of kh3 (assuming it really happened and wasnt just for gameplay purposes), and after using the power of waking at the KBG (the tunnel scene)

sora looks at riku, then back at MoM. riku is grimacing.

sora: that… that was… that was rikus light?

MoM: bingo!

MoM: but theres even more to it than that.

MoM: theres another force of power in this universe that keeps light and dark in harmony

sora: another…?

MoM: you feel an unfathomable depth of it in your heart for, well, pretty much everyone youve ever met.

MoM: what lies in rikus heart, however, comes from the same place, but is also very, very different. its something you claim to not understand, even though youve encountered it many times during your adventures.

rikus eyes widen and he tries to interject, but the MoM physically stops him; sora calls out for him

MoM: its more than just friendship. its hearts that are really, truly connected between two people.

MoM: think about it. think about all the times when everything seemed hopeless, but something, something, kept the bad guys from winning. it wasnt light.

cut to voiceless flashbacks between many of the disney couples sora has met: the beast arriving at hollow bastion out of sheer force of will in his search for belle, flynn sacrificing himself for rapunzel and her tears bringing him back to life (some shit with will/elizabeth and sam/quorra too maybe idk), and finally, herc gaining his strength back as he rescues megara from styx, followed by herc saying, 'people always do crazy things when theyre in love.'

sora stares ahead at nothing in particular, before wincing in pain; suddenly, a forgotten memory surfaces in his mind (if the convo with NS confirms he hasnt completely forgotten, then its the key details that have been missing):

rikus sacrifice in the KBG

riku calls out for him and struggles, but MoM just laughs so more.

MoM: there, now its coming back to you. and that wasnt the only time riku sacrificed everything for you, yknow, although it was probably the most heroic instance. remember him taking on ansems form to beat roxas? and his dive into your heart to wake you from slumber, despite the tremendous danger? you only met her briefly, but one of the princesses of heart experienced something very similar.

MoM: aurora. maleficent placed a curse on her when she was a baby, causing the princess and the rest of the kingdom to fall into a deep sleep on her 16th birthday. but the heir to a nearby kingdom, prince phillip, valiantly fought his way to the castle, and woke up the sleeping beauty– through a kiss. a kiss, of true… 

MoM trails off and looks at riku, then back at sora, expectantly. riku is still struggling to free himself before the truth is revealed, but its no use.

sora stares off again, before looking MoM in the eyes.

sora: … love…?

MoM does jazz hands and poses.

MoM: ding ding ding ding! we have a winner! it only took you, what, 12, 13 years to figure it out? honestly, i just couldnt stand watching it go on for any longer.

MoM: but, hey, i still have my honor. if im wrong, im more than happy to apologize.

MoM turns to riku then.

MoM: well? am i wrong, riku?

riku doesnt respond, and MoM sighs dramatically.

MoM: still no answer? okay, guess well have to do this the hard way.

MoM starts hurting sora, causing him to cry out in pain while riku watches helplessly 

MoM: come on, riku! do it! use your true strength! unleash the power hidden within your heart!

sora gasps and winces, barely getting out rikus name 

suddenly, theres a bright flash of pink energy (maybe rikus eyes also turn dream eater pink too?)

(if the power of love is too cheesy even for kh, then maybe its a black and white darkness/light combo attack)

riku breaks free of whatever MoM did to him, and then channels the energy through his arm, blasting it through soras restraints.

unfortunately, sora was being held in the air, and starts to fall– but in the blink of eye, riku is there to catch him in his arms.

MoM laughs in triumph and draws back slightly.

MoM: there we go!

MoM then shrugs.

MoM: well, this was fun, but ive got places to be. and im sure you two have a lot to talk about. toodles!

MoM disappears, leaving sora and riku in stunned silence.

after a moment, riku sets sora down and turns away from him, avoiding soras gaze.

sora meanwhile takes a second to catch his breath, before staring at riku with wide eyes.

sora: r… riku… is… is that...? is that really… how you feel?

riku clenches his fists at his sides and stays turned away. after a pause, he responds.

riku: … even if it is, it doesnt matter.

sora: what do you mean?

riku: i know… im not the one for you.

riku takes a deep breath.

riku: … when you were put to sleep for a year to fix your memories, some of them found their way into xion. they happened to be your most important memories– the ones you couldnt wake up without.

riku: those… were your memories of kairi. and xion took on her appearance because of them.

sora is stunned, only having been vaguely made aware of what happened in that year.

sora: k… kairi?

riku nods solemnly.

riku: yeah. and the only reason your memories got messed with in the first place is because the organization forced namine to make herself the person most important to you, instead of kairi.

sora pauses.

sora: you mean… castle oblivion.

riku nods again.

sora watches, before feeling a pain in his heart and grabbing at his chest instinctively.

underneath his hand, he can feel the cold metal of his crown necklace.

and thats when it finally clicks.

everything blurs, and theres a sudden rush of memories.

(maybe a memory sequence that you actually play through?)

sora, holding kairis wayfinder in castle oblivion. suddenly, the memory gets static-y, like during soras memory restoration.

cut to namine confessing to sora shes not the girl he cares about– but every time the word is feminine, its distorted by video static. (this is how we fix the aitsu thing)

"no. the g̸͓̦͙̫̮̦̠͗͐͗̊͑̕͝i̷͖̝̝̱̐ͅͅŗ̸̄̆̓̆̊̄̿l̶̮͉̦͓͔̹̀̂͗͝ͅ you care about...the one who was always with you... its not me. its ḧ̴̳͔̻̾̇e̵͚͂̀r̸̺̣̠̓̂̀̚."

cut to namine speaking to sora before he goes to sleep.

“but theres another promise you made—a promise to someone you could never replace. s̵̹̀͗͜h̷͇͇͌̆̐e̷̡̛̱'̷̦̆s̵̫͖̦̄̈̄ your light. the light within the darkness. if you can remember h̷̼̼̜͚͒e̸̢̡̤̹̬͖͐̒͒̾r̸͓̣̜̼̜̠͚͂̋̃...all the memories lost in the shadows of your heart will come into the light."

cut to a flashback of repliku talking about their shared promise. again, the feminine words are indecipherable.

"there was a meteor shower one night when s̶̳̄͑̆̅̆͗h̴͍̞͖͙͑̔̋̈́̎̈̾ę̷̧̰̰̖̝͆̆̕̚ and i were little... n̸̨̙̼͑̽ả̴̗͕̮́͊͝m̴̻̳͚̒i̸̳̟͑n̶̡̥̋̑̌é̸͍̦͑͐͋́ got scared and said, what if a shooting star hits the islands? so i told ḧ̷̡̬̽̅͆̊ė̸̙̩̠̥̿̃̚͠r̶̛̥̻̖̉̾̽͝, if a shooting star comes this way, ill protect you! and then—"

cut back to the memory pod.

"look at the g̴̬͛̄̚͘ŏ̴̞̙̰̍͂̀ö̴̘̥̗̱̐͋͆ͅď̷̨͙̙̩̓́͝ ̸̢̋̈́̂̚ļ̷̯̥̲̪̐̋͌̾̚ṵ̵̼̥̥͖̎c̸̱̟̹̚ķ̸̭̱̖̓̇ͅ ̷͇̳̃̑́͑͐͜ͅc̸̢̤̈̈́̊̚̕h̵̙̗̓͊̾ͅą̷̣̮̞̾̈́r̶̜̜͓̥̀́͋͝m̸̺̖͈̖͓̊̀̕. i changed its shape when i changed your memory. but when you thought of ẖ̴͚̙̆ȅ̴̡̛̞̲̥̼̋͐r̸̹̱̐, it went back to the way it was."

finally, a few more lines from namine.

"remembering one thing leads to remembering another, and then another... your memories are connected, like links in a chain. those same chains are what anchor us all together. i dont destroy memories. i just take apart the links and rearrange them. you still have all your memories."

cut back to sora in the real world. everything is still blurry, but now rikus voice can be heard in the background calling for him, distorted.

and then, a flash of light.

nighttime. its still. everything is quiet and peaceful.

young sora and riku are walking back from the beach.

suddenly, theres a bright streak across the sky. 

sora and riku both gasp.

then, another. and another. and another.

the night of the meteor shower.

riku watches the sky in amazement– until he feels a tug on his arm.

he glances at his side and sees sora, utterly terrified and clinging on to him for dear life.

sora: wahhhh!! r-r-riku, the sky is falling!!

riku laughs.

riku: no, those are shooting stars. theyre way up high in the sky.

sora however is not convinced, and keeps shaking as tears start to well up in his eyes.

sora: b-but…! theres so many of them. and theyre so fast!! what if a shooting star hits the islands?!

the reality of soras mood finally sets in, and riku is left staring as he tries to think of what to do.

hanging from his pocket is his wooden sword.

the words of the man with the real sword echo in his mind:

“no more borders around, or below, or above, so long as you champion the ones you love."

riku grabs his sword then and holds it up to the sky as he looks at sora, courage glinting in his eyes.

riku: if a shooting star comes this way, ill protect you! ill hit it right back into outer space!

sora sniffles as he watches riku swing the sword around.

sora: r-really?

riku nods his head confidently.

riku: i will. i promise!

after a moment of thought, riku reaches into his pocket and pulls out a silver chain with a crown dangling from the end.

riku: here. take this. i found it the other day.

with the magic of cutscene, riku somehow turns the chain into a necklace, and then reaches over to hang it around soras neck.

riku: whenever you get scared, all you have to do is look at this, and remember that ill always be there to protect you. no matter what.

tears run down soras face as he looks at the necklace.

the voice of the strange girl theyd met before rings through his mind:

"so then if something happens, and riku is about to get lost—or say, he starts wandering down a dark path alone—you make sure to stay with him and keep him safe. thats your job, sora, and im counting on you to do it, okay?"

sora gulps and then reaches out to grab rikus free hand in both of his own. riku is surprised by this.

sora: ill… ill protect you too! i-i know im not as strong as you, but ill… ill try! i promise!

riku is taken aback for a moment, before he smiles gently at sora.

riku: … thanks, sora.

afterward, a multitude of quick flashbacks to all the times sora and riku protected each other, culminating in seeing the KBG sacrifice one more time.

fade to back.

in a hotel room (or smth similar), sora suddenly sits up straight in a bed, heart beating rapidly.

sora: riku!

(paralleling when riku called out for him after waking up from the dive into his heart in ddd)

riku has been seated at the edge of the bed, waiting and worrying. when he realizes soras awake, he scoots down the bed towards him.

riku: sora! youre okay!

after catching his breath, sora looks around the room, confused.

sora: … what… happened?

riku: you passed out, so i brought you here. how are you feeling?

sora puts a hand to his head, grimacing slightly at his pulsing headache. but that doesnt matter right now.

sora: im… im fine. listen, riku… i saw… i saw some of the things that happened at CO.

rikus eyes widen.

riku: you did?

sora: yeah. i saw you… well, a version of you. and namine. namine…

sora looks into rikus eyes.

sora: she… she was wrong. or… maybe i was wrong, and she just played along for my sake…

riku: huh? what are you talking about?

sora swallows as his voice starts shaking, just a little.

sora: kairi… kairi wasnt the one most special to me. you were. i remember… i remember the night of the meteor shower.

sora clutches at the crown necklace.

sora: all this time, id thought id remembered everything important… but i forgot about it. [sighs] im sorry, riku

riku stays quiet for a moment, before putting on a forced smile.

riku: its fine, sora. we were little kids.

sora frowns.

sora: but… you never forgot, did you?

riku shrugs, and theres a moment of silence between them, before riku speaks again.

riku: maybe i was the one most important to you back then, but its not the same now. thats alright. im just happy to be your friend. i know how you feel about kai-

sora suddenly moves forward, closer to riku, now yelling as he cuts him off.

sora: i get to decide how i feel, riku! its my heart!

riku is taken aback at the shouting, and stares in shock. sora realizes hes gotten loud, and takes a moment to calm down.

dearly beloved starts to play in the bg

sora: i… i know now. maybe it took me a long time, but… i figured it out. the person most important to me… all along, its been you.

riku freezes up in pure shock. he cant believe what hes hearing. hed talked himself out of hoping for this day long ago.

sora finally smiles again.

sora: youre the one i love.

(paralleling prince eric with ariel)

BOOM FIREWORKS MAGIC SORIKU ENDGAME

riku is absolutely speechless, staring at sora with his mouth agape.

sora gives riku a sheepish grin, now growing nervous at the lack of a response.

sora: and… im the one you love… right?

after a second, riku returns soras smile– and, for the very first time in the series, starts crying.

he nods, shakily.

riku: … yeah. yeah, i do. i always have.

riku wipes at his eyes to stop crying, but its futile. the tears flow even harder.

sora feels himself start crying, too, but hes laughing at the same time.

he pulls riku into a hug, grabbing his upper back tightly.

without any hesitation whatsover, riku returns the embrace, holding onto sora in the same way.

(like so [sora in orange, riku in teal])

fade to black.

then they kill the MoM, get married, and live happily ever after. the end. :)

love balancing light and dark is largely taken from these tags by @osrinlore on this video of mine btw:

[cupidlovesastro]

what’s your moon sign, your mother’s/ mother figures sun, moon, or venus sign, and what’s the correlation?

my moon sign is aquarius and my mom is a sagittarius sun and leo moon

my mom was actually very veryyyy affectionate and always wanted to hug, hold hands, etc and she was a lot emotionally, so i became very emotionally detached to not get more hurt. and i hate being touchy with anyone which is very aqua moon of me. but im actually highly emotional, just around/ with certain people. idk why everyone thinks aqua moons are detached and cold when they’re literally the water carriers😭

[corishadowfang]

WAIT HANG ON TODAY'S THE PERFECT EXCUSE TO TALK ABOUT THE KHUX DIGIMON AU--

Okay. Okay, so, part of the main plot of KHUX is that they're stuck in a digital version of their world, and getting trapped in the digital world is just like...a standard Digimon plot, haha. So it doesn't take too much reworking to make the KHUX plot for this.

Basically, the idea would be that, instead of MoM recruiting kids to be Keyblade wielders, he's recruiting people to play this new virtual reality game. Each player gets teamed up with their own Digimon, and they log on to do daily quests, can join different groups, etc.

Just like in KHUX, Ephemer realizes Something's Up; in this case, he suspects the Digimon are actual, living things (we're really leaning on the standard Digimon plots here), and that MoM is recruiting them for some OTHER reason besides testing the game.

And...he's right! Basically, the digital world has some sort of entity that's slowing destroying it. MoM's familiar with the legends of "chosen children" partnering with Digimon to save the world, and is mass-recruiting people to basically like...brute force that. Like in KHUX, a lot of kids die for this. The Union Leaders end up being the designated "Chosen Children" and end up trapped in the digital world until they can save it.

...Of course, MoM doesn't actually have the power to choose the 'destined heroes,' so this goes awry. One: Skuld and Ephemer rescue the Player and drag them along with them, and Two: the entity MoM's trying so hard to get rid of catches wind of the plan and hijacks it. (The whole Ven and Strelitzia switch thing.)

There's a lot of stuff that plays out similarly to UX after that, with the caveat that they KNOW they're stuck in a digital world this time: they discover Ven's an imposter, the entity manifests to fight them, Ven and his Digimon sacrifice themselves to save the others, the world starts to fall, and they find a way out. The way out's still pretty flawed--it's something that Brain essentially hacked into the game--so people still end up in the wrong places/with spotty memories once they're out.

Skuld, Ephemer, and the Player still get stopped at the end by the entity, and the Player and their partner still fight them. In this case, though, they're fighting them to try and force them out--and staying behind to stall the entity long enough to force them to die with the falling world. It works.

Anyway, the UX crew and their Digimon end up in the real world, but separated, with memories spotty, though with the impression that they're missing something important. They'll probably go looking for each other eventually, but uh, that's as far as I've got for the moment, haha!

As for partners and where people end up:

Player would have Gatomon! (Gatomon -> Angewomon -> Magnadramon line) Partly because the fact that Gatomon is a cat like Chirithy, partly because Chirithy's English VA is the same as Kari's VA (Gatomon's partner in the anime). I imagine the OG Player ends up as like...a digital ghost after they die? Maybe Player 2 and the members of the Baroque Society are friends and end up poking through the remains of "Daybreak Town," and Player 2 starts to slowly pick up memories from Player 1, which starts to make their identity feel...blurred.

Ven's original partner is Lopmon (Lopmon -> Turuiemon -> Antylamon -> Cherubimon Vice/Virtue). Since Ven's a "pure light" in KH canon, I figured it'd be fun if he was partnered with the member of the Three Great Angels that was most famously corrupted. Lopmon is kind of... possessed and rebooted by the entity, and so doesn't get to escape with Ven. Ven ends up being found by Terra, Aqua, and Eraqus and taken in. (Not 100% sure what's going on with Eraqus and Xehanort; maybe they were part of the of the original, REAL chosen children, but they failed because the entity possessed Baldr and his partner and they killed everyone else?) Ven I think later ends up with a Pteromon he accidentally befriends, who encourages him to go looking for the things he's missing. (Maybe Eraqus reveals a little of his history to Terra and Aqua here because he needs to get Ven back? And sends them out with their own, newly-obtained partners.)

(Side note, but I think when Ven leaves the digital world the first time, he leaves behind a digital "copy" of himself that was influenced by the entity. This is Vanitas, who I think inherits a corrupted/reborn Lopmon. He has most of OG Ven's memories.)

@hallowed-nebulae said at one point that he'd probably pair Ephemer with Coronamon and Skuld with Lunamon so they could fuse into GraceNovamon for the final battle, and I honestly LOVE that idea. Alternatively, I could see Ephemer with Dorumon (Dorumon -> Raptordramon -> Grademon -> Alphamon) for the whole "leader of the Royal Knights"/leader of the Union Leaders" thing. Ephemer I think does the best job retaining his memories, though things are still spotty. He and his partner work on trying to rebuild the digital world.

If Skuld didn't end up with Lunamon, I think Gammamon (Gammamon -> BetelGammamon -> Canoweissmon -> Siriusmon) would be a good fit for the connection to the stars. I think Xehanort still finds her? If we go with the "Xehanort was one of the OG chosen children" thing, maybe he became like... obsessed with that and takes Skuld in because he found another one "like him." (Maybe he finds Vanitas, too, even if Vanitas is still trapped in the digital world? And trains him and Skuld together. Vanitas and Skuld interactions have Potential.)

(OH WAIT. Fun partner idea: maybe Skuld had Lunamon originally, but passes her on to Isa to protect her/because Xehanort has implied SOMETHING is going to happen and she wants to make sure Isa and Lea remember her, and THEN she gets Gammamon. Since GulusGammamon has a full line, I could see her having that at first, before moving into the main BetelGammamon line.)

(Also Gammamon's bandana reminds her of someone and she doesn't know who.)

Brain would get Keramon (Keramon -> Chrysalimon -> Infermon -> Diaboromon) because he says he's going to be "the virus that rewrites the program," and Keramon is a LITERAL virus. I think maybe Sigurd works for MoM and gets sent out to bring at least one of the UX crew in and try again? I'd guess that Brain realizes something's up at some point.

Lauriam would have Floramon (Floramon -> Kiwimon -> Blossomon -> BloomLordmon) because of the flower theme, and because Bloomlordmon reminds me of Marluxia, haha. Not 100% sure what happens with him; I kind of like the idea of him and Elrena doing their own thing? Maybe Elrena was part of the game originally, but had to quit playing or something, and she ends up teaming up with Lauriam after he reappears, since she knew his sister.

(Elrena I could see with Herissmon or Pulsemon? A little undecided there.)

Strelitzia gets Leomon. Just so everyone knows exactly what's going to happen to her :). (Okay, but outside of the "Leomon always dies" joke, Pomumon -> Parasaurmon -> Toropiamon -> Hydramon would work.)

The nice part of this AU is that the UX crew can actually all reunite with each other eventually! Since they're just scattered across space, and not time.

[yoroshiu]

Thinking about Kingdom Hearts' narrative with communication.

As with a lot of conflicts in story and real life, much of the most heart wrenching stuff in this series stems from a lack of communication or a severe misunderstanding between characters.

The Foretellers fall apart due to mistrust that was bred in between them, as according to the Master of Master's plan, and a lot of their interactions are full of deceit and witholding information. In an effort for most of them to do what MoM says while simultaneously realizing that they could go against his word to save the world, it inevitably leads to war.

Baldr, in his grief, is kept separate from his friends, alone until the darkness overtakes him and he ends up being consumed by it. As a result, everyone is taken by surprise and there's already too many bodies piled up by the time he's dealt with. Even when Hoder appears before him, they are unable to meet in the middle and turn on each other. He ends up killing many friends and plants a seed into what Xehanort becomes.

The basis of the Wayfinders and Eraqus is that they constantly don't talk to each other properly, pushing each other away until their tragedy becomes inescapable. Eraqus not telling his students about anything Xehanort has done, for instilling such an unforgiving view of Light and Darkness, for not telling Ventus the truth until it was too late. Terra, Aqua, and Ventus not being able to talk or clear things up until Xehanort is already beyond knees deep into his plans, and despite having their love for each other go beyond any possible discord, it is not enough to prevent unfortunate fates that befall them.

The Destiny Trio, especially Riku earlier on, suffers from a lack of communication. While not as turbulent as the other trios, it's Riku's tendency to hide away and lash out that builds the conflict between him and Sora. For one reason or another, a quite literal and physical reason for Kairi, they were unable to talk which goes on and on until RIku gets possessed. And it his shame that pushes him to hide for such a long time in the second game as well. Sora has also picked up on not saying anything, deciding to perish without letting anyone know beforehand, and the full-on effects of that have yet to be explored.

The Sea Salt Trio was built on miscommunication. Secrets, unknowns, caring so much that you believe that it'd be much better to fade away without a word than to burden someone with the pain of truth and knowledge. It drives a wedge between Roxas, Axel, and Xion at multiple points. Axel, who was stuck between loyalties, kept information to himself and ended up driving Roxas and Xion away at one point and another. Xion, who found out the truth and also made big decisions without fully explaining to the other two, also inevitably leaves a grief that digs into them even when they don't remember her. And Roxas, who was the probably the biggest victim of not being told anything, ends up barrelling forward, trust broken up until the pieces finally fell in place and he had to accept his fate in tired resignation.

But it's when love overcomes the lies, clearing them away that these groups of friends can come together and start again.

A lot of the emotional turmoil that Kingdom Hearts displays often comes from the very human act of communication with others and how often we fail to do so. The fragility that comes with one kept secret, or one mispoken phrase. How badly people get torn apart when no one says anything. Yet, it also shows how it can potentially be overcome with enough love and determination to recover what was lost, and even if it's not the same as before, there's potential to make things better.

TLDR; Connections are the basis of Kingdom Hearts. Communication is a foundation of connection. The highs and lows of communication is something that Kingdom Hearts explores extensively in the stories of its characters, and that has resonated with me so heavily that I stay up thinking about it.

[aihoshiino]

chapter 135 thoughts

Akasaka seems to have heard me bitching about other characters not getting involved last week because pretty much this entire chapter is focused on outsider perspectives on the RubyKana conflict, which I actually really appreciate. Not knowing how everyone else was responding to this felt really weird and while I ultimately am glad in hindsight Akasaka used the last chapter to focus exclusively on Ruby and her feelings about Ai, it did still feel really weird in the moment. And there's still no Miyako… girl where did you go…!!!

It's also really nice to get a bit of Aqua and Gotanda time, too — I feel like it's been forever since we've had any time focusing on that relationship and it's one of my quiet favourites in the series so revisiting it now was a nice surprise. We're still pretty locked out of Aqua's head but I feel like his dialogue here speaks for itself without us needing to peek in there. And whether or not he means to, I think Aqua says something really, really revealing here about how he's been dealing — or abjectly failing to deal — with Ai's death.

A running thread through OnK that Ruby is finally starting to come around from is the way the twins have both struggled with their idolization and objectification of Ai and ultimately failed to treat her like a human being. Here, Aqua doubles down on that dehumanization, rejecting the idea of Ai ever having complicated emotions about any of the things that happened to her. He flattens her into a caricature of herself, carefree and avoidant and specifically says that he personally never saw Ai crying. Not even once.

Except… of course he did. Because Ai cried as she told the twins that she loved them as she was dying. The anime even takes this a step further by having Ai break down into sobs during this moment and having her tears literally fall onto Aqua's face as he gazes into her eyes. In denying the existence of these tears, Aqua is also to some degree, erasing those words of pure love that Ai poured out with her last breaths. It feels like a confirmation of something I've been suspecting for a while: that in his fucked up attempts to 'grant her wish' Aqua is even willing to desecrate and erase the real Ai.

In a lot of ways, Aqua is deeply stunted in comparison to Ruby. Honestly I kind of get the feeling that Aqua… doesn't want to humanize Ai? Not out of cruelty but out of seemingly necessarily self defense; if Aqua lets himself love his mom as a human person, if he lets himself love her properly and with empathy then he will necessarily have to finally mourn and grieve for her as a human being and I think that would be the start of breaking him.

What's exciting about this talk as well is that it sets up Aqua and Ruby to be in opposition on something extremely central to the movie arc: Ai herself. This sets up the potential for them to come into conflict and maybe even for Ruby to really lay into him about the exploitative way 15YL is making use of Ai's image.

Final note before I move on: whether this was intended or not, I can't help but see a lot of parallels between Aqua's insistence that Ai would never cry over her treatment in B-Komachi and Nino's rant at the end of 45510 in which she reacts with revulsion at the idea of Ai wanting to connect with them. Aqua/Nino parallels aren't what I was expecting for Christmas but the implications are pretty (discord eyes emoji)

Gotanda's response is interesting, too. He claims that he wrote the script by 'listing the events that actually happened' when we know for a fact that there is a huge amount of dramatization and fictionalization at play just out of the necessity of recreating the events in the life of a person no longer here to give testimony. But he also betrays something here: his own lack of real care towards Ai herself. He dismisses the idea that it's worth trying to understand her feelings after her passing and admits that he isn't really making the movie out of empathy but out of a sense of wanting to capture something he failed to before. This movie is his revenge.

And like… fuck, man. It's just so miserable. There has always been this really ghoulish undercurrent to the entire idea of the Movie Arc, of digging up Ai's corpse again, slicing up her private and most personal self and her painful history that caused her so much shame and dressing it up into something pretty and consumable for the public to salivate over. Even in death, Ai can't rest in peace. Even in death, nobody can just leave her be. She has to be bought and sold and swapped and traded until all the value has been wrung out of her. Nobody making this movie really cares about understanding the real Ai at this point, apart from Ruby; not even the director who wants to be able to film her.

That said. man. the scene that followed was pretty sweet. The idea that Gotanda pulled Aqua into his project not just to give Kana a bit of a wake up call but because he was actually looking out for her and genuinely wanted her to have some friends is a really lovely idea and his sense of relief in seeing her having found a place in B-Komachi was also really good. In a lot of ways, the second generation of B-Komachi may be echoing the mistakes of their predecessors but they're also learning to correct them.

kana's face when she takes a bite out of ruby's parfait is like the hardest i've laughed all week btw god bless mengo yokoyari

The Gillian Cut of Gotanda talking so warmly about RubyKana's friendship to the two girls still being cold with each other is framed as a joke but I do think it's supposed to be read as a reassuring moment for the audience. While Aqua puts forth that his rose-tinted idea of fights making friendships stronger only happens in fiction… Oshi no Ko is fiction. Literally the very first words of the story are that verbatim and it constantly uses in-universe fiction as metatexual commentary on its own nature as a story. More than a joke, this feels like a sort of reassuring pat on the back for the reader that the girls will emerge from this rough spot stronger than before.

Aqua's sense of trust for both Kana and Ruby is really sweet, too. They're two of the people he cares about the most in the world — often to the point of him not being able to trust them, out of fear of the supposed repercussions — but here, he not only steps back to let them handle things themselves but reassures Gotanda that he can do the same. Aqua has been pretty cruel to both these girls in a lot of ways over the series so it was nice to see him express some warmth.

And that's the final chapter of this year…! Jesus I can't believe I only got back into the series back in April lol I really feel like I've been following the weekly chapters for longer. Admittedly, I'm starting to get really fatigued with the Movie Arc with how long it's been going but I'm hoping that we'll start to see some more progress on it when we return in 2024 and that Kamiki will do. Something maybe. can you even imagine.

[hathorneheiress]

Grayson Hawthorne bath head cannon

So, I had mentioned about a month ago about writing a head cannon on Grayson's love for baths, and here it is!

As we all know, Grayson's form of coping is swimming. We have confirmation from the author herself. But before he got pressured into becoming the best and the water was his safe haven, there was a time Grayson enjoyed being in the water, but not as a coping mechanism.

As a child, he was the one who would take the longest baths. And since they lived in a mansion, there were plenty of tubs for everyone and he didn't have to worry about others waiting for him to be done. He had the whole tub to himself.

While his brothers were having pillow fights and rough housing before bed, little Grayson was happily enjoying the nice hot tub. And he also had to have bubbles. Because a bath isn't complete without bubbles.

Grayson would never admit it, but he got his love for baths from his mom, Skye. Both love the feeling of relation it brings. A time for luxury that Grayson doesn't usually allow himself.

The water is his happy place, it has always been like that. It's where he feels the most alive. The most free. When he's in the water, it's like all his troubles are no longer there. He forgets everything, just the rhythm of his strokes as he paddles the water effortlessly.

The water submerses him, pulling him down under into the aqua of happiness.

Of course, anything Grayson seemed to enjoy, his grandfather seemed to think that it wasn't okay for Heir Apparent to enjoy things. He pushed Grayson to compete in swimming competitions because that was what was expected of him. It no longer became a love but a requirement. Something Grayson was expected to do.

What was once a pleasure was now something Grayson heavily relied on. The water was still something he enjoyed, even if it was more of a coping mechanism these days.

But sometimes, when the mood hits him, Grayson finds himself filling up the claw foot tub in his luxurious bathroom. As he sinks into the bubbly goodness he sighs in content.

It was good to sometimes allow yourself a treat. Right?

[kakiastro]

My Personal Astrology Opinions + Advice

Aries Suns- you guys are actually cool calm and collected most of the time. You guys have to be pushed over the edge to feel your anger. The sun rejoices in Aries!

Taurus moons- you guys have such beautiful voices omg! Taurus rules the throat and with a venus moon😍

Virgos suns and moons- stop being so hard yourselves please, you guys are enough🥺

12h suns- you all love to wear bangs or cover your face with your hair

Aquarius moons- the best way to get close to your mom is actually being more of a best friend. Also the farther you move away, the closer you all will get. I’ve talked with lots of aqua moons who’ve said this

Gemini Mars-start journaling and writing your emotions out, you’ll understand them better

Venus Pisces- see love as a fairytale, they daydream a lot. Just make sure you all put boundaries on people, I don’t want you all to get hurt🥺

Have 8th ruler(Scorpio) in 5h(Leo)- you express yourselves in a mysterious way, you say a whole lot without saying nothing at all😅

Pisces moon- you guys feel everything omg! You pick up on everyone and everything but you keep it deeply hidden.

Venus 1h- you’re beautiful, also stop being so hard on your looks okay 😫🥺

Venus sq Saturn- going natural or minimal makeup look so soo good on you all. Also as you get older, you’re going to age like fine wine😍

Neptune 6h- you guys are the types to take in stray animals because you know what it feels like to feel isolated so you don’t want to harmless creatures to feel the same🥺

Sagittarius risings -you guys are gurus but you definitely can be know it alls sometimes 😅

Pisces Mercuries- I have no idea what you all are saying have the time 😭but you have pretty voices 😅

Capricorns- they act all tough but they like to be babied or baby you😭 also funny asf once you get to know them😅

Libras- wardrobe stays unmatched, they may be indecisive about many things but fashion is not one of those

Taurus- you all are possessive when it comes to relationships, you’re just not as intense like your sister sign Scorpio! Y’all ain’t fooling me😅

Leo 2h- loud ass laughs, sound like y’all are roaring at me😅😭

Well I think this is long enough, I might make another! This was fun!

[strayheartless]

Things heard in the land of departure pt.2:

1

Roxas: Oh sorry, I can’t take part today. Why? Well because according to Master Terra, aiming Thundaga at Riku with extreme prejudice is “bullying” and I “have to stop”.

Sora: Remember that time that my mom took us to- OH MY GODS MY MOM!!!!

Kairi: Behind all this pink awaits a vile temperament that I fully intend to beat your ass with.

Lea: I really wish people would stop assuming that I protect Kairi. That girls packing federal charges on three separate worlds. I protect everyone else FROM Kairi.

Roxas: Ven and I are not the same. For starters, I do not think footie pyjamas are “neat”.

Ven: *running past Sora* If Riku asks it was Roxas, he’ll believe that!

Riku: How’s my day going? Horribly, that’s how!

Sora: “sleep is for the weak!” No, sleep is for the desperate, which I am! Goodnight! *pulls blanket over his head*

Riku: It baffles me that Terra trusts me to hit people with a deadly weapon, and yet he still doesn’t trust that I won’t approach the liquor cabinet with the same level of maturity. *Explosion sounds behind him. Xion and Sora screech.* Never mind, I’m starting to get it now…

Sora: sometimes when you travel with Donald and Goofy you just gotta smile first, then have the brake down later.

Roxas: are you okay?

Sora: *voice brakes* I’m great!

Aqua: okay kids, we are going to play a game. It’s called “give master Aqua some peace for five minutes” now fuck off.

Ven: *dragging Lea into the infirmary* would you believe me if I told you he looked this fucked up when I found him?

Terra: Ah, a nice easy day. No training, no emergencies. Just me my book and… *sighs* the deadly wall of unlit fireworks that are sitting directly near my chair. *snaps book closed*

Ven: *sadly* I do not have the mouska-tools for this situation.

Isa: Another day, another chance to get wailed on by five year olds. I’m so glad I agreed to do this!

Terra: I do not have a favourite student *behind him Sora, Roxas and Xion are struggling in the grips of a hydra, while Ven and Riku sit off to the side munching on ice cream.*

Kairi: make direct I contact with me one more time, I dare you!

Aqua: maybe if I lay here like I’m dead they’ll leave me alone.

Ven: Hi Aqua.

Aqua: fuck

Terra: if you’re looking for Riku, he’s gone to throw himself off the clock tower.

Xion: can someone pass me an ice pack? I think I’ve bruised my own ego.

Aqua: *spray Kairi in the face with a plant mister* bad student! No murder on the furniture!

[nin-deer]

okay here we go spoilers abt recent onk chaps, specifically onk 162

OH MY GOD i never expected it to go this direction,,,,, i think this revealed to me that this was never a story about aqua and ruby figuring out life after their mom was killed, but rather the second chance of gorou and sarina, more specifically for sarina.

like- ai was SARINA's favorite idol, SARINA was the one that lost her life too soon, and gorou was SARINA's favorite person

everything was circling around sarina, and now she had a new life as ruby to do as she pleases!!

during this moment with hikaru, i think aqua is finally coming to the realization of the purpose of his reincarnation, much like what he narrated in the chapters leading up to this. but like- it didn't really hit him until this confrontation. he was here to protect a life he didn't have a chance to before. like i mentioned in my previous post, the line where aqua was glad he was the one to die first this time really portrays his motivations during this story. he wasn't trying to find ai's killer to get revenge; rather, he wanted to make sure that they didn't go after his precious sister. when he was starting to separate from gorou, he still put his sister before his own desires. even making the documentary was to protect ruby.

a common theme in this story is the concept of lies. lies were used, throughout the narrative, as a way to manipulate one's emotions. ai and her audience, hikaru and his victims, aqua and his suspects. as the more logical of the two, aqua must have known how hikaru's lies could affect ruby. we saw in his little "redemption" arc that hikaru had no problem lying about anything to get people on his side, but aqua was able to see through that, gorou's influence or otherwise.

now here's were i think it gets interesting. the color of the star eyes. the symbol of lying. especially in this end game, ruby and ai have white, while aqua and hikaru have black. i think aqua put it best in ch160. sure. the whole hoshino family is lying, but their motivations are different. ai and ruby were selfless; they wanted to spread love into the world and be the light for those who needed one. meanwhile, aqua and hikaru selfishly lied to achieve their goals, noble or not. aqua knows this; he accepted it long ago when he sought out to kill hikaru. he wasn't doing this to rid the world of a serial killer. instead, he's doing it solely for the sake of his dear sister that he puts before anything else. it's the same with hikaru; he wanted to appease his own desires through his manipulations at the cost of everyone around him.

after everything hikaru has said, ch160-162 covers his motives best. hikaru acts for ai. it's similar in a way to aqua and ruby, but it's more twisted. self-centered. to appease his own mind and what he thinks is right, hikaru uses the pretense of his love for ai as an excuse for the way he behaves. but is this what ai wants? to me, the answer is no. let's take their kids, for example. hikaru would go so far as to kill his own daughter just because she had the potential of outshining ai. Ai, on the other hand, would do anything for her kids. They were the first people she learned to love, even if it came at the cost of her career. all her life, Ai just wanted to know what it meant to love. Hikaru didn't. He didn't care at all about love, but obsession. His actions have been fueled by his obsession of the one source of light that he's clung onto for years, blinding him from other potential sources of light he could use instead.

at the end of ch161, aqua's stars become white. white, because he was about to act selflessly for the better of those he loved. white stars like his mom and sister, because he chose to lie for others instead of clinging to his own selfish desires. he knew, in this moment, that he was given this new life for the sole purpose of protecting sarina. this is a decision he must have thought long and hard about, trying to see if there was any other avenue to watch his sister grow up to be the top idol.

there wasn't. instead, he used hikaru's tactics of scandals and the media to keep ruby's persona innocent in the eyes of the masses. like hikaru mentioned, if aqua were to kill him, ruby would bear the brunt of it as the more publicized one. aqua knew this, and knew the only way to make this work was if he was the victim.

i don't know where aka is going to take this story. personally, i think keeping aqua dead is the best narrative choice based on the direction they took this. but, i know that sometimes authors prefer pleasing the fans, so he might reincarnate as someone else as a reward, or maybe even get saved last minute from his current fate. it's really up in the air for what happens next. all i know is that aqua made the choice he felt like was the most optimal, and i'm curious to see where this goes as we start wrapping up the story. (hopefully,,,)

as;dfhas;ldkfj i've been rambling and its getting kinda long so i'll leave it here..... thx for reading if you made it all the way down here <333