#hc; I knew you in another life | npcs

[stories-about-you]

Ello again. It's me, the Angel of Stories anon, and I came up with another idea. This idea is inspired by a digital horror series called Interloper or SKY//BOX on YouTube (YOU SHOULD SO WATCH IT IT'S GOOD). Basically the idea is that reader is essentially a special type of npc that can realistically interact with the world and has advanced movements and AI. What makes them even more special is that they're actually sentient and can sometimes escape the confines of their model and roam freely between Source Engine games. So maybe for this scenario, gn reader got trapped in a scrapped model from Stanley Parable's source code, often appearing out of nowhere in strange places within the game as a result (ex: half stuck in a wall somewhere just barely in view of Stanley). So their unauthorized presence causes glitches, and Narrator man gets incredibly frustrated with the disturbance that he pulls that model back into the Parable to delete it, but suddenly finds out that it's sentient and actually responds to him, using his own audio files or that text-to-speech robot voice. And then they become friens :) oh and fun fact about that special type of npc that reader is: they tend to be scared of any man in a black suit carrying a black umbrella for... reasons :)

So yeah, this is really long and really specific that atp I should just write it myself but I'm more curious to see this piece come to life from your metaphorical pen. And also because as someone who used to do requests too, I got overly happy whenever someone sent me one, so I'm also doing this in hopes that it has the same effect on u :)

Oh and yeah, gn reader, platonic hcs if you will :) Feel free to take your time or ignore this one entirely (*￣∇￣*)

agagaga thank u for the requests really! It's really sweet of u (*ゝω・)ﾉThanks!

I'll try writing maybe? Shorter things for this one

⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆⋆｡˚ ☁︎ ˚｡⋆｡˚☽˚｡⋆

☆being the npc that you are, you could do a lot of cool things! switch between source engines, different games, maps...anything you could get yourself into

★but one thing you could do whenever you wanted, is watch your two favourite people, Stanley and his Narrator

☆they always seemed like they had fun....most of the time atleast, if the voice wasn't bickering at Stanley about his wrong choices, and today, you wanted to see them up close!

★coming into the game without notice, like usual, you watched them from behind a window, where most players would see the other Stanley

☆but, maybe you weren't supposed to come this close to them, because your vessel started clipping through the wall, mostly your arm

★when Stanley noticed you, he stopped, shocked, this confused The Narrator, asking Stanley about the abrupt stop

☆to which he then also noticed you, trying to pull back your glitched vessel from the wall in frustration, he immediately spawned Stanley into the broom closet and locked the door, worried you might be a virus

★The Narrator was now reminded of how many glitches had appeared in the Parable recently, to which he immediately knew was your doing, he felt anger rising up in him as he spawned you properly in the game, The Mind Control room0

☆spawning in, he went on about how you caused him so much trouble and pain with the glitches, and how you "interrupted his story on purpose", which of course, wasn't your intention

★he then mentioned how he was going to delete you for being such a nuisance to him and the game itself, you tried moving, but couldn't, you then thought of the one thing you could do, talk

☆you talked, you honestly forgot you could, using scrapped voice lines that were supposed to be from Stanley's employees, you got your hands on them a while back but never had a use for them, until now

★you screamed, beg for him not to hurt you, saying how you didn't mean for any of this, glitching like crazy as you exclaimed

☆he froze again in shock, staring down at you, he didn't even know vessel's like you could talk since you're not registered in the game at all

★after more screaming he decided he would spawn you in with Stanley, saying he'll decide later what to do with you

☆Stanley jumped as you were spawned in, you sat, trying to calm your racing nerves by taking deep breathes, he gives a little wave to you and a soft smile, you do the same back after a second

★after about 2 hours of you trying to communicate with Stanley through glitchy voice clips, Narrator comes back, saying he was discussing with the higher ups what he should do with you, to which one declared that he should keep you as a second protagonist

☆Narrator said he found it preposterous, saying one protagonist is already so much work keeping in line, but still reluctantly agreed, saying the higher ups would like it better if the game had two protagonists, maybe even thinking making multiple player modes

★so over time, you did the runs with Stanley, with The Narrator guiding you two as usual, but since your vessel is adjusting to be only in the Parable, you had some problems with glitching which Stanley and Narrator needed to help you with at times

☆you noticed The Narrator becoming more...fond of you? you thought was kinda weird since just a few months ago he was trying to delete you

★soon he was even asking for requests if you wanted anything specific in the story, or sharing unfinished scripts, you asked why he doesn't show it to Stanley, and only you, to which he replied "I think your feedback is better, and you can actually appreciate good work, unlike him" which caused you to laugh a little

[eveningstar1516]

I didn't see I was tagged until I opened my email 😅

Love y'a :Om_kiss: (I need my Discord emoji's -_-)

Favourite OC: It's actually not MC!Star 😅 Devon (Multi Fandom) would have to claim my favourite since there's always more about him I discover rather than make for him. His responses surprise even me at times!

Newest OC: They're actually twins! Issa and Halima, both Obey Me Muslim OC's if only because I wanted more representation! Have I actually done anything besides make a character sheet and HC's for them and the boys? No I have not. Do they still exist and I love them? Yes I do ^^

Oldest OC: Now this would be my MC!Star ^^ (Also Multi Fandom self insert) Fun fact, her name was actually Luna when I first made her. This was years ago and a gacha phase that will forever haunt me :mc_sweat:

Meanest OC: Now this is a tie between Ashton Hans (Don of a Mafia [OC!Cannon world]) and "Master" (Also OC!Cannon world). Master currently has no known name and is responsible for all of MC!Star, another OC, and a number of NPC's trauma >.> Ashton is just a grade A jerk, bully, and has no humanity.

Softest OC: Not me forgetting half my OC's while writing this Softest OC goes to Casta (Obey Me). She's the ghost of RAD and a very shy but sweet baby. She's mute and communicates in Demon Sign Language. If she doesn't like you, she'll generally just avoid you, but if she does like you, she'll hang around you almost like a shadow and generally just keep your company. If you want space, all you have to do is ask and she won't take it personally ^^

Most Aloof/Standoffish OC: Ngl, it would probably be Eddie (Multi fandom). He's a very... forward guy which is more often than not, misinterpreted. Generally a very fun guy to be around and someone you'd much rather have on your side instead of against, but to anyone that doesn't really know him well, he can appear to be very mean or insensitive.

Dumbest (Affectionate) OC: Remembers I still have the angels Saraqael (Obey Me). The Arch Angel of Forgiveness can very accurately be compared to a child. A literal bundle of too much energy and is always seen with his buddy Raguel (Arch Angel of Humility). It becomes very clear which one of them has the brain cell...

Smartest OC: Excluding god himself I made for Obey Me Also Devon ^^ This man makes it his life mission to research anything and everything he comes across on. The sheer number of facts this guy knows and the hours he spends researching is concerning. On top of running his own Mafia (separate from Hans) and being a part-time nurse, this man is scary- That being said, he has very little emotional intelligence so....

OC I'd Be Friends With: NONE OF MY MAINS FOR THEY'D KILL ME. Luciel would be my answer. He's the eldest son of MC!Star and Lucifer (Obey Me). He is adorable in ways I can never hope to be. Also doesn't really have any friends that aren't kids of people his parents knew because of his Father's and his status. Baby is happy with the people he has, but also just wants to fit in with the others, y'know?

I am tagging @the-derp-zone and @noosey-woosey ^^

Anyone else is welcome to join ^^

OC Tag Game

thank you for tagging me @serenpedac!

Tagging: anyone who wishes to do this as well as @crownleys @eveningstar1516 @orionis-delta! (most of the people I wanted to tag within TWC community have already been tagged! <3)

Favourite OC: Valerie Michaelis (twc)! Which is a small surprise to me but she's been a breath of fresh air that grew on me quick since I first made her! Evelyne Graves (OM) is also a beloved OC of mine though despite that!

Newest OC: Mina Langford (twc). I've yet to actually play through the books with her, but I wanted to make a detective to romance Mason. She's still in the process of being fleshed out a bit more but I have her appearance and mini background sorted now!

Oldest OC: Shiala Tsoni (Gw2). She was my first example of diving into character building outside of what the game's plot had in store for her. I hardly do anything with this OC outside of when I play the game, but I certainly had fun creating backstories for her in my head when I first made her.

Meanest OC: The Doll (OM). She is a somewhat grumpy ghost possessing an abandoned ball-jointed doll, she loves to scare people for the sake of it!

Softest OC: A mix between Valerie (twc) and Ophelia (ikevamp)! Both women have gentle personalities and are always the best at comforting people.

Most Aloof/Standoffish OC: Evelyne (OM). She is fairly closed off and will appear cold to those who try to get past all of her barriers too quickly. She also dislikes crowds and public spaces, which results in her appearing somewhat standoffish and rude.

Dumbest (Affectionate) OC: Lucille Michaelis (FFXIV). There's a reason I took her to be my virtual namesake when making accounts! Jokes aside, oc Lucille has good intentions but sometimes forgets to think about the larger picture when it comes to things and often doubts herself when it comes to that!

Smartest OC: Valerie (twc) purely due to being one of the very few oc's of mine who went to uni and graduated!

OC I'd Be Friends With: Is it cheating to say all of them (besides the doll)? I'd probably want to be friends with Evelyne the most, just so that I could give her a hug to apologise for all that I've put her through!

[zukuist]

in the moment [hcs]

“they are desperate for help when admirers swarm them, and they choose to seek for your assistance”

fandom/s : 僕のヘロアカデミア // boku no hero academia (bnha)

includes: h. shinsō, k. bakugō, i. midoriya

your name is shortened to y/n, last name is shortened to l/n gender neutral, use of the pretend lover trope, they’re actually pining.

further note: yes i’ve been gone for more than a week, and yes it’s because of school. i promise i’ll be posting more!!

REQUESTS ;; OPEN !!

© IZUKULIE 2021, HORIKOSHI KOHEI OWNS BNHA, DO NOT STEAL ❕

—

shinsō hitoshi

finds it super annoying

and this is coming from him, someone that’s not easy to irritate

he’s conscious and aware that people find him attractive (which for some reason, he still questions why)

eventually, admirers are bound to appear like it or not, but they’re not this insistent as this girl, nope.

shinsō has never experienced something like this, in his entire life.

noriko was a familiar face, but not in the best way for shinsō hitoshi.

she used to be one of those girls that’d band wagon with her opinions. whenever people were hostile towards him

she would be hostile too

but as soon as everyone started finding him attractive, she’d change too.

and it’s.. a mess. what more when he himself is pining on someone that’s not noriko

let alone, a student from class 1-A?

and it’s not like he could brainwash her into leaving him alone

as soon as she would be released by his quirk, she’d tell everyone what he did. therefore, leaving that out of the many solutions

and now he’s backed up into a corner, with her chasing him all across the hallways.

he can only hope for a solution.

— scene —

“this is ridiculous..” taking another turn in the hallway, shinsō mutters to himself quietly, the sleep deprived student can still hear her shrill voice

and by ‘her’, he’s referring to the admirer that has been tailing him down ever since the day had started.

“there are times like this where i wished i didn’t care about looking villainous” is what he’s really thinking. damn quirk stereotypes, and curse him for not having a quirk like iida tenya

“what.. are you doing?” was he lucky, or unlucky? it just so happened to be that he bumped into y/n l/n, out of all people

“i’m in a bit of a situation,” his palm rests against his nape, and he has to hope that you get the message, when noriko’s nearly deafening voice cuts through the air

“you’re quite popular with the ladies, huh?” you joke, and shinsō would’ve laughed if he wasn’t being trailed down.

“as much as i—”

“there you are !” noriko exclaims, slightly out of breath from the insistent chase, “you still haven’t answered !”

“i have, and i said no.” he makes his intentions concrete, compared to earlier (which was a mistake) when he rejected her in the nicest way he could’ve done so, but it wasn’t enough to make her quit.

“well earlier, you’ve said you appreciated it !” the whine pains both of your ears, and you contemplate if you should just grab his hand, and make a run for it.

but, she’d just chase you down again. so maybe not.

“yes, but i also said i can’t accept your feelings.” in instinct, he backs up so he could stand next to you, and he looks at you with his own style of desperation, which was obviously different than noriko’s desperation.

“i happen to be taken.” shinsō claims, hooking his hand along yours. which might’ve been done because he’s desperate, but could’ve been done because he wanted to

getting the motive, you lock away your shock, and play along, accepting his touch.

“i don’t believe you.” noriko blurts, “you two look like best friends more than anything. i’m not stupid !”

you didn’t think it would have to resort to this.

with not much of a thought, you grabbed shinsō by the collar, and smashed your lips together. his lips are warmer than you’ve anticipated, the distinct taste of coffee makes you lean into him further. while at first taken aback, shinsō decides to accept the act by pushing you even closer to him

you let go, deciding it was enough, and when you stare back at noriko, tears dotting at her waterline, and she sputters in humiliation and rejection.

“i never liked you anyway !” she uses as a defense, before storming off. the both of you feel a sense of relief when her figure turns at the end of the hallway

“sorry for kissing you like that. it was kind of in the moment,”

shinsō chuckles, “didn’t expect our first kiss to be like that.”

“well, there are more opportunities to come for you, you’re quite popular.” you tease, and shinsō flicks your forehead in retaliation. in return, you hiss at the sudden sting of pain.

“we’ll have more opportunities when i take you out for lunch on saturday.” he pats you on the shoulder, before he presses a quick real kiss on your cheekbone.

bakugō katsuki

also finds it super annoying. actually, he might as well just fight them and move on.

bakugō knows it well that he’s.. well-known, for all the right and wrong reasons

but what he doesn’t know is that he’s also known for his good looks, rough and boyish in nature.

so eventually, there’ll be that one brave and fearless soul that’ll take one for the team. or even two, or three.

he hates it. doesn’t his aura and demeanor alone scare off all of the suitors?

since when were they super persistent, smh.

it didn’t help that he was trying to drown and suffocate his feelings down the pipeline.

because curse bakugō katsuki for having normal, teenage feelings. he had other important things in life, right?

but he couldn’t help but wonder if you’d ever confess to him like that

(not that it would happen any time soon. you were too busy being a tough training partner)

but everything aside, he wishes that people would just take the hint already.

because ignoring doesn’t help all the time.

the girl named fumiko would be a dreadful sight he’d be constantly reminded of.

from his shoe locker being flooded with love letters that speak nothing to him, and to the obnoxious commentary on his looks

he’d think that they were just harassing him to get a reaction, but bakugō katsuki will remain unbothered!

but he spoke too soon, because he was approached directly right after his late training session.

—scene—

bakugō hates it

he hates extras, he hates being outshined, and he hates distractions. what more was there to dislike in the world? everything clearly.

he can handle things properly, and with that tough demeanor of his, and he definitely doesn’t need a quick and easy solution, from the girl that’s glued to his side.

he told himself that a persistent extra is nothing, he can just simply ignore them and look at them, like how he always looks at useless pebbles, and they’d go away. but clearly not this girl

“get off, you fucking extra” he pushes her off, grabbing his water bottle and immediately storming off, but it doesn’t convince fumiko (he learned her name unfortuantely) to finally lay off.

“c’mon katsuki! this would’ve all been over if you just went out with me!”

bakugō can’t hide the cringe on his face, hearing his first name, ugh. he doesn’t know how she found out about his late training sessions, considering that she wasn’t in his class or class 1-b

he doubts that he’d run into anyone at this hour, they’d be all in the common room, and he did say that he wanted all of them to ‘fuck off’. but luck does work in mysterious ways.

“..what’re you doing here?” he questions, clearly surprised by your presence, and his frustration would’ve disappeared at that exact mom“dinner’s almost ready. actually, why do you look so.. alarmed? is there a villain?—”

his palms are starting to sweat, and it’s not because of his training, or because of the girl that won’t leave him alone. “no! fuck no. okay, there’s just some shitty extra that’s been following me around like some obsessed freak.”

you decide to be smug, “i knew there was going to be a brave soul out there, ready to sacrifice themselves.” you rest your hand on your left side, like it was heart warming, but the blond is not amused with your gesture.

“right, right!” you hold your hands up, surrendering. “okay, what do you want me to do?”

“just don’t say a fucking thing.” you can hear foot steps get closer and closer to the both of you, and in a hurry, he pushes you closer to him, the smell of caramel evading your senses.

before you could even say a word, he kisses you. it’s rough, and it makes you feel warm, and it’s definitely not because of his quirk, or because of the large, warm palms that rest against your sides.

you get a grip on him, holding onto his shoulder when you feel your knees buck because of the butterflies in your stomach, and it seems to get worse when bakugō holds you even tighter

“okay geez, i get it. you’re taken!” you can hear the girl exclaim in humiliation and disgust, “ugh, a guy like you wouldn’t be able to handle me anyway.”

and when she finally scurries away, the both of you break the kisses, the wind out of you being knocked out cold from his sudden act of ‘romance’

“i sorta understand the hype now.” you grin, your lips still tingle from the kiss, and you’re convinced that you want more, despite the kiss being out of spite, and for fumiko to back off.

“shut up.” you would’ve laughed at him if it was any other day, but for now, you’re left silent. your heart flutters once more, when his lips press against your cheekbone briefly.

“c’mon, idiot. we’re gonna miss dinner.”

midoriya izuku

he’s so alarmed, and honestly very scared

he wasn’t popular, or well known to begin with, and people only started treating him like he was a real person in highschool

he’s just so used to being looked at like a background character, or a npc in a video game.

so the sudden swarm of suitors, and people that want to date him shocked him to the core.

he was never treated like this in middle school, or elementary!

it flatters him, and he’s glad that people actually like him. but.. he’d never actually think about being with either of them

because they’re not you, obviously. but wait, what’s so different about you exactly?

well.. you’ve treated him with kindness, even when he looked like this.. really awkward kid that sat at the back of the classroom.

so yeah, he’d never think about accepting anyone else’s confessions, as long as they’re not you

but still, midoriya has treated all of his admirers with kindness, despite not wanting to be with any of them

knowing how it feels to be humiliated, he wouldn’t want to do that on any of them

but.. this one particular girl was one he’d never truly be comfortable with, as much as he’d like to fake it.

rieko was.. something. probably the most persistent one out of all of them.

he would’ve appreciated it, if it weren’t for the fact that she was super obnoxious to other people.

and most importantly, he didn’t understand what she’d get out of it, and it wrecked his nerves!

— scene —

standing next to you, all lined up for lunch, midoriya shifts uncomfortably as he tries his best to ignore the loud and obvious commentary that’s being directed to him.

at first, it was flattering. but now? he just wishes things would go back to the times where people had no interest in him, whatsoever.

he knows what rieko really like him for, and it’s honestly disheartening. the girl would compliment him on things like his looks, and even his new moves!

but as soon as he elaborated on how he did it, the interest would fade away from her eyes

not that it did matter though. midoriya didn’t really have any feelings for any of the people that’ve approached him, wanting to date him. he’s been kind, and they’ve been kind in return, getting the hint and backing off.

the freckled boy was flattered but, not interested

but clearly, rieko didn’t get the message, despite the way midoriya would back away uncomfortably. how he’d immediately excuse himself whenever he’d see the girl.

just.. all signs of disinterest

“go! just ask him already!” he can hear her friends encourage her, but he’s not very enthusiastic to know what they’re cheering her on for

“he won’t be able to resist! just walk right in and do it, you guys will be an attractive couple anyway!”

midoriya’s palms are shaky, and he tries his best to calm his nerves down by clenching his fists. this doesn’t go un-noticed by you.

“you okay, midoriya?” you ask, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder, and the green haired boy hopes that his cheeks aren’t turning red.

the both of you guys are awfully close! not that he’s complaining, it’s just that—

“is it about them?” you ask in a nearly quiet tone, and midoriya’s aware that you’re talking about them.

“uhm..” midoriya tries to formulate a proper answer, not wanting to sound as bothered as he actually is. how would he be able to explain this? “don’t worry about it,” midoriya reassures, “it’s just—”

“do you think that he’s dating that person? you know, the one beside them?” he hears that the topic of the conversation has shifted, and the group of girls are referring to you.

midoriya wasn’t planning on telling anyone about the dilemma. let alone his crush. it was something he was going to ignore, until the mess calmed down.

but now? you’re roped into it, and his nerves didn’t calm down at all.

“izuku dating them? no, it can’t be. he’s too good for them!”

“that’s the spirit, rieko. you should just go like.. now!”

to him, it’s the other way around. you’re too good for him, and you’re out of his league. so, this comment upsets him to all ends.

he’s pondering on what he should do, and before he could take you out of the line to get food at some other place, he feels something warm enlace his hand.

he slightly shivers when he realizes that it’s your hand he’s holding, cheeks flushed with crimson.

your eyes are ahead, a lot more composed than he is clearly, but if he looked hard enough, he could sense the nervousness in your hold.

“you wanna leave the line, izu?” his first name sounds different when you say it, and he thinks to himself that he prefers it a lot more when it comes from you

“y-yes.” and you smile, pressing your lips against his cheek quickly, before tugging his hand and pulling him out of the line, walking away from the group.

it’s a miracle that he didn’t drop onto the cafeteria’s floors.

you can feel his anxiety subsiding. despite his flushed cheeks remaining, he looks better than he did a few seconds ago, and you’re glad.

deciding the both of you were at a safe distance, you peek over your shoulder. you can see the absolute defeat on rieko’s face, and the scowl on her friends’ faces as they attempted to comfort their heartbroken friend.

“thank you, y/n.”

“no, it’s nothing, really. anyhow, what do you plan on eating for lunch?”

[lunchdenarii]

May I ask about your Vulpes crucifixion headcannon? Where he has the scars/nerve damage?

Like, why was he crucified? Why was he let down? Does he think the punishment was necessary or complete bs?

Ok

Sit tight, I’m about to rant-

so when you talk to Caesar in the fort and ask about Vulpes, Caesar goes on this tangent ab how when Vulpes broke rank on a mission to capture a Cheiftan of some irrelevant tribe, his Centurion wanted him crucified for ‘disobedience’, but Caesar decided to promote Vulpes to Frumentarii instead bc he saw potential in him. (The part above is the only part of my hc that is confirmed in canon other than the stats I mention later!!)

And the first thought that went through my head when this conversation happened was “yeah, but was the Centurion allowed to go through with it before Vulpes was saved...? Like when did Caesar find out about this?? Did this furry legit get crucified??”

And now it’s my official HC that Vulpes was on a cross at one point bc the story got to Caesar after he’d been put up there.

Crucifixion usually consists of the hands being either nailed through to the wood at the palms or wrists, or the wrists being tied to the wood. Same goes for the ankles. So I HC that he either has nerve damage from having literal holes put through his hands/legs, and/or circulation problems from being tied tight enough for a long enough time to permanently screw up circulation (it’s kinda hard to keep a body on a cross and even if he was tied, he’d have to be tied tight , having circulation cut off for long enough causes nerve damage as well) So the nerve damage would mostly affect his hands and feet

If literally-just-a-mailman can get shot twice In the dome at point blank range with a 9mm and survive, Dog-Head, a seasoned (at the time) decanus of the legion can survive the cross- these are my fucked up legion HCs and I get to choose what’s possible /lh

Also in this hc this would be part of the reason his SPECIAL stats are so weirdly spread and unspecialized despite being a high ranking member of the Legion. 5s across the board with a 4 in Endurance...? I mean 34 SPECIAL overall isnt anything to scoff at per say but he’s that basic-? After all that training?? And one of his tag skills is s c i e n c e? He’s the weakest important Legion officer, coming in at one SPECIAL stat below Lucius and 18 points below Lanius. (Lucius only having a 6 in strength and a base stat total of 35 can be boiled down to his age, since his age has been mentioned in the game but this is a discussion for another day)

Kinda sketch considering the rank he’s achieved (the stats I’ve mentioned are canon as well! ). Meanwhile his literary foil, Lanius, is (correct me if I’m wrong) literally the strongest human NPC in the vanilla game, with a SPECIAL stat total of 52 AND all his extra buffs) But- if he was dealing with chronic issues like nerve damage and/or circulation problems and therefore couldn’t focus mainly on fighting and physical improvement anymore, *DEEP WHEEZE BC IM RANTING* a permanent stat nerf like this with no specialization would make a lot more sense, as would his promotion to “eyes and ears of the legion” status rather than simply being saved and put into another combat-heavy position, like being promoted to veteran decanus or centurion.

As far as his interpretation of events is concerned, I believe he’d only view it as unfair after he’d been saved,

like he knew when he did it that his centurion would want him dead but he did it for the “betterment of the legion” or some crap, so he was willing to die for it until he got saved. Then he was like “wait, I almost died for making the best possible choice and for bettering the legion? what a dick that centurion was”. He wouldn’t count it against the legion and its ideals as a whole bc he’s drank enough of the legion koolaid to disregard his own life if it meant the betterment of his faction, also bc Caesar himself saved him so that just cemented his loyalty all the more

EDIT: I think I should emphasize the fact that he got promoted from Decanus, a physically demanding, battle heavy role, to Frumentarii, a role for espionage and playing ambassador. And this was after leading a battle strategy, not after forging an alliance or laying groundwork for some sort of spy operations

Vulpes does almost none of his own dirty work physically. The whole function of his occupation changed which just adds to my belief that the reason this happened rather than him just being promoted to Centurion was because he physically couldn’t battle that heavily anymore.

I could talk literally all day about Vulpes’ character and the legion and the different avenues they could’ve been taken down had he been a companion but maybe, just maybe I should stop hyperfixating on villainous war criminal furries and their stupid, historically inaccurate, fascist factions-

✨RAMBLE OVER✨

I love getting inbox asks n shit so please feel free to spam me! I have nothing but time on my hands and thoughts in my head

[kittmoon]

Who Knows the Hero?

(a head-canonical list of NPCs who know of Link’s true identity and mission)

hi! This has been on my mind for a while, so I figured I’d compile it. This is a list of non-playable characters in BotW that, whether canon or through my own headcanons, truly know who Link is.

I’m not including any Zora or Sheikah in this list - even Granté, Robbie’s son. I’m assuming he visited his parents at some point, if he’s that close to the Tech Lab.

anyways!

Kass

Yeah, no secret there. Throughout my first playnthrough I had a theory that Kass knew Link’s identity, and of course the Champion’s Ballad confirmed that. Hc is that Kass keeps teasing Link about “potentially writing a new song for him”, and Link out of pure bashfulness manages to dodge the topic every time.

Yunobo

The boss may think otherwise, but Yunobo has his own theories. He began thinking on it after Link left the city, and he could have sworn he’d seen Daruk’s spirit atop the Devine Beast...who else other than the Champion of old could have provoked that?

Yunobo had heard tales from travelers as he’d grown up - stories of the Ancient Hero, sleeping in a hill somewhere (very ancient-European-folklore-esque, by the way). He’d grown up believing the story, but young adulthood pushed him to stop believing in fairy tales. But maybe Link’s appearance proved that the fantastical wonder of the past was still prevalent.

Cheif Riju and Bularia

Riju is sharp for her age. Link is one of the few people she knows who’s relatively close to her in age (y’know, comparatively). She wants to be closer friends with him, because kinship is honestly what she longs for amidst the stress of being Cheif.

Bularia is weary of Link, but she’s weary of everyone. She genuinely trusts his skills, especially after he tamed Vah Naboris, but the front she puts up is mostly a defense mechanism as the Chief’s personal guard.

Saki

Sis!! Sis. I will always long for the Saki Champion-Sucessor AU, where Teba is still Teba, but after he becomes wounded trying to get close to Vah Medoh (similarly to Harth), Saki decided to take use of the archery skills she had as a youth. My headcanon has always been that she was a Rito warrior who retired to start a family, happily so, but still. Saki is best wife.

Saki knew who she was in the presence of the second she saw Link’s realization-face, staring at Revali’s landing. Another separate headcanon I have is that, the closer you live to the Elder in Rito Village, the closer you are to being considered a part of his “court” (it’s not a monarchy, but you get it, it’s just how “within the nest” you are as a Rito). She’s done errands for the Elder. She knew the stories of Champion Revali, and how close he was to the other Champions (in the perspective of historical hindsight). She overheard Link speaking to the Elder - “I can calm Vah Medoh.” And when he actually succeeded, that’s when she knew. But, if there was a reason Link wasn’t saying it outright, then Saki wouldn’t ask. She’ll respect his boundaries.

Teba

Teba is totally in denial, except when his wife is like “hey I think Link is high-key the champion” and Teba’s like “yeah pff I knew that the whole time” but inside he’s all “what the fuck. like what the fuck”. Saki makes him a strong cup of tea.

Amali

Just kidding, Amali is actually best wife, because being a single parent is tough work, especially while her husband is low-key MIA. She takes her time assessing Link, though. He’s a helpful boy, and she appreciates his kindness, but it isn’t until Kass comes home - and until she sees Link talk to her husband - that Amali realizes Link’s true identity.

She and Kass have a long conversation about it. Kass is overjoyed to have been able to share his message with the hero, and Amali is happy for him. She’s a little winded to have met the Ancient Champion, but that’s life for you.

[ac-liveblogs]

Lantern Rite 2023

The first two days were boring as sin. Nothing else to say about them. YaoYao got introduced and vanished, it’s a regular NPC storyline used in place of a playable character, it’s an excuse for another loredump and cares far more about the lore than the characters included, and I don’t care how often I need to say it - there is no point playing “who’s that Adeptus?!” in Liyue when Zhongli would happily answer every possible question anyone could ever have about that subject, and literally any other.

If you want to do mysteries like this, pick any other region, god. Also, please make a better mystery than “Madame Ping played a song this one time. It was a really bitchin’ song. Also a guy almost drowned. GUIZHONG EXISTED!”

Cloud Retainer is sexy now though. That’s cool, I guess. We needed that. Also, I love that every time Shenhe shows up lately she doesn’t know some extremely basic thing. Last time it was flavoured drinks, and this time it’s THE CONCEPT OF MUSIC, despite music being such a huge thing in her quest??? This woman has goldfish brain, I swear.

The epilogue was a little better - no lore dragging us down - and I was surprised (pleased) to see HYV actually picking up on the thread from the Chasm about Xiao needing to socialise more, and seeing him attempting (and struggling) to do so. Xiao is very cute. Nothing else to say. He raises my serotonin levels. I Like Him.

Although, speaking of Xiao, and I’m just throwing this out there - I think this event would’ve been better served if maybe instead of some rando from Fontaine trying to find the magical music playing person from another country that saved an ancestor’s life with breathtakingly beautiful music, we could’ve maybe leveraged the two characters in this event that already have that backstory, and were IN THIS EVENT, BUT WHATEVER. WHAT DO I KNOW-

Anyway, this event was clearly trying to be funny, and while seeing Xiao “?!” “um” “uhhh”ing was cute, the humour is definitely muted by the VA’s restrained performances, and the lack of facial expressions/restricted movements on the 3D models mean any scene always seems a bit slow and underwhelming and can really impact a joke’s delivery. More to the point, HYV really cares far too much about Zhongli’s dignity to be able to capitalise on a skit where both Hu Tao and Venti put a fair amount of effort into mocking him. His straight man routine is sorely lacking.

At the end of the day, it’s 40 minutes of people sitting around a dinner table and a decent chunk of it is “oh I met [x] at [y]!” As always, Genshin needs a script editor to trim the fat.

In terms of character dynamic:

Xiao and Traveller’s slowburn romance friendship continues to be adorable, even if the foundation for its intensity is extremely shaky. Despite the fact that the PV wasn’t integrated into this year’s Lantern Rite at all, it did earn some points in my heart.

Chongyun, Xingqiu and Xiangling’s inclusions were mostly to justify the identity shenanigans involving Venti and Zhongli, but they were a bit lost in the scene despite this. The scene always seemed to forget they were there, which is a shame, because Chongyun has very specific beef with Xiao (per his mats) and Xiangling’s cooking should really be leveraged for comedy faaaar more often than it is.

Xiao and Zhongli is about what I would’ve expected it to be. Solid dynamic, no notes.

Hu Tao and Venti get on like a house on fire, which should really cause Zhongli more dread than it does. I did enjoy them burning each other, but again - HYV’s comedy is always a bit slow. Would’ve been great to see Zhongli lose his cool a bit.

It’s a bit sad that my relationship HCs about Xiao and Hu Tao, or Xiao and Venti, weren’t really challenged or confirmed in any real way. Due to Xiao’s dialogue about them in his mats, I’d assumed he’d already met Hu Tao and only knew of Venti, but I see that’s the other way around. Xiao clearly respects Venti a lot (the differing reactions between when you blame either Zhongli or Venti for Xiao’s awkwardness at dinner, plus Xiao’s reverence of Venti’s music, show that), but I don’t really get the sense that the two are “old friends”. If anything, Xiao having Venti as an “old friend” seems kind of odd given what we know of his backstory.

Anyway, I still think Mondstadt wins at festivals overall. Windblume soon!!! Looking forward to that!