#gaming application otp

[incorrect-slaytheprincess]

The damsel and the voice of the contrarian mayhaps?

Contrarian

favorite thing about them: one of the funniest characters in the game, like easily top 3

least favorite thing: i know for a fact that if he was real i would hate him so fucking much

favorite line: (the entire "throw it out the window" sequence)

brOTP: contrarian and cold, my buddy c*p roadtrip comedy ass duo

OTP: contrahero probably

nOTP: shrug i don't really dislike any stp ships to be honest

random headcanon: knocks things off counters while staring you directly in the eyes like a cat

unpopular opinion: we don't get enough contrarian/skeptic content in game or in the fandom. they're the voices that love poking and prodding at the fabric of reality, hoping to find a seamline that might help them to escape!!! there's so much potential there

song i associate with them: wrecking ball by mother mother

favorite picture of them: (uh not really applicable lol)

Damsel

favorite thing about them: the tragedyyyy!!! the horrors!!!!!

least favorite thing: the tragedy :( the horrors :(((

favorite line: "if that's what makes you happy" - it just hits the player in the head with the consequences of their actions. i've only ever seen two streamers catch onto the one dimensional state we've forced the princess into before she says this line. it's very cathartic lol.

brOTP: damsel and the hero

OTP: damsel x contrarian? it's kind of a crackship but i think they'd be good for each other.

nOTP: damsel x smitten but specifically in the dragon route

random headcanon: she smells like roses, even though us as the long quiet have no idea what those are

unpopular opinion: i don't really have one lol

song i associate with them: norman fucking rockwell by lana del rey. i promise i love the smitten, it's just the first thing that comes to mind haha

favorite picture of them:

[accidental-spice]

Oh also imma ask you about Enchanted Origins for the fandom ask game with the caveat that you reserve the right to skip any question you want if it's about something negative or if it spoils something that those of us who AREN'T @kanerallels 's sister don't know about yet 😂

Hehehehehe, EXCELLENT choice!!!! And thank you!! I have, however, been given permission by said author to vaguely allude to things in a mysterious voice *grins*

Send me a fandom and I'll tell you...

The first character I ever fell in love with: all of them. Fine, let's say Liam

A character that I used to love/like, but now do not: none of them. I actually like some of them even more now🤣

A ship that I used to love/like, but now do not: not applicable, I love everything and everyone in this series!!!

My ultimate favorite character™: it might be easier to ask me to sever my right arm. I mean, I can't choose!!!!!! They're all AMAZING!!

Prettiest character: she's evil, but you can't deny, Cinderella's got style. Also you haven't met my real answer yet

My most hated character: oh, definitely Goldilocks. You think she's bad now? Just you wait......

My OTP: *grins* you........ haven't met them yet............ but they're VERY cute............

My NOTP: Rebecca and Liam. They are besties and I refuse to ship them

Favorite episode: I'll take this as favorite scene and say.... maybe the scene in the bazaar in Carred

Saddest death: ........ you haven't met them either

Favorite season: I'll take this as favorite book, so, yes

Least favorite season: no

Character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but I hate: not really applicable, but in reverse, Griffith is sketchy, and I do dearly love him!!!

My ‘you’re a piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: oh, Gavin. He's awful, it's hilarious

My ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: *crying* Liam, among others

My ‘they’re kind of cute, and I lowkey ship them, but I'm not too invested’ ship: yeahhhhhhhh, I don't really do lowkey invested when it comes to this series🤣🤣

Thanks for the ask, it was quite fun!!!!

[zoloteh-volossya]

Tav/Durge Tag Meme

Tagged by @alicelufenia, thanks!

Left is how she typically looks, right is how she looks during Rage/a wild magic surge

-> BASICS

Name: Eiliatavin Amanoresh (aka Dayflower, depending if you like your elven surnames translated or not)

Class/Subclass: Ranger 2 / Wild Magic Barbarian 10

Background: Outlander

Gender: Female

Sexuality: Somewhere between aroace and lesbian. No real sense of attraction, about as romantic as a box of rocks, but once you have wormed your way into her heart she will weave you into every fiber of her being. And if you want to touch or be touched, ok, she can do that.

Pronouns: she/her

-> OTHER

Family: Raised by militant ecoterrorists the Emerald Enclave. After getting spellscarred during the Spellplague, was attacked by her own grove for being an abomination against nature. Considers fellow spellscarred & plaguechanged survivors her only family after that.

Birthplace: Vilhon Reach, Turmish

Job: Ranger -> Smuggler -> Knight of the Shield -> Adventurer (during the game) -> Owner of a completely legitimate delivery company

Phobias: Arcane magic, her own emotions (they trigger wild magic surges). After Orin: flaying knives, lying on her back, the smell of blood.

Guilty Pleasures: Gets addicted to alindluth after the Orin Incident

Hobbies: Sketching, gardening

-> MORALS

Alignment: Lawful neutral -> lawful evil -> lawful neutral. The 'lawful' doesn't have anything to do with actual laws, but she does have a fairly rigid set of personal rules that govern how she acts and understands the world.

Sins: Largely amoral, kinda ageist, only really cares about "her" people

Virtues: Determination, bone-deep loyalty to "her" people, practicality, competence.

-> THIS OR THAT

Introverted/Ambivert/Extrovert

Organized/Disorganized

Close-minded/In-Between/Open-minded

Calm/Anxious/Restless

Disagreeable/In-Between/Agreeable

Patient/In-Between/Impatient

Outspoken/In-Between/Reserved

Leader/Follower/Flexible

Empathetic/In-between/Apathetic

Optimist/Realist/Pessimist

Traditional/In-Between/Modern/Not Applicable

Hard-working/Lazy

-> RELATIONSHIPS

OTP: Minthara (she was originally created for my drider!Minthara AU)

Acceptable Ships: Shadowheart, Jaheira

OT3: None

BroTP: Jaheira! Very much so, they're two peas in a pod, get along like a house on fire.

NoTP: Halsin (reminds her far too much of the leaders of her old grove), Astarion (she did not appreciate the manipulation attempt).

General overview: Considers Wyll and Lae'zel her mentees, very invested in their development. Extremely protective of Karlach, quietly supportive of Shadowheart and Minthara. Cordial but distant working relationship with Astarion and Gale. Largely baffled by Minsc. Very strained relationship with Halsin.

No Stress Tagging: @thenugking, @unkledeath, @quescon, @dandelion-bride, @vestigialpersonality

[vallaragna]

Getting to know your moots

Tagged by @makoredeyes

•What's the origin of your blogs title?

My name is part of my reenactment name. And the blog title is just in a fiber artist and I am obsessed with destiny right now.

•Favorite fandoms

Currently obsessed with destiny. I'm also a huge fan of Dragon age and Lord of the Rings

•OTPs+Ship name

Felwinter/Shaxx and also Felwinter/Osiris permutations a la Mako's fics. Basically I love Felwinter and however I can smash pairings together with him I'm there.

•Favourite colours

Purple as well as this berry pink/almost magenta that I wear constantly

•Favourite game

Currently obsessed with Destiny 2

•Weirdest habit/trait

Other people would probably be able to point this out better than me, but I get fully dressed every day even if I'm just staying home. If I'm still in PJs once I'm out of bed I'm probably deathly sick.

•Hobbies

Fiber crafts. So many of them. Probably a fair few you have never heard of. Reenactment. I stream my embroidery on twitch for fun.

•Something you're good at

Teaching destiny raids. That's the only thing I'm even slightly confident about. I mean I love rocks and I know a fair bit about them, but I don't think I'm good at them.

•Something you're bad at

Self confidence.

•Something you excel at

I think I'm pretty alright at breaking down complex things into smaller pieces for people who have no knowledge base.

•Something you love

Rocks and fossils. I went to school for paleontology. I also love maps even though that's my job right now.

•Something you could talk about for hours without off the cuff

I could talk for hours about either destiny lore or rocks. I have talked for multiple hours with little prompt about each before. I have video evidence on YouTube of that.

•Something you hate

My gut reaction is to say myself, because honestly I am awful to myself. But climate change deniers and people who intentionally just want to argue.

•Something you collect

Too much destiny merch... but among that the seal pins.

•Something you forget

Anything I don't write down.

•What's your love language

This idea has been disapproven, but I guess you can say gifting.

•Favorite movie/show

Nightmare before Christmas or LotR.

•Favorite food

Lasagna

•Favorite animal

Velociraptor

•Favorite subject in school

Earth science or science in general

•Least favourite subject

English or PE

•What's your best character trait?

I don't think I'm the one to judge this and it feels very self serving to try to identify this, but I guess being considerate

•If you could change any detail of your day right now, what would it be?

I had checked that I had all the packages I went to pick up at the UPS store before I left this morning

•If you could travel in time, who would you like to meet?

What are with all these college application questions. Mary Anning? I'm not really sure.

•Recommend one of your favorite fanfics

Oh, this is hard. Playing Nice by Shimadagans has been a long time favorite. The On Like a Housefire series by Mako is so good as well. I have to recommend both equally. Particularly The Kingdom by Makoredeyes. Sansukh by determamfidd is an old favorite from when I was really in the Hobbit Fandom that I feel like is worth mentioning.

I don't really tag people, but if you're interested, join in.

[etherealabyss11037]

DRA Character Sexuality Headcanons

I’ll just be making a brief list of what sexual orientation I believe each character from the first Danganronpa Another game has. Remember, I’m not condemning anyone who disagrees with my interpretation or has a different headcanon of a character. I believe everyone is entitled to their own headcanon, even if it blatantly contradicts canon, and you don’t attack others who don’t share the same headcanon as you.

Kiyoka Maki: heterosexual.

Kiyoka spends her last FTE worrying about who’ll be a suitable boyfriend if they don’t escape, so that’s basically my justification for this interpretation.

Mitsuhiro Higa: heterosexual.

Yeah, I don’t think much explanation is needed: he sexually harasses Akane in chapter 1 and brags about how many girls he gets in his FTEs. I understand why some may interpret him as an in-denial homosexual, if only to take the piss out of him, but I don’t see it that way. Mitch is a pretty transparent character, so I doubt something as deep as that is applicable to him.

Kizuna Tomori: heterosexual.

Some see her as a repressed lesbian, which I understand why, but I see her as more of a “straight girl with severe issues in her relationship to men”. Plus, I take into account the FTEs, so Kizuna’s implied attraction to Yuki by her last FTE is indicative of her sexuality to me.

Ayame Hatano: Bisexual.

I forever headcanon Ayame is in love with Akane, but her last FTE has her blushing at Yuki, so I interpret her as a girl-leaning Bisexual.

Kakeru Yamaguchi: Bisexual.

I wholeheartedly ship Kakeru x Kanata (Kakenata? Kanakeru? Yamanori?), so that’s part of it, but Kakeru also gives major guy-liker vibes, so there you go. I also semi-ship Kakeru and Kinji, so that’s further fuel to the fire.

Kanata Inori: heterosexual.

As I just said, Kakeru x Kanata is OTP for me, and that’s all the justification I need.

Kinji Uehara: Pansexual.

This might sound unexpected, but I see Kinji as such an open-minded and big-hearted person that he wouldn’t consider the gender of his partner, even if his religion prevents him from entering any romantic relationships.

Haruhiko Kobashikawa: heterosexual.

Similar story with Mitch, except Haru isn’t nowhere near as creepy. Sure, some think he’s got some homoeroticism with Yuki in his FTEs, but his obsession with the female gender leaves me skeptical of that.

Satsuki Iranami: Pansexual.

Similar to Kinji, I believe Satsuki’s such a pure-hearted person that she wouldn’t even think about her partner’s gender. Still, Satsuhiko for the win!

Yamato Kisaragi: Pansexual.

Literally the exact same explanation with Kinji and Satsuki, only I think he’s got a preference for men.

Mikako Kurokawa: Biromantic Demisexual.

Being the mysterious and quiet girl she is in-game, I doubt Mikako would consider dating someone unless she’s built a secure, trusting relationship with them. However, I’m unsure whether this would apply to pre-game Mikako.

Teruya Otori: homoflexible.

Now, I just can’t unsee Teruya liking other guys, but I also headcanon that Teruya developed feelings for Rei between the time they escaped and pre-SDRA2, so I compensated roughly down the middle.

Akane Taira: Heteroflexible.

I view Akane as predominantly being attracted to men, but may make some exceptions for a girl or two (perhaps Ayame would fit the bill 👀)

Yuki Maeda: Heteroflexible.

Similar to Akane, he seems to be a woman-liker, but I’ve no problem with the idea of him getting together with the right man (*cough*KINJO*cough*). In regards to Utsuro, I think he’s either AroAce or Demisexual.

Rei Mekaru: Panromantic Demisexual.

See, I believe Rei would have an extremely difficult time with getting vulnerable enough with someone to consider dating them, but once a trusting relationship is established, I don’t think she’d care about her partner’s gender.

Tsurugi Kinjo: Biromantic Demisexual.

Similar to Rei, except Tsurugi may have a preference for men, given that he spent much of his backstory and post-SDRA2 presence being defined by his relationships to other men.

[gaymarasov]

G, R, E, M for the ask game! i chose the letters randomly...

Answering Fandom Alphabet for @gremland. Prompts here x. Chosen Fandom: Yellowjackets

G - Have you ever had an OTP? If so, do you remember your first one? Who was in it?

I don't believe in OTPs in the traditional sense of "I want to see these characters with only each other and seeing them with anyone else makes me want to blow up a building", because monogamy-brain is a curse on fandom. In terms of the ship I hold above all others in Yellowjackets, it would have to be Shaunajackie. GIFs of Jackie's dead-wife-montage pre-crash (the one where they're driving home from the party and Shauna watches her walk away in slow-motion) are what sold me on the show in the first place and I never looked back from there lol.

In terms of baby's first all consuming obsession with a fictional relationship, that one goes out to Tyzula. I used to read fanfic of them before bed and concentrate really really hard on it in the hopes of genuinely manifesting Tyzula dreams, because Tyzula fanfiction was not enough, which should tell you something about the kind of fictional relationships I tend to gravitate towards. Shaunajackie is actually deeply, deeply tame for me. If Jackie hadn't died horribly in a completely preventable way, I probably would find it boring, honestly!

R - Which friendship/platonic relationship is your favorite in fandom?

I know I was literally just ragging on this in a previous ask, but I actually really enjoy Van & Melissa friendship, just not in the perfectly cutesy, extremely sanitized way that it tends to be done in the fandom. I'm also partial to Akilah & Tai, and Van & Mari. It's really really hard to choose one favorite!

E - Have you added anything cracky/hilarious to your fandom? If so, what?

I think objectively this award, if even applicable, has to go to the Pregnant Mariverse, found here. Warning: Deeply NSFW! When Ozzy and I first conceptualized the AU this series takes place in, I said I was unlikely to write (or at least publish) any of it because I don't usually publish Omegaverse. Unfortunately the, um, pregnancy fetish urge to create won out, so here we are. And now there's 12k words of Mari knocked up and getting her brains fucked out on Ao3 because nothing is sacred, I guess. Sorry Mari. I promise this is the highest compliment that I am able to bestow upon you.

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

Misty! If I wasn't a survivor, I would probably get too curious about what happened "out there" and end up dissolved in a barrel of lye in her basement (that she would then wind up disposing of in some rural part of New Jersey), but otherwise I think it would be worth it. She is so fiercely loyal, and I love her dearly.

[lautity]

1, 4, 5, 11, 15, 16, 17, 23 with lautity/holyphone for the otp ask game :3 (no pressure to do all of these btw, i'm just really curious to hear other people's opinions on them since i dont see to many lautity shippers in the wild </3)

Ask game

HEHE its totally okay you could have sent me the whole book.....im so obsessed with them rn its not even funny. i <3 my niche ship nobody else thinks about. and im so sorry for how long this is...stuck it under a cut for safety

also note many of these answers are in the context of my silly fic/AU  but u do not have to read it to understand i included context where necessary. mostly i think abt them in terms of my AU but i think most of these are canon applicable as well

1. Who most initiates PDA?

Funny question for these two. Steph is by far more comfortable with PDA and treats it very casually, but she would probably have to slow down and match Grace's pace while she's still adjusting to being visibly in a queer relationship (especially in Hatchetfield/where she risks bumping into family or people from her congregation).

I think Grace is extremely affectionate though and once she's more comfortable (or just living somewhere she's less well known) she would probably initiate at least as much as Steph, if not more. I think she would get into the habit of hand-holding every time they're outside at some point and it would just be muscle memory to grab Steph's hand when they're walking side by side.

4. How did they first meet?

In Slow they met in middle school! Grace joined in 7th grade after attending a religious primary school, Steph failed 7th grade (too many skipped classes) and was taking it for the second time when Grace got there. They don't really interact significantly until a year or two later, but they're in the same homeroom pretty much every year in school, so they're always aware of each other in passing.

5. What is their love language?

I think for Grace the thing that makes her feel most comforted is probably physical touch, but the 'above and beyond' thing for her (and what she holds as a sign of the utmost commitment, at least on her part) is quality time. She's really punctual because she feels it's the best way to show that she cares and wants to be there + she's pedantic about attending her friend's events to show her support. She's also clingy in a 'following Steph around the house' way, she just loves to have company and another person around. Especially if that person is her girlfriend (someone who wants her around. She has not experienced much of this </3)

Steph probably appreciates words of affirmation quite a lot, especially if they're well thought-out. Also enjoys quality time (though she does need Some alone time) and is usually cool without fancy going-out stuff. Prefers casual, appreciates when people make time for her and enjoys the attention of being alone with someone. I think physical touch and being touchy is like breathing to her, just second nature with her friends and especially her partner. Throwing herself across laps and using people as pillows, always bumping shoulders. Stuff like that. it's very casual to her and it's a language for her in that it's how she says 'I feel safe and comfortable around you".

11. Which member is more physically affectionate?

I sort of already talked about this LOL but I think Grace is more intentionally affectionate and is more likely to initiate cuddling or kissing (once they get over the Afraid To Initiate bit of very newly-out Grace). But obviously Steph is always just touching her anyways, often unconsciously (initially this makes Grace's head explode. but she figures it out eventually) so while everything Grace does is thought out Steph is just always being touchy without realizing it because of how relaxed/comfortable she is. I think they're pretty equally matched on like volume but Grace does initiate more Big acts of affection

15. Who is more likely to make an impulsive decision and who is the voice of reason?

Steph has ADHD (to me.) and bad impulse control so she tends to be very spontaneous. I think a lot of the time she'll do things on a whim, even if they're risky, and say whatever comes to her mind. Grace is good at talking her into more safe activities and derailing her when she's feeling righteous and wants to pick a fight with someone twice her size over an insult to one of her friends.

Grace tends to be really unpredictable and impulsive when she's emotional at all and Steph gradually gets better at handling this and calming her down as they're together for longer. Not so much a voice of reason as a source of comfort for her.

Steph is the one online shopping and showing Grace her phone every 5 minutes just for her to go "no, we don't need another one" LOL

16. Who stays up way too late and who tries to drag them to bed?

Steph and her fuckass sleep schedule from parties and arguing online vs Grace, who has never stayed up past midnight, wakes up at 6:30 AM on weekends, makes her bed every morning, never snoozes an alarm... I think even when Grace drags Steph to bed "on time" (still an hour later than she'd like) Steph is just not a morning person and loves getting to sleep in and wake up slowly. Grace eventually learns to appreciate being cozy in bed for a little bit longer, but she never really stops waking up earlier than Steph and getting tons of things done before she even stirs.

17. Who fell in love first?

Hehe. Grace fell first, Steph fell harder/faster. Grace had like... this steadily building crush she didn't know was a crush. I think it probably started when they were in a group project together and Steph kept bumping their knees together under the table. She called them friends once and Grace pretty much did the entire project to please her. And even once Steph started ignoring her in class again she remained unusually fixated on her salvation and helping her. Around Abstinence Camp (summer before sophomore year/10th grade) Steph catches on to the fact that Grace genuinely wants to help her and tries to be nicer. They get more hostile again when Steph is outed as bisexual and Grace discovers what gay people are and that she isn't supposed to like them (but she can save them!). At the point where NPMD begins (around the beginning of their senior year) Steph has not had a non-religious interaction with Grace in over a year, and she is extremely sick of it.

(Slow is an everyone lives AU that has Max sleep with Grace before most of the events of NPMD, and the Waylon prank is both revenge and blackmail so she can force him to 'admit' to lying about it, hopefully preserving her reputations + preventing it from getting back to her parents. Everyone else is in on it for the same reasons as canon, and only Steph knows that Grace slept with Max at the point of the prank)

After finding out about Grace and Max, Steph just starts kind of pitying her because she knows how vicious gossip of this nature is and how cruel people are. So she's like okay, this girl really needs a friend, I can do that for now + being friends with Steph Lauter does give you some level of social standing which she figures she can lend to Grace for awhile. And Grace is still sort of annoying at first. But seeing her passionate + happy during the prank, orchestrating everything, awakens some really long-buried feelings about the weird girl in her homeroom who always tried too hard to relate every book to God, and who had come over to her house and described every research note to Steph while she assembled their poster by herself; Steph had SpongeBob reruns playing (which Grace was apparently not allowed to watch, so she sat with her back to the television) and was mostly tuning her out. They got 100% on their poster, and Steph stopped talking to Grace when her friends started to comment on it.

She feels bad for treating Grace that way + she is genuinely letting herself know this person for the first time and finding that she likes her. Like. Genuinely finds her smart and funny and interesting. She's sort of insane under duress, but it's endearing. But Steph does not pursue people, people come to her, so she sort of brushes it into the back of her mind, because there is no world in which Grace Chasity realizes her obvious queerness before she's 30.

Once she knows Grace likes her shes giggling and kicking her feet and extremely extremely excited about everything but she is trying So Hard to be normal and not rush her. She's sort of flattered about being Grace's first girl(friend?) and really really wants to give her a good experience and treat her well (the way she wishes her first partner had treated her). She is very happy and the only thing she really wishes is that Grace would apologize less and trust her a little more.

[ivyial]

Canonicity in the Context of Ships (and Ship Wars)

Essentially, what makes a ship canon? Does it even matter that a ship becomes canon?

So, disclaimer before we start:

1. This is my interpretation of the meaning of "canon" and what it means for a ship to be canon. As always, I'm open to disagreements and constructive criticism, especially if it can tame the constant aggression in some fandom spaces

2. I like ships, but I don't support ship wars because they're all fucking pointless and if you're a grown adult or close to being one and you're still harassing people over ships on the internet, you're a fucking loser

That being said

As we all know, online fandom spaces have developed their own vernacular over the years: canon, fanon, headcanon, OC, AU, OTP, the infamous 'Dead Dove: Do Not Eat', etc. Fandom slang has also evolved since it was first coined. A prime example of that would be the use of the term "lemon" to refer to erotic fanfiction, which while still used, has suffered a sharp decline in favour of the word "smut" (although smut has its own use and meaning outside of fandoms).

The word "canon" is arguably one of the most important words in fandom, since it refers to the official source material from a game, book, TV show, movie, whatever form of media said fandom is about. In essence, it's the official story: what actually happens and what was intended by the creators. Some universes are easily accessible and the canon isn't really subject to much debate. Most TV shows have very straightforward canon: assuming that everything is contained within, let's say, 5 seasons of 22 episodes each, with no spin-offs, movies, or exclusive bonus episodes, the canon of the show will be laid out in these episodes. That's it. Some other fandoms will be much more obscure: think of game franchises such as Resident Evil, where many games have been released over the years, remade, and some have been largely forgotten and can even contradict the current version of events. In this case, it can be much harder to define what canon is, which events are official and still applicable to the story and which should be discarded completely. (And I have to say, as a law student, canon is weirdly reminiscent of the hierarchy of norms, but that's for another day.)

I could discuss the importance of canon in fandoms, but that's irrelevant to the point of this post. Let's talk ships. I don't need to explain to everyone what a ship is. There's no point of contention there. In most media where romance is either dealt with or hinted at, fandoms, and therefore, shippers, will jump at the opportunity to write about or make art of their favourite ship. However, there's always something rearing its ugly head and contributing to the toxic atmosphere in fandoms: ship wars.

Ship wars are in essence extremely simple, and I'm sure we've all been in a fandom that participated in a ship war, whether we were involved in it ourselves or not. Long story short, shippers argue over which ship will become canon. Writers are toying with the idea of two or more major ships and teasing that both have their chances. So, in the end, it's all about who comes out on top and who becomes official.

The canonicity of a ship is a lot more complicated than the canonicity of media itself. I'd argue that even if the canonicity of the story is simple, it's likely that the canonicity of ships will necessarily be harder to draw conclusions about. So you can imagine how complicated canon is when it comes to ships from franchises that barely know their own canon.

Since I've seen a lot of arguments over canon ships in the Resident Evil fandom as of late, and this is what inspired this post, I will be using this example primarily - and since ideally I'd like this post to reach fandoms outside of RE, I'll be explaining and illustrating my examples. Other fandoms and ships might also be referred to.

1. Canon, semi-canon and non-canon

When it comes to ships, there are 3 main ways to describe them:

- Non-canon: quite straightforward. The ship has not officially expressed any desire (even implicit) to get together whatsoever. They may or may not interact in canon, and if they do, there's just no romantic interest there. Non-canon does not necessarily refer to a ship being into each other but not doing anything about it, as this is characterised as:

- Semi-canon: there's something there. Maybe both characters like each other romantically, maybe it's one-sided, maybe there is potential but it could either sail or be ruined completely by Character A's reaction to Character B's feelings. But overall, the general consensus seems to be that semi-canon ships have not acted on their feelings. This definition is not set in stone - we'll come back to it later.

- Canon: yay, your ship has sailed!! The pairing has officially been confirmed. The characters have acted on their feelings and you have won the ship war.

These are the general definitions of canon ships. And if you think they're clear and satisfactory, in what world are you living?

2. Past canon vs current canon

You finally got around to watching the season finale and there it is: Character A and B confessed and kissed. Finally, it's canon, and you can gloat on social media about how you were right all along.

But then it turns out that by the final season, your ship breaks up, and Character A gets with Character C. Even worse, Character A stays with Character C and the show ends with them being officially together. What the fuck.

So, what does that make your ship? It's officially a sunk ship, sure, but what about its canonicity? Should it be considered canon? I mean, they dated for 2 seasons. So technically, there was a period of time when your ship was canon. It just isn't anymore.

This is the first hurdle we meet when trying to define a ship as canon. It all hinges on the when aspect of it. This is also where ship canonicity differs from story canonicity. Storywise, the ship is rooted in canon since they were together at some point. Shipwise, however, they are not canon anymore, since they have broken up. It's canon that they happened, but they themselves aren't canon anymore.

At this point, I would argue that most people consider that a ship that is together by the end of the show/game/movie/book etc., by the end of canon essentially, is canon. Don't worry, we're still far from having solved this.

3. What does it take for a ship to be canon?

You will have noticed by now that, so far, I have instinctively referred to a canon ship as a ship that is together. I'd argue that this is what most people think of when they think of a canon ship.

But what does it mean for a ship to be together? Do we mean that they have to be a couple? Is it marriage, is it a relationship, is it friends with benefits? Or is it a simple kiss and confession? Do they even have to make out, or have sex, or put a label on their relationship?

This is when we venture into the territory of canon vs semi-canon. Earlier, I defined semi-canon as a ship that has feelings for each other, or is one-sided, but no one has acted on their feelings. Mind you, this is the definition provided by the Internet.

Let's say Character A confesses to Character B. Character B feels the same way, but they don't want to get into a relationship right now. The show ends there. I mean, technically, they like each other, right? That much was confirmed. They acted on their feelings by confessing. Technically, that gets them out of semi-canon territory. But does it get them into canon territory? Nothing came out of the confession, really.

We can't in good faith argue that two characters confessing is enough to make them canon, since the term semi-canon also exists, and could very well apply depending on your own definition of it.

The problem lies in defining what it takes for a ship to be canon. If we go back to the very roots of canon, it's confirmation that a ship has an official romantic nature.

Is liking each other enough? Doubtful: if a main character flirts with a minor side character, who reciprocates, does that make them canon? They're into each other. But it would be ridiculous by fandom standards to deem them canon when the side character might never be seen again and has no real bearing on the story.

Truth is, what makes a ship canon fluctuates depending on the standards set by the media itself. If a piece of media is heavily romance-based, canon will most likely be defined by the ship that makes it out in the end, the one that has proclaimed to be a couple. If the piece of media is not keen on romance, and never creates romantic relationships between characters, it might be enough for the fandom to consider canon a pairing that has simply alluded to being into each other.

Whether the last example is good enough reason to hail a ship as canon depends on the fandom and the shippers. Some might think it's a stretch, some might think it's more than enough.

One possibility would be to look at the writers' intention for the pairing, read interviews if they're available, etc. However, most of the time, franchises have changes in writers over the seasons/games/movies, and it gets even worse when you take into account franchises that are adapted from another source material - say, Game of Thrones vs ASOIAF: David Benioff and D.B. Weiss' intentions for the characters certainly differ from George R. R. Martin's intentions.

I'm going to start using actual examples now, to better illustrate my point. I'll be using Resident Evil ships, like I said. RE, despite having constant ship wars, is not famous for making ships canon or focusing on romance at all. The most you'll get is indicators that two characters are into each other or you'll get established relationships that are not subject to ship wars since they have no other love interest (see Mia and Ethan Winters: married couple, established as part of canon and the validity of their relationship with regards to other characters is never questioned). As a matter of fact, you could probably argue that the Winters are the only canon couple in the REverse.

Most RE ship wars happen as a result of Leon ships, the main ones being Aeon (Ada/Leon) vs Cleon (Claire/Leon). There are other Leon ships out there, mainly Chreon (Chris/Leon), Serennedy (Luis/Leon), Leshley/Eagleone (Ashley/Leon), and many more, but they don't engage in ship wars because they have the common sense to be normal human beings about their ships. (Seriously everyone, chill the fuck out.)

Aeon shippers are known for one thing: banging on and on about how their ship is canon - which, in their eyes, automatically discredits all other Leon ships (what's the point of shipping if it isn't to win, right? I'm obviously being sarcastic). Which, knowing the canon nature of Aeon, makes it the perfect test subject for this discussion and post.

Are Ada and Leon into each other? Sure. Ada confessed to falling in love with Leon in OG RE2, they flirted in OG RE4, Resident Evil: Damnation suggests that they have shared at least one night together, and in RE6, Helena guesses that Leon has feelings for Ada. These events, however, have changed in the remakes: Ada no longer confesses to being in love with Leon in RE2R, though she does kiss him to manipulate him, and they don't exactly flirt much in RE4R. But then, by discussing this, we'd end up discussing what is canon in a game franchise plagued by obscure secondary sources of canon, and that's not what I plan on doing here (I also severely lack the extensive knowledge to do that).

Despite all of this, Ada and Leon never actually get together. It's a constant game of cat and mouse, will-they-won't-they, whatever you wanna call it. Since they are on opposite sides of the same fight, it's practically impossible for them to get into a normal, healthy relationship. Going back to what I said about the canonicity of a ship being defined by the standards set by the piece of media itself, you could argue that Aeon is canon by those standards: since they can't get together, it only matters that they have shown reciprocated feelings towards one another.

However, that's not entirely true, is it? RE hasn't set those standards for romance. It doesn't act on ships, but it hasn't deterred romance as a whole: look at Mia and Ethan Winters. It is possible to get into a relationship in RE - now whether it is possible to get a happy ending is entirely less likely.

But I mean, there are other love interests for Leon that aren't on the side of who he's fighting. Look at Claire, or Ashley, or hell even Jill. We can't, as a fandom, reasonably ignore the flirting that went down between Claire and Leon in RE2R (and Infinite Darkness at times) and Leon and Ashley in both OG RE4 (though he does reject her at the end of the OG) and RE4R. And he was probably trying to flirt with Jill a little in Death Island, too - he's a bit of a whore (affectionate).

How do you even define the canonicity of a ship in a universe like RE, in which most characters can't form normal, healthy romantic relationships? Is it enough to kiss/sleep together (Aeon)? Is it enough to unabashedly flirt and to practically be parents to a practically adopted daughter (Cleon)? Is it enough to share all sorts of romantic tropes and overtly flirt with each other (Leshley/Eagleone)? What happens when you start removing all of the events that used to be canon, but might not be anymore/be part of a different canon than the current one?

4. Conclusion (kind of)

I really want to offer a definition of a canon ship that suits everyone, but every time i come up with one, I bump into yet another wall. Tentatively, we could define a canon ship as a ship that has, by the standards of the piece of media they belong to, acted on their desire to be together in a lasting manner that disproves all other potential ships for the characters. I'm sure that can be perfected, and there might be elements of this definition that can be refuted, but this is how I would characterise a ship as canon. Which would, you guessed it, make pretty much every Leon ship non-canon in the context of the REverse as a whole.

The one true conclusion of this post, however, is that shipping amounts to playing with Barbies and should not be taken so seriously. There are a lot of shippers who know that their ships have no chances of becoming canon, yet still choose to have fun with it, make content for it in their own space, and some of you guys are dicks enough to go and bully them over it. Go outside, take a breath, and understand that canonicity is not the be-all and end-all of shipping.

I went a bit overboard with this and I'm sorry (not really). I'd love to know everyone's opinions on what makes a ship canon, if there's scenarios I haven't considered, etc! Constructive criticism is more than welcome and as always, my ask box is always open <3

[otpserviceproviders]

[iholli]

👑 Holli / Rat • 24+ • any pronouns • ficto ace • artist, gamer, rat lover, selfshipper • so show me the sea, and I'll take you to Mars

🐀 heya! name's Holli but you can call me Rat, or whatever else you fancy :] I'm here to post about rats and the beach and cry about whatever fandom [or character] my singular braincell is currently most attached to. nice to meet you!

🎨 looking for art? you can find my work on BlueSky, though I occasionally still post things here! art tag: #ratkingdraws

⚠️ pro fiction / anti censorship space;

I'm personally uncomfortable with a lot of problematic content, but I believe people have the right to do whatever they want in fiction and I don't think they should be harassed for it. your ship is not my ship and that's okay. if you don't like something, block and move on, please. I'm an adult with better things to do. tag filter: #ratkingdiscourse

🌊 twice daily scheduled ocean posting;

#happy place 💙 / #oceancore • until the day they become my own posts.

💖 selfship posting;

#heart of mars • Rat King & J'onn J'onzz • DCAU / JLTAS / JLU • married

not comfortable sharing with canon but selfshippers are fine!

playlist 🌌🐀

×××

#it's a rat room blitz! • RTE-09 & Blitzwing • TFA / BBM • conjunxed

don't like sharing, canon or otherwise (Astrotrain is fine). you can interact with me but I likely won't do so in return.

playlist ✈️🚀 || informational sideblog

×××

#FIREBYTER • Ratbyte & Heatwave • Rescue Bots • sharing okay!

playlist 🚒🐀

💖 other selfships [sharing okay];

#💜💖💙 • Vincent "Vinny", Donatello Hamato, & Leonardo Hamato • ROTTMNT

playlist 🐢🐀

#ratstatic • Vermin & Vox • Hazbin Hotel

playlist 📺👑

#PREDATOR/PREY • Wastelander Rat & Megalo Don • Fortnite • qpp

playlist 🦈🐀 [cover photo]

✨ most common fandoms;

DC: DCAU fanatic / GLTAS always / The Suicide Squad / MAWS / hopeful for the future of DC

Transformers: I intentionally avoided it forever cause I knew it would consume me. I did not protest when my besties pulled me into it. this is my whole existence now. / Rise Up: Decepticon sympathizer / Blitzwing is everything to me in every iteration 💜

Fortnite: joined C5S1 / Montague, Artemis, Hades, Megalo Don, Fletcher Kane supremacy / more active on Twitter @ R47K1NGG4M3S / always looking for new friends, add me on Epic @ R47K1NGG4M3S :]

ROTTMNT: hi I love found family. and Leotello. but mostly found family. unpause ROTTMNT.

Marioverse / Luigi's Mansion: Luigi, King Boo, & Bowser fan / successfully played or own all the Luigi's Mansion games [including the arcade cabinet]!

Invader Zim: ZaDr my otp always / Almighty Tallest apologist / where the lore all started...

Hellaverse: Hazbin Hotel my beloved / RadioStatic / Helluva Boss is also cool. ily Queen Bee

MCU: less frequent here / forever a soft spot for Loki / Octogoblin / Spider-Verse / Team Cap / X-Men,,, swamp rat Gambit my beloved

🌊 I don't bite, I'm just here to vibe & I like making friends :] please feel free to talk to me about anything! I love getting asks about my interests and selfships [or YOUR interests and selfships] or just to chat, and you can always ask for my Discord!

⚠️ AI & NFT will not be tolerated in any capacity; I spam report any accounts posting AI art, and I will block anyone using AI chat bots including ChatGPT & c.AI; I do not make exceptions. AI is art theft, including writing, full stop. block me now if that's an issue.

🚫 Primus knew I'd be too powerful if I could draw (or commission) nsfw but I can and do post about it sometimes. I'm an adult, I like nonhumans and fucked up stuff and funny posts. and x readers. #suggestive / #nsfw / #valveplug when applicable

🔪 I do like candygore and cannibalism-- there may be the occasional bloody / gorey post though heavy realistic gore also makes me uncomfortable! tag filter: #blood tw or #gore tw; cannibalism does not have a specific tag!

💖 that's all for now! thanks for stopping by :]

[lanaevyssmoved]

so i saw this fun post with "otp" questions and i really wanted to answer them for afhiri/gale and instead of asking people to send me asks.. i thought i would answer them all myself in a post :) lots of text under cut!!!!!!

What, specifically, was the catalyst for their physical attraction (if applicable) to the other character? In other words, what in particular had them like “Oh, they’re...hot...”

afhiri likes how confident and charming gale is, they really enjoy (and fall for) the bravado entirely. but it's the magic that afhiri really likes, how controlled it is, how powerful he is (while i'm aware he's nerfed beyond belief, afhiri has never seen stuff like this and it's very cool!), and is completely mesmerised when he casts magic- which is a massive ego boost for the wizard.... oh and he's pretty. obviously

for gale, he likes how afhiri navigates situations. they're very good at talking to people, easy to make friends, can shift into being a manipulative liar when the situation demands it, and then turns to look at him with a wide "i did it!" smile. but when someone needs help, when afhiri knows they can do something to help someone who isn't capable of helping themselves, they'll step in and do the right thing. this is attractive to gale!

Does this change over time? What things do they find “hot” about their partner after they’ve been together for some time, and have had more time to, well, notice and appreciate?

for afhiri it honestly doesn't really change. he just gets more and more powerful as they spend more time together, constantly growing in skill, and it never loses its charm. they just get more fascinated. admittedly afhiri doesn't need to see more to stay interested, but gale likes to provide more because seeing them get even more impressed by him is constantly stroking the ego

the loyalty afhiri showcases, the fact they are entirely, 100%, ride of die, they will do anything for him, if he were to say jump she would say how high. while he's aware of how self destructive this can be and he encourages afhiri to think for herself even in terms of her friends and loved ones, he can't help but be enamoured by this display of devotion and trust, because it's for everyone who shows her even the smallest of kindnesses

By contrast, what was the moment that first made their ~heart~ Soft for the other person? Not necessarily a conscious realization of “I love this person,” but a moment that had them like “Oh...I adore them...”

afhiri was slow on this, which requires some context for her as a character. they are incredibly naive in the ways of the heart, they never had friends growing up, they never experienced a first crush, they never had a doomed teenage relationship. they didn't understand love, romance, sexuality. it wasn't until the events of the game that they started to have these feelings, and needed help understanding them. afhiri's various love affairs (because she doesn't just get involved with gale!) help her understand. so it took afhiri a long time to even understand what 'i love you' is outside of a family dynamic. if you were to ask afhiri, she would say she adored gale from the moment she met him. but since you're asking me, it would be the act 3 boat scene, when she takes his hands in their own, and he looks at her with bright, gentle eyes. that was the moment afhiri realised she would burn the world for him if he asked

gales moment was during act 2, his romance scene. not the confession, but when he had conjured the illusion of his tower at waterdeep, afhiri looked around in wonder. she asked questions about various things, she pet his statues and asked if they had names, she could tell which were his favourite books from the state of them, something that surprised gale greatly. they cared so much, about all the little things, about all the things that make him who he is. they got especially excited about the piano, wanting to learn how to play, wanting to play alongside it for him. she asked desperately if she could perform for him while he read, but he had to encourage her along with a gentle hand in hers to come to the balcony. when they sat together and he looked at her, that was the moment. he was so in love

Does this change over time? What will always reliably make them melt with how much they adore the other character?

with afhiri it's just his gentle kindness. while her attraction comes from his displays of confidence and power and skill, who he is when all that is put aside and there's just gale in his goofy pjs with a soft smile on his face. the way he encourages her, reassures her, the way he makes her feel like a complete person. he's like a guide for her in many ways, a mentor even. while i understand that they do have a natural power imbalance, gale is aware of it too, but never once infantilises her, and reminds her of all the things she does and says that tell the word she is more than a naive, stupid girl who never got to be a person until tragedy struck. that will always make her melt. that he touches her, and is gentle

admittedly it's almost the same. but afhiri is loud, her voice booms and her hands grip so tight her claws dig into him, her sharp teeth shine as she yells to him with furrowed brows how much he is worth. that despite his folly, he is an incredible person who deserves everything. that she will provide everything if he asked. that mystra is stupid bitch who didn't know what she had, and that afhiri knows, afhiri knows what she has and won't ever let him forget that. he is all that's beautiful in this world. afhiri is a lovebomber btw but it never stops, every ounce of mortal love gale has been neglecting in his life poured into him and he's drowning and gasping for air but he doesn't let go. he wants to drown

How do they consciously realize that they like the other character? Does it take them a while?

afhiri kinda needs to be beaten over the head with it. it isn't until gale's silliness in act 2 about near death experiences and how he's horny to get afhiri to go "oh....... so they were right!" because afhiri was already involved with karlach and wyll at this point, and they'd sit up at night holding hands in a circle and they'd tell afhiri "gale likes you. and you like gale." and afhiri would ":)? does he? he is funny. he's my favourite clown." they're just a little silly. and of course they did like gale! he's very pretty

for gale it's quite literally when afhiri hits on him in the act 1 weave scene. afhiri is completely overcome by the intensity of the weave the feeling between them and pictures kissing gale. it just feels right, it just makes sense. that doesn't necessarily mean afhiri was thinking that before, or even after, they were entirely swept away. but that was the moment gale noticed afhiri in that light, and continued to think about it. nonstop

How do they react to the realization that they like the other character? Is it an “oh my god I’m never going to think about this again” thing, or are they pretty comfortable with it?

afhiri is chill. first and foremost. this is a chill clown. the realisation is.. chill, if nothing happens with it? also chill. this is a free spirit who goes with the flow no matter what. karlach and wyll come easy because they are more forward, open characters who make it happen and it flows naturally and easily. gale takes time because gale takes time. afhiri won't make something happen between themselves and another because platonic love is just as good and fulfilling. so, "oh this is nice" and that's about it UNLESS*

gale obsesses. if anything it's a nice distraction from the absolute doom cloud over him, never letting him a moments peace. but thinking about affection? about love? about sex? that's a distraction, and one hell of a distraction. can't do anything about it because everything they have to do is so much more important. i don't think gale would have ever acted on it over the course of the game (except maybe the immediate end) without the acceptance that he is about to die, and needs to do something now or it will never happen. the what if

Do they (or would they) pursue the other character’s affection, and if so, how? Do they tell the other character how they feel? Try to earn their admiration? Woo them with romantic gestures? Flirt with them, skillfully or otherwise?

*afhiri wouldn't unless it naturally came up, if the moment was correct and it just.... happened. much like the weave scene, if the weave didn't dissipate they probably would have tried to kiss gale. they don't change their behaviour with gale consciously, but the others do notice it, paying more attention to him, talking to him first, looking at him for affirmation and reassurance, using him as a moral compass more than she used to, asking him questions over and over an over abundance of curiousity in him, however this can also be attributed to hearing about his condition and relationship with mystra and feeling empathy for him and wanting him to feel wanted

while gale is a gesture man, and would absolutely seek to woo, he doesn't because of the distraction of all that's going on, until as mentioned before, he believes he is going to die. however he absolutely does flirt with afhiri by using a needless amount of magic when she's watching. casting spells just to impress her, upcasting for no reason beyond watching her eyes widen and that toothy grin appear in wonder, an expression he grows addicted to

What do they think about romantic love? Do they have baggage surrounding it? Do they idealize it? Is it an object of longing and wanting, or were they really not thinking about it until they started falling for the other character? What are their expectations like?

i keep lowkey answering stuff before i get to the question huh!

afhiri doesn't think about it at all, it isn't on their mind, and they have no concept of romantic love at all prior to experiencing it for the first time and being told why it's different. it is something they need explained

gale... hhahahah dkjsfdskfhsdkf do i even NEED TO. gale doesn't long for romantic love, but he certainly misses being loved. and it's worth afhiri that he feels true, mortal romantic love for the first time in his life, because i like to think before mystra he only had teen romance, childhood crushes, and then all was mystra, who gave him a love based on power and religious devotion, he worshipped and she gave him tastes of power beyond comprehension. it's with afhiri that he learns what romantic love really is. i think it's safe to say he didn't expect it to feel as good or taste as sweet as it does

What do they think about commitment? Is a long-term partnership the goal? Are they thinking about building a life with their partner, or are they focused on the present?

haha :) ok we're talking about my post-game 3 years later fic for a second bare with me and do not cancel me for enjoying toxic dynamics for a second ok. also this lowkey rewrites canon i know :) i dont care anyway

afhiri and gale are so long term they never want their relationship to end. ever. afhiri is going to outlive gale, and while this is something they are comfortably aware of to start, the more they love, the more they go through, it becomes daunting, especially for gale. he doesn't want afhiri to live without him, to experience life on her own again, to be without someone who will guide and teach her, who will be there to protect her from herself. gale tells them all of this, he holds their hands tight, stares right into their eyes with such intensely it feels like the sun. and afhiri who hadn't had these thoughts at all is suddenly overcome with grief, because gale is sad. they cannot truly comprehend this future, but they can see how much it means to gale. and that's all it takes. gale brings up immortality, talks her into it, which isn't hard because afhiri would say yes to anything gale says. and on his pursuit for immortality, comes divinity, comes ascension. what better way to live together, forever

What scares them about entering a relationship?

afhiri has absolutely zero fear whatsoever. what is there to fear? happiness? huh. don't get it!!!!!!!

i don't think gale fears entering a relationship so much as he fears everything around him, the tadpoles, the orb, the dead three, the elder brain like, there's so much going on and he thinks he's going to die, when he doesn't he still knows he could, same for afhiri, but that fear shouldn't stop anyone from being happy and in love

What fears, past traumas, etc. would be hardest for them to talk about with their partner?

afhiri got nothing. there is no trauma in this clown. there is no fear. there is nothing terrible and bad. one could say their childhood was traumatic in general and another character could be deeply changed by it, afhiri isn't traumatised. this is just a sweet clown who's ready to adore you. i can imagine afhiri like infodumps/loredumps about their own life in an autadhd tangent in the middle of a discussion . where did that come from. anyway and gales like ??? that sounds like a really tough childhood and afhiris like ?????????????? anyway

its actually so easy for gale to open up about the biggest things that have ever happened in his life, which is so funny because he says he's not told another living soul this stuff other than tara, but that goes to show how much he's neglecting his friendships and bonds because it takes you being generally nice and good for him to be like "ok time to trust them with everything!" i don't even think the depths of his relationship with mystra, like Actual Details would be hard to tell either. and afhiri is so open and honest i think it would be encouraging

How much independence do they prefer in a relationship—do they want to share their lives as much as possible with their partner, or do they prefer to mostly do their own thing and let their partner do their own thing?

afhiri is very independent which may be surprising. when gale proposes at the end of the game, afhiri says no, but does go to waterdeep with him because it sounds fun. even when there, afhiri is very slow to officially move in, spending a lot of time there but not quite settling in and making it her own in any way. afhiri also still travels a lot, and disappears for weeks at a time, very rarely months, because adventuring is fun!

this encourages gale to be the same way, going on his own little adventures. seeking hidden artefacts, tomes and magics he reads about, getting tara to sniff out hints of new adventures he could have. sometimes they go together, but more often than not they go on their own, then reunite back at waterdeep with tales to tell.

in my post-game 3 years later fic, afhiri actually proposes to gale, and is still not quite moved in. having never had independence in her life before the events of the game, it is hard to let go of. and gale would never force her to

but also they do miss each other when they're apart.. so its good for their relationship, when they come back together its fresh and exciting and theyre overflowing with love to share

What is their go-to for making a partner feel loved?

gale does acts of clownery for afhiri. dump jokes, crass comments, potty humour, putting on the clown outfit afhiri got for him and doing a little bit where no one could ever possibly walk in on them, afhiri sitting on the groud cross legged clapping away for him like he's a clown at a kids birthday party. literally just lowering himself to her level of comedy and buffoonery dfgl;dkgd

afhiri realises pretty quickly that gale responds best to being validated, having his wants accepted, being encouraged to seek his desires. having his ambitions affirmed and being told that wanting more isn't a bad thing and she will help him get more. that wanting to use his magic to show her beauty is a good thing and he shouldn't have to change. that everything that makes him who he is.. is good. there is nothing wrong with a wizard who uses his skills and his talents, and ever seeks more. if afhiri didn't like these things, why would she have fallen for him in the first place!!!!

What makes them feel loved? Would they build up the courage to ask for it?

since i'm answering for two characters the first part doesn't really make sense so i will only answer the second......

afhiri has no inhibition, if afhiri wants affection they would straight up bluntly ask for it

for gale...... i think he would learn that afhiri responds positively to being asked for love and would get comfortable doing it. it wouldn't come so naturally but seeing afhiri do it to him, gives him the confidence to do it to them, and their eager willingness to provide helps massively

Are they okay with public displays of affection? Do they like them?

i wouldn't say either of them are PDA people

afhiri doesn't act differently with any of their partners when they're adventuring/in public, they're always affection to even their friends so it doesn't feel any different for anyone. they're not going to hold hands, hug, say i love you, in front of anyone, nothing like that. just general attentiveness and soft words when they feel right

i think gale would find it immensely inappropriate to do anything PDA in public, and this is because of my own personal headcanons of his upbringing

When would they say “I love you?” Do they say it first? Do they say it often, or is it reserved for special moments?

gale says it first and they both say it very often, and it multiple ways. it is a well used phrase but it never loses it spark

If sex is something that would be part of a relationship for them, do both or either of them have prior experiences? If not, how do they feel about it?

afhiri's only experience is with karlach prior to gale dlfkgjdfgd i think it's pretty obvious afhiri had no sexual experience based on what i've said prior. and gale had a teen romance, and then mystra, so it's been quite a while for him. two inexperienced at bodily sex dummies

What does sex mean for them? Socially, religiously, what attitudes are they bringing with them? Do they want sexual experiences to occur within a certain “level” of relationship, or does that not really matter so much to them?

now headcanon time, gale is transmasc. gale doesn't have a penis, and has had top surgery. gale uses magic to create a penis when he wants to. afhiri is transfem nonbinary, and has a t-dick. gale also helps afhiri in dick related ways too. WOOHOO *EDIT: AFHIRI IS ALSO INTERSEX

sex for them is extremely trans in experience. the magic sex scene actually encouraged this headcanon for gale in me immensely, the lack of penis in the scene, the desire to experience non-bodily sex and show afhiri what it is like, i think they have more sex this way than bodily.

nothing about their sex life fits into a comfortable 'norm' for people. a lot of body worship is involved, a lot of affirmations, a lot of focusing on trans features and devoting to them. the love of the spirit and the love of the trans experience and the trans body. the love of what magic could do for trans people.

sex for them is acceptance in the purest of forms

in terms of of 'level', afhiri's level is probably 'friend' which is just about anyone whose nice to them so. yeah, but i think gale reserves such a thing as a declaration of love

How comfortable are they talking about, and openly communicating during, sex?

yes for both of them! neither of them are coy individuals and both are comfortable. afhiri might make a crass, immature joke though... when talking about sex and having sex

What would their partner do that would really turn them on, perhaps unintentionally?

uh feel like i made it clear with afhiri that Magic Do Be Doing This.

and gale.. well he kind of tells us in canon that you killing people is hot as hell so. make of that what you will

They accidentally hurt or upset their partner. What happened? How do they respond? What do they do to make their partner feel better?

afhiri upsets gale with her sheer stupidity all the time if i'm honest. he is very patient but they do be doing completely illogical things that are reckless and dangerous, they put themselves in harms way sometimes as a joke with no real understanding of the danger or the risk, afhiri gets scolded a lot and apologies extremely quickly. they don't mean to do things that upset gale, they just..... act. they don't think. there is no plan they just DO and then the consequences of their actions hit like a brick (gale is yelling and crossing his arms)

gale upsets afhiri with his lack of self worth. whenever gale talks in a way that sounds like he doesn't believe he deserves good and that he is good, this upsets afhiri immensely, to the point of tears sometimes. from the moment they met afhiri thought he was the most incredible and amazing person, and this person doesn't think highly of themselves? that's awful. beyond awful. gale pats their head and apologies for talking about himself poorly and it pretty much fixes everything immediately

They have an argument with their partner—what is it about? Do things stay respectful, or is there some shouting and accusing going on?

these two don't fight, they just don't. they don't have arguments, they talk things out. afhiri isn't someone who screams and yells and argues, they helped raise 5 of their 6 siblings, they know how to calmly talk things out and communicate. and without retaliation, gale quickly calms down from angry and frustrated to calmly talking with afhiri too. you cannot get a rise out of this clown

They have to apologize to their partner. Is this difficult for them? How do they approach it?

neither of them find accepting fault and needing to apologise difficult. afhiri is poor at wording apologies and giving detailed apologies, making point of what they did wrong, how they'll change, that stuff, but afhiri is very good at giving sincere "i'm sorry" apologies. gale is extremely good at those like 5 paragraph apologies with a whole ass graph and shit like this man is writing up an entirely new lifeplan around not making this mistake again kind of thing....... but again i don't really see them ever experiencing a situation where this would occur and need to happen. especially when they forgive each other so quickly and easily

How do they feel about the prospect of parenthood? Do they plan on it? How would they react if they suddenly found out they were going to be a parent?

they adopt shovel :)

(afhiri adopted shovel and gale was forced to be father)

What compromises are they making in their relationship?

gale is compromising having a normal, domestic life with someone who loves to read and is intelligent and studies magic and would join in with his experiments and his research.. he's compromising an equal.

afhiri isn't making any compromises, but genuinely recognises gale is. she's not sad about this or thinking gale might want someone else because afhiri would tell him to find another person to have that with and she would be cool with it, this baby can fit so many people in the polycule! but gale has never once implied he wants this and is just happy with her. it's enough, it works

What completely petty topic (music taste, favorite food) do they find themselves completely at odds with their partner about?

afhiri eats utter shit trash and has all her life, gale has a delicate palette of exquisite tastes. afhiri can't eat his food because it's too difficult and weird and gale would never even try eating what afhiri eats. the compromise is he makes two meals and she steals pieces of his to slowly build up her palette :)

How do their friends react to finding out they’re a couple? Do they have lots of mutual friends? Did their friends know, perhaps before they themselves did?

lmao the Squad is very "FINALLY!!!", and tara and gale's mother are very "FINALLY HE'S NOT DYING ALONE!!!!!" everyone is happy

and i did kind of already state that their friends did, in fact, know before they did fsdgfsdfs

Under what circumstances would they feel jealous?

afhiri might feel a speck of jealousy over gales good childhood and upbringing and love he's experienced but. it wouldn't last long and it would be like a twinge of jealousy. nothing important

gale would feel jealous over afhiri's affections for others and the easiness with which it comes, but it would go away with affirmations and reassurance from afhiri

Under what circumstances would they feel protective?

such a funny question like every situation they're in over the course of game? this is a couple who focus on protecting one another over themselves in the heat of combat! (stupid)

Would they get a pet? What kind? Who brings up the idea, and who takes a little longer to convince?

they literally have scratch :) and gale uses magic to make scratch immortal :) it wasn't either of their ideas they both thought of it :)

[accidental-spice]

Star Wars Rebels for the fandom ask game!

Ooooh, good one!!

Send me a fandom and I'll tell you...

The first character I ever fell in love with: probably Hera!! We used to get the guidebook for the series at the library, before we watched it, and I always shipped her and Kanan!

A character that I used to love/like, but now do not: I have no clue. No one?

A ship that I used to love/like, but now do not: yeah same no idea

My ultimate favorite character™: ACK that's hard. My instinct is Hera, though

Prettiest character: Hera or Sabine

My most hated character: Governor Pryce, for SURE

My OTP: Kanera

My NOTP: anything related to Kanan or Hera that ISN'T Kanera

Favorite episode: gosh. I really love Twilight of the Apprentice, and Trials of the Darksaber

Saddest death: C'mon, man. You know this one

Favorite season: ehhhh, I'm not sure! They're all really good. @kanerallels had influenced me towards S2, though

Least favorite season: not applicable they're all AMAZING. Yes, even S4

Character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but I hate: search me

My ‘you’re a piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: Fenn Rau, a little bit

My ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: Ezra, of course!!

My ‘they’re kind of cute, and I lowkey ship them, but I'm not too invested’ ship: maybe Sabezra? I'm quite fond of them, and their aesthetic is FLAWLESS, but they're not, like, my number one, y'know?

Thanks for the ask!!

[otplusprompts]

Pinned Post

Important note for minors!!! While very uncommon, this blog does have some suggestive/18+ prompts! These are tagged as "nsft", and I'd rather you don't interact with those!

Polyam Prompts (All prompts)

Draw the Squad

Ot3 Prompts

Ot+ prompts (polyam prompts with over 3 people or applicable to over 3)

Ot4, Ot5, Ot6, Ot7, Ot8, Ot9, Ot10, Ot11, Ot12, … Ot18

Ot Any prompts (Prompts with no set amount of people or applicable to any amount)

Themes and bonus tags below the read more!

AUs: Soulmate AU, Fantasy, Medieval AU, Superheroes

Activities: Cooking, Camping, Travel, Vacation, Video Games, Cuddling

Holidays: Halloween, Christmas, Valentine's Day

Other: Outdoors, Food, Wedding, Parenting, School (fyi this includes all sorts of school scenarios including both high school and college!)

Suggestive/NSFT

Bonus Otp (posts that include 2 person prompts)

[unsettlingcreature]

Get to know your mutuals - tagged by @copia

what's the origin of your username? I honestly don't even remember, I think it was a reference to a tumblr shitpost. I just wanted something shorter than my old url of notoriousbastardlover

OTP(s) + shipname: I'm a multishipper and I don't really have an otp except for maybe Thorin and Bilbo/bagginshield from the Hobbit or Andrew and Neil/andreil from aftg

favourite colour: black OR orange

song stuck in my head: it's 100% Satanised by Ghost. anyone who knows me knows this was inevitable.

weirdest habit/trait: I CANNOT have my foods touching. it just can't happen. how did nobody pick up on me having autism from this alone.

hobbies: writing, reading, digital art and tabletop RPGs! I also used to larp but I've had to take a break on account of my body not working right

if you work, what's your profession? not applicable (again, on account of my body not working right)

if you could have any job you wish what would you have? at this point in my life, it would probably be working in game development as either a writer or an artist

something you're good at: singing

something you hate: half-assed accessibility, if you're going to add captions at LEAST make sure they're correct, if you're going to ban aesthetic fonts in discord, you can't ALSO use them for the names of your server's channels.

something you collect: the only thing I semi-actively collect at the moment is Ghost and pompurin merch but I've also collected dice in the past

something you forget: to eat/drink at regular intervals

your love language: quality time

favourite movies/shows: Puella Magi Madoka Magica, I've watched it so many times and I'm so excited for the game coming out this month

favourite food: currently the elusive croffle. it's so good. I have not stopped thinking of it since I had it.

favourite animal: cats

what were you like as a child? very nervous all of the time but rather friendly when not scared

favourite subject in school: english language

least favourite subject: biology

what's your best character trait? I'm not sure. maybe my ability to listen and empathise with others?

what's your worst character trait? I hold grudges for a long time

if you could change any detail of your life right now, what would it be? I would just love my body to work and not hurt.

if you could travel in time, who would you like to meet? I don't have any good answers to this gdfgkdjfgfg

tagging: @catt-crossing @strawberriandromeda @subterra-rose @interstitiallacunae and also anyone else who wants to do it

[prismatoxic]

hey there! my name is tox and I'm a 30-year-old gay trans man who loves writing, drawing, playing video games, and thinking about fictional men kissing.

writing tag

art tag

original text posts/post additions tag

my main interests right now are a few shared OC worlds and persona 5. my otp for p5 is shuake so that's mostly what you'll see on that front, aside from my own inane rambling about the game. some other fandoms that i've made content for and sometimes return to are dungeon meshi, the legend of zelda, gravity falls, star trek: lower decks, cult of the lamb, persona 4, and metal gear solid.

i have an organizational tag system, and i try to tag for fandom/ship (if applicable) as well as things like politics, queer discussions, various discourses, and stuff that makes me laugh. i'll also tag for major triggers and spoilers when warranted. (i have several things filtered myself.)

while i do reblog and discuss things like fandom and shitposting a lot, i also readily get involved with discussion topics that matter to me, like purity culture in fandom or transmasc-specific discrimination. if you're a "proship DNI" sort or make fun of people for saying transandrophobia is a real thing, you won't like it here, i promise. i don't tend to check blogs who follow me but if i do and i see either of those things or that you're under 18, i will be blocking. my blog is 100% not a safe space for minors any more than it's a safe space for fancops or transphobes.

asks are open, dms to people i don't follow are not. i like talking to people and about things so feel free to send stuff if you want, but i socially isolate sometimes when i'm feeling bad and might not respond right away. unsolicited requests for reblogs or donations, especially from anonymous blogs, will be reported for spam and blocked.

other places you can find me:

Aethy AO3 Buzzly deviantArt

wolf's bane ocs ask blog (on hiatus): @askwolfsbaneband malix ocs archive blog: @starlight-riptide